ã€ŠDemoness&#x27;s Art of Vengeanceã€‹


 Chapter 1: An End Filled with Hatred

    <h4>Chapter 1: An End Filled with Hatred</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The dungeon was dark and damp, sequestered by countless restrictive barriers and spell arrays. Even the key to the gate of the dungeon was protected by a threeyered spell array set up by cultivators of the Dharmic Enlightenment level. This level of security was so high that even a fly with spiritual awareness would not be able to leave the dungeon.

    The icy floor of the dungeon was strewn with serpentine streaks of dried blood. The scene waspletely stifling and blood-curdling.

    A ragged, thin figure was curled up in the corner of the dungeon ¨C her disheveled hair obscuring her face. Her arms wrapped around her legs, and her head was buried in her knees. Day after day, she maintained this posture,pletely motionless. It was almost as though she were dead.

    -Click-

    The lock opened. The dark and isted dungeon received its first visitor in over three hundred days. This visitor had pleasant looks, a graceful figure, pristine jade-like hands, and was dressed in fine, refreshing clothing. It was a look which waspletely ipatible with the state of the dungeon.

    ncing at the ragged figure, the visitor¡¯s eyes revealed a glimmer of both tion and derision. She promptly walked over to the other side of the dungeon. With a condescending and malicious smile stered on her face, the visitor lifted the chin of the raggeddy with the tip of her shoe.

    As the captive woman¡¯s disheveled hair parted involuntarily, one could see that her face waspletely covered in horrific scars. Worse, there were two deep, dark holes where one¡¯s eyes would normally be.

    The person on the floor was a blind woman. She had been horrifically disfigured, and her cultivation had beenpletely crippled.

    ¡°Chichichi-- you¡¯re so pitiful...so pitiful. The dreadful and formidable Lady Demoness actually finds herself in such a pitiable predicament,¡± the visitor remarked. Not only did the tone of her voice carry no trace of pity, she obviously took pleasure in the scene before her.

    Hearing the voice of the visitor, thedy on the ground finally moved. Her cracked lips quivered, asking, ¡°Qin Shanshan, how¡¯s your brother?¡±

    Perhaps it was because she hadn¡¯t spoken for such a long time, but her voice sounded extremely hoarse, like the grinding of gravel on the floor.

    Qin Shanshan frowned, with ever-growing abhorrence in her eyes. ¡°Haaa--? My brother?¡± She hooked her lips into a smile full of ridicule and derision, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, are you still expecting my brother toe and save you? Do you know what day it is today? Today is the day that he marries my new sister-inw! He is in love ¨C do you really expect that you, a murderous demoness, would even cross his mind?!¡±

    He actually...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt as though it had been stabbed by a needle ¨C and it wasn¡¯t an acute, unbearable type of pain, but the type of pain that reverberates and lingers, even eking out traces of blood ever so slowly.

    She should have known. After all, that person had note to save her after such a long time...

    Jun Xiaomo unconsciously held her abdomen. She once carried a child belonging to her and that man...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s silence caused Qin Shanshan to feel bored. After all, since they were both young, Jun Xiaomo had always been better than her ¨C birthright, looks, talent, and even cultivation! Qin Shanshan couldn¡¯t ept it. However, under her brother Qin Lingyu¡¯s orders, Qin Shanshan had no choice but to remain cordial and feign civility with Jun Xiaomo.

    It was so stifling and humiliating!

    Luckily, Jun Xiaomo had stumbled ¨C and had even stumbled at her brother¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Who is she...?¡± Jun Xiaomo hoarsely uttered. ¡°She¡±, in this case, naturally referred to who the bride was ¨C Qin Shanshan¡¯s new sister-inw.

    Qin Shanshan took pleasure in the fact that Jun Xiaomo would ask this of her own volition. ¡°She...Actually you know who she is. You must not have forgotten who "Yu Wanrou" is, have you?¡± Qin Shanshan asked with a rxed disposition. However, when she mentioned Yu Wanrou, her eyes shed with a trace of intolerance and bitter resentment.

    Yu Wanrou had not only enticed her brother away, she had even snatched away the man that she loved! Not to mention, Yu Wanrou already had so many suitors to begin with! Truth be told,pared with Jun Xiaomo, Qin Shanshan hated Yu Wanrou even more. However, because Yu Wanrou had surrounded herself with many formidable suitors, Qin Shanshan was unable to exact any form of revenge against her.

    She therefore chose to vent all her frustrations and grievances on Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled to herself in a self-deprecating manner. She should have known better ¨C who could resist the charms of Yu Wanrou?

    Within thest century, there were two well-known female practitioners in the cultivation world. One was notorious for ¡°evil¡±, while the other was well-reputed for ¡°good¡±.

    The words ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± were synonymous with ¡°terrifying¡±, ¡°bloodthirsty¡± and ¡°Lady Demoness¡±, causing people to instinctually retreat in fear, while ¡°Yu Wanrou¡± would be the exact converse. Almost all the male cultivators were willing to throw themselves at Yu Wanrou with the hope of bing her partner.

    In reality, numerous male cultivators had in fact thrown themselves at Yu Wanrou. Many of these were even formidable and powerful people with cultivation levels that were out of this world. Yet even so, they were hell-bent on fawning over Yu Wanrou and earning her favour.

    It was not a well-known fact that Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou hade from the same sect. It was an even less known fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current predicament was caused by Yu Wanrou and herckeys. Or perhaps, even if people knew, they might simply respond with a ¡°well done¡±.

    After all, this was a person widely persecuted as a Lady Demoness; while the other was a beautiful damsel in distress. Over time, people¡¯s hearts have bepletely biased and partial, and they continue to be convinced by their perception of the ¡°facts¡± presented to them.

    But if one peeled off the cover of that pristine image, how rotten must that core be?

    Jun Xiaomo clutched tightly at her abdomen, subconsciously revisiting that fateful day when the poison ebbed away at her child¡¯s life force bit by bit, until he was nothing more than a pool of blood and water filled with pain, despair and hatred.

    Her child! She had already been pregnant for six months. Why did Yu Wanrou have to implicate the child in her ns? Even if people might say that a Lady Demoness¡¯s child would be a vile spawn, why couldn¡¯t they see for a fact that Jun Xiaomo would not have be a demonic cultivator had it not been for the schemes of others?!

    ¡°Why! Why her!¡± Jun Xiaomomented. She would not mind if anybody else had married Qin Lingyu; it just cannot be Yu Wanrou! ¡°She killed our child!¡± Jun Xiaomo bemoaned, clenching her fists so hard that her bony fingers left deep depressions in her palm.

    ¡°Haa-? ¡®Our¡¯ child? Who do you mean? You and my brother? You better not implicate my brother with that vile spawn of yours.¡± Qin Shanshan smugly looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s despondence, remarking with extraordinarily vicious words.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head. Even though Jun Xiaomo was left with empty eye sockets, Qin Shanshan could nevertheless see the shocked expression on her face. Jun Xiaomo lookedpletely stunned.

    ¡°It is as I had mentioned.¡± Qin Shanshan calmly exined the cruel truth of the matter, ¡°My brother had long since been involved with Yu Wanrou. However, Yu Wanrou is a very selfish person ¨C even though she is herself promiscuous, she expects her partners to all bepletely loyal to her. So, for Yu Wanrou¡¯s sake, do you think my brother would even touch you?¡±

    ¡°Then whose child is it?¡±

    ¡°Who knows? The Euphoria-Stimting Incense that night wasn¡¯t too bad was it? I initially intended for you to be involved with my brother so that that detestable Yu Wanrou would finally be off his back. Little did I expect you to be so useless. Not only did you end up frolicking with a stranger, you even got pregnant with a stranger¡¯s child!¡±

    ¡°Qin Lingyu never told me that the child was not his.¡±

    ¡°Of course not! Why would he tell you this and strain your rtionship before he could extract everyst bit of value from you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed a few times, and a few streaks of blood seeped out of the corners of her mouth. She collected herself, and with a hoarse voice, slowly uttered, ¡°Heavens search my soul. I may have wronged the heavens, wronged my parents, wronged my sect brothers and sect sisters. However, I have never wronged Qin Lingyu. Even if I lose control of my body to the devil, I wouldn¡¯t bear to hurt even a single hair on Qin Lingyu¡¯s head. Yet, after all is said and done, what have I got at the end...¡±

    A trace ofplexity shone in Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes. Indeed,pared to Yu Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo was a hundred, no, a thousand or even ten thousand times better.

    Only, what was the use of this? The person that her brother loved was Yu Wanrou, so no matter how much Jun Xiaomo did, her brother would not appreciate any of it.

    ¡°Every man for himself, and the Devil takes the hindmost.¡± Qin Shanshan finally said.

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomoughed. It started with a small, low chuckle, and it grew bigger, and louder, and bigger, and louder. Finally, Jun Xiaomo roared enormously withughter ¨C aughter filled with absolute despair; aughter that prated the marrows. What a statement ¨C ¡®Every man for himself, and the Devil takes the hindmost¡¯.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo felt as though her mind were awash with a renewed sense of rity. As the scenes of her life reyed in her mind, she connected the dots on the little details which she had initially ignored to finally reveal a different narrative of her life. Her emotions ignited with unprecedented hatred.

    This level of hatred was even higher than the hatred she had when her child was murdered!

    ¡°Was Qin Lingyu marrying me for the dowry he received?¡±

    ¡°My parents¡¯ death also reeked of Qin Lingyu¡¯s schemes, does it not? He¡¯s a loyal dog of the Sect Leader!¡±

    ¡°That one fateful night when my father¡¯s Peak[1] waspletely annihted was also part of Qin Lingyu and the Sect Leader¡¯s ns, was it not? The Sect Leader lusted after my mother, while Qin Lingyu coveted my father¡¯s spirit treasures!¡±

    ¡°And this degenerate demon within me...was this really an ident, or was this all part of a carefully thought out n? If I did not emanate demonic energy, how could Yu Wanrou use the pretext of the righteous duties of an upstanding sect to persecute me?"

    ......

    In the face of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rhetoric, Qin Shanshan did not deny anything. Her silence signified a tacit approval of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s analysis of the situation. But, apart from a tacit approval, she did not for a moment think that her brother had done anything wrong. After all, people are all selfish, right? No one asked Jun Xiaomo to be good to her brother anyway. If anything, it was Jun Xiaomo who had made a mistake.

    If Jun Xiaomo had eyes right now, the tears which she had umted her whole life would flow out like waters from a broken dam.

    She hated! She hated all of Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions. But above all, she hated herself for not being discerning enough of the true nature of people and letting a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing gain a foothold in her household, resulting in theplete annihtion of her family and the entire Peak!

    At this moment, blood dripped from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingertips onto the floor, melding directly into the copious amounts of already dried blood on the floor.

    Qin Shanshan shuddered, unconsciously taking a few steps back. The present aura around Jun Xiaomo made her seem very dangerous.

    Despite knowing for certain that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiritual root had been crippled and her nascent soul had been crushed, something about Jun Xiaomo still made Qin Shanshan¡¯s hair stand on end.

    Run! RUN! Qin Shanshan¡¯s mind red with warning signs of danger. But before she could take any action, she realized it was all toote.

    ¡°You...What are you doing?!¡± Qin Shanshan¡¯s legs looked as though they were frozen solid, immovable and devoid of any feeling and senses.

    She panicked and was gripped by a sense of abject fear. She did not want to die!

    ¡°Hehe...what are you trying to do?¡± Jun Xiaomo invoked the residual spiritual energy within her body, firmly pressing her blood-stained palm to the floor.

    With Qin Shanshan at the centre, the ground glowed with a red light, revealing aplicated pattern on the floor.

    Jun Xiaomo had actually used her own blood to draw up a formation array! Qin Shanshan finally realized why this dungeon was full of bloodstains.

    ¡°Don¡¯t...don¡¯t act rashly!¡± Qin Shanshan panicked. ¡°Let me go, and I¡¯ll urge my brother to save you, ok?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s toote.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and said. Did Qin Shanshan think that she would be able to let everything go so easily now that she knows the whole truth?

    If she still had her eyes, bystanders would be able to see that her eyes were burning with intense hatred and manic rage.

    This formation array was initially prepared to deal with Yu Wanrou and herckeys. Now, it seems that it would suffice to deal with Qin Lingyu alone. Qin Shanshan was a bonus.

    ¡°This...what formation array is this? No, your spiritual root has clearly already been crippled. How can you even activate the formation array?¡±

    Qin Shanshan had a trace of hope in her heart. She hoped that Jun Xiaomo would not be able to fully activate and power this formation array.

    ¡°Do you really think that formation arrays must be powered by spiritual energy?¡± Jun Xiaomo curled her lips, evoking a strange smile. With a determined look on her face, she slowly stated, ¡°Have you ever heard of a formation array powered by a person¡¯s life force, with the sole intent of exacting revenge on a person¡¯s nemesis and his rtives?¡±

    ¡°You...you demon! A demon who does not even spare her own life! Let me go. Hurry and let me go! Brother! Come save me, brother!¡± Qin Shanshan struggled to get out, but it was all in vain.

    She regretted it all. She truly regretted it all. She should never have and stolen her brother¡¯s jade token to enter the dungeon to bluster in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    With absolute focus, Jun Xiaomopletely tuned out the screams of Qin Shanshan and began reciting a string of mnemonics. These mnemonics seemed to carry an ancient, mysterious power with it, causing the red glow of the formation array to intensify.

    Jun Xiaomo could feel her own spirit slowly being torn from her body, and her consciousness was also fading. This type of feeling was extremely painful and unbearable. However, her heart had long been hardened. She was willing to do anything as long as she could drag her nemesis to hell together with her.

    Qin Lingyu, I bet you never would have imagined that I would use such a method to finally bring mutual destruction to both of us.

    Jun Xiaomo felt herself growing weaker and weaker.

    My child, mother is finally able to see you soon...Jun Xiaomo held her abdomen and copsed on the floor. Finally, her lips curled to reveal a deste yet serene smile.

    A red light shot up to the sky. The dungeon that held the Lady Demoness Jun Xiaomo for hundreds of days on end finally copsed with a loud tremor.

    Hundreds of miles away, a dignified male cultivator d in a groom¡¯s attire suddenly copsed to the floor, yielding up his life.

    This marks the end of a story. Yet, another story is just beginning.

    [1] A Sect has numerous Peaks, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father was a Peakmaster

 Chapter 2: Reversion to Sixteen Years Old

    <h4>Chapter 2: Reversion to Sixteen Years Old</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ahh...it hurts... The bones of her entire body felt as though they had been shattered. She couldn¡¯t even lift one finger.

    Jun Xiaomoy on the bed, seemingly trapped in a never-ending nightmare. She desperately struggled to wake up, but to no avail. Her body involuntarily twitched from time to time. Her chest rose and fell violently in tandem with her furious breathing. Large globules of cold sweat constantly beaded up on her glistening forehead, frequently rolling down, percting the gaps in her hair.

    ¡°Hey dear...Mo-Mo, where does it hurt? Tell Mum, alright?¡± The beautifuldy sat beside the bed watched her daughter. Her eyes were filled with pain and heartache that only mothers know of. She tenderly and patiently wiped off the sweat on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with her handkerchief.

    Ever since her sixteen year-old daughter received punishment for entering the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground, her daughter had been trapped in a nightmare, unable to awaken from her slumber. Liu Qingmei was initially furious at her daughter¡¯s mischievous and naughty ways. Yet, after a few days, Liu Qingmei¡¯s anger quickly turned into a deep concern for her.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, don¡¯t scare your mother like that. Hurry up and wake up alright?¡± Liu Qingmei was well-reputed to be a strong and courageousdy. Yet faced with her daughter¡¯s serious injuries, she was unable to keep herself calm andposed. The tears she shed over these past few days far outnumbered the tears she had shed over the past yearbined! To make matters worse, her husband had entered closed-door cultivation, and she could only forcefully bear the frustration and pain in her heart alone.

    -plop- A drop of tearnded on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, and the sensation offered a small reprieve from the pain she was experiencing.

    This is...water?

    Jun Xiaomo was still fully immersed in the moment of death where her life force was torn from her body at the dungeon. She had thought that the formation array was iplete, and she was simply waiting for death¡¯s arrival. However, the cool, otherworldly sensation on her hand suggested to her that things were not as they seemed.

    Her consciousness slowly but surely returned to the present, and she found her ears ringing with a high-pitched noise. Jun Xiaomo tried shaking her head to dispel the noise, only to realize that her head felt heavy as though it were made of lead.

    ¡°Mo-Mo...¡± Almost as though she had sensed it, Liu Qingmei leaned over her body, gently caressing her daughter¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Mum...¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately recognized this voice which was buried in the depths of her memory. Two streaks of tears promptly gushed out of her tightly shut eyes, flowing into her hair.

    How many years has it been since she hadst heard her mother¡¯s tender call to her? She must finally be dead right now. Otherwise, how could she once again see her father and mother?

    ¡°Mo-Mo, don¡¯t cry. Let mother know where your difort is.¡± Liu Qingmei wanted so much to embrace andfort her daughter, but she was also worried that the injuries on her daughter¡¯s body might be aggravated. So, she could only gently and carefully hold onto her daughter¡¯s hand.

    Jun Xiaomo wanted to exim that her whole body was in difort, especially in her heart! However, the multitude of words found themselves lodged in her throat, and the only utterances which made its way out were iprehensible.

    With mixed feelings in her heart, Jun Xiaomo slowly opened her eyes.

    This is...light?!

    In the wake of losing her vision, Jun Xiaomo had almost forgotten what it was like to be able to see. She subconsciously shut her eyes before slowly opening them once again. This time, her vision gradually became clear.

    Sandalwood furniture, lc veils, and a young...mother.

    ¡°Mum...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was filled with emotions. She wanted to lift her hand to see if her mother was real or not. Only, the pain in her hand prevented her from doing so.

    Liu Qingmei noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions, and lifted her tender hands to her cheek, saying ¡°Dear...Mum is here.¡±

    ¡°Mum, am I dead?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked with a bitter smile on her lips. No matter what, having had the opportunity to see her mother onest time before being reincarnated, Jun Xiaomo was very satisfied.

    ¡°Silly child! What do you mean, dead? Your father is still around ¨C no one would dare to beat you to death!¡± Liu Qingmei looked at her quizzically. Who wakes up and immediately suspects that oneself is dead? Liu Qingmei red at Jun Xiaomo, rebuking, ¡°Have you finally learnt your lesson this time? Such mischief. You even dared to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds!¡±

    Forbidden grounds? Jun Xiaomo knitted her eyebrows, her pale lips stretching out into a thin line.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s memory from a long time ago resurfaced in her mind ¨C when she was sixteen years-old, she was incited by Qin Shanshan to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, almost lost her life as a result, and even rmed the Sect¡¯s Court of Elders. However, because Qin Shanshan was Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister and she wanted to please her sweetheart, Jun Xiaomo did not tattle on Qin Shanshan. Instead, she bore all of the punishment herself. The Sect Elders punished her in ordance with the rules of the Sect, almost taking away the remaining bit of life in her!

    If not for the fact that her father was a Peakmaster in the Sect, perhaps the Sect Elders might really have simply allowed her to return to the heavens.

    ¡°Stupid! So stupid! Extremely stupid!¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly muttered to herself. She could vividly recall the reason why she had entered the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds in the first ce. Wasn¡¯t it because Qin Shanshan said that the forbidden grounds held something which her brother had wanted? Just for that one casual statement, Jun Xiaomo ran into the forbidden grounds without further thought.

    Recalling the things that she had done for Qin Lingyu, an indignant feeling stirred within her, churning and festering.

    Could there be anyone lower than her?

    A bloody taste welled up at the tip of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tongue. This smell was extremely pungent, yet it was the same familiar smell which had apanied her in the three hundred or more days which she had been held captive in the dark and dank dungeon.

    ¡°Ah--! You¡¯ve bit your lips! Is it painful?¡± Liu Qingmei call jolted Jun Xiaomo back to her senses, incidentally rescuing her lower lips from the vice-like grip between her teeth. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower lips were left with a deep impression of teeth marks.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes grew red and hot. In that instant, a force welled up within her prompting her to throw herself into her mother¡¯s embrace, ignoring all the pain in her body.

    ¡°Mum~~! I¡¯m sorry~!¡± Jun Xiaomo hadn¡¯t forgotten how her parents had died, nor did she forget how her entire Peak was annihted.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tearspletely drenched Liu Qingmei¡¯s clothes. Her daughter seemed to have grown up overnight, and her whole being seemed to be shrouded with a kind of grief.

    What exactly happened to Mo-Mo in the forbidden grounds? Whilst Liu Qingmei gently stroked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back, she slightly raised her eyebrows.

    ¡°Forget it. Let¡¯s wait until her emotions have stabilized before asking her again,¡± Liu Qingmei thought to herself while tousling Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    Basking in thefort and love of her mother again, Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth ¨C it seems that time had reverted to when she was sixteen years old. This also happened to be the year where she experienced thergest turning point in her life.

    Mother, Father, and my fellow martial brothers and sisters, it will be my turn to protect you this time!

    No matter what, she was not going to let the bloody scene which happened 30 yearster repeat itself. If anyone dared to hurt the people which mattered to her, it would have to be over her dead body!

    Indeed, one can only hope that they have enough good fortune to experience this Lady Demoness¡¯s formidable and fearsome vengeance.

    Behind her shimmering, tear-filled eyes, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze carried with it a deep and fierce determination.

 Chapter 3: Acquired Demonic Body

    <h4>Chapter 3: Acquired Demonic Body</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Mum~~! I¡¯m hungry!¡± Reveling in the embrace of her mother, Jun Xiaomo sullenly remarked. Her current strength was far from that in her previous life. She had not even reached the Foundation Establishment cultivation level. Naturally, her body required physical food for sustenance.

    ¡°Alright, Mum is going to make you some porridge now.¡± Liu Qingmei caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair. As she attempted to stand up, she realized that Jun Xiaomo had tightened her embrace and was even rubbing her head in her mother¡¯s bosom.

    ¡°Now, now, why are you acting like a three year-old girl throwing a tantrum?¡± Liu Qingmei chuckled as she gently and yfully tapped on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just that it feels like I haven¡¯t seen you in such a long time, so I can¡¯t bear to see you leave me.¡± Jun Xiaomo deeply missed the familiar lotus fragrance gently diffusing from her mother. Ever since the death of her mother in her previous life, she could only experience this fragrance in her dreams.

    ¡°Mother only wishes that you will stop getting your mischievous self into trouble. If you can do that, mother will be very satisfied.¡± Liu Qingmei helplessly sighed. She had thought that the ¡°long time¡± which Jun Xiaomo was talking about was merely these ten over days where she was bedridden. Never in her wildest dreams would she have thought that Jun Xiaomo was in fact referring to an entire lifetime.

    ¡°Mm. I won¡¯t let you worry anymore! I will definitely focus on my cultivation from now on!¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her head and looked at her mother seriously. Her eyes glistened with unprecedented firmness.

    ¡°Good girl~!¡± Liu Qingmei patted her daughter¡¯s head with gratitude. Her daughter had finally grown up.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brimmed with tears again. Having lived life once, she was finally able to discern with rity those who were worth her time and effort.

    ¡°Are you crying again?¡± It dawned on Liu Qingmei that her daughter seemed to have turned into a little crying cat after awakening from her slumber, shedding tears at the smallest of things. Even though this mischievous daughter had shattered her heart time and again, yet she could not help but feel some sourness in her heart seeing her daughter silently shedding tears before her eyes.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head, obfuscating the tears in her eyes.

    She was not a weak person. Otherwise, when faced with the destruction of her Peak, the annihtion of her family and the persecution of several upstanding sects, how could she have made a name for herself as the intimidating, one and only Lady Demoness? She was ruthless to others, and even more ruthless to herself!

    Presently, it was just that her emotions were stirred time and again because she could now once again see the ones whom she had loved and lost.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach growled in a timely fashion, alleviating the embarrassing situation.

    ¡°It seems that Mo-Mo is really hungry. Mother is going to make food for you now.¡± Liu Qingmei stood up. This time, Jun Xiaomo did not keep her any further.

    Watching her mother leave, Jun Xiaomo gently waved her hands and caused the doors of the room to close.

    However, even this simple act caused Jun Xiaomo to experience excruciating pain! She groaned in pain and mmed back down onto the bed, fading in and out of consciousness.

    After receiving the Sect¡¯s punishment this time, her body was truly and thoroughly wounded. Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and endured the pain. She bitterly smiled to herself.

    About half an incense of timeter, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pain had slightly receded. Completely drenched in cold sweat, Jun Xiaomo painstakingly mbered up and sat down cross-legged, setting her palms facing up on her knees, closed her eyes, and entered into a meditation posture.

    She had to check what kind of damage her body had sustained. She remembered that this year was the year where her cultivation speed suddenly slowed down, such that she was no longer even a match for regr martial brothers and sisters. Even when her parents scoured high and low for spirit pills and miracle herbs, they did not seem to have any effect on her. No one could diagnose what the cause of such a change was. In the end, they could only suspect that her talent for cultivation had fallen as a result of the Sect Elders¡¯ punishment.

    Because of this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, Jun Linxuan brashly wanted to pick a fight with the five Sect Elders. However, Liu Qingmei was able to dissuade him. After all, it was already considered a light punishment that Jun Xiaomo was not emunicated from the Sect. If Jun Linxuan had pressed the issue, they would certainly be in the wrong. Furthermore, discounting the fact that Jun Linxuan would not be able to defeat the five Sect Elders on his own, this matter would in any event give people a basis to allege that Jun Linxuan was cing his own interests before the Sect¡¯s.

    In reality, Jun Linxuan was really known to be a selfless person in the Sect. If not for the fact that the problem arose in her daughter¡¯s body, he would never have lost his cool and almost break off rtions with the Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo sent a trace of spiritual energy throughout her body¡¯s meridians. Bestowed with the experience from her past life, even if her cultivation level right now were not too high, her control of spiritual energy would still be far better than most cultivators at her age.

    Probing at her meridians, Jun Xiaomo discovered that her meridians were severely blocked. She even faced a strong resistance when re-converging her spiritual energy to her Dantian.

    What is going on? Jun Xiaomo faintly remembered that just before she got injured, the flow of spiritual energy had been very smooth.

    Jun Xiaomo was not flustered at all. She converged her spiritual energy around her Dantian, swirling them around ever so slowly and carefully, like a hunter seeking out a prey.

    As her concentration deepened, Jun Xiaomo entered a mysterious state where her ¡°inner vision¡± enabled her to inspect her Dantian¡¯s condition.

    Consequently, she found an anomaly ¨C her body was actually absorbing demonic energy?!

    Being a reputable, righteous and upstanding sect, Dawn Sect¡¯s premises had very little demonic energy. Therefore, the amount of demonic energy absorbed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was also minimal. Even so, a light and delicateyer of demonic energy surrounded her Dantian, preventing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiritual energy from leaving or re-converging.

    If not for the fact that she had been very familiar with demonic energy in her previous life, she would not have so quickly discovered this power which was different from the energy absorbed by spirit cultivators.

    The only difference between spirit cultivating and demonic cultivatingy in the type of energy absorbed by the cultivator. Spiritual energy was gentler and found almost everywhere. Thus, spirit cultivators were ubiquitous. However, demonic energy thrived only in ces associated with ruthless, vicious, and even evil purposes, including jails, dungeons, ravaged viges, forests which did not see the light of day, and so on. In order to gather demonic energy, some demonic cultivators even utilized formation arrays to attract or create numerous vengeful spirits and souls. This was one of the main reasons that the public spurned and disdained demonic cultivators to begin with.

    Furthermore, demonic energy was by nature difficult to control. If one were careless when cultivating, the manifestation of the demonic energy would turn the cultivator into an irrational killer. Even Jun Xiaomo almost sumbed to such manifestation of demonic energies in her previous life, only to finally manage to re-stabilize her energy at the veryst moment.

    Jun Xiaomo knew full well that the inception of her tragic past life was exactly the existence of demonic energy within her body. Overnight, she was castigated and emunicated from the Sect, and even persecuted by righteous, upstanding sects.

    However, the very same demonic energy also turned out to be her greatest source of strength. It can be said that she had walked further on the path of demonic cultivation than most others in her generation, even attracting the envious gazes of cultivators of a higher cultivation level than her.

    Jun Xiaomo had not nned to walk down the path of demonic cultivation again in this present life. Her previous life experiences were sufficient to pave a way for an extremely smooth spirit cultivation. That is why she saw no need to risk her life pursuing the ways of demonic cultivation. However, life had already determined otherwise. At the young age of sixteen years, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had already been pervaded with demonic energy.

    Save for people who possessed a demonic body, the people who could automatically absorb demonic energy were few and far between. Some people are naturally born with demonic bodies, and fated to be demonic cultivators; while others acquire a demonic bodyter on in their life.

    For Jun Xiaomo, the odds of her being naturally born with a demonic body is practically zero. This was because her body had absorbed spiritual energy very smoothly before she had turned sixteen years old. It was only after she turned sixteen years-old that her body¡¯s absorption of spiritual energy inexplicably slowed down to the point of stagnation.

    Perhaps her acquisition of a demonic body was artificially caused by someone¡¯s meddlesome orchestration and schemes. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes shed coldly. She had a few suspects in mind, but she was not able to say with any certainty.

    Forget it, these people will eventually show their true faces. As long as these people made an attempt at the lives of her loved ones, she would not let a single one of them off! A wave of boiling hatred surged within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, but she quickly repressed it.

    Mulling over the situation in her Dantian, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled to reveal a calm and even bemused smile.

    Unfortunately, this schemer is going to be sorely disappointed. So what if she had demonic energy in her body? Having a lifetime of experience behind her, how would she let herself fall again into the same predicament as in her past life?

    Since some people decided to ¡®bestow¡¯ upon her an acquired demonic body, Jun Xiaomo would have to dly ept their goodwill!

    Only then, the end result would bepletely out of the scheming person¡¯s control.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grin gradually blossomed into a wide smile ¨C it must never have urred to these schemers that there was in existence a refinement technique that enabled the conversion between demonic energy and spiritual energy!

    With such a refinement technique, the demonic energy in her body would not only cease to be a misfortune to her; it could even be said to be her greatest blessing!

 Chapter 4: Vicious Sect Leader

    <h4>Chapter 4: Vicious Sect Leader</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo roused from her meditation after half an incense of time passed. She tried to open her eyes, only to realize that her whole body felt as though it had beenpletely drained of energy. Her body swayed and mmed back down onto her bed. At that moment, the door opened ¨C

    ¡°Mo-Mo! What happened to you?!¡± Liu Qingmei¡¯s hurriedly set down the piping hot bowl of porridge in her hands and ran over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    The Jun Xiaomo now looked as though she were once again heavily wounded. Her face was sickly pale colour, while crimson red blood oozed out of the corner of her mouth. The stark contrast of these colours was chilling.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled weakly. She really pushed herself to her limits earlier. She knew that her injuries were severe, yet she really underestimated the severity of her injuries. The simple act of manipting her spiritual energy in meditation nearly killed her!

    Enduring her pain and injuries, Jun Xiaomo braced herself and struggled to sit up. She gripped tightly onto Liu Qingmei¡¯s hands, softly leaned her head on Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulder, and murmured, ¡°Mum, I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Even so, the pain caused Jun Xiaomo to break out in cold sweat and shiver involuntarily. Seeing this, Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart wrenched, pulsing with intense heartache.

    Ever since receiving the Sect¡¯s punishment, her daughter seemed to have matured overnight. Her daughter even attempted to reassure her that she was fine despite experiencing excruciating pain.

    ¡°Mo-Mo dear, if there¡¯s any difort, let Mum know, alright? Don¡¯t push yourself so hard.¡± Liu Qingmei said, gently stroking Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Mm.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded with a low voice. At the same time, she pressed her forehead against Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulder, rubbing it ever so gently and lovingly.

    ¡°What happened to Mo-Mo?¡± A low voice rang from outside. Immediately after that, a tall figure strode into the room.

    ¡°Big brother He, Mo-Mo¡¯s injuries seem to have worsened.¡± Liu Qingmei said with concern, tacitly pleading for help. Her husband was after all in closed-door cultivation, while the Sect Elders were still furious about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s entry into the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. The only other person which Liu Qingmei could rely on for help was martial brother He Zhang, who had always been looking out for her.

    ¡°Has it? Let me take a look.¡± He Zhang said, promptly taking a few steps towards Liu Qingmei and Jun Xiaomo. At this instant, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body tensed up.

    She narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists.

    Jun Xiaomo almost couldn¡¯t hide the killing intent swelling from depths of her heart!

    Jun Xiaomo instantaneously recognized the voice of this man. The voice which echoed in her nightmares. The voice which had tormented her for thousands of days and nights!

    If Qin Lingyu were akin to a pawn in the events resulting in the annihtion of her family and her Peak, then He Zhang could only be described as the mastermind behind it all!

    He Zhang was the elder martial brother of both Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan, and also the Sect Leader of Dawn Sect. Qin Lingyu was one of his best disciples.

    How could Jun Xiaomo forget the moment of desperation where she witnessed with her own eyes her mother being vited, and yet was unable to do a single thing about it because her energy arts had been crippled! At that time, He Zhang hadpletely shed off his righteous and dignified appearances and had exposed his vile and depraved true nature. He Zhang yanked on Liu Qingmei¡¯s clothing, forcing himself onto the heavily wounded Liu Qingmei, who was powerless to resist him. Jun Xiaomo father, Jun Linxuan,y a short distance away in a pool of crimson blood,pletely motionless. His eyes were wide open, as though screaming out the grievances of his death.

    He...Zhang! The hypocrite who ravaged my mother like a primal beast! I killed you once in my past life. Don¡¯t you dare think for one moment that I will spare you in this life!

    Jun Xiaomo viciously bit down on her lower lips.

    ¡°Mo-Mo?¡± Liu Qingmei was initially about to make way for He Zhang to examine Jun Xiaomo, sensing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s change in disposition, she sat back down.

    It was only at this instance that Jun Xiaomo caught herself brooding over the hateful matters of her previous life.

    ¡°Mum, I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s have martial uncle He examine me for a moment.¡± Suppressing the roiling hatred within her, Jun Xiaomo shook of the tension in her head and rxed her body. As she slowly opened her eyes again, she seemed to have reverted to that simple, na?ve and ignorant sixteen years-old girl who respectfully and innocently addressed He Zhang as martial uncle.

    ¡°Good girl.¡± He Zhang patted her head, revealing a wide smile that was no different from any other elder who doted on the younger generation.

    Jun Xiaomo resisted the urge to smack away He Zhang¡¯s repulsive hand. She slowly shut her eyes and continued to suppress her hatred and disgust for He Zhang.

    ¡°Give me your hand. Martial uncle will examine your meridians.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo obeyed, stretching out her hand. He Zhang firmly ced three fingers on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and swiftly sent a thread of spiritual energy throughout her body, gently probing at her meridians.

    Despite being very resistant to the idea of letting this man hold her wrist and examine her meridians, she suppressed the urge to put up any form of resistance.

    As it was right now, she did not have the power to oppose He Zhang. She had no choice but to maintain a cordial attitude with He Zhang so that he would not raise any suspicions about her.

    After a few moments, He Zhang collected his spiritual energy. Liu Qingmei asked, ¡°Martial brother, how are Mo-Mo¡¯s injuries?¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s eyes glimmered with a sh of light, and this did not go unnoticed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s keen senses. As He Zhang turned his head towards Liu Qingmei, he wore on his face an expression of care and concern.

    ¡°Ai¡ªThese Sect Elders have been a little too heavy-handed with their punishment.¡± He Zhang sighed as he spoke. ¡°Xiaomo¡¯s meridians have been damaged. If we don¡¯t treat it properly, I¡¯m afraid it might affect her cultivation in future.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s that serious?!¡± Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart sank heavily. She looked over at Jun Xiaomo with anxiousness and worry in her eyes.

    He Zhang retrieved a jade bottle from his apparel, offered it to Liu Qingmei and said, ¡°I happened to obtain this bottle of Sagely Recovery Pills. Give Mo-Mo one pill a day. These are very effective for repairing and restoring meridians.¡±

    ¡°I cannot ept these! These are too valuable!¡± Liu Qingmei hurriedly rejected the gift.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve watched Mo-Mo grow up. As the Sect Leader, I feel guilty and responsible for being unable to convince the Sect Elders to show mercy to Mo-Mo. Take this gift as a token of my remorse.¡± He Zhang said as he pushed the jade bottle back to Liu Qingmei hands. However, even after the bottle were firmly received by Liu Qingmei, He Zhang continued to hold onto Liu Qingmei¡¯s hands, and his eyes shed with a trace of infatuation.

    At this moment, a suffocating feeling welled up within Jun Xiaomo, and she immediately coughed up a bloody sputum.

    ¡°Mo-Mo!¡± Liu Qingmei turned her attention away from the jade bottle of medicine, wrung her hand free from He Zhang¡¯s grasp and rushed over to her daughter.

    ¡°Mum~~¡± Jun Xiaomo buried her head into Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulders, clutching onto her clothes tightly.

    In the eyes of a normal bystander, Jun Xiaomo was being clingy to her mother because of the physical difort she was experiencing. Only Jun Xiaomo knew the true reason ¨C it was to prevent He Zhang from taking advantage of her mother, and to conceal and suppress the burning hatred in her own eyes.

    Liu Qingmei gently stroked her daughter¡¯s back. Seeing her daughter experiencing such pain, she made up her mind.

    ¡°Thank you, martial brother.¡± Liu Qingmei tightly gripped the jade bottle in her hands. She lifted her head to He Zhang and said, ¡°Once Linxuan returns from his closed-door cultivation, I will definitely get him to thank you properly.¡±

    Nothing was more important than the health of her daughter. However, Liu Qingmei did not want to owe others a favour. Even if this bottle of medicine weren¡¯t very important to He Zhang, Liu Qingmei would still feel uneasy epting such a valuable gift.

    At this time, Liu Qingmei had not the slightest clue on He Zhang¡¯s true feelings toward her ¨C He Zhang had concealed this too well. If Jun Xiaomo had not the benefits of her past life¡¯s experiences, even she might not even be able to see past the righteous and dignified appearances of He Zhang ¨C his vile and revolting true nature.

    Hearing Liu Qingmei mention Jun Linxuan, He Zhang felt a trace of disappointment, but did not show this on his face. Instead, he ced his hand on Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulder, reassuring her, ¡°Don¡¯t fret over these little things. Remember, one pill a day, and Mo-Mo should be fully recovered after about one month.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, martial brother.¡± Liu Qingmei nodded. The anxiety in her tone had also subsided substantially.

    As for He Zhang, Liu Qingmei still perceived him to be one of the more trustworthy people around.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo did not want this man with an ulterior motive loitering around her room any longer than was necessary. She pondered for a moment, and lightly said to Liu Qingmei, ¡°Mum~ I¡¯m not feeling well. I want to rest for a little while.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Lie down a rest for a little while then. You can have the porridgeter.¡± Liu Qingmei reassured Jun Xiaomo with a gentle tap on her body, before helping her lie down on her bed.

    ¡°Mum, don¡¯t leave yet. I want you to apany me.¡± Jun Xiaomo held onto Liu Qingmei¡¯s hand. Her pale, small face made her look fragile and pitiful.

    Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart sank again. She tucked Jun Xiaomo into bed carefully, saying, ¡°Alright. Don¡¯t be afraid, Mo-Mo. Mum is here with you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled with relief, and slowly shut her eyes.

    He Zhang felt that the interactions of this mother-daughter duo were rather irksome. Seeing how Liu Qingmei was fawning over her daughter, she had clearly relegated him to the back of her mind. Evidently, he was not going to get any more of Liu Qingmei¡¯s attention that he so desired.

    Forget it. We will cross the bridge when we get there. He Zhang silently thought to himself. He Zhang began making his way to the door, saying, ¡°Martial sister, I¡¯ve still got to handle some Sect-rted matters, so I won¡¯t bother you any further. If you need any more help, please feel free to look for me.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Thank you, martial brother.¡± Liu Qingmei gratefully nodded.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. After all, these are part of my duties as Mo-Mo¡¯s martial uncle.¡± He Zhang patted Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulders, conspicuously letting his hand linger on her shoulders for a few moments, before turning around and finally leaving.

    After hearing the sound of the door closing and confirming that Liu Qingmei was still around, Jun Xiaomo finally rxed herself.

    As soon as the tension dissipated, a wave of weariness swept over Jun Xiaomo, and she swiftly fell into a deep slumber.

    Jun Xiaomo had not slept so peacefully in a long, long time.

 Chapter 5: Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique

    <h4>Chapter 5: Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was night-time. Jun Xiaomoy on the bed, holding onto the jade bottle given by He Zhang. She smirked to herself, yet her eyes gave off a sense of coldness to them.

    She opened the bottle cap, and a waft of medicinal scent diffused into the surrounding air. Jun Xiaomo tipped out one medicinal pill, and promptly reced the bottle cap. The medicinal pill had a jet-ck sheen to it. She toyed with the medicinal pill between her finger, examining it.

    ¡°Refining a variant Marrow-Cleansing Bone-Refining Pill using Spirit-Erosion Grass. It truly is remarkable.¡± Jun Xiaomo sneered, her cold voice echoing throughout the otherwise pin-drop silent room.

    ¡°It seems that martial uncle really pulled out all the stops here.¡± Jun Xiaomo snorted. Without any hesitation, she tossed the pill directly into her mouth, swallowed it, and braced herself in anticipation for the apanying pain that came in tandem with the marrow-cleansing and bone-refining effects of the pill.

    After receiving punishment from the Sect Elders in her previous life, she had remainedatose for a much longer time and nearly even sumbed to her injuries then. It was only after He Zhang gave Liu Qingmei a simr type of medication to be fed to Jun Xiaomo that she began to recover.

    Presently, even though Jun Xiaomo had at her fingertips many more ways of spurring her recovery process in a gentler and more stable manner, she nevertheless decided to consume the ¡°Sagely Recovery Pill¡± given by He Zhang.

    Even though the recovery process would be much more painful, the upside was that it vastly shortened the recovery time.

    More importantly, the pill would alsopletely transform her body from the present half-human and half-demonic state to a full-fledged demonic body, maximizing herpatibility with demonic cultivation arts.

    How ironic. In her past life, even though she devoted much of her entire life searching far and wide for the root cause of her body¡¯s transformation to a demonic body, she never came close to solving this mystery. Yet in her present life, she had solved this unanswered mystery in just a few moments.

    Perhaps He Zhang was somehow involved in instigating her to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Otherwise, how would one exin the mysterious origins of the demonic energy in her body?

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly, mentally adding another entry against He Zhang in her ledger of charges against her enemies.

    If Jun Xiaomo did not have the fortune of retaining the memories of her past life, she would definitely have fallen prey to He Zhang¡¯s schemes again ¨C from the involuntarily eruption of demonic energy from within her body, to the ensuing persecution. But now...things are going to be so different from what that hypocrite expects.

    Within moments, a marrow-piercing pain swept across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s entire body. That feeling of having her bones shattered all at once caused her to involuntarily copse on the bed, sweating profusely. Jun Xiaomo tightly gnashed her teeth yet made not one single peep of sound.

    Half an incense...one incense...after three full incense of timeter, the excruciating pain finally subsided. Looking with disgust at the filth now covering her body, Jun Xiaomo quickly soaked herself into her bath filled with water.

    After washing herself, Jun Xiaomo mbered back onto her bed and began meditating again.

    He Zhang had not been lying when he had said that this jet-ck pill was a ¡°Sagely Recovery Pill¡±. At the very least, its effects were apparent. If one were to say that half of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians had been blocked because of her injuries before this, then right now the number of blockages had effectively halved. At the same time, the demonic energy within her body had consolidated and thickened by a few times. Yet even then, it gently fused with her spiritual energy and was barely discernable.

    After thoroughly absorbing the medicinal effects, Jun Xiaomo slowly released her meditative state and opened her eyes. She clenched her fist. Yes, the frailty that she had experienced with her body during the day hadpletely vanished. Even though she was still experiencing some lingering pains, this was still well within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pain-tolerance levels.

    Jun Xiaomo picked up the jade bottle, tossed it in the air and firmly caught it with her hand.

    He Zhang had mentioned that she was to take one pill a day, and she would have fully recovered within a month. That is to say, the jade bottle must contain enough medicine for at least one month.

    Based on the effects of the medicine earlier, her meridians and Dantian would bepletely transformed within one month. Her body constitution would then be fullypatible with demonic cultivation, andpletely ipatible with spiritual cultivation.

    In her previous life, even after her body was artificially transformed into a demonic body, she ignorantly continued to practice spiritual cultivation. Naturally, her cultivation progress came to aplete halt because her meridians were no longer suitable for the flow of spiritual energy. But now... Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up with a wry smile, and her eyes gleamed coldly.

    The acquisition of her demonic body was the first step in her journey to be the strongest cultivator.

    This time, she would once again stand at the peak of the world with insurmountable strength, and no one would be able to harm her or anyone whom she loved and cared for!

    ......

    A month passed by in the blink of an eye. Within thisst month, Jun Xiaomo practically lived in seclusion. Apart from the necessities of eating and sleeping, her lifeprised only of taking her medicine and meditation. She even turned down offers to visit her, including offers made by the enemies of her previous life.

    Compared with the strength of some of these cultivators, the present Jun Xiaomo was like an ant in front of a towering tree. It would be wishful thinking to even attempt to stir the leaves of the tree. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo decided not to engage in these affairs for now.

    With a resolute fixation on recovering and establishing a stable foundation for her cultivation, Jun Xiaomo had closed herself off to all visitors so that no one would be able to disturb her.

    After consuming thest medicinal pill in the jade bottle, Jun Xiaomo activated the demonic energy within her body, sending the demonic energy coursing throughout her meridians for an entire day, until the demonic energy finally returned to her Dantian.

    Yes, the energy Jun Xiaomo now operated was demonic energy, not spiritual energy. Even though her body still contained both spiritual and demonic energy, her body had already be a fully-fledged demonic body five days ago. Therefore, spiritual energy was no longer useful to her.

    Of course, this were only the case until she began to cultivate the refinement technique from her past life, the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique. With this refinement technique, Jun Xiaomo would be able to freely convert the spiritual energy within her body to demonic energy, and vice versa. Jun Xiaomo had only obtained this refinement technique through a serendipitous encounter in her previous life, where she had almost even lost her life because of it.

    Unfortunately, this refinement technique carried with it too many restrictions and conditions, including a restriction on age. One of the conditions was that the practitioner had to be under eighteen years of age and have an artificially acquired demonic body. Back then, Jun Xiaomo had already exceeded this age restriction by the time she acquired this refinement technique. Therefore, she had no choice but to simply set it aside in her Interspatial Ring.

    She might even have been a little dissatisfied and sore about not qualifying to practice that refinement technique back then. This was because despite so, she would nevertheless from time to time retrieve it from her Interspatial Ring and pore through it, until the technique was finally fully etched in her mind. At that time, she never imagined that she would be given a second shot at life and that this technique would in facte in handy!

    This was apletely fortuitous turn of events!

    Jun Xiaomo recalled to mind and traversed the detailed particrs of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique. However, she did not immediately dive headlong into practicing it. She could not, because this refinement technique was very demanding. One of the other conditions was that she would have to cripple all her present cultivation progress and restart from scratch.

    In other words, Jun Xiaomo had to give up her eighth level of Qi Mastery which she had painstakingly acquired to date!

    In this realm of cultivation, achieving the eighth level of Qi Mastery at the tender age of sixteen years was no mean feat. Yet, now that she was faced with the prospects of giving it all up, it seemed to be quite the waste. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had never heard anyone in this cultivation world talk about or even mention this Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, and it was impossible to gauge whether it was a tried and tested technique or otherwise. Unfortunately, apart from Jun Xiaomo herself, there seemed to be no other person qualified to practice such a refinement technique. At least, not after searching through the memories of her past life.

    Therefore, she could not ask anyone about this.

    It was a gamble. If she seeds, her path of cultivation would be much smoother. However, if she failed, she might even find herself in a more dangerous predicament than her previous life!

    Forget it. High risk begets high rewards. Jun Xiaomo silently considered, before deciding that she had to take the gamble.

    Crippling one¡¯s own energy arts is never a simple thing; it carried many dangers. In order to cater for the unexpected, Jun Xiaomo had to prepare some recovery pills and medication for emergency use.

    Fortunately, these pills and medications were not hard to obtain, and could be easily purchased at the markets. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Interspatial Ring also contained numerous spiritual stones given by her parents.

    So, after closing herself in as a hermit for over one month, Jun Xiaomo finally stepped out of her room for the first time in a long while.

 Chapter 6: Encountering Qin Shanshan

    <h4>Chapter 6: Encountering Qin Shanshan</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After fleeing for her life for decades and then spending more than three hundred days in that dark and dank dungeon, Jun Xiaomo had almost forgotten the carefree feeling of casually browsing at the markets. Jun Xiaomo took in sights and sounds before her. The dazzling array of goods on disy at each booth. The merchants dressed in various bright-coloured garments ¨C some standing behind their booths, while others satzily waiting for their next customer. Some merchants yelled loudly to promote their products, while others found themselves haggling with difficult customers. The hubbub of the bustling market brought a wide smile to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    Having been reborn for some time now, this was the first time she had felt so much at ease.

    After purchasing the pills and medicine she needed, Jun Xiaomo stored them in her Interspatial Ring before wandering around aimlessly in the market.

    It was still early, and she felt like staying a little while longer. Dawn Sect was a ce which reminded her of many depressing memories, and she wanted to indulge herself in this pleasant change of environment.

    However, life has a strange sense of humour; and fate often draws together enemies in serendipitous encounters.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo! I didn¡¯t expect to see you here!¡± A voice resounded behind Jun Xiaomo with pleasant surprise. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body stiffened, and her eyes dulled momentarily. Qin...Shan...Shan... I didn¡¯t expect to be able to encounter you so quickly.

    Jun Xiaomo did not turn around, but Qin Shanshan did not find this strange. She thought that Jun Xiaomo was simply too engrossed right now to hear Qin Shanshan¡¯s call.

    After all, Qin Shanshan knew how infatuated Jun Xiaomo was with her brother ¨C Jun Xiaomo would do anything for him, even give herself up! Qin Shanshan casually sauntered up to Jun Xiaomo side. As she approached, the object Jun Xiaomo was holding onto caught her eyes, and her eyes shone with delight.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo, have you also taken a fancy to this Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin?¡± Qin Shanshan reached her hand out, intending to take the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin from Jun Xiaomo. Qin Shanshan¡¯s actions here were fluent and natural, and seemed almost habitual. After all, she had on numerous instances taken things from Jun Xiaomo without asking, while the former Jun Xiaomo never found it unnatural. But now...

    Jun Xiaomo swiftly pulled back her long, slender fingers, tightly securing the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin in her grasp.

    Qin Shanshan raised her head with a puzzled look on her face. She did not know what this gesture by Jun Xiaomo was supposed to mean. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo also had strange expression on her face, one that seemed like a smile but was not quite really a smile.

    It was still the same person with the same features; yet Qin Shanshan felt that something seemed to be different about Jun Xiaomo.

    Faced with the present Jun Xiaomo, Qin Shanshan pulled back on her unbridled attitude and acted with a bit more modesty. Retracting her hand, she smiled brightly, yet continued to look at the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin with a trace of greed in her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the hidden meaning behind Qin Shanshan¡¯s gaze. Curling her lips, Jun Xiaomo started toying with the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin between her fingers.

    Truth be told, she did not fancy this Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin. Even though the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin were imbued with some low-level defensive spells, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s path of cultivation vastly detracted from the norm, and this hairpin would not be of much use to her to begin with.

    The only reason why she had picked up the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin for a closer examination was because it was assembled in a unique manner which made it look different from other hairpins. Equipment used by male cultivators differed substantially from equipment used by female cultivators. Male cultivators were often only concerned about the equipment¡¯s power or strength, and how the equipment looked or enhanced their looks were hardly even a consideration. Conversely, women innately desire to look good. That was why, apart from the strength or power of equipment, how the equipment looked or enhanced their looks was of utmost importance as well. If the equipment were ugly, no one would want them.

    Qin Shanshan could not tell whether Jun Xiaomo intended to purchase this Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin. However, she coveted it very much.

    Qin Shanshan was fifteen years-old ¨C one year younger than Jun Xiaomo. She had just attained the fifth level of Qi Mastery, and such essories that were imbued with low-level defensive spells would be perfect for her. Besides, the Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin looked exquisite. Even if she were not yet qualified to equip it, she could always disy it at home and keep it for future use. However, her father was not a Peakmaster or a source of immeasurable wealth, and she had to be frugal with how she used her allowances. How could she afford to splurge on these essories?

    Therefore, Qin Shanshan was always deeply envious ¨C even jealous ¨C of Jun Xiaomo. She felt that Jun Xiaomo was not outstanding or deserving in any way. She was simply fortunate enough to have been born into the right family.

    Seeing that Jun Xiaomo was about to return the hairpin to the booth, Qin Shanshan suddenly asked, ¡°Sister Xiaomo, can you let me try it on?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, promptly handing over the hairpin. As Qin Shanshan received the hairpin, she once again sized up Jun Xiaomo and read her expression, discovering that her smile was the same as it had always been. Seeing that there was nothing strange about Jun Xiaomo after all, Qin Shanshan dispelled her reservations, thinking that she might simply have been oversensitive earlier.

    Having no reason to hold back any longer, Qin Shanshan eagerly inserted the hairpin into her hair bun and began to admire her looks in a nearby mirror.

    It had to be said that Qin Shanshan and Qin Lingyu were both blessed with good looks. Even if one discounted all the ugly people in the world, their looks would still be considered well above average. Otherwise, how could Qin Lingyu have caused Jun Xiaomo to be so infatuated and obsessed with him in her past life?

    Presently, the light-purple hairpin emitted a faint glow of light, making the cheeks of the fifteen years-olddy even more radiant. The resulting radiance even caused the beads on Qin Shanshan¡¯s clothes to shimmer with light,pleting a royal, resplendent look.

    The more Qin Shanshan looked, the more she liked it. The merchant at the booth even spared no effort to praise Qin Shanshan¡¯s looks to promote his products.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo, do you think it looks nice?¡± Qin Shanshan turned around and asked Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes shed. She maintained the very same smiling expression and nodded gently, saying, ¡°It looks good.¡±

    ¡°I also think it looks pretty good!¡± Qin Shanshan carefully turned around before softly muttering, ¡°It¡¯s a pity it¡¯s so expensive. Two pieces of mid-grade spirit stones!¡±

    Hearing this, the merchant got a little bit anxious, ¡°Miss cultivator, my prices are very fair. If you would just take a closer look the colour and style of this hairpin ¨C the quality raw materials used here have already cost me one mid-grade spirit stone. My profit-margin is really not much.¡±

    Qin Shanshan knew that the merchant was not lying. However, she only gets ten mid-grade spirit stones a month. She could not bring herself to fork out two pieces just to buy a hairpin.

    Therefore, she wanted to manipte Jun Xiaomo into buying this as a gift for her. In order to please her future sister-inw, the former Jun Xiaomo would have done so with no reservations.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo, do you think this hairpin is worth two mid-grade spirit stones?¡± Seeing that her earlier statement had drawn no reaction from Jun Xiaomo, Qin Shanshan hinted to her again.

    ¡°I find the price rather fair. If you like it, you should buy it.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded inly.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s face stiffened. Why is she so slow to catch on today? She bit down on her lips and walked closer to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Holding onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms, and with pouting lips, Qin Shanshan said pitifully, ¡°Sister Xiaomo, I¡¯ve finished using almost all of the spirit stones given by my brother this month. But I really like this hairpin, is it possible...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart swelled up with a deep sense of disgust and nausea. She calmly removed Qin Shanshan¡¯s hands from her arm, nced at Qin Shanshan, before saying matter-of-factly, ¡°If you don¡¯t have enough spirit stones, then buy it next month.¡±

    ¡°Next month? Next month, this hairpin might not be around anymore!¡± Qin Shanshan screamed with increasing anxiety, ring at Jun Xiaomo with anger-filled eyes.

    Qin Shanshan usations made it seem as though Jun Xiaomo would be at fault if she did not buy this hairpin for her.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes grew cold with hatred, and her breathing grew in intensity. Look! Look at the true nature of the ¡°sister-inw¡± I had spent all my past life trying to please!

    Even animals would reciprocate with affection and gratitude if one feeds them. This person before her could not even hold a candle to an animal.

    Jun Xiaomo resented herself for stooping so low in her past life. But, who else could she me for her inability to discern Qin Shanshan¡¯s true nature?

    If not for the fact that she was presently too weak, Jun Xiaomo would really have given Qin Shanshan a tight p on the face. She could not care less for karma ¨C she did not believe in karma in the first ce. After all, how would karma ount for the people who had annihted her family and Peak, yetter attained transcendence?!

    Karma was just one of thews constructed by these ruthless practitioners. If one were strong enough, one would hold the power ofws within their hands!

    The present Jun Xiaomo was not able to take Qin Shanshan¡¯s life. However, she certainly did not intend to give in at all. She stared right back at Qin Shanshan with a fierce re. Qin Shanshan even reflexively took one step back.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled, evoking a cold smile as she said slowly, ¡°Qin Shanshan, tell me. If you don¡¯t have any mid-grade spirit stones, how do you intend to buy this hairpin, huh?¡±

 Chapter 7: Brother Ye Xiuwen

    <h4>Chapter 7: Brother Ye Xiuwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    How do I intend to buy it? Of course I¡¯m expecting my future sister-inw to buy it for me!

    Qin Shanshan thought this in her heart, but she dared not express it. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present gaze was too terrifying. It was as though the coldness in her gaze prated her body, sending chills straight to her soul.

    Seeing Qin Shanshan struggling to speak but having no words to express herself, Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly, saying, ¡°Qin Shanshan, if you have the gall to suggest that I buy this hairpin, why don¡¯t you have the guts to say it?¡±

    Having been exposed by Jun Xiaomo, Qin Shanshan no longer concealed it. Cognizant of the feelings Jun Xiaomo had for her brother, she unabashedly said with renewed confidence, ¡°I¡¯m only borrowing two mid-grade spirit stones from you to buy this hairpin! Your father is a Peakmaster; this little bit of money is nothing to you at all. We are fellow disciples from the same Sect! Do you even have any regard for our friendship?!¡±

    ¡°Ah--? Regard for fellow disciples and friendship?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked as though she had just thought of something hrious. Stifling a cold chuckle, she stared at Qin Shanshan and asked slowly, ¡°Qin Shanshan, back when you instigated me to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground, what regard did you have for your ¡°fellow disciple¡±? When I got punished by the Sect Elders andypletely bedridden, what regard did you have for our friendship? When you stabbed me in the back under the guise of cordiality, what regard did you have for our rtionship? Don¡¯t you think that the ¡®regard¡¯ you have ispletely and utterlyughable?!¡±

    Before Jun Xiaomo was finished, she suddenly took a step forward. Qin Shanshan took a step back in fear, only to find herself caught by Jun Xiaomo by her sleeves.

    ¡°And, how dare you say that you are only ¡®borrowing¡¯? You just take an ount now of what you have made me buy for you on the pretext of pleasing your brother. Have you ever repaid me for these things? This dress...these earrings...this bracelet...even this Interspatial Ring ...¡±

    For every item which Jun Xiaomo pointed out, she stretched her hand to touch each of them. This caused Qin Shanshan to tremble uncontrobly ¨C both in humiliation and rage. Themotion here also attracted many onlookers, whose prying eyes seemed to burn a hole through the outer appearances of Qin Shanshan and expose her true rotten core, causing her soul to ignite with fury and embarrassment.

    Qin Shanshan had always maintained a good reputation. Therefore, as Jun Xiaomo publicly revealed her ungrateful and covetous nature, she inadvertently also tore of Qin Shanshan¡¯s mask and trampled her reputation underfoot. To Qin Shanshan, this was much more painful than if she had been physically beaten up.

    Jun Xiaomo had not physically assaulted Qin Shanshan, yet Qin Shanshan¡¯s felt as though she had just been pped on the face. She was so furious that she wanted to just tear that mouth in front of her into pieces!

    Unfortunately, every single word spoken by Jun Xiaomo was the truth. Furthermore, this was the first time that Qin Shanshan had seen Jun Xiaomo act in such a domineering manner. Thus, Qin Shanshan was leftpletely speechless, unable to refute anything said by Jun Xiaomo.

    After finally expressing all that had been repressed in her heart, Jun Xiaomo felt much better. She shoved Qin Shanshan to the side, picked up that Purple Phoenix Feather Hairpin and said to the stunned merchant, ¡°I¡¯ll take this hairpin.¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡± The merchant was still trying to process what Jun Xiaomo had just said. He had thought that the transaction was lost given how things had panned out.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved two mid-grade spirit stones from her Interspatial Ring and tossed them over to the merchant. Seeing this, the merchant¡¯s eyes brightened, and dly received Jun Xiaomo¡¯s payment.

    Jun Xiaomo picked up the hairpin and waved it in front of Qin Shanshan. The beads on the hairpin cked against each other, emitting a crisp sound pleasant to the ear.

    Qin Shanshan thought that Jun Xiaomo had finally relented and bought that hairpin for her to ease the tension. She began to deliberate in her heart how she would make life difficult for Jun Xiaomo. Who told her to bring it upon herself?!

    Unexpectedly, after waving the hairpin in front of Qin Shanshan, Jun Xiaomo proceeded to keep the hairpin in her own Interspatial Ring.

    Qin Shanshan: ......

    Jun Xiaomo yed cheekily with the hair running down the side of her head, mouthing to Qin Shanshan ¨C Not. Giving. To. You.

    Following which, she grinned and left the store jauntily. Qin Shanshan could only stare at her back as she left.

    Qin Shanshan was extremely disgraced. Her eyes welled up with tears of humiliation and fury. Stamping her foot on the ground, she bellowed, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you slut! I will make you regret it!¡±

    I will...I definitely will report this incident to my brother. Then, Jun Xiaomo cane back crying and begging me for forgiveness. Qin Shanshan hardened her heart.

    Presently, Qin Shanshan had not realized that Jun Xiaomo was no longer that silly girl who waspletely submissive to Qin Lingyu¡¯s beck and call.

    ---------------------------------------

    Because of how she had served on Qin Shanshan a little bit of her just desserts, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s journey back to the Sect was filled with joy and tion. She ounted for the pills and medicine in her Interspatial Ring, ensuring that she was well prepared, before hastening her steps.

    Her mother would get upset if she left the Sect for too long. The Jun Xiaomo today paid great attention to the feelings of her loved ones.

    As she drew close to the woods just outside Dawn Sect, Jun Xiaomo saw in the distance a white figure sh by, disappearing into the woods.

    Martial brother Ye?! Even though it was only a glimpse, there was no way Jun Xiaomo would not recognize that familiar figure. Tears involuntarily welled up in her eyes, and Jun Xiaomo sped after that figure without hesitation.

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously called out this familiar name, frantically looking for that white figure.

    The vivid image of Ye Xiuwen lying in a pool of blood shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, as though it were something that happened in recent memory. This was one of her past life¡¯s greatest regrets and also turned out to be one of the greatest stumbling blocks in the path of her cultivation.

    She had been the cause of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death.

    After her parents¡¯ death in her previous life, Ye Xiuwen, as the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak, naturally assumed the mantle of leadership over Heavenly Peak and stepped into the shoes of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father. By then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirit had been so eroded by the demonic energy within her that she was on the brink of losing her mind. Heavenly Peak had not been wiped out then. If Ye Xiuwen had handed Jun Xiaomo over to the Sect to be dealt with in ordance with the Sect¡¯s rules and regtions, then perhaps Heavenly Peak would never have been decimated. However, because Ye Xiuwen respected and gave precedence to the wishes of his master and teacher, he took it upon himself to shelter and hide Jun Xiaomo.

    Not one; not two; but three full years of hiding.

    Within these three years, all of the martial brothers and sisters on Heavenly Peak knew of the existence and whereabouts of Jun Xiaomo, yet they all continued to im that Jun Xiaomo had long left the Sect, and that they did not know where she went.

    Day and night, they continued to protect this martial sister of theirs, each in their own little ways, until finally some so-called ¡°righteous¡± and ¡°upstanding¡± sects barged into their premises,pletely ughtering them in one night.

    These ¡°righteous¡± and ¡°upstanding¡± sects had attacked Heavenly Peak under the banner of a righteous crusade against the Lady Demoness. However, once they set foot on Heavenly Peak, they seemed to turn into bandits instead ¨C their cultivators beganbing through every nook and cranny on Heavenly Peak for medicines, treasures, spiritual equipment, spirit stones and the like. It was as though they hadpletely forgotten their ¡°business¡± to begin with.

    The tragedy of the massacre at Dawn Sect¡¯s Heavenly Peak did not gain any pity from the world. Numerous cultivators even felt that Heavenly Peak deserved it. After all, they deserve to be massacred if they had sheltered and concealed a demonic practitioner.

    But did they truly deserve it? The fact was that Jun Xiaomo had never harmed a single person before the Heavenly Peak massacre! Apart from the demonic energy within her body, she had never done anything evil deserving of such judgment.

    In order to conceal their true objective of seizing Heavenly Peak¡¯s bountiful resources and treasures, these ¡°righteous¡± and ¡°upstanding¡± sects went out of their way to paint Jun Xiaomo as a murderous, evil-doing demonic cultivator! Even though Jun Xiaomo had in fact not even left Heavenly Peak for three whole years, these schemers were still able to frame her and implicate her with crimes she never did!

    In other words, the logic of the world dictated that if Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body contained demonic energy, she was a demonic cultivator and deserved to die.

    After the massacre at Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen managed to escape with Jun Xiaomo, falling from the grace of a glorified Peakmaster to that of a persecuted fugitive charged with sheltering a Lady Demoness.

    Jun Xiaomo then had be dazed and muddleheaded because of the series of psychological blows to her, from the death of her parents to the massacre of Heavenly Peak. If not for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s constant protection, she would long have perished under the hand of these ¡°righteous¡± and ¡°upstanding¡± sects.

    Then, while they were atrge, Ye Xiuwen encountered ady cultivator whom he fell in love with. Seeing that Ye Xiuwen now had love in his life, Jun Xiaomo was afraid that Ye Xiuwen would abandon her and no longer care for her. They quarreled and fell out, and Jun Xiaomo left him in a fit of rage, only to be captured by her persecutors.

    This also turned out to be the final time that Ye Xiuwen woulde to save Jun Xiaomo, because this time, he perished in the process of doing so. Worse, he perished under the de of the woman that he loved.

    As it turned out, thatdy cultivator was under orders to draw close to Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo and never had feelings for Ye Xiuwen in the first ce.

    Over seventy yearster, Jun Xiaomo still had thatdy¡¯s looks and name firmly etched in her mind ¨C Zhang Shuyue. If she encounters thisdy in her present life, she must definitely let her experience the taste of a de stabbed through the heart!

    ¡°Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo leaned against the tree, covering her red, puffy eyes with both hands.

    She understood that she really should not be blinded by the hatred from her past life. This was dangerous for any cultivator ¨C the festering of such hatred could cause one to veer from the path of cultivation, and worse, lose all rationality.

    She had been reborn, and those people whom she cared for are all well and alive in this world, living by her side. Instead of building her life around vengeance, she would do well to protect those around her and create a blissful and safe environment for those whom she cared for.

    Having thought things through, Jun Xiaomo gradually calmed herself down, put down her palms and let the dampness of her eyes fade away.

    Apart from her eyes mildly reddened rims, there was no other trace of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier emotional outburst.

    Just then, the shrubs not far away rustled briefly.

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked sharply at the source of the noise.

    A pink figure emerged from behind the shrubs. The slender figure touted a leisurely gait, and a small, pale face featuredrge, glistening eyes. As she gazed over with her tender eyes, that image was like a painting that evoked emotions of benevolence, kindness and mercy in people, causing people to feel pity andpassion for her, and at the same time want to pamper and shower her with love and gifts. That look was one that would make countless people in the world bring out their prized belongings and offer them to her on bent knees.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows, eyes shing with an indiscernible trace of coldness.

 Chapter 8: Mistress Yu Wanrou

    <h4>Chapter 8: Mistress Yu Wanrou</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was ady rescued by Qin Lingyu on one of his missions outside the Sect. When she first arrived back in the Sect, Yu Wanrou was dark and thin like a shriveled beansprout. Naturally, no one paid much attention to her then. Afterwards, an elder from Pill Cauldron Peak discovered that Yu Wanrou¡¯s talent was quite decent and decided to take her in under his wings. From then on, she officially became the martial sister of Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo.

    Her quality of life in the Sect was a vast improvement from before. She was no longer constantly exposed to the elements, and she was no longer constantly weary from hardbour. As time passed, Yu Wanrou grew prettier and prettier. She grew taller and sported a svelte look; and her facial features grew sharper and blossomed. Her dark and rough skin seemed to have molted away, leaving her skin gleaming with a perfect luster, smooth and delicate. Her exquisite body line was perfectly topped off with a tender, pitiable look, naturally attracting the gazes of all male cultivators wherever she went.

    To be honest, Jun Xiaomo had never understood why in her past life the highly eligible male cultivators surrounding Yu Wanrou would condone her polygamous behavior. Let¡¯s not talk about whether this was true love to begin with. All men are selfish. If they indeed loved Yu Wanrou more than their own life, then how did they manage to repress their selfish desires and resist the urge to tear each other from limb to limb? Not only that, they even managed to live together harmoniously!

    Yet, Yu Wanrou had somehow managed to do it. The men surrounding Yu Wanrou all maintained a strange, harmonious rtionship with each other. Moreover, there seemed to be a tacit understanding that Yu Wanrou was the matriarch, and they all obeyed her every beck and call.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou could not be said to be the top in strength among her contemporaries either. In a duel, she would certainly have lost to the thenLady Demoness Jun Xiaomo.

    Therefore, the fact that Yu Wanrou maintained a harmonious polygamous rtionship caught Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention. Her intuition told her that Yu Wanrou still had some untold secrets about her that no one knew about.

    Actually, if not for the fact that Yu Wanrou and herckeys had harmed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s child in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo would not have developed such resentment for Yu Wanrou ¨C even if Yu Wanrou did be Qin Lingyu¡¯s wife.

    This was because her love for Qin Lingyu had dissipated together with her death in her previous life. How could she bring herself to be Yu Wanrou¡¯s ¡°love rival¡± in this life again?

    However, Yu Wanrou had killed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s child, and she had even used the cruel method of poisoning Jun Xiaomo, causing both mother and child to experience immense suffering by slowly dissolving the unborn child into nothing more than a pool of blood. Therefore, in this life, Jun Xiaomo was determined to make life difficult for Yu Wanrou.

    The debts owed in her previous life ¨C Jun Xiaomo was determined to w them back, bit by bit.

    -------------------------------------------

    When Yu Wanrou realized that it was Jun Xiaomo who had called out her name, she frowned and remained silent. Her heart developed a trace of uneasiness.

    The present Yu Wanrou was still argely insignificant female cultivator in the Sect. Whether it was her talent or her background, she was nothingpared to Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, she was always careful with every step that she took, particrly when it came to Jun Xiaomo.

    Even if a conflict arose, she would always ensure that she came out on top, and that other would always find fault to belie Jun Xiaomo, not her. Since young, Jun Xiaomo had always been sheltered and pampered by her parents and martial brothers, and naturally developed a fearless, unruly and headstrong temperament. Therefore, it was not a difficult thing to make others ce the me on Jun Xiaomo in any situation.

    After all, people tend to sympathize with the weak. Between a weak female cultivator with a difficult past and nothing to lean on; and an arrogant, strong female cultivator with a sheltered childhood and formidable backing, most people would instinctually root for the former and be biased against thetter.

    In her past life, Yu Wanrou had taken advantage of this and caused Jun Xiaomo quite some distress. To make matters worse, the Jun Xiaomo then was na?ve and simple-minded. In the end, apart from her family and a few close friends, most people would always look on Jun Xiaomo with hatred, thinking that she was a bully.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, are you upset with me? Why are you looking at me like that?¡± Yu Wanrou asked softly, her eyes welling up with tears.

    If other people were present, they would surely be given the impression that Jun Xiaomo was bullying Yu Wanrou. In truth, Jun Xiaomo had not even said a single thing.

    Jun Xiaomo had seen many people like Yu Wanrou in her past life ¨C the type who would win people over by pretending to be pitiful. Seeing the present Yu Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze grew deeper with profundity.

    Disregarding the things of the past, Jun Xiaomo hated when people schemed against her! Perhaps Yu Wanrou was young or inexperienced and did not conceal it well, but that glint in her eye told Jun Xiaomo everything she needed to know about Yu Wanrou¡¯s scheming nature.

    Jun Xiaomo contemted for a moment, and then grimly said, ¡°The things that I¡¯m unhappy about ¨C aren¡¯t you well aware of them?¡±

    ¡°I...I...¡± Yu Wanrou stuttered. Her eyes quivered evasively ¨C a sign of her guilty conscience.

    Could it be that the thing between brother Qin and I have been discovered by Jun Xiaomo? No! It cannot be! Yu Wanrou bit down on her lips in contemtion. Even though she liked Qin Lingyu, and Qin Lingyu had also confessed his fondness for her, there was nevertheless an arranged marriage between Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo. That is why Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu could not pursue their rtionship publicly and had shrouded it in secrecy.

    Yu Wanrou knew that Qin Lingyu was a man with great ambitions. If their rtionship were to get in the way of his ambitions, there was no doubt that he would abandon the rtionship first. For this reason, Yu Wanrou had always been very careful not to overstep boundaries when interacting with Qin Lingyu, lest she rouses Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suspicions.

    Now, faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question, Yu Wanrou could not help but think that the cat was out of the bag!

    In truth, Jun Xiaomo did not know that Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had already been having an affair. Her previous question was more probative than usative. Yet, after seeing Yu Wanrou¡¯s reactions, how could she still be unaware of what had happened?

    Very good, Yu Wanrou! Very good, Qin Lingyu!

    Jun Xiaomo suddenly took a step forward towards Yu Wanrou. Before she could react, Jun Xiaomo grabbed Yu Wanrou¡¯s chin and forcefully lifted her head.

    Tears welled up in Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes again. It hurt. She had not expected Jun Xiaomo to use so much force.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou, have you heard of these wise words ¨C don¡¯t do it if you don¡¯t want people to know about it?¡±

    ¡°I...I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about...¡± Yu Wanrou felt as though her chin were about to be crushed by Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Don¡¯t know? Ah-- When you kissed Qin Lingyu with this little mouth of yours, have you ever thought that for all intents and purposes he¡¯s a married man, hmm?¡± Jun Xiaomo viciously pressed her thumb against Yu Wanrou¡¯s mouth. Her sharp nails ruthlessly cut into Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips, causing a trace of blood to ooze out, slowly running down the side of her face onto her chin.

    Yu Wanrou cut a sorry figure. Jun Xiaomo had gripped her mouth so tightly that she was not even able to say anything to refute Jun Xiaomo.

    As Jun Xiaomo caught a whiff of the scent of blood, the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body stirred vigorously. The demonic energy within her Dantian immediately roused, growing unstable. Her originally jet-ck pupils now glowed with strange traces of red light.

    Pupils dting, Yu Wanrou opened her eyes wide and stared at Jun Xiaomo in horror, ¡°De--...demon...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo eyes shed with a chilling glow. Instantly, a palm thrusted out towards Yu Wanrou and hit her squarely on her chest. The impact from that blow caused Yu Wanrou to fly back, mming into a tree. A spurt of blood sprayed from her mouth, and Yu Wanrou went unconscious.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± The demonic energy in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body roiled even more. She knew that if she did not quickly take up countermeasures, the demonic energy in her body would erupt, and the disaster which resulted in the massacre of Heavenly Peak in her previous life might ur even earlier this time.

    Looking at how Yu Wanrou was slumped by the tree, unconscious, Jun Xiaomo grit her teeth, and decided to give up the idea of killing Yu Wanrou.

    The present Jun Xiaomo was still not able to kill a person without leaving any traces. If the Sect discovered that she was the culprit guilty of killing her own fellow disciple, then the oue would be highly undesirable to say the least.

    As Jun Xiaomo hurriedly stumbled away, a man dressed in white garbs wearing a veiled conical hat [1] emerged from the woods nearby.

    If Jun Xiaomo were still here, she would surely have recognized this man as the one whom she had been chasing after in the first ce ¨C Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at the figure of Jun Xiaomo quickly departing, then shifted his attention to the heavily-wounded Yu Wanrou lying on the ground.

    After pausing for a while, he sighed, made a few seals with his hands and cast the spell onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s body.

    [1] Something like this https://.google/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fchina-cart%2Fu%2F168%2F2985610%2Fphoenix_Crown_Hair_Decoration_Head_Helmet_wigs_hats_Cor_earrings_Comb_Wedding_Hair_Hairpin_essori.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2F.china-cart%2Fd.asp%3Fa%3DChinese%2BAncient%2BSwordsman%2BBamboo%2BCoolie%2BHat%2Bwith%2BWhite%2BLong%2BVeil%26d%3D271307&docid=zwRSAbz6dxhX5M&tbnid=ZdXJaNI9Y1Qc1M%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiCx4_mqfrjAhVPDewKHZXvC9UQMwhMKAcwBw..i&w=488&h=469&safe=off&bih=908&biw=871&q=veiled%20conical%20hat%20men&ved=0ahUKEwiCx4_mqfrjAhVPDewKHZXvC9UQMwhMKAcwBw&iact=mrc&uact=8

 Chapter 9: Crippling Oneâ€™s Cultivation

    <h4>Chapter 9: Crippling One¡¯s Cultivation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was not aware of the matters which took ce in the woods after she had left. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo was sprinting back to Heavenly Peak with only one thought in her mind ¨C faster! Faster!

    She had been too careless. In order to quickly acquire her demonic body, she had absorbed and directed arge amount of demonic energy into her meridians and Dantian, using them to refine and transform her meridians. However, absorbing demonic energy without any suitable andpatible refinement technique was extremely dangerous, as the demonic energy could erupt from within the body at any time. Just like right now!

    At this moment, the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body roiled vigorously like a volcano, ready to erupt at any time and burst through her meridians. Jun Xiaomo was unaware if anyone had noticed any peculiarities about her on the way back home. However, Jun Xiaomo could not care less about this right now. If she could not suppress her demonic energy from erupting in time, then her Sect would soon discover the existence of her acquired demonic body and she would once again suffer the fate of being persecuted for the rest of her life!

    It did not matter if she was being persecuted; but she absolutely did not want to implicate her parents or her martial brothers and sisters at Heavenly Peak.

    Almost there...almost there...

    Bang! Jun Xiaomo mmed shut the door of her room and slid onto the floor.

    After catching her breath, she hurriedly retrieved some talisman paper and cinnabar-ink [1] from her Interspatial Ring, haphazardly strewn them on the floor, and immediately started drawing an array on the talisman.

    First attempt...failed.

    Second attempt...failed.

    Third attempt......

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand trembled violently. Her meridians were burning up with such intense pain that she could barely maintain the grip on her brush.

    ¡°No!¡± Jun Xiaomo ferociously mmed the brush on the floor and closed her eyes momentarily.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright...don¡¯t be anxious...ignore the pain...¡± Jun Xiaomo silently murmured to herself.

    Having calmed her mind down, she picked up the brush once again.

    This time, Jun Xiaomo finally managed to sessfullyplete the talisman array.

    The arrayprised of five sheets of talisman. Leaning on the wall for support, Jun Xiaomo circled her room, cing one talisman on each corner of the room before attaching thest one to the door.

    With this array, even the most immense outburst of demonic energy could be contained and isted within the room. Naturally, others would not sense anything amiss even if her demonic energy erupts right now. In her previous life, in order to conceal the existence of demonic energy from her body, Jun Xiaomo had devoted such a substantial amount of time researching and studying simr arrays that she could even replicate these drawings with her eyes closed.

    Afterpleting her preparations, Jun Xiaomo weakly slid back down onto the floor,pletely drenched in her own perspiration. Agony was written all over her face, yet her eyes shone with fierce determination.

    She had never been afraid of such pain.

    In her past life, when she had first acquired her demonic body, she did not have any suitable refinement method to control the demonic energy within her body. As a result, the unbridled demonic energy would erupt from her body from time to time, bursting through her meridians and sending waves of intense pain coursing throughout her entire body. And when Yu Wanrou and herckeys murdered her child and crippled her spiritual root,pared with the eruption of demonic energy, the pain she experienced then was far greater by a magnitude of a hundred ¨C even a thousand times!

    Therefore, this degree of pain was really nothing to Jun Xiaomo.

    Demonic energy was by nature not as gentle as spiritual energy. When Jun Xiaomo embarked on her journey of demonic cultivation, she knew full well that the path ahead would be fraught with trials and tribtions. Yet, Jun Xiaomo was absolutely prepared to ensure such hardship.

    Why was it that between demonic cultivators and spiritual cultivators of the same cultivation level, demonic cultivators were always much stronger? Was it not because cultivating with demonic energy was always more difficult to begin with? The prowess of demonic cultivators cannot be measured simply by reference to their cultivation levels. Often, the offensive capabilities of demonic cultivators caused many spiritual cultivators to feel both envious and jealous.

    Temperance with extreme pain and hardship begets a powerful soul. This principle was thoroughly exemplified in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life.

    As the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body charged around violently, Jun Xiaomo raised her right hand and channeled all of the demonic energy through her meridians into her palm.

    The preamble of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique required the practitioner to cripple his own existing cultivation.

    Perhaps it might have been safer if Jun Xiaomo crippled her cultivation only after her roiling demonic energy had subsided. But time was not on her side. Yu Wanrou had seen that demonic, red glow in her eyes. If Yu Wanrou wakes up and reports this to the Sect Elders, she was bound to embellish the facts and make a mountain of a molehill about this.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had to be prepared.

    Once the demonic energy had sufficiently umted, Jun Xiaomo took a deep breath and closed both of her eyes.

    Then without a moment¡¯s hesitation, she mercilessly pped down on her Dantian.

    ¡°Haack--!¡± A crimson jet of blood spurted from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth. An acute wave of pain swept through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians, spreading through her limbs and prating her bones and marrows. The throbbing pain shot straight into her head, causing her to ck out momentarily, almost copsing on the floor. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo managed to hang in there.

    If she had really fainted there, then perhaps her death would not be out of the question. A person¡¯s heart and Dantian are located in very close proximity. With this blow, Jun Xiaomo had not only shattered her Dantian, she had also inadvertently jolted her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved from her Interspatial Ring a medicinal pill to protect her heart and swallowed it. At the same time, she continued to drive the demonic energy around her body so that both demonic and spiritual energies within her body would dissipate more quickly and elerate the process of crippling her own energy arts.

    This type of feeling was not pleasant at all. It felt as though her meridians and Dantian were being torn to shreds, and then burnt with Threefold Essenceme at the same time. It was intensely hot and unbearably painful. She even had to remain conscious throughout this entire process.

    Jun Xiaomo could only grit her teeth and endure the immense suffering.

    Once this terrifying torture was over, her cultivation level would fall back down to zero.

    If others witnessed this scene before their eyes, they would immediately conclude that this sixteen years-old girl must be crazy ¨C for a refinement technique which no one had heard of before, she had not only crippled her own cultivation arts, she had forgone her eighth level of Qi Mastery!

    Was it easy to achieve the eighth level of Qi Mastery? To put things into perspective, some fifty years-old cultivators were not even at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. Jun Xiaomo must have been mad to have relinquished all of this!

    This type of behavior waspletely preposterous; it was madness!

    Yet even so, such madness was also a trait of demonic cultivators. They were outrageously capricious, filled with bravado, and they always seem to exude an aura of cruel fanaticism and madness. In fact, this type of madness is so deeply etched into the core and souls of these demonic cultivators that even if they are reborn ten times, they would still be unable to change this identity of theirs.

    This bout of what can almost be described as self-abusested for six whole hours. Once Jun Xiaomo¡¯s original cultivation waspletely depleted, and her Dantian and meridians were absolutely damaged beyond repair, Jun Xiaomo finally crumpled onto the bed, promptly stuffing a few medicinal pills into her mouth.

    With the aid of these medication, her life would finally be saved. This thought briefly crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, before her consciousness slowly faded away.

    --------------------------------------

    On the other side, a few hours after Jun Xiaomo had left, Yu Wanrou finally regained her consciousness.

    She opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was a tall, towering tree. She was still in the woods outside the Sect and had not been discovered or rescued yet.

    At least, that¡¯s what Yu Wanrou thought. The truth was that Ye Xiuwen had already appeared before her, but he had not brought her back nor attempted to wake her up.

    ¡°Cough, cough...¡± Yu Wanrou violently coughed twice, and a bloody stench momentarily diffused from her mouth. Splotches of blood stains were strewn all over her clothes.

    ¡°Jun...Xiao...Mo!¡± Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth as she uttered these three words. Even though she usually appeared to be weak, that was merely false pretenses carefully devised to attract the sympathy and pity of others. Deep down, Yu Wanrou was in fact a very calctive and vindictive person.

    This time, she had suffered a huge loss at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. No matter what, she was not going to take this lying down.

    But where did Jun Xiaomo¡¯s strengthe from? I sustained such serious injuries from one palm strike of hers. With just her cultivation at the eighth level of Qi Mastery, there¡¯s no way she should have been able to do this.

    While Yu Wanrou carefully analyzed the incident which took ce before she fell unconscious, she realized that certain parts of her memory seemed to have been blurred out. No matter how hard she tried, she could not recall certain details about the incident.

    What¡¯s going on? Yu Wanrou knit her eyebrows into a frown. She felt that she had missed out on a very important detail of the incident.

    However, no matter how hard she tried, she could not remember anything apart from receiving that palm strike from Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s injuries were very serious. The little energy she expended on her thoughts caused her to cough out even more blood.

    Yu Wanrou angrily bit down on her lower lip and retrieved a jade bottle from her clothes. This jade bottle looked like a typical jade bottle carried by other disciples in Dawn Sect. At first nce, it seemed as though the contents were nothing more than the ordinary life-saving pills typically carried around by the other disciples.

    However, the moment Yu Wanrou opened the bottle, a thickyer of spiritual energy wafted out, causing anyone who inhaled it to feel extremelyfortable.

    Even a mere mortal who is not a cultivator would be able to sense this thickyer of spiritual energy and discern that the contents of the bottle must be something extraordinary.

    Yu Wanrou clutched her chest which was throbbing with pain from her injuries, yet she could not help but smirk smugly to herself.

    Her body contained a secret, and it was this secret which gave her immense confidence that one day she would rise above everyone else and be the true master and ruler of the world!

    [1] Cinnabar is a type of bright red mineral consisting of mercury sulphide, which is traditionally used as a pigment. People stopped using itter when they discovered that it was toxic. It is supposedly used as ink here. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinnabar

 Chapter 10: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Secret

    <h4>Chapter 10: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Secret</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou had crossed over ¨C she was not originally from this world.

    Of course, if that were the only secret that she had, then it would not justify the level of self-confidence that she had. The real reason why she felt so confident was that the host body of hers contained something special. This secret of hers had transformed her trash-grade spiritual root to a heavenly-grade spiritual root, and even changed her previous ¡°ugly-duckling¡± self into a matchless beauty that causes male cultivators to fall head-over-heels in love with her.

    This gift was a spectral demine, residing under Yu Wanrou¡¯s right vicle in the form of a blue, fox-shaped mark.

    When Yu Wanrou crossed over to this world, her host body was only ten years old. The body originally belonged to the child of a poor family, living in a run-down vige. This child was ying by the waters when he slipped, fell into the waters and drowned. Yu Wanrou¡¯s soul upied the child¡¯s body as his soul departed.

    After learning that her new world was one where cultivators existed, while her host body belonged to a mere mortal, Yu Wanrou was so mad that she almost wanted to die again.

    Before crossing over, Yu Wanrou was a girl of sixteen years of age, and her mother was the mistress of a married man. Even though she was the daughter of a mistress, her father had always doted on her because he much preferred the gentle and pleasant look of Yu Wanrou¡¯s mother over his first wife¡¯s perpetually cross and stern face.

    Therefore, Yu Wanrou had never experienced much hardship in the sixteen years of her previous life. Her father was a huge moneybag. Whenever she wanted something, she only had to pout or make an aggrieved face, and before long, her father¡¯s servants woulde running to her with the items that she coveted. Unfortunately, on one fateful day, her older stepsister pushed her and caused her head to m onto the corner of a table. She passed on there and then. But when sheter opened her eyes, she found out that she had somehow crossed over to this world.

    Even though Yu Wanrou hated any form of suffering, she was even more afraid of death. Therefore, after the ten-year-old Yu Wanrou weighed the pros and cons, she abandoned her feeble, sickly parents and her few brothers and sisters and absconded with her family¡¯s money.

    She wanted to leave the poor vige to establish her own footing in life!

    However, she forgot that this was a world fraught with many dangers, vastly different from the world which she used to live in where peace and stability was built upon the rule ofw. Not long after leaving the vige, she met with a crisis and was almost bitten to death by wild beasts.

    It was just at this moment that Lin Qingyu chanced upon her and rescued her from her peril.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s suave and striking appearance immediately caught Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes. Even though her host body was only ten years old, her soul was not. She had long understood and experienced what love meant, and she knew that this man before her had moved her heart.

    Therefore, Yu Wanrou made every effort to convince Qin Lingyu to take her in. She knew the lustful nature of men, and she knew exactly how to take advantage of that in order to firmly seize the hearts of these men and manipte them. These were all part of the ¡°knowledge¡± imparted to her by her mother. However, Yu Wanrou knew that realistically she did not have any capacity to physically attract Qin Lingyu then.

    Therefore, she fabricated a pitiable past for herself ¨C her parents were hounded and killed by bandits, and overnight she became homeless and was forced to wander the streets.

    Sure enough, Qin Lingyu took in Yu Wanrou and brought her back to the Sect.

    Yu Wanrou felt that this itself was already a fortunate turn of events. Little did she know that shortly after she would receive an even bigger surprise ¨C she inadvertently discovered the secret of this host body of hers!

    Under the right vicle of the host body sat a blue fox-shaped mark which she had always thought to be merely a birthmark. However, when she was bitten by the wild beasts, her blood fortuitously flowed onto this mark, stimting this mark to effect.

    This mark was in fact the gateway to a spectral demine. Yu Wanrou inadvertently entered this space, discovering that the space contained a spirit spring, a secret art manuscript and a scroll containing the mysteries of life.

    As it turns out, the host body contained with it traces of the fox n¡¯s blood, and this spectral demine was an inheritance handed down by her fox n ancestors.

    Yu Wanrou could not understand why it was only her who seemed to have inherited this gift from the fox n, and not her host body¡¯s parents. But it did not matter. Since the spectral demine approved of her, then there was no doubt that she must be the rightful inheritor of its gifts.

    The deep spirit spring within her spectral demine was a heaven-defying existence. Its functions could be described as all-epassing, ranging from cleansing her bones and refining her meridians to improving her spiritual roots; from healing any ailments or injuries to even tempering and refining herbs! It was practically a tailor-made gift for the present Yu Wanrou!

    With this spirit spring, even her trash-grade spiritual root could be transformed into a heavenly-grade spiritual root. Even an ¡°ugly-duckling¡± like her could blossom into a beautiful white swan!

    Yu Wanrou could not contain the excitement in her heart! After ncing through the preamble of the secret art manuscript, the ambitions of her heart were ignited like a fierce furnace. With the secrets contained in that manuscript, how could any man ever resist her?

    This was a supreme-grade dual-cultivation technique, requiring one male and one female cultivator to work together. Furthermore, the technique would only be effective if at least one of the cultivators carried the blood of the fox n. However, if all conditions were met, the resultant cultivation speed would be more than ten times that of any traditional cultivation methods!

    Yu Wanrou could almost foresee a future where she would have many formidable cultivators living in servitude under her!

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Yu Wanrou did achieve this goal of hers. Many of the male cultivators involved with Yu Wanrou had tasted her goodness, and they could not bring themselves to give up on this opportunity to both feel pleasure and at the same time improve their cultivation. Even if they had to share the same woman!

    The present Jun Xiaomo was still unaware of the exact nature of Yu Wanrou¡¯s secret. But even if she knew, she may only sneer dismissively at her.

    Cultivation levels did not equate to prowess or strength. Using such methods to ¡°level up¡± may well leave these male cultivators nothing more than beautiful shells ¨C impressive on the outside butcking in substance on the inside.

    Jun Xiaomo firmly believed that only by staying down-to-earth and diligently forging ahead, then can the resulting strength truly be called one¡¯s own.

    But unlike Jun Xiaomo, Yu Wanrou did not have such epiphanies. She made full use of the spirit spring to transform her body. Under the cleansing effect of the spirit spring, her trash-grade spiritual root transformed into a heavenly-grade spiritual root. Herplexion also gradually improved as though she constantly bathed in moonlight ¨C her skin grew white and glossy; smooth and delicate. With this, not only did she seed in earning the favour from a Pill Cauldron Peak Sect Elder, she also finally captured the attention of Qin Lingyu.

    Yu Wanrou was truly fond of Qin Lingyu. But Qin Lingyu was not the only person whom she paid attention to. Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo had a marriage arrangement, and Yu Wanrou deeply hated Jun Xiaomo ¨C that talented love rival who had powerful backing behind her.

    Worse, Jun Xiaomo also reminded her of the stepsister in her previous life who had caused her death. They had the same powerful backing and the same headstrong and unruly nature. It was as though all of the world¡¯s desirable things could be obtained without any effort on their part. Why was this the case?

    Yu Wanrou longed to see for herself the look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face the moment she realizes that everything she had has been taken away. That face that would be filled with such dejection and despondency ¨C it would be absolutely delightful!

    Therefore, Yu Wanrou had always put up a weak appearance, so that whenever a conflict arose, others would instinctively take her side and find fault with Jun Xiaomo.

    At this moment, Yu Wanrou held onto the jade bottle containing her spirit spring water. However, her eyes revealed a trace of indecision.

    She initially wanted to drink it all up and recoverpletely, but then her thoughts lingered on the fact that Jun Xiaomo had hurt her so badly this time. How could she take it lying down and not teach Jun Xiaomo a lesson?!

    After pondering for a moment, Yu Wanrou ced the bottle back into her clothes, and retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane from her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Help...help me......¡± After weakly articting these few words, Yu Wanrou made a few hand seals and cast a spell on the Messenger Paper Crane. As her hands were stained with blood, the Messenger Paper Crane also had two blood-red fingerprints imprinted on it.

    After releasing her hand, the Messenger Paper Crane flew off. Yu Wanrou knew that this Messenger Paper Crane would fly directly towards where Qin Lingyu lived.

    Lingyu, you will definitely save me...right?

    A soft and sweet smile shone on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face, yet her eyes glistened with cunning and trickery.

 Chapter 11: Cold Hearted Qin Lingyu

    <h4>Chapter 11: Cold Hearted Qin Lingyu</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Qin Lingyu received the Messenger Paper Crane, he was respectfully seated before He Zhang, diligently reporting to his master on the matters of the Sect.

    Qin Lingyu was He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple. Whenever He Zhang was upied with urgent or important matters, he would delegate part of his authority to Qin Lingyu, allowing him to preside over the matters of the Sect on his behalf.

    Qin Lingyu was clothed in jade-green attire, seated upright on the mat in a dignified manner. His sturdy build and handsome appearance were topped off by his formidable cultivation. Overall, he sported a suave and striking appearance that caused many of his martial sisters to fall in love with him. Most importantly, he was even a Chosen Disciple of Limitless Sect, and his potential was practically immeasurable.

    Dawn Sect was considered a mid-tier sect. Above it there were still upper-tier sects, supreme-tier sects and hidden sects. Limitless Sect was an upper-tier sect, and only epted Foundation Establishment cultivators with potential as its disciples. Qin Lingyu had attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery when he was only twenty-three years old, and he was already knocking on the door of the Foundation Establishment level. He was considered a genius in the cultivation world, and naturally Sect Elder Zhang Qing from the Limitless Sect had taken an interest in him.

    He Zhang was also once a disciple from Limitless Sect. Therefore, he very much approved of it when Qin Lingyu was appointed a Chosen Disciple of the Limitless Sect.

    As more of Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples entered Limitless Sect under He Zhang¡¯s charge, the rtionship between the two sects would draw closer and closer, and naturally He Zhang¡¯s position as the Sect Leader would be more and more secure.

    After receiving Yu Wanrou¡¯s message, Qin Lingyu indifferently ced the Messenger Paper Crane in his sleeve and did not depart immediately.

    He was certainly fond of Yu Wanrou ¨C her warmth and gentleness; her moving disposition; and even the way they locked lips in an impassioned kiss, these were things that that headstrong and unruly Jun Xiaomo could never match up to.

    Truth be told, if not for He Zhang¡¯s orders, he absolutely did not want to marry Jun Xiaomo. Who cared if Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father was a Peakmaster? Qin Lingyu was certain that within his lifetime, he would achieve much more than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father ever did.

    He Zhang also noticed Qin Lingyu¡¯s unwillingness. Therefore, he reminded Qin Lingyu that if he was able to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand in marriage, he would gain ess to the insurmountable riches and treasures of Heavenly Peak!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father was a Peakmaster, and the dowry he would offer for the marriage would already be quite substantial. Besides, bing cultivationpanions through wedlock was not an irreversible thing. The lifespan of cultivators was very long, and it was not umon to hear of cultivationpanions growing cold to each other and eventually separating.

    Since marrying Jun Xiaomo was something that brought only profits and no detriment, then why fret over matters of love and fondness? He Zhang thoroughly analyzed with Qin Lingyu all the pros and cons of marrying Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Lingyu was an ambitious man, and he was thoroughly convinced by He Zhang¡¯s analysis.

    Therefore, he had over these few years always feigned civility with Jun Xiaomo. His attitude could not be said to be extremely pleasant, yet it was at the same time not filled with animosity. In Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo always had been a cheap woman. No matter how he treated Jun Xiaomo, she continued to treat him as the apple of her eyes. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions never moved Qin Lingyu either. In fact, the more Jun Xiaomo stuck to him, the more contempt he felt for Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s head was in the clouds. His ego had long since been lifted to immeasurable heights by the attention poured onto him by Jun Xiaomo and other female cultivators.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu felt that only other female cultivators who were simrly fawned over by male cultivators would be suitable for him. Besides, Yu Wanrou was warm and thoughtful, nothing like the blockhead Jun Xiaomo who only knew how to say ¡°I like you¡±.

    Even so, the lovers¡¯ rendezvous between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had to be carried out in secret. If others discovered the illegitimate rtionship between him and Yu Wanrou, then the consequences would be unfathomable. Discounting what others might do, the manifestation of rage from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father alone would already cause him to be unable to eat or walk properly!

    Having received Yu Wanrou¡¯s message, Qin Lingyu knew that she had met with some danger. However, even though his heart was worried, he did not think that this worry alone was sufficient justification to abdicate his duties and excuse himself from this meeting with He Zhang.

    In the end, the most important thing to Qin Lingyu was still himself!

    That said, He Zhang did notice that Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart seemed to be somece else. He Zhang was always rather partial towards Qin Lingyu and gave him quite a lot oftitude. Therefore, he waved his hands, saying, ¡°We¡¯ve already discussed almost everything that needs to be discussed. Go do what you need to do. Master wishes to get some rest.¡±

    Qin Lingyu heaved a sigh of relief in his heart whilst maintaining an indifferent expression. Qin Lingyu respectfully bowed to He Zhang and took his leave.

    Once he had thoroughly departed from He Zhang¡¯s residence, Qin Lingyu hastened his footsteps towards the woods outside the Sect. As he sped along, a thought crept into his mind and he suddenly halted.

    If others found out that he was the first person Yu Wanrou had contacted when she met with danger, he would be hard-pressed to give a cogent exnation. After all, he was not Yu Wanrou¡¯s direct martial brother. Whether rtionally or logically, the first person of Yu Wanrou¡¯s contact should not have been him!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s prudence in this matter got the better of him. In order to avoid a potentially disastrous oue, he tapped his feet on the ground and swiftly went in another direction.

    It was not that he was abandoning Yu Wanrou. He merely chose a much safer option ¨C he would first gather a few fellow disciples, and then under the pretext of taking a trip to buy goods he would ¡°unexpectedly¡± encounter the Yu Wanrou who had met with danger.

    Qin Lingyu had not considered that if Yu Wanrou had in fact met with a life-threatening danger, then his dawdling may well have caused her to be nothing more than a handful of ashes.

    Or perhaps he had already thought about this, but nevertheless had concluded that Yu Wanrou¡¯s life was nothingpared to the importance of securing his future...

    ---------------------------------------

    Yu Wanrou did not know about Qin Lingyu¡¯s hesitation beforeing over to rescue her. After all, she and Qin Lingyu were passionately in love with each other. She firmly believed that with Qin Lingyu¡¯s feelings towards her, he would show up in no time.

    However, one incense of time passed...two incense of time passed...one hour passed...Qin Lingyu still had not showed up. Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart grew more and more anxious.

    Perhaps there is a good reason for his dy? Yu Wanrou bit down on her lip, thinking. Her chest throbbed with waves of intense pain, causing her to ck out intermittently.

    Just a few moments ago, she could no longer tolerate the immense pain and thus sumbed to the temptation of administering a few drops of her spirit spring water to her injuries. However, this only served to alleviate a little bit of the pain. She was absolutely determined not to quickly heal her injuries so that she could still maintain the persuasiveness of her sob story! Yet, Qin Lingyu still had not arrived after one whole hour.

    Qin Lingyu, is this what you meant when you said you ¡°like¡± me? A fit of anger swelled up from the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart.

    Shasha--...shasha--... The sound of footsteps drew near. Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart leapt with joy, expecting the footsteps to belong to Qin Lingyu. Without missing a beat, Yu Wanrou shut her eyes and wore a pathetic look on her face.

    Truth be told, given her present situation, Yu Wanrou did not have to act at all. She already looked immensely pitiful and weak.

    A momentter, a cry of surprise resounded in the woods. But Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart immediately sank. She knew that she had misced her hopes in Qin Lingyu.

    The voice emitting the cry of surprise was rather shrill. Obviously, the passer-by was a woman.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, what happened to you?!¡± Qin Shanshan ran up to her. With quivering hands, she ced a finger under Yu Wanrou¡¯s nose, checking if she was still breathing.

    Qin Shanshan had just returned from the market at the bottom of the mountain. As she passed by the woods, she saw out of the corner of her eye Yu Wanrou slumped at the foot of the tree. Her clothes were even stained with copious amounts of fresh blood. It was a bone-chilling sight.

    Seeing that Yu Wanrou lyingpletely still, Qin Shanshan was terrified and panicked. She could not tell at first nce whether Yu Wanrou was dead or alive. She had never seen a dead person in the entire fifteen years of her life. The prospects of seeing a dead person right nowpletely shook her to the core.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou?¡± Qin Shanshan tried shouting out her name again.

    Then, she discovered that Yu Wanrou still breathing weakly when she checked for Yu Wanrou¡¯s breath with her finger.

    Phew. As long as she¡¯s not dead. The fear in Qin Shanshan¡¯s heart diminished substantially. Even though she was a little bit jealous of Yu Wanrou¡¯s way with people, the fact remained that Yu Wanrou has had a difficult past and was not considered talented in cultivation arts. Therefore, Qin Shanshan¡¯s jealousy towards her was not great. Besides, Qin Shanshan was only fifteen years old right now. Her heart had not been hardened to the point where she could watch her fellow disciple die before her very eyes without batting an eyelid.

    Qin Shanshan thought for a moment, before retrieving a Messenger Paper Crane from her Interspatial Ring. She cast a spell on the Messenger Paper Crane, saying, ¡°Brother, Sister Wanrou has been hurt. Hurry up and bring some people over right now!¡± As she finished speaking, she released her hands and the Messenger Paper Crane flew away.

    Yu Wanrou heard Qin Shanshan¡¯s voice and decided that there was no longer a need to maintain her act. After all, Qin Shanshan was Qin Lingyu¡¯s younger sister, and she would achieve the same end by informing her about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions.

    Furthermore, Yu Wanrou could tell that Qin Shanshan was very jealous towards Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, she did not mind using this littledy as a conduit to broadcast to the world how the headstrong and unruly Jun Xiaomo had hurt her.

    Perhaps this might be even more effective at tarnishing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name than if she had herself used Jun Xiaomo. After all, Yu Wanrou did not want to diminish her reputation for being kind-hearted and magnanimous. She wanted to let people know that despite Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unreasonable attack against her, she was still willing to forgive Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unruly behavior on ount that they were fellow disciples.

    It is decided then. Yu Wanrou groaned, and under Qin Shanshan¡¯s watchful eyes, she gradually ¡°regained consciousness¡±.

    ¡°Shanshan? What are you doing here?¡± Yu Wanrou asked weakly, ostensibly pleasantly surprised.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, how can you still be concerned about me. Do you even know how serious your injuries are right now?!¡± Qin Shanshan was filled with exasperation. She was almost frightened to death by Yu Wanrou¡¯s condition earlier. Naturally, she could hardly be said to be calm andposed right now.

    ¡°Serious...serious injuries? Cough cough cough...¡± Yu Wanrou coughed uncontrobly, stopping only to gasp for breath. This rmed Qin Shanshan even more.

    ¡°Ai--, ai--...Do...don¡¯t speak yet.¡± Qin Shanshan waspletely flustered. She did not know how to react in such a situation.

    As Yu Wanrou¡¯s coughing gradually abated, she tugged tenderly at Qin Shanshan¡¯s mouth, gently smiled and revealed a look of gratitude on her face. Thereafter, she lowered her head in destion, as though something heavy was on her mind.

    Qin Shanshan looked at Yu Wanrou helplessly. She felt that Yu Wanrou was deep in thought, and her instincts told her that it had something to do with how Yu Wanrou got injured.

    After pondering for a moment, Qin Shanshan could not help but ask, ¡°Sister Wanrou, your injuries...¡±

    ¡°My...my injuries are not caused by anyone. I was just too careless.¡± Yu Wanrou nervously responded. Her calcted response made it even more obvious that she was trying to hide something.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, stop lying to me. Tell me who hurt you so badly!¡± Qin Shanshan snorted disdainfully at Yu Wanrou, clearly resenting the fact that she would not even stand up for herself.

    She knew that Yu Wanrou was a kindhearted person ¨C she was the type who would not even harm an ant or a fly. Obviously, Yu Wanrou was trying to cover up for the person who had hurt herself!

    Then, a thought suddenly struck Qin Shanshan.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, your injuries are caused by Jun Xiaomo, am I right?¡± Even though it was phrased as a question, Qin Shanshan¡¯s tone was filled with certainty.

    Yu Wanrou raised her head, as though she were in ¡°shock¡±. She looked at Qin Shanshan, and then evasively broke eye contact and lowered her head, murmuring, ¡°It...it¡¯s nothing. I told you I was just careless. It doesn¡¯t concern anyone.¡±

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, stop trying to cover up for her! Who else other than Jun Xiaomo would pick on you? And it¡¯s precisely because you don¡¯t even speak up for yourself that she continues to bully you! Dare she even pick on anyone else? Sister Wanrou, you are kind to a fault!¡± Qin Shanshan exploded with indignation. The thought of how Jun Xiaomo had denied her of purchasing that hairpin crossed her mind again, and hatred swelled up within her.

    ¡°And since when has that arrogant and unruly princess ever considered the feelings of others?! Sister Wanrou, tell me, how exactly did she pick on you this time?¡±

    ¡°She...she said that your brother and I have improper associations, so she...¡± Yu Wanrou lowered her head and stammered as though she had been wronged and humiliated.

    ¡°Haaaaa--?! And for this reason she beat you up?!¡± Qin Shanshan grew even more furious, deploring, ¡°That¡¯s just like her. I really don¡¯t want her to be my sister-inw! Sister Wanrou, don¡¯t be scared. I will tell my brother about this. Let¡¯s see if she still dares to be so arrogant!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had humiliated both Qin Shanshan and Yu Wanrou! Qin Shanshan swore on her own name that she would take these matters up with her brother so that justice can be served.

    ¡°Tell me what?¡± A deep voice boomed from not far away. Momentster, a few tall figures walked out from the woods nearby, among which was Qin Lingyu.

    He¡¯s finally here! Yu Wanrou leaned ¡°weakly¡± against the tree, her lips gently curling into a barely discernable smile.

 Chapter 12: The White Lotus Scheme

    <h4>Chapter 12: The White Lotus Scheme</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Even though nothing could precede the important of his own future in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, yet when he saw the pale-faced Yu Wanrou slumped against a tree with splotches of blood strewn all over her clothes, the scene still tugged at his heartstrings. He hastened his steps and walked over inrge strides.

    ¡°What happened here?¡± Qin Lingyu furrowed his eyebrows. His usual solemn look was now fortified with a chilling gaze.

    Yu Wanrou was one of the people he truly cared about. Even though they could not publicly express their feelings for each other, he had already considered her as part of his inner circle of people to protect. Therefore, when he noticed how serious Yu Wanrou had been injured, how could he not swell up with ire! This was clearly a provocation to him!

    Hearing the indignance in Qin Lingyu¡¯s voice, Yu Wanrou¡¯s displeasure for him also gradually subsided. She lifted her head and looked over at Qin Lingyu with her deeply emotive watery eyes. At this moment, she could be said to be the embodiment of sorrow and distress.

    ¡°Brother Qin.¡± Yu Wanrou softly said, her mellow voice was extremely gentle and pleasant, as though someone brushed the softest silk across one¡¯s ears.

    It was as though Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice had just gently strummed at Qin Lingyu¡¯s heartstrings. His originally roiling emotions were instantly soothed by Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice, and heposed himself once again.

    ¡°Tell me what happened here. I will make sure justice is served.¡±

    These woods near the Sect were surrounded by a huge formation array. If outsiders passed through these woods without carrying any Dawn Sect identity tokens, then this formation array would immediately be activated. Therefore, the only logical exnation was that the person who had injured Yu Wanrou must have been an insider from Dawn Sect!

    Yu Wanrou lowered her head and avoided Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze. She bit down on her lower lips and looked as though she had just been put in the spot.

    Seeing this, Qin Shanshan sighed with resignation. She truly resented Yu Wanrou¡¯s inability to stand up for herself! Qin Shanshan stood up, stamped her foot on the ground and swiftly ran over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side. Clinging to her brother¡¯s arm, she said, ¡°Big brother, you must vindicate Sister Wanrou! It¡¯s all that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fault. She thinks that she can do anything she wants just because her father is a Peakmaster. She even beat up Sister Wanrou and left her in such a sorry state!¡±

    Qin Lingyu grimaced, ¡°Jun Xiaomo did this?¡±

    ¡°She did!¡± Qin Shanshan dered with such certainty as though she had witnessed the entire incident.

    Even though the few male disciples following Qin Lingyu were not from Heavenly Peak, they were nevertheless highly reverent and fearful of the authoritative Peakmaster from Heavenly Peak, as well as secretly afraid of that tyrannical daughter of his! After all, Jun Xiaomo had long gained herself a reputation from being vastly different from the stereotypical gentle and considerate female disciple. Just a little while ago, she was severely punished for rashly entering the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Who would have thought that even before fully recovering from her injuries, she would yet again court trouble by injuring a fellow disciple?!

    Of course, they would not conclude that Jun Xiaomo was at fault simply based on the words of Qin Shanshan and Yu Wanrou. Therefore, one of the male disciples suggested, ¡°Shall we report this to the Sect Leader and the Sect Elders and let them investigate this matter?¡±

    This male disciple¡¯s suggestion was in fact the most reasonable in the circumstances. However, Yu Wanrou could tell that the underlying meaning of his suggestion was that he did not fully believe Qin Shanshan¡¯s words.

    Yu Wanrou therefore decided that she had to find a way to give Qin Shanshan¡¯s words more weight. She secretly manipted the spiritual energy in her meridians, causing her own injuries to be even more severe.

    I¡¯ve got the spirit spring in my spectral demine anyway. These injuries aren¡¯t enough to threaten my life.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± Yu Wanrou began to cough violently again. Fresh blood flowed out from her lips, dribbling all over her clothes. The juxtaposition of crimson red blood on her light-pink clothing was striking and chilling.

    ¡°Investigating? For what?! Can¡¯t you all see that Sister Wanrou¡¯s injuries are so severe?!¡± Qin Shanshan forcefully dragged Qin Lingyu to Yu Wanrou¡¯s side, saying, ¡°Big brother, hurry up and check on Sister Wanrou! She was already coughing up a lot of blood when I first discovered her!¡±

    Qin Lingyu was initially already very anxious and worried about Yu Wanrou¡¯s condition. But he could not afford to show too much concern for her under the eyes of so many people. After all, Qin Shanshan even alleged that the person who hurt Yu Wanrou was his fianc¨¦e! It would certainly be suspicious if he seemed to favour Yu Wanrou and be biased against Jun Xiaomo. However, now that Qin Shanshan had dragged him forward, he could do as he wished under the pretense of obliging his sister.

    Qin Lingyu bent over, ced his fingers on Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of spiritual energy through her meridians.

    ¡°Her heart and Dantian have been damaged.¡± Qin Lingyu concluded after thoroughly examining her body. His tone was frigid at this moment.

    ¡°Big brother, this time you absolutely cannot be biased to that Jun Xiaomo! Damaged her Dantian? That can cause Sister Wanrou¡¯s cultivation level to fall! Jun Xiaomo is too vicious!¡± Qin Shanshan opportunistically added fuel to fire.

    A few of the other male disciples heard this, and their initially indifferent attitude began to sway in favour of Yu Wanrou. No matter the justification, resorting to harming fellow disciples is just going too far.

    ¡°Cough cough...Brother Qin, it¡¯s not Sister Xiaomo¡¯s fault. We only had a small misunderstanding.¡± Yu Wanrou feebly held Qin Lingyu¡¯s rugged and sturdy palm. Her downcast look replete with quivering eyshes caused everyone around her to can¡¯t help but feel sympathetic towards her pitiful plight.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. If Jun Xiaomo had hurt you, even if she is my fianc¨¦e, I will still let the Sect Elders deal with this in ordance with the Sect¡¯s rules.¡± Qin Lingyu supported Yu Wanrou by her shoulders, reassuringly patting her arms. He promptly took out a medicinal pill from his Interspatial Ring, ¡°This Jadeheart Pill can help to repair your Dantian. Quick, take it right now.¡±

    In this cultivation world, there were not many medicinal pills which could repair a person¡¯s Dantian. Every pill was priceless and invaluable. Fortunately, Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation level is only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Otherwise, it would be even harder to obtain a suitable Dantian repairing pill for her!

    As one¡¯s cultivation levels improved, suitable medicinal pills be correspondingly harder to refine. Of course, it can also be said that cultivators with higher cultivation levels also rarely sustain such serious injuries.

    The fact that Qin Lingyu gave Yu Wanrou such a valuable medicinal pill was not strange at all. After all, the person who had injured Yu Wanrou was his fianc¨¦e. In their eyes, the gift of this medicinal pill was merely a form of rpense.

    Yu Wanrou stretched out her hand to receive this pill, but before her hand could reach the pill, it flopped back down weakly.

    She looked at Qin Lingyu with a bitter smile on her face. Her pretense was extremely convincing!

    Left with no other options, Qin Lingyu promptly fed the medicinal pill directly to Yu Wanrou. This time, Yu Wanrou was satisfied. It wasn¡¯t too clear whether her actions were deliberate, but when Yu Wanrou swallowed that pill, her lips briefly contacted with Qin Lingyu¡¯s fingertips.

    His fingertips momentarily felt a warm, moist sensation brush past. This caused Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes to brighten up, subconsciously shifting his gaze over to Yu Wanrou¡¯s luscious lips. Even though they were slightly tarnished by bloodstains, Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind briefly lingered in that moment when he had tasted Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips ¨C that sweet taste of cherry blossoms.

    ¡°Big brother, I think Sister Wanrou won¡¯t be able to walk back herself. Why not you carry her back?¡± Qin Shanshan enthusiastically prompted.

    Right now, she was still unaware that Yu Wanrou and Lin Qingyu had been having an affair. Her intentions here were only calcted to anger that darned Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s suggestion jolted Qin Lingyu back from his daydreaming state. Looking at Yu Wanrou, Qin Lingyu asked, ¡°Do you think you can walk back on your own?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s tone was in and simple, giving off an air of objectivity. Yu Wanrou knew that Qin Lingyu did not want others to grow suspicious of their rtionship. Yet the presently injured Yu Wanrou truly wanted to rest in the embrace of the man she loved. She bit down on her lower lip and thought for a moment, before murmuring, ¡°I think...I think I should be able to.¡±

    Having said that, she struggled to stand up on her own. As she was mbering up, her legs suddenly gave way, and she lost her bnce. At that moment, Qin Lingyu, who was standing just in front of her, reflexively pulled her into his arms.

    ¡°Brother Qin, don¡¯t...¡± Yu Wanrou resisted, ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be good if Jun Xiaomo gets suspicious.¡±

    ¡°Suspicious?¡± Qin Lingyu lingered on this very word.

    Hearing this, Qin Shanshan interjected with indignation, ¡°Yeah exactly! That jealous hag Jun Xiaomo beat up Sister Wanrou just because she caught wind of some rumours of Sister Wanrou and you! As I see it, she is just jealous that Sister Wanrou is better with people that¡¯s all!¡± Qin Shanshan spected.

    ¡°Shanshan, silence! She is your future sister-inw!¡± Qin Lingyu berated. He was not upset that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name was being tarnished. Rather, he was afraid of the spections that might ensue if Qin Shanshan¡¯s words got out.

    Sometimes, Qin Lingyu really felt exasperated by this loquacious younger sister of his who rarely thinks before she speaks. Qin Shanshan clearly never understood the saying that ¡°a loose tongue invites trouble¡±. Regardless of how Jun Xiaomo acts and behaves, it did not change the fact that her doting father is still a Peakmaster. If they incited trouble with Jun Xiaomo, even Sect Leader He Zhang might not be able to do much to protect them from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father. For this reason, Qin Lingyu and Qin Shanshan had to maintain civilities with Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Tch! A woman who would snatch away this littledy¡¯s things? I¡¯d rather not have this type of sister-inw.¡± Qin Shanshan muttered under her breath. Apart from Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou who were closest to her, no one else heard what she said.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s lips twitched again. When we get home, I really need to teach this unruly sister of mine a lesson.

    At this moment, a male disciple spoke, ¡°Brother Qin, I think it might be good if you could quickly bring Sister Yu back so that the Sect Elders can quickly examine her injuries.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. We can all see Sister Yu¡¯s injuries are serious. We won¡¯t go running our mouths off.¡±

    These male disciples were neither from Heavenly Peak nor Pill Cauldron Peak, and did not normally interact much with Jun Xiaomo or Yu Wanrou to begin with. As they saw the attractive Yu Wanrou¡¯s increasingly pale appearances, their hearts also softened. It would be inappropriate for them offer to carry Yu Wanrou back. On the other hand, Qin Lingyu was the highest-ranked disciple among all of them present, and already had an arranged marriage ¨C others would not misunderstand his intentions. Therefore, they openly suggested for Qin Lingyu to carry Yu Wanrou back as he seemed to be the most appropriate choice.

    It can only be said that Qin Lingyu¡¯s present demeanor was truly indifferent. All who were present could never have imagined that he actually did have an affair with Yu Wanrou!

    Qin Lingyu raised his eyebrows for a moment, as though he were pondering, before relenting, saying, ¡°Then alright. Sister Wanrou, pardon my actions.¡± With that, he tenderly lifted Yu Wanrou in his arms.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Qin Lingyu casted a spell, and leading the pack, flew in the direction of where the Sect Elders usually resided.

    Seeing this, the other male disciples also pulled out their swords, including one who carried Qin Shanshan along with him, and followed Qin Lingyu on their swords.

 Chapter 13: Difficulty Within the Sect

    <h4>Chapter 13: Difficulty Within the Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As Jun Xiaomo roused from her stupor, she momentarily felt disoriented, unsure of what reality she was presently in.

    She had a long and terrible dream. In her dream, she had returned to the days where she had been trapped in that dark dungeon, with both eyes gouged out, her cultivation crippled, and discarded in a dank corner like unwanted trash. Day after day, nothing moved, nothing changed ¨C it was as though time hade to aplete standstill.

    The despair that apanied the endless torment was like having an awl driven through her bone ¨C it was a piercing, acute pain that spreads across the entire body; the type of pain that lingers till one¡¯s final breath.

    Death... That¡¯s right. I have died and been reborn. I have gone back to when I was sixteen years old, and now I have a second shot in life.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyelids twitched, and she gradually opened her eyes. Her momentary confusion was quickly dispelled, and she regained her focus, carefully analyzing her surroundings.

    Yes, she was lying on the cold, hard floor. Beside her were a few jade bottles, empty.

    Her fingers twitched. Jun Xiaomo wanted to sit up but discovered her arms had gone limp without any strength. Her whole being felt as though it had been drained out, and not an ounce of strength was left within her.

    It seems that my cultivation has truly been thoroughly crippled... Jun Xiaomo grimaced.

    This feeling of weakness was strangely familiar to Jun Xiaomo. In the three hundred over days Jun Xiaomo had been held captive in the dungeon, apart from the pain and the festering hatred, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s only other feeling had been that of abject frailty, as though her body was barely being held together.

    That said, her present condition was still far better than that in her past life. Back then, not only was her cultivation crippled; her spiritual roots had even been destroyed!

    If one¡¯s cultivation is crippled, he can always start afresh. However, if one¡¯s spiritual roots are destroyed, unless he is able to refine a heaven-defying, fate-seizing miracle pill, that person would be fated to live the rest of his life as a mere mortal.

    This was one of the reasons why the former Jun Xiaomo had finally chosen an end with mutual destruction. Rather than live the rest of her life in humiliated, why not perish together with her nemesis!

    The only regret was that in death she only took Qin Shanshan and Qin Lingyu with her; while Yu Wanrou and herckeys had got off scot-free.

    In this life...Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes shed coldly.

    After getting ustomed to the heavy and lethargic feeling of her body, Jun Xiaomo finally managed to sit up. She closed her eyes and began driving both spiritual energy and demonic energy around her meridians, closely inspecting her body¡¯s condition.

    Excellent. The damage to both her meridians and her Dantian had been lighter than she thought. I was right to have prepared those recovery medicinal pills beforehand.

    However, because her cultivation levels had fallen, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian had all shrunk in size. If the capacity of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians at her former eighth level of Qi Mastery was like a boundless river, then the capacity of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current meridians could only be described as a small creek. Her Dantian had also shrunk to one-twentieth of its original size.

    ¡°This must be the state of a non-cultivator.¡± Jun Xiaomo observed. Even though her cultivation had fallen eight levels at one go, yet her heart did not consider this a pity at all.

    After all, if she had been unable to operate or use any of the demonic energy or spiritual energy in her body, then no matter what level her cultivation was at, she may as well be considered a cripple or a dead on the battlefield.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian had not fully recovered. Yet, Jun Xiaomo had decided against the use of any more medicine. The same effects could be achieved by using her ¡°Qi¡± to nourish her meridians and Dantian. In fact, it could potentially be even more beneficial, because meridians and Dantian nourished by spiritual or demonic energy would be more stable and resilient. This was an effect that could not be had with medicinal pills.

    Even though this process would take more time, and be somewhat ufortable and painful, but for the sake ofying a good foundation for the future, Jun Xiaomo absolutely did not mind having some patience and enduring a little bit of pain.

    After thoroughly ascertaining that her cultivation had beenpletely crippled, Jun Xiaomo sat cross-legged on the floor and recalled to mind the contents of her Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique. Yet, just as she was about to meditate on its details, a sound of pping wings jolted her back to reality.

    ¡°A Messenger Paper Crane?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at the small paper crane at her windowsill. She stood up and walked over.

    As the drew closer, Jun Xiaomo noticed that the paper crane bore the markings of a Sect Elder.

    ¡°Seems like the Sect Elders sent this.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath.

    Jun Xiaomo never had a good impression of the Sect Elders of Dawn Sect. The Sect Elders with higher cultivation levels were proud and arrogant, obstinate and self-opinionated, and often arbitrarily decided on the matters within the Sect. On the other hand, the Sect Elders with lower cultivation levels were just He Zhang¡¯sckeys.

    The former Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lifepletely revolved around Qin Lingyu, and she never concerned herself with the matters and politics of the Sect. Thinking back now to the acts and conduct of those ten-over Sect Elders, Jun Xiaomo could only coldly chuckle to herself.

    Did they really not know a thing about the demonic energy within her body? These old monsters who had lived over a thousand years cannot possibly be so ignorant. They had either for some reason decided to turn a blind eye; or they must be acting in collusion with He Zhang!

    As she pondered about these matters, Jun Xiaomo slowly opened the Messenger Paper Crane, and the contents of the paper crane suddenly boomed into her ear:

    ¡°Dawn Sect, three-hundred and fifty-second generation disciple, Jun Xiaomo. You are hereby summoned before the Penal Hall.¡±

    The peremptory voice which reverberated in the room was filled with authority.

    This must be Second Elder¡¯s voice......

    Penal Hall? Tch, Yu Wanrou must be trying to cause me trouble.

    With a cold snort, Jun Xiaomo crumpled the paper crane in her hand and tossed it onto the floor.

    ----------------------------------------

    In the Penal Hall, the Second Elder, the Third Elder and the Fifth Elder were seated on their mats, silently presiding over theints and assertions of Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples.

    The few male disciples had given rather urate and factual testimonies, only informing the Elders of the salient details of how they had chanced upon Yu Wanrou and her condition when they first saw her. While they did not miss out any important detail, they did not embellish the facts either.

    However, when Qin Shanshan took the stand, her tone was quickly filed with indignation as she delivered an impassioned recount of her version.

    ¡°When I first encountered Sister Wanrou, I really thought that she had died. She was slumped on the floor, quiet andpletely still. And she was even lying in a huge pool of her own blood! When I ran over to check on her, I discovered that her breathing was so weak that I could barely sense it! Then, when Sister Wanrou finally woke up, she even said that she carelessly injured herself. How could anyone ¡°carelessly harm themselves¡± to such an extent?! I think that Sister Wanrou must definitely have been threatened by Jun Xiaomo to keep mum about it!¡±

    Qin Shanshan clearly embellished the facts, and at the end even used Jun Xiaomo of ¡°threatening her fellow disciple¡±.

    In order to maintain the appearance of fairness, disciples from every Peak would be in attendance every time the Penal Hallmences an inquest. At the same time, they are often only in attendance, and had no speaking rights. In the end, the final verdict stilly with the few Sect Elders presiding over the Penal Hall. Right now, after hearing Qin Shanshan¡¯s impassioned spiel, the various disciples in attendance could not help but begin to feel angry and upset.

    After all, it was a universally epted fact that those with bad character are often loathed and disapproved by others, regardless of which Sect or Peak they came from.

    There was also a person from Heavenly Peak in attendance. He wore a veiled conical hat, silently and casually sitting there. His body exuded a sharp, dignified aura, yet because of the veil over his face no one could see his expressions clearly. He did not interact with anyone else. Even though he seemed a little out of ce, no one dared to belittle him either.

    He was the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak, twenty-five years of age. In terms of strength, he was the same as Qin Lingyu, or perhaps even slightly better. If not for the fact that he had been disfigured by a wave of demonic energy which corroded his skin when he was ten years-old, perhaps the number of female disciples fawning over him would beparable to the number who surrounded Qin Lingyu. Yet, this was merely ¡°if¡± it were the case. The fact remained that the demonic energy which corroded Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face left a huge, terrifying scar on his face,pletely ruining that originally striking appearance of his.

    That was right ¨C this was the exact Ye Xiuwen whom Jun Xiaomo had been looking for ever since she had been reborn. Of all the people present in the Penal Hall, no one knew that Ye Xiuwen had personally witnessed Jun Xiaomo strike Yu Wanrou with her palm. And Ye Xiuwen did not intend to let the cat out of the bag.

    Jun Xiaomo was his master¡¯s daughter and his martial sister. On ount of that, he was not going to stand on Yu Wanrou¡¯s side.

    He just sat there, silently observing the proceedings before him.

    Yu Wanrou had not said a single thing during the course of the inquest. She merely hung her head low, silently shedding tears. As these immacte droplets of tears coursed down her beautiful cheeks, they scattered in sorrowful exuberance as they dripped onto her arms, momentarily glistening before fading away into her clothes. Her appearance right now exuded an aura of sadness and humiliation.

    Many of the disciples in attendance saw her sorrow-filled appearances and immediately sympathized with her. It can be said that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reputation preceded her ¨C these disciples had often heard rumours of how Jun Xiaomo had bullied Yu Wanrou. From what they could see today, perhaps these tales were more than just rumours after all.

    ¡°Come over here. Let me examine the injuries on your body.¡± Second Elder gestured to Yu Wanrou. Yu Wanrou nodded her head, softly saying, ¡°Then, I¡¯ll have to trouble Second Elder.¡± Leaning on Qin Shanshan¡¯s arm for support, Yu Wanrou made her way towards where the Second Elder was seated.

    Since this was the Penal Hall, and there were so many people bearing witness to the proceedings, she and Qin Lingyu would naturally have to be even more careful with each other to prevent raising suspicions.

    The Second Elder promptly ced his fingers on Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist, closed his eyes, and sent a thread of spiritual energy throughout her meridians.

    ¡°Her meridians and Dantian have been damaged.¡± The Second Elder opened his eyes and reported his findings to the other Sect Elders. Then, he turned to Yu Wanrou, asking, ¡°Have you taken any Dantian repairing medicine?¡±

    Yu Wanrou nodded her head in response; her face still bore traces of her tears. Qin Shanshan added, ¡°My brother gave that to Sister Wanrou. Sister Wanrou is really pitiful ¨C she has been hurt by Jun Xiaomo so badly that her cultivation level nearly fell!¡±

    Qin Shanshan seemed to interject whenever she could emphasize the message that ¡°Jun Xiaomo injured Yu Wanrou¡±, as though she had witnessed the assault with her own eyes.

    As the Second Elder signaled for them to return to their seats, he conferred with his fellow Sect Elders before announcing, ¡°Let¡¯s wait for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arrival before we form our verdict.¡±

    Just as the Second Elder finished speaking, a clear voice rang out from outside the Penal Hall, ¡°There¡¯s no need to wait. I¡¯m here.¡±

    Most people in the Penal Hall could feel that the voice which they just heard was exceptionally calm andposed.

    Momentster, a figure dressed in fiery-red clothing entered everybody¡¯s field of vision. Jun Xiaomo had coolly made her appearance.

    As Jun Xiaomo arrived, everyone in the Penal Hall made different expressions on their face. Some wore a look of disdain, some were fuming, some raised an eyebrow with suspicion, and yet others had their noses in the air, arrogant and indifferent. Jun Xiaomo swept her gaze across the hall, taking in all the various expressions worn by the different people. As her eyes shifted to where Ye Xiuwen was seated, her eyes quivered and paused for a moment before promptly moving on.

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu had thought that Jun Xiaomo was looking for him, and would react with joy and affection when she saw him. To his surprise, Jun Xiaomo merely swept her gaze past him indifferently without pausing.

    It was as though he were just like any other person around.

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows. He felt that something was amiss ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s presentck of reaction to his presence was quite different from what he was used to.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu feared that the secret rtionship between him and Yu Wanrou had been discovered by Jun Xiaomo. The notion of something as outrageous as Jun Xiaomo being reborn certainly did not cross Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind.

    Thinking of how Yu Wanrou had been hurt this time, Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes gleamed with an ineffableplexity.

    Perhaps he would find an opportunity to sound out Jun Xiaomo to see what she knew and where she stood on the matter. At the very least, he could not let Jun Xiaomo remain at odds with him.

    Jun Xiaomo could hardly be bothered with Qin Lingyu¡¯s schemes. She walked before the three presiding Sect Elders, before respectfully bowing before them, ¡°Three-hundred fifty-second generation disciple, Jun Xiaomo humbly greets the Second Elder, the Third Elder and the Fifth Elder. May I humbly ask the reason for these respectable Sect Elders¡¯ urgent summons today?¡±

    Even though she was suspicious of the Sect Elders before her, she nevertheless had to remain respectful of their stature and disy etiquette inpliance with sect regtions.

    The Second Elder lifted his eyes, stating inly, ¡°The disciples below have used you of harming fellow disciples, and threatening them not to expose you. Do you deny these usations?¡±

    ¡°Oh? Harming fellow disciples? Who have I harmed, may I ask?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around, asking perplexedly.

    ¡°Are you still acting innocent? You¡¯ve beaten Sister Wanrou so badly that her cultivation has almost been affected!¡± Qin Shanshan exploded in fury. Seeing Jun Xiaomo act this way, Qin Shanshan was immediately reminded of the incident regarding the hairpin and her rage swelled up to boiling point.

    ¡°Her cultivation was almost affected? So serious?!¡± Jun Xiaomo responded with a shocked look on her face.

    ¡°Yeah-uh. That¡¯s how it is. So you admit that you did it now?¡± Qin Shanshan felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response was an implied admission of her guilt, and she gleefully anticipated the look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face when she receives punishment.

    ¡°Mmm...I do admit that I dislike Yu Wanrou.¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnly nodded her head, shocking the audience with her honest response.

    What a headstrong and arrogantdy! She doesn¡¯t even bother to maintain any appearance of civility with people! The people in the audience all eximed to themselves.

    Hearing this, Yu Wanrou mocked Jun Xiaomo silently in her heart ¨C If this foolish Jun Xiaomo only knew to appear vulnerable and pitifully deny the usations, perhaps she might gain some redeeming ground for herself. Who would¡¯ve thought that she would immediately confess to these crimes?

    Did she think her previous punishment wasn¡¯t enough?

    Jun Xiaomo could vaguely guess what everyone was thinking. Raising her eyebrows and smiling, she suddenly added a twist, ¡°But...¡± Jun Xiaomo turned towards Yu Wanrou, and sonorously retorted with a flourishing vigour, ¡°I¡¯d like to ask martial sister Wanrou ¨C how could I, a person at the first level of Qi Mastery, possibly have caused you, a person at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, to suffer such great injuries?!¡±

    As the words left Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth, the whole hall was silenced.

 Chapter 14: A Non-Negotiable Slap on the Face (1)

    <h4>Chapter 14: A Non-Negotiable p on the Face (1)</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level fell to the first level?! How can it be?! This was the immediate reaction of all who had heard the shocking news.

    Who was Jun Xiaomo? She was the daughter of the Peakmaster of Heavenly Peak! Everyone knew that since young, the Peakmaster of the Heavenly Peak and his wife had always watched over their precious daughter closely, sheltering and protecting her from all harm. Even the fellow disciples within Heavenly Peak treated her as a precious little sister of theirs, always watching out for her. Therefore, how was it possible that somebody could have crippled her cultivation arts?

    If the audience were in disbelief, then Yu Wanrou found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ims to be absolutely incredible. Even though she was astonished when she first heard the news, yet when she raised her head and caught sight of that smirk on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, her emotions quickly settled down and she managed topose herself.

    Ah, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level fell to the first level of Qi Mastery? Absurd! She gave me a vicious palm strike just a few hours ago! How could someone at the first level of Qi Mastery have such strength?!

    Yu Wanrou could still feel waves of throbbing pain emanating from her chest where Jun Xiaomo had struck her. Even though she had taken recovery pills, these had yet to take effect, and she still bore the pain of her injuries.

    In any event, it was practically impossible to fabricate a story about the cause of Yu Wanrou¡¯s injuries. Since that was the case, what was there to fear about these little twists thrown around by Jun Xiaomo? Having thought about the matter more thoroughly, Yu Wanrou managed to calm down.

    In Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo was just an immature, headstrongdy, just like her stepsister from her previous life,pletely incapable of matching up in terms of her own craftiness and schemes. Therefore, Yu Wanrou refused to believe that Jun Xiaomo could think of any remotely believable excuse to exonerate herself.

    Perhaps she had used some medicinal pills to artificially suppress her true cultivation level? Yu Wanrou sneered in her heart. Cultivation suppressing medicines are effective only for a period of time. Once this period of effectiveness is over, then Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lies would naturally unfurl and fall apart.

    After Yu Wanrou carefully considered again all the possible exnations, she bit the bullet and decided to drive home the point that Jun Xiaomo had hurt her. She could never take this humiliation caused by Jun Xiaomo lying down!

    Of course, Yu Wanrou would not forcibly interrogate Jun Xiaomo. Her fortey with acting pitiful and winning the sympathy of others. Therefore, she adjusted her temperament and emotions, and then looked at Jun Xiaomo with reddened, watery eyes, as though filled with humiliation and unresolved grievances.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo, I know that we¡¯ve had some misunderstanding with each other, and I¡¯m not too hopeful that you would be willing to hear my exnation, but I sincerely hope that this misunderstanding wouldn¡¯t strain our rtionship with each other. How about let¡¯s just forget about this incident and move on? If it mollifies you, we¡¯ll just take it that I carelessly injured myself this time.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coolly took in every word of Yu Wanrou¡¯s ¡°heartfelt¡± speech. She couldn¡¯t help but secretly apud Yu Wanrou for that highly convincing andpelling performance. With not more than a few sentences, she subliminally convinced everyone of the notion that ¡°my injuries had all been caused by you, but I forgive you¡±. Replete with that pitiable expression of hers, this act of hers not only convinced many that Jun Xiaomo was the willful perpetrator in this incident, it even served to paint herself in a better light!

    Jun Xiaomo examined the expression of those seated in the audience. As expected, more and more were being swayed by the pretense of this ¡°pitiable¡± Yu Wanrou!

    She coldly chuckled to herself, turned around and respectfully bowed to the presiding Sect Elders, saying, ¡°Respectable Sect Elders, disciple¡¯s cultivation level has truly fallen to the first level. Please feel free to examine for yourselves.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could tell that Yu Wanrou¡¯s entire pretense was premised on her certainty that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation levels could never have been crippled. Yu Wanrou is going to be sorely disappointed this time. Jun Xiaomo thought with a crafty gleam in her eyes.

    ¡°Come over here.¡± The Second Elder wave his hands, summoning Jun Xiaomo before him. Jun Xiaomo calmly obliged, walked over and stretched out her hand before the Second Elder.

    The Second Elder ced his fingers on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of spiritual energy through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians.

    Compared with his examination of Yu Wanrou, the Second Elder spent a much longer time examining Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Three incense sticks¡¯ worth of time passed. The Second Elder opened his eyes, ced his hands down, and looked at Jun Xiaomo with a profound gaze, as though he were experiencing a mix of curiosity and disbelief.

    Jun Xiaomo gently closed her eyes, pretending not to notice theplexity in the Second Elder¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°So, how¡¯s her condition?¡± The Third Elder had a more vtile temperament. Seeing that the Second Elder took so long, his patience had long worn thin.

    Truth be told, he did not wish for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation to fall back to the first level of Qi Mastery. After all, Jun Xiaomo considered one of the more talented disciples of Dawn Sect. If Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had indeed been crippled, then Dawn Sect would effectively have lost one of its talents!

    This line of thought left the Third Elder rather anxious. The Second Elder deliberated for a moment, before addressing the Penal Hall, ¡°Disciple Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation has indeed fallen to the first level.¡±

    Immediately, the originally somber ambience of the Penal Hall exploded with chatter. The gaze of numerous disciples fell on Jun Xiaomo, some in shock, some with looks of pity and sympathy, while others coldly chuckled, taking joy in her misfortune.

    Yet, Jun Xiaomo seemed to bepletely oblivious to their stares, only calmly inquiring, ¡°Does this mean that the present matter has been decided?¡± As she said this, she looked directly at Yu Wanrou. Yu Wanrou bit down on her lips, desperately contemting whether to press on with her present usations. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stare made her feel even more unsettled at this moment.

    But before Yu Wanrou made her decision, another person interjected, moving things along ¨C

    ¡°How do we know you haven¡¯t taken cultivation suppressing medicines?¡± When Qin Shanshan saw that things did not develop as she had hoped for, she burst out with exasperation.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows, shifting her focus to Qin Shanshan, saying, ¡°Oh? Are you saying that my current condition is caused by cultivation suppressing medicines? That¡¯s fine, let¡¯s return in a few days, and see if my cultivation level has recovered or not. Did you forget that cultivation suppressing medicines have a limited period of effectiveness?¡±

    ¡°You...you could always take cultivation suppressing medicine just before the Sect Elders check on you. That does not prove anything!¡± Qin Shanshan retorted angrily, refusing to let go of the issue.

    ¡°Ah, a continuous pretense by taking cultivation suppressing medicine? Qin Shanshan, have you taken all of your Medicinal Knowledge and fed them to flies?¡± Jun Xiaomo bluntly mocked, ¡°Don¡¯t you know that cultivation suppressing medicine can only be taken consecutively three times before one¡¯s cultivation will actually fall? How much of an idiot must I be to resort to such measures?¡±

    ¡°Pfft....¡± A male disciple couldn¡¯t control hisughter ¨C fed flies with her Medicinal Knowledge? How did Jun Xiaomo evene up with that...

    He wasn¡¯t the only one in the audience who found it funny. The lips of numerous other disciples twitched uncontrobly as they tried to suppress theirughter.

    At this moment, Qin Shanshan¡¯s face was flushed red with embarrassment, her chest undted with increasing amplitude as her breathing intensified. Despite pointing at Jun Xiaomo and stuttering through a few ¡°you¡¯s¡±, she could not find any other words to refute what Jun Xiaomo had just said.

    Since when did her tongue be so sharp?! Qin Shanshan found that the present Jun Xiaomo was truly hateful. Twice! Within one day! Jun Xiaomo had twice embarrassed me in public. And this time not only is it before my fellow disciples, it is before my brother as well! Ugh!

    Qin Shanshan stared at Jun Xiaomo with such fiery intensity that her eyes may well have been on fire. Yet, Jun Xiaomo merely smiled daintily back at her, as though she werepletely unfazed and unaffected by Qin Shanshan¡¯s hatred.

    ¡°Oh, Qin Shanshan, there¡¯s one more thing that I would like to remind you about. With the cultivation levels of these respectable Sect Elders, I¡¯m pretty sure they would know if I had indeed consumed cultivation suppressing medicine. So, when you asserted that I had taken these cultivation suppressing medicine despite what the Second Elder had said, were you being over-confident in the quality of my cultivation suppressing medicine, or were you just doubting the Second Elder¡¯s cultivation level and abilities?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo maintained a simple smile on her face as she delivered her final blow to Qin Shanshan, driving the final nail into her coffin. Not only had Qin Shanshan been absolutely humiliated in public, she was even pped with a charge of ¡°disrespecting her elders¡±! Qin Shanshan''s anger momentarily reached a breaking point, her eyes flipped up, and she instantly fainted. Fortunately, Qin Lingyu managed to support her before she fell onto the ground.

    As things were right now, it was quite unlikely that Qin Shanshan would even think of leaving her home within the next few days. She had always been a person who viewed the idea of ¡°face¡± or her reputation as something of utmost importance to her. And this time, Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly trampled on that in public.

    Holding onto his younger sister, Qin Lingyu pondered over all these ¨C he felt that something about Jun Xiaomo was truly strange. Yet, he could not ce a finger on what had catalyzed such a change in her.

    Master He Zhang, let¡¯s just hope that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s change will not unduly affect our ns.Qin Lingyu thought silently to himself, yet his heart nevertheless felt unsettled.

    No matter. The n we have is perfect! As Qin Lingyu consolidated his thoughts, his heart grew with hardened determination.

 Chapter 15: A Non-Negotiable Slap to the Face (2)

    <h4>Chapter 15: A Non-Negotiable p to the Face (2)</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The final part of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arguments could be said to havepletely exonerated Jun Xiaomo from any further suspicions that she had consumed cultivation suppressing medicine. However, she had not exined how her cultivation had fallen back to the first level of Qi Mastery. After the Second Elder pondered about this for a bit, he raised his eyebrow and queried, ¡°When did your cultivation level begin to fall?¡±

    ¡°Response to Second Elder ¨C disciple is not certain of that.¡± Jun Xiaomo slightly bowed as she replied courteously.

    ¡°Not certain?¡± The Second Elder knit his brows.

    ¡°Yes, disciple is not certain of that. After disciple received the punishment for entering the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, Sect Leader had once examined the conditions of disciple¡¯s meridians and Dantian. Back then, Sect Leader only mentioned that the meridians were damaged, but the damage was not irreversible. However, in thest few days, the loss of spiritual energy from disciple¡¯s Dantian and meridians continued to grow worse and worse. When disciple finally discovered weakness in her limbs and the loss of almost all the spiritual energy in disciple¡¯s body, it was already toote ¨C disciple¡¯s cultivation had already fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery.¡±

    There was some truth in what Jun Xiaomo had said, and at the same time also some lies. Jun Xiaomo knew that half-truths were the hardest to detect.

    She was not afraid even if someone attempted to verify her ount with He Zhang. After all, she had indeed consumed all of the medicinal pills given by He Zhang. How would anyone be able to exin how her condition had ¡°worsened¡± when all she was doing was focusing on her recovery? Perhaps even He Zhang might not be willing to divulge exactly what medicinal pill he had given to Jun Xiaomo.

    Ah, the medicine to forcibly transform her spiritual body into a demonic body...did He Zhang think he could fool everyone?

    Of course, as Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, everyone in the Penal Hall was silent again.

    Everyone knew how seriously Jun Xiaomo was punished for entering the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. It would not be considered too far-fetched if her cultivation levels were affected as a result of the heavy-handed punishment from then.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you report this to the Sect?¡± The Third Elder asked.

    ¡°Disciple deserved the punishment for entering the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground in the first ce. If this caused disciple¡¯s cultivation levels to fall, then disciple deserves it as well. Therefore, disciple did not consider such a trifling matter of enough importance to disturb the cultivation of these respectable Sect Elders.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo exined conscientiously, presenting herself as a noble and considerate disciple.

    Act? She also knew how to act. However, her acting was not the pitiful type. Jun Xiaomo nced at thedy who was seated at the side with her head hung low. There was no way she could tell what Yu Wanrou was thinking of right now.

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, the Third Elder and the Fifth Elder nodded with some praise in their eyes. It was clear that the manner in which she had just presented herself left a very good impression on these two Sect Elders. However, the Second Elder was an exception. He continued to look over at Jun Xiaomo with aplicated look in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart sank a little, and she felt that the Second Elder¡¯s attitude towards her was a little bit fishy.

    After all, she had never offended the respectable Second Elder. If that was the case, then perhaps the Second Elder must have some other reasons for making things difficult for her.

    What reason is it? Is it because he just doesn¡¯t find me pleasing to his eye, or is it...

    As she dwelt on this matter, another person interjected, breaking her train of thought ¨C

    ¡°If I may...Sister Xiaomo, if your cultivation had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, howe you don¡¯t appear to be in any form of difort?¡± A male disciple seated not far away hesitantly asked.

    And not to mention you were even so overbearing and quick-witted earlier! The male disciple silently added in his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at him, and then indifferently swept her gaze around the hall again. Again, several disciples in attendance revealed a puzzled and unconvinced look on their faces.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, suddenly lifting her chin and hooking her lips, she proudly glowered at the male disciple, saying, ¡°Must I show it on my face if my body is in difort? What¡¯s the point of revealing it on my face? So that you can pity or sympathize with me? Pity; sympathy; mercy ¨C I, Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t need any of these things, because I am the daughter of Jun Linxuan. I have my pride. That¡¯s all. You decide for yourselves.¡± With that, she turned her head and looked away from all the disciples in attendance as though she were sulking.

    Didn¡¯t people say I was arrogant and obstinate, headstrong and unruly? Then I¡¯ll put on a show of my pride for all to see!

    Yes, the Jun Xiaomo now looked very prideful indeed. However, this prideful side of hers was not one that was contemptible or repulsive at all. If one said that Yu Wanrou¡¯s propensity to break out in tears attracted sympathy, then the fortitude that the injured Jun Xiaomo disyed by resiliently riding out the pain caused people to feel even sorrier for her, and perhaps also find her...somewhat cute?

    In fact, there¡¯s a type of animal called a civet [1] which behaves exactly like this. Even when it is injured, it would still calmly brandish its ws, disying its ferocity and unyielding spirit. Many of the disciples witnessing this scene unwittingly thought of this, including both Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen. However, none of them revealed these thoughts on their faces.

    Several of the male disciples were moved by Jun Xiaomo. These male disciples could not help butment in their hearts ¨C she truly deserves to be called the daughter of Jun Linxuan with her strong temperament!

    At this instant, an rm red in Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart! She could not help but look at Qin Lingyu and discovered that his eyes were trained onto Jun Xiaomo, even subconsciously revealing aplicated look on his face. Her heart wrenched momentarily, while she cried out silently ¨C No! Qin Lingyu is mine! Jun Xiaomo cannot snatch him from me!

    As though it were echoing the pain Yu Wanrou felt in her heart, the injuries on her chest suddenly tensed up in acute pain, causing her to cough relentlessly, as though she were about to cough up her heart!

    Jun Xiaomo followed the sound of the coughing and shifted her eyes to Yu Wanrou, coldly remarking, ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Sister Wanrou? Do you have anything to add? Or...do you still think that this person at the first level of Qi Mastery could hurt you who are at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, hmm?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not...cough cough cough...¡± Yu Wanrou had wanted to say that she was not trying to express anything with her cough. Yet Jun Xiaomo wouldn¡¯t let her have any opportunity to exin herself.

    ¡°What was that? You¡¯re not falsely using me anymore?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a mocking smile, intentionally misinterpreting what Yu Wanrou was trying to say. ¡°Then why not you exin ¨C how did I unreasonably bully you, the pitiful maiden, and how did I threaten you to keep quiet in an unruly manner? Do exin it carefully. Don¡¯t miss out anything.¡±

    Yu Wanrou viciously bit down on her lower lips; and her eyes welled up with tears again like a bursting dam.

    But this time, her tears were authentic. She was extremely sullen. She couldn¡¯t understand why every time she tried to recall the details of how exactly Jun Xiaomo had injured her, her memory would draw a nk.

    It was as though her memory had been altered or tampered with!

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes. From Yu Wanrou¡¯s expressions, she had discovered something.

    Yu Wanrou seems to have forgotten that moment where she had almost demonized! This was a good thing for her. It would be truly problematic if Yu Wanrou could remember that detail.

    Having concluded as such, she decided to shelve these thoughts for the moment.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly strolled towards Yu Wanrou, bending over her head to take a closer look at Yu Wanrou¡¯s tear-strewn face.

    ¡°Tsk tsk, it seems that I¡¯m truly ¡°unruly and headstrong¡± eh? See, I¡¯ve unwittingly even caused you to tear up! Although...I wonder where my reputation of being ¡°unruly and headstrong¡± hade from, hmm?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo carefully paced out and articted her words. Even though she spoke softly, yet every word spoken by Jun Xiaomo waspletely audible across the Penal Hall because of the surrounding silence.

    Within moments, almost half of the disciples in attendance widened their eyes in realization ¨C that¡¯s right, weren¡¯t their impressions of Jun Xiaomo being unruly and headstrong all based on hearsay and rumours? Many people had said that Jun Xiaomo had taken advantage of her privileged background to bully fellow disciples like Yu Wanrou who were not as privileged.

    Of course, if this entire incident were considered one of these instances of ¡°bullying¡±...then rumours truly could not be trusted!

    As she felt more and more sharp, scrutinizing gazes fall upon her, Yu Wanrou really couldn¡¯t help but feel an immense hatred swell up within her, fueling her desire to tear Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smiling face to pieces!

    On this day, their roles had finally reversed ¨C the hunter had truly be the hunted! There were numerous asions in the past where Yu Wanrou had acted as the weaker party and made things difficult for Jun Xiaomo. Yet today, she finally had a taste of her own medicine ¨C it was as though the vile, bitter pill Jun Xiaomo had served on Yu Wanrou were now lodged in her throat, choking her.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips again, resolutely deciding to throw caution to the wind. Havinge so far, she could not back down now, otherwise she would forever be known as the ndering disciple!

    Within the Sect, ndering fellow disciples is also considered a very serious offence. Yu Wanrou could not be unafraid of its consequences.

    Having decided as such, Yu Wanrou once again burst out into tears. Choking with emotion, she muttered, ¡°Sister Xiaomo, it¡¯s not that I intentionally maligned you, but the fact was that the person I saw then was really you. What could I do? Actually, I never wanted to pursue this matter, but I did not want our misunderstanding to continue unmitigated...cough cough cough...we...can we not just bury this hatchet? I don¡¯t need to know exactly who it was who injured me...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo straightened herself. After solemnly staring at Yu Wanrou for quite some time, she finally revealed a smile on her face.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes flickered with delight, expecting Jun Xiaomo to extricate herself from the situation and quit while she was ahead. Little did she expect...

    ¡°No way.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke from her moral high ground, emphatically enunciating each and every word she said, ¡°We can never bury the hatchet because you are a hypocrite.¡±

    Yu Wanrou almost choked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unexpected response. She stared at Jun Xiaomo in a daze, momentarily neglecting to shed her tears.

    [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civet

 Chapter 16: The Second Elderâ€™s Hidden Agenda

    <h4>Chapter 16: The Second Elder¡¯s Hidden Agenda</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was indeed a hypocrite, but she did not think that there was anything wrong with being one! If in her previous life her mother had not earned her father¡¯s love and favour by acting pitiful, then perhaps as a mistress and an illegitimate daughter, they would have been terribly oppressed by her father¡¯s fierce and fearsome first wife.

    Therefore, by Yu Wanrou¡¯s ybook, so long as she could achieve her own goals, any means and measures were permissible ¨C even if that meant using others as stepping stones.

    Yu Wanrou had never ced Jun Xiaomo in her sights. Even though Jun Xiaomo was Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, she felt that as long as Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart remained with her, it was only a matter of time that Qin Lingyu woulde to her side. Besides, Jun Xiaomo was extremely na?ve and foolish ¨C the type that would not only be oblivious to the schemes of others, but would even unwittingly help others aplish their schemes. Therefore, Yu Wanrou absolutely looked down on Jun Xiaomo.

    Who would have known that one day she would be forced into such a predicament by Jun Xiaomo?

    While Yu Wanrou found it permissible to use extraordinary measures to achieve her own goals, she did not want others to know of these intentions of hers. Therefore, when Jun Xiaomo publicly exposed her hypocritical ways in the Penal Hall, Yu Wanrou¡¯s face felt as though it was on fire.

    It was as though someone had peeled off the skin on her face ¨C the resultant pain even caused Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart to momentarily skip a beat.

    But because she was seated far away and her head was tilted up, others did not see the panic on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face. They only thought that Yu Wanrou had been shocked by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s imposing mannerism, sighing in their heart ¨C Jun Xiaomo is truly domineering; she even speaks in such a blunt and unrestrained manner!

    Only this time, the disciples did not feel as much ill will towards Jun Xiaomo. At this moment, they were unable to discern Yu Wanrou¡¯s character because they did not usually interact with Yu Wanrou, and therefore did not know what to make of the present scene before them. But that said, Yu Wanrou had always maintained a pretty good reputation around the Sect with her kindness and magnanimity. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s character was not too bad either. Her candour, her abhorrence for evil, her straightforward demeanor, and even that civet-like pride of hers ¨C these were all traits that were not loathsome at all.

    While others remained oblivious to Yu Wanrou¡¯s hypocrisy, Jun Xiaomo could see it with pristine rity. She smiled faintly towards Yu Wanrou as though saying, Yu Wanrou, this is but the first step. Just you wait and see...

    Yu Wanrou couldn¡¯t help but tighten her grasp on her clothes, biting down on her lower lips.

    At this moment, the disciples in attendance looked back and forth between Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou,pletely unable to discern who was right and who was wrong, or whether there was a third possible interpretation of the matters before them ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words arepletely reasonable, and her imposing manner makes her look like she has the moral high ground. Yet Yu Wanrou¡¯s teary-eyed appearances makes her look as though she is thoroughly aggrieved and humiliated. It also seems to be authentic. As things are right now, there is really no way to determine who is lying and who is telling the truth!

    As the disciples in attendance looked on in confusion, the Second Elder, who had silently been observing the proceedings, calmly took a breath, poising himself to interject.

    ¡°Everyone, the truth is, there is one small detail I did not point out earlier. Disciple Yu Wanrou¡¯s Dantian also seems to contain a trace amount of demonic energy. But, because it had been thoroughly mixed with her spiritual energy, I couldn¡¯t be sure earlier. Now, it doesn¡¯t seem out of the question that my suspicions were right, and Yu Wanrou might have been injured by a rogue demonic cultivator. After all, we¡¯ve previously also encountered such an incident where a demonic cultivator had disguised himself as a Dawn Sect disciple and hurt a real Dawn Sect disciple, thereby inciting an internal dispute.¡±

    What?! Demonic energy?!

    The disciples in attendance all froze in shock. Dawn Sect was a righteous and upstanding sect and had always abhorred the ways of demonic cultivators. Who could have suspected that a demonic cultivator would be involved in the present dispute!

    Only, why did the Second Elder not speak up about this earlier? Everyone harboured this question in their heart, yet no one dared to directly question the Sect Elders.

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes, concealing the roiling emotions swelling up in her heart.

    So that¡¯s how it is! These old fogey Sect Elders are actually able to distinguish between demonic energy and spiritual energy. If that is the case, why didn¡¯t any of them inform me about the demonic energy in my body in my previous life? Instead, they chose to wait until the demonic energy had erupted from my body before relentlessly persecuting me on the pretext of rooting out evil in the world!

    Jun Xiaomo suddenly felt her temple throbbing with pain. The rage in her heart continued to swell, and the surrounding chatter started to remind her of her lonely and deste days of her persecution where anyone around her could be a potential assant.

    ¡°Silence.¡± The Second Elder suddenly released a wave of pressure throughout the Penal Hall. The pressure released by someone in the Immortal Ascension level was not something that could be easily withstood. Many people momentarily felt their chests tightening up and their breathing quicken, yet nobody dared to utter another sound. The Penal Hall was now so silent that one could hear a pin drop.

    The Second Elder lifted his eyelids, saying, ¡°Since disciples Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou have both stuck to their own ount, both equally valid, and there is even the possibility of the involvement of a demonic cultivator, we shall adjourn this inquest for now. Lingyu.¡± The Second Elder called out to the Qin Lingyu who stood silently at the side, supporting Qin Shanshan with his arms.

    ¡°Yes, Second Elder? May I ask what orders Second Elder may have?¡± Qin Lingyu was unable to bow at this moment, and instead respectfully nodded towards the Sect Elders.

    ¡°I want you to bring a few of the Sect¡¯s disciples to scour the woods outside the Sectter and see if there are any traces or presence of a demonic cultivator.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Second Elder.¡± Qin Lingyu acknowledged.

    The Second Elder nodded his head in satisfaction, promptly standing up and saying to the rest of the disciples in attendance, ¡°This matter shall end here. Let this also be a warning to everyone here ¨C you must not harm fellow disciples, otherwise you will be punished in ordance with the Sect¡¯s regtions! You may go.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Elder.¡± All the disciples responded in unison. As the three Sect Elders departed from the Penal Hall, the disciples respectfully bowed, sending them off.

    As soon as the Second Elder had left, everyone in the Penal Hall buzzed into frantic discussions of what had just happened. Some people felt puzzled by the fact that the Second Elder would conceal the truth about the demonic energy on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body, while others still felt that the key to the truth stilly with Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou. As a result, many disciples secretly nced over inquisitively at Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou, hoping to glean some clues from their expressions.

    Yet, Jun Xiaomo merely clenched her fists, calmly looking in the direction of where the Sect Elders had left.

    She couldn¡¯t help but suspect that the Second Elder had only disclosed the fact about the remnant demonic energy on Yu Wanrou¡¯s injury in order to protect Yu Wanrou and save her from the charge of nder.

    But why? The Second Elder and Yu Wanrou were neither rtives nor friends. So why did he feelpelled to do this?

    Furthermore, if the Second Elder could discover the trace amount of demonic energy from Yu Wanrou¡¯s injuries, why was it that when my cultivation progress came to aplete standstill in my previous life, and the Second Elder examined me, he merely said that he could not find the cause of the problem?

    Did he truly not discover the umtion of demonic energy within my body, or did he never intend to disclose this observation?

    Jun Xiaomo eyes grew frigid and cold as she pondered.

    ¡°Wanrou, are you alright? Will you be able to go back on your own?¡± The voice of a male disciple rang from not far away, disrupting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s train of thought. Following the source of that voice, Jun Xiaomo discovered that it belonged to one of Yu Wanrou¡¯s suitors from the same Peak as her.

    ¡°I...I think I should be alright.¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s face was filled with tear-stained marks. As she said that, she struggled to mber up from her mat. However, her body was still weak from her injuries, and her legs immediately gave way. Instinctively, that male disciple stretched out his arm and caught her before she fell.

    ¡°Perhaps it would be a better idea if I sent you back after all.¡± That male disciple said in a concerned fashion, while his eyes spoke volumes about his adoration and fondness for Yu Wanrou.

    He was obviously pleased with the fact that he now had the opportunity to get closer to this beauty.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll have to trouble martial brother Ke then.¡± As Yu Wanrou gently replied, she subconsciously nced over at Qin Lingyu.

    On the other side, after Qin Lingyu gave instructions to a few martial brothers regarding the search for the demonic cultivator, he immediately carried Qin Shanshan and left the Penal Hall, not even ncing back at Yu Wanrou or Jun Xiaomo.

    Seeing this, Yu Wanrou dejectedly hung her head down. She could not help but feel bitter in her heart. Even though she knew that Qin Lingyu¡¯s coldness to her was intentional to prevent rousing the suspicion of others, she still could not help but feel upset. After all, the present Yu Wanrou had fully invested her heart in Qin Lingyu.

    Forget it. Jun Xiaomo is Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, and yet Qin Lingyu didn¡¯t bother giving her any attention either. Yu Wanrou thought in constion, gradually calming herself down.

    As she thought about it, Yu Wanrou lifted her head, hoping to see a simr frustration on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. To her surprise, what she saw was instead Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fleeting shadow ¨C Jun Xiaomo had rushed out of the Penal Hall, as though she were chasing after somebody.

    Hmph. She must be chasing after Lingyu. Yu Wanrou mocked ¨C go ahead, no matter how hard you chase after him, the person that Lingyu loves is still me!

    Of course, Jun Xiaomo was not actually chasing after Qin Lingyu. Ever since she was reborn, her heart would swell up with immense hatred and perplexing frustration every time she met an enemy of her previous life. Why then would she of her own volition put herself through such pain by chasing Qin Lingyu?

    Rather, she was chasing after Ye Xiuwen. A few hours ago, she had noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure sh by outside the Sect and had then spent a good amount of time looking for him in the woods. In the end, the only person Jun Xiaomo ended up finding was Yu Wanrou, causing her to wonder whether her eyes were ying tricks on her.

    Later, she noticed Ye Xiuwen again in the Penal Hall. That surreal existence had left an indelible impression in her mind, reminding her of the warmth and security of the final bastion of protection she had experienced in her past life.

    Yet, the former Jun Xiaomo had foolishly given up all of these.

    In this life, the person she had wanted to see the most, apart from her parents, would be Ye Xiuwen. Naturally, she also wanted to see her other martial brothers and sisters, but the desire to see her parents and Ye Xiuwen was the greatest.

    Jun Xiaomo swore on her heart that if Ye Xiuwen ever fell in love in this life, she would do all she could to help Ye Xiuwen find the right partner, even at the cost of her own life. This was what she owed to Ye Xiuwen.

    Naturally, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s partner would at the very least have to be dependable and virtuous. As for that despicable Zhang Shuyue from her previous life, Jun Xiaomo would not hesitate to let her taste the tip of her sword!

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously called out to that white figure in front of her, simultaneously hastening her footsteps and sprinting forward. Because of the drop of her cultivation level, her body condition was currently terribly weak. Yet, fueled purely by her willpower and desire, she maintained her pace and ran towards Ye Xiuwen.

    At this point, she did not know what came over her. But she felt that if she could not tangibly feel for herself Ye Xiuwen¡¯s existence, then she wouldn¡¯t be able to help but feel that all of this was but an illusion, and when she awakened, she would still be in that dank and dark dungeon.

    At this instant, Ye Xiuwen stopped in his tracks, and slowly turned around.

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo called out again, and the rims of her eyes suddenly reddened.

    In her previous life when they were fleeing from danger together, Ye Xiuwen had on several asions stopped like this ahead of Jun Xiaomo, silently waiting for her to catch up.

    Yet, she was also the one who caused Ye Xiuwen to die in her previous life.

    The present Ye Xiuwen never expected Jun Xiaomo to call out to him. Even more unexpected was the fact that Jun Xiaomo was now rushing towards him like an arrow just loosened from a bow.

    The veiled conical hat worn by Ye Xiuwen obscured his astonishment at this moment. Before Ye Xiuwen could even react, a petite frame shot into his bosom, tightly clutching his waist and burying her warm face into his chest.

    Ye Xiuwen stood in the middle of the road,pletely bbergasted.

 Chapter 17: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Past

    <h4>Chapter 17: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Past</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured repeatedly. At this moment, her eyes gradually welled up with tears.

    In the three hundred over days and nights she was held captive in the dark dungeon, she had on countless asions recalled that moment when Ye Xiuwen had died. Ye Xiuwen loved wearing white. Yet from that gaping hole in the middle of his chest poured copious amounts of blood, dyeing his entire outfit a blood-curdling crimson red.

    Jun Xiaomo had often wondered how would Ye Xiuwen be like if he did not have to bear the burden of looking after her? How would his life have been?

    With Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities and talents, he would surely have be a formidable cultivator, and perhaps even found his own sect!

    In the end, because of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s idiocy and recklessness, Ye Xiuwen perished even before he reached the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. This became one of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s greatest regrets in life.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s embrace grew tighter and tighter. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level was high, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level had fallen, her vice-like embrace might even have caused Ye Xiuwen some pain.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen lowered his head and his eyes fell onto his little martial sister who had buried her face in his chest. His eyes glimmered with mixed,plicated emotions.

    Truth be told, he and Jun Xiaomo were not close at all. Even though they hailed from the same Peak, but they barely interacted with each other.

    And it was not because Ye Xiuwen did not pay attention to this little martial sister of his. Rather, it was because of an incident some time ago which created a rift between them, prevented them from getting any closer to each other. As the former Jun Xiaomo never felt any kinship for Ye Xiuwen, she naturally also did not pay any attention to her increasing estrangement from Ye Xiuwen.

    At that time, Ye Xiuwen was fifteen years-old. He had, based solely on his own strength and abilities, won the praise and recognition of several people in the Sect, including Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, Jun Linxuan.

    With Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disy of talent at this young age, everyone was certain that he would achieve great things in life. Therefore, Jun Linxuan naturally appointed Ye Xiuwen as the First-Seat Disciple of his Heavenly Peak.

    Because Ye Xiuwen was appointed as Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, in additional to his usual daily cultivation, Ye Xiuwen also set aside time each day to learn from Jun Linxuan and improve his knowledge of peak management. It was at that time that Ye Xiuwen first encountered his cute and lovely little martial sister, Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter, Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen was older than Jun Xiaomo by a margin of nine years. Therefore, while he was fifteen years of age then, Jun Xiaomo had only been six years-old. Jun Xiaomo had always been sheltered and protected by his parents, and she therefore rarely appeared in public. When Ye Xiuwen first saw Jun Xiaomo, he immediately took a liking to this cute and adorable little martial sister ¨C her agile and curious eyes coupled with her chubby cheeks made her look irresistibly cute.

    Anyone who saw the six years-old Jun Xiaomo would find it hard to resist patting her head endearingly.

    The six years-old Jun Xiaomo ran out from behind her father clumsily, looking curiously at Ye Xiuwen with herrge eyes. As she fumbled over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, she looked up at that big brother, asking inquisitively, ¡°Brother, why do you wear a hat in the house?¡±

    The Ye Xiuwen back then also wore a veiled conical hat. When Ye Xiuwen was ten years-old, he was disfigured by a demonic cultivator who sent a wave of curse-infused demonic energy sweeping across his face, corroding his skin and flesh, leaving a sprawling, terrifying scar. Even with the vast,bined knowledge of the Sect Elders, no one had any means of removing this horrible scar from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face. Therefore, Jun Linxuan could only remorsefully pat Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulders in dismay.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen was not very much bothered by the fact that the scar could not be removed. He was very mature for his age, and he did not ce much importance on his own appearances to begin with.

    In any event, this cultivation world was a ce where the strong ruled and the weak were despised, and appearances truly did not count for much. Besides, because of his now-blemished appearances, Ye Xiuwen would have less distractions surrounding him and he could be truly focused on pursuing the path of strength. This was also the reason why Ye Xiuwen could be the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak in the first ce ¨C apart from his innately high talent, he possessed boundless determination and diligence.

    However, while Ye Xiuwen did not mind his blemished appearances, he did not appreciate the fact that strangers would stare at the scar on his face. Therefore, every time he went outside the Sect¡¯s premises for a task or mission, he would never fail to wear his veiled conical hat.

    That day, because he had justpleted a task outside the Sect and was just retuning to Jun Linxuan with his report, he did not remove his veiled conical hat.

    That fifteen years-old teenager sat silently in the hall, dressed in all white with a veiled conical hat obscuring his appearances. The exceptionally sharp aura he exuded was somewhat diluted by his dignified mannerism and his clean and pure white clothing, making him look both like a deity and yet somewhat warm and approachable at the same time.

    Jun Xiaomo was exactly allured by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura and appearance. As a bright-eyed six years-old girl, she was easily fascinated by the good things around her. Therefore, she curiously found her way beside Ye Xiuwen, thinking of removing the veiled conical hat from him.

    Brother looks so dignified. He must be very handsome as well! The six years-old Jun Xiaomo thought in her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen thought that this little martial sister only wanted to y with his veiled conical hat, and he had therefore intended to remove it and let her y with it. However, as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers touched the hat, he momentarily hesitated.

    His hesitation was because he recalled that there was that terrifying scar on his face. He truly adored this cute little martial sister of his and did not want to scare her away.

    The six years-old Jun Xiaomo pouted. She did not understand why this big brother looked like he was going to remove his hat, yet stopped at thest minute.

    The aggrieved Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks indignantly. But when there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way. She had the will, so she would think of the way!

    Her eyes spun around as she thought to herself. Suddenly, she mustered her strength and jumped with gusto, instantly knocking over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat.

    Ye Xiuwen was shocked and could not react in time. He never imagined that Jun Xiaomo would resort to such measures to have her own way.

    ¡°Wu-wu-......waaaaahhhhhhh¡ª¡± At that moment, the six years-old Jun Xiaomo immediately started bawling. She had thought this big brother with such a warm temperament would surely be good-looking. Yet who knew that his appearance that was before her eyes right now was so incredibly terrifying!

    Ye Xiuwen felt a bit flustered by her reaction. No matter how mature he was for his age, he was still just a fifteen years-old teenager. Besides, the girl crying now was even his master¡¯s daughter!

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you are not allowed to cry!¡± Jun Linxuan coldly ordered as his voice boomed across the hall. Even though Jun Xiaomo was his beloved daughter, there were some things that his daughter simply needed to learn. This disciple¡¯s appearances were not of his own choice after all. Additionally, Ye Xiuwen had already received enough strange stares tost a lifetime. Therefore, he could not bear seeing his own daughter rubbing salt into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wounds!

    No matter what, this daughter of his needs to learn not to judge people by their appearances!

    Although Jun Linxuan had ordered his daughter to stop crying, this in fact only made her crying worse. Ever since young, Jun Linxuan had rarely chided, let alone scolded his daughter. Yet today, he had fiercely raised his voice at her just because of a big brother with frightening appearances...

    Ye Xiuwen thought for a moment, and then raised his hand, intending to pat Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head to console this little martial sister whom he adored. However, as he stretched his hand forward, Jun Xiaomo ducked out of his arm¡¯s way and ran off to his father¡¯s side, looking timidly at Ye Xiuwen.

    The original affection and curiosity in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes had now been reced by fear.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen could not help but feel anguished. In the past when he received those stares from passers-by, he did not feel a thing at all because these people¡¯s existence in his life was transient and momentary. Therefore, he could not be bothered with what they thought at all.

    As for the people within the Sect, Ye Xiuwen had also earned their respect with his own strength, and they no longer dared toment on his appearances.

    But as for Jun Xiaomo, she was the beloved daughter of one of the people whom he respected the most ¨C his master and teacher, Jun Linxuan. Jun Linxuan had even once saved his life and brought him back to the Sect and protected him. As the saying goes, ¡°teacher for a day, father for a lifetime¡±. In his own heart, Ye Xiuwen had long since treated Jun Linxuan as his own father. By association, Ye Xiuwen had also counted Jun Xiaomo as his sister, and had enthusiastically anticipated the day when he would finally meet Jun Xiaomo face to face.

    Ye Xiuwen told himself then that if fate allowed it, he would treat her as his own sister, protecting and spoiling her.

    Who knew that their first encounter with each other would end in such an awkward manner instead!

    Ye Xiuwen appeared to be indifferent, but that instant where his face turned pale and tightly clenched his fist spoke volumes about his unsettled heart. Jun Linxuan sighed, patting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, saying, ¡°Xiaomo, apologize to big brother.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to! I didn¡¯t do anything wrong!¡± By now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes had be so swollen and puffy that they looked almost like peaches.

    ¡°Why is Mo-Mo crying?¡± Liu Qingmei stepped into the hall, asking. Her daughter¡¯s hysterical crying had caused her to rush over in a flustered manner.

    ¡°Muuuum¡ª¡± Seeing Liu Qingmei, Jun Xiaomo reacted as though her pir of support had arrived and leapt into Liu Qingmei¡¯s bosom, furiously wiping her tears off on Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulders.

    The relentless pitter-patter of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s teardrops would made anyone¡¯s heart ache for her.

    ¡°Good girl~ Mo-Mo, would you like to tell mother why you are crying?¡± Liu Qingmei hugged her daughter, tenderly patting her daughter¡¯s back whilst also ring at Jun Linxuan.

    Liu Qingmei felt that the only one present who could make Jun Xiaomo cry was Jun Linxuan.

    Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows. While he usually puts his wife and daughter first, he felt that this time he absolutely could not back down and indulge in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behavior, because her actions had clearly crossed the line. After all, he did not want his daughter to grow up being unruly and headstrong,ckingmon sense, or even cry at the smallest sign of trouble.

    ¡°Look at her! She¡¯s crying so hysterically just because I spoke to her sternly. She¡¯s really been spoilt by us!¡±

    ¡°Why did you chide her in the first ce?¡± Liu Qingmei raised her eyebrows, ring at Jun Linxuan.

    ¡°Her actions have hurt Xiuwen. Can I not admonish her for that? Xiuwen did not want her to remove his veiled hat because he didn¡¯t want to shock her. But she insisted on removing it, and now she¡¯s even making a scene out here. I asked her to apologize and she refused to do so. How can we let our daughter be so finicky!¡±

    As Liu Qingmei listened to her husband¡¯s exnation, she roughly understood what exactly happened. She shifted her gaze to Ye Xiuwen, promptly noticing for the first time that he was seated that with a dignified, upright posture. He was only fifteen years-old, and yet his demeanor exuded an inexplicable air of mncholy.

    This kind of mncholy was truly heartrending.

    Liu Qingmei sighed, patting her daughter¡¯s shoulder, she put her down. With some measure of strength she egged Jun Xiaomo towards Ye Xiuwen, saying, ¡°Mo-Mo, good girl, this is your big brother Ye. Remember how you often hear your father and I talk about him? Don¡¯t you also adore him very much? How about making friends with big brother Ye?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo pursed her lips, twisted her head away, before leaning on Liu Qingmei¡¯s leg, refusing to speak to anyone.

    She did in fact often hear her parents talk about big brother Ye, and even mention how he was young and promising. Yet not once did they ever mention that this big brother Ye would...would have such a frightening appearance!

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his head slightly. He knew that it might be asking too much to expect a six years-old little girl to discern right from wrong or be considerate to others. But at the same time, it was also precisely because her response was so innocent and pure that it really cut to the heart!

    ¡°Master, Ma¡¯am.¡± Ye Xiuwen stood up and bowed courteously. ¡°Disciple has some sect matters to attend toter, so disciple shall take his leave for now.¡±

    ¡°This...Xiuwen, why don¡¯t you stay for dinner? I¡¯ve prepared several home-cooked dishes tonight. There¡¯s enough food for everyone here.¡±

    Liu Qingmei felt deeply remorseful to Ye Xiuwen for her daughter¡¯s earlier misdeed.

    ¡°Thank you kindly, Ma¡¯am, but unfortunately these matters are rather urgent, and I¡¯m afraid I will have to rush back.¡± Ye Xiuwen tactfully rejected her.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine then. When you have the time, I¡¯ll bring Mo-Mo over to your ce to apologize to you.¡± Liu Qingmei also felt a little bit helpless towards her daughter.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly smiled in response. After he bid Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei farewell once again, he left without looking back.

    Ever since that day, Ye Xiuwen developed a habit of wearing his veiled conical hat at every moment of the day, even when he returned to the Sect. Furthermore, every time he crossed paths with Jun Xiaomo, he would subconsciously also avoid her.

    A Peak was in fact enormous. If Ye Xiuwen intentionally avoided her, then Jun Xiaomo would not even have the chance to see Ye Xiuwen more than once in a hundred years. As for the young Jun Xiaomo who had been shocked by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances, naturally she did not go about actively looking for her father¡¯s First-Seat Disciple to y with.

    As time passed, Jun Xiaomo slowly forgot about this matter, as well as the fact that she once bore such curiosity and adoration for her martial brother Ye Xiuwen. She knew that Ye Xiuwen was her father¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and also the fact that Ye Xiuwen had been disfigured when he was young, but she had long forgotten how Ye Xiuwen face actually looked like.

    To the young Jun Xiaomo, the name ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡± had slowly be synonymous with just another reputable person that people talked about ¨C Heavenly Peak¡¯s First-Seat Disciple; the third in ranking among all cultivators under thirty years old; the upper-tiered Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s inner disciple, etc. These were all descriptions used to describe this young, rising star in the cultivation world.

 Chapter 18: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Reckoning

    <h4>Chapter 18: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Reckoning</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Having been pushed away by Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt extremely bitter.

    She knew that while Ye Xiuwen appeared to be warm and approachable, the truth was that Ye Xiuwen had built a towering wall around his heart. Perhaps it was because of his dark past or that terrifying scar on his face; but apart from Jun Linxuan and his wife, Ye Xiuwen habitually maintained a distance from everyone else. This distant attitude of his caused him to develop a solitary and independent, yet mncholic aura about him. At the same time, he was also enshrouded with an air of loneliness which was particrly apparent when all was still and silent at night.

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Ye Xiuwen was once Jun Xiaomo¡¯s closest kin after her parents¡¯ death, and also her lifeline in her times of trouble.

    At that time, this white-garbed big brother of hers who always donned a veiled conical hat had helped her ride out one of the most difficult periods of her life.

    Yet, the former Jun Xiaomo could never tell whether Ye Xiuwen had helped her because they were fellow discipleship, or whether it was simply out of a duty to her thente-parents.

    After all, with Jun Linxuan¡¯s and Liu Qingmei¡¯s death, Ye Xiuwen inherited their duties and responsibilities, which included this little martial sister of his and the management of Heavenly Peak.

    To others, Ye Xiuwen could simply have forgone all of these and pursued his own dreams and future. But in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, duty and cultivation were both equally important, and none superseded the other.

    Because he had to look after this little martial sister of his day and night, counselling her when she gets depressed, and at the same time think of ways to expel the demonic energy within her, Ye Xiuwen eventually lowered his barrier and opened up his heart to her.

    He could sense his little martial sister¡¯s reliance on him. It was a strange sensation and feeling, but to Ye Xiuwen, this sort of feeling was not too bad.

    But these harmonious times were short-lived. On one asion when the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body erupted again, she had in her struggle against the demonic energy inadvertently knocked over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat. At that time, Ye Xiuwen was too busy holding Jun Xiaomo down to prevent her from hurting herself that he could not even bother about the veiled conical hat...

    But as the pain in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians gradually subsided and her consciousness returned, the first thing she saw was that terrifying scar sprawled across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, and she unintentionally let out a scream.

    The truth was, Jun Xiaomo could not even remember whether this scream was because she was shocked or afraid.

    Regardless, because she had hurt Ye Xiuwen for the second time, he once again put up that barrier to his heart. No matter how much Jun Xiaomo apologized to Ye Xiuwen thereafter, Ye Xiuwen never opened up his heart to her again. To Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo was no longer anything more than just his duty.

    As Jun Xiaomo roused from her thoughts, she could not help but feel like giving herself two tight ps on the cheek. She knew that she had once hurt Ye Xiuwen in her childhood; otherwise Ye Xiuwen would not have rejected her outright at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo knew herself. Put nicely, Jun Xiaomo was a person who liked beautiful things. But put bluntly, Jun Xiaomo was a thoughtless person who judged things only by their appearances.

    The irony was that in her previous life, those whom she loved schemed against her; and the beautiful Jun Xiaomo ended up having both eyes gouged out, and her appearances ruined.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo knew that she only had herself to me. After all, what goes aroundes around.

    Jun Xiaomo was deeply immersed in her tragic and sorrowful memories, and her tears fell incessantly. Despite her tears, she struggled to open her eyes, and through that blurry, teary vision of hers she gazed at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silhouette.

    She wanted to take off Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat. She wanted to tell Ye Xiuwen that she was not afraid of the scar on his face at all! Yet no words emerged from her lips ¨C as though the words she wanted to say were allpletely lodged in her throat.

    She could only continue to clench tightly to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes, as though once she let go of her hands, Ye Xiuwen would disappear from her life forever.

    Ye Xiuwen looked down pensively at Jun Xiaomo. Even though he could not clearly determine the expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face through the veil of his conical hat, he knew that Jun Xiaomo was crying at this moment.

    The splotches on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fiery-red clothing caused by her tear drops were unmistakable. A few drops of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tears even fell onto his own clothing, dampening his garbs.

    No matter what, she is still a fifteen years-old child... Ye Xiuwen sighed and silently thought to himself.

    Even though she put on an imposing air and an impressive disy in the Penal Hall, addressing three Sect Elders in front of an already suspicious audience could not have been an easy thing for her! Jun Xiaomo must have been so intimidated at that time, otherwise she would not be crying relentlessly right now.

    Ye Xiuwen attributed the present situation to the manifestation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fear, causing her to find sce and affirmation in the arms of an older martial brother from the same Peak. Regardless, his heart remained indifferent to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sudden appearance.

    ¡°Alright, you can stop crying now. Let¡¯s go back together.¡± Ye Xiuwen gently loosened her grip on his clothing.

    He recalled the scene in the woods outside the Sect a few hours ago where Jun Xiaomo had slightly demonized, and he had already intended to speak to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mother about it. At the very least, he had hoped for some rity as to what exactly happened to Jun Xiaomo.

    However, something told Ye Xiuwen that this matter was not going to be simple at all.

    As to his removal of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands from his clothing, he only felt that her outburst was a little bit too intense for him ¨C Ye Xiuwen had been used to living a solitary life and was not used to having people intrude on his personal space.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo did not mind Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion here, so long as it meant that Ye Xiuwen was not outrightly pushing her away.

    In this life, she was determined to make amends to her big brother Ye, as well as help him find his true love! With these thoughts, Jun Xiaomo could not help but smile, wiped down her tears, and then reflexively held onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s right hand.

    Ye Xiuwen was momentarily stunned by her actions. Even though he was not used to it, he nevertheless indulged in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheekiness here...

    ------------------------------------

    As her daughter seemed to be recovering well, Liu Qingmei felt sufficiently assured to leave the sect for a few days on a mission. Little did she know that immediately upon her return to the Sect, the first thing she would be greeted with was news of how her daughter was summoned to the Penal Hall to address a charge of harming a fellow disciple!

    The Messenger Paper Crane had been sent by her husband¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Ye Xiuwen. Liu Qingmei knew that Ye Xiuwen was not the type to callously joke about these matters ¨C if he said that Jun Xiaomo had been summoned on that charge, then this must be the case.

    At this moment, Liu Qingmei was both flustered and angry at the news. Without even bothering to tidy herself up after her long journey back to the Sect, she immediately departed for the Penal Hall. However, just as she stepped out of her room, she saw Ye Xiuwen holding onto her daughter¡¯s hand, bringing her back safely.

    Ye Xiuwen was clothed in his usual all-white attire, and exuded a warm yet dignified air about him. Beside him, her daughter¡¯s attention-grabbing fiery-red clothing seemed to dilute the surreal, almost-divine appearance of Ye Xiuwen.

    Liu Qingmei was momentarily stunned, and found this sight before her strangely harmonious. But this pleasant thought only dwelt in her mind for a short moment, before the wave of anxiety and worry in her heart swept it all away again.

    ¡°Mum!¡± As Jun Xiaomo noticed her mother standing at the door as though she were awaiting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s return, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes lit up, promptly letting go of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands and bolted towards Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Mum~~!¡± Jun Xiaomo leapt into Liu Qingmei¡¯s arms and cuddled up in her embrace. Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soul was technically over one hundred years-old by now, yet the fact that she could experience the love and affection of her loved ones in this life made her feel like a little child once again.

    Having once lost this warmth long ago, she knew that she had to cherish it and make every moment in the present count.

    ¡°Why have you got yourself into trouble again!¡± Liu Qingmei ignored Jun Xiaomo¡¯s endearing behavior. Furrowing her brows, she pinched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks.

    ¡°Ahhhh--! Mum, it hurts~!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately let go of Liu Qingmei and rubbed her cheeks in pain. She did not expect Liu Qingmei to actually use so much force there!

    ¡°Do you still know how to feel pain, huh? Why is it that just a few days after receiving yourst punishment, you¡¯re now in trouble again? I think you must¡¯ve been spoilt by us! Do you think that you parents can protect you forever?! When you leave Dawn Sect for higher tiered sects, we will no longer able to protect you anymore. What¡¯s going to happen when you get in trouble then?!¡± Liu Qingmei felt that her increasingly unruly daughter was truly deserving of a beating. Yet, Liu Qingmei could not bring herself to do it, and instead fiercely admonished Jun Xiaomo, hoping that that would jolt her to her senses.

    Jun Xiaomo quietly took in all the scolding, and tears begun to well up in her eyes.

    Of course she knew that her parents could not protect her forever. She had thoroughly experienced that in her previous life, so ¨C

    ¡°Mum, then next time it will be my turn to protect you and dad, okay?¡± Jun Xiaomo once again leapt into Liu Qingmei¡¯s arms, obfuscating the tears in her eyes.

    ¡°We would already be very grateful if could just stop getting into trouble.¡± Liu Qingmei patted her daughter back as her originally roiling emotions gradually subsided.

    Ye Xiuwen silently observed the scene ying out in front of his eyes. His veiled conical hat obscured his eyes, and no one could tell what expression he made on his face.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions calmed down, Liu Qingmei lifted her head, asking Ye Xiuwen gently, ¡°Xiuwen, thanks for bringing Mo-Mo back home. Seeing her leap and frisk about like that, am I right to say that she had not received any punishment this time?¡±

    ¡°Because of theck of evidence, the Sect Elders decided not to pursue the matter. However, Ma¡¯am, we might need to have a discussion regarding the condition of martial sister¡¯s body.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s said with a solemn and serious tone.

    ¡°Her body¡¯s condition? What happened to Mo-Mo?¡± Liu Qingmei worriedly examined her daughter¡¯s face, discovering that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was indeed pale and sickly. She had initially missed this detail only because of the bright-red clothing worn by Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Mum~ don¡¯t listen to big brother Ye. I¡¯m fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo held onto her mother¡¯s hand,forting her, whilst at the same time throwing a few nces over to Ye Xiuwen, hoping that he would not disclose the matter regarding the fall in her cultivation levels.

    She did not want her parents to worry about her.

    However, Ye Xiuwen either did not receive these ¡°visual cues¡± from Jun Xiaomo; or he did receive them but nevertheless decided to ignore them.

    Either ways, to Ye Xiuwen, he had a duty to report what he saw and heard to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents. Because of that, he did not pay any heed to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts or feelings.

    Liu Qingmei obviously believed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words. She red at Jun Xiaomo before looking back at Ye Xiuwen, tenderly saying, ¡°Xiuwen, don¡¯t stand on ceremony. Come, let¡¯s have this discussion inside.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen gently nodded in response, ¡°Okay. Then, pardon the intrusion.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say that. I can¡¯t even begin to thank you enough for all you¡¯ve done.¡± Liu Qingmei gratefully replied. She knew that this disciple of Jun Linxuan did not have much affection for her daughter. But he chose to show respect for Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei by putting more effort into looking after Jun Xiaomo. This thoroughly pleased and satisfied Liu Qingmei.

    Except, it¡¯s just such a pity that Jun Xiaomo had fallen for He Zhang¡¯s disciple...Liu Qingmei sighed in her heart.

    It was not that she thought Qin Lingyu was not qualified. In fact, it was just the opposite ¨C Qin Lingyu¡¯s qualifications were too good for Jun Xiaomo. Furthermore, Liu Qingmei¡¯s intuition told her that Qin Lingyu did not really have much feelings for Jun Xiaomo, and she feared that the marriage arrangement was forced onto him by his master, He Zhang. Liu Qingmei did not require her daughter¡¯s future cultivationpanion to have great achievements. Instead, Liu Qingmei¡¯s only requirement was that he would be true and sincere to Jun Xiaomo and treat her well. However, Qin Lingyu clearly did not meet this simple condition of hers.

    That¡¯s why every time she saw her daughter chasing after Qin Lingyu, Liu Qingmei would always have the urge to admonish her daughter.

    As a mother, how could she bear to see her own daughter get hurt by others!

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo knew that she could no longer hide from her mother the fact that her cultivation level had fallen. She dejectedly pursed her lips, contemting how she would assuage her motherter.

    Does this mean I would have to tell Mum all about the Nineform Spirituo-demonic Refinement Technique? If she asks about the origins of this refinement technique, what would I say?

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her forehead ¨C this is such a headache...

 Chapter 19: The Forgotten Marriage Arrangement

    <h4>Chapter 19: The Forgotten Marriage Arrangement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Mo-Mo, what happened? Are you feeling ufortable anywhere?¡± As Liu Qingmei carefully observed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition, she saw Jun Xiaomo rubbing her forehead and couldn¡¯t help but worry for her.

    Parents can truly never cease worrying for their children.

    ¡°Mum~ I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡± Jun Xiaomo endearingly clung onto Liu Qingmei¡¯s arm and stuck out her tongue, before giving her mother a yful and radiant smile.

    Liu Qingmei rapped her fist on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head,ughing in a good mood, ¡°Naughty girl.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s childish behavior had caused Liu Qingmei to subconsciously let go of her anxiety and worries.

    Liu Qingmei knew her daughter¡¯s nature. Ever since young, Jun Xiaomo had grown up in a honey pot ¨C apart from the strict cultivation requirements Jun Linxuan had for her, Jun Xiaomo had never had to endure any hardship or adversities in life. Therefore, Liu Qingmei was certain that if her daughter were feeling difort anywhere, she would long have leapt into Liu Qingmei¡¯s embrace andined to her all about it. At the very least, she would not be leaping and frisking about.

    Of course, it also did not ur to Liu Qingmei that the present Jun Xiaomo had in fact been reborn after enduring a whole life of hardship and adversity.

    Instead, it was Ye Xiuwen who had noticed these little changes in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behavior. He recalled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s speech in the Penal Hall ¨C ¡°Must I show it on my face if my body is in difort? What¡¯s the point of revealing it on my face? So that you can pity or sympathize with me? Pity; sympathy; mercy ¨C I, Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t need any of these things, because I am the daughter of Jun Linxuan. I have my pride.¡±

    Right now, it appears that her pride was not the only thing that caused her to hide the difort on her body ¨C not letting her loved ones worry for her seemed to be another reason.

    Jun Xiaomo never considered that her act of consoling her mother would cause Ye Xiuwen to reassess his original judgment of Jun Xiaomo. After Jun Xiaomo made her face at her mother, she turned around and noticed Ye Xiuwen seemed to be...observing her?

    Jun Xiaomo felt a little embarrassed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze. She subconsciously rubbed her face, asking Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, is there something on my face?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen silently shifted his gaze away, responding indifferently, ¡°It¡¯s nothing, martial sister. Would you like to stretch out your arm and let your mother examine the condition of your cultivation?¡±

    The three of them had taken their seats by now, and Ye Xiuwen tactfully brought the conversation back to the main agenda at hand.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that she could not avoid having this discussion any longer, so she looked at her mother and said with a shy smile on her face, ¡°There¡¯s nothing much to examine. It¡¯s just...it¡¯s just...it¡¯s just that my cultivation level has fallen to the first level.¡±

    ¡°What?! When did this happen?! Why didn¡¯t you tell mother?!¡± Liu Qingmei eyes knitted her eyebrows together as the fury in her eyes grew.

    ¡°Mum, don¡¯t...don¡¯t get angry.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted her mother¡¯s back, then softly murmured, ¡°It¡¯s nothing too serious anyway. I can always regain the same cultivation level with some hard work.¡±

    At least, this would be much better than having the demonic energy lodged in there, preventing any further progress to my cultivation level. Jun Xiaomo silently added in her heart.

    ¡°Rubbish! What do you mean ¡°not too serious¡±? Do you think it¡¯s so easy to regain your eighth level of Qi Mastery?! Besides, cultivation speeds tend to be quicker when one is young. Now that you¡¯ve returned to the first level of cultivation, you may not even reach the eighth level of Qi Mastery with another sixteen years of hard work. If you can¡¯t even step into the Foundation Establishment level, then you will be just like any other mortal, susceptible to the vicissitudes of life, and even death! Do you truly want your parents to witness your passing?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo noticed her mother getting increasingly agitated, and hurriedly poured out some tea, respectfully offering her a cup, saying, ¡°Mum, it won¡¯t be as serious as you¡¯ve said.¡±

    Liu Qingmei glowered at her, stifling an outburst of anger swelling rapidly from within her. In the end, she red at her daughter and received the cup of tea.

    As Liu Qingmei sipped on the tea, she reposed herself and coldly demanded, ¡°Stretch out your hand.¡±

    Seeing how her mother was still brewing with anger, Jun Xiaomopliantly ce her hand tly on the table.

    Then, Liu Qingmei ced her fingers on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of spiritual energy into her body, probing about her meridians and Dantian.

    Jun Xiaomo did not say anything else, while her eyes remained fixated on her wrist. No one could tell what she was thinking at this moment.

    Ye Xiuwen was also a man of few words. Unless it was necessary, he would usually prefer not to speak. Therefore, he also remained silently seated in his chair, patiently awaiting Liu Qingmei¡¯s examination of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition.

    At this moment, the atmosphere in the room was heavy and somber ¨C almost even stifling.

    After a long while, Liu Qingmei finally sighed and retracted her hand.

    ¡°Speak. When did you first discover that your cultivation level had fallen?¡± Liu Qingmei knew that this was the unfortunate reality ¨C one that could not be changed. Therefore, she was calm andposed when she asked Jun Xiaomo about this. Nevertheless, one could tell from her expression that she was still mad.

    She was mad that her daughter had concealed such an important thing from her. More than that, she was mad at herself for not discovering this situation earlier.

    If I had known about this earlier, perhaps Mo-Mo would not have...

    ¡°Mum, it¡¯s not your fault.¡± How could Jun Xiaomo not tell that that her mother was berating herself? Jun Xiaomo held her mother¡¯s hand, adding, ¡°Actually, even I didn¡¯t find anything wrong with myself at the start. The medicinal pills given by Sect Leader He Zhang was quite effective, and I felt that my body was recovering pretty quickly. But...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hesitated before continuing, ¡°But in thest few days, these medicinal pills seemed to have lost their effectiveness. Particrly, when I took that final pill, my body suddenly became extremely weak and lethargic. I thought that this was just the after-effects of the trauma to my body, and I would recover from it after a few days of rest. But even after a few days of rest, my body remained just as weak and lethargic. Then, when I finally examined the internal condition of my body today, I discovered that my cultivation level had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery...Mum, sorry. I didn¡¯t intend to hide anything from you.¡±

    Saying this, Jun Xiaomo hung her head low, revealing a miserable look. Seeing this, Liu Qingmei also could not bear to excoriate Jun Xiaomo any further.

    Liu Qingmei carefully considered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ount of what had happened, and thentched onto an important detail ¨C ¡°You mentioned that Sect Leader¡¯s medicinal pills suddenly lost their effectiveness?¡±

    ¡°Mmm...yes, they seemed to.¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her head again, hesitantly nodding her head before adding, ¡°Then shortly after, I began to feel weak and lethargic.¡±

    ¡°Did you eat anything else that was out of the ordinary during this period of time?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Jun Xiaomo ¡°recalled¡± for a moment, before affirmatively shaking her head.

    Liu Qingmei stared into the distance as she thought for a while, before asking again, ¡°Mo-Mo, do you still have any of the medicinal pills given to you by the Sect Elder?¡±

    ¡°I...I¡¯ve finished them all.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head, concealing the slight gleam in her eyes.

    Liu Qingmei furrowed her brows again, delving deep into her thoughts.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen was also looking at Jun Xiaomo pensively. If he had not witnessed with his own eyes the altercation between Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou at the woods, then perhaps even he would be fooled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current expression.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s innocent and pure expression was on point; anyone watching right now would be fully convinced that she is telling the truth.

    But Ye Xiuwen was well aware that Jun Xiaomo was lying. Just a few hours ago, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had evidently not fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, otherwise that single palm strike she had delivered to Yu Wanrou would not have had so much power behind it. Ye Xiuwen originally thought that Jun Xiaomo had only decided to lie to the three Sect Elders in the Penal Hall in order to avoid getting punished. But now, Jun Xiaomo was even lying to her own mother!

    Why did she have to cover up the truth about the fall in her cultivation level? No matter how much Ye Xiuwen thought about it, he could not think of any usible reasons.

    And besides, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations all seemed to be leading her mother to consider the Sect Leader as a potential issue, as though she were certain that the medicinal pills given by Sect Leader He Zhang were the source of the problem. But why was this the case?

    Ye Xiuwen knew that Liu Qingmei, Jun Linxuan and He Zhang were martial brothers and sisters from the Sect and they could be considered to be on rather good terms. This was quite apparent from the way in which He Zhang persistently pleaded the Sect Elders for mercy on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behalf when she had trespassed on the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Furthermore, as a Sect Leader, the recovery medicines and pills belonging to He Zhang are all extraordinary treasures. The fact that he could immediately deliver medicinal pills to Jun Xiaomo should also speak volumes about his care and concern for her.

    Therefore, there did not seem to be any basis for Jun Xiaomo to rattle the rtionship between He Zhang on the one hand and Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan on the other hand. But she had nevertheless done so.

    And this could not be attributed to mere callous speech either. Earlier in the Penal Hall, Jun Xiaomo had disyed her ability to tell a watertight lie to fool three Sect Elders to the point where they had insufficient evidence to maintain their charge against her. Not only that, she had even used that opportunity to give Yu Wanrou her just desserts! It was evident that this little martial sister of his was not someone who would simply shoot off the hip without any deliberation.

    In any event, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns and schemes seemed rather enigmatic at this stage, and Ye Xiuwen could not understand the ends she was trying to achieve.

    Ye Xiuwen had initially also intended to inform Liu Qingmei of the possibility that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body could contain demonic energy within. But now, he capitted and decided against it.

    Since Jun Xiaomo wished to conceal her body¡¯s condition to her own mother, then she must also have some ns to deal with it. If I divulged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s secrets here, it would almost certainly foil her ns instead. Ye Xiuwen silently thought to himself.

    Of course, it was not that he wanted to beplicit in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns. Rather, he merely assessed that Jun Xiaomo possessed the ability to handle her own affairs, and that there was no need for him to interfere any further.

    As to the fact that Jun Xiaomo lied as a result of her grand ns, that was not within the ambit of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s concerns. In fact, he felt that this was instead a rather wee development ¨C the shedding of her naivete and ignorance means that she would no longer unduly implicate and burden her own parents!

    In this regard, it could be said that Ye Xiuwen truly had foresight!

    Having considered all these matters, the satisfied Ye Xiuwen becamepletely taciturn.

    At this moment, Liu Qingmei finally spoke, ¡°Unfortunately, based on the lead we have right now, we cannot be certain that the problem was caused by the medicinal pills given by the Sect Leader. The medicinal pills given by the Sect Leader were rtively effective after all. Ai...it was my fault for thinking that you were recovering well and leaving the Sect for a mission. Otherwise, I would be able to stop your condition from worsening to this extent!¡±

    ¡°Mum~~¡± Jun Xiaomo held onto her mother¡¯s hands tightly, but did not know how else to console her.

    There were many things that Jun Xiaomo could not directly tell her mother about. Therefore, she could only covertly make insinuations or suggestions in order to protect these people that she cared for the most.

    She knew that it was impossible to expose that hideous and hypocritical side to He Zhang in just a short span of time. However, time was still on her side. As long as she had nted the seed of suspicion in her mother¡¯s heart, then that seed would surely sprout one day.

    ¡°Oh yes, your father is almost out of his closed-door cultivation. Once he is out, let him have a look at your condition as well. And at the same time, we should start discussing the matters of your marriage to Qin Lingyu with the Sect Leader.¡± Liu Qingmei said anxiously.

    The second half of Liu Qingmei¡¯s statementpletely startled Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    ¡°What?! Mum! I¡¯m only sixteen!!!¡±

    In her past life, her parents clearly thought that Qin Lingyu was not a good man. Why were they so anxious to marry her off in the present life instead?!

 Chapter 20: Upper-Tier Sect Selections

    <h4>Chapter 20: Upper-Tier Sect Selections</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°What is it? Aren¡¯t you very fond of Qin Lingyu?¡± Liu Qingmei found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions rather strange.

    ¡°Who likes that guy!¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted, evidently flustered by the turn of events. Liu Qingmei¡¯s suggestion here was not within her scope of considerations at all. Scenes from her previous life immediately shed before her eyes, and Jun Xiaomo had to muster all her willpower to suppress her emotions so that they were not unduly revealed in front of Liu Qingmei and Ye Xiuwen.

    She took in a deep breath, lowered her head, and clenched her fists tightly under the table.

    The tragedy in her previous life all began with that person. Earlier in the Penal Hall, she even had to consciously avoid looking in his direction to prevent her emotions from welling up within her.

    It was not because she was still fond of him; but it was because she was afraid that she would explode with uncontroble rage and hatred if she saw him.

    ¡°Mo-Mo?¡± Liu Qingmei worriedly tousled her daughter¡¯s hair. She had thought that her daughter was just upset that she was being teased. But now that she saw her daughter silently sitting there with her head hung low, it seemed that there was more than meets the eye.

    ¡°Mum, I¡¯m fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head once again and looked over at her mother with a casual smile on her face.

    It failed this time. Liu Qingmei furrowed her eyebrows even more, clearly unconvinced by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expression.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, is it because you and Lingyu had a quarrel?¡± Liu Qingmei was taking a jab in the dark. She knew how fond her daughter was of Qin Lingyu. Even when she was inatose from the Sect¡¯s punishment, she would constantly call out for ¡°Brother Lingyu¡±. Evidently, Jun Xiaomo had already fallen inextricably in love with Qin Lingyu, and this caused Liu Qingmei a lot of frustrations and worries.

    After deliberating for a moment, Jun Xiaomo revealed the harsh truth of the matter, ¡°We didn¡¯t quarrel. I just don¡¯t like him anymore.¡±

    ¡°How can you say that you haven¡¯t had a quarrel? These are clearly words borne out of anger!¡± Liu Qingmei red at her daughter, simultaneously patting the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, offering her guidance, ¡°Mo-Mo, matters of the heart need to be worked out together by both parties. You cannot be too headstrong, do you understand? Also, you and Qin Lingyu already have a marriage arrangement. Marrying him is only a matter of time. With your current situation, it might be better if you marry him earlier.¡±

    Upon hearing the words ¡°marriage arrangement¡±, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened in horror.

    How could I have forgotten this!

    The incident happened when Jun Xiaomo was fifteen years of age. Back then, almost the entire Sect knew that the daughter of Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster was fond of the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Qin Lingyu, but Qin Lingyu¡¯s attitude to her hadrgely been one of indifference. asionally, he would express some concern for her, or perhaps every now and then bring a small gift or two back for Jun Xiaomo from his missions outside the Sect. But apart from this, Qin Lingyu had been quite passive.

    Qin Lingyu also knew that Jun Xiaomo was fond of him. There was once when Qin Lingyu was hurt from one of his missions outside the Sect, and Jun Xiaomo had immediately rushed over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side, giving to him the only bottle of Lifesource Pill that she had. It was clearly only a very small wound, yet that had already broke Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disy of affection was so obvious and pure that only an idiot would not see it.

    But Qin Lingyu did not say anything ¨C he did not positively disy any signs of affection for Jun Xiaomo; and did not reject Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disy of affection to him.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s lukewarm attitude towards Jun Xiaomo was deeply upsetting to her who had strenuously pursued him. Finally, she exploded with exasperation. She stood directly in front of Qin Lingyu and asked him to make a choice ¨C either be together with her, or state clearly that he did not like her so that she would no longer be tangled in this mess.

    Jun Xiaomo was a person who practiced what she preached. If Qin Lingyu had indeed rejected her there and then, she would have thoroughly given up her pursuit of Qin Lingyu as well.

    But, not only did Qin Lingyu not reject her, he even proposed to the fifteen years-old Jun Xiaomo three dayster.

    Jun Xiaomo was only fifteen years-old. In the mortal world, it was not considered too early to be married at this age. Yet in the cultivation world, it was in fact considered slightly earlier than usual. Besides, both of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents did not find Qin Lingyu to be a trustworthy person ¨C this man was ambitious and far too cold. They were afraid that their daughter would be taken advantage of.

    ¡°Do you truly wish to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand in marriage?¡± Jun Linxuan asked with a cold gaze in his eyes, momentarily releasing an immense wave of spiritual pressure.

    ¡°Yes, I wish to marry her.¡± Qin Lingyu forcibly resisted the spiritual pressure emanating from Jun Linxuan, all the while coolly maintaining his eye contact with Jun Linxuan.

    Jun Xiaomo was also present at that moment. She wanted to stop her father from putting pressure on Qin Lingyu, but she was immediately stopped in her tracks by Liu Qingmei who red at her and shook her head sternly. If Qin Lingyu could not even withstand such a small amount of spiritual pressure, then it might be best for him to just give up right now.

    Then, Jun Linxuan once again increased the spiritual pressure on Qin Lingyu, asking incisively, ¡°Do you love Jun Xiaomo?¡±

    As Jun Linxuan¡¯s words left his mouth, Jun Xiaomo was momentarily rendered speechless. She subconsciously looked at Qin Lingyu with bated breath ¨C this was also something that she had wanted to know for a long time. Did Qin Lingyu ever love Jun Xiaomo; or was this all just unrequited love on her part...

    Qin Lingyu squinted her eyes, and without much hesitation, he nodded and said, ¡°Yes, I love Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo finally let out a sigh of relief.

    At this moment, Jun Linxuan released the spiritual pressure around Qin Lingyu¡¯s body, and Jun Xiaomo ran over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side, supporting him. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was filled with immeasurable tion and sweetness right now.

    Seeing her daughter bashfully look at Qin Lingyu with cute and helpless looking eyes, Jun Linxuan also sighed with resignation ¨C rather than saying that he was satisfied with Qin Lingyu, it would be more urate to say that he simply could not bear to see his daughter look disappointed.

    This was a father¡¯spromise.

    Furthermore, Jun Linxuan felt that as long as he was still around, Qin Lingyu would not dare to bully Jun Xiaomo at all.

    In any event, Qin Lingyu¡¯s proposal to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand in marriage had seeded. With the Sect Leader presiding over the formalities and the Sect¡¯s members as witnesses, Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu had finally sealed their marriage arrangement. Once Jun Xiaomo turned twenty years-old, they would officially be husband and wife, and cultivationpanions.

    Since she had been reborn, Jun Xiaomo had almost forgotten all of these.

    Thinking about how she used to desperately pursue Qin Lingyu, the present Jun Xiaomo could not help but feel like beating up her former self.

    The former Jun Xiaomo was so fixated on his express admission of love that she had failed to consider how authentic and real his love truly was ¨C after all, love is not merely an expression to be said, but something that had to be shown with actions and deeds. The Qin Lingyu in her past life had never allowed his ¡°love¡± to manifest in actions or deeds, and Jun Xiaomo had always been the ¡°giver¡± in the rtionship that they had.

    ¡°Mum, this is not borne out of anger. This is my decision after much thought and consideration. Qin Lingyu and I are notpatible.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo solemnly said to her mother, hoping that this would be sufficient to convince her mother of her present attitude towards Qin Lingyu.

    She¡¯s not even calling him ¡°Brother Lingyu¡± anymore... Liu Qingmei frowned, clearly distressed by a few considerations that had surfaced in her mind.

    If her daughter had truly recognized their ipatibility before arranging the marriage, then it was a splendid thing. But things are a bit moreplicated now that they have already arranged the marriage, and under the Sect Leader¡¯s authority no less. How could they just resile on the marriage arrangement just like that?

    Worse, a rescission of the marriage arrangement would be tantamount to giving the Sect Leader a p on the face ¨C it was aplete disrespect of his authority to formalize such marriage arrangements!

    Liu Qingmei was a person who always thought of others before herself and took the big picture into consideration. Even though right now He Zhang was a suspect for causing her daughter¡¯s cultivation levels to fall, but that was still no more than just a conjecture. After all, He Zhang had no conceivable motive to do this in the first ce. Therefore, Liu Qingmei temporarily shelved her suspicions for He Zhang.

    Furthermore, Liu Qingmei believed in leaving a way out for others and not burning bridges so that there is a possibility of a future together. She did not want this small incident to incite the Sect Leader¡¯s animosity.

    Besides, even though Qin Lingyu did not treat her daughter very well, he did not seem to treat anyone else very well either. Perhaps it was just in his nature to be so cold and indifferent in the first ce? Therefore, Liu Qingmei did not feel any need to rescind the marriage agreement at this stage.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, good girl. Would you like to tell mother why you suddenly say you and Qin Lingyu are no longerpatible?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo did not know where to begin discussing this. So, she exasperatedly asked her mother instead, ¡°Mum, then you tell me, why do you want to marry me off so quickly, huh?¡±

    This was not the mortal world after all. How many cultivators had already been married before they were twenty years-old?

    ¡°This...ai, Mo-Mo, mother is doing this for your sake. Lingyu is already at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and he could break into the Foundation Establishment level at any time. Once he is at the Foundation Establishment level, he would leave Dawn Sect to join an upper-tier sect. Unfortunately, you won¡¯t be able to follow him with merely an arranged marriage at hand. In fact, mother wouldn¡¯t feel as worried right now if you were still at the eighth level of Qi Mastery, because the Foundation Establishment level wouldn¡¯t be far away for you, and you could always reunite with Qin Lingyuter on. But now...now that your cultivation level has fallen to the first level, who knows how long you will take before you can even see the Foundation Establishment level in sight?¡±

    What Liu Qingmei had omitted to say was the fact that, given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current condition, there was almost a hundred percent certainty that she would not be able to enter an upper-tier sect. This was because in order to qualify for the upper-tier sects¡¯ selections, one of the conditions was that the applicants must have attained the Foundation Establishment stage before the age of thirty-five years. Jun Xiaomo had achieved the eighth level of Qi Mastery when she was only sixteen, and this was considered quicker than the average. However, if she started from scratch right now, to achieve the Foundation Establishment cultivation level before the age of thirty-five was hardly an easy feat!

    Hearing Liu Qingmei¡¯s analysis, Jun Xiaomo immediately understood that her mother was afraid that she would no longer be able to enter an upper-tier sect in her entire life. Therefore, she had hoped to let Jun Xiaomo enter through a back-door in her capacity as the cultivationpanion of a disciple of an upper-tier sect instead.

    Every five years, upper-tier sects would always send representatives to mid-tier sects to scout for talents and potential disciples. The higher the ranking of these upper-tier sects, the more stringent their entry requirements. For instance, the top-five upper-tier sects such as Limitless Sect or Frozen Sword Sect requires their applicants to have attained the Foundation Establishment level before the age of thirty-five years. Generally, the earlier one attains the Foundation Establishment level, the higher their talent is, and naturally this trantes to greater achievements in the future.

    Even though there were exceptions to this rule, because apart from one¡¯s natural talent, one¡¯s diligence and understanding were also very important, these exceptions were nevertheless few and far between. It can be said that almost all the exceptions to this rule were influenced by one¡¯s luck in some way or another.

    Of course, this rule was not absolute. For example, Chosen Disciples¡¯ cultivationpanions would not be under any form of restrictions on age or cultivation levels.

    Qin Lingyu was already a Chosen Disciple of the Limitless Sect. Once he steps into the Foundation Establishment level, then he would be qualified to enter the Limitless Sect. When Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level had not fallen, with her talent and a reasonable amount of diligence, to qualify for one of the top-five upper-tier sects was not a difficult thing. But now, given that her cultivation level had fallen back to the first level of Qi Mastery, even if she cultivated ceaselessly without rest, it might be difficult to attain the Foundation Establishment level of cultivation before thirty-five years of age.

    This was exactly Liu Qingmei¡¯s considerations before conceding that it would be for the best to quickly marry off her daughter to Qin Lingyu. After all, her daughter was only sixteen years-old; how could she bear to marry her off so quickly? But the fact remained that Qin Lingyu was already at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and would be able to step into the Foundation Establishment level at any time. Once he enters the Limitless Sect and discovers many more eligible and outstanding women there, who knows if he would even remember Jun Xiaomo in his heart?

    And besides, Qin Lingyu had always been rather indifferent to Jun Xiaomo...

    Jun Xiaomo finally understood her mother¡¯s concerns. But it was precisely because she understood her concerns that she had to resile from this marriage arrangement all the more!

    She straightened her posture, looked her mother straight in the eyes, and sincerely said ¨C

    ¡°Mum, I will not join an upper-tier sect as ¡°Qin Lingyu¡¯s cultivationpanion¡±. Even if it means I may never join an upper-tier sect in my whole life, I will not resort to such a backdoor approach. If I were to join an upper-tier sect, then it must be based on my own abilities. And besides, once I don the identity of ¡°Qin Lingyu¡¯s cultivationpanion¡±, can I even be considered a free person ever again? I will never be able to shed this title, and everywhere I go people would point and say that this is a person who has entered through the backdoor as Qin Lingyu¡¯s wife.¡±

    In the end, Jun Xiaomo paused for a moment, before dering with fierce determination in her eyes, ¡°Mum, I don¡¯t belong to anybody. I am my own person.¡±

 Chapter 21: The Spiritual Demonic Interchangeability Method

    <h4>Chapter 21: The Spiritual Demonic Interchangeability Method</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s past life, when she was twenty years-old, she had also entered the Limitless Sect in her capacity as ¡°Qin Lingyu¡¯s cultivationpanion¡±. But because her cultivation level stagnated at the eighth level of Qi Cultivation, she frequently received supercilious looks from the other disciples there.

    Therefore, she was determined not to repeat the same mistake in this life. Qin Lingyu was free to like or love whoever he wished, and it was no longer any of her concern. So long as he did not provoke her, she was even willing to pass up her original intention to take his life.

    Besides, Qin Lingyu had countless backers, and taking his life would also invite trouble upon herself. Of course, this did not mean that she was going to forgo any opportunity make Qin Lingyu suffer in what little ways she could.

    In hindsight, things were quite ludicrous indeed. If the former Qin Lingyu had truly cared for her, how could he have left her in such as helpless and sorry state in the Limitless Sect? What was even more exasperating was the fact that Jun Xiaomo had realized this only at the end of her previous life.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s profound gaze and determined tone left Liu Qingmei momentarily dazed, as though she had missed out an important detail. Her daughter seemed to have matured overnight! The Jun Xiaomo today was certainly no longer that little girl who would throw a tantrum or cry at the earliest sign of trouble. Instead, she had finally learnt to think for herself and n for her own future.

    However...

    ¡°Mo-Mo,¡± Liu Qingmei sighed, ¡°it¡¯s great that you¡¯re learning to think for yourself. However, do you understand that joining an upper-tier sect means that you can also tap into their wealth of cultivation knowledge and learn from amazing people? Dad and Mum will not be able to apany you for your whole life. If anything is to happen to us, the people that we are most worried about would be you.¡±

    The cultivation world was not as peaceful and safe as it seemed. Even a cultivator approaching the Transcendence level of cultivation could not guarantee that he would not meet with any disaster. Liu Qingmei thought that this daughter of hers who had always been sheltered and protected within the Sect might not have taken this fact into consideration.

    ¡°Mum...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart once again ached sorely. She swallowed the words that she initially wanted to say, and instead suggested, ¡°How about this. The upper-tier sects would visit us to scout for potential talents in three years¡¯ time. Give me three years of time. If I can recover my cultivation level and achieve the ninth level of Qi Mastery, then I will think of a way to rescind the marriage agreement with Qin Lingyu, and you are not allowed to stop me then; but if I fail to achieve the ninth level of Qi Mastery by then, then I will obediently marry Qin Lingyu when I reach the age of twenty. How¡¯s this suggestion?¡±

    ¡°This...¡± Liu Qingmei furrowed her brows, saying, ¡°Mo-Mo, are you certain you can no longer ept Qin Lingyu anymore? After all, the marriage arrangement was presided over by the Sect Leader ¨C it¡¯s not something that can be easily rescinded.¡±

    If there were no marriage arrangement, then everything would be on the table for consideration. But now that her daughter had entered into a marriage arrangement, presided over by the Sect Leader no less, how difficult would it be to rescind this?

    And besides, Qin Lingyu was even He Zhang¡¯s disciple...

    ¡°Mum, don¡¯t you worry about this. I will take care of that part. You just need to say whether you agree with my suggestion or not.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gradually hardened her attitude here. She knew that only by doing so her mother would willinglypromise.

    As for the method to rescind the marriage agreement, Jun Xiaomo did not think there would be any issue here. Once she found evidence of Qin Lingyu¡¯s secret rendezvous with Yu Wanrou, then rescinding this marriage arrangement would not be a problem. At that time, no matter how thick He Zhang¡¯s skin was, he would no longer be able to forcibly maintain the marriage arrangement of the two-timing Qin Lingyu.

    Just as Liu Qingmei was deliberating over this, Ye Xiuwen, who had been silently observing their interaction all this while, suddenly spoke up, ¡°Ma¡¯am, why not wait for Master toe out of his closed-door cultivation before deciding all of these matters? Besides, junior martial sister is right, joining an upper-tier sect as a cultivationpanion may not necessarily be a good thing.¡±

    He was different from Liu Qingmei. Liu Qingmei was perplexed because of her existing concerns for Jun Xiaomo. But Ye Xiuwen had the objectivity of a neutral third-party observer and could therefore clearly discern the advantages and disadvantages of awkwardly joining a sect as a cultivationpanion.

    Liu Qingmei also thought that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion was reasonable. At this instant, she merely sighed and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand in exasperation.

    Perhaps this is the best way forward. Dear, I hope youe out of your closed-door cultivation quickly! Liu Qingmei thought to herself.

    Jun Xiaomo felt slightly aggrieved at her mother¡¯s reaction. After all, she had attempted to convince her mother with lengthy discourse, yet her words seemed hardly as effective as that single statement from Brother Ye! That said, the silver lining was that her mother had agreed to shelf her intention to marry her to Qin Lingyu.

    As she thought about this, Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly to Ye Xiuwen, even revealing two small dimples on her face.

    Ye Xiuwen was stunned, promptly turning his head slightly and unobtrusively shifting his gaze away.

    He truly did not know how to respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s radiant smile that looked almost like a blossoming flower.

    Disparaged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response, Jun Xiaomo pouted. It suddenly dawned on her that the present Ye Xiuwen seemed to be even colder to her than the Ye Xiuwen in her previous life.

    But this was not entirely Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fault either. In her previous life before her parents met with tragedy, Ye Xiuwen had never shown much care and concern for Jun Xiaomo. It was only after her parents had been murdered that Ye Xiuwen had no choice but to bear the burden of looking after Jun Xiaomo.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen understood that these were his master¡¯s final wishes. If he did not look after Jun Xiaomo, then Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei would not be able to rest peacefully on their deathbed. And, in order to look after Jun Xiaomo properly, Ye Xiuwen naturally could no longer be cold to her.

    But in this life, Ye Xiuwen had no reason to look after his junior martial sister. On top of that, he had experienced a previous run-in with Jun Xiaomo that left a sour taste in his mouth. Naturally, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen would not warm up to each other.

    Jun Xiaomo also knew that at this moment, it would be wishful thinking if she had hoped for Ye Xiuwen to take the initiative to warm up to her. Therefore, she had to be the one taking the initiative in this regard, in order to win over this big brother who had bestowed her with many warm memories in the past.

    Ai, it seems that it would be a grueling task to get brother Ye to open his heart again. Jun Xiaomo stroked her chin as she thought bitterly to herself.

    Forget it. Perhaps I should focus on practicing my Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique instead. If I cannot get my cultivation levels up to speed, then I would really have no choice but to marry that scumbag Qin Lingyu.

    --------------------------------------------

    It was night-time. Jun Xiaomo sat cross-legged on her bed, recalling the contents of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique.

    Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique has a total of nine chapters. Each chapter corresponds with the nine different stages of spiritual and demonic cultivation. These stages are divided into Qi Mastery, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Immortal Ascension, Void Formation, Coalescence, Dharmic Enlightenment, and finally Transcendence.

    In this cultivation world, the techniques that remained relevant and applicable across all nine stages of cultivation are all known as the ¡°Heavenly Arts¡±. Most other techniques would only be relevant or applicable to two or three stages of cultivation. Therefore, cultivators who practiced non-Heavenly Art techniques would invariably have to look for a suitable cultivation technique every time they ascended to the next stage of cultivation.

    ording to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s knowledge from her previous life, there were no more than twenty Heavenly Arts known to this cultivation world, and these were all priceless treasures that were securely hidden in caches or vaults of upper-tier sects and supreme sects. Ordinary cultivators would never be able to gain ess to these Heavenly Arts manuscripts.

    At the same time, higher grade cultivation arts did not necessarily trante to a better cultivation art, because the higher the grade, the more difficult the cultivation method. Furthermore, there was also a special rtionship between the cultivation art and the cultivator themselves that was somewhat akin to the idea of ¡°fate¡±. If the cultivation art were not suitable for that cultivator, then the risks of going crazy or even dying in the course of cultivation bes much higher. Therefore, it was not umon for people to have familiarized themselves with a cultivation art, only to find a more suitable cultivation art at ater stage.

    Heavenly Arts were exactly like this. Even though the number of people who wished to practice these arts were as many as the stars, but the actual number of people who could stand on top of the world with merely one cultivation art were exceedingly rare.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had never heard of anyone in this cultivation world practicing the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, yet she felt that this cultivation art was the most suitable for her right now.

    This was a very subtle feeling, and perhaps could even be what cultivators often considered as the ¡°sixth sense¡±. In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had on several asions relied on such a ¡°sixth sense¡± to escape certain cmity. Therefore, she trusted her senses in this regard.

    However, once Jun Xiaomo hadpletely traversed the entire contents of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, she could not help but smile bitterly to herself. This refinement technique was truly a Heavenly Art ¨C exceptionally difficult to cultivate. Its requirements for the cultivator¡¯s patience, willpower, understanding, talent and diligence were all very high. Furthermore, every time the cultivator ascended to the next stage of cultivation, they would have to ovee a tribtion of sorts. As to what exactly this tribtion entailed, the manuscript did not specify its details.

    In the preamble of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, it even mentioned an unprecedented concept ¨C true energy.

    True energy was an intermediate form of energy that is only present during the conversion of demonic energy to spiritual energy or vice versa. It was by nature not a stable form of energy, and therefore it cannot exist on its own in the natural world. However, after a period of refinement, one can store true energy within the meridians and Dantian of his own body.

    This was the foundation and building block of the NineformSpirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique which enabled the cultivator to transform demonic energy to spiritual energy and vice versa.

    Two parts of demonic energy or two parts of spiritual energy could be consolidated into one part of true energy, and this one part of true energy would then be stored within the meridians and Dantian of the cultivator. As and when he saw fit, this cultivator could transform that true energy to demonic energy or spiritual energy.

    ¡°Is it truly possible to refine something such as true energy?¡± Jun Xiaomo queried aloud.

    It¡¯s worth a shot. Jun Xiaomo entered a meditative state and begun muttering the mnemonics as directed by the NineformSpirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique¡¯s preamble to transform demonic energy into true energy.

    As it turns out, she begun to feel traces of the existence of true energy forming within her ¨C the energy within her Dantian and meridians were gradually consolidating. Even though it was slow, it was surely congealing! The resultant energy neither bore any of the demonic energy¡¯s harsh properties, nor any of the spiritual energy¡¯s gentle and warm properties. It could certainly be considered as a formless, neutral, intermediate form of energy.

    I hadn¡¯t expected to actually seed in this! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart leapt with joy, and she continued to meditate in ordance with the refinement technique¡¯s instructions.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian were originally considered to be abundantly filled with energy, yet now they have once again begun absorbing more demonic energy and spiritual energy.

    The surrounding spiritual energy gradually entered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, filling up the emptied spaces in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian, and these were in turn subsequently converted to true energy through her meditations.

    When Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian had finally been filled to the brim with true energy instead, Jun Xiaomo had already meditated for four whole hours.

 Chapter 22: Yet Another Troublemaker

    <h4>Chapter 22: Yet Another Troublemaker</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo slowly adjusted her breathing, stopped absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy and released her meditative state.

    As Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes again, she could feel the viscous true energy within her body flowing about. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up into a faint smile.

    Things had proceeded much smoother than she had thought. This refinement technique seemed to be extremely difficult, and she worried that it would have taken her several attempts to be able to begin congealing true energy. Unexpectedly, she seeded on the first attempt, and without much difficulty at all!

    One part of true energy equaled two parts of spiritual energy or two parts of demonic energy. That is to say, the amount of spiritual energy or demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body right now was exactly twofold of the original amount!

    If one described Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian as a form of container, and assuming this container was fixed in size, then the energy within her body can be said to have beenpressed, therefore increasing the total amount of energy that could be stored in her body.

    This would be very advantageous to Jun Xiaomo, especially on the battlefield. If she faced off with an opponent of the same cultivation level and with simr abilities to her, then the mere fact that her body contained more spiritual energy or demonic energy could be the determining factor between life and death.

    ¡°It seems that the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique is not that difficult to cultivate after all!¡± Jun Xiaomomented to herself. Recalling the fact that the title page of this technique¡¯s manuscript even contained a warning which said ¡°Warning: Extremely Difficult Technique¡±, Jun Xiaomo even chuckled to herself, thinking that there might have been some exaggeration there.

    At that moment, Jun Xiaomo wanted to see if the effective doubling of her spiritual energy source would have any positive effects on her offensive arts or spells. Therefore, she made some hand seals and attempted to cast a spell that cultivators at the first level of Qi Mastery could use, me. To her surprise, not a single spark was emitted.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo attempted this a few more times, and to her horror, all of them had failed!

    Could it be that this cultivation technique would cause my sorcery sess rate to fall? Then that would be a huge drawback! Why didn¡¯t the author of this technique mention this?! Jun Xiaomo thought in bewilderment, before hurriedly closing her eyes again.

    Slowly, an image of that manuscript once again formed in her mind, and page by page, she painstakingly traversed the contents of the whole manuscript.

    Having a lifetime worth of experiences behind her, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soul had already been tempered to immeasurable heights, and her mental prowess were also exceedingly strong. Once a person attains a certain level of mental prowess, they would also gain an eidetic memory, never again forgetting a single detail or instance in their lives.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo could ¡°refer¡± to this book at any time she wished.

    ¡°That¡¯s how it is...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found the crux of the problem ¨C true energy cannot be used for battle at all. This energy would first need to be converted back into spiritual or demonic energy before one could then cast a spell, control spirit swords, or power a formation array.

    Furthermore, the Qi cultivation aspect of the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique was different from other refinement techniques.

    In her previous life, regardless of whether Jun Xiaomo was a spiritual cultivator or a demonic cultivator, when she was in the Qi Mastery period, she would enter a meditative state, and then in ordance with the cultivation method circte the spiritual energy or demonic energy between the surroundings and her body. In this process, the energy that is absorbed by her body would not stably remain within her body, but they would spontaneously disperse into the surrounding air, creating an interaction between the cultivator and the surroundings called the ¡°outer cycle¡±.

    Under the influence of this outer cycle, the cultivator¡¯s body would be gradually tempered. The umtion of these quantitative changes would at each breaking point cause a qualitative change in the body, thereby achieving the next level in Qi Mastery. This was the basis for establishing a strong foundation in preparation for the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    However, ever since practicing the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, the true energy umted within her Dantian and meridians would not spontaneously disperse into the environment. Instead, they now required an external force in order to create a simr ¡°outer cycle¡±.

    This external force was precisely the mnemonic which would allow the cultivator to turn true energy back into either spiritual energy or demonic energy. Furthermore, the mnemonic for turning true energy into spiritual energy was different from the mnemonic for turning true energy into demonic energy ¨C this was so that cultivators could adjust ording to the situation and do what was necessary.

    ¡°Fill one¡¯s meridians and Dantian with true energy ¨C this forms the infusion cycle. Then convert all true energy back into demonic or spiritual energy and disperse them ¨C this forms the diffusion cycle. Combine both cycles together ¨C this forms oneplete outer cycle. Only by achieving theplete outer cycle can one realize the effects of tempering one¡¯s body.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo silently recited this passage within the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, and then slowly knit her brows together.

    After some time, she gently sighed and softly spoke, ¡°As expected. A Heavenly Art that spans the nine stages of cultivation cannot be easy to cultivate after all. It is much moreplicated than a normal cultivation technique.¡±

    Earlier, she had onlypleted the part about filling her meridians and Dantian with true energy, or the infusion cycle. Then, there was the diffusion cycle which required her to disperse that energy within her body. She has not done so, and therefore it cannot be said that she haspleted the process exined by the manuscript.

    Jun Xiaomo crossed her legs and closed her eyes once again. Because she was still in the Sect¡¯s premises, she could not brazenly cultivate her demonic energies. Therefore, she chose to recite the mnemonic for converting true energy back into spiritual energy.

    One incense stick of time passed...two incense sticks of time passed...three incense sticks of time passed...two hours passed...

    What¡¯s going on? Why has there been no movement at all?! Jun Xiaomo released her meditative state once again, and she waspletely bbergasted by the current progress.

    The true energy was smoothly and stably flowing within her meridians and Dantian, yet none of them were being converted to spiritual energy and being diffused into the surrounding air.

    Could I have used a wrong mnemonic? I¡¯ll check again. Jun Xiaomo closed both of her eyes and adjusted her thoughts again.

    There¡¯s nothing wrong with it. Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows intensely, not knowing where the problemy.

    If the true energy within her body could not even be converted to spiritual energy or demonic energy, then she would be forever stuck in the first level of Qi Mastery, and she would be no more than a ¡°crippled¡± in the cultivation world!

    No, this cannot be! Since spiritual energy and demonic energy can be converted into true energy, then howe true energy cannot be converted back into spiritual or demonic energy? It definitely can! Jun Xiaomo silently encouraged herself.

    Who would have thought that converting spiritual energy or demonic energy to true energy was so easy, yet it was so difficult to transform true energy back the other way?

    Jun Xiaomo decided to try again.

    Yet another two hours passed, and Jun Xiaomo could finally clearly identify that the bloatedness apanying herpletely full Dantian and meridians had dissipated by a fair amount. This was proof that the mnemonic was not deficient, and some true energy had indeed been transformed into spiritual energy and dispersed.

    However, this level of efficiency was far too low! Almost two hours¡¯ worth of conversion, and the amount of true energy converted was not even ten-thousandth of the total amount stored in her body!

    But at this moment, Jun Xiaomo had no better solution in mind, and she could only grit her teeth and press on with bitter perseverance.

    As the sun rose and brilliantly illuminated the earth, Jun Xiaomo who had arduously cultivated for the whole night finally felt a wave of weariness wash over her.

    She concluded her cultivation and released her meditative state, and then sat there with her eyes closed,pletely still.

    From the time she hadmenced the reversion of true energy to now, almost ten whole hours had passed. However, from her estimates, the amount of true energy that had been converted to spiritual energy and dispersed was not even one-thousandth of the total amount within her body!

    With this level of efficiency, how long would she have to cultivate in order toplete one outer cycle? And how many of these outer cycles would she require in order to improve from the first level of Qi Mastery to the second level of Qi Mastery?

    Given the current progress, there was no need to even consider achieving the ninth level of Qi Mastery.

    Just yesterday, she had even confidently told herself that she would achieve the ninth level of Qi Mastery within three years¡¯ time, and then abolish the marriage agreement between her and Qin Lingyu.

    In the end, she has practically given herself a tight p on the face ¨C she had selected an extremely difficult cultivation art, only to have stymied her own cultivation progress. One could only say that she was now caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    Jun Xiaomo smacked her forehead andughed in a self-deprecating manner.

    I really shouldn¡¯t have been so full of myself. It would¡¯ve been great if I had simply insisted on not marrying Qin Lingyu. But now, I¡¯m not even sure if I will be able to fulfill the condition I¡¯ve set...

    Feeling depressed, Jun Xiaomo decided to go out for a walk. She wanted to experience once again the sights and sounds within the Sect, while simultaneously letting off some steam from her frustrations in her cultivation.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo wandered around the Sect aimlessly. Very soon, even she was unsure where exactly she had stumbled to.

    ¡°Yo~ I was wondering who it was dressed in such dazzling red clothing. Who would¡¯ve thought it was actually Jun Xiaomo, daughter of the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster, hmm?¡± An annoying voice called out just beside Jun Xiaomo, causing her to reflexively look in the direction of that voice.

    ¡°Dai Yue?¡± Jun Xiaomo btedly recognized the owner of the voice.

    ¡°Yuh-uh~ What¡¯s the matter? We¡¯ve not seen in other for only a short while and you¡¯ve already developed amnesia? Makes sense though ¨C a person punished for trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, before suffering a fall in cultivation level cannot possibly be a very smart person after all.¡± Dai Yue mocked, raising her head and staring at Jun Xiaomo out of the corner of her eye. She obviously despised Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo could not really be med for forgetting Dai Yue either. In her previous life, thest time she saw Dai Yue would have been over sixty years ago. How could she possibly recall who this person is in such a short amount of time?

    But once she recognized Dai Yue, the rted memories also came flooding to her mind.

    ¡°Dai Yue, aren¡¯t you a disciple of the Evesting Summit Sect? What are you doing in Dawn Sect?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked indifferently.

    The Evesting Summit Sect was quiteparable to the Dawn Sect. In terms of strength, both numbered among the top ten of the mid-tier sects. Since time immemorial, both sects have had a deep history of rivalry and conflict with each other. Yet at the same time this ongoing rivalry and conflict had been a constant source of motivation for sharpening the disciples of both sects.

    Dai Yue was annoyed when she heard the indifference in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice. She proudly raised her chin even more, saying incisively, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you still remember our five-year wager?¡±

    ¡°Five-year wager?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Three years ago, we both set our sights upon Brother Lingyu. Back then, we agreed that we would bothpete against each other in the uing Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition, and whoever triumphed there would be entitled to pursue Brother Lingyu. You haven¡¯t forgotten about this, have you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily stunned by Dai Yue¡¯s words. After all, Jun Xiaomo had of her own volition chosen to forget as many matters concerning Qin Lingyu as possible. It was only when Dai Yue had reminded her about these matters that she vaguely started to recall such a ¡°five-year wager¡±.

    But Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shock was written all over her face, and Dai Yue noticed it. Furious, she pointed directly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose and berated, ¡°I knew you¡¯d forgotten about this! Ah, we even agreed to a fairpetition then! But now? You¡¯ve ignored our promise and entered into a marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu! You absolutely can¡¯t be trusted at all! You deserve to have your cultivation fall to the first level!¡±

    It would have been fine if Dai Yue had not mentioned the marriage arrangement. However, now that she had mentioned the marriage arrangement, Jun Xiaomo could not help but feel a swathe of rage and frustration lodged in her chest.

    ¡°It was Qin Lingyu who proposed to me. What has that got to do with me?¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly refuted Dai Yue. This statement cut straight to Dai Yue¡¯s heart, causing waves of bitterness to emanate from her chest.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s statement here could not be considered a lie either. Qin Lingyu had indeed proposed to her. As for the back-story to that proposal, Jun Xiaomo could not be bothered to remind this jealousy-drivendy of its details.

    ¡°Impossible!¡± Dai Yue retorted angrily, ¡°You must¡¯ve broken your promise and harassed Brother Lingyu so much that he only agreed to the marriage arrangement to get you off his back!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re free to believe what you want.¡± Jun Xiaomo truly wanted to wash her hands off anything rted to Qin Lingyu. She did not wish to waste time chatting with Dai Yue over things that she could not be bothered about. Therefore, after curtly responding to Dai Yue, Jun Xiaomo brushed her sleeves and prepared to leave.

    As for what a disciple of the Evesting Summit Sect was doing at the Dawn Sect, this was a trifle that did not matter to her. It was none of her business anyway.

    ¡°Hold it right there!¡± Dai Yue barked at Jun Xiaomo. She was furious that Jun Xiaomo was leaving right after hitting the nail on the head.

    Yet, Jun Xiaomo ignored herpletely and continued on her way without even turning back.

    ¡°You¡¯re a despicable person, Jun Xiaomo!¡± Dai Yue was an ill-tempered person. She gritted her teeth as the festering hatred within her grew to its boiling point. Then, Dai Yue¡¯s eyes momentarily shed red with rage, she bellowed, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, go to hell!¡± As she said that, she fiercely pulled out the belt around her waist, charged forward and viciously struck out at Jun Xiaomo!

    Jun Xiaomo heard every single word that Dai Yue shouted. She tried to avoid the blow, but her movements were sluggish because she was unable to tap on the true energy within her body. Instantly, a cracking sound rang out ¨C Dai Yue had viciously struck Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back. Jun Xiaomo only felt a wave of intense pain emanate from her back before she was sent flying away like a kite with a broken string,nding heavily on the ground a distance away.

    ¡°Pu¡ª¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, dyeing the ground in front of her crimson-red in colour.

 Chapter 23: Battle, the Three-Year Promise

    <h4>Chapter 23: Battle, the Three-Year Promise</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Stop!¡± Two voices rang out in unison a short distance away. Before Jun Xiaomo recovered from the daze of being struck from behind, a blue figure swiftly strode over to her side, helping her up from the ground.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed a few times. The stench of blood filled her throat, and her vision was momentarily blurry. It took some time before her vision cleared up and she finally recognized the person supporting her, ¡°Sect Elder Yu...¡±

    Yu Zhuolian was the Dawn Sect¡¯s Seventh Elder, and was also the only female cultivator within the top ten Sect Elders in Dawn Sect.

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak for now.¡± Yu Zhuolian swiftly depressed a few acupoints on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, before promptly retrieving two pills from a bottle of medicinal pills and sending them flying straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth was filled with the stench of blood at this moment. With the addition of the medicinal scent of these two pills, the amalgamated smell waspletely repulsive. Yet, Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, chewed on the pills a few times, and managed to ingest them after much difficulty.

    Shortly after that, a wave of warmth emanated from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach and swiftly spread to every corner of her body, causing the immense pain at her back to substantially subside. Her grogginess also gradually dissipated.

    It had not been easy for Jun Xiaomo to have finally fully recovered from her earlier injuries. Yet in this instant, she once again found herself injured. Luckily, she had met with Sect Elder Yu Zhuolian. If it were any other person, perhaps she would not have been given recovery medical pills as quickly.

    The rtionship between Yu Zhuolian and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents could only be considered average. But Yu Zhuolian lived strictly by her principles ¨C she would not do anything thatcks integrity. Therefore, in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life after her parents had died and she was taken captive, whilst Yu Zhuolian did not protect Jun Xiaomo, she nevertheless refused to participate in the schemes against Heavenly Peak and covet Heavenly Peak¡¯s spirit treasures and sagely pills.

    ¡°Thank you, Sect Elder Yu.¡± Jun Xiaomo sincerely thanked Yu Zhuolian. At the same time, she was frustrated that her limbs had gone limp as wool, and her body was so weak that the simple ¡°thanks¡± to Yu Zhuolian had taken so much out of her.

    ¡°Mm.¡± Yu Zhuolian curtly acknowledged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gratitude. At the same time, her expressions darkened as she looked up towards her good friend standing some distance away, saying, ¡°Laifeng, this matter is caused by your daughter. Doesn¡¯t she need to give our Dawn Sect disciple here a proper exnation?¡±

    Yu Zhuolian was by nature already a very serious person. Now that she wore a stern expression and swept a chilling gaze towards both Dai Yue and Qiu Laifeng, Dai Yue immediately grew unsettled.

    Qiu Laifeng sighed, looked at Dai Yue and said, ¡°Dai Yue,e and apologize to this younger sister.¡±

    Dai Yue was older than Jun Xiaomo by two years of age, and it was quite natural to address Jun Xiaomo as a ¡°younger sister¡±.

    Dai Yue¡¯s lips quivered. After a moment of hesitation, she reluctantly muttered under her breath, ¡°Sorry.¡±

    In fact, Dai Yue already regretted her actions the moment that she saw Jun Xiaomo fly backwards.

    Dai Yue and Qiu Laifeng hade over to Dawn Sect as visitors today, and at the same time wanted to see if they had an opportunity to bump into Qin Lingyu. But fate has a strange sense of humour. Instead of meeting Qin Lingyu, she had instead encountered Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, Jun Xiaomo. And Dai Yue was then so incensed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s indifference towards her that she absolutely forgot that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, and thus had not held back when she struck Jun Xiaomo.

    Dai Yue was rash, but she was not stupid. She had injured someone within their Sect. If Dawn Sect sends people to further investigate this matter, both she and her mother might not be able to leave this ce easily.

    However, when her mother insisted that she apologized to her rival in love, Dai Yue¡¯s heart also felt ufortable and bitter, and her resultant apology therefore sounded half-hearted and insincere.

    Yu Zhuolian¡¯s expression darkened even further, ¡°Laifeng, you and I are friends, and I¡¯ve also seen Dai Yue grow up since she was a small child. But I cannotpromise on this matter at all. If this matter were handed over to be handled by the Sect, I cannot guarantee that Dai Yue would be able to safely leave the Sect¡¯s premises today!¡±

    Even though Yu Zhuolian and Qiu Laifeng were on good terms with each other, but Dawn Sect and Evesting Summit Sect were not. If Dawn Sect discovered that Evesting Summit Sect¡¯s disciple had hurt one of their own disciples within Dawn Sect¡¯s premises, then there was no doubt that Dawn Sect would leverage on this to forcibly gain some benefits from Evesting Summit Sect or coerce them into some form ofpromise.

    Qiu Laifeng had also thought of this, and as her face grew paler, she turned to Dai Yue and sternly hollered at her, ¡°Dai Yue, apologize!¡±

    Dai Yue was initially still rather reluctant to do so. Yet when Yu Zhuolian¡¯s chilling gaze swept over to her once again, her confidence dwindled.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry.¡± This time, Dai Yue¡¯s words were much more sincere.

    Qiu Laifeng judged that Dai Yue¡¯s apology this time ought to be sincere enough to be eptable. Therefore, she looked directly at Jun Xiaomo as she remained slumped on the floor, adding, ¡°I¡¯ll alsopensate you with three fifth-grade superior Energy Recovery Pills, and let¡¯s put this matter behind us, shall we?¡±

    Fifth-grade superior Energy Recovery Pills! To any reasonable cultivator, this offer was an extremely tempting one. To put things into perspective, with injuries like the ones Jun Xiaomo had just sustained, one fifth-grade superior Energy Recovery Pill would be sufficient to bring her back to full health. And the present offer was a whopping three fifth-grade superior Energy Recovery Pills!

    Qiu Laifeng thought that Jun Xiaomo would surely ept this tempting offer. Therefore, she looked calmly at Jun Xiaomo, waiting for her to nod her head in agreement.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes as she sized up the expressions of both Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yue. The former wore an expression as though she were being charitable to a beggar; while thetter timidly hid behind her mother, staring at Jun Xiaomo with resentment and asionally fearfully ncing over at Yu Zhuolian¡¯s direction.

    Ah, there¡¯s every expression possible present except for guilt and remorse. Did they think I got myself injured just so I could have those few lousy Energy Recovery Pills?! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart momentarily swelled up with indignation.

    This indignation was not incited solely by Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yue. She was also upset by the fact that the present her was just too weak.

    If she still had her peak strength from her past life, these people would not even think of looking upon her with such disdainful res.

    The indignation in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart grew and grew. She resented the fact that she was beaten so easily. She hated the fact that she was always being persecuted and oppressed by others!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes also grew frostier by the minute. Yet, when she finally reached her boiling point, her heart suddenly seemed to be at peace once again.

    Hooking her lips into a smile, Jun Xiaomo slowly said, ¡°Dai Yue, your apology is not sincere enough. I¡¯d rather not ept it.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Dai Yue¡¯s eyes widened with fury. She felt that Jun Xiaomo was trying to provoke her at this moment.

    ¡°Then, would this little fellow cultivator mind sharing with us what exactly you are looking for?¡± Qiu Laifeng¡¯s tone also carried with it some dissatisfaction, and her gaze now carried traces of animosity.

    Yu Zhuolian raised her eyebrows. This was the first time she had discovered that her friend¡¯s character was really nothing to rave about. At the very least, Dai Yue was the one at fault to begin with, so what gives her the right to react with such an attitude? This was not any way to spoil her daughter.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father is the Peakmaster of Heavenly Peak.¡± Yu Zhuolian matter-of-factly reminded Qiu Laifeng of an important detail.

    Qiu Laifeng¡¯s face ckened. She knew that Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster had a daughter, and this daughter of his had snatched away Dai Yue¡¯s beloved. Who would have thought that that daughter was this verydy before her eyes!

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s frail appearances, Qiu Laifeng¡¯s heart grew disdainful ¨C So what if you are the daughter of a Peakmaster? You can¡¯t even hold a candle to my own daughter. That Qin Lingyu person must be blind to have chosen this weakling over my Yue Yue!

    Even though she thought that in her heart, but Qiu Laifeng still decided to be respectful on ount of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, ¡°Since you are the daughter of a Peakmaster, it¡¯s no wonder you would find these fifth-grade superior Energy Recovery Pills to be nothing special. Would this little fellow cultivator mind telling us what you want so that you are willing not to pursue this matter any further? At the same time, leave a way out for others and you¡¯ll behold a future together. I hope this little fellow cultivator would be willing to give and take, and not be too greedy.¡±

    But how could Qiu Laifeng¡¯s contemptuous gaze escape from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes? Besides, Qiu Laifeng¡¯s words sounded as though she held the moral high ground in the present situation. At the very least, her words were certainly not something that should be said by a party at fault in any circumstance.

    ¡°Huh.¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly chuckled, before slowly speaking, ¡°It¡¯s still the same thing ¨C the apology is not sincere enough; I don¡¯t need it.¡±

    ¡°You--!¡± Dai Yue was about to explode with rage when Qiu Laifeng swiftly interrupted Dai Yue with her hand.

    Qiu Laifeng coldly said, ¡°I also wish to remind this little fellow cultivator that my husband is the Grand Sect Elder of Evesting Summit Sect.¡±

    In other words, Qiu Laifeng was now saying that her husband was superior to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, because a Peakmaster is only appointed a teacher based solely on their prowess; while a Sect Elder holds greater authority and power within the sect. Therefore, unless Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father managed to get the backing of the entire Sect, he would not be able to match up against Qiu Laifeng¡¯s husband.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, concealing the intense coldness within.

    After a moment of deafening silence, Jun Xiaomo looked at Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yue, saying, ¡°The uing Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition will be held in two years¡¯ time. I originally had a promise with Dai Yue that whoever wins the other in thispetition will gain the right to pursue Qin Lingyu, and the other party must back down. However, I now have no interest in such conditions. How about if I decide to change the condition?¡±

    ¡°What condition do you want to change it to?¡± Dai Yue impatiently asked, ring angrily at Jun Xiaomo.

    Obviously, the earlier condition has no meaning to you anymore - you and Qin Lingyu have already entered into a marriage arrangement. Infuriating! Dai Yue thought to herself in spitting anger.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°I¡¯ve decided that...if I beat you, then you shall apologize to me in front of everybody, and it must be with sufficient sincerity and to my satisfaction. How about it?¡±

    Dai Yue was momentarily stunned. She had thought that Jun Xiaomo would suggest a condition which would be extremely difficult to fulfill. As it turns out, it was simply apologizing to her in front of everyone.

    ¡°Just like that?¡± Dai Yue asked in disbelief.

    ¡°Just like that. But you must remember that it has to be ¡°to my satisfaction¡±. In other words, if your apology or facial expressions or bodynguage is not satisfactory to me, you will have to continue apologizing.¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly exined.

    ¡°Huh! You think that you can beat me in your current state? Laughable! Fine, Jun Xiaomo, I agree to your condition. But, if I win, then you and Qin Lingyu must rescind your marriage arrangement. How about that?¡± Dai Yueughed wickedly, expecting Jun Xiaomo to be put in a spot at her suggestion.

    ¡°Okay.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her palms together andughed, ¡°This is a pretty good wager. I agree.¡±

    She had already wanted to rescind the marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu in the first ce. With these conditions, she would not be at any disadvantage whether she wins or loses the wager.

    ¡°You...¡± Dai Yue had not expected Jun Xiaomo to agree to her terms so readily! Therefore, she looked suspiciously at Jun Xiaomo, unsure of what schemes she was employing right now.

    At this moment, even though Jun Xiaomo was still slumped on the floor, her face was filled with joy.

    Qiu Laifeng had also found the fact that Jun Xiaomo agreed so quickly a little bit fishy. She had more life experiences under her belt, and naturally her thought processes were a lot more thorough than Dai Yue¡¯s. Qiu Laifeng deliberated for a moment before speaking as though she had found the crux of the problem, ¡°This little fellow cultivator¡¯s marriage arrangement was presided over by your Sect Leader, right? My worry is that if your marriage arrangement cannot be rescinded so easily, then my Yue Yue would be the one losing out on this wager at the end.¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo was so infuriated that she almost burst out in a cold chuckle ¨C Your daughter would be losing out? What kind of a joke is this? Who was the one who had hurt me so terribly in the first ce? I was already being considerate and kind to them by agreeing to settle this dispute with a mere wager rather than let the Sect settle this matter for them! I give her an inch and she¡¯s now trying to take a mile!

    ¡°Then, what condition do you propose?¡± This time, the one who spoke was Yu Zhuolian. She was sorely disappointed with her friend, Qiu Laifeng. Spoiling her daughter without heed to any principles is something that she could never ept. People who walk different paths cannot make ns together. At this moment, she had decided that after sending them off this time, they would never need toe back again.

    Qiu Laifeng also noticed the coldness in Yu Zhuolian¡¯s voice this time. Nevertheless, she did not think she was at fault for protecting her own daughter. Her daughter was after all the child of Evesting Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Sect Elder. She should not have to suffer any humiliation or disgrace in front of outsiders.

    After Qiu Laifeng thought for a moment, she said to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°How about this, both sides are each allowed to change one condition. There is no limit to what it can be changed to, as long as it does not harm anyone; it does not strain the rtionship between the two Sects; and it is not require the other tomit an atrocity. How does that sound?¡±

    ¡°In other words, if I beat Dai Yue two yearster, she would have to agree to one of my conditions, and this condition could be to apologize, or it could be something else?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she rified.

    ¡°Yes. Conversely, if Yue Yue beat you, then you would also have to agree to one of her conditions.¡± Qiu Laifeng felt that this wager would be the fairest to both parties.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers moved about as though she were calcting something while she nced over towards that mother-daughter duo. Seeing this, Dai Yue sneered at Jun Xiaomo in her heart ¨C I knew that you were a weakling only appearing to be strong. See? You don¡¯t dare to take this wager anymore, do you? A cultivator at the first level of Qi Mastery hoping to beat a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Mastery in two years¡¯ time? What a joke!

    As Dai Yue¡¯s patience wore thin, Jun Xiaomo slowly raised her head, saying, ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s make this wager.¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Yu Zhuolian eximed, hoping to voice out her objections ¨C this wager seemed to be too unfair to Jun Xiaomo! At this moment, she truly regretted inviting Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yue over as guests.

    ¡°Sect Elder Yu, don¡¯t be too anxious. I have already decided on this.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hand, and thenughing, said, ¡°Even though the chances of winning are slim, but isn¡¯t it more exciting like this?¡±

    She had always weed a challenge. Where there is a challenge, then there is motivation. This was the characteristic imposing and brazen attitude of a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°Tsk. It¡¯s good that you recognize you can¡¯t win, you useless, first-level cripple!¡± Dai Yue mocked, before loudly dering to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°I also agree to this wager. This wager is now officially locked in. You cannot change it anymore.¡±

    ¡°Absolutely not. Oh yes, how about if Sect Elder Yu witnesses this wager?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around and asked.

    Yu Zhuolian silently considered this suggestion. She could see that Jun Xiaomo had no intention of changing her mind, and reluctantly nodded, saying, ¡°Sure.¡±

    Qiu Laifeng was now satisfied; while Dai Yue revealed a confident smile on her face. Looking at Jun Xiaomo, Dai Yue mouthed ¨C You. Are. Dead!

    Jun Xiaomo calmly smiled ¨C Just you wait and see; nothing is decided yet.

 Chapter 24: An Unexpected Reward

    <h4>Chapter 24: An Unexpected Reward</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo did expect that her stroll around the Sect¡¯s premises would result in an additional wager. With that, she now had a total of two wagers with others.

    One wager was with her mother ¨C if she was able to attain the ninth level of Qi Mastery before she was neen years of age, then she would think of a way to rescind the marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu, and her parents cannot stand in her way. That said, her mother did not expressly agree to this wager, and had left it to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father to decide whether to ept the wager proposed by Jun Xiaomo.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo knew that her father has never had a good impression of Qin Lingyu. Therefore, she was ny percent confident that she would be able to convince her father to agree to this wager.

    The second wager was the one she had locked in today ¨C if she beat Dai Yue at the uing Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition in two years¡¯ time, then Dai Yue would have to agree to one condition of hers, no matter what it was. Conversely, if she lost to Dai Yue, she would have to agree to one of Dai Yue¡¯s condition instead.

    ¡°These two wagers are both rted to my strength and prowess too.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed. Surprisingly, Jun Xiaomo was not worried about these wagers; she was instead filled with determination and fighting spirit. The despondence which Jun Xiaomo had left home with had nowpletely dissipated, and in its ce was now a willpower to ovee all odds. Adversity is the best motivation ¨C Jun Xiaomo was absolutely clear of this. Therefore, even if she ended up losing both wagers, she would not regret it one bit.

    That was because she knew that she would not continue to fail.

    Having thoroughly contemted these matters, Jun Xiaomo mentally shelved them for the moment, and consumed the two recovery medicinal pills given to her by Yu Zhuolian.

    These two recovery medicinal pills given to her by Yu Zhuolian were exactly the same as the one given to her by Yu Zhuolian at the start, and these pills could swiftly heal all of the injuries sustained by Jun Xiaomo. Because Jun Xiaomo had not thoroughly pursued the matter with Dai Yue, and Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yue were Yu Zhuolian¡¯s guests to begin with, therefore Yu Zhuolian felt guilty and responsible for indirectly contributing to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries.

    As a result, Yu Zhuolian gave Jun Xiaomo two fourth-grade superior recovery medicinal pills which bore quick results and carried no side effects.

    Jun Xiaomo did not stand on ceremony either. She graciously epted these two medicinal pills after thanking Yu Zhuolian. It was a fact that Yu Zhuolian had invited that troublemaking mother-daughter duo over. Furthermore, Yu Zhuolian had not blown up this incident because she had expected her guests to mitigate the situation out of respect to her. However, not only did her guests ignore her good intentions, they even reacted in such an unruly manner as though they were the ones who had been disgraced and humiliated.

    Therefore, since Yu Zhuolian wished topensate Jun Xiaomo using these three recovery medicinal pills, she graciously epted them.

    Besides, the current Jun Xiaomo needed to recover as soon as possible. The amount of time she had for cultivation was invaluable, and she absolutely could not afford to waste any time lying in bed in recovery.

    The fourth-grade superior recovery medicinal pills were truly effective. These two medicinal pills not only fully healed Jun Xiaomo from Dai Yue¡¯s attack, it even fully healed all of thesting injuries incurred by Jun Xiaomo when she crippled her own cultivation.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo felt as though she had been thoroughly renewed. All the pain and weariness apanying her injuries had dissipated, and she was instead rejuvenated with such vigor that she could practically cultivate for the next three days and nights without any rest.

    Of course, this were but a fleeting thought. Jun Xiaomo was well aware of the concept of striking a bnce between work and rest; and cultivating too hard could be counterproductive. In the pursuit of strength, one must always maintain a rity of mind and act ording to one¡¯s means. Otherwise, the consequences can be unimaginably dire.

    Once Jun Xiaomo had ascertained that all of her injuries had been fully healed, and her meridians and Dantian were also unaffected, Jun Xiaomo once again began to meditate, persevering in her pursuit to transform the rest of her true energy to spiritual energy and dispersing them to form the outer cycle.

    ¡°Eh? That¡¯s strange.¡± Jun Xiaomo did a double take when she felt that the rate in which true energy was being transformed back to spiritual energy had seemed to increase.

    Suppressing the joy in her heart, Jun Xiaomo roused from her meditative state, and looked at the sky outside while she calcted the time.

    After determining what time it was, Jun Xiaomo once again entered her meditative state, cultivating her refinement technique wholeheartedly.

    Two hours...four hours...six hours...

    As a whole night passed, Jun Xiaomo finally opened her eyes, and one would be able to tell that her eyes were now gleaming with joy.

    The true energy transformation speed had indeed increased! In the same amount of time, she only managed to transform less than one-thousandth of all her true energy, while today she managed to transform three-thousandth of the same!

    Even though three-thousandth were still miniscule, this did not discourage Jun Xiaomo at all. So long as it were possible to increase the rate of transforming true energy, then eventually she would be able to discover the key to such an increase and adjust her own cultivation speed!

    ted, Jun Xiaomo adjusted her emotions andposed herself, before carefully considering the potential factors which might have caused such an increase in true energy transformation speeds.

    ¡°The cause...the cause... That¡¯s it! The only thing that can be considered out of the ordinary would be my encounter with Dai Yue. During this encounter, Dai Yue struck me once, and I consumed some recovery medicinal pills given by Yu Zhuolian.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knitted her brows while thinking aloud, ¡°Which is it that caused the increase? Was it that strike from Dai Yue; or the recovery medicinal pills?¡±

    As she contemted the possibility of the former causing an increase in her true energy transformation speed, which in turn tranted to a constant need to get hurt, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body involuntarily tensed up slightly. Wouldn¡¯t this be a form of self-abuse then?

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo recalled to mind the fact that Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique¡¯s first requirement was the crippling of one¡¯s own cultivations. If now it also required people to beat her up in order to increase her Qi Mastery levels, then would it not be more appropriate to call this the ¡°Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Self-Abuse Technique¡±?

    Jun Xiaomo smacked herself on the forehead and abandoned this line of thinking. Then, she considered the other possibility ¨C recovery medicinal pills.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo had hoped that it was not recovery medicinal pills which had increased the speed of true energy transformation. From Jun Xiaomo¡¯s experience, it was never a good thing to increase one¡¯s cultivation through the aid of medication. Not only would this develop a form of reliance, such cultivation methods always improved only the form, not the substance. Worse, these medicine-reliant cultivators would invariably find their cultivation progress teauing after a certain stage.

    This was the importance ofying a good foundation for cultivation. The firmer the foundation, the stronger the cultivation base, and the smoother the cultivation path ahead.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo would very much prefer to rely solely on her own diligence.

    Forget it. These are mere conjecture. I need to put these theories to test instead... Jun Xiaomo thought inquisitively.

    But, those two fourth-grade superior recovery medicinal pills had already been consumed by her, and she would need to acquire more if she wished to put her theory to the test. And these medicinal pills were not cheap like cabbage to begin with.

    Jun Xiaomo was truly distressed at this moment.

    She rubbed her temple, deliberating whether she had to ask her mother for one more of these pills...

    ----------------------------------

    Liu Qingmei discovered that Jun Xiaomo had really changed. In the past, her daughter would practice cultivation not of her own volition. After all, sixteen years-olddies were all quite yful and outgoing. Therefore, Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan would always have topel Jun Xiaomo to practice cultivation byying down rules and regtions for her.

    Furthermore, apart from the time spent cultivating, her daughter would spend most of her time around Qin Lingyu unless Qin Lingyu were not at the Sect.

    But the present Jun Xiaomo was like apletely different person. Not only had she stopped obsessing over Qin Lingyu, she was even diligently practicing cultivation without any prompting from her parents!

    To a certain extent, Jun Xiaomo even seemed to have achieved too much self-actualization.

    Look! She¡¯d only just finished her dinner, but she¡¯s already run back to her own room to practice her cultivation! Liu Qingmei shook her head in exasperation. Her heart was both satisfied and a little bit upset at this moment.

    Is she¡¯s doing this because she cannot ept the reality that her cultivation had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery? Liu Qingmei thought further, deeply fretting the possibility of what she had just contemted.

 Chapter 25: Third-Grade Flowerleaf Koi

    <h4>Chapter 25: Third-Grade Flowerleaf Koi</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was not aware of Liu Qingmei¡¯s thoughts. She had fully immersed herself in the world of cultivation at this moment, and she did not find this to be dry or dull at all.

    Perhaps to the former sixteen years-old Jun Xiaomo, living such a repetitive life would be exactly synonymous with a dull life to her. But, to someone who had been wholeheartedly pursuing the goals in mind like Jun Xiaomo, every little bit of progress was something to be celebrated. Naturally, she would not find such progress towards her goals to be dull or dry at all.

    To date, she had been practicing the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique for already half a month. Yet even with these fifteen days, Jun Xiaomo had not managed to grasp the nub of enhancing her true energy transformation speeds.

    During this time, Jun Xiaomo had also thoroughly tested both of her previous conjectures. But neither experiment was sessful, and in the end, she had only suffered a minor injury and wasted a precious fourth-grade superior recovery medicinal pill.

    Luckily, her mother was not aware that this precious fourth-grade superior recovery medicinal pill was used in the course of an experiment. Otherwise, would Liu Qingmei simply let her off the hook that easily?

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s true energy transformation speed had remained at three-thousandth of her total energy in ten hours. Even with half a month of painstaking cultivation at that speed, the true energy from her first infusion cycle had not been fully dispersed.

    That is to say, Jun Xiaomo had not even achieved oneplete outer cycle within thest fifteen days of cultivation.

    When Jun Xiaomo first embarked on the journey of cultivation, she had only used seven months¡¯ worth of time to improve her cultivation from the first to the second level of Qi Mastery. At that time, her father was so happy that he lifted her up with his hands, joyfully proiming, ¡°You are truly Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter!¡± But at the rate her cultivation is going now, even if she had one years¡¯ time, she might not be able to increase her cultivation to the second level of Qi Mastery.

    As it was right now, to win the two wagers would be no more than a fantasy.

    Jun Xiaomo suppressed the frustrations that were rising from her heart. She had to think calmly at this point in time.

    What exactly was it that caused her true energy transformation efficiency to increase? Jun Xiaomo thought to herself.

    She had a vague and blurry inkling of what the answer might be, but at the same time this answer remained an elusive thought and she was unable to pinpoint what exactly it was.

    It felt as though she were grasping at water ¨C she could tangibly feel its existence, yet when she tried holding onto it, it would be nothing more than a cool, damp feeling on her skin.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo found herself deep in contemtion of this matter, her room¡¯s door rang out with a knocking sound ¨C Dong! Dong!

    ¡°Xiaomo, are you there? Can Ie in?¡± Liu Qingmei gently asked from outside.

    Mother? Jun Xiaomo found it strange that her mother woulde looking for her at this time of the day, but nevertheless replied, ¡°Mum,e in.¡±

    Liu Qingmei walked into the room with a basket hung on her arm.

    ¡°I noticed that you did not set up any formation arrays outside your room, so I guessed that you were not cultivating.¡± Liu Qingmei exined.

    Generally, cultivators would always set up formation arrays outside their room to alert and prevent others from disturbing them in the midst of their cultivation. Being disturbed in the midst of cultivation was not just annoying for the cultivator, it could even cause the cultivator to experience cultivation deviation and go crazy!

    Therefore, Liu Qingmei had checked time and again that her daughter were not cultivating before knocking on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room door.

    ¡°Mum~ What is this? It smells so good!¡± Jun Xiaomo swiftly jumped out of bed and ran over to her mother¡¯s side, motioning towards the basket carried by Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Shoo!¡± Liu Qingmei smacked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, ¡°This belongs to your martial brother Ye. Stop hankering for it!¡±

    ¡°Ai~ Mum, can¡¯t I just take a quick peek at it? I¡¯m starting to find you somewhat biased. How can you make such good stuff for brother Ye and not let me try even a little bit of it?¡± Jun Xiaomo bitterly murmured while her sharp nose continued to savour the aroma emitted from the basket.

    It really smells so fragrant...

    Before Jun Xiaomo had been reborn, her life¡¯s priorities had generally been matters rting to evading capture or avoiding the next attempt at her life, and naturally the pleasures in life would always take a backseat. Even though cultivators no longer relied on food for sustenance once they had attained a certain level of cultivation, many cultivators would nevertheless indulge in some delectable delights from time to time. After all, food is still one of the greatest pleasures in life. And besides, if a cultivator did nothing but cultivate, then wouldn¡¯t his life be very dull and gray?

    Jun Xiaomo was one of these cultivators who enjoyed delectable delights from time to time as well. Even while she was evading capture and avoiding attempts at her life, she would always find time to indulge in the good food and wine of different locales.

    Liu Qingmei looked sharply at Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°Do you think it¡¯s possible that your mother would make this only for your martial brother Ye? Your martial brother Ye had chanced upon this third-grade Flowerleaf Koi in one of his excursions outside the Sect. He found this koi to be rather unusual, and he stunned it and brought it back alive as a gift to us. You little brat, on the other hand, even suspected that your mother would only make this for your martial brother Ye. This is but one portion of it, and there¡¯s more in the pot. It¡¯s a good thing that Xiuwen didn¡¯t witness your grumbling, or he would be so disappointed that his kindness had been taken for granted here.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue, clung onto her mother¡¯s arm and said, ¡°Mum~ It¡¯s only cause I¡¯m feeling peckish right now~ I spoke too fast...I spoke too fast.¡±

    Liu Qingmei rapped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head tenderly, simultaneously shoving the basket into her arms, ¡°Mother needs to go out in a moment. This koi tastes better when it¡¯s eaten hot. Go deliver it to your martial brother now if you have the time now.¡±

    ¡°Mm, okay Mum! You can count on me!¡± Jun Xiaomo patted her chest and dered.

    ¡°Pfft! I don¡¯t know where you learnt that kind of expression from. You¡¯re getting more and more boisterous.¡± Liu Qingmei shook her head with resignation, and rubbed the part of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head where she had earlier rapped, saying, ¡°It¡¯s also good that you¡¯re cheerful. You¡¯ve rarely shown such joy in your face ever since you ran into trouble with the Sect for entering its forbidden grounds.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was a little bit shaken up by her mother¡¯s words, and she could not help but feel touched at this moment. She looked into her mother¡¯s eyes, smiling sweetly at her, saying, ¡°Then from today onwards I¡¯ll always be so happy in front of you, okay?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s joy I was referring to, not a pretense in front of me~¡± Liu Qingmei tenderly prodded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead. ¡°Okay, don¡¯t dy any further. Mother has to leave shortly. Hold the basket securely, and don¡¯t sneak any bites.¡±

    ¡°It seems that I¡¯m only a glutton in my mother¡¯s heart.¡± Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue at her mother in jest. Then, after waving her hands at Liu Qingmei, she promptly departed.

    As she looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s silhouette, Liu Qingmei sighed with resignation ¨C I only hope that the rift between Xiuwen and Xiaomo can gradually be washed away.

    After Jun Xiaomo had been punished by the Sect for trespassing its forbidden grounds, she seemed to be more carefree and much livelier. This truly gratified Liu Qingmei.

    However, just as Liu Qingmei was about to leave Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, a thought suddenly urred to her ¨C Oh dear. Does Xiaomo know where Xiuwen¡¯s abode is?

    Liu Qingmei promptly retrieved a Pathfinding Paper Crane, wrote the names of Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen on its back, and sent it flying off with a spell.

    ¡°Ai~ I¡¯d only just praised her for being mature, and there she goes carelessly and clumsily again.¡± Liu Qingmeiughed and shook her head before finally departing as well.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo was not as lost as Liu Qingmei had expected. In her previous life after the death of her parents, she was hidden by Ye Xiuwen in his abode for three whole years. During these three years, even though she rarely stepped out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode, yet she would asionally follow Ye Xiuwen out for a walk to clear her mind. Therefore, she knew exactly where Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode was located.

    If not for the fact that she had been so focused on her cultivation right now, perhaps she might even have sought opportunities to visit Ye Xiuwen at his abode, chat for a bit, and hopefully slowly but surely warm Ye Xiuwen up to herself.

    As she walked along towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode, toting the basket in hand, wafts of fragrance from the basket constantly assaulted her senses. While Jun Xiaomo was extremely tempted by the food right now, yet deep in her heart she was somewhat moved by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gesture.

    The meat of Flowerleaf Koi were extremely tender. However, to obtain one was not easy. Not only did they have high offensive capabilities, they even had the ability to conceal themselves. Higher grade Flowerleaf Koi would naturally be even more difficult to catch.

    She knew that this Flowerleaf Koi was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s token of respect to her own parents. But even so, it was an extremely touching gesture.

    Jun Xiaomo lightly ran her finger along the basket¡¯s cover and gently sighed. If not for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s deep filial piety for her parents, then he would not have taken on the burden of looking after Jun Xiaomo in her previous life, much less be prematurely killed in his attempt to rescue her.

    As Jun Xiaomo remained immersed in her thoughts, she unknowingly arrived at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode bore the same dignified air about it as Ye Xiuwen. It had a simple, minimalist design with serene and calm surroundings. A small, winding gravel path ran from the main door to his room¡¯s entrance. Several unknown spirit nts and spirit flowers grew in an orderly fashion along both sides of the path, filling the ce with an air of exuberance. Over ten willow trees spread their leaves around these spirit nts and flowers, sheltering them from the heat. As the gentle breeze swept past, the willow leaves danced about with a mesmerizing rhythm, as though ripples were being sent through a sheet of jade-green curtains.

    As she approached Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart seemed to skip a few beats. The scene before her eyes now was exactly that from her memory. It was as though she had just walked down memoryne through the winding gravel path, and now stood before that serene and cool ce which had once brought her many warm memories.

    As she finally arrived before Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room, she took a deep breath and cleared her mind of the thoughts of the past.

    ¡°We¡¯re still not very familiar with each other right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered a reminder to herself under her breath, before knocking on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s door, ¡°Brother Ye, are you in? I¡¯m your martial sister Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    She waited a while, but there was still no response.

    ¡°Could it be that no one¡¯s home right now? I should¡¯ve known better to send a Messenger Paper Crane first.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was filled with disappointment.

    She knocked on the door a few more times, and after thoroughly ascertaining that Ye Xiuwen was not home, she turned around and began to leave.

    But after taking a few steps, Jun Xiaomo suddenly stopped.

    Since brother Ye isn¡¯t around, why not take a look around this ce? It¡¯s still too early to go home anyway. Besides, my cultivation hasn¡¯t produced much results recently. A change of environment is a good thing!

    As Jun Xiaomo made up her mind, she turned around, and walked deeper into the abode down a narrow trail.

 Chapter 26: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Abode

    <h4>Chapter 26: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Abode</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As a disciple of Heavenly Sect, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode was naturally not very small. A cultivator¡¯s abode did not merely refer to the ce where they rested or cultivated. It also included the surrounding areas within a few miles. These surroundings areas would then generally be sub-divided by their owners into different plots ofnd, each for their own designated usage. Additionally, some cultivators would even ce numerous formation arrays to prevent outsiders from trespassing theirnd!

    In her previous life, when Jun Xiaomo suffered several emotional traumas and was perpetually in a muddleheaded state of mind, Ye Xiuwen had granted her ess to the restricted zones in his abode in order to prevent her from inadvertently activating any formation arrays and injuring herself. But now, all these things have not yet happened. Therefore, when Jun Xiaomo followed the path she took, she could sense that the area ahead rejected her presence ¨C every time she took a step in that direction, she could obviously sense ripples in the restriction zone. If she were to barge in regardless, the activation of the formation array could seriously hurt her or even kill her!

    ¡°Sigh...I didn¡¯t expect martial brother Ye to set up a restrictive formation array here.¡± Jun Xiaomo reached out her hand and probed the area in front of her. Instantly, a wave of cold energy resisted her hand, as though there were an invisible wall in front of her.

    This was thest fork in the trail which Jun Xiaomo had taken. Jun Xiaomo remembered that the right path led to an area filled with green willows which vaguely obscured a small lotus pond. On the pond sat a small bridge leading to a gazebo which overlooked the waters. While countless fish thrived in these waters, the main star of the show was the lotus flowers which bloomed midsummer, disying their ephemeral beauty in pink, white, purple and other vibrant colours.

    Jun Xiaomo missed this lotus pond. In her previous life, whenever she got reminded of the loss of her parents and the despondence crept back into her heart, she would always sit silently on the gazebo and stare nkly into space for hours at a time, and her downcast mood would gradually subside and return to normal.

    It was a pity that if she wished to see that lotus pond again in this life, she would have no choice but to bide her time until martial brother Ye warms up to her again.

    As Jun Xiaomo shook her head with resignation, she walked towards the left fork on the trail. This path led to a vast bamboo forest with no end in sight. In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo would rarely go there, because the bamboo forest looked the same all year around ¨C there was nothing much to see there.

    However, that was only Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts in her previous lifetime. Right now, Jun Xiaomo cherished every single part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode as they brought back some of her most precious memories.

    This was because in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, when she and Ye Xiuwen left Heavenly Peak to escape the people tracking them down, Ye Xiuwen burnt his entire abode down in order to cover their tracks. Nothing was spared. Long after Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death, when Jun Xiaomo once again returned to the vague location of Heavenly Peak, she could not locate even traces of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode no matter how hard she looked.

    Jun Xiaomo thought that this bamboo forest would bear some restrictive formation arrays as well. Unexpectedly, her journey down that path was rather smooth, and there were no invisible barriers blocking her way!

    This was a pleasant surprise! When someone does an act without any expectations, and that act instead brings about pleasant results, then that person¡¯s joy would be amplified by magnitudes. Jun Xiaomo had just experienced just this ¨C the disappointment with the series of restrictions earlier had been wiped out. Instead, her lips curled into a faint smile, and she quickened her pace down the path with a slight skip in her step.

    As she neared the center of the bamboo forest, Jun Xiaomo suddenly stopped in her steps.

    There is someone in the bamboo forest! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intuition told her. As she silently made her way towards the heart of the bamboo forest, the swishing sounds which prated the bamboo forests became more and more obvious.

    This was the sound made by a sharp weapon swiftly slicing through the air. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heartbeats quickened ¨C her intuition now told her that the person whom she had been looking for should be right ahead.

    Indeed, as she circled around a man-made mountain, Jun Xiaomo finally saw Ye Xiuwen practicing his sword arts in a clearnding.

    Jun Xiaomo did not want to disturb Ye Xiuwen¡¯s practice, so she hid behind arge stone nearby. At the same time, her vision remained trained on Ye Xiuwen, who remained in the center of the clearnding. Because her cultivation level was too low, she could not clearly see every movement which Ye Xiuwen made. Instead, all she saw was the blurry white afterimages left behind by the swishing of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothing.

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo continued watching Ye Xiuwen, intently following his silhouette.

    As graceful as a swan; as imposing as a dragon. This was perhaps the most apt description of Ye Xiuwen at this moment.

    ¡°It seems that brother Ye had not even infused his sword with spiritual energy. If he did, how much more powerful and impressive would this swordy be?¡± Jun Xiaomo subconsciously eximed aloud.

    ¡°Who is it?!¡± Ye Xiuwen had justprehended a deeper level of sword intent and was fully immersed in his swordy. Furthermore, because Jun Xiaomo bore no ill intent towards Ye Xiuwen, he had beenpletely oblivious to her presence.

    However, when Jun Xiaomo eximed aloud, Ye Xiuwen immediately heard it. Ye Xiuwen was already at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and his visual acuity and auditory senses have both been enhanced substantially. Therefore, he was able to pick up even the tiniest peep of sound. This was something that the present Jun Xiaomo at the first level of Qi Mastery would never be able to do.

    Jun Xiaomo was flustered. As she attempted to take a step out to reveal her identity, she immediately discovered Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword intent charging right towards her!

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword had been much quicker than she expected! There was no time to reveal her identity right now, and Jun Xiaomo quickly operated the true energy within her body in order to take evasive measures. By now, Jun Xiaomo was already very familiar with the mnemonic to transform true energy to spiritual energy. Everything happened in a blink of an eye, and Jun Xiaomo reacted instinctively. She did not expect toe out unscathed here. But perhaps her recent diligence in cultivation had produced some results, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attack barely brushed across her cheek, instantly slicing off a lock of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ck hair.

    Shhk! Ye Xiuwen sheathed his sword, and swiftly strode over to Jun Xiaomo. He glowered at Jun Xiaomo, and his face waspletely ck with rage.

    Obscured by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat, Jun Xiaomo could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions clearly. But she knew for a fact that Ye Xiuwen was absolutely furious.

    ¡°Bro...martial brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo stammered. To her enemies, she was able to disy her strengths like a proud peacock, speaking in such a sharp and imposing manner that caused others to cough up blood. Yet she could not be so overbearing before the people she cared about because she cared about their feelings.

    And besides, she was the one at fault here. If Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword had shifted its trajectory ever so slightly, she might well have be a blind person by now.

    But she could not help it. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s subconscious mind, Ye Xiuwen was ssified in the same group of people as her parents ¨C he would never hurt her in any way. Therefore, she had let her guard down this time.

    ¡°Do you know that hiding behind a rock secretly observing someone practice their sword arts is a very dangerous thing? If not for the fact that I had seen your appearance at the veryst moment, do you think you would still be able to stand here and speak to me right now?¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was frigid as a snowstorm in winter. His sharp re at this instant seemed to pierce through the veiled conical hat and cut straight through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s flesh, causing her to feel a sharp pain in her heart.

    ¡°Martial brother, I¡¯m sorry. I won¡¯t do it again.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and looked at the tips of her shoes. Her deted look made her look extremely sorry as she apologized.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows. He had always been good with reading people, but Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current attitude was somethingpletely outside his expectations. This youngdy is by nature arrogant and domineering. Even though she bears no malicious intentions, she would always insist that she was right even when she was at fault. However, this time she not only admitted it, she even sincerely apologized ¨C it¡¯s as though she were apletely different person!

    It was as if Jun Xiaomo¡¯s close shave with death from the Sect¡¯s punishment had catalyzed a change in her character. Even though she still kept her arrogance, the object of her disy of arrogance had seemed to shift slightly.

    Ye Xiuwen analyzed this from the perspective of a neutral observer. Even though he generally appeared to be cordial and warm with people, his true nature was nevertheless cold and distant, and he rarely opened up to others. But it was precisely this objectivity in his day to day interactions which allowed him to see the changes in Jun Xiaomo clearer than most others.

    He even knew that this little martial sister of his had be far sharper and more quick-witted than before.

    Jun Xiaomo did not think that Ye Xiuwen would have seen the changes in her with just this short period of interaction. But at this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silence caused Jun Xiaomo to feel uneasy. She raised her eyes and stole a nce at Ye Xiuwen, hoping to see whether he was still fuming mad.

    s! Jun Xiaomo had forgotten about that darned veiled conical hat of his which absolutely obscured his expressions.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat was a spirit treasure that could only be worn by cultivators of at least the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. If Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation were higher, then she naturally would be able to see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions under the veiled conical hat. But at this moment, her cultivation level was still at the first level of Qi Mastery, and all she could see was the veil hanging in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face.

    While she could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions, but this did not mean that Ye Xiuwen could not see hers. When Ye Xiuwen discovered Jun Xiaomo stealing a nce at his face, the anger in his heart also dissipated substantially.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s anger was not targeted at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clumsy behavior. Rather, he was upset by the prospects of causing hurt to Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei! Jun Xiaomo was their only child. If Jun Xiaomo had suffered any form of hurt, the ones who would be truly upset would be them.

    Ye Xiuwen had lost all of his loved ones since he was a young child. Not only did Jun Linxuan rescue him and teach him all he knew, he and his wife even gave Ye Xiuwen a ce to call home and experience the love and warmth he thought he had lost forever. This made him deeply cherish his rtionship with both Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen never wanted to see Jun Xiaomo get hurt ¨C and especially not on his hands.

    But, seeing Jun Xiaomo being so delicate and mindful of the present situation, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s anger also gradually subsided.

    Forget it. I¡¯m also nothing more than a martial brother to her. It might be counterproductive if I say too much. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself. His attention swiftly shifted over from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier dangerous act to the basket that was still hanging on her arm.

    ¡°What¡¯s that you¡¯re holding?¡± Ye Xiuwen now discovered a pleasant scent wafting out from the basket. Even though he was far less experienced and learned in the matters of degustation, he was nevertheless captivated by wafts of fragrance.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right! I almost forgot this... This is the Flowerleaf Koi which you had caught for us!¡± Jun Xiaomo leapt over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and held out the basket to him as though she were presenting him with a precious treasure. Smiling, she added, ¡°Mum said that this koi was caught by you, and you should have a taste of it too! So, I¡¯ve delivered it over to you~¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile was truly resplendent and sincere. Seeing this, all of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier anger hadpletely dissipated.

    ¡°Mm. Many thanks to martial sister then. Give my gratitude to your mother as well.¡± Ye Xiuwen warmly said, revealing a rare and sincere smile on his face.

    It was a pity that this smile was obscured by his veiled hat, and Jun Xiaomo did not see it.

 Chapter 27: Warming Up to Ye Xiuwen

    <h4>Chapter 27: Warming Up to Ye Xiuwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had by now handed over the basket of third-grade Flowerleaf Koi into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, she did not wish to leave immediately. After all, she finally had an opportunity to interact with Ye Xiuwen, and she wanted to make the best of it to improve their strained rtionship so that Ye Xiuwen would not only think of avoiding her at every step of the way.

    This life would not be like herst, where Ye Xiuwen had of his own volition opened his heart to Jun Xiaomo so that he could look after her. In this life, who knows how many opportunities Jun Xiaomo would have to even interact with Ye Xiuwen? Ye Xiuwen was already at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and once he reaches the Foundation Establishment level, he would immediately join the upper-tier Frozen Sword Sect. At that time, Jun Xiaomo would have even fewer opportunities to interact with Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo softly sighed. She felt that there was so little time and so much to do.

    ¡°Has martial sister tried this yet?¡± A cool and clear voice interrupted her thoughts. Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses, looked at Ye Xiuwen and shook her head.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s have it together.¡± Ye Xiuwen held the basket and headed in the opposite direction of the bamboo forest. He had erected a small pavilion there. Usually when he was taking breaks from his sword practice, he would sit at the pavilion and enjoy a cup of tea on his own.

    Jun Xiaomo minced alongside Ye Xiuwen, hesitating for a moment before saying, ¡°That...martial brother, we¡¯ve apportioned some for ourselves. This portion of the Flowerleaf Koi isn¡¯t too much. You should have it all.¡±

    She had indeed wanted to find an excuse to stay behind, but this did not include taking any of the delectable Flowerleaf Koi that should rightfully be enjoyed by Ye Xiuwen. After all, her mother had saved a portion of the Flowerleaf Koi for her in the pot at home.

    And besides, the Flowerleaf Koi had been caught by Ye Xiuwen to begin with, and she would feel terrible if she ate part of his portion.

    ¡°This portion here is quite generous. I can¡¯t finish it on my own. Don¡¯t worry, let¡¯s eat together.¡± As Ye Xiuwen spoke, he set the basket down on the stone table and opened the lid of the basket.

    Once the basket¡¯s lid was off, a fragrant aroma filled the pavilion and assaulted their olfactory senses. The thick fish soup had been braised until it turned a pearlescent white colour, while freshly chopped spring onions floated atop the soup, gently dancing around the partially submerged fish. Even though the soup had not been voured with too many condiments, the freshness of the ingredients more than made up for it.

    This basket can hold quite the amount of food. No wonder it was so heavy when I brought it over! Jun Xiaomo eximed in her heart. But this was only testament to the original size of the Flowerleaf Koi caught by Ye Xiuwen!

    Ye Xiuwen swiftly retrieved two sets of bowls and utensils from his Interspatial Ring and set the table. Taking thedle from the basket, Ye Xiuwen began to fill out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bowl with some fish soup and meat.

    The creamy white fish meat glistened in the exquisite bowls set before her, emanating irresistible wafts of fragrance. Anyone who saw this would instantly find their stomachs growling with hunger.

    ¡°Thank you, martial brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo grinned as she respectfully served Ye Xiuwen a bowl as well.

    Even though her stomach was growling loudly at this point, Jun Xiaomo sincerely felt that it would be more respectful if she let Ye Xiuwen taste the food first.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo strangely. He noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils were quivering slightly, as though they were saying, ¡°Hurry up and eat! Eat and tell me if it¡¯s any good!¡±

    The fact that Jun Xiaomo was straightforward and wore her heart on her sleeve left Ye Xiuwen with aplicated feeling in his heart.

    In theirst interaction, he already gleaned that this martial sister had matured, was no longer as na?ve and ignorant as before, and even knew how to conceal facts and win people over to her side. But the present Jun Xiaomo seemed to be quite different from thest.

    It was as though she had once again reverted to that na?ve and ignorantdy, albeit less arrogant and much smarter.

    Ye Xiuwen naturally did not know that Jun Xiaomo had already lived life once and had seen clearly who her true friends and family were, and also those who were merely putting on a pretense. This was the cause of the change in her personality. Now, whenever she stood in front of enemies, she would don that imposing and domineering persona of a Lady Demoness who would have an eye for an eye and not budge an inch. Yet in front of friends and family, especially those who had showered her with love and countless warm memories, she would shed that persona, subconsciously showing them her vulnerabilities and giving to them charitably, even at great cost to herself. This gave rise to the two seemingly irreconcble personas witnessed by Ye Xiuwen.

    Simply put, if others respected her, she would reciprocate with abundant respect. But if others hurt her, she would pay back that hurt by a hundred or even a thousand times. Repay good with good and evil with evil. These principles conformed exactly with the ones the former Lady Demoness Jun Xiaomo lived by.

    Ye Xiuwen did not know that he held such an important ce in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. After all, he had barely interacted with this little martial sister of his; and the only asion that they had interacted did not end well. Naturally, he was puzzled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present attitude and behaviour.

    Forget it, there¡¯s no point thinking too much. Let¡¯s wait and see what happens then. Ye Xiuwen silently thought to himself. He looked down, scooped up some soup into his spoon and slurped it up.

    Instantly, a warm sensation ran down his throat, and a sweet aroma reminiscent of springtime lingered in his mouth. This was certainly a fresh, high-quality Flowerleaf Koi!

    ¡°Martial brother, how is the taste?¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously asked, as though she were the one who had prepared the soup.

    Ye Xiuwen was momentarily stunned as he caught himself likening the present Jun Xiaomo to a dog wagging its tail, expectantly waiting for praise. But he quickly dispelled that thought and brought himself to his senses. Nodding, he said warmly to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°The taste is pretty good.¡±

    ¡°Is it? Then let me try as well.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked back down, picked up her spoon and drank the soup as well. That thick soup and fresh aroma quickly enveloped her taste buds and infiltrated all her senses, and she was instantly fully immersed in the experience.

    How many years has it been since shest tasted such delectable cuisine? Jun Xiaomo tried her utmost to suppress these thoughts, focusing her mind on scooping up spoonful after spoonful of this precious and delicious fish soup.

    She was afraid if she delved into these thoughts again, her eyes would quickly turn red and puffy.

    This had nothing to do with her vulnerabilities. Rather, it was more because having lived life once, she truly appreciated and cherished the littlest blessings in life. It was so easy for people to always take the simplest blessings in life for granted, and when they finally lose these blessings, it is toote ¨C the only ce they can find these again is in their memories.

    After finishing the fish soup, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach felt warm and full. She finished her soup much quicker than Ye Xiuwen ¨C even after she had finished the entire bowl, Ye Xiuwen still had half a bowl left. He drank his soup one spoonful at a time, regrly pacing out his sips, while maintaining a perfect body posture and his dignified mannerism.

    Jun Xiaomo rested her head on her left palm, observing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions, and her mind began to wander ¨C

    If martial brother were not disfigured by that demonic energy attack, then by now his poprity would definitely be no less than Qin Lingyu¡¯s! Martial brother¡¯s warm and dignified appearance is not something that can be learnt or mimicked by others after all.

    ¡°Have you finished your soup? Would you like some more?¡± Ye Xiuwen discovered that Jun Xiaomo was only staring at himself in a daze and not speaking, and he thought that she was merely too shy to ask for another bowl, so he motioned to refill her bowl and give her seconds.

    ¡°That...martial brother, I¡¯ve had enough. You should finish the rest.¡± Jun Xiaomo covered her bowl as she spoke. After all, Liu Qingmei had saved a portion for them, and she felt that she should not take too much from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s portion just to satisfy her own cravings.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows. Seeing that Jun Xiaomo did not intend to have seconds, he also relented.

    ¡°If you want some more, do help yourself. Thedle is here.¡± Ye Xiuwen said, simultaneously shifting thedle over to her side of the basket.

    ¡°Mm, okay.¡± Jun Xiaomo acknowledged. While she did not take seconds, she also did not take her leave.

    Ye Xiuwen also left her to her own devices.

    Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen was not used to having Jun Xiaomo around at all. He had always been used to living a solitary life, relying on no one but himself. Yet now that this little martial sister suddenly showed up here, he did not feel great about it.

    But at the same time, he could not discount the fact that Jun Xiaomo had taken the time and effort to deliver the fish soup to him. Therefore, out of politeness and courtesy, Ye Xiuwen did not reveal his uneasiness to her.

    Ye Xiuwen was never a man of many words. And at the same time, Jun Xiaomo could not find a suitable conversational topic with Ye Xiuwen. Therefore, at this instant, there was a moment of awkward silence between them.

    The only sounds which broke this long drawn, awkward silence was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s periodic clinking of his spoon against the bowl as he had his soup.

    The veil on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s conical hat was a distance away from his face. If one peeked from under the veil, one would be able to see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s elegant and fine jawline.

    In reality, whenever Ye Xiuwen had his veiled conical hat on, the people he interacted with would never expect there to be a terrifying scar underneath the veil. Instead, their impression of Ye Xiuwen would be a gentle, kind and humble man with the air of a nobility.

    It was such a pity...

    As she thought about it, Jun Xiaomo nced over at Ye Xiuwen again and sighed in her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen had all along been very alert to his surroundings. Therefore, he caught it when Jun Xiaomo stole yet another nce at Ye Xiuwen, even if he did not show it.

    Ye Xiuwen gently set the spoon back down in the bowl, setting off a bright, crisp ¡°clink¡± into the pavilion.

    ¡°Martial sister, why are you looking at me like that?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned to her and asked her inly. At this moment, it was as though his gaze had pierced through the veil and looked straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

 Chapter 28: The Taste of Defeat

    <h4>Chapter 28: The Taste of Defeat</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The eyes are the gateway to a person¡¯s heart. Ye Xiuwen had always discerned people¡¯s true nature this way. Therefore, in his first encounter with Jun Xiaomo when he noticed the fear and trepidation in her heart, he chose to distance himself from her.

    He was a human susceptible to hurt too. Especially to the sixteen years-old Ye Xiuwen, that kind of hurt cut particrly deep.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen was still in his youth then. No matter how well exposed he was with to social conventions and human interactions, there was still no way he could have been inert to the things around him.

    If not for Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei, perhaps Ye Xiuwen¡¯s and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lives would have been like two parallel lines, never to intersect again.

    But it was also precisely because of this that Ye Xiuwen just could not understand Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts at this moment. After she barely escaped from the Sect¡¯s punishment with her life, she seemed to have be a different person altogether ¨C she no longer fluttered around Qin Lingyu like a butterfly to a flower, and she even disyed some measure of affection for himself.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo felt that she was already very restrained with her change of behavior, Ye Xiuwen could still tell from the expressions in her eyes. This made Ye Xiuwen¡¯s iced-over heart experience a trace of warmth.

    However, this warmth was very slight and fleeting. When Ye Xiuwen recalled to mind the incident that happened between them when he was young, his heart immediately iced over again.

    Practically everyone in the Sect knew that the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s daughter, Jun Xiaomo, was a person who ced emphasis on looks and judged people by their appearances. Otherwise, she would not have been so enamored with Qin Lingyu, desperately pursuing him with all she had.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen did not believe that if Jun Xiaomo would still want to interact with him if she sees his appearance again.

    As for the reason for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s change of personality, Ye Xiuwen simply attributed it to her growing up and maturing after experiencing and oveing adversity.

    Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sudden question to her. It was only at this point that she discovered that she had subconsciously been starting at her martial brother¡¯s veiled conical hat while she was immersed in her own thoughts.

    Staring at somebody like this was quite an impolite thing to do. Having realized this, Jun Xiaomo awkwardly shifted her gaze away and broke her eye contact with Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°That...martial brother, isn¡¯t it very inconvenient for you to be wearing your veiled conical hat while eating?¡± Jun Xiaomo could not think of an appropriate conversational topic; so, she asked him the first thing that came to mind, hoping to dispel the earlier awkwardness as well.

    ¡°I¡¯m already used to it.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded.

    Yes, he was already used to it ¨C used to the strange and inquisitive stares from others; and used to the solitary and lonesome life that he led.

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s could not help but feel a wave of sorrow and sourness wash over her heart ¨C It should not be like this! Martial brother¡¯s talent is no lower than Qin Lingyu¡¯s, and hisbat prowess is also higher. He should be the one receiving looks of praise and admiration and basking in all the glory at the peak of the Sect! But now, whenever someone mentions Ye Xiuwen¡¯s name, the first thing thates to people¡¯s mind would not be his abilities, but that distant and deste personality of his caused by the demonic energy¡¯s disfiguration of his face.

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and looked up straight at Ye Xiuwen, asking, ¡°Martial brother...if...if I say that I may have a way of curing the scar on your face, do you believe me?¡±

    Even though she had not seen the extent of the injuries on her martial brother¡¯s face, but she was confident in her abilities to deal with demonic energy. Having practiced demonic cultivation for nearly a hundred years in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo assessed that her abilities in this regard would certainly be no lower than those old fogey Sect Elders. Therefore, even if the Sect Elders were helpless in this situation, it did not necessarily mean that Jun Xiaomo would have no solution either.

    She had initially wanted to rebuild this rtionship with Ye Xiuwen before mentioning the prospects of curing his scarred face. After all, she had a reputation for being a sheltered princess who had been protected all her life, never leaving the Sect unless absolutely necessary. Therefore, even she would be hard pressed to exin how she managed toe across a suitable method of curing his scarred face. Worse, it would even easily arouse suspicions if word got out.

    However, seeing her martial brother act like this, she could not help but to ask anyway. She felt that if her martial brother could be less lonely and warmer to others, then perhaps he would not fall prey to the evil ploys of that lowly and scheming Zhang Shuyue.

    Ye Xiuwen silently sized up the expressions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face at this moment, and discovered that there was only sincerity and concern, and no other ulterior motives.

    This tugged slightly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heartstrings. Nevertheless, Ye Xiuwen looked down and deliberated for a moment before saying, ¡°It¡¯s no use. This wound is not just caused by the corrosion of demonic energy. There is also the element of a curse at y.¡±

    ¡°Curse?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°Yes, a curse.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, ¡°Back then when the demonic cultivators annihted all one hundred fifty-three members of the Ye n, I, as the lone survivor, was also cursed by them. Unless I discover what kind of curse this is and find the person responsible for this curse, there is no way of removing the demonic energy on my face.¡±

    This was the first time Jun Xiaomo had heard of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s past, and it was truly heartrending.

    Ye Xiuwen ran his finger along the edge of the empty bowl, seemingly immersed in his thoughts even though he continued to observe Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions.

    This little martial sister...I really can¡¯t figure her out. But it seems that this is not a bad thing after all, is it?

    As Jun Xiaomo thought for a moment, she decided that it was still worth the shot. Even though the Sect Leader and Sect Elders did not have a way with her martial brother¡¯s scar, but in her previous life, her level of mastery with demonic cultivation was far greater than any of these. Therefore, she was confident that she would have a solution for him.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, do you think you could let me take a look at your wound?¡± Jun Xiaomo stretched out her hand and tugged gently at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present cautiousness seemed akin to the small animals that were easily frightened. This fleeting thought caused Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips to curl up slightly.

    But this was only for a moment. After the smile faded, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips even tensed up slightly.

    Ye Xiuwen was somehow reminded of the incident when he was fifteen years-old ¨C when his veiled conical hat was knocked over by this little martial sister and she immediately burst out into tears.

    It was not that Ye Xiuwen was a person who bore grudges. Rather, it was more that he feared experiencing the same hurt caused by the same person in the same ce. Especially now that their rtionship was not as strained as before, why make things more awkward than it has to be in the first ce?

    Having thought as such, Ye Xiuwen shook his head, and cidly said, ¡°I appreciate the concern that martial sister has for me. But at this moment this scar doesn¡¯t really affect my body¡¯s condition, so there¡¯s no urgency to remove it.¡±

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo did not catch the tacit rejection beneath Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cid response. As she grew anxious, she held Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist and eagerly repeated, ¡°Martial brother, please let me take a look at it?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body quivered in shock, and his eyes gradually grew cold once again.

    Quite apart from the fact that Ye Xiuwen never liked peopleing too close to him, the fact that Jun Xiaomo was now holding his wrist was also a rather offensive thing.

    This is because the wrist was a gateway to a person¡¯s meridians. Formidable cultivators could even cripple a person¡¯s cultivation arts through a person¡¯s wrist!

    And besides, the present rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was not too different from mere strangers. Even if they seemed to have grown closer in theirst few interactions, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s insistence on seeing his wound right now made Ye Xiuwen suspicious of her true intentions.

    Putting all of these together, Ye Xiuwen suddenly felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s insistence here might only be to satisfy her own curiosity.

    With this thought, his eyes instantly grew much colder. Even though his expressions were veiled by the hat, Jun Xiaomo nevertheless felt his displeasure. This was because Ye Xiuwen had just wrested his hand free of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grasp, and he had done so forcefully as well.

    ¡°Martial brother, I...¡± Jun Xiaomo wanted to exin, but Ye Xiuwen did not let her continue.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Martial sister should quickly return, otherwise Ma¡¯am would get worried.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s said inly. His intention to rebuff Jun Xiaomo at this point was patently clear.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo knew that she would be merely inviting snub from Ye Xiuwen if she stayed. Therefore, she stood up and hesitated for a moment, before apologetically saying, ¡°Then, martial brother...I¡¯ll take my leave.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen calmly nodded, acknowledging with a simple ¡°Mm.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was so upset that her eyes involuntarily reddened. She felt that all her hard work warming up to Ye Xiuwen had gone to waste at this point. After saying ¡°Take care, martial brother,¡± she sped away from the pavilion. She even tripped up slightly at thest step of the pavilion. But she quickly steadied herself and left without even looking back.

    Ye Xiuwen merely also looked on her silhouette as she departed. After a long while, he finally let out a soft sigh.

    ¡°She¡¯s still a child.¡± Ye Xiuwen softly said, yet this murmur of his quickly dissipated into the surroundings, not to be heard by anybody.

 Chapter 29: The Furry Bundle

    <h4>Chapter 29: The Furry Bundle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After leaving Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode, Jun Xiaomo did not head home immediately. Instead, she ran out aimlessly without a destination in mind, draining the energy in her body in order to wear down the frustrations in her heart.

    She ran on and on, until she was finally so worn down that she could run no longer. As she stopped, she did not even consider where she had run to. Regardless, she plonked down on a big, green boulder nearby and just stared vacantly into the space ahead of her.

    The sun was setting far off in the distance, igniting the sky with streaks of crimson red. This scene was so warm and stifling that in seemed to agitate the vexations in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart even more.

    ¡°It¡¯s...everything has been ruined.¡± Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lips, mocking herself. Her eyes were filled with distress and reluctance.

    In this second life, she had thought that it would be much easier to stand at the pinnacle of the world, and she would be able to protect those whom she loved from the evil, scheming monsters from her previous life. In the end, she painfully crippled her cultivation arts, found a way to mask her demonic energy, yet was unable to grasp the nub for reverting true energy to a usable form.

    In this second life, she had thought that it would be easy to get rid of that scumbag Qin Lingyu and repair her rtionship with martial brother Ye. In the end, not only was the marriage arrangement difficult to rescind, her rtionship with Ye Xiuwen was even bing more and more strained.

    What¡¯s the point of being reborn? Is it so that I can taste defeat once again?!

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened, but no tears came out. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly damp eyes and tightly pursed and quivering lips spoke volumes of her inability to calm herself down at this moment.

    She thought of how her parents and her martial brothers and sisters had died in her previous life ¨C it had all been because they were protecting her!

    If not for their protection, her parents would not be used of harbouring and concealing a demonic cultivator and be persecuted by the ¡°righteous and upstanding¡± sects; if not for their protection, the martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak could have flourished and left the Sect to establish their own futures; if not for their protection, martial brother Ye would not have the burden that is Jun Xiaomo foisted on him at such a young age, and eventually fall into the trapid by Zhang Shuyue...

    With their cultivation, it was only a matter of time if they stood at the pinnacle of the cultivation world, rather than tragically perishing under evil ws of the schemers...

    Do I even deserve to exist? Do I deserve to be reborn?

    Jun Xiaomo started to doubt her recent efforts; and even started to doubt the reason for her existence.

    If she were still the Jun Xiaomo from herst life, with no burdens and cares left in this world, then she naturally would not be so easily wavered by such a small setback. But right now, she was sixteen years-old and she still had her loved ones living by her side. Under such conditions, Jun Xiaomo could not help but feel burdened by her cares in this world.

    The thing that she was most concerned with would be the loss of her loved ones. This was the greatest fear in her life.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was immersed in her own thoughts, a squeaking sound broke her train of thoughts. She lifted her eyes and saw a white shadow sh by, instantly shooting into her chest.

    In that instant, she felt a warm feeling in her bosom. Right there, a plump and furry little bundle was trembling and scuttling anxiously, as though it were trying to burrow directly into her chest. The rustling of footsteps and human voices could be heard some distance away. Jun Xiaomo could vaguely make out words that seemed like ¡°see where it¡¯s run off to¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo recognized one of the voices ¨C it belonged to Ke Xinwen, a disciple from Pill Cauldron Peak who liked Yu Wanrou. Even though his life did not end well in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, that did not change the fact that he was one of the main culprits responsible for framing and harming Ye Xiuwen.

    His motive was linked to the upper-tier sect¡¯s selection of their Chosen Disciples ¨C particrly when Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s Sect Elder Weiran had selected Ye Xiuwen instead of Ke Xinwen. As a result, Ke Xinwen resented Ye Xiuwen, and actively tried to trip up Ye Xiuwen at every opportunity possible. Once, his sabotage even almost cost Ye Xiuwen his life. Moreover, Ke Xinwen had picked a fight with Jun Xiaomo on several asions under the instructions of Yu Wanrou ¨C and he did not even realize that he was being used by Yu Wanrou!

    If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present strength were insufficient, Jun Xiaomo was determined to show him a thing or two.

    Despite that, it was still possible to cause him some trouble within her current means.

    Thinking about this, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a fourth-grade invisibility talisman from her Interspatial Ring, pped it on the furry little bundle, and softly said, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to let those people find you, you¡¯d better stay still and not make a single peep of sound!¡±

    At that instant, the squeaking sounds stopped, and the furry little bundle silently bit on its ws in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom.

    It¡¯s such a smart little fellow. Jun Xiaomo thought as she stroked its ears, while a strange look shed across its eyes ¨C in the cultivation world, the animals with awakened spiritual senses are invariably monarch-grade animals. Is this little fellow just smart or is it...

    Jun Xiaomo did not have the luxury of time to ponder over this matter. In no time, a few people came running out of the woods nearby. When they saw Jun Xiaomo sitting on the boulder, they were momentarily stunned ¨C they did not expect to see Jun Xiaomo here.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes revealed a look of disgust. He liked Yu Wanrou, and he naturally despised Jun Xiaomo, a person reputed to have picked on Yu Wanrou. Especially today, when his beloved martial sister Wanrouy on her bed recovering from her injuries; while on the other hand Jun Xiaomo, rumoured to have her cultivation level fall to the first level of Qi Mastery, was instead frolicking about. This further aggravated Ke Xinwen¡¯s hatred for Jun Xiaomo.

    Ke Xinwen firmly believed that Yu Wanrou had been hurt by Jun Xiaomo!

    Jun Xiaomo could immediately tell what Ke Xinwen was thinking, and sheughed at him in her heart.

    This person¡¯s displeasure could not even tickle her, much less harm her. Besides, as long as the demonic energy did not erupt from her body, and she remained the daughter of the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster, then no one would dare to even contemte harming her in the first ce.

    Of course, the ¡°harm¡± here would refer to the bodily type. As for the things which people said behind her back, these were matters which fell outside Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ambit of consideration.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, did you see a white packrat running through here?¡± Ke Xinwen coldly asked.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at him dispassionately, responding snidely, ¡°When you¡¯re asking someone for help, shouldn¡¯t you at least add the word, ¡®please¡¯?¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s face froze momentarily. That packrat was something that he bought as a gift to cheer up his bedridden martial sister Yu Wanrou. However, the moment that packrat saw Yu Wanrou, it viciously scratched her before slipping away at lightning speed!

    How maddening! Mark my words, if I catch that packrat, I will definitely shred it into pieces.

    Thinking of this, Ke Xinwen¡¯s desire to catch that packrat momentarily exceeded his hatred for Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, he suppressed the rage for Jun Xiaomo within his heart and asked Jun Xiaomo again, ¡°Can martial sister Xiaomo please tell me if she has seen a packrat run through in this direction?¡±

    Jun Xiaomozily swept her gaze across Ke Xinwen and his entourage before pointing out a direction, saying, ¡°I¡¯m not sure about a packrat, but I did see a white shadow dart over in that direction.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s face immediately lit up, dering, ¡°It must be that little bastard!¡± Saying that, he waved his hand and swiftly led all of his other martial brothers towards that direction pointed out by Jun Xiaomo.

    As Jun Xiaomo looked at their silhouettes disappearing into the distance in the direction she had pointed out, she coldly chuckled to herself, mouthing the words ¨C enjoy the search. Then, she lifted up the furry little bundle in her bosom, leisurely hopped off the boulder she was on, and walked in another direction.

    This little encounter had interrupted the earlier despondence she had; and the vexations of her heart had also dwindled substantially. Earlier, she was in a poor state of mind because her thoughts were fixated in that dead-end scenario, constantly amplified into a downward spiral by her emotions. Yet now when she took a step back and assessed the situation, she realized that even if she were out of the picture, the schemers like He Zhang and gang would still not let her parents off the hook because they had long since nned on seizing the riches belonging to Heavenly Peak.

    Therefore, the only thing that she could do is to get stronger, and stronger, and stronger ¨C until absolutely no one could stand in her way!

    ¡°Thank you, little fe!¡± Jun Xiaomo believed in fate ¨C this furry little bundle had appeared in the most opportune time when she had firmly driven herself into a rut, and ran interference against her train of destructive thoughts, allowing her to see past her earlier fixations. This was also a type of fate.

    Squeak, squeak~ The snow-white little bundle in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom happily gnawed at its ws, asionally rubbing itself against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm. It was extremely endearing.

    ¡°I wonder what species of packrat you are?¡± Jun Xiaomo inquisitively lifted the packrat in front of her face and closely examined it ¨C there are a lot of different species and different grades of packrats; and the different species of packrats had different types of abilities.

    ¡°Eh? This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened in amazement as she fixed them on the fiery-red coloured specks in the middle of the packrat¡¯s paws, ¡°It seems you are a Demonic Packrat!¡±

    If she had not pried open the thick fur of this little packrat, she would never have noticed this tiny detail.

    Squeak, squeak~ The packrat cheerfully responded. It was unclear whether it was acknowledging Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words, or whether it simply liked this human which had inadvertently be its new master.

 Chapter 30: The Secret of the Forbidden Grounds

    <h4>Chapter 30: The Secret of the Forbidden Grounds</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°If you are indeed a Demonic Packrat, then it¡¯s no wonder we feel so close to each other!¡± Jun Xiaomo light-heartedly rubbed the little packrat¡¯s white fur.

    Demonic Packrats liked anything that contained or emanated demonic energy, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s acquired demonic body was naturally something they were attracted to.

    Demonic Packrats were considered a mutated species, and they were different from most other species of packrats ¨C they do not reproduce in order to ensure the survival of its species. Rather, it depended solely on the mutations of newborns to regr packrats. In other words, the odds of their appearances are based entirely on chance. Furthermore, while regr packrats were rather productive creatures, there was less than a million-in-one chance that a newborn packrat would be mutated as a Demonic Packrat! It was highly likely that a Demonic Packrat¡¯s parents would merely be two regr packrats.

    Therefore, the number of Demonic Packrats was few and far between. Furthermore, several cultivators treat Demonic Packrats as bad omens or harbingers of bad luck, and they would invariably kill these creatures as soon as they saw them.

    As for the origins of these rumours, it was simple ¨C Demonic Packrats liked anything to do with demonic energy and shunned spiritual energy; this was their main difference from other packrats. In turn, the areas which are generally rich with demonic energy tend to be dark and vile ces, such as burial sites, prison cells, ck forests, and the like. Therefore, because Demonic Packrats were generally attracted to and inhabited these ces, their appearances in thend of the living were naturally generally seen as a bad omen for people.

    But the truth was that these were baseless rumours spread by the ¡°righteous and sanctimonious¡± cultivators, just like how they had treated Jun Xiaomo in the past.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the little creature in her bosom and was somehow reminded of the years she had been persecuted by others for no reason. Therefore, she truly empathized with this little creature.

    ¡°Little fe, are you willing to follow me? If you are, I will take you wherever I go from now on.¡± Jun Xiaomo gently stroked the ruffled fur on the packrat¡¯s back.

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat gently rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers, and even tenderly licked her fingertips, expressing its attachment to Jun Xiaomo in its actions.

    ¡°Alright! Then from now on you¡¯re my little packrat! I¡¯ll call you Packie, okay? Packie~¡± Jun Xiaomo again tousled the little furball, which in turn responded cheerfully with its little squeaks.

    Suddenly, the little packrat leapt down from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and sped away of her. Worried that she would lose her new pet, Jun Xiaomo hurriedly chased after it, shouting, ¡°Little fe, where are you going?!¡±

    At this moment, the little Packrat¡¯s body was still obscured by the effects of the invisibility talisman. However, because Jun Xiaomo had left her mark on the invisibility talisman, she was the only one under the Golden Core cultivation level still able to see this little packrat.

    But this did not necessarily mean that the little packrat was safe. After all, it was not difficult toe by a formidable cultivator within the Sect, and these people would not necessarily be unable to identify the demonic nature of this packrat!

    Jun Xiaomo thought ¨C this packrat is too disobedient! I¡¯ll have to smack its butt when I catch it.

    Despite its short legs, the snow-white packrat continued to sprint forward in leaps and bounds, asionally disappearing into the tall grass, while at times revealing itself in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s line of sight. However, whenever it discovered that Jun Xiaomo was not following it anymore, it would obediently turn back and wait until Jun Xiaomo caught up before moving off again.

    Jun Xiaomo was absolutely infuriated by this little creature¡¯s behaviour!

    The surroundings gradually began to change ¨C the original verdant and lush woods grew increasingly sparse, and the ground below began to reveal an unidentifiable reddish-brown coloured soil.

    At this instant, Jun Xiaomo felt the onset of a bad premonition, and she immediately stopped in her tracks, where she promptly also discovered the aura of a formidable formation array. The surrounding air even carried faint traces of the stench of blood!

    Not good! This is the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds!

    Even though her memory of this ce was from almost one hundred years ago, but that dreadful aura of the forbidden ground¡¯s formation array was ever so peculiar and familiar to Jun Xiaomo. This ce absolutely did not seem like a normal ce; rather, it seemed more like a man-made demonic energy gathering grounds.

    Wait. Demonic energy gathering grounds? Jun Xiaomo took a closer examination of the area and discovered a thick concentration of demonic energy here; while the spiritual energy was so sparse that it was almost pitiful.

    Why was there a demonic energy gathering formation array here around the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds?

    In her previous life, when Jun Xiaomo trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, she had wholeheartedly set her mind to retrieving what Qin Lingyu wanted. Furthermore, she was only sixteen years-old then, and was unable to differentiate between demonic energy and spiritual energy. Therefore, she had not discovered the demonic energy gathering effects of the formation array around the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. But in this life, there was no reason for her to still be oblivious to the effects of this formation array.

    Now, it seemed that Dawn Sect¡¯s secrets were far more numerous and insidious than what she had originally expected.

    Squeak squeak! Packie discovered that Jun Xiaomo had not followed along, and obediently returned towards to Jun Xiaomo, scampering around her in circles.

    ¡°Little fe, the further you go, the more dangerous it is. I cannot follow you in there right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo bent down andughed at thatical little ball of fur, simultaneously deciding to leave this mysterious ce and retrace her path back to where she came from.

    Even if she wanted to further investigate the forbidden grounds, she would have to hold this off until the next time. Otherwise, with her first level of Qi Mastery and her inability to properly operate the true energy within her body, she would almost certainly be courting her own doom.

    Seeing that its master was determined not to go any further into the forbidden grounds, Packie also gave up its initial n to travel deeper.

    But...there¡¯s a really pleasant aromaing from within... Packie dishearteningly thought, gnawing at his ws unwillingly.

    Demonic Packrats were attracted to things which contained demonic energy. Therefore, some demonic cultivators would use Demonic Packrats to hunt for treasures and equipment!

    What this ¡°gluttonous¡± Demonic Packrat did not know was, if Jun Xiaomo and it had taken one step further into the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, they would immediately have activated a defensive formation array. If that happened, even escaping with their lives intact might have been a difficult thing.

    Therefore, it could be said that this day, Jun Xiaomo and Packie had practically knocked on Death¡¯s door and lived.

    -------------------------------------------

    After she returned to her room, Jun Xiaomo set her little packrat down to one side, and propping her chin up with her hands, she immersed herself in her thoughts.

    Most sects would have a simr area set aside as their forbidden grounds. But as to the exact location and what it hid or stored ¨C these were matters that over ny-nine percent of the sect members were unaware of. This was because the details pertaining to a sect¡¯s forbidden grounds were generally passed down from sect leader to sect leader by word of mouth. Apart from these sect leaders and their most trusted sect elders or disciples, other people would be kept in the dark.

    The surrounding areas of these forbidden grounds would further be restricted and protected by countless mysterious and profound formation arrays. Unless one was aware of the locations of these formation arrays and what exactly they were used for, then even if the forbidden grounds were just in front of that person, he would not be able to discover nor enter it.

    Truth be told, if not for Packie¡¯s innate understanding of these demonic ¡°delicacies¡±, coupled with its pathfinding abilities, the two of them might well have been trapped in the forbidden ground¡¯s formation arrays long ago.

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her finger and stroked her little packrat¡¯s fur gently,ughing helplessly, ¡°You¡¯re such a gluttonous thing. I¡¯m really not sure whether finding you was a blessing or a disaster.¡±

    Squeak squeak... Packie gently hugged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger with its paws and happily licked it.

    Jun Xiaomo retracted her finger, and her smile slowly faded away.

    Right now, she was even more certain that Sect Leader He Zhang was inextricably linked to her earlier trespassing of the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Could it be that He Zhang had from a long time ago already nned to use her to slowly x at Heavenly Peak?

    As she contemted, Jun Xiaomo grew more and more determined to grow stronger, and she found her earlier despondence almostughable.

    Did I really think that without myself, He Zhang would not scheme against Heavenly Peak? Of course not! He would just attempt to achieve the same end with different means.

    Besides, the current He Zhang was still proceeding ording to his original n. Having this knowledge would enable Jun Xiaomo to make all the precautions necessary. But if He Zhang changed his ns, it was going to be much more difficult to guard against him.

    With this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mood momentarily lightened up.

    ¡°Hey, be good and stay here quietly. I¡¯m going to meditate and cultivate for a while, understand?¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked her little packrat and tousled its white fur.

    Squeak squeak~ Packie obsequiously responded.

    Jun Xiaomoughed as she crossed her legs, sat upright and ced both palms facing up on her legs. Then, she slowly started operating the true energy within her body.

    She still had not discovered the nub for speeding up the transformation of true energy into spiritual energy, and so she had no choice but to painstakingly work at her cultivation. After all, if a cultivator wished to stand at the pinnacle of the world, it required both talent as well as diligence.

    Packie gnawed at his ws, and suddenly leapt into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom, shuddered for a moment, and then quietened itself.

    Jun Xiaomo did not realize this, but the dispersion of demonic energy and spiritual energy from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had all been absorbed by her little packrat.

    After two hours, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes and looked at herself with a pleasant surprise ¨C her cultivation speed had once again increased!

 Chapter 31: Combat and Skirmish

    <h4>Chapter 31: Combat and Skirmish</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo once again closed her eyes and probed about the true energy stored within her Dantian and meridians in disbelief. When she finally ascertained that she had used only two hours¡¯ time in order to transform and disperse five-thousandth of all of the true energy within her body, her heart leapt with joy.

    Her demonic energy transformation speed had indeed increased once again ¨C from the previous three-thousandth of her total capacity in ten hours, to five-thousandth of her total capacity in just two hours!

    Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes, delightedly biting down on her lower lip. Suddenly, she realized that there was some weight on herp. As she looked down, she discovered Packie obediently waiting on herp, and even yfully tumbling about.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at it curiously as she scratched its ear, thinking that this little packrat was truly her lucky star.

    Packie squeaked in pleasure and clumsily tickled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers with its whiskers.

    ¡°I have to consider what it is exactly that is causing my true energy transformation efficiency to increase.¡± Jun Xiaomo thoughtfully tapped her sharp chin and immersed herself in her thoughts.

    She recalled to mind everything that urred before both instances where her transformation efficiency increased ¨C

    On the first asion, she encountered Dai Yue, Dai Yue attacked her, and she instinctively reacted by operating her true energy. Although it did not work too well, she managed to move away slightly.

    On the second asion, she was stealing a look at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s swordy when Ye Xiuwen attacked her and she urgently operated her true energy...

    These two asions had been under simr conditions of being attacked suddenly, and as a result she had reflexively transformed true energy to spiritual energy. Previously, she had brushed this reaction off aspletely mundane and useless. But under closer examination, perhaps this was the true cause of the increase in her true energy transformation efficiency.

    At this point, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s analysis gave rise to much more rity than before. She remembered the idiosyncratic trait of all demonic cultivators ¨C their cultivation improved with everybat and skirmish.

    Demonic energy is by nature difficult to handle and manipte. Therefore, demonic cultivators who were under the influence of demonic energy day and night would invariably develop a wild and unrestrained personality; bing fearless ¨C unafraid ofbat and unfazed by death. Over time, some demonic cultivators even grew addicted to the euphoria brought by frenzied ughter and be the archetypical demonic cultivators that were both dreaded and hated by spiritual cultivators.

    Of course, Jun Xiaomo did not agree with the ways of these demonic cultivators whose life revolved around indiscriminate killing. These frenzied demonic cultivators were no different from regr cultivators who became deranged as a result of cultivation deviation ¨C after these frenzied demonic cultivators and deranged cultivators attained a certain level of cultivation, they would either implode and die; or lose all ability to think and be a ughter-obsessed maniac, eventually having their souls judged and destroyed by tribtion lightning.

    At the same time, not being an indiscriminate killer did not mean that she had to turn the other cheek even if others sought trouble with her. Jun Xiaomo had always lived by the principle that if others gave her an inch, she would reciprocate with ten; but if others aggrieved her, she would repay that tenfold! Therefore, in her previous life, countless persecuting cultivators from the ¡°righteous and upstanding¡± sects had perished under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands.

    In any event, perhaps Jun Xiaomo¡¯s prowess would not have improved at such an immense speed had she not been forced into difficult situations at every step of the way. If the people from her previous life realized that it had been their efforts that fueled the creation of this Lady Demoness, then they would certainly be banging their heads on the wall in utter regret.

    As Jun Xiaomo checked her theories against the matters of her previous life, she finally gained a new understanding of her present cultivation art.

    No matter what, this refinement technique was considered a demonic cultivation technique, and it would naturally have the same characteristics as other demonic cultivation techniques. For instance,bat was far better at improving one¡¯s cultivation levels than simple meditation.

    This would also exin why every time Jun Xiaomo encountered a potentially dangerous situation, there would be an obvious increase in her body¡¯s true energy transformation speed. This was because she reflexively operated the refinement technique in order to escape harm, and thus her cultivation level would always improve slightly.

    ¡°Ai-, it¡¯s such a simple thing. How could I have only figured it out now.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed.

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat that was curled up into a ball suddenly started moving in her bosom. When Jun Xiaomo looked down at it, she discovered that this little thing was actually gnawing away at her clothes!

    ¡°Eh! My clothes aren¡¯t food, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hand and swiftly retrieved a handful of pine nuts from her Interspatial Ring and set them on the table. Then, she put Packie in front of these nuts, saying, ¡°Here, have this instead. This should fill you up.¡±

    Packie went up and sniffed the pine nuts, but then turned around and looked at Jun Xiaomo as though it were trying to say it disliked the nuts. But even though Jun Xiaomo was tenderly smiling at it, her eyes revealed a resolute firmness ¨C clearly, her decision was non-negotiable. Therefore, Packie had no other choice but to pick up a pine nut and grouchily gnaw at it.

    ¡°It¡¯s really strange. Are all the Demonic Packrats as spiritually aware as you are?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she stroked Packie¡¯s fur. Yet Packie simply twitched its whiskers, focusing on the food before it andpletely ignoring Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo gently stroked one of her little packrat¡¯s whiskers as she delved deeper into her own thoughts.

    Since she had now grasped the essence of why her true energy transformation efficiency was so low, she had to think of a reasonable solution. With her present cultivation level, looking forbat opportunities outside the sect was tantamount tomitting suicide. But if it were within the Sect...

    Ye Xiuwen was the first person toe to mind. She momentarily stopped her finger in mid-air as she considered.

    Martial brother Ye...would he agree to this?

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip, seemingly distressed about some issues with this thought.

    If she were to ask Ye Xiuwen to be her sparring partner, then she would have to trouble Ye Xiuwen on several asions. On the one hand, she would feel sorry if she were to keep bothering Ye Xiuwen with this request of hers; while on the other hand she was nervous and even a little bit expectant about the increase in their interactions.

    These conflicting considerations caused Jun Xiaomo to feel absolutely perplexed about what the right decision were ¨C she knew that if she came clean with her analysis of the situation to Ye Xiuwen, it was quite likely that he would not reject her suggestions. However, whether he would reluctantly agree to help her or be delighted to do so would be another question altogether. After all, Jun Xiaomo knew that on ount of respect for her parents, Ye Xiuwen would not easily reject any request from Jun Xiaomo, unless that request crossed his bottom line.

    Yet it was precisely because of this that Jun Xiaomo did not want to coerce orpel Ye Xiuwen into doing something that he would rather not do. This would make her feel guilty.

    ¡°Sigh...this is so difficult. Should I look for martial brother or not~¡± Exasperated, Jun Xiaomo patted that little furball enjoying his pine nuts, ¡°Little Packie, do you think I should go look for martial brother?¡±

    Hearing this, her little packrat immediately threw away the pine nut in its hands and clutched tightly to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s index finger.

    Jun Xiaomoughed at this. ¡°What am I doing asking you such things, eh, you oblivious glutton~? Alright alright, go eat your pine nuts. Mum is almost back. I¡¯m going to go heat up the pot of Flowerleaf Koi in the kitchen.¡±

    As she said that, Jun Xiaomo lightly pulled her finger away from Packie¡¯s grip, stood up and left.

    Packie looked at her longingly as she left. Then, as soon as Jun Xiaomo were out of sight, it licked its paws again and picked up another pine nut...

    -------------------------------------

    It was a serene night, and constetions sshed across the dark skies as they silently nketed the Earth.

    At Dawn Sect¡¯s Pill Cauldron Peak, Yu Wanrou lit up a candle in her room. Instantly, the flickering me illuminated the room, revealing a burdened gaze in her eyes.

    She held a medicinal pill in her hand with a humiliated and unwilling look in her eyes.

    She swallowed that pill, and as the medicine took effect, the pain in her chest also gradually diminished.

    As she reveled in the effects of the medication, Yu Wanrou recalled how Jun Xiaomo had forced her into a spot with her reasoning in the Penal Hall, and a deep sense of burning indignation swelled up from her heart, choking and stifling her.

    If not for the Second Elder bailing her out of the difficult situation, perhaps her hard-earned reputation would have been single-handedly torn apart by Jun Xiaomo there and then.

    But Second Elder¡¯s aid had note freely. In order to secure herself some backing within the Sect, she had earlier used the spirit spring within her spectral demine to refine several medicinal pills and offered them to the Second Elder to earn his favour and protection. After the Second Elder bailed her out this time, Yu Wanrou had no choice but to present him with a few more of these medicinal pills. But because of this, she even almost let slip the existence of the spirit spring!

    Yu Wanrou was cautious of the fact that having such a treasure might incite the jealousy of others and invite trouble upon herself. Therefore, she could not gift the Second Elder with her medicinal pills too frequently, or he might learn of her treasure and turn on her and scheme against her instead.

    Furthermore, in order to conceal the existence of the spirit spring, Yu Wanrou had not dared to heal herself by drinking from the spirit spring directly. If she recovered too quickly from her injuries, this would also invite suspicion by those who were around her as well. Therefore, she had no choice but to take ordinary medicinal pills and bear with the pain from her injuries for a few weeks.

    As she thought about these matters, a desire to tear to shreds the culprit, Jun Xiaomo, welled up in Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart.

    Just as Yu Wanrou was immersed in her own thoughts, an obscure picture beside her bed suddenly brightened up. Her heart leapt with joy, and immediately her eyes were filled with tears. She sat on her bed and pitifully gazed upon that dancing me on the candle.

    ¡°Wanrou.¡± A deep voice from a man called out softly. A warm body pressed itself against Yu Wanrou¡¯s back and immediately embraced her from behind.

    Plop¡ªA glistening tear drop fell from Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes,nding on the man¡¯s arm. However, if a third person were present, they would be absolutely astonished by this scene ¨C that drop of tear that fell did not hit the ground; rather, it seemed to have simply vanished into this air!

    ¡°Alright, stop crying. I know you feel humiliated and snubbed. But during this time, I have not gone to see her either ¨C I¡¯ve alwayse here to visit you. What else is there to be upset about? Cheer up, hmm?¡± A pair of invisible hands turned Yu Wanrou around to face himself, gently wiping away the tears on her face.

    This man was Qin Lingyu. He had not dispelled the effects of the invisibility talisman on his body. Therefore, apart from Yu Wanrou who had left her mark on the invisibility talisman, as well as cultivators who were of at least the Nascent Soul cultivation level, nobody would be able to see him at all.

    Every time Qin Lingyu visited Yu Wanrou, he did the same thing ¨C he would use a teleportation formation array in conjunction with an invisibility talisman to enter Yu Wanrou¡¯s room covertly without alerting anybody. Therefore, nobody was aware of their secret rendezvous or their hidden rtionship with each other.

    ¡°You know my feelings towards you. How could I be truly happy when your marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo still stands?¡± Yu Wanrou leaned tenderly into Qin Lingyu¡¯s embrace. She looked into his eyes with tear-filled eyes and added dolefully, ¡°But I know you are an ambitious man. So, I¡¯m willing to wait. I will wait till the day when you can finally marry me.¡±

 Chapter 32: The Schemes of a Scumbag

    <h4>Chapter 32: The Schemes of a Scumbag</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s self-sacrificial attitude that prioritized the big picture thoroughly pleased the male chauvinist in Qin Lingyu. Furthermore, because Yu Wanrou willinglypromised for him, Qin Lingyu loved her even more dearly.

    Qin Lingyu gingerly patted dry the tears on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face, warmly asking, ¡°Then you should also know my feelings to you. She and I are only future spouses in name; while you and I are spouses in substance. Does this not ay some of your concerns? Why would I run the risk of being discovered by others and meet you if I didn¡¯t ce you first in my heart?¡±

    By now, Yu Wanrou¡¯s tears had stopped. With reddened rims around her eye, sheughed softly. Then, staring at Qin Lingyu, she coquettishly said, ¡°I knew you would have some sweet nothings to cajole me with.¡± As she said that, her somewhat tear-strewn face revealed a bashful yet sweet smile, just like the blossoming of fresh flowers strewn with morning dew.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened momentarily as his fiery gaze fixed on Yu Wanrou¡¯s plump and juicy red lips. Simultaneously, he lifted her chin tenderly and directed her eyes to his. He then leaned over and spoke with a raspy voice, ¡°What if I think your cherry lips are even sweeter, hmm?¡±

    Yu Wanrou swiftly hooked her arms around Qin Lingyu¡¯s neck, gazed into his eyes and whispered gently, ¡°Then do you want to have a taste and see what it¡¯s like?¡±

    Qin Lingyu loved this about Yu Wanrou ¨C that she was sometimes coy, sometimes innocent and pure, and sometimes simply brazen and open. The confluence of these factors made him want to devour her even more. As a man of action, he swiftly waved his hand and put out the flickering me in the room, enveloping the room inplete darkness. He embraced and locked lips with Yu Wanrou, while both of them clumsily motioned towards the bed.

    Very soon, the rooms were filled with sensual moaning and groaning sounds...

    After about half an hour, the creaking sounds of the bed gradually diminished. Qin Lingyu had earlier ced a Noise-Cancelling Talisman within the room, so no matter how much of a ruckus they made, others would bepletely unaware of it.

    Their euphoria was still lingering in their bodies, and naturally Qin Lingyu would stay for a while more. He held onto Yu Wanrou tightly and caressed her skin lovingly. Ever since his first ¡°experience¡± with Yu Wanrou, he woulde back to have a ¡°taste¡± again every now and then.

    However, it was not difficult to understand why. Yu Wanrou¡¯s body had been refined and substantially improved by the spirit spring in her spectral demine ¨C how bad could it be? Without this, she could not have enthralled throngs of male cultivators to worship her as a female goddess in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life.

    Yu Wanrou was even well versed in how to secure and manipte a man¡¯s heart ¨C when to act pitiful; and when to request for something.

    Furthermore, it must be said that making a request was all about timing. If the timing were poor, not only would one be unable to achieve her goal, she would even stir up ill feelings from the other person.

    Just like earlier, she had used her weakness and vulnerabilities to win over Qin Lingyu¡¯s care and concern, and even spent a night of pleasure with him. And now, it was the right time to finally make her request known to Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Lingyu...you¡¯ll be travelling out of the Sect for a mission next month, right? Could you take me along with you?¡± Yu Wanrou gently asked as she ran her finger across Qin Lingyu¡¯s chest slowly.

    Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen had both only attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery at the start of this year. Based on the Sect¡¯s regtions, the disciples who have reached that level must travel out of the Sect on a mission. This regtion was in fact put in ce for the benefit of the Sect¡¯s disciples. Cultivators at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery are essentially already at the foot of the Foundation Establishment stage, and all they need is the right opportunity to cross over to the next stage of their cultivation. Without such an opportunity, cultivators can only remain in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery and would never bridge the gap to Foundation Establishment.

    At the same time, these opportunities are mysterious and subtle things - cultivators would be able to understand and recognize an opportunity when they see one, yet it would be practically impossible to describe or to put a finger on what exactly the opportunity entailed. Furthermore, these opportunities are not something that can be attained by merely meditating ¨C they had to be grasped through one¡¯s own life experiences.

    Therefore, the Sect¡¯s disciples who have attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery will invariably leave the Sect on one of the Sect¡¯s missions, and most of these disciples would be able to encounter such an opportunity and bridge the gap to the Foundation Establishment stage before returning from that mission.

    Of course, those who had not attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery can also leave the Sect to experience the world outside and toplete missions, but it would be best if they were apanied by a stronger disciple. Otherwise, not only would they risk failing their missions, they may even lose their lives outside the Sect. After all, it was not umon to hear of cultivators losing their lives to covetous bandits in this world.

    Yu Wanrou would never make such a request if Jun Xiaomo were still at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. Because once she suggested it, and if Jun Xiaomo insisted on tagging along as well, how would she still be able to interact with Qin Lingyu at all? There was no doubt that Jun Xiaomo would be hovering around Qin Lingyu for the entire trip.

    But now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had fallen back to the first level of Qi Mastery. Even if she insisted on tagging along, both Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu would have countless ways of rebuffing her.

    In the first ce, would Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents even be willing to let their daughter at the first level of Qi Mastery leave the Sect?

    Qin Lingyu instantly felt moved the moment Yu Wanrou made this suggestion. After all, the prospects of bringing along an exquisitedy like Yu Wanrou on his travels was an absolute pleasure to him. But in the next moment, he hesitated. He was reminded once again of what his younger sister had said to him, that Jun Xiaomo had already grown suspicious of his rtionship with Yu Wanrou.

    If he brought Yu Wanrou when he left the Sect this time, it might fuel Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suspicions even more. If at that time Jun Xiaomo kicks up a ruckus about this matter and word spreads like wildfire to the rest of the Sect, then regardless of whether there was evidence to support her allegations, this matter would be a stain to his pristine reputation.

    Yu Wanrou knew exactly what Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts were. But she was unwilling to let it go. She was unwilling because Jun Xiaomo had trampled on her once. Therefore, she wanted to openly snatch Qin Lingyu over to her side just this once and put Jun Xiaomo through some pain and heartache.

    Yu Wanrou thought for a moment before adding, ¡°Lingyu, I know what you are thinking. However, when you leave the Sect this time, you will have to bring along a few disciples of the Sect for the mission in any event. What does it matter if I¡¯m but one of the disciples you¡¯re bringing? See, you can bring a few male disciples and a few female disciples. This way, no one would be suspicious of our rtionship. Additionally, they could even be our ¡°alibis¡±, proving that there was nothing going on between us at all.¡±

    The interactions between Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had always been hidden in the dark, and in front of others they kept a watertight pretense. Therefore, having a few others be their ¡°alibis¡± was definitely a good idea.

    Nevertheless, Qin Lingyu was still hesitant about it. Whenever the decisions to be made affected his own interests, he would always be exceptionally rational about them, never letting his emotions and feelings get in the way of his logical processes.

    This somewhat infuriated Yu Wanrou. She angrily smacked Qin Lingyu, saying with displeasure in her voice, ¡°Alright, are you not willing to bring me? Then fine. There are others who are willing to bring me along. Brother Ke Xinwen is not bad either ¨C I¡¯ll go with him instead!¡±

    Ke Xinwen was that very disciple who wanted to please Yu Wanrou by giving her the little packrat. He attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery when he was thirty-two years of age, but even after two whole years of hard work, he had broken into the Foundation Establishment stage. This year, he was thirty-four years-old. If he still did not manage to break into the Foundation Establishment stage, then he would no longer be able to qualify for the upper-tier sects.

    Therefore, he definitely had to seed in his travels this year. Even though his talent was far lower than Qin Lingyu or Ye Xiuwen, but his overall capabilities were still not too bad. After all, his cultivation level is indisputably at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and among all of the disciples within Dawn Sect, there were only the three of them who had attained this twelfth level of Qi Mastery. Yu Wanrou was not going to lose out too much by following him.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face looked ugly at this moment ¨C Yu Wanrou was clearly forcing him to decide right now. Even though he liked Yu Wanrou, this fondness had not grown to the extent where he could abandon everything else before her. This was particrly so when Yu Wanrou was even forcing his hand!

    Yu Wanrou could feel Qin Lingyu¡¯s hands tightening around hers as well, and his breathing seemed to have sped up slightly. Her heart immediately grew anxious, and she knew that she had slipped up a little.

    Perhaps she should be more restrained with her temper before she gained the ability to tap into that dual-cultivation technique. Otherwise, all would be lost if Qin Lingyu bes fed up with her.

    The secret dual-cultivation technique within Yu Wanrou¡¯s spectral demine required both cultivators to minimally be of the Golden Core stage of cultivation before it could be used. Before she attains the Golden Core stage of cultivation, she would do well to keep Qin Lingyu by her side and not let his heart wander away.

    As she thought about it, Yu Wanrou softly sighed, and dolefully said, ¡°Lingyu, you¡¯re hurting me.¡±

    Qin Lingyu immediately loosened his grip but did notfort her as he would usually do.

    Yu Wanrou again smacked Qin Lingyu¡¯s chest, sullenlyining, ¡°I was only kidding. Why can¡¯t you take a joke? If you are not willing to bring me along, then I would obediently wait for your return at the Sect, alright?¡±

    As she finished, her voice even trembled with a trace of sorrow, promptly shedding a drop of tear onto Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder.

    Seeing this, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart immediately softened again. He pulled Yu Wanrou into an embrace, and patting her back, he said, ¡°Alright, alright, of course you may joke with me; but can¡¯t I also be upset with you? Don¡¯t say such things next time. You¡¯re surely also aware of Ke Xinwen¡¯s feelings for you ¨C so when you casually say such things won¡¯t it hurt me as well? Anyhow, dear, I¡¯ll think about it. If I can bring you along, I definitely will, hmm?¡±

    Yu Wanrou softly acknowledged with a slightly flirty, prolonged ¡°Mm¡±, instantly dispelling the rest of Qin Lingyu¡¯s earlier displeasure.

    As the now rposed Qin Lingyu once again experienced the warmth and tenderness of Yu Wanrou¡¯s body, his heart grew slightly unwilling.

    Leaving the Sect for one of these missions may take as long as an entire year ¨C this meant that Qin Lingyu would potentially be unable to have such frolics with Yu Wanrou for this entire period of time.

    Since Yu Wanrou wanted toe along, what¡¯s the harm in bringing her? After all, the allegations made by Jun Xiaomo were but conjectures based off the figments of her own imagination; she definitely has no proof of all of these. For all I know, she might even just be kicking up a fuss because she is jealous that Wanrou has a much better way with people than she does.

    Thinking about these, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart grew more and more restless. Of course, he would first have to sound out Jun Xiaomo and see what exactly she meant by her allegations.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Interspatial Ring had plenty of goodies gifted to her by Jun Linxuan. If he could obtain one or two of these at the same time, then that would add substantially to his confidence inpleting the mission outside the Sect.

    The room was now silent. Qin Lingyu¡¯s hand gently stroked Yu Wanrou¡¯s back with a slightly irregr rhythm while he was immersed in his own thoughts.

    Just then, even as Yu Wanrou was still locked in Qin Lingyu¡¯s embrace, her lips curled up into a cunning smile, and her eyes gleamed with radiance.

    She could feel that Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was beginning to be moved.

 Chapter 33: Discovery of the Truth

    <h4>Chapter 33: Discovery of the Truth</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo had also just had a sleepless night. She had wanted to cultivate in meditation, yet because there were concerns weighing on her heart, she grew so agitated that she could not properly enter a meditative state of mind.

    ¡°Sigh...Should I, or should I not ask martial brother Ye for help to increase my cultivation speed?¡± Jun Xiaomo thought with immense frustration as she impatiently tapped on her cheeks.

    Her little packrat snoozed in a small basket beside her. The basket wasden with cotton wool, and it was extremely soft and warm to the touch. When her little packrat first dove into the basket, it was so happy that it squeaked excitedly for a long time.

    ¡°It truly is a simple-minded creature.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled at it as she pulled a thin silken sheet over her little packrat¡¯s body to prevent it from catching a cold.

    One whole night passed just like that. As dawn broke, Jun Xiaomo finally made the decision to look for Ye Xiuwen for help.

    Actually, Jun Xiaomo was not an indecisive person. However, when faced with those whom she cared about and even owed a debt of gratitude towards, then she would invariably find herself overtly considerate towards their feelings. After all, she knew that she was not a very conscientious person, or she would not have been bamboozled by that scumbag Qin Lingyu in her previous life. Therefore, in this life, she was determined to be much more conscientious where it mattered ¨C whether it be assessing potentially dangerous situations or dealing with loved ones.

    And besides, even though Jun Xiaomo had in her previous life interacted with Ye Xiuwen for quite some time, a good part of their interaction had been when Jun Xiaomo was in a muddleheaded state of mind and depressed. Because of that, her understanding of Ye Xiuwen hadrgely been gleaned from her memories of him and put together only after his death, and it could only be said to be shallow at best. Therefore, if the present Jun Xiaomo wished to improve her rtionship with Ye Xiuwen, she had to tread gingerly and take things one step at a time.

    Jun Xiaomo rummaged through her Interspatial Ring for some time, carefully picking out a few items that were suitable for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s usage ¨C a bottle of fifth-grade Energy Recovery Pills, ten pieces of third-grade Thunderbolt Talisman and a bundle of third grade Fragrantroot Grass. She ced all of these items into a small basket and then departed her room and headed directly for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode.

    Before she stepped out of her room, Jun Xiaomo even repeatedly warned Packie not to run about, and only left after Packie replied obediently with two squeaks.

    Even though daybreak had just arrived, Jun Xiaomo knew with her basic understanding of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s habits that he would already be awake and practicing his swordy. Ye Xiuwen had always been a person of both talent and diligence. Otherwise, he would not been selected by Jun Linxuan as the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak at such a young age. It must not be understated that Jun Linxuan¡¯s criteria for epting disciples were not merely abilities ¨C he looked intently at a person¡¯s character as well. If this person¡¯s character did not meet his requirements, then no matter how strong that person was, he would not receive Jun Linxuan¡¯s approval at all.

    As expected, when Jun Xiaomo neared the same man-made hill from yesterday, her ears immediately picked up sounds made by a sword slicing through the air. The fallen leaves in that area had even been ground to dust and scattered about by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sharp sword intent, travelling as far as the other side of the man-made hill.

    Jun Xiaomo had learnt her lesson. This time, she no longer went ahead towards where Ye Xiuwen was. Instead, she waited silently behind the man-made hill for Ye Xiuwen to finish his practice before heading out.

    After some time, the sky had already brightened substantial. Ye Xiuwen concluded his practice and patiently waited until his body¡¯s spiritual energy had calmed down, before finally leaving in the direction of the man-made hill.

    Ye Xiuwen had discovered the presence of another person during his practice earlier, but he also sensed that that person bore no ill-intent towards him, so he left that person alone.

    After that incident with Jun Xiaomo yesterday, Ye Xiuwen also grew more cautious, and he would no longer rashly attack a stranger with his sword.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen had roughly already guessed who this person was. In the first ce, the people who visited his abode would generally only include his master and his martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak; it was quite rare to have visitors from other Peaks. Furthermore, most of his martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak had followed Jun Linxuan to the back of the mountain to undergo special training in a closed-door cultivation environment. Therefore, the only other person who still had the freedom to walk about Heavenly Peak as she wished could only be his martial sister Jun Xiaomo.

    As expected, once he circled around the man-made hill, he immediately bumped into Jun Xiaomo, who wore a bright and cute smile on her face which entuated her two dimples on her cheeks.

    ¡°Brother Ye~¡± Jun Xiaomo respectfully addressed him as she smiled. She still felt rather ill at ease thinking about that awkward incident from yesterday. Therefore, she gently lowered her head, and carefully observed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response to her.

    Ye Xiuwen had always given some indulgence to Jun Xiaomo and her antics on ount for her identity. Furthermore, he was not even extremely angry at her yesterday. Even if he had misunderstood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions, he attributed her behaviour to her childish personality and did not take it to heart.

    Thus, when he saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expression which seemed to say, ¡°I¡¯m ready to face the music¡±, Ye Xiuwen could not help but find this scene ratherical.

    This martial sister of his had always had a devil-may-care attitude, and whenever she interacted with people she would always do as she pleased, rarely taking into consideration the feelings of others. Yet today was a rare asion where she actually seemed concerned about the consequences of her actions yesterday. Perhaps she even cared about him?

    Ye Xiuwen was not an undiscerning person. Since Jun Xiaomo was willing to interact with him with sincerity, then he would not bear grudges and blindly reject her goodwill.

    After all, everyone grows up after some time. The present Jun Xiaomo seemed to have matured quite a fair bit from their earlier interactions.

    ¡°What is this?¡± Ye Xiuwen warmly asked as he pointed to the basket hanging on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm. Incidentally, he also shattered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ill-at-ease feelings with these words.

    ¡°Ah! I almost forgot about this. Martial brother, this is my gift to you to pay respect to my master!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled widely as she spoke, simultaneously removing the cloth covering the basket to reveal its contents to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Gifts to pay respect to your master?¡± Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrow in bewilderment, ¡°You and I are martial brother and sister, how can I be your master?¡±

    Wouldn¡¯t this be absurd?

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks at Ye Xiuwen, mumbling, ¡°It¡¯s not formally making you my master; it¡¯s just...I¡¯d like martial brother Ye to teach me sword arts.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had thought it through. With her current cultivation, it would not be practical to learn anything else ¨C given that the present Jun Xiaomo could not muster any spiritual energy, she was no better than a mere mortal. She was unable to infuse a silver needle with spiritual energy, so if she tried to fling it out, it would be soft and limp, and even a worm would not die from such an attack, much less be able to use it inbat. Sorcery would be even more impossible. The present her could not even activate a spell as simple as me, so what else would she be able to do?

    At the same time, she needed to increase her true energy transformation speeds throughbat and skirmish. Therefore, the best method to do this would be through sword arts.

    Ye Xiuwen was a Chosen Disciple of Frozen Sword Sect, and his knowledge and understanding of the sword arts far exceeded anyone of his generation. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo thought that there would be no better person to learn these sword arts from than him.

    Furthermore, if martial brother Ye taught her sword arts, this would increase the interactions they had with each other and possible foster better rtionships. With so many benefits from this arrangement, Jun Xiaomo would be daft if she did not seriously consider this. This was the result of her the entire night¡¯s worth of contemtion after all.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had brought this humble ¡°introductory gift¡± to Ye Xiuwen to seek his approval to teach her sword arts.

    Ye Xiuwen silently sized up Jun Xiaomo at this moment. He was uncertain of whether she was doing this impulsively, or whether she seriously wished to learn the sword arts.

    Of course, the present Ye Xiuwen leaned towards thetter.

    As she realized that her martial brother was sizing her up and seriously considering her suggestion, her heart grew with increasing excitement. After a few moments, she inquisitively prompted, ¡°Martial brother?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a while, before finally asking. ¡°Martial sister, tell me truthfully ¨C why do you want to learn sword arts?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips, choosing a more ptable reason, ¡°Martial brother, as you know, my cultivation level has since fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery. I also need to have the ability to protect myself.¡±

    But Ye Xiuwen was not so easily deceived.

    ¡°If that is the case, then you should devote more of your time to increasing your cultivation level, and not spread yourself so thin learning sword arts on the side while practicing cultivation. This could stifle your progress on both ends. And besides, if you remain in the Sect, who would be able to hurt you? As of now, you don¡¯t really need the abilities to protect yourself.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly analyzed the situation and pointed out the crux of the matter.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was filled with defeat, as she discovered that Ye Xiuwen could truly see through all her lies.

    Sometimes, she truly felt like revealing all her secrets to Ye Xiuwen. But as the words were about to leave her mouth, she would always stop herself ¨C some secrets are meant to be kept as secrets all her life. The fewer the people who knew it, the safer she would be. Besides, the Ye Xiuwen now might not even believe her if she told him everything.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes redden, and hesitating to speak, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart also softened. He sighed and said to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Martial sister, perhaps I have been too harsh with my words, but this is really for your own good. You have to know that practicing sword arts is not something that produces results overnight. You have to persevere and work diligently at it, and it would even use up a good part of your precious meditating hours. If you truly like sword arts, why not wait till you have recovered your eighth level of Qi Mastery before making your decision? If you still wish to learn at that time, I will do my best to teach you, alright?¡±

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s forte was sorcery, therefore asking Ye Xiuwen to teach Jun Xiaomo sword arts waspletely understandable.

    After listening to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words, some expressions and colour finally returned to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s originally stunned, pale face. But she was still determined. She shook her head, looked up at Ye Xiuwen and told him seriously, ¡°Martial brother, I cannot wait any longer. If I cannot learn sword arts, then there is a good chance that I will forever remain at the first level of Qi Mastery. Even if I spend my whole life meditating, I will still be unable to progress in my cultivation.¡±

    This time, it was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s turn to be stunned. He thought about how Jun Xiaomo had used demonic energy when she struck out at Yu Wanrou that fateful day, and then contemted how absurd it was that Jun Xiaomo presented herselfter that same day with her crippled cultivation.

    He felt that there is an important secret deep within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart at this moment.

    As he thought about it, Ye Xiuwen grabbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand and pulled her into the pavilion. As they entered the pavilion, he pressed on a part of the stone table sitting in the middle of the pavilion. Instantly, the surroundings seemed to shift and distort ¨C bamboos, flowers, trees, stones...everything moved on its own, until when they finally settled, the surroundings lookedpletely different from before.

    This was a formation array, and it could ensure that no one would be able to enter or secretly listen in on the conversations at that pavilion. Even though the probability of these things happening were rather low, but the meticulous Ye Xiuwen would rather not take the chance no matter how low they were.

    After making all these preparations, Ye Xiuwen calmly looked at Jun Xiaomo, asking, ¡°Martial sister, tell me the truth now, what exactly happened with your body?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was initially stunned by the fact that Ye Xiuwen would of his own volition hold onto her hand. Who would have thought that Ye Xiuwen had done an entire series of surprising things just to elicit the truth from her?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions caused Jun Xiaomo to realize one thing ¨C Ye Xiuwen may well have guessed a portion of the truth about her.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip, uncertain of what exactly she should be revealing to Ye Xiuwen.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hesitation, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes immediately darkened.

    ¡°Xiaomo, is there the existence of demonic energy within your body?¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen said these words, Jun Xiaomo looked up in astonishment, nkly staring at Ye Xiuwen with her widened eyes,pletely stumped for words.

 Chapter 34: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Sympathy

    <h4>Chapter 34: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Sympathy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Because of her astonishment, Jun Xiaomo did not realize that Ye Xiuwen had addressed her as ¡°Xiaomo¡± instead of ¡°martial sister¡±. Her momentarily vacant mind had only one thought remaining ¨C

    Martial brother has discovered it?! When did this happen? Will he hate me if I be a demonic cultivator?

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the Ye n had been annihted by demonic cultivators, and Ye Xiuwen would naturally despise demonic cultivators. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents had both perished in her previous life, leaving no one to care for Jun Xiaomo, perhaps the already estranged Ye Xiuwen might even have distanced himself with the then-demonized Jun Xiaomo.

    Therefore, when Ye Xiuwen asked her about the demonic energy in her body, Jun Xiaomo simply stood there in a daze,pletely confounded as to whether she should admit it or not.

    Ye Xiuwen could also see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hesitation, so he did not press for an answer. Rather, he casually retrieved a tea set from his Interspatial Ring, put in some tea leaves, boiled a pot of water, and then rinsed the tea leaves twice before making a pot of tea. Finally, he carefully filled an exquisitely designed teacup and set it in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Take a seat. Have some tea first.¡± Ye Xiuwen told the distressed Jun Xiaomo as she stoodstanding to the side.

    Jun Xiaomopliantly took a seat, hesitantly picking up the teacup and taking a sip.

    Instantly, the tea¡¯s fragrance dispersed some of her earlier shock and allowed her to rpose herself. Ye Xiuwen also noticed that Jun Xiaomo had somewhat recovered, and thus he continued, ¡°I¡¯ve already set up a formation array and a restrictive barrier, so you don¡¯t have to worry that anything you say would be heard by others. Of course, if there¡¯s something you wish to keep to yourself, I won¡¯t force you to say it either.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo slowly finished the cup of tea she was holding. As she collected her thoughts, she subconsciously ran her finger along the edge of the teacup. After some time, she finally spoke with some difficulty, ¡°Martial brother...when did you realize that there is demonic energy within my body?¡±

    ¡°On the day you hurt Yu Wanrou.¡± Ye Xiuwen stated matter-of-factly, as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers twitched slightly in response.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled grimly, ¡°If that was the case, howe you...¡±

    ¡°Howe I didn¡¯t say anything in the Penal Hall?¡± Ye Xiuwen had guessed what Jun Xiaomo was going to ask andpleted the sentence for her, ¡°Because I am your martial brother, not Yu Wanrou.¡±

    The most important point was that Jun Xiaomo had hurt Yu Wanrou because Yu Wanrou had seduced Qin Lingyu. Ye Xiuwen had no reason to throw Jun Xiaomo under the bus.

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo finally let her guard down a little ¨C given how willingly Ye Xiuwen had taken on the burden of looking after her in her previous life, she should have known that this was based on his immutable principles, and by extension his stance on this present matter would not be vastly different either.

    Perhaps martial brother Ye had not thrown me under the bus on ount of my parents? But regardless of the main reason, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was nevertheless filled with warmth and gratitude.

    Martial brother Ye is still the same person I used to know. This is great...

    It was as though Jun Xiaomo had a huge load taken off her back right now. She suddenly felt that it might not be so bad to tell Ye Xiuwen a portion of the truth. At least she would not have to bear this burden all by herself.

    Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes and deliberated over the matter. After a few moments, she slowly opened her eyes after having made her decision.

    She nodded, and said to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Yes, martial brother, my body indeed has demonic energy. Furthermore, the reason why my cultivation level has fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery is also rted to the demonic energy in my body.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen knit his eyebrows together, saying, ¡°Tell me more about it.¡±

    ¡°That day, after I received punishment for trespassing on the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo told Ye Xiuwen all about He Zhang¡¯s medicinal pills, and how the demonic energy in her body increased day by day after taking these medicinal pills. However, she did not say anything about the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique.

    It was not that she did not trust Ye Xiuwen, nor was she worried that Ye Xiuwen would covet this secret art of hers. Truth be told, the people she trusted the most in this world, apart from her parents, would only be Ye Xiuwen.

    However, she would be unable to exin where and how she came to obtain this secret art. After all, she had made up her mind to keep the matter of her rebirth a secret for life.

    After listening to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnation, Ye Xiuwen grasped two things ¨C the first was that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s constitution had been transformed to a demonic body and as a result of that her cultivation level had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery; and secondly He Zhang could be the mastermind behind these events, because these things had only happened to Jun Xiaomo after she had taken the medicinal pills given by He Zhang.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows even more. He could tell that Jun Xiaomo was not lying, but the contents of what she had said bordered on incredulity.

    Ye Xiuwen did not interact much with He Zhang because he was not He Zhang¡¯s disciple. But he knew that the rtionship between Sect Leader He Zhang and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents were still rather good, and He Zhang and Liu Qingmei were once even martial brothers and sisters. This being the case, why would He Zhang want to harm Jun Xiaomo? There seemed to be something missing here.

    Of course, Ye Xiuwen would not determine whether He Zhang was a good or bad person simply on his previous interactions with He Zhang. He only silently sowed a seed of suspicion against He Zhang in his heart, waiting to see whether any future events would sprout this seed and reveal more about He Zhang¡¯s nature.

    But quite apart from all these, his martial sister¡¯s present cultivation condition was absolutely worrisome.

    Ye Xiuwen pondered for a moment before he asked, ¡°Xiaomo, since you know the reason for the fall in your cultivation level, why didn¡¯t you inform the Sect Elders and let them figure out what¡¯s wrong with your body?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, ¡°Martial brother, I can¡¯t trust them...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo strangely. He did not expect her to give such an answer.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened slightly from anger. Every time she thought of the number of enemies within the Sect, whether hidden and concealed or otherwise, she could not help but think of burning down the entire Dawn Sect to wipe out all these pests and vermin!

    They were like branches of the same tree ¨C yet why did these other branches have to force the issue despite being from the same source? Jun Xiaomo could not understand how people¡¯s hearts could be so evil and vicious ¨C why did people of the same Sect have to force their martial brothers in the Heavenly Peak to such ends?

    Taking a deep breath, Jun Xiaomo adjusted her emotions before continuing, ¡°Martial brother, have you thought about it before? With Second Elder¡¯s abilities, how could he not have discovered the demonic energy in my meridians and Dantian? Yet he did not say anything about it, and the other Sect Elders also did not press the issue. I can¡¯t tell who¡¯s a friend and who¡¯s a foe among all these Sect Elders as things are right now.¡±

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen became taciturn. He never thought that a person who had been spoilt by her parents since young and who acted as though she had no worries in the world would in fact be bearing such heavy burdens on her heart.

    ¡°Xiaomo, then why didn¡¯t you tell your mother about these things?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen felt that her martial sister was still too young to be bearing such heavy burdens on her own.

    Jun Xiaomoughed bitterly in exasperation. Shaking her head, she said, ¡°Martial brother, if I told these things to my mum, would she even believe me? In her eyes, I¡¯m still a kid who hasn¡¯t grown up yet ¨C how would I be able to convince her? Furthermore, mum isn¡¯t a person who likes to hide things in her heart. If she confronts He Zhang or reveals it in her expressions, then she may inadvertently alert He Zhang to our suspicions. Once He Zhang knows we have grown suspicious of him, then I shudder to think of what he will do.¡±

    And this was not simply limited to Liu Qingmei. Jun Linxuan was also a person who was straightforward and wore his heart on his sleeves; he never thought too much about the intricacies of interpersonal rtions at all. Otherwise, he would not have seen He Zhang¡¯s true nature only on his deathbed in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. The disciples taught by Jun Linxuan naturally inherited these characteristics of his. Among all his disciples, only Ye Xiuwen could be considered to be more aware of the nuances of interpersonal rtions.

    This was also one of the reasons why Jun Xiaomo was willing to tell these things to Ye Xiuwen.

    Thinking about how her parents had died in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes darkened, and she grew taciturn as well.

    Ye Xiuwen had now discovered that this martial sister was much more mature than he thought. Her level of analysis on such matters was certainly notmensurate with that of a sixteen year-old spoilt princess.

    Perhaps it was because of the impact on her from recent events? Ye Xiuwen sighed in his heart.

    It was absolutely devastating to any cultivator to have their cultivation level fall back to the first level of Qi Mastery as a result of demonic energy within their body. Furthermore, to have to keep these matters bottled up in their heart...

    Such devastation could elerate one¡¯s maturity, and perhaps Jun Xiaomo was no exception to this.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo who currently had her head hung low and looked depressed. He could not help but feel sorry for her.

    Ye Xiuwen stood up and walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Patting her shoulder, he said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you wanted to learn sword arts from me? Come here at dawn tomorrow[1]. I have a wooden sword in my Interspatial Ring which should be suitable for your use.¡±

    ¡°Martial brother?!¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her head, and her eyes gleamed with radiant joy.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes revealed traces of joy in response. He felt that this kind of expression suited Jun Xiaomo much better ¨C the earlier Jun Xiaomo was simply too downcast.

    However, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression quickly turned stern. Even though this werergely obscured by the veiled conical hat he was wearing, Jun Xiaomo could tell from his tone the change of his attitude.

    ¡°But I¡¯d like to forewarn martial sister ¨C learning sword arts is an arduous and painful process. Once you begin, you are not allowed to give up easily. Otherwise, I won¡¯t teach you anymore.¡±

    ¡°Mm-mm!¡± Jun Xiaomo eagerly nodded her head, and her eyes were filled with a bright and joyful radiance.

    ¡°Also, your main focus right now should be to improve your Qi Mastery level. Therefore, practicing sword arts cannot take up your cultivation time. In this regard, I will give you a cultivation n. Unless you have a better idea, you will have to adhere strictly to these ns no matter how difficult it gets. Can you do this?¡±

    Since Ye Xiuwen had agreed to teach Jun Xiaomo, he would go all out to make the necessary arrangements for Jun Xiaomo so that she would not be overwhelmed by juggling both sword arts and her cultivation. This was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s style of doing things ¨C serious, diligent, meticulous, and impably responsible.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to nod her head in response to all of these, and tears of joy even welled up in her eyes.

    It was as though the Ye Xiuwen of the past had returned in the present...

    1. The mandarin trantion uses an archaic way of identifying time in 2-hour blocks which refers to 5-7am in the morning.

 Chapter 35: Punishing Qin Lingyu

    <h4>Chapter 35: Punishing Qin Lingyu</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt much lighter after sharing with Ye Xiuwen some of the things she had cooped up within her heart for the longest time. At the same time, she was ted and relieved because she could finally let her guard down around Ye Xiuwen and be truthful with him.

    Even though He Zhang and the numerous schemers within the Sect still lurked about Heavenly Peak like prowling lions stalking its prey, it would be much more difficult for them to seed in their schemes or move against the Heavenly Peak once martial brother Ye has put up his guard against these people. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself as her lips curled into a smile.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was thinking about something else.

    ¡°Xiaomo, is your body still absorbing demonic energy?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses. Again, she was confounded by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s query which got to the nub of the issue.

    What do I do? Should I tell martial brother the truth? What happens if he guesses that I¡¯ve be a demonic cultivator?

    After deliberating for a moment, she nodded and told Ye Xiuwen truthfully, ¡°Yes, by body has already been changed on a substructure level, and it now naturally absorbs demonic energy.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn. If his martial sister¡¯s body absorbs demonic energy more smoothly than demonic energy, then spiritual cultivation would no longer be suitable for her.

    Unless there was a way to revert Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body to a spiritual body, she may be left with no choice but to be a demonic cultivator.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silence caused Jun Xiaomo to feel anxious and uncertain. She knew that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s entire n had been ughtered by demonic cultivators, and she was fearful that Ye Xiuwen would detest her if she became a demonic cultivator.

    Thinking of this, Jun Xiaomo pulled gently on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves, softly murmuring, ¡°Martial brother, even if I end up as a demonic cultivator, I will not hurt anyone. I swear it on my heart!¡± As she said that, she raised three fingers, swearing formally to show her sincerity.

    Seeing the pitiful Jun Xiaomo acting so cautiously towards him, Ye Xiuwen could not help but smile in amusement. He ruffled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, saying warmly, ¡°I know martial sister won¡¯t hurt anyone. I only worry that if your body continues to absorb demonic energy, then the cultivation methods avable within the Sect would no longer be suitable for you. Furthermore, cultivating with demonic energy is different from cultivating with spiritual energy, and even I am not certain what exactly these differences are. I only fear that you may run into some ident during cultivation.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo subconsciously rubbed her head, evidently a little shaken up at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response. At this moment, a warm feelingced with joy rose up from within her heart ¨C she could feel her martial brother¡¯s concern towards her, and this proved that he was also gradually warming up to her.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen. She wanted to assure Ye Xiuwen that she had everything under control so that he would not have to worry about the demonic energy in her body. Thus, she tugged at his sleeve again, raised her head and said, ¡°Martial brother, don¡¯t worry. As for this matter, I already have a way to deal with it. Um...even though I¡¯m not at liberty to say what the solution is right now, but I will definitely let you know when the time is rightter.¡±

    In this regard, ¡°the right time¡± naturally meant when she was confident of revealing these details to Ye Xiuwen without having to allude to her rebirth.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder in response, ¡°As long as you have a way to deal with it, I don¡¯t mind if you don¡¯t tell me at all. But if you encounter any difficulty or issues with your cultivation, you must immediately inform me. You¡¯re still young after all, and there¡¯s no need for you bottle it up and bear all these burdens on your own.¡±

    ¡°Okay. Thank you, martial brother!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled at Ye Xiuwen brightly. In the spur of the moment, she leaned forward and hugged Ye Xiuwen, rubbing her head tenderly in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom.

    This little gesture of hers was something that she often expressed to her loved ones only ¨C Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan had often experienced it. However, this was the first time she had acted this way towards Ye Xiuwen. The embrace even carried with it some traces of acting like a spoilt child. But Ye Xiuwen was a person who guarded his personal space closely, and his body froze in shock when he got caught off guard like that by Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo had always feared that Ye Xiuwen would hate and shun her, so she was always cautious with everything she did around Ye Xiuwen. But seeing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s change of heart towards her today, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cautiousness also gradually faded away, and she brazenly clung tightly to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s waist, refusing to let go of him.

    In the seemingly unending days she spent in the dark dungeon, Jun Xiaomo had time and time again thought about how Ye Xiuwen had allowed her to experience the warmth of family and love, even if this warmth may well have been derived from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s responsibilities and duty. These thoughts brought about wave after wave of regret and sorrow on the then-captive Jun Xiaomo.

    But now, she could finally once again experience Ye Xiuwen¡¯s warmth and concern. Even if it were only for a short time, she wanted to cherish every moment of this interaction and not let go.

    Yet, it was indeed only for a short time. Once Ye Xiuwen realized that Jun Xiaomo had no intention of letting go, he gently nudged her away, and patting her back, he helplessly said, ¡°Alright alright, have you be a puppy now?¡±

    Whilst he framed his response this way, his tone was nevertheless mixed with some slight annoyance and displeasure. The truth of the matter was that Ye Xiuwen did not despise such actions ¨C he was just not used to these things.

    Jun Xiaomo finally raised her head, and the radiant smile on her face was like a blossoming flower at this point. Despite being young, she had beautiful, sharp features set perfectly on her smooth, tender cheeks. Her features seemed to be even more defined after her recovery from the Sect¡¯s punishment. At the same time, her expressions exuded the bright and cute charms of a sixteen years-old teenager, especially the two dimples on her cheeks.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes glinted momentarily, revealing an expression of warmth and softness he did not even know he was capable of.

    At this moment, a paper crane flitted through the bamboo forest towards the pavilion where Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were located, but because of the formation array and restrictive barrier, it circled about the bamboo forest, unable to enter the same.

    Ye Xiuwen discovered the slight disturbance outside the formation array. Having full control over the formation array, Ye Xiuwen sent a thread of divine sense through the formation array and probed about outside, discovering a Messenger Paper Crane circling outside the formation array. The aura on the Messenger Paper Crane was an unfamiliar one ¨C meaning this was sent by someone unfamiliar to him.

    ¡°Martial brother, what is it?¡± Jun Xiaomo noticed Ye Xiuwen cing his hand on the heart of the formation array inside the pavilion and asked curiously.

    ¡°Seems like someone is looking for me. Xiaomo, do you still have anything you wish to tell martial brother? If there¡¯s nothing, I¡¯ll be releasing the formation array and restrictive barrier.¡± Ye Xiuwen asked Jun Xiaomo.

    Even though she was slightly dissatisfied by the fact that their blissful interaction wasing to an end because of the interruption of a measly paper crane, she was appeased by the fact that she could still see Ye Xiuwen when she learnt sword arts from him tomorrow.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing else I have to add. You can go ahead and release the formation array and restrictive barrier, martial brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo shook her head and obediently said. She did not want to get in the way of her martial brother¡¯s duties.

    Both Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had thought that the Messenger Paper Crane was here to ry a message to Ye Xiuwen. Unexpectedly, once the formation array and restrictive barrier were removed, the Messenger Paper Crane actuallynded in front of Jun Xiaomo instead.

    ¡°This paper crane is looking for me?¡± Jun Xiaomo widened her eyes in surprise, muttering, ¡°Could it be mum? But it doesn¡¯t seem to be her.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo picked up the paper crane and swiftly opened it.

    Immediately, a familiar cold and low voice rang out within the pavilion, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m outside your room door right now. Once you receive this Messenger Paper Crane, hurry on back. I¡¯ve got some matters to discuss with you.¡±

    It¡¯s actually Qin Lingyu?! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened even more, as though she had just seen a ghost.

    In the next moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes ignited with fiery ze ¨C That¡¯s just great. This jerk is quite something else. I haven¡¯t even looked to settle the score with him, and he¡¯s alreadye knocking on my door. And he¡¯s even using such a demanding attitude towards me.

    Who does he think he is!

    And the most frustrating thing was that he even disrupted the interaction she had with Ye Xiuwen!

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth, slowly but surely crushing the Messenger Paper Crane into an unrecognizable lump of paper, as though she were crushing Qin Lingyu¡¯s flesh and bones.

    Ah-- This scumbag would never think about this ¡°fianc¨¦e¡± of his unless he was looking for some goodies or benefits. Jun Xiaomo mocked in her heart as the burning ze burgeoned into a raging firestorm, raring to raze Qin Lingyu to the ground.

    Ye Xiuwen frowned at this. From Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier words, he knew that He Zhang could well be the orchestrator causing his martial sister¡¯s cultivation to fall to the first level of Qi Mastery. And Qin Lingyu was He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple ¨C did their association with each other mean anything? If their suspicions against He Zhang bore out, then did this mean that Qin Lingyu wasplicit or in the know for these things as well?

    As he brooded over these matters, Ye Xiuwen looked silently at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions. This was because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fondness for Qin Lingyu was public knowledge to members of the Sect. In fact, everyone knew that the former Jun Xiaomo was but one step away from wrapping herself up with ribbons and presenting her entire self to Qin Lingyu.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen did not know whether when faced with Qin Lingyu, Jun Xiaomo would muddleheadedly capitte andpletely set aside her earlier suspicions.

    But as he looked on, his martial sister seemed unfazed, and perhaps even incensed by Qin Lingyu¡¯s demand that she returned straight away.

    Ye Xiuwen heaved a sigh of relief, and his heart welled up with aplicated feeling.

    Jun Xiaomo tossed the crushed Messenger Paper Crane to a side, ring at it, before leisurely saying, ¡°Let Qin Lingyu slowly wait then. He wants me to return immediately? I¡¯ll do the exact opposite! Pfft. Who does this Qin Lingyu think he is!¡± Jun Xiaomo even rolled her eyes as she finished.

    Ye Xiuwen found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly boorish behaviourical, while at the same time her candor rather refreshing and perhaps even cute. He set his hands down from the heart of the formation array, before walking beside the table and pouring out a cup full of tea. He set the teacup in front of Jun Xiaomo, yfully eximing, ¡°Since martial sister is not in a rush to return, then why not apany martial brother here for a few cups of tea?¡±

    ¡°Suits me, suits me~¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled flippantly as she nodded. She picked up the cup of tea and gulped it down all at once.

    Ye Xiuwen froze in ce at the sight ¨C he waspletely stunned by his martial sister¡¯s almost vulgar way of drinking tea.

    After a few moments, Ye Xiuwen burst out intoughter ¨C this little martial sister is bing more and more interesting!

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed the dimples on her cheek abashedly, before she too joined Ye Xiuwen in uproariousughter.

    On this side, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were having the time of their lives, and the atmosphere was casual and harmonious. On the other side, Qin Lingyu who expected Jun Xiaomo to drop whatever she was doing and speed back upon receiving the Messenger Paper Crane, instead stood there waiting in the ¡°cooling¡± autumn wind for almost four whole hours.

 Chapter 36: Okay, Rescind the Marriage Arrangement!

    <h4>Chapter 36: Okay, Rescind the Marriage Arrangement!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo sat there at the pavilion chatting with Ye Xiuwen about everything under the sun, and only returned home after four full hours had passed. By then, she had expected Qin Lingyu to have already departed and gone home. However, the moment she stepped back into her abode, she saw that obtrusive and imposing figure standing by her room door looking coldly at the entrance. Immediately, their eyes connected.

    Whoa¡ªThat¡¯s rare! He actually waited for such a long time! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes shed with a derisive look.

    To put things into perspective, in the past, Qin Lingyu calling in on Jun Xiaomo of his own volition was already a rarity. Therefore, having Qin Lingyu wait for her for four hours would be something quite unimaginable. Often, Qin Lingyu would instead summon Jun Xiaomo with a Messenger Paper Crane and she would drop whatever she was busy with andply immediately. Even the most obedient dogs could not hold a candle to the former Jun Xiaomo.

    Thinking about how she had acted in the past, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart welled up with a sense of disgust for her former self and a greater sense of hatred for Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu thought that Jun Xiaomo would hurry back, but Jun Xiaomo did not. He thought that Jun Xiaomo would bound over to him happily as usual when she saw him, but Jun Xiaomo did not. Instead, she only furrowed her brows and looked at him with disgust from afar. Seeing this, a thought shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart ¨C Could it be that the truth between me and Yu Wanrou had truly been discovered by Jun Xiaomo?

    Truth be told, if not for this lingering suspicion on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, he would not have waited for Jun Xiaomo like an idiot for four whole hours. Ever since Yu Wanrou had been hurt, Qin Lingyu had been meaning to have a chat with Jun Xiaomo to sound her out. However, he did not expect Yu Wanrou to be so clingy to him. At the same time, Qin Lingyu also indulged in Yu Wanrou¡¯s behaviour because he felt with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s daftness and her feelings for him, he would be able to write off this incident by slightly cajoling her. Therefore, he hade looking for Jun Xiaomo only after such a long time.

    At the same time, these reasons were all but secondary to his true intentions today. The main reason for looking for Jun Xiaomo today was that he hoped to obtain some spirit tools and spirit medicine from Jun Xiaomo before leaving the Sect on his mission. As He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Qin Lingyu already had several spirit tools and spirit medicine in his possession. But at the same time, the more the merrier ¨C one additional spirit treasure would mean one additional means to preserve his life after all.

    In this regard, Qin Lingyu and Qin Shanshan were clearly brothers and sisters ¨C even the way they thought about these matters were exactly the same.

    Qin Lingyu saw that Jun Xiaomo simply stood there at the entrance without any intention of initiating the conversation. Therefore, he had no choice but to start things off, ¡°You¡¯re back? I¡¯ve already waited for you here for four hours.¡±

    Qin Lingyu spoke with an uncourteous tone, even carrying with it some trace of anger. His eyes looked coldly on Jun Xiaomo, as though her causing him to wait for four hours was an atrocity.

    Jun Xiaomo tugged gently at a lock of hair in front of her chest, inly stating, ¡°Oh? Is it? But I didn¡¯t ask martial brother Qin to wait for me, did I?¡±

    Reading between the lines ¨C how was it her fault when he waited for her of his own volition?

    Qin Lingyu clenched his fists which were hidden by his sleeves. His eyes swiftly ignited with a burgeoning fire, but he quickly suppressed it before it erupted.

    He could not afford to burn all bridges right now. At the very least, he had to do all he could to preserve this rtionship between them before he could drain out this cash cow that is Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Lingyu quickly adjusted his emotions within two breaths of time, warmly saying to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Xiaomo, I was slightly too irascible earlier. I was just worried that something might have happened to you because you were out for such a long time. So, when I saw you, I couldn¡¯t help but let my emotions get the better of me. I apologize.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously. This was still the first time she had heard Qin Lingyu apologize to her in her two lifetimesbined. In her previous lifetime, Qin Lingyu would always look haughtily at her, and he would not even wipe off that cold look on his face, much less apologize to her. Regardless of whether it was towards Jun Xiaomo or other female cultivators, Qin Lingyu would always ster such a look on his face. Worse, the former Jun Xiaomo had even thought that such a cold, frigid look seemed to instill a sense of security in her ¨C Jun Xiaomo truly made herself aughingstock!

    Why was Qin Lingyu so cold and frigid? Wasn¡¯t it because he just didn¡¯t care about anyone because he thinks that no one is deserving of him? Yet because of that, it¡¯s even weirder that Yu Wanrou managed to win him over, and even tamed him to the point where he was willing to share Yu Wanrou with over ten other male cultivators.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart swelled up with disgust for the former Jun Xiaomo¡¯s obsequious attitude towards Qin Lingyu. In her previous life, as she grew stronger and collected more life experiences under her belt, she had on one asion grown suspicious of the real reason why Qin Lingyu drew close to her. This was because in the several years that Ye Xiuwen sheltered her and saved her from her persecutors, Qin Lingyu had not once appeared to help her.

    If Qin Lingyu¡¯s love for her was real, then how could he allow her to be embroiled in such a difficult situation and not once think of saving her? Even if he did not save her, how could he not even try to locate her whereabouts if he truly cared for her?

    It was only after Jun Xiaomo had attained the Nascent Soul cultivation stage that she once again encountered Qin Lingyu. At that time, Qin Lingyu told her that he had not forgotten their marriage arrangement, and that he had hoped that they could rebuild their estranged rtionship. By then, Jun Xiaomo had already experienced and learnt of the nuances of interpersonal rtionships, and she did not easily trust people. Furthermore, Qin Lingyu was a person who had disappeared from her life for decades by that point. Therefore, when he suddenly appeared in her life again, she naturally put up her guard against him.

    But even though Jun Xiaomo was guarded against Qin Lingyu then, she had never thought of harming him. After all, he was someone whom she had deeply loved in the past. Even with the ebb and flow of time, this type of affection did not wane easily, and she could not bring herself to harm Qin Lingyu. The Qin Lingyu then had also attained the Nascent Soul cultivation stage, but spiritual cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage could not hold a candle to demonic cultivators of the same level. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo even had several high-grade formation arrays and talismans at her disposal, so if Jun Xiaomo wished to dispose of Qin Lingyu at any point in time, it was well within her means.

    After Qin Lingyu discovered that Jun Xiaomo did not have any intentions to harm him, he started following by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and even helped her with some of her troubles. Even though Jun Xiaomo did not openly express her thoughts then, she was silently moved in her heart by Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions.

    She had been lonely for too long.

    Then, on one asion when Qin Lingyu saved a heavily-wounded Jun Xiaomo, and they finally ¡°knew each other inside-out¡±, Jun Xiaomo once again opened her heart to Qin Lingyu and fell deeply for him.

    Perhaps she did not like Qin Lingyu as much as she thought, or perhaps she developed a reliance on him after having been alone for too long; but Jun Xiaomo did treat very well both Qin Lingyu and Qin Shanshan who reunited with themter on.

    Yet when she was on the brink of death, she was informed that Qin Lingyu never had ¡°such rtions¡± with her before ¨C all her previous stirring of emotions and her sacrifice for Qin Lingyu had be nothing more than a tragicedy!

    Could it be that her life-threatening injuries might even have been part of Qin Lingyu¡¯s orchestrations? He needed the right opportunity to draw close to the Jun Xiaomo then, and what better way than to save a damsel-in-distress?

    Right now, Jun Xiaomo found Qin Lingyu¡¯s face absolutely repulsive. Every time she saw this face, she could not help but recall her past hurts which caused her heart to swell up with roiling emotions and immense hatred.

    It was a pity that she had no way of dealing with Qin Lingyu yet, otherwise she would settle the score from her previous life right this moment! Considering all the atrocities that he hadmitted against her, she had been too easy on him previously by allowing him to simply perish with her in a blood rite.

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her eyes, forcefully suppressing the roiling emotions within her.

    Qin Lingyu thought that her silence meant that her attitude towards him had softened. Therefore, he walked over to Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°I will be travelling out of the Sect for a mission in a while, and I wanted to bid you farewell for a while. I don¡¯t want these small things to strain our rtionship.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo eyes momentarily quivered. She looked up in surprise and anxiously asked, ¡°Travelling? What travels?¡±

    As expected, she still cares very much for me. As Qin Lingyu observed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions, his heart swelled with more confidence. Reverting to his usual in and confident tone, he added, ¡°Have you forgotten? I¡¯ve already attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery. ording to the Sect¡¯s regtions, all disciples who attain the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery must travel out of the Sect for a mission, so that we may swiftly step into the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.¡±

    ¡°Peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery...travelling out of the Sect...damn it! I actually forgot about this!¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured to herself, subconsciously twisting her eyebrows into a knot.

    Of course, she was not concerned about whether Qin Lingyu stayed within the Sect or not. Rather, she was concerned about Ye Xiuwen. She wanted to continue learning sword arts from Ye Xiuwen, and at the same time foster their rtionship. But now that Ye Xiuwen was travelling out of the Sect, who else could she turn to for her sword arts?

    It must not be understated that without anybat experience, her cultivation level could not increase one single bit.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip as her heart grew increasingly flustered. At the same time, Qin Lingyu misunderstood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions and thought that Jun Xiaomo could not bear to see him go, and his eyes shed with a gleam.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t be away from the Sect for too long. It will at most be a year before I will be back. But...¡± Qin Lingyu was all set to segue the conversation to the spirit tools and spirit medicine, yet he was quickly interrupted by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s frustrated voice.

    ¡°What does that have anything to do with me!¡± Jun Xiaomo was deeply upset with Qin Lingyu¡¯s ¡°adoring¡± attitude towards her. Jun Xiaomo knew deep in her heart that Qin Lingyu would only appear this way before her when he wanted something from her. Otherwise, it was exceptionally rare to see any type of warm expressions on Qin Lingyu¡¯s face.

    Having been interrupted by Jun Xiaomo, Qin Lingyu found himself lost for words. He was no longer able to broach the subject about the spirit tools and spirit medicine at all, and the words he had prepared all found themselves lodged in his throat.

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight at Qin Lingyu with indifferent eyes, saying, ¡°It doesn¡¯t concern me even if you die outside the Sect. Qin Lingyu, don¡¯t you think for one moment that I don¡¯t know why you are here. You want to obtain some spirit treasures from me? Don¡¯t even think about it!¡±

    Hearing this, Qin Lingyu¡¯s face turned from a sickly green to a pale white. Despite this being his original intention, Qin Lingyu was nevertheless a person who cared deeply about his appearances and reputation and he never wanted his thoughts to be exposed in broad daylight.

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attitude towards him dealt a great blow to his self-confidence. Qin Lingyu always thought that that he hadplete control over Jun Xiaomo because he hadpletely charmed her with his outstanding personality and disposition. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo was always at his beck and call, and she would deliver to him anything he asked for.

    But now, when Jun Xiaomo, a person whom he never held in his sights, actually looked at him with a mocking, disgusted and cold re, Qin Lingyu felt deeply upset and ufortable.

    Thus, his expression suddenly turned frigid, and he coldly quipped, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t you dare go too far. When your cultivation level has fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, I didn¡¯t even say anything about rescinding the marriage agreement and abandoning you. What else do you want? I¡¯ve even waited here for you for four whole hours. Quite apart from howte you are, you didn¡¯t even bother exining where you have been. Is this how a fianc¨¦e should be acting?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo red at Qin Lingyu, curling her lips, she said, ¡°Okay, since this fianc¨¦e is not qualified, then let¡¯s rescind the marriage arrangement. I don¡¯t mind.¡±

    Qin Lingyu immediately squinted his eyes, and the veins on his forehead bulged out as blood rushed to his head in his fury.

    He was indeed dissatisfied with the marriage arrangement. If not for the fact that there were eye-watering benefits to be had from such an arrangement, he would certainly not have agreed to this. But at the same time, he felt that if the marriage arrangement were to be rescinded, he should be the one raising it. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s role was to bepletely infatuated with him, and she should not be the one raising the issue of rescinding the marriage.

    But in the end, these ¡°should nots¡± had all be eventualities, and the unexpected had indeed urred.

 Chapter 37: Obtaining Yu Wanrouâ€™s Apology

    <h4>Chapter 37: Obtaining Yu Wanrou¡¯s Apology</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Seeing the raging fury burning in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat in delight. In fact, she was so pleased at this moment that she wanted to throw her hands in the air and celebrate.

    How should one describe this scene? This could be called delighting in his displeasure; and taking pleasure in his helplessness.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that before Qin Lingyu could extract every bit of value he could from Jun Xiaomo, his greed would prevent him from rescinding this marriage agreement. Therefore, no matter how much he wanted to wave his sleeve and wash his hands off this detestable situation, he would still have to swallow this bitter pill,pose himself and try and ameliorate the situation. Of course, if Qin Lingyu agreed to rescind the marriage agreement, then Jun Xiaomo would not mind that oue that either. After all, she had long since hoped for the same.

    Qin Lingyu suppressed the raging fury in his heart, and with great difficulty eked out an awkward smile on his face, saying, ¡°Xiaomo, the marriage agreement cannot be rescinded just like that. Earlier, I might have misspoken in a fit of anger. I¡¯ve never thought for a moment that you were not qualified as a fianc¨¦e. Don¡¯t say this type of things next time, alright? There¡¯s no need to make both of us upset.¡±

    Again, Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows in surprise. Was there going to be a blue moon today? Not only had Qin Lingyu time and time again apologized to her, he even eked out a smile on that frigid and cold face of his.

    But to Jun Xiaomo, this smile of his was not much better than that usual cold and frigid look on his face. In fact, it might even be worse than Qin Lingyu¡¯s usual look of indifference. After all, the cold look was an expression of Qin Lingyu¡¯s true feelings, while this forcible smile had the word ¡°hypocrite¡± written all over it.

    Jun Xiaomo rolled her eyes at Qin Lingyu in her heart. She folded her arms, lifted her chin and looked straight at Qin Lingyu as she said, ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense. What are you here for today?¡±

    She absolutely did not want to spend any more time as was necessary with this hypocrite. As such, she pressed him to get straight to the point.

    When Qin Lingyu noticed that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attitude towards himself had not taken any turn for the better, he could not help but worry about whether he could achieve his original intentions today. But regardless, he still had to try. He was banking on the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s feelings for him ran deeply, and she was only sulking and throwing a tantrum at this moment.

    At the core of it all, Qin Lingyu did not believe that a person who seemed to love him more than herself would be able to forget these feelings overnight.

    Qin Lingyu let out a histrionic sigh, saying to Jun Xiaomo reluctantly, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m not sure whether you¡¯re being so cold to me because you may have misunderstood me in any way. I¡¯m about to travel out of the Sect for a mission very soon, and these missions have varying levels of difficulties. Let¡¯s not talk about when I would be able to finish these missions and return to see you; I¡¯m not even certain that I would be able to return to see you...¡±

    It should be said that even though there were not many disciples who lost their lives while travelling out of the Sect for missions, there were still at least one or two each year on average. But with Qin Lingyu¡¯s abilities, putting aside whether he was able to sessfullyplete the mission, he would certainly have no issues with preserving his own life. Rather, what he was trying to do right now was to gain Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sympathy and concern for him, in the hope that this sympathy and concern would then turn into some form of benefit for himself.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly, interrupting Qin Lingyu¡¯s ¡°performance¡± ¨C Just say it directly if you¡¯re looking for spirit tools and spirit medicines from me; why do you have to beat about the bush? Even I feel tired and exasperated listening to you.

    In her previous life, whenever Qin Lingyu said that he was about to travel out of the Sect for a mission, Jun Xiaomo would immediately fork out a whole bunch of valuable spirit tools and spirit medicines as gifts to Qin Lingyu, even to the extent of emptying the contents of her Interspatial Ring. A good part of the gifts she had given to Qin Lingyu had even included things which Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had painstakingly obtained for her cultivation or future use. To their horror, their daughter had instead willingly offered all of these to her sweetheart without a single thought given to their feelings.

    Put another way, the former Jun Xiaomo could be considered a ¡°loaded idiot¡± ¨C she took so much trouble to present good gifts to cajole some ingrates who subsequently repaid her good with their evil, scheming against her and harming her.

    However, the present Jun Xiaomo who had been sharpened by her demonic energy for nearly a hundred years had long discarded that old, na?ve and foolish self of hers. The Jun Xiaomo now would not only be much more circumspect with who she treated well; if anyone wished to draw her blood, they would be wise to beware her bite. She was raring to sink her fangs deep into the skin of any perpetrators, inflicting as much pain on them as she could!

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu was neither blind nor a fool. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disdain for him was so obvious at this point that even Qin Lingyu could not bring himself to ignore it. After deliberating for a moment, the only reasonable exnation he could find was that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was obsessed over the matters she had heard about himself and Yu Wanrou.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu no longer avoided the elephant in the room, and he decided to address it.

    ¡°Xiaomo, is this all because of some rumours you¡¯ve heard? Your attitude towards me today has been quite unusual.¡± Qin Lingyu inly asked, staring intently at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions.

    What now? Are you here to sound me out on whether I know of your filthy rendezvous with Yu Wanrou? Jun Xiaomo mockingly thought. That¡¯s fine as well. I want to know how much of the truth I can elicit from the horse¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m a little miffed about certain things I¡¯ve heard through the grapevine. Could martial brother Qin rify what exactly you may be referring to?¡± Jun Xiaomo leisurely responded, intentionally keeping her response vague.

    Qin Lingyu almost choked on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response, and he found himself lost for words momentarily. After all, directly mentioning ¡°that matter between himself and Yu Wanrou¡± seemed almost akin to an admission.

    The fact of the matter was that there were presently no rumours regarding Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou spreading within the Sect. Therefore, Qin Lingyu was absolutely confuddled on where exactly Jun Xiaomo had heard about these things from.

    But he very quickly found a reasonable response, and used this as an excuse to broach the subject for discussion, ¡°I heard from martial sister Wanrou that you beat her up because you suspected that there was something going on between martial sister Wanrou and I. Xiaomo, where did youe hear such rumours from?¡±

    ¡°Oh? She said that, huh...¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as though her interest had been piqued. Then, she asked bluntly, ¡°But, wasn¡¯t I earlier absolved of all liability and suspicion for beating up Yu Wanrou during the Penal Hall inquest? What¡¯s this then ¨C are you saying that you believe the ount of a third party over and above your fianc¨¦e¡¯s?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes with a derisory gaze.

    ¡°No, no, that¡¯s not it. I was only trying to say...¡± Qin Lingyu very quickly found his segue not as brilliant as he initially thought it was, and he tried to find another way to approach the subject.

    ¡°Or do you think I should once again exin myself at the Penal Hall?¡± Jun Xiaomo ruthlessly cut off Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnations.

    ¡°It¡¯s not...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not what? The truth is that you resolutely believed the words of a distant and absolutely unrted martial sister; yet you refused to ce a single bit of trust in your own fianc¨¦e ¨C do you agree or not?!¡± Jun Xiaomo stepped forward aggressively as she rebuked Qin Lingyu, and the sharp, prating gaze in her eyes was so imposing that Qin Lingyu even almost took a step back reflexively.

    As the Lady Demoness, the former Jun Xiaomo had spent her whole life rebuking the entire cultivation world, and that imposing and ruthless temperament of hers had long since prated her marrows and fused with her soul. While this ruthlessness was now well concealed when Jun Xiaomo was calm andposed; but once she erupted with fury, how could a meagre twenty-three years-old sprout who had not travelled out of the Sect on his own match up to her imposing attitude at all?

    Therefore, despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo was merely a ¡°useless¡± person at the first level of Qi Mastery, Qin Lingyu who stood at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery was subconsciously intimidated by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cold, soulless re!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s haughty and insufferably arrogant expression finally cracked. That day in the Penal Hall, when Jun Xiaomo angered Qin Shanshan so much that she fainted, and when Jun Xiaomo also angered Yu Wanrou so much that she fell sick, Qin Lingyu merely stood there observing the entire proceedings without revealing any trace of emotion at all. But this time, under the relentless battering of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allegations, he finally caved in. He also finally realized how much Jun Xiaomo had changed.

    The previous Jun Xiaomo had sometimes thrown a tantrum as a result of being spoilt by her parents; but she had never relentlessly provoked or cornered anyone with such sharp, incisive allegations before.

    Is this person really the same Jun Xiaomo who used to give me anything I asked for? Qin Lingyu thought to himself uneasily.

    Seeing that Qin Lingyu was left speechless by all these, Jun Xiaomo smiled widely at him. She flippantly coiled the hair draped around her shoulders around her snowy-white fingers as she changed the subject, ¡°Martial brother Qin, actually...I¡¯m also not such an unforgiving person. After all, you were the one who had rescued martial sister Wanrou. Seeing that her injuries were so severe and adding the fact that she led you on with a few false allegations, having your judgment hampered is a very natural thing.¡±

    Qin Lingyu felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations were more than meets the eye; and they seemed to be implying something or luring him to a trap.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers momentarily stopped, as she hooked her lips, saying, ¡°How about this? Martial brother Qin could ask Yu Wanrou to apologize to me for straining the rtionship that we have; and then I will give you the spirit tools, talismans and medicine within my Interspatial Ring that you can use. How does this sound?¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo, there¡¯s really nothing going on between martial sister Wanrou and myself. The reason why I misspoke earlier was because there are so many things upying my mind right now, and I momentarily lost control.¡± Qin Lingyu spoke with much less confidence right now because of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s imposing attitude earlier. As it was right now, he was simply working hard at salvaging his appearances and trying to avoid beingbelled as a hypocrite.

    ¡°I¡¯m not alluding to anything going on between the two of you. I only feel upset that Yu Wanrou¡¯s nderous allegations caused me to be summoned to the Penal Hall, so I want her toe and apologize to me. Also, I¡¯m not sure who it is who¡¯s always been talking behind my back, saying that I¡¯ve been bullying her. At first, I couldn¡¯t be bothered too much about this; but now that martial brother Qin you have grown biased towards her as a result, I cannot swallow this bitter pill any further. Therefore, I want an apology from her, and it would be best if she could even issue a written apology, pledging that if she nders me again, she shall be punished. How about it?¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo, this is a matter between the two of us. Do we really have to implicate outsiders?¡± Qin Lingyu attempted to dispel Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns in a roundabout manner.

    ¡°To me, she¡¯s not considered an outsider.¡± Jun Xiaomo gave Qin Lingyu a meaningful look as she added in her heart ¨C Because you are absolutely not considered part of my inner circle in the first ce.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu interpreted this statement as ¡°Yu Wanrou is the third wheel in this rtionship¡±.

    Evidently, people with a guilty conscience always perceive the facts differently.

    At this point, Qin Lingyu could not ascertain whether Jun Xiaomo knew about the affair between him and Yu Wanrou, but he decided not to press the issue any further. As things were, the present Jun Xiaomo knew how to give vague and crafty responses, and he feared that if he pressed the issue, he might be the one divulging even more secrets to Jun Xiaomo instead.

    I¡¯ll just let sleeping dogs lie.

    Once Qin Lingyu made up his mind, he said to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Xiaomo, I still feel that you¡¯re too deeply fixated on thatst incident. That¡¯s why I wanted to check on you today, and at the same time inform you that I¡¯ll be leaving the Sect for a mission in a while. Anyhow, it¡¯s gettingte now, so I shall take my leave.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked silently with bemusement at this man who was about to leave without having achieved any of his objectives.

    Qin Lingyu noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s silence as well, and he made a ¡°goodbye¡± gesture as he swiftly motioned to leave.

    Yet, when Qin Lingyu turned around to leave, Jun Xiaomo slowly spoke once more, ¡°Martial brother Qin, I¡¯m not lying to you. I do intend to give about half of the contents of my Interspatial Ring if you get Yu Wanrou to apologize to me. These would include spirit tools, talismans and medicinal pills, of which there are even two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills! Do consider my proposition.¡±

    ¡°Fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills?¡± Qin Lingyu paused in his steps as he turned back.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled and looked at Qin Lingyu with a profound look, ¡°Yes, fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills.¡±

    Energy Rejuvenation Pills and Energy Recovery Pills are both used to treat injuries, but the difference between the two were vast as heaven and earth. The former could be used to quickly bring a person back from the gates of hell to good health as long as one still had a single breath of life left within him; while thetter could only be used to treat the more generic internal and external injuries, and its healing effects were much, much weaker.

    Furthermore, the higher the grade of the Energy Rejuvenation Pills, the stronger its healing effects. In this regard, a fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills could even act as an antidote to some deadly poisons; this pill was highly coveted and could hardly be found on the market. Having one of these Energy Rejuvenation Pills was tantamount to having an additional life! Now that Jun Xiaomo was dangling two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills in front of Qin Lingyu, how could he not be tempted?

    In fact, this was precisely her goal - Jun Xiaomo also wanted him to be tempted! Once the bait has been taken and the fish has been hooked, things would be much more exciting.

    ¡°Martial brother Qin, my request isn¡¯t too difficult. Right now, I¡¯m only asking Yu Wanrou to apologize to me ¨C is this something impossible?¡± As Jun Xiaomo finished the sentence, she evenced her words with a trace of ignominy.

    She knew that Qin Lingyu liked hearing such pleading words and lilts indies¡¯ voices. Therefore, even though this disgusted her, she acted as though she were aggrieved by the situation in order to securely hook this fish that had taken the bait.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go ask her. After all, she was the one at fault in the first ce. Xiaomo, don¡¯t let your imaginations run wild anymore. I¡¯m only treating her as a regr martial sister, and the rtionship we have between us doesn¡¯t extend beyond that of Sect-mates. After this matter is resolved, let¡¯s put it entirely behind us, alright?¡± Qin Lingyu consoled and assured Jun Xiaomo as he was once again filled with confidence.

    For the sake of the resources in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands, he had to go all out to dispel Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suspicions about his rtionship with Yu Wanrou.

    Of course, he would also have to get Yu Wanrou to apologize to Jun Xiaomo. These were fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills after all!

    Jun Xiaomo turned her head away and silently nodded, putting on the perfect pretense for a sulky look.

    Qin Lingyu patted her shoulder gently before he promptly departed ¨C he had to quickly convince Yu Wanrou to apologize to Jun Xiaomo.

    After Qin Lingyu left, Jun Xiaomo turned back and looked in the direction of Qin Lingyu¡¯s departure as she burst out intoughter. How could she have been aggrieved?

    Just how angry was Yu Wanrou going to be this time?

 Chapter 38: The Anticipated Quarrel

    <h4>Chapter 38: The Anticipated Quarrel</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was indeed absolutely furious. It was Jun Xiaomo who had hurt her in the first ce. Yet now, not only did she expect Yu Wanrou to grit her teeth and swallow her indignation and humiliation, she even wanted Yu Wanrou to apologize to the culprit?! What was this? Wasn¡¯t the perpetrator practically calling herself the victim?

    ¡°I won¡¯t do it! She was the one who had hurt me, so why should I be apologizing to her, and even admit that I¡¯m ndering her?!¡± Yu Wanrou was so angry that the veins on her face started to bulge out as shemented to Qin Lingyu with tears streaking down her cheeks.

    ¡°Quieten down a little! Do you want others to discover that you¡¯re quarreling?!¡± Qin Lingyu harshly rebuked her with a raspy whisper. He felt deeply frustrated. On one hand, he was deeply unsettled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s changes, and he was also afraid that others might discover his rtionship with Yu Wanrou. Yet at the same time, he absolutely had to convince Yu Wanrou to apologize to Jun Xiaomo. After all, those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills were truly too valuable to pass up.

    ¡°Lingyu, I¡¯m not lying to you. The person who hurt me was really Jun Xiaomo, not some demonic cultivator. Didn¡¯t you also bring some of the Sect¡¯s martial brothers and sisters tob the Sect¡¯s surrounding woods? Did you find any traces of demonic cultivators? I¡¯m certain you didn¡¯t, right? I don¡¯t know what happened to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, and why her cultivation level would fall to the first level of Qi Mastery immediately after injuring me, but I¡¯ve really been telling the truth...¡± Yu Wanrou clutched tightly to Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeve as she bemoaned. She looked pitifully at Qin Lingyu with tear-filled puppy eyes, hoping to gain his sympathy and concern as she had always done before.

    ¡°I believe you...but all that is inconsequential now.¡± Qin Lingyu gritted his teeth as he responded. That pitiful look stered on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face which had tugged at Qin Lingyu¡¯s heartstrings on so many asions in the past had instead stirred his frustrations today. He lowered his head slightly, and then swiftly shot out his hand and gripped Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist tightly, articting every single word clearly as he demanded, ¡°Whether it was Jun Xiaomo who hurt you or not, you must apologize to her, do you understand me?!¡±

    ¡°Lingyu, it hurts...¡± Instantly, Yu Wanrou felt a sharp pain at her wrist, as though it was going to be crushed to a pulp. Qin Lingyu had never treated her with such violence before; and this first experience left a deep impression in her heart.

    Weren¡¯t they lovers? Why would Qin Lingyu castigate her just because of that Jun Xiaomo? She could not ept this...absolutely not! How could she time and again lose out to that fool Jun Xiaomo?!

    At this moment, the flickering me in Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart known as ¡°jealousy¡± exploded with such fiery intensity that it nearly consumed Yu Wanrou¡¯s rationality!

    She had forgotten that Jun Xiaomo was in fact Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e; and she had even forgotten how Qin Lingyu viewed all things secondary to the importance of his own reputation. Right now, she only knew that Jun Xiaomo had manipted Qin Lingyu by dangling some benefits before him, and she felt extremely aggrieved. She could not swallow this bitter pill!

    ¡°Lingyu, with your outstanding abilities, you would be able to sessfullyplete the Sect¡¯s mission even without Jun Xiaomo¡¯s treasures or benefits. Why do you insist that I apologize to a person who had hurt me in the first ce?¡± Yu Wanrouughed bitterly to herself. She hung her head low, her eyes quivered as tears streaked from them uncontrobly, and her expression exuded immense sorrow.

    ¡°What do you know...¡± Qin Lingyu had finally calmed down. He let go of Yu Wanrou¡¯s hand indifferently, walked to the side and sat down. After drinking some water, he fixed his profound gaze on the dancing me on a candle set atop the table, saying, ¡°If the treasures that Jun Xiaomo were going to give me were anything else, then it¡¯s fine ¨C I could ignore them. But right now, the treasures that she is offering includes two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills. With these Energy Rejuvenation Pills, it¡¯s tantamount to having two additional lives ¨C who would not be tempted by these things? Only that fool Jun Xiaomo would use these priceless treasures for such a small request.¡±

    Yes, despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo was about to give two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills to Qin Lingyu, he had always seen this fianc¨¦e of his as nothing more than a fool to be used.

    If he were her, he would have kept these fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills securely ¨C who could bear to use these priceless treasures for something so simple as an apology? It must be known that obtaining these fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills must have been no mean feat, even to a Peakmaster like Jun Linxuan. After all, these treasures were not something that could be simply bought with money.

    Having heard Qin Lingyu call Jun Xiaomo a ¡°fool¡±, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt a little bit better ¨C albeit only a tiny bit.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s words made her realize that this matter was non-negotiable to him. For the sake of obtaining those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills, she had to apologize to Jun Xiaomo, and even state in writing that she would never nder Jun Xiaomo again!

    Having thought about all these things ¨C after all is said and done, Yu Wanrou still felt unwilling. She just could not reconcile with the truth before her.

    Qin Lingyu raised his head and noticed the unwilling expression on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face, and an idea popped into his mind. With a softened voice, he probed, ¡°Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo agreed to give us two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills. This means that each of us can have one. Isn¡¯t this a good thing? Why pass up such a good opportunity to obtain some priceless treasures in a fit of anger?¡±

    Yu Wanrou looked up and locked eyes with Qin Lingyu, yet she merely bit down on her lips and remained silent.

    Why would she covet these meagre Energy Rejuvenation Pills from that harlot Jun Xiaomo? To begin with, the spirit spring in her spectral demine was already far, far better than these Energy Rejuvenation Pills!

    But she knew that the secret of her spectral demine could not be disclosed at all costs ¨C even to her most adored Qin Lingyu. Otherwise, she might just be the next Jun Xiaomo to Qin Lingyu.

    To Qin Lingyu, benefits and treasures are far more important than love and rtionships. The present incident was concrete proof of this.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt a little sour and cold chilly. Her former zing passion for Qin Lingyu had dwindled slightly from all these things.

    At the same time, because her emotions had subsided, Yu Wanrou¡¯s rationality once again took the reins in her thought processes. Even though she still felt jealous of Jun Xiaomo, she nevertheless nodded her head in agreement to apromise, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go apologize to her.¡±

    As long as she remained in Dawn Sect, she would have to cling onto this great tree that is Qin Lingyu. If Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart grew cold towards her as a result of her refusal here, her potential losses would be far, far greater.

    It¡¯s alright. With my spirit spring at hand, coupled with my top-tier dual cultivation technique that only I can use, I will surpass Jun Xiaomo in no time at all! Besides, hasn¡¯t her cultivation level fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery? How long is it going to take before she can return to the eighth level of Qi Mastery? What have I got to fear then? Lingyu certainly wouldn¡¯t marry a useless thing who can¡¯t even attain the Foundation Establishment stage before the age of thirty-five!

    I¡¯ll let her revel in her cockiness just this one more time then. Yu Wanrou mocked in her heart, and the bitterness in her heart gradually subsided.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo was the one who had set the conditions, she did not mind the oue too much. This was because she knew how much these two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills meant to Qin Lingyu ¨C the temptation was so great that Qin Lingyu might even resort to violence in order to coerce an apology from Yu Wanrou to Jun Xiaomo!

    Ah-- what is true love? When benefit-driven people like Qin Lingyu are faced with the prospects of obtaining much coveted treasures, even ¡°true love¡± would have to stand aside and give way to these benefits. Besides, Qin Lingyu may not necessarily be infatuated with Yu Wanrou at this moment. After all, his standards have long since been inted beyond reason by the numerous female disciples throwing themselves at him; and his pride might not let himmit fully to Yu Wanrou ¨C a person of humble backgrounds and with seemingly no talent at all.

    Of course, these statements were only true for the moment. In the future, when Yu Wanrou bes the matriarch in control of several outstanding men, then this assessment of her may well be highly inadequate. After all, the true nature of men is that they are drawn topetition. When everyonepetes for one single piece of treasure, then the value of this treasure would naturally be inted in their sights. Perhaps the objective value of such treasures might not even be of great importance to these men in the first ce.

    This was particrly true for people like Qin Lingyu. If the treasure that belonged to him were stolen or won over by someone else, how could he just take it lying down? Therefore, in thetter half of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Qin Lingyu had done all he could to return to Yu Wanrou¡¯s side.

    But now that Jun Xiaomo were equipped with the experiences from her previous life, and she had discarding all the distracting emotional attachments which previously clouded her mind, the present Jun Xiaomo could see with pristine rity the true nature of scumbags like Qin Lingyu.

    Right now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was only concerned about one thing ¨C the fact that Ye Xiuwen is soon about to travel out of the Sect for a mission. She had spent considerable effort convincing Ye Xiuwen to teach her sword arts. Yet before she could revel in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s guidance, she was met with the shocking news that Ye Xiuwen was soon to leave the Sect ¨C what an unfortunate turn of events!

    Jun Xiaomo let out a soft sigh in frustration. She knew that Ye Xiuwen had to go through this phase of life. Without such experiences sharpening him, he would never be able to encounter the opportunity required to step into the Foundation Establishment stage from the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery. Therefore, she could not be selfish and prevent Ye Xiuwen from leaving the Sect.

    ¡°What should I do, then?¡± Jun Xiaomo tapped her chin as the brooded over this matter. The little Demonic Packrat fervently gnawed at the pine nuts just beside her.

    ¡°You¡¯re such a carefree little fe~¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked that plump, furry body of her little packrat; yet it ignored her, and even turned its body around, showing her its bum.

    Seeing this, Jun Xiaomo could not help but burst intoughter. She felt that this littlepanion of hers was truly gifted in dispelling her vexations.

    ¡°How about...if I travel out of the Sect with martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered to herself under her breath as her eye gleamed brightly, ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do that!¡±

    Demonic cultivators could not increase their cultivation levels through mere meditation; instead, the requirement forbat and skirmish far exceeded that of regr spiritual cultivation. Therefore, travelling out of the Sect with Ye Xiuwen would be far more beneficial to her cultivation progress.

    Squeak squeak~ Packie understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions, and it instantly turned around and leapt onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm, squeaking incessantly as it refused to go down. It was impossible to tell whether it was anxious that Jun Xiaomo was travelling out of the Sect, or whether it was extremely happy that it could tag along.

    ¡°Alright, alright, I¡¯ll take you along with me no matter what, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo tickled her little packrat¡¯s chin.

    Packie was a Demonic Packrat after all; and Jun Xiaomo naturally would not leave it behind at the Sect.

    The frequency of her little packrat¡¯s squeaks increased even more, and its ck beady eyes seemed to exude a trace of emotion that was not seen in animals.

    It was a pity that Jun Xiaomo did not notice this at all. After all, who would have thought that a little Demonic Packrat could have the same level of spiritual awareness as humans?

 Chapter 39: Demonic Cultivation and Sword Arts

    <h4>Chapter 39: Demonic Cultivation and Sword Arts</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    If Jun Xiaomo wished to travel out of the Sect, she had to seek her parents¡¯ permission first. However, Jun Xiaomo had her own thoughts about this ¨C given how her mother spoils and pampers her so much, if she directly approached Liu Qingmei and asked for permission, Liu Qingmei might even end up locking Jun Xiaomo up in her own room to prevent her from slipping out. Therefore, if she wanted things to go much more smoothly, Jun Xiaomo decided to get Ye Xiuwen on her side first.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo arrived early at the bamboo forest in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode, eagerly anticipating the first lesson she would have with Ye Xiuwen. In fact, Jun Xiaomo had arrived one hour early. Yet little did she know, Ye Xiuwen was even earlier than her, and he was already practicing on his own at the bamboo forest.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was also surprised to see Jun Xiaomo this early. He did not expect his martial sister to be so diligent and arrive so timeously. Nevertheless, he slowly concluded his practice, flicked his sword and sheathed it, and then walked towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to arrive early next time. It¡¯s fine if you arrive on time at dawn.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders and said leisurely.

    Of course, he was pleased to see his martial sister¡¯s diligence, but praising her too much might be counterproductive. After all, she was still young, and it would be dangerous to let the praise get to her head.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded intently in acknowledgement, as she minced over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, looked at Ye Xiuwen eagerly and asked, ¡°Martial brother, what are we learning today?¡±

    Seeing how his martial sister was gingerly clutching onto his sleeves, Ye Xiuwen slowly shut his eyes, as he spoke, ¡°For today...¡±

    As he spoke, Jun Xiaomo suddenly realized that the contents of this lesson might not necessarily be inclined towards thebat and skirmish that she had hoped for.

    Indeed, she soon realized that the truth was as she feared ¨C

    Run three rounds around the bamboo forest, then hold a half-squat position for one hour; then run another three rounds around the bamboo forest, and then hold a half-squat position for yet another one hour...

    If not for the fact that she knew Ye Xiuwen had no interest in teasing people, Jun Xiaomo might have suspected that Ye Xiuwen intentionally came up with this training menu to torture her.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo could not understand Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions, she nevertheless obedientlyplied with them and powered through these dry and arduous training tasks. She took breaks in between these tasks, and she even stumbled on one asion while maintaining the half-squat position, falling t on her face. But she gritted her teeth and powered on with sheer willpower until finally shepleted the training menu given to her.

    And because of this, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appraisal of Jun Xiaomo increased by yet another notch.

    In Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, it was not a scary thing to have low talent or even experience a fall in cultivation levels. Rather, the scariest thing wascking the courage to be diligent; andcking the willpower to persevere. And seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance today, she clearly possessed both these qualities.

    ¡°Mar--martial brother...is...is there more?¡± Afterpleting the final three rounds around the bamboo forest, Jun Xiaomo was so tired that she was on the brink of copsing. Both her legs felt as though they had a ball and chain tied to them, and every step she took was incredibly arduous and painful ¨C almost as though she were wading through water.

    Furthermore, this was the result after she had intentionally utilized the true energy in her body to sustain herself. Even though the true energy stored within her body was not easily transformed and dispersed, she noticed that by manipting and gathering the true energy in parts of her body, she could experience a gradual sense of relief washing over these areas of her body. Therefore, when she had no more strength left in her, she had no choice but to manipte her true energy to push on.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s end today¡¯s training here. Come over here and take a rest.¡± Ye Xiuwen stood near the pavilion in the bamboo forest and waved to Jun Xiaomo. Complying, Jun Xiaomo dragged her dainty feet towards the pavilion. As she approached the pavilion, intending to turn to face Ye Xiuwen, her legs suddenly spasmed and gave way, and she fell towards Ye Xiuwen! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat; but right in that moment, Ye Xiuwen caught her, preventing her from falling t on her face.

    ¡°That...thanks martial brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo had discovered from her previous interactions with Ye Xiuwen that he did not like body contact with people. Therefore, she hastily picked herself up and tried to stabilize herself on her own. However, her dainty feet were already drained dry of all their energy, and very quickly they spasmed and gave way again, and Jun Xiaomo once more fell straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom.

    What a cmity...Would martial brother Ye think I¡¯m doing this on purpose? Jun Xiaomomented in her heart, thinking that she had really messed things up this time.

    If she knew this would be the oue, why did she bother pushing herself with the training to begin with?

    However, as Ye Xiuwen held onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soft and limp body, he discovered that he did not feel repulsed as he did before. In fact, this was despite Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body being now covered in dust because she fell t on the ground several times while maintaining the half-squat position earlier. Yet Ye Xiuwen did not feel disgusted by this at all. Instead, Ye Xiuwen flexed his arms, swept Jun Xiaomo up and set her down gently on the stone chairs inside the pavilion.

    On the surface, while Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body type seemed to be of the longish sort, his arms in fact contained immense strength. As Jun Xiaomo was suddenly lifted into the air by Ye Xiuwen, her ears suddenly flushed with a burning sensation.

    Only when Ye Xiuwen set her down gently on the stone chair in the pavilion did Jun Xiaomo finallye to realize that Ye Xiuwen had only carried her over because she could no longer walk properly.

    Havinge to her senses, her embarrassment also gradually faded away, and the tension apanying her earlier anxiety and awkwardness was also dispelled.

    ¡°That...cough cough, thanks martial brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and said softly and somewhat awkwardly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. Next time when you can¡¯t take the training anymore, just let me know. Don¡¯t force yourself.¡± Ye Xiuwen said in a calm and tranquil fashion. The indifference with which he spoke made it seem as though he didn¡¯t take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier awkwardness to heart.

    Sigh! Martial brother¡¯s behaviour is very normal! Why do you have to y up such an insignificant matter? Forget it! Forget it!

    After Jun Xiaomo regted her own emotions with several more ¡°forget its¡±, she was able to face Ye Xiuwen with a much more natural disposition. She lifted her head and yfully made a face at Ye Xiuwen, saying, ¡°I know, I know~ I also didn¡¯t think I would be as weak as I am right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo subconsciously pulled out some tricks that she would normally use against her mother when she persistently nagged at Jun Xiaomo.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes shed as he swiftly broke eye contact with Jun Xiaomo and motioned towards the stone chair directly opposite her and began to brew a pot of tea.

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue genially as she thought that her martial brother¡¯s silence made him look even more solemn than before.

    However, because of the veiled conical hat, Jun Xiaomo was unable to make out Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression. Therefore, she did not discover that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present expression was in fact extremely awkward as well.

    As the tea brewed, wafts of fragrance slowly diffused to the surrounding air and filled every corner of the pavilion. The scentplemented the serene surroundings, refreshing the hearts and soothing the minds of all around. As the aroma lingered on, it seemed to dilute and dispel the earlier awkwardness experienced by Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    Sipping the tea, Ye Xiuwen casually queried, ¡°Martial sister, do you know why I¡¯m asking you to do all of these dry and arduous, yet difficult training?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hefted the cup of tea with both hands, looking intently at the swirling tea in her cup as she deliberated for a moment. Then, with some uncertainty, she replied, ¡°Is it because you wish to increase my body¡¯s tolerance?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded gently, replying, ¡°This is only one aspect of it. There are other reasons as well. Martial sister, do you know why, among all the Sects out there, there are so few sword cultivators?¡±

    In this world, there were many spiritual cultivators who used the sword as a weapon or an equipment. However, of these cultivators, those who sought understanding of their cultivation paths through the sword, otherwise known as sword cultivators, were extremely few in number. Among the upper-tier sects, only the Frozen Sword Sect specialized in nurturing sword cultivator disciples. Furthermore, within thest few centuries, the number of disciples epted by the Frozen Sword Sect numbered fewer than one hundred. Apart from the stringent qualifications required to enter the Frozen Sword Sect, the number of cultivators who were willing to pursue the path of the sword were extremely few as well.

    ¡°Because sword cultivation is extremely difficult?¡± In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had not specialized in any weapon; and had always used whatever was avable to her at hand. Because of this, she knew a little bit of everything, but she also barely scratched the surface in understanding each of these weapons. In any event, she did not pursue the path of a weapon-based cultivator in her previous life, so there was also no impetus for her to hone her art in that regard.

    ¡°Sword cultivation is actually more akin to martial arts cultivation. It requires its cultivators to have both a strong physique as well as an unwavering willpower. Yet at the same time it¡¯s not just a practice, because a core aspect of it is in the idea of ¡°understanding¡±. Only when one begins to understand the sword¡¯s intent can one truly be considered to have embarked on the path of the sword. Otherwise, no matter how many forms and techniques one learns through both mind and body, one can only remain on the periphery of the path of the sword, never truly bing a sword cultivator.¡±

    It requires both a strong physique and a profound understanding? This is built on the same principles as demonic cultivation. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself. Naturally, she would not speak of such thoughts in front of Ye Xiuwen.

    Thinking of this, Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen and said, ¡°Then I¡¯d like martial brother to teach me to be a sword cultivator!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen lifted his index finger and gently rapped her on the head, replying, ¡°I¡¯ve said all of that earlier not because I want to ask you to walk down the path of sword cultivation. Whether sword cultivation is suitable for you is a decision to be made when you¡¯re at the tenth level of Qi Mastery. It¡¯s still way too early to decide now.¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks indignantly and she scratched her head, insistently saying, ¡°But martial brother you¡¯ve already agreed to teach me the sword! You cannot feign ignorance there!¡± Saying that, she even forcefully nodded her head, affirming her own words.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows ¨C Feign ignorance? It was the first time he had heard someone using these words on him.

    Ye Xiuwen casually took another sip of tea, before slowly responding, ¡°I¡¯ll naturally teach you since you are willing to learn. Even if you decideter that the path of the sword is not something for you, you¡¯ll still be able to protect yourself with these basic sword techniques and forms. But I¡¯ll leave these words with you ¨C sword arts are extremely difficult to master, and it will require unwavering perseverance on your part. What you¡¯ve experienced today is only an appetizer, and future trainings will be even tougher. I won¡¯t go easy on you once you¡¯vemitted to learning from me.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly and fervently nodded her head in agreement. After all, she had in her previous life experienced many things which were far more difficult and grueling. Inparison, this little bit of hard work could not be counted as much at all. Furthermore, there were benefits to be had at the end of all this as well!

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled, refilling Jun Xiaomo¡¯s teacup with a fresh cup of tea.

    ¡°Oh yes, martial brother, I heard that you will be travelling out of the Sect for your missions soon!¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly recalled this matter of importance which had troubled her the whole night before.

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen was also a bit stunned. He had forgotten all about it until Jun Xiaomo reminded him!

    Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a moment, before assuring Jun Xiaomo, ¡°It¡¯s fine, I will give you a training n and a suitable sword technique for you to practice. As long as martial sister follows my instructions, the effects will be the same.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo pouted in frustration. This was not the result she had expected from broaching this subject. If there was only a sword technique and nobat or skirmish, her cultivation would remain stuck at the first level of Qi Mastery.

    Jun Xiaomo leapt down from the stone chair and inched closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Then, she gazed at Ye Xiuwen, blinking hesitantly.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen knew that Jun Xiaomo had something she wished to say to him. Therefore, he kept his cool and waited for her to speak.

    ¡°Martial brother, could you bring me out on your travels with you?¡± Jun Xiaomo grinned cheekily at Ye Xiuwen, revealing the two dimples on her cheeks.

    ¡°You want to travel out of the Sect with me?¡± Ye Xiuwen frowned ¨C he had not expected Jun Xiaomo to make such a request.

 Chapter 40: A Failed Request

    <h4>Chapter 40: A Failed Request</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Mhmm, mhmm!¡± Jun Xiaomo forcefully nodded her head, looking ahead with her eyes wide open, hoping that Ye Xiuwen would be able to see the eagerness and the desire in her heart through her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen looked silently at Jun Xiaomo, but he did not give his response immediately. This silence made it seem as though he was deliberating about it; but it also made it seem like he was tacitly refusing her request.

    Either way, Jun Xiaomo could not make out what Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silence meant. Because of this, Jun Xiaomo had no choice but to shelf the spiel she had prepared to convince Ye Xiuwen and continue looking at Ye Xiuwen in anticipation.

    Okay...this pose is rather difficult to maintain; my eyes are already starting to feel sore...

    Ye Xiuwen wryly curled his lips. It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s two big, pearly eyes were so expressive that they would melt someone¡¯s heart easily ¨C especially when her eyes were nowced with tears that seemed to bnce precariously on the rims of the eyes. But...

    ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Ye Xiuwen denied Jun Xiaomo with a peremptory tone.

    ¡°Why not?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits fell immediately, as she promptly plonked back down onto one of the stone chairs, discouraged.

    She had thought that he would ede to her request as long as she entreated and implored Ye Xiuwen. Unexpectedly, Ye Xiuwen not only denied her, he did so with such unwavering determination.

    His declination was so firm that Jun Xiaomo even lost all hope of convincing Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Xiaomo, if you were still at the eighth level of Qi Mastery, I would have no issues bringing you out of the Sect with me. But now you are only at the first level of Qi Mastery. With my current abilities, I have no means to ensure your safety, do you understand?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was not sure of the true reasons why Jun Xiaomo was so insistent on travelling out of the Sect with him, and he only thought that Jun Xiaomo was being yful and wanted to go out to see the world.

    ¡°That¡¯s not going to be any problem. My Interspatial Ring has several life-preserving spirit treasures and talismans. And, I also have a number of tricks up my sleeve for saving my own life. Martial brother, I won¡¯t be a burden to you at all. Really!¡± Jun Xiaomo made her pitch to Ye Xiuwen with such sincerity that she was just short of raising three fingers and swearing on it.

    In this regard, Jun Xiaomo was also telling the truth. In her previous life, she had faced countless attempts at her life by her persecutors and yet escaped on every single one of these asions. As these numbers increased, she naturally also developed more and more skills, methods and techniques for preserving her own life. In this regard, her rich and vast life experiences could even be considered an invaluable treasure on its own.

    Unfortunately, only Jun Xiaomo knew of this ¡°invaluable treasure¡± of hers. Even if she told Ye Xiuwen about her rebirth, it is not exactly certain that he would believe what she was saying.

    Hearing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°sales pitch¡±, Ye Xiuwen coughed lightly in order to stifle hisughter ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s solemn and sincere delivery of an ostensibly nonsensical spiel was so absurd that even elicited rare smile on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face.

    Quite apart from what she¡¯s trying to achieve here, this little martial sister seems like she is ...praising herself?

    If Ye Xiuwen could see how Yu Wanrou had acted in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, he woulde to learn of the concept of ¡°selling oneself¡±. And this description was perfectly suitable for the present Jun Xiaomo as well.

    ¡°Alright, I know martial sister is very capable. But if you truly wish to travel out of the Sect to experience the world, you can only do so after you¡¯ve attained the eighth level of Qi Mastery. If you only want to leave the sect to have a looksee, it¡¯s best to ask your mother to bring you. Only she would have the abilities to protect you, understand?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen patiently and warmly exined the situation to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I know martial brother¡¯s reservations, but I also firmly believe that martial brother has the capability to protect me! Doesn¡¯t martial brother have a little bit of confidence in his own abilities?¡± Having decided to go all out, Jun Xiaomo even tried to provoke Ye Xiuwen into agreeing with her in order to have her way.

    Ye Xiuwen could not help but hook his lips wryly, before he reluctantly shook his head, saying, ¡°I truly have no confidence in my own abilities.¡±

    Sigh. Even my provocations aren¡¯t working. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart grew more frustrated as she clung onto her own hair in vexation.

    Seeing how his martial sister looked absolutely disappointed and frustrated, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes shed, gently clinking the rim of his teacup and curiously inquired, ¡°Martial sister, if I may ask, why do you insist on going with me?¡±

    He initially thought that Jun Xiaomo was only being yful; but as it turns out, things may be more than meets the eye. His martial sister was not a fool, and naturally would be aware of the dangers faced by a cultivator at the first level of Qi Mastery travelling out of the Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks as she realized that her only hopey now with telling Ye Xiuwen the whole truth.

    ¡°My cultivation has met with a slight problem...¡± Jun Xiaomo pinched her index finger and her thumb together as though indicating that the problem were really insignificant, ¡°Since my cultivation level fell back to the first level of Qi Mastery, my body has also met with some changes. As it is right now, my cultivation speed seems to abound under stressful conditions or emergency situations; but if I merely meditate, my cultivation progress woulde to aplete standstill.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo told Ye Xiuwen the truth, leaving out only the fact that she had be a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°So, it¡¯s like that...¡± Ye Xiuwen slowly ruminated on the new information he had just learnt of.

    This is not amon urrence, but at the same time it is not unheard of. No wonder Jun Xiaomo asked me to teach her sword arts. She must be hoping to use thebat experience to increase her cultivation speeds.

    Ye Xiuwen quickly understood the gist of the matter, and he sighed, saying, ¡°It seems that martial sister is destined to walk down the path of a sword cultivator then.¡±

    Given the condition with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, she was not suited to cultivation through meditation; and perhaps she would be more suited to understanding the sword instead. If his martial sister had some talent in this regard, it would not necessarily be a bad thing to start her early and guide her down the path of a sword cultivator.

    Even though the path of a sword cultivator is long and arduous, the benefits one reaped as a result were very apparent. This was because sword cultivators would have both a strong physique and flexibility in the ways they wield the sword. Compared with other spiritual cultivators, they would almost always be stronger in terms of both defensive and offensive capabilities. Furthermore, the sword cultivators could even umte, refine and imbue their ¡°sword¡± with the various spiritual elements in the world; and in turn their ¡°sword¡± would hone and grow with them. Therefore, the potential of a sword cultivator was almost limitless.

    This ¡°high difficulty; high reward¡± trait of sword cultivators was very simr to the cultivation path taken by demonic cultivators in general. It was no wonder that Ye Xiuwen felt that Jun Xiaomo was a good sprout suited for sword cultivation.

    Having heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intention to guide her in the ways of sword cultivation, her eyes brightened, expectantly asking, ¡°Then martial brother, does this mean you¡¯ve agreed to bring me with you on your travels?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled wryly as he nced over at Jun Xiaomo, replying, ¡°Since when did I agree to take you along with me on my mission?¡±

    ¡°That...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart sank again. Having her hopes raised and then only to have them dashed again did not feel good.

    ¡°These are two separate matters. Even though I do have the intention of guiding you in the ways of sword cultivation, but I still won¡¯t take you along with me on my mission. Martial sister, the world outside is much more dangerous than you think. This is a risk I cannot afford to undertake, because it would aggrieve your parents ¨C my master and his wife. Besides, your cultivation is not contingent on leaving the Sect ¨C you can still look for sparring opportunities within the Sect to improve your cultivation.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks in exasperation ¨C she had also thought about this matter before, but apart from her parents, she only trusted in Ye Xiuwen, and therefore only wanted to practice her cultivation with him.

    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s settled then. I¡¯ll work out a training schedule for you over the next few days and include some sparring content as well. We¡¯ll make any necessary adjustments after you¡¯ve tried it out. Let¡¯s target to finalize the training schedule before I leave the sect, and then you can simply adhere to the finalized schedule for your cultivation.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as Jun Xiaomo looked at him listlessly.

    ¡°Martial brother, how about if I gave you five fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills in exchange for your agreement to take me along with you on your mission? Will you agree to this condition?¡± Jun Xiaomo pleaded in a mncholic manner.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled with an almost pained expression as he looked at Jun Xiaomo, but he nevertheless shook his head with peremptory insistence.

    As expected...martial brother isn¡¯t the type of covetous scumbag like Qin Lingyu. Even with five fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills I wasn¡¯t able to tempt him. Sigh.

    Only, how much had she hoped that her martial brother would be ¡°bought over¡± by these five pills of hers...

    With this, she had yed all her cards avable to her. Dejected, Jun Xiaomoy her head down on the table and buried her head into her arms.

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu had arrived at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode together with a wan-looking Yu Wanrou just as Jun Xiaomo was attempting to convince Ye Xiuwen.

    Despite having agreed to apologize to Jun Xiaomo, yet when Yu Wanrou arrived at this exquisitely designed and furnished abode, her heart once again swelled with jealousy and indigence.

    She was jealous that Jun Xiaomo was literally born with a silver spoon in her mouth; and yet she was indignant that Jun Xiaomo had time and again defeated and suppressed her. Even though she was certain that the contents of her spectral demine would pave the way for her counterattack against Jun Xiaomo in future, she was nevertheless extremely dispirited at present because she still had to apologize and lower her head to Jun Xiaomo.

    At this moment, Yu Wanrou cursed from the bottom of her heart that this despicable Jun Xiaomo would quickly meet with an ident so that she would not answer the door at all!

    As though the heavens had answered Yu Wanrou¡¯s prayers, Qin Lingyu knocked on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s door for a long time, yet no one responded.

    ¡°Could she have gone out this early?¡± Qin Lingyu thought aloud. It suddenly dawned on him that Jun Xiaomo had not of her own volition looked for him for a long time. At present, he was unable to even hazard a guess as to where Jun Xiaomo might have gone to this early in the morning.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart secretly leapt with joy, wondering whether this means that she would no longer have to apologize to Jun Xiaomo today. Unfortunately, Yu Wanrou had underestimated the allure of these two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills. Within moments, Qin Lingyu had already retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane from his Interspatial Ring, recorded his message, cast a spell on it, and sent the paper crane on its way towards Jun Xiaomo.

    He had ced one strand of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair on the Messenger Paper Crane so that it could locate Jun Xiaomo and bring her back.

    Yu Wanrou looked at Qin Lingyu¡¯sck of any hesitation in performing all these tasks. In that instant, her face froze, and she fiercely bit down on her lower lip.

    Over thesest two days, Qin Lingyu had time and time again swept her to the back of his mind over some meagre benefits. Even though she had already prepared her heart for all these, she still could not help but feel indignant over this fact.

    She felt disappointed, and she felt her heart freezing over.

    Should she really be cing all of her hopes and trust in Qin Lingyu? Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes quivered as she contemted. She was not certain anymore.

    On the other side, as Jun Xiaomoy on the table pondering whether any other options were avable to her, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Messenger Paper Crane swiftly fluttered over into her hands.

    This time, because Ye Xiuwen had not activated the bamboo forest¡¯s formation array, the Messenger Paper Crane had no difficulties locating Jun Xiaomo.

    As she inspected the Messenger Paper Crane, Jun Xiaomo roughly guessed who the sender was. She leisurely held onto the paper crane while toying with it, but she refused to open it.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you open it and take a look?¡± Ye Xiuwen found the presently pouting Jun Xiaomo rather adorable, and rather pitiful at the same time.

    As she smirked dolefully, Jun Xiaomo replied inly, ¡°I¡¯m already in a bad mood. I¡¯m not sure hearing a certain person¡¯s voice would make things much better.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows quizzically. Given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response, he had also roughly guessed who the sender of this paper crane was. Therefore, he left Jun Xiaomo to her own devices and slowly sipped at his tea.

    After mulling over things for a little while longer, Jun Xiaomo opened the paper crane in her hands, and immediately a deep voice resounded in the pavilion ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯ve brought Yu Wanrou to your abode.¡±

    In other words, Qin Lingyu was hoping to quickly obtain those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills from Jun Xiaomo.

    After hearing the contents of this paper crane, Jun Xiaomo could not help but curl her lips into a wicked smile.

    Ah! How timely! I was just feeling extremely frustrated ¨C and someone has shown up at my door looking for some abuse!

 Chapter 41: Drama, A Good Show

    <h4>Chapter 41: Drama, A Good Show</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As Jun Xiaomo heard Qin Lingyu¡¯s message, her listless disposition was quickly renewed with glowing spirits and a somewhat smug look. Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen could not help but lift an eyebrow curiously as he continued to sip his tea indifferently.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smiled impishly as she sneaked over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, tugging at his snow-white coloured sleeve, asking mysteriously, ¡°Martial brother, are you interested in checking out a good show?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen turned his head slightly, and he saw that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s obsidian-ck eyes shed with a glint of mischief. Even though he knew right this moment that she was up to no good, he could tell that what she was about to do was not hateful either.

    It was just like watching a yful and cheeky kid arrogantly bragging to his friends about the innocent mischief he has caused. Apart from leaving people not knowing whether tough or cry, this kind of ¡°magnanimous¡± behaviour was not detestable to begin with.

    If Jun Xiaomo knew that Ye Xiuwen had just likened her to a ¡°yful and cheeky kid¡±, she would definitely find his reactionmentable. After all, her soul was already past a hundred years old ¨C how could it be apt to call her ¡°innocent and bright¡±, or ¡°yful and cheeky¡±?

    However, what Jun Xiaomo did not realize was that in front of those whom she trusted and let her guard down, such as Jun Linxuan, Liu Qingmei and Ye Xiuwen, she would always behave with a childish and impish attitude, and sometimes even act like a little princess.

    This could truly be called renewing one¡¯s youth ¨C not just in her physical reversion to sixteen years of age, but in her heart as well. That said, her renewed youth was only disclosed and apparent to a few select people.

    ¡°Martial brother, let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go~¡±

    As she noticed how Ye Xiuwen was only looking at her silently, Jun Xiaomo tugged at his sleeves once again, fervently blinking herrge, pearly eyes at him.

    Ye Xiuwen was never a person to enjoy crowds, festivities, or generally being a busybody. Therefore, if this had happened on any other day, he would have immediately turned down Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion. But now, Ye Xiuwen could not deny the fact that he was convinced by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s puppy eyes.

    He stood up and waved his hands, and the tea set on the stone table were immediately all stored within his Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go have a look at what spectacle you have to show me.¡± Ye Xiuwen said indifferently, yet a slight smile could be seen on the corner of his lips.

    ¡°Yay~! Hurray! I guarantee it will be good!¡± Jun Xiaomo said with a lilt as she lifted her chin, revealing a smug look on her face like a peacock boasting its feathers. Yet as soon as Ye Xiuwen looked over at her, she immediately turned away and walked ahead of him, masking the little bit of guilty conscience in her heart.

    The truth was that she could not guarantee a ¡°good show¡± as Ye Xiuwen understood it. After all, she knew that Ye Xiuwen did not like to watch these kinds of shows.

    Nevertheless, one of the main reasons why she had asked Ye Xiuwen along was because she wanted to see how far the present Ye Xiuwen would indulge in her antics. As it turns out, her thick-skinned attitude has indeed paid off ¨C he was clearly warming up to her right now!

    But this time, she would be careful not do anything to hurt Ye Xiuwen again. Absolutely not!

    As she walked on ahead of Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo secretly revealed a determined smile on her face.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    Last time, Qin Lingyu waited for Jun Xiaomo for four whole hours before he saw her sauntering back home tardily. Considering how this time he had brought Yu Wanrou over to render her apology, he thought that Jun Xiaomo would show up in no time. Unexpectedly, he had already waited for two whole hours and still Jun Xiaomo had not showed up. Not only that, the woods nearby buzzed with the incessant, intermittent moring of cicadas, multiplying the roiling frustrations on his heart.

    ¡°Lingyu, why not...let¡¯s leave for now and return another day. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s still not back yet, and she hasn¡¯t sent any Messenger Paper Cranes either, so there¡¯s no way we¡¯ll know where she¡¯s gone. Are we really going to wait here for her so pointlessly?¡±

    Yu Wanrou walked over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side as she gently tugged at his hand as she spoke with dolefulness and dissatisfaction.

    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t be so obvious. Remember, we¡¯re outside now.¡± Qin Lingyu promptly wrested his hand free of Yu Wanrou¡¯s touch as he said with some measure of vexation in his voice ¨C the growing frustration in his heart had long since depleted any capacity and patience he had for sympathizing with Yu Wanrou. At present, his heart and mind were all solely fixated on the promise of that two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills.

    If Qin Lingyu knew that Jun Xiaomo had without hesitation attempted to barter five fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills with Ye Xiuwen for an even simpler task, he might just be so infuriated that he would spit out a mouthful of blood!

    Ever since she fell in love with Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou did not mind it when he treated her coldly in front of others. But today there was only the two of them present, yet Qin Lingyu still bore the same attitude to her ¨C how could she ept this? Did Qin Lingyu think that she was a fool pandering to every single of his beck and call like Jun Xiaomo?

    These thoughts festered in her heart, and her anger burgeoned, fueled by both the thoughts of Jun Xiaomo hurting her, and Qin Lingyu forcing her to give an apology. Furthermore, that wave after wave of vexatious buzzing of the cicadas slowly grew on her nerves and wore down her rationality. Under the confluence of all these factors, Yu Wanrou finally reached her boiling point and she snapped.

    She stamped her feet as she blew her top, blurting, ¡°Qin Lingyu, if you want to wait you can wait alone. I¡¯m going!¡± As she said that, she motioned towards the exit of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode.

    Hearing this, Qin Lingyu quickly strode over to her and gripped her arm, saying with a grimace on his face, ¡°You¡¯ve alreadye this far, are you recanting now?!¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by recanting?! I¡¯ll be honest with you. Qin Lingyu, I absolutely do not want to apologize to this harlot! The person who hurt me was Jun Xiaomo, yet the person to apologize is me ¨C where is the reason in this?!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s tears filled the rims of her eyes and streamed down like waters bursting out a dam. She was both infuriated and hurting at the same time ¨C Qin Lingyu had gripped onto her arm so tightly that her bones felt as though they were being crushed.

    Yet Qin Lingyu did not do anything to console her. Instead, he only tightened his grasp on her arm as though he were afraid that she would run if he let go of her. Gritting his teeth, he slowly spoke, ¡°I¡¯ve said it before ¨C I don¡¯t care who¡¯s wrong or who¡¯s right, I only want you to give her an apology, understand?! Even if you want to leave, you can only do so after you¡¯ve apologized!¡±

    Even though Qin Lingyu¡¯s tightened grasp caused her to experience excruciating pain, but the infuriated Yu Wanrou could not care for that any longer! She cried as shemented, ¡°And why should I be the only one to apologize? She is clearly torturing me because she knows our rtionship. But you¡¯re the mastermind ¨C you should be the one to apologize to her!¡±

    At this moment, a cold gleam shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes as he shot his palm towards Yu Wanrou¡¯s face. But Qin Lingyu managed to stop himself at the veryst moment.

    Yu Wanrou had countless suitors chasing her within the Sect. If they noticed a palm mark on her face, who knows what kind of mountain they would build out of this molehill.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened in gloom. He lowered his head, looked at Yu Wanrou, and coldly said with a hushed voice, ¡°There is nothing going on between us, do you understand, Yu Wanrou? Don¡¯t you dare try to test my boundaries by starting any rumours. If I hear any such rumours spreading within the Sect, I won¡¯t go easy on you.¡±

    s! This was clearly an open threat against her. To make matters worse, this person threatening her was the same one who once held her in his embrace, assuring her that she was the apple of his eye!

    Yu Wanrou stared vacantly at him with streaks of tear stains on her face.

    Qin Lingyu¨C This was the first time she had clearly seen this person¡¯s true nature.

    Justst night, the two of them were still close and affectionate with each other; yet overnight he seemed to have be apletely different person. Was this not just for the two measly Energy Rejuvenation Pills from Jun Xiaomo?

    Yu Wanrou felt absolutely bitter as the waves of cold hard truth battered against her heart, threatening to shatter her reality.

    Qin Lingyu realized that Yu Wanrou no longer had any intention to leave Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode, so he loosened his grip, walked to the side and sat atop arge stone, adjusting and collecting his own roiling emotions.

    At this instant, both parties no longer spoke to each other, and the weight of the air about them seemed to have be dense and heavy. Qin Lingyu looked at a spot just beside him, as though vacantly, while at the same time as though he were in deep thought. On the other side, Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lip and tears streaked down her eyes as she clutched onto her arm that had been hurt by Qin Lingyu¡¯s vice-like grip. He had used so much strength earlier that her arm had already grown slightly swollen.

    In the woods not too far away, two people witnessed this entire scene between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. They had each applied on their bodies one high-grade Invisibility Talisman that concealed not only their physical bodies, but their auras as well. Therefore, there was no way Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou could have discovered their presence.

    ¡°So that must have been the ¡°good show¡± that you mentioned earlier huh.¡± Ye Xiuwen gave Jun Xiaomo a bemused look as he said ¨C this youngdy is rather magnanimous, isn¡¯t she? The earlier argument between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou clearly revealed that they didn¡¯t have an ordinary rtionship with each other, but Jun Xiaomo¡¯s showing no signs of jealousy. Instead, she was merely watching intently as though she were watching a theatre show performed by outsiders.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved a green fruit from her Interspatial Ring, and she rubbed it against her teeth before crisply sinking her teeth into the fruit. As she filled her cheeks with mouthfuls of fruit like a chipmunk, she waved her hand at Ye Xiuwen, pouting slightly as she said with arrogance, ¡°This youngdy hasn¡¯t even made her appearance yet. That was only half the show~¡±

    Ye Xiuwen knit his eyebrows as he picked off a dry leaf from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair and toyed with the leaf, saying, ¡°Qin Lingyu isn¡¯t a person with a bad temper. Yet today he lost control of his emotions ¨C I wonder if you¡¯ve set any trap for them in your yard?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the leaf in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand and coughed lightly. Then, as she dusted the dry leaves and dirt and soil from her body, she exined, ¡°It¡¯s not much of a trap either. It¡¯s just a small formation array I¡¯ve set within the yard.¡±

    Earlier, in order to drag out the time and let Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou wait a little while longer, they even ran over to the other side of Heavenly Peak just to pick some green fruits from the trees there. As Jun Xiaomo was presently unable to operate her true energy within her body, she personally climbed up the fruit tree just to pick these fruits. However, after picking only a few fruits, she made a misstep, fell from the tree andnded on Ye Xiuwen.

    With this, it would be the third time she had already fallen into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. This time she felt so embarrassed that she was unable to face Ye Xiuwen or speak to him for a short while.

    At present, these few dry leaves on her body were the ¡°battle scars¡± from that earlier incident, including the one that Ye Xiuwen had removed from her head. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo waspletely oblivious to the existence of these leaves and ¡°battle scars¡± until a little while ago.

    A smile crept up the corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips, but his tone remained very calm. He slowly said, ¡°If my guess is right, I would say that the sound of the cicadas must be fake, right? There¡¯s no reason to have so many cicadas around in the current season.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes gleamed as she nodded her head forcefully, smiling as shemented, ¡°Martial brother is still the best. You¡¯ve managed to guess it in one try!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled, ¡°Little martial sister is the skilled one here. You could even think of using the sound of cicadas to disrupt their emotions!¡±

    Even a person without any worries would grow frustrated after hearing the dry, incessant chirping of these cicadas, much less the present Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou who already had numerous things weighing on their hearts. These sounds evidently triggered the deeply hidden emotions within them, turning their frustrations into conflict in no time. The ability to think of such subtle yet effective tactics clearly proves that this little martial sister of his was not as much of a fool as what everyone makes her out to be.

    It was truly a wonder how she grew to be so infatuated with Qin Lingyu in the first ce.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo was unable to say whether Ye Xiuwen wasplimenting her when he said she was ¡°skilled¡±, Jun Xiaomo nevertheless opened her eyes wide, and puffed up her chest as she said proudly, ¡°Of course! To those who dare to scheme against me, I, Jun Xiaomo, will naturally let them have an eye for an eye ¨C I¡¯ll let them have it!¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright. Then let me ask this ¡°eye-for-an-eye¡± little martial sister, when will I be able to see the second half of the show?¡± Ye Xiuwen yed along with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s antics as he queried, evidently curious about how things would pan out.

    ¡°There¡¯s no hurry. Let me finish these green fruits first.¡± Jun Xiaomo leisurely replied, stuffing another few green fruits into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, ¡°Martial brother you should try it too! Even though they¡¯ve not fully ripened yet, they¡¯re still not too bad.¡±

    She had tried to give Ye Xiuwen some of these fruits after plucking them from the trees earlier, but Ye Xiuwen had refused. Therefore, she was trying her luck again this time.

    Watching a good show with her ¡°partner in crime¡± with snacks in tow ¨C this was an absolute delight!

    This time, Ye Xiuwen no longer refused the fruits. He picked up one of these green fruits and took a small bite.

    Mm, it¡¯s really not too bad. Ye Xiuwen smiled as he thought. At this moment, he discovered that he had never been so happy and rxed ever since his n had been annihted years ago.

    I must have been infected by this contagious youngdy before me... Ye Xiuwen silently added in his heart, as heughed at himself and shook his head helplessly. Ye Xiuwen stared into the distance, as he indulged in his own thoughts.

 Chapter 42: Punishment and Torture

    <h4>Chapter 42: Punishment and Torture</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo pped off the dust on her palms as she finally finished thest mouthful of her green fruits. Then, she sauntered over to the gate to her yard and swiftly removed the invisibility talisman off her own body. Once the invisibility talismanpletely immted and vanished into thin air, Jun Xiaomo leisurely skirted around the surrounding walls and entered her yard as though she had just ¡°returned¡±.

    ¡°Oh! You guys sure are early!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at the two persons in her yard who were giving each other the silent treatment as she hooked her lips into a slight smile.

    Even though these two people standing before her were her fianc¨¦ and her ¡°love rival¡± from her previous life, she felt awash withplete, unwavering calmness.

    In fact, it would be a good thing if Yu Wanrou could make Qin Lingyu fall head over heels in love with her - then she would have no issues with rescinding the marriage agreement they had. However, it was a pity that the present Yu Wanrou did not have Cupid¡¯s blessings in this regard. At the very least, in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, the value of those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills far outweighed the value of his rtionship with Yu Wanrou right now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice cut through the heavy air about Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou like a knife through butter. Hearing this, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart leapt as he quickly turned his head in the direction of the voice ¨C he had never had such a burning desire and anticipation to see Jun Xiaomo show up before. Of course, the object of his desire and anticipation was not Jun Xiaomo per se. Rather, it was for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills.

    Yu Wanrou also looked in the direction of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice, but her reaction was vastly different from Qin Lingyu¡¯s. She dreaded seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arrival. In fact, she detested Jun Xiaomo so much that she had hoped Jun Xiaomo would never again show up in front of her and Qin Lingyu.

    But obviously, her hopes were dashed at this very moment.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo nce over, Qin Lingyu promptly walked over to her, saying with a pleasant voice, ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯re back. We¡¯ve been waiting for some time.¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo lifted her eyebrows strangely. It was an extremely rare thing to hear such a pleasant tone in Qin Lingyu voice. She discovered that this man before her had no bottom line or principles when it came to matters concerning his own benefits or interests.

    But as Jun Xiaomo stared straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s two long and narrow eyes, she saw that this was a mere pretense ¨C she could tell that there was no joy or pleasure in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, only a deep, cold ambition brewing in his heart.

    Having noticed this, Jun Xiaomo realized that she disliked Qin Lingyu even more ¨C she found this kind of aggressive, overambition to be repulsive and disgusting.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile faded away as she ignored Qin Lingyu and turned her gaze towards Yu Wanrou. At this moment, Yu Wanrou was still biting down on her lower lips, looking deeply aggrieved as though she had just been humiliated.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Jun Xiaomo burst out in a sprightlyughter, saying to Yu Wanrou, ¡°What is it, martial sister Wanrou? You must be very disappointed to see me, aren¡¯t you? What¡¯s with that expression stered all over your face that makes it look like I¡¯ve owed you eight lifetimes¡¯ worth of debt, huh? I really can¡¯t bear to see this.¡±

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows and turned to look at Yu Wanrou, signaling to her with his eyes that she should quickly apologize to Jun Xiaomo.

    Yu Wanrou gritted her pearly white teeth as she struggled against her own emotions. Finally, she unwillingly walked in front of Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo, lowered her head and with a voice as small as a mosquito, she murmured, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, sorry.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nced at her from the corner of her eyes,menting, ¡°Martial sister Wanrou, are you talking to a mosquito or a human being? Are you sure that kind of voice can be heard by normal people?¡±

    Yu Wanrou increased her volume, parting her teeth slightly as she muttered, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, sorry.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled genially as she casually repeated, ¡°I still can¡¯t hear it.¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, sorry!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice finally reached the volume of a normal speaking voice.

    ¡°I still can¡¯t hear it.¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, sorry!¡±

    ¡°I still can¡¯t hear it.¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, sorry!!!¡± Yu Wanrou lifted her head, staring straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes with fury raging in her own as she tightly clenched her fingers around the silken handkerchief in her hands.

    If Jun Xiaomo still says that she can¡¯t hear this, then I...

    But with Qin Lingyu staring her down from the side, what else could she do? Yu Wanrou finally understood how all those other women felt when she stole their men. That is, no matter what she said or did, her lover would not only ignore it; he would even take the side of her love rival and stand against her.

    The thought that Jun Xiaomo was going too far had also crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind. Jun Xiaomo had clearly repeated that same phrase of ¡°I can¡¯t hear¡± in order to torment Yu Wanrou and rub salt in her wounds. But when Qin Lingyu remembered the treasures promised by Jun Xiaomo, he chose to remain silent and watch on at the side.

    Qin Lingyu could not risk offending Jun Xiaomo just for Yu Wanrou ¨C after all, Yu Wanrou was a pretty-looking fellow disciple who only moved his heart slightly; while Jun Xiaomo was a gateway to immeasurable treasures and resources. With these resources, he could easily rise above thepetition and stand at the peak of all his contemporaries without having to risk his life obtaining the same.

    Jun Xiaomo took in both the expressions on the faces of Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou, and she assessed that the time was ripe for her next move. Therefore, she looked at Yu Wanrou and wryly said, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve heard your apology. But...since you are apologizing, you ought to do so with a hundred and twenty percent sincerity. I don¡¯t feel the remorse in your voice when you¡¯re just shouting at me like that.¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s face momentarily froze, turning green and pale as she experienced conflicting emotions in her heart. Finally, she coldly remarked, ¡°First, you say that you can¡¯t hear me; then, you say that I¡¯m shouting at you. Martial sister Xiaomo, tell me, what exactly should I do to show my ¡°sincerity and remorse¡±?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo leisurely responded, ¡°It¡¯s simple. Just tell me in detail why you are apologizing to me and write me a statement saying that you will not make this mistake again. This manner of apology would be sufficient to appease me. What do you think?¡±

    Yu Wanrou indignantly retorted, ¡°It¡¯s martial sister Xiaomo who asked me toe and apologize to you today. Don¡¯t you already know the full reason, or are you just trying to torment me today?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, my initial intention was indeed to torment you. What about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo admitted that fact without any hesitation, causing Yu Wanrou¡¯s face to freeze in shock as though she were choking on something.

    How could anyone so inly and honestly reveal their wicked thoughts? This was the first time Yu Wanrou had seen someone as brazen as Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°But...¡± Ignoring their responses, Jun Xiaomo continued, ¡°I¡¯ve also said it. If you apologize with enough sincerity, I won¡¯t pursue this matter any longer and I¡¯ll let you off the hook. I, Jun Xiaomo, am a woman of my word. How about it, Yu Wanrou, do you admit your mistake?¡±

    ¡°I admit it.¡± Yu Wanrou wished to quickly leave this ce and free herself from this torment.

    This torment was not a physical one, but rather a torment of the heart and mind. Yu Wanrou had always been jealous of the fact that Jun Xiaomo had everything going for her; but at the same time, she had never set had Jun Xiaomo in her sights because she also looked down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s foolish and na?ve disposition. Therefore, when Jun Xiaomo time and again trampled on her pride, causing her to feel helpless beyond belief, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt like it had fallen into an inescapable pit.

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear it, tell me what mistake you¡¯re admitting to.¡± Jun Xiaomo tucked her hair behind her ear as she ardently pressed the issue.

    ¡°I should not have ndered martial sister Xiaomo and said that you injured me...¡± Yu Wanrou said unwillingly, but she instinctually got defensive and added, ¡°But it can¡¯t really be considered nder at the same time. The person I saw at that time really bore martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s appearances, and Second Elder said it could have been a demonic cultivator posing as you to harm me. I was just reporting what I saw to the Sect Elders, how was I wrong in any way?!¡±

    Yu Wanrou looked at Jun Xiaomo intently, hoping to salvage some of her diminishing pride.

    ¡°Oh, but martial brother Qin didn¡¯t find any traces of the demonic cultivator perpetrator, did he? Since he didn¡¯t, then Second Elder¡¯s conjectures are no longer valid. Besides, you say that you¡¯ve seen my appearances, but did anyone else corroborate your testimony? And do you have any hard evidence to prove I hurt you? You made all these allegations to the Sect Elders without the confirmation of any other witness or hard evidence. Martial sister, don¡¯t you think that you¡¯ve been too thoughtless in the circumstances? If not for the fact that my cultivation level fell to the first level of Qi Mastery, I might very well have been punished by the Sect for nothing!¡±

    ¡°You...you...you¡¯re being ridiculous! Can¡¯t I gain any sympathy from the fact that I was injured to begin with? And besides, the Penal Hall is presided over by the honourable Sect Elders and they would make a fair determination of the matter, so how would you have been punished by the Sect for nothing?!¡±

    ¡°If martial sister Wanrou had evidence, then you would be making reasonable usations. But if martial sister Wanrou had no evidence to begin with, then what difference is it from false usations? Martial sister, I¡¯m saying all of these things so you can understand one thing ¨C some things cannot be said thoughtlessly without any consequences...for example, the rumours about me bullying you.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo made her diatribe, she took a few steps forward, all the while keeping her eyes locked on Yu Wanrou. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a sardonic smile as she said, ¡°Don¡¯t you enjoy telling people in the Sect that I¡¯ve always been bullying you? You¡¯ve always had these allegations at the tip of your tongue. Why not martial sister Wanrou give an ount for the basis for such statements then? Or do you think that it is alright making such baseless, irresponsible statements to the world, without having need for any evidence, hmm?¡±

    At this moment, the rims of Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes reddened and filled with tears. She looked over at Qin Lingyu, only to discover that Qin Lingyu only lifted his chin slightly and gave her a meaningful look. His message? Continue to apologize.

    This was because as long as Yu Wanrou could not give Jun Xiaomo a satisfactory apology, he would not be able to obtain the promised medicinal pills from Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Alright. I apologize for all of my irresponsible statements as well.¡± Yu Wanrou finally gave up arguing with Jun Xiaomo. She knew that as long as Jun Xiaomo held onto the resources which Qin Lingyu coveted, Jun Xiaomo held all the cards and there was no way Yu Wanrou coulde out on top of this situation.

    This is only temporary... Yu Wanrou silently consoled herself as she lowered her head, obscuring a vicious glint in her eye.

    Jun Xiaomoughed heartily and decided not to press the issue any further. At this moment, she retrieved from her Interspatial Ring a talisman with a formation array drawn on it and waved it in front of Yu Wanrou, asking, ¡°Do you know what array this is?¡±

    Yu Wanrou looked at Jun Xiaomo, keeping silent. She had relied solely on the spirit spring within her spectral demine to attain her present cultivation level. Therefore, when it came to formation arrays, secret arts, talismans and other fields of knowledge, she waspletely ignorant, and no better than the mere mortals living outside the Sect.

    Anyway, Yu Wanrou had never bothered herself with these things. Given her personality, she never once desired to be a strong cultivator. Instead, her direction in life had always been to seduce men who were stronger than her.

    Jun Xiaomo also knew that Yu Wanrou would be clueless about these things, so she took her silence as ignorance as she exined, ¡°Heart-Oath Array ¨C have you heard of this?¡±

    ¡°Heart-Oath!¡± Qin Lingyu immediately understood where Jun Xiaomo was going with this.

    ¡°Yes, Heart-Oath.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded, ¡°This is the most basic Heart-Oath Array, but its strength is enough to make you pay for your actions. Once you swear an oath on this array, you will suffer punishment from this Heart-Oath Array if you vite your oath. Do you dare make an oath here, Yu Wanrou?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo once again waved the Heart-Oath Talisman in front of Yu Wanrou¡¯s face.

    Her current cultivation was too low, so the present effectiveness of the Heart-Oath Array was not too great. In fact, its effectiveness was limited to one instance of punishment for viting the oath. Once that punishment urs, the Heart-Oath Array would lose its power. However, Jun Xiaomo naturally left out these little details when she described her array to Yu Wanrou.

    She only wanted to see whether Yu Wanrou dared to make such an oath or not.

    As expected, Yu Wanrou once again hesitated.

 Chapter 43: Endless Provocation

    <h4>Chapter 43: Endless Provocation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Yu Wanrou¡¯s flickering, uncertain eyes, replete with hesitance. Jun Xiaomo could not help but chuckle to herself, tapping on the Heart-Oath Talisman, meaningfully saying, ¡°It seems that martial sister Wanrou cannot guarantee that she would not spread rumours in futures huh...That¡¯s alright. Since that is the case, I¡¯ll just keep this, and I won¡¯t force you to apologize any longer.¡± Saying that, Jun Xiaomo motioned to store the Heart-Oath Array in her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Hold on!¡± Qin Lingyu who had been silently observing all these while suddenly interjected and stopped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions. He turned towards Yu Wanrou and said indifferently, ¡°Martial sister Wanrou, I¡¯ve brought you here today to apologize to Xiaomo. I also think that Xiaomo¡¯s request here is not unreasonable. The Heart-Oath Array only requires that you keep to your oath. If you don¡¯t vite your oath, then there won¡¯t be any punitive effects on you. So, there is no need for you to be so hesitant about it.¡±

    Yu Wanrou held back the tears in her eyes as she sorrowfully looked at Qin Lingyu. Calling her ¡°martial sister Wanrou¡±, while he referred to Jun Xiaomo more dearly as ¡°Xiaomo¡± ¨C it was evident who he was distancing himself from. Even though she knew Qin Lingyu was merely acting here, she still felt extremely hurt.

    It had long since slipped Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind that Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo were an engaged couple. All she could think about at this moment was how Qin Lingyu had betrayed their rtionship and how he had abandoned her for some meagre benefits from Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo mocked in her heart as she saw all these. To her, the torment that Yu Wanrou had experienced this day could hardly bepared to a thousandth of what she had experienced in her previous life! How could the trivial fact that Qin Lingyu had set aside his rtionship with Yu Wanrou for some benefits bepared with how Qin Lingyu had used Jun Xiaomo in her previous life, drained herpletely dry, and then sent her to that dark dungeon for countless days where Jun Xiaomo could only await her own death? All of these had been a result of those two masterminds, Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo could no longer care less about sowing discord between these two people. In fact, she took pleasure in the fact that they were now being torn apart. After all, she had sworn to herself that she would be repaying them with everything they had done to her!

    As Qin Lingyu saw that Yu Wanrou only looked at him with her teary eyes and did not show signs of any other response, Qin Lingyu grew anxious, and he promptly demanded, ¡°Martial sister Wanrou, hurry up! What are you waiting for?¡±

    Yu Wanrou took a deep breath and managed to finally repress the sourness and unwillingness of her heart, before she turned to Jun Xiaomo and said, ¡°Fine, martial sister Xiaomo, I agree to make the oath. What do I have to do?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s simple.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled in satisfaction as a waved her hands, and a wooden table appeared in front of their faces. Then, she ced the scroll with the formation array onto it.

    The scroll unwrapped into arge formation array talisman. As it unfurled, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou saw aplicated formation array inscribed in red ink that they could not understand.

    After all, they were not talisman masters, and there was no impetus for them to analyze how formation arrays were inscribed. In fact, most cultivators would generally onlye into contact with the moremon talismans that they could purchase with spirit stones, such as Teleportation Talisman, Invisibility Talisman, Spirit Gathering Talisman, Thunderbolt Talisman, and the like. As for the more umon talismans like the Heart-Oath Talisman which were much more expensive, these were outside the consideration of most cultivators.

    Therefore, even though Qin Lingyu had heard of the Heart-Oath Array before, it was not difficult to see why Qin Lingyu was unable to determine the strength of this Heart-Oath Talisman. Of course, he was also unable to tell that this talisman was actually drawn by Jun Xiaomo herself!

    ¡°Bite your fingertip and drip a drop of blood onto the talisman. Then, put your palm on the center of the Heart-Oath Talisman, say your oath, and the oath will be sealed.¡±

    Heart-Oath Talismans drew power from the naturalws of this world. Therefore, once an oath was sworn, it would never lose its effectiveness unless a special method was used to destroy the talisman itself, or until the oath-maker vited his or her oath and depleted the punitive efficacy of the Heart-Oath Talisman.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was certain that before Yu Wanroues to know that talisman masterckey of hers in the future, she would not have any means to dispel this oath. This way, Yu Wanrou would have no choice but to constantly watch what she says, or else she would suffer the wrath and punishment of the Heart-Oath Array.

    As for the things in the future...we¡¯ll cross that bridge when wee to it. Jun Xiaomo knew that if she wanted to deal with Yu Wanrou, not only did she have to deal with only Yu Wanrou herself, but she would have to deal with all theckeys who would eventuallye to recognize Yu Wanrou as a matriarch. This was the greatest obstacle which Jun Xiaomo knew she would have to ovee. This was also one of the greatest motivating factors for her to be stronger.

    After all, pure strength trumps all ¨C whether it be schemes and cunning, trickery and techniques, all of these would be useless in the face of absolute strength. Therefore, possessing absolute strength would simplify things when Jun Xiaomo dealt with these schemers around her in future.

    Under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s relentless determination and Qin Lingyu¡¯s cold, watchful eyes, Yu Wanrou knew that there was no escaping the making of this oath. Therefore, she did as Jun Xiaomo instructed ¨C she ced a drop of her blood onto the center of the formation array, and then ced her palm on top as she swore her oath ¨C

    ¡°I, Yu Wanrou, hereby make oath that I will not spread baseless rumours about Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    ¡°Also, you are not allowed to weave any untrue tales or tell any lies about me. Once you¡¯re done with the oath, you¡¯ll have to end off by saying the words ¡°that is all¡±, otherwise the formation array would still expect you to continue.¡± Jun Xiaomo ¡°benevolently¡± reminded Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou clenched her teeth as she battled back the anger and frustrations roiling deep within her heart before she finally managed to supplement her oath with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s requirements. As she concluded her oath, a red light glowed from the heart of the array, exuding some measure of primal, domineering force about it. Then, with a sh, the lights disappeared, and everything was back to normal.

    This was the power of the naturalws of the world. It was rumoured that once a person¡¯s cultivation reached the absolute pinnacle, that person would possess the powers to change thews of the world, and even hold in their palms the key to the secrets and mysteries of life! Of course, these were but hearsay, and no one had been able to achieve all these things ¨C even those cultivators who had attained the Transcendence stage of cultivation!

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head satisfactorily, before she carefully rolled up the Heart-Oath Talisman and stored it within her own Interspatial Ring.

    At this time, the colour of the inscriptions on the Heart-Oath Talisman had turned a bright crimson red, as though it hade alive. This was evidence that the formation array was now effective, and the oath was sessful.

    Yu Wanrou felt that she had suffered enough humiliated today. It must be said that before she passed into this world, even while she was the illegitimate child of her father¡¯s frolics, she had never suffered such humiliations.

    ¡°Are you pleased now? I¡¯ve already apologized to you, and I¡¯ve already sworn an oath ¨C do you still have any other demands?¡± Yu Wanrou asked Jun Xiaomo with a zed look over her eyes. She no longer disyed her usual pitiable look which earned her the sympathy of those around her.

    It was understandable. The only person whom she thought would take pity on her turned out not to care about her feelings at all. There was no longer any reason for her to put on any pretense at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she nodded her head, saying, ¡°I¡¯m satisfied. You should have done this right from the outset. What was the point in your bickering and your jibber-jabber at the start? The result turned out to be the same at the end.¡±

    At this moment, Yu Wanrou was so infuriated that she almost choked in a fit of rage.

    ¡°Then if there¡¯s nothing else, I¡¯ll take my leave.¡± Yu Wanrou said with slightly reddened eyes, and no one could tell whether it was because of the humiliation or the anger in her heart.

    Regardless, she did not wish to stay any longer than she had to. As for Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou was so maddened by his behaviour that she did not even want to deal with him at this moment.

    ¡°Alright, there¡¯s nothing else from me. Martial sister Wanrou, take care on your way out.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hand jovially as she smiled smugly at Yu Wanrou.

    Hmph, useless trash at the first level of Qi Mastery. Yu Wanrou reluctantly bit down on her lower lips as her eyes shed with a derisive look.

    Yu Wanrou swore in her heart that one day she would make Jun Xiaomoe begging to her for mercy. She took a deep breath, gave a cryptic look to Qin Lingyu who promptly avoided her gaze, nodded at Jun Xiaomo before finally taking her leave.

    As Yu Wanrou left, Qin Lingyu finally heaved a sigh of relief. He was nervous that Jun Xiaomo would confront and question them about the rtionship between him and Yu Wanrou. To his relief, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anger was directed solely at the previous incident, and she did not press for an exnation on his rtionship with Yu Wanrou.

    Of course, had Jun Xiaomo asked him about it, Qin Lingyu had already decided to deny all her allegations and maintain that he and Yu Wanrou were merely martial brother and sister from the Sect. As long as Jun Xiaomo could not find any evidence of their secret rtionship, then there was no way she could prove that Qin Lingyu had been unfaithful while they were engaged.

    Further, Qin Lingyu thought that if Jun Xiaomo was not pressing this issue, then that must mean Jun Xiaomo was uncertain about the matters between him and Yu Wanrou, and it was perfectly safe and reasonable for him to continue to tap on the rich vein of resources that is Jun Xiaomo.

    As the thought of resources crossed his mind, Qin Lingyu naturally would not forget about the two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills. Now that Yu Wanrou had apologized as agreed, Jun Xiaomo ought to also fork over those two pills to him.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu pondered over how he was going to broach this topic to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Xiaomo--¡± Just as Qin Lingyu spoke, Jun Xiaomo immediately cut him off midway ¨C ¡°Eh? Martial brother Qin, aren¡¯t you leaving yet? We¡¯ve already concluded the agenda for today, and unfortunately I¡¯ve got nothing here to host you with.¡±

    Hearing this, Qin Lingyu was stunned. He now experienced firsthand exactly what Yu Wanrou had felt earlier.

    The present Jun Xiaomo had such a sharp tongue that she could practically anger people to death with just her words.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face turned sickly green and pale ¨C he absolutely did not expect Jun Xiaomo to act dumb about their agreement right now. The former Jun Xiaomo would have obsequiously delivered countless spirit treasures and spirit tools to Qin Lingyu without any prompting on his part. But now, for just two measly Energy Rejuvenation Pills ¨C not only did Jun Xiaomo set down countless conditions for exchange, she even acted dumb about the transaction after Qin Lingyu had performed his end of the bargain!

    Was the person before his eyes truly the same Jun Xiaomo that he had always known?!

    Seeing how Qin Lingyu was staring at him listlessly like he had just seen a ghost, Jun Xiaomo smirked to herself, shrugged her shoulders as she said, ¡°Since martial brother likes my yard so much, then I¡¯ll just leave you here to slowly appreciate the surroundings! I¡¯ll return to my room first.¡±

    ¡°Hold on!¡± Qin Lingyu knew that if he did not explicitly state his demands, then this bird in hand was truly going to spread its wings and fly away, ¡°Xiaomo, what about the two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills you¡¯ve agreed to give to me?¡±

    ¡°Ah! So it¡¯s about that!¡± Jun Xiaomo pped her head as though the matter hadpletely slipped her mind. At the same time, she revealed an apologetic look on her face, exining, ¡°Martial brother Qin, I¡¯m sorry about that, but the fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills in my Interspatial Ring have all been given to others, and I currently don¡¯t have any with me.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve given them away?!¡± Qin Lingyu stared at her with disbelief, no longer able to calmly conceal the roiling emotions in his heart. Just a little while ago, Qin Lingyu was still absolutely certain that Jun Xiaomo would hand over the Energy Rejuvenation Pills to her. That was also why he hardened his heart and did not step in to prevent Yu Wanrou from making the oath even when Yu Wanrou was weeping and sobbing away.

    Besides, he had to let Jun Xiaomo realize that there was nothing going on between him and Yu Wanrou at all.

    Little did he expect that after putting on a good show and indulging in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s antics, the only thing he got in return was an exnation that all the pills had already been given away.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I had something to ask of others, so I¡¯d given away all five fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills in my Interspatial Ring to them.¡±

    ¡°Five?!¡± This new piece of information dealt yet another heavy blow to Qin Lingyu. He had gone through so much trouble just to please Jun Xiaomo in order to obtain two Energy Rejuvenation Pills from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands; yet Jun Xiaomo had in the blink of an eye given five away to others.

    Qin Lingyu eyes burned with a raging fire at this moment. He took a step forward, intending to grab onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm and demand an exnation. However, Jun Xiaomo swiftly tilted her body and avoided his grasp.

    ¡°Speak if you have something on your mind. Don¡¯t get all touchy-feely on me.¡± Jun Xiaomo threw a dirty nce at Qin Lingyu.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attitude, Qin Lingyu collected his thoughts and finally understood everything.

    Like a wild beast that had just lost its prey, Qin Lingyu momentarily lost his mind as he bared his teeth, coldly roaring, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯ve swindled me!¡±

    ¡°Tsk-- so what if I did?¡± Jun Xiaomo no longer bothered to keep up with the pretense any further. She despised Qin Lingyu with every fiber of her being ¨C every time she saw that detestable face of his, she could not help but develop an urge to tear his face to shreds. Therefore, she wanted to give him a piece of her own mind right this moment. ¡°So, you are allowed to toy with my feelings, while I am not allowed to toy with your feelings as well?¡± Jun Xiaomoughed sardonically, ¡°How does it feel? That feeling of expectant hope quickly transforming to an abject despair ¨C it¡¯s pretty exciting isn¡¯t it.¡±

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! What exactly do you want!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want much. I just want you to know that I, Jun Xiaomo, am not a cheap vein of resources for you despicable Qin siblings. How dare youe take what you want, as and when you want ¨C and do it as though it were an honourable thing. Ingrates!¡±

    ¡°But we had an agreement that as long as I get Yu Wanrou to apologize to you, then you would give me the spirit talisman and spirit medicines in your Interspatial Ring. This was a fair transaction!¡± Qin Lingyu was truly deserving of being called He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple ¨C his retorts were quick and clever, ¡°And what are you doing now? Recanting on your word?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. This was only a verbal agreement. I can recant if I want to ¨C what are you going to do about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo smirked.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯re courting death!¡± In a fit of rage, Qin Lingyu momentarily forgot that Jun Xiaomo was Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter, and he lurched forward with his fists!

    ¡°Stay your hand!¡± A low voice resounded as Qin Lingyu¡¯s attack was intercepted by a wave of sharp sword intent.

 Chapter 44: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Unrequited Feelings

    <h4>Chapter 44: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Unrequited Feelings</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen!¡± Qin Lingyu never expected that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s saviour would actually be the mysterious First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen. Ye Xiuwen was known to be a person who minded his own business after all.

    Ye Xiuwen was clothed in snow-white garbs, and he now stood valiantly in front of Jun Xiaomo. The sword in his arm emitted mild humming sounds as it gleamed coldly. Even though Qin Lingyu could not make out Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions because of his veiled conical hat, he knew that the sword intent which Ye Xiuwen released earlier was not a pretense. If Qin Lingyu had not retracted his arm at that veryst moment, his arm might very well have been cleaved in half by now!

    While both Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen were at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, Qin Lingyu could not match up to Ye Xiuwen in terms ofbat prowess. In all the past Sect Ranking Competitions, Qin Lingyu had always lost out to Ye Xiuwen. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword arts was simply too versatile, and they could be used for both offense and defense. There were even times where Foundation Establishment cultivators were unable to defeat Ye Xiuwen. How would Qin Lingyu even stand a chance?

    Whilst Qin Lingyu¡¯s talent could be considered high, one of the main reasons why he was able to attain the twelfth level of Qi Mastery by the age of twenty-two years had to do with the countless spiritual pills, medicine and herbs he had consumed over the years. Naturally, he could notpare with Ye Xiuwen who had painstakingly forged his own path through hard work and diligence. Just as much as how several female disciples were jealous of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s privileged identity; several disciples in the Sect were equally as jealous of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation andbat prowess.

    Qin Lingyu was incredibly sore that he had time and again lost out to Ye Xiuwen. But at the same time, he did not feel threatened by his existence. Ye Xiuwen was the same as his master Jun Linxuan ¨C they were like fanatics who only focused on their cultivation, and did not bother about external rtions and politics or concern themselves with vying for power within the Sect. Qin Lingyu sincerely felt that people like that who did not know how to curry favour from others would sooner orter fall to the schemers around. Therefore, he never once ced Ye Xiuwen in his sights at all.

    But Qin Lingyu never once considered the fact that absolute power foils all schemes ¨C when one umtes sufficient power, then he would bepletely impervious to all forms of schemes and trickery.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was also not the type of fool who would easily fall prey to the schemes of others to begin with.

    Seeing Ye Xiuwen standing guard in front of Jun Xiaomo, Qin Lingyu furrowed his eyebrows. He never knew that they shared such a close rtionship. A lot of treasures and spiritual pills in Qin Lingyu¡¯s Interspatial Ring had been gifted to him by Jun Xiaomo, and he naturally did not wish to share his cash cow Jun Xiaomo with anyone else.

    But this time, his hopes had clearly been dashed.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo delightedly skipped over beside Ye Xiuwen, clinging onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s free arm. She smiled widely at Ye Xiuwen as she looked at Ye Xiuwen with a sprightly look. Anyone could tell that she was in a good mood from the way her eyes were curling up in joy right now.

    Compared with how she treated Qin Lingyu earlier, the stark difference in her attitude was like heaven and earth.

    Ye Xiuwen flicked his sword and sheathed it, turned his head and was momentarily stunned as he saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bright, resplendent eyes staring back at him. Then, he sighed as he said with some exasperation, ¡°You must have been so daring and brazen because you knew that I would be watching from the side, right?¡±

    If he had not interfered earlier, or if he was not present today, then perhaps Jun Xiaomo might really have been seriously hurt by Qin Lingyu.

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue as she retorted, ¡°Sounds about right. But how would I have known that Qin Lingyu was such a lightweight ¨C just a little bit of provocation and he¡¯s already blown his top.¡±

    Hearing this, the veins on Qin Lingyu head bulged and twitched slightly ¨C How was this considered ¡°a little bit of provocation?!¡± Qin Lingyu shot a cold re towards Jun Xiaomo.

    As though she heard her thoughts, Jun Xiaomo released Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, crossed her arm and smiled sardonically at Qin Lingyu as she said, ¡°What? Can¡¯t this be called ¡°a little bit of provocation¡±? Apart from not giving you those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills, I only tossed in a few words to annoy you a little bit. I didn¡¯t even attack you or harm you in any way. On the other hand, you resorted to violence and even threatened to kill me just because you didn¡¯t receive the Energy Rejuvenation Pills. Who¡¯s the one who¡¯s going overboard huh?!¡±

    Qin Lingyu graduallyposed himself and his rationality returned. He finally realized the potentially disastrous consequences of what he almost did in the heat of the moment.

    It would not be a big problem if he hurt anyone else within the Sect. After all, the other party was also at fault, and he could still justify his actions. But the person he had almost hurt was Jun Xiaomo! With Jun Linxuan¡¯s and Liu Qingmei¡¯s legendary hot-tempered personalities, the consequences could certainly have been extremely dire.

    Havinge to this realization, his thoughts of the potential consequences sent shivers down his back.

    ¡°And besides...¡± Jun Xiaomo added, ¡°Qin Lingyu, search your heart and tell me ¨C just how much spirit treasures and pills have I given you to date? I¡¯ve even trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds for you and almost lost my life there! And you? If you dare to say that you have any gratitude for what I¡¯ve done for you all these years, then exin to me why you even had the gall to make an attempt at my life earlier?!¡±

    As she finished, the mocking gaze in her eyes subsided and was reced with a profoundly cold re.

    This was a type of refreshing, bleak coldness that apanied the snuffing out of a once burning passion.

    Qin Lingyu looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes which were now devoid of any affection and love, and instead reced by a pitch-ck solitude. It was almost akin to a bottomless abyss that could suck one¡¯s soul in; and at the same time, it seemed like a mirror which reflected the ugliest side of a person¡¯s character.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu suddenly felt very ufortable. He had thought that no matter what he had done, Jun Xiaomo would always wait patiently like a fool for him to return to her; and she would also willingly give all that she had without question to him.

    Yet, after being put through the Sect¡¯s punishment for trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, Jun Xiaomo had suddenly grown wiser to the ways of the world. Most importantly, her eyes no longer revealed any trace of affection for him. Qin Lingyu had thought that this was a temporary change in her attitude ¨C after all, how could a burning passion suddenly be snuffed out just like that. But as it turns out, things may be as he had feared.

    Qin Lingyu had often scorned his marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo, because he felt that someone like Jun Xiaomo did not deserve someone like him. Therefore, he often fantasized about the day he would finally drain Jun Xiaomo dry of all her resources, and how he would then find a way to dissolve their marriage. Yet who would have thought the first person to withdraw from the marriage and want nothing to do with this rtionship was in fact Jun Xiaomo.

    As he put aside his difort for the moment, Qin Lingyu decided that he had to properly address the earlier incident to quash any chances that Jun Xiaomo might report this matter to Liu Qingmei or Jun Linxuan directly.

    Qin Lingyu deliberated for a moment, before he mustered all the sincerity and humility that he could and said to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry, I was too rash earlier. What you said earlier was right ¨C I had in fact taken all these things for granted. I¡¯ve never forgotten how good you¡¯ve been to me. But recently we¡¯ve both been too busy with our own things that we¡¯ve not had the chance to sit down and have a good talk. This naturally gave rise to the earlier misunderstanding between us. Let¡¯s find some time to have a chat soon, shall we?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at Qin Lingyu, as she lifted her chin and said, ¡°Alright, since you want to chat, then today is as good as any day. Let¡¯s chat all we want right here, right now.¡±

    Qin Lingyu looked at Ye Xiuwen as he stood beside Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°Since this is a matter between the two of us, then perhaps I could ask martial brother Ye to excuse us for a moment.¡±

    He felt terribly perturbed by the fact that Jun Xiaomo treated him coldly while she treated Ye Xiuwen with such warmth. In the past, Jun Xiaomo would always hover and flutter about Qin Lingyu; and now it seemed that Jun Xiaomo had shifted her attention to someone else.

    This type of difort was different from jealousy. Rather, it was Qin Lingyu¡¯s pride that prevented him from epting that his own fianc¨¦e has had a change of heart. After all, female disciples within the Sect had always thrown themselves at him, and naturally he had a lot of confidence in his own charms. Therefore, how could he imagine Jun Xiaomo would one day grow to like a disfigured person who does not even show his real face in public?

    Ye Xiuwen nced over at Qin Lingyu indifferently as he said, ¡°I think it would be for the best if I stayed. It wouldn¡¯t be good if martial brother Qin had another bout of recklessness and acted impulsively again.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was also considered a person with a short fuse. Since he had slowly opened his heart to Jun Xiaomo and epted the existence of this little martial sister, he would not let others take advantage of or bully Jun Xiaomo easily.

    Qin Lingyu was stunned by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words. This was the first time he hade to learn that Ye Xiuwen also had a rather sharp tongue.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Martial brother Ye is my father¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and he¡¯s just like my own brother. Since he¡¯s my family, then he can¡¯t really be considered an outsider. So, Qin Lingyu, you can just say whatever you have to say. Don¡¯t beat about the bush.¡± Jun Xiaomo said impatiently as she grew increasingly annoyed at this man standing before her right now.

    Qin Lingyu did not know whether tough or cry at this. Qin Lingyu had always been a haughty and proud man who looked down on Jun Xiaomo; yet today Jun Xiaomo had time and again trampled on his pride. Not only did his few instances of apologies to Jun Xiaomo meet with her indifference, she even gave him a few dirty looks. How could his pride take this!

    ¡°Fine, fine, fine!¡± Qin Lingyu said a string of ¡°fine¡¯s¡± as he lost his cool. He could no longer keep up the false pretenses and emotions on his face, and momentarily his face turned frigid and cold once again as he spoke sternly, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, since you want to act like this, then you and your dear brother can go be ¡°loving¡± to each other. Hmph, I only hope you don¡¯te back with any regrets!¡±

    Qin Lingyu knew that Jun Xiaomo was a person who judged things by their appearances. Even though news of how the younger Jun Xiaomo was shocked by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s true appearances was not very widespread, Qin Lingyu still managed to catch wind of it.

    Perhaps Jun Xiaomo had forgotten all about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s real appearances under the veiled conical hat, otherwise there was simply no exnation of how she could still bear to hang around him as though Ye Xiuwen were some sort of rare treasure.

    And then one day, when Jun Xiaomo finally sees Ye Xiuwen¡¯s true appearances under that veiled conical hat, she would definitely regret this day when she had rejected his good intentions just because of Ye Xiuwen.

    Qin Lingyu analyzed the situation calmly, and he still maintained that Jun Xiaomo could not possibly fall for another person overnight. The more reasonable exnation for all of this is that she was using Ye Xiuwen to aggravate him.

    If that was the case, then there was no longer any need for him to appease her at all costs. His pride would not let him take this any further anyway.

    Thinking about these things, the frustrations in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart also subsided substantially. He gave Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen one final cold re as he turned to leave.

    He would wait patiently till the day where Jun Xiaomoes crying back to him for forgiveness.

    ¡°See you, martial brother Qin. Don¡¯te back next time, you¡¯re not wee here~¡± Jun Xiaomo hollered at Qin Lingyu¡¯s back. ¡°Pfft!¡± At that moment, Jun Xiaomo erupted into an uproariousughter.

    As she burst out intoughter, Qin Lingyu¡¯s strides grew wider as he departed with quickened pace.

    Seeing all of this, Ye Xiuwen shook his head helplessly, as his lips curled into a slight smile as well.

 Chapter 45: The Sectâ€™s Mission

    <h4>Chapter 45: The Sect¡¯s Mission</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just like that, a month¡¯s time passed by without any hitch.

    Ever since that day when Qin Lingyu left Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode in a huff, Jun Xiaomo had not seen Qin Lingyu again. But as she thought more about this, this was also to be expected ¨C given Qin Lingyu¡¯s haughty and arrogant personality, no matter how much he coveted those two fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills, his pride would never allow him to stoop so low to capitte and attempt to appease Jun Xiaomo. In any event, Jun Xiaomo did not mind his absence from her life. In fact, she could not care less about where Qin Lingyu went, as long as he did not show up in front of her.

    Apart from this, there was another thing that thoroughly pleased Jun Xiaomo ¨C that is, she could vaguely feel that she was on the brink of breaking through the first level of Qi Mastery, into the second level of the Qi Mastery.

    If this were in the past, Jun Xiaomo would not have celebrated such a small increase in her cultivation level ¨C to most talented cultivators, breaking through the first level of Qi Mastery and attaining the second level of Qi Mastery was not a difficult thing. But ever since Jun Xiaomo started cultivating with her Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, she already found it a difficult thing to increase her true energy transformation efficacy, much less qualitative increase in her own cultivation level.

    Therefore, it came as a pleasant surprise when Jun Xiaomo discovered that she was already on the brink of a breakthrough within only approximately two months of cultivation. After all, she had thought that with her prevailing true energy transformation speeds, she would require more than half a years¡¯ time before she would be able to attain the second level of Qi Mastery.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo formed a few hand seals as she thought to test her own abilities with a fire spell. Instantly, a ball of me formed out of nowhere on her palm, warming the surroundings with its fervent ze.

    The ball of me was notrge, but it danced in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm very stably. As Jun Xiaomo continued to recite in her heart the mnemonic for the transformation of her true energy into spiritual energy, the continuous flow of converted spiritual energy fueled this spell of hers.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiritual root was fire-based, and naturally fire-type spells were much more effective in her hands. Right now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fire spells were still rather weak because her cultivation levels were still low. However, once Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation reaches the Nascent Soul cultivation stage, even basic spells would turn out to be incredibly powerful.

    The amount of true energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was not much to begin with. Thus, as the ball of me in her palm gradually simmered down until it finally sizzled out, the well of true energy in her body had also bepletely dry.

    ¡°It¡¯s still not enough. It still can¡¯t match up to the true energy transformation rate duringbat.¡± Jun Xiaomo puffed her cheeks in frustration.

    In the Qi Mastery phase of cultivation, Jun Xiaomo had to absorb the surrounding spiritual energy or demonic energy and convert them into true energy with one set of mnemonic; and then transform the true energy back into spiritual energy or demonic energy and disperse them, forming oneplete ¡°outer cycle¡±. These cycles would then achieve the same effects as the outer cycles of regr spiritual cultivators. Through the process of creating these outer cycles, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian would be gradually tempered and refined. And in turn, the umtion of these quantitative changes would at each breaking point cause a qualitative change to her body, thereby ascending to the next corresponding level in Qi Mastery.

    However, the main difference between Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation method and that of other regr spiritual cultivators is that Jun Xiaomo could not simply sit and meditate; rather, she needed practical experiences in order to increase the efficiency of her true energy transformation for her outer cycles. This was also the part which gave Jun Xiaomo the most trouble.

    Converting her true energy back to spiritual energy for the purposes of casting spells or making spirit talismans were considered a type of ¡°practical experience¡± as well. However, the efficiency of this could hardly hold a candle tobat experiences. The main reason why Jun Xiaomo had arrived at the bottleneck of the first level of Qi Mastery in only one month had to do with the fact that she would recite the true energy transformation mnemonic in her heart as she practiced her sword arts with Ye Xiuwen.

    If Ye Xiuwen could continue to stay in the Sect and practice with her, then Jun Xiaomo might even be able to attain the fourth level of Qi Mastery within one year! Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen was soon about to leave the Sect. Faced with the absence of her sparring partner, Jun Xiaomo felt that the fourth level of Qi Mastery was still quite a distance away.

    It must be said that the higher a person¡¯s cultivation level, the harder it gets to increase his cultivation level further ¨C improving from the first to the second level of Qi Mastery was only an appetizer on the full course meal of one¡¯s cultivation path. For instance, if a person took two months to improve from the first to the second level of Qi Mastery, then all things being equal, it would take that person four months to improve from the second to the third level of Qi Mastery; six months to improve from the third to the fourth level of Qi Mastery, and so on and so forth.

    At the same time, if one adjusts the method and conditions of his cultivations, then the required time to attain the next level of cultivation would also change ordingly.

    Jun Xiaomo felt that her present cultivation speed was way too slow. As things stood right now, she could not even be certain of attaining the ninth level of Qi Mastery within the stipted three years¡¯ time. Furthermore, once Ye Xiuwen leaves Dawn Sect, her cultivation speed would fall, and she would be even further away from her goals.

    ¡°Sigh...this is terrible. How could my ns coincide with martial brother Ye¡¯s travels so unfortunately?¡± Jun Xiaomonguished in her current ¡°tragedy¡±.

    At the same time, she knew she could not prevent Ye Xiuwen from travelling out of the Sect on his mission, because the experience he gained from these travels would be the cornerstone of the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. Therefore, the only thing she could do right now was to think of a way to follow Ye Xiuwen on his travels.

    Yet no matter what she did, whether coaxing or pestering, making threats or promises, Ye Xiuwen stood his ground and tly refused Jun Xiaomo. Liu Qingmei¡¯s response was even worse. The moment she heard that her daughter had the intention to travel out of the Sect together with her husband¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Ye Xiuwen, she immediately stood up and mmed the table, ring at her daughter as she said, ¡°Not a chance! With your cultivation level, are you looking to be killed by others?!¡±

    ¡°Mum~ It won¡¯t happen that way. Martial brother Ye will protect me. And besides, I¡¯ve also got a lot of life-preserving treasures on me anyway~¡± Jun Xiaomo changed her tact and tried to convince Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Then you¡¯ll just be a burden on your martial brother Ye! Do you think that travelling out of the Sect is a very easy thing? Even though your martial brother Ye is at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, there are many cultivators outside the Sect who have cultivation levels beyond that. If you encounter such cultivators, how will Xiuwen be able to look after you?¡± Liu Qingmei felt that her daughter was too na?ve and innocent in the way she assessed the matter.

    ¡°But mum, I can¡¯t improve my cultivation level by just meditating!¡± Jun Xiaomo had no choice but to reveal some of the truth to her mother. Jun Xiaomo scrunched up her face as she clung on to her mother¡¯s arm, adding, ¡°Mum, it¡¯s only when I learn sword arts from martial brother Ye that my cultivation speeds would increase. Now that martial brother Ye is leaving the sect, who knows how long it will take me to reach the ninth level of Qi Mastery...¡±

    ¡°Nonsense. Just how do you think you managed to reach the eighth level of Qi Mastery in the past? Dear, mother knows that you are anxious to be stronger. But you cannot take any shortcuts if you want to be strong. You will have to be down to earth and diligent, understand? Be a good girl and cultivate in the Sect. Don¡¯t inconvenience your martial brother anymore.¡± Liu Qingmei gently patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as she exined the situation to her warmly.

    Liu Qingmei knew her daughter was determined to grow stronger, but she did not approve of her daughter¡¯s ¡°high risk, high rewards¡± mentality. Besides, her daughter was quite talented to begin with. If she cultivated patiently, attaining the twelfth level of Qi Mastery by the time she was forty-five years old was not a difficult thing. Even though this would mean missing out on reaching the Foundation Establishment stage at the ideal age, she would nevertheless be able to increase her lifespan and be insusceptible to things like falling ill, growing old and dying.

    Sigh. With Jun Xiaomo¡¯s initial cultivation speed, she would have been able to attain the twelfth level of Qi Mastery well before the age of thirty... Liu Qingmeimented in her heart as she felt aggrieved for her own daughter.

    When she saw her mother¡¯s distressed look, Jun Xiaomo could no longer bring herself to continue discussing this issue any further.

    She knew that discussing matters rting to her fall in cultivation level was a sore point for her mother. After all, a mother feels her child¡¯s pain, and Liu Qingmei was no exception to this. She worried that her daughter¡¯s cultivation level would never increase again; she worried that her daughter would be bullied by others; and most of all, she worried that there will be a day where she would not be able to look after Jun Xiaomo anymore.

    The cultivation world was fraught with danger ¨C much more than the deceitfully peaceful appearance it bore on the surface. Despite Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan being both at the Nascent Soul stage, and thereby substantially extending their lifespan, the vicissitudes of life in the cultivation world nevertheless rendered things extremely unpredictable. One could be perfectly fine one day, and yet meet with a cmity in the very next day. If that happened to them, the only regret she would have would be that she could no longer look after this daughter of hers.

    Seeing her mother¡¯s care and concern for her greatly warmed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, and she grew more determined to work hard and be stronger. She wanted to let Liu Qingmei know one day that she was equally able to shelter her loved ones, including her parents, under her wings.

    Jun Xiaomo saw her mother out to the yard as the deeply distressed Liu Qingmei took her leave. Then, after she returned to her own room, she brooded about these matters on her heart for an entire night.

    Even though she knew Ye Xiuwen and Liu Qingmei¡¯s concerns, Jun Xiaomo was nevertheless determined to travel out of the Sect with Ye Xiuwen.

    Since her mother and martial brother were both disapproving of her suggestions, she had no choice but to resort to more ¡°creative¡± solutions. As she nned her next steps, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes formed a squinch; and her eyes shed with a trace of mischief and pleasure.

    --------------------------------------------

    The time for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s departure from the Sect had finally arrived. Today, Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu and others had all been summoned into the Sect¡¯s Great Hall so that Sect Leader He Zhang could brief them on the details of their respective missions.

    There were three disciples in the Sect who had attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery and ready to travel out of the Sect on their missions, namely Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen. Apart from Ke Xinwen who had attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery two years ago but had not been able to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, both Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu had only attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery this year.

    He Zhang gave an introductory speech to honour all who were present, and then he moved over to the three disciples and presented them with their options.

    Travelling out of the Sect for the Sect¡¯s mission brought various benefits. Apart from the experience and opportunity to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, disciples would also be given rewards forpleting their missions. These rewards are often highly generous ¨C not only would one be able to obtain valuable, high-quality spirit pills and medicine, the disciples were sometimes even rewarded with magical weapons or equipmentmensurate to the difficulty of the mission they hadpleted.

    It must be said that if a cultivator were able to obtain a magical weapon that suited him or her, then that would be tantamount to having an additional helper beside him. This would greatly increase a cultivator¡¯sbat abilities and overall prowess. This difference was particrly obvious in the Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competitions, where disciples of different Sects duked it out for fame and glory. Disciples who wielded suitable magical weapons in thispetition would invariably perform at a different level than those who fought bare-handed.

    The Sect¡¯s missions were divided into three levels of difficulties, namely easy, normal and hard missions. Generally speaking, the easy missions would always be undertaken by the normal disciples of the Sect; and then once they had attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, they would normally pick the normal missions.

    But without any hesitation at all, both Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu picked the hard missions, leaving Ke Xinwen with no choice but to clench his teeth and pick the hard mission as well.

    In the two previous years when he had left the Sect for these missions, he had also picked the hard missions. But not only did he fail both hard missions he had chosen, he also failed to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage in his travels.

    If Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu were not present today, Ke Xinwen might well have chosen the normal missions instead. After all, failing yet another mission was not going to be good for his reputation. But now, under the gaze of all the other martial brothers and sisters around, he could no longer afford to pick the normal missions after Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu had picked the hard ones. His only wish was that his hard mission was not going to be too difficult.

    The Sect would usually have on hand a few different missions at each level of difficulty in order to prevent any internal conflict or disputes from arising. This way, the disciples travelling out of the Sect would have no reason to interfere with each other¡¯s missions, and they could wholeheartedly focus on their own tasks at hand.

    Additionally, for the sake of impartiality, the disciples would each draw lots to determine their own missions after they had selected their mission difficulty. Ye Xiuwen drew first, and he picked out a lot which said ¡°Travel to the Mystic Woods and pick out ten Basilisk Fruits¡±.

    The Mystic Woods were not far from the Dawn Sect, and it was possible to arrive there by foot in approximately three months¡¯ time. However, the difficulty came from the Basilisk Fruits that he had to pick. These fruits grew incredibly far apart ¨C one could often only find one thicket of the Basilisk Fruit Shrub within a radius of a few hundred miles. Furthermore, it wasmon to find several small spirit animals near these Basilisk Fruits Shrubs. Even though their individual attacks were not too strong, their threat was in their numbers. Faced with wave after wave of attacks from these small spirit animals and the Basilisk Fruit Shrub¡¯s attacks at the same time, even a cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery might not escape unscathed.

    If obtaining one Basilisk Fruit was already such a difficult thing, then how much more difficult would obtaining ten fruits be? No wonder it was ssified as a hard mission.

    As Ye Xiuwen calmly kept the lot he drew, Ke Xinwen, who stood on his side, spoke, ¡°I didn¡¯t think that martial brother Ye would also be going to the Mystic Woods. Seems like the three of us are fated to travel together.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked towards the direction of Ke Xinwen¡¯s voice, and he discovered Qin Lingyu was standing just beside Ke Xinwen and looking calmly at Ye Xiuwen himself.

    From what it seems, the three disciples at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery are all to carry out their missions at the Mystic Woods.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen was reminded of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s word of caution to him ¨C Be careful of the He Zhang and Qin Lingyu duo.

    Did all these ur out of pure coincidence...or did someone have a hand in arranging these missions?

 Chapter 46: Imminent Departure

    <h4>Chapter 46: Imminent Departure</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After the three disciples at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery hadpleted the mission selection process, the other sect disciples took turns as well, each selecting their desired missions to bepleted together with Ye Xiuwen and the other two. It was also an unwritten rule that those who managed toplete their missions would give a portion of their rewards to their team leaders, which in this instance would be Ye Xiuwen, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu, as repayment for their team leader¡¯s protection along the way.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke, I¡¯d like to travel with you on my mission, is that okay?¡± Yu Wanrou walked before Ke Xinwen and fluttered her eyes at him as she asked coquettishly, as though with hidden meanings to her words.

    Ke Xinwen had always been fond of Yu Wanrou. Therefore, when Yu Wanrou looked to him rather than the two more prominent disciples Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu, his heart suddenly skipped a beat and he was momentarily dazed and lost for words.

    ¡°That...tha-...that, martial sister Wanrou, you...are you sure that you want to travel with me on your mission?¡± Ke Xinwen stuttered.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I think that martial brother Xinwen treats me well, and you¡¯re also meticulous in your ways. I would feel more at ease travelling with you.¡± Yu Wanrou said with a voice as soft and sweet as cotton candy, and it immediately melted Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart.

    At this moment, the only thought running through his mind was that only a fool would reject Yu Wanrou¡¯s request! After all, he was just given a chance to spend several days and nights with a beauty like Yu Wanrou ¨C of course he would not let such a once in a lifetime opportunity slip by!

    Instantly, Ke Xinwen¡¯s mind was filled with fantasies of how he would save Yu Wanrou from dangerous situations like a hero, while Yu Wanrou would lean in his firm chest like a damsel-in-distress, fawning over him with looks of admiration. Ke Xinwen almost got drunk in his own fantasies.

    ¡°Martial brother, would it be alright?¡± Yu Wanrou prompted again as she stole a nce over at Qin Lingyu, hoping to catch his response to all of these.

    Indeed, ever since that incident where Jun Xiaomo had yed out both Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had been in a cold war and had not managed to reconcile their differences. Yu Wanrou was mad at Qin Lingyu for forcing her to make an oath under the Heart-Oath Array, while Qin Lingyu was so perturbed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unusual behaviour that he could not be bothered about Yu Wanrou¡¯s feelings. Therefore, the two of them had not spoken to each other even after one month from that incident.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou did not want topletely give in to Qin Lingyu¡¯s profit-driven mentality. Even though she knew that men generally aspired to make one¡¯s mark in their lives and leave a legacy, and thus Qin Lingyu could not be wholeheartedly devoted to Yu Wanrou herself, she still felt that it was absolutely maddening if she were going to be sidelined every single time Qin Lingyu was faced with the prospects of obtaining a benefit for himself.

    And besides, Yu Wanrou fully subscribed to the belief that one had to loosen the reins from time to time in order to reel in the hearts of her men. After all, men would treat it for granted if their women always fawned over them or gave in to them, just like how Qin Lingyu treated Jun Xiaomo.

    Therefore, having carefully thought about these things, Yu Wanrou decided to use this opportunity of travelling outside the Sect to let Qin Lingyu realize her importance in his life.

    Didn¡¯t Qin Lingyu put her on the sidelines just so that he could gain some profits? Then, she wanted to see if Qin Lingyu would feel any remorse or regret for his actions when he saw her act affectionately with another man.

    Unfortunately, Yu Wanrou¡¯s ploys did not seem to bear any fruit. At this moment, Qin Lingyu was so focused on his mission at hand that he waspletely oblivious to what Yu Wanrou was doing on the side.

    Seeing this, Yu Wanrou felt even more frustrated and neglected. She bit down on her lower lip as she consoled herself ¨C It¡¯s alright. There are many days ahead of us on this trip ¨C I don¡¯t believe Lingyu would remain cold to me forever.

    On the other hand, Ke Xinwen waspletely ignorant to Yu Wanrou¡¯s thoughts and he hastily replied to her, ¡°I agree! Of course I agree! I¡¯m so happy that martial sister Wanrou has decided to join my team!¡±

    Yu Wanrou heard Ke Xinwen¡¯s reply and she smiled to him as she replied abashedly, ¡°Thanks, martial brother Ke.¡± Even though she said that, her innermost thoughts were the exact opposite ¨C she scorned Ke Xinwen for his sorelycking abilities and average looks.

    Soon, all of the disciples who were looking to travel out of the Sect on a mission had managed to decide on the respective team leader who they wished to follow. In order to prevent the formation of any disproportionately strong teams, the Sect limited the number of people in one team, and priority was given to the stronger disciples to fill up the vacancies in each team. Those whose cultivation levels were weaker were naturally filtered out as well ¨C after all, the Sect only wanted their disciples to gain experience from their travels and not to lose their lives out there.

    In the end, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu each formed a team with five other martial brothers and sisters from Dawn Sect of at least the eighth level of Qi Mastery; while Ye Xiuwen only had two other martial brothers in his team, both of whom were at the fifth level of Qi Mastery ¨C the bare minimum level of cultivation required to leave the Sect on these travels. Furthermore, these two disciples had originally wanted to join Ke Xinwen or Qin Lingyu¡¯s teams, but because their teams had already filled up, they had no choice but to pick Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team.

    It was not that they felt Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level was too low. Rather, it was merely because Ye Xiuwen was just not well known by the other disciples within the Sect. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s objective-minded personality meant that his life revolved around his cultivation; and this was unlike Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu, who were much more outgoing and often mingled with their other martial brothers and sisters within the Sect. Of course, if there were any Heavenly Peak disciples around, there was no doubt that they would have chosen to follow Ye Xiuwen. However, most of the disciples from Heavenly Peak had followed their Peakmaster Jun Linxuan to the back of their Peak for closed-door cultivation and instruction. The disciples from the other peaks were not familiar with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality, and they naturally would not entrust their lives into the hands of someone whom they did not know well enough.

    It was also important to note that even though team leaders were entrusted with the tasks of protecting their team members, they were equally entitled to choose to save themselves when their own lives were threatened as well. Therefore, the Sect¡¯s disciples were generally very circumspect on who they selected as their team leaders.

    If Jun Xiaomo knew what these disciples were thinking at this moment, she would surely have mocked them for their ignorance. Among the three team leaders present, Ye Xiuwen was the only one who took his responsibilities and duties seriously. Naturally, picking Ye Xiuwen was the safest choice. As for Ke Xinwen or Qin Lingyu, their team members could count themselves lucky if they did not find themselves being used as cannon fodder.

    Whatever the case was, the arrangement for their travels had thus been finalized. Ye Xiuwen, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu would depart and travel to the Mystic Woods together, and only when they arrived at the Mystic Woods would they each go their separate ways toplete their respective missions.

    Having safety in their numbers would naturally also mean that their journey to the Mystic Woods would be safer. At least, this was the case on the surface. After all, no one knew whether any of these disciples had schemed or nned anything devious for their travels...

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo also got wind of roughly when her martial brothers were going to leave the Sect, and so she expedited her talisman making processes.

    Jun Xiaomo was extremely fortunate to have retained her memories of the past. Otherwise, she would never have been able to leave the Sect and follow these martial brothers and sisters without a hitch.

    Jun Xiaomo was presently working on a third-grade superior Elementary Alteration Talisman. When these were applied to one¡¯s own body, one could change his or her appearances to that of another person¡¯s, and no one under the Foundation Establishment stage would be able to determine that person¡¯s real looks.

    A third-grade superior Elementary Alteration Talisman was not difficult to make. At least, to people who were rtively adept at making talismans like Jun Xiaomo, these Alteration Talismans were things that she could do with her eyes closed. In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had even made several stronger and moreplex Alteration Talismans in order to escape her persecutors. But as it were right now, her cultivation level was too low, and the amount of spiritual energy she could operate was too little. Therefore, taking everything into ount, Jun Xiaomo had only managed toplete five such Alteration Talismans despite having worked on these talismans for one whole month.

    Every Alteration Talisman could maintain a person¡¯s altered state for one week before the talisman would burn up and be dust. That is to say, Jun Xiaomo had a total of five weeks¡¯ time where she could hide the truth from Ye Xiuwen and travel alongside him. After the five weeks were up, she would have to find another way to dupe him.

    Jun Xiaomo was satisfied by the present oue of things and she temporarily kept the matters of the near future on the backburner. If they had the appropriate materials, she could even secretly create more of these third-grade superior Elementary Alteration Talismans as she tagged alongside Ye Xiuwen.

    Of course, another option avable to Jun Xiaomo would be to purchase a few of these talismans from the marketce. But she knew that Ye Xiuwen was extremely sharp. She felt that since Ye Xiuwen already knew of her intentions to tag along with Ye Xiuwen, he might already have considered the fact that Jun Xiaomo could resort to Alteration Talismans for the same. Therefore, she was left with no choice but to make these talismans herself in order topletely conceal the truth from Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was unaware that Jun Xiaomo had been reborn, and naturally he was also oblivious to the fact that Jun Xiaomo knew how to make talismans. Otherwise, he would have been even more cautious and observant of every action of this crafty martial sister of his in order to ensure that she would not secretly tag along.

    ¡°Martial brother, will you be leaving tomorrow already?¡± Jun Xiaomo had been extremely diligent with her daily sword practices with Ye Xiuwen, and today was no exception either.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. You¡¯d better not ck off once I depart. You have to continue to practice your sword arts ording to the training n I¡¯ve given you, understand?¡± Ye Xiuwen meticulously instructed Jun Xiaomo. His voice no longer carried with it any traces of indifference or distance, but it was instead filled with warmth.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality was just like that ¨C a person was only able to see a different side of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s when he let his guard down and opened his heart to that person. His concern for these people would be sincere, honest, and it would subconsciously be revealed in every single one of his actions.

    ¡°Alright, I will definitely not ck off!¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded forcefully as she smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen, revealing her two cute dimples to him.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo was presently only using her smile to mask the immense guilty conscience in her heart right now. She knew that Ye Xiuwen was particrly sensitive to people¡¯s emotions, and if she had revealed even a trace of her guilty conscience, this would undoubtedly be picked up by Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo envied and respected Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities to discern people¡¯s true emotions. But at the same time, it was extremely frustrating when she was the one who had to deal with his prating, omniscient gaze. In front of Ye Xiuwen, she felt as though she were a transparent being, and Ye Xiuwen were able to grasp the nuances of every single bit of her feelings at any point in time.

    Having had her true intentions and true emotions exposed by Ye Xiuwen several times, Jun Xiaomo also learned from her mistakes. Therefore, she acted as she did right now, and she used a bright, resplendent smile to cover up her innermost thoughts. This had also proven to be a rather effective method of dealing with Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo was generally a genial and jovial person around her loved ones, so Ye Xiuwen naturally did not notice the subtle trace of guilty conscience which was masked by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was also feeling somewhat distracted by the listlessness he was experiencing at this moment. Whenever he was reminded of the fact that he would be leaving the Sect tomorrow and leaving his present life behind, he would experience a sense of reluctance.

    Ye Xiuwen subconsciously stretched out his hand and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, as Jun Xiaomo reciprocated by rubbing her head against his palm gently and relishing in his act of affection.

    To Jun Xiaomo, she had thought that this was martial brother Ye¡¯s way of rewarding her ¡°determined¡± response to his earlier instructions.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen was slightly startled. Under his veiled conical hat, a trace of reluctance shed across his eyes before he retracted his hands and said coolly, ¡°Alright, today¡¯s training is almost over. Take a break here before you return to your meditation.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo pouted a little as she bargained, ¡°Martial brother, you¡¯re already going to leave tomorrow, why are you chasing me away so quickly today?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not chasing you away; I just don¡¯t want you to lose precious time for your meditation.¡± Ye Xiuwen was unaware that Jun Xiaomo had already changed her cultivation method, and he was still under the impression that Jun Xiaomo was still using the Sect¡¯s cultivation techniques. To every spiritual cultivator at the Qi Mastery level, meditation was a very important part of the cultivation process. Therefore, cultivators at the Qi Mastery level would invariably make every second of their meditation count in order to quickly improve on their cultivation progress.

    ¡°But...losing one day¡¯s worth of time won¡¯t really make much of a difference anyway... and I think that I will miss martial brother once you leave. Can you just let me stay a little while longer, please~?¡± Jun Xiaomo swiftly minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she tugged gently at his sleeve and acted like a spoilt child.

    Of course, Jun Xiaomo had her own reasons for doing this. Even though she were going to be reunited with Ye Xiuwen shortly after their entourage left the Sect, she had to be thorough with her acting and act as though she were unwilling to see him leave. Otherwise, Ye Xiuwen might even grow suspicious of her.

    Ye Xiuwen did not think that his little martial sister would be so meticulous about these things, as he gently ced his hand on her shoulders, tacitly allowing her to stay for a little while longer.

    But at the same time, aplicated feeling arose from his heart.

    Truth be told, he was also rather unwilling to leave...

 Chapter 47: Departure! Onward to the Mystic Woods

    <h4>Chapter 47: Departure! Onward to the Mystic Woods</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was dawn. The lush, verdant valleys were enveloped by a thinyer of fog, and the moon hung high in the sky as twinkling stars peeked out behind the sparse clouds. At the very end of the horizon, a warm glow illuminated the earth, bringing colour and life to all that was in sight.

    Early in the morning, the several disciples who were about to leave the Sect for their missions began to trickle towards their gathering point beside the pir-shaped granite block just outside the Sect, where they would meet with their respective team leaders. Among the three team leaders who were at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, Ye Xiuwen was the first to arrive. In fact, he had arrived even earlier than most other disciples. After all, Ye Xiuwen was used to being awake at this time. His usual routine meant that he would already be practicing his sword arts by this time.

    The other disciples standing beside Ye Xiuwen could not help but yawn repeatedly, and next to them, Ye Xiuwen looked absolutely fresh and alert.

    It could only be said that it was not without reason that Ye Xiuwen was much further ahead in his cultivation path than his contemporaries. After all, diligence redeems stupidity. Furthermore, given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s talent in cultivation, he could hardly be said to be ¡°stupid¡± to begin with.

    At this moment, the white-garbed Ye Xiuwen stood at the gathering point silently, exuding a dignified yet solitary air about him. Even though his posture looked rxed, his cool, tranquil look gave people the impression that he was not a very approachable person.

    The other disciples from the Sect who had assembled at the gathering point also began to form cliques as they casually chat about all sorts of things. Some of them were excited because it was going to be their first foray out of the Sect; while others engaged in conversation to temporarily suppress their anxiety that they might meet with unforeseen circumstances outside.

    However, none of these disciples approached Ye Xiuwen at all. And this was not because Ye Xiuwen was not engaging in conversations. Rather, the most important point is that every time they encountered this formidable martial brother who possessed a special, dignified air about him, he felt so different from everyone else that they would always subconsciously avoid him. As time went by, Ye Xiuwen was left with nothing more than a vacuum around him, devoid of any fellow disciples.

    The former Jun Xiaomo also used to act like one of these other disciples of the Sect. It was only recently that Jun Xiaomo managed to approach Ye Xiuwen and forcibly tunnel her way past his guardedness and into his heart.

    After some more time passed, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu arrived, fashionablyte. They both arrived at practically the exact same time, and each of them were also escorted by a gorgeous female disciple.

    ¡°Hehe, as expected of martial brother Ke and martial brother Qin ¨C they¡¯re really lucky with women.¡± One of the disciples on the side muttered under his breath to a fellow disciple just beside him.

    ¡°But of course! If you can attain the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery before the age of thirty-five, you can also bring a beautiful martial sister out of the Sect on your travels with you! But unfortunately, only time would tell whether you have this level of talent and luck.¡± Yet another male disciple turned around and whispered to them even as his heart was filled with envy for Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu.

    It had to be said that the two female disciples beside Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu were considered among the top beauties in the Sect; especially Yu Wanrou who stood beside Ke Xinwen. Yu Wanrou had beautiful, sharp features, and she was kind, considerate, and warm to people. She was practically the dream girl for at least seventy percent of all male disciples in the Sect.

    As for the other thirty percent of male disciples, they belonged to the other group of cultivation fanatics like Ye Xiuwen who were not moved by matters such as beauty.

    Yu Wanrou enjoyed the looks of admiration cast her way by other male cultivators. She strutted alongside Ke Xinwen as she chatted with him casually, ncing at the other disciples of the Sect from time to time. The slight grin on her face gave others the impression that she was in great spirits; while other disciples were so distracted by her pink, luscious lips that their souls almost left their bodies.

    However, only Yu Wanrou knew that she was not at all pleased; she even felt depressed and frustrated in her heart. When she initially joined Ke Xinwen¡¯s team, her sole intention was to evoke some jealousy on Qin Lingyu¡¯s part so that he would realize her importance to him. In the end, not only did Qin Lingyu not notice all these things at all, he was even seduced by another female disciple.

    As things were, not only was she unsure of whether she had made Qin Lingyu jealous; she was even overwhelmed by jealousy for the female disciple beside Qin Lingyu.

    This female disciple walking alongside Qin Lingyu was Zhong Run, and she was also a disciple of the Pill Cauldron Peak like Yu Wanrou was. She was ady with beautiful features, but she had a slightly arrogant personality. Because of that, most male cultivators did not fancy her as much as they did Yu Wanrou. Furthermore, Zhong Run was already twenty-nine years old. The talented male disciples who were older than her had almost all left the Sect for Upper-tier Sects, and those who stayed within the Sect generally could not be considered particrly talented. With Zhong Run¡¯s arrogance, she naturally looked down on these remaining male disciples.

    In the end, Zhong Run fell for someone seven years younger than him, namely the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Qin Lingyu. Initially, when she learnt that Qin Lingyu was engaged to Jun Xiaomo, she was so furious that she almost crushed the cup in her hands. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo had the backing of the entire Heavenly Peak, she might well have approached Jun Xiaomo for a duel.

    In the cultivation world, it was not umon to see male or female disciples duke it out with their love rivals for the right to pursue their potential partners. As long as the duel took ce in the arena and under the conditions that both parties agreed to, no one would be punished for their behaviour. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous altercation with Dai Yue, the only reasons why Jun Xiaomo could threaten her with that incident was the fact that their fight took ce outside the arena, and also the fact that Dai Yue secretly attacked Jun Xiaomo instead of settling matters with a fair, honourable duel.

    Initially, Zhong Run had almost given up all hope to be with Qin Lingyu. However, now that she noticed Qin Lingyu¡¯s coldness towards Jun Xiaomo, coupled with the fact that she had an opportunity to interact with Qin Lingyu alone outside the Sect, she could not help but rekindle the mes of hope in her heart.

    Therefore, she applied to join Qin Lingyu¡¯s team. With her cultivation at the tenth level of Qi Mastery, it was not difficult for her to qualify for Qin Lingyu¡¯s team.

    As expected, after the Sect Elders had considered the applicants and deliberated over the matter, her application to travel out of the Sect was approved and she was assigned to join Qin Lingyu¡¯s team. Zhong Run¡¯s considerations were simple. Now that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, whether Qin Lingyu would adhere to the marriage arrangement was already an uncertainty. If she were able to arouse and ignite Qin Lingyu mes of passion for her during these travels, then with enough luck, she might just be able to secure the rescinding of the marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo.

    What Zhong Run had not considered was that her true love rival was not Jun Xiaomo, but the one who had been standing behind her and staring daggers into her back all these while ¨C the femme fatale, Yu Wanrou.

    It was a pity that Jun Xiaomo were not there to witness this entire scene. Otherwise, all of this would have certainly made her day!

    Fight...fight! Whoever defeats the other wins Qin Lingyu. She would be overjoyed to put ribbons on her ambitious fianc¨¦ and offer him up as a prize to the winner!

    Just like that, the four of them, each bearing their own considerations, finally assembled with everyone else at the gathering points. Ye Xiuwen stood closest to the Sect¡¯s gate, so naturally the first person that these four disciples encountered was also Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye.¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Ye.¡±

    Two voices greeted Ye Xiuwen, one after the other. The first was spoken by Ke Xinwen, while thetter was spoken by Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke, martial brother Qin.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly greeted them as he nodded to them as well. Ye Xiuwen locked eyes with Qin Lingyu through his veiled conical hat ¨C just a day ago, Qin Lingyu had still treated him particrly coldly because of that incident with Jun Xiaomo. But today, Qin Lingyu greeted him with a calm expression as though he had already forgotten that incident with Jun Xiaomo.

    However, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s keen observation of a person¡¯s feelings were not purely based on their facial expressions. More importantly, Ye Xiuwen examined a person¡¯s heart through the gaze in their eyes. Qin Lingyu seemed calm on the surface, but the iciness and frigidity of his gaze could not be masked as easily, and Ye Xiuwen naturally also noticed it.

    Ah, what attitude is this? Could it be that he hates me because he suspects that I¡¯ve be the third wheel in their engagement?

    But if he truly cared for little martial sister, then how could he allow her to trespass the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground and suffer such severe injuries? Wasn¡¯t this double standard just a manifestation of his self-serving mentality?

    Ye Xiuwen was immensely displeased with Qin Lingyu¡¯s greed and his inability to be content with what he had. Most importantly, the person that Qin Lingyu wronged was Jun Xiaomo. Even though his little martial sister had on three asions expressed that she did not like the scumbag Qin Lingyu, yet whenever Ye Xiuwen thought of their marriage arrangement, he would feel a sense of frustration swelling from his heart.

    This sense of frustration was fleeting, and Ye Xiuwen brushed it off as a type of righteous indignation against Qin Lingyu¡¯s wrongdoing and did not think further about it.

    He had already let his guard down and opened his heart to Jun Xiaomo, and he now doted on her as a younger sister. Naturally, he would not want to see her getting hurt by anyone.

    While Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions were obscured by his veiled conical hat; and Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions seemed very natural, some of the more sensitive disciples still managed to pick up on the sparks of conflict between the two of them.

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes shed and he spoke with a beaming grin on his face, ¡°Aha! Martial brother Ye is rather early today, isn¡¯t he?¡± The oppressive air immediately dispersed as he spoke.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly replied, ¡°This can¡¯t really be considered early. You guys are alreadyte by an incense stick of time.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s face froze in shock. Despite the fact that Ye Xiuwen spoke the truth, having his fault pointed out like still tarnished his reputation a little bit.

    But this was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality after all. Unless it was necessary, Ye Xiuwen rarely beat about the bush. Besides, he did not feel that people who werete should be given any indulgence at all. After all, if this were the battlefield, that five minutes of tardiness could spell the difference between life and death for the rest of their team.

    This was a kind of discipline and awareness that was almost a type of necessity for any sessful cultivator. Unfortunately, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu could not appreciate this fact ¨C especially Ke Xinwen, whose narrowminded view of matters caused him to perceive that Ye Xiuwen was simply mocking his tardiness.

    Ke Xinwen found it hard to maintain the smile on his face, but nevertheless he forcibly presented a smile on his face as heughed pompously, saying, ¡°Haha, martial brother Ye is right. This was our fault. We won¡¯t bete next time.¡±

    It was exactly this tolerant and magnanimous attitude Ke Xinwen had disyed which had earned him favour with the other martial brothers and sisters of the Sect. If Qin Lingyu was a person who drew fellow disciples to him through his stature and abilities; then Ke Xinwen, on the other hand, was someone who drew fellow disciples to him because he was chummy and easygoing with all who were around him.

    But the truth of the matter was that Ke Xinwen was much more narrowminded than people thought he was.

    Ke Xinwen had attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery earlier than Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu. If not for the fact that he was slightly on the older side by this time, he could well have be one of the most prized disciples within the Sect.

    Ever since he attained the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, Ke Xinwen had aspired to be selected by the Upper-tiered Frozen Sword Sect as their Chosen Disciple. However, when the Third Elder of the Frozen Sword Sect visited Dawn Sect and did his rounds, not only did hepletely disregard Ke Xinwen, he even set his eyes on Ye Xiuwen who had then been only in the eleventh level of Qi Mastery. The Third Elder was impressed by both Ye Xiuwen¡¯s talents with the sword and diligent attitude. Therefore, he selected Ye Xiuwen without further hesitation to prevent elders from other sects from snatching him away.

    Ke Xiuwen had originally wanted to rmend himself for consideration by the Third Elder of the Frozen Sword Sect. In the end, once the Third Elder of the Frozen Sword Sect made his decision about Ye Xiuwen known, Ke Xiuwen could only hold his tongue in dismay.

    He knew that the Third Elder of the Frozen Sword Sect would not change his mind even if he went on to that rmend himself for consideration. Instead, doing so might only invite more ridicule on him.

    No one knew the ponderances of Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart regarding this matter, and Ke Xinwen also hid it well in his regr interactions. In particr, he would make it a point to beam at Ye Xiuwen whenever he saw him. Therefore, no one knew the jealousy that was brewing in his heart against Ye Xiuwen.

    If the tables were turned, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s desired position had been upied first by another disciple, he would calmly ept that reality, before channeling any sorrow and self-pity into motivation to work hard in the hope that he would be offered an even better opportunity in future.

    This was also the difference between Ye Xiuwen and other people. To this date, Ke Xinwen still could not understand and appreciate how he wascking in any waypared to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s ¡°performance¡± deceived all the other ordinary disciples around, but his pretense did not veil the eyes of Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen. After all, the former was an even more devious schemer than Ke Xiuwen; and thetter was one who had keen senses sharper than most others.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu before he nodded and said, ¡°Since it¡¯s already gettingte, let¡¯s not dally any further. Let¡¯s depart.¡±

    This was yet another manifestation of his personality ¨C concise and to the point.

    As he finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen walked ahead before them, leading the way.

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes shed with a vicious gleam before he quickly masked it with his signature beaming face as he followed behind Ye Xiuwen.

    Qin Lingyu followed them closely, leading the rest of the Sect¡¯s disciples as they embarked on their journey.

    Yet not a single person witnessed how Qin Lingyu stared intently at Ye Xiuwen and Ke Xinwen¡¯s backs while his eyes flickered with scheming intent.

 Chapter 48: Reluctance of a Still Night

    <h4>Chapter 48: Reluctance of a Still Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Since time immemorial, Dawn Sect had always required their disciples who were leading teams out of the Sect for the first time to travel by foot. This was not because they wanted to torment their disciples, but because such experiences were invaluable. In their travels, the people they met and the things they encountered would broaden their horizons so that they would not be a frog in a well who only knew how to cultivate.

    Not only that, the Sect barely gave any spirit stones as an allowance to each disciple, so if the disciples wished to return to the Sect safely, they would have to find some way to earn their own spirit stones on these travels.

    These training regtions had proven to be highly effective. As a result of this, Dawn Sect became one of the ces that the upper-tier sects would look to first when they scouted for talents and recruited new disciples.

    No pain, no gain. This idiom was indeed true of all disciplines.

    Notwithstanding all these things, Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and the other fellow disciples had also considered the fact that their entourageprised of two female disciples. Therefore, on the very first day of their travels, they decided to reside in an average-priced inn.

    When Ye Xiuwen first learnt of their decision to rest in an inn, he furrowed his eyebrows, but he did not make his objections known explicitly.

    He could tell that several male disciples had a soft spot for these martial sisters, and even if he had made his objections known, they would not only fall on deaf ears; he might even affect the cohesiveness of the entourage.

    Ye Xiuwen knew the importance of solidarity in such teams. Even if the other disciples did not appreciate it, the three teams formed a single entity right now. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen would only make his objections known when it came to matters that were truly important.

    As to the concern that the spirit stones would be insufficient, these disciples would naturally have to experience it for themselves and learn it the hard way.

    It was night. Ye Xiuwen stood silently by his windowsill, staring deeply into the distant darkness. His equally deeply profound gaze was obscured by his veiled conical hat, and no one was able to tell the expressions he wore at this instant.

    As Ye Xiuwen stood by the window, his snow-white garbs cascaded peacefully in the night¡¯s gentle breeze, and he softly melded into the stillness and serenity of the dark, soulless night.

    Since the start of the day, Ye Xiuwen had been repressing the feelings welling up from his heart, and as he finally slowed down at the end of the day, he ruminated on this reluctance of his heart.

    And the object of his reluctance was naturally his martial sister Jun Xiaomo whom he had left behind in the Sect.

    Just a day ago, she stillid on his knee and bbered on about anything and everything that came to her mind. This little martial sister used her actions to express her reluctance to see Ye Xiuwen go; but Ye Xiuwen had buried his own reluctance in his heart.

    At that time, his unwillingness was still rather shallow and fleeting, as though this period of separation would be over in a blink of an eye.

    However, it had only been one short day since he had left the Sect. As the distance from the Sect grew longer, the reality of not being able to see his little martial sister slowly sank in, and the reluctance gradually seeped into every single corner of his heart, taking root. It was as though someone had woven a web of silk around his heart, trapping him inside with no room for escape.

    And Ye Xiuwen did not know whether his body¡¯s strong rejection of the present reality was because he had been in solitude for too long a time.

    Furthermore, even though Ye Xiuwen could get along well enough with the people of other Peaks, it did not change the fact that Heavenly Peak was different because he was given respect from all other martial brothers and sisters there. This was also the greatest difference between Heavenly Peak and other Peaks.

    After all, respect in Heavenly Peak could not be gained through personal favours or gifts. Rather, respect had to be earned through one¡¯s diligence and abilities.

    Ye Xiuwen stood by the window for a long, long time. It was only when the darkness of the night became thick and heavy that Ye Xiuwen finally walked away from the window,y down on his bed and removed his veiled conical hat.

    Under his veiled hat was a horrifying scar that was strewn diagonally across his entire face. This scar even looked like it was alive. ck demonic energy squirmed along the edges of the scar as though it was trying to escape, but at the same time was locked in ce by a mysterious force.

    Ye Xiuwen ced his hand on his scar. After a while, he shut his eyes and forcefully repressed the unwillingness in his heart once again.

    ---------------------------------------

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo also had a restless night of tossing and turning in bed. Earlier that morning, she had habitually run over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode to practice her sword arts with him. However, it was only when she saw his empty abode that it finally dawned on her that Ye Xiuwen had already left the Sect on his travels.

    Jun Xiaomo berated herself for her inability to connect the dots on all these things. If she had remembered that her martial brother would be leaving the Sect today, she would at least have sent him off.

    But now, it was all toote, and her martial brother Ye would already be a distance away from the Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo rapped herself hard on her head, before she finally walked back home listlessly.

    For the rest of the day, Jun Xiaomo cooped herself up in her room, working relentlessly on drawing her talismans.

    The little packrat of hers could also sense Jun Xiaomo¡¯s low mood, and it did not gnaw away loudly at its pine nuts. Instead, it sat obediently by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, asionally pushing the talisman papers towards her.

    When Jun Xiaomo finally returned to her senses, she delightfully stroked her little packrat, receiving a pleased response from it in return.

    Liu Qingmei also sensed her daughter¡¯s unhappiness. During this period of time, she noticed how Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had warmed up to each other, and she was secretly pleased with how her daughter had grown up and how Ye Xiuwen had found it in him to let go of the hurtful incidents of the past.

    Ye Xiuwen had been a disciple under Jun Linxuan ever since he was ten years-old. By then, his nsmen had already been annihted, and he was the only one left. Liu Qingmei took pity on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tragic life experiences, and she would from time to time check in on his and bring some warmth and constion to his cold heart. In a way, she had seen Ye Xiuwen grow up, and she naturally also treated Ye Xiuwen as her son.

    In the past, the fact that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo treated each other like they were strangers brought a lot of frustration to Liu Qingmei who treated them as her children. As for Jun Linxuan, his main concerns always pertained to matters of cultivation, so he was not as sensitive to these things as Liu Qingmei.

    Therefore, the person who desired most to see Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen get along well with each other was naturally Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Xiaomo, I know that you are reluctant to see your martial brother go, but cooping yourself in your room would make you feel even worse. Why not take a walk outside and let your feelings out a little bit, hmm?¡± Liu Qingmei tenderly patted her daughter¡¯s head as she persuaded.

    If not for the fact that Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, she could have been following Xiuwen on his travels this time. Liu Qingmei thought to herself helplessly.

    ¡°Mum, don¡¯t worry about it. I can manage my own emotions.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her head tenderly against her mother¡¯s palm, as she obsequiously assured her mother.

    Liu Qingmei knew that she could not convince her daughter, so she decided not to press the issue any further. Even so, she still gave to Jun Xiaomo several Messenger Paper Cranes so that Jun Xiaomo could still keep in touch with her martial brother Ye Xiuwen.

    After Liu Qingmei left Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, Jun Xiaomo finally heaved a sigh of relief. She carefully stored the Messenger Paper Cranes as she revealed a warm smile on her face.

    It feels great having people fawn over me. It really feels great.

    Squeak squeak~ It was as though the little packrat knew what Jun Xiaomo was thinking, and it cuddled up to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger.

    ¡°Alright, alright, I know you like to fawn over me too.¡± Jun Xiaomo scratched her little packrat¡¯s head as she gently picked it up and gave it a kiss.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that her little packrat liked this kind of disy of affection. As its tender-loving owner, she naturally would indulge in her little pet¡¯s preferences.

    As expected, the little packrat¡¯s ck beady eyes flickered brightly, as though its eyes contained the constetions of the world. Packie continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo as though it were burning Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure into its eyes.

    In fact, the first time it got kissed this way by Jun Xiaomo this way, the little packrat¡¯s face even flushed red as though it were blissfully drunk. However, because of its coat of fur, no one saw its expressions.

    Jun Xiaomo also did not notice her little packrat¡¯s disy of human emotions. She only thought that her little packrat loved its owner, and the frustrations of her heart also simmered down substantially.

    I¡¯m going to be reunited with her martial brother soon anyway. There¡¯s no point being upset over such a small thing as not sending him off. Jun Xiaomo rationalized her thoughts and adjusted her emotions.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s n was to teleport to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side using her Teleportation Scroll. There were only two Teleportation Scrolls within her Interspatial Ring, and she had to use them wisely.

    Furthermore, she could not leave the Sect under her mother¡¯s watchful eyes. Otherwise, Liu Qingmei would personally escort her back as soon as she realized it.

    Therefore, she had to find an appropriate time to use this. Ideally, she would use it when she was certain that Liu Qingmei was leaving the Sect and was not returning for some time.

    These Teleportation Scrolls were effective only over a limited distance. The Teleportation Scrolls possessed by Jun Xiaomo were at the fourth-grade superior level, and the maximum distance she could cover was approximately three small towns away from the Sect. Therefore, with every day that passed, she would estimate in her heart the distance covered by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s entourage; and as time went on, she grew more and more anxious to use the Teleportation Scroll.

    When push came to shove, she would still use the Teleportation Scroll to leave the Sect even at the risk of alerting Liu Qingmei to the fact.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s patience paid off. Just as Ye Xiuwen and the others arrived at the third small town from the Sect, Liu Qingmei took her leave from the Sect on urgent business which would upy half a month of her time.

    ¡°Xiaomo, mother needs to leave the Sect for some time. You must be good and cultivate hard, alright? Don¡¯t let your mind wander too much, understand?¡± Liu Qingmei worriedly nagged at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Mum, don¡¯t treat me like a three year-old child anymore. I know my limits.¡± Jun Xiaomo did not know whether tough or to cry at the way her mother was so overprotective of her. But she was careful not to say anything hurtful to her mother.

    This was because Jun Xiaomo knew that everything her mother came from her good intentions.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you know your limits. I hope I won¡¯t find you missing when I¡¯m back.¡± Liu Qingmei tenderly knocked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    Jun Xiaomo yfully stuck out her tongue at her mother. Liu Qingmei truly understood his bizarre daughter of hers. At this moment, even though Jun Xiaomo responded with ¡°Of course, of course¡±, her heart in fact muttered two words silently, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    She had to grasp every opportunity she could to grow stronger. She had to leave the Sect.

    Liu Qingmei left the Sect that very same day, but she got so worried that she returned again on the second day to check on Jun Xiaomo. After she ensured that Jun Xiaomo was staying obediently in the Sect, she finally felt sufficiently assured to leave the Sect to go about settling her own matters.

    As soon at Liu Qingmei left the Sect, Jun Xiaomo set up a formation array outside her door to prevent any disturbances, before she promptly closed and locked the door. Then, she took out the scroll and an envelope that she had prepared beforehand.

    The envelope contained a letter of apology to her mother because she felt bad deceiving her own mother.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arrangements made it look like she was in closed-door cultivation in an attempt to break through a bottleneck in her cultivation. Therefore, even after Liu Qingmei returned to the Sect, Jun Xiaomo could still mask the truth from her for some time.

    After preparing all these things, Jun Xiaomo applied the Alteration Talisman on her own body. The Alteration Talisman faded away, and her appearances started to transform.

    Jun Xiaomo did not wear the skirt she usually liked to wear today. Instead, she wore a garment generally worn by men, and she also tied up her hair in a bun with a green satin hair tie. As the Alteration Talisman took effect, her appearances transformed to that of a suave and handsome young male cultivator.

    That¡¯s right ¨C Jun Xiaomo did not intend to appear before Ye Xiuwen as a female cultivator. This would arouse Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suspicions too easily.

    Her intention was to travel alongside Ye Xiuwen as a male cultivator.

    Jun Xiaomo hooked her lips and smiled wryly as she opened up the scroll, ced a strand of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hair on the center of the scroll, and then ced her palm directly onto the formation array.

    A blue light shed, and Jun Xiaomo vanished from her room.

    Approximately one thousand miles away, Ye Xiuwen was wholeheartedly focused on dealing with the vicious beast in front of him.

 Chapter 49: The Frenzied Blackwind Sabretooth Tiger

    <h4>Chapter 49: The Frenzied ckwind Sabretooth Tiger</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Travelling out of the Sect on missions was a considerably hard thing to do, especially inparison with the days in the Sect where all they had to do was to simply sit and meditate. This was particrly so for the two female disciples, Yu Wanrou and Zhong Run, whose feet had blistered from hastening on their journey. Additionally, they had to sleep out in the open air between these small towns. Therefore, in order to cate and care for these two female disciples, the entourage made it a point to stay and rest for a few days every time they arrived at a small town, before continuing their journey again.

    Ye Xiuwen did not have many objections to this arrangement. Even though it would be ideal toplete their missions quickly, Ye Xiuwen did not feel particrly upset by the fact that caring for these two female disciples was dying thepletion of their mission. After all, Ye Xiuwen had always been quite indifferent to the worldly things, and he was not particrly anxious to receive the rewards for thepletion of the mission. What was most important to Ye Xiuwen was to gain sufficient experience to break through to the Foundational Establishment stage.

    The only thing was that these dys also pushed back that next time he was able to see his little martial sister again...

    Early in the morning, Ye Xiuwen did as he was used to, and he left the small town where they were staying at to practice his sword arts in the woods nearby. As the cultivators often said, three days of idleness costs the mastery of a craft. To sword cultivators, this was the same as well. Therefore, in order to maintain his proficiency with the sword, Ye Xiuwen would practice his sword arts at the same time every day, rain or shine.

    Those who had seen Ye Xiuwen practice his sword arts would only describe it as a graceful waltz that was pleasing to the eye ¨C Ye Xiuwen moved about gracefully like a swan and yet as imposing as a dragon. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s garbs fluttered behind him magnificently like a dignified general of thousands. Several fellow disciples who had attempted to spar with Ye Xiuwen in the past were invariably defeated by Ye Xiuwen only after a few moves.

    In the eyes of these fellow disciples, they only saw how skilled Ye Xiuwen truly was, but they failed to recognize the number of arduous hours he spent mastering his craft. Once, in order to perfect aplicated sword technique, Ye Xiuwen had spent one whole month repeatedly practicing the same move until he finally etched the technique deeply into his bones and got its moves right.

    This was an immensely difficult and arduous process. The difficultyy not with the body, but the patience and perseverance required to press on with no end in sight. This was also one of the reasons why Ye Xiuwen developed an unppable and unwavering personality.

    On the other hand, people who were fickle and impatient were not suited to sword cultivation. Ke Xinwen never considered this point, and he naturally never entertained the idea that the Third Elder of the Frozen Sword Sect would never have selected Ke Xinwen as his Chosen Disciple even without Ye Xiuwen around. After all, Ke Xinwen would have failed the Third Elder¡¯s qualification assessments based solely on his personality.

    Yet, it was precisely also because Ke Xinwen failed to appreciate this fact that Ke Xinwen perceived Ye Xiuwen to have snatched an opportunity away from him, and he added Ye Xiuwen¡¯s name to his mental list of archnemeses.

    By now, Ye Xiuwen had practiced his sword arts for close to one hour. Just as the first light of the day illuminated the earth, Ye Xiuwen slowly concluded his sword practice as well.

    But at this moment, Ye Xiuwen discovered a trace of an anomaly in his surroundings.

    Quiet. It was too quiet. It was so quiet that wind and time seemed to have ceasedpletely, and the entire woods were overwhelmed with a deadly, oppressive silence.

    Ye Xiuwen wrapped his right hand tightly around the hilt of his sword. He gritted his teeth and his eyes gleamed in alertness as he put up his guard. He did not panic and look around nervously. Instead, he released his divine senses and probed about his surroundings, hoping to find the source of the danger.

    Crack! Suddenly, the sound of twigs snapping resounded as a vicious shadow charged directly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back with horrifying might. This shadow even emanated wafts of pungent blood scent!

    Ye Xiuwen reacted instantly. Just as the shadow reached his back, he leaned to one side, turned around andshed out with his sword. With one swift action, he initiated a flurry of attacks, turning the situation around as the hunted became the hunter. In moments, the ck shadow also swiftly retreated as its body revealed traces of injuries from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attacks.

    ckwind Sabretooth Tiger! Having finally recognized the identity of the ck shadow that had attacked him out of nowhere, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils constricted slightly, as a trace of suspicion emerged in his heart.

    ckwind Sabretooth Tigers generally lived deep in the forests and mountainous regions, and they rarely appeared at the borders of woods or attacked humans. Apart from the fact that human towns and cities were fortified with dangerous defensive formation arrays, ckwind Sabretooth Tiger rarely attacked humans because humans were too small to be able to feed these massive beasts.

    Ye Xiuwen knew of a cultivator who had strayed from his teams in the past and encountered a ckwind Sabretooth Tiger deep in the woods. However, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger only nced derisively at the human cultivator before leaving with disinterest.

    Therefore, the fact that the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger would attack him today left him puzzled.

    The ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had been cut several times by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword, and blood streamed from its wounds and gashes. However, it seemedpletely unfazed and unaffected by the pain. It bared its fangs before swiftly lunging at Ye Xiuwen once more!

    Many spirit beasts could cultivate naturally, including the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger, which possessed a wind-based spiritual root. Low-level, primitive spirit beasts relied solely on their instincts to cultivate. Even though this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had not awakened its spiritual senses, it used its affiliation to wind to great effect, and its movements were extremely swift. Despite its massive size, its speed was so fast that it became like a moving shadow when it attacked.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword was also extremely quick and swift. Fighting speed with speed, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger was unable to gain an upper hand, and it only continued to sustain more and more injuries. At the same time, what worried Ye Xiuwen was the fact that as the number and severity of injuries on this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger grew, it attacked more and more valiantly. Its two bloodshot eyes gleamed viciously like rubies set in its obsidian-ck fur. At this moment, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger presented the look of a frenzied, manic beast.

    Not good, something¡¯s wrong with this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger.

    Ye Xiuwen swiftly avoided the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s attacks as he continued to observe this beast¡¯s behaviour. He discovered that the redness of its eyes continued to deepen in colour. This was a sign that the beast was falling deeper and deeper into a state of manic frenzy.

    There were two reasons why a beast would enter a frenzied state. The first reason was that it had experienced cultivation deviation; while the other reason was that it was a state induced by man... For the moment, Ye Xiuwen was temporarily unable to determine the exact reason why the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had entered a frenzied state.

    Regardless, frenzied beasts were extremely dangerous to deal with. Not only would they constantly seek out battles and revel in them, but theirbat prowess would also even be raised by three to four levels. Unless one was able to stun or kill these beasts, there was no way a cultivator would be able to escape from a frenzied beast once it had fixed its eyes on its target.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s white garbs had been stained with fresh blood belonging to both the beast and his own. Ye Xiuwen had a mutated water-based spiritual root, and he was able to tap on the powers of ice magic. He attempted to use some ice spells to bind and reduce the speed of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger. However, the frenzied ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had immense strength, and it attacked without having any regard to its own life and safety. Thus, the effectiveness of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ice spells were substantially diminished.

    ROAR! The number of injuries on the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s body increased, and some of these injuries even prated deep to the bones. Finally, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger was drawing its final breaths. At this moment, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s eyes werepletely bloodshot, and its massive fangs gleamed coldly as they hung out the side of its mouth. Then, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger opened its mouth slightly as drops of saliva dangled and dribbled down the side of its mouth.

    Ye Xiuwen frowned as his heart swelled with an unsettling premonition.

    As expected, the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had ceased to attack Ye Xiuwen, but its body was now surrounded by an aura of ever-increasing valiance. As it continued to muster its strength, gusts of wind began to swirl around it in increasing speeds like a hurricane, and the surrounding woods were engulfed in a powerful force.

    Not good! This ckwind Sabretooth Tiger is about to self-detonate its Dantian!

    Survival was the basic instinct of all spirit beasts. Therefore, even when spirit beasts realized that they had lost to their opponents, it was extremely rare to find spirit beasts choosing to self-detonate. However, when this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger which had lost all rationality and lived for the same ofbat was finally forced into a corner, it chose the most extreme method to take down its opponent.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that he might not perish if he faced the explosion head on, but he would nevertheless suffer some serious injuries. Therefore, he immediately made the decision to use an Escape Scroll to leave this ce.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen retrieved an Escape Scroll from his Interspatial Ring, a ck figure suddenly fell from the sky and heavilynded on the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s head. The impact from this blow was so great that the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger immediately lost consciousness, and the billowing winds around it immediately dispersed.

    Ye Xiuwen: ...

    The end to thisbat was simply too unexpected and anti-climactic, and Ye Xiuwen did not know whether tough or to cry about it.

    ¡°Argh...it hurts...¡± A young man whose voice had not broken eximed as hey beside the unconscious ckwind Sabretooth Tiger. This person fell directly from high up in the sky and was fortunate enough to have the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger to break his fall, so he was only mildly hurt. On the other hand, the unfortunate ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had been knocked unconscious by the heavy impact.

    Well, so his injury might not be that ¡°mild¡± either. After all, this young man had collided directly into the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s head which was quite hard as well.

    Ye Xiuwen walked over beside the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger and looked down. He discovered a young man dressed in green garbs with slightly disheveled hair gritting his teeth, attempting to get up from beside the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger.

    However, despite trying to get up for a while, all this young man managed to do was to il his arms around like an overturned tortoise.

    Ye Xiuwen stood at the side, bemused. At the same time, he continued to stay on guard notwithstanding this young man¡¯s harmless appearances. After all, this young man had appeared too mysteriously ¨C not only had he fallen from the sky, he had even urately struck the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger on its head.

    ¡°That...that...¡± The young man struggled for a while longer before he finally gave up. Exasperated, he looked over at Ye Xiuwen staring back at him indifferently, as he huffed, ¡°Friend, do you mind giving me a hand here?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled under the cover of the veiled conical hat. He walked over beside the young man, stretched out his arm and yanked, and the young man was cleanly pulled back onto his feet.

    ¡°Tsss¡ª¡± The young man drew a deep breath as he winced in pain. He had inadvertentlynded on the foot which he had injured from striking the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s head, and the young man hopped about on the other foot, and almost even fell back to the ground. Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reflexively supported him, and the young man swayed for a moment before he finally managed to stabilize himself.

    ¡°Thank you, ma--...my friend!¡± The young man bit down on his tongue and changed his statement at the veryst moment.

    Ye Xiuwen did not notice the strangeness in the young man¡¯s words. He only nodded calmly in response, ¡°No need to thank me. You¡¯ve also saved my life earlier after all.¡±

    Even though Ye Xiuwen would still be able to escape the st radius of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger self-detonation, every Escape Scroll he used means that he had one less for the future. It would be much better to save it for another rainy day.

    ¡°That...that¡¯s good...¡± This young man coughed dryly as he stared at Ye Xiuwen with his innocent eyes. At the same time, his back waspletely drenched in cold sweat ¨C

    Why are you so dumb! You¡¯ve almost gave it all away!!!

    Indeed, this ¡°young man¡± berating himself was the very same person who hade from afar to join her martial brother Ye on his travels, Jun Xiaomo.

 Chapter 50: Danger! Vampire Demonrats

    <h4>Chapter 50: Danger! Vampire Demonrats</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo subconsciously checked the Alteration Talisman that she had ced on her arm as she thought ¨C Phew. Good thing my cover hasn¡¯t been blown.

    Once the Alteration Talisman has been ced onto a person¡¯s body, it would be invisible to outsiders, and only the person using the talisman would be able to determine its location on his body. This would prevent the user of the Alteration Talisman from inadvertently showing the Alteration Talisman to others and reveal that they were under the effects of alteration.

    If things proceeded as per normal, this Alteration Talisman wouldst Jun Xiaomo one week. After one week, she had to rece the same with another Alteration Talisman. Earlier, she had subconsciously rubbed her arm to check on her Alteration Talisman because she felt the onset of her guilty conscience under Ye Xiuwen prying gaze.

    Ye Xiuwen continually sized up Jun Xiaomo ¨C this young man chuckled twice before quickly lowering his head and avoiding further eye contact with me. Was this intentional or not? If it was intentional, then this young man must be hiding some guilty conscience in his heart; but if it was not intentional... Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes suspiciously at the young man. He felt that this young man was not a simple character.

    Regardless, this young man¡¯s origin waspletely mysterious. Therefore, he had to be guarded about him.

    ¡°How did youe to fall from the sky?¡± Ye Xiuwen saw that the young man only lowered his head and refused to speak, so Ye Xiuwen asked him the greatest query on his mind right now.

    ¡°Oh...that...¡± Jun Xiaomo who wore the appearance of another man was quickly jolted back to her senses, and she immediately gave the response she had already prepared, ¡°Earlier I was on the other side of the woods when I was attacked by a spirit beast. I panicked and I used an Escape Scroll, and the next thing I knew, I found myself falling down in this location.¡±

    Escape Scrolls were separated into different sses as well. The lowest level Escape Scrolls not only teleported a person only a short distance away, it did not even allow the user to choose the location he would end up at. In other words, using a low-level Escape Scroll could very well cause a user to escape one dangerous situation, only to find himself appearing in yet another dangerous ce. Therefore, people who were well off in their finances would never consider using low-level Escape Scrolls.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s excuse was rather effective. At the very least, Ye Xiuwen was unable to find any faults with it.

    Ye Xiuwen temporarily set aside the mysterious origins of this young man before he asked Jun Xiaomo yet another question, ¡°Since this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger was jointly killed by both of us, let¡¯s split the loot equally.¡±

    The skin, bones, tendons and teeth of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger were all valuable and useful items. Stronger and higher grade ckwind Sabretooth Tigers would even leave a highly coveted spiritual core behind when it died. Unfortunately, this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger had not even awakened its spiritual awareness. Naturally, its body would not have developed any spiritual core inside of it.

    Therefore, when Ye Xiuwen suggested to split it equally, he naturally also meant to divide the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s skin, bones, tendons and teeth.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had only knocked the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger unconscious, it had earlier sustained grievous injuries from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attacks and was already nearing the end of its life. After it got knocked unconscious, it was unable to operate its spiritual energy to protect its own body and it bled even more profusely as a result. By the time Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had finished their earlier introductions with each other, it had already bled to death.

    However, it was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo discovered the existence of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger, ¡°Eh?! When I dropped down from the sky earlier, I thought I fell onto something. Who knew that it was actually a ckwind Sabretooth Tiger!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Friend, are you really that slow to catch on?

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that he felt a little bit helpless in front of this young man ¨C evidently, this young man¡¯s origin was still shrouded in mystery, yet seeing this young man¡¯s clumsy behaviour made him unsure whether tough or to cry, and most importantly it made him feel that there was no point questioning this clumsy buffoon about his origin any further.

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo also realized that her words made her look rather silly, so she coughed awkwardly as she said, ¡°The impact when I fell down was too great, and I think I must have been too dazed to even look at what I had fallen on.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded in understanding as he continued, ¡°So what do you think of my earlier suggestion to split the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger equally?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo waved her hand, saying, ¡°Friend, you were the one who had killed this ckwind Sabretooth Tiger. I only clumsily fell onto it and coincidentally struck it unconscious. I cannot im any credit for this. You should take all of it.¡±

    When it came to Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo was even willing to part with five fifth-grade Energy Rejuvenation Pills without batting an eyelid, what more this measly ckwind Sabretooth Tiger? Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were currently ¡°strangers¡±, and she had to find a way to get into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s good books once again.

    Jun Xiaomo thought about how she invested so much of her time and effort before she was finally able to break through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s guarded heart, and she could not help but feel stifled about using the Alteration Talisman. Once she stuck on the Alteration Talisman, she would appear to be a different person, and she would have to win over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s trust all over again. Wasn¡¯t this too much of a hassle?

    Ye Xiuwen did not know the ponderances of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Without a word, he walked ahead to the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger and begun to dismember and carve out the useful portions of its body.

    Even though butchering and carving out parts of a spirit beast was considered a bloody and violent process, under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s nimble hands, this process went on in a very orderly and dignified fashion. At the end of the entire process, Ye Xiuwen still looked as dignified as ever, as though he werepletely unfazed by the blood and gore he had just faced.

    Of course, this was ignoring the bloodstains that got onto his body during the earlier battle with the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger.

    While Jun Xiaomo was astonished by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s quick and nimble actions, she also sighed in her heart for the scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face. If not for the fact that her martial brother¡¯s appearances had not been ruined by that dastardly demonic energy, there was no doubt that countless women would be throwing themselves at Ye Xiuwen.

    When Jun Xiaomo thought about how Zhang Shuyue had seduced Ye Xiuwen in her previous life, her heart once again swelled with waves of unease and heartache.

    How could such malicious people like Zhang Shuyue deserve martial brother Ye?! Not a chance! She was determined to sieve through all his suitors to find one who is truly qualified to be Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wife!

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind wandered, Ye Xiuwen had alreadypleted the process of carving out and extracting out the valuable parts of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s carcass. He picked up a pair of the tiger¡¯s giant fangs and a tendon, walked over to Jun Xiaomo and said, ¡°This is for you.¡±

    The ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s giant fangs and tendons were all valuable items. The former could be ground down to make smaller and more intricate items that could be imbued with formation arrays to be a defensive item; while thetter could be refined into a low-grade weapon.

    Even though the weapon would be of a low grade, but if a cultivator at the Qi Mastery stage were able to obtain a whip made out of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s tendon, hisbat prowess would nheless be greatly magnified.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree that it¡¯s all yours? I can¡¯t take this...¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hands as she obstinately refused.

    ¡°If you didn¡¯t appear when you did, I would¡¯ve been unable to obtain these valuable resources. Therefore, we should split these things fifty-fifty.¡± Ye Xiuwen was right. If Jun Xiaomo had not appeared in the sky andnded on the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger¡¯s head, then he would have used his Escape Scroll to leave the ce. After all, it would not be wise to deal with a spirit beast¡¯s self-denotation head on without sufficient defensive items.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips, deliberated for a moment, before her eyes brightened as she said, ¡°I don¡¯t want these resources. But in exchange, can you let me follow you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could not help but feel that this was a great opportunity for her. She was still perplexed about how she would broach this suggestion to Ye Xiuwen.

    After all, given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s habits and personality, he might not be willing to let a young man with a mysterious origin follow him. If that were the case, they would have no choice but to part ways after splitting the loot from the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger.

    That would certainly be uneptable to Jun Xiaomo. In the first ce, her sole intention ining to this ce was to follow Ye Xiuwen on his travels.

    Indeed, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s original intention was to part ways with this young man before him once they had split the loot. Ye Xiuwen was generally quite guarded against strangers. Furthermore, it did not help that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present appearance was shrouded in mystery. Naturally, Ye Xiuwen had never considered interacting with this young man any further. But now that Jun Xiaomo made her suggestion, Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously.

    ¡°I¡¯m not used to travelling with strangers.¡± Ye Xiuwen said indifferently, hoping to curtly dismiss this young man¡¯s idea of travelling together.

    ¡°Don¡¯t--...that...My name is Yao Mo[1]. Now that you know my name, we can¡¯t be considered strangers anymore, right?¡± After Jun Xiaomo gave herself a new name, she asked Ye Xiuwen with a thick-skin.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Was ¡®strangers¡¯ something defined so simply? Knowing a person¡¯s name meant that we were no longer strangers?

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that ever since he encountered this mysterious young man who fell from the sky, he had already found himself left speechless several times. But then, ¡®Mo¡¯......

    Thest syble of his name, ¡°Mo¡±, triggered some threads of thought in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s train of thought wandered off, even if it were for only a brief moment.

    ¡°And besides...¡± Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks as she added, bringing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thoughts back to reality, ¡°Given my cultivation at the first level of Qi Mastery, it¡¯s too difficult for me to survive in these woods on my own. Can you bear to leave me here and let me be devoured by a spirit beast?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with puppy eyes, hoping that he would soften his heart and allow her to travel together with him.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his eyebrows. Just as he was about to tell Jun Xiaomo that she could continue using her Escape Scrolls, he suddenly sensed another wave of danger approaching quickly!

    ¡°Careful!¡± Ye Xiuwen pulled Jun Xiaomo behind him as he swiftly turned around and unsheathed his sword, sending out a deadly wave of sword intent. The shadow that were lurching towards him at this moment shrieked as it momentarily retreated and appeared a distance away. There, it stared viciously at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    A Vampire Demonrat! Why would a Vampire Demonrat appear in a ce like this?! If the appearance of the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger was a mere coincidence, then the appearance of this Vampire Demonrat certainly caused Ye Xiuwen to grow much more suspicious of their origins.

    Vampire Demonrats were not considered demonic creatures because they still absorbed spiritual energies from their surroundings. However, they often moved about at night in swarms, and encountering such a swarm at night was tantamount to meeting a ghost at night ¨C it sent chills down a person¡¯s back and gave people goosebumps. As such, ¡°demon¡± became a part of its name.

    But now, a Vampire Demonrat had appeared in broad daylight. Furthermore, this Vampire Demonrat stared at them with bloodshot eyes, simr to the one possessed by the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger. Clearly, it was in a frenzied state as well.

    A single Vampire Demonrat could not threaten Ye Xiuwen given his abilities. However, it was a different matter altogether if they appeared in a swarm.

    ¡°Quick, let¡¯s run while there¡¯s only one Vampire Demonrat right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen nodded, signifying that he had the same intention as well.

    However, just as they searched for an opportunity to escape, Vampire Demonrats started emerging from the woods nearby! One, two, three...in the end, an entire swarm of Vampire Demonrats appeared. The swarm of Vampire Demonrats surrounded Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, staring at them viciously with their beady little eyes. Anyone who saw this would have chills immediately sent down his back.

    Ye Xiuwen clenched the sword in his hands as his expression turned cold and serious.

    Under normal conditions, his best option would naturally be to escape this ce with an Escape Scroll. But, what about this person here?

    The Escape Scroll in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Interspatial Ring could only send one person away. If he were to escape, he naturally would not be able to bring this young man along.

    Even though they had only met a short while ago, Ye Xiuwen found that he could not find it in him to harden his heart and leave this young man in the lurch.

    Should I leave on my own, or...perhaps we can each use one Escape Scroll.

    After much deliberation, Ye Xiuwen finally decided to retrieve two Escape Scrolls from his Interspatial Ring. Just as he was about to do so, the young man beside him suddenly turned his head and whispered in his ears, ¡°Friend, do you trust me?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows slightly as he found this young man was implying something.

    ¡°If you believe me, we can kill this swarm of Vampire Demonrats together. How about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo hooked her lips wryly as she dered with confidence.

    This time, because Jun Xiaomo raised her head when she spoke to Ye Xiuwen, Ye Xiuwen was able to look straight into her eyes.

    In her eyes, Ye Xiuwen saw no fear and no hypocrisy. If it were anyone else, perhaps they would immediately mock Jun Xiaomo for bragging ¨C after all, how could a person at the first level of Qi Mastery possible deal with this swarm of ferocious Vampire Demonrats?

    However, Ye Xiuwen believed his own eyes, and he also believed what he saw in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes ¨C

    This young man¡¯s confidence stemmed from a confidence in his own abilities. Despite being at the first level of Qi Mastery, perhaps he might have a way to deal with their current predicament.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen found that this young man piqued his curiosity.

    He wanted to know exactly how this young man at the first level of Qi Mastery intended to deal with an entire swarm of Vampire Demonrats.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled wryly as she responded, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t let you down.¡±

    [1] The character for ¡®Yao¡¯ means handsome; while the character for ¡®Mo¡¯ is the same as the ¡®Mo¡¯ in Jun Xiaomo, and it means stranger. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo was practically naming herself handsome stranger. Oh, the irony.

 Chapter 51: Cooperation

    <h4>Chapter 51: Cooperation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The reason why Jun Xiaomo was so confident in her own abilities was because she had experience dealing with these swarms of Vampire Demonrats. When she was escaping from her persecutors in her past life, she had on several asions encountered these Vampire Demonrats. At the start, she did not expect these seemingly harmless rats to be so vicious once they locked with their target inbat. Their strength was in their numbers, and the swarms in which they appeared in was so mind-numbing and bone-chilling that cultivators would often feel their legs weaken before they even engaged inbat with these creatures.

    In order to save her skin, Jun Xiaomo had time and again used Escape Scrolls to evade these swarms in the past. But at the same time, Escape Scrolls were limited in number, and they were especially important to Jun Xiaomo who had then been escaping from her persecutors. This was particrly so when she was persecuted by a number of well-known sects, and she could not brazenly walk into marketces in cities to replenish her stock of scrolls and talismans.

    On one such encounter with a swarm of Vampire Demonrats, Jun Xiaomo searched through her Interspatial Ring and she found only three Escape Scrolls. If she continued to deplete her Escape Scrolls like that, she would soon have none left to use, and the next time she encountered a truly strong opponent would spell certain death for her.

    Forget it. Let¡¯s try to fight it out. Only when I absolutely can¡¯t keep it up will I think about escaping. Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she whipped out her Frozenme Ribbon...

    Back then, Jun Xiaomo had already attained the Golden Core stage of cultivation. Yet even so, she had only barely managed toe out on top of that battle after a grueling fight. In fact, she had practically expended all of her demonic energy doing so. At the same time, it was because of this one victory that Jun Xiaomo stopped escaping from these Vampire Demonrats and adopted a ¡°fight-before-flight¡± mentality.

    Some time down the road, as Jun Xiaomo gained more experience through her fights with these Vampire Demonrats, Jun Xiaomo also learnt some tricks that helped her to deal with these Vampire Demonrats more effectively. When the stars were aligned in her favour, she could even annihte an entire swarm of Vampire Demonrats in no more than ten moves.

    Today, even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was still extremely low, she had the aid of a partner at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. From her experience, their teamwork would be more than sufficient to fend off this swarm of Vampire Demonrats.

    ¡°Ma--...My friend, I¡¯ll be cing a defensive talisman on you in a moment¡¯s time. I¡¯ll need you to protect me and ensure that no Vampire Demonrats cane within a one-arm radius around me. I will be making some preparations in the meantime. Can you do that?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head as he temporarily agreed to let this young man take charge. Besides, this young man was willing to give his defensive talisman to Ye Xiuwen himself and entrust his life to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. Ye Xiuwen did not know what made this young man trust him so much, but since he was willing to trust in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities, Ye Xiuwen would not let him down either.

    Jun Xiaomo swiftly retrieved and pped on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back a third-grade defensive talisman in a proficient manner. A blue light shone, and the defensive talisman vanished, but Ye Xiuwen felt that he had been imbued with a defensive barrier and he would be immune to attacks for approximately one incense stick¡¯s worth of time.

    At this moment, the Vampire Demonrat that had initially encountered Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen suddenly shrieked. Its shriek was so shrill and deafening that it started to hurt Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ears. But this was the least of their concern right now, because the entire swarm of Vampire Demonrats had begun to shift and surge towards them.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately reacted and swung the sword in his arm,unching a series of strikes around so swiftly that an invisible sword barrier seemed to form in a one-arm radius around them. Ye Xiuwen erupted with immense speed, and amidst the flurry of sword strikes, the Vampire Demonrats surging towards them began to be cleaved in half, one by one.

    This burst of speed was not something that could be maintained for long periods of time because it expended a lot of spiritual energy. Once Ye Xiuwen had depleted his spiritual energy, then both he and Jun Xiaomo would find themselves in an extremely dangerous predicament.

    Jun Xiaomo did not speak. She fully entrusted her back to Ye Xiuwen as she wholeheartedly focused on her own things ¨C one could only see her walk in a circle, sometimes walking in a zigzagged manner within the circle, while at other times walking out of the circle as she muttered something under her breath...

    Ye Xiuwen even noticed that as this young man walked about, he scattered some things on the ground, and from time to time he would throw some low-grade spirit stone into the circle.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen nced over at this young man withplexity in his eyes. He had vaguely guessed what Jun Xiaomo was doing at this moment ¨C she was setting up a formation array.

    Indeed, just as Jun Xiaomopleted her preparations, she directed Ye Xiuwen to dash into the center of the formation array. As they ran, she instructed Ye Xiuwen as he followed closely behind her, ¡°Once we are in the center of the array, disperse your sword barrier protecting me. The moment these Vampire Demonrats surge towards me, bring us out of the heart of the formation array.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo intended to use herself as a bait to lure these Vampire Demonrats into the formation array and deal with them all at once!

    Ye Xiuwen was immediately stunned by this young man¡¯s bravery. In all honesty, if the person he had met were not Ye Xiuwen, but a scheming cultivator, then this method of dealing with things was tantamount to courting his own doom ¨C it was highly likely that in that moment when the Vampire Demonrats surged towards that young man, that scheming cultivator would abandon the young man and retreat on his own.

    However, Ye Xiuwen was evidently not someone who would abandon his brother in war. He was moved by the trust this young man had ced in him, and he decided in his heart that he would do all that he could to bring him away from the Vampire Demonrats in one piece.

    Being swarmed by countless Vampire Demonrats was nothing tough about. Jun Xiaomo could attest to that fact. It was a torment on all fronts ¨C sight, smell and even in one¡¯s heart. Vampire Demonrats had a coat of fur as ck as charcoal, and the movement of a swarm seemed as though all light was being obscured by a cloud of darkness. On top of that, their bodies were covered by a pungent and nauseating scent of blood which assaulted one¡¯s olfactory senses.

    This very day, Ye Xiuwen had also experienced the torment on all three fronts of sight, smell and in his heart as well. Ye Xiuwen was generally very particr about cleanliness. If not for the fact that they had a n to destroy all the Vampire Demonrats, he might well have reflexively swatted the Vampire Demonrats away as they surged towards them.

    Ye Xiuwen relied on the effectiveness of his defensive talisman and tightly embraced Jun Xiaomo so that the Vampire Demonrats that pounced onto them could not harm a single hair on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo wore a different appearance right now, her martial brother¡¯s all-out protection was still sufficient to warm her heart, just like a person drinking a hot cup of tea during winter.

    Jun Xiaomo estimated the number of Vampire Demonrats surging towards them. After a few breaths of a time ¨C

    ¡°It¡¯s almost time! Scatter!¡± Just as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice sounded out, Ye Xiuwen immediately shot up towards the sky. At this moment, the Vampire Demonrats were so stunned that they squeaked incessantly as they attempted to chase after their prey, only to find out that they had all been trapped within the heart of the formation array.

    What Jun Xiaomo had just activated was a Constriction Array. Not a single Vampire Demonrat was able to escape the active zone of this formation array, and they could only haphazardly scuttle about within the formation array. At this very moment, the entrapped and panicking Vampire Demonrats looked almost like an undting ck mound.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s activation of his Windwalk ability was not able to send them too far away, and therefore theynded just a few meters away from the heart of the Constriction Array. There were a few Vampire Demonrats that had not been caught out by the Constriction Array, and Ye Xiuwen swiftly lunged at these stragglers, killing all of them without a hitch.

    ¡°How about it? This method isn¡¯t too shabby, is it?¡± Jun Xiaomo patted her hands rather pridefully as boasted to Ye Xiuwen with a lifted chin.

    Ye Xiuwen found that this young man had a rather simr personality to his little martial sister. His little martial sister was the same ¨C whenever she encountered something that she was proud of, she would pridefully raise her chin and appeal to Ye Xiuwen for affirmation and praise.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen subconsciously reacted, patting the young man¡¯s head, saying, ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right. You¡¯re pretty good.¡±

    This was something that Ye Xiuwen would often respond with in his interactions with Jun Xiaomo. When Ye Xiuwen subconsciously patted the young man¡¯s head, both of them were momentarily stunned.

    Ye Xiuwen was stunned because he had caught himself thinking of his little martial sister; while Jun Xiaomo was stunned because this action was extremely familiar to her.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly as she reminded, ¡°The Vampire Demonrats have already been trapped in ce. This Constriction Array is the most basic one, and it can¡¯tst for a very long time. Let¡¯s make use of this opportunity topletely destroy this swarm of ck looking pests.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head as he collected his thoughts and surging emotions. Then, he and Jun Xiaomo worked together to dispose of the entrapped swarm of Vampire Demonrats.

    After killing all the Vampire Demonrats, Ye Xiuwen looked at the young man, querying, ¡°You must be an array master, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Few people would be able to set up a formation array so quickly apart from array masters who specialized in formation arrays. Besides, this young man looked to be at least fifteen or sixteen years old, yet he was only at the first level of Qi Mastery. Therefore, he could very well have focused his attention on other matters rather than mere meditation and cultivation.

    Because of their focus on different disciplines, array masters and talisman masters would invariably find their cultivation levels increasing much more slowly than most others. It would naturally exin this young man¡¯s low cultivation level.

    Jun Xiaomo quickly contemted this reasoning, and she thought ¨C It might not be a bad thing to let martial brother think that I¡¯m an array master. This way, there would be an even lower chance of revealing my true identity. The most important point was that Jun Xiaomo was indeed rather adept at her mastery of formation arrays and talismans due to her past life¡¯s experience. Even though she could not truly hold a candle to the top array masters or talisman masters in the present world, it was still not an overstatement to call her an expert in these fields.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo could ¡°admit¡± that she was an array master without being too afraid that others would mock her inabilities.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I guess you must have realized that I¡¯m an array master.¡± Jun Xiaomo pretended to be slightly embarrassed as she chuckled awkwardly. Then, she opened her eyes widely as she minced her way over the Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, pleading, ¡°Then does this mean that brother would be willing to let me join you on your travels? See, my formation arrays are so powerful ¨C having me around is like having an addedyer of protection!¡±

    Array masters are a form of specialization that tended to y more of a supporting role in the cultivation world. Therefore, few people would consciously choose to be array masters because one could be murdered very quickly and easily if he did not surround himself with a strong group of trusted brothers and sisters.

    At the same time, no one dared to look down on array masters. Having a single skilled array master in a team would mean that many tasks could be performed much more easily. For example,rge sects like the Dawn Sect, the Frozen Sword Sect or the Limitless Sect, would invariably have one to two array master Sect Elders to ensure the overall safety of their sects.

    It was precisely also because of this importance of array masters that Jun Xiaomo decided that being known as an array master would increase her chances of being able to travel with Ye Xiuwen.

    As expected, after Ye Xiuwen thought for a long time, he finally nodded in agreement, ¡°Then alright. Let¡¯s find a ce to tidy up before we head back.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen felt that there was something about this young man that he could not put a finger to. But instead of rebuffing this young man, why not let this young man follow him so that he could keep and eye on this young man and see what his true intentions were.

    And besides, Ye Xiuwen trusted his own eyes. Even though this young man was clearly hiding something from him, Ye Xiuwen knew that this young man nevertheless bore no malicious thoughts. That pair of eyes was exactly the same as someone he knew...

    Just as Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had destroyed the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger and the swarm of Vampire Demonrats, Qin Lingyu and the others had also slowly left their rooms and trickled into the main hall of their inn, where they ordered their food and ate heartily.

    Of course, only the disciples were lively among themselves; while Qin Lingyu silently ate his breakfast on the side.

    ¡°Ai¡ªI find that martial brother Ye is too much. He doesn¡¯t even eat breakfast with us. His solitary personality is way too arrogant.¡± One of the disciplesmented as he stuffed his face with food.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that right? Truth be told, I feel that out of all the martial brothers and sisters within the entire Sect, Ye Xiuwen is the least approachable person. What gives him the right to be so arrogant and aloof? Even though he¡¯s the First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak, martial brother Qin who is the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader is still eating with us.¡± Another disciple chimed in as he took the opportunity to curry favour with Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu was He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and he was even a Chosen Disciples of the Limitless Sect. His stature alone was sufficient for other disciples to want to curry favour with him.

    And while Qin Lingyu loved to be praised and reveled in this type of poprity, he rarely showed this in his expressions.

    ¡°Alright, alright. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities in the Sect are among one of the best. Being slightly arrogant about that is quite understandable. Let¡¯s cut down a little on the gossip and focus more on your own cultivation, alright?¡± Qin Lingyu interjected indifferently. On the surface, he was chiding these martial brothers and sisters to focus on their own cultivation and to cut down on their gossip; but in actual fact he was taking a jibe at Ye Xiuwen for being arrogant and aloof.

    As expected, even though the other disciples ceased to talk about Ye Xiuwen, the smirks on these faces revealed that they understood the implicit meaning behind Qin Lingyu¡¯s words.

    Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou were truly a match made in heaven. Even the way they spoke about people behind their backs were highly skilled and effective.

    On the other side, the usually chatty and lively Ke Xinwen was unusually quiet. He silently took in all the other disciples¡¯ments about Ye Xiuwen as a mocking gaze shed across his eyes ¨C

    Arrogant and aloof? I¡¯m afraid that after this morning, whether or not Ye Xiuwen can even return safely would be a mystery to all of us.

 Chapter 52: The Speechless Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 52: The Speechless Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After encountering two battles, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bodies were full of bloodstains and the pungent smell that belonged on the bodies of the Vampire Demonrats. Ye Xiuwen had always been obsessed with his cleanliness, and as a girl Jun Xiaomo naturally regarded her personal cleanliness of utmost importance. Therefore, both walked over to the nearby stream in agreement.

    This stream was located at the border of the woods. Its waters were so clear that one could see the bottom of the stream, as well as all the fish within that were darting about here and there. Under the warm glow of the sunlight, the colouful pebbles at the bottom of the river shimmered radiantly.

    ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought that this ce would be so scenic.¡± The unexpected, resplendent view caused Jun Xiaomo to smile widely in surprise as she eximed. Even though her smile looked funny with the streaks of white and ck stered all over her face from the battles, her rxed and content disposition nevertheless spread to Ye Xiuwen as well.

    ¡°It¡¯s truly not bad.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded in agreement. But in the next moment, he calmly inquired, ¡°Didn¡¯t brother Yaoe from within the woods earlier? Howe you didn¡¯t notice this small stream?¡±

    That astonishment on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face gave away the fact that this was the first time she had seen this stream.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down hard on the tip of her tongue. She thought to herself ¨C Can you give me a break? How can martial brother be so sharp to pick up all these loopholes in my story? Oh man...what am I going to say now? Is my cover going to be blown in the first day? Am I going to be sent back to the Sect immediately?

    Jun Xiaomo had racked her brains and carefully nned for these travels for weeks. If she sumbed to her martial brother¡¯s analytical prowess at this very moment, she was going to be so upset that she could almost cry.

    Seeing the young man in front of him bite down on his lower lips and scrunch his face up like a Chinese dumpling, Ye Xiuwen knew that this young man did not have the answer to his question. Even so, he decided not to press the issue anymore.

    This young man clearly wore his heart on his sleeve, and anyone could tell what he was thinking. Faced with this, Ye Xiuwen could not bear to abandon him here and ignore him.

    Besides, this young man¡¯s demeanor was practically the spitting image of his little martial sister. All the more, Ye Xiuwen found it difficult to harden his heart against him.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen did not connect the dots ¨C this young man seemed like Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spitting image because ¡°he¡± was in fact Jun Xiaomo!

    Ye Xiuwen still thought that Jun Xiaomo was obediently cultivating and practicing her sword arts in the Sect right this moment.

    ¡°Alright, since it¡¯s hard for you to speak about it, let¡¯s shelve it for the time being.¡± Ye Xiuwen felt that there would always be things that people did not like to talk about, and sometimes there was no need to uncover everything. As for the origin of this young man, Ye Xiuwen had an inkling that one day everything will be made clear to him.

    Hearing that Ye Xiuwen was willing to let Jun Xiaomo off the hook and not press the issue any further, her eyes lit up and she immediately grinned cheerfully at Ye Xiuwen, saying, ¡°Thank you, brother! I will definitely tell you the truth when the time is right!¡±

    That¡¯s right. Jun Xiaomo did not intend to deceive Ye Xiuwen his entire life. Once she felt that Ye Xiuwen had sufficiently witnessed the extent of her abilities and would no longer send her back to the Sect immediately, she would of her own volition reveal her true identity to him.

    The ¡°young man¡¯s¡± voice was still crisp and tender, as though he had not reached puberty. This word of ¡°thanks¡± was simrly crisp and resonant, as though responding to a call from afar.

    Under the veiled conical hat, Ye Xiuwen could not help but hook his lips in amusement as he warmed up to the young man in front of him. Ye Xiuwen spoke, ¡°It¡¯s not getting any earlier. Let¡¯s tidy up in this little stream and wash off all the bloodstains before leaving.¡±

    ¡°Alright!¡± Jun Xiaomo responded enthusiastically. But very shortly after, she realized a problem ¨C

    ¡°That...that...brother, do you mean that...¡±

    ¡°My name is Ye Xiuwen.¡± Ye Xiuwen interrupted the young man¡¯s utterances, ¡°Since I¡¯m older than you, you may call me brother Ye or big brother Ye.¡±

    Since he was already prepared to take this young man, Yao Mo, into his team, Ye Xiuwen naturally would not want him to keep referring to himself as ¡°brother¡±. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen introduced himself formally to Yao Mo.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed once dryly. It was a good thing to be able to refer to her martial brother as ¡°brother Ye¡± ¨C after all, this term of endearment was much better and more affectionate than ¡°Mr Ye¡± or ¡°Mr Xiuwen¡±. However...

    ¡°That...that, brother Ye, do you mean that, we...we will be ba-- bathing together?¡±

    This time not only was Jun Xiaomo tongue-tied, even her brain was soon going to be tied together in knots. What kind of joke is this?! How could I bathe together with martial brother?! It¡¯s not like I¡¯m still an unaware young sprout ¨C this is going to make things so awkward between us!!

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo quizzically, asking, ¡°Is there going to be a problem bathing together? This ce isn¡¯t the shower room in the inn. With such a big stream, certainly there¡¯s no need for us to be taking turns, right?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was almost in tears at this moment. Her concern was not about the size of the river after all ¨C the most important point was that she was a girl...

    But of course, because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances had now been altered by the Alteration Talisman, she was now a young man in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo felt as though she had fallen into her own trap at this moment. If she had known this was going to happen, she would have adopted the appearance of a female cultivator instead.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen could not understand what this young man was thinking right now. Even if he were not used to bathing or showering with others, time was still ticking by very quickly. Besides, both of them were men, so there should be nothing much to be concerned about.

    ¡°Let¡¯s just wash ourselves at the same time. It¡¯s going to be noontime soon. My other teammates are still waiting for me at the inn ¨C we can¡¯t let them wait for us.¡± Ye Xiuwen said inly.

    Ye Xiuwen was well aware that even if the others discovered him to be missing, they might note searching for him. But at the same time, he was still one of the team leaders, and he could not disappear without a trace without properly ounting to the others. This was a matter of principles to him.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Jun Xiaomo knew that once Ye Xiuwen had said it like that, he would have pretty much made up his mind and there was no room left for any further negotiations.

    She mulled over this for a moment, and finally managed toe to terms with it ¨C there would not be any problems as long as she made it a point to have her back facing Ye Xiuwen.

    After all, even if she stripped off all her clothes right this instant, Ye Xiuwen would still see her as a man ¨C under the effects of the Alteration Talisman, the parts that guys should have would be there; while the parts that guys should not have would not appear on her body either.

    But when Ye Xiuwen discovers my true identityter, things might just be extremely awkward between us...

    Jun Xiaomo sobbed silently in her heart as she turned her back towards Ye Xiuwen before slowly but surely removing all of her blood-stained clothing.

    Ye Xiuwen also noticed that Yao Mo was no longer resisting his suggestions. Therefore, he also began to take off his clothes ¨C he truly wished to set these horrific blood-stained, smelly clothing that he had on fire.

    His movements were faster than Jun Xiaomo. Even before Jun Xiaomo had removed her outer wear, he had already taken off all his clothes and walked straight into the stream.

    Ye Xiuwen enjoyed wearing white; and he possessed a long and slim body type. However, once he took off his clothes, his well-defined muscles that were revealed were certainly something that many male disciples could only dream of having.

    No matter what, Ye Xiuwen was still a martial arts cultivator specializing in the way of the sword. Having been put through long, arduous and difficult training, there was no chance that he would be skinny and scrawny under those white garbs of his.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo who had her back facing Ye Xiuwen saw none of these things.

    Instead, it was the sshing sounding from the stream behind her that told her Ye Xiuwen had already entered the waters.

    Instantly, she heaved a sigh of relief. Truth be told, even though she had no unhealthy thoughts or intentions for her martial brother, this was still a highly embarrassing and awkward situation for her.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo numbed herself to her surroundings, speedily removed all the remaining clothing on her and then ran into the stream so quickly as though a wild beast were chasing after her.

    On the other side, as he focused on cleaning himself, Ye Xiuwen suddenly stopped mid-motion as aplicated thought arose in his heart.

    He really could not understand what this young man Yao Mo was thinking...

    But at this moment, Jun Xiaomo who had rushed headlong into the water met with yet another tragedy. She had underestimated the depth and the temperature of the stream waters. An icy cold sensation spread across all four of her limbs, and any exposed skin she had felt as though it had been frozen solid. Her limbs momentarily seized in ce; her legs slipped on the smooth pebbles on the bottom of the stream, and she instantly sank into the waters.

    Ssh...ssh... ¡°He--...Help...¡± If Jun Xiaomo had just calmed down for a single moment, she would have discovered that even though the stream waters ran rather deep, her head would still be above the waters if she simply stood still.

    However, the stream¡¯s waters were truly too cold, and it practically froze Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body together with her brain and her rationality. Who would have time to investigate the water¡¯s true depths?

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    He suddenly wondered whether it would be a mistake bringing this young man back to join his team. Even though this young man were a rarely seen array master, his clumsy and blunderous attitude was absolutely worrying.

    Regardless, Ye Xiuwen could not just watch Yao Mo drown in the stream. He waded over to Yao Mo¡¯s side and yanked him out of the waters easily.

    ¡°Cough...cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo clung onto Ye Xiuwen tightly as she sputtered out all the waters that she was choking on. By this time, Jun Xiaomo had choked on so much water that her airways were burning with a suffocating and painful sensation.

    The present Jun Xiaomo could not care less about her proximity with Ye Xiuwen anymore ¨C she only hoped that she would not fall back into the depths of the waters.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows at this moment. The helpless Jun Xiaomo was clenching onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm so tightly that even his veins were starting to bulge.

    Once Jun Xiaomo had gradually calmed down, Ye Xiuwen spoke to her solemnly and calmly, ¡°Actually, the waters aren¡¯t too deep. You should be able to breathe if you just tiptoe.¡±

    The moment Jun Xiaomo heard this, she immediately stared vacantly at Ye Xiuwen. How would she be able to face her martial brother in future? Why is it that she always makes these stupid, silly mistakes in front of Ye Xiuwen? She was not ordinarily a foolish person after all...

    Seeing how the young man was now almost in tears, Ye Xiuwen patted his head gingerly as he cautioned, ¡°Just be more careful next time. Don¡¯t rush headlong into the waters. Get yourself used to the water¡¯s temperature and depth first.¡±

    ¡°Al--...Alright.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and she mumbled in response. It suddenly crossed her mind whether her previous lifetime of experience had all been in vain.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo was not entirely at fault. Under normal circumstances, she might not have been so clumsy. It was only because Ye Xiuwen had suggested to bathe together did she get flustered and overlook these important details.

    Once Jun Xiaomo came back to her senses, it immediately urred to her that she and Ye Xiuwen were standing in an extremelypromising position at this moment! It was embarrassing! She was clinging onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms, and her whole body was practically leaning on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body!

    Worst of all, they werepletely naked in a small stream at this moment!

    As though she had just been scalded, Jun Xiaomo immediately let go of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and took a few steps back, stuttering as she spoke, ¡°I...I¡¯m fine now. Let¡¯s...let¡¯s continue ba-...bathing...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was so flushed with embarrassment that smoke could almost be seening out of her ears. She was so flustered that she did not know where to look, and her eyes darted here and there ¨C anywhere was fine, as long as it was not on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    She wanted to cry. How could things have turned out this way? How was she going to face Ye Xiuwen in the future when she finally revealed her true identity to him?

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously. He did not expect that despite both of them being men, this young man would actually be so embarrassed about their proximity.

    Alright, since the other person were notfortable with their proximity, Ye Xiuwen would not move any closer to him either. Anyhow, Ye Xiuwen had always been rather particr with his personal space and did not like people getting too close to him either. If not for the fact that it was an ¡°emergency¡± earlier, he would not have allowed the young man to cling onto him like that.

    ¡°Have a good bath. Don¡¯t fall back in again.¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed before he waded further away from Jun Xiaomo and continued with his own bath some distance away.

    ¡°Alright...¡± Jun Xiaomo finally managed to heave a sigh of relief. She lifted her head and looked towards where Ye Xiuwen had walked over to, and she discovered that Ye Xiuwen had consciously turned his back against her.

    Martial brother must have noticed that I was embarrassed earlier, and therefore he considerately turned his back so that I would feel morefortable bathing. Jun Xiaomo was both relieved and moved at this moment, and the earlier embarrassment and flustered feeling in her heart also dissipated slightly.

    After this incident, nothing much happened between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen as they concluded their respective baths. They each tidied themselves up silently, returned to shore and put on a new set of clothing at their own time.

    ¡°Let¡¯s be on our way then. It¡¯s not getting any earlier. We¡¯ll be just on time for lunch if we rush back to the inn quickly.¡± Ye Xiuwen told Jun Xiaomo as Jun Xiaomo hastily nodded and trotted alongside Ye Xiuwen.

    I hope we won¡¯t encounter any further embarrassing incidents from now on. Jun Xiaomomented to herself in her heart; yet for some strange reason, her premonition told her otherwise.

 Chapter 53: Malicious Ke Xinwen

    <h4>Chapter 53: Malicious Ke Xinwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, Yao Mo was still a stranger to him. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen plodded on silently and did not say much on the road.

    However, Jun Xiaomo had always been a go-getter when it came to matters of building rtions. Therefore, even if Ye Xiuwen did not make conversation with her, she would break the silence and make conversation with him instead.

    ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t you find the matters today rather strange? Logically speaking, it¡¯s impossible to see Vampire Demonrats move in a swarm like this in broad daylight.¡± Jun Xiaomo walked beside Ye Xiuwen and looked at him curiously as she spoke.

    ¡°I also found that a bit strange. And then there¡¯s also the matter with the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger, whose natural habitat is deep in the forests. It is incredibly rare to find a ckwind Sabretooth Tiger wandering to the edge of the forest.¡± Ye Xiuwen said coldly, adding, ¡°Furthermore, these spirit animals were all in a frenzied state.¡±

    ¡°A frenzied state?!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked astonished. She naturally also appreciated how dangerous these creatures were in a frenzied state ¨C their offensive powers could increase as much as tenfold or more.

    No wonder today¡¯s Vampire Demonrats were considerably crazier than the ones I¡¯ve encountered in the past. Good thing this swarm wasn¡¯t too big. Otherwise, with our cultivations at the first level of Qi Mastery and the twelfth level of Qi Mastery respectively, it might well have been a better idea to have escaped using the Escape Scrolls. Jun Xiaomo thought silently to herself.

    ¡°Yes, they were in a frenzied state.¡± A sharp gaze shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes even as he spoke inly, ¡°I¡¯m afraid someone might be scheming against me.¡±

    If it were only one type of frenzied spirit beast, then perhaps Ye Xiuwen might just have been extremely unlucky. But now that they encountered two different types of frenzied spirit beasts, then clearly this was more than just a coincidence.

    Jun Xiaomo stopped momentarily in her tracks as she gritted her teeth ¨C

    Scheming against martial brother! If Jun Xiaomo finds out who it was, she was determined to let him suffer a fate worse than death!

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu and the others had finished their breakfast, visited a nearby marketce, bought resources and other things before returning to the inn.

    As the First-Seat Disciple of Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Qin Lingyu was able to gather quite a substantial amount of spirit stones and other resources. Apart from the allowance given by the Sect, several martial brothers and sisters would even give gifts to Qin Lingyu in order to curry favour with him; and Qin Lingyu naturally received all of these gifts dly. Because of this, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Interspatial Ring was filled with countless valuable treasures. Therefore, when they walked around the marketce, he was able to splurge with extravagance on the things which piqued his interest.

    Other martial disciples were naturally unable to spend with such extravagance that Qin Lingyu did. While they envied the insurmountable riches stored in Qin Lingyu¡¯s Interspatial Ring, they continued to apany him with a smile on their faces in order to curry favour with this First-Seat Disciple who had a seemingly limitless potential.

    Zhong Run was even more obvious. She was well aware of the fact that the was older than Qin Lingyu by seven years, and she knew that if she did not manage to bag Qin Lingyu during the travels, then she would lose Qin Lingyu to the countless sweet young things that would surround him once he returns to the Sect. Therefore, she applied a thickyer of make up every day and spared no effort in disying all her seduction tactics towards Qin Lingyu.

    Yu Wanrou witnessed how Zhong Run was attempting to seduce her own man, and she was so maddened by her that she almost flew into a fit of rage. To make matters worse, Qin Lingyu had for the sake of keeping things under wraps continued to treat Yu Wanrou coldly and with indifference.

    However, Yu Wanrou still had that Ke Xinwen about her who fluttered about her like an obsequious butterfly. Even though Ke Xinwen could hardly match up to Qin Lingyu in every single aspect, it was still a form of constion to Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke, I¡¯ve noticed that you¡¯ve been rather generous today, haven¡¯t you?¡± One of the male disciples who was rather chummy with Ke Xinwen put his arms around Ke Xinwen¡¯s shoulder as hemented.

    Ke Xinwen was not as cold and somber as Qin Lingyu, and he was also not as indifferent as Ye Xiuwen. Therefore, the martial brothers in the Sect who were of a lower cultivation level were still able to joke around with him ¨C these martial brothers felt that Ke Xinwen¡¯s warm and generous attitude was far better than Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude.

    Ke Xinwenughed heartily, remarking, ¡°I¡¯m in good spirits today, so I¡¯m just buying whatever catches my eye!¡±

    ¡°Ah, I wonder what happened that pleased you so much, martial brother Ke?¡± Another martial brother asked curiously.

    ¡°Could it be...Martial sister Wanrou has agreed to let martial brother Ke pursue her? Hahahahaha...¡± The martial brother who had his arm around Ke Xinwen¡¯s shoulder spected as he nced over at Yu Wanrou.

    Ke Xinwen never hid the fact that he was fond of Yu Wanrou. Furthermore, Ke Xinwen had in recent times persistently solicited Yu Wanrou¡¯s attention. Unless one was a fool, nobody would be oblivious to the fact that he was trying to pursue Yu Wanrou.

    Of course, among the other disciples who were travelling with them, some of the male disciples were also fond of Yu Wanrou. But they knew that they could not match up to Ke Xinwen in terms of their cultivation levels, so they were resigned to the fact that they could only think about it and not act on it.

    Yu Wanrou also overheard the tomfoolery of these bunch of brothers and how they were tying her and Ke Xinwen together. Therefore, she eked out a pretentious smile on her face as she responded shyly, ¡°Naw, don¡¯t make fun of us, guys. Ke Xinwen has been looking out for me only because I¡¯m a female disciple after all.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh ¨C It seems that martial sister Wanrou finds your gift of a ne imbued with defensive abilities not expensive enough. Martial brother Ke you have to work harder at it~¡± The martial brother beside Ke Xinwen teased.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, martial sister Wanrou looks like a shy person to begin with. Martial brother Ke, it seems that you will have to work much harder if you want martial sister Wanrou to warm up to you~¡± Another male disciple egged them on.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Whether it¡¯s wealth or abilities, martial brother Ke has both. Furthermore, with his handsome and dignified appearance, how could martial sister Wanrou¡¯s heart not be moved? Martial sister Wanrou is just being a little bit more reserved here...¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is. I understand now.¡±

    ......

    Yu Wanrou continued to listen to how these martial brothers built on each other¡¯s words as they continued to tease her and Ke Xinwen, and she could only forcibly maintain that smile on her face, lower her head and act as though she were shy about these things.

    As for how she truly felt, only Yu Wanrou knew in her heart.

    Ke Xinwen was truly in great spirits today, so he waspletely ignorant to the fact that Yu Wanrou was forcibly maintaining the smile on her face, while the other martial brothers were reaping the coteral benefits of his good mood. Ke Xinwen felt that all the other disciples within the entire Dawn Sect, apart from Qin Lingyu, should look up to himself.

    As for Ye Xiuwen, Ke Xinwen felt that after today, this person would no longer be within his considerations. This was because he was going to forcibly tear this Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect down from his pedestal, step by step!

    That¡¯s right, Ke Xinwen was still bearing that grudge against Ye Xiuwen for snatching his spot as a Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect. Despite being well aware that Ye Xiuwen was far above him in terms of both talent and abilities, he still refused to ept the reality before him.

    After all, he was the first one to eye that opportunity to be the Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect that fateful year, but Ye Xiuwen had stepped ahead of him and seized the opportunity first. How could he just take this lying down?

    All this while, even though Ke Xinwen had been fooling around with the other martial brothers and sisters, he had in actual fact been closely observing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions and habits in the hope that he could find an opportunity to dispose of Ye Xiuwen.

    Very soon, he discovered that Ye Xiuwen had the habit of leaving the group every morning to find a quiet ce to practice his sword arts. This habit had been deeply ingrained in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s marrows, and he would practice his sword arts every day at the same time in the morning, rain or shine.

    Ke Xinwen knew that this was his opportunity.

    Even though Ke Xinwen often acted like the ss clown with his martial brothers within the Sect, he was nevertheless careful and conscientious when it came to matters of scheming against others. In the past, when Ke Xinwen first entered the Dawn Sect with ten other martial brothers and sisters, one of the other martial brothers who entered the Sect with him was discovered to be an extremely talented cultivator. Like Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu, this other martial brother very quickly became one of the most important disciples to be nurtured by the Sect.

    Ke Xinwen was extremely jealous of his talent, yet on the surface he maintained the appearance of being chummy with this martial brother.

    Then, soon after they had all formally be disciples of Dawn Sect, that martial brother suddenly disappeared without a trace. The entire Sect was mobilized to look for this martial brother for a few days, yet no one could find a clue as to where he had disappeared to, and they could only return empty handed with bad news to the Sect Elders and the Sect Leader.

    ¡°Forget it. If he¡¯s vanished, he¡¯s vanished. If he doesn¡¯t even have the ability to prevent this from happening, then the Dawn Sect doesn¡¯t need such a disciple either.¡± The Sect¡¯s Second Elder spoke coldly after hearing the reports, and this matter was concluded there and then.

    At that time, Ke Xinwen could have sworn that he had seen the Second Elder ncing over at his direction as he spoke, and he was so scared that he began to sweat profusely.

    But the end result was still favourable to Ke Xinwen. No one knew it was Ke Xinwen who had murdered that martial brother. And from then on, Ke Xinwen would also present little gifts to the Second Elder from time to time, hoping that they could leave this matter in the dust forever.

    From this incident, one could see that Ke Xinwen was a two-faced, vicious person with an extremely narrow mind. He hated it when others were more talented or more capable than him. Qin Lingyu was Sect Leader He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and naturally Ke Xinwen did not dare to make any moves against Qin Lingyu. In any event, Ke Xinwen also knew that he had no ability to deal with Qin Lingyu. But Ye Xiuwen was a different story altogether. Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s stature was rather high as well, being the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak, but Ke Xinwen knew that Heavenly Peak only consisted of cultivation fanatics who were oblivious to the schemes and ploys of their martial brothers within the sect.

    Coupled with the fact that Ye Xiuwen had be the Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect, Ke Xinwen naturally viewed Ye Xiuwen as the thorn in his flesh and ced a bullseye on his back.

    After observing Ye Xiuwen for some time, Ke Xinwen knew that his opportunity was finally here. He secretly bribed an attendant toce Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bathtub with a substance made from Frenzypani Grass.

    This substance was colourless and odourless, and normal people would be oblivious to its existence. However, spirit beasts were extremely sensitive to this substance. When spirit beasts ingest or inhale the Frenzypani Grass, no matter how docile the spirit animal normally is, it would lose its mind and attack the nearest living thing that it sees. In particr, any person or entity that hase into contact with the Frenzypani Grass would immediately be the prime target of the frenzied spirit animal. Some beast tamers would even directly feed their beasts with a watered-down version of the Frenzypani Grass in order to induce a frenzied state duringbat and increase their spirit beasts¡¯ fighting abilities.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen was generally a rather alert person with astute senses, his experience wascking, and he never expected anyone to try and trip him up with this kind of tactics. Under Ke Xinwen¡¯s instructions, the attendant had dumped copious amounts of powdered Frenzypani Grass into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bath water before courteously asking Ye Xiuwen to enjoy his bath as he took his leave.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen had alsoe to be tripped up by Ke Xinwen and fall prey to his schemes.

    Ke Xinwen was certain that once Ye Xiuwen encountered spirit animals in a frenzied state, the consequences would either be death, or at the very least severe injuries. If Ye Xiuwen got lucky and came back alive, Ke Xinwen did not mind devising a few more traps to stumble Ye Xiuwen and send him on his way.

    Ke Xinwen had indeed calcted everything very well. However, he missed out one important detail ¨C that is, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Interspatial Ring would certainly contain some scrolls he could use for escape purposes.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen had fortunately encountered Jun Xiaomo who hade looking for him. Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level were low, thebat experience from her previous life more than made up for it. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen was able to return from his encounters with barely a scratch ¨C and he even brought along a little addition to the entourage.

    Ke Xinwen chatted heartily with the other martial brothers and sisters as they returned from the marketce. Yet the moment they entered the inn and saw Ye Xiuwen sitting at the table drinking his tea calmly and waiting for them, Ke Xinwen¡¯s face immediately froze in ce.

    How could Ye Xiuwen be sitting here perfectly fine? Could it be that the Frenzypani Grass was not effective?

    It can¡¯t be...

    Just before using the Frenzypani Grass, he had even inquired with the attendant and learnt that the nearby woods were not safe, and there were frequently sightings of vicious beasts in that area.

    After making further inquiries on his own, Ke Xinwen confirmed what the attendant said was true, and among all the beasts often sighted in that area, at least two of them were spirit beasts, namely the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger and the Vampire Demonrats. Ke Xinwen could not believe that Ye Xiuwen, a cultivator at only the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, would be able to deal with these two types of frenzied spirit beasts.

    However, no matter how hard it was to believe it, the truth was still before his eyes ¨C Ye Xiuwen waspletely unharmed, and he sat calmly before them, drinking his tea leisurely.

    Because Ke Xinwen was so stunned to see Ye Xiuwen, he hadpletely overlooked Jun Xiaomo who was just seated beside Ye Xiuwen.

    Even though he failed to notice Jun Xiaomo; this did not mean that Jun Xiaomo did not notice him. Although Jun Xiaomo had lifted her teacup, she done so in order to secretly observe the group of people that were entering right this moment.

    The person who would scheme against martial brother Ye could onlye from this group of people.

    Thus, she immediately also noticed the anomalous reaction on Ke Xinwen¡¯s face.

    And she was not the only one who noticed it. Ye Xiuwen, whose face was obscured by his veiled conical hat, also caught a glimpse of Ke Xinwen¡¯s momentarily stunned looks.

 Chapter 54: Unbearable Beauty

    <h4>Chapter 54: Unbearable Beauty</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ke Xinwen never thought that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen would be able to discover his peculiar behaviour from just that little slip up of his. In fact, Ke Xinwen thought that he was able to recover from his shock before anyone noticed anything strange about him. He quickly adjusted his expression beforeughing boisterously, striding forward quickly and casually speaking to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Seems like martial brother Ye has returned rather early today, huh?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen lifted his cup and took a sip from it before saying inly, ¡°I¡¯m not early. It¡¯s already almost time for lunch.¡±

    Ke Xinwen could not tell from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reaction whether Ye Xiuwen had grown suspicious of him, because Ye Xiuwen had always been this indifferent. Therefore, heughed dryly as he responded, ¡°Ahaha, is that right? It seems that we¡¯ve lost track of time browsing through the marketce then.¡±

    The other martial brothers had not noticed the peculiarities in Ke Xinwen¡¯s voice. However, Qin Lingyu nced over at Ke Xinwen thoughtfully with a glimmer in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo had retained her memories from her past life, and she naturally knew that Ke Xinwen was not as harmless as he seemed. In fact, he was really a two-faced person who could beughing and joking with people whom he called brothers in one moment, and then stab that brother in the back the very next moment. The worst thing about him was that in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, he was one of the main culprits who hadmandeered a team of cultivators towards Heavenly Peak that fateful night when Heavenly Peak was massacred and annihted.

    Ever since Jun Xiaomo had been reborn, she had never thought to spare this scumbag Ke Xinwen. Today, when she realized that Ke Xinwen could well have been the one who had schemed against her dear martial brother Ye Xiuwen, her hatred for Ke Xinwen once again reignited and erupted within her!

    Jun Xiaomoughed lightly as she flicked open the fan in her arms and fanned herself suavely. Then, she looked towards Ke Xinwen as she suggested meaningfully, ¡°Excuse me, brother, it seems that you must be makingmerry and taking pleasure in the little things in life, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo particrly emphasized the words ¡°making merry¡± and ¡°little things¡±.

    From what others could tell, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words did not seem to be particrly meaningful or special. But to Ke Xinwen, as expected, his guilty conscience made him perceive Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words to be particrly scathing and harsh to his ears, as though they were crafted to take a direct jibe against him.

    He had all along been so focused on Ye Xiuwen, and it was only when Jun Xiaomo spoke that he shifted his attention over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    Ke Xinwen discovered that there was a suave, charming and dignified-looking fifteen or sixteen year-old young man sitting just beside Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°And you are...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hooked her lips as she fanned herself leisurely, as she responded flippantly, ¡°My name is Yao Mo. Brother Ye found me in the woods and brought me back here. These few misters must be brother Ye¡¯s martial brothers. I look forward to your kind guidance in future.¡± As he finished, he shut his fan with a flick of his wrist and gave the group of people a fist and palm salute.

    Found me in the woods...what kind of description is this... The lips of these martial brothers twitched slightly as they were left momentarily speechless.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes shed with a look of helplessness, but he did not despise this young man¡¯s present actions. After all, this young man¡¯s bizarre behaviour was too simr to his little martial sisters. Thus, Ye Xiuwen could not help but give this young man an increased measure of indulgence.

    ¡°Everyone, let¡¯s take a seat first. We can continue with our conversations once we¡¯ve ordered some food.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly stated as he helped to take some of the heat from Ke Xinwen¡¯s gaze off Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen could feel that this young man was standing up for him. After all, Yao Mo and Ke Xinwen did not know each other previously, and naturally had no grievances for each other. Therefore, what reason did Yao Mo have to provoke Ke Xinwen with such words with hidden implications?

    It might well be the case that Yao Mo had discovered Ke Xinwen¡¯s intentions. But at the same time Ke Xinwen was not a simple person, and Ye Xiuwen did not wish for Yao Mo to invoke Ke Xinwen¡¯s ire just because he was standing up for him.

    Right now, as Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s teams joined them, a total of sixteen people sat around therge round table.

    Being the one who knew all parties present, Ye Xiuwen naturally bore the burden of introducing Jun Xiaomo to everyone. After giving Jun Xiaomo an introduction to the disciples¡¯ names, Ye Xiuwen went on to tell everyone briefly how he came to meet Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°That must mean that brother Yao must be an array master.¡± After listening to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s introductions, Ke Xinwen thought that he had found the main reason why Ye Xiuwen was able to return unscathed ¨C it was pure, dumb luck that he managed to encounter an array master.

    Even though thebat prowess of an array master was not high, their support abilities were second to none. After all, one could easily find their abilities amplified by a few folds if they received the support buffs of an array master duringbat. Additionally, this array master was actually able toy down a formation array under such critical circumstances. His abilities must naturally be unimaginable...

    Ke Xinwen was not the only one who thought of all these. Qin Lingyu was the same as well. He looked straight at Jun Xiaomo with a deep gaze.

    ¡°Brother Yao¡¯s arrays sound amazing. I wonder what sect brother Yao hails from?¡± Qin Lingyu set aside the pride apanying his stature as the Sect¡¯s First-Seat Disciple as he asked courteously.

    Whenever he encountered someone who may potentially be useful to him, Qin Lingyu would never scrimp on currying favor and showering praise.

    But on the other hand, having interacted with Qin Lingyu for so many years, how could Jun Xiaomo not know the schemes and considerations on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart? She smiled wryly as shezily said, ¡°I belong to no sect. I¡¯ve always been learning these things for fun, and I never expected these things to be so useful!¡±

    Everyone was left speechless by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response as they wondered whether Jun Xiaomo hade over to cause trouble or provoke them. After all, none of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s responses could be described to be ordinary or expected, and they had been time and again rendered speechless.

    Jun Xiaomo joyfully took in all of these disciples¡¯ expressions as sheughed, saying, ¡°What is it? Don¡¯t you believe me? It is my desire to join a reputable Sect and be one of their official disciples. Too bad none of these reputable Sects are willing to take me in.¡±

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t any Sects willing to take you in?¡± one of the disciples beside Ke Xinwen asked curiously.

    ¡°My cultivation talent is too low. I¡¯m only at the first level of Qi Mastery right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo sipped at her tea as she casually revealed these details to everyone at the table.

    Ah, turns out that you¡¯re a useless oaf who¡¯s still at the first level of Qi Mastery despite being in your teens. No wonder none of the Sects are willing to take you in. A trace of mockery shed across Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes as he lost all interest in sounding out Jun Xiaomo any further.

    To an array master, the cultivation level is indeed not of critical importance to his career. But at the same time, it cannot bepletely ignored either. By the conventional wisdom of the cultivation world, an array master still at the first level of Qi Mastery at the age of fifteen or sixteen could almost be pronounced as a ¡°useless¡± person as his future potential was going to be extremely limited.

    These thoughts had also crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind, and even though he did not disy any contemptuous looks on his face, he also ceased to inquire more with Yao Mo or get to know Yao Mo better.

    But this was precisely the oue that Jun Xiaomo desired. After all, she did not want to answer all these insipid questions from these scheming people.

    As for the contemptuous looks given by some of the other disciples, Jun Xiaomo dismissed them all as she saw no need to engage with an argument with these frogs in a well.

    As such, the atmosphere at the table became somber and quiet. Just this moment, a movement came from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest, and then a small furry head peeped out of her clothes.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat clung onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes as it stared at the other disciples with its ck, beady eyes, gently twitching its six whiskers.

    Not good! The Stupefaction Talisman has lost its effects!

    Jun Xiaomo could not leave the little packrat at home. But it was difficult to bring this little creature around, as the Interspatial Ring could not be used to store living things. Therefore, she could only use the Stupefaction Talisman to knock out the little packrat before cing it in a pocket in her clothing before bringing it out with her.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that the Stupefaction Talisman would lose its effects at the worst possible timing? Didn¡¯t I make it such that its effects wouldst one whole day?!

    ¡°It¡¯s that packrat!¡± Ke Xinwen eximed as he opened his eyes widely in astonishment. Just a little while ago, he had wanted to give a packrat to Yu Wanrou as a birthday gift to her. To his dismay, not only did the little packrat scratch Yu Wanrou, it gave everyone the slip soon after and it had been missing ever since.

    Now, seeing the packrat¡¯s umon snow-white fur, Ke Xinwen naturally thought that this was the same one that he had prepared as a gift for Yu Wanrou.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that this was indeed Ke Xinwen¡¯s packrat. After all, when Ke Xinwen and his martial brothers came looking for this packrat that she chanced upon, she had pointed them in a wrong direction, causing Ke Xinwen to search blindly for an entire day.

    But Jun Xiaomo never felt burdened by these matters. Not only was this little packrat of an umon snow-white colour, it was an extremely rare demonic packrat ¨C apart from her, none of the other disciples in the Sect were suitable owners for it.

    Furthermore, seeing how Ke Xinwen¡¯s face was filled with rage and fury when he came searching for the little packrat thest time, who knows what oue the little packrat would face if Jun Xiaomo had turned the packrat over to Ke Xinwen then. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had made her decision to trick Ke Xinwen then without any hesitation at all.

    At present, Jun Xiaomo faced Ke Xinwen as aplete stranger, and it would be an even easier thing for her to fool Ke Xinwen once again. In any event, there was no way she was going to let Ke Xinwen know the true identity of the little packrat in her clothes right now.

    ¡°Oh? Brother Ke has seen this little packrat?¡± Jun Xiaomo pretended to be shocked by Ke Xinwen¡¯s reaction.

    ¡°This...I wonder where brother Yao hade across that packrat of his?¡± Ke Xinwen was jolted back to his senses as he suddenly realized that it was quite unlikely that the little packrat had travelled one thousand miles and found its way to Yao Mo¡¯s side. But nevertheless, he had to be sure.

    ¡°This little packrat was a gift from my father when I turned sixteen years-old. My father managed to buy this packrat when he saw it at the capital of zen Country. He told me that its fur colour is extremely rare, and that I should cherish it. That¡¯s why I brought it with me when I went out.¡±

    zen Country was practically on the other side of the cultivation world. Ke Xinwen could not imagine how this could possibly be the same packrat that he was searching for that other day, and he decided not to press the issue any further.

    ¡°Haha, I also think that its fur colour is extremely umon.¡± Ke Xinwen chuckled dryly as he was once again reminded of how the packrat he bought had scratched Yu Wanrou¡¯s face before giving them the slip, and his heart once again swelled with rage. How he wanted to tear that darned packrat to shreds right this moment!

    As Ke Xinwen once again sized up that white little furball peeking out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes at this instance, his expression grew cold and frigid. Right now, he was clearly thinking of taking out his anger on something that did not deserve it!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile also grew colder at this moment. How dare he stare at my little packrat with such vicious intent. Ke Xinwen is truly a petty and narrow-minded monster!

    No one discovered this momentary wave of tension between Ke Xinwen and Jun Xiaomo. Rather, it was Yu Wanrou who suddenly eximed and caught everyone¡¯s attention ¨C

    ¡°This little packrat is so cute~ Can I take a closer look at it please~?¡±

    Yu Wanrou softly eximed as she batted her eyelids at Jun Xiaomo shyly and timidly.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    This was the first time Jun Xiaomo realized that being stared by a ¡°beauty¡± like that could truly give her goosebumps.

 Chapter 55: Extra Awesome Packrat

    <h4>Chapter 55: Extra Awesome Packrat</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had never thought she would one day receive such tender, pitiful, and goosebumps-inducing expressions from her love rival, Yu Wanrou.

    However, this wasn¡¯t entirely Yu Wanrou¡¯s fault. After all, she had already grown used to using her weak and soft disposition to earn the sympathy of her martial brothers, to the extent that she would even consider this her greatest weapon. Who would have thought that the ¡°young man¡± in front of her was absolutely not a male cultivator; but rather a female cultivator wearing a male cultivator¡¯s appearance?

    To make matters worse, this female cultivator was actually the one who Yu Wanrou hated the most and was most jealous of, Jun Xiaomo! She was the very same person that Yu Wanrou had on so many asions wanted to chop up to pieces and boil in a cauldron of oil!

    Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan at this instant and covered her twitching lips so that Yu Wanrou could not see her present expression. Then, she coughed dryly as she spoke, ¡°It¡¯s truly difficult to reject the requests of a beauty...¡±

    When she heard herself being referred to as a ¡°beauty¡±, Yu Wanrou¡¯s face immediately flushed red as she thought to herself ¨C I knew these male cultivators could never resist my charms and allure.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips twitched again, and she raised her fan to cover up almost half her face as she continued, ¡°But...this little packrat of mine is afraid of strangers. It wouldn¡¯t be good if it treated you irreverently.¡±

    Yu Wanrou never expected that with such a quick twist of words, the answer to her was actually ¡°no¡±. Yu Wanrou felt humiliated.

    Most female cultivators liked furry and cuddly little animals, including Yu Wanrou. She truly wished to take a closer look at the little packrat in spite of her previous experience with the other packrat given by Ke Xinwen.

    Therefore, the humiliated Yu Wanrou wore an even more pitiable expression on her face as she gazed pleadingly at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Please don¡¯t look at me like that. I¡¯m about to lose my appetite!!!

    If not for the fact that everyone else was looking at her for her response, she would have dashed out right that moment to wash her eyes.

    As though it were echoing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s innermost thoughts, the little packrat in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes leisurely licked its paws before it slowly turned its body around and showed its little butt towards Yu Wanrou ¨C

    Poot! The little packrat made a loud fart.

    Everyone: ......

    Jun Xiaomo wanted so much tomend this little packrat openly and exim, ¡°well done¡±, but under the watchful eyes of all who were around, she could only try her best to suppress theughter that was madly swelling up in her belly.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± What Jun Xiaomo had not managed to do, Zhong Run had done on her behalf. She eximed meaningfully, ¡°It seems that the unparalleled beauty of martial sister Wanrou has its limits after all. It doesn¡¯t seem to work on this little packrat.¡±

    Zhong Run has always been known in Dawn Sect for her fiery temperament, and she had always spoken whatever was on her mind. However, her obstinance had a different side to it from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pride was caused by her parents sheltering and spoiling her, and her obstinance carried with it traces of innocence and naivete. But Zhong Run¡¯s fiery temperament was a somewhat deliberate construct, because there were male cultivators who looked for this type of personality in girls.

    Zhong Run did not know about the rtionship between Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu. But she was jealous of Yu Wanrou¡¯s gift with people and how she could earn the favour of anyone she sets her eyes on. Therefore, she would never pass up on any opportunity to run with a joke and poke fun at Yu Wanrou.

    Zhong Run had always thought that she was on par with Yu Wanrou in terms of looks; and in terms of abilities, she was already at the tenth level of Qi Mastery, and there was a good chance that she would be able to attain the twelfth level of Qi Mastery before the age of thirty-five. Therefore, she had never considered herself to be lousier than Yu Wanrou. However, as she noticed how more and more male cultivators in the Sect preferred Yu Wanrou over Zhong Run, how could she repress that indignation rising in her heart?

    Yu Wanrou naturally heard the mockery in Zhong Run¡¯s voice. At this moment, Yu Wanrou felt as though her pride had been trampled all over by a small, insignificant creature, and an indignant feeling swelled up within her. She bit down hard on her lower lip as she looked bitterly at Yao Mo.

    Jun Xiaomo remained unperturbed in her seat, and she flippantly ignored Yu Wanrou¡¯s gaze altogether.

    And this angered Yu Wanrou even more.

    Just this moment, Ke Xinwen who sat beside Yu Wanrou spoke up. He had just witnessed the woman he was fond of be bullied by a measly array master at the first level of Qi Mastery. As a man, how could he just take this lying down? Even though he usually maintained a cordial rtionship with people, there was no way he could remain civil right now.

    Ke Xinwen made a cold expression on his face as he spoke sternly to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°It¡¯s just a puny bastard. Are you going to lose something precious if you let Wanrou take a closer look at it? I think brother Yao must have spoilt it. What do you even mean ¡®it¡¯s not willing to interact with strangers¡¯? If it dares to resist, all brother Yao needs to do is to beat it a few times, or to starve it for a bit. Then you¡¯ll see whether it still dares to show such disrespect to the people around you!¡±

    This time, it was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s turn to return a frigid look at Ke Xinwen as she scornfully said, ¡°Brother Ke, please watch what you say. What do you mean by ¡®puny bastard¡¯? I can spoil whoever or whatever I like. What right do you have to interfere with this?!¡±

    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s only because its owner acts this way that it dares to climb all over your head and act all high and mighty.¡±

    ¡°Then what kind of owner do you think people should be? Abusive owners who beat up pets as soon as they show signs of disobedience? You know, I had originally thought brother Ke was a true man ¨C magnanimous and virtuous. Yet now I can see that your heart is even more vicious than snakes and scorpions. Do you think small creatures have no feelings? Given how vicious and cold-blooded you are, I think not even snakes and scorpions would be willing to hang out with you for fear that you might stab them in the back and make liquor out of them!¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo lets loose her tongue, her words be so sharp that they could even anger a person to death. Most importantly, she often only used the truth against her opponent so that they would not have any room left for rebuttals.

    At this moment, while it seemed to others that Jun Xiaomo had no basis for making such allegations towards Ke Xinwen, yet in reality, everything she said had cut through Ke Xinwen¡¯s pretenses and exposed his true self. After all, Ke Xinwen was exactly the type of backstabbing person who hides daggers behind his smiles.

    Ke Xinwen was so infuriated by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words that his face turned red with fury and then pale. As the indignation rose up from his heart, he began to ramble on incoherently.

    Ke Xinwen chuckled coldly as he refuted, ¡°And what does that make you? A useless piece of trash at the first level of Qi Mastery despite being at sixteen years of age? Don¡¯t you dare think that your cultivation level doesn¡¯t matter anymore just because you¡¯re an array master. No expedition team would be willing to take a burden like you who can¡¯t even protect himself from a pin prick. It¡¯s no wonder none of the sects are willing to ept you. You can just go and live happily ever after with that little bastard of yours!¡±

    Squeak! The little packrat had initially ignored the bickering that was going on at this table. But now that it witnessed Ke Xinwenmbasting away at Jun Xiaomo, it absolutely blew its top!

    Once the little packrat grew mad, there would be dire consequences.

    Immediately after it squeaked loudly, it kicked off strongly with its hind legs, leapt onto the table and sped over in front of Ke Xinwen. Then, it sprung up from the table and shot onto his face, directly biting down hard on Ke Xinwen¡¯s nose.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little packrat had practically executed this entire series of actions in the blink of an eye. And as soon as the Sect¡¯s disciples at the table were able to react, they instantly also heard a pathetic screaming from Ke Xinwen.

    ¡°Ahh¡ªYou little bastard! Get off me!¡± Ke Xinwen wanted to yank away the little packrat that was dangling from his nose at this moment. But the little packrat had truly bitten down hard into his nose. Furthermore, his fur felt extremely slippery, as though it had been covered with ayer of grease, and Ke Xinwen was not able to get a tight grasp on the little packrat at all.

    The little packrat bit down hard, and with the help of gravity as it hung from Ke Xinwen¡¯s nose freely, Ke Xinwen¡¯s nose immediately began to swell like a balloon.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Jun Xiaomo almost burst outughing. She wanted to continue to watch this clownish show, but that vicious look on Ke Xinwen¡¯s face right now was just too scary, and she was afraid that if she allowed this to continue, her little packrat¡¯s life might truly be in danger.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo lightly ordered, ¡°Little Packie,e back here!¡± Amidst all themotion, the little packrat picked up on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s softmand, nimbly avoided Ke Xinwen¡¯s final swipe as it slipped back down, scampered along the table and leapt back into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom.

    Once it leapt into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes, the little packrat immediately froze in ce as it ¡°yed dead¡±. It was almost as though it were saying that the lively packrat that just bit Ke Xinwen was not itself, but another packrat.

    Jun Xiaomo scratched behind its ears, softly whispering to it ¨C ¡°Well done~¡±

    Apart from Ye Xiuwen who remained just beside Jun Xiaomo, everyone else was scrambling to check on Ke Xinwen¡¯s condition, and no one could hear Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words to the little packrat.

    The little packrat wiggled its ears in response, before turning around and letting its butt face the audience again.

    After some time, Ke Xinwen finally managed topose himself again. Even though had had applied some medication on his nose, the swelling still had note down. Therefore, he could only pitifully rub his red and swollen nose with one hand while mming down on the table hard with his other hand as heically demanded, ¡°Yao Mo! Don¡¯t you think you owe me an exnation?!¡± Several other disciples also nced over at Jun Xiaomo with incensed eyes, as they felt that Jun Xiaomo was practically challenging Dawn Sect¡¯s authority at this moment.

    However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips twitched uncontrobly as she tried hard to stifle herughter. Ke Xinwen had earlier been bitten so hard that tears had started welling up in his eyes. Right now, his tears had not yet dried up, and it had to be said that this ¡°teary-eyed¡± look of his was actually rather pitiful looking.

    But then again, these were not the most appropriate words to describe a tall, burly and built man after all.

    Jun Xiaomo shook off these trivial thoughts in her mind, adjusted her expressions as she responded derisively, ¡°Exnation? I¡¯ve already given my exnation to you earlier. All little creatures have feelings too. Calling them ¡®little bastard¡¯ here and there ¨C do you think it would be able to remain calm?! Why not let me call brother Ke a ¡®bastard¡¯ a few times and see if you get angry?¡±

    ¡°You dare?!¡± Ke Xinwen stared madly at Jun Xiaomo.

    Ke Xinwen generally liked to maintain civility with people and treat them cordially. But faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sharp tongue today, he had practicallypletely demolished his reputation for being tolerant and magnanimous.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately pretended to be terrified as she responded, ¡°I don¡¯t dare, I don¡¯t dare... I was just drawing an analogy there.¡± As she finished, she changed her expressions immediately and said leisurely as she waved her fan, ¡°Since Brother Ke is so averse to the word ¡®bastard¡¯, then you must naturally also understand the feelings of my little packrat when you called it names, right? I¡¯m just assisting with a thought experiment and helping you look at things from its perspective. What was it called...Ah, I remember, it¡¯s called ¡®perspective-taking¡¯.¡±

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen was so infuriated that the indignation swelled up to his throat and he nearly coughed up blood.

 Chapter 56: Heaping Hostility

    <h4>Chapter 56: Heaping Hostility</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Also, brother Ke doesn¡¯t need to worry too much. My little Packie here is still young and small, and its bark is worse than its bite. These few minor scratches will get better very quickly if you apply some simple balm on them, and they won¡¯t leave anysting scars. Most importantly, these injuries definitely won¡¯t affect your charming and suave image at all.¡± Jun Xiaomo leisurelymented. In particr, thest statement made was clearly made up entirely ofmendations, but it sounded more contemptuous and derisory than anything because of the way she had said it.

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes were burning with so much fury that they may well be balls of me.

    The part that left the other disciplespletely speechless was how that little packrat had promptly squeaked twice right after Jun Xiaomo stated all these things, as though it agreed and understood what Jun Xiaomo was saying.

    Everyone: ......

    Seeing how this owner and his pet echoing one another could really anger a person to death.

    However, Jun Xiaomo could hardly be bothered about what the others thought. Among all who were present, she only concerned herself with what Ye Xiuwen thought.

    Just this moment, Jun Xiaomo felt the back of her hand being gripped by something, then immediately after, a cool finger began writing something on the back of her hand.

    Jun Xiaomo knew right away that the person who held and wrote on the back of her hand was her martial brother. By now, she had already had a fair amount of interaction with Ye Xiuwen and she should already be used to these kinds of interactions. But even so, her hand trembled slightly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions, she could not shake of the strange feelings in her heart.

    In particr, the part of her hand that was held by her martial brother was left with a strange, lingering sensation of warmth.

    Could it be that the incident in the river is causing me to be unable to face martial brother Ye normally? Jun Xiaomo felt like crying as she contemted this possibility.

    The little packrat that was still hiding in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes noticed her hesitance, and it lifted its head, looked directly and Jun Xiaomo and squeaked twice.

    But Jun Xiaomo ignored it because she was still deep in her thoughts.

    Immediately, the little packrat¡¯s eyes shed with an expression of deep displeasure, but all of this waspletely overlooked by the distracted Jun Xiaomo.

    And the reason for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s distraction was the fact that Ye Xiuwen had written some words on the back of her hands twice before she finally understood what Ye Xiuwen was saying.

    ¡°Quit while you¡¯re ahead.¡± This was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s written advice to her.

    Ye Xiuwen did not think that what Yao Mo had done so far was wrong in any way. However, he knew that Ke Xinwen was not as harmless and magnanimous as he appeared to be. Ye Xiuwen feared that if Yao Mo provoked and offended Ke Xinwen too much, Yao Mo might find himself the target of Ke Xinwen¡¯s deranged vengeance.

    After all, Ke Xinwen was hardly a magnanimous person to begin with. His ¡°magnanimity¡± was only an appearance to fool others.

    Jun Xiaomo also knew this. Therefore, she secretly nodded slightly to Ye Xiuwen, signaling that she was going to take his advice. Her cultivation was still rather low right now, and even with her formation arrays and talismans, she might not be able to escape from Ke Xinwen¡¯s schemes without any losses.

    Most importantly, she was not prepared to die just yet.

    Having collected her thoughts, Jun Xiaomo poured out a cup of tea, walked over to Ke Xinwen and spoke to him with a much more earnest tone, ¡°Actually, I might have said some things in a fit of anger earlier. The little packrat can¡¯t be said to be entirely innocent either. After all, the fact that it did injure brother Ke is a reality. Therefore, I¡¯ll take this chance to formally apologize to brother Ke.¡± As Jun Xiaomo said that, she finished the cup of tea in front of Ke Xiuwen, and diplomatically poured a cup of tea for Ke Xinwen as well.

    ¡°With tea as a substitute for alcohol, I hope that brother Ke will be able to ept my sincerest apologies.¡± Saying that, Jun Xiaomo offered the fresh cup of tea to Ke Xinwen.

    However, Ke Xinwen stared coldly at the cup of tea in front of him, as though it had beenced with poison.

    This was not unexpected either. After all, Ke Xinwen¡¯s nose was still immensely swollen; how was he going to be able to ept Jun Xiaomo¡¯s apology that easily?

    But Jun Xiaomo continued to hold up the cup she offered to Ke Xinwen as she looked at him with determination in her eyes, awaiting his next move.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that given how Ke Xinwen loved appearing to be magnanimous in front of others, it was only going to be a matter of time before he epted the cup of tea from her.

    As expected, after Ke Xinwen had deliberated for a while, he managed to adjust the expressions on his face and eke out a smile before receiving the cup of tea from Jun Xiaomo. Then, he pretended tough heartily as hemented, ¡°I¡¯ve also been a little bit irresponsible in my speech earlier ¨C I hope brother Yao doesn¡¯t hold it against me. Your little pet is truly smart and spiritually aware!¡±

    It¡¯s so smart and aware that it even knows what ¡°little bastard¡± means! Ke Xinwen gritted his teeth as he silently added in his heart.

    Even so, the few martial brothers who were closer to Ke Xinwen stared at Jun Xiaomo with indignation as they wondered in awe how magnanimous their martial brother had to be if he could find it in him to forgive that person in front of their eyes right now.

    Furthermore, because of how close they were to Ke Xinwen, they naturally felt aggrieved for him.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was actually trying to suppress theughter in her heart so much that she felt like she was going to suffer from an aneurysm. How could she not see the pretentiousness in Ke Xinwen¡¯s ¡°magnanimity¡± here?

    In her heart, Jun Xiaomo hoped that Ke Xinwen would not sumb to his anger, or it would no longer be fun for her to get back at Ke Xinwen. Even though Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue at Ke Xinwen in her heart, her facial expressions remainedpletely sincere and apologetic.

    Just this moment, Qin Lingyu, who had been watching the drama unfurl at the side, finally spoke up. He spoke with a cool and suave charm about him, ¡°Alright, brother Yao is a friend that we¡¯ve just met, and there¡¯s no need to let this small incident affect our rtionship. After all, having another friend is always better than having another enemy. Isn¡¯t that right, brother Yao?¡±

    On the surface, Qin Lingyu¡¯s words seemed to be mediating the conflict. However, if one looked below the surface, it would be apparent that the veryst statement consisted of a double entendre which was used to threaten Jun Xiaomo and warn her that if she did not appreciate the kindness extended to her right now, they would be enemies.

    Jun Xiaomo silently gritted her teeth as she suddenly found this scumbag Qin Lingyu to be even more hateful ¨C his threats were so skillful that they exceeded Ke Xinwen¡¯s abilities by a magnitude of ten times or more!

    Forget it. The current Jun Xiaomo was unable to deal with both Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen at the same time, and it would be wise to bide her time.

    Once Jun Xiaomo made up her mind, she looked over at Qin Lingyu with a smile on her face as she responded, ¡°Brother Qin is right. Having another friend is definitely better than having another enemy.¡±

    After hearing Qin Lingyu¡¯s words, the other disciples from Dawn Sect also stopped looking at Jun Xiaomo with hatred in their eyes, and they picked up their teacups and drank the tea that had already be lukewarm by now.

    Qin Lingyu was the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader of Dawn Sect after all, and his words naturally carried much more authority than anyone else present. Since he had already evinced an intention to stop pursuing this issue, then what more could the other disciples do?

    Yet Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart swelled with indignation once more as he felt that Qin Lingyu seemed to havee out above him yet again.

    Yu Wanrou also heard Qin Lingyu words. After thinking about it, she looked up gently at Jun Xiaomo as she said softly, ¡°Brother Yao, actually this entire incident started because of me. If not for the fact that I thought this little packrat was cute and wanted to take a closer look and cuddle it, you and brother Ke wouldn¡¯t have had such a big argument.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately ridiculed her in her heart ¨C I¡¯m d you know.

    Ridiculing in her heart was one thing; but Jun Xiaomo had to be careful of what she expressed outwardly to others. She collected the frustrations in her heart before she flicked open her fan and said charmingly, ¡°That¡¯s where the beauty is wrong. In this incident, I was wrong, and the little packrat was wrong, but the beauty isn¡¯t wrong. In fact, that my packrat¡¯s willfulness had caused this beauty such sorrow is truly Yao Mo¡¯s transgression.¡±

    This move by Jun Xiaomo was modelled after the aristocratic princes from her previous life. When she was escaping for her life, she had also met with several people who had not recognized her identity as the Lady Demoness. Among these people, some aristocratic princes even openly teased her with ¡®beauty-this¡¯ and ¡®beauty-that¡¯, causing her to feel so upset that she wished she could just take an open swipe at them and knock them all the way to Java Ind.

    Jun Xiaomo was not aware of how others would normally act in front of ¡°beauties¡± like Yu Wanrou, and how one should respond. Therefore, she could only learn from her own experience and model her behaviour after some of these old aristocratic princes.

    What Jun Xiaomo did not expect was that this turned out to be more effective than she thought. She could see how Yu Wanrou¡¯s face immediately flushed red again, saying, ¡°Brother Yao is teasing me. With such a sweet tongue, I bet brother Yao must have a lot of suitors chasing after him.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Don¡¯t I know it?

    Jun Xiaomo instinctively raised her fan slightly to obscure her twitching lips once again, as she thought that Yu Wanrou¡¯s responses today seemed to challenge what she knew of Yu Wanrou in the first ce.

    In fact, what Jun Xiaomo did not know was that her Alteration Talisman was drawn so well that her present appearances could be considered above average, even among all the good-looking people in the cultivation world ¨C

    A sixteen years-old young man, cherry-red lips and pearlescent-white teeth, suave and charming appearances replete with cherry blossom eyes that were filled with a deep, profound gaze. These were all attributes that could easily charm a youngdy and make her fall in love. Above all that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s upbringing had imbued her with a dignified air like an aristocratic prince. Therefore, when Yao Mo raised his eyebrows earlier and hooked his lips in a charming smile, his looks momentarily left Yu Wanrou flushed with embarrassment.

    The final appearance from an Alteration Talisman was affected by a number of factors, including the user¡¯s own appearances, the quality of the Alteration Talisman, and the grade of the Alteration Talisman. If the Alteration Talisman¡¯s grade is too low, even if the user was a handsome man or a beautifuldy, the end result would still very well be that of an ugly appearance.

    Jun Xiaomo had been extremely concerned with the Alteration Talisman losing their effects prematurely, and she prepared these talismans with the utmost care. She drew each stroke of the brush extremely conscientiously and meticulously; she imbued the talismans with a considerable amount of spiritual energy, and she even used talisman paper of a high quality. Furthermore, even though Jun Xiaomo had not reached the age of maturity, her tender looks could nevertheless be considered quite good-looking.

    Therefore, under the confluence of all these factors, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present appearance was extremely charming and suave. If one overlooked Yao Mo¡¯s earlier imposing disposition and sharp tongue, and focused on how Yao Mo was sitting there in a dignified manner, waving his fan leisurely with a warm smile on his face, Yao Mo¡¯s deep gaze at anydy right now would immediately cause sparks to fly and charm thatdy so much so that she cannot help but think that ¡°he likes me¡±.

    The most important point was that many female cultivators swooned over male cultivators with unique personalities, a sweet tongue, and a slightly ¡°bad boy¡± personality.

    Yu Wanrou was not a faithful person. It was quite evident from the harem of male cultivators she had under her skirt in her previous life that she enjoyed the feeling of being surrounded and fawned over by throngs of male cultivators. Therefore, when Yao Mo kept calling her a beauty, she could not help but begin to feel moved by Yao Mo.

    Despite Yao Mo¡¯s low cultivation, the fact that he was able to rescue Ye Xiuwen meant that his abilities were more than meets the eye. Yu Wanrou¡¯s bit down on her lower lip as these thoughts crossed her mind, and a gleam shed across her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo never thought that Yu Wanrou would actually make her male persona one of her targets of pursuit. At present, she only wanted to know whether she would be able to live to see the next day ¨C

    As Yu Wanrou¡¯s words left her mouth, Jun Xiaomo immediately received two threatening gazes staring daggers at him.

    The first gaze was from Qin Lingyu, whose gaze was like the cold gaze of a deadly, poisonous snake waiting to strike; while the second gaze came from Ke Xinwen, whose fiery gaze looked like he wanted Jun Xiaomo to spontaneouslybust and die.

    Haha!Who would have thought that I would be lucky enough to experience this amalgamation of ice and fire!

    Indeed, Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou were not fated to be with each other. Despite her changed persona right now, Yu Wanrou still somehow managed to implicate and heap hostility on her.

 Chapter 57: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Protection

    <h4>Chapter 57: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Protection</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Even so, Qin Lingyu did not count someone like Yao Mo qualified to be called his love rival. After gazing momentarily at Jun Xiaomo, he quickly turned his gaze away. On the other hand, Ke Xinwen continued to stare daggers at Jun Xiaomo with a fiery gaze in his eyes. In fact, he could barely maintain the smile on his face at this moment.

    This stood to reason ¨C Qin Lingyu did not even consider people like Ke Xinwen qualified to be called his ¡°love rival¡±, much less this array master Yao Mo whose cultivation was so weak that it was not worth mentioning at all. Yu Wanrou would be blind not to choose him and run to others instead.

    And on the other side, Jun Xiaomo also saw how Ke Xinwen¡¯s was trying so hard to maintain an appearance of magnanimity and heartiness. In fact, even Jun Xiaomo felt tired watching Ke Xinwen ¨C just how much indignation did he have to suppress in order to prevent any of it from showing on his face at this instant? Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan to fan herself, at the same time shielding herself from the deadly re that Ke Xinwen was giving her.

    Just this moment, Zhong Run suddenly spoke up. As though she wanted to see the world burn, shemented with a mocking tone, ¡°Oh? Look at the expression on martial sister Wanrou¡¯s face. It seems that you¡¯ve somewhat fallen for our brother Yao here? It¡¯s understandable though. I feel that brother Yao¡¯s appearances and dignified air are both top notch too. It¡¯s not strange that martial sister Wanrou would set him in her sights.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: Haha...what¡¯s this Zhong Run trying to do? Does she find the amount of hatred heaped on me insufficient?

    The thing that left Jun Xiaomo absolutely speechless was the fact that Yu Wanrou did not even bother to deny Zhong Run¡¯s suggestion. Instead, Yu Wanrou only softly said, ¡°Martial sister Wanrou likes to joke. I¡¯m only stating facts here. Brother Yao¡¯s looks are dignified and charming, and he is even an array master with impressive abilities ¨C I¡¯m certain that there are a lot of women out there who greatly admire brother Yao.¡±

    One of the reasons why Yu Wanrou had not spared Yao Mo anypliments was in order to pave the way for the future. This is because she knew that most men liked admiration and praise from women, as that gave them a sense of aplishment.

    How would she have known that this Yao Mo was in fact ady wearing the appearances of a male? Therefore, no matter how much she was trying to ¡°pave the way¡±, all her efforts were clearly lost on Yao Mo.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo felt so disgusted with the praise Yu Wanrou had showered on her right now that she was extremely tempted to silence her with a Tonguetied Talisman!

    Hearing this, Ke Xinwen¡¯s gaze that was already trained on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body grew even colder. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo absolutely certain that in theing days, as long as Ke Xinwen was able to find the right opportunity, he would attempt to make her vanish under Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes.

    As she strongly suppressed the urge to p a talisman onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips, Jun Xiaomoughed dryly as she responded, ¡°Sister Wanrou and sister Run, you tter me.¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were spoken rather rigidly, yet most people present did not pick out that little nuance in her words. Rather, several male cultivators even felt that Jun Xiaomo was bragging and showing off, and their impressions of Yao Mo worsened even more.

    Did martial brother Ye bring this Yao Mo back to snatch all the attention from martial sister Wanrou and martial sister Run?!

    Fortunately, thanks to the waiter showing up at the most opportune moment, Jun Xiaomo narrowly averted an impending disaster.

    ¡°Food is here~ Dear guests, please enjoy the food...¡± As the waiter eximed, he swiftly walked past Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and set the freshly made food on the table.

    Having browsed around at the market for an entire morning, everyone was already famished by now. The aroma from the various dishes immediately wafted to their noses and excited their pte, and all their attention was immediately shifted away from Jun Xiaomo and onto the table full of dishes.

    ¡°Even though this inn doesn¡¯t seem too big, their dishes are still quite decent. They smell and look good, and I¡¯m sure they also taste great!¡± Jun Xiaomo propped up her chin with her fan as shemented.

    She was also hungry. After all, she and Ye Xiuwen had fought off the frenzied spirit animals for an entire morning, and they had to be even hungrier than those other disciples who had only been window shopping at the market!

    When the others heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯sments, they were once again jolted back to their senses and their attention was brought back to what they were discussing before the food came.

    ¡°Let¡¯s sit down. If we don¡¯t eat now, the food is going to get cold.¡± Ye Xiuwen said calmly, offering Jun Xiaomo an out from her predicament, while at the same time telling everyone else that they should cease their earlier discussions at this point.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately responded to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions and swiftly sat down at the table as she looked at Ye Xiuwen with an appreciative smile.

    Seeing that even Ye Xiuwen had spoken, the other disciples did not dare to press the issue either. Furthermore, they were indeed also very hungry. Therefore, once Qin Lingyu, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo started helping themselves to the food, the others immediately followed suit as well.

    Sharing a meal together has an interesting way of dispelling tensions and mediating conflicts. During this meal, everyone ate, drank and chat merrily, almost as though the earlier conflict never happened at all. There were even several Sect disciples who used tea as a substitute for wine and had a few rounds with Jun Xiaomo as a way of weing her to the group.

    Jun Xiaomo cheerfully obliged each one of them as well as she drank all of the cups of tea offered to her.

    However, she was well aware that these disciples were merely feigning civility with her. Given how bad the start of her journey together with them had been, she knew by extraption that the rest of the journey would not be much better.

    Even so, Jun Xiaomo was someone who hadughed in the face of danger and even death; and these little things could barely be enough to faze her.

    She knew that she would just have to deal with the different situations as they arise.

    After lunch, most disciples went back to their rooms to take a rest. Ye Xiuwen, on the other hand, brought Jun Xiaomo to the concierge and asked if they had a room avable for Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, dear guest. Our rooms are all fully booked.¡± The innkeeper replied apologetically.

    The innkeeper certainly did not wish to reject any business that hade knocking on their doors. However, there was nothing he could do about it ¨C somehow, the number of guests staying at their inn was unusuallyrge these few days, and they had been fully booked out every day by lunchtime.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, are there any otherrge and reputable inns nearby?¡± Jun Xiaomo inquired.

    She emphasized rge and reputable¡± because in these small cities, only therge and reputable inns could offer security and safety to their guests. When it came to the smaller inns, it was more difficult to distinguish the ones that ran an honest business from those that scammed their clients or even robbed and killed their guests.

    This vignce that she was showing right now was clearly gleaned from her previous life¡¯s experiences.

    ¡°Ah, there is one, but the prices might be on the higher side.¡± The innkeeper was not trying to poison the well on hispetition, but he was merely stating facts as things were. That inn¡¯s price to quality ratio was not great, so it could very well still have rooms avable for Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine, since it¡¯s only for one night.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hand as she replied light-heartedly.

    Truth be told, the price of an inn was one thing, but the most important factor to look at was one¡¯s personal safety. Even though she had several talismans in her Interspatial Ring at her disposal, making these talismans nevertheless required a substantial investment of time. Every single talisman she expended meant that she had one less for the future, and it would be tragic if she found herself in a real emergencyter on with no more talismans left at her disposal.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his eyebrows slightly as though he had something to tell Jun Xiaomo. But just in that moment, he saw out of the corner of his eye that Ke Xinwen, who had not returned to his room, was ncing over at their direction.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes shed with a trace of suspicion, before he quickly swallowed the words he was initially going to say to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°...Turn left at the exit, head straight and then turn right at the second intersection. Got it.¡± Jun Xiaomo rified the location of the other inn before thanking the innkeeper. She decided to make a trip to the other inn to take look at it.

    ¡°Brother Ye, it seems that we¡¯ll be separated for the night then.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed as she said to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen nodded, saying, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you to have a look at the other inn.¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately brightened as she said genially, ¡°Then I¡¯ll thank brother Ye in advance!¡±

    She liked hanging around her martial brother. Ever since their interactions in her previous life, she found that Ye Xiuwen brought to her a deep sense of security.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat once again peeked out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes as it gnashed its teeth at Ye Xiuwen and waved its little paws about, almost as though it were displeased that Ye Xiuwen were going to follow them.

    ¡°Stop being rude! This is brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo chided the little packrat as she tousled the hair on its head with her index finger. Seeing this, the little packrat immediately bit onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger. However, it also did not bear to use too much force, and it barely left any marks on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger at all. In fact, Jun Xiaomo was even slightly tickled by the little packrat¡¯s fur, and she chuckled lightly.

    ¡°Alright, be good~ Are you hungry? I¡¯ll give you some pine nuts in a bit.¡±

    Earlier, Jun Xiaomo had fed her little packrat while she was eating, and she thought that her ¡°multi-tasking¡± had resulted in the little packrat not having its fill right now.

    Mimunications indeed arise when people spoke in differentnguages.

    Hearing this, the little packrat let go of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger angrily. After it fiercely red at Jun Xiaomo with its ck, beady eyes for being daft and unable to understand it, it quickly slipped back into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes and buried its head into her clothes.

    ¡°This little packrat exhibits some human-like behaviour.¡± Ye Xiuwen pointed out objectively.

    ¡°Indeed. I also think that my little packrat is quite spiritually aware.¡± Jun Xiaomo said proudly, raising her chin as though she were iming credit for the fact that her pet had great spiritual awareness.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips curled into a wry smile. It once again crossed his mind that this young man was very simr to his little martial sister in certain ways. But in any event, this was not something he was going to tell the young man about.

    ¡°Let¡¯s make haste and head over to the other inn right now. We don¡¯t want to bete and miss out on all the avable rooms.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly reminded Jun Xiaomo of the important task at hand.

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right!¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her head, ¡°Then let¡¯s get going quickly!¡± As she finished, she quickly strode in the direction of their inn¡¯s exit.

    Ye Xiuwen followed quickly behind her. Just before leaving the inn, he secretly nced over at Ke Xinwen once again.

    Even now, Ke Xinwen was still openly staring at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back with dark and murky gaze.

    Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes and picked up his pace as he followed behind Jun Xiaomo.

    After departing some ways from the inn, Ye Xiuwen turned his head around and looked at the spritely Jun Xiaomo as he said with a somber expression on his face, ¡°Yao Mo, be careful of Ke Xinwen.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily stunned, before she quickly recovered and understood what Ye Xiuwen was trying to say.

    Earlier, her thoughts were still immersed in some other matters, and she was only jolted back to her senses when Ye Xiuwen said these things to her.

    ¡°Mm! I¡¯ve got it. Brother Ye doesn¡¯t have to worry too much.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen, even as her heart grew warm from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s concern for her.

    Once Ye Xiuwen had decided to protect someone, he would be absolutely serious about it.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that since Ye Xiuwen had agreed to bring her back with him, he would also in some ways assume responsibility over her protection. At the very least, he was not going to let people like Ke Xinwen hurt her, much less take her life.

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it, before saying to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Oh yes, brother Ye, since I¡¯m already calling you brother Ye, you don¡¯t have to call me Yao Mo anymore. It feels so distant. Maybe you could call me Little Mo instead?¡±

    Little Mo, Xiaomo ¨C they both sounded exactly the same. This would allow her to feel even closer to Ye Xiuwen whenever he calls her.

    Little Mo...Ye Xiuwen could not help but once again be reminded of his little martial sister. But this time, he was able to recover from his dispiritedness very quickly.

    ¡°Alright, Little Mo.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded as he suppressed the awkwardness in his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo also smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen in response.

    Suddenly, Ye Xiuwen stopped in his tracks, and he furrowed his eyebrows slightly.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Even though Jun Xiaomo was unable to see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions under his veiled conical hat, but she could tell from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions that something was not right.

    Ye Xiuwen did not immediately answer Jun Xiaomo, but instead, he released his divine sense and probed around at their surroundings.

    Shortly after that, Ye Xiuwen replied with a grimace, ¡°I think someone might be following us using a Tracker Paper Crane.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen and Ke Xinwen were both at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, so even if Ke Xinwen had used a Tracker Paper Crane on them, Ye Xiuwen could only vaguely sense this.

    But Ye Xiuwen trusted in his senses.

    ¡°Could it be Ke Xinwen who¡¯s tracking us?¡± Jun Xiaomo was at the first level of Qi Mastery, and naturally she would not be able to sense the existence of the Tracker Paper Crane unless she used a True Sight Talisman.

    After all, Tracker Paper Cranes could conceal themselves as they followed their target, and while they remained effective, they would be able to report on a real-time basis the rough location of their target.

    If it were Ke Xinwen, then everything would make sense. He obviously wanted to learn of the location of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lodging so that he could sneak over at night and dispose of his love rival, Yao Mo.

    The norms of the cultivation world were quite different from the mortal world. After all, as long as no one decides to pursue the matter, it was not umon or uneptable for cultivators to kill another cultivator.

    ¡°Unless you¡¯ve got other enemies, there¡¯s a good chance that it is him.¡± Ye Xiuwen said coldly.

    Having realized that she had very quickly be Ke Xinwen¡¯s target, she was momentarily bbergasted.

    ¡°Where would I find so many enemies... It¡¯s just my dumb luck that Yu Wanrou had repeatedly drawn so much hatred to me today.¡± Jun Xiaomo said in dismay. She had always been the one to put people in a difficult position; and this time she was finally getting a taste of her own medicine.

    Furthermore, the fact that Yu Wanrou had done so unintentionally made her so annoyed that she wanted to cough up blood.

    ¡°Let¡¯s ignore it for now, and pretend that we¡¯re unaware.¡± Ye Xiuwen intimated as he proceeded to walk ahead.

    ¡°Mm, mm. I also think so.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded as she picked up her pace and followed along as well.

    After thinking for a moment, Ye Xiuwen turned around to look at Jun Xiaomo as he said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have a way to ensure your safety.¡±

    Seeing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s serious expression, Jun Xiaomo could not help but look at Ye Xiuwen with an appreciative expression, responding in a simrly serious fashion, ¡°Mm. I know that, and I trust brother Ye.¡±

    That¡¯s right ¨C she had always believed Ye Xiuwen, not only for his personality, but also for his abilities.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo had her own ways of dealing with Ke Xinwen. In her past life, she had been the notorious Lady Demoness which had eluded the clutches of these righteous, reputable sects for countless years after all. How could she not have the means to preserve her own life right now?

    That said, Jun Xiaomo also cherished the fact that she could once again experience Ye Xiuwen¡¯s protection and shelter over her in this life.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo wondered whether the countermeasures in her mind were the same as what martial brother Ye was thinking of, and her eyes revealed a meaningful and irreverent gaze.

 Chapter 58: Continuously Courting Calamity

    <h4>Chapter 58: Continuously Courting Cmity</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As expected, the other inn was not as crowded as the inn which Ye Xiuwen had put up in. This great hall had only a few tables upied by guests, while most of the other tables were presently empty.

    However, this was partially also due to the fact that most guests had already taken their lunch by now and had all returned to their rooms to rest.

    ¡°Innkeeper, could we know if you still have rooms avable?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked up to the front desk of the inn as she asked politely.

    Few guests would usuallye looking for lodging at this time of the day, so this innkeeper was even taking his afternoon nap right now. As soon as he heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s inquiry, he quickly came to his senses and enthusiastically responded, ¡°Heyyo! Let me have a look for you!¡± Seeing that he had new guests, the innkeeper was once again filled with vigor. He flipped through his guest book quickly before looking back at Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°Dear guests, I¡¯m so sorry but the best room I have left is a mid-grade room. Would that be alright for you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at the price list, and it immediately urred to her that the prices of this inn¡¯s rooms were on average over ten spirit stones more than the other inn.

    No wonder everyone would pick that inn over this one.

    Nevertheless, Jun Xiaomo smiled as she responded, ¡°That¡¯s alright. Then I¡¯ll trouble you to prepare a mid-grade room for me please.¡± Being out on travels right now, Jun Xiaomo naturally managed her own expectations. As long as she had a ce to rest and a roof over her head, she did not require much else for her lodging. After all, regardless of how exquisitely well-designed these rooms were, they were not her home, and she was going to be on her way the very next day.

    ¡°Excellent-o!¡± The innkeeper registered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s details in his guest book, epted payment in spirit stones, and then directed an attendant to bring Jun Xiaomo to the fifth room on the second floor. Ye Xiuwen also followed suit.

    ¡°Dear guests, this is your room. Please let me know if you have any other requests. I¡¯m the attendant in charge of rooms on this floor.¡± The attendant bowed to Jun Xiaomo as he said.

    ¡°Alright, there¡¯s nothing much for now. Thanks.¡± After Jun Xiaomo nodded to the attendant, the attendant bowed again before taking his leave.

    Jun Xiaomo entered the room and immediately sized up the room¡¯s furnishings and decors. Even though this was only a mid-grade room, its overall designs and furnishings were pretty decent. The room was spick and span, and there was even a scented incense diffusing calming and soothing aromas in the room.

    ¡°Seems that I¡¯ll be staying here tonight. It turned out much nicer than I expected. Those few spirit stones were well spent after all.¡± Jun Xiaomo sat down as she poured out a cup of water for Ye Xiuwen and herself.

    Ye Xiuwen did not immediately step foot into the room. He stood at the entrance and probed about his surroundings with his divine sense for a while, before finally stepping into the room and closing the room door.

    Jun Xiaomo paused in her actions as she turned to look at Ye Xiuwen, giving him an inquisitive look ¨C Is that Tracker Paper Crane still around?

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head. It was unclear whether that meant that ¡°the crane is no longer there¡±, or ¡°I can¡¯t tell whether the crane is still there¡±.

    However, since Ye Xiuwen did not speak, Jun Xiaomo also would not rify her queries for now. After all, some higher-grade Tracker Paper Cranes were even equipped with the ability to listen in on its target. Since their goal was to find a method to deal with this scheming person, they naturally did not want to unduly alert him.

    Ye Xiuwen sat down at the table, lifting his cup and slowing sipped a mouthful of water.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that Ye Xiuwen was now attempting to determine more carefully the existence of the Tracker Paper Crane, and this required apletely still and quiet environment. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo did not make any sounds to disturb Ye Xiuwen, and she sat there drinking her water, admiring the expressions Ye Xiuwen made when he was serious.

    Alright, even though she could not see anything under his veiled conical hat, she could still imagine what Ye Xiuwen looked like.

    After a while, Ye Xiuwen finally spoke up, ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be around anymore. It seems that that person¡¯s main goal was to find out where you would be lodging tonight. If he¡¯s going to take any actions, it would likely be in the still of the nightter.¡±

    ¡°Phew. It¡¯s good that it¡¯s no longer around. I was almost about to lose it there. It¡¯s so stifling having to act as though I¡¯m unaware when someone is tracking me.¡± Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan and fanned herself vigorously as though she were blowing away two hours¡¯ worth of frustrations that she had experienced earlier.

    And the reason why her frustrations stretch for the preceding two hours was precisely because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was already filled with immense displeasure ever since she met and interacted with Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and their entourage.

    After all, there were several nemeses from her previous life in that crowd, and yet she was unable to do anything about it because her present strength was insufficient. How could she not feel dismayed and exasperated?

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Yao Mo¡¯s carefree and light-hearted demeanor, and he made a bemused expression on his face. Yao Mo¡¯s expressions and demeanor in front of the others werepletely different ¨C he even wore that dignified, aristocratic appearance and fooled almost everyone there.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen also knew that it was because Yao Mo trusted him that he was willing to reveal his true self to Ye Xiuwen at this instant. Therefore, he would not let Yao Mo¡¯s trust be misced.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be safe for you to stay her alone tonight. Why not move back to my room and stay with me?¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly but seriously suggested.

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was dumbfounded. She would never have thought that this was what her martial brother meant when he said, ¡°I will protect you¡±!

    Move...move back to martial brother¡¯s room? Then what was the point of going through the trouble of finding a room in this inn to begin with?

    As though he understood the hidden meaning under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier exmation, Ye Xiuwen went on to exin his rationale, ¡°If you didn¡¯t find a room here and directly came back to my room, then the person tracking you would definitely discover that we¡¯ve already been alerted to his intentions. Then, he might well resort to even more insidious methods to deal with you. But now, since he knows you¡¯re going to be lodging here, he won¡¯t think too much about it and he would simplye here to dispose of you. My intention is to let him make a wasted trip. By then, even if he guesses that you¡¯re residing in my room, he won¡¯t be able toe up with another n to deal with us on the spot.¡±

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo choked on a mouthful of water and coughed violently. Once she recovered, she stammered, ¡°But...but I might be imposing on you if I stayed at your room, right?¡±

    I¡¯m a girl after all! How can I live together with her martial brother like that!!! Especially once I expose my true identity, how am I going to face martial brother afterwards...

    Besides, she knew that Ye Xiuwen did not like others toe too close to him. In her previous life, she had resided in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode for three whole years, but her room and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rooms were nevertheless separated by a whole yard in between them, and they never once rested in the same room together. Furthermore, males and females should not be so closely associated. Even if they did not do anything indecent in the same room, others might easily misunderstand them.

    The little packrat also heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion, and it promptly peeked out from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes, leapt on the table, and angrily squeaked away at Ye Xiuwen as it waved its paws about in fury.

    It was almost as if it was saying ¨C I will protect my master. Mind your own business!

    Ye Xiuwen frowned a little, as though he understood what this little thing meant as it squeaked furiously.

    ¡°Let something as small as you protect Yao Mo, are you sure?¡± Once Ye Xiuwen said these words, he immediately caught himself. He had never thought there would be one day when he would be responding to a little packrat¡¯s squeaks.

    Yet the most amazing thing was that this little packrat seemed to understand Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words. It immediately slowed down the frequency of its squeaks and rubbed its paws on its cute little cheeks. Then, it curled up into a ball of fur on the table, buried its head in its body and stopped squeaking altogether.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Jun Xiaomoughed out loud, and the earlier awkwardness in her heart also subsided substantially. However, she still felt that it might not be a great idea for her to reside with Ye Xiuwen, so she turned down Ye Xiuwen¡¯s good intentions, saying, ¡°I appreciate brother Ye¡¯s concerns. But I¡¯ve already brought enough troubles to brother Ye, and I don¡¯t want to keep imposing on brother Ye to help me deal with all these issues.¡±

    However, Ye Xiuwen interpreted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s refusal as a polite rejection for upying his own room. Therefore, he changed tact and insisted with a warmer tone, ¡°It¡¯s fine. This is the best method to deal with the person tracking you.¡±

    Indeed, with a cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery guarding her, Ke Xinwen would never dare to rush into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room to attack Jun Xiaomo.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo knit her eyebrows into a thick knot as she said with a troubled expression on her face, ¡°That...I could set up some formation arrays here.¡±

    This was in fact Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intention right from the outset. She would meet Ke Xinwen¡¯s carelessness andcency with her preparations by setting a massive trap and stumbling block for Ke Xinwen!

    Ke Xinwenpletely did not understand the ways and working of an array master. He had always thought with abjectcency that array masters at the first level of Qi Mastery were hardly going to be any concern to him. However, what he did not appreciate was the fact that the greatest advantage formation arrays had over spells, talismans and pills were that they barely required any spiritual energy to activate these formations. This was because their main source of spiritual energy was the energy within the spirit stones that formed part of these arrays, and not the array master¡¯s spiritual energy. Therefore, even an array master at the first level of Qi Master would still be able to set up killer formation arrays as long as he has enough time and a profound understanding of formation arrays.

    If a cultivator had sufficientbat experience, then he would understand this point extremely clearly ¨C the best way of dealing with an array master was to dispose of him as quickly as possible, rather than drag things out. This was because once an array master had the luxury of time to set up his own formation arrays, the result would be extremely difficult to deal with.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen understood this point. However, he did not think that Yao Mo would be able to rest well without any concerns just because he had a little bit of time to set up his formation arrays.

    ¡°This room is too small. It¡¯s not going to be easy to set up formation arrays. Furthermore, you don¡¯t have a lot of time to prepare, and it seems unlikely that you would be able to set up any strong formation arrays with the limitation of time. Once the perpetrator breaks through your formations, you will certainly be in danger.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s analysis was on point. It was a well-known fact that setting up formation arrays inrge, open spaces were much easier. Inparison, the room was too small and contained too many things that would obstruct and hinder the setting up of these formations. Therefore, if Jun Xiaomo were to set up her formation arrays, she would have to take these things into considerations and work around these restrictions.

    ¡°This...¡± Jun Xiaomo found herself at a loss, and she could not find any good ways to rebut Ye Xiuwen¡¯s opinions.

    ¡°Then, it¡¯s settled.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders firmly as he concluded their discussions unterally.

    Jun Xiaomo also knew that no matter what other reasons and excuses she put up at this point would be immediately rebuffed by Ye Xiuwen because his method was truly the safest. She would be wise not to reject his good intentions anymore.

    It¡¯s so frustrating... Jun Xiaomo once again found herself in a tricky position because of her foolish decision to follow Ye Xiuwen as a male cultivator.

    Forget it. Cheer up! Let¡¯s prepare some ¡°gifts¡± for our ¡°guest¡± tonight! Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and decided to take out her frustrations on her unfortunate perpetrator.

    Indeed, even though Jun Xiaomo hade to terms that she would be staying at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tonight, she had not dismissed her earlier intentions to set up formation arrays within this room. However, she would be making some alterations to her earlier ns.

    Her earlier intention was to set up only defensive formations. However, how that she was no longer going to be living in the room, there was no need for any more defensive formations.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo hooked her lips into a wicked smile. If people from her previous life saw this wicked smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face right this moment, they would immediately know that Jun Xiaomo was scheming against someone.

    But now, the person being schemed against was still confidently sitting in his own room in the inn, nning his course of action to dispose of this thorn in the flesh, Yao Mo.

    It¡¯s not his first time killing someone anyway. When he first entered the Dawn Sect, he had already killed a talented martial brother who had exceeded him in all he did.

    Therefore, as he fantasized about how Yao Mo would die a horrible death tonight, Ke Xinwen¡¯s face glowed with a sinister, macabre smile.

 Chapter 59: Digging a Hole; Inviting a Guest

    <h4>Chapter 59: Digging a Hole; Inviting a Guest</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In the next two hours that followed, Jun Xiaomo managed to set up several formation arrays within the room in preparation for her guest that night. Then, she prepared to leave with Ye Xiuwen for his room. Just before leaving the inn, Jun Xiaomo even used a drop of her own blood to create a Humanoid Puppet and set it on the bed, as though Yao Mo was sleeping.

    Since they wanted to put up a false front, they naturally had to go all out. Otherwise, once the ¡°guest¡± discovers that there was no one in the room, he might very well guess where Yao Mo had gone and leave the ce, in which case all the formation arrays set up by Jun Xiaomo would have gone to waste.

    Ye Xiuwen stood by the side as he watched Jun Xiaomo busy herself. He was unable to render any assistance to her given his limited knowledge of formation arrays. Then, when he saw Jun Xiaomo bring out a small paper man and create a Humanoid Puppet from it, Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously. He had just discovered that this young man was much more meticulous than he looked.

    ¡°Alright!¡± After setting the Humanoid Puppet on the bed, Jun Xiaomo pped her hands together and covered the puppet with a nket.

    From the outside, one could vaguely make out the shape of a human being underneath the nket, as though someone were sleeping underneath.

    ¡°It¡¯s such a pity that my cultivation is too low, and I can¡¯t make this Humanoid Puppet move. Otherwise, I could even turn this into an offensive weapon and cause some serious problems for that person who¡¯s scheming against me! Hmph!¡± Jun Xiaomo boasted as she proudly raised her chin.

    Ye Xiuwen pretended to cough into a fist, preventing a smile from eking out on his face.

    He just realized how impish this young man actually was ¨C he would sometimes act a little bit clumsily, while at other times he would be so smart and meticulous that others could only gasp in admiration.

    As to the fact that the person scheming against this young man was very likely to be a fellow disciple from the Sect, Ye Xiuwen knowingly turned a blind eye to this. Since Ke Xinwen had wanted to hurt someone, he had better be prepared if others set up countermeasures against him as well.

    ¡°Ah...I feel like I¡¯m forgetting something as well. What could it be?¡± Jun Xiaomo racked her brains as she went over the checklist of what she had to do. However, it was almost as though she had used too much of her brainpower earlier, and she currently drew a nk on what it was exactly she had forgotten.

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen chuckled softly as he suggested, ¡°Aren¡¯t you forgetting your Invisibility Talisman? Or do you intend to brazenly walk back to my room with me?¡±

    Since Yao Mo had decided to pretend that she was still staying at this inn, she naturally could not be seen going back to the inn where the others were staying at. Otherwise, how would she exin the existence of two Yao Mo¡¯s?

    ¡°That¡¯s it! That¡¯s what I¡¯ve missed out!¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her head as she promptly retrieved an Invisibility Talisman from her Interspatial Ring and pped it on herself. The Invisibility Talisman immediately glowed with a blue light and enveloped Jun Xiaomo in its dazzling eruption of light. Then, as the blue light faded, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s physical body also disappeared right in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Brother Ye, how is it? This Invisibility Talisman is not too bad, isn¡¯t it?¡± The young man¡¯s voice resounded in the empty room. If others witnessed the present scene, they would definitely think that something strange is going on.

    Ye Xiuwen hooked is lips as he smiled wryly and said, ¡°Mm, it¡¯s not bad.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I also think so.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded pridefully, causing Ye Xiuwen to once again cough into his fist to suppress theughter welling up from within.

    What¡¯s with this young man¡¯s personality ¨C the simrity to little martial sister is uncanny! That talisman isn¡¯t even drawn by him, so what¡¯s he so proud about?

    However, that¡¯s where Ye Xiuwen had got it wrong. This talisman had in fact been drawn by Jun Xiaomo. She had prepared for herself several different types of talismans in preparation for situations exactly like this.

    Of course, this Invisibility Talisman drawn by Jun Xiaomo was still of a rather low-grade. Therefore, the effective period of invisibility is still not too long. As for high-grade Invisibility Talismans, not only would the effective period of invisibility be extremely long, some of them could even mask a person¡¯s voice and conceal his aura, achieving the effect of making a person vanishpletely!

    Under the effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present Invisibility Talisman, as long as a person was of the Golden Core stage of cultivation or higher, he would be able to discover her existence with one look from their eyes. After all, it was easy to conceal her physical appearances, but it was much more difficult to conceal her voice and aura. However, Ke Xinwen¡¯s present cultivation was only at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and the Invisibility Talisman used by Jun Xiaomo was more than enough for her purposes. As long as Ke Xinwen was not alerted to the fact that Jun Xiaomo had followed Ye Xiuwen back to the inn, then there was no way their n could go wrong.

    ¡°Alright, if everything is in order, then let¡¯s depart.¡± Ye Xiuwen stood up as he spoke to the invisible Yao Mo.

    ¡°Alright. Ah, hang on. Let¡¯s me p a Noise-Cancelling Talisman on my little packrat. Otherwise, our cover would be blown if he even makes a peep of sound.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined as she retrieved another talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    Squeak squeak! Since the little packrat was hiding on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, it had also be invisible. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen only heard the little packrat¡¯s objections through his squeaks.

    ¡°Be good, don¡¯t move around so much. It¡¯s just one Noise-Cancelling Talisman. Once the coast is clear I¡¯ll take it off for you, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo assured Packie.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat¡¯s objections became even more violent. However, just as Ye Xiuwen was about to ask Yao Mo whether he needed his own help or not, the little packrat¡¯s squeaking suddenly disappeared, and there was once again silence in the room.

    ¡°Who knew that this little fe would despise the Noise-Cancelling Talisman so much, huh.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she said bemusedly. It took her some effort before she managed to finally p on that Noise-Cancelling Talisman on her little packrat.

    Ye Xiuwen had a feeling that this little packrat was somehow different from the others. It¡¯s behaviour was too human-like. However, as an outsider, it was not really his ce to make suchments either.

    I¡¯ll let these owner and pet duo continue to torment each other then.

    As he thought about it, Ye Xiuwen stepped out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. After giving Jun Xiaomo some time to leave the room as well, he finally shut the door behind him.

    ¡°Dear guest, are you leaving already?¡± The floor attendant wore a smile on his face as he respectfully asked Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right. Oh yes, and my friend is a little bit tired, so he¡¯s gone to bed early. If he doesn¡¯t call for any assistance, then don¡¯t go in and disturb him.¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned the attendant.

    ¡°Oh, oh. Alright. I understand, I understand.¡± The attendant hastily nodded his head.

    ¡°Alright, thanks very much.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded in a refined manner.

    ¡°No need, no need. It¡¯s all in a day¡¯s work. Please watch your step as you leave, dear guest...¡±

    The attendant bowed respectfully to Ye Xiuwen once more as he admired Ye Xiuwen¡¯s dignified air about him, deducing that he must be from an aristocratic family. How he wished that he got more guests like this, rather than the usual riff-raff off the streets ¨C then he would not be subject to their usual hollering and demands.

    Ye Xiuwen turned around and walked down the stairs, and invisible Jun Xiaomo followed closely behind him.

    These two inns were not located too far from each other, and Ye Xiuwen managed to return to his own inn in no time.

    At their inn¡¯s great hall, Ye Xiuwen once again met with Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and the other disciples. They were currently huddled together as though they intended to go out again.

    But that was only to be expected. After all, Jun Xiaomo had spent more than two hours¡¯ worth of time setting up the various formation arrays in her room, and this was more than enough time for the other disciples to have had their afternoon nap.

    ¡°Brother Ye, you¡¯re back. Eh? What about that brother Yao?¡± One of the other disciples noticed Ye Xiuwen return to the inn alone, and he immediately greeted and inquired of Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°This inn has no more guest rooms avable, so I¡¯ve sent him over to another inn. He¡¯s a bit tired from today, so he¡¯s retired for the day and did note back with me.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined calmly. Even though he was clearly lying, no one around could tell from the way he spoke.

    After all, under the direction of Peakmaster Jun Linxuan, the disciples of Heavenly Peak were all known to be righteous cultivation fanatics who were simple-minded. Who would have thought that under the right circumstances, Ye Xiuwen would be able to tell a white lie without even batting an eyelid?

    ¡°It¡¯s good that he didn¡¯te back with you. Then we won¡¯t need to bother ourselves with this burden of an array master.¡± Another straight-talking disciple scorned, evidently annoyed by the way Yao Mo had acted earlier.

    Truth be told, among all the Dawn Sect disciples who were present, none of them respected this array master Yao Mo. They all felt that his cultivation level was too low, and allowing him to follow them would be tantamount to epting a burden.

    Furthermore, the martial sister they were all fond of, Yu Wanrou, had even expressed her strong interest in this Yao Mo character, and this further catalyzed their contempt for him.

    Yet Ye Xiuwenpletely ignored the expressions of these disciples as he calmly added, ¡°Tomorrow, Yao Mo will be leaving and travelling with us.¡±

    ¡°What?! Why do we have to bring him along?¡± Several disciples looked at Ye Xiuwen with a face of astonishment, especially those disciples who were fond of Yu Wanrou who looked like they were all ready to protest.

    They had thought that Yao Mo was only going to join them for a meal, and then they were going to part ways from there. Who knew that their martial brother Ye had actually intended to bring that array master at the first level of Qi Mastery into his own team!

    After all, this entourage would be braving the wilderness and their journey would be fraught with many dangers, so how would they have the time and capacity to look after this piece of trash at the first level of Qi Mastery?

    ¡°This was my decision when I had brought him back with us. As for his being a burden...¡± As Ye Xiuwen nced over at the group of disciples who were ready to protest, he articted each and every one of his words clearly with emphasis, ¡°I can assure each of you, he will not be a burden to us at all.¡±

    All this while, Jun Xiaomo stood at the side observing their interactions silently. When Ye Xiuwen stood up for her without any hesitation, she could not help but smile warmly to herself.

    She had an unwavering trust in her martial brother, so why wouldn¡¯t her martial brother ce some form of trust in her as well? This was despite the fact that she was now interacting with her martial brother as aplete ¡°stranger¡±.

    Perhaps this could also be considered a tacit approval between martial brother and sister. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself as she grinned with her eyes.

    Most of these disciples were still rather reverent of their martial brother Ye Xiuwen. This was not because Ye Xiuwen had a fierce and imposing air about him, but rather because Ye Xiuwen had always carried himself in a respectable, dignified manner. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s somber and serious personality made the other disciples instinctively shun him. Therefore, these disciples were all reticent to directly refute what he had said.

    Especially in times like these, when Ye Xiuwen had made his intentions patently clear, the other disciples did not dare to speak up against him even if they did not believe what Ye Xiuwen had said.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen did not fear Ye Xiuwen as much. But they absolutely did not consider Yao Mo to be any form of threat or burden to them.

    After all, this were merely an array master at the first level of Qi Mastery. If it turns out that he did drag down the entourage, then all they had to do was to toss him aside in the wilderness to fend for himself. This was Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts right now, but he revealed none of it on his cold and suave look on his face.

    As for Ke Xinwen, he had never intended for Jun Xiaomo to live to see the light of another day. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s decision naturally did not mean too much to him.

    With everyone brooding over their own thoughts, the atmosphere between these disciples momentarily became thick and stifling.

    Then, Yu Wanrou suddenly stood up and enthusiastically and warmly suggested, ¡°Actually, meeting each other in these circumstances is also a kind of fate, so why bother about matters of whether he is a burden or not, right? It¡¯s only a pity that brother Yao doesn¡¯t have the time to join us this afternoon. We intend to go over to the other market in town to see if they have the supplies we need for the next leg of our journey.¡±

    Even though they had gone to the eastern market in town for the entire morning, most of their purchases had been some exquisite-looking but practically useless trinkets, or some insignificant cultivation books. Just a little while ago, their attendant informed them that the western market sold talismans, herbs, medicine and other necessities. Therefore, they had decided to spend the afternoon at the western market, taking a look at their wares and buying what was necessary.

    ¡°Brother Ye, do you want toe along with us?¡± Yu Wanrou asked softly as she gazed coquettishly at Ye Xiuwen as though she were hinting at something.

    Jun Xiaomo almost choked as though she had swallowed a fly ¨C Yu Wanrou was so well-practiced in her seduction tactics that these expressions had already be habitual to her. She could even make such an expression at Ye Xiuwen even though she clearly took no interest in him!

    However, it couldn¡¯t be helped that there were so many male disciples who liked such coquettish looks from Yu Wanrou. Of course, these did not include Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly rejected, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m feeling a little bit tired today and I¡¯d like to return to my room early to rest. You may go without me.¡±

    ¡°I see. Then alright. Martial brother, have a good rest. We¡¯ll be departing early tomorrow morning.¡± Yu Wanrou continued considerately.

    ¡°Mm, alright. I hope you guys have fun too.¡± As Ye Xiuwen finished, he nodded indifferently to the others, and then headed straight to his room.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indifference did not attract Yu Wanrou¡¯s ire, because she had long been aware that Ye Xiuwen was a disfigured person, and the male disciples with unappealing looks naturally fell outside the scope of Yu Wanrou¡¯s considerations.

    However, even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indifference did not attract Yu Wanrou¡¯s ire, it did not mean that the other disciples did not mind his attitude either. While they did not dare to express their displeasure in front of Ye Xiuwen, that did not prevent them from speaking about him behind his back ¨C some said that Ye Xiuwen acted on his own and brought an addition to the team without caring about what others thought; while other said that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude was too cold and did not hang out with the others enough; and yet others said that Ye Xiuwen was arrogant and aloof...

    As they listened to theints of these other disciples, Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes glimmered with a meaningful gaze; while Ke Xinwen mocked in his heart ¨C

    So what if you have strong abilities? If you don¡¯t maintain good rtions, nobody would care if you die outside the Sect...

 Chapter 60: Shadow in the Night

    <h4>Chapter 60: Shadow in the Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen did not mind how the other disciples were talking behind his back. Dawn Sect was essentially filled withplicated factions and allegiances vying for power within the Sect. Of all these factions, He Zhang¡¯s was the strongest. It was under these circumstances that Jun Linxuan¡¯s focus on cultivation seemed more of an anomaly than the norm, as he maintained cordiality with all factions and groups and preferred none over the other.

    Under Jun Linxuan¡¯s direction, Heavenly Peak and its disciples had developed a simr personality with an absolute focus on cultivation and a disinterest in all other matters. Even though Ye Xiuwen could sense disciples from other Peaks giving derisory looks at Heavenly Peak and its disciples, he knew that people who walked different paths should stay separate and not force the issue. There was no reason for him to change his personality just so that he could curry favour with others.

    After following Ye Xiuwen back to his room, Jun Xiaomo was about to remove her Invisibility Talisman when Ye Xiuwen stopped her.

    ¡°Little Mo, don¡¯t remove your Invisibility Talisman yet. It¡¯s still early now, and they might still return ande find me after they¡¯re done with their shopping.¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo immediately retracted her hand that was already reaching out for her Invisibility Talisman. Then, sheughed and said with embarrassment, ¡°Brother Ye¡¯s clearly more meticulous. I was just about to remove the talisman!¡±

    Even though the odds of the others looking for Ye Xiuwen were low, it was better to be safe than sorry. Once the others discovered Yao Mo¡¯s presence in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room, then all of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier preparations would have gone to waste.

    Ye Xiuwen could guess the look and expressions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face right now even though he was unable to see her. He smiled wryly as he responded, ¡°It¡¯s fine, as long as you¡¯re aware of it. Oh yes, that little fe in your clothes must be too stifled by now. Let¡¯s let him out then.¡±

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right! I almost forgot!¡± Jun Xiaomo hurriedly retrieved her little packrat and removed the Noise-Cancelling Talisman on its back.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! Once the Noise-Cancelling Talisman had been removed, the little packrat squeaked madly at Jun Xiaomo. It felt humiliated and aggrieved because Jun Xiaomo had ced a Noise-Cancelling Talisman on it before it had given its approval!

    This was the first time that the little packrat blew its top at Jun Xiaomo as well. After all, it had always been very protective and loving of Jun Xiaomo. This only went to show how angry it was right this moment.

    Seeing the furry in the little packrat¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart swelled with remorse.

    She knew that her little packrat was filled with spiritual awareness. But in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, that little bit of spiritual awareness did not change the fact that it was a small creature. Therefore, she did not think too much when she ced the Noise-Cancelling Talisman on it for insurance.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ll seek your approval first next time, right?¡± Jun Xiaomo used her index finger to stroke and tenderly tousle her little packrat¡¯s snow-white fur.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat angrily squeaked two more times, as if to say ¨C There¡¯s still a next time?!

    However, Jun Xiaomo could not understand the hidden meaning behind these two squeaks, and she even thought that her little packrat felt pacified by her cajoling. Therefore, she only continued to stroke its fur in silence.

    The little packrat also knew that Jun Xiaomo had not understood the real reason why it was angry, and in a fit of its frustration it angrily bit down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger. This time, it really bit down hard.

    Jun Xiaomo felt a sharp pain surge from her finger before she immediately felt some dampness on it ¨C the little packrat had drawn blood.

    The little packrat also tasted the stench of blood in its mouth. It gradually reduced its biting strength until finally it licked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger as it gently bit down on it. Once there was no longer any stench of blood, it turned its little body around and ignored Jun Xiaomo.

    Seeing this, Jun Xiaomo could not help but realize how tender and caring her little packrat was towards her. After all, despite being so infuriated, it had nevertheless been extremely reluctant to hurt her.

    Jun Xiaomo once again scratched her little packrat¡¯s head with her index finger. The little packrat also wiggled its ears in response, but it continued to look away from Jun Xiaomo.

    She knew at this moment that the little packrat¡¯s anger wouldn¡¯t dissipate so quickly, so she resigned to continue stroking its fur as she drank tea and chatted with Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Cough... Brother Ye, seems like I¡¯ve made a fool of myself in front of you. This little fe¡¯s temper is something to behold, eh?¡± Jun Xiaomo said slightly abashedly.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I actually think that that¡¯s a rather good thing.¡± Ye Xiuwen sincerely responded.

    Ye Xiuwen sat opposite Jun Xiaomo as he drank his tea leisurely while observing the little scuffle between the pet and its owner. For some reason, he subconsciously smiled to himself.

    He suddenly felt encountering this young man Yao Mo on his travels was not such a bad thing after all. At the very least, Yao Mo brought some excitement and joy to him, and that would beat having to face the cold, scheming duo Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen all on his own.

    Jun Xiaomo could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions, but she could feel that he was in a good mood, and this made her heart lighten up considerably as well.

    Jun Xiaomo tousled the little packrat¡¯s fur a little more, before she was suddenly reminded of something ¨C

    ¡°Oh yes, brother Ye, do you still remember the ckwind Sabretooth Tiger and the swarm of Vampire Demonrats we encountered in those woods?¡±

    ¡°Of course. What about it?¡± Ye Xiuwen lifted his head and looked curiously in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s direction.

    Even though he couldn¡¯t see anyone around, Ye Xiuwen knew that Yao Mo was sitting right there.

    ¡°When we were on our way back earlier, we guessed that someone had a part to y in these encounters because encountering two frenzied spirit beasts in quick session is just too much to be a coincidence. Brother Ye, who do you think the culprit is?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen took a sip of tea, before saying with coldness in his voice, ¡°I have someone that I¡¯m suspicious of, but I can¡¯t be certain.¡±

    ¡°You must be talking about Ke Xinwen, right?¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately exposed the identity of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s prime suspect. Back then, when she and Ye Xiuwen had returned to the inn early and were waiting for the rest at the Great Hall, Ke Xinwen had made a peculiar expression when he returned and noticed Ye Xiuwen sitting there. Both Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had picked up on this before Ke Xinwen managed to adjust his expressions.

    ¡°Indeed, my suspicions are on him. But I wouldn¡¯t draw any conclusions before I find any hard evidence on this.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded.

    He naturally wouldn¡¯t let off anyone who wanted to harm him easily. But at the same time, he would not make bare assertions against others without substantiating these allegations with hard evidence either.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, acknowledging her understanding.

    The truth of the matter was that both Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu had the motive for harming Ye Xiuwen. It would soon time for the annual Sect Ranking Competition. If they sessfully broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage during their travels, then they would naturally be rivals in the Foundation Establishment category in the uingpetition. Historically, Ye Xiuwen had always outshone hispetition. Despite being the Sect Leader¡¯s disciple, Qin Lingyu had never once been able to defeat Ye Xiuwen.

    Thepetition in the Foundation Establishment category had apletely different level of significance from thepetition in the Qi Mastery category. The rankingpetition in the Qi Mastery category would only be watched by a few small sects. But from the Foundation Establishment category and beyond,rge, reputable sects would attend in the audience and watch thepetition closely. Therefore, Qin Lingyu did not want to lose out to Ye Xiuwen again.

    In the Foundation Establishment category Sect Ranking Competition in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Qin Lingyu had indeed surpassed Ye Xiuwen. Back then, Jun Xiaomo had been wholeheartedly rooting for Qin Lingyu, whom she thought excelled in every single discipline in life. Therefore, she did not discover any issues with Qin Lingyu¡¯s victory over Ye Xiuwen. But now, having gained a whole lifetime of experience, she naturally could see the vast difference in strength between Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu.

    But as things stood right now, Jun Xiaomo knew that it was practically impossible for Qin Lingyu to defeat Ye Xiuwen unless he encountered an immense amount of good luck during these travels.

    Jun Xiaomo was now deep in her own thoughts, while Ye Xiuwen casually drank tea as he rxed.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat realized that the finger stroking its head had stopped, and it immediately called out, jolting Jun Xiaomo back to her senses.

    ¡°Eh? What¡¯s up, little fe? Are you hungry?¡± Jun Xiaomo tickled its ears before retrieving a bag of pine nuts from her Interspatial Ring and taking out the biggest pine nut she could find, ced it before the little packrat and said, ¡°Good boy. Have a bite!¡±

    The little packrat looked at the pine nut in despondence, before it suddenlyy t on the table, ying dead.

    ¡°If you¡¯re not hungry...don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re still mad at me?¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly felt that it was getting harder and harder to understand this little packrat.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly because this little packrat was looking directly at Ye Xiuwen with its beady eyes, and Ye Xiuwen could see its ¡°expressions¡± very clearly.

    ¡°It¡¯s not hungry at all. It¡¯s because it thoroughly enjoyed your scratching, and it¡¯s upset that you¡¯ve now stopped.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s how it is!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed in astonishment as she thought to hop over to take a peek at the little packrat¡¯s expressions to see if it were true.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat felt rather upset having had its thoughts exposed by Ye Xiuwen, and it squeaked fiercely at Ye Xiuwen.

    But, given its small stature, its ferocity did not amount to any form of threat at all.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen simply shrugged it off and maintained a calm expression as he continued to sip tea from his cup.

    Jun Xiaomo grew amused by her little packrat. ¡°Pfft!¡± She chuckled as she stroked her packrat¡¯s head, saying, ¡°Alright, I know you¡¯re very capable. Come on, you¡¯ve not eaten anything today. Be good and eat the pine nut. Brother Ye and I have some matters to discuss.¡±

    The little packrat felt dismayed and exasperated. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, it would forever be that little packrat hiding in her clothes, unable to assist with any important matters.

    At least, it was unable to assist with any important matters in its current state.

    Resigned to its fate, the little packrat finally stopped squeaking and pulled the pine nut to its face. Then, it started gnawing on the pine nut unhappily.

    Just like that, the afternoon passed by calmly and peacefully.

    It was night. A ck shadow slipped out from the inn they were staying at and sped towards the otherrge inn.

    This was a small town, and there were not many ces that offered entertainment at night. Therefore, most people had gone home early, and there were only a few stragglers left wandering on the roads. As the ck shadow sped by these wanderers at night, most of them felt as though it were a cool, natural breeze that blew past them, and they did not notice anything strange at all.

    The ck shadow finally arrived at the inn that Jun Xiaomo was supposed to be residing in. Then, it immediately shot up to the corridor on the second floor. The cloud cover momentarily separated, and a dim beam of moonlight shone on the ck shadow and revealed his identity ¨C

    Ke Xinwen was here to confront Yao Mo.

    Second floor, room number five...

    Once Ke Xinwen checked the room number and ascertained that this was the room that Yao Mo was residing in, he circled over to the window at the side, attempting to break in through the windows. Unfortunately, he discovered that both the window and the room door was shut tightly, and it could not be opened.

    ¡°Ah, it seems this Yao Mo fe is rather cautious.¡± Ke Xinwen mocked in his heart. In the next moment, a Wind de flew out and sliced the door¡¯s locking mechanism in half.

    But right in that moment when the lock was cut, the door suddenly glowed with a bright light, and that bright light immediately shot strongly into Ke Xinwen, knocking him back a few steps. Ke Xinwen was knocked so hard that he even almost fell over the second-floor railing.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Ke Xinwen coughed up a mouthful of blood. He had received that sudden blow without putting up any form of guard at all, and he obviously sustained some injuries from it.

    But, to Ke Xinwen, these injuries were only minor at best.

    ¡°Not bad, you certainly have some tricks up your sleeves. But you¡¯re an array master at the first level of Qi Mastery after all, and this is your limit. Pfft.¡± Ke Xinwen spat out a spittoon of blood, took out a medicinal pill and swallowed it.

    Within moments, Ke Xinwen¡¯s chest ceased hurting, and he looked straight at the closed door as his eyes shed with a macabre intent ¨C he had never intended to take this array master¡¯s life; and he only wanted to show him his ce so that this array master would not be able to join their entourage tomorrow.

    But now that this array master had hurt him, how could Ke Xinwen let him off so easily?!

    Ke Xinwen thought about this as he kicked down the doors with murderous intent.

    Earlier, he had used a Wind de to cleave the door¡¯s lock, and Ke Xinwen was naturally able to open the door easily.

    With a vicious grin on his face, he was just about to step through the door when the room suddenly glowed again with another light. This time, Ke Xinwen was prepared, and he quickly stepped to the side, hoping to avoid any burst of force.

    However, the glow of light this time was not a force of repulsion, but a force of attraction. Only Ke Xinwen¡¯s sleeve was caught by this light, but his entire body immediately began to be sucked into the room...

    Bang! The room¡¯s doors mmed shut and startled a bird on a tree outside. But apart from that, no one else found anything amiss.

    Outside the door, things were serene, and the moon hung high. No one was aware of what had just happened here, and what was about to happen shortly.

 Chapter 61: Irresistible Warmth

    <h4>Chapter 61: Irresistible Warmth</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had guessed from the onset that Ke Xinwen would have resorted to violence to force open the door¡¯s lock. Therefore, she had ced two formation arrays on the door frame. The first was an offensive formation array, such that once Ke Xinwen forcefully opened the door lock, the formation array would activate and send a repulsion force towards the person who broke the lock. However, because the spirit stones within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Interspatial Ring were limited and she had to use them sparingly, this formation array would lose its effects after one attack.

    The second formation array set up by Jun Xiaomo at the door frame was a Suction Force Array. Once someone stepped into the formation array¡¯s area of effect, that person would immediately be sucked towards a designated space. Unless the trespasser¡¯s abilities exceeded the limits of the formation array, that person would not have any chances of resisting. Therefore, when Ke Xinwen kicked down the door, he was immediately sucked into the room.

    As can be seen, Jun Xiaomo had chained her attacks perfectly, luring her prey directly into the trap that she had prepared.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s trap had been carefully crafted with Ke Xinwen¡¯s personality in mind. If she were making preparations against Qin Lingyu, she would have set up her formation arrays quite differently. After all, Ke Xinwen¡¯s personality was more of the overconfident and brash type. From his expressions, one could tell that he viewed Yao Mo as nothing more than a lowly cultivator at the first level of Qi Mastery whom he could squash like an ant anytime. Therefore, he would hardly take any precautions against Jun Xiaomo. Everything he did at this moment was absolutely within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s predictions.

    This was the difference between a veteran atbat and a tender chick who had no experience inbat. Jun Xiaomo had dealt with innumerable opponents in her previous life, and people like Ke Xinwen were hardly considered a challenge to her despite his higher cultivation level. Qin Lingyu, on the other hand, might have posed some difficulties.

    When Ke Xinwen had decided to take care of Yao Mo, he never expected this person with such a low cultivation would be able to torment him to such an extent.

    And now, it was toote for Ke Xinwen who had finally started to realize his carelessness. It was easy for him to enter this room, but it would be difficult for him to leave. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had several ¡°gifts¡± awaiting him which would be served shortly.

    But let¡¯s shelf the matters pertaining to Ke Xinwen for a while. On the other side, as she remained safe and sound in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room, Jun Xiaomo also encountered some difficulty on her own part.

    The onset of this dark night did not only signify the end to an eventful day; it also ushered in a night where she would be residing together with her martial brother in the same room.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at that pitiful bed on the side, as she wondered how that small bed was going to contain both of them. Even if she managed to fall asleep, there would be hardly any gap between the two of them...

    As this thought crossed her mind, Jun Xiaomo immediately tensed up with a sense of anxiety and helplessness. She wondered whether it would be better if she tried to ignore these little details and brazenly turn in, or whether she should just sit at the table and stay up all night.

    After all, it was only a matter of time before Ye Xiuwen discovered her true identity. When that timees, how was she going to be able to face her martial brother? At this moment, Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lips and wished that she could once again go back in time and choose to tag along as a female cultivator instead of a male one.

    At the very least, they would not be caught in such awkward situations.

    Actually, the truth was that Jun Xiaomo had let her thoughts wander too much. Even if they shared the same bed, they would at most be sharing the same nket and chatting all night; nothing more was going to happen. Once her identity was revealed, and as long as they were able to speak openly about it, they naturally would not feel any awkwardness about this incident.

    But Jun Xiaomo could not understand why she was so distressed about this arrangement...

    Ssh! A sshing sound of water broke Jun Xiaomo¡¯s train of thought. Her body momentarily froze in shock as she forced herself to stare straight into the dancing me atop the candle and avoided looking at the screen at the corner of the room.

    Ye Xiuwen was currently bathing behind the screen. But because Jun Xiaomo was currently a ¡°man¡±, Ye Xiuwen naturally did not see the need to ¡°hide¡± anything before taking a bath.

    Jun Xiaomo stared directly at the candle for a while longer. Once she realized that Ye Xiuwen had not walked out yet, she could not help but heave a sigh of relief.

    Stop it! It¡¯s not like martial brother is going to walk out stark naked, so what am I so worried about? Jun Xiaomo chided herself in her heart as she shifted her gaze elsewhere and rubbed off the tears welling up inside her eyes.

    Just this moment, the screen was suddenly drawn aside, and a tall,nky figure walked out. Ye Xiuwen was only wearing his bathrobes, tied together by a belt around his waist. He had let down his ink-ck hair which hung freely and extended to his waist. Under the dim glow of the candlelight, one could vaguely make out the shape of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest muscles ¨C firm but not overly bulging. His fair skin had a milky sheen to it under the illumination of the candlelight, as though it had been covered with a thinyer of silk.

    Jun Xiaomo momentarily stopped rubbing her eyes as she stared in astonishment at Ye Xiuwen walking out from behind the screen doors, not knowing how to respond.

    Locking eyes with Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s usually calm gaze surged with waves of unease. He walked over the Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, sat down, poured a cup of tea, and after he took a sip of the tea, he finally spoke, ¡°This scar on my face is caused by an incursion of demonic energy when I was young.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo responded in a daze. It was only after some time that she managed to rpose herself and understand what exactly Ye Xiuwen was saying.

    Why would martial brother suddenly talk about the scar on his face? These were the first thoughts in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind. Then, within moments, she discovered that Ye Xiuwen had taken of his veiled conical hat when he was showering.

    This was what her eyes were telling her ¨C this was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actual appearance without his veiled conical hat.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s original looks must not be too bad. From his eyebrows, his nose bridge, his lips and his cheekbones, one would be able to roughly ascertain that if Ye Xiuwen had not been disfigured by this incursion of demonic energies, he would look very much like a pretty boy with sharp features and a chiseled look.

    But this was the conclusion after a deep analysis of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s facial features. Most other people would be too shocked to continue observing his facial features once they noticed the enormous scar that cut diagonally across his whole face. After all, this scar was not only fierce-looking and ugly, the dark energies within the scar even seemed to be squirming about like a snake.

    This was a curse left behind by a demonic cultivator. Unless someone could find the caster of this spell, or find another special way to dispel the curse, Ye Xiuwen might very well have to live with this scar for the rest of his life.

    The lifespan of spiritual cultivators would be extended in ordance with their cultivation levels. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lifetime could be very, very long ¨C a few hundred years on a conservative estimate; or up to thousands or even ten thousand years if he were lucky.

    Does this mean that martial brother will have to bear this scar his entire lifetime, and wear that veiled conical hat so that others couldn¡¯t see his appearances? Can¡¯t he just remove this scar and directly receive looks of praise and admiration from others, and even openly pursue the woman he loves?

    Thinking about how that scumbag Zhang Shuyue had deceived Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings and lured him into a deadly trap in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart ached ¨C she feared that her martial brother would make the same mistake again. If he once again encountered Zhang Shuyue in this life, what should she do? Should she kill Zhang Shuyue, or should she break her limbs and cripple her cultivation so that she would no longer be a threat to her martial brother?

    Others might find her methods cruel and vicious, but she was a Lady Demoness after all. When it came to people whom she could not care less about, especially her enemies, she was never concerned about what others thought of her methods, as long as she obtained the results that she desired.

    But if martial brother truly fell in love with Zhang Shuyue in this life, both these two methods might hurt his heart as well, would they not?

    Jun Xiaomo felt so upset that she felt as though she were sinking into the abyss. She bit down on her lower lips as she stared vacantly at Ye Xiuwen, and she was even unaware of how her eyes had welled up with tears.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen thought that this young man was stunned and at a loss for words because of his scar. Little did he know that after he finished drinking his tea and looked up again, he was faced with Yao Mo¡¯s now puffy eyes and two streaks of tears down the sides of his face. It was as though he had just been humiliated or aggrieved.

    This time, it was Ye Xiuwen who was shocked ¨C he did not understand why this young man was looking at him and crying like that.

    Furthermore, he was silently tearing, and not bawling pitifully.

    Could it be that his scar looked so terrifying that it even scared a sixteen year-old young man till he cried non-stop?

    Ye Xiuwen rubbed his forehead helplessly, took out a napkin and offered it to Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°Would you like to wipe off your tears?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo received the napkin and wiped her face. Once she had dried her tears, she had also pulled herself back from her thoughts into the present, realizing that she had been tearing up uncontrobly in front of Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Thank you mar--...brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo hung her head low and said softly, biting down on her tongue to prevent the wrong words from slipping out of her mouth.

    She had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she almost called Ye Xiuwen her martial brother and gave away her identity.

    Ye Xiuwen did not notice this brief slip up by Jun Xiaomo, and he only saw the top of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lowered head. After a brief moment of deliberation, he calmly asked, ¡°Yao Mo, are you afraid of the scar on my face?¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was shocked by the question. She raised her head and stared nkly at Ye Xiuwen with some traces of tears left in her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed, repeating, ¡°Tell me the truth. I won¡¯t hold it against you. You won¡¯t be the first one who¡¯s been scared by my scar.¡±

    The other person he was referring to was none other than Jun Xiaomo, that little martial sister of his who was still far away at the Dawn Sect. Jun Xiaomo was six years old back then, and despite being young and immature, she had inadvertently hurt her martial brother.

    However, the present Ye Xiuwen was no longer that weak and sensitive youth that he was back then. He would not grow angry at Yao Mo¡¯s tears, and he would not be upset by Yao Mo¡¯s fear. He had matured enough to be able to calmly deal with strange stares from others right now.

    And the most important thing was that Yao Mo was only a friend whom he had just met. If the person before him right now was Jun Xiaomo, he might not have reacted in the same way.

    After all, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ce in his heart was different from Yao Mo whom he had only just met. Naturally, his expectations and response to each of them would be vastly different.

    Jun Xiaomo heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words and immediately realized that Ye Xiuwen had misunderstood her response. She immediately lifted her head, held onto his arm and told him seriously, ¡°It¡¯s not like that. I don¡¯t think the scar on your face is scary at all!¡±

    What Jun Xiaomo said was the truth. Jun Xiaomo had seen and encountered even scarier and more terrifying things in her previous life, and this scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face could hardly be defined as a scary thing to Jun Xiaomo.

    This was also why she did not immediately notice that Ye Xiuwen had removed his veiled conical hat when he walked into the room after his bath earlier. She absolutely overlooked this terrifying scar of his.

    Yao Mo¡¯s jet-ck pupils stared straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. Under the illumination of that dancing me on the candle, Yao Mo¡¯s eyes were absolutely clear and transparent, like the clear spring waters in the middle of a tranquil, untouched forest. Anyone would be able to see Yao Mo¡¯s emotions through his clear eyes right this moment.

    And Yao Mo¡¯s eyes revealed that he was absolutely serious about what he said. It was so serious that even Ye Xiuwen would not be able to deny it if he wanted to.

    Ye Xiuwen gently sighed, and he even slightly smiled on his face. He stretched out his hand and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, saying, ¡°I know you mean it. Thank you, Little Mo.¡±

    No matter what reason this young man had for caring so much about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thoughts and feelings, his actions were sufficient for Ye Xiuwen to ce Yao Mo¡¯s sincerity on his heart. After all, not many people could find it in themselves to reject thepassion and warmth from others. At least, Ye Xiuwen could not.

    A calm smile melded with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indifferent air about him. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and she smiled with a silly look on her face as well.

    Under the dim orange glow of the candle¡¯s illumination, this room was momentarily filled with warmth and tranquility.

 Chapter 62: Ke Xinwenâ€™s Panic

    <h4>Chapter 62: Ke Xinwen¡¯s Panic</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    But this moment of peace and tranquility did notst too long, and it was soon interrupted.

    ¡°Tss¡ª¡± Jun Xiaomo sucked in a breath of cold air. She felt a twinge of pain on her finger, and looking closer at it under the candlelight, she realized that a drop of crimson blood had seeped out from the tip of her index finger.

    ¡°How did you hurt yourself?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he tried to recall what Yao Mo might have touched idently.

    Jun Xiaomo promptly sucked on her finger for a while until the bleeding stopped before retracting her finger.

    ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t worry. This is not an injury.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she exined. She held her chin and tapped on her cheek as she added, ¡°Remember how I ced a Humanoid Puppet on the bed this afternoon? I had used a drop of fresh blood and a talisman paper plus a basic Humanoid Puppet formation array to create this. Someone has probably just destroyed the Humanoid Puppet, and therefore my drop of blood hase back to my body.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen did not have a very thorough understanding of things like Humanoid Puppets. Therefore, after he heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnation, he curiously raised his eyebrows, ¡°Brother Yao, you seem to know a lot about these things.¡±

    Strictly speaking, Humanoid Puppets are not considered a part of either the discipline of formation arrays, or the discipline of talismans. But at the same time their creation required both talismans and formation arrays. Therefore, it could be said to be an even moreplex discipline than just talismans or formation arrays.

    Furthermore, there were few people from upstanding and reputable sects who would learn to make Humanoid Puppets. This was because many people were of the impression that Humanoid Puppets was a discipline that demonic cultivators liked to dabble in ¨C some demonic cultivators would even temper with the dead and create high-level Humanoid Puppets called ¡°Zombies¡±. These Humanoid Puppets were unable to think for themselves or feel pain, and they would only listen to themands of their creators. It was a terrifying existence.

    Therefore, most people from upstanding and reputable sects would not even bother learning about these Humanoid Puppets to begin with.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen did not know how to create a Humanoid Puppet, this did not mean that he was averse to these matters either. Everything had two sides to them. Knowledge in and of itself did not distinguish between good or evil; rather it all depended on the intentions of those who used this knowledge. For instance, Yao Mo¡¯s creation of a Humanoid Puppet had not involved dead people; and it was used for self-defense purposes only.

    Jun Xiaomo discovered that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s did not reveal any look of disgust in his eyes, so she smiled charmingly at Ye Xiuwen, lifted her chin and said, ¡°But of course! No matter whoes looking for me tonight, as long as he underestimates my abilities, he will definitely meet with a tragic fate. Hmph! Don¡¯t he dare think for a moment that my Humanoid Puppet is just for show. Whoever breaks it will definitely pay for his crimes.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes shed with a trace of bemusement. It once again dawned on him that this young man is very simr to his little martial sister ¨C they both lift their chin like a peacock when they are proud of something they have done.

    However, this proudness was not loathsome at all. In fact, it was in some ways rather charming.

    ¡°Alright, amazing brother Yao, it¡¯s not early anymore. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s about time you took a bath and turned in? We still have to wake up early tomorrow.¡± Ye Xiuwen rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head tenderly as he asked yfully.

    ¡°Pfft...cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo almost spit out her tea.

    Ah, she might have been too pleased earlier that she had almost forgotten the dilemma she was in ¨C should she sleep on the floor or sit at the table the whole night?

    In the end, the fact of the matter was that she actually only had one proper choice, and that was to share the bed with Ye Xiuwen...

    On the other side, just as Jun Xiaomo had expected, Ke Xinwen who had just been sucked into the room had noticed a human-shaped object wrapped under the nket. Thinking that it was Yao Mo, he immediately mustered his Wind de Technique and sent a Wind de shing towards ¡°Yao Mo¡±!

    The Wind de Technique was a fundamental technique of cultivators with wind-based spiritual roots. Even though its name was far from being impressive, it was nevertheless a difficult technique to master. The number of Wind des, the speed of these des, the cutting edge of these des, and even the cultivation level and aim of the user all yed a part in whether the user could draw out this technique¡¯s full potential.

    Even though Ke Xinwen did not have a good control over the Wind des he generated, he nevertheless enjoyed summoning several Wind des all at once. As this swarm of Wind des surged towards ¡°Yao Mo¡±, Ke Xinwenughed out viciously. At this moment, he was absolutely certain that ¡°Yao Mo¡± had just drawn final breath!

    Ke Xinwen awaited Yao Mo¡¯s tragic scream of pain as he got diced by the several Wind des he summoned. However, the only response he got was a loud tremor ¨C Bang!

    Once the Humanoid Puppet on the bed was cut in half, it immediately exploded.

    The immense shockwave generated by the explosion instantly sent Ke Xinwen flying back, causing him to m into the door behind him so hard that it felt as though his internal organs momentarily shifted. But before Ke Xinwen could recover from this impact, another ten sharp Windneedles immediately shot towards Ke Xinwen, plunging straight into his chest area.

    ¡°Cough...cough cough...¡± Ke Xinwen clutched painfully at his chest immediately. His breathing suddenly grew difficult, as though someone was choking him; and every breath he drew would cause him to wince in immense pain.

    Of these ten Windneedles stuck in his chest, three of them had prated directly into the meridians near Ke Xinwen¡¯s Dantian, thereby cutting off the flow of spiritual energy from his Dantian. If he could not get rid of these three Windneedles, then there was a good chance that he would perish here tonight.

    Ke Xinwen immediately retrieved a Spirit Relieving Pill from his Interspatial Ring, stuffed it into his mouth and swallowed it with some difficulty.

    Spirit Relieving Pills were generally used to aid with the flow of one¡¯s spiritual energy after one¡¯s meridian had been clogged up by poison. It was not a cheap pill to obtain, so Ke Xinwen only had three of these pills within his Interspatial Ring. However, Ke Xinwen could hardly care less at this moment. This series of unfortunate events had given him a bad premonition for what is toe.

    Moments after taking the Spirit Relieving Pill, the pain in Ke Xinwen¡¯s chest started to subside. He supported himself on the door panel as he stood up, ring directly at the bed ¨C Yao. Mo! I won¡¯t be a man if I don¡¯t kill you today!

    Ke Xinwen was not only a hot-tempered person, he was also a narrow-minded person. He had thought that killing Yao Mo tonight would have been as easy as squashing an ant. Yet right from the start of his attack until now, he had never managed to gain an upper hand in the situation.

    Let¡¯s not even talk about killing Yao Mo ¨C Ke Xinwen had not even managed to touch the corner of Yao Mo¡¯s clothes at this moment.

    If the person who hade tonight was Qin Lingyu, he would definitely have wised up to the situation and left the room. After all, it was wise to choose to live to fight another day. These formation arrays were clearly set up by the array master Yao Mo and designed to trap any trespassers and chain attacks against them. Continuing to hang around would only be asking for more trouble.

    However, Ke Xinwen was not Qin Lingyu, and once the fire of fury had ignited in his heart, it immediately consumed all his rationality. At present, the only thought running through Ke Xinwen¡¯s mind was to tear Yao Mo to pieces!

    Where¡¯s Yao Mo?! Ke Xinwen jolted to his senses as he discovered the bed waspletely empty, and not a single person was there.

    ¡°Very good. You¡¯re actually hiding from me!¡± Ke Xinwenughed sardonically, ¡°You¡¯ve got a couple of tricks up your sleeves, huh. But I don¡¯t believe that you can hide from me the whole night!¡±

    Yet, even at this point in time, the possibility that Yao Mo was not in that room did not even cross Ke Xinwen¡¯s mind ¨C Yao Mo, or Jun Xiaomo, was currently enjoying tea and chatting leisurely with her beloved martial brother right now! She was probably even imagining Ke Xinwen¡¯s looks right now when he had stumbled upon the different traps she hadid for him in the room!

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen retrieved arge sword from his Interspatial Ring, walked over to the cupboard and viciously shed away at it. The wooden cupboard was immediately cleaved in two. Yet, the insides werepletely empty.

    Ke Xinwen had thought that Yao Mo would be hiding in his cupboard, and thus he had cleaved it in two with hisrge sword. But as it turned out, there was no trace of Yao Mo in the cupboard.

    ¡°Ah, very good! Then let me see if you¡¯re hiding under the bed!¡± Ke Xinwen lunged at the bed with a manic look on his face before swiftly sending a few Wind des towards the bottom of the bed. Yet once again, nothing happened.

    However, Ke Xinwen did discover a small note on the bed at this moment. This small note emitted a faint glow, as though it had been soaked in a special liquid. The note read ¨C Dear Uninvited Guest, are you feeling mad because you can¡¯t find me? Haven¡¯t you heard of something called an Invisibility Talisman? I love seeing that look of despondence on your face. :)

    The raging fury in Ke Xinwen¡¯s chest momentarily erupted. He chuckled coldly as he crumpled the little note and tossed it fiercely into the ground.

    ¡°Yao. Mo. Do you think I can¡¯t kill you if you¡¯re invisible? Hahahahahahaha...¡±

    As heughed wickedly, Ke Xinwen swiftly retrieved and consumed a Spirit Convergence Pill which effectively doubled his attack powers for a short period of time. Then, Ke Xinwen slowly mustered his strength as his aura swelled instantly. Right then, with him as the center of the vortex, innumerable Wind des started to congeal in the air around him and circted around him with increasing speeds.

    This was the strongest area of effect spell that a wind-based spirit cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery could use ¨C Windsquall! At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room looked as though it were being battered and torn apart by a twelfth-grade great squall, and the squall even contained innumerable tiny Wind des, each of which were sharp enough to be able to slice through human bones. There was no ce to hide at all! If a person whose cultivation level was too low stood here right now, he would definitely be minced meat ¨C there wouldn¡¯t even be any traces of his bones left in the wake of the squall.

    ¡°Die!¡± Ke Xinwen roared in fury again as he squeezed out thest of his energy in one final burst of power, turning everything around him into dust.

    Ke Xinwen had actually used his most powerful skill, Windsquall, against a measly array master at the first level of Qi Mastery.

    ¡°Hahaha...¡± Ke Xinwen stood in the middle of the aftermath,pletely drained of his spiritual energy, as he slowly looked around at the destruction in the wake of his most powerful spell.

    Windsquall was a technique that drained an immense amount of spiritual energy, especially for cultivators like Ke Xinwen who had not even attained the Foundation Establishment stage. Therefore, there were few cultivators at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery who would resort to this massive spell unless the situation absolutely called for it.

    Jun Xiaomo had forced Ke Xinwen to use his strongest spell ¨C this evidently showed how much Ke Xinwen was irked by her antics and her ploys.

    As Ke Xinwenughed andughed like a maniac, the expressions on his face slowly hardened and the joy in his heart gradually subsided ¨C he did not smell any stench of blood at all.

    Logically speaking, even if Yao Mo had used an Invisibility Talisman, Ke Xinwen would still be able to smell the stench of blood after killing him. However, apart from the smell of wood shavings around him, there was absolutely no trace of blood scent in the air.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡± Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes bulged out in surprise. He could not ept the fact that he had been unable to kill Yao Mo after resorting to his strongest technique!

    Just this moment, Ke Xinwen discovered another light glowing where the table in the room used to be. He slowly walked over and saw the corner of yet another note peeking out from under the wood shavings.

    A chill went down Ke Xinwen¡¯s back. He suddenly realized that he might well have walked straight into another one of Yao Mo¡¯s traps.

    Who is this Yao Mo? How could he calcte my every move with such uracy? Perhaps it was a mistake to attempt to kill Yao Mo today...

    But Ke Xinwen was reluctant to return in such a tragic state after being beaten to a pulp. At the very least, he had to gain something out of this trip. After hesitating for a moment, he bent down and picked up the note from the wood shavings.

    This note looked as though it had been securely fastened somewhere, and Ke Xinwen had to use some strength before he managed to pick it up.

    Ke Xinwen wanted to see if this note was only just written by Yao Mo, or whether it had been ced here for some time already. After all, he did not notice any note on the table when he first stepped into the room.

    Could it be that Yao Mo is not dead yet, and he¡¯s still in this room?! The more Ke Xinwen thought about it, the colder the chill sent down his spine. He even contemted the possibility that Yao Mo¡¯s cultivation level was far higher than he said it was. Otherwise, how could he possibly have survived Ke Xinwen¡¯s Windsquall technique?

    The contents of that note were written in the same style, designed to provoke and anger its reader ¨C I don¡¯t want to scare you, but I¡¯m really not dead yet. :) Oh yes, this note had been pasted under the table and attached to a formation array. If you have removed this piece of paper from its original location, then congrattions, you¡¯ve just activated the array! Enjoy this glorious festivity as my final gift to you! No need for any thanks!

    ¡°Wha--...What?!¡± After reading the entire contents of that note, Ke Xinwen discovered that an eerie blue lighting from under his foot lit up a round formation array. This formation array was massive, and it practically covered the floor of the entire room.

    As the eerie blue light grew brighter and brighter, Ke Xinwen¡¯s feet looked as though it werepletely stered to the floor ¨C absolutely immovable. Amidst the glowing light, slowly, but surely, a ck figure appeared. And the identity of the figure grew clearer and clearer; clearer and clearer...

    As Ke Xinwen finally made out the identity of that person who walked out of the light, his pupils constricted and quivered with abject fear!

    ¡°Ahhhhhhhhh------¡±

    Apletely silently room echoed with a cold, shrill shriek.

    Yet outside that room, everything was as serene and tranquil as it had been all night. The darkness of the night loomed ahead.

 Chapter 63: Embarrassment in the Wake of a Nightmare

    <h4>Chapter 63: Embarrassment in the Wake of a Nightmare</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo slept extremely well that night ¨Crgely because she had been so pleased about serving cold revenge against the one who had schemed against her. Even as she roused from her slumber, there were parts of her that just wanted to snooze in bed and not get up.

    ¡°Uhh...¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her lips, rubbed her eyes, and habitually snuggled her head on the pillow. Then, she discovered that for some strange reason, today¡¯s pillow seemed rather hard, and it was even emanating some mild warmth from it.

    Eh, something feels different...

    It was still early in the morning, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s brain did not put two and two together very quickly. After some time, she finally realized what the difference was.

    She slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing that entered her vision was a snow-white inner robe...

    Wait...Wait a minute. Inner robe?!

    Jun Xiaomo was jolted wide awake and opened her eyes wide, lifted her head and turned around, and the first thing she saw was a muscr chest...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart thumped quickly, even skipping a beat. Within moments, blood shot up through her neck and straight into her head, yet she could only look on with a vacant stare in her eyes.

    But...but...she had clearly been sleeping on a pillowst night!

    Jun Xiaomo always thought that she had good sleep antics. After all, she never once found herself moving about too much or falling off the bed. Last night, in order to steer clear of any potentially awkward situations, she even made sure there was a fist-sized gap between her and Ye Xiuwen.

    Naturally, this meant that she had stered herself to the wall because the bed was so narrow to begin with.

    Despite the awkward sleeping posture, she not only managed to fall asleep, but she even slept pretty well. However, it was only when she woke up that she discovered the tragedy of having be an octopus in her sleep, clinging onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body and treating her martial brother¡¯s chest as her pillow...

    ¡°You¡¯re awake.¡± A cool, deep voice resounded from the top of her head. Jun Xiaomo immediately lifted her head in shock and her gaze immediately met with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s deep pupils. She could tell that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were filled with pristine rity ¨C it was clear that he had been awake for some time now.

    ¡°Ah...that...haha...mor¡ªmorning...¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled dryly as she yammered a greeting to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Morning.¡± Ye Xiuwen replied curtly. However, he did not have any look of awkwardness on his face like Jun Xiaomo did; he only wore a slightly look of exasperation and helplessness, ¡°I¡¯ve woken up slightly earlier than you, hoping to go practice my sword arts. But you¡¯ve held on to me too tightly, and I didn¡¯t want to disturb your sleep, so I could only wait for you to wake up first.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s way of saying ¡°held on to me too tightly¡± was a rather tactful and soft way of putting it ¨C how did Jun Xiaomo merely hold onto him tightly? She had clung onto Ye Xiuwen as though he were a bolster, a pillow, a nket or the like ¨C her hands and feet had wrapped around him and hugged him extremely tightly, as though he would fly away and disappear as soon as she loosened her grasp.

    It was hard to imagine how Ye Xiuwen managed to sleep through the night like this.

    Jun Xiaomo realized how ufortable it must have been for Ye Xiuwen. She coughed dryly as she let go of her hands around Ye Xiuwen and released him as a prisoner of her sleep antics. Then, she curled into a ball and hid under the quilts as she looked at Ye Xiuwen with apologetic eyes.

    ¡°Alright, I don¡¯t me you at all, so you don¡¯t have to look at me like that.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he said.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that this was all a misunderstanding. After all, Jun Xiaomo was a male cultivator in his eyes, and Ye Xiuwen naturally wouldn¡¯t let his thoughts wander too far from the straight truth.

    Jun Xiaomo did not know whether she should be pleased that Ye Xiuwen did not mind the present situation, or whether she should feel exasperated that she was the only one feeling awkward about all of these.

    Ye Xiuwen did not know the distress in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart right now. He sat up and retrieved and put on a set of outer wear from his Interspatial Ring.

    Jun Xiaomo stayed wrapped in the quilt all this while. It was only when the flush on her face had subsided that she slowly and clumsily mbered out and sat at the side of the bed.

    At this time, Ye Xiuwen turned to Jun Xiaomo and said, ¡°Once I¡¯m done freshening up, I¡¯m going to the woods outside to practice my sword arts. Do you intend to stay here or follow me?¡±

    ¡°I would like to go with you!¡± Jun Xiaomo enthusiastically replied. Once she was faced with cultivation rted matters, the earlier distress in her heart immediately vanished into thin air.

    After all, she had put in all this hard work to join her martial brother on his travels precisely so that she could continue practicing her sword arts with him and gain somebat opportunities.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled to himself as well ¨C he liked people who were diligent and hard working.

    ¡°Alright, since you also intend to go practice, then don¡¯tze around in bed anymore. Come freshen up as well. I won¡¯t wait for you if you¡¯rete.¡± Ye Xiuwen grinned as he spoke, and his voice was filled with more warmth once again.

    ¡°Ah! Alright! I¡¯m awake!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately scrambled from the bed, retrieved a set of outer wear from her Interspatial Ring and hastily put on her clothes. She knew that Ye Xiuwen was a man of his words, and if he said he would not wait, then he really would not wait.

    However, the result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s haste was the very definition of ¡°haste makes waste¡± ¨C her cor was crooked; her belt was nted; and even her hair was frazzled and all over the ce, like hay in a rooster¡¯s nest. It was a hrious sight.

    Seeing all this, Ye Xiuwen immediately coughed dryly into his fist twice to stifle hisughter, before saying, ¡°Alright, I was only joking earlier. You don¡¯t have to hurry so much. Get yourself properly in order before we go out.¡±

    As he said that, Ye Xiuwen leisurely walked behind the screen and started to freshen himself up.

    Jun Xiaomo dropped her jaw in a daze as she stared at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back vacantly until he disappeared around the screen. Who knew that her martial brother was capable of cracking jokes too?

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat¡¯s squeaks jolted Jun Xiaomo back to her senses. She nced back over to her bed and discovered that the little packrat has also just awakened from its sleep, and it was squeaking in its little basket.

    Jun Xiaomo stretched out her hand and tenderly stroked the little packrat, saying, ¡°Morning, you little fe.¡±

    The little packrat immediately responded by hugging Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger and licking it in frustration.

    However, Jun Xiaomo continued to let it lick her finger, as she thought that it was merely her pet¡¯s expression of its tender affection and reliance on its owner.

    After all, the little packrat looked just like a ball of fur ¨C how difficult would it be to tell its expressions under that thickyer of fur?

    But the truth was that the little packrat was exasperated by the fact that she had slept with Ye Xiuwenst night. Even though it knew that it was safest for Jun Xiaomo to have stayed herest night, but rationality was one thing, and its feelings were quite something else.

    If it could have its way, it would even chase Ye Xiuwen away and make him sleep on the floor! However, these thoughts would only remain in its little brain, and they could never be a reality.

    Besides, even if Ye Xiuwen were willing to sleep on the floor, Jun Xiaomo might not even agree to this. Given how much Jun Xiaomo cared about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings, how could she bear to make her martial brother sleep on the floor? She would rather volunteer to sleep on the floor than to let Ye Xiuwen sleep on the floor.

    ¡°Alright, alright, don¡¯t make a fuss. I¡¯ll have to quickly get ready, otherwise martial brother might really leave me here.¡± Jun Xiaomo said as she stroked the little packrat.

    The little packrat hopped into the little fluffy bed that Jun Xiaomo had prepared for it as itid down in frustration, ncing helplessly at its short legs and paws as it stopped squeaking.

    Jun Xiaomo is really daft! How could she still think I¡¯m just a pet?!

    After freshening up, Jun Xiaomo did not feel at ease leaving the little packrat at the inn, so she decided to bring the little packrat along. It was still early in the morning, and only a warm glow of light had faintly illuminated the earth. Ye Xiuwen walked ahead, and Jun Xiaomo followed closely behind, looking straight at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s valiant silhouette. For just that moment, a sense of security swept across her.

    That¡¯s just like the martial brother I know. He holds up the falling sky with his broad shoulders to shelter those under his wings, whether out of duty and responsibility or otherwise.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, before promptly skipping over towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and walking beside him.

    Ye Xiuwen turned around to look this young man in the eye, before he asked with a twinkle in his eye, ¡°What is it? You look really pleased today.¡±

    ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right! I¡¯m rather happy today.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded, but she did not say more about what made her happy. Jun Xiaomo resolved in her heart that in future, she definitely would not let her martial brother carry all of this burden by himself ¨C because she would be standing by her martial brother¡¯s side, carrying the burdens of Heavenly Peak together with him.

    ------------------------------------------------------

    About two hours after Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had left the inn, Qin Lingyu and the others finally trickled out from their rooms and arrived at the inn¡¯s great hall to have their breakfast.

    Today was the day that they nned to leave this city and continue towards the Mystic Woods. ording to their calctions, they would have to sleep under the stars for the next few nights. As such, everyone took this opportunity to enjoy onest big meal before heading out into the wilderness.

    ¡°Where¡¯s martial brother Ke?¡± One of the disciples asked curiously as he looked about but did not spot Ke Xinwen around.

    From what they could tell from the past few days, Ke Xinwen should have been up and having breakfast by now. This was particrly so because Yu Wanrou had already arrived in the great hall, and everyone knew that he would not pass up any opportunities to get close to her and woo her.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes gleamed, as he nced up as though he were pondering something. Then, he told that disciple, ¡°Fan Hai, go knock on martial brother Ke¡¯s door and ask him when he¡¯sing down.¡±

    ¡°Ah, ok. I¡¯ll do it.¡± This martial brother who had been named by Qin Lingyu had always been rather close to Ke Xinwen, so he did not mind doing what was asked of him.

    Yet, he got no response at all even after knocking on Ke Xinwen¡¯s door for some time. Therefore, he pushed the door gently, and then he realized that the door was not locked!

    ¡°Martial brother Ke¡± Fan Hai walked into his room and called out Ke Xinwen¡¯s name at the same time.

    However, even after going around Ke Xinwen¡¯s room once, he did not find any traces of him.

    Fan Hai felt rather helpless about the situation. Therefore, he went back down to the great hall and reported to Qin Lingyu that Ke Xinwen was not at the inn, and he did not know where Ke Xinwen had gone to.

    ¡°It¡¯s quite rare that martial brother Ke would go out this early in the morning.¡± Another martial brother thought aloud.

    It was understandable if Ye Xiuwen left the inn early in the morning, but it was far more unnatural if it was Ke Xinwen.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, let¡¯s eat while we wait.¡± Qin Lingyu waved his hands and signaled for Fan Hai to sit down with them.

    Fan Hai also had no choice but to sit down as he picked up his chopsticks and bowl, perplexed about the situation.

    Just this moment, the sound of a bright and livelyughter rang out from just outside the inn¡¯s doors, followed by some inaudible chatter.

    This voice was like the babbling of flowing waters ¨C so clear and refreshing that it was pleasing to the ears. But just the day before, this entire table of Dawn Sect disciples had also seen a different side of the owner of this voice, whose words were so sharp that they could cut the heart and pierce the marrows. Therefore, they did not find this voice to be music to their ears at all.

    The ones who had just arrived back at the inn were precisely Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. They had shortened their sword practice ande back early because everyone had nned to leave the town today.

    ¡°Oh! Everyone¡¯s here!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed with a radiant smile on her face.

    Everyone: ... How is everyone here? Is this young man blind?

    But shortly after that, Jun Xiaomo nced around at the disciples seated at the table, before putting on a strange look on her face, adding, ¡°Eh, that¡¯s not right. Where has brother Ke gone to?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not too sure either. Martial brother Ke has been missing since early this morning, and we¡¯re not sure where he¡¯s gone.¡± The person who responded Jun Xiaomo was Yu Wanrou, who nced tenderly over at Yao Mo.

    Immediately, Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan and covered her twitching lips.

    ¡°So, it¡¯s like that. That¡¯s a pity...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo fanned herself charmingly as she sighed meaningfully.

    Just beside her, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes twinkled with humour ¨C this person beside him was clearly the culprit behind his disappearance, yet he acted so persuasively as though this matter werepletely unrted to him.

    At the same time, Qin Lingyu turned his head around and fixed his gaze on Jun Xiaomo with a profound look in his eyes.

 Chapter 64: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Suspicions

    <h4>Chapter 64: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Suspicions</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo discovered Qin Lingyu gazing meaningfully at her and she instinctively tensed up her hand that was holding the fan and slowed down her breathing.

    She knew that Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen were very different. If Ke Xinwen were like a wild and hot-tempered lion, then Qin Lingyu would be more akin to a poisonous snake, coiled up, concealed in the ground and ready to strike at any time. While the lion¡¯s attacks were powerful, its prey bes aware of the lion¡¯s presence once it attacks. On the other hand, the poisonous snake would bide its time to deliver a swift, deadly blow, and the prey would not even know what struck it before it dies.

    It was just like that for Jun Xiaomo in her previous life ¨C she only realized on her deathbed how thoroughly she had been schemed against all her life.

    Therefore, faced with Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze today, Jun Xiaomo instinctively reacted by attempting to surmise what Qin Lingyu was plotting. However, Qin Lingyu was not the sort who gave away the head or tail of his schemes that easily. At the very least, Jun Xiaomo had no way of ascertaining what Qin Lingyu¡¯s present thoughts were right now.

    Jun Xiaomo was not afraid that Qin Lingyu would expose the fact that she had set up formation arrays against Ke Xinwen in her own room. What she was most afraid of was that Qin Lingyu would discover and expose her true identity.

    If Qin Lingyu discovered her true identity, he was sure to make a huge brouhaha about it.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo worked hard at maintaining her calm andposed appearances, a strong and firm hand set itself on her shoulder and patted her shoulder gently.

    It¡¯s martial brother... The billowing waves within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to subside. With Ye Xiuwen beside her, she naturally felt much more at ease.

    ¡°Brother Yao, seems like you¡¯re pretty chummy with our martial brother Ye, aren¡¯t you? Who would¡¯ve thought that you two woulde back from outside at the same time this early on in the morning?¡± A bold martial brother asked curiously and ruefully.

    After all, this was the cold, isted Ye Xiuwen that everyone was talking about ¨C who had ever seen him ce a hand on the shoulder on another disciple of his own volition?

    This type of behaviour was something that was more expected of a friendly martial brother like Ke Xinwen. But seeing Ye Xiuwen act this way...it was as rare as a blue moon! These represented the thoughts of most Dawn Sect disciples present.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes flickered meaningfully. He found Yao Mo to be a young man full of mystery, from the way he appeared in their entourage, to how he was unusually chummy with Ye Xiuwen.

    Where exactly did this young mane from? Is his cultivation level really at the first level of Qi Mastery?

    It even crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind that Ke Xinwen¡¯s disappearance would be connected to this smiling young man. After all, the friction between Ke Xinwen and this young man had almost escted to a full-blown altercation yesterday. With Qin Lingyu¡¯s understanding of Ke Xinwen, he could very well have paid this young man a visitst night to settle their scores.

    That¡¯s right ¨C Qin Lingyu had long since known that Ke Xinwen was in fact a rather narrow-minded person, and he was very well capable of killing Yao Mo at the earliest opportunity offered to him.

    However, the fact that Yao Mo appeared safe and sound today, while Ke Xinwen vanished without a trace, was testament to how Ke Xinwen could well have failed in his attempt to settle the score and fallen at the hands of a sixteen years-old array master at the first level of Qi Mastery!

    Qin Lingyu did not have a deep understanding of the workings of an array master, so he could not understand how this was possible. Therefore, he decided that he could only watch and see how things panned out.

    In particr, Qin Lingyu hoped that Yao Mo¡¯s abilities would not be too great, otherwise it might foil his ns in the near future ¨C especially given how close Yao Mo was with Ye Xiuwen...

    ¡°I actually stayed together with brother Yest night.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled brightly as she fanned herself, ¡°Yesterday brother Ye and I hit it off really well, so I hade over in the evening to have dinner and chat with him. Then, we lost track of time, and it was already sote by the time we ended that I decided to just stay here with brother Ye.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knew full well that Ke Xinwen could still be facing the tormenting effects of her formation arrays at the other inn right now, so she had to establish an alibi for herself. As to how the other martial brothers and sisters would look at her once her identity had been exposed, she would deal with that fact in future.

    Everyone froze in shock when they heard that Yao Mo had actually spent the night in the same room as Ye Xiuwen.

    Of course, this was not because they had any deviant thoughts just because Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo were both males. Rather, they simply wondered how Yao Mo could actually bear with that stifling, cold and isted attitude of Ye Xiuwen. Not only that, he had even stayed the whole night and ¡°hit it off¡± ¨C this waspletely outside their imagination of anything remotely possible.

    At the very least, they knew that they would not be able to do this. After all, being located within a three-meter radius of Ye Xiuwen would already subconsciously cause them to put up their guard.

    At the same time, Qin Lingyu simply continued to observe Jun Xiaomo¡¯s every move and every action. This caused Jun Xiaomo so much frustration that she felt like taking some chopsticks and stabbing them straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s prying eyes! That would make him experience the torment of not being able to see at all.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo sighed to herself, flicked open her fan and leisurely fanned herself, covering her face at the same time. Then, she spoke, ¡°Brother Qin, I know I¡¯m rather handsome, but you don¡¯t have to keep staring at me like that. I would feel embarrassed if you keep it up.¡±

    She continued to fan herself as she spoke.

    Qin Lingyu and the other disciples around: ......

    ¡°Alright, we¡¯re all hungry and haven¡¯t eaten anything yet. Let¡¯s not stand around chatting. We¡¯ll wait for martial brother Ke while we eat.¡± Qin Lingyu said inly as he retracted his gaze from Jun Xiaomo.

    The truth was that he did not really bother about what kind of rtionship Yao Mo had with Ye Xiuwen. He only wanted to know how strong Yao Mo¡¯s abilities were, and whether he would threaten Qin Lingyu¡¯s ns in future.

    Qin Lingyu intended to probe about and uncover more information through this incident with Ke Xinwen. Even though Ke Xinwen¡¯s disappearance was rted to Yao Mo, he was certain that Ke Xinwen would still be alive. This was because Ke Xinwen was still a Dawn Sect disciple after all, and Qin Lingyu did not believe that a person without any sect backing him would dare to make an entire sect his enemy by taking the life of one of their disciples.

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear Qin Lingyu¡¯s conjectures at this moment, she would definitelyugh in his face.

    She had not spared Ke Xinwen¡¯s life because she was afraid of attracting the Sect¡¯s ire against her. Rather, it was because she felt that allowing Ke Xinwen to die just like that was going too easy on him. In her previous life, Ke Xinwen had time and time again made attempts at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life; andst night he even tried to take her own life! Jun Xiaomo would not be able to live up to her name as the one and only Lady Demoness if she did not let Ke Xinwen experience the torment of a life worse than death.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo felt much more at ease now that Qin Lingyu had retracted his vexing gaze from her body.

    ¡°Let¡¯s eat, let¡¯s eat. I haven¡¯t eaten since early this morning. I¡¯m super hungry right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo pulled Ye Xiuwen by the wrist as she squeezed into this table full of people.

    Ye Xiuwen also allowed her to drag him along and did not wrest his hands free of her grasp. This once again shocked all of the Dawn Sect disciples present.

    As they were mid-way through their breakfast, a rowdy group of guests made their way into the inn, and the originally peaceful great hall immediately burst out with a cacophony of chatter.

    ¡°Waiter, bring me a pot of Bi Luo Chun.¡±

    ¡°Ah~ Coming right up!¡± The waiter hastily picked up a pot of tea and walked over gingerly as he served them each a cup of tea. ¡°Dear guests, please enjoy.¡± The waiter bowed before taking his leave and returning to serve the inn¡¯s other guests.

    ¡°Hey, I¡¯ve gotta say that this inn is pretty good, eh? It¡¯s hardly like that other inn...tsk tsk, I¡¯m not sure where that innkeeper got his dumb luck from, but he actually epted a crazy guest to the inn.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it? I hear that the guest was still fine yesterday. I wonder what made him go mad overnight. I mean just look at that innkeeper¡¯s green and sickly face...hahaha, I think he must want to strangle that guest to death.¡±

    ¡°Sigh, and you didn¡¯t mention that the mad man might not even be the inn¡¯s guest! I heard that the person who booked the room was someone else...¡±

    ¡°Who cares! Whatever it is, the fact is that there is a madman in that inn. I even heard several guests looking for a refund because they are afraid that the madman has some disease that they might catch!¡±

    ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s so tragic, so tragic. Actually, the innkeeper is a victim of the situation after all.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it? Oh yes, and it seems like that madman still has some identity token on him, like he¡¯s from a reputable sect or something.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the sect called?¡±

    ¡°I think it was...Dawn...Dawn...Dawn something.¡±

    ¡°Dawn Sect! You idiot ¨C you can¡¯t even remember such a simple name. How did you even know this was a reputable sect?!¡±

    The rowdy group of people all had loud voices, and every single word they said could be clearly heard by everyone in the great hall. At the same time, because there weren¡¯t many guests around this early in the morning, everyone¡¯s gazes were naturally fixed on this group of people.

    The people at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s table had initially been disinterested in that rowdy group¡¯s conversations. However, in that moment that they mentioned ¡°Dawn Sect¡±, everyone froze in ce and stopped eating at the same time.

    Dawn Sect! How could it be Dawn Sect?! They looked at each other dumbfounded, and no matter how hard they tried, they just could not link ¡°Dawn Sect¡± and ¡°madman¡± together.

    Their Sect was ranked among the top three of all the mid-tier sects after all! So, how could they have a madman among their midst? This person must be an imposter!

    Among everyone seated at their table, only three of them managed to remain calm ¨C Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had long since guessed that the madman referred to in the other table¡¯s gossip could very well have been Ke Xinwen, so they calmly epted that fact. On the other hand, even though Qin Lingyu did not know the exact details of what had happened, he had nevertheless made head and tail of the situation, and thus he also kept his cool.

    At this moment, the other riled up disciples looked at theposed Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu intently, not speaking a single word. They wanted very much to pay a visit to the other inn and see what exactly was going on. However, among all who were present, it was only their team leaders, Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu, who had the authority to call the shots.

    Therefore, they waited in anticipation for Ye Xiuwen or Qin Lingyu to speak up and give instructions to them.

    As Qin Lingyu slowly finished up thest dumpling in his bowl, he calmly said, ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go to the other inn and take a look and see which ¡°madman¡± of Dawn Sect it is.¡±

    The other disciples nodded in acknowledgement, as their faces were all stered with indignation at this moment. Once they find out who this imposter was, they would let him have it!

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at each of these disciples¡¯ looks of indignation, and she could not help but press her lips together tightly in order to stifle her burst ofughter.

    I wonder what expressions these guys would make once they discovered that this ¡°madman¡± is actually their favourite chummy martial brother, Ke Xinwen!

    As to how this incident would harm the Sect¡¯s reputation, this waspletely outside of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s consideration. This was because in her previous life, it was precisely this reputable and upstanding Dawn Sect that had forced Heavenly Peak into a corner!

    Since Dawn Sect was not a good ce to begin with, why would she bother helping them keep up their appearances? Jun Xiaomo was merely doing them a favour right now by helping them to remove that false fa?ade of theirs.

    Jun Xiaomo smirked to herself.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was rather hesitant about all these. This was because Ke Xinwen had gone crazy in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room in that inn. There was no concealing this fact once the martial disciples all went over to the other inn.

    Jun Xiaomo also guessed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s concerns here, so she turned her head to Ye Xiuwen and secretly whispered, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I never intended to conceal this.¡±

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and looked curiously at Jun Xiaomo. He had initially thought that this young man intended to deal with this troublemaker Ke Xinwen discreetly. But who knew that Yao Mo had never intended to conceal this fact? What exactly was he thinking?

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm as she shook her finger at Ye Xiuwen ¨C

    You¡¯ll find outter. Jun Xiaomo mouthed these words silently to Ye Xiuwen.

 Chapter 65: Crazy Ke Xinwen

    <h4>Chapter 65: Crazy Ke Xinwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The others did not notice these small interactions between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. Everyone waspletely preupied by the thoughts of that ¡°madman¡±, wondering which imposter had the audacity to feign his identity and tarnish the good name of Dawn Sect.

    Most members of reputable sects would take pride in their sect¡¯s reputation regardless of what tier their respective sects were in. Naturally, these disciples of Dawn Sect couldn¡¯t believe that a ¡°madman¡± would havee from their Sect ¨C this would not only gravely tarnish their reputation, it might even attract the mockery of other sects!

    As they grimly brooded over this matter, the whole group of them quickly left their own inn and headed in the direction of the otherrge inn. This other inn was incidentally also the inn that Jun Xiaomo had booked a room in.

    Soon after, they arrived at their destination and the saw a crowd surrounding the inn¡¯s entrance. At the same time, there were several people who were conspicuously carrying their belongings and leaving the inn hastily.

    ¡°What are you guys doing here?¡± One of the sect¡¯s disciples asked one of the onlookers curiously.

    ¡°I hear there¡¯s a madman on the fifth room on the second floor. This madman¡¯s saying crazy things like how he killed someone, and even saying that if he could kill that person once, he could kill that person twice. It¡¯s vicious! Everyone here is curious to see what¡¯s going on right now.¡±

    The group of disciples from Dawn Sect were speechless. Who knew that an entire circle of people had alle to be busybodies.

    Just this moment, several waiters from that inn walked out and started dispersing the crowd and chasing people away, hollering, ¡°Don¡¯t block the entrance, don¡¯t block the entrance! There¡¯s nothing to see here! It¡¯s just a madman with his crazy antics. You¡¯ll get bored watching him. How are we going to run a business if you guys all block our entrance?¡±

    ¡°Pfft!¡± One of the onlookers burst outughing, retorting immediately, ¡°It seems like people who stay at your inn go crazy overnight huh? Who would still dare to stay at your inn?¡±

    The innkeeper was standing just behind the waiter dispersing the crowd. As soon as he heard this onlooker¡¯s retort, his face immediately turned sickly green and pale ¨C he didn¡¯t understand what he had done wrong to deserve his dumb luck to attract that madman to his inn, who had in turn singlehandedly ruined his business overnight.

    Furthermore, the mess on the inside was far worse than what the rumours had said ¨C the table, chairs, cupboards and other furniture had all been ground to fine sawdust. He did not know where this guest hade from, but his destructive abilities were simply too fearsome. In fact, some guests did not leave immediately, but they tried getting as close as they could to the madman to see what exactly was going on. However, none of them could enter the room. The room seemed to be obstructed by an invisible wall, and everyone could only stand and watch from the outside.

    Therefore, they all witnessed how this madman had been shouting to himself, saying things like ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of you! Bring it on!¡± and ¡°if I can kill you once, I can kill you twice!¡±

    In fact, it was pretty hrious to hear about these things. It was as though a person had a frightening encounter but put on a pretense and acted as though he were fearless. However, no one managed to bring themselves tough about it once they saw the state of the room he was in.

    This madman wielded an immense destructive force! How easy would it be for this madman to kill someone? If a person idently got one step too close to that madman, there was a very real likelihood that he would immediately be shredded to minced meat!

    As they thought about these things, several guests instantly got goosebumps, and shivers went down their backs.

    At the same time, the innkeeper was extremely perplexed because he did not know where this madman hade from. Most residents of this town were mere mortals without any form of cultivation, so they had never seen such immense destructive powers on a single person. On the other hand, the innkeeper could tell from his experience that this man was a cultivator of a considerable cultivation level, and if he wanted to chase this person away, he would need to enlist the help of a person at an equal level of higher.

    But the problem was that this town was a small town after all ¨C where was he going to find such a formidable cultivator?

    In this world, mortals and cultivators were not separated by strict boundaries. If the child of two mere mortals had talent in cultivation and was scouted by a sect, then he would be able to step on the path of cultivation. At the same time, if a person were unsuitable for cultivation, then unless he encountered a stroke of luck which changed his fate, he would be destined to live the rest of his life as a mere mortal with a simple career.

    Therefore, the ¡°mortal world¡± and the ¡°cultivation world¡± were more of a vague concept of two different realms; but in reality, there was hardly any distinction between the two in the physical world.

    Because of this, those who walked along any particr road, street or path, could be a cultivator; or they could equally be a mere mortal. Those of a higher cultivation level could identify a person¡¯s cultivation level as long as it was lower than his own. However, those of a lower cultivation level would be unable to tell a person¡¯s cultivation level if it were higher than his own. As such, given that this innkeeper was a mere mortal, he waspletely unable to tell which of the guests before him were cultivators.

    As the innkeeper grew more anxious and frustrated, some of the more learned guests recognized the identity token which the ¡°madman¡± had dropped in the room.

    ¡°It¡¯s from Dawn Sect!¡± One guest eximed when he recognized the emblem on the identity token. Every sect had a unique emblem on their identity tokens, and these emblems served to identify the sect which they came from.

    Pleasantly surprised, the innkeeper immediately requested the aid of that guest to chase this ¡°madman¡± away. To his dismay, that guest only shook his head, saying, ¡°I¡¯ve only seen this emblem before. Unfortunately, I¡¯m a rogue cultivator, and my cultivation level isn¡¯t even at the third level of Qi Mastery. I can¡¯t identify the cultivation level of the man in the room, so I¡¯m quite certain I won¡¯t be able to beat him.¡±

    The innkeeper¡¯s hope immediately dwindled as he heard this. He looked on this madman in the room in vexation as he instructed his waiters to disperse the crowd of onlookers at the entrance of his inn.

    He was already feeling immense vexation in his heart; and all these onlookers blocking the entrance of his inn absolutely did not help the situation at all!

    The disciples from Dawn Sect had also vaguely learnt of the situation at the inn as they made their way over. When they finally arrived and saw the waiters dispersing the crowd, a few of the disciples who were more hot-tempered even thought of barging in.

    The waiter grew even more agitated. As he chased people away, he thought in his heart ¨C These people look so well dressed and refined; who knew they could be such busybodies as well!

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his eyebrows before taking two steps forward and speaking directly to the innkeeper, ¡°Innkeeper sir, don¡¯t chase us away just yet. We might be able to help you.¡±

    The innkeeper initially thought that this was a hopeless situation. Yet, just as he was about to despair in his hopeless situation, someone actually stood up and offered to help.

    As for whether this group of young men could subdue that ¡°madman¡±, the innkeeper felt that only people who were rtively confident in their abilities would step up and offer to help given how far news had spread of this madman¡¯s formidable destruction. Furthermore, the innkeeper sized up this group of youngsters and noticed that they carried a dignified air about them, especially the two young men in front, one with a cold and suave gaze, and the other cool andposed. Both look like they were not busybodies who were anxious to court death. Therefore, his hopes for help were once again rekindled.

    The innkeeper kept his crumpled face that looked like a distressed bitter gourd and reced it with a radiant smile as he spoke to Qin Lingyu and the others politely, ¡°Pleasee in, distinguished guests. I was still fretting over where I would find help for this madman...¡±

    Qin Lingyu nodded as he led the Dawn Sect disciples and followed the innkeeper to the second floor of the inn.

    The Dawn Sect disciples heaved a sigh of relief. They were rather fortunate that the innkeeper had not inquired of their background ¨C seeing how the incident was caused by a ¡°madman¡± from Dawn Sect, it would be awkward and embarrassing if these disciples now identified themselves from the same sect.

    But it was precisely because of this that these disciples were so enraged by this imposter that they wanted to sever him to pieces to warn the world that those who dared to use their name in vain should beware of the consequences that ensued!

    ¡°Ah...that¡¯s right.¡± As the innkeeper walked on, he paused and turned around, asking abashedly, ¡°These...these few distinguished guests, could I ask what you would ask of me to help make this problem go away?¡±

    After all, these guests were people whom he had just met, and the innkeeper was not hopeful that these people would be doing this for free out of the kindness of their heart. At the same time, this innrgely dealt with mortals, and rarely had guests who were cultivators. Therefore, the innkeeper did not have many things of value to those in the cultivation world, and he was afraid that he would not be able to afford the services of the sect¡¯s disciples.

    ¡°This won¡¯t be a problem. Let¡¯s take a look first.¡± Qin Lingyu said inly. The innkeeper immediately nodded his head, thinking in his heart ¨C Perhaps I might have encountered some good Samaritans after all...

    He naturally did not know that these people hade to deal with the imposter and preserve the name of their Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo followed quietly behind them. Once they arrived at the second floor, she bumped into the attendant who had served her and Ye Xiuwen. This attendant had been hard at work calming down the other distressed guests who were extremely distressed and upset at theck of security in this inn.

    ¡°Eh! De--...Dear guest, it¡¯s actually you! Hurry on over! There¡¯s big trouble in the room that you booked yesterday!¡± The attendant anxiously said to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. Even though he did not really remember Jun Xiaomo, the way Ye Xiuwen carried himself left an indelible impression on the attendant ¨C after all, not only did Ye Xiuwen look extremely dignified, the way he had interacted with the attendant was extremely polite. Additionally, the veiled conical hat worn by Ye Xiuwen was highly unusual, and the attendant immediately recognized it.

    As she heard this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips twitched. She had thought that apart from Ye Xiuwen and Ke Xinwen who had followed her, the other members of Dawn Sect would not have known that the room with this incident was the very same room that she had booked.

    But now, the attendant had let the cat out of the bag.

    Hearing this, everyone¡¯s gazes fell upon Jun Xiaomo, anticipating an exnation from her.

    ¡°Attendant, the room you mentioned...is that the same room with the madman?¡± One of the other disciples rified with the attendant.

    ¡°That¡¯s right! The fifth room on the second floor was booked by this guest and his friend. Yet who knew that a madman would appear in the room overnight! No one knows where this madman hade from! Sigh...dear guests you¡¯ve arrived just at the right time. Please go take a look for yourselves.¡± The attendant spoke directly towards Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly nodded his head, and he did not reveal any peculiar looks on his face as he walked ahead. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo secretly stuck out her tongue when no one was looking.

    Everyone around was uncertain whether this incident had anything to do with Ye Xiuwen or Yao Mo. They only thought to themselves ¨C Perhaps it¡¯s all a coincidence.

    Even at this point, no one had contemted the possibility that this ¡°madman¡± would in fact be one of their fellow disciples in Dawn Sect.

    But just this moment, those who were following more closely behind the innkeeper suddenly gasped in shock and eximed in horror, ¡°Martial brother Ke, what happened to you?!¡±

    Immediately, the other disciples who were walking behind them picked up their pace and sped to the front of the room door as they peered in in shock ¨C as expected, the person madly iling his arms about and hollering at the top of his voice was the very same Ke Xinwen who had vanished since the morning!

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡± One of the disciples turned around and demanded an exnation from Jun Xiaomo with fury and indignation in his eyes.

    This room was booked by Yao Mo, and Ke Xinwen¡¯s current predicament was naturally rted to this Yao Mo.

    It was not only this one disciple who thought that. Everyone else slowly turned around and fixed their gaze towards Yao Mo, awaiting his exnation.

 Chapter 66: Furious Dawn Sect Disciples

    <h4>Chapter 66: Furious Dawn Sect Disciples</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo maintained her cool despite the looks of condemnation from everyone around. She slowly made her way in front of her room door, nced into her room, and then she flicked open her fan and said, ¡°Hmm, I thought I¡¯d only caught a small shrimp. Who knew that in the end I would bag a lobster, huh...¡±

    Everyone: ...What does she mean by ¡°shrimp¡± or ¡°lobster¡±?

    Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples grew even more furious. Not only had Yao Mo implicitly confessed to his crimes, he even seemed to take pleasure in Ke Xinwen¡¯s misfortune. What kind of attitude was that? He clearly showed no respect for Dawn Sect¡¯s people!

    ¡°Yao Mo, what is the meaning of this?! Martial brother Ke did not even offend you, yet you¡¯ve tormented him and reduced him to such a sorry state ¨C do you wish to make enemies of the entire Dawn Sect?!¡± Fan Hai, one of Ke Xinwen¡¯s closest buddies, demanded an exnation with immense fury.

    ¡°Tsk tsk, I¡¯m so afraid~¡± Jun Xiaomo pretended to be afraid as she patted her chest softly, but her facial expressions said otherwise as she calmly curled her lips into an impish smile.

    ¡°You!¡± In a fit of anger, Fan Hai had poised himself to attack Jun Xiaomo. However, Jun Xiaomo once again flicked out his fan and said in a carefree manner, ¡°Are all of you Dawn Sect disciples so brash? Do all of you think about beating someone up even before listening to their side of the story? This is what Dawn Sect teaches you?¡±

    Qin Lingyu also put his hand out in front of Fan Hai to restrain him. He was curious how exactly Yao Mo had managed to torment Ke Xinwen and reduce him to such a sorry state.

    No one had realized that at this moment, Ye Xiuwen had already walked over the Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Even if Fan Hai had attacked Jun Xiaomo earlier, there was no way Jun Xiaomo would have been injured either.

    This was because in the period of time it took for Fan Hai¡¯s fist would take to travel towards Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen would have already unsheathed his sword to block Fan Hai¡¯s attack.

    ¡°Alright, Fan Hai, don¡¯t be rash.¡± Qin Lingyu sternly warned Fan Hai, before turning around and asking Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Brother Yao, since you¡¯ve mentioned that there¡¯s an exnation for all this, then do you mind letting us know what exactly happened here?¡±

    Apart from the few Dawn Sect disciples present, everyone else also looked over at Jun Xiaomo. In particr, the innkeeper looked at Jun Xiaomo with a severely displeased expression in his eyes. After all, this young man before him seemed to be the cause of all these things, which even affected his business for the day. Naturally, he would not have a good impression of Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo fanned herself as she leisurely exined, ¡°Actually, I¡¯m not too sure myself how brother Ke ended up like that either.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Fan Hai sincerely felt that Yao Mo waspletely full of nonsense. In fact, his guts told him that Yao Mo¡¯s cryptic responses were clearly designed in order to hide his own guilty conscience.

    ¡°Ai, ai...brother Fan, don¡¯t be so agitated.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her hands and signaled for Fan Hai to hold his horses, saying, ¡°I¡¯m only speaking the truth. I was at brother Ye¡¯s room restingst night. Haven¡¯t you forgotten this?¡±

    At this, Fan Hai immediately froze mid-action and furrowed his brow in thought.

    He had indeed forgotten this little detail. At the same time, something happened to martial brother Ke while Yao Mo had stayed away from his room ¨C was this merely a coincidence?

    Qin Lingyu looked at Jun Xiaomo coldly as he said, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then brother Yao absolutely doesn¡¯t know what happened in this room?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the case.¡± Jun Xiaomo folded her fan and tapped it on her palm as she said, ¡°Brother Qin, you¡¯re also aware of the fact that I¡¯m an array master who wouldn¡¯t stand too long inbat. Therefore, I¡¯ve set up a few defensive arrays in my room. This is only understandable, right?¡±

    Qin Lingyu nodded his head and look at Jun Xiaomo with a probing gaze, but he did not say any more.

    Jun Xiaomo saw Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze at her, but she ignored it and slowly exined, ¡°Actually, I had only set up a few formation arrays to deter thieves. Yesterday, after I visited brother Ye and chatted with him till we lost track of time, I decided to rest at his ce and forgot about these few formation arrays altogether. It was only this morning when I woke up that I decided toe back and dismantle the formation arrayster. Unexpectedly, not only did my formation arrays did not end up deterring any thieves, it actually ended up trapping brother Ke.¡±

    ¡°Therefore, I think you shouldn¡¯t be asking me why brother Ke¡¯s like this right now. I think you should instead be asking brother Ke why exactly he had paid me a visittest night, huh?¡± Jun Xiaomo carefully analyzed the matter, before finally pointing at Ke Xinwen with his fan, adding, ¡°Could it be that brother Ke also hit it off really well with me, and he couldn¡¯t help bute find me at night to chat under the stars? Hmm...¡±

    ¡°Pfft...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words caused several people who stood around to burst out inughter. On the other hand, Fan Hai waspletely stumped by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations, and he could not find any way of rebutting what Jun Xiaomo had just said.

    Indeed, Ke Xinwen had no good reason to be calling on Yao Mo thiste at night. By right, Yao Mo should be the one most perplexed by all of these.

    Just then, Ke Xinwen started shouting once again with reddened eyes, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m afraid of you?! Bring it on! Lu Rong, I¡¯m already at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery! You¡¯re nothing to me! I¡¯ve killed you once, and I can certainly kill you a second time!!! Come on!¡± As he said this, Ke Xinwen once again started iling his arms and hacking around him despite having already been drained of almost all his spiritual energy.

    Everyone was startled by Ke Xinwen¡¯s sudden barking. When Ke Xinwen inadvertently swung his sword in the direction of the onlookers, several people even instinctively took a step back in fear that they would be hurt by Ke Xinwen.

    Only Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu did not back off. Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu did not budge because they were strong, while Ke Xinwen waspletely drained like an arrow at the end of its flight and he would not be able to hurt them at all. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo knew that the formation array had not lost its effects yet, and therefore Ke Xinwen¡¯s attacks would be contained within the boundaries of the formation array and it could not hurt her either.

    As expected, once Ke Xinwen¡¯s attacks arrived at the boundaries of the formation array, it seemed to be absorbed by an invisible force and dissipated immediately. The areas outside the formation array continue to be unaffected by Ke Xinwen¡¯s attacks.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief as though they had avoided a cmity. The innkeeper was also initially immensely displeased with Jun Xiaomo. But now, seeing Ke Xinwen¡¯s attacks being absorbed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays, he even felt some gratitude towards Jun Xiaomo for her.

    If not for the fact that there was a formation array trapping this madman and holding his attacks in ce, this entire inn might well have already be sawdust and wood shavings like the rest of this room. It was a terrifying thought indeed.

    Yet, everyone in Dawn Sect had their attention drawn to the name which Ke Xinwen had called out in his stupor ¨C who exactly was Lu Rong?

    Several of the disciples present found this name to be rather familiar, but they just could not ce a finger on his exact identity.

    Just as the disciples were racking their brains trying to recall where they had heard that name, Ye Xiuwen calmly addressed all their innermost queries, ¡°Lu Rong and Ke Xinwen had be disciples of Dawn Sect at the same time. His talent was incredibly high, and if he had not disappeared, he might well have be the First-Seat Disciple of the Pill Cauldron Peak by now.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had a better recollection of who this Lu Rong was because Lu Rong would always greet him warmly with ¡°martial brother Ye¡± whenever they crossed paths. Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response was always simple and in, Lu Rong had nevertheless continued to speak to Ye Xiuwen with warmth.

    Lu Rong waspletely different from Ke Xinwen. Lu Rong was genuinely a magnanimous and easygoing person,pletely unlike Ke Xinwen who did all these things under a pretense.

    Ye Xiuwen could see that Lu Rong was a genuinely easygoing and sincere person, and these were attributes that were rarely found among Dawn Sect¡¯s other Peaks. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen had etched this name deeply into his memory. Unexpectedly, Lu Rong had suddenly vanished shortly after he had formally be a Dawn Sect disciple. The entire sect was mobilized to search for him for a full three days and three nights, yet no one managed to surface any clues about his whereabouts ¨C not even a corpse to ascertain his death. Then, under the instructions of the Sect Elders to cease the search, this matter was written off just like that.

    After Ye Xiuwen had reminded them of Lu Rong¡¯s history, several of the other disciples also started to recall who this man was. Therefore, they also looked at Ke Xinwen with slightly confuzzled gazes in their eyes ¨C Was martial brother Ke telling the truth? He killed Lu Rong! Wasn¡¯t he very chummy with Lu Rong back then?

    As everyone thought about the possibility of Ke Xinwen killing Lu Rong, a chill went down their spines.

    Of course, there were others who adamantly dispelled that possibility. Fan Hai was one of them. He stared viciously at Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°Yao Mo, what poison have you given martial brother Ke to make him utter such nonsense?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously before sheughed, ¡°Brother Fan, you actually think I¡¯ve poisoned brother Ke? I¡¯m an array master, while brother Ke¡¯s master is a pillmaster ¨C who do you think is more likely to have used pills or poisons in such an instance?¡±

    The Peakmaster of Pill Cauldron Peak was a pillmaster. However, not all of his disciples were required to learn the art of pill-making. After all, there was no reason for cultivators to decide on their cultivation paths before reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. Only those who were extremely interested in pill-making would begin to learn the art of pill-making at the Qi Mastery stage.

    Take Yu Wanrou for instance ¨C the spirit spring in her spectral demine was a heaven-defying cheat. Even if the pills she made turned out to be of inferior or low quality, all she had to do was to drip a few drops of her spirit spring waters on it to turn these pills into superior or high-quality pills. This was one of the main reasons why Yu Wanrou had decided to specialize in pill-making to begin with. She knew that with her spirit spring and medicinal pills, she would be able to easily establish herself in this cultivation world and make people subservient to her.

    But prior to this, Yu Wanrou would keep a low profile.

    Truth be told, Yu Wanrou was rather afraid of Ke Xinwen¡¯s present appearance, and shepletely forgot about how she wanted to use Ke Xinwen to get back at Qin Lingyu.

    On the other hand, Fan Hai was one of Ke Xinwen¡¯s more loyal followers. However, there was no certainty that his loyalty would be reciprocated by Ke Xinwen.

    ¡°Then exin why brother Ke has be like that!¡± Fan Hai demanded an exnation from Jun Xiaomo.

    In response, Jun Xiaomo simply pointed into the room and asked, ¡°Do you all know what formation array this is?¡±

    No one responded. They were not array masters, and everyone had only a shallow understanding of formation arrays at best. Naturally, they weren¡¯t be able to understand theplex designs on the floor. It was already daytime by now, and the formation array had already depleted a substantial portion of its energy by now, so the blue glow had grown faint and dim. Yet despite that, theplicated designs of the formation array could still be seen on the floor.

    This was what was often referred to by array masters as the ¡°formation diagram¡±.

    ¡°This is called a Nightmare Array. This is a type of illusion array, but it doesn¡¯t only trap its target in an illusion ¨C the illusion would make its target face his worst fears. In other words, the illusion essentially brings out the target¡¯s deepest, darkest memories which had impacted him the most. Now, do you finally understand why brother Ke is acting like this and uttering all this nonsense?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan and fanned herself once again as she said thoughtfully, ¡°One has nothing to fear if his conscience is clear. Yet when I look at how fearfully brother Ke is facing his mortal enemy right now, his expressions truly makes me speechless.¡±

    Hearing this, a few of the other disciples also could not help but look on Ke Xinwen with suspicion in their eyes.

    Fan Hai thought for a moment, but he was still dissatisfied with the exnation, ¡°Martial brother Ke is currently still in a stupor, so he can¡¯t refute what you¡¯ve said. Who knows whether you¡¯re just using this opportunity to make something up and nder him!¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo just tutted and sighed. At this moment, she did not know whether tough or to cry at Fan Hai¡¯s reactions.

    It was funny that he was so devoted to Ke Xinwen and gave him so muchtitude because he could not see Ke Xinwen¡¯s true nature at all. But on the other hand, it was also tragic because Fan Hai¡¯s character was not half bad either. At the very least, even though others were merely observing and reticent to get involved, he stood by his friend whom he believed in.

    Alright, since I can¡¯t dispel his suspicions like this, then let¡¯s extend him another helping hand and reveal Ke Xinwen¡¯s true image to him.

    This was also Jun Xiaomo¡¯s true intention for setting up this chain of formation array attacks ¨C it was to tear down Ke Xinwen¡¯s pretense and reveal his true nature! This was much more satisfying than directly killing him...

    As she thought about this, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a mirror from her Interspatial Ring.

    The Mirror of a Thousand Reflections could be used to revisit everything that had happened in the past. Of course, one of the pre-conditions was that the scene to be revisited had to be captured by a second Mirror of a Thousand Reflections which formed its pair. Jun Xiaomo had carefully set up a Mirror of a Thousand Reflections in her room and concealed it using an Invisibility Talisman so that she could deal with the present situation she was in.

    ¡°It seems that brother Fan Hai only believes what he sees, huh? Then, feast your eyes on what exactly transpiredst night.¡± As Jun Xiaomo said this, she handed the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections to Fan Hai.

    Without hesitation, Fan Hai took the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands, and several other disciples also crowded around him as they stared into the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu started straight into the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections held in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and his eyes immediately narrowed.

    It¡¯s really a Mirror of a Thousand Reflections ¨C this is indeed a treasure that money can¡¯t buy.

 Chapter 67: Ke Xinwenâ€™s Bad Reputation

    <h4>Chapter 67: Ke Xinwen¡¯s Bad Reputation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Mirror of a Thousand Reflections had indeed recorded every single one of Ke Xinwen¡¯s actions. These disciples watched in absolute horror as they discovered that the usually big-hearted and magnanimous martial brother Ke had such a fierce and vicious side to him ¨C this truly made them tremble in fear.

    Wasn¡¯t Yao Mo but an array master at the first level of Qi Mastery? What grudge did martial brother Ke bear against him that made him want to kill Yao Mo so much? He even unleashed his strongest Windsquall attack on him and turned everything around into dust!

    If Yao Mo had been in the room when Ke Xinwen attacked, then he would most certainly have be minced meat under Ke Xinwen¡¯s attacks.

    Once these disciples witnessed with their very eyes how Ke Xinwen had attempted to attack Yao Mo, they could no longer justify making things difficult for Yao Mo. Thus, they remained absolutely silent.

    These disciples were also thinking about the other disciple mentioned by Ke Xinwen, Lu Rong. Lu Rong was a fellow disciple of theirs, and seeing how things were, there was a good chance that Ke Xinwen had murdered Lu Rong and disposed of his body so that no one could find a single trace of it.

    As they thought about these things, the disciples who had always been chummy with Ke Xinwen suddenly got goosebumps. Even Fan Hai who would adamantly stand up for Ke Xinwen was left speechless.

    ¡°That...these few distinguished guests, could I ask how you intend to deal with the man in this room?¡± The innkeeper asked cautiously. He could tell that these people knew the madman in the room, so he was careful not to refer to Ke Xinwen as a madman so as not to offend these cultivators. Therefore, he politely reminded Qin Lingyu and the others to think of a way to deal with this situation.

    Jun Xiaomo leisurely fanned herself as she answered, ¡°Innkeeper sir, don¡¯t worry. These brothers standing around and that person in the room are martial brothers and sisters, so they definitely won¡¯t ignore him and leave him here.¡±

    The innkeeper smiled as he responded, ¡°Ha...haha. That¡¯s good, that¡¯s good. I, Mr Yang, will have to thank everyone here for their help then.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s faces were absolutely downcast after Jun Xiaomo had spoken. There was little they could do to salvage their reputation now that Ke Xinwen had acted like this and tarnished Dawn Sect¡¯s good name. Who knows how these onlookers would talk about the Dawn Sect disciples from now on? Perhaps they would say that the disciples from Dawn Sect were vicious people who would ughter their own brothers; or perhaps they would say that a Dawn Sect cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery had lost to an array master at only the first level of Qi Mastery. Either way, there was nothing good that coulde out of the the present situation at all.

    Qin Lingyu also witnessed how Ke Xinwen was tormented by a well-linked chain of attacked from all these formation arrays that had been set up, and he sized up Yao Mo thoughtfully ¨C this person is not simple at all.

    At the very least, he had definitely underestimated his opponent prior to this. Who would have thought that even with a low cultivation, Yao Mo was incredibly talented and knowledgeable in the field of formation arrays? Normal array masters would not have been able to set up this chain of formation array attacks within such a short amount of time, and with the space constraints Yao Mo had.

    As Qin Lingyu turned his thoughts to how Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo maintained such a good rtionship, he could not help but have a bad feeling about all of this. Perhaps the ns that he and his master had carefully crafted would have to be modified to deal with this new variable. Otherwise, with this formidable array master by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, it might truly be difficult to achieve their initial goals right now.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo stored her Mirror of a Thousand Reflections in her Interspatial Ring. As it vanished into thin air, Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes curled up, exuding a greedy, covetous intent.

    If this person could take out such priceless treasures with such east, perhaps Yao Mo¡¯s true identity might not be as simple as I thought!

    Several possibilities shed quickly across Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind at this point, but he decided to shelf all these for the moment and adopt a ¡°wait-and-see¡± approach.

    In any event, the Mystic Woods are still about two to three months¡¯ away by foot, and I can carefully n my next steps along the way.

    This final formation array set up by Jun Xiaomo, the Nightmare Array, was set up with enough spirit stones tost only up to noontime. Once noontime passed, the formation array would lose its effects.

    Ke Xinwen had beenpletely trapped in this illusion ¨C his martial brother Lu Rong whom he had killed had time and time again appeared before him, and Lu Rong would not die no matter how much he hacked and shed at him. Ke Xinwen¡¯s face was now strewn with ck streaks of dried blood, replete with a terrifying, macabre expression as he sought to take Lu Rong¡¯s life again and again. Right now, Ke Xinwen was trapped in the illusion and he could not see his surroundings outside the formation array. Therefore, he thought that his surroundingsprised only of him and Lu Rong, and he once again hollered at Lu Rong in order to muster his energy and self-confidence.

    But it was finally noontime, and the formation array had just started to lose its effects. At this moment, Ke Xinwen finally saw Lu Rong¡¯s appearance start to blur and fade away as it became less and less corporeal.

    Could it be that Lu Rong has finally given up on his vengeance? Ke Xinwen finally felt more at ease as heughed manically, ¡°Lu Rong, oh Lu Rong, it seems you could only put on a front and give me a scare. Look at you now ¨C you can¡¯t even deal with me as a ghost! Hahahahaha...¡±

    Then shortly after, Ke Xinwen noticed that his surroundings were starting to blur as well. His heart tightened anxiously as he grew anxious by the prospects that this might be another one of Lu Rong¡¯s tricks. Subconsciously, Ke Xinwen tightened his grasp around therge sword in his hands again.

    Just this moment, a ray of bright light prated the boundaries of the formation array and entered Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes, causing him to shut his eyes reflexively. Then, in the next moment when he finally opened his eyes again, he realized that it was already daytime outside.

    Under the effects of the formation array, Ke Xinwen had thought that he was surrounded by the darkness of night, and he did not know how much time had passed as he battled the spirit of Lu Rong.

    The bystanders around could see Ke Xinwen slowly calming down as he ceased iling his hand about and shing that big sword in his arms anymore, and they looked at each other in dismay.

    The show was over ¨C this madman had recovered on his own, and his own martial brothers and sisters did not even have to do anything.

    Of course, Ke Xinwen had not gone crazy to begin with. It was only under the effects of the formation array that he momentarily lost all rationality when he saw Lu Rong¡¯s image appear before his eyes. Additionally, because there was no one else around, he naturally felt no need to temper his conduct and appearances with restraint.

    But now that the formation array¡¯s effects were gone, Ke Xinwen could finally see the throng of people surrounding and watching him. Apart from Yao Mo, who was fanning himself leisurely, the people standing closest to him were his martial brothers and sisters from the Sect.

    These martial brothers and sisters had always gotten along well with him. But right now, everyone was looking at him with aplicated gaze in their eyes ¨C obviously everyone had witnessed everything and heard every single word that he had shouted to ¡°Lu Rong¡±.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen knew that Ke Xinwen was a two-faced person, so they had the calmest of expressions among all the other disciples present.

    As realization dawned upon him, Ke Xinwen¡¯s face turned sickly green and pale. He could never have thought that the reputation he had carefully built for himself over all these years would be lost overnight just like that!

    Most pertinently, if Qin Lingyu reported this matter of him murdering a fellow disciple to the Sect, he would definitely be summoned before the Sect Elders to answer for his crimes. If that happened, his life would be over.

    ¡°That...martial brother Ke, can you recognize us now?¡± Fan Hai noticed that the others maintained their silence, so he had no choice but to make the first move.

    Truth be told, he was rather fearful of Ke Xinwen right now. And this was not solely because of his suspicion that Ke Xinwen had previously killed a talented fellow disciple, but also because of Ke Xinwen¡¯s present looks.

    Ke Xinwen had not rested the entire night, and his eyes were bloodshot. Furthermore, he had been battling with Lu Rong¡¯s illusion the entire night, and his body was still shrouded with thick, murderous intent. Therefore, Ke Xinwen¡¯s present expression looked manic and macabre, like that of a crazed warrior at the end of a long, arduous battle.

    Ke Xinwen did not immediately answer Fan Hai. He wore a somber expression at this moment as he swept his gaze across the entire mass of onlookers, before finally resting his gaze on Yao Mo.

    From his eyes, one could see that an intense fury and hatred for Yao Mo had ignited in his heart.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu stepped forward a few steps and obscured Ke Xinwen¡¯s gaze on Jun Xiaomo, as well as the onlookers¡¯ line of sight on Ke Xinwen.

    Since the formation array¡¯s effects had worn off, Qin Lingyu could easily walk into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room now.

    As he looked on Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen¡¯s face lookedpletely drained of colour ¨C he knew right this moment that his fate rested in Qin Lingyu¡¯s palms. If Qin Lingyu reported all of this to the Sect Elders, then there was no way he would be able to walk away from this incident intact.

    Even the Second Elder would be powerless to protect him if this matter came to light. After all, murdering a fellow disciple was a grave crime within the Sect. Additionally, even if he managed to step into the Foundation Establishment stage before the age of thirty five, none of the other upper-tier sects would be willing to ept him as a disciple, given his criminal records.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes shed with a cold gleam, as he patted Ke Xinwen¡¯s shoulder and spoke in a low voice, ¡°Let¡¯s discuss this matter after we leave this ce.¡±

    Ke Xinwen loosened his grip on therge sword in his hand, deliberated for a moment before silently nodding his head helplessly.

    There were just too many onlookers present right now. No matter how Qin Lingyu decided to resolve this matter with him, it was now considered Dawn Sect¡¯s internal affairs, and there was no need for so many onlookers to be involved in this process or witnessing it.

    Qin Lingyu led Ke Xinwen as he walked out of this ce. As the bystanders noticed Ke Xinwen walk towards them, they all parted ways and gave him a great berth of clearance as he left. After witnessing how Ke Xinwen had put on a crazed expression on his face for an entire morning, none of the onlookers were willing to risk getting too close to him for fear that Ke Xinwen would once again erupt in a manic frenzy.

    Right now, everything seemedpletely surreal to Ke Xinwen. Last night, he was even chatting heartily and making merry with his fellow martial brothers and sisters. Yet overnight, everyone¡¯s attitude towards him hadpletely changed.

    All of this had been caused by that darned array master! As he passed by Jun Xiaomo, Ke Xinwen grasped onto hisrge sword tightly, fervently suppressing the urge to lunge over and hack away at that scumbag smiling at him with slightly raised eyebrows. He wished to kill Yao Mo with all his heart! But he knew that he could not make a move under everyone¡¯s watchful eyes, because doing so would simply confirm and seal everyone¡¯s impression of him right now.

    He could no longer act with reckless abandon.

    Jun Xiaomo also knew this. Therefore, when Ke Xinwen coldly stared daggers at her, she could still give Ke Xinwen a radiant smile from the depths of her heart.

    Ke Xinwen was enraged by this, but he quickened his steps and fixed his eyes straight ahead. Everyone else consciously parted ways and allowed this madman to leave the premises of the inn.

    ¡°Ahem, that...dear guests...look at my room...¡± As the ¡°madman¡± left the premises inrge strides, the innkeeper was left almost in tears. Everything in the room had been turned to sawdust and wood shavings ¨C who knew what his losses would amount to?

    Therefore, the innkeeper had no choice but to look hopefully at Yao Mo and see if he would be willing topensate for some of these damages. After all, she had been one of the main causes of this incident.

    Jun Xiaomo pointed her fan at Fan Hai as she responded, ¡°Look at how pitiful this innkeeper is. Won¡¯t you make some form of rpense to him?¡±

    Fan Hai did not expect Yao Mo to immediately nominate him, and he immediately pointed at his own nose as he responded in astonishment, ¡°Ha--?! I pay him?!¡±

    ¡°Of course! Brother Ke is from Dawn Sect, and you¡¯re from Dawn Sect. At the very least, you should help your martial brother Ke ount for the mess he¡¯s created, shouldn¡¯t you?¡± Jun Xiaomo exined logically.

    Most of the other Dawn Sect disciples had left the premises together with Qin Lingyu, and only Fan Hai was left to deal with this mess.

    The other onlookers also felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were reasonable, and they started to chatter among themselves as well.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen was also from Dawn Sect, but he had not spoken this entire time, and naturally he was outside the consideration of all of these onlookers.

    Seeing how things panned out, Fan Hai frowned bitterly as he retrieved a whole bunch of spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring, counted out a few mid-grade spirit stones and ten low-grade spirit stones and handed them to the innkeeper, asking, ¡°Is this enough?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s enough, that¡¯s enough.¡± The innkeeper smiled radiantly as he epted the spirit stones offered by Fan Hai.

    Actually, this was more than sufficientpensation. However, this innkeeper was clearly not someone very honest, and he did not disclose this to Fan Hai. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo had also noticed that Fan Hai had given the innkeeper more than he needed to, but she decided to keep mum about it as well.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We should follow them and see how your Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple is going to handle this fe Ke Xinwen.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved at Ye Xiuwen and Fan Hai.

    Ye Xiuwen followed Jun Xiaomo. Fan Hai also followed behind for a few steps before he froze momentarily ¨C Hang on. Why do I have to listen to this array master at the first level of Qi Mastery? This array master is an outsider, and we¡¯re going to deal with our Sect¡¯s internal affairs right now, so what right does he have to observe these matters?!

    After Jun Xiaomo had walked to the other side of the stairs, she realized that Fan Hai had not followed her, so she quickly turned around and asked, ¡°Brother Fan, you¡¯re not leaving yet? Don¡¯t tell me that you want to stay here and do the dishes for the innkeeper?¡±

    Fan Hai: ......

    Forget it. Just don¡¯t think about it. We¡¯ll deal with this after we leave this ce. Fan Hai thought to himself, as he quickly left this ce under the onlookers¡¯ watchful eyes.

    On the other side Qin Lingyu led Ke Xinwen out of the inn first, and the other disciples followed not far behind.

    The other disciples had note close to Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen right now because they had seen Ke Xinwen¡¯s vicious looks earlier and they were afraid of him right now.

    The more Ke Xinwen thought about it, the more furious he grew. He was already well above his boiling point, and he wanted so much to tear Yao Mo to shreds this instant. At the same time, he felt uneasy about how Qin Lingyu was going to deal with him.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s probably going to report these matters to the Sect Elders, right? After all, I¡¯m now also at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and I¡¯m one of Qin Lingyu¡¯s rivals. Ke Xinwen thought to himself.

    Just this moment, Qin Lingyu turned around and faced Ke Xinwen as he asked inly, ¡°Do you want all these problems to go away?¡±

    ¡°Wha--...What?¡± Ke Xinwen did not expect the first thing that Qin Lingyu said to be this.

    Qin Lingyu hooked his lips and smiled wryly as his eyes revealed a cruel and profound intent, ¡°If you be myckey and allow me to use you, I will allow you to continue practicing your cultivation in peace. How about that? Do we have a deal?¡±

 Chapter 68: Accepting Puppetry

    <h4>Chapter 68: epting Puppetry</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    To be used by Qin Lingyu?! What kind of a sick joke is this?!

    Even though Qin Lingyu was the First Seat Disciple of Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, He Zhang, Ke Xinwen had been a Sect disciple for a longer time. Ke Xinwen¡¯s cultivation level was no less than Qin Lingyu¡¯s either. Ke Xinwen had never thought of Qin Lingyu as someone superior to him. At the very least, Ke Xinwen felt that he was no worse than Qin Lingyu within the Sect. Therefore, when Qin Lingyu suggested for Ke Xinwen to pledge his loyalty to Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen¡¯s first reaction was to reject itpletely!

    If he agreed to be controlled by Qin Lingyu, then how would he be able to hold his head high and face his other martial brothers in future?

    Qin Lingyu nced back at the martial brothers and sisters following behind them, before slowly breaking down the situation to Ke Xinwen, ¡°Martial brother Ke, you¡¯ve got to think carefully about this. You¡¯re well aware of the consequences if I recount what exactly transpired today to the Sect Leader, right?¡±

    This immediately sent shivers down Ke Xinwen¡¯s back ¨C of course he knew the consequences of that! If he were lucky, he would get away with merely being emunicated from the Sect; but if not, his punishment could well be a crippling of his cultivation so that he would be no more than a mere mortal, and once again be subject to the vicissitudes of life.

    Murdering a fellow disciple was a heinous crime anywhere, regardless of one¡¯s background.

    ¡°I...I did not kill him intentionally...I only lost control momentarily...¡± Ke Xinwen attempted to justify his actions before Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°What you tell me right now doesn¡¯t really matter. The most important thing is that too many people have learnt of this matter today. If you wish to cover up this matter, you will naturally have to pay amensurate price for your freedom. Do you think I¡¯m just offering you a free lunch right now?¡± Qin Lingyu said to Ke Xinwen coldly and indifferently, and his eyes gleamed with an immutable decisiveness and no signs of hesitation at all.

    ¡°I¡¯ll...I¡¯ll think about it.¡± Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart was conflicted right now.

    Qin Lingyu was not concerned that Ke Xinwen would reject him in the end. After all, he had something huge to ckmail Ke Xinwen with, so he was certain that Ke Xinwen would have no choice but to pledge his loyalty to Qin Lingyu. But at the same time, Qin Lingyu did not wish to give Ke Xinwen much time to decide, because he knew that given the luxury of time, Ke Xinwen mighte up with a way to deal with the matter on his own.

    ¡°You¡¯d best not take too long. There are several eyes staring at your back right now. If you wish to cover up this matter, you¡¯ll still have to find a good excuse, or you¡¯ll just have to bear the weight of your crimes under our Sect¡¯s regtions.¡±

    Hearing this, Ke Xinwen¡¯s back immediately felt numb, as though the whole world were scrutinizing him right this moment.

    But he could only me himself for being careless. If not for the fact that he had wanted to deal with that damned array master at the first level of Qi Mastery, how would he havended himself in such a predicament?

    A million regrets could not even begin to describe Ke Xinwen¡¯s emotions right now.

    His eyes were momentarily filled with an internal struggle between reluctance and regret, before he sighed in resignation and said to Qin Lingyu, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve got no other choice, have I?¡±

    Qin Lingyu immediately retrieved a small jade bottle from his Interspatial Ring and poured out a pill, saying, ¡°Since you¡¯ve already made up your mind, then swallow this pill.¡±

    ¡°Wha--...What?! You still need me to consume a pill? What pill is this?!¡± Ke Xinwen looked with hesitance at the fiery red pill in Qin Lingyu¡¯s palm right now as sweat permeated his entire back.

    ¡°This pill won¡¯t do anything to you as long as you don¡¯t harbour any traitorous intent towards me. How about it? Are you willing to take this pill?¡±

    ¡°And...and if I betray you? What will happen to me?¡± Ke Xinwen probed further.

    Qin Lingyu revealed a cruel smile as he slowly articted each word, ¡°You don¡¯t want to know.¡±

    Suddenly, Ke Xinwen felt as though he were being gazed upon by a vicious, poisonous snake. It just dawned on him that this First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader was much more fearsome than he had thought. In fact, seeing how Qin Lingyu had perfectly forced every single one of Ke Xinwen¡¯s moves with just his words made Ke Xinwen realize that he was absolutely not a match for Qin Lingyu.

    Ke Xinwen pursed his lips for a moment, before he finally said, ¡°Fine. I agree.¡±

    After all, he was caught between a rock and a hard ce right now, and thispromise would allow him a brief moment of respite. Who know, he might be able to find a trace of hope in future.

    Then, Ke Xinwen received the pill from Qin Lingyu with trembling hands, ced the pill in his mouth as he shut his eyes, and swallowed.

    The pill was not only cool to the touch; Ke Xinwen could also feel a cold sensation travel down his throat and straight into his stomach as he swallowed the pill. Then, that cold sensation immediately dispersed throughout his four limbs and caused them to be frozen stiff for a second.

    How much did Ke Xinwen want to spit out this pill right this moment! However, he could only fantasize about this right now ¨C this was certainly not something that he dared to do under Qin Lingyu¡¯s watchful eyes.

    ¡°Very good.¡± Qin Lingyu nodded his head in approval, yet his eyes were filled with a cold, deadly gaze. He patted Ke Xinwen¡¯s shoulder and said, ¡°Follow me. We¡¯ll have to find you a way out of your current predicament.¡±

    Ke Xinwen followed closely behind Qin Lingyu, and his whole being was nowpletely listless. It was aplete change from the bright exuberance that he was so well known for.

    Qin Lingyu brought Ke Xinwen over to the group of martial brothers and sisters following him, and he said to them all, ¡°I¡¯ve just spoken with martial brother Ke. I find this matter a little odd, and we might have to report this to the Sect Leader and Sect Elders and let them make a decision on this after their investigations.¡±

    ¡°Odd? What¡¯s so odd about what brother Ke had said? Unless you¡¯re saying that someone had forced him to say stuff like ¡®I¡¯ve killed you once, and I can kill you again¡¯? But wouldn¡¯t that be too incredible?¡± One of the more straight-talking disciples around immediately spoke his mind. He had a pretty good rtionship with Ke Xinwen in the past. But witnessing this new side of Ke Xinwen he had never seen before had truly shocked him to the core. Right now, he would get chills down his spine every single time he thought of how his ¡°buddy¡± martial brother Ke was in fact a murderer who killed a fellow martial brother.

    The other disciples also looked on Ke Xinwen with suspicion, wondering what he had told Qin Lingyu for him to adjudge the matter as ¡°rather odd¡±.

    Just this moment, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Fan Hai also arrived and joined the group. They had earlier been dyed by the group of onlookers in the inn, and they only finally managed to catch up with the rest.

    Once she heard Qin Lingyu mention that things were ¡°rather odd¡±, Jun Xiaomo immediately furrowed her brows, flicked open her fan and listened on intently at what story Qin Lingyu was going to construct in order to help Ke Xinwen out of his present predicament.

    As expected, Qin Lingyu truly lived up to his name as He Zhang¡¯s disciple ¨C he could shoot lies straight off the hips without even batting an eyelid. He calmly said, ¡°I¡¯ve just asked martial brother Ke about the matter. He said that from his memory, he had indeed murdered Lu Rong.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart immediately sank as he looked up at Qin Lingyu with quivering eyes.

    How could Qin Lingyu betray me right after I swallowed the pill?!

    But Qin Lingyu ignored Ke Xinwen¡¯s furious gaze as he continued, ¡°But martial brother Ke¡¯s memory is at times hazy, and at times clear. Particrly, he draws a nk whenever I ask him how exactly he had killed Lu Rong. Therefore, I suspect that martial brother Ke¡¯s memory might have been modified by someone.¡± As Qin Lingyu finished speaking, his gaze directlynded on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    In other words, he was implying that Yao Mo might well have been the culprit who had modified Ke Xinwen¡¯s memory.

    Jun Xiaomo smile immediately grew frigid as she locked eyes with Qin Lingyu.

    Ah, not bad. Not bad at all. He actually found such a good excuse to use! Memory modification ¨C how creative does this guy have to be to even think of such a thing!

    ¡°If brother Ke¡¯s memory was really modified, then can brother Qin exin howe he was so anxious to kill that illusion Lu Rong, to the point of even saying things like ¡®I¡¯ve killed you once, and I can kill you again¡¯? Normally speaking, shouldn¡¯t a person be filled with so much remorse that he would instead be begging on the ground for forgiveness?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she refuted Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnations.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke mentioned that his mind immediately became hazy and fuzzy once he was caught in that formation array, and whatever his heart thought of doing, the exact opposite would happen. I¡¯ve heard of a formation array called Bewilderment Array ¨C I think with brother Yao¡¯s mastery and knowledge of formation arrays, you would be aware of such a formation array as well, right?¡±

    The other disciples from Dawn Sect were all no better than infants when it came to matters pertaining to formation arrays. Even though they saw theplex formation diagram on the floor of the room, they were unable to identify the exact formation array used.

    If they knew more about formation arrays, they would be able to tell that the formation diagram was clearly for a Nightmare Array, and not the Bewilderment Array. But it was precisely because they were unable to identify this that Qin Lingyu¡¯s words right now sounded extremely convincing to them.

    With this seemingly usible exnation for Ke Xinwen¡¯s actions, their gazes of suspicion immediately swung back from Ke Xinwen¡¯s body to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo secretly cursed in her heart ¨C A bunch of imbeciles!

    But she had no way of proving that the formation diagram she had drawn was indeed a Nightmare Array. Even if she drew out the formation diagram right now, Qin Lingyu would simply use her of drawing a different formation array as the one used in the inn, and no one would be able to verify this. After all, everyone¡¯s attention had been trained on Ke Xinwen¡¯s madman-like actions back then, and no one bothered to examine the formation diagram on the floor.

    Furthermore, a formation diagram would lose its luster and fade away once the formation array had lost its effects. Therefore, faced with Qin Lingyu¡¯s alternative exnation of the facts right now, Jun Xiaomo naturally had no way to prove that her earlier formation array was indeed a Nightmare Array and not a Bewilderment Array.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart swelled with a sense of indignation. Sheughed sardonically as she said, ¡°So is brother Qin insisting that I¡¯m ndering you Dawn Sect disciples by using a Bewilderment Array on Ke Xinwen, making him say that he had killed a fellow disciple and even say things like ¡°I¡¯ve killed you once, and I can kill you again¡±? Is this how you people at Dawn Sect conduct their investigations? By ignoring hard evidence and relying on a person¡¯s baseless words?¡±

    ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t dare to draw any conclusions on the veracity of the matter right now. That was why I suggested for the Sect Elders to conduct a thorough investigation, and I was hoping for brother Yao to assist in these investigations as well. I hope you can understand.¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s calm and cool response further added to his persuasiveness, ¡°Besides, I¡¯m sure everyone at Dawn Sect knows martial brother Ke¡¯s personality. Truth be told, it¡¯s hard to imagine that he would kill a fellow disciple.¡±

    Once Qin Lingyu tied everything back to Ke Xinwen¡¯s personality, all the other disciples standing around werepletely convinced that this was the only proper exnation for the earlier incident. After all, Ke Xinwen was usually magnanimous and big-hearted, and he did not seem anything like the kind of people who would pick a fight with others in the Sect, much less kill a fellow disciple!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s words were extremely moving. Coupled by the fact that Yao Mo was merely an outsider, everyone was clearly biased towards Ke Xinwen and favoured Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation of the matter. At this point in time, some of the disciples around even threw nasty and disgusted looks at Jun Xiaomo.

    On the other hand, as he stood behind Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen was beaming from ear to ear right now ¨C he had not swallowed that pill for nothing. His stifled heart felt a substantially more appeased when he saw how Yao Mo was unable to refute Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation of the matter.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo realized that Dawn Sect was a ce where two kinds of people existed ¨C schemers and idiots. She did not know whether Qin Lingyu was too crafty to worm Ke Xinwen out of his earlier predicament, or whether the other disciples were simply too daft to have believed him so easily.

    Of course, she had once been one of these idiots who had beenpletely fooled by Qin Lingyu.

    Jun Xiaomo fanned herself as she looked coldly at Qin Lingyu and said, ¡°Then brother Qin, tell me, how should I cooperate with your Sect Elders for their investigation?¡±

    ¡°I think we will have to discuss this further once we return to the Sect. However, we¡¯re currently only leaving the Sect for our missions, and it¡¯s not convenient for us to return to the Sect right now. I wonder if brother Yao is willing to travel with us, and follow us back only when we¡¯re done with the Sect¡¯s missions?¡±

    Travel together?! It would have been fine if any other disciple present had said these words. But hearing it from Qin Lingyu¡¯s mouth was absolutely strange, and even somewhat suspicious. Jun Xiaomo squinted at Qin Lingyu as she attempted to pry deeper on what exactly he nned to do.

    However, her original intention had been to follow her martial brother in their travels in any event, so this was in line with her objectives. The only niggling feeling she had right now was what exactly Qin Lingyu was nning to do during these travels.

    ¡°Fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head without much hesitation as she agreed to Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestions.

    ¡°That¡¯s good then. I¡¯ll have to thank brother Yao for your cooperation.¡± Qin Lingyu remained asposed as every before, albeit with a slight trace of politeness.

    Jun Xiaomo carefully sized up Qin Lingyu once more, but she was stillpletely clueless as to what ulterior motives he might have. Therefore, she decided to shelf her thoughts for the moment.

    ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± Jun Xiaomo curtly responded before turning to leave. Ye Xiuwen also followed closely beside her.

    On the other side, Ke Xinwen was also confused about what Qin Lingyu was hoping to achieve by having Yao Mo travel with them. But he had already taken Qin Lingyu¡¯s pill, and he did not dare to question Qin Lingyu¡¯s arrangements.

    Whatever the case was, Qin Lingyu had managed to worm him out of his predicament and turn suspicion back into brotherhood. He had never thought that this matter could be resolved as easily as that.

    ¡°That...that, thanks martial brother.¡± Ke Xinwen stammered as he thanked Qin Lingyu with aplicated feeling in his heart.

    ¡°No need to thank me. I want you to carefully observe that Yao Mo, and if there¡¯s anything special or unique about him, let me know immediately.¡± Qin Lingyu looked meaningfully at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back as he ordered Ke Xinwen.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ke Xinwen had no confidence in dealing with Yao Mo right now, but he had no choice but toply, given that Qin Lingyu had ordered him to do so.

    His life was now in Qin Lingyu¡¯s grasp after all.

    Qin Lingyu nodded his head and followed along with the rest ¨C they had dallied for too long today, and they needed to be on their way as soon as possible.

    As for Yao Mo...

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes shed with a covetous gleam as he once again thought of the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections in Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring.

 Chapter 69: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Shortcomings

    <h4>Chapter 69: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Shorings</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Over the next few days, the entourage of people travelled through a small forest by day and slept under the stars by night. Jun Xiaomo had experienced quite a lot of hardship in her previous life. In some of her most difficult days, she had even spent tens of days without food while facing both extreme heat in the day and freezing cold at night. Therefore, these little matters like sleeping under the stars could not even be considered ¡°hardship¡± by her books.

    Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and the other male cultivators also adapted well to the situation, since they were not too particr about things. On the other hand, Yu Wanrou and Zhong Run found these travels to be unbearable ¨C they had rushed about so much that their feet were all blistered and sore, and they continued to hurt even after applying medicinal powder on them. Furthermore, they had grown sick and tired of eating the same dry rations which they had stocked in their Interspatial Rings from the small towns that they had earlier passed through. Even worse, there were countless bugs lurking in every corner of the forest, some of which would even hover about them incessantly...

    As such, after walking through this small forest for three days, Yu Wanrou and Zhong Run were at their limits. Zhong Run leaned against a tree trunk massaging her calf as sheined, ¡°I¡¯m stopping! I¡¯m stopping! I can¡¯t walk any further. Let¡¯s just rest for one day, alright?¡±

    On the other side, Yu Wanrou tilted her head and looked pitifully at the other male disciples with her tear-filled puppy eyes. Even though she did not explicitlyin about the situation like Zhong Run did, the way she bit down on her lower lip in such a tear-jerking manner was much more effective than Zhong Run¡¯sints.

    If Zhong Run¡¯sints had caused a few disciples to turn back and consider her suggestions, then Yu Wanrou¡¯s performance was so effective that it immediately melted the hearts of these male disciples like ice in a burning furnace.

    ¡°Since martial sisters Zhong and Yu are suffering so much, then shall we rest one day and take stock of things?¡± One of the male disciples suggested to the rest. Nevertheless, he still had to seek Qin Lingyu¡¯s opinion of the matter, as Qin Lingyu was the one with the final say in such matters, ¡°Martial brother Qin, what do you think?¡±

    Qin Lingyu nodded, saying, ¡°Alright. Resting for one day won¡¯t hinder our progress too much.¡±

    Once Qin Lingyu gave the green light, the rest immediately set into motion. With them at the center, several disciples began to scatter medicinal powder and set up a perimeter several tens of meters away to deter wild beasts from entering. Even so, this powder was only able to deter and repel low level beasts, and they could only hope that they were not so unlucky to meet with higher level beasts that they were unable to deal with. While they would certainly be able to preserve their lives in such situations with the use of an Escape Scroll, every single one used meant one less for the future. This was something which they wanted to avoid at all costs.

    Jun Xiaomo also set up a few suitable defensive formation arrays before walking back to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side.

    ¡°What¡¯s up, brother Ye? Are you able to adapt to this kind of lifestyle?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she sat down.

    She knew that Ye Xiuwen was extremely particr about his cleanliness, and even though these few days of hardship was insufficient to drain Ye Xiuwen of his energy, going for several days without a bath must nevertheless be rather difficult for her martial brother.

    Looking at this young man¡¯s concerned gaze, Ye Xiuwen curled his lips and lightly chuckled as he tousled the young man¡¯s hair, saying, ¡°I should be the one asking you, shouldn¡¯t I? You¡¯re always acting like a little old man huh.¡±

    In Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, Jun Xiaomo and Yao Mo were both only in their teens, and he ought to be the one looking after them. Who would have thought that this young man would instead be acting like an old man and showering him with his concern? Seeing Yao Mo¡¯s look of concern on that infantile appearance of his was even considerably adorable.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips in exasperation. If one counted the age of her soul, then she would be like an ancient monster to all these people. Even thebined age of all who were present in their entourage might not be as old as the age of her soul!

    Forget it. Being pampered by my martial brother is still rather enjoyable. At least he¡¯s still alive and beside me, isn¡¯t he?

    Jun Xiaomo thought like that as she beamed radiantly at Ye Xiuwen, enjoying the feeling of Ye Xiuwen running his fingers through her hair like a small kitten.

    This harmonious interaction between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo did not bother the others either, because they were all seated far away from Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo around a bonfire that they had set up.

    In thesest three days, the disciples had all distanced themselves from Jun Xiaomo. This was a stark contrast from the warmth and friendliness they had epted her with when she first met them. The reason for this was precisely because Jun Xiaomo severely undermined and humiliated Ke Xinwen with her formation arrays, torn down Ke Xinwen¡¯s pretense in front of all these other disciples, and tarnished Dawn Sect¡¯s reputation.

    Most people find it difficult to look at conflict with objectivity, especially when they knew one party involved better than the other. In the present situation, most of the disciples were clearly biased towards Ke Xinwen. Once Qin Lingyu gave a usible exnation for the entire incident and provided a reasonable way out for Ke Xinwen, the other disciples immediately snapped it up and cast the me back on the outsider, Yao Mo.

    They were all of the same mind that martial brother Ke never looked like the type to scheme against others to begin with. Therefore, they found Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation very usible, in that Yao Mo had modified brother Ke¡¯s memory with a formation array or some spell, causing him to think that he had murdered his own martial brother.

    This being the case, the Dawn Sect disciples had decidedly segregated themselves from Yao Mo, and Ye Xiuwen was now the only one willing to interact with him.

    Even so, Jun Xiaomo did not mind this at all! To begin with, she only cared about her martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak, and she had wanted nothing to do with the disciples from the other Peaks to begin with!

    ¡°Martial sister Wanrou, would you be interested in some wild game? I could go out and hunt something for you.¡± Ke Xinwen asked Yu Wanrou eagerly. Despite being under Qin Lingyu¡¯s control, his zing passion for Yu Wanrou had not subsided one bit.

    Yu Wanrou lowered her head and softly replied, ¡°Alright. Thanks, martial brother Ke.¡±

    ¡°Haha, no need for thanks. It¡¯s my pleasure to be able tobour for martial sister Wanrou!¡± As Ke Xinwen finished speaking, he led the martial brothers in his team and departed for the woods.

    Yu Wanrou also discreetly bit down on her lower lip as she discreetly threw an aggrieved look at Qin Lingyu. Yet Qin Lingyu did not reciprocate her efforts. He continued to sit aloof where he was, apanied by the beautiful Zhong Run seated beside him.

    Yu Wanrou had been deep in introspection over thesest few days. She had initially intended to use Ke Xinwen to provoke Qin Lingyu so that he would realize how much he needed her, and hopefully rekindle his passion for her. Who would have thought that Qin Lingyu would insteadpletely ignore Yu Wanrou and treat her as nothing more than a normal martial sister of his! After that, when they first encountered Yao Mo, Yu Wanrou had also contemted Yao Mo as a potential partner of hers. After all, Yao Mo was a mysterious man with several secrets on him ¨C just the mere fact that he was able to pull out the Mirror of a Thousand Reflections so easily was testament to his less-than-humble background.

    However, no matter how many times Yu Wanrou tried to signal her intentions to Yao Mo, he simply responded with indifference, and Yu Wanrou was none the wiser whether she had moved his heart or not. It was as though Yu Wanrou had been throwing coquettish looks to a blind man.

    Then, Yao Mo offended the Sect¡¯s disciples, and none of the other disciples apart from Ye Xiuwen were willing to interact further with Yao Mo. And it did not help that Ye Xiuwen had already been reputed for being strange and a loner to begin with. Therefore, Yu Wanrou had no choice but to give up on Yao Mo as well.

    After all, she did not want to be isted from the rest like Ye Xiuwen was.

    Having thought things through, she suddenly found that she might well have been the fool in this entire sequence of events. She and Qin Lingyu clearly had a thing for each other from the outset. Since that was the case, what was the point in her looking for these inferior substitutes, Ke Xinwen and Yao Mo, just because of a petty fight? If Qin Lingyu really fell for Zhong Runter on, then she would probably have to invest much more in order to win Qin Lingyu back.

    I¡¯ve been too careless! Yu Wanrou thought in despair, but it was no use crying over spilt milk. She was now caught between a rock and a hard ce. Everyone knew that Ke Xinwen was pursuing her, so how would she be able to find any chances to interact with Qin Lingyu?

    Yu Wanrou poked at the bonfire with a stick in her frustrations as her heart grew sourer and dourer by the minute.

    Jun Xiaomo looked bemusedly at the love triangle on the other side, before turning her head and saying to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, why not let¡¯s go hunt for some wild game as well? We¡¯ve been eating dry rations so much that even my throat is getting parched.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen continued to fan the campfire in front of them for a moment, before he turned around and said firmly, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to prepare wild game.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo did not notice that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face was flushed with embarrassment because of the veiled conical hat.

    In fact, the truth of the matter was that Ye Xiuwen was so inadequate in his cookery that he could hardly even hold a candle to young children. Jun Xiaomo was well aware of this from her previous life¡¯s experiences. There was once when they had escaped into the wilderness together, and they had been all out of dry rations as well. In order to stave off their hunger, they could only attempt to snag some wild animals. Yet despite catching their prey, both of them looked idiotically at their prey in a daze, not knowing what to do. In the end, Ye Xiuwen could only attempt to clean out and prepare the wild animal ording to his own intuition.

    The resultant vor left an indelible memory in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind. Both of them were clearly famished and starving at that time. Yet no matter how much they tried, they could hardly bring themselves to swallow the food prepared by Ye Xiuwen because it was simply too disgusting! Ye Xiuwen had failed to defeather the wild game. He had not removed the offal and innards before grilling it over the fire. To make matters worse, he even burnt the skin of the wild game, while the meat inside remainedpletely bloody and raw. As they bit into the meat, the raw and bloody scent of the meat lingered in their mouths...

    Jun Xiaomo found this memory to be so horrific that perhaps applying on herself an Amnesia Talisman to forget this entire incident might not be such a bad idea.

    Right now, hearing how Ye Xiuwen had tantly admitted that he was an idiot at cookery, Jun Xiaomo could not help but smile at himically.

    She knew this full well. But the present Jun Xiaomo was not the same as the Jun Xiaomo in the past. Even though she was still unable to prepare any delectable delights in the kitchen, she was nevertheless proficient enough to prepare some mouth-watering dishes in the wilderness. Therefore, since they were taking a break right now, she thought of preparing some wild game for herself, for Ye Xiuwen and for her little packrat to enjoy themselves.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go! I know how to prepare these things.¡± Jun Xiaomo tugged gingerly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves as she said.

    Ye Xiuwen stood up and dusted off the soil on his clothes, saying, ¡°Then alright. Let¡¯s get going while the sun¡¯s still up. We¡¯ll make it quick.¡±

    They were now close to the heart of the forest, and the odds of encountering a stronger wild beast was naturally higher. Therefore, they did not want to leave the main body of the group for too long a time.

    Once Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo departed, Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes suddenly shed with a cruel gleam. Then, when the other disciples were all looking away from him, Qin Lingyu secretly released a paper crane.

    This paper crane glowed momentarily before it vanished into thin air.

    Not longter, as he hunted with a small team of people, Ke Xinwen suddenly found a paper crane mysteriously appearing in his hands. He opened the paper crane, and saw these words written on it: Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo have just left the campsite. Follow them and find a way to cause some trouble for them.

    Ke Xinwen gnashed his teeth together as he used a talisman to identify the direction that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo were in, and then turned around to tell his teammates: ¡°Let¡¯s go over there to take a look. There¡¯s nothing much here, but we might get lucky over there.¡±

    The other disciples did not suspect anything. After all, Ke Xinwen was the team leader of a small team. They nodded and followed Ke Xinwen as they headed in the direction of where Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had gone.

 Chapter 70: Old Dog Ke Xinwen

    <h4>Chapter 70: Old Dog Ke Xinwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Twigs and branches twisted and twined around each other, forming a thick overhanging foliage in the woods. At the same time, beams of sunrays peeked through theplex canopy of branches, dotting the ground with marks of light and faintly illuminating the forest trail, bringing a sense of warmth and life to this otherwise serene and tranquil realm. Walking along the forest trail strewn with dried leaves and listening to the crisp chirps of songbirds would bring calm and peace to anyone¡¯s heart.

    Even though they intended to hunt for some wild game, Jun Xiaomo felt that leaving the toxic people from Dawn Sect behind and simply walking along this forest trail and taking in the sights and sounds around them wasn¡¯t too bad either.

    ¡°There¡¯s a wild boar ahead. Do we want to consider that?¡± Ye Xiuwen suddenly asked, breaking the silence around them.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the wild boar?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked ahead, but she could not see where the wild boar was.

    ¡°It¡¯s some distance ahead of us. I¡¯ve discovered it using my divine sense.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly said. But as he thought about how dirty the wild boar looked, Ye Xiuwen could not help but knit his brows together.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips. She had just been reminded that with her first level of Qi Mastery, the range of her divine sense could hardly hold a candle to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s divine sense from his cultivation at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. There was a good chance that Ye Xiuwen had always been using his divine sense to probe about their surroundings to ensure their safety, and he had also discovered the presence of that wild boar inadvertently.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo could not help but smack her lips as she thought about the different ways of preparing wild boar meat. Then, she looked at Ye Xiuwen with a glimmer in her eyes, saying, ¡°Brother Ye, then let¡¯s go catch it right now, shall we?¡±

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen absolutely did not face the same temptation that Jun Xiaomo had experienced because he felt repulsed by the dirty looks of the wild boar. However, seeing Yao Mo¡¯s gluttonous look at this moment, he could not bring himself to reject that young man either.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in exasperation, patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder and then instructed, ¡°Follow me closely, and don¡¯t fall behind.¡± As he said that, he forged ahead, leading the way.

    Jun Xiaomo flourished a smile as she followed closely behind ording to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instructions.

    Shortly after, Ke Xinwen and his martial brothers arrived at exactly where Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had been just moments ago. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had earlier been taking a leisurely stroll through the forest trail, so it did not take Ke Xinwen much effort to catch up to them.

    ¡°Huff...martial brother Ke, didn¡¯t you say that there would be more prey for us to hunt over here? Howe we haven¡¯t seen a single one after walking for such a long time?¡± Ke Xinwen had walked very quickly in order to catch up to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen earlier, and his martial brothers naturally had to keep pace with him. Right now, the weakest one was even panting hard and trying to catch his breath.

    ¡°Hang on a minute.¡± Ke Xinwen told them to stay patient as he took out another Dowsing Talisman. After making a few hand seals, the talisman lit up and pointed out a certain direction to him.

    Ke Xinwen thought for a moment, before releasing his divine sense in the direction pointed out to him. His cultivation level was currently the same as Ye Xiuwen, at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, so whatever Ye Xiuwen could detect with his divine sense, Ke Xinwen could do the same.

    So, they¡¯ve gone to hunt a wild boar, have they? Ke Xinwen squinted his eyes as they were immediately filled with a scheming intent.

    Even though Qin Lingyu had only instructed Ke Xinwen to ¡°give them some trouble¡±, both Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo were Ke Xinwen¡¯s prime targets, and he certainly had no reservations tearing them into pieces and eliminating them from existence. And now that he was presented with an excellent opportunity, what was there to stop him from scheming against his targets?

    Qin Lingyu had lost to Ye Xiuwen several times during the Sect Ranking Competitions in the past. Therefore, Ke Xinwen had a good reason to believe that Qin Lingyu also wanted to deal with Ye Xiuwen and wipe him off the face of this earth.

    If this is the case, perhaps Qin Lingyu would not mind it one bit even if I killed Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. Ke Xinwen thought to himself.

    Having made up his mind, Ke Xinwen turned to the martial brothers around him, saying, ¡°You guys wait here for a bit. I¡¯m going to go forward and use my divine sense to check if there are any preys around us. If there¡¯s nothing around us, then we¡¯ll go to another ce.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s cultivation level was higher than these other martial brothers following him, and his divine sense could naturally cover a greater distance. Therefore, they did not suspect that Ke Xinwen would have any other ulterior motives at all, and they all immediately agreed.

    Ke Xinwen imbued himself with his wind-based techniques and swiftly sped in the direction that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had headed towards. As he neared their location, Ke Xinwen cautiously stopped, hid behind arge tree and concealed the aura from his body. Then, he retrieved a packet of tightly sealed medicinal powder from his Interspatial Ring.

    In reality, Ke Xinwen was still quite some distance away from Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. There was no way Jun Xiaomo would have spotted Ke Xinwen with her eyes. Given the extremely limited range of her divine sense, there was also no way she would be able to discover his presence around.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was so focused on catching the wild boar that he did not realize Ke Xinwen had drawn so close to them at this instant.

    The bag of medicinal powder that Ke Xinwen had retrieved from his Interspatial Ring was the same type of medicinal powder that he had used in his schemes against Ye Xiuwen before. It was a bag of Frenzypani Grass ground to dust ¨C colourless in nature and odourless to humans. Yet spirit beasts would immediately enter a frenzied state at the tiniest whiff of this substance.

    Furthermore, this bag contained more Frenzypani Grass than Ke Xinwen had used the previous time, because Ke Xinwen had hoped that it would attract an even stronger spirit beast to deal with his targets.

    Then, with a wicked smile stered all over his face, Ke Xinwen tossed the medicinal powder into the air and casted a wind-based spell to sweep the medicinal powder in the direction where Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo presently were.

    The gentle breeze that was sweeping through the forest at this moment was coincidentally also an east-blowing wind, and together with Ke Xinwen¡¯s spell, the medicinal powder very quickly found its way to Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s location. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen remained oblivious to the presence of the Frenzypani Grass because of its odourless nature.

    On the other hand, Ke Xinwen had cautiously maintained a thinyer of wind circting and shielding his body so that none of the medicinal powder wouldnd on his body at all.

    ¡°Ahaha, enjoy this gift of mine!¡± Ke Xinwen chuckled coldly as he crushed the empty bag in his hands and tossed it onto the floor.¡±

    As Ke Xinwen thought about how Yao Mo had tripped him up so terribly using his formation arrays and forced him into the current predicament, he reveled in every moment of his vengeance right now.

    After doing all these things, Ke Xinwen patted his hands, turned around and left. He had used so much Frenzypani Grass this time, and he firmly believed that even if Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen were lucky enough to escape with their lives, there was no way they were going toe out unscathed.

    At this moment, he relished in the thought of how he was going to enjoy seeing Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo returning to the campsite a few hourster,pletely bloodied and in a sorry state. Of course, it would be even better if they had perished and returned as nothing more than corpses.

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen was dealing with the rtivelyrge wild boar while using his divine sense to check his surroundings for danger, but he did not sense anything out of the ordinary.

    However, what he did not expect was for Ke Xinwen to have used a talisman to conceal his own body¡¯s aura. Since Ye Xiuwen and Ke Xinwen were at the same cultivation level, there was no way that Ye Xiuwen would be able to detect Ke Xinwen¡¯s presence in the first ce.

    All this while, Jun Xiaomo stood silently at the side watching her martial brother as she knew that she would only cause more trouble for him if she intervened. In any event, given her martial brother¡¯s cultivation level, subduing a normal wild boar was not a difficult task.

    And as expected, Ye Xiuwen managed to subdue the wild boar in no time at all. All it took was one Wind de that sliced straight through the wild boar¡¯s artery, spilling its blood all over the floor. Then, after the wild boar took as few more steps, its entire body flopped lifelessly on the floor as it yielded up its life.

    It was so effortless that Ye Xiuwen did not even need to unsheathe his sword to aplish all this.

    ¡°Let¡¯s quickly clean up the mess and bring this wild boar away.¡± Ye Xiuwen turned around and instructed Jun Xiaomo as she continued to watch from the side.

    Even though he had just killed the wild boar, it did not change the fact that Ye Xiuwen was almost obsessed about his own cleanliness, and he did not want to have any physical contact with this wild boar at all.

    ¡°Haa--?! Bring the whole wild boar away?!¡± Jun Xiaomo asked,pletely bbergasted.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. We¡¯ll bring the whole wild boar away, then find a water source to clean out this wild boar. Otherwise, the scent of blood will attract fiercer wild beasts our way.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined.

    In the past, he hade to these woods to practice his sword arts before, and he naturally knew that there was a small stream nearby, and it would not be difficult to locate that stream again.

    While Ye Xiuwen was still confident of dealing with stronger wild beasts, things might be much more problematic if multiple wild beasts attacked at the same time. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen could not be certain that there were no spirit beasts in this area. If the stench of blood attracted strong spirit beasts, then he and Yao Mo would be in deep trouble.

    Jun Xiaomo opened her mouth, intending to tell Ye Xiuwen that she could set up a formation array to prevent the stench of blood from spreading to the surroundings. But then once she thought of the number of spirit stones she had left on her, she hesitated.

    Formation arrays required various kinds of resources to be set up, and spirit stones were the life blood and sustenance of these formation arrays. Right now, she no longer had any reliable source of spirit stones at all!

    I¡¯ll have to use my spirit stones more sparingly. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself helplessly.

    Jun Xiaomo turned around to look at Ye Xiuwen, sizing up her martial brother dressed from top to toe in white as though a deity, before concluding that it was truly beneath Ye Xiuwen to be touching this wild boar with his own hands.

    Fine. This is not the first time I¡¯m hunting outside anyway. Even though the wild boar is a little bit dirty, but I can always use a Cleansing Talisman to purge my clothes of any stains. Jun Xiaomo was resigned to her fate as she walked over to that dirty wild boar lying on the ground a distance away.

    Suddenly, a shuffling sound rang out, followed by the rustling of the dead leaves on the floor. Then, an enormous Green Elder Python instantly appeared out of nowhere, opened its mouth wide and lunged towards Jun Xiaomo with immense speed! Its eyes werepletely bloodshot, indicating that it was in a frenzied state!

    Jun Xiaomo reflexively dodged backwards; but how would a Green Elder Python let its prey get away just like that?

    The Green Elder Python¡¯s movements were extremely swift, and it closed in on Jun Xiaomo in the blink of an eye. A vile, noxious odour emanated from its mouth, and its two sharp fangs were coated in a viscous, ck poison that gleamed coldly under the sun.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted ¨C she knew that there was no avoiding it this time.

    If this Green Elder Python bit down on her right now, she would be severely wounded, if not dead!

 Chapter 71: That Moment Between Life and Death

    <h4>Chapter 71: That Moment Between Life and Death</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Jun Xiaomo operated her true energy instinctively, intending to duke it out with the Green Elder Python, a sharp sound of grating metal sliced through the air ¨C Ye Xiuwen had unsheathed his Frostburn Sword and stabbed it straight into the area between the Green Elder Python¡¯s fangs. A deep gash appeared in the Green Elder Python¡¯s upper jaw.

    However, this small wound was nothing much to the Green Elder Python at all. In fact, the stench of its own blood, coupled by the thick presence of Frenzypani Grass in the air agitated the Green Elder Python even more! The redness of its eyes grew two shades darker, and it turned its attention from Jun Xiaomo to Ye Xiuwen and lunged towards him!

    The Green Elder Python¡¯s movements were extremely quick, and it could travel a few hundred meters in just a few moments. This was the reason why Ye Xiuwen had not discovered its presence right at the outset. Right now, if any other cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery with a different spiritual-root were in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ce, he would immediately have lost its life to the Green Elder Python. But Ye Xiuwen was a sword cultivator with a wind-based spiritual root. He immediately imbued his hands and feet with wind energy and increased his speed by a few folds. Armed with the formidable treasure, Frostburn Sword, the Green Elder Python was unable to immediately overpower Ye Xiuwen.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen and the Green Elder Python had be like two shadows that were shing about and shing together at times. From time to time, their shes would even release a wave of chilling sword intent about them.

    But Jun Xiaomo did not have the time to appreciate how this battle was panning out. She knew that it was going to be difficult for the present Ye Xiuwen at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery matched with the Green Elder Python. It must be said that apart from the Green Elder Python¡¯s immense speed, it even had a thickyer of scale around its body that acted like armor, and this scale waspletely imprable unless one had weapons of a certain grade.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Frostburn Sword was able to unleash ice-based attacks and it could slow down the Green Elder Python¡¯s speed, but the Frostburn Sword were only at the third-grade ¨C there was only a very low possibility of prating the Green Elder Python¡¯s scales at its current level.

    Therefore, having been locked inbat for some time, the Green Elder Python managed toe out on top of their shes with only minor scratches on its body, and the worst injury it sustained had been the very first stab Ye Xiuwen had made between the python¡¯s fangs!

    On the other hand, it was quickly bing a concern how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s speed was gradually slowing down. After all, how could the amount of spiritual energy in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body bepared with the wealth of spiritual energy possessed by these spirit beasts which were able to cultivate from the moment they were born? Therefore, the more drawn out thisbat was, the more it was disadvantageous to Ye Xiuwen.

    But faced with such agile and swift spirit beasts like the Green Elder Python, Jun Xiaomo knew that she was unable to put to use any of her knowledge pertaining to formation arrays or talismans. Formation arrays were predicated on capturing its targets in the array¡¯s area of effect. However, the Green Elder Python was too fast, and it was highly possible that it would slip out of the array¡¯s area of effect before the array fully activates. Worse, the array might even end up injuring Ye Xiuwen inadvertently.

    On the other hand, the usage of talismans was dependent on its user¡¯s aim and uracy. Otherwise, if one tossed out talismans recklessly, not only would one be unable to hit his target, he might even injure his own allies.

    If Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation were a little bit higher so that she could track the Green Elder Python¡¯s movements, then she might possibly be able to use the various talismans in her possession to aid Ye Xiuwen and deal with the Green Elder Python. However, it was a pity that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation right now was only at the first level of Qi Mastery.

    Once again, Jun Xiaomo found it tragic that her present cultivation technique made it so difficult for her to improve her cultivation level.

    As thebat wore on, Ye Xiuwen finally slipped up for the first time. The Green Elder Python immediately recognized its opportunity and bit down hard on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, puncturing a deep wound from which crimson red blood flowed. Ye Xiuwen gritted his teeth and fought through the pain as he stabbed at the Green Elder Python¡¯s upper jaw again, causing the Green Elder Python to let go of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm in pain.

    It was a fortunate thing that the Green Elder Python had only managed to bite down on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s left arm, while Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sword-bearing arm was his right arm. Otherwise, there was no way that Ye Xiuwen would be able to free himself from the Green Elder Python¡¯s bite so easily.

    But even so, this wound still affected Ye Xiuwen¡¯s offensive and defensive capabilities. The poison from the Green Elder Python had corrosive and paralyzing effects. Therefore, the pain in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s left arm only grew more painful over time, and his body¡¯s movements grew more and more sluggish.

    Martial brother! Jun Xiaomo nearly called out as she bit down on her lower lips. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injury was the final straw that broke the camel¡¯s back!

    This cannot do! I cannot stand idly by the side and not do a thing anymore! Even if it meant pushing myself to the limits, I cannot let martial brother die before my very eyes while protecting me again!

    As Jun Xiaomo retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and took aim at the Green Elder Python, the little packrat on her body suddenly moved, and a small, furry white head suddenly jumped out, looked at her and squeaked twice.

    ¡°Packie!¡± Jun Xiaomo did not think that the little packrat would suddenly jump out like that, and she could not help but holler at it anxiously and in anger.

    It must be said that the woods were notcking in creatures with strong offensive abilities, including creatures that were the natural enemies of packrats. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo thought that her little packrat¡¯s actions right now only served to add to the present chaos!

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat scampered forward a few steps, before turning around and looking at Jun Xiaomo with another two squeaks. Then, it scampered forward a few steps again, and then looked at Jun Xiaomo and squeaked again.

    ¡°You want me to follow you?¡± Jun Xiaomo was stunned. She felt that this possibility was rather low, but the little packrat¡¯s actions right now clearly signified that intention.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat lifted its head and squeaked twice again, staring at Jun Xiaomo with its two ck beady eyes with a determined look.

    It suddenly crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind that the little packrat was bing more and more mysterious to her. But now was not the time to delve into these matters. Since the little packrat was so determined, she would trust in the little packrat just this once.

    ¡°Brother Ye, follow me quickly!¡± Jun Xiaomo yelled at Ye Xiuwen as he continued to be locked inbat with the Green Elder Python. This exmation not only attracted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention; it even caused the Green Elder Python to pause in its movements momentarily.

    It momentarily cocked its head and shifted its bloodshot eyes to look at Jun Xiaomo ¨C and this look that gave Jun Xiaomo the opportunity she needed!

    Jun Xiaomo rushed forward as she recited the mnemonic to convert the true energy in her body to spirit energy and flicked out two Thunderbolt Talismans.

    Under the guidance of her spirit energy, the two Thunderbolt Talismans struck the Green Elder Python directly in its eyes. Then, Jun Xiaomo activated the spirit energy on the Thunderbolt Talismans, and they immediately exploded. The sound of two loud thunderbolts rang out through the woods, and the Green Elder Python¡¯s eyes had instantly be tworge, bloody cavities.

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injuries were very severe, but he still managed to hang on. Jun Xiaomo held onto his wrist as she said, ¡°Brother Ye, follow me quickly. My little packrat has found an escape method.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately stumbled over as Jun Xiaomo pulled his wrist. Jun Xiaomo turned back, and she only just realized that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s garbs had been dyedpletely red with his own blood.

    It was like a re-creation of the memories of her past life ¨C a deep fear prated her heart right now, and the rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened as tears welled up quickly.

    But now was not the time to be sad or sorrowful ¨C the moment of danger had not passed! The Green Elder Python had only lost its vision, but it still possessed acute auditory senses. Once it recovered from its present shocked state, it would definitely speed towards Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen in pursuit!

    Ye Xiuwen also knew this full well. Therefore, despite staggering about because of his blood loss, he still fought through the pain and told Jun Xiaomo, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth, before cing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm on her shoulder. Even though Ye Xiuwen was quite a bit taller than her, and this would slow down their movement, but Jun Xiaomo had only one goal on her mind right now ¨C and that was to bring Ye Xiuwen away from this ce safely!

    The little packrat squeaked at them anxiously as it scampered ahead, while Jun Xiaomo supported Ye Xiuwen and hobbled after the little packrat. On the other side, the Green Elder Python that had just lost its vision was still under the frenzy-inducing effects of the Frenzypani Grass, and it was unable to determine the direction of its prey momentarily. Therefore, it hissed furiously and thrashed its massive body about furiously, levelling its surroundings to t ground.

    Within moments, several trees around the Green Elder Python were pulled up by the roots or broke in half. If these trees hadnded on a person, how great would that impact be!

    After a while, the Green Elder Python finally managed to get used to the pain in its eyes and the darkness around it. But at the same time, its auditory senses became even more acute ¨C this was a very basic, primal reaction and adaptation for its own survival.

    Within moments, the Green Elder Python cocked its head ferociously and slithered in the direction that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had headed for.

    At the same time, the little packrat finally brought Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to the destination it was headed for ¨C it was a pitch-ck cavern. The cavern¡¯s entrance was not toorge, and it could only fit a single person at any one time. The cavern was even surrounded by a unique type of nt that they had not seen earlier.

    Of course, the little packrat had not known that there was going to be a cavern here. Its senses had told it that there was going to be arge field of Firescale Grass which was useful for repelling serpents. Incidentally, the little packrat had also just coincidentally discovered the existence of the cavern here. Because of its small size, the little packrat had almost fallen right through the entrance of the cavern on the ground. As soon as it discovered the cavern, its eyes gleamed brightly, and it turned around and squeaked at Jun Xiaomo immediately.

    If Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen stayed on the outside, perhaps the frenzied Green Elder Python which had lost all rationality would ignore the existence of the Firescale Grass and relentlessly pursue them. But things were different with this cavern. The Green Elder Python¡¯s body was as thick as three or four peoplebined, and there was no way it was going to be able to fit into the entrance to that cavern. At best, the Green Elder Python would circle around the cavern¡¯s entrance for a little while, before retreating under the repelling effects of the Firescale Grass.

    Jun Xiaomo had also considered this. But the cavern waspletely pitch ck, and no one could see exactly how far it stretched down or what exactly awaited them in the cavern. For all they knew, something even more dangerous might lurk below.

    Even though her hesitation was only for a brief moment, the Green Elder Python had managed to catch up to them in this short amount of time. Using his divine sense, Ye Xiuwen was the first one to discover the Green Elder Python¡¯s movement towards them. He quickly gave Jun Xiaomo a push, causing her to fall into the hole immediately, and she slid along a long narrow path down towards the bottom of the cavern!

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo could only see darkness ahead of her as she reflexively shouted for Ye Xiuwen. But the only thing she heard right now was the sound of her clothes scraping against the walls of the cave, as well as the echo of her voice from the bottom of the cavern.

    Above the ground, Ye Xiuwen also heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shout, but he had no time to respond to her. The Green Elder Python had charged over extremely quickly, covering the remaining tens of meters in the blink of an eye.

    Ye Xiuwen gritted his teeth as he forcefully kept his consciousness, unsheathed his sword again and stabbed towards the Green Elder Python that was charging towards it right now!

 Chapter 72: Little Packratâ€™s Sudden Outburst

    <h4>Chapter 72: Little Packrat¡¯s Sudden Outburst</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Hiss! The Green Elder Python had once again overlooked the Frostburn Sword in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. To the Green Elder Python, Ye Xiuwen was nothing more than a prey that had been cornered with no more than moments left to live.

    Therefore, the Green Elder Python opened wide its mouth as it attempted to swallow Ye Xiuwen whole!

    However, Ye Xiuwen had by now lost a lot of blood, and his consciousness was quickly fading away. That one stab of his was weak and inurate, and it only cut off a thinyer of scales beside the Green Elder Python¡¯s mouth, while his entire body fell towards the mouth of the Green Elder Python.

    Squeak squeak! At this critical moment, the little packrat suddenly appeared by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, and an immense amount of demonic energy erupted from its tiny, furry body. The demonic energypletely engulfed its little body as it sprung forward and collided head on with the Green Elder Python¡¯s head. Surprisingly, the Green Elder Python was knocked aside by this sudden, powerful blow by the little packrat. Coupled with the fact that demonic energy was destructive by nature, the blind Green Elder Python could only writhe on the field of Firescale Grass in pain and fury.

    At the same time, the little packrat¡¯s entire body became limp after erupting with such immense demonic energy. Ity lifelessly on the floor and squeaked softly towards the entrance of the cavern where Jun Xiaomo had fallen to. After all, who knew whether there were any dangers waiting for Jun Xiaomo at the bottom of this pitch-ck cavern? But diving headlong into the entrance was the only option avable to them in such a life or death situation.

    The little packrat was extremely worried for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s safety right now. But having burst out with all the demonic energy it had, it no longer had any strength to even crawl to the side of the cavern¡¯s entrance. These few meters between the little packrat and the entrance was perhaps only a single step for a man, but to the little packrat, this distance represented tens of steps ¨C and it did not have the energy to make this journey at this moment.

    Ye Xiuwen could also tell that the little packrat was worried for Yao Mo. He coughed out two mouthfuls of blood, before he hobbled over to the little packrat¡¯s side, picked it up, ced it into his clothes, and then jumped into that pitch-ck entrance to the cavern without any hesitation.

    Within moments, the Green Elder Python slithered back over again. It hissed furiously as it slithered about the tiny entrance to the cavern that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had entered. It could still smell the scent of its prey, but it could not locate a way to get to them. Furthermore, the Firescale Grass around the cavern caused it to experience a burning sensation on its scales. Thus, after some time, the Green Elder Python could only give up on its prey and leave the cavern.

    Inside the cavern, Jun Xiaomo who had been shoved in first by Ye Xiuwen had finally arrived at the bottom. There was a pile of straw at the bottom of the cavern, and Jun Xiaomonded directly on this pile of straw unscathed.

    The temperature within the cavern was extremely low, and goosebumps appeared on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s skin as she shuddered and shivered. However, she couldn¡¯t care less about this little difort she was feeling. She immediately looked towards the entrance of the hole as she shouted desperately, ¡°Brother Ye! Packie!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of the situation at the entrance of the cavern. But given that the Green Elder Python had once again appeared, how optimistic could she be about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s situation? Furthermore, her little packrat had somehow remained at the entrance of the cavern and not jumped down with her ¨C this caused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart to be filled with immense frustration and destion.

    We should have just used an Escape Scroll! Jun Xiaomo thought back regretfully ¨C she had not thought to conserve the usage of these Escape Scrolls earlier, rather, she had justpletely overlooked it! This Green Elder Python looked like it had just grown up and matured, and its abilities were not likely to be too strong. Jun Xiaomo had estimated that they would have been able to easilye out on top of this Green Elder Python with theirbined abilities.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo had neither expected Ye Xiuwen to suffer such a serious injury; nor that Ye Xiuwen would have ceded the first opportunity for escape to her!

    ¡°Brother Ye! Little Packie!...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out again and again. Even though this cavern¡¯s entrance was extremely narrow and long, and it was unlikely that Ye Xiuwen and her little packrat would be able to hear her, she still had to try.

    As time wore on, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice started to grow hoarse and the rims of her eyes began to redden. Just as she began to lose hope, she suddenly heard a rapid rustling sounding from above her ¨C this was the sound made by the rustling of a person¡¯s clothes against the walls of the cavern!

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face lit up in joy as she mbered up to her feet and walked forward, peeking up at the hole. In the next second, a person emerged from the hole immediately andnded directly where Jun Xiaomo had been moments ago.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......Should I be happy that I¡¯ve stood up just in time?

    ¡°Cough...¡± Ye Xiuwen coughed out a few more mouthfuls of blood, and then immediately fainted there and then. The little packrat also fell out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes, rolled over twice on to the floor, andy there lifelessly.

    ¡°Little packrat! Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart tightened anxiously as she scuttled over to their side and squatted beside Ye Xiuwen. At the same time, she picked up the little packrat from the floor and ced it gingerly into her own clothes.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat opened its eyelids and looked at Jun Xiaomo, assuring her with its squeaks.

    The little packrat was rtively uninjured. Earlier, when it had mustered all of its demonic energy and surged forward to save Ye Xiuwen, it had drained too much of its energy, causing it to be lifeless and limp as it were right now.

    Jun Xiaomo tenderly stroked her little packrat¡¯s head. Even though she did not witness what happened earlier, she knew that her little packrat had definitely yed a part in helping Ye Xiuwen escape his earlier predicament. Otherwise, the originally active and lively little packrat would not be as lethargic as it were right now.

    ¡°Thank you, little packrat.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose on the little packrat¡¯s fur. The little packrat¡¯s ears twitched a little bit, and its face immediately flushed with embarrassment. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo did not see this.

    In fact, if not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had saved Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life once, the little packrat would not have saved Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life. But now, it seemed that its efforts had paid off. Otherwise, it was quite likely that Jun Xiaomo might have been overwhelmed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death and me herself for the rest of her life. The little packrat rested in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom blissfully as it thought with a glimmer in its ck, beady eyes.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo temporarily set the little packrat aside as she helped Ye Xiuwen up and leaned his body against hers.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat had disappeared, and that terrifying scar which sprawled across his face gleamed viciously even in the sparse light that was avable in the dark cavern. Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip as she softly called out, ¡°Brother Ye.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyebrows were furrowed so tightly that creases formed on his forehead. His lips were now tightly pursed together, and his entire garment had been soaked through with blood. This entire scene was extremely shocking and worrisome.

    The Green Elder Python¡¯s poison was clearly wreaking havoc in his body. Even though the poison from these types of spirit serpents were not deadly, these poisons nevertheless subjected their preys to immense pain and torment within their bodies. Ye Xiuwen was presently experiencing just that. He was in a state of semi-consciousness because of the immense loss of blood, but he was still aware of what was going on around him. The pain from his wounds felt as though they spread through his limbs and permeated his bones, and all his blood vessels felt like they were on fire right now ¨C ¡°painful¡± could not even begin to describe what he was going through right now.

    To make matters worse, this poison would linger for a few days before it slowly fading away. Naturally, this meant that Ye Xiuwen was currently faced with the prospects of experiencing a few days of this pain. Jun Xiaomo had experienced this once in her previous life, and she understood exactly what kind of pain and torment Ye Xiuwen was experiencing right now.

    Jun Xiaomo sucked in a breath of cold air, collected her thoughts and braced herself. Sssst! She tore apart the garment on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder. Then, she focused some spiritual energy on her palms, and beginning with the ends of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s limbs, she slowly pushed the poison in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body towards the wound on his shoulder.

    Using spiritual energy to expel the poison in a person¡¯s body was not an easy process, especially to someone like Jun Xiaomo at only the first level of Qi Mastery. But Jun Xiaomo did not want Ye Xiuwen to experience this tormenting pain at all! Therefore, she had to do her best to expel the poison.

    One incense of time passed; two incense of time passed; two hours passed...

    As the poison gathered near the wound on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder, Jun Xiaomo found that the poison had started to congeal together and stiffen up. But this was to be expected, because the poison had be much more concentrated in one area, and the blood there had begun to clot.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wound even started to turn ck and fester ¨C this was a result of the corrosive properties of the poison taking effect.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyebrows were knit even more tightly right now. The pain had all be concentrated on one spot at his wound, and this umtion of pain escted his pain exponentially. To make matters worse, Jun Xiaomo realized that the true energy reserves remaining in her Dantian and her meridians were getting less and less, and she was almostpletely drained of her energies.

    Not good! Once all the energy is gone, all my efforts would be in vain!

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth, closed her eyes and moved close to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder. Then, she ced her lips over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s would and sucked hard!

    A glob of ck blood flowed straight from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder directly into her mouth, and the thick, musky stench of blood mixed with the bitter astringency of the Green Elder Python¡¯s poison caused her entire mouth to go numb very quickly!

    Putt! ¡°Cough, cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo spat out the glob of ck, poison-filled blood to the side, and coughed a few times. Then, she immediately turned her head back to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wound, forced the poison in his bloodstream towards the mouth of the wound, and then once again sucked at the wound...

    The little packrat did not expect Jun Xiaomo to go this far for Ye Xiuwen. It squeaked angrily on the side, angrily clutching at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes with whatever energy it had managed to recover and muster. Yet Jun Xiaomo waspletely focused at this point, and she blocked out and ignored the fuss made by her little packrat. After her little packrat scratched at her clothes in frustration, it turned around and turned its back to Jun Xiaomo and ignored her altogether.

    Jun Xiaomo repeatedly purged the ck blood from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wound until the blood that she sucked out was no longer ck in colour, before she finally stopped.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a Blood Regeneration Pill from her Interspatial Ring and ced it in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mouth, pressed on an acupoint on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s neck and forced Ye Xiuwen to swallow that pill.

    The cavern¡¯s surrounding temperature was extremely cold. So, after Jun Xiaomo helped Ye Xiuwen toy down, she took out a thick nket from her Interspatial Ring and covered Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body with it. Finally, she stood up and swept a substantial portion of the straw to the center of the cavern before setting it aze.

    The lighting in the cavern was not great, and Jun Xiaomo could not identify what kind of straw this was. But at the very least, it seemed quite mmable. Once the straw had been set alight, Jun Xiaomo turned back to walk towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side.

    Just as she turned back towards Ye Xiuwen, her knees suddenly buckled and she stumbled to the ground! As she regained consciousness from her momentary stupor, she realized that she was now barely able to support her body.

    It seems that even though I¡¯ve spit out most of the poison, I might still have swallowed some inadvertently, huh. Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she chuckled bitterly to herself.

    The first symptoms of manifestation of the Green Elder Python¡¯s poison was a numbing and dazing effect. As the poison festered, it wouldter on cause immense pain to a person¡¯s body.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat could not remain angry any longer and scampered over quickly to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. But how would it be able to support Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with its small frame? Therefore, it could only look on as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head swayed about in difort.

    Jun Xiaomo attempted to resist the poison for a little while, but eventually the effects of the poison overcame her, and she copsed onto the ground. Soon after that, her surroundings started to fade away...

    On the other side, having put his ns into motion, Ke Xinwen brought his band of brothers and looked around for one more hour before he finally managed to catch some rabbits and bring them back to their campsite.

    Seeing these rabbits, Yu Wanrou and Zhong Run¡¯s faces were filled with joy as they weed their return. Ke Xinwen noticed Yu Wanrou smile softly at him as he walked over, and he could not help but feel proud of his aplishments.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke, I¡¯ve got something I want to ask you.¡± Qin Lingyu nced over as he spoke indifferently to Ke Xinwen. At this moment, Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart tightened because he noticed the joy on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face beginning to subside.

    Truth be told, he was quite afraid of Qin Lingyu right now because his fatepletely depended on Qin Lingyu.

    But because Qin Lingyu had spoken, Ke Xinwen could onlyugh dryly at the others around him before walking overpliantly to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side.

    The martial disciples¡¯ attention waspletely focused on the results of their hunt at this moment, and nobody noticed how far Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen had walked to on the side.

    ¡°Have you managed to carry out the matters I¡¯ve instructed?¡± Qin Lingyu questioned in a low voice with amandeering look in his eyes.

    ¡°I...I tossed a fair amount of Frenzypani Grass towards them. We¡¯re quite near the heart of the woods right now, and there are bound to be spirit beasts nearby. Don¡¯t worry, they won¡¯te out of this alive this time.¡± Ke Xinwen hastily reported to Qin Lingyu as he imagined how pleased Qin Lingyu ought to be with his methods.

    Unexpectedly, Qin Lingyu did not reveal a satisfied expression. Instead, he coldly rebuked Ke Xinwen, ¡°Imbecile! Who told you to kill them off?!¡±

    Ke Xinwen was stunned. He had not expected such a reaction from Qin Lingyu at all!

    ¡°That...that...¡± Ke Xinwen stammered, but he did not know what else he could say in the present circumstances.

    Qin Lingyu took one step towards Ke Xinwen, gnashing his teeth, he said, ¡°If the spirit beasts kill Yao Mo, then who¡¯s going to give me his Mirror of a Thousand Reflections? You?! Do you know that you¡¯vepletely ruined my ns with your idiocy right now?!¡±

    A shiver went down Ke Xinwen¡¯s spine at that moment, and his entire back was now soaked through with cold sweat. He finally realized that Qin Lingyu coveted the possessions stored in Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring.

 Chapter 73: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Suspicions

    <h4>Chapter 73: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Suspicions</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was now nighttime. The temperatures in the cavern had dipped even further, and the fire started by Jun Xiaomo had almost burnt out, leaving only some glowing embers flickering in the mound of ashes.

    Ye Xiuwenid beside the fire. His arms twitched, and then he slowly opened his eyes.

    ¡°Ugh...¡± Ye Xiuwen lifted his arms weakly as he rubbed his forehead. This action also drew his attention to the wound on his shoulder as a wave of pain assaulted his senses. Then, Ye Xiuwen noticed that the cavern was filled with a dank and heavy stench of blood, before he turned his attention to his white garments which looked like they had been immersed in ck blood ¨C dried streaks and patches of blood popted his entire set of clothing. It was a terrifying sight.

    Ye Xiuwen reyed the scenes just before going unconscious in his mind, and he was certain that they ended with a warm embrace and a soft sensation on his shoulders.

    That¡¯s right. Ye Xiuwen had not fully lost his consciousness even while Jun Xiaomo was sucking out the blood from within his body. In his stupor, everything that Jun Xiaomo had done for him had been etched in his memory before he went unconscious. Even though he was not entirely sure of what Jun Xiaomo had done, he knew that his injuries before his consciousness faded were extremely severe, yet his body seemed to have recovered substantially right now. How could he not connect the dots and guess that this young man must have done something for him to aid in his recovery in his downtime?

    Ye Xiuwen threw aplicated nce over at the manying at the side ¨C he never imagined that Yao Mo would do all these things for him.

    Yet very quickly, he realized that Yao Mo¡¯s present condition was not normal. The slim young man¡¯s eyebrows were knit tightly together as he curled up into a ball by the remaining embers of the fire, and there were traces of blood stains seeping out of his mouth. This young man was even shivering uncontrobly!

    ¡°Yao Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen got up anxiously. It was rtively difficult for him to do so in his current state, but he couldn¡¯t care less. He hurriedly made his way over to Yao Mo¡¯s side, and patted on his shoulder, calling out to him again, ¡°Little Mo!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had sucked out the poisonous blood in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body. Even though she spat most of it out, she had inadvertently swallowed some of it. Under these circumstances, the Green Elder Python¡¯s blood had already been diluted substantially and would not cause any life-threatening issues for Jun Xiaomo. However, it would still cause her to experience incredible pain for a day or so. Right now, the poison in her body was in full blown manifestation. Coupled with the dipping temperatures in the cavern, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body naturally found it hard to deal with the situation.

    To make matters worse, she was even running a temperature right now.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat noticed that Ye Xiuwen had finally awakened, and it quickly ran over to the straw located on the side of the cavern and scuttled about on it as it squeaked at Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately knew the little packrat¡¯s intentions. He made his way over to the pile of straw, hefted a big bunch of straw over and piled it onto the dying embers of the fire started by Jun Xiaomo, giving it a new lease of life.

    The fire blossomed once again and illuminated the cavern with a warm glow. In her semi-conscious state, Jun Xiaomo also felt the renewed source of warmth, and she instinctually inched closer to the mes.

    But she was getting too close to the mes forfort ¨C her hair was almost close enough to be singed by the mes! Ye Xiuwen hurriedly got over to her side and carried her away from the fire. In her stupor, Jun Xiaomo realized that she was moving further from the mes, and she furrowed her brows even more tightly and began to struggle.

    ¡°Bear with it for a while. It will get warmer very soon.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he assured her. Then, he immediately retrieved a thick nket from his Interspatial Ring and wrapped her up tightly, leaving only her head exposed.

    Jun Xiaomo had previously also given Ye Xiuwen a thick nket for his cover, but that nket had since been soaked through by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s blood. If he ced this on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body right now, the dampness of his nket would only make Jun Xiaomo feel colder. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen had taken out a fresh set of nkets to cover Jun Xiaomo with.

    ¡°Cold...¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured in difort. Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen had no choice but to hug her close to his body, hoping that this would allow her to feel warmer.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat looked at Jun Xiaomo with darkened eyes, then looked dejectedly at its own paws and small body, before finally turning around and looking away.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s teeth were still chattering, but she was already looking much better than just a little while ago. Her eyebrows were still knit together, and she was clearly still locked in that semi-conscious state in difort.

    In fact, she was now having a nightmare. The nightmares of her previous life had once again resurfaced in her present weakness, manifesting in such a full and corporeal manner that she waspletely drawn into that tormenting period of her previous life.

    ¡°Mar--...martial brother...I¡¯m sorry...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered in despair under her breath, as her eyes were filled with tears.

    These tears were not obvious in the dimly lit cavern right now, and Ye Xiuwen naturally did not notice this. However, Ye Xiuwen did hear Jun Xiaomo¡¯s murmurs at this instant.

    Martial brother? Didn¡¯t Yao Mo say that he was just a rogue cultivator who hadn¡¯t joined any sects? Why would he have a martial brother?

    A trace of suspicion shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, but he did not press the issue.

    However, Jun Xiaomo once again murmured subconsciously. This time, her murmuring even carried with it traces of sobbing as she groaned nasally, ¡°Martial brother Ye...I¡¯m sorry...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body froze in shock immediately as he looked down towards Yao Mo in surprise.

    At this time, Yao Mo¡¯s head was still buried in his arms, and he could only see the top of his head. This young man¡¯s ink-coloured hair was scattered about haphazardly, as though it were a soft, crumpled piece of silk.

    It suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen how simr Yao Mo was to his little martial sister ¨C even his silhouette looked exactly like his little martial sister¡¯s back.

    If Yao Mo and his little martial sister stood side by side with the same hairstyle and had their backs facing Ye Xiuwen, there was no way Ye Xiuwen would be able to tell them apart.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart thumped quickly for a moment before he managed to calm himself down.

    How could this be possible? Ye Xiuwen mocked himself in his heart, thinking that he must have been mistaken. How could Yao Mo be Jun Xiaomo? After all, his little martial sister had only learnt fire spells her entire life, and she had never been exposed to things like formation arrays, humanoid puppets, talismans and the like, much less be able to use these things so effectively against Ke Xinwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he hugged Yao Mo close to him while his eyes stared vacantly at the cavern¡¯s entrance... That narrow passageway right there was the point of ess between the cavern and the rest of the world. But just as much as it was so narrow that the starlight could not enter; the feelings in his heart werepletely stifled.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was distant and vacant. At this moment, no one knew what this First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak was thinking right now.

    On the other side, the Dawn Sect disciples had begun to realize something was amiss given how Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen had not returned for several hours. Therefore, they had no choice but to spread out and beganbing through the woods for them. Of course, they had no qualms if Yao Mo had perished in the wilderness. But Ye Xiuwen was the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak after all, and losing him during the travels would be a massive deal.

    At the very least, if he was still alive, they had to find him; and if he was dead, they would need to recover his corpse. This was the very least they could do to give an ount to Heavenly Peak.

    However, despite searching for half a day, their efforts were in vain. They only saw a dead wild boar lying in the wilderness whose wounds look like it had been caused by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Wind des. Apart from that, they could not even find a trace of his garments.

    ¡°That¡¯s strange. Why didn¡¯t martial brother Ye bring this wild boar back after killing it? Where has he and Yao Mo gone to?¡± One of the disciples asked in bewilderment.

    ¡°Who knows? Martial brother Ye¡¯s an enigma sometimes.¡± Another disciple replied in dismay. He personally felt that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s opinions were always different from that of everyone else. Take how he treated Yao Mo for example ¨C even though Ye Xiuwen was from the same sect as everyone else, he still insisted on hanging out with the outsider Yao Mo.

    Could it be that martial brother Ye has already forgotten how this outsider Yao Mo has tarnished Dawn Sect¡¯s name? The Sect has an ingrate among its numbers, huh.

    Ke Xinwen also noticed the aftermath of his schemes, and even he was unable to tell whether the traces of blood left behind belonged to Ye Xiuwen or the wild boar. Despite that, his eyes gleamed viciously, and he couldn¡¯t help revealing a wicked smile on his lips.

    Even if his schemes had inadvertently resulted in the demise of Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen right now, he would nevertheless have disposed of the two people he hated the most in this world right now. And the prospects of this gave him a sick sense of satisfaction.

    If this means that I would be punished by Qin Lingyu, then so be it! Ke Xinwen thought to himself smugly. But in the next moment, as he thought about how he was now under Qin Lingyu¡¯s control, a sense of indignation once again swelled up in his heart.

    Ah. Just wait till I find a way out of this predicament. I¡¯ll let Qin Lingyu know I¡¯m not to be messed with!

    Qin Lingyu also personally assisted in the search for Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. Truth be told, he wasn¡¯t too bothered about whether Yao Mo lived or died, because the thing he coveted the most was the treasures stored within Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring. But obtaining Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring required Yao Mo¡¯s presence after all. If Yao Mo had been eaten by a spirit beast, then where would Qin Lingyu go about locating his Interspatial Ring?

    Therefore, no matter what reason they had toe up with, he would still mobilize all of Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples tob the woods for the whereabouts of the missing duo.

    ¡°Martial brother Qin, it¡¯s gettingte. Do we still have to continue searching?¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples asked Qin Lingyu as he took a break and caught his breath.

    By now, these disciples had beenbing the entire woods for almost half a day for Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. This entourage of people had made haste and travelled for a few days, and their initial n was to rest today. Yet these ns had beenpletely ruined, and their rest had ended up turning into a pointless search for Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo.

    As a result of this, several disciples wore a dark and gloomy look on their faces, and they directed their anger and frustrations at Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo.

    ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s go back then.¡± Qin Lingyu ordered, ¡°We¡¯ll wait for them until tomorrow. If they still don¡¯t show up by then, we¡¯ll continue on our way without them.¡±

    Even though he seriously coveted the Interspatial Ring on Yao Mo¡¯s hands, thepletion of the Sect¡¯s mission was nevertheless of the highest priority. If they dallied for too long, then there was a good chance that they would not be able toplete their tasks in time. This would be an even more uneptable oue.

    And besides, if Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo still did not return after another day, then it would be rather safe to assume that they might already have ended up in the stomachs of spirit beasts.

    Hearing Qin Lingyu¡¯s orders, everyone heaved a sigh of relief and followed Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen back to their campsite.

    ------------------------------

    Just like that, an uneventful night passed by silently, and the first ray of light on daybreak once again illuminated the earth and prated the dense foliage of these woods.

    Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had stayed in the cavern all night. Even though they could not see the earth being illuminated by light right this moment, they were nevertheless able to guess roughly how much time had passed since falling down the hole.

    Jun Xiaomo finally rode out the painful and tormenting night, and her body had gradually recovered. After Ye Xiuwen wrapped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body tightly with nkets and warmed her body up, Jun Xiaomo felt somewhat stifled, so she stretch out her arms from the nkets and hugged Ye Xiuwen tightly. She even rubbed her head in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest gingerly.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Ye Xiuwen did not know why, but ever since it urred to him that Yao Mo could be Jun Xiaomo, he started to feel rather awkward being so close to Yao Mo. Even after rationalizing and telling himself so many times that Yao Mo could not be Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen continued to feel strange when he drew closer to Yao Mo.

    Just like right now, the young man was rubbing his head and burying his face in his chest, just like a little pet would do.

    In these circumstances, particrly because Ye Xiuwen could not see Yao Mo¡¯s face right now, he would immediatelye under the ¡°illusion¡± that the person in his bosom right now was Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen closed his eyes, trying hard to dispel these thoughts that the person in his arms right now was Jun Xiaomo.

    But sometimes, when certain thoughts ur to a person, it can be extremely hard to dispel those thoughts no matter how ridiculous they were. Ye Xiuwen looked down, as though he were looking at Jun Xiaomo. Just at that moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyelids also moved.

    Slowly, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo muddleheadedly looked at that blood-stained white garment in front of her eyes. Then, as her eyes looked up, following the edges of the garment, she saw a chest, then a neck, and then finally a pair of clear eyes gazing at her meaningfully, as though deep in thought.

    That...What¡¯s going on right now?! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s brain took a double take as she processed the information, and then it struck her like a lightning bolt when she finally realized what kind of mistake she had made again.

 Chapter 74: An Unexpected Discovery

    <h4>Chapter 74: An Unexpected Discovery</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This was the second time that she had awakened in martial brother Ye¡¯s bosom.

    The first time was a few days ago in that inn, where she had slept in a sprawling position and inadvertently embraced Ye Xiuwen in her sleep. And this time, even though she had been wrapped up as tightly as a dumpling and held tightly in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s embrace, she somehow managed to stretch her arms out and cling onto Ye Xiuwen by the waist!

    Just as the dazed Jun Xiaomo finally managed to rouse to her senses, this sudden realization caused blood to shoot up to her brains and stupefy her once more.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately retracted her hands and shrunk back into her nkets, hoping that this would allow her to hide her present embarrassment.

    From Ye Xiuwen¡¯s perspective, this young man had opened his eyes hazily and gazed at Ye Xiuwen in a daze. Then, as the young man realized what was going on, his eyes immediately opened wide as he stared at Ye Xiuwen and his ears flushed red ¨C evidently embarrassed about the situation.

    Right now, the young man looked like he was trying to shrink back into his nket to hide from the world. This even caused Ye Xiuwen to second guess his actions and contemte whether he had done something terrible to that young man.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Yao Mo¡¯s head helplessly as he said calmly, ¡°Alright,st night you were stillining that you were feeling cold, and you even kept inching closer to the fire. I had to hug you tightly to prevent you from getting burnt.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s matter-of-fact expression immediately caused Jun Xiaomo to wonder whether she might have been overly amplifying the awkwardness in her heart. After all, wasn¡¯t she a young man right now? This should be something very normal, shouldn¡¯t it?

    But if one day martial brother Ye discovers my true identity, how awkward is this going to be... Jun Xiaomomented in her heart.

    Seeing the distressed expression on the young man¡¯s face, a query suddenly surfaced on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart and he asked sincerely, ¡°Little Mo, do you treat everyone with so much trust?¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo did not know what exactly Ye Xiuwen meant with this question.

    ¡°Last night when you sucked out the poisonous blood in my wound, you must have known what the consequences would be, right? We¡¯ve only known each other for a few days, so how could you trust me not to steal all of your belongings in your Interspatial Ring?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level was higher than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level by over ten levels. If he wanted to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s things for himself, it would be extremely easy ¨C just like taking candy from a baby. Furthermore, things would be even easier after Yao Mo had sucked out the poison from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body and be weak and unable to fend for himself.

    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you would take the things in my Interspatial Ring.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her chin as she retorted.

    ¡°Oh? Why is that? Do you treat everyone with the same level of trust?¡± Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrow as he probed further.

    ¡°Nonsense! I only ce this level of trust in you; how could I dare to ce this kind of trust in anyone else?! Besides, even if I put up my guard around the others, they might still end up scheming against me!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen as she once again refuted him, evidently displeased with his sudden questioning.

    Ye Xiuwen hooked his lips wryly as he asked meaningfully, ¡°Then can you tell me why you feel that you can especially ce your trust in me?¡±

    Then, Jun Xiaomo immediately realized her mistake and she stared at Ye Xiuwen vacantly.

    Just how was she supposed to answer that?! Could she say that she had some form of omniscient eyes that enabled her to discern that Ye Xiuwen was a good person? If she did, wouldn¡¯t she sound like aplete and utter fool?!

    And besides, why does it always seem like his words carry a deeper meaning beyond face value?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s smile slowly subsided. He looked sternly at Jun Xiaomo as he calmly said, ¡°Little Mo, do you know ¨C something tells me that you know me from somewhere.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes grew even wider at this statement. Her jaw dropped, and she remained in a daze for a long time, before she finally managed to chuckle dryly and stammer in response, ¡°Ha...haha...how...how can it be...haha...brother Ye, you¡¯ve never seen me before either, huh...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed, and he was now almost seventy percent confident that hisst conjecture must be true. His earlier statement had been more probative than it was conclusive, but he knew from the young man¡¯s reaction that his conjecture had been right.

    This would also exin why Yao Mo could wholeheartedly trust Ye Xiuwen in the first ce.

    ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t force you to say it. You can tell me when you feel that the time is right.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he said warmly, ¡°And I have to thank Little Mo for expelling the python¡¯s poison from my body. If not for you, I would probably still be writhing on the ground in pain right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief in her heart as she smiled radiantly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t stand on ceremony with me, brother Ye! I¡¯ve long since considered you a good friend who¡¯s gone through thick and thin with me!¡±

    ¡°Haha...¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, making it look even more disheveled than it already was.

    Jun Xiaomo also looked at Ye Xiuwen with a twinkle in her eyes and a smile on her lips.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat had worn itself outst night, and it had just been roused from its slumber by the conversation between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. Yet thest thing it expected to see when it first woke up was Jun Xiaomo gazing into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as she smiled. This caused the little packrat to feel immense displeasure.

    As a result, the little packrat scampered into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom, squeaked incessantly and even wed gently at her clothes just to grab her attention from Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Oh, the little fe is awake as well!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled lightheartedly as she stroked the little packrat¡¯s fur, before picking it up and giving it a small kiss, saying, ¡°Thank you, little fe. If not for your discovery of this cavern yesterday, brother Ye and I might well have ended up as that Green Elder Python¡¯s food already.¡±

    Furthermore, there was still the Firescale Grass at the entrance to this cavern which was useful for repelling Green Elder Pythons.

    The little packrat was immediately dazed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s kiss. It pulled its ws back close to its furry body, and its ck beady eyes gleamed brightly as it seemed to stare at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s...lips.

    However, Jun Xiaomo did not notice the little packrat¡¯s strange expression and bodynguage. She only found it extremely cute how this little packrat had curled up into a little ball of fur, and she could not help but continue to stroke its little back.

    Ye Xiuwen alsoughed out loud, as he stretched out his hand to stroke the little packrat¡¯s head, saying, ¡°Not only did you save Little Mo here, you¡¯ve also saved me. If not for the fact that you attacked the Green Elder Python with that strike of yours, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to escape that situation up there so easily.¡±

    ¡°Oh? Is that right! You¡¯re too amazing, little packrat!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed in joy.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat lifted its paws and puffed up its chest before it fussily pushed away Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers ¨C only Jun Xiaomo was allowed to scratch its head!

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen helplessly retracted his hand. It had just dawned on him that Yao Mo¡¯s little pet seemed to particrly despise himself, despite the fact that it had saved his life once.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Jun Xiaomo could no longer hold herughter in. Momentster, she brought the conversation back to their present predicament, ¡°Oh that¡¯s right ¨C how are we going to leave this ce? Should we use an Escape Scroll?¡±

    The entrance to this cavern was directly overhead, and that entrance was long and narrow ¨C it was not a viable option to leave that way.

    Ye Xiuwen also furrowed his brows, saying, ¡°We can try using the Escape Scroll.¡±

    But he had a hunch that an Escape Scroll would not have any effects within this cavern.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately took out an Escape Scroll and ced two spirit stones on it. The two spirit stones instantly vanished, and the Escape Scroll glowed momentarily. Then, the light faded away and nothing else happened.

    Generally, Escape Scrolls required a short activation time because the Escape Scrolls would automatically search for a suitable location to send its user to. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen waited for a few moments after the Escape Scroll¡¯s light faded away. But in the end, just as Ye Xiuwen had suspected, the Escape Scroll did not glow with a sessful teleportation light at all.

    ¡°Tsk. Seems like it¡¯s easy to enter this ce, but it¡¯s going to be difficult to leave, huh.¡± Jun Xiaomomented in frustration.

    Ye Xiuwen had already suspected things would be as such, so he did not find this to be a surprise.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. This ce doesn¡¯t look like a natural cavern. It should be man-made. Since we can enter it, there must be a way to leave. Let¡¯s take a look around then.¡±

    The cavern they were in were surrounded by three walls, and there was a small path located on the final wall which led them a long, windy path deeper into the cavern.

    ¡°I guess we can only go down that road and see where it takes us.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed helplessly. Then, she retrieved a Nightgleam Pearl from her Interspatial Ring and held it in her hands to illuminate her surroundings.

    It was not possible for them to be hefting a bunch of burning straw around as they explored the cavern. Therefore, she retrieved Nightgleam Pearls to illuminate the way. Jun Xiaomo used one herself, and she also gave Ye Xiuwen one for his own use.

    The Nightgleam Pearl did not give off as much light as the burning straw did, but it did the job.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly as he looked at the Nightgleam Pearl in his hand before he decided to take the lead in the exploration of the cavern.

    ¡°Ah! Brother Ye, wait for me!¡± Jun Xiaomo did not expect Ye Xiuwen to start walking ahead without any warning, and she scuttled off hastily after Ye Xiuwen. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little packrat had been ced back into a bag hanging by the side of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes, and it leaned on the rims of the bag, looking at the surroundings.

    Ye Xiuwen decided to take the lead because the person in front was the most likely to encounter any danger.

    He walked ahead cautiously while at the same time releasing his divine sense ahead to probe about the surroundings. As they walked on, they did encounter anything out of the ordinary apart from the gradually falling temperatures in their surroundings.

    ¡°Brr...Is there a cooling device here or something? Howe it¡¯s getting so cold?¡± Jun Xiaomo folded her arms as sheined with a quivering voice.

    ¡°Do you need to put on moreyers of clothing?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned around and asked. He always kept a stash of warm clothing in his Interspatial Ring for situations like this.

    ¡°Ah...that¡¯s not necessary. Haha, thanks brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hand immediately, thinking that it might be even more awkward if she started putting on her martial brother¡¯s clothing.

    Ye Xiuwen also nodded his head as he nagged, ¡°Alright, don¡¯t force yourself. Let me know if you can¡¯t take it anymore.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled in response.

    Just this moment, something happened! Without any warning, the little packrat squeaked twice, jumped out of its bag and sped into the darkness ahead.

    ¡°Packie!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately called out as she instinctively gave chase after her little packrat.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, feeling slightly annoyed at their recklessness. However, he had no choice but to speed up ahead as well.

    As they ran on, the little passageway suddenly broadened. Within moments, as they turned at a kink in the passageway, apletely different scene emerged in front of them ¨C

    The passageway opened into a massive cavern that was about three timesrger than the room at the entrance. The four walls of this cavern were neatly lined with embedded Nightgleam Pearls which together illuminated this room pleasantly.

    But the most amazing thing was the massive formation array that was located in the center of this room. This formation array was formed by a nine-by-nine grid of eighty-one superior grade spirit stones, and some ck liquid seemed to crawl along the engravings of the formation diagram and flow into an altar in the center of the formation array. That altar looked like the eye of the formation array, and it was also the location where the ck liquid seemed to have congealed and form an ink-ck round object that seemed to gleam with brilliance under the soft illumination of the Nightgleam Pearls.

    ¡°This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo at it with widened eyes in surprise.

    The little packrat¡¯s reaction was even more extreme. It had sprinted towards the eye of the formation array without any form of restraint. Then, with one leap, it sprung up to the stone altar and drew close to that ink-ck round object that was on the stone altar. There, it closed both of its eyes as it basked in the stone¡¯s energies and began absorbing it.

    Ye Xiuwen had also followed closely behind. As he entered the room, he suddenly felt a jolt of difort on his face before he cried out ¡°Ah!¡± Ye Xiuwen immediately clutched at the scar on his face.

    ¡°Ah! I almost forgot!¡± Jun Xiaomo heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s exmation and immediately turned around and ran towards Ye Xiuwen. Then, she quickly took out a talisman and ced it on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Instantly, a cold, refreshing wave swept gently across the scar on his face, and that initially burning sensation on his scar simply vanished.

    ¡°You...¡± Ye Xiuwen had not expected Yao Mo to be carrying such a talisman on him. It had to be known that the scar on his face was very peculiar because it was caused by demonic energies to begin with. Therefore, only a Demonic Dispersing Talisman would be able to grant him temporary relief from the corrosive effects of the demonic energy.

    ¡°Cough...I¡¯ll exin this next time.¡± Jun Xiaomo quickly nced around as she said.

    The only reason why she had prepared this talisman was for Ye Xiuwen. As for herself, she was a demonic cultivator to begin with, and she was naturally not afraid of the corrosive properties of demonic energy, or demonic energy itself for that matter.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her shoulder, saying warmly, ¡°Thanks, Little Mo.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately coughed twice into a clenched fist as she replied abashedly, ¡°Didn¡¯t I say you don¡¯t have to stand on ceremony with me?¡±

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat opened its eyes again as it nced over at the two of them and broke up their interactions.

    Ye Xiuwen did not get angry, and he only shook his head helplessly as he asked Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Little Mo, you know this formation array?¡±

    He had clearly noticed the expression Yao Mo had made earlier which told him that Yao Mo knew what exactly this formation array did.

    Jun Xiaomo remained silent for a few moments, before she slowly responded, ¡°Mm, I know this. This should be a Demonic Gathering Array...¡±

    ¡°Demonic Gathering Array!¡± Ye Xiuwen ferociously clenched his fists. Anyone would be able to see the roiling emotions in his eyes right now.

 Chapter 75: The Tragic Concubineâ€™s Will

    <h4>Chapter 75: The Tragic Concubine¡¯s Will</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Demonic Gathering Array was one of the arrays used by demonic cultivators to gather demonic energy for their cultivation. Different types of Demonic Gathering Arrays also gave rise to different levels of efficiency in gathering demonic energy. This Demonic Gathering Array had used a nine-by-nine grid of superior grade spiritual stones to activate the entire formation array. Evidently, its demonic energy gathering abilities were no trifling matter.

    In fact, if Jun Xiaomo had decided to cultivate at the heart of this Demonic Gathering Array for a period of time, she would very quickly be able to break through the third level of Qi Mastery or even more. However, she could not bring herself to tell Ye Xiuwen any of these things right now, despite Ye Xiuwen having once told Jun Xiaomo that he did not mind if she practiced demonic cultivation. This was because she knew that Ye Xiuwen still harboured some hatred for demonic cultivators in his heart.

    When Ye Xiuwen was only eleven years-old, his entire n had been annihted by demonic cultivators who had coveted and used the lives of the Ye n as tribute for a blood rite to activate an enormous Demonic Gathering Array, thereby sending the entire Ye n into extinction.

    The demonic cultivators then had seen how talented the Ye n was in spiritual cultivation, and they knew that the spiritual energy in the blood of the Ye n members was extremely potent. Therefore, the resultant Demonic Gathering Array would naturally be of amensurate potency. If not for the fact that Jun Linxuan had coincidentally passed by that area and saved Ye Xiuwen then, Ye Xiuwen might well have joined his n members and be part of that Demonic Gathering Array¡¯s foundations.

    This was also the reason why Ye Xiuwen had such a huge reaction upon hearing that this formation array was a Demonic Gathering Array. After all, this reminded him of one of the worst tragedies in his life.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip as she blinked her eyes a few times. Then, she stretched out her arm and firmly gripped Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, saying, ¡°Perhaps brother Ye might not have a very good impression of demonic cultivators, but I want to say that not all Demonic Gathering Array have been activated and formed using blood rites or blood sacrifices. Just like how this Demonic Gathering Array taps onto thetent powers of spirit stones in order to active the array. Therefore, you don¡¯t have to be too worried about its existence.¡±

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen was brought back to his senses. He looked at the young man solemnly trying to console him, and he could not help but chuckle softly, saying, ¡°I understand that. Whether it¡¯s a formation array or a cultivation method, they are by nature neither good nor bad. It all depends on the person using these things.¡±

    Just like Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu. It did not matter that they bore the reputation of being from a righteous and upstanding Sect, and that they practiced orthodox spiritual cultivation and techniques. As long as their hearts were not in the right ces, they were no better than any scheming demonic cultivators.

    Jun Xiaomo returned a smile at Ye Xiuwen as she said, ¡°It¡¯s good that brother Ye understands then!¡±

    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t you want the ink-ck object in the heart of the formation array? What are you waiting for?¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he said.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Jun Xiaomo did not realize that Ye Xiuwen had seen through her intentions so easily.

    ¡°Seeing how your little pet likes that ck object at the heart of the formation array so much, I can¡¯t imagine that its owner would be very much different either. Besides, your earlier expression has already betrayed you.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled sincerely as he said. Most importantly, his eyes did not show any trace of hatred or despise for the possibility that Yao Mo could be a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°Alright, seems like brother Ye has discovered my intentions.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose in embarrassment.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo was surprised by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s urate observation of her intentions, she was not rmed by it at all. After all, the earlier Ye Xiuwen knew about these things, the better. This way, she did not have to hide the fact that she was a demonic cultivator any further either.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat once again broke up their interactions and brought Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention back over to her side. It scampered about around the ink-ck object before looking at Jun Xiaomo pleadingly with its ck, beady eyes.

    It was as though it were saying: Come and get it! Quickly! ...

    Jun Xiaomo deliberated for a moment, before shaking her head as she said, ¡°Let¡¯s look on to see if we can leave this ce first. Since there is a Demonic Gathering Array here, then perhaps this might be a demonic cultivator¡¯s cultivation grounds. It would not be good to simply appropriate his things.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo with praise in his eyes, and he nodded in affirmation.

    Most people faced with such a valuable object would hardly hesitate to appropriate it for their own personal gains. The fact that this young man could remain soposed and not covet what is not theirs clearly spoke volumes about the innocence and purity of his heart.

    Compared with this young man, people like Ke Xinwen had really better look at himself and reflect on his crimes. Ye Xiuwen thought coldly to himself.

    This massive cavern looked exactly like the previous cavern. Three sides were walls, and one side bore a path that led away from the cavern.

    As it turns out, it really might not be such an easy thing to leave this cavern right now.

    ¡°My instincts tell me that this ce should have a trap door or a hidden mechanism of sorts.¡± Jun Xiaomo said thoughtfully as she tapped on the experiences from her previous life.

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen walked to another part of the cavern, looked pensively at the wall for a moment, before cing his hands on the walls and pushing ¨C

    Grrrrrr¡ª The walls suddenly parted, revealing a hidden chamber within the walls.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Just how sharp can martial brother Ye be? ...

    Ye Xiuwen calmly turned around and exined, ¡°The colour of this wall looked different from the colour on the other walls, so I tried my luck. I didn¡¯t expect things to be so simple either.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo apuded Ye Xiuwen¡¯s acute observational skills in her heart.

    Then, both of them walked into this hidden chamber, and discovered that the chamber was furnished with a stone bed, a small table and a bookshelf. It looked exactly like a ce where someone would rest at. Apart from this, they found no other traces of living people around.

    Just at this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes noticed some writings on the stone bed that had been gathering dust for some time.

    ¡°There are some words here.¡± Jun Xiaomo inched closer to the stone bed. Just as she was about to retrieve a Cleansing Talisman, Ye Xiuwen waved his hands and casted a simple wind-based spell, swiftly clearing away all the dust that had gathered on the stone bed immediately.

    Jun Xiaomo was rendered momentarily speechless. She had almost forgotten that her martial brother was a living source of wind.

    Once the writings had been cleaned of all its dust, Jun Xiaomo inched over to have a closer look at the words as she read the writings from start to end ¨C

    ¡°Wee, dear guests. I¡¯m the owner of this cavern. If you¡¯re reading these words right now, then I¡¯m afraid that I¡¯m no longer of this world. I¡¯ve set up various formation arrays around this cavern in the hope that someone woulde into my cavern one day and read my parting words.¡±

    ¡°You must have realized by now that this ce is easy to enter yet difficult to leave. I don¡¯t have the intentions of trapping you here, and I don¡¯t want to make things difficult for you either; however, I do hope that you would be willing to help me fulfill my final wishes.¡±

    ¡°My name is Jiang Yutong, and I was once a concubine of Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince. The second prince promised to take care of me all his life. But when that scumbag finally ascended the throne, he turned on everyone who ceased to be useful to him any longer and killed all of them. Not only did he annihte my entire n, he even disfigured me and locked me in this cavern for the rest of my life! I know I don¡¯t have much life left in me, and my only regrets are that I could not look after my child and watch him grow up.¡±

    ¡°Dear guest, if you¡¯re reading this, I hope that you can help to fulfill my final wishes ¨C find my child and give him the piece of Blood Jade that is on the bed. Once you agree to this and make an oath ordingly on the Heart-Oath Array, then a Teleportation Array will naturally appear and allow you to safely leave this ce. The piece of Blood Jade is inscribed with my son¡¯s name, and it would emit a red glow the moment you encounter him.¡±

    ¡°Finally, you may take everything else that is in this cavern away with you, including the Demonite set at the heart of the Demonic Gathering Array, as my thanks to you for your hard work.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished reading the writings on the stone bed, these words slowly shifted about and gathered in the center of the stone bed, bing aplex formation diagram that was better known as the Heart-Oath Array.

    Jun Xiaomo scratched her chin ¨C she felt that the name Jiang Yutong was a rather familiar name to her.

    Momentster, she pounded a fist on her palm as she said, ¡°So it¡¯s her!¡±

    Jiang Yutong was not a foreign name to Jun Xiaomo. This was because before her ¡°notoriety¡± as the Lady Demoness had spread far and wide within the cultivation world, there was another demonic cultivator whose name preceded hers ¨C and this person was none other than Jiang Yutong.

    However, her notoriety had not arisen because of the fact that she was a demonic cultivator. Rather, it was because despite being such a powerful demonic cultivator, she had agreed to be the concubine of Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince, attend to her husband, teach her child, and otherwise lead the life of a mere mortal. This caused a hugemotion among everyone in the cultivation world.

    At that time, everyone expected Jiang Yutong to be the queen once the second prince ascended the throne. Unexpectedly, once the second prince sessfully ascended the throne, Jiang Yutong mysteriously vanished off the face of this earth, and someone else became the queen to the second prince.

    Someone people spected that Jiang Yutong had died; while others said that Jiang Yutong had entered closed-door cultivations. As time wore on, people gradually began to forget the fearsome and awesome name of that concubine, Jiang Yutong who singlehandedly helped the second prince ascend the throne.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect her life to have ended in such a tragic manner...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed in remorse for her.

    It was as though she saw a trace of her past in Jiang Yutong¡¯s life ¨C they had both lived their lives for that man that they fell in love with, but that very fact had also resulted in their tragic downfall and eventual death.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll help you to fulfill your final wishes.¡± Jun Xiaomo softly said, ¡°If need be, I¡¯ll even take revenge for you. And you can...count it as my thanks for all the treasures and resources you¡¯ve left behind.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo said this, she walked over to the side of the bed, intending to ce her palm on the center of the Heart-Oath Array.

    ¡°Wait a minute, Little Mo, what are you doing?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he held onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm and asked.

    Jiang Yutong had nned everything out carefully. The words left behind by her could only be seen by demonic cultivators, while all Ye Xiuwen saw were merely messy symbols on the stone bed.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen andughed, saying, ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯ll exin it all to brother Yeter. The owner of this ce doesn¡¯t intend to trap us here, and she only hopes that we can help to fulfill one of her dying wishes.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen could see the determination in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and he relented.

    Furthermore, he seemed to have noticed in Yao Mo¡¯s eyes some traces of...water.

    Jun Xiaomo ced her hand on the array, closed her eyes, and then said in her heart ¨C I, Jun Xiaomo, hereby solemnly make oath that I shall help senior Jiang Yutong fulfill her final wishes. That is, I shall help her locate her child and give Jiang Yutong¡¯s Blood Jade to him. That is all.

    As Jun Xiaomo ended the oath, the inscriptions below her hand instantly vanished in a glow of blue light. As the blue light faded, the Heart-Oath Array had now be a Teleportation Array.

    ¡°Senior¡¯s formation arrays are really quite something. I don¡¯t think I would be able to make a formation array transform into another one like she did.¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed to herself.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, saying, ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you, Little Mo.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. It¡¯s only a single statement anyway.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she temporarily refrained from exining Jiang Yutong¡¯s matter to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right. This senior has said that we can take everything here with us. Brother Ye, let¡¯s take what we need. This senior¡¯s cultivation level had been extremely high, and it would be a waste if we left anything here.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had a feeling that this entire cavern would vanish off the face of this earth once they left this ce.

    ¡°Alright, since that¡¯s the case, why not you go retrieve that ck coloured stone first?¡± Ye Xiuwen pointed towards the object beside the little packrat as he said.

    Demonite was a substance formed by the congealing of concentrated demonic energy. To a demonic cultivator, this was an extremely valuable form of nourishment.

    ¡°Mm, mm. I¡¯ll do that.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded as she made her way over to her little packrat.

    Ye Xiuwen was a spiritual cultivator, and he naturally did not want to draw near to anything that was emanating concentrated amounts of demonic energy. Otherwise, he might face a bacsh from the demonic energy.

    Once Jun Xiaomo safely stowed away the Demonite, she took her little packrat along with her as she returned to Jiang Yutong¡¯s chambers. Then, she discovered that Ye Xiuwen was currently looking curiously at a book on the bookshelf. The words on the book stated ¨C Beast-taming Technique.

    Beast-taming Technique? Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin as she deliberated for a moment. Then, her face revealed a profound and mischievous smile.

    Perhaps this might be a good thing...I was just fretting over how I would deal with Ke Xinwen and the others...

 Chapter 76: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Promise

    <h4>Chapter 76: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Promise</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Brother Ye, could I please have a look at that book you¡¯re holding?¡± Jun Xiaomo minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and peered over his shoulders at the book he was holding.

    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t stick your neck out so long. Just say it if you want to read it. I¡¯m not going to hide it from you anyway.¡± Ye Xiuwen helplessly patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he said. Then, he closed the book entitled Beast-taming Technique and handed that book over to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Thanks brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she received the book, before slipping over to the side and excitedly flipping through the book¡¯s pages as she devoured its contents. At this moment, both of her eyes gleamed as though she had discovered some rare, valuable treasure.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled helplessly to himself as he shook his head, before walking back to the bookshelf to flip through the other books there.

    Jiang Yutong was truly of an aristocratic background. Even the bookshelf here contained books that were rare and invaluable. Some of the books here were even unique, one-of-a-kind productions that were simply priceless.

    It was such a pity that she had fallen in love with someone who only saw her as something to be used, resulting in her tragic and sorrowful demise.

    As Ye Xiuwen browsed through the remaining books in the bookshelf, Jun Xiaomo had very quickly skimmed through the entire contents of the Beast-taming Technique, and her eyes gleamed with ever growing brightness ¨C This book is indeed a pleasant surprise! It¡¯s practically a godsend! The Beast-taming Technique was much more useful than I had expected!

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo had alsoe across simr beast taming techniques and manuscripts in the past as she escaped her persecutors. But back then, she had merely skimmed through the contents of these techniques and then tossed them to a corner to collect dust, never intending to delve deeper into her study of these techniques. The main reason was that learning to tame and handle spirit beasts simply took too much time, and strong cultivators invariably never walked down this route.

    When the former Jun Xiaomo had encountered these beast-taming techniques and manuscripts, she had already been a formidable cultivator. Even though she knew that there were opponents she was unable to defeat inbat, she would very simply rely on her talismans and formation arrays to flee for her life and live to fight another day. There was simply no impetus for her to delve into the study of a new discipline.

    More importantly, mastering the discipline of beast-taming required an incredible investment of time. Spirit beasts were very different from talismans, formation arrays and humanoid puppets in that spirit beasts possessed spiritual awareness and feelings. Unless these spirit beastspletely pledged allegiance and subservience to their masters, beastmasters would never be able to fully subdue and tame their spirit beasts. Since this was the case, there was naturally also a good chance that a beastmaster would be devoured by his own spirit beast as soon as he lets his guard down.

    Additionally, stronger beastmasters naturally had higher requirements of these spirit beasts as well. These beastmasters would have to look under every rock possible for superior grade spirit beasts with great potential, and then slowly groom them to be their own spirit beast. The process of grooming even required the beastmasters to source out suitablebat environments for the spirit beasts to gainbat experience and grow holistically.

    This was an extremely long and arduous process, and the former Jun Xiaomo neither possessed the luxury of time, nor the heart to consider such an investment of time either.

    Of course, the present Jun Xiaomo was not considering the path of beast-taming either. She had the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, and she naturally did not need to rely on external forces such as spirit beasts to improve herbat prowess. All she needed to do right now was to find the best way to improve her cultivation speeds.

    What truly caught Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes was a more practical chapter within the Beast-taming Technique book. This chapter described a technique that could be mastered by beastmasters and non-beastmasters alike, and that was to use spirit herbs, blood essences and talismans to establish a temporary rtionship with the spirit beast in order to spur them to do one¡¯s own bidding.

    Jun Xiaomo was well aware that she was unable to deal with Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu with her current abilities. Even if her martial brother Ye assisted her, their chances of sess were slim. Quite apart from the fact that Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu were both at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, just dealing with the bunch of imbecile Sect¡¯s disciples in their entourage was already enough of a headache. If Qin Lingyu or Ke Xinwen suffered any mishaps at her hand, there was no doubt that the Sect¡¯s disciples would all attack her at once.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo had thought about setting traps to trip up Ke Xinwen again and make him suffer. However, formation arrays were not that easy to set up. Additionally, given how Ke Xinwen had already suffered in her hands once, he would certainly be much more guarded around Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, it was going to be far more difficult to deal with him using formation arrays a second time.

    However, that did not mean Jun Xiaomo was simply going to take things lying down after suffering so terribly at Ke Xinwen¡¯s hands this time. Even though revenge is a dish best served cold, there was nevertheless no reason to bide her time if she was presented with a reasonable opportunity right now!

    Jun Xiaomo again flipped through the chapter entitled ¡°Establishing Temporary Rtionship, Controlling Spirit Beasts¡± so that she could ascertain that with Ye Xiuwen and herbined prowess, they would be able to control spirit beasts below the fifth-grade. Then, she happily stowed away the Beast-taming Technique back into her Interspatial Ring.

    After all, this was a discipline that waspletely foreign to her, and Jun Xiaomo had decided to experiment with it and familiarize herself with the technique before putting her ns into motion and giving Ke Xinwen a massive surprise.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was making ns in her heart, Ye Xiuwen suddenly eximed, ¡°Ugh!¡± He immediately clutched at the scar on his face that had been caused by the incursion of demonic energies.

    Jun Xiaomo had clearly ced a talisman on his body earlier, and no one expected issues to arise so quickly. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen had only walked near a box with a seal that hade loose, and the demonic energy on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face immediately started roiling and burrow deeper into his flesh, as though they were trying to hide from something.

    Once Jun Xiaomo heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s groan in pain, she immediately hurried over to his side and asked him anxiously, ¡°Brother Ye, what happened?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly replied. However, the profuse perspiration on the Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back and the bulging veins on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face told a different story ¨C Ye Xiuwen was currently enduring the pain brought by the corrosive effects of the roiling demonic energy right now.

    ¡°Damn it! This scar is clearly a potential source of danger waiting to erupt!¡± Jun Xiaomo blurted out angrily, pulling Ye Xiuwen to the side and had him sit down. Then, she solemnly instructed him, ¡°Brother Ye, Jiang Yutong is a demonic cultivator, and her things are all filled with demonic energy, so it might be best if you refrained from touching them. I¡¯m personally a demonic cultivator, so I¡¯mpletely immune to these things. Why not let me sort out the rest of her things and then we¡¯ll be on our way?¡±

    Even though Jiang Yutong had stated in her will that everything in her cavern can be taken by them, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Interspatial Rings were limited in space, and they would not be able to carry everything away. Besides, some things in this cultivation world naturally repelled each other, and they would be wise to sort out their belongings properly instead of stowing everything together in a haphazard fashion. This was one of the main reasons why Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had stayed in this ce for such a long time.

    Ye Xiuwen also decided not to force the issue, and he nodded his head as he said to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Be careful.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo made a ¡°rest assured¡± gesture with her hands to Ye Xiuwen, before she walked over to the box which had earlier caused Ye Xiuwen to feel ufortable. She lifted the box from the bookshelf with her hands and peered into it.

    The box had a talisman ced on it, and its contents could all be seen from the side where the seal hade loose.

    The objects inside were hardly attention grabbing ¨C everything inside was dark and ck, almost like a clump of soil. But upon closer inspection, one would discover that this ¡°soil¡± was in fact formed by numerous ck beads that hade together, and each of these ck beads even emanated a soft luster from them.

    ¡°This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat as she stretched out her hand to the contents of the box.

    ¡°Little Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen gave Jun Xiaomo a disapproving look. Stretching her hand out to touch the contents of the box before ascertaining what it was? This was simply too dangerous!

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and blinked innocently at Ye Xiuwen, saying, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve roughly guessed what this item is already, and I only want to confirm my suspicions. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯ll be fine.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen also heard the determination in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice, and he decided not to press the issue any further. But at the same time, his eyebrows were still knitted tightly together as he watched on.

    Jun Xiaomo removed one small ck bead from the box and then swiftly crushed it in her hands. Then, ayer of ck substance on the bead itself started to be powder and ke off, and the little bead finally returned to its original form ¨C

    It was a cream coloured little bead which emanated a soft, lustrous glow. On the other side, Ye Xiuwen once again felt some difort spreading from the scar on his face. It was as though the demonic energy had been provoked into its present reaction.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately closed his eyes and regted his breathing to suppress the pain and difort that he felt.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at Ye Xiuwen, but at this moment her face was filled with joy.

    She looked back at the little bead in her hand with a bright glimmer in her eyes, nodded and said to herself, ¡°So it¡¯s actually this...¡± As she finished speaking, she wrapped her fingers around that little bead in her hand before retrieving a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and pasting the same on the box containing the other ck beads. Then, she gingerly kept the box in her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± After doing all these things, Jun Xiaomo skipped over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she joyfully said to him, ¡°Brother Ye, do you know what those little ck beads earlier were?¡±

    Because Jun Xiaomo had already kept the box in her Interspatial Ring, the scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face had stopped reacting to the box as well.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bright eyes seemed to exim, ¡°Ask me! Praise me!¡± Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen chuckled to himself and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he replied, ¡°Brother Ye¡¯s not as learned as you; I don¡¯t know what those things were.¡±

    ¡°Cough, cough...That¡¯s not the case. I¡¯ve only coincidentally learnt about these things before.¡± Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks shyly.

    If not for her previous life¡¯s experiences, she certainly would be none the wiser as to what these little ck beads were. After all, these things were extremely rare, and they were furthermore useless to normal people. Therefore, it waspletely understandable that Ye Xiuwen would not have heard of these things before.

    But even though these beads were useless to normal people, they were in fact extremely beneficial to Ye Xiuwen. In fact, its use was rted to why Ye Xiuwen would experience difort emanating from the scar on his face every time he drew closer to these beads.

    ¡°These beads are called Demonophile Soil, and they can usually only be found in ces with thick concentrations of demonic energy. It carries strong adsorption properties to the surrounding demonic energy, and so the surface of these beads would invariably be coated with a ckyer of demonic energy, causing them to look no different from the normal soil that we see. But in fact, as brother Ye would have noticed, these beads are originally cream coloured, and one would only be able to see this after scraping off thatyer of demonic energy on the outside.¡±

    ¡°This is also one of the reasons why it is difficult to locate Demonophile Soil to begin with. Spiritual cultivators would not travel to ces with thick concentrations of demonic energy to begin with. On the other hand, even if demonic cultivators travelled to ces with a thick concentration of demonic energy, they wouldn¡¯t take any interest to the Demonophile Soil. This is because the Demonophile Soil would continue to absorb the demonic energy within the demonic cultivator¡¯s body if a demonic cultivator did not have the ability to properly seal it up.¡±

    Then, Jun Xiaomo paused momentarily to suppress the excitement in her voice, before continuing with a steady and calm tone, ¡°Brother Ye, the Demonophile Soil is simply an umon object to most normal people. But if one used it when curing injuries caused by the incursion of demonic energy, then it can be likened to a miracle medicine!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Ye Xiuwen would never have thought that these little beads could actually be used on the scar on his face!

    ¡°But the scar on my face was caused by a curse. I¡¯m afraid that even these Demonophile Soil would not have much effects on it.¡± Ye Xiuwen stated coldly after a moment of deliberation.

    Naturally, Ye Xiuwen did not want to live with this scar for his entire life. But the Sect Elders had concluded that the only way was to find the demonic cultivator who had cursed him; otherwise, there was absolutely no way to remove this hideous scar from his face.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head as she walked over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, gripping tightly onto his arm as she said, ¡°Brother Ye, believe me. Finding the demonic cultivator who had cursed you is not the only way to remove this scar. Of course, this is but one medicinal element required for the cure, and it would not be sufficient to cure the scar on your face. But at the same time, this is the most important medicine for removing the scar on your face, and also the most difficult medicine to locate. Previously, I only had a ten percent confidence in removing the scar on your face. But after obtaining this medicine, my confidence level is now at a level of seventy percent. All that remains are to locate and gather two more medicinal elements which are on the rarer side of things.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled brightly, and her bright eyes curled radiantly as she continued with a determined tone, ¡°We¡¯re only looking for two rare medicines in such a big world. We will definitely be able to find them! If not in one year, then two years; if not in two years, then three years...our life span is much longer than that of mortals anyway, and these are but two mere types of medicines ¨C time is definitely on our side! Brother Ye, you will definitely be cured!¡±

    Despite Yao Mo¡¯s young age and his naivete and innocence, Ye Xiuwen could feel the determined warmthing from Yao Mo right now. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen felt that meeting this young man might well have been his greatest returns in these travels.

    ¡°That¡¯s great.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled warmly, softening the terrifying look caused by his scar, ¡°Thanks, Little Mo.¡±

    ¡°Cough, there¡¯s no need for thanks, haha.¡± Jun Xiaomo did not know why, but she would feel a little bit shy every time she saw her martial brother Ye smiling at her. Thus, she lowered her head and rubbed her nose awkwardly.

    In the very next moment, she was suddenly pulled into an embrace by Ye Xiuwen, who patted her back as she heard the warm notes of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice emanating from beside her ear ¨C

    ¡°Little Mo, no matter what reason it is that caused you to be so willing to do all these things for me, I swear that as long as I shall live, I will always protect you to the very end.¡±

    As she heard the wordsing from the side of her head, the thoughts of her previous life¡¯s experiences suddenly welled up within her once again and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately reddened and her heart soured.

    ¡°Mm.¡± She responded softly, while silently adding these words in her heart ¨C I know. I¡¯m willing to do so much for martial brother Ye because I¡¯ve always known martial brother Ye was the type of person who would do the same for me ¨C just like you did in my previous life.

 Chapter 77: Ke Xinwenâ€™s Failed Schemes

    <h4>Chapter 77: Ke Xinwen¡¯s Failed Schemes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen remained in the cavern for slightly over two hours. It was only after they had fully ascertained that they¡¯ve left no stone unturned that they walked to the Teleportation Array at the stone bed.

    ¡°We probably won¡¯t be able to return to this ce anymore.¡± Before activating the formation array, Jun Xiaomo looked down at the empty stone bed as she said regretfully.

    The writings on the stone bed had vanishedpletely, as though its owner was now fully satisfied, having entrusted her final wishes and the Blood Jade to this stranger standing before the bed right now.

    ¡°Mm.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded softly, patting Yao Mo¡¯s head as he said, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Finding senior¡¯s child and fulfilling her final wishes is the greatest form of gratitude and repayment we can give.¡±

    The value of the things that they had recovered from this cavern far outweighed the simple request left by Jiang Yutong. In fact, Jiang Yutong¡¯s good nature and kind-heartedness could be seen from the fact that she did not even seek revenge in her final will.

    Even so, if the stars were aligned in her favour as she carried out the task requested by Jiang Yutong, Jun Xiaomo did not mind throwing in ¡°revenge¡± as a bonus for her senior. At the very least, Jiang Yutong¡¯s death would not have been in vain this way.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled at Ye Xiuwen, before imbuing the formation array with her spiritual energy.

    As the blue light from the formation array slowly intensified and engulfed them, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen sped their hands together respectfully and solemnly said, ¡°Thank you, senior.¡±

    Then, an after an intense re of blue light, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen vanished from the cavern. At the same time, the entrance to this cavern becamepletely sealed off as well.

    Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had been transported to a location with verdant and lush fields, where reindeers could be spotted some distance away quietly grazing on the moist grass speckled with glistening morning dew. Not far away, a small stream flowed quietly along asrge, plump fishes darted about leisurely within the stream¡¯s clear waters.

    ¡°Seems like senior even carefully nned out where she would send us through that Teleportation Array. I¡¯d thought we would simply be transported back to the entrance of the cavern!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed in surprise as she mentally noted her gratitude to Jiang Yutong. At the same time, she also grew more remorseful for Jiang Yutong¡¯s tragic demise.

    The cavern¡¯s entrance was the ce where they had initially entered the cavern, and it was surrounded by arge field of Firescale Grass. But right now, they could not see any Firescale Grass no matter where they looked. Evidently, they had been teleported some distance away from the entrance of the cavern.

    Ye Xiuwen also calmly spoke, ¡°Perhaps the entrance has finally been sealed.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was caught by surprise, but as she thought about it, she understood what Ye Xiuwen meant.

    Indeed, the cavern¡¯s entrance was a distance away from them, and it could well have been sealed forever. This was also a nice form of closure ¨C at the very least, no one would be able to enter and disturb the final resting ce of their respected senior anymore.

    After adjusting her emotions for a little bit, Jun Xiaomo lifted her head as she said to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m afraid that the wild boar that we¡¯ve caught is probably no longer around. Shall we hunt a reindeer to satiate our appetite instead?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach growled timeously as her eyes looked pleadingly at Ye Xiuwen ¨C she lookedpletely like a glutton at this moment.

    Ye Xiuwenughed at her as he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and said, ¡°Sounds good. I¡¯ve not tried Little Mo¡¯s culinary skills too! I¡¯m sure it must be pretty good.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her chin proudly as she said, ¡°That¡¯s a given! It¡¯s necessary to have some good culinary skills after all!¡±

    While Jun Xiaomo did not know how to prepare regr homemade food, she was nevertheless decently proficient at preparing wild game meals. This was a natural byproduct of her having been on the run in the wilderness for the most part of her previous life.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions were incredibly swift, and these reindeers could hardly hold a candle to the wild boar they had hunted earlier. Wild boars still possessed rtively strong offensive capabilities; while reindeers had almost no offensive capabilities at all. With one sh of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s de, one reindeer¡¯s headnded on the floor. The other reindeers immediately galloped away in shock. But momentster, when they realized that Ye Xiuwen was not pursuing any of them, they slowed down and began to graze leisurely once again.

    Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo dragged the reindeer¡¯s carcass to the nearby stream and washed and prepared it for their travels. Then, Jun Xiaomo kept the entire reindeer within her Interspatial Ring.

    This ce was not suitable for starting a fire, and it was best if they returned to the woods before doing so.

    ¡°That...brother Ye, do we still have to go back to the others?¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated as she asked Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a moment, before reluctantly nodding his head, saying, ¡°That¡¯s right. Two of the martial brothers there had followed me out on these travels, and I can¡¯t just leave them behind.¡±

    ¡°But, but...they clearly don¡¯t respect brother Ye at all!¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted furiously, ¡°They¡¯re brother Ye¡¯s team-mates in name, but it seems as though their allegiance ispletely with Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu and theirckeys! Can¡¯t you just leave them be and let them fend for their own survival?!¡±

    ¡°Since they belong to my team, then they are part of my responsibility. I can¡¯t just discard them like that.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded.

    ¡°Responsibility. Responsibility! It¡¯s always your responsibility! Why are you so rigid all the time!¡± Jun Xiaomo eyes reddened in fury as she red furiously at Ye Xiuwen as though she were trying to bore a hole through Ye Xiuwen with her eyes right now.

    He had treated Jun Xiaomo the same way in her previous life as he was treating those two martial brothers right now. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo wanted so much to dig out that part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart that was so obsessed with responsibility!

    It was fine if Ye Xiuwen were only responsible towards her. After all, she was Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter, and Ye Xiuwen would naturally want to show his gratitude to Jun Linxuan for saving his life by taking care of his daughter. This was quite reasonable. But those two martial brothers were clearly ingrates! Why did martial brother Ye have to care about them in the first ce?!

    Ye Xiuwen gave a bemused look at this young man fighting for his injustice right now. Before Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions escted any further, he gripped firmly on that young man¡¯s shoulders, gently patted it and said, ¡°Brother Ye understands this. Thanks, Little Mo. However, even though they prefer following Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu, they¡¯ve never once done anything untoward against me; at best, they¡¯ve only just been ignoring me. Furthermore, have you ever considered what would happen should something bad happen to my two team members once I abandon my team and traveled on my own? How would I exin this to the Sect Elderster on? Do you think they will simply drop the matter and not me me for not taking responsibility for them?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips as she thought about it ¨C she finally understood all of his considerations.

    Since Ye Xiuwen was the team leader of a small team, if something happened to his team members while Ye Xiuwen was not around them, the schemers within the Sect were bound to embellish the facts and frame Ye Xiuwen for their untimely demise.

    Besides, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu had not once seeded in their schemes against Ye Xiuwen, and they must be extremely frustrated with him by now. It was almost a certainty that they would be capitalizing on any opportunities they could to make Ye Xiuwen suffer under their hands.

    It must be said that Jun Xiaomo had a perfect grasp of the contemtions of these schemers.

    ¡°Alright, I understand.¡± Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks in a huff again, ring at Ye Xiuwen before murmuring in a low voice, ¡°Since brother Ye thinks we should go back to the rest, then let¡¯s be on our way.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grinned as he rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, chuckling as he said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, brother Ye isn¡¯t a fool who would suffer and take things lying down just because he¡¯s responsible.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted and tilted her head and gave Ye Xiuwen a quizzical look as she asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen continued to grin at her as a cold gleam shed across his eyes, but he chose to remain silent.

    The Sect¡¯s requirements were that the team leader had to ¡°do his best¡± to protect his team members. But there was room for interpretation when it came to what exactly ¡°doing his best¡± entailed. At the very least, the Sect would certainly not insist that the team leader gives up his life to protect his team members.

    Therefore, even though Ye Xiuwen was going to return to the rest, since those two team members did not cherish his protection, then he would simrly be cursory about it.

    In any event, Ye Xiuwen had never been an altruist who could not distinguish good from evil. He was eighty to ny percent certain that their encounter with the Green Elder Python had been a result of Ke Xinwen¡¯s schemes. If he did not return to the rest, how was he going to ¡°repay¡± this culprit for his invaluable gift to them?

    However, in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, Ye Xiuwen had always been that warm and kind martial brother of hers. Therefore, she had overlooked the cold glimmer in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes at that veryst moment.

    ----------------------------------------

    On the other side, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu had once again had an uneventful night, and the members of their entourage only slowly roused from their slumber when the sun hung high in the sky.

    The bonfire in the center of the camp site was still glowing and flickering with dim red embers as it emitted sporadic crackling sounds. After everyone roughly freshened themselves up, they retrieved some dry rations from their Interspatial Rings and started to munch on them.

    The wild rabbits and wild boar that they had snagged for a change of taste had all been discarded to the side, and no one wanted to touch those ck, charred objects.

    That¡¯s right. No one in the right mind would identify those ck, charred objects as things that were...edible.

    Ke Xinwen had wanted to impress thedy he was fond of. So, after he returned to the camp sitest night, he immediately started a bonfire and roasted both the rabbit meat as well as the wild boar that had been killed by Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    The other disciples also tried to help out as well. After all, Ke Xinwen was their senior martial brother, and they could not sit idly by and allow Ke Xinwen to cook meat and serve them.

    The only people who remained seated while the others busied themselves were Yu Wanrou, Zhong Run and Qin Lingyu. The three of them simply sat where they were and stared at the disciples who were busying themselves with the roasting process.

    At the same time, everyone had thought that roasting wild game was an extremely easy thing to do. In the end, their efforts had been in vain because of theircence. Nothing that they had roasted was edible.

    The rabbit¡¯s flesh had been charred beyond belief, and all the moisture in the meat hadpletely dried up and vaporized. Biting into it was no different from biting onto a salty piece of charcoal ¨C apart from the charred, burnt taste of the meat, they could only taste salt. It waspletely inedible.

    On the other hand, the wild boar¡¯s meat had been much tougher than expected, and they had overcooked the outside but undercooked the inside. Therefore, the first few mouthfuls were filled with the same charred, burnt tastes, and after a few more bites the taste would evolve to the disgusting stench of blood. A closer look would reveal that the inner part of the wild boar¡¯s meat waspletely raw and bloody.

    Therefore, everyone had quickly tossed aside these few pieces of meat, while Ke Xinwen could only retreat in frustration at his failed attempt to please thedy he was fond of.

    After finishing up with their dry rations, one of the other disciplesmented, ¡°Since brother Ye is still not back yet, do we still have to go out looking for him today?¡±

    Qin Lingyu thought for a moment before calmly replying, ¡°Let¡¯s give it another shot. After all, we¡¯vee out on these travels together, and it would not be good to lose someone along the way. Besides, Yi Hong and Di Yue, both of you are travelling under martial brother Ye as your team leader. By right, he should be the one looking after you guys.¡±

    Yi Hong and Di Yue both looked at each other with frustration in their eyes.

    It would be great if Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen were their team leaders instead. It was so difficult to get along with martial brother Ye, who always seems to prefer to act alone. Right now, he had even disappeared from the rest of the team.

    However, they had clearly omitted from their considerations the fact that they were the ones who had rejected Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions to practice cultivation early in the morning, just so that they could loiter about and curry favour with Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu.

    Ke Xinwen nodded his head in approval, adding, ¡°I also think it¡¯s better if we tried looking for them again. Perhaps martial brother Ye had only been caught up with an exigency or emergency which dyed his return to the camp site.¡±

    Ke Xinwen had even said all these things with a straight-face replete with a concerned look in his eye, as though he truly cared for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s safety.

    But at this point in time, only he and Qin Lingyu were aware that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo might well have had an unfortunate encounter and would no longer be able to return. After all, given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality, there was no way he would willingly stay away from the group unless something happened to him.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s only regret was that he was unable to secure the treasures within Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring. But apart from that, he was nevertheless rather pleased with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s untimely demise.

    Ke Xinwen was naturally even more pleased with the oue ¨C he had got rid of two thorns in his flesh with one fell swoop. This was an oue deserving of great celebration!

    Just at this moment when Ke Xinwen was about to smile in deep satisfaction, a voice resounded from a short distance away, stifling the smile on his face ¨C

    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s almost lunchtime and everyone¡¯s still gathered here. Does this mean that everyone¡¯s waiting for our return? I¡¯m so touched~!¡± The clear voice of a ¡°young man¡± resounded from behind them, yet its contents clearly got under the skins of several disciples here ¨C was this really the tone of a person who was touched? Or was it someone who was simply mocking them?

    Ke Xinwen immediately turned around, and twopletely unscathed Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo stood right there in the center of his field of vision.

    ¡°You...You¡¯re actually fine?!¡± Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes widened as he eximed.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she remained calm and asked curiously, ¡°Oh? Could brother Ke exin to us why we shouldn¡¯t...shouldn¡¯t be fine?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo mimicked the manner in which Ke Xinwen stammered. Her expression and her tone were sufficient to anger Ke Xinwen to no end!

 Chapter 78: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Trap, Public Condemnation

    <h4>Chapter 78: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Trap, Public Condemnation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo intentionally mimicked the way Ke Xinwen spoke to spite him ¨C she loved provoking her enemies after all.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s face turned red with fury, then pale, and then a sickly green. And these fluctuations in his facial expressions continued for a while until he finally managed to calm himself down.

    ¡°Hahaha, brother Yao loves to joke. How would I know what happened to you and martial brother Ye that caused both of you not to be able to returnst night?¡± Ke Xinwen forcible eked a smile on his face and gnashed his teeth as he spoke.

    ¡°Oh. I was somehow under the impression that brother Ke seemed to know something about it, hmm...¡± Jun Xiaomo thought aloud to herself as she stared at Ke Xinwen meaningfully as though she had already discovered the truth of the matter.

    In fact, they could tell from Ke Xinwen¡¯s expressions right now that the incident to do with the Green Elder Pythonst night had something to do with him! Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes as she analyzed the matter.

    I want to spite and provoke you until you slip up and let the cat out of the bag!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s prating gaze caused Ke Xinwen to feel exposed and self-conscious. Ever since he failed in his ploy against Yao Mo thest time, and instead even got served his just desserts by Yao Mo¡¯s formation arrays, Ke Xinwen would now feel a chip on his shoulder every time he faced Yao Mo.

    He had never expected that a measly array master at the first level of Qi Mastery would be so formidable, to the extent that he would be forced to reveal his deepest, darkest secrets in open.

    If not for the fact that Qin Lingyu thought of a way out for him, his folly would already have been reported to the Sect for their investigations. But the price of Qin Lingyu¡¯s help was that he had now be Qin Lingyu¡¯s puppet. Therefore, Ke Xinwen intensely hated the genesis of all his problems ¨C Yao Mo!

    No! I¡¯m not going to walk into Yao Mo¡¯s verbal traps once again! Since the two of them didn¡¯t die, then what can they do even if they know I was the one who had schemed against them? As long as I refuse to admit it, there¡¯s nothing they can do against me! Ke Xinwen gritted his teeth as he thought.

    Once he made up his mind, Ke Xinwen forced himself to calm down and put on a false front of confidence as he looked at Jun Xiaomo and retorted, ¡°Brother Yao, what do you mean by that?! I haven¡¯t offended you at all, so don¡¯t me every unfortunate event you encounter on me! I can¡¯t take responsibility for what I¡¯ve not done!¡±

    ¡°Oh. So, it seems that brother Ke doesn¡¯t know anything about it then...¡± Jun Xiaomo prodded her own chin with her fan as she calmly responded, ¡°Since brother Ke doesn¡¯t know anything, then why did you act all shocked when you saw brother Ye and myself return, as though us being alive was an extremely rming thing? Your expression wouldn¡¯t really make sense now, would it?¡±

    ¡°You...you guys hadn¡¯te back for the entire night, and I¡¯ve guessed that you might have encountered some form of mishap or danger ¨C isn¡¯t this a very normal response?¡± Ke Xinwen stared viciously at Jun Xiaomo as he said.

    ¡°Alright, that sounds barely passable.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head affirmatively. Just as Ke Xinwen heaved a sigh of relief, thinking that he had barely escaped the verbal trappings, Jun Xiaomo once again broke the silence and added, ¡°It¡¯s normal to feel rmed, but brother Ke seemed to be rather nervous too... Could you exin to us, then, why our safe return to the camp site would cause you to feel so nervous?¡±

    ¡°Ner...nervous?¡± Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart immediately constricted and his breathing slowed, before he immediately hollered, ¡°How was I nervous! Nonsense! Don¡¯t you dare say whateveres to your mind without thinking about it!¡±

    ¡°Hehehe, brother Ke, don¡¯t you think your current expression can be called nervous?¡± Jun Xiaomo took a few steps forward and circled Ke Xinwen as she said leisurely, ¡°Right now, I see brother Ke¡¯s tightly clenched fists; a full head of sweat; stammering at every statement you¡¯re making, and even purposely raising your voice at me. These all seem to be very characteristic of a ¡®nervous¡¯ look, am I not right?¡±

    ¡°Pfft...¡± One of the disciples around could not help but burst out inughter. That disciple knew that hisughter was rather inappropriate, but he couldn¡¯t help it at all ¨C Yao Mo¡¯s description was spot on and matched every single one of Ke Xinwen¡¯s actions right now. It was absolutelyical!

    Ke Xinwen red fiercely at the martial brother who had let out that spurt ofughter, causing that brother to immediately recoil in shock. That disciple instantly shut his mouth, and he dared not make another peep of sound.

    Martial brother Ke looks really scary when he wears such a vicious expression on his face... That disciple thought to himself.

    Ke Xinwen took a deep breath as he strongly suppressed the urge to tear Yao Mo apart right this moment, before he changed his tone of voice and spoke warmly, ¡°I¡¯d just been extremely worried for you guys. And that¡¯s why I was extremely moved and emotional to see you guys return safely. This was a look of emotional agitation on my face. Please don¡¯t be mistaken, brother Yao.¡±

    The muscles on Ke Xinwen¡¯s face twitched slightly as he attempted to reveal a ¡°friendly¡± expression on his face. But in the end, his hatred towards Jun Xiaomo ran too deep, and his expression turned out quite incongruous, as though his facial muscles were cramping up.

    Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan and fanned herself in a suave and charming manner as she replied, ¡°I wish I could give you that indulgence andtitude to interpret your expression as ¡®emotional agitation¡¯. But I¡¯m just not convinced that our rtionship is at that level. Just a little while ago, there was even a fair bit of hostility and animosity between us. So, I really can¡¯t understand why brother Ke would be so emotionally agitated to see that brother Ye and I returned safely. Shouldn¡¯t you be hating us to the core, hoping that I would perish in the very next second instead? Am I not right, brother Ke?¡±

    ¡°You...you...¡± Jun Xiaomo had exposed Ke Xinwen¡¯s innermost thoughts with her exposition, and this caused Ke Xinwen to temporarily be speechless.

    Is this Yao Mo person just here to get under my skin and oppose me?! When I engaged in straight-talk with him, he would beat about the bush and entangle me with his wily words; and now when I want to speak with him in a more tactful manner, he decides to shed all pretense of civility!

    Ke Xinwen was so enraged by Yao Mo that he almost experienced the onset of an aneurysm.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to fan herself as she topped it all off with a final blow, articting with a hint of profundity, ¡°Truth be told, brother Ke, the way you¡¯re acting right now makes me feel like a hypocrite...¡±

    At this moment, Ke Xinwen waspletely bbergasted and speechless. He could only stare daggers at Jun Xiaomo with widened eyes that were bulging out so much that he looked almost like a cute little enraged frog.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes vacited between Ke Xinwen and Yao Mo at this moment. On the one hand, everyone found Yao Mo¡¯s explication rather reasonable and logical; while on the other hand, they also felt like they should not let an outsider sway their thoughts so much, even to the extent that they were starting to suspect their martial brother Ke!

    Most importantly, if the reason why martial brother Ye and Yao Mo did not returnst night was because of martial brother Ke, then martial brother Ke¡¯s acting was simply too masterful! Yesterday, he had even remained silent and disyed a worried look on his face the entire night as he searched together with everyone else for Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo.

    These thoughts were running through the minds of several disciples right this instant.

    While they felt bad for suspecting Ke Xinwen, they could not help but wonder what if Yao Mo¡¯s exposition were true as well.

    At this moment, the only thing that Ke Xinwen could think of was to seal up Yao Mo¡¯s mouth so that he could no longer put him in a spot with his words; or perhaps even cut off Yao Mo¡¯s tongue!

    Why didn¡¯t he die yesterday?! Ke Xinwen cursed in his heart as he red viciously at them. If only Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen perishedst night, how great would that be?! That way, I won¡¯t have to be subject to such torment anymore!

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu was quietly observing the discourse between Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. He did not want to interject if possible. After all, Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen were only suspicious of Ke Xinwen for now, and there was no reason for him to draw any of their attention to himself.

    Furthermore, he had always intended to use Ke Xinwen as his scapegoat so that his schemes could proceed much more smoothly. Even if something happenedter on, he could simply volunteer Ke Xinwen to be his fall guy.

    However, what he did not expect was how useless Ke Xinwen actually was ¨C he had exposed himself with just the slightest of provocation on Yao Mo¡¯s part! Right now, all of the Dawn Sect disciples were already growing suspicious of Ke Xinwen. Qin Lingyu knew that if he continued to observe without interjecting, then Ke Xinwen¡¯s secrets may very well be fully exposed before all his martial brothers and sisters!

    Qin Lingyu was not too concerned if Ke Xinwen was simply going to suffer on his own, but it would be a huge problem if Ke Xinwen somehow implicated him in all these as well. After all, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen could be considered to be in the same boat right now.

    Imbecile! Qin Lingyu cursed Ke Xinwen in his heart. But there was no other alternative right now ¨C Qin Lingyu had to step in.

    ¡°Brother Yao, don¡¯t be too anxious to pin the me on brother Ke. I invite you to consider my views on this matter first.¡± Qin Lingyu calmly said to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at Qin Lingyu, before squinting her eyes to hide the displeasure in her heart right now.

    This fe is always out to ruin things! Jun Xiaomo knew the capabilities of this ¡°fianc¨¦¡± of hers, and she knew that it was very possible that he could turn the situation back around.

    ¡°Speak. I¡¯m listening.¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she put on an attentive look on her face.

    Then, Qin Lingyu¡¯s deep voice resounded with such gravitas that lent it great credibility, ¡°Brother Yao, I think that what brother Ke¡¯s referring to is not the same kind of ¡®emotional agitation¡¯ that you might be referring to. I think he¡¯s just being muddleheaded and too ashamed to admit it. You might not know this, but brother Ke¡¯s temper isn¡¯t too great. And once he gets angry, he tends to bber all sorts of nonsense.¡±

    ¡°Muddleheaded from anger? Why would he be muddleheaded from anger? I didn¡¯t do anything to agitate him, did I?¡± Jun Xiaomo tapped her palm with her fan.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid brother Yao wouldn¡¯t be aware of that. When brother Yao and martial brother Ye had both failed to return yesterday, we were all extremely worried, and we spent a good part of the day searching for both of you. Initially, our intentions were to continue our search for you today. But then both of you returned safely. Of course, it¡¯s a great thing that brother Yao and martial brother Ye could return safely, and we¡¯re all very happy for you. However, not only did brother Yao not ount for where the two of you had been the entire night, you even started interrogating martial brother Ke at the very first opportunity, cornering him at every turn with your words and rendering himpletely speechless. How could martial brother Ke not be angry at all this? Truth be told, even I, an observer on the sidelines, feel indignant for him. After all, martial brother Ke is still a martial brother of ours ¨C how could we simply p some baseless charges against him like that? Brother Yao, am I right?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation of the situation was extremely masterful. With just those few words, hepletely turned the tides and cleared Ke Xinwen of any earlier suspicions against him.

    That¡¯s right! What basis does Yao Mo have to make such allegations immediately upon his return? Who knows what he went throughst night? And all martial brother Ke did was to reveal an expression of shock, and Yao Mo somehow managed to twist that expression into some form of ¡°guilty conscience¡±. This is tooughable, isn¡¯t it?!

    And it¡¯s true! Yao Mo didn¡¯t even bother exining where they¡¯ve been! They¡¯ve even caused everyone to spend so much time and energybing the entire woods for them!

    Several disciples immediately grew infuriated at Yao Mo after hearing Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation. They felt that Yao Mo was simply making baseless allegations and sowing discord among them ¨C and they had almost fallen for his ploy!

    At this moment, the disciples were all thrown into a chaotic uproar, as several disciples began to condemn Yao Mo¡¯s actions ¨C

    ¡°That¡¯s right!! Martial brother Ke aside, I¡¯m angry at you as well! You must think that our brother Ke is easy to bully just because he doesn¡¯t have a tongue as sharp as yours, huh? Ah, we¡¯ve truly wasted our time on you. We should have let you perish in the woods alone had we known you were this kind of person. You¡¯re clearly repaying our kindness with evil!¡±

    ¡°If you say that martial brother Ke has the intention to harm you, then bring some hard evidence to prove it! You don¡¯t even have any evidence, and yet you try and entrap our martial brother Ke like that? Despicable!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re clearly the one with ulterior motives, yet you try and find fault with martial brother Ke. Do you think the whole world is out to get you, huh?¡±

    ¡°You must be delusional! I¡¯m speechless.¡±

    ¡°Your enmity with martial brother Ke isn¡¯t that great ¨C why do you have to torment him at every opportunity you have...¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve never once respected Dawn Sect!¡±

    ......

    Jun Xiaomo maintained a calm expression as she received the condemnation of all these disciples. Then, she smiled sardonically as she thought to herself ¨C these people are so protective of Ke Xinwen. But I wonder how much of that is going to be reciprocated by Ke Xinwen? If they encounter some real danger, how likely is it that Ke Xinwen would protect them?!

    After all, it was evident from how Ke Xinwen had acted under the effects of the Nightmare Array that he was a seasoned hypocrite who repaid good with evil.

    Jun Xiaomo had intended to wait for all these disciples to finish with their usations before refuting each and every single one of them. Unexpectedly, a cold voice carrying a trace of indignation resounded from beside her ¨C

    ¡°Enough!¡± Ye Xiuwen had remained silent all this while because he knew that Yao Mo had his own ns, and he did not want to disturb Yao Mo¡¯s thoughts.

    But now, he had reached his boiling point and was unable to stay silent anymore. He coldly articted each and every single word he said, ¡°Yao Mo is my friend, and I trust him. Besides, you don¡¯t know what we¡¯ve been through, so what basis do you have for your condemnation?!¡±

    It had to be said that once Ye Xiuwen spoke, his voice was domineering and full of gravitas.

    Everyone was immediately enraptured by his voice, and the whole ce became dead silent.

 Chapter 79: Infuriated Ye Xiuwen

    <h4>Chapter 79: Infuriated Ye Xiuwen</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    These Dawn Sect disciples did not have a close rtionship with Ye Xiuwen. In fact, they were quite distant from Ye Xiuwen ¨C even akin to strangers. But at the same time, they did not dare to offend this First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak.

    This had nothing to do with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s stature or position in the Sect. Rather, it was the dignified aura that he gave off which caused people to be on guard at all times.

    Despite the cold and distant front of their martial brother who seemed disinterested about matters apart from cultivation, no one dared to belittle him at all. At best, they might speak poorly of Ye Xiuwen behind his back, but no one had the gall to say anything in front of him.

    After all, whenever Ye Xiuwen¡¯s piercing gaze swept across their bodies, they would instinctively feel like retreating and shrinking back into their shells.

    Therefore, these disciples who were venting their frustrations and unreservedly condemning Jun Xiaomo just a little while ago were immediately taken aback when Ye Xiuwen spoke. They were instantly rendered speechless and lost all ability to retort momentarily.

    Even so, they still felt deeply dissatisfied and unconvinced! They even found it ridiculous that their martial brother Ye was now sticking out his neck for a mere outsider.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo smiled warmly to herself. She loved the feeling of being protected and sheltered by her martial brother, and her earlier frustrations at this entire group of disciples seemed to have dispersed substantially when Ye Xiuwen stood up for her.

    She had initially been racking her brains for the right words to refute all the allegations being levied at her. But now that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s outburst had silenced everyone around and appeased her heart, she saw no further need to refute their allegations anymore.

    What was the point of arguing with this bunch of people anyway? Her interactions with this group of people were only limited to their travels at this time, and there were no prospects of them bing good friends either. Most importantly, it was only a matter of time that she picked a fight with the entire Dawn Sect in future!

    Some might say that this was ingratiating behaviour, because Dawn Sect was the ce that had groomed her into who she had be today. But this could not be further from the truth in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. Dawn Sect was one thing, while Heavenly Peak was another. They were twopletely separate entities to her. Most importantly, the ce that had truly groomed her into who she had be today was Heavenly Peak, not Dawn Sect.

    And besides, Dawn Sect even harboured several individuals who eyed Heavenly Peak covetously, and Jun Xiaomo could hardly wait to pick off these pests and get rid of them. Therefore, how could Jun Xiaomo begin to feel any sense of belonging to such a terrible ce like Dawn Sect?

    Since there were no prospects of developing any good rtions with those around them, then what need was there to bother herself these people¡¯s opinions of her to begin with?

    Having carefully analyzed these matters, Jun Xiaomo finally came to terms with the situation ¨C there was no need for her to bother about what these inconsequential people thought.

    Rather than butt heads with these people, why not spend some time and effort filling their growling tummies instead? After all, they hadn¡¯t even eaten the reindeer that they had caught!

    Jun Xiaomo thought about this, and rubbed her stomach as sheined, ¡°Ahh~ I haven¡¯t eaten anything this morning, and I¡¯mpletely famished. Brother Ye, why not let¡¯s go make something to eat? We can ignore these people who¡¯re making a fuss over nothing.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice cut through the stifling silence in the atmosphere. But as it dawned on these disciples what Yao Mo was saying right now, they could only stare nkly at this gluttonous young man ¨C

    We were all still discussing some pretty serious allegations moments ago; yet how did the topic of discussion changed to something so trivial in the blink of an eye?!

    And besides, what did this young man mean by ¡°making a fuss over nothing¡±? He¡¯s the one who started throwing baseless allegations the moment he came back, didn¡¯t he?!

    This was what most people around were thinking right now. But with Ye Xiuwen protecting him, they could only stare at this young man with their eyes and mock him in their hearts ¨C no one dared to say anything out loud.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyutched on to an important point that Ye Xiuwen had alluded to when he interjected. Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes shed momentarily before he finally decided to rify certain things ¨C

    ¡°Brother Yao, us Dawn Sect disciples had reacted with impropriety earlier, and I apologize on everyone¡¯s behalf.¡± Qin Lingyu stood in front of Jun Xiaomo as he gave her a fist and palm salute symbolizing their contriteness. Then, he added, ¡°Since we¡¯re going to be travelling together as a group, it would be best to let bygones be bygones and work towards ourmon goal, wouldn¡¯t it? In fact, I¡¯m rather curious as to what brother Yao and martial brother Ye had experiencedst night. I wonder if it would be convenient for us to discuss this matter right now? If the both of you have encountered some form of dangers, it would be good for all of us to take the necessary precautions as well.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lips hooked into a slight sardonic smile as she remained silent.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart constricted slightly. He could tell that this young man named Yao Mo was not someone who could be easily duped. Right now, Yao Mo seemed to be staring at him with such a prating gaze that it felt as though all his ploys had been exposed. It was undoubtedly intimidating to be stared at like that.

    It was no wonder Ke Xinwen would always stumble at Yao Mo¡¯s allegations. This young man could read people¡¯s minds very urately and grasp the deepest contemtions of their hearts. Furthermore, Ke Xinwen was also an easily agitated person. Thus, every single one of Yao Mo¡¯s allegations towards Ke Xinwen was like a hammer that struck the nail on the head.

    But Qin Lingyu was not Ke Xinwen. Even if Yao Mo attempted to expose him right now, he knew that he could simply change the topic and evade Yao Mo¡¯s verbal traps without batting an eyelid. Therefore, Qin Lingyu maintained that air of confidence about him and a calm look on his face despite Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intimidating gaze.

    Jun Xiaomo flicked open her fan and hid her pouting lips behind the fan as she fanned herself and retorted, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll let you guys know what happened since you¡¯re curious about it. These woods are filled with several spirit beasts, and brother Ye and I have already encountered these spirit beasts on three asions. Furthermore, each one we encountered was stronger than the previous. Thest one that we encountered was even a Green Elder Python that had just matured...¡±

    ¡°Green Elder Python!¡± A disciple eximed in shock. Green Elder Pythons were known for their speed. If a disciple like him at only the eighth level of Qi Mastery encountered one, the oue would almost certainly be death.

    However, he was also very quickly reminded of the fact that Ye Xiuwen was a cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery who possessed a wind-based spiritual root. Therefore, it was highly likely that Ye Xiuwen might still have a fighting chance against the Green Elder Python.

    As this disciple thought about it, he sought to test what Jun Xiaomo had said, ¡°Martial brother Ye is at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and he even possesses a wind-based spiritual root, so he wouldn¡¯t have anything to fear of this Green Elder Python, right? Why did you make it sound so serious earlier?¡± This disciple¡¯s voice was rather soft and timid, and he even cautiously nced over at Ye Xiuwen as he spoke, worried that his analysis of the matter would attract Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ire.

    However, Ye Xiuwen did not grow upset at the disciple¡¯s insinuating analysis of the matter. He only calmly rified, ¡°It was a Green Elder Python in a frenzied state.¡±

    ¡°Ssss---¡± Several people gasped immediately. Everyone had heard of spirit beasts in frenzied states before ¨C a spirit beast in a frenzied state would invariably have offensive abilities that were several grades higher than what they should be. No wonder martial brother Ye went missing for the whole night before returning only in the morning. It¡¯s already a wonder that he could stay alive while attending to that burden with him.

    Naturally, the ¡°burden¡± that these disciples referred to was Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes as he thoughtfully said, ¡°The fact that martial brother Ye could ovee a Green Elder Python in a frenzied state and not suffer any injuries is truly spectacr. If it were me, I wouldn¡¯t be so sure that I could evene out alive from such an encounter.¡±

    Qin Lingyu wanted to use this opportunity to suss out Ye Xiuwen¡¯s truebat abilities ¨C

    If Ye Xiuwen truly possessed the ability to ovee a Green Elder Python in a frenzied state, then perhaps I might need some new ns in order to deal with him!

    He Zhang had intended capitalize on these travels to trip up Ye Xiuwen so that Ye Xiuwen would no longer be able to defeat Qin Lingyu in the Sect-Ranking Competition next year.

    But as things looked right now, if Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were so great that they far exceeded our initial estimations, then he would almost certainly be a huge obstacle in our ns in future. We have to get rid of this person before he can fully realize his potentials! Qin Lingyu thought silently to himself.

    Jun Xiaomo was sensitive enough to pick up the thoughts running through Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind right now. A cold, chilling intent shed across her eyes, before an idea came to her mind. She decided that she was going to draw Qin Lingyu¡¯s k against Ye Xiuwen to herself.

    ¡°Ai--...Actually, I didn¡¯t really want to brag about it.¡± Jun Xiaomo fanned herselfzily, ¡°But this time brother Ye was lucky to have me around. With the few formation arrays that I had set up, we managed to dispose of that Green Elder Python rtively easily.¡±

    ¡°Tch! You really know how to brag. If it had been so easy, why did you guys go missing for the entire night?¡± Another disciple could not stand how Jun Xiaomo had raised her chin proudly as she bragged right now, and he attempted to call out her bluff.

    Jun Xiaomo chucklednguidly as she replied, ¡°It¡¯s up to you if you want to believe me or not. But...brother, if you were in my shoes, I wonder if you would be able to receive even one blow from the Green Elder Python? Let¡¯s not even talk about a Green Elder Python in a frenzied state ¨C I don¡¯t think you could¡¯ve lived for more than half an incense worth of time even if it were just a normal Green Elder Python, huh?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± That disciple¡¯s face immediately turned green and a sickly pale. He had now experienced firsthand what Ke Xinwen had already experienced several times.

    Indeed, the most formidable part about this array master was that sharp tongue of his. In fact, it was so sharp that they would not be surprised if he possessed the ability to anger a person to death with just his words!

    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ve already given the necessary ount of the matters. Little Mo, didn¡¯t you say you were feeling hungry? Let¡¯s go make something to eat.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he changed the topic.

    ¡°Mm, mm. Sounds good.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with a warm expression as she nodded, just like how a pet dog would look at its master.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, are you really going to help an outsider like that?¡± The disciple who had been so infuriated with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s retort looked indignantly at Ye Xiuwen as he used. He could no longer suppress the anger on his heart.

    ¡°You¡¯ve also heard it. Brother Yao had saved my life. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s reasonable that I¡¯m being nice to him? On the other hand, I don¡¯t understand how all of you, being disciples of arge, reputable sect, can be so narrow minded to others andck magnanimity.¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly responded.

    ¡°If you truly cannot ept brother Yao travelling together with us, then we can part ways here and now. Yi Hong, Di Yue, since the both of you had followed me here, I can¡¯t leave you behind in the lurch. But seeing how things have developed, I can only give you one of two choices ¨C you either choose to follow me, or you can continue to follow martial brother Qin and the rest. It¡¯s your choice.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen finally gave them the ultimatum. The way everyone had dealt with Yao Mo had thoroughly infuriated him.

    As for the Sect Elders, Ye Xiuwen believed that as long as he thoroughly exined the entire situation, there was nothing much that the elders in the Penal Hall would be able to do to him. After all, it was not like he did not give Yi Hong and Di Yue any element of choice. If they chose not to follow him right now, then he would not need to bother about them either.

    Yi Hong and Di Yue looked at each other, before lowering their heads inplete silence.

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his eyebrows even more. He never expected that things would escte to such an extent.

    Most importantly, he did not want Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo to leave and travel separately. Quite apart from the schemes and ploys he had nned to execute against Ye Xiuwen in these travels, the treasures in Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring was already sufficient to move Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart.

    Therefore, he had to make sure that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo stayed with the group!

    Qin Lingyu softened his tone as he tried to mitigate the situation, ¡°Martial brother Ye is right. We¡¯ve truly failed to disy the generosity and magnanimity expected of arge and reputable sect. Brother Yao, I¡¯m truly sorry for all of this. Once again, I would like to apologize on everyone¡¯s behalf.¡±

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo simply pouted her lips and refused to respond.

    ¡°All of you, apologize to brother Yao right now. Since he saved martial brother Ye, he could also be considered as our benefactor, understand?¡± Qin Lingyu sternly chided the other disciples.

    How could the other disciples resist the orders of the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple? Thus, one by one, the disciples all took turns apologizing to Jun Xiaomo.

    As to what they thought in their hearts right now, only they knew.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t be bothered to remain angry at these people. Rather, she was more concerned about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s decision at this point in time. Therefore, she looked over to Ye Xiuwen thoughtfully.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder. And then, with a low, soft voice that could only be heard by the two of them, he whispered, ¡°Have patience.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her hand, then she waved her hands as she said, ¡°Forget it, forget it. I¡¯m a magnanimous person. I forgive your ignorance!¡±

    Everyone: ...This person is truly annoying! I¡¯ve never heard words of forgiveness sound so hateful before!

    Even then, a bright glimmer shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and he smiled furtively to himself.

 Chapter 80: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Full Capabilities

    <h4>Chapter 80: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Full Capabilities</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had not eaten anything today, and she had even wasted a fair bit of time arguing with these bunch of buffoon disciples. Right now, she waspletely famished. Since matters hade to some form of conclusion, she did not wish to waste her saliva on the other disciples any further. Thus, she tugged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm,menting, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m hungry...¡±

    She had earlier alreadyined to Ye Xiuwen about her hunger. But right now, she even made it sound like she was being wronged.

    The suave-looking young man scrunched up his face like a bitter gourd as looked at Ye Xiuwen with watery eyes and a hopeful gaze. All that was possiblycking was for someone to write the words ¡°I¡¯m hungry. Let¡¯s eat¡± on his face. Ye Xiuwen could not help but chuckle lightheartedly.

    This person really wears his expressions on his sleeve. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself helplessly as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, saying, ¡°Let¡¯s go then. Didn¡¯t you say you wanted brother Ye to try your culinary skills?¡±

    ¡°Great! Come with me, brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened as he immediately grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and dragged him to the side, ignoring everyone else present.

    On the other hand, everyone else who were looking at this sight were leftpletely speechless. The two of them seemedpletely oblivious to everyone¡¯s presence right now, and the intimate atmosphere between them did not even allow room for a third party¡¯s interjection. Everyone waspletely stunned by this sight.

    They had never seen Ye Xiuwen acting so...affectionately. In their eyes, Ye Xiuwen had always been cold and distant. But now, not only had Ye Xiuwen patted Yao Mo¡¯s head; he even allowed Yao Mo to hold his arm and lead him away. This left all the disciples from the Sectpletely bbergasted.

    But how would these disciples know that Ye Xiuwen had been so cold and distant to these martial brothers and sister precisely because they had never done deserving of a ce in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart? To those whom he cared about, such as his martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen would always maintain a cordial attitude towards them and treat them warmly. Of course, he also tastefully tempered his cordiality with these disciples with the dignity and awe from his stature as the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak. This also allowed Ye Xiuwen to gain the utmost respect from everyone within Heavenly Peak. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Ye Xiuwen naturally became the main pir of support of all the disciples of Heavenly Peak after Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei¡¯s death.

    As Jun Xiaomo dragged Ye Xiuwen along, she passed by the location of the bonfire which Qin Lingyu and the others had just put out. And just beside that bonfire, she noticed the various pieces of rock-hard, ck-looking meat that had been discarded by the disciples.

    ¡°Tsk tsk. Is yourbined culinary effort only worth that much?¡± Jun Xiaomo prodded those few pieces of meat with her legs in disgust as she chuckled to herself.

    Hearing this, all the disciples immediately red at her. One of them even added, ¡°Since you¡¯re so good, then why not you cook something and show us? Talk is cheap ¨C the proof is in the pudding!¡±

    They all felt that Yao Mo acted like the son of an aristocratic n head born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and thus they sincerely believed that he knew nothing about cooking, much less roasting wild game out in the wilderness. Therefore, they did not believe that Yao Mo could make anything decent to begin with.

    Tch! This Yao Mo fe clearly only knows how to p his jaws. The disciples all red at Jun Xiaomo as they thought.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at themnguidly but decided not to waste her breath on them. She walked over to the side with a more open space, and she set up another bonfire in a few quick moves.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efficacy and proficiency with setting up this bonfire immediately silenced the rest of the disciples.

    After all, these disciples had spent a good amount of time starting the fire yesterday, even with all of their effortsbined.

    ¡°Let¡¯s continue to rest here for a while more. Some of you might not have eaten much this morning, so those who need to eat or hydrate, do so now. We can leave when everyone is sufficiently rested.¡± Qin Lingyu gave orders to everyone around. The disciples all nodded as they took their seats around their camp site.

    There were now two bonfires burning in the woods. One bonfire had several disciples seated around it; and the other looked much lonelier with only two people at the bonfire. The segregation was well apparent.

    Even though nobody believed that Yao Mo would be able to whip up anything good, all the disciples around still could not help but nce over their shoulders at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen from time to time.

    ¡°Hmph. They mentioned that they¡¯ve encountered a Green Elder Python, but it looks like they¡¯ve only been hunting. Look at the size of that reindeer!¡± One of the disciples who noticed Jun Xiaomo retrieve therge reindeer from her Interspatial Ringmented with bitter jealousy.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? They even made us worry the entire night for them.¡± Another disciple chimed in softly. However, when they noticed Ye Xiuwen suddenly turn around to look at them, they immediately shut their pping mouths.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen face was obscured by the veiled conical hat, his gaze was still sufficient to put pressure on these disciples.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen turned his head back and continued looking at the fire. Seeing this, the disciples all heaved a sigh of relief.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo swiftly divided the reindeer¡¯s body as she cut skillfully along the grain and prepared various parts of the reindeer¡¯s meat for roasting. They were divided into pieces of different sizes, and Jun Xiaomo ced all of them ontorge leaves before she started to season them.

    Jun Xiaomo had brought some seasonings along from the kitchen back home. In fact, she hade so well prepared that her Interspatial Ring stored sufficient seasoning for her and Ye Xiuwen to use for a couple of months.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed these various types of bottles that Yao Mo had taken out and immediately revealed a shocked look on his face. Then, he looked thoughtfully over at Yao Mo.

    Liu Qingmei had loved going into her kitchen ever since she was pregnant with Jun Xiaomo. This was because she hoped that as her daughter grew up, she would have the blessing of being able to taste Liu Qingmei¡¯s own cooking that was made with love.

    Because of this, Liu Qingmei was extremely particr about the things she kept in her kitchen, to the extent that even these little bottles that were used to store various kinds of seasonings were all extremely exquisite and well made. At times, walking into the kitchen in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s home would even feel no different from walking into a woman¡¯s chambers ¨C everything was clean, neat and orderly, while the seasoning bottles were exquisite and beautiful. All that wascking was a bunch of fresh flowers toplete the look.

    This was something known to all of the disciples at Heavenly Sect. Sometimes, Jun Linxuan would bring one or two of his disciples with him when he traveled out of the Sect on missions, just so they could experience the world outside. During these trips, they would discover that their master had a habit of stopping by some small crafts stores at the marketce, pick out a few well-made bottles that looked pleasing to the eye, pay for them, before quietly storing them within his Interspatial Ring. And he did all these with a stern and somber expression on his face.

    At the start, the disciples at Heavenly Peak had spected that their master might have some strange obsession and therefore enjoyed collecting these exquisite looking bottles. Some of them even thought of gifting some of these lessmonly seen bottles to their master for his birthday gift. But after a few of these disciples made the mistake of gifting these things to their master, the disciples all eventually learnt that these little bottles that he had purchased on his travels were in fact gifts to Liu Qingmei for her use in the kitchen.

    Once they learnt the truth of the matter, everyone could not help but be pleasantly surprised at how well their master treated his wife! Naturally, they all had a goodugh about their misunderstanding too.

    After all, their master picking out these bottles with a stern and somber face was something that was tooical. It was as though the items he was picking out were not even regr bottles or containers, but some high-quality miracle medicine or herb of sorts.

    As Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Ye Xiuwen was naturally aware of this incident. Even though Ye Xiuwen was unaware of how his master¡¯s kitchen looked like, since the kitchen belonged to the private realm of the family, but there were few people in this world who would be so particr about their kitchen¡¯s cleanliness and order. Therefore, this incident left an indelible mark in his heart.

    Right now, when Jun Xiaomo retrieved so many exquisite looking seasoning bottles from his Interspatial Ring, Ye Xiuwen was immediately reminded of Liu Qingmei¡¯s obsession with her kitchen.

    Is this a mere coincidence? Or is it... Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart skipped a beat. Then, he managed to suppress the roiling emotions in his heart.

    All this while, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention had been fixated on seasoning the reindeer meat perfectly, and she naturally failed to notice Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar expressions. How would she have known that her act of bringing out some bottles from her kitchen would give Ye Xiuwen an important clue about her identity?

    If these clues continued to umte, then perhaps the day that Jun Xiaomo can no longer deny her true identity would just be around the corner...

    Jun Xiaomo was extremely well practiced with her art of seasoning and grilling meat out inn the wilderness. She swiftly coated each piece of the reindeer meat withyers of seasonings, and then she flipped them over and did the same to the other side. After that, she did not hastily put the meat to the grill, but waited a moment before brushing yet anotheryer of seasoning on the meat...

    After a few repetitions, Jun Xiaomo finally stopped when she judged that the meat had now be sufficiently marinated with the seasoning. Thereafter, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a piece of wire mesh from her Interspatial Ring. Then, she picked out a few pieces of round and smooth pebbles and started stacking them up to form a mini ¡°furnace¡± of her own, ced the wire mesh on top, and started a fire directly under the wire mesh, in the furnace.

    Everyone: ...... Was this person really lost in the woods before being rescued by Ye Xiuwen earlier? He looks incredibly well prepared for this!

    Jun Xiaomopletely ignored the curious nces from the other disciples, and she only continued to busy herself with the task at hand. Right now, she continued to brushyer afteryer of oil on the wire mesh as the gleaming golden globules of oil dripped through the mesh into the fire below, setting the fire below aze with even greater intensity.

    When the fire in the furnace grew to a sufficiently strong level, she finally began cing the reindeer meat onto the grill.

    Tssss!! The reindeer meat sizzled as it as it hit the grill, and a thick waft of fragrance from the seasonings and the searing meat immediately diffused into the air around them.

    Jun Xiaomo had even added her own special touch to the seasoning so that the meat would have a fresher aroma with traces of fruity fragrances.

    At this moment, a gentle breeze blew across the woods, carrying the aroma of the grilling meat over to the disciples by Qin Lingyu¡¯s side, causing them to bepletely enveloped by the smells emanating from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grill.

    Growllll... One disciple gulped as he swallowed the salivation in his mouth, and he couldn¡¯t help but gaze over nkly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    In fact, he was not the only one gazing nkly at Jun Xiaomo at this moment. Several other disciples involuntarily turned their attention towards Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and stared vacantly at them right now. The only people who were able to remain calm and settled right now were only Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen. Ke Xinwen was able to remain calm because his hatred for Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen was even stronger than his gluttonous desires. Therefore, he refused to sumb to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s temptation right now. On the other hand, Qin Lingyu had to maintain his image as the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader, and he naturally remained calmly seated where he was, munching away at the dry rations in his hands.

    It was as though the dry rations in his hands were just as tasty as the grilled meat on the other side.

    Jun Xiaomo had a great grasp on the heat emanating from the furnace. Just as a thinyer of caramelization formed on the surface of the reindeer¡¯s meat, she lowered the heat and continued to broil the meat, flipping the meat with some bamboo skewers from time to time.

    It¡¯s about time! Jun Xiaomo removed from the grill a piece of beautifully cooked meat that looked thick and sulent, and then she carefully ced it on arge leaf. They had earlier picked a few of these leaves beside the stream and cleaned them thoroughly so that they could be used as ¡°tes¡±.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo sprinkled some pepper on the grilled meat, and vo ¨C the dish wasplete. Just as she was about to ¡°submit¡± her work of art to Ye Xiuwen for his review, she immediately smacked her head as she said muddleheadedly, ¡°Ah! I¡¯ve forgotten to bring a small knife along with me!¡±

    Without a small knife to cut up the reindeer meat to bite sized pieces, how were they going to eat this piece of grilled meat? Gnaw on it?

    Ye Xiuwen had all this while been silently watching Yao Mo proficiently prepare and sear the meat as he tried hard to suppress his suspicions for Yao Mo¡¯s true identity. But now, he was suddenly jolted back to his senses when he heard Yao Mo exim to himself.

    ¡°Let me do it.¡± Ye Xiuwen softly said, as he received the leaf holding the reindeer meat from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. Then, with a few quick flicks of his hands, the meat was sliced into neat pieces by several controlled Wind des.

    Everyone: ......I never knew that wind-based spells could be used in such a practical manner. Extraordinary... But regardless, seeing Ye Xiuwen use a Wind de to cut meat is simply too strange and peculiar.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened as she saw Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disy of abilities as she eximed, ¡°Brother Ye, that¡¯s amazing!¡± As she said that, she picked up a piece of meat with a bamboo skewer and delivered it straight to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mouth as she expectantly said, ¡°Brother Ye, hurry up and give it a try!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen gave the reindeer meat that had been delivered in front of his mouth aplicated look ¨C if Yao Mo were truly his little martial sister, then how could he possibly be so adept at her culinary arts?

    He was wearing a veiled conical hat at the moment, and it was not convenient for him to eat out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands right now. Therefore, he received the bamboo skewer from Jun Xiaomo before cing the piece of grilled reindeer meat into his mouth...

    It was truly delightful. The outeryer of the grilled reindeer meat was caramelized perfectly ¨C crisp to the bite while it carried slight traces of charred fragrance. At the same time, the sear on the outside locked in the juices so much so that it was extremely tender, and every bite delivered an explosion of vours formed by thebination of the seasoning and the freshness of the reindeer meat. It was truly delectable and irresistible.

    ¡°It¡¯s great.¡± Ye Xiuwen gave Jun Xiaomo an objective review of her food as he looked at herically.

    ¡°Then have more, brother Ye! I¡¯ll make more if it¡¯s not enough.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded in tion, and her eyes curled up in joy.

    On the other side of the fire, the other disciples looked ck jawed at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s delectable food as they suddenly felt extremely hungry.

    Unfortunately, they knew that had offended Yao Mo too much, to the extent that the bridge had been burnt. Even if they wore a contrite expression on their face and asked her nicely right now, it was highly unlikely that they would be able to get any reindeer meat from her.

    Furthermore, how would their pride allow them to wear a contrite expression and ask her nicely in the first ce?

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat was so tempted by the aroma of the food that it even popped its head out of the bag, hopped over to a piece of meat that had juste off the grill and almost immediately took arge bite at it.

    ¡°Nuh-uh-uh! Hot, hot, hot! What are you so anxious about? It¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t make a portion for you!¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her little packrat¡¯s paws as she chided. Then, only when the piece of meat had cooled down a little, did she let her little packrat put its paws on the food and start eating.

    The little packrat immediately buried its head into its food as it devoured its food in joy. It¡¯s body even quivered in its delight!

    The people from Dawn Sect: ...... That¡¯s just great. Our food can¡¯t even bepared with the food of a little packrat now!

    Then, their minds wandered to thoughts of how theiring days were going to be filled with situations like this ¨C glistening pieces of meat that they could smell and see, but not eat or taste. Immediatetly, their eyes darkened in dismay.

    Can it get any worse than this?!

 Chapter 81: Tormented Dawn Sect Disciples

    <h4>Chapter 81: Tormented Dawn Sect Disciples</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Under the baptism of looks of admiration, covetousness and even frustration from the Dawn Sect disciples, Jun Xiaomo, her little packrat, and Ye Xiuwen had slowly and steadily polished off the few perfectly grilled pieces of meat on that wire mesh rack with absolute satisfaction and delight. In particr, the little packrat burped after he finished his meal, before itidfortably on its back, exposing its round and full belly. Jun Xiaomo chuckled at the sight of her little packrat and rubbed its belly. Immediately, the little packrat picked itself up, kicked off with its feet and sprung into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes, leaving only its tail exposed.

    Could it be that this little fe is embarrassed?

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled to herself before she turned her attention away from the little packrat that had buried its head into her chest. Within a few quick moments, she picked up the rest of the reindeer meat that she had cut into pieces and stored them.

    This was a habit that she had developed from her previous life. It was very possible to encounter unexpected circumstances when one was traveling outside in the wilderness. Even though they had nock for food right now, they were still quite some distance away from the Mystic Woods, and nobody would be able to predict what kind of predicament they might find themselves in in future. If they happened to encounter a food shortage in future, then the reindeer meat that she had stored in her Interspatial Ring would certainly be a life-saving measure.

    Naturally, they would be able to use a Subsistence Pill to ovee their hunger. However, Subsistence Pills were not cheap objects. Given the limited amount of spirit stones that they had, there was no way that they would be able to stockpile a hoard of Subsistence Pills for a rainy day. Therefore, it was necessary to prepare a healthy stash of food for their sustenance.

    At the same time, objects stored in Interspatial Rings were not affected by the effluxion of time, and there was no need to fear that food and meat would rot inside. This was why Jun Xiaomo could confidently store the excess raw meat in her Interspatial Ring without any fear at all.

    This should probably be enough meat to feed the three of us for three days, I think. Jun Xiaomo estimated in her heart as the various ways of preparing reindeer meat surfaced and shed across her mind.

    The other disciples did not share the same thoughts as Jun Xiaomo. They felt that storing raw meat within Interspatial Rings was aplete waste of space. When they saw Yao Mo store her excess reindeer meat inside, their lips twitched as they wondered what had to be going through this strange array master¡¯s mind to make him act this way.

    The air lingered with the fragrance and aroma of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier grilling. It was as though the gentle breeze blowing through the woods were doing its utmost to provoke Qin Lingyu and the other disciples. When Jun Xiaomo was grilling the meat, the wind constantly blew the irresistible scent of grilled meat over to whet the disciples¡¯ appetites. Yet now that Jun Xiaomo and the others had finally finished their food, the woods werepletely silent and still, devoid of any movement of air.

    As such, the group of disciples continued to be enveloped with the thick aromas of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s food, assaulting their olfactory senses and exciting their taste buds, causing the disciples to involuntarily tighten their grasp around their dry rations as they craved better food.

    This was despite the fact that these disciples had already eaten two sets of dry rations since the morning.

    ¡°Alright, since everyone seems sufficiently rested. Let¡¯s be on our way then.¡± Qin Lingyu finally spoke, bringing the disciples¡¯ attention away from the frustration of gnawing away at the tasteless, dry rations in front of them.

    Several disciples immediately stood up in a spirited fashion as they packed up their belongings and prepared to leave with unprecedented speed.

    They simply could not wait to get away from this dastardly ce that was filled with the aroma of roast meat.

    Right now, the disciples were in unanimous agreement that it was an important thing to master their culinary arts before embarking on future travels out of the Sect.

    But it was toote for regrets right now. They could only gnaw away at their dry rations for the rest of their mission.

    As for the disciple who challenged Jun Xiaomo to make a better meal than them? Seeing the results of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cooking had dealt a heavy blow to him, and his face was now hot, prickling numbly andpletely flushed with embarrassment.

    In fact, it was not just his face that was feeling slightly sore ¨C his stomach was as well! After all, he could only gnaw away unwillingly at his dry rations as he continued to be battered by the incredible scent of roasted meat that made him salivate uncontrobly. After some time, his stomach even started to cramp up, as though it were in protest against the torment that he was going through right then.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled wryly and stroked her chin wickedly. By now, she had already taken in all the disciples¡¯ individual expressions and reactions to her cooking. These reactions were well within her expectations. After all, like martial brother Ye, most cultivators did not see the need to practice or improve on their culinary arts to begin with.

    Hehe. Do you think things will be much better once you leave this ce? Since I¡¯m travelling with you guys, there¡¯s still plenty of time for me to torment your senses with my cooking. Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow andughed wickedly in her heart as she thought to herself.

    Yu Wanrou stole a nce at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. Her eyes gleamed brightly, and then she lowered her head and bit down on her lips discreetly. There was no way to tell what she was thinking at this moment.

    Over the next few days, the disciples¡¯ faces grew uglier and uglier as time wore on, just as Jun Xiaomo had predicted. In particr, whenever Jun Xiaomo began to pick out stones to set up her makeshift furnace, the disciples would all stare daggers at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo as though they wished to puncture them with holes like swiss cheese.

    But they had no choice. These disciples had not attained the level of cultivation where they no longer needed to eat. Furthermore, even if they had attained that level of cultivation, it would still be difficult to keep themselvesposed when faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s assault on their olfactory senses three times a day.

    What frustrated them the most was how this array master loved to prepare food in different ways ¨C she would roast meat one day; then smoke meat on the next; braise meat on other days; and salt-bake meat on yet other days.

    Having witnessed Yao Mo¡¯s adept culinary arts, they sincerely felt that it was a waste this array master did not choose to be a chef instead. Just why did Yao Mo have to follow them and tempt them with his cooking like that?

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo was certainly not going to let them know that she had done all of these on purpose.

    Didn¡¯t all of you acim the fact that you hail from Dawn Sect, and that you¡¯re better than a ¡°rogue cultivator¡± like me? You even alleged that I only knew how to p my jaws and that I¡¯m good for nothing else.

    I¡¯ll make you eat your words!

    There were a few disciples who were truly remorseful about how they had acted. From the outset, there was no reason for any enmity between them and Yao Mo. Rather, it was only because they wished to curry favour with Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen that they decided to provoke and challenge Yao Mo with their usations.

    Unexpectedly, Yao Mo¡¯s culinary arts were far better than any of them had imagined possible, and the food that he prepared had always been so aromatic and fragrant that just one whiff of it would cause their stomachs to growl incessantly for a taste of Yao Mo¡¯s cooking. However, they knew that they had thoroughly offended Yao Mo, and their pride prevented them from humbling themselves and asking Yao Mo for a taste of his cooking. To these disciples, they felt that they would be no better than a beggar if they stooped so low to do so.

    Naturally, Jun Xiaomopletely disapproved of these disciples. She saw how those disciples eyed her food like they were hungry wolves prowling about their prey, and she stroked her chin thoughtfully ¨C I wonder whether these people would actually cast aside their pride if Mother were cooking in my ce?

    But what Jun Xiaomo did not expect was that someone actually did cast aside her pride toe begging for food. And this was not just anyone ¨C it was her love rival from her previous life, Yu Wanrou!

    ¡°Brother Yao, are you preparing fish soup today?¡± Jun Xiaomo currently had one foot on arge piece of rock as she sliced open arge fish and cleaned out its innards. Yu Wanrou had deliberated for a moment before she carefully approached ¡°Yao Mo¡± and asked softly.

    Jun Xiaomo gave Yu Wanrou a peculiar nce, before shifting her eyes back to the big fish without a word and resuming her work.

    Truth be told, she did not like to prepare fish-rted dishes because they were simply too troublesome. Not only did she have to de-scale them and clean out their innards; the fish soup that she prepared had never tasted as good as her mother¡¯s ¨C ever. However, having already had meat every meal for the past few days, she decided it was a good time to change things up slightly.

    Ye Xiuwen was currently boiling the water on the side. From time to time, he would add some dried leaves and twigs to the fire to maintain the intensity of the mes below the pot.

    Ye Xiuwen was a person who had always been solely focused on his cultivation, and he would rarely bother himself with matters unrted to cultivation. However, seeing how this young man before him had been squirreling around preparing food for the two of them and one packrat, he could not bring himself to sit idly at the side waiting to be served. Therefore, he picked up a thing or two from Jun Xiaomo and started helping out as well.

    Ye Xiuwen had never been good at cooking, whether now or in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s past life. However, preparing and maintaining a small fire was something that was well within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities. At the very least, he had a pretty good grasp on controlling the intensity of the mes.

    Jun Xiaomo had earlier already informed Ye Xiuwen that they would be preparing fish soup today, so Ye Xiuwen was aware of what Jun Xiaomo was preparing at this moment.

    However, the answer to Yu Wanrou¡¯s question was obvious, and neither Jun Xiaomo nor Ye Xiuwen bothered to reply Yu Wanrou. Ye Xiuwen remained silent because he felt that no answer from him was necessary because Yu Wanrou had not directed her question to him to begin with. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was simply toozy to bother feigning civility with Yu Wanrou.

    Since she had already burnt bridges between her and the other disciples, then it was unlikely that they would be interacting much with each other even if they were going to be travelling together. After all, they already looked like two separate groups camping together at the same spot at this point of time.

    If Jun Xiaomo were preparing food on any other day, Yu Wanrou might not necessarily ce the food Jun Xiaomo had prepared in her sights. However, they had been travelling in these woods over thest ten days, and she had not even touched meat and fish in the same amount of time. The other male disciples travelling with them were incapable of preparing any wild game for her, and they could all only gnaw away at their dry rations every mealtime for sustenance. Therefore, her stomach felt as though it had been deprived of food for a long time, and it was starting to be unbearable for her.

    Right now, Yu Wanrou thought that there might be a slim chance that Yao Mo would be willing to share some food with her if she just unted her body and flirted a little bit. Since this was a possibility, why not give it a shot?

    After all, Yu Wanrou was confident that no male cultivator was able to escape her charms and allure, and Yao Mo shouldn¡¯t be an exception either.

    However, Yu Wanrou¡¯s hopes had obviously been misced. Despite Yu Wanrou having made the first move, Yao Mo continued to affix his attention on the fish he was de-scaling andpletely ignored her.

    Seeing this, Yu Wanrou made a sorrowful look on her face as she pleaded with Yao Mo, ¡°Brother Yao, do you intend to ignore me forever just because you¡¯re angry at brother Qin and the others?¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm that was de-scaling the fish suddenly jerked forcefully, and she almost cut off the fish¡¯s entire head.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately made a discreet, wincing expression on her face, before she looked up with a face of bewilderment and responded curtly, ¡°Excuse me, do I know you very well?¡±

    Yu Wanrou: ......

    ¡°It seems to me that you don¡¯t think so either.¡± Jun Xiaomo acted as though she was taking things seriously as she nodded, adding, ¡°Since we¡¯re not that close, then please stop trying to worm your way into my good books like that. Your actions are giving me goosebumps.¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s expression momentarily turned ugly when she heard this. This was the first time that it dawned on her how much this Yao Mo¡¯s sharp tongue was highly reminiscent of a particr other person ¨C both were equally hateful, and she desired to tear both their mouths to shreds.

    This ¡°other person¡± that Yu Wanrou was thinking of was naturally Jun Xiaomo! One could only imagine the expression she would make on her face when she finally finds out that Yao Mo was in fact the very same Jun Xiaomo whom she hated to the core!

    However, Jun Xiaomo felt that her reaction was still insufficient, so she added, ¡°Oh yes, please don¡¯t stand there and cast your shadow on this fish here. It¡¯s causing me to be unable to see the fish¡¯s scales.¡± As Jun Xiaomo said this, she even waved her hands, gesticting for Yu Wanrou to move away.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips and gritted her teeth as she red furiously at Jun Xiaomo. Then, she turned around and walked back to Qin Lingyu and the others with a sickly green face.

    At this moment, Zhong Run snickered ¨C she was absolutely pleased at how Yu Wanrou had returned with such defeated spirits.

    She had since time immemorial seen Yu Wanrou as a thorn in her side ¨C especially how she used her weak and pitiable pretenses to earn the sympathy and gifts of generosity from the male disciples. Therefore, how could she not take pleasure in Yu Wanrou¡¯s misery when she saw how her pretenses had simply bounced off Yao Mo like he was a steel wall?

    On the other hand, as Ke Xinwen watched the interaction between Yao Mo and Yu Wanrou, his heart immediately burned with indignance ¨C there was a mix of both indignance against Yu Wanrou, as well as an indignance arising out of jealousy.

    He was furious that Yu Wanrou would actually make a move on that array master; and he was even more furious that Yao Mo would treat thedy he was fond of with such a dismissive attitude.

    However, despite a few attempts at roasting meat, he could not even get the basics right. Therefore, he could only give up on currying favour with Yu Wanrou with his cooking for now.

    Separately, he also noticed that Qin Lingyu had not consulted him on how to deal with Yao Mo ever since thest time he had plotted against Ye Xiuwen with Frenzypani Grass.

    Therefore, when the emotions in Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart once again roiled at this sight, he immediately grew uneasy.

    Has Qin Lingyu decided to give up, or is he...

    Just as Ke Xinwen thought about this, Qin Lingyu suddenly looked over discreetly and signaled to him with his eyes.

    Ke Xinwen immediately understood. He stood up and followed Qin Lingyu as they left the other disciples and walked to a big tree some distance away, and then disappeared behind it.

 Chapter 82: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Unique Auditory Abilities

    <h4>Chapter 82: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Unique Auditory Abilities</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu looked cautiously around at his surroundings, and even sent a thread of divine sense probing about the camp site below. Then, when he finally ascertained that everyone had remained seated around the bonfire and there were presently only him and Ke Xinwen around, he finally felt more at ease. He turned back towards Ke Xinwen and asked inly, ¡°Have you managed toe up with any ideas to deal with Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo?¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Ke Xinwen did not expect Qin Lingyu¡¯s questions to be along these lines.

    Given how Qin Lingyu held his fate in the center of his palms, he was naturally resigned to obeying Qin Lingyu¡¯s every beck and call right now. Since that was the case, he had every intention to obey Qin Lingyu¡¯s instructions and directions when it came to the matters pertaining to Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo, and he certainly did not dare to act out of line.

    Therefore, he had never expected Qin Lingyu to ask him whether he hade up with any ideas to deal with Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. Isn¡¯t this something for you to think about instead? Ke Xinwen thought to himself as he stared nkly at Qin Lingyu,pletely lost for words.

    As expected... Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes immediately turned frosty and his voice grew colder as he rebuked Ke Xinwen, ¡°Do you expect me to do everything around here? Are you a three years-old child? Do I have to hold your hand and teach you everything? I¡¯ve already said that the things I want are within Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring. As for Ye Xiuwen, he¡¯s never truly disyed the full extent of his abilities before us. Even though we are all at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery right now, do you know what would happen if he breaks through to the Foundation Establishment stage before either of us? I¡¯m sure even you would be able to guess the answer, right?¡±

    Hearing this, Ke Xinwen¡¯s face immediately flushed with embarrassment. Qin Lingyu¡¯s breakdown of the situation left him absolutely no room to hide his shame. But at the same time, he knew that Qin Lingyu was right ¨C Ye Xiuwen was their greatest rival right now. Being of simr cultivation levels, everyone naturallypared Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen with Ye Xiuwen. Even though Ke Xinwen was better with people; and Qin Lingyu held a better position in the Sect, none of them could hold a candle to Ye Xiuwen when it came to their actual abilities.

    In the cultivation world, when a person of a low cultivation level could still muddy the waters and get by with their interpersonal skills or the position which they upied within the sect. But as the person¡¯s cultivation level increases, so does the emphasis on one¡¯s true abilities; while on the other hand the importance of these peripheral skills would gradually fade into the background.

    Therefore, whether it was Ke Xinwen or Qin Lingyu, neither of them wished to see Ye Xiuwen return to the Sect alive.

    ¡°I understand what you mean.¡± Ke Xinwen suppressed the humiliation he experienced from Qin Lingyu¡¯sshing as he clenched his fists tightly and added, ¡°I also wish to find a way to deal with the two of them. But as you can see, I¡¯ve plotted against them three times now. But somehow, I end up losing out each time. Especially when ites to that damn array master Yao Mo who ims to be only at the first level of Qi Mastery ¨C I wonder if he¡¯s hiding his true abilities? Otherwise, how could he end up rescuing Ye Xiuwen time and time again?¡±

    Furthermore, whenever Ke Xinwen was reminded of how Yao Mo had severely tripped him up with his Nightmare Array, thereby causing him to divulge his deepest secrets about killing his fellow martial brother, his heart would swell up with both hatred and fear for Yao Mo.

    ¡°That¡¯s cause you¡¯re a fool. They won¡¯t know you¡¯re scheming against them if you just change things up once in a while. Why do you think they would immediately point their finger at you the moment they return?¡±

    ¡°So what if they suspect me? Do they have any proof, huh?¡± Ke Xinwen sheepishly refuted.

    ¡°Idiot! Once they suspect you, they will naturally put up their guard against you. Right now, they might even be aware of the exact methods you¡¯re employing against them each time. Believe me ¨C your foolishness has and will make every future attempt at scheming against them more and more difficult.¡± Qin Lingyu spoke bluntly and without any reservations, causing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face to turn a sickly green.

    ¡°Then what can we do? There¡¯s no way we can duke it out with them openly either. Even if we could, there¡¯s no guarantee that we would be able to defeat them either. Just Ye Xiuwen alone would be difficult enough to deal with. If we add that mysterious array master Yao Mo to the mix, then things really don¡¯t look good for us right now.¡± Ke Xinwen retorted with a mild despondence.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you use your brains and think from a different perspective? Sometimes, I really wonder whether it was a good idea to keep you by my side. I don¡¯t want to be implicated when you go down in your stupidity.¡± Qin Lingyu once again rebuffed Ke Xinwen harshly. Hearing this, Ke Xinwen¡¯s body froze in shock, and he clenched his fists even more tightly in frustration.

    ¡°Then tell me! How do you intend to deal with the two of them!¡± Ke Xinwen replied indignantly.

    Even though he did not want to admit it, he knew that Qin Lingyu was far more cunning than him when it came to scheming against others. This was why Ke Xinwen had decided to leave things to Qin Lingyu right at the outset ¨C

    He knew that there was no way he would be able to deal with both Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo with just his own abilities.

    Then, Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes gleamed viciously as he gravely articted each word, ¡°Divide. And. Conquer.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes immediately lit up, and he quickly understood what Qin Lingyu meant.

    ¡°Are you saying that we should find a way to separate the two of them, and then pick them off one by one...¡± As he said this, Ke Xinwen put a finger to his neck and drew a line across viciously.

    Qin Lingyuughed wickedly, ¡°No matter how formidable Ye Xiuwen might be, he¡¯s still nevertheless only a cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery ¨C we stand a good chance if we join hands against him. And Yao Mo is even less of an issue. He¡¯s just a measly array master who¡¯s not suited forbat to begin with. His fate is sealed once Ye Xiuwen is no longer there to protect him.¡±

    ¡°This...¡± Ke Xinwen hesitated, ¡°I think that his formation arrays are too formidable. Last time, I was practically locked in that inn by his formation arrays. I¡¯m afraid we cannot becent against Yao Mo.¡±

    ¡°Aha, and you were even beaten to a pulp by him.¡± Qin Lingyu mocked. Ke Xinwen looked pale at this moment. He truly did not want to admit his inadequacies, but he knew that there was no way he could deny that fact.

    Qin Lingyu nced indifferently at Ke Xinwen, a man clearly ambitious butcking the brains to achieve his goals. Then, he casually queried, ¡°Do you know what the greatest weakness of an array master is?¡±

    Ke Xinwen stared nkly at Qin Lingyu as he contemted for a moment, before responding with uncertainty, ¡°They are weak in their offensive abilities.¡±

    Qin Lingyu revealed a sardonic smile on his face as hemented, ¡°I really wonder how martial brother Ke had managed toe back alive thest two times you traveled out of the Sect.¡±

    Ke Xinwen had grown used to Qin Lingyu¡¯s sarcasticments by now, and he seemed rtively unfazed by hisments. Therefore, Ke Xinwen ignored Qin Lingyu¡¯sments and anxiously pressed the issue, ¡°Hurry up and tell me.¡±

    ¡°An array master¡¯s greatest weakness is the time required to set up his formation arrays.¡± Qin Lingyu exined cautiously, ¡°Have you thought about it before? If you had not waited till dusk to make your movest time, Yao Mo would not have had the time to set up his formation arrays, and you would not have lost the ability to make the first move. You might even havee out on top of that conflict.¡±

    Ke Xinwen immediately froze in ce, and his lips slowly stretched into a vicious smile as realization dawned upon him.

    Qin Lingyu had earlier probed about his surroundings with his divine sense, so he was confident that no one was listening in on his discussion with Ke Xinwen right now. However, what he did not notice was how a small leaf was peculiarly stuck on Ke Xinwen¡¯s body. When they finished their discussions and decided to return to the camp site, this leaf silently fell off Ke Xinwen¡¯s clothing and floated to the ground. After a few moments, it spontaneouslybusted and turned into ashes.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo sat atop a round, smooth rock beside the river. As she gingerly slipped the fish into a pot of boiling water, her hands stopped momentarily, and she smiled discreetly before she finally released her grip on the pieces of fish meat.

    As the water boiled gently, the fish¡¯s meat quickly turned a pearlescent, milky-white colour as it bobbed about in the pot ¨C the fish stew wasing together nicely.

    Jun Xiaomo stirred the pot of fish stew gently as she slowly contemted how she was going to deal with the two bungling schemers who had now joined hands, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen.

    Qin Lingyu had not expected Yao Mo to be able to draw a formation diagram on a fallen leaf. Over and above that, he had never expected Yao Mo to have thus been able to listen in on their conversation in its entirety.

    At the same time, how was Jun Xiaomo going to let them seed in their schemes so easily now that she had learnt of their ns?

    Right now, the only thought running through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was of how she was going to beat them at their own game ¨C she was going to teach them the taste of how one could be too smart for his own good.

    However, while Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen had already hammered out their ns, they did not discuss when they would implement it. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo was still unsure of when exactly they nned to make their move.

    They might intend to make their move midway through their travels, or they might intend to make their move only when they had arrived at the Mystic Woods. Regardless, she had to be prepared when they finally did so.

    It even crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind to make many more simr talismans with fallen leaves to secretly listen in on Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s secret conversations. However, these ¡°fallen leaf talismans¡± were highly unreliable. Not only was their period of effectiveness extremely low, the sess rate of making such talismans was extremely low as well ¨C Jun Xiaomo had expended almost half of her Dantian¡¯s true energy working on fifty over dried leaves before she managed to make a passable ¡°fallen leaf talisman¡±.

    Furthermore, her sole intention today was to test the effectiveness of this fallen leaf talisman on Ke Xinwen¡¯s body. What she did not expect was to inadvertently learn of their infuriating schemes against her and Ye Xiuwen.

    However, this was not necessarily a bad thing. After all, this certainly beats being caughtpletely unaware and falling prey to their schemes.

    These fallen leaf talismans require too much effort for too little. It¡¯s just not worth my time. After Jun Xiaomo objectively assessed the situation again, she dispelled any intentions of making any more of these talismans.

    Forget it. I¡¯ll just deal with the situation and adapt ordingly. As long as I keep my guard up, these two bungling schemers are bound to let the cat out of the bag in time.

    Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen pretended that they had gone for a walk, and thus they returned with one walking ahead of the other. The other disciples also knew that it was not their ce to question where Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen had been and what they had been up to. Therefore, they continued to sit by the bonfire, munching away at the dry rations in their hands.

    ¡°I¡¯ve just done some calctions with martial brother Ke on the side. We should be arriving at the next town in about another day and a half. Hang in there, everyone.¡± Qin Lingyu stated coldly, and his facial expressions were extremely sincere and genuine.

    The disciples seated around the bonfire naturally took Qin Lingyu¡¯s words at face value. By now, these disciples had grown weary of the fragrance emanating from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cooking on the one hand; and that nd, tasteless dry rations in their hands. Therefore, Qin Lingyu¡¯s words were like a breath of fresh air to them.

    Once they arrived at town, they would be able to indulge in all the delectable cuisines to their heart¡¯s content; sleep on soft,fortable beds; and even soak off all their weariness in their personal, hot, steaming bathtubs. It was as though heaven were right around the corner!

    Oh, and of course they would also have to stock up on a stash of seasonings like Yao Mo kept in her Interspatial Ring. Otherwise, they were sure to face such a gustation torment once they left that town and started travelling through the wilderness again.

    That¡¯s right - several disciples had attributed the difference between the food they prepared and Yao Mo¡¯s food solely to theck of seasoning.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t care less about what these foolish disciples were thinking at this moment. What she was most concerned about right now was whether Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu were going to find some way to trip her and Ye Xiuwen up within the next day and a half.

    One and a half days... Jun Xiaomo mulled over this period of time as she smacked her lips.

    Somehow, she had a feeling that something was going to happen within the next day and a half...

 Chapter 83: The Sudden Appearance of the Demonvine

    <h4>Chapter 83: The Sudden Appearance of the Demonvine</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intuition was rarely ever wrong. Therefore, she consciously maintained vignt of her surroundings as she journeyed along with the rest.

    One could never be too cautious. If Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen wished to make a move against Ye Xiuwen within the next one and a half days, then she had to do all she could to ensure that they were not going to get their way.

    Jun Xiaomo had thought that her uneasiness came from Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s ploys. However, in the afternoon of the second day, as the entire entourage hurried along on their journey towards the Mystic Woods, the uneasiness in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart slowly escted, until it finally reached its limits and triggered a response from Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Brother Ye, hang on a minute. Something¡¯s not right with this ce!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand, preventing him from moving forward any further.

    Ye Xiuwen was immediately taken by surprise. But he nevertheless took Jun Xiaomo¡¯s opinion seriously. He stopped moving forward, and slowly released his divine senses to probe around at his surroundings.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen had constantly probed about their surroundings with his divine sense as they trudged along on their journey, but he did not discover anything peculiar. Now that Jun Xiaomo had made her suspicions known, he decided to expand the range of his divine sense and check his surroundings more thoroughly.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen retracted his divine sense and shook his head at Jun Xiaomo, saying, ¡°I didn¡¯t discover anything strange in our surroundings.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lips, as she knitted her brows in perplexity.

    ¡°But I¡¯m getting this strange sense that something is not right...and I just can¡¯t ce a finger on where this uneasinesses from.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, before he decided to check his surroundings even more thoroughly, leaving no stone left unturned.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen finally discovered what the abnormality was ¨C this ce was simply too quiet! In fact, the surroundings were enshrouded by such a deathly stillness that it could be likened to thend of the dead.

    It was not an umon thing for them to encounter spirit beasts in the deepest parts of the woods. Therefore, encountering periods of unnatural stillness and quietness in the woods were not too umon. Whenever the entourage realized this, they would release their divine senses to probe about their surroundings so that they could avoid crossing paths with strong spirit beasts.

    After all, thebinedbat prowess of this entourage was still rather limited; and locking inbat with spirit beasts too frequently was not a good thing. If that happened, there was a real possibility that the weaker disciples might end up overdrawing their spirit energy reserves.

    However, this was the situation in the deepest parts of the woods. Right now, they were only a day¡¯s journey away from the edge of the woods. Logically speaking, they should not be encountering such an unnatural stillness in the woods where they are.

    ¡°I don¡¯t hear any crickets chirping or birds calling ¨C this is highly unusual. Didn¡¯t Qin Lingyu say we are about to leave these woods very soon?¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin as she thought aloud, ¡°Logically speaking, predators rarely traversed the edge of the woods, and there would usually be many more small creatures around these parts. Right now, I don¡¯t even see a single bug in sight.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen stretch out his hand and tugged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s right hand as he instructed, ¡°Follow me closely. Be careful.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo relished in the warmth transmitted by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm which was wrapped around her hand. Despite the potential dangers ahead, she smiled blissfully as she inched towards Ye Xiuwen and followed closely behind him.

    Ye Xiuwen hesitated for a moment, before he went along with the flow as well.

    As they walked on, the beams of sunray shone which through the canopy warmly illuminated their bodies, turning them into a hazy silhouette of two persons holding hands as they walked towards the light. It was as though they would on and on, forever......

    Qin Lingyu and the rest of their entourage walked on ahead, and they simrly released their divine senses to probe about their surroundings to check for potential dangers.

    However, it had been several days since they came close to encountering any dangerous situations. Furthermore, they knew that they were already nearing the next small town. Therefore, these disciples had long since growncent ¨C even those that did release their divine senses to probe at their surroundings did so halfheartedly at best.

    ¡°Sigh, once we leave these damned woods and arrive at the next small town, I¡¯m going to find some ce to indulge in some good food and drinks, and then treat myself to a nice long nap.¡± One of the disciples waved his fist in the air as hemented.

    They had lived off dry rations for well over ten days now. To make matters worse, Jun Xiaomo had always been cooking all kinds of delectable delights at the side, whetting their appetites and testing their self-restraint.

    In fact, the temptation was so great that this disciple felt as though he had not eaten his fill ever since Yao Mo first prepared his grilled reindeer meat.

    But he didn¡¯t have any choice. There was a great disjunct between the scents and aromas that assaulted their olfactory senses and the dry rations in their hands. This juxtaposition was so great that the dry rations even started to lookpletely inedible to these disciples. Therefore, notwithstanding their growling stomachs, they ate less and less over thest few days because they simply could not bring themselves to swallow that detestable, grainy food any longer.

    Another one of the disciples looked at him empathically as he nodded his head, before he turned around and nced at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen who were following them some distance behind. Then, he turned back andmented with some measure of indignance, ¡°I still think that bringing that Yao Mo fe along with us was a bad decision. Even though our original intention was for him to follow us until we returned to the Sect so that he can aid with the Sect¡¯s investigations, his actions right now are simply tormenting us.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so! Furthermore, I don¡¯t think Yao Mo has much substance to offer to the group. At best, I reckon he only knows one or two formation arrays that are only useful for tripping people up. Look, just the other day when we encountered some danger, he simply hid behind martial brother Ye with no intention to help out. He¡¯s clearly freeloading off us here. If he¡¯s really so powerful, then why didn¡¯t he lend a helping hand at all? I just can¡¯t see how he could have rescued martial brother Ye, and twice at that. He¡¯s clearly lying through his teeth!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had indeed been rather passive in thest few days, and she had always allowed Ye Xiuwen to protect her ¨C

    The first reason was that her cultivation level was still too low, and she might end up being more of a hassle if she tried to help out Ye Xiuwen. Furthermore, their recent encounters had been small spirit beasts, and Ye Xiuwen alone was more than sufficient to deal with these minor threats. After all, he was a sword cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. The second reason was that she had an extremely limited number of talismans in her Interspatial Ring. The more she used, the less she would have for a rainy day. Naturally, it would be wise to err on the side of caution so that she would not find herselfcking talismans in the event of a true emergency.

    And besides, she had not been wasting her time. She would find time to practice her sword arts with Ye Xiuwen every day, spar for a little bit, and then use any of her remaining true energy to make more talismans.

    With such an organized and rigorous training schedule, Jun Xiaomo even discovered that she was starting to show signs of breaking through the bottleneck of the first level of Qi Mastery.

    Regardless, these were not things that she had to ount to the entire entourage that she was travelling with. Therefore, in the ignorance of these disciples¡¯ eyes, Yao Mo was simply a coward who would hide behind Ye Xiuwen in times of danger!

    ¡°What I¡¯m most baffled by is how martial brother Ye could condone this fe¡¯s disy of cowardice by hiding behind his back. He doesn¡¯t even protect Yi Hong and Di Yue with this kind of conscientiousness! Eh?¡± As this disciple eximed, he patted Yi Hong and Di Yue¡¯s shoulders withpassion.

    Yi Hong and Di Yue were both team members of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s teams, but they were clearly more willing to follow Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen. This was evident by the fact that they would always follow Qin Lingyu or Ke Xinwen¡¯s lead and listen to Qin Lingyu¡¯s instructions. On the other hand. they consciously distanced themselves from their appointed team leader, Ye Xiuwen.

    Yi Hong looked at his fellow martial brother and smiled helplessly as he shook his head and said, ¡°What choice do I have? When I first applied to travel out of the Sect, I also wanted to choose martial brother Qin or martial brother Ke as my team leaders. Unfortunately, my abilities can¡¯t match up to yours. Then, given how martial brother Qin and martial brother Ke¡¯s teams had already filled up, I could only end up picking martial brother Ye as my team leader. I never expected him to treat an outsider better than he treats us either. Sigh...¡±

    Di Yue was walking ahead of them. When he heard Yi Hong¡¯s words, he immediately turned around and added sarcastically, ¡°I couldn¡¯t care less if he doesn¡¯t want to protect us. He and that young man Yao Mo can go be lovey-dov¡ªAhh¡ª!¡± Before Di Yue finished, a thick vine suddenly appeared in everyone¡¯s sights and wrapped itself around Di Yue¡¯s body, lifting him up high in the air.

    Then, more and more vines started to appear and wrap around Di Yue¡¯s body that had already been hoisted into the air.

    Di Yue was so frightened that he immediately started screaming at the top of his lungs. He wanted to break free of these vines¡¯ constriction around his body so that he could get back down on the ground. However, the more he struggled, the tighter these vines constricted around him, and it eventually got to the point that he found it increasingly difficult to breathe ¨C the constriction was getting so tight that air was being forcefully squeezed out of his lungs.

    The most frightening thing about these vines was how they seemed to have something hidden within them which pierced straight through his skin and ferociously drained away at his energies.

    At this moment, Di Yue had been constricted so tightly that even his eyeballs began to bulge out. His mouth hung loosely as he looked at his fellow martial brothers and sisters standing some distance away. Then, with a quivering voice, he pleaded, ¡°Help...me...quick...help...me...¡±

    The other disciples were all caught unaware by this sudden ambush, and they did not know how to react. Yet in that instant, and despite Di Yue¡¯s pleading, not a single person went forward to rescue Di Yue, including those two senior martial brothers which Di Yue adored so much ¨C Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen.

    Qin Lingyu did not appear frazzled by this sudden development, but he was not willing to make the first move to rescue Di Yue ¨C he did not have any intentions to help out before he could properly ascertain what exactly these vines were.

    In Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, his life was far more valuable than the lives of anyone else around him right now.

    Pfft--! Di Yue suddenly spurted out a mouthful of blood, and some of this blood dribbled all over the surface of the vine. However, this blood disappeared astonishingly quickly, as though they had been absorbed by the vines. Then, in the next moment, the vines instantly erupted into a frenzy.

    ¡°Retreat!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes quivered as he immediately signaled for a retreat. The other disciples were slower to react. But seeing Qin Lingyu run away, they quickly followed suit. As the disciples ran, they even started casting all sorts of spells to cover their retreat ¨C they had no choice because the vines had started to close in on them. Right now, the vines were thrashing about with such hysteria that sent shudders down the spines of several disciples.

    What kind of a thing is this?!

    At this moment, Di Yue saw each and every single one of the martial brothers and sisters whom he trusted start to leave him, and he knew in his heart that they were all abandoning him. His anger swelled up to his throat, and this sudden agitation caused him to spit out another mouthful of blood.

    Instantly, the vines thrashed about more hysterically, and it even began to glow with a dim red light at this point.

    Further behind, Ye Xiuwen had reacted immediately the moment the vines attacked Di Yue, and he had already retreated some distance together with Jun Xiaomo. Since they were at the back of the entourage to begin with, there was no way the vine would be able to reach their bodies anytime soon.

    In truth, Jun Xiaomo had immediately recognized the true identity of those vines the moment she saw the vines appear. And, she also finally understood the origins of her uneasiness at the outset.

    Demonvine, an existence that consumed all living beings in its surroundings for sustenance and nutrition. The higher the grade of the Demonvine, the greater the range of its domain of dominance.

    This naturally also exined why this entire region of the woods had been so quiet to begin with. It was a very real possibility that all the spirit beasts and creatures in this region had already been consumed by the Demonvine and be nothing more than nutrients coursing through the stem of the Demonvine right now!

    Jun Xiaomo smiled wryly. Even though the Demonvine was vicious and cruel, it was not difficult to deal with the Demonvine as long as one had the requisite know-how.

    The vines drew closer and closer, and the efforts of Qin Lingyu and the others to dy the approach of the vines looked to be in vain. Therefore, Qin Lingyu led the disciples to dash directly over in the direction where Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was standing at this moment, luring the vines directly towards them!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes shed with a frigid gleam as she chuckled coldly.

    Then, she retrieved two talismans from her Interspatial Ring and pped them onto Ye Xiuwen and her body.

 Chapter 84: Moment of Danger, Di Yueâ€™s Regret

    <h4>Chapter 84: Moment of Danger, Di Yue¡¯s Regret</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The talismans on Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bodies shone with an intense blue light before promptly vanishing into thin air. Then, as the blue light faded, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen remained standing where they were, as though nothing had changed.

    Seeing this, a glint of light shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes ¨C Had the talisman lost its effects?

    Having contemted that possibility, he increased his speed as he rushed over towards Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, intending to lure the Demonvine over towards them.

    There¡¯s no time to run!

    Ye Xiuwen tensed up anxiously as he tightly gripped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and retrieved his Frostburn Sword from his Interspatial Ring. Ye Xiuwen held his sword horizontally across his chest in a defensive stance ¨C Instead of running aimlessly, why not duke it out with the Demonvine!

    Then, Ye Xiuwen promptly pulled Jun Xiaomo behind him so that he stood between Jun Xiaomo and the Demonvine. Obviously, Ye Xiuwen intended to protect this young man, Yao Mo. Jun Xiaomo smiled warmly in appreciation of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gesture.

    All these things happened extremely quickly, and Qin Lingyu sprinted past Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo in the sh of an eye, luring that vicious Demonvine right before Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faces.

    As he passed Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu also released a dense wave of ice spikes to deter the Demonvine¡¯s fast approaching appendages.

    At the same time, he nced over at Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo from the corner of his eyes, and he was surprised to see that both of them seemed to remain rooted to the floor, as though they were waiting for death! Didn¡¯t they notice all of us retreating from this Demonvine?!

    The Demonvine possessed incredible resilience to attacks. As long as one was unable to unearth and carve out its demonic core buried in the heart of its main vine, then it would continue to be able to send out wave after wave of appendages at its surroundings and devour all living beings in its path of destruction.

    All living beings were nutrients to the Demonvine, whether small and insignificant like worms and insects, or enormous spirit beasts like the Green Elder Python. None were spared. Of course, the Demonvine¡¯s range was limited, and then there was no way that it would be able to pursue or attack its prey once it left the Demonvine¡¯s domain.

    This Demonvine that was attacking them had probably been around for such a long time that it had already begun to develop a basic level of spiritual awareness. Therefore, it knew how to bide its time and wait for its prey to walk deeper into its attack range beforeunching the first strike. This way, its prey would remain for a longer time within its domain, and there would be a much lower chance of its prey escaping from its appendages.

    This was evidently the case right now ¨C Qin Lingyu and the others had been unable to leave the Demonvine¡¯s attack range within thest few moments.

    Seeing how Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had remained rooted to where they were, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen had expected them to be wrecked by the quickly approaching appendages and left in a sorry state in no time. However, as the Demonvine¡¯s appendages sped towards Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, a surprising thing happened ¨C

    The Demonvine¡¯s appendages suddenly went around Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen and continued its pursuit of Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen who were speeding into the distance behind them!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face immediately turned dark and sickly green at this sight. He had not expected such an oue at all!

    What kind of talisman had Yao Mo used? There were no apparent changes to Ye Xiuwen or his body when he pped on that talisman after all!

    It was at this moment that it finally dawned on Qin Lingyu that Yao Mo¡¯s abilities might well be far above his estimations. Yao Mo¡¯s profound capabilities did not stem from a strongbat ability. Rather, it stemmed from the innumerable tricks and unorthodox but practical know-hows that he had up his sleeves. This was not something that any of the disciples could emte or learn from very easily either.

    Most importantly, Qin Lingyu finally realized that he had no way of urately estimating the full extent of Yao Mo¡¯s abilities right now.

    Jun Xiaomo took in all of the astonished looks on Qin Lingyu and the other disciple¡¯s faces with great pleasure, and she could not help but curl up her lips with a wry smile.

    How could these ignorant people be aware of the fact that the Demonvine was in fact so easy to deal with? One only needed to trick the Demonvine into thinking that he or she were not a living thing.

    Jun Xiaomo had also encountered the Demonvine a few times in her previous life, and she had simrly attempted to retreat like Qin Lingyu and the others did, only to be left in an extremely sorry state by the time she managed to escape the Demonvine¡¯s domain. Then one time, she encountered a Demonvine that was quickly catching on to her despite her attempts at shaking it off. In her desperation, she pped on herself a talisman that concealed the aura of life from her body.

    Unexpectedly, thisst-ditch attempt worked!

    Once the talisman shed with a blue light, it concealed itself, together with the aura of life emanating from her body. Even though her physical appearance was still present, this Demonvine could no longer sense it because it relied on its acute senses to pick up the aura of life from living beings to locate its preys.

    Having narrowly averted a cmity, Jun Xiaomo slumped back down onto the floor with her whole body drenched in sweat. From then on, she thoroughly etched in her mind this little trick to be used against Demonvines.

    Later in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, when her cultivation level and abilities had all be far stronger, she was able to use a simple fire spell topletely turn the Demonvine to ashes. By then, she naturally no longer needed to rely on her little talisman trick to save her life.

    As expected, having perceived Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo to be non-living objects, the Demonvine treated them like stones or trees andpletely ignored them. The Demonvine¡¯s appendages simply circled around them and continued in its pursuit of Qin Lingyu and the others who were living beings to it.

    Jun Xiaomo watched in joy how flustered Qin Lingyu and the others looked at this moment. They ran desperately, and in their panic, they cast every spell they knew at the Demonvine¡¯s appendages, hopelessly trying to shake them off. If Jun Xiaomo had a table, a chair and a teapot right now, she would sit right where she was and sip tea while she thoroughly enjoyed the show panning out before her.

    Qin Lingyu and the others ran off into the distance and left Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s line of sight. Then, Jun Xiaomo turned around and looked at Ye Xiuwen as she asked, ¡°Brother Ye, do you intend to go rescue the fe who has been captured by the Demonvine? He seems to be someone from your team.¡±

    A gleam shed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, before he responded indifferently, ¡°He won¡¯t die for now. Let¡¯s wait for a little while more.¡±

    Hearing this, Jun Xiaomo smiled discreetly to herself ¨C As expected, martial brother Ye isn¡¯t a person who lets people walk all over his head. Since Di Yue and Yi Hong don¡¯t like travelling with martial brother, then what need is there to rush to their rescue? Who cares about how serious their injuries are? It¡¯s fine as long as they don¡¯t die.

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo realized that the solemn and serious martial brother Ye that she knew also had a mischievous side to him. He was certainly not all the goody-two-shoes that she thought he was. And this did not make her despise her martial brother Ye at all; in fact, it made her admire her martial brother even more!

    If someone repaid one¡¯s good with evil, then what reason was there for one to continue to treat that person kindly? In life, one must act in ordance with his own desires, and this includes not letting others trample over oneself and taking advantage of one¡¯s good nature. That would no longer be kindness ¨C it would be weakness!

    Ye Xiuwen also noticed Yao Mo¡¯s impish smile stered all over his face, and he couldn¡¯t help but reveal a smile as well. He patted Yao Mo¡¯s head as hemended him, ¡°Little Mo is truly formidable to have even thought of such a method to deal with the Demonvine. The talisman you¡¯ve used must have concealed our life auras, am I right?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes and she gave him two thumbs up, before sticking out her tongue yfully in response, ¡°Brother Ye is the formidable one. How did you manage to guess it right at one shot?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly, ¡°It¡¯s rather obvious, isn¡¯t it? Our physical bodies remained visible, so the only other thing you could¡¯ve concealed would be our life auras.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked disdainfully in the direction that Qin Lingyu and the others had run off to, as she raised her chin and mocked, ¡°Well, some people clearly can¡¯t seem to guess what I¡¯ve just done. This Demonvine is still extending its appendages in their direction. I¡¯m pretty sure those imbeciles haven¡¯t managed to guess what talisman I¡¯ve used earlier.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly, tacitly agreeing with what Jun Xiaomo had said.

    After some time passed, Ye Xiuwen finally estimated that Di Yue might be near his limits. Then, he lowered his head and looked at Jun Xiaomo as he instructed, ¡°Little Mo, I¡¯m going to go rescue Di Yue now. Stay here and don¡¯t move, understand?¡±

    Even if Yao Mo had applied a talisman to conceal her own life aura, it was still extremely dangerous to go any closer to the heart of that crazed Demonvine. Yao Mo¡¯s cultivation level was not high to begin with, and it was not unreasonable to predict that an ident might ur if Yao Mo drew too close to the Demonvine.

    However, Jun Xiaomo shook her head adamantly, clung onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and insisted with a determined voice, ¡°Not a chance! I must go with you!¡±

    ¡°Your cultivation level is not high enough, and it would be dangerous if you came along. Be good and stay here alright? I will be back very soon.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he exined warmly in an attempt to cajole her.

    ¡°Who says it¡¯s going to be dangerous? Who was the one who¡¯d thought of using this talisman to conceal our life auras to begin with, huh?!¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted unwillingly, ¡°I¡¯ve still got plenty of other talismans with me too! Inferno Talisman, Thunderbolt Talisman, Static Field Talisman, Ice Spikes Talisman, Windsquall Talisman... I¡¯ll use these one after the other, and I don¡¯t believe that I won¡¯t be able to ovee this damned Demonvine!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but clench his fist tightly together to suppress theughter that was quickly welling up from within. He found Yao Mo¡¯s slightly arrogant and proud attitude to be rather adorable, and he could not help but tousle his hair.

    After he thoroughly tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, Ye Xiuwen once again attempted to persuade her, ¡°Using your talismans means you¡¯ll have less for the future. Save them for a rainy day, and don¡¯t waste them on inconsequential people, hmm?¡±

    If Di Yue could hear how Ye Xiuwen was describing him as an ¡°inconsequential¡± person right now, he might even pass out in anger!

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips sullenly for a moment, before she suddenly mmed her fist down on her palm. Then, she looked at Ye Xiuwen with her bright, resplendent eyes and maintained, ¡°It still won¡¯t do. I have toe along with you!¡±

    ¡°Little Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Brother Ye, listen to me. I¡¯ve got a way to cure the scar on your face. The Demonophile Soil we found in that cavern was one of the medicinal elements, but that in itself is not sufficient, and we will still need several other medicinal elements that are slightly on the rarer side of things. Even though the Demonvine is vicious, its roots have incredible medicinal properties. I must have it!¡±

    ¡°Do you mean...¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart tightened in anticipation, ¡°...that the Demonvine¡¯s roots are one of the medicinal elements for my cure?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Even though it can be substituted with other medicinal elements, the other medicinal elements are even harder to obtain than the roots of a Demonvine. Since that¡¯s the case, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s worth a shot at taking down this Demonvine?¡± Jun Xiaomo sped her hands around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands as she gazed into his eyes expectantly.

    Ye Xiuwen finally sighed helplessly, asking, ¡°Little Mo, why do you treat me so well?¡±

    This was something that Ye Xiuwen just could not understand. Even though fate had somehow drawn him and Yao Mo together, and they had even been through a couple of disastrous encounters together, Yao Mo¡¯s attitude towards him was not something that mere strangers who had serendipitously encountered each other would treat each other with.

    It once again urred to him that Yao Mo must know him from somewhere ¨C and Yao Mo must have already known him for a long time.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s guilty conscience surged within her, she bit down on her lower lips, and her gaze also darted around and grew more evasive. She lowered her head and entreated him, ¡°Brother Ye, could you refrain from asking so much? You¡¯ll know in time toe...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn for a moment, before responding slowly, ¡°Then alright. I won¡¯t force you to say it now. But, Little Mo, we might not be able to kill this Demonvine together, even with your plethora of talismans.¡±

    Even though Ye Xiuwen had not battled a Demonvine head on before, he had nevertheless noticed how Qin Lingyu and the others had cast a multitude of spells against the Demonvine to little effect. With only him and Yao Mo, what oue could they hope to achieve?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s original intentions were to find a way to rescue Di Yue, and escape the Demonvine¡¯s attacks while the talisman concealing his life aura was still effective.

    Jun Xiaomo let out a brief sigh, before she lifted her head and grinned at Ye Xiuwen as she quipped, ¡°Brother Ye, have you forgotten that I¡¯m an array master?¡±

    Formation arrays! Ye Xiuwen recoiled for a moment, before he quickly understood what Yao Mo was getting at ¨C

    ¡°Do you mean that you intend to kill this Demonvine with a formation array?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Jun Xiaomo pped her hands as she grinned and added, ¡°Since our bodies are invisible to the Demonvine under the effects of the life aura concealing talisman, that means that it won¡¯t attack us even if we draw closer to it. Brother Ye, you can rescue Di Yue first while I set up a formation array to the side. Once the formation array is ready, we can join forces and deliver a deadly blow to this Demonvine. There¡¯s no way it¡¯s going to be able to survive that!¡±

    The prideful and confident look on Yao Mo¡¯s face brightened up his young and innocent features in a dazzling manner. Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but tousle Yao Mo¡¯s hair once again. It was a good thing that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair was soft and silky ¨C otherwise, it was sure to have be as disheveled as a bird¡¯s nest by now.

    Jun Xiaomo did not resist it when Ye Xiuwen tousled her hair either. Truth be told, she rather enjoyed her martial brother fawning over her affectionately like that.

    ¡°Alright, since you¡¯ve made all the necessary calctions, I won¡¯t try and convince you otherwise. But no matter what, your safety is of the top priority, understand? Don¡¯t force yourself too hard.¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned.

    ¡°Alright, alright, my dear brother Ye. I know that much.¡± Jun Xiaomo clung onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms as she started to drag him towards the Demonvine, adding, ¡°Brother Ye, if we don¡¯t hurry on over right now, that fe named ¡®Di Yue¡± might really be finished soon.¡±

    It was indeed as Jun Xiaomo had said. Di Yue would have been finished if the Demonvine were given another half an incense worth of time. Right now, he was already fading in and out of consciousness as he struggled to cling onto thatst strand of hope within him.

    Having been wrapped tightly byyers uponyers of the Demonvine¡¯s appendages, Di Yue had long since lost all energy to struggle against it. His eyes remained half open as he gazed weakly into the distance... He did not want to die. He really did not want to die right here. But he knew in his heart that hispanions had all abandoned him. He could no longer see any shadow of Qin Lingyu or the others within his field of vision anymore.

    It seems that this is it, huh... Di Yue thought to himself with immense regret. If he had known this was going to be the oue, he would not have insisted on travelling out of the Sect to begin with.

    Di Yue¡¯s field of vision started to blur and fade away, and his heavy eyelids started to sink and droop down, just like how the curtains were drawn over the stage after the finale of a y.

    Finally, just as Di Yue¡¯s consciousness was about to fade away into the abyss of darkness, a snow-white figure suddenly disrupted his ¡°final moments¡± and shed across his field of vision, darting straight into the Demonvine!

    Di Yue was immediately jolted back into his senses as he recognized in one nce the owner of that iconic veiled conical hat and that unmistakable figure ¨C this was Ye Xiuwen!

    Who would¡¯ve thought that the person who¡¯s willing to save me in the end was also the person I least expected to save me... These final thoughts shed across Di Yue¡¯s mind, before his consciousness finally faded away.

 Chapter 85: Level Up! A Flawless Victory

    <h4>Chapter 85: Level Up! A wless Victory</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Under the talisman¡¯s life aura concealing effect, Ye Xiuwen arrived at the Demonvine¡¯s heart unobstructed. There, he lifted his Frostburn Sword and made a clean sh towards the Demonvine. Instantly, countless gleams of light shone through the Demonvine¡¯s appendages that had been tightly wrapped around Di Yue¡¯s body, severing them into numerous pieces. However, Di Yue was not out of harm¡¯s way yet. Within moments, several sets of new appendages shot out of nowhere and once again coiled themselves around Di Yue, burying him within theiryers.

    Furthermore, because the Demonvine¡¯s appendages had been cleaved into pieces earlier, the Demonvine that had developed some spiritual awareness began to fly into a fit of rage. Even though it could not detect where this living being Ye Xiuwen was, it nevertheless began to il its appendages about with reckless abandon, hoping that it would by chance be able to strike this ¡°invisible being¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately operated his Windwalk technique, increasing his speed by several folds as he avoided the Demonvine¡¯s attacks while looking out for an opportunity to rescue Di Yue. Di Yue was not in an optimistic condition right now. In fact, he appeared to be on his final breaths, and he was on the brink of passing on at any moment as a result of blood loss or the poison in his body.

    While Ye Xiuwen was trying to rescue his team member, Jun Xiaomo busied herself on the sidelines. She swiftly set up four identical formation arrays, one each at the north, south, east and west of the Demonvine¡¯s main vine. Then, she used four Talisman Threads to tie these four formation arrays together.

    This formation array was called the Savage Augmentation Array, and it was created by connecting four smaller formation arrays with Talisman Threads to form onerge formation array. Each small formation array was powered by a mid-grade spirit stone, while the person who held the key to activate and operate these formation arrays remained Jun Xiaomo who stood by the side of the formation array.

    Jun Xiaomo had to remain close to the heart of the formation array because the operation of this formation array required its user to channel a constant flow of spiritual energy into the formation array. In turn, the Savage Augmentation Array¡¯s effects were highly dependent on its user¡¯s cultivation level and his spiritual root affiliation. The user¡¯s cultivation level determined the strength of the formation array¡¯s resultant effects; while the user¡¯s spiritual root affiliation determined the type of attack generated at the heart of this formation array.

    Simply put, the Savage Augmentation Array was akin to a massive magnifying ss which amplified its user¡¯s offensive abilities. Every formation array served to ramp up the effects of the user¡¯s abilities in order to unleash a massive destructive force against the target at the heart of the formation array.

    This was a formation array that Jun Xiaomo was thoroughly familiar with. In fact, this was one of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s favourite formation arrays in her previous life. She had time and again used it to great effects by luring her opponents into the heart of the formation array before unleashing immense devastation on her persecutors who came from the well-reputed, ¡°upstanding and righteous¡± sects.

    That said, the use of this formation array was predicated upon her having sufficient preparation time to set it up to begin with. If she encountered these persecuting cultivators unexpectedly, there was no way she would be given the luxury of time to set up these formation arrays.

    Right now, Jun Xiaomo did not have the luxury of time to carefully set up a perfect Savage Augmentation Array either. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had made a few adjustments to the formation array under the constraints of time.

    This might well result in a diminished effectiveness of the formation array, but Jun Xiaomo had no time to concern herself with these trifling matters.

    Adapt to the situation and hope for the best! Any exigencies can be dealt with as theye along!

    A brief moment of timeter, Ye Xiuwen had managed to leverage on his nimble and flexible sword art to finally extricate Di Yue from the entanglement of the Demonvine appendages.

    At this moment, Di Yue¡¯s skin looked as though it had been corroded by the Demonvine¡¯s appendages. Flesh and blood were ground together into a bloody pulp, and he was left in a horrifying state.

    ¡°Brother Ye, hurry on out! I¡¯m going to activate the formation array now!¡± Jun Xiaomo shouted at Ye Xiuwen. He was located just beside the Demonvine right now.

    The greatest pitfall of using the Savage Augmentation Array was that it did not distinguish between friend and foe, and the devastation it unleashed was directed at anything and everything within the heart of the formation array. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo naturally had to warn Ye Xiuwen to leave the area of effect of this formation array before activating it.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s footwork was nimble and masterful, to say the least. Hearing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warning, he swiftly stepped onto one of the Demonvine¡¯s iling appendages, utilizing its momentum to increase his movement speed as he quickly shot out of the heart of the formation array in the blink of an eye.

    The Demonvine relentlessly pursued Ye Xiuwen. Even though it could not detect Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life aura, Ye Xiuwen was nevertheless carrying Di Yue with him, and Di Yue¡¯s life aura was not masked by any talisman. Furthermore, Di Yue¡¯s entire body was covered in his own blood right now, and this nauseating bloody stench thoroughly stimted the bloodlust of the Demonvine, causing it tosh out with a crazed fanaticism.

    Besides, how could the Demonvine just let its prey get away from it like that?! Therefore, in the moment that Ye Xiuwen extricated Di Yue from the Demonvine¡¯s clutches, the Demonvine immediately increased the viciousness of its attacks by several times and it sent almost all of its appendages chasing after Ye Xiuwen!

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction speed was incredibly quick as well. Once Ye Xiuwennded on the floor outside of the formation array, she immediately activated her Savage Augmentation Array. A stream of her true energy was now being constantly converted to spiritual energy and channeled straight into the heart of the formation array, and the four smaller formation arrays glowed with a soulless blue light. A brief momentter, the heart of the formation array erupted with an incredible inferno that engulfed everything within it, causing the main branch of the Demonvine to emit a cold and shrill shriek.

    The Demonvine¡¯s roots were buried deep within the ground, and it had no way of escaping this zing inferno. It could only helplessly continue to il its appendages about, causing immense destruction to its surroundings. Within moments, the towering trees around the Demonvine were snapped in half like twigs and felled by its temerarious attacks. On the other side, Ye Xiuwen was still carrying an injured Di Yue, and he was unable to swing his sword as he normally would. Therefore, he could only continuously operate his Windwalk technique to avoid the relentless blows of the Demonvine.

    Jun Xiaomo had envisioned that it was not going to take much time for her topletely obliterate this Demonvine. After all, she possessed a fire-based spiritual root. Of the five main elements, the element of fire naturally subjugated the element of wood. Therefore, coupled with the incredible effects of the Savage Augmentation Array, it was fairly reasonable for her to have expected to destroy the Demonvine with ease.

    However, she had underestimated the Demonvine¡¯s resilience. Every time she managed to burn off the surface of main vine, the Demonvine would retract some of its recklessly iling appendages back to the main vine and wrap these appendages tightly around the main vine, forming a newyer of defense around it.

    ¡°Damn! Why is it so hard to kill!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth, and once again increased the output of her spiritual energy to the Savage Augmentation Array, raising the intensity of the inferno to new heights. The mes became white-hot, and the heat started to prate the joints between the appendages and the main vine. The Demonvine¡¯s main vine had also begun to char on the outside.

    Just a little bit more... Jun Xiaomo stared viciously at the Demonvine as the mes of battle ignited within her heart. But just this moment, Jun Xiaomo suddenly experienced a violent tremor emanating from her Dantian.

    Damn! Jun Xiaomo cursed silently as her heart swelled with a bad premonition ¨C she was breaking through into the next level of cultivation!

    Breaking through into the next level of cultivation during battle was an incredibly perilous matter. If one did not control it well, he could very well experience cultivation deviation or even explode and die.

    However, Jun Xiaomo knew that she could not stop now. The Demonvine¡¯s ability to retaliate was extremely strong. If one could not kill it in one fell swoop, there was a good chance that the Demonvine would then detonate its spiritual core to take down its enemy with it.

    Bear with it...It¡¯ll be fine once I kill this Demonvine... Jun Xiaomo muttered in her heart as she gnashed her teeth and fought through the pain.

    Jun Xiaomo had already established for herself a good cultivation base, and under the umtion of her efforts over the past few months, she had long since reached the bottleneck before the second level of Qi Mastery. Right now, given the immense output of spiritual energy in this critical juncture, her cultivation level finally broke through the bottleneck, pushing her straight into the second level of Qi Mastery. This timing was somethingpletely outside of her control.

    Jun Xiaomo was aware of this fact as well. Therefore, she could only continue to maintain her output of spiritual energy into the formation array while she manipted the remnant true energy within her Dantian and meridians to sort out the fresh inflow of spiritual and demonic energy into her body in order to prevent any permanent orsting damage to her Dantian or meridians.

    This level of multi-tasking required immense focus and concentration, and it thoroughly drained Jun Xiaomo. Very soon, she found herself at her limits!

    By now, Ye Xiuwen hade to arge tree in the distance. Seeing that there were no appendages in pursuit of him at this moment, he set Di Yue down, before speeding on his way back to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. He knew that leaving Yao Mo to deal with the Demonvine alone was an extremely dangerous matter. Therefore, he had to return to Yao Mo¡¯s side in the shortest time possible.

    ¡°Little Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen immediately noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s peculiar behaviour. At this moment, the slim young man had beads of sweat rolling down his face as he continued to hold his palm to the floor. The dim, blue glow of the four formation arrays were flickering with varying intensities. It was obvious that Yao Mo had almost exhausted all of her energies.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen regretted his decision to bring Yao Mo here with him. While the Demonvine¡¯s roots was an important medicinal element which could be used to treat this scar on his face, Ye Xiuwen would never agree to it if he knew this entailed putting Yao Mo¡¯s life at risk. He would much rather consider other sources of medicinal elements.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen had already grown used to the scar on his face, and it did not matter too much whether this scar could be cured or not. On the other hand, he was not willing to let anything happen to Yao Mo at all!

    Ye Xiuwen sped over to Yao Mo¡¯s side, and attempted to carry him away from his formation array.

    If this goes on, the formation array was soon going to drain Yao Mo dry of all his energies!

    ¡°Stop! It¡¯s just a little bit more, let me continue...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered in a slightly dazed fashion. The pain in her meridians and Dantian had intensified so much that she was already in a state of semi-consciousness. Right now, she was moving based purely on her instincts.

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart felt extremely pained. He tightly embraced Jun Xiaomo, before cing his arm on the back of her arms, saying slowly, ¡°Little Mo, be good. Let me do it.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he immediately began to imbue the heart of therge formation array with his own spiritual energy, and the flickering blue glow on the four small formation arrays once again intensified with a magnificent flourish. Then, the heart of the formation array suddenly started to shift as an incredible gale started to blow. This gale carried within it countless sharp wind des which swept through the Demonvine, slicing both its appendages and the main vine to pieces before it could even begin to self-detonate. In turn, the little pieces of the shredded Demonvine werepletely consumed and burnt to ashes by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s zing inferno.

    All of this happened in the blink of an eye. Under thebined forces of Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, the vicious Demonvine hadpletely perished in these woods.

    Once Jun Xiaomo sensed that the Demonvine had been thoroughly destroyed, and their battle was finally over, Jun Xiaomo immediately rxed her spirits and slumped into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s warm embrace. However, the spiritual energy and demonic energy were presently wreaking havoc within her body. If she did not quickly operate her cultivation technique to transform them into the inert true energy at this moment, Jun Xiaomo could very well implode and die!

    Even if the shing energies within her body did not tear apart her meridians and Dantian, she would nevertheless sustain severe internal injuries if this problem was left unchecked.

    Jun Xiaomo shivered in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s embrace and she made an extremely pained expression on her face right now. Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen sent a thread of spiritual energy into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body to investigate the cause of the problem, and he very quickly understood the root of it all ¨C Jun Xiaomo had just broken through the next level of Qi Mastery.

    Breaking through to the next level of cultivation was a personal matter. Outsiders could not be of any help even if they wanted to. Furthermore, it would be best not to rely on any medicines, pills, or other external forces to increase one¡¯s cultivation level, because this might destabilize one¡¯s cultivation base. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen could only suppress his urge to act as he allowed Yao Mo to rest and recover for a brief moment. He patted Yao Mo¡¯s face gently as he spoke softly, ¡°Little Mo, wake up. You can rest after you¡¯ve properly broken through to the next level.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knitted her eyebrows even more tightly at this moment, and the immense pain within her body tempted her to fall into a deep slumber to sleep off the pain.

    ¡°Little Mo, wake up. Little Mo...¡± Ye Xiuwen called out to Jun Xiaomo time and again, fearing that she was going to sumb to the temptation to fall asleep.

    Seeing the young man¡¯s pale and sickly face made Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart ache. Ever since he had encountered Yao Mo, Ye Xiuwen had never seen such a weak look on his face.

    Fortunately, armed with her previous life¡¯s experiences, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s possessed an incredible will to live. Her survival instincts kicked in strongly, and she finally roused from her state of semi-consciousness.

    ¡°Brother...Ye...¡± She had heard Ye Xiuwen calling out to her in her moment of dibobtion.

    As her eyes gradually cleared up, her pristine rity of her pupils took in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silhouette and bodynguage. Despite the existence of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat, she could almost tell exactly what kind of worried expression Ye Xiuwen wore right now.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m just experiencing a breakthrough in my cultivation bottleneck.¡± Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she consoled Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°I know.¡± Ye Xiuwen held her hands tightly, ¡°The Demonvine is already dead. Don¡¯t worry about it and focus on your breakthrough. I will stand guard by your side.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo mustered her strength as sheughed weakly, muttering, ¡°That¡¯s great. We managed toe out unscathed too...¡±

    ¡°Ugh...¡± As she finished speaking, the pain in her body intensified, and Jun Xiaomo knitted her eyebrows tightly together.

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak for now. Focus on breaking through to the second level for now.¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her headpliantly. Through her sheer willpower, she suppressed the intense paining from within her body, mbered up and sat upright in a cross-legged fashion. Then, she ced her palms on herps as she began to operate her Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique to sort out the shing spiritual energy and demonic energy within her body, turning all of them into the inert true energy to nourish her meridians and Dantian.

    Seeing how Yao Mo¡¯s condition seemed to be stabilizing, Ye Xiuwen finally heaved a sigh of relief, stood up and released his diving sense to probe about at the surroundings. He was determined to ensure that nothing was going to interrupt Yao Mo¡¯s breakthrough.

    As for Di Yue who had been set down on therge tree some distance away, his existence was outside the ambit of everyone¡¯s considerations at this very moment.

 Chapter 86: Breakthrough Success! The Disciplesâ€™ Astonishment

    <h4>Chapter 86: Breakthrough Sess! The Disciples¡¯ Astonishment</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and the others continued to run desperately from the Demonvine. However, they couldn¡¯t seem to lose the quickly approaching Demonvine appendages no matter what they did.

    Ke Xinwen possessed a wind-based spiritual root just like Ye Xiuwen. Naturally, he was proficient with his wind-based spells. When they were first retreating from the Demonvine, Ke Xinwen had intended to increase his movement speed by imbuing his feet with his wind abilities. However, once Qin Lingyu discovered his intentions, he secretly activated the poison within Ke Xinwen¡¯s body and caused Ke Xinwen to stumble momentarily. Ke Xinwen was almost caught by the Demonvine as a result.

    At that time, Ke Xinwen red furiously at Qin Lingyu, only to receive an even more threatening nce back at himself.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s intentions were clear ¨C Don¡¯t forget that you¡¯re now my subject. You¡¯d better not think of escaping before I do!

    Therefore, Ke Xinwen had no choice but to continue running alongside Qin Lingyu instead, as he continued to use his wind-based spells to slow down the Demonvine appendages that was hot on their tail.

    At the same time, Ke Xinwen stared viciously at Qin Lingyu¡¯s back. Oh, how he wished he could tear Qin Lingyu to shreds right now!

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation level was only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, and she did not possess muchbat experience to begin with. Therefore, her overall abilities could be considered to have been the weakest among all the disciples around. Notwithstanding that, her good luck more than made up for her inadequacies. Several disciples in Dawn Sect were her secret admirers, and they all made it a point to protect and cover her from the Demonvine¡¯s pursuit, allowing her to escape easily without too much trouble.

    As they ran along and the Demonvine¡¯s appendages continued to pursue them relentlessly, the disciples felt increasingly despondent about their situation. At one point, they were even resigned to the fate of barely escaping with severe injuries, if they were even lucky enough not to end up as nutrients to the Demonvine. After all, the reservoir of spiritual energies within their bodies were limited and dwindling extremely quickly, and they knew that they would be at the end of their road soon.

    Fortunately, the heavens favoured them ¨C it was not their time yet. Just as they were almostpletely drained of their spiritual energies, a loud, shrill shriek travelled from afar, and the Demonvine¡¯s appendages suddenly thrashed about violently where they were, before they slowly retracted like a receding tide.

    This...What¡¯s going on?! Everyone stopped in their tracks and looked at each other, absolutely confuzzled by the present situation.

    At this moment, none of them had expected that they were only able to avert this cmity at the eleventh hour because Yao Mo had activated the Savage Augmentation Array and delivered that fatal blow to the Demonvine.

    As a result of her attack, the Demonvine had retracted all of its appendages to protect its main vine, ceasing its pursuit of the other disciples.

    The disciples looked on in bewilderment as the Demonvine¡¯s appendages disappeared out of their sights. Then, a bright glint shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes as he instructed, ¡°Let¡¯s go back and take a look at what¡¯s going on. We¡¯ll take a detour out of these woods if we can¡¯t deal with the Demonvine.¡±

    Truth be told, what Qin Lingyu was investigating was nothing more than an inkling that the Demonvine¡¯s sudden cessation of attack and retraction of its appendages might have had something to do with Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen.

    But at the same time, he sincerely hoped that this inkling was wrong. This was because he, as the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, would seem uselesspared to what Ye Xiuwen would have achieved in this skirmish.

    Qin Lingyu clenched his fists discreetly, and a trace of vicious indignation shed across his eyes.

    None of the other disciples expected Qin Lingyu to have contemted all these things. At this moment, the only thing that was on their minds was how fortunate they had been to be able to avert this cmity unscathed.

    Even now, all the disciples continued to shudder in their lingering trepidation as they recalled how they had been running for their lives just moments ago. As they headed back to where they came from, their legs continued to shake uncontrobly with soreness and numbness.

    ¡°That...the Demonvine isn¡¯t going to appear again, is it?¡± One of the disciples asked with paranoia as his teeth chattered slightly.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. This has been the scariest experience since leaving the Sect yet.¡± Another disciple chimed in, teeth chattering in the exact same manner.

    If Jun Xiaomo had heard their grumbling andints, she would absolutely have burst out in uncontrobleughter ¨C That¡¯s your definition of scary?! How are you guys going to survive the Mystic Woods which is fraught with much greater danger than this?!

    Yet in reality, these disciples had been spoilt by the safety andfort of their Sect. After all, their usual day at the Sectprised only of some meditation and cultivation, and there was no impetus for them to consider how the spells or techniques that they had learnt could be implemented in actualbat. Take their escape earlier for example ¨C they had in their desperation cast a multitude of spells at the Demonvine¡¯s appendages with reckless abandon, hardly pausing to even consider how they could chain their spells or use their spells to greater efficacy. As a result, they grew more and more pathetic as their reservoir of spiritual energy dwindled rapidly with every casting of a spell.

    This was one of the main reasons why the Sect encouraged its disciples to go out on these travels. The Sect had hoped that these disciples could gain some practicalbat experience so that they would be better able to utilize the spells they had learnt. Otherwise, these disciples would have nothing more than book smarts, and they would be unable to react ordingly in the face of realbat.

    As the disciples drew closer to the ce where they encountered the Demonvine, the disciples started to notice how several towering trees with incredible girths had been snapped in half like twigs by the Demonvine¡¯s appendages. Instantly, they shuddered, and they grew increasingly anxious and fearful.

    If such incredibly sturdy trees had been snapped in half just like that, one could only imagine the oue if they were to be hit squarely by one of these thrashing appendages.

    Subconsciously, the footsteps of several disciples started to slow down in reluctance, and their sweat thoroughly permeated their inner wear. However, they did not dare to retreat without Qin Lingyu¡¯s orders.

    ¡°Ah! Isn¡¯t that Di Yue?!¡± Yi Hong¡¯s sharp eyes spotted a bloodied figure dangling from the branches of one of these great, towering trees that had not been snapped in half by the Demonvine. That figure was drooping over one of the tree¡¯s branches, and his head hung down facing the ground. No one could tell whether he was alive or not.

    ¡°It¡¯s Di Yue. I recognize the colour of his clothing!¡± Another disciple eximed.

    Everyone here had abandoned Di Yue earlier, and they felt extremely remorseful in their hearts right now. Therefore, they quickened their steps as they hurried over to Di Yue¡¯s side.

    Di Yue had been ced on a branch that was some distance from the ground. Ke Xinwen saw this as an opportunity to redeem himself and salvage some of his lost reputation. Therefore, he operated his Windwalk technique, swiftly leaping up to that tree branch to rescue Di Yue.

    Qin Lingyu possessed a lightning-based spiritual root. while his offensive capabilities were extremely strong, he was hardly as nimble as a person who possessed a wind-based spiritual root. Therefore, he ceded the opportunity to show off to Ke Xinwen this time.

    Di Yue was in a horrendous state. Almost all of his skin had been corroded, thereby exposing the raw flesh and blood of his body. Some of his wounds even ran so deep that his bones were visible. Yet everyone could tell that this was the result of the corrosive poison secreted by the Demonvine appendages which had so tightly wrapped around Di Yue earlier on.

    Everyone¡¯s shuddered in horror as they saw Di Yue¡¯s present condition. If they had also been caught by this Demonvine¡¯s appendages earlier, they might well have suffered the same fate. Even if they managed to escape alive, there was no doubt that these injuries would leave them experiencing immense pain for several days toe.

    Earlier, Ye Xiuwen had ced Di Yue onto this tree before hastily returning to Yao Mo¡¯s side. Therefore, Di Yue had not received any treatment for his injuries yet, and he was now left hanging onto his life by a thread. His breathing had be extremely weak, and he was desperately gasping for air.

    Qin Lingyu immediately retrieved a medicinal pill from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it into Di Yue¡¯s mouth.

    While Qin Lingyu was quite reluctant to waste a medicinal pill on someone other than himself, he nevertheless had to maintain his appearances in front of the others. This medicinal pill was of a rtively lower grade, and its healing effects were nothing extraordinary. At best, this pill would only preserve Di Yue¡¯s life. Yet to Qin Lingyu, this was more than enough.

    ¡°Eh? There seems to be someone breaking through a bottleneck.¡± All the disciples here were at least of the fifth level of Qi Mastery, while Jun Xiaomo was only breaking through the first level of Qi Mastery into the second level of Qi Mastery. Therefore, there was no way of concealing her aura from the rest.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes gleamed meaningfully, before directing the rest, ¡°Come, let¡¯s go take a look.¡±

    I only hope it¡¯s not Ye Xiuwen. Otherwise......

    Ye Xiuwen was already at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and he would be at the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation if he broke through again. Qin Lingyu had always seen Ye Xiuwen as a thorn in his side that he needed to get rid of. Naturally, he did not wish for Ye Xiuwen to break through into the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation before he did.

    When the entourage finally arrived at Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo¡¯s location, they realized that the person breaking through right now was not Ye Xiuwen, but that array master, Yao Mo.

    ¡°Is he really only breaking through the first level of Qi Mastery into the second level of Qi Mastery? How is the aura that he¡¯s giving off so strong and intense?!¡± Yi Hong eximed in horror. He was already at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, yet the aura released by Yao Mo at this instant was sufficient to cause him to feel pressured.

    This pressure was not something that was overwhelming to Yi Hong. Therefore, this was testament to the fact that Yao Mo¡¯s cultivation did not exceed the sixth level of Qi Mastery. However, the aura he gave off still was not something that someone at the mere second level of Qi Mastery should possess.

    Yu Wanrou was only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, so the amount of pressure that she experienced was even greater than what Yi Hong experienced. She bit down on her lower lip as she nced over at Yao Mo. Right now, she was mentally revising her original estimation of Yao Mo¡¯s potential and value.

    If Yao Mo¡¯s abilities are greater than what he publicly reveals, then I must find a way to get into his good books. At the very least, I can¡¯t let him be my enemy.

    Just this moment, one of the disciples suddenly eximed in shock,¡°Demonvine...The Demonvine has been burnt to a crisp!¡±

    Hearing this, everyone reacted in shock and immediately walked towards the location that disciple was pointing towards. As they arrived, they noticed that the original location of the Demonvine¡¯s main vine was left with nothing more than a patch of ck ashes and soot. That fearsome and vicious Demonvine that had relentlessly pursued them earlier waspletely burnt up and razed to the ground ¨C not a single shred of the vine remained.

    Tsss--! The disciples unanimously drew a cold breath in shock ¨C Who had managed to aplish such a feat?!

    Some disciples with keener senses noticed that there were four small formation arrays that had been set up north, south, east and west of where the Demonvine¡¯s main vine had been. But these formation arrays had already be gray and evidently spent.

    ¡°Could Yao Mo have done this? That¡¯s simply incredible. I never knew array masters were so formidable...¡± Presently, the disciples had forgotten about the incidents which caused them to ostracize Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen earlier, and they could only exim in shock when they saw what Yao Mo had achieved.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart also roiled withplicated emotions. Yao Mo was far more formidable than he had given him credit for. Not only was Yao Mo able to utilize such a powerful formation array, he was even able to determine the most effective formation array to use against the Demonvine and set it up under such time constraints.

    What Qin Lingyu foundpletely bewildering was how Yao Mo could possibly have done all of this. Qin Lingyu¡¯s personal knowledge of formation arrays and talismans were cursory at best. However, he had heard from others about the professions of array masters and talisman masters some time ago, and his assessment of these professions was that their disciplines were hard to pick up, and even harder to utilize with flexibility. Therefore, to master these disciplines and be an outstanding talisman master or array master was an almost impossible feat.

    It could not be understated howplicated formation arrays and talismans were. Most people pursuing these paths spent at least ten years of time building a foundational level of knowledge of either discipline, before spending the next twenty years internalizing this knowledge. After that, one would have to invest even more time transforming their head knowledge of these disciplines into practical applications...

    This was an extremely arduous process. If Yao Mo was able to achieve this level of proficiency with formation arrays only in his teens, then how talented would he be?! His potential would practically be limitless!

    Qin Lingyu secretly hated the fact that he was not the one who had first encountered and gotten to know Yao Mo. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t need to be put through all the trouble to separate the two of them before dealing with each of them separately.

    It suddenly urred to him that it was going to be very difficult for him to deal with Ye Xiuwen if Yao Mo continued to hang around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side.

    Under the baptism of everyone¡¯s watchful eyes, Ye Xiuwen continued to stand guard valiantly by Yao Mo¡¯s side, protecting him from any potential interference as he broke through.

    He had already discovered the arrival of Qin Lingyu and the others, but he couldn¡¯t be bothered to even throw them a nce to acknowledge their presence. In fact, he was prepared to ignore their presence as long as they did not interfere with Yao Mo¡¯s break through to the next level of Qi Mastery.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breakthrough to the next level of Qi Mastery was extremely smooth. The threat of the Demonvine had already been ovee, and with Ye Xiuwen standing guard beside her, she entered a deep meditative state andpletely immersed herself in the process of her breakthrough. As the shing spiritual energy and demonic energy were gradually converted to true energy and stored within her meridians and Dantian, Jun Xiaomo also gradually calmed down and stabilized her body¡¯s condition. The faintly gold coloured true energy slowly coursed through her meridians and Dantian, gently repairing and nourishing her meridians that had been damaged by the shing energies in her body earlier.

    Approximately one hourter, Jun Xiaomo finally sessfully broke through to the second level of Qi Mastery. Right now, her meridians and Dantian had expanded to more than twice of their original size, and the amount of true energy stored within her body had increased by several times.

    Then, as Jun Xiaomo slowly opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a snow-white garb flickering about before her eyes ¨C

    ¡°Brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bright eyes glowed in delight as she cast her eyes upon Ye Xiuwen with eyes that were so deep and profound that they seemed to contain the boundless skies and all its constetions.

    ¡°Thank you, brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled with cheerful eyes as she thanked Ye Xiuwen.

    She knew that Ye Xiuwen had been standing guard beside her throughout the process of her breakthrough. The safe environment created by Ye Xiuwen might have been one of the main reasons why her breakthrough this time had gone by so smoothly.

    Besides, Ye Xiuwen gave her a sense of peace and security whenever he was around her.

    As this ¡°young man¡± addressed him with a crisp tang in his voice, Ye Xiuwen noticed that he was no longer sick and pale as before, and a healthy pink glow had returned to his face.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen could not help but smile warmly to Yao Mo. In the next moment, Ye Xiuwen realized that Yao Mo could not see his expressions because he still donned his veiled conical hat of his. Therefore, he promptly walked over to Yao Mo¡¯s side, gently tousling his hair as he warmly replied, ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯re fine now.¡±

    The other disciples around watched on awkwardly as this scene unfolded before their eyes. At this moment, they unanimously felt that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo¡¯s interactions somehow generated an atmosphere about them that left no room for a third party to interject.

    If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo were both males, their thoughts might well be at other ces by now...

 Chapter 87: Whoâ€™s Got a Thicker Skin?

    <h4>Chapter 87: Who¡¯s Got a Thicker Skin?</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Despite the potentially cmitous breakthrough, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits recovered very quickly once she sessfully broke through to the second level of Qi Mastery. In fact, her vitality and spiritedness had even improved by leaps and bounds.

    But this was understandable as well. After all, the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation was when cultivators strengthened and refined their meridians and Dantian. Every time they broke through to the next level of Qi Mastery, their meridians and Dantian would experience tremendous, qualitative changes, and their capacity to hold and store spiritual energy or demonic energy would increase by several folds as well. During this process of qualitative changes, the cultivator¡¯s flesh and bones would also simrly be refined and remolded, strengthening and augmenting them.

    Therefore, the muscr aches, weariness and weaknesses in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body before she broke through the bottleneck all vanished once Jun Xiaomo sessfully broke through to the second level of Qi Mastery. Instead, Jun Xiaomo was now revitalized and imbued with a new source of strength that surged through every fiber of her being.

    Jun Xiaomo stood up and jumped on the spot. Immediately, she could feel the difference in her body. Her legs were filled with a renewed strength, and there was no longer any trace of soreness or weakness emanating from her legs. This caused Jun Xiaomo to grin widely in delight.

    Then, it suddenly urred to Jun Xiaomo what she had been doing just before she had fainted ¨C she had been using her formation array to deal with the Demonvine, and her spiritual energy had be substantially depleted before she could aplish what she wanted to achieve. Therefore, she was uncertain about whether she had managed to take down the Demonvine or not.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately ran over to where the main vine of the Demonvine was originally located and saw that the entire vine had been reduced to nothing more than ashes. The Demonvine had beenpletely obliterated.

    ¡°Brother Ye, we did it!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed in a crisp, clear voice as she spun around, skipped over to Ye Xiuwen side joyfully and clung onto his arm, waving it about in delight. The tail end of her exmation lilted up slightly, and she even raised her eyebrows as Ye Xiuwen, as though she were inviting him to praise her.

    Truth be told, she had thought that they would no longer be able to defeat the Demonvine in that moment when she discovered that her spiritual energy had been substantially depleted. To her dismay, she even suddenly experienced an unexpected breakthrough at that critical juncture. As a result of that, not only did she risk a potential failure in her breakthrough, she even risked losing her life to that Demonvine in front of her.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen managed to arrive in time and lend her a helping hand with the Demonvine, allowing her to narrowly avert the disaster before her and sessfully breakthrough to the second level of Qi Mastery.

    Ye Xiuwen curled his lips, but his facial expressions did not seem to reveal amensurate level of tion.

    He recalled to mind the earlier scene ¨C if he had not managed to arrive back on time earlier, he might well be saying his final goodbyes to this young man here before leaving this ce with a lifetime of regrets ahead.

    Apart from his master, his master¡¯s wife and his little martial sister, he had now elevated this young man before him to that ce of importance in his heart.

    Ye Xiuwen wanted to harshly reprimand this na?ve and brash young man before him so that he would no longer force the issue and ce himself in harm¡¯s way in future. However, as he locked eyes with that bright, pleading gaze from Yao Mo, Ye Xiuwen just couldn¡¯t bring himself to berate him.

    Besides, Ye Xiuwen rarely ever reprimanded people. Most times, he only had to speak sternly with a slight trace of indignation in his voice, and the band of disciples from Heavenly Peak would obsequiously listen to him and take his cautionary words to heart. After all, when this martial brother of theirs grew angry, that threatening and fearsome aura of his was daunting enough to stifle any thoughts of objecting.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed helplessly, before patting Yao Mo¡¯s head as he calmly chided, ¡°Don¡¯t force the issue next time. Your safety is of utmost importance, understand? Brother Ye here would be extremely pleased if you can do this for him ¨C perhaps even moved. But thest thing brother Ye wants is to see you get hurt, alright?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the traces of displeasure in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice, and the excitement in her heart also dwindled slightly.

    Logically speaking, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s displeasure was not something unforeseeable at all. If it had been the other way around, and Jun Xiaomo had seen Ye Xiuwen throw himself in harm¡¯s way for her, she would simrly have been displeased, even if they managed toe out victorious and unscathed in the end.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo obsequiously responded, ¡°Mm.¡± Then, she lowered her head, tacitly acknowledging that she had been at fault.

    Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen lightly patted her head, signifying his appreciation for her response.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo murmured as she discreetly qualified her acknowledgment of fault, ¡°But I didn¡¯t expect to breakthrough so suddenly either. It wasn¡¯t much of a dangerous situation to begin with.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or grow mad at her when he heard her discreet qualification. Therefore, he hooked his lips into a wry smile as he lightly rapped Jun Xiaomo on the head.

    ¡°Ouch!¡± Jun Xiaomo pouted, and she reflexively rubbed her forehead as she cast Ye Xiuwen an aggrieved gaze.

    ¡°Even if Little Mo did not coincidently encounter a breakthrough, it would still have been difficult for you to maintain the formation array, wouldn¡¯t it? When I returned to this ce, your spiritual energy had already been substantially depleted. Do you know what the oue would be if this formation array suddenly lost its effect? So how can you say that it¡¯s all due to your breaking through in the middle of the fight? Even if you didn¡¯t breakthrough and managed to eke out a victory against the Demonvine, you might have ended up overdrawing your spiritual energy, and this could be equally dangerous to you. Little Mo, do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡± Ye Xiuwen broke down the situation with some measure of exasperation. Yet, under the baptism of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aggrieved gaze, he couldn¡¯t help but gently tousle her hair as he chided her.

    Seeing that her martial brother was not truly mad at her, Jun Xiaomo immediately perked up once more. She immediately grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm and held it with both her hands as she nodded sincerely, ¡°I know, I know. I guarantee that I won¡¯t do this again next time! Spare me this time, brother Ye...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen waspletely helpless against the impish attitude of this young man before him, and he could only stretch out hisnky arms and pinch Yao Mo¡¯s cheeks to dispel the rest of his frustration against him.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo rubbed her face gently ¨C her cheeks felt a little bit warm where they had been pinched.

    Alright...apart from tousling my hair or patting my head, martial brother seems to have expanded his arsenal of the things he likes to do to me, huh...pinching my cheeks...

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± One of the disciples from Dawn Sect coughed dryly, as he found the interactions between Yao Mo and his martial brother Ye increasingly awkward for them as onlookers ¨C they were even getting slightly embarrassed by the scene ying out in front of them right now.

    Is this Yao Mo person really a male cultivator? Why is it that his actions seem so effeminate at times? It¡¯s as though he was a female wearing the skin of a man.

    What this male disciple did not know was that he had inadvertently grasped the roughshod truth of the matter.

    As she heard the dry coughs from the disciple, Jun Xiaomo shot a fierce re at that male disciple. Jun Xiaomo was extremely displeased that her interactions with her martial brother was about to be interrupted by these busybodies around her.

    Even so, that male disciple was not the only one unable to read the situation. Qin Lingyu took a few steps forward, before giving Jun Xiaomo a palm and fist salute as he respectfully said, ¡°We¡¯re grateful to brother Yao for saving our lives. I imagine brother Yao was the one who had burnt this Demonvine to ashes?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s deductions were simple and straightforward. There were traces of formation arrays on all four sides of the Demonvine¡¯s main vine, and the Demonvine had beenpletely burnt to a crisp. This was naturally not something that Ye Xiuwen who possessed a wind-based spiritual root would be able to aplish.

    The other reason why Qin Lingyu humbled himself and donned this pretentious attitude was precisely because he had to maintain his appearance as the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader. Since Yao Mo had saved them, it was necessary to thank him appropriately on all their behalf.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows mischievously. She knew the thoughts running through Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind right now, and she was not going to let things go his way so easily!

    Doesn¡¯t Qin Lingyu want to express the dignity of a First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader? Then I must take the opportunity to trip him up!

    Jun Xiaomo folded her arms and wore ackadaisical attitude as shemented, ¡°Whoa. You actually know how to express gratitude. That¡¯s not bad, not bad...then dare I ask brother Qin, what do you intend to thank me with?¡±

    Qin Lingyu: ......

    This was the first time he had encountered someone who had asked for ¡°gratitude¡± with an outstretched arm! Just how thick was Yao Mo¡¯s skin?!

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear Qin Lingyu¡¯s thought, she would definitely have quipped in response ¨C It naturally takes a thick-skinned person to deal with a thick-skinned person like you!

    That¡¯s right. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, Qin Lingyu and his sister were two people who were extremely thick-skinned. They had alwayse calling on her for their needs and wants, demanding spiritual equipment, spiritual herbs and spiritual medicine of all sorts. Despite having received years¡¯ worth of gifts, the brother-sister duo didn¡¯t once express any form of gratitude to Jun Xiaomo at all. Not only that, they even treated all of this as a given, as though Jun Xiaomo owed it to them.

    Therefore, when it came toparing the thickness of their skins, was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s skin truly thicker than that Qin brother-sister duo? Right now, Jun Xiaomo was only taking a leaf out of their books and repaying an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

    Seeing that Qin Lingyu had not responded after some time, Jun Xiaomo hooked her lips into a wry smile as she added, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Can it be that brother Qin thinks that mere lip service counts as ¡°gratitude¡±? Don¡¯t you think you should express your gratitude with something more, hmm?¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she stretched out her hand and rubbed her thumb and her index fingers together in front of Qin Lingyu¡¯s face.

    Jun Xiaomo had evidently picked up all the bad habits from her previous life¡¯s experience, including the gruff behaviour of debt collectors. However, Yao Mo¡¯s present actions were aplete mismatch with his suave and charming looks with young and innocent features. Therefore, it was hardly aggravating when she acted the way she did ¨C in fact, it was even rather adorable and cute.

    Of course, this was only the case in the eyes of some people. As for Qin Lingyu whom she was ¡°collecting debts¡± from, that wry smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face irked him to no end.

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows tightly as he strongly resisted the urge to seal up Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips at this instant. Then, he finally managed to eke out a response in a stiff and icy manner, ¡°I wonder what kind of gift of gratitude brother Yao is looking for?¡±

    ¡°As for this...it depends on what brother Qin is able to fork out as an expression of gratitude to me.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin as she responded thoughtfully.

    The vein on Qin Lingyu¡¯s forehead bulged and throbbed in his fury, as he continued to stifle his rage, ¡°How about this ¨C in my capacity as the First-Seat Disciple of Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, I shall agree to one condition that is set by brother Yao. Furthermore, as long as brother Yao is in any form of difficulty in future, I will not hesitate to render any form of help if it¡¯s within my capacity to do so.¡±

    ¡°Tsk, tsk, who knows what lies ahead of us in future?¡± Jun Xiaomo snickered as she cast a derisive look at Qin Lingyu. Then, lifting her chin slightly, she suggested, ¡°Let¡¯s do it this way. Why not you just give me a few medical pills?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes immediately grew frigid as a bad premonition swelled up within his heart.

    Yet under everyone¡¯s watchful eyes, there was no way he could outrightly reject Yao Mo¡¯s request. After all, it was a fact that Yao Mo had killed the Demonvine and saved everyone present. Furthermore, all he was asking for right now was only a few medicinal pills. This was not unreasonable no matter how one looked at it.

    ¡°Speak. As long as I¡¯m able to get these medicinal pills you want, I, Qin Lingyu, will offer them up dly to you.¡± Qin Lingyu gnashed his teeth as he managed to respond, albeit rather unwillingly.

    Even then, Qin Lingyu had already made up his mind that he was going to deny possessing any of the medicinal pills which Yao Mo was going to ask for. After all, how would Yao Mo be able to peer into his Interspatial Ring and know its contents?

    Since that was the case, he could simply make up some excuse to cate Yao Mo, such as by telling Yao Mo that he would do his best to locate these pills and gift them to Yao Mo when he found them. And as to matters of the future, it was just as Yao Mo said ¨C who knows whaty ahead of them in future?

    Whether Yao Mo can live to tell the tale is still something to be determined! A vicious thought shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind as he chuckled wickedly in his heart.

    But Jun Xiaomo truly lived up to her name as Qin Lingyu¡¯s wife for decades in her previous life. She was able to tell what exactly Qin Lingyu was contemting at this moment with one nce at the minutest and subtlest expressions that leaked out onto Qin Lingyu¡¯s face.

    Ahah! Qin Lingyu must be thinking that I¡¯ll be helpless against him as long as he refuses to hand over the medicinal pills, huh. Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly to herself, as a mischievous gleam shed across her eyes.

    ¡°Actually, the medicinal pills that I¡¯m asking for aren¡¯t too difficult to find, and these pills can be obtained with some time and money.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head slightly as she added, ¡°I believe that with brother Qin¡¯s capabilities, obtaining these pills won¡¯t be an issue at all. Therefore, with everyone here as witnesses, I hope that brother Qin will keep his end of the deal.¡±

    Qin Lingyu put on a magnanimous and generous pretense, courteously spreading his palms wide open in an inviting fashion as he prompted, ¡°Please go on, brother Yao.¡±

    ¡°Let me think...hmm...one fifth-grade Revitalization Pill, one third-grade Qi Nourishing Pill, one fourth-grade Fire Decoction Pill, one sixth-grade Energy Convergence Pill, and one third-grade Soul Rarefication Pill. How about that? They¡¯re not too difficult to obtain, are they?¡± Jun Xiaomoughed heartily, yet herughter somehow seemed to carry a trace of depravity. ¡°I did save your lives after all. One pill in exchange for two to three person¡¯s lives, and I won¡¯t ever mention any gift of gratitude anymore. So, how about it? Do we have a deal?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face turned paler and paler with each medicinal pill which Jun Xiaomo named. As Jun Xiaomo finished naming the fifth pill that she was asking for, Qin Lingyu simply stood there aghast ¨C his faceplete devoid of colour.

    The reason was that these five pills were all something within Qin Lingyu¡¯s possession at this moment ¨C

    The Revitalization Pill and the Qi Nourishing Pill were pills that he had publicly received from the Grand Elder as a reward forpleting a task assigned to him by the Sect Elders;

    The Fire Decoction Pill was something that He Zhang bestowed upon him when he received his appointment as He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple. This appointment ceremony was also witnessed by several members of the Sect;

    And the Soul Rarefication Pill was something that Jun Xiaomo had given to Qin Lingyu as a birthday gift. Coincidentally, this was a gift that Jun Xiaomo had given to Qin Lingyu in public so that she could disy to the world their affection for each other at that time. Therefore, several members of the Sect also witnessed this gifting as well...

    In other words, it was public knowledge that Qin Lingyu had within his possession the five pills named by Jun Xiaomo, and there was no way that Qin Lingyu could possibly deny his possession of these pills!

    Conversely, if he hardened his heart and lied about the existence of these pills in his possession right now, then would that not be tantamount to ripping off and trampling on the foundation of pretense that his hard-earned reputation had been built on over thest twenty years!

    Where the hell did this Yao Moe from?! How could he know all these things?! Is this merely a coincidence?

    Qin Lingyu looked over at Jun Xiaomo with profound astonishment, yet all he received in return was a wry smile from Jun Xiaomo, as though she were saying ¨C How about it? Be good and obediently fork out those precious and valuable medicinal pills right now!

    Qin Lingyu was so incensed that a lump swelled up in his throat.

 Chapter 88: The Burden of Engagement

    <h4>Chapter 88: The Burden of Engagement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo heart swelled with tion as she witnessed Qin Lingyu¡¯s dumbstruck look. She felt awash with joy at this moment, just like someone who had just taken a cold, refreshing shower on a hot, grimy summer day. Every single fiber in her being was now tingling with this refreshing sensation emanating from the look on Qin Lingyu¡¯s face right now.

    Didn¡¯t this fe want to team up with Ke Xinwen to scheme against martial brother Ye and I? I want to see how he¡¯s going to deal with the present situation.

    In all these years, Qin Lingyu had umted countless treasures and precious possessions through the convenience of his position and stature in the Sect. These treasures had all been ¡°gifted¡± to him by the earnest disciples within the Sect, and Qin Lingyu also weed these gifts with open arms, as he stored each and every one carefully within his Interspatial Ring.

    At the same time, these ¡°earnest disciples¡± did not have many possessions to begin with. Even if they all pooled together their most prized possession within their respective Interspatial Rings right now, the value of theirbined possessions would be far less than the value of the pills that Jun Xiaomo had just asked Qin Lingyu for.

    These pills sought by Jun Xiaomo were notmonly seen ¨C especially the fifth-grade Revitalization Pill and the sixth-grade Energy Convergence Pill. The pillmaster would have to ovee a pill tribtion when forging each of these pills. Therefore, these pills were much harder toe across than the other moremon pills. In fact, they were so valuable and precious that one might not even be able to obtain one of these pills with ten-thousand superior-grade spirit stones.

    Naturally, Qin Lingyu had always stored these pills safely and securely within his Interspatial Ring. In fact, he would be reticent to even talk about, let alone reveal the existence of these pills in front of others.

    Furthermore, one other reason why he had always kept these pills in storage was the fact that he had never encountered a situation so serious that he had to consume these pills either. In other words, there was simply no impetus for him to deplete these precious resources of his which he was saving for a rainy day.

    But right now, Yao Mo had in one breath demanded the five most precious medicinal pills within Qin Lingyu¡¯s possession! To Qin Lingyu, this was tantamount to asking for five pieces of flesh straight from his body!

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the fuming gaze in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes and the throbbing of the bulging veins on his forehead. She retrieved a folded fan from her Interspatial Ring and flicked it open, before leisurely remarking, ¡°It¡¯s public knowledge that the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Sect Leader have always been very generous. Brother Qin, as the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, I imagine that the gifts you¡¯ve received from them over the years wouldn¡¯t be too shabby either. Since that¡¯s the case, I don¡¯t think my request of only five medicinal pills is too outrageous. Who knows, theirbined value might well be only a tiny fraction of the wealth of invaluable medicinal pills and priceless treasures you have stored in your Interspatial Ring! Unless, brother Qin doesn¡¯t think that your lives are worth as much as these medicinal pills, and my request for this measly gift of gratitude is too much?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo intentionally emphasized her final sentence in a meaningful manner as she nced over at Qin Lingyu with a mocking look in her eyes.

    In fact, the Dawn Sect disciples had all felt rather indignant when Yao Mo had first asked for this gift of gratitude with an outstretched arm, because they all thought that Yao Mo was being petty and ridiculous here. Yao Mo had only incidentally saved our lives, so what basis did he have for making such outrageous demands off the cuff? Does he not know what avarice means? Revitalization Pill; Qi Nourishing Pill, Fire Decoction Pill, Energy Convergence Pill and Soul Rarefication Pill ¨C none of the pills listed by Yao Mo are things that could be easily obtained! Even if martial brother Qin had these pills within his possession, why would he just give them to an outsider?!

    However, after Jun Xiaomo had made her spiel, the disciples began to change their minds about the matter.

    It¡¯s true. Martial brother Qin¡¯s different from the rest of us. Even though these five pills seem to be invaluable and priceless to us, these same items may be worth much less in the eyes of martial brother Qin. He is the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader after all. He¡¯s always been able to obtain whatever medicinal pills he desired; and some of us here have even given martial brother Qin some ¡°gifts¡± in order to get into his good books.

    There was no need to even mention the fact that Qin Lingyu still had that cash cow of his, Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s daughter, Jun Xiaomo, who would from time to time offer up invaluable presents to him.

    Having contemted these things, the Dawn Sect disciples eventually changed their minds and felt that Yao Mo¡¯s request wasn¡¯t too farfetched at all. Furthermore, these disciples all prided themselves in being the cream of the crop in Dawn Sect, and they naturally perceived their lives to be worth much more than those five measly pills. Therefore, the disciples all turned their attention eagerly to Qin Lingyu, hoping intently that he would make the right decision and validate their innermost feelings.

    Of course, none of the disciples would acknowledge the fact that they were secretly also jealous of the fact that Qin Lingyu possessed such an immense amount of wealth and resources......

    Jun Xiaomo took in the expressions of each and every disciple present, including the traces of hidden jealousy and greed in each of their eyes. Then, a smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    The human psyche is an incredible thing. An originally disadvantageous situation was turned aroundpletely in her favour with one simple provocative spiel from Jun Xiaomo. In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had on innumerable asions been made the object of ridicule or found herself with the shorter end of the stick. Over time, she naturally acuminated her skills and learnt to take advantage of a person¡¯s ndestine side and use it against them.

    Didn¡¯t Qin Lingyu want to put on a pretense of magnanimity and generosity and appear to be sanctimonious and dignified to the others? Didn¡¯t he want to incite discord between the Dawn Sect disciples on the one hand, and martial brother Ye and Jun Xiaomo on the other hand? Even if Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t be bothered to even feign civility with these people any longer, Jun Xiaomo nevertheless felt indignant and aggrieved for Ye Xiuwen!

    Right now, she wanted to see how Qin Lingyu was going to choose between his personal benefit and his personal reputation!

    Jun Xiaomo certainly ced Qin Lingyu in quite the spot. Qin Lingyu knew that his position and stature in the eyes of these disciples would be diminished greatly if he did not resolve this matter satisfactorily.

    Damn! Of all the medicinal pills possible, why did Yao Mo have to pick these five types of medicinal pills?! Qin Lingyu cursed in his heart, and his eyes quivered with the fluctuations of his roiling emotions.

    But in the next moment, he was quickly reminded of the treasures within Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring. This was his original objective to begin with! Furthermore, who knows whether Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring would contain much more invaluable treasures? So what if he gave these five pills to Yao Mo right now? It was only a matter of time before Yao Mo¡¯s Interspatial Ring became his possession. At that time, wouldn¡¯t these five pills naturally return to him?

    After thinking through these matters, his originally roiling emotions gradually subsided, and he immediately felt much more at ease.

    ¡°Brother Yao¡¯s words make sense. My thoughts had been slightly misguided earlier. How about this ¨C let me offer brother Yao the five pills you¡¯ve sought right now as a gift to express all of our gratitude. What do you think?¡± Qin Lingyu bowed courteously, and his facial expressions hardly seemed contrived at all.

    ¡°Oh? That forthright?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously. After all, she never knew Qin Lingyu to be such a magnanimous person to begin with.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ll be frank with brother Yao. Even though these five medicinal pills are difficult to obtain, I happen to have these five medicinal pills in my Interspatial Ring right now. Therefore, I can gift these medicinal pills to brother Yao right now.¡± As he finished speaking, he promptly retrieved five small jade bottles from his Interspatial Ring and presented them to Jun Xiaomo.

    As Jun Xiaomo stretched out her hand to receive the jade bottles, she noticed out of the corner of her eyes a diabolical look sh across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes before it quickly disappeared. Then, she chuckled sardonically in her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo received the five jade bottles from Qin Lingyu. She opened them one by one and took a whiff from each one. After she ascertained that the jade bottles indeed contained the medicinal pills that she had asked for, she joyfully stored them in her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Thank you, brother Qin.¡± Jun Xiaomo made a fist and palm salute to Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. Since brother Yao saved us Dawn Sect disciples, then you¡¯re naturally our benefactor. These five measly pills don¡¯t mean too much in the circumstances.¡± Qin Lingyu waved his hands about as he responded, as though he truly did not mind giving away these five medicinal pills to Yao Mo.

    ¡°Excellent!¡± Jun Xiaomoughed heartily ¨C she truly felt pleased by the fact that she had managed to extort these few medicinal pills from Qin Lingyu at this moment.

    Besides, one of these pills had been gifted by her to Qin Lingyu while she was still mesmerized by Qin Lingyu and obsessing over him. It could hardly be considered outrageous to be asking for it back right now.

    Seeing this, Qin Lingyu also joined in andughed heartily. Yet at the same time, he thought coldly in his heart ¨C I only wonder if you¡¯ll live long enough to be able to use these medicinal pills...

    Jun Xiaomo looked on bemusedly as Qin Lingyu continuedughing hypocritically. She could tell what exactly was running through his mind right now with just one nce.

    Her eyes curled up in joy and she reveled in her pleasure as she thought to herself ¨C Do you really think that you¡¯ll be able to get these back? Dream on, my dear ¡°fianc¨¦-in-name¡±!

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo subconsciously made a mental note to bear this ¡°burden¡± of her engagement. Yet to others, it merely seemed like Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu were burying the hatchet and resolving things amicably.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the renewed civility and even harmonious interactions between Yao Mo and Qin Lingyu. Yet somehow, the sight of this made him feel rather ufortable, even though he couldn¡¯t put a finger on why this was so. Therefore, he walked to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and patted her head as he queried, ¡°Little Mo, didn¡¯t you say that the Demonvine contains something that you need? Would you like to go harvest it?¡±

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right! I¡¯ve almost forgotten!¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her head, berating herself for forgetting something so important to her. Then, she turned around hastily and dashed towards where the Demonvine¡¯s main vine had been located, exining, ¡°This thing has to be harvested within three incenses¡¯ worth of time! Otherwise, it¡¯s effects won¡¯t be as strong. Gosh! Good thing brother Ye reminded me!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo quickly made her way to the Demonvine¡¯s ashes and swept away the topyer of ashes with her feet. Then, she started digging at theyer of soil underneath. Once the Demonvine¡¯s roots were revealed, she held onto the thickest ones and yanked hard at the roots.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at this young man¡¯s candid actions, and his lips curled into a smile involuntarily.

    Naturally, one of the other reasons for his smile was the fact that he had seeded in breaking the eye contact between Yao Mo and Qin Lingyu to begin with.

    Due to the veiled conical hat obscuring his face, no one could tell the expressions on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face at this moment. The disciples quickly forgot about their benefactor Yao Mo, and they all promptly turned their attention to Qin Lingyu as they showered him with praise andpliments ¨C

    ¡°Martial brother Qin is truly magnanimous and generous! You¡¯re absolutely deserving of the title of heir to Dawn Sect!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right! With that, it¡¯s as though our lives had been saved by martial brother Qin as well. It was a good decision to follow martial brother Qin on these travels! Martial brother Qin is always looking out for us!¡±

    ¡°These five medicinal pills are all extremely meaningful to brother Qin. We never expected martial brother Qin to simply give them away like that for us. We¡¯re truly moved and touched by your actions.¡±

    ......

    Qin Lingyu stood in the midst of these martial brothers as he allowed them to continue to shower praises and heappliments on him. His heart was absolutely satisfied with the way things turned out right now.

    He had crafted this course of action so that his martial brothers within the Sect would owe him. With that, it would be much easier for him to ¡°recover¡± this debt in future ¨C and possibly with interest.

    Just this moment, Di Yue gasped for air as he finally roused from his state of unconsciousness. He had earlier consumed the medicinal pill which Qin Lingyu had fed to him and thus managed to ovee the greatest catastrophe he had faced in his life thus far.

    Right now, he was supported by two of his martial brothers on their shoulders. He slowly struggled to lift his head as he looked at his martial brothers and sisters around him, yet he did not even feel moved by their presence around him.

    Even though he was still in a bit of a daze, he hadn¡¯t forgotten how these travelpanions of his had abandoned him and turned tail at the earliest sign of danger.

    That scene would forever be etched in Di Yue¡¯s memories. This also allowed Di Yue to understand that the ¡°Sect fraternity¡± that these travelpanions always talked about was something that was built on shallow grounds ¨C that notion copses at the earliest signs of distress.

    This is a joke!

    Di Yue hacked twice, and the pungent stench of blood immediately filled every corner of his mouth. At this moment, everyone finally realized that Di Yue had regained his consciousness.

    ¡°Oh, Di Yue! You¡¯re awake!¡± One of the martial brothers supporting Di Yue cried out with a pleasant surprise ¨C

    It was a truly pleasant surprise to that disciple. Di Yue had arge frame, and this disciple felt that it was getting too heavy for him to support Di Yue much longer, not to mention that pungent and nauseating stench of blood emanating from him which assaulted his senses.

    However, Di Yue did not respond to him. Instead, Di Yue turned his head and looked around at the crowd until he finally spotted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure.

    Seeing this, Di Yue quickly left the two people supporting him and hobbled towards Ye Xiuwen. Then, he knelt to the ground heavily and solemnly and sincerely kowtowed to Ye Xiuwen. With his head to the ground, he earnestly proimed, ¡°Di Yue sincerely thanks martial brother Ye for saving his life!¡±

    Even after he finished speaking, he continued to kowtow to Ye Xiuwen with his head firmly nted to the ground.

    All the other disciples were in abject shock at this moment ¨C

    What¡¯s going on?! Isn¡¯t the person who saved Di Yue¡¯s life martial brother Qin? We just witnessed with our own eyes how martial brother Qin fed him the medicinal pill after all......

 Chapter 89: The Strong Prevails; Public Approval

    <h4>Chapter 89: The Strong Prevails; Public Approval</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Everyone stared at the back of Di Yue¡¯srge frame right now in shock. In an instant, the atmosphere around them becamepletely still and silent.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes and a deep sense of displeasure swelled up from the depths of his heart. He thought the same as the other ¨C he was the one who had saved Di Yue. But seeing that Di Yue had suddenly thanked Ye Xiuwen when he awakened from his state of unconsciousness, Qin Lingyu felt a deep sense of indignance as though his efforts had been imed by someone else.

    Ye Xiuwen stood there, silent and expressionless. He was in fact the one who had saved Di Yue¡¯s life, and he graciously epted this sincere gesture of appreciation from Di Yue.

    As the Dawn Sect disciples recovered from their earlier shock, they intended to demand an exnation from Di Yue. Unexpectedly, Di Yue continued to remain kneeling there, holding the position of his kowtow. Furthermore, no one could tell the expression on Di Yue¡¯s face because he still had his head nted to the ground.

    Yi Hong and Di Yue had always been part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team, and they naturally interacted more with each other than anyone else. Therefore, Yi Hong walked over to Di Yue and patted him gently on the back, calling him, ¡°Di Yue, Di Yue.¡±

    But Di Yue did not respond.

    Sensing that something was wrong, Yi Hong immediately lifted Di Yue¡¯s head and looked at his face ¨C

    This fe! To think that he¡¯d brace himself and run over to martial brother Ye¡¯s to thank him, but then fainted in the midst of a kowtow due to his serious injuries!

    The other disciples also noticed this. Yet even as they were rendered speechless by Di Yue¡¯s actions, they were all the more curious as to how Ye Xiuwen had rescued Di Yue right now. Logically speaking, shouldn¡¯t the person who saved Di Yue be martial brother Qin or Yao Mo? After all, Yao Mo was the one who had in the Demonvine.

    Their curiosity continued to tickle them to no end like the scrambling of a cat¡¯s ws against a scratching post. It was insatiable, and they longed for Di Yue to once again regain his consciousness so that they could hear his ount of the incident.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in his heart, before retrieving a recovery pill from his Interspatial Ring. Then, he ced it into Di Yue¡¯s mouth, pressed an acupoint on Di Yue¡¯s neck, and forced Di Yue to swallow the pill.

    This medicinal pill was much better than the one which Qin Lingyu had fed to Di Yue, and it was much more effective at healing the severe injuries, even the internal injuries, sustained by Di Yue.

    Naturally, Ye Xiuwen did not give him the best medicine he had with him. After all, his duty extended only to preserving Di Yue¡¯s life, but not to the extent of charitably healing all of Di Yue¡¯s injuries. Ye Xiuwen wasn¡¯t a saint, and what he did was already better than what most people would have done for Di Yue in the circumstances. Besides, he and Di Yue were hardly more than acquaintances who had barely interacted with each other to begin with.

    ¡°Ah yes! It¡¯s finally out!¡± The young man¡¯s clear and crisp voice resounded from where the Demonvine had been, and his voice carried traces of joy and excitement with it. It was as though he had found a treasure!

    That young man¡¯s voice caught everyone¡¯s attention, and they all looked over at Yao Mo¡¯s direction. Then, they discovered that his entire body was covered in dirt right now, and this young man looked to be in a sorry state as he half-knelt on the ground, carrying fondly what looked to be a¡­¡­root of a tree.

    What disgusted them even more was how that root seemed to have innumerable blisters on them that looked almost like tumours of some sort. Worse, these blisters would pulsate and throb ever so frequently, as though they each contained a heart within them.

    My goodness! What on earth is that?! This was the immediate response in every single disciple¡¯s minds right now. Furthermore, the two female cultivators, Zhong Run and Yu Wanrou were even less fond of such things. They both instinctively retreated one step and covered their noses and mouths with their scarves, as though that would lessen the impact of that hideous looking root!

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo discovered that she had attracted all sorts of responses from the disciples. She stood up and retrieved arge cloth sack from her Interspatial Ring. The cloth sack had a formation array drawn onto it. She stuffed the blistered Demonvine root into the cloth sack, before finally tying up the mouth of the bag.

    Then, a blue light glowed brightly and faded away, and the formation array was now active. Yet to the eyes of the unlearned onlookers, there were no changes to the state of that cloth bag at all.

    Jun Xiaomo gingerly patted the bloated cloth bag. Then, she stored the cloth bag back into her Interspatial Ring as she nced over at the other disciples and remarked, ¡°What kind of expression is that? Do you despise how this Demonvine¡¯s root looks? Tsk. You¡¯re all such daft and uneducated people. Don¡¯t you know what kind of treasure this is?¡±

    The disciples who had been called ¡°daft and uneducated¡±: ¡­¡­

    Zhong Run wasn¡¯t the type of person who could rein in her emotions. She perceived that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocative words had clearlybelled her as a daft and uneducated person as well. Thus, her emotions roiled, and she shrilly refuted, ¡°If it¡¯s such a treasure, then why haven¡¯t any of us heard about it before? All of us here are clearly senior to you, so what basis do you have to speak off the cuff so arrogantly to us? Absurd!¡±

    ¡°Since you haven¡¯t heard about it before, then how can you say that I¡¯m speaking off the cuff and arrogantly?¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately rebuffed her with ackadaisical tone, ¡°Just because you¡¯re senior to me in age, does that necessarily trante to knowing more than me? What kind of logic is that? I bet none of you even know what formation array I¡¯d drawn on that cloth bag where I¡¯d kept the Demonvine root, huh?¡±

    Hearing this, Zhong Run was momentarily rendered speechless. She couldn¡¯t think of any way to substantiate her objections.

    On the other hand, the other disciples did not have the intention to dispute Yao Mo¡¯s allegations that they were ¡°daft and uneducated¡± to begin with ¨C

    Even though they felt frustrated and indignant in their hearts, they had all learnt over the past few days of interaction with Yao Mo that they should never, ever, verbally contend with Yao Mo in a battle of wits. There was no way they coulde out on top; and the only thing they would leave with was increased blood pressure, if not an aneurysm.

    A meaningful look shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes as well. He was unable to determine what that blistered Demonvine root could be used for. But one thing he knew ¨C if Yao Mo saw it as a treasure, then it had to be something good.

    At this moment, it suddenly dawned on Qin Lingyu that this young man Yao Mo was bing more and more mystifying and mysterious to him. Not only was his background and his identity shrouded in secrecy, even the things he knew about werepletely unorthodox yet practical at the same time. It was absolutely peculiar.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou also found Yao Mo to be an increasinglyplicated character. She deliberated for a moment, before deciding that she should make another attempt at seducing him.

    She looked at Yao Mo softly and said, ¡°Brother Yao, your talismans are incredibly impressive. Earlier, when the Demonvine rushed towards you and martial brother Ye, you applied a talisman on each of you, and the Demonvine immediately ceased to pursue you and martial brother Ye. I¡¯m extremely curious as to what these talismans might be.¡±

    Yu Wanrou knew that most men loved expressions ofmendation and adoration from women, and she believed that Yao Mo would not be an exception to the norm either.

    Unfortunately, how would she have known that Yao Mo was not a male cultivator to begin with? There was no way Yao Mo was going to fall prey to Yu Wanrou¡¯s charms.

    Jun Xiaomo yed with the hair at the side of her head as she raised her eyebrows and asked inquisitively, ¡°Does sister Yu really want to know?¡±

    Yu Wanrou curled her lips into a shy smile and responded, ¡°Of course. Furthermore, I think that it¡¯s extremely impressive of brother Yao to have thought of such a solution. At the very least, this kind of thing never urred to me at all.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she threw a bewildered look at Yu Wanrou. Just as Yu Wanrou was about to lower her head and put on a shy and embarrassed expression, Jun Xiaomo nonchntly tapped on her chin as she quipped, ¡°Why should I tell you, hmm? I don¡¯t feel like telling you at all.¡±

    Yu Wanrou: ¡­¡­

    The smile on Yu Wanrou¡¯s face froze at this moment. It was this moment that Yu Wanrou finally realized that Yao Mo was simply toying with her feelings, and there was no way that Yao Mo would fall prey to her charms at all.

    Hmph! It¡¯s such a waste of my efforts! Yu Wanrou thought with a huff. This was the first time that her efforts had been foiled and thwarted so thoroughly.

    Forget it. The extent of Yao Mo¡¯s potential is still pretty much an unknown, even with these few small victories of his. Who knows if this fe¡¯s victories aren¡¯t more than mere coincidences?

    Yu Wanrou refused to ept that her charms were unable to move a young fellow in his teens. Therefore, she decided to set aside her thoughts of seducing Yao Mo at this instant and shelf her thoughts to subdue Yao Mo for her own benefits.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t care less about this group of people before her to begin with. If not for the fact that the Demonvine¡¯s roots were an important element in crafting the cure for the scar on her martial brother Ye¡¯s face, she wouldn¡¯t even have bothered burning and razing that Demonvine to the ground.

    The lives of Qin Lingyu and the others werepletely outside the ambit of her consideration to begin with. In fact, it wouldn¡¯t have been a bad thing if the Demonvine could have tormented them for just that little bit longer.

    Rumble¡­ Just at that moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach growled loudly. It had already been a long time since thest time they ate. After an arduous battle and a tumultuous breakthrough to the second level of Qi Mastery, her stomach had long since been devoid of any nutrients.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately ignored all who were around as she minced over towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and fluttered her eyes at him, asking with puppy eyes, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m hungry. Shall we go whip up something to eat?¡±

    Despite the fact that this young man¡¯s face was covered in dirt right now, his expressions made him seem like a little tabby cat. As a whole, an adorable tabby cat.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomoically as he wiped off the dirt on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks with his thumb. Then, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he responded, ¡°Alright. You¡¯ve just seeded in your breakthrough as well, so you should have some food to replenish your body¡¯s energy.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thumb ran across her cheek, Jun Xiaomo felt that her cheeks seemed to experience a faint, burning sensation.

    By now, the other disciples had already grown used to this type of interaction between the two of them. As a result, their originally awkward response had be far more diluted right now.

    However, another thought crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind. He furrowed his eyebrows as he interjected, ¡°It¡¯s not clear whether there¡¯s still any dangers residing within these woods. Perhaps it might be a better idea to eat only after we¡¯ve left the woods.¡±

    The other disciples found Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestions to be logical and reasonable, and they all nodded their heads enthusiastically in agreement.

    Most importantly, they would be able to enter a small town once they left these woods, and they would no longer have to gnaw at these tasteless, dry rations any further. Therefore, they naturally would prefer Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestion to look for food only after they¡¯ve left these woods.

    Furthermore, if they ate in the woods, they would almost certainly be put through the misery of once again being able to witness Yao Mo¡¯s culinary skills without being able to taste it. It was a torment on all three fronts of sight, smell and taste.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at everyonezily as she responded grumpily, ¡°Don¡¯t you guys know that there wouldn¡¯t be a single living thing left within a fifty-kilometer radius of where the Demonvine is located? So, what kind of dangers are you talking about?¡±

    Hearing this, the disciples¡¯ faces immediately turned red with fury, and then a sickly green as they thought about the prospects of having to experience Yao Mo¡¯s culinary skills again. They realized that their own ignorance had be more apparent than ever since the day they had encountered Yao Mo.

    They were truly ignorant of the fact that the Demonvine¡¯s attack radius spanned fifty-kilometers wide.

    At the same time, Qin Lingyu was displeased that Yao Mo seemed to be challenging his authority. Therefore, he continued, ¡°It¡¯s better to err on the side of caution. It would be disastrous if we encountered any further dangers right now.¡±

    ¡°Even if we encountered any additional forms of danger, wouldn¡¯t our chances of getting away be higher if we replenished our energy right now? Look at all of you right now. All of you lookpletely weary and worn out from your escape from the Demonvine earlier. Are you sure you would be able to escape the pursuit of another spirit beast if we encounter er?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled sardonically as she quipped.

    Even though the disciples were extremely displeased with Yao Mo¡¯s attitude right now, they could not refute the logic behind his words.

    Furthermore, Yao Mo¡¯s unorthodoxbat abilities were truly formidable. The cultivation world had always been a ce ruled by the strong. Therefore, even if the disciples found themselves displeased with Yao Mo¡¯s character, they would nevertheless have to give him sometitude on ount for his formidable strength.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes, but he remained silent. He looked as though he was plotting something; and at the same time, he looked as though he was also sincerely testing the veracity of Yao Mo¡¯s logic.

    Then, one of the disciples looked cautiously towards Qin Lingyu as he suggested, ¡°That¡­martial brother Qin, I also think brother Yao¡¯s words are rather reasonable. Perhaps we should really take some time to adjust ourselves?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right¡­¡± Once the others heard that disciple¡¯s suggestions, several others immediately chimed in in agreement.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s all take some time to adjust ourselves. Quickly rest up and recover your energy and have some food if necessary. We¡¯ll leave this ce in about two hours.¡± Qin Lingyu boomed with a deep voice as he acquiesced to that disciple¡¯s suggestions. The disciples immediately heaved a sigh of relief, before they all scattered about to look for their own little resting ce.

    Then, after the other disciples went about to do each their own things, Ke Xinwen walked over to Qin Lingyu side and sarcastically quipped, ¡°It seems that someone¡¯s authority has been challenged, hasn¡¯t it? Look, the bnce has started to shift in favour of that young fe Yao Mo. Who knows whether they¡¯re starting to find that this Yao Mo fe is even more formidable than the Sect¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, huh? At the very least, he didn¡¯t turn tail and run at the earliest sign of trouble when the Demonvine charged at them.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d better shut your damn trap if you don¡¯t want to experience the effects of the poison again.¡± Qin Lingyu shook of Ke Xinwen¡¯s provocations coldly.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s face immediately grew pale in fright, before he red at Qin Lingyu as he took his leave.

    Then, Qin Lingyu was alone. He cast a deep, profound gaze at Jun Xiaomo, before he quickly collected the tumultuous emotions roiling within him.

    Time is on my side. A mere array master¡­¡­

 Chapter 90: A Wanted Fugitive! Traces of the Blood Jadeâ€™s Owner

    <h4>Chapter 90: A Wanted Fugitive! Traces of the Blood Jade¡¯s Owner</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Approximately two hours passed, and the disciples found themselves fully rested and rejuvenated for the road ahead. They packed everything they needed back into their Interspatial Ring, before standing up and patting the dirt off their bodies. Then, they continued to forge ahead towards their next destination ¨C a small town some distance away.

    Strangely, the disciples no longer seemed to dissociate themselves with Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, and they even started to gravitate towards them in twos and threes. Perhaps the Demonvine¡¯s pursuit had left an indelible impression in their minds, but it was apparent that these disciples felt a greater sense of security if they stuck close to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. From time to time, some disciples would even throw a nce over at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to check that they were still around, before heaving a sigh of relief. Then, they would continue chatting with their fellow disciples as though nothing had happened.

    Jun Xiaomo had long since noticed this strange phenomenon out of the corner of her eye. When the next disciple nced over at her, she mischievously returned a meaningful smile at him, causing that disciple to involuntarily cough twice as he shifted his gaze away awkwardly.

    ¡°Brother Ye, I think your fellow martial brothers and sisters are all scared stiff by the Demonvine. Previously, these disciples used to treat us as though we were invisible, but now they¡¯re all gravitating towards us as though our presence clothes them with a sense of security.¡± Jun Xiaomo minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she ryed to him her observations thus far with a bemused expression on her face.

    Ye Xiuwen did not verbally respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s observations, and he only gently patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo seemed to be able to tell that her martial brother wore a warm smile on his face under that veiled conical hat of his right now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t too small, and the other disciples walking close to them awkwardly scratched their noses when they heard what Jun Xiaomo had said. It was a fact that they did not particrly like Yao Mo as a person, and they certainly would not wish to hover about this young man if they could have it their way.

    But it was just as Yao Mo had said. They had all been scared stiff after their close shave with the Demonvine earlier. When death stares a person in the eyes, what did a person¡¯s pretense and appearances count for?

    Furthermore, even if Yao Mo did not intend to rescue them, staying by Yao Mo¡¯s side might give them an opportunity to glean some of Yao Mo¡¯s unorthodox yet potentially life-saving methods which they could then themselves use to ensure their survival.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expression was dismal right now. Ever since thatst encounter with the Demonvine, he felt as though his stature in the eyes of these fellow martial brothers and sisters had fallen substantially. He was the one at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, yet these martial brothers and sisters seemed to be gravitating towards a person at the measly second level of Qi Mastery, hoping that he would be able to protect them? This was absolutely humiliating to the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader!

    Ke Xinwen took in the present scene with a derisory look in his eyes. He had not forgotten how Qin Lingyu had treated him while they were escaping from that Demonvine earlier ¨C Qin Lingyu had activated the poison in his body to make him fall behind the pack!

    Therefore, his hatred towards Qin Lingyu was no less than his hatred towards Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen at this moment. In fact, he longed for these three persons to duke it out with each other so that he could reap the benefits of their conflict.

    But when it rains, it pours. Not only did Fate seem to disregard Qin Lingyu¡¯s feelings, it even seemed like Fate wished to aggravate matters and rub salt in Qin Lingyu¡¯s wounds. As they walked on, Di Yue gradually regained his consciousness once again. This was the result of the fact that the medicinal pill which Ye Xiuwen had given to Di Yue was far more effective than the medicinal pill Qin Lingyu had given to Di Yue earlier. Therefore, when Di Yue regained his consciousness this time, he no longer fainted again.

    ¡°Ah Di Yue, you¡¯re awake!¡± Yi Hong and another disciple were supporting Di Yue as they journeyed on. Therefore, they noticed it immediately when Di Yue moved.

    Di Yue shifted his hands, signaling for them to let him stand on his own. As they let go of his arms, Di Yue staggered about for a bit, before he managed to regain his footing and stabilize himself without falling down.

    Then, Di Yue swiftly retrieved two third-grade recovery pills and consumed them. He then promptly operated his spiritual energy to enhance his body¡¯s absorption of these medicinal pills. Within moments, his spirit and disposition visibly improved.

    A third-grade recovery pill can be considered to be rather effective. But at the same time, Di Yue¡¯s injuries were extremely severe. If he hadn¡¯t increased the dosage of his recovery medicine, who knows how long he would take to fully recover? Right now, they were still trekking through the woods, and there was a reasonable possibility that further dangery ahead of them. Therefore, he could not be bothered conserving these two precious medicinal pills.

    Di Yue drew a long breath, and he finally felt more revitalized. However, the present did not change the fact that his heart would involuntarily quiver with fear and trepidation whenever he was reminded of that horrific incident with the Demonvine.

    ¡°Ah, Ah Yue, why did you kneel towards martial brother Ye so passionately earlier? Did martial brother Ye really save you?¡± Yi Hong shoulder-bumped Di Yue chummily as he broached the issue with mild incredulity.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen always behaved in such a cold and isted manner. There was no way he seemed like the type who would voluntarily risk his life to rescue another person.

    Hearing this, Di Yue immediately red at Yi Hong with disdain as he rebuked him, ¡°What kind of tone is that? What do you mean ¡°really save me¡±? How could I falsify such matters?¡±

    ¡°Tsk tsk, I still find it hard to believe. Tell me more ¨C how did martial brother Ye rescue you? I¡¯d always thought it was Yao Mo who had rescued you.¡±

    ¡°What has Yao Mo got to do with this?¡± Di Yue furrowed his brows. Even though his gratitude was targeted towards Ye Xiuwen, Yao Mo continued to be an outsider to him. Furthermore, his impression of Yao Mo thus far had not been great either.

    Besides, isn¡¯t Yao Mo only at the first level of Qi Mastery? How could he possibly possess the ability to rescue me?

    Yi Hong and Di Yue weren¡¯t too far away from Jun Xiaomo at this instant, and Jun Xiaomo could naturally hear everything that they were saying right now. Thus, she turned around and smiled at Yi Hong and Di Yue as she recounted, ¡°If Di Yue had been within the formation array when I killed the Demonvine, then he would¡¯ve ended up with the same fate as that Demonvine.¡±

    In other words, Di Yue would have been burnt to ashes and razed to the ground.

    Everyone around who heard Yao Mo¡¯s words couldn¡¯t help but shudder at the thought of Di Yue¡¯s close shave with death. Yet the irony was that Di Yue¡¯s reaction was in and dull because he was the only one who had not seen the final state of the Demonvine.

    ¡°Furthermore, the person who had saved him was indeed brother Ye. I¡¯m unrted to you, and we¡¯re not that close either, so why should I bother to save you guys in the first ce?¡± Jun Xiaomo yed with her hair as she added, ¡°But then, I might still consider rescuing you in theing days if you can entertain me, or if brother Ye insists that you should be saved.¡±

    Everyone: ...... How is it that this guy can make every single statement sound so irksome?!

    But at the same time, no one dared to look down on this array master at only the second level of Qi Mastery any longer. His outstanding capabilities had time and again given them figurative ps on their faces for their ignorance.

    When Di Yue learnt that Yao Mo was the one who had indeed killed the Demonvine, his face was filled with shock. But he immediately shelved that thought ¨C after all, as Yao Mo had mentioned, it was still Ye Xiuwen who had rescued him even if Yao Mo didter dispose of the Demonvine.

    Di Yue quickened his steps as he walked before Ye Xiuwen and gave him an earnest palm and fist salute to thank him, ¡°Martial brother Ye, thank you for saving my life. I apologize for my earlier ignorance and disrespect to you. Please let me know if you have any instructions in future. I, Di Yue, shall not refuse you, no matter how difficult the task might be ¨C even if I have to risk my life!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, ¡°You¡¯re my team-mate; I naturally have to rescue you.¡±

    In other words, Ye Xiuwen was saying that if Di Yue were not his team member, then he would not have bothered saving Di Yue.

    Furthermore, only Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen knew that one of the reasons why Di Yue¡¯s injuries were so severe was precisely because they had intentionally dallied in their attempts to rescue Di Yue. It was as Ye Xiuwen had said ¨C he would rescue Di Yue¡¯s life, but the extent of Di Yue¡¯s injuries was certainly not within the ambit of his considerations.

    After all, Di Yue¡¯s earlier attitude towards him had truly been appalling, and he deserved to reap what he sowed.

    Poor Di Yue! He did not know that this man standing before him with a distant yet pristine disposition like that of a deity in fact possessed a slightly wicked side to him as well. Di Yue continued to gaze at Ye Xiuwen with the utmost gratitude,pletely idolizing Ye Xiuwen at this moment.

    This sight caused goosebumps to creep up all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s skin. Just imagine this ¨C a man built like a grizzly bear staring at you with affectionate, gleaming eyes. Just what kind of feeling would that give any person?

    Even though Jun Xiaomo knew that the object of Di Yue¡¯s affection was Ye Xiuwen, she was standing beside Ye Xiuwen at this moment, and she was unable to avoid the ¡°coteral damage¡±ing from Di Yue¡¯s deep gaze.

    ¡°Cough cough. Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go.¡± Jun Xiaomo tugged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms as she shifted her attention away from the gaze of a particr person. Di Yue thickened his skin as he obsequiously tagged along with that party of two.

    Yi Hong looked at the martial brothers and sisters around him awkwardly. Then, he thought for a moment before gritting his teeth, and hastened his steps after Di Yue and joined Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s group.

    Yi Hong was much more discerning than the well-built yet simple-minded Di Yue. Given their previous run-in with danger, he knew that Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu might not necessarily be willing to save them, just like how they did not rescue Di Yue because he did not belong to their team to begin with.

    Therefore, he was willing to follow in Di Yue¡¯s footsteps and tag along with Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo. After all, was there really any basis forparing their safety and security; and a merebel of being ¡°thick-skinned¡±?

    At the same time, the other disciples gazed profoundly at Di Yue and Yi Hong ¨C not with disdain, but with admiration in their eyes. They did not have the fortune of being part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team. If they encountered another Demonvine once more, who knows what their fate would be?

    Back when Di Yue and Yi Hong were assigned to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team, the other disciples had even expressed their pity towards the two of them.

    Yet in the end, fortunes rise and fall, and the ones who had expressed their pity earlier now found themselves more deserving of pity for not being assigned to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team.

    Right now, apart from Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu, practically every single disciple had ¡°tragedy¡± written all over their faces.

    Seeing this, Qin Lingyu¡¯s face turned a deep green with envy. But this was not immediately noticeable if one did not pay close attention to his expressions, since this was hardly different from the usual somber and stern expression worn by Qin Lingyu to begin with.

    However, Ke Xinwen picked up on this point without fail. He took pleasure in Qin Lingyu¡¯s pain and smiled wryly as he lowered his head to hide the hatred in his eyes.

    --------------------------------------------

    As Jun Xiaomo had expected, they did not encounter any strong spirit beasts or spirit nts in the rest of their time in the woods. After all, the Demonvine¡¯s domain spanned a radius of fifty-kilometers, and few spirit creatures would be able to escape its clutches within this region. And even if the spirit beasts were able to survive the Demonvine¡¯s attack, their instincts would ensure that they left the Demonvine¡¯s domain well behind them so as to prevent future harassment by the Demonvine and preserve their own lives.

    ¡°There seems to be a path ahead!¡± A disciple eximed as his heart leapt with joy.

    The existence of a path meant that this route was frequently traversed by people. This in turn naturally meant that they were close to the small town that was their next destination. By now, the entourage of people had braved the elements and slept under the stars for well over ten days. Thus, the prospects of arriving at a town wherefort and delectable food awaited them immediately rekindled their spirits, and everyone subconsciously picked up their pace as they made haste on their final stretch.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen did not anticipate the pleasures of afortable inn quite as much as the others. Therefore, they simply followed after the rest in a leisurely fashion.

    Slowly but surely, several paths began to converge with the path that they were travelling on, and the disciples found more and more travelers walking along the same widened path in the direction of the small town ahead.

    After about an hour, a city gate finally appeared within their field of vision. Several people were waiting outside the city gate impatiently, and all they could see right now was a sea of ck hair on the heads of these people.

    ¡°Seems like the size of this town isn¡¯t too shabby, isn¡¯t it? They even have a city gate! Ah, but why aren¡¯t these people entering the city?¡± One of the disciples thought aloud to himself.

    ¡°This town is called Xingping County, and it¡¯s a short distance away from the capital of Inferno Kingdom. Therefore, Xingping County is very well organized and constructed. Even though it¡¯s called a ¡°County¡±, its size isparable with a small city in most other ces.¡± Jun Xiaomo discreetly turned to Ye Xiuwen as she apprised him of the basic information of this ce. As Ye Xiuwen turned around to look at Jun Xiaomo, he was immediately greeted by her pair of brightly lit eyes.

    It was as though she were saying ¨C I¡¯m very smart, aren¡¯t I? Praise me, please!

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled as he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Please be patient, please be patient! Everyone, please remain calm and line up in an orderly fashion! I will need to verify your identity or personal documents before I can let you into the city.¡± An armoured soldier stood on each side of the city gate, preventing the public from barging into the city through the city gates.

    No wonder there are so many people waiting outside! Everyone thought in their hearts.

    But the entourage from Dawn Sect did not bother arguing with these soldiers. So, they obediently walked to the back of the queue as they waited for their turn.

    Even then, one of the soldiers with a sharp eye immediately spotted this distinct group of people. He walked over to report this to hismander and exchanged a few words with hismander. Then, themander looked towards the entourage from Dawn Sect, nodded his head, before making his way over to Jun Xiaomo and the rest.

    ¡°Dear guests, may I ask if you may be cultivators?¡± Themander immediately asked the disciples from Dawn Sect as he approached them.

    The disciples all looked at each other quizzically, wondering why the first thing thismander asked about them was whether they were cultivators or not.

    Despite that, Qin Lingyu immediately made a fist and palm salute to themander as he responded, ¡°Indeed, we are cultivators. I wonder...¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± Themander was an impetuous person, and he immediately cut off Qin Lingyu when he received the response he was hoping for, ¡°Since you¡¯re cultivators, do you have any interest in a bounty-rted task? This task is directlymissioned by our king. Once the task isplete, I¡¯m certain that the Inferno Kingdom would greatly reward your achievements.¡±

    ¡°This...we¡¯re currently under time constraints...¡± One of the disciples hesitated as he exined.

    ¡°This task isn¡¯t too difficult. It¡¯s just that we haven¡¯t encountered any cultivators suitable for the task to date. Furthermore, this task requires some measure of luck as well. I invite you to take a look at the task objectives before you make your decision.¡± Themander continued campaigning for the entourage¡¯s support.

    A gleam shed across Qin Lingyu eyes ¨C he was particrly interested in the rewards to be had uponpletion of this task.

    Therefore, he swiftly raised his hand to tell everyone to hold their horses. Then, he politely gestured to themander as he said, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then let¡¯s take a look at what the task might be before we decide.¡±

    ¡°Please!¡± Themander gestured for the entourage to follow him.

    ¡°I guess there¡¯s a silver lining in undertaking this task too ¨C it seems that we can skip the queue and enter the city gates immediately.¡± A disciple murmured under his breath. Truth be told, he was not too keen to ept this task to begin with, because he knew that given his stature in the entourage, he would likely be left with nothing more than scraps from the task¡¯s rewards even if theypleted this task sessfully.

    But now that martial brother Qin had spoken, he was certainly in no ce to object either.

    In fact, all of the other disciples had the same thoughts running through their minds earlier. However, there was also no way they would be able to object right now. Therefore, they could only suppress their frustrations as they trotted along beside the rest.

    -------------------------------------

    Themander brought them to an inn at the corner of the city and then asked the innkeeper to prepare a room for them. Once they had entered that room, he shut the door, and retrieved a scroll from within his clothes and unfurled it to reveal a portrait of a person.

    Everyone looked on at the portrait curiously, wondering what exactly the reward for this task would be.

    Then, themander pointed at the person depicted by the portrayed, exining, ¡°This is the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, but he is now also the most wanted fugitive within Inferno Kingdom. He poisoned our king, his father. When the king fell into aatose, the first prince managed to give us the slip, and we¡¯re all trying to locate him right now. The first prince is a cultivator as well, so mere mortals like us are unable to capture him by ourselves. That is why we require help from formidable guests such as yourselves.¡±

    The person in the portrait was extremely handsome. He had sharp and chiseled features, including expressive eyebrows and thin lips that were curled into a slightly aloof smile, as though he were looking down at and mocking the rest of the world for their ignorance. What was most striking about his appearance was the deep, cold gaze in his eyes which seemed to oppressively stare straight into people¡¯s hearts, even through a mere portrait of him.

    It was hard to imagine that such a striking person could possiblymit such a heinous crime to be Inferno Kingdom¡¯s most wanted fugitive! This thought immediately crossed several disciples¡¯ minds, and some of them even began to feel for the first prince.

    While everyone was silently observing andmitting to memory the most wanted fugitive¡¯s appearances, a different thought crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind ¨C

    The first prince¡¯s neck seems to have a small totem on it. Somehow, this totem looks rather...familiar.

    As she deliberated about it, she suddenly opened her eyes wide in realization ¨C she had seen this totem while she was looking through Jiang Yutong¡¯s belongings in her cavern some time ago! Furthermore, she had learnt that this totem was unique to the Jiang n, and only the bloodline of the Jiang n would possess these totems.

    Could it be that this first prince of the Inferno Kingdom was the owner of the Blood Jade ¨C senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s own son?!

    Jun Xiaomo had thought that it was going to take her several years before she could finally locate Jiang Yutong¡¯s son. Who would¡¯ve thought that she would find a clue to his whereabouts immediately upon their entry into Inferno Kingdom¡¯s territory?

 Chapter 91: Blood Jadeâ€™s Sudden Resonance; Nemesis

    <h4>Chapter 91: Blood Jade¡¯s Sudden Resonance; Nemesis</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    However, Jun Xiaomo was unable to ascertain that this person was Jiang Yutong¡¯s son based solely on that totem on his neck.

    She furrowed her brows and deliberated for a moment, before she decided that it was worth rifying matters with themander.

    ¡°Excuse me, I¡¯m sorry to interrupt, but I have a question for themander.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked directly at themander as she interjected.

    ¡°Please ask.¡±

    ¡°Is this first prince¡¯s mother... imperial concubine Jiang Yutong who had vanished from the Inferno Kingdom several years ago?¡± Jun Xiaomo carefully sized up themander¡¯s expression as she queried. She did not want to let slip any potential clue about the whereabouts of Jiang Yutong¡¯s son.

    ¡°You know about imperial concubine Jiang?!¡± Themander widened his eyes as he looked at Jun Xiaomo with astonishment in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo waved her hands casually as she responded, ¡°It¡¯s not that I know her personally. I¡¯ve only ever heard of her. Back then, the tales of imperial concubine Jiang were so controversial that my father would speak about it from time to time.¡±

    Themander knitted his brows together. After muttering under his breath for a brief moment, he heaved a long sigh, nodded his head and exined, ¡°The first prince is indeed imperial concubine Jiang¡¯s son. Perhaps the real reason for his actions today might have been the fact that his father, the king, had annihted his mother¡¯s nsmen and driven his mother away. He couldn¡¯te to terms with it even after all these years, and therefore he resorted tomitting the most heinous of crimes ¨C making an attempt at his own father¡¯s life.¡±

    Hearing this, a bright gleam shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she took another look at the portraitid out on the table in front of her ¨C

    The man on the portrait possessed sharp and chiseled features and deep, profound eyes. He curled his lips ever so slightly into a wry smile that seemed to gaze, through the portrait, at the present surroundings. He gave off such an aloof and dignified air that the world seemed to be nothing more than a yground to him, as though nothing in this world mattered to him.

    It was hard to imagine how this man could have gone through all that effort to poison his father, the king, just for the sake of vengeance over matters from ages past. From the way the man in the portrait looked and presented himself, it seemed that going through all that effort to poison someone might even be too troublesome for him.

    Jun Xiaomo silently mulled over this matter, and she concluded that things might not be as simple as they looked on the surface.

    The other disciples from Dawn Sect continued to listen attentively at themander¡¯s report. However,pared with Jun Xiaomo, they hardly concerned themselves with the first prince¡¯s character. They only cared about one thing ¨C whether they could use any of the clues to capture this target and secure the promised reward.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right. There¡¯s one other thing. Please be mindful not to mention ¡°imperial concubine Jiang¡± or ¡°Jiang Yutong¡± once you enter the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s capital. This would only invite trouble upon yourselves.¡± Themander sincerely cautioned.

    ¡°Oh? Why is that?¡± Jun Xiaomo queried curiously.

    Themander sighed again before he exined, ¡°Five years after the disappearance of imperial concubine Jiang, her name was dered by the king to be a taboo within the Inferno Kingdom. If one was caught discussing matters about imperial concubine Jiang in public, that person would be considered lucky if he were simply banishment from the Inferno Kingdom and forbidden from entering the capital ever again. If one were less fortunate, the person might even find their digits chopped off or his bones broken as a result of his offence. Everyone was immediately stricken with fear about these matters at that time, and everyone consciously avoided any mention of imperial concubine Jiang. Over time, people ceased to talk about matters pertaining to imperial concubine Jiang anymore.¡±

    In fact, back when the present king ascended his throne, the first thing he turned his attention to was imperial concubine Jiang¡¯s n. He murdered their livestock, seized their possessions, and he got rid of every single person in the n because they ceased to be useful to him. Everyone in the Inferno Kingdom was well aware about this matter. Perhaps it was for this reason that the king issued a decree preventing anyone from talking about matters pertaining to Jiang Yutong behind his back. It was all for the sake of hiding the guilty conscience in his heart.

    Themander knew this fact as well. But he was amander in Inferno Kingdom after all, and his duty extended only to training his soldiers and leading them to defeat their enemies. Therefore, he did not have the heart nor the time to care about the dirty, politicking matters of the imperial family.

    Having heard themander¡¯s full report, everyone looked at each other vacantly. Wasn¡¯t the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king way too cruel? This was the first thought that ran through everybody¡¯s minds at this moment.

    As for Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen who possessed a deeper knowledge of these matters, their assessment of the king of Inferno Kingdom was even worse.

    Why didn¡¯t he die from the poison! Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she eximed in her heart. She did not have a good impression of the present king of Inferno Kingdom at all. She even felt that it was a crime to let him continue living!

    At the same time, she immediately begun to feel slightly sympathetic to the first prince¡¯s plight. Even then, this person in the portrait looked like the type of person who didn¡¯t need anyone¡¯s sympathy because his heart and soul were strong enough to stand up to such adversity.

    It must be said that it would have been extremely difficult for a young child like him to live through that period of internal strife and dissension when his mother¡¯s entire n was being annihted by the king. But not only did he manage to survive, he even managed to sharpen his skills and hone his abilities. Then, when the time was ripe, he stirred the entire kingdom into chaos singlehandedly. This thoroughly impressed Jun Xiaomo.

    Now that she had ascertained the identity of the Blood Jade¡¯s owner and senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s son, how could she let him be captured and thrown behind bars in front of her own eyes? At the very least, she had to find an opportunity to hand the Blood Jade over to him first. Furthermore, she was determined to even help him escape from his present predicament if his character and personality was decent enough. After all, this was what she owed to her senior Jiang Yutong for all the treasures and resources she had been blessed with.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s all the information I can provide you with. I wonder if these experts are keen to ept this task?¡± Themander made a polite gesture at the disciples as he finished speaking.

    A bright gleam shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes as he inquired, ¡°I wonder if themander could give us an indication of what the reward might be for the sessfulpletion of this task?¡±

    ¡°The exact details are still up to the king to decide. But at the very least, it would include precious medicinal pills such as the Snow Lotus Invigoration Pill, Spirit Harmonization Pill, and the Heart Purging Pill. Furthermore, the Inferno Kingdom maintains a stash of some national treasures in its treasuries. The second prince and the queen have both decreed that whoever manages to capture the first prince, then they would be entitled to take their pick of any two national treasures from the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s treasuries as part of their reward.¡±

    A national treasure! Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes were immediately filled with greed. If the earlier mention of the medicinal pills had piqued his interest, then the mention of the national treasurespletely sealed the deal for Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°What do you think?¡± Qin Lingyu looked around at his fellow martial brothers and sisters as he asked.

    Qin Lingyu still had to maintain his appearances even though he had already decided in his heart. At the very least, he had to appear to be fair to everyone.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got no particr preference in this regard, so I¡¯ll let martial brother Qin decide.¡± The disciple standing closest to Qin Lingyu immediately expressed his loyalty to Qin Lingyu as he responded.

    Then, the other disciples followed suit and gave Qin Lingyu a ttering smile as they added, ¡°That¡¯s right, we¡¯ll all let martial brother Qin decide.¡±

    In the end, only Di Yue and Yi Hong did not follow suit among all the other disciples. After all, they were now a part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s party, and they would only take the lead from Ye Xiuwen.

    Qin Lingyu noticed that Ye Xiuwen was standing silently at the corner and he had not made his views known yet. Therefore, he continued with his pretense and asked, ¡°Martial brother Ye, what do you think?¡±

    Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen immediately looked at Jun Xiaomo. He had heard that the first prince was Jiang Yutong¡¯s son, which meant that he was the owner of the Blood Jade. Therefore, he knew that Yao Mo would likely to want to stay in this ce for a while until he could locate the owner of the Blood Jade.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen and blinked her eyes twice. Then, she smiled sweetly as she responded, ¡°The rewards are truly attractive. It¡¯s moving to even people like me who are generally apathetic and disinterested in rewards. Brother Ye, let¡¯s stay and help out a little, alright?¡±

    Everyone: ......What do you mean ¡°generally apathetic and disinterested in rewards¡±? You¡¯re clearly obsessing over it right now!

    Ye Xiuwen noticed that Yao Mo was growing fonder of using his words and actions to provoke those around him. But this was not necessarily a bad thing either. At the very least, it could mask their true objectives for staying. After all, most people here thought that Jun Xiaomo had bitten the bait of the potential rewards. Who would have thought that their true motive was to help the owner of the Blood Jade escape this predicament?

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he responded, ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s stay behind and help out.¡±

    Hearing this, Qin Lingyu silently snickered in his heart ¨C Be careful. You might not only fail to obtain the rewards you desire ¨C you might even inadvertently leave your lives behind.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the scheming look in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, but she casually brushed it off with a chuckle. She found that this ¡°fianc¨¦¡± of hers truly seemed to enjoy looking for trouble ¨C it was as though he couldn¡¯t live a day without scheming or plotting against people.

    Forget it. Why should I care about these kinds of people? It¡¯s only a matter of time before I butt heads with that fe.

    Qin Lingyu looked back at themander and reported, ¡°Since the others have no preferences on this matter, then we shall stay behind and try our luck.¡±

    Themanderughed heartily in great pleasure. Then, he eximed, ¡°That¡¯s great, that¡¯s great! If Ie across any new leads in future, I will inform these experts as soon as I can. That¡¯s right, I hear it¡¯s your first timeing to Inferno Kingdom? Then let me be your host for now and treat you to some local delicacies. I only hope that these renown experts won¡¯t despise the local cuisine of the mortal world.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. We¡¯re all out on travel from our Sect, and we¡¯re not particr about matters pertaining to food at all. Since themander has cordially invited us with such enthusiasm, how could we refuse?¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled as he agreed politely.

    --------------------------------------------------

    Themander led everyone to one of thergest inns in Xingping County. There, he told the innkeeper that he wanted a private room for his guests.

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry dear guests, but there¡¯s an unusuallyrge number of people in Xingping County these few days, and all the private rooms have been booked out. Would the great hall do?¡± The innkeeper knew from one look at the guests before him right now possessed a certain stature. Therefore, he could only attempt to cate them as he asked with a radiant smile on his face.

    Themander furrowed his brows. ording to their social norms, hosting his guests in the great hall wasn¡¯t quite right.

    ¡°Commander, the great hall is fine. It¡¯s only going to be a meal in any event. We¡¯re not too fussed over these things. Besides, isn¡¯t the quality of food more important?¡± It must be said that when Qin Lingyu wasn¡¯t scheming and plotting against others, he was actually quite proficient in the matters of interpersonal rtions. At the very least, he had just given themander an out to his little predicament.

    ¡°Haha, brother Qin is right! I¡¯d been obsessing over nothing.¡± As themander spoke, he requested the innkeeper to prepare arge table for them so that they could all be seated at the same table.

    Then, after everyone got seated, they knew that the food would take some time to be served. Therefore, they all started chatting cordially with each other.

    ¡°Sigh,ing back to the matter at hand,mander must already have been looking for the first prince for some time, right? Aren¡¯t there any other clues or leads? It¡¯s got to be difficult to locate him with just this portrait, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s truly hard to locate him. But, just a few days ago, one of our informants told us that they had seen the first prince appear within the vicinity of the Xingping County. That¡¯s one of the main reasons why we¡¯d rushed here in the first ce. Truth be told, finding the first prince isn¡¯t the hardest part. After all, there are only a few ces where he¡¯s likely to show up at, and Xingping County is one of these few ces. However, the main difficulty is that none of us would be able to subdue and capture him even if we encounter him. It¡¯s just like that informant of ours. The first prince immediately knocked out our informant once he discovered the informant¡¯s presence.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is.¡± The disciples all nodded their heads as they gained a better understanding of the situation.

    While Jun Xiaomo continued to listen in on the conversations at the table, she discreetly released a thread of divine sense to probe at the condition of the Blood Jade within her Interspatial Ring.

    Senior Jiang Yutong had mentioned before that as long as her son appeared near the Blood Jade, the Blood Jade would naturally glow with a red light. Therefore, once Jun Xiaomo learnt that the first prince could very likely be hiding within the Xingping County, she had from time to time checked on the Blood Jade¡¯s condition.

    Hang on a moment! It seemed to have glowed red earlier! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat as she reflexively shot up to her feet.

    Everyone was puzzled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sudden and clumsy actions, and no one had a clue what Yao Mo was thinking right now.

    However, Jun Xiaomo did not have the luxury of time to exin anything to them. The Blood Jade had only glowed for a moment before dimming down again. The only possibility was that the first prince had zipped past where they were with immense speed. There was a good chance that he had just passed by the inn they were at right now.

    Without any warning, Jun Xiaomo immediately ran out of the inn without a word, leaving everyone at the table staring at each other in bewilderment.

    Bang! A loud m rang out, as though something had collided into another object with great speed.

    ¡°Little Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen also stood up and ran out of the inn. Then, the first thing that he saw was how Yao Mo was now being held tightly in the bosom of another man donned in pale blue garments. There was even an entourage of people following behind that man.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes flickered, and a deep sense of displeasure welled up within him. Just for a moment, it even crossed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind to unsheathe his sword and slice off that man¡¯s hand that was wrapped around Yao Mo¡¯s waist right this instant.

    ¡°Little brother, you¡¯ve got to watch where you¡¯re going, eh?¡± The man chuckled coquettishly, and his sleazy eyes gazed at the man lying in his bosom.

    Ye Xiuwen was just about to ¡°rescue¡± Yao Mo from his clutches when he noticed that a vicious intent suddenly shed across Yao Mo¡¯s eyes. Then in the next instant, Yao Mo retrieved a sharp dagger from his Interspatial Ring and ferociously thrusted it at the man!

    At this moment, Yao Mo seemed to give off the vibe that she would not rest until that man was dead.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks were orderly and well regted. And with her second level of Qi Mastery, her attacks would be more than enough to dispose of mere mortals. However, that man simply flicked open his folded fan and avoided her attacks with much ease. It was evident that this man could very possibly be a cultivator as well.

    ¡°Little Mo!¡±

    ¡°Second prince!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen and themander¡¯s voices rang out at the same time. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo continued tounch attacks at that man, and that man continued to avoid her attacks.

    ¡°So, your name is ¡®Little Mo¡¯!¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re the second prince of Inferno Kingdom!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo and that man¡¯s voice also resounded at the same time. After hearing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words, that man smiled as he responded, ¡°That¡¯s right. I wonder if Little Mo knows me too?¡±

    That man spoke with an extremely coquettish tone, clearly intending to tease Jun Xiaomo. This was despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present identity was that of a young man.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze grew frigid as the corner of her mouth twitched slightly. However, she remained silent ¨C

    Of course she knew this man! However, she had never known that this man was in fact the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom.

    No, she ought to have known that fact too. After this man became the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king in her previous life, he even ended up as one of Yu Wanrou¡¯sckeys.

    Most importantly, he was the very same man who had killed her child in her previous life!

    The stench of blood started to well up from within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest. She could barely hold in her hatred for this man any longer!

 Chapter 92: Inferno Kingdomâ€™s Second Prince, Rong Yebin

    <h4>Chapter 92: Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Second Prince, Rong Yebin</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen noticed Yao Mo¡¯s aberrant expressions, and his gaze darkened considerably. He took two quick strides and arrived at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Then, he quickly ced his hand on her shoulder and softly called out, ¡°Little Mo.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately felt that warm sensation on her shoulder. Gradually, she left behind those haunting memories of her previous life and attempted to refocus her attention on the present reality.

    She hung her head low, concealing the still-roiling hatred in the depths of her eyes.

    That¡¯s right, the matters of her previous life had already passed. This was a fresh, new start for her, and the things which had happened in her previous life had not urred in this life. Therefore, there was no reason for the nemeses in her previous life to affect her this much.

    That said, the death of her child in her previous life was an incident that carved an eternal void in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Even though she could still bear another child in her present life, it was never going to be the same as the one she had lost.

    She was even unaware of the identity of the child¡¯s father! And all of this was the result of the schemes of one single person ¨C the dignified looking man seating in the inn, Qin Lingyu!

    Put another way, the thread of fate that tied her child to her been irreversibly severed, and there was no way she could ever reunite with that child of hers in the present life once again.

    This was one of the main reasons why Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart would always explode with overwhelming hatred whenever she encountered the people who had caused the death of her child in her previous life!

    Her hatred was not only for these people. She hated herself ¨C she hated the fact that she fell into the traps of these schemers; and she hated the fact that she could not even protect her own child!

    The firm arm on her shoulders tightened once more. Ye Xiuwen could tell that Yao Mo was still deeply shaken and agitated, and she had not managed topose herself yet.

    ¡°Just what¡¯s going on out here?!¡± Themander questioned with a frigid voice as he cast an incensed look at Jun Xiaomo.

    The second prince, Rong Yebin, was the crown prince and future king of the Inferno Kingdom. In themander¡¯s eyes, the fact that Jun Xiaomo assaulted the second prince was tantamount to contempt against the entire Inferno Kingdom! As amander of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s troops, this was behaviour which could not be tolerated.

    Even if this young man was a person who had been invited to capture the most wanted fugitive in Inferno Kingdom, he had to ount for his crimes!

    Rong Yebin batted his eyelids flirtatiously before he gestured towards themander, instructing, ¡°It¡¯s fine. This was just a misunderstanding. We didn¡¯t even know each other before this encounter, so how could he and I have any form of animosity against each other? Little Mo, am I not right?¡±

    Themander furrowed his brows. He was still dissatisfied with the fact that Yao Mo had made an attempt at the second prince¡¯s life.

    Ye Xiuwen also furrowed his brows. How could this second prince Rong Yebin address Yao Mo as ¡°Little Mo¡± this, and ¡°Little Mo¡± that, when they didn¡¯t even know each other? Wasn¡¯t this term of endearment a little bit too chummy or intimate for him?

    However, no one could tell Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions right now due to the obfuscation of his veiled conical mask.

    Jun Xiaomo gradually managed to pull herself out of the mires of her memories and return to the present. Then, she lifted her head, looked at Ye Xiuwen. Despite the fact that she could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions right now due to his veiled conical hat, she knew that she had caused Ye Xiuwen to worry about her.

    Therefore, she sought to cate Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m fine.¡±

    Then, Jun Xiaomo made a polite fist and palm salute to each of themander and the second prince, Rong Yebin, as she apologized with a doleful expression, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ve been too hotheaded earlier, and I mistook the second prince for somebody else.¡±

    The young man¡¯s delicate eyshes quivered ever so slightly, as though he had been appalled by the incident. His pale face even made him look weak and frail.

    At this moment, several fantasies crossed the second prince¡¯s mind and his heart tingled with stimtion. He walked closer to Yao Mo and lifted his hand, motioning for Yao Mo¡¯s face. However, Ye Xiuwen immediately blocked his hand as he saw this.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, second prince. Please be respectful.¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly cautioned.

    The second prince raised his eyebrows with a curious look on his face. He was a cultivator, and his abilities were not too shabby either. Who would have thought that this slim and unassuming man possessed the ability to block his hand ¨C and effortlessly at that.

    Could it be that this man¡¯s cultivation level was above the tenth level of Qi Mastery? The second prince thought to himself, as he quickly exercised restraint and reached for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders instead of her face. Then, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders, remarking, ¡°Don¡¯t look so worried. I¡¯m not some kind of monster. If I¡¯ve said that I won¡¯t me you, then I won¡¯t me you at all. Don¡¯t worry, hmm?¡±

    As his handnded on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, her body quivered involuntarily. But this was not out of fear ¨C it was fury!

    She felt extremely disgusted to have been ¡°teased¡± by the nemesis of her previous life. Furthermore, the second prince would one day be one of Yu Wanrou¡¯sckeys, and who knows when this man was going to be inextricably entangled with that woman?

    As these nauseating thoughts crossed her mind, a strong urge swelled up within her to cast off the second prince¡¯s hand from her shoulder right that instant!

    As she fervently suppressed the swelling urge in her heart, Jun Xiaomo tilted her body and shrugged off the second prince¡¯s hand. Then, she raised her head and muttered with an expressionless look on her face, ¡°Thank you, second prince, for your understanding.¡±

    As the young man¡¯s crisp and clear voice resounded and strummed gently on his eardrums, Rong Yebin¡¯s ears quivered slightly as though they had just been tickled lightly by the young man¡¯s voice.

    Rong Yebin once again swelled with the urge to have a taste of Yao Mo¡¯s sweet, cherry lips! Even if that young man did not have a good impression of him to begin with, the existence of a challenge made the object of his fascination seem only more desirable to him!

    Yes, that¡¯s right. The Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince, Rong Yebin, was a person who devoured both men and women alike. Ever since he was old enough to appreciate carnal rtionships, he had always kept a constant stream of his ¡°objects of fascinations¡± by his side ¨C both women and men.

    When Jun Xiaomo had hastily dashed out of the inn to look for the owner of the Blood Jade, the second prince had already noticed her presence. Then, when that ¡°young man¡± clumsily ran into his bosom and he had a first taste of his soft and tender body, ripples immediately surfaced on the second prince¡¯s heart. He even took a closer look at this young man¡¯s features ¨C red lips, white teeth and expressive eyebrows. It was theplete package of an adorable and innocent young man.

    Furthermore, when the young man collided straight into him, his sharp nose rammed straight into the second prince¡¯s stout and sturdy chest, and this caused the young man¡¯s nose to turn slightly pink and his eyes to well up with tears. When that young man looked up to see what he had collided into, he presented a teary-eyed face that looked somewhat pitiful and somewhat adorable at the same time.

    At that time, Jun Xiaomo had indeed rammed into the second prince so hard that her nose felt sore and pain. She rubbed the tip of her nose as she lifted her head, intending to apologize to the person she had collided into. Unexpectedly, the first thing she saw was the face of one of the archnemeses of her previous life! That sight rendered herpletely bbergasted and at a loss of how to react. Therefore, she could only stare at the person before her eyes in a daze.

    When Rong Yebin saw the young man¡¯s dazed look, he thought that the young man looked even more adorable than ever. That was also when he decided that he was going to bring this young man back to his chambers and thoroughly and dearly express his carnal affection for him.

    Rong Yebin was used to obtaining anything that he had set his eyes upon. His father, the king, thoroughly loved his mother. Furthermore, he was one of the rare few among the royalty who were talented in cultivation, and he even possessed a mutated water-based spirit root. As a result, he had been earmarked as the next king of Inferno Kingdom ever since he was a young boy. Therefore, whenever he desired something, his subordinates would always serve it up to him on a silver tter. As for those objects that he could not have immediately, he would then use various ways and means to seize those objects and make them his own.

    Inferno Kingdom¡¯s nobility and officials were all well aware of the fact that the second prince devoured both men and women ¨C especially young men and young women who looked exquisite, beautiful and pure. Therefore, these nobles and officials would spare no effort in sourcing out the greatest beauties from all four corners of the world and deliver them to the second prince¡¯s residence, just so that they could worm their way into his good books. As a result of that, the second prince¡¯s residence was filled with all sorts of beauties. Most of these beauties had willingly thrown themselves at the second prince, while the remaining small portion of them had been snatched and seized by the second prince for his own pleasure.

    Right now, the second prince¡¯s grand eunuch stood behind him silently and discreetly, almost as though he formed part of the second prince¡¯s shadow.

    Having followed the second prince, Rong Yebin, for such a long time, this grand eunuch already thoroughly understood his master¡¯s psyche. If it were anybody else who had collided into the second prince like this, his master would already have made a meal out of this. If the second prince had been in a good mood, he might have decreed a light punishment of severing the nerves within that person¡¯s limbs. If not, he would even dish out heavier punishments, including breaking that person¡¯s four limbs, rendering the perpetrator no more than a cripple for the rest of his life. Therefore, the second prince¡¯s magnanimity and good-natured reaction in the present circumstances was clearly an anomaly. The second prince had even actively assuaged and consoled the young man who collided into him!

    The second prince must have set that young man in his sights.

    But at the same time, the grand eunuch was concerned by the fact that the young man immediately sought to duke it out with the second prince the moment he saw his face. Could it be that the young man already knows the second prince for somewhere?

    The grand eunuch didn¡¯t think that Yao Mo was truly after the second prince¡¯s life. Rather, he thought about another possibility. The grand eunuch sighed in his heart ¨C this young man must have been someone whom the second prince had a fling with. The second prince must have led him on and then left him hanging dry. That must be why the young man is so mad right now.

    Indeed, apart from the harem of beauties residing within Rong Yebin¡¯s residence, he would often have flings with people whom he met out on his travels as well. He would always entangle himself with these people in the dead of the night. Then, when dawn breaks, the object of the fling would invariably discover that the warm body from their night of passion would havepletely vanished without a trace.

    There were even instances of beauties showing up at the royal residence demanding an audience with the second prince, asking the second prince to take responsibility for his actions. In such instances, these beauties would invariably find themselves being taken into the second prince¡¯s residence.

    After all, the second prince had always been a person who weed all with open arms, as long as they were qualified to be called beauties by his books. He would keep these beauties within his residence so that he could look for them from time to time for a night of passion.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware that his actions had beenpletely misinterpreted by the grand eunuch standing behind the second prince. But even if she knew, this would only disgust her a little bit. Even then, she did not see the need to exin herself to inconsequential people like the grand eunuch.

    Besides, these people were never going to know the real truth which had perished together with her previous life.

    At this moment, the only thought running through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was to get away from the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom, because she found his flirtatious gaze towards her was extremely nauseating.

    It was that disgusting impassioned gaze that was filled with anticipation. She had seen such looks on many asions in her previous life, and she would always thoroughly teach these lechers a lesson whenever she encountered one. In fact, the most severe punishment that she had dished out was topletely cripple the lecher¡¯s cultivation and his limbs before leaving him at the doors of a brothel.

    Didn¡¯t he enjoy looking at beauties? He can gander all he wants at the beauties in the brothel!

    But the present Jun Xiaomo did not have the ability to teach the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince such lessons. Therefore, she only wished to depart this ce so that she would no longer have to receive Rong Yebin¡¯s goosebumps-inducing gaze.

    Themander was a candid and straightforward person, so he did not appreciate the fact that the second prince had already set Yao Mo in his sights. He only noticed that the dispute had been resolved rather amicably, and therefore decided not to pursue the matter against Yao Mo for assaulting the second prince as well.

    ¡°Honoured second prince, let me make the introductions. This is Dawn Sect¡¯s disciple, Ye Xiuwen. And this is his friend, Yao Mo. They¡¯re part of an entourage that¡¯s headed to the Mystic Woods to perform their Sect¡¯s missions, and they happened to pass through the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Xingping County. When they learned that we needed help from experts like themselves, they graciously epted our task as well.¡± Themander made introductions to the second prince.

    ¡°So, the two of you are experts personally invited by themander. Then, I¡¯ve been too disrespectful, too disrespectful.¡± The second prince folded the fan in his hands and gestured courteously with a fist and palm salute to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    Even though Rong Yebin feigned the appearances of civility and paid lip service to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, the gaze in his eyes never once left Yao Mo¡¯s body. In fact, it only grew more and more impassioned and lustful as time went by.

    Evidently, the fact that Yao Mo was a cultivator made him seem even more desirable to Rong Yebin.

    At this moment, the grand eunuch coughed twice lightly, before walking over to the second prince¡¯s side and whispering into his ears.

    The second prince¡¯s eyes immediately brightened, and his lips curled into a radiant smile as he nodded his head.

    Then, the second prince turned towards Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen and suggested, ¡°Since you¡¯re all experts who have been invited by themander and you¡¯vee all this way, then we must treat you properly as guests. As the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom, it wouldn¡¯t be right if I neglected your presence here. How about this, I¡¯ve got an exclusive private room within this inn. Let me buy you all dinner in this private room of mine. What do you say?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately thought of tly refusing the second prince. But after several moments, she could not find any reason to turn him down.

    Furthermore, her window of opportunity to think of a reason to reject Rong Yebin was very quickly shut down by themander who promptly responded on their behalf, ¡°That¡¯s great! I sincerely thank the second prince for granting us this great honour. Second prince, apart from these two experts, there are over ten other experts who had travelled together with them. These experts are all seated within the great hall right now. Shall we ask them to join us?¡±

    ¡°But of course. I only wonder if...the two experts here would also agree to such an arrangement?¡± The second prince looked over at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen as he inquired again.

    Ye Xiuwen gently patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, tacitly telling her not to fret over this too much.

    Jun Xiaomo deliberated for a moment, before nodding in agreement, ¡°Then we¡¯ll have to thank the second prince in advance for your hospitality.¡±

    It¡¯s just a meal anyway. I don¡¯t believe that the second prince would dare make any move against me!

 Chapter 93: Yu Wanrouâ€™s New Target

    <h4>Chapter 93: Yu Wanrou¡¯s New Target</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    While Ye Xiuwen dashed out of the inn after hearing the loud bang, the other members of his entourage all remained seated at the table. None of them had any intention to leave their seats to take a look at what had happened. After all, Yao Mo was nothing more than an outsider to them, and they couldn¡¯t care less whether something happened to him at all.

    Evidently, these disciples had already forgotten that their safe arrival at Xingping County had beenrgely contingent on the fact that Yao Mo had disposed of the Demonvine earlier. Otherwise, who could be sure whether they would be able to escape from the Demonvine¡¯s pursuit with life and limb intact?

    That said, Yi Hong and Di Yue did cast their gaze over at the doors to the inn. Several people seemed to be gathered around, watching amotion of sorts, but they couldn¡¯t tell what was going on exactly from where they were. However, they knew that Yao Mo was a cultivator with peculiar abilities. Logically speaking, the mortals who would be able to hurt Yao Mo were few and far between. Furthermore, their martial brother Ye had gone out to check on Yao Mo as well. With martial brother Ye¡¯s protection, what kind of danger could Yao Mo possibly be in?

    Having contemted these things, Yi Hong and Di Yue also continued to remain seated in the great hall, together with the rest of the disciples from Dawn Sect.

    At first, they thought that Ye Xiuwen would return very quickly. Unexpectedly, it was only after most of the dishes they had ordered earlier had arrived at the table did Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo return. They even brought along with them an entourage led by a man dressed in blue garbs who exuded an air of nobility about him. The mere fact that over twenty armed guards followed this man was testament to the extent of his unusual stature.

    ¡°This is...¡± Qin Lingyu stood up in a modest fashion as he asked politely.

    ¡°This man here is the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince. Second prince, these formidable guests are the experts whom we¡¯ve invited to assist in the capture of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s most wanted fugitive. The man standing right there is Qin Lingyu. He¡¯s the leader of this group of people, and he¡¯s also the First-Seat Disciple of Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader.¡±

    Themander had walked behind the second prince deferentially when he had returned to the inn. Then, when they arrived at the table, themander took a few steps forward, and took the initiative to make introductions to everyone present.

    ¡°So, it¡¯s the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom. It¡¯s an honour to meet you.¡± Qin Lingyu respectfully made a fist and palm salute to him.

    The second prince immediately folded his fans and returned the gesture,mending him, ¡°The Dawn Sect Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple is truly young and outstanding. The honour is all mine.¡±

    After having exchanged pleasantries with each other, the second prince remarked, ¡°The great hall is far too noisy, and this ce is not suitable for hosting such distinguished guests as yourselves. How about this ¨C I¡¯ve got an exclusive private room within this inn. Would these honourable guests mind if this prince hosted you there instead?¡±

    ¡°This...the dishes here have just been served.¡± Yi Hong was slightly stunned by the second prince¡¯s suggestions, and in his muddle-headedness, he pointed towards the neatly presented table of food as he stammered.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. My subordinates haven¡¯t eaten yet, so we can let them have those dishes.¡± The second prince waved his hands as he casually responded.

    ¡°Thank you, second prince.¡± The second prince¡¯s subordinates immediately raised their hands and gave the second prince a fist and palm salute at the same time as they thanked the second prince in unison.

    When the deep voices of over twenty men resounded in unison within the small, confined space of the great hall, the resultant response was naturally amplified, giving off a certain sense of grandeur.

    Several guests eating in the great hall immediately stopped moving as they looked over at the entourage of people in awe.

    The second prince had already grown used to such looks of admiration from the others, and he was unfazed by all the attention he was getting. On the other hand, it was the disciples from Dawn Sect who seemed slightly unsettled when they realized they had just be the center of attention.

    ¡°Then, on behalf of all the disciples from Dawn Sect, I thank the second prince for this gracious reception.¡± Qin Lingyu once again gestured to the second prince courteously. It was neither overboard, nor insufficient. Qin Lingyu disyed just the right amount of dignity which anyone would expect these reputable sects to possess.

    If one ignored the schemes and plots that were constantly being woven in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, the solemn and dignified manner in which Qin Lingyu usually carried himself was in fact truly deceiving.

    With that, the second prince made another polite gesture to the disciples, directing them to follow one of the inn¡¯s attendant, who promptly led them towards the second prince¡¯s exclusive private room.

    ----------------------------------------

    The second prince¡¯s subordinates remained at the great hall as they partook of the table of dishes which had already been served. The only ones who joined the second prince at his exclusive private room were the Dawn Sect disciples as well at themander who had made introductions earlier.

    The Cloudguest Inn was thergest inn within Xingping County, and the room they were in was an exclusive private room permanently booked out by the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince. Naturally, the room was extremely exquisite. From the design of theyout to the furnishings and the ornaments around ¨C everything was a far cry from theparatively ordinary look of the rest of the inn. Even the walls of this room were iid with several spirit stones as mere essories.

    To put things into perspectives, spirit stones were such treasures tomoners that that they would even go through the trouble of breaking a single spirit stone into two or more pieces just so that they could use them in separate asions. Therefore, the present sight of this room waspletely unfathomable to thesemoners.

    In fact, even the Dawn Sect disciples were astonished by the extravagance of this room. They sighed as they eximed in their hearts ¨C There¡¯s truly no basis forparison. Even though we take pleasure in the fact that we lead afortable life, our wealth is still hardly worth a fraction of what this second prince possesses!

    Yu Wanrou silently sized up the second prince in her heart. Then, she immediately clutched tightly at the small scarf that was in her hands, suppressing the excitement in her heart.

    Truth be told, she had always fantasized about a day when she would be able to encounter in her travels a prince charming who possessed all the wealth and status she could desire in the world. However, given how uneventfully the earlier days of their travels had been, she began to lose hope in these dreams of hers. To make matters worse, she found that her rtionship with Qin Lingyu had only seemed to grow more distant and strained.

    So what if she had by her side someone ever so diligent in his attempts at earning her approval? Ke Xinwen had never been part of her consideration to begin with. She had only drawn closer to Ke Xinwen because she had intended to use Ke Xinwen to provoke Qin Lingyu. In the end, not only was she unable to achieve that goal of hers, she was even relegated to the sidelines where she could only silently watch on as that unsightly Zhong Run stuck to Qin Lingyu and employed all forms of seduction techniques on him. Oh, how she wished to tear Zhong Run¡¯s beautiful appearances to shreds!

    Could it be that my charms have weakened? When the dark night enshrouded thends in its stillness, Yu Wanrou would always find herself questioning the extent of her charms time and again. Despite that, she would never be able to find a satisfactory answer to her questions.

    She had almost given up all hopes for achieving any of her goals during these travels. However, just when she was about to be resigned to all these, she unexpectedly encountered a twist of fate and met with the prince charming of her dreams, the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom! The second prince was handsome and suave, and he was hardly inferior to Qin Lingyu in any respect.

    Furthermore, she had even heard on the grapevine that the second prince had been earmarked as the future king of the Inferno Kingdom!

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips as she thought excitedly ¨C I cannot let this opportunity slip away!

    As Yu Wanrou began to deliberate about how she would win over the second prince of the Inferno Kingdom and make him herckey, the second prince casually flicked open his fan and sized up the entire group of disciples around him.

    Naturally, this was not because he felt threatened by any of their presence. Rather, he did so because this was how habitually searched out potential preys.

    It could not be understated that there were rarely ugly people in the cultivation world. This was because as cultivators umted spiritual energies or demonic energies to refine their meridians and Dantian, they naturally transformed the constitution of their bodies in that process as well. As a result of that, cultivators naturally possessed better looks and auras about them than mere mortals.

    The second prince tapped his palm with his folded fan as he sighed with admiration in his heart. Dawn Sect is indeed filled with handsome men and beautifuldies!

    However, he wasn¡¯t interested in thoserge and burly disciples seated in front of him. Even though he enjoyed devouring both men and women alike, his preferences included only the weak and tender-looking young people like Yao Mo. Therefore, among all who were present, only Zhong Run and Yu Wanrou caught his eye.

    Zhong Run and Yu Wanrou both had their fair share of secret admirers within Dawn Sect ¨C this was testament to their attractive good looks and the charming manner in which they each carried themselves. When Rong Yebin¡¯s gaze swept over the two of them, his eyes had indeed shed with a trace of astonishment and admiration. He even paused ever so slightly to consider them ¨C how excellent would it be if he could invite these two exquisite beauties to his residence to live with him.

    In particr, when Rong Yebin set his gaze upon Yu Wanrou, her face momentarily flushed with a pink hue, before she lowered her head bashfully.

    Her bashfulness was partly genuine, and partly a pretense. Rong Yebin¡¯s good looks were attributable to the fact that he had inherited the best traits of both his parents. He possessed an attractive pair of eyes which seemed to be filled with boundless sentiments and emotions. When he curled the ends of his lips with a coy smile and gazed deeply into a person¡¯s eyes, few people would be able to resist the electrifying charms that he exuded. Yu Wanrou was no exception to this ¨C she could even hear her own heart thump with an elerated tempo as she locked eyes with him.

    The second prince is mine! When it urred to Yu Wanrou that she was now presented with the opportunity to be the queen of an entire kingdom, her heart was immediately filled with ambition.

    Tsk tsk, she¡¯s a beauty through and through. But she¡¯s no different from the other beauties in my residence. They¡¯ve got the same few expressions and the same old responses......

    Yu Wanrou would never have thought that the foolproof seduction tactics that she had always employed against other male cultivators had instead backfired against her, causing Rong Yebin¡¯s interest in her to dwindle instead.

    Then, Rong Yebin passed his gaze over the two beauties and fixed his eyes once again on Yao Mo.

    This young man is still the most adorable one of them all. That pair of glossy, tear-stained eyes that I witnessed earlier makes me want to tie him up in bed and ¡°punish¡± him so severely that he would put on an even more pitiable and adorable expression.

    Jun Xiaomo felt a goosebumps-inducing gazend on her body, and she immediately looked up to see where that gaze hade from. Then, she discovered that the second prince was gazing meaningfully at her body, and a peculiar smile even crept up the corner of his lips.

    Jun Xiaomo red back at him viciously, before tilting her body slightly, using her martial brother¡¯s body to obscure the second prince¡¯s vision of her.

    She did not wish to see Rong Yebin¡¯s nauseating looks ever again.

    On the other hand, that young man¡¯s re made Rong Yebin find him even more adorable than ever. It was akin to the aggrieved re from a cat after its whiskers had just been tickled.

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear what Rong Yebin was thinking at that instant, she would most certainly have thrown up in disgust. She waspletely disinterested in Rong Yebin¡¯s all-embracing, promiscuous attitude. Besides, Rong Yebin was even the archnemesis from her previous life!

    The second prince had been plotting how he could get Yao Mo to sit beside him at the table. Unexpectedly, Yu Wanrou made the first move instead. She smiled softly at the second prince as she asked coyly, ¡°Second prince, it¡¯s truly an honour to get to know you. May I sit here?¡±

    Rong Yebin looked back at Yu Wanrou with a slightly ambivalent gaze, before promptly responding, ¡°Since this exquisite beauty has made a request, this prince naturally cannot reject you. Please.¡±

    Yu Wanrou thanked him with a tender voice, before taking her seat with gratitude.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes were filled with fury. He had thought that Yu Wanrou¡¯s object of affection was himself. Was that not why she had elected to join his team in the first ce?

    What does this mean?! Could martial sister Wanrou have had a change of heart with just one nce at that detestable second prince?

    Qin Lingyu also squinted his eyes slightly as he nced over casually at Yu Wanrou. His fondness for Yu Wanrou had always been rtively shallow at best. Therefore, it did not affect him as much when he noticed Yu Wanrou¡¯s sudden change of heart.

    Jun Xiaomo took a gander at the brilliant and varied expressions disyed by these few people, and she snickered in her heart ¨C

    Who would have thought that she would have the fortune of seeing Yu Wanrou¡¯s lovers disy their jealousy all at the same time? That said, Yu Wanrou is still a rather mysterious person. After all, how did Yu Wanrou manage to subjugate all these men in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, to the extent that they were even willing to live harmoniously together and share one woman? Could it be that sharing their object of affection with others made their ¡°love¡± more meaningful?

    As Jun Xiaomo thought about how that scene might potentially look, she involuntarily shuddered in disgust.

    Perhaps I shouldn¡¯t think much more about it. The minds of these irrational people aren¡¯t something that I would be able to understand.

 Chapter 94: Drinking; Drunk

    <h4>Chapter 94: Drinking; Drunk</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was undeniably a beauty through and through. Her soft and tender tone of voice thoroughly pleased the second prince. Therefore, even though he found it rather regrettable that he had been denied the opportunity to coax the ¡°young man¡± to sit next to him, the second prince quickly shelved his desires for Yao Mo, and he devoted his full attention towards enjoying Yu Wanrou¡¯s tender loving care.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo could barely stand that nauseating, goosebumps-inducing gaze from the second prince! Therefore, when Yu Wanrou inadvertently diverted Rong Yebin¡¯s attention away from Jun Xiaomo and towards herself, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief in her heart. Seeing that the second prince¡¯s gaze was no longer trained on her, she quickly helped herself to arge piece of roasted meatloaf and took arge bite out of it. Instantly, the rich juices of the meat enveloped her taste buds, and Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks involuntarily as her taste buds danced in delight.

    The delicacies of this world are the best! Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t care less about the second prince anymore. After all, Jun Xiaomo had been cooking so much wild game over thest few days that she had started to grow sick of that smell of smoked meat over a fire.

    Yao Mo¡¯s expressions attracted the attention of two people. The first person was Ye Xiuwen; and the other was the second prince.

    Ye Xiuwen picked up some vegetables with his chopsticks and set it down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bowl as he spoke, ¡°Don¡¯t just eat meat. Have some vegetables.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo obediently nodded her head in response. Then, she set down the half-eaten piece of meatloaf and stuffed the vegetables into her mouth. As the second prince looked on curiously at how that ¡°young man¡± pursed his luscious lips slightly as he ate, nefarious thoughts once again ignited in his heart and flourished with passion.

    At the same time, the second prince also found the interactions between Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen rather curious.

    ¡°Brother Ye and brother Yao seem to have quite a good rtionship with each other.¡± The second prince pointed out meaningfully.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his head slightly and responded coolly, ¡°Little Mo is my benefactor, and he¡¯s also younger than me. It¡¯s natural that I should take care of him. In fact, I treat him as a younger brother of mine.¡±

    ¡°Ah, is that right? That¡¯s pretty good.¡± The second prince nced coquettishly at Jun Xiaomo again as he responded.

    Are you sure that he¡¯s just a younger brother to you? This atmosphere seems to suggest otherwise, hmm? The second prince mocked in his heart.

    The second prince was a person who devoured both men and women alike, and he treated Ye Xiuwen as a person who walked the ¡°same path¡± as him.

    Even then, he did not mind it even if Ye Xiuwen had such intentions towards Yao Mo. After all, precious things were often coveted and contested by many. Conversely, the second prince even perceived that things would be rather dull if not for that element ofpetition.

    When Yu Wanrou first encountered Rong Yebin in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, she already had several suitors and secret admirers by her side. Therefore, Rong Yebin perceived Yu Wanrou as an important target and pursued her actively. As things turned out, Yu Wanrou eventually came out on top of it all when she managed to subjugate Rong Yebin and made him one of the key characters within her following of men.

    But right now, Yu Wanrou only had one suitor beside her, Ke Xinwen. Furthermore, Ke Xinwen had not actively wooed Yu Wanroutely because he had been so preupied with the existence of Qin Lingyu¡¯s poison within his body. Therefore, Yu Wanrou was rated nowhere near a coveted, precious object to the second prince at this moment.

    Rong Yebin had never rejected anyone who presented themselves to him for his pleasure. That said, it took much more to pique his interest and draw his attention. After all, Rong Yebin never treasured things that could be easily obtained.

    Little did Jun Xiaomo know that things would be so different in her present life. How could she have known that the rtionship between Rong Yebin and Yu Wanrou would develop so differently now?

    However, even if Jun Xiaomo were made aware of such matters, perhaps the difference would hardly matter to her in any event.

    Midway through their feast, the second prince suddenly retrieved several bottles of spirit wine in his euphoria as he proimed to everyone, ¡°Attention please! To think that I¡¯d actually forgotten about something as important as this. Distinguished guests, it¡¯s truly our honour that you havee from afar and made time just to assist us in capturing the fugitive who made an attempt at my father¡¯s life. Therefore, it¡¯s only deserving that I host you with these bottles of good wine.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re too kind, second prince.¡± Qin Lingyu politely returned the second prince¡¯smendations with a fist and palm salute.¡±

    ¡°Eh, this is the truth, not just some mere pleasantries. Besides, good food always tastes better when paired with some good wine. It¡¯s no wonder I had that niggling thought that something was missing earlier. This important detail must¡¯ve slipped my mind because I¡¯d been too worried and anxious about my father¡¯s condition.¡±

    As the second prince spoke, he waved his hand gently, and the bottlecaps of the wine bottles all opened on their own.

    Instantly, the scent of the spirit wines wafted into the air and filled the entire room with its fragrance. Several disciples who appreciated a good wine every now and then even involuntarily curled up their eyes into squinches and smiled with delight as they indulged themselves in the aroma of the spirit wines.

    When Jun Xiaomo heard the second prince¡¯s words, she mocked him secretly in her heart ¨C Hmph, what a filial son the second prince is. Despite his grieving and ¡°muddle-headedness¡±, he still never forgets to delight in beauties. Tch. However, when the second prince opened the spirit wine bottles, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts were immediately enraptured by the fragrance of the spirit wine that filled the room.

    Apart from the delectable food in this world, Jun Xiaomo loved her wines too.

    ¡°Seems that Little Mo finds the spirit wines rather satisfactory too, huh?¡± The second prince suddenly chuckled and poured out a cup of spirit wine and presented it to Jun Xiaomo as he prompted, ¡°Would you like to try some?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo wanted to roll her eyes when she heard the second prince address her as ¡°Little Mo¡±. However, she knew that everyone was watching her right now, and doing so would only invite trouble to herself. After all, only her martial brother Ye would stand on her side if things went downhill.

    And besides, the spirit wine¡¯s fragrance was truly tempting. Jun Xiaomo reflexively stretched out her hand to receive the cup...

    Then, a long, slender arm held Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, pulling it back.

    ¡°Little Mo¡¯s still too young to be drinking wine. Second prince, please excuse him.¡± Ye Xiuwen rejected the second prince with a calm voice. Yet at the same time, his voice seemed to carry traces of intransigence.

    ¡°I¡¯m not that young...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered in objection.

    In fact, her soul was already a few hundred years old ¨C this was well over ten times of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present age.

    Ye Xiuwen heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯sint, but he remained taciturn as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Despite that, Jun Xiaomo knew what Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gesture meant ¨C Be good and listen to me.

    However, Jun Xiaomo continued to stare intently at that cup of wine ¨C as though her eyes could drill holes into that opaque cup at this moment.

    She truly wished to drink that cup of spirit wine...

    The second prince chuckled lightly as he added fuel to fire, ¡°Sixteen years isn¡¯t too young either. After all, this prince has already had a taste of the royal pce¡¯s strongest wine when he was only thirteen years of age. Besides, the alcohol content of this spirit wine isn¡¯t too high at all. I believe that brother Yao should be able to hold his liquor.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately turned her head towards Ye Xiuwen and looked at him expectantly with her bright, gleaming eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed helplessly. He somehow felt that the second prince seemed to have an ulterior motive for all of this. Therefore, he was reticent to allow Yao Mo to take the second prince¡¯s bait and let the second prince reel him in.

    Jun Xiaomo knew the extent of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s concern from that sigh of his, and her heart swelled with warmth. Even then, she looked over towards Ye Xiuwen and mouthed to him ¨C You don¡¯t have to worry about his schemes. I can hold my liquor, and my Interspatial Ring contains several treasures that can be used to dispel poisons. I¡¯m not afraid even if he poisons me.

    After she finished ¡°speaking¡±, she continued to stare pleadingly into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as she blinked a few times.

    Ye Xiuwen found it hard to argue against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s puppy eyes, and he relented.

    Immediately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened and she smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen. Then, she promptly received the exquisite looking cup that contained the spirit wine from the second prince. She brought it close to her nose and took a strong whiff at it.

    This spirit wine truly possessed the ability to dden the heart and refresh the mind. Just that one whiff of the wine seemed to send intoxicating tingles across every fiber of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, causing her body to feel as though it were floating with euphoria.

    She stuck out her tongue and licked a little bit of the wine. The biting astringency of the liquor danced about on her pte momentarily before it quickly subsided, and then in its ce, a refreshing fragrance of wine permeated every corner of her mouth, instantly seizing her mind and rousing her spirits.

    ¡°Such good wine!¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but exim in astonishment as she curled up her slightly intoxicated looking eyes in delight. She had not tasted wine for too long! Towards the end of her previous life, she had been locked up in that dank and dark dungeon without ess to any form of alcohol. Then, when she was reborn in the young and tender age of sixteen years-old, her mother Liu Qingmei naturally disallowed her to touch a single drop of alcohol.

    ¡°Haha, brother Yao is truly a fellow connoisseur of wine. Since that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s all drink to our heart¡¯s content tonight! We won¡¯t stop till we¡¯re drunk! Brother Qin, what do you say?¡±

    The second prince¡¯s final statement was directed at Qin Lingyu because he knew that Qin Lingyu was the decision maker in this group of people, and the second prince naturally had to show respect by seeking his approval first.

    Naturally, Qin Lingyu did not have any objections to this. After all, spirit wine was greatly beneficial to cultivators. To begin with, it was their fortune that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince was willing to host them with such precious and valuable spirit wines. Since that was the case, why would he possibly reject the second prince¡¯s kind gesture?

    Ye Xiuwen curled up his index finger and rapped Jun Xiaomo gently on the head as he cautioned with a stern voice, ¡°Don¡¯t go overboard.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue and responded, ¡°I won¡¯t get drunk. I swear!¡± As she said that, she even curled up her lips with a mischievous smile as she added, ¡°I¡¯m quite a heavyweight in this regard. Don¡¯t worry, brother Ye.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Yao Mo helplessly. Somehow, something told him that Yao Mo¡¯sst statement ought to be taken with a pinch of salt.

    Forget it. If things go south from here, I¡¯ll just have to take care of him. I can¡¯t just leave him here after all.

    Jun Xiaomo was extremely confident in her ability to hold her liquor because she had not gotten drunk no matter how much she drank in her previous life. However, there was one small detail that she had missed out ¨C her current physical body was only that of a sixteen years-old, and this physical body had never touched a single drop of alcohol prior to this, much less precious, aged spirit wine like the present one. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo started to show signs of intoxication after consuming only five cups of spirit wine.

    ¡°I...I still want to drink! Let me drink!¡± Jun Xiaomo knitted her eyebrows as she tried to snatch the cup of wine from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. However, Ye Xiuwen easily avoided each of her attempts.

    ¡°You have to stop drinking. You¡¯re getting drunk.¡± Ye Xiuwen felt truly exasperated by this little drunk kitten in front of him.

    ¡°Pfft. I...I¡¯m not drunk! I¡¯m so clear-headed! Brother Ye...I want to drink...¡± Jun Xiaomo once again lunged towards Ye Xiuwen with both of her arms. Then, with just one move, Ye Xiuwen avoided Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grasp and restrained both of her arms and held Jun Xiaomo tightly.

    ¡°Hahaha, Little Mo looks pretty adorable when he¡¯s drunk, doesn¡¯t he?¡± The second prince licked his lips and ran his finger along the edge of his cup as hemented. Even then, he continued to gaze intently at Yao Mo as she continued to be restrained by Ye Xiuwen.

    That young man¡¯s eyes had turned slightly hazy as a result of his intoxication, as though they were covered with a thin gloss of tears. His cheeks were glowing with a tinge of red hues, as though he had just applied ayer of blusher on his face. Yao Mo¡¯s lips had even turned slightly puffy from the alcohol¡¯s irritation ¨C as though it were beckoning and inviting someone to...

    The second prince¡¯s eyes were now burning with fiery passion. Anyone, apart from fools, would be able to understand what that gaze meant.

    Yet this only caused Yu Wanrou to bite down on her lips viciously. How could she ept the fact that she had lost out to a ¡°man¡± right now?! What kind of a joke was this?! Are things kind of rtionships even tolerable in ancient times?

    Ye Xiuwen was even more displeased right now. A cold gaze swept over the second prince¡¯s body as a frigid voice rang out, ¡°Second prince, Little Mo has clearly sumbed to the strength of the wine. Please excuse me as I escort him back to the inn.¡±

    ¡°Ah-ah-ah, wait a moment. Don¡¯t be so hasty.¡± The second prince gestured for Ye Xiuwen to hold on as he added, ¡°Little Mo¡¯s only a little bit drunk. He doesn¡¯t seem to be in any form of difort either. So, what¡¯s the rush? Let him stay around for a little while longer, hmm? Besides, brother Ye hasn¡¯t had any spirit wine yet either. Could it be that you despise the spirit wine that I¡¯ve brought out?¡±

    ¡°Second prince sure has a good sense of humour. However, that¡¯s not the case ¨C I¡¯m just not great at holding my liquor.¡± Ye Xiuwen replied with indifference.

    ¡°Come on, just because you¡¯re not good at holding your liquor doesn¡¯t mean that you can¡¯t drink at all. If brother Yao can¡¯t hold his liquor anymore, then I invite brother Ye to drink in his ce! How about it? Let me make a toast to you first!¡± As he said that, the second prince poured out a cup of wine for himself and drank it all in one gulp. Then, he showed Ye Xiuwen his empty cup as a sign of respect to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen raised the cup in his hands slightly as he looked at the second prince smiling right back at him.

    After deliberating for a moment, Ye Xiuwen drank the spirit wine in his cup all in one gulp as well. Then, in a simr fashion, he showed Rong Yebin his empty cup, reciprocating the respect shown to him earlier.

    ¡°Splendid! Brother Ye is truly forting! Another round! Come, everyone, let¡¯s drink together!¡± As the second prince eximed, he instructed themander to fill everyone¡¯s cup with spirit wine, before making a toast to everyone again.

    Even though the alcohol content of this spirit wine wasn¡¯t too high, but its aftereffects were nevertheless apparent. After several more rounds of toasting, most people had sumbed to the strength of the spirit wine¡¯s aftereffects and copsed on the table. Finally, there were only three who remained sober ¨C Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu and the second prince.

    The second prince¡¯s initial n was to incapacitate Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo with the spirit wine, before bringing Yao Mo back to his own abode to do as he pleased. Unexpectedly, despite inundating Ye Xiuwen with several rounds of spirit wine, Ye Xiuwen seemed to remainpletely impervious to the effects of the spirit wine!

    Tch, the aftereffects of this wine are formidable ¨C I don¡¯t believe you will be able to hold out till the end! The second prince chuckled coldly in his heart as he nced over at Ye Xiuwen. He was extremely confident in his ability to hold his liquor, and under the pretext of all types of toasts towards Ye Xiuwen, he continued to ply Ye Xiuwen with cup after cup of spirit wine.

 Chapter 95: Werewolf Prince

    <h4>Chapter 95: Werewolf Prince</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Five bottles of spirit wine had beenpletely polished off, and thest bottle of spirit wine was almost empty as well. Rong Yebin¡¯s hands involuntarily swayed about as he lifted his cup of wine. Then, he struggled even more in his attempt to set the mouth of thatst bottle of spirit wine over his cup. His vision grew somewhat hazy, and his body started swaying about slightly...

    Finally, the second prince Rong Yebin copsed on the table with a resounding thud. Thest bottle of spirit wine which he had been holding also fell out of his hands and onto the table. The rest of the bottle¡¯s contents flowed out onto the table and trickled along a serpentine course until it dripped off the side of the table.

    Now, the only two people who remained sober at this round table were Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu sighed meaningfully as he set his cup down,menting, ¡°It¡¯s such a pity that the perfectly good spirit wine in that bottle had been wasted like that.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen also calmly set down the cup in his hands, and a crisp sound promptly resounded in the otherwise silent room.

    As the crisp sound reverberated slightly, Qin Lingyu looked towards Ye Xiuwen and curled his lips into a wry smile as he remarked, ¡°I never would have thought that martial brother Ye was such a heavyweight in holding his liquor. Seems like martial brother Ye was merely being humble earlier when you said you hardly drank at all.¡±

    ¡°You tter me, martial brother Qin.¡± Ye Xiuwen curtly responded. Evidently, Ye Xiuwen had no intention to continue chatting with Qin Lingyu.

    Ever since he discovered the well-concealed intentions in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t even be bothered to feign civility with Qin Lingyu any longer. Besides, Qin Lingyu was even fooling around with other women despite the existence of his marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be bringing Yao Mo back to the inn first, and I¡¯ll have to trouble martial brother Qin to take care of this ce. The second prince¡¯s subordinates are all still having their meal below, and I¡¯m sure they would be happy to help if you asked.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded at Qin Lingyu, before lifting Yao Mo in his arms.

    When Jun Xiaomo first got drunk, she kicked up a huge fuss when Ye Xiuwen stopped her from consuming any more spirit wine. As time went by and she grew more spent from kicking up the fuss, she obedientlyid on the table and finally fell into a deep slumber.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo was in such a deep sleep right now that she didn¡¯t even stir when Ye Xiuwen carried her horizontally.

    As Ye Xiuwen carried Jun Xiaomo all the way back to her inn, he attracted the peculiar gazes from several passers-by. After all, a tall andnky man who donned a veiled conical hat and exuded a dignified, cold aura was carrying a young man ¨C not a treasure sword; not a beautifuldy; but unmistakably, a young man. To make matters worse, he even carried the young man horizontally. A strange and ambiguous atmosphere seemed to enshroud these two people, and several passers-by raised their eyebrows when they nced over at them suspiciously, wondering what their rtionship might be.

    ¡°Sigh. Public morals are degenerating with each passing day.¡± An elderly man walking along the side of the street sighed as he shook his head before entering his abode and shutting the door.

    It was as though he was living out in practice the idiom that ¡°the heart doesn¡¯t grieve over what the eye doesn¡¯t see¡±.

    Despite all of that, Ye Xiuwen turned a blind eye to the peculiar stares that the public were giving him along the way until he finally arrived at the reception of the inn. Ye Xiuwen looked at the innkeeper as he asked, ¡°Innkeeper, do you still have any rooms avable?¡±

    ¡°Uh-huh. We do, we do. Xiaoyou!¡± The innkeeper called out to his attendant.

    ¡°Yes, boss, I¡¯ming. What are your instructions?¡±

    ¡°Bring these...two guests to the Sky Wing¡¯s second room.¡± The innkeeper instructed.

    ¡°Mm! Gotcha!¡± The attendant turned towards Ye Xiuwen as he gestured to him with his arms, ¡°Dear guests, this way please.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen carried Jun Xiaomo and followed the attendant all the way to the Sky Wing¡¯s second room. When they arrived, the attendant politely opened the room¡¯s door for them.

    Then, after Ye Xiuwen stepped into the room and set Jun Xiaomo gently on the bed, the attendant bowed politely behind Ye Xiuwen as he added, ¡°Dear guest, you may call on me if you need hot waterter.¡±

    ¡°Hot water?¡± Ye Xiuwen froze for a moment.

    ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right. When you¡¯re...finished with that thing, it would be best to wash the other guest with hot water. There¡¯s a lower chance of falling ill that way.¡± The attendant advised him sincerely.

    Ye Xiuwen: ...... Even though the attendant had taken the trouble to speak with innuendoes, he could still understand what the attendant was implying.

    However, the attendant did not notice Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar expressions because of his veiled conical hat. Instead, he mistook Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silence for an expression of impatience. Therefore, the attendant immediately excused himself, ¡°Then I shan¡¯t bother the two of you any further. Rest well, dear guests.¡±

    As he finished speaking, the attendant turned around and slipped out of the room. He even ¡°considerately¡± closed the door behind him for Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s privacy.

    After a moment of silence, Ye Xiuwen managed topose himself and rubbed his forehead helplessly ¨C Do all attendants at inns have vivid imaginations of the rtionship of their guests, or is this particr attendant just special?

    Regardless, Ye Xiuwen understood that he had received many peculiar nces and stares on the way to the inn earlier as well. Naturally, none of these passers-by were able to ascertain their rtionship from that one nce of theirs. However, this did not change the fact that such interactions between two males were nevertheless rarely seen.

    Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen had always had the option of carrying Yao Mo on his back. Nevertheless, he chose to carry Yao Mo horizontally when he noticed how well Yao Mo was sleeping at that moment.

    As Ye Xiuwen noticed how Yao Mo was resting in such a docile manner, Ye Xiuwen was suddenly filled with a strange sense of satisfaction.

    ¡°Unngh...¡± As though the bed weren¡¯tfortable, Jun Xiaomo began to stir from her deep slumber as she tossed and turned about.

    Ye Xiuwen walked over to her side, intending to draw a nket over Yao Mo¡¯s body. Unexpectedly, Yao Mo instinctively grabbed onto his right hand and brought his hand over her cheek. Then, she rubbed her cheek against her hand tenderly and endearingly.

    Yao Mo¡¯s body temperature was slightly on the higher side as a result of the wine he had drunk. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands remained rather cool to the touch. Under the juxtaposition of these two different temperatures, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm instantly felt a burning hot sensation, as though it had contacted a zing fire.

    He reflexively pulled back his hand. Yet as his pinky incidentally ran across Yao Mo¡¯s face as he was doing so, he felt as though he had just touched a piece of clean silk.

    Ye Xiuwen slowly clenched his fist. His mind was suddenly filled with thoughts about his little martial sister right now. Yet, he stared nkly at the man in front of him, Yao Mo. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes flickered with uncertainty.

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stupor, she noticed that she had grabbed onto something cool andfortable to the touch which helped in easing the burning sensation off her face. Unexpectedly, that object pulled back after a mere few moments.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo waved her hands about, desperately trying to locate where that ¡°object¡± had gone. Evidently, she was displeased with its sudden departure.

    Ye Xiuwen fiercely stood up, avoiding Yao Mo¡¯s arms that seemed to be grabbing for him.

    He cast Yao Mo aplicated gaze as he clenched his fists once more. Then, without turning back, Ye Xiuwen left the room.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room was once again enshrouded withplete silence.

    -------------------------------------------

    As the night wore on, Ye Xiuwen never once took another step back into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. At the same time, he also instructed the attendant not to let anyone disrupt the guest in that room.

    Upon hearing that, the attendant realized immediately that he had been gravely misguided as to the rtionship between those two guests. He quickly apologized for the misunderstanding, before acknowledging Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instructions.

    Hourster.

    It waste at night, and Jun Xiaomo awakened to a throbbing pain on the temples of her head. She jolted to her senses, before realizing that there was a piece of cloth folded neatly on her forehead.

    That...how did I end up here? Who brought me here?

    Previously, they had been invited to the Cloudguest inn before they could even secure a room in this inn. Therefore, when they returned at night, they would still have to process their registration and ce a deposit with the innkeeper before they could stay the night.

    It must¡¯ve been martial brother Ye. Jun Xiaomo puffed her cheeks up in embarrassment as she though ¨C I¡¯ve really embarrassed myself big time. I got myself drunk with only a few rounds of drinks. And this was especially after I assured him with such confidence that I wouldn¡¯t get drunk at all!

    Fine, so the fact that she managed tost a whole five cups before getting drunk was somewhat a constion to her.

    As Jun Xiaomo thought about this, she decided that she would sincerely apologize to Ye Xiuwen the next day. After all, she must have worried him sick when she turned tipsy from the drinks.

    The fact of the matter was that Jun Xiaomo had also gotten drunk in her previous life before. However, she invariably managed to sober uppletely after just one night¡¯s sleep. This was a result of her body¡¯s constitution, and thus it was the same in her present life as well. Even though her head was still throbbing slightly, she no longer felt dizzy. In fact, she even feltpletely refreshed.

    However, that was to be expected. After all, she had slept the entire afternoon away. It would be strange if she didn¡¯t feel refreshed after all that.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved the little bag containing her little packrat. Then, she opened the bag, and gently lifted her little packrat out of the bag.

    Jun Xiaomo had made it a point to keep a healthy stash of pine nuts inside the bag at all times so that the little packrat wouldn¡¯t be hungry at all. Then, when it realized that Jun Xiaomo had not shown any signs of letting it out even after it had eaten and drank its fill, it resigned to its fate and fell asleep in its bag. It even seemed to have ¡°saved¡± a little kernel of pine nut on one of its whiskers forter.

    ¡°You truly are a carefree little fe.¡± Jun Xiaomo gently stroked her little packrat¡¯s head as she retrieved a little basket from her Interspatial Ring, tenderly set the little packrat inside the basket and covered it with a tiny nket.

    It wasn¡¯t a good thing to keep the little packrat cooped up in its bag all the time. Even though the bag allowed for the cirction of air, her little packrat would nevertheless get upset after some time.

    After attending to her little packrat, Jun Xiaomo intended to retrieve the Beast-taming Technique from her Interspatial Ring to run through its contents again. However, when she reached into her Interspatial Ring, she incidentally discovered that the Blood Jade in her Interspatial Ring was glowing dimly at this very moment!

    Could it be that the first prince is nearby?! Jun Xiaomo shot to her feet, pped on herself a Windsail Talisman and leapt out of the window immediately.

    Under the effects of the Windsail Talisman, she floated down from height andnded on the ground safely. Then, she lifted the Blood Jade in her hands and tried to determine the direction where the first prince was located from her.

    Whenever she brought the Blood Jade towards the direction of the first prince, the Blood Jade would grow brighter ever so slightly.

    Under the guidance of this principle, Jun Xiaomo ran along the empty streets in the dead of the night as the Blood Jade glowed brighter and brighter. This was proof that she was headed in the right direction.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s speed had been increased due to the effects of the Windsail Talisman. However, the first prince¡¯s speed was not too shabby either. Jun Xiaomo felt as though she had to run with all her might before the Blood Jade began to glow slightly brighter.

    It should be that shadow in the distance!

    In the dim illumination of the moonlight, Jun Xiaomo discovered a beast-like shadow that seemed to be running on all fours. Even though she had her reservations, the Blood Jade¡¯s brightness nevertheless told her that this was the person whom she was looking for.

    As the distance grew closer and closer, Jun Xiaomo began to make preparations. She retrieved two talismans, intending to p on herself a talisman to further enhance her abilities, and at the same time hit her target with a Body-Binding Talisman to cease his movements. Unexpectedly, the shadow flickered for a moment, and then it simply vanished into thin air!

    What?! Wasn¡¯t that the first prince¡¯s top speed earlier? What kind of a human is he? His speed seems to be even quicker than martial brother Ye who¡¯s already at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery!

    Could the first prince also possess a wind-based spiritual root with a higher cultivation level than martial brother? Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she contemted.

    But time was not on her side. She had lost sight of her target, and she had no choice but to use the Blood Jade to determine once again the position of her target.

    Seems to be...over here! Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and began running in the direction pointed out by the Blood Jade once more!

    However, as time wore on, it became more and more apparent that the first prince treated this chase as no more than a game of tag. Whenever she drew near her target, the shadow would immediately flicker and vanish into thin air.

    After four hours of this pointless chase, Jun Xiaomo waspletely spent. Despite having used the Windsail Talisman, maintaining her speed for such a long time was truly a stretch for someone who did not possess a wind-based spiritual root to begin with.

    Sigh, forget it. I¡¯ll try locating him again next time. Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly as she turned to return to the inn.

    Jun Xiaomo did not return through the main door of the inn. Instead, she used another Windsail Talisman on herself. Then, in three quick leaps, she arrived at the windowsill of her room. What Jun Xiaomo had not expected was that an uninvited guest was already waiting in her room.

    As soon as her feet touched the ground in her room, a pair of strong, burly arms instantly caught her around her waist, and she felt a rigid, muscr chest press against her back. At this moment, she couldn¡¯t tell whether her assant had intended to kill her or not. That said, that pair of strong, burly arms had mped down around her waist so tightly that her back felt as though it was going to be snapped in half! Furthermore, her assant had proficiently trussed her arms, restraining any possible attempts at resistance!

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely caught by surprise, and she was terrified. Just as she was thinking about a way to escape her present predicament, a deep, booming voice resounded from just behind her head ¨C

    ¡°You¡¯re looking for me?¡±

    His voice was distant and cold. It was so cold that it seemed to be devoid of emotions. However, Jun Xiaomo managed to guess her assant¡¯s identity immediately.

    ¡°You¡¯re the first prince!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo turned around. This time, her assant did not restrain this action of hers. It was as though for some reason he decided to loosen his restraint on her.

    As a result, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes met with a pair of eyes that left her momentarily stunned ¨C

    The first prince¡¯s eyes were filled with an emotionless and soulless gaze like that of a wolf. His bloodshot eyes werepletely devoid of any rationality, and the only thing she saw in his eyes were the manic instincts of a beast.

 Chapter 96: The First Prince Who Lost Control

    <h4>Chapter 96: The First Prince Who Lost Control</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Danger!

    This was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s first thoughts when she saw the pair of bloodshot eyes transfixed on her. A ring rm resounded in her mind.

    Run!

    This was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reflexive thought after her mind alerted her to the presence of danger.

    These two thoughts shed past Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind within a fraction of a second. However, before Jun Xiaomo could trante these thoughts into actions, the first prince¡¯s bloodshot eyes once again roiled with a manic expression. He suddenly lunged forward, pinning Jun Xiaomo down directly under the weight of his body. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back mmed heavily into the windowsill, and a jolt of immense pain surged like electricity through her body, and she almost cried out in pain.

    Jun Xiaomo red furiously at the first prince. Just as she was about to ask him why he was in such a manic frenzy, the first prince immediately wrapped one of his hands tightly around her throat. Jun Xiaomo struggled to fight back the choking sensation as she pried away at the first prince¡¯s fingers. However, her attempts were in vain. The first prince forcefully restrained her hands with his free hand, cutting off any attempts at resistance once more.

    Jun Xiaomo wanted to curse and swear at him! When had she ever provoked this man before her? She hadn¡¯t even met this man before, much less do anything to invoke his ire and animosity!

    If she died right now ¨C not in the hands of her archnemeses, but in the hands of aplete stranger ¨C how tragic would it be? There would be no proper closure to her life!

    However, it was clear that the first prince did not intend to kill Jun Xiaomo. He only clutched at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, forcing her to raise her chin. Then, just like a beast, he got on all fours and begun sniffing at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with his nose.

    From the side of her face, to her ears, to her neck, and then all the way down. The heaving and sighing of his breath on her skin caused her to get goosebumps time and again.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... She could not have encountered a wastrel here, could she?!

    She attempted to struggle once again, but this was only met with an even greater force of restraint on her. Despite imbuing her body with her true energy, she still found herself inextricably bound by the first prince.

    At this moment, it suddenly crossed her mind that her present predicament was very much akin to an encounter with the Demonvine. The Demonvine would tighten its constriction around its prey the more its prey struggled, until its prey finally dissolved in its corrosive fluids.

    A retching feeling swelled up within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s guts. Just as she thought of struggling against the first prince¡¯s restraints again, she suddenly heard a loud squeak ¨C the little packrat had awakened from its slumber and charged towards the first prince in fury. Its body was even enshrouded with immense demonic energy right this instant!

    Last time, the little packrat had channeled the outburst of demonic energy in its body to save Ye Xiuwen. And this time, it thought to do the same to rescue Jun Xiaomo!

    However, the little packrat seemed to have miscalcted. Just as its body exploded with demonic energy, the first prince loosened his restraint on Jun Xiaomo, cocked his head and grabbed the little packrat tightly, causing it to let out a long, shrill squeak in pain.

    ¡°Packie!¡± Jun Xiaomo waspletely terrified by the prospects that her little packrat would be hurt by the first prince. The rims of her eyes reddened instantly, and she immediately retrieved a Thunderbolt Talisman from her Interspatial Ring and tossed it straight towards the first prince¡¯s body.

    The first princepletely ignored Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions. He looked straight at the little packrat with his bloodshot eyes. Then, after a moment, he suddenly opened his mouth and sent the little packrat straight into his mouth.

    ¡°Packie!!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo let out a desperate cry when she saw this. At the same time, she operated her true energy and activated the Thunderbolt Talisman on the first prince¡¯s body. A deafening crackle resounded within the room. Then, a deep, gruesome wound appeared on the first prince¡¯s body.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat took the opportunity to slip away from the first prince, scuttling over to safety.

    His prey had escaped; and he had been severely wounded! At this moment, the manic frenzy in the first prince¡¯s eyes had elevated to new heights, and he started thrashing about in his surroundings with reckless abandon.

    It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo finally discovered that something wasn¡¯t quite right with the first prince.

    She was now certain that this person was indeed the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, as well as the owner of the Blood Jade whom she was looking for. This was because his appearance was exactly the same as that person in the portrait.

    However, the first prince in the portrait possessed a pair of deep, profound-looking eyes, and his lips were curled into an aloof smile. Even though his eyes stared out of the painting devoid of any emotions, it certainly did not possess the look of manic frenzy that he disyed right now.

    Just what was it that had reduced such a dignified-looking man to this state where he could hardly be considered a human anymore?

    Once Jun Xiaomo turned her attention to these things, she was no longer bothered by the first prince¡¯s earlier wastrel-like behaviour.

    How could she attempt to rationalize with a person who had lost all of his senses? Instead, her appropriate response was to think of a method to get the first prince out of his present stupor.

    After deliberating for a moment, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a Heart Purging Pill from her Interspatial Ring and readied herself. Then, when the first prince lunged forward at her once again with bloodlust in his eyes, she immediately flicked that Heart Purging Pill directly into the first prince¡¯s mouth.

    Gulp. The first prince reflexively swallowed. However, the effects of the medicinal pill weren¡¯t instantaneous. Therefore, this did not prevent or slow the first prince¡¯s attacks towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Fortunately, the first prince had sustained a heavy blow to his body, and his movements were substantially slower than before. Otherwise, there was no way that Jun Xiaomo would have been able to avoid his attacks.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo continued to avoid the first prince¡¯s attacks as she prayed that the Heart Purging Pill would quickly take effect and bring rity to the first prince¡¯s mind.

    Slowly, but surely, the first prince¡¯s attacks slowed down, and the redness of his bloodshot eyes gradually subsided.

    Jun Xiaomo finally heaved a sigh of relief. She intended to wait until the first prince had fully regained his rity of mind before sorting things out with the first prince. At the very least, she had to determine what had happened to the first prince¡¯s body, and whether the first prince¡¯s character was deserving of her assistance.

    That¡¯s right ¨C despite her debt of gratitude towards her senior Jiang Yutong, her past life¡¯s experience had nevertheless told her that she could not easily trust a stranger, and that she had to keep her saviour mentality under check. After all, it was not umon to see people repay kindness with evil in this world. Therefore, she was cautious not to ce herself in a situation where she would blindly render assistance to the first prince at risk to life and limb, only to find herself being used by the first prince and then discarded.

    As for the Blood Jade, she was certainly going to hand that over to the first prince. However, her assessment of the first prince¡¯s personality would in turn determine exactly how Jun Xiaomo was going to hand over the Blood Jade to him.

    However, what happened next waspletely outside of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s calctions. When the redness of the first prince¡¯s eyes had substantially subsided, the first prince¡¯s body twitched, his eyes shut, and he immediately fell forward towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately ran over to support him. However, even she was helpless to the fact that the first prince was so well built, and she almost even copsed under his weight!

    ¡°Unngh...he¡¯s so damn heavy! Just what had this fe eaten when he was growing up?! Why¡¯s he so damn heavy?!¡± Jun Xiaomo drew a long, deep breath, before breathing out in frustration. Then, she struggled with all her might to drag the unconscious first prince over to her bedside, before letting him copse on her bed.

    It was only a simple task, but by the time Jun Xiaomo managed toplete it, she was already panting heavily because of the first prince¡¯s weight.

    Despite that, she did not have the luxury of time to catch her breath. She had earlier witnessed with her own two eyes how the first prince had wrapped his fingers around her little packrat so tightly, and she was extremely worried that her little packrat was injured.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo searched around her room for her little packrat. Finally, she found her little packrat curled up in a ball of fluff near one of the legs of the table in the middle of the room.

    ¡°Little Packie...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened as she ran over and tenderly scooped up the little packrat with her hands.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat squeaked twice as it attempted to console Jun Xiaomo and tell her that it was fine. However, its weak and frazzled appearance told Jun Xiaomo otherwise ¨C it had not managed toe out unscathed.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely heartbroken. She retrieved a bottle of medicinal pills from her Interspatial Ring, poured out one pill and fed it directly to her little packrat.

    This medicinal pill was considerablyrge in rtion to the size of the little packrat¡¯s body. Therefore, the little packrat slowly gnawed away at the medicinal pill for some time before it finally managed to finish it. Even then, Jun Xiaomo had continued to stroke the little packrat¡¯s fur as she patiently waited for her little packrat to consume the medicinal pill.

    On the other hand, the first prince remained unconscious all this while. Jun Xiaomo nced over at the first prince helplessly. She was at aplete loss as to how she was going to deal with this man who had suddenly appeared.

    There was a reasonably possibility that the second prince and his escorts were all residing within this inn of theirs, and it would be extremely problematic if they were to discover traces of the first prince¡¯s whereabouts right now. Quite apart from the fact that this would jeopardize her mission to hand over the Blood Jade to the first prince, she might even be foundplicit to harboring a fugitive if word got out.

    However, despite the potential danger, Jun Xiaomo never once possessed any intention of handing the first prince over to the second prince and hisckeys.

    Compared with the crazed first prince, Jun Xiaomo detested the second prince much, much more. In fact, she hated him so much that she cursed in his heart that he would fall harshly to the ground from his elevated pedestal as the crown prince of the Inferno Kingdom!

    At time trickled by, the sky outside the window started to glow with the first light of the day. The little packrat squeaked twice as it caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger tenderly.

    ¡°Ah, little Packie, you¡¯ve finished the medicine.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled softly as she ticked the little packrat¡¯s ears, ¡°Do you feel better now? Would you like one more pill?¡±

    Squeak squeak. The little packrat hugged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers, and its whiskers quivered slightly as it licked her fingers gently.

    ¡°You¡¯re looking much more spirited.¡± Jun Xiaomo finally felt more appeased, but she added, ¡°Let me know if you still feel ufortable anywhere, understand? Don¡¯t push yourself too hard.¡±

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat licked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger in response, signifying that it understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present act of speaking to a little pet whose spiritual awareness had ostensibly not awakened might attract the curious or even judgmental gazes of some people who didn¡¯t know any better. However, Jun Xiaomo knew that her little packrat understood every word of what she had just said.

    Her little packrat was special ¨C this was something Jun Xiaomo was unreservedly convicted of. However, the only thing that Jun Xiaomo was still unaware about was the exact extent of how special this little packrat was.

    Thud, thud. The door to her room suddenly rang out with two knocks. Instantly, Jun Xiaomo froze in her ce, and her heart thumped as she thought anxiously to herself ¨C Damn! Who could it be this early in the morning? I can¡¯t let anyone see the messy state of this room right now!

    Most importantly, there was even a stranger resting in her bed right now. Not just any stranger ¨C it was the most wanted fugitive in Inferno Kingdom right now! Everyone in Inferno Kingdom was currently looking high and low for this most wanted fugitive so that they could im the bounty on his head!

    Jun Xiaomo was anxious and flustered like ants on a hot pan. Yet, before she could think of an appropriate response, her room¡¯s door rang out with another two knocks.

    That¡¯s right! Invisibility Talisman!

    Jun Xiaomo smacked her forehead as she hastily retrieved an Invisibility Talisman from her Interspatial Ring and pped it directly on the first prince¡¯s body.

    Within moments, the first prince¡¯s appearance started to fade away from the bed.

    However, there was no way that Jun Xiaomo was able to pack up the mess in the room within that short span of time she had. The room was presently covered in pieces of wood and sawdust in the aftermath of the first prince¡¯s reckless thrashing.

    If Jun Xiaomo had just a bit more time to make preparations, perhaps she could have thought of a way to conceal the mess using her formation arrays. However, time was not on her side now, and she didn¡¯t know who that person standing at her door was.

    Forget it, I¡¯ll just make up an excuse and say that I had caused this mess when I was sleep-walking. Then, I¡¯ll make things up as I go along if this person doesn¡¯t believe me.

    After making up her mind, Jun Xiaomo braced herself as she walked towards the entrance of her room. She drew a deep breath, and then opened the door.

    She saw...no one. It waspletely empty outside.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Is it a ghost?

    Who¡¯s trying to scare me this early in the morning?!

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen was deep in his own thoughts as he walked along the empty streets. It was still too early, and the shops on both sides of the street were not open for business yet. The only things that were on the path right now were fallen leaves that were being tossed about yfully by the gentle breeze. As the wind blew gently, the leaves danced about as though actors performing in front of an empty audience. The atmosphere was lonely and bleak.

    Ye Xiuwen had gone out early in the morning to practice his sword arts as he habitually did.

    This morning, he had habitually knocked on Yao Mo¡¯s door, intending to ask him along for his sword practice. However, he received no response after having knocked twice. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen set aside any intentions to knock on the door any further.

    There he stood, with his arms half-raised, as he stared silently at the tightly-shut door.

    Previously when they were still travelling through those woods, he would always move about together with Yao Mo by his side.

    They were so glued to each other as though they were like conjoined twins. He had never thought much of their closeness to begin with. However, having experienced the series of events which urred yesterday, he suddenly became more self-conscious of his rtionship with Yao Mo ¨C he even worried that things were beginning to be slightly awkward.

    And yet the root cause of all these feelingspletely eluded him.

    After a moment of hesitation, Ye Xiuwen slowly lowered his arm and clenched his fists tightly. Then, he turned around and left.

    On the other side of the door, flustered at her own predicament, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware that her martial brother Ye was the one who had just been standing at the door moments ago.

 Chapter 97: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Internal Struggle

    <h4>Chapter 97: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Internal Struggle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was the midst of autumn season. The leaves hanging from the branches of the trees had already be dry and shriveled. Under the relentless battering of the cold, autumn breeze, these yellowing leaves finally broke loose of its branches¡¯ shackles as they gently floated down in a chaotic yet somewhat harmonious manner.

    However, before these leaves couldnd on the ground, a cold st of sword intent swept across these leaves, instantly cleaving them into several pieces. These shredded leaves scattered about as they danced in the sky like golden snowkes. Under the illumination of the warm glow of dawn, they evoked a beautiful scene about them.

    Regrettably, no one was there to appreciate this immacte sight. Amidst all of this, a single long-haired man donned in snow-white garbs remainedpletely focused on his own thoughts. His clothes pped about and he flickered from ce to ce, leaving countless afterimages of his swordy in his wake as he continued to slice the falling leaves into pieces.

    An incense of time passed, and the flickering shadow finally stopped moving about. He lowered his head slightly as he looked at the fallen leaves around him, silently. He seemed to bepletely engrossed in his own thoughts.

    This man was Ye Xiuwen. If this were any other day, he would have practiced for a full two hours before concluding his practice. Yet today, he only managed to sustain his practice for only one incense of time.

    This was the first time that he had found himself distracted during his practice. The shredded leaves on the ground were a testament to this ¨C he ought to have controlled the uracy and direction of his sword intent such that every single leaf would be cleaved in two. No more, no less. However, these leaves had instead all been shredded and almost ground to dust by his chaotic sword intent today.

    He found it absolutely difficult to concentrate. As he swung his sword about, images of his little martial sister or Yao Mo would surface in his head from time to time. Sometimes, the images of these two people would even seem to merge into one......

    Ye Xiuwen adjudged that he must be going mad ¨C why else would he be so affected by Yao Mo¡¯s every action, to the point where he even started drawing parallels with his own martial sister?

    Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t understand his thoughts. No, perhaps it was because he was afraid to delve into what exactly his thoughts meant.

    Just a little while back, when Ye Xiuwen realized that his rtionship with his little martial sister had been improving by leaps and bounds, he had made up his mind that he was going to treat her as his dear little sister. Then, he encountered Yao Mo on these travels. Yao Mo had extended unconditional kindness to him, and he had treated this friendship as one of the greatest rewards of his travels thus far. In fact, it was the friendship that he had treasured the most in his life.

    However, if this were all his feelings entailed, then why was it that his heart would swell with such indignance when he noticed how the second prince were gazing at Yao Mo with such obsession? As a result of his roiling emotions, he even sumbed to the second prince¡¯s provocation and pitted his own alcohol tolerance against the second prince.

    Truth be told, even though Ye Xiuwen liked the asional drink every now and then, he was never too certain or confident of his ability to hold his liquor. Therefore, if he had been his usual self, he would never have reciprocated the second prince¡¯s challenge. Instead, he would have employed more circuitous methods to reject the second prince¡¯s request.

    Right now, Ye Xiuwen felt extremely tense and confused. It was as though he were walking on a tightrope amidst a fog, unable to tell whether he was walking within a peach garden or perched high above a bottomless abyss.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed to himself in exasperation as he sheathed his sword.

    It seems like I won¡¯t be able to calm my heart and focus on my sword arts today. Perhaps I should take this time to sort out my thoughts instead.

    On the other side, after Jun Xiaomo had time and again ascertained that the person who hade knocking on her door had vanished without a trace, she puffed up her cheeks in bewilderment before she once again closed the door and secured the door with atch.

    The first prince was still lying there on the bed, and he had not awakened from his slumber yet. Jun Xiaomo thought for a moment, before she decided that she might as well remove the first prince¡¯s shoes and shift him to the side of the bed closer to the wall. Then, she folded the nket and made sure that the bed lookedpletely normal. Once all that was done, she patted her hands in satisfaction.

    Jun Xiaomo had tempered her Invisibility Talisman slightly such that she would be able to see the first prince even though nobody else could. This way, she could remain guarded against the first prince and ensure that he would not sneak up on her under the cover of her own Invisibility Talisman.

    This was a self-preserving measure.

    Jun Xiaomo swept her gaze across the room and sized up the chaos amidst the sawdust. She rubbed her temples as she felt the onset of a headache ¨C there was no time to go out and buy new furniture to rece the damaged ones in the room, and she had no choice but to conceal the damage with a formation array.

    Fortunately, time was on her side. It was still early in the morning, and Jun Xiaomo was confident that she would be able to prepare the formation array before any of the other disciples woke up. Once she made up her mind, she began to pick out the appropriate formation array toy in the circumstances...

    Approximately one hourter, Jun Xiaomo set up both a Trickeye Array and a Memory Alteration Array in the room. Of the two, she intentionally maintained her Memory Alteration Array in a dormant state. Jun Xiaomo had set up this formation array only as a precautionary measure, so that she could activate it immediately if someone entered her room and saw something he should not have seen.

    However, the Memory Alteration Array could only be used once, so Jun Xiaomo also had to be careful about when exactly she decided to use it.

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right! I thought I¡¯d forgotten something! Now¡¯s the time when I should be practicing my sword arts with martial brother Ye. Yet I¡¯m still here in my room...Eh, hang on. Could the person who had knocked on my door earlier be martial brother Ye?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had finally remembered her longstanding tacit arrangement with Ye Xiuwen. But it had already been some time since Ye Xiuwen had knocked on her door. Even if she ran out in search for Ye Xiuwen right now, he might already have concluded his practice for the day.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe it! How can martial brother Ye be so gentle even when he¡¯s knocking the door?¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath in exasperation. Yet she could never have guessed that Ye Xiuwen had been so distressed with his own thoughts that it was bing difficult for him to face Yao Mo right now.

    Even if she weren¡¯t able to practice her sword arts with her martial brother Ye, she still had to have her breakfast. Jun Xiaomo reckoned that Ye Xiuwen must have returned from his sword practice by now. Therefore, she stepped out of her room and locked the door before walking downstairs leisurely.

    As expected, when she arrived at the ground floor, she immediately noticed Ye Xiuwen seated at a table and sipping away at a cup of tea in his hands. There were even several dishes of foodid out neatly before him.

    ¡°Brother Ye! You¡¯re back from your practice!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately skipped over to Ye Xiuwen and took a seat beside him as she had always done before.

    Sensing the young man¡¯s presence, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand which was holding his cup paused for a moment, and his eyes quivered slightly with aplicated gaze.

    However, all of this was obscured by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat, and Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t notice anything amiss.

    ¡°Little Mo.¡± Ye Xiuwen called out softly.

    ¡°Mm?¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and looked towards Ye Xiuwen. She gazed at Ye Xiuwen with eyes filled with trust and reliance.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and he involuntarily broke eye contact and shifted his gaze elsewhere. Then, he stated inly to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°The others are not up yet, and there are many vacant seats around this table. Is there a need for you to sit so close to me?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was stillpletely oblivious to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar behaviour. Rather, the first thing that she noticed from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s remarks were that the table was empty.

    She looked around at the table as she quipped curiously, ¡°Eh? That¡¯s right. Where did that bunch of fes go? Are they all still sleeping andzing about?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was the first one to have be intoxicated. Therefore, she waspletely ignorant to the fact that the second prince had plied everyone else at the table with so much spirit wine that the only two people who managed to remain sober at the end of the meal was Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu.

    Ye Xiuwen remained silent. The series of events which had urredst night had caused his emotions to be in a constant state of flux today. Right now, he was at aplete loss as to how he ought to continue interacting with Yao Mo.

    At the very least, he found it difficult to continue treating Yao Mo as intimately he usually did without feeling perturbed.

    Jun Xiaomo also noticed that Ye Xiuwen did not respond to her quips. A sense of uneasiness swelled up within her heart, and she began to feel the slight tension in the air.

    It was as though she and her martial brother Ye had grown distant overnight.

    Besides, the seating at this table is hardly narrow at all, and it can hardly be said that I¡¯ve encroached on his personal space. Furthermore, martial brother Ye had never seemed perturbed whenever I had cozied up to him. We¡¯ve even squeezed together in tighter spaces before! Why¡¯s he so particrly nit-picky today?

    The more Jun Xiaomo thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt. In the end, she decided to remain seated where she was, just beside Ye Xiuwen. Then, she retrieved a pair of chopsticks from beside her and delivered a small meatball into her mouth, before mumbling to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°The others are going toe down sooner orter anyway. I think it might be better to remain seated beside brother Ye instead of having to shift aboutter on when the others show up. Furthermore, it¡¯s rather chilly today ¨C huddling up close can keep us warm too!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen knew that there was no way he could out-argue Yao Mo¡¯s sharp tongue. Therefore, he sighed lightly as he responded curtly, ¡°...Then suit yourself...¡±

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo felt as though her heart had been pricked by something. It wasn¡¯t a sharp pain, but it wasn¡¯t a pain that she could ignore either. This dull pain was extremely visceral, and it seemed to slowly meander through her blood vessels and enter her meridians. It even caused the food she ced into her mouth to tastepletely nd.

    What¡¯s going on with martial brother? Jun Xiaomo lowered her head, as a trace of uneasiness and disappointment shed across her eyes.

    After some time, the other disciples from Dawn Sect started trickling down one by one. Some of them yawned loudly, while the others rubbed their foreheads. It was evident that several disciples were still unable to rouse from their drunken stupor even after one night¡¯s rest.

    Right now, an invisible wall seemed to have developed between Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen. Ordinarily, Yao Mo would be sticking close to Ye Xiuwen and chatting non-stop. However, Yao Mo merely ate his food silently, while Ye Xiuwen did nothing to break the silence either.

    That said, most of the disciples weren¡¯t very observant of these little details to begin with. Furthermore, several disciples were still in a state of half-drunken stupor, and none of them could be bothered to concern themselves with the atmosphere between Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo at this instant.

    Of all the disciples present, the only one who noticed something amiss was none other than Qin Lingyu. After all, he had been trying to figure out a way to separate Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen so that he could deal with them one at a time. Unexpectedly, a rift seemed to have developed between them overnight without any action on his part!

    This was a fortuitous thing for him ¨C at the very least, it would save him some time and effort to achieve the first step of his n.

    A meaningful look shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and a discreet, wicket smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    The silent atmosphere enshrouding Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen continued throughout the rest of their breakfast. Towards the end of their meal, the second prince Rong Yebin suddenly showed up in the great hall of their inn with his entourage of troops. Immediately, Rong Yebin¡¯s gazended on the young man who still had his head lowered slightly as he ate. Then, he flicked open his fan and fanned himself as he remarked, ¡°Little Mo, I hope you didn¡¯t feel light-headed or sick when you woke up from your drunken stupor this morning, hmm?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found herself truly helpless against how Rong Yebin seemed to enjoy teasing her from time to time. She lifted her head and returned Rong Yebin¡¯s gaze as she sought to cate him with a simple response, ¡°Thank you for your concern, second prince, but I¡¯m feeling rather spirited today.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good then. However, I think that Little Mo needs to work on his capacity to hold his liquor. After all, you got drunk way too easilyst night! If you have the time, this second prince would like to invite you to have a taste of the pce¡¯s most treasured aged spirit wines with him. What do you think?¡±

    The second prince¡¯s smile was filled with ulterior motives. However, Jun Xiaomo could hardly be bothered to decipher the hidden intentions behind the second prince¡¯s impassioned, coquettish gaze. Therefore, she cated the second prince with yet another curt response, ¡°Alright. Thanks, second prince.¡±

    The second prince¡¯s smile grew. He did not mind Yao Mo¡¯s blunt coldness at all.

    Besides, the colder his prey was, the more challenging and exciting it was to the second prince.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand which was holding his teacup tightened involuntarily. The cup clinked softly, and several cracks immediately appeared on the inner walls of the teacup...

 Chapter 98: Inferno Kingdomâ€™s Grand Vizier

    <h4>Chapter 98: Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The great hall was buzzing with chatter from the inn¡¯s guests. In contrast, the clinking of the teacup in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands were hardly noticeable. At the very least, not a single person present discovered Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar, wavering emotions.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately set the teacup back down onto the table gently to prevent shattering it. As the base of the teacupnded on the wooden surface of the table, it clinked once again.

    An imperceptible amount of tea started seeping out from the cracks of the teacup, and a watermark slowly formed under the base of the cup.

    Evidently, the teacup would have shattered into pieces if Ye Xiuwen had just held or set down the teacup with a little bit more force.

    Apart from Ye Xiuwen, there was another person at the table who found it an absolute eyesore when the second prince verbally teased Yao Mo ¨C and this person was none other than Yu Wanrou.

    Yesterday, she had given it her all and employed all possible techniques at the feast just so that she could get into the second prince¡¯s good books. She plied the second prince with spirit wine as she toasted to him in a soft, gentle voice; and she even threw several coquettish nces at the second prince as she donned a bashful look on her face. Having done all these things, she had expected that the second prince would bepletely enthralled by her right now. Unexpectedly, the first person that the second prince set his eyes on this morning was still none other than Yao Mo!

    Yu Wanrou possessed a different manner of thought from the traditional, straight-thinking mindsets of these ancient people. She had crossed over into this world from a liberal and technologically advanced society. In that world, it was not umon to find men associating with men; and women associating with women. Some countries had even legalized gay marriages, allowing persons of the same sex to be legally wedded.

    Therefore, she did not find Yao Mo to be any less threatening just because he was a man. In fact, it was well apparent that the second prince was much more interested in Yao Mo than Yu Wanrou. This caused Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart to burn with jealousy, as though it had been tossed into a furnace and roasted over white-hot mes.

    If it was considered dissatisfactory to lose out to another woman, then losing to a man was something that waspletely uneptable to Yu Wanrou. In fact, she was so ashamed right now that she didn¡¯t know where she could turn her head to hide her embarrassment ¨C especially when Zhong Run ceaselessly maintained that mocking gaze that was trained on her. She felt as though she were a worthlessmodity that was unwanted by anyone. This caused Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart to swell with indignance and anxiety.

    However, her thoughts immediately turned to that spirit spring within her spectral demine. This was the only constion that was able to calm her down right now.

    She believed that it was practically impossible to find another person in the world who would possess the same spirit spring or a simrly effective dual-cultivation technique in a spectral demine.

    This was her greatest asset. With this asset, it was only a matter of time that she would be able to subjugate any and every male cultivator whom she had set her eyes on!

    At least, this was what Yu Wanrou feltpletely convicted about.

    Incidentally, she recalled the fact that the king of the Inferno Kingdom was still bedridden from the poison, and a bright gleam flickered across her eyes ¨C Perhaps I should work at it from a different perspective.

    As Yu Wanrou made several calctions in her heart in this respect, Qin Lingyu also made several calctions as to the potential rewards that could be gained frompleting the taskmissioned by the king. In some regards, both of them were truly a ¡°match made in heaven¡±.

    By now, the disciples had already spent half a day in Xingping County. However, apart from partaking a meal together with the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince, there seemed to be hardly any progress on the front of locating that fugitive andpleting the task that they were here for to begin with. Were they really going to spend the rest of their time in Xingping County hanging around the second prince as he ogled at and teased ¡°beauties¡±?

    As he thought about these things, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart started to feel slightly anxious.

    Naturally, this anxiety was not something that he would express outwardly. Therefore, he made a polite gesture at the second prince as he courteously broached the topic with a low voice, ¡°Second prince, pardon me for speaking bluntly. Since we have already epted the king¡¯s task, we will do our utmost toplete the same. However, we don¡¯t have a single lead to follow right now. Apart from the fact that the fugitive wasst seen at Xingping County, there is nothing else for us to go on. I¡¯m afraid that without anything more, this task is only going to get harder and harder, and the possibility of seeding in this task is going to grow smaller and smaller. I wonder if the second prince is able to disclose whether he has any ns in this regard?¡±

    Qin Lingyu is evidently anxious to secure for himself the promised rewards from this task. Yet somehow, he¡¯s able to put on a pretense of ¡°being anxious for others¡±. He truly lives up to his name as Dawn Sect¡¯s number two hypocrite. Jun Xiaomo thought with squinted eyes. As she tapped her chin thoughtfully, a sardonic smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    As to the number one hypocrite of Dawn Sect, this was naturally Qin Lingyu¡¯s master, Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, He Zhang. That said, the student often surpasses the master. If Qin Lingyu continued in the path he was on right now, there was no doubt that he would soon exceed his master to earn the top spot as the hypocrite of Dawn Sect.

    Since Qin Lingyu had broached this topic, the second prince naturally shifted his gaze away from Yao Mo¡¯s body. After all, Yao Mo was nothing more than a prey to him, while securing the title of king was of utmost importance to him.

    If he botched things up, not only would he potentially face the ire of his father, the king; he might even present his other siblings with the perfect opportunity for upheaval and to overthrow his title as the crown prince.

    That¡¯s right ¨C this was not just a task that had merely been entrusted to Qin Lingyu and the rest; it was also a test for the second prince. Right now, he had been charged with the task of managing the kingdom¡¯s affairs in his father¡¯s stead. Apprehending the most wanted fugitive in Inferno Kingdom naturally constituted one of the second prince¡¯s heaviest responsibilities as well.

    The second prince sipped his tea calmly before he addressed the disciples of Dawn Sect, ¡°Brother Qin has poignantly tapped on the crux of the matter. Yesterday, themander must have shown you the first prince¡¯s portrait and told you that he wasst seen in Xingping County, right?¡±

    The disciples all nodded unanimously, eagerly anticipating the second prince¡¯s next words.

    ¡°Truth be told, I¡¯m afraid that themander must have missed out an important detail; and for some reason I¡¯d also overlooked apprising you of the same. The Inferno Kingdom has a Grand Vizier who advises the king as well. This Grand Vizier has always been watching over and protecting the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s royalty ever since the Inferno Kingdom had been founded and established. When my father, the king, had been poisoned, the Grand Vizier was incidentally in his closed-door cultivation. That was one of the main reasons why the first prince was able to give the royal guards the slip.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, the first prince must have calcted his moves carefully and acted against the king only when he knew that the Grand Vizier was in closed-door cultivation.¡± One of the disciples eximed when he realized that he had roughly grasped the nub of the matter.

    ¡°It¡¯s exactly that. Moreover, the Grand Vizier¡¯s closed-door cultivation is an extremely well-concealed secret. Apart from the royalty, outsiders arepletely kept in the dark about these matters. This is to prevent others from invading Inferno Kingdom or inciting civil unrest in the Grand Vizier¡¯s absence. Despite all of that, an incident still urred ¨C and it was even caused by a member of the royalty.¡± The second prince fanned himself as he sighed meaningfully.

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and remained taciturn throughout. Therefore, no one noticed that Jun Xiaomo had tightly clenched her fists under the table right now; while her slightly quivering hands revealed the roiling emotions within her heart.

    ¡°Come to think of it, you¡¯ve mentioned that the Grand Vizier had been around and protecting the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s royalty ever since the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s establishment. If that¡¯s the case, then wouldn¡¯t he be extremely old by now?¡± One of the disciples pointed out curiously.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. He must be over one-thousand years-old by now.¡± Another disciple chimed in after making some quick calctions with his fingers.

    The second prince smiled in response as he tacitly agreed with the disciples¡¯ conjectures.

    In fact, there was one other thing that the second prince had failed to mention, and that was his rtionship with the Grand Vizier ¨C he was the direct apprentice of the Grand Vizier, and everything he knew about cultivation had been imparted to him by the Grand Vizier himself.

    However, the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier was not a normal cultivator. Rather, he was an array master and a talisman master. The Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce grounds were protected by countless formation arrays set up by the Grand Vizier. With these formation arrays in ce, any rioters or assassins would seriously have to think twice before causing any trouble at the pce grounds.

    If not for the Grand Vizier, perhaps Jun Xiaomo might not have been apprehended by Yu Wanrou and herckeys so easily in her previous life. Towards the end of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final skirmish with Yu Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo discovered to her horror that all of the formation arrays which she had previously set up to aid in her escape had been dismantled and thwarted by that old fogey. Not only that, that old fogey even possessed an extremely mystical, high-grade spirit tool. With the aid of this spirit tool, Yu Wanrou managed to easily uncover and expose Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hiding ces on several asions.

    This was one of the main reasons why Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions roiled so frically when she heard the second prince mention the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier.

    Jun Xiaomo secretly hated the fact that this old fogey had almost slipped her mind entirely. Moreover, Jun Xiaomo was astounded by the fact that she was already encountering all of her archnemeses from her previous life in her first travels outside of the Sect.

    Aren¡¯t I just ill-fated? Jun Xiaomo mocked in her heart as she mustered all of her strength and willpower to suppress the hatred within.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right. There¡¯s one other thing. I¡¯ve just received a message from the pce a few days ago, informing me that the Grand Vizier had broken through to the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation, and that he should be out of his closed-door cultivation within the next few days. When that timees, I could simply request the Grand Vizier to determine the first prince¡¯s location. This would allow us to nab that fugitive much more easily.¡±

    ¡°Immortal Ascension stage!¡± One of the disciples eximed softly, before he asked with perplexity, ¡°Since the Grand Vizier is already in the Immortal Ascension stage, then wouldn¡¯t it be a better idea to ask the Grand Vizier to personally capture the first prince?

    The second prince continued to smile and fan himself as he exined to the disciples, ¡°The Grand Vizier¡¯s expertisey with formation arrays and talismans, and he¡¯s not anywhere near as adept with his offensive spells. Besides, the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s capital cannot do without the Grand Vizier¡¯s protection and overwatch. Therefore, we will still have to depend on the assistance of these formidable guests here.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case...¡± The disciples nodded their heads fervently as they were finally enlightened about the entire situation. After the second prince¡¯s exnation, their hearts were once again filled with the confidence to capture the first prince and im the rewards for themselves.

    After all, they felt that they certainly stood a much better chance at sess with the help of a Grand Vizier at the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was tangled into a knot right now ¨C Ascertaining his location? Wasn¡¯t this exactly the same spirit tool that he used against me in my previous life?!

    Despite Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formidable strength at the end of her previous life, she still stumbled at the hands of the Grand Vizier¡¯s mysterious spirit tool time and again. And right now, Jun Xiaomo had a feeling that the first prince¡¯s abilities could hardly hold a candle to Jun Xiaomo back then. Therefore, if the Grand Vizier was truly willing to use that spirit tool against the first prince, then it was going to require more than a miracle if the first prince were to escape this predicament!

    This is frustrating. I¡¯ve not even decided whether I¡¯m going to help the first prince yet, and the second prince is already making things more difficult for me.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips as aplicated gaze surfaced in her eyes.

    All this while, Ye Xiuwen had remained silent on the side as he continued to observe Yao Mo¡¯s reactions to all these things. When he noticed how Yao Mo clenched his fists so tightly, Ye Xiuwen instinctually motioned to put his palms over Yao Mo¡¯s arm to reassure him.

    However, Ye Xiuwen hesitated after he lifted his hands.

    He couldn¡¯t do it anymore. He could no longer draw closer to Yao Mo without first oveing these psychological barriers.

 Chapter 99: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Guilty Conscience

    <h4>Chapter 99: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Guilty Conscience</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After their breakfast, the second prince suggested to show the Dawn Sect disciples around Xingping County, introduce them to Xingping County¡¯s famous sights and to take a walk down the main marketce.

    ¡°I know that everyone here is travelling outside their sect to glean some life experiences. But you must also ensure that your life experiences are holistic. Work and leisure are the main constituents of life, and one cannot do without the other. Achieving harmony between the two is the path to understanding life¡¯s mysteries. Therefore, can I suggest that this prince shows everyone the sights and sounds of Xingping County?¡± The second prince fanned himself leisurely as he asked the disciples. Yet at the same time, he cast a flirtatious, coy look directly at Yao Mo as his lips curled into a smile ostensibly filled with hidden intent.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lips. Her heart once again swelled with reluctance as she noticed how the second prince had cast an impassioned gaze at Yao Mo. Therefore, she smiled softly at the second prince as she interjected with her remark, ¡°Sounds good! This is my first time in the Inferno Kingdom, and I¡¯m quite interested in the people and the culture here. We¡¯ll have to trouble the second prince then.¡±

    Rong Yebin raised his eyebrows curiously as he finally shifted his attention over towards Yu Wanrou.

    A beauty who¡¯se knocking on my door? That¡¯s not too bad either. After all, her looks can be considered top-notch, and they suit my taste. Rong Yebin¡¯s coy-looking eyes momentarily ignited with passion as he sized up Yu Wanrou again.

    Rong Yebin had never understood the meaning of ¡°faithfulness¡± or ¡°love¡±. To him, there were only two kinds of beauties in this world ¨C people who were his prey, and people who were not.

    Yu Wanrou could not be considered a prey to him. However, since Yu Wanrou had packaged herself nicely ande knocking on his door, Rong Yebin was naturally not going to reject her.

    Before he could seize Yao Mo and make him his own, he could always have some fun with the beautiful Yu Wanrou in the interim.

    As he thought about this, the second prince grinned even more as he responded, ¡°It is my pleasure to have the opportunity to travel with such a beauty. This is no trouble to this prince at all.¡±

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s heart fumed with rage when he saw how the second prince and Yu Wanrou were exchanging coy, coquettish looks with each other. His heart swelled with the urge to retrieve his great sword and cleave the second prince in half this very moment. Yet in the very next moment, he immediately remembered that his life was currently under Qin Lingyu¡¯s control. Therefore, he could only suppress the hatred in his heart as he dispelled any thoughts of acting out of line.

    What can I do to win martial sister Wanrou¡¯s heart? Ke Xinwen sighed in disappointment.

    Little did Ke Xinwen know, Qin Lingyu had already been passionately involved with Yu Wanrou.

    In fact, Qin Lingyu was also feeling somewhat restless in his heart seeing Yu Wanrou¡¯s interaction with the second prince. Previously, he had been so fixated by the second prince and themander¡¯s mention of the task¡¯spletion rewards that he hadpletely obviated Yu Wanrou from his thoughts. Therefore, he remained apathetic regardless of what Yu Wanrou had done.

    But now that matters hade to a closure of sorts, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart once again began to feel uneasy at the sight of Yu Wanrou¡¯s present actions.

    Even though Yu Wanrou had decided to join Ke Xinwen¡¯s team because she had earlier fallen out with Qin Lingyu, Qin Lingyu did not take this matter to heart.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s talents and capabilities were far below that of Qin Lingyu¡¯s to begin with. As a result, Qin Lingyu had never once seen Ke Xinwen as a threat.

    After all, Yu Wanrou would have to be blind to have chosen Ke Xinwen over Qin Lingyu.

    However, the second prince was different. He possessed everything that Qin Lingyu had, be it strength, talent, stature or potential. In fact, he might have even exceeded Qin Lingyu in several respects.

    Most men were secretlypetitive in their hearts, even if they did not outwardly reveal this. When he saw how Yu Wanrou had turned her attention away from pleasing himself and now fixed her mind on currying favour with the second prince, Qin Lingyu heart soured with dissatisfaction.

    This type of dissatisfaction had nothing to do with the fondness of a person. It arose solely when a male creature¡¯s machismo was threatened or hurt.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes and trained his gaze directly on the interactions between Yu Wanrou and the second prince.

    Jun Xiaomo watched on in delight as this multi-angled love affair unraveled. She tapped on her cheeks mischievously as she tried to predict who would eventually fall prey and be subjugated by Yu Wanrou to form part of her harem.

    In her previous life, it was Qin Lingyu and the second prince who had ended up as Yu Wanrou¡¯s subjects. From the way things looked right now, things might not differ too greatly in this lifetime either. It was slightly harder to say whether Ke Xinwen would be able to stick by Yu Wanrou¡¯s side till the end.

    After all, Yu Wanrou was quite picky in her taste, and she despised men who were too weak. At best, these weaker men would be relegated to a mere supporting role in her life.

    Yet somehow, it did not ur to Jun Xiaomo even once that one of these three men vying for Yu Wanrou¡¯s attention right now was in fact her fianc¨¦-in-name.

    ¡°Brother Yao has been silent all this while, and I wonder what brother Yao thinks of this prince¡¯s suggestion? Are you keen on talking a walk with this prince?¡±

    The second prince fanned himself leisurely, disying a suave and charming look as though he were an immacte prince sent to save an especially troubled and chaotic world.

    But this were only how he appeared to be. Furthermore, the precondition to appreciating this ¡°appearance¡± was that one would first have to look beyond his presently impassioned, lustful gaze.

    ¡°Haha, I¡¯ll pass, unfortunately. There are still some things that I need to sort out on my end here.¡± Jun Xiaomoughed pretentiously as she replied.

    These words were not entirely perfunctory. The truth was that Jun Xiaomo still had to return to her room to check on that crazy fellow lying in her bed right now. No matter what the case was, she had to interact with that man for a bit to determine whether his character was deserving of her assistance or not.

    The second prince was hardly surprised at Yao Mo¡¯s response either. Therefore, he feigned a sigh as he responded, ¡°So it¡¯s like that. Then, this prince won¡¯t press the issue any further. However, Xingping County will be organizing an auction over the next few days, and I¡¯d like to bring brother Yao there to take a looksee.¡±

    An auction! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately brightened as she eximed in her heart.

    What a coincidence! Healing the scar on martial brother¡¯s face still requires several precious medicinal elements which are pretty hard to locate. Perhaps we might have some luck at this auction!

    The second prince noticed the change of expression in Yao Mo¡¯s eyes, and he knew that Yao Mo¡¯s interest had been piqued! He sighed in his heart again ¨C As expected. Not many people are able to resist the temptation of obtaining precious treasures and valuable objects!

    A smile crept up the corner of the second prince¡¯s mouth as he borated, ¡°Brother Yao seems pretty interested in this. If there¡¯s nothing too urgent, why note along with this prince and take a looksee at the auction? Furthermore, brother Yao could simply let this prince know if he¡¯s interested in anything, and this prince will do all he can to fulfill your every wish.¡±

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo knew that she had worked herself into a bind. Even though she wanted to steer clear of thisscivious prince as far as possible, it was nevertheless extremely difficult to pass up on a rare auction such as this!

    However, what was she going to do about the man lying in her room while she attended the auction? Was she going to leave him there alone? Would any issues arise because of that?

    Just like that, a series of questions and doubts started springing up in her mind, causing her to furrow her brows in frustration.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened when he noticed this. He absolutely did not want to see the second prince lead Yao Mo away by the nose.

    ¡°Little Mo.¡± Ye Xiuwen called out softly to Jun Xiaomo. The awkwardness from before seemed to have also dissipated by a fair bit.

    ¡°Mm?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned her head reflexively and looked straight at Ye Xiuwen.

    She was unable to see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression due to the obfuscation of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s veiled conical hat.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go practice our sword arts togetherter.¡± Ye Xiuwen suggested calmly. At the same time, he stretched out his long, muscr arm under the table and firmly gripped onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s right hand.

    ¡°Ha--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo had not expected Ye Xiuwen to suddenly talk about practicing their sword arts.

    When they had been travelling through the woods previously, she had often tagged along with her martial brother¡¯s sword art practices. However, her martial brother had been extremely quiet earlier; and the first thing he did when he broke the silence was to change the topic of discussion at hand. This caused her to feel extremely perplexed at her martial brother¡¯s behaviour.

    ¡°The things which you can get at auctions are often more suitable for people at a higher level of cultivation. Your cultivation level isn¡¯t high enough. Rather than buy things that you can¡¯t use for a long time, why not take the opportunity to improve your cultivation level first?¡± Ye Xiuwen exined in an apodictic manner.

    Naturally, this were only a pretext for his true motives. Ye Xiuwen simply did not want Yao Mo to follow the second prince to the auction.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted to herself as she murmured unwillingly, ¡°I also know this fact. I only wanted to take a look on brother Ye¡¯s behalf to see if there¡¯s anything useful at the auction.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and he involuntarily tightened his grip around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Tss---¡± Jun Xiaomo sucked in a breath of cold air involuntarily as she winced in pain. Ye Xiuwen looked at her, loosened his grip, but continued to hold onto her hands in a reassuring manner.

    Their hands were under the table right now, so nobody apart from the two of them knew what was going on right now.

    However, it was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo finally brought her attention to the fact that she and her martial brother were holding hands under the table right now. Subconsciously, she began to feel slightly flustered by the turn of events. She coughed dryly, attempting to dispel the strange feeling that was swelling up within her right now.

    On the other hand, the second prince¡¯s keen senses meant that he immediately noticed when Yao Mo¡¯s ears flushed slightly at this moment. This caused him to look suspiciously at Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo as he attempted to reassess their rtionship.

    Could it be that these two people have already developed mutual feelings for each other? The second prince pondered in his heart.

    However, what did mutual feelings mean to the second prince? After all, it wasn¡¯t as though the second prince had never broken apart loving couples to seize his objects of desires before. Furthermore, he never once coveted Yao Mo¡¯s feelings. All he wanted to do was to devour Yao Mo ¨C this had nothing to do with Yao Mo¡¯s feelings to begin with.

    The second prince¡¯s thoughts continued to brew in his heart. Despite all of that, the second prince never once contemted the possibility that he would slip up.

    But since this beauty¡¯s sole purpose for attending the auction were to purchase something for his man, then the second prince was naturally not going to fund Yao Mo¡¯s pursuit in this regard. After all,mitting such follies was not in line with the second prince¡¯s style of doing things.

    The second prince smiled coyly as he alluded, ¡°Eh? Seems like brother Yao and brother Ye have quite the close rtionship, huh? One would even think of the other first in deciding whether to attend the auction or not. Anyway, since brother Yao is busy, then so be it ¨C we can pass on the auction. Tonight, ...¡±

    The second prince was initially going to think of another excuse to lure Yao Mo into his abode. Unexpectedly, Yao Mo immediately cut him off before he could say anything else, ¡°Who says I¡¯m not going to the auction? I¡¯m definitely going!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo announced categorically, and her tone was filled with decisiveness.

    ¡°Little Mo, you don¡¯t have to...¡± Even though Ye Xiuwen was extremely moved by Yao Mo¡¯s actions at this moment, he was not willing to see Yao Mo sacrifice so much for himself.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s only an auction. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m sending myself to the lion¡¯s den!¡± Jun Xiaomo leaned over slightly towards Ye Xiuwen as she whispered into his ears so that only the two of them were privy to their conversation, ¡°Brother Ye, the scar on your face still requires some precious and valuable medicinal elements. These medicinal elements aren¡¯tmonly seen in the shops at the marketce. I want to take a look at the auction, alright?¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she looked straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes and batted her eyelids twice.

    It was at this moment that it suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen that Yao Mo¡¯s spirited, lively eyes were beautiful. Her pupils looked like two polished obsidian stones that were sheening mildly, and its depths seemed so profound as though they contained the constetions of the skies.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded softly, ¡°Thank you, Little Mo.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly, revealing her two characteristic dimples, ¡°Brother Ye doesn¡¯t have to thank me. You¡¯ll know in the near future.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen mentally noted her promise in his heart, and he gently tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    ¡°Alright, since brother Yao is so keen to attend the auction, then let¡¯s go take a looksee. I hear that there are several previous treasures that will be sold at this auction!¡± The second prince added in an unperturbed manner. He absolutely did not take to heart the warm and intimate atmosphere between Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen.

    This beauty will know once he attends the auction ¨C the price of the items there aren¡¯t something that a measly cultivator like him can afford. The second prince chuckled wickedly as he thought to himself.

    When that timees, this beauty is going to look at me helplessly and pleadingly for assistance, and I¡¯ll be able to earn the beauty¡¯s favour and respect. Ascivious smile crept up the second prince¡¯s lips as he thought to himself.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    The auctionmenced in the afternoon. Therefore, both Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo informed the rest that they would link up with them in the afternoon.

    The second prince did not force the issue either. After they fixed a time and location to meet, he led the way as he began to show the rest of the disciples the sights and sounds around Xingping County.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo would not have entertained the second prince if there were no entry requirements at the auction. Otherwise, there was nothing preventing her from attending the auction with her martial brother undercover.

    However, this was the harsh truth of the reality. Because of the entry requirements at the auction, Jun Xiaomo had no choice but to suppress the frustration in her heart and agree to the second prince¡¯s suggestions.

    It¡¯s only an auction anyway. I don¡¯t believe that the second prince would dare take advantage of me in the watchful eyes of the public in any event. Besides, the second prince had only been verbally teasing me. He¡¯s never shown any signs of making a move to begin with.

    Jun Xiaomo made up her mind to ignore the second prince¡¯s gaze as long as he did not attempt to take advantage of her.

    After the second prince left with the other disciples, the only people remaining at the table were Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo coughed twice dryly as she broke the awkward silence ¨C she suddenly felt as though the air had be rather stifling, and their interactions had be a lot more tense and peculiar than before.

    In the past, she would eagerly draw closer to Ye Xiuwen and chat about everything under the sun as they poured out their hearts to each other. But now, she found herself speechless when faced with her martial brother¡¯s abject silence.

    To make matters worse, she could not see her martial brother¡¯s expressions under that veiled conical hat of his at all. She could not make out what he was thinking about right now.

    That said, she could still sense Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze that was trained on her. This gaze was filled withplicated emotions, and it left her with a peculiar sensation that gave her the urge to flee from this ce.

    It was truly too awkward forfort!

    Ye Xiuwen also noticed that this young man was avoiding his eye contact right now. He had earlier consciously distanced himself from Yao Mo because he could not understand his own feelings. But right now, he found himself gradually discarding those thoughts.

    He must have hurt the feelings of this young man when he had distanced himself earlier. How could he bear to continue hurting someone who had always treated him with such sincerity?

    Ye Xiuwen sighed helplessly. He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he made the first move to apologize, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Brother Ye has been too muddleheaded earlier.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo could not understand why Ye Xiuwen was suddenly apologizing to her.

    However, it was precisely because of this apology that the earlier awkwardness and stifling atmosphere between the two of them seemed to have vanished into thin air.

    ¡°Even though I¡¯m not sure what brother Ye is apologizing for, I won¡¯t me brother Ye for anything.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded sincerely.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly amused at Yao Mo¡¯s response. At the same time, his heart was particrly moved by Yao Mo¡¯s unwavering trust in him.

    ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s put this matter behind us once and for all.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you had something to deal with earlier? Is this matter urgent?¡±

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right! I¡¯ve almost forgotten!¡± Jun Xiaomo smacked her head, ¡°That fe¡¯s still on my bed!¡±

    ¡°That fe? Your bed?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he picked up on the most important words.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly into her fist.

    It suddenly dawned on her that her earlier expression had been...slightly...ambiguous. Her heart seemed to be battered by her guilty conscience right now. What¡¯s going on?

 Chapter 100: The Strife at the Auction

    <h4>Chapter 100: The Strife at the Auction</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    To prevent any misunderstandings, Jun Xiaomo immediately recounted her encounter with the first princest night, particrly shedding light as to why the first prince would have ended up lying on her bed.

    ¡°In other words, you immediately set out in pursuit of the first prince when you saw the Blood Jade glowst night?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    Jun Xiaomo could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions and thought that he was only rifying her earlier ount of what happened. Therefore, she immediately nodded her head in affirmation, ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately curled up his fingers and gave Jun Xiaomo a hard rap on the head. Then, he bluntly chided her, ¡°You¡¯ve got gutsrger than most spirit beasts, don¡¯t you? You gave chase without determining whether your target is a friend or foe, and you didn¡¯t even tell me about this matter. Do you think that you can deal with any situation with just those talismans of yours, hmm?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo finally realized that Ye Xiuwen was angry. He was angry at the fact that she had recklessly rushed outst night. After all, it would be toote for regrets if she had encountered a life-threatening situation.

    ¡°Cough...I only wanted to locate the owner of the Blood Jade quickly. Furthermore...¡±

    ¡°Furthermore, you think that the owner of the Blood Jade wouldn¡¯t be dangerous to you, isn¡¯t that right?¡± Ye Xiuwenpleted the sentence for Jun Xiaomo helplessly, ¡°Little Mo, you can¡¯t measure dangers with just your instincts, understand?¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, his words grew so sharp that they cut straight to the heart.

    As the Heavenly Peak¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, there were times when Ye Xiuwen would have to chide and discipline mischievous martial brothers and sisters on Jun Linxuan¡¯s behalf. He disyed the attitude of a First-Seat Disciple right now. Despite his rtively calm tone of voice, the manner in which he spoke left Jun Xiaomo no room for any rebuttals.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo could only obsequiously lower her head as she softly murmured, ¡°I understand...¡±

    In fact, she had failed to consider matters with the same level of meticulousness as Ye Xiuwen, despite the age of her soul being far greater than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s. That said, this had more to do with one¡¯s personality than their age and life experiences. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality was inplete dissonance with the concept of ¡°meticulousness¡±. Otherwise, she would not have been sopletely fooled by Qin Lingyu in her previous life.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he added, ¡°Brother Ye¡¯s not ming you. I¡¯m only reminding you that you¡¯ll have to watch out for these little details in future. When you¡¯re outside, every slip up can potentially cost you your life, understand?¡±

    ¡°Alright...¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head once more.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand was still on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Therefore, when Jun Xiaomo nodded her head again, her ink-ck hair ran through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers, leaving a sensation as though one had been tickled by a feather. This action of hers seemed to directly tickle at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he retracted his hand without a word.

    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s not much of a solution to keep him cooped up in your room. Let¡¯s go check on him and see if he¡¯s awakened yet.¡± Ye Xiuwen suggested with a calm voice as he hid the peculiar feelings in his heart from Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Mm, mm. That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m thinking of. Let¡¯s go, brother Ye.¡± As Jun Xiaomo responded, she swiftly hooked her arms around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms and dragged him towards the second floor of the inn, in the direction of her room.

    Ye Xiuwen had already made up his mind to go with the flow. Therefore, he calmly epted Yao Mo¡¯s affection without any form of resistance.

    Jun Xiaomo pushed opened the door and stepped into her room. Then, as she turned to look at her bed, she suddenly stopped in her tracks,pletely stunned.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Ye Xiuwen noticed her bizarre reaction. However, Jun Xiaomo had pped on the first prince an Invisibility Talismanst night, and no one would be able to see the first prince¡¯s position apart from Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, the reason for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shock wasn¡¯t immediately apparent to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°That...that...he¡¯s gone.¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around in confusion, pointing towards the empty bed as she stammered to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. Then, he sighed helplessly and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he suggested, ¡°Perhaps he left immediately aftering to. I guess the matter pertaining to the Blood Jade will have to wait till the next time you encounter him.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in exasperation as she thought to herself ¨C I just hope that he¡¯lle back sooner rather thanter. Sigh, I wonder when I¡¯ll next encounter this madman. Where would I go about looking for this crazy fe to begin with?

    Time passed by quickly, and it was soon afternoon. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen made their way to their meeting point at the previously agreed time. There, they once again linked up with the second prince and the other Dawn Sect disciples.

    It was unclear what had exactly transpired in this time that they were apart, but the rtionship between the second prince and Yu Wanrou seemed to have developed substantially within one morning. Both of them chatted with each other casually as they even held hands. At the same time, Ke Xinwen trudged silently along behind the two of them as he wore an extremely dark expression on his face.

    Zhong Run swept a mocking gaze over towards Yu Wanrou. She personally felt that Yu Wanrou¡¯s profligate habit of falling in love with any man that came along was tantamount to courting her own doom. After all, how was this any different from what a prostitute did? If the other disciples start talking about this when they got back to the Sect, Yu Wanrou¡¯s reputation might truly fall into shambles.

    If Jun Xiaomo could only hear what Zhong Run was thinking right now, she would certainlyugh and sigh at Zhong Run¡¯s naivete ¨C Jun Xiaomo was able to ascertain from her previous life¡¯s experience that not only would Yu Wanrou¡¯s reputation remain intact, she would even be one of the most coveteddies in the cultivation world that male cultivators wouldn¡¯t even mind sharing with others!

    As to how exactly Yu Wanrou had achieved all of this, Jun Xiaomo presently had no way of knowing these things.

    ¡°There doesn¡¯t seem to be too many people attending this auction.¡± One of the disciples looked around as he estimated the number of people around, before thinking aloud.

    ¡°This auction in Xingping County is held over five full days. As time goes on, the items auctioned will get increasingly more valuable. Today is only the third day of the auction, so the things sold at this auction today are only slightly better than average. Therefore, you won¡¯t see that much interest in the goods being sold today.¡± The second prince exined from his past experiences at the auction.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is.¡± The disciples all nodded in appreciation as they thanked the second prince for his exnation.

    ¡°Haha, there¡¯s no need for thanks. If anyone sees anything that catches your fancy, please feel free to let this prince know. If it¡¯s within this prince¡¯s capacity to help out, this prince certainly won¡¯t scrimp on those few spirit stones.¡± The second prince fanned himself as he generously offered.

    At the same time, his gaze was transfixed on Yao Mo¡¯s body when he said all these things. That pair of flirtatious, coy looking eyes gleamed with a certain obsession.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately turned her head away, ignoring the second prince¡¯s gaze entirely.

    Even if the second prince hadn¡¯t beenplicit in murdering her child in her previous life, she would never stoop so low to associate with someone who tangled himself with just about anyone who presented themselves to him.

    Just like that, the auctionmenced. The items that were to be auctioneered today were brought up onto the stage one by one and disyed there. A que was ced on a table on the side, and this que disyed the starting price of the object to be auctioneered. Everyone could make their bids on their desired objects starting from the starting price, and the highest price wins the bid.

    As the second prince had pointed out earlier, the objects auctioneered today were nothing extraordinary. Most items were only at the fifth or sixth grade, and they were items that were considered umon at best.

    Because of this, few people were interested in the items that were being sold, and thest few objects to be sold had been auctioned off with only one bid. ordingly, none of the items were sold for a high price, and the auction progressed extremely quickly.

    The disciples all looked on at the objects as they were auctioned off one by one. Slowly but surely, the disciples started to lose interest in the auction. The items being sold right now were either too impractical, or somonly found that they could hardly be considered special. Therefore, no one contemted even participating in the auctions.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo yawnedzily with dwindling interest, something suddenly caught her eye. She immediately perked up and fixed her eyes on the item that was being brought out onto the stage right now.

    At this moment, the auctioneer held up a paintbrush-like object and introduced it to everyone around, ¡°This pen is called the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush. This item has been carefully crafted by the master craftsman, Official Hong, over forty-nine painstaking days, and it can be considered one of his most prized creations. This item is at the upper-tier of the sixth-grade, and its starting price for this auction is thirty superior-grade spirit stones. Highest bid wins. The auction begins. Dear guests, please make your bids.¡±

    A few moments passed, and everyone remained silent. No one made any bids at all.

    ¡°Little Mo, do you like this brush?¡± Ye Xiuwen lightly leaned over towards Jun Xiaomo as he whispered into her ears.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lips, before replying, ¡°I can¡¯t say that I¡¯m truly attracted to that brush.¡±

    This was the truth. She did not truly ¡°like¡± this brush. After all,pared with the talisman brushes that she had obtained towards the end of her previous life, this upper-tier sixth-grade talisman brush was truly not deserving of any special mention.

    However, this brush possessed a different type of worth to Jun Xiaomo. This was because seeing this brush immediately reminded Jun Xiaomo of the memories of her past ¨C in her previous life, she had seen this exact same brush before, but had never used it once.

    Back when Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were escaping for their lives together, they had once encountered a team of persecutors whichprised of a talisman master.

    During that encounter, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen barely made off with their lives intact, and their only spoil of war in that encounter was a talisman brush which the talisman master had inadvertently dropped during their skirmish.

    Once they ascertained that they had left their persecutors in the dust, Ye Xiuwen presented Jun Xiaomo with this talisman brush as he suggested, ¡°Since you¡¯re still trying to find a suitable cultivation art for yourself, why not learn how to make talismans in the meantime? At least, by doing so, you¡¯ll be able to preserve your own life better.¡±

    At that time, Jun Xiaomo had just experienced the trauma of losing her parents and the entire Heavenly Peak, and she was perpetually in a state of dibobtion. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had just been betrayed by her martial brothers and sisters from Dawn Sect whom she had wholeheartedly trusted. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion was like the straw that broke the camel¡¯s back. She burst out with fury, grabbed the brush from Ye Xiuwen, threw it harshly on the ground and stamped on it furiously with her foot. As she continued to trample on the brush, shemented in anguish, ¡°I refuse! I absolutely refuse to be a talisman master! I¡¯m a cultivator, and I¡¯m not a stupid talisman master!¡±

    ording to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s perception and understanding of the world at that time, Jun Xiaomo had unterally concluded that a talisman master was a career without any prospects, and their existence was a nuisance and a burden to the world around them. Therefore, when Ye Xiuwen suggested for her to learn to draw talismans, she imputed her own meaning into his words and thought that Ye Xiuwen was foreclosing any possibilities of her continuing on the path of cultivation.

    Jun Xiaomo had always taken pride in her talents in cultivation. Therefore, how could she set aside her pride in that instant and resign to a life of being a talisman master?

    Despite her tantrum, Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn as he stared vacantly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s maddened expressions. After a little while, he turned around silently and began to walk away.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure as it gradually grew smaller, and her heart soured with disappointment. She crouched on the ground and began to cry in despondence. As she continued to bawl, she deplored, ¡°I know martial brother hates me. I know you think of me as a burden, and you don¡¯t want to take responsibility for me anymore...wuu-wu-wu...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen stopped in his steps. He continued to look away into the distance, and no one was privy to what went through his mind at that time.

    Yet, a few momentster, he turned around and walked back to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. He looked directly at Jun Xiaomo crouching on the ground as he assured her, ¡°Get up. I promise you that as long as I shall live, nothing is going to happen to you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly got to her feet. Her eyes quivered with roiling emotions, and she wrapped her hands tightly around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, as though she were grabbing onto her only lifeline in this world.

    Ye Xiuwen turned around and motioned to leave again, and Jun Xiaomo followed alongside clumsily.

    On that day, as Ye Xiuwen led Jun Xiaomo away from that ce, the brush that Ye Xiuwen had intended to give to Jun Xiaomo remained forsaken on the ground where Jun Xiaomo had trampled on it.

    In the end, Ye Xiuwen kept every bit of his promise to Jun Xiaomo. He protected her with every fiber of his being until he drew his final breath. Yet, it was only muchter that Jun Xiaomo finally realized that Ye Xiuwen had suggested for her to learn the art of drawing talismans only for her own good.

    Back then, Jun Xiaomo was unable to control the demonic energy in her body and she was unable to draw talismans. She was truly a burden to Ye Xiuwen. If she had learnt how to draw talismans and thereby improved her self-preservation abilities, then perhaps she might not have needed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s watchful protection over her every step of the way. She might not have caused Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death in the end!

    However, it was a pity that she had onlye to this realization all toote.

    Jun Xiaomo regretted everything she had done.

    Presently, the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush held in the auctioneer¡¯s hands right now looked exactly the same as the one that Ye Xiuwen had presented Jun Xiaomo with in her previous life. Even though Jun Xiaomo knew in her heart that these two brushes were different, she still couldn¡¯t help but be reminded of that incident in her previous life when she saw the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush.

    Ye Xiuwen had always been a meticulous and sensitive person. Even though Jun Xiaomo had explicitly stated that she was not attracted to that brush, the quivering and roiling emotions in her eyes could not be faked.

    In Yao Mo¡¯s eyes, Ye Xiuwen could see a confluence of pain, despondence, regret, disappointment, longing, and other simr emotions, and he just couldn¡¯t figure out whether Yao Mo cared about that talisman brush or not.

    I¡¯m almost certain that this talisman brush is of some sentimental value to Yao Mo, even though he says he doesn¡¯t like it. Ye Xiuwen assessed in his heart.

    Having thought about this, Ye Xiuwen retrieved thirty superior-grade spirit stones and ced it into the bowl in front of him and called out, ¡°Thirty superior-grade spirit stones. I wish to make a bid for the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush.¡±

    The bowl was imbued with a miniscule talisman array. As long as someone ced spirit stones into the bowl, it would alert the auctioneer to the location of the person cing the bid.

    The auctioneer had waited for some time now, and he was worried that he wasn¡¯t going to be able to sell this talisman brush today. Fortunately, someone made a bid for the brush in the end.

    ¡°A man on this side has just made a bid for the talisman brush at thirty superior-grade spirit stones. Is there anyone else who wishes to ce a bid?¡± The auctioneer inquired in a sonorous voice.

    Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses by the auctioneer¡¯s inquiry, and she immediately turned her head and looked at Ye Xiuwen with a stunned expression, ¡°Brother Ye, you don¡¯t have to...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen patted her head as he cut her off, ¡°It¡¯s fine. Since that brush is so important to you, let¡¯s buy it.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip, and the rims of her eyes instantly reddened. The scenes of the past and the scenes of reality had seemed toe together harmoniously, instantly evoking the deep, profound emotions in her heart once more.

    If nobody else were around right now, she might very well have burst out into tears and cried her heart out.

    Jun Xiaomo sniffled slightly as she murmured to Ye Xiuwen with a shaky voice, ¡°Mm, thanks, brother Ye.¡±

    She had made up her mind that she was going to treasure the talisman brush this time.

    ¡°Is there anyone else? ...¡± After a few moments, the auctioneer began to count down, ¡°Thirty superior-grade spirit stones going once... Thirty superior-grade spirit stones going twice...¡±

    ¡°Sixty superior-grade spirit stones.¡± Another voice rang out leisurely as it cut off the auctioneer¡¯s trailing voice,pletely silencing the entire audience.

    The price immediately doubled?! Which nouveau riche is this?

    The entire audience turned their attention to the person who had just spoken, only to see a man dressed in a dignified manner with an entourage of people standing behind him. Obviously, this man was someone with stature.

    Jun Xiaomo also turned around furiously and looked at the person who had just ced his bid ¨C

    It was not just anyone. It was that man who had noticed Yao Mo¡¯s interest in the brush and intentionally ced a bid in order to win Yao Mo¡¯s favour ¨C the second prince, Rong Yebin!

 Chapter 101: Itâ€™s Your Loss, No Thanks!

    <h4>Chapter 101: It¡¯s Your Loss, No Thanks!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath, and then breathed out slowly.

    She red directly at the second prince as she forcibly stered a smile on her face and gritted her teeth as she queried, ¡°Second prince, what¡¯s the meaning of this? Are you also interested in obtaining this talisman brush?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t actually think that the second prince would take any form of interest in this talisman brush. After all, if he were truly interested in making talismans to begin with, the high officials within Inferno Kingdom would hardly hesitate to present him with talisman brushes of higher quality and grades in order to curry favour with him. Therefore, what could the second prince possibly want with a sixth-grade talisman brush?

    The second prince continued to fan himself as he exined, ¡°I noticed that Little Mo had taken a liking to this talisman brush, so I took it upon myself to buy it as a gift for Little Mo.¡± As he said that, he fluttered his eyes at Jun Xiaomo in a suggestive fashion.

    Clearly peeved, Jun Xiaomo responded sharply with an annoyed tone of voice, ¡°Since brother Ye has already decided to purchase it for me, why did second prince have to double the price?¡±

    ¡°The meaning attached to the brush won¡¯t be the same. After all, the persons giving this gift are different.¡± The second prince explicated in a profound fashion, ¡°And besides, the highest bidder always wins at an auction. If two people have set their eyes on the same object, that object naturally belongs to the one with the deeper pockets, wouldn¡¯t you say so, brother Ye?¡±

    The ¡°object¡± mentioned by the second prince did not merely refer to the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush ¨C it included Yao Mo as well.

    In the eyes of the second prince, there were few people out there who could resist the temptation of money and wealth. Because of this, the second prince thought to unt his wealth and crush hispetition, Ye Xiuwen. He did not believe that Yao Mo¡¯s heart would not be moved by his present actions.

    The second prince had often acted in the same manner in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. Whenever a beauty caught his eye ¨C even if that beauty already had a suitor or lover ¨C the second prince would employ all sorts of methods to strong-arm hispetition and capture the heart of that beauty.

    He thoroughly enjoyed the process of winning over his targets. In fact, he found things simply too in without anypetition.

    Jun Xiaomo was so fuming mad from the second prince¡¯s response that she did not notice the double entendre in the second prince¡¯s words. However, Ye Xiuwen picked up on it.

    Ye Xiuwen closed his eyes and lifted his head. Then, he looked towards the auctioneer as he inly announced, ¡°Eighty superior-grade spirit stones.¡±

    The auctioneer¡¯s eyes immediately brightened as he grew more spirited. He would never have expected to encounter such distinguished patricians on the third day of the auctions. He immediately raised his voice and echoed, ¡°Seven Aperture Talisman Brush, eighty superior-grade spirit stones. Does anyone else have a bid?¡±

    ¡°One hundred superior-grade spirit stones.¡± The second prince continued to fan himself as he leisurely announced his bid.

    ¡°One hundred superior-grade spirit stones! The price of this Seven Aperture Talisman Brush has now grown to one hundred superior-grade spirit stones! Does anyone else have a bid?¡± The auctioneer¡¯s voice quivered in excitement.

    The entire audience was now set aze with an uproariousmotion. One hundred superior-grade spirit stone for this measly sixth-grade Seven Aperture Talisman Brush ¨C was this necessary?! The bidding price had already far exceeded the objective value of this object.

    ¡°One hundred and ten superior-grade spirit stones.¡± Ye Xiuwen continued.

    ¡°One hundred and ten! One hundred and ten superior-grade spirit stones! Anybody else?¡±

    ¡°One hundred and sixty superior-grade spirit stones.¡± The second prince increased the price by fifty superior-grade spirit stones in just one breath. As he announced his bid, he even grinned impishly as he cast a derisory look over at Ye Xiuwen.

    The second prince¡¯s grand eunuch stood diagonally behind him and gulped anxiously. He had wanted to say something to the second prince, but then he hesitated and caught himself.

    He wanted to tell the second prince that with one hundred and sixty superior-grade spirit stones, one could already buy a mid-tier eighth-grade talisman brush! Spending the same amount of money on a mere sixth-grade upper-tier talisman brush was avish waste of money!

    But he caught himself. He knew his ce ¨C he was no more than a eunuch to the second prince. It was unlikely that the second prince would change his mind, no matter what he said. In fact, speaking out right now might only serve to draw the second prince¡¯s ire upon himself.

    Sigh. Forget it. I¡¯ll keep observing on the sidelines and see how things pan out.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that there was no meaning contending with the second prince. He knew that the second prince was maliciously driving prices up, and no matter what price he bid, the second prince was going to one-up him by calling out a bid that was at least ten superior-grade spirit stones higher than his. In fact, Ye Xiuwen was almost certain that the second prince were going to keep this up until Ye Xiuwen was unable to fork out any more spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring.

    What the second prince was doing right now was clearly unting his wealth. He was the crown prince of the Inferno Kingdom and its future king. Therefore, he was hardly concerned about the little amount of spirit stones that he was bidding with right now.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen was thinking up an appropriate countermeasure, Jun Xiaomo leaned slightly over towards him and whispered in a discreet, soft voice that could only be heard by the two of them, ¡°Brother Ye, I don¡¯t want that talisman brush. Let the second prince have it.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen softly patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Yao Mo¡¯s consideration towards him left him with a sour feeling and some measure of exasperation in his heart.

    The aching feeling in his heart came from Yao Mo¡¯s sensibility; while his exasperationid with the fact that he did not possess sufficient spirit stones in his Interspatial Ring to duke it out with the crown prince of the Inferno Kingdom.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo could sense the displeasure within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart. She knew that Ye Xiuwen were still deeply affected by this incident.

    Therefore, she blinked twice and mouthed the following words to Ye Xiuwen ¨C I have a better talisman brush in my Interspatial Ring. Don¡¯t worry.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo silently added in her heart ¨C Besides, I don¡¯t want it if it¡¯s not given by martial brother Ye!

    This talisman brush possessed sentimental value precisely because it reminded her about the memories of her past interactions with Ye Xiuwen. Therefore, what was the point if Ye Xiuwen were not the one giving her the brush? The brush¡¯s sentimental value would certainly be substantially diminished, if not rendered entirely obsolete!

    However, Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t prepared to express these words verbally, and she could only silently think about these matters.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s observational skills were amazing. Even though Jun Xiaomo had not expressed her feelings in words, he could see that Jun Xiaomo absolutely did not want to owe the second prince any favours.

    After all, it was easy to get into a debt of gratitude, but it was much harder to pay it off. Once Jun Xiaomo epts the second prince¡¯s gift of the talisman brush to her, it was not going to be easy for her to set things straight with the second prince in future.

    Besides, the second prince was obviously inting prices with a malicious intent just so that he could stave off Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bids. Otherwise, a mere sixth-grade Seven Aperture Talisman Brush could easily be bought for less than one hundred superior-grade spirit stones.

    Having understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions, Ye Xiuwen wrote in the palm of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands the following words ¨C I¡¯ll buy a better one for you next time.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled at Ye Xiuwen, and her heart was nowpletely devoid of any disappointment.

    Even so, Ye Xiuwen were still dissatisfied with the fact that the second prince had botched his attempt to purchase the talisman brush. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen resolved in his heart that he was going trip up the second prince and let him have a little taste of his own medicine.

    Since themunication between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo took a little while, the auctioneer had already started to count down. Nevertheless, Ye Xiuwen lifted his head once more and coolly called out, ¡°One hundred and seventy superior-grade spirit stones.¡±

    As soon as he finished speaking, the second prince immediately called out, ¡°Two hundred superior-grade spirit stones.¡±

    The second prince¡¯s extravagance caused the entire crowd to turn around and stare at him with open jaws in astonishment. Within moments, the entire crowd was filled with chatter as people spected the second prince¡¯s identity. Naturally, there were also some individuals in the crowd who managed to remainposed because they had recognized the second prince¡¯s identity or the fact that he was a member of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s royalty.

    After all, this wasn¡¯t the first time that the second prince had splurged with extravagance in order to win over the affection of his targets. Therefore, the people who managed to recognize the second prince¡¯s identity continued to crane their necks as they attempted to spot which beauty it was that the second prince had set his eyes upon this time.

    However, the disturbance and uproar in the crowd did not affect Jun Xiaomo and the rest. In fact, the Dawn Sect disciples had already be aware of the fact that the second prince and Ye Xiuwen were now locked in a bidding war. Therefore, they all continued to observe the two protagonists of this war keenly. On the other hand, Yu Wanrou looked helplessly at Yao Mo with a gaze filled with admiration ¨C evidently, she desired to be in his shoes right now.

    Jun Xiaomo was bbergasted as she turned around and stared at Ye Xiuwen ¨C didn¡¯t I say I didn¡¯t want the talisman brush anymore? Why did you start bidding again?!

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, but he did not exin his actions. Instead, he continued to bid, ¡°Two hundred and ten superior-grade spirit stones.¡±

    ¡°Two hundred and fifty superior-grade spirit stones.¡± The second prince leisurely fanned himself as he continued to delight himself in the limelight created by the countless looks of admiration and adoration.

    These looks of admiration naturally came from the male cultivators; while the looks of adoration naturally came from the female cultivators. Several female cultivators even fantasized about having the fortune of being fawned over by the second prince.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly increased his bid again, ¡°Two hundred and eighty superior-grade spirit stones.¡±

    The second prince flicked shut his fan as he red over at Ye Xiuwen with increasing displeasure, ¡°Three hundred superior-grade spirit stones!¡±

    As soon as the second prince shouted out hisst bid, the entire audience was immediately filled with a deafening silence, as though someone had applied a Noise-Cancelling Talisman on every single person present at the same time.

    The auctioneer¡¯s hand quivered in excitement as he looked at the second prince with incredulity. It had to be said that items to be auctioneered tomorrow might not even fetch the juicy price of three hundred superior-grade spirit stones. Furthermore, the auctioneer would take a cut of the auctioned price as hismission.

    In other words, he stood to gain thirty superior-grade spirit stones through this single transaction of the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush. To put this into perspective, this amount was something that far exceeded what he would have earned after one regr day of auctioneering.

    The auctioneer truly thanked his lucky stars for encountering these two patricians who engaged in a bidding war at this moment.

    The second prince smirked as he nced over at Ye Xiuwen with a mocking gaze once again. He knew that Ye Xiuwen could not match up to his level of wealth. Even if Ye Xiuwen had continued to increase his bid, Ye Xiuwen could never fork out as much money as the second prince could.

    As expected, Ye Xiuwen remained silent and stopped bidding any further. ordingly, the second prince sessfully purchased this Seven Aperture Talisman Brush for the price of three hundred superior-grade spirit stones.

    ¡°Eunuch De, go settle the ounts.¡± The second prince turned around and instructed Eunuch De.

    ¡°Yes, this humble servant shall do so.¡± With a bitter expression, Eunuch De counted out three hundred superior-grade spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring and handed them over to the auctioneer.

    The auctioneer received this with a glint in his eyes, before promptly handing over the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush to Eunuch De.

    When Eunuch De returned to the second prince, he immediately presented the second prince with the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush. As the second prince received the brush, his face was stered with a proud and pleased expression.

    At this moment, Eunuch De felt so anguished by the second prince¡¯s actions that he wanted to rub his aching temples ¨C Master, you¡¯ve basically purchased this talisman brush at a price that is several times of its fair value. What do you have to be pleased about?

    It had to be known that three hundred superior-grade spirit stones were more than sufficient to cover the expenses of any ordinary family for several years!

    Well, master is the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s future king after all. Having grown up in the pce, he naturally doesn¡¯t understand the hardship experienced by themon folk. Sigh.

    Eunuch Deined in his heart, but he kept his thoughts to himself as he continued to stand deferentially behind the second prince.

    The second prince beamed in delight as he turned towards Yao Mo and presented the talisman brush to him as he proimed victoriously, ¡°I¡¯ve said it before, brother Yao can let me know if he sees anything he fancies. I will definitely buy it for you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she looked back at the second prince. She found that nauseating smile stered all over his face especially vulgar and garish.

    Despite that, she chuckled lightly, and then disyed an unconstrained attitude as she responded, ¡°I thank the second prince¡¯s good intentions, and I¡¯ve taken it to heart. However, I really don¡¯t need this talisman brush. I humbly ask the second prince to keep it for now and give it to someone who might need it moreter.¡±

    The second prince¡¯s smile immediately froze in ce. He squinted his eyes as he queried, ¡°Brother Yao loves to joke. Wasn¡¯t brother Ye bidding for this brush on your behalf earlier?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth discreetly as she muttered in her heart ¨C Why did you meddle in our affairs if you knew that martial brother Ye was buying it for me?!

    It was when the second prince managed to secure his bid on the talisman brush that Jun Xiaomo finally picked up on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions for increasing his bids. Ye Xiuwen had used the second prince¡¯s malicious intentions against himself and dug a pit that the second prince had fallen into. Right now, Jun Xiaomo was only lending her martial brother a hand to aggravate the second prince.

    Therefore, she hooked her lips into a smile as she leisurely responded, ¡°That¡¯s right. Butter on in the bidding, I suddenly realized that I possess an even better talisman brush, so I decided that I don¡¯t need this brush anymore.¡±

    The second prince: ......

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo retrieved from her Interspatial Ring the talisman brush that she had habitually used. This brush was a low-tier seventh-grade brush. Even though it could hardly hold a candle to the brushes she had used in her previous life, it was nevertheless better than the Seven Aperture Talisman Brush held in the second prince¡¯s hand right now.

    ¡°Therefore, martial brother wasn¡¯t bidding on my behalf towards thetter half of things.¡±

    He was only raising prices to aggravate you! Since you like to unt your wealth so much, then you can thoroughly enjoy this brush which you have just splurged on!

    Thisst statement was something that Jun Xiaomo had only added in her heart and not made explicit. However, the second prince was not a daft person. How could he not understand the implications of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier words?

    Jun Xiaomo clearly meant that she no longer had the intentions to possess this talisman brush midway through the bidding, and Ye Xiuwen was well aware of this fact. Therefore, the only reason Ye Xiuwen had continued to bid was because Ye Xiuwen knew that the second prince intended to outbid him to the end, and he merely wished to make the second prince fork out more spirit stones at the auctions.

    Ye Xiuwen was adept at making use of circumstances to his own benefits like that. After all, he had not done too much, but he was nevertheless able to seriously trip up the second prince and make him spend three hundred superior-grade spirit stones to purchase that worthless talisman brush.

    Seeing that his n hadpletely backfired, the second prince was absolute furious. His lips twitched uncontrobly, and he almost failed to maintain his usual appearance replete with that charming and suave smile.

    On the other side, the disciples from Dawn Sect were all trying to stifle theirughter as well. They could not help it. The second prince¡¯s extravagant methods had not only attracted looks of admiration from them, it also incited feelings of jealousy and even hatred. Now that the second prince had dropped the rock on his own foot, how could they not feel secretly pleased at the situation? Therefore, they tried their very best to keep theirughter in at this moment.

    This was the first time that the second prince had been made into aughingstock, and he felt incredibly frustrated!

    He coldly chuckled as he remarked, ¡°Brother Ye is truly good with his schemes.¡±

    Yet Ye Xiuwen calmly rebuffed him with a curt response, ¡°You¡¯re not too shabby either.¡±

    If not for the fact that the second prince had raised the prices maliciously; if not for the fact that the second prince interjected in their affairs and pitted himself against Ye Xiuwen, Ye Xiuwen would not have considered retaliating at all.

    The second prince snickered coldly, before handing the talisman brush back to Eunuch De as he instructed, ¡°Keep it, and give it to whoever wants it.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Eunuch De carefully stashed the pen and remained taciturn. He did not want to incur the wrath of his master right now.

    In the time that followed, the second prince no longer teased Jun Xiaomo with his words. It was as though he hadpletely lost interest in Yao Mo.

    Jun Xiaomo secretly gave Ye Xiuwen a thumbs up as she smiled discreetly at him.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, and they were once again enshrouded with an intimate atmosphere that left no room for a third party.

    However, what they did not notice was how the second prince had nced over at them at this moment, and a soulless gleam flickered across his eyes before it vanished.

 Chapter 102: First Prince; Half-Man, Half-Beast

    <h4>Chapter 102: First Prince; Half-Man, Half-Beast</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just like that, the fracas-filled auction ended with a thick, heavy atmosphere. Fortunately, the second prince had reserved for himself a booth within the auction, and everyone seated outside of the second prince¡¯s booth was unable to witness the ensuing scene when the second prince had been severely tripped up by Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. Otherwise, this crown prince would have been thoroughly embarrassed.

    Notwithstanding that, the second prince truly lived up to his name as the heir to the throne. He possessed a far more sanguine temperament than people like Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen, and he managed to recover from this situation fairly quickly. As the auction ended, he fanned himself leisurely as he bid farewell to the entourage of Dawn Sect disciples.

    As the second prince Rong Yebin departed with his subordinates trailing behind him, Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly and sighed, ¡°Truth be told, if this person weren¡¯t so lustful, I could learn to appreciate his character.¡±

    Few people were able topose and collect themselves and even dispel any thoughts of revenge so quickly after being schemed against by someone. At the very least, even Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t sure that she would be able to do this.

    Furthermore, the heir of a kingdom would always ce an inordinate amount of emphasis on his appearances and reputation in public. Rong Yebin had had these trampled upon in public, yet he did not even appear to concern himself with getting back at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo and salvaging some of his appearance and reputation. Evidently, he was far from being a petty person.

    ¡°It¡¯s such a pity...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed again, but she didn¡¯t mention what she was feeling sympathetic about. Then, as another thought crossed her mind, Jun Xiaomo tapped on her chin as she thought aloud, ¡°Come to think of it, does this mean that he will no longer harass me any further?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t a narcissist by any means. Rather, the second prince had made his intentions so clear by his actions, and Jun Xiaomo truly hoped that she would no longer be entangled in this messy affair with the second prince. She did not even want to be considered as one of the second prince¡¯s preys to begin with.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, but he remained taciturn.

    The truth was that Ye Xiuwen had an inkling that the second prince wouldn¡¯t take things lying down. In fact, he felt that the stronger Yao Mo¡¯s resistance, the stronger the second prince¡¯s desire for him.

    This was what Ye Xiuwen had managed to glean from the second prince¡¯s profound and meaningful smile just before he departed. However, it was also a rare sight for Little Mo to feel at ease. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen simply kept these thoughts to himself so that he would not add to Yao Mo¡¯s burdens.

    We¡¯ll respond ordingly when the second prince makes his move again. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself coolly. This was also Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression of concern.

    ---------------------------------------------

    It was night. Jun Xiaomo had just taken a shower. She let out a big yawn as she walked over to her bedside while drying her hair.

    She felt truly drained, having spent a good part of the day with people whosepany she could do without. Furthermore, there was still that incident with the first princest night which precluded her from a good night¡¯s rest the night before. Therefore, the only thought running through her mind right now was to flop down to her bed and get a good night¡¯s sleep.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo suddenly paused, and her pupils constricted as her eyes anxiously darted about at her surroundings.

    In the dim glow of the flickering candlelight, her room was covered with shadows that were dancing ever so slightly. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s goosebumps crept up along the edge of her skin. For some peculiar reason, she felt that there was a pair of eyes transfixed on her body in the depts of the shadows in her room right now.

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± Jun Xiaomo questioned sharply.

    Yet no one responded. Her surroundings were enveloped by a deafening silence, that was only asionally broken by the gentle crackling of the candle me.

    Jun Xiaomo was frustrated by the fact that she was still only at the second level of Qi Mastery. Even if she released her divine sense right now, she wouldn¡¯t be able to sense the presence of any cultivators who possessed a higher level of cultivation than her.

    Even then, Jun Xiaomo made preparations for the worst. She began to manipte the true energy within her body and channel them to her limbs so that she would be able to react and respond against any attacks in the shortest time possible.

    Then, a cold breeze swept through the room, and the candle me flickered violently as the wind threatened to put it out. The shadows in the room shifted about menacingly. Just at that moment, a tyrannical wind suddenly swept past Jun Xiaomo and appeared behind her body! She immediately turned around and retrieved a Thunderbolt Talisman from her Interspatial Ring in one swift motion!

    However, she wasn¡¯t fast enough. In the blink of an eye, Jun Xiaomo felt a heavy weight pressing down on her body, and she found herself falling backwards as she mmed heavily onto the bed.

    The impact was so great that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s internal organs felt as though they had been jolted about severely. She struggled to catch her breath. Even then, the assant had pinned down both of her hands, preventing her from using the Thunderbolt Talisman she had earlier retrieved.

    Jun Xiaomo cursed in her heart. She was lucky that her soft bed was behind her right now. Otherwise, she might have been severely injured if she had been sandwiched between her assant and the floor!

    ¡°Huff...huff...¡± The assant on top of Jun Xiaomo heaved and breathed heavily as he sniffed about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. However, he had not lifted his head once to meet with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. Therefore, apart from determining that her assant was a man from his build, Jun Xiaomo could see nothing more than the ck hair on the top of his head.

    Jun Xiaomo could feel his breath over her neck, and then her chest. If she did not wear the appearances of a ¡°man¡± right now, she would almost certainly see this man as a lecher.

    Yet even though she was under the effects of the Alteration Talisman, Jun Xiaomo still felt extremely embarrassed and awkward. Her whole body was burning up right now ¨C both in shame, and in fury.

    ¡°Hey! What¡¯s wrong with you? Are you a dog? What are you sniffing here and there for?!¡± Jun Xiaomo sharply demanded an exnation.

    She discovered that this assant did not really have the intention to attack her. Instead, after pouncing on her earlier, he only sniff about her body as though he were looking for something, or as though he treated Jun Xiaomo as a piece of meat on a bone.

    Meat on a bone... Jun Xiaomo was bbergasted by even her own imagination. A deep sense of frustration welled up within her.

    Even then, the man did not respond to Jun Xiaomo. It was as though he tacitly agreed with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s observations that she was nothing more than a piece of meat on a bone to that man. After sniffing about for some time, he shifted his attention back to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, drew a deep breath, and then breathed out slowly. After that, the man stopped moving.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    What the heck is this?! Am I just supposed to lie here the whole night with this mad man over me until this man agrees to move his body?!

    And just what did this man eat growing up? Why¡¯s his strength so immense?!

    Jun Xiaomo was so frustrated that she wanted to cry; but no tears came out. Right now, she could only stare at the top of her bedframe as she thought of how to slip out of this awkward predicament.

    Just then, two squeaks rang out. Her little packrat crept out from the corner of the room and took a vicious bite at the man whoid on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    ¡°Aaaoooo!¡± This man yowled with a strange cry before letting go of Jun Xiaomo. Then, he formed ws with his hands before stretching his arm out at the little packrat.

    ¡°Little Packie!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart tightened anxiously, and she immediately sent the Thunderbolt Talisman flying at the man while diving straight at the little packrat, blocking that man¡¯s attack in the nick of time. Then, just as she managed to shield her little packrat with her body, the Thunderbolt Talisman exploded.

    A deafening crackle resounded in the room, and the table behind Jn Xiaomo¡¯s body was immediately reduced to nothing more than sawdust. However, the man remainedpletely unharmed.

    Jun Xiaomo quickly looked at her little packrat. After ensuring that it was fine, she knitted her brows at the uninvited guest in her room.

    When she finally saw this man¡¯s appearance, Jun Xiaomo was momentarily frozen in her steps ¨C it was the same person whom she encounteredst night, the fric first prince!

    The first prince had obviously failed to break out of his maddened stupor. His eyes glowed with a soulless red light, and Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but liken him to a vicious spirit beast that hadn¡¯t yet gained any spiritual awareness.

    Just what happened to him?!

    Jun Xiaomo once again retrieved a Heart Purging Pill from her Interspatial Ring and prepared herself to flick it in his mouth when he came pouncing at her again.

    Naturally, she would have to aim it at his mouth so that he would swallow the pill like he did yesterday.

    ¡°Aaooooo!¡± The first prince howled again. Then he furrowed his brows as though he were in perplexity and some measure of pain, before he closed his eyes and shook his head vigorously.

    Jun Xiaomo was speechless ¨C Howling? Why was he howling as though he were a wolf?

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat poked its head out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes. Then, it waved its short, stubby paws about as it continued to squeak at Jun Xiaomo, as though it had discovered what¡¯s wrong with the first prince¡¯s body.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo did not understand thenguage of packrat. After gazing into each other¡¯s eyes for some moments, the little packrat finally gave up. It dejectedly put down its paws and slipped back into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes.

    How frustrating! There¡¯s no way tomunicate with her at all! The little packrat stared at its own paws as it gnawed on them as though it were swearing.

    Jun Xiaomo stroked her little packrat helplessly. Then, she promptly turned her attention back to the first prince as she stared at him intently.

    She did not know what the first prince was going to do, and whether the first prince was going to attack them again.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo was absolutely vexed by her present predicament. It would be great if the first prince had retained his rationality. At the very least, she would be able to converse with him and determine whether he was friend or foe. However, the first prince was in apletely maddened state of mind right now. Just when was he going toe to his senses?

    Just then, the first prince suddenly opened his eyes and howled again. Then, he shifted his legs and started walking over towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo took one step back cautiously. She had prepared two items in her hands which he held onto tightly right now ¨C a Heart Purging Pill in one hand, and an offensive talisman in the other hand.

    If push came to shove, she would resort to using that offensive talisman to protect herself.

    Then, the first prince tilted his head slightly, as though it were bewildered why Jun Xiaomo were backing away.

    Despite that, seeing a towering person almost eight-foot-tall reveal such an innocent and pure expression did not do anything to lessen Jun Xiaomo¡¯s guard at all. Rather than develop affection for him, this made goosebumps crawl all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s skin instead.

    This...this person ispletely mad!

    Just like that, the first prince took another few steps forward, and Jun Xiaomo retreated in a simr fashion. Finally, her heel bumped into the base of her bed frame ¨C there was no more room to retreat.

    Having been backed into a corner, Jun Xiaomo now raised her senses to new heights and stared at the first prince with all the alertness she could muster. She braced herself forbat.

    ¡°Aaaooooo~¡± This time, the first prince¡¯s howl sounded slightly aggrieved. Even though Jun Xiaomo did not speak ¡°hisnguage¡±, she could tell from his expression right now that the first prince somehow felt humiliated.

    Jun Xiaomo legs almost crumbled in astonishment. She could not figure out what was going on in the first prince¡¯s mind right now.

    Humiliation? Shouldn¡¯t I be the humiliated one?! I¡¯ve spent much effort locating the owner of the Blood Jade, only to find that he had somehow turned into a madman who cannot be reasoned with. Furthermore, he¡¯s be almost like a beast,pletely devoid of all human rationality right now!

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo truly believed in her heart that she was not going to be able to fulfill her promise to senior Jiang Yutong for a long, long time.

    Then, the first prince howled again and suddenly leapt towards Jun Xiaomo. Just as Jun Xiaomo was about to resist, she realized that the first prince had merely held her by the waist as he begun to rub his face against hers as though he were being wronged.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat popped out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes again. Immediately, a vicious intent once again filled the first prince¡¯s bloodshot eyes as he red at the little packrat.

    ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to bully my little packrat! Otherwise, I¡¯m going to throw you out!¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and reprimanded the first prince.

    She was only testing out an absurd theory that had just crossed her mind. After all, the first prince had seemed to have lost all rationality, and she was uncertain whether the first prince would even be able to understand the words that she had just spoken. And even if he could understand her words, who knew how he would take these ¡°threats¡± of hers?

    However, her attempt turned out to be more effective than she had thought. After the first prince bared his teeth menacingly at her little packrat, he continued to hug Jun Xiaomo as he shut his eyes in contentment,pletely ignoring the little packrat.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the first prince helplessly once again. She just could not understand what was going through his mind.

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat scuttled over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and hopped about eagerly, hoping that Jun Xiaomo could understand its expressions.

    ¡°Are you suggesting that I should check his Dantian and meridians to see what¡¯s wrong?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked curiously.

    Squeak squeak! Her little packrat leapt up in joy as it celebrated its first sessfulmunication with Jun Xiaomo.

    However, Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows doubtfully. Having a stranger control or ess one¡¯s meridians was an extremely dangerous thing to a cultivator. Therefore, cultivators would generally refrain from sending their own spiritual energy to probe about another cultivator¡¯s body without that cultivator¡¯s agreement. This was not only disrespectful to another cultivator; it could even result in a severe bacsh against his own body! In fact, Jun Xiaomo had almost suffered from such a bacsh previously when she wrapped her palm around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist. Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen was able to restrain his attack at the veryst moment.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s considerations. But it also knew that if Jun Xiaomo did not determine the root of the problem, there was no way that Jun Xiaomo could treat him with the appropriate cure, and the first prince would be fated to live the rest of his life as a madman.

    In fact, the little packrat was aware of what exactly had gone wrong with the first prince¡¯s body. However, it was extremely vexed that it was unable to exin to Jun Xiaomo its findings in a manner that Jun Xiaomo could understand.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo made up her mind. She drew a deep breath, before softly coaxing the first prince who had cuddled up to her, ¡°Let me investigate the condition of your body¡¯s Dantian and meridians. You¡¯re not allowed to attack me, understand?¡±

    The first prince opened his eyesckadaisically, howled once softly, before shutting his eyes again. It was as though he was saying that he didn¡¯t mind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.

    Yet, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but wonder to herself ¨C Do you really understand what I¡¯ve just said to you?

    However, there was no way she could ascertain this. The first prince¡¯s condition did not allow her to obtain any more of an approval than the one she had just obtained. Even if she grabbed the first prince by his cor and demanded an answer, it was highly improbable that she was going to get anything more than a few howls from him.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her temples in distress. This first prince was even more of a handful than her little packrat.

    Even then, Jun Xiaomo decided to approach this cautiously. She first ced her hand gingerly on the first prince¡¯s wrist so see if the first prince would react with aversion. However, the first prince remained motionless as though he had fallen asleep. There was no reaction at all.

    Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief. Then, she began to convert the true energy within her body into spiritual energy, before sending a thread of it probing about the first prince¡¯s meridians.

    At this moment, the first prince shifted, and Jun Xiaomo almost pulled back her spiritual energy in shock. However, the first prince only shifted his body slightly. It did notunch any attacks against Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was thoroughly relieved.

    She closed her eyes once more, and this time, shepletely set her mind on controlling her energy as she sent that thread of energy throughout the first prince¡¯s meridians and Dantian. Then, she opened her eyes once more. This time, her face was filled with an expression of bewilderment.

    She would never have thought that the first prince was a born with a natural demonic body. His meridians and Dantian were filled with chaotic demonic energy, and this energy almost immediately expelled her spiritual energy when she first sent it into the first prince¡¯s body. Fortunately, she was able to react quickly and transform that thread of energy into demonic energy, and therebyplete her investigation of the condition of his body.

    What surprised Jun Xiaomo even more was the fact that the first prince¡¯s body possessed a demonic core within it. It was apparent to Jun Xiaomo that the demonic core was the result of the first prince having ingested a demonic beast¡¯s core, and the first prince had not been able to fully subjugate the energies within this demonic core. This was why the first prince was reduced to his present half-man, half-beast state.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her temples again, chuckling bitterly as she remarked, ¡°My friend, you¡¯re really a natural born troublemaker, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Regrettably, Jun Xiaomo knew that she was not going to be able to hand the first prince that piece of Blood Jade before he regained consciousness again.

 Chapter 103: The Excessively Serene First Prince

    <h4>Chapter 103: The Excessively Serene First Prince</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo reassessed the situation before her. She had originally intended to feed this half-man, half-beast fellow with a Heart Purging Pill. However, now that it became clear that the first prince was not here to create a ruckus, she decided to shelf that thought.

    Given the first prince¡¯s condition, a Heart Purging Pill would only suppress the symptoms, but it would not cure the root of the problem. Unless the first prince couldpletely absorb and subjugate that demonic core¡¯s energies, the effects of the Heart Purging Pill would only be temporary. In fact, once the Heart Purging Pill loses its effects, the bacsh to the first prince might even worsen his condition.

    Jun Xiaomo attempted to move her arms and her body. However, as soon as the first prince sensed this, he hugged Jun Xiaomo even more tightly. The heat radiating from the first prince made Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face flush with a burning sensation ¨C it was partly from embarrassment, and partly from anger.

    She attempted to regte her thoughts with some self-hypnosis ¨C This is only a humanoid with animalistic instincts. This is only a humanoid with animalistic instincts...

    Having recited that mantra several times, the flush on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face somewhat subsided. However, this did not change the fact that the first prince was hugging her so tightly that her limbs were beginning to feel sore and numb. If this went on, her limbs might even suffer from the loss of blood.

    Squeak squeak! Her little packrat grew maddened. It stood up on its hind legs as it furiously squeaked at the first prince ¨C

    Forget Ye Xiuwen for now. After all, he was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s martial brother, so they would naturally be closer to each other. Given its appearance as a little packrat right now, it couldn¡¯t do much even if it wanted to. Therefore, it could only watch on silently on the sidelines as Jun Xiaomo drew closer and closer to Ye Xiuwen.

    But who was this person who had just popped up out of nowhere? On what basis did he think he could hug Jun Xiaomo so tightly like that?!

    This caused the little packrat¡¯s fury to reach its boiling point ¨C how it wished it could bite that first prince to death right now!

    Despite this, the first princezily raised its eyelid and nced nonchntly at the little packrat. This nce was filled with disdain, contempt, and other simr emotions. The little packrat¡¯s fury once again raised to new heights, even as the first prince shut his eyes apathetically.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Did this person really lose all rationality of thought? Why is it that his present actions seem to suggest otherwise?

    The little packrat continued to squeak at the first prince indignantly. However, the first prince seemed to treat the little packrat¡¯s annoying peeps as nothing more than a melodious tune and shrugged it offpletely.

    After a while, the little packrat grew tired of squeaking as well, and it slumped onto the bed in dejection.

    It knew that it wasn¡¯t its ce to attack the first prince either. If anything, yesterday¡¯s altercation had told it that it was absolutely no match for the first prince.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was also so exasperated that she was reaching her breaking point. If she could, she would have kicked the first prince away long ago. However, she simply did not have the strength to resist him.

    Her present predicament was akin to that of a prey that had been captured and tightly bound by the Demonvine. The only difference was that the first prince did not suck her blood like a Demonvine would. At best, the first prince simply treated her like a pillow or a bolster.

    Do I really have to spend the entire night like this? A dreadful notion shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind as she stared vacantly into the air.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to stare at the ceiling with her tightly restrained body. Slowly, slowly, with the gentle crackling of the me in the center of the room, and the heaving and sighing of the first prince and the little packrat¡¯s breaths, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyelids began to droop and grow heavy. Finally, she fell into a deep slumber.

    ----------------------------------------

    It was dawn. Jun Xiaomo was jolted awake by a suffocating sensation. An immense pain emanated from her neck, as though something were mping down hard on it right now. Jun Xiaomo feltpletely devoid of any energy to struggle.

    Jun Xiaomo reflexively sought to pry away that object mping down on her neck, but that vice-like grip around her neck only seemed to grow tighter and tighter. Finally, in that moment when Jun Xiaomo was about to lose her consciousness, she mustered all of her energy and ferociously opened her eyes. Instantly, she saw a pair of cold, frigid eyes staring back at her.

    ¡°Cough cough...cough cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo hacked dryly in pain, ¡°Let...go...¡±

    Having discovered that Jun Xiaomo was now awake, that man loosened the grip around her neck ever so slightly. However, he still kept his palm wrapped around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck.

    ¡°Who are you, and why are you on my bed?¡±

    That man¡¯s voice was an extension of that cold, frigid gaze in his eyes. It waspletely devoid of feelings, much less emotions such as warmth and the ilk.

    ¡°Let...go...first...¡± Jun Xiaomo struggled to articte her thoughts in the fewest number of words possible.

    She was going to choke to death if this person did not let go of her neck soon! How was she going to respond to his query when she was dead?!

    That man ferociously let go of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, but in that instant which he let go of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, he immediately shifted his hands to restrain Jun Xiaomo¡¯s limbs so that she had no means of resisting him at all.

    It was well apparent that this man was proficient and well-ustomed to dealing with such situations of skirmish.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest instantly expanded as she furiously sucked in a breath of fresh air, replenishing her lungs and body with the oxygen that she needed. It was almost as though she had just been given a new lease of life.

    Once she managed to catch her breath, Jun Xiaomo immediately red at the person restraining her, gritting her teeth as she barked, ¡°This ce is my room, alright?! You should search your heart and ask yourself instead why you¡¯ve decided toe running over to my room and squeeze with me on my bedst night!¡±

    That¡¯s right. The person restraining Jun Xiaomo was the very same ¡°uninvited guest¡± who hade calling on Jun Xiaomost night ¨C that fric, beast-like first prince. However, the present first prince no longer possessed that bloodshot eyes like he didst night. Instead, they had now reverted back to their original form. His obsidian-ck eyes were now deep, cold and abstruse, and his gaze was filled with distrust and guardedness against Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I remember you.¡± Momentster, the first prince indifferently added, ¡°You were tailing me the previous night. Tell me, who sent you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was infuriated by the first prince¡¯s response ¨C who sent her? It was the first prince¡¯s own mother!

    Had she known that the first prince would possess such a guarded nature and was so difficult to appease, she would have taken the opportunity while the first prince was asleep to return that Blood Jade to him directly! What was the point of getting herself into this mess right now?!

    ¡°Would you believe it if I told you that there¡¯s no one instructing me right now?¡± Jun Xiaomo responded coldly.

    The first prince squinted his eyes and grimaced as he continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo silently. However, his taciturn, frigid expression told Jun Xiaomo everything she needed to know ¨C

    He did not believe her!

    In fact, it was not hard to see why the first prince was so guarded against Jun Xiaomo right now. Under normal circumstances, there was no reason for a stranger to be chasing a target across half an entire county!

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know how to begin exining things to the first prince. More importantly, she was afraid that the first prince would not believe her even if she recounted the entire truth to him!

    By now, the first prince¡¯s mother, Jiang Yutong, had already been missing for several years. It would be peculiar, to say the least, if a stranger shows up suddenly with an alleged keepsake from Jiang Yutong, saying that he had fallen into Jiang Yutong¡¯s cavern and brought this Blood Jade to him under her instructions. Even Jun Xiaomo would find it hard to believe the stranger if she were in the first prince¡¯s shoes.

    Furthermore, the first prince was highly sensitive to matters pertaining to his identity right now. He had beenbelled as the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s most wanted fugitive, and he could not rule out the possibility that someone might spin tales like this in order to lure him out of his hiding ce.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo did not have much room to consider other options right now. If she did not speak the truth right now, perhaps the first prince might not let her go unscathed either.

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath, suppressed the frustrations welling up within her heart, before she began to recount her experience starting from when she unwittingly fell into the cavern belonging to Jiang Yutong. She left out nothing. In fact, she made certain to apprise the first prince about how her senior Jiang Yutong had made such conscientious preparations in order to ensure that anyone who entered her cave would agree to pass on the Blood Jade to her son. Jiang Yutong had prepared a Heart-Oath Array, requiring the visitor who stumbled upon her cavern to make an oath on it before that visitor was allowed to leave.

    As the first prince listened to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s recount of her experiences, his gaze was filled withplicated emotions. Then, when Jun Xiaomo finished exining everything, he remained taciturn.

    ¡°Do you mean to say that after you fell into my mother¡¯s cavern, and under the instruction of her final will, you¡¯vee to hand over this piece of Blood Jade to me?¡± The first prince indifferently summarized the essence of what Jun Xiaomo had been saying. The first prince¡¯s voice was detached and aloof, and he did not let his roiling emotions reveal themselves through his words.

    In fact, he spoke with such disinterest as though her mother¡¯s final wishes hardly meant anything to him.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded curtly, bitterly disappointed with the frigidity of the first prince¡¯s heart. After all, senior Jiang Yutong had been thinking about her own child, even on her deathbed; yet the first prince seemedpletely unmoved by this fact.

    But she was an outsider, and she knew that it was not in her ce to condemn the first prince.

    ¡°There¡¯s something else.¡± Jun Xiaomo recalled uniqueness of the Blood Jade as she continued to expound, ¡°The Blood Jade would glow with a red light whenever you¡¯re close by. This was the main reason why I¡¯d chased after you two nights ago.¡±

    The first prince furrowed his brows, yet he responded with a distant voice, ¡°Let me see that piece of Blood Jade.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo gestured to the first prince to loosen his restrain on her. The first prince did so, but he only allowed Jun Xiaomo to move one of her arms.

    Does this person really need to be so guarded against me? Jun Xiaomoined in her heart.

    She had already been bound and restrained since the beginning ofst night. Yet this morning when she woke up, she was once again restrained by the first prince, albeit in a different fashion. Right now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms had already grown numb. She stretched her loosened arm, before promptly retrieving the piece of Blood Jade from her Interspatial Ring.

    The Blood Jade was extremely exquisite-looking. It was wless and limpid, and when it was ced under the illumination of the sunlight, it even reflected a whole spectrum of colours around it.

    Yet at this moment, the piece of Blood Jade knew that it had found its owner, and it glowed with a bright, red light. This light was so bright that it even lit up the dim room they were in.

    ¡°Do you believe me now?¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth.

    The first prince grew taciturn. Momentster, he queried again, ¡°Am I right to say that if you don¡¯t hand this piece of Blood Jade to me, your oath will remain unfulfilled and the Heart-Oath Array will remain in effect?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Therefore, will you please take it from me quickly?¡± Jun Xiaomo earnestly pleaded with the first prince.

    Then, the first prince suddenly smiled mischievously. When the mischievous smile was superimposed on the first prince¡¯s suave and charming appearance, the resultant look even exuded a slight tinge of viiny.

    In fact, the present look that was on the first prince¡¯s face was aplete match with the appearance of the first prince in the portrait. Of course, the first prince¡¯s smile in the portrait disyed his carefree attitude then, as though he held the entire world in the palm of his hands. However, this expression of his was now reced with a frigid, abstruse expression.

    One could only imagine what the first prince must have gone through to have resulted in such a stark change in his personality.

    Even then, the smile on the first prince¡¯s charming appearance was still an expression that warmed the heart.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was hardly given an opportunity to admire the first prince¡¯s rarely seen smile. This was because the first prince¡¯s next words dashed all her hopes of fulfilling the oath she had sworn on the Heart-Oath Array ¨C

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll entrust this Blood Jade to you for now.¡± The first prince smirked as he remarked with a tranquil voice. Yet the contents of his words were anything but tranquil.

    ¡°What?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened as she stared at the first prince in shock, ¡°Why?!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know whether this Blood Jade is truly from my mother as you have alleged. Thus, I¡¯ll leave it with you first.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    She wanted to beat the first prince¡¯s face into a pulp to wipe that smirk off his face right now. However, she had to possess the ability to do so first.

 Chapter 104: The First Princeâ€™s Transaction

    <h4>Chapter 104: The First Prince¡¯s Transaction</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°I wonder what I have to do to earn the first prince¡¯s trust?¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth slightly as she asked. Her eyes were filled with indignation.

    The first prince chuckled coldly, before he exined, ¡°There¡¯s absolutely no reason for me to believe you now, is there? After all, you had epted by brother¡¯s bounty-rted task to capture me only a few days ago. Yet now, you take out an object that is allegedly a keepsake from my mother and expect me to believe you? How do I know you haven¡¯t tampered with the Blood Jade? How do I know I can trust you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was unable to respond to the first prince. She had almost forgotten about these things.

    ¡°So, you know about our eptance of the second prince¡¯s bounty-rted task.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed.

    ¡°Of course. What about it? Are you going to confess that everything you¡¯ve said till now had been a lie?¡± The first prince raised his eyebrows.

    Jun Xiaomo exined herself, ¡°That¡¯s only the n of the decision-maker within our group. Besides, the person who¡¯s epted the second prince¡¯s task isn¡¯t me. It¡¯s that fe from Dawn Sect surnamed Qin. Furthermore, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s going to be harder for me to look for you if I hadn¡¯t acquiesced to epting this task?¡±

    Her gaze remained calm and unwavering, and she locked eyes with the first prince.

    The first prince Rong Ruihan deliberated for a moment, before he spoke once again, ¡°Let¡¯s make a transaction, then.¡±

    ¡°What kind of transaction do you propose?¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly queried. By now, the indignation in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart had already dwindled substantially.

    Just as the first prince was about to borate on his suggestion, the room¡¯s door suddenly rang out with two knocks ¨C thud, thud.

    Jun Xiaomo and the first prince were both slightly shocked. Who could havee looking for them this early on in the morning? The sky wasn¡¯t even bright yet.

    In the end, it was the first prince who managed to react to the situation first. He once again mped his hands against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck and restrained her limbs as he looked cautiously at the tightly shut door.

    If not for the fact that she was being choked right now, Jun Xiaomo would have exploded with rage and castigated the first prince ¨C What¡¯s this guy¡¯s problem? Why does he love to choke people at the drop of a hat?!

    Having received no response, the person at the door knocked twice again ¨C thud, thud. Then, a clear, soft voice called out, ¡°Little Mo, are you awake yet?¡±

    So, it¡¯s martial brother...

    Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief. She was just about to respond to Ye Xiuwen when the first prince suddenly tightened his grasp around her neck, leaning in close to her ear as he coldly whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare let hime in. Otherwise, I¡¯m going to snap your neck in half!¡±

    Just like that, a lump of anger swelled up in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s throat. She finally experienced the indignation that the disciples had previously felt when she had cornered them with her words ¨C it was the feeling of being aggrieved and wronged, topped with a momentary inability to retaliate against the perpetrator.

    She shot a deadly re at the first prince, before responding to the man standing just outside her door, Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m awake. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°Nothing much. I only wanted to ask if you wished to go practice my sword arts with me.¡± Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was clear and cool, it was nevertheless filled with warmth.

    By now, Jun Xiaomo would have been tormented by the fric first prince for one night and half a morning. Apart from her physical weariness, she was also incredibly frustrated and exasperated in her heart. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s crystal clear voice sounded as refreshing as flowing waters to her right now. In fact, its effects on Jun Xiaomo were tantamount to a Heart Purging Pill, and it instantly swept away all of the frustrations in her heart.

    Sigh, martial brother Ye is still the best. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was filled with gratitude and helplessness as she thought.

    However, she knew that she had to somehow worm herself out of this predicament. Jun Xiaomo knew that if her martial brother barged in right now, the first prince would almost certainly kill her before slipping out of the window.

    This was a type of self-preserving intuition she had when she was faced with danger.

    ¡°Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo tried her level best to remain calm as she spoke to steer clear from provoking that madman any further, ¡°I¡¯m a little bit tired today, so I¡¯ll give sword practice a pass. Sorry about that.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen shut his eyes thoughtfully as he considered her response for a moment, before he responded, ¡°Alright, then rest well, Little Mo.¡±

    With that, Ye Xiuwen turned around and left. Jun Xiaomo listened intently as his footsteps drew further and further away, and she finally let out a sigh of relief. At this moment, she couldn¡¯t tell whether she could count herself fortunate, or be disappointed at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response.

    However, Ye Xiuwen had not in fact walked very far because he very keenly picked up that something was wrong ¨C Yao Mo was not a delicate person. Back when they were travelling through the woods, he would make it a point to practice his sword arts with Ye Xiuwen no matter how hard the going got. Now that they had arrived in town and therefore ate and rested well, there was no reason that Yao Mo would suddenly be ¡°too tired¡± to practice his sword arts.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately thought about the ¡°uninvited guest¡± mentioned by Jun Xiaomo. He sharpened his senses, and then discreetly sent out a thread of divine sense to probe about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room.

    His divine sense passed through the tiny gaps between the doors to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. It continued in, and then very quickly arrived at where Jun Xiaomo and the first prince were located.

    The first prince was just about to borate on his earlier suggestion. However, his beast-like instincts kicked in and he paused midway as he cocked his head at the door. At the same time, the first prince swiftly retrieved a talisman from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it towards the door.

    On the other side, some distance away from the door, Ye Xiuwen discovered that his divine sense was suddenly cut off; he could no longer probe into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room.

    Slowly, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands curled into tightly clenched fists, and a cold gleam shimmered across his eyes.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was far lower than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s, and she naturally did not discover the divine sense that Ye Xiuwen had sent probing into her room. Because of that, she thought that the first prince was merely behaving strangely.

    The first prince chuckled as he responded, ¡°Naturally, I¡¯m taking the necessary precautions against a curious worm who¡¯s trying to y detective.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was oblivious to the fact that the ¡°curious worm¡± mentioned by the first prince in fact referred to Ye Xiuwen. She only thought that the first prince¡¯s paranoia had manifested again, so she decided not to press the issue any further.

    She gnashed her teeth and asked, ¡°Can you let go of me now?¡± Jun Xiaomo felt as though her internal organs were being crushed under the weight of the first prince.

    The first prince finally let go of Jun Xiaomo and sat at the side. However, Jun Xiaomo knew that the first prince was incredibly tense and edgy. As long as she made any sudden movements, he would immediately restrain her once again, and possibly even snap her neck!

    The first prince squinted his wolfish eyes and trained his gaze directly at Jun Xiaomo. Then, he began to borate slowly, ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask me earlier what you had to do to earn my trust? Truth be told, nothing you can do will earn my trust.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart tightened slightly as she found that this man was increasingly more deserving of beating as time went by.

    ¡°Therefore, you¡¯re proposing a transaction.¡± Jun Xiaomo was no fool. Since the first prince had suggested it, then that naturally meant that he was proposing a transaction in exchange for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fulfillment of her promise made under the Heart-Oath Array.

    How frustrating. The owner of the Blood Jade is right in front of my eyes, yet he¡¯s simply not willing to ept it. I don¡¯t even have the power to force him to ept it.

    The first prince toyed with the Interspatial Ring on his hands as he responded, ¡°You¡¯ve seen it as well. My current condition isn¡¯t too great, and I would find myself losing my rationality from time to time, transforming into a half-beast that can be easily taken advantage of.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips twitched. She wanted to interject and refute the first prince¡¯sst statement. After all, the first prince¡¯s offensive capabilities increases by several folds whenever he entered that beast-like state, so how could he be ¡°easily taken advantage of¡±?

    However, the first prince simply ignored Jun Xiaomo¡¯s peculiar expression as he continued, ¡°This condition is here to stay. I don¡¯t quite understand why I woulde looking for you time and again whenever I lose my rationality, but this is not something within my control either. Therefore, I only have one request of you ¨C before I fully recover from my present condition, you are not to betray me, and you cannot disclose any clues as to my presence or location to anybody. If you can do this for me, then I will ept the Blood Jade when I fully recover and return you your freedom.¡±

    The Heart-Oath Array was indeed a time of restraint around the oath-maker. Thus, when the first prince mentioned that he would return Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°freedom¡±, he naturally meant that Jun Xiaomo would be able to fulfill the terms of her oath.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head. She found this transaction to be rather fair, and not too onerous on her.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re in agreement, then make an oath on it.¡± As the first prince added, he retrieved arge sheet of talisman paper with a rather familiar formation diagram drawn on it. This was the very same formation array that she had used on Yu Wanrou previously.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...why is it another Heart-Oath Array?!¡± Jun Xiaomo seriously questioned whether she owed the mother and son duo in her previous life. Why did he have to make yet another oath before she even managed to fulfill her oath on the first Heart-Oath Array?

    ¡°I¡¯m already being rather reasonable here. I¡¯m only requesting you to make an oath using the Heart-Oath Array. It¡¯s not as though I¡¯m using any poison pill to control your entire being.¡± The first prince calmly stated as he presented the Heart-Oath Array to Jun Xiaomo.

    Fine. It was a stretch, but she could ept his reasoning. After all, she was too tired to both arguing with this paranoid fanatic right now.

    Jun Xiaomo ced her palm into the center of the Heart-Oath Array, before sincerely making an oath that she would not betray the first prince or disclose his presence or location to anyone until the first prince had fully recovered.

    A blue light shone brightly, and the Heart-Oath Array took effect. Seeing how things had panned out, the first prince finally rxed slightly as he rolled up the Heart-Oath Array and stored it safely in his Interspatial Ring.

    With the Heart-Oath Array now in effect, the first prince no longer treated Jun Xiaomo with the same level of tension or paranoia. He calmly looked at Jun Xiaomo before he dropped yet another bombshell on her, ¡°I¡¯ll stay here for the near future, then.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo had not expected the first prince to make such a request, ¡°Are you even aware that the second prince is residing in his official residence nearby? He even drops by from time to time to loaf about. He¡¯s already aware that you¡¯re hiding within Xingping County right now. Are you worried that he can¡¯t locate you now?¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo mentioned the second prince, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes involuntarily flickered with a vicious, cold gleam. Nevertheless, he kept his cool as he maintained his earlier request, ¡°I know that. However, I would lose my rationality from time to time, and I can¡¯t control my behaviour or where I go when that happens. Instead of running around and risking my life that way, wouldn¡¯t it be safer to stay here so that you can look after me when I lose my senses?¡±

    Could this be his real motive for asking me to make an oath on the Heart-Oath Array?

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in realization, before she immediately furrowed her brows once again as she refuted, ¡°But I can¡¯t always be watching over you every minute of the day. Do you expect me not to step out of my room at all?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to look after me every minute of the day. Generally, I tend to lose my rationality at night. The odds of me losing my senses in the day are much lower. Furthermore, I seem to like looking for you whenever I lose my rationality. Perhaps you won¡¯t even have to expend much energy to ¡°look after¡± me at all.¡±

    As the first prince mentioned this, he couldn¡¯t help but knit his eyebrows together as well. He could not figure out why he woulde running to Jun Xiaomo whenever he lost all rationality either. After all, yesterday had been their first encounter with each other, wasn¡¯t it?

 Chapter 105: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Moment of Crisis

    <h4>Chapter 105: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Moment of Crisis</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Jun Xiaomo was reminded of how that humanoid object had bound and restrained her limbs for the whole ofst night, and she was extremely reticent to agree to the first prince¡¯s request.

    If she epted the first prince¡¯s request right now, wouldn¡¯t that mean that she would have to suffer the same kind of torment every single night moving forward? She certainly did not wish to be used as a ¡°pillow¡± by some stranger every night.

    The prospects of this waspletely uneptable to her, even if she were under the guise of a male cultivator right now!

    The first prince noticed the distress stered all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face at his suggestion, so he slowly added, ¡°You have to understand that if my ¡®dear¡¯ brother happens to capture me, then I¡¯m afraid that your promise will thenceforth be impossible to fulfill.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo appreciated this fact as well. Therefore, after much internal struggle, she red at the first prince in a huff and unwillingly acquiesced, ¡°Do what you want!¡±

    It suddenly dawned on Rong Ruihan that this young man before his eyes was rather fun to mess around with because this young man wore his expressions on his sleeves. The first prince had spent the better part of his life growing up in the pce ¨C a ce filled with strife and schemes, tension and apprehension. It was an extremely refreshing sight to see someone as pure, innocent and even na?ve as the young man before him now.

    Of course, this didn¡¯t mean that Rong Ruihan would lower his guard around Jun Xiaomo. After all, Rong Ruihan knew that even his most loyal subject could potentially turn against him given the right price, much less aplete stranger whom he had just encountered out of nowhere.

    As his thoughts shifted to the traitor who had betrayed him and switched allegiance to the second prince¡¯s camp, Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze grew incredibly frigid and cold.

    Perhaps his scheming rivals had long grown anxious and impatient as a result of his history and reputation of wless conduct...

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand why the first prince still looked so sullen despite her agreement to his request. However, she was quickly reminded of the fact that she need not regard him in the same manner as any other rational person. After all, she knew that the first prince would disy irrational behaviour from time to time as a result of the existence of the demonic core within his body.

    ¡°Alright, if there¡¯s nothing else to sort out, I¡¯m going to have my breakfast downstairs, hmm?¡± Jun Xiaomo yawned and stretched her body as she wrapped things up.

    ¡°Mm.¡± The first prince curtly responded in an unperturbed manner. Then, he adjusted his position, sat cross-legged and ced his palms facing upwards, as though he had entered into a meditative state.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips. This fe must be too used to life as a prince. Not only is he treating my room as his own, he¡¯s even acting like my owner and master right now!

    Sigh. I guess it can¡¯t be helped anyway. I can only me myself for not having the ability to chase him away. I¡¯ll just have to tolerate him for a while.

    Jun Xiaomo walked out of her room and shut her door. Then, she discreetly drew a small, simple formation array on the door using her talisman brush.

    Under the effects of this small formation array, any person¡¯s aura emanating from her room would bepletely concealed and hidden.

    Afterpleting these preparations, Jun Xiaomo patted her hands in satisfaction as she departed for the great hall.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s footsteps drew further and more distant, the first prince slowly opened his eyes once again. His tightly sped lips stretched out and curled into a genial smile, and the detached look in his eyes had also subsided substantially.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    After going around the corner of the inn, she immediately saw Ye Xiuwen silently waiting for her at a pir nearby.

    ¡°Eh? Brother Ye! Why are you still here? Haven¡¯t you gone to practice your sword arts?¡± Jun Xiaomo stared at Ye Xiuwen with widened eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen had been waiting with his eyes closed. Now that Yao Mo¡¯s crisp, clear voice called out to him from the side, he slowly opened his eyes once more.

    ¡°Little Mo.¡± Ye Xiuwen turned around and responded softly. Then, he suddenly pulled Jun Xiaomo into his bosom in a tight embrace.

    Eh, eh, eh...what...what¡¯s going on?!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was momentarily frazzled. She could not understand how, after just one night¡¯s sleep, her martial brother had greeted her as though they had been separated for a long time.

    Had she forgotten something, or missed out any important details?

    Jun Xiaomo blinked her eyes in astonishment as she remained in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s warm embrace.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his eyes slightly and gazed at the young man whose head was buried in his chest right now. Earlier, when he noticed the peculiarity in Yao Mo¡¯s room, he was almost unable to resist the urge to barge in.

    However, it was precisely because he had discovered the peculiarity within Yao Mo¡¯s room that he knew he needed to resist that urge. He knew that if Yao Mo had truly encountered a dangerous situation, barging into the room might only serve to aggravate the perpetrator and exacerbate the crisis that Yao Mo was in.

    Once again, these travels had shown Ye Xiuwen the extent of his weakness. Time and again, he found himself powerless to do anything when someone dear to him had encountered a dangerous situation. Instead, he could only wait outside impatiently for the situation to resolve itself.

    This sense of helplessness caused Ye Xiuwen to feel stifled. He was unwilling to ept the present state of affairs. Moreover, this impetus motivated him with increasing restlessness and anxiety to strengthen his abilities.

    Fortunately, Yao Mo didn¡¯t seem to have encountered any insurmountable problems. At the very least, he had managed toe out unscathed.

    As he felt the warmth emanating from Yao Mo in his bosom, Ye Xiuwen sighed in relief, and his originally tense state of mind rxed substantially.

    ¡°There¡¯s someone else in your room, right?¡± After Ye Xiuwen released Jun Xiaomo, he gently tousled her hair as he queried.

    ¡°Eh? How does brother Ye know about this?¡± Jun Xiaomo replied in astonishment.

    ¡°Earlier, I found things rather peculiar, so I sent a thread of divine sense probing about your room. Unexpectedly, my divine sense was cut off and blocked outside the door.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined tly. Evidently, he was rather displeased with the person in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room earlier.

    Even if that person did not harbour any ill-intentions against Yao Mo, Ye Xiuwen nevertheless found his conduct of appearing in Yao Mo¡¯s room as and when he liked extremely inappropriate.

    It had to be said that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts were exactly aligned in this regard ¨C they both found that uninvited guest extremely hateful!

    But Jun Xiaomo had no other options avable to her right now. After all, she had already eded to the first prince¡¯s requests.

    ¡°Cough.¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly as she replied somewhat cryptically, ¡°The one in my room is the same as the one from previous night.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could not directly disclose news about the first prince. However, speaking about it in a circuitous manner would not invoke the consequences of the Heart-Oath Array.

    ¡°I¡¯d guessed as much. Apart from him, I don¡¯t think there would be anyone else who would appear in your room this early in the morning.¡± Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes as he remarked. The frigidity in his voice was well apparent to Jun Xiaomo.

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm as she assured him, ¡°Brother Ye, it¡¯s fine. He¡¯s only putting up for a few nights, and he will leave once things have been satisfactorily resolved.¡±

    ¡°Putting up?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. This phrase left him a sour feeling in his heart, ¡°Then where¡¯s he going to be sleeping? On the floor?¡±

    ¡°Cough...¡± It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo discovered yet another issue with the present arrangement ¨C That¡¯s right. There¡¯s only one bed. Where¡¯s he going to be sleeping?

    Or did this mean that she was going to end up being treated as a ¡°pillow¡± every night from now?

    As these thoughts crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, she felt like crying in humiliation, but no tears came out of her eyes. Could she renege on her agreement? ...

    Ye Xiuwen rubbed his head gently and spoke to her with a trace of unyieldingness in his voice, ¡°Have him move out. You don¡¯t owe him any obligations, so what basis does he have to take up lodging in your abode? Besides, you can simply hand that Blood Jade over to him.¡±

    However, Jun Xiaomo replied helplessly, saying, ¡°I don¡¯t have a choice. He refuses to ept it, and he insists that he will only allow me to fulfill my promises once things on his end have been resolved.¡±

    ¡°What needs to be resolved? And when are things going to be resolved?¡± Ye Xiuwen obstinately pressed the issue.

    It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo finally realized that Ye Xiuwen seemed to be angry. In fact, he seemed to be infuriated.

    She drew closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she gingerly tugged at his sleeves as she groveled, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t worry...¡± As she said that, Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and muttered under her breath, ¡°That...it¡¯s hard for me to say, but there¡¯s a problem with his body right now, and he has to stay in my room during this period of recovery, just to err on the side of caution.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen stared at the back of Yao Mo¡¯s head as he took in what Yao Mo had just said. Particrly, he noticed the hesitance in Yao Mo¡¯s reply, and he knew that Yao Mo must have his own difficulties as well.

    However, it was the fact that Yao Mo seemed to be hiding something from him that caused Ye Xiuwen to feel dissatisfied in his heart. It was as though their intimacy was now stymied by an invisible membrane that hade between them.

    Even then, after deliberating for a few moments, Ye Xiuwen decided topromise on his position and stop pressing the issue.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine as long as you understand. However, don¡¯t force the issue if things start to get out of hand. You have to tell me when that timees, do you understand?¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned sternly.

    ¡°Mm, mm. I¡¯ll do that! I swear!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked straight back at Ye Xiuwen as she raised three fingers to the sky.

    Despite that, she received a light rap on the head from Ye Xiuwen as he remarked, ¡°You never keep your oaths. I¡¯ve never once seen you relenting and not forcing the issue!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue as she replied cheekily, ¡°This isn¡¯t something I want to do either. It¡¯s only because there¡¯s always no time to inform brother Ye about these things.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his eyebrows. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen wondered whether he should properly apprise this ¡°ignorant¡± young man on the dangers one could encounter in this world.

    However, Jun Xiaomo immediately understood the things going through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind the moment he grew taciturn. In order to avoid listening to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s harangue over the next hour, she quickly wrapped her hands around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms and dragged her towards the great hall as she changed the topic, ¡°Oh gosh, I haven¡¯t eaten anything the whole morning, and I¡¯m absolutely famished right now. Let¡¯s go grab something to eat, shall we?¡±

    But how could Ye Xiuwen not know what Yao Mo was trying to do? Nevertheless, he smiled warmly as he yed along with Yao Mo.

    Just before they left, Ye Xiuwen once again cast his gaze over at Yao Mo¡¯s room.

    Even though Yao Mo had time and again assured Ye Xiuwen that the first prince wasn¡¯t any form of threat at all, Ye Xiuwen resolved in his heart that he was not going to let the first prince off scot free just like that. After all, the human heart was evil. Who knew whether the first prince had some ulterior motive for showing up like that in front of Yao Mo?

    Furthermore, the first prince was even going to spend the following nights in Yao Mo¡¯s room...

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced at the thought. Under the cover of his veiled conical hat, a profound, cold look shed across his eyes.

    ---------------------------------------

    After having her fill, Jun Xiaomo had initially intended to go out for a walk with her martial brother. However, she was suddenly reminded of that person still residing in her room right now ¨C that person had not had any food yet.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted slightly. She did not want to bother about satiating the first prince¡¯s appetites or other needs. However, the more she thought about it, the more she felt that she needed to do the right thing. After all, she may as well go all out if she were going to help the first prince. In any event, delivering food to the first prince required hardly any effort on her part. She might as well pack some food for him.

    This way, she could even ensure that the first prince wouldn¡¯t wander out of her room looking for food and be caught by the second prince as a result. After all, not only was the inn filled with the second prince¡¯s prying eyes and spies at this moment, the inn even harboured people like Qin Lingyu and the other disciples who coveted that promised reward for capturing the first prince!

    With that, Jun Xiaomo finally made up her mind. She instructed the attendant to serve her some snacks, and then she swiftly stored these snacks into her Interspatial Ring.

    Ye Xiuwen knew who Yao Mo was preparing this foodstuff for. Even though he felt slightly aggrieved in his heart, he did not express it on his face.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen might not even be aware about this, but his present reaction might not have stemmed from concern for Yao Mo¡¯s safety. Rather, it might be more appropriate to say that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present emotions had arisen because he felt threatened by the first prince¡¯s closeness and proximity to Yao Mo.

 Chapter 106: Inferno Kingdomâ€™s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang

    <h4>Chapter 106: Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    At the same time, the first prince Rong Ruihan stood silently by the window in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. A man dressed in stealthy ck garbs half-knelt behind the first prince. That man¡¯s sleeves were even embroidered with aplex pattern on it.

    If Jun Xiaomo were present right now, she would immediately recognize this pattern on the man¡¯s sleeves -after all, she had seen the exact same pattern in the cavern of her senior Jiang Yutong!

    ¡°Are you saying that...the Grand Vizier wille out of his closed-door cultivation soon?¡± Rong Ruihan looked past the busy streets of this little county and gazed into the distant. His eyes were filled with an incisive and frigid intent.

    The direction that he gazed into was precisely where the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s capital was located. He had spent over twenty years growing up in that ce, yet he possessed not a single shred of memory pertaining to the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s royal pce that was filled with warmth.

    ¡°Yes. Your subject has checked and coborated with several sources. This news is indeed urate.¡± The ck-garbed man lowered his head as he spoke. His face was filled with a somber expression.

    ¡°Ah. That wily old fox is still ever so difficult to deal with. It¡¯s already been over a thousand years, and he still refuses to let go of the authority in his hands. I¡¯m afraid he must have expedited thepletion of his closed-door cultivation because of these rumours about me, am I right?¡±

    The first prince derided coldly. A thickyer of frost seemed to have gathered in his eyes as he continued to stare into the distant with an icy gaze.

    Every foreigner would have heard of how the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang, hadid down a massive formation array to protect the Inferno Kingdom, and was thus retained and ced on a pedestal by the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s royal family. However, what the foreigners didn¡¯t know was that this was only half the story.

    The other half was in fact a closely guarded secret that was not known to many. Ever since the founding of the Inferno Kingdom, at least ny percent of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king had in fact been elected and groomed by the Grand Vizier. In other words, these people had not merely inherited the throne by conventional ascension methods.

    With every generation that passed, the Grand Vizier would always pick his favourite sprout from among the ruling king¡¯s children and make that sprout his disciple. Later, this disciple of his would invariably be earmarked as the crown prince and eventually ascend the throne as the next king of the Inferno Kingdom.

    At the same time, one could not be further from the truth if one thought that the Grand Vizier had selected his disciple based on conventional wisdom such as based on a person¡¯s talent or potential. Rather, the Grand Vizier habitually picked those who were the most impressionable and easiest to manipte. Furthermore, the sprout¡¯s odds of being selected as the Grand Vizier¡¯s next disciple would greatly increase if that sprout¡¯s mother could please and satisfy the Grand Vizier as well.

    In this regard, rather than saying that the Inferno Kingdom were ruled by the royal family, it might not be too far from the truth if one said that the Inferno Kingdom waspletely under the control of this Grand Vizier instead. In fact, since time immemorial, matters pertaining to the ascension of the throne hadrgely always been outside the control of anyone within the royal family!

    If one looked at the abilities of all the princes within the Inferno Kingdom right now, the second prince could hardly hold a candle to the first prince¡¯s abilities ¨C the first prince began reciting poetry at the age of three;posed poetry at the age of five; proposed reforms to the system of taxation at the age of twelve; and he even led armies to victory at the age of fifteen!

    In terms of talent, the second prince managed to attain the tenth level of Qi Mastery at the impressive age of twenty-three, albeit under the assistance and aid of numerous spirit pills and miraculous herbs. On the other hand, the first princepletely left the second prince in the dust when he attained the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery when he was only at the tender age of twenty-two. There was no doubt which one among them the more talented of the two.

    In terms of character, the second prince had always lusted after objects of beauty ever since he learnt about the carnal ways of the world. He devoured men and women alike. As long as he set his sights on a target, that target would have no say whether to ept or reject his advances either. On the other hand, the first prince shunned all immorality and maintained clean hands. He even consciously made it an effort not to retain any pce maids around by his side...

    However, it was precisely because the first prince was so outstanding that the Grand Vizier could not tolerate his existence. The Grand Vizier only needed an obedient, unquestioning puppet; not a charming and sensible king. Furthermore, the first prince¡¯s mother was the first daughter of a widely known n of demonic cultivators. Even though this n had already been annihted, the Grand Vizier continued to have an irrational, lingering fear of their bloodline.

    That being the case, the Grand Vizier began to sow discord between the king and the first prince when the fifteen years-old first prince returned victorious from the battlefields. Furthermore, the king had been deeply unsettled about the fact that he had in that very same yearmitted genocide against the Jiang n. As a result of that, the king made up an excuse to revoke the first prince¡¯s right tomandeer an army, rendering the first prince nothing more than a paper pusher.

    It was also that day when the first prince understood that people who were too outstanding would naturally draw the jealousy and ire of scheming people.

    At that time, Rong Ruihan swore in his heart that he would in time wrest control of the Inferno Kingdom back from the Grand Vizier. But he knew that then was not the time. Before he could fully mature and hold his own, he knew that if he disyed a performance any more outstanding than he did, there was a good chance that the Grand Vizier would immediately get rid of him.

    Therefore, Rong Ruihan continued to maintain a low key over these years. He wanted to conceal his abilities and bide his time as he developed his strength. Yet in that moment of indiscretion, he slipped up and swallowed a demonic wolf¡¯s core. This demonic core wreaked havoc within his body, causing him to lose all rationality and even almost implode.

    To make matters worse, one of the first prince¡¯s closest aides had been bought over by the second prince, and he reported this matter to the second prince. Having learned about this incident, the second prince fully utilized this opportunity and framed the first prince with the charge of attempted murder against the king.

    Even though Rong Ruihan was severely displeased with his father, the king, he would never have employed such silly methods against him. Not only did he stand to lose everything, he knew this would only allow the second prince to gain the upper hand.

    If Rong Ruihan had retained his rationality, these allegations would have been resolved easily, without a hitch. Unfortunately, the first prince knew that he would lose his rationality from time to time. In order to avoid getting murdered while he lost all measure of rationality, the first prince could only stay away from the pce and escape to Xingping County.

    ¡°Master, why don¡¯t you return to your n¡¯s settlement? This ce is full of the second prince¡¯s eyes and ears. Furthermore, the Grand Vizier is about to exit his closed-door cultivation soon ¨C that would leave you in a highly disadvantageous state.¡± The ck-garbed man suggested.

    However, the first prince waved his hands lightly, replying, ¡°I won¡¯t entertain the thought of returning to my n¡¯s settlement for now. If I lose my rationality within my n¡¯s settlement, I may inadvertently expose their presence and implicate all of them. That¡¯s something I cannot afford to risk.¡±

    The ¡°n¡¯s settlement¡± that the ck-garbed man had mentioned was naturally the location where the remnants of the Jiang n had settled at. Many years ago, the Grand Vizier personally led an army,mitting genocide against the Jiang n, and he thought that he had already wiped out the entire n. However, there was in fact a handful of the Jiang n members who had evaded capture and survived to this day. Not only that, they even managed to re-establish a ndestine contact with the first prince.

    Rong Ruihan did not harbour any intentions to kill his father in revenge for his mother. This was because death was not always a punishment; sometimes, death was instead a form of release.

    What Rong Ruihan aspired to do was far, far greater and more ambitious than that. He wanted to expose everyone involved in the genocide up and drag them down from their high pedestals, especially the masterminds behind it all. He wanted to let them experience for themselves what the game of cat-and-mouse felt like when the roles were finally reversed ¨C and the ambit of his revenge naturally included the puppeteer, Situ Cang.

    But the first thing he needed to do right now was to fully and finally absorb the demonic wolf¡¯s core which was wreaking havoc within his body, subjugate its powers and make it his own. Otherwise, he would continue to be unable to maintain his own rationality, much less execute any n for revenge.

    Rong Ruihan spent the next half an incense of time ounting for the matters of his n. Then, he began to hear footsteps approaching the door. He immediately waved his hands, dismissing the ck-garbed man.

    The ck-garbed man understood what the first prince meant. He bowed politely to the first prince, before he suddenly vanished into thin air.

    In the very next moment, Jun Xiaomo walked into the door. She noticed Rong Ruihan standing by the window, and she raised her eyebrows curiously as she quipped, ¡°Eh? I thought you were meditating.¡±

    Rong Ruihan calmly responded, ¡°I¡¯m thinking about some things, so I decided to stop meditating.¡±

    Then, Jun Xiaomo retrieved the foodstuff that she had stored within her Interspatial Ring and set them on the table, before turning her attention to Rong Ruihan again as she remarked, ¡°Eat up. I packed it for you on the way back.¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s deep gaze rippled gently with emotions, before it quickly faded away into stillness.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Rong Ruihan walked over to the tableside and picked up a hot steaming bun as be began to eat slowly. His actions were incredibly dignified and elegant.

    In fact, his Interspatial Ring was so well-stocked with Subsistence Pills that there was no fear that he would go hungry anytime soon.

    However, he appreciated the fact that this young man remembered that he had not eaten his breakfast either. Therefore, Rong Ruihan was not going to reject the young man¡¯s kind gesture. The truth was that he had not expected the young man to go beyond his call of duty and prepare breakfast for him either.

    After all, their rtionship and interactions hardly extended beyond that transaction of theirs.

    As the first prince slowly ingested the warm food packed by Jun Xiaomo, his originally cold disposition began to melt away, and his expression began to be filled with warmth.

    ¡°No need for any thanks. Just remember to pay for the food.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she spoke.

    Rong Ruihan stopped in his tracks. His obsidian-ck eyes shifted its attention and gazed straight at Jun Xiaomo. If Jun Xiaomo were anyone else, that person would almost certainly be grow frazzled when he received this deep and profound yet seemingly emotionless gaze from Rong Ruihan.

    However, this did not include Jun Xiaomo. She opened her eyes widely and pretended to be astonished as she responded, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that you expected this too be free?! I¡¯ve already provided you with lodging; do I still have to provide food for you for free? Wouldn¡¯t this be too disadvantageous to me?!¡±

    Rong Ruihan: ......

    Then, he retrieved thirty superior-grade spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring and tossed them over to Jun Xiaomo as he said, ¡°Take it. You¡¯ll be responsible for all my meals in future.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes formed a squinch as she received her payment dly, ¡°The first prince is truly generous.¡±

    Thirty superior-grade spirit stones were sufficient to cover an entire family¡¯s expenses for over one whole year! This transaction was hardly disadvantageous at all.

    Rong Ruihan looked at the young man¡¯s avaricious expression for a moment, before he turned his attention away from him and recalled the gratitude that he had earlier shown to Yao Mo.

    After breakfast, Rong Ruihan continued to meditate, while Jun Xiaomo tagged along with Ye Xiuwen at his sword practice. When Ye Xiuwen saw Jun Xiaomo leaving and closing the door to her room, he walked up to her and put his arms around her shoulder as he nced vigntly over at the room.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, everything¡¯s fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo knew that Ye Xiuwen was worried about that man in her room right now, and she patted his arm, reassuring him.

    Ye Xiuwen tensed up his hands, but he knew that there was no use speaking any more. Therefore, he led the way as the two of them left the inn.

    It was noon. Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had just had lunch, and they once again arrived at the auction house in ordance with their arrangements with the other disciples and the second prince.

    After that incident at the auction house yesterday, Jun Xiaomo had thought that the second prince¡¯s interest in her would dwindle substantially. Unexpectedly, the second prince continued to tease her incessantly ¨C almost as though that incident yesterday had not taken ce at all.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo truly wondered whether the king of the Inferno Kingdom was being levelheaded when he appointed the second prince as the crown prince.

    Having interacted with the first prince as well, Jun Xiaomo naturally found Rong Ruihan much more suitable to inherit the throne as the next king of Inferno Kingdom. And this was despite the fact that he would lose his rationality from time to time.

    Regardless, Jun Xiaomo decided to turn a blind eye to the second prince¡¯s advances and focus her attention solely on the auction at hand.

    She was still hopeful that she would find at the auction the remaining medicinal elements required to cure the scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face. After all, she had to try her luck no matter how low and insignificant the possibility was.

    Unexpectedly,dy luck was on her side. When the auctioneer brought out the third item for the day, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately lit up with joy. She immediately straightened her posture and leaned forward, attempting to get a closer look at the object being auctioneered.

    There was no doubt ¨C this was the ckmoon Grass, one of the most important spiritual grasses required for concocting the cure!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart pumped vigorously in anticipation.

 Chapter 107: The Second Princeâ€™s Threats and Promises

    <h4>Chapter 107: The Second Prince¡¯s Threats and Promises</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Oh? Little Mo is interested in this stalk of ckmoon Grass?¡± A flirtatious chuckle called out from the side, and Jun Xiaomo immediately knew who the owner of the voice was without even turning her head.

    Apart from the second prince, no one else would speak to her with that tone of voice.

    As Jun Xiaomo strongly repressed the urge to throw a punch at the second prince¡¯s face, she turned around, gritting her teeth as she muttered, ¡°That¡¯s right. Therefore, I humbly ask the second prince to show magnanimity and refrain from fighting with me over this. After all, with the second prince¡¯s status, I imagine this stalk of ckmoon Grass is hardly something even worth considering to you.¡±

    The second prince fanned himself in an urbane manner as he responded, ¡°That¡¯s true. This prince has within his residence many herbs that are far more precious and valuable than ckmoon Grass. That measly stalk of ckmoon Grass isn¡¯t much to me at all. However, ...¡±

    At this juncture, Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes with chagrin. She had a good feeling that the words about to be spoken by the second prince was thest thing that she would like to hear at this moment.

    As expected, the second prince continued to torment Jun Xiaomo, ¡°However, I¡¯ve also said it before ¨C I can never find it within me to resist any request from beauties like yourself. Since brother Yao is interested in this stalk of ckmoon Grass, then this prince takes it upon himself to bid for it on your behalf. This way, brother Yao can also save some money for the road ahead. After all, it¡¯s always important to have some cash on hand when you¡¯re travelling.¡±

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo could hardly even be bothered to feign civility with the second prince. She red at the second prince as she responded with indifference, ¡°Thanks, but no thanks. I have enough money within my Interspatial Ring, and I don¡¯t need the second prince to splurge on me.¡±

    Just as the second prince were about to respond to Jun Xiaomo, the auctioneer at center stage began to introduce the ckmoon Grass and its effects ¨C

    ¡°The ckmoon Grass grows in a frozen tundra, and it must be harvested in September to tap into its greatest potential. After September, the medicinal effects of the ckmoon Grass would dwindle substantially, and it would lose all its effects within ten days. This stalk of ckmoon Grass is something that we hadmissioned someone to harvest for us in the middle of September and preserved using Thousand Year Frost as we brought it all the way back here. Its medicinal efficacy remains as strong as it ever was.¡±

    ¡°The ckmoon Grass is not only useful as a constituent in the creation of various types of medicinal pills; it serves another purpose that most people aren¡¯t even aware of ¨C it has the ability to rid demonic energy. In fact, it is particrly effective in dealing with injuries that had been caused by the incursion of demonic energy ¨C the ckmoon Grass will not only purge the demonic energy, it will even revitalize and nourish the body. It can be said to be a miracle medicine! Dear guests, if the ckmoon Grass speaks to you right now, then please ce your bids. Don¡¯t miss out on this opportunity! Remember, highest bidder wins! ...¡±

    ¡°Pfft...¡± Yu Wanrou burst out in a melodiousughter in a timeous fashion as she added, ¡°This auctioneer is really good at selling his stuff. At least, he¡¯s much better than the one yesterday.¡±

    As she finished, she turned expectantly towards the second prince, eagerly anticipating his response.

    The ckmoon Grass could also be used as a constituent to refine pills beautification pills. Given the importance with which Yu Wanrou viewed her appearances, she naturally did not wish to pass up the opportunity to obtain this ckmoon Grass. Furthermore, she wanted to pit herself against Yao Mo and see who the second prince would end up giving this stalk of ckmoon Grass to.

    Even though the second prince did not reject Yu Wanrou¡¯s advances, the fact that he appeared to take more interest in Yao Mo left a sour feeling in Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart. She was extremely bitter and unwilling to ept this ¡°defeat¡±.

    How could I lose to a man?! Yu Wanrou found the notion of thispletely ridiculous.

    Even then, the second prince enjoyed this fresh development. He fanned himself as he quipped, ¡°Ah, it leaves me in quite the predicament that both beauties covet this stalk of ckmoon Grass. Brother Yao, what do you think? Who do you think I should give the ckmoon Grass to?¡±

    In other words, the second prince were now suggesting that whoever could please him more would be bestowed this stalk of ckmoon Grass.

    Evidently, the second prince were hopeful that Yao Mo wouldpromise on his hard line and cajole the second prince for the ckmoon Grass.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously as she refused to fall into the second prince¡¯s trap. Instead, she looked towards Yu Wanrou as she suggested, ¡°Sister Wanrou, it¡¯s not good to live off people and owe others favours. Rather than let the second prince splurge on us, I propose that wepete fairly against each other ¨C the highest bidder wins. What do you think?¡±

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips, refusing to respond. She even stared at Jun Xiaomo with an usatory look.

    Seeing that Yu Wanrou¡¯srge watery eyes were now filled with tears as though she had been put through severe humiliation, several disciples from Dawn Sect grew indignant. One disciple even turned towards Yao Mo with fierce, usatory eyes as though Yao Mo had bullied their martial sister Wanrou as he cried out with indignation, ¡°What¡¯s a big man like you doing snatching something from a demuredy? Do you even consider yourself a man?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at his usations. Nevertheless, she defended herself, ¡°I¡¯m only suggesting a fairpetition. What about it? Am I bullying her now? Do I have to present the ckmoon Grass to her on a silver tter before I can be called a ¡°true man¡±?¡±

    Besides, she was not even a man to begin with!

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo re directly back at him, that disciples grew taciturn, hesitant to speak any further.

    In fact, that disciple had indeed felt that Yao Mo should let Yu Wanrou have the stalk of ckmoon Grass. However, he could not bring himself to express his feelings. After all, he knew about the tension between Yao Mo and Yu Wanrou.

    The second prince chuckled and brought their attention back to the precondition at hand, ¡°The bidding for the ckmoon Grass has already begun. Brother Yao, if you don¡¯t call out your bid quickly, this ckmoon Grass might very well get snagged by someone else instead.¡±

    There were several people in the audience who coveted the ckmoon Grass. As a result of theirpetition, the price of that stalk of ckmoon Grass had already grown to sixty superior-grade spirit stones by now.

    However, apart from Jun Xiaomo, every single person bidding for the ckmoon Grass right now was a female cultivator looking to use it on their appearances ¨C just like Yu Wanrou. Therefore, they were rather reticent to raise prices by too much.

    After the bidding for the ckmoon Grass went up to sixty-five superior-grade spirit stones, the auctioneer began to count down.

    ¡°Eighty superior-grade spirit stones.¡± Jun Xiaomo called out in a sonorous voice, causing several people to turn their attention to her.

    It¡¯s a male cultivator! Everyone stared at Jun Xiaomo in astonishment.

    ¡°One hundred superior-grade spirit stones.¡± The second prince coolly raised the bid again.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately cast a furious re at the second prince ¨C she had thought that the second prince was no longer going to bid for this!

    The second prince chuckled coyly as he quipped, ¡°Since brother Yao rejected my good intentions, I have no other choice but to buy this for the beautiful Wanrou instead.¡±

    This was the first time that Jun Xiaomo discovered that she secretly hated the rich. In fact, she presently found herself having to suppress the urge to retrieve all of the second prince¡¯s spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring and stuff them all into his mouth.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was about to duke it out with the second prince in a bidding war, she found someone holding on to her hand to restrain her.

    Jun Xiaomo froze mid-action, and she turned to look towards Ye Xiuwen. Softly, yetced with a trace of preemption, Ye Xiuwen uttered, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know why her martial brother would suddenly grab onto her hand, and then tell her to leave with him.

    Ye Xiuwen stood up where he was and ounted to everyone else present, ¡°Little Mo and I still have some things to attend to, so we¡¯ll take our leave first.¡±

    ¡°Ah...sigh! Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo wanted to wait and see how the auction for the ckmoon Grass would pan out before assessing how she should respond to the situation. Unexpectedly, Ye Xiuwen held onto her hand with such force that she had no choice but to follow alongside as they departed the auction house together.

    The second prince continued to gaze at their backs as they left, before he revealed a wry smile on his face, remarking aloud, ¡°Interesting. Truly interesting.¡±

    The grand eunuch standing behind the second prince lowered his head and maintained his silence. However, he involuntarily let out a sigh in his heart on behalf of Yao Mo ¨C

    It was alright if this young man had just yed along with the second prince¡¯s intentions. That way, the second prince might lose interest in the young man after a short while. However, this young man had time and again rejected the second prince¡¯s advances ¨C and this only served to pique the second prince¡¯s interest in him more and more!

    From his past observations, he knew that the more a person resisted, the more the second prince prized that target.

    Given how things are going, perhaps the second prince is soon going to resort to some slightly ¡°unconventional¡± methods against this young man...

    After all, this had been the second prince¡¯s modus operandi over thest few years, and the grand eunuch had already grown numb seeing these incidents pan out in the exact same manner.

    Regardless, the grand eunuch collected his thoughts and suppressed his sympathy for Jun Xiaomo.

    Having dragged Jun Xiaomo out of the auction, Ye Xiuwen walked on the streets without another word. Jun Xiaomo had already dispelled any remnant intentions of returning to the auction by now, yet Ye Xiuwen continued to hold onto her hands tightly. It was as though he were afraid that Jun Xiaomo would immediately take flight if he let go of her hands.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that Ye Xiuwen was angry right now, but she could not understand why he was angry, and who he was angry with.

    Their surroundings were bustling with people plying the streets and while various shop owners touting their products in their attempts to attract the attention of potential customers. However, the cheerful and lively atmosphere found itselfpletely cut off from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart ¨C it was an impregnable fortress right now. Her heart waspletely filled with countless questions and uncertainties.

    Then, as they approached a slightly more deserted street, Ye Xiuwen finally stopped in his steps.

    ¡°That...brother Ye, are you upset?¡± Jun Xiaomo feltpelled to break the stifling silence.

    Despite that, Ye Xiuwen continued to look ahead as though he were deep in thought. Then, after a moment, he turned back, stared Jun Xiaomo straight in the eyes as he asked, ¡°Little Mo, you were bidding for that ckmoon Grass for me, weren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Ye-...Yes.¡± Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she lowered her head in admission.

    She knew that with the auctioneer¡¯s thorough introduction of the effects of the ckmoon Grass, it would not be difficult for Ye Xiuwen to have guessed as much.

    As she thought about how that ckmoon Grass had slipped away from her just like that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart also swelled with indignance. She lifted her head in a huff and stared at Ye Xiuwen as she cried out, ¡°Since brother Ye knew the true reason why I was buying the ckmoon Grass, why did you have to drag me out of that ce?! With your interference, the ckmoon Grass would most certainly already have been sessfully obtained by the second prince!¡±

    ¡°Would you have been able to win the bid had I not interfered at all?¡± Ye Xiuwen got to the crux of the issue.

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks and lowered her head sullenly.

    Indeed, she would not have been able to win the bid. After all, how could the meagre amount of spirit stones within her Interspatial Ring even begin topare with the rich and imposing wealth of the second prince?

    Seeing Yao Mo¡¯s doleful expression, Ye Xiuwen sighed softly, took a few steps forward and gently pulled Yao Mo into a warm embrace. Then, he patted Yao Mo¡¯s back as he apologized, ¡°Perhaps I¡¯d spoken a little bit harshly earlier. I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°Brother Ye doesn¡¯t have to apologize. I know you¡¯re doing this for my good too.¡± Jun Xiaomo understood that Ye Xiuwen would be even more displeased had she let the second prince have his way in order to obtain that stalk of ckmoon Grass for Ye Xiuwen.

    Besides, wasn¡¯t the second prince engaging in bidding wars with them only so that he could coerce Jun Xiaomo to cajole him and draw her close to himself?

    After all, the second prince loved dangling carrots in front of his targets to lure them into a trap.

    Ye Xiuwen tightened his arms and softly added, ¡°Little Mo, I don¡¯t want you to agree to anything of the second prince just because of me.¡±

    ¡°Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo wanted to say that, when push came to shove, it was fine to put on a small show for the second prince.

    ¡°Promise me.¡± Ye Xiuwen solemnly and sincerely pressed the issue, ¡°Little Mo, I¡¯d rather live the rest of my life with this scar than allow you to pay any form of price to the second prince for that stalk of ckmoon Grass.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and responded helplessly, ¡°Alright...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen softly patted her head, even as he wore a slightly downcast expression on his face.

    Truth be told, he was mad. Not at Jun Xiaomo, but himself. If he had been stronger right now, then wouldn¡¯t he possess the ability to extricate himself from such situations and dictate his own rules of engagement?

    Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists tightly, and his heart roiled with a strong sense of dissatisfaction.

    It was night. Jun Xiaomo had received a Messenger Paper Crane that had the second prince¡¯s name written on it ¨C Rong Yebin.

    Jun Xiaomo opened the Messenger Paper Crane, and the second prince¡¯s flirtatious tone of voice immediately filled the room as it teased, ¡°Little Mo, I¡¯ve managed to obtain the ckmoon Grass at the auction. If you desire it, make a trip to my residence tonight.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stretched out her lips into a tight grimace, and her heart grew conflicted.

 Chapter 108: Breaching the Tigerâ€™s Lair

    <h4>Chapter 108: Breaching the Tiger¡¯s Lair</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Aaoooo!¡±

    While Jun Xiaomo was hesitating, the first prince let out a loud howl as he pounced towards her and nudged her slightly as he tried to snatch the Messenger Paper Crane from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. His bloodshot eyes were filled with hatred and fanaticism against the owner of this message.

    ¡°Alright, be good. Shush!¡± Jun Xiaomo rapped the first prince¡¯s head lightly, and the first prince slowly calmed down again. Then, he continued to half-squat beside Jun Xiaomo as he gazed back at her with a wronged expression in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her temples. She had almost forgotten this man¡¯s existence in her room.

    The first prince had remained in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room for the entire day. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had just had the ¡°fortune¡± of witnessing the entire process of how the first prince had transformed from a state of calm rationality to his present state of fric madness.

    Even though she was only an observer, Jun Xiaomo could see that this entire process was apanied by incredible pain and torment. The first prince¡¯s body would erupt with an enormous amount of demonic energy like water bursting out of a dam. Large beads of perspiration would fill the first prince¡¯s head before trickling down in turn while his lips would be drained of blood. During this entire process, the first prince would struggle to resist the demonic core¡¯s hostile takeover of his body as he attempted to maintain his consciousness.

    Then, red, serpentine veins would start to creep up from the side of the first prince¡¯s irises towards his pupils. Slowly but surely, the innumerable red veins would begin to overwhelm and obscure the white parts of the first prince¡¯s eyes as though the demonic core were slowly ebbing away at his rationality. Finally, when the first prince¡¯s eyes had bepletely bloodshot, the gaze in his eyes would be devoid of any rationality. In its ce would remain a primal gaze, like that of a beast. At this moment, the first prince would even leap down from his chair and prowl about on all fours as he howled like a wolf.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo had already made the necessary preparations and set up a formation array within her room. Otherwise, the outburst of demonic energy would almost certainly be discovered by the second prince¡¯s hidden eyes and ears.

    Jun Xiaomo had initially thought that it was going to take a lot of energy and effort to deal with the first prince who had lost all rationality. Unexpectedly, the first prince who had entered a half-man half-beast state was in fact extremely docile and tame towards Jun Xiaomo. He would yowl as he minced towards Jun Xiaomo before hugging her waist and nodding at her obsequiously ¨C almost like how arge dog would act.

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo found herself extremely embarrassed with the present turn of events. She couldn¡¯t understand what the irrational first prince¡¯s actions meant. Was he treating her as a friend, rtive, master...or a potential partner to him?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final guess made her entire body freeze in shock momentarily, and she expended quite the effort before she managed to suppress the goosebumps-inducing thoughts from her mind.

    At the moment, the fact that Jun Xiaomo had just received the second prince¡¯s Messenger Paper Crane immediately drew an incredibly adverse reaction from the first prince.

    She found herself to be in a little bit of a pickle right now. Even though she had managed to calm the first prince down, she couldn¡¯t bear to see the first prince¡¯s aggrieved expression replete with doleful eyes either.

    And for some reason, Jun Xiaomo started to experience the onset of some ill feelings, but she could not understand where these ill feelings hade from.

    ¡°Alright, alright. You wouldn¡¯t be able to understand it even if I gave it to you.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved the paper crane in her hands as she exined to the first prince.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo wouldn¡¯t have objected if the rational first prince had insisted on seeing it. After all, she could always examine it after the first prince were done with it. However, the present first prince was now devoid of all rationality and ability toprehend these messages, just like a beast without any spiritual awareness. Therefore, it was a waste of time and effort letting the first prince take a look at things right now.

    Rather, Jun Xiaomo attributed the first prince¡¯s adverse reaction to the Messenger Paper Crane precisely because of the second prince¡¯s lingering aura on the same. After all, beasts did not only rely on the sense of sight when they sized up their opponents ¨C they also used the sense of smell.

    Jun Xiaomo sighed heavily. She had no choice but to treat the irrational prince as arge dog right now. This was the only way she was able to exin his every move and action with her.

    However, this was a rge dog¡± that was wearing the clothes of the royalty ¨C it was a sight to behold no matter how one looked at it.

    ¡°Aaooo!¡± The first prince noticed that Jun Xiaomo had stopped moving, and it once again embraced her at the waist.

    Jun Xiaomo reassuringly patted the first prince¡¯s head, just like how she would treat her little packrat. Then, she furrowed her brows. After a few moments of deliberation, she finally made up her mind.

    She was going to make a trip to the second prince¡¯s residence.

    Having made up her mind, she crumpled the Messenger Paper Crane into a ball and ced it atop her palm. Then, she operated the true energy within her body and converted it to spiritual energy. Slowly, the Messenger Paper Crane ignited and started to burn up. Finally, it was reduced to nothing more than ashes as they fell to the ground. A cold breeze swept into the room, and the ashes were picked up and tossed away.

    As Jun Xiaomo looked out of her window at the bright moon hanging in the sky, her eyes flickered with a cold, intense gleam.

    She knew that the second prince would certainly have prepared some ¡°good stuff¡± to wee her. Yet even though there was only a glimmer of hope, she knew that she had to at least try.

    After all, the ckmoon Grass was not something that was easy toe by. If they missed out on this opportunity, who knows how long they would have to wait before they could encounter the next one?

    The scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face was the stumbling block in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Unless she could quickly rid the scar on her martial brother¡¯s face, this stumbling block would always remain etched in the innermost part of her being.

    This was why she was incredibly unwilling to let this opportunity slip by when the ckmoon Grass were just dangling in front of her right now.

    Furthermore, what the second prince wanted was not her life. Therefore, the second prince¡¯s residence couldn¡¯t really be called the tiger¡¯sir. She firmly believed that it would not be too difficult to achieve all of her objectives sessfully as long as she took all the necessary preparations.

    Having thought these things through, she brought her little packrat out of her clothes and ced it on the table. Then she instructed the two ¡°animals¡± in front of her sternly, ¡°I¡¯m going out for a while because I¡¯ve got some matters to deal with. Be obedient and stay here, understand? You¡¯re not allowed to run about outside.¡±

    ¡°Ao!¡±

    ¡°Squeak squeak¡±

    Just like that, a ¡°wolf¡¯ and a ¡°packrat¡± continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo with eyes that were filled with objections and worry.

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo was unrelenting. She rubbed her forehead as she retrieved several Confinement Talismans from her Interspatial Ring, just as an added preventive measure. Then, she set up a small and simple formation array around the first prince and her little packrat. As long as this formation array remained active, no one would be able to leave or enter the domain of the formation array.

    Apart from this formation array, Jun Xiaomo had also prepared several defensive formation arrays within the room.

    Having made all these preparations, Jun Xiaomo patted her two ¡°pets¡±, before pping on herself a Windsail Talisman as she leapt out of the window and vanished into the darkness of the night.

    Squeak squeak... A strange premonition told the little packrat that it was not a good thing for Jun Xiaomo to go out sote at night. Therefore, it started wing away at the talismans in an attempt to get out.

    The first prince ncedzily at the little packrat. Then, with one sweep of his hand, he removed the few pieces of talismans that had been prepared by Jun Xiaomo.

    The little packrat: ......

    Just like that, the first prince walked out of the formation array with ease. Just as the little packrat was about to follow suit, the first prince suddenly turned around and ced the talisman papers back in their respective locations.

    As a result, the little packrat cold only continue to remain confined within the domain of the formation array. It stared indignantly as the first prince leapt out of the window, vanishing into the night with a few leaps, just like Jun Xiaomo had done.

    A few rooms down the walkway, Ye Xiuwen tossed and turned about in bed, but he could not fall asleep. Therefore, he got up and walked to the window to gaze at the serene, moonlit skies outside.

    The hazy glow of the moonlight dimly illuminated the world as though covering the world with a thinyer of silk.

    It suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen that he had not thought about his little martial sister for a long time. It was as though his little martial sister¡¯s ce in his heart had slowly but surely been seized by that young man.

    No, there are even times when their actions make them seem like the exact same person...

    One person...Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists asplicated emotions began to roil in his heart.

    Just at this moment, the swift, leaping motion of a slim figure entered his field of vision out of the corner of his eye. This figure darted past his window with immense speed, but Ye Xiuwen immediately recognized who the person was ¨C it was Yao Mo!

    It¡¯s already sote, where¡¯s Little Mo going to?!

    With only questions and no answers in his heart, Ye Xiuwen began to feel suspicious and worried. Therefore, he made up his mind in the next moment to give chase as well. Ye Xiuwen leapt out of his window, masked his aura and ran behind Jun Xiaomo as he tailed her.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware that she had two ¡°tails¡± behind her right now. Under the cover of the night, she finally arrived at the second prince¡¯s residence.

    The reason why she knew the location of the second prince¡¯s residence was the fact that they always had to pass by the second prince¡¯s residence on the way to the auction house. Whenever they passed by this extravagant,vish ce, the second prince would always look around at the disciples and boast that this was his residence within the Xingping County.

    As expected, this only drew looks of admiration from Yu Wanrou and Zhong Run; while at the same time looks of jealousy and ambition filled eyes of the male disciples in the entourage.

    Unfortunately, the second prince found it a pity that Yao Mo would only look calmly at the residence without any form of covetous expression on his face. Even though this disappointed the second prince, it only served to increase the second prince¡¯s desire to devour Yao Mo.

    Right now, this ce lookedpletely different than it did in the day. The street in front of the residence was no longer bustling with crowds of people, and only a few guards remained standing there.

    When they saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure approaching them, the guards immediately recognized her as one of the people whom the second prince had taken to the auction house. Moreover, the second prince had personally instructed the guards to allow this particr person entry to his residence.

    Therefore, the guards duly opened the gate to the second prince¡¯s residence as they gestured to Jun Xiaomo, inviting her in. On top of that, they told Jun Xiaomo to wait at the front of the residence for a while, and the second prince¡¯s attendant would be with her shortly.

    After Jun Xiaomo stepped into the residence, the main gate to the residence slowly closed behind her.

    The second prince¡¯s grand eunuch had not arrived yet. Therefore, the surroundings werepletely still and silent, and Jun Xiaomo was the only one who stood in the middle of the residence¡¯s grounds.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows and a mischievous smile crept up the corner of her lips. Then, she retrieved two talismans from her Interspatial Ring...

    A few momentster, the second prince¡¯s grand eunuch trotted over towards Jun Xiaomo. Then, he bowed politely to Jun Xiaomo as he apologized courteously, ¡°Master Yao, I¡¯m sorry to keep you waiting. My master has thrown a banquet to host the experts from Dawn Sect, and this servant has rushed over as soon as he finished his duties there.¡±

    ¡°Ah, if that¡¯s the case, then Qin Lingyu and the others must still be around, isn¡¯t it?¡± Jun Xiaomo responded curiously with a raised eyebrow.

    Since he had just ¡°finished his duties¡±, then wouldn¡¯t the natural implication be that the guests haven¡¯t left yet? However, it¡¯s already getting sote! What are they still doing in the second prince¡¯s residence? Is this normal?

    The grand eunuch bowed slightly as he exined, ¡°Master Qin and the rest have already grown tipsy from their drinks, so they have decided to put up in this residence¡¯s guest rooms for the night.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, but she said no more.

    The second prince had in fact also sent messengers inviting her and Ye Xiuwen to attend this banquet. However, they had both grown sick and tired of dealing with the second prince¡¯s relentless advances. Therefore, they made up an excuse to turn the second prince down.

    Unexpectedly, Qin Lingyu and the others were still around.

    Is this a coincidence, or is it...

    Just as Jun Xiaomo continued to walk ahead with these thoughts pressing on her mind, she suddenly discovered that the grand eunuch seemed to have vanished into thin air.

    Then, she discovered another peculiarity ¨C the path leading out of the residence had disappeared!

    She found herself presently located in a little courtyard surrounded by walls. The second prince stood at the center of the courtyard, holding a box containing the ckmoon Grass. A sly grin was stered over the second prince¡¯s face right now as he gazed longingly at Jun Xiaomo. At the same time, his eyes flickered with excitement and delight, like a hunter that had just caught his prey.

 Chapter 109: Sadistic Second Prince

    <h4>Chapter 109: Sadistic Second Prince</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Hehe, Little Mo is truly audacious to have entered my residence alone. You truly deserve your ce in my sights.¡± The second prince licked his lips as a roaring me of passion ignited in his coquettish eyes, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Where¡¯s your dear knight in shining armor? Is he at ease that you¡¯reing alone to meet this prince at night?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly. There was not a single shred of anxiety on her face as she slowly replied, ¡°The second prince likes to joke. Brother Ye and I are just regr friends, and it wouldn¡¯t be right to describe him as my knight in shining armor.¡±

    ¡°Oh? Are you only regr friends?¡± The second prince responded with a meaningful gaze in his eyes. He had deliberately emphasized the word ¡°regr¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows, ¡°That¡¯s right. What other kind of rtionship could we possibly have? Besides, second prince¡¯s residence isn¡¯t a tiger¡¯sir. Since it can¡¯t swallow me or devour me, then there¡¯s no reason for me to be afraid and cautious, right? Don¡¯t you agree, second prince?¡±

    ¡°Hahaha...well said! This prince¡¯s residence cannot be said to be a tiger¡¯sir at all. This residence is in fact a ce where Little Mo can rx and enjoy life.¡± The second prince spoke suggestively. Then, he pped his hands twice, and two beautiful women wearing nothing more than a translucent, silk-like cloth covering their bodies strutted out from the side of the courtyard, each of them holding a tray. Several bottles of wine were ced atop these trays, and the corks on these bottles had already been removed for their convenience. As thesedies walked along, the fragrance of the wine began to diffuse throughout every corner of the courtyard.

    Then, the two beauties began to ce the bottles of wine onto the stone table just beside the second prince. They even prepared the wine cups and wine carafes. After they had set up the table, they bowed courteously at the second prince and reported, ¡°Please enjoy, your highness.¡±

    ¡°Good~¡± As the second prince responded, he ran the back of his hand along each of their bodies, all the while keeping his eyes transfixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    It was as though the body he was touching was that of the ¡°young man¡± in front of him right now.

    This was the first time that Jun Xiaomo had encountered someone who brazenly defied the taboos in this world and lusted after ¡°his¡± body so tantly. If the second prince weren¡¯t a prince of the Inferno Kingdom, she might not have been able to resist the urge to send a Thunderbolt Talisman flying straight at his disgusting eyes!

    It would be best if that pair of lecherous eyes could bepletely destroyed.

    Even though she were extremely fed up in her heart, she did not reveal any of these thoughts outwardly. She simply continued to observe the second prince¡¯s actions with indifference.

    Those twodies had thought that they had been invited over to wait upon the second prince and Yao Mo. As the second prince continued to tease them, they appeared flushed with embarrassment and shy as they continued tough melodiously with the second prince. Then, after a few moments, the second prince impatiently waved his hands and dismissed them.

    Immediately, theirughter seized up, but they did not dare to show any displeasure or resistance. They bowed once again, before they took their leave in a intive manner.

    Just before they left, one of thedies even sized up Yao Mo¡¯s appearances, and she immediately understood the second prince¡¯s intentions ¨C he had a new prey to subdue.

    I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s not going to be too long before this courtyard¡¯s going to wee its newest addition. After all, this is not the first time the second prince has forcibly seized possession of a prey.

    As thatdy thought about these things, deplorable and bewailing thoughts arose in her heart, and she decided to shelf these for now and leave this ce.

    After the two beauties had left, the second prince Rong Yebin once again turned towards Yao Mo with renewed vigor and passion. In contrast with the two beauties that had just taken their leave, he was evidently still far more intrigued by Yao Mo whom he just couldn¡¯ty his grasp on.

    ¡°Since Little Mo knows how to appreciate a good wine, this prince has especially prepared some delectable, aged wine for our thorough enjoyment. How about it? Is Little Mo happy? Are you pleased?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo strode over towards the table with a little bit of a swagger, before pouring out a cup of wine for both the second prince and herself. Then, she raised her wine cup respectfully and made a toast to the second prince as she eximed, ¡°Many thanks to the second prince for the bestowment of wine.¡± As she said that, she downed the cup of wine in one shot and remarked, ¡°Good wine!¡±

    The second princeughed heartily as he reciprocated, ¡°Excellent! Forthright!¡±. Then, he too, downed the cup of wine in a shot.

    After drinking this cup of wine, Jun Xiaomo curled her lips up to a smile and continued to gaze at the second prince with a pensive look as she said, ¡°Second prince, you haven¡¯t forgotten the true reason why I¡¯m here, have you?¡±

    The second prince wiped his lips with his index finger as he replied, ¡°Of course this prince hasn¡¯t. Look, isn¡¯t the ckmoon Grass right here?¡±

    As he said that, the second prince knocked twice on the exquisite box containing the stalk of ckmoon Grass.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over suspiciously at the box containing the ckmoon Grass, before she turned her attention back to the second prince and cautiously responded, ¡°Second prince, I wonder if you would mind opening the box so that I can inspect its contents?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you afraid that this prince will trick you?¡± The second prince pretended to be displeased as he skirted the question.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to smile faintly at the second prince, but she remained taciturn.

    ¡°Alright, since Little Mo wishes to ascertain the contents of the box, then this prince shall bestow you that honour.¡± With that, the second prince opened the box towards Jun Xiaomo.

    As the box opened, a dim shimmer emanated from within the box. Under the illumination of the moonlight, that stalk of ckmoon Grass appeared to be beautiful and wless, just like a single stalk of flower that blossomed in the dead of the night.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger twitched, and she slowly clenched her fists tightly.

    The second prince noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little reactions to the sight of the ckmoon Grass, and he immediately grew more confident in subduing his prey tonight.

    He was not afraid of Yao Mo coveting that stalk of ckmoon Grass. Conversely, the more Yao Mo coveted the ckmoon Grass, the more likely the second prince was to get what he wanted!

    At this moment, the second prince once again closed the box containing the ckmoon Grass as he leisurely queried, ¡°Little Mo, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve heard of the term ¨C fair trade ¨C haven¡¯t you? Since you¡¯re here, what do you intend to use in exchange for this, hmm?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll offer you three times the price you¡¯ve paid for this stalk of ckmoon Grass. What do you say?¡± Jun Xiaomo suggested with indifference.

    ¡°Haha...¡± The second prince shook his head, and ascivious gleam shed across his eyes as he responded coyly, ¡°Little Mo, oh Little Mo, are you truly na?ve, or are you feigning ignorance now? This prince is the crown prince of an entire kingdom ¨C I can get anything I want! Do you think that I¡¯ll covet that few measly spirit stones from you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her eyes as she responded wryly, ¡°I know that the second prince doesn¡¯tck these few spirit stones. Let me put this differently ¨C establishing a friendship is always better than gaining an adversary. If the second prince is willing to sell to me this stalk of ckmoon Grass at three times the purchase price, then I will be able to maintain a cordial rtionship with the second prince. There¡¯s everything to gain, and nothing to lose, don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    ¡°Oh? Are you saying that if this prince doesn¡¯t sell the ckmoon Grass to you, then you¡¯re going to view this prince as an adversary?¡±

    ¡°Of course I wouldn¡¯t dare to.¡± Jun Xiaomo made a fist and palm salute to the second prince.

    ¡°Haha, as this prince sees it, it¡¯s not that Little Mo doesn¡¯t dare to. Rather, you¡¯re just feigning ignorance... Well, let me put this across unequivocally. This prince is not interested in establishing a friendship with you at all. Rather, this prince is simply...interested in Little Mo.¡± As the second prince finished speaking, he immediately caught Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sleeve with one swift grab and attempted to pull her into an embrace.

    A vicious gleam instantly shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and she retrieved a spirit sword from her Interspatial Ring and shed at the second prince with one smooth action.

    However, the second prince swayed his body and easily avoided Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks. As he dodged about, he coldly chuckled, ¡°Yao Mo, do you think you can defeat this prince? If you know what¡¯s good for you, then lie down obediently and let me have a taste of you. Otherwise, as soon as my patience wears thin, I¡¯ll make sure you thoroughly experience an immense agony!¡±

    That¡¯s right. Not only did the second prince enjoy seizing what was not his and collecting various kinds of beauties as his ¡°spoils of war¡±, he even had abusive, sadistic tendencies.

    Whenever the second prince encountered beauties who refused to submit to him ¨C even on their deathbed ¨C they would invariably be put through incredible inhumane abuse after the second prince has had his way with them. Those who were lucky would be able to escape with their lives intact. However, there were several beauties who had perished in this manner as well.

    Of course, this was a well-concealed secret that stayed within the four walls of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce grounds. None of the pce maids or eunuchs dared to wag their lips and spread word of this for fear of their lives. This was one of the main reasons why the grand eunuch who knew about these things only continued to watch on silently or turn a blind eye to these things.

    This was also why the grand eunuch had expressed his sympathy and pity towards Yao Mo once he ascertained that the second prince had made him into his next target.

    He knew that if Yao Mo remained unyielding until the very end, then once the second prince¡¯s patience wore thin, Yao Mo was almost certainly going to meet with a tragic fate. He knew that the meagre First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak did not possess the abilities to rescue Yao Mo. In fact, it might not even be enough if the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster personally came to rescue Yao Mo. After all, the second prince had the backing of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, who possess a cultivation level far higher than most others.

    When the second prince¡¯s grand eunuch led Jun Xiaomo over to this ce, he had already anticipated what Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fate was going to be ¨C eitherpromise, or be forcibly used, tormented and discarded like those who came before him.

    Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely kept in the dark about these things. However, the hidden intentions concealed within the second prince¡¯s gaze was not unfamiliar to her.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had encountered several demonic cultivators who possessed simr entricities of abusing their ¡°spoils of war¡±. In fact, some of these demonic cultivators would make it a point to torment their targets to their heart¡¯s content before finally draining these targets dry of all their cultivation.

    Demonic cultivators were not limited to conventional cultivation methods to increase their abilities ¨C some demonic cultivators who coveted quick gains would even resort to absorbing the cultivation of others and seizing their abilities for themselves.

    This was one of the reasons why demonic cultivators attracted the contempt and rancor of everyone else. Even though this was clearly a stereotype or hasty generalization of all demonic cultivators, it did not change the fact that these demonic cultivators lived by morals that were so depraved that the world began to view demonic cultivators with increasing intolerance.

    When these depraved demonic cultivators sought to torment Jun Xiaomo in her previous life, she repaid every single bit of their repulsive intentions with interest. Right now, even though she was temporarily unable to deal with the second prince in the same manner, this did not prevent her from giving him a slight taste of his own medicine.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo tossed out a Thunderbolt Talisman towards the second prince. However, the second prince easily avoided it as he mocked, ¡°Do you think that you¡¯ll be able to put up any form of resistance with just your cultivation at the second level of Qi Mastery?¡±

    The second level of Qi Mastery and the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. There was a chasm of ten levels¡¯ worth of abilities between the two of them. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s speed wasn¡¯t even something that the second prince had to concern himself with.

    However, how could Jun Xiaomo be unaware of all these? She had never intended for the Thunderbolt Talisman to strike the second prince to begin with!

    The Thunderbolt Talisman exploded right in front of the second prince¡¯s eyes with a dazzling sh of light. Even though the second prince had operated his spiritual energies to shield his body, the blinding light was something that the second prince wasn¡¯t able to avoid!

    ¡°Ahhhhh! My eyes!!¡±

    The second prince reflexively shut both eyes, and the pain in his eyes caused him to recoil and retreat two steps back.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a wicked smile. Just as she was about to continue with her attacks, the second prince suddenly waved his hands, channeling his spiritual energy towards a nearby location. Then, in the next moment, Jun Xiaomo found a formation array appearing underneath her feet.

    It¡¯s a Confinement Array!

    Jun Xiaomo was frozen in her tracks, and she realized that she could no longer take any step forward.

 Chapter 110: Injury; A Failed Scheme

    <h4>Chapter 110: Injury; A Failed Scheme</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The dazzling bright light from the Thunderbolt Talisman happened in a sh, and the second prince was blinded momentarily. But secondster, the second prince¡¯s vision began to slowly recover.

    ¡°Yao...Mo!¡± The second prince put down his hands. His originally magnanimous and charming smile was now reced by an incredible ferocious and vicious disposition. Even his previously flirtatious and coy-looking eyes were now filled with a diabolical and macabre intent. His previously perfectly pleasant aura was nowpletely gone.

    Jun Xiaomo found herselfpletely shackled by the Confinement Array. She could no longer move her limbs, and she gazed indignantly at the second prince.

    On the other hand, the second prince was incredibly satisfied with the present oue, and the hatred in his heart dwindled slightly.

    Then, he adjusted his expressions and smiled wickedly at Jun Xiaomo as she walked towards her while taunting her, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it have been better if you had just given in earlier? Why do you have to force this prince to resort to all of this just to subdue you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo pulled a long face as she remained taciturn.

    Then, the second prince lifted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chin and leaned over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ear as he whispered, ¡°Did the wine earlier taste good? I want you to know that even drinking this prince¡¯s wine has its price, understand?¡±

    As the second prince spoke, he started to reach his arm into Yao Mo¡¯s clothes.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grimacing face suddenly brightened in a manicughter. Her expression of indignation was suddenlyced with a nefarious intent. Even her coldly gleaming eyes looked deep and profound as though they were filled with the constetions of the skies as they stared at the second prince.

    Just as the second prince was about to ask what Yao Mo wasughing about, he suddenly discovered that the tactile sensation under his fingers had vanished.

    As Yao Mo¡¯s figure started to fade away, a clear, crisp voice resounded from behind the second prince¡¯s body, ¡°Second prince, since your master is the Grand Vizier of the Inferno Kingdom. Haven¡¯t you heard of something called the Humanoid Puppet Talisman?¡±

    ¡°Humanoid Puppet Talisman?!¡± The second prince recoiled in shock. He was just about to turn around when he suddenly felt a strong force m into his back, forcing him to fall defenselessly into the domain of the Confinement Array.

    At the same time, there was no longer any presence of Yao Mo¡¯s figure within the domain of the Confinement Array. All that was left was a small paper cut-out of a human with a Humanoid Puppet Talisman pasted onto it. Then, the talisman spontaneouslybusted and was fully engulfed in mes within moments, while the remains of the small paper cut-out floated to the ground and fell in front of the second prince¡¯s body.

    Jun Xiaomo stood where the second prince was originally standing right now. She towered over the cowering second prince as she looked derisively at the second prince.

    ¡°Haha, interesting. I never expected that the one who had been chatting and fighting with this prince was nothing more than a mere Humanoid Puppet Talisman.¡± Even though the second prince had now been helplessly constricted by his own Constriction Array, he did not disy any looks of anxiety or appear to be in a sorry state. Instead, he softened the tone of his voice and smiled wryly as he attempted to discuss Jun Xiaomo¡¯sbat tactics with her.

    The second prince picked up the paper cut-out and held it in his hands as he examined it. How could the second prince still be in the dark about what Yao Mo had done? Yao Mo had evidentlye up with countermeasures from the moment he received that Messenger Paper Crane from the second prince. This was probably what gave Yao Mo the confidence to strut into his residence alone without any fear to begin with.

    The second prince¡¯s guess was quite close to the truth. However, Jun Xiaomo had not nned all of this right from the start. It was only a countermeasure that she had thought up after she had entered the second prince¡¯s residence.

    Back then, the second prince¡¯s grand eunuch had not yet arrived, while the residence¡¯s gate had already shut behind her. As soon as she realized that no one was looking at her, Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved a Humanoid Puppet Talisman and an Invisibility Talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    She pped the Humanoid Puppet Talisman onto a little human-shaped paper cut-out, dripped one drop of her own blood onto it, and instantly created a ¡°clone¡± of herself. Then, she pped on herself the Invisibility Talisman to conceal her true presence.

    Nevertheless, controlling the Humanoid Puppet required an immense amount of concentration and spiritual energy. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo had just broken through to the second level of Qi Mastery. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo practiced the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, and the conversion of true energy stored within her body meant that she could generate twice as much spiritual energy than her body could otherwise have stored. This was one of the main reasons why she had been able to maintain and control the Humanoid Puppet for such a long time.

    From the beginning, the second prince had only seen the Humanoid Puppet created by Jun Xiaomo, while Jun Xiaomo had secretly stood behind the second prince without a word as she bided her time.

    Seeing that the second prince had beenpletely restrained within his own Constriction Array, Jun Xiaomo Jun Xiaomo knew that she could leisurely retrieve the box containing the ckmoon Grass and escape from the premises.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo made her way over to the stone table in the center of the courtyard. When the second prince had avoided her attack earlier, he had ced the box containing the ckmoon Grass on the stone table.

    It wasn¡¯t clear whether the second prince had done so because he had no time to stash the box away, or he simply feltcent because he never expected Yao Mo to be able toy his hands on the box.

    Regardless, Jun Xiaomo had finally managed toy hold of that precious stalk of ckmoon Grass. After she opened the box to ascertain that the ckmoon Grass was there, she smiled in satisfaction as she closed the box again and stashed it back into her Interspatial Ring.

    Then, the second prince who had been observing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions suddenly spoke up once again. He inquired in a pensive yet arrogant manner, ¡°Do you really think that you¡¯ll be able to leave this courtyard without this prince¡¯s permission?¡±

    It was only at the second prince¡¯s prompting that Jun Xiaomo finally recalled the peculiarity with this courtyard. Her eyes darted around at her surroundings, and she saw that three sides of this courtyard were simply surrounded by walls, and the side that was not a wall was a stoic-looking, exquisite room.

    The entrance to this courtyard had vanished, and all that was left in its stead was a in wall.

    ¡°This is a formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo very quickly guessed the cause of this abnormality.

    ¡°Little Mo is truly clever. You¡¯re so clever that this prince cannot bear to torment you.¡± The second prince licked his lips as he remarked, ¡°How about this ¨C this prince will let Little Mo go if you can guess how this formation array can be broken?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stretched out her lips as she grimaced to herself. Her eyes revealed that she was presently deep in thought.

    There were three ways of breaking any formation array. The first method was to destroy the heart of the formation array, but the necessary precondition to this was that one must first be able to locate the heart of the formation array. The second method was to interrupt the formation array¡¯s source of spiritual energy or demonic energy. However, this method was risky, because the formation array might potentially retaliate against any inference in this regard. The third and final method was simply to overpower the formation array with an even stronger formation array, rendering itpletely powerless to resist.

    Of these three methods, each was harder than the preceding one. Jun Xiaomo judged that thetter two methods were unlikely to be feasible in the circumstances, so she decided on the first method.

    Then, she examined the courtyard closely, starting from the walls. At the same time, she also released threads of spiritual energies as she probed about her surroundings as she attempted to uncover the flow of energy and determine the exact location of the heart of the formation array.

    The wealth of experience from her previous life allowed Jun Xiaomo to carry out this task with confidence. In fact, she knew that as long as she had the luxury of time, she would almost certainly be able to determine where the heart of the formation array was located.

    Fortunately, the second prince had already been restrained by his own Constriction Array. Therefore, even though the second prince continued to stare at her with an impassioned, lustful gaze, Jun Xiaomo couldpletely ignore his gaze right now.

    As the second prince noticed how Yao Mo seemed to be drawing closer to the exact location of the heart of the formation array, he discovered that Yao Mo seemed to possess a reasonable handle on matters pertaining to formation arrays.

    Despite that, the second prince wasn¡¯t anxious at all. He continued to gaze at Yao Mo lewdly as a wry smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    He still had some tricks up his sleeves, and he was merely biding his time right now...

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo finally discovered the heart of the formation array ¨C it was that stone table!

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to muster her spiritual energy to destroy it, when a wave of lethargy suddenly swept over her. Within moments, Jun Xiaomo discovered that she was not only unable to muster or operate any more of the true energy within her body, she even began to experience a faint and giddying sensation.

    She shook her head vigorously, attempting to shake off the feeling of dizziness. However, her legs buckled slightly, and she almost lost her bnce.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately leaned onto the stone table for support, inadvertently knocking over the wine bottles that had earlier been set on the table. In turn, these wine bottles fell onto the floor and shattered into innumerable pieces. Jun Xiaomo struggled even harder to maintain her senses as she clutched tightly to the stone table for support so that she would not fall onto the pieces of shattered ss strewn all over the floor right now.

    At this moment, the second prince started to stand up slowly. The Constriction Array that had been restraining him immediately lost its effect as soon as the second prince began to operate his own spiritual energy.

    As the second prince walked closer and closer to Jun Xiaomo, she bit down on her lower lips and chuckled coldly, ¡°It¡¯d almost slipped my mind. This Constriction Array had been prepared by the second prince to begin with. It¡¯s naturally not a difficult task for you to dismantle it and negate its effects.¡±

    More than anything, Jun Xiaomo was mocking herself right now.

    She had been too careless.

    However, the second prince was no longer as eager to devour Yao Mo as he were earlier. Instead, he strutted over to Yao Mo¡¯s side in a rxed manner and sat down at the table. Then, he kicked up his legs as he nced at Yao Mo as though he were appreciating the final stand put up by Yao Mo.

    It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo discovered that apart from her sensation of dizziness, she was beginning to even lose her rationality as well! It was as though an invisible hand were peeling off her rationality forcibly, and her body was beginning to emit a familiar burning sensation.

    ¡°You¡¯ve poisoned me!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth as she red at the second prince in fury.

    ¡°That¡¯s right... Doesn¡¯t Little Mo find it strange that you¡¯d fallen into the trap even though you weren¡¯t the one who had drunk that cup of wine?¡±

    The second prince drew back the corner of his lips as he probed nonchntly. However, his eyes continued to gleam with excitement as a hunter would when he secures his prey.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and clenched her fists tightly. After deliberating for a moment, she slowly responded, ¡°You¡¯ve dispersed the poison within the entire courtyard. Furthermore, with the confining effects of the formation array, this poison won¡¯t be able to leave the premises of this courtyard.¡±

    ¡°Hahaha, Little Mo, oh Little Mo. This is the first time that this prince has encountered someone as interesting as you are. You¡¯ve managed to guess everything spot on!¡± The second prince pped his hands slowly as he added, ¡°But it truly is a pity. It¡¯s precisely because of this that this prince can¡¯t bear to let you go anymore. I have to experience for myself what exactly a prey as intelligent as yourself would taste like.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coldly refuted, ¡°Didn¡¯t the second prince say that you would let me go as long as I managed to discover the location of the heart of the formation array? Then let me tell the second prince now ¨C the heart of the formation array is this stone table. I wonder if the second prince would be willing to let me go?¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t Little Mo already know this prince¡¯s answer to your question? Why bother asking things that you already know?¡± The second prince chuckled coyly, as though he were ridiculing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s naivete. After all, since he had already expressed his desires to devour Jun Xiaomo, how was he going to just let Jun Xiaomo go like that?

    Jun Xiaomo stared sullenly at the second prince without another word.

    Then, the second prince licked his lips as he continued, ¡°Oh yes, there¡¯s one other thing. Just to make things a little bit more interesting, the substance diffused within this courtyard is one called Euphoria-Stimting Incense. I wonder if the erudite Little Mo would have heard of this substance before?¡±

    Euphoria-Stimting Incense?!

    Jun Xiaomo widened her eyes in shock as she cursed in her heart. How could she not know about the Euphoria-Stimting Incense? In her previous life, it was precisely because Qin Shanshan had spiked her with Euphoria-Stimting Incense that she live most of her lifepletely ignorant of the fact that the person whom she had spent the night of passion with was not Qin Lingyu, but somebody else.

    This was because the Euphoria-Stimting Incense would stimte a person¡¯s deepest, most basal carnal instincts, causing that person to be under the illusion that he or she were interacting with the person of his or her dreams. More importantly, any person under the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense would temporarily lose all his rationality and act like a depraved beast without restraint.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately bit down fiercely on the tip of her tongue, and her mouth was instantly filled with the stench of her own blood. This allowed her to temporarily regain some of her rationality.

    Right now, Jun Xiaomo no longer red at the second prince with only fury in her eyes. Her feelings had escted to that ofplete, abject hatred.

    However, the second prince waspletely unperturbed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze at him. After all, he had seen too many of such expressions in his lifetime. So what if his preys hated him? They would all be forced to bow before him obsequiously in the end.

    The second prince stood up and slowly minced his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. At the same time, having lost all her ability to resist, Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and became taciturn.

    The second prince grew so satisfied that he began tough heartily.

    The second prince drew closer and closer to Jun Xiaomo, until he was merely inches away from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. Then in that moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes suddenly opened wide as she started moving again.

    When the second prince¡¯s reflexes finally kicked in, it was already toote. Jun Xiaomo had pped an Explosive Talisman onto the stone table and immediately activated it. With a violent tremor, the stone table burst open, and the second prince and Jun Xiaomo were both sent flying from the powerful shockwave that emanated from the explosion.

    The second prince had shielded his body with his spiritual energy in time, and he only suffered minor injuries from the st. On the other hand, arge mouthful of blood sprayed from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth as she was sent flying from the explosion.

    Jun Xiaomo staggered backwards, expecting to m violently to the ground. Unexpectedly, her back bumped into a warm and solid body, while a pair of strong arms firmly caught her around the waist.

 Chapter 111: The Second Princeâ€™s Astonishment and Fear

    <h4>Chapter 111: The Second Prince¡¯s Astonishment and Fear</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This embrace was simply too familiar to Jun Xiaomo, and she knew who it was without having to turn her head.

    It¡¯s martial brother Ye... She had initially intended to keep Ye Xiuwen in the dark about this matter. After all, given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s character, he was bound to think of a way to prevent her froming to this ce.

    However, she truly wished to obtain that stalk of ckmoon Grass. She did not want Ye Xiuwen to wear that damned veiled conical hat for his entire life. She did not want him to look at others through a veil, and even received peculiar or even judgmental gazes from others for the rest of his life!

    ¡°Ungh...Pfft...¡± Jun Xiaomo spat out another mouthful of blood. Her true energy had been thoroughly suppressed, and she had no way of utilizing her mnemonics as per normal. As a result, her defensive capabilities had fallen, and the injuries she had sustained were far more severe than the second prince.

    ¡°Brother Yao treats others mercilessly. But, I¡¯d never expected brother Yao to treat himself even more mercilessly.¡± The second prince slowly wiped off the traces of blood seeping out of his mouth as he mocked.

    He had never been turned into such a sorry state by any of his preys before. This was the first time ¨C and because of this, Jun Xiaomo had now thoroughly enraged him.

    ¡°Seems like your knight in shining armor had managed to arrive in the nick of time too.¡± The second prince grimaced as he nced over at the man standing behind Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen. His eyes were now filled with a trace of hatred.

    This trace of hatred hadpletely betrayed the second prince¡¯s usual disy of warm passion and lustfulness in those flirtatious eyes of his. This present look had exposed the second prince¡¯s true, rotten core.

    But this was also not something out of the blue. After all, who would ever expect a prince who grew up in the midst of strife and learning only to struggle for power to know what true warmth meant? The only warmth that the second prince knew was a mere pretense for the sole purpose of luring his targets into his inescapable traps.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms tightened, and a frigid shimmer shed across his eyes, as though an extension of the dazzling gleam of his sword.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t want to be the cause for Ye Xiuwen being thrown behind bars, she was nevertheless extremelyforted by the fact that Ye Xiuwen had arrived in the nick of time.

    Jun Xiaomo felt that she had finally found a reliable bulwark she could entrust her life with. She slowly rxed herself and slumped into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s embrace.

    ¡°Brother Ye,ter, I¡¯m going to ce a piece of Invisibility Talisman on each of us. This will make our escape much easier.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyelids drooped down as she whispered to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ears.

    The reason why Jun Xiaomo had mentioned ter¡± was because her current injuries were too severe. Coupled with the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense, she did not even have the energy to retrieve these talismans from her Interspatial Ring right now.

    The effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense only continued to strengthen as it slowly took over her body. If not for the fact that her previous life¡¯s experiences had fortified her soul and mental will to the extreme, then by now she might well have lost all her rationality and been reduced to nothing more than a beast during mating season.

    Jun Xiaomo abhorred the fact that the second prince would do this to her. She knew how to dispel the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense. However, the preparation of the antidote was predicated on their escape from this courtyard and locating a safe ce!

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo let out a groan as she furrowed her brows in difort.

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak for now.¡± Ye Xiuwen murmured softly. His calm disposition concealed the roiling emotions in his heart right now.

    The sight of the unconditional intimacy between these two people raised the second prince¡¯s jealousy and hatred to its boiling point. As the heir to the Inferno Kingdom, he refused to believe that there would be any objects out of his reach.

    And when he did encounter things that he could not in facty his hands upon, he would rather destroy them than let others have it. If he could not even do this, then he would explode in a fit of violent anger and lose his usual suave and magnanimous appearances.

    ¡°Ah, do you think you¡¯ll still be able to get out safely?¡± The second prince coldly chuckled, ¡°Yao Mo, you¡¯ve ruined the heart of the formation array within this courtyard. Very soon, this prince¡¯s guards are going to arrive. Once they arrive, you¡¯ll be outnumbered and surrounded on all four sides. Even if you had wings and could fly, do you still think you¡¯ll be able to escape?!¡±

    ¡°Rong Yebin, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever offended you before. Why do you have to force me into a corner like this?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth as shembasted.

    She could not be bothered to even feign civility now, and she directly referred to the second prince by his name.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. To this prince here, anyone who disobeys him must be destroyed.¡± The second princeughed coldly and egotistically.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had already grown so cold that they seemed to be covered with ayer of frost. He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back, retrieved a mat and gingerly ced Jun Xiaomo onto the mat.

    ¡°Brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and gripped onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands worriedly.

    Ye Xiuwen reassuringly patted the back of her hand, before he gently peeled off her grasp.

    The second prince let out a sardonicughter. He saw that this man before him was bracing himself for a battle with him right now!

    Battle? So be it! Win or lose, the two of you are never leaving this prince¡¯s residence today!

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen made his move. His sword flickered quickly, and a frigid sword intent instantly carved a deep gash onto the second prince¡¯s arm.

    If not for the fact that the second prince had reflexively tilted his body, his arm might perhaps have already been sliced into two by now!

    Fast! The second prince could not even tell when Ye Xiuwen had unsheathed his sword or made his move.

    At this moment, the second prince raised his vignce and retrieved his weapon of choice as well. He could not afford to becent any longer.

    The second prince¡¯s weapon was a Magic Enhancing Loop which had the ability of enhancing the strength of his spells by at least ten-fold, no less. At the same time, this Loop itself could even be used as an offensive weapon. The strength of this weapon was well apparent.

    If the second prince had encountered just any normal cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, he would have been able to dispose of his opponent with ease. Unfortunately, the one he had encountered right now was a man who had been appointed as the Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect three years ago ¨C Ye Xiuwen. To begin with, a sword cultivator¡¯sbat abilities generally far exceeded that of any spell or magic-based cultivators. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen had never skimped or cked off on matters pertaining to his own cultivation before. Therefore, how could this second prince who only knew how to sit on his high horse, struggle for power and indulge in carnal pleasurespare with him?

    Within moments, several wounds began to appear on the second prince¡¯s body.

    The second prince never wished for this to be a life-and-death duel. He only wanted to buy time to that his guards could arrive on time and deal with this situation. Furthermore, Qin Lingyu and the rest were even resting within his residence right now. It would be even better if they came over as well.

    The second prince was not worried that Qin Lingyu and the others would stand on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. This was because he could tell that there was a rift between Ye Xiuwen and the other Dawn Sect disciples ¨C and there was even a bit of hostility between them. Apart from two disciples (Yi Hong and Di Yue) who formed part of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s team, the others maintained nothing more than a lukewarm attitude towards Ye Xiuwen.

    Therefore, he believed that these people would secretly be pleased to witness Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo get tormented by them.

    However, none of his guards arrived on the scene even after approximately half an incense of time. His surroundings werepletely still and quiet, as though all of his guards had fallen asleep at the same time.

    At this moment, a trace of macabre, vicious intent began to swell up in the second prince¡¯s heart. He made a mental note that he was going to sternly punish these night guards of his once this incident blew over.

    Then, just as the second prince was about to sumb to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s relentless attacks, a set of footsteps ran helter-skelter towards the courtyard. The second prince¡¯s heart immediately leapt with joy ¨C he knew that his guards had finally arrived!

    Jun Xiaomo had swallowed a recovery pill, and her spirits were beginning to recover slightly. She also heard the iing footsteps, and she began to feel anxious and worried about the situation. She shifted her rigid and stiff hands, before finally managing to retrieve two Invisibility Talismans from her Interspatial Ring and hid them under her clothes.

    ¡°Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out. Even though her voice were weak and soft right now, Ye Xiuwen still managed to pick up on it.

    With one sh of his Frostburn Sword, Ye Xiuwen cleaved into two the serpentine shaped fireball that had been sent his way by the second prince. Then, with one leap, he arrived at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and half squatted as he checked on her condition.

    He had thought that Yao Mo had called out to him because his condition had worsened.

    In fact, the final sh sent out by Ye Xiuwen had travelled past the fireball andnded squarely on the second prince¡¯s chest. This sh easily tore apart the second prince¡¯s clothes and left a long, deepceration underneath, causing the second prince to look down reflexively in pain. Just at this moment, the officer in charge of his guards finally arrived at the scene.

    ¡°Your--...Your Highness...¡± The officer presented himself in a sorry state, and his body¡¯s condition was not much better than the second prince¡¯s. His breathing was ragged, and he struggled to catch his breath as he reported, ¡°First...First prince...¡±

    ¡°What do you mean the first prince?! Can you speak properly?!¡± The second prince was extremely anxious in his heart. The officer¡¯s disposition and words left him with a bad premonition of what was toe.

    ¡°The...the first prince has fought his way into your residence alone!¡± Just as the officer finished speaking, two skulls were immediately sent flying his way from behind him, followed quickly by fresh blood that sttered all over the officer¡¯s body. A cold chill went down the officer¡¯s spine, and the shock momentarily numbed his bodily functions so much that the officer involuntarily discharged his bodily fluids there and then.

    The two skullsnded just beside the second prince, and frozen expressions of abject dread could be seen on the faces of these decapitated heads. Evidently, these people had never expected to have perished in such a horrific manner.

    ¡°Oh...Oh god...¡± The officer had spent his days riding on the second prince¡¯s coattail. He esteemed himself in the fact that he was a cultivator and thought that the second prince¡¯s trust in him was a testament to his abilities. Therefore, he had always felt secure where he stood, with the backing of the second prince.

    However, he had never had such a close shave with death before. He never expected that the first prince who had already disappeared without a trace for over one month would suddenly appear with such ferocious disy of strength. Replete with that pair of bloodshot eyes, the first prince looked almost as though he was a demon that had just crawled up from the depths of hell.

    The second prince¡¯s eyes were filled with dread. He turned his attention to themotioning from behind the officer right now, and he saw arge group of guards fending off attacks as they sought to retreat in his direction. Thatrge group of guards had formed a massive human circle around what was ostensibly their target, and the second prince could not see what went on in the middle of this dense circle of guards. However, what he could see was the fact that one headless body after another was being relentlessly thrown out of the circle of guards right now. This was a testament to the pure, brute strength of the opponent they were surrounding.

    The second prince truly hoped that his ears had been wrong. He knew how formidable the first prince was, but he remained doubtful that the first prince could have caused such a horrific state of events.

    What has the first prince been through over thisst month? If the Grand Vizier doesn¡¯t exit his closed-door cultivation soon, would we be able to subdue this demon?!

    At this moment, sweat profusely seeped through the second prince¡¯s clothes. He grabbed the officer¡¯s cor anxiously and demanded a rification, ¡°Are you sure that that¡¯s the first prince?!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m certain. This servant cannot possibly mistake the features on His Highness...¡± The officer pulled a long face as he responded with despondence. He was almost resigned to the fact that this might well be his final stand. At the same time, he did not dare to desert his position right now, because he knew that the second prince were backed by the powerful Grand Vizier of the Inferno Kingdom. If he were found to have deserted his post and something happened to the second prince, neither he nor his family would be able to live to tell the tale.

    The second prince tossed the officer aside as he struggled to catch his breath.

    Having deliberated for a moment, he kicked the officer as he instructed, ¡°Go! Hurry up and call Qin Lingyu and the others over!¡±

    ¡°Mm, mm. Yes! Yes! There are still several experts residing here tonight!¡± The officer smacked his head as he hastily ran towards the direction of Qin Lingyu and the other disciples¡¯ rooms. The officer tripped and fell several times as he struggled to find his footing ¨C his legs had buckled under the immense threat and pressure of the first prince.

 Chapter 112: The Second Princeâ€™s Ace in the Hole

    <h4>Chapter 112: The Second Prince¡¯s Ace in the Hole</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The second prince did not have the time to bother with Jun Xiaomo or Ye Xiuwen right now. He continued to stare dreadfully as the ring of guards shuffled closer and closer to him. His eyes quivered withplicated emotions.

    The moring outside the courtyard had also caught Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention. However, they were absolutely unaware that the person who had singlehandedly incited this fracas was the first prince who should have been confined within the domain of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Confinement Array.

    ¡°Brother Ye, this is our chance. Take me away, quickly...¡± Jun Xiaomo hastily grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes as sweat beaded up on her forehead and started to roll down her cheeks. She had bitten down so hard on her lower lips earlier that a deep imprint had been left ton it.

    ¡°Little Mo, where are you hurt?¡± Ye Xiuwen had mistakenly interpreted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions to mean that her injuries were still incapacitating her, and he grabbed onto her arm in concern.

    ¡°Don¡¯t...don¡¯t touch me!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body quivered violently, and she spoke with a tone of voice that was a few notches higher than usual. Right now, she was even heaving and panting as though she were in pain.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand froze in ce as it hung in mid-air. He did not know whether to shift his hand away or put his hand down.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head. Despite the veiled conical hat, she could already guess that her martial brother¡¯s emotions must be filled with immense worry and concern right now.

    She loosened her teeth that were mping down on her lower lips. Jun Xiaomo struggled with all her might to repress the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense that threatened to consume her rationality and unleash her carnal desires. Gritting her teeth, she stammered to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye...I¡¯m under the effects of...the Euphoria-Stimting Incense...take me out of here...find a herb called the...Soul Acuity Grass and I¡¯ll be fine...¡±

    The Soul Acuity Grass was the natural antidote to the Euphoria-Stimting Incense. It was not difficult to find, and mostrge apothecaries would keep a healthy stock of these herbs.

    It was at this moment that Ye Xiuwen discovered that Yao Mo¡¯s condition was not symptomatic of his physical injuries. Yao Mo¡¯s body was boiling hot as though he had just been soaked in a boiling cauldron. Apart from that, his cheeks had been flushed with a pink hue as though brushed with blushers; and his usually clear and alert pupils seemed to have been glossed over by ayer of hazy substance. In particr, his enrapturing eyes seemed to ripple with emotions and tug at a person¡¯s heartstrings.

    Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists ferociously as he furiously dispelled the momentarily stirring emotions in his heart. Then, he lifted Yao Mo into his arms and allowed Yao Mo¡¯s face to rest on his strong shoulders.

    Now that he could no longer see that impassioned gaze in Yao Mo¡¯s eyes, Ye Xiuwen managed to stabilize the emotions in his heart.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Brother Ye is going to bring you away right now.¡± As he finished speaking, he pped on each of them the Invisibility Talisman which Jun Xiaomo had earlier stuffed into his hands, causing both their figures to vanish into thin air within the courtyard.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure right now, Ye Xiuwen nevertheless held her tightly and firmly. She could feel herself flying through the air and the billowing of the wind rushing past her ears. Since her face was buried deeply in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulders, she could not see her surroundings very clearly. However, she felt safe and secure with her martial brother by her side. Furthermore, she could sense her martial brother¡¯s aura; and the gentle fragrance of his body gradually stimted her mind, slowly pulling her back from her subconsciousness.

    Instinctively, Jun Xiaomo clung onto Ye Xiuwen tightly, wrapping her hands around his neck. Her light and tense breathing gradually began to stabilize as well.

    This was a posture of reliance and trust. And the rare sight of Yao Mo¡¯s vulnerability also etched itself deeply within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen found that his skin where Yao Mo was breathing heavily onto had developed a burning, stinging sensation, as though it had been infected by Yao Mo¡¯s high temperature.

    He struggled to ignore this burning sensation as he sped on ahead. However, his eyes quivered with a conflicted, cryptic expression.

    The disturbance created by the first prince had created a window of opportunity for Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo to escape from the second prince¡¯s residence within Xingping County without facing any form of resistance. On the other hand, the first prince Rong Ruihan and the second prince Rong Yebin were fully locked inbat at the moment.

    No, perhaps this should not be called ¡°locked inbat¡± ¨C it might be more urate to describe the present state of affairs as a ¡°one-sided massacre¡±.

    Even though the second prince had numerous guards securing and protecting his residence, and each of these guards possessed reasonablebat abilities, theirbined strength stood feebly at best when faced with the wrecking ball that was the first prince right now. The extent of the first prince¡¯sbat abilities had reduced all of the guards surrounding him into a sorry state. There were even some guards who were decapacitated even before they could react to the first prince¡¯s sudden attacks.

    When a person¡¯s abilities exceeded his opponent¡¯s by such an insurmountable chasm, the idiom ¨C strength in numbers ¨C bespletely meaningless.

    The second prince stood aghast as he wondered how the first prince¡¯s abilities had soared to such an extent. Once again, the feeling of indignation swelled up in his heart as he found himself experiencing the despondence of being defeated time and again.

    The second prince had known the concept of ¡°jealousy¡± ever since he was a little child.

    His mother was the king¡¯s favourite concubine and he was selected as the Grand Vizier¡¯s chosen disciple from young. As such, he had enjoyed immeasurable prestige and glory for as long as he could remember.

    However, this prestige and glory had always been something bestowed upon him by others. He had never managed to make a name for himself like the first prince did with his own abilities.

    Perhaps the bloodline of the Jiang n was just that noble and outstanding, but ever since he was young, the first prince Rong Ruihan had disyed incredible talent in both reading and writing that far exceeded his contemporaries.

    On the other hand, Rong Yebin was invariably always taken as aparison with his brother. His talents were not too bad. Yet somehow, he could never exceed Rong Ruihan¡¯s achievements.

    The n of the first prince¡¯s mother had always been a subject of taboo in the Inferno Kingdom. Yet despite the severe punishment it attracted, word of the Jiang n still somehow got around. From his interactions with the pce staff, Rong Ruihan managed to glean a few pieces of information for himself ¨C he even knew that his father had only managed to secure the throne through his own mother¡¯s efforts.

    It was also precisely because of this fact that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king, Rong Yebin¡¯s father, always treated Rong Ruihan with a strange disposition ¨C

    There were times where he would be extremely concerned about Rong Ruihan¡¯s growth and development, and he would always shower him with gifts and treasures as though he were making up for a deficiency. Yet, on other asions, he would distance himself from Rong Ruihan ¨C even to the point of ignoring his existence ¨C and let him fend for himself. During these periods of time, he could even turn a blind eye to things when he heard of pce workers bullying Rong Ruihan.

    This was the kind of environment that Rong Ruihan had grown up in. In fact, the times when the king had distanced himself from Rong Ruihan far exceeded the times when the king showered him with blessings. Perhaps these extremities were nothing more than a manifestation of the king¡¯s guilty conscience.

    Yet despite the harsh environment of his childhood, Rong Ruihan somehow managed to work his way to the top, disying his outstanding abilities and charms to all who were around.

    When he was fifteen, he led an army to war and came back victorious. To put things into perspective, this was a war between the Inferno Kingdom and its neighboring country that had been ongoing for several years, and both sides seemed to have been locked in a stalemate. Neither was able to gain an advantage over the other, and even the king was resigned to the fact that things weren¡¯t going to change overnight.

    It was this war that had elevated the first prince¡¯s fame and reputation to unprecedented levels. At the same time, everyone couldn¡¯t help butpare the abilities of the first and second princes.

    Before the Grand Vizier epted the second prince as his sole disciple, he had always praised the second prince for being highly intelligent and incredibly talented. Even then, the second prince¡¯s abilities paled inparison with the first prince¡¯s countless achievements which spoke volumes about him.

    At the very least, the second prince did not possess any abilities to make contributions like the first prince did when he was fifteen. Instead, the second prince made a name for himself as the prince who only indulged himself in his carnal desires, collecting within his residence various types of beauties for his own pleasures.

    Even the high officials within the Inferno Kingdom couldn¡¯t help but secretlypare the abilities of these two princes. And it was evident ¨C apart from some officials who were the trusted aides of the second prince, most high officials found the first prince to far exceed the second prince in any respect.

    These were not matters that the high officials were prepared to proim openly about, but even then, some rumours still managed to find their way to the second prince.

    If not for the fact that the second prince had plotted against the first prince and sowed the seed of discord in his father¡¯s heart, perhaps the second prince might not even have been nominated as a crown prince of Inferno Kingdom right now.

    Even though Rong Yebin rarely expressed his inferiorityplex, his heart was in fact filled with jealousy and hatred for the first prince, and there was no modicum of time where he had not thought about disposing of him.

    Therefore, he bought over a trusted aide by Rong Ruihan¡¯s side, and this ndestine agent of his would from time to time report Rong Ruihan¡¯s condition to him. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he would not disclose the existence of this spy of his.

    Then one day his spy reported to him that Rong Ruihan had consumed an unknown substance which made him lose his mind and even attack the people around him. This was when Rong Yebin knew that his opportunity to dispose of Rong Ruihan had arrived.

    Rong Yebin bided his time and waited a few days. Once he had properly ascertained that Rong Ruihan had indeed lost his rationality, and this was not a mere pretense, he activated the poison within his father¡¯s body.

    This poison was something that his mother had painstakingly fed to the king through his food over countless years. Furthermore, this poison was specially crafted with his mother¡¯s blood as a primer. Thus, the king¡¯s life had beenpletely under the control of this mother-son duo ever since he had been poisoned.

    Then, Rong Yebin began to falsify and spread rumours that the first prince had poisoned the king. As the crown prince of Inferno Kingdom, he ordered the first prince¡¯s arrest as soon as he took charge of the nation¡¯s affairs.

    Everything had been calcted to near-perfection. However, the one thing that he miscalcted was that the first prince had managed to wrestle control of his body back from the demonic core and regain his rationality on the day that the decree of arrest was made against him. Of course, the first prince was unable to maintain his rationality at all times; and his condition was just like when Jun Xiaomo had encountered him ¨C clear-headed at times, fanatical and irrational at others.

    However, despite the short duration of his rationality, the first prince managed to weed out and kill the spy hidden within his numbers. Then, he swiftly made his preparations and escaped from the pce before the pce guards could arrest him. As a result, the second prince¡¯sckeys returned empty handed.

    This was how Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince became the most wanted fugitive in his own kingdom.

    Rong Yebin knew in his heart that Rong Ruihan was a thorn in his side that had to be eliminated. Rong Yebin could not rest until he had done so because he knew that with Rong Ruihan¡¯s outstanding abilities, it was only a matter of time before his seat as the crown prince would be ousted by Rong Ruihan.

    This was not unprecedented after all. Being the Grand Vizier¡¯s sole disciple were not a guarantee of ascension to the throne. The current king, Rong Yebin and Rong Ruihan¡¯s father, was a living example of that. It was precisely with the stoic backing of Jiang Yutong and her entire n that thwarted the Grand Vizier¡¯s ns to help his then-disciple ascend the throne.

    Rong Yebin did not want history to repeat itself. He could not allow that to happen.

    At this moment, the number of guards surrounding Rong Ruihan was diminishing gradually. Innumerable dead bodies piled up outside the circle of guards, soaking and staining the ground with a crimson red dye. The bloodbath was an absolutely chilling sight.

    Then, the second prince¡¯s eyes darkened as though he had just made a difficult decision.

    He dashed over towards the diminishing circle of guards and began to lift the outermost guards up and toss them further from the circle to safety.

    ¡°Second prince!¡± The guards were first shocked, and then awash with joy.

    They had thought that the second prince was here to save them.

    But in the next moment, the second prince retrieved an ink-ck de from his Interspatial Ring and started walking towards them.

    This de had aplex formation diagram inscribed on it, almost akin to fretwork. At the same time, the de released an ominous aura around it and instantly enshrouded the surroundings with a bone-chilling breeze.

    As they stared at the frigid-looking de, these few guards immediately grew ufortable, ¡°Second prince...¡± They were just about to ask the second prince what he intended to do when they suddenly felt a sharp pain on their necks! Blood sprayed out from their severed arteries, but their blood did notnd on the ground. Instead, they formed an arc in the air as they begun to be absorbed and consumed by the sword in the second prince¡¯s hands.

    They no longer possessed the ability to ask anything. Thest thing their eyes saw was the sullen and deep gaze in the second prince¡¯s eyes. Yet there was no emotion in his eyes. It was as though he were killing or butchering senseless animals.

    Just like that, the second prince repeated the same process with several more guards, until he judged that it was finally sufficient. Then, he wielded that de and made his way over towards the middle of the courtyard where the stone table originally was.

    This stone table had been destroyed by Jun Xiaomo, and all that was left was a stump of stone in the ground.

    On the other side, the guards locked in battle with the first prince had been so engrossed in their fight that they hardly noticed anything amiss when over ten guards had left their midst and been killed off by the second prince.

    At this moment, Rong Yebin walked over to the stone stump, cut his palm with the de and dripped a drop of his blood onto the stump.

    Then, he half-knelt onto the ground and ferociously stabbed the de directly through the center of the stone stump.

    Immediately, an immense formation array activated out of nowhere, and itsplex formation diagram covered the entire floor of the courtyard that they were standing on.

    ¡°Haha...Rong Ruihan, since you like fighting so much, knock yourself out with this demon I¡¯m about to summon!¡±

    As he spoke, a dribble of blood seeped out of the corner of his mouth, and he wiped it off nonchntly.

    A demon summoning array required the souls and fresh blood of ten people as its catalyst for activation. It was a formation array that defied the natural orders of the world! Furthermore, just like dangerous demonic cultivation techniques, there were even risks that the user would suffer from potentially irreparable bacshes.

    Therefore, the Grand Vizier had previously warned his disciple that he had to be cautious when using such a formation array.

    However, Rong Yebin could hardly care less any longer. His jealousy and hatred towards Rong Ruihan had exceeded all other considerations at this moment. Furthermore, given Rong Ruihan¡¯s abilities, not even the collective efforts of the Dawn Sect disciples might pose a threat to him at this moment.

    Since this was the case, he resolved to stake it all on this one strike.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan, Yao Mo, Ye Xiuwen, this prince wants all of you dead! I¡¯ll let you have a taste of the consequences of defying this prince right now!¡±

    As he finished speaking, a monstrous creature began to rise up out of the stone stump. It possessed an enormous ck body, blood-red eyes and gleaming sharp ws. As its body started to take shape, long, enormous tusks started to grow out of its head. Then, its neck grew longer and extended out of its gargantuan body. Finally, scales covered its legs.

    The second prince retreated to the side as he sized up the monstrous beast that he had summoned. However, his eyes were not filled with fear or dread at all. Instead, they were filled with a crazed desire for victory.

    The second prince looked even more like a madman that had lost all sense of rationality than the first prince right now. He was like a madman that had bottled up all his jealousy and uneasiness in his heart for all his life and finally managed to unleash it at one go.

    ¡°Go forth! Imand you to kill Rong Ruihan, Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen! Split open their stomachs and gouge out their bowels. Give them a fate worse than death itself!¡±

    As the second prince yelled out hismands at the monster, an evil smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    The monster roared in response, before taking off towards the first prince Rong Ruihan!

 Chapter 113: The Unexpected Kiss

    <h4>Chapter 113: The Unexpected Kiss</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In that moment when the second prince activated the demon summoning array, practically everyone ¨C even those locked inbat ¨C paused in their tracks and began to look around at their surroundings tensely. They tightened their grasp around their weapons nervously. Everyone could sense the arrival of a foreboding presence.

    This unanimous sense of danger arose from the most primal part of their senses. The fear of what was soon toe sent shivers down their back. Their limbs grew stiff, and their breathing grew shallow and cold.

    In the next moment, a hair-raising shriek broke up the tense atmosphere in the air. This shriek was so shrill that it threatened to burst their eardrums, and everyone reflexively turned to where it came from, only to be greeted by a dreadful, blood-curdling sight ¨C

    A two-storey high monster towered over them, brandishing its thin, sharp ws that were dripping with fresh blood as it swished its spiked tail about threateningly. Then, it gnarled viciously at the guards and swiftly lurched towards them.

    What...what in the world is this?!

    Their pupils shrank in fear and their eyes ckened in despair. Thest thing some of the less fortunate guards saw was their own headless bodies fall onto the ground, before everything faded away.

    The guards no longer thought about standing their grounds to resist this monster. Earlier, these guards had sized up the first prince¡¯s abilities, and they thought that it might be possible to defeat him if they were to wear him down. However, when faced with this monster that seemed to possess traits and abilitiespletely outside any of their imagination, all thoughts of resistance immediately went up in smokes, and the only rm ring in their mind was that of escape.

    Immediately, the guards began to scatter in all directions. The ones who reacted quicker than others managed to escape the clutches of this monster, while the others ended up as fodder.

    In contrast with these guards who turned tail to run, the first prince who equally possessed bloodshot eyes like this monster had apletely different reaction.

    His eyes quivered, not with fear or dread, but with excitement, mania, and a strong intent to battle!

    If the second prince had noticed the first prince¡¯s reaction right now, perhaps he might no longer be as confident in the monster that he had summoned. However, the second prince stood quite some distance away, and he could only see that the monster had arrived before the first prince, but not the expressions of manic delight on the first prince¡¯s face.

    The second prince¡¯s lips curled up wickedly, and a murderous intent flickered across his eyes.

    Once this night was over, the man named Rong Ruihan would be nothing more than a historical figure, and his ascension to the throne would be secure.

    The second prince could already smell his victory.

    The few guards who managed to escape from the monster thought the same thing as well ¨C Rong Ruihan was soon going to be history. It was only after they had escaped the circle ofbat that they noticed that the monster did not pursue after them. Instead, it had turned its attention to the first prince who had held his ground.

    ¡°What in the world is that thing?!¡± One of the guards eximed with lingering fear and trepidation in his heart. He had barely avoided a deadly swipe from that monster earlier.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve never seen something so nefarious and ghoulish!¡±

    ...These guards were now standing a safe distance away from the monster¡¯s location. As they were catching their breaths, they began to observe the monster and specte where it might havee from.

    ¡°I...I¡¯ve heard of these things before. I think it might be an Abomination.¡± Yet another guard stammered in shock as he chimed in.

    An Abomination?! The other guards immediately revealed expressions of shock, disgust, fear, and other simr expressions.

    It was akin to the contemptuous and rancorous expressions that demonic cultivators drew from cultivators in those self-proimed righteous and upstanding sects. As long as an existence had anything remotely to do with demonic energy, it would incite derision from most people¡¯s hearts.

    Yet among all these things, the Abomination was still one of the vilest creatures whose existence was viewed with far more disdain and contempt than any other demonic cultivator or demonic beast. After all, demonic cultivators and demonic beasts only cultivated using demonic energy. On the other hand, Abominations were creatures that were formed by congealing demonic energy using fresh blood and souls as catalyst.

    Abominations do not possess cognitive functions nor any preferences. They live for one purpose and one purpose only ¨C to kill.

    As an Abomination killed, it would consume the blood and souls of those who had perished in order to continually grow and strengthen its own abilities. Once it has consumed sufficient blood and souls, it would then wrestle control and break away from its summoner to be its own independent being. At that time, it would be a thing of nightmares, razing towns and even cities to the ground and leaving only a path of destruction in its wake.

    It was precisely this reason that the Grand Vizier, despite his immense abilities, had warned the second prince time and again to be extremely cautious and circumspect about when he used the demon summoning array. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he should be wise never to activate this formation array at all.

    However, the second prince did not possess such a good understanding of the Abomination that he had just summoned. The second prince had always been obstinate and self-centered. Furthermore, he had always wanted to dispose of the first prince that was the thorn in his side. Under the tense circumstances earlier and given the prospects of finally disposing of the first prince, the second prince made the rash decision of summoning the Abomination.

    In fact, the second prince didn¡¯t even consider the risks involved in summoning the Abomination.

    The second prince eagerly anticipated the moment that the first prince would be torn to shreds by the Abomination. However, in the very next moment, that expression of macabre satisfaction waspletely frozen on his face ¨C

    The first prince suddenly made his move. Within moments, the first prince ripped apart the two-storey, towering Abomination, and tore itpletely to shreds!

    It was also at this moment that the second prince finally managed to catch a glimpse of the first prince¡¯s present appearances. The first prince had curled his fingers and held out his hands like they were ws in an aggressive beast-like stance; his nails were long and sharp; and his eyes were filled with primal bloodlust. His entire body was covered in blood from the massacre of the second prince¡¯s guards. The first prince¡¯s current appearances looked even more horrific and nightmarish than the Abomination that the second prince had summoned.

    In fact, the first prince almost looked like a demon that had just crawled up from the depths of hell!

    However, the Abomination that had earlier been ripped apart did not die so easily. Pieces of its body slowly came together as its body reformed within moments. Then, itunched another attack at the first prince.

    Despite that, the first prince continued to face it without fear. In fact, the first prince thoroughly indulged himself in this battle. Time and again, he would rip apart the Abomination to shreds and absorb some of the Abomination¡¯s demonic energy, while the Abomination would persistently reform its body and duked it out with the first prince.

    Demonic energy was a scarce resource in the cultivation world. As a result of this, several demonic cultivators would choose to devour or absorb the cultivation, demonic core, or the like from demonic beasts or other demonic cultivators, just so that they could raise their own abilities further.

    Rong Ruihan had lost all measure of rationality by now, and he acted purely based on his primal instincts. However, his instincts didn¡¯t consider the Abomination an opponent to contend with. Rather, it viewed the Abomination as nothing more than arge demonic pill for his own nourishment!

    Furthermore, his instincts told him that if he managed to fully absorb the demonic energy from this Abomination, he would experience another breakthrough in his cultivation!

    On the other hand, the second prince didn¡¯t appreciate the magnitude of the gift he had just bestowed upon the first prince. The only realized the futility of his efforts as he saw the Abomination¡¯s body gradually fading away as the hatred in his heart burgeoned once again.

    The second prince possessed many means for escape within his Interspatial Ring, including Teleportation Scrolls or Escape Scrolls. As long as he opened up these scrolls and activated the formation array, he would be able to leave this ce safely.

    Even though this would make him feel even more defeated than he already did, it was nevertheless far better than being murdered by the first prince.

    Besides, the remaining guards within his residence could easily be disposed of and silenced under the charge of failing to protect him. This way, he could close off all the loose ends and no longer be worried that tongues would wag and rumours would spread regarding hismentable escape from this ce.

    Having thought about these things, the second prince finally made his resolve. But, the second prince had miscalcted the time taken for the first prince to dispose of the Abomination. Just as he was about to retrieve an Escape Scroll from his Interspatial Ring, the first prince sent a deadly attack flying over towards the second prince.

    This attack was so quick that the second prince couldn¡¯t even respond to it. Within the blink of an eye, the first prince¡¯s attack punctured a huge hole through the second prince¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Cough...cough...¡± The second prince copsed to the ground, and blood gurgled and spattered from his mouth. His eyes stared hazily into the dark night sky as his pupils began to dte...

    The first prince flicked the blood off his hands, and he swept his bloodshot eyes towards the other guards standing a distance away.

    In the distance, the frightened guards continued to stare vacantly at the horrific development of the situation, yet no one took a single step towards the first prince.

    Unconcerned about the other guards, the first prince shifted his gaze away, allowing the guards to heave a heavy sigh of relief. Yet when these guards turned their attention towards the second prince¡¯s condition, their hearts immediately constricted with anxiety once again ¨C

    The second prince isn¡¯t dead, is he?! We...we¡¯re finished...

    The Grand Vizier isn¡¯t going to let us off...

    However, the first prince couldn¡¯t care less about the despair in the eyes of these guards. He looked around and sniffed about at his surroundings, as though he was looking for something.

    This series of actions were exactly akin to that of a beast. However, the guards who watched on found themselves unable tough at the situation. Their dread and despondence were so great that it simply overwhelmed and suppressed any other emotion within them right now.

    Suddenly, the first prince looked like he caught a whiff of something. He immediately leapt over to a pool of blood on the floor and sniffed about the circumference of it. If one looked closely, it would be apparent that the first prince¡¯s bloodshot eyes were rippling gently with emotions right now.

    The first prince threw his head into the air and howled loudly. Then, he got down on all fours, and sprinted out of the second prince¡¯s residence.

    The others could only watch on nkly as the first prince departed the residence. When the first prince¡¯s figure had thoroughly disappeared from their vision, they began to hastily make their way towards the second prince with fear lingering in their hearts.

    Their only hope right now was that the second prince was not dead. That was the only way they could possibly escape from the cmity that was toe.

    However, when they saw that gaping hole in the second prince¡¯s chest, their hearts sank to the ground.

    ¡°Hurry...hurry! Quickly send a message to report this to the Grand Vizier.¡± One of the guards eximed.

    Another guard responded immediately and retrieved a Transmittance Talisman, recorded his message and then burnt up the talisman. Once the Transmittance Talisman has been burnt up, the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence would receive this message in no time.

    This was all they could do for now. After this, they could only keep their fingers crossed and hope that the present incident would not implicate the lives of their own family members.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen carried the semi-conscious Jun Xiaomo as he knocked on the doors of every apothecary around. However, every single apothecary that they called upon had turned them away, saying that the Soul Acuity Grass had been sold out to the second prince¡¯s residence.

    Ye Xiuwen hugged Jun Xiaomo dearly, and his eyes began to grow bloodshot.

    ¡°Ye...Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out weakly to Ye Xiuwen. With incredible willpower, she managed to stifle and prevent herself from involuntarily letting out a moan.

    Jun Xiaomo refused to reveal to her martial brother the vulgar expressions shown by a female beast during mating season. She knew that doing that would only jeopardize the good rtionship that they had forged thus far.

    Ye Xiuwen responded softly, and he perked up his ears as he listened attentively to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    ¡°Brother Ye, I know what the Soul Acuity Grass looks like. The...woods outside...outside the county has some...bring me there...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo struggled hard before she managed to eke out these few words. She was already on the verge of losing all rationality.

    She felt as though she were walking along a precipice adjoining a bottomless abyss right now. One misstep would cause her to fall into the depths and shatter all her bones.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her back gently. Then, he mustered his spiritual energy and sprinted towards the woods outside the county.

    A few incenses of timeter, a man with deeply bloodshot eyes appeared on the very location that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was just moments ago. The first prince sniffed about at his surroundings again. Once he ascertained the direction that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had departed towards, he got down on all fours once again and sprinted in that direction.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen stepped into the woods outside the county, he immediately discovered Yao Mo¡¯s peculiar behaviour as he began to stir in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom.

    Yao Mo must have sumbed to the Euphoria-Stimting Incense and lost all rationality! Yao Mo hugged Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body extremely tightly as he involuntarily let out tantalizing, moaning sounds.

    ¡°Mar-...martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out softly as she caressed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s neck before motioning to bury her burning face in it.

    This young man¡¯s usually clear, crisp voice was suddenly imbued with an alluring charm, while his beautifullyrge, watery pupils seemed to possess the ability to draw a person¡¯s soul into a deep, dark abyss through its gaze.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately shut his eyes and turned his attention elsewhere as he attempted to avoid Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze.

    However, the person in his arms had already lost all rationality, and he couldn¡¯t appreciate Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ¡°efforts¡± at all. Jun Xiaomo was now glued onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body like a ko hugged its Eucalyptus tree. To Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s soothing aura seemed to alleviate the burning sensation on her body.

    Ye Xiuwen remained motionless. He closed his eyes and struggled to bind up his thoughts.

    ¡°Martial brother...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was clearly dissatisfied with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s passive response. She instinctively stretched out both hands and with one swift motion, she removed the veiled conical hat on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s head. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ink-ck hair immediately came free and dangled loosely by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulders. Some of his hair even fell towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair and inteced her hair as well.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo continued to call out for her ¡°martial brother¡± as she grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face and struggled to draw closer to it.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen finally opened his eyes. He lowered his head and gazed directly into Yao Mo¡¯s eyes. In Yao Mo¡¯s clear and reflective eyes, the only thing he saw was his own disfigured face ¨C a terrifying scar caused by the incursion and corrosion of demonic energy was syed diagonally across his face, ruining his originally sharp and suave features.

    ¡°Just who is this martial brother of yours that you¡¯ve been calling?¡± Ye Xiuwen knocked the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he softly asked.

    Jun Xiaomo hadpletely lost all rationality by now, and she was naturally unable to respond to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s question. Therefore, she ignored the question and continued to mince her way closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face.

    An intense struggle surfaced in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes right now. He acknowledged that he has some feelings for Yao Mo. These feelings had admittedly initially developed because of Yao Mo¡¯s likeness to Jun Xiaomo. However, having had experienced so many things together, his feelings for Yao Mo had be purer, and purer.

    By now, Yao Mo had already established a ce of his own in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Yet, having a ¡°ce in his heart¡± was still rather vague. It could be kinship; it could be friendship; and it could also be...love.

    Ye Xiuwen was not a daft person. He had already discovered that his attachment towards Yao Mo had long surpassed the realms of pure friendship. Yet even then, he had simply been too reticent to examine the extent of his feelings towards Yao Mo.

    This was because he couldn¡¯t be certain what exactly his feelings for Yao Mo entailed. He wasn¡¯t sure how much of his attachment towards Yao Mo had been a result of his little martial sister¡¯s image in Yao Mo.

    Put differently, Ye Xiuwen had never been confident of his own feelings because of his dark past ¨C whether it be in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, or at present.

    ¡°Martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out softly once again. Her hazy eyes were even filled with an aggrieved look as a result of the difort in her body.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart felt a pang of pain. Even though it wasn¡¯t obvious, its effects lingered on persistently.

    ¡°I¡¯m not your martial brother, Little Mo. Wake up.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks as he responded again. His tone was now filled with stoicism.

    One of the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense is to cause the person under its effects to think that he or she was currently interacting with the person he or she was most fond of. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen was certain that Yao Mo was now viewing him in the image of that ¡°martial brother¡± of his.

    ¡°You¡¯re clearly my martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo repeated again with slight exasperation. Then, just as Ye Xiuwen was distracted, Jun Xiaomo jerked her body, pulled Ye Xiuwen¡¯s head towards hers and locked lips with him.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality was immediately expelled from his mind. Echoes reverberated as his mind drew aplete nk.

    It was as though all his thoughts had been reced by one thing ¨C that is, the pair of soft, luscious lips belonging to the person in his embrace right now.

 Chapter 114: The Moment of Confusion and Passion

    <h4>Chapter 114: The Moment of Confusion and Passion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen reeled in shock for a moment before he managed to collect himself. Then, the first thing that he noticed was how the heat emanating from Jun Xiaomo seemed to burrow through their clothing and onto his skin, causing his chest to experience a burning sensation.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened instantly. His rationality told him that he should strongly resist Jun Xiaomo¡¯s advances. However, his body seemed to ignore themands of his rational mind, and both of his hands remained frozen there in shock.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soul could hardly be considered young or immature. After all, she had at one point in her previous life even been pregnant with child. At this moment, she clutched tightly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s neck as she tilted her head back with sensual delight. Her small delicate tongue crept out of the small crevice between her lips as though she were attempting to savour a delicacy ced right in front of her lips.

    But her efforts were in vain. The tip of her tongue darted about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips like a dragonfly skirted about the surface of a water body, but it couldn¡¯t find an entry point. After thoroughly moistening Ye Xiuwen¡¯s slightly parched lips, Jun Xiaomo retracted her tongue back into her mouth and continued to press her lips against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips as she heaved and gulped sensually.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were extremely hazy, and her cheeks were slightly flushed as though she were intoxicated. However, though cheeky and mischievous, her actions had note close to the line of debauchery or depravity. Rather, her earlier kiss was filled with a sense of sincerity that came from the bottom of her heart, as though she weremunicating her deepest emotions to the person of her dreams.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen reacted as though Jun Xiaomo had ced him under a bewitching spell. He finally lifted his hands and gently wrapped his arms around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nimble body as he embraced her.

    ¡°Martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo called out once more. Her voice sounded both aggrieved and bewildered at the same time ¨C

    She was thoroughly aggrieved because the difort in her body had not dissipated in the slightest, and her body continued to feel as though it were being immted by an all-consuming fire ¨C it would not subside no matter what she did. At the same time, she was bewildered as to why the person standing in front of her was simply watching her suffer without lending any assistance to alleviate this suffering at all...

    If Jun Xiaomo had not lost her rationality, she would never have done all these shameful deeds to Ye Xiuwen ¨C not over her dead body. But right now, she had lost all sense of rationality, and everything she did was purely based on her primal instincts.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes again. This time, her gaze was filled with a na?ve sense of ignorance that seemed akin to a newborn animal. It was a gaze filled with reliance,ced with a trace of the profundity of life.

    In this moment of dibobtion, Ye Xiuwen could hardly tell whether the person in front of him was Yao Mo or Jun Xiaomo.

    Regardless, something seemed to click within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, and the walls that he had built up around his heart began to copse. He lightly shifted his hand around to the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and pulled her into a tighter kiss. Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t resist it either. In fact, she tilted her head backwards even more in delight, as though she were presenting herself ripe for ¡°harvest¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen applied a little bit more force, and he managed to pry open Jun Xiaomo¡¯s teeth. Then, he began to wrap and tangle his tongue with hers as they tangoed to his lead.

    Jun Xiaomo had earlier already consumed some wine at the second prince¡¯s residence. Right now, as her body heated up in tandem with their blossoming passion, the fragrance of alcohol that wafted out from her lips and nose became even more apparent. Just like that, the faint aroma of alcohol danced between the two entangled bodies as intoxication began to fill this night of passion.

    Ye Xiuwen had thoroughly cast off any resistance stemming from his rationality. His thirst for the person in his bosom was like the floodwaters gushing out of a dam that had just been breached. This dam could never be closed again.

    This had been a long and lingering kiss. But right now, time stood still for Ye Xiuwen who hadpletely immersed himself in the delight of this kiss.

    It was only when Jun Xiaomo grew slightly breathless and let out a small moan that Ye Xiuwen relented for a moment. But it was only a moment. After Jun Xiaomo managed to catch her breath, Ye Xiuwen once again kissed Jun Xiaomo with renewed vigor and passion.

    It had to be said that Ye Xiuwen ordinarily behaved in a cool,posed and even passive manner. Yet the present Ye Xiuwen was like apletely different person ¨C his every action was imbued with immense initiative and the desire to seize!

    Despite this, Ye Xiuwen could hardly care less about his ostensible change in his personality right now.

    Just when their breathing grew haggard and things were about to escte to the next stage of passion, an intense portent of crisis swelled up from within as a sense of danger rushed at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back!

    In one smooth action, Ye Xiuwen pulled Jun Xiaomo into his embrace, unsheathed his Frostburn Sword and shed behind where he originally stood.

    The sword intent from this sh flew ahead, instantly slicing in two the enormous trees in its path like they were butter. However, the woods remainedpletely still and silent. It was as though that portent of crisis had been nothing more than a mere illusion.

    However, Ye Xiuwen trusted his instincts and knew that this was no illusion. He released his divine sense and thoroughly probed about his surroundings with vignce.

    The right side!

    A ck figure flickered as it rushed towards Ye Xiuwen from his side. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reflexes were extremely quick. Within moments, Ye Xiuwen waspletely locked inbat with this ck figure.

    However, this ck figure¡¯s abilities were greater than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s to begin with. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was concerned that the ck figure would hurt Jun Xiaomo if he put her down. Therefore, he continued to hold her in his embrace as he fought off the advances of the ck figure without a single thought of setting her down.

    Naturally, this obstructed his ability to fight. The ck figure¡¯s speed was at least as fast as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s, if not more. There were a few instances that Ye Xiuwen only managed to dodge the ck figure¡¯s attacks by a hair¡¯s breadth. On other instances, Ye Xiuwen would even throw his body in the way of the ck figure¡¯s attacks in order to protect Jun Xiaomo.

    As the fight went on under such circumstances, the number of wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body continued to increase as it got more and more difficult for him to deal with the iing attacks.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he resolved in his heart that when push came to shove, he would think of a way to let Yao Mo use an Escape Scroll to get away safely, while he would personally lure this unknown assant away from Yao Mo.

    By now, the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense had thoroughly manifested itself in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Then, when Ye Xiuwen passionately locked lips with Jun Xiaomo earlier, any remaining sense of rationality within Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely overwhelmed and evicted from her mind.

    However, as the number of wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body began to increase, the stench of blood and the vigorous movement of their bodies began to rouse Jun Xiaomo from her stupor and shake off the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense. As a result, Jun Xiaomo gradually began to return to her senses.

    As rity began to permeate her mind, the first thing that Jun Xiaomo noticed was how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes had been stained a sharp crimson red from the wounds on his body. Then, the stench of blood assaulted her olfactory senses ¨C it was obvious that the blood was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s.

    ¡°Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo clutched anxiously at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes as she noticed the ck figureunch another flurry of attacks at Ye Xiuwen once more.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cry momentarily seized Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention and diverted his focus away from the difficult skirmish he was engaged in. As a result, his reactions to the ck figure¡¯s attacks came a split secondter.

    In a battle, any momentary loss of focus such as this could potentially cost one his life. Just as the ck figure¡¯s attacks were about to hit Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted in fear. In that moment of panic, she pushed Ye Xiuwen away to safety and ced herself directly in harm¡¯s way!

    This entire series of events had urred as a manifestation of her basic instincts that were deeply ingrained in her heart. There was only one thought running through her mind right now ¨C that is, she was not going to let her martial brother die because of her ever again!

    Ye Xiuwen had never expected Yao Mo to do such a thing for him. Thus, his heart stopped, and he almost lost his mind when it urred to him what Yao Mo had just done.

    Unexpectedly, the ck figure came to aplete halt in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°First prince?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gave away the assant¡¯s identity as she blurted out in astonishment.

    Shouldn¡¯t the first prince be in the inn? She had clearly restrained the first prince and her little packrat within the domain of her Confinement Array earlier. How could the first prince be here? Furthermore, the first prince¡¯s body was clearly roiling with dreadful demonic energy right now. Just what in the world was going on?!

    A series of questions immediately popped up in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind. However, the first prince continued to gaze deeply at her. His eyes were densely filled with an air of vicious and macabre intent.

    Ye Xiuwen had also recoiled in shock when he heard Jun Xiaomo refer to the assant as ¡°first prince¡±. He heaved a sigh of relief when he realized that Jun Xiaomo was not hurt. At the same time, he looked solemnly at his assant and size up the man who had been attacking him ¨C outstanding, deep features; sharp, expressive brows, replete with a pair of eyes that were filled with an evil-looking gaze. It was as though he was a spirit that had escaped from the depths of hell in the cover of the night.

    No wonder Little Mo can immediately tell at one nce the identity of this assant. His looks are indeed unique and outstanding.

    Even though the first prince was no longer poised for attack, Ye Xiuwen continued to remain vignt. He took two steps forward, stepped in front of Jun Xiaomo and shielded her behind his back as he brandished his Frostburn Sword in front of him.

    ¡°Aaoooo!¡± The first prince¡¯s eyes erupted with a vicious intent and he once again got on all fours as he lunged towards Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced. She immediately retrieved a Heart Purging Pill from her Interspatial Ring and yelled at the first prince, ¡°Little Han, over here!¡±

    The first prince¡¯s name was Rong Ruihan. However, whenever he lost all rationality and transformed into that half-man, half-beast state, the first prince would never respond to his first name. Instead, he only responded to references such as ¡°Little Han¡± or other simr pet-names.

    The first time that Jun Xiaomo discovered this, she waspletely rendered speechless. However, as time went by, she grew more and more ustomed to it, as though it had be second nature. In fact, she had even begun to treat the first prince who had lost all rationality as a pet, just like how she had treated her little packrat...

    As expected, in that moment that Jun Xiaomo bellowed ¡°Little Han¡±, the first prince stopped attacking and turned its attention eagerly towards Jun Xiaomo.

    That obsequious expression on his fact right now was almost akin to when arge-sized pet hears its master calling it.

    Jun Xiaomo held the Heart Purging Pill in her hand, imbued it with her spiritual energy and gave it a quick flick. Under the effects of her spiritual energy, the Heart Purging Pill very quickly found its way into the first prince¡¯s mouth.

    Truth be told, resorting to the Heart Purging Pill while the demonic energy was wreaking havoc within the first prince¡¯s body was not a good solution. This was because the demonic energy would have nowhere else to go, and the resultant demonic bacsh would be even greater.

    However, Jun Xiaomo could hardly think of a better solution at this moment. Overnight, the amount of demonic energy wreaking havoc within Rong Ruihan¡¯s body had not only lessened ¨C it had even increased! If she did not do anything to counteract this surge of demonic energy and suppress the condition in his body, the first prince might possibly end up losing all rationality for good and be nothing more than a wild beast without any cognitive functions.

    Once the Heart Purging Pill entered his lips, Rong Ruihan shut his mouth and swallowed it with a gulp.

    Then, just as Jun Xiaomo motioned towards Rong Ruihan¡¯s side, Ye Xiuwen immediately gripped onto her arm tightly.

    Jun Xiaomo turned back in shock as she stared at Ye Xiuwen. Ye Xiuwen was no longer wearing his veiled conical hat at the moment, and she could finally see the expressions in his eyes.

    Worry, anxiety, and there were even some expressions that were rather peculiar and unfamiliar to her...

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m just going to check on that fe. His current condition isn¡¯t quite right.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands as she reassured him.

    Then, Ye Xiuwen let go of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. Even though he had not raised any objections, a trace of internal struggle could still be seen in his eyes.

    After Rong Ruihan had swallowed the Heart Purging Pill, the tumultuous demonic energy roiling about his body subsided substantially. The redness of his bloodshot eyes had even dwindled slightly.

    ¡°Little Han, give me your hand. Let me take a look.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Rong Ruihan¡¯s arms as she instructed.

    Ye Xiuwen tightened his grasp around his Frostburn Sword, evidently afraid that Rong Ruihan would suddenly attack Yao Mo.

    Unexpectedly, Rong Ruihan only nced overzily at Jun Xiaomo, before obediently stretching out his right hand. Then, Jun Xiaomo ced three fingers onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of demonic energy probing about Rong Ruihan¡¯s Dantian and meridians to observe his body¡¯s condition.

    It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo finally discovered that, apart from that demonic core which had already been wreaking havoc within his body, there was now another immense source of demonic energy within his body.

    ¡°Little Han, why are you always eating all sorts of nonsense?¡± Jun Xiaomo retracted her hand and rapped Rong Ruihan on the head as she chided, ¡°Demonic energy isn¡¯t something that you can just eat and umte without regard or restraint. If you umte too much of it and you can¡¯t absorb it in time, you might even explode and die, understand?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found herself unable to harden her heart against the first prince as he behaved like arge dog. After all, she had always liked little animals to begin with. Her little packrat was one; and she viewed ¡°Little Han¡± as another.

    ¡°Ao!¡± The first prince yowled in a husky voice. However, nobody else around could understand what it was trying to say.

    Gradually, under the effects of the Heart Purging Pill, the first prince¡¯s ¡°beast-transformation¡± was suppressed, and his eyelids slowly drooped over his eyes...

    The towering man copsed as soon as his eyes werepletely shut. Jun Xiaomo held onto his body, intending to lend the first prince a hand. Yet the weight of the first prince proved to be too much. Under his weight, she also fell forward,nding onto the first prince¡¯s body as he mmed into the ground.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he immediately shot forward and gave Jun Xiaomo a hand.

    As Jun Xiaomo scrambled off the first prince¡¯s body, she suddenly found herself caught within Ye Xiuwen embrace once again. He even wrapped his arms tightly around her waist.

    Ye Xiuwen was truly unwilling to see Yao Mo lying on the first prince¡¯s body. And this was despite him being absolutely certain that there was nothing peculiar going on between Yao Mo and the first prince.

    Are there really no other feelings involved? As he thought about how the first prince seemed to be especially obedient to Yao Mo, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but doubt his eyes as he furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Brother Ye...ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as well. Earlier, the stench of blood emanating from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body had temporarily repressed the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense. As a result, it brought a short moment of reprieve to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, allowing her to momentarily regain her rity of mind. Now that things had been resolved and the stench of blood was gone, the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense once again manifested itself.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware of what she and Ye Xiuwen had done in her earlier moment of stupor. Furthermore, she now found herself fading in and out of her state of semi-consciousness again. At the same time, she knew that she did not want to reveal to Ye Xiuwen the vulgar expressions that the Euphoria-Stimting Incense would bring out in a person when it manifestedpletely. Therefore, while she clung furiously to that modicum of rationality residing within her mind, she immediately retrieved some paper and a brush from her Interspatial Ring and began drawing the shape of the Soul Acuity Grass.

    Jun Xiaomo was sprawled all over the floor, and her body quivered as she struggled with each stroke of the brush. Wave after wave of emptiness ebbed away at her senses, causing her great difort.

    Ye Xiuwen did not do anything to stop Jun Xiaomo. However, when he noticed how Yao Mo was drawing the shape of the Soul Acuity Grass in such a painstaking manner, it suddenly dawned on him that his earlier moment of unrestraint was extremely uncharacteristic of him ¨C and he felt extremely shameful about it.

    After all, Yao Mo¡¯s heart had always been fixated on that martial brother of his, yet he had taken advantage of this and kissed Yao Mo.

    Just then, a drop of sweatnded on the ground and seeped through the surface of the soil. Jun Xiaomo hand tremored, and the brush slipped out of his hand andnded on the ground with a ¡°ck¡±.

    The drawing was finallyplete, and she was already at her limits. She eased up on her focus ever so slightly, and the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense once again overwhelmed her senses and consumed her rationality.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands weakened, and her entire body copsed to the ground. Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen managed to support her in the nick of time and held her closely in his bosom.

    The fragrance from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body once again assaulted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s olfactory senses, ¡°Martial brother...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed his head gingerly against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest as she hazily lifted her head towards Ye Xiuwen.

    This time, Ye Xiuwen no longer had possessed any untoward thoughts against Jun Xiaomo. He caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pouting and slightly swollen lips with his thumb as he calmly said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Little Mo. I¡¯ll definitely help you locate the Soul Acuity Grass.¡±

    Deep within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, he resolved to thoroughly forget everything that had happened this very night.

 Chapter 115: Ye Xiuwen and the First Princeâ€™s Battle for the Top

    <h4>Chapter 115: Ye Xiuwen and the First Prince¡¯s Battle for the Top</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Soul Acuity Grass was not a difficult herb to find. It was known to grow beside a type of green vine that had leaves shaped like butterfly wings. As long as one managed to locate that green vine, then one would naturally also be able to locate the Soul Acuity Grass growing at the roots of the main vine.

    Just a few days ago, when Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo passed by these woods, they had spotted many of these green vines with butterfly winged leaves. But back then, they had not considered the fact that the Soul Acuity Grass might one daye in handy. Therefore, they had simply turned a blind eye to the Soul Acuity Grass then.

    It was the dead of night right now. Ye Xiuwen circled around the woods under the dim illumination of the moonlight, but he just could not locate any traces of these green vines with butterfly winged leaves.

    In fact, what Ye Xiuwen did not know was that whenever night fell, these green vines with butterfly winged leaves would fold their leaves down along the stem of the vine. If one did not pause to take a closer look at each vine, it would be easy to mistake these vines for any other normal vines.

    The Euphoria-Stimting Incense¡¯s effects incessantly tormented Jun Xiaomo and made her experience extreme difort. She remained in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s embrace while she continued to call out ¡°martial brother¡± from time to time. These murmurings and mumblings from Jun Xiaomo sounded weak and soft, but each one dealt a heavy blow to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality was also dangling at the edge of the precipice right now. It was almost as though he had also fallen prey to the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense.

    But no matter how hard he tried, he simply could not locate the Soul Acuity Grass. Dejected, Ye Xiuwen carried Jun Xiaomo as they returned to their original location.

    By now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head had grown incredibly hot to the touch. The only thing running through her dazed mind was that the tighter she embraced this man, the morefortable she felt. She wanted more. Therefore, she suddenly pushed Ye Xiuwen towards a nearby tree, before tangling her arms and legs around his. She even began to make light moaning sounds.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately ced his hands onto Yao Mo¡¯s shoulders, intending to harden his heart and shove Yao Mo away. However, his arms remained frozen on Yao Mo¡¯s shoulders and he could not bring himself to do it.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes that had been soaked through with her sweat was now stered to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers curled up stiffly, and his lips stretched out into a long, painful grimace. It was evident what kind of struggle Ye Xiuwen was going through right now.

    By this point, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes had been thoroughly ruffled up by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unrestrained actions. The cor of his garbs red outwards, revealing his snow-white inner shirt.

    Just as things were about to escte even further, the first prince who had been lying unconscious on the floor began to stir. His fingers twitched, and momentster, he opened both of his eyes.

    His eyes were no longer bloodshot. They had reverted to their original form ¨C obsidian-ck pupils that were so deep and dark that, under the cover of the night, each of them seemed to contain a bottomless abyss.

    The first prince had thought that he would awaken inside Yao Mo¡¯s room. Unexpectedly, the first thing he noticed was that he was located deep within a forest. The dense foliage of the overhanging canopy seemed almost impermeable, and the resultant illumination of the stars and moon became thin and sparse.

    It was precisely because of this that when the first prince swept his cold gaze towards the other two people nearby, he did not notice that one of them was in fact Yao Mo.

    The first prince was extremely sensitive to matters concerning his own safety. Naturally, he kept his vignce about him and regarded everything as a potential threat to him. Just as he began to put up his guard, intending to deal with the other two around him, he discovered to his surprise that these were not assants after his life. Rather, they were...two lovebirds that seemed to be getting it on in the woods.

    The first prince would never have expected to witness such a ¡°brazen¡± act in the very first moment that he regained his consciousness. Of the two lovebirds, the slightly shorter one was mbering all over the other¡¯s body, as though that lovebird were impatiently grasping at the other¡¯s chest area. Soft, impassioned moans were evening out of the shorter lovebird¡¯s lips. That voice was slightly androgynous, albeit pleasant and even slightly ticklish to the ears.

    It was no wonder that the other lovebird found it difficult to resist that shorter lovebird¡¯s advances and decided to carry out their act so brazenly in these woods. The first prince chuckled softly as he castigated them in his heart. He personally found this type of inability to control one¡¯s carnal desires extremely detestable and vulgar.

    In the first prince¡¯s eyes, those who were unable to control their own primal urges were no better than beasts who only knew how to procreate ¨C just like that dear brother of his.

    The first prince stood up and patted off the dried grass and leaves from his body. Just as he was about to dive in between the lovebirds and break up the ¡°fun¡±, he suddenly paused in his steps.

    The few steps that he had just taken had changed his visual perspective of the two lovebirds. As a result of this, he finally noticed the identity of the shorter lovebird ¨C

    Who would have thought that it was actually Yao Mo? And as for the slightly taller man, who else could it be besides Yao Mo¡¯s dear friend, Ye Xiuwen?

    The first prince couldn¡¯t believe his eyes! They quivered in shock. Then, the demonic energy within his Dantian which Jun Xiaomo worked so hard to suppress began to roil once again. If he did not quickly address this issue and keep his demonic energy in check, the next outburst of demonic energy was only going to be a matter of time. At that time, his rationality might very well be consumed once again.

    Rong Ruihan knew that he should leave this ce without hesitation right now. After all, he and Yao Mo were no more than acquaintances who mutually benefited from the others¡¯ existence. It was hardly his business who Yao Mo decided to physically entangle himself with.

    However, his feet refused to move. It was as though there were a strange forceing from deep within his heart that was preventing him from leaving right now.

    ¡°Have you seen enough? If so, I invite your highness to take his leave.¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly uttered as he swept a frigid gaze towards Rong Ruihan.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen was currently looking quite disheveled, he had never once let his guard down at all. In fact, he was even aware of the first prince¡¯s stirring when he had firste to his senses.

    Ye Xiuwen found his predicament extremely unbearable. He was unsure whether he would once again lose his restraint and force his lips onto Yao Mo¡¯s once again. Nevertheless, he wished that the first prince would leave them be. The first reason was that he did not want the first prince to witness Yao Mo¡¯s vulnerable state any longer; while the second reason was that the manner in which the first prince was staring at Yao Mo thoroughly displeased Ye Xiuwen.

    The first prince picked up on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions to drive him away. However, the first prince felt extremely reluctant in his heart. Even though he could hardly put a finger on what made him feel reluctant this way, he was absolutely certain that his heart did not want to let Ye Xiuwen have his way that easily.

    Therefore, the first prince folded his arms and curled his lips wryly as he remarked, ¡°You clearly had no issues ignoring me earlier when you began tangling with each other while Iid on the floorpletely unconscious. What¡¯s the matter? Are you two feeling shy now that I¡¯m awake and conscious?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes as he thought about how he could best rebuff the first prince.

    Just at this moment, Jun Xiaomo tugged firmly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms once again as she cried out, ¡°Martial brother!¡± This resounding cry was crisp and clear, and even the first prince heart exactly what Jun Xiaomo had said.

    Martial brother? The first prince had learnt several things about Yao Mo from his ndestine agents. In particr, he knew that Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo had only encountered each other in the midst of their travels, and they were not from the same sect.

    Since that¡¯s the case, why would Yao Mo cling onto Ye Xiuwen and address him as ¡®martial brother¡¯?

    The first prince furrowed his brows. Then, he took a closer examination of Yao Mo and discovered that Yao Mo¡¯s present condition was rather peculiar.

    In the next moment, a cold realization washed over the first prince¡¯s body as he straightened his stance in shock. Then, he coldly eximed, ¡°You¡¯ve poisoned Yao Mo!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced back at the first prince with indifference as he rified, ¡°The one who poisoned Little Mo isn¡¯t me, but your dear brother, the second prince.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s him?¡± The first prince¡¯s face was immediately filled with expressions of hatred and contempt as he chuckled sardonically, ¡°Who knew that the Heavenly Peak¡¯s First-Seat Disciple from the righteous and upstanding Dawn Sect would take advantage of others in their moment of weakness? The person that Yao Mo is calling for is obviously not you, huh? What¡¯s the matter? Are you trying to take advantage of the situation and have a casual, liberal fling?¡±

    The first prince¡¯s words sessfully provoked Ye Xiuwen¡¯s exasperation. He had never intended to take advantage of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s moment of weakness. Rather, it was just that he had been unable to find the Soul Acuity Grass, while Yao Mo had inadvertently been enticing him all this while. Unless one was a celibate or a saint, how could any man remain unmoved in the face of the temptations of someone whom he had feelings for?

    Truth be told, it was already a miracle that Ye Xiuwen had held out until now.

    Ye Xiuwen hesitated for a moment, before he responded simply, ¡°Little Mo is under the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense, and he needs Soul Acuity Grass in order to dispel it.¡±

    Without the Soul Acuity Grass, Yao Mo would have no other choice but to copte with someone in order to dispel the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense.

    The first prince possessed keen senses. He immediately connected the dots with the piecemeal information that he had gleaned, and he roughly understood what had happened. In particr, he understood that Ye Xiuwen had brought Yao Mo out at night in order to look for the antidote.

    As to why the he had awakened in these woods, the first prince knew that he had to shelf this thought until Yao Mo aroused from his stupor.

    A glint of darkness shed across the first prince eyes as he lowered his head in deliberation for a moment. Then, he retrieved a small pill bottle from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it over to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°This is a Soul Acuity Pill. Its main constituent ingredient is the Soul Acuity Grass. Perhaps it might be of some use. You can feed it directly to Yao Mo.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen caught the small pill bottle with gratitude, ¡°Thanks.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen thanked the first prince, he poured out a pill and fed it directly to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth.

    Jun Xiaomo initially resisted the medicinal taste emanating from the Soul Acuity Pill. She prodded the Soul Acuity Pill with the tip of her tongue and tried to push it out. However, Ye Xiuwen resolutely pressed the pill down past Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tongue and into her mouth.

    Jun Xiaomo finally gave up resisting. She curled up her tongue and swallowed the Soul Acuity Pill.

    Her nimble tongue had earlier touched Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingertips, and that warm and soft sensation lingered on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s skin.

    Ye Xiuwen was once again reminded of that kiss they shared earlier. He was willing to erase that memory from his mind entirely. However, he discovered that this memory would seem to resurface in his mind without notice and cause his emotions to roil without restraint.

    The first prince noticed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s index finger was still pressing on Yao Mo¡¯s lips despite Yao Mo having already swallowed the pill. Immediately, the first prince¡¯s eyes darkened, and a smirk crept up the corner of his lips as he remarked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter, brother Ye? Are you still unwilling to let go of his lips even after the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense had been dispelled? Or are you just trying to deal with that sudden sense of loss? Do you regret dispelling the poison from his body now?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen finally retracted his hand. He retrieved arge mat from his Interspatial Ring and set it on the floor. Then, he carried Jun Xiaomo over and sat her down gently.

    The Soul Acuity Pill took effect almost instantaneously, and Jun Xiaomo managed to calm down very quickly. She no longer experienced her earlier shortness of breaths, and she now breathed with a much calmer tempo. Her tendency to gravitate towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom had also dwindled substantially.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes suddenly shut, and her body slumped limply. However, Ye Xiuwen managed to catch her before she fell onto the ground.

    Ye Xiuwen used his palm to check on her temperature once again, and he discovered that her originally burning temperature had also subsided. Evidently, the medicine had been effective.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s roiling emotions which had earlier resulted in the intense heaving and sighing of his breath had finally begun to calm down. He shut his eyes slowly and collected his thoughts ¨C he had no intention of ever revealing these memories to anybody.

    Seeing that things hade to some form of conclusion, the first prince also restrained himself and ceased to mock Ye Xiuwen any further. Truth be told, he was also unsure why he had offered that Soul Acuity Pill to Ye Xiuwen earlier.

    After all, even though the main constituent of the Soul Acuity Pill was Soul Acuity Grass, its usage was not limited to dispelling the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense. It had other important functions, including nourishing and soothing one¡¯s meridians, and pacifying the chaotic or shing spiritual and demonic energies within a person¡¯s body. It had simr effects to a Heart Purging Pill. The only difference was that it had the additional function of strengthening and soothing one¡¯s meridians.

    Therefore, using the Soul Acuity Pill in such a manner was almost tantamount to aplete waste of a precious resource.

    Yet despite fully appreciating this fact, the first prince didn¡¯t find in his heart any form of remorse or reluctance.

    He leaned against a nearby tree trunk and shut his eyes. As he regted and sorted out the chaotic demonic energies within his body, he reflected on his own, peculiar actions tonight as well.

    --------------------------------------------------

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu and the others had been alerted to the incident by the guardmander, and they hastily ran out of their rooms towards the second prince¡¯s courtyard.

    Earlier that night, the second prince had hosted all of them with a grand banquet reception. After the banquet, most disciples were slightly tipsy from having drunk too much. Therefore, they all decided to retire for the night and stay at the second prince¡¯s residence.

    The guardmander had not apprised them about how menacing and ferocious the first prince had been when he fought his way into the second prince¡¯s residence. He only informed Qin Lingyu and the others that the first prince had appeared, while the guards in the second prince¡¯s residence were unable to resist his onught given their limited abilities. Therefore, he invited the experts Qin Lingyu and the others to make their appearance to capture the first prince.

    Qin Lingyu roughly understood the first prince¡¯s abilities. He knew that before the first prince had disappeared, he was at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery ¨C just like himself. As a result, Qin Lingyu assessed that capturing the first prince was not going to be too difficult given the collective abilities of the Dawn Sect disciples put together.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu hardly gave it any thought when he heard the guardmander¡¯s report. He immediately led the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples and followed closely after the guardmander. Even though Qin Lingyu noticed that the guardmander was running with an unstable footing, he shrugged it off, attributing it solely to this guardmander¡¯s anxiety.

    The rest of the Dawn Sect disciples followed behind Qin Lingyu¡¯s back, including Yu Wanrou. Today, Yu Wanrou had finally opened her eyes to the second prince¡¯s world when she marveled at the grandeur of the second prince¡¯s residence. She waspletely mesmerized and dazzled by thevish lifestyle of the second prince. She had been rescued from a life of hardship ever since she had stepped foot into the Dawn Sect. However, ¡°not facing hardship¡± and ¡°enjoying life¡± were twopletely separate concepts. The second prince¡¯s lifestyle was exactly thevish lifestyle that Yu Wanrou had always dreamed about!

    This trip to the second prince¡¯s residence once again convicted her that she absolutely had to find a way to subjugate the second prince and make him her own. She even began to fantasize about the day when the second prince would ascend the throne and take her as his queen. At that time, all the resources belonging to the Inferno Kingdom would be at her disposal, including thisvish residence and the assemge of servants.

    In fact, Yu Wanrou had managed to achieve all of this in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. At that time, the second prince had been sopletely captivated by the effects of her dual cultivation technique that he was even willing to pledge himself to Yu Wanrou and be one of herckeys.

    As for how things would pan out in this life...who knows?

    Just like that, the guardmander led the Dawn Sect disciples to the courtyard in fear and trepidation. Yet in the moment that they arrived at the courtyard, they were greeted with a blood-curdling sight. The entire courtyard was covered with piles and piles of dead bodies and dismembered parts. A thick, nauseating stench of blood filled the air.

    The guardmander¡¯s legs immediately buckled, and a sense of dark foreboding washed over him.

    This sight also sent chills down the backs of the Dawn Sect disciples. After all, was this the type of destruction that could be caused by a single cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery?!

    Then, they began to step over dead body after dismembered part as they made their way into the heart of the courtyard.

    ¡°Se-...second prince!!!¡±

    As soon as he noticed the identity of the person lying unconscious in the middle of the courtyard, the guardmander was frightened out of his wits. He cried out the second prince¡¯s name as he hobbled over towards him.

    The guardmander ced his finger under the second prince¡¯s nose to check his breathing. In the very next moment, his knees buckled again, and he copsed to the floor in despair.

    It¡¯s over. It¡¯s all over. The Grand Vizier¡¯s dearest disciple is dead! How is he going to let us off?!

    Then, as though sealing the fate of the guardmander, a Teleportation Array connecting the second prince¡¯s residence to the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence glowed brightly in the courtyard...

 Chapter 116: Ke Xinwenâ€™s Attempt to Kill with a Borrowed Knife

    <h4>Chapter 116: Ke Xinwen¡¯s Attempt to Kill with a Borrowed Knife</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang, is a widely known character in the cultivation world. He had spent almost two thousand years in order to finally raise his cultivation level to the Immortal Ascension stage. In and of itself, this was hardly considered an achievement to be beheld. But more importantly, he also possessed a distinguished status as an array master and a talisman master. These abilities of his more than made up for theck of talent in his cultivation level.

    There were numerous cultivators in the world at the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation or higher. However, the number of array masters and talisman masters with this level of cultivation were few and far between. This was what earned Situ Cang his ce on the pedestal in Inferno Kingdom. Otherwise, he would not necessarily have been able to maintain his position as the Grand Vizier for such a long time.

    Present, Situ Cang had received news of his precious disciple¡¯s injury in the moment when he first stepped out of his closed-door cultivation. His emotions immediately raged furiously, and he nearly destroyed half of his residence in his ire.

    Apart from Situ Cang and the second prince¡¯s mother, Concubine Ming, not a single third person knew the true identity of this second prince ¨C Rong Yebin was not only the Grand Vizier¡¯s disciple, he was in fact the Grand Vizier¡¯s first and only son after almost a thousand within the Inferno Kingdom.

    Concubine Ming was an extremely ambitious woman. She could tell that even though the present king had ordered the Jiang n to be wiped out, he still deeply loved Jiang Yutong within his heart. So long as Jiang Yutong¡¯s shadow remained in the king¡¯s heart, she knew that she could never be the queen of the kingdom.

    Therefore, after much deliberation, she secretly seduced the Grand Vizier, Situ Cang.

    It must be said that the women who managed to earn a ce by the king¡¯s side were all extremely outstanding and charming. Furthermore, Situ Cang found it incredibly exciting and fresh that he could toe the line of forbidden rtions and sleep with the king¡¯s woman. Under the confluence of these two factors, the two found themselves deeply entangled in a taboo rtionship with each other.

    One yearter, Concubine Ming gave birth to a child. After Situ Cang secretly checked out that child¡¯s bloodline and ascertained that the child was indeed his own, he was incredibly overjoyed. It was then that Situ Cang resolved in his heart that he would help his child ascend the throne and be the next king of the Inferno Kingdom.

    On the other hand, the king of the Inferno Kingdom waspletely oblivious to the fact that he had been made a cuckold. Under the rmendations and advice of the Grand Vizier, he acknowledged the Grand Vizier¡¯s son as the crown prince of Inferno Kingdom and began to teach him about ruling a country.

    He had no other choice. The Grand Vizier¡¯s stature within the Inferno Kingdom was too high and mighty. Furthermore, he had fallen prey to the schemes of others and unwittingly disposed of his only backing that could potentially oppose the Grand Vizier ¨C the Jiang n. It was only at this moment that the king of the Inferno Kingdom realized what a serious mistake he had made.

    However, it was toote for regrets now. He could only swallow that bitter pill and attempt to move on with life the best he could.

    This was one of the main reasons why he had agreed to cede control of his army to the first prince to begin with. He wanted to use his son, the first prince, to bnce out the Grand Vizier¡¯s power within the kingdom. However, the king was paranoid as well. When the first prince defeated the kingdom¡¯s enemies and returned victorious from a longstanding war as an exalted hero, he feared that the first prince¡¯s ambitions would bloat out of proportions and eventually usurp the throne. Therefore, under the encouragement of the Grand Vizier¡¯s faction, the king once again revoked the first prince¡¯s right tomandeer an army.

    In the end, after all was said and done, the present king¡¯s greatest love wasn¡¯t Ming Concubine or Jiang Yutong ¨C it was himself.

    The first prince Rong Ruihan was thoroughly aware of this. Therefore, he did not harbour much expectations from his father, and he resolved to discreetly develop his own abilities in preparation for the future.

    Right now, Rong Ruihan had lost all rationality and severely wounded the second prince Rong Yebin as a result. As Rong Yebin¡¯s biological parent, how could the Grand Vizier not be thoroughly anguished?

    At this moment, an immense pressure that carried clear traces of fury suddenly engulfed the second prince¡¯s residence within Xingping County. The heart of the formation array dazzled brightly as a beam of light shot into the air, bursting through the darkness of the night.

    Thud. The guardmander standing nearby immediately knelt down as he shivered uncontrobly. The other Dawn Sect disciples fought to resist the immense pressure, but one by one, they gave in. Within mere moments, every single one of the disciples had been forced to kneel down as well.

    Was this the power associated with a secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation? This is incredible! I wish I could have such power... Qin Lingyu lowered his head as a manic excitement surfaced in his eyes.

    That said, Situ Cang had spent almost two thousand years before attaining the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. With Qin Lingyu¡¯s present abilities and talent, perhaps he might only need a few hundred years to achieve the same.

    Of course, if he chose to partake in Yu Wanrou¡¯s dual cultivation technique, this duration could be reduced substantially. This was precisely why Qin Lingyu was willing to share Yu Wanrou with several other men while faithfullymitting himself to her in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. It was all for his own personal benefits.

    Regardless, all of these were matters for the future. Right now, Qin Lingyu was stillpletely unaware of Yu Wanrou¡¯s secrets. This was one of the reasons why his affection for Yu Wanrou was for now only cursory at best.

    A figure slowly appeared within the heart of the formation array. This middle-aged looking man possessed average looks, and his features could be said to be ¡°aligned¡± at best. Despite that, his face was stered with an expression of fury.

    Once a cultivator reached the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, he would no longer experience changes to his appearances, unless extraordinary circumstances caused his cultivation to fall such that he would have to go through the entire process of Qi Mastery again.

    Situ Cang¡¯s cultivation talent wasn¡¯t high to begin with. He had only managed to attain the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation at around one hundred years-old. If not for the fact that he had used a cosmetic pill to change his appearances, he would have presented himself as a shriveled old man with a full head of white hair.

    ¡°Where is this Sovereign¡¯s disciple?!¡± Situ Cang bellowed as he swept his gaze around at the people who were either half-kneeling or fully kneeling right now.

    ¡°Re-...responding to the preeminent Grand Vizier, the second prince, he...he¡¯s there...¡± The guardmander stammered as he fearfully pointed his finger towards the second prince lying motionless on the floor with a gaping hole in his chest.

    The other guards dreaded the prospects of ounting to the Grand Vizier and facing the music. Therefore, they had turned tail and run for the hills after sending the message to the Grand Vizier. Right now, there was only the guardmander and the Dawn Sect disciples remained at the courtyard.

    The guardmander had initially nned toy a tiger skin mat below the second prince. Unexpectedly, the Grand Vizier had arrived so quickly that the guardmander had no time to make these preparations and the Grand Vizier witnessed the second prince lying on the cold, bare floor within his own pool of blood.

    The guardmander noticed the Grand Vizier¡¯s reaction, and a single thought crossed his mind ¨C This is the end.

    And it was as he expected. The Grand Vizier¡¯s rage soared to the next level when he saw the horrific wounds on the second prince¡¯s body. Before the guardmander could even react, his head burst open with a ¡°bang¡±, and the shattered bones and brains scattered about the floor around the Dawn Sect disciples.

    The Dawn Sect disciples legs and minds grew numb. Ever since they had embarked on this cultivation journey of theirs, they had never encountered anyone remotely as scary as the Grand Vizier. He had killed someone with merely his own aura ¨C and it was even a cultivator at that. Could they possibly escape the Grand Vizier¡¯s wrath with their lives intact?

    ¡°Tch. Servants who can¡¯t protect their own masters don¡¯t deserve to live. Death is but a mercy to you!¡± The Grand Vizier bellowed in rage as his eyes continued to burn with a towering inferno within.

    The Grand Vizier made his way over to the second prince¡¯s body with one quick step. Then, he rapidly tapped on the second prince¡¯s acupoints all over his body before forcing the second prince to swallow a medicinal pill.

    The bleeding in the second prince¡¯s chest had already stopped. Furthermore, the Grand Vizier had already ced several protective talismans on the second prince¡¯s body to begin with. Therefore, even if the second prince sustained serious injuries, these talismans would nevertheless preserve his life until the Grand Vizier arrived.

    Earlier, the guardmander had been so fraught with fear that he had failed to notice the fact that the second prince was in fact still alive, albeit barely breathing.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± The Grand Vizier turned his head around and looked at the disciples kneeling on the ground right now. They evidently did not wear the uniform of the second prince¡¯s guards. Rather, they seemed to be dressed like disciples from a sect.

    ¡°Response to the Grand Vizier. We are disciples from Dawn Sect. We are travelling outside our Sect on a mission when we had the fortune of encountering the second prince. Earlier, the second prince had kindly hosted us with a banquet to host us with. As the banquet endedte, the second prince invited us to rest here for the night.¡± Qin Lingyu respectfully gave Situ Cang a fist and palm salute as he reported.

    In fact, there was no need for them to continue kneeling in front of Situ Cang. After all, they did not possess any master-disciple rtionship with him. Despite that, they knew that Situ Cang was absolutely enraged right now, and they would do well not to do anything that might unnecessarily agitate him or aggravate him even more. Therefore, the continued to kneel on the floor.

    ¡°Ah? Dawn Sect? So, it¡¯s just a measly mid-tier Sect, huh.¡± Situ Cang absolutely did not set Dawn Sect in his sights at all.

    Several disciples grew indignant and displeased when they heard how Situ Cang had shrugged off their Sect¡¯s reputable name, and their expressions said it all.

    Situ Cang saw this. His expression turned grave as he waved his arms, causing the few disciples who had revealed their indignation to spurt out a mouthful of blood as they copsed limply on the floor.

    ¡°Let me tell you this. Even if this Sovereign kills each and every single one of you, those fes at Dawn Sect wouldn¡¯t even be able to do a single thing against me in retaliation. Do you believe me?¡± Situ Cangughed sardonically as he added, ¡°If you came from an upper-tier sect, then perhaps I might be a little bit more apprehensive. But what do mid-tier sects even count for? Even your strongest Sect Elders are probably only at the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. Pfft. Not worth mentioning at all!¡±

    Qin Lingyu lowered his head, suppressing the reticence and displeasure in his eyes.

    He had always known that upper-tier sects had better ess to cultivation resources including rare cultivation techniques. They also possessed a greater overall strength than mid-tier sects. However, it was only at this moment that he finally understood the extent of the vast disparity between an upper-tier sect and a mid-tier sect. After all, when they encountered a truly strong cultivator, the reputation and backing of a mid-tier sect could hardly serve as any form of deterrence and protect them against these strong cultivators.

    It was imperative to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation as soon as possible. It was only then that he would officially be a disciple of the Limitless Sect.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu resolved in his heart that once the matter with the Inferno Kingdom had been resolved, he would make haste towards the Mystic Woods to carry out their Sect¡¯s mission.

    ¡°Grand--...Preeminent Grand Vizier, sir, our martial brother Qin here is also a Chosen Disciple of the Limitless Sect...¡± One of the other disciples interjected with a slight tremor in his voice.

    They were truly afraid of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier. They dreaded the possibility that the Grand Vizier would take his anger and frustrations about the second prince¡¯s injuries out on them. Therefore, this disciple thought to bring up Qin Lingyu¡¯s other identity in a bid that Limitless Sect¡¯s reputation would serve as a form of deterrence against this Grand Vizier.

    ¡°Limitless Sect, hmm?¡± The Grand Vizier squinted his eyes as he somewhat restrained his aura.

    He could disregard Dawn Sect entirely, but he knew that he had to respect the backing of the Limitless Sect. After all, if all of Limitless Sect¡¯s sect elders joined hands, theirbined forces were not something that a secondary-tier Immortal Ascension array master would be able to deal with.

    This was a world ruled by the strong and the strong only. And this was the sole, immutable principle that undergirded the entire cultivation world since time immemorial.

    Even though it was not obvious, Qin Lingyu¡¯s back waspletely drenched in sweat by now. He took some measure offort in the knowledge that his other identity was still sufficient to deter the Grand Vizier.

    ¡°It cannot be! Why is my disciple¡¯s life force still weakening?!¡± The Grand Vizier suddenly barked as he swiftly formed several hand seals and cast a spell on the second prince¡¯s body. After a few shes of light, the spell seemed to vanish.

    This spell was something used to determine the strength of a person¡¯s life force. The longer it flickered for, the stronger that person¡¯s life force. Right now, the spell faded away after only a few flickers ¨C it was testament to the weakening life force of the second prince.

    The veins on the Grand Vizier¡¯s head bulged out. Then, in the next moment, the Grand Vizier¡¯s energy surged so violently that it seemed to contain the power to level mountains and dry up oceans. The Grand Vizier bellowed, ¡°Who hurt my disciple?!!!¡±

    ¡°Pfft--!¡± Several disciples had initially thought that they were well on the path to averting certain doom. Unexpectedly, the Grand Vizier threw all caution to the wind as his energy erupted. The few disciples who had been earlier injured immediately fainted, while the other disciples where thrown back so hard by the Grand Vizier¡¯s burst of energy that they mmed into the surrounding walls a distant away. Crimson-red blood sprayed out of their mouths.

    The ce that Ke Xinwennded at was coincidentally where Ye Xiuwen had entered the second prince¡¯s residence from earlier. He had mmed into the wall so violently that he almost fainted as well. However, he managed to cling onto his consciousness as he clutched at his chest and gasped for breath.

    Just at this moment, he discovered a bright, gleaming object on the ground ¨C

    ¡°This is...¡± Ke Xinwen picked it up. After examining it for some moments, he determined that this essory was something that Yao Mo had earlier given to Ye Xiuwen. Back then, they passed by a stall on the streets and this very essory caught Yao Mo¡¯s eye. Therefore, he bought it and gave it as a gift to Ye Xiuwen.

    This essory waspletely worthless apart from its decorative purposes. Despite that, Ye Xiuwen kept it on him at all times. Evidently, he had dropped it carelessly in his duel with the second prince earlier.

    So, Ye Xiuwen had been here earlier tonight as well? Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes flickered with vicious intent.

    He was unsure whether the second prince¡¯s injuries were rted to Ye Xiuwen, but this did not stop him from hatching an evil ploy against Ye Xiuwen.

    Within moments, Ke Xinwen had already set his mind on carrying out his next strategy ¨C to kill Ye Xiuwen with a borrowed knife. If all went ording to n, even Jun Linxuan might not be able to save Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life!

 Chapter 117: The Incensed Grand Vizier

    <h4>Chapter 117: The Incensed Grand Vizier</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Situ Cang continuously applied several talismans onto the second prince¡¯s body. In particr, these were Situ Cang¡¯s precious talismans that he had painstakingly crafted with blood, sweat and tears. He had specifically prepared these talismans for the purposes of oveing tribtions, and he would never use them unless it was absolutely necessary.

    Each of these talismans that Situ Cang used possessed the ability to slow down the loss of one¡¯s life energy. Even though Situ Cang wanted to save them to preserve his own life, these considerations all went out of the window in that moment when he noticed that his only son¡¯s life was dangling by a thread.

    ording to Situ Cang¡¯s calctions, these talismans would be able to preserve his son¡¯s life and avert the crisis before his eyes. However, the talismans did not achieve the purposes he intended.

    Even after he used these talismans on his son, his son¡¯s life force nevertheless continued to seep out from his body, albeit at a slower rate. If this situation continued without any form of intervention, the second prince¡¯s death was only a matter of time.

    It was evident that these talismans did not even disy thirty percent of their intended efficacy.

    Situ Cang¡¯s eyes were bloodshot, and he was evidently on the verge of erupting in fury again. His frigid gaze swept across the bodies of everyone present as the energy within his body roiled and surged with every second.

    He desperately wanted to find the culprit who had reduced his son to such a sorry state. However, he did not intend to let these Dawn Sect disciples go scot-free either.

    They had all been in my son¡¯s residence tonight ¨C why is it that my son is so seriously injured, yet these people arepletely fine?!

    Situ Cang wanted to vent his frustrations and anger. He wanted to bury these Dawn Sect disciples together with his son!

    At this moment, Situ Cang did not intend to let a single one of them off the hook ¨C even the Chosen Disciple from Limitless Sect. After all, he possessed several tricks up his sleeve that could be used to cover up and conceal these heinous crimes. To a person of his cultivation level, it was hardly a difficult task to discreetly dispose of worthless, Qi Mastery ants.

    Situ Cang¡¯s gaze was extremely incisive and stinging, pricking the skins of the Dawn Sect disciples like a cold, poisonous needle. The disciples who locked eyes with him immediately felt shivers down their spines, and their backs were instantly drenched in cold sweat.

    Yu Wanrou shivered incessantly as shey on the ground. She had curled up her body into a tight ball. Earlier, Situ Cang¡¯s st had struck her so violently that she had almost fainted like some of her other martial brothers around.

    She possessed a spectral demine, and one mouthful of the waters of her spirit spring would immediately restore her vitality and heal all of her injuries. However, she knew that she could not afford to bring out her spirit spring waters under Situ Cang¡¯s watchful eyes. Therefore, she could only bear with the pain and hope that she could avert this cmity.

    However, she had a foreboding sense of the impending doom. She noticed how Situ Cang was now gazing at all of them with wan-looking eyes. It was evident that he had already lost all hope given the second prince¡¯s imminent demise.

    If the second prince did not survive this disaster, not only would her dreams of bing the queen of a kingdom bepletely dashed, she might not even be able to keep her life! Having died once before, Yu Wanrou was extremely afraid of dying again.

    Her ambitions were in lofty ces ¨C she wanted to subjugate the entire cultivation world and stand at the top as the matriarch to all. How could she just die here?!

    As Yu Wanrou thought about these things, she gnashed her teeth and resolved to give it a shot ¨C she could use some of her spirit spring¡¯s waters in exchange for the promise that the Grand Vizier would refrain from killing her for the time being.

    Having made up her mind, Yu Wanrou cautiously lifted her head and weakly addressed the Grand Vizier, ¡°Pre-...Preeminent Grand Vizier, I...I might have a way to save the second prince¡¯s life.¡±

    Situ Cang immediately perked up his head and turned his attention to Yu Wanrou as he coldly responded, ¡°Speak.¡±

    ¡°Preeminent Grand Vizier, please hold on.¡± As Yu Wanrou spoke, she retrieved a bottle containing some spirit spring waters from her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°This is a strange, miraculous medicine that I¡¯d managed toe across some time back. Whenever I got injured in the past, I would always apply some of the medicine onto my injuries, and these wounds would recover incredibly quickly. I wonder if this medicine would be of any use to the second prince.¡±

    Naturally, Yu Wanrou was reticent to disclose the existence of the spirit spring or her spectral demine. Therefore, she exined that she had only discovered this bottle of medicine by chance.

    Situ Cang hardly bore any hope that a cultivator at the meagre fifth level of Qi Mastery would possess any miraculous medicine with her. However, given the urgency of the situation at hand, he decided to give it a shot anyway. He made a grabbing action in the air, and the medicinal bottle in Yu Wanrou¡¯s hands immediately flew over to his hands.

    He continued to wear a cold expression on his face as he opened the cap of this small jade bottle. Instantly, a waft of dense spiritual energy diffused outwards from the bottle.

    The other disciples were all located some distance away from Situ Cang right now, and they could not detect the spiritual energy that had wafted out of the bottle. However, Situ Cang¡¯s sudden change of facial expression was extremely obvious ¨C the coldness had faded, and there was even a trace of shock in his eyes.

    He nced over at Yu Wanrou meaningfully once more. As their eyes locked once more, Yu Wanrou instantly broke out profusely with cold sweat that drenched her entire back within moments.

    When faced with the prating gaze of the aged freak that was Situ Cang, Yu Wanrou felt as though her deepest, darkest secrets had instantly been exposed to him, and goosebumps crept up all over her skin.

    However, Situ Cang could hardly be bothered about the secrets on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body for now. Time was of the essence. He immediately forced open the second prince¡¯s mouth, poured all of the contents of that small jade bottle in and then shut the second prince¡¯s mouth.

    The waters from Yu Wanrou¡¯s spirit spring were essentially spirit energy that had been congealed into a liquid form. Once it entered the second prince¡¯s mouth, it immediately began to diffuse throughout his body and seep through his meridians and Dantian.

    The second prince¡¯s meridians and Dantian had been thoroughly damaged and corroded by the incursion of the demonic energy from the first prince¡¯s body. Therefore, the second prince no longer had any ability to store spiritual energy. This was one of the main reasons why all those talismans that Situ Cang had ced on the second prince¡¯s body had achieved barely any effects. What Yu Wanrou had brought out right now was a bottle containing water from the spirit spring within her spectral demine. One drop of this spirit spring water contained as much spirit energy as the amount that a normal cultivator would cycle through over the course of half a month of meditation. Therefore, one could only imagine the amount of spirit energy flowing through the second prince¡¯s body when Situ Cang poured the entire contents of that bottle directly into the second prince¡¯s mouth.

    Under the baptism of such immense, concentrated spirit energy, the demonic energy within the second prince¡¯s body was forced out of his body and washed away. As a result, his Dantian and meridians began to recover, and his life force followed suit as well.

    As the Dawn Sect disciples watched on, the second prince¡¯s body seemed to expel a thick cloud of roiling, ck energy. Their hearts constricted with fear. They were unsure whether the miracle medicine offered by Yu Wanrou had been effective or not.

    However, what was apparent was that the fury in Situ Cang¡¯s eyes had gradually begun to subside. Situ Cang could tell for himself that the medicine from Yu Wanrou had worked, and his son¡¯s life was now safe. As to whether his son¡¯s cultivation would fall as a result of his injuries, this was something left to be determined at ater time.

    Then, Situ Cang cast a spell and shot it into the air. Momentster, the heart of the Teleportation Array glowed brightly again, and several servants from the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence appeared in the second prince¡¯s courtyard.

    ¡°Bring the second prince back to my residence to rest and recuperate. This Sovereign shall take care of the loose ends before going back.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± The servants knelt as they responded in unison. Then, they gingerly lifted the second prince¡¯s body before tossing out a Teleportation Scroll in front of them. An intense blue light dazzled brightly, and the servants vanished together with the second prince.

    This entire sequence of events happened within a few breaths of time. The Dawn Sect disciples had initially despaired in the fact that they might not be able to escape certain doom this time. However, things took an unexpected turn when the miracle medicine offered by their martial sister Wanrou proved to be useful!

    Having been granted a new lease of life, the disciples all looked towards Yu Wanrou with only gratitude in their eyes. At the same time, Yu Wanrou cheered in her heart ¨C This gamble has indeed paid off. After today, these people from Dawn Sect, the Grand Vizier as well as the second prince all owe me a favour now. Things ahead are going to be much smoother for me!

    ¡°Alright, you don¡¯t have to kneel anymore. You may recover.¡± The Grand Vizier waved his arm coolly as he spoke. The Dawn Sect disciples began to help each other as they all mbered back up to their feet.

    ¡°Thank you, senior.¡± As the leader in charge of these disciples, Qin Lingyu naturally had to maintain his appearances and partake in pleasantries on behalf of everyone.

    Situ Cang waved his hands nonchntly, brushing off Qin Lingyu¡¯s gestures. He had not let these disciples off out of the kindness of his heart. Rather, it was because the second prince¡¯s life had been preserved that there was no longer a need to ventte his frustrations and anger on these people any longer.

    Furthermore, he had a hunch that that female cultivator did not only possess a single bottle of miracle medicine on her. Right now, he was still unsure whether his son would be able to fully recover. Therefore, before he could properly assess his situation and where things stood, he had to let this female cultivator off the hook for now.

    ¡°Senior, your humble servant has discovered this little essory some distance away. Perhaps it might have something to do with the perpetrator.¡± Ke Xinwen knew that the moment of crisis had passed. Therefore, he mustered his courage to present the essory he had earlier found to Situ Cang.

    He intended to kill Ye Xiuwen by using Situ Cang as borrowed knife against him.

    This was a simple essory to be worn on one¡¯s clothing that could easily be found in stores at the marketce. But at the same time, it was precisely because it was something somon and cheap that the fact that it had appeared within the second prince¡¯s residence was a cause for suspicion.

    Situ Cang immediately received the essory in his hand and examined it with aplicated look in his eyes.

    When Di Yue noticed the essory presented by Ke Xinwen, Di Yue murmured under his breath, ¡°Isn¡¯t this the essory that Yao Mo had given martial brother Ye?!¡±

    However, Situ Cang picked up on what Di Yue had muttered under his breath. He made a grabbing action at Di Yue and pulled Di Yue towards himself. Then, he held Di Yue by the neck and gazed coldly into Di Yue¡¯s eyes as he interrogated him, ¡°You recognize the owner of this essory?¡±

    Di Yue¡¯s eyes widened. He did not want to betray Ye Xiuwen if he could help it. After all, Ye Xiuwen had once saved his life. However, Situ Cang¡¯s facial expression right now obviously told him that Situ Cang was going to snap his neck if he didn¡¯t spill the beans right now.

    Just as Situ Cang increased the pressure on his neck, Di Yue began to speak hoarsely, ¡°I¡¯ll speak...senior, I¡¯ll speak...¡±

    Situ Cang loosened his grasp slightly, but he continued to keep his fingers wrapped around Di Yue¡¯s neck.

    ¡°It¡¯s...I think it¡¯s...it¡¯s...it¡¯s martial brother Ye¡¯s...¡± Di Yue wore a wailing expression as he spoke.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye? Someone from Dawn Sect?¡± Situ Cang¡¯s fury once again ignited.

    ¡°Senior, please allow me to speak.¡± Qin Lingyu noticed Ke Xinwen¡¯s n to kill Ye Xiuwen with a borrowed knife, and he decided to lend Ke Xinwen a hand, ¡°Martial brother Ye is indeed a fellow disciple within the Dawn Sect, and he¡¯s even our Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s First-Seat Disciple. However, he¡¯s quite introverted and rarely interacts with us. I¡¯m afraid he¡¯s also acted in the same manner on these travels as well ¨C he has continued to act ording to his own whims and fancy. At the very least, we¡¯re never aware of his true intentions or motives, and we never know where or when hees and goes.¡±

    In other words, even if Ye Xiuwen had hurt the second prince, this had nothing to do with anyone else present right now.

    Situ Cang stared silently at Qin Lingyu, causing Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart to feel somewhat uneasy ¨C Could it be that the Grand Vizier doesn¡¯t believe me? Or does he want us to ount for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s crimes now?

    Qin Lingyu suddenly regretted acting on an impulse and attempting to push the me onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    After sizing up Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen for a moment, he coldly mocked in response, ¡°Are you saying that Dawn Sect is a sect of demonic cultivators?¡±

    ¡°Demon-...Demonic cultivators?!¡± Everyone was astonished by Situ Cang¡¯s sudden reference to demonic cultivators.

    ¡°Ah, the perpetrator who had hurt my disciple was obviously a demonic cultivator. His wounds had clearly been caused by the incursion of demonic energy. If you¡¯re telling me that your ¡®martial brother Ye¡¯ is the one who had injured him, then isn¡¯t that tantamount to saying that Dawn Sect is a sect of demonic cultivators?¡±

    Having lived for over two thousand years, how could Situ Cang not see that Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen were trying to kill Ye Xiuwen using a borrowed knife?

    And are they trying to use me as a ¡°borrowed knife¡±? Shouldn¡¯t they be worried about whether they can live to even ¡°borrow¡± this ¡°knife¡± to begin with?

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s ploy had thoroughly fallen apart from this one simple fact. He had never expected that the first proper scheme that he hade up with would so easily be thwarted by the existence of ¡°demonic energy¡±.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu was hardly anxious. His cognitive abilities were much more thorough and meticulous than Ke Xinwen¡¯s to begin with, and he was also much moreposed. Therefore, he made a fist and palm salute at Situ Cang as he continued to address him, ¡°Martial brother Ye isn¡¯t a demonic cultivator. However, there is another young man of mysterious origins who tags along Ye Xiuwen, called Yao Mo. We know little about this young man, and we cannot be sure that he¡¯s not a demonic cultivator as well.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! There¡¯s still Yao Mo!¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple eximed, as though in sudden realization, ¡°I¡¯d always thought that Yao Mo to have behaved mysteriously. Perhaps his methods were so strange precisely because he is a demonic cultivator!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯d even butted heads against the second prince during the auction earlier.¡± Another disciple chimed in.

    ¡°Yeah, and he even began to mock and ridicule the second prince over the fact that he and the second prince were both bidding for the same object.¡±

    ......

    The only thing on these disciples¡¯ minds was to divert the Grand Vizier¡¯s attention away from themselves onto someone else. Therefore, they had echoed Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s words without restraint, intending to use Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo to drag the k away from their own bodies.

    As to whether Ye Xiuwen would be killed by the Grand Vizier as a result of their actions, they could hardly care less. After all, they could hardly even preserve their own lives, much less the lives of others.

    Situ Cang swept his prating gaze around at the disciples who were voicing out their opinions. He could tell with his keen senses that these disciples weren¡¯t lying right now.

    With this new piece of information in mind, Situ Cang resolved that he was not going to let this young man named Yao Mo off, regardless of whether he was the culprit for his son¡¯s injuries. After all, those who argued with his son must die!

    Situ Cang was fiercely protective over his son. This was one of the reasons why the second prince had grown up being so narcissistic and entitled, with an overinted ego.

    Having made up his mind, Situ Cang threw Di Yue onto the ground. Then, he cast a spell and shot it into the air. Immediately, the remaining traces of demonic energy in the surrounding air swirled about as it congealed together, before hovering about slightly above his palm.

    Situ Cang retrieved a small bottle from his Interspatial Ring and stored the demonic energy within the bottle.

    This demonic energy carried weak traces of their owner¡¯s aura. With these traces of the perpetrator¡¯s aura, all Situ Cang had to do was to imbue a formation array with some of this aura, and he would be able to locate the perpetrator who had injured the second prince.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s n to kill Ye Xiuwen with a borrowed knife was destined to fail as a result of demonic energy. However, the dispute between Yao Mo and the second prince had somewhat inadvertently salvaged Ke Xinwen¡¯s thwarted scheme and ced Yao Mo in Situ Cang¡¯s sights instead.

    If Situ Cang was going to go after Yao Mo, then he most certainly would not turn a blind eye to Ye Xiuwen who hung around Yao Mo either.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s lips began to curl up with a wicked smile, and a bright gleam shed across his eyes.

    Di Yue, who had just been tossed to the ground was sprawled all over the floor as he shivered, gasping hard to catch his breath. However, he remained taciturn, just like the rest of the other disciples. After all, the less they spoke, the less likely they were to say something wrong and incur the consequences of Situ Cang¡¯s wrath.

    On the other hand, Situ Cang had already obtained the result that he had hoped for. Naturally, he was no longer after the lives of these disciples. However, he could not be sure that his son would fully recover from his injuries. Therefore, he intended to keep these Dawn Sect disciples close to him, especially the mysterious Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°The rest of you may temporarily stay at this residence. You may leave once this Sovereign has thoroughly resolved the present incident and tied up all loose ends.¡±

    It was clear that this was a peremptorymand from Situ Cang ¨C he was obviously not seeking their opinion in the matter.

    Despite that, everyone hurriedly nodded their head. They were more than satisfied to leave with their lives intact. What more could they ask for?

    And as for Ke Xinwen, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou, they had never intended to leave this ce to begin with. Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu wanted to witness with their own eyes how Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo would be dealt with by Situ Cang; while Yu Wanrou wanted Situ Cang and the second prince to owe her even more favours.

    With different feelings and thoughts in their hearts, everyone finally departed the courtyard and retired to their own rooms.

    With so many things on their minds, no one noticed that Di Yue had discreetly remained behind in the courtyard.

    After ascertaining that everyone had walked ahead and no one¡¯s eyes were on him, he immediately retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane and wrote a message on it:

    Martial brother Ye, the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier is probably chasing after you and Yao Mo right now. Hurry up and leave this county. Don¡¯te back!

    After he finished writing his message, he sent the Messenger Paper Crane flying off with a trace of regret in his eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen had saved his life. Naturally, he did not wish to see Ye Xiuwen be hurt as a result of his earlier weakness.

    I hope this warning will reach you in time. Di Yue silently muttered in his heart. He gently rubbed his neck where the Grand Vizier had earlier strangled him, as he picked up his steps and caught up with the rest of the disciples.

 Chapter 118: Turmoil in Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Heart

    <h4>Chapter 118: Turmoil in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Heart</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    A zing bonfire burnt brightly in the darkness of the woods. The mes danced about, giving off crisp, crackling sounds as its warm glow illuminated the faces of all who were around.

    Three people huddled up close to the bonfire ¨C two were seated and one was lying down. The one lying down was curled up underneath a thick, woolen nket, while hey on a luxurious rug made of Inferno Tiger skin. This tiger skin was fire-affiliated by nature, and it naturally warmed the person who rested on it.

    These three people were Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan. It was night, and the temperatures had plummeted. Furthermore, they had no choice but to spend the night under the stars, in the midst of a swathe of thick fog. The resultant cold was so sharp and chilling that it cut through the bone, straight to the marrow.

    After Ye Xiuwen started the bonfire, he was concerned that Yao Mo, who had fallen asleep on the floor, would catch a chill. Therefore, he gingerly ced Yao Mo on a rug and covered him with a warm nket, wrapping him up into a tight warm bundle, leaving only his head peeking out.

    Now that the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense had finally been dispelled, coupled with the snuggling warmth of the nket and the bonfire, Jun Xiaomo subconsciously disyed a look of contentment on her face. Two precious dimples surfaced on her cheeks and entuated her features. It was extremely dear and adorable.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo began to stir. Perhaps she had been wrapped up too tightly, and it was getting a little too warm and ufortable for her. Jun Xiaomo subconsciously ran her hands along the edges of her nket until they emerged from the nket and were exposed to the elements. She even mumbled and grumbled slightly in her stupor.

    Ye Xiuwen loosened her nket for her, before adjusting her hands and setting them by the side of her face. Then, he patted her arms tenderly.

    Jun Xiaomo reflexively grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand and pulled it close to her face. Then, she affectionally rubbed her cheeks against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, even letting off a gratified murmur as she did so.

    This time, the object of her murmur wasn¡¯t ¡°martial brother¡± any longer ¨C it was ¡°brother Ye¡±. Ye Xiuwen was initially about to retract his hand when that light gentle murmur inadvertently strummed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heartstrings gently. Just like that, he decided to leave his hand on her cheeks.

    Jun Xiaomo looked as though she was having a pleasant dream right now. She subconsciously smiled in contentment once more and revealed her adorable little dimples. Then, she fell into an even deeper sleep.

    Rong Ruihan sat at the side as he continued to observe all these in silence. He could tell for himself that the interactions between Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo left no room for a third person to interject. Yet for some reason, this left him feeling slightly agitated and frustrated.

    Just then, the sound of pping wings rang out not too far away. Even though this was a sound that would ordinarily be barely noticeable, it was incredibly ostensible in juxtaposition with the stillness of these woods at night. Rong Ruihan was about to put up his guard when he saw that the pping sound came from a small paper crane that was flitting its wings clumsily as it hovered over andnded on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder.

    This was a Messenger Paper Crane to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, wondering who could possibly have sent a Messenger Paper Crane to him in the middle of the night.

    Could it be an emergency within the Sect?

    As he spected, Ye Xiuwen opened the Messenger Paper Crane. Immediately, Di Yue¡¯s voice leapt out of the paper crane as he anxiously reported, ¡°Martial brother Ye, the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier is probably chasing after you and Yao Mo right now. Hurry up and leave this county. Don¡¯te back!¡±

    The Messenger Paper Crane also contained Di Yue¡¯s handwriting. This handwriting was irregr and haphazard, and even barely legible at times. It was evident that Di Yue had written this in hastily and anxiously.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression froze in shock, and his lips stretched out grimly.

    He never expected that the incident tonight could have resulted in such a serious bacsh. Logically speaking, the injuries that he had left on the second prince¡¯s body would never be sufficient to attract the ire of the Grand Vizier.

    Those injuries were light at best, and the second prince would fully recover from them with the aid of an ordinary recovery pill. How could his actions earlier have possibly invited so much trouble?

    How would Ye Xiuwen have known that all this trouble had been singlehandedly caused by the first prince seated within earshot from him? After departing the second prince¡¯s residence with Jun Xiaomo, the frenzied first prince had fought his way through the second prince¡¯s residence, before swiftly delivering a near-fatal blow to the second prince which left a gaping hole in his chest.

    At the same time, the first prince did not have any recollection of these actions of his. Therefore, he raised his eyebrows slightly and even revealed a shocked expression as he questioned Ye Xiuwen, ¡°What have you done to offend that old geezer?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve injured the second prince while I was rescuing Little Mo.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded with indifference as he spared the first prince the details of the genesis of the entire incident.

    However, Rong Ruihan understood the second prince¡¯s personality well enough. With one nce at Yao Mo¡¯s appearances, he could vaguely hazard a guess of what had transpired.

    The second prince was still the same after so many years ¨C he knew nothing apart from that lustful desires of his. Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes flickered with a trace of disgust and contempt for the second prince.

    ¡°No wonder that old geezer wants your life now. My ¡®dear¡¯ brother is that old geezer¡¯s darling. Even a simple scratch on the second prince could incense that old man and incite his wrath.¡±

    Rong Ruihan explicated with a contemptuous voice. When it came to matters pertaining to the Grand Vizier or Rong Yebin, his tone of voice would invariably be frigid and filled with hatred.

    However, it seemed like Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t catch Rong Ruihan¡¯s exnation. Ye Xiuwen tossed a few dried twigs into the bonfire, and his entire being seemed to be deeply immersed in his own thoughts.

    Just like that, the night passed by slowly but uneventfully, and the first light of day once again shone on the ground. Having been tormented by the effects of the Euphoria-Stimting Incense for half a night, and then sleeping the other half away, the crisp morning calls of the birds around began to rouse Jun Xiaomo from her slumber.

    She opened her eyes. Momentster, she finally seized her thoughts and realized that she was no longer resting on the bed in her inn, but she was now in fact located at the small woods beside Xingping County.

    ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± Ye Xiuwen noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stirring, and he turned his head to look at her.

    Ye Xiuwen had not managed to catch a single wink of sleepst night, and his condition wasn¡¯t too great right now. His eyes were slightly bloodshot, and his voice even carried some traces of hoarseness.

    ¡°Brother Ye, your veiled conical hat...¡± Jun Xiaomo locked eyes with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s obsidian-ck pupils, realizing that he was no longer wearing his hat.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he warmly responded, ¡°I won¡¯t wear it anymore.¡±

    Previously, Ye Xiuwen had worn that veiled conical hat because he disliked how others would always look at the terrifying scar that was sprawled across his face and stare at him with a peculiar gaze in their eyes. Furthermore, that incident with the young Jun Xiaomo had hurt Ye Xiuwen so much so that he developed the habit of always wearing his veiled conical hat as a manner of self-preservation.

    However, seeing how Yao Mo had time and again drawn closer to him without regard for the scar on his face, the walls that Ye Xiuwen had built up around his heart since young began to crumble and fall, and the warmth of eptance once again filled his heart. He finally understood that there were still people in this world who would not look at him with judgmental looks and shun him just because of his appearances.

    In fact, when Yao Mo removed his veiled conical hatst night, Ye Xiuwen had already decided that he would no longer pick it up again ¨C ever. He did not mind the judgmental looks from others at all. It sufficed for him that those whom he cared about could look beyond his scar and treat him as he was.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. She stretched out her hand from within her nket and gripped tightly on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. Her eyes curled up into squinches as she encouraged, ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t wear your hat either. We¡¯ve already found the ckmoon Grass. So long as we can locate that one final medicinal element, I can help brother Ye refine the medicinal pill to cure the scar on your face!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was filled with warmth. Yet at the same time, when Jun Xiaomo mentioned the ckmoon Grass, he couldn¡¯t help but be reminded of the incident with the second prince which had now drawn the ire of the Grand Vizier.

    ¡°Little Mo, I¡¯m afraid that we must separate for a period of time.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he tried his best to speak with aposed and collected voice.

    ¡°Why?!¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously sat up, and she immediately gripped Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms tensely as she asked.

    ¡°Because of that incidentst night, the Grand Vizier of the Inferno Kingdom has set us in his sights. I¡¯m afraid that he¡¯s going to give us some trouble in the near future. I was the one who had hurt the second prince, and it has nothing to do with you. As long as I draw his attention away...¡±

    ¡°No way!¡± The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened, ¡°I was clearly the one who started this entire incident. If I didn¡¯t enter the lion¡¯s den of my own volition to retrieve that stalk of ckmoon Grass, you would never have had to duke it out with that fe to begin with!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed softly, before responding with a measure of resignation, ¡°This is the best option we have, Little Mo. I¡¯m still not aware of your background, but I can tell that youe from a ce of decent backing. Go back to your parents. I¡¯m sure they will have the ability to protect you.¡±

    When it came to the Grand Vizier, Ye Xiuwen knew that his odds ofing out victorious were close to zero. After all, the Grand Vizier had already broken through to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was only at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery. There was simply no basis forparison.

    My father is your master, you idiot! He¡¯s not going to be of much help against the Grand Vizier either! Jun Xiaomo berated in her heart in exasperation.

    Once again, the scenes from her previous life began to rey in her head. That heart of responsibility and duty had caused Ye Xiuwen to cede the opportunity to survive time and again to Jun Xiaomo. This had even resulted in his own death in the end!

    ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m just going to say it as it is. If you insist on going your separate way, I¡¯m going to ce a Tracking Talisman on your body so that I can follow you wherever you go ¨C just like your shadow!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth as she gave him her ultimatum. She red at Ye Xiuwen in fury, like how a fierce animal would re at the perpetrator who stepped on its tail.

    Ye Xiuwen was extremely moved. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expression was so peculiar that he didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry. In the end, he could only helplessly tousle Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair as he remained silent.

    On the other side, Rong Ruihan continued to observe the interactions between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. Deep in his heart, a faint trace of disappointment surfaced ¨C one that even he was unaware of.

    Just this moment, another pping sound rang out some distance away. This time, the paper cranended on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    This Messenger Paper Crane was imbued with a special formation diagram that was unique to Rong Ruihan and his followers. As a result of this, only Rong Ruihan and a few special nominees of his were able to open this paper crane and read its contents. If others were to forcibly open this paper crane, it would immediately self-immte and destroy its contents with it.

    Rong Ruihan bit his thumb and dripped a drop of blood onto the paper crane, and it unfurled itself automatically and became a simple note.

    Then after examining the contents of the little note, Rong Ruihan began to knit his brows together tightly.

    Momentster, a ball of me appeared in his palm. After Rong Ruihan had read the contents of that note, it automatically immted and vanished into thin air.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid there have been someplications to this incident.¡± Rong Ruihan made a grim expression as he turned around and borated, ¡°I¡¯ve just received news from my eyes and ears within the second prince¡¯s residence. Rong Yebin has been severely wounded, and the Grand Vizier is fuming mad. He¡¯s prepared to personally settle the ounts with the culprits ofst night¡¯s incident.¡±

    ¡°Severely wounded? That can¡¯t be right. Brother Ye and I don¡¯t possess the ability to cause such serious injuries to him to begin with.¡± Jun Xiaomo sought to rify with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°The person who severely wounded Rong Yebinst night was me.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly responded, ¡°I¡¯m not exactly sure why, but after losing my sensesst night, I somehow ended up going to Rong Yebin¡¯s residence and inflicting grievous injuries on him.¡±

    Rong Ruihan spoke rather matter-of-factly, without any trace of frustrations or emotions for that matter. After all, he knew that it was only a matter of time that he would be tussling with the Grand Vizier.

    Rong Ruihan was also unsure about the extent of the ¡°serious injuries¡± that he had inflicted on Rong Yebin as well. It was hard to say whether there would be anysting effects on Rong Yebin¡¯s body. Regardless, Rong Ruihan remained convicted that Rong Yebin deserved every bit of punishment that he had dished outst night. After all, he had long grown extremely frustrated at how Rong Yebin had sought to corner him and trip him up at every step of the way.

    However, Rong Ruihan¡¯s cool-headedness did nothing to soothe Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anxious heart. She smacked her head in exasperation as she eximed, ¡°It¡¯s over, it¡¯s over. The second prince has suffered serious injuries, and with that old fogey¡¯s over-protective mentality, he¡¯s bound to go all out against everyone remotely involved inst night¡¯s incident.¡±

    This was one of the main reasons why Jun Xiaomo had not resorted to using any powerful talismans or formation arraysst night. It was hardly a difficult thing to inflict serious injuries against the second prince ¨C even for her. However, the main deterrence was the immense backing that the second prince possessed. Presently, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities could not even be considered ten-thousandth of the immense strength she had possessed at the peak of her previous life. Facing the Grand Vizier right now was no different from courting her own doom.

    Does this mean that I¡¯ll have to start escaping from my persecutors even earlier than I did in my previous life? Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows and her heart sank.

 Chapter 119: Almost Exposed!

    <h4>Chapter 119: Almost Exposed!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was noon, and the sun hung high in the sky. Inside the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence, several servants stood silently at their posts, bowing their heads in subservience. Even if there was something urgent that required their attention, they would go about doing their tasks gingerly, being careful to soften any sounds they made. They were especially wary because they knew that disturbing the man resting in the master bedroom might potentially incite the wrath of the Grand Vizier.

    As a result of this, the Grand Vizier¡¯s entire residence was enshrouded with a tense, oppressive atmosphere. Some of the servants even intentionally slowed down their breaths just to keep the silence. The usual hubbub and mor of the residence was naturally suspended.

    At this moment, a set of hasty footsteps broke up the oppressive silence in the atmosphere. A beautifuldy donned in exquisite robes wore an exasperated and infuriated expression as she marched into the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence with a trailing entourage of eunuchs and pce maids as she arrived at the doorstep of the master bedroom.

    ¡°All of you wait outside. There¡¯s no need for you to follow me inside.¡± Thedy paused in her steps as she instructed the eunuchs and pce maids.

    ¡°Yes, Madam Concubine.¡± The entourage of eunuchs and pce maids responded in unison.

    With that, thedy stepped into the master bedroom, and saw the second prince lyingpletely motionless on the bed. Instantly, tears welled up in her eyes and began to fall from her cheeks inrge globules. She gnashed her teeth in fury as she yelled, ¡°Who¡¯s the one who hurt my son so badly?!¡±

    Some attendants who were in the master bedroom were gingerly applying medicinal balms on the second prince¡¯s body. Then, when they noticed the appearances of this visitor, they hurriedly dropped what they were doing and knelt to the ground.

    This visitor was Concubine Ming, the second prince¡¯s mother. These attendants within the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence had more or less guessed the type of ndestine rtionship between Concubine Ming and the Grand Vizier. Therefore, they were naturally much more cautious not to offend her whenever she visited the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence.

    Concubine Ming walked towards the second prince and sat tenderly at his side. Concubine Ming was not a cultivator. Therefore, when she took a closer look and saw his limp body lying weakly on the bed, she could only silently shed tears as she gnashed her teeth and resolved to do all she could to tear the culprit to shreds!

    Once the Grand Vizier returned from his duties, he immediately noticed how Concubine Ming was softly shedding tears by the second prince¡¯s side with a bowed head. Such a doleful or even sorrowful expression on a beautifuldy¡¯s face would normally be a pleasing and heartwarming sight ¨C after all, whenever Concubine Ming revealed such expressions on her face in the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence in the past, it would always result in a warm night of passion. However, their son was grievously wounded and lying motionless on the bed right now. How could they even begin to think about romance at this state?

    Hearing Concubine Ming¡¯s soft bewailing voice only served to add fuel to the burning frustrations in Situ Cang¡¯s heart. Thus, he reprimanded her, ¡°What are you crying for?! Ye-er isn¡¯t dead yet!¡±

    Concubine Ming was infuriated at the fact that she was being reprimanded. She no longer maintained the usual soft and charming manner of speech and sharply yelled back at Situ Cang, ¡°If not for the fact that you only know how to lock yourself up in that closed-door cultivation of yours, Ye-er wouldn¡¯t have suffered like this!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s already a grown-up. This Sovereign can¡¯t always be watching over him and cleaning up his mess every day! Haven¡¯t you seen his actions outside? Spare the rod, spoil the child. His maverick and undisciplined ways are all caused by your incessant spoiling and fawning over him!¡±

    ¡°So what if I spoil him?! Ye-er is the crown prince of the kingdom, and it¡¯s natural that he gets the best of the best within the Inferno Kingdom. Why do you insist on putting my son through all sorts of hardship on the pretext of maturity?¡±

    The bickering between Concubine Ming and the Grand Vizier had already exceeded the boundaries of their ordinary capacities, and it was akin to how a married couple would argue with each other over the manner in which they should bring up their child. All the eunuchs, pce maids and servants standing outside the master bedroom kept their thoughts to themselves as they sheepishly looked down, pretending not to have heard the thought-provoking contents of the argument.

    At this moment, the second prince let out a soft groan in the bed, timeously interrupting the argument between the Grand Vizier and Concubine Ming.

    ¡°Ye-er, how are you feeling? Don¡¯t scare your mother like that!¡± Concubine Ming immediately bent over her son as she asked tenderly.

    ¡°Stand aside for now. Let me take a look the condition of Ye-er¡¯s meridians and Dantian.¡± Situ Cang nudged Concubine Ming to the side as he took a seat beside Rong Yebin. Then, Situ Cang ced three fingers on Rong Yebin¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of spiritual energy probing about his meridians and Dantian.

    Situ Cang knitted his eyebrows tighter and tighter, while Concubine Ming¡¯s heart gradually constricted with increasing anxiety. She had a terrible premonition at what was toe.

    After half an incense of time, Situ Cang finally recalled his spiritual energy. At this moment, his face was filled with intense fury.

    Bang! With one swish of Situ Cang¡¯s sleeves, the wooden table in the middle of his roompletely disintegrated and became nothing more than sawdust.

    ¡°How¡¯s Ye-er?¡± Concubine Ming wasn¡¯t fazed by Situ Cang¡¯s disy of strength. The only thought running through her mind was how Rong Yebin¡¯s condition was.

    ¡°This Sovereign has underestimated the extent of injuries on Ye-er¡¯s body.¡± Situ Cang¡¯s voice tremored slightly as he struggled to speak while masking the swelling hatred within his heart, ¡°I never expected the perpetrator to have such gall ¨C he has shattered Ye-er¡¯s Dantian and meridians!¡±

    ¡°What...what does that mean?¡± Concubine Ming was unaware of matters rting to cultivation, and she could only seek a rification of what Rong Yebin¡¯s condition meant.

    ¡°Earlier, when Ye-er¡¯s life was dangling by a thread, it was one of the Dawn Sect disciples who had presented me with a bottle of congealed spirit water that allowed me to pull Ye-er back from the gates of hell. This Sovereign thought that the main crisis would¡¯ve been averted like that. However, I never expected that his Dantian and meridians would be damaged so severely to the extent that the bottle of spirit water could not even heal itpletely.¡± Situ Cang gritted his teeth as he exined.

    The waters from the spirit spring within Yu Wanrou¡¯s personal spectral demine was essentially congealed spiritual energy in liquid form, and it was naturally extremely effective in healing injuries and wounds. However, it could not counteract the loss of a person¡¯s cultivation. This was because the spirit waters could only slowly nourish and refine a person¡¯s constitution, not enable a cultivator to reach heaven in a single bound and achieve instant sess. Otherwise, Yu Wanrou would long since have capitalized on the spirit waters to break through her present cultivation levels.

    ¡°Then, Ye-er is...¡±

    ¡°Ye-er¡¯sst twenty years of cultivation have all been wasted, and he¡¯s been reduced back to the first level of Qi Mastery. I don¡¯t know when he will be able to regain his former cultivation levels.¡± As Situ Cang finished exining, his voice grew frigid, and he added with gritted teeth, one word at a time, ¡°If this Sovereign finds out who hurt Ye-er¡ªNo, when this Sovereign finds out who hurt Ye-er, this Sovereign is going to make the culprit pay a thousand times the suffering he has inflicted on Ye-er. He¡¯s going to suffer a fate worse than death!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s already been so long. Haven¡¯t you managed too locate the culprit yet?¡± Concubine Ming questioned with some measure of displeasure.

    She was not like Situ Cang ¨C she could not understand the importance of cultivation levels to a cultivator. To her, it sufficed that her son had managed to preserve his life.

    Of course, the fact that her son was going to live did not mean that she intended to let the culprits go scot-free. Her ns for vengeance had not dwindled in the slightest!

    Situ Cang furrowed his brows, and a vicious intent flickered across his eyes as he replied, ¡°Soon. Once this Sovereign¡¯s formation array isplete, I will be able to locate the culprit even if he runs to the ends of the earth!¡±

    -------------------------------------------------

    On the other side, the first prince Rong Ruihan remained calm andposed as he sat on the floor in the midst of the woods outside Xingping County. From time to time, he would flip the meat that was roasting in front of him ¨C this was going to be lunch for Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo and himself today.

    Jun Xiaomo was already holding onto a piece of grilled meat wrapped in some leaves. However, Jun Xiaomo had no appetite to dig in.

    Whenever it crossed her mind that she now faced the prospects of being on the run for the rest of her life, her heart would constrict with intense anxiety, and she would not be able to rx at all. The experiences from her previous life would rey over and over in her mind, and she couldn¡¯t help but feel immensely frustrated and remorseful for her decision to slip out to the second prince¡¯s residencest night.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that the second prince would have been so grievously hurtst night?

    Jun Xiaomo sighed helplessly as she nced at Rong Ruihan subconsciously. She couldn¡¯t understand why the first prince was hardly anxious at all. After all, he was the one who had hurt the second prince, and the Grand Vizier was going toe after him sooner orter.

    ¡°Why do you keep looking over at this prince?¡± Rong Ruihan lifted his head and stared straight at Jun Xiaomo as he asked.

    Yao Mo had been ncing over at him from time to time for quite a while now. Rong Ruihan couldn¡¯t help but liken Yao Mo¡¯s action to a particr animal who lived in a tree and woulde out of his hole to steal nces at his surroundings from time to time.

    At the same time, even Rong Ruihan failed to realize that his eyes no longer carried his usual sense of vignce or distrust whenever he looked at Yao Mo. Instead, he had begun to look at Yao Mo with some measure of warmth in his gaze.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly, before responding, ¡°Your highness, do you have any ns or countermeasures to deal with the Grand Vizier? You don¡¯t seem to be anxious about him at all.¡±

    Rong Ruihan hesitated for a moment before he responded slowly, ¡°I do have some ns, but unfortunately I¡¯m not at liberty to reveal them right now.

    In other words, even though his life was now inextricably intertwined with Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lives, he still found it difficult to trust the two of them with such information. Therefore, he intended to keep his ns a secret in the near future.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips and grew taciturn.

    Then, Rong Ruihan recalled the extent of intimacy between Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo, and his heart was slightly moved. Therefore, he supplemented his earlier words and added, ¡°This prince has a hideout located at the border between Inferno Kingdom and the Mystic Woods. When the time is right, we¡¯ll use some Teleportation Scrolls to get there.¡±

    Naturally, this was only the first step of his ns. As to the rest, he didn¡¯t see the need to reveal them to Yao Mo for now.

    However, Jun Xiaomo hardly hesitated to air her concerns aloud, ¡°The Grand Vizier possesses a saintly spirit tool with him. If he uses this spirit tool, he would be able to locate us no matter where we¡¯re hiding.¡±

    This was one of the main reasons why Jun Xiaomo feared the Grand Vizier. The Grand Vizier had thoroughly tripped her up on several asions in her previous life.

    ¡°That saintly spirit tool can only be operated once every twenty years. And each time it can be operated, it would only be effective for ten uses. After ten uses, the spirit tool would have to be sealed for another twenty years before the next use. Furthermore, that spirit tool¡¯s usage requirements are incredibly demanding. Therefore, I don¡¯t think that the Grand Vizier is going to use that spirit tool to look for us unless it is absolutely necessary.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly explicated with a steady andposed voice.

    Jun Xiaomo was stunned. She had never contemted these things before.

    She finally understood why it took Yu Wanrou one hundred years after she got to know the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince before she managed to locate her. It had to be that the Grand Vizier had never intended to use this saintly spirit tool to locate her at the outset, and it was only when they were left with no other options that he finally relented.

    Having understood this, the anxiety in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart dwindled substantially. Then, she took out two talismans from her Interspatial Ring and presented them to Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Rong Ruihan raised his eyebrows curiously.

    ¡°One of them is a talisman that can be used to conceal your aura; while the other talisman is something that you can use to alter your appearances. Even though this might not necessarily guarantee that we won¡¯t be caught by the Grand Vizier¡¯s search and investigative formation arrays, it¡¯s still worth giving it a shot.¡± Jun Xiaomo extended her hands as she exined.

    In fact, she could have offered the first prince these two talismans much earlier, if not for the fact that she had been reluctant to part with them ¨C especially the Alteration Talisman. After all, she only had two Alteration Talismans remaining in her Interspatial Ring. If she gave one to the first prince, she would only have one left for herself.

    Furthermore, Alteration Talismans were not simply to draw up, and she didn¡¯t know whether there would be any more time for her to make another Alteration Talisman in the near future.

    As her frustrations festered, Jun Xiaomo contemted her sess rate of drawing up these Alteration Talismans and discreetly calcted the amount of time she would need toplete one. As she did so, a sense of foreboding washed over her and she somehow felt a hunch that her identity might be exposed very soon.

    Rong Ruihan reached over and received the two talismans from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands with a yful and mischievous smirk on his lips.

    Then, he suddenly asked, ¡°Are you also using one of these Alteration Talismans right now?¡±

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± This sudden question caused Jun Xiaomo to suddenly choke and sputter vigorously. Just then, Ye Xiuwen arrived back at their camping grounds after making his rounds of patrol around the vicinity.

 Chapter 120: Three Men Act

    <h4>Chapter 120: Three Men Act</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo saw Ye Xiuwen¡¯s white garbs out of the corner of her eye. Immediately, she collected and suppressed her earlier moment of anxiety and listlessness and adjusted her emotions and expressions. Then, with feigned imperturbation, Jun Xiaomo replied, ¡°Your highness must be joking. What would I need to use an Alteration Talisman for?¡±

    Rong Ruihan meaningfully nced over at Ye Xiuwen on the side, before looking back towards Jun Xiaomo and chuckling lightheartedly, ¡°This prince was only shooting off the hips. Brother Yao doesn¡¯t have to take this prince¡¯s questions to heart.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Since you¡¯re only shooting off the hips, why did you have to put on an expression as though you¡¯ve seen through the pretense? It¡¯s incredibly frightening, alright?!

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and bit down furiously into the grilled meat in front of her. Then, she chewed and ground the meat down fervently, as though she were ventting the frustrations in her heart on that poor little piece of meat.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen was still quite a distance away, the divine sense that he had released around in his surroundings had allowed him to ¡°listen in¡± to this conversation. His eyes darkened slightly, and suspicions once again arose in his heart as to Yao Mo¡¯s true identity.

    By the time Ye Xiuwen arrived back at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, he had already collected his thoughts. He knew that he would not get any proper answers if he questioned Yao Mo about this directly. Therefore, he resolved that he would bide his time ¨C he would wait until Yao Mo revealed his own identity to Ye Xiuwen of his own volition.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intuition told him that Yao Mo¡¯s identity was inextricably linked to his own.

    Rong Ruihan stared nkly at Jun Xiaomo burying her face in her food and stuffing her cheeks. Mirth swelled up in his eyes as he found this young man before him to be increasinglyical and humorous.

    After all, it had been such a long time since he had seen a person who wore his heart on his sleeves. Earlier, he had only intended to tease Yao Mo. He had never expected to discover some of Yao Mo¡¯s secrets from that innocent question of his.

    However, he could tell from Yao Mo¡¯s earlier expressions that Yao Mo had in fact used the Alteration Talisman. Perhaps even Ye Xiuwen wouldn¡¯t know of Yao Mo¡¯s true identity.

    All of a sudden, Rong Ruihan found himself rather intrigued by Yao Mo¡¯s true appearances and identity ¨C If one day, I manage to uncover and expose his true identity, I wonder what kind of expression Yao Mo is going to make?

    Rong Ruihan raised his eyebrows curiously and his thoughts wandered along as he explored the infinite possibilities to his musings. If Jun Xiaomo could hear the thoughts of Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart right now, she would almost certainly choke with shock and insist on recovering the talismans she had kindly offered to Rong Ruihan!

    ¡°Let¡¯s use the Teleportation Scroll to leave this ce once we¡¯ve finished eating. I estimate that it would only take us three Teleportation Scrolls to get to my hideout.¡± Rong Ruihan flipped the meat on the grill as he suggested.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in agreement.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and ferociously stood up in shock as she eximed, ¡°Damn! I¡¯ve forgotten about the little packrat!¡±

    Poor little packrat. It had been locked up inside the inn with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Confinement Array, and it was unable to escape no matter how much it scrambled about and scratched at the array. After struggling for an entire night and morning, her little packrat had already grown faint and weary from its pointless resistance.

    Jun Xiaomo could roughly also guess the extent of her little packrat¡¯s sorry state. She hurriedly set down the grilled meat aside as she insisted, ¡°This can¡¯t do! I have to make a trip back to the inn. Even though the Confinement Array will lose its effects after a while, who knows whether the second prince¡¯sckeys would seal off the inn?¡±

    ¡°If the Grand Vizier¡¯s men have indeed sealed off the inn, you won¡¯t be able to do anything even if you return now. Are you just going to barge in?¡± Rong Ruihan calmly pointed out the ws in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to give it a try no matter what. I can¡¯t just leave my little packrat behind.¡± Jun Xiaomo hated the fact that she had been so careless. After all, she had only remembered her little packrat after several hours had passed!

    ¡°Alright, take a seat first. This prince will trouble his ndestine agents to rescue your little pet from the inn you¡¯ve been staying at. It could very well be the case that your portrait is already being put up all over the Xingping County right now. There¡¯s a good chance that you¡¯ll immediately be arrested by the county guards once you enter its vicinity.

    After deliberating for a moment, Jun Xiaomo found that Rong Ruihan¡¯s perspective of the matter also made sense. Thus, she sat back down disparagingly and clutched at her own fingers in frustration.

    Then, Rong Ruihan retrieved a Transmittance Talisman from his Interspatial Ring, wrote some words on it, and the Transmittance Talisman self-immted and vanished into thin air.

    The Transmittance Talisman could transmit a message much quicker than a Messenger Paper Crane. Generally speaking, once the Transmittance Talisman hadpletely burnt up, the other side would almost immediately receive the message to be transmitted.

    However, the Transmittance Talisman required far more resources to manufacture. Furthermore, the other side that was to receive the message also had to possess the same type of talismans for the transmission to be effective. Therefore, even Rong Ruihan was reticent to employ the usage of Transmittance Talismans unless it was absolutely necessary.

    Jun Xiaomo also understood these considerations. Therefore, seeing how Rong Ruihan had treated her concerns with such gravity, she solemnly and sincerely thanked Rong Ruihan for his help.

    Rong Ruihan also noticed that Yao Mo¡¯s eyes no longer viewed him with the same reticence and distance as before. He saw his own reflection in Yao Mo¡¯s clear, glossy eyes, and he couldn¡¯t help but smile subconsciously as he responded, ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers twitched slightly. He wanted to lift up his hands and pat Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders reassuringly like he had always used to. But in the end, he lowered his head and shut his eyes, strongly repressing that desire of his.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s ndestine agents proved to be highly efficient in what they did. After approximately one hour from the transmittance of the message, a ck shadow suddenly appeared beside Rong Ruihan¡¯s body. More importantly, he carried a plump and fluffy little packrat in his arms.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat squeaked excitedly as it leapt out of the ndestine agent¡¯s arms and scampered over towards Jun Xiaomo. Within moments, it shot itself into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom joyfully.

    Squeak squeak squeak... Her little packrat wed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes. Its ck, soulful eyes looked slightly damp as it gazed longingly into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. Its incessant squeaks even seemed to contain a multitude ofints.

    ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯m sorry little packrat. I was wrong. I won¡¯t leave you behind next time, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo was thoroughly frightened by the prospects of losing her little packrat again. If she had indeed forgotten about her packrat earlier, or if she had failed to rescue her little packrat before the Grand Vizier¡¯s men spotted it, one could only imagine the kind of suffering her little packrat would be put through.

    Fortunately, her little packrat had been rescued without a hitch, and it waspletely unscathed as well.

    Squeak squeak... Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little packrat clutched onto her clothes tightly and stuck close to Jun Xiaomo, as though it were afraid that she would leave it behind again.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart ached. She held her little packrat closely in her bosom and stroked her little packrat gingerly. Then, she retrieved a bag of pine nuts from her Interspatial Ring and fed them to her little packrat, one by one.

    As the little packrat ate, it also licked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers affectionately ¨C one kernel of pine nut, one lick of the finger.

    Rong Ruihan looked back at his ck-garbed ndestine agent and waved his hands gently as he instructed, ¡°Alright, you may take your leave.¡±

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± The ndestine agent bowed to Rong Ruihan respectfully. Then, he pulled out a talisman and pped it on himself. Instantly, he vanished from right beneath their eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo had been overwhelmed by feelings of guilt and remorse by the fact that she had left her little packrat behind. Therefore, ever since her little packrat had been rescued by the ndestine agent, she had devoted her full attention to her little packrat, treating it with the utmost patience and care. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo inadvertently obviated from her mind the existence of the other two persons around her.

    Ye Xiuwen had long since discovered that this little packrat had disyed human characteristics. He involuntarily squinted his eyes and found the entire scene rather unbearable when he saw this little packrat burrowing its head into Yao Mo¡¯s bosom.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen spoke up with indifference, ¡°Little Mo, if your pet has been hungry for too long, it might not be a good thing to feed itrge amounts of food at one go. It might get too stuffed.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen even emphasized the words ¡°too stuffed¡± as he spoke.

    ¡°Ah? It¡¯s like that?!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately stored the kernel of pine nut that she was holding onto. Then, she patted her little packrat¡¯s head and said, ¡°Be good, I¡¯ll continue to feed youter.¡±

    The little packrat was still thoroughly enjoying itself when its moment of splendor ended just like that. Annoyed, the little packrat brandished its ws and gnashed its teeth at Ye Xiuwen.

    Rong Ruihan found the interactions among these three entities left no room for him to interject. Therefore, he held back for a little while longer, before finally interjecting and breaking up their ¡°happy reunion¡±, ¡°Since brother Yao¡¯s little pet is back, we should be on our way with the Teleportation Scrolls as soon as possible. The longer we dally, the higher the chances of being caught by the Grand Vizier.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo concurred, and immediately began packing up their things.

    On the other side at the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence, the second prince who had been lying unconscious for several hours finally awakened from his slumber. When he first learnt that his cultivation level had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, he momentarily lost control of his emotions and began thrashing about and smashing anything he could.

    ¡°It¡¯s Rong Ruihan! It¡¯s that damned Rong Ruihan!¡± If the second prince had earlier only harboured feelings of envy and jealousy against the first prince, then an emotion of boundless hatred would most certainly have joined the fray right now.

    He had never felt as weak as he currently did. All the spiritual energy in his body felt as though they had been dispersed into the surrounding. Even his meridians and Dantian felt exactly the same way, save for a single, thin thread of spiritual energy that remained.

    As a result of his fall in cultivation level, his meridians had shrunk from the size of a raging river to that of a small creek ¨C it could no longer hold even a fraction of what used to course through his body.

    He had spent over twenty grueling years of time to attain his twelfth level of Qi Mastery. Yet overnight, he had reverted to the state he had been in at the start of this cultivation journey ¨C he was now no different from a useless person¡¯s existence.

    If word got out that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s crown prince had now fallen from grace and be a useless ¡°trash¡± at the first level of Qi Mastery, it wouldn¡¯t even require the schemes and ploys of his ambitious brothers to overthrow his position as a crown prince. Just a simple call for investigations and an ount of this incident from kingdom¡¯s ministers would be sufficient to topple his grand ascension ns.

    ¡°This prince is definitely going to kill Rong Ruihan!¡± The second prince yelled out with fanaticism in the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan? Ye-er, are you certain it¡¯s him?¡± The Grand Vizier walked in from outside and furrowed his brows as he rified.

    ¡°I¡¯m certain! How could I be mistaken about how that damn face looks like?!¡± The second prince¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. His present frenzied state was akin to that when Rong Ruihan had lost his rationality.

    ¡°His cultivation level is only at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. How could he possibly have hurt Ye-er so seriously?¡± Situ Cang had initially suspected the culprit to be Rong Ruihan as well. However, Situ Cang knew full well the extent of Rong Ruihan¡¯s capabilities, and his assessment was that Rong Ruihan could never have inflicted such grievous on Rong Yebin.

    ¡°Who knows what kind of stroke of luck that damn fe¡¯s chanced upon?!¡± The second prince swore and cursed, before he gritted his teeth and added, ¡°Master, we cannot let Rong Ruihan live any longer. Otherwise, sooner orter, he¡¯s going to be our greatest stumbling block.¡±

    Situ Cang patted the second prince¡¯s shoulders reassuringly in response, ¡°Your master understands. You just focus on recovering right now. Leave the rest to your master.¡±

    When he saw how his dear disciple and son that he had ced so much hopes and expectations on had been reduced to such a sorry state, Situ Cang¡¯s heart was filled with boiling hatred. In fact, if one could measure hatred, then there was no doubt that the hatred in Situ Cang¡¯s heart would far greater than that in the second prince¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Master, what are your ns?¡± The second prince asked worriedly. He wanted to witness with his own eyes how Rong Ruihan was going to pay for what he had done.

    ¡°Let¡¯s talk about this after I¡¯ve located Rong Ruihan.¡± Situ Cang patted the second prince¡¯s shoulders as he replied.

    ¡°Master, don¡¯t you have a formation array that can allow you to track down a person? It shouldn¡¯t be too difficult to locate them, right?¡± The second prince furrowed his brows. Having regained his consciousness, he was extremely anxious to have some closure on this matter.

    ¡°The perpetrator might have used several Teleportation Scrolls to evade capture. The X-mark Array isn¡¯t able to urately pinpoint their location.¡±

    In fact, Situ Cang had already begun to operate the X-mark Array, even while the second prince had been unconscious. He had imbued the heart of the formation array with the demonic energy that he had earlier collected from the courtyard. However, his efforts bore no fruit.

    ¡°Then what are we going to do?!¡± The second prince clenched his fists restlessly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. As long as they haven¡¯t left the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s territories, then they will not be able to escape your master¡¯s clutches.¡± Situ Cang gave a slow, enigmatic response with an awe-inspiring yet frigid tone of voice.

    Teleportation Scrolls? Very well. Then I shall seize and restrain the effects of all Teleportation Scrolls within all of Inferno Kingdom¡¯snds!

 Chapter 121: The Indomitable Situ Cang

    <h4>Chapter 121: The Indomitable Situ Cang</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo and the others took out the third Teleportation Scroll and activated it. As a result of Situ Cang¡¯s formation array, the third Teleportation Scroll shone with an intense blue light, before fainting away feebly. Jun Xiaomo and the others remained in the center of the Teleportation Scroll¡¯s area of effect, staring nkly at each other.

    ¡°Seems like the Teleportation Scroll has lost its effects.¡± Rong Ruihan sighed with resignation.

    ¡°Why would it lose its effects? The Teleportation Scroll doesn¡¯t have an expiration date, does it?¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured as she held up the Teleportation Scroll in her hands to examine it. She began to run her fingers along the inscriptions on the Teleportation Scrolls as she gradually furrowed her brows.

    Teleportation Scrolls were made with a special material, and their inscriptions were etched with spirit stones that had been ground to a fine powder. Therefore, there was immense energy contained within the scroll itself.

    However, when Jun Xiaomo ced the Teleportation Scroll in her hand, she discovered that immense source of energy seemed to have disappeared. The mysterious sensation that these inscriptions normally emanated had also vanished into thin air along with its energy.

    ¡°Could another formation array be absorbing the Teleportation Scroll¡¯s energy?!¡± Jun Xiaomo widened her eyes in shock.

    ¡°Is there such a formation array?¡± Rong Ruihan raised his eyebrows curiously.

    ¡°There is, but...¡± Jun Xiaomo knitted her eyebrows together as she added with some difficulty, ¡°These formation arrays aren¡¯t easy to prepare. Furthermore, the formation array would only be effective if the Teleportation Scroll is used within the domain of the formation array itself. The Grand Vizier can¡¯t possibly be so powerful to determine our location so urately for this formation array of his, can he?¡±

    Rong Ruihan chuckled lightheartedly as he responded, ¡°Indeed, he can¡¯t determine our location with such uracy. However, this doesn¡¯t mean that he can¡¯t set up this formation array over the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s entire territory.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo drew a cold breath, ¡°A formation array over the entire Inferno Kingdom¡¯s territory?! Howrge must the array be...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you forget that Situ Cang had been the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier ever since the Inferno Kingdom had been established. Setting up a formation array over the span of a thousand years isn¡¯t something that is too difficult.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath, before ncing over at Rong Ruihan with a slightly sympathetic expression on her face, ¡°You¡¯ve actually pitted yourself against a thousand years-old freak, haven¡¯t you? It¡¯s a miracle that you¡¯re still alive right now.¡±

    Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at this. He returned a nce at Jun Xiaomo as he remarked, ¡°Don¡¯t forget that your name also forms part of Situ Cang¡¯s to-do list.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo almost choked from Rong Ruihan¡¯s response. Then, in her abject frustration, she squatted down on the floor and began to pluck at the grass around her.

    Rong Ruihan looked at the top of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and curled up his lips found this entire sight to be ratherical. He chuckled lightly to himself as he retrieved a Transmittance Talisman from his Interspatial Ring, wrote a few words on it and then burnt it up. His agents on the other end of the Transmittance Talisman immediately received his message.

    Situ Cang would soon be able to locate them, and he had to make some preparations in advance.

    It was night. Once again, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan huddled up close to a bonfire that they had set up in the wilderness. In order to counteract the potential disastrous consequences of losing his rationality again, Rong Ruihan had taken a preventative Heart Purging Pill in advance and managed to keep his sanity for now. He sat on the side silently, as he worked hard to absorb and subjugate the two foreign sources of demonic energy that was wreaking havoc within his body ¨C one source of energy came from the demonic wolf¡¯s core; while the other source of energy hade from his consumption of the Abomination¡¯s demonic energy at the second prince¡¯s residence.

    Ye Xiuwen was also meditating at the side. Things were escting out of control, and he knew that he had to make full use of every opportunity possible to improve his abilities. It was ideal if he could break through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation during this period of time ¨C that would greatly improve their odds of sess right now.

    Jun Xiaomo sat in the midst of the two as her gaze vacited between the two of them. Once she had ascertained that they were both deep in meditation, she snuck off to the side andid a mat on the floor. There, under the warm glow of the bonfire, she began to start drawing her talismans.

    What Jun Xiaomo was drawing now was the Alteration Talisman. She had given one Alteration Talisman to Rong Ruihan a few days ago, and she had used another one on herself shortly afterwards. Therefore, she no longer possessed any more Alteration Talismans right now.

    Over thest few days, Jun Xiaomo had struggled to find time or make time to draw up an Alteration Talisman. Yet every time she set down to draw an Alteration Talisman, something unexpected would arise or require her attention. Therefore, she had not managed to draw even half an Alteration Talisman as yet.

    Today, her goal was not only to draw up an additional Alteration Talisman for herself ¨C she had to prepare an additional set for Rong Ruihan as well. Whenever she thought of the size and importance of this task, her heart would sink slightly under the pressure.

    If Jun Xiaomo lived in present times, she would certainly havee across a term which would aptly describe what she was going through right now ¨C and that was ¡°stress-induced anxiety¡±.

    One brush, and one stroke; another brush, and yet another stroke...

    Jun Xiaomo was so focused on her task at hand that shepletely lost track of time. When she finally drew on the final stroke of her brush thatpleted the Alteration Talisman that she had spent thest few nights on, she heaved a great sigh of relief. She set aside that talisman and made preparations tomence work on the second one.

    ¡°Little Mo, what are you drawing?¡± A warm voice suddenly called out from behind her. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand immediately jolted involuntarily, and she inadvertently drew a heavy-handed stroke on the next talisman she had just started on. The entire talisman was now rendered useless.

    Jun Xiaomo looked on at the ruined talisman paper, and tears nearly welled up in her eyes. Fortunately, she had only just started on this second talisman.

    Ye Xiuwen took a few steps forward, and he noticed the slightly yellowing talisman paper which Jun Xiaomo had earlier set aside.

    ¡°Ah, is Little Mo drawing talismans? Sorry about that. Brother Ye must¡¯ve disturbed you.¡± Ye Xiuwen apologized. He had also noticed the special cinnabar-ink that Jun Xiaomo had been using for her talismans.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ve only just started on this one anyway.¡± Jun Xiaomo hurriedly waved her hands as she gave Ye Xiuwen a reassuring, radiant smile.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Yao Mo¡¯s head - he couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly moved by Yao Mo¡¯s sensibility and consideration for him.

    ¡°What talisman is this?¡± Ye Xiuwen minced towards Jun Xiaomo as he asked.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly. She wracked her brains for a moment before finally replying, ¡°This is an Alteration Talisman. It can be used to change the first prince¡¯s appearances.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve stayed up all night and put aside your meditation just to draw that Alteration Talisman for him?¡± Ye Xiuwen responded indifferently.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions were calm andposed, something made Jun Xiaomo feel that her martial brother was still a little bit miffed about what she had just said.

    ¡°That...the first prince¡¯s appearances are simply too eye-catching. Therefore, I¡¯m drawing up a few Alteration Talismans so that he can conceal his appearances and not draw so much attention to us...¡± Jun Xiaomo replied with a soft voice and a trace of diffidence as her voice trailed off towards the end.

    After all, she had been drawing this Alteration Talisman for herself.

    ¡°The first prince has so many ndestine agents at his disposal. He can easily get any one of them to go out and buy some Alteration Talismans, can¡¯t he? Why does he need you to especially draw these for him?¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, ¡°Alright, you¡¯re still a na?ve little child. Go get some rest for now. Otherwise, you¡¯re never going to grow taller.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo opened her mouth and drew a breath, intending to respond. Yet, in the next moment, she closed her mouth without saying a word. Defeated, she began to collect her talismans and the drawing apparatus as she stored them into her Interspatial Ring.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words were too logical, and there was no way she could reasonably refute them. What a headache...

    Jun Xiaomo walked to the side and sat down cross-legged. She put on the appearance of entering a meditative state; yet in actual fact, she was secretly contemting how else she could find the time to draw up a few more Alteration Talismans.

    In the next few days, Jun Xiaomo found that she had even less time to draw up these Alteration Talismans. As a result of their inability to use Teleportation Scroll, they had no choice but to press forward towards the location of the first prince¡¯s hideout. In fact, they had even encountered several ambushes by the Grand Vizier¡¯s men along the way.

    These ambushes were all well organized, and the assants that attacked them donned clothing that bore the emblem of the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence. Evidently, the Grand Vizier had managed to get a good grasp of their whereabouts.

    That said, Rong Ruihan¡¯s raw abilities were far too strong; while Ye Xiuwen could also hold his own with his sword arts. With the aid of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s powerful talismans supplementing and enhancing their abilities, the assants stood no chance against the trio.

    Even then, the ambushes were incessant. Time and again, the trio were assaulted and ambushed as they slowly marched towards the first prince¡¯s hideout. Regardless of how strong their individual abilities were, it did not change the fact that there were only three of them. As the relentless attacks whittled and wore them down, they also increasingly began to find these ambushes unbearable.

    ¡°First prince, don¡¯t you have any contingencies avable? What about those followers and agents of yours?¡± Jun Xiaomo shouted at the first prince with some measure of frustration as she threw an explosive talisman towards an assant. The resultant explosion sent several other assants flying away as well.

    Rong Ruihan heard her and brandished a somber gaze. With one strike of his fist, he cleanly rebuffed and sent flying a whip-wielding assant.

    He did not immediately respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s questions because he naturally couldn¡¯t divulge his ns in the presence of these assants.

    Yet once that ambush had been defeated and rebuffed, the ambushes and assaults seemed to have ceasedpletely, as though the Grand Vizier had simply given up. Not a single assant appeared to ambush the trio over the next few days.

    ¡°First prince, is this your handiwork? That¡¯s simply too impressive! How did you lure them away?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked curiously, ¡°Or did you simply get your ndestine agents to dispose of the assants before they can reach us?¡±

    ¡°We didn¡¯t dispose of the assants. I¡¯ve only employed some simple tactics to confuzzled and distract them.¡± Rong Ruihan vaguely exined with indifference.

    ¡°Do you mind sharing some details?¡± Jun Xiaomo tilted her head and blinked eagerly at the first prince.

    Rong Ruihan curled his lips into a wry smile as he confidently presented his distraction tactics, ¡°If Situ Cang wishes to determine our location with a formation array, he would need a medium or a primer of sorts. This medium could be an object belonging to any of us, as long as it contains traces of our aura. What I¡¯ve done is to separate one of these mediums to several parts and give these parts to my ndestine agents and let them each run off in a different direction. This way, Situ Cang¡¯s formation array would be confused by the multiple locations of the medium and he would no longer be able to determine our presence with any certainty.¡±

    ¡°Medium? How do you know what medium Situ Cang is using to determine our location?¡±

    ¡°Do you know what medium carries the most characteristic signature of a person¡¯s aura?¡± Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t directly address Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin in deliberation. Then, she murmured, ¡°I would say that it¡¯s the spiritual energy or demonic energy within a person¡¯s body.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s exactly that. This prince had severely wounded Rong Yebin. The wound on Rong Yebin¡¯s body would definitely carry traces of this prince¡¯s demonic energy. In order to locate the perpetrator, the Grand Vizier would definitely have stored some of this demonic energy and used this as a medium to locate us.¡±

    ¡°I understand now. You must have sealed some of your own demonic energy within various bottles and have your subordinates run about with them, then?

    Rong Ruihan smiled knowingly. He did not expressly confirm or deny Jun Xiaomo¡¯s posttions, but his expression had tacitly confirmed that Jun Xiaomo had hit the nail on the head.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but be impressed by the first prince. When it came to schemes and plots, she could hardly hold a candle to these members of the royalty who had been engaged in internal strife and vying for the top spot ever since they were young sprouts.

    On the other side, at the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence, the Grand Vizier¡¯s subordinates all knelt on the floor with their heads on the grounds. They had time and again been misdirected by the first prince¡¯s countermeasures, and the Grand Vizier had exploded with infuriation at their ipetence.

    ¡°Wrong again! Are you telling me that I¡¯m wrong again?!!¡± The outburst of Situ Cang¡¯s aura had battered against these subordinates, splitting their skin and leaving several wounds on their bodies. Yet, these subordinates did not dare to make a peep of sound in response.

    ¡°Master, I suspect that the first prince might be employing some measures to confuse us. I¡¯ve recovered an object from one of the first prince¡¯s ndestine agents that we have killed. Please examine, master.¡± One of the subordinates reported with a trembling voice as he presented an object to the Grand Vizier.

    Situ Cang opened the bottle cap and examined its contents. Then, he ferociously smashed the bottle onto the ground.

    No wonder his formation array couldn¡¯t locate the whereabouts of Rong Ruihan and the others. Rong Ruihan was already prepared against them!

    ¡°Master...¡±

    ¡°Go! Summon those fes from Dawn Sect right now.¡± Situ Cang demanded. His eyes flickered with a frigid, grave intent.

    ¡°Yes!¡± The representative of Situ Cang¡¯s subordinates heaved a sigh of relief as he swiftly ran out of the room under Situ Cang¡¯s orders.

    Situ Cang slowly crushed the Transmittance Talisman in his hand as he mocked in his heart ¨C Do you think that you would be able to escape your current predicament just like that? Rong Ruihan, you¡¯re still too na?ve.

    This time, he was going to take things into his own hands and crush those ants without fail! They¡¯ve been running amok for far too long.

 Chapter 122: The Game of Cat and Mouse

    <h4>Chapter 122: The Game of Cat and Mouse</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Situ Cang knew from his subordinates¡¯ reports that Rong Ruihan was presently travelling together with Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo.

    This was the main reason that Situ Cang had summoned the members of Dawn Sect right now. Rong Ruihan understood the Grand Vizier¡¯s thought processes extremely well. Naturally, he would be able to prepare the necessary countermeasures against the Grand Vizier¡¯s innumerable formation arrays. Therefore, having failed in thest few attempts, Situ Cang realized that it was only going to get more difficult locating the trio on the run by tracking down Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan was just like a slippery eel. Whenever the Grand Vizier¡¯s subordinates drew near to pinpointing their exact location, they would suddenly vanish without a trace, thwarting all their progress thus far.

    Therefore, Situ Cang decided to change tactics and locate the trio by instead tracking down the First-Seat Disciple of Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen.

    Qin Lingyu and the other Dawn Sect disciples walked along slowly as they entered the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence. The path that they took was surrounded by peculiar and strange nts and flowers on both sides, creating an atmosphere of mystery and otherworldliness. Somehow, this seemingly unrted matter further enhanced their impression of the Grand Vizier¡¯s mastery over formation arrays.

    Situ Cang¡¯s servants led them into the guest conference room, before he bowed politely at them and took his leave.

    Qin Lingyu and the rest waited in silence for quite some time before Situ Cang finally made his way into the room slowly. As he slowly strutted in, Situ Cang also brought with him an air of heaviness into the room.

    This was not unexpected either. After all, he had ced so much hopes and expectations on his biological son, yet his son had been reduced to such a sorry state. Anyone in his shoes would be simrly unable to carry themselves with a cheerful disposition at this time.

    ¡°Senior Situ.¡± Qin Lingyu stood up and gave Situ Cang a respectful bow.

    The other disciples followed suit and gave Situ Cang a fist and palm salute as well.

    Even though Situ Cang had made them wait in the room for quite some time, the disciples from Dawn Sect could only suppress the indignation welling up within their heart for Situ Cang. No one dared to reveal any of their displeasure on their faces. After all, Situ Cang¡¯s cultivation was so much higher than theirs.

    This was the manifestation of the immutable principle that undergirded the entire cultivation works ¨C the world was ruled by the strong.

    Situ Cang nodded his head at them with nonchnce. Then, he arrogantly lifted his hands and made an inviting gesture as he spoke, ¡°Take a seat.¡±

    After Qin Lingyu and the rest took their seats, Situ Cang slowly exined the situation to them, ¡°This Sovereign has summoned you today to discuss matters with that other Dawn Sect disciple, Ye Xiuwen.¡±

    ¡°This...martial brother Ye¡¯s actions are all of his own volition, and they¡¯ve got nothing to do with Dawn Sect at all. I humbly ask senior Situ to refrain from pinning the me on us.¡±

    Qin Lingyu hurriedly cut off all ties with Ye Xiuwen to minimize the possibility of implicating themselves.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get ahead of yourself. This Sovereign hadn¡¯t even said that he was going to me you. This Sovereign is extremely clear about who¡¯s at fault and who¡¯s innocent.¡± Situ Cang responded with some measure of displeasure. Qin Lingyu immediately nodded his head meekly as he sought to cate Situ Cang.

    Seeing that no one was interjecting any longer, Situ Cang continued, ¡°This Sovereign has discovered that the Dawn Sect disciple named Ye Xiuwen is in cahoots with a felon of the Inferno Kingdom. These viins collude against us, and this Sovereign hopes that you will ce justice before family and lend us your strength to weed out the enemy.¡±

    ¡°And this felon is...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s exactly the culprit who has hurt my disciple and poisoned the king of the Inferno Kingdom, Rong Ruihan.¡± Situ Cang enunciated each word with pristine rity, and he even gnashed his teeth as he articted the name, Rong Ruihan.

    The Dawn Sect disciples stared aghast at each other. No one could have imagined that Ye Xiuwen would in fact know the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince, Rong Ruihan, to begin with.

    ¡°I wonder what senior Situ requires of us, then?¡± Qin Lingyu continued to ask with a warm tone of voice. His eyes gleamed brightly at this moment.

    Who would have known that Ye Xiuwen would actually offend the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier?This was the prime opportunity to get rid of him.

    What use is Yao Mo¡¯s talismans and formation arrays now? No matter how formidable he is, there¡¯s no way his abilities would exceed that of the Grand Viziers, huh? Qin Lingyu¡¯s lips curled up discreetly with a vicious smirk.

    ¡°This Sovereign only needs you to provide me with some artefacts belonging to Dawn Sect. Of course, if these are artefacts that Ye Xiuwen normally carries around by his side, then that would enable this Sovereign to locate them much quicker.¡±

    ¡°This is naturally not an issue.¡± As Qin Lingyu responded, he immediately retrieved some artefacts from his Interspatial Ring and presented them to Situ Cang.

    Ke Xinwen thought for a moment, and he also retrieved an artefact from his Interspatial Ring. Then, he introduced that artefacts to Situ Cang, ¡°Senior Situ, this small essory was something that Yao Mo had given to Ye Xiuwen as a gift. Ye Xiuwen had dropped it earlier in the midst of his altercation with the second prince. Perhaps this might be of use to you.¡±

    As he said that, he simrly presented the artefact to Situ Cang.

    In fact, he had earlier presented the very same essory to Situ Cang for his inspection when he thought about pinning the me for the second prince¡¯s injuries on Ye Xiuwen. However, that attempt had been stemmed and thwarted by Situ Cang¡¯s exnation that the second prince¡¯s injuries was caused by a demonic cultivator.

    This time, Ke Xinwen was certain that Situ Cang would no longer let Ye Xiuwen go scot-free.

    ¡°That¡¯s even better. As expected, most of the Dawn Sect disciples are sensible and virtuous.¡± Situ Cang nodded his head in satisfaction, and his expressions were no longer as heavy as before.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief ¨C apart from Di Yue. Di Yue possessed an honest and candid disposition. He had previously maintained a fairly good rtionship with Ke Xinwen and naturally spoke well of Ke Xinwen to others. However, having been betrayed by the others, only to be rescued from the jaws of death by Ye Xiuwen, he cut ties with the other disciples and now identified himself as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s younger martial brother.

    This was a decision which he had made unterally.

    Di Yue lowered his head as he wracked his brain, thinking about how he was going to leak this news to Ye Xiuwen.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou had been listening intently to the exchange between Situ Cang and the other disciples and deliberating on her next move. Then, she mustered her courage and wrapped her hand tightly around her scarf as she asked, ¡°Grand Vizier, sir, I wonder...how the second prince¡¯s condition is right now?¡±

    Yu Wanrou had earlier offered the Grand Vizier a bottle containing her spirit spring waters for the second prince¡¯s use so that the Grand Vizier and the second prince would owe her a favour. A few days had passed since that incident, but she still had not heard of any news about the second prince. Therefore, she wondered whether the second prince had fully recovered by now.

    Yu Wanrou treated this as a form of investment. Having offered a gift out of goodwill earlier, she naturally expected something in return. Even if she could not be the second prince¡¯s concubine for now, receiving somepensation for her efforts was better than nothing.

    Unexpectedly, the Grand Vizier did not even mention anything about the second prince during the course of their entire meeting. This left Yu Wanrou feeling sore and disappointed, as though all her efforts had been wasted.

    Of course, the reason why Yu Wanrou had not heard any news about the second prince was because Situ Cang had already put on lockdown the spread of any information within the Grand Vizier¡¯s residence about the second prince¡¯s condition. This lockdown of information had been so effective that not even the people residing within the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce had heard news that the second prince¡¯s cultivation level has fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery.

    Naturally, this is with the exclusion of the second prince¡¯s mother, Concubine Ming.

    If the high officials of Inferno Kingdom learnt that the second prince¡¯s cultivation level had fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery, they would almost certainly challenge the second prince¡¯s authority and qualifications to be the crown prince. This was an eventuality that Situ Cang absolutely wished to avoid.

    Situ Cang had not forsaken his grand ns to let his own son ascend the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s throne. In fact, the manifestation of this notion of his only grew stronger when Rong Yebin got injured.

    After all, his son deserved nothing but the best!

    Once Yu Wanrou¡¯s words left her mouth, Situ Cang¡¯s grim and gloomy gaze drifted across all the other disciples andnded on her body.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s back shivered. She felt as though a vicious, poisonous snake had just transfixed its sharp gaze on her, piercing her skin with its eyes and exposing the depts of her heart.

    Situ Cang was in fact sizing up Yu Wanrou. From his perspective, the matter pertaining to Rong Yebin¡¯s fall in cultivation level was something that could never be leaked to others. At this moment, he wished to ascertain whether Yu Wanrou¡¯s query was an innocent question or oneced with ulterior motives.

    If she bore even a trace of ulterior motives, then he wouldn¡¯t mind looking for the right opportunity to dispose of Yu Wanrou!

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart sank and her confidence wavered. Despite that, she mustered her courage once more and tensed up her body. Then, she looked straight back at Situ Cang as she forcibly put on a soft smile on her face.

    This was the only thing she could do in the circumstances. In Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, her greatest assety not with her cultivation, but her looks and appearances. Naturally, there was also her spectral demine and its contents.

    After sizing up Yu Wanrou for a moment, Situ Cang managed to ascertain that Yu Wanrou was merely an insensitivedy asking an innocent question. Therefore, he dropped any thoughts to investigate her background further.

    ¡°Thank you for your concern. My disciple¡¯s life is no longer in danger.¡± Situ Cang replied with indifference.

    Yu Wanrou had been so frightened by Situ Cang¡¯s earlier prating gaze that her back waspletely soaked through with cold sweat. In the circumstances, she could hardly be bothered about obtaining any rewards for her efforts any longer. Having received a response to her question, she forcibly maintained the smile on her face as she lowered her head quickly to avoid further eye contact with Situ Cang.

    However, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was still filled with immense regrets ¨C

    Why is the Grand Vizier treating me with this kind of attitude? Could it be that the spirit spring waters weren¡¯t effective? That¡¯s not possible. Every time I drink it after suffering serious injuries, my injuries would recover extremely quickly.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips as she remained perplexed by Situ Cang¡¯s reactions.

    Yet how could she have known that the second prince¡¯s injuries this time were hardly as simple as she thought? His cultivation had even fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery.

    Armed with the artefacts furnished by Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen, Situ Cang once again managed to track down the rough location of Rong Ruihan and the others. Thus, he sent his own subordinates in pursuit of them with renewed vigor.

    Situ Cang wanted to kill these fugitives with his own hands. But at the same time, he was suddenly awash with the idea of toying with his prey and watching them struggle in despair and hopelessness before killing them. This notion manifested itself rather strongly, and Situ Cang naturally decided to watch on and observe his prey intently, resolving in his heart to only make his move after they¡¯ve been seriously wounded or incapacitated.

    Thus, over the next few days, Rong Ruihan and the others found themselves at the mercy of several ambushes once again. In fact, these assants seemed to have found the crux of the earlier problem, and they had once again struck at the trio with uracy at every step of their way.

    Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t expect things to take a turn for worse so quickly. Nevertheless, he recalled a portion of his subordinates and instructed them to run interference against the onught of ambushes.

    That said, Rong Ruihan¡¯s resources were limitedpared to the depths of Situ Cang¡¯smand. The assants sent by Situ Cang against them only grew stronger over time, while Rong Ruihan, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ability to resist Situ Cang¡¯s advances grew more and more difficult.

    It was just like how an experienced cat slowly tormented and wore down its prey, watching with macabre intent as the rat struggles and squeals in fear and anguish in its final moments.

    Today, the number of injuries and wounds on Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan¡¯s bodies had increased substantially. On the other hand, it was Jun Xiaomo who remained rtively unscathed as a result of being sandwiched and protected between the other two.

    Jun Xiaomo had always chided the others to look after themselves first and ignore her. Yet whenever a skirmish broke out, the other two would somehow subconsciously end up protecting Jun Xiaomo anyway. It was as though it were second nature to them.

    Jun Xiaomo could understand it if Ye Xiuwen did all these things for her. In fact, not only did she understand it ¨C she found it extremely upsetting. This was because she had always been a burden to her martial brother.

    However, Jun Xiaomo could hardly understand why Rong Ruihan would do all these things for her. They were not close enough to justify such self-sacrificial actions on his part. So, why did the first prince have to shield and protect her time and again?

    Having found no answers after wracking her mind, Jun Xiaomo decided that she would look for the answer directly from the horse¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much of it. This prince happened to save you coincidentally.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly responded as he held onto a Messenger Paper Crane and walked away.

    Is that really the case? Jun Xiaomo stared nkly at Rong Ruihan¡¯s back, but she found no words to express her thoughts.

    Forget it. There was no point wasting any time contemting matters that she could not understand. Her time was better spent improving her own abilities ¨C otherwise, she would always be known as nothing more than a burden to others.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo retrieved the Demonite from her Interspatial Ring and ced it in front of her as she began meditating. This piece of Demonite was exactly the same as the one that she had picked up from Jiang Yutong¡¯s cavern.

    Some distance away, Rong Ruihan revealed a sullen expression on his face as he released the Messenger Paper Crane into the air. Then, he remained standing where he was and gazed vacantly into the horizon. He seemed to be thinking about something; yet at the same time, he seemed to be recalling something.

    He did not give an answer to Yao Mo¡¯s earlier question because even he was puzzled why he had time and again instinctually protected Yao Mo.

    But he had a feeling that, perhaps, this might have to do with a recurring dream that he had been having...

 Chapter 123: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Dreams (Previous Life)

    <h4>Chapter 123: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Dreams (Previous Life)</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    His surroundings werepletely enshrouded in a thick, stirring mist. Rong Ruihan was unable to tell what entity he was right now ¨C whether a soul; a particle in the air; a gentle breeze; or even a secret observer of all that was around.

    The only thing he did know was that he had slipped back into the same, old dream. In fact, this was part of the same dream that he had been having for over twenty years.

    It all began when he was six years old. Rong Ruihan slipped and fell from a rock garden and knocked his head on the ground. As a result of that, he was renderedatose for one day and one night.

    During this period of time, he slipped into a long, tedious dream. In this dream, he saw ady wearing red garbs battling with several fierce-looking men. It was a highly disadvantageous situation where several enemies were grouping up and attacking her at the same time. Yet, a cool and elegant smile was stered on her face at all times ¨C thisdy was clearly filled with confidence.

    It was evident that thisdy¡¯s techniques did note from any of the upstanding or reputable sects. She swung her hands about menacingly, sending shockwaves mming into her opponents who were rushing at her incessantly. These shockwaves exploded on impact, sending blood sttering everywhere. As time went by, thisdy¡¯s glowing jade skin began to be covered with splotches of blood as she battled on.

    However, the crimson-red colour which was often associated with death did not make thisdy look any more fearsome. Instead, the sshes of colour seemed to entuate her charms and imbue her with an irresistible allure.

    The assants were stunned by thisdy¡¯s strength, and they backed off and regrouped, addressing thedy as ¡°Lady Demoness¡± with a tremor in their voice.

    Lady Demoness? Why are these people calling this older sister a Lady Demoness? She¡¯s such a beauty...

    Back then, Rong Ruihan was only six years old and still ignorant about many things in the world. Despite that, he had been so captivated by the sight of this Lady Demoness that he subconsciously inched closer to get a better view. But just then, the Lady Demoness turned around sharply and stared in the direction that he was at, as though she were staring straight at Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He did not know how thisdy intended to deal with a little peeping tom like him.

    Yet thedy in red simply ignored the bewildered Rong Ruihan. Her elegant, almond-shaped eyes dazzled with a cold, clear glimmer, while her lips slowly curled up with a sardonic smile.

    Then, she suddenly turned back towards her assants. This time, the shockwaves that she sent out had turned into invisible des of wind that cleanly cleaved her assants into several pieces.

    This was when Rong Ruihan finally realized that thedy in red had not noticed his presence at all. His young, tender heart swelled up with aplicated emotion that seemed to be a mixture of disappointment and relief at the same time. Nevertheless, that final smile from thatdy in red was like an awl that etched her presence deeply within his heart and soul.

    When Rong Ruihan finally came to his senses, he tried his level best to recall thatdy¡¯s appearances. Yet despite his efforts, his memory of thedy¡¯s appearance remained hazy at best. In the end, all he could recall was that striking, blood red figure of hers that remained etched in the deepest parts of his memory.

    The six years-old Rong Ruihan had thought that thisdy was merely a figment of his imaginations that he had seen in his dreams. Therefore, he felt disappointed and frustrated by the fact that he could no longer recall any details about thisdy. Unexpectedly, he met this very samedy in his dreams a few dayster.

    A second time, followed by a third. A third time, followed by the fourth... Rong Ruihan saw the samedy in her dreams time and time again. By the umpteenth time, Rong Ruihan was absolutely certain that he and thisdy were to be inextricably intertwined by the cords of fate.

    However, if his memory served him well, he had never encountered thisdy in his entire life. Additionally, he was certain that even if he only passed her by on the streets, he would never forget that encounter. This was because thedy was incredibly outstanding and possessed a special disposition.

    In any event, the dreams that Rong Ruihan had experienced were not all the same. The onlymon thread running through these dreams were that thedy in red would always be the protagonist of his dreams.

    Once, Rong Ruihan had even dreamt about thedy in red bing pregnant. At that time, thedy in red had collected and repressed that ruthless, vicious aura of hers, and instead be just like any other warm, doting mother in the world. She would gaze softly at her baby bump as the warm glow of sunlight shines radiantly on her body. It was as though thatyer of sunlight had be an additional gloss of warmth that embellished that portrait of beauty with love and affection.

    Who in the world is thisdy?

    By then, Rong Ruihan had already managed to link up with the remnant members of the Jiang n and learnt that his own mother was also a demonic cultivator. Therefore, he began to wonder whether thisdy was his biological mother.

    Or perhaps, it could be his idea of who his mother was.

    Yet as he began to inquire more from the older members of the Jiang n remnants, their description of his mother seemed to be aplete mismatch with thisdy in red. At the very least, his mother hardly dressed herself in red of her own volition. Furthermore, ever since she had wedded with the king of the Inferno Kingdom, she would dress herself with her pce provided apparel which was anything but red.

    Later, Rong Ruihan even managed to obtain a portrait of his biological mother. With that, he finally ascertained that his mother was not the same person as thatdy in red.

    Once he learnt of this, Rong Ruihan heaved a sigh of relief in his heart.

    That¡¯s right ¨C even though Rong Ruihan was uncertain of who he had hoped thisdy in red to be, he secretly knew in his heart that he did not want thisdy in red to be his own biological mother.

    This sense of bewilderment stayed with him until he was fifteen years-old. That year was when he had his first wet dream.

    The dream was charming and gentle, yet vivid at the same time. In fact, it was so vivid that it almost felt that it had actually happened in real life.

    Rong Ruihan furiously embraced thatdy in red. That aura of fragrance emanating from her body assaulted his olfactory senses as the heaving and sighing of their breaths blended together in perfect harmony. Thedy¡¯s face was even flushed with a red hue as though she were slightly intoxicated.

    He savored her like how he would enjoy the best wine in the world, as he left his mark on every part of thedy¡¯s body. Thedy held him close in a tight embrace, enabling and encouraging him. Her soft, luscious lips opened slightly ajar as they let out bewitching moans.

    However, what thedy called out was not his name. Instead, it was a name that he had never heard of before ¨C Lingyu.

    ¡°Who¡¯s Lingyu?¡± Rong Ruihan jolted to a halt.He tugged at thedy¡¯s chin and questioned her with a fiery tone.

    Thisdy was a person who killed her enemies without batting an eyelid ¨C and even with a smile on her face at times. Right now, sheid under his body, but her eyes were no longer filled with that frigid and decisive intent. There was only her hazy, intoxicated eyes and cloudy pupils.

    With half-closed eyes, thedy continued calling out that stranger¡¯s name ¨C Lingyu.

    In the next moment, Rong Ruihan suddenly understood that the man whom thedy was looking at was not himself. He was invisible to her, while she had been calling out the name of a man whom he had never even heard of.

    Infuriated, Rong Ruihan no longer treated thedy with the tender loving care as he had done before. Instead, with rough and gruff actions, he had his way with thedy. Then, he left in a huff even before the first light of day had hit the earth. All that was left was the chaotic aftermath of their tussle in bed.

    This wet dream had hardly been a good experience for Rong Ruihan. Rong Ruihan sincerely felt that he must be the first once since time immemorial who had, on his first wet dream, dreamt that thedy whom he was fond of had perceived him to be another man.

    He simply could not understand what this dreamt was supposed to mean, or whether he was supposed brush it off and treat the dream as though it had no symbolism or meaning, and that thedy in red was a mere figment of his imagination.

    In particr, Rong Ruihan strongly resisted the notion of thetter.

    Tonight, Rong Ruihan slipped back into the same series of dreams that he had partaken over thest twenty years again. He found himself walking forward the amidst thick, stirring mist. He walked on and on, until the mist finally thinned out in front of him and his surroundings became visible once more.

    This scene waspletely new to him. This was a new ¡°incident¡± that he had never encountered in this series of dreams before.

    ¡°Where is she? Have you located her?¡± Rong Ruihan heard himself speaking in a hoarse voice. It was as though he had just experienced a traumatic incident.

    This question of his had been askedpletely without any pretext or context. Yet for some reason, Rong Ruihan could somehow tell that the ¡°her¡± he had earlier referred to was in fact thatdy in red.

    ¡°Responding to master, we¡¯ve located her. She has been captured by the eight great sects and locked up in the dungeon under Deste Peak.¡± A subordinate half-knelt on the ground as he respectfully reported.

    ¡°Dun-...geon?!¡± A profound sense of fury erupted from the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart. He flicked his sleeves in his anger, and the subordinate was immediately sent flying as he spurted out a mouthful of blood. Then, his subordinate mmed back to the ground. This subordinate had been reduced to such a sorry state that he was barely hanging onto his life.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t I instructed all of you to protect her properly? How did she end up being captured and thrown into the dungeon?!¡± Rong Ruihan walked over menacingly towards his subordinate. His ferociously billowing aura weighed down so strongly that his subordinate¡¯s bones had even started to make cracking and popping sounds.

    Two years ago, Rong Ruihan faced an imminent breakthrough in his cultivation level and thus hastily entered a period of closed-door cultivation. But before he entered his closed-door cultivation, he had particrly instructed his subordinates to discreetly protect and watch over thatdy in red.

    Thisdy in red was indisputably strong. However, this did not change the fact that there were a multitude of cultivators who wanted her dead and would actively make attempts at her life. No matter how strong she was, there was no guarantee that she would not slip up one day.

    ¡°Mas-...Master...your humble servant is too weak...already tried my best...¡± The subordinate who had been half-kneeling on the ground was nowpletely lying prostrate on the ground. He had not hesitated to plead for mercy because he was afraid that Rong Ruihan would squash him like an ant in his fury.

    The pressure continued to build up, and the subordinate was at his limits. Then, just when he thought that this was the end for him, the pressure on his body suddenly vanished.

    ¡°Rally the troops and follow me to the Deste Peak. If we still don¡¯t manage to rescue her, then you know what to do.¡± Rong Ruihan coldly ordered, before he flicked his sleeves and left in a huff. The subordinates behind him immediately responded affirmatively in unison.

    Then, as Rong Ruihan and his troops finally made their way to the Deste Peak, they noticed from afar that a pir of crimson-red light shot burst straight through the cloud and into the skies. This column of red light glowed with an ominous foreboding, and anyone who saw it would immediately think of it as death¡¯s omen.

    Momentster, the entire Deste Peak tremored with a thunderous crackle, following which the entire mountain peak was swallowed by a massive sinkhole. As a result of that, the innumerable formation arrays that had been set up around Deste Peak to fetter and bind thedy in red were also instantly destroyed.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart palpitated with immense rm, while the bulging veins on his head throbbed uncontrobly.

    Thedy in red has met with a cmity!

    His intuition dered a grim prognosis of her fate, and he rushed headlong towards the Deste Peak with reckless abandon. Along the way, he encountered several guards and patrolmen who were guarding the Deste Peak, but their resistance proved to be futile as he destroyed each and every single one of them with a ferocious swipe at them.

    It was just like how thatdy in red did in the past.

    Rong Ruihan was covered with blood by the time he finally arrived at the foot of what used to be the Deste Peak. Yet in its ce was a massive sinkhole which was filled with stone debris and rubble which were strewn about haphazardly. Despite that, one could still tell that this ce used to be a dungeon for chaining up ¡°criminals¡±.

    Rong Ruihan knew that he could not split and dig through these stone debris and rubble with his powerful talismans because he was afraid of hurting thedy. Therefore, he imbued himself with an augmenting talisman, got on his knees, and began digging with his bare hands.

    In fact, with the aid of his talismans as well as his entourage of subordinates, their digging proceeded very quickly. But even then, every single second that passed by without results seemed to be an eternity of anguish to Rong Ruihan.

    Finally, their digging bore fruit, and they managed to uncover thedy. However, thedy was already dead through and through. Furthermore, he nearly fell apart when he saw the extent of the torture thisdy had been put through just before her death.

    Thedy¡¯s spiritual roots had been severed; her cultivation was crippled. Both her eyes had been gouged out; and she was so malnourished that she was no better than a piece of shriveled skin wrapped around a bag of bones.

    Of course, the most important part of her body was her belly, because that was where she bore their child. But when Rong Ruihan sent his spiritual energy probing about the remains of her body, the only things he saw in her belly were the indelible scars of a devastating trauma.

    Their child must also be gone...

    Slowly but surely, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes began to be dyed a deep, crimson-red colour, and the demonic energy he had repressed and kept under restraint for so long began to roil and churn as it marked the advent of a massive superstorm.

    ¡°Master! It¡¯s getting dangerous, wake up!¡±

    ¡°Master! get a hold of the demonic energy in your body! You¡¯re losing control soon!¡±

    ......

    Their subordinates began to call out from a distance away, but their cautionary words were nothing more than feeble attempts at suppressing the iing tempest. Right now, Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart was obsessed with one thing, and one thing only ¨C revenge.

    After Rong Ruihan lost control of his mind, he experienced an immense surge in hisbat abilities in exchange for the loss of his rationality. The hidden experts and sect elders from all eight great sects of that cultivation world were slowly felled by him one by one. He passed through the cultivation world like a malevolent, raging storm of devastation ¨C leaving only blood and death in the wake of his path.

    Rong Ruihan even managed to track down thatdy who had murdered his child, as well as the entourage ofckeys who recognized her as matriarch. As they gazed at Rong Ruihan in absolute horror and terror, he proceeded to crush and split each of their heads without mercy.

    However, losing control and entering that state of maddened frenzy was a double-edged sword ¨C the bacsh to the cultivator was extremely great as well. Therefore, by the time Rong Ruihan managed to get the vengeance that he had set out to achieve, he had already been reduced to nothing more than an arrow at the end of its flight.

    In his final moments when he copsed to the ground, Rong Ruihan¡¯s head momentarily cleared up once more.

    Even though this moment of rity was nothing more than a split second, it was sufficient time for a single notion to sh across his mind with pristine rity ¨C

    If he could be reborn, he hoped that thedy in red would love him instead, and not that person named Lingyu who did not reciprocate her love.

    The dream faded into darkness; while Rong Ruihan roused from his deep slumber and returned to reality.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s face felt cold and chilly. He touched his face, and he noticed that two damp streaks of tears ran down his cheeks.

 Chapter 124: Situ Cangâ€™s Personal Involvement

    <h4>Chapter 124: Situ Cang¡¯s Personal Involvement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Hey, what happened to you? Are you alright?¡±

    A clear, crisp voice resounded from the side. Rong Ruihan was still relishing in the lingering emotions from his dream when he was jolted back to his senses.

    He covered his eyes with his hands. As he wiped off the tear stains, Rong Ruihan struggled to collect his emotions andpose himself. Then, when he finally removed his hands, he was that expressionless and stoic first prince once again.

    Yao Mo¡¯s appearance immediately entered his field of vision. This young man¡¯s face carried a trace of worry on it.

    They had traveled and lived together with each other for some days now. Furthermore, they had fought alongside each other, entrusting each other their backs. Their earlier vignce and guardedness towards each other have diminished, and they had also developed some form of friendship and trust for each other.

    Naturally, Jun Xiaomo saw Rong Ruihan as her friend in her heart. But in Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart, his feelings towards Yao Mo was a lot moreplicated than that.

    At the beginning, he had not even considered the possibility that Yao Mo and thatdy of his dreams could even be remotely connected to each other. After all, one was a man, while the other was ady. One wore green, while the other donned herself in red. One was charming and suave, while the other was aggressively beautiful. No matter how he looked, they were two separate, distinct persons.

    However, whenever Yao Mo fought against the assants who ambushed them, hisbat disposition would somehow always cause Rong Ruihan to think about thatdy in red.

    They possessed the same kind of ruthlessness and decisiveness about them.

    There were times when Yao Mo looked like apletely different character inbat than how he usually behaved. But Rong Ruihan did not fear Yao Mo or shun him because of this; in fact, he would even unknowingly nce over at Yao Mo with a strange glint in his eye from time to time.

    If he ignored Yao Mo¡¯s appearances, the expressions he made duringbat was exactly the same as thedy in red! Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart would skip a beat whenever he thought about the renewed possibilities of this.

    It was as though he had seen a shadow or a trace of thatdy in red in Yao Mo. It was only a pity that he never managed to get the name of thedy in red, even at the end of her life...

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo naturally never thought that she would have left such an emotional burden behind in her previous life. It never even crossed her mind that, despite changing her appearances and the nature of her aura, it was instead the tiniest, idiosyncratic mannerisms and one¡¯sbat disposition that were the hardest things to change.

    Ye Xiuwen had grown suspicious of her true identity through her mannerisms; while Rong Ruihan had found clues to her true identity through herbat disposition.

    However, these two men had kept their suspicions buried deep within their heart for now.

    Even then, Jun Xiaomo had noticed that Rong Ruihan had recently begun to stare nkly at her as though in a daze. She could not help but wonder whether it was the chaotic demonic energy in his body that was starting to get to his head.

    Therefore, with some measure of worry and concern for Rong Ruihan, Jun Xiaomo pped resoundingly in front of Rong Ruihan¡¯s face as she yelled, ¡°Hey, hey! Wake up! Now¡¯s not the time to space out.¡±

    Rong Ruihan began to collect his thoughts once more. He sat up and rubbed his forehead as he replied sheepishly, ¡°Sorry about that. I must¡¯ve been too tired these few days, and I wasn¡¯t able to clear my head when I woke up earlier.¡±

    After being on the run for some time now, Rong Ruihan had finally managed to set aside the airs of his princely arrogance about him. He no longer habitually referred to himself as ¡°this prince¡±, and Jun Xiaomo naturally felt as though the trust and friendship between them had strengthened as well.

    Furthermore, it would have been practically impossible to hear Rong Ruihan apologize or say the words ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡± in the past!

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head genially as she replied, ¡°It¡¯s alright. I could also tell that you were struggling to focus earlier. Your eyebrows were knitted tightly together as though you were in pain. That¡¯s why I tried to rouse you from your stupor. Anyhow, here, this is for you. I¡¯ve grilled some rabbit meat earlier this morning. You¡¯ll feel better after eating something.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was speaking from experience right now. Her little packrat might have been infected by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s contagious habits, and it behaved in the exact same manner as Jun Xiaomo ¨C both were gluttons who enjoyed pleasing their minds through their stomachs.

    Rong Ruihan received the grilled rabbit from Yao Mo¡¯s hands with gratitude. A discreet smile crept up the corners of his mouth, but his eyes visibly darkened instead.

    Perhaps I¡¯d been thinking too much? Thedy in red is filled with such a vicious and ruthless aura as though she were prepared to bury the world together with her. How could she possibly have room for such a rxed and content disposition like Yao Mo?

    It wasn¡¯t as though Rong Ruihan had never suspected a connection between Yao Mo and Jun Xiaomo. After all, he had once even questioned Yao Mo on whether he had used an Alteration Talisman to change his appearances.

    But suspicions were suspicions. Without seeing Yao Mo¡¯s true appearances, this suspicion of his could never be fully investigated and verified. In fact, he would only find that his suspicions would time and again be tested by Yao Mo¡¯s little actions.

    How would Rong Ruihan be able to know that Jun Xiaomo could only maintain her present, affable appearances because everyone who mattered to her were still alive and well around her? She was a far cry from what she was in her previous life when everything was gone, and all she had left was her hatred, her regret and her loneliness.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s approaching us. We need to leave right now.¡± Ye Xiuwen had got up early in the morning to practice his sword arts as usual, and he checked on their surroundings as he did so as well.

    ¡°Could we have been discovered by that old fogey Grand Vizier again?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows.

    She had set up several formation arrays in their surroundings to conceal their presence. By now, she had already cycled through well over ten different formation arrays, and she was all out of potentially feasible formation arrays for their purposes. Despite that, the Grand Vizier still managed to locate their whereabouts.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened as he began to suggest, ¡°Like I¡¯ve said, ...¡±

    ¡°No way!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately leapt to her feet as she interjected. She ran over to his side and clutched tightly at his hand as she responded, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯ve already said it before, this isn¡¯t a personal matter. Don¡¯t you dare harbour any thoughts of sacrificing yourself so that we can escape. I¡¯m not going to condone that!¡±

    A few days ago, Ye Xiuwen had received Di Yue¡¯s message and got wind of the fact that the Grand Vizier had managed to track them down time and again because the Grand Vizier had now got possession of an artefact that belonged to Ye Xiuwen.

    After he saw the message, Ye Xiuwen thought of luring away the Grand Vizier and hisckeys so that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan could escape. However, Yao Mo had also seen the message, and she could immediately guess what Ye Xiuwen was thinking.

    No matter how hard Ye Xiuwen tried to convince them, Yao Mo would regardless insist on acting together. He was like a piece of candy that had thoroughly adhered itself to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hair ¨C it could not be removed no matter how hard he tried.

    Despite that, Yao Mo¡¯s persistence deeply moved the exasperated Ye Xiuwen.

    Then in the next few days, Jun Xiaomo insisted that Ye Xiuwen slept beside her so that he would not be able to secretly leave when everyone was asleep. Jun Xiaomo would awaken at the slightest movements around to check on her martial brother. As a result,rge eyebags formed under her eyes in no time.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that in such situations where their opponents waged gueri warfare against them, the fact that Yao Mo was unable to maintain rity of mind was an extremely dangerous thing. As such, under his repeated reassurances that he would not secretly leave at night, Yao Mo finally had one good night¡¯s rest.

    This morning, the notion of luring their persecutors away had once again crossed his mind. However, Jun Xiaomo interrupted him even before he could even get started.

    ¡°And besides, if he¡¯s using an artefact that you had carried on you, your personal aura on that artefact would only dwindle and grow weaker over time. The Grand Vizier won¡¯t be able to use this formation array for much longer. Once that formation array is no longer effective, then there is no doubt that we will be out of harm¡¯s way.¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnly explicated.

    Ye Xiuwen locked eyes with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eager and sincere eyes, and he knew that there was nothing he could say in rebuttal.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Thank you, Little Mo.¡±

    Satisfied, Jun Xiaomo finally smiled.

    As Rong Ruihan looked on at the intimate atmosphere that left no room for a third party, his heart somehow sank, and he turned his attention elsewhere.

    Just this moment, his heart suddenly constricted with anxiety and his vignce surged to its peak!

    ¡°Danger!¡± He only had time to yell out this one-word warning as he leapt back reflexively.

    Shk! Shk! Shk! Several ice arrows immediatelynded where Rong Ruihan was originally standing and prated deep into the ground.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen reacted extremely quickly as well. He shoved Jun Xiaomo towards his back, unsheathed his sword and cut down the ice arrows that had been shot towards him.

    However, this wave of ice arrows had only been the prelude to the oing attacks. Within moments, a flurry of various types of attacks immediately sted towards them from out of nowhere.

    Having almost been caught off guard by the ice arrows, Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo ands Rong Ruihan hurriedly adjusted their positions and got into a three-man defensive formation.

    This was a form of tacit understanding that they had developed after having experiences several battles together. Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, who both possessed strongerbat abilities, stood outside and blocked most of the attacks; while Jun Xiaomo use a plethora of talismans and formation arrays to buff and assist them inbat.

    These assants evidently intended to conceal their physical appearances from them. None of the trio could tell where the assants were located. Therefore, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan both expanded the range of their divine sense, hoping to uncover the location of their enemies. However, the assants were well prepared this time ¨C wave after wave of attacks swept towards them from all directions, and the sources of these attacks were well concealed amidst the chaotic and dazzling disy of spells and offensive abilities.

    It won¡¯t be easy to deal with this ambush!

    Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen had the same assessment of the situation at hand.

    On the other side, Situ Cang, who had earlier applied an Invisibility Talisman on himself, trained his gaze on the trio like a vicious, poisonous snake. Slowly, a macabre smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    That¡¯s right. His subordinates had failed in their ambushes time and again, while Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura on that essory of his was dwindling with every use. Therefore, the Grand Vizier decided to take matters into his own hands and seal the fate of these three insignificant worms.

    Furthermore, the ones who were concealed and observing the trio right now included not only Situ Cang and his subordinates ¨C it also included the disciples from Dawn Sect.

    Apart from Di Yue, every single other disciple watched calmly as the weary Ye Xiuwen continued to deal with the onught of attacks. Faced with the persuasion of rewards and the dissuasion of threats, they were prepared to passively watch on as their martial brother¡¯s life was imed by others.

    They were unable to defeat the Grand Vizier, so there was no reason for them to oppose the Grand Vizier to begin with. Yet these disciples had hardly considered the fact that they would already have been dead if not for the aid which Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had rendered in their earlier encounter with the Demonvine. In other words, they owed Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo their lives!

    This was the main reason why Jun Xiaomo scorned all the other Dawn Sect disciples apart from those under the Heavenly Peak ¨C the notion of ¡°sect fraternity¡± meant nothing to these other Dawn Sect disciples at all!

    Jun Xiaomo knew about the hypocrisy of their lip service through her previous life¡¯s experiences.

    Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen were even worse. Right now, their eyes gleamed brightly in delight as they watched on expectantly ¨C how could they not be pleased by the prospects of disposing of one of their greatest rivals in the Sect?

    Ke Xinwen had even eagerly reported to the Sect the fact that Ye Xiuwen had now been implicated with a demonic cultivator.

    To any ¡°upstanding and reputable¡± sect, including the Dawn Sect, being implicated with a demonic cultivator was an extremely shameful thing. As long as the Sect could ascertain this fact, then even the Sect Elders were not going to say anything about the disciples passively watching on as Ye Xiuwen perished before their very eyes.

    A vicious smile crept up the corner of Ke Xinwen¡¯s lips.

 Chapter 125: Jun Linxuanâ€™s Infuriation

    <h4>Chapter 125: Jun Linxuan¡¯s Infuriation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    At the same time in Dawn Sect, the Sect Leader He Zhang had called an urgent meeting with all Peakmasters and Sect Elders, saying that he had a pressing matter that they needed to discuss together.

    The Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, Jun Linxuan, was still in his closed-door cultivation. Therefore, his wife, Liu Qingmei, attended the meeting on his behalf.

    ¡°That¡¯s not possible! How could Little Wen possibly be in cahoots with those demonic cultivators?!¡± After listening to He Zhang¡¯s exnation of the issue at hand, Liu Qingmei stood up in fury and mmed her hands on the table.

    In Liu Qingmei¡¯s eyes, Ye Xiuwen was almost akin to her adoptive son. She had watched Ye Xiuwen grow and mature ever since he was a young little sprout. Therefore, her protective, maternal instincts kicked in strongly right now as she refused to see Ye Xiuwen receive the Sect¡¯s punishment.

    ¡°Martial sister Qingmei, please don¡¯t get so riled up. Do you think that I want to see a Dawn Sect disciple in cahoots with a demonic cultivator either? But apart from Ye Xiuwen, all the other disciples who are out on their travels have confirmed this.¡± He Zhang had always harboured furtive thoughts in his heart for Liu Qingmei. Even though his heart experienced immense tion from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s predicament right now, he nevertheless had to disy a look of worry and concern on his face.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the proof? If there¡¯s no proof, then this is nothing more than nder!¡± Liu Qingmei¡¯s beautifully sharp brows were now knitted tightly together. Her eyes red viciously at He Zhang, and a trace of infuriation could be seen in the depths of her pupils.

    In Liu Qingmei¡¯s eyes, He Zhang was no longer her dear martial brother at this moment. Instead, he was now an antagonist out to harm her child!

    It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo hadpletely inherited her mother¡¯s traits in this respect ¨C as long as she ced someone in her heart, then there was no doubt that she would go all out to protect that person regardless of the kind of taboo or unforgivable actmitted by that person.

    Furthermore, without hard evidence supporting these allegations, everything said by He Zhang right now was just one side of the story.

    He Zhang sighed pretentiously, before handing over Ke Xinwen¡¯s message to Liu Qingmei. At the same time, he instructed that the letter be passed on towards each and every Peakmaster and Sect Elder for their inspection and perusal, for their own determination of the matter.

    Liu Qingmei grimaced as she slowly read the contents of this letter, line by line. Then, when she finally turned her attention to the signatories of the letter, her pupils immediately constricted with disbelief.

    The reason for her shock was that the letter was not signed off merely by Ke Xinwen alone ¨C it included all the other disciples who had gone out on these travels. In fact, not only did it carry their signatures, they had also left their unique seals on the letter and imprinted their aura on these seals, proving the authenticity of their signatures and seals.

    Given the circumstances, this was a letter that could hardly be refuted. However, ¨C

    ¡°There¡¯s still another person.¡± Liu Qingmei spotted a loophole with her keen senses and clutched tightly at the letter as she articted word by word.

    ¡°What?¡± He Zhang couldn¡¯t understand what Liu Qingmei meant.

    ¡°There¡¯s still another person!¡± Liu Qingmei repeated her earlier statement with greater emphasis. She lifted her head, locked eyes with him and borated with a frigid tone, ¡°When Little Wen went out on these travels, he took two other Dawn Sect disciples with him as his teammates. One of his teammates called Di Yue hasn¡¯t signed off on this letter.¡±

    Liu Qingmei refuted He Zhang in a slightly overbearing manner. Given that her husband was still locked in his closed-door cultivation, she knew that if she did not stand her ground and aggressively rebuke the allegations right now, these Sect Elders might very well convict Ye Xiuwen without conducting any proper investigations of the matter.

    Liu Qingmei had lost all respect for the Sect Elders ever since that incident when her daughter was punished by the Sect for trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds.

    That said, the basis for her refutation was still a little bit of a stretch. He Zhang pretended to be exasperated as he walked over towards Liu Qingmei, intending to pat her shoulder reassuringly. Unexpectedly, Liu Qingmei tilted her body and avoided this gesture of his.

    Right now, Liu Qingmei¡¯s gaze towards He Zhang was filled with nothing more than a deep sense of frigidity and enmity.

    A dark and gloomy expression flickered in the depths of He Zhang¡¯s eyes as he retracted his hands. Then, He Zhang exined with a sigh, ¡°Martial sister, I know that you¡¯re really angry at the situation. But you have to understand that Dawn Sect simply cannot afford to harbour a disciple that had been implicated with a demonic cultivator. This would tarnish the Sect¡¯s reputation and topple our foothold among the rest of the mid-tier sects. As for that one person who hasn¡¯t signed on this letter, don¡¯t you agree that this hardly stands for much? After all, most of the disciples have already endorsed the contents of the letter. Under the testimony of these other disciples, would theck of one endorsement absolve Ye Xiuwen of all liability just like that?¡±

    He Zhang spoke with sincerity and ostensible logic and reasoning. Yet Liu Qingmei simply shrugged it off.

    Or perhaps it might be more urate to say that she had heard every single word of He Zhang¡¯s exnation, but her protective maternal instincts dictated that she had to shield Ye Xiuwen to the bitter end.

    ¡°I don¡¯t care!¡± Liu Qingmei ignored He Zhang. With an erect back, she stood her ground firmly and swept her gaze around at the other Peakmasters and Sect Elders within the room as she coldly added, ¡°Back then, all of you had leveraged the fact that my husband was in closed-door cultivation and hurt my daughter. Are you all thinking of taking further advantage of this and disposing of my husband¡¯s First-Seat Disciple right now? Is the Heavenly Peak really such an eyesore to you? If that¡¯s the case, we can uproot the entire Heavenly Peak and leave this Sect once my husband is out of his closed-door cultivation. From thenceforth, we will each walk our own path and make our own decisions. The Heavenly Peak and Dawn Sect will no longer have anything to do with each other!¡±

    Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan had both grown up as members and disciples of Dawn Sect. Over time, they had developed such a strong sense of camaraderie with the Sect itself that this sense of family and belonging to the Sect that made them reject the much-coveted offers from upper-tier sects and return to Dawn Sect to establish their own Peak.

    However, ever since the previous Sect Leader passed on, the Sect gradually changed and became different from what they had known it to be. In the past, she had always focused her mind on her daughter, while her husband had beenpletely obsessed with his cultivation. Therefore, they werepletely oblivious to the innumerable schemes and plots that had sprung up around them, and they had even fallen prey to some of these at times.

    But now, as she stood in the midst of the Penal Hall addressing the Peakmasters and Sect Elders who mostly seemed to stand in agreement with He Zhang, she suddenly discovered that those Peakmasters and Sect Elders no longer seemed to have any regard for the concept of sect fraternity as they had used to. Instead, their eyes were only filled with furtive and insidious thoughts that could not be allowed to see the light of day.

    Liu Qingmei¡¯s lips tightened anxiously, while her heart swelled with ever increasing vignce against them.

    He Zhang swore in his heart. He had never expected Liu Qingmei to be so protective over Ye Xiuwen. She had even grown suspicious of them as a result of this incident.

    He Zhang knew that this little martial sister of his was different from Jun Linxuan, a man concerned only about his own cultivation. Her thought processes were meticulous and filled with introspection. Therefore, he knew that several schemes which he had already put to motion had just ground to a halt as soon as Liu Qingmei¡¯s suspicions were aroused. In fact, she might even begin to uncover some of his previous ploys against her if she were to bring her mind to those matters.

    Just as He Zhang was about to cajole Liu Qingmei to mitigate the situation, a sonorous voice boomed out from outside the Penal Hall with much gravitas, ¡°Who dares to convict my disciple in my absence?!¡±

    As this voice rang out, a stern, imposing figure with striking appearances strode majestically into the Penal Hall.

    ¡°Linxuan!¡± Liu Qingmei saw her pir of support walking into the hall, and she ran over to him and leapt into his bosom.

    Her earlier aggressive, overbearing disposition was nowpletely gone, and she had revealed in its ce the disposition of a weak, vulnerabledy who sought the support of her husband.

    This period of time that her husband was locked up in closed-door cultivation had been too eventful for her ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s punishment by the Sect Elders, the fall in her cultivation level, and now the prospects of their most beloved disciple facing the charge of being implicated with a demonic cultivator...

    One after another, these heavy burdens had been unforgivingly piled onto Liu Qingmei¡¯s body. When day turned to night, her burdens were further amplified by the fac that there was not a single person she could pour her emotions out and ventte her frustrations to. She knew that for everyone¡¯s sake, she could only persevere and grit her teeth tightly as she hefted these burdens all by herself.

    Jun Linxuan had always loved his wife immensely. He immediately returned her embrace and patted her back reassuringly without saying a word.

    He Zhang took all of this in, and he squinted his eyes as he suppressed the rising jealousy and fury in his heart.

    Even though Liu Qingmei had always deeply respected He Zhang in his capacity as her martial brother, she had never disyed such reliance and vulnerability in front of him before. Therefore, he watched on in fury and abject jealousy at the special ce Jun Linxuan had in Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart.

    Hisbat abilities were hardly worse than Jun Linxuan¡¯s to begin with! What basis did his martial sister have for choosing that unromantic and insensitive wooden block that was Jun Linxuan over him?!

    His jealousy was like a prick that had stabbed straight into his heart, and He Zhang had never been able to pull it out after all those years.

    On the other hand, the other Peakmasters and Sect Elders reacted differently from He Zhang. These other Peakmasters and Sect Elders did not harbour any ulterior motive towards Liu Qingmei, and they therefore watched the tearful reunion of the husband and wife duo with indifference.

    That said, the Grand Elder who possessed the highest cultivation abilities nevertheless discovered a difference in Jun Linxuan¡¯s disposition ¨C

    ¡°Linxuan, has your cultivation level risen to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage?¡± The Grand Elder slowly questioned with a calm tone of voice, yet he trained his eyes on Jun Linxuan with aplicated gaze.

    Achieving the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation before the age of two-hundred! Heavenly Peak Peakmaster Jun Linxuan¡¯s abilities and talents were truly impressive ¨C it could even be described as heaven-defying!

    ¡°Secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage?!¡± He Zhang¡¯s earlier jealousy was immediately rendered to y second fiddle to this striking piece of news that jolted him back to his senses. At this moment, He Zhang could hardly find it within himself to maintain any modicum of cordiality with Jun Linxuan any further.

    He had thought Jun Linxuan¡¯s closed-door cultivation was for the purposes of breaking through to the elementary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. How could he have known that Jun Linxuan had in a short span of time broken through twice and leapt straight into the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation from his earlier advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation?

    This Jun Linxuan...... He Zhang¡¯s heart shivered slightly. He knew that disposing of Jun Linxuan was going to be more difficult than ever before.

    Even Liu Qingmei did not expect her husband to immediately break through to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation.

    No wonder Jun Linxuan¡¯s closed-door cultivation was especially long this time. Liu Qingmei thought to herself, before turning her thoughts back to her daughter and Ye Xiuwen with perplexity.

    It¡¯s still good that he¡¯s in the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage right now. This way, he will be able to ensure Little Wen¡¯s safety.

    The cultivation world was ruled by the strong. Without the backing of absolute strength, no one would care about listening to a person¡¯s logical reasoning.

    But if one possessed absolute strength, no one would be able to pin the me on a person even if he annihted an entire sect of his own volition. Of course, this were unless several sects joined forces to condemn the perpetrator.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had experienced just that. She was pped with various charges by different sects and ended up being persecuted by the eight great sects for several hundreds of years.

    Yet Jun Linxuan did not respond to the exmations and queries of the others. Liu Qingmei held onto him tightly and briefly got him up to speed on the pressing matters at hand. Naturally, the most pressing one was the charge that Ye Xiuwen was on the verge of being convicted for. As for her daughter¡¯s fall in cultivation level, that was something that could wait till they returned to their abode.

    After processing Liu Qingmei¡¯s exnations, Jun Linxuan immediately erupted with the pressure of a secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage cultivator. This was the manifestation of his infuriation ¨C

    ¡°You dare to convict my First-Seat Disciple with one meagre letter?! What wanton behaviour! What audacity!¡± Jun Linxuan¡¯s outburst of energy knew no bounds, ¡°Let me make this clear to all of you ¨C whoever wishes to convict my disciple will have to do so over my dead body!¡±

 Chapter 126: Exposed!

    <h4>Chapter 126: Exposed!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Linxuan would never believe that Ye Xiuwen would be in cahoots with a demonic cultivator. He had seen Ye Xiuwen grow up since young and he knew this disciple inside out. Even if they could prove without a doubt that Ye Xiuwen had indeed been implicated with a demonic cultivator, Jun Linxuan had absolute faith that Ye Xiuwen must have his own reasons for doing so.

    It had to be said that Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were extremely doting parents. Despite the fact that Jun Linxuan held high expectations for his disciple and daughter, he would never hesitate to shelter them under his wings whenever others harboured any thoughts of bullying or oppressing his children.

    Given Jun Linxuan¡¯s obsession over his own cultivation, there was not a single person within the Sect whose cultivation speed could evene close to matching his. At this moment, the only two who could possibly subdue Jun Linxuan and keep him in check were the Grand Elder and the Second Elder. Even the Sect Leader He Zhang did not possess a cultivation level that could match Jun Linxuan¡¯s. Therefore, when Jun Linxuan expressed his intention to protect his disciple to the very end, the other Peakmasters and Sect Elders could only look listlessly at each other with hesitation in their eyes.

    A sect¡¯s overall strength was directly rted to the existence of experts within their numbers. The Dawn Sect was presently ranked second among all of the mid-tier sects, and this wasrgely attributable to Jun Linxuan and his efforts. Not only did Jun Linxuan possess immense abilities, the disciples of Heavenly Peak who were under Jun Linxuan¡¯s charge could hardly be considered weak as well. Therefore, it was an indisputable fact that the existence of Heavenly Peak had increased the overall strength of Dawn Sect.

    Now that Jun Linxuan had broken through to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation, Dawn Sect was certainly poised to vie for the position of the top spot among all mid-tier sects. Despite the difference of only one position in the rankings, the difference in benefits to the Sect were incredible ¨C the mere difference in their ess to resources and connections already justified the effort vying for the top spot.

    Furthermore, it was only when a sect took the top spot among all mid-tier sects did it possess the qualifications to transcend the chasm and be an upper-tier sect. Otherwise, Dawn Sect would forever be stuck in the rut among the mid-tier sects.

    Some of the other Peakmasters and Sect Elders behaved in an even more peculiar manner. On the one hand, they feared the consequences of Jun Linxuan¡¯s surge in cultivation level. Yet on the other hand, they were already nning how they were going to ¡°borrow¡± Jun Linxuan¡¯s abilities to achieve their own goals.

    After weighing the costs and benefits, the Grand Elder and the Second Elder finally made their decision ¨C

    ¡°Since Linxuan thinks that the evidence is insufficient for the purposes of convicting Ye Xiuwen on the charge of being implicated with a demonic cultivator, then let¡¯s recall him from his travels to address the charge.¡±

    Jun Linxuan knitted his eyebrows, ¡°My disciple is present midway through his travels. How can you just recall him like that?¡±

    ¡°How else should we resolve this matter unless we recall him? If we find out that it¡¯s all a misunderstanding, then we¡¯ll let him continue with his travels from where he left off by allowing him to use several Teleportation Scrolls to reach the Mystic Woods.¡± The Second Elder answered with some displeasure in his voice.

    ¡°Ah, if this is all a misunderstanding, then that means the other disciples would¡¯ve been ndering him. nderers ought to be punished by the Sect as well, right?¡± Liu Qingmei mocked, ¡°Since you intend to recall Little Wen from his travels, then wouldn¡¯t it be fair to recall all the other disciples as well? This way, they can confront and address each other fairly on the allegations!¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s heart thumped vigorously. He never would have expected Liu Qingmei to make such an overbearing request.

    However, this was notpletely unexpected either. After all, his martial sister had always possessed a sharp and incisive disposition. It was only after she had a child that she tapered off and grew warmer and more considerate.

    He Zhang did not want his disciple Qin Lingyu to return midway through his travels either. After all, a proper inquest was an extremely long and arduous process. Furthermore, if the evidence were found to becking, then matters could be dragged on for an even longer period of time.

    The Second Elder had made such a suggestion earlier in order to disadvantage Ye Xiuwen and cause him to miss the travels this year and potentially even receive the Sect¡¯s punishment. However, the moment he realized that Liu Qingmei was going to implicate the other disciples as well, he knew that his earlier train of thought had met with a dead end.

    Recalling all of the disciples was an extremely unwise thing to do. After all, the Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition was about to take ce very soon. Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen were all disciples with the potential to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. If these three disciples missed out on this year¡¯s travels and failed to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, then Dawn Sect was almost certainly going to be theughingstock among all the mid-tier sects at the Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition.

    As he thought about these matters, the Second Elder knew that he had no choice but to forcibly suppress the scheming intent in his heart.

    He Zhang had always been excellent at putting on pretenses and reacting to difficult situations. Therefore, in that very moment when he knew that things were not going to end up going his way, he immediately changed his tact and acted as the mediator instead.

    ¡°Martial sister Qingmei makes sense. However, the travels are an integral part to their cultivational development, and it wouldn¡¯t be good if they missed out on this opportunity. Let¡¯s do it this way instead. We¡¯ll send a message to them, telling them to finish their task and breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage as soon as possible. Then, we¡¯ll shelve the matter for now and re-open it for investigation once all of them are back. I wonder what the other Peakmasters and Sect Elders think of this suggestion?¡±

    The Grand Elder deliberated for a moment, before nodding his head as he responded, ¡°That seems to be the only way out.¡±

    Given that the Sect Leader and the Grand Elder have both concurred in the best way moving forward, the other attendees at the meeting no longer had much of a choice as they hastily nodded in agreement.

    Jun Linxuan snorted indignantly, before flicking his sleeves and leaving without another word. Liu Qingmei followed closely by his side.

    He Zhang thought for a moment, before hurriedly following after them. Then, with a tone filled with remorse, he apologized, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, martial brother Jun. I¡¯d never thought things woulde to a head like this. I was only trying to do my duties as a Sect Leader earlier, so I hope you can be understanding and not take it to heart.¡±

    Jun Linxuan red back at him with frigid eyes, but he remained taciturn.

    Unconcerned, He Zhang smiled courteously as he added, ¡°I still haven¡¯t congratted martial brother Jun for breaking through to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation! How about this ¨Ce over to my ce tonight. I¡¯ll open a few bottles of spirit wine to celebrate with martial brother Jun. We won¡¯t retire until we¡¯re drunk. What do you say?¡±

    ¡°Spare the thought.¡± Jun Linxuan was a frank and candid man who could hardly care less about tactful responses, ¡°Until my First-Seat Disciple¡¯s matter is thoroughly resolved, I¡¯ve got no mood to indulge in wine and banal chatter with you.¡±

    As he finished speaking, Jun Linxuan immediately turned to leave with Liu Qingmei by his side. They walked past He Zhang and disappeared from sight as they turned the corner at the end of a small street.

    He Zhang stared at their backs as they took their leave, and a cold, vicious intent began to congeal in the depths of his eyes.

    Once they returned to their abode, Liu Qingmei could no longer maintain the imposing air that she had put on earlier any longer. The rims of her eyes reddened, and tears began to well up and roll out of her eyes in glistening globules.

    As soon as Jun Linxuan noticed that his wife was crying, he grew anxious and flustered. The disposition apanying a Peakmaster immediately waned and weakened, and he was awash with a sense of helplessness.

    ¡°Don¡¯t cry, don¡¯t cry...¡± After so many years, Jun Linxuan still had not learnt how to properly console a person. He simply hugged Liu Qingmei around the shoulders as he repeatedly told her not to cry.

    However, it was precisely the daftness and simplicity in which Jun Linxuan dealt with Liu Qingmei¡¯s tumultuous emotions that somehow managed to appease her.

    Under Jun Linxuan¡¯s stiff constion, the tears in Liu Qingmei¡¯s eyes gradually began to dwindle and subside. Then, she bit down on her lips as she said, ¡°That bunch of old fogeys in the Dawn Sect are really out to bully those from the Heavenly Peak. First, our daughter, and then now our disciple.¡±

    ¡°Daughter?! What happened to Xiaomo?!¡± Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows together.

    ¡°Shortly after you entered your closed-door cultivation, that clumsy girl Xiaomo ¨C for some reason, she trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds and got caught by those old fogeys. In the end, she received the Sect¡¯s punishment even before her injuries from trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds had healed. As a result, her cultivation...her cultivation fell to the first level of Qi Mastery again...wu-wu-wuuu....¡±

    Every time she thought about this matter, Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart would always be filled with a wrenching pain and immense remorse. She had never disyed her emotions before Jun Xiaomo because she did not want her daughter to worry about her. But now that her husband was back beside her, she could no longer suppress the flow of tears that had been dammed up over thest few months.

    ¡°Trespassing the forbidden grounds? This girl...how can this girl be so impudent!¡± Jun Linxuan fury once again hit his limits as he stormed towards his daughter¡¯s room, intending to give her a piece of his mind.

    ¡°Jun Linxuan,e back right now!¡± Liu Qingmei yelled at Jun Linxuan and stopped him in his tracks. Her face was strewn with tear-stains, but she red at Jun Linxuan as she added, ¡°Our daughter has already been reduced to such a sorry state. Aren¡¯t you just going to make things worse for her if you still give her a piece of your mind right now?!¡±

    ¡°But...¡± Jun Linxuan hesitated, before finally relenting and eximing with a sigh, ¡°All of this has only happened because we¡¯ve spoilt her too much!¡±

    Liu Qingmei used her scarf to wipe her tears as she remarked, ¡°But things might not be as simple as they seem. I hadn¡¯t thought much about it previously. Back then, I had only thought that our daughter had trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds because she was too mischievous. However, I began to find something amiss after this incident with Little Wen as well. Mo-Mo isn¡¯t a girl who doesn¡¯t appreciate the severity of certain actions. Despite her mischievous nature, she¡¯s never done anything to worry us in this regard before. Therefore, why would she go running off into the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds for no reason?¡±

    ¡°Then, Qingmei, have you asked her about these things?¡±

    ¡°Sigh, I haven¡¯t asked her. It¡¯s all my fault for focusing too much on the consequences of her action that I¡¯d failed to ask about why she did so in the first ce. It¡¯s toote for everything now.¡± As she exined, tears began rolling down her eyes again.

    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s all in the past now.¡± Jun Linxuan hugged his wife again and patted her back, ¡°Even if her cultivation has fallen, she can always get it back. Who cares if she can¡¯t qualify for the upper-tier sects as a result of this? My daughter would never allow herself to be tripped up so easily by such a small stumbling stone.¡±

    Liu Qingmei nodded her head, and the difort in her heart dissipated substantially.

    ¡°Oh yes, where¡¯s Mo-Mo?¡± It just urred to Jun Linxuan that he hadn¡¯t seen his daughter anywhere ever since he had returned to their abode.

    In the past, his daughter would alwayse flitting to him as soon as she learnt that her dad had exited his closed-door cultivation.

    After Jun Linxuan pointed out this abnormality, Liu Qingmei also realized that something seemed to be amiss.

    ¡°When I returned to the Sect a few days ago, I noticed that Mo-Mo had ced a Seclusion Array at her door to indicate that she was focusing on breaking through a bottleneck. However, does she really need such a long time to break through to the second level of Qi Mastery?¡±

    In fact, there was hardly even a need to be in a closed-door environment for the purposes of breaking through the first level of Qi Mastery to the second level of Qi Mastery. It was only because Liu Qingmei had momentarily forgotten that her daughter¡¯s cultivation level had fallen that she had failed to notice something amiss at that time.

    ¡°Let me take a look.¡± As Jun Linxuan spoke, he strode towards the courtyard that his daughter¡¯s room was located at.

    As he stepped into her courtyard, Jun Linxuan immediately sensed the energies flowing from the formation array set up by Jun Xiaomo. However, a Seclusion Array¡¯s main purpose was to indicate to any visitors that one was presently focusing on a breakthrough so that the visitors could refrain from causing any unnecessary disturbance. A Seclusion Array did not possess any offensive abilities to begin with. Therefore, Jun Linxuan ignored the effects of the Seclusion Array, strode right up to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room door and knocked a few times.

    Yet, nobody answered. She was either truly in a state of deep meditation, or she was not there at all.

    Jun Linxuan thought for a moment, before he expanded his divine sense and sent it probing about her room. In the end...

    Her room is empty!!!

    Thud! A deafening sound rang out from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard. Liu Qingmei ran over towards the courtyard worriedly, before she discovered an infuriated Jun Linxuan standing at the door to their daughter¡¯s room. The chair, table and wooden door of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room had beenpletely destroyed and turned to sawdust.

    ¡°Linxuan, what happened?!¡± Liu Qingmei ran over quickly, and her heart felt the onset of a bad premonition.

    As expected, Jun Linxuan held out a sheet of paper with a message on it while he yelled out in rage, ¡°This troublemaking child of ours has gone out looking for Ye Xiuwen!¡±

    ¡°Wha--...what?!¡± Liu Qingmei paused mid-step, frozen in shock. She had thought of a few possibilities on the way here, but this waspletely outside of her expectations.

 Chapter 127: Mystic Woods, Missing Companions

    <h4>Chapter 127: Mystic Woods, Missing Companions</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    If this were any other day, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei would hardly be nervous about Jun Xiaomo travelling out of the Sect with Ye Xiuwen. At best, they would have sent a Messenger Paper Crane to check in with them and ensure that Jun Xiaomo had indeed linked up with Ye Xiuwen.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen had always presented himself with maturity and steadfastness that was well beyond his age. Therefore, both Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan knew that they would be able to entrust their daughter to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s care. At the very least, it was far better than entrusting their daughter to Qin Lingyu.

    However, their most trusted First-Seat Disciple had somehownded himself in a heap of trouble now. Qin Lingyu, Ke Xinwen and the other Dawn Sect Disciples had all made a testimony sworn on oath that Ye Xiuwen had betrayed the Sect by colluding with demonic cultivators. Therefore, there was no way that Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei could suppress the worry and concern in their hearts.

    It was not that they believed the testimony of these other disciples. In fact, there was not a single cell in them that believed that Ye Xiuwen would be capable of straying from the orthodox paths. Notwithstanding that, they had witnessed with their very own eyes the contents of the letter endorsed by the other members of the entourage that had travelled out of the Sect ¨C it was even replete with their signatures and sealed with their auras!

    ¡°Linxuan, no wonder I¡¯ve always felt strangely uneasy thesest few days. I worry that something might have happened to Little Wen.¡± Liu Qingmei ced her hands on her chest as she remarked. Her chest had begun to hurt from the onset of pangs of anxiety.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too worried just yet. Let me release a Messenger Paper Crane to check in with them.¡± Jun Linxuan reassured Liu Qingmei as he patted her shoulders. But at the same time, his furrowed eyebrows revealed his equal measure of anxiety right now.

    ¡°No! Linxuan, we have to personally make a trip to check on them. We¡¯ve seen with our own eyes the letter sent by disciple Ke. Its contents even mentioned that Ye Xiuwen had colluded with the demonic cultivator to hurt the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s second prince, and that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier is on his way to kill them right now. If...if Mo-Mo is also among those who are being pursued by the grand Vizier...¡± As she thought about what her daughter¡¯s fate might be, Liu Qingmei began to shed tears again.

    Decades of their marriage had culminated with a single, treasured child, Jun Xiaomo. They had sheltered her and protected her, worried for her and cared for her. Who would have thought that their daughter would now be met with a series of unfortunate events? It was as though she had to make up for all the previous shielding and sheltering from harm all at one go.

    Furthermore, her daughter was only at the first level of Qi Mastery. Once she leaves the protective boundaries of the Sect, even a mere mortal who practices martial arts would be able to injure her, much less the potentially strong cultivators or spirit beasts that they might possibly encounter. Liu Qingmei could hardly bring herself to contemte the kind of difficulty and harm that her daughter might be put through.

    ¡°Alright, alright, don¡¯t be anxious.¡± Jun Linxuan reassuringly patted Liu Qingmei¡¯s shoulder again as he added, ¡°Then, let¡¯s send a message to Ye Xiuwen and that unfilial daughter of ours. After that, we will use Teleportation Scrolls to make our way there quickly. However, I can¡¯t be certain that Jun Xiaomo would definitely be by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side right now. After all, I¡¯m quite sure that if Ye Xiuwen discovered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s presence sneaking up on him, he would have sent Jun Xiaomo packing back home without any hesitation.¡±

    Liu Qingmei furrowed her eyebrows as she sighed, ¡°But I still do hope that Mo-Mo has managed to locate Ye Xiuwen. Otherwise, where are we going to begin looking for this troublemaker in that vast world out there?¡±

    Just as Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei finally agreed to make the trip out of the Sect to personally search for Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo; the trio consisting of Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, who had pressed on with a steady tempo, finally made their way to the borders between Inferno Kingdom and the Mystic Woods.

    As a result of the Grand Vizier¡¯s formation array, they had been unable to hide their tracks and conceal their movements from the Grand Vizier. Furthermore, their Teleportation Scrolls had all been rendered ineffective. Each attempt to teleport was nothing more than a waste of a single Teleportation Scroll.

    Therefore, when they closed in on the edge of the Mystic Woods, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan exchanged nces and tacitly agreed on their next move ¨C they would dash into the Mystic Woods.

    The trees in the Mystic Woods were far taller than those in any other ordinary woods that they had passed by. The dense foliageprising of branches and twigs interlocked high in the sky, eclipsing the grounds of the woods. The grounds of the Mystic Woods were therefore eerily chilly and enshrouded in darkness.

    In that moment where they all dashed into the Mystic Woods, their surroundings darkened almost instantaneously. It took some time before they could limatize to their new surroundings and regain their vision once more.

    ¡°Be careful. Large, powerful spirit beasts might appear here without any warning.¡± Ye Xiuwen whispered into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears, and Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in acknowledgment. Even though the frequentbat and skirmishes had reduced her body into a rather sorry state, her eyes were still alert and sparkling bright.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Then, he released his divine sense and began probing about at their surroundings for any movements.

    Rong Ruihan looked at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s backs as he lowered his eyes, suppressing that feeling of disappointment that had momentarily swelled up in the depths of his heart.

    Situ Cang had initially thought that it would not be too difficult to capture Rong Ruihan and the others as long as he took matters into his own hands. Little did he expect that the trio werepletely unfazed by his presence. These three people were no more than puny cultivators at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation, yet they behaved like slippery eels ¨C no matter how many subordinates he had sent out to capture the trio, the trio would somehow always manage to give them the slip.

    How would Situ Cang ever have guessed that it was not because of some sheer, dumb luck that the Jun Xiaomo trio had evaded capture on every asion? Rather, their escapes were attributable to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rich and rifebat experience from her great escapes in her previous life, supplemented by Rong Ruihan deep and profound understanding of the Grand Vizier¡¯s subordinates. The trio¡¯s ability toplement each other was what allowed them to escape each and every well-nned ambush set up by the Grand Vizier at every step of the way.

    ¡°A bunch of imbeciles!¡± Once Situ Cang learnt that the Jun Xiaomo trio had charged headlong into the Mystic Woods, his fury swelled up and he immediately smacked one of the subordinates standing closest to him, turning him into nothing more than a gruesome pulp of blood, flesh and bones.

    The other subordinates remained half-kneeling on the floor before Situ Cang as shivers went down their backs.

    Situ Cang had never expected the trio to dive recklessly into the Mystic Woods. After all, the Mystic Woods were rife with dangers. If one were not sufficiently prepared, their ability to leave the Mystic Woods with their lives intact would be entirely up to fate.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that they would rush in so recklessly?

    Situ Cang squinted his eyes thoughtfully.

    The trees in the Mystic Woods are tall and dense, and they are hardly suitable for setting up formation arrays. It could be that the trio had considered this before they made their decision to take the risk and rush straight into the woods.

    Situ Cang waved his hands at his subordinates as he instructed, ¡°You may take your leave. Rally your troops and deploy them in the Mystic Woods. This time, there¡¯s no need to capture them alive. I don¡¯t care what you do, and how you do it. Just bring me their damn heads. Go!¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Situ Cang¡¯s subordinates respectfully acknowledged in unison as they took their leave.

    Then, Situ Cang turned around and looked at the Dawn Sect disciples behind him as he quipped, ¡°This Sovereign is going to propose another transaction. It¡¯s still the same rewards of the national treasures from the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s treasury, but I would like to change some of the conditions of these tasks.¡±

    ¡°I wonder what conditions senior Situ ns to amend?¡± Qin Lingyu bowed slightly as he sought to rify.

    ¡°Haha, it¡¯s simple. Let¡¯s change it to...whoever kills a person among that trio would be rewarded with one national treasure from the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s treasury. What do you say?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart immediately thumped vigorously in excitement. Of course he wanted to agree! They had everything to gain and nothing to lose from such a transaction!

    After all, there was no need for them to personally kill the three of them. It sufficed if they could cause them to die in the hands of someone or something else.

    However, Qin Lingyu was adept with his pretenses. Just like how he had allowed Ke Xinwen to report back to the Sect with minimal involvement on Qin Lingyu¡¯s part, he intended to do the same here. This was all carefully nned out so that he would always have a way out even if Ye Xiuwen managed to somehow turn the tables against them.

    And this was despite the fact that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chances of survival were incredibly marginal in light of Situ Cang¡¯s hatred against those who had hurt the second prince. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen simply needed a miracle.

    Qin Lingyu collected his own thoughts, adjusted his emotions, before speaking with a slightly ¡°distressed¡± look, ¡°This...Brother Ye is still our Sect mate after all...¡±

    Qing Lingyu¡¯s words were immediately cut off by Ke Xinwen, who eagerly responded, ¡°And if we managed to kill all three of them?¡±

    Situ Cang looked at the avaricious looks in Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes; and then turned his attention towards Qin Lingyu. He could tell that Qin Lingyu coveted those treasures as well, and he was merely putting on a pretense of camaraderie at this moment. Despite that, he chuckled sardonically as he responded, ¡°If you can truly do that, then I¡¯ll allow you to pick out any three national treasures you desire, hmm?¡±

    After all this was made patently clear, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen no longer voiced out any opinions. The other Dawn Sect disciples also lowered their heads silently as they tacitly expressed their intentions.

    It was as Situ Cang had postted. Jun Xiaomo and the rest had considered the fact that the Mystic Woods were densely filled with great, towering trees which would inhibit Situ Cang¡¯s preparation of formation arrays. This was why they had decided to rush headlong into the Mystic Woods.

    Situ Cang¡¯sckeys were hot on their tails, and the trio knew that there was no way they could immediately run towards Rong Ruihan¡¯s hideout without giving away its location. Therefore, they turned to their other options at hand.

    The Mystic Woods truly lived up to its name. Apart from skyscraping, towering trees and vicious spirit beasts, there were even parts of the woods that where enshrouded with thick, stirring fog that obscured a person¡¯s vision, misdirected his senses and even induced illusions.

    Jun Xiaomo knew the dangers of possibly splitting up and losing the other two. Therefore, she issued a Transmittance Talisman to Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen, and all of them dripped a drop of blood each onto these talismans.

    These Transmittance Talismans were slightly different from the ones used by Rong Ruihan earlier. These Transmittance Talismans were made to be carried by a person¡¯s side at all times. If they strayed from the group, they would be able to use these Transmittance Talismans tomunicate with each other.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan held tightly onto these Transmittance Talismans as they walked into the woods in a single file, one behind the other, with Jun Xiaomo standing between the two of them.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that they did this in order to protect her. After all, herbat abilities were still the weakest among the three, and the other two were far better equipped to deal with any dangers lying in wait ahead of them or creeping up at them from behind.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo did not resist their present arrangement. She only mentally noted that gratitude that was in her heart.

    The fog grew thicker and thicker. Slowly, Jun Xiaomo realized that she could no longer clearly see Ye Xiuwen or Rong Ruihan anymore. All that was left were two vague, distorted figures ahead of her and behind her.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo began to discover that something was amiss. She paused in her steps and called out to Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, ¡°Brother Ye, first prince, should we pause for a moment? The fog here is simply too thick. I believe that even if the Grand Vizier¡¯s men had followed us here, they would be lost by now.¡±

    After she spoke, she waited patiently for Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan¡¯s response.

    Yet momentster, her surroundings remainedpletely still and silent. Nobody responded to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.

    ¡°Brother Ye? First prince?¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously walked ahead of her and behind her, hoping to find the other two. But there was no longer a trace of the other two in sight.

    They had lost sight of each other!

    Jun Xiaomo immediately whipped out her Transmittance Talisman and called out Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan¡¯s names. To her dismay, the Transmittance Talisman had somehow lost its effects as well. Nobody responded to her calls.

    Jun Xiaomo clutched at her chest as her heart began to thump more and more vigorously.

    This was the ring rm arising out of the primal sense of fear that had swelled up in her heart.

    But it was also precisely because of this that she discovered yet another anomaly ¨C thepels of her clothing were too smooth and unfettered.

    That bag containing her little packrat had disappeared!

 Chapter 128: The Hidden World in the Fog

    <h4>Chapter 128: The Hidden World in the Fog</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo clutched anxiously at her clothes where she had originally tied the bag containing her little packrat. To her dismay, the bag was no longer there.

    ¡°Little Packie¡ª¡±

    ¡°Brother Ye¡ª¡±

    ¡°First prince¡ª¡±

    Jun Xiaomo kept on walking as she nced around at her surroundings, hoping to catch a glimpse of thepanions that she had lost sight of.

    Yet despite that, her surroundings continued to be filled with a roiling, white fog. The fog was now so thick that she could hardly see beyond a radius of one meter ¨C much less the silhouettes of herpanions.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to palpitate. She stopped in her tracks and clutched at her chest, trying hard to regte her emotions and calm herself down.

    Her years of experience on the run had taught her that anxiety and being flustered would only serve to aggravate the situation. It was only when she had calmed down and regained her rity of mind that she would be able to better assess the situation and think of the appropriate measures.

    Then, just as Jun Xiaomo finally managed to rpose herself and adjust her thoughts, a silhouette of a person appeared in the distance.

    She took a few steps closer to that silhouette. However, Jun Xiaomo discovered that the figure seemed to remain equidistance from her. Details such as the figure¡¯s height, appearances or clothing continued to elude her. In fact, she could hardly even tell whether the figure was facing her or facing away from her.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows and picked up her pace. Even then, that figure seemed to maintain that equidistance away from her. It was as though that figure had simrly picked up his pace as well.

    Then, a thought crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind ¨C What if the figure is trying to lure me to a specific location?

    The fog in this part of Mystic Woods was truly too thick. Jun Xiaomo were absolutely certain that even if she were to run around recklessly, it was going to take a lot more to escape from the fog¡¯s domain.

    Therefore, after some thought, Jun Xiaomo decided that she would follow the beckoning of that figure in the fog.

    She retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and held it tightly in her hand as she vigntly followed the lead of that figure in the fog, all the while maintaining a safe andfortable pace.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the figure in the fog was going to ¡°wait¡± for her regardless of how quickly she moved.

    Then after some time, the fog gradually thinned out, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s surroundings became clearer and clearer. Yet what continued to mystify Jun Xiaomo was how she still could not make out the details of that figure in the fog.

    It was as though that figure was no more than an illusion ¨C as the fog thinned out, that figure also seemed to fade away at the same time.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart shuddered. She picked up her pace yet again, and the surrounding fog grew even thinner.

    Then, as she made her way forward, that figurepletely vanished into thin air. At the same time, a dazzling beam of light suddenly appeared and shone directly at Jun Xiaomo.

    This beam of light cut straight through the white fog, as though it had creating a path just wide enough to guide Jun Xiaomo out of the fog.

    Jun Xiaomo hesitated for a moment. But in the end, she made her resolve and strode straight into the light.

    The beam of light intensified, and Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes reflexively.

    A few momentster, when her eyes had finally adjusted to her the dazzling brightness of the light, she slowly opened her eyes once again.

    To her surprise, her surroundings hadpletely changed. Jun Xiaomo was presently standing in a ce that seemed rather familiar to her.

    ¡°This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes narrowed as she took in her surroundings, trying to recall where she had witnessed this scene before.

    Jun Xiaomo stood on a lush and verdant field, and there was even a winding path running through these fields that ran into the horizon.

    Wasn¡¯t she in the Mystic Woods? Why would an endless verdant field appear out of nowhere?

    Jun Xiaomo turned back to look at the Mystic Woods where she hade from. To her surprise, the thick, roiling fog hadpletely disappeared together with the rest of the woods, and the lush, verdant field that she was standing on extended into the horizon behind her as well!

    Her heart shuddered, and she grew even more vignt of her surroundings. She immediately retrieved more talismans from her Interspatial Ring and held them in her hands as she braced herself for what was toe.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears picked up the soft chattering of some people some distance away. She perked up her senses as her eyes darted about her surroundings. But it was grass everywhere ¨C there was nowhere she could hide herself!

    There was no choice ¨C she could only retrieve an Invisibility Talisman and p it on herself.

    To Jun Xiaomo¡¯s surprise, this Invisibility Talisman seemed to be ineffective! She remained standing where she was, and as far as she could tell, her arms and feet were still visible to the naked eye.

    The voices were quickly approaching her, and there was nowhere to hide. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo adopted a defensive stance as she anticipated the arrival of these approaching voices.

    In the next moment, two people appeared in the horizon. The first person was donned in pure-white garments and carried himself with a cool, dignified disposition; while the other person was dressed in a pretty pink and possessed beautifully sharp features. At this moment, thetter wasughing radiantly as she chattered on, while the other person nodded his head from time to time.

    ¡°Brother Ye?!¡± Despite their distance, Jun Xiaomo could immediately recognize that one of these two people was none other than Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately sprinted over to Ye Xiuwen. By the time she got to where Ye Xiuwen was, she was slightly breathless.

    ¡°Bro-...brother Ye, where have you gone? I couldn¡¯t locate you earlier.¡± Jun Xiaomo extended her hand, intending to grab hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm. Unexpectedly, Ye Xiuwen dexterously evaded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grasp.

    ¡°Bro-...brother Ye?¡± Jun Xiaomo was stunned at his reaction.

    ¡°Is this Xiuwen¡¯s martial sister? You¡¯re truly quite the adorable chick. But why is it that you keep calling Xiuwen ¡®brother Ye¡¯, hmm?¡± Ady¡¯s voice rang out beside where Ye Xiuwen was. Her tone was soft and charming, and it was the kind of voice that would immediately give others a good impression of her.

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo turned her attention to the female cultivator standing beside Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately surged with immense hatred, ¡°What are you doing standing beside my martial brother?¡±

    ¡°Eh? Does this little martial sister know my name as well? Xiuwen and I had serendipitously made acquaintances with each other at the inn. After crossing paths a few times and getting to know each other better, we discovered that we seemed to have an affinity for each other. Therefore, I suggesteding here to meet you. After all, you¡¯re considered one of Xiuwen¡¯s only remaining kin.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s voice was just as soft and warm as ever, but that trace of provocation in her tone of voice was unmistakable.

    She had intentionally emphasized the word ¡°kin¡± in order to seal Jun Xiaomo¡¯s position in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart to nothing more than ¡°kin¡±.

    ¡°Who¡¯s your little martial sister!¡± Jun Xiaomo barked, ¡°Zhang Shuyue, don¡¯t you dare go about unctuously drawing close to me. You can hide your ulterior motives with martial brother, but you can never deceive me. If you don¡¯t wish to die by my hands today, then get out of my sight right now!¡±

    Zhang Shuyue lowered her eyes, pretending to be disappointed as she turned back to Ye Xiuwen dejectedly, ¡°Xiuwen, it seems that your martial sister really doesn¡¯t like me. I don¡¯t want to make things difficult for you. I think I should take my leave first.¡±

    As she finished speaking, Zhang Shuyue turned and motioned to leave.

    ¡°Shuyue, hang on.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, before turning to Jun Xiaomo with some measure of indignation in his voice, ¡°Martial sister, Shuyue is my friend. I know you don¡¯t like me, so I don¡¯t expect you to like her either. But I do hope that you will ord her the due respect that she deserves.¡±

    It must be said that Ye Xiuwen rarely spoke to Jun Xiaomo in such a harsh manner. Therefore, as soon as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words left his mouth, Jun Xiaomo immediately grew anxious, and the rims of her eyes immediately reddened. In her distress, she tried to exin herself, ¡°It¡¯s not that! Martial brother, I...¡±

    Hang on a minute. Hate martial brother? Why would martial brother say that I hated him?

    Furthermore, my Alteration Talisman hasn¡¯t lost its effects yet. How does martial brother know that I¡¯m Jun Xiaomo?

    A series of questions immediately began to pop into her mind. Then, the floodgates of her memories burst open, and it finally dawned on her where she had seen this scene before ¨C

    It was no wonder that she found this scene to be particrly familiar! In her previous life, she and Ye Xiuwen had once made their way to the top of a mountain and hid there from their persecutors for some time. It was also during this period of time that Ye Xiuwen had serendipitously encountered and got to know Zhang Shuyue, whoter proved to be the fatal pitfall in his life.

    The little wooden hut where they had lodged at was surrounded by arge patch of grass, and this was precisely where she was located right now.

    Could she have crossed over back into her previous life again? Had she crossed back to that time when they first encountered Zhang Shuyue?!

    Yet despite the innumerable questions that were surfacing in her mind, Jun Xiaomo made her resolve ¨C regardless of whether she had crossed over or otherwise, she was going to stop Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue from getting together.

    ¡°Martial brother, I beg you to listen to me this time. Zhang Shuyue isn¡¯t a good person. She¡¯s going to cost you your life!¡± Jun Xiaomo could not think of a good way to convince Ye Xiuwen about Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character, so she resorted to the most straightforward, simpleminded way that she could think of ¨C speaking her mind.

    However, the Ye Xiuwen at this point in her life had not opened his heart to Jun Xiaomo. In fact, it could even be said that he treated Jun Xiaomo as nothing more than a duty and responsibility of his. Therefore, no matter what Jun Xiaomo said, Ye Xiuwen was always going to take her words with a pinch of salt ¨C her words would never reach Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    As expected, Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo with disbelief, before he shrugged her off indifferently, ¡°Martial sister, I can¡¯t just judge Shuyue¡¯s character based on that sweeping statement. Furthermore, if you don¡¯t have any proof, then what you¡¯re doing is no better than irresponsible, baseless nder. I hope I never hear such words from you again.¡±

    ¡°nder?! Are you saying that I¡¯m ndering her?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to strain with pangs of pain and sourness. And this was not merely caused by the fact that Ye Xiuwen disbelieved her words ¨C there were other reasons that Jun Xiaomo was currently still unaware about.

    Jun Xiaomo clutched at her chest as she attempted to collect herself and suppress her roiling emotions.

    She lowered her head and calmed herself down. Then, as she slowly lifted her head again, she made an unbelievable suggestion to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Martial brother, let¡¯s do it this way then. I challenge Zhang Shuyue to a duel. If I win, then Zhang Shuyue shall disappear from our sight, and she¡¯s henceforth no longer allowed to interfere with our lives. On the other hand, if she wins, then I won¡¯te between the two of you anymore. What do you think?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was unable to tell Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions right now because of the veiled conical hat on his head. Therefore, she simply turned to look at Zhang Shuyue ¨C as expected, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes were filled with a mocking, contemptuous gaze.

    It wasn¡¯t hard to understand why Zhang Shuyue found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion extremelyughable. If Jun Xiaomo had indeed crossed over to this point in her previous life, then her cultivation was at best only at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. She was nothingpared with Zhang Shuyue, who had by then already broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    However, Jun Xiaomo maintained a cool-headed, steadfast expression on her face. It was a far cry from her expressions just moments ago. It was almost as though they were two different persons right now!

    Zhang Shuyue chuckled lightly as she lightheartedly epted the challenge, ¡°Alright, then! I ept the challenge.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved a sword from her Interspatial Ring. This sword was something that Ye Xiuwen gave to her on the seventh day that she began to learn sword arts from Ye Xiuwen. Even though it was a in, simple sword that was not imbued with any special abilities, Jun Xiaomo was nevertheless extremely fond of it.

    Previously, she had not pulled out this sword because she was worried that Ye Xiuwen might discover her true identity. However, she intentionally retrieved this sword to test some theories this time...

    ¡°Come.¡± Jun Xiaomo stated calmly. The earlier roiling emotions in the depths of her eyes were gone, and there was only cid serenity in its ce.

 Chapter 129: Treacherous Mistlands; The Soulless Lands

    <h4>Chapter 129: Treacherous Misnds; The Soulless Lands</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    On the other side, Situ Cang¡¯sckeys were closely in pursuit of Jun Xiaomo and the rest. Several people even chased after them so eagerly that they too dove headlong into the Mystic Woods¡¯s Misnds.

    ¡°Come back. There¡¯s no need to follow them in there.¡± Situ Cang¡¯s calm voice rang out behind them. The rest of his subordinates who had not entered the Misnds paused in their steps, nced at each other with slight relief, before returning to Situ Cang. They bowed courteously to Situ Cang as they reported back to him.

    ¡°Master.¡± They called out in unison.

    Then, Situ Cang nonchntly exined, ¡°These Misnds within the Mystic Woods are also known as the ¡®Soulless Lands¡¯. The fog is created by the congealed fragrances emitted by patches of little red flowers. But don¡¯t underestimate this fog. This fog possesses the power to draw out and amplify the worst fears in a person¡¯s heart. It would even greatly magnify the pains and fears in a person¡¯s heart. Those who fall prey to the fog¡¯s illusions would forever be trapped within an endless cycle of their worst fears and nightmares, until their souls and fleshly bodies have finally been devoured and absorbed by these little red flowers.¡±

    Situ Cang¡¯s exnation of the dangers of these Misnds sent a chill down the spines of the Dawn Sect disciples.

    To be trapped in an endless cycle of their worst fears and nightmares until they slowly perish?! The disciples shuddered at the horrific thought of such a prospect.

    Fortunate...Fortunately, we didn¡¯t dive straight into the Misnds earlier. Several disciples thought at the same time.

    However, Qin Lingyu¡¯s contemtions were deeper than that of the other disciples, ¡°Senior Situ, are there ways of escaping the illusions of these Misnds?¡±

    ¡°There is one way. If a person can recognize and possess the conviction that the nightmares and illusions aren¡¯t real, then one would be able to break out of the endless cycle of nightmares. However...¡±

    Situ Cang¡¯s words caused everyone to heave a sigh of relief, diminishing their earlier horrific assessment of the Misnds. However, Situ Cang¡¯s qualifier made their hair stand on ends again.

    Situ Cang¡¯s grimaced as he continued, ¡°From what I know, the odds of breaking out of the endless cycle of nightmares are not more than one in ten thousand. That is to say, among ten thousand people, only one would possess the ability and conviction to dere that the nightmares and illusions aren¡¯t real. Furthermore, among those who manage to escape from these Misnds alive, there are some who remain tormented by the lingering effects of these nightmares for the rest of their lives. These survivors continue to conte and confuse their dreams and reality, and they be unable to live properly in the present.¡±

    Soulless Lands ¨C the name says it all. Those who were unable to break out of the endless cycle of tormenting nightmares would invariably find their souls consumed by these benign-looking little red flowers.

    The Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ fear of the Soulless Lands reached new heights after hearing Situ Cang¡¯s exnation of its dangers. Naturally, the exceptions to this were Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu. To them, the dreadfulness of the Soulless Lands was a good thing. After all, it was ideal if Ye Xiuwen and Yao Mo could be trapped by the Misnds¡¯ illusions forever and perish within the Misnds.

    Therefore, Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes only shone brighter in delight after Situ Cang¡¯s exnations.

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right. This Sovereign¡¯s subordinates have intercepted a Messenger Paper Crane. Would you like to guess the nature of its contents?¡± Situ Cang suddenly broached a fresh topic at hand and alleviated the heavy atmosphere in the air. Several disciples turned their heads to look at Qin Lingyu, evidently with their interests piqued.

    Qin Lingyu possessed a sharp and keen mind. Within moments, his mind contemted hundreds and thousands of possibilities. Then, when he finally ascertained that he had done nothing to enrage Situ Cang, he stabilized the emotions in his heart and made a fist and palm salute to Qin Lingyu as he politely responded, ¡°I am unaware. Would senior Situ care to enlighten this ignorant one?¡±

    ¡°Haha, take a look for yourself.¡± As Situ Cang responded, he handed the Messenger Paper Crane over to Qin Lingyu who received it eagerly.

    Qin Lingyu opened the paper crane and skimmed through its contents.

    The paper crane only contained a few lines of words on it, so it did not take Qin Lingyu long to read its contents.

    Qin Lingyu had not expected too much when he had first opened up this paper crane to read its contents. Yet a few sentencester, his eyes widened in shock, and his heart began to roil with intense emotions.

    Situ Cang chuckled cryptically before he slowly uttered, ¡°When I first received this paper crane, I had asked my subordinates to check on the background of this ¡®Jun Xiaomo¡¯ referred to in this paper crane. Guess what this Sovereign found?¡±

    Qin Lingyu remained taciturn, but his face had already turned a sickly green and pale white by now.

    ¡°It turns out that Jun Xiaomo is the daughter of Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. Furthermore...she is also brother Qin¡¯s fianc¨¦e. How about that? Your fianc¨¦e had travelled thousands of miles ¨C not to look for you ¨C but someone else altogether. How are you feeling right now?¡±

    Situ Cang eagerly anticipated Qin Lingyu¡¯s reaction. After having expending so much time and effort to capture the Rong Ruihan trio but to no avail, his patience had long worn thin. Now that he was presented with an opportunity to watch an exciting drama unravel before his very eyes, how could he not delight and indulge himself in that?

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face had turned ashen by now. He could hardly control the rage welling up within his chest!

    He had always thought highly of himself. Even though Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen seemed to have grown closer before they had departed from the Sect on their travels, he had never thought much of it. At the very least, he had never thought that Jun Xiaomo would have had a change of affection then. Quite apart from the repulsiveness of hideous looking scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, Qin Lingyu did not believe that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s past five or six years of infatuation with him could possibly change overnight just like that.

    But if Jun Xiaomo had not had a change of affection, then why was there a need for her toe travelling thousands of miles just to look for Ye Xiuwen?!

    Qin Lingyu felt as though this realization was an intense p to his face. His dignity was in tatters!

    Yet the irony of all this was that it hadpletely slipped Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind that he had already been passionately involved with Yu Wanrou. In his own eyes, it was perfectly understandable if he were unfaithful and tangled with other women. This was because he did not think that Jun Xiaomo deserved his love; and he had never reciprocated Jun Xiaomo¡¯s affection for him either. On the other hand, it waspletely uneptable and unforgivable if Jun Xiaomo were unfaithful to him. After all, Qin Lingyu did not believe that he was inferior to Ye Xiuwen in any respect.

    Furthermore, it was an incredibly shameful matter if a man¡¯s fianc¨¦e is found to have an affair with someone else. It was as though his pride and dignity had been stripped off his face and trampled on the ground.

    This was the logic of Qin Lingyu¡¯s twisted double standards.

    Then, Qin Lingyu slowly crushed the paper crane as he struggled to respond in a calm andposed voice, ¡°Perhaps this news is false. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level is only at the first level of Qi Mastery. If she travels out of the Sect, there is no doubt that she would not be able to survive long enough to meet with Ye Xiuwen.¡±

    Despite saying that, Qin Lingyu had a niggling premonition in his heart ¨C a hunch ¨C that this entire matter was true. However, this was not something he was going to express to others. He could only continually deny the existence of this matter in a bid to salvage some of his pride and dignity.

    Situ Cang was rather displeased with Qin Lingyu¡¯s calm andposed response. He despised the fact that Qin Lingyu could confine that raging inferno burning within his chest. Therefore, he continued to rub salt in his wounds.

    ¡°Do you still remember that there is the young man who travelled alongside Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan? Yao Mo...Jun Xiaomo... Both names contain the word ¡°Mo¡±. Do you think this is just a coincidence?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s just a coincidence!¡± Qin Lingyu lost his temper and denied tly, ¡°How would Jun Xiaomo know so much about formation arrays, then?!¡±

    ¡°Oh? It seems that brother Qin is just unwilling to ept the truth, huh? Then this Sovereign shall bestow you with yet another telltale sign. Yao Mo is presently only at the second level of Qi Mastery. I imagine that when you first encountered him, he was only at the bottleneck of the first level of Qi Mastery and about to break through to the second level of Qi Mastery, right? His cultivation level and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level at that time seems to match perfectly. Brother Qin, don¡¯t you think that this is simply too coincidental?¡±

    As Situ Cang ended his spiel, he looked up and nced at Qin Lingyu expectantly.

    He saw that the veins on Qin Lingyu¡¯s head was bulging and throbbing uncontrobly right now. A smile crept up Situ Cang¡¯s lips as he slowly walked away.

    As expected, this drama is going to be pretty exciting. I can¡¯t wait for the second act.

    ---------------------------------------------

    Just as Situ Cang had expected, the trio consisting of Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, had all fallen prey to the Soulless Land¡¯s illusions. At it were right now, the Misnds had trapped each of them in their worst fears and nightmares, magnifying the heartache and despondence that they each experienced.

    Just like Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen had very quickly also discovered that he had lost sight of Yao Mo and Rong Ruihan after entering the Misnds. He looked about his surroundings for them for a few moments. Then, when he ascertained that Yao Mo and Rong Ruihan were no longer nearby, he paused to collect his thoughts and contemte his next move.

    He had noticed that there was something fishy about the fog when they had first entered the Misnds. But instead of panicking and losing his mind, he knew that it would be far better to still his mind and observe his surroundings.

    At that moment, Ye Xiuwen noticed that a person¡¯s silhouette had slowly appeared in the distance. But he did not follow that figure like Jun Xiaomo did. Instead, he called out to it.

    ¡°Little Mo?¡±

    ¡°First prince?¡±

    But the figure ignored him.

    Having received no response, Ye Xiuwen stopped calling out at the figure as well. He stared vigntly at the silhouette in case it was to make any form of attack against him.

    Yet after a few moments, the silhouette remained motionless where it was.

    Then, the fog gradually began to disperse. It was as though the fog knew that this silhouette would not be able to entice Ye Xiuwen to follow it. Thus, the silhouette also gradually dissipated with the fog as it grew more and more illusory.

    Once the fog hadpletely dissipated, Ye Xiuwen found himself standing at the pathway leading to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard. Even though Ye Xiuwen had not visited Jun Xiaomo too frequently, he was nevertheless familiar with these surroundings ¨C the flowers, the grass and the trees were all located in the same ces.

    His heart thumped expectantly. Ye Xiuwen slowly trotted along the path as he entered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard.

    As he neared the courtyard, he could hear the sound of joyous chatter emanating from within the courtyard. He immediately knew that the owner of this voice was his little martial sister.

    His heart began to beat faster and faster. His heart longed to see his little martial sister again, and this yearning had festered in his heart for far too long.

    Even though his thoughts were still a mess, his body nevertheless began to move by itself. He increased his stride and picked up the frequency of his steps. Then, he finally stepped through the gate into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little courtyard.

    At that moment, the tinkling of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice immediately stopped.

    There were two people in the courtyard right now, one of whom was Jun Xiaomo. She had practically noticed Ye Xiuwen at the moment that Ye Xiuwen first stepped into her courtyard.

    However, there was no trace of excitement or eagerness for reunion in her eyes. Instead, there was only shock...and fear!

    Ye Xiuwen could read her mind through her expressions right now ¨C Jun Xiaomo was terrified of that menacing scar that was syed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face!

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Jun Xiaomo shrieked as she reflexively grabbed onto the arm of the man beside her, eximing with a tremor in her voice, ¡°He...who¡¯s he? Martial brother Qin, who¡¯s he?!¡±

    That¡¯s right. The person standing beside Qin Lingyu right now was the one whom she had always been fond of ¨C Qin Lingyu.

    Ye Xiuwen stood there motionless with an enigmatic expression on his face. Yet this expression of his, coupled with that menacing scar on his face, only seemed to terrify and distress Jun Xiaomo even more.

    Only Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tightly clenched and slightly quivering fists revealed the true conditions of his heart ¨C

    Anguish. Abject disappointment.

 Chapter 130: Return from Deathâ€™s Domain, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Retaliation

    <h4>Chapter 130: Return from Death¡¯s Domain, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Retaliation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was absolutely unaware that Ye Xiuwen had encountered a counterfeit version of herself in another part of these Misnds. She was faced with her own predicaments right now. She wrapped her hands tightly around the hilt of her sword and let the tip of the sword point to the ground loosely.

    She did not make the first move. Instead, she simply stared at Zhang Shuyue and Ye Xiuwen with her obsidian-ck eyes. Right now, there were no expressions that could be seen in the depths of her pupils. This was apletely different sight from how Jun Xiaomo would usually behave.

    Across the ins, the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen did not reveal any expressions of suspicion nor concern. He simply stood at the side, watching passively as he tacitly approved of this duel between Jun Xiaomo and the counterfeit Zhang Shuyue.

    And this was despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo could never win Zhang Shuyue with her current cultivation level. In fact, there was a good chance that she might even end up being killed by Zhang Shuyue as a result of this duel.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was wearing his characteristic veiled conical hat right now, and none of the twodies around could see his appearances with any rity. Thus, after observing Ye Xiuwen for a moment, Jun Xiaomo shifted her attention away from Ye Xiuwen.

    It was just then that Zhang Shuyue made her move.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s weapon of choice had always been a ribbon. As she waved her hand, that limp, seemingly harmless ribbon began to dance about as though it had be like a vicious spirit snake. In the blink of an eye, the ribbon swept over ferociously towards Jun Xiaomo with a savage intent.

    Jun Xiaomo had witnessed the strength of this ribbon in her previous life. Zhang Shuyue was the disciple of the third elder of an upper-tier sect. Just like any other disciples ofrge sects, her weapon of choice was hardly a simple spirit tool. The ribbon she was using right now was imbued with the ability to greatly enhance her offensive abilities.

    To put things into perspective, the ability enhancing effect of this ribbon was so strong that someone of the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation using this ribbon would be able to instantly cleave in half any cultivator at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation!

    Fortunately, Zhang Shuyue was only at the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and she did not possess the ability to kill Jun Xiaomo with a single strike. But this did not change the fact that Jun Xiaomo would still be grievously hurt if Zhang Shuyue managed tond a strike on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with the ribbon.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s movements were incredibly nimble. Despite Zhang Shuyue¡¯s relentless attacks, Jun Xiaomo managed to evade all of her strikes cleanly.

    Truth be told, this was the result of a principle that Jun Xiaomo had discovered in her previous life. Jun Xiaomo realized that if she forced spiritual energy or demonic energy into her limbs, joints and bones, then she would experience a temporary increase in her agility and nimbleness.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo was unable to avoid Zhang Shuyue¡¯s attacks indefinitely. As time wore on, the number of injuries sustained by Jun Xiaomo began to increase.

    As the wounds on her body began to bleed into her clothing, the colour of blood looked extremely striking in juxtaposition to her green clothing.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo had begun to look like an arrow at the end of its flight. Even then, Ye Xiuwen continued to watch passively, and he did nothing to stop Zhang Shuyue¡¯s attacks.

    It can¡¯t go on like this! Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lips as she cursed in her heart. She did not want to die here!

    Therefore, she decided to stake it all on one final strike.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved from her Interspatial Ring three of her strongest Explosive Talismans which possessed tyrannical powers. Then, when Zhang Shuyue drew close to her again, she suddenly sent these Explosive Talismans flying towards Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body.

    Seeing that the earlier Invisibility Talisman bore no effects whatsoever, Jun Xiaomo bore no expectations of the effectiveness of these three Explosive Talismans.

    Yet these Explosive Talismans were nevertheless herst resort. There were no no other contingencies avable to her. Therefore, she prayed and prayed hard for a miracle that the three Explosive Talismans would be effective.

    Unexpectedly, the heavens answered her prayers and a miracle urred. The three Explosive Talismans erupted with a massive explosion, puncturing a gaping, gory hole straight through Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chest. Zhang Shuyue was sent flying like a kite that had its strings cut, and Ye Xiuwen immediately caught her in his arms.

    Zhang Shuyue coughed and sputtered as blood gurgled from her mouth.

    Her heart had ruptured. Without a miraculous, heaven-defying medicinal pill, no one would be able to save her now ¨C not even her master.

    ¡°Xiu...Xiuwen...¡± In front of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, Zhang Shuyue looked tenderly at Ye Xiuwen as the focus in her eyes gradually faded away.

    Ye Xiuwen held Zhang Shuyue closely to his bosom. Though he remained taciturn, Jun Xiaomo could sense the immense fury erupting from the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hate was patently obvious from the sharp and frigid aura released by him right now. This oppressive aura surrounding Ye Xiuwen was something that cultivators would only release when they were shing with their enemies.

    In other words, Jun Xiaomo was now an enemy to Ye Xiuwen through and through.

    Pangs of sourness tugged at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. However, she consciously repressed these thoughts and revealed none of it on her face.

    She was waiting. She was waiting for a specific oue...

    Momentster, Zhang Shuyue passed away in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom. In her final moments, she had even asked Ye Xiuwen to kiss her on the lips.

    Ye Xiuwenplied. While he did not remove his veiled conical hat throughout that entire process, Jun Xiaomo could see that Ye Xiuwen had locked his beautiful lips with Zhang Shuyue¡¯s.

    Jun Xiaomo nearly crumbled and lost her mind at the sight of this scene. Her heart wrung with immense agony.

    She was now experiencing an intense, stifling and suffocating feeling that she had never experienced before.

    Then, when Ye Xiuwen finally removed his lips from Zhang Shuyue¡¯s, Jun Xiaomo could see that Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes had bepletely shut. Despite her manner of death, her face revealed an expression of bliss and contentment ¨C as though she had been thoroughly satisfied on her deathbed.

    Naturally, that smile on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face was still immensely jarring to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen set Zhang Shuyue down gently, before he retrieved his Frostburn Sword from his Interspatial Ring. Then, he pointed the tip of his sword directly at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, revealing a bitter expression on her face as she remarked, ¡°Martial brother, are you really going to turn against me over this woman?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was incredibly hoarse by now. It was as though she had to muster all of her strength before she managed to eke out those few words.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen gave a cold and curt response, ¡°You¡¯ve killed her.¡±

    ¡°Just because I¡¯ve killed her, you¡¯re going to kill me for revenge? Even though I¡¯ve always told you that this woman harbours evil intentions against you?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo asked in anguish.

    ¡°I¡¯ve never seen her evil intentions. I only saw you murder Zhang Shuyue.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice remained as monotonous as ever.

    If not for his present actions that spoke far louder than his words, it would be difficult to tell from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice that his heart was filled with rage and hatred right now.

    This was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality. Regardless of the intensity of his roiling emotions, he would always remain cold and distant on the surface.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes darkened and the rims of her eyes reddened as she replied, ¡°Martial brother, what am I to you? And what is she to you?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn for a few moments before he responded, ¡°You are nothing more than a duty and responsibility to me. But Shuyue was a person that I would have liked to spend the rest of my life with.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had already expected Ye Xiuwen¡¯s answer. In her previous life, the atmosphere around Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue had indeed grown closer and more intimate over time. There were even times where the atmosphere grew so intimate there was no longer any ce left for Jun Xiaomo.

    At that time, she feared that her martial brother would despise her and abandon her once he fell in love with Zhang Shuyue. But in this life...

    As Jun Xiaomo processed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response, her heart began to be filled with aplicated, indescribable sensation ¨C it was sour and bitter; agonizing and traumatizing. The resultant effect was one of pure, abject despondence.

    But Jun Xiaomo forced a bitter smile to her face as she made her resolve known, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then kill me, martial brother. Kill me for that woman. I won¡¯t resist at all.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen tightened his grip around his Frostburn Sword. He had never expected Jun Xiaomo to make such a suggestion.

    Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes, consciously ignoring the pangs of agony that were intensely radiating from the depths of her heart. Then, she dered, ¡°My life can be considered martial brother¡¯s to begin with. If not for the fact that martial brother had always looked after me, I would already have been dead by now. Therefore...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes and sincerely continued, ¡°Therefore, if martial brother wishes to take my life, then do so. I¡¯ll treat it as though I¡¯m returning this life to you.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, a bright glint shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen was nothing more than an illusion created by the little red flowers within the Soulless Lands. Its objective had always been to kill any person who trespassed its domain to begin with.

    Once the trespasser had been killed within his illusions, then that person¡¯s soul and fleshly body would be nothing more than nourishment to the patches of little red flowers. At that time, the illusory abilities of these little red flowers would be strengthened once again.

    Thus, as soon as the echo of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final words faded away, Ye Xiuwen made his move. Without hesitation, he plunged his Frostburn Sword straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest!

    Shk! The nauseating sound of a sword cutting through flesh resounded, and their surroundings were immediately filled with the stench of blood.

    The frigid de of the Frostburn Sword had cleanly prated Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest. The coldness from the de diffused through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s flesh, sending chills to the bottom of her heart.

    Yet at this moment, Jun Xiaomo began tough bitterly. She coughed andughed at the same time, while tears streamed from her eyes and trickled down her cheeks to her chin.

    ¡°Imposter...In the end, you¡¯re just an imposter. Do you think I would be unable to tell whether my martial brother is phony or real?¡± Jun Xiaomo discovered that her strength was quickly draining out of her body, but herughter only escted. It was as though she had justpleted an incredibly important task. Her face was even filled with relief and contentment.

    It was only at this moment that Ye Xiuwen discovered that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand was also wielding a sword. As his attention followed along the body of the sword, he saw that almost half of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sword had been stabbed right through his own body.

    Furthermore, it had stabbed precisely where the heart was located. Just like Zhang Shuyue, this was the end of the road for him.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils suddenly constricted with anxiety. Then, they ckened uncontrobly. He lifted his head and looked towards Jun Xiaomo. His lips moved slightly, as though inquiring how Jun Xiaomo had seen through his pretense.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation was a far cry from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level, Ye Xiuwen had never expected Jun Xiaomo to retaliate against him in the moment that he attacked her.

    Capitalizing on that single moment ofcency, Jun Xiaomo had managed topletely turn the tables on Ye Xiuwen and deliver a fatal blow to him.

    Jun Xiaomo had experienced innumerable battles in her previous life. If nothing else, these experiences had taught her to bide her time and wait patiently for the right opportunity to strike a fatal blow at her opponents.

    In other words, once Jun Xiaomo managed to grasp her opponent¡¯s weaknesses, she would never pass up any opportunities to counterattack. Furthermore, she would always strike with the greatest efficacy to inflict the greatest damage possible.

    In the end, Ye Xiuwen copsed before he managed to ask that question on his lips. Jun Xiaomo pulled out her sword ferociously. Then, she slumped back onto the ground as well. Blood continued to pour from the wound in her chest.

    In the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen was dead. He was dead before he could kill Jun Xiaomo.

    With much difficulty, Jun Xiaomo moved her hands and began to wipe off the streaks of tear stains on her face as she yelled at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s corpse ¨C

    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare pick martial brother as the object of your illusion ever again.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was no longer filled with any emotions; and her eyes were no longer filled with the same warmth as before.

 Chapter 131: The Third Medicinal Element, Blisterfruit

    <h4>Chapter 131: The Third Medicinal Element, Blisterfruit</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The first time that Jun Xiaomo discovered something suspicious about Ye Xiuwen was when she first suggested to have a duel with Zhang Shuyue.

    The main reason why Jun Xiaomo had made such a suggestion was not to defeat Zhang Shuyue and make her leave Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Rather, she had done so as a form of test.

    Although Jun Xiaomo did not possess a deep understanding of the Soulless Lands, she had nevertheless encountered simr illusory domains in her previous life. Therefore, she had always been somewhat vignt of these sudden changes in her surroundings. Furthermore, the fact that Jun Xiaomo could be reborn and have a second shot at life was a miracle in and of itself. How could such miracles keep happening to her time and again?

    Therefore, after the initial shock from seeing Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue hold hands as they approached her had passed, Jun Xiaomo managed to collect herself and suppress the intense emotions in her heart.

    As she analyzed and broke down her situation, she began to suspect the veracity of what she was seeing.

    Then, with Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue¡¯s rtionship as the stakes, Jun Xiaomo broached the idea of a duel to Ye Xiuwen. If she won, then Zhang Shuyue would have to leave Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, never to appear before them again.

    Such duels were in fact fairlymon in the cultivation world, especially when two women were vying for the same man or when two men were vying for the same woman. Since it was not umon to see cultivators resolving their disputes through duels, perhaps the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen had failed to notice the issues with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion at that time.

    After all, the little red flowers had only managed to create an illusion of Ye Xiuwen by drawing out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s memories of him. No matter how real his appearances and his aura were, the little red flowers would never be able to replicate the minutest of details, habits and idiosyncrasies that Ye Xiuwen possessed.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo immediately grew suspicious of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s true identity when he tacitly agreed to the duel between Jun Xiaomo and Zhang Shuyue.

    If this were the real Ye Xiuwen, he would never have condoned such an unreasonable request from Jun Xiaomo. At best, the real Ye Xiuwen would have chided her sternly in his capacity as her elder martial brother and coerced her intopromising on her position.

    Afterwards, Jun Xiaomo set up her second test in the midst of her battle with Zhang Shuyue. As soon as she received her first injury from Zhang Shuyue, she had been waiting for Ye Xiuwen to intervene with the duel.

    When she had first encountered Zhang Shuyue in her previous life, Ye Xiuwen had already closed off his heart to her a second time. Therefore, it was a fact that Jun Xiaomo was nothing more than a duty and responsibility to Ye Xiuwen at that time.

    That said, despite the fact that she was nothing more than a duty and responsibility to Ye Xiuwen, he had never abandoned or turned a blind eye to her, much less passively allow her toe close to dying like what the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen appeared to do.

    In the end, the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen failed to intervene even after Jun Xiaomo was beaten to a bloody pulp by Zhang Shuyue.

    Perhaps the Misnds had wanted to see the most intense despair and despondence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. Therefore, it did not allow the counterfeit Zhang Shuyue to kill Jun Xiaomo, and instead left the final blow to be delivered through the hands of the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen.

    That might also exin why it had allowed the counterfeit Zhang Shuyue to die by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s retaliations. This was all so that Ye Xiuwen would have a reason to kill Jun Xiaomo.

    After all, dying in the hands of her most beloved person would only amplify the pain and agony experienced by Jun Xiaomo moments before her death. If the Misnds possessed a rational mind, this must have been its considerations.

    But naturally, the Misnds did not possess such cognitive functions. It was motivated based solely on its basic survival instincts.

    Then, when Ye Xiuwen stabbed his sword into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, Jun Xiaomo had at the same time plunged her sword through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest. Over the years, Jun Xiaomo had sharpened and honed herbat instincts to inflict the greatest amount of damage with the greatest efficacy. Herbat instincts manifested in her present predicament, and she left no room for the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen¡¯s survival at all.

    With the death of the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen, the fog around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body also gradually dispersed. Jun Xiaomo could no longer support her own body, and she copsed onto the floor.

    Yet apart from that feeling of weakness and the echoing pain emanating from her chest, Jun Xiaomo discovered that within moments, she no longer experienced any other physical diforts. Even that grievous wound inflicted by the counterfeit Ye Xiuwen seemed to have automatically closed up and healed. In fact, it hadpletely vanished.

    This all stood to reason. The Soulless Land¡¯s attacks affected a person through the realm of souls. These attacks stuck directly at a person¡¯s soul, severely wounding or even destroying their soulspletely. Then, these trespassers¡¯ physical bodies would be left with nothing more than empty, brain-dead husks that would eventually be nutrients to these little red flowers. In the end, not a single bit of the trespassers¡¯ souls would remain.

    This was also the reason why the trespassers would regain their senses once they had managed to ovee the illusions generated by the little red flowers.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly closed her eyes and adjusted her thoughts. Then, when she opened her eyes again, she discovered that she was now lying on a flowerbed of deep-red flowers. This flowerbed was approximately as tall as the knee-height of a five or six years-old child. As the gentle breeze swept across these flowers, these flowers would rustle and sway along in conformance with the ebb and flow of the winds, just like the waves of the ocean. It was a serene and beautiful sight.

    But the more beautiful something was, the more dangerous it was. What earned the Soulless Lands its name was precisely the handiworks of these innocent and harmless-looking little red flowers.

    Jun Xiaomo stood up, bent over and began examining these flowers. After some moments of deliberation, a radiant smile shed across her face.

    ¡°It¡¯s you! You¡¯re the final medicinal element I need to treat that scar on martial brother¡¯s face!¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo eximed joyfully, she wrapped her hand around the stems of some of these flowers and gave it a great yank ¨C

    As soil fell from the roots of the now uprooted red flowers, a bunch of fruits could be seen below its roots.

    These fruits were incredibly small. Each of them was about the size of a person¡¯s thumb, and they were shaped like a blister. They were hardly pleasant to the eye. Yet the colour of these fruits, its appearances and its smell told Jun Xiaomo that this was exactly the Blisterfruits that she had been looking for.

    Jun Xiaomo recalled the contents of a book that she had read in her previous life which introduced the Blisterfruit ¨C

    ¡°Blisterfruit ¨C bitter to the taste and peculiarly-shaped. The surface of the fruit is bumpy and rough. Its name is a misnomer ¨C though it is called a fruit, it is in fact the root of a nt. It grows in bunches under a peculiar, little red flower that is native to the Mystic Woods. Beware: these carnivorous flowers lure travelers into their illusions...A rough sketch of the Blisterfruit can be seen below.¡±

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, the manifestation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s survival instincts had caused her to practically consume and devour all knowledge pertaining to spirit herbs and medicines. Although her talent and sess rates for refining medicinal pills were mediocre at best, she could nevertheless recall with pristine rity the procedures and constituents for refining each type of medicine.

    Once she had gathered all the medicinal elements that she needed, she would only need to locate a sufficientlypetent pillmaster before martial brother Ye¡¯s scar can be cured!

    As she thought about this, Jun Xiaomo mood immediately lightened up. She smiled radiantly as she looked at the little red flowers under her feet. At this moment, she no longer saw these little red flowers as the culprits who had earlier bound her in a devastating illusion.

    Right now, this was nothing more than a luxurious herb garden to her!

    Jun Xiaomo bent over and began to pluck and uproot the little red flowers fervently.

    Poor little red flowers. When they had earlier trapped Jun Xiaomo in their illusion, intending to turn her into their nourishment, they could never have expected that this ¡°prey¡± of theirs would turn out to be their own worst nightmares. It must be said that these little red flowers had painstakingly nourished their bodies with the souls and fleshly bodies of travelers over umpteen years. Their flowers possessed a vibrant red colour, while their stems and leaves were a glistening jade-green colour. Notwithstanding that, this single failed attempt at devouring their ¡°prey¡± had resulted in them being uprooted and stored within the Interspatial Ring of that ¡°prey¡±.

    The winds swept by again, and the flowerbeds of little red flowers shuddered. Perhaps it was a result of the wind; or perhaps the little red flowers were well aware of their fate.

    In the meantime, the eager Jun Xiaomo continued to immerse herself in the joy of harvesting the field of Blisterfruits. Little did she know that, bit by bit, she was also drawing closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s location...

    While Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were not too far apart, they were still unable to see each other. This was because Ye Xiuwen was still trapped in the thick fog generated by the patches of little red flowers.

    Ye Xiuwen was unaware that the scene ying out before his very eyes was nothing more than an illusion. After all, he did not have the benefit of a lifetime of experience like Jun Xiaomo did.

    Compared with the plethora of life experience that Jun Xiaomo had under her belt, Ye Xiuwen was still far too young and na?ve.

    Ye Xiuwen already knew that his feelings for his little martial sister were extremelyplicated. But Ye Xiuwen¡¯s experience with life thus far made him reticent to delve deeper into his own feelings.

    He thought that as long as he shelved his feelings, then he would continue to be the martial brother that Jun Xiaomo respected, and their rtionship would never change for worse, ever.

    Ye Xiuwen had always been a passive person to begin with. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo and Yao Mo had actively drawn closer to him, it might well be the case that their rtionship would be no more than cursory, even now.

    They would have been no better than strangers.

    This present illusion was specifically crafted for Ye Xiuwen. In fact, not even Ye Xiuwen himself knew how much he minded the fianc¨¦-fianc¨¦e rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu.

    Not even right now. Instead, he only knew that seeing Jun Xiaomo nestle against Qin Lingyu in his bosom was an incredible eyesore to him.

    This form of visual provocation had pricked the depths of his heart, giving rise to an oppressive, stifling feeling.

    As though this were all insufficient, the counterfeit Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she softly remarked, ¡°I never knew that martial brother Ye looked so terrifying...it¡¯s no wonder I cried so much when I saw him when I was young.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists tightly. Then, he let go.

    ¡°Sorry for interrupting.¡± Ye Xiuwen stated curtly before he turned to leave.

    He did not like arguing with people. Who cares if Jun Xiaomo had hurt him again? He could simply evict her from her ce in his heart.

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Qin Lingyu called out. In the next moment, Qin Lingyu operated a peculiar formation array, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s entire courtyard was suddenly enveloped with a dark yellow light.

    This dark yellowish light was extremely visceral and corporeal, and it formed a conical-shaped cage as it enclosed the four corners of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard.

    With that, Ye Xiuwen found himselfpletely trapped inside.

    ¡°Martial brother Qin, just what is the meaning of this?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned around and questioned cidly.

    Ye Xiuwen no longer wore his veiled conical hat, and his deep, pupils were visible and striking. It looked mysterious and enigmatic, like the darkest of nights. It seemed almost inconsistent with the cool, dignified air that Ye Xiuwen possessed.

    While Ye Xiuwen did not like inciting conflict or initiating arguments with people, he was not a person who would let someone step all over him either.

    Qin Lingyu chuckled, before he exined with a measured tone of voice, ¡°What do I mean? Naturally, I¡¯m purging the Sect of vermin.¡±

    ¡°Purging the Sect?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Do you think I would conceal from the Sect how you¡¯ve colluded with demonic cultivators?¡± Qin Lingyuughed sardonically as he added, ¡°In fact, the first prince was not the only demonic cultivator; even that young man called Yao Mo was also one. He deserves to have been burnt to death by the Grand Vizier¡¯s Ninefold Empyrean me.¡±

    ¡°What did you say?!¡± Ye Xiuwen waspletely taken aback by Qin Lingyu¡¯s final statement. The earlier cid expression on his face was nowpletely shattered.

    Qin Lingyuughed meaningfully, ¡°What I¡¯m saying is that the young man named Yao Mo is already dead. He had even held the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first king in a tight embrace as he died, as though he wanted to perish together with that first prince.¡±

    ¡°Ahh, that¡¯s right.¡± Qin Lingyu added, ¡°I forgot that martial brother Ye was especially fond of that young man, Yao Mo. You¡¯ve even lived and ate together at one point. It¡¯s just such a pity...¡±

    His voice trailed off meaningfully, but it was impossible to tell whether he meant that it was a pity that Yao Mo was dead; or it was a pity that Yao Mo¡¯s final choice was the first prince.

    Regardless, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s brain momentarily drew a nk.

    There was no doubt that Qin Lingyu¡¯s final statement had dealt Ye Xiuwen the greatest blow.

 Chapter 132: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Retaliation

    <h4>Chapter 132: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Retaliation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest rose and fell as he heaved and breathed. His emotions were a mess right now. Just then, Qin Lingyu made his move.

    The Misnds¡¯ mode of operations was always the same ¨C it would create a scenario to draw out the most abject despondence and despair in its prey before attacking and killing it. Then, it would slowly devour and consume the soul of its prey.

    Naturally, the physical body of the Misnds¡¯ prey would not immediately vanish after its soul had perished ¨C it would only enter a brain-dead state of existence. But without a soul, the body would never be able to wake up again.

    The counterfeit Qin Lingyu intended to capitalize on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s stupor to strike at him and deal him a fatal blow. But having been through so manybats and skirmishes, self-preservation and defense was almost second nature to Ye Xiuwen. Therefore, just as Qin Lingyu¡¯s attack arrived in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, Ye Xiuwen reacted. His sword flickered, leaving only afterimages in its wake. Soon, both of them were locked in an intense battle.

    In reality, Ye Xiuwen¡¯sbat abilities had always exceeded Qin Lingyu¡¯s abilities by a mile. Since the counterfeit Qin Lingyu had been created from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s memory of Qin Lingyu, thebat abilities of the counterfeit Qin Lingyu were the same as they were in reality. In other words, once Qin Lingyu had lost the element of surprise after his very first attack, the rest of their battle was fated to be a grueling, uphill task for him.

    Gradually, their difference in abilities began to show as the counterfeit Qin Lingyu ceded more and more ground to Ye Xiuwen.

    Even then, Ye Xiuwen would not be able to leave this illusion even if he killed off the counterfeit Qin Lingyu. There was only one condition for escape ¨C and that was to recognize and be convicted that the ¡°reality¡± before his eyes was nothing more than an illusion.

    This was something that Ye Xiuwen had not noticed yet.

    Just as the counterfeit Qin Lingyu was unable to hold on any longer, the counterfeit Jun Xiaomo anxiously watching at the side suddenly yelled out, ¡°Brother Lingyu, I¡¯ming to help you!¡±

    As her exmation rang out, a pink figure suddenly rushed between Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen. As soon as he heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exmation, Ye Xiuwen immediately hesitated in his attack. Yet that moment of hesitation proved to be disastrous. Both Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s swords instantly plunged straight through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abdomen.

    ¡°You...¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes widened in horror as he stared with incredulity at the youngdy before his very eyes.

    At this very moment, the youngdy¡¯s eyes were no longer filled with that limpid and obsequious gaze of hers. Instead, there was only a cold, frigid gaze that stared straight through the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    There was even an undeniable trace of hatred in her eyes.

    Hatred? Ye Xiuwen recoiled in shock. Then he coughed a few times ¨C blood had begun to seep out of the corner of his mouth in serpentine streaks. Ye Xiuwen chuckled bitterly ¨C

    That¡¯s right. Little martial sister has always valued things that bore a pleasant appearance. How could she not hate my appearances after seeing that terrifying scar under the veiled conical hat of mine?

    Ye Xiuwen looked on as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clear, obsidian-ck eyes stared straight at his sprawling scar which had been caused by the incursion of demonic energy. Then, realization dawned upon Ye Xiuwen; he finally understood everything. At least, that was what he thought.

    His heart began to grow colder and colder. While the earlier news about Yao Mo¡¯s death had plunged Ye Xiuwen into the depths of despair and despondence, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present attitude towards him had iced over his heart once again, instantaneously negating all of the real Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efforts at warming her martial brother up to her.

    He had almost dealt a fatal blow to Qin Lingyu earlier. Yet it was precisely because Jun Xiaomo had interjected that he hesitated. He did not want to hurt his little martial sister at all.

    Even then ¨C even though he did not wish to hurt Jun Xiaomo ¨C his opponents did not reciprocate such thoughts. They mercilessly plunged their swords straight into his abdomen. Jun Xiaomo had even used the sword arts that Ye Xiuwen had imparted to her against himself!

    Ye Xiuwen had already sustained slight injuries when he forcibly recalled the spiritual energy to retract his earlier attack. Now that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had viciously stabbed him in his abdomen, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injuries could only be described as grievous, bordering on fatal. The odds of his survival were now thin at best.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu ferociously pulled back their swords at the same time, causing blood to immediately spurt out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abdomen.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stab had punctured Ye Xiuwen¡¯s artery.

    As Ye Xiuwen¡¯s blood began to flow out profusely, the strength in his body began to drain out extremely quickly. His eyes blurred, and his surroundings started to shift.

    Yet he steeled his nerves and continued to stand where he was with an erect back. It was as though he waspletely unwilling to fall and falter, even at the final moments of his life.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu¡¯s image had be nothing more than blur patches of colours to him. Nevertheless, he could vaguely make out what Qin Lingyu was saying to him right now ¨C

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, you should have anticipated such an end when you had decided to collude with the demonic cultivators earlier... But, don¡¯t worry. You won¡¯t be alone. Yao Mo and the others are waiting for you below...¡±

    Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faces beamed with immense delight and satisfaction as they watched Ye Xiuwen draw his final breaths.

    Yao Mo...Little Mo...

    That young man¡¯s suave and charming appearance shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind once more. His face made several expressions, including that of mischief, seriousness, disappointment, heartyughter...

    Then, Yao Mo¡¯s face finally paused at the expression that he had made when he first learnt that the scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face was caused by the confluence of a curse and the incursion of demonic energy ¨C

    ¡°Brother Ye, is it painful?¡± The young man asked him dolefully, as though that scar was on his own face.

    ¡°Brother Ye, I will definitely find the medicinal elements necessary to treat that scar on your face! Then, you¡¯ll finally be able to hold your head up high and live amidst gazes of admiration!¡± The young man sincerely eximed. Even though his voice was still tender and crisp, it was nevertheless filled with persuasiveness. His words had once again ignited the feeling of hope in his heart...

    A warm feeling gushed out from the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, mitigating the pain from the injuries on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body. It even brought some measure of rity back to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind.

    Perhaps the only person who could look at me without staring at my terrifying scar with a peculiar gaze is Yao Mo? That clumsy yet abnormally determined young man...

    It¡¯s a pity that the young man is now dead. As he thought about this, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart ckened once more.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart wrenched at the thought of Yao Mo¡¯s death. He did not mind the fact that Yao Mo had chosen to embrace the first prince at the end instead of himself. His only wish was that the silly and adorable young man could live well and live happily.

    Generally, when people discover that their most beloved person in the world had perished, they would feel incredibly aggrieved and despondent, and perhaps even turn suicidal.

    But Ye Xiuwen was not like that. The pain and grief in his heart only brought rity to his mind. And that was not all. At this moment, that spark of fiery intent within his chest had finally burgeoned into a roaring inferno ¨C

    This towering inferno engulfed his mind with thoughts of vengeance!

    Ye Xiuwen suddenly opened his eyes again menacingly. His obsidian-ck eyes were no longer still and serene as waters on ake. Instead, they had be deep and profound like a bottomless abyss.

    This deep profundity was like the calm before the raging superstorm ¨C despite the still appearances, it bore down with immense pressure on Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bodies.

    Ye Xiuwen had not discovered that the wound on his body had somehow begun to recover and fuse together again.

    In the end, the illusory world was still inextricably intertwined with a person¡¯s thoughts and convictions. When a person¡¯s convictions became so overwhelmingly strong that they could repress the illusions created by the little red flowers, the illusions would naturally be reformed in the direction of that person¡¯s convictions.

    The counterfeit Qin Lingyu realized this immediately. With his limited senses, he was unable toprehend how his ¡°prey¡± already at his final breath would suddenly draw a second wind with such immense vitality.

    That said, each of these ¡°persons¡± in the illusory world were nothing more than an extension of the little red flowers. A few of these little red flowers might have developed spiritual awareness and be better able to understand the basic thoughts and actions of humans, but they were nevertheless no more than little red flowers in the end. They were never going to be able to fullyprehend the nuances andplexities of human emotions in a person¡¯s heart.

    In other words, while the fragrance dispersed by these little red flowers could draw out the despair and despondent memories within a person¡¯s heart, these flowers could never understand human emotions, much less adapt ordingly when unexpected circumstances arise.

    The present counterfeit Qin Lingyu was just like that. He knew that things had gone awry and developed in ways which were out of his expectations, but his only reaction was to increase the measure of fragrance that it emitted in a feeble attempt to amplify the despair and despondence it drew out from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Yet the amplification of despair and despondence only seemed to add fuel to the raging inferno in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart. As a result, his thoughts of vengeance only grew stronger, and stronger.

    Finally, Ye Xiuwen made his move. This time, he was the one who took the initiative to attack Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo.

 Chapter 133: Yao Mo = Jun Xiaomo!

    <h4>Chapter 133: Yao Mo = Jun Xiaomo!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo hastily picked up their swords to defend themselves. But as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hatred festered, hisbat abilities only grew stronger and more aggressive. In contrast, Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo had lost any modicum of advantage that they earlier had over Ye Xiuwen, and their attacks only grew weaker and feebler as time went by.

    In just a few moments, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart cut a deep gash across Qin Lingyu¡¯s throat, and scarlet blood spurted and gurgled out from Qin Lingyu¡¯s throat, spattering across the floor of the courtyard.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes widened in shock, as though he had never expected to die in such a clean and concise manner.

    At the same time, outside of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s illusion, a fairlyrge red flower slowly withered up. Another simrlyrge flower stood just beside that withered red flower, and this flower looked almost listless right now.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye! I¡¯m your younger martial sister! Do you want to kill me as well?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was now covered with numerous wounds and injuries. Her odds of survival had greatly diminished now that she had lost herpanion.

    Jun Xiaomo panicked. She clutched at straws and resorted to reminding Ye Xiuwen of her identity.

    Yet, she seeded by a lucky stroke of fate. Having heard her desperate yell, Ye Xiuwen paused in his steps.

    Little martial sister? That¡¯s right, she¡¯s the daughter of my master after all...

    Ye Xiuwen deeply respected Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei. Naturally, he would never do anything to hurt these people whom he owed such a great debt of gratitude to.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen sheathed his sword. Even though his eyes were still covered with a thickyer of frost, he had already cast off his earlier intent to kill Jun Xiaomo.

    Forget it. She¡¯s not the culprit who caused Little Mo¡¯s death anyway. Ye Xiuwen turned to leave. He was on his path of vengeance against all who had caused Yao Mo¡¯s death ¨C especially the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier!

    Just as Ye Xiuwen showed his back, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes flickered with a vicious intent. She braced herself as she prepared to change the contents of the illusion to another scene in a bid to reignite the despair and despondence in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    However, this little red flower never found a chance to execute its schemes. Just as it was nning its next move, the real Jun Xiaomo managed to locate its physical body, and a stalk of particrlyrge, red flower was uprooted just like that.

    Jun Xiaomo took a gander at the particrlyrge red flower and the Blisterfruits hanging below as she nodded her head and eximed with great satisfaction, ¡°With this bunch of Blisterfruit, there should now be sufficient medicinal element for martial brother Ye¡¯s cure. Furthermore, the grade of this Blisterfruit seems better than the others. There should be a higher chance of sess in its refinement too!¡±

    There were varying grades of Blisterfruits, even among those she had just harvested. For example, thest bunch of Blisterfruit that she had harvested was part of a little red flower that had already developed a basic spiritual awareness. Naturally, it was of a higher grade than the rest, and the medicine refined from it would be more effective. It was also more valuable.

    That¡¯s right, the Blisterfruits could also be sold for money, and its price was rather considerable as well. After all, few people could ovee the illusions created by these little red flowers. Therefore, despite the thriving market for these fruits, there were not many people were able to harvest and sell these Blisterfruits.

    Jun Xiaomo stored thest bunch of Blisterfruits that she had just harvested into her Interspatial Ring. Then, she began digging for more Blisterfruits.

    ¡°Come to think of it, I wonder where brother Ye, the first prince and my little packrat are?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she wracked her mind.

    --------------------------------------------

    ¡°Ahhh--!¡± In his illusion, Ye Xiuwen only heard a shrill, pained shriek call out from behind him. As he reflexively turned his head, he witnessed Jun Xiaomo disintegrating into fine powder before dispersing and scattering into the air.

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± It was his martial sister after all. Ye Xiuwen could hardly bring himself to watch on as she died. Therefore, he ran back into her courtyard anxiously. However, it was all toote. There was no longer any trace of his little martial sister left.

    Not only had Jun Xiaomo vanished, even Qin Lingyu¡¯s corpse hadpletely disappeared.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his eyebrows. His first thoughts were ¨C Could this all be caused by the Grand Vizier?

    However, he was very soon presented with the answer. His surroundings began to shift, and a thick fog once again settled over the courtyard, obscuring his entire view. It was just like how he first entered this ce to begin with.

    It was at this moment that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind suddenly red out its realization ¨C Illusion!

    Ye Xiuwen had read about illusions from books and literature, but he had never personally experienced one before.

    It could only be said that theoretical knowledge and physical experiences were incredibly different. It was only after one had experience such things could one properly be guarded and vignt against these things.

    Just in that moment when Ye Xiuwen noticed that he had fallen into an illusion, the surrounding white mist began to vanish and dissipate...

    ¡°Brother Ye?!¡± A familiar voice called out not too far away. This voice carried with it traces of joy that apanied a blissful reunion.

    Little Mo...

    Ye Xiuwen practically immediately recognized the owner of this voice. His heart skipped a beat, and he leapt to his feet ¨C

    As expected! Little Mo isn¡¯t dead!

    This was also the first time that Ye Xiuwen developed some measure of gratitude in his heart for the earlier illusion that he had experienced. At the very least, he was thankful that they were no more than an illusion ¨C none of it was real.

    ¡°Brother Ye...?¡± As the voice drew nearer, it seemed to carry with it a trace of hesitation.

    Yet this measure of hesitation waspletely understandable. After experiencing that incredibly vivid illusory world, she could not be sure that what she was seeing right now was reality and not another illusion.

    Besides, she had not noticed Ye Xiuwen lying here earlier. Why would he suddenly appear out of nowhere?

    What Jun Xiaomo did not know was that whenever a person was trapped in an illusion created by these little red flowers, others would not be able to see that person. It was only when a person had thoroughly broken free of the shackles of these illusions that he would once again be visible to the others. The principles behind this was akin to that of formation arrays.

    Therefore, once Ye Xiuwen broke free of the control of his illusory world, he instantly appeared where he had always beenying ¨C behind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back.

    Ye Xiuwen stood with an erect back. He had shut his eyes tightly earlier, and he only just slowly began to open his eyes once again.

    A bright ray of light shone into his pupils. Then, a small figure entered his field of vision.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately recognized the characteristic green garbs on that person ¨C

    ¡°Little Mo!¡± Ye Xiuwen strode forward quickly and pulled Jun Xiaomo into a hearty embrace!

    ¡°Bro...brother Ye?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears instantly turned red.

    That cool and aloof disposition about Ye Xiuwen made her realize that this was undoubtedly her martial brother.

    But...but isn¡¯t martial brother being a little bit too passionate right now? It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t seen him in a few hundred years...

    The burning sensation from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears began to spread to her face, and then her neck. She could feel that her heart was now beginning to beat faster and faster, but she could not understand why.

    After some hesitation, Jun Xiaomo slowly lifted her hands and softly hugged Ye Xiuwen as well. She patted his back, as though assuring him that everything was fine now.

    ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m fine...¡± Jun Xiaomo stammered.

    She knew that Ye Xiuwen was worried that something might have happened to her. That was the only usible exnation for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s current outburst of emotions.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were slightly bloodshot. He continued to hold Jun Xiaomo in a tight embrace. Then, he mustered all his strength and courage before he finally managed to collect his emotions and suppress his dread, lingering fear, anxiety, and other simr feelings.

    ¡°Mm, we¡¯re both fine now.¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled the young man¡¯s hair. After some time, he finally loosened his grip and let go of Jun Xiaomo.

    By now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks had already turned incredibly warm. They were flushed with a radiant, pink hue.

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head bashfully, so that Ye Xiuwen could not see the expressions on her face. But Ye Xiuwen could nevertheless see Yao Mo¡¯s reddened neck and ears. He knew that Yao Mo was...shy.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart quivered. He put a finger to the young man¡¯s chin and lifted his face gently.

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected her martial brother to act so coquettishly towards her. Therefore, she stared back at him in shock.

    Yet when he saw ¡°Yao Mo¡¯s¡± appearance, Ye Xiuwen became even more dumbfounded than Jun Xiaomo was ¨C

    The person standing in front of her was not some ¡°young man¡± at all. That green-garbed person was undeniably his little martial sister!

 Chapter 134: A Pleasant Surprise Amidst the Danger

    <h4>Chapter 134: A Pleasant Surprise Amidst the Danger</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°You...¡± Ye Xiuwen let go of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chin before using the same hand to touch Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks...

    It was warm and soft. It was definitely not an illusion.

    ¡°Ye...brother Ye, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Jun Xiaomo stammered as her face grew warmer with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gentle caress.

    Ye Xiuwen had not used much strength at all. He had simply rested his palm on her cheek. But it was precisely because of such an action that Jun Xiaomo could feel the warmth of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm on her cheek as well.

    It was not particrly hot. In fact, his hand could even be described as slightly cool to the touch. Despite that, this only made the part of her cheeks that he touched ignite with a burning sensation.

    Jun Xiaomo tilted her face slightly as she tactfully shrugged off Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm. At the same time, she quickly lowered her head to avoid eye contact with Ye Xiuwen.

    She was at aplete loss as to how she should deal with the present situation. Therefore, she reflexively chose the path of least resistance ¨C otherwise, her face was only going to turn redder and redder.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at the ¡°young man¡±...or rather, the young, demuredy. Her cheeks were flushed with an attractive, pink hue, while her eyes seemed to bashfully avoid eye contact with him. His heart stirred. He subconsciously stretched out his hands and pulled Jun Xiaomo into a tight embrace once again.

    Badump. Badump. Their heartbeats began to synchronize and beat in harmony.

    ¡°That...that...¡± Jun Xiaomo grew increasingly perplexed and bewildered by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions. Yet her heart knew that she was not resistant to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intimate advances.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head was buried in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulders. She stared vacantly at his clothes and she blinked listlessly.

    ¡°Xiaomo...¡± After some time, Ye Xiuwen suddenly called out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name.

    ¡°Ah?¡± Jun Xiaomo responded ignorantly. She had thought that Ye Xiuwen was still referring to her as ¡°Little Mo¡±[1]

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his head as he looked at the top of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. A smile crept up the corner of his lips as he yfully added, ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯re incredibly mischievous. Do your parents know that you¡¯vee looking for me?¡±

    Bzzt! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s brain almost imploded at this statement. She instantly drew a nk.

    As this white, empty fuzz in her mind dissipated and rationality returned to her, Jun Xiaomo finally recalled something extremely important ¨C today was thest day that her Alteration Talisman would remain effective. She hadpletely forgotten about this matter as a result of being trapped in the illusory world earlier.

    Does this mean that I¡¯vepletely reverted to my original body? Then why hasn¡¯t my voice changed back?

    Jun Xiaomo was almost in tears.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body stiffen in his embrace, and he rapped Jun Xiaomo gently on the head as he chided, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you looking for excuses now?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo struggled out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s embrace. Then, she lowered her head as she obsequiously admitted her fault, ¡°Martial brother, I was in the wrong...I shouldn¡¯t have run out like that.¡±

    The warmth in his bosom was now gone. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had once again be deep and abstruse. Yet Jun Xiaomo who had hung her head low failed to notice these slight changes.

    ¡°At least you¡¯re straightforward in admitting that you¡¯re at fault.¡± Ye Xiuwen spoke cidly. It was unclear whether he was pleased or angry at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head. Then, she strode over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and clutched at his arms as she cajoled, ¡°Martial brother, please don¡¯t be mad at me, hmm? Like I mentioned earlier,bat and skirmish are the most effective way of increasing my cultivation level. See? My cultivation level has already increased to the second level of Qi Mastery in no time!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had always weed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efforts at drawing close to him. But somehow, thetter part of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s statement only invoked a peculiar feeling in his heart. He raised his eyebrows curiously, ¡°Are you saying that your only objective foring out on these travels is to improve your cultivation?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was an incredibly sincere and honest child in front of her loved ones. She rubbed her cheeks shyly as she replied, ¡°Cough...that¡¯s right...having deliberated for some time, I felt that travelling out of the Sect was still the best way to increase my cultivation level. That¡¯s why I secretly followed you here. Furthermore, I was worried that martial brother wouldn¡¯t allow me to follow you, so I used an Alteration Talisman to change my appearances...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice trailed off towards the end, and thest part of what she had said was spoken with an extremely soft voice and filled with some measure of guilty conscience. She even nced discreetly towards Ye Xiuwen to see if he was angry at her right now.

    Ye Xiuwen was in fact rather frustrated at her. But even he found it hard to pinpoint which of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s statements it was that had incited his frustrations.

    Even then, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s emotions rarely manifested outwardly. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo was still unable to tell whether her martial brother was angry or not. He was simply staring cidly at her, and there was no way she could tell what was going through her martial brother¡¯s mind right now.

    ¡°That...martial brother, please don¡¯t force me to go back now, alright? We¡¯ve already reached the Mystic Woods. Let¡¯s go back together once you¡¯vepleted the Sect¡¯s mission.¡± Jun Xiaomo hooked her arm around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s as she swung it about.

    If Yao Mo were not Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen would naturally be unable to send Yao Mo packing back home. This was because he did not know where Yao Mo lived.

    But Yao Mo was none other than Jun Xiaomo. In turn, Jun Xiaomo was his master¡¯s beloved child...

    Jun Xiaomo had already left home for so long. Master and his wife must be incredibly worried once they discover that she¡¯s missing, right? Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened. Their surroundings were undoubtedly fraught with many dangers. It was obvious that home was the safest ce for Jun Xiaomo right now.

    Having thought about these things, Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head lightly as he made a peremptory resolve, ¡°No way. I have to bring you back first.¡±

    ¡°I knew it was going to be like this!¡± Jun Xiaomo grew exasperated. She red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°I should be the one saying ¡®no way¡¯! If martial brother escorts me home right now, what¡¯s going be of your mission? Are you just going to abandon it?!¡±

    ¡°Be good. I¡¯lle back once I¡¯ve sent you home.¡±

    ¡°No way! Each leg of this journey takes such a long time. How could you possiblyplete the mission in time?! Furthermore, don¡¯t forget that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier is still looking for us. How can I allow you to run about alone in these Mystic Woods?¡±

    The more Jun Xiaomo said, the madder she grew. In the end, her eyes widened into round, glistening globes of obstinance as she stared at Ye Xiuwen with slightly reddened rims.

    This was anger.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly moved by the fact that Jun Xiaomo was not willing to abandon him and leave him behind. But he was also incredibly exasperated by her unbending attitude to the current situation.

    ¡°Be good, Xiaomo. It¡¯s not safe for you here. Do you want to make your parents worry about your safety unceasingly?¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words had be slightly harsher as he began to speak in his capacity as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s elder martial brother.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t want anything to happen to you.¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly leapt into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom and tightly hugged him at his waist. Then, she began to choke with emotions as she stammered, ¡°Martial brother, I don¡¯t want to stay behind alone at the Sect, unaware of your fate and unable to ascertain whether you¡¯re alive or not...you don¡¯t understand...I¡¯m so afraid...I often wake up in fear, thinking that all of this is but a dream...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stammered on incoherently. She was unable to speak about her previous life¡¯s experiences. To her, Jun Xiaomo had relegated those experiences to be treated as nothing more than a terrible, arduous nightmare. It was a nightmare that she had never wanted to revisit ever again.

    This was one of the reasons why she had be so incredibly outraged at the illusions drawn out by the little red flowers. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death had always been a huge stumbling block in her heart. Yet the little red flowers had captured these thoughts precisely and used it to draw out her despair and despondence. The illusion was then imposed on her, and she had thus been forced to relive that nightmare of her previous life once again. She had experienced every measure of bitterness, agony and anguish of her memories again. How could she not be furious at that?

    Then, Ye Xiuwen found that his clothes began to feel damp.

    This is...Xiaomo¡¯s tears?

    Ye Xiuwen had never expected Jun Xiaomo to resist his intentions so strenuously.

    He sighed helplessly. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was filled withplicated, indescribable emotions right now. He patted the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he finally relented, ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s go back once I manage toplete the Sect¡¯s mission then. Don¡¯t cry, hmm?¡±

    How could Ye Xiuwen still harden his heart after witnessing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rarely-shed tears?

    ¡°I¡¯m not crying!¡± Jun Xiaomo found that given the age of her soul, it was incredibly embarrassing and shameful to be throwing herself into her martial brother¡¯s embrace and sobbing uncontrobly.

    Therefore, she secretly wiped off her tears before lifting her head and ring straight at Ye Xiuwen before she murmured, ¡°Martial brother, do you know that it¡¯s only to your benefit that you¡¯re keeping me around? My talismans and formation arrays are so powerful! Hmph!¡±

    This was the manifestation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality ¨C she had to justify herself even after she had earned a concession from Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly. There was even a light trace of pampering and indulgence in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as he cated Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Alright, Xiaomo didn¡¯t cry. It¡¯s my benefit.¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo somehow found herself a little bit embarrassed by what Ye Xiuwen had just said. She coughed dryly as she shifted her attention away from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    ¡°But I must inform your parents that you¡¯re with me right now, understand? If they¡¯re still too worried for your safety and intend to personally bring you back, then you cannot be willful about it, okay? If that happens, I want you to follow them back obediently, understand?¡± Ye Xiuwen added.

    ¡°Mm...alright...¡± Jun Xiaomo responded unwillingly as she looked down.

    She was currently thinking about how she should best phrase this letter so that her parents would allow her to continue following her martial brother until hepletes the Sect¡¯s mission.

    Little did Jun Xiaomo know that her parents were already making haste towards the Mystic Woods right now.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at his little martial sister, and his heart softened ¨C Fortunate. Fortunately, the illusion was all a lie. Fortunately, Yao Mo is none other than my little martial sister.

    In fact, he had already had his suspicions about this. But he had never dared to hope for too much. Thus, he had time and again consciously dispelled his suspicions in this regard.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present emotions were still extremelyplicated. The fact that Yao Mo was Jun Xiaomo was an incredibly pleasant surprise to him. But he did not have the luxury of time to sort out the rest of hisplicated feelings right now. After all, there was still a throng of enemies hot on their tail.

    It¡¯s just like Jun Xiaomo had said. It¡¯s best to finish the Sect¡¯s mission and breakthrough into the Foundation Establishment level before considering any other things.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen shelved theplications in his heart and motioned to bring Jun Xiaomo away from these grounds, a pping sound rang out from a short distance away.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s senses perked up and he immediately cocked his head towards the direction the pping sound had travelled from ¨C

    A middle-aged man wearing a cold smile on his face slowly walked out from behind a tree, leading an entourage of people behind him.

    ¡°That was such a touching moment. Who would¡¯ve thought that Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak¡¯s martial brother and sister duo would have such strong feelings for each other? I only wonder what this littledy¡¯s fianc¨¦ would think when he hears his own fianc¨¦e professing her feelings to another man.¡±

    As he said that, the middle-aged man nced meaningfully at another man standing behind him. This other man stared frigidly at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. The bulging veins on his forehead were throbbing ostensibly. It was unclear how long they had been watching Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen for.

    This man was none other than that ¡°fianc¨¦¡± of the middle-aged man¡¯s spiel, Qin Lingyu.

    1. They sound the same in Mandarin

 Chapter 135: The One Who Broke the Marriage Arrangement

    <h4>Chapter 135: The One Who Broke the Marriage Arrangement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo returned a frigid gaze back at Qin Lingyu. One could see traces of Yao Mo¡¯s disposition on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s look of wariness right now.

    Qin Lingyu took a few steps forward. Jun Xiaomo immediately turned her body around, stepping in front of Ye Xiuwen and shielding him behind her back.

    This was a protective posture. Whenever Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen had battled together against enemies in the past, they had developed a tacit understanding to entrust their backs to each other as they fended off the attacks for one another. It was the same right now. Jun Xiaomo stood in front of Ye Xiuwen as though it had be second nature to her.

    When the other Dawn Sect disciples saw this previously, they had cast looks of admiration towards them, apuding them for the level of trust that Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen could have for each other. This was something that could only be done on a subconscious level when they had fully let down their guard around each other. This was something that the Dawn Sect disciples were evidently unable to do around each other. After all, when faced with the temptations of profits and the risk of their lives, they would invariably choose to sacrifice theirpanions for their own gains.

    But now that Yao Mo had turned into Jun Xiaomo, the disciples once again reassessed at the interaction between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen with some measure of suspicion. The disciples looked straight at Qin Lingyu with all types of expressions ¨C pity, delight in Qin Lingyu¡¯s misery, or even with interest as the drama unfolded.

    Then, their thoughts shifted to the period of time that Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen had resided together and partaken of meals with each other, and none of them could help but wonder to what extent Qin Lingyu had been made into a cuckold right now ¨C after all, all of this was done under Qin Lingyu¡¯s very own watchful eyes!

    And if these thoughts had crossed the minds of the other disciples, how could they not have crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind either? The bulging veins on his forehead throbbed violently as he forcibly eked out a stiff smile. Then, with gritted teeth, he articted his words fervently, ¡°What do I think? I can only say this ¨C Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯re truly capable. We¡¯ve not seen each other in such a long time, and yet when you finally see me, this is the kind surprise you give me, hmm?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo curled her fingers around a bunch of hair hanging down the side of her face as she responded wryly, ¡°It can¡¯t be considered a very ¡®long time¡¯, can it? I mean, didn¡¯t martial brother Qin lead the other Dawn Sect disciples in a fervent pursuit for the lives of martial brother Ye and I just a few days ago? If you want to talk about a ¡®surprise¡¯, wouldn¡¯t you say that attempted murder of a fellow disciple is almost certainly a greater surprise? I wonder how the Sect Elders are going to punish you when they hear about this. You know, I¡¯m truly worried for you.¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo mentioned that she was ¡°worried¡±, a smirk had in fact crept up her face when she said it. She was evidently filled with anticipation rather than worry.

    Qin Lingyu swept a cold gaze back at Jun Xiaomo before he coldly refuted, ¡°Xiaomo had better worry for herself first. The Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince is a demonic cultivator. The Sect Elders have already been alerted to the fact that you and martial brother Ye are colluding with a demonic cultivator. Who knows ¨C they might be on their way to capture you right this moment!¡±

    Qin Lingyu had earlier allowed Ke Xinwen to report this news to the Sect so that he could leave himself some room for manoeuvre in the case of any exigencies. But now that Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly provoked him, all of these considerations had gone straight out of the window. He was so incensed right now that his only wish was to see Jun Xiaomo squirm in anxiety and helplessness.

    But his hopes were dashed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction. Her facial expressions revealed that she hardly cared about these matters.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and locked eyes with Qin Lingyu as she craftily responded, ¡°Martial brother Qin, you allege that the first prince is a demonic cultivator, but do you have any proof of this? If you don¡¯t have any proof, then I would advise you not to make false allegations. Otherwise, you might be guilty of the charge of nder. Don¡¯t you dare think for a moment that He Zhang will be able to protect you for the rest of your life!¡±

    The moment that He Zhang bes incapacitated like he did in my previous life, that¡¯s when I will begin to deal with you properly! Jun Xiaomo silently added in her heart as she continued to stare coldly at Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Enough! Martial sister Jun, can the name of our Sect Leader be thrown around by you so casually like that? You¡¯ve truly be no different from a demonic cultivator!¡± One of the disciples beat his breast indignantly as he decried. He acted as though a person¡¯s reasonableness wasmensurate with the volume of his voice.

    However, even this disciple knew that he could not say for sure whether the first prince was indeed a demonic cultivator or not. After all, this was only something that the Grand Vizier had alleged, and the Dawn Sect disciples had never seen it with their own eyes.

    What if this were nothing more than a ploy that the Grand Vizier had hatched so that we would agree to kill their martial brother Ye and the rest?

    As his thoughts turned to how they had endorsed Ke Xinwen¡¯s letter reporting this matter to the Sect, this disciple¡¯s heart immediately swelled with unease and unrest.

    This disciple was not the only one who thought this way. Several other disciples also shared this thought at this very moment. But they chose to remain taciturn and keep observing as matters unfurled.

    Jun Xiaomo meaningfully curled her lips into a slight smirk as she swept her gaze over each any every disciple from Dawn Sect right now. As her gaze swept over each one of them, that disciple would feel their uneasiness amplified by magnitudes.

    Jun Xiaomo was simply too unfazed and unppable right now. Such a disy of steadfastness on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part made them second guess the basis for their initial decision to hunt down Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen in the first ce.

    If the first prince was not a demonic cultivator, then there was absolutely no way that they would be able to shirk off the charge of attempted murder of their fellow disciple. With Qin Lingyu and Ke Xinwen¡¯s esteemed statuses, one being the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader and the other being the First-Sect Disciple of the Pill Cauldron Sect, perhaps nothing much might happen to them. It was as Jun Xiaomo had said, their masters would naturally do their best to protect them.

    But the rest of the disciples were in a far greater predicament. It was quite likely that they would be made into scapegoats and emunicated from the Sect.

    Ke Xinwen had always hated Yao Mo and Ye Xiuwen. This hardly changed a bit when he learnt that Yao Mo was in fact Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, he continued to transfix his cold gaze on the two of them, like how a vicious, poisonous snake did as it prepared to strike at its enemies.

    Yu Wanrou had also watched on silently at all these things. The fact that Jun Xiaomo would give up on her pursuit of Qin Lingyu should have given rise to immense pleasure on her part.

    However, she was hardly pleased at this moment. She thought about how Qin Lingyu had seemed to neglect her throughout the entirety of these travels; while Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had only develop a closer rapport with each other. Suddenly, she felt like aplete loser.

    She had clung on so tightly to a person that even Jun Xiaomo did not relish. What was the point of it all?

    What was more ludicrous was the fact that she had always thought about how Jun Xiaomo would be jealous of her. She had thought that as long as she won over Qin Lingyu to her side, then she would be able to sit on her high horse and look down at Jun Xiaomo as she wore that defeated expression on her face.

    At this moment, Yu Wanrou subconsciously shifted her attention away from Jun Xiaomo and onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body. It was only at this moment when she realized that Ye Xiuwen had already removed his veiled conical hat ¨C

    This was the first time that Yu Wanrou had seen Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances without his veiled conical hat. She had often heard rumours about how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances had been ruined. But no matter how descriptive these rumours had been about that terrifying scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, they did nothing to mitigate the impact of witnessing it for the first time.

    That long, murky scar that ran across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face from the left side of his forehead to his right lower jaw ruined Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances entirely. Demonic energy coursed slowly within the scar and threatened to seep out at the edges of the scar, creating shadows of movement under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s skin as though the scar were a living thing. What was perhaps the most terrifying was the fact that the flesh surrounding the scar even seemed to be corroded by the incursion of demonic energy. It was a horrific, ghastly sight.

    ¡°Uhk...hurgh...¡± Yu Wanrou immediately covered her mouth and turned her head away.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze had coincidentally just swept over Yu Wanrou. Therefore, she noticed that Yu Wanrou had retched at the sight of Ye Xiuwen. A sense of indignation swelled up in her heart immediately. Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows and shouted, ¡°Yu Wanrou! You¡¯re looking for trouble!¡±

    As she said that, she motioned to strike at Yu Wanrou!

    Ye Xiuwen immediately held back Jun Xiaomo, preventing her from acting rashly. He patted her shoulders as he cajoled, ¡°Martial brother is fine...don¡¯t be angry...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen could hardly care about how others viewed him. In fact, he couldpletely ignore the scar on his face as long as the people who mattered to him were able to look at him normally.

    He was once again reminded about his encounter in the illusory world, where the counterfeit little martial sister of his looked at his face in terror and disgust. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he subconsciously tightened his grip around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder.

    Jun Xiaomo had not gotten used to the fact that she was no longer wearing that persona of Yao Mo any longer. Therefore, she hardly found her intimacy with her own martial brother strange. Yet the other disciples wore expressions of realization when they witnessed the interactions between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen right now.

    As expected, martial brother Qin has been made a cuckold. This was the unanimous thought among all the other disciples.

    Qin Lingyu felt that his pride and reputation had been thoroughly trampled by vulgar woman before his eyes today. He wanted so much to tear apart that illicit couple and kill them in the cruelest way possible.

    Qin Lingyu remained taciturn, but his vicious ¨C almost diabolical ¨C gaze revealed the ponderances of his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo locked eyes with Qin Lingyu, and she understood what was running through his mind right now.

    Then, a realization dawned upon her, and she suddenly found this entire situation ratherughable. In her previous life, Qin Lingyu had humored Jun Xiaomo on the surface while he actively tangled himself in bed with Yu Wanrou. Even then, he never once considered his own actions as a form of betrayal to Jun Xiaomo. But now, despite how things between her martial brother and her were still extremely kosher, Qin Lingyu had already sought to pin on her the charge of betraying their marriage agreement. Just what basis did he have for this!

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly as she remarked, ¡°Qin Lingyu, don¡¯t look at me with that kind of gaze. You know full well what you¡¯ve done. Hmm? Have you already forgotten the ecstatic feeling of tussling with your martial sister Wanrou in bed?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s remarks were incredibly explicit, causing the other Dawn Sect disciples to immediately reel with shock.

    ¡°What?! Martial brother Qin and martial sister Wanrou have already...?¡±

    ¡°It cannot be. We¡¯ve never seen them behave intimately with each other.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps Jun Xiaomo is trying to pry our attention away from her with some baseless rumours?¡±

    ......

    The disciples whispered and spected among themselves, but none of them believed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allegations at this moment. After all, Qin Lingyu¡¯s pretense had been so wless that none of them could imagine something going on between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had undeniably shared a bed before.

    Naturally, Jun Xiaomo had been ¡°Yao Mo¡± when all of that had happened.

    When Qin Lingyu heard the discussions emanating from behind him, he smiled grimly as he replied Jun Xiaomo sarcastically, ¡°How¡¯s that, Jun Xiaomo? You¡¯ve also heard what the others are saying, hmm? Are you finally clear on who¡¯s betrayed who now? If you want to smear and tarnish the pure and innocent rtionship between martial sister Wanrou and I, you¡¯d better have some proof.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo calmly nodded her head as she immediately rebutted, ¡°Do you want proof? Fine.¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart immediately shuddered, and a sense of unease swept over him.

    Then, in the next moment, Jun Xiaomo retrieved arge formation diagram from her Interspatial Ring and tossed it to the ground. The formation diagram instantly unfurled itself in the open space between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Qin Lingyu, do you dare to resolve our dispute with a confrontation on the Authentication Array?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her brows as she revealed a vicious grin on her face.

    The Authentication Array. As long as a person standing on the heart of the formation array told a lie, that person would incite the wrath of the heavens and be punished by a wave of Threefold Empyrean Lightning.

    By now, everyone had witnessed with their own eyes Yao Mo¡¯s peculiar formation arrays and talismans. Thus, nobody suspected the veracity of the formation arrayid out on the ground right now.

    Most importantly, Qin Lingyu had never expected Jun Xiaomo to resort to such tactics. He waspletely frozen in shock.

 Chapter 136: Tearing Apart Your Mask

    <h4>Chapter 136: Tearing Apart Your Mask</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just a moment ago, Qin Lingyu was still castigating Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°traitorous behaviour¡± with righteous indignation. Yet in the very next moment when Jun Xiaomo set up an Authentication Array between the two of them, Qin Lingyu¡¯s face immediately contorted slightly.

    His heart had be undeniably anxious even though he tried his best to maintain a dignified appearance on his face. The end result was an expression that looked like a confluence ofughter, sorrow and fury. Even Qin Lingyu could hardly decipher the feelings in his heart right now.

    Jun Xiaomo had already expected such a response from Qin Lingyu. Sheughed sardonically as she pointed to the formation diagram lying between the two of them as she challenged, ¡°What about it? Don¡¯t dare? Or are you saying that you still suspect the veracity of this Authentication Array? Do you want to give the Threefold Empyrean Lightning a try?¡±

    It was unclear what substance the formation diagram had been drawn with. Even though it was broad daylight right now, the formation diagram nevertheless glowed visibly with a soulless purple light. The patterns and inscriptions on the formation diagram were soplex that it dazzled everyone¡¯s eyes. At one nce, nobody could tell whether the Authentication Array was real or not.

    There were in fact some disciples who were initially curious about what an Authentication Array looked like. Therefore, they subconsciously took a few steps forward as they craned their necks over the top of the Authentication Array for a better perspective. Yet in that moment that Jun Xiaomo asked whether they wished to give it a try, the disciples immediately shrunk back to where they came from.

    They slunk back behind Qin Lingyu, tacitly responding to Jun Xiaomo through their actions that they absolutely did not want to ¡°try¡± the formation array.

    None of the disciples found this to be a joking matter. After all, who wouldn¡¯t have one or two secrets in their hearts that they did not wish for anybody to know about? What if these secrets were revealed by the Authentication Array? What were they going to do then?

    Furthermore, the consequence of lying was a heavenly punishment ¨C one would be struck by a bolt of the Threefold Empyrean Lightning. They would be grievously hurt after that, if not dead. It had to be said that the strength of the Threefold Empyrean Lightningy in the fact that it could damage a cultivator¡¯s soul. In serious cases, the damage caused to the soul could even be irreparable.

    As for the formation diagram presented by Jun Xiaomo, none of them had ever doubted its veracity to begin with. After all, they had all witnessed ¡°Yao Mo¡¯s¡± prowess with his formation arrays and talismans. Since Yao Mo was none other than Jun Xiaomo, then it was hardly any cause for suspicion that she would possess such strange, formidable formation arrays at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly took in the expressions of all the disciples around. Then, she curled her eyes into a squinch, and a smile crept up her lips as she said, ¡°It seems that nobody has any objections as to the veracity of this formation array. Since that¡¯s the case, martial brother Qin, you can rest assured, and we can finally resolve our dispute through a confrontation on the Authentication Array to determine who¡¯s lying. The manner of confrontation is simple ¨C we can each ask the other one question. What do you say?¡±

    Of course not! Qin Lingyu bellowed in his heart as his facial expression contorted even more.

    Now that things hade to this state, the other disciples began to grow suspicious of the true rtionship between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. After all, if there was nothing furtive about their rtionship, then why was there an obvious look of struggle and hesitation on Qin Lingyu¡¯s face right now?

    Jun Xiaomo waited for a few moments. Then, when she saw that Qin Lingyu remained taciturn, she decided to draw the k over towards Yu Wanrou as she attempted to hide discreetly at the side.

    ¡°Since martial brother Qin isn¡¯t willing to ept a confrontation on the Authentication Array, then why not you take the stand, martial sister Wanrou? How about it? The question that I was going to ask martial brother Qin is rted to you, so it¡¯s the same if you¡¯re the one answering it.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrowsnguidly as she made her suggestion to Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou had earlier been reeling from her shock at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances, and she had barely just managed topose herself. Despite that, Jun Xiaomo had immediately followed up with yet another brutal blow to her. Her mind was instantly sent tumbling into a mess.

    ¡°No! No...¡± Yu Wanrou waved her hands about as she reflexively shrunk behind Qin Lingyu¡¯s back.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes as she looked meaningfully at Yu Wanrou¡¯s appearances right now. She smacked her lips as she thought ¨C What a rare sight! To think that I would actually see the day when the widely acimed lotus fairy would reveal such a tragic expression on her face!

    In her previous life, Yu Wanrou had surrounded herself with a huge following of male cultivators. Their rtionship was exceptionally messy and convoluted. Yet Yu Wanrou still took pride in this as though her honour and glory were built on it. In fact, there were even rumours being spread that only the blind would choose other females over this ¡°lotus fairy¡±.

    Who would have thought that Yu Wanrou would actually be shunning the ¡°glory¡± of such rtionships right now? What¡¯s the cause for this change? Jun Xiaomo wracked her brain as she sought out the reason behind all of this.

    Yu Wanrou was not aware that Jun Xiaomo had time and again nced at her with an inquisitive gaze. Rather, what she was most concerned about at this moment were the suspicious gazes cast on her by the other disciples from Dawn Sect.

    After all, Yu Wanrou had always maintained a reputation of being a warm, considerate and puredy, just like the dazzling and glowing snow lotus that blossomed in the midst of winter. One could only admire its beauty from afar, and not touch it with wanton disrespect.

    There were several disciples in their midst who were secretly fond of Yu Wanrou as well. However, given how close Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen seemed to be, as well as the fact that their abilities were a far cry from Ke Xinwen¡¯s abilities, they knew that they could only shelf such intentions for now.

    But at this moment, Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions seemed to be a tacit admission of the allegations levied by Jun Xiaomo ¨C thetter had hesitated to step into the heart of the Authenticity Array for a confrontation, while the former had hurriedly rejected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestions.

    This was highly suspicious no matter how one looked at it!

    She had seduced a man who had already entered a marriage arrangement, and even lured him to her own bed. Could this truly and sincerely be described as a ¡°snow lotus¡±? To do so might be an insult to the snow lotus instead!

    The disciples¡¯ chatter started to grow as they watched on in excitement at unexpected twist of this unfolding drama.

    Yu Wanrou saw the looks of suspicion, disdain and disappointmenting from the other disciples. At this moment, she truly wished to lock herself up in a cave and hide from the world!

    In particr, there were two especially harsh lines of sight that Yu Wanrou wished to avoid ¨C

    The first line of sight came from Zhong Run. Her gaze was filled with indignation and even nefarious desires that only caused Yu Wanrou to shudder. Zhong Run had never hidden her ambitions to win over Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. Not only had she been unable to sessfully win him over, she had even just learnt that Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart had been stolen by a measly little girl at the fifth level of Qi Mastery. How could she not be furious?!

    The other line of sight came from Ke Xinwen. His gaze was filled with shock, grief, rage, and a series of other simr emotions. If nobody else were around right now, perhaps Ke Xinwen might already have thrown caution to the wind, held Yu Wanrou by the neck and demanded an exnation from her.

    After all that was said and done, he was the one who had been thoroughly used by Yu Wanrou.

    But perhaps this might have been a fortuitous turn of events for Ke Xinwen. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, he had been so thoroughly manipted by Yu Wanrou that he died in order to do her bidding. Even at the end of his life, he had not been able to wise up to Yu Wanrou¡¯s true nature.

    Then, when Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly taken in everyone¡¯s expressions, she suddenly twitched her wrist and waved her hand slightly. In the blink of an eye, she retrieved what looked to be a small, ck pellet from her Interspatial Ring.

    Before the rest of the disciples could react, she flicked that small pellet towards where the other disciples were located.

    Bang! Arge explosion erupted at the point of impact, and several disciples who failed to retreat on time were injured by the st.

    That said, even those who managed to retreat in time did not find themselves in a much better state. One would be wise not to underestimate that pellet just because it was small. After it exploded, it followed to emit a thick, billowing smoke that obscured everyone¡¯s vision.

    It was unclear what that ck smoke had been created with, but the disciples were unable to disperse it no matter what they tried to do. At this moment, there was nobody around who could still see where Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were located.

    On the other hand, when Jun Xiaomo first flung out that ck pellet, she had quickly pulled Ye Xiuwen by the hand and left the scene.

    Ye Xiuwen had not expected that Jun Xiaomo would y her cards in such an unruly and abrupt fashion. It was only after they had run for some distance that he had managed to collect his thoughts and realize what she had just done.

    ¡°Hang on, Xiaomo.¡± Ye Xiuwen tugged at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, motioning for her to stop for a moment.

    Jun Xiaomo paused in her steps and blink at Ye Xiuwen curiously.

    ¡°Xiaomo, are you really going to discard that Authentication Array just like that?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked helplessly.

    The ability to call upon the power of the Threefold Empyrean Lightning meant that the quality of the Authentication Array was at least of the sixth-grade, upper-tier. After Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo pored through the belongings left by senior Jiang Yutong, they had only managed to locate one such Authentication Array. Therefore, he never expected Jun Xiaomo to abandon it just like that.

    ¡°Ah, that thing? ...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin in embarrassment as she exined, ¡°Actually, that formation diagram isn¡¯t the one left behind by senior Jiang Yutong. That thing is nothing more than my feeble attempt at replicating senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s Authentication Array. It¡¯s only a half-finished product. Furthermore, I haven¡¯t imbued any spiritual energy into it yet, so it can¡¯t be used at all.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    After a moment of brief silence, Ye Xiuwen slowly collected himself as he responded, ¡°Are you saying that from the start, you¡¯ve intended to use a fake formation array to fool the other disciples?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue cheekily as she stubbornly maintained, ¡°That¡¯s right. It was pretty effective, wasn¡¯t it? It¡¯s their fault for being so timid that they didn¡¯t even dare to ascertain that the formation array was real. Furthermore, I¡¯ve even secretly recorded the entire scene earlier with my Mirror of a Thousand Reflections. If my mother still insists that I marry Qin Lingyu next time, I can show her legitimate proof for rescinding the marriage arrangement.¡±

    As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo stretched out her lips and stered a mischievous grin on her face.

    With this, Ye Xiuwen finally realized that, at this moment, Jun Xiaomo no longer possessed a single trace of feelings for Qin Lingyu.

    Ye Xiuwen was unable to tell whether that slight, subtle emotion that had just flitted across his heart could be considered ¡°joy¡±. Regardless, Ye Xiuwen calmly epted this reality that Jun Xiaomo had presented to him.

    He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he said, ¡°Alright. That ck pellet was also something that we¡¯ve obtained from senior Jiang Yutong, wasn¡¯t it? I think its effectsst for only one hour. We¡¯d better get going in the meantime.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right!¡± Jun Xiaomo tugged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands as she motioned to run forward.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly as he patted her shoulder,menting, ¡°How long are we going to have to keep running if we keep going like that? How about this, let me carry you while I run along using Windwalk?¡±

    ¡°That...that, huh...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo began stammering once again.

    In fact, she noticed that ever since her identity had been revealed, there were so many more instances where she found herself stammering than before. Yet she could not pinpoint the reason for this. She only felt that her interactions with her martial brother were no longer as natural as before.

    Ye Xiuwen did not say much more. He walked in front of Jun Xiaomo and bent down, beckoning her to climb onto his back.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears immediately grew slightly flushed. She hesitated for a moment, before she slowly mbered onto his back and held tightly onto his shoulders.

    Then, Ye Xiuwen lifted Jun Xiaomo up and began sprinting forward as he operated his Windwalk.

    As expected, their speed increased by at least twentyfold with the assistance of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Windwalk.

    But after they had run along for some distance, Jun Xiaomo suddenly smacked her head as she cried out anxiously, ¡°It¡¯s a disaster! Martial brother, my little packrat and the first prince might still be trapped in the Misnds!¡±

 Chapter 137: The Recurring Nightmare

    <h4>Chapter 137: The Recurring Nightmare</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen was carrying Jun Xiaomo on his back as he operated his Windwalk ability. Once he heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice, Ye Xiuwen immediately slowed down his steps and furrowed his brows.

    By now, they had already left a considerable distance between themselves and where they hade from.

    Jun Xiaomo leapt off Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back, clutching at her hair anxiously. She was evidently flustered like ants on a hot pan. She paced around as she berated herself, ¡°Not good, not good! How could I have forgotten about the two of them? Where are we going to find them now...¡±

    Truth be told, this was not entirely the fault of Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. After all, they had just escaped from an emergency situation earlier. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo had employed some tricks to distract the attention of Qin Lingyu and the others, they might not have been able to escape their encirclement so smoothly and easily. In fact, they might well have been captured by the Grand Vizier¡¯s men by now!

    Despite knowing all of this, Jun Xiaomo continued to beat herself down. She had already considered her little packrat and Rong Ruihan as her friends, and it was absolutely uneptable to leave her friends behind. This was the manifestation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s immutable personal principles.

    Jun Xiaomo looked down on the ground as she paced about in circles anxiously. Then with a resounding thud, her head collided into something that felt like a wall.

    ¡°Arghh.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her slightly swollen nose. The rims of her eyes were slightly reddened as she looked to that ¡°wall¡±, which was Ye Xiuwen, as sheined, ¡°Martial brother, why didn¡¯t you avoid me...¡±

    It was not particrly painful, but Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose nevertheless felt sore from that collision.

    Exasperated, Ye Xiuwen rapped her head gently as he replied, ¡°If you didn¡¯t bump into me, would you have stopped pacing around so anxiously? Even I felt dizzy watching you go in circles like that.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and pouted her lips as she grew taciturn.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed again. He discovered that while this little martial sister of his was sometimes brilliant, she was equally immensely clumsy and muddleheaded at times as well. She had earlier singlehandedly confounded a whole throng of pursuers with her ingenious tactics. Yet now, just momentster, she had cornered herself with her anxious thoughts just because of her little packrat and the first prince. Where had all of her earlier brilliance gone?

    A trace of sourness welled up in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart out of nowhere. Yet it was extremely fleeting. Within moments, Ye Xiuwen shrugged it away and forgot about it entirely.

    He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head reassuringly, ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. Didn¡¯t Xiaomo hand each of us a Transmittance Talisman earlier? Let¡¯s try it out and see if we can contact the first prince for starters.¡±

    ¡°Mm, mm! That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved the Transmittance Talisman from her Interspatial Ring, dripped a drop of blood onto it before bringing it close to her lips as she shouted, ¡°First prince, are you there?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen retrieved his Transmittance Talisman and dripped a drop of his own blood onto it as well. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice immediately leapt out from his talisman. But there was no other reply from the first prince.

    Jun Xiaomo tried again, ¡°Rong Ruihan, can you hear my voice? Where are you now?¡±

    Moments passed, but everything remained still and silent. It was evident that the first prince was not using the Transmittance Talisman right now.

    ¡°What do we do...¡± Jun Xiaomo seemed to havepsed back into her earlier muddleheaded stupor again. She was at a loss for what to do.

    After deliberating for a moment, Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo and inquired, ¡°Xiaomo, are you able to prepare a formation array to locate people simr to the one the Grand Vizier used?

    ¡°That...¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, ¡°That formation array isn¡¯t easy to prepare. Furthermore, my cultivation level is too low, so the one I can prepare is only of the lowest grade. The chances of erroneous results are high...Ah! That¡¯s right, I think there was one such formation array among the things that senior Jiang Yutong had left for us earlier. Let me take a look.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she immediately sent a thread of divine sense probing about her own Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°I¡¯ve found it!¡± Jun Xiaomo retrieved a scroll with that formation diagram andid it out onto the floor, ¡°There¡¯s really one, and it¡¯s even a high-grade formation diagram at that. As long as we have sufficient spirit stones, we can keep reusing it for up to a thousand times! Senior Jiang Yutong is truly formidable...Ah, but we aren¡¯t carrying any artefacts belonging to the first prince...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found herself at a loss once again.

    Ye Xiuwen helplessly waved the Transmittance Talisman in front of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as he asked, ¡°Doesn¡¯t this Transmittance Talisman have all of our blood on it? Both of us have a Transmittance Talisman each, but we really only need one, don¡¯t we?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and puffed up her cheeks sheepishly as she responded, ¡°Oh yeah. I really get muddleheaded when I start to be anxious, don¡¯t I...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen saw how worried Jun Xiaomo had been for the first prince¡¯s safety, and he too found himself at a loss as to how to respond to her.

    That said, since Ye Xiuwen had always been a rather inert person, Jun Xiaomo did not notice anything peculiar about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s behaviour.

    Jun Xiaomoid out the formation diagram properly, before cing a few spirit stones onto a few circles on the formation diagram. Instantly, the originally dark formation array began to glow with a faint blue coloured light.

    Jun Xiaomo tore off a third of her Transmittance Talisman and ced it into the heart of the formation array.

    Gradually, the heart of the formation array revealed a topographic map and a little red blip on it. The topographic map was that of the Mystic Woods, while the little red blip revealed the first prince¡¯s present location.

    ¡°We¡¯ve found him!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened. Then, she gingerly ced her little packrat¡¯s hair into the heart of the formation array, and another red blip immediately showed up on the map.

    ¡°My little packrat seems to be a little bit farther away from Rong Ruihan...¡± Jun Xiaomo frowned.

    If they were to seek out one of them, that would necessarily mean abandoning the other for now.

    ¡°It would be wise to prioritize the first prince.¡± Ye Xiuwen immediately made his decision, ¡°The Grand Vizier goal has always been the first prince, while your little packrat has only been incidentally implicated. Besides, the first prince is a more obvious target.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it, and concurred. The little packrat was nothing more than a little round ball of fluff. It could hardly be seen as long as it hid itself among the tall grass and flowers in the area. Furthermore, the Grand Vizier¡¯s men might not even bother to stop for a small, measly animal.

    But despite that, Jun Xiaomo still found it difficult to make the decision to relegate her little packrat to ying second fiddle. As her little packrat¡¯s owner, she felt extremely guilty about making such a decision.

    I wonder whether my little packrat would feel extremely anxious and afraid when it can¡¯t locate me?

    As these thoughts crossed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, she realized that it was imperative that they moved quickly and dallied no further.

    ¡°Martial brother, we¡¯d better make haste then.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo thought to resolve this issue as soon as possible. She wanted to quickly locate the first prince so that she could turn her attention to her little packrat immediately.

    However, Ye Xiuwen hesitated. After deliberating for a few moments, he shook his head.

    ¡°Martial brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand what Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gesture meant.

    ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m going to bring you to a safer ce. You¡¯ll wait there for me while I go look for the rest.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined slowly.

    ¡°No way!¡± Jun Xiaomo yelled back in objection.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice had be harsher as well.

    ¡°Martial brother, have you ever considered that no matter how safe a ce seems, we¡¯re still standing right in the middle of the Mystic Woods? Can there be a truly safe ce within these woods?¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnly rebuffed Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°But...¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows in disagreement.

    ¡°Besides, how will you guarantee that I would obediently wait at the safe ce for you?¡± Jun Xiaomo added as she blinked at Ye Xiuwen with a mischievous look on her face.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Sigh. It had truly slipped his mind how this mischievous little martial sister was. After all, she had applied an Alteration Talisman on herself and followed him all the way to the Mystic Woods. Even if he brought Jun Xiaomo to a safe haven in the Mystic Woods, there was no way he could guarantee that she would obediently stay there and not simply run off after him anyway.

    Forget it. Keeping her in my sights might still be the safer option.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed again in his heart as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and conceded, ¡°You¡¯re such a handful. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue yfully at Ye Xiuwen, before quickly skipping alongside him.

    --------------------------------------------

    Rong Ruihan was located exactly where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array had revealed him to be. However, even if others were present right now, they would have no way of detecting his presence anyway.

    This was because Rong Ruihan was still trapped in the endless repetitions of the Misnds¡¯ illusions. In fact, he had already been trapped for over two hours now.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s willpower and capabilities were undoubtedly the strongest among the trio that had been on the run. Otherwise, there was no way that Rong Ruihan would have been able to establish an empire of his own in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, despite the oppression of the Grand Vizier and the second prince.

    Perhaps it was also precisely because of this that the Misnds¡¯ illusion faced by Rong Ruihan was especially intense and imprable.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s physical bodyy in the midst of the flowerbed, but his soul was still deeply entrenched in the mire of the illusion.

    ¡°Hahahahaha...who would¡¯ve thought, who would¡¯ve thought. The fearsome, nefarious Lady Demoness ¨C persecuted by the world. Who would¡¯ve thought that someone would actually give up his life for her?!¡± An unknown man stood before Rong Ruihan as heughed heartily. Blood dripped rhythmically from his hand and stained the soil below.

    This blood did not belong to that man. It belonged to thedy who had been help captive by that man, and this captivedy looked like she was in her final breaths. Her abdomen had been split open by a deep, gruesome gash, and the barely formed fetus had been ripped from her body and tossed aside.

    Thedy was clothed in a striking red colour, and a stench of blood diffused from her clothing into the surrounding air. It was no longer possible to distinguish the colour of the material and the blood that had soaked through her clothing.

    ¡°My child...my child...¡± Thedy¡¯s voice was incredibly hoarse and shrill, just like a broken wind instrument ¨C each and every spoken word was airy and guttural.

    She was barely hanging on to her life.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. His pupils looked cold and soulless, while a deep red crept towards his pupils from the corner of his irises. As soon as his eyes were fully consumed by the encroaching red, he wouldpletely lose his senses and be demonized.

    Although Rong Ruihan had not bepletely demonized yet, there was already barely any trace of rationality left in his mind. In his eyes, the silhouettes of the people around seemed to blend into the blurry background. The only thing that he could see with pristine rity was thedy in red that was held captive in the unknown assant¡¯s hands.

    Am I still...toote...

    These were the only words that shed across Rong Ruihan¡¯s mind. These words acted like a trigger. As soon as they crossed his mind, the oppressive aura released by his body instantly intensified greatly, while the crimson-red colour in his irises visibly crept closer towards his pupils.

    Anybody would immediately recoil in fear and retreat when faced with such an incredible surge in aura. However, the ¡°person¡± before Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes were nothing more than an illusion. He did not know fear. Therefore, he continued tough heartily with a discordant and raucous voice.

    Rong Ruihan slowly stretched out his arm. Then, he made a grabbing motion in mid-air, followed by a twisting motion. Instantly, that man¡¯sughter stopped.

    He copsed to the ground, and his eyes were still filled with disbelief at what had just happened.

    Rong Ruihan walked towards thedy in red. Without the assant¡¯s hands supporting her, thedy in red had already fallen face forward into the ground.

    Rong Ruihan walked to her side, but he did nothing to help her up.

    He simply looked silently at thedy in red. Nobody knew what he was thinking in his heart. Perhaps he was no longer even thinking by now.

    This had already been the twelfth time that Rong Ruihan had seen Jun Xiaomo die before his very eyes. Of the previous eleven times, only one time had been an exact replica of what he had seen in his dreams. The other ten different scenarios had been a construct of the illusory world.

    That¡¯s right. Rong Ruihan¡¯s deepest despair and despondence was to see thedy in red die over and over again in his dreams. No matter how he struggled against it, he could not find a way of these recurring nightmares. With every instance of this nightmare, he would find himself getting so close to saving thedy in red. Yet each time, the illusory world would allow Jun Xiaomo to die in a different, unexpected fashion.

    In thest twelve instances, he had been just shy of saving her each and every time.

 Chapter 138: Disorientation, Between Illusion and Reality

    <h4>Chapter 138: Disorientation, Between Illusion and Reality</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just like that, Rong Ruihan continued to sit passively at the side. The crimson red hue of his eyes had not subsided one bit as a result of the death of his enemies. Instead, as time went by, it only continued to thicken and deepen in colour as they emanated a cold, soulless gleam.

    Thedy in red remained slumped on the ground. Her breathing grew weaker and weaker. They would be erratic at times, and even pausepletely at others. Yet Rong Ruihan did nothing to save her. He simply continued watching her silently at the side. This was a stark contrast from how he had behaved at the very start.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had never managed to learn of the identity of her child¡¯s father, even on her deathbed. Therefore, she was hardly aware of the fact that after she had perished, her child¡¯s father had waged war on the alliance of the eight great sects, massacring all who had been involved in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s death. The entire cultivation world was thrown into chaos, and everyone lived in abject paranoia.

    The death of thedy in red was the greatest regret and stumbling block in Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart. He had never understood why he had always had that series of recurring dreams, but he had eventuallye to ept that these dreams were a sign or omen of sorts. Therefore, he had resolved in his heart that he would look for thatdy in red before the events of his dreams urred in real life.

    Yet despite his best efforts, he could not locate her in reality.

    When Jun Xiaomo first appeared in the Misnds¡¯ illusions, Rong Ruihan thought that he had somehow stumbled upon thatdy.

    He attempted to draw near to thatdy to save her life. But time and again, thatdy in red would pass him by after a brief encounter.

    It was as though their fates were like two parallel lines ¨C no matter how he tried, he could never properly cross paths with her, and he could only watch on as that she drew closer and closer to her demise.

    The Misnds¡¯ objective was not to fulfill a person¡¯s dreams after all. It was to torment a person by drawing out the most immense despair and despondence within him, and thereby wear down that person¡¯s soul.

    With every instance of nightmare that passed, he would always attempt to change thatdy¡¯s fate in a different way. But in the end, save for changing the manner in which thatdy in red perished, his efforts werepletely in vain.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo had perished before Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes for twelve times now. Furthermore, each ending she had met with was worse than the preceding one.

    On the first time that he witnessed Jun Xiaomo die before his eyes, his emotions surged uncontrobly, and a single notion crossed Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart ¨C he intended to bury everyone else together with her!

    On the second time that he witnessed Jun Xiaomo die before his eyes, Rong Ruihan experienced a deep, profound sense of helplessness and guilt, apart from his fury ¨C Is it because I¡¯m not strong enough? Was I unable to save her because I hadn¡¯t been meticulous enough?

    On the third time that he witnessed Jun Xiaomo die before his eyes, Rong Ruihan no longer experienced such intense emotions. He only wished that if there was a fourth time, he would be able to sessfully rescue thatdy in red.

    ......

    Time and again, the nightmare recurred and reyed before his very eyes. Gradually, his despair and despondence were reduced to nothing more than anguid apathy.

    It had to be said that the Misnds were able to urately capture the darkest memories buried in a person¡¯s heart that would enable it to draw out the deepest sense of despair and despondence in a person. However, its one-size-fits-all methods were not always effective.

    In the end, the culprits behind these illusions were no more than spirit nts with basic spiritual awareness. These nts could never possess the level of logical processes toprehend the depths andplexities of human emotions.

    When thedy in red was in her final moments, Rong Ruihan finally squatted down beside her. He gently passed his hand over her face and shut her eyelids, before muttering softly, ¡°Rest well. It¡¯s not going to hurt anymore...¡±

    As though she were acknowledging Rong Ruihan¡¯s words, thedy in red drew a final breath, before finally passing on.

    Rong Ruihan stood up again. He no longer looked upset nor despondent at the way things had turned out.

    This was because he had already expected such an ending. When a person bes trapped in an infinite loop of simr scenarios ending with death, even the dullest of persons would be able to discover something strange or peculiar about it. At the onset of these illusions, Rong Ruihan had indeed been so overwhelmed by his despair and pain that he had failed to see the truth before his very eyes. But now, despite the fact that he appeared to have fully demonized, his mind had never been clearer.

    ¡°This is already the twelfth time. Do we still need to keep ying this silly game?¡± Rong Ruihan stared nkly into space as he remarked.

    These words were like a key that unlocked the shackles of the Misnds. Thick, roiling fog began to fill Rong Ruihan¡¯s surroundings, obscuring his view entirely.

    The fog thickened and grew, until itpletely enshrouded everything within sight. Rong Ruihan¡¯s field of vision waspletely white at this moment. Yet, he remainedpletely still and calm.

    He was waiting for the next instance of this recurring nightmare to begin. Since he was unable to escape from it, then he had decided to ept it and fully embrace it.

    In fact, the Misnds¡¯ illusion had already lost their effects as soon as Rong Ruihan acknowledged and became convicted that everything around him was false. Thus, when the thick, billowing fog dispersed and Rong Ruihan regained his senses once more, he had already left the illusory world and returned to reality.

    But Rong Ruihan was still unaware of this.

    When Rong Ruihan came to his senses, he discovered that he was now lying among a bed of unknown nts. These nts had long, thin leaves running along their stems, and a bright red flower at its top. There were even a few flowers which were particrlyrgepared with the rest.

    At the same time, some of therger flowers were drooping as though they were dispirited, while others had evenpletely withered up.

    These withered little red flowers had in fact earlier manifested as the enemies of Rong Ruihan¡¯s illusions. They sought to kill off Rong Ruihan in his most listless and despondent moments, but time and again, Rong Ruihan retaliated and destroyed them.

    They had therefore withered up and be dispirited.

    ¡°Martial brother,e quickly! There seems to be somebody lying over there!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sharp eyes allowed her to quickly discover an anomaly with the bed of flowers that Rong Ruihan was lying in. She had noticed that several flowers had peculiarly withered up.

    When Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen first arrived beside Rong Ruihan¡¯s physical body, Rong Ruihan had still been trapped within the illusions. Therefore, they were unable to see or detect his presence. Nevertheless, Jun Xiaomo had managed to ascertain the location of his physical being using her earlier formation array. Then, a glint shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she thought of a simple yet practical solution ¨C harvesting.

    The root cause of these illusions was none other than the harmless-looking little red flowers growing on the flowerbed. That being the case, if one wished to rescue someone from the midst of these illusions, the best way would be to uproot these flowers.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo had earlier managed to wrestle Ye Xiuwen from the illusions precisely because she had coincidentally harvested the little red flower that had been responsible for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s illusions.

    But s, her luck had run out. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen spent a good amount of time uprooting the little red flowers to no avail. In the end, Rong Ruihan had sessfully escaped from his recurring nightmares on his own strength.

    The only lingering effect was that Rong Ruihan had been so disoriented by his recurring nightmare that he could not tell that he had already returned to reality. He had thought that he was still dreaming.

    When Rong Ruihan finally came to his senses, he happened to hear Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exmation to Ye Xiuwen. That voice was clear and crisp as flowing waters and pleasing to the ears. It resonated lightly on Rong Ruihan¡¯s eardrums; and it also resonated with the depths of his heart.

    This is...a youngdy¡¯s voice?

    Rong Ruihan furrowed his eyebrows. When he lifted his hands, he had discovered that his clothes were full of dirt on them.

    Rong Ruihan was not paranoid about cleanliness. At the very least, he was not as particr as Ye Xiuwen was with cleanliness. That said, his aristocratic and ptial upbringing meant that he was nevertheless particr about keeping his appearances presentable before others. And this was his habitual practice, even though he was trapped in his dreams.

    Therefore, Rong Ruihan sat up, patted off the grass and dirt from his body, before he slowly rose to his feet.

    In that moment that he stood up, the first thing that entered Rong Ruihan¡¯s vision was that same familiar face. This face had appeared countless times in his dreams, and he had on innumerable asions covered her eyes when she had lost her life.

    But this time, thisdy looked slightly different from before.

    No, perhaps she could not be called ady; it would be more appropriate to refer to her as a youngdy instead. After all, her features were still evidently immature and tender.

    The youngdy was not wearing red, but green clothing. Her hair was tied into a bun, and she barely looked like a youngdy at all. In fact, she looked more akin to a suave and charming young man.

    But Rong Ruihan knew that the person before his very eyes was a youngdy and not a young man. She had appeared far too many times in his dreams now, and her appearance had already been etched deep within his heart. Even if he closed his eyes right now, Rong Ruihan would certainly be able to recreate a wless reproduction of her image in his mind.

    Rong Ruihan looked cidly at Jun Xiaomo. He was not particrly surprised by her appearance right now.

    Rong Ruihan had still thought that he was trapped in that recurring nightmare of his. In other words, thisdy before his very eyes was not going to be able to escape certain death no matter how hard he tried.

    Since that was the case, then what was the point of struggling against the nightmare?

    Rong Ruihan chuckled at himself. He had developed such unnecessarily intense emotions for thatdy in red just because of a series of dreams that he had been having since young. Yet he barely even knew whether the person of his dreams was real to begin with!

    And if that person was indeed real, then why was it that he still had not encountered her after so many years had passed?

    And this time, he had even fallen into a series of recurring nightmares as a result of thisdy in red. The more he thought about it, the more he found himself to beughable.

    Hmm, if I ignore her and keep my cool regardless of the situation, then I wonder if I will be able to finally break free of these recurring nightmares... Rong Ruihan thought in his heart.

    Rong Ruihan nced over at Jun Xiaomo coldly. Then, he turned around and left without hesitation.

    ¡°Ah...hey! He...he...why did he leave just like that?!¡± Jun Xiaomo never expected such a reaction from Rong Ruihan. She looked at Ye Xiuwen dumbfoundedly as she pleaded for his assistance.

    Ye Xiuwen walked over and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder helplessly as he exined, ¡°Xiaomo, your present appearances are no longer influenced by your Alteration Talisman.¡±

    In other words, she was no longer Yao Mo. How could she expect Rong Ruihan to recognize her?

    Given Rong Ruihan¡¯s vignce and guarded personality, it was already a miracle that he had not immediately attacked her. Did she really expect him to greet her with such joy as though a blissful reunion?

    Jun Xiaomo smacked her head as she eximed, ¡°Argh! I¡¯ve forgotten all about that. No wonder, no wonder...Rong Ruihan, wait for me! I¡¯m Yao Mo!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shouted at Rong Ruihan as she ran after him.

    Rong Ruihan immediately paused in his steps and turned around suddenly ¨C

    ¡°You¡¯re Yao Mo?!¡±

    Rong Ruihan stared straight at Jun Xiaomo with his bloodshot eyes, as though he was scrutinizing Jun Xiaomo from top to toe.

 Chapter 139: The Stirring in Rong Ruihanâ€™s Heart

    <h4>Chapter 139: The Stirring in Rong Ruihan¡¯s Heart</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°That¡¯s...that¡¯s right...I¡¯m Yao Mo. What¡¯s...what¡¯s up?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked cautiously as she involuntarily took a step back.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s present appearances were too intimidating. His bloodshot eyes seemed to possess boundless demonic energy within them. A malevolent air seemed to swirl about within them, just like the eyes of a vile, vicious beast.

    A sudden chill ran along the bottom of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, and she subconsciously rubbed the side of it.

    Rong Ruihan isn¡¯t going to snap my neck, right? Have I done anything to anger Rong Ruihan?

    I think...not?

    Jun Xiaomo searched herself for a moment. Once she finally ascertained that she had not betrayed Rong Ruihan, whether intentionally or unintentionally, she mustered her courage and locked eyes with Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan did not respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. In fact, he had subconsciously even blocked out the contents of what Jun Xiaomo had said.

    He was only interested in sizing up that person before his very eyes right now as he determined whether she was indeed thatdy in red from his dreams.

    They¡¯re different...they¡¯re different in all respects...apart from the fact that her appearances look almost identical to thatdy in red, nothing else is the same...

    Thedy in red did not possess such clear, pristine eyes. Her gaze had always been hazy and dispirited as a result of the burdens on her heart. There were even traces of hurt, regret and remorse.

    Thedy in red also did not possess such a vivacious and pure personality. She was a person who treaded the bloody mires of a path built of corpses. Her hands were stained with blood, and her striking, fiery red clothes looked like they had been dyed crimson by the blood of her enemies.

    Rong Ruihan was still unaware of thatdy¡¯s name. He only knew that the others in his dreams referred to her as the Lady Demoness with much dread and hate.

    Lady Demoness? That¡¯s right, she had been aptly named the Lady Demoness. Innumerable cultivators had fallen at her hands; and the mention of her name struck fear into the hearts of her persecutors. Everyone longed and prayed for the day that she would die.

    Yet even then, Rong Ruihan found himself drawn to the Lady Demoness, especially when she smiled. Her smile was cold and frigid, almost akin to the manic smile of a Death God. Despite that, Rong Ruihan would feel his heart beat faster and faster whenever he saw that smile creep up the corner of the Lady Demoness¡¯s lips.

    He felt that thatdy in red and he were peas in a pod. They were a match made in heaven.

    Rong Ruihan continued to size up the person in front of his eyes right now. Her appearances were the same, but the air and disposition about her waspletely different. Rong Ruihan stretched out his hand, intending to touch her face. Yet Jun Xiaomo tilted her head slightly and avoided his hand.

    Jun Xiaomo found Rong Ruihan¡¯s expressions incredibly peculiar. It was as though he was reminiscing about something, or someone.

    ¡°Do I remind you of someone?¡± Jun Xiaomo tilted her head slightly as she asked in bewilderment. Her eyes blinked innocently at Rong Ruihan.

    She did not harbour any special feelings for Rong Ruihan, so she naturally did not mind letting Rong Ruihan search for that other person through her. The only reason why she had asked her earlier question was only because her curiosity had been piqued.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze darkened. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice had yanked him back from his memories to reality.

    He stared silently at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face for a moment, before he finally remarked, ¡°With your appearances...red suits you better.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened. She waspletely dumbfounded. Rong Ruihan had stared at her in such a stifling manner and then sized her up for such a long time, and yet his response waspletely unrted to her question.

    Regardless, Rong Ruihan gazed profoundly at Jun Xiaomo once more, before he turned...and left.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at Rong Ruihan right now. Ever since they had been reunited, Rong Ruihan¡¯s actions had been nothing but abnormal.

    After all, had she not revealed that she was Yao Mo? Why was he still walking away from her?!

    ¡°Rong Ruihan! You...you insipid fe!¡± Jun Xiaomo caught up to him and blocked his path of movement.

    ¡°Move aside.¡± Rong Ruihan red coldly at Jun Xiaomo. It was evident with this gaze that he no longer saw her as apanion or a friend. Instead, she was nothing more than a troublemaking stranger to him right now.

    ¡°Why are you walking away after seeing us? I¡¯m not letting you go unless you exin yourself!¡± Jun Xiaomo finally lost her temper at Rong Ruihan. She red furiously at Rong Ruihan, refusing to let him take a further step.

    Rong Ruihan squinted his eyes. A trace of displeasure flickered across his eyes.

    He was still unaware that he had already returned to reality. To his mind, the present Jun Xiaomo was no more than an illusion that had been constructed by this illusory world in ordance with his memories.

    If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo looked exactly the same as thatdy in red, Rong Ruihan would already have struck Jun Xiaomo. To him, any persons constructed by this illusory world were his enemies.

    Rong Ruihan was unaware of what the key to break away from this endless cycle of nightmares was. Therefore, he could only rely on his instincts and kill every single person in these illusions.

    But when he saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances, he found himself unable to harden his heart and kill her.

    Just then, the person who had been silently observing all these things walked over. Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders and broke apart the stiff tension in the air.

    ¡°Xiaomo, we¡¯ve dallied for too long. The Grand Vizier¡¯s men are already nearby. You should use your formation array to determine your packrat¡¯s location.¡±

    ¡°Then what about...¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated.

    ¡°Leave this ce to me. Let me have a word with the first prince.¡± Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo as he warmly replied.

    ¡°Alright then.¡± As Jun Xiaomo relented, she gave Rong Ruihan a final re before running over to the side. There, she retrieved the formation diagram from her Interspatial Ring andid it out on the ground again.

    As Jun Xiaomo busied herself on the side, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan stood squarely opposite each other in a silent confrontation.

    It was a serious confrontation. On the one hand, Ye Xiuwen was incredibly displeased with how coldly Rong Ruihan had treated Jun Xiaomo. On the other hand, Rong Ruihan stared viciously at Ye Xiuwen as though he were no more than an illusion.

    Ye Xiuwen did not possess the appearances of thatdy in red, and Rong Ruihan had much fewer qualms making a move against him.

    Rong Ruihan squinted his eyes as he released an oppressive aura at Ye Xiuwen. The waves of hostile intent aimed at Ye Xiuwen were well apparent.

    Even though he was faced with someone who possessed strongerbat abilities than himself, Ye Xiuwen kept his cool and remained calm. He nced back at Jun Xiaomo with a warm gaze, before turning his attention back to Rong Ruihan¡¯s body with a cold, frosty gaze.

    But Ye Xiuwen did not remain silent for too long.

    ¡°Xiaomo is worried for you.¡± Ye Xiuwen began speaking, ¡°Naturally, she¡¯s also worried for her little packrat. But she treats you as her first true friend outside the Sect. She truly cherishes you.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words were spoken with incredible serenity, as though he were expounding a simple and normal truth. Yet Rong Ruihan waspletely frozen in shock hearing this.

    ¡°Do you see thatrge patch of red flowers? These red flowers are the culprits for creating the illusions you¡¯ve seen. Any person who steps into its domain would invariably be trapped in its illusions. Xiaomo and I had earlier broken free of these illusions. I imagine the first prince had just done so as well.¡±

    Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows. He had begun to be swayed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words. Yet, a part of him remained just as vignt as before.

    ¡°Xiaomo coincidentally bumped into me when I had earlier returned to my senses. But we did not stay for long because the Grand Vizier¡¯s men had caught up to us. They discovered and surrounded us. If not for the fact that Xiaomo employed some tricks to distract them, we might well have been captured by the Grand Vizier by now. Who knows what our fate might have be? Despite that, we managed to escape from the Grand Vizier¡¯s pursuit amidst of the chaos created by Xiaomo. At that time, we had intended to run far away from here. However, Xiaomo thought about you and her little packrat, and we decided to turn back.¡±

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to lose either of you. You¡¯re someone that she cherishes, and she would never abandon you. Yet despite all of her efforts to return to look for you, what did she get in return?¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen ended his spiel, his words wereced with a frigid tone and became somewhat of a reprimand.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know whether something had happened to you while you were in the Misnds¡¯ illusions which caused you to treat Xiaomo with such hostility. But I hope that you can have regard to the fact that she had put herself in danger ande back looking for you. I hope that you won¡¯t go overboard with your words and hurt her. Of course, if you still decide to treat her with the same attitude despite what I¡¯ve said, then there is nothing else I can say to you. I would then ask you to kindly leave.¡±

    After Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he ignored Rong Ruihan, turned around and walked towards where Jun Xiaomo was.

    The vignce in Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart had dwindled even more. His gaze followed Ye Xiuwen and slowly shifted to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. He noticed that a youngdy who looked exactly like thedy in red was squatting on the floor, intently examining something. Her eyes were filled with a warm tenderness and naivete. When she lifted her head and beckoned to Ye Xiuwen to join her, Rong Ruihan subconsciously found Yao Mo¡¯s likeness superimposed perfectly on her.

    Could Yao Mo really be thatdy? Have I truly, finally encountered thatdy in reality? Then what do my dreams mean? Are they things that are going to happen in the future?

    In fact, it was not hard to see why Rong Ruihan would still be vignt and suspicious around Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. Anyone who had been trapped in twelve arduous repetitions of the same dream would find themselves unable to distinguish illusion from reality any longer. Rong Ruihan was simply erring on the side of caution by putting his guard up right now.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words had truly moved Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart. At this moment, a realization dawned upon him. There was no need for him to pursue the veracity of what he was experiencing right now. All that mattered was that he acted in ordance with his heart.

    And his heart said that he could not simply turn around and leave given how sincere Yao Mo had been treating him.

    So what if this was yet another trap? So what if this was yet another illusion? At least I¡¯m going to live with no regrets.

    As Rong Ruihan made his resolve, his heart began to calm down, and the crimson red hue that had encroached his irises began to subside.

    He once again collected the oppressive aura surrounding his body that he had earlier released, before he slowly walked towards Jun Xiaomo. Incidentally, Jun Xiaomo looked up from her formation diagram at this moment.

    Just then, their eyes locked, and both of them were slightly taken aback.

    Rong Ruihan paused in his steps, while Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows slightly.

    ¡°What is it? Has your highness the first prince finally decided that he¡¯s no longer in a rush to get reincarnated now?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was still rather miffed about their earlier altercation, and she could not resist shooting Rong Ruihan a snarkyment.

    Rong Ruihan noticed how that face that looked so familiar was now behaving with an unfamiliar sense of quick-wittedness. His originally sullen mood suddenly took a turn for the better.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m no longer rushing to be reborn.¡± Rong Ruihan nodded with a serious expression as he responded to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo nearly choked at his response. But she could hardly be bothered to pursue this line of banal banter. Thus, after acknowledging his response, she turned back to her formation diagram to search for her little packrat.

    A discreet smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips.

    If this were thatdy¡¯s original character and personality, then it¡¯s not too bad either. At least she wouldn¡¯t live her entire life with such a lonely and sullen disposition.

 Chapter 140: Fusion of Dream and Reality

    <h4>Chapter 140: Fusion of Dream and Reality</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had managed to determine her little packrat¡¯s rough location. But narrowing that field down to determine her little packrat¡¯s exact location was where the real difficultyy.

    Her little packrat¡¯s physical body was far too small, and Jun Xiaomo did not possess any particrly special artefacts belonging to her little packrat apart from the few strands of her little packrat¡¯s fur that were stuck to her clothing. Thus, no matter how hard Jun Xiaomo tried, she could only narrow the search location to a radius of one kilometer.

    That is to say, her little packrat could be anywhere within a one-kilometer radius of where they were located right now.

    ¡°What are we going to do now...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed helplessly as she muttered to herself in distress.

    Ye Xiuwen stared at the formation diagram. After a moment of deliberation, he raised a fresh possibility, ¡°Perhaps we don¡¯t actually have to determine his exact location. These little creatures have intuition that are often far better than us humans anyway. We can slowly search around within the area marked out by the map. Once the little packrat discovers our presence and auras, it will naturallye looking for us.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she looked helplessly at the little red blip on the map that was fading in and out. Then she conceded, ¡°I suppose that¡¯s our best option for now. There¡¯s nothing else I can think of.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rolled up her formation diagram once they determined their search routes. Then, after briefing Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan on what they had to do, they began their search and rescue mission. Time was of the essence. If they could not locate little packrat¡¯s tracks before sundown, then they would be forced to wait until daybreak again. At the same time, they were cognizant of the fact that the Grand Vizier¡¯s men were not far away. The longer they took to locate the little packrat, the more dangerous it was for them. Therefore, it was best if they could locate the little packrat within the shortest amount of time possible.

    Rong Ruihan had no objections to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arrangements. He only reminded everyone that they should stay rtively close to each other so that they could have each other¡¯s back when emergencies arose.

    Although searching for a little ball of fluff in such an immenselyrge space was a monumental task, Jun Xiaomo had made her resolve, and she was determined to see it through to the very end. Therefore, she began to search high and low, not letting up even at the slightest trace or clues of her little packrat. For example, when a mound of small pebbles formed a small cavern of sorts, she would kneel on the ground and stretch her hand into the hole to see if her little packrat were inside.

    But her search would be in vain each time, and the only thing she gained was that dirt and grass left on her clothing.

    On the other side, Rong Ruihan released his divine sense to continually probe about at their surroundings. His area of vignce and search naturally epassed Jun Xiaomo as well.

    Even though the main purpose of sending his divine sense probing about was to detect the presence of any potential threats or dangers, Rong Ruihan could not help but observe Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions at the same time. He saw that an anxious grimace was stered all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. Her eyes were filled with serious determination and care. As she walked along, she would brush aside the vines and flowers, and if there was anything suspicious which caught her eye, she would then bend down to take a closer look.

    Her entire body had been covered with soil and grass by now, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was gray and dirty. As a person extremely conscious about his appearances and image, Rong Ruihan wondered with amazement at how Jun Xiaomo could stand being like this.

    Was she also like this when she was looking for me earlier? An anxious expression on her face and yet painstaking and meticulous in her approach?

    These thoughts subconsciously surfaced at the front of his mind, and they even brought a peculiar sense of joy to Rong Ruihan.

    When Jun Xiaomo was still Yao Mo, Rong Ruihan had already discovered that he would subconsciously pay attention to the young man¡¯s actions and idiosyncrasies. But his attention towards Yao Mo never came anywhere as close to what it was now ¨C Rong Ruihan waspletely rapt with attention as he observed Jun Xiaomo.

    Rong Ruihan knew that he saw thedy in red through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. But as time went by, he gradually discovered that Jun Xiaomo was still Yao Mo through and through. Even though her external appearances had changed, the internal things could never be changed just like that.

    Rong Ruihan could no longer distinguish what his heart desired anymore.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo suddenly eximed, ¡°This looks like the little packrat¡¯s footprints! It must havee here before!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exmation broke Rong Ruihan¡¯s train of thought. He retracted his divine sense. Then, just as he was going to walk towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side to take a look, an unusual phenomenon urred.

    The atmosphere in the air twisted, and tens of sword beams congealed in the air out of nowhere. These densely packed sword beams ovepped with each other in the air, as though forming a. Then in the next moment, they surged forward towards Jun Xiaomo!

    Jun Xiaomo coincidentally lifted her head at this moment. The radiance of the sword beams forced her to reflexively squint her eyes.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Yao Mo!¡±

    Two cries rang out at the same time. One came from Ye Xiuwen, while the other came from Rong Ruihan. Both rushed towards Jun Xiaomo immediately.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance exceeded their expectations. Her lips stretched grimly as she swiftly retrieved four talismans from her Interspatial Ring, imbued them with her spiritual energy and tossed these talismans in all four directions around her.

    These talismans exploded in mid-air, and the of sword beams were blown apart and shattered by the shockwaves of these explosions. As a result of this, the power of the remaining sword beams was greatly diminished by the time it struck Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Some of the sword beams were even blown off course andpletely missed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Even then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s green clothes were still sliced apart in over ten different ces. Blood flowed profusely from her resultant wounds.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved a medicinal pill from her Interspatial ring and swallowed it. Then, she forcibly opened her eyes once more.

    When these explosions rang out, the covert assants who had been hiding in their surroundings finally made their appearance. They hesitated slightly, before rushing towards Jun Xiaomo at the same time.

    Conversely, apart from a few assants whose jobs were obviously to block and deter Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, the two of them were hardly in any danger. It was evident that these assants were either after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, or they intended to pick off the weakest link before turning their attention back to Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan.

    Jun Xiaomo had reflexively retrieved her spirit sword to defend herself. But her cultivation level was simply far too low. She was only at the second level of Qi Mastery, and there was no way she was going to be able to defeat her assants. To make matters worse, the number of talismans in her Interspatial Ring was dwindling rapidly. Unless push came to shove, and she found herself in a critical situation, she did not intend to use anymore of her talismans.

    Therefore, she knew that she could only attempt to hold out here until Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan could rush over and rescue her.

    As the battle intensified, Ye Xiuwen killed off two assants who had been blocking and obstructing him and found time to nce over at Jun Xiaomo to check on her. Yet this nce made him almost lose his mind ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo!!!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was incredibly hoarse and carried immense dread with it. As a result, Rong Ruihan turned to look at Jun Xiaomo as well.

    In the end, both of them witnessed how a single sword had stabbed straight through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest...

    No, in fact, it did notpletely stab through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest. This was because Jun Xiaomo had grabbed onto the sword¡¯s de in the nick of time. From Rong Ruihan¡¯s perspective, he could see that bulk of the sword¡¯s ce had been stopped outside of her body.

    Yet apart from Jun Xiaomo, no one was aware of the extent of her injuries right now.

    Time seemed to pause at this moment. The assants were anticipating her death, while Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen were praying for a miracle.

    An excruciating pain emanated from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm. Crimson-red blood coursed out along her jade-white fingers and dripped onto the flowerbed below.

    By now, her green garbs had been dyed a striking red with her own blood, and the nauseating stench of blood diffused into the air as a result. It was almost as though she had just soaked herself in a pool of blood.

    This description was not too far from reality either. Even though she had not soaked herself in a pool of blood, she was nevertheless soaked through and through with blood.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo had always been that pampered daughter who had been doted on and sheltered as she grew up. She was pretty much a princess in all regards. Given the extent of her injuries, anyone would have expected her to break down in fear and cry profusely. They might even have expected her to kneel on the floor and beg her assants for mercy.

    But she presented none of these reactions that others would expect of her. She remainedpletely expressionless as she faced her assants. Her eyes revealed a heavy and frigid intent. The assant who had stabbed her chest immediately felt himself faced with an immense, oppressive aura that waspletely illogical and unimaginable given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tender age.

    However, the assant simply shrugged off that fleeting sense of dread in the next moment. This cultivation world was ruled by the strong after all. A person possessing the strongest aura without any true abilities would be an existence that is nothing more than a beautiful flower vase on disy ¨C a single tap would shatter it to pieces.

    The assant standing in front of Jun Xiaomo exerted more force, intending to push the sword further into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest. Yet, the sword remained unmoving.

    The amount of strength with which Jun Xiaomo had grabbed onto that sword far exceeded anyone¡¯s expectations ¨C Does it not hurt to grab the sword¡¯s body like that?!

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo chuckled. In fact, she had not frowned a single time ever since she got injured with the first volley of attacks. Right now, she was evenughing. Her lips slowly curled into a wicked smile as she mouthed the following words back to the assant ¨C

    Back. At. You!

    Before the assant had any time to process what these three words meant and react to it, he immediately felt a tremor on the sword in his hand ¨C the sword¡¯s body had been snapped in half by Jun Xiaomo!

    It was only at this moment that he discovered that Jun Xiaomo had applied a talisman on her hand. Under the effects of this talisman, his sword had beenpletely rendered useless.

    Yet his thoughts went no further, because in the next moment, Jun Xiaomo curled her hands into a w-like posture, and then she struck directly at the assant¡¯s chest, crushing his heart with one swift, concise action.

    A gory and gruesome sputter echoed out into the surroundings, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was dyed with yet anotheryer of blood. This time, it was no longer hers, but that of her assant.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final strike was incredibly shocking and deterred all who were around. Despite her low cultivation level, no one else dared to view or treat her as the weakest link among the trio any longer.

    After all, the skilled feared the vicious; while the vicious feared the suicidal. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier behaviour ostensibly portrayed her menacing intention to take the lives of others with hers.

    At this moment, the original encirclement around her dispersed, and some assants decided to regroup with the other assants who were battling with Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen. Therefore, the pressure on Jun Xiaomo had diminished substantially as well.

    ¡°Xiaomo has just broken through to the third level of Qi Mastery.¡± Ye Xiuwen eximed aloud. Yet his eyes were filled with a deeper resolve as he increased the intensity of his attacks.

    Ye Xiuwen was not afraid of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intention to take the lives of others with hers. Rather, he only felt his heart ache at such a notion.

    Naturally, the frustrations arising from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heartache was ventted on the assants who hade charging towards him. Within moments, Ye Xiuwen had cut down a multitude of his assants.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s attacks had also grown increasingly fiery and ferocious. Yet at the same time, some of his attention fell on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body ¨C

    Clothed in striking red...they look exactly the same...and that earlier viciousness and intention to take others down with her...

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s image had finally begun to coincide with the image of thedy in red of Rong Ruihan¡¯s dreams.

 Chapter 141: The Little Packratâ€™s True Identity

    <h4>Chapter 141: The Little Packrat¡¯s True Identity</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was searching for her little packrat, her little packrat was also searching for Jun Xiaomo at the same time.

    Amidst the billowing, white fog, a small, white ball of fluff leapt about in the tall grass. Its small figure would disappear from sight from time to time.

    Its body was simply too small. Its was only the size of a normal person¡¯s fist. The vibrant wildflowers and tall grass greatly obstructed its short strides and its vision, and the poor little packrat had to spend threefold its usual time and effort just to cover the same distance.

    Squeak squeak... It paused in its steps and nced anxiously at its surroundings as it took whiffs from the surrounding flowers and grass.

    Achoo! The small furball sneezed. Apart from inhaling a bunch of pollen and thick fragrance from the flowers around, its keen nose could not pick up anything else.

    Squeak squeak... The little furball licked its own paws with chagrin, curled itself into a ball, and stopped moving entirely.

    Where in the world is Xiaomo? The little packrat thought to itself in despair. They had only been separated for an hour, but it had already begun to miss Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warm and fragrant embrace.

    That¡¯s right. The little packrat had always referred to Jun Xiaomo as ¡°Xiaomo¡± in its heart. This is because it was not a little pet to begin with.

    He had only ended up in this form because he had mistakenly ingested a nt that caused him to turn into his present form. The most tragic thing was that even he was uncertain what exactly he had ingested that caused him to be like this. As a result, there was simply no way he could go about looking for the cure. There was no ce to start from.

    When he had aroused from his slumber then, the first thing that he realized was that he had transformed from a human to a small spirit beast with tiny limbs. He almost fell apart there and then.

    He had originally been the young master of a hidden sect, and he was one year older than Jun Xiaomo. He had run away from his sect in mischief. Then after spending all of his money, he discovered that he had no means of returning home.

    Naturally, the young man possessed several life-saving treasures within his Interspatial Ring. He even possessed a huge stack of Transmittance Talismans which he could use tomunicate with his n members. There was no doubt that his n members would immediatelye looking for him if he had just reached out to them.

    However, the rebellious young man simply refused to resort to these Transmittance Talismans. He simply found it too embarrassing and shameful!

    When he had first slipped out of his sect, his sole intention was to prove to his parents that he was all grown up and capable. He had personally felt that he was sufficiently mature, and he possessed the ability to travel out of the sect and hold his own. Yet his overprotective parents had never been able to let go of him.

    Therefore, he decided to sneak out.

    Sometimeter, after he had finished squandering all of the money he had, he found himself caught in a predicament ¨C he was almost dazed from his stomach-wrenching hunger. In order to sustain his physical body, he picked out and consumed a harmless-looking red fruit. He had often seen this wild, red fruit being sold in the markets. They were sweet to the taste, and they could reasonably fill his tummy.

    Unfortunately, he failed to consider the fact that there were several fruits in the world that looked simr to that harmless-looking red fruit. With his dumb luck, he had inadvertently consumed the Shapeshifting Fruit.

    If a spirit beast had consumed the Shapeshifting Fruit, their physical bodies would transform into the likeness of a human body. But if humans mistakenly consumed the Shapeshifting fruit... Then, just like this unlucky man, they would awaken from their slumber only to find that they had transformed into a spirit beast.

    He...no, the correct term of reference was now ¡°it¡±.

    After it woke up to its new body, it puffed up the fur on its body as it anxiously darted about the woods. The rtively tall shrubs in the woods seemed even taller to the little packrat given its height. In fact, given the little packrat¡¯s height, each shrub could even be described as a patch of tall woods to it right now.

    An abject fear engulfed the little packrat.

    He had initially thought that the effects of what he had consumed would wear off within a few days, and he would revert to his human form in no time. Yet one day passed, two days passed...On the third day, his body was still covered in fine fur and his limbs were still equally tiny. Those tiny paws of his did not even possess the strength to lift arge pebble.

    He was at his wit¡¯s end. There was no other choice but to reach out to his sect for help. His only hope was that his parents would not smack his butt when he returned home.

    Unfortunately, his luck took a turn for the worse ¨C after he had be a tiny little packrat, the demonic energy in its body seemed to have condensed and shrunk into a tiny corner. No matter how hard he tried, he had no way of extracting or moving even a shred of his demonic energy.

    Without the ability to operate his demonic energy, there was simply no way of retrieving the items stored within his Interspatial Ring. In turn, this meant that there was no longer any avenue through which he could reach out to his sect.

    In other words, he could no longer return home.

    At this moment, a wave of despair washed over the little furball.

    First things first, he knew that he had to eat something in order to sustain his body. But with its current appearances, how was he going to catch prey for food? It would already be a miracle if he could escape from the clutches from otherrge spirit beasts.

    In fact, he did encounter arge spirit beast sometimeter. But that spirit beast only nced indifferently at the little furball before walking away.

    It was as though that spirit beast resented the fact that the little furball was too small to fill its stomach, and the little packrat had so much hair that consuming it would simply be too troublesome. He might even end up hacking and coughing up a hairball afterwards.

    The little packrat: ......

    At that moment, the little packrat could no longer tell whether it was his fortune or his misfortune that he had turned into a little furball.

    After darting about the woods for half a day, its efforts to locate other sources of food were in vain. Therefore, it slunk back to its original location and began to consume that small red fruit again.

    It was this dastardly red fruit that had caused him to turn into a furball to begin with.

    On the third day, he finally encountered a passing traveler. He thought that there was finally hope for him to be saved. Therefore, he pranced forward and began to squeak at the traveler.

    The traveler looked curiously at the little packrat, and then he picked it up.

    Unfortunately, the little packrat¡¯s misery continued. Its hope to return home waspletely dashed when this traveler immediately brought him to a market to be sold to a pet shop.

    ¡°Just one look and you¡¯ll know that this little packrat is incredibly spiritually aware. Sir, I hope you can give me a good price for it.¡± The traveler boasted to the shop owner.

    When the little packrat heard the contents of their conversation, its fur instantly ruffled up in anger. It leapt down from the table and tried to escape from the shop. Unfortunately, the shop owner¡¯s quick reflexes meant that its attempt at escape were immediately foiled, as the owner immediately grabbed onto its tail.

    ¡°Does it understand what we¡¯re talking about? It seems to be pretty smart. I¡¯ll give you twenty mid-grade spirit stones for it. What do you say?¡± The shop owner offered.

    ¡°Twenty spirit stones are too few. I know the prevailing market rates. Even a normal packrat can fetch a price of fifteen to eighteen mid-grade spirit stones...¡±

    The traveler had not had a good meal for a long time. His clothes were torn and tattered, and his only hope was to obtain a good price for this little packrat so that he could satiate his appetite.

    Just as the traveler and the shop owner were negotiating for the right price, the little packrat could only continue to squeak incessantly. Yet its struggle in the shop owner¡¯s arms waspletely futile.

    No matter how it resisted, it still got sold to the shop owner in the end. In the days toe, its fate could simply be described as an endless repetition of ¡°sold-escaped-captured-sold-escaped-captured¡±.

    On one asion, the little packrat had even thought about writing words with its paws so that its present owners would bring him back home. Unfortunately, the only result of that was that its ¡°value¡± had increased even more.

    No one would ever believe that a normal looking packrat like it was in fact a young master of a hidden sect to begin with.

    The discouraged little packrat: ......

    Thest person that had purchased the little packrat was Ke Xinwen. He had wanted to woo Yu Wanrou by giving her this cute, little furball as a birthday gift.

    When the little furball was presented to Yu Wanrou, it was already extremely downcast. It had almost resigned to its fate of never returning home ever again.

    Yu Wanrou was pretty fond of the little packrat at the beginning. After all, how many youngdies were there who would be able to resist the charms of such an adorable little pet? But no matter how much she tried to tease and cajole the little packrat, it simply ignored her.

    Thus, the malevolence within Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was triggered.

    She brandished her long and sharp nails as she stabbed them straight into the little packrat¡¯s back! The little packrat squeaked in pain and leapt to its feet as it attempted to scuttle away. Yet Yu Wanrou¡¯s actions were quicker than its own, and she instantly stamped down onto the little packrat¡¯s tail, preventing it from escaping.

    Squeak, squeak, squeak... Fear struck the little packrat¡¯s heart when it noticed the manic sadism sh across Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes.

    That¡¯s right. Not only had the little packrat¡¯s squeal of pain failed to attract Yu Wanrou¡¯s sympathy and affection, it had instead even incited the dark, sadistic intent buried deep within Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart.

    This was not the first time that the little packrat had been abused by its owner. Back then, the sadistic owner had prick it with a long needle and doused it in freezing cold water just to punish it for its ¡°misbehavior¡±.

    Over all the years since the packrat had been born to the time that he had left the hidden sect, all of his n members had constantly pampered and showered the young master with their praise, love and affection. Yet within thest half a year, the little packrat had thoroughly experienced the cold, cruel human nature from the rest of the world.

    The little packrat had even tried changing his approach. He attempted to show Yu Wanrou that it knew how to be obedient as well, so that he would not get punished any longer. But obviously Yu Wanrou had not punished him because of his disobedience. She had only done so in order to derive a sick and disgusting sense of pleasure.

    In the end, the more obsequious the little packrat was, the harsher his punishment.

    One day, the little packrat finally had enough. It erupted in fury and took a vicious swipe at Yu Wanrou before escaping from her clutches.

    Ke Xinwen waspletely kept in the dark from the fact that Yu Wanrou had been tormenting the little packrat. When Yu Wanrou cameining to him in tears about how the little packrat had taken a swipe at her and run away, he had thought that the little packrat was simply being unruly and misbehaving. More importantly, he felt that the little packrat had disgraced his efforts to please Yu Wanrou. Therefore, Ke Xinwen set out to capture the little packrat again and teach it a harsh lesson before forcing it to apologize to Yu Wanrou.

    It was at this time that the little packrat had finally encountered Jun Xiaomo.

    The little packrat¡¯s n was a n of demonic cultivators to begin with. Yet the little packrat had been so sheltered while he was growing up that even he waspletely unaware how demonic cultivators were treated by the world out there.

    Had he known all of this, he would have been much more cautious.

    The little packrat did not know how exactly Jun Xiaomo was different from the rest, but it somehow felt that the aura emanating from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body made it feel a lot morefortable. It was different from anyone else it had encountered thus far who had made his fur ruffle up just by drawing close to the little packrat.

    Thus, the little packrat clutched so tightly onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes when it first shot into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom. It was as though it were clutching to its lifeline.

    Jun Xiaomo certainly did not disappoint it. When Ke Xinwen came rushing out of the woods furiously at Jun Xiaomo, she simply pointed him to a different direction, misdirecting him and thwarting his efforts to locate the little packrat.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s protection of the little packrat made it feel at ease. At the same time, the little packrat had grown sick and tired of running all the time. Therefore, it decided to stick by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    At the start, it was immensely displeased that Jun Xiaomo had treated it as her own little pet. It felt as though this were an affront to its personal pride. But as time went by, it gradually came to ept that it had be...a ¡°pet¡± to thisdy younger than itself.

    It had slowly grown to enjoy how Jun Xiaomo would interact with it in a sweet and beautiful manner. It also loved her warm and gentle disposition. Every time Jun Xiaomo gently stroked its back, she would send a shuddering sensation straight into his heart.

    It was thoroughly fond of Jun Xiaomo. As to exactly how fond it was ¨C even the little packrat was unsure about this.

    After observing Jun Xiaomo for a period of time, the little packrat had concluded that Jun Xiaomo was an extremely reasonable andpassionate person. It was almost certain that if it revealed the truth of its background to Jun Xiaomo, she might attempt to find a cure to turn him back into a human, or even attempt to reach out to its family on its behalf and help him return home safely.

    Yet, despite being faced with an excellent opportunity with reasonable prospects of sess, it found itself hesitating.

    Suddenly, it realized that it was reluctant to leave its new ¡°owner¡±.

    And it was not simply reluctant. It was incredibly averse to the prospects of losing her. Otherwise, it would not have hesitated time and again, and continue to remain by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side as no more than her little ¡°pet¡±.

    Day after day went by like this, until the little packrat finally made its resolve. It had decided that once Jun Xiaomo had returned back to her sect from her present travels, it would finally bid Jun Xiaomo goodbye.

    After all, it had already left its sect for far too long now, and its family members would certainly be incredibly worried for him.

    But as fate would have it, its ns were thwarted by exigencies. Just when it was sound asleep in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom, it suddenly fell out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes and onto the ground. Jun Xiaomo was gone, leaving only her little packrat and its bag behind.

    Fortunately, it possessed thick fur, and the fields were lush. As such, it managed to recover from the fall unscathed.

    The little packrat squirmed out from its bag with a full body of disheveled fur. It squeaked twice at the top of its voice, hoping to catch Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention. But in the next moment, when it finally managed to take in its surroundings, it waspletely dumbfounded ¨C

    Its surroundings werepletely white. Apart from the base of the wildflowers and grass, it could hardly spot anything else in its surroundings.

    Where¡¯s Xiaomo?

    The little packrat grew exasperated.

 Chapter 142: The Little Packratâ€™s Struggle Against the Illusion

    <h4>Chapter 142: The Little Packrat¡¯s Struggle Against the Illusion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    By now, the little packrat was already well acquainted with life on the run, and it was hardly out of its depths, even without the support of Jun Xiaomo. Thus, itposed itself, perked up its spirits very quickly, and prepared to look for traces of Jun Xiaomo among the sea of lush, tall grass.

    It sniffed at stalks of grass and took whiffs from flowers. Yet as a ¡°fake¡± little packrat, it could hardly tell the difference between the scents of all these things.

    I must have lost Xiaomo by now.

    The little packrat slumped to the ground in despair and curled itself into a ball as it bit indignantly at its tail.

    Will Xiaomo discover that I¡¯m missing ande back for me? The little packratmented to itself.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo had already discovered that her little packrat had gone missing by now. But she was also currently trapped by the Misnds illusion. How was she going to be able to rush over to rescue the little packrat of hers?

    Furthermore, when the little packrat had scampered all over the ce aimlessly, what it failed to realize was that it had run in the wrong direction. It was now located even further from Jun Xiaomo than ever.

    The little packraty on the ground for a while listlessly. Then gradually, it discovered that the fog in front of its eyes had begun to dissipate.

    The fog has dissipated?! Then won¡¯t I be able to locate Jun Xiaomo very easily now?!

    The little packrat perked up its spirits once again. Its ck, beady eyes stared transfixed into the vanishing fog, as though doing that would make the fog dissipate more quickly.

    Yet when the fog had finally dissipated, the little packrat discovered that his surroundings had somehow...seemed to change? The grass had be far shorter, and there were no longer any flowers on the field.

    The little packrat took a few steps forward, and a brand, new horizon opened up before his very eyes. The grasnds ended a short distance away, a somewhat familiar brick road presented itself just beyond the grasnds.

    Squeak squeak? The little packrat tilted its head in confusion. It was unsure where this ce was.

    Just this moment, an extremely familiar voice called out from behind it. It was a voice that he hated and despised ¨C

    ¡°It¡¯s over here! Let¡¯s surround it!¡±

    Rustling sounds rang out. Momentster, a few well-built young men ran out of the woods adjoining that brick road. They wore the uniform of the Dawn Sect disciples. One of the men even wore a vicious, macabre smile on his face as he red threateningly at the little packrat.

    ¡°Run?! Let¡¯s see how long you can keep running for! How dare you scratch martial sister Wanrou? Just wait till you see what I¡¯m going to do to you!¡±

    The little packrat shuddered, and the fur on its body began to stand on ends ¨C no wonder these surroundings seemed so familiar! Wasn¡¯t this ce within Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds? This was the road I had run along when I finally managed to encounter Xiaomo!

    And the person staring at it viciously was none other than the man who had bought the little packrat to please his martial sister Wanrou, Ke Xinwen.

    Yet even Ke Xinwen was unaware of Yu Wanrou¡¯s ck heart underneath that warm and gentle disposition she maintained. She had earlier viciously jabbed the little packrat with her sharp nails just because her little packrat had been unresponsive to her cajoling!

    Why else would the little packrat scratch her and escape from captivity?

    More importantly, the little packrat was a demonic cultivator, and demonic energy naturally coursed through its body. In this regard, it knew that it would not be wise for it to hang around spiritual cultivators for too long because it had also learnt these so-called sanctimonious and dignified people would not hesitate to destroy anything remotely rted to demonic energy.

    Back then, the little packrat had almost been resigned to its fate of perishing within the Dawn Sect. It had never expected to serendipitously encounter its final lifeline, Jun Xiaomo.

    Why have I returned to Dawn Sect now?! And why did they say I scratched Yu Wanrou? Have I returned to the past?!

    A series of befuddling questions immediately surfaced in the little packrat¡¯s mind, but the little packrat knew that it did not have the luxury of time to answer these questions. Ke Xinwen and hisckeys were already hot on its tail.

    Thus, the little packrat cocked its back and began channeling its energy to its hind legs.

    Then, when Ke Xinwen pounced at it, the little packrat leapt ferociously from the ground and scratched Ke Xinwen¡¯s face before scampering out of the encirclement of helpless disciples.

    ¡°Damn! Go after it!¡± Ke Xinwen clutched at his face in pain as he ordered his martial brother in anger.

    The little packrat ran for its life, but it did not get very far before it began to grow weary. After all, it had already expended a lot of energy looking for Jun Xiaomo within the Misnds earlier. Right now, its four tiny little limbs felt as though they had pebbles tied to each of them.

    It was further weighed down by its plump and round body. Jun Xiaomo had really fed it too well.

    Squeak squeak squeak...

    The little packrat tried to understand the situation as it ran along. However, it simply could not understand why it had seemed to return to the past.

    It had to be said that he had only seventeen years of life under his belt before he had mistakenly eaten the Shapeshifting Fruit and turned into a little packrat. These seventeen years were far too little.

    At the very least, the short span of seventeen years of life experience meant that it had failed to distinguish the present trappings of an illusory world. In fact, its mind had not even considered that possibility at all.

    The only thoughts running through its mind were why it had ¡°returned to the past¡±.

    Right now, it knew from its prior experience that all it had to do was to follow the road in front of it and run towards where Jun Xiaomo was. Then, everything would be fine.

    Thus, with this conviction firmly rooted in its mind, it followed the road and sprinted ahead.

    Soon...I¡¯ll be there soon...

    Although the footsteps and the sounds of cursing and swearing behind it gradually drew near. The little packrat¡¯s heart waspletely calm andposed. It knew that Jun Xiaomo would be seated atop therge rock not too far away. Once it dashed into her bosom, then this crisis would be over.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat darted through the shrubbery at the end of the road as it triumphantly yelled out the name of its lifeline, Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was nowhere to be seen this time round.

    Having dashed through the shrubbery, it was now at the edge of the ins with only onerge rock located in its midst. But nobody sat atop this rock. The rock sat coldly under the cool illumination of the afternoon sun.

    Where¡¯s Xiaomo?

    The little packrat could hardly believe what it saw. It squeaked incessantly as it ran rounds around therge rock. Each squeak was filled with more anxiety than thest.

    But Jun Xiaomo was still nowhere to be seen.

    The little packrat¡¯s unwavering spirit was finally broken. Anxiety began to mount in its heart ¨C Could it be that I had run here too early, so Jun Xiaomo hasn¡¯t appeared yet?!

    Just as the thought of waiting here crossed the little packrat¡¯s mind, loud rustling sounds travelled from the shrubbery not too far away ¨C Ke Xinwen and hisckeys were here!

    Having no other choice, the little packrat gritted his teeth, turned in a different direction, and scuttled madly down yet another road.

    Although Jun Xiaomo was nowhere to be seen at these ins, it knew where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode was. Therefore, its contingency n was to run straight to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode to look for her there.

    It would be alright even if it could not immediately locate Jun Xiaomo there. It knew Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode like the back of its paw, and it was confident that it would be able to find a safe hiding spot and wait until Jun Xiaomo returned home.

    Squeak...squeak squeak...

    The little packrat¡¯s squeaks grew intermittent. It had run so hard that it was furiously trying to catch its breath. However, it knew that it could not stop running. The moment that it did would mark the moment that Ke Xinwen and hisckeys caught up to it.

    Thus, the little packrat ran on and on, and it drew closer and closer to its destination. Finally, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode was just around the corner...

    The little packrat mustered all of its strength to make that final break for its safe haven. As it turned the corner, the little packrat was greeted by an exquisite looking little courtyard.

    Squeak squeak!!!

    The little packrat was filled with delight and relief. If these squeaks could be tranted to the humannguage, it had essentially just loudly greeted the person in the courtyard, ¡°Xiaomo!!!¡±

    That¡¯s right. The first thing that the little packrat had seen in the courtyard was that familiar youngdy seated on the stone bench with her head buried in her books, Jun Xiaomo.

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat joyously darted towards thatdy in the yard. Its two ck, beady eyes glimmered brightly, as though it was on the brink of tears.

    Naturally, these were tears of excitement. As a creature with a soul of seventeen years of age, it was hardly so fragile as to break down in tears that easily.

    However, just as it was about to leap through the gate of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard, a wave of powerful force repelled it back, flinging it back out. It mmed back onto the ground in the distant, and its snow-white fur was instantly covered with ayer of soil.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat recoiled in pain. Then, it discovered that the powerful force had forcibly twisted its paws into an odd, unnatural shape. There were even traces of blood on its fur.

    It had been injured.

    The little packrat tucked its right w gingerly into the fur in its chest as it picked itself back up. It shook off the dirt on its back, before making its way towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard once more, one limp at a time.

    In the little packrat¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo was its only safe haven.

    But what it failed to realize was that thedy in the courtyard was not the real Jun Xiaomo. It was nothing more than an illusion.

    Squeak squeak... The little packraty at the doorstep, stretching out its good paw to see if the powerful, repulsion force was still there. Fortunately, it felt no resistance this time.

    Therefore, with one paw supporting the weight of its body, it flopped forward over the doorstep and rolled into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat called out to Jun Xiaomo once more as it hobbled over towards the stone bench where Jun Xiaomo was seated.

    Yet after taking only a few steps, another wave of powerful repulsion force mmed against it once more. This time, the little packrat was flung even further than where he hadnded before.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat whimpered in dismay. By now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure had grown blur and faint in its eyes.

    Its organs had just been injured, and excruciating pain spread from its limbs. It could no longer move.

    The little packrat couldn¡¯t understand what this all meant. It could only curl itself into a ball as it continued to call out desperately to Jun Xiaomo who remained seated in her courtyard.

    It could be that its squeaks had been too feeble, or perhaps Jun Xiaomo had been too enthralled by the book she was reading. Whatever the case was, Jun Xiaomo remained still and passive on her stone bench despite the little packrat¡¯s incessant calls.

    A wave of despair and despondence began to sweep over the little packrat¡¯s heart.

    ¡°You¡¯re really good at running, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯ve actually found your way to the Heavenly Peak!¡± A terrifying looking Ke Xinwen and hisckeys finally appeared behind the little packrat. Then, with one grab, Ke Xinwen picked it up.

    He picked up the little packrat by its tail.

    Squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat tried extremely hard to struggle. It even attempted to scratch Ke Xinwen with its paws, but to no avail.

    But thismotion finally attracted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention. She slowly set down the book in her hands and walked over towards Ke Xinwen¡¯s side as she inquired curiously, ¡°Martial brother Ke, this is...¡±

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat yelled out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name in exasperation. It desperately hoped that Jun Xiaomo could once again save it from Ke Xinwen¡¯s evil clutches as she had done before.

    But this time, Jun Xiaomo failed to respond to its call for help.

    Ke Xinwen threw a disgusted look at the little packrat in his arms, swung it about wickedly, before exining to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°This was a gift I had bought for martial sister Wanrou. I¡¯d never expected that it would scratch martial sister Wanrou so viciously and then run all the way here. I¡¯ve finally caught it now, and I¡¯m going to force it to apologize to martial sister Wanrou.¡±

    The little packrat had been swung around so hard by Ke Xinwen that it waspletely dibobted. It ceased calling out for help, but it still looked pleadingly towards where Jun Xiaomo was, hoping that she would notice its plea for help.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over nonchntly at the little packrat, before calmly responding, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then please bring it away, Ke Xinwen. It had been squeaking so incessantly outside my abode that I couldn¡¯t even concentrate on my book.¡±

    The little packrat¡¯s eyes widened in horror. It stared at Jun Xiaomo inplete disbelief, only to be returned apletely cold and distant gaze from Jun Xiaomo. There was no sympathy and pity whatsoever in the depths of her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo had looked at it as though it was no better than a dead animal. It was no different that when she looked at the rocks nearby.

    In that moment, the little packrat¡¯s heart hit rock bottom.

 Chapter 143: Hidden Sect, Chi Clan

    <h4>Chapter 143: Hidden Sect, Chi n</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When he first realized that he had transformed from a human into a plump little furball with short stubby limbs, he had been nothing more than concerned about his predicament. He did not experience any form of dread or despondence whatsoever. This was because he had always trusted that his n members would never leave him in the lurch. As long as he could find a way to contact his n members, there was no doubt that they would do all they could to bring him back safely.

    Eventually, he grew to ept the reality that he would not be able to return to his n in the near future. He was even resigned to the fate of beingbelled as a pet and sold to different owners. Although this hurt his pride and self-worth, he did not experience any form of dread or despondence whatsoever. This was because his owners had treated him as they would a pet without spiritual awareness; and he was never at risk of life and limb. At the very least, he knew that he would be able to live on until he could finally return to his loved ones one day.

    Then, there came a point where he was tormented so severely by Yu Wanrou so much that his life was dangling by a thread. It did not help that Ke Xinwen and hisckeys hunted for him after he had escaped from Yu Wanrou. Admittedly, he did experience a trace of dread and despondence at that point. Had he lost his life there and then, nothing ¨C not even the abilities of his entire n put together ¨C would be able to bring him back to life. But this despondence was very quickly shattered by the appearance of his lifeline, Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo protected and sheltered him, and she even made him feel a sense of ease that nobody else had given him before.

    Under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meticulous care, he saw the light at the end of the tunnel. He saw hope to return home.

    Yet despite all that had happened, the little packrat had never experienced dread and despondence like he was experiencing now. The feeling of such despondence could only be described to be like an unstoppable wave of darkness that bore down on and engulfed a personpletely, stifling and choking him for all eternity. There was no light of hope to be seen, anywhere.

    Was there anything more dreadful than dangling a thread of hope for a person to clutch to with his life, before snapping it altogether in front of that person¡¯s very eyes?

    Jun Xiaomo was synonymous with safety in the little packrat¡¯s heart. It knew that Jun Xiaomo was undoubtedly the only person who would willingly and unconditionally care for it until it could fully recover and shed its weak body.

    Yet at this dreadful moment, the final bastion of his hope had abandoned it. She had evenined that it was noisy in her eyes as she passively watched Ke Xinwen bring it away with a cold, distant gaze.

    By now, the little packrat hadpletely given up struggling. It had shut its eyes in resignation, and the fur by its cheeks were damp with stains of watermarks. Although the repulsive force had injured it earlier, its hurt was purely physical in nature. Yet when it finally realized that Jun Xiaomo hadpletely abandoned it, it felt as though his heart had wrung itself dry, and an awl had been shoved straight through what was left of its heart.

    It reminisced sorrowfully about how Jun Xiaomo had always cared dearly for it when it was hurt, and how she would gently blow its pain away. Although it found behaving obsequiously like a little packrat rather shameful, it nevertheless enjoyed basking in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warmth and concern.

    It knew that it could no longer follow Jun Xiaomo like this and lean in her warm and soft bosom once he returned to his human form. Thus, the little packrat had indefinitely put off contacting his n members. Its only hope was that this period of bliss with Xiaomo could go on for that much longer.

    But why is Xiaomo abandoning me now? Why is it that things are so different after returning to the past? Could everything that has happened to date be nothing more than a dream?

    The little packrat¡¯s heart was in shambles.

    ¡°Martial brother Ke, have you finally managed to capture it?¡± Yu Wanrou asked with a pleasant surprise. Yet her voice sounded immensely jarring to the little packrat, as though it had just scraped across its eardrums.

    The little packrat¡¯s ears twitched slightly, and its small, fluffy body shuddered involuntarily.

    Back when it had been under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s protection, it knew that it could brandish its ws at Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen with no consequences because they would have no way of hurting it.

    But now, it hadpletely lost Jun Xiaomo¡¯s protection.

    Faced with two people whose only thoughts were to torment it, the little packrat suddenly found itself in an inextricable predicament.

    The little packrat gingerly tucked its injured paw under its fur as it continued to shudder and twitch.

    ¡°It looks like it¡¯s incredibly afraid of us.¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice sounded extremely sweet ¨C like sticky honey ¨C as it reverberated through the air for some time.

    Some male cultivators loved the tang in Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice. Her lingering voice even made the skins of these male cultivators feel numb and prickly all over.

    However, the little packrat only knew fear right now. She was the source of a nightmare buried deep within its memories, and it knew her voice to be a precursor to her brutal torment. After all, Yu Wanrou loved to douse it with such sweet, honeyed words as she abused it in all forms and means.

    Who can save me? Am I really going to perish here today?

    Yu Wanrou had never ceased tormenting the little packrat just because it was afraid. In fact, the Misnds had even increased the sensitivity of the little packrat¡¯s five senses and pain receptors so as to increase its pain and despondence.

    If only this little packrat couldpose himself and analyze the present situation right now! He would have been able to immediately discover the anomalies with the illusion ¨C the real Yu Wanrou had always been extremely conscious about her image in front of others. Therefore, the real Yu Wanrou would never disy her own cruel side in front of Ke Xinwen. Not over her dead body.

    But the counterfeit Yu Wanrou created by the Misnds could hardly care less. After all, the counterfeit Yu Wanrou had been created by those little red flowers in the image of the little packrat¡¯s worst fears. There was hardly any logic behind it, and the illusion would naturally be fraught with loopholes from time to time.

    Thus, the counterfeit Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen tormented the little packrat together as their shrill, wickedughter filled the room. In no time, the little packrat had been quickly reduced to itsst breaths.

    The little packrat¡¯s fate was certain if things went on like this ¨C it would be nothing more than nutrients for the little red flowers.

    Then, as the pain and suffering mounted on the little packrat¡¯s body, the demonic energy within its body gradually began to stir.

    As the young master of a hidden sect, his cultivation talent had been more than decent to begin with. At this moment, the crisis that he was in had triggered his body¡¯s self-defense mechanism, unlocking the demonic energy that had somehow been sealed in its body, allowing it to once again course through his Dantian and meridians.

    The demonic energy flowed quicker and quicker. Quicker, and quicker! As a result of the excruciating pain caused by the sudden flow of demonic energy through its meridians, the little packrat painfully curled itself into a tight little ball and remainedpletely motionless.

    The counterfeit Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen had not noticed this anomaly. They had only thought that the little packrat had curled itself into a ball because it was at the end of its road.

    Right now, they knew full well that their prey¡¯s life would be theirs with one final prick. Thus, the counterfeit Yu Wanrou brandished a long, silver needle in her hands and aimed it directly at the little packrat¡¯s brain.

    Her face revealed a peculiar, macabre smile.

    Just as she motioned to plunge that silver needle into the little packrat¡¯s head, the little packrat¡¯s body suddenly erupted with an incredible outburst of demonic energy. And this was no normal outburst of demonic energy ¨C it was imbued with a terrifying, oppressive aura! As the energy and aura manifested together, an incredibly visceral and corporeal wave surged out of the little packrat¡¯s body, towards Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen. In the blink of an eye, both of them hadpletely perished before they could even cry for help.

    Then, an authoritative, ancient voice boomed into the little packrat¡¯s ears ¨C

    ¡°Little Chi, stand up right now! You¡¯re the young master carrying the bloodline of the Chi n. How can you be so weak?!¡±

    The little packrat¡¯s ears perked up and twitched, and it opened its eyes again ¨C Squeak...squeak squeak...

    It had just called out ¡°Great grandfather.¡± It recognized this voice. It was the father of his grandfather. It was also the voice of the present n Head.

    The position of the Chi n¡¯s n Head had always been assumed by the person with the strongest abilities at any one point in time. Even though the little packrat was only three generations apart from his great grandfather, his great grandfather had nevertheless already exceeded five-thousand years of age. His strength was simply immeasurable.

    This voice rang out only once, before it disappearedpletely. But the booming voice had spoken energy into its body, and the little packrat managed to mber back up to its feet.

    As it got to its feet, it discovered that surrounding illusion had also dispersedpletely. This was slightly different from what Jun Xiaomo and the rest had experienced, because this time, the illusory world around the little packrat had been forcibly shattered and torn down.

    The little packrat¡¯s great grandfather had left on its body a drop of his true blood for its protection. The purpose of this drop of blood was so that it would erupt with immense energy as soon as it detects that the little packrat was on the brink of death. The apanying oppressive power that came from a cultivator at the Coalescence stage of cultivation [1] was not something that the little flowers were able to resist at all. As such, they had immediately disintegrated when met with that oppressive force.

    The little packrat blinked his eyes nkly. He discovered that the surroundings had been reduced into a patch of bare and barren ground. The earlier tall grass and nts that had obscured its vision could no longer be seen anywhere.

    Squeak squeak...

    It was only at this moment that the little packrat finally realized he had been trapped in an illusion earlier. The pain on his body had also vanished together with the illusion earlier.

    It suddenly dawned on the little packrat that it had been extremely useless. It had earlier been trapped in that illusion for such a long time without realizing it. It had almost even misunderstood Jun Xiaomo as a result of the illusory world.

    But it knew that now was not the time to indulge in its self-pity. It thought about Jun Xiaomo. It worried that Jun Xiaomo would also be trapped by the illusory world.

    Thus, it wiped its face with its paws and stretched its limbs. Once it had fully ascertained that its body had reverted to its healthy, uninjured form, the little packrat began to scamper ahead.

    This time, it was determined to find Jun Xiaomo.

    At the same time, on a misty, foggy mountain top elsewhere, a pir of dazzling light shot through the sky.

    ¡°Is our Great Ancestor out of his closed-door cultivation?!¡±

    ¡°Our Great Ancestor is out of his closed-door cultivation!¡±

    The n members saw this pir of dazzling bright light as they ran towards the restricted grounds of their n residence.

    A teary-eyed woman wiped off her tears with her handkerchief as she turned to her husband and murmured, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Grandfather is out of his closed-door cultivation. Hopefully we will be able to bring Little Chi back safely this time...¡±

    The slightly taller man standing beside her nodded his head sullenly.

    Momentster, when they finally arrived at the restricted grounds of their n residence, they noticed that an old man with a full head of white hair was already standing there, waiting for them.

    The old man opened both of his eyes. His eyes were filled with a profound sense of tranquility that spoke volumes about the vicissitudes of life he had been through.

    He looked directly at thedy with puffy, red eyes, and the somber and solemn-looking man, before he slowly spoke, ¡°I¡¯ve detected Little Chi¡¯s movement...¡±

    Thedy¡¯s face was instantly filled with delight.

    ¡°But...¡± The old man sighed as he qualified this good news, ¡°The drop of true blood that I had left in Little Chi¡¯s body to protect him had just been used. This was the only reason why I could detect his whereabouts.¡±

    ¡°Then, grandfather...¡± Thedy¡¯s rims reddened once more from anxiety.

    The drop of true blood was something that would only be activated in the most life-threatening situations. In fact, it would generally only activate in the veryst moment before a fatal blow was dealt. Furthermore, this true blood¡¯s protection could only be used once. After that single use, thest line of defense would also have expired.

    If Little Chi¡¯s true blood protection had been activated, does this not mean the Little Chi is in grave danger?!

    ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. I¡¯ll need just one moment to determine his location. Hongyi...¡± The old man called out to the man standing beside thedy.

    ¡°Yes, grandfather.¡± Chi Hongyi, the little packrat¡¯s biological father, bowed respectfully to the old man.

    ¡°Make the preparations to bring Little Chi back. We might need to bring some of our nsmen with us, just in case.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Having heard the old man¡¯s orders, thedy¡¯s tear-strewn face finally revealed a smile of relief.

    --------------------------------------------

    The little packrat had initially thought that it was going to need a long time to locate Jun Xiaomo. But right now, it discovered that its senses had suddenly be incredibly sensitive. The Misnds¡¯ illusions had somehow affected its body.

    It ran through the tall grasnds nimbly ¨C its physical body had be far lighter than it had ever been before.

    Very soon, its sharp ears had picked up the sound ofbat in the distance. Then, it detected wafts of the stench of blood in the air.

    The scent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s blood was in the air as well!

    The little packrat grew worried. It picked up its speed as it made haste towards Jun Xiaomo. It was uncertain how it could now tell Jun Xiaomo¡¯s blood apart from the rest, but it trusted its intuition.

    As he ran along, he began to notice traces ofbat ¨C the knee-height grass in the area had been cleanly sliced off. Within moments, the sight ofbat unfolded before his eyes.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat immediately noticed the silhouette of a figure dressed in striking red.

    That¡¯s right. It was striking red because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s originally green clothing had been thoroughly soaked through with her blood by now!

    1. The Coalescence stage is the seventh out of nine stages of cultivation. The nine stages are ¨C Qi Mastery, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Immortal Ascension, Void Formation, Coalescence, Dharmic Enlightenment, Transcendence.

 Chapter 144: The Perilous Moment

    <h4>Chapter 144: The Perilous Moment</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Since time immemorial, the cultivation world had always been a ce where the strong had devoured the weak.

    By now, Jun Xiaomo had already lost track of how long she had been battling it out with the assants. The stench of blood assaulted her olfactory senses to no end, and the visible vicinity waspletely stained with spatters and splotches of blood.

    Round after round ofbat gave rise to wave after wave of dead assants. There was no end in sight to their battle right now.

    It was as though Jun Xiaomo had returned to her previous life. Day after day, she would plod on dangerously along the precipice between life and death as she fended off the persecution of the self-proimed sanctimonious and dignified sects.

    She truly detested such a lifestyle. She had sworn never to live life like that again.

    She was already extremely tired. If not for the fact that battling had be almost second nature to her through her previous life¡¯s experiences, she might not even have been able tost through the second wave of assants.

    A fresh drop of blood fell out of nowhere andnded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. As it slid across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks, she roused from herbat stupor and regained some measure of rity of mind.

    This blood is...

    Two figures immediately entered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind. One was sturdy and well-built; while the other was tall andnky.

    Rong Ruihan and martial brother Ye... That¡¯s right. I¡¯m no longer fighting on her own. If I fall right now, where would that leave Rong Ruihan and her martial brother Ye? They would never choose to flee for their lives if that happens.

    Having thought things through, she shook off the remaining stupor and sharpened her mind. The sword intent flowing out of her body also began to condense slightly and be more incisive.

    Situ Cang and his group ofckeys bided their time as they observed the trio from afar. Qin Lingyu and the other disciples were located just beside him.

    When Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen broke free from their earlier encirclement with the aid of the smokescreen created by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pellet, Situ Cang discovered that the Authentication Array presented by Jun Xiaomo was aplete dud. Jun Xiaomo hadpletely fooled everyone present then.

    At that time, Situ Cang had ripped up the Authentication Array in rage, rallied all of his troops, and ordered all of them tob the area for Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    Eventually, one of the search teams discovered Jun Xiaomo and immediately engaged them in battle. At the same time, the search team¡¯s leader took it upon himself to notify Situ Cang.

    Once they received the team leader¡¯s report, Situ Cang and his men hastily made their way to the battlegrounds and arrived just as the first round of battle had concluded.

    With a simple gesture from Situ Cang, a second wave of assants charged into the fray and locked inbat with the Jun Xiaomo trio again.

    Situ Cang was not going to give the trio any breathing room anymore. He was determined to see the trio die before his very eyes today. He was going to get revenge for his son!

    ¡°I never thought that a person at the third level of Qi Mastery would be able to hold out for so long.¡± Situ Cang remarked. His tone of voice was almost expressionless.

    However, his eyes revealed the true intentions of his heart ¨C

    In his eyes, Jun Xiaomo and the others were no different from three corpses ¨C no matter how much they struggled, their death was going to be inevitable.

    ¡°She is the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s daughter after all. She won¡¯t die that easily.¡± Ke Xinwen responded viciously, ¡°Perhaps she might even possess some life-preserving treasures on her body too.¡±

    As soon as Ke Xinwenmented about the possibility of treasures on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, Situ Cang¡¯sckeys immediately looked at Jun Xiaomo with a different gaze in their eyes.

    Their eyes were now filled with greed and avarice.

    Qin Lingyu had remained silent as he continued to observe the trio fending of the encirclement of assants. Due to his silence, no one was able to tell what contemtions were on his mind right now.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat¡¯s squeaks were hardly noticeable amidst the chaos. It nced anxiously at Jun Xiaomo as she barely hung onto her life, and it once again berated itself for being unable to do anything to help. It could only stand at the side and worry for the trio.

    Just then, a surge of demonic energy erupted form Rong Ruihan¡¯s body. This outburst of demonic energy instantly reduced all the assants within a three-meter radius from Rong Ruihan¡¯s body into nothing more than pieces of blood and gore. They were utterly and thoroughly dead.

    ¡°Not good! The first prince has gone mad again!¡± Situ Cang¡¯sckeys cried out as they took a few steps back in fear.

    Demonic energy was something that was incredibly difficult to control to begin with. This difficulty waspounded even further when the demonic cultivator grew agitated and his emotions destabilized. Often times, this would lead to demonic energy uncontrobly bursting out of the demonic cultivator¡¯s meridians. While the demonic cultivator would experience a surge in hisbat abilities, he would invariably also lose his rationality and be nothing more than a killing machine.

    Rong Ruihan had lost his rationality on a number of asions by now. Each time he did, Situ Cang¡¯sckeys would always get beaten up to a pulp as they retreated in fear. Those who were fortunate enough to survive Rong Ruihan¡¯s frenzied state were nevertheless left with a lingering fear.

    They were extremely reluctant to continue tussling with this god of war. Furthermore, Rong Ruihan¡¯s present demonic outburst seemed to be even more powerful than any of his previous outbursts. He looked far more dreadful and horrific right now.

    Rong Ruihan had found himself thoroughly triggered and agitated by the sight of Jun Xiaomo battling while soaked in blood. Reliving this scene in reality had reminded him of the abject sense of helplessness and despondence he had experienced time and again in that illusory world.

    When he had been trapped in those illusions, he had resolved in his heart to rescue thedy in red in the next iteration of his dream every time he saw her die before his very eyes.

    But this was no longer a dream. They were currently locked in a battle of life and death. Once they perished, there was no longer a ¡°next time¡±.

    As the battles wore on, that overwhelming sense of helplessness festering in Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart had somehow developed into a trigger in his heart. As soon as it activated, the entire world became dyed red in colour, and bloodlust would swell up from within his heart.

    Power! I need much more power!

    Demonic energy billowed around his body as though he were a frenzied demonic beast. The crimson-red colour of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes turned scarlet, before deepening even further into an extremely terrifying ga colour. The ga colour in his eyes coursed and swirled along the depth of his pupils. It was an incredibly peculiar yet horrific sight.

    Not good! Jun Xiaomo noticed Rong Ruihan¡¯s condition, and she immediately yelled at him, ¡°Rong Ruihan, it¡¯s dangerous! Stop it now!¡±

    Such demonic outbursts were never a good thing. Even though the cultivator would experience a temporary surge in hisbat abilities, these outbursts would invariably damage the cultivator¡¯s meridians and Dantian ¨C sometimes even irreversibly!

    Unfortunately, the present Rong Ruihan could no longer process Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warnings. He turned his gaze towards the group of people observing them from a distance, let loose a blood-curdling howl, before charging straight into their midst.

    His target was none other than Situ Cang and the group of people around him.

    Situ Cang chuckled coldly. He immediately retrieved a formation diagram from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it onto the ground.

    As soon as the scroll unraveled, a defensive formation array instantly activated, enshrouding Situ Cang and the others around him. Rong Ruihan was sequestered from the rest of them, and he could only batter the defensive formation array with demonic energy infused blows. Dull thuds continued to ring out as Rong Ruihan attacked, but to no avail.

    Situ Cang¡¯sckeys and the Dawn Sect disciples heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

    Then, Situ Cang nced over at the Dawn Sect disciples nonchntly as he mocked them, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were going to help this Sovereign capture the first prince? What¡¯s the matter? Do you only know how to hide behind this Sovereign now?¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples were incredibly embarrassed with themselves right now. They had nothing to say in response to the Grand Vizier¡¯s mockery, and they could only lower their heads and pretend not to have heard the Grand Vizier¡¯s words.

    ¡°Ah, I guess Dawn Sect isn¡¯t worth mentioning after all.¡± Situ Cang continued to mock them.

    Situ Cang knew that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were from the Dawn Sect as well. Thus, despite the fact that the other Dawn Sect disciples were standing on his side, he couldn¡¯t help but vent on the rest of these disciples his anger against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    Before he could kill Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, these Dawn Sect disciples would have no choice but to bear the brunt of his frustrations.

    Situ Cang continued to re at Rong Ruihan with an incredibly frigid gaze. His peculiar ga-red eyes, his frenzied state, and his billowing vicious demonic energy hardly fazed Situ Cang one bit.

    This was because his cultivation was already at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. There was no reason for him to fear a simple, young sprout whose cultivation had not even reached the Golden Core stage yet.

    ¡°It¡¯s about time to end it all.¡± Situ Cang calmly stated. A sinister smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    Then, Situ Cang stretched out both his hands...

    Bang! Just then, a thunderous crackle rang out, and the entire battleground tremored slightly.

    Situ Cang and hisckeys momentarily lost their auditory functions, and all of them reflexively brought their hands to their ears. At the same time, a red silhouette dashed over behind where Rong Ruihan was located.

    ¡°Little Han, look here!¡± Jun Xiaomo called out to Rong Ruihan.

    Jun Xiaomo would always address Rong Ruihan as ¡°Little Han¡± whenever he lost his senses, because he would only to respond to pet names such as ¡°Little Han¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo felt extremely uneasy about the present situation because Rong Ruihan¡¯s present outburst of demonic energy had simply been too immense. It had been so unusually great that even Jun Xiaomo was uncertain whether Rong Ruihan would still respond to her call right now.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gamble paid off, and her call proved effective.

    Rong Ruihan turned his head as he obsequiously nced at her. As soon as they locked eyes, Jun Xiaomo discovered that Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes waspletely devoid of any human rationality at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved a Stupefaction Talisman and pped it on Rong Ruihan¡¯s head.

    In the blink of an eye, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes rolled up and he fell unconscious, copsing onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Then, Jun Xiaomo yelled anxiously to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Martial brother Ye!¡±

    At the same time, she retrieved the final Teleportation Scroll within her Interspatial Ring.

    Ye Xiuwen had been fending off his share of the assants while barely hanging on to his life as well. When Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anxious yell rang out from behind him, he immediately understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts.

    This was the tacit understanding between them as a result of their countless battles together.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately operated his Windwalk technique and leapt over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side in the shortest time possible. Along the way, he conveniently took the lives of three more assants as he stabbed them cleanly and concisely through their chests.

    Jun Xiaomo supported Rong Ruihan with one hand, while she stretched out her other hand to Ye Xiuwen. As soon as Ye Xiuwen got close enough, she immediately grabbed onto his arm.

    All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

    Our gamble has paid off! At this moment, there was only a single thought in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind.

    She had earlier thrown all caution to the wind when she made her way over to Rong Ruihan¡¯s side, and there were several fresh wounds on her body right now as a result of her reckless actions.

    The Teleportation Scroll would take effect within seconds. Once that happens, they would temporarily be safe and sound.

    But just then, an ice arrow aimed straight at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chest was loosed! Jun Xiaomo hands were full right now ¨C one was supporting Rong Ruihan, while the other was holding tightly to Ye Xiuwen. She had absolutely no way to avoid this.

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that arrow at the same time that Jun Xiaomo did. Just as he was about to block that arrow, ¡°someone¡± else moved quicker than he did!

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat scampered over with immense speed, before leaping off the ground with great strength.

    Shk! The ice arrow plunged straight into the little packrat¡¯s body. The little packrat squealed as it fell back to the ground limply. Nobody could tell whether it was dead or alive.

    ¡°Little Packie!!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened in horror as she yelled out in disbelief. She was about to reflexively squat down and pick up her little packrat when an intense blue light burst out. Then as the light faded, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan hadpletely vanished from where they had been moments ago.

    The Teleportation Scroll had activated. Unfortunately, the little packrat was not located within its area of effect.

    It had once again been left behind.

 Chapter 145: The Again-Abandoned Little Packrat

    <h4>Chapter 145: The Again-Abandoned Little Packrat</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    At another part of the Mystic Woods, the ground suddenly lit up with an intense, eerie blue light. Then when that blue light faded, Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen fell from the sky andnded straight on the ground that was covered in leaves.

    Jun Xiaomo was rtively unscathed from the fall. Ye Xiuwen had operated his wind-rted spells just in time to catch her and soften theirnding. However, the stupefied Rong Ruihan had plunged straight into the ground andnded with a sickening thud.

    Fortunately, Rong Ruihan was well built and sturdy, to say the least. The roughnding barely left anysting injuries on him as well.

    Ye Xiuwen held onto Jun Xiaomo by her shoulders as they slowly descended to the ground.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately noticed that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body temperature was shockingly low, and he furrowed his brows.

    Pfft... As soon as they hadnded on the floor, a mouthful of blood sprayed from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mouth. Some of her crimson-red blood had inadvertentlynded on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes as well, but she no longer had the strength within her to even apologize to him.

    If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen were supporting her right now, she would have copsed straight onto the ground.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety. He quickly retrieved a bottle of recovery pills from his Interspatial Ring, poured out two pills, and fed them directly to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely in a stupor by now, and she would not swallow anything she was fed. Nevertheless, Ye Xiuwen forcibly shoved the medicinal pills into her mouth. He even pulled down her lower lips in order to stuff the pills into her mouth.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose picked up the fragrance from the medicinal pills, and she could feel the external force pressing against her lips. Although she did not have the strength to lift her head or even open her eyes, she could only imagine the look of anxiety on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face right now.

    In order to reassure her martial brother, she mustered thest of her strengths and forced herself to swallow the medicinal pills.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo struggled to catch her breath, before she finally managed to painstakingly wipe off the blood stains at the side of her lips. Even then, her head continued to hang limply as she did all this.

    A ray of sunlight peeked through the canopy andnded on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, warmly illuminating the grim, horrific sights on the rest of her body.

    ¡°Xiaomo...¡± Ye Xiuwen called out softly to her.

    He knew that the parting scene involving the little packrat must have left Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart feeling incredibly uneasy.

    ¡°Martial brother, I can¡¯t take it anymore. I¡¯d like to sit on the floor.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded feebly without revealing any trace of the emotions in her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen retrieved an animal fur rug from his Interspatial Ring and set it down on the floor that was strewn with leaves. Then, he supported Jun Xiaomo as she took her seat on the rug.

    Once she sat down, Jun Xiaomo buried her head in her knees, and Ye Xiuwen could no longer see her face.

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced. Jun Xiaomo rarely revealed such a weak and vulnerable side to anyone.

    Despite the danger and despondence of her circumstances earlier, Jun Xiaomo had never for a single moment revealed any trace of cowardice or dread. She had continued to battle on valiantly and courageously, working hard to ensure that she would not be a burden to Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen.

    Such a disy of maturity was not something that was consistent with a child who had been pampered growing up. Instead, the disy of her sensibility was something incredibly heartrending, even to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen half-knelt to the floor to lower his stance. Then, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head gingerly as he consoled her, ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯ve already done extremely well. About the little packrat...this was all something that none of us could have anticipated.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shuddered slightly, causing Ye Xiuwen to mistakenly think that he had identally touched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wounds. Just as he was about to retract his hand, he noticed Jun Xiaomo ferociously clenching her fists together.

    Then, a soft, choking sound came from where Jun Xiaomo had buried her head. Her head was still in her knees, but Ye Xiuwen knew at this moment that Jun Xiaomo was in tears.

    ¡°This is already the third time...this is the third time that I¡¯ve abandoned my little packrat...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s such a small little thing, so I always think that the enemies wouldn¡¯t notice it. Then, whenever something happens, it¡¯s always the first thing to be abandoned and left behind...¡±

    ¡°It must be extremely afraid right? That¡¯s why it¡¯se looking for me so anxiously.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not qualified to be its owner, yet that silly thing keeps following me so obsequiously... And it was even sillier this time... Why did it have to block that arrow for me? Its body is so small, how could it possibly withstand the power of that arrow...¡±

    ¡°What do I do? I wish the one injured had been me instead...¡±

    It had to be said that the arrow had been aimed directly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. If that arrow had struck her earlier, she would almost certainly be in her final moments right now.

    Despite that, Jun Xiaomo still felt that such an oue was far better than if her little packrat had blocked that arrow for her.

    In her eyes, there was no way that her little packrat could survive that arrow. Therefore, an immense sense of guilt and remorse washed over her and pressed heavily against her heart, causing her breath to be shallow.

    All her memories with her little packrat surfaced in her mind, one by one. That small white fluffball had always remained so obsequiously in its little bag. It had to be said that the little bag had been designed precisely to restrict its movement to begin with, yet it had never onceined about it. In fact, it had rarely caused any trouble for Jun Xiaomo at all.

    On the other hand, it would even brandish its own ws at enemies far bigger than itself so as to protect Jun Xiaomo. There were even times when it would even cheer Jun Xiaomo up in her times of sorrow by rubbing its head gingerly in her palm.

    It had previously saved Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life once; and it had just saved her life as well.

    Yet how had she treated her little packrat? Every time she was forced to make a difficult decision, she had invariably relegated her little packrat to ying second fiddle. In other words, she had abandoned her little packrat, time and again.

    In fact, hadn¡¯t the little packrat always seen me as its only source of shelter and protection? I should logically reciprocate this by caring more for such a weak and small creature like it. But in the end...

    Jun Xiaomo thoughts about the little packrat froze in the moment that the arrow shot through its body. Her body began to shiver even more vigorously.

    Was the little packrat very scared when he got hit by the arrow? Would it be hurt and disappointed by the fact that it had been abandoned again?

    Ye Xiuwen keenly picked up on the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions were quickly spiraling out of control. He managed to hold onto her in time and give her a big, warm embrace.

    There was nothing he could say to console her right now, so Ye Xiuwen simply patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back slowly as she attempted to calm her down.

    ¡°Martial brother, I want to go back there to look for my little packrat.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head as she muttered with a hoarse voice.

    Her eyes were red and puffy, and there were even traces of blooding from her lower lips where she had earlier bit down on viciously.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face immediately grew sullen, ¡°What can you do if you go back? Do you want the little packrat¡¯s sacrifice to have been in vain?!¡±

    ¡°But...perhaps the little packrat isn¡¯t dead yet...¡± Jun Xiaomo choked and sputtered.

    She knew that the odds were low, but she still had to give it a shot.

    She did not want to abandon her little packrat again. Even...even if it was reduced to nothing more than a small little corpse, she still wanted to bring that corpse back with her.

    Ye Xiuwen could tell what exactly was running through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind right now. His heart sank, but he firmly held Jun Xiaomo by her shoulders and forced her to look into his own eyes as he sternly rebuked her with indignation in his eyes, ¡°What can you do even if the little packrat isn¡¯t dead?! Bring it back? Do you have the ability to do so? Don¡¯t you forget for a single moment that the Grand Vizier and his men are still watchfully waiting for your return. Or do you think that the Grand Vizier and his men will let you off if you kneel down ande crying to them, huh?! Xiaomo, can you please wake up?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at Ye Xiuwen in shock. Momentster,rge beads of tears began to roll out of her eyes uncontrobly.

    This time, she no longer bore any thoughts of returning anymore.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed heavily, before he rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head gently and added, ¡°Xiaomo, you have to understand that being rash and reckless isn¡¯t a solution.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she muttered nasally, ¡°I know that...but...¡±

    Then, she suddenly paused. Momentster, she looked up again with a glimmer in her eyes as she spoke excitedly, ¡°Martial brother, you¡¯re right. I still have other methods of determining whether my little packrat is fine.¡±

    As she said that, she scrambled about as she retrieved a nk formation scroll and some drawing materials,id it on the floor and began to draw inscriptions on it.

    What she was working on right now was simr to an X-mark Array which was used to track down a person¡¯s location. However, it was much simpler than an X-mark Array, and the amount of time needed to prepare this array was much quicker.

    Jun Xiaomo still possessed some of her little packrat¡¯s fur in her Interspatial Ring. With these fur as mediums and the formation array she was preparing right now, she would be able to track and understand her little packrat¡¯s condition.

    After all, this was her only hope right now...

    Ye Xiuwen sighed again. It dawned on him that it was probably going take a long time before Jun Xiaomo would be able to ovee this hurdle within her heart. Truth be told, the little packrat¡¯s ¡°sacrifice¡± had leftplicated emotions in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart as well. There was both gratitude and remorse, amongst other things. But his rtionship with the little packrat had been a far cry from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rtionship with it. Furthermore, as the only person thinking rationally among the trio right now, he knew that he was the one who had to make all the necessary preparations for their next move.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen gazed into the distance as his expressions remained sullen.

    This was because he knew that they had only temporarily avoided a life-threatening crisis. They were not in the clear yet.

    The strength of their trio was truly too weakpared to the Grand Vizier¡¯s strength and the depth of his resources.

    This predicament we¡¯re in...can we really break out of it?

    --------------------------------------------

    On the other side, the little packrat whom Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen thought had ¡°sacrificed¡± itself rolled on the floor twice. Then, it shuddered for a moment before it immediately got back to its feet.

    Its body was enshrouded with a thickyer of demonic energy, and it was precisely this demonic energy around its body that had acted as a buffer, preventing that ice arrow from prating its body.

    When the ice arrow had earlier arrived at the little packrat¡¯s body, the demonic energy around the little packrat¡¯s body had somehow ¡°devoured¡± the ice arrow.

    Notwithstanding that, the ice arrow¡¯s impact still struck the little packrat heavily. This was the reason why it had fallen back onto the ground.

    The little packrat was indeed injured, but its injuries were light. They were the kind that would recover on its own after a few days of rest.

    Squeak squeak... When the little packrat came back to its senses, it immediately scampered back to where Jun Xiaomo and the rest had been. Yet all it saw was an empty formation diagram.

    This formation array had already been spent, and it was nowpletely useless.

    Squeak squeak squeak...

    Xiaomo ah...

    The little packrat spoke in anguage only it could understand. It lowered its head as it continued to call out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name.

    Its injuries were light, but it felt as though its heart had been thoroughly torn to shreds by this turn of events.

    It had been abandoned once again.

    Even though it knew that Jun Xiaomo had not done this on purpose, it was still immensely heartbroken.

    Why is it that the others never get left behind? Why am I always the one who gets abandoned?

    The little packrat curled itself into a ball as itid on the empty formation array in dismay. It even scratched the formation diagram in its frustrations.

    But no matter what, it knew that Jun Xiaomo was never going to return to this ce.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little packrat?¡± A hateful voice called out from above the little packrat¡¯s head.

    Squeak squeak! There was no need to look. The little packrat immediately knew who the owner of that voice was ¨C it was the person that it absolutely detested, Yu Wanrou.

    It lifted its head and bared its teeth at Yu Wanrou as it brandished its ws.

    But very soon, it discovered that Yu Wanrou was not alone. There were several others who had crowded around it, including the Dawn Sect disciples, the Grand Vizier and hisckeys.

    At this moment, all of them looked at the little packrat with cold, vicious eyes.

    The little packrat¡¯s plump little body shuddered.

    By now, about a third of his strength had returned to its body. Even though it did not have the ability to revert to his original form and hurt the people around right now, escaping was still a possibility.

    Furthermore, it had earlier secretly retrieved an invisible Transmittance Talisman, dripped a drop of its own blood onto it and sent a message to its parents.

    I hope father and mother can get here before I get caught... The little packrat shivered as it thought.

    But it knew that its hope was thin at best.

 Chapter 146: Refinement Technique; Arrival of the Little Packratâ€™s Father

    <h4>Chapter 146: Refinement Technique; Arrival of the Little Packrat¡¯s Father</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Situ Cang and his men failed to notice the invisible Transmittance Talisman under the little packrat¡¯s paw.

    In their eyes, this little packrat who had always tagged alongside Jun Xiaomo was only looking at them in fear and trepidation as its body quivered uncontrobly. It no longer presented itself with that pride and arrogance as it had done in the past when it had nuzzled against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom.

    Yu Wanrou was particrly delighted seeing this. She stared at the little packrat as a vicious and macabre gaze shed across her eyes.

    She had already guessed the little packrat¡¯s identity by now ¨C ever since she saw this little packrat in Yao Mo¡¯s bosom, she had found it to be extremely familiar. Who would have thought that it would be the very same one that she had lost some time ago?

    Yu Wanrou never liked it when her things were touched by other women. She could not stand it ¨C even if this ¡°thing¡± were no more than a mere little pet.

    Furthermore, this little packrat ought to have been hers to begin with. It was something that her martial brother Ke had bought as a birthday gift for her. What basis did this little packrat have to treat Jun Xiaomo with a far better attitude than it had ever treated her with?

    Every time she thought about how her little packrat had scratched her, Yu Wanrou could not help but feel a sense of indignation swell up within her heart. She could hardly resist the urge rising up within her heart to torment this little beast with far more vicious and sinister methods. She was going to thoroughly etch in its bones the consequences of baring its fangs at its master and owner.

    Truth be told, Yu Wanrou had in fact already put this matter behind her and forgotten all about the little packrat when Ke Xinwen said that he could no longer locate its whereabouts within Dawn Sect. But right now, a renewed sense of hatred swelled up in her heart, and Yu Wanrou decided that she was not going to let off this little packrat no matter what.

    Since its owner has run away, then this little packrat should naturally receive all the punishment in its owner¡¯s stead. Yu Wanrou¡¯s ¡°soft and charming¡± smile broadened, but the true contemtions of her heart could be seen through the frigid intent in her eyes.

    She hated Jun Xiaomo. Previously, her jealousy for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s background had been far greater than her hatred for Jun Xiaomo. But given how things had unraveled, her hatred had swelled so much that it had now far exceeded her immense jealousy for Jun Xiaomo.

    In fact, every time she was reminded of the fact that she had attempted to seduce Yao Mo, she would develop a sense of anger, frustration and indignation towards Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo must¡¯ve looked at me as though I was some clown to her. She must even have been looking at me with such contempt and mockery in her heart!

    Yu Wanrou longed to tear Jun Xiaomo to shreds. But given how they were temporarily unable to locate Jun Xiaomo, she did not mind ventting some of her frustrations on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little packrat first.

    Yu Wanrou was not the only one who had thought this way. Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen had once again eluded capture from right under everyone¡¯s noses ¨C this was undoubtedly akin to a tight p to their faces.

    If it had happened only once, they could attribute it to thecency and carelessness of Situ Cang and his men. But this was the second time.

    Furthermore, Situ Cang had sent out several teams of men to surround and assault Jun Xiaomo and the rest in order to wear them down in a battle of attrition. Situ Cang had even personally supervised their assault and directed the assant from the sidelines.

    Yet in the end, Jun Xiaomo still somehow managed to slip out of their encirclement and escape together with Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen using a Teleportation Scroll.

    Situ Cang squinted his eyes as he remained taciturn. Momentster, he waved his hand, gesturing to hisckeys to capture the little, white packrat on the ground.

    Hisckeys immediately understood what their master meant, and they tiptoed towards the little packrat as they slowly made their way towards it... Truth be told, there was no need for them to do that to begin with, because the little packrat had already been watching them intently.

    Under its thick coat of fluffy fur, the little packrat¡¯s ck, beady eyes had been trained on Situ Cang¡¯sckeys as they made their way over. It had also begun to muster its strength in its hind legs.

    Squeak squeak!

    Just as Situ Cang¡¯sckeys pounced at it, the little packrat kicked powerfully with its hind legs and shot out among their midst.

    ¡°Quickly catch it!¡± The leader of Situ Cang¡¯sckeys called out anxiously.

    Everyone immediately scrambled to capture the little packrat.

    This time, it was no longer only Situ Cang¡¯sckeys who were involved ¨C even the Dawn Sect disciples had joined in the fray as they attempted to pounce on the little packrat¡¯s body.

    When the assants were persecuting and attacking Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen earlier, the Dawn Sect disciples had refrained from acting because of their identity. But now, given that the target of their capture was no more than a small creature, they could hardly care less any longer.

    Even then, they could never have thought that such a small ball of fluff would be so difficult to capture. Not only was it nimble and quick on its feet; its entire body was incredibly round and slippery ¨C some had touched it, but none were able to sessfully grab hold of it.

    The little packrat had imbued its body with its demonic energy. Despite their concerted efforts, the little packrat still managed to slip out from their grasp time and again. In the end, the Dawn Sect disciples and Situ Cang¡¯sckeys could only scramble about chaotically to no avail.

    In the end, Situ Cang was forced to make a move himself. With one move, Situ Cang tossed out a Confinement Array, the little packrat was instantly bound in ce, motionless.

    The little packrat who had once experienced the effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Confinement Array: ......

    I...I...I hate Confinement Arrays the most!!!

    Furthermore, the Grand Vizier¡¯s Confinement Array was different from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s. Jun Xiaomo had only restricted the little packrat¡¯s movement within the domain of the array in order to keep from running into any dangers. On the other hand, the Grand Vizier¡¯s Confinement Array was designed to put pressure on the trapped object.

    The immense pressure bore down heavily on the little packrat¡¯s back, forcing it to squeak in pain and difort.

    It scratched at the Confinement Array with its ws. But when it finally discovered that there was no way he could stand up and break free of this immense and fearsome oppressive force, it curled up its body into a ball and shrunk to the ground.

    Situ Cang squinted as he sized up the little packrat for a bit. Then, heughed sardonically, ¡°As expected, Dawn Sect is really full of degenerates. Even the pets you rear are vermin that thrive on demonic energy.¡±

    ¡°Demonic energy?!¡± The Dawn Sect disciples were initially indignant at Situ Cang¡¯s contemptuousments about their sect. But when they heard his second statement, they werepletely stunned, ¡°Could this packrat be a demonic packrat, and not a spiritual packrat?¡±

    Situ Cang chuckled coldly, ¡°Its body is undoubtedly emanating demonic energy.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. The degenerates are those from Heavenly Peak. It¡¯s got nothing to do with us.¡± Ke Xinwen rebutted with indignance as several other disciples threw nces of praise at him.

    Situ Cang immediately red at Ke Xinwen. He shivered, and then immediately grew taciturn.

    ¡°Heavenly Peak is one of the Peaks within the Dawn Sect. Are you saying that this Sovereign is wrong? Rather than dispute over trivial and inconsequential things like this, why not let this Sovereign take a look at that little beast over there?¡± Situ Cang refuted, before making a suggestion.

    Everyone stared at each other nkly. In the end, it was the person who had spokenst, Ke Xinwen, who walked over to the Confinement Array and picked up the little packrat.

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat began to struggle for its life. It wanted to break free from Ke Xinwen¡¯s grasp, but it was renderedpletely helpless because Ke Xinwen had grabbed it from its tail. After struggling for a brief moment in vain, the little packrat even found itself getting slightly dizzy from all the blood that had flowed to its head.

    Squeak squeak... It called out dolefully, before it curled itself up once again, giving up on any further thoughts of struggling.

    Ke Xinwen presented the plump little packrat to Situ Cang, but Situ Cang did not receive it immediately. Instead, he instructed nonchntly, ¡°Hold onto it first.¡±

    As he said that, Situ Cang retrieved six talismans from his Interspatial Ring and tossed them into the air.

    Then, he made aplex series of hand seals in a sh. In the next moment, the six talismans in the air floated about and neatly arranged themselves to form a six-sided star formation.

    Having formed this six-sided star formation, the talismans continued to rotate slowly in mid-air as they glowed with a faint ga light.

    It was obvious that this was a formation array ¨C a formation array formed by the use of multiple talismans.

    ¡°ce that little beast inside.¡± Situ Cang instructed.

    ce it inside? How do I ce it inside? Ke Xinwen stared nkly at the six-sided star floating in mid-air, and he could not wrap his head around Situ Cang¡¯s instructions.

    Despite his hesitation, Ke Xinwen toted the little packrat and drew closer to the six-sided star.

    Just as he drew within half an arm¡¯s length of the six-sided star, he suddenly felt an incredible suction force emanating from the heart of that six-sided star.

    It was at this moment that he finally understood the meaning of ¡°ce it inside¡±. This little packrat was going to be sucked in by that mysterious force.

    The little packrat also experienced that fearsome suction energy at this moment. It immediately began to squeak in fear.

    Ke Xinwen chuckled coldly, ¡°What are you calling out for? You should already have expected this when you decided to follow Jun Xiaomo at the beginning.¡± As he said that, he tossed the little packrat towards the six-sided star.

    Within moments, the little packrat was drawn into the heart of the six-sided star. Even Ke Xinwen had to exert considerable force before he managed to escape its ferocious suction force.

    That¡¯s truly fearsome. I wonder what the consequences of being sucked in there would be. Ke Xinwen shuddered to himself as he thought. Then, he turned his attention back towards Situ Cang.

    At this moment, Situ Cang¡¯s eyes were already half-closed, and his mouth began to move slightly as he muttered a mysterious and unrecognizable mnemonic.

    The six-sided star began to glow brighter and brighter. As the ga light began to engulf the little packrat, its fur and skin began to look as though it was being immted. Then in the next moment, an immense wave of excruciating pain swept over the little packrat as it began to squeal.

    Everyone was shocked at this sight, and nobody knew what exactly Situ Cang was doing right now.

    Did he intend to torment this little packrat to death?

    Could it be that the Grand Vizier was trying to take out his frustrations at the escape of the Jun Xiaomo trio on this poor little packrat?

    These thoughts began to sprout out in the hearts of the Dawn Sect disciples and the Grand Vizier¡¯s men.

    But, in reality, Situ Cang¡¯s considerations had far exceeded the contemtions of the other people around ¨C Situ Cang¡¯s intentions were to ¡°refine¡± the little packrat.

    Refining spirit and demonic beasts was an incredibly cruel process. This was because the cultivator would have to resort to extreme methods to forcibly rip out the spirit or demonic beast¡¯s soul from its body. Furthermore, the beast would have to lose its consciousness under the baptism of excruciating pain so that the newly congealed entity would be fullypliant with the cultivator refining it.

    That¡¯s right ¨C the refined beast could only be referred to as an entity or a thing. This is because it would no longer possess any form of conscience or awareness, and it would function as an existence no different from a spirit tool.

    Naturally, Situ Cang never had the intention of refining the little packrat into a powerful offensive spirit tool. Based on his assessment, the little packrat was nothing more than a cute, adorable little pet. Therefore, there was no chance of it ever bing a powerful spirit tool for the Grand Vizier¡¯s use to begin with.

    His main goal right now was to use the little packrat to lure Jun Xiaomo out of hiding. He could tell that Jun Xiaomo cared immensely for this little pet of hers.

    He could even imbue the little packrat¡¯s body with some powerful formation arrays so that when Jun Xiaomo picked up the little packrat, he could detonate these formation arrays remotely and wipe the Jun Xiaomo trio off the face of this earth!

    Situ Cang longed to see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions when she finally realizes that the little pet in her bosom had been the cause of her demise.

    I bed it would be filled with incredible astonishment and despondence, huh?

    A smile crept up Situ Cang¡¯s lips as he thought to himself.

    However, he soon realized something unusual about this situation. Logically speaking, a low-grade spirit beast like the demonic packrat would not take such a long time to refine.

    Yet in reality, an incense stick of time had passed, and apart from the growing intensity of demonic energy emanating from the little packrat¡¯s body, he did not notice any signs of progress in his refinement.

    Situ Cang furrowed his brows and recited a few more lines of his mnemonic. Then, he pointed his finger towards the six-sided star and imbued it with more spiritual energy.

    Squeaaaaak¡ªThe little packrat¡¯s squeal grew even more shrill.

    Just then, an infuriated voice boomed out from mid-air ¨C

    ¡°Who dares to hurt my child?!!!¡±

    As this infuriated shout roared out, several onlookers whose cultivation levels were too low immediately spat out blood as their knees buckled and they copsed onto the ground.

 Chapter 147: A Tooth for a Tooth, Little Packratâ€™s Great Grandfather

    <h4>Chapter 147: A Tooth for a Tooth, Little Packrat¡¯s Great Grandfather</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Everyone looked up in the air in shock and discovered a man and a woman standing tall in mid-air. The man looked cool, suave and dignified, while the woman was charming and beautiful. That said, she wore an ashen appearance on her face. She swept her gaze across the people on the ground. Then, when she saw the little packrat, the worry and anxiety in her eyes burgeoned to a roaring inferno of rage.

    ¡°You dare to hurt my child? You¡¯re asking for it!¡± The woman bellowed.

    Child? Who¡¯s their child?

    Everyone followed the woman¡¯s line of sight and shifted their gazes from the Grand Vizier to...the little packrat.

    Could this little packrat be their child?! How can this be? Is this not Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pet? When has it be a cultivator¡¯s child? And how incredibly strong are these cultivators.

    The ability to ¡°stand¡± in mid-air meant that these cultivators possessed immense abilities. The prerequisite for this was the Golden Core stage of cultivation. Thus, most of the cultivators present trembled in fear as soon as the couple showed up.

    However, this was naturally to the exclusion of Situ Cang. Situ Cang was already at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation, and he was three qualitative levels stronger than Chi Hongyi, who had only been at the secondary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    Having swept his gaze towards Chi Hongyi earlier, the Grand Vizier had managed to identify the cultivation levels of both Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong.

    One was at the secondary-tier Nascent Soul stage, while the other was at the advanced-tier Golden Core stage. Both could hardly threaten him.

    Situ Cang mocked coldly, ¡°Which two measly demonic cultivators dare to create such a ruckus in front of this Sovereign here?!¡±

    As Situ Cang spoke, he instantly also released an oppressive aura that wasmensurate with his cultivation at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. Shao Sirong¡¯s face immediately grew pale and devoid of any colour when Situ Cang¡¯s aura washed over her. Chi Hongyi immediately stepped in front of his wife to block the aura for her, and then he also cast a barrier in front of them.

    Situ Cang snorted with indignance. Then, he intentionally increased the amount of spiritual energy that he was channeling into the six-sided star formation array.

    Squeak squeaaak¡ªThe little packrat¡¯s struggle intensified as it squealed for help.

    ¡°Little Chi!¡± Shao Sirong could hardly care less anymore, and she motioned to rush to the little packrat¡¯s side.

    Just then, a wave of overwhelming oppressive aura suddenly engulfed the entirends. With Shao Sirong and Chi Hongyi at the center, the oppressive aura instantly enshrouded an area of a hundred-mile radius.

    ¡°Pfft--!¡±

    ¡°Pfft--!¡±

    ¡°Pfft--!¡±

    Situ Cang¡¯sckeys and the Dawn Sect disciples were instantly crushed under the heavy pressure of this aura, and all of them copsed on the ground, spitting out blood. Not only that, those with lower cultivation began to find that their bones were even creaking and starting to crack and shatter.

    Some of them even passed out immediately.

    Situ Cang was hardly any better himself. Even though he was already at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation, this oppressive aura was nevertheless far too strong. He was immediately forced to his knees, and the flow of spiritual energy to the six-sided star formation array was instantaneously cut off.

    What cultivators feared the most during the process of refining a spirit or demonic beast was to be forcefully cut off by an external force in the midst of that entire process. If a cultivator were lucky, he would get off with only some injuries; but if he were any less than lucky, then the resultant injuries might even be life-threatening.

    The oppressive aura had pressed so strongly against Situ Cang¡¯s body that he felt as though his organs were beginning to shift. Now that his refinement process had been forcefully halted, his body suffered a further bacsh from it. As things were right now, Situ Cang was in a horrendous state.

    He struggled to look towards the sky where the oppressive aura had emanated from, and he noticed a ripple in the sky. In the next moment, a white-haired old man walked out from the center of the ripple. It was as though he were walking down a flight of stairs. Step by step, he walked towards the ground.

    The man and the woman standing in mid-air had also found their way over to the old man¡¯s side, and they respectfully and politely addressed him, ¡°Grandfather.¡±

    This old man was not only Chi Hongyi¡¯s grandfather, he was also none other than the hidden sect, Chi n¡¯s strongest cultivator right now.

    As soon as the old man made his appearance, Situ Cang could immediately tell the difference in their strengths ¨C it could only be described as a chasm as wide as the heavens were from thend.

    As Situ Cang remained kneeling on the ground, the old man nonchntly nced at him and cidly remarked, ¡°How does a trash like you in the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage have the gall to call himself ¡®this Sovereign¡¯? What absurdity. Sigh, I¡¯ve been holed up in the sect for too long. Just a few hundred years out, and this cultivation world has really fallen into pieces.¡±

    The old man gently waved his sleeves as he finished speaking. Instantly, Situ Cang flew away like a kite with a broken string, mming heavily into the ground a distance away.

    The bones in Situ Cang¡¯s arms and legs had bepletely shattered with just this one attack, and they bent in absolutely horrific locations and directions. He looked just like any of his other followers right now.

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± Situ Cang gurgled and choked as wave after wave of blood stench swelled up from within his body. His eyes widened like never before, and dread filled the depths of his pupils.

    He no longer had the strength to even stand up right now. Every single bone within his body had been shattered into pieces.

    He would never have thought that his retribution would be so swift, so fearsome and so thorough when he was tormenting the little packrat earlier or when he was persecuting Jun Xiaomo and the others.

    More importantly, he was unaware that his nightmare was only just beginning.

    Having dished out his punishment, the old man turned his attention towards the little packrat...which is also his great grandson.

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat was not frightened by the oppressive aura emanating from that old man¡¯s body. In fact, it was even rejoicing at the fact that its great grandfather had appeared in the nick of time.

    The little packrat had initially been resigned to the fact that this was where it would breathe its final breaths. Yet with a twist of fate, even his great grandfather had personally made an appearance right now!

    When the old man saw his great grandson, his eyes were filled with affection and love. But very soon, this affection and love were reced by a stern and righteous indignation ¨C

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with you when we get back!¡±

    The little packrat¡¯s squeaks immediately grew feeble and weak. Then, it curled itself up into a ball.

    Thedy standing behind the old man was also the little packrat¡¯s mother, Shao Sirong. She could hardly suppress her worry and concern for her child any longer. She ran over to her little packrat and gently tore up the talismans forming the six-sided star formation array.

    Once the talismans had beenpletely destroyed, the formation array could no longer support the little packrat in mid-air. The little packrat fell from the air, and Shao Sirong gingerly caught it.

    Squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat was finally at peace now that it had returned to its mother¡¯s side. It rubbed its head tenderly against Shao Sirong¡¯s palm, expressing its affection for her.

    ¡°Little Chi, he...why has he be like this?¡± Shao Sirong looked helplessly at the little packrat norger than the size of a fist, furrowed her brows and asked.

    If not for her husband¡¯s astute observations earlier, she would never have realized that the little animal in her palm right now was none other than their missing son.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid he might have inadvertently consumed a Shapeshifting Fruit.¡± Chi Hongyi snorted as he replied.

    Chi Hongyi had always been a stern and serious father. Seeing the magnitude of the mess his troublemaking son had caused, Chi Hongyi¡¯s expression grew ashen.

    If he could, he truly wished to give his son a tight spanking right there and then.

    Yet it was a pity that his son was only an ¡°it¡± right now, and there was no way he could begin disciplining his son. Therefore, he continued to re at his son with incensed eyes.

    The little packrat looked on at its father¡¯s ashen face, and it trembled slightly in its mother¡¯s palm.

    Then, the old man ced his hand on the little packrat¡¯s body, sending a thread of demonic energy swimming about the little packrat¡¯s meridians and Dantian, probing about at its body¡¯s condition.

    ¡°He has indeed consumed a Shapeshifting Fruit.¡± The old man confirmed their conjectures, before adding, ¡°But Little Chi¡¯s condition is pretty bad right now. If it had simply been the Shapeshifting Fruit, I can concoct a simple medicine and he can easily be cured. But there are several hidden ailments and injuries tormenting his body right now which must have been umted over this year of travels outside. I¡¯m afraid we will have to slowly address each and every one of them.¡±

    From what the old man had said, Shao Sirong gleaned that her son must have been through a lot over thisst one year, and she could not help but begin to shed tears for her son.

    The little packrat was incredibly guilt-ridden and remorseful seeing its mother¡¯s tears. It just dawned on him exactly how selfish, willful and unruly it had been. It was his willfulness that had singlehandedly caused his loved ones to worry so much for him.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat patted Shao Sirong¡¯s palm with its tail in a reassuring manner.

    Once the old man had finally confirmed that his great grandson¡¯s body had not suffered from any permanent orsting injuries, he could finally rest at ease and turn his attention fully to Situ Cang and his men.

    That¡¯s right. The earlier wave of oppressive aura had only been an ¡°introductory gift¡± to Situ Cang and his men. He was only just about to serve the main course of his punishment.

    ¡°Huh, refinement technique. You have such gall, hmm?! You dare to use the refinement technique on my great grandson?!¡±

    As the old man spoke, the oppressive aura emanating from his body intensified by several levels. A few of Situ Cang¡¯sckeys immediately found their skin splitting open from the intensified pressure, revealing the flesh and even the bone under their skin. It was a scene straight out of a nightmare.

    Apart from the little packrat, its parents and the old man, everyone else shook in abject fear. Among them, the dread experienced by Ke Xinwen and Yu Wanrou were the highest.

    After all, they were the ones who had tormented the little packrat the most among everyone present. If the old man were going to get each and every one of them to ount for their transgressions, then there was no way they would be able to escape this present predicament.

    Their only hopey in the possibility that the little packrat would have no way of reporting their transgressions to the old man. After all, the little packrat only spoke thenguage of packrats that nobody understood.

    Just then, the old man began to sweep his hazy eyes across the bodies of each and every person present.

    As the old man¡¯s gaze swept across Ke Xinwen¡¯s body, Ke Xinwen could no longer suppress the guilty conscience in his heart, and he immediately yelled out, ¡°Se-...senior...it...it¡¯s got nothing to do with us! This is all the Grand Vizier¡¯s idea. We didn¡¯t know he was using a refinement technique!¡±

    Ke Xinwen attempted to draw the k back towards Situ Cang and turn him into a scapegoat. He thought that this way might give the rest of them a better chance of survival.

    Perhaps this old man¡¯s infuriation would dwindle substantially after he deals with the Grand Vizier. Ke Xinwen thought to himself hopefully.

    Situ Cang¡¯s eyes widened, and he red back at Ke Xinwen with immense hatred.

    But the old man had lived for such countless years. How could he not be able to tell the guilty conscience flowing out from the depths of Ke Xinwen¡¯s eyes? Truth be told, things might have been alright if Ke Xinwen had not spoken. Perhaps the old man would have been unable to tell who had left all these hidden ailments and injuries within the little packrat¡¯s body from just its simple squeaks. But right now, he had a rough idea of who the main culprits were.

    It could only be said that Ke Xinwen had shot himself in the foot.

    The old man snorted, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Not a single one of you will get away today.¡±

    As he said that, he lifted his hand, and a massive formation array congealed in mid-air. This formation array was formed purely by the congealing of the old man¡¯s demonic energy. It emanated a soulless, frigid light as it enveloped Situ Cang and everyone else present.

    ¡°Since you dare use the refinement technique against my great grandson, then I¡¯m going to let you experience for yourself what life worse than death feels like!¡±

 Chapter 148: Jun Xiaomo, the Daughter-in-Law

    <h4>Chapter 148: Jun Xiaomo, the Daughter-in-Law</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When he saw the formation array congealed from demonic energy appear overhead, Situ Cang nearly went mad.

    Using demonic energy to congeal a formation array?! How strong is this person?! It must be said that congealing a formation array using spiritual energy or demonic energy was something that could only be done by a person at the Coalescence stage of cultivation.

    Within moments, even the luxury of thought was thoroughly stripped away from Situ Cang as his torment began. His body started to feel as though it were immting. Every inch of his skin repeatedly split open, before fusing together again. Within the blink of an eye, he had turned into a bloody, gory mess.

    In the past, Situ Cang had used the same formation array to deal with some of the misbehaving or ill-disciplined people under him. Yet he would never have thought that there would be a day when this same formation array would be used on himself.

    One incense of time passed...two incense of time passed...three incense of time passed... Yet Situ Cang was still alive. This is because the formation array performed both the functions of destroying and healing. A person would not be able to die even if he wanted to. He could only continue to experience the immense, excruciating pain delivered by this brutal formation array.

    It was truly as the old man had said ¨C this was a life worse than death.

    Then, the old man opened his eyes again, and waved his sleeves. Instantly, the formation array that had congealed over Situ Cang¡¯s head changed. It was still congealed by his demonic energy, and there were stillplex inscriptions and patterns all over the formation array, but the formation diagram was now slightly different than before.

    Within moments, Situ Cang, under the effects of this transformed formation array, began to shiver and chatter his teeth. The blood percting on his body had immediately begun to coagte and harden.

    After burning Situ Cang with scorching temperatures, the old man had drastically changed things up to allow Situ Cang to experience the chill of freezing temperatures.

    Situ Cang¡¯sckeys and the Dawn Sect disciples were hardly in a better shape ¨C especially Ke Xinwen. Ke Xinwen¡¯s attempt to draw k away from himself had aroused the old man¡¯s suspicions, and he therefore treated Ke Xinwen with an extra measure of ¡°care and concern¡±.

    If one could say that Situ Cang¡¯s level of torment was a hundred percent, then the level of torment experienced by Ke Xinwen¡¯s would be eighty percent of that, while the rest would be at fifty percent.

    Of course, even fifty percent of Situ Cang¡¯s pain were still incredibly unbearable.

    At this very moment, each and every one of the Dawn Sect disciples regretted taking up this task decreed by the Inferno Kingdom. The prospects of obtaining a national treasure were only bing increasingly distant, while the prospect of losing their lives here were bing more and more certain.

    Several disciples secretly med Qin Lingyu in their hearts for epting the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s task to begin with.

    If they had not epted the this task, there was a good chance that they might already havepleted their Sect¡¯s task be on their way back by now.

    But what these people had forgotten was the fact that even though it was Qin Lingyu who had epted this task to begin with, they could have bid farewell to Situ Cang at any timeter on and washed their hands off this matter.

    Instead, it was of their own volition that they had time and again epted Situ Cang¡¯s offer and chased after Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo fervently. Could they really me anyone else? Should they not me the greed and avarice in their hearts instead?

    In fact, there was something that everyone hadpletely overlooked. This was the fact that formation arrays congealed by demonic energies were imbued with a certain corrosive effect that apanied the use of demonic energy. At this moment, this corrosive effect was attacking their bodies in ces they could not see ¨C their meridians and Dantian were slowly being ebbed away by the effects of the demonic energy¡¯s incursion and shriveling up as a result.

    Just as their level of despair and despondence hit their limits, the little packrat in Shao Sirong¡¯s palm suddenly began to squeak in anguish. Its body convulsed furiously as though it were writhing in pain from something.

    ¡°What happened, Little Chi?! Don¡¯t scare your mother like that...¡± Shao Sirong anxiously called out.

    Chi Hongyi was no longer staring at his son with that stern and serious face. He quickly made his way to Shao Sirong¡¯s side and observed the little packrat¡¯s condition.

    ¡°The refinement technique...That refinement technique earlier has partially seeded!¡±

    Chi Hongyi turned around ferociously as he stared menacingly at Situ Cang as he struggled in the heart of the formation array.

    At this moment, there was no longer a single part of Situ Cang¡¯s body that was in good condition. Quite apart from the condition of his skin and flesh, even his meridians and Dantian had been irreversibly damaged.

    ¡°Hahahaha...cough cough...Surprise, surprise. I¡¯ve already left a part of my soul in the little packrat¡¯s body. Even though this Sovereign¡¯s refinement process had been interrupted by you, I¡¯ve still seeded in part...hahaha...¡±

    Seeding in part meant that Situ Cang would still have no way to control the little packrat. However, he could nevertheless still ¡°share¡± his pain with the little packrat.

    This was one of the other purposes of the refinement technique. The refined spirit or demonic beasts would be forced to share the pain and injuries sustained by its owner. In moments of crises, the owner could even make the refined spirit or demonic beasts die on his behalf.

    These methods were incredibly cruel and dreadful. Therefore, there were several spiritual cultivators who denounced such practices without qualification. But Situ Cang could hardly care less about the thoughts of others. All practices were permissible to him as long as they benefitted him personally.

    Truth be told, Situ Cang¡¯s practices made him much more of a stereotypical demonic cultivator that everyone dreaded than the Chi nbined. Situ Cang barely possessed anypassion and kindness for others at all.

    The old man was evidently caught in a pickle given the present situation. If he carried on with his torment, the little packrat could very possibly die instead of Situ Cang.

    ¡°Grandfather!¡± The little packrat¡¯s father anxiously took two steps forward, intending to apprise the old man with the new development.

    ¡°Alright, you don¡¯t have to say anything else. I¡¯ve heard everything.¡± The old man spoke cidly.

    To the old man, maintaining the formation array while probing about at his surroundings with his divine sense was hardly difficult at all.

    In fact, he had already discovered this condition in his great grandson earlier. But he chose to carry on with his formation arrays. The first reason was because he was extremely confident in his control of the output of his formation array. He knew that Situ Cang was not going to die as a result of his torment, and there was no way his great grandson¡¯s life would be in any danger. The second reason was that he felt that his great grandson ought to experience a little bit more hardship. This torment could even serve as a form of punishment against him, so that he would learn to keep his willfulness in check and not wreak havoc or cause such unnecessary trouble in future.

    Shortly afterwards, as soon as the old man felt that the torment was just about enough, he began to recall the flow of demonic energy that was being used to sustain his formation array. Everyone who had been tormented earlier sensed that the oppressive powers of the formation array had finally been lifted off their bodies, and they all involuntarily let out a sigh of relief.

    There were no thoughts of vengeance or other simr notions in their minds. To them, survival was already the greatest gift that they could receive right now.

    However, Situ Cang was the exception to the norm. Despite the fact that his life was hanging by a thread right now, he stillughed heartily, ¡°Hahahahaha...I knew that you couldn¡¯t kill me!¡±

    He had refined countless spirit beasts in his lifetime. If the old man were to maintain his formation array, he could simply have one of these spirit beasts die in his stead, feign his own death, and escape from this old man with his life intact.

    Situ Cang knew that where there was life, there was hope. As long as he could survive this present crisis, it was only a matter of time when he served that cold dish of revenge on these perpetrators!

    Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong red hatefully at Situ Cang. They found this person no better than a madman.

    The old man¡¯s eyes darkened, and his expressions grew sullen. Then, he waved his hand and gave Situ Cang a tight p from a distance. Situ Cang was instantly silenced, and he spurted a mouthful of fresh blood.

    The little packrat in Shao Sirong¡¯s palm quivered again. It was obvious that it had experienced the same kind of pain as well.

    ¡°Little Chi...¡± Shao Sirong stroked the little packrat¡¯s body as her heart wrung in pain.

    ¡°Grandfather, can Little Chi¡¯s body still recover from this?¡± Chi Hongyi¡¯s heart grew worried for his son as well.

    ¡°There¡¯s no problem. A mere refinement technique can¡¯t befuddle this old man here.¡± The old man¡¯s eyes remained unfazed by it all. His stoicism rubbed off slightly on Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong as well, inspiring confidence in them and appeasing the roiling emotions in their hearts.

    The old man strolled over towards where Situ Cangy gasping for breath as he cautioned with a peremptory voice, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare think for a moment that you¡¯ve escaped this crisis just because I¡¯m not killing you now. Even if I don¡¯t kill you right now, I know countless ways of making your life worse than death itself.¡±

    Situ Cang coughed as he stared straight back at the old man¡¯s eyes. He spat out a fresh spittoon of blood but remained taciturn.

    Then, Situ Cang discreetly retrieved several talismans and held them in his hand where the old man could not see.

    At least, this was what Situ Cang thought. In reality, the old man had immediately discovered it when Situ Cang had retrieved the talismans from his Interspatial Ring. However, the old man did not stop him. The old man simply passed him by and walked to where the rest of Situ Cang¡¯sckeys and the Dawn Sect disciples were at.

    ¡°Even though I¡¯m not killing your master today, this doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m letting the rest of you off the hook. Since you are willing to render aid to a tyrant for your own selfish gains, then there is no reason to keep existences like your ilk around. You can me this on the fact that you¡¯ve followed the wrong master.¡±

    As he finished saying this, the old man waved his sleeves, and the tens ofckeys behind Situ Cang immediately exploded, turning into a cloud of blood and gore. They did not even have the opportunity to plead for mercy before they were written off.

    What...what kind of power is this?! This is too fearsome!

    Ever since the old man had made his appearance, the disciples had found themselves wallowing in the mires of their despair and despondence. Every time they found themselves hitting a new low, the old man would unt his disy of terrifying power in the next moment and send their hearts spiraling to greater depths of misery.

    The old man had dealt with Situ Cang¡¯sckeys first because they were located closest to Situ Cang while the Dawn Sect disciples were located slightly further away.

    But the fact that they were unaffected by the old man¡¯s devastating wave of attack did not meant that they felt relieved in their hearts. In fact, several disciples stared at the old man with ever increasing dread as the old man slowly made his way over. Their pupils constricted, just like how their heart was wrenching in anxiety right now.

    The old man was only a few steps away, yet these steps felt like years to the disciples.

    Every step that the old man took made them feel that much closer to death¡¯s door. There was nothing more dreadful and despondent than counting down to one¡¯s own demise.

    The old man¡¯s face was expressionless. Yet to the eyes of the Dawn Sect disciples, the old man¡¯s face could only be described to be terrifying, like an avatar of wrath.

    Thus, by the time the old man made his way before them, several disciples among them had already wet their pants ¨C including Ke Xinwen.

    Qin Lingyu had not wet his pants, but his heart was nevertheless constricted with fear. He knew that even if his master He Zhang were present, there would be nothing much his master could do to save him.

    This was the first time he had been reduced to such a sorry state.

    But the smell of involuntary bodily discharge from the other disciples acted as a stimnt to his tense and constricted mind. He perked up slightly, clenched his fists and adjusted his emotions. Then, he mustered his strength and made one final attempt to address the old man, ¡°Senior, we¡¯re not Situ Cang¡¯sckeys. We¡¯re disciples from Dawn Sect who had coincidentally passed by the Inferno Kingdom and epted Situ Cang¡¯s request to aid him in the capture of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince. We have never done anything to hurt your great grandson. We hope you can spare us our lives.¡±

    ¡°Oh? But I don¡¯t see you capturing any so-called first prince. I¡¯ve only seen you bullying my son!¡± Before the old man could respond, Shao Sirong interjected immediately in anger.

    ¡°This...we were truly helpless about this situation. The Grand Vizier hadbelled this little packrat as something that was inextricably linked to the first prince, therefore...¡±

    Qin Lingyu truly lived up to his name as He Zhang¡¯s disciple. In the face of such a life-threatening crisis, he was actually able to rise to the asion and disy his incredible persuasiveness. He presented his version of the factsced with clever omissions and crafty lies. But because bulk of it was real, even the old man did not notice any traces of his lies.

    The old man closed his eyes and remained expressionless as he contemted what to do about these Dawn Sect disciples in front of his eyes right now.

    Qin Lingyu clenched his fists and waited for the old man¡¯s decision with bated breath.

    Just then, the little packrat began to squeak furiously ¨C Squeak squeak squeak, squeak squeak squeak! Shao Sirong furrowed her brows as she gently stroked her son¡¯s head and asked, ¡°Little Chi, what are you trying to say?¡±

    Forgive her. She truly couldn¡¯t understand the little packrat¡¯s lingo.

    However, it was the old man who opened his eyes curiously as he turned his attention to the little packrat with a curious question, ¡°Great granddaughter-inw?!¡±

    ¡°Ha--?¡± Shao Sirong was stunned for a moment before she rified, ¡°Grandfather, is Little Chi saying that...he has a fianc¨¦e?¡±

    After all, the old man¡¯s great granddaughter-inw would be none other than her own daughter-inw.

    It can¡¯t be, can it? Has Little Chi already found himself a fianc¨¦e during these travels? But whichdy would fall in love with him given his appearances right now? It couldn¡¯t be another female packrat, could it?

    Shao Sirong¡¯s thoughts began to stray in a peculiar direction...

    All this while, the little packrat continued to squeak incessantly as it reported its own version of events. Even though Shao Sirong was unable to understand its lingo, the old man, curiously, could.

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is...¡± The old man waved his hands, signaling to the little packrat that he had heard enough. Then, he turned back to Qin Lingyu and the others as he remarked, ¡°Ah, you have indeed never bullied my great grandson. However, you have bullied my great granddaughter-inw. That¡¯s the same thing. Especially you...¡± The old man stared straight at Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, ¡°I hear that you¡¯re the one who has been especially vile towards my great granddaughter-inw.¡±

    Some distance away, the little packrat squeaked twice affirmatively, as though he were confirming the old man¡¯s allegations.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s body stiffened. He had never expected such a strange turn of events.

 Chapter 149: Revenge from Old Man Chi

    <h4>Chapter 149: Revenge from Old Man Chi</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Anyone with a half-decent mind would have been able to guess the identity of the great granddaughter-inw referred to by the old man.

    Apart from Jun Xiaomo who had always carried the little packrat around in her bosom, who else could Qin Lingyu have offended so thoroughly?

    Previously, after Jun Xiaomo alleged that Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had be intimately involved with each other, several disciples began to develop their own levels of suspicion of Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. Yet despite the revtion of the unadorned truth, some of the disciples continued to be infatuated with Yu Wanrou¡¯s beauty; while others who idolized Qin Lingyu continued to put faith in his character. In the end, the disciples¡¯ impression of Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu only fell slightly.

    But right now, the little packrat had referred to Jun Xiaomo as its fianc¨¦e. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen seemed to have grown close and intimate through these travels, while yet another person, the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, had joined the fray. As these disciples thought about the confluence of these factors, they began to feel that Qin Lingyu was truly the pitiable one in this entanglement of rtionships.

    Just how many times has martial brother Qin been made a cuckold?

    Given how the marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo was still standing, it was technically not wrong for the disciples to think this way. As these thoughts crossed their minds, they momentarily forgot about the predicament they were in right now. Each of them looked at Qin Lingyu with different types of gazes ¨C some with sympathy, others delighting in his misery, and yet others withplicated looks.

    Even then, Qin Lingyu hardly felt appeased by the existence of his sympathizers. In reality, he would much rather prefer thebel of the traitor to his marriage arrangement than be the poor worm who had been abandoned by other women.

    However, the facts spoke for themselves. No matter how displeased Qin Lingyu was, he could not avoid squaring up to the problem at hand.

    Jun Xiaomo, his fianc¨¦e-in-name, seemed to have dabbled in several rtionships and affairs. Some of these even seemed to be matters that she was inextricably tangled with.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions were in flux ¨C from sickly green to a pale white; these expressions were brilliant and varied. His tightly clenched fists and the bulging green veins on his forehead revealed the indignation and shame on his heart. To make matters worse, the great grandfather of one of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°lovers¡± was even staring at himself threateningly. How could he openly berate Jun Xiaomo at this moment? He could only silently curse and swear at Jun Xiaomo and all of her ¡°lovers¡± in his heart.

    It bears reiterating that the little packrat¡¯s great grandfather had already lived for a few thousand years. Thus, could the present situation anything novel or new to him? He had managed to infer some clues about the situation from the eyes of each and every disciple around. But what did it matter even if his great granddaughter-inw were tangled with multiple parties? It was not umon for love rivals to duke it out with each other for the right to pursue their object of affection. Furthermore, the Chi n were a n of demonic cultivators, and they were renown for their willfulness and headstrong attitude. If his great grandson had set his sights on ady, then all he had to do was to win her over from the rest of his rivals!

    Besides, the old man understood from his great grandson¡¯s earlierints [1] that the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu was rather strained. Therefore, he had absolutely no qualms doing this.

    Thus, armed with the imposing demeanor befitting of the formidable cultivator that he was, the protective old man stretched out his hands and began to congeal a swathe of demonic energy within his palm.

    He nned to destroy his great grandson¡¯s ¡°love rival¡±.

    Qin Lingyu could tell what the old man was nning to do. He finally panicked. At this moment, his bones had already been fractured in several ces, and he could no longer stand up. Therefore, he painstakingly crawled before the old man as he begged, ¡°Please believe me, I¡¯m...I only have a marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo in name. There¡¯s nothing going on between us...¡±

    He was about to grab hold of the old man¡¯s clothes as he begged, but the old man nimbly avoided him.

    Old man Chi furrowed his brows as he revealed a disdainful expression at Qin Lingyu whose hands were covered in soil and blood.

    This man possesses a far lousier character than my great grandson. No wonder my great granddaughter-inw would abandon him.

    Yes, this old man had selectively listened to the facts and maintained his disbelief that Jun Xiaomo had treated his great grandson as a pet.

    At this moment, the little packrat¡¯s mother Shao Sirong burst out with sardonicughter as she mocked with contempt, ¡°And these spiritual cultivators stillin that us demonic cultivators are heartless. From what I can tell, it¡¯s these spiritual cultivators who are truly heartless ¨C they even resort to casting away their rtionships just to save their own lives. If there¡¯s truly nothing between the two of you, why did you even enter a marriage arrangement to begin with?¡±

    Qin Lingyu had been cornered by Shao Sirong¡¯s keen analysis of the matter, and his face twisted in an unsightly manner.

    He had earlier sought to enter the marriage arrangement because he had coveted the immeasurable depths of resources within the Heavenly Peak that was only essible through Jun Xiaomo, the daughter of the Peakmaster of Heavenly Peak itself. Any existence of feelings in that rtionship of theirs had emanated solely from Jun Xiaomo, and it waspletely unrequited.

    But Qin Lingyu naturally could not reveal this truth to the little packrat¡¯s parents and its great grandfather. There was no way he would live to see the light of day if he revealed this truth to that overprotective old man.

    His heart was now filled with roiling emotions and a plethora of considerations. Yet Qin Lingyu firmly suppressed the indignance in his heart for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°promiscuous¡± character, and he softly murmured to old man Chi, ¡°I admit that I haven¡¯t been good to Xiaomo. Therefore, how things had ended up right now is all my fault. But I hope senior would be kind enough to spare my life. Once I¡¯m back in the Sect, I will do my best to dissolve our marriage arrangement and set her free.¡±

    His only hope right now was to y up his identity as the other party in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s marriage arrangement. This was incredibly humiliating to Qin Lingyu, but he knew that there were no other options avable right now. He was practically grasping at straws. But between his pride and his life, he would naturally pick thetter option.

    Old man Chi squinted at Qin Lingyu as he sized him up. Momentster, he chuckled contemptuously, ¡°You¡¯re a pretty bright one. You know what needs to be said to obtain the right result. Fine. I¡¯ve already killed several people today, and my anger has dissipated slightly. I hope you¡¯ll be able to do what you¡¯ve promised to do. Once you return to your sect, dissolve your marriage arrangement right away.¡±

    Qin Lingyu immediately agreed. As he heaved his sigh of relief, his hatred for Jun Xiaomo deepened even further.

    He felt that everything that had happened today was entirely caused by Jun Xiaomo to begin with!

    Old man Chi began to walk away. But after two steps, he suddenly turned back again. Qin Lingyu immediately shut both of his eyes so that old man Chi would not be able to see the hatred in the depths of his heart.

    Then, old man Chi uttered slowly, ¡°But... You¡¯ve only escaped the death penalty, not the rest of your punishment. It still remains a fact that you had bullied my great granddaughter-inw. I will have to thoroughly etch the consequences of this into your bones so that you will never forget it.¡±

    As he finished speaking, old man Chi waved his sleeves and sent the congealed ball of demonic energy straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s Dantian.

    Qin Lingyu spat out a huge mouthful of blood and he immediately passed out.

    The other Dawn Sect disciples shuddered as they looked at old man Chi, wondering how he was going to deal with each of them.

    Fortunately for them, old man Chi only red viciously at them before he turned his attention away and walked back to Situ Cang¡¯s side. He looked down at Situ Cang disdainfully as he cautioned, ¡°Don¡¯t think for a moment that you can rest easy just because I¡¯m letting you off today. The day that the effects of your insipid refinement technique has been stripped away from my great grandson¡¯s body is also the day that I¡¯m back to collect your head. You just wait and see.¡±

    Situ Cang coughed out a few more mouthfuls of blood and his body quivered endlessly as he lowered his head. He clenched his fists hatefully.

    Finally, the old man walked back to Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong¡¯s side, opened his eyes and red at the little packrat as he said, ¡°Little brat, are you happy now?¡±

    It can be said that the old man was rather indulgent towards this great grandson of his. Otherwise, there was no way he would have travelled thousands of miles to this ce just to escort his great grandson back safely.

    It was a pity that this great grandson of hiscked determination despite his incredible talent for cultivation. Quite apart from hisckadaisical attitude towards cultivation, this great grandson of his had even run away from his sect willfully, causing such immense trouble outside of the sect. If not for the fact that the old man had affixed a true blood protective array on his great grandson¡¯s body, this young sprout might already have be dead by now.

    Squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat obsequiously curled into a ball of fluff.

    Then, just as the old man was about to leave this ce with his grandchildren and the little packrat, the little packrat¡¯s ck beady eyes shifted slightly andnded on a figure that was lying prostrate on the ground as she desperately tried to remain incognito, Yu Wanrou.

    That¡¯s right. From the start, Yu Wanrou had done her best to remain silent ¨C out of sight, out of mind. She had done so, hoping that the little packrat would not attempt to court revenge for all that she had done to it.

    But back then, she had never spared the little packrat a single thought when she had tormented it. She had even treated the little packrat as though its life were not worth a single consideration.

    After all, a packrat that disobeyed its own master was not worth having to begin with.

    Then, when old man Chi had drawn everyone¡¯s attention towards Situ Cang, Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu, she had done her best to reduce her visibility and exposure, hoping that she would be able to avert this crisis by remaining hidden from sight.

    Finally, when old man Chi turned to leave, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart skipped a beat, thinking that she had seeded.

    Unfortunately, she was fated to receive her just dues. Just as Yu Wanrou heaved a sigh of relief in her heart, the little packrat¡¯s attention turned towards her. Instantly, a deep sense of indignation swelled up in the little packrat¡¯s heart.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat stared straight at Yu Wanrou as itined to its great grandfather about her crimes.

    Following the little packrat¡¯s gaze, old man Chi noticed the littledy hiding in the mist of all the other disciples. When his gazended on her body, Yu Wanrou¡¯s body began to tremble uncontrobly in fear and trepidation.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! Having realized that its own great grandfather could understand its packrat lingo, the little packrat would naturally not pass up any chance atining about its predicament. The people that the little packrat hated the most within the Dawn Sect were Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou and Ke Xinwen. If Ke Xinwen and Qin Lingyu had both received their just desserts, there was simply no reason for Yu Wanrou to get away scot free instead.

    As the little packrat¡¯sints continued, old man Chi¡¯s face grew more and more ashen.

    ¡°Good! Very good! You dare to torment my great grandson?!¡± Old man Chi¡¯s veins bulged as he roared in fury, ¡°If my great grandson hadn¡¯t encountered my great granddaughter-inw, would you have left him any lifeline?! Since you enjoy tormenting little animals so much, why not you have a taste of your own medicine?!¡±

    As old man Chi spoke, he waved his hand again. In the blink of an eye, a fresh formation array appeared above Yu Wanrou¡¯s head. The demonic energy congealed by this formation array slowly turned into countless silver needles as they pricked all over Yu Wanrou¡¯s body. Yu Wanrou remained trapped in the heart of the formation array as she let out a banshee-like shriek.

    No one else dared to beg for mercy on Yu Wanrou¡¯s behalf. Everyone continued to stare nkly as Yu Wanrou experienced so much pain that she began to convulse vigorously and writhe madly in pain. Tears and mucus were strewn all over her face as she presented a ghoulish expression. She had been stripped of all her dignity apanying her reputation as a ¡°lotus fairy¡±.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat was finally satisfied as ity in Shao Sirong¡¯s palm and snuggled its ears on her fingers.

    Old man Chi turned around and ignored that gruesome sight behind him. He looked at his great grandson who appeared to behave more and more like a little animal, pat its head and curtly asked, ¡°Now, can we finally go?¡±

    The little packrat hesitated for a moment, before it squeaked a few more times.

    This time, even Shao Sirong could understand her son¡¯s intentions without old man Chi¡¯s trantions.

    ¡°Eh, what¡¯s that? You¡¯re still thinking about your fianc¨¦e?¡±

    Squeak squeak...

    The little packrat was truly worried for Jun Xiaomo because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries before she managed to escape with the help of her Teleportation Scroll had been incredibly grave. Furthermore, knowing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s character, she could very possibly be distraught by the fact that she had just effectively abandoned her little packrat. If that was the case, would she even be able to focus on her own recovery?

    The little packrat wanted to see Jun Xiaomo one final time before leaving. At the same time, it wished to leave a token or a form of keepsake behind as well. That way, it would be much easier to reunite in future, when the time was right.

    Having understood her son¡¯s intentions, Shao Sirong rubbed its hair, saying, ¡°Alright, alright. Your mother will take you on this trip then. At the same time, I¡¯ll be able to see who this...is her name Xiaomo? I¡¯ll be able to see what kind of ady Xiaomo is.¡±

    As long as she¡¯s not a female packrat. Shao Sirong added softly in her heart.

    After it squeaked twice more, it leapt out of Shao Sirong¡¯s palm and disappeared amidst the tall grass within a few bounds. Momentster, it bounded back to Shao Sirong with a little bag in its mouth.

    This bag was something that Jun Xiaomo had personally made in order to carry the little packrat about. Even though it was slightly ugly and unsightly, the little packrat still treasured it very much. After all, it was the little ¡°house¡± that Jun Xiaomo had gifted to it.

    Most importantly, this bag carried traces of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aura on it, and it would be an important tool to locate Jun Xiaomo with.

    Old man Chi red disapprovingly at how this little packrat was mesmerized by its fianc¨¦e. Despite that, he retrieved a formation diagram from his Interspatial Ring.

    If Jun Xiaomo were present, she would immediately recognize this formation diagram. It was inscribed with none other than an X-mark Array.

    ¡°Take great grandfather¡¯s word of advice ¨C there are few cultivators out there now who can ept demonic cultivators like us. If she can¡¯t ept you when you finally reveal your true identity, then even great grandfather won¡¯t be able to help you. Don¡¯t embarrass us by shedding tears of sorrow then.¡±

    It could have been because he grew up being pampered by everyone in the Chi n, but the little packrat used to love crying a lot when he was young. That said, he had shed that habit when he grew up.

    Yet what was most exasperating was the fact that old man Chi still saw his great grandson as a young sprout who loved crying. Therefore, he would always warn him not to shed tears from time to time.

    The little packrat was momentarily rendered speechless by old man Chi¡¯s advice, before it squeaked twice in resistance.

    That won¡¯t happen! Xiaomo is also a demonic cultivator after all...

    Perhaps this little packrat¡¯s squeaks were too soft; or perhaps old man Chi had already turned his attention elsewhere. Regardless, old man Chi did not pick up on what the little packrat had just said.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve located her whereabouts.¡± Old man Chi¡¯s formation diagram was evidently much stronger than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s. Within moments, he discovered her exact whereabouts. She was not located too far away.

    At the very least, this short distance was hardly considered far to someone of old man Chi¡¯s cultivation. They could close this distance with a simple formation array congealed with his demonic energy.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat immediately perked up its spirits given the prospects of seeing Jun Xiaomo again.

    Furthermore, I¡¯ll finally be able to reveal my true identity to Jun Xiaomo! The little packrat thought to itself expectantly.

    Yet it had never considered how Jun Xiaomo would react when it finally realized that she had been carrying a ¡°man¡± around in her bosom. What kind ofplicated emotions would arise in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart?

    At this moment, old man Chi¡¯s Teleportation Array flourished on the ground and enveloped the little packrat, Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong within its midst.

    On the other side, just as Jun Xiaomo was still setting up her formation array to determine whether her little packrat was dead or alive, the little packrat suddenly fell from the sky. Within a few leaps and bounds, it shot straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom once again.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat called out to Jun Xiaomo in joy.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo was still drying her tears from her little packrat¡¯s ¡°sacrifice¡± for her, and she waspletely unprepared for this sudden reunion.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    1. The Mandarin version included these words in parentheses ¨C ¡°God knows how the old man understood the little packrat¡¯s lingo¡±

 Chapter 150: The Little Packratâ€™s Loss of Face

    <h4>Chapter 150: The Little Packrat¡¯s Loss of Face</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The little packrat¡¯s sudden appearance from out of nowhere stunned Jun Xiaomo for a while. But momentster, after Jun Xiaomo finally managed to collect herself, she became incredibly moved by its appearance. She picked it up gingerly and kissed its cheek. Then, she tenderly rubbed her cheeks against the little packrat¡¯s fur as she called out, ¡°Little Packie...¡±

    She had never thought she would be able to see the little packrat again. Unexpectedly, not only did this little thing reappear before her eyes, it was even alive and seemedpletely unscathed right now.

    Then her hands trembled slightly when her thoughts turned to how the little packrat had blocked the ice arrow for her. She immediately set the little packrat down and started parting its fur in various ces, evidently afraid that there would be scars or traces of injuries on her little packrat.

    Squeak squeak squeak...squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat found itself rather embarrassed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°search¡±. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions had inadvertently tickled it, and it involuntarily started squirming about as it squeaked inughter.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was unable to tell that its present squeaks were any different from its usual squeaks. After all, its squeaks sounded the same to her.

    Jun Xiaomo felt much more reassured seeing how her little packrat was filled with vitality. She lifted up her little packrat and kissed it on the cheek again, as she sincerely thanked it, ¡°Thank you, little Packie.¡±

    If not for her little packrat, she would certainly be reeling with a grievous injury right now.

    The little packrat was slightly dazed from all the kisses from Jun Xiaomo, and it curled up its tail in embarrassment.

    If its body were not covered entirely with fur, perhaps this snow-white looking little packrat would already have be a red packrat by now.

    Regardless Jun Xiaomo thought that her little packrat had run such a long distance toe looking for them. It must be tired.

    ¡°You cannot force the issue like that next time, understand?¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked the little packrat¡¯s head as she chided, ¡°I was truly worried for you.¡±

    Squeak squeak. It was only at this moment that the little packrat discovered that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were reddened and puffy. She had evidently been crying. Her cheeks were even strewn with tear stains.

    Squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat wished that it could put its arm around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders to console her. Unfortunately, its body was far too small, and it was only the size of a human fist. Even its paws were tiny.

    Nevertheless, the little packrat attempted to stretch itself out, only to discover that it was barely asrge as the size of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm. Thus, it did its best to hug Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger and gave it a few licks, as though it was telling Jun Xiaomo that everything was fine now!

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the caring little packrat in her palm right now, and she could not help but burst into a lighthearted chuckle ¨C Pfft!

    At the same time, Shao Sirong chuckled out loud where she stood in mid-air as well. She, Chi Hongyi and old man Chi had all arrived together with the little packrat, but they had all also hid their presence so that they could silently observe what exactly this daughter-inw of theirs looked like.

    In the end, Jun Xiaomo certainly did not disappoint them. At the very least, she could tell from Jun Xiaomo and the little packrat¡¯s interactions that Jun Xiaomo was truly fond of and cared for their child.

    However, what Shao Sirong had overlooked was the fact that Jun Xiaomo had never considered the little packrat as a human. She had always treated it as an extremely clever and spiritually aware little animal.

    Thus, the ¡°beautiful¡± misunderstanding continued.

    Finally, old man Chi thought that it was about time to make their appearances. Therefore, he removed the invisibility barrier and several ripples appeared in the sky. Then, the three figures slowly stepped out from among the ripples in the air.

    Coincidentally, Jun Xiaomo was looking at the sky when all of this happened, and she immediately noticed these three people stepping out of the barrier when they made their appearance.

    Jun Xiaomo stared vigntly at the three persons standing in mid-air as she quickly stuffed her little packrat into a safe ce in her clothing, scrambled to her feet and stood protectively in front of Rong Ruihan. Ye Xiuwen had gone into the woods to hunt for food, so the only ones around were Jun Xiaomo, her little packrat and the still-unconscious Rong Ruihan. In the circumstances, the burden of protecting all of them around was clearly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders.

    Shao Sirong, Chi Hongyi and old man Chi slowly descended to the ground. Chi Hongyi and old man Chi remainedpletely expressionless, their eyes were even filled with a deep sense of profundity, and they looked extremely somber.

    These three are incredibly strong! As soon as the three of them descended to the ground some distance away from Jun Xiaomo, Jun Xiaomo could immediately detect the pressure apanying the difference in their cultivation levels.

    Jun Xiaomo did not know the identity of these three persons, nor whether these three persons were friend or foe. The only thing she knew right now was that there was no way she would be able to survive a single attack from them with her present abilities.

    But even then, she could not leave Rong Ruihan in the lurch and turn tail. After all, Rong Ruihan was a friend who had been through thick and thin with her.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen had not returned from his hunt yet. She did not want Ye Xiuwen to run into these people if they were here for their lives. Therefore, she would have to take the necessary precautions to warn Ye Xiuwen if things came to a head.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to stare vigntly at the three persons walking over. Her entire body was primed to move at the shortest of notice, just like a bow that had been prepared to shoot.

    Shao Sirong raised her eyebrows. Nodding in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s direction, shemented to Chi Hongyi and old man Chi who were beside her, ¡°This young sprout¡¯s personality isn¡¯t too shabby. I like her. No wonder Little Chi would stick so closely to her.¡±

    With their cultivation levels, how would they not be able to assess that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present cultivation was only at the third level of Qi Mastery? Despite that, the fact that Jun Xiaomo could resolutely remain in front of herpanions in the face of their insurmountably oppressive auras revealed that she was not a selfish and vicious person.

    Chi Hongyi and old man Chi remained taciturn. They were still observing her ¨C especially old man Chi. After having lived for thousands of years, and he knew far better than anyone else the wretched personality of human beings. Therefore, he was far more diligent and meticulous than any of the other two when it came to judging a person¡¯s character.

    The little packrat heard its mother¡¯s voice and immediately scrambled out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothing. Then, it squeaked twice as it continued to stare at Shao Sirong and the others with its ck beady eyes.

    It was trying to say ¨C Don¡¯t bully Xiaomo like that!

    Shao Sirong sighed as she muttered, ¡°This little kid has really forgotten about his mother now that he¡¯s got a fianc¨¦e.¡± As she remarked, a smile crept up her lips as she hooked her fingers and ordered, ¡°Little Chi,e here!¡±

    The little packrat hesitated for a moment before it slipped out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes and scampered back to Shao Sirong¡¯s feet. Shao Sirong picked it up gingerly and set the little packrat in her palm.

    ¡°Little Packie!¡± Jun Xiaomo did not know why the three persons were calling the little packrat ¡°Little Chi¡±, and she could not understand why her little packrat would run over so obsequiously. Most importantly, they were afraid that the three persons would hurt her little packrat.

    Shao Sirong noticed the unmistakable look of worry in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and she nodded her head in approval. Momentster, she furrowed her brows as though thinking about something as she asked, ¡°You addressed him as...little Packie?¡±

    What kind of a name is that? Why is the pet name given by his fianc¨¦e no different from a little packrat¡¯s name?

    The little packrat¡¯s body stiffened, before it yed dead in its mother¡¯s palm.

    A young master of a hidden sect acting like a little pet packrat for half a year ¨C this is something that was incredibly shameful!

    The little packrat could hardly imagine how its parents and nsmen would poke fun at it and tease it when they realized how it had kissed up to Jun Xiaomo for thest half a year! At the very least, he would be the object of table talk for some time.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo did not find anything strange about the nickname she had given to her little packrat. After all, her little packrat was such a small ball of white fluff that calling it ¡°Little Packie¡± was incredibly apt, not to mention the fact that it was also an adorable and memorable name.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo had also judged that the three persons approaching her did not bear any hostility towards her. At the very least, they seemed to be well acquainted with her little packrat.

    Jun Xiaomo thought and hesitated for a moment, before she politely asked, ¡°If I may ask, was it these seniors who had rescued my little packrat?¡±

    This was the only possibility that Jun Xiaomo could think of for now.

    Jun Xiaomo felt that this was the only way she could exin how her little packrat could have fallen from the sky earlier on. After all, with her little packrat¡¯s abilities, there was no way that a mere little packrat could have run so far to cover the distance that her Teleportation Scroll had taken her to.

    Shao Sirong was slightly shocked by the question, and she mulled over how her daughter-inw were addressing her son. The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

    Regardless, Shao Sirong decided to respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s questions first, ¡°We were the ones who had saved him. However, it¡¯s not like we saved him for no reason, so there¡¯s no need for thanks.¡±

    ¡°This...¡± Jun Xiaomo had initially intended to express her gratitude towards them. But now that the female cultivator had preempted her response, she found herself at a loss for words.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she thought about it. Then, her attention turned to the fact that the female cultivator had addressed the little packrat as ¡°Little Chi¡±.

    ¡°Could it be that...you already knew the little packrat before this?¡± After much hesitation, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

    Shao Sirong cast an approving look at Jun Xiaomo as she replied, ¡°Indeed, we had already known each other before this. Why don¡¯t you guess our rtionship with this...this little fe?¡±

    Forgive Shao Sirong. She truly could not bring herself to call her own son ¡°Little Packie¡±. The thought of doing so made her feel as though she had brought up a tiny little pet over thest seventeen years rather than a son.

    Shao Sirong¡¯s clues had been rather obvious. From her perspective, it was not going to take Jun Xiaomo very much to be able to guess their identities.

    As expected, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened as realization dawned on her. She even mmed her fist into her palm.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got it!¡±

    Shao Sirong revealed a tender and caring smile that a senior would look upon their juniors with.

    However ¨C

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo looked at the little packrat in Shao Sirong¡¯s embrace with some measure of reluctance as she responded, ¡°Senior must be little packrat¡¯s previous owner, right? You must be here to bring little Packie back... Even though I¡¯m quire reluctant, perhaps little Packie would be safer by your side...¡±

    Previous...owner...

    Just like that, Shao Sirong¡¯s tender and caring smile on her face stiffened.

    Chi Hongyi, old man Chi: ......

    Shao Sirong did not even hear the rest of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response. Her mind hadpletely seized up when she heard her ¡°daughter-inw¡± address them as ¡°previous owner¡±.

    No wonder...no wonder she called him ¡°Little Packie¡±...

    Her daughter-inw had always treated their son as no more than a pet!

    This...this...can this still be called a reciprocal rtionship?!

    At this moment, Shao Sirong realized the extent of their misunderstanding. At the very least, as long as Jun Xiaomo continued to treat their son as no more than a little packrat, there was no way she would fall in love with their son.

    After all, it was not as though Jun Xiaomo had some form of a weird fetish.

    The little packrat squeaked once as it covered its eyes with its paws. At this moment, it felt as though its thick, luscious coat of fur could do nothing to prevent hisplete loss of face.

 Chapter 151: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Complicated Feelings

    <h4>Chapter 151: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Complicated Feelings</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Shao Sirong finally realized a serious sit-down chat with Jun Xiaomo was imperative. At the very least, she would have to rify what this ¡°fianc¨¦e¡± rtionship alleged by her son exactly meant. For now, she had managed to glean that her son¡¯s affection towards Jun Xiaomo wasrgely unrequited ¨C at least not on a human-to-human level.

    Old man Chi and Chi Hongyi had the same thoughts as well. They strongly suspected that their great grandson and son respectively had been acting obsequiously as a pet this entire time, and this made the veins on their forehead bulge and twitch uncontrobly.

    He has truly turned himself into aughingstock...

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen returned from his hunt. He carried the bloodied carcass of an animal that he had just killed. As usual, he had killed it cleanly and incisively with one single strike to its throat.

    Ye Xiuwen had hurried back from his hunt because he was afraid that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts would run wild or she might do something stupid if she were left alone for too long.

    As for the other person...the first prince was still lying unconscious on the ground, and he wasn¡¯t going to be of much help to Jun Xiaomo for now.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed from a distance that there were three uninvited guests standing in front of Jun Xiaomo. Each of their stance and posture told Ye Xiuwen that they were presently squaring off in confrontation with each other.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen could hardly care less about the fruits of his hunt any longer. He tossed the animal carcass aside, heightened his senses and immediately rushed over to stand guard in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo only noticed a sh flicker past her eyes, and a figure appeared in front of her eyes in the next moment. It was Ye Xiuwen.

    A warm sensation swelled up from the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart when she saw Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tall,nky figure standing guard in front of her. Nevertheless, she tugged gently at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves and tiptoed as she whispered to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Martial brother, don¡¯t worry, they¡¯re not bad guys. They were the ones who had just rescued my little packrat.¡±

    ¡°Your little packrat?¡± It was only at this moment that Ye Xiuwen noticed how the female cultivator was holding a plump, round ball of fluff in her hands ¨C who else could it be other than the little packrat?

    Jun Xiaomo continued to exin, ¡°They seem to be little Packie¡¯s previous owner, and they¡¯re already well acquainted with little Packie.¡±

    Although Jun Xiaomo was whispering right now, how could Shao Sirong and the rest not pick up what she was saying given their keen senses that apanied their incredible cultivation levels?

    ¡°Little Packie¡± this, ¡°previous owner¡± that...these three distinguished guests could hardly contain their unsightly expressions anymore.

    In fact, the three of them were at aplete loss as to how they should deal with the fact that their child had be nothing more than a little pet.

    Even then, Ye Xiuwen hardly noticed theplications in the hearts of the three distinguished guests. He sheathed his sword again as he apologetically made a palm and fist salute to the three guests, ¡°I didn¡¯t know these seniors were the ones who had saved little Packie. I have been rude and offensive earlier. Please forgive me.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words were polite and sincere. Thus, Shao Sirong and the rest chose to let the matter go for now.

    However ¨C

    ¡°Your name is Xiaomo, right?¡± Shao Sirong softened her tone as she asked Jun Xiaomo warmly, ¡°I wonder if we can sit down and have a chat together?¡±

    Given Shao Sirong and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s respective statures, a senior was essentially making a request of a junior. There was no reason for Jun Xiaomo to refuse.

    Thus, momentster, they sat on chairs around a round table provided by Shao Sirong. There was even a tea set prepared on the table.

    Then, Shao Sirong respectfully served everyone around the table a cup of tea. The wafts of fragrance from the tea cut through the musky smell of soil in the forest, refreshing their senses and soothing their minds.

    If one ignored their surroundings right now, the atmosphere created by the diffuse scent of exquisite tea was almost akin to a cordial and pleasant reunion between bosom friends.

    Shao Sirong set the little packrat down on top of the table. Once Shao Sirong let go of it, the little packrat immediately slipped over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand and began to rub its head against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers. It was incredibly affectionate.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly, lifted her fingers and began tob through the little packrat¡¯s slightly disheveled fur.

    Ever since that incident where the little packrat had saved her life, Jun Xiaomo had resolved in her heart that she was going to treat her little packrat much better.

    The gentle strokes and constant tempo of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers running through the little packrat¡¯s fur was incrediblyfortable to the little packrat. It even trembled and shuddered slightly in pleasure.

    The little packrat closed its eye as it let out two squeaks of joy. It flopped down andy silently beside Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, and it even swished its tail about in bliss from time to time.

    While this entire scene was incredibly heartwarming, Shao Sirong could only rub her temples as she sighed.

    No matter how I look at it, my son seems to have grown more and more like...a little packrat. A little packrat, through and through...

    Old man Chi noticed his great grandson¡¯s behaviour as well, and he let out two ufortable, dry coughs as he tried to contain his emotions. At the same time, Chi Hongyi simply red at his son with a disapproving look.

    They had sat around the table for some time now, yet the three seniors had remained taciturn as they observed Jun Xiaomo and her interaction with the little packrat. Their peculiar behaviour piqued Jun Xiaomo¡¯s curiosity.

    ¡°I wonder if these seniors could enlighten this junior on what they wish to discuss about?¡± Jun Xiaomo sought to draw their attention back to the reason they had sat down to begin with.

    Shao Sirong cast aplicated look at Jun Xiaomo, before asking enigmatically, ¡°What is...he...to you?¡±

    Shao Sirong pointed straight at the little packrat under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers.

    Shao Sirong would naturally have referred to the little packrat as her son. But from what she could see, Jun Xiaomo was not even aware that the little packrat was a human.

    Therefore, she chose to ask her question in a slightly more enigmatic manner.

    Jun Xiaomo froze for a moment, before she replied naturally, ¡°It¡¯s my dear little pet...¡±

    Shao Sirong: ......

    As expected, she had treated my son as nothing more than a little pet. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s confirmation of her suspicions intensified theplicated feelings pressing on her heart.

    However, Jun Xiaomo noticed that Shao Sirong did not seem too pleased with her response. Therefore, she thought for a moment before adding, ¡°In fact, I treat it as a friend. Even though it¡¯s a pet, I¡¯ve always treated it as a dear friend andpanion by my side.¡±

    This was because she knew that her little packrat was incredibly spiritually aware. Therefore, there was no way that Jun Xiaomo could only treat it purely as though it were a pet.

    Shao Sirong: ......

    No matter what she said, my son is still nothing more than a pet to her. How am I going to reveal the truth about my son to her?

    It was a more than difficult conundrum.

    That said, it was old man Chi who could no longer stand idly by and bear with the situation any longer. Quite apart from the fact that Jun Xiaomo did not fancy his great grandson, she had even treated his great grandson as nothing more than a pet ¨C what insolence!

    Thus, old man Chi snorted as he boomed with indignation, ¡°Since when has my dear great grandson be your pet?! Girl, you must be blind!¡±

    This time, it was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s turn to stiffened up in shock.

    And it was not just on her expressions ¨C she had even paused midway whilst stroking her little packrat.

    ¡°Haa--...haa?! Little...little packrat is...is your...great grandson?¡± Jun Xiaomo stammered as her eyes widened with disbelief.

    Old man Chi snorted again as he tacitly responded in the affirmative.

    Then, Chi Hongyi who had been silent all this while finally spoke up as he calmly explicated, ¡°That little fe beside your hand is our child. Some time ago, he secretly ran away from our sect in an attempt to prove his capabilities to us. Then, on his journey, he inadvertently consumed a Shapeshifting Fruit and became like this.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    As it turns out, the creature that she had been toting around in her bosom was not purely a little packrat, but a person that had only transformed into a little packrat because he had consumed a Shapeshifting Fruit?!

    ¡°If I may ask, how old is your son now?¡± Ye Xiuwen queried politely as he nced over at the little packrat and squinted his eyes.

    ¡°Seventeen years-old.¡± Chi Hongyi sighed as he replied.

    He sincerely felt that a seventeen years-old child that was still causing so much trouble was truly a disgrace to him.

    Chi Hongyi had expected Ye Xiuwen to exim and decry how incredulous it was that a young man in his teens would do something so rash and immature. Unexpectedly, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand flickered quickly. Before the rest could react, he had already picked up the little packrat under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand and tossed it straight back into Shao Sirong¡¯s bosom.

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat was startled by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sudden action. When it finally regained its senses, it red at Ye Xiuwen and squeaked at him with indignance.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard that men and women should not behave so intimately? You¡¯re already seventeen years-old, yet you still linger around by Xiaomo¡¯s side. What are you trying to do here?¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly rebuked, ¡°Back then, we only thought that you were a little pet, so such behaviour was not inexcusable. But you¡¯re a man and you possess your own cognitive functions; surely, you understand the meaning of propriety, don¡¯t you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately thought about how she had carried the little packrat about in her bosom and even ced her little packrat in her clothes. The corner of her lips began to twitch uncontrobly.

    My goodness...What in the world, why has the little packrat turned into a human now?!

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat brandished its ws as it protested against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions and his rebuke. It did not think there was anything wrong it did. Besides, this idiot Ye Xiuwen had never maintained any form of propriety with Jun Xiaomo either!

    Old man Chi had always been protective of his own people. He also heard of the little packrat¡¯sints through his great grandson¡¯s squeaks.

    ¡°Young man, my great grandsonins that you haven¡¯t acted with propriety either. He says that you have even shared the same room as this girl for some time too.¡± Old man Chi refuted.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face immediately turned red. Back then, she had used an Alteration Talisman and she wore the appearance and identity of a young man. Thus, there was no issue when she had shared a room with Ye Xiuwen. After all, they had only innocently shared the same bed for the night.

    If not for old man Chi¡¯s reminder, she had already forgotten about this incident.

    But now that old man Chi had brought it up again, she truly felt rather embarrassed about this matter. As to the exact reason for her embarrassment, she would rather not delve into such details.

    As she repressed the roiling emotions in her heart, Jun Xiaomo calmed herself and interjected, ¡°Actually...that¡¯s not really martial brother¡¯s fault. I¡¯d been using an Alteration Talisman back then, and even martial brother didn¡¯t know I was Jun Xiaomo. Back then, I had donned the identity of a young man who had left his own sect.¡±

    Old man Chi cast a strange look at Jun Xiaomo, and then he nced over at Ye Xiuwen. And then his attention shifted between the two of them for some time. Finally, he snorted again as he prodded his great grandson on the table as he teased, ¡°Little brat, you¡¯d better pull up your socks. Seems like someone else is trying to snatch away your dear fianc¨¦e.¡±

    Squeak squeak~ The little packrat lowered its head as it gnawed on its own ws, selectively ignoring old man Chi¡¯s teasing.

    Shao Sirong sighed. As a woman, her intuition in this regard was better than old man Chi¡¯s. I¡¯m afraid that the rtionship between this martial sister and brother duo has already far exceeded that of mere martial siblings.

    It¡¯s just that these two simpletons haven¡¯t realized their feelings for each other.

    As she thought about it, she nced over at the little packrat that wasying on the table, evidently dismayed by old man Chi¡¯s words. Thus, Shao Sirong decided to be slightly ¡°selfish¡± and not alert Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to their own thoughts for now.

    If she remained taciturn about their feelings, at least her son would have some hope in the near future. But if she enlightened them about the true nature of their feelings with each other, then they might well end up getting together to the exclusion of her own child.

    As for whether or not her son possesses the ability to ¡°snatch¡± his own ¡°fianc¨¦e¡± back, that would be entirely up to him. This matter was going to be entirely out of her hands.

 Chapter 152: Truly, the Old are Wise

    <h4>Chapter 152: Truly, the Old are Wise</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was thunderstruck by old man Chi¡¯s reference to her as ¡°fianc¨¦e¡±. This was already the second blow to her. After all, she was already extremely embarrassed by the old man¡¯s allegations that she had lived together in the same room as Ye Xiuwen earlier.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly and managed to adjust her own expressions.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and picked up his cup. He casually swept his gaze over the little packrat lying motionless on the table before he shut his eyes serenely. Then, he took a sip of the tea.

    Shao Sirong silently sized up her son¡¯s ¡°love rival¡±, Ye Xiuwen, and she couldn¡¯t help but exim in her heart. Although this man¡¯s appearances had been ruined, he was nevertheless a warm, caring and dignified person with an air of steadfastness about him. These were all qualities that her own son did not possess.

    Thus, Shao Sirong rubbed her temples helplessly ¨C There¡¯s no way our child canpare with Ye Xiuwen.

    Everyone was deep in their own thoughts at this moment, and the air about them grew heavy and still. But this was only for a moment, because a new development broke the silence very quickly.

    Rong Ruihan had just awakened.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s keen auditory senses immediately picked up on the rustlinging from behind her. She looked back, and she immediately saw Rong Ruihan rubbing his forehead with his clenched fists as he struggled to clear his mind.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo skipped over to his side and half-squatted to the ground. She paused for a moment, before she gently patted her shoulder.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan.¡± Jun Xiaomo called out again.

    In his stupor, Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows; the veins on his arm throbbed...Then, his eyes suddenly opened wide! Just like that, Jun Xiaomo locked eyes with him.

    Damn! Rong Ruihan has note to his senses!

    Jun Xiaomo drew this conclusion the moment that she noticed Rong Ruihan¡¯s crimson-red eyes. Unfortunately, she was too weak. Even though her reflexes were quick, she could never match up to the speed with which Rong Ruihan threw his fist at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen discovered this anomaly in the nick of time. He instantly unsheathed his sword and blocked Rong Ruihan¡¯s attack.

    Rong Ruihan had already lost all his senses by now, and his instinct told him to attack whoever blocked his attack. Thus, he quickly changed his target to Ye Xiuwen and lunged towards him. At this moment, strands of corporeal demonic energy seemed to flow out of his eyes uncontrobly.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that her martial brother did not possess the ability to stand against a frenzied Rong Ruihan. Therefore, she unsheathed her own spirit sword and joined the fray as she and Ye Xiuwen attempted to draw Rong Ruihan¡¯s attention away from the other.

    Squeak squeak! The little packrat was incredibly anxious, but it knew that it could do nothing with that little body of its.

    ¡°Alright, alright. I know you¡¯re worried about that little girl.¡± Old man Chi sighed helplessly as he stood up.

    Truth be told, he was less than impressed by his great grandson¡¯s choice of his ¡°fianc¨¦e¡±. In old man Chi¡¯s eyes, the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen was hardly clear, and he was afraid that his great grandson would eventually get hurt by Jun Xiaomo.

    That said, he remained helpless and exasperated by the fact that that youngdy had somehow left an indelible mark in his great grandson¡¯s heart and earned his great grandson¡¯s wholehearted affection. Thus, old man Chi had no choice but to extend his aid to that object of his great grandson¡¯s affection as well. At the very least, he could not stand by idly and watch her get herself hurt.

    ¡°Make way!¡± Old man Chi bellowed as he jumped into the fray. With two quick waves off his arm, he nudged Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo to the side and mmed straight into the vicious blows released by Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°Eh?¡± Old man Chi had initially intended to dispose of this matter quickly. But he very soon realized through Rong Ruihan¡¯s attacks that he was a demonic cultivator.

    Furthermore, Rong Ruihan¡¯s bloodshot eyes told him that the demonic energy had already taken control of his senses.

    Thus, old man Chi adjusted his abilities and regted his attacks. He began to measure up Rong Ruihan¡¯s capabilities with great interest. The more he observed Rong Ruihan, the more surprised he grew.

    ¡°Incredible. Incredible! This young man¡¯s talent is actually higher than my great grandson¡¯s?¡± Old man Chi eximed as his eyes glistened with pleasant surprise.

    Although old man Chi doted on and spoiled his great grandson, he was not the kind who would oppress cultivators who possessed talents greater than his own great grandson.

    Having lived for over five thousand years, old man Chi had long since understood the principle that one could always find someone more talented in the vast world out there. Furthermore, old man Chi knew that talent was not everything ¨C things such as diligence, opportunities and willpower were three other important aspects to a person¡¯s sess. Therefore, he had always viewed with contempt the rigid entry requirements by the upper-tier sects that arbitrarily allowed entry to only cultivators who had achieved the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation before the age of thirty-five.

    Who says that those who only attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation after the age of thirty-five were necessarily trash? Anyone who had lived for a thousand years or two would very well understand that the further along a person was on the path of cultivation, the less there was a corrtion between his prowess and his talents. On the other hand, the importance of diligence, opportunities and willpower often far outweighed the so-called ¡°talent¡± that was so prized by the world.

    That said, old man Chi nevertheless admired juniors who possessed incredible talent for cultivation.

    Isn¡¯t it? Isn¡¯t there one in front of me right now?

    Then, with a single move, old man Chi pulled Rong Ruihan over towards him and swiftly pped three talismans on him. Instantly, Rong Ruihan froze where he was and remainedpletely motionless.

    Rong Ruihan could only widen his eyes and re at old man Chi as he made peculiar, beast-like yowls where he stood.

    Old man Chi ignored the strange sounds he was making. He ced his hand on Rong Ruihan¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of demonic energy probing about Rong Ruihan¡¯s Dantian and meridians. During this process, he even drew a cold breath several times.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly minced her way over to old man Chi¡¯s side as she worriedly asked, ¡°Senior, his condition right now...is there any way to resolve it?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo already knew that the more Rong Ruihan lost his senses, the more irreversible the damage to his meridians and Dantian.

    After all, she was also a demonic cultivator, and she was well aware of the corrosive and destructive effects of demonic energy to a demonic cultivator¡¯s mind. Once the undtions of a demonic cultivator¡¯s spirit and willpower swelled too greatly, there was a good chance that the cultivator would experience a demonic upheaval, which would in turn irreversibly transform him into a simple-minded killing machine that was devoid of any rationality.

    But old man Chi did not immediately answer Jun Xiaomo. After he finished examining the condition of Rong Ruihan¡¯s meridians and Dantian, he looked at Rong Ruihan¡¯s palms, flipped up and examined his eyelids, and then cast his eyes on Rong Ruihan¡¯s corbone. Then, he recoiled slightly in shock.

    There was a totem at the corbone near the base of Rong Ruihan¡¯s neck. Old man Chi found it extremely familiar. After examining it for some time, he sighed heavily as he remarked, ¡°I never thought that you would be the child of an old friend of mine. It¡¯s no wonder, it¡¯s no wonder...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart shuddered as she interjected, ¡°Senior, would you perhaps be referring to...the Jiang n?¡±

    She connected the dots extremely quickly. It would not be surprising if the old man knew senior Jiang Yutong and the Jiang n. After all, the Jiang n had always been a well-known n of demonic cultivators. It was their misfortune that senior Jiang Yutong had loved the wrong person, thereby ushering a cmitous end to her entire n.

    Old man Chi nced at Jun Xiaomo with some peculiarity in his eyes as he eximed, ¡°I never expected a young girl like you to know about the Jiang n.¡±

    ¡°To tell you the truth, martial brother and I inadvertently discovered senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s cavern some time back. She left several priceless treasures behind for us, but in exchange she had but one request from us ¨C and that was to find her child and pass a token to him. Senior, the man in front of you is none other than senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s only son, the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, Rong Ruihan.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could tell that old man Chi was not a greedy or avaricious person, so she revealed everything about their discovery within senior Jiang Yutong¡¯s cavern to him.

    ¡°A token?¡± Old man Chi furrowed his brows, ¡°Could it be a piece of Blood Jade?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°Has senior seen the Blood Jade before?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not that I¡¯ve seen it before. But I know that whenever members of the Jiang n bloodline give birth, they would always carve out a piece of Blood Jade from a special material belonging to their n. This Blood Jade can be used to control the demonic energy within the body of these Jiang n members. This would allow them to avoid any potential dangers of a demonic upheaval.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Are you saying that the reason why Rong Ruihan would lose his senses from time to time is precisely because of his refusal to ept that piece of Blood Jade?!

    Old man Chi did not notice theplicated feelings swelling up within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. He continued, ¡°The Jiang n are a well renown n of demonic cultivators. However, it is difficult for them to bear children, so their bloodline are but few in numbers. Nevertheless, each member of their bloodline possesses incredibly high talent for cultivation. This is what secures their stature and position in the world of demonic cultivators. But it¡¯s a pity...it truly is a pity...I¡¯m afraid this child must be the only surviving member of the Jiang n now, isn¡¯t he?¡±

    Old man Chi couldn¡¯t help but sigh as he thought about the Jiang n¡¯s demise.

    ¡°Senior, then what if we gave Rong Ruihan that piece of Blood Jade now? Would that change his present condition right now?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked expectantly.

    Old man Chi cried out in surprise, ¡°You mean you haven¡¯t given him that piece of Blood Jade?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose sheepishly as she said with some measure of exasperation, ¡°The first prince refused to believe my words at the beginning. He was afraid that I was out to hurt him, so he refused to ept that piece of Blood Jade. Later on, we were so preupied with running for our lives that the matter pertaining to the Blood Jade had also slipped my mind. This piece of Blood Jade is still inside my Interspatial Ring.¡±

    ¡°Nonsense! What¡¯s the point about engaging in insipid talk about belief or disbelief?! Without that piece of Blood Jade, Rong Ruihan is headed straight to his own demise!¡± Old man Chi¡¯s eyes widened as he bellowed, ¡°He can count it on his own dumb luck that he¡¯s encountered me right now. First, his cultivation technique ispletely ipatible with him. Secondly, he swallowed that demonic wolf¡¯s core that had already wreaked havoc within his body for some time now. Then, he even lost himself amidst the illusions in these Mystic Woods. No matter how high his talent is, he¡¯s headed straight for his own demise at the rate he¡¯s going!¡±

    ¡°His cultivation technique is ipatible?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knew about thetter two things, but this was the first time she had heard about Rong Ruihan practicing an ipatible cultivation technique.

    ¡°Hmph! This is obvious from the conditions of his Dantian and meridians. I¡¯ll bet he¡¯s picked up all these nonsensical, trash refinement techniques because he¡¯s never had anyone who¡¯s pointed him in the right direction. He¡¯s not only practiced demonic cultivation techniques ¨C his arsenal includes even some techniques that are only suited for spiritual cultivators. It¡¯s aplete mess! It¡¯s a hodgepodge in his body! What¡¯s most important to him right now is not to increase his cultivation level, but to give him some medicinal pills to nourish his body and purge him any traces of scars left by this mess. If he goes on like this, even a talent like him will bepletely wasted!¡±

    Old man Chi had been on fairly good terms with the Jiang n, especially Jiang Yutong. After all, he had watched her grow up. Therefore, the indignation swelling up within his heart right now arose out of a concern that a senior would have for a junior.

    Unfortunately, the object of his indignation was still yowling incoherently. Everything that old man Chi had said had been wasted on him.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved the Blood Jade from her interspatial ring and ced it on her palm. Then, she bashfully added, ¡°Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t believe me previously, and he even wanted me to make a promise to him on the Heart-Oath Array. I wonder whether his level of trust for me is sufficient for him to ept this Blood Jade from me right now.¡±

    Old man Chi raised his eyes as hemented dispassionately, ¡°If he doesn¡¯t ept it, why don¡¯t you just force it onto him? He¡¯s already devoid of rationality now anyway. Make an incision on his thumb and drip of drop of his blood onto the Blood Jade. Then, thread a string through the Blood Jade and hang it over his neck. That would do.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Is that all I had to do?!!

    Then what did I put myself through all this trouble for...

    Truly, the old sure are wise.

 Chapter 153: Old Man Chiâ€™s New Disciple

    <h4>Chapter 153: Old Man Chi¡¯s New Disciple</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo did as old man Chi suggested. While Rong Ruihan was still bound by old man Chi¡¯s talismans, she cut Rong Ruihan¡¯s finger and let a drip of his blood drop onto the piece of Blood Jade.

    Instantly, the Blood Jade shone with a striking red light, before fading away once again.

    ¡°This means that it has finally recognized its owner.¡± Old man Chi exined, ¡°Once the Blood Jade recognizes its owner, others will no longer be able to use it. That said, not many people would covet such a thing as the Blood Jade to begin with. The meridians and Dantian of members of the Jiang n are all different from that which normal people possess. Therefore, there is a good chance that they would experience demonic upheavals in the process of their cultivations. This is one of the main reasons why they prepare a piece of Blood Jade for each member of their bloodline. Normal people won¡¯t need such things to begin with.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head. Then, she retrieved a length of cord from her Interspatial Ring. Just as she was about to tie it to the piece of Blood Jade, old man Chi stopped her.

    ¡°Hang on, use this instead.¡± Old man Chi retrieved another length of cord from his own Interspatial Ring. If one took a closer examination of it, he would be able to see minute inscriptions on length of cord. Evidently, this was something special. ¡°I consider this child a junior of mine. After all, I¡¯ve personally watched his mother grow up. When the Jiang n was annihted, I had regrettably been locked in my closed-door cultivation, and I was unable to even save a portion of them. This is one of my life¡¯s greatest regrets. Let me do at least this to make amends for what I had failed to do.¡±

    This was a form of penitence for him.

    As old man Chi spoke, he handed the length of cord over to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in acknowledgment. After receiving the length of cord, she threaded it through the piece of Blood Jade, looped it around, and then knotted it at the end. Once she had ensured that it was fully secure, she tiptoed and hung the piece of Blood Jade around Rong Ruihan¡¯s neck.

    Jun Xiaomo did all of these with the utmost sincerity, as though she were performing a gravely important task. Her lips stretched out thinly as she focused her heart and mind entirely on it.

    Old man Chi stood at the side observing Jun Xiaomo all this while, and he began to glean more of her personality from her actions.

    Sigh. She¡¯s just a simple and honest little child. At least she bears no devious or crooked thoughts. Nevertheless, isn¡¯t her luck with men still a little too strong? Does my great grandson really stand a chance with her?

    It had to be said that birds of a feather truly flock together. Old man Chi¡¯s assessment of the matter right now was exactly the same as that of his granddaughter-inw, Shao Sirong.

    After Jun Xiaomo hung that piece of Blood Jade over Rong Ruihan¡¯s neck, Rong Ruihan¡¯s yowls gradually grew weaker and weaker. Old man Chi once again grabbed onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s wrist as he sent another wave of demonic energy into Rong Ruihan¡¯s body. This time, the demonic energy old man Chi sent into Rong Ruihan¡¯s body carried the power to pacify and soothe. Just like a calming wave that washed over the craggy beaches, it began to soften and smoothen the lines of Rong Ruihan¡¯s meridians and Dantian.

    Momentster, Rong Ruihan passed out again.

    ¡°When he regains consciousness once more, he will havee to his senses.¡± Old man Chizily muttered. Then, he turned around and walked back to enjoy his cup of tea again.

    ¡°Thank you, senior.¡± Jun Xiaomo bowed sincerely to old man Chi.

    Old man Chi waved his hand and looked up curiously as he remarked, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be bothered to save him if not for the fact that I owe his grandfather a meal.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    As he looked on at the speechless and slightly exasperated expressions on the faces of the other four people around, old man Chi picked up his teacup and drank from it as heughed heartily.

    Old man Chi was naturally not thinking about that meal that he owed Rong Ruihan¡¯s grandfather. Rather, he simply found the various brilliant expressions on the respective faces of his juniors extremely humorous andical to him.

    After approximately two hours, Rong Ruihan finally awakened again. This time, his eyes were no longer filled with a blood-red hue. Instead, they had reverted to his usual deep and profound ink-ck eyes.

    He groaned softly and rubbed his throbbing head. Momentster, he sat up and discovered that he had earlier been lying on a soft and warm mat.

    Jun Xiaomo had earlier rolled out a mat for him to rest on, and even covered him with arge woolen nket. The mat and the nket looked slightly dirty and worn for wear because Jun Xiaomo had not had the luxury of time to wash and clean them recently. Notwithstanding that, they were still extremelyfortable and warm.

    Rong Ruihan could roughly guess the person responsible for these arrangements, and a warm smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    Very soon, he discovered that there was an additional cord hung around his neck, and a piece of Blood Jade hung loosely in front of his chest.

    ¡°This is...¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows.

    He immediately thought about his first encounter with Yao Mo when Yao Mo had attempted to return this piece of Blood Jade to him. Back then, he had refused to receive that piece of Blood Jade because he was unsure whether he could trust Yao Mo or not.

    So how did this piece of Blood Jade end up on his neck right now?

    ¡°Hmph! Don¡¯t look at that piece of Blood Jade with such disdain. If not for that piece of Blood Jade, you might already be meeting your makers now.¡± An aged voice rang out above his head. Rong Ruihan looked up reflexively and saw a wrinkled...unfamiliar...face.

    At this moment, the stranger was stroking his long, white beard and toting a pot of tea with the other hand as he poured mouthful after mouthful of tea into his mouth. The old man nced over at him with a profound and enigmatic look in his eyes.

    That¡¯s right. Old man Chi loved drinking tea straight from the spout of the teapot. Therefore, his pot of tea was specially brewed for his own personal consumption.

    Having heard the old man¡¯s exnation, Rong Ruihan wrapped his palm around the Blood Jade dangling in front of his chest. He could feel a warm yet gentle pulsing sensation emanating from that piece of Blood Jade which swept through his entire body. Under the baptism of the Blood Jade¡¯s warmth, his demonic energy was now less chaotic, and it coursed through his body much more smoothly.

    I never thought that this piece of Blood Jade would have such effects on my body! Rong Ruihan eximed in his heart as he made a respectful palm and fist salute to old man Chi, ¡°I reckon it must be this respected senior who had reminded Xiaomo of the Blood Jade¡¯s effect. I sincerely thank senior for saving this life of mine.¡±

    Old man Chi snorted as he wryly responded, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have bothered about you if not for the fact that I know your mother and your grandfather.¡±

    Rong Ruihan looked curiously at old man Chi. He never would have expected that this formidable and mysterious old man would actually know his own kinsmen.

    Mother...grandfather... Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart swelled withplicated emotions. He was extremely young when the Jiang n had been annihted. Thus, he barely had any recollection of that horrific event.

    If not for the fact that the remnant Jiang n had managed to get in touch with himter on, Rong Ruihan might well have been kept in the dark about this entire matter.

    Yet what was most precious to him was how his own biological mother had on her deathbed still been concerned about how to entrust this important piece of Blood Jade to a third party, so that the third party would personally hand it to himself. This had allowed Rong Ruihan to finally have a glimpse of the extent of his mother¡¯s love for him.

    Old man Chi sighed. Then, he repeated to Rong Ruihan the contents of what he had said to Jun Xiaomo and the rest. He even digressed slightly as he poured out to Rong Ruihan his regrets and remorse for being unable to save his old friends from the Jiang n.

    Finally, old man Chi patted Rong Ruihan¡¯s shoulder as he asked, ¡°Kid, are you interested in being my disciple?¡±

    ¡°Disciple!¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes widened in shock.

    Rong Ruihan was an unppable man, and few things were able to faze him. Yet this series of unexpected circumstances and incidents had caused him to lose hisposure time and again.

    ¡°Hmph, what¡¯s that? Are you not willing?¡± Old man Chi snorted, ¡°I have never epted someone outside the Chi n as my own disciple. I¡¯m making an exception for you right now on ount of my deceased old friends. Besides, you really need to toss out those damn useless refinement techniques. Less is more, do you understand, little brat? Don¡¯t just pick up any old, lousy technique and just add it to your arsenal like that. Don¡¯t you understand how to sieve through its contents and choose what¡¯s best for yourself? Truth be told, it¡¯s a miracle that you¡¯re still alive now!¡±

    Rong Ruihan was indeed moved by old man Chi¡¯s spiel. Although he could not determine with any certainty what stage of cultivation old man Chi was at, his intuition told him that old man Chi was nevertheless the strongest person he had ever met in his entire life.

    However¡ª

    ¡°Senior, it¡¯s not that this junior is reticent to recognize you as his master. It¡¯s just that this junior is presently being persecuted by the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang, and recognizing you as master now would bring trouble to you.¡± Rong Ruihan helplessly exined his predicament.

    ¡°Is Situ Cang that fe who likes to unt his formation arrays and talismans?¡± Old man Chi quickly connected the dots and guessed Situ Cang¡¯s identity.

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly him. Back then, he was the culprit who had led an army against my mother¡¯s nsmen. If he learns that I¡¯ve be senior¡¯s disciple, I¡¯m afraid he might make a move against senior as well.¡±

    Old man Chi mocked, ¡°How can that man possibly wipe out the entire Jiang n with his meagre capabilities? What a joke. I still haven¡¯t figured out the truth about that massacre yet, but I¡¯m certain that Situ Cang and his men were not the only ones who had moved against the Jiang n back then. It¡¯s quite possible that the heinous atrocity had beenmitted by an alliance formed by several sects of spiritual cultivators. Hmph! And they still say that demonic cultivators ought to be put to death. If you ask me, its these self-professed righteous and sanctimonious sects that are the ones who have their hands stained with blood! They¡¯re ruthless to the extreme!¡±

    Rong Ruihan had personally borne the brunt of such persecution before, and he fully concurred with old man Chi¡¯s assessment of the spiritual cultivating sects.

    Then, old man Chi slowly added, ¡°As for that so-called Grand Vizier, you have no need to worry about him. I¡¯ve already taught him a lesson. For now, I¡¯ve spared his life on ount for my great grandson. But he is an existence that I will weed out sooner orter!¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart thumped vigorously. He had initially thought that they were already at the end of their line, and there was nowhere else to go. Yet by this fortuitous turn of events, he had just been informed that Situ Cang was no longer a threat to him.

    It was as though he were a person drowning amidst roiling floodwaters and on the brink of going under when he finally managed to grab hold of a lifeline. Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart began to thump with excitement.

    Rong Ruihan restrained the surging emotions within his heart and made a polite fist and palm salute to old man Chi as he made a request filled with determination, ¡°If I may, I hope that senior would kindly cede to me the opportunity to avenge my kinsmen.¡±

    In other words, he had hoped that old man Chi would spare Situ Cang¡¯s life so that he would be able to personally kill him in the future.

    Old man Chi nced over curiously at Rong Ruihan as he remarked, ¡°Although Situ Cang has been grievously injured by this old man, it¡¯s still far too early for you to be considering matters of vengeance against him.¡±

    Rong Ruihan tightened his fists unwillingly.

    ¡°However...¡± Old man Chi added a twist, ¡°If you¡¯re willing to ept me as your master, I can guarantee that you will be able to take Situ Cang¡¯s head within ten years¡¯ time. Do you believe me?¡±

    Old man Chi was truly pulling out all the stops to make Rong Ruihan his disciple. Apart from Rong Ruihan¡¯s identity as the child of his old friend, the other reason was Rong Ruihan¡¯s incredible talent.

    Rong Ruihan was born with a demonic body, and his meridians and Dantian were special as a result of his bloodline. No one was more suitable than him to inherit old man Chi¡¯s self-created techniques ¨C not even Chi Hongyi or the little packrat.

    This time, Rong Ruihan no longer hesitated. He knelt to the floor ferociously and gave old man Chi three kowtows as he respectfully called out, ¡°Master, please ept the kowtows from your disciple!¡±

    ¡°Hahahaha...good! Good, good! Henceforth, you shall be known as the tenth-generation disciple of I, Chi Ruihong! Hahahahaha...¡± Old man Chiughed heartily as he gave Rong Ruihan a genial p on the back.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo and the rest who had gone some distance away to clean out the fruit of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier hunt had finally returned. Old man Chi waved at Chi Hongyi as he called out to him, ¡°Hey, Hongyi,e over here. This kid right here is now your younger martial brother.¡±

    While old man Chi and Chi Hongyi were biologically rted to each other, Chi Hongyi had since years ago already recognized old man Chi as his master. Therefore, he was also considered one of old man Chi¡¯s disciples.

    Rong Ruihan took the initiative to give Chi Hongyi a fist and palm salute, ¡°Martial brother.¡±

    Chi Hongyi nodded, but his face remained expressionless.

    He was different from old man Chi. Although old man Chi put on his airs when he was in front of all his nsmen, he would reveal his mischievous and spritely self in front of those whom he was close to. The closer his rtionship to a person, the wackier and nuttier he would be before them. On the other hand, Chi Hongyi was far more introverted, and he rarely expressed his feelings to others.

    At the same time, Chi Hongyi was also an incredibly meticulous person. After deliberating for a moment, Chi Hongyi asked, ¡°Since martial brother Rong has recognized grandfather as his master, then does this mean you intend to return to the sect together with us?¡±

    Old man Chi and the rest never intended to stay for too long at the Mystic Woods. After all, old man Chi was still the present n Head, and he could not be away from his duties for too long. Furthermore, he still had to address the issue with lingering effects of Situ Cang¡¯s refinement technique in the little packrat¡¯s body.

    From old man Chi¡¯s perspective, there was no doubt that his disciple would be following his master back to the sect. But Chi Hongyi¡¯s considerations were much more meticulous than that. He knew that Rong Ruihan was a man with burdens and duties, and he might not be able to drop them and leave just like that.

    As expected, Rong Ruihan hesitated.

    The cause for his hesitation was not only the residual matters pertaining to the Inferno Kingdom. There was still...

    Some distance away, a youngdy¡¯s crisp and clearughter rang out.

 Chapter 154: The Truth of the Past

    <h4>Chapter 154: The Truth of the Past</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had just grilled some meat, and she was about to bring the grilled meat back on a te. Just then, she noticed that an intense gaze hadnded on her body. She looked up and followed this gaze straight back to a pair of abstruse, obsidian-ck eyes. These eyes were staring at him with a multitude ofplicated emotions roiling within them.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan, you¡¯re awake?¡± Jun Xiaomo did not want to oveplicate things. Thus, she shrugged off the contents of Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze and greeted him in a straightforward and candid manner. At the same time, she ced the te of grilled meat onto the table.

    ¡°Ohhh~~~ This grilled meat smells great! Little girl, your cooking is pretty good, huh!¡± Old man Chi sniffed at the aroma of the grilled meat that was diffusing through the air. Within moments, he had made his way to the table side, whipped out a pair of chopsticks from his Interspatial Ring, and sent a piece of glistening, grilled meat straight into his mouth. As he chewed his food, he continued to mumblepliments at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Delicious, delicious!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. Although she had only just met old man Chi a little while ago, this senior had already given her a great impression of himself. Old man Chi did things in a straightforward and upright manner, and he stuck strongly to his own set of principles. These were all characteristics that coincided with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s own personal values.

    ¡°Since senior enjoys it, then please feel free to have more. I¡¯m still grilling more meat on the other side.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled.

    ¡°Mm, mm! Not bad, not bad.¡± Old man Chi swallowed his food, before giving Jun Xiaomo a huge thumbs up. Then, he casually added, ¡°Little girl, I notice that your talents are pretty good as well. Do you want to consider being my eleventh-generation disciple?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was stunned.

    Old man Chi opened his eyes as he mischievouslymented, ¡°You can fool others, but you can¡¯t fool this old man¡¯s ancient eyes. You¡¯re a demonic cultivator, aren¡¯t you? Furthermore, you possess an acquired demonic body. Truth be told, I don¡¯t quite understand why your parents are both spiritual cultivators, while you had for some reason turned into a demonic cultivator. But what I do know is that there are no benefits to you if you continue to use the refinement techniques from Dawn Sect. How about it? Want to consider joining this sect of mine?¡±

    Rong Ruihan looked towards Jun Xiaomo with a discreetly expectant gaze.

    However, Jun Xiaomo only deliberated for a moment, before she shook her head and rejected the offer. She tactfully replied, ¡°This junior sincerely appreciates senior¡¯s kind intentions. Truth be told, I¡¯ve already discovered a cultivation path that is suitable for me, and there¡¯s no need for any changes at this moment. Furthermore...I¡¯ve got too many burdens within the Sect that I can¡¯t give up on. There¡¯s no way I can just freely leave my Sect for now.¡±

    Most importantly, He Zhang and hisckeys are still eyeing the Heavenly Peak with an avaricious gaze. She had to think up the appropriate countermeasures to protect her parents and her beloved martial brothers and sisters in Heavenly Peak.

    Unfortunately, Rong Ruihan misunderstood the hidden implications behind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response. He was unaware of the fact that Jun Xiaomo had been reborn, and he thought that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s burdens and reticence simply referred to that man, Qin Lingyu. Or perhaps...Ye Xiuwen.

    As his thoughts turned to the intimate atmosphere between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen as they interacted with each other, Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart sank slightly.

    But then again, if Yao Mo was indeed thedy in red that he had so often seen in his dreams, then Rong Ruihan would still very much rather Jun Xiaomo fall in love with Ye Xiuwen than that selfish and mercenary Qin Lingyu.

    Old man Chi sighed, ¡°This bag of old bones rarely harbours any thoughts of epting new disciples. Yet when he finally does, his prospective disciples despise him. Forget it, forget it. One new disciple is already troublesome enough. Having one less disciple means more free time for me too! Ah, it¡¯s just a pity that I won¡¯t have grilled meat to eat in future...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Could it be that you only want to ept me as a disciple for my grilled meat...?

    On the other hand, old man Chi¡¯s bemusing words had set several heavy thoughts running through Rong Ruihan¡¯s mind. Then, momentster, he made his resolve.

    ¡°Xiaomo, there¡¯s something I would like to speak with you about. Could youe over for a minute?¡± Rong Ruihan called out to Jun Xiaomo warmly.

    Rong Ruihan had often habitually addressed Jun Xiaomo as ¡°brother Yao¡± in the past, and there were few instances where he would address her as ¡°Xiaomo¡±, much less call upon her with such a gentle, warm tone of voice. Thus, Jun Xiaomo was mildly taken aback when she heard Rong Ruihan call her by her real name.

    But despite her slight double take, Jun Xiaomo still nodded and followed Rong Ruihan to the woods.

    As the two figures disappearing into the woods, old man Chi shook his head as he sighed heavily, ¡°Looks like Little Chi has yet another rival now...Sigh...this old bag of bones can¡¯t understand the world of young people now.¡±

    Once they had reached a ce that was out of the line of sight of old man Chi and the others, Rong Ruihan paused in his tracks and turned towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was unsure of what Rong Ruihan wished to say to her, so she stared at Rong Ruihan and blinked her eyes at him in bewilderment.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes quivered slightly as he gazed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tender face for a moment. Then, he finallyposed himself and began his diatribe, ¡°I¡¯d been having a series of dreams ever since I was six years-old. The protagonist in these dreams is always the same person. That was the first telltale sign that this wasn¡¯t a normal dream.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly, not knowing how to respond to Rong Ruihan.

    She muttered in her heart ¨C Is this guy for real? Did he really just call me here to chat about his dreams?

    But Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t mind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction. He continued, ¡°The protagonist in my dream was ady who loved wearing red. She was a demonic cultivator, and there would always be arge group of men chasing after her, trying to take her life. But each time, their attempts would be thwarted, and thisdy in red would take their lives instead... At the beginning, I had never been able to see thatdy¡¯s appearances properly. There was even a time when I had thought thisdy was my mother...¡±

    ¡°But as time went on, and the number of dreams increased, I finally saw her appearances clearly. I have a portrait of my mother in the pce, and I knew that thisdy was not my mother. Rather, she was ady whom...I had never met before...¡±

    Thus, Rong Ruihan immersed himself within his memories, and he began to describe in chronological order each and every dream that he has had with thisdy in red. He missed out nothing ¨C not a single detail ¨C from these dreams.

    In fact, he had never intended to tell Jun Xiaomo so much. He had only intended to tell Jun Xiaomo to beware of Qin Lingyu. But for some strange reason, as he gazed at this familiar-looking face that bore some semnce to the appearances of thedy in red, yet possessed each their unique differences as well, he found himself pouring out the details of his dreams to Jun Xiaomo.

    Rong Ruihan stared vacantly into the distant woods as he delved into the recollection of his dreams. It was as though his gaze had prated the shackles of time and space and transported him into an unknown, distant realm of dreams. Thus, he failed to notice Jun Xiaomo¡¯s quivering eyes that were presently transfixed on him. She looked increasingly astonished as Rong Ruihan went on; and her face turned whiter, and whiter.

    ¡°After that fateful night, thedy in red was pregnant with my child. I should have brought thatdy in red to my side, but regrettably, one of my subordinates had suddenly turned traitorous at that time. I was injured as a result, and I also knew that it was no longerpletely safe by my side. Besides, thatdy hardly knew me, and she was always of the impression that the child¡¯s father was none other than the man surnamed Qin. Thus, I could only lock myself up in a closed-door environment as I recovered from my injuries and attempted to breakthrough to the next stage of cultivation. At that time, I entrusted her care to my most trusted subordinates...¡±

    ¡°That was the one thing I regretted the most in these dreams. Because when I finally exited my closed-door cultivation, I was greeted with the macabre state of her corpse ¨C her thoroughly abused, disfigured and mutted corpse. I killed my ipetent subordinates in anger, before turning my wrath to the rest of the cultivation world. In the days ¨C or even months ¨C toe, I waged war against the eight great sects, annihting every single one of them. But thedy in red and our child...they were still gone...¡±

    Rong Ruihan did not delve into the details of how he had sought vengeance for thatdy in red. But Jun Xiaomo knew that to achieve something on the magnitude of annihting the eight great sects in the world then was something that undoubtedly entailed an immeasurable amount of sacrifice on Rong Ruihan¡¯s part.

    Ever since her parents had died and her Peak was massacred in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, she had always thought that the only person who had treated her well and kindly was Ye Xiuwen.

    She had never expected that there was yet another person who had been watching over her for such a long time. He had even waged war against the world, just for her...

    Jun Xiaomo had no doubts about the veracity of what Rong Ruihan was telling her right now. This was because she had never spoken a single word about her previous life to anybody. Furthermore, Rong Ruihan had urately described the events of her previous life through an observer¡¯s perspective.

    And there was even the child that Rong Ruihan had talked about.

    Jun Xiaomo had never known the identity of her child¡¯s father in her previous life, and she had resigned to the fact that it would forever remain a mystery to her. Who would have known that the answer would present itself to her just like that?

    As these thoughts ran through her mind, Jun Xiaomo choked up.

    Thus, Rong Ruihan ended his recollection of his dreams. As he pulled back out of the depths of his memories and returned to reality, he immediately noticed that Jun Xiaomo was currently staring nkly at him with streaks of tears rolling down her cheeks.

    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re such a princess. Have you been moved by the story of my dreams? Don¡¯t worry, this had all been nothing more than a dream. Nothing has happened yet.¡±

    Rong Ruihan chuckled softly as he consoled her.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she wiped off the tears in her eyes. As her palms covered her face, she masked her innermost feelings and chuckled lightheartedly as she responded, ¡°That¡¯s right, it had all been but a dream. But your descriptions were so vivid that they¡¯ve even moved me to tears.¡±

    Yet only Jun Xiaomo knew how much pain and sorrow and exasperation was hidden under that smile on her face right now.

    Rong Ruihan stretched out his hand. After a moment of hesitation, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, as he added, ¡°The reason why I had recounted these dreams to you was because I wanted to tell you to be alert and vignt about the people around you. Don¡¯t be like thatdy in red in my dreams. Don¡¯t love the wrong people.¡±

    Rong Ruihan had wanted so much to tell Jun Xiaomo directly that ¡°thedy in red was you¡±. Yet after a moment of hesitation, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to say it.

    This was because everything within his dreams had not urred yet. There was no reason for him to increase Jun Xiaomo¡¯s burdens by letting her know this crucial detail.

    Besides, thatdy in red had never personally met or known Rong Ruihan in his dreams, whereas in this life they have already encountered each other ¨C does this mean that the events within the dream would change ordingly?

    With such possibilities in mind, Rong Ruihan found there to be even less of a need to reveal these details to Jun Xiaomo.

    He was content with forever burying the identity of thatdy in red in the depths of his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the ring omissions in Rong Ruihan¡¯s ount of his dreams, and she had thus also realized Rong Ruihan¡¯s intentions. A trace of gratitude and swelled up in her heart of surging emotions. At the same time, she had also temporarily averted a potentially awkward and embarrassing situation ¨C having finally realized that Rong Ruihan was the father of her child, she was truly at a loss at how she should treat this man who had sacrificed so much for her.

    She drew a deep breath, before releasing her tightly clenched fists. Then, she looked up at Rong Ruihan with her tear-stained eyes as she revealed a radiant smile ¨C

    ¡°Thank you, Rong Ruihan.¡±

    Not just for your words of caution. I sincerely thank you for all your sacrifices and protection in your previous life.

    She had just resolved in her heart that even if she could not reciprocate Rong Ruihan¡¯s affection for her in this lifetime, she would still treasure their friendship with the utmost sincerity.

    This was a friendship that would see them through thick and thin together. This was a friendship that would withstand the test of time.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get to know each other afresh, brother Rong.¡± Jun Xiaomo stretched out her hand as she changed the manner in which she addressed Rong Ruihan, ¡°My name is Jun Xiaomo, and I¡¯m the daughter of Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. Pleased to meet you, Rong Ruihan...brother Rong.¡±

    Previously, she had always interacted with Rong Ruihan in her capacity as ¡°Yao Mo¡±. Now that her true identity has been exposed, she had never really had the chance to formally introduce herself yet.

    Rong Ruihan was slightly taken aback. But very soon, a warm and genial smile crept up his lips.

    ¡°Very pleased to meet you, Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    He stretched out his hand and firmly received Jun Xiaomo¡¯s handshake.

 Chapter 155: Heartrending Goodbyes

    <h4>Chapter 155: Heartrending Goodbyes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In the end, Rong Ruihan decided to leave with old man Chi and his nsmen. Although Rong Ruihan¡¯s abilities were second to none among his contemporaries, they were nothingpared with the rest of the cultivators in the world.

    He needed to get stronger. It was only with sufficient strength that he would finally be able to avenge his mother and his nsmen.

    And to protect those whom he wished to protect.

    Some distance away, Jun Xiaomo was saying her final goodbyes to the little packrat as it nestledfortably in Shao Sirong¡¯s bosom. As he watched them say their goodbyes, a swathe ofplicated feelings swelled up in the depths of his eyes for a moment, before they quickly disappeared into aplete stillness once again.

    Rong Ruihan consciously resolved to suppress the thoughts hidden in the depths of his heart until he could finally obtain the strength that he needed, just like how he did in his dreams.

    ¡°Little Packie, be good. You can only turn back to your human form when you get back to your sect. Once you¡¯ve recovered and healed up fully, I¡¯ll invite you over as guests to the Heavenly Peak, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo gently stroked the little packrat¡¯s nose with her index finger as she cajoled.

    Jun Xiaomo was still unable to shed her previous habits despite knowing that the little packrat was a human and not a little pet. Thus, she continued to speak to it though it were nothing more than a little packrat.

    Squeak squeak squeak... The little packrat grabbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers tenderly. Its round, beady eyes were evenced with glimmering traces of tiny tears.

    I...I...I still can¡¯t bear to part with Xiaomo...

    Furthermore, even if Jun Xiaomo had promised to invite him as a guest over to the Heavenly Peak, how could he just tantly stride into a sect of spiritual cultivators when he was a demonic cultivator? Chances were that it was going to be a long time before they would be able to see each other again.

    ¡°Look at you! Such impudence!¡± Shao Sirong could hardly hold it in any longer as she rapped her son gently on his head, ¡°It¡¯s precisely because you act this way that Xiaomo always treats you as a pet!¡±

    In other words, do you really think you can win her over like that? Dream on!

    Shao Sirong had truly struck a nerve when she castigated her son like that.

    Squeak squeak... The little packrat understood what its mother meant. Thus, he tucked his ear back and licked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger onest time before it turned away from its previous ¡°owner¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled helplessly as she tenderly rubbed the little packrat¡¯s head and stroked the fur on its back.

    ¡°Goodbye, little fe.¡± The corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were slightly damp as she spoke, but this dampness quickly dried up within moments.

    Jun Xiaomo was not afraid of parting ways temporarily ¨C the only thing she was afraid of was parting ways forever in death. This was because even though their present goodbyes wereced with some measure of reluctance and sadness, there was no despair or despondence.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that as long as they lived long and lived well, there would undoubtedly be a day when their paths would cross again.

    Therefore, Jun Xiaomo repressed the sorrow and unwillingness in her heart, and revealed a radiant smile filled with many blessings to the little packrat. She bid them a safe journey back to their sect and prayed that he would revert to good health in no time.

    Old man Chi squinted his eyes as he sized up this potential great granddaughter-inw of his once again. His assessment of her had grown slightly better over this short period of interaction.

    This was a sensible young girl, and the grilled meat she prepared was delicious. She was even sincere and straightforward towards him and his great grandson. It would be a pity if anything happened to her.

    As he thought about this, old man Chi suddenly stepped forward and retrieved from his Interspatial Ring a little ornament etched from jade.

    ¡°This little ornament is something that I picked up by chance. I had intended to give it to my great grandson as his seventeenth birthday present. But his seventeenth birthday has already passed. As a token of our appreciation of how you¡¯ve cared for my great grandson these few months, I would like you to have this instead. I¡¯ve stored a portion of my own strength within this ornament. If you happen to encounter a crisis in the future, perhaps this will be able to save your life.¡±

    Old man Chi handed the little jade ornament to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°This...this gift is far too valuable. There¡¯s no need for it.¡± Jun Xiaomo politely motioned to reject old man Chi¡¯s gift.

    ¡°Xiaomo, please take it. Grandfather will naturally prepare something else for Little Chi¡¯s birthday gift.¡± Shao Sirong persuaded Jun Xiaomo with a faint smile, ¡°Furthermore, this isn¡¯t anything too valuable. You can treat grandfather¡¯s gift as a gesture of goodwill from an elder to a junior.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it, before finally relenting and epting the gift. As she received it, she looked at old man Chi in the eye and sincerely thanked him from the bottom of her heart.

    Rong Ruihan was moved by this sight. Thus, he quickly retrieved two exquisite looking earrings from his Interspatial Ring, bit his fingers and dripped two drops of blood, one on each earring, as he softly murmured an ancient mnemonic.

    Old man Chi nced over at Rong Ruihan and noticed what he was doing, but he remained taciturn. No one else saw Rong Ruihan¡¯s discrete actions right now.

    Momentster, the earrings glowed with a red light, before fading away into stillness as though nothing had happened.

    On the surface, it looked exactly the same as it had been before. But if someone sent a thread of demonic energy probing about these earrings, they would discover that there was an immense source of energy stored within them.

    Rong Ruihan had overexerted himself, and his forehead was soaked profusely with sweat. Nevertheless, the gaze in his eyes remainedpletely still.

    He walked over to Jun Xiaomo and presented his gift of earrings to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback.

    ¡°This is also a small token from me to thank Xiaomo for looking after me during this period of time.¡± Rong Ruihan exined.

    Yet after some hesitation, Jun Xiaomo shook her head and looked straight into Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes as she earnestly replied, ¡°Brother Rong, we¡¯re friends. Looking after each other is something thates naturally with being friends. I can¡¯t ept this token from you.¡±

    Although the events of her previous life meant that she now owed an additional debt of gratitude to Rong Ruihan, this debt of gratitude was not the same as love. She knew full well that she saw Rong Ruihan as nothing more than a friend. Therefore, she did not wish to give him any hope and lead him on.

    ¡°What if...it¡¯s my earnest desire that you ept this gift of mine?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s tone of voice remained indifferent, yet it was obvious that he was pleading with her right now.

    ¡°Brother Rong...¡± Jun Xiaomo was caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    ¡°I understand.¡± Rong Ruihan sighed and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I won¡¯t let my thoughts wander just because you¡¯ve epted these earrings from me. Xiaomo, your cultivation level is still rather low, and you¡¯re still some distance away from your Sect. Having an addedyer of protection means possessing another measure of hope, isn¡¯t it? This is just a friend¡¯s token of concern for you.¡±

    Most importantly, this pair of earrings did not merely store a portion of Rong Ruihan¡¯s powers ¨C it even stored a tiny fragment of his soul.

    If Jun Xiaomo encountered any dangerous situation, he would be the first one to know. It would no longer be like how it was in his dreams, where he had been unable to even witness Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final moments.

    He did not want to feel such regrets and abject helplessness ever again.

    Naturally, these were not matters that he would apprise Jun Xiaomo of. After all, fragmenting one soul was an incredibly dangerous process. At the very least, if this earring was broken and his soul dissipated as a result of that, his body would suffer from amensurate bacsh.

    If Jun Xiaomo knew of what Rong Ruihan had done, she would never ept this earring no matter what he said.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo still looked as hesitant as ever about epting Rong Ruihan¡¯s gift, and she grew taciturn.

    Rather, it was that Ye Xiuwen stepped forward at this moment and received the earrings from Rong Ruihan¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Martial brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo never expected her martial brother to interject like that, and she looked curiously at him.

    ¡°It would be best if you epted it. The first prince is right ¨C an addedyer of protection means another measure of hope.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen spoke, he stretched out his hands and tucked the hair beside Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face behind her ear, and then punched the earrings straight through her ears.

    ¡°Hss¡ª¡± Jun Xiaomo drew a cold breath when she felt the pinching sensation on her ears. But in the blink of an eye, there were now two exquisite earrings dangling from her ears.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions were so swift that they caught Jun Xiaomopletely off guard. Jun Xiaomo did not even have the time to object to it.

    After he gently wiped off the traces of blood from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears, Ye Xiuwen retracted his hand and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    The part of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears that Ye Xiuwen had touched felt slightly warmer than usual. Nevertheless, she ran her fingers along the new earrings dangling from her ear with joy.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Rong Ruihan expressed his gratitude to Ye Xiuwen.

    Although the intimate interactions between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo made an inexplicably dour sensation arise in Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions had saved him a lot of time and effort from cajoling Jun Xiaomo.

    Furthermore, if he had been in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoes, he might not have helped his love rival in this regard. Therefore, he sincerely extended his thanks to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen nced over indifferently to Rong Ruihan as he responded, ¡°No need for thanks. I also hope that Xiaomo can return to the Sect safely.¡±

    As long as they were still outside the Sect, dangerous encounters were an inevitability. Even if old man Chi had already ridded them of their greatest enemy, who could guarantee that they would not encounter another wave of hostile forces?

    There was simply no way of guaranteeing a person¡¯s safe return once they left the safety of the Sect¡¯s borders.

    Ye Xiuwen was also aware of the inadequacies of his own strength. He knew that there was no way he would be able to protect Jun Xiaomo if any opponent vastly stronger than himself showed up. Thus, he would very much prefer to ept any measure of Rong Ruihan¡¯s assistance in this regard.

    Rong Ruihan was aware of the thoughts running through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind as well. He presented a rare smile on his face as he remarked, ¡°I understand. Take good care of her.¡±

    Naturally, everyone understood who ¡°her¡± referred to.

    ¡°I will.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was filled with determination.

    Rong Ruihan was finally at ease. He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he bade her farewell, ¡°Then, I¡¯m leaving now. Xiaomo, take care.¡±

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened, but she did her best to present a smile as she bade him farewell, ¡°Thanks, brother Rong. Goodbye.¡±

    Old man Chi snorted again as he yelled, ¡°Disciple, we won¡¯t be able to wait for you any longer if you don¡¯te over now...¡±

    Old man Chi had already begun to activate his Teleportation Array. Chi Hongyi and Shao Sirong were all standing within the heart of the formation array right now, while the little packrat remained obsequiously in Shao Sirong¡¯s bosom as it stared at Jun Xiaomo with glistening eyes.

    Rong Ruihan nodded to Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Farewell then. We will meet again.¡±

    As he said that, he took quick, long strides as he made his way to old man Chi¡¯s formation array.

    Jun Xiaomo waved at his back. Then, she cupped her hands around her mouth as she yelled to everyone at the formation array, ¡°Farewell--!¡±

    Everyone else waved back at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen and bade them farewell.

    Then, once Rong Ruihan made his way to the heart of the formation array, an intense blue light burst out from the heart from the formation array, engulfing all of them.

    Within the blink of an eye, Rong Ruihan, the little packrat, and old man Chi and his nsmen all vanished from the heart of the formation array.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms finally ckened, and tears began to fall from the corner of her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her head. Even though he remained taciturn, Jun Xiaomo knew that he was consoling her.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m just a little bit sad to say our goodbyes. But I¡¯m sure we will meet each other again.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke with conviction as she lifted her head once more. At this moment, her eyes were only slightly puffy, but she was no longer tearing anymore.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, then.¡± Jun Xiaomo clutched tightly onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm as she beamed as said, ¡°Martial brother, we still have toplete the Sect¡¯s mission for these travels, don¡¯t we? Basilisk Fruits aren¡¯t easy to find. Let¡¯s make haste.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed with blissful warmth as he responded, ¡°Alright.¡±

    On the other side, Situ Cang, who had been reduced to a tragic state by old man Chi, hadid motionless on the ground for thest few hours. Finally, he began to stir once more.

 Chapter 156: Situ Cangâ€™s Frenzy

    <h4>Chapter 156: Situ Cang¡¯s Frenzy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ever since he had been appointed the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang had always basked in the glory of the looks of admiration from his subjects. It had been an incredibly long time since thest time Situ Cang was reduced to such a tragic state.

    Every single bone in his body had been crushed and shattered by old man Chi¡¯s aura. All of his defensive talismans, essories and ornaments had beenpletely spent as well. Presently, heid motionless on the floor, no better than a living corpse. If not for the momentary shallow gasps of air that he took, anyone who passed by would almost certainly mistake him for a corpse.

    ¡°Cough, cough...¡± Situ Cang¡¯s head drooped down as he coughed out two swathes of blood. His bulging eyes were bloodshot and filled with a depraved gaze, while his body waspletely soaked through with blood. At this moment, he looked no different from a demon that had just crawled up from the depths of hell.

    Even though old man Chi had not taken his life, his injuries were nevertheless incredibly grievous. As soon as old man Chi departed from this ce, he had practically taken out two-thirds of the best medicinal pills within his Interspatial Ring, stuffed them all into his mouth and swallowed them. Otherwise, with such terrifying injuries, even three full months of rest might not be sufficient for him to regain his ability to move.

    Situ Cang¡¯s heart was filled with hatred, but he knew that there was nothing he could do against old man Chi right now ¨C old man Chi¡¯s was simply too powerful.

    All he could do right now was to recover as best as he could and leave this ce as soon as possible.

    It was soon dusk. Once night falls, the entire Mystic Woods would be fraught with even more dangers. His subordinates had beenpletely wiped out by old man Chi in the blink of an eye, and he was now all alone. He knew he had to tread carefully if he wished to return safely to the Inferno Kingdom.

    He supported his body and slowly struggled to mber up to a sitting position. Yet this seemingly simple action took Situ Cang one incense of time toplete because of the extent of his injuries. He leaned on his hands as he sat on the floor. His breath was haggard as heughed maniacally, ¡°Spare me today, regret it tomorrow! I, Situ Cang, swear that I shall one day personally y your skin and cut your nerves!¡±

    As Situ Cang swore his revenge, his vicious gaze swept across those several Dawn Sect disciples that were lying motionless on the floor.

    Even though the object of Situ Cang¡¯s revenge was somebody else, these disciples still couldn¡¯t help but tremble in trepidation.

    It could have been a misperception, but the disciples were almost certain that Situ Cang had gazed directly at them when he said that he was going to personally y their skin and cut their nerves.

    Situ Cang¡¯s injuries had not been any worse than that suffered by the disciples. In fact, the four people who suffered the most grievous injuries around were Situ Cang, Ke Xinwen, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou.

    Nevertheless, Situ Cang possessed several high-quality medicinal pills, and his cultivation level had been far higher than the Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ cultivation levels to begin with. Therefore, he was the one who managed to recover sufficiently to mber to his feet first.

    Yet how could Situ Cang have known any earlier that old man Chi¡¯s punishment on him was much more than meets the eye ¨C

    ¡°Ahh¡ª My cultivation level! Why has my cultivation level fallen to the Nascent Soul stage?!! Ahh¡ª¡±

    Situ Cang had initially intended to enter into a meditative state in order to expedite his recovery process. Yet once he sent his spiritual energy flowing around his body, he immediately discovered a huge problem.

    His cultivation level had fallen! It had fallen straight from the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation to the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation!

    Situ Cang did not possess great talents for cultivation. Otherwise, he would never have had to resort to these various dishonest and vile practices in order to painstakingly increase his cultivation level. He had spent a whopping one thousand five hundred years of time before he painstakingly ground his way up from the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation to the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. How could he have known that he was going to be beaten back to the same old state as before?

    In other words, his efforts over thest one thousand five hundred years of time had beenpletely wasted by old man Chi. If he wished to regain his secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation once more, he might quite possibly require an even longer time than he did before.

    How could this not make him mad?!

    The bulging vein on Situ Cang¡¯s forehead began to throb uncontrobly. His eyes bulged out, and his arms trembled as he muttered to himself, ¡°It can¡¯t be. This has to be a mistake. Yes! It¡¯s a mistake. I¡¯m going to check it again!¡±

    Situ Cang closed his eyes and sent his own spiritual energy flowing about within his body once more. This time, he spent a far longer time as he meticulously checked the condition of his body.

    Not far away, the Dawn Sect disciples began to tremble in their own skins as well. All of them began to stuff more and more medicinal pills in their mouths. They had only one goal right now ¨C and that was to get well enough to leave this ce before Situ Cang exploded with fanaticism.

    Their intuition told them that if they continued to stay here any longer, the consequences would be unimaginable.

    Unfortunately,dy luck was not on their side. When Situ Cang opened his eyes once again, both of his eyes had already bepletely bloodshot.

    This was the state of a cultivator experiencing a demonic upheaval!

    ¡°Die!¡± Situ Cang suddenly leapt to his feet and swung his hand at the Dawn Sect disciple closest to him. Bang! A loud tremor rang out, and that disciple instantly exploded into nothing more than traces of blood and gore.

    A warm, crimson mushprising fresh blood, flesh and bones sttered all over the other disciples¡¯ bodies, rendering them momentarily frozen with shock.

    After what must have felt like eons to the disciples, someone finally came to their senses and screamed out ¨C

    ¡°Ahh¡ªMartial brother Ke is dead! He¡¯s dead!!! Ahh¡ª¡±

    This exmation was like the key that unlocked the floodgates to a dam. Within moments, the entire surroundings were filled with the tragic and pathetic cries of the Dawn Sect disciples. All of them were either eximing that ¡°martial brother Ke is dead¡±, or they were shouting ¡°run¡±...

    That¡¯s right. The one that Situ Cang had killed was none other than Ke Xinwen. Ke Xinwen could only count it on his own dumb luck that he had been located closest to where Situ Cang had been.

    Ke Xinwen¡¯s death had seemed to draw out the hidden reserves of strength within the rest of the disciples. Within moments, several disciples managed to mber to their feet. Their bodies were still screaming out in pain. Every time they mustered the spiritual energy from the depths of their bodies, their meridians and Dantian would feel as though they were burning with fire. Even then, their tolerance for such pain surged when faced with the threat of imminent death.

    However, it was already toote to begin running for their lives now.

    Situ Cang had thoroughly lost his mind as a result of his fallen cultivation level. His bloodlust roiled, and he was now reduced to nothing more than a killing machine. At this moment, the disciples thoroughly regretted their decision to follow the Grand Vizier in his pursuit of Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. If they had a choice right now, they would definitely choose to abandon this god of death behind and run as far away as possible. They would nevere close to him ever again.

    But, did they really have a way out of this predicament right now?

    In the end, each and every single one of the disciples found themselves lying helplessly on the ground within moments. Some were dead, while the others were heavily injured.

    Situ Cang had evidently found it too boring to simply kill all of these ¡°vermin¡± before him. Therefore, he decided to have a little bit of ¡°fun¡± with those who were still alive.

    The Dawn Sect disciples who were still alive found themselves experiencing what anyone would easily describe as a glimpse of hell. They witnessed the cruel deaths of their martial brothers. From their skin, to their flesh and innards, then to their bones ¨C these disciples were stripped offyer byyer, until they were finally reduced to nothing more than a puddle of bloody pulp.

    Before they died, they had even moaned in agony and anguish. Some of these disciples had even cast spiteful and odious gazes at Qin Lingyu.

    This was because Qin Lingyu was the one who had epted the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s task to begin with. If not for the fact that Qin Lingyu coveted the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s national treasures, would they find themselves even close to such a predicament right now?!

    Qin Lingyu naturally saw the hatred in his martial brothers¡¯ eyes. Yet he coughed up a few mouthfuls of blood and turned his pale face away to avoid their gazes.

    His own life was in danger right now! Where would he find the heart to care about what his martial brothers thought right now?

    Just then, a loud, piercing shriek rang out ¨C it was ady¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Lingyu! Lingyu, quick, save me! Lingyu!!!¡±

    As it turns out, it was none other than Zhong Run who had been travelling together with Qin Lingyu. Her injuries were hardly grievous at all, and she would have fully recovered with a few more hours of rest. Yet little did she know that she would lose her life to the frenzied Situ Cang right now.

    Faced with such a crisis, the only person that she could seek help from was that man whom she loved, Qin Lingyu.

    Regrettably, her cries for help had been in vain. Inch by inch, Situ Cang began to crush and grind up her bones and flesh in her body, causing her to wail and shriek in pain, anguish and despair.

    These shrieks were incredibly earsplitting. Perhaps this might have been what got on the frenzied Situ Cang¡¯s nerves as well, because within moments, he waved his hand, and Zhong Run¡¯s head immediately separated from his body.

    Her head fell onto the ground and rolled towards Qin Lingyu¡¯s ear. Her head was almost soaked entirely in crimson-red blood, and her eyes remained wide open as they seemed to lock eyes and re directly at Qin Lingyu!

    She had died with a remaining grievance!

    Qin Lingyu was so horrified right now that he began to climb backwards. Then, his hand bumped into another person.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Qin Lingyu yelled out in shock. He turned around in jitters as he looked towards who he had bumped into, and he was met with another pair of eyes that was filled with fear and dread.

    However, those were eyes that had not ckened yet ¨C they were still spirited and focused.

    It was Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes.

    After Zhong Run had perished, only two Dawn Sect disciples remained alive at those grounds ¨C Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Save me! Martial brother Qin, save me!¡± It was as though Yu Wanrou had managed to grip onto her final lifeline. She wept and wailed as she clung tightly to Qin Lingyu¡¯s arms. Tears and mucus ran all over her face, and her appearances were aplete mess. She was a far cry from the proud and seductivedy she had always appeared to be.

    Naturally, Qin Lingyu hardly had the heart to be concerned about Yu Wanrou¡¯s beauty at this moment either.

    Qin Lingyu had always been a cold and distant person. Given any normal day, he would already be reticent to put himself in harm¡¯s way to save a person whom he did not consider to be valuable or useful to him, much less in moments of crisis like this.

    And this was the case, even if that person had once been his ¡°true love¡±.

    Once Situ Cang killed off the rest of the disciples, he began to make his way over towards Qin Lingyu.

    In Situ Cang¡¯s eyes, there were only two more ¡°vermin¡± to exterminate.

    Qin Lingyu grabbed hold of Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist, and a bright gleam flickered across his eyes ¨C

    Once Situ Cang drew close enough, he nned to use Yu Wanrou as fodder to shield himself from Situ Cang.

    Yu Wanrou did not notice the surreptitious flicker in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. The anxiety and dread in her heart hadpletely inhibited her judgment. Right now, she had even thought that Qin Lingyu was grabbing onto her arm because he intended to protect her.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was moved. Her blood and tears were strewn all over her face right now, and her vision was blurry. Nevertheless, she anxiously muttered, ¡°Martial brother Qin, I¡¯ve got some spiritual water with me right now. It¡¯s highly effective in healing wounds and injuries. Hurry up and drink it. Once you do, there will be hope for our escape.¡±

    As Yu Wanrou spoke, she immediately retrieved a bottle of spirit spring waters from her Interspatial Ring.

    Earlier, she had been worried that others might grow suspicious if her injuries recovered too quickly. Thus, she had resisted the temptation of using these spirit spring waters. But given how the crisis had escted to where it was right now, she knew that she would never be able to escape from Situ Cang¡¯s grasp with her own abilities. Furthermore, Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions made her think that he still loved her. Therefore, she had revealed the trump card that she had hidden close to her heart.

    Qin Lingyu received the spirit spring waters immediately and hurriedly drank its entire contents. Then, a warm sensation immediately coursed through his meridians and Dantian and engulfed his entire body, and the pain experienced by his body rapidly subsided.

    This is excellent! Incredible!

    A bright glimmer flickered across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. That said, he still had not abandoned his n to use Yu Wanrou as a meat shield for his own escape.

    Then, Situ Cang¡¯s attack finally arrived. Qin Lingyu¡¯s hand tightened around Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist. Just as he was about to pull Yu Wanrou in front of her, a wave of immense sword intent ferociously extended horizontally between Qin Lingyu and Situ Cang, cutting off and interrupting Situ Cang¡¯s attack!

    In fact, this wave of sword intent was filled with such turbulent energy that it instantly knocked Situ Cang back!

 Chapter 157: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Care

    <h4>Chapter 157: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Care</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was not filled with tion even though he had just averted certain death. This was because he felt that the only people in this god-forsaken ce who could possibly restrain Situ Cang¡¯s attack with one move must be that little packrat¡¯s family members.

    Qin Lingyu had thought that old man Chi and his grandchildren had returned. Truth be told, falling to old man Chi was not far better than falling to Situ Cang. In fact, falling to Situ Cang might be quicker and cleaner.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu shuddered as he looked back into the sky where the attack hade from. Then when he finally saw who hade, his eyes were instantly filled with jubtion, and the earlier uneasiness in his heart had dissipatedpletely ¨C

    ¡°Martial uncle Jun!¡± Qin Lingyu called out to the man standing in the sky right now, worrying that his martial uncle had not noticed him.

    The man standing in the sky was indeed none other than Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei who had left the Sect and made their way to the Mystic Woods in order to search for their daughter, Jun Xiaomo. Within moments, they descended from the sky andnded, each in front of Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou, just in time to block Situ Cang¡¯s second wave of attacks.

    Situ Cang¡¯s cultivation had already fallen to the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage, while Jun Linxuan¡¯s cultivation was still at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage. Thus, thetter was able to block Situ Cang¡¯s attacks with hardly any effort.

    Qin Lingyu finally saw hope. He crawled on the floor and made his way to Jun Linxuan¡¯s side and grabbed onto the corner of Jun Linxuan¡¯s clothes as he pleaded, ¡°Martial uncle Jun, save me!¡±

    Jun Linxuan turned his head around, but his voice was icy cold and distant as he questioned, ¡°Where¡¯s Xiaomo?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions froze. His was immediately reminded of how he had just a little while ago been leading the other Dawn Sect disciples in their efforts to kill Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    As he suppressed these thoughts and rposed himself, Qin Lingyu pretended to look extremely sorrowful as he replied Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei, ¡°Martial sister Jun and martial brother Ye have been running from the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s Grand Vizier, Situ Cang. Regrettably, amidst all the chaos, we found ourselves separated from each other after some time...¡±

    Qin Lingyu could hardly be considered to be lying because Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had indeed vanished with the assistance of a Teleportation Scroll earlier. But Qin Lingyu had conveniently omitted one small detail from his report ¨C he had also formed part of Situ Cang¡¯s persecuting party.

    If not for Ke Xinwen¡¯s earlier letter ofint to the Sect¡¯s Elders, Jun Linxuan might have wholeheartedly bought Qin Lingyu¡¯s pretense right now. However, Qin Lingyu had undoubtedly also affixed his name and seal on the bottom of that letter ofint.

    No matter what, Qin Lingyu¡¯s words must be taken with a pinch of salt.

    Regardless, Jun Linxuan could hardly be bothered whether Qin Lingyu was truly sorrowful or putting on a show right now. He had managed to glean from Qin Lingyu¡¯s report that his daughter was still alive, and that was all he needed to know.

    In any event, he was not going to let the person who had hurt his daughter go off scot-free!

    The aura around Jun Linxuan¡¯s body surged instantly, and he directed his boundless pressure gushing towards Situ Cang. Situ Cang¡¯s body had not evene close to fully recovering from his earlier grievous injuries, and it was only because he had experienced a demonic upheaval that he had mbered up and begun to murder everyone around him. Furthermore, his cultivation level was two qualitative levels lower than Jun Linxuan¡¯s right now. Thus, under the immense oppression of Jun Linxuan¡¯s aura, Situ Cang¡¯s bones shattered once again, and he copsed back down onto the ground.

    Situ Cang¡¯s mouth sputtered and gurgled with blood, and he lifted his head in astonishment.

    Having been afflicted with yet another round of grievous injuries, Situ Cang had once again returned to his senses.

    On the other side, Jun Linxuan raised his sword and began to consolidate his roaring sword intent onto the surface of his sword ¨C

    His intention was to kill Situ Cang once and for all.

    Situ Cang¡¯s pupils constricted immediately as he yelled out, ¡°Fellow cultivator, why do you seek my life with such fervor?!¡±

    He had earlier been experiencing a demonic upheaval and lost all of his senses. Thus, he waspletely unaware of the contents of the earlier conversation between Jun Linxuan and Qin Lingyu.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s face grew more frigid, but he remained taciturn as he continued to consolidate the sword intent into his sword.

    Instead, it was Liu Qingmei who replied with incisiveness, ¡°When you decreed the death of our child and our disciple, have you ever considered the fact that we would do anything to get vengeance for them?!¡±

    Child...? Disciple...?

    Then, Situ Cang finally recalled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s identity ¨C she was the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster!

    Situ Cang¡¯s eyes widened in shock. Yet in that moment that realization dawned upon him, Jun Linxuan¡¯s attack also fell from the sky ¨C

    Hong! An earsplitting tremor rang out, and a cloud of dust and dirt instantly scattered into the air. Beginning from where Jun Linxuan stood, an enormous fissure extended towards Situ Cang¡¯s direction and into the distance.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart quivered thrice as a result of this incredible tremor.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s abilities seem to have risen again. Will master still be able to sessfully scheme against Jun Linxuan as things stand right now?

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was filled with unease.

    Once the dust began to settle again, the surrounding scenery began to clear up once more.

    ¡°Dead...is he dead?¡± Qin Lingyu looked towards where Situ Cang had been as he thought aloud.

    He should be dead, right? That was such a powerful strike! Qin Lingyu thought with tion and relief in his heart.

    Finally, once the dust had all settled, the depths of the fissure finally became visible to them. Yet Situ Cang¡¯s corpse could not be located within the heart of the fissure. There were only traces of his blood.

    Could Situ Cang have been so thoroughly obliterated that not even a corpse had been left behind? Qin Lingyu eximed to himself in astonishment.

    Jun Linxuan walked over to the traces of blood within the fissure. After observing that remnant puddle of blood, he snorted, ¡°Hmph. He¡¯s quick to escape!¡±

    In that split second that it took for Jun Linxuan¡¯s attack to reach him, Situ Cang had been able to retrieve an Escape Scroll and activate it, thereby barely escaping with his life.

    ¡°Hmph! With that kind of injury, he¡¯s not going to be able to live for long regardless.¡± Liu Qingmei remarked contemptuously. Then, she added to Jun Linxuan, ¡°Linxuan, let¡¯s make haste after Mo-Mo.¡±

    Jun Linxuan nodded his head. Then, just as he was about to step into the air and take off, Qin Lingyu scrambled over and flopped down on his knees in front of Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei as he pleaded wholeheartedly, ¡°Martial uncle Jun, I beg you to take us with you! With our condition right now, there¡¯s no way we will be able to leave these woods at all...¡±

    Liu Qingmei furrowed her brows as she nced over at Qin Lingyu. Qin Lingyu had abandoned his dignity, and he looked incredibly tragic. Her impression of this son-inw of hers was now at an all-time low.

    Truth be told, none of the disciples of Heavenly Peak would have abandoned their dignity so readily ¨C not even in the most hopeless and despondent of situations. Yet despite the recent upturn in their circumstances, Qin Lingyu had forgone his fighting spirit and resilience, and was even begging for mercy.

    If, in the past, Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen could be considered as equals among their contemporaries, this revtion as to the extent of their resilience would be the very difference that sets them worlds apart from each other.

    Nevertheless, Liu Qingmei knew that this was the person whom her daughter was fond of. Therefore, Liu Qingmei knew that she could not stand idly by as he perished before her eyes.

    ¡°Take these.¡± Liu Qingmei retrieved several bottles of recovery medicine and a scroll from her Interspatial Ring and tossed them over towards Qin Lingyu as he remained kneeling on the ground.

    Qin Lingyu anxiously received these items. However, he did not know what Liu Qingmei meant by this gesture of hers.

    Liu Qingmei exined, ¡°The only reason why we had made this trip out is to locate Xiaomo. You haven¡¯tpleted the Sect¡¯s mission, and your cultivation level hasn¡¯t even broken through to the Foundation Establishment level. Thus, there¡¯s no benefit in following us back right now. You might even find your cultivation being stuck at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery for many years toe. That scroll is a Teleportation Scroll. You can open it during an emergency, and it will automatically teleport you back to the Sect. There are also sufficient medicinal pills for the both of you to use for some time. With these, your life won¡¯t be in any danger in the near future. Alright, I¡¯ve said enough now. It¡¯s really up to you whether you still wish to follow us back.¡±

    As he held onto the items that Liu Qingmei had handed to him, his face turned a sickly green and a pale white.

    Liu Qingmei had exined everything with a calm and indifferent tone, as though she were expounding the truths of the world. Yet despite the fact that Liu Qingmei had not been mocking him, Qin Lingyu felt as though he had been verbally pped on the face time and again, and his face instantly burnt up with a hot, prickly sensation.

    Quite apart from the fact that only two people of their entire entourage had survived these travels, he had not even fulfilled the missions entrusted to them by the sect. Most importantly, his cultivation level was still stuck at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery.

    If he decided to follow Jun Linxuan and the rest back right now, there was a very high likelihood that he would no longer be able to hold his head up high among his martial brothers and sisters within the sect!

    Previously, Qin Lingyu had been so petrified by the series of unfortunate encounters that he had been unable to think straight. Now that Liu Qingmei had broken down the situation for him, and his rationality had begun to return, he was naturally unwilling to return to the Sect empty handed just like that. At least, not with that prideful, ambitious personality of his.

    He drew a deep breath, suppressed the roiling emotions in his heart, and he looked straight back at Liu Qingmei as he made up his mind, ¡°I understand. Junior thanks martial aunt.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you understand. At least you¡¯ve got some backbone. Otherwise, I would be truly reticent to entrust Mo-Mo to you.¡± Liu Qingmei remarked bluntly.

    In other words, the earlier Qin Lingyu had no backbone at all ¨C just like a pitiful little worm!

    Qin Lingyu hung his head low, hiding his expressions that were filled with shame and indignation.

    As expected, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mother is just as hateful as she is!

    Liu Qingmei nced nonchntly at Qin Lingyu again as she furrowed her brows. Nevertheless, she held her tongue and remained taciturn. There was no need to say anymore. She turned back towards Jun Linxuan and caught up with him as they took their leave together.

    Qin Lingyu watched their backs with a sullen expression on his face as they slowly departed from his line of sight.

    All this while, Yu Wanrou had remained absolutely silent. Truth be told, she had been hoping from the bottom of her heart that Qin Lingyu would not choose to follow Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei. Even though leaving with them right now would guarantee their safety, Yu Wanrou just couldn¡¯t find it within herself to look beyond their identity.

    Those two people were none other than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents!

    Whenever Qin Lingyu had sought something from Jun Xiaomo in the past and thus curried favor with Jun Xiaomo, Yu Wanrou would invariably find her heart stirring with tremendous, stifling jealousy.

    She hated it all. She hated how she was not as fortunate as Jun Xiaomo to have been born into a position of stature, where she could simply ask and instantly receive a shower of countless blessings.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou despised Jun Xiaomo¡¯s naivete and simplemindedness. If she could just swap identities with Jun Xiaomo, she was certain that she would be able to securely win over Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. Yu Wanrou would never have let things fall into such a state where she would have to rely on her parents¡¯ efforts to secure a man¡¯s promise.

    Besides, all Jun Xiaomo had managed to secure was nothing more than a false promise.

    But now that Qin Lingyu had decided not to depart with Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei, Yu Wanrou heaved a huge sigh of relief in her heart.

    Then, when she turned her thoughts to how Qin Lingyu had protected her earlier during their confrontation with Situ Cang, Yu Wanrou found herself slightly moved.

    Qin Lingyu still cares for me! Yu Wanrou eximed in her heart.

    She bit down onto her lower lip and tugged at Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeve as she softly muttered, ¡°Lingyu, it¡¯s alright. I¡¯ve still got quite a bit of the spirit waters that I had given to you earlier. You¡¯ll definitely be able to recover quickly. We can turn back to the Sect¡¯s missions once you have fully recovered again!¡±

    A bright gleam instantly shed across Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes!

    He forcibly suppressed the surging emotions in his heart as he replied to Yu Wanrou with a calm, peaceful voice, ¡°Did you say that...you still have some of that spirit water with you?¡±

    He had earlier consumed approximately half a bottle of spirit water, and he could already tell for himself that these waters possessed incredibly strong recovery abilities. After all, it had only taken half an incense of time for his body to recover so substantially.

    More importantly, these spirit spring waters even possessed the ability to restore one¡¯s Dantian and meridians, and its effects were better than some high-grade Energy Recovery Pills!

    Who would have known that there would be such incredible treasures hidden in Yu Wanrou¡¯s Interspatial Ring?

    Thousands of contemtions and calctions ran through Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart right now, but he maintained apletely cool andposed look on his face as he continued to smile gently at Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou lowered her head bashfully as she responded affirmatively with a soft, ¡°Mm.¡±

    It had to be said that Yu Wanrou¡¯s entire body was covered in blood, her hair waspletely disheveled, and her face was covered in streaks of red and ck from all the blood and dirt. With her looks in such a mess, no matter how much she tried to look pitiful and bashful, it hardly did a thing to stir the sympathy in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart.

    But all these things mattered not to Qin Lingyu. To him, it sufficed that what Yu Wanrou possessed was valuable.

    Thus, his expressions softened, and he pulled Yu Wanrou into a warm, tender embrace as he whispered, ¡°Fortunately, you¡¯re still by my side...¡±

    This simple gesture from Qin Lingyu touched Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart even more, and her emotions began to stir from the bottom of her heart. At the same time, she began to think about their blissful prospects together.

    So what if Jun Xiaomo had that huge mountain of backing behind her? I¡¯ve got my spectral demine! I¡¯ve got my spirit spring! It¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before I trample you underfoot, Jun Xiaomo!

 Chapter 158: A Rare, Peaceful Day

    <h4>Chapter 158: A Rare, Peaceful Day</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou were locked in a deeply emotional embrace, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had already embarked on their search for the Basilisk Fruits.

    That said, the Basilisk Fruits were truly hard toe by. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had spent three whole days before they had managed to find a single Basilisk Fruit. Furthermore, it was not umon to hear of vicious spirit beasts appearing beside the Basilisk Fruits. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had encountered one such vicious spirit beast when the found their first Basilisk Fruit. Thus, they had no choice but to spend considerable effort oveing that strange-looking spirit beast. After they had defeated that spirit beast, they even found a small core within the spirit beast¡¯s body.

    Spirit beasts with cores were minimally mid-tier, fifth-grade spirit beasts. If Ye Xiuwen had been alone, the fight would almost certainly have gone much worse for Ye Xiuwen. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo had been by his side. She possessed several powerful talismans in her Interspatial Ring, it was with the use of some of these talismans that they had managed to ovee that spirit beast with fairly light injuries.

    Thus, they began to grill the spirit beast¡¯s meat for dinner that night.

    ¡°Although this spirit beast looks weird, its taste is still pretty good, huh. Its meat is pretty fragrant and tender.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she critiqued the food.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Ye Xiuwen softly responded. Even though they were in the woods right now, Ye Xiuwen never failed to carry himself in a dignified and elegant manner.

    His gaze swept past the flickering mes andnded on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was wholeheartedly focused on grilling meat, and she did not notice Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze.

    Ye Xiuwen began to ruminate on all of the little interactions that he had had with his little martial sister ¨C not just with Jun Xiaomo, but also with Yao Mo.

    His first impression of his little martial sister from ages ago had already faded deep into the back of his mind. In its ce was now a much fresher and livelier image of his little martial sister.

    Even if he closed his eyes now, he would be able to picture with pristine rity the image of his little martial sister¡¯s appearances, replete with that bright, radiant smile of hers.

    Pure, spirited and beautiful ¨C she possessed a contagious happiness that spreads joy to others wherever she went.

    He knew that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ce in his heart had only grown deeper and stronger as the days went by. Yet Ye Xiuwen had never paused to contemte what the increasing gravity of her importance meant to him.

    He neither dared to nor was he willing to delve into such things.

    Ye Xiuwen thoroughly enjoyed their present interactions which were not bound by any shackles or rules. At the same time, he was afraid that they would no longer be able to return to such blissful interactions once he had broken the tacit silence on the exact definition of their rtionship right now.

    Let it be. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself. His pupils grew sullen for a moment, but they recovered very quickly.

    ¡°Martial brother, you were distracted for a moment earlier.¡± Jun Xiaomo turned her attention to Ye Xiuwen and puffed up her cheeks as she remarked.

    ¡°Is that right? Sorry about that. I was just thinking about some things.¡± Ye Xiuwen revealed a warm and embarrassed smile as he apologized.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to apologize. It¡¯s not like we¡¯re strangers anyway. But...I¡¯m curious as to what martial brother was thinking of that made you look so listless?¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked her eyes curiously as though her eyes were yelling at Ye Xiuwen ¨C Say it, say it! This busybody demands to know!

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s warm and genial smile was nowced with aplicated expression. But in the darkness of the night, and with the dim glow of the firece, the trace amount of these expressions was hardly apparent at all.

    Ye Xiuwen thought about it, and then he found an excuse for himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much, really. I was just thinking that my cultivation seems to be showing signs of a breakthrough.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly stated.

    ¡°Really?! That¡¯s excellent! Once martial brother breaks through the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, you will be at the Foundation establishment stage of cultivation!¡± Jun Xiaomo cheered.

    The purposes of these travels, apart from thepletion of the Sect¡¯s missions, was to achieve a breakthrough in cultivation and attain the Foundation establishment stage of cultivation. It could even be said that having a breakthrough was far more important thanpleting the Sect¡¯s tasks.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, we will have to prepare some things, such as the appropriate defensive formation arrays and the like. Let me think about it for a moment.¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved her talisman brush and some nk sheets of paper as she began to write on them.

    Breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation carried with it some risks ¨C at least much more than simple breakthroughs within the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation. Breaking through to the Foundation Establishment was a process that entailed immense qualitative changes to the body. Ideally, one would hope to have some medical pills within reach so that they could control and smoothen the surge of spiritual energy within one¡¯s body. At the same time, it was also a necessity to find a safe and quiet ce so that one could wholeheartedly focus on his breakthrough.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen had already prepared most of these things prior to leaving the sect. He was even carrying with him two Foundation Establishment Pills within his Interspatial Ring which had been given to him by Jun Linxuan before he left the Sect.

    It was not in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s character toe unprepared after all.

    However, seeing how Jun Xiaomo was so eagerly making all these preparations for himself, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t bring himself to interrupt her train of thoughts.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo continued to write, while he waited patiently and silently at the side as he watched her. At this moment, even Ye Xiuwen was unaware how soft and gentle his gaze had be.

    ¡°Martial brother, look! What do you think of this?¡± Jun Xiaomo handed the sheet of paper to Ye Xiuwen as though she were presenting him with a precious treasure.

    Ye Xiuwen graciously received that sheet of paper. He had initially thought that this littledy¡¯s written ns would likely have been all over the ce, given how she had never delved into matters of Foundation Establishment to begin with.

    Regardless of how bad it was, he was prepared to praise Jun Xiaomo¡¯s preparation for him, because they hade from a ce of good intentions.

    But when he finally read through everything that Jun Xiaomo had written, Ye Xiuwen had to sincerely admit that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s understanding of the Foundation Establishment process was hardly any lower than his. The list of resources set out by Jun Xiaomo in that sheet of paper was extremely thorough andplete.

    ¡°It¡¯s very well written. Thanks, Xiaomo.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed up her cheeks slightly in embarrassment. As she did so, she inadvertently rubbed some ink onto her cheeks. Her originally jade-white cheeks had momentarily be stained with streaks of ck ink.

    The smile on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips crept further up his face. He stretched out his hand and helped Jun Xiaomo wipe off the ink-stains on her cheek.

    Within moments, Jun Xiaomo felt a hot, burning sensation sweep across her cheeks, especially where Ye Xiuwen had touched her face. She reflexively broke eye contact with Ye Xiuwen and turned her gaze elsewhere.

    Her gaze shifted to that piece of paper Ye Xiuwen was holding in his hands.

    ¡°Eh? Is there something else between those sheets of paper?¡± Jun Xiaomo was slightly stunned when she noticed an additional corner sticking out at the bottom of that sheet of paper.

    Following Jun Xiaomo¡¯s line of sight, Ye Xiuwen also discovered the anomaly on that sheet of paper he was holding. He pulled out that anomalous piece of paper between the sheets, and he noticed that there wereplex scribbles on this sheet of paper.

    ¡°Ah, seems like when I pulled out these sheets of nk paper, something else got stuck in between...¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured to herself.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Ye Xiuwen skimmed through the contents of the scribbles on that sheet of paper and discovered that it was a prescription for the refinement of a pill. Theplex scribbles on it had all been names of medicines, spirit herbs and the like.

    There were even some medical elements that Ye Xiuwen was rather familiar with.

    ckmoon Grass, Blisterfruit, Illusory Flower...

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heartstrings trembled, and he had the answer at the tip of his tongue ¨C

    As expected, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s answer confirmed his suspicions, ¡°This is the prescription for the medicine to cure martial brother¡¯s scar! We¡¯ve been through a lottely, but the silver lining to all of that is that we¡¯ve somehow managed to secure the rarest medicinal elements on this list. Therefore, once we leave this ce, we will be able to find a pillmaster to refine the medicine for martial brother!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes curled up joyously as she spoke. Evidently, she had longed with anticipation to see the day when Ye Xiuwen¡¯s scar would be cured and removed.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed lightly in exasperation as he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair again andmented, ¡°I never thought that Xiaomo would mind the scar on my face more than I did.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mind the scar at all!¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously exined, fearing that Ye Xiuwen would misunderstand her, ¡°I only don¡¯t want others to look at martial brother with peculiar gazes any longer!¡± As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was even filled with a trace of indignation, as though she were outraged by the injustice caused against her martial brother.

    Ye Xiuwen was moved by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. He tenderly flicked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he refuted, ¡°Then what are you being so anxious for? Martial brother isn¡¯t even ming you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed the part of her head that had been flicked by Ye Xiuwen as she mumbled softly, ¡°I didn¡¯t want martial brother to misunderstand me...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had been particrly cautious because in her previous life, Ye Xiuwen had always been incredibly sensitive about his scar.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze softened once again as he calmly stated, ¡°I understand.¡±

    It was true. He understood full well that Jun Xiaomo had never minded the scar on his face. He knew that Jun Xiaomo had never looked at him peculiarly just because of the scar on his face.

    Most importantly, it must have precisely been because he understood and was convicted of all these things that Jun Xiaomo would slowly creep closer and closer to the center of his heart...right?

    ---------------------------------------------------

    On the second day, Jun Xiaomo found herself leaning on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder as she roused from her slumber. If anyone else were around, they might perhaps have pointed out that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were behaving far too intimately. However, Jun Xiaomo did not think so. After all, she had already grown used to such intimacy with Ye Xiuwen ever since her interactions with him as Yao Mo.

    Sometimes, habits were an incredibly powerful force.

    Ye Xiuwen had awakened much earlier than Jun Xiaomo. However, he consciously decided not to wake Jun Xiaomo up, and had even allowed her to continue resting on his shoulder.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm had already grown numb by the time Jun Xiaomo woke up.

    ¡°Martial brother, why didn¡¯t you wake me up?¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her eyes and yawned loudly as she asked.

    ¡°You must have been too tired from writing all those thingsst night. Therefore, I decided to let you sleep in.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined.

    Apart from preparing the things for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage, she had even made a copy of the prescription for curing the scar on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face and handed it to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°This is just in case we lose either copy of it.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined as she folded up the copy of the prescription seriously and handed it to Ye Xiuwen.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s adult-like behaviour, Ye Xiuwen beamed and chuckled lightly as he epted her kind little gesture.

    Therefore, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t bring himself to wake Jun Xiaomo up this morning.

    ¡°We¡¯ve still got nine Basilisk Fruits to harvest. I hope I haven¡¯t dyed our progress too much by oversleeping.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured remorsefully.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. These few hours don¡¯t matter that much. Besides, it¡¯s only when our minds are rested that we would have the spirit to deal with any exigencies, am I not right?¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he consoled her.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Then, let¡¯s have some food before we set out on our journey, then.¡± As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she retrieved two red fruits from her Interspatial Ring and handed one to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. He had never recalled having something like this fruit before.

    ¡°I saw these fruits on a tree a few days ago, so I took the liberty to pluck some for us. I¡¯ve eaten these fruits before. They¡¯re high-energy fruits, and they taste rather sweet. It¡¯s perfect for our breakfast.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she exined.

    With that, Ye Xiuwen bit into one for a taste. The sweet juices of the fruit immediately coursed through his mouth and flowed down his throat.

    ¡°Outstanding, Xiaomo! You¡¯re really knowledgeable!¡± Ye Xiuwen praised.

    ¡°Of course!¡± Jun Xiaomo proudly lifted her chin, while aplicated gaze flickered across her eyes.

    The truth of the matter was that this was all gleaned from her previous life¡¯s experience.

    Forget it. There¡¯s no point thinking too much about the past anymore. In this life, my parents and martial brother Ye are all living and well, while the martial brothers and sisters of the Heavenly Peak are still safely at the Sect. Furthermore, the demonic energy in my body hasn¡¯t been discovered by anyone yet.

    No matter how she thought about it, her fate seemed to have taken a turn for the better.

    It¡¯s going well...right?

    Jun Xiaomo consoled herself. Yet for some strange reason, a sense of uneasiness seemed to be niggling at her from the bottom of her heart.

 Chapter 159: A Vulgar Young Lady

    <h4>Chapter 159: A Vulgar Young Lady</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Two more days passed. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had finally managed to locate their second Basilisk Fruit. The second Basilisk Fruit was located near the edge of a crevice. And the crevice was a steep drop into what seemed like a bottomless abyss.

    The crevice had appeared out of nowhere within the Mystic Woods. It was as though a Transcendent cultivator had cleaved the Mystic Woods into two with his sword, dividing the eastern and western parts of the Mystic Woods with a massive fissure. The ends of this fissure were too far away to be seen with the naked eye, and the gap between the two sides were of the width of several arms¡¯ length. If a person stood at the edge of this precipice and looked down, he would be able to see nothing more than roiling mist, as though he were standing at the edge of a bottomless abyss.

    ¡°Martial brother, this ce gives me the creeps. Should we pick the Basilisk Fruit from elsewhere?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked up to Ye Xiuwen and clutched anxiously at his arm.

    Most importantly, this crevice was incredibly long and deep. If a person identally fell into it, getting out would be an almost insurmountable task.

    Besides, who knew what lurked at the depths of this crevice?

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. He did not get the same chilling feeling that Jun Xiaomo got from this ce. Conversely, he found that this ce was rich in spiritual energy. It was almost as though there was roiling, thick spiritual energy that was flowing out of the crevice and onto the surrounding Mystic Woods.

    After deliberating for a moment, Ye Xiuwen still decided against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.

    ¡°Xiaomo, the Basilisk Fruit isn¡¯t easy to find. We won¡¯t know when we will be able to find the next one if we missed out on this one. I still think we should give this a shot. Furthermore, it¡¯s not as though the Basilisk Fruit were growing on the walls of the crevice; it¡¯s just located near the edge of the crevice.¡± Ye Xiuwen refuted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s concern with his logical reasoning.

    ¡°But...¡± Jun Xiaomo began her refutation once more.

    ¡°I¡¯ve still got some of the talismans Xiaomo has given me in my Interspatial Ring. It¡¯s fine. Wait here for me.¡± Ye Xiuwen rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair as he cut her off with a peremptory tone of voice. He had evidently already decided the matter in his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that anything else she said would simply fall on deaf ears. Thus, she bit down on her lower lips as she murmured to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Then, martial brother, please be careful.¡±

    Herbat abilities were far from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities. Thus, their arrangement had always been for Ye Xiuwen to pick the fruit while Jun Xiaomo stood a distance away, standing guard and observing their surroundings.

    Ye Xiuwen nodded, and his eyes were filled with warmth. Then, he turned around and began to make his way to the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine.

    The Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine grew along the floor of the Mystic Woods. Its leaves were shaped like a snake¡¯s head, and there were even scale-like patterns on it. It was precisely because it resembled a snake through and through that it hade to be known as the Basilisk Fruit. Some travelers who encountered the Basilisk Fruit after a particrly long and arduous journey might even end up being shocked by the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine, because the vine could easily be mistaken for countless snakes squirming out from the ground.

    Generally, a single Basilisk Fruit vine would only produce one Basilisk Fruit on it. This present vine was the same.

    As he made his way over to the Basilisk Fruit, Ye Xiuwen discovered that this Basilisk Fruit was different from the other Basilisk Fruit he had managed to harvest. It was even different from how Liu Qingmei had described a Basilisk Fruit.

    Before they set off, Liu Qingmei had carefully described the Basilisk Fruit to Ye Xiuwen so that he would be able to identify it without any issues. Over and above describing the shape and appearances of the Basilisk Fruit, she had even described where the Basilisk Fruits had moremonly been seen.

    If not for her assistance in this regard, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo might have even spent a far longer time before they could locate a single Basilisk Fruit.

    From Liu Qingmei¡¯s description of the Basilisk Fruit, its leaves would be a muddy, brown colour, while the fruit itself would be a pale, yellow colour. The leaves would possess a scale-like pattern on it, while the fruit itself would not.

    But the present Basilisk Fruit seemed to possess a few anomalies. Its leaves were a pale yellow colour, while the patterns on it were not obvious to the eye at all. At least, one would have to take a closer examination of it to notice the patterns on the leaves. Furthermore, the fruit was of a deep purple colour, and it had starkly visible scale-like patterns on it.

    This Basilisk Fruit itself looked more like a snake than its leaves.

    Nevertheless, Ye Xiuwen did not remain astonished for too long. He began to release his divine sense probing about him as his arm swiftly reached out and plucked off the Basilisk Fruit with one smooth motion.

    Suddenly, the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine came ¡°alive¡± and began to thrash around. Ye Xiuwen had already known this was going to happen from his experience with the first Basilisk Fruit that they had harvested. He quickly avoided the thrashing vines and threw out a Freezing Talisman.

    The Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine was incredibly resilient, and it was not afraid of fire or water. The only element that could subdue it was the element of ice.

    As expected, the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine ceased moving once the Freezing Talisman took effect.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anxious cry rang out from behind ¨C

    ¡°Martial brother, be careful!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s divine sense had also noticed the anomalous change in the surroundings. He whipped his body around, unsheathed his sword, and managed to block the attack from a monster that had just lurched towards him.

    That¡¯s right. It was a monster. This unidentifiable creature was farrger than any other spirit beast they had encountered in the Mystic Woods. Compared with Ye Xiuwen, its size was almost like a mountain, and it practically blocked Ye Xiuwen¡¯s view of the surroundings.

    ROAR! The massive creature bellowed. Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were nothing more than ants in its eyes.

    But these ants had the audacity to pick the Basilisk Fruit within its territory?! Unforgivable!

    The massive creature spat a ball of me at the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine, melting the ice around it within the blink of an eye. Thus, both the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine and the massive creature began to attack Ye Xiuwen at the same time. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reflexes were quick, he might already have ended up dead by the ws of the massive creature.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t stand idly by the side. She immediately joined the fray, standing back to back with Ye Xiuwen as they battled together.

    As Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen spent more and more time together, their tacit understanding and coordination with each other during battle also became stronger and stronger. When they first encountered dangerous situations together, Ye Xiuwen had habitually stood in front of Jun Xiaomo, protecting her. But after Jun Xiaomo had recklessly joined the fray on several asions, Ye Xiuwen grew to discover that she possessed her own ways of fighting effectively and oveing her cultivation level deficiencies. In this regard, even though the enemies they squared off against were invariably of a few levels higher than Jun Xiaomo, she had been able to skillfully and easily dispose of them with the aid of her talismans and formation arrays.

    Thus, as time went by, Ye Xiuwen began to recognize Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities in this regard, and the pressure on him to handle the skirmishes on his own had also dwindled substantially.

    This massive creature looked incredibly frightening because of its size. But it was also precisely because of its size that its movements were clumsy and inflexible. In its eyes, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were like ants that it was unable to crush no matter what it did. This was incredibly frustrating to the massive creature.

    On the other hand, the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine possessed a decent speed. However, Ye Xiuwen possessed a wind-based spiritual root, and his speed and nimbleness were higher than that of other cultivators at the same level as he was. Under the confluence of all these factors, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen hardly found themselves disadvantaged by the situation at all.

    Furthermore, they could even support and supplement each other by providing medicinal pills for the other.

    Finally, after battling for more than two hours, the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s vine found itself frozen in ce again by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s second application of a Freezing Talisman on it. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen summoned a powerful wind magic and sliced up the frozen Basilisk Fruit vine into pieces.

    The massive creature could hardly hold on as well. It possessed a basic level of spiritual awareness, and it had the ability to judge the situation. In such situations where it recognized its own defeat, all it had to do was to turn around and leave. However, it must have been so frustrated by the prospects of being defeated by two little vermin that it chose to detonate its Dantian instead.

    An incredible crackle resounded through the Mystic Woods, and Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen found themselves severely injured by the massive creature¡¯s self-detonation!

    ¡°Cough, cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo mmed onto the ground as blood began to sputter and gurgle from her mouth.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen cried out anxiously. His condition was not far better either. The impact from the massive creature¡¯s self-detonation had thoroughly riled up the spiritual energy within his body. The bottleneck at his peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery loosened even further.

    His body was already showing signs of breaking through!

    Nevertheless, breaking through under such conditions was incredibly dangerous. The most proper way to do things was to locate a safe ce, stabilize the spiritual energy within his body before working on breaching the bottleneck of his cultivation. These were precisely Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thoughts as well. He hastily consumed some recovery pills, before painstakingly making his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was lower than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level. Thus, her injuries were far worse than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injuries. She was not even able to stand up on her own right now.

    When he saw how Jun Xiaomoy in a puddle of her own blood on the ground, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes quivered with remorse as he berated himself.

    Just then, the sound of footsteps could be heard in the distance, and these steps were noticeably drawing nearer to them by the second. There were even sounds of chatter.

    ¡°I hear that these Mystic Woods have a massive fissure running through it called the ¡°Death¡¯s Gorge¡±. I wonder if we¡¯ll have the fortune of encountering this mythical ce here.¡± A youngdy¡¯s voice rang out from the distance. Due to the dense growth within the Mystic Woods, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were unable to identify the people who were approaching them.

    ¡°I think it might be better if cousin shelves this thought for now. With that kind of name, that ce must be incredibly peculiar. Who knows, it might even be fraught with hidden dangers.¡±

    Another male cultivator refuted. His voice also sounded pretty young.

    ¡°I personally think that such a ce might be worth considering. After all, the more dangerous a ce is, the greater the rewards. Furthermore, we¡¯re presently travelling eastwards from the west. It¡¯s only a matter of time that we will encounter this Death¡¯s Gorge.¡± Yet another male cultivator chimed in with a stern and solemn voice.

    ¡°See? Even brother Xu agrees with me!¡± The youngdy was evidently pleased that ¡°brother Xu¡± had approved of her suggestions.

    ¡°Hang on a moment! There¡¯s somebody over here!¡± The male cultivator with the stern and solemn voice alerted his otherpanions, and they slowed down their steps.

    They walked along gingerly and made another turn. Then, the two parties finally met. There was Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen on one side; while the other side had over ten people with them in their entourage.

    These people wore the same uniform. Evidently, they were from the same sect.

    Ye Xiuwen had just fed several recovery medicines to Jun Xiaomo, while Jun Xiaomoy in his embrace. Her teeth were tightly clenched together; her eyes were shut tight, and her face was incredibly pale.

    It was going to take several more incense sticks of time before she would be able to stand on her own again. Fortunately, even though her injuries looked incredibly serious, they were not life-threatening at all.

    Ye Xiuwen looked up to size up the people who had just entered his field of vision. He discovered that the strongest among them was a male disciple in his twenties, also at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery. Everyone else possessed decent cultivation levels as well, ranging from the ninth to the eleventh levels of Qi Mastery.

    All in all, this entourage of people possessed rather formidable strength.

    Given that he had not fully recovered from his injuries, Ye Xiuwen did not intend to sh with this group of people at all. More importantly, his intentions were to bring Jun Xiaomo with him to a safe ce so that he could break through his current bottleneck.

    That said, his deference to peace did not necessarily mean that the others thought the same way too.

    Just as he was about to lift Jun Xiaomo up, the youngdy in the other group spoke up ¨C

    ¡°Hey, ugly! You must be carrying a mutated Basilisk Fruit there, right? If you know what¡¯s good for you, then leave the fruit here, hmm?¡±

    The youngdy had obviously referred to Ye Xiuwen as ¡°ugly¡±. The tone in her voice was filled with evil and vicious intentions. It was a stark contrast with the soft, warm voice with which she had chatted with her ¡°brother Xu¡± earlier. It was almost as though they were two different people.

 Chapter 160: Built on the Lives of Others, the Du Clan

    <h4>Chapter 160: Built on the Lives of Others, the Du n</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    A mutated Basilisk Fruit? Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart shuddered. He finally understood why this Basilisk Fruit looked so different and special. In fact, he had attempted to store the mutated Basilisk Fruit into his Interspatial Ring during the battle earlier, but to no avail. This must also have been a by-product of the Basilisk Fruit¡¯s mutation.

    This was precisely why this group of people knew that Ye Xiuwen possessed a Basilisk Fruit right now.

    He clutched tightly at the Basilisk Fruit in his hands, and a trace of hesitation shed across his eyes.

    If he had been alone, he would have refused that youngdy¡¯s request without any hesitation. He would neverpromise, even if that meant fighting another arduous battle with the group of people before him.

    This was becausepromising and admitting defeat was not something that the disciples of the Heavenly Peak would ever do. Furthermore, thatdy was obviously humiliating him. How could he just take things lying down like that?!

    That said, he knew that his little martial sister had been severely injured and was relying solely on him right now. The consequences could potentially be disastrous if he chose to act recklessly.

    Just as his heart was deeply tangled by these deliberations of his, Jun Xiaomo, with her head still hung low, whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t give it to her.¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen lowered his head and looked at Jun Xiaomo lying in his bosom.

    ¡°Martial brother, don¡¯t give it to her.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head slowly as she locked eyes with Ye Xiuwen and repeated again.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen softly responded. At the same time, he retrieved an Escape Scroll from his Interspatial Ring and discreetly stuffed it into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom. This was his final Escape Scroll.

    When push came to shove, he had to at least be certain that his little martial sister would be able to get away from the fight safely.

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened and grew warm and moist. At the same time that she received the Escape Scroll, she also clutched tightly onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist.

    It might have been her willfulness or her headstrong personality, but when she heard that youngdy call Ye Xiuwen ¡°ugly¡±, her heart swelled with immense rage.

    A notion of tearing up that youngdy¡¯s vulgar lips immediately crossed her mind!

    Thedy on the other side didn¡¯t hear the contents of the conversation between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. She only saw Ye Xiuwen remain taciturn as he stood where he was. After some time, she could hardly hold herself back as she mocked, ¡°How about it? Is this decision really that difficult? I¡¯ll tell you the truth ¨C whether you¡¯re willing or not, you¡¯ll still have to cede that Basilisk Fruit to us either ways. If you know what I mean, then be good and hand it over right now. Otherwise, you might find a few more scars added to that already ugly face of yours.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened again ¨C this time with anger! Every statement by this vulgar youngdy had been targeted at the scar on her martial brother¡¯s face, and her final statement was thest straw that broke the camel¡¯s back!

    ¡°Martial brother, let me down, please.¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly stated.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m no longer in much difort.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms.

    She was telling the truth here. Ye Xiuwen had earlier fed her with several high-quality recovery pills. Thus, despite her rtively severe injuries, her recovery had been fairly quick.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the determination in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and he said no more as he slowly let Jun Xiaomo back down to her feet.

    Jun Xiaomo had always been nestling in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom earlier, so the other group had failed to see her appearances clearly. But now that she stood squarely before the entire group of disciples, her appearances immediately became clear for all to see.

    When that youngdy who had earlier been provoking Ye Xiuwen with her scathing remarks saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances, she could barely contain herself.

    She had initially thought that thedy in the arms of an ugly man could only be another ugly person. Who would have expected her appearances to be so pleasant... No, it was not just pleasant ¨C Jun Xiaomo was far more beautiful than thatdy herself!

    This viciousdy hated people who looked more beautiful than her.

    A trace of jealousy surged from the depths of her eyes, and that youngdy immediately retrieved a whip from her Interspatial Ring as a vicious thought crossed her mind ¨C It¡¯s fine. Thatdy¡¯s appearances are going to be ruined within a few moments.

    But when it came to hatred and contempt, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart possessed far more of these than that group of peoplebined. This was something that the other group waspletely unaware of.

    That¡¯s right, hatred and contempt. As soon as Jun Xiaomo saw with her own eyes the appearances of the other group of people, her heart not only roiled with profound contempt, an immense, incisive hatred also swelled up from the depths of her heart.

    This was because the disciples standing before her right now belonged to one of the eight great sects that had persecuted her in her previous life. They were the Du n! In particr, the viciousdy and that male cultivator standing beside her had been two of the main perpetrators who had caused her disfiguration in her previous life!

    This youngdy¡¯s name was Du Lianqin, while the male cultivator¡¯s name was Du Yongxu.

    Thedy must have been referring to Du Yongxu when she had called out ¡°brother Xu¡± earlier.

    Although Du Yongxu possessed a handsome and striking appearance, Jun Xiaomo was extremely clear that under those deceptive appearances of his was an incredibly ck heart which pumped vile, dirty blood throughout his body.

    In fact, Du Yongxu was not where the problemy ¨C it was the entire Du n.

    Despite the valor and dignity enjoyed by the so-called eight great sects, the truth of the matter was that each of these sects possessed several dark secrets of their own. Of these secrets that each of the eight great sects possessed, there was one pertaining to the Du n that was practically an open secret. At the very least, everyone within the eight great sects knew of this matter.

    The Du n thrived on human sacrifices.

    The main reason why the Du n¡¯s disciples generally possessed fairly strong and equal cultivation levels was a result of these human sacrifices. In the eyes of the Du n, these human sacrifices were existences that were akin to livestock and poultry ¨C they could be killed and harvested at any time they wished.

    The Du n would habitually pick out four to five years-old children from the mortal world who had an affinity or talent for cultivation and groom them to be their own human sacrifices. They would use the pretext of epting disciples to pick out these children, and they would even invest a considerable amount of spiritual pills and medicine on these children to elevate their cultivation levels.

    These ignorant and muddleheaded children would invariably rejoice and celebrate at finally having taken the first step onto the path of cultivation and immortality. Yet what they were unaware was the fact that they had just taken the first step onto the path of certain doom.

    The day that these children realized their cultivation potential would also be the day that Death knocked on their door.

    When that time came, the Du n would toss these children into a massive formation array and activate it. Thus, they would refine the spiritual energy within these children and transfer them onto the bodies of the Du n disciples.

    The transference of spiritual energy was an incredibly painful and arduous process. But once the formation array had been activated, the fate of these human sacrifices would be sealed ¨C there was no way of escape from within. The formation array would slowly but surely drain out all the spiritual energies from these children, until each and every one of them had finally withered uppletely.

    Thisrgely ounted for why the Du n¡¯s disciples invariably possessed fairly high cultivation levels.

    In other words, it can be said that the Du n¡¯s empire of sess had been built on a foundation of souls and bones of young men and women.

    Viewed in this light, it was therefore hardly a surprise that these Du n members would immediately think of robbing Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen given that there were only two of them. After all, each and every single person within the Du n, from top to toe, possessed a tainted heart. How could there possibly be room for the existence of a pure and kind-hearted disciple? Jun Xiaomo nced over at the group of Du n disciples with a contemptuous and disgusted gaze, as though she had just seen something dirty.

    Du Lianqin was outraged by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze. She raised her voice and yelled, ¡°What are you looking at?! If you continue to re at us like that, I¡¯m going to gouge out your eyeballs right here, right now!¡±

    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m just looking at how the Du n disciples of the eight great sects are so vile and vicious!¡± Jun Xiaomo rebuked bluntly.

    ¡°You!!!¡± Du Lianqin would never have expected Jun Xiaomo to guess their identity with just one nce. Her heart immediately began to thump with unease.

    Could it be that they also belong to another n within the eight great sects? It can¡¯t be, right? If they were part of the eight great sects, why would they look like they¡¯re in such a tragic state right now?

    Although the eight great sects were fraught with their discreet strife and pursuits for power, they had to maintain a clean and pristine appearance on the surface. After all, the overall strength of each of these eight great sects were about the same. If any two sects ended up having an internal strife or conflict among themselves, the parties benefitting from such strife would almost certainly be the other sects.

    Thus, there was an unwritten rule that these sects would adhere to, particrly when they sent their disciples out of the sect on travels ¨C as long as they encountered someone else from within the eight great sects, they would do their best to avoid conflict with each other so as to prevent any potential esction of the matter to an inter-sect conflict.

    Standing beside Du Lianqin, Du Yongxu had also thought about this. He squinted his eyes as he sized up Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. Then, he nevertheless decided to err on the side of caution as he made a fist and palm salute and asked, ¡°Dare I ask which sect these two fellow cultivators hail from?¡±

    Although he had made a fist and palm salute as he asked his question, the facial expression on his face revealed a look of disgust ¨C he meant no politeness or respect at all.

    Jun Xiaomo was thoroughly annoyed seeing this. She picked up a bunch of her hair and curled it around her fingers as she smirked, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know?¡±

    After a protracted pause ¨C

    ¡°I¡¯m not telling you. You can guess for yourselves.¡±

    This was the first time that Du Yongxu¡¯s face felt as though it had been thoroughly stripped off his face and trampled upon. A glimmer of indignation immediately surged from the depths of his eyes.

    Du Lianqin found this youngdy before her incredibly vile and upsetting. How could she treat her dear brother Xu with such disrespect? Thus, she gnashed her teeth as she bellowed with indignation, ¡°How dare you treat our kindness with such disrespect?! You¡¯re asking for it!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Kindness? I¡¯ve never seen any kindness from you people so far. From the outset, you had aggressively requested my martial brother to hand over the mutated Basilisk Fruit to you, and you¡¯ve even called my martial brother ¡®ugly¡¯. If you think that all of this is ¡®kindness¡¯, then let me extend a portion of this ¡®kindness¡¯ right back to you ¨C martial brother¡¯s face is only like this because of an injury since childhood. This is something that is out of his control. Compared with martial brother, the Du n are the ones who are truly ugly and possess a vile heart ¨C even your blood must be ck! I mean, how many innocent young lives do you think each of you have taken so far?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Du Lianqin was thoroughly enraged right now, ¡°I can¡¯t be bothered where you¡¯vee from anymore. Since you dare to humiliate our n, you¡¯d best be prepared to die! So what if you¡¯re part of the eight great sects? Even if the two of you perish here today, we can cover our tracks so well that no one will even be able to find your corpse!¡±

    As she finished speaking, Du Lianqin made her move against Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Hmph. Humiliate the Du n? I¡¯m only stating facts here!¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly refuted as she promptly retrieved several talismans from her Interspatial Ring.

    If Jun Xiaomo had not been afraid of even Situ Cang to begin with, how would she be fazed by these greenhorns from the Du n?

    Ye Xiuwen did not immediately move to protect Jun Xiaomo because he could see what kind of cultivation that female cultivator possessed. She was only of the ninth level of Qi Mastery. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo possessed formidable talismans that more than made up for her cultivation level deficiencies. There was no way that Du Lianqin would be able to ovee Jun Xiaomo.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was being vignt of the others standing behind Du Lianqin right now.

    Momentster, Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes gleamed coldly when he noticed how Jun Xiaomo was battling on equal grounds despite her injuries.

    Thus, Du Yongxu coldly ¡°responded¡± to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Fellow cultivators, you leave us no choice with your stubbornness. You alleged that the Du n has killed several innocent people. Then let me expound some greater truths to you ¨C this cultivation world has always been one ruled by the strong and the strong only. Those people¡¯s existences are not worth anyone¡¯s considerations at all. The weak will always be abandoned by their fate!¡±

    As he finished speaking, he signaled to his martial brothers and charged towards Ye Xiuwen and the rest.

    Du Yongxu had already hardened his heart ¨C he was going to kill and rob these people!

 Chapter 161: Tragedy at the Death Gorge

    <h4>Chapter 161: Tragedy at the Death Gorge</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Du Yongxu had thought of robbing and killing Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen because the way they dressed had caught his eye.

    They looked different from usual cultivators. Sect disciples fromrge and reputable sects were invariably extremely particr about the way they dressed. Some would don themselves with clothing and essories that would boost their offensive or defensive abilities, while others would ensure their clothing and essories would possess elemental affiliations thatplemented their own.

    Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen looked extremely haggard as a result of their earlier battles. Notwithstanding that, it was obvious that their clothing and essories were not things that weremonly seen.

    In particr, Jun Xiaomo was even wearing the earrings and the little jade ornament that were gifted to her by Rong Ruihan and old man Chi respectively. Both of these items had been imbued with a portion of their previous owner¡¯s power, and the faint traces of energy seeping out each of these items were extremely tantalizing and alluring.

    Naturally, Jun Xiaomo was unable to detect these faint traces of energy seeping out of her possessions because her cultivation level was still too low. She did not possess sufficient spiritual sensitivity yet. In fact, only Du Yongxu among everyone from the Du n present possessed sufficient sensitivity to notice this.

    But it was precisely because he had sensed the energy emanating from these ornaments on Jun Xiaomo that the greed and avarice in his eyes were overflowing right now.

    As he engaged with Ye Xiuwen inbat, a part of his mind was slightly distracted as he examined and analyzed the ornaments on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. The more he looked at it, the more exquisite these items were ¨C

    That piece of jade ornament looks exactly like the rare and coveted Firescale Jade that had appeared in the Gozo Kingdom¡¯s auction years ago. It possesses the ability to augment fire-based spells as well as directly increase the offensive abilities of cultivators with fire-affiliated spiritual roots.

    And that ring looks exactly like something crafted by the grandmaster craftsman Yun Boyang. It even carries that grandmaster¡¯s signature inscriptions on it. No wonder it looks so familiar...I¡¯ve got one as well.

    And then there¡¯s that hairpin of hers. Even though it looks like it''s not affiliated with any elements, but one look and you¡¯ll know that it¡¯s a high-quality artefact. I¡¯m pretty sure there would be something special about that hairpin...

    In fact, these items were all artefacts that Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had obtained from their travels to the distantnds around the world. Furthermore, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had adorned Jun Xiaomo with these artefacts ever since the day she was born as a token of their blessings upon her. How could Jun Xiaomo have known that someone would covet these precious gifts one day?

    It had to be said that the Du n disciples had never been taught the concept of values or principles. In their eyes, the means mattered not as long as the ends could be achieved. After all, they firmly believed that the strong ruled the world, and that everything was all about survival of the fittest. Those who were killed or hurt could only me themselves for not being talented or gifted enough. If a person was weak, then he could only resign to his fate ofpromise or death.

    It was precisely because of such an upbringing that Du Yongxu did not think that there was anything wrong with coveting Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s possessions. As a result of such a mindset, they had even killed and robbed several cultivators on these travels of theirs.

    These Du n disciples had been given the exact same mission of harvesting and collecting Basilisk Fruits by their sect as well. This was why they had immediately noticed and clung onto the notion of snatching the Basilisk Fruit from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands from the outset.

    Furthermore, this was even a mutated Basilisk Fruit. It was an incredibly rare urrence.

    Du Yongxu had initially thought that it was going to be incredibly easy to kill Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. After all, he could tell that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level was exactly the same as his, at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, while Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was only at the third level of Qi Mastery. She was at the level of trash among all trash.

    That¡¯s right. To cultivators, being at the third level of Qi Mastery at the age of sixteen years-old was a rarely seen ¡°trash¡±.

    s, I guess she can only ept what she can get. Du Yongxu mocked in his heart. He suspected that the only reason why Jun Xiaomo hung around that disfigured man was due to the fact that her cultivation level was simply too low.

    But these were only his thoughts at the outset. As time wore on, Du Yongxu¡¯s heart grew increasingly anxious ¨C even though these two people looked extremely weak, and they were even injured to different extents, they had managed to hold their own against the Du n¡¯s relentless attacks. At the very least, they were not on their backfoot.

    Even if they ignored the cultivator at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, the cultivator whom they thought to be nothing more than trash was calmly and nimbly dealing with their attacks without any slip ups right now.

    That¡¯s right. Calmly. In Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo could even be considered too calm right now. If any other cultivator in their teens had locked inbat with people who possessed cultivation levels that were several tiers higher than him, it would already be a miracle if he could hang on in the fight, much less deal with the fight in such a calm andposed manner.

    Therefore, it was an incredible feat that this female cultivator waspletely calm and collected as she fought. Such a disposition was not something that wasmensurate with a youngdy of her age.

    Furthermore, her use of talismans was unbelievably urate. Every talisman she tossed out would urately hit the spot she was aiming for and achieve her desired effects. She had on asion even used several talismans together, creating a mid-tier offensive formation array in the midst ofbat!

    Could thisdy be a talisman master and an array master?

    Du Yongxu concluded that he must have roughly grasped the truth of the matter ¨C No wonder her cultivation level is so low.

    Generally speaking, the cultivation level of talisman masters and array masters were usually far lower than that of normal cultivators because they spent too much of their time delving into matters of formation arrays and talismans.

    At this moment, Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly as he gestured to his otherpanions.

    Since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level was higher, they had initially intended to deal with Ye Xiuwen first. However, after assessing the situation, Du Yongxu had now decided to change their approach and get rid of Jun Xiaomo first.

    It wasmon knowledge that one should always deal with a talisman master first inbat. This was because the talisman master invariably yed a supporting and augmenting role in any team of cultivators, and they would each possess far lower offensive abilities individually. If one got rid of the talisman master first, then thebat prowess of that talisman master¡¯s team would naturally fall substantially.

    As soon as the Du n¡¯s target shifted from Ye Xiuwen to Jun Xiaomo, she instantly noticed the increase inbat pressure on her. Yet she remained as stoic as ever, while Ye Xiuwen was the one who couldn¡¯t help but furrowed his brows in anxiety.

    Ye Xiuwen knew what the Du n was thinking, and he was worried for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s safety.

    ¡°Martial brother, I¡¯m fine! You focus on those at hand...¡± Jun Xiaomo shouted at Ye Xiuwen amidst her battle.

    Although he still worried for Jun Xiaomo in his heart, Ye Xiuwen nevertheless decided to shelf any thoughts of rushing over to her side for now. It was important to avoid getting distracted during a fight. He knew that there was no guarantee that he would be able to help Jun Xiaomo break free of the Du n¡¯s encirclement even if he had rushed over. On the other hand, there was even a reasonable prospect of disrupting herbat rhythm if he appeared before her right now.

    Ye Xiuwen believed in Jun Xiaomo just as Jun Xiaomo believed in him. This was the tacit understanding that they had developed over their countless battles together.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen began to each fend off wave after wave of attacks from the Du n disciples.

    Over time, the Du n disciples found that wounds and injuries began to appear on each of their bodies. All in all, the total number of wounds on their bodies right now were far more than the number sustained by Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    But this was to be expected. The Du n had always been the aggressors who possessed strength in numbers, and they always had the option of retreat avable to them. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were the Du n¡¯s ¡°prey¡±, and they knew that failure would only mean death.

    With the threat of death looming over their head, almost anyone caught in such a situation would find themselves able to draw out and tap on the hidden potentials within their bodies to extricate themselves from such danger. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were no exception to this.

    However, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present condition was hardly optimistic at all. Before the battle began, his cultivation level had already been on the brink of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment level. This battle had served to push him beyond that tipping point, and the spiritual energy within his body was ready to breakthrough to the next level.

    As the spiritual energy within his body became increasingly chaotic, the risks of him imploding and dying gradually increased.

    Once the process of breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment level had begun, it could no longer be stopped. If one forcibly stopped it, he would almost certainly have his cultivation level crippled entirely. There was even a risk that the cultivator would implode and die.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Ye Xiuwen groaned. The surge of energy within his body froze up his body for a moment, and Du Yongxu fully capitalized on this opportunity that presented itself. With one swift stab, Du Yongxu sent his sword straight through Ye Xiuwen, puncturing arge, gaping wound within his body.

    Crimson-red blood began to flow out and stain Ye Xiuwen¡¯s characteristically snow-white garbs. The sight was blood-curdling.

    ¡°Martial brother!¡± Jun Xiaomo wanted to rush over, but Du Lianqin¡¯s whipshed out and obstructed her movement.

    ¡°Your opponent is us right here!¡± Du Lianqin smirked. There was a diabolical expression stered all over her face, ruining her originally pleasant disposition and appearance.

    The calmness on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face finally shattered, and her expressions were now reced by that of anxiety and indignation. She gritted her teeth as she yelled, ¡°You¡¯re courting death!¡±

    ¡°Hmph! I wonder who¡¯s the one courting death right now!¡± Du Lianqin derided with a contemptuous gaze, ¡°Open your eyes and take a look. We¡¯re the ones who are going to have thestugh! Your struggle is only going to be in vain! Besides, brother Xu¡¯s stab was such a clean and excellent blow. That¡¯s ugly monster is going to have another scar on his body right now!¡±

    Du Lianqin¡¯s boorishments had thoroughly provoked Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved and tossed out a purple coloured talisman towards Du Lianqin.

    Du Lianqin had already witnessed the prowess of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s talismans. She hurriedly dodged to the side, and that purple talisman slipped right past her.

    A satisfied smile crept up the corner of her lips as she thought that she had managed to avoid the talisman. Unexpectedly, the talisman exploded behind her body in the very next moment ¨C

    Bang! An ear splitting tremor rang out, before several smaller crackles of electrical arcs filled the area.

    This was the strongest Thunderbolt Talisman within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Interspatial Ring. It possessed the ability of striking everyone within a three-meter radius of its explosion. The closer someone was to the epicenter of the talisman¡¯s explosion, the more severe the resultant injuries to that person.

    Thus, by the time the Thunderbolt Talisman¡¯s effects had thoroughly expired, Du Lianqin¡¯s body had already been reduced to a bloody mess, and her face had even been charred to a crisp.

    ¡°Who¡¯s the ugly one now, huh?¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked.

    Du Lianqin could guess her present condition without the aid of a mirror. She could thoroughly feel the excruciating pain from her pulpy mess of skin and flesh. Thus, she discarded her whip, menacingly waved her fists in the air before pouncing towards Jun Xiaomo as she cried out, ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m going to kill you!!!¡±

    Being reduced to such a tragic state in front of her dear brother Xu was somethingpletely uneptable and unbearable to Du Lianqin.

    The Thunderbolt Talisman¡¯s explosion had also severely injured several other Du n disciples. At this moment, Du Yongxu was thoroughly anxious about the entire situation.

    But what he did not know was that Jun Xiaomo had already used herst resort. That talisman that she had just used was thest powerful talisman within her Interspatial Ring.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that these Du n disciples had already learnt their lesson by now, while the roiling, unstable energy emanating from martial brother Ye¡¯s body was a reminder to her that it was time to leave this battleground.

    Jun Xiaomo capitalized on the fact that the Du n disciples were still recoiling from the effects of her Thunderbolt Talisman and ran over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. She clutched onto his wrist as she began to unravel an Escape Scroll.

    She intended to leave this ce using an Escape Scroll.

    Yet to their horror, there was no reaction from the Escape Scroll when they opened it!

    Jun Xiaomo was stunned. She closed and opened it again, but there was still no reaction that she had been hoping for!

    Du Yongxu finally noticed what they were trying to do. As he charged over at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen once more, heughed sardonically, ¡°No wonder you had no qualms tarnishing the good name of the Du n. You had intended to use the Escape Scroll all along! Unfortunately for you, all Escape Scrolls lose their effects by the Death¡¯s Gorge. Your miscalctions will be the cause of your demise!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety. She was afraid that Ye Xiuwen would not be able to hold on any longer.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine, Xiaomo. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Ye Xiuwen hugged Jun Xiaomo tightly as he operated his Windwalk technique to avoid Du Yongxu¡¯s attack. At the same time, he patted her back to reassure her.

    But Jun Xiaomo was hardly reassured. She knew for a fact that her martial brother was barely hanging on right now.

    Just then, Du Lianqin had finally made her way over again. She had once again joined hands with Du Yongxu.

    The spiritual energy within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body surged again, and his body flinched. In this moment of stasis, he was struck squarely on his body by Du Lianqin¡¯s whip.

    Ye Xiuwen was located just a few steps away from the Death¡¯s Gorge when this happened. As soon as Du Lianqin¡¯s whip struck Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, he inadvertently took two steps back to stabilize himself. Unfortunately, the second stepnded on nothing but air...

    As he fell backwards, he should have been able to operate his Windwalk ability to extricate himself from the situation. However, Jun Xiaomo was still in his embrace, and the spiritual energy within his body could no longer support the weight of two people.

    His instincts moved quicker than his mind. With thest of his strength, Ye Xiuwen pushed Jun Xiaomo back onto the edge of the cliff. Then, he fell straight down into Death¡¯s Gorge helplessly!

    ¡°Martial brother!!!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cry of anguish echoed through the deathly silence of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    The depths of the abyss under the crevice waspletely dark and devoid of light, and not a single trace of Ye Xiuwen could be seen any longer.

 Chapter 162: Arrival of Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei

    <h4>Chapter 162: Arrival of Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Hmph. There¡¯s no way that ugly monster can still be alive if he¡¯s fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge.¡± Du Lianqin took delight in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s misery as she chuckled, ¡°Seems like you¡¯re not aware of what exactly the Death¡¯s Gorge is, huh? Since time immemorial, no one that has fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge has been able toe back out alive. That ugly monster martial brother of yours has already joined the ranks of these fallen ancestors of his.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo turned around fiercely and red menacingly at Du Lianqin. An all-consuming hatred swelled up within her and filled her gaze with the desire to destroy everything around her.

    Du Lianqin was momentarily stunned by that ghoulish gaze on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, but she reminded herself that Jun Xiaomo was all by herself right now. There was nothing to be afraid of. Thus, a vicious smile crept up her charred face as she smirked, ¡°What is it? Do you hate me? This cultivation world has always been dominated by the strong. So what if you hate me? How about this, why don¡¯t you let me send you down to the depths of the abyss to join your uglypanion, hmm? This way, you won¡¯t be left all alone on the surface, and you can join your uglypanion in death.¡±

    The indignation in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart burnt like a roaring inferno. Every cell within her body was crying out ¡°revenge¡± in unison right now. The true energy within her body toiled and flowed incessantly...until finally, a wave of strong ripping sensation coursed through the meridians within her body, and Jun Xiaomo spat out a mouthful of crimson-red blood!

    All of this happened in the blink of an eye. But under the operation of the intense hatred which filled every corner of her body, Jun Xiaomo had just experienced two breakthroughs at once!

    The present Jun Xiaomo had just attained the fifth level of Qi Mastery!

    A violent rush of spiritual energy swept through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body and was rapidly transformed into true energy as they filled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s erged meridians and Dantian once more. Yet even then, Jun Xiaomo was incredibly sullen.

    The anguish in her heart had caused her breath to be shallow. There was only one thought running through her mind right now ¨C revenge for Ye Xiuwen!

    She was going to kill everyone around right now, and then jump in after Ye Xiuwen to look for him.

    Du Lianqin was momentarily shocked by the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level had experienced a breakthrough twice in quick session in the midst of this crisis. But she quickly collected herself and smirked at Jun Xiaomo once more.

    ¡°So what if your cultivation level has risen to the fifth level of Qi Mastery now? Any one of us here possesses a stronger cultivation than you. Any one of us here can easily squash you like an ant.¡±

    As Du Lianqin finished speaking, she no longer waited for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response. Instead, she brandished her whip as she pounced at Jun Xiaomo once more.

    She had suffered tragic injuries under the effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Thunderbolt Talisman earlier. She absolutely had to get back at her. She absolutely had to repay her a thousand times more!

    However, was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s increase in cultivation level really useless? Jun Xiaomo was prepared to prove Du Lianqin wrong. An increase to the fifth level of Qi Mastery in these circumstances might have been useless to any other cultivator, but this certainly did not include Jun Xiaomo!

    Under the effects of her Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, one part of true energy could be transformed into two parts of spiritual energy or demonic energy.

    In other words, even though the amount of true energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was akin to that of a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, the amount of spiritual energy would be twice that after factoring its conversion from true energy.

    Jun Xiaomo shelfed the thoughts of using the spirit sword that she had been using earlier. Instead, she now retrieved a whip that was stored within her Interspatial Ring.

    This whip was something that could only be used by cultivators of at least the fifth level of Qi Mastery. There were evenplex inscriptions set out on its body.

    In fact, even Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were unaware of the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s greatest expertise was not with a spirit sword, but a whip. Earlier, she had only chosen to use a spirit sword because her cultivation level had fallen. But she whipped out her weapon of choice right now because she was fixated on revenge for her martial brother.

    Most importantly, this whip had been modified by Jun Xiaomo so that it no longer required spiritual energy to operate, but demonic energy.

    Demonic energy was far better suited to cause harm and destruction.

    Jun Xiaomo no longer intended to conceal the fact that she was a demonic cultivator. So what if these people knew about her secrets? Right now, she was only concerned about dishing out the punishment due to these Du n disciples that they thoroughly deserved!

    Du Lianqin immediately noticed the strange, peculiar aura emitting from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip when she first took it out.

    Something¡¯s not right! Du Lianqin paused in her steps and retreated slightly as she looked at Jun Xiaomo in astonishment.

    On the other hand, Du Yongxu was far more learned. He knew with one look what the peculiarity with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s weapon was.

    ¡°You¡¯re actually a demonic cultivator?!¡± Du Yongxu eximed.

    ¡°So what about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes began to grow slightly bloodshot as she responded grimly.

    Du Yongxu chuckled sardonically, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. It¡¯s just that we¡¯ve got even more reason to dispose of you now.¡± As he finished speaking, he nced over at his fellow disciples meaningfully. Momentster, everyone began to rush towards Jun Xiaomo in a concerted attack.

    They no longer had any qualms killing Jun Xiaomo. After all, killing a demonic cultivator was something that this ¡°righteous and upstanding¡± sects would celebrate, and there was no need to conceal this fact at all. In fact, it was something that they could even boast of as an achievement!

    With such a notion in their minds, the Du n disciples began to attack Jun Xiaomo with ever increasing ferocity.

    Yet even though they were ferocious, Jun Xiaomo was even more so. This was because Jun Xiaomo was fueled by the immense hatred festering in her heart right now. Her sole intention was to destroy and devastate everyone around her.

    It was as though she had returned to the past, when everyone had abandoned her, leaving her all alone as she walked along the lonesome path of revenge. It was as though she could not escape such a fate of hers.

    That¡¯s right. An inescapable fate. Right now, Jun Xiaomo was absolutely uncertain whether she would be as fanatical and frenzied as she had been in her previous life if she had truly lost her martial brother again.

    The shadow of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s past had begun to creep up on her. The bloodstains on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body hadpletely soaked through her garments, and she looked as though she were dressed in striking red right now.

    Those who were vicious were afraid of those who were suicidal.

    Jun Xiaomo gave off a fierce suicidal intent as she battled the Du n disciples. If not for the fact that the artefacts given to her by old man Chi and Rong Ruihan had been protecting her, she might already have been reduced to her final breaths right now.

    Just like that, the Du n disciples found themselves getting increasingly injured. To begin with, several disciples had already been reduced to a sorry state by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s powerful Thunderbolt Talisman earlier. Now that Jun Xiaomo had thrown all caution to the wind and battled with the sole goal of causing the most devastation possible without a care for self-preservation, these Du n disciples found themselves reduced to an even more tragic state.

    Thoughts of retreat began to surface on their minds.

    ¡°No retreating! There must be valuable treasures on her body!¡± Du Yongxu demanded as his eyes glistened with avarice.

    That¡¯s right. In Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes, the fact that this female cultivator at the measly fifth level of Qi Mastery could hold her own against so many cultivators who possessed a far higher cultivation level meant the existence of several treasures on her body which augmented her abilities.

    From the start, Du Yongxu had never abandoned his intention of killing and robbing Jun Xiaomo.

    But just as he yelled out his orders, a loud voice bellowed out of nowhere, ¡°Who dares to bully my daughter?!¡±

    A powerful aura instantly engulfed the surroundingnds. Du Yongxu¡¯s reflexes were the quickest, and he immediately retracted his attack and took two steps back. Despite that, a bolt of lightning still managed to strike his arm.

    Instantly, his arm turned ck, and he lost all senses from that arm.

    It¡¯s been crippled!

    The other Du n disciples were hardly in a better state. They had not been able to retreat in time, and two disciples were instantly killed by the bolts of lightning, while others were barely hanging on to their lives.

    Du Yongxu cursed in his heart. He had never expected this youngdy to have such a powerful backer behind. Furthermore, how was he going to ount to his sect for the death of these two Du n disciples?!

    Nevertheless, he knew that now was not the time tonguish in his infuriation. The person who had just arrived was a fearsome expert. This was his final opportunity to make his escape.

    Thus, Du Yongxu retrieved a spirit tool from his Interspatial Ring, dripped a drop of blood on it and began to recite some mnemonics... Momentster, a bright blue light engulfed all the Du n disciples.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately rushed towards Du Yongxu in the center of this bright blue light. However, she was toote.

    The blue light intensified quickly. Then, in the blink of an eye, the light faded once more, and Du Yongxu and the rest vanished together with that blue light.

    This was a spirit tool that the Du n had given to their disciples travelling out of the sect for their use as ast resort. Even though all Escape Scrolls were ineffective beside the Death¡¯s Gorge, these restrictions did not include their live-saving spirit tool.

    This tool¡¯s effects were quite simr to a normal Teleportation Scroll, but it was of much higher quality. This was because it could detect and pick out everyone within a three-hundred-meter radius who possessed the same bloodline as the user and send them all back to their sect.

    Their possession of this live-saving spirit tool was one of the other reasons why the Du n disciples had tyrannically killed and robbed people along the way on these travels as well.

    They thought that as long as they had this spirit tool with them, there was no way anyone would be able to take their lives. Furthermore, they banked on the fact that most cultivators would at least show deference to them on ount for the fact that they hailed from the eight great sects. Thus, they felt incredibly safe and secure on these travels.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo could only stare vacantly at the space that they had vanished from, and she was at aplete loss of what to do.

    ¡°Damn!!! Come back! Come back right now!¡± Jun Xiaomo was on the verge of losing her mind. She had never lost her mind like that ever since she had been reborn. She brandished her whip andshed out at her surroundings where each of the Du n disciples had been standing just a little while ago. But they had already all vanished ¨C what was the use of her actions right now?

    A man and a woman slowly descended from mid-air. Thedy¡¯s heart constricted in pain as she called out, ¡°Mo-Mo.¡± The man remained sullen for a while. Then, he stepped forward and snatched the whip from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand as he bellowed, ¡°Xiaomo, enough!¡±

    The two who had just arrived were none other than Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei. They had earlier detected the confrontation at this location with their divine sense. But given that they were still located some distance away, they released a wave of oppressive pressure, while Jun Linxuan used a long-range lightning spell tounch a first wave of attack on the assants.

    However, it was also because they were located too far away that the power of the attack was substantially diminished. Otherwise there would be no way that Du Yongxu would have survived Jun Linxuan¡¯s attack. After all, the difference between Jun Linxuan¡¯s current cultivation level and Du Yongxu¡¯s cultivation level was simply far too great.

    Regardless, that was how things had turned out. Jun Linxuan¡¯s anxiety to rescue his daughter had inadvertently given Du Yongxu and the others a chance to escape.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened as she ran towards Jun Linxuan. She wanted to snatch her whip back from Jun Linxuan. She wanted to kill those people!

    Smack! Jun Linxuan gave his daughter a tight p on the face.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheek immediately reddened and swelled up slightly, but her madness finally subsided.

    ¡°Are you finally awake?¡± Jun Linxuan sternly rebuked her.

    Jun Xiaomo held her cheek, and tears began to roll out of her eyes inrge beads. She hung her head low and grew taciturn.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! I¡¯m asking you ¨C are you finally awake?! Answer me!¡± Jun Linxuan¡¯s tone of voice grew increasingly harsh.

    ¡°Why did you hit her!¡± Liu Qingmei couldn¡¯t bear to see her daughter hurt like that, and she anxiously stepped forward to take a look at her daughter¡¯s swollen cheek.

    As she drew closer, Liu Qingmei¡¯s body shuddered involuntarily ¨C she had just noticed that her daughter was not dressed in red. Rather, her clothes had been dyed red from her daughter¡¯s blood!

    Jun Linxuan did not notice Liu Qingmei¡¯s reaction. This was the first time that he had ever disagreed with Liu Qingmei¡¯s spoiling their daughter. He gritted his teeth as he exploded, ¡°Hasn¡¯t she caused enough trouble yet? Huh?! Look! Just look at what she¡¯s be! Leaving a letter behind and running after Xiuwen like that. Who does she think she is?! A cultivator at the second level of Qi Mastery travelling out of the Sect? Doesn¡¯t she know how much she worries us?! Will she wake up from this stupor of hers if I don¡¯t p her?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands quivered slightly. The emptiness in her heart had once again been dispelled by Jun Linxuan¡¯s mention of ¡°Xiuwen¡±, jolting her attention back onto her task at hand.

    ¡°Martial brother! That¡¯s right! Father, mother, we¡¯ve got to go rescue martial brother. That¡¯s right, we¡¯re going to rescue martial brother now!¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed as she wrested her hands free from Liu Qingmei¡¯s grasp and began running towards the edge of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    ¡°Mo-Mo!!!¡± Liu Qingmei had never expected her daughter to act so rashly. In that brief moment ofcency, Jun Xiaomo managed to wrest free of Liu Qingmei¡¯s grasp just like that.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was still trapped in the mire of her despondence right now, and the only notion on her mind was to save her martial brother!

    As to how she should go about saving him, or whether she would even be able to rescue him after jumping down the Death¡¯s Gorge, these were considerations that could be dealt withter.

    The veins on Jun Linxuan¡¯s head bulged and throbbed. As a Peakmaster, he naturally had heard of the Death¡¯s Gorge before. If his disciple had truly fallen into Death¡¯s Gorge, chances were...

    A trace of agony shed across his eyes. But he knew that the matter with his disciple had already happened. What was more important was to prevent his daughter from following in his disciple¡¯s footsteps.

    Thus, with tworge strides, Jun Linxuan appeared behind Jun Xiaomo. Then, just as she was about to take onest step before leaping down into Death¡¯s Gorge, he knocked her unconscious.

    Just before passing out, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was filled with only disbelief, as though she simply could not understand why her own father was preventing her from saving Ye Xiuwen.

    The thick stench of blood assaulted Jun Linxuan¡¯s olfactory senses, and his heart swelled with uncontroble rage!

    If he could just wind back time slightly, he would most certainly have obliterated those bastards!

    ¡°Then, about Little Wen...¡± Liu Qingmei had roughly managed to guess what had happened to Ye Xiuwen from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words and actions.

    Liu Qingmei saw Ye Xiuwen almost as a son to her. Naturally, she was incredibly worried for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s safety as well.

    Jun Linxuan sighed, ¡°The energy in Xiaomo¡¯s body is extremely unstable, and there are signs of her forcibly breaking through the bottlenecks of her cultivation level. In fact, there are even signs of a demonic upheaval. We can¡¯t let her remain like this. We¡¯ll need to stabilize her condition right now. As for Xiuwen...¡±

    Jun Linxuan paused for a moment, and a trace of unwillingness shed across his eyes, ¡°We¡¯ll have to wait till Jun Xiaomo wakes up before making any further decisions.¡±

    Teardrops began to roll out of Liu Qingmei¡¯s eyes. As she continued to stare nkly into the deep, dark abyss, a wave of despondence washed over her heart.

 Chapter 163: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Successful Breakthrough

    <h4>Chapter 163: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Sessful Breakthrough</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen had instinctively used thest of his strength to toss Jun Xiaomo back up to the surface. His heart had barely considered the consequences.

    There was only a single notion in his mind ¨C and that was that Jun Xiaomo must not fall down into the Death¡¯s Gorge with him.

    The winds rushed past his ears with a swooshing sound as the light at the end of the crevice grew further and further away. A shrill, heartrending cry rang out after him ¨C ¡°Martial brother!!!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced.

    Little martial sister is going to be extremely upset for a while, isn¡¯t she? I guess it¡¯s going to be like when she thought her little packrat had died.

    Perhaps my little martial sister is going to cry again... But he knew that there was no way he could console her this time.

    Bearing these regrets on his heart, Ye Xiuwen stared vacantly at the light at the end of the crevice as it grew smaller and smaller, until it had be nothing more than a slit. Then, just as the light vanishedpletely, Ye Xiuwen also slowly shut his eyes.

    ......

    After some time, Ye Xiuwen finally regained consciousness once more. He had been roused to his senses by the waves of excruciating paining from within his body.

    ...I¡¯m still alive?

    Ye Xiuwen lifted his head, but he could no longer see the light at the end of the crevice. This was testament to the fact that he was now an incredible distance away from where Jun Xiaomo had been. There was no way Jun Xiaomo could still be visible to him now.

    A sense of disappointment swelled up within his heart. Yet there was also some measure of relief and joy.

    He was relieved that he was still alive. He was relieved that there was still hope that he could return. Ye Xiuwen knew that with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s character, there was a good chance that she might do something silly when she realized something bad had happened to himself.

    Perhaps she might even jump in after me...

    It had to be said that Ye Xiuwen thoroughly understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s character. If not for the fact that her parents had arrived in the nick of time, Jun Xiaomo might very well have done what Ye Xiuwen had suspected.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed lightly as he collected his thoughts. Then, he began to observe his surroundings.

    ...A?

    Ye Xiuwen had just noticed that he was lying on a massive. There were even some ck shadows and silhouettes on this, but he could hardly make out what those entities were.

    This was incredibly malleable and springy, and it was the sole reason why Ye Xiuwen had not fallen to his death.

    Ye Xiuwen struggled to sit up. Then, he gnashed his teeth as he painstakingly crawled to the end of the... Along the way, he bumped into some discolored, graying bones ¨C both of humans and of spirit beasts.

    This massive looked like it was something used for hunting preys or harvesting asuras.

    Ye Xiuwen perked up his senses as he probed about vigntly with his divine sense. His entire body was tensed up and ready to react forbat at any time.

    Fortunately, he managed to get to the edge of the uneventfully.

    Ye Xiuwen finally heaved a sigh of relief as he climbed out of the andnded on firm ground. He was still deep within the depths of Death¡¯s Gorge, and his surroundings werepletely filled with darkness. Not a single ounce of light prated this area.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Ye Xiuwen groaned again as he clutched at his heart.

    He had begun to show signs of a breakthrough since a little while ago. Unfortunately, this process of breakthrough had been forcibly shelved and interrupted by a series of unfortunate encounters. Right now, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s meridians and Dantian were already bursting at the seams with the shing, chaotic spiritual energy leaping about within his body. He was at grave risk of imploding and dying if he did not quickly find a safe ce to stabilize his body and breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    There might not be enough time to look for a suitable safe haven anymore. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself, as he decided to resolve matters where he was. He began to retrieve several formation diagrams from his Interspatial Ring. After he set up these formation arrays around his location, he immediately sat cross legged and shut his eyes.

    Such a series of actions was incredibly dangerous. But push hade to shove, and he could no longer put off to ater time the stabilizing of his body¡¯s condition and his breakthrough.

    The defensive formation arrays began to glow with a faint, blue light within Death¡¯s Gorge. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart had initially been palpitating uncontrobly. But when he adopted his meditative posture and began to sort out the chaotic energy within his body, his heart gradually began to calm down once more.

    Within moments, Ye Xiuwen entered a mysterious realm where he could ¡°see¡± how the chaotic spiritual energy within his body had gently been sorted out and appeased as they began to course smoothly through his meridians and enter his Dantian.

    His Dantian appeared to be filled with thick, roiling mist, while each strand of spiritual energy appeared to be distributed evenly throughout the spaces within his Dantian. It was almost as though each of these strands of spiritual energy were living peacefully and inplete harmony with each other.

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen meticulously directed each strand of energy within his Dantian and meridian for two whole days, until every single strand of spiritual energy had found its own ce and calmed downpletely. There, the spiritual energies would gently course along in harmony with all the other strands of spiritual energy within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    At that moment, Ye Xiuwen could feel that his Dantian and meridians were extremely bloated and slightly stinging as a result of that.

    This was a symptom of storing slightly more energy than what the full capacity of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body had allowed. This was the reason for his breakthrough, and it was also the best sign that he was ready for a breakthrough.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart quivered slightly. Then, he began to direct all of the strands of spiritual energy lined up in his meridians into his Dantian.

    Slowly, under the perfusion of fresh spiritual energy, his Dantian began to shudder. Slowly, the mist in his Dantian began to grow denser and denser as the energy within his Dantian grew increasingly more corporeal.

    As the spiritual energy gradually flowed from his meridians into his Dantian, his body automatically drew fresh spiritual energy from its surroundings back to replenish the spiritual energy within his meridians. In turn, this spiritual energy was once gradually directed to flow back into his Dantian. Thus, his meridians continued to experience a state of perpetual bloatedness, while the mist in his Dantian only grew thicker, and thicker. Then the mist within the Dantian began to swirl harmoniously in the same direction...

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen remained in this state as time flowed by incessantly. It might have been an hour, or it might have been days, but finally, Ye Xiuwen experienced what felt like a splitting sensation within his Dantian. Momentster, arge tremor rang out as though something had just exploded within him! Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind drew aplete nk. However, before he could react to the situation, the spiritual energy within the surroundings began to rush madly into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Dantian and meridians.

    This feeling was vastly different from before. At this moment, Ye Xiuwen no longer experienced that bloatedness in his meridians and Dantian. Instead, it was reced with what seemed like an insatiable thirst to swallow up all the spiritual energies in his surroundings. It was as though his Dantian and meridians had expanded several folds all at once.

    In fact, this was not a mere illusion on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s part. This tremor was a telltale sign that he had sessfully broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. This was the moment when his Dantian, his meridians, and even his bones, flesh and muscles all experienced a qualitative transformation.

    If one were topare the size of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Dantian and meridians in the past to a smallke connected to a few streams, then Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present Dantian and meridians would be like raging rivers opening into an entire vast ocean. The amount of spiritual energy that could be stored in his body was a far cry from what Qi Mastery cultivators could store.

    Once Ye Xiuwen had calmed himself down, he began to inspect the condition of his Dantian and meridians. He discovered that a whirlpool like liquid vortex had appeared within his Dantian. All of the spiritual energy that coursed through his body would gradually flow through this vortex within his Dantian before being dispersed throughout the rest of his body once more.

    This vortex was the primary difference between Foundation Establishment cultivators and Qi Mastery cultivators. Then, when a Foundation Establishment cultivator broke through to the Golden Core stage of cultivation, the vortex within his body would further shrink andpress into a solid, round, golden core.

    ording to the cultivation texts and manuscripts, the liquid vortex within the Dantian of Foundation Establishment cultivators would generally possess the same colour as the affinity of one¡¯s spiritual root. For instance, a wood-based spiritual root would give rise to a green-coloured vortex; a lightning-based spiritual root would give rise to a yellow-coloured vortex; fire would be red; earth would be brown; water would be blue, and so on and so forth. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spiritual root was of the wind affinity. Logically speaking, it should be slightly translucent colour, just like the colour of a small creek.

    However, the liquid vortex within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Dantian was surprisingly a gold coloured vortex.

    Gold? Why is it gold?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was slightly perplexed.

    Just then, an enraged voice broke apart his train of thoughts, ¡°Ye li¡¯l brat! Ye dare to steal all of yer ancestor¡¯s golden spiritual energy? How dare ye?!!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes widened. In the next moment, he noticed a ck shadow fiercely rushing towards him. He swiftly retrieved his Frostburn Sword from his Interspatial Ring and shed out at the ck shadow. A ferocious sword intent that was far stronger than before swept towards the ck shadow.

    ¡°Tsk tsk. Yer reflexes ain¡¯t too shabby!¡± The voice rang out in the dark. Ye Xiuwen could not see the appearances of this person speaking right now. The only thing he knew was that this voice sounded incredibly ancient.

    He was immediately reminded of old man Chi, but he knew that it was not the same person. Old man Chi had already brought his newfound disciple and his family members back to his n. There was no way he would be here right now.

    Within a few moments, Ye Xiuwen had exchanged hundreds of blows with the owner of the ancient voice. At the beginning, he sought to observe his opponent¡¯s actions and thus adopted a more defensive stance. As time wore on, he began to shift his stance from defensive to offensive as he began to take the initiative tounch attacks at his opponent.

    Yet this hardly meant that his opponent was now on his backfoot. In fact, it was exactly the converse. Through their exchange of blows, Ye Xiuwen could somehow tell that his opponent was incredibly strong. At the very least, he was not someone that a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage like him could deal with.

    Most importantly, he could not sense any killing intenting from his opponent. Even though his initial bellow had been terrifying, the tens of moves that he had exchanged with his opponent had told him that his opponent was intent on correcting his offensive posture instead.

    Ye Xiuwen possessed an incredible talent for cultivation to begin with. Otherwise, he would not have been earmarked as the Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s Chosen Disciple since young. Right now, given that an expert was willing to personally give him instructions on his techniques, of course Ye Xiuwen would dly hold fast to this expert¡¯s teachings and learn what he could.

    Gradually, he began to experience a breakthrough in his understanding of his sword technique.

    ¡°Mm, mm, not bad, not bad. Ye¡¯ll do fine.¡± After a few hundred moves, this hidden expert finally concluded.

    I¡¯ll do? I¡¯ll do what?

    Several questions shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind. Yet in the next moment, Ye Xiuwen felt a dull paining from his neck, and he immediately passed out.

    When he finally regained his consciousness, Ye Xiuwen discovered that his surroundings hadpletely changed. It was no longer that dark and dank rock surface within Death¡¯s Gorge that he had earlier been at. Instead, he was now in a room that was filled with the aroma of various herbs. This room was brightly illuminated with sunlight. Its brightness and beauty lightened Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mood and brought joy to his heart.

    Could that expert have rescued me and brought me back to the surface?

    As soon as this notion crossed his mind, he could no longer suppress it. He hurriedly got to his feet and rushed to the door eagerly as he hoped to catch a glimpse of what was outside.

    ¡°Hey! Ye dank li¡¯l kid, whatcha doin¡¯ runnin¡¯ about like that? Don¡¯t ye know how amazin¡¯ this bed is? My heart aches that it¡¯s wasted on ye!¡±

    An old, ancient voice reverberated in the room. Just as Ye Xiuwen was about to look for where this voice had called out from, an old man slowly strode into the room.

    The old man noticed that he had already got out of bed, and he red straight at Ye Xiuwen with an annoyed expression on his face.

    Ye Xiuwen could not understand what was going on right now.

    ¡°Please, may I ask if it was this senior who had saved me?¡± Ye Xiuwen respectfully gave the old man a fist and palm salute as he asked.

    ¡°Hmph! Do I look like a kind man to ye?¡± The old man raised an eyebrow and nced at Ye Xiuwen as he responded with another question.

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn. He was unsure how he ought to go about interacting with this old man.

    ¡°Ye damn brat. Yer no fun, ye know? At least, yer not as fun as that li¡¯l gal in yer memories.¡± The old manined as he stroked his beard.

    ¡°You saw my memories?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Can¡¯t I? I¡¯ve gotta check yer personality before epting ye as a disciple, don¡¯t I?¡± The old man red at Ye Xiuwen once more.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    epting as a disciple?

 Chapter 164: A Newfound Master and Disciple

    <h4>Chapter 164: A Newfound Master and Disciple</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This white-haired old man did not consciously suppress his own cultivation level. As a result, Ye Xiuwen could feel an incredible suppressive force arising out of the difference between their respective cultivation levels. This feeling was extremely ufortable and suffocating. It felt as though every single cell within his body was forcibly beingpressed into a smaller space.

    Despite that, Ye Xiuwen remained stoic and revealed none of his difort on his face, and he continued to gaze calmly at the old man staring at him.

    This was because he did not detect any killing intent emanating from the old man¡¯s body. Thus, he knew that he could calmly face the old man¡¯s suppressive force without any concerns.

    However, now that the old man said he was going to ept Ye Xiuwen as a disciple, his calm disposition was instantly shattered, and it turned into anxiety and shock.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Can¡¯t believe yer gettin¡¯ such a nice piece o¡¯ pie?¡± The old man stroked his beard as he nonchntly added, ¡°I know, I know...with my strength, eptin¡¯ such a young sprout that has just entered the Foundation Establishment stage like ye is truly yer fortune. But don¡¯t let it get to yer head! I have my conditions! I¡¯ve checked yer cultivation and yer bone structure while you were sleepy headed earlier, and I realized yer pretty suited for my self-created techniques. And besides, I saw from yer memory that yer personality ain¡¯t too shabby either. So, I decided to ept ye as my disciple... How¡¯s that? So happy that yer stunned?¡±

    The old man noticed that Ye Xiuwen had grown taciturn, so he intentionally added thatst line in order to elicit a response from Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was truly bbergasted. When he finally managed topose himself again, he stammered, ¡°That...that¡¯s not the case.¡±

    If anyone else had received favour from this powerful old man in his shoes, they might have epted the old man as their master without any hesitation. However, Ye Xiuwen was much more meticulous, and he had several considerations in his mind right now.

    He bowed sincerely to the old man and apologetically responded, ¡°Senior, this junior sincerely appreciates your kindness and consideration for him, but this junior already has a master, so...¡±

    ¡°Hmph! Pedantic! So what if yer got a master? Is yer master stronger than me? Also, who says ye can¡¯t have two masters at the same time?¡± The old man responded in a huff as he red at Ye Xiuwen again.

    ¡°But...its conventional wisdom that the first master has to be present when I pay my respects to a second master. Or I should at least inform my master of this matter...¡±

    This was to avoid a situation where both masters turned out to be long-time nemeses who were at loggerheads with each other, and the disciple ends up getting caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    ¡°Rules are made by people. Who says we can¡¯t change ¡®em?¡± The old man suddenly realized that this seemingly brilliant young man was rather inflexible and rigid.

    Sigh, am I goin¡¯ to get an aneurysm one day if I ept him as disciple? The old man thought to himself in exasperation.

    ¡°This...Then, could senior kindly indulge in junior and allow junior to ask his master before deciding?¡±

    ¡°Ask? How ye gonna ask?¡± The old man looked at him in bewilderment, ¡°Messenger Paper Cranes can¡¯t fly outta here, and Escape Scrolls and Teleportation Scrolls have no effect here either. How are ye gonna ask?¡±

    ¡°This...could it be that we¡¯re still trapped within the Death¡¯s Gorge?!¡± Ye Xiuwen was dumbfounded.

    ¡°Death¡¯s Gorge? Hahaha...good name! I can¡¯t believe that I¡¯ve only been here two thousand years and this ce is already so famous...¡± The old man stroked his beard and smiled radiantly as he eximed.

    ¡°This...this ce truly doesn¡¯t look like it...¡± Ye Xiuwen murmured softly. He nced around at his surroundings again. When he looked out of the light brown coloured window frames, he could see the bright and radiant sunlight illuminating an entire garden filled with spirit herbs.

    If they were still within the Death¡¯s Gorge, then where did all of these thingse from? Weren¡¯t the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge apletely dark ce?

    The old man roughly guessed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s contemtions as he snorted disdainfully, ¡°Ye think this ce is so easy to get out of? This light is only an illusion. An illusion! I used a formation array to make it like this. And the things below the herbs look like soil, but they¡¯re congealed spiritual energy. When ye fell down here, you must¡¯ve felt the thick spiritual energy, didn¡¯t ye?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded his head.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen had already detected the thick spiritual energy emanating from the crevice on the surface of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    ¡°The Death¡¯s Gorge¡¯s opening looks small, but it¡¯s actually reaaaaally big. It¡¯s got tons of things of all kinds of spiritual energies here. Naturally, there are also all kinds of strange mutated spirit beasts. That¡¯s why people who fall down here simply disappear. Most of them get...eaten up!¡±

    The old man chuckled as he spoke. Evidently, he hardly took pity or sympathized with the plight of these other cultivators who had fallen in here to their death.

    But this perspective was quite understandable. After all, a person who had lived for so long might well have seen so much death and decay that he would no longer have any pity orpassion on others. Death had already be part and parcel of life.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen found himself extremely concerned when the old man mentioned that people disappear once they fall down here.

    ¡°Does this mean that...practically no one has escaped this ce before? Is that why it¡¯se to be known as Death¡¯s Gorge?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had only learnt that this ce was called the Death¡¯s Gorge from the mouths of the Du n disciples. He hardly understood why this ce had earned itself that name.

    ¡°From what I know, nobody has got out before.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart grew cold and grim, ¡°Then does that mean we¡¯ve got no way of leaving this ce? Since even senior has no way of getting out...¡±

    ¡°Who says I¡¯ve got no way of goin¡¯ out? Ye li¡¯l brat are such a spoilsport!¡± The old man blew his top.

    Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t understand how he had stepped on the old man¡¯s toes. But having heard that there was still a way out, he was naturally extremely pleased.

    He looked solemnly and sincerely at the old man as he bowed once again and asked, ¡°Then could senior kindly enlighten junior on the way to get out of this ce?¡±

    The old man nced at him, replying, ¡°Haven¡¯t I already told ye the method?¡±

    ¡°Um...¡± Ye Xiuwen thought for a moment, but he simply could not think of when the old man had mentioned a way of getting out of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    ¡°Idiot! Didn¡¯t I say to pay yer respects to yer master? What is it? Do ye think that with ye abilities right now, ye will be able to leave the Death¡¯s Gorge? Don¡¯t kid, li¡¯l brat. Every single one of the spirit beasts here have been fattened by the thick spiritual energies here. Take one step out and yer gone. Kaput! Food for ¡®em! Do ye believe me?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn. He truly hadn¡¯t considered these details.

    ¡°Hmph! You younglin¡¯s these days are too agitated.¡± The old man chided, ¡°Don¡¯t ye dare think ye can leap to the skies with one step.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sped his hands respectfully as he responded, ¡°Senior¡¯s teachings are wise.¡±

    The old man had evidently not spoken to anyone for a long time. Thus, when his gift of the gab began to flow, it seemed to flow incessantly, without pausing or stopping.

    ¡°And also, ye paying respects to me as master is good fer that youngdy too, mm?¡± Creases formed on the old man¡¯s face as he revealed a wry, mischievous and meaningful smile at Ye Xiuwen.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen was too daft to recognize the meaning of this wry and mischievous smile.

    ¡°This...what has it got to do with my martial sister?¡± Ye Xiuwen hesitated before rifying. He was concerned that there might be issues with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body that the old man had discovered from his memories.

    The old man resented Ye Xiuwen¡¯s daftness, and he decried in exasperation, ¡°Ye truly have a wooden brain, ye li¡¯l brat. That youngdy has many suitors, don¡¯t she? There¡¯s old fogey Chi¡¯s li¡¯l, li¡¯l brat, and there¡¯s also old fogey Chi¡¯s new disciple, that Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince. Don¡¯t ye look down on that Rong Ruihan fe, his talent is even higher than yours or old man Chi¡¯s li¡¯l, li¡¯l brat. With old fogey Chi¡¯s guidance, his prowess is sure to take to the skies. Then when his cultivation level is far stronger than yers, then ye will just see that youngdy get snatched by that li¡¯l brat then!¡±

    ¡°This... does senior know old man Chi?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen found the prospects of this slightly peculiar because this old man before him was a spiritual cultivator, while old man Chi...

    Xiaomo had earlier secretly informed him that old man Chi was a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°Of course I know ¡®im! Me and that old fogey have never seen eye to eye. Every time I see ¡®im, I fight ¡®im!¡± The old man retorted in a huff.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrow. His guts told him that the rtionship between this old man and old man Chi was in fact pretty decent.

    Regardless, he turned his attention towards the words of ridicule that the old man had mentioned about him and Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings for Jun Xiaomo had always been buried in the depths of his subconsciousness. Now that the old man had brought it out, he couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly awkward and embarrassed about it. Thus, he lowered his head and exined the misunderstanding, ¡°Senior loves to joke. The rtionship between little martial sister and I are nothing more than that of martial siblings.¡±

    ¡°Hmph! Ye can continue maintaining yer martial siblings rtionship then! Don¡¯t regret it when yerdy leaps into the bosom of some other man~ Sigh. I don¡¯t know what ye younglin¡¯s think these days. Even love has to be so secretive. Back in the days, I...¡± The old man looked as though he had thought about something. But he immediately caught himself and adjusted his thoughts as he turned back to the topic at hand, ¡°Eh, eh...forget it, forget it. What am I doing telling ye damn li¡¯l brat these things. Good thing I haven¡¯t epted ye as a disciple. Otherwise, I might get so exasperated that I¡¯ll die!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew sullen. If there was hope, of course he wanted to go back.

    The atmosphere grew tense and silent for a moment. Then, when Ye Xiuwen finally raised his head again, a trace of resolve could be seen in the depths of his eyes ¨C

    ¡°Senior, please ept junior as your disciple.¡± Ye Xiuwen half-knelt to the floor and bowed politely to the old man.

    ¡°Eh, have ye finally thought things through?¡± The old man nced at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°I¡¯ve thought things through. Senior, please ept junior as your disciple.¡± Ye Xiuwen made a fist and palm salute to the old man.

    ¡°Hmph! I don¡¯t wanna ept you as a disciple no more.¡± The old man dismissed Ye Xiuwen in a huff.

    ¡°This...¡± A sense of remorse swelled up from the depths of his heart.

    ¡°Fine. If ye want me to ept ye as disciple, it¡¯s simple ¨C let me see yer resolve.¡± The old man raised his hands and gestured for Ye Xiuwen to get back to his feet. Then, he pointed towards the rest of the room and the herb garden outside and instructed, ¡°First, clean up this ce. Be careful! This ce has countless treasures and precious things. Pick ¡®em up gently, clean ¡®em carefully, put ¡®em down gently. Same for the herb garden. Those pile of books tell yer all about ¡®em herbs. Take a gander for yerself.¡±

    After he finished speaking, the old man waved his sleeves and took his leave.

    Ye Xiuwen examined the pile of books haphazardly strewn all over the floor as well as the dusty and disorderly room. He sighed in exasperation and shook his head. Then, he began to clean up carefully.

    Cleaning up a room sounded easy, but it was an extremely difficult and arduous process. That pile of books had been left there for years on end. Being strewn all over the floor was the least of his concerns right now. Some books had missing corners. Some books had rotting pages. Then, there were loose sheets of papers strewn all over the ce that had evidently fallen out from some books and had their contents all jumbled up.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen decided to begin with the books.

    He first straightened and picked up each of the books. He reced each missing corner on the pages of these books with nk paper. For the pages that were rotting and blurring, he would copy the contents on a good sheet of paper and rece the rotting sheets with the good sheets of paper. Then, he sorted out the loose sheets of paper and returned them to the rightful ce within each respective book.

    It took Ye Xiuwen three full days before he finally sorted out the books. During this period of time, the old man had once asked him to cook for them as well. But when Ye Xiuwen''s attempt nearly caused the old man to have an explosive diarrhea, the old man no longer asked Ye Xiuwen to prepare their food.

    Ye Xiuwen was an extremely meticulous and patient person. After he had sorted out the books, he retrieved some materials from his Interspatial Ring and constructed a simple bookcase, before storing the books neatly on its shelves.

    Once he was done with this, he began to examine the various ornaments within the room in order to determine how each one was to be maintained.

    It had to be said that the old man could have easily told Ye Xiuwen how each ornament should be maintained. The fact that he wanted Ye Xiuwen to figure things out for himself clearly meant that he was trying to make things difficult for this prospective disciple of his.

    But Ye Xiuwen did not utter a single word ofint. He simply epted the old man¡¯s instructions and began examining each any every ornament.

    In the process of his inspections, what stunned Ye Xiuwen was the fact that these seemingly normal ornaments on disy were in fact incredible artefacts, each in their own rights. Even the simple flower vase on the table was a priceless ninth-grade spirit tool that could hardly be found or purchased from the marketce.

    Ye Xiuwen waspletely bbergasted when he realized how the old man had haphazardly left all of these priceless treasures wherever he pleased, without bothering to maintain them at all.

    It took Ye Xiuwen another three weeks to return each and every piece of ornament to their original condition...

    Just like that, time passed by slowly. By the time Ye Xiuwen had sorted out the old man¡¯s herb garden, approximately three months of time had passed in total.

    Ye Xiuwen hardly saw the old man during this period of time. The old man would even disappear for stretches of up to two weeks at a time without telling Ye Xiuwen where he had gone.

    But Ye Xiuwen¡¯s discretion told him that this waspletely outside his scope of care. Thus, he continued to focus solely on the tasks set for him by the old man as he painstakingly worked towards theirpletion.

    Today, the old man had finally returned to check on the fruit of his prospective disciple¡¯sbour. After making his rounds, the old man stroked his beard as he remarked, ¡°Not bad, not bad. Pretty good, pretty good. From now on, ye can regrly help me clean out the herb garden and tidy up this ce from time to time. Feel free to look through the books too.¡±

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± Ye Xiuwen bowed to the old man.

    The old man raised his eyebrows curiously, ¡°I haven¡¯t even said I¡¯m eptin¡¯ ye as disciple. Howe yer already callin¡¯ me master, hmm?¡±

    ¡°The books here have all been written by master, haven¡¯t they? I noticed that these were all the fruit of your painstakingbour. Since master was willing to let me browse through its contents freely, then this means that you¡¯ve already recognized me as a disciple in your heart.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded.

    The old man was stunned for a moment, before he broke out into a heartyughter andmented, ¡°My judgment ain¡¯t too bad after all. I¡¯d thought that ye would always be a stone-headed li¡¯l brat! All¡¯s good, all¡¯s good. Hahahaha...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen bowed respectfully once more, ¡°Thank you, master, for yourvish teachings.¡±

    Seeing that his disciple always looked so calm, the old man snorted and added, as though hoping to provoke Ye Xiuwen once more, ¡°Don¡¯t get yer hopes up too high just yet. Yer master can teach, but yer cultivation is all up to ye. My teachings aren¡¯t gonna be easy, and it¡¯s gonna be even harder for yer to defeat those spirit beasts outside to return to the surface. If ye wanna go back to see yer li¡¯l lover quickly, then ye best be prepared to work hard, li¡¯l brat.¡±

    Once he thought about Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were once again filled with sorrow.

    ¡°Yes, master!¡±

    This time, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words were much more lighthearted than before.

    The old man stroked his long white beard, waved his hands and took his leave. As he left, the old man chuckled in his heart ¨C Younglin¡¯s these days need to face some hardship. Ah, old fogey Chi¡¯s disciple is my disciple¡¯s love rival, eh? Let¡¯s have ¡®em fight each other once we get out. As the disciple of me, old man Le, ye better not be worse than old fogey Chi¡¯s disciple!

 Chapter 165: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Growth

    <h4>Chapter 165: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Growth</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Winter and spring, summer and autumn. The ebb and flow of time swept across thends. In the blink of an eye, one full year had passed since Jun Xiaomo had returned to the Dawn Sect.

    Themotion that day was deeply etched and ingrained in the hearts of every member of the Dawn Sect ¨C Jun Linxuan had carried his bloodied daughter as he rushed back to the Sect. A teary-eyed Liu Qingmei followed closely behind him, evidently fraught with worries and concerns for her daughter¡¯s safety.

    But all that stood to reason. After all, their only daughter had been reduced to such a tragic state! As parents, how could Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei not be upset and worried for her?

    Nevertheless, this was the first time that anyone within the Dawn Sect had seen Jun Xiaomo in such a tragic state. She did not even suffer injuries remotely close to this when she had received punishment for trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds!

    The Dawn Sect disciples could vaguely see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s limbs and face through her clothes that werepletely soaked through with blood.

    Deepcerations covered her entire skin, and some were so deep that even her bones could be seen. Half-curdled blood stained her wounds as trace amounts of blood continued to drain out from her body. It was a bloodcurdling sight.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breath was incredibly weak, and theck of vigor made her look as good as dead.

    Everyone knew that Jun Xiaomo was the daughter of Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. Everyone knew that Jun Xiaomo had been pampered and spoilt growing up. How could she withstand such immense suffering and such punishing, grievous injuries?

    Perhaps Jun Xiaomo might not make it through this time? Those who saw the extent of her injuries found their thoughts drifting to the same ce as they silently parted ways for Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei.

    Nobody could tell whether the hearts of these onlookers were filled with pity, or calmness, or delight in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s misery at this moment.

    Everyone had thought that Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei would immediately bring Jun Xiaomo to the Sect Elders to have them examine Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition. Unexpectedly, the Heavenly Peak duo brought Jun Xiaomo straight back into their own abode.

    And that was thest time that anyone within the Dawn Sect had seen Jun Xiaomo. Of course, this was with the exception of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Some guessed that Jun Xiaomo was dead; while others guessed that Jun Xiaomo had already been crippled. There were even others who guessed that Jun Xiaomo remained in a vegetative state on her bed... Whenever the Heavenly Peak disciples heard of such spections, they would always wave their fists at these busybodies with indignation. Thus, as time wore on, the disciples of other peaks learnt to refrain from discussing about Jun Xiaomo in the presence of these Heavenly Peak disciples.

    They were afraid of provoking the bunch of ¡°madmen¡± from Heavenly Peak.

    As such, a rift gradually began to form, sequestering the Heavenly Peak disciples from the disciples of other Peaks. One camp was formed solely by the ¡°madmen¡± from Heavenly Peak, while the other camp was anyone from the other Peaks who were affiliated to He Zhang, the Sect Elders, and their respectiveckeys.

    As time passed by, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body experienced several changes as well.

    The first change was the fact that she regained her consciousness. This happened without any warning on the day that she turned seventeen years-old. In fact, Jun Linxuan had since some time ago already suppressed the demonic upheaval within her body and cured all the injuries caused by the shing, chaotic energy within her body. Despite her physical body experiencing a full recovery, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind remained unconscious. At that time, Liu Qingmei concluded that this must have been because Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sacrifice had dealt Jun Xiaomo such a heavy mental blow that she refused to wake up and ept reality.

    Thus, Liu Qingmei could only time and again call Jun Xiaomo in an attempt to draw her out of her mental stupor. She had hoped that Jun Xiaomo would not give up on life just like that.

    In reality, the period of time that Jun Xiaomo had remained unconscious had only been less than three months¡¯ time. Yet these three months felt no less than three hundred years to Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, mother knows that Little Wen¡¯s death must have dealt a heavy blow to you, but your father and your mother needs you, hmm? Don¡¯t scare your mother like that anymore, alright?¡± Liu Qingmei touched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head gingerly as tears fell uncontrobly from her eyes and she choked and sputtered.

    ¡°Sorry...¡± Jun Xiaomo said softly, before she ced her palm reassuringly on Liu Qingmei¡¯s hand and added, ¡°Mother, how are you so certain that martial brother is dead?¡±

    Liu Qingmei¡¯s tears continued to fall, leaving streaks of tear stains on her eyes.

    ¡°When you were unconscious, your father had on numerous asionsbed the perimeter of the Death¡¯s Gorge and discovered that on top of all the thick spiritual energies emanating from the crevice, there were even several auras emanating from vicious, powerful spirit beasts within the Death¡¯s Gorge. Mo-Mo, do you know that the thicker the spiritual energy of a specific location, the more fearsome the spirit beasts that live there. One of the reasons why the Death¡¯s Gorge had earned its name is precisely because of the powerful spirit beasts that reside there.¡± Liu Qingmei wiped her tears as she exined with a guilt-ridden voice, ¡°Your father had initially wanted to dive down into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge to investigate further. However, I stopped him. I stopped him because no one has ever returned from the Death¡¯s Gorge alive. I can¡¯t bear to see your father...sorry.¡±

    Liu Qingmei¡¯s heartfelt apology was not only spoken to Jun Xiaomo ¨C it was spoken to Ye Xiuwen who had fallen into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge as well.

    Ye Xiuwen had clearly saved their daughter, Xiaomo, in his final breaths. Despite that, Liu Qingmei still couldn¡¯t bear to let her husband take such a risk.

    The guilt in Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart swelled up day by day, suppressing and stifling her heart so much that her breath had even grown shallow.

    Jun Xiaomo could tell that her mother was getting increasingly emotional, and she could roughly guess the contemtions of her mother¡¯s heart. Thus, she patted the back of Liu Qingmei¡¯s hand as she consoled her, ¡°Mother, don¡¯t be so hard on yourself. I¡¯m sure martial brother would understand your decision. Since no one has evene back alive from the Death¡¯s Gorge, then even if father goes down, he¡¯s likely to end up being trapped within the Death¡¯s Gorge. The Heavenly Peak can¡¯t do without father. Mother can¡¯t do without father. This family can¡¯t do without father. So, don¡¯t worry, I understand. And I¡¯m sure martial brother understands as well.¡±

    ¡°Besides...¡± Jun Xiaomo gazed into the distance outside the window. The haziness in her eye had already disappeared, and it was now filled with limitless resolve as she added, ¡°I believe that martial brother won¡¯t leave us that easily. I¡¯m sure that he¡¯s still alive and living well within the Death¡¯s Gorge...¡±

    ¡°Mo-Mo...¡± Liu Qingmei gripped onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand, fearing that she might do something silly again.

    From Liu Qingmei¡¯s assessment of things, the odds of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s survival were extremely slim. Furthermore, there was no reason that Ye Xiuwen had not reached out to the Sect with any messages if he was still alive.

    ¡°Mother, this is my intuition, and I trust in my intuition. Martial brother is definitely still alive!¡± Jun Xiaomo turned her head around and articted each word with immense resolve.

    ¡°Alright, alright. Little Wen is still alive. But Mo-Mo, don¡¯t go do anything silly, please...¡±

    Liu Qingmei thought that her daughter¡¯s denial was the only way she could begin to live with such hurts, so she consciously refrained from refuting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words as she reminded Jun Xiaomo not to be rash.

    ¡°Mother, don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t do anything rash.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled with her pale face as she added, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I must have caused mother and father to worry for me.¡±

    Liu Qingmei could see the remorse within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she spoke. Liu Qingmei sighed helplessly, rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and grew taciturn.

    Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes once again as she grimaced.

    The Heavenly Peak¡¯s enemies were still around, and she could not afford to be willful and headstrong any longer... But at the same time, she was never going to abandon hope and cease her search for her martial brother.

    She firmly believed that her martial brother must be alive! He must be!

    Ever since she had regained her consciousness, Jun Xiaomo had actively reduced her area of activity to only ces within the Heavenly Peak. Apart from cultivating and meditating, she would only walk around within the Heavenly Peak. She was intentionally cautious not to take a single step out of the Heavenly Peak.

    This was also why the rest of the world outside the Heavenly Peak had spected that she had died, or that she was bedridden or crippled.

    Jun Xiaomo had breached her cultivation bottlenecks and attained the fifth level of Qi Mastery through the baptism of her countless battles while she was outside the Sect. Over thest half a year that she had remained within the Heavenly Peak, she had worked hard on stabilizing this foundation of the fifth level of Qi Mastery. She could even vaguely feel that the next breakthrough to the sixth level of Qi Mastery would soon be within reach.

    During this period of time, she had time and again reminded herself that she could not be anxious. That nightmare that was filled with bloodshed was still some time away, and she had to remain extremely patient...

    That said, her eyes would sting with pain and agony whenever she looked at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode in the distance.

    She did not dare to take a step into that ce at all, because she was afraid that going in would only remind her of all the memories that she had shared with Ye Xiuwen. She was afraid that the tender and sensitive heartstring that had healed slightly over time would snap again, and she would willfully rush straight into the Death¡¯s Gorge once more.

    She knew that doing so would only hurt her parents. She simply cannot afford to be willful anymore.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, I knew you would be here.¡± The clear, crisp voice of a young man rang out some distance away. Momentster, she heard a rustling sounding from the shrubs beside her, before a tender, doll-like face of a young boy peeked out from the shrubbery. His head was even covered with a bunch of dried grass and leaves.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled lightheartedly as she softly remarked, ¡°Little Lang, your parents are going to punish you if they see you like this.¡±

    Practically everyone within the Heavenly Peak were cultivation fanatics. There was only one exception, and that was the young man before Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes right now.

    This young man much preferred y and gossip, rather than matters pertaining to his own cultivation. Thus, he would always be gallivant about the entire Dawn Sect, picking up thetest news and gossip and rying the same to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo looked genially at the young man as he scratched his head and pouted slightly. Seeing that he remained taciturn for some time, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but chuckle lightly as she added, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you really afraid that your father would punish you? Don¡¯t worry, your martial sister knows how to keep a secret. But ying aside, you absolutely shouldn¡¯t neglect your cultivation, understand?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was incredibly fond of her martial brothers and sisters within the Heavenly Peak, and this included the young man before her. Her thoughts involuntarily drifted to thatst moment when she had left the Heavenly Peak in her previous life. Back then, she had seen this younger martial brother of hersying motionless in a pool of his own blood...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes drooped listlessly as she fervently suppressed the thoughts of her previous life.

    This young man named Wei Gang had been slightly stunned by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s remarks. When he finally came back to his senses, he scratched his head in embarrassment as he stammered, ¡°Martial...martial sister is bing better-looking as the days go by. I¡¯d been staring at you in a daze...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was tickled by her little martial brother¡¯sments, and her originally sullen mood dissipated substantially. She burst outughing as she helplessly responded, ¡°Since when have I grown better-looking? Aren¡¯t my looks just as they had always been? Aren¡¯t I still the same as before?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m wrong here...¡± Wei Gang continued to rub his head as he murmured softly.

    Truth be told, he was not the only one who had thought that Jun Xiaomo had gotten more good-looking over thest few months. In fact, the martial brothers from Heavenly Peak had recently been discreetly discussing with each other how their martial sister seemed to have gotten more good-looking as the days went by.

    It was understandable why they would think this way. The period of time from sixteen years-old to twenty years-old was precisely when ady would gradually mature. Jun Xiaomo had grown slightly taller and more svelte, and her t, washboard body had be much more curvaceous than before. Even the tenderness in her face had dwindled and matured in turn. Herrge round eyes had elongated and deepened slightly to be a beautiful almond shape. When she gazed into a person¡¯s eyes, her clear-ck pupils, replete with the rest of her maturing features, would give off an electrifying sensation, causing that person to be drawn into the depths of her gaze.

    Furthermore, the red coloured garment that Jun Xiaomo loved to wear entuated her jade-white skin and her jet-ck hair. Even though she was only seventeen years-old, her elegant movements carried a particrly special and electrifying charm to it that would draw in the gaze of any onlookers.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present looks had grown that much closer to her looks in her previous life. The only thing that was different was that her pupils in her previous life were filled with a vile, vicious gaze, while her present pupils were slightly mncholic as a result of the incidents that happened in this life. As a result, her present looks were hardly repulsive at all. In fact, the slight mncholy in her eyes only served to trigger an impulsive urge in others to calm and console her.

    Jun Xiaomo hardly noticed anything different about herself, but this didn¡¯t mean that her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak couldn¡¯t appreciate her looks when they encountered her within the Peak.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu already had a marriage arrangement. Furthermore, the sense ofmunity and fraternity within the hearts of these Heavenly Peak disciples far outweighed their appreciation for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s beauty. Thus, none of them harboured any illicit or untoward thoughts towards Jun Xiaomo at any point in time.

    They were simply sincerely appreciating the fact that she was gorgeous.

    ¡°What is it, then? Aren¡¯t you looking for martial sister here because you¡¯ve got something you want to talk about?¡± Jun Xiaomo rapped Wei Gang¡¯s head gently.

    The young teenager clutched at his forehead where Jun Xiaomo had just rapped as heined in a huff, ¡°Martial sister, I¡¯m here to report some important news to you! How can you treat me like this?!¡±

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Jun Xiaomo burst outughing, before she rubbed his head gently and cajoled, ¡°Alright, now, can you tell me?¡±

    ¡°Hmph!¡± Wei Gang snorted, before adjusting himself and donning his gossip mongering persona as he proudly reported, ¡°It¡¯s about that Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. Today, I¡¯ve heard others remark that they¡¯re a couple made in heaven again. I keep hearing news like this over thest few days, and I really can¡¯t help but wonder if they¡¯re really tangled with each other right now!¡±

    Wei Gang indignantly reported. He was truly angered at the situation. He felt incredibly aggrieved for his martial sister.

    Truth be told, he did not like Qin Lingyu one bit. After all, Qin Lingyu was always surrounded with flocks of his suitors despite the fact that Qin Lingyu had consciously maintained the appearance of a true gentleman. Who knows what went on behind these appearances of his?

    After all, flies don¡¯t hover about a seemingly good egg for no reason. If Qin Lingyu had used his words and actions to tell these female cultivators to stay away from him, then why was it that these female cultivators still flocked to him incessantly like flies around a rotten egg?!

    There was clearly something fishy going on!

    When she heard the news about Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile faded substantially. Nevertheless, she patted Wei Gang¡¯s head as she remarked, ¡°Don¡¯t get angry over these kinds of people. It¡¯s not worth it.¡±

    ¡°But how could I not be furious! Furthermore, the other disciples always say that Yu Wanrou looks beautiful andpassionate, while Qin Lingyu has suffered substantially being locked in this marriage arrangement with you. I have the urge to tell them that if martial sister takes a walk around in the rest of Dawn Sect, every single one of them would immediately eat their words! Hmph! Beautiful? I still think that no one can hold a candle to martial sister!¡± This was naturally slightly exaggerated. However, the Heavenly Peak disciples had always been inculcated with the values of protecting their own numbers, and Wei Gang was understandably slightly biased in this regard.

    Wei Gang was clearly upset at the situation. Perhaps he might even have juste back from a quarrel with the disciples from other Peaks.

    ¡°Alright, alright, I¡¯m not even angry. What are you doing being upset on my behalf?¡± Jun Xiaomo patted his head.

    ¡°But, martial sister...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, your martial sister has her own ns in this regard.¡± Jun Xiaomo revealed a cold smile as she added. Whenever she thought about how Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had returned to the Sect in glory a few months ago, her eyes would be filled with a frosty gaze.

 Chapter 166: Imperative Rescission of the Marriage Arrangement

    <h4>Chapter 166: Imperative Rescission of the Marriage Arrangement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Dawn Sect had suffered heavy casualties from their disciples¡¯st travels. Not only did they lose two distinguished disciples at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery, most of the other disciples who travelled out together with them had perished as well. The only constion was the fact that two disciples managed to return to the Sect. The first was Qin Lingyu, and he had already sessfully broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. The other was Yu Wanrou, and she was following closely on his heels.

    Not only that, both disciples who returned from these travels had experienced a fairly substantial boost to their cultivation levels. Qin Lingyu had in one fell swoop leapt two qualitative levels, straight into the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment level, while Yu Wanrou had also managed to increase her cultivation level from the sixth to the eighth level of Qi Mastery.

    Nobody knew exactly what happened in the Mystic Woods, or what these two disciples had been through. But as the only two disciples to return from the travels, they were undeniably in the limelight, and received all types of looks from the other disciples, ranging from curiosity, to admiration, to respect, and even to that of concern.

    This was one of the reasons why Jun Xiaomo had in her heart viewed their return to the Sect as one that was filled with glory.

    Right now, the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition [1]was soon about to begin. Given that they had lost two powerful disciples to these travels, the Dawn Sect had no choice but to ce all of their hopes on Qin Lingyu¡¯s back. This further augmented the glory and attention that was showered upon Qin Lingyu.

    Most recently, the Sect had gathered most of its disciples to a central location in order to train them together and make full use of the remaining time before thepetition. Gossip thrived where people gathered. Those who had usually hidden their thoughts at the bottom of their hearts would invariably find their tongues loosened and wagging as soon as they found someone with the same perspectives as them.

    ¡°I think that martial brother Qin¡¯s really drew the short end of the stick here. His abilities and potential are practically limitless, yet he just had to be tied down to Jun Xiaomo from the Heavenly Peak.¡± A female cultivatorined with indignation.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Furthermore, the Heavenly Peak is currently in the rut. They¡¯ve not been able to produce a single expert from their Peak ever since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death. And Jun Xiaomo has even been reduced to nothing more than a cripple. She truly doesn¡¯t deserve martial brother Qin.¡± Another female cultivator chimed in. Her heart would skip a beat whenever she thought about Qin Lingyu¡¯s suave and charming appearance.

    The first female cultivator was unaware that the second female cultivator had special feelings for Qin Lingyu. Thus, she continued ranting, ¡°I think martial sister Yu Wanrou is a hundred or a thousand times better than that Jun Xiaomo. See, Yu Wanrou has already managed to breakthrough to the eighth level of Qi Mastery when she¡¯s only sixteen years-old! Her potential is also limitless! Furthermore, she and martial brother Qin have even braved life and death and faced all kinds of trials and tribtions in the Mystic Woods together. I truly believe that they¡¯re a match made in heaven!¡±

    The second female cultivator¡¯s appearance paled slightly when she heard her friend¡¯s analysis of the matter, before she quickly acquiesced, ¡°Haha...that¡¯s right, that¡¯s right...¡±

    It took her only a moment¡¯s assessment before the second female cultivator realized that there were no aspects in which she could hold a candle to Yu Wanrou at all. In terms of appearances, Yu Wanrou had been hailed as Dawn Sect¡¯s top beauty at the tender age of sixteen years-old. This title was conferred upon her practically unanimously by all the male disciples in the Dawn Sect, with the exception of those disciples from the Heavenly Peak. Thus, nobody thought that such a title was any form of mere exaggeration.

    In terms of abilities, Yu Wanrou had already attained the eighth level of Qi Mastery at the age of sixteen years-old. Her talent in cultivation was undeniable. Among all of the disciples within Dawn Sect right now, only the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s daughter, Jun Xiaomo, had ever done this before. That said, it was highly likely that Jun Xiaomo had already turned into nothing more than a cripple right now. Therefore, the limelight naturally fell onto Yu Wanrou.

    In terms of personality and disposition, Qin Lingyu had personally testified that when all of the Dawn Sect disciples had been murdered by the demonic cultivators and he was on his final breaths, it had been Yu Wanrou who had painstakingly struggled to bring him away from that hellish ce. If Yu Wanrou did not possess a good personality or disposition, there was no doubt that she would have simply left her martial brother Qin behind and departed on her own.

    When she broke down the matter this way and analyzed it part by part, the second female cultivator found herself getting increasingly ashamed when she realized that there was absolutely nothing that she could outshine Yu Wanrou in. Thus, she reluctantly shelved her feelings towards Qin Lingyu.

    Other simr exchanges could be heard frequently around different parts of the Dawn Sect. In the eyes of the Dawn Sect disciples, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou were truly a match made in heaven. Furthermore, one was the ideal man in the eyes of most female disciples, while the other was the ideal woman in the eyes of most male disciples.

    As for these rumours, Qin Lingyu had never thought about stemming them where they began. He knew that given the temperament of the Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei duo, they would most certainly consider rescinding the marriage arrangement as soon as they heard about these rumours. This was exactly what Qin Lingyu was aiming for.

    He hated the fact that he was still tied and bound to that woman, Jun Xiaomo.

    He had not once visited Jun Xiaomo ever since he had returned to the Sect. He could not find it within his heart to visit of his own volition thatdy who had previously torn apart his pretenses and trampled on his pride.

    Most importantly, he knew that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart had already beenpletely stolen by Ye Xiuwen. Even though Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo were still technically engaged to each other in name, there was no longer a single modicum of rtionship between the two of them. Qin Lingyu was fully aware that he would not be able to extract any further benefit from Jun Xiaomo any longer.

    Conversely, Yu Wanrou was of far greater benefit to him right now. In fact, the only reason why he had been able to breakthrough twice in one fell swoop and attain the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment was precisely because of those spirit waters within Yu Wanrou¡¯s Interspatial Ring.

    Yu Wanrou refused to tell Qin Lingyu where these spirit waters hade from, but she had assured Qin Lingyu that she still had plenty where it came from. However, her only condition to Qin Lingyu was that he had to abandon Jun Xiaomo entirely and allow them to be in an open rtionship within the Sect.

    Thus, the marriage arrangement that Qin Lingyu had earlier entered solely for profit had now be a form of burden that had shackled him, and he could hardly wait to rescind this marriage arrangement.

    Yet no matter how anxious Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was, he knew he had to bide his time.

    What he desired was for Jun Xiaomo to back out of the marriage arrangement on her end. This way, he would be able to maintain his appearances as the reasonable party, and at the same time steer clear from stirring Jun Linxuan¡¯s ire. In turn, these rumours were in fact his greatest assets right now.

    Nothing could hurt people more than rumours. Qin Lingyu felt that as long as there was some measure of self-respect within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, there was no doubt that she would initiate the rescission of the marriage arrangement when she got wind of these rumours.

    Qin Lingyu considered this his way of being merciful to Jun Xiaomo and leaving her a fair option out of the marriage arrangement.

    But how could Jun Xiaomo not understand Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts right now? In fact, Qin Lingyu present actions could even be said to be a result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s calctions. After all, she was the one who had thought about rescinding the marriage arrangement to begin with.

    However, she had recently been far too immersed in her own pain and sorrow and far too preupied with increasing her abilities. This meant that the rescission of the marriage arrangement had taken a backseat in her mind for now.

    She was willing to let Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart palpitate with anxiety. She was willing to let Qin Lingyu suffer the pain and anguish from having to wait for her response. In fact, she was happy to do all of these while watching Qin Lingyu scuttle about anxiously with his pretenses like a silly little clown.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo had also adjudged that this farce was growing old, and it was about time to end it all.

    ¡°Gang, do you know when the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition is?¡± Jun Xiaomo tilted her head and asked her little martial brother.

    ¡°I think...I think it¡¯s about a monthter...¡± Wei Gang scratched his head.

    His abilities were the weakest in all of Heavenly Peak. In fact, even Jun Xiaomo would be able to beat him in a fight. Therefore, he knew that he was never going to make an appearance in the uing Secondary Inter-Sect Competition.

    And it was precisely because he was not going to participate in the uingpetition that his response was no more than an estimate.

    ¡°That quick, huh?¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed, but her gaze remained stoic.

    Then, a smile crept up the corner of her lips as she added, ¡°It seems that it¡¯s about time to dispose of some remaining shambles in my life.¡±

    ¡°Shambles? What shambles?¡± Wei Gang quipped curiously.

    ¡°None of your business. Little children should be good and go practice their cultivation. If you can¡¯t break through to the next level of Qi Mastery by next year, I¡¯m pretty sure your father is going to give you a good spanking!¡± Jun Xiaomo gently rapped Wei Gang¡¯s head.

    ¡°Oh...¡± Wei Gang responded unwillingly. He rubbed his head as he grumbled softly, ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re not much older than me, but you always nag at me like those old folks...Martial sister, you¡¯re getting less fun these days, you know that?¡±

    ¡°Stillining over here? Shall I take care of you on your father¡¯s behalf, hmm?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow.

    In order to increase her cultivation level, Jun Xiaomo had in thest few months actively sought out her martial brothers and sisters for spars and a few rounds of friendly exchanges. Wei Gang had often also joined in the fray to bask in the glory of themotion. But in the end, he had always been thoroughly defeated by Jun Xiaomo.

    Thus, as soon as Jun Xiaomo yfully threatened Wei Gang, he immediately slipped away in the blink of an eye after saying a quick ¡°goodbye¡± to her martial sister.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly as she chuckled to herself. Then, her smile faded when she turned her attention back to the task at hand. An intense gleam of light flickered across her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo thought aloud as she got to her feet, ¡°It¡¯s about time to look for mother to resolve this outstanding issue.¡±

    Some momentster, Jun Xiaomo hopped back to her parents¡¯ abode and discovered that Liu Qingmei was currently boiling some soup in her kitchen. Liu Qingmei felt extremely sorry for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s plight and all the hardship that she had been through. Thus, ever since Jun Xiaomo had awakened, Liu Qingmei had always found different ways and means of locating the delectable meats of certain spirit beasts to nourish her daughter¡¯s body. Right now, Jun Xiaomo could smell the sweet fragrance of the Third-Grade Flowerleaf Koi before she had even entered the kitchen.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were filled with warmth as she suppressed theplicated emotions in her heart. Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she minced her way over to her mother, hugged her mother at the waist and rubbed her head on her back gently. Then, she quipped, ¡°Mother~ What are you cooking now? It smells so good...¡±

    ¡°You greedy little brat. Are you only hovering about the kitchen because you¡¯ve smelled the aroma of what I¡¯m preparing now? This is a pot of Third-Grade Flowerleaf Koi. Your dad has made time to go out and catch this for you.¡± Liu Qingmei nced back at her daughter.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile grew wider, and a closer look would reveal that her eyes were quivering slightly.

    Her parents¡¯ love had touched her and filled her heart with warmth, and she knew that she should never do anything willfully that would hurt them.

    ¡°Mum, thank you.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured.

    ¡°Sigh, don¡¯t thank me. I would thank the heavens if you could just stay out of trouble.¡± Liu Qingmei rolled her eyes at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightheartedly.

    Momentster, she thought about it and broached the main topic to Liu Qingmei, ¡°Mum, I want to rescind the marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu, is that alright?¡±

    Liu Qingmei was midway through her tasting of the soup when she heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion. She paused momentarily, before setting herdle back down as she furrowed her brows and responded, ¡°Mo-Mo, is this something you¡¯ve juste up with because you¡¯ve been hearing some rumours?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not because of the rumours.¡± Jun Xiaomo shook her head and walked beside Liu Qingmei. She picked up thedle and began to stir the soup again as she added, ¡°Mother, I¡¯m pretty sure that you¡¯re also aware of this, but Qin Lingyu isn¡¯t a good person. I was young and ignorant back then, so I had always been fooled by Qin Lingyu¡¯s appearances. But I¡¯ve done a lot of thinking in thest year or so. Do you remember how I had wanted to rescind the marriage arrangement before I had left the Sect on the travels? But your conditions back than was that I had to attain the ninth level of Qi Mastery by next year before you would agree to my request to rescind the marriage arrangement.¡±

    ¡°But this time, after further consideration, I think there¡¯s no reason to wait for next year anymore. There¡¯s no difference whether we rescind the marriage arrangement earlier orter. Mum, I¡¯d much rather not enter a Greater Sect [2]than be tied down to this marriage arrangement for my entire life.¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnlymunicated her rationale to Liu Qingmei with eyes filled with determination.

    Liu Qingmei grew sullen as she stared straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. Momentster, she sighed briefly before responding, ¡°If you had made this requestst year, I would never have agreed to your request. But after all that has happened, your mother has also thought things through. Rather than rely on others to enter a Greater Sect, it might be much better to stay by your parents¡¯ side and practice your cultivation safely. Therefore, no matter what decision Mo-Mo hase to, your mother will always support that decision of yours.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, mum.¡± Jun Xiaomo hugged Liu Qingmei as warmth filled her heart.

    Liu Qingmei tousled her daughter¡¯s hair, before she calmly patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Mo-Mo, when are you thinking of rescinding the marriage arrangement? Your mum has to discuss this matter with your dad as well.¡± Liu Qingmei suddenly realized that she had not discussed this matter with Jun Linxuan either.

    ¡°Could we do it just before themencement of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition?¡± A smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, and a trace of mischief flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°Before thepetition? Why then of all times?¡± Liu Qingmei couldn¡¯t understand her daughter¡¯s thought processes.

    ¡°Because things be much more interesting when you tie them together.¡± Jun Xiaomo slowly explicated, ¡°Aren¡¯t they very curious about how I am right now? Aren¡¯t people saying that I can¡¯t make it anymore, or that I¡¯ve be nothing more than a cripple? Since these gossip mongers like a good show, then let¡¯s give them a good show, shall we?¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo spoke, the smile on her lips grew. Finally, she added the punchline ¨C

    ¡°Mum, not only do I want to rescind the marriage arrangement, I also want to participate in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition.¡±

    1. Do note that Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition has been renamed to Secondary Inter-Sect Competition!

    2. Please note that I¡¯ll be using these terms of reference in future! They sound much better than what I had used before (previously, I¡¯ve used mid-tier and upper-tier to describe Secondary Sects and Greater Sects respectively).

 Chapter 167: Rescinding the Marriage Arrangement

    <h4>Chapter 167: Rescinding the Marriage Arrangement</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Every sect in the cultivation world was separated and ssified by different grades, namely, Elementary Sects, Secondary Sects, Greater Sects, Supreme Sects and Hidden Sects.[1]

    Dawn Sect was ssified as a Secondary Sect, while the eight great sects as well as Little Chi¡¯s sect were all considered Hidden Sects.

    Hidden Sects generally refrained from participating in the Inter-Sect Competitions. That said, they were still not to be looked upon with contempt or derision. In fact, even members of the Supreme Sects would think twice before challenging the members of Hidden Sects.

    This was because Hidden Sects werergely formed by the bloodlines of a single n. In turn, these ns generally possessed incredible, heaven-defying talents for cultivation, or certain special abilities.

    How Jun Xiaomo had stirred the wrath of the eight great sects in the past was something that she would rather not think about for now. At present, what was most important to her was how she could obtain the rights to participate in the uing Secondary Inter-Sect Competition.[2]

    Every five years, the Secondary Sects would congregate and organize a massivepetition where they would pit their disciples against each other, and the top three Sects would be granted the opportunity to participate in the Greater Inter-Sect Competition.

    If they were able toe out victorious in these Greater Inter-Sect Competitions, then the Secondary Sects that had participated would naturally earn for themselves a chance to be considered a Greater Sect as well.

    However, this was something easier said than done. To put things into perspective, Dawn Sect had already ranked among the top three in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition in thest fifty years. Even then, they would invariably be wiped out and eliminated from thepetition by their opponents in the very first round of battles when they participated in the Greater Inter-Sect Competitions.

    Thus, Dawn Sect had maintained its status as a Secondary Sect to date. Their rivals, the Eternal Summit Sect, were in the same predicament as well.

    In thesest travels, Dawn Sect had managed to groom and send out three disciples in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. This was the first time that the Dawn Sect were hopeful of cing first in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. Yet tragedy struck, and Dawn Sect lost two of the three disciples in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. To make matters worse, over ten other talented disciples had lost their lives during these travels as well. The losses sustained by the Dawn Sect this time was unimaginable.

    As such, the Sect had no choice but to ce all of their hopes onto Qin Lingyu, who had managed to sessfully breakthrough into the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, are you sure that you want to participate in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition?¡± Liu Qingmei furrowed her brows as she asked.

    ¡°Mum, I¡¯m absolutely certain that I want to participate.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded affirmatively.

    ¡°But you must understand that the fights during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition are quite different from your usual sparring with your martial brothers. Each of the sects would send out their strongest disciples topete. Mother doesn¡¯t want to see you get hurt.¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was not high enough, she could gain special participation rights to thesepetitions as the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster.

    This was the so-called ¡°backdoor ess¡±.

    However, what Liu Qingmei was concerned about was quite something else ¨C whenever these Secondary Inter-Sect Competition took ce, there would invariably be disciples who sustained grievous injuries, and everypetition would even see a few deaths. This was something permissible during thepetitions.

    Liu Qingmei was worried that her daughter would be taken advantage of. After all, her daughter¡¯s cultivation level was not high enough.

    ¡°Mum, it¡¯s fine. I won¡¯t force the issue if I really can¡¯t defeat my opponent. I just hope to have this opportunity to prove myself.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes glistened as she spoke. ¡°Furthermore...¡± She lowered her head, ¡°I¡¯ve already made a bet with the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder. We¡¯ve even sworn an oath on the bet, so...¡±

    ¡°You little brat!¡± Liu Qingmei red at Jun Xiaomo as she eximed, ¡°Every time I begin to think you¡¯ve grown up, you throw caution to the wind and do something reckless like this.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled and hugged Liu Qingmei around the shoulders and shook her gently as she replied, ¡°Mother, let me be willful onest time, please?¡±

    Liu Qingmei rapped her forehead in exasperation, ¡°Do I have any other choice, you little brat?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knew that this meant that Liu Qingmei had tacitly agreed to her request.

    ¡°Thanks, mum.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled cheekily.

    Just like that, the Dawn Sect disciples hunkered down and worked diligently as they made full use of any remaining time to prepare for the uing Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. Then, out of nowhere, a shocking rumour began to spread about within the Sect ¨C Jun Xiaomo had finally decided to rescind the marriage arrangement between her and martial brother Qin Lingyu!!

    This news had seemed to sprout up out of nowhere. At the beginning, everyone waited with bated breath in a hope that an exciting drama would unfurl. Yet nobody dared to believe that this news was true.

    This was a joke! Qin Lingyu had already attained the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation at the tender age of twenty-three years-old. His talent was apparent, and his potential was limitless. Furthermore, he was even the Chosen Disciple of the Limitless Sect. Practically every single female cultivator within the Dawn Sect wanted to throw themselves at Qin Lingyu. Everyone was jealous of the existence of this marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu.

    On the other hand, what was Jun Xiaomo? Quite apart from the fact that her cultivation level had fallen from heights to the depths of despair, she had in recent times be nothing more than a hermit that hid from the rest of the Sect as well. When one put two and two together, Jun Xiaomo was nothing more than a trash hermit!

    If not for the fact that her father was the Peakmaster of Heavenly Peak, this type of trash was one that would already have been emunicated from the Dawn Sect a long time ago. How else could she have remained safely within the borders of this Sect?!

    Yet what was most unexpected about this was that the trash of the Sect was now looking to rescind the marriage arrangement between her and martial brother Qin? This was tantamount to the greatest joke in the world! It would have made more sense if Qin Lingyu had been the one rescinding the marriage arrangement with her!

    Regardless, it took no time for Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei to dispel all of these spections. Their actions told these busybodies that this news was noughing matter.

    Just one day before themencement of thepetitions, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei strode proudly towards the Sect¡¯s discussion hall. They walked straight into the center and greeted the Sect Leader He Zhang and all other Sect Elders that had congregated there as they announced, ¡°We hope that everyone here can be a witness. Today, my daughter intends to nullify the marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu and henceforth have nothing to do with him.¡±

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s announcement came out of nowhere. He Zhang and the other Sect Elders had been discussing the matters pertaining to the order of battles in the uingpetition, and they were already at the tail end of their discussions. They had never expected Jun Linxuan to suddenly make an appearance and drop such a bombshell announcement on them.

    Truth be told, the Sect Elders had already heard of the rumours spreading about within the Sect, but they had never believed its veracity.

    Qin Lingyu was already the Chosen Disciple of a Greater Sect, the Limitless Sect. As Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, Jun Xiaomo would have unrestricted ess to enter the Limitless Sect. The prospects of that was a hundred times better than remaining in the Dawn Sect.

    If Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were rational and logical about the costs and benefits, they would never have broached the issue of rescinding the marriage arrangement.

    But they did. Perhaps they could no longer think straight after the death of their beloved First-Seat Disciple, or perhaps they were spoiling their daughter far too much. But whatever the reason was, they had unmistakably just made the request to rescind the marriage arrangement.

    He Zhang¡¯s sullen gaze swept across Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei¡¯s bodies as he discreetly suppressed the vile, nauseating thoughts swelling from the depths of his heart.

    It won¡¯t be long now... He Zhang thought to himself. Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple was already dead, and the that he had cast out a long time ago was slowly being reeled back in. The Heavenly Peak was soon going to be their prized catch of the day.

    And there¡¯s still Liu Qingmei...

    He Zhang collected the nefarious thoughts on his mind and turned his attention back to the present. Then, he pretended to sigh as he queried, ¡°Linxuan, Qingmei, have you already thought things through? I hope this isn¡¯t because you¡¯ve heard some baseless rumours spreading within the Sect, is it? Don¡¯t worry, as Lingyu¡¯s master, I¡¯m very clear of his personality, and I¡¯m quite certain that he had never done anything that would hurt Xiaomo.¡±

    He Zhang was referring to the rumours of the rtionship between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou.

    Liu Qingmei chuckled sardonically in her heart. She derided the fact that He Zhang could lie through his teeth like that.

    As ady, she was naturally far more sensitive as to whether Qin Lingyu had even loved her own daughter. If not for the fact that her daughter had been so infatuated and obsessed with Qin Lingyu in the past, she would never have agreed to their marriage arrangement!

    Ever since they had brought Jun Xiaomo back from her travels, Liu Qingmei no longer looked upon He Zhang with the same level of trust as she had before. One of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s phrases had resonated particrly clearly in her mind ¨C ¡°Mum, like master, like disciple. One begets the other. Given how Qin Lingyu¡¯s character is so fraught with issues, do you really think that He Zhang could be an angel himself?¡±

    This statement had sunk into Liu Qingmei¡¯s mind like a nuclear explosion ¨C it instantly cleared the roiling smoke and mirrors within her mind and brought rity to everything that had happened to date.

    That¡¯s right. Even though the Heavenly Peak disciples all possessed their own unique characteristics, there were nevertheless some matters of principles and values that were non-negotiable. This isrgely a result of Linxuan¡¯s influence on them. If that¡¯s the case, then what about Qin Lingyu? His scheming and opportunistic behaviour muste from somewhere. Is this really entirely unrted to He Zhang?

    Then, when Liu Qingmei turned her mind to the events of the past, she could not help but find things more than simply suspicious.

    Take for example the matter with the rumours that had been spreading within the Sect. As Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, it was an extremely simple task if He Zhang wanted to stem the flow of these rumours. But why did he refrain from doing so? Why did he simply allow these rumours to spread and grow like wildfire?

    If he truly cared for Jun Xiaomo as much as he presented himself to, then would he not be aware that such rumours could be incredibly damaging and scathing to a youngdy¡¯s heart?

    Thus, the more Liu Qingmei thought about matters, the colder her heart grew.

    She was quite different from her husband, Jun Linxuan. Compared with Jun Linxuan, Liu Qingmei was far more meticulous and sensitive when it came to personal rtionships.

    But she naturally revealed none of her indignation towards He Zhang on her face. She wanted to see how He Zhang was going to maintain these false pretenses of his.

    ¡°Xiaomo¡¯s decision wasn¡¯t based off the rumours at all. Rather, she felt that they were young and reckless at the time the marriage arrangement was entered into. She doesn¡¯t want to unduly restrain him from pursuing thedy of his dreams. Likewise, she doesn¡¯t want to be shackled to this marriage arrangement either.¡± Liu Qingmei calmly observed He Zhang¡¯s reaction as she exined.

    ¡°This...¡± He Zhang appeared to be caught in a pickle, as though he needed further persuasion.

    ¡°Sect Leader, I think it would be best to let our juniors decide for themselves the matter pertaining to their eternal bliss. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need for us to overstep our boundaries in this regard, don¡¯t you agree? Ah, that¡¯s right. This is the formation scroll for the rescission of the marriage arrangement. Jun Xiaomo has already signed on it and dripped a drop of her blood in the formation array. If martial nephew Qin Lingyu finds this proposal to be eptable to him, he can do the same as well, and the formation array will thus be activated. What do you think?¡±

    The marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu had been formally sworn. Thus, the rescission of the same would require a simr level of formality with a formation array as well.

    He Zhang sighed as he responded, ¡°Since martial sister Qingmei is so determined...then so be it.¡±

    As he said that, he retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane, wrote a few words on it and released it.

    Liu Qingmei grimaced discreetly, and a trace of disgust shed across her eyes.

    Having finally recognized He Zhang¡¯s true character, she had begun to find that He Zhang¡¯s manner of addressing her was getting increasingly more loathsome.

    1. Please note that I¡¯ll be using these terms of reference in future! They sound much better than what I had used before (previously, I¡¯ve used mid-tier and upper-tier to describe Secondary Sects and Greater Sects respectively).

    2. Do note that Mid-Tier Inter-Sect Competition has been renamed to Secondary Inter-Sect Competition as well!

 Chapter 168: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Dream Come True

    <h4>Chapter 168: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Dream Come True</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu was with Yu Wanrou when the Messenger Paper Crane first arrived. They were enjoying a stroll together along a quaint little pathway running beside theke.

    The little pathway was lined by neatly separated willow trees, and there were undting rocks surrounding the jade-green, crystalline waters of theke. The scenery was tranquil and idyllic.

    Everyone was currently preupied with cultivating and preparing for the uingpetition, and the number of people taking strolls by theke had dwindled substantially. Even if there were passers-by, this ce was so scenic that they might hardly notice the fact that this intimate couple were none other than the rumoured match made in heaven, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou.

    As soon as Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou returned from their travels in glory, all kinds of inspiring and moving tales about them began to spread throughout the Sect. Naturally, the public began to treat their ever growing intimacy as a natural progression of all that they had been through on the travels.

    In their hearts, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had together faced life and death and overcame all forms of trials and tribtions. Growing closer and more intimate to each other was only a natural byproduct of all that they had been through. In the past, Yu Wanrou could only discreetly meet up with Qin Lingyu. But now, she could do so openly, and nobody would say a single thing about them.

    However, this was naturally to the exclusion of any out-of-character behaviour. At the very least, they still had to maintain their propriety in front of others because Qin Lingyu was technically still bound by his marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo. If Jun Linxuan learnt that if either of them had behaved out of line in any way, the manifestation of his short temper might result in grave consequences.

    At the beginning, Yu Wanrou was still rather satisfied with the present arrangement. At least Qin Lingyu was always by her side. Furthermore, Qin Lingyu had be increasingly pleasant towards her ever since they had returned from their travels. Thus, Yu Wanrou felt as though her dreams hade true, and she was in bliss.

    However, people are always greedy for more. Yu Wanrou quickly grew displeased with mere status quo in no time. She was upset by the fact that she had to maintain the appearances of propriety when she was by Qin Lingyu¡¯s side in public.

    She wanted to proim to the world that Qin Lingyu was somebody she loved, and she coveted those looks of jealousy that everyone had cast on Jun Xiaomo. She refused to let Jun Xiaomo bask in that ¡°glory¡± any further.

    Therefore, in the nights toe, Yu Wanrou hadid beside Qin Lingyu on their bed and badgered him on when exactly he was going to rescind the marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo.

    It was only when the marriage arrangement had been rescinded that she could openly hold Qin Lingyu¡¯s hand and proim to the world that this man was hers to the exclusion of everybody else.

    After all, Yu Wanrou had always treated Jun Xiaomo as the stumbling block that had obstructed her rtionship with Qin Lingyu. She was the thorn in her flesh. Yet Yu Wanrou had selectively obviated from her mind the fact that with the existence of the marriage arrangement, she was in fact the true third wheel in the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu.

    And that was despite the fact that this marriage arrangement was no more than a fa?ade.

    Each time Yu Wanrou broached this topic in bed, Qin Lingyu would warmly embrace her and kiss her cheeks as he cajoled, ¡°Wait a little while longer. That woman will initiate the rescission of marriage with me as soon as she can¡¯t bear with it any longer. This is the only way we can refrain from invoking Jun Linxuan¡¯s wrath and be openly together without any worries.¡±

    Yu Wanrou would cast a bitter and angry re at him, but Qin Lingyu would continue to kiss her. They would kiss, and kiss, and soon after that lock with each other in a warm embrace once more.

    Just like that, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had spent night after night indulging in their carnal desires. They had expected Jun Xiaomo to sumb to the power of these rumours very quickly and initiate the rescission of the marriage arrangement in no time. Yet to their increasing dismay, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unfazed by the rumours. She continued to indulge in her hearty meals and sleep well at night. In fact, she had even secretly kept tabs on Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou as they pranced about anxiously like clowns, waiting with bated breath for the result that they so desired.

    ¡°Martial brother Qin, tomorrow¡¯s already the day of thepetition. Do we still have to keep on waiting like this? When will we have to wait until, huh...¡± Yu Wanroumented to Qin Lingyu who walked by her side.

    ¡°Since tomorrow¡¯s already thepetition, then all the more we have to keep our guard up. We can¡¯t growcent now, understand? Otherwise, her father will find a reason to deal harshly with us.¡±

    Qin Lingyu patiently exined the situation to Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lip in dismay as tears filled her eyes. Yet she saw the determination in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and she knew that she had no choice but to shelf her thoughts for now.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the agony of waiting was far more unbearable than a swift and decisive judgment or punishment. This was precisely why she had waited all this while. She wanted to torment Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. If not for the fact that she had already grown bored of these pretenses and the fact that she wished to teach somebody a lesson during the uingpetition, she would have continued to torment them with the anguish of waiting.

    Thus, the discreet couple walked along the pathway in silence for a while. Then, Qin Lingyu finally broke the silence and eximed, ¡°Tomorrow¡¯s the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. I imagine the other Sects would be sending several experts to take the stage as well. I wonder if I¡¯ll be able to meet my master and the Sect Elder¡¯s expectations...¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Qin can do it! After all, how many people are able to step into the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation at the tender age of twenty-three years-old?¡± Yu Wanrou paused in her steps as she cheered Qin Lingyu with a slightly flushed face.

    ¡°But it¡¯s hard to say as well. After all, even though there are few disciples within the Secondary Sects who possess cultivation levels higher than mine, this doesn¡¯t mean that there are none. I hear that the disciple of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Second Elder has already broken through to the Foundation Establishment level two years ago. It¡¯s hard to say what level his cultivation is at right now.¡± Qin Lingyu sighed as he looked towards Yu Wanrou with a soft and profound gaze, ¡°I¡¯m just concerned that I¡¯ll suffer from serious injuries. If that happens...¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not going to happen!¡± Yu Wanrou anxiously interjected as she promptly retrieved three bottles of spirit water from her Interspatial Ring, ¡°Martial brother Qin, these three bottles contain undiluted spirit waters. No matter how severe your injuries are, you¡¯ll just need to apply these spirit waters on your wounds, and you¡¯ll be better in no time! I want you to have them!¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes shed with a trace of avarice, before he smiled genially as he received the spirit waters and responded, ¡°Rou-er, meeting you is really the best thing that had ever happened to me.¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s face immediately flushed red, and she lowered her head bashfully, ¡°Martial brother Qin, me too...¡±

    Just then, the sound of pping wings broke apart their harmonious and intimate atmosphere. A Messenger Paper Crane perched itself on Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder before it becamepletely still and motionless.

    Qin Lingyu picked up the Messenger Paper Crane and opened it. Momentster, he beamed with absolute satisfaction, ¡°It¡¯s finally here.¡±

    ¡°Finally here? What¡¯s finally here?¡± Yu Wanrou asked curiously.

    ¡°It¡¯s that thing that we¡¯ve both been eagerly anticipating.¡± Qing Lingyu¡¯s smile remained stered on his face as he exined.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart immediately skipped a beat, ¡°Is...is Jun Xiaomo finally asking to rescind the marriage arrangement?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly it. Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei are in the Sect¡¯s discussion hall right now. Master has just summoned me over.¡± Qin Lingyu crushed the message and tossed it into theke.

    ¡°I knew that she couldn¡¯t take the relentless battering of those rumours. Furthermore, I suspect that she¡¯sing to terms with the fact that she¡¯s no more than a crippled, huh? She¡¯s been cooped up within Heavenly Peak for such a long time. Do you think that she¡¯s been disfigured, and that¡¯s why she doesn¡¯t want to show her face within the Sect?¡± Yu Wanrou derided Jun Xiaomo as she delighted in her misery. Their goal was finally within reach, and it felt almost surreal.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not talk about these things right now. We don¡¯t want anyone to hear us.¡± Qin Lingyu patted Yu Wanrou¡¯s shoulder.

    Yu Wanrou pouted her lips unwillingly.

    Then, Qin Lingyu tenderly picked up a lock of Yu Wanrou¡¯s hair and toyed with it in his fingers as he added, ¡°I¡¯ll rush over right now. Once I¡¯ve settled this matter, we can finally be together openly.¡±

    ¡°Then you should quickly be on your way, martial brother... It¡¯s just a pity that I won¡¯t be able to see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tragic appearance when she rescinds the marriage arrangement!¡± Yu Wanrou urged Qin Lingyu along as she mocked contemptuously.

    A trace of tedium flickered across the depths of Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. The truth of the matter was that he had already grown tired of Yu Wanrou since some time ago. Not only had his pursuit of Yu Wanrou been too easy, Yu Wanrou¡¯s narrow-mindedness, paranoia and vicious disposition was something that made him unable to wholeheartedly ept, trust and love Yu Wanrou.

    Her love was almost akin to a double-edged sword. Qin Lingyu was concerned that one day, this sword might turn around and hurt him instead.

    That said, Yu Wanrou possessed the spirit waters that he highly coveted. Therefore, he did not mind leading Yu Wanrou on for a little while more. After all, he had treated Jun Xiaomo in the same manner just some time ago.

    After Qin Lingyu tenderly tickled Yu Wanrou¡¯s chin, he turned around and left, leaving Yu Wanrou behind by thekeside as she contemted the tragic expression that might be on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    As soon as Qin Lingyu arrived in the Sect¡¯s discussion hall, he noticed that not only were Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei present, even his master, He Zhang, and all the other Sect Elders were present as well.

    The only person that he did not see was Jun Xiaomo.

    A trace of suspicion shed across his heart, but he adjusted his thoughts very quickly. Then, he politely bowed to everyone in the discussion hall and respectfully addressed every single one of them, including Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei.

    Seeing Qin Lingyu¡¯s neither servile or overbearing attitude replete with a delightful presentation of respect and courtesy, several Sect Elders nodded in affirmation and revealed expressions of praise on their faces.

    As expected, Qin Lingyu was He Zhang¡¯s beloved disciple through and through. Despite achieving his desired oue, Qin Lingyu maintained an appearance of humility ¨C humble in victory, and unrelenting in defeat, this was the model example of the disciple that all others should learn from.

    Several Sect Elders even nced back towards Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei as though they were delighting in their misery.

    I wonder whether this Jun couple regrets giving up such a fine son-inw? Perhaps their hearts are even stirring in disappointment right now?

    Yet Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei maintained a stoic appearance to the dismay of these eager Sect Elders.

    ¡°Lingyu, you¡¯ve seen the letter that master has sent you. Xiaomo wishes to rescind the marriage arrangement, and your martial uncle Jun has handed the right to decide over to you. What are your thoughts?¡± He Zhang sighed slightly as he looked over towards his beloved disciple in anticipation.

    Even the rescission of the marriage arrangement is handled by her parents, and Jun Xiaomo has not showed up. Could it be as Yu Wanrou has suspected? Has Jun Xiaomo been disfigured or turned into a cripple? Qin Lingyu eximed in his heart.

    But what had be of Jun Xiaomo was no longer of his concern. After today, he would no longer be tied to that woman in any way.

    As these thoughts crossed Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind, he turned towards Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei and respectfully made a fist and palm salute as he said, ¡°Since martial sister Xiaomo has already made her decision, I won¡¯t force the issue as well. If it¡¯s not meant to be, it¡¯s not meant to be. I can only say with resignation that martial sister Xiaomo and I aren¡¯t fated.¡±

    As he finished speaking, Qin Lingyu lowered his head and sighed, as though such an end to the rtionship were a pitiable matter.

    In the eyes of those around, they found this junior to be incredibly sentimental inparison with Jun Xiaomo who had refused to even show up even for such an important matter. Thus, their impression of Jun Xiaomo worsened.

    Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows, while Liu Qingmei¡¯s heart swelled with some measure of unease.

    Whatever the exnation given was, the fact remained that Qin Lingyu had already agreed to the rescission of the marriage arrangement, and the process was thus going to be that much easier. Liu Qingmei picked up the formation scroll and brought it over to Qin Lingyu as she exined, ¡°Martial nephew Qin, this is a formation scroll for the purposes of rescinding the marriage arrangement. As long as you sign on it and drip a drop of your blood on it, the marriage arrangement between you and Mo-Mo will henceforth be rescinded. You may proceed.¡±

    Qin Lingyu looked as though he hesitated for a moment before he signed with great force and determination. Then, he bit his thumb and dripped a drop of blood onto the heart of the formation array. Instantly, the formation array glowed with a bright blue light, signifying that the marriage arrangement had been formally rescinded.

    Qin Lingyu heaved a sigh of relief in his heart, be he let none of that show on his expression right now.

    ¡°Alright, us husband and wife have already done what we¡¯vee here to do. Earlier, Sect Leader and Sect Elders looked like they had been discussing something important. Linxuan and I still have some matters to attend to, so we shan¡¯t be participating in these discussions. Please, carry on.¡± As Liu Qingmei spoke, she hooked her arm around her husband¡¯s arm and left without even looking back. The Sect Elders turned and grimaced to each other as they looked at the ashen-faced He Zhang.

    ¡°Sigh, I think Linxuan and Qingmei have both grown more and more audacious, huh?¡± The Second Elder intentionally pointed out as he sighed in dismay.

    ¡°Perhaps he thinks that being in the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage is particrly impressive, huh? But he¡¯s still a far cry whenpared with these few respected elders! Such insolence.¡±

    ¡°Lingyu, don¡¯t be too upset. That Jun Xiaomo doesn¡¯t know what¡¯s good for her. If the marriage arrangement has been rescinded, then so be it. It¡¯s actually a good thing for you, since you won¡¯t have to bear that burden anymore.¡± The Fourth Elder consoled Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Thank you, Sect Elder for your concern.¡± Qin Lingyu made a fist and palm salute to him.

    ¡°Haha...alright, let¡¯s not discuss all these depressing things. Shall we all resume our discussions on the battles tomorrow?¡±

    Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were unaware of the discussions and gossip between the Sect Elders behind their back. In fact, it did not matter to them even if they had heard the contents ¨C they would not mind it a single bit.

    Thus, the rest of the day passed uneventfully, and the next day soon arrived. The day ofmencement of the eagerly anticipated Secondary Inter-Sect Competition had finally arrived, and the curtains had thus been drawn.

 Chapter 169: The Astonishing Appearance

    <h4>Chapter 169: The Astonishing Appearance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This year¡¯s Secondary Inter-Sect Competition was held at the Heavenly Crane Mountain one hundred miles away from the Dawn Sect. Early at dawn, all disciples who were participating or keen to observe thepetition had gathered on therge ins within the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds. In just a few moments, the Sect Elders would personally escort them in batches as they made their way towards the Heavenly Crane Mountain.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had also gathered by now. Apart from a few disciples that had already entered some Greater Sects for training, there were a total of twenty-three disciples who were following behind Jun Linxuan right now. Each of the Heavenly Peak disciples carried themselves with a stern and dignified disposition. This was inplete contrast with the rowdy shenanigans and clowning around that disciples of other Peaks had engaged themselves with as they gathered themselves into groups of twos and threes.

    ¡°These disciples truly take after their master, martial uncle Jun. Each one of them is just as stern as the other, and they¡¯re all acting like ancient old fogeys right now.¡± A disciple from the Pill Cauldron Peakmented to a fellow disciple beside him.

    ¡°Hmph, so what if they look noble and virtuous? Didn¡¯t that First-Seat Disciple Ye Xiuwen die before he evenpleted the Sect¡¯s mission? If you ask me, a person should know how to navigate the intricacies of human rtions and curry favour with the right people. Otherwise, no matter how strong you are, you¡¯ll still meet your own doom in the end.¡± The fellow disciple mocked contemptuously as he cast a disgusted look at the Heavenly Peak disciples some distance away.

    Worst of all, these disciples had not even bothered to lower their voices when they spoke. Thus, the Heavenly Peak disciples clenched their fists tightly and the bulging veins on their foreheads throbbed ferociously as they repressed the urge to tear these Pill Cauldron Peak disciples¡¯ lips to shreds!

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were extremely fond of their martial brother Ye Xiuwen. Whenever Jun Linxuan was too busy with his administrative duties, Ye Xiuwen had always taken the initiative to oversee their cultivation progress and give them some instructions from time to time.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen was an existence that could practically be described as half a master and half a brother to them. How could they not be upset that others had now turned him into aughingstock?!

    ¡°Don¡¯t be rash.¡± Jun Linxuan cautioned with a cid, peremptory tone of voice.

    ¡°Master!¡± A slightly more short-tempered disciple was just about to protest when Jun Linxuan red at himnguidly, causing him to shrink back to his ce as he continued to re at the two disciples from Pill Cauldron Peak with indignation.

    ¡°If you really wish to take revenge for your martial brother, then force these people to their knees on the arenater!¡± Jun Linxuan sternly ordered as he swept his gaze at the loose-lipped disciples form Pill Cauldron Peak.

    Jun Linxuan powerful disposition was not something that normal disciples at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation could withstand. Thus, when Jun Linxuan¡¯s gaze fell upon their bodies, the Pill Cauldron Disciples involuntarily trembled, and they immediately shut their traps and turned their gaze away sheepishly.

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± Twenty-three disciples bowed slightly behind Jun Linxuan as a desire for battle ignited in their hearts.

    Among all of these disciples, Wei Gang¡¯s age was the smallest, and he was incidentally also the most hyperactive. Within moments, he could no longer bear with the oppressive atmosphere, so he ran up to Jun Linxuan¡¯s side and tugged at his clothes as he asked, ¡°Master, where¡¯s martial sister Xiaomo? Didn¡¯t she say that she wasing today?¡±

    Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows. The time for departure was quickly arriving, but his daughter was still nowhere to be found. Just what¡¯s going on?

    Just as Jun Linxuan was about to send out a Messenger Paper Crane to inquire what was going on with his daughter, the silhouette of Liu Qingmei appeared in the distance on the road leading to their gathering point. There was also a red-garbeddy strutting alongside Liu Qingmei ¨C who else could this be if not his daughter?

    Since all of the other Dawn Sect disciples had already more or less gathered at the ins by now, Jun Xiaomo and Liu Qingmei¡¯s tardy appearance was well apparent to everyone. At the beginning, no one apart from the Heavenly Peak disciples could tell exactly who these people were because Jun Xiaomo and Liu Qingmei were still far away in the distance. At that moment, they began to whisper among themselves ¨C

    ¡°Eh? Someone¡¯s only just arriving now?¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t they afraid of being punished by their master if they¡¯rete like this...¡±

    ¡°Is there anyone in our sect who likes to wear red? She looks rather bright-eyed too.¡±

    Then, as Jun Xiaomo and Liu Qingmei drew closer, the stirring and chattering among the disciples dwindled until it dissipatedpletely. The entire surroundings were engulfed with pin-drop silence, as though someone had just cast a hex on this location.

    ¡°Father, sorry for my tardiness. I¡¯d been held up with somest-minute preparations.¡± Jun Xiaomo walked up to Jun Linxuan and apologized sincerely to him.

    Although she was Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter, she had never had a special ¡°privilege¡± of beingte. Thus, she had apologized to Jun Linxuan.

    ¡°Mm. Be more careful next time. You should be arriving slightly before the gathering time instead.¡± Jun Linxuan sternly chided her.

    ¡°Yes, father.¡± Jun Xiaomo acknowledged.

    This was only a minor episode between a father and a daughter, but the surroundings immediately exploded into incessant chatter within moments ¨C

    ¡°This is Jun Xiaomo?!¡±

    ¡°What a stark change from before...¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t they say that she was bedridden and ill? Didn¡¯t they say that her cultivation had fallen, and she had be nothing more than a cripple? Howe her disposition and vitality seems so much better than when west saw her?¡±

    ¡°She looks like she¡¯s already in the fifth level of Qi Mastery, doesn¡¯t she? My goodness! Her cultivation level had just fallen to the first level of Qi Mastery justst year. Had she actually scaled four levels of Qi Mastery within one years¡¯ time? How did she do this? That¡¯s just heaven-defying...¡±

    The disciples who had never interacted much with Jun Xiaomo to begin with were filled with astonishment and admiration, while those who had delighted in what they perceived to be Jun Xiaomo¡¯s misery found themselves at aplete loss for words right now. At this moment, everybody found themselves staring at Jun Xiaomo with their jaws drooping involuntarily as they revealed incredulous looks on their faces.

    ¡°Hmph, so what if she¡¯s attained the fifth level of Qi Mastery? Sister Wanrou is already at the eighth level of Qi Mastery right now!¡± Qin Shanshan chuckled coldly as she remarked loudly so that everyone around her could hear what she was saying.

    Jun Xiaomo dares to rescind the marriage arrangement with my brother?! Just wait till the day my brother marries Yu Wanrou. This woman can go cry all to herself when that finally happens! Qin Shanshan thought to herself with indignation.

    Qin Shanshan was not privy to Qin Lingyu¡¯s considerations. She only felt that given how outstanding her brother was, Jun Xiaomo should be crying and begging her brother not to abandon her, rather than rescind her marriage arrangement with her brother. Qin Shanshan felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions were a disgrace to her brother, and she was incredibly aggrieved for her brother.

    Who does this Jun Xiaomo think she is! Does she think that she can do anything she wants just because her father¡¯s the Peakmaster of Heavenly Peak?! Qin Shanshan thought jealously to herself.

    Jun Xiaomo heard Qin Shanshan and nced nonchntly at her. Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were practically expressionless and emotionless when she did so, Qin Shanshan was nevertheless incredibly frightened when she saw it.

    Why¡¯s Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disposition so strong? This must be an illusion! She¡¯s just a filthy piece of trash at the fifth level of Qi Mastery...

    Qin Shanshan hurriedly shifted her attention elsewhere as she repressed the panic and anxiety that was surging in her heart.

    Several male disciples standing in front of Qin Shanshan had the exact opposite thoughts when they saw Jun Xiaomo. They had never interacted much with Jun Xiaomo to begin with. Thus, from their memory, Jun Xiaomo was a willful little princess who enjoyed hanging around Qin Lingyu. Regardless, they could tell that there had been a tremendous change to Jun Xiaomo within the short span of a single year!

    Her bright, round eyes had elongated and deepened slightly and be a perfect almond shape. They now glistened with emotions and were filled with a slight trace of mncholy. Her tender cheeks that were full of baby fats had now sharpened and be much more defined, revealing a beautifully sharp chin. And that lovely, dainty nose of hers and her luscious pink lips could only be described by the word ¡°exquisite¡±. Finally, her now-devilish, curvaceous figure was further entuated by her red garments, while her milky, lustrous skin stood out brilliantly.

    Jun Xiaomo had matured, and she had be incredibly beautiful. This was their first impression of Jun Xiaomo when these male disciples had just seen her again. In fact, the present image of Jun Xiaomo was so strong and striking that their previous memories of her were very quickly overridden by what they saw right now.

    When Jun Xiaomo had turned her attention towards Qin Shanshan earlier, she had inadvertently swept her gaze across the few male disciples beside Qin Shanshan. This was normally an incredibly normal thing to do, especially given the fact that her gaze had not even paused on each of these disciples. Yet for some reason, the male disciples found themselves blushing slightly and grinning from ear to ear.

    Frigid yet enchanting ¨C she was almost like a demon or a temptress of sorts. The few disciples silently suppressed their assessment of Jun Xiaomo as they shifted their gaze away from her body...before they idently locked eyes with each other.

    Instantly, they could see a fleeting, mesmerized look within the depths of each other¡¯s dazzled eyes.

    That mesmerized look passed extremely quickly, and the disciples quickly collected themselves and coughed dryly in embarrassment.

    Jun Xiaomo remained absolutely cool andposed despite the baptism of various, meaningful nces that she was receiving right now. She walked straight over towards the Heavenly Peak martial brothers and sisters as she retrieved a stack of talismans from her Interspatial Ring. Each sheet of talisman had someone¡¯s names written on it, each of which corresponding to a martial brother or sister of hers.

    As she distributed these talismans, she softly said to them, ¡°I¡¯ve spent three weeks preparing these talismans for you, and I hope that they will be able to help you all in your moments of crises.¡±

    ¡°I presume martial sister Xiaomo waste today because she was rushing out thest of these talismans, right?¡± One of the martial brothers surnamed Chen tapped on the small wad of talismans in his hand as he mused.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled back at him without saying a word. It was a form of tacit agreement.

    ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re the best!¡± Wei Gang hugged Jun Xiaomo. Just as he was about to rub his head tenderly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, someone else pulled him away by his cor.

    ¡°How old are you now? Are you still acting like a spoiled child before your martial sister right now?¡± Martial brother Chen spoke sternly to Wei Gang as he smacked Wei Gang¡¯s head lightly.

    Wei Gang immediately shrunk his head towards his body. He did not dare to act rashly in front of this stern and solemn martial brother of his.

    Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows as he remarked, ¡°Thepetition disallows the use of talisman on the arena. Xiaomo, you should be aware of this.¡±

    In other words, his daughter¡¯s painstaking preparation of all these talismans might well have been a waste.

    ¡°Father, I know that.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled, but a sense of determination and resolve filled her eyes as she added, ¡°But I hope that my dear martial brothers and sisters would be able to return from the arena safe and sound with life and limb intact. Even though the use of talismans would immediately disqualify them from the rest of thepetition, this would still be far better than being irreversibly wounded, is it not?

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were all instantly taken aback at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response, and they all couldn¡¯t help but be reminded of Ye Xiuwen who had fallen down to the depths of Death¡¯s Gorge.

    Perhaps martial sister Jun Xiaomo had been thinking of martial brother Ye when she thought to prepare all of these talismans for us. She doesn¡¯t want to lose anyone else from the Heavenly Peak.

    After all, they knew that everyone within the Heavenly Peak treated each other as family.

    ¡°Martial sister Jun, thank you.¡± Martial brother Chen walked to Jun Xiaomo and patted her shoulder.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly back at him.

    As they watched the joyous and harmonious atmosphere among the Heavenly Peak disciples, the disciples of the other Peaks found their hearts swelling with thoughts of admiration and jealousy.

    Their own Peaks were very different from the Heavenly Peak. The members of each Peak had invariably sub-divided themselves into several alliances and coalitions. Even though the members of each of these alliances and coalitions presented themselves to be harmonious on the surface, there was nevertheless powerful undercurrents of tension and strife beneath the appearance of peace and calm. After all, resources were limited. Those who were table to earn the approval or favour of their master or elders would receive showers of blessings in resources, while the other who had been neglected could only attempt to live off the scraps of these ¡°blessed¡± few.

    This was something that the Heavenly Peak was fundamentally different from the others. Jun Linxuan had always picked his disciples based on their character, not their talent. Furthermore, Jun Linxuan had always viewed disciples as equals regardless of their talents. Therefore, under Jun Linxuan¡¯s leadership, the disciples within Heavenly Peak had always been able to get along perfectly harmoniously with each other, without any form of internal strife and tension.

    Such peace and sincerity among martial brothers were things that werepletely unfathomable to the disciples of other Peaks. Yet the Heavenly Peak disciples had somehow done it.

    The Heavenly Peak possessed a sense of solidarity that other Peaks could not even begin topare with.

    Qin Lingyu was located not too far away from the Heavenly Peak disciples, and he witnessed this entire scene as well.

    ¡°Martial brother Lingyu, what are you looking at?¡± Yu Wanrou walked over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side as she softly asked.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s query had jolted Qin Lingyu back to his senses, and he immediately shifted his gaze away from Jun Xiaomo. He turned back to Yu Wanrou and replied her warmly, ¡°I¡¯m not looking at anything. I¡¯m just thinking about thepetitionter.¡±

    Liar! You were clearly staring at Jun Xiaomo earlier! Yu Wanrou bellowed in her heart with indignation and jealousy. She was almost unable to maintain that smile on her face any longer.

    That¡¯s right. Ever since Jun Xiaomo had made her appearance again, Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze had always been on her body. It was a gaze filled withplicated emotions, and it was a gaze that Yu Wanrou hardly wanted to see.

    Therefore, Yu Wanrou had walked over to Qin Lingyu with the sole intention of tearing away his rapt attention from Jun Xiaomo. She even had the urge to hook her arms around Qin Lingyu¡¯s arms and announce to the world that this man was hers!

    Since he was hers, then Qin Lingyu¡¯s attention should naturally not bending on the bodies of otherdies, much less Jun Xiaomo¡¯s.

    Qin Lingyu could see the possessive gaze in Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, and he began to grow even more loathsome of thisdy in front of him. Nevertheless, he stered a warm and pleasant smile on his face as he cated her, ¡°Alright, I had only unintentionally nced over there. She¡¯s not any threat to you anyway. Her cultivation is only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery.¡±

    In other words, a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery was not worth Qin Lingyu¡¯s consideration at all.

    When Yu Wanrou heard this, she began to rx once more.

    That¡¯s right. She¡¯s only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery. How could martial brother Qin have eyes for her? Furthermore, so what if Jun Xiaomo is beautiful? I¡¯m just as beautiful as her, if not more!

    Just like that, Yu Wanrou immersed herself along this line of thought and appeased the tension in her heart.

    Hmph, I wonder if Jun Xiaomo will be making an appearance at thispetition? If so, I sincerely hope that she gets so thoroughly destroyed that there¡¯s nothing left of her corpse! A vicious smile crept up the corner of Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips.

 Chapter 170: Two Ladies in Red!

    <h4>Chapter 170: Two Ladies in Red!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Dawn Sect¡¯s arrival at the Heavenly Crane Mountain created a little uproar among all who were present. As the long-term fixture among the top three ces in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, Dawn Sect naturally drew the attention of all other sects around.

    When they arrived, the Dawn Sect attracted all types of looks, ranging from admiration, to astonishment, to resignation, and others. As a result, several disciples within the Sect found themselves unwittingly puffing up their chests proudly as they revealed a prideful and smug look on their faces.

    They counted themselves lucky that they hailed from the Dawn Sect. After all, it was only with the Dawn Sect¡¯s reputation that they were able to feel like such an important person or guest in this event.

    However, they forgot one important detail ¨C the Sect¡¯s strength was not necessarilymensurate with their own strength. In fact, it was generally those who were most prideful and puffed up that fell the hardest in the end. This was a painful lesson that these disciples were going to learn through this iteration of the quinquennial Secondary Inter-Sect Competition.

    At the beginning, Jun Xiaomo was hardly conspicuous when she entered with the rest of the Dawn Sect. This was because the disciples from each Peak formed each a contingent as they marched into thepetition venue. In the same fashion, Jun Xiaomo had walked among her martial brothers, and their tall andrge bodies obscured the small frame that she possessed.

    But as soon as the Dawn Sect disciples dispersed from formation and took their respective seats, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure immediately became strikingly apparent for all to see.

    It didn¡¯t matter that the Dawn Sect was a sect with both male and female disciples. This was because Jun Xiaomo dressed herself in a striking red colour, and she stood out conspicuously among her martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak who were all donned in green.

    Everyone¡¯s attention immediately turned to her.

    ¡°Who¡¯s thatdy in red?¡± A male cultivator from a small sect some distance away discreetly whispered to thepanion beside him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve seen her around at thest iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. This must be her first time here.¡± Thepanion responded, but his eyes remained transfixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    ¡°I think she¡¯s really beautiful. Do you think I¡¯ve got any chance of seeding at chasing her?¡± The first male disciple couldn¡¯t control the ripples in his heart as he remarked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it. That¡¯s Dawn Sect over there. The talented and distinguished male cultivators there are dime a dozen. You don¡¯t stand a chance at all. You best shelf these thoughts, friend.¡± Hispanion bluntly dropped the bombshell on him.

    ¡°Sss...so they¡¯re from Dawn Sect! No wonder they feel so much more distinguished than most of the other sects here.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you know?! It¡¯s obvious from the emblem on their uniform. That¡¯s the emblem that is worn only by the Dawn Sect disciples.¡±

    ¡°No wonder. Actually, if that¡¯s the case, do you think thisdy in red would be the fabled female disciple who¡¯s enraptured the hearts of so many male disciples and even stole the heart of the First-Seat Disciple of their Sect Leader? Do you think that that¡¯s the Yu Wanrou?¡±

    ¡°I think it¡¯s very possible! She¡¯s the most beautiful one among all of the Dawn Sect¡¯s female cultivators. The rumours also say that she¡¯s on rather intimate terms with Qin Lingyu...But it doesn¡¯t seem to be the case. Look, they¡¯re seated so far away from each other.¡±

    ...The conversations and discussions between these two disciples continued as theypletely mistook the identity of this beauty.

    Simr spections yed out at different parts of the audience as well. After all, gossip thrived where people gathered. Even though everyone was primarily here to observe the friendlypetition between sects, gossip was something that was practically unavoidable between matches.

    Furthermore, the inspiring and moving tales about Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had already spread like wildfire well beyond the borders of the Dawn Sect. To begin with, people had already viewed Qin Lingyu with close scrutiny given his identity as the First-Seat Disciple of the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader. Now that Yu Wanrou was inextricably tied to Qin Lingyu, people naturally began to talk about her in the same breath as Qin Lingyu as well.

    Just like that, these rumours spread from person to person, eventually reaching the four corners of each and every sect out there. As these rumours spread, there were invariably details that were either left out or changed, or embellishments added. In the end, Yu Wanrou had eventually be synonymous with the most beautiful female cultivators in the hearts of these male cultivators within the other sects.

    Soft and warm; kind and powerful; and most of all, looks that could kill. This was their understanding of who Yu Wanrou was.

    And all of this was based solely from rumours and hearsay. None of them had ever seen Yu Wanrou before. However, this did not mean that they hadn¡¯t paused to imagine how brilliantly beautiful this fairy-like existence, Yu Wanrou, must be. After all, everyone had previously already learnt of the marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo. If Qin Lingyu were willing to abandon the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster just for Yu Wanrou, how beautiful must she be!

    In their eyes, the daughter of the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster was synonymous with ess to insurmountable treasures and resources, while Yu Wanrou was a fairy-like beauty.

    Given their understanding of the situation, as much as they were astonished that Qin Lingyu had forsaken his prospective ess to insurmountable resources, their impression of Yu Wanrou¡¯s beauty also grew that much better as a result.

    Thus, when everyone from the Dawn Sect had finally taken their seats, everyone began to sweep their gazes across the faces of the female disciples as they sought to identify this fairy-like existence ¨C the most beautiful female cultivator within Dawn Sect.

    Then, when they spotted Jun Xiaomo, several male disciples eximed in their hearts ¨C they thought that they had finally realized why Qin Lingyu had been willing to abandon his ess to the insurmountable resources and choose Yu Wanrou instead. Her beauty was truly breathtaking.

    Regrettably, they had missed out on one tiny but important detail. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aura and disposition could hardly be described as ¡°soft and warm¡±, like what they understood the fabled Yu Wanrou to be.

    If Yu Wanrou¡¯s pretentious warm and soft disposition were likened to the soft, flowing waters from a stream, then Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disposition would no doubt be like a gleaming, unsheathed sword that flourished its aggressive and threatening intent. Although she was calmly seated where she was, the existence of this powerful, overflowing aura was unmistakable.

    Despite that, most of the ignorant audience continued to mistake Jun Xiaomo as Yu Wanrou because of her looks, and the audience continued to gaze at her beauty.

    Naturally, there were some other bold busybodies who attempted to get the news straight from the horse¡¯s mouth. One of these disciples even minced his way over towards one of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s disciple that was seated farthest on the outside of the group, Wei Gang.

    ¡°Hey, brother, could I ask you something? Thatdy wearing red in the same row as you ¨C is she the fabled disciple Yu Wanrou from your sect?¡±

    That disciple found his way to Wei Gang¡¯s side as he discreetly asked.

    Wei Gang¡¯s body stiffened in shock. Momentster, he finally realized who this male cultivator was pointing to.

    Wei Gang snorted disdainfully, before responding in a huff, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare mention thatdy¡¯s name in the same breath as my martial sister Xiaomo! She¡¯s not worthy of it!¡±

    In Wei Gang¡¯s eyes, Yu Wanrou was the third wheel who had disrupted the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu. No matter what kind of trials and tribtions Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had been through, it did not for one bit change the fact that Qin Lingyu had betrayed his martial sister Xiaomo!

    Thus, he hated Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°You...you...you¡¯re saying that thedy in red is actually Jun Xiaomo?!¡± This time, it was the male cultivator who was shocked instead.

    ¡°Hey, hey. What are you implying here? Is it very hard to believe that she¡¯s my martial sister Xiaomo?¡± Wei Gang grew annoyed. He thought that this male disciple was either too daft to understand what he was saying, or he bore ulterior motives for his actions.

    ¡°Ah...haha...no-...nothing, I¡¯m just asking.¡± That male disciple chuckled awkwardly, before the turned tail and slipped back to where he was originally seated.

    ¡°Pah! What a ridiculous fe!¡± Wei Gang spat on the ground where he was and red at the male disciples back, before turning his attention back elsewhere. This was his first time witnessing the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, and he was going to make sure that he would have a good time.

    Shelving Wei Gang¡¯s boyish temper for a minute, it had to be said that as soon as that male disciple returned to his sect, he immediately began to ry the shocking news to the rest of his martial brothers and sisters.

    ¡°What?! She¡¯s Jun Xiaomo?! She¡¯s the one who had been abandoned?!¡± The other martial brothers and sisters revealed looks of amazement and astonishment.

    Although Jun Xiaomo was the one who had requested that the marriage arrangement be rescinded, yet by the time the other sects got wind of this news, for some strange reason, Jun Xiaomo had instead be the one who had been abandoned by Qin Lingyu.

    Furthermore, they had got wind of the ¡°rescission by Qin Lingyu¡± before Jun Xiaomo had in fact requested the rescission of marriage.

    Several female disciples sympathized deeply with Jun Xiaomo. After all, being abandoned by one¡¯s fianc¨¦e was tantamount to a harsh p to the face. As a fellowdy, they were naturally well aware of what kind of heartache and despair would apany being abandoned by the person one loved. Nevertheless, most of the others who heard the news contented themselves as mere observers of this unfolding drama. More importantly, most disciples were curious how beautiful Yu Wanrou must be if one could abandon the ess to treasures and resources just for her.

    Thus, when they finally got wind that thedy in red was in fact Jun Xiaomo, they found themselves dismayed that they had got things wrong right from the very beginning...

    And if Jun Xiaomo¡¯s looks were already this good, then just how high did Qin Lingyu set his sights? They had heard that Yu Wanrou would be present today as well, but nobody could find anyone within the Dawn Sect prettier than Jun Xiaomo...

    An unavoidable question therefore surfaced in their hearts ¨C were they blind, or was Qin Lingyu the blind one?

    Regardless, the news continued to spread like wildfire throughout the rest of the sects. As soon as they learnt that thedy in red was Jun Xiaomo and not Yu Wanrou, they would immediately reveal expressions of shock and disbelief.

    Naturally, there were some self-proimed ¡°truth-seekers¡± who attempted to exin the situation, ¡°I heard thatst year, the Heavenly Peak Peakmaster¡¯s daughter had received punishment for trespassing their sect¡¯s forbidden grounds and thus had her cultivation level fall to the first level of Qi Mastery. At that time, she was already sixteen years-old. If one had to start from scratch then, it would be impossible to breach the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation by the time she is thirty-five years of age. As long as Qin Lingyu isn¡¯t dumb, he would never agree to marry such a burden like Jun Xiaomo, right? Furthermore, Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu had already been through thick and thin together. Their tacit feelings for each other is something that a beautiful flower vase like Jun Xiaomo would never be able to match up to.¡±

    Having her cultivation level fall to the first level of Qi Mastery was tantamount to crippling her entire being and her life. This was what everyone thought.

    Thus, when they heard the exnations of these ¡°truth-seekers¡±, several people felt like they had finally understood the situation, and fewer people began to nce over at Jun Xiaomo.

    In the cultivation world, no matter how beautiful a ¡°piece of trash¡± was, that person could never attract any looks of admiration or respect if he or she did not possess power and abilities.

    Some of the remaining disciples who loved appreciating things of beauty couldn¡¯t help but sigh to themselves, ¡°Such a waste, such a waste. Bringing her home as a trophy wife might not be a bad thing either.¡±

    The exmations of such disciples naturally drew theughter of those around. But this sardonicughter was hardly filled with good intentions.

    In their eyes, losing her cultivation levels meant that Jun Xiaomo was nothing more than a beautiful flower vase that could only be used for ¡°disy¡±.

    Just as everyone were intently discussing matters about Jun Xiaomo, the disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect finally arrived slightlyte. They had their noses in the air as they strutted into thepetition grounds disdainfully, hardly bothering to greet any of the other sects around.

    All, with the exception of a single sect ¨C the Dawn Sect.

    In the eyes of the Eternal Summit Sect, the only sects that could match up to them right now was the Dawn Sect. Therefore, they did not see any need to greet any of the other sects around.

    However, even their greeting of the Dawn Sect wasced with provocative intent. It was like a deration of war prior to themencement of thepetition.

    ¡°Ah, even though you¡¯ve lost some pretty strong disciples, the Dawn Sect still looks pretty strong, doesn¡¯t it?¡± The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder looked at the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders as he mocked contemptuously.

    ¡°Same to you, same to you. You Eternal Summit Sect disciples have all grown strong only as a result of medicinal pills and herbs, but their auras and dispositions are still fairly good. Keep up the good work.¡± One of the Sect Elders from Dawn Sect returned the favour.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elderughed sardonically, before curtly replying, ¡°Then, let¡¯s see everyone¡¯s performance on thepetition grounds. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    As he said that, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder led the rest of his entourage to their designated waiting spot.

    Just then, some other onlookers with keen senses discovered that there was yet anotherdy wearing red among the Eternal Summit Sect. She equally stood out among the Eternal Summit Sect disciples as Jun Xiaomo had.

    ¡°Brother Rong, what are you looking at?¡± Thatdy in red asked the male disciple walking beside her.

    ¡°Nothing.¡± The male disciple replied nonchntly as he gently tugged his sleeve back. He disliked it when others drew too close to her.

    Thedy in red bit down on her lower lips indignantly, but the male cultivator continued to ignore her.

    Then, thedy in red stomped her foot in anger, before running back to join up with the rest of her sect.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo waspletely frozen stiff. Her gaze had been trained on that male cultivator¡¯s back ¨C

    Rong Ruihan! Brother Rong! What¡¯s he doing here?

    And if I¡¯m not mistaken, thedy beside brother Rong is none other than thedy with whom I¡¯ve got an outstanding bet with ¨C the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder, Dai Yue! Jun Xiaomo thought in bewilderment as she furrowed her brows tightly.

 Chapter 171: Alteration of the List of Contestants

    <h4>Chapter 171: Alteration of the List of Contestants</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s impression of Dai Yue was faint, to say the least. If not for the fact that she had encountered Dai Yue two years ago, she might very well have forgotten her existencepletely by now.

    Back then, her cultivation level had just fallen back to the first level of Qi Mastery, while Dai Yue and her mother had visited Dawn Sect as guests and encountered Jun Xiaomo.

    Dai Yue was fond of Qin Lingyu. Thus, she had always seen the existence of the marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu as a thorn in her side. She had even beaten up Jun Xiaomo as a result of this. The Dawn Sect¡¯s Seventh Elder, Yu Zhuolian, was the friend of Dai Yue¡¯s mother, Qiu Laifeng. After some rounds of mediation, Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue agreed to resolve this issue with a bet ¨C they wouldpete with each other in the uing Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, and whoever loses would unconditionally agree to a request set by the winner.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes. Their time for interaction had been too short, and she had been unable to identify the cultivation level of her opponent, Dai Yue. Regardless, she knew that her cultivation could not be lower than the eighth level of Qi Mastery.

    Seems like it¡¯s not going to be an easy fight. Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly in her heart. However, since she had already agreed to the bet, she would never go down without a fight. After all, conceding defeat without having given her best was not one of the values that the Heavenly Peak disciples lived by.

    In any event, what she was more concerned about right now was why Rong Ruihan would be travelling together with the disciples of the Eternal Summit Sect. Shouldn¡¯t he be at the n residence of her little packrat, training and learning from old man Chi? Things were going to be much moreplicated if Rong Ruihan and Dai Yue were on good terms with each other.

    Jun Xiaomo had always treated Rong Ruihan as a bosom friend of hers, and she naturally did not want to make things difficult for him as a result of a silly bet of hers.

    Forget it, I¡¯ll just look for brother Rong and rify things with him after the end of thepetition today. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself.

    Jun Xiaomo had been so immersed in her own thoughts that had shepletely failed to realize how Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze had been transfixed on her ever since he had taken his seat. Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze was even filled withplicated emotions right now.

    The Secondary Inter-Sect Competition was a massive quinquennial event. Whenever this event urred, not only would the various Secondary Sects congregate in the same location to participate in or watch thepetition, there were even several Greater Sects who would send their sect elders to observe the proceedings.

    The main reason why these sect elders from Greater Sects took interest in thispetition was primarily because they had hoped to pick out and earmark a few promising young sprouts for their respective sects so as to prevent them from being snatched away by the other sects when these young sprouts realized their potentials.

    Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen had in the previous iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition produced ster results, and thus been selected and earmarked by the elders of the Limitless Sect and the Frozen Sword Sect respectively.

    The Secondary Inter-Sect Competition was essentially the culmination of every five years of each participant¡¯s efforts. Each and every single one of the participants in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition would disy the fullest extent of their abilities on the arena with the hope of being spotted by the sect elders and offered a ce in Greater Sect as a Chosen Disciple. It was no wonder that there were also several participants who would suffer serious injuries and even deaths in each and every iteration of thispetition.

    But whether grievous injuries or death, this was entirely permissible on the arena. As a result, the quinquennial Secondary Inter-Sect Competition had also be a tform where some cultivators would mercilessly murder their rivals.

    After all, there were always some cultivators who felt that every single rival they killed meant one less worry for themselves. Thus, these cultivators had never been prepared to hold back their vicious and merciless attacks to begin with.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, thepetition is going to begin soon. Howe master isn¡¯t back yet?¡± Wei Gang slipped over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and pointed his chin towards the panel of judges as he murmured.

    Because Wei Gang was young and slightly hyperactive, he hardly had anything inmon with the rest of his martial brothers and sisters in the sect. Thus, he always preferred to stick to his martial sister Xiaomo who was only older than her by two years of age.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she looked worriedly at the panel of judges.

    Just a little while ago, her father Jun Linxuan and several other sect elders had walked over towards the panel of judges to submit the list of contestants on their end. Logically speaking, this was an extremely simple process, and it should have been done in the blink of an eye. But they were taking much longer than expected, and there was no sign that they wereing back anytime soon.

    There were a lot of people crowding around the panel of judges, and Jun Xiaomo had been unable to locate Jun Linxuan¡¯s figure for the moment.

    ¡°Not good! Master seems to be arguing with someone!¡± Wei Gang cried out in dismay.

    Jun Xiaomo finally noticed themotion. Just as she stood up fiercely, intending to run over to figure out what was going on, Liu Qingmei grabbed hold of her and motioned for her to sit back down.

    ¡°Mum~!¡± Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know what her mother meant by this.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go over instead. Mo-Mo, stay here.¡±

    ¡°But mum...¡±

    ¡°Thepetition is just about to begin. Contestants who sh with others outside of the arena would immediately be disqualified. Have you forgotten this?¡± Liu Qingmei harshly reprimanded. Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips and finally backed down. Seeing this, Liu Qingmei heaved a sigh of relief, nodded to herself and then quickly made her way over to the panel of judges as well.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, are you going topete as well?¡± Wei Gang was stunned when he finally learnt of her intentions topete.

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Can¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Can...Of course you can...But martial sister¡¯s cultivation is only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery...¡± Wei Gang increasingly realized that his words could be interpreted to be disdainful of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities, and his voice grew increasingly timid as he shrunk his head back into his neck.

    It suddenly dawned on Jun Xiaomo that this tender-faced little martial brother of his possessed a very bulliable disposition. Thus, she stretched out her hand and pinched his cheeks as she retorted, ¡°Then tell me, is your cultivation level higher, or is your martial sister¡¯s cultivation level higher.¡±

    ¡°Mine is higher than martial sister¡¯s by one level.¡± Wei Gang made a ¡°one¡± gesture with his hand.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled, before sheckadaisically continued, ¡°But from what I recall, little martial brother seems to have lost to me every single time during our spars, huh...?¡±

    Wei Gang: ...... It¡¯s not just ¡®seems¡¯...it is a fact...

    Wei Gang was dismayed by the fact that his actualbat prowess was the lowest among all the martial brothers and sisters within Heavenly Peak. But he knew that he could only me himself for beingzy and always being distracted by ¡°fun¡± things.

    On the other side, Jun Linxuan¡¯s argument with the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders had just escted to a whole new level, and everyone else present had crowded around to watch themotion.

    ¡°That list of contestants isn¡¯t the same one that we had previously agreed upon. Why?!¡± Jun Linxuan furiously demanded an exnation as his body¡¯s oppressive aura burst out uncontrobly from within.

    But the few Sect Elders standing before him possessed a fairly decent cultivation level, and they werepletely unfazed by Jun Linxuan¡¯s aura.

    The Second Elder looked up as henguidly responded, ¡°After our discussions yesterday, we all felt that the previous list of contestants wasn¡¯t satisfactory, so we decided to make somest-minute changes to it. Everyone finds that the present list of contestants is much more reasonable.¡±

    ¡°Your so-called ¡®unsatisfactory¡¯ and ¡®changes¡¯ are no more than excuses to curtail the participation rights of my disciples from Heavenly Peak, huh?!¡± Jun Linxuan fervently suppressed the swelling desires to wage war against these elders as he gnashed his teeth. His eyes were filled with a raging inferno as he stared daggers at the Sect Elders.

    ¡°The list of contestants isn¡¯t fixed, and there¡¯s no regtion which says that the Heavenly Peak should be entitled to that many participants in thesepetitions. We can naturally make any changes we think fit.¡± The Second Elder calmly refuted, ¡°Even though previous iterations of thispetition had seen many disciples from Heavenly Peak participating, we were all of the view that the opportunity to participate should be afforded to the disciples of other Peaks in this presentpetition.¡±

    ¡°You all have personally witnessed the incontrovertible abilities and prowess of the Heavenly Peak disciples.¡± Jun Linxuan snapped back, ¡°It¡¯s not that the Heavenly Peak disciples are snatching away the participation rights of the other Peaks¡¯ disciples. This is just the result of arranging the disciples in descending order of their abilities and prowess. Rather than ask why the Heavenly Peak disciples are dominating all the rights to participate, perhaps you should ask yourselves why the other Peaks¡¯ disciples are simply so weak!¡±

    ¡°Jun Linxuan, you...!¡± The Peakmasters of other Peaks were all present as well, and they couldn¡¯t help but grow indignant at Jun Linxuan¡¯s words right now.

    ¡°Huh, so if we base it solely on the descending order of their abilities and prowess, why is it that your daughter¡¯s name is part of this list? Aren¡¯t you also pursuing your personal agenda on the pretext of fairness?¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster coldly retorted as he cast a hostile gaze back at Jun Linxuan.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t something out of my own personal agenda. You¡¯ll know once Xiaomo enters the arena.¡± Jun Linxuan replied curtly.

    ¡°Hmph. We know, we know. But swords have no eyes. Just be careful that your precious daughter doesn¡¯t lose her life up on the arena!¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster sarcastically remarked.

    Pak! A clear p rang out. The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster found that a tight p had just connected with his face.

    ¡°You!!!¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster stared furiously at the person who had just arrived, but his eyes were immediately met by an even more ashen gaze ¨C

    ¡°Yu Zhiyong, I think you ought to wash your vulgar mouth. My daughter is your martial niece no matter how you look at it. But look at how you¡¯re cursing her! Do you even consider yourself a human being?!¡± Liu Qingmei roared with such intense fury as though she were prepared to duke it out if the Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster Yu Zhiyong said anything else.

    ¡°Alright, enough!¡± The Dawn Sect¡¯s Grand Elder finally spoke, ¡°Stop all this at once. Do you want others to make the Dawn Sect aughingstock?! Linxuan, it was indeed improper on our part to have madest-minute changes to the list of contestants without informing you. But what¡¯s happened, has happened. There¡¯s no meaning in pursuing this line of argument. Let¡¯s all take a step back, finish thepetition, and then we¡¯ll address any issues when we¡¯re back, alright?¡±

    On the surface, the Grand Elder seemed as though he was being the wise and responsible one, but he was in actual fact discreetly castigating Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei for causing a scene and making them a publicughingstock.

    In fact, the truth of the matter was that Jun Linxuan had never made a big fuss about this entire issue. He had throughout the entire course of events been fervently repressing the roaring inferno of rage within his heart. Yet despite that, the Grand Elder had essentially med him for the entire sequence of events that had transpired.

    ¡°Everything that needs to be said has already been said. There¡¯s nothing else to add anyway.¡± Liu Qingmei coldly remarked before she tugged gently at her husband¡¯s arm, ¡°Linxuan, let¡¯s go. The kids are still waiting for our instructions.¡±

    After deliberating for a moment, Jun Linxuan swept a threatening gaze one final time across all the Sect Elders and Peakmasters, before he turned around and headed back to his disciples.

    ¡°Tch. Does he think that he¡¯s so great now that he¡¯s in the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation? With his temperament, he might not even realize it when he draws his final breath.¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster Yu Zhiyong muttered under his breath.

    The Grand Elder heard his remarks but did not rebuke him.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± After the Grand Elder submitted the list of contestants to the panel of judges, he led the rest of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters back to the Dawn Sect¡¯s designated seating area.

    Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had returned to their disciples before the rest of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters. Together, they informed the Heavenly Peak disciples about this matter, before Jun Linxuan sincerely apologized to the disciples.

    He personally did not feel that there were any issues with apologizing to his disciples. From his perspective, it was his failure as their master to ensure the participation rights of his disciples.

    ¡°Master, you don¡¯t have to apologize to us. It¡¯s those Sect Elders that are too much!¡± Wei Gang cried out with indignation.

    ¡°That¡¯s right! What basis do they have to make us give up our participation rights? Our abilities are far stronger than all of the other disciples!¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple echoed in agreement.

    In fact, none of the Heavenly Peak disciples med their master because they knew that with their master¡¯s temperament, there was no way he wouldn¡¯t have pressed the issue to the bitter end unless there was truly no way of changing the list of contestants right now.

    Jun Linxuan patted Wei Gang¡¯s head as he responded sincerely, ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Jun Linxuan generally presented himself as solemn and introverted, and he rarely disyed his emotions outwardly. Evidently, he had been incredibly incensed today.

    Wei Gang realized that his master had rarely patted his head. Thus, when Jun Linxuan did so, Wei Gang thought that he felt traces of a father¡¯s love in his actions. Wei Gang was delighted, and he held his head high with a pure and silly delight.

    ¡°Father, do you know which martial brothers have had their participation rights taken away?¡± Jun Xiaomo found the series of events extremely fishy, and she couldn¡¯t help but consider taking further precautions right now.

    ¡°Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t manage to get a good look at the list of contestants. Back then, I was so mad that I threw the list of contestants to the ground.¡± Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows as he examined his memories, ¡°I only remember that we have five disciples participating in the Lower Category, and three disciples participating in the Middle Category.¡±

    ¡°Three people in the Middle Category?!¡± Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists, ¡°We have twelve martial brother who have earned their rights to participate in the Middle Category, and all of our disciples there are among the top thirty within the Sect in terms of their abilities and prowess. What basis do they have for taking all of these away from our martial brothers?!¡±

    The Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions were further sub-divided into three categories, namely the Lower Category, the Middle Category and the Open Category. Only cultivators from the first to the eighth levels of Qi Mastery could participate in the Lower Category; only cultivators from the ninth to the eleventh levels of Qi Mastery could participate in the Middle Category, and the Open Category was open to the rest of the cultivators of at least the twelfth level of Qi Mastery.

    In order to limit the number of participants, the Lower and Middle Categories were each limited to thirty participants per sect. On the other hand, there were generally few disciples who qualified to participate in the Open Category to begin with, so there was no limitation on the number there.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance had created a rift in the strength of the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ abilities, and they had no one qualified to enter the Open Categorypetition this year. However, this did not mean that the rest of Heavenly Peak had weakened.

    The truth of the matter was that the Heavenly Peak disciples had always been incredibly strong. If theypeted with their Dawn Sect contemporaries at the same level as them, there was no doubt that the Heavenly Peak would be able to ce top five within each category.

    Thus, the twelve Heavenly Peak disciples who were at the ninth to eleventh levels of Qi Mastery had all been listed as participants in the previous list of contestants. But just like that, the Sect Elders had surreptitiously kicked out and reced most of these disciples from the original list of contestants in the eleventh hour.

    At this moment, the Heavenly Peak was left with only three disciples participating in the Middle Category.

    ¡°I get the feeling that they¡¯re trying to suppress the Heavenly Peak¡¯s growth and progress.¡± Jun Xiaomo observed, ¡°Martial brother Ye¡¯s performance in the previous iteration of thispetition had made them grow wary of the Heavenly Peak, and they don¡¯t want to see another Ye Xiuwen appear within our Peak. Therefore, they decided to transfer our martial brothers and sisters¡¯ participating rights to the disciples from other Peaks.¡±

    ¡°How does this benefit them? Aren¡¯t we representing the Sect here?¡± Wei Gang queried with both indignation and disappointment.

    He felt depressed every time he was reminded about the disappearance of his martial brother Ye.

    ¡°The Dawn Sect had lost too many disciples since thesest travels, and there¡¯s no way that the Sect would be able to get good results in this uingpetition. Thus, they decided to limit the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ opportunities to disy their abilities, so that fewer people wouldpete with their own disciples for the chance to be spotted and chosen by the Greater Sects¡¯ sect elders.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo analyzed the situation with a cold gleam in her eyes as her heart sank.

    She had never thought that the situation with Heavenly Peak would continue to worsen notwithstanding the fact that she had kept her identity as a demonic cultivator well concealed.

    She was still young, and she still did not possess the abilities to protect her parents and martial brothers and sisters right now.

    What¡¯s going to happen to us? Is the Heavenly Peak¡¯s fate from my previous life really inevitable?

 Chapter 172: Grand Arrival of Du Clanâ€™s Head

    <h4>Chapter 172: Grand Arrival of Du n¡¯s Head</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This unexpected development weighed heavily on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart like a huge rock. There was no longer a trace of smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, and her crestfallen expression cast a dark shadow over her face.

    Just then, a warm and firm hand pressed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and patted it.

    ¡°Mum...¡± Jun Xiaomo came back to her senses and turned to look behind her.

    ¡°You¡¯re just seventeen years-old. Leave these things to the adults. Don¡¯t think too much about it. Just focus on yourpetition at hand.¡± Liu Qingmei¡¯s soft and warm voice cajoled her.

    A trace of warmth washed across her heart and the ends of her lips curled into a faint smile. Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she lightly responded, ¡°Mm, alright. Mum, don¡¯t worry about me.¡±

    Liu Qingmei found that her daughter had never been truly happy ever since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance from the Sect. But she knew that no amount of constion would be able to rouse her daughter from this faint stupor of hers. Her daughter had to recover on her own.

    After patting her daughter¡¯s shoulder, Liu Qingmei returned back to her husband¡¯s side.

    The Secondary Inter-Sect Competition were separated to two main segments. The firstponent was individual battles, which was subdivided into the Lower Category, the Middle Category and the Open Category, while the otherponent was group battles. The group battles were ted to take ce after the conclusion of the individual battles.

    Both the individual battles and group battles were conducted in the style of elimination brackets. In other words, as soon as one lost a battle, that person would immediately be eliminated from the rest of thepetition. There were no second chances.

    The first day begun with the Lower Categorypetition, which was none other than thepetition between cultivators from the first to the eighth level of Qi Mastery. There was generally an unwritten rule that sects would send their weaker disciples up to take the stage first, before sending out increasingly stronger disciples as time went by.

    Naturally, there were exceptions to this. For example, Jun Xiaomo was not ted topete today despite the fact that her cultivation level was only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery ¨C one of the lowest among all who were participating in thesepetitions.

    ¡°Why isn¡¯t martial sister Xiaomo making her appearance today? The other sects might very possibly be sending out their own core disciples tomorrow! How would martial sister Xiaomo be able to defeat them?!¡± Wei Gang bemoaned with indignation.

    The order of participation was entirely up to the Sect Elders to decide. In fact, they had sent most of Dawn Sect¡¯s weakest disciples to take the stage today, with the exception of Jun Xiaomo. If Jun Xiaomo did not take the stage today, then she was bound to take the stage in the next few days. Theter she made her appearance, the more likely she would be to meet a strong opponent.

    ¡°Perhaps what they¡¯re trying to do is to get us Heavenly Peak disciples eliminated right at the outset.¡± Martial brother Chen coldly made his conjecture, as his assessment of the Sect Elders worsened by the minute.

    Perhaps they¡¯re hoping that I would die on the arena, or maybe provoke the demonic energy in my body so much that I would suffer from a demonic outburst in front of all of these spiritual cultivators.

    Wasn¡¯t this exactly what happened in the past? They made the demonic energy in my body erupt in front of other guests, making it incredibly difficult for father and mother to exin themselves. In the end, they had no choice but to hide me from the persecutors.

    Jun Xiaomo derided in her heart as a frigid intent flickered across the depths of her pupils.

    Regardless, she had resolved that she was going to keep all of her thoughts to herself. She was not afraid that her loved ones from Heavenly Peak would despise or abandon her. She simply didn¡¯t want them to worry for her.

    She knew that no matter what she had be, the lovely people from Heavenly Peak would never abandon her. Just like in her previous life, they would continue to protect her; and they would continue to protect the Peak until they drew their veryst breaths.

    --------------------------------------------------

    Just as Jun Xiaomo had expected, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders had arranged the order such that Jun Xiaomo was one of thest few disciples to make her appearance. They had done so precisely in the hope that she would be eliminated from thepetition right from the outset.

    Of course, it was not every single Sect Elder that had maliciously hoped for something to happen to Jun Xiaomo. For example, the Seventh Elder, Yu Zhuolian, had never harboured any thoughts of annihting the Heavenly Peak.

    But at the same time, she was only prepared to withhold her assistance. She had decided to be a passive observer in these entire proceedings. In fact, there were a number of others who had simrly chosen self-preservation over what was right.

    This was one of the reasons why, in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, few people had stepped out to render their assistance to the Heavenly Peak even after discovering that Jun Xiaomo had been framed. Everyone had simply been minding their own business.

    After an entire day ofpetitions, He Zhang finally retired to his own room. To his surprise, someone else was already there, waiting for him. That person had even helped himself to the tea in his room, and was presently seated at the table, appreciating a steaming cup of hot tea.

    He Zhang was momentarily stunned, before he hurriedly took a few steps forward and respectfully bowed as he said, ¡°Pardon me for my rudeness and ignorance. I was unaware of the Du n Head¡¯s arrival.¡±

    ¡°Alright, dispense with the formalities. Don¡¯t be annoying.¡± The guest waved his hand without even looking at He Zhang, as though He Zhang were no more than a mere ornament within the room.

    Yet He Zhang was hardly angry at all. He remained absolutely polite and courteous as he cautiously responded, ¡°Yes.¡±

    If other Dawn Sect disciples were present to witness this sight, they might find themselves in such disbelief that they would even suspect that this was an illusion. After all, with He Zhang¡¯s stature, who would dare be disrespectful to him? Who dared to incite the wrath of this powerful man?

    But there was in fact a person who dared to treat He Zhang with such insolence, and he was none other than the man seated in front of He Zhang right now.

    He dared to do so because his stature was far higher than He Zhang¡¯s. In fact, it was far higher than what He Zhang could even hope to achieve in his entire lifetime. If this man had wanted to kill He Zhang, it was as simple as the snap of his fingers. Even the Sect Elders might not dare to seek vengeance on He Zhang¡¯s behalf if this happened.

    He was none other than a n head of one of the eight great sects, Du n Head, Du Ruiguang.

    He was here for revenge. But naturally, he wasn¡¯t here for He Zhang¡¯s head. Otherwise, there was no way that He Zhang would still be alive by now.

    The people he sought was Jun Linxuan, Liu Qingmei and Jun Xiaomo. Consequently, Jun Linxuan¡¯s Heavenly Peak also fell within the ambit of his vengeance.

    One year ago, his nephew Du Yongxu had led a team of his Du n disciples out for travels, and they had been entrusted the task of picking and harvesting twenty Basilisk Fruits from the Mystic Woods.

    This task was not difficult for the entourage that had set out on the travels then. As his martial uncle, Du Ruiguang firmly believed in his nephew¡¯s abilities, and he had expected Du Yongxu toplete his task within the span of two months¡¯ time.

    Yet not only did he fail toplete his mission, Du Yongxu and the other disciples had even been reduced to a tragic state and barely escaped death as they used their special spirit tool to return to their n¡¯s grounds. Some of the disciples¡¯ injuries were particrly grievous, and it took them almost half a year before they could get out of bed once more.

    This was something unprecedented in the history of the Du n. After all, as long as the Du n disciples revealed their background and identity, most cultivators in the world would naturally defer to them.

    Of course, whether these other cultivators were willing to defer was something which was outside the scope of the Du n¡¯s considerations.

    But ording to Du Yongxu¡¯s ount of what had happened, despite revealing their identity to the cultivators they had encountered, not only did they refuse to hand over their Basilisk Fruit, they even revealed the Du n¡¯s secrets and beat up the Du n disciples.

    As the n Head, how could Du Ruiguang simply take this lying down?!

    Thus, after analyzing the situation and conducting their own investigations, the Du n finally discovered who the perpetrator was.

    Ah, I¡¯d thought it was somerge n¡¯s disciples. Who would¡¯ve thought that this was only a measly Secondary Sect Peakmaster and his daughter!

    Du Ruiguang initially had the intention ofpletely annihting the entire Dawn Sect. From his perspective, it would hardly be an issue if they were to use the Du n¡¯s power to wipe out this insignificant Secondary Sect from the face of the earth.

    But after he had learnt of He Zhang¡¯s secret schemes against the Heavenly Peak, the Du n Head decided to change his approach.

    Jun Linxuan was only a Peakmaster after all, and his meagre status did not deserve the involvement of the entire Du n. Rather than destroy the entire Dawn Sect and attract the wrath of the rest of the cultivation world, why not let Jun Linxuan and his Peak fall prey to their internal politics and strife instead?

    Thus, Du Ruiguang decided that he was going to lend He Zhang a hand and help him carry out his schemes. Furthermore, as the enabler from behind the scenes, he could maintain a front of beingpletely uninvolved in their matters.

    When Du Ruiguang first met up with He Zhang to discuss his ns, He Zhang¡¯s heart could only be described as overjoyed.

    He had never expected Jun Linxuan to have offended, of all people, the Du n from the eight great sects. The heavens must be on his side!

    At the same time, He Zhang was also wary and fearful of Du Ruiguang.

    He knew that Du Ruiguang¡¯s abilities were incredible. In fact, he knew that it was so incredible that Du Ruiguang could squish him like an ant whenever he wanted to. This was also why he had tolerated and deferred to Du Ruiguang from the start, despite Du Ruiguang¡¯s arrogance.

    Without power, he could only conform. This was one of the undergirding principles of the cultivation world since time immemorial.

    From the first meeting to date, Du Ruiguang had already met up with He Zhang for over ten times. Every visit after the first had been with the hope and expectation of seeing results. Yet, each visit had been met with disappointment. At this moment, Du Ruiguang¡¯s patience had long worn thin, and he was increasingly displeased with He Zhang¡¯s progress.

    Du Ruiguang had given He Zhang immense support over thest few months, but all He Zhang had achieved had barely scratched the surface of Jun Linxuan¡¯s skin.

    If He Zhang was still unable to produce any results by the end of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, then Du Ruiguang would have no choice but to cooperate with somebody else.

    He Zhang understood this as well. Therefore, he eagerly exined his ns to Du Ruiguang.

    ¡°Are you saying that you intend to cause Jun Xiaomo to have a demonic outburst through thepetition?¡± The Du n Head squinted his eyes as he tapped the table.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Your junior has such an intention.¡±

    ¡°Ah, but didn¡¯t you say that you¡¯ve already given her an acquired demonic body some time ago? Why hasn¡¯t anything happened yet? In fact, her cultivation has even increased, hasn¡¯t it? Could she be practicing a refinement technique from elsewhere?¡± The Du n Head queried coldly.

    ¡°This...She had encountered a demonic cultivator during her travels outside the sect a little while ago. They had even travelled together for some time. I¡¯m afraid that she must have obtained a refinement technique for demonic cultivation from him.¡± He Zhang hesitated as he spoke, ¡°This junior had checked her meridians and Dantian before. Her body is filled with demonic energy right now. There shouldn¡¯t be any doubts in this regard.¡±

    ¡°I hate hearing things like ¡®should¡¯ or ¡®maybe¡¯.¡± Du Ruiguang red coldly at He Zhang, ¡°Furthermore, I¡¯m not confident in your ability to excite and provoke a demonic outburst from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body during the course of thispetition. You must certainly understand that if she¡¯s practicing a demonic refinement technique, then she would naturally already be employing the use of demonic energy. Do you think it would be so easy to provoke a demonic outburst if that¡¯s the case?¡±

    ¡°This...¡± He Zhang had not thought so far. He had only thought that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s demonic energy would burst out of her body if she was ced in a dangerous predicament.

    ¡°I knew that you buffoons from small sects can¡¯t be relied on. Sigh, do I really have to do everything just so that I can see the results I want?¡± The Du n Head derided as he chuckled bitterly.

    A trace of indignation swelled up from the depths of He Zhang¡¯s heart, but he dared not reveal it on his face.

    ¡°Take this package. Think of a way to make Jun Xiaomo ingest this before thepetition.¡± Du Ruiguang handed a small packet of powdered substance to He Zhang.

    ¡°This is...¡± He Zhang could not tell what the powdered substance was.

    ¡°This is a substance that can thoroughly excite the demonic energy within a demonic cultivator¡¯s body, even when used in small amounts. This is something that demonic cultivators like to use in their cultivation. However...¡± Du Ruiguang chuckled coldly, ¡°If you use too much of it, then this miraculous herb would be no different from a poison. Not only would the demonic cultivator lose his mind, the demonic energy within their body would even be chaotic and burst out of their body. In serious cases, the demonic cultivator might even find his cultivation crippled. Furthermore, this substance can only be used against demonic cultivators.¡±

    He Zhang received the packet of powder and a bright gleam shed across his eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, there¡¯s one other thing. Find the right opportunity to use it. Don¡¯t waste my efforts locating this powdered substance. These things aren¡¯t easy to find.¡± The Du n Head cautioned dispassionately.

    ¡°Yes, this junior is aware. Much thanks to Du n Head for your support.¡± He Zhang obsequiously bowed to Du Ruiguang.

    ¡°Hah.¡± Du Ruiguang chuckled onest time, before he waved his sleeves and vanished from under He Zhang¡¯s eyes.

    He Zhang¡¯s room becamepletely silent and still once more, as though nobody had ever been there. The only evidence of Du Ruiguang¡¯s presence earlier was the lukewarm tea that he had been drinking earlier.

    He Zhang wrapped his fingers tightly around the packet of powdered substance, and a wicked smile crept up the corner of his lips.

 Chapter 173: Dai Yueâ€™s Change of Heart

    <h4>Chapter 173: Dai Yue¡¯s Change of Heart</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Although the Sect Elders¡¯ schemes were vile and infuriating, Jun Xiaomo was still rtively unperturbed about the prospects of any incidents arising during the course of thepetition.

    Quite apart from the fact that she had already given a stack of talismans to each of her martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak, she knew that there was no way these schemers would be able to do too much during thepetition under public scrutiny.

    Furthermore, the title of cultivation fanatics conferred on the Heavenly Peak disciples was not simply for show. Each and every one of these Heavenly Peak disciples were easily ranked among the top of their contemporaries. It could never be an easy thing to scheme against them given their abilities.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo temporarily ced her worries and concerns for her martial brothers and sisters on the backburner.

    That said, these burdens had upied her mind for the entire day, and they had caused Jun Xiaomo topletely overlook the fact that she had intended to look for Rong Ruihan at the end of the day. Fortunately, Rong Ruihan was of the same mind as her, and he looked for her of his own volition as well.

    Rong Ruihan approached the Heavenly Peak entourage as they were on their way back to the inn.

    ¡°Xiaomo, it¡¯s been a long time.¡± Rong Ruihan stood squarely across Jun Xiaomo as he greeted her. His chiseled appearance was supplemented by an expression of warmth and tenderness.

    ¡°Who are you? What are you looking for martial sister Xiaomo for?¡± Wei Gang stepped forward, stood directly in front of Jun Xiaomo and red at Rong Ruihan as he questioned him cautiously.

    Don¡¯t you think for one moment I¡¯m not aware that you¡¯ve been travelling with those punks from the Eternal Summit Sect. You must be looking for martial sister Xiaomo with bad intentions! A sense of righteous indignation swelled from the depths of Wei Gang¡¯s heart as he was filled with the desire to protect Jun Xiaomo.

    Naturally, he had selectively obviated from his mind the fact that hisbat abilities were a far cry from Jun Xiaomo¡¯sbat abilities. It had to be said that Wei Gang had lost out to Jun Xiaomo every single time they had sparred, despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was one level lower than his.

    In any event, Jun Xiaomo looked at theical little martial brother standing in front of him, slightly moved, but mostly exasperated.

    She patted her little martial brother¡¯s shoulders as she cated, ¡°Alright, Little Lang, brother Rong is my good friend. You don¡¯t have to be so uptight.¡±

    ¡°Good friend?¡± Wei Gang was stunned as he whipped his head around and rified, ¡°Martial sister, since when did you be good friends with people from the Eternal Summit Sect?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not from the Eternal Summit Sect.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not from the Eternal Summit Sect.¡±

    Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s answers echoed out at the same time. They froze for a moment as their eyes locked, before both of them began to chuckle lightheartedly.

    Wei Gang suddenly had a hunch that the rtionship between his martial sister and that male cultivator was much better than that of normal friends. Otherwise, how could they possibly be so coordinated and synchronized with their responses?

    For some reason, Wei Gang¡¯s heart ached slightly. He felt as though his own dear martial sister had just been stolen by some male cultivator of unknown origin.

    It was akin to the feeling in his heart when he realized that the cabbage in his garden had been eaten up by a wild boar.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed that Wei Gang was pouting in dismay because he was still wary of Rong Ruihan¡¯s personality and character. Thus, she continued to exin, ¡°Brother Rong was someone that martial brother Ye and I had encountered on our travels outside the Sect. He¡¯s helped us a lot during that period of time. If not for him, I might not have been able to return to the Sect.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were slightly exaggerated. After all, she had many life-saving tips and tricks up her sleeves. But Wei Gang was her dear martial brother, an existence akin to her family, while Rong Ruihan was her bosom friend for life. She did not want to see the two of them view each other with any measure of hostility at all.

    ¡°Ah?! So it¡¯s like that!¡± Such a possibility had never crossed Wei Gang¡¯s mind. This would also exin why his rtionship martial sister Xiaomo was so unusually close. They must possess a tacit understanding that had been developed over the course of countless life and death battles!

    Once his mind digested these thoughts, Wei Gang finally understood everything. He chuckled and bashfully scratched his head before muttering, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, thanks for all your help, brother...¡±

    ¡°No need for thanks. Xiaomo is my...friend.¡± Rong Ruihan paused for a split second before he managed to eke out thest word in his statement with a slightly darkened expression.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo did not notice this tiny detail.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re martial sister¡¯s friend, then you¡¯re also the friend of I, Wei Gang! Don¡¯t be afraid to ask me if you need any help from me next time!¡± Wei Gang patted his puffed-up chest as he proimed.

    He was just a young sprout, yet his attitude and disposition were far more exaggerated and audacious than any other kid his age.

    Even a usually serious and somber person like Rong Ruihan couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at Wei Gang¡¯sical behaviour.

    He finally understood where Jun Xiaomo had got her bubbly and spirited personality from.

    A person is the product of his environment after all.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality had changed slightly ever since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ¡°death¡±. Even though the change in personality was ever so slight, Rong Ruihan immediately noticed it within a few moments of their interactions.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to thank brother Wei in advance, then.¡± Rong Ruihan quipped as he yed along with Wei Gang. Then, he turned his attention back to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Xiaomo, do you have time now? I¡¯d like to catch up with you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, but she quickly collected herself before responding enthusiastically, ¡°Of course I¡¯ve got the time now. We haven¡¯t seen each other for so long! I¡¯d also been thinking of looking for brother Rong to catch up for old times¡¯ sakes.¡±

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s go. Let me buy you dinner, if you don¡¯t mind?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s expression grew warm and tender.

    ¡°As long as it¡¯s not grilled meat.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled, as she walked towards Rong Ruihan.

    This was a joke. After all, Jun Xiaomo had grilled meat for them everyday while they were escaping for their lives. She had already had enough grilled meat for a while.

    As Rong Ruihan thought about those days of persecution, his heart was also filled with immense sorrow and regret.

    ¡°Ah? Martial sister, does this mean you¡¯re not going back with us anymore?¡± Wei Gang quipped with a slight stupefaction.

    Jun Xiaomo patted his head as she replied, ¡°What do you mean? Brother Rong and I are going to reminisce about our good old days. Be good, and help me inform my parents, alright?¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s like that...¡± Wei Gang hesitated for a moment, before adding, ¡°Won¡¯t your parents be worried for you?¡±

    ¡°They know brother Rong. I¡¯ve told them about him before. It¡¯ll be fine if you inform them about it.¡± Bemused, Jun Xiaomo responded.

    ¡°Then, alright. Don¡¯te back toote, martial sister.¡± Wei Gang was still rather concerned by the fact that one man and one woman were going to have a meal together.

    ¡°Alright, you should hurry on back to the rest of your martial brothers and sisters. Otherwise, you¡¯re going to lose your way back to the inn.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted his head in exasperation.

    It had to be said that Wei Gang was not only mischievous, he was also horrendous with his sense of direction. Jun Xiaomo was seriously and sincerely concerned that he would lose his way if he did not quickly catch up with the rest of his martial brothers and sisters.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll be leaving, martial sister.¡± Wei Gang skipped back to the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Fortunately, the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples had noticed that Wei Gang and Jun Xiaomo had been left behind, and they were waiting for them not too far ahead.

    Once she ascertained that Wei Gang had joined up with the rest, Jun Xiaomo turned back to Rong Ruihan and addressed him once more, ¡°Let¡¯s go then, brother Rong.¡±

    Rong Ruihan nodded, and they slowly began to make their way to a street full of inns located at the base of the Heavenly Crane Mountain.

    On the other side, Dai Yue turned around immediately after thepetition had ended, intending to look for Rong Ruihan. To her dismay, Rong Ruihan had already disappeared.

    ¡°Where¡¯s brother Rong?!¡± Dai Yue grabbed another Eternal Summit Sect disciple by the cor in consternation as she interrogated him.

    ¡°This...this...he left earlier, saying that he was going to look for a friend.¡± The disciple who had been held up by his cor stammered in response.

    He was incredibly afraid of this martial sister of his. Whenever something did not go ording to her ns or expectations, she would immediately ventte her anger on her martial brothers and sisters. But these disciples knew that they could not resist orin about it because Dai Yue was the Grand Elder¡¯s daughter.

    There was once a disciple who had been incredibly upset with Dai Yue¡¯s action, and thus sternly rebuked Dai Yue there and then. In the end, that disciple vanished without a trace on the very next day.

    Rumours had it that he was punished for his wrongdoing, had his cultivation crippled, and was discarded at the bottom of their mountain. Nobody knew whether he managed to survive that ordeal.

    With such overprotective parents of hers, Dai Yue could naturally do as she pleased within the sect. All of the other disciples had no choice but to suppress the indignation in their hearts as they tried their best to stay out of her way.

    It was an open secret that Dai Yue was fond of Qin Lingyu and had set in her sights.

    Although Dai Yue had never expressed to anyone that she was fond of Qin Lingyu, her actions spoke far louder than her words. She had always leapt at any an excuse to visit Dawn Sect. Whenever she saw Qin Lingyu, she would immediately hover around him like a bee hovers around a beautiful flower. Then, when she got wind of the marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu, she thrashed about the flowerbeds within the sect and even took out her anger on a few martial brothers of hers. Naturally, everyone was aware of how she felt towards Qin Lingyu.

    It could be said that her heart hadpletely been seized by her dear ¡°brother Qin¡± before she had encountered Rong Ruihan.

    But just some time ago, Dai Yue encountered Rong Ruihan when she had slipped out of her sect to y. She had inadvertently encountered some ferocious spirit beasts, while Rong Ruihan happened to chance upon her and rescue her. As soon as she saw Rong Ruihan¡¯s handsome and dignified appearance, Dai Yue practically fell in love with him immediately.

    She felt that Rong Ruihan looked far better than Qin Lingyu. Furthermore, Rong Ruihan had even saved her life.

    That moment when her prince charming Rong Ruihan saved her yed over and over again in Dai Yue¡¯s mind, causing Dai Yue¡¯s emotions to roil uncontrobly. She thought that this must be fate. Otherwise, how could she have been saved by Rong Ruihan so coincidentally?

    In other words, Dai Yue had had a change of heart ever since she encountered Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°My name is Dai Yue, and I thank this gant cultivator for saving my life. May I know what my benefactor¡¯s name is?¡± Dai Yue looked bashfully at Rong Ruihan as she asked.

    As soon as Rong Ruihan took a closer look at Dai Yue¡¯s appearances, he furrowed his brow. Then, without a single word, he turned and began to leave.

    ¡°Hey! Wait a minute!¡± Dai Yue had never expected such a response from him, and she couldn¡¯t help but grow anxious and slightly upset. She caught up to him and remarked, ¡°I¡¯m the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder. If you¡¯re willing to follow me back, my father is sure to present you with a token of his gratitude!¡±

    Dai Yue anxiously dangled a bait in front of Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°Eternal Summit Sect?¡± Rong Ruihan paused in his steps, and his expressions darkened.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Dai Yue believed that Rong Ruihan had been enticed by the prospects of receiving tokens of her father¡¯s gratitude. Thus, she looked Rong Ruihan in the eyes as she added, ¡°Believe me, I won¡¯t lie to you. My father is the Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect. He will be extremely grateful to you for saving my life.¡±

    Rong Ruihan deliberated for a moment, before he finally nodded towards Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue raised her brows in tion. She motioned to hook her arms around Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm, yet her nimble actions were swiftly avoided by Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°I¡¯m not used to having people too close to me.¡± Rong Ruihan exined nonchntly, causing Dai Yue¡¯s face to turn red with embarrassment and a pale white. She found Rong Ruihan¡¯s attitude to put her in a difficult spot, as though she were trying to take advantage of him.

    However, the truth of the matter was that Rong Ruihan had never harboured any romantic feelings for Dai Yue to begin with. The only reason why he had eded to Dai Yue¡¯s request was because she had mentioned the ¡°Eternal Summit Sect¡±.

    He didn¡¯t mind if Dai Yue blew her top and refused to bring him back to the Eternal Summit Sect either. He would still be able to achieve his goals through other means, albeit with a little bit more difficulty.

    In fact, Dai Yue had been on the verge of falling out with him. Ever since she was young, there were few people who had trampled over her pride like how Rong Ruihan had done. But she held back her temper and evaluated the situation ¨C they were hardly any better than strangers right now, and his attitude in this regard was quite understandable. At the very least, this meant that Rong Ruihan was not a casual and wanton man.

    Thus, the knot in Dai Yue¡¯s heart loosened, and she was once again filled with the desire of winning over this man before her.

    She firmly believed that given Rong Ruihan¡¯s cold and frigid personality, he would stick dearly to anyone whom he fell in love with. And that was precisely what she wanted ¨C she wanted this handsome man to fall in love with her and stick dearly to her.

    At this moment, Dai Yue couldn¡¯t help but think about Jun Xiaomo and the existence of her marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu.

    This handsome man before her eyes was far better looking and more dignified than Qin Lingyu. When they finally got married, she was going to unt and gloat about her man in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately, Dai Yue never paused to consider why Rong Ruihan was so sensitive towards the words ¡°Eternal Summit Sect¡± to begin with.

    Dai Yue heart was simply too convicted by the prospects that one day, this cold and frigid man would be moved by her actions and fall head over heels in love with her.

 Chapter 174: Dai Yueâ€™s Jealousy

    <h4>Chapter 174: Dai Yue¡¯s Jealousy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Heavenly Crane Mountain was an incredibly scenic ce. Apart from being used a site for hosting grand events, this ce was also well-renown among mortals and cultivators alike as one of the best locations for sight-seeing. Consequently, the Heavenly Crane Mountain was well equipped for such crowds with its fair share ofrge inns, teahouses and restaurants.

    As they walked along a small street with a breathtaking view, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan finally found themselves arriving before a small, exquisite-looking inn.

    ¡°Let¡¯s settle for this ce, shall we?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around and suggested to Rong Ruihan.

    If they had walked down the street just a little bit more, they would find themselves entering an adjoining street which was lined with restaurants, teahouses and eateries. This adjoining street was far busier and bustling with activity. However, Jun Xiaomo had decided to settle on a quieter ce.

    This little inn was located slightly off the main street, and the traffic here was sparse. Furthermore, this little inn had several elegant looking booths avable for their guests to have a private little discussion over their meals, and it looked particrly attractive for their purposes.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Rong Ruihan responded affirmatively. If anyone else were around, they might have found Rong Ruihan to be rather cold.

    But this was not the case. He was simply not used to beating about the bush andcing his words with formalities and pleasantries. He much preferred getting straight to the point when it mattered. In any event, the softness in his eyes alsopletely negated the curtness of his speech.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled at him. She knew Rong Ruihan¡¯s personality, and she found herself increasingly able to glean more from Rong Ruihan¡¯s curt and simple responses. Perhaps this might be attributable to the tacit understanding developed through their experiences together.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan entered the inn and took their seats in a little booth adjoining a window. All they had to do was to tilt their heads a little and they would be able to take in the full view of the beautiful scenery on the Heavenly Crane Mountain, as well as see the road from which they hade from.

    They ordered a pot of tea and some small dishes for sharing. Within moments, their booth was filled with the sweet-smelling aroma from the tea.

    The atmosphere was silent and still. The two bosom friends who hadn¡¯t seen each other for such a long time found themselves at aplete loss for words as they continued to gently sip the tea from their respective teacups.

    Finally, it was Rong Ruihan who broke the silence.

    ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯ve changed a lot.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly stated as he cast his gaze directly on Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Is that right? I¡¯ve been hearing that quite a lot. Is brother Rong going to say that I¡¯ve be more beautiful as well?¡± A mischievous smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips and she raised her eyebrows slightly as she replied. It was as though she waspletely ignorant to the fact that she was praising herself.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Rong Ruihan had not expected such a response from Jun Xiaomo, and he nearly choked on his tea.

    He set his teacup down and coughed lightly for a bit, before he resumed, ¡°Seeing that you¡¯re still able to joke these days sets my heart at ease.¡±

    When he first saw Jun Xiaomo earlier, her sullen-looking appearance was like a pin that had pricked straight through his heart.

    It had only been a short span of time apart, but in these short moments, Jun Xiaomo had grown that much closer to the Jun Xiaomo in his dreams. Both clothed themselves in a striking red colour, and both presented themselves with a stirring sense of mncholy in the depths of their eyes.

    Even now, when Jun Xiaomo was joking around with Rong Ruihan, he could hardly feel a trace of joy within the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    Ever since Rong Ruihan departed, he had exchanged correspondences with Jun Xiaomo on a few asions and learnt about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tragedy through these letters. Rong Ruihan had even inquired this of old man Chi, only to be told that the odds of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s survival were slim to none if he had indeed fallen to the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t know what else to say to console Jun Xiaomo, so he simply decided to conceal old man Chi¡¯s words from Jun Xiaomo. Rong Ruihan believed that as long as there was even a trace of hope, then Jun Xiaomo would not fall into ornguish in a state of despair.

    But he had underestimated Ye Xiuwen¡¯s importance in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. It was evident that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance had dealt a severe blow to Jun Xiaomo. In fact, this blow was so great that it hadpletely washed away the bubbly and impish side to her.

    The present Jun Xiaomo was almost akin to an exact replica of thatdy in red of Rong Ruihan¡¯s dreams ¨C she seemed always to be afflicted with an air of sorrow around her.

    Seeing Jun Xiaomo like that made his heart ache immensely. Yet he also felt incredibly helpless.

    Rong Ruihan dreaded the prospects of Jun Xiaomo bing like thedy in his dreams. He would very much prefer if Jun Xiaomo could remain as she had been when he had first encountered her ¨C witty and sly as she interacted with people with a bright glimmer in her eyes.

    All of a sudden, Rong Ruihan found himself considering whether Jun Xiaomo would have changed just as much if the person who had disappeared was instead himself.

    Perhaps...not...?

    He knew deep within his heart that he was of a different standing in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Thus, he derided himself for even entertaining such a possibility, and he fervently shrugged off these thoughts.

    ¡°Brother Rong, what are you thinking about?¡± Jun Xiaomo discovered that Rong Ruihan was simply staring at her, and she even heard Rong Ruihan chuckle to himself sardonically.

    ¡°Nothing much.¡± Rong Ruihan picked up his teacup again and lifted it to conceal the slight grimace on his face.

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks in exasperation. Then, she squinted her eyes and smiled faintly as she quipped, ¡°Shall I take a guess what you were thinking about?¡±

    Rong Ruihan looked back at Jun Xiaomo, and his eyes quivered slightly.

    Without waiting for his response, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile grew, she closed her eyes and ran her finger along the rims of her teacup as she guessed, ¡°Brother Rong must still be extremely worried for me, right? You must be worried that I¡¯m still trapped within the painful mires of losing martial brother Ye.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo sighed listlessly and paused her finger.

    ¡°I¡¯ll admit that. Martial brother¡¯s fall into the Death¡¯s Gorge had dealt me a heavy blow.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head once more and looked straight into Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes with her obsidian-ck pupils, ¡°He disappeared because he was protecting me. In my grief, I couldn¡¯t help but me myself as well. I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about whether these would have happened had I not willfully left the Sect and gone looking for him in the first ce. However...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly, ¡°However, there¡¯s no going back. No matter how much pain and agony I go through; no matter how much I berate myself, nothing will change the present reality. That one instance of willfulness is more than enough. I cannot bear to lose more family and friends as a result of my own willfulness anymore.¡±

    Having heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel, Rong Ruihan finally understood that there was no need to concern himself with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s position in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    He had finally realized that whether it was lover, family or friends, every single one upied the same space in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. No matter who it was that had fallen off the precipice, that person would leave a scar on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart as long as he was someone that she cared about.

    It would leave an indelible, ineffaceable scar.

    Rong Ruihan had once overheard the conversation among a pair of lovebirds. Thedy had asked the man, ¡°If your mother and I both fell into the water at the same time, who would you rescue first?¡±

    If Jun Xiaomo had been caught in this situation, she would not be able to abandon either of the two, no matter who they might be. She might not even bother to consider the question ¨C she would undoubtedly do all she could to save both people who mattered equally much to her.

    ¡°I understand.¡± Rong Ruihan stretched out his arm and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, ¡°Xiaomo has grown up.¡±

    ¡°Pfft! You say it as though I¡¯m a little kid.¡± Jun Xiaomo burst out inughter as well.

    If we included the age of her previous life as well, then she was far from a little kid! When she had first returned to the past, her mentality did regain a little bit of her youthful vigor back then. But right now, she had done nothing more than shed that youthful vigor and return to the prudence and unppable personality in her previous life.

    ¡°In my eyes, you¡¯re still a little kid.¡± Rong Ruihan solemnly stated.

    That¡¯s right. Seventeen years of age was an extremely young existence given the immense lifespan of cultivators. Therefore, Rong Ruihan did not want to see Jun Xiaomo shoulder all of her burdens herself.

    He was willing to extend a hand to help Jun Xiaomo protect all that she wanted to protect so that Jun Xiaomo would no longer experience the grief and pain apanying the loss of a loved one.

    And Rong Ruihan never expected any reciprocity on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part either. After all, he knew that rtionships and emotions were things that could not be forced. All that mattered to him was that he followed the desires and intentions of his heart.

    ¡°You can let me know if there¡¯s anything on your heart next time. Don¡¯t bottle it up. You¡¯re still young, and you shouldn¡¯t be bearing such heavy burdens all on your own.¡± Rong Ruihan assuaged Jun Xiaomo.

    He could tell that there were still numerous things weighing on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, and he thought that such burdens were far too heavy for a seventeen years-old youngdy to bear.

    ¡°Brother Rong, I understand. Thank you.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. Her heart was moved by Rong Ruihan¡¯s sincerity.

    ¡°Dear guests, your food has arrived.¡± The waiter walked into the booth and began to set down various dishes before adding, ¡°Please enjoy.¡±

    ¡°Alright, thanks.¡± Jun Xiaomo politely responded.

    After the waiter left, Rong Ruihan picked up some vegetables with his chopsticks and ced them into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bowl as he remarked, ¡°The cold dishes here are pretty good. Have a taste.¡±

    ¡°Oh? Has brother Rong been here before?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked in astonishment.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been to the Heavenly Crane Mountain five times, and I¡¯ve picked this inn every time I came because it¡¯s much quieter than the rest.¡±

    ¡°Then it seems that brother Rong seems to be tied to this little inn by fate.¡± Jun Xiaomo mused, ¡°With this, it would be the sixth time that you¡¯re here then.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d never thought that Xiaomo would pick this inn as well.¡±

    Just like that, this little coincidence served to alleviate the earlier heaviness in the room between the two. After some lighthearted conversations, Jun Xiaomo suddenly recalled how Rong Ruihan was travelling with the Eternal Summit Sect and decided to broach the topic.

    ¡°Oh yes, brother Rong, if you don¡¯t mind me asking, are you and Dai Yue from the Eternal Summit Sect...very close to each other?¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated as she asked.

    If Rong Ruihan were indeed close to Dai Yue, then her bet with Dai Yue was going to be a lot more troublesome. After all, she did not want to trap Rong Ruihan between the two of them and make things difficult for him.

    Rong Ruihan was slightly stunned by her question, but he quickly collected himself and dispassionately responded, ¡°We¡¯re not too close. I¡¯ve only saved her life once.¡±

    ¡°Saved her life?¡± Jun Xiaomo had never expected such an answer. After all, she had never seen Rong Ruihan as a person with overflowingpassion.

    Rong Ruihan looked straight at Jun Xiaomo, and a swathe ofplicated emotions could be seen in the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°Back then, she was dressed in striking red, and I mistook her for you.¡± Rong Ruihan spoke sullenly as Jun Xiaomo was momentarily rendered speechless.

    Rong Ruihan had not expected much of a response from Jun Xiaomo either. He continued to describe to Jun Xiaomo the circumstances under which he hade to rescue Dai Yue, and how he had thus followed her back to the Eternal Summit Sect.

    ¡°So does the Eternal Summit Sect bear any special significance to brother Rong?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was not the same as the infatuated Dai Yue, and she had keenly picked up on the essence of Rong Ruihan¡¯s ount ¨C Rong Ruihan¡¯s change of heart only urred when he was prompted by Dai Yue¡¯s mention of the ¡°Eternal Summit Sect¡±.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes darkened. Momentster, he looked at Jun Xiaomo as he slowly uttered, ¡°My mother¡¯s death might be closely linked to the Eternal Summit Sect.¡±

    This time, it was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s turn to be stunned. She lowered her eyes and sighed, ¡°No wonder...¡±

    ¡°The only reason I¡¯d decided to follow Dai Yue back to the Eternal Summit Sect was so that I could personally verify a few things. If they turned out to be unrted to my mother¡¯s death, then I would have left peacefully. But if they were inextricably tied to my mother¡¯s death...¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze grew cold and frigid, ¡°Then I¡¯ll never let them off!¡±

    ¡°Would things be dangerous if you remain there?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. She was concerned about the fact that Rong Ruihan had infiltrated the Eternal Summit Sect all on his own.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze softened as he responded, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my master has provided me with some life-saving treasures.¡±

    His ¡°master¡± naturally referred to old man Chi.

    ¡°Brother Rong, the consequences would be dire if they learnt that you¡¯re a demonic cultivator.¡± Jun Xiaomo continued to knit her brows as she pressed the issue.

    Rong Ruihan chuckled lightheartedly as he stretched his hand out once more and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Nobody¡¯s realized it yet, right?¡±

    ¡°But...¡±

    ¡°Also, it¡¯s not going to be long now.¡± Rong Ruihan cut off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    ¡°What¡¯s not too long?¡± Jun Xiaomo grew slightly bewildered.

    ¡°It¡¯s not going to be too long before I find out the truth.¡± A frosty gaze crept up the depths of his pupils, before he quickly turned back to Jun Xiaomo with a smile on his face, ¡°I hope that Xiaomo will be willing to take me in when that timees.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

    It was now that Rong Ruihan finally began to experience the exuberance of a seventeen years-old girl form Jun Xiaomo. He smiled faintly as he exined, ¡°Once I find out the truth and depart from the Eternal Summit Sect, won¡¯t I have nowhere else to go? Therefore, I hope that Xiaomo will be able to take me in when that timees. After what we¡¯ve been through together, you wouldn¡¯t be unwilling to do so, would you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected such a sudden development. But, why doesn¡¯t brother Rong just return to the Chi n¡¯s residence?

    Just then, ady dressed entirely in red stood behind a tall tree located not too far away from the inn as she red at Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan with fire burning in her eyes. Gnashing her teeth, her veins bulged as she articted one word at a time ¨C

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo! Why do you have to steal everything?! Brother Rong is mine!!!¡±

    ¡°This time, I¡¯m going to kill you on the arena!¡±

 Chapter 175: My Heart Belongs to You

    <h4>Chapter 175: My Heart Belongs to You</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After dinner, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan took a stroll towards the adjoining, busier street where a mid-autumn-likentern festivity was being celebrated.

    Back in the Dawn Sect, Jun Xiaomo was practically faced with the threat of danger to life and limb at all times, and there was hardly a moment where she could let her guard down. Right now, as she walked along the bustling street at night and took in the loud chatter andmotion, her thoughts drifted further and further away from her burdens and duties, and Jun Xiaomo suddenly realized that she could once again let loose and be in the present for once.

    ¡°There seems to be a crowd over there. Do you know what they¡¯re doing?¡± Jun Xiaomo had always been on the run in her previous life ¨C she hardly came across any such bustling festivities, and she barely knew anything about the festivities of the mortal world.

    ¡°They should be guessingntern riddles.¡±

    Rong Ruihan had grown up as a royalty, and he had slipped out of the pce on countless asions in the past to experience what life outside the pce was like. Thus, he was reasonably familiar with these festivities.

    ¡°Lantern riddles?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s curiosity was piqued.

    A smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders and told her, ¡°Wait here for a moment. I¡¯ll be back shortly.¡±

    As soon as he said that, Rong Ruihan began to make his way into therge crowd of people.

    ¡°Hey!¡± Jun Xiaomo wanted to grab a hold of his arm and tell him not to bother himself too much, but Rong Ruihan¡¯s movements were just too quick. Within the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the crowd of people.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly, while a faint smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    In a beautiful autumn evening, amidst a multitude of brilliant, exquisitenterns, ady in red stared vacantly into the distant as smiled faintly to herself. The warm illumination of thesenterns brushed a hazy sheen over her fair and pristine cheeks, softening the harsh and incisive disposition from her cruel life experiences. It was as though this timeless beauty hadpletely transcended the gentle ebb and flow of time.

    Several people couldn¡¯t help but steal nces at Jun Xiaomo, while some other had even brazenly stared at Jun Xiaomo with gaping mouths. Among these people, some were even fellow cultivators who were also participants in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition.

    ¡°She must be Jun Xiaomo, right? Everyone in the arena has been talking about her all day. Thedy in red from Dawn Sect is none other than Jun Xiaomo, and she¡¯s incredibly beautiful.¡± One of the male cultivators around discreetly whispered to hispanion.

    ¡°I think it¡¯s her as well. I¡¯d earlier been seated too far away, so I didn¡¯t manage to catch a glimpse of her. Truth be told, I¡¯d thought that the rumours must be a little bit exaggerated. But now that I¡¯ve seen the extent of her beauty in person, I can only say that if I were Qin Lingyu, I would never rescind the marriage arrangement with here even if her cultivation had been crippled.¡± As the second male cultivator said this, his mind began to wander and imagine how Jun Xiaomo must look on the day of her wedding, especially when she smiled faintly and stared straight towards himself. His nose twitched slightly, and he almost lost hisposure.

    The first male cultivator pped his friend awake from his stupor and barked at him, ¡°Don¡¯t even bother thinking about it. Even if her cultivation had been crippled, she¡¯s still the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. Didn¡¯t you see the male cultivator standing beside her earlier? I imagine that his cultivation must be incredibly strong.¡±

    The second male disciple resentfully rubbed his nose as he returned to his senses.

    Just like Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, several other cultivators had also decided to take a walk along the bustling street after dinner to immerse themselves in the excitement of thentern festivities. Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou were no exception to the norm. Now that Qin Lingyu was no longer tied down to a marriage arrangement, Yu Wanrou could naturally be around him openly.

    Yet as fate would have it, they had happened to walk by the very same spot where Jun Xiaomo was located at the same time as her. They noticed Jun Xiaomo smiling faintly as she gazed into the distance, and they also overheard the discreet conversation between the other two male disciples.

    Qin Lingyu paused in his steps.

    ¡°Lingyu?¡± Yu Wanrou tugged at Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeves, and a sense of danger arose in her heart.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze swept towards Jun Xiaomo, pausing for a moment on her body before he looked away. Then, he spoke in a low voice to Yu Wanrou, ¡°Let¡¯s go. There¡¯s nothing much to see over here.¡±

    As soon as he said that, he turned his body back in the direction that they hade from and began to walk back,pletely ignoring the indignation swelling up from the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Lingyu!¡± Yu Wanrou looked at Qin Lingyu¡¯s back as she stomped her foot in anger. She cocked her head back and cast a hateful gaze back at Jun Xiaomo, before resentfully making her way back to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware of what had just happened. In order to minimize the effects of sect rivalries on the participants, there was a standing rule that once the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitionmenced, none of the participants were allowed to sh with each other outside the arena. Those who flouted such a rule would immediately be disqualified from thepetition.

    Under such circumstances, Jun Xiaomo realized that it was fairly safe for her to let her guard down for the moment. Thus, she temporarily lowered her vignce and ceased looking over her shoulders for any potential attempts at her life.

    Since she longer constantly probed at her surroundings with her divine sense, Jun Xiaomo was naturally also unaware about how she had somehow be the focal point of onlookers right now.

    It didn¡¯t take too long before Rong Ruihan returned to where Jun Xiaomo was. Although his clothes had be slightly disorderly, it barely affected his dignified and royal disposition.

    Rong Ruihan carried a particrlyrge and eye-catchingntern. Severaldies even covered their mouths and tittered as they looked at Rong Ruihan with an expectant gaze.

    ¡°Xiaomo, this is for you.¡± Rong Ruihan handed thergentern to Jun Xiaomo. As soon as the otherdies around saw this, they swished their scarves in disappointment and left listlessly.

    ¡°For me?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked pleasantly surprised as she received thentern from Rong Ruihan. After taking a closer look at thentern, she smiled radiantly at him and quipped, ¡°It¡¯s beautiful. Thanks, brother Rong.¡±

    In the next moment, she discovered that there was a little note stuck to the bottom of thentern, and the note had some words scribbled on it.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± She picked up the note and discovered that a single line of poetry was written on it. That said, Jun Xiaomo had never understood things like the literature of the mortal world. Naturally, the romance of poetry was also something distant and foreign to her.

    ¡°This is a line of poetry, and it¡¯s also a riddle. Would Xiaomo like to guess the answer to this riddle?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knitted her brows and deliberated for some moments, but in the end she let out a helpless chuckle as she remarked, ¡°Seems like I¡¯m still pretty inept when ites to things like riddles.¡±

    Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he quipped, ¡°It¡¯s alright. You can think about it slowly since thentern is yours to keep anyway.¡±

    ¡°Huh? Doesn¡¯t brother Rong intend to tell me the answer?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

    A bemused look filled the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes as he bantered, ¡°It¡¯s only when you guess the answer of your own ord that you get that sense of achievement, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo grew exasperated, ¡°But I might not be able to guess the answer even if you give me an entire lifetime!¡±

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll tell you the answer next time.¡± As he said that, he turned around and motioned to leave.

    ¡°Brother Rong, you...!¡± Jun Xiaomo found herself both upset and bemused at the same time as she hurried on after Rong Ruihan.

    Thus, the two silhouettes vanished among the crowd amidst the bustling street.

    -----------------------------------------------------------

    Just like that, Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo spent the better part of the evening and night walking along the street and immersing themselves with the festivities. It was only when the moon hung high in the sky that they parted ways at a fork in the road.

    Jun Xiaomo was about to return to where the Dawn Sect¡¯s inn was located, while Rong Ruihan was about to return to where the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s inn was located.

    ¡°Thank you, brother Rong. I¡¯ve been very happy tonight.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked up at Rong Ruihan as she beamed. Then, she unted thentern in her hand as she added, ¡°I¡¯ll definitely take good care of thisntern. After all, this was something that brother Rong had won from guessing riddles.¡±

    Rong Ruihan smiled pleasantly. Such riddles requiring him to guess a single word from a line of poetry was hardly considered difficult to him. After all, he had grown up in an environment where double-entendres, nuances and implied meanings were dime a dozen among those scheming and plotting ptial residents. He was already used to such guessing games.

    What Rong Ruihan had omitted to inform Jun Xiaomo was the fact that he had won thergest and most beautifulntern avable by guessing the hardest riddle from the gamemaster.

    After all, some things are better left unsaid.

    ¡°I¡¯m d that you like it.¡± Rong Ruihan tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, ¡°Hurry on back, then. If you dally any longer outside, your parents might be worried.¡±

    ¡°Mm, alright. See you tomorrow!¡± Jun Xiaomo waved at Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°See you tomorrow.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo toted herntern chirpily as she disappeared down a path along the forked road. Rong Ruihan stood where he was and continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back for a while, before he finally turned around and took the other fork leading back to his inn.

    After bidding Jun Xiaomo farewell, the warmth and softness in Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes gradually disappeared. By the time he returned to the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s inn, his expressions hadpletely reverted to that usually cold and distant look of his.

    ¡°Brother Rong, where have you been?¡± A figure walked out from the inn. The gentle illumination of the moonlight revealed a face filled with immense indignation.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you already know? Haven¡¯t you been following us the entire night?¡± Rong Ruihan retorted with disinterest. Not a single ripple of anxiety could be seen in the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°You! Brother Rong, are you fond of that slut?!¡± Dai Yue harshly pressed the issue.

    She had indeed been following Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo for the entire night. This was exactly why the jealousy and hatred for Jun Xiaomo had now burgeoned to an unprecedented level.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of the superfluous things of the mortal world, and she had epted Rong Ruihan¡¯s gift of antern, thinking that it was nothing more than a gift from a friend.

    But what Dai Yue had heard on the grapevine was that in the mortal world, a man¡¯s act of giving antern to ady meant ¡°my heart belongs to you¡±; and if thedy epted the man¡¯s gift, it also meant that she epted and weed his advances and courtship.

    Furthermore, Dai Yue heard the onlookers discussing the answer to the riddle on thatrgestntern won by Rong Ruihan ¨C it was ¡°two hearts beating as one!¡±

    Who does she think she is?! I was the one who had encountered Brother Rong first! What basis does Jun Xiaomo have to seduce him the very moment that they had met?! Apart from that face of hers, what else does she have? She¡¯s no more than a crippled piece of trash!

    Jealousy engulfed Dai Yue¡¯s heart, while her emotions stirred uncontrobly. She had been waiting at the entrance of their inn all this while so that she could confront Rong Ruihan and hear it from the horse¡¯s mouth.

    She refused to believe that Rong Ruihan had fallen in love with Jun Xiaomo. But the truth of the matter was quite the converse ¨C Rong Ruihan had never had any feelings of romance for anyone apart from Jun Xiaomo.

    The warmth and tenderness with which Rong Ruihan treated Jun Xiaomo was something that Dai Yue could only dream of. She had initially thought that with Rong Ruihan¡¯s cold and distant personality and disposition, nobody would be able to elicit any form of warmth or tenderness from Rong Ruihan at all. How could she ept the fact that someone had in fact managed to elicit such a response from Rong Ruihan, and without much effort on her part to boot?

    Furthermore, that ¡°someone¡± was none other than Jun Xiaomo!

    As soon as he heard Dai Yue¡¯s manner of addressing Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes grew incredibly frosty.

    ¡°Who I like is my own business. Since when did I have to report to you such matters?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s booming voice carried clear undertones of indignation, ¡°Dai Yue, remember this. I¡¯m the one who had saved your life, not the other way around. I¡¯ve never owed anything to the Eternal Summit Sect. Even the lodging fees are borne out of my own expenses.¡±

    Rong Ruihan had already roughly verified the extent of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s role in the persecution of his mother. Therefore, he no longer had any need to keep up with his present pretenses and feign civility with the members of the Eternal Summit Sect.

    The rims of Dai Yue¡¯s eyes instantly reddened as she decried in denial, ¡°Impossible! You must¡¯ve been mesmerized by that slut! Otherwise how could you possibly be saying these things?!¡±

    Rong Ruihan took a single step forward, and an immense wave of oppressive aura burst out from his body, frightening Dai Yue so much that she took a step back in retreat.

    ¡°Since you want an answer so badly, then I¡¯ll tell you. I am fond of Jun Xiaomo. Furthermore, I¡¯ve never liked anyone apart from her. Thus, don¡¯t let me hear you calling her a ¡®slut¡¯ ever again. Know this ¨C I can save you, and I can also kill you.¡±

    Rong Ruihan articted each word extremely clearly, as though he were etching each and every word into the depths of Dai Yue¡¯s fric heart.

    That¡¯s right. Fric and manic. In Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes, Dai Yue was nothing more than a megalomaniac who had been spoiled by her parents so much that she now willfully dictated how everyone around her had to live their lives. If anyone disobeyed her bidding or displeased her, she would do anything she could to ruin that person and make his life miserable.

    Dai Yue¡¯s behaviour reminded Rong Ruihan of his ¡°dear¡± old brother, Rong Yebin. Therefore, there was no way he would ever be moved by someone like Dai Yue, even if Jun Xiaomo had not been in the picture.

    By the time Rong Ruihan finished speaking, Dai Yue¡¯s face had already beenpletely drained of colour. This was because Rong Ruihan¡¯s cultivation was already in the advanced-tier Foundation Establishment stage, and the aura that he released was not something that a cultivator in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation could withstand.

    After he finished speaking, Rong Ruihan nced coldly at Dai Yue before he strutted back into the inn.

    Dai Yue no longer dared to obstruct Rong Ruihan because she had earlier detected a trace amount of killing intent emanating from Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    ¡°Rong Ruihan, you¡¯ll regret this.¡± Dai Yue lifted her head and looked in the direction where Rong Ruihan had disappeared to. She clenched her fists and furiously barked, ¡°I¡¯ll not gonna let Jun Xiaomo off! Just you wait!¡±

 Chapter 176: Breakfast with Extra Ingredients

    <h4>Chapter 176: Breakfast with Extra Ingredients</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Dai Yue tossed and turned for the entire night as her intense jealousy and hatred stirred in her heart.

    She sincerely hoped that she would be able to encounter Jun Xiaomo when she made her appearance the very next day. She would shuck her bones and pluck out her nerves and let everyone watch in horror as that vermin crawled around on stage, begging for mercy. At that time, Rong Ruihan would be able to see for himself who truly had the right to stand beside him.

    Unfortunately, Dai Yuecked a little bit of luck in this regard, and she was separated from Jun Xiaomo in the very first round of thepetitions. She made her appearance on the sixth day of the Lower Category battles, while Jun Xiaomo was ted to appear on the seventh day.

    The only passable silver lining to this was that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s first opponent was also from the Eternal Summit Sect. It was her fifth martial brother, Liang Yulong.

    One day before thepetition, Dai Yue knocked on the door of Liang Yulong¡¯s room and asked if he would be willing to intentionally lose to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°What?! Martial sister must be kidding. You¡¯re asking me to lose to a female cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery?!¡± Liang Yulong cried out in disbelief.

    ¡°I¡¯m not joking. You¡¯re still allowed to cause grievous injuries to her. In fact, the more serious the injuries, the better. But I hope that she will be able to hold out until she squares off against me.¡± Dai Yue demanded with a peremptory tone of voice.

    The only reason why she had asked Liang Yulong to intentionally lose to Jun Xiaomo was naturally not so that Jun Xiaomo would be able to win thepetition in the end. Her only goal was so that she could personally kill that woman on the arena.

    She intended to use the cruelest methods she knew to torment Jun Xiaomo to death. And before Jun Xiaomo died, she even nned to carve scars and wounds all across her face and disy her disfigured face to the entire audience.

    When that time came, she did not believe that Rong Ruihan would continue to remain fond of Jun Xiaomo or stay by her side.

    That piece of trash doesn¡¯t deserve brother Rong! Dai Yue thought hatefully as her mind considered each and every possible manner of torment she might inflict on Jun Xiaomo.

    The catharsis of such thoughts made her heartbroken heart feel slightly better.

    ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re crazy!¡± Liang Yulong could see the fric emotions roiling in the depths of Dai Yue¡¯s eyes, ¡°I reject this request of yours. Thispetition doesn¡¯t only have to do with my personal future, it¡¯s got to do with the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s glory as well. Martial sister, how can you ask me to lose to a Dawn Sect disciple in the fifth level of Qi Mastery just for your own personal reasons? Do you want the Eternal Summit Sect to be theughingstock of the entirepetition?!¡±

    ¡°Huh. You make yourself sound so noble, but the truth of the matter is that you¡¯re afraid of trampling on your pride and reputation in public, aren¡¯t you?¡± Dai Yue chuckled coldly as she added, ¡°Brother Liang, don¡¯t forget the difference in our statures. This isn¡¯t a request. It¡¯s an order. If you¡¯re not willing toply, I have my ways of making sure that you never return to the Eternal Summit Sect, understand?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Liang Yulong had never expected Dai Yue to directly threaten him like that.

    ¡°I¡¯m not joking here. Fifth martial brother, let me break the news to you ¨C you¡¯re not all that important to the Eternal Summit Sect at all. Eighth level of Qi Mastery at the age of twenty-one years-old ¨C it¡¯s still hard to say whether you would even be able to attain the twelfth level of Qi Mastery by the age of thirty-five, much less attract the attention of the Greater Sect¡¯s sect elders. If you know what¡¯s best for you, you¡¯ll agree to my suggestion here. Otherwise, you might not have a ce to return to even if you win thispetition.¡±

    Dai Yue was bound and determined when she spoke. This was evidently not the first time she had done such things.

    The truth of the matter was that Dai Yue had often ridden on her father¡¯s coattail and forced fellow disciples whom she could not see eye to eye with out of the Eternal Summit Sect. Thus, those who remained could only bottle up their indignation for Dai Yue¡¯s strategies to intimidate and do their best to stay out of her way for fear that they would be the next one to be emunicated from the Eternal Summit Sect.

    Liang Yulong had often heard of these rumours, but he had never expected to one day be at the receiving end of such threats and intimidation.

    He lowered his head and gnashed his teeth as he furiously suppressed the swelling rage in his heart.

    Some timeter, he lifted his head again and muttered sullenly, ¡°Fine, I agree. However, how I¡¯m going to lose to her is up to me to decide.¡±

    ¡°Hah, that¡¯s fine. Of course, it would be best if you could ¡®lose¡¯ after tormenting her half to death. This would make me feel good, and perhaps my father might even give you some excellent spiritual pills and medicine as rpense for your efforts.¡±

    After Dai Yue said this, she chuckled lightly andckadaisically strolled out of the room, before closing the door behind her.

    Pshh! Liang Yulong furiously smashed a cup against the door of his room. The depths of his eyes were filled with humiliation and rage.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    Thus, time passed, and the second day soon arrived.

    On the dawn of this fresh new morning, Jun Xiaomo received a breakfast set with ¡°extra added ingredients¡±. This was personally delivered to her by her inn¡¯s attendant.

    On the surface, her breakfast lookedpletely normal. But having experienced one lifetime of being a demonic cultivator, how could Jun Xiaomo not immediately pick up that faint whiff of herbal scent emanating from her food?

    ¡°Hah, they¡¯ve actually scattered ground and powdered Bedeviled Grass on my food? Such extravagance! I wonder whose grand idea this was to use Bedeviled Grass against a meagre cultivator like me who¡¯s only in the fifth level of Qi Mastery.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled sardonically. Then, she stirred the soup, scooped up a spoonful of it, and swallowed it without any hesitation.

    ¡°The taste is pretty good, isn¡¯t it?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically.

    Just like that, mouthful after mouthful of soup, she finished the entire bowl of soup with ¡°extra ingredients¡± added into it.

    If these people scheming against her intended to use the Bedeviled Grass to stimte the demonic energy in her body, then they are going to have to be sorely disappointed. After all, the energy within her body right now was true energy, not demonic energy.

    The Bedeviled Grass was practically nothing more than a priceless, nourishing herb to her right now.

    With the Bedeviled Grass as a catalyst in her body, it would be a simple thing for her to breakthrough her present bottleneck and soon attain the sixth level of Qi Mastery.

    As soon as she finished up her ¡°herbal soup¡±, Jun Xiaomo adjusted her clothing and unhurriedly stepped out of her room. As she turned the corner of the corridor, she crossed paths with He Zhang just as he was leading a few disciples downstairs as well.

    ¡°Much thanks, martial uncle.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured softly as she walked past He Zhang.

    He Zhang¡¯s ears picked up her soft murmurs, and his heart skipped a beat in horror ¨C Could Jun Xiaomo have realized I¡¯d done something to her food?

    That¡¯s impossible! He Zhang knitted his brows. Even Jun Linxuan might not know the existence of the Bedeviled Grass, much less Jun Xiaomo! I must have heard wrongly...

    Just as He Zhang grew distracted by his own thoughts, Jun Xiaomo brushed past his body and walked on ahead, leaving behind only a small yet quickly diminishing silhouette.

    When He Zhang finally managed to collect himself, he involuntarily squinted his eyes as he gazed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back. A vicious smile crept up the corner of his lips ¨C

    After today, chaos is going to descend upon the Heavenly Peak!

    He had heeded the Du n Head¡¯s suggestion and stirred into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s food a third of the powdered Bedeviled Grass that was provided to him. The remaining two-thirds were for precautionary measures.

    In He Zhang¡¯s eyes, the ten-thousandth chance of failure could never be an eventuality. This was because the Du n Head had assured him that even one-third of the powdered Bedeviled Grass was more than enough to stimte a demonic outburst from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    He Zhang eagerly anticipated the day when the Heavenly Peak would from grace and be nothing more than vermin living on the streets.

 Chapter 177: Repaying Good with Evil â€“ Dai Yue and Her Father

    <h4>Chapter 177: Repaying Good with Evil ¨C Dai Yue and Her Father</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The seventh day of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition was also the final day of the first round of the Lower Category battles. This was also the day when each participating sect would send their strongest disciples within the first eight levels of Qi Mastery. Generally speaking, it was rare to see any participant under the eighth level of Qi Mastery on the final day of thepetition.

    One could only imagine what kind of potential opponents Jun Xiaomo was going to square off against today.

    ¡°Those old fogeys within the Sect must have done this on purpose! Given her cultivation level, martial sister should clearly have made her appearance on the first day of thepetition. But they intentionally arranged it such that martial sister¡¯s only making her appearance on the seventh day. Aren¡¯t they simply bullying martial sister?!¡± Wei Gang waved his fist in the air with righteous indignation. He puffed up his round, chubby cheeks even more than usual, and he looked almost as though he were ready to duke it out with the old fogeys within the Sect.

    This fifteen years-old youth felt wronged on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behalf.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m not even angry about this, so what have you got to be angry about?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she rapped his head lightly.

    ¡°I¡¯m angry for martial sister! I don¡¯t understand how martial sister can be so calm at the present situation.¡± Wei Gang clutched at his head as he cried out with exasperation.

    ¡°What else can I do but remainedposed? Those old fogeys have already set me in their sights since a long time ago. It¡¯s not the first day that Little Lang has known of this as well. Now that they¡¯ve got such a prime opportunity to trip me up, why wouldn¡¯t they use it?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly, but her eyes were filled with stoicism, and there was not a single bit of uneasiness, ¡°Furthermore, I¡¯m free to walk whichever path I desire. If I were truly afraid of their schemes, I wouldn¡¯t have participated in thepetition. But given that I¡¯ve chosen to participate in thepetition, I naturally wouldn¡¯t bother too much with the strength of my opponents.¡±

    ¡°But every other sect¡¯s sending cultivators at the eighth level of Qi Mastery today!¡± Wei Gang emphasized.

    In other words, Wei Gang believed that these opponents were far too strong for Jun Xiaomo, and he had already determined that there was no way his martial sister would be able to win.

    ¡°Who says I¡¯m only participating in thispetition to win it?¡± Jun Xiaomo quipped with a slightly raised chin as she looked quizzically at her little martial brother.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you in it to win it? If not, why would martial sister be participating in thispetition?¡± Perplexed, Wei Gang scratched his head.

    ¡°This...You wouldn¡¯t understand it even if I told you. Alright, don¡¯t fuss over this matter any longer. So what if I lose? I¡¯ll at best lose a few strands of hair. Do you think your martial sister doesn¡¯t know how to retreat if she knows that she won¡¯t be able to defeat her opponent? Furthermore, the longer I stay on in thispetition, the stronger the opponents I¡¯ll meet. In other words, it¡¯s only a matter of time that I encounter these opponents of mine. You can just think of this situation as shortening the arduous process.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head, ¡°Be good. Calm down and enjoy the show.¡±

    Wei Gang realized that this martial sister of his was getting increasingly more enigmatic. But if martial sister Xiaomo says it¡¯s not going to be a problem, then there shouldn¡¯t be any problems at all, right? After all, martial sister still has several talismans within her Interspatial Ring at her disposal.

    Having thought about these things, Wei Gang managed to release some of the tension in his heart and rx his disposition once more.

    Following Jun Linxuan¡¯s lead, Jun Xiaomo and Wei Gang walked together with the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples as they made their way to the peak of the Heavenly Crane Mountain where the arena was located. Compared with the first day, there were now far fewer people staring or ncing over at Jun Xiaomo. After all, this was the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, not a beauty pageant. Everyone was naturally more focused on the battles themselves.

    Besides, ever since the first day of thepetition, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s identity had quickly spread like wildfire from person to person, until practically everyone who had originally been interested in her learnt that she was none other than the ¡°crippled¡± daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. Thus, their interest in Jun Xiaomo naturally dwindled substantially as well.

    After all, those who were good looking but possessed hardly any abilities would never earn the respect of others within the cultivation world.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo was nothing more than a porcin flower vase ¨C she was only good for disy purposes.

    Right now, the second battle for the day had just concluded, and it was time for the third battle tomence. The referee announced, ¡°I invite the participants of the third battles, Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak, Jun Xiaomo, to the stage...¡± At that moment, the chattering in the entire audience quickly subsided, and the entirepetition venue was engulfed withplete silence.

    Jun Xiaomo?! It¡¯s actually Jun Xiaomo?!

    Practically everyone eximed in the same manner in their hearts at the same time. Everyone had even second guessed their auditory abilities as they whipped their heads around towards Dawn Sect¡¯s waiting area.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo stood up from her seat. Her face was awash with a calm disposition. Her garments flowed gracefully, and she unhurriedly strode towards the arena and stepped onto the stage.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were trained on thisdy in red. They were puzzled, bewildered, and some were even inplete disbelief. Just like that, everyone watched on in silence as Jun Xiaomo slowly walked up the short flight of stairs, onto the firm ground of the arena.

    ¡°...and the other participant, Eternal Summit Sect, Ochrecloud Peak, Liang Yulong, please take the stage right now.¡± The referee called out loudly. His voice seemed to have blown away the pindrop silence that had engulfed the audience. Once everyone returned from their stupor, roaring discussions began to burgeon all over, and the entire atmosphere was ignited and stimted to unprecedented levels of excitement.

    ¡°I thought I¡¯d misheard the referee. I would never have expected that this participant would be none other than Dawn Sect¡¯s Jun Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°She must be courting death. What¡¯s a person at the fifth level of Qi Mastery doing participating in such battles, especially today? Shouldn¡¯t she be cooping herself up at home, ying catch-up on her cultivation instead?¡±

    ¡°And her opponent is even someone from the Eternal Summit Sect! There¡¯s always been an intense rivalry between the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect. This doesn¡¯t bode well for her.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s such a pity. She¡¯s such a beauty after all. I just hope that her opponent would be willing to hold back slightly. At least, I hope he doesn¡¯t ruin her appearances.¡±

    ¡°Tch. That¡¯s what you¡¯ve been leading towards all this time? No wonder you¡¯ve been staring in that direction thesest few days ¨C you¡¯ve fallen for her, huh!¡±

    ¡°Who doesn¡¯t like to appreciate a good beauty? Come to think of it, isn¡¯t her father the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster? Why¡¯s her father even entertaining her willfulness and allowing her to participate in thispetition?¡±

    ¡°Who knows? Maybe she simply insisted that she wanted to take the stage? You never know. A single daughter of parents of stature generally have attitude problems.¡±

    ¡°......¡±

    Simrments were sprouting out at each and every other corner of the audience. Yet most people had the same assessment of Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    Acting recklessly and attempting the impossible!

    As Dai Yue listened to the public¡¯s opinion of Jun Xiaomo, a smile involuntarily crept up the corner of her lips. She minced her way over to Rong Ruihan¡¯s side as she softly said, ¡°Brother Rong, take a look for yourself. Everyone thinks that thedy you¡¯re fond of ispletely overestimating her own abilities.¡±

    ¡°Whether she¡¯s overestimating her abilities is something that one can only decide at the end of the battle.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly responded without even ncing back at Dai Yue.

    Dai Yueughed sardonically as she quipped, ¡°Is brother Rong actually saying that Jun Xiaomo who¡¯s only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery is going to defeat our martial brother Liang Yulong who¡¯s already at the eighth level of Qi Mastery? That would be far too incredulous wouldn¡¯t it?!¡±

    Yet Rong had already blocked out Dai Yue¡¯s voice. He could hardly be bothered with her insane and wild speech.

    The indignation in Dai Yue¡¯s heart burgeoned even more. Yet she knew that if she carried on like this, it was only going to be a matter of time before Rong Ruihanpletely blocked her out of his mind.

    Thus, after some moments of deliberation, she took a deep breath and suppressed the roiling emotions in her heart. Then, she forcibly eked out a smile on her face and adopted a different stance as she addressed Rong Ruihan once more, ¡°Actually, I understand. Brother Rong and Jun Xiaomo are close friends, so you don¡¯t like it when I badmouth her. I was too angry earlier, and I know I¡¯ve crossed the line with my words. I sincerely apologize to brother Rong.¡±

    Yet Rong Ruihan continued to ignore her.

    Dai Yue bit down on her lower lip, and a trace of displeasure shed across her eyes as she pleaded, ¡°Brother Rong, please don¡¯t ignore me like that! You know that I like you very much. Because of you, I¡¯ve even asked my martial brother Liang Yulong to give in to Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    Dai Yue had thought about it. Since Rong Ruihan hated the fact that she was hostile towards Jun Xiaomo, then she would change her attitude and pretend to be the magnanimous one instead. After all, there was no loss to her at all.

    Besides, it was a fact that she had earlier asked Liang Yulong to ¡°give in¡± to Jun Xiaomo. As for the real reason why she had done so, she intended to conceal this from Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan finally nced back at Dai Yue with a dispassionate gaze. But the next thing he said made Dai Yue¡¯s smile stiffen uppletely.

    ¡°Xiaomo doesn¡¯t need anyone to give in to her on the arena.¡± Rong Ruihan spoke indifferently, as though he were expounding on a universal truth.

    ¡°You!¡± Dai Yue was incensed by Rong Ruihan¡¯s words, ¡°Does brother Rong really have that much confidence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities?!¡±

    Rong Ruihan calmly replied, ¡°It¡¯s not that I¡¯m confident in her abilities. It¡¯s just that she¡¯s not concerned about winning or losing at all.¡±

    To Jun Xiaomo, thepetition was nothing more than a prime opportunity to spar and hone her abilities. After all, it was a chance for her to encounter opponents far stronger than herself, and suchbat experience would be immensely helpful to her cultivation and the development of herbat skills.

    Rong Ruihan knew this full well, so it had never surprised him when he learnt that Jun Xiaomo had decided to participate in thepetition.

    ¡°Wha--...what?! You must be kidding! If there wasn¡¯t the desire to win, then what¡¯s the point ofpeting in the first ce?¡± Dai Yue¡¯s emotions toiled as she refuted contemptuously, ¡°Ah, I understand. She knows that she doesn¡¯t have the ability to win, so she must have told brother Rong that she¡¯s not particr about winning or losing, right? She¡¯s such a hypocrite!¡±

    ¡°Enough!¡± Rong Ruihan bellowed, ¡°Dai Yue, I¡¯ve said it before. You best stop testing the limits right now.¡±

    The argument between Rong Ruihan and Dai Yue had attracted the attention of Dai Yue¡¯s father, Dai Yanfeng. He walked over and coldly remarked, ¡°What¡¯s going on over here?¡±

    Rong Ruihan had intentionally selected a seat far away from anyone because he had intended to watch thepetition on his own. Yet Dai Yue had somehow wormed her way over to his side. In the circumstances, nobody else had overheard the contents of the earlier dispute between Dai Yue and Rong Ruihan.

    Dai Yue was so maddened that her eyes had reddened as she silently bit down on her lower lips in humiliation.

    Seeing her daughter¡¯s expressions, Dai Yanfeng got the impression that Rong Ruihan had been bullying his own daughter. Thus, his expression grew sullen as he cautioned, ¡°Young man, I¡¯d invited you here as our guest on ount for the fact that you¡¯ve saved my daughter¡¯s life. Don¡¯t make me regret my decision. My daughter is not someone you can bully as and when you want!¡±

    Rong Ruihan stood up and stared Dai Yanfeng straight in the eyes.

    Even though Dai Yanfeng¡¯s aura and disposition was immensely powerful, Rong Ruihan had already grown used to the far stronger aura emanated by old man Chi. Therefore, Dai Yanfeng¡¯s aura hardly fazed him at all.

    Momentster, Rong Ruihan grimaced as heid down the ultimatum, ¡°Very well. Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll take my leave now.¡±

    As he said that, he turned around and began to leave.

    ¡°Brother Rong, where are you going?!¡± Dai Yue grew anxious, and she immediately tugged at Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm as she attempted to cajole him, ¡°Brother Rong, I was wrong. Could you please not leave? I...I won¡¯t oppose Jun Xiaomo ever again, alright?¡±

    I¡¯ll just kill her! Dai Yue furiously added a single sentence in her heart.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t an issue with what you¡¯ve done or what you¡¯ve not done. People who walk different paths are fated to go their separate ways. Farewell.¡±

    Rong Ruihan wrested his arm from Dai Yue¡¯s grasp and took his leave without looking back again. Dai Yue was just about to run after Rong Ruihan when Dai Yanfeng immediately ordered her to stop.

    ¡°Enough! Yue-er,e back!¡± Dai Yanfeng rebuked, ¡°Just take a look at yourself! Everyone¡¯s watching thepetition now. Do you want everyone to turn around and start making fun of the Eternal Summit Sect? The daughter of Yanfeng whining and bawling over a man, hmm?!¡±

    ¡°But, father! Brother Rong, he...¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong, brother Rong. Your heart ispletely obsessed with brother Rong. Let me tell you this ¨C I, Dai Yanfeng, can never ept him as my son-inw!¡± Dai Yanfeng scowled, ¡°What¡¯s so good about him, huh? Let¡¯s not even mention the fact that we don¡¯t know his origins to begin with. This man ispletely mesmerized by Jun Linxuan¡¯s trash of a daughter. How promising and outstanding can a person who¡¯s fallen in love with that piece of trash be? Do you want to stoop to the level of that piece of trash and tussle over a man like this?!¡±

    Dai Yue bit down fiercely on her lower lips and tears filled the rims of her eyes as she grew taciturn.

    ¡°Alright, sit down. Your martial brother Liang has already taken the stage. He¡¯ll take care of that youngdy from Heavenly Peak on your behalf and show her that she¡¯s clearly overestimating her own abilities.¡± Dai Yanfeng patted her daughter¡¯s shoulder as he added, ¡°As for that Rong Ruihan, your father will teach him a good lesson once I uncover his background. I¡¯ll show him that us people from Eternal Summit Sect aren¡¯t to be messed with. Hmph!¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s eyes flickered slightly. She was just about to plead for leniency on his behalf and tell her father that a token punishment would do, but then she capitted. Since his heart had already been stolen by Jun Xiaomo, then what was the point of being courteous to him any longer?

    It¡¯s best if he learns some remorse through father¡¯s punishment. Maybe then he would turn back ande looking for me once more. Dai Yue thought to herself.

    Her heart wandered along that train of thoughts and drifted to the day when Rong Ruihan would have a change of heart and look back to her again. Unfortunately, in her obstinacy, Dai Yue failed to consider the fact that not everyone would react the same way to her father¡¯s threats.

    Most importantly, it hadpletely slipped her mind that she would no longer be here had it not been for Rong Ruihan¡¯s help ¨C she would already have lost her life.

    It can only be said that there were some people whose lives were the very embodiment and manifestation of repaying good with evil.

 Chapter 178: Liang Yulongâ€™s Change in Attitude

    <h4>Chapter 178: Liang Yulong¡¯s Change in Attitude</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After Rong Ruihan left the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area, he did not immediately leave thepetition grounds. Instead, he turned around, entered the Dawn Sect¡¯s designated seating area and located the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    ¡°Brother Wei, do you mind if I sit here?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s steady and firm voice boomed out above Wei Gang¡¯s head. There happened to be an empty seat right beside Wei Gang.

    ¡°Eh?! Brother Rong, what are you doing here?¡± Wei Gang only just noticed the presence of another person beside him, ¡°Please take a seat! This was originally where martial sister Xiaomo would be seated, but I think she had nned to return straight to the inn after her battle.¡±

    Rong Ruihan smiled, ¡°Is that so? Thank you very much.¡±

    Wei Gang waved his hands to show that he did not mind it at all, ¡°No need for thanks. I¡¯ve said it before, martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s friend is also my friend!¡±

    A faint smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips, and he no longer stood on ceremony as he took his seat.

    Knowing that Jun Xiaomo had just been sitting here made a strangely pleasant sensation swell from within the depths of his heart. Rong Ruihan ignored this feeling and looked back towards the stage. At this moment, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciple had also finally made his way to the stage.

    Liang Yulong stood at the stage with a grimace as he gazed at Jun Xiaomo with a deste expression on his face.

    That¡¯s right, deste. His talent for cultivation couldn¡¯t be considered high, so he had only managed to attain the eighth level of Qi Mastery in his twenties. Notwithstanding that, he was incredibly hardworking ¨C far more than any of his other fellow martial brothers who enjoyed boosting their cultivation levels using pills and medicine. Liang Yulong¡¯s cultivation was all of his own hard work and efforts. In other words, he was a man of substance.

    Thispetition had been an opportunity of a lifetime. He knew that if he could ce top three in the Lower Category battles, then regardless of hisck of talent, he might very possibly earn the attention and favour of Greater Sects and finally be able to leave the Eternal Summit Sect behind.

    That said, Fate enjoys ying cruel tricks on people ¨C it knew that he had worked hard, but it nevertheless made sure to force him into such a despondent predicament.

    If he lost to this youngdy at only the fifth level of Qi Mastery, then there was no doubt that he would be one of the greatestughingstocks in the history of the cultivation world. At that time, would there still be any Greater Sect who would be willing to ept him?

    On the other hand, if he refused to submit to Jun Xiaomo, he knew that Dai Yue possessed countless ways of tormenting him, and she would almost certainly do her utmost to put him through the harshest of punishments.

    It¡¯s just my dumb luck that Dai Yue had to have such a ¡°good father¡±.Liang Yulong mocked himself in his heart. Worst of all, Dai Yanfeng was also his master, and there was simply no way he could reasonably refuse Dai Yue¡¯s request here.

    Forget it. Haven¡¯t all these things been decided a long time ago? He knew that no amount of hatred and indignation would be able to change his reality right now.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart sank, he clenched his fist, and a look of humiliation swelled up from the depths of his pupils.

    Jun Xiaomo stood in front of Liang Yulong as she furrowed her brows ¨C Is this an illusion? Why do I get the feeling that his emotions seem to be in turmoil?

    Just then, the referee stood up, rang the bell beside him and dered, ¡°I hereby dere that this battle has officially be-...¡±

    ¡°Referee.¡± Liang Yulong suddenly cut off the referee¡¯s deration. He no longer faced Jun Xiaomo. Instead, he had turned straight towards the referee and bowed politely as he announced, ¡°I¡¯m abandoning thispetition. I admit defeat.¡±

    Liang Yulong¡¯s voice was monotonous and emotionless, but it had been picked up by the Voice Amplification Array and transmitted to the rest of the audience. Within moments, the entire audience was filled with aplete silence.

    Everyone stared at Liang Yulong with widened eyes and gaping mouths inplete disbelief on what they had just heard.

    Are the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect trying to outdo each other in terms of madness? First, Jun Xiaomo had clearly overestimated her abilities and decided to make her appearance only on the seventh day. Then, Liang Yulong decided to abandon this once-in-a-lifetime advantageous situation and admit defeat?

    What kind of madness was this? Has everyone gone mad?

    Momentster, an infuriated voice bellowed out from the audience, ¡°Liang Yulong, what are you doing?! Who told you to give up?!¡±

    This voice had been infused with the immense aura of its owner¡¯s cultivation as it travelled towards the arena, but the aura was instantly blocked off and filtered out by the sequestering formation arrays on the arena.

    There was no need to turn around to identify the owner of this voice. Liang Yulong knew it full well ¨C apart from Dai Yanfeng, there was nobody else who would be yelling at him in the circumstances.

    But what else can I do? Liang Yulong grimaced as he derided himself again. Dai Yanfeng¡¯s daughter, Dai Yue had asked him to pretend to lose against a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery just so that she could personally deal with Jun Xiaomo in the next battle.

    Liang Yulong was at the eighth level of Qi Mastery, while Jun Xiaomo was at the fifth level of Qi Mastery. How was he going to even begin ¡°pretending¡± in this regard? Could he pretend to slip and fall, and let Jun Xiaomo benefit from his ¡°clumsiness¡±?

    No matter how one thinks about it, this was apletely ridiculous request!

    Thus, the more Liang Yulong thought about it, the more he felt that it might be better to lose in a straightforward manner. As to the reason for his admission of defeat, he was satisfied leaving the audience guessing for themselves.

    Dai Yanfeng noticed that his disciple hadpletely ignored him, and the fury in his heart burgeoned. Thus, he bellowed at the stage once more, ¡°Liang Yulong, if you don¡¯t withdraw your admission of defeat right now, I¡¯m going to send you straight to the Penal Hall once you¡¯re back from the arena!¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t much better either. She had indeed instructed Liang Yulong to intentionally lose to Jun Xiaomo, but certainly not in such an obvious manner.

    Furthermore, she had personally instructed him to severely beat up Jun Xiaomo before he ¡°lost¡±.

    What¡¯s going on?! If he just admits defeat like this, he¡¯s almost sure to get summoned to the Penal Hall to answer to the Sect Elders. What if Liang Yulong implicates me? Will I be punished as well? Father is only the Grand Elder of the Sect, and even he might not be able to do much to protect me when that timees.

    Thus, Dai Yue began to curse and swear at Liang Yulong in her heart.

    On the other side, where the Dawn Sect¡¯s designated seating area was, He Zhang¡¯s face was incredibly ashen as well. After all, he hadced Jun Xiaomo¡¯s food with one-third of the powdered Bedeviled Grass. Thest thing he wanted to see was for Jun Xiaomo to win her opponent without having to even lift a finger and return from the battlepletely unscathed.

    Having made a few more calctions, He Zhang also realized that the effects of the powdered substance was soon to manifest as well. But if the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciple suddenly decided to forfeit the battle, then what was the point of He Zhang¡¯s earlier preparations? The use of the Bedeviled Grass would have beenpletely wasted!

    Thus, He Zhang¡¯s heart roiled with both anxiety and infuriation. In fact, he was fiercely trying to resist the urge to run up to the arena and personally activating the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    It was not umon to hear of participants forfeiting their battles. The referees would never probe into the reason for forfeiting their battles either. Thus, even though Liang Yulong¡¯s abandonment of the incredibly advantageous situation to him was highly suspicious, they would nevertheless respect Liang Yulong¡¯s decision and refrain from interfering from these matters.

    ¡°Liang Yulong, are you certain? Do you choose to forfeit the battle and consequently admit defeat to your opponent, Jun Xiaomo?¡± The referee calmly confirmed Liang Yulong¡¯s decision.

    ¡°I confirm.¡±

    ¡°I object.¡±

    Just when Liang Yulong confirmed his decision, Jun Xiaomo also announced her objection to his forfeiture.

    Liang Yulong¡¯s eyes widened as he stared at Jun Xiaomo in disbelief.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly at him as she added, ¡°I refuse to ept your admission of defeat. I hope to have a good battle with you on the arena today.¡±

    Liang Yulong furrowed his brows and couldn¡¯t help but exim, ¡°Are you out of your mind?¡±

    If she were not out of her mind, why did she refuse to ept such a fortuitous turn of events for herself and insist on battling? How could a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery possibly defeat a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Mastery?

    Even the audience thought that Jun Xiaomo waspletely out of her mind at this moment.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly and exined, ¡°I¡¯m not out of my mind. I simply don¡¯t care too much about things like winning or losing. I just want to let loose and thoroughly enjoy the process of battle. Will you let me have this opportunity?¡±

    Liang Yulong¡¯s eyes widened even more. This was the first time he had heard someone unconcerned about winning or losing, and more concerned about the process.

    However, faced with that pristine clear obsidian-ck pupils staring earnestly into his eyes, Liang Yulong could tell that what she was saying was from the bottom of her heart.

    She indeed desired nothing more than to immerse herself in the joy of battle in an unrestrained manner.

    Such a strange person. This was Liang Yulong¡¯s assessment of Jun Xiaomo. Yet he was somehow also slightly moved by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.

    Liang Yulong¡¯s fists tightened momentarily and loosened again. Then, he clenched his fists once more and quivered slightly.

    It was as though he were making an incredibly difficult decision. He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. Finally, when his eyes opened once more, there was a firm sense of resolve swelling from the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s put winning and losing aside and thoroughly enjoy this battle between ourselves.¡±

    Liang Yulong knew that people like Jun Xiaomo would never admit defeat so easily, nor would they readily ept his forfeiture and im an unearned victory for themselves.

    Therefore, he sincerely epted his opponent¡¯s decision, steeled his resolve and decided to face his opponent seriously.

    As for Dai Yue? Who cares! Dai Yanfeng had already made up his mind to send me to the Penal Hall after all.

    Liang Yulong¡¯s heart no longer bore any respect for his master, Dai Yanfeng.

    Jun Xiaomo was delighted. She could now see that Liang Yulong¡¯s battle intent had once again been ignited.

    She got the feeling that Liang Yulong¡¯s personality was not too bad. Furthermore, she knew that he had been struggling with the decision to admit defeat, so there were clearly external factors ying on his mind there. Thus, she had earlier decided to give him a nudge in the right direction and help him with his decision.

    Besides that, it was a fact that she wished to thoroughly enjoy this battle ¨C she wanted to assess for herself what herbat abilities were like without the aid of her talismans and formation arrays.

    As to whether she won or loss, she truly couldn¡¯t care less about these things. That said, winning was far better than losing. At the very least, a win would serve to silence the pping mouths of the gossip mongers around!

    The referee heard the conversation between Liang Yulong and Jun Xiaomo. Therefore, having confirmed the participants¡¯ decisions to carry on with the battle once more, the referee dered that the battle would begin in five minutes.

    The reason for this dy was so that the participants could take the time to adjust their emotions and disposition once more beforemencing the battle.

    Having made his decision, Liang Yulong felt as though the heavy stone that was weighing down his heart had finally been released.

    There was still a little bit of time before the battle. Liang Yulong¡¯s gazended on his opponent, and he noticed that Jun Xiaomo perpetually wore a faint smile on her face.

    Jun Xiaomo did not lock eyes with him. Instead, she took out a fiery-red whip and began to toy with it. Her calm andposed disposition was imensurate with the fact that she was soon to take the stage for a battle. Rather, it looked as thought she were on her way to an excursion or the like.

    He was different from other male cultivators. Liang Yulong had never truly noticed Jun Xiaomo or sized her up prior to this. Even though he had heard his martial brothers¡¯ discreet discussions and exmations about how beautiful and attractive Jun Xiaomo was, he had never thought to verify these things for himself.

    To him, Jun Xiaomo simply carried twobels with her ¨C the first was ¡°fifth level of Qi Mastery¡±, while the other was ¡°Dawn Sect disciple¡±.

    With the confluence of these twobels, Liang Yulong¡¯s impression was that thisdy was not a strong opponent.

    Yet having interacted with Jun Xiaomo and sized her up in close proximity, he truly couldn¡¯t help but find that this youngdy was indeed stunning and breathtaking.

    This was not merely in terms of her looks. This also included her disposition. Her striking red garments clothed here with the appearance of an extravagant beauty, and at the same time made her look cold and distant. It was as though he were looking at an attention-grabbing disy of a dazzling inferno with leaping mes dancing in front of his eyes, yet that intense heat meant that no one could step within a radius of three meters of it.

    There was even the way that Jun Xiaomo toyed with the whip in her hands. It gave rise to an indescribable sensation in the depths of people¡¯s hearts that made them wish they were that whip in her hand so that they could experience the sensation when Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pale and pristine fingers wrapped around them.

    Liang Yulong closed his eyes and shifted his attention away from Jun Xiaomo.

    Ding! Just then, the sound of a bell rang out, and the referee¡¯s voice resounded from some distance away ¨C

    ¡°I hereby announce that the third battle on the seventh day of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition begins now!¡±

    Liang Yulong ferociously opened his eyes once more, and this time, the only expression remaining in the depths of his eyes was a raging battle intent.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly, brandished her whip andshed it out firmly on the ground nearby.

    Liang Yulong struck first, but Jun Xiaomo rapidly blocked his blow with her whip.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. On ount for the fact that you¡¯ve helped me earlier, I won¡¯t go too hard on you.¡± Liang Yulongmunicated discreetly with Jun Xiaomo in the moment that they shed.

    He felt that with his cultivation at the eighth level of Qi Mastery, this was going to be nothing more than a one-sided battle. Therefore, he decided to hold back slightly as he locked inbat with Jun Xiaomo.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows quizzically ¨C Does this guy intend to go easy on me?

    The smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face widened, and her gaze grew far more incisive than it had been moments ago.

    She knew that she had to let her opponent experience for himself the consequences of beingcent.

 Chapter 179: The Combat Exigency

    <h4>Chapter 179: The Combat Exigency</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo increased the pressure of her aura, Liang Yulong immediately felt goosebumps on his skin. This was an intuitive reaction when faced with a dangerous situation. However, Liang Yulong simply brushed it off.

    Is this possible? How could a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery possibly threaten me when I¡¯m at the eighth level of Qi Mastery?

    However, Liang Yulong very quickly dispelled these thoughts as soon as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whipshed out at the ice shield that he had set up. This ice shield was congealed with half of the strength he would normally have used, but Jun Xiaomo had still managed to shatter it into pieces with just one strike! If not for the fact that he had quickly avoided her attack, thatsh of her whip might very well have struck him squarely on his body!

    Such strength! Is Jun Xiaomo also a body cultivator? But given her thin arms and slender legs, it doesn¡¯t seem like she had trained her body strength that much. Otherwise, she would already be bulging with muscles, right?

    A strange image of Jun Xiaomo with bulging muscles surfaced in his mind, and Liang Yulong immediately shuddered at the thought. He immediately shrugged off these thoughts and focused his mind on the battle at hand.

    A smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. Of course she was not a body cultivator! She had simply focused a portion of her true energy to her arms earlier when she struck out at the ice shield.

    This was a trick that Jun Xiaomo had inadvertently discovered from her battles in her previous life. Back then, she noticed that when she forced her demonic energy towards her limbs, she would momentarily experience a surge in the explosiveness and flexibility in her movement. But at the same time, doing so would result in amensurate dip in the strength of her spells and her defenses. Therefore, this trick was like a double-edged sword that had to be used at the right time. Using it recklessly could potentially result in disastrous consequences.

    Jun Xiaomo had made use of this trick to jolt Liang Yulong back to his senses so that he would shed hiscency and treat this battle seriously.

    And Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tactics proved to be effective. Liang Yulong tensed up, and he was now far more focused than he had been since the start of this battle.

    ¡°Frostedge de!¡±

    Instantly, a long ribbon made of ice congealed in the palm of Liang Yulong¡¯s hand. This ribbon had looped itself around a blunt weight that shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo as it attempted to wrap itself around her. Liang Yulong¡¯s intentions were to restrain her.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes. She noticed that Liang Yulong¡¯s techniques was hardly filled with any offensive or destructive powers, and she could also tell that his sole intention here was to restrain her movements.

    If Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely restrained and thus lost all ability to move, then Liang Yulong would equally be dered as the winner of this battle.

    But it was just as Rong Ruihan had said. Jun Xiaomo had never needed anyone to go easy on her, especially on the battlefield.

    ¡°Brother Liang, seems like you still haven¡¯t learnt your lesson.¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly increased the explosiveness in her limbs once more. Within the blink of an eye, she disappeared from where she was, and appeared behind Liang Yulong¡¯s back. Liang Yulong¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety. Yet before he could do anything, he felt an immense pain spreading from his back ¨C he had just been struck with a vicioussh from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip.

    Jun Xiaomo had not held back her strength with this whish. As a result, arge wound appeared on Liang Yulong¡¯s back. There were even traces of burn marks on it.

    Jun Xiaomo possessed a fire-based spiritual root. Even though her weapon was a simple whip that couldmonly be found on the marketce, she had nevertheless imbued her attacks with the element of fire. Thus, the strength of her attacks was far higher than what Liang Yulong had expected.

    ¡°Brother Liang, if you still don¡¯t begin to treat this fight seriously, I may very well force you down the stage.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she quipped.

    What arrogance! How can you say that I¡¯m not treating this seriously? I¡¯m just taking into ount the fact that you¡¯re only in the fifth level of Qi Mastery. I don¡¯t want to be seen to be bullying you given that my cultivation is at the eighth level of Qi Mastery!

    Liang Yulong grew slightly maddened by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocations, and he began to unleash a much stronger attack ¨C ¡°Majestic Hoarfrost Dance!¡±

    Within moments, countless ice des and frost des congealed in the air and began to sweep towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°It¡¯s finally getting interesting.¡± Jun Xiaomo licked her lips, and her thirst for battle was quickly ignited as well.

    The entire audience watched with bated breaths as the battle between Jun Xiaomo and Liang Yulong unfolded.

    Everyone had expected this battle to go without a hitch for Liang Yulong and end within moments. Yet after three full incense sticks of time, it was still as difficult as ever to determine who held the upper hand in this battle. Not only that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks seemed to be growing increasingly aggressive and incisive, while the injuries on Liang Yulong¡¯s body only seemed to be increasing rapidly.

    ¡°Damn! What the hell is Liang Yulong doing? Can¡¯t he even defeat a cultivator at the measly fifth level of Qi Mastery?!¡± One of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples cried out with indignation.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had earlier already been displeased by the fact that Liang Yulong attempted to admit defeat without a fight. Now that Liang Yulong was beaten to such a tragic state by a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, the disciples even began to feel as though their pride and reputation as members of the Eternal Summit Sect was being trampled upon.

    It would be far too shameful if Liang Yulong truly lost to Jun Xiaomo at the end.

    Yet none of the other sects felt the same kind of indignation that the Eternal Summit Sect felt right now. In fact, even though the manner in which the battle unfolded had been outside their expectations, they still found it rather enjoyable to watch.

    As the Chinese proverb goes, in the fight between the snipe and the m, the fisherman gets the best of it. In the same fashion, when tworge sects lock heads against each other, it was practically something to be celebrated by all the smaller sects around.

    ¡°Hehe, could it be that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciple has fallen for the Dawn Sect¡¯s beauty, and so he¡¯s not willing to injure her?¡± A disciple in the audience smirked as he suggested.

    ¡°What you¡¯re saying...I think there¡¯s that possibility. Just look at that unwilling gaze on his face. If I were the one facing her on the arena, I wouldn¡¯t be willing to hurt her either...¡± Hispanion chuckledsciviously as he added, ¡°I wonder whether if she would be equally charming and elegant in bed as well...¡±

    The two disciples began tough and joke in a crude and vulgar manner. All of a sudden, two ck shadows flickered across quickly and shot straight into their throats, and they reflexively swallowed the ck object with a gulp.

    ¡°What...what was that?¡±

    ¡°No...no idea.¡±

    They looked at each other in dread as they fearfully gagged in the hope that they could vomit out the substance that they had just swallowed.

    Momentster, one of the two disciples began to grab his mouth as he cried out, ¡°Ahh, my...my tongue...ahh!¡± The other disciple was in an even worse condition, and he could not even say a single word. His entire tongue had corroded from its roots, and his mouth was now filled with copious amounts of his own blood. It was a bloodcurdling sight.

    This incident created a small ripple in the audience around the two disciples, but most of the other audience members continued to fixate their attention on the battle that was unfolding on the arena.

    Rong Ruihan nced dispassionately at the two bbering buffoons, before turning his attention back to the battle arena with a much better disposition than before.

    Wei Gang waspletely unaware of what had just happened on the side. His was watching the battle with an intense gaze as he eximed aloud, ¡°I never knew that martial sister¡¯s abilities were so incredible! I thought that she could only defeat me.¡±

    A discreet smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips as he chimed in as well, ¡°Her abilities have always been incredible.¡±

    Wei Gang nodded nkly. It was unclear whether he had even registered what Rong Ruihan had said.

    On the other side of the Dawn Sect¡¯s seating area, He Zhang gazed coldly at the battle on the arena like a vicious, poisonous snake that was poised to strike at any moment.

    He was waiting expectantly for the powdered substance in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body to take effect.

    If Jun Xiaomo experienced a demonic outburst right before the eyes of the entire audience today, there would be absolutely nothing that Jun Linxuan could do to absolve himself of the matter.

    At that time, all he needed to do would be to give Jun Linxuan a simple nudge off the cliff, and the entire world of spiritual cultivators would undoubtedly spurn and march against Jun Linxuan and the Heavenly Peak.

    That said, three full incense sticks of time had passed, and the powdered substance should have taken effect by now. Why were there no signs or symptoms showing up on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body?

    Could the powdered substance be ineffective? Or did I not put enough into her food? Or could it be that there¡¯s simply no demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body?

    Countless possibilities began to surface to He Zhang¡¯s mind, but each and every one was rejected by his logical processes.

    He trusted in his own assessment. It was an incontrovertible fact that he had previously already detected the presence of demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Furthermore, the Du n Head hated Jun Linxuan and his Peak to the core, so there was no way he would have handed fake or ineffective powdered Bedeviled Grass over to He Zhang.

    Let¡¯s wait a while longer, then. He Zhang thought to himself. His fingers tapped impatiently on the rims of his teacup as he continued to gaze at Jun Xiaomo intently.

    On the arena, Liang Yulong tensed himself up as heunched wave after wave of attacks at Jun Xiaomo, but Jun Xiaomo continued to nimbly avoid all of these attacks.

    Perhaps no one could guess the state of his mind right now, but the sweat beading up on his forehead and his tightly knit brows gave an insight into what he was thinking.

    Distress, anxiety, and bewilderment.

    He was truly befuddled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fearsome aura and her incrediblebat abilities. He had beencent when he first squared off against Jun Xiaomo in this battle. But as time wore on, he began to realize the folly of such thoughts, and he was fully invested in the fight right now.

    Unfortunately, despite giving his all, this battle was far more difficult than he had imagined. Jun Xiaomo behaved like a slippery eel that dodged left and right and darted nimbly about, and practically all of his attacks hadpletely missed.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo wouldsh out at him with her whip while she was avoiding his attacks. This issue was furtherpounded by the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s angles of attack were incredibly crafty and incisive, and he had no way of avoiding her attacks at all.

    Yet to the external observer, Liang Yulong looked as though he were clumsily running into each and every attack released by Jun Xiaomo. It was no wonder that several people in the audience even began to suspect whether Liang Yulong was intentionally losing to Jun Xiaomo. The truth of the matter was that he was not. But who was going to believe him?

    Liang Yulong was truly distressed.

    That said, some of the cultivators who possessed a wealth ofbat experience could see for themselves the true reason why Liang Yulong was being beaten to a pulp. After all, the experienced knew best.

    ¡°This youngdy is amazing. Her grasp ofbat is simply ster, and every single judgment that she has made has been spot on. No wonder that young man who¡¯s three levels higher in terms of cultivation level can¡¯t even do a single thing to her.¡± One of the sect elders from a Greater Sect stroked his beard with interest as he eximed.

    ¡°This kind ofbat intuition can only be developed after years ofbat experience. I wonder what that youngdy has been through to have developed it to such an extent.¡± Another Greater Sect¡¯s sect elder beside chimed in, tacitly approving of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities.

    ¡°It¡¯s only a pity that she¡¯s only in the fifth level of Qi Mastery, otherwise we could even consider epting her into our sect.¡± The first sect elder signed in resignation.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. Even though herbat intuition is remarkable, her cultivation level is still a ring shoring. It¡¯s already pretty good that she¡¯s been able to hold her own until now and leave everyone wondering who the winner might be. But I feel that it¡¯s going to take quite a lot more if this youngdy wishes to win this battle. Perhaps it¡¯s not even possible for her.¡± The second sect elder offered his opinion.

    Stroking his beard, the first sect elder paused for a moment and squinted at the arena. Momentster, he enigmatically remarked, ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see. Perhaps that youngdy will truly surprise us.¡±

    Just like what the two sect elders pointed out, as much as Liang Yulong found himself helpless against Jun Xiaomo, Jun Xiaomo was equally also unable to pull ahead.

    After all, there were three qualitative levels between her fifth level of Qi Mastery and Liang Yulong¡¯s eighth level of Qi Mastery. There were some slightly stronger abilities that she was still unable to use for now, given her cultivation level.

    Thus, she could only continue to build up the number of small injuries that she had inflicted on Liang Yulong¡¯s body. Even though they looked severe, the truth of the matter was that these injuries did nothing more than scratch the surface. On the other hand, Liang Yulong¡¯s attacks continued to miss because of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s quick reflexes and nimble moves. The natural result of this was that the battle seemed to havee to aplete stale mate.

    Jun Xiaomo was well aware that if things continued at status quo, the true energy within her body would soon be depleted, and she would no longer have any means of avoiding Liang Yulong¡¯s attacks.

    Although the conversion rate from true energy to spiritual energy meant that she had ess to essentially twice the amount of true energy that was currently stored in her body, the total amount of spiritual energy was still far less than the amount of spiritual energy that Liang Yulong possessed at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. At the very least, she knew that if things went on as it did, she would deplete her store of spiritual energy before Liang Yulong did.

    It was for this reason that Jun Xiaomo had refrained from using any moves that expended immense amounts of spiritual energy.

    She was biding her time for the right opportunity.

    Just then, her heart suddenly pumped ferociously, and a familiar painful sensation began to spread from her Dantian and meridians.

    It can¡¯t be! Why does it feel like I¡¯m about to breakthrough to the next level? Could it really havee so soon?!

    Then, her thoughts drifted to the breakfast with ¡°extra ingredients¡± that she had consumed earlier. A wave of realization dawned upon her, and she grimaced to herself ¨C she truly didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at the situation right now.

    Could this be considered seeding by a lucky stroke?

    But no matter how one looked at it, breaking through duringbat was nothing to celebrate about...

 Chapter 180: A Difficult Victory

    <h4>Chapter 180: A Difficult Victory</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Breaking through in the midst ofbat was one of a cultivator¡¯s greatest fears. In rare and fortunate cases, the cultivator would barely seed in breaking through. That said, the consequences were generally grievous injuries to say the least. Those who were less fortunate would even find their cultivation crippled, or worse, even implode and die.

    To put things into better perspective, the odds of a ¡°rare and fortunate¡± case was no more than one in ten thousand. In other words, out of ten thousand cultivators who broke through in the midst ofbat, only one would sessfully breakthrough there and then,pletely unscathed. Everyone else would invariably find themselves suffering from injuries to different extents.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation was still fairly low, and she had slightly higher odds of sessfully breaking through without a hitch. But even then, the odds of something slightly higher than ten-thousandth was still far too low.

    Bear with it. Whether I win or lose, I¡¯ll finish this battle before I breakthrough. Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and told herself.

    That said, suppressing the changes to one¡¯s Dantian and meridians was an incredibly painful and even unbearable process. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head began to spin, and her speed and ability to avoid Liang Yulong¡¯s attacks naturally dwindled substantially.

    Her thoughts began to drift to thatst time she battled together with Ye Xiuwen. At that time, Ye Xiuwen had also been fervently suppressing the urge to breakthrough his cultivation bottleneck even though he was on the brink of ascending to his Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    In her stupor, the scene of Ye Xiuwen falling down the crevice reyed in her mind once more ¨C

    ¡°Martial brother!¡± Jun Xiaomo yelled out in her dibobtion. Just then, a powerful shockwave filled with innumerable frost des swept ferociously towards her body and smashed straight into it. Jun Xiaomo was sent flying back on the arena and she mmed hard on the ground.

    ¡°Pfft--!¡± Jun Xiaomo spat out arge mouthful of fresh blood. The pain from her fresh wounds were far more excruciating than the pain swelling from within the depths of her body, Dantian and meridians. Thus, she was forcibly pulled back from her state of stupor, and she returned to her senses once more.

    What am I doing?! I¡¯m still in a fight right now!

    Just then, in the Dawn Sect¡¯s seating area, Liu Qingmei stood up anxiously and cried out, ¡°Mo-Mo!¡± Moments ago, Wei Gang had also been bouncing up and down excitedly at his seat as he cheered his martial sister on. Yet he froze uppletely when he saw this scene unfold before his eyes. Rong Ruihan clenched his fists tightly, while the veins on his forehead bulged slightly, reflecting the tensed state of his heart...

    Among all these people, the only person who watched this sight with glee was He Zhang. He had mistaken Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition to be the manifestation of the Bedeviled Grass within her body. He waspletely unaware of the fact that she was in the process of breaking through.

    He eagerly and expectantly watched Jun Xiaomo, and his lips curled up with a faint yet unmistakably victorious smile.

    On the arena, Liang Yulong was momentarily taken aback after he sent Jun Xiaomo flying. He had just sensed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anomalous state and realized that she had been in a stupor. Otherwise, there would be no way his attack would have struck her so easily.

    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Liang Yulong walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side as he asked her.

    He chose not to press the attack at this moment. After all, he knew that there was something wrong with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition right now, and he couldn¡¯t find it within himself to take advantage of his opponent¡¯s predicament for the sake of victory.

    Yet Dai Yanfeng had seen all this, and he once again knitted his brows together as he bellowed, ¡°Liang Yulong, what are you doing? Is this really the time to behave like a gentleman?!¡±

    Liang Yulong heard Dai Yanfeng¡¯sint, but he chose to ignore Dai Yanfengpletely.

    Jun Xiaomo wiped off a slither of blood from the corner of her lips before she smiled faintly and replied, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s continue.¡±

    ¡°You...¡± Liang Yulong was about to advise Jun Xiaomo not to force the issue, but Jun Xiaomo immediately shook her head and interjected, ¡°Brother Liang, we¡¯repeting now, not sparring. You should never have stopped earlier. That was the best opportunity for you to force me off the stage and im victory. But now that you¡¯ve given me the opportunity to continue with thepetition, I¡¯m not going to give in so easily.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she painstakingly mbered back up to her feet and squared off against Liang Yulong once more. Her breathing had returned to her earlier calm andposed state, and her eyes were once again filled with determination.

    She would not give in until the veryst card in her hand had been yed.

    A trace of bewilderment flickered across the depths of his eyes, and undting ripples of emotions spread out from his heart.

    He smiled, ¡°Alright.¡±

    As he said that, he immediatelyunched another attack straight at Jun Xiaomo without giving her the opportunity to react. But given that Jun Xiaomo had already returned to her senses, she managed to avoid the attack without a hitch.

    From then on, Liang Yulong attacked Jun Xiaomo without letting up a single bit, even though he was aware of the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s severe injuries. He knew that the best way to show respect to an opponent like Jun Xiaomo was if he fought seriously and with his full strength.

    She did not care about winning or losing, and she did not need anyone going easy on her either.

    Just like that, the fight between Jun Xiaomo and Liang Yulong escted to a climax. Each of them released powerful attacks after attacks, ostensibly without regard to their own spiritual energy consumption. The audience watched with rapt attention. It was incredible; it was enthralling.

    The audience had initially thought that this fight was going to be a simple walkover given the disparity in their cultivation levels. Yet not only had Jun Xiaomo held out for such a long time, she had even forced Liang Yulong to use the full plethora of his ice spells against her. One after the other, a splendid disy of dazzling spells exploded on the arena, yet the seemingly disadvantaged Jun Xiaomo somehow managed to avoid most, if not all of these spells. On the other hand, her fiery-red whip seemed to have a life of its own under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s adept control. As her whipshed out time after time in an incisive fashion, her clothes swished about behind her gracefully as though it were the dance of a flickering me.

    Simply put, this was a riveting battle.

    Then, just as everyone was about to get themselvesfortable for a long-drawn battle, both parties on the arena suddenly paused in their steps.

    It was as though time hade to aplete standstill on the arena for that very moment. Liang Yulong¡¯s frost arrow had prated Jun Xiaomo¡¯s left shoulder, but Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip had wrapped itself tightly around Liang Yulong¡¯s neck.

    Fresh blood began to pour from the wound in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, but a smile crept up the corner of her lips, and her eyes gleamed with a bright sparkle.

    ¡°I¡¯ve won.¡± Jun Xiaomo panted lightly as she dered.

    Liang Yulong bitterly chuckled as he responded helplessly, ¡°That¡¯s right. This is your win.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was now in a position to take Liang Yulong¡¯s head at any moment, and there was nothing that he could do about it. Therefore, the victor of this battle was naturally Jun Xiaomo.

    He had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be so reckless to allow her left shoulder to sustain an injury in order to create an opportunity to deal a fatal blow to her enemy.

    If his frost arrow had changed its trajectory by just that little bit more, it would not have prated Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder ¨C it would have prated her heart.

    Of course, the reason why the frost arrow failed to strike her heart could very well be a result of Jun Xiaomo dodging that blow at the veryst moment as well. Therefore, Liang Yulong was fully convinced of his loss ¨C even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation was not high, her wealth ofbat experience was something that more than made up for her deficiency in cultivation level.

    The only question left on his mind was where Jun Xiaomo had managed to glean this wealth ofbat experience.

    Liang Yulong lowered his stance and rxed his body as he slowly raised both hands into the ¡°surrender¡± posture. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo also loosened her whip around his neck.

    The panel of referees on the side huddled together for a discussion. Momentster, the main referee stood up and dered, ¡°I hereby announce that the victor of the third battle on the seventh day of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition is...Dawn Sect¡¯s Jun Xiaomo!¡±

    As soon as the referee announced the winner, the entire audience exploded into an uproarious celebration and apuse. Apart from those from the Heavenly Peak, several other people from other sects stood up to give Jun Xiaomo their sincerest round of apuse to congratte her as well. At this moment, everyone had forgotten the fact that they had once called Jun Xiaomo a ¡°piece of trash¡±. After all, as a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery, Jun Xiaomo had managed to ovee therge disparity in cultivation levels and defeat Liang Yulong, a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. There was no better testament to her hard work and her true abilities.

    On the other hand, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s response was theplete converse of everyone else¡¯s response. The Eternal Summit Sect remained seated in the audience in aplete daze as they stared at the arena with disbelief. No one had expected such a result at all.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciple Liang Yulong has lost? How is this possible?! He¡¯s lost to a piece of trash at the fifth level of Qi Mastery...

    Practically everyone in the Eternal Summit Sect thought the same way. The present situation was incredibly surreal ¨C it almost felt like a dream.

    Yet the most infuriated of them all was naturally Dai Yanfeng. He was the first one to recover from his stupor, and he immediately leapt to his feet in rage as he berated Liang Yulong, ¡°Rubbish! You¡¯re a piece of trash! You can¡¯t even defeat a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery. You¡¯re a disgrace to your sect and your masters!¡±

    Dai Yue was still rather stupefied by the sudden and unexpected conclusion of the battle. It was only when she heard her father berating Liang Yulong that she slowly came to her senses as well.

    As she looked at the spirited Jun Xiaomo basking in the glory of her victory and the uproarious apuse from the audience, Dai Yue instantly clenched her fists in fury.

    ¡°This can¡¯t be right. Jun Xiaomo can¡¯t be so strong. Brother Liang must have gone easy on her. That must have been the case!¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s gaze grew cold and hazy, as though ayer of frost had grown over it. She gnashed her teeth and eximed with indignation, ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo! You¡¯re not going to be so fortunate in the nextpetition!¡±

    Up on the arena, Liang Yulong cidly nced back at the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area. As expected, he noticed that Dai Yanfeng, his master, had already leapt to his feet in fury.

    A discreetly bitter yet contemptuous smile crept up the corner of his lips, before he shifted his attention away from them.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo walked up to Liang Yulong and stretched out her right hand, ¡°Brother Liang, thank you for the respect you¡¯ve shown me on the arena. I sincerely appreciate it.¡±

    Faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s glowing smile, Liang Yulong involuntarily eximed in his heart ¨C No wonder this youngdy is so well liked among the people of the Heavenly Peak. It seems like it¡¯s not just due to the fact that her father is the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster.

    She truly had her own charms and intriguing personality. At the very least, there was no reason for Liang Yulong to feel upset losing to Jun Xiaomo in this battle at all.

    ¡°I also thank you for allowing me to experience such a thrilling battle.¡± Liang Yulong stretched out his arm and shook Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled. After they retracted their respective hands, she waved goodbye to Liang Yulong, and began to walk off the arena.

    ¡°Hang on a minute.¡± Liang Yulong called out after Jun Xiaomo.

    She turned around and turned her attention back to Liang Yulong once more with a quizzical gaze in her eyes.

    Liang Yulong grimaced. After a moment of silence, as though he had just made a difficult decision, he finally told Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Dai Yue has managed to bribe one of the referees to ensure that she would be facing off against you. In other words, your next opponent might very well be Dai Yue in the next battle.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously, ¡°Oh? It¡¯s her...That¡¯s fine. We¡¯ve got a bet with each other anyway, and it¡¯s only a matter of time that we face off against each other.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the problem.¡± Liang Yulong earnestly explicated, ¡°Dai Yue has already attained the ninth level of Qi Mastery. But she had consumed a medicine to forcibly suppress her cultivation level to deceive the tests before themencement of thepetition, and she had managed to remain within the Lower Category of thepetition. Thus, it¡¯s very likely that she would be harder to deal with than I was.¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the referees know if she had suppressed her cultivation level using medicinal pills?¡± Jun Xiaomo dropped her shoulders as she rified.

    ¡°There are ck sheep everywhere, even among the ostensibly fair and impartial referees.¡± Liang Yulong exined.

    Jun Xiaomo revealed a faint smile, ¡°I understand. Thank you for alerting me to this. I¡¯ll make some simple preparation in the meantime, and I¡¯ll deal with it when the timees.¡±

    Liang Yulong nodded, and he walked past Jun Xiaomo and motioned for the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, brother Liang.¡± This time, it was Jun Xiaomo who called out to Liang Yulong.

    Liang Yulong turned back, only to be met with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soft and radiant smile, ¡°If there¡¯s no longer a ce for you in the Eternal Summit Sect, you could always consider the Heavenly Peak. I¡¯m pretty sure my father would be pleased to have another disciple.¡±

    A look of slight astonishment surfaced on Liang Yulong¡¯s face. Momentster, he smiled as well.

    ¡°Thank you. I will consider that.¡±

    The solidarity among the Heavenly Peak disciples is truly inspirational...

 Chapter 181: An Unconscious Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 181: An Unconscious Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After bidding farewell to Jun Xiaomo, Liang Yulong¡¯s originally sullen mood improved substantially. He finally began to understand what Jun Xiaomo meant when she said that she did not mind winning or losing, as long as they could thoroughly enjoy the process of battle. The fact that he had gained a deeper understanding of his abilities and improved his cultivation was well worth the effort despite his loss.

    Yet shortly afterwards, when he was faced with Dai Yanfeng¡¯s infuriated expressions, his ddened heart and rxed disposition was once again stifled and reced by a stone that weighed down heavily on his heart.

    ¡°Master.¡± Liang Yulong walked up to Dai Yanfeng, lowered his head and addressed him.

    Pak! Dai Yanfeng swung his arm and pped Liang Yulong on the face. This p was incredibly forceful, and it even caused Liang Yulong to stumble backwards slightly.

    Liang Yulong had already expended most of his body¡¯s energy during the earlier battle, and he was naturally unable to resist the forcefulness of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s p.

    ¡°How dare you return?! Huh?!¡± Dai Yanfeng gnashed his teeth as he yelled, ¡°How dare you still call me your master? You can¡¯t even defeat a measly piece of trash at the fifth level of Qi Mastery? You may as well have died on the arena for all I care. At least that way you won¡¯t disgrace the sect any further!¡±

    Liang Yulong lowered his head and clenched his fists tightly, but he remained taciturn.

    Dai Yue sauntered over to Liang Yulong and added contemptuously, ¡°What¡¯s the matter, brother Liang? Do you think that my father¡¯s criticism is wrong? Why do you look so aggrieved? You¡¯re truly remarkable, you know that? How could you even think about admitting defeat before the battlemenced. Did you already know that you wouldn¡¯t be able to match up to a piece of trash right from the onset, so you decided to admit defeat to reduce the pain and shame? I truly feel ashamed on your behalf.¡±

    That¡¯s right. Dai Yue was incredibly incensed by the fact that Liang Yulong had attempted to admit defeat before the battle evenmenced. To her mind, even if Jun Xiaomo won, she wanted Jun Xiaomo to have been reduced to a sorry state and barely be able to defeat Liang Yulong.

    At the very least, her victory should not have attracted the sincere apuse and adtion of the entire audience.

    Liang Yulong looked up and dispassionately retorted, ¡°Back when martial sister asked me to intentionally lose to Jun Xiaomo, why didn¡¯t you consider the fact that I would disgrace the Eternal Summit Sect?¡±

    ¡°You! Don¡¯t malign me! Why would I have asked you to intentionally lose to Jun Xiaomo?!¡± Dai Yue¡¯s eyes flickered momentarily with panic before she quickly stabilized her emotions.

    Liang Yulong doesn¡¯t have any proof anyway. I¡¯ll just deny whatever he says. Dai Yue mocked in her heart.

    As expected, Dai Yanfeng bellowed, ¡°Enough! Liang Yulong, haven¡¯t you disgraced the sect enough? Are you even resorting to ndering your martial sister now? I¡¯m revoking your rights to observe all future battles. You¡¯ll return to the sect¡¯s penal hall and reflect on your own actions!¡±

    Since the penal sect was involved, then there was no doubt that Dai Yanfeng had essentially already determined Liang Yulong¡¯s guilt in this matter.

    ¡°Yes. Disciple shallply.¡± Liang Yulong hung his head low as he relented. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s philosophy of enjoying the process of battle and her invitation to the Heavenly Peak once again crossed his mind, and Liang Yulong¡¯s eyes darkened.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo returned victoriously to the Dawn Sect¡¯s seating area, but her return was not received by a boisterous celebration. Most people looked curiously and stole suspicious nces at Jun Xiaomo as though she were a monster, or as though they had just seen a side of Jun Xiaomo that they had never seen before.

    That said, their behaviour was quite understandable. After all, anyone would be bewildered by the fact that a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery could defeat a person at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. Some might even suspect something fishy about the entire situation.

    Regardless, Jun Xiaomo ignored the bewildered and peculiar looks on the faces of the Dawn Sect disciples and made a beeline towards the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    As soon as she returned to the Heavenly Peak seating area, she received the warm apuse and adtion that she deserved. Some even gave her a standing ovation and motioned to give her a celebratory hug. One after the other, several disciples gave Jun Xiaomo a hug, while others tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair andughed heartily as they eximed, ¡°Great showing, martial sister! You¡¯re our dear martial sister from the Heavenly Sect through and through!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face looked a bit pale, but she did not want to be a spoilsport, so she continued to receive everyone¡¯s praise and adtion graciously with a faint smile on her face.

    ¡°Martial sister! Martial sister!¡± A young man squirmed his way through the crowd and found his way to Jun Xiaomo. His tender, boyish face was even slightly contorted by the time he managed to get through the crowd.

    ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re incredible!¡± Wei Gang finally made his way to Jun Xiaomo after much difficulty. His eyes gleamed with praise and adoration as he idolized his martial sister.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly as she patted his head and remarked, ¡°Little Lang will be just as strong in the future.¡±

    Wei Gang replied with some measure of exasperation, ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s much hope of that. My cultivation is one level higher than martial sister¡¯s, but my abilities are a far cry from yours.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled and shrugged, ¡°This is just a slight difference in ourbat experience.¡±

    She possessed several hundred years¡¯ worth ofbat experience more than Wei Gang after all. This was more than enough to deal with some young sprout cultivators who were only at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation. Yet at the same time, she knew that if their cultivation levels were far too different, or she had encountered a cultivator experienced withbat as well, then these little tricks of hers would not do much to cover for her cultivation level deficiencies.

    Regardless, she had to deal with the important matters first ¨C she had to quickly increase her cultivation level.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart thumped ferociously, and she reflexively bent over and clutched at her abdomen where the Dantian was located ¨C Damn! I¡¯ve suppressed my breakthrough too much and I¡¯m losing control!

    The roiling true energy momentarily broke free of her restrains and gushed through her Dantian and meridians ferociously.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, what¡¯s happening?!¡± Wei Gang facing Jun Xiaomo when all of that happened, and he saw with his own eyes how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was suddenly drained of the colour of blood.

    Beads of cold sweat filled her face densely, and she chuckled bitterly with a smile, ¡°I think...I¡¯ve pushed myself too hard.¡±

    With that, she cked out and fell backwards.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡± ¡°Xiaomo!¡± ¡°Martial sister!¡± ... A series of anxious cries rang out.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo fell into a steady and firm bosom.

    She no longer had the energy to identify who had caught her, because she only felt herself falling deeper and deeper into the abyss of darkness, and then she thoroughly lost consciousness.

    ¡°Rong...Brother Rong?¡± Wei Gang lifted his head to see Rong Ruihan¡¯s suave and charming face. At this moment, Rong Ruihan supported Jun Xiaomo with one hand, while his other hand had shifted to her wrist, and his eyebrows were knitted tightly together.

    Momentster, Rong Ruihan softly stated, ¡°We need to get her to a quiet ce to sort out the spiritual energy within her body. She¡¯s been too reckless. She knew that she was already on the brink of a breakthrough, but she intentionally suppressed her Dantian and her meridians so that she could continue with thepetition. She¡¯s currently suffering from a bacsh from the suppressed energy within her body.¡±

    Wei Gang was momentarily taken aback. As soon as he regained his senses, he anxiously asked, ¡°Then, let¡¯s quickly bring martial sister back to the inn.¡±

    Without further prompting, Rong Ruihan lifted Jun Xiaomo horizontally and prepared to make haste back to the Heavenly Peak¡¯s inn. However, he was quickly blocked by the other disciples from Heavenly Peak.

    ¡°You¡¯re from the Eternal Summit Sect. Where are you bringing Jun Xiaomo?¡± One of the Heavenly Peak disciples surnamed Chen furrowed his brows as he queried.

    ¡°Brother Chen, don¡¯t worry. Brother Rong is martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s friend. When Brother Ye was out on his travels, the three of them had traveled together, so they¡¯re on very good terms with each other.¡± Wei Gang hurriedly exined.

    Yet the Heavenly Peak disciples were uneasy leaving their dear martial sister in the hands of a stranger, so they continued to prevent Rong Ruihan from leaving.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had just returned from verifying the results of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s battle. Thus, they had only just discovered the crowd of Heavenly Peak disciples gathered together around one single spot.

    ¡°Master, martial sister has fainted, and this man is looking to bring martial sister away.¡± Now that Jun Linxuan had showed up, the Heavenly Peak disciples could feel slightly more at ease. At the very least, Rong Ruihan would not be able to do anything improper to Jun Xiaomo with Jun Linxuan around.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were unable to trust Rong Ruihan because they knew that Rong Ruihan had attended thepetition together with the rest of the entourage from the Eternal Summit Sect.

    ¡°Senior, Xiaomo¡¯s Dantian and meridians are in a very bad shape right now, and we need to find a quiet ce to sort out the spiritual energy within her body quickly.¡±

    Rong Ruihan remainedpletely calm despite the overbearing aura emanating from Jun Linxuan¡¯s body.

    Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows, and quickly ced his hand over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of his spiritual energy probing through her body as well. Yet his spiritual energy was very quickly forced out of her body by the shing and chaotic true energy within.

    Jun Linxuan finally realized the gravity of the situation. Thus, he instructed the other disciples around, ¡°All of you remain here. I¡¯ll bring Jun Xiaomo back to the inn with this young man here.¡±

    ¡°Linxuan, let me go as well.¡± Liu Qingmei looked worriedly at her unconscious daughter.

    ¡°Qingmei, we cannot move around at the same time. You need to stay here and helm this ce.¡± Jun Linxuan disagreed. Even though he could sense his wife¡¯s concern for her daughter, but his duty as the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster was equally important as well.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were still involved in the uing fights today, so Liu Qingmei had to remain around to deter and prevent any shenanigans against their disciples.

    Liu Qingmei understood this as well. Thus, she sighed in her heart and watched sullenly as Jun Linxuan and Rong Ruihan turned to leave among the throngs of people.

    ¡°Martial aunt, don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s just as brother Rong has said, martial sister Xiaomo has just broken through to the next level of cultivation. This is a good thing.¡± Wei Gang stood beside Liu Qingmei as he consoled her.

    She patted the head of her husband¡¯s youngest disciple as she smiled in appreciation, ¡°Martial aunt understands. Thanks, Little Lang, for your constion.¡±

    He Zhang had also noticed themotion among the Heavenly Peak disciples. Due to the loud buzz and chatter among the audience, he was unable to make out the contents of the conversations between Rong Ruihan and the other Heavenly Peak disciples. Nevertheless, he knew that shortly after Jun Xiaomo returned victoriously, everyone from the Heavenly Peak surrounded her for a short moment. Momentster, Jun Xiaomo was carried away, unconscious, while Jun Linxuan¡¯s expression was ashen as well.

    He Zhang squinted his eyes and eximed in his heart ¨C Seems like the Bedeviled Grass is still rather effective, huh? It¡¯s a pity that I didn¡¯t put enough of it earlier, so it had taken a slightly longer time to manifest its effects.

    Otherwise, why would a victorious Jun Xiaomo suddenly faint after she returned to the Sect¡¯s waiting area?

    He Zhang was incredibly tempted to follow Jun Linxuan and Rong Ruihan to take a closer look at her condition, but he knew that there was already an irreparable rift in the rtionship between Jun Linxuan and himself. If he followed along right now, perhaps Jun Linxuan might even grow suspicious of his involvement in this regard.

    Therefore, he remained seated as he contemted the next moves in his schemes.

    It¡¯s just a pity that the Bedeviled Grass had not manifested fully on the arena. He Zhang thought maliciously.

    Nevertheless, a macabre smile crept up the corner of his lips as he consoled himself ¨C It¡¯s fine. There¡¯s still the next battle. In the next battle, I¡¯ll spike Jun Xiaomo¡¯s food with all the remaining Bedeviled Grass. I don¡¯t believe that Jun Xiaomo will be lucky a second time!

    Having made his decision, the tension in He Zhang¡¯s heart rxed once more, as he leaned back on his chair and thoroughly immersed himself in the uing battles.

 Chapter 182: Discovery of her Secret!

    <h4>Chapter 182: Discovery of her Secret!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Rong Ruihan walked with a firm and determined gait as he carried Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soft and limp body.

    This was the first time he had been in such close contact with Jun Xiaomo. Even in those days when they had been on the run from Situ Cang, ¡°Yao Mo¡± would always lie on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom as she slept in an unrestrained fashion, while he would politely steer clear of the intimate couple. In fact, whenever he attempted to draw close to Jun Xiaomo back then, she would always awaken from her slumber and re at him in a vignt and guarded fashion.

    Naturally, things took a turn for the betterter on. That said, he could still sense that his status in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was still not the same as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s status in her heart.

    And could this difference truly be exined as the difference between ¡°friendship¡± and ¡°the rtionship between martial sister and brother¡±?

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes darkened as he fervently pulled himself out from the mire of these entangling thoughts running through his mind.

    Despite the slight distraction in his mind, Rong Ruihan nevertheless made haste as he brought Jun Xiaomo back to her inn.

    Jun Linxuan followed closely beside them. At the same time, he discreetly sized up this young man that had seemed to appear out of nowhere.

    He knew that this man had arrived at thepetition grounds together with the entourage from the Eternal Summit Sect. After all, they had exchanged pleasantries on the very first day. That said, Jun Linxuan was unaware that Rong Ruihan knew Jun Xiaomo back then. It was onlyter, after Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan went out that night, that Jun Xiaomo first spoke about this good friend of hers to Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei. This was also the first time that Jun Linxuan had heard about the existence of Rong Ruihan.

    From how things looked right now, he could tell that the rtionship between this young man and his daughter could very possibly be beyond that of mere ¡°brothers and sisters in arms¡±. At the very least, he could tell how much Jun Xiaomo meant to this young man right here.

    The gaze in this young man¡¯s eyes reminded Jun Linxuan of himself in his youth.

    Back then, the rtionship between him and Liu Qingmei was nothing more than mere martial brothers and sisters. There were several people within the Sect who were discreetly fond of Liu Qingmei back then, but no one expressed themselves for fear that they would strain the unrestrained and carefree rtionship that they had maintained between each other as martial brothers and sisters. Back then, Jun Linxuan had seen several such gazes in the eyes of his other martial brothers ¨C it was a look of patient forbearance and a cryptic,plex adoration.

    A profound intent shed across Jun Linxuan¡¯s eyes ¨C there was no way he would be able to entrust his daughter into his hands if this person possessed any form of personality or character defects.

    After all, that long-drawn incident with Qin Lingyu had already left a sour taste in his mouth. As a father, how could he afford to see his daughter go through such pains and trials again?

    I¡¯ll keep observing for now. Jun Linxuan grimaced as he shelved his thoughts for now.

    Once they arrived at their inn and set Jun Xiaomo back in her bed, Rong Ruihan checked on the conditions of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Dantian and meridians once more.

    The condition of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had worsened within the short period of time since she had fallen unconscious.

    ¡°Senior, I¡¯m afraid someone will have to sort out the chaotic spiritual energy within Xiaomo¡¯s body.¡± Rong Ruihan politely reported to Jun Linxuan.

    The energy within his body was demonic energy, and it was naturally unsuitable for sorting out the spiritual energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    At this time, Rong Ruihan was stillpletely oblivious to the fact that the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was neither spiritual energy nor demonic energy. He had only concluded that the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was spiritual energy because he knew that it was different from the nature of his body¡¯s demonic energy.

    Jun Linxuan walked over and examined Jun Xiaomo for a moment, before he furrowed his brows as well.

    He shut his eyes and began to send more spiritual energy coursing through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and into her Dantian and meridians.

    While Jun Linxuan was doing so, Rong Ruihan took the initiative to set up a few defensive formation arrays at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room door, just as an added preventive measure.

    Jun Linxuan nced over at Rong Ruihan, and Jun Linxuan couldn¡¯t help but praise Rong Ruihan for his initiative and meticulousness in his heart.

    But, after one incense stick of time, Jun Linxuan discovered that his spiritual energy was unable do anything to soothe the chaotic energies within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. The energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Dantian and meridians were still shing about furiously, as though they were trying to break out of the rampart that was constricting their movements.

    And the situation was worsening by the minute.

    ¡°Senior, is Xiaomo still in her stupor?¡± Rong Ruihan discovered the peculiarity within Jun Linxuan¡¯s gaze.

    ¡°Would you like to give it a shot?¡± Jun Linxuan relinquished his spot beside Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°This...¡± Rong Ruihan hesitated. His body was filled with demonic energy. Wouldn¡¯t this be ipatible with the energy flowing within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body?

    ¡°There have been some issues surfacing from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body ever since she had received the Sect¡¯s punishment for trespassing the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. I¡¯m not too sure of the exact details of these issues, but I hope that this fellow cultivator would be willing to examine her. Don¡¯t worry too much and give it a shot. I¡¯ll be watching from just beside here, so there won¡¯t be any issues.¡±

    Faced with his daughter¡¯s crisis right now, Jun Linxuan steeled his resolve and made his decision.

    Jun Linxuan had already managed to guess Rong Ruihan¡¯s identity as a demonic cultivator from his daughter¡¯s description of him. Furthermore, the Sect¡¯s persecution of Ye Xiuwen and his daughter back when they were still out on the travels might very well have been linked to the fact that they had been travelling together with Rong Ruihan.

    That said, Jun Linxuan had never been a stickler for the conventional wisdom and rules of the world. To him, the determination of a person¡¯s character should never be based on what type of cultivator they are or what type of energies they utilized. Rather, it had more to do with a person¡¯s heart.

    Therefore, he did not mind it one bit that Rong Ruihan could very well be a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°Then, alright.¡± Rong Ruihan sat beside Jun Xiaomo and began to send his demonic energy into her body.

    If the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was spiritual energy, then it would definitely sh with Rong Ruihan¡¯s energy and reject it. Therefore, Rong Ruihan did not dare to send too much demonic energy into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body all at one go.

    Instead, he did it with an incremental approach. Bit by bit, thread by thread, he slowly sent his demonic energy into her body to prevent aggravating the condition of her body.

    But as time went by, Rong Ruihan also began to reveal a bewildered expression on his face.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°spiritual energy¡± did not do anything to reject his demonic energy at all. Just what was going on?

    Thus, Rong Ruihan began to increase the amount of demonic energy which he suffused through her body. Yet the result was still the same, and it drew no response whatsoever from the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    It neither improved the situation within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Dantian and meridians, nor did it aggravate her condition.

    It was as though the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body hadpletely ignored the presence of Rong Ruihan¡¯s demonic energy as it continued to sweep around and batter against the walls of her meridians and Dantian. Thus, the threads of demonic energy which he had sent into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body swept throughout Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Dantian and meridians before returning to Rong Ruihan¡¯s body without a hitch.

    ¡°This...what¡¯s going on?¡± Rong Ruihan opened his eyes and furrowed his brows as he stared in perplexity at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Did your demonic energy also attract no response from Xiaomo¡¯s body?¡± Jun Linxuan asked him calmly.

    ¡°Senior?¡± Rong Ruihan revealed a look of slight astonishment. He had never expected Jun Linxuan to know his identity as a demonic cultivator.

    Can he tell? Or is he...

    ¡°Xiaomo has already told me a little bit about your background. I¡¯ve managed to connect the dots between your identity and the matters that urred on their travels outside the sect, and I¡¯ve guessed the truth about your identity as well. But don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t despise demonic cultivators per se. That said, you have to be mindful that this is the territory of spiritual cultivators. You would be wise to keep your identity well under wraps.¡±

    Jun Linxuan casually reminded Rong Ruihan to mind his steps since he was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s friend.

    ¡°Much thanks to senior for his reminder.¡± Rong Ruihan felt much more at ease after Jun Linxuan¡¯s exnation, and he sincerely bowed towards Jun Linxuan.

    He truly lives up to his expectations as Xiaomo¡¯s father... Rong Ruihan eximed in his heart, before quickly turning his attention back to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition. He was growing increasingly worried.

    ¡°When I sent my spiritual energy coursing throughout Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body earlier, I encountered the exact same situation. The spiritual energy did nothing to her body ¨C it was neither absorbed nor rejected.¡± Jun Linxuan walked towards Jun Xiaomo and swept his hand tenderly across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead.

    Jun Xiaomo was sweating profusely, and her forehead was covered with sweat. It was evident what kind of pain she was experiencing right now.

    ¡°Why is it like this?¡± Rong Ruihan thought aloud.

    Jun Linxuan contemted for a moment, before hazarding a guess, ¡°It could very well be that the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body is considered neither demonic energy nor spiritual energy, but a third kind of energy that none of us have heard of before.¡±

    ¡°A third kind of energy?¡± Rong Ruihan had not expected such an answer from Jun Linxuan, ¡°If there¡¯s a third kind of energy in the world, then howe nobody has discovered it to date? And where would Xiaomo happen to learn of this energy from?¡±

    Jun Linxuan sighed, ¡°I¡¯m afraid we¡¯ll only know when Jun Xiaomo wakes up.¡±

    He had never expected his daughter¡¯s body to be hiding so many secrets as well.

    ¡°But if we can¡¯t figure out a way to sort out the chaotic energy within her body, how are we going to wake her up?¡± Rong Ruihan got straight to the nub of the issue.

    ¡°Perhaps we can only wait and hope that Xiaomo will be able to tide over this crisis on her own.¡± Jun Linxuan said with a grave expression on his face.

    ¡°That won¡¯t to! That¡¯s far too dangerous!¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart sank, and he immediately rejected Jun Linxuan¡¯s suggestion.

    Given the urgency of the matter, it hadpletely slipped Rong Ruihan¡¯s mind that Jun Linxuan was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, and his worry for Jun Xiaomo could hardly be any less than Rong Ruihan¡¯s.

    But Jun Linxuan did not castigate Rong Ruihan¡¯s attitude towards him. Jun Linxuan calmly exined, ¡°Even though the energy within Xiaomo¡¯s body is in a state of flux, I noticed that the amount of energy hasn¡¯t increased one bit. Thus, I hazarded a guess that the energy within Xiaomo¡¯s body is different from both spiritual and demonic energy, and this energy cannot automatically be absorbed from the surroundings by the cultivator under normal circumstances. Alternatively, I imagine that the presence of this energy is incredibly scarce and undetectable in our surroundings, so other cultivators had never thought about cultivating using this energy.

    What Jun Linxuan was unaware was how he had roughly grasped the concept of true energy with from these vague clues and hints from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    If Jun Xiaomo were conscious right now, she would most certainly bow down to the ground, filled with respect and admiration for her own father because her father had practically been spot on with his conjecture.

    Rong Ruihan was not a daft person either. As soon as Jun Linxuan exined his observations, he also vaguely understood why Jun Linxuan was hardly as worried as he was about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present condition.

    After all, Jun Xiaomo would not be in any danger of imploding so long as the amount of energy within her body does not increase. Jun Xiaomo was just going to have to continue suffering and face a period of hardship until she awakens.

    Rong Ruihan looked at how Jun Xiaomo was still in a stupor, while her eyebrows were knitted tightly. His expression darkened.

    Even if there was an eighty percent chance of Jun Linxuan¡¯s conjecture being true, he did not wish to risk the dangers apanying the possibility that Jun Linxuan¡¯s conjecture were wrong.

    Furthermore, given the pained and tormented expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, there was no way he could keep calm andposed while patiently waiting for Jun Xiaomo toe back to her senses.

    Thus, he suddenly stood up and informed Jun Linxuan, ¡°Senior, Xiaomo¡¯s condition is rather special, so I intend to ask my master about it.¡±

    If he apprised old man Chi about this problem, then there was a good chance that old man Chi he would bee up with an appropriate solution, right?

 Chapter 183: Obstructing Rong Ruihan

    <h4>Chapter 183: Obstructing Rong Ruihan</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Rong Ruihan used the quickest means of rying the message back to the Chi n¡¯s residence. But he knew that old man Chi might not have an answer for him so readily.

    Thus, Rong Ruihan remained by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side until it was evening, but Jun Xiaomo still remained unconscious. The silver lining to all of this was that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition did not continue to worsen ¨C there was no way for the amount of true energy within her Dantian and meridians to increase on its own, so there was no risk of her imploding and dying in the near future. That said, the true energy within her body continued to sh about with the walls of her meridians and Dantian as long as they were not sorted out and soothed properly. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo remained in a perpetual state of unconsciousness.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s impression of this young man had grown better over time. He deliberated for a moment before rting to Rong Ruihan, ¡°There were quite a number of people who noticed it when you departed thepetition grounds while carrying Jun Xiaomo. I¡¯m afraid that the Eternal Summit Sect wouldn¡¯t wee you on their end anymore.¡±

    The Eternal Summit Sect and the Dawn Sect had always maintained a rivalrous rtionship. Thus, the fact that Rong Ruihan was close to someone within the Dawn Sect would almost certainly offend the members of the Eternal Summit Sect.

    Rong Ruihan chuckled nonchntly as he responded, ¡°That¡¯s fine. I¡¯m not someone from the Eternal Summit Sect either.¡±

    The only reason why he had chosen to stay with the Eternal Summit Sect was because he wished to further investigate the culprits who had killed his mother and massacred of the Jiang n some years back. His investigations had already turned up some results, and he vaguely knew the truth of the matter. Thus, there was no longer any reason for him to be staying around the members of the Eternal Summit Sect.

    In fact, it was only going to be a matter of time before he found a way to take back everything that the Eternal Summit Sect had stolen from him and his n.

    Jun Linxuan noticed a frigid intent sh across Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes. But Jun Linxuan could hardly care less about his enmity with others as long as that frigid intent was not targeted at his daughter.

    ¡°Senior, I¡¯ve still got some matters to take care of, so I might not be able to stay by her side for now.¡± Rong Ruihan stood up.

    ¡°Mm, go ahead.¡± Jun Linxuan responded curtly.

    After leaving Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, Rong Ruihan made a beeline towards where the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s inn was located. He intended to check out of the inn and then find another lodging that was closer to the Dawn Sect¡¯s inn.

    Everything went on uneventfully, until Rong Ruihan found himself being obstructed by Dai Yue¡¯s party on his way back to the Dawn Sect¡¯s inn.

    Dai Yue led several disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect and stood in front of Rong Ruihan¡¯s path of travel.

    Rong Ruihan paused for a moment and swept his gaze across each and everyone of the disciples blocking his path. Then, hepletely ignored them and continued to make his way forward.

    ¡°Wait a minute! Where are you going, brother Rong?¡± Dai Yue stepped in front of Rong Ruihan and asked with a slightly maddened expression.

    ¡°Since when do I have to report where I¡¯m going to you?¡± Rong Ruihan responded with a rhetoric.

    ¡°I knew it! You must be going to look for that slut Jun Xiaomo, aren¡¯t you?!¡± Dai Yue bemoaned, ¡°I saw you carry her off thepetition grounds. What¡¯s so good about her that you fell in love with her the moment you saw her? Are you willing to give your heart to her despite the fact that she¡¯s just a lowly piece of trash?!¡±

    The moment I saw her? Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes flickered. No, he had never believed in love at first sight.

    If not for the series of dreams that he had been having since young, and if not for the fact that he had earlier encountered Yao Mo, then Jun Xiaomo would be no more than a stranger to Rong Ruihan right now.

    That said, he did not intend to tell Dai Yue these things. There was simply no need to.

    Rong Ruihan couldn¡¯t be bothered to engage in a protracted argument and debate with Dai Yue. Thus, he ignored everyone around, circled around them and began to forge forward once more.

    But Dai Yue was relentless. Within moments, she and her entourage of disciples once again blocked Rong Ruihan¡¯s path of travel. This time, they formed a tight human wall in front of Rong Ruihan andpletely obstructed his path of travel.

    There was no way that Rong Ruihan would be able to circle around them now.

    ¡°Dai Yue, what¡¯s the meaning of this?¡± Rong Ruihan asked dispassionately. There was no way of knowing the state of his mind through the tone of his voice.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t my intentions patently clear?¡± Dai Yue stared intently at Rong Ruihan, ¡°I don¡¯t want brother Rong to leave.¡±

    ¡°So you send these people to block my way?¡±

    ¡°So what if I did? They won¡¯t do anything to brother Rong if you don¡¯t leave.¡± Dai Yue¡¯s eyes gleamed viciously as she retorted.

    Rong Ruihan finally turned his attention to Dai Yue.

    ¡°Dai Yue, are you only capable of this? Threatening your father¡¯s disciples so that they would help you to obstruct my way?¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s words were cid and calm, yet Dai Yue picked up on the thick undertones of mockery from within.

    ¡°What...what do you mean by threaten?!¡± Dai Yue felt so humiliated that she grew infuriated. Her face flushed in fury as she barked, ¡°They¡¯ve all followed me of their own volition! Why don¡¯t you ask them, huh?!¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to ask, because their eyes already reveal the state of their hearts and minds right now.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly explicated, ¡°Truth be told, I feel sorry for your father that he¡¯s got such a daughter like you. If you carry on like this, won¡¯t these martial brothers of yours lose faith and grow wary of you father-daughter-duo? I don¡¯t see any trace of ¡®willingness¡¯ in any of their eyes. I only see ¡®humiliation¡¯.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Dai Yue had never thought that she would hear such incisivementsing from Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips. The rims of her eyes reddened almost instantly.

    Yet Rong Ruihan did not pause to give Dai Yue any opportunity to make her rebuttal. He continued, ¡°Furthermore, even with these poor Eternal Summit Sect disciples here, do you really think you can stop me from leaving? Dai Yue, where did your inted sense of egoe from?¡±

    ¡°I...you...¡± Dai Yue panicked. Yet she was rendered momentarily speechless, unable to find the words to respond to Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan noticed that his spiel had derived the results that he had desired. Thus, he began to walk towards Dai Yue and her party of people slowly as well. As he drew closer to the Eternal Summit Sect disciples, he immediately released the oppressive aura from his body that apanied a cultivator at the advanced-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    The entire entourage of Eternal Summit Sect disciples were in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation, and there was no way they would be able to withstand the powerful, oppressive aura that was approaching them. Thus, they subconsciously took a few steps back in fear.

    Just like that, Rong Ruihan walked past Dai Yue and the rest without a hitch.

    As she stared nkly at Rong Ruihan¡¯s departing silhouette without any means of stopping him, the rims of Dai Yue¡¯s eyes reddened even more, while the hatred in the depths of her pupils intensified! Her gaze remained transfixed on Rong Ruihan¡¯s back as she bellowed ¨C

    ¡°Rong Ruihan! You¡¯re going to regret this! Do you think the backing behind Jun Xiaomo is really so firm and steady? The Heavenly Peak¡¯s fate has already been written in blood. Everyone is ring at them as a prey to be devoured. Even the Dawn Sect can¡¯t stand their ilk. Rong Ruihan, you¡¯re only going to be implicated with them if you go to their side right now. Just you wait!¡±

    Yet Rong Ruihanpletely ignored her.

    Dai Yue clenched her fists. She wanted Rong Ruihan to stay behind no matter what. Thus, she ran up to him once more, thinking to grab only Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm and dragging him back. However, she found that Rong Ruihan¡¯s aura hadpletely blocked her off from getting within a one-meter radius of Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    Left with no choice, Dai Yue began to plead with him, ¡°Brother Rong, don¡¯t leave, please? I really like you very much... And besides, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s not a good person at all. She¡¯s still got a marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu, and you don¡¯t even know the extent of her rtionship with those martial brothers of hers within the Heavenly Peak. I don¡¯t want brother Rong to be deceived by her appearances...¡±

    Yet Rong Ruihan simply kept walking. He did not even turn his head around to acknowledge Dai Yue¡¯s presence.

    By this time, Rong Ruihan had already reached the fork in the road and he was soon about to disappear out of sight.

    Jealousy toiled and roiled in Dai Yue¡¯s chest. She began panting, and a manic expression filled her eyes as she bellowed, ¡°Rong Ruihan, you¡¯re going to regret this! I¡¯m not going to let Jun Xiaomo off on the arena!¡±

    This time, Rong Ruihan finally paused in his steps. He turned around and looked dispassionately at Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue finally thought that he was going to change his mind about leaving, and a victorious expression began to ovey that vicious expression of hers. But before she could even begin to smile, Rong Ruihan¡¯s response left herpletely bbergasted.

    ¡°I believe in Jun Xiaomo. If youpete solely on your abilities, you¡¯re no match for her.¡±

    In other words, unless Dai Yue resorts to some underhanded means, she would never be able to defeat Jun Xiaomo.

    After saying his piece, Rong Ruihan turned around and immediately disappeared from sight.

    ¡°Ha...haha...what a joke! I¡¯ll lose to a piece of trash at the fifth level of Qi Mastery?!¡± Dai Yueughed sardonically, ¡°Rong Ruihan, you truly are crazy.¡±

    That¡¯s right ¨C Rong Ruihan was crazy over Jun Xiaomo. This fact left Dai Yuepletely incensed.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, then are we going to return to the inn now?¡± A disciple standing beside Dai Yue queried.

    ¡°Where else would we go if we don¡¯t return to the inn?! Stay here and be apleteughingstock?!¡± Dai Yue red at the disciple viciously, before turning around and marching towards the inn in fury.

    The disciple that she had red viciously trembled slightly before he ran over and caught up to the rest of the group.

    The other disciples looked on at Dai Yue¡¯s back, and a trace of humiliation and indignation swelled up from the depths of their eyes as well. But in the end, they could only collect and suppress these emotions of theirs, lower their heads and run back to Dai Yue¡¯s side.

    Rong Ruihan finally returned to the Dawn Sect¡¯s inn and checked with the innkeeper for their avability of rooms. Fortunately, the Dawn Sect¡¯s inn was a ratherrge one, and they were not fully booked out yet.

    Afterpleting the necessary registrations, Rong Ruihan made his way to the third floor of the inn. On his way there, he crossed paths with He Zhang and Qin Lingyu who happened to be making their way down from the upper floors.

    As they passed each other by, Rong Ruihan and Qin Lingyu paused in their steps momentarily.

    ¡°I never thought that you would dare trespass the spiritual cultivators¡¯ grounds. You¡¯re truly brave, first prince of the Inferno Kingdom.¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly.

    ¡°Just as you¡¯re resilient, I won¡¯t be felled so easily either.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly remarked.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes squinted. He was already at the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, but he was still unable to tell what stage of cultivation Rong Ruihan was at.

    There were only two possibilities to this. The first was that there was an artefact on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body that was suppressing his cultivation level; while the other is that Rong Ruihan¡¯s cultivation level was higher than his own.

    But was this even possible? Rong Ruihan was hardly any older than him, yet his cultivation level was still higher than his?! Furthermore, he had only managed to achieve a double breakthrough and attain his present cultivation level as a result of using Yu Wanrou¡¯s spiritual waters.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was filled with some uneasiness as he mocked, ¡°Those who are arrogant and prideful fall the hardest and quickest.¡±

    Rong Ruihan nced nonchntly back at Qin Lingyu as he retorted, ¡°Same to you.¡±

    After saying his piece, he walked ahead without giving Qin Lingyu any further opportunity to respond to him. Qin Lingyu stared coldly at Rong Ruihan¡¯s back, while a trace of hatred surfaced on his heart.

    ¡°Lingyu, who¡¯s that?¡± He Zhang naturally discovered the tension between his disciple and the young man who had just walked upstairs. He also knew that the young man seemed to be rather close to Jun Xiaomo, so he asked Qin Lingyu about him curiously.

    ¡°He¡¯s someone that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had met on their travels together. He¡¯s also the man I¡¯ve told master about some time ago, that demonic cultivator from the Inferno Kingdom.¡±

    Qin Lingyu particrly emphasized the fact that he was a demonic cultivator.

    ¡°Oh? So that¡¯s him...¡± He Zhang nodded knowingly, and a bright gleam shed across his eyes.

 Chapter 184: Unconscious, Medicine, Awakening

    <h4>Chapter 184: Unconscious, Medicine, Awakening</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    He Zhang and his disciple found a secluded booth in the inn, sat down and ordered a pot of tea and some small dishes.

    ¡°Master, didn¡¯t you discover any traces of demonic energy from that man¡¯s body earlier?¡± Qin Lingyu poured a cup of tea for He Zhang as he asked.

    He Zhang squinted his eyes as he recalled their earlier encounter before he shook his head, ¡°No. Even though you¡¯ve mentioned that he¡¯s a demonic cultivator, your master can¡¯t detect any anomalies in his body. I¡¯m afraid that there must be an artefact on his body that¡¯s presently concealing his demonic energy.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened. To him, Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen were like two thorns by his side that had to be removed.

    But now that Ye Xiuwen had disappeared and was very likely dead, the only remaining thorn was naturally Rong Ruihan.

    If possible, he wanted to reveal to the world the fact that Rong Ruihan was a demonic cultivator so that he would immediately be the target of all spiritual cultivators.

    His fingers tightened around the cup in his hands as he suggested, ¡°Master, the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince seems to be on good terms with the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Jun Xiaomo. Would it be possible to think of a way to reveal his identity as a demonic cultivator? This would be helpful to us in the grand scheme of things.¡±

    He Zhang deliberated for a moment before he rejected Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestion.

    ¡°This man doesn¡¯t only seem to be close to Jun Xiaomo, right? He had arrived at thepetition grounds together with the Eternal Summit Sect entourage, and we¡¯re not clear on his rtionship with that group of people. If we disclose his identity as a demonic cultivator, it might unnecessarily implicate the people from Eternal Summit Sect as well. That¡¯s something we can¡¯t afford to do.¡±

    ¡°Master, I don¡¯t think that the people from the Eternal Summit Sect are aware that Rong Ruihan is a demonic cultivator. If we expose his identity, I¡¯m sure the Eternal Summit Sect will simply distance themselves from him. Why would they bear any enmity or hostility against us?¡±

    ¡°This might not be the case. The Eternal Summit Sect pride themselves in their reputation, especially Dai Yanfeng. Even if they¡¯re not prepared to harbour and protect a demonic cultivator, it¡¯s still a fact that they had once received a demonic cultivator within their midst. This would make them the biggestughingstock in the spiritual cultivation world. At that time, they might even think that the Dawn Sect had done this with the sole intention of humiliating them and that might further strain the rtionship between our sects to the point of hostility and enmity.¡±

    ¡°But...¡± Qin Lingyu was unwilling. He was just about to continue when he was cut off by He Zhang.

    ¡°Alright, Lingyu, I know you¡¯re incredibly displeased and uneasy about the things that you¡¯ve experienced on your earlier travels. But you have to have the big picture in mind. You need to keep your emotions in check and prevent that from influencing your judgment. The more pressing issue at hand is to think of a way to stimte the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body and reveal her identity as a demonic cultivator, not Rong Ruihan. Furthermore, no matter how close Rong Ruihan is to Jun Xiaomo, he¡¯s just an outsider. So what if we expose his identity as a demonic cultivator? The Heavenly Peak can immediately dissociate themselves with him by saying that they had been keptpletely in the dark. By then, we would have not only wasted our efforts, we would even attract unnecessary attention to ourselves.¡±

    He Zhang took a sip of his tea before he continued ¨C

    ¡°On the other hand, if Jun Xiaomo¡¯s identity as a demonic cultivator is exposed, then things would be quite drastically different. Jun Xiaomo is Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter ¨C this is an indissociable truth. Furthermore, Jun Linxuan would never stand idly by and watch his dear daughter get shredded to pieces by the rest of the cultivation world. He would most certainly find a way to conceal and protect his daughter. At that time, all we have to do would be to give him little push off the precipice that he¡¯s treading upon, and the Heavenly Peak would no longer have any firm ground to stand on.¡±

    As he turned his attention to Jun Linxuan¡¯s impending doom, a vicious smile crept up the corner of He Zhang¡¯s lips, and a sense of joy filled his heart.

    If his schemes worked out, not a single person from Heavenly Peak would be able to escape! By then, the insurmountable resources and treasures, and...that person that he desired most would be his.

    Qin Lingyu grimaced silently, tacitly signifying hispliance with He Zhang¡¯s instructions. Yet when he lifted his teacup, a trace of mncholy filled his eyes.

    Everything was going ording to n, so there was no reason not to be pleased at all. But the fact of the matter was that there was no joy in his heart right now.

    He couldn¡¯t understand why he was experiencing such reluctance right now. In fact, he had thought of their ns with great eagerness and anticipation just a little while ago.

    Just then, the image of Rong Ruihan carrying Jun Xiaomo in his bosom as he left thepetition grounds surfaced in Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind again, and his fingers tightened slightly around his teacup.

    Qin Lingyu ferociously gulped down a mouthful of tea as he mustered all of his strength to suppress these unnecessary thoughts.

    On the other side, Rong Ruihan had unpacked some of his travel necessities in his room and was just about to head over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room to check on her when the Transmission Talisman in his clothing began to grow hot.

    He retrieved his Transmission Talisman from his clothing and ced it on the table. The formation array on the Transmission Talisman glowed with a faint blue light, before a conspicuous image was projected from the heart of the formation array. Just like that, an illusory image of old man Chi¡¯s body was projected onto the surface of the table.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s face revealed some measure of astonishment. Momentster, he respectfully bowed to old man Chi, ¡°Disciple greets master.¡±

    ¡°Hmph!¡± Old man Chi snorted as he got straight to the point, ¡°What happened to that youngdy again?¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s expression of bewilderment intensified as he rified, ¡°Did master use the sect¡¯s Transmission Talisman just to discuss Jun Xiaomo¡¯s matter with disciple?¡±

    ¡°Who else would it be for? Do you think this old man would be contacting you to discuss how much he misses you?¡± Old man Chi grunted sarcastically.

    Even though he was already a few thousand years old, and his face was already filled with countless wrinkles, old man Chi still behaved and acted like an adolescent child throwing a tantrum in front of those whom he was familiar with and close to.

    A smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips as he respectfully responded, ¡°Disciple sincerely thanks master for master¡¯s efforts. Truth be told, disciple didn¡¯t expect master to use the sect¡¯s Transmission Talisman to speak with disciple about this matter. Disciple thought that this matter might affect master¡¯s cultivation, so disciple had only used a Transmittance Talisman back then.¡±

    Transmittance Talisman and Transmission Talisman were very simr, but their speed and efficacy differed greatly.

    ¡°Hmph! Do you think this is of your master¡¯s own volition? If I didn¡¯t personally get involved in this matter, this young little runt is going to personally pluck out all of my beard!¡± Old man Chi snorted with indignation.

    ¡°Young little runt?¡± Rong Ruihan paused for a moment in shock, before he very quickly managed to guess who old man Chi was referring to.

    It was almost as though it wanted to confirm Rong Ruihan¡¯s suspicions, but within the blink of an eye, a chubby little packrat scampered up old man Chi¡¯s shoulder and greeted Rong Ruihan with a few squeaks.

    After returning to the n grounds, old man Chi managed to refine the cure to counteract the effects of the Shapeshifting Fruit that the little packrat had earlier consumed, and the little packrat had thus reverted to his human form.

    That said, the little packrat might have remained as a little packrat for far too long before a cure was applied, because even after the cure was applied, there were still some residual,sting effects ¨C that is, the little packrat would revert to his packrat form for a few days in the middle of every calendar month.

    Old man Chi had looked up all kinds of medicinal books and manuscripts, but he had been unable to find a cure for this residual effect of the Shapeshifting Fruit. Thus, he was resigned to having his great grandson revert to his little packrat state for a few days within each month.

    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s rather cute and adorable too.¡± The little packrat¡¯s mother, Shao Sirong, consoled herself as she thought aloud.

    The little packrat and his father, Chi Hongyi stared in exasperation at Shao Sirong, and their lips twitched involuntarily.

    Fortunately, apart from this minor residual effect, the Shapeshifting Fruit did not leave othersting or permanent damage to the little packrat¡¯s body.

    It so happened that the little packrat saw the message transmitted back to the n¡¯s grounds by Rong Ruihan. At that time, it anxiously leapt up to old man Chi¡¯s body and began to w impatiently at old man Chi¡¯s beard, coercing him to save Jun Xiaomo as soon as possible.

    This was what had transpired just prior to the presentmunication between old man Chi and Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan was rather bemused by this turn of events, but he was nevertheless immensely grateful to old man Chi and the little packrat for their concern towards Jun Xiaomo.

    He knew that if old man Chi did not have a good impression of Jun Xiaomo, he would never have bothered to use the Transmission Talisman to resolve this matter, regardless how much the little packrat would have wed at his beard.

    ¡°Master, given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current condition, do you have any suggestions?¡±

    ¡°First, tell me in detail what happened to that youngdy.¡± Old man Chi shed his yful appearance and spoke earnestly to Rong Ruihan.

    Thus, Rong Ruihan briefly exined Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition to old man Chi. He especially pointed out the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body contained a different type of energy within.

    It was neither demonic energy nor spiritual energy. This was what left both him and Jun Linxuanpletely helpless.

    Old man Chi furrowed his brows. Having lived for a few thousand years, this was the first time he had ever heard of something so absurd as a third type of energy apart from demonic energy and spiritual energy.

    But he knew that since demonic energy, spiritual energy and the type of energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body were all foundations of power and abilities, they were bound to have somemon ground among them.

    Old man Chi thought about it, before he retrieved a little jade bottle from his Interspatial Ring, poured out one medicinal pill and ced it onto the formation array.

    Momentster, that medicinal pill appeared in front of Rong Ruihan and floated in mid-air.

    Rong Ruihan picked up the medicinal pill and asked, ¡°This is...?¡±

    ¡°This is an Energy Amelioration Pill, and it can be used to soothe and sort out shing energies within a person¡¯s body. You¡¯d earlier mentioned that it was because this youngdy was about to breakthrough a bottleneck that the energy within her body grew chaotic and shed about, resulting in her falling into a stupor, right? This Energy Amelioration Pill might be useful to help appease the shing energy in her body.¡± Old man Chi slowly exined, ¡°Go ahead, feed it to her and see if it works.¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s face was obviously filled with joy. He hurriedly bowed to old man Chi as he eximed, ¡°Disciple thanks master!¡±

    ¡°Hurry on then, before I change my mind! Hmph! To think that you¡¯ve even forced me to take out the good stuff that I¡¯ve been storing for ages.¡± Old man Chi snorted, before waving his hands and ending the transmission.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes were filled with a lingering trace of joy.

    He looked at the medicinal pill in his hand once more before standing up and making his way to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room.

    When Rong Ruihan entered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were already by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Their expressions were filled with worry and concern.

    The other disciples from the Heavenly Peak had also sought to visit their martial sister, but Jun Linxuan prevented them from doing so. After all, there was no need to have everyone crowd around Jun Xiaomo in the confines of this small room. It would not be good for Jun Xiaomo either.

    ¡°Senior, my master has given me an Energy Amelioration Pill, and he says that this might be useful to mitigate Xiaomo¡¯s condition.¡± Rong Ruihan presented the Energy Amelioration Pill to Jun Linxuan.

    ¡°Energy Amelioration Pill?¡± Jun Linxuan revealed a bewildered expression on his face.

    Of course he had heard of the Energy Amelioration Pill before. In fact, he knew just how difficult it was to refine these pills.

    ¡°That¡¯s far too valuable. I can¡¯t just take it from you like that. I wonder what the value of this Energy Amelioration Pill is? I¡¯m willing to purchase it from you.¡± Jun Linxuan stated with sincerity.

    ¡°Senior, since I¡¯m willing to hand this medicine over to you, I¡¯m naturally not asking for anything in return. Furthermore, Xiaomo is my good friend, and there¡¯s no need to stand on ceremony. I hope you won¡¯t regard me as an outsider either.¡±

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case...then alright. Thank you.¡±

    Jun Linxuan sincerely thanked the young man, before turning around and carefully feeding Jun Xiaomo with the Energy Amelioration Pill.

    One hourter, Jun Xiaomo finally began to rouse from her stupor.

 Chapter 185: Suggestion, Establish Another Sect?

    <h4>Chapter 185: Suggestion, Establish Another Sect?</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo felt as though she had been floating in the middle of a vast ocean, undting in tandem with the ebb and flow of the waves.

    The boundless ocean waters seemed to have a life of its own, and each drop of the ocean waters sought to forcefully burrow through each and every pore on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s skin. She felt like wincing and crying out in pain. She felt like waving her arms about in order to shake off the dull pain apanying the bloated feeling afflicting her body, yet the ocean waters seemed to engulf her orifices, restrain her limbs and drag her down to the depths of the ocean as it consumed her.

    Just as she was about to be resigned to her fate of perishing in this boundless ocean, a soothing current swept over towards her and enshrouded her, protecting her from the dreadful ocean waters and bringing relief to her aching bones and flesh.

    Finally, she came to her senses.

    When she first awakened, everything in front of her eyes still seemed like a blur, and she mistook her surroundings for that boundless ocean in her dreams.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her eyes, and her head turned slightly as she began to stir.

    ¡°You¡¯re awake? You¡¯ve been unconscious for several hours.¡± A deep voice rang out beside her, causing her to remove her hands from her eyes in bewilderment.

    ¡°Brother Rong?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡±

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo discovered her dark surroundings were a result of theck of sunlight around her. The sky outside her room had already darkened, and dusk had fallen. The candles in her room was unlit as well.

    As her eyes slowly limated to her dark surroundings, she began to notice Rong Ruihan seated quietly beside her.

    ¡°Brother Rong, what are you doing here?¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked curiously.

    ¡°Your parents have been watching over you for a long time. I took over their duties and told them to go have dinner first.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly exined.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly, ¡°Thanks, brother Rong.¡±

    Rong Ruihan looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as a swathe ofplicated emotions began to roil within him. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s radiant smile sent ripples going through his heart.

    ¡°No need to thank me. Between us...there¡¯s no need to be so formal.¡± Rong Ruihan spoke softly.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her hands and tried to sit up, but her arms were still extremely weak. Thus, she failed after several attempts.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes darkened. Then, he leaned over and supported Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders with both hands.

    Jun Xiaomo froze momentarily. She lifted her head, and her eyes immediately met with Rong Ruihan¡¯s deep, profound gaze. She could make out the fact that there wereplicated emotions within Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes ¨C emotions that she would rather not delve into.

    She lowered her eyes and chuckled lightly as she responded, ¡°I¡¯m really useless now, aren¡¯t I? I can¡¯t even sit up on my own, and I¡¯ve got to trouble brother Rong like this.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Rong Ruihan used a little bit more force and supported Jun Xiaomo as she finally sat up.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was tense and stiff. This was inplete contrast with how her body felt when Rong Ruihan carried her unconscious and unguarded body back from thepetition grounds. Rong Ruihan sighed in his heart. Even though he was reluctant, he released Jun Xiaomo from his grip.

    Would Jun Xiaomo be so tense and stiff if I were Ye Xiuwen? A thought crossed Rong Ruihan¡¯s mind, but he quickly shelved it.

    Rong Ruihan picked up a pillow and ced it behind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back so that she could lean backfortably on the pillow.

    After doing all this, the atmosphere in the room somehow began to feel somewhat tense and unbearable.

    ¡°Actually...now that I¡¯m awake and alright, brother Rong can also go have something to eat to fill your stomach.¡± Jun Xiaomo thought about it and began to persuade him.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. We can wait for senior Jun and his wife to return before I go.¡± Rong Ruihan immediately rejected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion, before asking with concern, ¡°Are you thirsty? Do you want to drink some water?¡±

    ¡°Ah? Oh...alright...alright then. Thanks.¡± Jun Xiaomo was taken aback by the sudden change in topic. Her earlier suggestion to let Rong Ruihan leave the room had thus been met with a dead end as well.

    Rong Ruihan filled a cup with tea and presented it to Jun Xiaomo.

    After receiving that ss of tea, Jun Xiaomo took a sip, and then continued to hold it gingerly in her hands.

    She looked down on the ripples on the surface of the tea in her cup, and her heart somehow began to surge withplicated emotions as well.

    ¡°Actually, there¡¯s no need for you to feel burdened by the actions on my part.¡± Rong Ruihan stretched out his arms and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯ll admit that my inclination towards you can¡¯t simply be exined by friendship. But no matter where these feelings of minee from, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that the things I cherish most are the times we¡¯ve shared while on the run together, as well as the precious friendship that we¡¯ve developed through the same. Therefore, I hope that you won¡¯t distance yourself from me just because of the fact that I¡¯ve got feeling for you, alright?¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong...I...¡± Jun Xiaomo had never expected Rong Ruihan to directly address the elephant in the room, and she waspletely caught off guard at this moment.

    Rong Ruihan sighed again, tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair once more, before he stood up and motioned to leave.

    ¡°Wait a minute, brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo grabbed onto his arm. Rong Ruihan lowered his head and met with a pair of guilt-stricken eyes, ¡°I...I didn¡¯t intend to distance myself from you. I only felt that it wouldn¡¯t be fair to you if I couldn¡¯t reciprocate your feelings towards me. I don¡¯t want to see you get hurt because of me.¡±

    Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair as he responded ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯ve never expected you to reciprocate my feelings just because I have feelings for you. Furthermore, I won¡¯t feel hurt if you are unable to reciprocate these feelings of mine. Rather, I find the prospects of having this friendship that I cherish so muchpletely uprooted and discarded more painful than anything else. Do you understand what I mean?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes began to grow red and puffy, and her heart began to ache with sourness.

    She gripped Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm tightly, ¡°I understand. I¡¯m sorry, brother Rong. I¡¯ve let my thoughts wander astray.¡±

    Rong Ruihan hugged Jun Xiaomo gently and patted her back. This time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body no longer stiffened and tensed up.

    Having noticed the change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disposition towards him, a trace of joy filled the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes once again.

    After releasing her from their embrace, Rong Ruihan lowered his head and looked straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, before he exined, ¡°This is just a normal, no-strings-attached hug between friends.¡±

    ¡°Pfft--!¡± Jun Xiaomo burst outughing because of Rong Ruihan¡¯s solemn and sincere expression. The sourness in her heart also dwindled substantially.

    She clenched a fist and punched Rong Ruihan¡¯s shoulder yfully, before adding, ¡°I know~ There¡¯s no need to exin this as well. You make it look like I treat you as a great scourge.¡±

    Rong Ruihan raised his eyebrow quizzically, ¡°But didn¡¯t you treat me like a great scourge earlier?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo revealed a bashful expression on her face. She brought her clenched fist to her mouth and coughed dryly into it as she made up an excuse, ¡°I¡¯d just awakened from my stupor and I couldn¡¯t think straight earlier. That¡¯s why my mind thoughts went astray.¡±

    Rong Ruihan smiled faintly. He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°It¡¯s fine, as long as your mind doesn¡¯t wander too far the next time. Otherwise, if you end up breaking my heart, you¡¯ll have no choice but to take responsibility and find a way to mend it back.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo burst out intoughter again. This was the first time she noticed that Rong Ruihan had aical side to him as well.

    In fact, the fact that Rong Ruihan maintained such a straight face when he joked made the entire scenario that much moreical.

    Having ovee this little knot in their rtionship, the little wall that Jun Xiaomo had subconsciously built up around her heart was now thoroughly demolished. The atmosphere between the two of them became harmonious and cordial again.

    In fact, it could be said that the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan had be better than it had ever been before.

    Seeing how Jun Xiaomo had returned to her usual, chirpy self, Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze softened, but his eyes deepened with increasing profundity.

    This was the result that he had hoped for...was it not?

    ¡°Oh yes, Xiaomo, do you know why you weren¡¯t able to arouse from your state ofatose?¡±

    After dissolving that knot in their rtionship, Rong Ruihan once again turned his attention to the condition of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    ¡°Comatose?¡± Jun Xiaomo deliberated for a moment, ¡°Maybe...it¡¯s because I¡¯m about to breakthrough to the next level of cultivation? During the battle earlier, I managed to ascend through the bottleneck of the fifth level of Qi Mastery, and I¡¯m ready to step into the sixth level of Qi Mastery.¡±

    ¡°Battle?¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows, ¡°Since you knew that you were about to breakthrough, why didn¡¯t you stop thepetition?¡±

    ¡°If I stopped in the midst of thepetition, then that would be giving up my right to participate, is it not?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly with helplessness.

    ¡°Absurd! How can you force the issue until thepetition ends? Do you know how dangerous that is?!¡± Rong Ruihan sternly chided.

    ¡°I know it¡¯s pretty dangerous, but I still...wanted to give it my best shot.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she responded remorsefully, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ve made everyone worry.¡±

    She knew that she must have worried all her friends and family while she was trapped in her state ofatose.

    She had resolved countless times not to let others worry for her any longer, but whenever push came to shove, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s restraint had always taken a backseat, and she would inadvertently cause others to worry for her time and again.

    Furthermore, the other main reason why this matter escted out of proportion was because of the nature of the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    It was neither demonic energy nor spiritual energy, and thus it was unable to draw in more from the surroundings on its own. In other words, if Jun Xiaomo were unable to consciously recite the mnemonic for transforming the surrounding energies to true energy, then the true energy within her body would not increase at all.

    Therefore, even though she had broken through duringbat, the risks of danger to life and limb were not high. The only cause for concern was how her shing, chaotic true energy would render her unconscious, which in turn meant that she would be unable to resolve and soothe the energy within her body.

    Just like what she had just been through.

    ¡°Xiaomo, the energy within your body isn¡¯t the same as ours, is it?¡± After a few moments of silence, Rong Ruihan got to the nub of the issue.

    ¡°Huh?¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head in shock. She had never expected Rong Ruihan to discover this anomaly within her body.

    Almost as though Rong Ruihan knew the questions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind right now, he continued, ¡°It¡¯s not just me who knows about this. Senior Jun has also discovered this anomaly. Because when both of us sent our spiritual energy and demonic energy through your body in turn, we received no reactions from your body whatsoever.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled helplessly, ¡°Brother Rong is formidable...That¡¯s right. This is a third kind of energy that is different from spiritual energy and demonic energy. I¡¯d only discovered it by chance, and it happened to be the most suitable for someone in my current condition.¡±

    She had fallen to He Zhang¡¯s schemes and acquired a demonic body. Yet she lived within the world of spiritual cultivators. Naturally, she could not disclose her identity as a demonic cultivator.

    If she were to avoid a tragic end like in her previous life, she had to continue to use spiritual energy, just like how she had done for now.

    See? Haven¡¯t I managed to avert He Zhang¡¯s schemes this time?

    ¡°Xiaomo, I don¡¯t know why your body would have this kind of energy within it, but I hope it won¡¯t cause any further damage to your body. After all, even old man Chi hasn¡¯t heard of this kind of energy before. Sometimes, the unknown is also a source of potential danger.¡± Rong Ruihan earnestly explicated as he cautioned.

    ¡°I understand, brother Rong. But don¡¯t worry, this energy isn¡¯t dangerous for now.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she consoled him.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes darkened. He hesitated for a moment again, before he pressed the issue, ¡°Xiaomo, can you tell me why you don¡¯t choose either spiritual energy or demonic energy, but you decided to pursue and use a third kind of unknown energy?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was dumbfounded by this question. She lowered her head and grimaced.

    Rong Ruihan had always known that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes would on asion reveal a sense of burden and heaviness that was notmensurate to someone of her age. This burden invariably left a sour feeling in his heart.

    Just like now, he could sense that there was an incredibly burden tucked away at a deep corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    And this corner of her heart was perhaps something that Jun Xiaomo had never revealed to anyone before, not even her parents.

    Just what kind of burden is this, that a young girl at the tender age of seventeen would have to bear on her own? Rong Ruihan truly wanted to know what it was. Therefore, he asked Jun Xiaomo directly.

    Will Jun Xiaomo answer me? Rong Ruihan waited expectantly.

    After a long time, Jun Xiaomo finally responded.

    ¡°Brother Rong, have you realized that my body also absorbs demonic energy? In fact, my affinity for demonic energy outweighs my affinity for spiritual energy.¡±

    Rong Ruihan remained taciturn, but Jun Xiaomo understood his response from the determined look in his eyes.

    After chuckling bitterly to herself, Jun Xiaomo continued, ¡°It wasn¡¯t always like this. But after I¡¯d trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, things began to change. My body could no longer absorb any spiritual energy, and it had instead begun to absorb demonic energy.¡±

    ¡°Acquired demonic body...¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes widened with a sense of revtion.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d acquired a demonic body. I discovered the fact that my body could no longer absorb spiritual energy earlier than my mother. My cultivation level could no longer increase, and I was stuck at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. Thus, I knew that I needed to change my refinement technique...¡± Jun Xiaomo did not exin how she hade across the Nineform Spirituo-Demonic Refinement Technique, but she briefly described the characteristics of true energy.

    ¡°In the end, I crippled my own cultivation and began to work my way up from the very beginning. This is also the reason why my cultivation is only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at Rong Ruihan with a smile, ¡°I¡¯d intended to bury these things in the depths of my heart, but since brother Rong had asked, then there¡¯s no reason for me to hide it any further. I trust brother Rong. I believe that you won¡¯t reveal these things to anyone else.¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart ached ¨C he had never experienced for himself the pain of crippling his own cultivation, but he could only imagine how excruciating the pain must have been.

    Just how dreadful must the circumstances be if Jun Xiaomo had had to make such a decision at such an early age?

    Then, he was reminded of what Dai Yue had said ¨C the Heavenly Peak was surrounded by covetous schemers on all four sides. Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart sank, and he began to realize that this issue was only the tip of the iceberg.

    ¡°Is your acquisition of the demonic body rted to He Zhang¡¯s schemes?¡± Rong Ruihan looked sullenly at Jun Xiaomo as he queried.

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily stunned, before she grimaced as she responded, ¡°I never thought that brother Rong would¡¯ve guessed as much.¡±

    She knew that she could never tell her parents or her martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak because they might very possibly confront He Zhang in a fit of anger.

    But Rong Ruihan was different. Jun Xiaomo believed in Rong Ruihan¡¯s stoicism and rationality. Furthermore, this was a thing of the past as well. There was no meaning in pursuing it any further.

    As expected, Rong Ruihan¡¯s expressions only darkened and grew more frigid, but there was no trace of urgency for vengeance that surfaced in his expressions at all.

    That said, after another period of silent deliberation, Rong Ruihan made a bold and outrageous suggestion to Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo, have you ever considered asking senior Jun to establish his own sect?¡±

 Chapter 186: Jun Linxuanâ€™s Infuriated Rejection

    <h4>Chapter 186: Jun Linxuan¡¯s Infuriated Rejection</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°...Establish a new sect?¡± These words somehow wormed their way into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, and her heart skipped a beat.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Establish a new sect.¡± Rong Ruihan nodded. He could see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly widened eyes, and he thought that Jun Xiaomo found his suggestion rather uneptable. Therefore, he began to break down his rationale to her ¨C

    ¡°It seems that there¡¯s no longer a ce for the Heavenly Peak in the Dawn Sect under He Zhang¡¯s leadership. He Zhang is an ambitious man. If he fails once, he will persist in making a second attempt, and then a third, and it will go on and on. He will undoubtedly seed at least once if you give him a thousand tries. On the other hand, it¡¯s only going to get increasingly more difficult for you to thwart each and every attempt of his. They¡¯re engaging you in gueri warfare, while you are exposed in the open. It¡¯s practically impossible to keep defending like this. Thus, rather than staying within the sect and acting like a pincushion, why not leave the Dawn Sect behind and establish a new sect? This might not necessarily be a bad thing for the Heavenly Peak¡¯s development. At the very least, you won¡¯t be used by others anymore.¡±

    After skipping another beat, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to thump with excitement, and it beat faster, and faster...

    That¡¯s right! Why didn¡¯t I think of this before?!

    Ever since she had been reborn, she had only been thinking of how to take up countermeasures against He Zhang¡¯s schemes and ploys, but she had never thought about actively changing the rules of their engagement. Furthermore, the only reason why she had not thoroughly stripped off all pretenses and ceased feigning civility entirely was because the Heavenly Peak was still considered to be part of the Dawn Sect.

    But in reality, Jun Xiaomo had no longer considered herself a part of the Dawn Sect.

    If the Heavenly Peak found another location to establish their own Sect, He Zhang might not be able to stretch his scheming hands all the way across the physical chasm and reach into the Dawn Sect¡¯s pockets any longer.

    And even if He Zhang continued to plot against them at that time, she could openly hack away at his arms whenever he sought to reach into their pockets. They would no longer need to be as restrained as they were right now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes glistened brilliantly, and the weakness in her body apanying her chaotic, shing true energy waspletely swept away to the back of her mind.

    ¡°Brother Rong, you couldn¡¯t be more spot on! There¡¯s no reason for us to remain so passive in this matter! My approach has been all wrong...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed as her attention to other issues, ¡°But that said, establishing a new sect isn¡¯t easy as well. We need resources, manpower, spirit stones, territory...and we even need some massive formation arrays for our own protection. Sigh. It¡¯s not going to be easy when you think about it.¡±

    ¡°When there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way, is it not? As long as you have a goal, then no matter how difficult that goal and how arduous the journey, you just need to keep forging ahead to that goal and you¡¯ll eventually reach it.¡± A trace of joy and praise for Jun Xiaomo shed across the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes, before he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°I didn¡¯t think that such a little brat like you would have thought of all these little details. At least you¡¯re not dazed by my suggestion at all.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found herself slightly speechless by the way Rong Ruihan was treating her. If one counted the age of her soul, could she really be called a ¡°little brat¡±? Perhaps the title of an ¡°old monster¡± might be far more suitable for her.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s expression looked almost like that of a teacher that was speaking to his students. Thus, when Jun Xiaomo thought about the vast difference in the age of their souls, she couldn¡¯t help but burst outughing.

    Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows curiously, ¡°Did I say anything funny?¡±

    ¡°Cough...cough cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly as she attempted to adjust her expressions, ¡°No you didn¡¯t. It¡¯s just that brother Rong ispletely right. We have to continue forging ahead to that goal of ours, and not be overly bothered or distracted about the little intricacies.¡±

    Despite her contrived exnation, Rong Ruihan knew that Jun Xiaomo was still suppressing herughter within. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were still slightly curled at its ends, while her eyes were glistening with traces of tears as a result of stifling herughter.

    Rong Ruihan suddenly had the urge to stretch his hand out and wipe away the tears from the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes and then lightly kiss each of those bright, sparkling eyes of hers.

    But he could not. At least, not now. He wanted more than anything to carefully preserve the precious friendship between them.

    Forget it. It¡¯s such a rare sight to see herughing so carefreely. Let¡¯s not think about these upsetting thoughts either. Rong Ruihan thought to himself as his eyes darkened momentarily.

    ¡°If there¡¯s anything else that troubles you, don¡¯t bottle it up within your heart. Youcan always tell brother Rong, alright? You¡¯re not fighting this war alone. You¡¯ve got your parents; you¡¯ve got your martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak; and even old man Chi and your little packrat would be happy to extend a helping hand if you requested their aid.¡± Rong Ruihan rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair gently.

    A sense of warmth swept across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Mm, alright. Thanks, brother Rong.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes curled up into a squinch, and her face was filled with a blissful expression.

    Thus, the idea of establishing a new sect took root in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    However, she could never have expected that the first person to obstruct such an idea would be her very own father, Jun Linxuan.

    ¡°Establishing another sect? Don¡¯t be absurd!¡± Jun Linxuan mmed on the table and barked with furrowed brows.

    He had just returned with his wife Liu Qingmei after a quick meal in the inn, and they discovered that their daughter was now awake. Just as they sighed with relief, their daughter suddenly broached a ridiculous suggestion, thereby inciting a swathe of rage in their hearts ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo, when will you mature and grow up, huh?! You always make your parents worry for you. Is establishing another sect something you can speak of so trivially? How do you think they will treat the Heavenly Peak if others within the sect overhears these suggestions?!¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re already targeting and bullying the Heavenly Peak even though they haven¡¯t heard anything in this regard...¡± Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips as she said with an aggrieved expression in her eyes.

    ¡°This is just a small dispute within the Sect, and it hasn¡¯t escted to the point of no return.¡± Jun Linxuan chided her, ¡°Xiaomo, you have to understand that establishing another sect isn¡¯t something you can casually speak of like that. Otherwise, the Sect will begin to treat us as though we have an ulterior motive, and they will think of a way of casting us aside.¡±

    ¡°I understand all these! That¡¯s why I¡¯m suggesting this matter only to the two of you.¡± The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes began to redden as she retorted.

    ¡°Mo-Mo, you still don¡¯t understand what your father is saying.¡± Liu Qingmei sighed as she supplemented, ¡°Even though the environment within the Sect doesn¡¯t seem too great right now, this is still something that can happen within any sect. The sh of opinion and personalities is something that will dilute over time and resolve themselves naturally. Conversely, actively choosing to establish a sect of our own is tantamount to expressly going against the Sect. Once that happens, there will no longer be any hope of mending rtionships within the Sect, and we might even find ourselves isted and surrounded by enemies without any help. Silly child, do you understand now?¡±

    ¡°Resolve themselves naturally?¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s silhouette surfaced in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind once more, and a drop of tear fell from her eyes, ¡°Father, mother, do you think there¡¯s any hope of resolving this enmity and hostility with the rest of the Sect? Have you already forgotten how these people had treated martial brother Ye and I while we were on the travels? You harp on the importance of sect fraternity; but what about them? Do you think that these are the kinds of people who would simply look past your differences and amend rtions willingly?!¡±

    No! There was no chance of that! She knew because she had already experienced it all in herst life. That was a nightmare ¨C a horrific nightmare that had forever etched itself in the depths of her memories.

    If Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei could not steel their resolve and wholeheartedly pit themselves against the Dawn Sect, then it was only going to be a matter of time before they fall prey to He Zhang¡¯s schemes once and for all.

    And there was still the matter with Ye Xiuwen. If not for the fact that Qin Lingyu and the other disciples had time and again lured the Grand Vizier to their location, they might never have been forced to the site where the Death¡¯s Gorge was located.

    In her previous life, her martial brother Ye had clearly returned back to the Sect safely...

    Jun Xiaomo hugged her knees and buried her head into her arms. Tears burst out of her eyes like a broken dam, and she choked and sputtered as she bawled incessantly, unable to speak another word with coherence.

    The atmosphere in the room grew thick and sullen.

    Jun Linxuan knitted his eyebrows, and his lips twitched, as though he was about to rebuke her. However, his wife caught him and restrained him.

    ¡°Enough, Linxuan. Let Mo-Mo be alone for a while. We can discuss this matter in greater detailter. She¡¯s juste to her senses, and it¡¯s not good to let her emotions run wild like that.¡± Liu Qingmei persuaded.

    She knew that her daughter was extremely close to Ye Xiuwen. Thus, her emotions would explode out of control every time Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance was mentioned.

    How could Liu Qingmei not feel for her daughter when she saw her acting like that?

    Sigh, forget it. She¡¯s not a daft kid anyway. She¡¯lle to her senses and see things from our perspective eventually. Saying too much all at once might be counterproductive instead. Liu Qingmei concluded in her heart. In the end, she dragged her husband and left the room without saying more to her daughter, leaving Jun Xiaomo to her own thoughts in her room.

    The door opened, and then it shut again. Jun Xiaomo waspletely immersed in her own thoughts and emotions, and she did not notice her parents leave her room at all.

    Thus, when she finally noticed the aura of a person beside her, she thought that it was Jun Linxuan or Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Father? Mother?¡± Jun Xiaomo had managed to collect and suppress most of her roiling emotions, and she lifted her head and opened her tear-stained eyes once more.

    In the dimly illuminated room and with her hazy, tear-stained eyes, she noticed a vague silhouette of Rong Ruihan¡¯s tall and burly body.

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly lowered her head again and wiped off the tears in her eyes. Then, she looked up again and forced a smile to her face as she remarked bashfully, ¡°I¡¯ve made a fool of myself in front of brother Rong.¡±

    Rong Ruihan patted her head and replied genially, ¡°I take it that senior Jun and his wife didn¡¯t take the suggestion of establishing a new sect very well?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes darkened once more, ¡°That¡¯s right. They think that I¡¯m being ridiculous...perhaps I¡¯m really always making people worry, aren¡¯t I? My willfulness means that I¡¯m always doing something that worries them...¡±

    She revealed a bitter smile on her face.

    ¡°Compared with some of the other cultivators around, I think that Xiaomo is already extremely independent. It¡¯s just that faced with the same problem, you¡¯ve got your own way of dealing with it, while they also have their own ways of dealing with it as well. When both perspectives of the problem and solution are not aligned, you¡¯ll naturally experience a sh of opinions. This has nothing to do with your willfulness.¡± Rong Ruihan patted her shoulders and consoled her.

    ¡°How is it that brother Rong is always so good at consoling someone?¡± The smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was far less agonized than before.

    ¡°What I¡¯m saying is the truth. Xiaomo, you¡¯re not the same person as your parents, and there¡¯s no need to convince them of your perspective all the time. As long as you¡¯re convicted that your way is the best way forward, then forge ahead and pursue it. Of course, this will have to be to the exclusion of anything that endangers your own life. Just like how you forced the issue with thispetition despite being on the brink of a breakthrough ¨C this is something that I wouldn¡¯t agree with either.¡± Rong Ruihan explicated with seriousness.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled, ¡°Then I won¡¯t be as reckless next time then.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s leave the that aside for now. As for establishing a new sect...¡± Rong Ruihan thought for a moment, ¡°Actually, Xiaomo, you don¡¯t have to be so anxious about getting your parents to see eye to eye with you for now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was stunned, ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Rong Ruihan exined his enigmatic observation, ¡°You¡¯re also aware of the fact that your parents were also disciples of the Dawn Sect when they were younger. Even though there¡¯s an irreconcble difference between your parents and the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders, they still very much treat Dawn Sect at their home. Deep in their hearts, they¡¯re hoping that this conflict is only something small that time will heal. At the very least, they don¡¯t see this as a life-threatening conflict. Therefore, it¡¯s not going to be easy to make them want to leave this ¡®home¡¯ of theirs.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo responded with some measure of exasperation, ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m afraid that this is the main reason why father was extremely resistant to my earlier suggestion. He¡¯s a cultivation fanatic through and through, and he rarely thinks about the intricacies and nuances of politics, and schemes and plots alike. Even though I find that He Zhang¡¯s intentions against the Heavenly Peak are already incredibly obvious, I¡¯m pretty sure father still sees this as nothing more than a minor internal strife within the Sect. But if this were truly only a minor internal strife, then why would He Zhang force us Heavenly Peak disciples to a corner, and even to the point of death?¡±

    Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder reassuringly as he further explicated, ¡°That¡¯s right. Besides, setting up the Sect is no simple matter. You¡¯ll need manpower, resources, territories, etc. Someone will have to undertake this groundwork no matter what. Rather than spend your time and energy trying to convince your parents of your perspective, wouldn¡¯t you say that your time would be more well spentying this groundwork in the dark? This way, you¡¯ll most certainly be able to conceal all of this from He Zhang and the rest, and they won¡¯t be able to thwart your efforts in this regard as well.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened, ¡°Brother Rong makes sense.¡±

    Seeing that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes was once again filled with spirit, Rong Ruihan curled his lips into a smile as he added, ¡°As for such groundwork preparations, there¡¯s no need to even let your parents know about these things, much less seek their approval in that regard. In fact, keeping the groundwork hidden from your parents might trante to less clues for He Zhang to pick up on. This might not necessarily be a bad thing.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true as well.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed, ¡°Father wears his heart on his sleeves after all. If he really intends to leave Dawn Sect and establish another sect of his own, He Zhang might very quickly learn of it and instigate the entire Sect to oppress his efforts. But on the other hand, would I really be able tomence with the groundwork without my parents¡¯ participation?¡±

    After all, establishing another sect was a big thing. How could a measly cultivator at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation achieve something as grand as that?

    ¡°Don¡¯t you still have me, the little packrat and his n?¡± Rong Ruihan flicked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead, ¡°And there¡¯s still my master. As the n head of a Hidden Sect, he can¡¯t bepletely uninformed about such things, right? Do you think that you won¡¯t be able to do anything, even with his help, hmm?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her forehead as she smiled sheepishly, ¡°Seems like I¡¯ll have to trouble brother Rong again, then...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m happy to help.¡± Rong Ruihan tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair again.

    Jun Xiaomo looked back up at Rong Ruihan and smiled at him. Her heart was now much more at ease.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, the first round ofpetition for the Lower Category battles are ending soon. Xiaomo might very soon have to participate in the second round of battles. Don¡¯t brood over these things in the few days. You should take the time to focus on stabilizing your cultivation instead.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had technically already broken through to the sixth level of Qi Mastery ever since herst battle, and the imperative thing to do was to stabilize her cultivation level. Otherwise, the true energy might run wild and chaotic during her next battle again.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she responded, ¡°Mm, I¡¯ve got it. I¡¯ll definitely work hard at it.¡±

    If things were truly as Liang Yulong had suggested, then Dai Yue would have bribed a referee and ensured that her next battle would be against Dai Yue. This was not necessarily a bad thing.

    At the very least, she did not intend to lose to Dai Yue no matter what!

 Chapter 187: Rong Ruihan Undermines He Zhangâ€™s Plans

    <h4>Chapter 187: Rong Ruihan Undermines He Zhang¡¯s ns</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo spent three full days and nights before she managed to finally stabilize her condition at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Then, her second battle in thepetition arrived two days thereafter.

    On the morning of her battle, Jun Xiaomo woke up and washed up earlier than usual. Then, she arrived at the great hall of her inn, hoping to find a quiet corner to settle down at.

    Since it was still earlier than usual, there were not many people in the great hall. The only reason why Jun Xiaomo had woken up so early was so that she could ensure that she was thoroughly prepared for her battle today.

    Thus, she did not expect to see Rong Ruihan already awake and seated by the window-side, sipping a cup of tea all by himself. Several guests couldn¡¯t help but steal nces at him when they noticed his suave and elegant disposition.

    ¡°Brother Rong, you¡¯re early today.¡± Jun Xiaomo walked over to Rong Ruihan¡¯s table and sat across him.

    Rong Ruihan smiled faintly. Instantly, several youngdies who were stealing nces at him flushed with embarrassment as they gazed in astonishment at how this cold and suave man had such a warm and soft side to him as well. Unfortunately, he seems to have a partner already... They looked at Jun Xiaomo as they thought to themselves dejectedly.

    Jun Xiaomo nced around at her surroundings as she poured herself a cup of tea. Then, she teased with a soft voice, ¡°Brother Rong, did you wake up so early so that you could be an eye candy for other people here? There are several others here who are staring at you.¡±

    Bemused, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes flickered slightly, before he lowered his eyes as he remained taciturn.

    After pausing for a moment, Rong Ruihan took another sip of his tea before he cidly retorted, ¡°Then am I considered an eye candy to you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had been drinking her tea when he had asked this question, and she nearly choked on her tea.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...¡± She looked up and denounced Rong Ruihan¡¯s untimely response, ¡°Brother Rong, are you doing this on purpose?¡±

    He must have been waiting for her to drink her tea before rendering her speechless with such a peculiar response.

    ¡°Am I considered an eye candy to you?¡± Rong Ruihan asked again. Even though there was a faint smile on his face, his eyes were filled with earnest.

    ¡°Cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed into her fist, before she stuck out her thumb proudly and responded with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Brother Rong is suave and charming, elegant and distinguished. There¡¯s no better eye candy than you.¡±

    Rong Ruihan knew that Jun Xiaomo had purposefully exaggerated her response, but he nevertheless weed herpliments. His smile widened as he casually remarked, ¡°Thank you for yourpliments. I think so as well.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nearly choked at Rong Ruihan¡¯s casual remark again, and she decried his behaviour, ¡°Brother Rong, I never knew there would be times when you would be so thick-skinned too.¡±

    Rong Ruihan smiled, but he grew taciturn as he tacitly agreed with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s observations.

    Just then, a waiter interjected as he served food to the table, ¡°Dear guests, your buns, porridge and other dishes are here! Please enjoy...¡±

    ¡°This...isn¡¯t this a little bit too much?¡± Jun Xiaomo stared in horror at the amount of food served by the waiter.

    ¡°It¡¯s not too much. It¡¯s for two people after all.¡± Rong Ruihan exined.

    ¡°Two people?¡± Jun Xiaomo was taken aback.

    ¡°I knew you would wake up early today, so I¡¯ve taken the liberty to order two portions of breakfast. This way, you¡¯ll be able to eat once you¡¯ve arrived, and there won¡¯t be a need to wait for too long.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo froze momentarily, but she soon began to understand the rationale for his actions ¨C Perhaps Rong Ruihan is afraid that He Zhang would spike my food again this morning, so he came especially early to order breakfast on my behalf so that He Zhang wouldn¡¯t have the opportunity to make a move, right?

    After all, there was no way He Zhang would have known that Rong Ruihan would be at the great hall early just so he could order breakfast for Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case...then I¡¯ve got to thank brother Rong for your efforts.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly at Rong Ruihan as she sighed helplessly in her heart.

    She was beginning to owe this man more and more despite the fact that they only im to be no more than friends.

    In fact, things were as they had expected. When Jun Xiaomo first made her way to the great hall, He Zhang had already been secretly following her under the cover of an Invisibility Talisman, hoping to find the right opportunity to spike Jun Xiaomo¡¯s food with more Bedeviled Grass. But he had never expected Jun Xiaomo to share a meal with Rong Ruihan. Furthermore, Rong Ruihan had already ordered the food for Jun Xiaomo beforehand.

    This had essentially denied He Zhang the prime opportunity to spike her food. After all, he had intended to momentarily stun the waiter before stirring the powdered Bedeviled Grass into her porridge.

    He Zhang gnashed his teeth furiously as he cursed Rong Ruihan for thwarting his ns.

    Then, his eyes flickered, and he thought of another n.

    He Zhang secretly left the great hall and went back upstairs to the third floor where all of the Heavenly Peak disciples were located.

    He was still under the cover of the Invisibility Talisman. Given his high cultivation level, there was not a single person there who noticed He Zhang sneaking around on the third floor at this moment. Most of the disciples were still fast asleep.

    Within the blink of an eye, He Zhang slipped into a room, before pasting a Noise-Cancelling Talisman on the door of the room.

    In this room, there was a disciple whoy fast asleep on his bed as he snored loudly.

    He Zhang crept up to that disciple, gently drew the bed curtains and revealed Wei Gang¡¯s tender face. He slept with his limbs spread wide open on the bed, and he even smacked his lips from time to time. It was evident that he was deep in slumber right now.

    He Zhang chuckled coldly. He knew that such unsuspecting victims were the easiest targets to manipte.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Wei Gang stretched himself, as though he was about to awaken. He Zhang tensed up immediately. He quickly grabbed a Drowsiness Talisman from his Interspatial Ring and pped it on Wei Gang¡¯s forehead.

    Poor Wei Gang. He was midway through his stretch when the Drowsiness Talisman hit his forehead, and he limply copsed back onto the bed as he fell back into a deep sleep.

    He Zhang retrieved that pack of powdered Bedeviled Grass and a recovery pill. Then, he began tobine the two together with the infusion of his spiritual energy until they were finallybined together into a singr medicinal pill.

    This was a rare fifth-grade recovery pill, even by the standards of the contents of He Zhang¡¯s Interspatial Ring. He found it almost a waste to use it on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    But he knew that this could be considered an investment. As long as Jun Xiaomo consumed this medicinal pill when she was injured, then there was no way that the demonic energy within her body would not erupt uncontrobly.

    As he thought about this, a vicious smile crept up the corner of He Zhang¡¯s lips, as though he was already victorious.

    He ced the recovery pill into an exquisite jade bottle, before cing the same jade bottle gingerly by Wei Gang¡¯s pillow. Then, he retrieved a Confusion Talisman and a Hypnotic Talisman and applied both onto Wei Gang¡¯s head.

    After doing so, he leaned over beside Wei Gang¡¯s ear and he craftily began to fill Wei Gang¡¯s mind with how he came to obtain this pill ¨C in his dreams, Wei Gang dreamt that he had somehow obtained an invaluable recovery pill, and he ran excitedly to present this as a gift to Jun Xiaomo.

    Under the effects of the Confusion Talisman and the Hypnotic Talisman, Wei Gang would muddleheadedlyply with He Zhang¡¯s simple suggestions. When he woke up, he would naturally think of a way to hand that invaluable recovery pill to Jun Xiaomo and persuade her to consume it during her battle.

    At the same time, Jun Linxuan would never suspect He Zhang if something happened to Jun Xiaomo. After all, the ¡°culprit¡± was none other than the Heavenly Peak¡¯s youngest disciple, Wei Gang.

    He Zhang chuckled coldly as he straightened his back and tore off the Drowsiness Talisman from Wei Gang¡¯s head.

    As for the Confusion Talisman and the Hypnotic Talisman, these had already seeped into Wei Gang¡¯s body as soon as they had been applied.

    Within a few moments, Wei Gang¡¯s room door opened quietly, and then it shut again.

    On the bed, the tender-faced Wei Gang yawned a few times before he slowly got out of bed.

    Then, the jade bottle beside his pillow caught his eye. Wei Gang¡¯s eyes brightened as he smacked his head, ¡°That¡¯s right! I¡¯d wanted to give this recovery pill to martial sister yesterday. I¡¯d actually forgotten all about it! This won¡¯t do. I¡¯ve got to get it to martial sister before thepetition begins!¡±

    He Zhang stood surreptitiously outside his door as he used his divine sense to observe Wei Gang¡¯s actions. As soon as he heard Wei Gang¡¯s exmation, He Zhang revealed a wicked smile with absolute delight, before promptly slipping away. He left no traces, and nobody knew that he had ever been around Wei Gang at all.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo had just finished eating, and she began to chat heartily with Rong Ruihan.

    She rested her chin on her palms as her almond-shaped eyes nced over towards the stairwell some distance away. She wondered what He Zhang was going to do now, given that Rong Ruihan had denied him of any opportunity of spiking her food.

    She was curious as to what form and what means He Zhang was going to use to deliver the powdered Bedeviled Grass to her hands.

    Just then, Qin Lingyu appeared on the other end of the staircase. Jun Xiaomozily nced up, and their eyes coincidentally met.

    Just like that, the ex-fianc¨¦-fianc¨¦e couple locked eyes with each other momentarily. One remainedpletely expressionless, while the other revealed an indifferent expression with a frigid gaze in her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo was the first one to shift her attention away. After all, she waspletely disinterested in Qin Lingyu right now. In fact, she might even find herself nauseated if she continued staring at Qin Lingyu for no reason.

    ¡°Xiaomo, have some tea.¡± Rong Ruihan filled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cup with some tea and sessfully brought her attention away from Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she thanked him, before bringing her teacup to her lips and taking a small sip out of the cup.

    Yet Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze remained transfixed on Jun Xiaomo. In the glimmer of dawn, Jun Xiaomo was dressed in striking red as shenguidly leaned her chin onto her palms. Her beautiful eyshes cast a faint shadow over her doleful eyes, deepening her gaze; and she wore a faint smile on her lips which glistened brilliantly after sipping her tea. Her lips were like the radiant pink petals of a pretty flower that gleamed with morning dew, causing a person to want to...touch it, feel it, and then pluck it from the stem and y with it.

    It¡¯s still the same person, but how could she have transformed so much over the course of only one year?

    Furthermore, even though she was aggressive and imposing duringbat, she was like apletely different person outside ofbat. Every single move she made was filled with such an enticing and alluring disposition, as though she were silently but surely luring her enemies into a trap specially craft for them.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions darkened and grew sullen.

    ¡°Martial brother Lingyu, why are you standing here in a daze?¡± A coquettish voice resounded from behind him, jolting Qin Lingyu back to his senses.

    ¡°Nothing much.¡± Qin Lingyu shifted his gaze away, before turning back to face Yu Wanrou, ¡°You¡¯re up early today.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I couldn¡¯t really sleep in for some reason.¡± Yu Wanrou red at Qin Lingyu with an aggrieved and annoyed look.

    Last night, she had thought of an excuse to ask Qin Lingyu to spend the night with her. Yet in the end, Qin Lingyu curtly rejected her on the pretext of the inconveniences of being out in public.

    Truth be told, it had been quite some time since theyst spent the night together, and she missed Qin Lingyu¡¯s strong and secure embrace.

    A sense of weariness swelled up from the depths of Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, but he nevertheless smiled warmly at Yu Wanrou as he remarked, ¡°You must be homesick. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯ll get better once you limatize and get used to this ce.¡±

    In other words, he would satiate Yu Wanrou¡¯s desires after this period of time.

    Yu Wanrou smiled bashfully, before ncing at where Jun Xiaomo was seated out of the corner of her eye. A frigid, vicious intent shed across the depths of her eyes.

 Chapter 188: The Much-Anticipated Battle

    <h4>Chapter 188: The Much-Anticipated Battle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Given that He Zhang had been unable to spike her food, Jun Xiaomo had initially expected He Zhang to send Qin Lingyu to personally see that Jun Xiaomo somehow consumes the Bedeviled Grass. Yet all Qin Lingyu did was to greet her from afar before slipping over to a table some distance away. There were over ten tables separating Jun Xiaomo¡¯s seat and where Qin Lingyu had plonked down at, and there was practically no way he would be able to make a move in the circumstances.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo continued to tap her lower lip with her index finger as she contemted how He Zhang was going to make his next move.

    Sigh. It¡¯s really terrible that my opponents are moving in the dark while their schemes are looming over my head. How great would it be if we could just separate ourselves from these troublesome people! Jun Xiaomo eximed in her heart.

    Just then, a young man¡¯s crisp voice shattered the tranquility of the great hall ¨C

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo--!¡± His voice preceded his physical appearance. The young man who had just appeared was none other than the youngest and most mischievous of the Heavenly Peak disciples, Wei Gang. He ran down the stairs three steps at a time and sped over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side like a little whirlwind.

    As a result of his boisterous attitude, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s table attracted even more attention from the rest of the great hall. Most of this attentionnded directly on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    Naturally, there were other looks thatnded directly on the source of themotion, Wei Gang. But in contrast with Rong Ruihan, these people looked at Wei Gang only with contempt or with derision.

    Jun Xiaomo flicked Wei Gang¡¯s forehead as she rebuked him, ¡°You little monkey. Can¡¯t you behave yourself when you¡¯re travelling outside the Sect?¡±

    ¡°Aiyah, a leopard can¡¯t change its spots on short notice.¡± Wei Gang minced his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side as he retorted with a mischievous smile on his face.

    ¡°Oh yes, martial sister, this is a recovery pill that I happened toe across. It¡¯s extremely good stuff! I¡¯ve only got one pill left, and I¡¯d like you to have it so that you won¡¯t be disadvantaged against the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Dai Yue.¡± As Wei Gang finished his introduction of the pill, he presented the little jade bottle to Jun Xiaomo.

    A sense of warmth swept over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart as she chuckled heartily, ¡°It¡¯s that good? Why not keep it for your own use then? Martial sister doesn¡¯tck recovery pills at all.¡±

    ¡°Aiyah, this pill can¡¯t bepared with those normal recovery medicine of yours. Besides, I¡¯m not entering thepetition anyway, so there¡¯s no danger to life and limb on my part. I think martial sister needs this more than I do.¡± Wei Gang casually picked up a leftover bun lying on the table and stuffed it into his mouth as he spokeckadaisically.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously as she received the jade bottle from Wei Gang¡¯s hands. As she opened the bottle cap, she remarked, ¡°Alright. I want to see for myself just how special this recovery pill is.¡±

    Then, as soon as she opened that bottle cap, a thick waft of medicinal fragrance diffused into the surrounding air. However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted immediately.

    Great medicine. It was a high-quality pill indeed. One could immediately tell from the waft of thick medicinal fragrance that the quality of this medicinal pill was at least of the fourth-grade, superior tier. However, the reason why Jun Xiaomo had frozen in shock was because there was another type of aroma that was mixed with the medicinal fragrance that had wafted out earlier.

    It was faint, but it was unmistakably the aroma of the Bedeviled Grass.

    If Jun Xiaomo were only a seventeen years-old cultivator through and through, she might bepletely unaware of what the Bedeviled Grass was, much less pick up on the faint scent of it within the medicinal fragrance of this pill.

    But having lived for an entire lifetime as a demonic cultivator, she was incredibly familiar with the unmistakable fragrance of the Bedeviled Grass. This was particrly because she had on several asions in her previous life fallen prey to schemes involving the Bedeviled Grass. From then on, she learnt to be vignt about the Bedeviled Grass andmitted its unique aroma to her memory.

    Thus, no matter how faint it was, she would be able to distinguish the fragrance of the Bedeviled Grass even if it was mixed into the strongest smelling of foods.

    Given her body¡¯s current condition, the Bedeviled Grass was of no threat to her. However, what she was more concerned about was how her little martial brother came to possession of this medicinal pill that had Bedeviled Grass mixed into it.

    Could martial brother Wei be...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to thump ferociously as she shut her eyes in dismay.

    No. Little Lang would never betray the Heavenly Peak. In my previous life, Little Lang had fended off the assants to the bitter end, and I saw him fall to the ground lifelessly with my very own eyes. How could he have possibly betrayed the Heavenly Peak?

    Rong Ruihan had also picked up on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s peculiar behaviour. He furrowed his brows and prompted with concern, ¡°Xiaomo?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes once more and fervently suppressed her roiling emotions as she shook her head at Rong Ruihan and chuckled, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. Brother Rong doesn¡¯t have to be too worried.¡±

    ¡°Your face looks a little bit pale. Are you feeling ufortable somewhere?¡± Rong Ruihan still did not feel at ease with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing...I¡¯m only...just a little bit dazed.¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated before responding.

    ¡°Eh? Martial sister, are you feeling ufortable?¡± Wei Gang had been heartily gobbling down the food at the table, and it was only when Rong Ruihan pointed it out that he began to notice the peculiar expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    Jun Xiaomo turned around and looked straight into Wei Gang¡¯s eyes. In his eyes, she could not see any traces of scheming nor guilty conscience.

    His eyes were as clear as pristine waters. His innermost thoughts were clear for all to see.

    Something must have gone wrong somewhere. A suspicion arose from the bottom of her heart as she began to rify with Wei Gang, ¡°Little Lang, you mentioned earlier that you¡¯ve ¡®happened toe across this medicine¡¯. Do you remember the exact circumstances under which you came across this medicinal pill?¡±

    ¡°Ah? This...¡± Wei Gang froze for a moment as he thought extremely hard about it. Then, he scratched his head in confusion, ¡°Eh? That¡¯s strange. I really can¡¯t recall how I¡¯ve managed toe across and obtain this medicinal pill...¡±

    ¡°Then do you remember when you¡¯ve used the other medicinal pills in this bottle of pills?¡± Jun Xiaomo pressed the issue further.

    Wei Gang continued to scratch his head, before he began to mumble to himself, ¡°I really can¡¯t remember. My memory¡¯s all hazy. It¡¯s strange...where have I used these pills before...¡±

    At this moment, a sense of realization washed over Jun Xiaomo. At the same time, her fingers tightened around the jade bottle in her hands in fury ¨C

    He...Zhang! How dare you use the Heavenly Peak¡¯s disciples to execute your nefarious schemes! If not for the fact that my body¡¯s demonic energy had already been transformed into true energy; and if not for the fact that I¡¯ve got at least eighty percent confidence in Wei Gang¡¯s pure personality, wouldn¡¯t you have seeded in creating an irreparable rift within the Heavenly Peak?!

    After all, once her body¡¯s demonic energy erupts uncontrobly, her father Jun Linxuan would naturallye under close scrutiny and even persecution of all spiritual cultivators, particrly when the person who had caused her body¡¯s demonic energy to erupt was none other than the little martial brother of the Heavenly Peak, Wei Gang.

    With such a n, He Zhang couldpletely dissociate himself from the entire matter and not arouse anyone¡¯s suspicions at all. Conversely, others might even begin to allege that the Heavenly Peak was filled with internal strife. At that time, Jun Linxuan might even explode his fury and direct his rage towards the innocent Wei Gang for triggering the entire debacle.

    What a n. What a schemer, He Zhang!

    And even though Jun Xiaomo had not witnessed with her own eyes how He Zhang had deceived Wei Gang into doing his bidding, she could nevertheless roughly guess what he had done. After all, her knowledge of the discipline of talismans was hardly any lower than He Zhang¡¯s.

    ¡°Xiaomo, what¡¯s the matter? Something wrong with the medicinal pill?¡± Rong Ruihan inferred from the expressions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    ¡°No, there¡¯s nothing wrong with the medicine.¡± Jun Xiaomo collected her thoughts and smiled at Rong Ruihan and Wei Gang as she added, ¡°This medicinal pill is of a high quality indeed! Little Lang has been of a big help this time.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Is that right? I¡¯m d that I was able to help out then!¡± Wei Gang chuckled heartily,pletely oblivious to the fact that he had almost severely tripped up his dear martial sister.

    A helpless smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips as she continued to watch Wei Gang¡¯s carefree and boisterousughter. She shook her head, and she heaved a sigh of relief in her heart ¨C It¡¯s a good thing that my little martial brother hasn¡¯t changed at all.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyebrows were still tightly knitted together. After all, he could tell from Wei Gang¡¯s description of the medicinal pill that its origins were absolutely unclear and unknown.

    He sincerely cautioned Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Don¡¯t consume this medicine unless it¡¯s absolutely necessary. It would be wise to remain vignt.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled with appreciation, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, brother Rong. I understand.¡±

    She had resolved in her heart that she would find the most appropriate time to consume this medicinal pill so as to take full advantage of its effects.

    Subsequently, several other Heavenly Peak disciples also went down to the great hall one after the other. They sat together, ate together, and then made their way to the arena together.

    It was still the Lower Categorypetitions today. Having watched cultivators from the first to the eighth levels of Qi Mastery duke it out against each other for well over ten days, a good part of the audience had already grown bored of it. After all, the Lower Category was the lowest category in the entirepetition, and the disy of skills was somewhat limited.

    However, as soon as the referee announced the names of the participants today, Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue, the entire audience in attendance began to buzz with excitement and anticipation once more.

    Several members of the audience who were drifting off into slumber immediately perked up as they stared with a fiery intensity at the arena.

    Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue had practically made their way to the stage at the same time, and they both ascended the steps of the arena together.

    Everyone¡¯s gazes were transfixed on these two femalebatants. Everyone¡¯s eyes followed their movements until finally both of them stood still, squaring off against each other on stage.

    Whether it was Jun Xiaomo or Dai Yue, both of them had left an indelible impression on the hearts of the audience from their performance in the first round of thepetition.

    This was a natural result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance. After all, she had defeated a cultivator from the Eternal Summit Sect at the eighth level of Qi Mastery despite being only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery. Her victory could almost be described as a miracle. At the very least, not a single person in the audience had ever expected Jun Xiaomo to win.

    In the end, not only did she defeat her opponent, she did so with style and a brilliant disy of skills.

    As for Dai Yue, her vicious use of the whip had etched its way into the hearts of the audience ¨C

    Everyone saw her as a vicious and ferocious beast who attacked relentlessly without giving her opponent any opportunity to take a breath. From the moment she ascended the stage to the point where she had obtained victory, Dai Yue had used only one incense stick of time. In other words, she had within one incense stick of time thoroughly crippled her opponent¡¯s meridians.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that the referee had ordered her to stay her hands, Dai Yue might very well have killed her opponent. In Dai Yue¡¯s mind, murdering her opponent was hardly an issue to be concerned about.

    After all, thepetition¡¯s rules tacitly allowed instances of death on the arena.

    At that time, when the referee announced that Dai Yue hade out victorious in this battle, there were only a few people in the audience who apuded for her. Most of the others simply shuddered in their hearts as they gazed at her with astonishment ¨C This youngdy is too dreadful. She¡¯s going all out to take her opponent¡¯s life!

    They had been twoplete strangers to each other before each of them took to the stage, much less possess any grievances against the other. Was there really a need for Dai Yue to have been so aggressive to her opponent?

    It was precisely because of all these things that the battle between Dai Yue and Jun Xiaomo attracted so much attention and excitement. Everyone was curious whether the dark horse Jun Xiaomo or the vicious Dai Yue was going toe out on top of this battle.

    However, just like in the previous round of battles, most people were absolutely certain that Jun Xiaomo was going to lose this battle, while anyone who thought otherwise merely gave Jun Xiaomo a slim chance at oveing her opponent.

    The audience¡¯s only hope was that Dai Yue would not mutte Jun Xiaomo or beat her up too viciously. Otherwise, crippling such a beauty like Jun Xiaomo would be too much of a waste.

    Then, it was only when both Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue ascended the stage that the entire audience noticed how bothdies were quite good-looking, both clothed themselves in red, and both weapons of choice were the whip.

    ¡°Seems like thispetition is going to be rather exciting, huh...¡± The audience members began to turn to each other and discuss their observations.

    Without waiting for their exmations to subside, Dai Yueshed out at the floor with her whip, before pointing her whip straight to Jun Xiaomo as she barked, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you still remember our bet from one year ago?¡±

    Bet? Everyone in the audience immediately perked up their ears.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a smile as sheckadaisically replied, ¡°Of course I remember.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Good that you remember.¡± Dai Yue snorted. With a vicious gaze and gritted teeth, she continued ¨C

    ¡°Since you remember, then let me make my condition known to you now...If I win this battle, you¡¯ll have to return brother Rong to me, and you can never show yourself in front of him again!¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s voice was picked up by the arena¡¯s Voice Amplification Array and projected throughout the audience. At that instant, the entire audience grewpletely silent.

    Then in the next moment, the audience burst out into an uproar.

 Chapter 189: The Rejected Stake

    <h4>Chapter 189: The Rejected Stake</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Gossip thrived where people gathered ¨C this was one of the fundamental ts of human interaction. Apart from a minority who were particrly stern and somber, most people loved gossiping.

    Just like now, when Dai Yue first announced her condition for the bet, several people nced around curiously as they attempted to locate the ¡°brother Rong¡± that was mentioned by Dai Yue.

    From what Dai Yue had announced, the audience gathered that it seemed to be a love triangle ¨C two female cultivators from different sects had fallen in love with the same male cultivator. Not only had they vied for this male cultivator¡¯s attention, they had evenid down a bet such that the winner of this duel would be able to earn for herself the attention and favor of that male cultivator.

    Almost eighty percent of all the male cultivators within the audience admired this ¡°brother Rong¡± mentioned by Dai Yue. After all, few people possessed such luck with women to be able to attract the affection of two beautiful female cultivators like the ones on the arena right now.

    Even if one sets aside thedies¡¯ appearances for now, just their backing and stature alone was already sufficient to cause one to salivate.

    One was the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster; while the other was the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder. Being together with either one already meant that one would have ess to insurmountable riches, resources and wealth. And this man had attracted the attention of these twodies all at once.

    Just who is this ¡°brother Rong¡±? Several gossipmongers in the audience began to look around in excitement as they eximed in their hearts.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, and her cherry-blossom lips stretched out into a thin grimace.

    If her loved ones were on the arena, they would undoubtedly be able to tell that Jun Xiaomo was fervently suppressing the indignation that was surging within her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo looked wryly at how Dai Yue was ring back at her with her nose in the air as she coldly articted, ¡°I. Re-fuse.¡±

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo responded, the entire audience grew silent once more.

    It was evident that nobody expected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current response. Most people had expected her to wee the challenge with open arms.

    After being dazed for a moment, the pride and contempt in Dai Yue¡¯s expressions deepened even more as she coldly chuckled, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You¡¯re backing out now because you know you¡¯re going to lose? Jun Xiaomo, I despise you. I really don¡¯t know what else brother Rong sees in you apart from that face of yours. This is fine as well. Brother Rong can see your timid and gutless true colours more clearly.¡±

    As Dai Yue finished speaking, she looked purposefully into the audience. Everyone followed her gaze curiously, and their eyesnded on the body of a suave and handsome-looking male cultivator.

    A fiery gaze in his eyes; a striking disposition; sharp and chiseled features entuated the cool and distant charms about him. Simply put, this man he exuded the airs of royalty. It was no wonder he was able to attract the attention of these two beauties on stage right now.

    Despite that, this man continued to watch nonchntly at the dispute on the arena. Nobody could tell what he was thinking of right now.

    Dai Yue also discovered that Rong Ruihan waspletely still andposed, and she couldn¡¯t help but grow anxious as well.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo began to speak with a cold and dispassionate tone, ¡°Dai Yue, I didn¡¯t reject your earlier condition because I was afraid of you. Rather, making brother Rong a condition for this bet is a humiliating to him! Brother Rong isn¡¯t a tool to be handed from one to another. He¡¯s a person, and he¡¯s got his feelings and pride as well. You ask me to ¡®return¡¯ him to you. But let me ask you this ¨C do either of us even have the right to ¡®return¡¯ him to begin with?!¡±

    Realization swept across the entire audience as they began to cast looks of approval at Jun Xiaomo. At the same time, they found themselves tacitly agreeing with Rong Ruihan¡¯s decision to pick Jun Xiaomo.

    After all, who would like someone who treated himself as nothing more than an ¡°object¡± that was to be obtained or discarded at any time? Rong Ruihan was not a person with fetishes after all!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel made Dai Yue¡¯s face turn sickly green and pale with fright. Then, when she realized how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel was met with the approval of almost the entire audience, the indignation in her heart burgeoned into a roaring inferno.

    ¡°You¡¯re a liar! You¡¯re clearly afraid of losing to me. That¡¯s why you¡¯re not willing to take this bet.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo snorted disdainfully, ¡°Since when did I say I¡¯m backing out of the bet? I¡¯ve only refused the condition that you¡¯ve set.¡±

    ¡°Then why is it that when we made your marriage arrangement the subject of our bet, you didn¡¯t see any reason to reject it, huh? You must have already had a change of heart back then! That¡¯s why you didn¡¯t even need to think about it before you epted my conditions back then!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows quizzically, before sighing in her heart ¨C At least you¡¯ve managed to guess half of it.

    Even though she had not exactly had a ¡°change of heart¡± back then, the truth of the matter was that, having been reborn again, she no longer possessed any modicum of affection towards Qin Lingyu.

    Of course, she was not going to bother Dai Yue with these finer details.

    Jun Xiaomo gently patted her palm with her whip as she cidly responded, ¡°Dai Yue, I truly pity yourck of logic and your inability toprehend simple truths. The marriage arrangement is a contractual arrangement. It can naturally be made the subject of a bet. Besides, the marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and I had always been nothing more than a formality, and there has never been any entanglement of feelings amongst us. So what¡¯s the issue with making it the subject of a bet?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Dai Yue was infuriated with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s verbal agility.

    Themotion in the audience was incessant. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu was hardly news to most people in the audience.

    Since when did the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple get drawn into the picture? Is this not just a love triangle? Could this be a multi-sided love affair?!

    Everyone watched on excitedly as this ¡°drama¡± unfurled.

    In the audience, Qin Lingyu¡¯s face turned pale the moment he heard that Jun Xiaomo had already made his marriage arrangement with her the subject of a bet one year ago.

    He had never expected Jun Xiaomo to have had a change of heart since such a long time ago. Most of all, he found itpletely absurd that he had always been under the impression that Jun Xiaomo was reluctant to dissolve the marriage with him, and he had even wracked his mind trying to think of a way to make Jun Xiaomo rescind the marriage arrangement with him.

    Qin Lingyu stared at Jun Xiaomo with a sullen gaze in his eyes. He was incredibly frustrated and infuriated.

    It suddenly dawned upon him that he had been yed like a fiddle all this while.

    Ding! The chief referee rang the bell in his hands as he reprimanded, ¡°Enough. This is an arena, not a theatre. Make your final preparations. The battle will soon begin.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she walked to her side of the arena and began to examine the whip in her hands.

    Yet Dai Yue was simply relentless. She yelled across the arena, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you cowardly piece of trash! I knew that you would sooner orter renege on your agreement when you made that bet.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze grew frosty. She looked up again and curled her lips into a smirk as she dispassionately responded, ¡°Dai Yue, since you really want a bet, then shall we make something else the condition of out bet?¡±

    ¡°What do you want to stake this time?¡± Dai Yue mocked, ¡°Don¡¯t bother if it¡¯s things like spirit tools or medicinal pills. I¡¯ve got no interest in them.¡±

    Jun Xiaomoshed her whip out intently as she responded, ¡°Whoever loses this battle...shall never appear before brother Rong again. How about that?¡±

    Dai Yue snorted coldly, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you can¡¯t make brother Rong the subject of our bet? What¡¯s the matter? Capitting after a slight provocation on my part?¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong isn¡¯t the subject of the bet. The condition that I¡¯ve set simply determines our own actions...¡±

    ¡°You...you¡¯re twisting words!¡±

    ¡°But isn¡¯t it true? I¡¯m not using brother Rong as the subject of a bet nor treating him as an object to be passed around. What we can do is to stake the restrictions on our own movement and conduct. So, how is it? Do you ept these conditions?¡±

    Dai Yue almost choked on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rhetoric. Finally, she squinted her eyes as she rified, ¡°Are you really willing to make this the condition of our bet?¡±

    ¡°Of course. Furthermore, with the entire audience as witness, you won¡¯t have to be afraid that I¡¯ll capitte.¡±

    ¡°Hah!¡± Dai Yue chuckled disdainfully, ¡°Good. Remember, you¡¯re the one who suggested it. Furthermore, I¡¯m not afraid of you capitting at all...¡±

    Because I¡¯m going to kill you on this arena today! Dai Yue gnashed her teeth as she added in her heart.

    Just as both parties managed to agree to the conditions of their bet, the chief referee stood up once more and rang the bell on his hands ¨C Ding, ding, ding!

    ¡°I hereby announce...the seventeenth battle of the second round of Lower Categorypetition...begins now!¡±

    As soon as the chief referee dered themencement of the battle, Dai Yue immediately went on the offensive and rushed straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    She did not intend to give Jun Xiaomo any time to react. Furthermore, she firmly believed that defeating Jun Xiaomo was going to be an incredibly simple task.

    After all, in Dai Yue¡¯sst battle, she had taken one incense stick of time topletely and utterly defeat her opponent who was only at the seventh level of Qi Mastery. Jun Xiaomo was only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery ¨C did this not mean that this battle was going to be that much easier?

    How much time would I be able to end this battle in? Half an incense of time? Or maybe even less...

    No. She would never end the battle so quickly. Rather than let Jun Xiaomo die a quick and painless death, she would instead prefer to torment thisdy who had snatched the object of her affection time and again.

    She was going to ruin her appearances, before crushing her limbs...

    Dai Yue was already convinced of her own victory. Yet Jun Xiaomo had avoided her first attack easily ¨C this waspletely outside the ambit of her calctions.

    In her first battle, Dai Yue had precisely taken advantage of the fact that her opponent had not managed to react quickly enough to themencement of the battle, and the first strike of her whip instantly connected with her opponent. In this present battle, she had in a simr fashion sent her first whish straight towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    She did not wish to merely injure Jun Xiaomo ¨C she intended to utterly ruin Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances and disfigure her.

    However, Jun Xiaomo nimbly avoided Dai Yue¡¯s attack.

    Dai Yue was momentarily stunned. Then, she gritted her teeth ¨C This must be Jun Xiaomo¡¯s luck! I don¡¯t believe that Jun Xiaomo can keep avoiding my attacks!

    Thus, a secondsh of the whip, and a third, and a fourth... Countless afterimages of her whipsshes enveloped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure as their fluttering clothes melded together in an intense battle.

    Off the stage, the entire audience watched with bated breaths as they grew worried for Jun Xiaomo. Dai Yue¡¯s usage of the whip was incredibly vicious, and eachsh of the whip resounded with an earsplitting snap, as though powerful enough to cleave the floor of the arena.

    In contrast, Jun Xiaomo appeared to have beenpletely suppressed and restrained by Dai Yue¡¯s relentless attacks. Jun Xiaomo did not appear tounch any counterattacks at Dai Yue at all.

    The audience only saw Jun Xiaomo fervently avoiding each and every attack released by Dai Yue. Several members of the audience even broke out profusely with sweat on her behalf.

    Seems like Jun Xiaomo¡¯s is fated to lose this battle, then? It¡¯s to be expected. Thatdy from the Eternal Summit Sect is just too vicious. Furthermore, the difference in their cultivation levels are so great.

    It¡¯s such a pity. I wonder if this beauty will still be able to walk out of the arena alive...?

 Chapter 190: Dai Yueâ€™s Frenzy

    <h4>Chapter 190: Dai Yue¡¯s Frenzy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Things in the arena were quite different from what the audience members thought. Even though Dai Yue¡¯s attacks were aggressive, relentless and seemed all-epassing, Dai Yue¡¯s heart was not filled with delight at the situation at all. In fact, her heart only grew more and more frustrated as time went by.

    Dai Yue had been taught to use the whip by the Third Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect, the strongest whip user in the entire sect. Thus, she had always possessed immense confidence in her own abilities with the whip.

    Furthermore, Dai Yue had often sparred with her martial brothers and sisters from the Eternal Summit Sect. Each time she did so, she would invariably viciously force her martial brothers and sisters off the stage with her whip. This further increased her self-confidence with the whip.

    It was in such circumstances that Dai Yue adjudged that there was going to be no suspense as to the oue of this battle at all. She was going to win. She was bound to win at all costs.

    However, as soon as her surprise attack at themencement of the duel entirely missed Jun Xiaomo, Dai Yue immediately realized that things might not be as smooth sailing as she had earlier thought it would be.

    She fervently suppressed the swelling sense of frustrations and uneasiness in her heart as she red viciously at Jun Xiaomo. Yet to her horror, Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightheartedly at her.

    Damn! Jun Xiaomo must be doing this on purpose! She¡¯s mocking me! She¡¯sughing at me!

    Thus, Dai Yue imbued her whip with even more spiritual energy than she had done before. With a macabre glint in her eyes, Dai Yue began tosh at Jun Xiaomo with her whip once more!

    Her heart was crying out to kill Jun Xiaomo. But the precondition was that she had to be able to kill Jun Xiaomo to begin with.

    One incense of timeter, Dai Yue found that she had beenpletely unable to cause any form of harm to Jun Xiaomo. Conversely, the spiritual energy within her body was dwindling extremely quickly. Off the stage, the audience was beginning to find that there might be a glimmer of hope for Jun Xiaomo to defeat Dai Yue after all. There might be a chance of yet another miracle happening.

    After all, she had already sustained for one incense stick of time already, hadn¡¯t she? In thest battle, Dai Yue¡¯s opponent was a cultivator at the seventh level of Qi Mastery, yet even he did notst as long as Jun Xiaomo did.

    At the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area, Liang Yulong found himself seated at the side as he silently watched the battle between Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue.

    ¡°If martial sister Dai Yue continues like this, she¡¯s not going to be able to defeat Jun Xiaomo.¡± After deliberating for some time, Liang Yulong suddenly spoke up, ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s doing this on purpose. She might very well be wasting the spiritual energy in martial sister Dai Yue¡¯s body and biding her time until martial sister Dai Yue¡¯s energy has almostpletely dried up beforeunching her own counterattack.¡±

    ¡°Shut up! You lost to Jun Xiaomo in thest round. What gives you the right to assess your martial sister¡¯s conditions right now?!¡± Dai Yanfeng castigated him with infuriation, ¡°Once thispetition is over, I¡¯m going to lock you up inside the penal hall so that you can thoroughly reflect on your misdemeanors!¡±

    Liang Yulong¡¯s eyes flickered, and he immediately grew taciturn.

    In fact, how could Dai Yanfeng, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder, not notice Jun Xiaomo¡¯s strategy if his disciple could determine as much? He had only castigated Liang Yulong so that he could preserve his own reputation.

    After all, Dai Yue was undeniably his own daughter. An admission that Dai Yue was inferior to Jun Xiaomo, was practically tantamount to an admission that he was inferior to Jun Linxuan. This was absolutely uneptable to him.

    Besides, in order to allow his dear daughter toe out ahead of thepetition, Dai Yanfeng had resorted to several underhanded ways and means, including expending precious, invaluable resources in order to bribe two referees of thepetition.

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart would ache in pain whenever he thought about the things that he had ¡°given¡± to the others to smoothen the way for his daughter.

    If his daughter lost and got knocked out in the second round of thepetition after all that he had done, then everything that he had given out as bribes would havepletely gone to waste.

    As soon as he thought about the prospects of this, Dai Yanfeng couldn¡¯t help but wish that he could turn back time and recover everything that he had lost!

    No. It¡¯s still not over yet. I can¡¯t be anxious. Dai Yanfeng fiercely suppressed the indignation rising up from his heart as he thought with gritted teeth ¨C My daughter still has her trump card. She will definitely win!

    As to whether his daughter¡¯s trump card was allowed by thepetition regtions, this was something outside the scope of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s considerations. In his eyes, it was not outrageous to resort to some underhanded means as long as this meant that he could obtain the results that he had desired.

    Just as Liang Yulong had anticipated, even as Dai Yue¡¯s spiritual energy depleted quickly from her body, she was unable to leave any marks or damage on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body at all.

    So what if her attacks were ferocious and devastating? These hardly meant anything if she could not evennd her attacks!

    Liang Yulong had experienced firsthand that Jun Xiaomo possessed an incrediblebat intuition and judgment. It was as though she were able to preempt what her opponents would do before they even motioned to unleash their next attacks.

    Thus, there was only two possible solutions if Dai Yue was to defeat Jun Xiaomo. The first was topletely suppress Jun Xiaomo with her advantage in cultivation levels so that Jun Xiaomo had no way of avoiding the attacks; while the second was to end the battle quickly with area of effect spells.

    And even then, Dai Yue¡¯s odds at victory were at best fifty percent ¨C perhaps even lower. This was because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wealth ofbat experience was truly that formidable that it could make up for her cultivation level deficiency. This was not something that a young sprout like Dai Yue who had never even set foot outside of her sect couldpare with.

    This was also the main reason why Liang Yulong had predicted Dai Yue¡¯s loss to begin with.

    That said, the arena was an unforgiving and unpredictable ce. The tides of battles were susceptible to the greatest changes at the slightest slip ups. Furthermore, Dai Yue still held her trump card close to her heart. With the presence of these variables, the victor of this battle was still very much undecided for now.

    Dai Yue was infuriated at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nimble avoidance of her attacks. Finally, after three incense sticks of time, Dai Yue couldn¡¯t help but bark at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Jun Xiaomo! Do you only know how to jump and prance about like a little clown?! Do you dare to fight me head on?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically and squinted her eyes ¨C Eh? You¡¯ve already lost your patience just like that?

    One must never lose their cool and patience in battle. This was an undergirding truth aboutbat that was deeply ingrained in each and every cultivator that possessed a wealth ofbat experience.

    But Dai Yue was evidentlycking in this regard. She was unable to keep her hot-temper in check and maintain cool-headed in the heat ofbat.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo estimated that as a cultivator at the eighth level of QI Mastery, Dai Yue would only have one-third of the total amount of spiritual energy within her body remaining.

    I guess it¡¯s also about time for me to make my move.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and locked eyes with Dai Yue. An inconspicuous smile crept up the corner of her lips, and then her aura suddenly flourished!

    Dai Yue was astonished by the sudden change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disposition, and her next attackpletely missed her mark.

    To Dai Yue¡¯s eyes, this was just a small and inconsequential slip-up. Yet to Jun Xiaomo, this was the prime opportunity for a counterattack.

    Jun Xiaomo made a feint, before quickly closing the distance between herself and Dai Yue. Jun Xiaomo gripped the whip tightly andshed it ferociously towards Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue¡¯s pupils constricted. She had already justshed out with her whip, and there was no way she could retract the entire length of the whip in time. Thus, she reflexively raised her hands to block Jun Xiaomo¡¯s oing attack, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯ssh of the whip ferociously struck Dai Yue squarely on the arm.

    ¡°Ah!¡± Dai Yue cried out in anguish. She had practically heard her bone chipping inside her arm.

    If she had not expended two-thirds of her body¡¯s spiritual energy; and if she had not channeled most of her remaining spiritual energy into her earlier attack, leaving little to protect her body with, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attack might not have dealt her such a serious injury.

    But all of this was knowledge on hindsight. Dai Yue¡¯sck ofbat experience meant that she had chosen an erroneous approach to this battle, and her opponent had taken advantage of it.

    Dai Yue¡¯s overconfidence in her own abilities was one of the main contributing factors to herck ofbat experience. She had thought, given her undefeated status within the sect, that she would be simrly victorious in every battle outside of the sect.

    Yet little did she consider the possibility that several martial brothers and sisters within the sect had intentionally lost to Dai Yue on ount of her identity as Dai Yanfeng¡¯s daughter.

    But could anyone really me them for doing so? Who dared to offend this unruly and headstrong princess within the sect? If they had defeated her in battle and tarnished her reputation of beingpletely undefeated, who was to say that she would not bear a grudge and attempt to expel her opponent from the sectter on?

    After all, it was not as though there were no such precedents.

    Thus, there were several disciples of the Eternal Summit Sect who did not even feel a single bit sorry for Dai Yue when she was ferociously struck by Jun Xiaomo. In their eyes, Dai Yue deserved every single bit of it, and she only had Dai Yanfeng and Qiu Laifeng¡¯s over-protective ways to me for it all.

    That said, it was still far too early to decide the victor in this battle.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! You¡¯re asking for it!¡± Dai Yue needed several moments to dispel the excruciating pain from the forefront of her mind. This was practically the first time she had experienced such pain ever since she was born.

    But Jun Xiaomo refused to give Dai Yue any breathing room. After sessfully putting Dai Yue on the backfoot with her first attack, she immediately took another step forward andunched another second attack straight towards Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue hurriedly attempted to block this attack. Even though she imbued far more spiritual energy into her whip than Jun Xiaomo did, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attack came from such a peculiar angle that Dai Yue was only able to graze the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip. Thus, bulk of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attack stillnded squarely on Dai Yue¡¯s body.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s second attack ¨C sess!

    Thus, this turn of events seemed to be a point of inflection in the eyes of the audience, and Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue¡¯s roles seemed to have reversedpletely. Earlier, Dai Yue had been the oneunching each and every attack, while Jun Xiaomo was forced to dodge and avoid every attack. But now, Jun Xiaomo had be the aggressor, while Dai Yue was busy attempting to escape.

    But if they took a closer look, they would discover that the present scenario was still very much different from what happened earlier ¨C

    Even though both had been attacking, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks were far more effective than Dai Yue¡¯s attack. Earlier, Dai Yue was practically unable tond any attacks on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body at all; but right now, Jun Xiaomo had practicallynded every single attack that she had released on Dai Yue¡¯s body.

    Furthermore, it had to be said that because Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level was not as high as Dai Yue¡¯s cultivation level, this meant that the strength of her attacks on Dai Yue¡¯s body was greatly diminished. This was because the higher a person¡¯s cultivation level, the stronger theyer of defensive spiritual energy that was naturally congealed around their bodies.

    That said, no matter how weak Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks were, the umtion of damage on Dai Yue¡¯s body could still be incredibly debilitating. After all, even ant bites could kill an elephant.

    At this moment, there was not a single part of Dai Yue¡¯s body that was not in pain. It was as though her bones had been shattered and reattached together once more.

    Most of all, sustaining such injuries in battle was incredibly humiliating to her. After all, she had been put perpetually on backfoot and reduced to such a tragic state by a measly cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery.

    Dai Yue had not discovered that Jun Xiaomo had already attained the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Otherwise, Jun Xiaomo would most certainly have dragged things out a little bit more beforemencing her counterattack on Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue thought about her argument with her father Dai Yanfeng a few days back. In order to be matched up against Jun Xiaomo in the second battle in thispetition, she had forced her parents Dai Yanfeng and Qiu Laifeng to bribe the referees once more.

    She had taken the stage with the vicious intention of thoroughly tormenting Jun Xiaomo before killing her off. Yet this turn of events waspletely outside of her expectations ¨C she was presentlypletely restrained and rendered helpless by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s moves.

    Back then, Dai Yanfeng had found himself unable to resist his daughter¡¯s willfulness and headstrong attitude, and he had used an eighth-grade exquisite cauldron and twenty-seven seventh-grade superior medicinal pills to arrange for the match-up between Jun Xiaomo and Dai Yue.

    It had to be said that if these items had been sold at an auction instead, the amount of spirit stones that they could have earned was practically enough for purchasing a small city!

    After bribing the referees and returning to the inn, Dai Yanfeng had even thrown a tantrum inplete disbelief that he would have done something so silly.

    But Dai Yue had firmly believed that all of this would be worth it. After all, it was as her father had said ¨C any and all means were permissible as long as it meant that one¡¯s goals could be achieved.

    Even then, Dai Yue was not Dai Yanfeng. She had never faced any forms of hardship before, and she waspletely unaware of the objective value of what her father had just given away as a bribe.

    Furthermore, Dai Yue had rarely seen Dai Yanfeng angry at her before. Thus, she was rather taken aback when she saw Dai Yanfeng¡¯s incensed tantrum earlier.

    ¡°Dai Yue! If you don¡¯t defeat Jun Xiaomo this time, I¡¯m going to lock you up at the sect¡¯s back mountain for closed door cultivation for five years!¡± Dai Yanfeng bellowed in rage.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s back mountain was tantamount to a treasure trove for cultivators, and there were several Eternal Summit Sect disciples who coveted the opportunity to cultivate at the back mountain even for a short period of time. But to Dai Yue, being locked up at the back mountain with nothing else to do apart from cultivating was an incredibly dull and tedious punishment.

    She did not want to lead that kind of lifestyle at all. Thus, she was even more determined to defeat Jun Xiaomo at this moment.

    No! I¡¯m going to lose if things go on like this... After innumerableshes of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip, Dai Yue¡¯s mind finally shed her state of denial.

    Dai Yue gritted her teeth, and a nefarious gaze flickered across her eyes.

    She retrieved a medicinal pill and swiftly consumed it. Thepetition allowed the usage of recovery pills, but it was limited to one use of a medicinal pill per battle.

    After the consumption of this medicinal pill, she would no longer be able to consume any other medicinal pill no matter how grave the injuries she sustains. Her only other option at that time would be to admit defeat.

    Dai Yue¡¯s medicinal pill had been especially modified and enhanced. It looked like a normal recovery pill on the surface, but it hid a powerful effect.

    Off the stage, the audience looked on with a pleasant surprise and found themselves wowed by the fact that Jun Xiaomo could force Dai Yue to such a state where she would have to consume her recovery pill.

    At this moment, the audience¡¯s admiration towards this dark horse Jun Xiaomo grew more and more.

    Then, as soon as Dai Yue¡¯s medicinal pill took effect, an incredible sight urred. Not only did Dai Yue¡¯s spiritual energy recover, her body even experienced some qualitative changes.

    The surrounding spiritual energy began to rush madly into Dai Yue¡¯s body. Even the audience members that were a distance away from the arena could clearly experience the changes to her body.

    ¡°She...is she really going to breakthrough in the midst ofbat?!¡± A cultivator located closer to the arena eximed aloud.

    Breaking through in the midst ofbat was not too umon. But most times, cultivators would choose to suppress the urge to breakthrough to the next level or simply admit defeat and abandon the battle before breaking through.

    It was because breaking through during a battle was far too dangerous.

    Yet nobody would have expected Dai Yue to breakthrough in the midst ofbat.

    ¡°Ha...haha...Jun Xiaomo, I bet you¡¯d never expect this, did you? I was on the brink of breaking through to the ninth level of Qi Mastery.¡± Dai Yue chuckled coldly as she barked at Jun Xiaomo. Her eyes were filled with a maddened bloodlust.

    This was Dai Yue¡¯s trump card!

 Chapter 191: Incredibly Difficult Battle

    <h4>Chapter 191: Incredibly Difficult Battle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo paused in her steps. She immediately retracted her attack and then increased the distance between herself and Dai Yue.

    Ever since Liang Yulong had cautioned her that Dai Yue¡¯s true abilities were at the ninth level of Qi Mastery, she had always remained vignt against Dai Yue. Thepetition¡¯s regtions naturally disallowed the use of medicinal pills to suppress and conceal one¡¯s true cultivation level. If anyone was discovered to have flouted this rule, there would be grave and severe consequences.

    But if Dai Yue had found a way of bribing the referees, then this would naturally no longer be an issue. After all, being a referee of thepetition did not necessarily mean that they would be impartial and insusceptible to corruption. After all, the human heart was naturally avaricious. This was something that Jun Xiaomo would never underestimate, given her previous lifetime of experience.

    As expected, as soon as Dai Yue had realized that she was unable to defeat Jun Xiaomo at status quo, she decided to resort to her trump card ¨C that is, to consume the antidote to her cultivation suppressing medication and release the true extent of her cultivation level.

    In the eyes of the audience, Dai Yue seemed to be breaking through in the midst ofbat. But what Dai Yue had in fact done was much safer than that.

    Dai Yue was currently only recovering the full extent of her cultivation level, and there were hardly any risks involved at all. Conversely, the fact that she was no longer bound by the restrictions of the eight level of Qi Mastery meant that she could now disy the full extent of her abilities at the ninth level of Qi Mastery. In other words, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disadvantage in this fight had just be that much more apparent.

    At the very least, if Jun Xiaomo decided to maintain her previous approach to this battle, then her chances ofing out on top of this battle were truly slim.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo retreated and attempted to put a safe distance between herself and Dai Yue, Dai Yue¡¯s whip immediatelyshed out and snapped at where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s foot was just a moment ago. Sparks flew, and rocks and dirt scattered everywhere.

    One could only imagine the consequences had this single whishnded squarely on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Being disfigured was now but a small thing. Given the strength of Dai Yue¡¯s present attacks, having broken bones was a very real possibility.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, and her pupils constricted with ever-increasing vignce.

    A cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Mastery was far more difficult to deal with than a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Mastery. Whether explosiveness, offensive abilities or speed, all of these would have increased by several times with the increase in her cultivation level.

    When the audience saw that Jun Xiaomo managed to avoid that explosive attack from Dai Yue, everyone managed to heave a sigh of relief.

    But it was understandable. The human heart is prone to bias. Both were simrly outstanding female cultivators. One was vicious and cruel, and her eyes were filled with a vile and nefarious intent. Even though the other could not be considered soft and gentle, she was nevertheless measured in her approach and has clear boundaries between good and evil. Furthermore, her petite and beautiful face was not tainted with the stains of schemes and ploys, and there was only a calm, cool, and determined expression on her face. Under such circumstances, even apletely unassociated and unaffiliated audience would find themselves hard pressed not to be biased towards thetterdy inbat.

    Dai Yue saw that Jun Xiaomo had managed to sessfully avoid her attack, but she was hardly frustrated at all this time. She thought that a measly cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery could never be her opponent at this point in time! After all, she had already recovered her abilities at the ninth level of Qi Mastery.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! Do you think you can keep avoiding all of my attacks? I¡¯m going to thoroughly etch into your bones the meaning of cultivation level deficiency!!!¡±

    Dai Yueughed sardonically. Then, she mumbled inaudibly a mnemonic before crying out, ¡°Violent Dance of the Inferno!¡±

    The Violent Dance of the Inferno was a fire spell that could only be released by cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Mastery.

    Within moments, innumerable streaks of fireballs congealed in mid-air and began to speed towards Jun Xiaomo. These brightly coloured fireballs flickered brilliantly in the air as they left streaks of zing trails behind them, just like a beautiful, bloodcurdling dance. This was what earned this fire spell the name ¡®Violent Dance of the Inferno¡¯.

    This was an incredibly powerful area-of-effect spell. Dealing with Jun Xiaomo with such a spell could be considered an overkill. After all, Jun Xiaomo was all by herself, and there was no way she would be able to avoid such an attack.

    Just like that, these fireballs that shot towards Jun Xiaomo began to explode around her, and a remarkable disy of spectacr fireworks ensued. Yet not a single person in the audience found themselves able to marvel at the beauty of such a disy.

    As the brilliance of the fire spells subsided, the arena was left in aplete mess, while Jun Xiaomo stood in the heart of it all. She was finally injured ¨C the explosionsd left several wounds andcerations all over her body.

    ¡°See? Do you finally appreciate the vast chasm between our cultivation levels right now? Hmph. I want to show everyone that you, Jun Xiaomo, are an idiot who¡¯s overestimating her own abilities!¡± Dai Yue cried out in wicked delight. Her gaze hardened once more, and she began to cast several other area of effect spells again.

    Dai Yue knew that she would not be able to hurt Jun Xiaomo if she did not resort to such area of effect spells, because Jun Xiaomo was simply too quick on her feet.

    Thus, Dai Yue had decided to resort to her area of effect spells to ravage Jun Xiaomo and whittle down her ability to be able to defend herself. Then, when Jun Xiaomo was finally reduced to her final breaths, Dai Yue would slowly torment her byshing at Jun Xiaomo with her whip until Jun Xiaomo died.

    When it came to torture, Dai Yue¡¯s personal preference was to use the whip because it enabled her to thoroughly enjoy herself while protracting the process of torment.

    Dai Yue continued tounch several other area of effect spells at Jun Xiaomo. The injuries on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body naturally mounted, and wafts of burnt blood stench filled the air. All of this was undoubtedly from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wounds.

    As time wore on, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s speed and ability to avoid attacks grew slower and slower...

    Then, as soon as Dai Yue decided it was about time, she stopped using her area of effect spells entirely, and she turned her focus back to the whip that was in her hands.

    Pak! Dai Yue¡¯s whip struck Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body squarely for the first time. Jun Xiaomo was unable to avoid this attack, and the vicious strike tore a deep wound on her skin. Fresh blood began to seep out of her wound and soak through her clothes, dyeing her red garments with an even more striking ga colour of blood.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo groaned as she clenched her fists and remained standing.

    She stared back at Dai Yue with eyes filled with a frigid intent.

    ¡°Pfft! What are you looking at me like that for? Are you hoping that the daggers in your eyes will be able to kill me?¡± Dai Yue mocked contemptuously, but her hand holding the whip was unrelenting ¨C it immediatelyshed out with yet another attack!

    This nextsh was even more vicious than thest. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo managed to tilt her body slightly at the veryst moment, the bones and nerves in her arm might very well have beenpletely shattered and severed by Dai Yue¡¯s attack.

    These two strikes with the whip whetted Dai Yue¡¯s appetite to torment Jun Xiaomo even further, and a macabre killing intent filled Dai Yue¡¯s eyes.

    She was going to thrash up Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face until it was a bloody pulp, before breaking every single inch of her bones and severing every single one of her nerves!

    Pak! Pak! Pak! ...

    Onesh, twoshes, threeshes...

    Dai Yue¡¯s whip had been imbued with her fire-based spiritual energy, and eachsh was like an attack using a hot branding iron, resulting in excruciating, splitting pain.

    Jun Xiaomo managed to avoid some attacks, but not all ¨C it was not that herbat intuition had weakened. Rather, it was simply the result of her cultivation level deficiency coupled with the serious injuries to her body that caused her speed to be unable to match up to that of Dai Yue¡¯s right now.

    She knew where Dai Yue¡¯s attacks wereing from and where they were going tond, but she simply had no way of avoiding her attacks.

    Dai Yue¡¯s eyes reddened with bloodlust, and she was reminded about an incident that urred when she was six years-old.

    Back then, an incident urred within the Eternal Summit Sect that was neither trivial nor grave. It was not grave because these matters were not umon in the cultivation world, and practically every sect would witness at least one or two such incidents within their numbers.

    But the reason why it was hardly trivial was because this matter was blown way out of proportion within the Eternal Summit Sect. In the end, the Sect Elders and Peakmasters had to caution their disciples time and again and even order them not to speak of this to outsiders so that outsiders would not have a chance to mock them or make them aughingstock.

    This incident was none other than how a female disciple had climbed into bed with Dai Yanfeng and shared secret, intimate rendezvouses with him for an entire year until Qiu Laifeng discovered it.

    At that time, a frenzied and furious Qiu Laifeng pulled the female disciple out of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s bed and mmed her to the ground. Then, in front of several people within the Sect, she struck at the female disciple withsh aftersh of her whip. As Qiu Laifeng whipped her, she decried, ¡°You slut! You dare to seduce my husband? I¡¯m going to kill you today!¡±

    Dai Yanfeng was initially going to rush over to protect that female disciple of his. But then his thoughts turned towards the preservation of his own reputation and pride. Given how everyone was watching themotion then, he hardened his heart and decided not to intervene at all.

    Thus, that female disciple ended up being beaten to death by Qiu Laifeng. Even in her death, that female disciple stared with widened eyes at Dai Yanfeng. She had died with a remaining grievance.

    At that time, Dai Yue was still unaware of what that pretty-looking martial sister had done wrong. She only remembered that pool of fresh blood on the floor, and the bloody, pulpy mess that her martial sister had been reduced to.

    Qiu Laifeng grabbed hold of Dai Yue¡¯s shoulders then and pointed to the macabre remains of the female disciple on the floor as she gnashed her teeth and barked madly, ¡°Yue-Yue, do you see that? If anyone dares to steal your man from you next time, then you must beat them to death like that. Don¡¯t ever give them any room for escape!¡±

    Thus, Dai Yue firmly etched the sight of that macabre corpse in her mind, and she securely treasured Qiu Laifeng¡¯s teachings in her heart.

    Time wore on, yet this indelible mark in her mind hardly grew any fainter. In fact, it even deepened in intensity.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tragic state sent Dai Yue back in time to when her mother had torn that female disciple off the bed.

    In Dai Yue¡¯s eyes, she had be none other than Qiu Laifeng, while Jun Xiaomo had be none other than the female disciple who had slept with her father.

    Kill her! Dai Yue¡¯s heart cried out ¨C She deserves to die! How dare she snatch your beloved man away from you?!

    Dai Yue¡¯sshes with the whip grew more vicious, while Jun Xiaomo increasingly gave the audience the impression that she was about to fall at any moment.

    Not enough! It¡¯s still not enough! Dai Yue¡¯s gaze intensified ¨C Why isn¡¯t this woman begging for mercy like the female disciple who had slept with father? Things have alreadye to a head, so why is that woman still wearing that damned calm andposed expression on her face?! Why isn¡¯t she crying and begging me for mercy?!

    She wanted to tear off this woman¡¯s pretenses. She wanted to tear off her pride and trample it on the ground! She wanted her dear brother Rong to see for himself just what kind of person it was that he had fallen for!

    Pak! Anothersh flew out, and Jun Xiaomo felt a dull impact on her shoulder. She could no longer stabilize herself, and she copsed to the ground.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± ¡°Mo-Mo!¡± ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    Several cries rang out at the same time from where the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seats were located. They watched on as the horrendous sight unfolded on stage, and their hearts swelled with the urge to rush forward to the stage to rescue Jun Xiaomo from that mad woman.

    But they knew that they could not do this because it would flout thepetition rules.

    Dai Yue looked on in delight as Jun Xiaomoy face down on the floor,pletely motionless. A wicked smile crept up the side of her face.

    Naturally, her smile was stered over an expression that was still filled with a fierce killing intent. No matter how one looked at it, she looked vile, nefarious and incredibly vicious.

    Yet thepetition would go on as long as neither contestants admitted defeat on the arena. This was why every iteration of thispetition would witness the death of several disciples as well. These incidents would invariably ur when one disciple would be beaten up so harshly that he would no longer have the ability to fight, and then his opponent would deliver a vicious fatal blow to him.

    This was Dai Yue¡¯s n as well. She felt that the fruit of herbour was soon ripe for her harvest.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands quivered, and she slowly clenched her fists.

    At the same time, she retrieved a medicinal pill from her Interspatial Ring and held it firmly in her palm.

    This medicinal pill was none other than the medicinal pill that Wei Gang had given to her ¨C the fifth-grade recovery pill that had ¡°extra ingredients¡± to it.

    The faint aroma of the Bedeviled Grass wafted into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, and then she forcibly swallowed the recovery pill.

 Chapter 192: The Dust Settles on the Second Battle

    <h4>Chapter 192: The Dust Settles on the Second Battle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Dai Yue brandished her whip andshed it at the floor from time to time as she walked slowly towards Jun Xiaomo, one step at a time.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, weren¡¯t you so arrogant just a while back? Weren¡¯t you extremely confident that you would be able to defeat me? Look at me. Who¡¯s the winner now, huh?¡± Dai Yue chuckled contemptuously as she looked at Jun Xiaomo with disgust as though she were looking at vermin, ¡°Oh, I¡¯m so sorry. I¡¯ll bet you can¡¯t even lift your head now, huh? Tsk tsk, pitiful. You look just like a dog that¡¯s just lost its master.¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s voice was picked up and projected into the audience by the Voice Amplification Array. Many people in the audience frowned when they heard her spiel.

    After all, nobody liked a savage person who took pleasure in trampling on the pride of others. Even if her opponent had lost the battle, she should still ord her with some respect.

    Dai Yue walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and bend over, whispering, ¡°I see that you¡¯re suffering a lot. Shall I send you on your way then? It¡¯ll be quick and easy. Just one whip would do.¡±

    Whilst Jun Xiaomo remained taciturn, her body quivered slightly. However, since Jun Xiaomo had fallen face forward, Dai Yue was unable to clearly see the expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face at this moment.

    Thus, Dai Yue interpreted her taciturn quivering response as ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fear¡±, and her face was stered with a wicked, delighted smile.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present appearance was finally one and the same as that female disciple that her mother had murdered years ago.

    That¡¯s right. That¡¯s how it should be! They should quiver as they remain on the floor. This is their penance for what they have done!

    Dai Yue viciously eximed in her heart. Then, she straightened her back and raised the whip in her hand ¨C

    She was going to use the strongest ability avable to her as a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Mastery and send Jun Xiaomo straight to the depths of hell!

    In the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seating area, Wei Gang had all along been sweating profusely on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behalf. Then, when he saw Dai Yue mustering her strength for the final blow, he finally grew anxious. He leapt to his feet and yelled out at the top of his voice, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, don¡¯t force the issue anymore! Hurry up and admit defeat! The battle will end once you admit defeat...¡±

    He was immensely afraid of the consequences of this final strike from Dai Yue. He was afraid of losing his martial sister.

    Yet outside of Dai Yue¡¯s line of sight, Jun Xiaomo grimaced slightly, and the depths of her eyes revealed an unrelenting fighting spirit.

    She had heard Wei Gang¡¯s cry, but she was not going to give up that easily. There was still some fight left in her.

    The true reason why her body had quivered slightly earlier was not because she was afraid of Dai Yue. Rather, under the effects of the superior quality fifth-grade recovery pill she had earlier consumed, her body was experiencing immense pain that apanied the closing of her wounds and the recovery of her injuries. This kind of pain was far more unbearable than the pain from her wounds and injuries.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo had also detected an increasing sense of danger emanating from Dai Yue¡¯s body. She knew that Dai Yue was now storing and mustering her energy for one final strike against her.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly clenched her fist and stared at the floor in front of her eyes. After heaving a few breaths, she closed her eyes and began to intensify the divine sense that she had released.

    As she did so, she began to see with more rity Dai Yue¡¯s exact movements. Through the minutest of Dai Yue¡¯s movements, the expressions she made and her line of sight, Jun Xiaomo made slight adjustments to her prediction of where Dai Yue¡¯s strike would exactlynd at.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s vignce was now at its very peak.

    Shk!

    A whip sliced through the tension in the air. A fiery-red whip surrounded by intense mes shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. The mes darted through the air like a hurricane that was surrounded by several sawtooth peeking out of it. It was evident that such a strike to a person¡¯s body would be incredibly devastating.

    Off the stage, tension filled the audience as several people gasped at Dai Yue¡¯s attack. Everyone¡¯s eyes were trained on the whip that was clutched tightly in Dai Yue¡¯s hands right now. The Heavenly Peak disciples were even more anxious, as most of them leapt to their feet and clenched their fists worriedly.

    Bang! An earsplitting crackle rang out. Debris scattered about, and dust billowed and filled the air. At that moment, nobody could see what became of Jun Xiaomo after that one intense strike by Dai Yue.

    That said, there were several people who had also adjudged that the odds of Jun Xiaomo surviving such a strike were slim to none.

    ¡°Wuu¡ªwuu...martial sister...¡± Wei Gang began to bawl uncontrobly, as streaks of tears fell from his eyes. Seated just beside him, martial brother Chen found himselfpletely dumbfounded as well, and he simply handed Wei Gang his own handkerchief.

    A few momentster, the dust on stage began to settle, and the consequences of Dai Yue¡¯s strike was revealed for all to see ¨C Jun Xiaomo clutched at her injured shoulders and stood squarely across from Dai Yue. Even though she presented herself in a sorry state, her eyes were filled with determination and immense fighting spirit as she gazed straight into Dai Yue¡¯s eyes.

    She managed to avoid that attack?! Several audience members gasped with widened eyes. Momentster, everyone began to start cheering once more.

    Under the effects of the fifth-grade recovery pill, the wound on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder was closing up at a rate that was visible to the naked eye. Furthermore, all of the other wounds and injuries that Dai Yue had earlier inflicted on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body hadpletely vanished ¨C they had all healedpletely.

    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re really able to take a beating, huh? You didn¡¯t even die to that strike. Let me guess, you must have used a high-grade recovery pill, right? Look at the rate of your recovery...tsk tsk, you¡¯re really willing to go all out just for this battle, huh?¡± Dai Yue mocked Jun Xiaomo with a nauseating smirk on her face, ¡°That¡¯s fine with me. I wouldn¡¯t be satisfied if you died so early either. I mean, you haven¡¯t even kneeled before me and begged me for mercy. How can I let you die before all of this, right?¡±

    A frigid intent flickered across the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, before a smile crept up the corner of her lips, ¡°If you¡¯d intended to force me to my knees and make me beg for mercy, then I¡¯m afraid that I must disappoint you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t speak too soon.¡± Dai Yue continued to disparage Jun Xiaomo, ¡°The situation¡¯s not going to turn around for the better just because you¡¯ve consumed a recovery pill. You should know your limits. I might even spare your life if you kneel before me and beg for mercy.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could feel the Bedeviled Grass stimting the energy in her body, and the true energy in her body began to flow faster throughout her body. Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, and she nodded her head calmly as she remarked, ¡°That¡¯s right. But if I don¡¯t give it a shot, who knows what the oue would be?¡±

    As soon as she finished speaking, a trace of frigid intent flickered across the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes and she immediately charged towards Dai Yue!

    Dai Yue hardly expected Jun Xiaomo tounch a surprise attack at her while her guard was still down. She hurriedly attempted to block Jun Xiaomo¡¯s strike but to no avail ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacknded squarely on her body.

    That said, Dai Yue was still at the ninth level of Qi Mastery, and there was an abundance of spiritual energy protecting her body. Thus, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s surprise attack barely did any damage to Dai Yue.

    Dai Yue gritted her teeth as she barked, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you expect such a feeble surprise attack to seed? You¡¯re far too na?ve!¡±

    Dai Yue quickly adjusted herself and began to retaliate.

    Just like that, this battle finally evolved from its earlier one-sided battle to an equal exchange of blows. It was incredibly intense, and the nail-biting tension in the air made several audience members watch on with bated breaths and transfixed eyes. Their hearts pulsed ferociously as the battle unfurled.

    Ever since Dai Yue pointed out the fact that Jun Xiaomo had consumed a high-grade recovery pill, He Zhang¡¯s gaze had been transfixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    He had reason to believe that the recovery pill that Jun Xiaomo had consumed was the one that he had earlier tampered with. Otherwise, there was no way Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries and wounds would have recovered so quickly.

    After all, the difference between high-grade recovery pills and normal recovery pills was the speed at which the recovery took ce.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s speed and explosiveness had increased several folds after having consumed her recovery pill. This was an effect that could not be achieved had the pill been an ordinary recovery pill. The only rationale for such a development was the fact that the demonic energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had been thoroughly stimted.

    He Zhang¡¯s expressions tensed up as he estimated the time taken for the demonic energy to burst out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    One incense stick of time...two incense sticks of time...three incense sticks of time...

    Time flowed by quickly as the intense battle developed, yet apart from the increase in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s explosiveness, there was hardly any signs of a demonic outburst from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Not only that, Dai Yue was even beginning to lose her advantage under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s relentless attacks.

    How can this be?! He Zhang gritted his teeth and clenched his fists so hard that his fingers dug into his palms.

    At this moment, He Zhang was not the only one who wanted to ask that question. Even Dai Yue began to cry out with disbelief, ¡°How can this be?!!!¡±

    She had never expected a single medicinal pill to change anything apart from healing the injuries and wounds on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, much less turn the tides of battle.

    Yet, Dai Yue¡¯s calctions proved to be wrong. After consuming the medicinal pill, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disposition was akin to a gleaming sword that had just been unsheathed as itunched wave after wave of relentless and unavoidable attacks at its target.

    On the other hand, it was no longer possible for Dai Yue to resort to therge area of effect spells as she had earlier done in order to weaken Jun Xiaomo.

    This was because she had in the earlier battle expended most of her spiritual energy. In particr, that ¡°final strike¡± that she hadunched against Jun Xiaomo had depleted almost one-tenth of the total spiritual energy stored within her body.

    And the worst part of it all was that despite depleting one-tenth of the total spiritual energy within her body, she had achieved nothing more than grazing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder.

    To her mind, her final strike should have shattered all of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bones and left her as nothing more than a mangled corpse on the stage. At that time, not only would she have killed Jun Xiaomo, she would even be able to disy Jun Xiaomo at her ugliest and most horrific state for all to see.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo had ¡°coincidentally¡± consumed the recovery pill and ¡°by a stroke of luck¡± avoided her attack.

    This absolutely infuriated Dai Yue.

    Regardless, Dai Yue had expended far too much spiritual energy earlier, and she could no longer use any area of effect spells against Jun Xiaomo to restrain her movements and weaken her body. She could only resort to her single attack spells and her technique with the whip to fend off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks. That said, how could she possibly match up against Jun Xiaomo given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s incrediblebat intuition?

    No matter how strong her spells or attacks were, these strikes were absolutely useless if she could notnd a single one of them.

    Furthermore, under the stimting effects of the Bedeviled Grass, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s explosiveness had increased several folds as well.

    In the eyes of the audience, Jun Xiaomo was now so proficient with the whip that it had almost be as though an extension of her own body. Together with her fluttering garments, the flickering shadows and afterimages of her whip flourished gracefully. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo also interspersed theshes of her whips with a dazzling disy of fire spells, each of which had without fail found their way to Dai Yue¡¯s body.

    Jun Xiaomo was sometimes active and sometimesnguid, sometimes powerful and sometimes flexible...

    The abilities executed by Jun Xiaomo were incisive and designed to destroy, yet the manner in which she used it was simply so graceful and enthralling that it maically drew the audience¡¯s attention to her disy of skills.

    Yet on the other hand, Dai Yue whose disposition throughout the entire battle had been ruthless and vulgar had begun to show signs that her spirit was willing, but her flesh was weak. Her vicious attacks dwindled, and she was increasingly on the defensive and pushed onto her backfoot.

    Finally, Dai Yue fell fiercely onto the ground, and her body was covered with dirt.

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked over to her side. She looked down on Dai Yue whoy pitifully on the ground as she asked dispassionately.

    It was almost as though she were exchanging a casual greeting with a mere acquaintance.

    Dai Yue¡¯s heart was filled with humiliation. She had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be able to stand on her high horse and deride her like this.

    This waspletely different from Dai Yue¡¯s expectations!

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡± Jun Xiaomoshed firmly at the floor with her whip.

    ¡°I don¡¯t!¡± Dai Yue shook her head with indignation, ¡°You must have used a prohibited medicinal pill! Otherwise, how could you possibly have defeated me?!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Is that right? I didn¡¯t realize that I¡¯d defeated you with the use of a prohibited medicinal pill. Then, tell me, what kind of prohibited medicinal pill did I use?¡±

    ¡°That medicinal pill!¡± Dai Yue¡¯s eyes zed with rage as she barked, ¡°That medicinal pill is the problem. It must be a medicinal pill that allows you to increase your cultivation level!¡±

    A smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips as she remarked nonchntly, ¡°Dai Yue, not everyone¡¯s the same as you.¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s face turned pale, and her expression turned even uglier, ¡°You, you...Jun Xiaomo! What do you mean?!¡±

    ¡°You understand, don¡¯t you?¡± Jun Xiaomo tilted her head slowly as she cidly responded, ¡°Do you really think you can conceal from everyone the fact that you¡¯ve taken a cultivation suppressing medicinal pill? How about it ¨C a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Mastery losing to a measly cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Do you feel satisfied by your performance?¡±

    ¡°You! You just wait! I haven¡¯t lost yet!¡± Dai Yue¡¯s veins began to bulge as she bemoaned in anger and infuriation. She struggled to stand up to no avail as she almost instantly fell back down onto the ground.

    Her injuries were simply too severe.

    Jun Xiaomo coiled up her whip and tapped them in her hands. She stood tall with an erect back as she looked down on Dai Yue and suggested, ¡°If you admit defeat, I¡¯ll let you off the hook. Do you admit defeat?¡±

    ¡°Never!¡± Dai Yue understood that her chances of turning the tides of battle were slim to none, but that did not change the fact that she was infuriated by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocations. In the heat of the moment, she refused to give in.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly, before she coldly stated, ¡°That¡¯s fine. Remember, you¡¯ve brought this upon yourself.¡±

    Dai Yue¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety as a sense of unease swept over her. Yet there was no longer a chance for her to capitte ¨C in the blink of an eye, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whipshed out straight towards Dai Yue¡¯s face!

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Dai Yue let out a shrill shriek. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whip had directly struck Dai Yue¡¯s mouth, grinding up the flesh around her lips and causing her face to swell up.

    ¡°Wu-wu-wu...¡± Dai Yue clutched tightly at her lips. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier whish had struck her tongue and her teeth as well. Not only had Dai Yue lost several teeth, she had almost even bitten off her tongue as a result of the fierce strike.

    She stared back at Jun Xiaomo in fear. Her earlier unwillingness and vicious attitude had all been instantly dissipated by this singlesh from Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡± Jun Xiaomo cidly questioned again.

    Dai Yue wanted to say that she admitted defeat, but she had already lost the use of her lips and tongue, and there was nothing more she could say right now. Thus, she could only clutch at her mouth as she continued to sob tragically.

    Jun Xiaomo had noticed that Dai Yue intended to admit defeat as well, but she pretended not to notice this.

    Her whipshed out again. This time, it struck Dai Yue on her body, causing her to roll across the arena like a ragdoll.

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked again.

    Dai Yue wanted so much to say that she admitted defeat, but her mouth was filled with blood and no sound came out of it. She wanted to gesture her admission of defeat, but Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier strike had disoriented her so much that she could no longer even do so. In her confusion, she anxiously nodded her head, before shaking her head, and nobody could tell what exactly she meant by all of this.

    Pak! Another whish.

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡±

    Pak! A second whish.

    ¡°Do you admit defeat?¡±

    ...

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo alternated between a whish and a question; a whish and a question. This went on until Dai Yue was reduced to a pile of tears and blood in her final breath as she finally managed to mber to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s feet and tug gently at her clothes, begging Jun Xiaomo to let her off the hook.

    After such a long time, Jun Xiaomo had finally ventted the frustrations and exasperations that she had bottled up in her heart since the start of the match.

    Jun Xiaomo curled up her whip as she nced back at Dai Yue and left her with a few parting words, ¡°Remember, others will treat you in the same way you treat others. I¡¯m just returning you the favor right now.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she lifted her head and dered to the referee, ¡°The opponent has admitted defeat. Contestant Jun Xiaomo requests an end to this battle.¡±

    The audience below were still dazed with astonishment by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had managed to turn the tides of battle, and it was only at this moment that they came back to their senses ¨C Jun Xiaomo has won?! Jun Xiaomo, who¡¯s only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, has won?! Jun Xiaomo, who had earlier been reduced to no more than her final breaths by Dai Yue, has ¨C actually ¨C won?!?!

    In that moment, the entire audience erupted into a thunderous apuse.

 Chapter 193: He Zhangâ€™s Unwillingness, Du Clan Headâ€™s Ploy

    <h4>Chapter 193: He Zhang¡¯s Unwillingness, Du n Head¡¯s Ploy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    There was a sea of people apuding Jun Xiaomo in the audience. On the arena, Jun Xiaomo was unable to distinguish the exact people apuding for her right now, but she could tell from their apuse that these people were truly and sincerely celebrating her victory. It was an undoubted affirmation of her abilities.

    Jun Xiaomo coiled up her whip and stored it within her Interspatial Ring as she smiled genially at the audience as a disy of her appreciation. Even though her beauty had been diluted by ayer of dirt and streaks of blood stain all over her body, Jun Xiaomo continued to gaze at the audience with her glistening, dazzling eyes that were filled with determination and confidence.

    Their apuse grew wilder. There was even a cultivator in the audience who nudged his friend with a flushed face as he remarked abashedly, ¡°I think I¡¯m beginning to grow even fonder of Jun Xiaomo. What do I do now? Do you think there¡¯s any hope for me to woo her?¡±

    His friend rolled his eyes and derided mischievously, ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only one who thinks this way? I¡¯m afraid that countless male cultivators would¡¯ve fallen for her after such a remarkable showing at this battle. You can consider your prospects after you¡¯ve defeated these bucketloads of love rivals. Besides, doesn¡¯t she already have someone she likes? Look over there ¨C¡±

    His friend pointed at Rong Ruihan; a man presently seated at the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seating area. The first cultivator was taken aback when he saw Rong Ruihan. Afterparing his abilities and his appearances with Rong Ruihan, he gulped in dismay, before wholeheartedly extinguishing the budding affection for Jun Xiaomo in his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo had undoubtedly earned every bit of her victory in this battle. As soon as the referee announced the final results of thepetition, Jun Xiaomo politely bowed towards the panel of referees before she walked down the arena, back to the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seating area.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s return was met with a warm celebration from her martial brothers and sisters from the Heavenly Peak. They surrounded Jun Xiaomo joyously and extended their palms to pat her head and shoulders with affirmation as theyuded her victory with ¡°well done¡±, ¡°good showing, martial sister¡± or ¡°incredible¡±, and other praises alike. Jun Xiaomo was practically showered withudations and congrattions.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled blissfully. The people in front of her eyes were her kin from the Heavenly Peak after all. A sense of warmth gushed straight through her heart.

    In the arena, Dai Yuey alone on the ground in a tragic state. She had earlier expended far too much spiritual energy, and that had resulted in a situation where she was left with little spiritual energy to protect her body towards the end of the battle. Her meridians and Dantian werepletely drained right now, and she was no different from a mere mortal. It was no wonder that Jun Xiaomo was able to deal such grievous injuries and wounds to her.

    Dai Yue heard the adtion for Jun Xiaomo from the audience, and she also felt a variety of looksnd on her body as well, including pity, sympathy, as well as some which delighted in her misery. She felt incredibly humiliated and aggrieved, and a swathe of frustration filled her heart. However, she knew that there was no way she could resist any further.

    After all, she no longer possessed even the strength to stand on her own right now.

    Just as much as she had been incredibly arrogant on the arena earlier, she was equally in an incredibly tragic state right now. It was as though she had shot herself in the foot. She had earlier thought that killing Jun Xiaomo was going to be as easy as squashing an ant, but it turned out that she was the one who had lost this battle!

    Dai Yue began to fade in and out of consciousness. In fact, she hoped that she would faint sooner rather thanter. She hoped that when she woke up, she would discover that this had been nothing more than a terrible nightmare, and the fight with Jun Xiaomo had not taken ce yet.

    Dai Yanfeng and Qiu Laifeng were incensed and exasperated. But over and above all that, they were heartbroken to see their daughter reduced to such a tragic state. As soon as the results were announced, they immediately rushed onto the arena to examine their daughter¡¯s condition. Then, when they drew closer, they staggered involuntarily when they saw the macabre sight in front of their eyes.

    Earlier, they had been unable to see the exact condition of Dai Yue¡¯s body when they had been off the stage. It was only when they ascended the tform where the battle took ce that they finally discovered the true extent of Dai Yue¡¯s injuries. Dai Yue had beenpletely beaten to a bloody pulp and shey in a pool of her own blood ¨C she hardly even looked like a human right now.

    ¡°Yue-Yue!¡± Qiu Laifeng cried out with a trembling voice.

    Dai Yue stirred slightly, and she painstakingly tried to move her head. She wanted toin to her mother, but she no longer possessed the use of her lips and tongue as a result of the injuries caused by Jun Xiaomo.

    Dai Yanfeng gingerly embraced his daughter. On the other hand, Qiu Laifeng¡¯s gaze grew frosty as she red viciously at the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seating area and berated, ¡°Jun Xiaomo! How dare you beat my daughter to this state! I¡¯ll definitely settle the score with you in future ¨C replete with interest!¡±

    Qiu Laifeng¡¯s vilification silenced the entire audience momentarily, before everyone around began to whisper to each other, denouncing her conduct ¨C What¡¯s up with this couple from the Eternal Summit Sect? Are they really such sore losers? I mean, none of the others who had suffered far worse injuries than Dai Yue had even thought about seeking revenge like this.

    This was because such injuries were permissible under the rules and regtions of thispetition after all.

    Furthermore, if not for the fact that Dai Yue had forced Jun Xiaomo into a corner to begin with, she would never have ended up like that.

    Jun Xiaomo heard Qiu Laifeng¡¯s provocation. She patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder, appeasing his growing indignation, as she retrieved a Voice-Amplification Talisman from her Interspatial Ring, stuck it on her body and responded to Qiu Laifeng, ¡°Senior Qiu, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re fully aware why Dai Yue ended up the way she did. I, Jun Xiaomo, have always lived by the principle that if others don¡¯t step on my toes, I won¡¯t offend them either; but if others intentionally take advantage of my goodwill, then I will undoubtedly repay their transgressions tenfold. That said, I¡¯ve only just done to Dai Yue what she has done to me. In fact, I didn¡¯t even take her life. How can this be considered overstepping my boundariespared with what Dai Yue has done? Or are you saying that Dai Yue¡¯s life is worth more than others¡¯ lives now?¡±

    Qiu Laifeng waspletely taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s refutations, and her face immediately turned sickly green.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly as she continued, ¡°If senior Qiu still insists on looking to me for revenge, then this junior has nothing more to say to you besides this ¨C bring it on.¡±

    Jun Linxuan had never been on good terms with the people from the Eternal Summit Sect. Seeing that Qiu Laifeng had actually dared to threaten his daughter, the rage in his heart burgeoned into a roaring inferno. A wave of oppressive aura apanying his cultivation at the secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage swept across the arena towards Qiu Laifeng. Jun Linxuan¡¯s eyes darkened as he bellowed, ¡°If you want to look to my daughter for revenge, you¡¯ll have to step over my dead body first!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! How dare you look to our martial sister Xiaomo for vengeance ¨C you haven¡¯t even sought our approval yet!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going too far! Don¡¯t you dare think that us members of the Heavenly Peak can be bullied like that!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister, I¡¯ll stand up for you!¡±

    Just like that, everyone from the Heavenly Peak began to chime in, publicly disying their indignation towards Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yanfeng, and signifying their intention to protect Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart immediately grew warm and fuzzy at their support.

    ¡°I¡¯ll protect you as well.¡± Another voice chimed in beside Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. She turned her attention to where the voice came from, and she saw Rong Ruihan wearing a faint smile on his face.

    ¡°I know you will.¡± Jun Xiaomo returned a smile. Then, as though she had just remembered something important, she turned back to the arena and remarked firmly, ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s still the matter of our bet. Since Dai Yue has lost, I hope she will adhere to the conditions that we had earlier set, and refrain from ever showing up before brother Rong again.¡±

    As though Jun Xiaomo and the members of Heavenly Peak had given her a tight p on the face, Qiu Laifeng¡¯s expression grew even uglier.

    That said, Qiu Laifeng and Dai Yanfeng knew that nothing good woulde to them if they pressed the issue any further. After all, given how the situation had developed, they knew that nobody would stand on their side anymore. They would only amplify their image as aughingstock if they continued to bark at Jun Xiaomo and scold her.

    In any event, revenge was a dish best served cold.

    Thus, they collected their roiling emotions with indignation, lifted Dai Yue up gingerly and hurried off the arena with her.

    As soon as Dai Yanfeng and Qiu Laifeng returned to the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area, several disciples ran up to check on Dai Yue¡¯s condition as well as echo their frustrations towards theirmon enemies.

    Only Liang Yulong remainedpletely calm and collected where he stood. After a few moments, he chuckled sardonically to himself before turning to leave.

    You reap what you sow after all. It was just like what Jun Xiaomo had said ¨C Dai Yue had only herself to me for the extent of her injuries this time. But given how master and his wife spoil their daughter, I¡¯m afraid Dai Yue will never be able to understand this universal truth.

    Furthermore, he could tell that none of the other martial brothers and sisters who had run up to check on Dai Yue¡¯s condition actually cared about her condition at all. In fact, their eyes were filled with a gaze that dered, ¡°serves you right¡±.

    Forget it. Show¡¯s over. They can do what they want.

    Sometimes, I truly admire the bunch of people from Heavenly Peak...

    As the idiom goes, one man¡¯s meat is another man¡¯s poison. While the members of the Heavenly Peak were celebrating the fact that Jun Xiaomo had barelye out victorious in an arduous and difficult battle; He Zhang waspletely incensed by the turn of events.

    He had never expected Jun Xiaomo toe outpletely unscathed despite the fact that he had already mixed the rest of the Bedeviled Grass into the medicinal pill.

    Jun Xiaomo had walked off the stage with a pale face after the first battle. Yet after this battle, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits simply couldn¡¯t be any better!

    Just what in the world is going on?!

    He Zhang returned to the inn with a heavy heart. Then, as soon as he lifted his downcast gaze, he immediately noticed that the Du n Head was already waiting for him in his room.

    ¡°I think you¡¯ve got some exining to do.¡± The Du n Head stated with a frigid gaze, ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I¡¯d made myself clear that the Bedeviled Grass isn¡¯t for the purposes of increasing herbat ability. Yet in the span of a few days, not only has Jun Xiaomo advanced to the sixth level of Qi Mastery, she¡¯s even won two battles in thepetition. Are you trying to pull a fast one on me, huh?!¡±

    The Du n Head mmed the table in fury.

    He Zhang hurriedly bowed as he anxiously attempted to appease the Du n Head, ¡°Do you think I¡¯d dare to even try pulling a fast one on you? I¡¯ve done as you¡¯d instructed and made sure that Jun Xiaomo had consumed the Bedeviled Grass. But the demonic energy within her body hasn¡¯t erupted or gone out of control yet. This...I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on either.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Idiot.¡± The Du n Head nced at He Zhang disdainfully as he mocked, ¡°I just knew you Secondary Sect pieces of trash can never be relied upon. If not for the fact that there are established conventions within the spiritual cultivation world which prevents us Hidden Sects from interfering from the matters between smaller sects, I¡¯d have made my move and wiped the Heavenly Peak off the face of this world a long time ago!¡±

    The Dawn Sect was not considered a small sect among the Secondary Sects. That said, the Dawn Sect was no more than an insignificant speck whenpared to the insurmountable strengths of Hidden Sects and ns like the Du n.

    He Zhang dared not refute the Du n Head¡¯s spiel, and he obsequiously nodded his head in affirmation.

    The Du n Head deliberated in silence for a moment, before rifying, ¡°Are you certain that Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter possesses and acquired demonic body?¡±

    ¡°This should be the case. I had personally checked the condition of her body when she was injured some time ago. Her body already had the presence of demonic energy, and I could even sense that her body was automatically absorbing demonic energy from the surroundings.¡±

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s hard to say.¡± The Du n Head chuckled coldly, ¡°If there¡¯s truly demonic energy within her body, there¡¯s no way she would be immune to the effects of the Bedeviled Grass. You¡¯ve made her consume the Bedeviled Grass twice. If the demonic energy within her body was to erupt, it should have erupted a long time ago.¡±

    ¡°This...then shall this junior think of a way to verify the condition of her body once more?¡±

    ¡°Forget it. I don¡¯t trust your ability to handle things. Sometimes, I even wonder whether you¡¯re able to distinguish spiritual energy from demonic energy to begin with.¡± The Du n Head mocked contemptuously.

    Anyone would be incensed if they received such harsh criticisms and sarcastic remarks, much less a prideful man like He Zhang.

    However, He Zhang knew that he could only bottle up his frustrations and exasperations in his heart, and not disy it on his face.

    That said, and despite He Zhang¡¯s efforts at concealing his expressions, the Du n Head knew what He Zhang was thinking with just one nce. Yet the Du n Head did not mind this one bit. After all, He Zhang was nothing more than a tool to him.

    Since He Zhang was only a tool, then his value only extended insofar as he remained useful to the Du n Head. As for whether the tool was d or upset, this waspletely outside the scope of the Du n Head¡¯s considerations.

    The Du n Head thought about it for a while before he added, ¡°I only need you to do one simple thing for me right now.¡±

    He Zhang obsequiously responded, ¡°Junior awaits the Du n Head¡¯s instructions.¡±

    ¡°In the uing group battles, ensure that every single participant is from the Heavenly Peak.¡±

    ¡°This...¡± He Zhang hesitated. The group battles concerned a sect¡¯s prestige and reputation. Even though the Heavenly Peak disciples possessed reasonable strength on average, he would nevertheless be hard pressed as a Sect Leader to justify selecting only the Heavenly Peak disciples rather than the strongest disciples within the Sect to participate in the group battles.

    Picking only the disciples from a single Peak? What kind of a request is this?!

    He may as well be telling others that the Dawn Sect could only afford to send the disciples from Heavenly Peak!

    Besides, He Zhang had his own selfish reasons as well. It was widely known that any outstanding leaders of the group battles would invariably earn the attention of others, including the sect elders from Greater Sects. Thus, he intended to have his own First-Seat Disciple Qin Lingyu lead the group battle on behalf of the Dawn Sect.

    That said, would the Du n Head really be unaware of what He Zhang¡¯s reservations were right now? He chuckled coldly as he added, ¡°If you don¡¯t want the disciples you¡¯re well-pleased with to perish in thispetition, then you¡¯d better not let them participate in this iteration of the group battles.¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s pupils constricted as he rified, ¡°Could it be that you intend to...intervene with the group battles?¡±

    ¡°Ah, you¡¯ll know when the timee. You just need to do as I¡¯ve instructed. Jun Linxuan has hurt my Du n¡¯s disciples, and I¡¯m going to let him have a taste of his own medicine! Let¡¯s see how he reacts when his beloved daughter and all of his disciples perish before his very eyes...hahahaha...¡±

    He Zhang contemted silently for a moment, before he made his resolve as well.

    We¡¯ve lost far too many young sprouts in thest travels, and it¡¯s going to be an incredibly uphill task if we intend to win this uing group battles.

    Going with the flow instead might not be a bad thing. If we end up losing, our disciples won¡¯t have to take the me. Not only that, we can even push the me entirely onto the Heavenly Peak disciples under Jun Linxuan¡¯s lead.

    That would be a far better n.

    He Zhang¡¯s expressions revealed a glimmer of joy as he bowed humbly, signifying his intentions toply.

 Chapter 194: Overcoming All Odds, Lower Category Grand Finals

    <h4>Chapter 194: Oveing All Odds, Lower Category Grand Finals</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo hade out victorious twice in a row now. At this moment, every single participant around hade to realize that this cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery was not to be underestimated at all.

    Practically every single sect participating in thispetition would pull out all the stops and make all forms of preparatory work that they could in order to gain an advantage for their disciples. Among other things, most of these sects would conduct their own research and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each of the remaining participants in the battles.

    That said, it was evident that everyone had overlooked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s participation in the Lower Category. After all, how strong could a cultivator at the fifth level of Qi Mastery possibly be?

    Yet in the end, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance over thest two battles astonished everyone, and several people had themon hunch that Jun Xiaomo was going to be the greatest underdog among the Lower Category battles.

    Thus, the blunderous sect leaders immediately called for an urgent meeting with their respective sect elders and peakmasters to analyze Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities ande up with the necessary countermeasures to deal with her. At the very least, they needed to better understand where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s advantageid which allowed her to ovee her cultivation level deficiencies. This would give their disciples participating in the Lower Category battles some hope for oveing her in the uing matches.

    Unfortunately, the result of all these emergency meetings in every single sect was the same ¨C there was no appropriate countermeasure.

    As the sect leader, sect elder and peakmasters, everyone knew exactly where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s advantageid ¨C it was none other than her wealth ofbat experience. But such a wealth ofbat experience was not something that could be simply developed overnight. Even if they forced their disciples to undergo emergency remedialbat training or the like, there was still no way of increasing theirbat intuition and judgment to close the gap with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s frightening abilities.

    ¡°I really don¡¯t know how that Jun Linxuan taught his daughter all of this. He couldn¡¯t have tossed her into the wilderness to fend for herself before she had even learnt to speak, could he?¡± One of the sect leaders chuckled bitterly as he remarked.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way of telling for sure.¡± Another sect elder seated beside him casually remarked, ¡°But don¡¯t forget that Jun Linxuan is a renown cultivation fanatic. It¡¯s not an impossibility that he would put his daughter through inhumane, extreme training right from a young age.¡±

    Everyone immediately revealed a look of realization, thinking that they had roughly grasped the truth of the matter.

    But the truth of the matter was that even Jun Linxuan found it astonishing how Jun Xiaomo had developed such maturity in herbat judgment and gathered such a wealth ofbat experience. In the end, Jun Linxuan found that he could only attribute it to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s experience with her earlier travels outside the Sect.

    She must have gone through a lot of hardship to have gleaned so much. Jun Linxuan sighed in his heart.

    It must be said that every single sect elder and sect leader of these participating Secondary Sects were all well over a hundred years of age and venerated seniors in their own rights. Thus, they were naturally able to adjudge from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance in the previous two battles that it was hardly going to be an easy thing if their Lower Category disciples were to defeat Jun Xiaomo.

    And this was how the subsequent few battles panned out as well. Jun Xiaomo was like an undying cockroach ¨C despite her weak cultivation at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery, she was able to avoid most of the attacks unleashed upon her as she bided her time. Then, when she adjudged that her opponent¡¯s reservoir of spiritual energy hadrgely been depleted, she would begin tounch her counterattack and subdue her opponent in one fell swoop.

    Thus, those who were defeated by Jun Xiaomo would invariably describe their experience in battle as ¡°weary¡±. If they were to supplement that description, they would have added ¡°humiliating¡±, and ¡°I want to beat her up so very much¡±.

    After all, thesebatants all possessed cultivation levels that were one or two qualitative levels higher than their opponent, yet they were slowly and consciously worn down by that opponent without the ability to do a single thing against it ¨C how could one not feel humiliated when it all ended?

    Furthermore, having observed thest tens of days ofpetition closely, everyone began to realize that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s battles generally took the longest time toplete. There was no other reason apart from the fact that Jun Xiaomo was simply too arduous and unrelenting.

    She had practically dragged things out with each of her opponents so much so that several opponents had lost their temper at her. Yet all this while, she remained calm and cool as a cucumber.

    It was absolutely infuriating.

    That said, the number of people who had begun to fall for Jun Xiaomo naturally also grew and grew. After all, she was undeniably beautiful, possessed incrediblebat abilities, and her character was not half bad either ¨C who wouldn¡¯t fall for such a person?

    And most importantly, her father was even a Peakmaster!

    The person who had agreed to rescind the marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo must be blind! Such a rare find like Jun Xiaomo was something to be treasured and held closely and securely to one¡¯s heart after all!

    Qin Lingyu also found himself in quite the pickle thesest few days. No matter where he went, he would always find there to be other cultivators giving him peculiar looks.

    He could tell from their eyes that there were looks of pity, exasperation, delight in his misery and even some filled with indignation.

    He knew that the reason for these peculiar looks from other cultivators emanated from his history with Jun Xiaomo.

    As such, Qin Lingyu also began to realize that he might very well have acted too rashly when it came to the rescission of the marriage arrangement. But there was nothing in this world that could allow him to turn back time. He could only cate himself with countless reminders that he had not made the wrong decision.

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo has some vague and ambiguous rtionships with several other men. If I don¡¯t rescind this marriage arrangement when I did, would I not be simply waiting to be made a cuckold of?

    Qin Lingyu continued to cate himself with such thoughts as he fervently repressed these roiling and toiling emotions back to the depths of his heart.

    From the start, he was convinced that he had not wronged Jun Xiaomo at all.

    At the same time, even though Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions were incredibly discreet and ndestine, Yu Wanrou still managed to pick up on the slight changes in Qin Lingyu¡¯s attitude and disposition. After all, Yu Wanrou was one of the people closest to Qin Lingyu.

    In the past, Qin Lingyu would always reveal a vile and disgusted look whenever they talked about Jun Xiaomo, as though he couldn¡¯t wait to break off all rtions with that woman at the earliest possible moment. But now, Qin Lingyu would always grow taciturn and delve deep into his own thoughts whenever he heard someone talk about Jun Xiaomo.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s sullenness made Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart grow flustered, and a primal sense of danger arose in her heart.

    Qin Lingyu was all Yu Wanrou had right now. If Qin Lingyu abandoned her, where would that leave Yu Wanrou? Would she be relegated to live the rest of her life as a nobody? Then what was the purpose of her crossing over into this world and obtaining her spectral demine and spiritual spring?

    No! I have my own advantage as well. I¡¯m going to make everyone sit up and take notice of me through the uing battles! Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth as she dered in her heart.

    Yu Wanrou was in the eighth level of Qi Mastery, and she was one of the participants in the Lower Category battles as well.

    The recovery pills she possessed had all been refined with the waters from her spiritual spring. They looked the same as any other recovery pills, but the effects of these pills were even stronger than the fifth-grade recovery pill that Jun Xiaomo had used during her battle.

    At the very least, normal recovery pills could only treat a person¡¯s wounds and injuries, but Yu Wanrou¡¯s pills that had been refined with the waters from her spiritual spring could not only heal a person¡¯s wounds and injuries, they could even replenish the spiritual energies and vitality of a person¡¯s body.

    It was with the aid of these recovery pills that Yu Wanrou had sessfully defeated several opponents and earned herself a ce in the grand finals of the Lower Category battles.

    If not for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s participation in the Lower Category battles, Yu Wanrou¡¯s performance would have been incredibly eye-catching. After all, everyone enjoyed watching the performance of a powerful and beautiful female cultivator.

    Unfortunately, Yu Wanrou¡¯s performance undeniably paled inparison with the dark horse, Jun Xiaomo, who had ovee her cultivation level deficiency and defeated several cultivators at the seventh or eighth levels of Qi Mastery even though she was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery.

    This was a situation where she had been born with a luster but unable to shine. Yu Wanrou had crossed over and been blessed with incredible, heaven-defying resources, yet Jun Xiaomo seemed to being out ahead of her no matter what she did.

    She could not ept this!

    That said, Yu Wanrou was not going to be as silly as Dai Yue to think about disfiguring or killing Jun Xiaomo. She appreciated the fact that most people sympathized with the weak. Thus, Yu Wanrou naturally knew that presenting herself with an aggressive disposition would be tantamount to standing in the heart of the storm and making herself a public enemy.

    Yu Wanrou was not going to do something as silly as that.

    Instead, she wanted to prove on the arena that she was better than Jun Xiaomo. That sufficed for her. At the very least, it sufficed for the moment. Anything else could be decided uponter.

    Very soon, the day of the grand finals arrived. Yu Wanrou got out of bed early and put on a thickyer of make-up before leaving the inn. She had always been confident in her looks, and thest thing that she wanted to hear today werements like ¡°Jun Xiaomo is the most beautiful¡± or the ilk.

    Today was the day of the final Lower Category battles. It was also the day of the grand finals where the champion of the Lower Category battles was determined.

    Needless to say, the uing grand finals battle attracted far more attention than any other battle did over thest tens of days. The arena was filled to the brim with people, and some audience members were even relegated to standing on the outer circle of the arena to watch the uing battle.

    What several people found the most remarkable was the fact that the grand finals was going to be between two female cultivators from the Dawn Sect.

    The Dawn Sect truly lives up to its reputation. They¡¯re undoubtedly deserving of being the mainstay among the top three of every iteration of thesepetitions.

    However, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters were hardly as pleased as others expected them to be ¨C especially the Second Elder.

    Just a few days ago, one of the Second Elder¡¯s personal disciples whom he was hopeful of taking the title of champion was utterly defeated by Jun Xiaomo, and the Second Elder was still reeling from shock. Thus, how could he find it within himself to celebrate the fact that the grand finals constituted onlybatants from the Dawn Sect?

    Truth be told, it was never within any of their expectations for Jun Xiaomo to obtain the title of champion for the Lower Category battles. After all, they had hoped with all their hearts that Jun Xiaomo would have perished on the arena instead.

    ¡°Wanrou, you have to do your best to take thispetition. The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s glory is entirely in your hands right now.¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s master patted her shoulder as he spoke.

    ¡°Disciple takes heed.¡± Yu Wanrou made a respectful fist and palm salute as she bowed slightly. Her eyes were filled with an intense desire to take the victory as well.

    The conversations on the other side was the exact opposite of what had just urred with Yu Wanrou. Jun Linxuan looked indifferently at Jun Xiaomo as he remarked, ¡°Do your best, but don¡¯t push yourself too hard.¡±

    ¡°Yes, father.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded curtly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t just say it! I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯re going to forget what you¡¯ve just agreed to momentster.¡± Liu Qingmei chided her daughter as she rubbed her daughter¡¯s head gingerly ¨C Since when has Xiaomo not forced the issue?

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled helplessly as she ced her arm around her mother¡¯s shoulders in an endearing manner and shook her gently as she cated, ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to remember it this time~¡±

    Liu Qingmei rolled her eyes at her daughter.

    ¡°You can do it, martial sister!¡± Wei Gang pumped his fist into the air.

    Jun Xiaomo tousled that young man¡¯s hair as she chirped, ¡°Thanks for your support, Little Lang.¡±

    She was going to do it for all these people. She was not going to lose to Yu Wanrou.

    The chief referee stood up and invited both grand finalists to the arena once again. The harmonious atmosphere was stripped away by the chief referee¡¯s announcement, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze tensed up once again. The aura around her body immediately flourished like a gleaming sword that had just been unsheathed.

    Jun Xiaomo took firm and determined steps as she made her way to the arena slowly. Yu Wanrou followed closely behind her and took the stage as well.

    Both grand finalists were Dawn Sect cultivators, and both were female cultivators. Everyone in the audience, especially male cultivators, couldn¡¯t help but crane their necks as they sized up these grand finalists with widened eyes.

    One was soft and warm like water, while the other was headstrong and aggressive. They were of two distinctive types of personalities...

    But it was an undeniable fact that both were beauties in their own rights. Furthermore, the fact that both made it to the grand finals also meant that both possessed immense abilities.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s male cultivators are so fortunate...especially Qin Lingyu. After all, these two female cultivators had at some point in time been romantically associated with him, haven¡¯t they? One was an ex-fianc¨¦e, while the other was his current lover ¨C I wonder whose side he¡¯ll take?

    Regardless, he¡¯s in such an enviable and admirable position...

    Several members of the audience thought this way and cast their gazes directly towards Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s cold and suave appearances remainedpletely expressionless. His eyes darkened, and nobody could tell what was going through his mind at this moment.

 Chapter 195: Final Victor of the Lower Category Battles

    <h4>Chapter 195: Final Victor of the Lower Category Battles</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was also deeply concerned with how Qin Lingyu saw her. Before thepetition began, she nced over at the Dawn Sect seating area with a soft gaze that was filled with tears. Unfortunately, the distance was simply too great, and she was unable to clearly see the expressions on Qin Lingyu¡¯s face.

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lip, and a trace of frustration flickered across her eyes.

    Off the arena, those who had experienced a split second of Yu Wanrou¡¯s gaze when she swept her gaze across the audience towards Qin Lingyu felt their bodies stiffen up and turn numb slightly.

    Such a pitiable beauty like her truly tempts a person to pull her into a warm embrace and give her a sense of security! Several male disciples eximed in their hearts.

    It had to be said that Yu Wanrou had always known how to y to her strengths to stimte the sympathy and affection in male cultivator¡¯s hearts.

    Jun Xiaomo watched Yu Wanrou¡¯s act indifferently as she lightlyshed out with the whip in her hands.

    Just then, the chief referee stood up and rang the bill in his hands ¨C Ding ding!

    ¡°I hereby announce ¨C the grand finals of the Lower Category battles begins now!¡±

    As soon as the referee¡¯s deration of themencement of battle resounded, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits flourished and she burst straight towards Yu Wanrou with an explosive attack as she brandished the whip in her hands.

    Fast! Yu Wanrou was still immersed in her own thoughts, and hercency meant that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s surprise attack struck her squarely on her body. Her arms immediately swelled up.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look so pitiful ¨C it¡¯s no use in this duel of ours. I¡¯m not going to go easy on you if you¡¯re not going to take this seriously.¡± Jun Xiaomo cautioned with a calm tone of voice and slightly raised brows. Her eyes were filled with a frigid gaze that almost seemed to prate deep into the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart, dug out her innermost thoughts and exposed them to the world.

    Damn you, Jun Xiaomo! Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart decried. She no longer dared to becent, and she focused her mindpletely on the battle at hand as well.

    And it was only when she put her heart and mind into this battle that she truly discovered how fearsome Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities were.

    After the exchange of what must have been fifty blows, every single one of her attacksnded on nothing but air. Worse, Jun Xiaomo had but narrowly avoided every single one of these attacks by a hair¡¯s breadth, and she came outpletely unscathed.

    Conversely, Jun Xiaomo made full use of the downtime between Yu Wanrou¡¯s attacks tounch several whishes at her. Even though these strikes were not imbued with much spiritual energy and were therefore low on their offensive power, being struck by such blows was still incredibly painful and annoying!

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lips. Her glistening eyes seemed to be filled with fluid, as though tears were going to break out of the dam and pour out of her eyes in the very next moment.

    While Jun Xiaomo waspletely unconcerned about Yu Wanrou¡¯s pitiful looks, the audience did not think the same way. In particr, the audience members seated closest to the arena who could see Yu Wanrou¡¯s expressions clearly invariably thought that Jun Xiaomo had been far too heavy-handed with her attacks.

    It must be because they¡¯re love rivals! The audience members sighed in their hearts.

    That said, Yu Wanrou discovered that whether she feigned a pitiable look or faced Jun Xiaomo squarely in battle, both approaches hardly did anything to give her an edge in the battle. Thus, Yu Wanrou could only press on and attempt to find an opening for herself in battle.

    In fact, she thought to take a leaf out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s book and engage in a battle of attrition with Jun Xiaomo ¨C her recovery pill had been immersed in the spirit spring waters, and it possessed the ability to fully replenish her body¡¯s spiritual energy. She could rely on this to turn the tides of battle!

    I¡¯ll bet Jun Xiaomo doesn¡¯t know about this trump card of mine! Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes darkened as she eximed in her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo was indeed unaware of Yu Wanrou¡¯s spirit spring and her spectral demine, as well as the spirit spring¡¯s effect of replenishing her spiritual energy. Nevertheless, Jun Xiaomo also possessed a hidden trump card as well ¨C and that was the nature of the true energy within her body.

    One part of true energy could be converted into two parts of spiritual energy.

    If Jun Xiaomo was unaware of Yu Wanrou¡¯s hidden trump card, how could Yu Wanrou possibly be aware of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hidden trump card either?

    Just like that, the grand finals also turned out to be the longest, most arduous battle among all of the Lower Category battles, and the grand finalists battled for close to six whole hours!

    During these six hours, the audience members started off watching the grand finals with eager anticipation. Then, the eager anticipation turned into an anxietyced with slight frustration as the audience began to wonder who woulde out on top of the battle. Then, towards the end of the six hours, everyone had grown numb and weary, and the only thought on their mind was when this battle would finally end.

    Towards the end of the battle, even Yu Wanrou began to grow incredibly frustrated and exasperated at Jun Xiaomo. Even though she did not have a good grasp on the precise amount of spiritual energy stored by a person at a specific level of Qi Mastery, she had nevertheless gradually begun to discover that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body also harboured an anomaly.

    Otherwise, how could it be possible that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had not been drained dry of her spiritual energy after such a long time? She¡¯s only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery after all...

    Could Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body possess something like the spirit spring within her body as well?! Yu Wanrou bit down fierce on her lower lips as she suppressed the thoughts of that possibility ¨C No! There can only be one special person, and that¡¯s me! This world is not big enough for two people with unique, heaven-defying abilities.

    Yu Wanrou tossed these considerations to the back of her mind and continued topete in a frustrating and arduous battle with Jun Xiaomo. Her only hope was that the spiritual energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body would be depleted before hers ¨C that was her only hope at victory.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo had discovered Yu Wanrou hidden trump card not long after she had consumed her recovery pill. Jun Xiaomo was already used to urately assessing the remaining spiritual energy within a person¡¯s body duringbat. Based on her estimations, Yu Wanrou had consumed her recovery pill when her body was nearlypletely drained of all its spiritual energies.

    That said, she noticed that Yu Wanrou seemed to regain her vitality once more after consuming the recovery pill.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo drew the conclusion that Yu Wanrou¡¯s recovery pill had the effect of replenishing her body¡¯s spiritual energy and her vitality. As a result of that, Jun Xiaomo made it a point to be even more cautious and conservative about using the true energy within her body.

    She knew that she woulde out victorious as long as she had one modicum of true energy more than Yu Wanrou at the point of her depletion of energy.

    And things turned out just the way Jun Xiaomo had expected it to. Just as Yu Wanrou had almostpletely depleted the spiritual energy in her body a second time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was left with approximately one-tenth of the total amount of true energy within her body.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s body was ¡°almostpletely drained¡± because her body still possessed a trace of spiritual energy left.

    This residual spiritual energy was insufficient for unleashing a powerful spell, but it was more than sufficient to use a tiny spell, such as to create an ice de or the like.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whipshed towards Yu Wanrou and struck her, sending her flying back and mming into the ground.

    ¡°Stop! I beg you to stop!¡± Seeing that Jun Xiaomo had raised her whip again, Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes were filled with tears as she begged for her life.

    The male cultivators in the audience pitied Yu Wanrou, and they all began to beg for mercy on her behalf as well, ¡°That¡¯s right, please stop! Mercy is a virtue. The little beauty has already been reduced to such a sorry state. Don¡¯t make her into another Dai Yue, please.¡±

    That¡¯s right. From their perspective, Jun Xiaomo had been far too heavy-handed on Yu Wanrou. They felt like she had treated Yu Wanrou as though she were a second Dai Yue.

    Hell truly hath no fury like a woman¡¯s scorn. Several audience members remarked in their hearts.

    Jun Xiaomo nced towards the audience indifferently, before she heeded the audience¡¯s requests and loosened her grip on her whip.

    Just this moment, Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes flickered with a gleam and she operated the residual spiritual energy within her body once more andunched another attack towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck!

    Yu Wanrou had only begged for mercy, but she had not disyed any intentions to ¡°admit defeat¡± at all. Thus, thepetition was technically still ongoing. If she were able to injure Jun Xiaomo severely enough with this one strike, she would still be able to take the victory in these grand finals.

    And even if she were unable to injure Jun Xiaomo, the ice de that she had congealed and sent flying towards Jun Xiaomo had been so covert and concealed from public sight that nobody in the audience would have noticed it. Thus, she could continue to pretend to be pitiful and make everyone think that Jun Xiaomo was a vicious person.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s n was almost perfect. But she had miscalcted the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s battle awareness and herbat intuition.

    In that very moment when the ice de was congealed andunched towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, Jun Xiaomo tilted her body, and Yu Wanrou¡¯s sneak attack with the ice de was immediately exposed for all to see.

    Jun Xiaomo brandished her whip once again and smashed Yu Wanrou¡¯s ice de to smithereens.

    At this moment, the spiritual energy within Yu Wanrou¡¯s body had truly and thoroughly been depleted, yet the result was not what Yu Wanrou had expected.

    ¡°See? It¡¯s not that I¡¯m not letting you off; but you¡¯re not letting me off. I¡¯ve already lowered my whip, but you stillunched an attack at my neck with an ice de ¨C what¡¯s the meaning of that?¡± Jun Xiaomo tapped her whip on the palm of her hand with a steady tempo as she demanded an answer.

    Yu Wanrou knew that her n had failed, and she sought to salvage her reputation. She lowered her head and disyed an appearance akin to a frightened sparrow as she stammered in ¡°fear¡±, ¡°I...I was just nervous and afraid that you would continue to attack me...¡±

    ¡°Oh? Is that so...¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head knowingly, raised her eyebrow before she slowly added, ¡°Then let me be nervous and give you two harshshes of the whip too, alright? I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯ll sneakily attack me again...¡±

    The audience members that had initially spoken up for Yu Wanrou grew taciturn as well because Yu Wanrou¡¯s earlier conduct truly looked like an unadorned sneak attack.

    That said, even though they had their suspicions in their hearts, they still bore some sympathy for a beauty like Yu Wanrou. Thus, they all looked towards Jun Xiaomo with bated breaths.

    ¡°I...I didn¡¯t...¡± Yu Wanrou lifted her head suddenly and looked at Jun Xiaomo with aggrieved, reddened eyes that seemed to be filled with humiliation, as though Jun Xiaomo were framing and bullying her.

    Jun Xiaomo was infuriated with Yu Wanrou¡¯s pretentious disy. She ferociouslyshed out at the floor with her whip as she red at Yu Wanrou and barked, ¡°Don¡¯t beat about the bust! Tell me ¨C do you admit defeat?¡±

    ¡°I...¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was incredibly unwilling! She found the words ¡°admit defeat¡± extremely nauseating, and she simply couldn¡¯t bring herself to say these words.

    But the spiritual energy in her body hadpletely dried up. Under the rules of thepetition, she was not allowed to consume a recovery pill more than once either.

    Thus, even if she dragged on the battle, there was no way she would be able to turn the tides.

    Jun Xiaomo did not urge Yu Wanrou either. She simply looked down from up high at Yu Wanrou as she lightlyshed out at the floor with her whip from time to time.

    These frustrating smacking sounds from the whip became an undeniable pressure that weighed heavily on Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart ¨C she truly did not want to be another Dai Yue.

    Even if she possessed a spirit spring in her body, she did not ever wish to appear in such a tragic state like Dai Yue did. She did not want to be reduced to a bloody pulp of flesh and gore as others carried her down the arena.

    Tension filled the air in that few moments of silence, before Yu Wanrou finally steeled her resolve and made her decision. She knew that there was only one route for her to take, and that was ¨C

    ¡°I admit defeat.¡± Yu Wanrou lowered her head and eked out these few words as she ferociously suppressed the humiliation and unwillingness in her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a smile. She turned around and faced the panel of referees.

    The chief referee stood up at the same time, before he faced the audience and dered ¨C

    ¡°The victor of these grand finals, and the grand champion of the Lower Category battles is none other than....Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak, Jun Xiaomo!¡±

    This deration was like a huge rock that left a heavy depression in the hearts of several people in the audience ¨C He Zhang, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders, the people from the Eternal Summit Sect, and several other members of the audience who disliked Jun Xiaomo...

    This massive rock thatnded in their hearts even felt like it was scorching hot, stifling their hearts with immense amounts of frustration.

    It was particrly so for the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders. They had expected Jun Xiaomo to perish on the arena. Yet not only did Jun Xiaomo not perish, she had evensted throughout the entire Lower Category battles and taken the title of champion!

    This waspletely unexpected! This waspletely converse to their ns!

    Faced with themendations from the other sects, the faces of these Sect Elders began to stiffen and freeze up...

 Chapter 196: Yet Another Change of Group Battle Participants

    <h4>Chapter 196: Yet Another Change of Group Battle Participants</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After several rounds of incredible and arduous battles, Jun Xiaomo had managed to etch herself into the annals of history among the world of Secondary Sects. Wherever she went, disciples from many sects would drop what they were doing and cast looks of admiration on her as though she were their idol.

    Yet all of this was quite understandable. After all, it was already rare to find cultivators who were able to make up for their cultivation level deficiencies and defeat opponents of a stronger cultivation base. And what Jun Xiaomo had done was far more incredible than this, because she had defeated several opponents in a row to take the title of champion. This signified the emergence of a talent that could only be seen once every few hundred years.

    At the very least, thest time this had happened was four hundred years ago, when a spiritual cultivator had ovee all odds against his cultivation level deficiency ande out victorious in thepetition. This spiritual cultivatorter established himself as a sect elder of a Greater Sect.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions had spoken far louder than any words. Who would still dare tobel Jun Xiaomo as the trash among all spiritual cultivators and the disgrace of the Dawn Sect? In fact, the public had already turned their attention towards mocking the people within the Dawn Sect who had failed to realize Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities and treated that hidden pearl as nothing more than the glistening eye of a fish.

    In thest few days, Jun Xiaomo had been relentlessly receiving letters from the disciples from other sects confessing their fondness for her and asking for the opportunity to pursue and woo her. These confessions came in all forms and styles, each of which seemed more sincere than the other, and each of which was more...sappy than the other.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry at the fact that she was receiving all of these confessions. In the end, she simply stored these letters into a designated corner of her Interspatial Ring. She simply couldn¡¯t bring herself to burn them up.

    After all, that these letters were a physical manifestation of a person¡¯s heartfelt affection towards her. There was no reason for her to simply toss them to the ground and trample on their sincere gesture like that. That said, there was also no need for her to respond to these confessions. Thus, she decided to shelve these letters and ignore them.

    As to those who had even presented her with gifts, Jun Xiaomo had rejected every single one of them.

    ¡°I¡¯d thought that you would be incredibly frustrated at all these confessions.¡± As he witnessed Jun Xiaomo store a letter of confession in her Interspatial Ring for the fifty-third time, Rong Ruihan remarked with a tinge of sourness in his heart.

    That said, even he was unaware of the fact that his tone had carried that tinge of jealousy.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. She shook her head as she responded lightheartedly, ¡°They¡¯re only sending me some Messenger Paper Cranes, and it¡¯s not like they¡¯re doing anything overboard. Why should I be too bothered by them?¡±

    Rong Ruihan took a sip of tea. He found this mouthful of tea slightly bitter and astringent.

    In order to avoid cing Jun Xiaomo in a difficult spot, he had consciously suppressed the feelings on his heart and continued to interact with her as any other normal friend would.

    However, when the still of the night washed over thends, his suppressed feeling would burst uncontrobly out of his heart. Rong Ruihan longed for more.

    In fact, Rong Ruihan understood that Jun Xiaomo was able to calmly and indifferently deal with their confessions precisely because her heart did not have any room for these strangers.

    Even if she rejected them, Jun Xiaomo was hardly concerned that such a rejection would affect her rtionship with these people.

    But Rong Ruihan was different. It was precisely because Jun Xiaomo deeply cherished the friendship with Rong Ruihan that she would feel troubled by Rong Ruihan¡¯s disy of affection towards her that exceeded the bounds of normal friendship.

    Jun Xiaomo did not want to strain their existing rtionship at all.

    It¡¯s this damned friendship that we have!

    Rong Ruihan cursed in his heart, before he continued to forcibly suppress these emotions and shelve his thoughts.

    Jun Xiaomo did not discover Rong Ruihan¡¯s peculiar behaviour. She gently tapped the rims of the cup with her index finger, and she lowered her eyes and smiled faintly as she continued ¡°Furthermore, I think that these confessions only stem from a shallow admiration and appreciation for something pleasant. This can hardly be considered true love in any event. Let¡¯s wait and see. I¡¯m pretty sure that their attention on me would be reced by something else very quickly.¡±

    Rong Ruihan was taken slightly aback, before he began to shake his head andugh aloud ¨C

    Xiaomo is right. I¡¯ve let my mind wander too far this time. Am I not demeaning my own value if Ipared myself with those other cultivators?

    After all, those cultivators had set their sights on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s beauty and abilities. But what about Rong Ruihan? Rong Ruihan was certain that he already had Jun Xiaomo in his sights even when Jun Xiaomo was an immature youngdy at only the third level of Qi Mastery.

    Rong Ruihan chuckled lightheartedly as he took another sip of the tea. This time, he found that he could appreciate the tea¡¯s pleasant aroma once more.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo had expected, everyone¡¯s attention on Jun Xiaomo dwindled as soon as the Middle Category and the Open Category battlesmenced.

    Regardless of how astonishing her abilities during the Lower Category battles had been, she was still a cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Her disy of abilities was far from the dazzling disy put up by the other cultivators participating in the Middle Category and the Open Category battles.

    Furthermore, there were also several beautifuldies who disyed far stronger abilities throughout the course of the Middle Category and the Open Category battles. As soon as the limelight began to shine on these other female cultivators as well, Jun Xiaomo no longer stood out as much as she did before.

    However, Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t mind this at all. She was not an attention-seeker like Yu Wanrou. In fact, she could hardly be more pleased by the fact that things had substantially quietened down for her.

    ¡°Martial sister, martial sister, that Crescentfell Sect¡¯s female cultivator was incredible! She only needed ten moves to defeat her opponent!¡± Wei Gang couldn¡¯t contain his excitement and ran over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side to engage in banal banter.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. And she even looks quite beautiful too, doesn¡¯t she?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly as she nced at Wei Gang. Jun Xiaomo did not bother to watch every single battle that took ce, so Wei Gang took it upon himself to report the highlights of each day to her.

    ¡°Eh? Martial sister got that spot on as well~ Everyone in the audience was discussing all about that female cultivator today...they even said that her beauty is otherworldly and captivates even the birds and the beasts...¡± Wei Gang eximed. Then, almost as though he was reminded about something important, he chuckled to himself before adding, ¡°Of course, if you ask me, I still think the most beautiful female cultivator is none other than martial sister. Once your cultivation level goes up again, you¡¯ll definitely be stronger than her!¡±

    ¡°Alright, your martial sister doesn¡¯t take offence at what you¡¯ve said. There¡¯s no need to engage in such ttery, you little bootlicker!¡± Jun Xiaomo rapped his head gently with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°Ah~ I just knew that such methods don¡¯t work on martial sister!¡± Wei Gang clenched his fists.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly, before turning away and ignoring this little martial brother of hers.

    Just then, a group of people surrounding a beautiful female cultivator walked into the dining hall, and Jun Xiaomo incidentally locked eyes with her.

    It was only a fleeting moment, but that female cultivator unmistakably sneered disdainfully at Jun Xiaomo, before turning the corner with the bunch of people walking around her and headed into a different part of the hall.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows ¨C What a strange encounter. Have I ever offended her before?

    ¡°Eh?! It¡¯s her?! She¡¯s also eating here...¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly as he remarked.

    ¡°Her?¡± Jun Xiaomo was unaware of where Wei Gang was referring to.

    ¡°It¡¯s thatdy who¡¯s just walked into the dining hall...look over there!¡± Wei Gang discreetly pointed towards that beautiful female cultivator still surrounded by the group of people around her, ¡°She¡¯s that formidable martial sister I¡¯d been telling you about earlier...I think her name was...Luo Tianyi. Her name sounds really nice~¡±

    Wei Gang rested his cheeks on his palms and disyed a mesmerized look at he stared vacantly towards where Luo Tianyi was seated.

    Jun Xiaomo had the urge to burst this bubble of his ¨C it was obvious that Wei Gang had not discovered the confrontational look that his dreamdy had given to Jun Xiaomo earlier.

    Forget it. I won¡¯t shatter his dreams for now. Jun Xiaomo thought helplessly.

    No matter what kind of attitude that Luo Tianyi had just disyed to her, Jun Xiaomo was certain that they had never encountered each other prior to this.

    Additionally, Jun Xiaomo knew that she would not be participating in any otherpetitions apart from the Lower Category battles which had already ended.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware of the fact that the bunch of schemers within the Dawn Sect had already prepared another huge ¡°surprise¡± that was soon going to be revealed to her.

    ¡°Master, I¡¯ve just taken a look at the list of participants for the group battles. Why is it all disciples from the Heavenly Peak?¡± Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows as he queried.

    The end of the Open Category battles would also mark themencement of the group battles. The group battles were hardly any less important than the Open Category battles. After all, they tested a sect¡¯s solidarity and unity, and they also offered each team¡¯s leader the opportunity to disy their leadership skills.

    Qin Lingyu was presently in the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and he even possessed recovery pills tempered with Yu Wanrou¡¯s spirit spring waters. Thus, taking the title of champion in the Open Category battles was an incredibly easy thing to him.

    It was precisely because of this that he viewed the group battles as far more important and significant than the Open Category battles.

    This was because it was his opportunity to shine and show everyone that he possessed the ability to take charge of the sect in future. It was the opportunity of a lifetime.

    He Zhang remained seated in front of Qin Lingyu as he continued to write steadily on a piece of paper.

    ¡°Lingyu, how confident are you of taking the title of champion in these group battles?¡±

    Qin Lingyu paused for a moment as he considered the abilities of the other formidable sects around, before he gave a conservative estimate, ¡°It should be around fifty-fifty.¡±

    He took the view that the only other sect that could hold its own against the Dawn Sect was the Eternal Summit Sect. He did not view any of the other sects as rivals at all.

    It was for this reason that he had conveyed his conservative estimate of ¡°fifty-fifty¡± to He Zhang. That said, Qin Lingyu was personally of the view that this was an underestimate of their odds of taking the title of champions.

    Qin Lingyu had been He Zhang¡¯s disciple for a long time now ¨C how could He Zhang not know what was running through his mind right this moment? He Zhang shook his head and his eyes darkened as he offered his perspective, ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve even got a thirty percent chance of taking the title as champions in these group battles.¡±

    ¡°How can that be...¡±

    ¡°Lingyu, you can¡¯t simply determine a sect¡¯s abilities with only their historical results. You have to be aware that every sect is susceptible to change and variations. Take for example the Dawn Sect. We¡¯ve lost so many outstanding disciples in ourst travels outside. Do you think our odds of sess will still be as high as it would be historically?¡± He Zhang explicated.

    A trace of gloominess and unwillingness surfaced in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and he clenched his fists as he remarked, ¡°Master, please forgive disciple for his inability to take care of the other disciples entrusted to him.¡±

    ¡°Alright, the reason why I¡¯m raising this issue is not because I¡¯m looking to pin the me on anyone.¡± He Zhang waved his hands as he added, ¡°I simply wanted to drive across the point that our odds of sess aren¡¯t that high. Furthermore, you¡¯ve also seen with your own eyes how other sects have groomed their own fair shares of strong disciples. Several of these participating sects are most certainly stronger than they have been historically.¡±

    ¡°But there¡¯s no need to change the entire list of participants to the Heavenly Peak disciples just for this reason, right?¡± Qin Lingyu continued to furrow his brows as he retorted.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s tone of voice grew impatient because he felt as though something that he had eagerly anticipated had just been taken away from him.

    ¡°This is indeed not the only reason.¡± He Zhang was not incensed by Qin Lingyu¡¯s attitude towards him. He Zhang finished the final brushstroke on the piece of paper he had been writing on with a glint in his eyes, before he warmly added, ¡°What if the Du n has decided to intervene in this matter as well?¡±

    ¡°The Du n?!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes squinted slightly, before he thoughtfully added, ¡°Could master be referring to...one of the Hidden Sects, the Du n?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± He Zhang set his brush down, blew gently on the ink before chuckling lightheartedly, ¡°I¡¯m not sure what went wrong with Jun Linxuan¡¯s brain, but he¡¯s actually managed to cross and offend the Du n, and they¡¯vee knocking on our doors seeking revenge.¡±

    He Zhang chuckled coldly as he continued, ¡°The Du n Head said that he was going to make sure that every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples are going to die during these group battles, so that Jun Linxuan can personally experience what despondence and grief feels like. Since that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s no need for us to take part in these battles anymore.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll only need to sit back, rx, and watch the show.¡±

 Chapter 197: Uninvited Guest at Night

    <h4>Chapter 197: Uninvited Guest at Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was a cold and dark night, and the moon hung high in the sky as it cast an eerie glow over thends. At the foot of the Heavenly Crane Mountain, the hustle and bustle of the evening had already dispersed, and the crowds had all returned to their abodes to retire for the night. All that remained were faint glows of candlelight that sporadically illuminated a few rooms ¨C their owners were unable to sleep.

    In the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s lodging area, Dai Yanfeng was among one of the few who had been unable to retire for the night. Under the dim candlelight, his grip stiffened around a piece of paper that was filled with words, and aplicated gaze filled his eyes.

    This piece of paper reported the current standings of each sect in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. It was detailed with the results of each and everypetition, the number of points allocated to each sect per battle, and the current position of each sect in the rankings.

    The Eternal Summit Sect had presently taken first ce, but it was only a few points ahead of the Dawn Sect. As long as the Dawn Sect defeated the Eternal Summit Sect again, then they would without a doubt steal the first position away from the Eternal Summit Sect.

    Thus, even though they were presently ced first, Dai Yanfeng knew that this was nothing to celebrate about. At the very least, it was still far too early to celebrate.

    However, this was not the main reason that had kept Dai Yanfeng up at night. What he was most concerned about was that among all of the points umted by the Dawn Sect, forty percent of them were attributable to the Heavenly Peak disciples under Jun Linxuan.

    Furthermore, Dai Yanfeng had heard something else on the grapevine ¨C as a result of the Dawn Sect¡¯s internal strife, the Heavenly Peak had only sent out a total of eight disciples,prising five participants in the Lower Category and three in the Middle Category.

    Yet in the end, the Heavenly Peak disciples had taken first ce in both the Lower Category and the Middle Category, while the other disciples that had participated also achieved fairly decent results.

    It was precisely also because of this that the Dawn Sect had managed to maintain their ce among the top three in thepetition despite their tragic losses during their previous travels.

    This was tantamount to giving a tight p to the faces of the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders. These results also incensed Dai Yanfeng.

    As the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder, he did not possess any form of special enmity against Jun Linxuan to begin with. Any enmity back then was nothing more than a mere extension of the intense and fierce rivalry between their sects.

    However, Jun Linxuan¡¯s dear daughter Jun Xiaomo had just viciously injured his own precious daughter Dai Yue!

    During the second round of the Lower Category battles, Jun Xiaomo had not only torn apart Dai Yue¡¯s appearances and trampled on her pride and reputation in front of all to see, she had even beaten up Dai Yue into a bloody mess.

    What incensed Dai Yanfeng the most was that when he brought Dai Yue back to their lodging to heal her wounds and injuries, he discovered that Dai Yue¡¯s meridians had all been severed by Jun Xiaomo!

    Severed meridians could still be repaired, but one would need to source the necessary few rare, priceless spiritual herbs before one would be able to refine the peculiar, high-quality Meridian Adhering Pill.

    And what was most tragic was the fact that Dai Yanfeng¡¯s Interspatial Ringcked every single one of these constituent spiritual herbs right now, and he did not possess a Meridian Adhering Pill with him either. Therefore, he could only do his utmost to locate each of these herbs within the shortest possible time.

    Unfortunately, while her meridians remain severed, Dai Yue¡¯s cultivation woulde to aplete halt, and she would even experience the excruciating pain and dull difort apanying her severed meridians.

    Jun Linxuan! You and your damned daughter! I was still wondering why Jun Xiaomo had let off Dai Yue so easily and allowed her to admit defeat. She actually has a hidden trump card like this!

    Yet Dai Yanfeng had selectively obviated from his considerations the fact that it was Dai Yue who had time and again sought to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life on the arena to begin with.

    Did he think that Jun Xiaomo had no feelings either?

    As Dai Yanfeng¡¯s hatred for Jun Xiaomo festered and burgeoned, the ambit of his hatred began to grow and epass every member of the Heavenly Peak as well. Dai Yanfeng thought that given how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s viciousness was the product of Jun Linxuan¡¯s teachings, the other Heavenly Peak disciples would hardly be any better either.

    Thus, when he first learnt that a rift had emerged within the Dawn Sect, and the Sect Leader and several Sect Elders had joined hands to deal with the Heavenly Peak, joy filled his heart, and he eagerly anticipated the fruits of their schemes and ploys.

    Yet to his dismay, even after the list of Heavenly Peak participants had shrunk to such a dismal state, each and every remaining participant still managed to achieve ster results during theirpetitions.

    What would happen if all of these disciples had not had their rights to participate stripped away? Would the Eternal Summit Sect still be able to maintain their current position at the top spot? Furthermore, the Greater Sects have all noticed the ster showing from the Heavenly Peak disciples during thispetition. When they choose their own disciples from the Secondary Sects in future, would they be partial towards the Heavenly Peak?

    The bulging veins on Dai Yanfeng¡¯s head throbbed uncontrobly, and a roaring inferno burgeoned in the depths of his eyes.

    How he wished that he could just bury Jun Linxuan and his entire following of people into the ground!

    Just as he delved deeply into his own thoughts and emotions, the candlelight in his room flickered furiously. A cold wind swept across the room, and another person suddenly appeared in his room.

    ¡°Who are you?!¡± Dai Yanfeng barked in shock and rage.

    The uninvited guest possessed a pair of eagle eyes with such an incisive gaze that seemed to bore through and peek into every corner of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s mind. At the same time, this man possessed an exquisite and dignified aura. If one were to ignore that pair of incisive eyes of his, this man could be described as a schr and the hallmark of refinement.

    He¡¯s not a simple person! A tense analysis of this man shed across Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart.

    As though the man were confirming his thoughts, he tapped gently in the air, and a trace of congealed spiritual energy emerged from his body. The spiritual energy twisted and turned in mid-air, before it began to form a single word ¨C Du.

    Du? Could this be...

    Dai Yanfeng looked at the man in bewilderment, hesitant to rify his suspicions with the man.

    Yet the man was hardly bothered by Dai Yanfeng¡¯s astonishment. He calmly picked up a clean teacup, poured himself a cup of tea and slowly took a sip from it.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect? Haven¡¯t you realized who I am yet?¡± The guest nced at Dai Yanfeng and remarked impolitely.

    Even then, Dai Yanfeng hardly dared to pick a fight with this man because he knew that the ability to release and congeal spiritual energy in mid-air was testament to how frightening this man¡¯s cultivation level was.

    At the very least, Dai Yanfeng knew that he was no match for this man if they ended up fighting. He would at best be able tost no more than ten moves from that man.

    ¡°You must be...from the Du n? One of the ns among the eight great sects, the Du n?¡± Dai Yanfeng rified cautiously.

    ¡°Ah, at least you¡¯re not too daft. Otherwise, I might very well have to reassess the current transaction I¡¯m about to propose.¡±

    ¡°Transaction?¡± Dai Yanfengtched onto the most important word.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Transaction.¡± The man confirmed.

    This man was none other than the Du n Head. Right now, the Lower Category and Middle Category battles were over, and the Open Category battles were at its tail end and would conclude very shortly.

    Thus, it was about time for the Du n Head to apprise the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder of his ns as well.

    That¡¯s right. In the mind of the Du n Head, the reason he had snuck into Dai Yanfeng¡¯s room at night was simply to ¡°apprise¡± Dai Yanfeng of his ns ¨C he hardly considered this a transaction at all.

    In the eyes of the Du n Head, Dai Yanfeng was bound to agree to his ns. Even if Dai Yanfeng disagreed from the onset, the Du n Head had various ways and means of making sure that he wouldply.

    ¡°I wonder what kind of transaction this senior from Du n is proposing?¡± Dai Yanfeng anxiously yet politely queried.

    ¡°You can call me the Du n Head.¡± Du Ruiguang casually remarked. Yet the revtion of his identity rang out like the crash of a loud gong in Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart.

    It¡¯s the Du n Head?! Dai Yanfeng¡¯s emotions could no longer simply be described as ¡°astonishment¡± ¨C it might be more urate to describe it as ¡°terrified¡± right now.

    Just the stature of the Du n Head alone was sufficient to ce Dai Yanfeng on the backfoot, despite the fact that he was a Grand Elder of a Secondary Sect. And this did not even take into consideration the fact that the Du n Head possessed an incredible and formidable cultivation level ¨C one that was more than sufficient to easily squash Dai Yanfeng as though he were no more than an ant.

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s tone of voice grew even more cautious.

    ¡°When the esteemed Du n Head mentioned a transaction earlier, you meant...¡±

    ¡°The group battles are going tomence once the Open Category battles conclude, am I right? I¡¯m thinking of exchanging your Eternal Summit Sect disciples for the Du n disciples.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Dai Yanfeng waspletely taken aback, and he suspected that he might even have misheard the Du n Head.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You don¡¯t agree with my suggestion?¡± Du Ruiguang squinted his eyes as he stared coldly at Dai Yanfeng.

    ¡°No...it¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just that...why...¡± Under Du Ruiguang¡¯s intense and incisive gaze, Dai Yanfeng¡¯s voice grew smaller and tinier by the moment.

    As a Grand Elder, Dai Yanfeng had always spoken with authority and gravitas within the Eternal Summit Sect. There was not a single moment when he would be reduced to such a timid state. Yet faced with Du Ruiguang¡¯s overbearing aura and immense pressure, he found himself unable to maintain that authority with which he usually spoke with, for fear that he would offend Du Ruiguang.

    ¡°Let¡¯s put it this way ¨C we¡¯ve got amon enemy right now. Therefore, I hope to borrow the identity of your Eternal Summit Sect disciples to deal a heavy blow to thismon enemy of ours. How about it? This transaction isn¡¯t too bad for you, is it?¡± Du Ruiguang changed his tact and adopted a softer approach as he calmly broke down the situation for Dai Yanfeng.

    ¡°Common enemy?¡± Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes glistened, ¡°Could it be the Dawn Sect?¡±

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s not it. The Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader is our ally as well.¡± Du Ruiguang chuckled sardonically as he mocked the term ¡°ally¡± in his heart.

    Truth be told, whether it be Dai Yanfeng or He Zhang, none of the two were considered more than mere pawns to Du Ruiguang. Therefore, even though he proposed ¡°transactions¡± with the two of them, it might be far more urate to say that these two were no more than tools that were used to carry out and execute his own ns.

    In his eyes, Dai Yanfeng and He Zhang were not qualified to be discussing any terms of transactions with him.

    Dai Yanfeng knitted his brows. After deliberating for a moment, he finally understood who the Du n Head was referring to ¨C

    ¡°Could the mon enemy¡¯ you¡¯re referring to be...the Heavenly Peak?¡±

    ¡°Not bad. You¡¯ve managed to guess it.¡± Du Ruiguang nced down at the cup of tea in his hand and discovered that he had almost finished it all. Thus, Du Ruiguang mocked in his heart ¨C These Secondary Sect people are all idiots. I¡¯ve dropped them so many hints and they still take such a long time to find the right answer.

    That said, he did not reveal any of this on his face. Du Ruiguang simply continued with a in expression on his face, ¡°So, how about it? This transaction isn¡¯t too bad for you, is it? The Du n¡¯s average strength is undeniably several levels stronger than the disciples in your sect. It¡¯s not going to be too difficult for them to kill off the Heavenly Peak disciples during thepetition.¡±

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart skipped a beat ¨C

    What do you mean ¡®not bad¡¯?! This is practically a dreame true!

    ¡°But why don¡¯t you just...act directly against them?¡± Dai Yanfeng carefully selected his words before querying cautiously.

    ¡°Grand Elder Dai, are you using your brain to think or your foot to think right now? If a hidden n intends to act directly against you Secondary Sect ants, you would have perished a long time ago.¡± The Du n Head mocked contemptuously.

    Even though Dai Yanfeng was displeased with the term of reference ¡°ants¡±, he dared not disy his emotions on his face at all. Dai Yanfeng simply nodded his head obsequiously, ¡°Du n Head is right.¡±

    That said, Du Ruiguang waspletely uninterested in Dai Yanfeng¡¯s bootlicking. He took another sip of his tea as he added, ¡°It appears that Grand Elder Dai agrees to this transaction, then?¡±

    ¡°This...¡± Dai Yanfeng was a shrewd person. He could tell that Du Ruiguang wanted to secure this transaction at all costs.

    Since that was the case, why not attempt to gain some benefits out of this win-win situation? For example, requiring Du Ruiguang to cure his daughter¡¯s injuries...

    Thus, Dai Yanfeng put on a hesitant look on his face. On the other hand, Du Ruiguang slowly finished off his cup of tea, before mming the teacup back down onto the table.

    The teacup was shattered into fine powder by Du Ruiguang¡¯s momentary release of his oppressive aura. Not only that, the chair which Dai Yanfeng was seated on cracked in several ces as well, and he fell back down onto the floor in a sorry state.

    ¡°Grand Elder Dai, I think you need to realize something. I¡¯m not really ¡®discussing¡¯ things with you right now; I¡¯m just ¡®informing¡¯ you of this matter...In other words, this matter has already been set in stone, regardless of whether you agree with my ns or not. There¡¯s no room for any changes. Furthermore, this n hardly ces the Eternal Summit Sect at a disadvantage at all, does it? You¡¯d best keep your avarice in check. Otherwise, don¡¯t me me for my impoliteness!¡±

    Dai Yanfeng hurriedly knelt onto the floor and kowtowed to Du Ruiguang as he anxiously responded, ¡°Du n Head is right. I agree, I agree...¡±

    This was the first time he had been reduced to such a tragic and humiliated state.

    Du Ruiguang nodded his head in satisfaction. Then, with a wave of his arm, several pieces of herbs and medicines found their way to Dai Yanfeng¡¯s palms.

    ¡°This is...¡± Dai Yanfeng¡¯s hands trembled slightly as he sought to rify.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t your daughter¡¯s meridians been damaged by Jun Xiaomo? These are a few constituent medicines required for the refinement of a Meridian Adhering Pill, and it might be of use to you. Take them. Consider them a token of my appreciation for your assistance.¡±

    At this moment, Dai Yanfeng¡¯s earlier frustrations vanishedpletely into the air, and he erupted with great joy, ¡°Thank you, Du n Head, thank you...¡±

    With these few pieces of herbs in hand, it might only require a few months¡¯ worth of time before he would be able to locate the rest of the constituent medicines and herbs for the refinement of the Meridian Adhering Pill.

    The Du n Head looked down at Dai Yanfeng. It was discreet and barely noticeable, but a contemptuous smile crept up the corner of Du Ruiguang¡¯s lips as though he were looking at a dog or a simple house pet ¨C Hmph, these people from Secondary Sects are so easily pleased...

    These medicines and herbs were dime a dozen in the Du n. Even normal disciples would carry several pieces of these precious medicines within their Interspatial Rings.

    Tsk. I guess by extension, the Heavenly Peak won¡¯t amount to much either. There¡¯s no need to treat them as opponents to be considered seriously at all.

    It¡¯s going to be too easy to kill off those Heavenly Peak vermin. I¡¯m going to use this as an opportunity for my disciples to hone their skills and let Xu-er have the chance to take revenge for the Basilisk Fruit incident as well.

    The Du n Head thought coldly to himself.

    ¡°Oh yes, Du n Head, I wonder how you intend to exchange the Eternal Summit Sect disciples for your Du n disciples? It must be said that there thepetition organizers strictly prohibit fraudulent behaviour. If we¡¯re caught...¡±

    ¡°Alright. Do you think this is the first time someone engages in fraudulent practices?¡± Du Ruiguang mocked contemptuously, ¡°Or are you suggesting that the Du n is weak and won¡¯t be able to achieve something so simple?¡±

    ¡°Junior doesn¡¯t dare, junior doesn¡¯t dare. It¡¯s just that what is simple to the Du n is simply unfathomable to those from Secondary Sects like me.¡± Dai Yanfeng hurriedly corrected the misunderstanding.

    ¡°Hmph.¡± Du Ruiguang snorted, ¡°You¡¯ll just have to wait and see. All you¡¯ll have to do is to submit your name list as per usual, and I have countless ways and means to achieve the end I desire.¡±

    As Du Ruiguang finished speaking, the frigid smile on his face darkened and turned sinister.

 Chapter 198: The List of Group Battle Participants Revealed; Jun Linxuanâ€™s Fury

    <h4>Chapter 198: The List of Group Battle Participants Revealed; Jun Linxuan¡¯s Fury</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After the conclusion of the Open Category battles, everyone began to consolidate their numbers and enter the preparatory phase for the group battlesponent. The organizers had instituted a five-days buffer period for the participants who had just fought in the Open Category battles to have time to rest, freshen up and revitalize their spirits. This also acted as a lull period when the individual sects could let loose slightly from the tension of thepetition so far.

    At the same time, the rules for this iteration of the group battles were also distributed to each and every sect¡¯s sect leader, sect elders and peakmasters.

    The rules of the group battles were the same as previous years. Teamspeted through the umtion of points, and the sect that was able to umte the most points throughout the course of the group battles would be able take the title of champions.

    Every past iteration of these group battlessted for three full days, and this iteration was no exception either. This year, the organizingmittee had picked the marsnds on the Heavenly Crane Mountain as the location where the group battles would take ce. These marsnds were often enshrouded in a poisonous fog and miasma, while spiritual beasts and poisonous creatures were often sighted and reported in these areas. It was an incredibly dangerous ce.

    There were three main ways for teams to earn points during these group battles. The first way was to snatch and obtain the identity tokens of other participants. Each identity token obtained earned the team five points, while the participant who has had their identity token removed or snatched would immediately be disqualified from thepetition. The second way was to kill the spiritual beasts or monsters within the marsnds. The teams would be orded a wide range of pointsmensurate with the type and the strength of the spirit beast or monster defeated. The third and final way to obtain points was to locate and obtain the treasures in the marsnds previously hidden by the organizingmittee. Simrly, the type and strength of these treasures obtained would earn the teams amensurate amount of points.

    As the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, Jun Linxuan had obtained a set of thepetition rules as well. He made several copies of thesepetition rules and distributed them to his disciples so that each and every one of them would have a copy.

    ¡°My goodness! This year¡¯spetition is going to take ce in the Heavenly Crane Mountain¡¯s marsnds?!¡± Wei Gang stared in astonishment at thepetition rules as he remarked with slightly trembling hands, ¡°I hear that the marsnds are an inauspicious ce ¨C many who enter the cee out either insane or dead. Those who are able to return safely can practically be counted on one hand. Isn¡¯t it too much that the organizingmittee has decided to make the marsnds this year¡¯spetition location? They must have overestimated the abilities of us Qi Mastery cultivators! They need to know that we¡¯ve basically only just stepped into the realms of cultivation!¡±

    Another Heavenly Peak disciple standing beside Wei Gang, Chen Feiyu, rapped him on the head as he retorted, ¡°This is the result of your unwillingness to learn basic,mon knowledge. Good thing there¡¯s no one else around. Otherwise, you¡¯re going to make aughingstock of yourself. Those marsnds were indeed considered a deadly ce about thirty years ago, but the dangers have already subsided in recent years.¡±

    Wei Gang clutched at his head in humiliation as he remarked, ¡°Eh? Is that right? ...Martial brother Chen, you¡¯re still as harsh as ever. Why do you always hit my head with such force...?¡±

    Chen Feiyu nced lightly over at him as he responded, ¡°How will your memory improve otherwise?¡±

    Unable to retort any further, Wei Gang chuckled bitterly before he puffed up his cheeks and retreated to a corner in exasperation. Chen Feiyu¡¯s eyes were filled with a trace of bemusement.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. She felt that they would have to strategize properly if her martial brothers were to return from these group battles safely.

    ¡°Even though these marsnds are no longer as deadly as they have been thirty years ago, I still think that it would be wise to be cautious. There are still innumerable poisonous creatures and waves of poisonous miasma floating around the area, not to mention the fact that some parts of the marsnds are even in and of itself poisonous. One misstep and you could find yourself in a dangerous predicament. I think that this year¡¯s group battles are going to be incredibly challenging.¡± Jun Xiaomo broke down the situation for everyone.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo is right. However, you don¡¯t have to be too worried either. After all, the sect is sure to send its strongest disciples for the group battles. If we find the group battles difficult, I¡¯m sure the other sects would find the battles difficult as well.¡± Chen Feiyu offered a different perspective.

    ¡°That right, martial sister. You can count on martial brother Chen and the rest. We¡¯ll give them our utmost support and cheer for them where we¡¯re seated!¡± Wei Gang clenched his fists, and his eyes appeared to be filled with battle intent.

    Those who were unaware of what was going on might even mistake him as one of the participants of this year¡¯s group battles.

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled, yet her heart continued to be fraught with a sense of unease. It was as though her mind was ensnared by a dreadful premonition.

    The disciples of several other sects had initially beaten themselves up over the fact that their cultivation level was too low, and they were thus unable to earn themselves a ce to participate in the uing group battles. However, as soon as they learnt of thepetition rules and the location in which the group battles were to take ce, they immediately had a change of heart and heaved a sigh of relief as they began to see their non-participation as a blessing in disguise.

    After all, everyone had heard about the dangers of the poisonous substances and creatures hiding within the marsnds. Who in the right mind would be happy to throw themselves into thesends and subject themselves to such dangers for three full days and nights?

    There was no guarantee that a person would be able to return safe and sound after three days of the group battles. In this regard, it had to be said that it was not umon to hear of participants perishing in thepetition grounds during the group battles in the past.

    Of course, thepetition organizers would have taken some preliminary preventive measures before allowing the marsnds to be used as the location of the group battles. But to err is human, and it was practically impossible for thepetition organizers to remove all deadly dangers to these participants. Thus, who knows whether one would be so unlucky as to encounter one of these deadly dangers that thepetition organizers had missed out on?

    The list of participants for the group battles had already been discussed and agreed upon previously. If there were no changes to this list of participants, then the Heavenly Peak would be sending eight disciples to participate in these group battles. The rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples, including Jun Xiaomo, could only sit in the audience and observe the proceedings of the group battles as they unfurled.

    On the day of day when the list of participants was published for all to see, Wei Gang even joked at the dining hall as he quipped, ¡°I wonder if the old fogeys from our Sect would change the list of participants again? Maybe they¡¯ll cut the number of participants from the Heavenly Peak by half and leave three or four disciples to participate...¡±

    There was no better way to refer to Wei Gang¡¯sments as term ¡°inauspicious remark¡± ¨C as luck would have it, the list of participants had been changed once again.

    And not only had it been amended again, it was even amended in the worst possible manner.

    ¡°What the hell is going on?! The group battle allows for twenty participants, yet all of these participants are disciples from the Heavenly Peak?! What the hell are those old fogeys thinking?!¡± Wei Gang leapt up in fury, ¡°Where¡¯s Qin Lingyu? Where¡¯s He Chengye? Where¡¯s Jiang Yuande? These disciples all possess such incredible strength, so why aren¡¯t they included in the list of participants at all?!¡±

    This arrangement was obviously intentional ¨C given the dangers involved in this iteration of the group battles, the Sect had decided to involve practically every single disciple of the Heavenly Peak. This reeked so strongly of evil schemes that even Wei Gang was able to recognize their nefarious intentions with his pure and na?ve heart.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that the Sect Elders intend for every single one of us to suffer in the group battles. Or perhaps they can¡¯t afford to lose members of the Sect such as Qin Lingyu, so they¡¯re simply using us as cannon fodder.¡± Chen Feiyu¡¯s face darkened as he thought aloud. His heart grew increasingly displeased with the Sect.

    On the other side, Jun Linxuan had stormed towards the Sect Elders at the very first instance when the list of participants was published. He demanded an exnation for the sudden changes.

    ¡°This is the second time! This is the second time you¡¯ve made changes to the list of participants without first consulting me!¡± Jun Linxuan fervently suppressed the burgeoning fire in his heart as he cut to the chase, ¡°Do you even respect the fact that I¡¯m the Peakmaster of the Heavenly Peak, huh?!¡±

    ¡°Linxuan, please be calm.¡± The Second Elder stood up with an indifferent expression on his face, ¡°We hadn¡¯t consulted you first before making these changes precisely because we knew there was a good chance that you would object to these changes.¡±

    ¡°Since you know I would object to these changes, then why did you still go ahead with them in the first ce?¡± Jun Linxuan red at the Second Elder with a frigid gaze as he pressed the issue.

    ¡°Because we all agree unanimously that this list of participants is the most appropriate.¡± He Zhang took a step forward as he exined, ¡°Martial brother Jun, take a look at this. In the Lower Category, Middle Category and the Open Category battlesbined, the Heavenly Peak disciples had the best showing among all the other disciples. Almost forty percent of our total scores are attributable to the Heavenly Peak disciples. Thus, after one night of deliberation and discussions, we agreed that the previous change in the list of participants were unfair to the Heavenly Peak disciples, and several disciples were denied the opportunity to showcase their abilities. Therefore, we¡¯ve unanimously decided to cede this opportunity to showcase their abilities to the Heavenly Peak disciples.¡±

    ¡°Hah, you make yourself sound so noble. You say that the Heavenly Peak disciples ought to take the stage because their overall abilities are strong enough, but then why isn¡¯t Sect Leader¡¯s dear First-Seat Disciple part of the list of participants? Qin Lingyu is the champion of the Open Category battles after all!¡± A clear, crisp voice resounded clearly. Momentster, the tightly shut room door flung wide open, and Jun Xiaomo entered the room.

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± Jun Linxuan had not expected his own daughter to show up in anger as well.

    ¡°Father, I¡¯m worried about you, so I thought toe over and engage in discourse with these Sect Uncles and Sect Elders here.¡± Jun Xiaomo wrapped her arm around Jun Linxuan¡¯s arm as she smiled grimly at the others around her.

    He Zhang¡¯s eyes darkened. Among all of the Heavenly Peak disciples, the one whom he hated the most was none other than Jun Xiaomo.

    Not only was Jun Xiaomo the lovechild of Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei, she possessed an incredibly sharp tongue that had the ability to twist facts and corner people with words. Her verbal gymnastics would invariably leave others frustrated at their inability to refute her words at all.

    This thorn in his side was something that He Zhang could hardly wait to get rid of.

    Unfortunately, the previous two instances of Bedeviled Grass did absolutely nothing to Jun Xiaomo...

    He Zhang¡¯s heart swelled with all forms of nefarious thoughts, yet he stered a warm and harmonious smile on his face as he looked at Jun Xiaomo.

    He Zhang chuckled pretentiously as he exined, ¡°Xiaomo words are far too harsh. Your father is in the Secondary-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation, and none of us here are able to bully him at all.¡±

    ¡°Oh? That might not necessarily be the case. Martial uncle Sect Leader, aren¡¯t you precisely bullying my father with the change in the list of participants right now?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled sardonically. The manner in which she addressed He Zhang as ¡°martial uncle Sect Leader¡± wasced with a contemptuous tone of voice.

    ¡°You little brat!¡± The ill-tempered Fifth Elder mmed on the table as he barked, ¡°Didn¡¯t we already say earlier that this name list is the most suitable one?¡±

    ¡°Since you say it¡¯s the most suitable list, then why can¡¯t you justify why Qin Lingyu¡¯s name isn¡¯t on the list of participants?¡± Jun Xiaomo waspletely unfazed by the Fifth Elder¡¯s oppressive aura, and she pressed the issue with apletely calm tone of voice.

    ¡°It¡¯s because Qin Lingyu had intentionally given up his spot in the uing group battles. He¡¯s already obtained ster results in the Open Category battles, and he¡¯s already been conferred the title of Chosen Disciple by the Limitless Sect. Thus, there¡¯s no longer a need for him to disy his abilities any further, and he¡¯s graciously decided to give up this opportunity so that other disciples would have the chance to shine.¡± He Zhang exined.

    It must be said that his exnation was rather believable. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo did not buy a single bit of his story at all. After all, she had already seen through He Zhang¡¯s farcical disy, and that enabled her to find the loopholes in his arguments as well!

    ¡°Hahahahaha, then this arrangement would be even more peculiar.¡± Jun Xiaomoughed loudly, yet there was undeniable disdain that was swelling up from the depths of her eyes, ¡°The idea of ¡®group battles¡¯ clearly evinces an intention topare the overall abilities of the Sect¡¯s disciples. Yet you and Qin Lingyu, as the Sect Leader and the First-Seat Disciple of the Sect Leader respectively, actually view the group battles as nothing more than a tform to disy an individual cultivator¡¯s abilities? I truly wonder whether you sometimes treat other people as fellow Sect members and even martial brothers and sisters at all... Or could it be that you see everyone else within the Sect as no more than stepping-stones that can readily be used or sacrificed at point in time...?¡±

    ¡°Outrageous!¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster mmed the table as he yelled in rage, ¡°Who do you think you are to talk to our Sect Leader like that?!¡±

    ¡°Was I wrong?!¡± Jun Xiaomo no longer suppressed the fury in her heart as she barked back, ¡°Take a look at yourselves. Pour out your hearts and test those ugly and nefarious thoughts hidden within. Don¡¯t make your schemes and ploys sound like such a noble thing. If you¡¯ve ever considered the Heavenly Peak as a part of the Dawn Sect; if you¡¯ve ever ced the glory of the Sect in your hearts, then how could you possiblye up with such aughable and ridiculous approach to the group battles?¡±

    ¡°You all know full well that the list of participants that we¡¯ve previously agreed upon was the most suitable. That list contained the Dawn Sect¡¯s strongest twenty disciples, and their odds of sess were naturally the highest. But what about now? You¡¯ve changed out and reced the entire list so that it¡¯s only filled by Heavenly Peak disciples. I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ve never thought that the Heavenly Peak¡¯s abilities were so strong that they¡¯ve be synonymous with the Sect¡¯s overall abilities.¡± Jun Linxuan coldly added.

    The father and daughter duo had thoroughly ced He Zhang and the Sect Elders in a spot.

    They were fraught with guilt because they knew full well that this arrangement was none other than a manifestation of their ploys against the Heavenly Peak. Now that Jun Linxuan and Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly exposed this, they could no longer find a foothold of an excuse for themselves to stand upon.

    He Zhang¡¯s eyes darkened, and he furiously repressed the surging emotions in his heart as he changed his approach, ¡°Martial brother Jun, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯d never expected you to be so ardently opposed to this list of participants. However, this list of participants has already been submitted to the panel of referees and it can no longer be changed. That said, I firmly believe that the disciples raised by you won¡¯t be any weaker than the previous list of participants that we had earlier decided upon. Thus...¡±

    ¡°Thus, regardless of the fact that you¡¯ve stabbed us in the back, the Heavenly Peak will still have to grit our teeth and bear with it, am I right?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled grimly as shepleted the sentence for He Zhang.

    ¡°Youngdy, do you have to speak with such mockery and ridicule all the time?¡± The Fifth Elder barked with displeasure.

    ¡°Hah, I¡¯ve never seen a need to respect and have consideration for people who scheme against the Heavenly Peak and stabs us in the back.¡± Jun Xiaomo red disdainfully at the Fifth Elder as she retorted matter-of-factly.

    ¡°You! Good, good, good! In any event, whether you agree or disagree, the dice had already been cast. Do as you see fit.¡± The Fifth Elder disengaged with Jun Xiaomo in exasperation.

    His final statement was evenced with some measure of delight in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s misery.

    ¡°Alright. Since that¡¯s the case, then let¡¯s make a deal right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes as she remarked.

    ¡°What deal?¡± He Zhang¡¯s eyes gleamed expectantly.

    Jun Xiaomo nced back at He Zhang, before a smile crept up the corner of her lips, ¡°Considering the fact that the Sect¡¯s actions have left the Heavenly Peak utterly disappointed, I wish to make a deal with the Sect ¨C after the conclusion of thispetition, the matters of the Dawn Sect will no longer be rted to the Heavenly Peak. Whether they bring glory or disgrace to the Sect, none of these matters would be rted to the Heavenly Peak anymore. At the same time, the Dawn Sect can no longer also interfere with the matters within the Heavenly Peak, nor give the Heavenly Peak direct orders or tasks. How about it? Can you agree to these terms?¡±

    ¡°Are you trying to decouple the Heavenly Peak from the Dawn Sect?¡± The Second Elder squinted his eyes as he rified.

    ¡°Oh? I didn¡¯t say anything like that. I simply don¡¯t want the Heavenly Peak to be the Dawn Sect¡¯s footstool or stepping-stone.¡± Jun Xiaomo shrugged her shoulder as she retorted.

    After all, who knows whether these scheming and cunning people would continue to press the issue and order the Heavenly Peak to undertake any absurd tasks?

    ¡°Linxuan, are you of the same mind as well?¡± The Grand Elder turned towards Jun Linxuan ¨C the truth of the matter was that even though Jun Xiaomo had not expressly stated the words ¡°break away from the Sect¡±, these words were in effect tantamount to the same thing.

    ¡°I stand by Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.¡± Jun Linxuan calmly stated. This incident had truly left him utterly disappointed with the Dawn Sect.

    He Zhang deliberated for a moment, before he sighed pretentiously and patted Jun Linxuan¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I know that the misunderstanding between martial brother Jun and I run incredibly deep, but I also appreciate the fact that I won¡¯t be able to change your mind over a short span of time. Fine. We¡¯ll agree to that for now. If martial brother Jun changes his mind in future, you can let me know directly.¡±

    The only question remaining is whether you¡¯ll be able to live till the day you have a change of heart. He Zhang mocked in his heart. At the very least, he was certain that the Heavenly Peak disciples could not possibly survive this iteration of the group battles.

    I¡¯ll just let them make whatever deal they want.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine.¡± As soon as Jun Linxuan finished speaking, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, turned around and left with her.

    The door mmed behind them, leaving the room full of schemers behind with their cold and frigid gazes.

    After leaving for some moments, Jun Xiaomo hesitated once more before quipping softly, ¡°Father, I still think we should consider establishing a new sect.¡±

    Jun Linxuan paused in his steps. He was already utterly disappointed by the Dawn Sect, and this suggestion by Jun Xiaomo once again sent innumerable considerations flickering across his mind.

 Chapter 199: Consolation in the Deep of the Night

    <h4>Chapter 199: Constion in the Deep of the Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In the end, Jun Linxuan did not give Jun Xiaomo any definitive answer about establishing a new sect. That said, he no longer met her idea with the same amount of rejection and disdain as before.

    When all was said and done, Jun Linxuan was still far more concerned about the safety and future of his disciples from the Heavenly Peak than the Dawn Sect as a whole. Furthermore, the Dawn Sect¡¯s recent acts of bullying had left him utterly disappointed.

    After Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan departed from the meeting room, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Fifth Elder snorted disdainfully, ¡°Like father, like daughter. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s temper is even worse than her father¡¯s. How dare she oppose us seniors like that! She¡¯s be far too unruly and headstrong!¡±

    The Second Elder sipped his tea as he calmly responded, ¡°The young are brash and reckless. She hasn¡¯t experienced life enough to understand that her parents cannot possibly protect her for her whole life. That¡¯s why she doesn¡¯t have any regard for anyone. That said, it¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before she falls hard.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that we won¡¯t have to wait too long for that either, huh? Hmph. Didn¡¯t those Heavenly Peak brats proim themselves to be extremely capable? We¡¯ll give them the chance to showcase their solidarity and abilities here. Let¡¯s see if they have the ability to ce well in the group battles then.¡± The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster chuckled sardonically.

    Even though they were both Peakmasters, he absolutely hated Jun Linxuan. After all, everyone would immediately think of the Heavenly Peak first whenever the Dawn Sect was mentioned. The Heavenly Peak¡¯s ever-growing glory meant that the Pill Cauldron Peak had always been left in their shadows. This was how humble and meek the Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s existence had always been.

    The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster had gnashed his teeth while staring at the Heavenly Peak for far too long, and he knew that this was the prime opportunity to get back at them. After all, the Heavenly Peak disciples were to participate in the uing group battles, and their fate was very much an unknown at this point. The Pill Cauldron Peak¡¯s Peakmaster was naturally overjoyed at the present development.

    He could already taste victory ¨C he could already see Jun Linxuan¡¯s expression when half his disciples perished over the course of the group battles.

    In fact, almost everyone in the meeting room thought the same way. The only reason why nobody spoke their minds was because they did not trust each other with the deepest, darkest contemtions of their hearts.

    Some wanted to harm Jun Linxuan. Some wanted to obtain for themselves the innumerable treasures and resources in Jun Linxuan¡¯s possession. Some simply found Jun Linxuan to be an eyesore, and they were pleased to see his misfortune. Then, there were some others who were simply content with minding their own business. Even though these others did not bear any grudge against Jun Linxuan, they did not intend to stand up and speak out for Jun Linxuan either ¨C they did not want to draw k upon themselves.

    He Zhang sighed pretentiously as he remarked, ¡°Actually, our intentions were good, but we¡¯d never expected martial brother Jun to be so rash to even broach the prospects of decoupling themselves from the Sect.¡±

    ¡°Hah, they can do whatever they want. It doesn¡¯t affect us anyway. Regardless, the Heavenly Peak will forever remain a part of the Dawn Sect. They¡¯re not going to be able to shift the entire Peak away after all!¡± The Fifth Elderughed sardonically, ¡°It¡¯s fine if he wishes to leave the Dawn Sect ¨C but the price to pay is to leave all of his wealth and treasures behind for us. They can leave with their bodies intact then.¡±

    Besides, the Heavenly Peak was going to sustain heavy losses after this iteration of the group battles. At that time, with only Jun Linxuan and his wife supporting the entire peak, what kind of a fuss would they be able to create?

    The others tacitly agreed with the Fifth Elder¡¯s spiel, and contemptuous smirks crept up all of their lips as they waited expectantly for the fruits of their schemes.

    Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan¡¯s return in low spirits caused all of the Heavenly Peak disciples to be engulfed with a thick, stale air of misery. Wei Gang¡¯s face turned red like a tomato in rage. He clenched his fists and cursed, ¡°These old fogeys! Old cronies! Bastards! They¡¯re bullying us!!!¡±

    A whole string of curse words shot out of his lips before Chen Feiyu rapped his head with some measure of exasperation. Wei Gang reflexively clutched at his head as he murmured, ¡°Martial brother Chen¡¯s bullying me again...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was incensed as well. But things had alreadye to a head, and no amount of infuriation would be able to turn things around. It was just like what the old fogeys had said ¨C the list of participants had already been submitted, and the organizingmittee would never allow a change in this regard, much less allow them to back out of thepetition. This was part of the rules of thepetition.

    They had undoubtedly underestimated He Zhang and his cronies¡¯ viciousness.

    ¡°Given how things have turned out, we can only seriously consider how to maximize our chances for the uingpetition.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed as she concluded.

    Everyone agreed with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts. Thus, they began to huddle around together as they discussed the best strategies to approach these uing group battles with.

    The night was still as waters, and the cool of the night swept over thends with a balmy warmth that washed away the frustrations of the day. The group battles were starting the next day, but Jun Xiaomo found herself tossing and turning in bed, unable to fall asleep. Thus, she got out of bed, walked to the windowsill and gazed into the cold, barren streets outside of the inn as she attempted to clear her heavyden mind.

    The orange glow of the candlelight sat by the windowsill, silently casting a long and lonely shadow on the curtains by the side. It was as though the shadow were flickering as a result of the burdensome thoughts andplicated emotions weighing heavily on its heart.

    Du, du. The door rang out with two soft thuds.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, and she was jolted back to her senses from her own thoughts. She furrowed her brows ¨C It¡¯s already sote. Who would be looking for me at this time of the night?

    ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked without opening the door.

    Her door was sealed with a formation array. As long as she did not open the door to her room, her room would remain very much a safe haven for her.

    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± A low and firm voice rang out from outside the door.

    Brother Rong? Jun Xiaomo lowered her vignce as she walked to the door and opened it.

    Rong Ruihan stood at the door. The clothes on his body were neat and tidy, and they even carried a faint musky scent of the winds and dirt around. It was evident that he had only just returned to the inn.

    ¡°I¡¯ve made a trip to the Inferno Kingdom a few days ago, and I¡¯ve only just managed to make my way back this evening. I noticed that you haven¡¯t slept yet, so I decided to check in on you.¡± Rong Ruihan spoke warmly.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°Brother Rong¡¯s too kind and thoughtful.¡±

    The truth of the matter was that Rong Ruihan did not have any reason to rush back to begin with. After all, thispetition hardly concerned Rong Ruihan. That said, Jun Xiaomo knew that there was no reason for her to bring this up ¨C she knew full well in her heart the reason for Rong Ruihan¡¯s speedy return.

    ¡°If you can¡¯t sleep, would you like to go out for a walk?¡± Rong Ruihan nced at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed and noticed that her nket was still folded neatly in the corner.

    ¡°Alright. I was just thinking of going out to let off some steam too.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled.

    Rong Ruihan walked over to the veranda and leaned against the railing.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Something left you so frustrated that you couldn¡¯t sleep?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo sighed before she responded with a bitter smile on her face, ¡°Nothing escapes your eyes, huh?¡±

    ¡°Then are you willing to speak to brother Rong about it? If there¡¯s anything troubling you, speaking about it will make you feel better.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head wanly, ¡°It¡¯s a long story. I don¡¯t know where to start from.¡±

    Rong Ruihan raised his eyebrows quizzically, ¡°We¡¯ve got time.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s put it this way. I¡¯ll be participating in the group battles tomorrow. I hope brother Rong will wish me luck.¡± Jun Xiaomo stered a lighthearted smile on her face, but anyone would be able to tell that it was a smile filled with frustrations and exasperation.

    ¡°Group battles? Why are you participating in the group battles?¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Who else could have done this apart from those crooks?¡± Jun Xiaomo shrugged, ¡°Those old fogeys from the Sect are getting anxious, so they¡¯ve altered the list of participants for the group battles again. Haha...this time they¡¯ve included almost everyone from the Heavenly Peak in the list of participants. They really have faith in us, don¡¯t they?¡±

    A swathe of fury surged up within Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart. If he possessed the requisite ability, he would not hesitate one moment to wipe out and obliterate those old fogeys from the Dawn Sect!

    ¡°Then, what are you guys going to do?¡±

    ¡°What else can we do? We can only deal with it in our stride.¡± As Jun Xiaomo spoke, her eyes grew frosty and cold, ¡°But if they think that such a predicament would put us at our wits¡¯ ends, then they can¡¯t be any more mistaken. Us people from the Heavenly Peak will never be beaten down so easily.¡±

    ¡°Mm, I believe in Xiaomo¡¯s abilities.¡± Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders in a reassuring fashion, ¡°But I think that the best long-term solution is still to break away from the Dawn Sect and have senior Jun establish his own Sect.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve already reminded my father about this matter earlier, and I think he¡¯s starting to warm up to this idea. At the very least, he¡¯s no longer insisting on remaining at the Dawn Sect anymore.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a given. Anyone faced with such oppression would naturally find themselves utterly disappointed.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions became downcast, and she grew taciturn. The truth of the matter was that she was the same as well. If not for the fact that she had experienced the Dawn Sect¡¯s schemes and ploys against her from her previous lifetime, she would simrly have been reluctant to depart from the Dawn Sect too.

    After all, the Dawn Sect was the ce that she grew up in...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wan expressions left Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart a little sour and aching. He hesitated for a moment, before he walked up to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back and practically embraced her from the back.

    ¡°Brother Rong, what are you doing?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body suddenly tensed up involuntarily.

    It was not because she was guarded against Rong Ruihan ¨C it was just that such an act felt far too intimate for herfort. She was incredibly ashamed, and her entire body felt ill at ease.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous.¡± Rong Ruihan whispered into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears.

    At the same time, his fingers wrapped themselves rightly around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlobes as they pressed on her earrings.

    Earrings? Jun Xiaomo suddenly recalled that those earrings were indeed gifted to her by Rong Ruihan, and he had even imbued the earrings with some of his energies. It definitely possessed some defensive abilities.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s fingers glowed with a red light, and Jun Xiaomo felt her earrings grow faintly warm.

    Naturally, this was not a mere illusion on her part.

    Momentster, Rong Ruihan stepped back again, before patting on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he remarked, ¡°It¡¯s all done.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo touched her earrings, and she discovered that there were still some lingering traces of warmth on it.

    ¡°This is...¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve just increased the amount of power stored within these earrings, and it should increase the defensive abilities of these earrings. This way, you¡¯ll have an addedyer of safety during the uing group battles.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly exined.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and met with Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes, but she did not discover any peculiarity in his gaze.

    Seems like I¡¯ve been too sensitive there... Jun Xiaomo chuckled bashfully to herself. At the same time, she felt a little bit guilty for her overreaction to Rong Ruihan¡¯s earlier actions.

    ¡°Thanks, brother Rong.¡± Jun Xiaomoughed, before smiling radiantly and sincerely at Rong Ruihan.

    After such a minor misunderstanding with Rong Ruihan, the earlier sullenness and frustrations of her heart had also dissipated substantially.

    At the very least, she possessed a wealth of experience from her previous life, and she firmly believed that He Zhang and hisckeys would never be able to have their way as easily as they thought they would.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze darkened momentarily. He had previously indeed been very tempted to pull Jun Xiaomo into a deep embrace and tell her not to be too worried. But Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tense response and verbal rejection, coupled with his own rationality, told him that he had to suppress the inner desires of his heart.

    Fortunately, there was still Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earrings...

    ¡°You¡¯re wee. It seems like you¡¯ll be able to sleep properly tonight, then?¡± Rong Ruihan collected his thoughts before he quipped.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, and it¡¯s all thanks to brother Rong~¡± Jun Xiaomo punched Rong Ruihan¡¯s shoulder gently, ¡°We¡¯ll leave things at that, then. I¡¯ve still got to wake up early to get ready for the group battles tomorrow, so I should try and get some shut-eye right now. Brother Rong must be tired as well. Have a good night¡¯s rest.¡±

    ¡°Mm, I will. Goodnight.¡±

    ¡°Goodnight, brother Rong.¡±

    After Jun Xiaomo bid Rong Ruihan goodnight, she turned back and entered her own room. Before shutting the door, she waved goodbye to Rong Ruihan once more, gesturing for him to return to his room to have a good rest as well.

    Rong Ruihan nodded his head. Yet even after Jun Xiaomo shut the door of her room, he remained outside, immersed in his own thoughts.

    Then, it was only when the moonlit shadows on the ground drew longer and more distant that he snapped out of his stupor, turned around, and walked back to his own room.

    Under the shade of arge tree, a man and a woman walked out at the same time.

    ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought that Jun Xiaomo still has the heart to have a date at night when the group battles are just around the corner?¡± Yu Wanrou softly remarked as she turned her gaze away from the third-floor veranda to Qin Lingyu whoid beside her.

    Since there was no longer a need for Qin Lingyu to participate in the group battles tomorrow, Yu Wanrou had after much coaxing and pestering managed to convince Qin Lingyu to take a walk with her around the Heavenly Crane Mountain and enjoy its night scenery.

    As for whether this had been an innocent trip around the Heavenly Crane Mountain, or whether it involved additional ¡°activities¡±, this was something privy only to the two of them.

    But little did they know that when their little rendezvous at night hade to an end, they would even be treated to a little ¡°show¡±. From their perspective, Rong Ruihan had clearly locked with Jun Xiaomo in a warm embrace earlier.

    Yu Wanrou thought that Jun Xiaomo must have been silly to have given up Qin Lingyu to pursue a man like Rong Ruihan. After all, no matter how strong he was, Rong Ruihan was undoubtedly a demonic cultivator, and no good wille out of a rtionship between a spiritual cultivator and a demonic cultivator.

    Thus, she was hardly jealous that Jun Xiaomo was able to earn the fancy of the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, Rong Ruihan. As far as Yu Wanrou was concerned, securing Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was the most important thing to her for now.

    Her earlier remarks had solely been designed for the purpose of testing the waters to see what kind of reaction she would get from Qin Lingyu.

    She somehow got the feeling that Qin Lingyu¡¯s attitude towards Jun Xiaomo has had a marked change ever since Jun Xiaomo had reemerged after disappearing from the rest of the Sect for over one year.

    What kind of a joke is this?! Is Qin Lingyu really going to rekindle his love for Jun Xiaomo after so much time and effort on my part winning his affection?

    Heaven forbid! I¡¯m not going to allow any other woman to exist in his heart!

    Qin Lingyu was He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and he had under He Zhang¡¯s tutge already learnt all about the nuances of human interactions, politics, and the like. How could he not notice these little contemtions of Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart?

    Truth be told, his heart did toil with a strange sense of indignation when he saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intimacy with Rong Ruihan earlier.

    Yet this sense of indignation was fleeting. As soon as he brought to the forefront of his mind the fact that his rtionship with Jun Xiaomo was no longer of the fianc¨¦-fianc¨¦e status, this reminder immediately jolted him back to his senses as though an awl had been driven through the depths of his mind.

    At the start, when Jun Xiaomo was infatuated with him, he was absolutely convinced that she would never have a change of heart so easily. He was even convinced that if Jun Xiaomo were to broach the issue of rescinding the marriage arrangement, her heart would be shattered in a million pieces as she was doing so.

    But as things panned out, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unfazed by the rescission of their marriage arrangement. Her unppable attitude towards the rescission made Qin Lingyu suspect whether she even had feelings for him to begin with.

    This left Qin Lingyu a sour and bitter feeling in his heart, as though he was the one who had just been abandoned by his fianc¨¦e.

    And it was precisely because of such suspicions festering in his heart that he began to grow indignant. Qin Lingyu was a prideful man with arge ego, and he had never expected to be abandoned like that! Jun Xiaomo was the first for him!

    Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t describe what kind of peculiar sensation it was that he was experiencing. All he knew was that it was ufortable, and it did not feel good at all.

    Forget it. Who knows whether that woman would still be able toe back alive after tomorrow? Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes squinted as he cated himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. We should go.¡± Qin Lingyu collected his thoughts as he quipped to Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s soft and dainty arms wrapped around his as she softly smiled, ¡°Alright.¡± But her heart was instead sour and bitter.

    Qin Lingyu had clearly been distracted earlier, and he had not heard a single word of what she had just said.

    In the depths of her heart, Yu Wanrou hoped and prayed that Jun Xiaomo would thoroughly perish in the group battles tomorrow.

 Chapter 200: Dispute Before the Group Battles

    <h4>Chapter 200: Dispute Before the Group Battles</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    With low spirits and heavy hearts among the Heavenly Peak disciples, the day of the group battles had finally arrived.

    Early this morning, Jun Linxuan had summoned all of his disciples who were participating in the group battles and gathered them together in a room within the inn so that he could check if they had prepared everything they needed within their Interspatial Rings. Jun Xiaomo was among the disciples who had gathered.

    The Interspatial Ring in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm was not the one she usually carried. Rather, it was an Interspatial Ring distributed by thepetition organizers for the purposes of these battles. Thesepetition Interspatial Rings were marked with the organizingmittee¡¯s emblems, and they had to be returned once the group battles ended.

    Thesepetition Interspatial Rings possessed far less space in them whenpared with their own personal Interspatial Rings. This also meant that participants would have to be circumspect about the items that they were going to bring into battle. At the very least, they would not be able to bring everything that they usually would in their own personal travels.

    As such, the stacks of talismans that Jun Xiaomo had earlier prepared for her martial brothers had nowe in handy, and each disciple had consequently also stored them within thepetition Interspatial Rings as well.

    But over and above all that, Jun Xiaomo had retrieved every single talisman in her personal Interspatial Ring and stuffed all of them into herpetition Interspatial Ring, just in case she needed to use them during the group battles.

    cing well in the group battles were secondary to Jun Xiaomo. What was most important was for these martial brothers and sisters from Heavenly Peak to return safely from the marsnds. She could not and did not wish to lose a single person!

    Apart from her talismans, Jun Xiaomo had even prepared several spirit stones, her talisman brush, some scarlet sand, some y, and the like. These items very quickly filled up four-fifths of the total space in herpetition Interspatial Ring, and she was left with no more than one-fifth of the remaining space to store some recovery pills and food for sustenance, as well as her weapon of choice ¨C her whip.

    When Jun Linxuan noticed the items chosen and prioritized by Jun Xiaomo, the veins on his forehead bulged and throbbed uncontrobly. He pointed towards the pile of items selected by his daughter as barked, ¡°What are you doing bringing those things? Sand, and y and pen, and even some spirit stones? Do you think there will be shops in thepetition grounds for you to buy stuff with during thepetition, huh?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo knew that her father had mistaken her intentions, so she stuck her tongue out and smiled mischievously as she exined, ¡°Father, I¡¯m just bringing along some necessities that I would need to prepare formation arrays with here.¡±

    ¡°Absurd!¡± Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows, ¡°Do you think thispetition is something for you to y and mess around with? Where do you think you¡¯ll have the time to slowly draw up and prepare your formation arrays during battles? Furthermore, you¡¯ve only scratched the surface with your formation arrays ¨C how much of it do you think you¡¯ll actually be able to use during a battle? I want these things removed at once! Have them reced with some recovery pills and more food and sustenance.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo remained resolute as she stood her ground, ¡°Father, I¡¯ve never treated these group battles as a yground or with a mischievous attitude. I appreciate the fact that thesepetitions are going to be fraught with dangers. It¡¯s precisely because of this that I find it necessary to bring along these items for the preparation of formation arrays.¡±

    ¡°Insolence! I¡¯ve already said it earlier ¨C where are you going to have the time to draw up your formation arrays during battle? Besides, how long have you learnt formation arrays for? Most people would only dare im to have stepped onto the path of being a talisman master after decades of practice. You can¡¯t even begin to be considered a dabbler in these arts, yet you insist on setting up these formation arrays during battle ¨C what else are you trying to do but cause trouble and inconvenience for everyone here?! I¡¯m not going to allow this!¡±

    ¡°Father!¡± Jun Xiaomo grew maddened and frustrated, yet she found herself at aplete loss at how she was going to convince her father.

    Was she going to say that she had been reborn, and she had already spent several hundred years¡¯ learning the discipline of formation arrays? Would her father not say that she was just making things up that way?

    ¡°Master, I think...if martial sister Xiaomo truly finds these formation arrays so important, we can just let her be? I¡¯ll be bringing quite a fair bit of recovery medicine along anyway, and it should be sufficient to share it among the two of us.¡± Chen Feiyu persuaded.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, master. I¡¯ve also brought quite a bit of recovery medicine and sustenance along with me. I can share it with martial sister.¡±

    ¡°Me too.¡±

    ¡°Me too...¡±

    As more and more of her martial brothers chimed in, offering to share their recovery pills and medicines with her, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was touched and filled with exasperation at the same time. She found herself not knowing whether tough or to cry ¨C could all of her martial brothers be thinking that she was bringing all of these things for her own amusement as well?

    But one couldn¡¯t fault them for thinking this way either. After all, none of these disciples had ever traveled out of the sect with Jun Xiaomo, and they naturally were unaware of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s proficiency with formation arrays.

    If only martial brother Ye were around. He would undoubtedly be the first one to stand up in support of my actions right now, because he¡¯s seen how I¡¯ve been able to use formation arrays duringbat...

    Several thoughts along that thread surfaced in her mind. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted, and pangs of bitter astringency began to emanate from her heart.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s eyebrows were still tightly knitted together. He was still ill at ease because this problem concerned the safety of everyone around, not just his own daughter.

    If his disciples did as they said and shared some of their own recovery pills with his daughter, then there would be the possibility that when a critical situation arises, there would not be sufficient recovery pills to go around.

    If that happens, then a single mistake might cost the entire group of disciples their lives.

    Jun Linxuan was not only a stern father right now ¨C he was also a Peakmaster. Thest thing he wanted was to risk jeopardizing the lives of his disciples just because of his own daughter¡¯s willfulness.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan had reached an impasse, two knocks rang out on the door to their room. Everyone thought that it might be the waiter, so they thoughtlessly responded, ¡°Come in.¡±

    Unexpectedly, it was Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan had initially intended to look for Jun Xiaomo to give her his blessings. What he did not expect to see upon entering the room was an entire room full of people.

    Not only that, he noticed how Jun Linxuan was seated in a position of power right as he red indignantly at Jun Xiaomo, as though she had justmitted an atrocity.

    Rong Ruihan patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder as he softly asked, ¡°What happened here?¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo wants to use formation arrays during the group battles, so she had prepared to bring along some items necessary for the preparation of these formation arrays within thepetition Interspatial Ring. But master disagrees because he thinks that martial sister Xiaomo is beingpletely ridiculous bringing these things. Thus, the two of them began to argue. Um...maybe it¡¯s not right to call it ¡®argue¡¯, when master has been the one castigating martial sister all this while without letting up.¡±

    Rong Ruihan lifted his head and looked at Jun Xiaomo. It was only at this moment that he noticed her facial expressions were incredibly tense, but at the same time her eyes were filled with an unbending and resolute gaze.

    Both father and daughter felt that they were right, and both refused to give in at all.

    An exasperated smile crept up the corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips before he walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and patted her shoulder.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, ¡°Brother Rong?¡±

    She had earlier been so fixated with her confrontation with her father that she waspletely oblivious to the fact that another person had entered the room.

    Rong Ruihan patted her head, before turning towards Jun Linxuan and respectfully addressing him, ¡°Senior Jun, you are also aware of the fact that Xiaomo and brother Ye had encountered me on their travels outside of the Sect, and we had been on the run for our lives for a period of time. At that time, it was truly our fortune to have Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays with us which enabled us to escape with our lives intact time and again. Thus, I¡¯m personally of the view that allowing Xiaomo to use formation arrays during these group battles might even give the group an edge over other groups.¡±

    Having heard Rong Ruihan¡¯s testimony of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities, Jun Linxuan¡¯s tightly knitted brows rxed substantially.

    His attitude had finally begun to shift.

    Jun Xiaomo finally saw hope that her father would change his mind. Her eyes glistened, before she supplemented Rong Ruihan¡¯s earlier spiel, ¡°That¡¯s right, father, I¡¯m only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery now, so even if I meet my opponents head on, I¡¯m not likely to be able to defeat them. This isn¡¯t apetition where participants are separated into different categories after all. There are going to be several cultivators at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery or higher ¨C how am I going topete with them? Even if I have the aid of several talismans within my Interspatial Ring, will these be able tost me three whole days?¡±

    Jun Linxuan thought for a moment, before he realized that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan do sound somewhat reasonable after all, and he was almost fully convinced of their point of view.

    Then, it was Chen Feiyu who finally tipped the scales in their favour, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, master. There¡¯s still going to be the recovery medicines in our Interspatial Rings no matter what. There won¡¯t be any issues with this arrangement.¡±

    Seeing that his disciples were all standing on the side of his daughter, Jun Linxuan sighed with resignation, and he no longer forced the issue. Nevertheless, he turned his stern gaze back to Jun Xiaomo as he cautioned, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m only indulging in your antics because of your repeated assurances to me. I hope you don¡¯t disappoint me this time. This matter doesn¡¯t only implicate you ¨C it affects the safety of all of your martial brothers as well. We can¡¯t afford to mess this up.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Xiaomo understands father¡¯s reminders.¡± Jun Xiaomo acknowledged obsequiously.

    Wei Gang minced up to Chen Feiyu¡¯s side as he quipped, ¡°Isn¡¯t master being a little bit too harsh on martial sister Xiaomo now?¡±

    Chen Feiyu shook his head as he exined, ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. Master¡¯s bearing the responsibility and burden of the entire Heavenly Peak on his back, and he naturally can¡¯t be sloppy when dealing with this matter. Besides, martial sister Xiaomo is his daughter. As a father, he naturally doesn¡¯t want to see his own daughter willfully messing around, especially when ites to apetition that might potentially implicate lives. This is also for martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s own good. Otherwise, it will be toote to remedy the situation if everyone ends up ming martial sister Xiaomoter on.¡± Then, Chen Feiyu patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulders as he added, ¡°You¡¯re still young. You¡¯ll understand this in future.¡±

    Wei Gang scratched his head with some measure of confusion before he grew taciturn.

    After ascertaining that everyone had packed the necessities into theirpetition Interspatial Rings, Jun Linxuan instructed everyone to have a quick breakfast before they all made their way towards thepetition grounds once more.

    Thepetition grounds were packed full of people. Everyone was eagerly awaiting the processing of participants¡¯ identities and themencement of the group battles.

    In order to prevent sects from discreetly substituting or swapping out participants, every iteration of these group battles would always be preceded with an incredibly strict verification process.

    ¡°Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s participants, please step forward.¡± One of the referees announced through the Voice Amplification Array so that the entirepetition grounds could hear what he was saying.

    Dai Yanfeng and the other sect elders from the Eternal Summit Sect led a pack of disciples with a steady gait towards the referees where they would have their identities verified.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples gave off an incredibly dignified air about them, so much so that when they walked through the crowd, everyone unwittingly parted and gave way to them as they watched them make their way towards the referees.

    As they passed by Jun Xiaomo, one of the disciples even nced over towards Jun Xiaomo. His gaze was most certainly not filled with any form of kindness at all ¨C there was only disdain.

    As they walked past, Wei Gang clenched his fists in fury and waved it threateningly at their backs as he remarked, ¡°Tch! What gives them the right to be so haughty?! Do they think they¡¯re so great just because they¡¯re still leading in terms of points right now?! No matter what, they¡¯re no more than a bunch of Secondary Sect disciples only. We disciples from the Heavenly Peak are certainly no worse than them!¡±

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, and a peculiar sense of unease swelled up from the depths of her heart ¨C Are these really disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect? Howe they give off such a different vibe from when west saw them?

    People would often remark that ¡°a person possesses a remarkable disposition¡±, or ¡°that fe¡¯s aura is formidable¡±.

    Disposition and aura were illusory concepts that were difficult to grasp, but they were undeniable existences in each and every person.

    They were things that formed and matured over time under the influences of a person¡¯s environment and the contemtions of his heart. It was somewhat rted to a person¡¯s cultivation level, yet at the same time there was no direct corrtion there either.

    That said, one thing was for sure ¨C a person¡¯s aura and disposition could not be changed that easily.

    A person¡¯s appearance could be changed through medicinal pills, talismans, formation arrays, and the like, but things such as a person¡¯s aura and disposition were much harder to change.

    This was why Jun Xiaomo sensed there to be a peculiarity with the disciples that had just walked past her. She had encountered the Eternal Summit Sect disciples at themencement of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions, yet she had not sensed the same air of disposition and aura from those disciples as she did now.

    At the very least, herst encounter with the Eternal Summit Sect disciples did not leave her with the impression that they were so ¡°dignified¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo watched on as the Eternal Summit Sect disciples walked towards the referees and, in ordance with the referee¡¯s instructions, each of them dripped a drop of their blood onto the formation diagram at the feet of the referee.

    This formation array possessed the ability to assess and verify a cultivator¡¯s identity and cultivation strength. A blue glow would mean a sessful verification of identity; while a red glow would mean that these cultivators were not one and the same as those who had been registered in the list of participants submitted earlier.

    It might have been no more than an illusion, but time seemed to slow down slightly during the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s verification process. It felt as though this process took an unusually long time for them.

    Everyone dropped what they were doing and turned their attention expectantly towards the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples.

    Some distance away, a drop of sweat rolled off the foreheads of one of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s sect elder. His eyes were filled with a guilty conscience.

    That sect elder was hoping and praying that they would not be exposed...otherwise the good name and reputation that the Eternal Summit Sect had built up over thest hundred years would be finished.

    Approximately half an incense stick of timeter, the heart of the formation array finally glowed brightly ¨C

    ¡°The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s verification process has been sessful. Would the next sect, the Crescentfell Sect, please get ready.¡± The referee dered. Even though the faces of several Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s sect elders remainedpletely expressionless, they nevertheless heaved a huge sigh of relief in their hearts.

    Fortunately...

    They looked at each other sheepishly, before they all nced back at their grand elder, Dai Yanfeng.

    When Dai Yanfeng had first sought to convince them of the Du n Head¡¯s suggestion, these other sect elders had struggled with the idea for a long time. At the end, they had only reluctantly epted the idea of a ¡°substitute team¡± for fear that they would invoke the wrath of the Du n should they refuse toply. That said, they were still extremely unsettled by their decision.

    After all, nobody had heard of anyone sessfully substituting a team of participants ever since the inception of these quinquennial Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions. The sects that had previously attempted to cheat with such substitutions had invariably met with a tragic end.

    These sects had invariably found themselves undermined by all other sectster on, before finally fading away and bing nothing more than a record on the annals of history.

    This was why the arrogant Dai Yanfeng had taken the time to consider and deliberate the Du n Head¡¯s suggestion when it was first broached to him as well.

    Dai Yanfeng liked to gamble, but he hated to lose.

    But in the end, his gamble had paid off. Even the panel of referees had been unable to discern the truth behind the identity of the ¡°Eternal Summit Sect disciples¡± that had just had their identities verified.

    Who would have thought that the Du n would actually render the Eternal Summit Sect such massive help this time?

    Satisfied, Dai Yanfeng smiled discreetly to himself...

 Chapter 201: The Group Battles Begin, Chen Feiyuâ€™s Secret

    <h4>Chapter 201: The Group Battles Begin, Chen Feiyu¡¯s Secret</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Once all the group battle participants had gone through the verification process, the panel of referees led the participants from the various Secondary Sects to a sequestered part of thepetition grounds and directed them to stand on a massive formation array.

    Each of these participants possessed an identity token with them that contained the particrs of their personal vitals. The backs of these identity tokens were further marked with each of their sect¡¯s emblems and each was imbued with their sect¡¯s unique seals. There was no way to falsify these tokens.

    This was a confirmation of their identity, and it was also a means of obtaining points during these group battles ¨C as soon as someone else snatched their identity tokens away, that person would be disqualified, and he would be immediately transported to the entrance to the marsnds, while the person who had snatched their identity token would have five points added to his sect¡¯s total score.

    However, in order to prevent the sects from scrambling madly at each other at themencement of these group battles, the massive formation array would send each group of participants to different locations at the marsnds in ordance with the marks on their tokens. Then, it would be entirely up to their luck whether they would encounter other groups over the course of the group battles.

    This way, everything was left up to luck ¨C there was a possibility that a group would not encounter any disciples from other sects over the entire duration of the group battles; yet there was equally a possibility that a group would find themselves attacked by another sect right from the onset.

    The Heavenly Peak had a total of twenty-three disciples, and twenty of these were involved in the present group battles, including Wei Gang.

    ¡°Mar-...Martial sister...I...I¡¯m a little bit nervous.¡± Wei Gang stuck close to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and spoke apprehensively with a scrunched-up face.

    Logically speaking, a person at his cultivation level and with his abilities should never have been selected for these group battles. Thus, Wei Gang had attended thispetition with the sole intention of thoroughly enjoying himself and to cheer his martial brothers and sisters on during their battles.

    Unexpectedly, the old fogeys within the Dawn Sect had tripped up the Heavenly Peak so viciously that they had even forced this young sprout at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery with nobat experience to participate in the group battles.

    He was nearly in tears at his own predicament.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous. Just follow behind us. If there¡¯s any threats we can¡¯t deal with, make sure to protect yourself first.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head as she consoled him, ¡°We will definitely all make it out alive.¡±

    After all, wasn¡¯t everything that she had prepared for her martial brothers beforehand done with the hope that everyone would be able to leave these marsnds safely at the end of three days?

    We can do it!

    ¡°But...martial sister, I¡¯m afraid that I would be a burden to you guys.¡± Wei Gang appeared to be in even greater distress at such a prospect.

    Jun Xiaomo stared at Wei Gang with some measure of exasperation and bemusement as she responded, ¡°Do you think that martial sister had given you those talismans earlier for no good reason? As long as you use them at the appropriate time, these talismans should be more than enough tost you one week. Remember, you have to prioritize self-preservation above all else, understand?¡±

    Wei Gang scratched his head clumsily as he muttered, ¡°Oh...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could understand why Wei Gang was somewhat unsettled by the group battles. After all, Wei Gang was still young and inexperienced. If Jun Xiaomo did not possess a full lifetime of experience under her belt as well, she would hardly be better off than Wei Gang right now.

    Just as they were in the midst of their chatter, the chief referee stood up and dered, ¡°The time has arrived. I invite all participants to stand still within the formation array, and I will be counting down to the activation of the formation array shortly.¡±

    ¡°Three...¡±

    ¡°Two...¡±

    ¡°One, activate!¡±

    As soon as the chief referee counted down, a faint blue light immediately began to glow from the ground where the participants were standing. Some of the younger participants who had never participated or watched the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition¡¯s group battles before immediately revealed tense and nervous expressions on their faces.

    Then, before they could adjust their own emotions and collect their tense thoughts, the blue light intensified and erupted into the sky. In the blink of an eye, everyone disappeared from where they had earlier been standing. At the same time, arge group of people appeared in mid-air at various different ces within the marsnds. After hovering where they were for a few moments, these people fell straight towards the ground, and several groans and moans resounded across the marsnds.

    Those who had experience with these battles knew that this would happen, so most of them found some way of ensuring that they wouldnd safely and stably on the ground. But those who had never participated in these group battles found themselvespletely caught off guard, and several participants mmed straight into the ground. Some of these participants even discovered for the first time what mud tasted like.

    There were several members of the audience who were younger and less experienced cultivators, and they had only attended the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition to observe its proceedings. When they saw what had happened, and they couldn¡¯t help but cover their mouths and tittle as they found joy in the misery of the participants who had unwittingly mmed into the ground before they could react in time.

    As soon as the participants were teleported to their designated areas within the marsnds, the chief referee waved his hands, and the formation array where the participants had all been located began to shift and transform. Within moments, the formation array created a massive water screen, while a hazy-looking gleaming pearl rose from the center of the screen.

    Then, when the water screen settled down, the gleaming pearl began to shine and project the images on its surface onto the water screen below, disying figure after figure of moving images.

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s martial brother Ke!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s martial brother Song!¡±

    ¡°I see martial sister Qinglian...¡±

    Several members of the audience were taken aback at the sight ¨C it turns out that they would be able to observe the entire proceedings of the group battles as well! Furthermore, the audience¡¯s perspective looked as though they were captured through the little identity tokens worn by each participant around their hands.

    That¡¯s right. Apart from being a source of points to other teams, these identity tokens possessed an additional function of being able to capture moving images and projecting them onto the water screen. This was also an additional means of safeguard against cheating during the group battles.

    On the other side, as soon as Jun Xiaomo began to fell, she immediately whipped out and applied a Windsail Talisman on herself, thereby slowing down her fall and allowing her tond safely on the ground.

    Wei Gang was just beside her, and he was hardly as fortunate as he immediately mmed straight into the ground.

    ¡°Argh¡ª¡± Wei Gang groaned in pain. He had mmed so hard into the ground that his bottom felt like it was practically going to split in two.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled helplessly as she walked over and extended a hand to him, ¡°Come on, get up.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, mar¡ª¡± Wei Gang was just about to thank Jun Xiaomo when he discovered that another hand had extended in front of him even before Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand had arrived. This hand was muchrger and firmer than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand.

    Wei Gang followed the arm and looked up, and he was immediately met with Chen Feiyu¡¯s stoic and stern-looking face.

    Wei Gang¡¯s heart would always tremble slightly whenever he encountered Chen Feiyu. This was because Chen Feiyu¡¯s disposition was far too stern and stoic, and he was practically the spitting image of Jun Linxuan, their master! This was why Wei Gang was far closer to Jun Xiaomo than any of his other martial brothers to begin with.

    Wei Gang was far too mischievous and impish, and he couldn¡¯t withstand the overbearing serious and somber disposition that all of his other martial brothers possessed. Furthermore, Wei Gang found that Chen Feiyu was the strictest and the sternest one among all of his other martial brothers. He was naturally most reticent to interact with Chen Feiyu.

    His heart trembled slightly, and Wei Gang ¡°seriously¡± thought about it, before he noticed that Chen Feiyu¡¯s gaze was far more oppressive than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s. Thus, he stretched out his arm and took Chen Feiyu¡¯s hands instead.

    With one strong pull, Chen Feiyu pulled Wei Gang back to his feet.

    ¡°Thanks...thanks martial brother Chen.¡± Wei Gang hung his head low as he timidly thanked his martial brother with a voice as small as a mosquito.

    ¡°No problem.¡± Chen Feiyu¡¯s voice was almost monotonous, and he turned his gaze directly to Wei Gang as he responded.

    Faced with Chen Feiyu¡¯s gaze, Wei Gang¡¯s head lowered even further, as though he had done something wrong and he was waiting to face the music.

    God knows that I haven¡¯t done anything wrong... Wei Gang bemoaned in his heard with grief.

    Yet it was precisely because Wei Gang¡¯s head had lowered so much that he hadpletely failed to notice the trace of bemusement sh across the depths of Chen Feiyu¡¯s eyes.

    As an observer on the side, Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow as she thought in her heart ¨C Was it just an illusion? Howe I get the impression that the atmosphere between martial brother Chen and martial brother Wei seem a little bit...odd?

    Finally, just as Wei Gang was almost certain that Chen Feiyu was going to get at his neck for his clumsiness, Chen Feiyu simply patted his shoulder firmly and walked away.

    Wei Gang heaved a sigh of relief, raised his head and immediately minced his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, patting his chest as he remarked, ¡°That really scared me. Martial brother Chen¡¯s aura is getting more and more oppressive over time...¡±

    Martial brother Chen¡¯s aura is oppressive? Jun Xiaomo nced at Chen Feiyu¡¯s back, before ncing back at Wei Gang as she chuckled lightheartedly, ¡°Howe I get the feeling that you¡¯re particrly afraid of martial brother Chen?¡±

    ¡°With his fearsome and oppressive aura, how can I not be afraid of him...¡± Wei Gang chuckled bitterly in response.

    Truth be told, she was hardly fazed by Chen Feiyu¡¯s aura at all. Whether in her previous life or her present life, she had never found Chen Feiyu to have given off a particrly strong or oppressive aura. That said, who couldpare with the oppressiveness of Rong Ruihan¡¯s aura when she first encountered him? Back then, the aura that he released was simply so oppressive that it almost felt like her neck was about to be snapped in half.

    Then, some thoughts shed across her mind, and Jun Xiaomo thought of a different way to test her theories. She quipped, ¡°Then, which do you think is more fearsome ¨C martial brother Chen¡¯s aura or your master¡¯s aura?¡±

    ¡°Of course it would be master¡¯s aura!¡± Wei Gang responded without a thought.

    ¡°But from what I can tell, it seems thatpared with your master, you seem to be more afraid of martial brother Chen.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder as she added, ¡°Perhaps martial brother Chen particrly enjoys to disying his strength in front of you.¡±

    ¡°Hah? What do you mean?¡± Wei Gang muttered in exasperation, ¡°Do you mean martial brother Chen enjoys bullying me? That can¡¯t be. With that old, grumpy face of his, how could he be the type of people who enjoy bullying others...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rapped his head as she replied enigmatically, ¡°If you don¡¯t understand what I mean, then just forget about it. You¡¯ll understand eventually.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by this! I hate this kind of ambiguous responses the most! Don¡¯t make it sound like I¡¯m such a young kid. I¡¯m only two years younger than you, martial sister!!!¡± Wei Gang made a ¡°two¡± gesture with his hand as he refuted.

    ¡°So what if you¡¯re only two years younger than me? You¡¯re still young.¡± Jun Xiaomo turned to leave as she made her riposte.

    Wei Gang skipped clumsily behind her hoping to get some form of answer from Jun Xiaomo, yet Jun Xiaomo kept her mouthpletely sealed shut about the matter.

    Even though she still maintained a bemused expression on her face, her eyes were not filled with amensurate amount of joy.

    This was because a memory of a tragic incident in her previous life had once again surfaced on her mind ¨C

    In the battle which reduced the Heavenly Peak to nothing, Chen Feiyu had been the first one to fall. Back then, he had already attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and he should never have fallen so easily. Yet the fact of the matter was that he was still the first one to be martyred.

    At that time, the deadly strike had been directed straight at Wei Gang. In the end, it was blocked by Chen Feiyu.

    But once he was felled by this deadly strike, he never got up again.

    Although the night of massacre had urred years and years ago, Jun Xiaomo could never forget a single detail about that incident. She even remembered everyst expression on the faces of these martial brothers and sisters of hers as they perished.

    Jun Xiaomo initially thought that Chen Feiyu had blocked that deadly strike for Wei Gang because he was concerned for a younger martial brother of his. But as things panned out right now, there might well be another reason for his actions.

    Indeed, it was only when a person was so deeply concerned about the wellbeing of another ¨C more than his own life ¨C that he would be willing to respond instinctively despite the risk of death.

    Regardless, no matter what her martial brother Chen¡¯s thoughts were, Jun Xiaomo was determined not to let him meet with the same fate in this present life!

    Chen Feiyu waspletely oblivious to the fact that Jun Xiaomo had already discovered a part of the deepest, darkest secrets of his heart. He walked ahead, meticulously observing his surroundings.

    Ever since Ye Xiuwen fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge and disappeared from the Heavenly Peak, Chen Feiyu naturally became Jun Linxuan¡¯s strongest disciple. That said, his cultivation was still at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery, and he was still one full level away from the bottleneck to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    Thus,pared with the other sects that were participating in these group battles, the Heavenly Peak¡¯s overall strength was truly considered weak.

    At the very least, each and every other team participating in these group battlesprised of at least one cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. There were even some teams that had Foundation Establishment cultivators among them.

    The team of Heavenly Peak disciples stood in particrly stark contrast with the team sent by the Eternal Summit Sect. The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s teamprised of two disciples who had already broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, as well as three disciples at the peak twelfth level of Qi Mastery.

    It was no wonder why several sects felt that the Dawn Sect¡¯s team could only be considered mediocre at best ¨C the overall abilities of their team could hardly evenpare with most of the other small sects around.

    Thus, everyone hardly set the Dawn Sect¡¯s team in their sights, and they concerned themselves more with teams that they found might potentially rival their abilities.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, have you discovered anything yet?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked over to Chen Feiyu¡¯s side as she asked.

    ¡°Not at the moment.¡± Chen Feiyu knitted his brows as he remarked, ¡°I feel that the grounds we¡¯re stepping on is far too firm. It¡¯s hardly anything like the marsnds we¡¯ve always heard about.¡±

    ¡°I think so too. It would be wise to remain vignt.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded earnestly.

    Just then, the sound ofbat rang out from afar. Jun Xiaomo and Chen Feiyu exchanged nces, increased their vignce and began to make their way quickly towards where the sound ofbat was travelling from. It didn¡¯t take them too long before they discovered a group of female cultivators dressed in pink duking it out against three or fourrge scorpions.

    ¡°They¡¯re from the Crescentfell Sect!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately recognized the identity of the team that was locked inbat.

    Among all the Secondary Sects around, the Crescentfell Sect was the only sect strictly made up of female cultivators. Furthermore, each and every one of their disciples were fairly good-looking, to say the least.

    ¡°Crescentfell Sect?! Isn¡¯t that where Tianyi is from?! Wei Gang hurried over and anxiously craned his neck as he observed the battle that unfolding a distance away.

    Tianyi? Jun Xiaomo paused for a moment, before she finally recalled who ¡°Tianyi¡± was.

    It was none other than thedy which the crowd was fawning over some time ago, proiming that her abilities were great, and that her beauty was even greater. She was the widely-acimed beauty from Crescentfell Sect that had caused many male cultivators to fall head over heels in love with her. Yet at the same time, when this beauty discovered that Jun Xiaomo was ncing over at her, she made a proud and haughty expression ¨C one that simply deserved a good, tight p to the cheeks.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s impression of this ¡°beauty¡± was hardly any good. However, she did not want to ruin her little martial brother¡¯s beautiful dreams back then. Furthermore, she had thought that they were unlikely to interact with each other after that single encounter, so she had restrained herself from making any unnecessary remarks to her little martial brother.

    But now, seeing that an expression of anxiety was stered all over Wei Gang¡¯s tender and innocent face, Jun Xiaomo rubbed her forehead in dismay. A deep sense of uneasiness suddenly washed over her heart.

 Chapter 202: The Crescentfell Sectâ€™s Accusations

    <h4>Chapter 202: The Crescentfell Sect¡¯s usations</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The luck of the Crescentfell Sect disciples was hardly greatpared with that of the Heavenly Peak disciples. The Crescentfell Sect¡¯s starting position was directly in the midst of a Sand Scorpion nest. To these Sand Scorpions, fresh meat falling from the sky was practically tantamount to a godsent meal. Having sensed the arrival of these delectable delights, the Sand Scorpions hastily burrowed out of their nests brandishing their massive pincers as they weed their ¡°gifts¡±.

    Fortunately, the overall abilities of the Crescentfell Sect disciples could hardly be considered weak. Their garments had even been refined and imbued with some defensive capabilities. Thus, under the confluence of these factors, the Crescentfell Sect disciples managed to avoid certain death uponnding.

    That said, avoiding the Sand Scorpions¡¯ initial attack was naturally not the same as beingpletely in the clear. As soon as the Sand Scorpions discovered that their prey had evaded their first strikes, they began to thrash about and charge madly at the Crescentfell Sect disciples.

    This was one of the reasons why Jun Xiaomo and the rest had decided to stand at the side and observe this battle between man and scorpion when they first arrived at the battlefield.

    ¡°The anomalous ground in this part of the marsnds might have something to do with those Sand Scorpions. Look! Those mounds of mud and dirt are evidently created by the Sand Scorpions. These Sand Scorpions must possess earth-based spiritual roots.¡± Jun Xiaomo analyzed.

    When she was on the run in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had encountered several spiritual beasts and demonic beasts that simrly possessed earth-based spiritual roots. Back then, she had noticed that the ground around these creatures would always be somewhat anomalous or unusualpared with the rest of the surroundings. Sheter discovered that this was a result of the fact that these creatures with earth-based spiritual roots generally enjoyed altering the surrounding ground to create an environment that they enjoyed living in.

    These creatures with earth-based spiritual roots generally possessed offensive abilities that looked far weaker than their counterparts with fire-based, wind-based, water-based, or metal-based spiritual roots, not to mention the lightning-based spiritual roots which possessed the strongest and most fearsome offensive abilities.

    But if a person thought that this tranted to the notion that creatures with earth-based spiritual roots were easy to deal with, then he could not be any further from the truth.

    This was because creatures with earth-based spiritual roots were most adept at altering their environments. This meant that they could easily soften or harden the ground under the feet of their assants, giving it ess to abilities such as creating a sinkhole out of nowhere.

    In other words, it practically possessed the ability to stumble a person or bury him alive at any point in time. Jun Xiaomo had nearly fallen prey to these creatures several times in her previous life as well.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to watch the battle unfold on the side as she slowly broke down the abilities of these Sand Scorpions. In no time, Jun Xiaomo discovered that these Sand Scorpions hardly possessed any strong offensive abilities. Furthermore, their attacks were highly unregted and haphazard, and these Sand Scorpions did not leverage on their strength in numbers either.

    It could be seen that these Sand Scorpions were hardly any cause for concern.

    But could these few Sand Scorpions possibly possess the ability to create such a massive domain of hardened ground in these marsnds? Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she contemted other possibilities. Her instincts told her that it would be unwise to let down her guard here.

    Just then, she found that someone was tugging at her sleeves. She turned her head, and she was immediately met with a pair of ck, beady eyes that was filled with hesitance and internal struggle.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, aren¡¯t we going to do anything to help them?¡± Wei Gang stammered.

    Help? Seeing how Wei Gang¡¯s tender and innocent face was presently scrunched up like a steamed bun, Jun Xiaomo rubbed her forehead with exasperation as she broke down the situation for him, ¡°Little Lang, do you remember that they¡¯re still our opponents during thispetition? This is apetition, not a charity. Furthermore, there¡¯s already one cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation and two who are in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery among the Crescentfell Sect participants. Do you think they¡¯ll need our help in the circumstances?¡±

    ¡°But...but...¡± Wei Gang was naturally too embarrassed to admit that he was fond of a female cultivator among their midst and that he was worried for her. He was almost certain that his martial sister Xiaomo would give him a harsh dressing down if he did.

    But who did he think Jun Xiaomo was? She had lived for hundreds of years, and her wealth of life experience meant that she was able to understand what Wei Gang was thinking with just one nce at his expressions. His ¡°pretense¡± could hardly fool her at all.

    She discreetly nced over at Chen Feiyu with some pity in her eyes before patting Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder, intending to give her little martial brother a lesson about the dangers of letting his emotions get the better of his rationality so that he would give up on these na?ve notions.

    Unfortunately, things did not go as she had nned. Before Jun Xiaomo could measure her words and begin her spiel, Wei Gang immediately eximed, ¡°Not good! There¡¯s arge scorpion behind Luo Tianyi¡¯s back, and she hasn¡¯t noticed its approach!¡±

    As he eximed, Wei Gang reflexively motioned to dash into the fray.

    ¡°Stay here!¡± Chen Feiyu held Wei Gang back by the cor and tossed him backwards, before instructing the other Heavenly Peak disciples, ¡°All of you remain here. I¡¯ll go take a look ahead.¡±

    As he finished speaking, Chen Feiyu applied a Windsail Talisman on himself before rushing headlong into the fray.

    After being tossed back just like that, Wei Gang found himself slightly dibobted. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo managed to catch and support him. Then, she immediately turned her attention towards Chen Feiyu¡¯s back with furrowed brows.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head as she instructed, ¡°Little Lang, stay here with the rest of the martial brothers. I¡¯m going to take a look as well.¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    Several cries rang out behind Jun Xiaomo to no avail. As a result of the Windsail Talisman she had applied earlier, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s movements were swift and reasonably quick. In no time, she caught up to Chen Feiyu, and they both arrived near where the battle was taking ce.

    Chen Feiyu was indeed there to rescue Luo Tianyi. As a cultivator with a mutated water-based spiritual root, he congealed andpressed block of ice in his hands and sent it flying straight towards the massive scorpion approaching Luo Tianyi¡¯s back.

    The scorpion¡¯s sharp teeth were instantly shattered by Chen Feiyu¡¯s attack, and it began to il and thrash about its surroundings in pain. Incidentally, it inadvertently struck two of itspanions, causing the Sand Scorpions which were already on the backfoot to thrash about even more wildly.

    That said, this was hardly a good thing. The Sand Scorpions¡¯ wild thrashing broke up the rhythm of the Crescentfell Sect disciples¡¯ attacks. In turn, some of the rtively weaker Crescentfell Sect disciples mistimed or misaimed their attacks, and almost allowed the Sand Scorpions to break out of their circle of attacks.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo arrived in the nick of time. She reached into her Interspatial Ring and swiftly retrieved five Constriction Talismans, recited a mnemonic and pointed towards a Sand Scorpion¡¯s body. Instantly, the five Constriction Talismans rose into the sky and formed a massive Constriction Array, selectively binding up all the Sand Scorpions within its area of effect.

    The cultivation levels of these Sand Scorpions were not high to begin with, and their fates were sealed as soon as they were bound by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Constriction Array. Within a few moments, the Crescentfell Sect disciples managed to join forces and disposed of one Sand Scorpion.

    Even though Chen Feiyu had instructed the Heavenly Peak disciples to remain where they were, the Heavenly Peak disciples were all filled with an immense sense of solidarity, and nobody wanted Chen Feiyu and Jun Xiaomo to get hurt. Thus, they had also made their way over just in time to clear up the bound and constricted Sand Scorpions.

    Under thebined abilities of the disciples of these two sects, the Sand Scorpions were very quickly fully disposed of.

    As soon as the Sand Scorpions were out of the picture, the Crescentfell Sect¡¯s team leader, Tang Qiaozhu turned her attention towards Jun Xiaomo and the rest. Given that she was already in the Elementary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, she was able to tell the cultivation levels of Jun Xiaomo and the rest with just one nce.

    The disciple with the strongest cultivation level among the Heavenly Peak disciples was Chen Feiyu, whose cultivation was at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery. The rest were even lower than his.

    Thus, Tang Qiaozhu had already managed to guess which sect this team hailed from. Furthermore, there was another telltale sign that confirmed her suspicions ¨C thedy dressed in striking red, Jun Xiaomo.

    She turned towards Jun Xiaomo and the others and furrowed her brows with a grimace on her lips but chose to remain taciturn.

    However, this did not mean that the other disciples would simrly remain taciturn as well. Another female disciple dressed in pink with a sweet-looking appearance stepped forward and red viciously at Jun Xiaomo and the rest as she barked, ¡°Who asked you to be so meddlesome?! Speak! Was it because you saw that we were about to win that you decided to butt in to secure a share of points for yourselves?!¡±

    Meddlesome?! Several Heavenly Peak disciples were bbergasted. This was the first time that some of them had encountered such ingrates who repaid good with evil and even turned around to make usations against them.

    Jun Xiaomo sighed in her heart. She knew that this was going to happen. This was why she had initially been reticent to step in and render aid to this group of Crescentfell Sect disciples. It was not the case that she was content watching them die in this battle; rather, it was because given the overall abilities of these Crescentfell Sect disciples, they would have no issues dealing with these Sand Scorpions at all. On the other hand, she knew that if the Heavenly Peak disciples butted into the Crescentfell Sect disciples¡¯ fight, they might not be met with mere ingratitude, they might even be used of attempting to snatch a share of the points for themselves!

    It had to be mentioned that if a spiritual beast or a demonic beast were defeated by the joint efforts of two teams, then the referees would allocate points ording to each team¡¯s performance during the battle.

    In other words, if the Sand Scorpions had been killed solely by the Crescentfell Sect disciples, they would be able to obtain fifty points to add to their team¡¯s score. This was equivalent to snatching ten identity tokens from other sects. But now that the Heavenly Peak disciples had intervened, the amount of points that they would be able to obtain from their efforts would naturally be lower.

    It might even be the case that the referees would allocate both teams equal amounts of points at twenty-five each.

    By this point in time, Wei Gang had realized that his earlier actions had been far too rash and reckless ¨C he had almost be a burden to his martial brothers, and a sense of guilt and remorse swelled up in his heart. Then, when the Crescentfell Sect disciples reacted harshly to their good intentions, the anger in his heart burgeoned.

    He red back at the Crescentfell Sect disciples as he huffed with indignation, ¡°If...if not for martial brother Chen¡¯s help, Luo...Luo Tianyi would already have fallen prey to that Sand Scorpion earlier!¡±

    Wei Gang turned his attention towards Luo Tianyi as he spoke. As soon as he noticed that Luo Tianyi was looking back at him, he began to stammer.

    Luo Tianyi had only looked at Wei Gang because he was speaking. But now that she had heard what Wei Gang was saying, she raised an eyebrow as she mocked contemptuously, ¡°How do you know I wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid its attack earlier? Do you think my cultivation is as low as yours?¡±

    As she finished speaking, she turned her attention away from Wei Gang and back onto the tall and well-built Chen Feiyu ¨C

    Truth be told, when she discovered that a well-built and handsome male cultivator had appeared to rescue her earlier, she did find her heart slightly moved by his actions. But as soon as she noticed Chen Feiyu¡¯s identity and cultivation level, she immediately extinguished these thoughts.

    Luo Tianyi has had a steady stream of suitors and confessions ever since her impressive showing during her individual battles. Several of these suitors were even cultivators at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery or greater. Thus, Chen Feiyu¡¯s cultivation at the measly eleventh level of Qi Mastery could hardly move her at all.

    Furthermore, she knew that Chen Feiyu was a disciple of the Heavenly Peak. Almost everyone among the Secondary Sects knew that the Heavenly Peak had practically been abandoned by the Dawn Sect.

    Otherwise, why would they have sent such weak disciples from only one Peak to participate in these dangerous and trying group battles? Were they not sending these disciples to their death?

    After weighing the costs and benefits, Luo Tianyi concluded that it would be wise not to interact any further with the Heavenly Peak disciples ¨C even if they had just saved her own life. After all, even if Chen Feiyu had not saved her earlier, she would only been slightly injured by the Sand Scorpion.

    Luo Tianyi was confident in her own abilities.

    On the other side, Wei Gang was incredibly hurt by Luo Tianyi¡¯s words. He was only a teen at the tender age of fifteen years-old, and this was the age when he would first begin to appreciate rtionships between men and women. When he noticed how Luo Tianyi¡¯s abilities were swell, her beauty was stunning, and she carried herself with a dignified appearance, he could not help but grow fond of her.

    Yet he had hardly expected his object of affection to cast him aside with a string of mockery at their very first interaction. Her words were clearlyden with disdain and contempt for him.

    Thus, Wei Gang¡¯s heart felt incredibly stifled and ufortable, and the rims of his eyes reddened uncontrobly.

    ¡°Oh? Are your eyes are already bing red and puffy just like that? You¡¯re just a small child that hasn¡¯t grown up yet. What are you doing participating in these group battles? You¡¯d be better off running home and crying to your mommy.¡± The first female disciple dressed in pink chimed in with derision once more, and her mockery was only met with theughter of the other Crescentfell Sect disciples.

    ¡°Enough. We thoroughly regret helping you ingrates earlier. Very well, if the Crescentfell Sect encounters any dangers in future, the Heavenly Peak disciples shall no longer help out anymore. Simrly, if we Heavenly Peak disciples encounter any problems, we won¡¯t need the assistance of the Crescentfell Sect disciples as well. Let¡¯s go.¡± As soon as Chen Feiyu spoke, he ced his arm around Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder and led the Heavenly Peak disciples away along another road.

    Wei Gang was no longer mesmerized by Luo Tianyi. He wiped his tears, and his face appeared to be filled with a renewed sense of resolve and determination.

    As they watched the Heavenly Peak disciples depart, one of the Crescentfell Sect disciples remarked sarcastically, ¡°Tsk. They even made it sound as though they were intentionally helping us. They¡¯re just here to steal our points after all.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was walking at the back of the pack of Heavenly Peak disciples. When she heard this derisivement, she suddenly spun around with a disdainful look on her face as she chuckled sardonically, ¡°Let me remind you, if not for the talismans I¡¯d used earlier, you would never havee out from the earlier battle with the Sand Scorpionspletely unscathed. It¡¯s fine to puff yourself up full of hot air, but remember that the higher you go, the harder you fall!¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Incensed, the Crescentfell Sect disciples stared at Jun Xiaomo, but they could not find any words to refute what she had just said.

    Indeed, if not for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier assistance, this battle could never have gone so smoothly without a hitch at all. But their pride did not allow them to admit that they were so weak as to require the aid and assistance of a female cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. This was a bitter pill that they simply could not swallow!

    Thus, they continued to tell themselves as well as the audience observing them that they would have been able to win even without Jun Xiaomo¡¯s assistance.

    A cold smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, and she held back from speaking any further as she quickly caught up to the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Even though there were twenty pairs of eyes staring daggers into her back right now, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unfazed and unmoved.

    She squinted her eyes, and aplicated gleam flickered in the depths of her eyes.

    Since these people were so insistent on their perspective, then there was no need for Jun Xiaomo to remind these people of a tiny detail that might have slipped their minds ¨C the monarch of this domain cannot possibly be the Sand Scorpions that they had earlier dealt with.

    This was because the ground under their feet had remained as firm as it had been even after the Sand Scorpions had perished. Logically speaking, they should have reverted to the usual conditions in the marsnds.

    What did this mean? This meant that there was a far stronger andrger spiritual beast or demonic beast that existed in these domains which possessed the ability to transform such a massive part of the marsnds into its own granary.

    Those massive Sand Scorpions could very well have been nothing more than a snack to this monarch beast.

    Jun Xiaomo shuddered at the thought, and she picked up her footsteps slightly.

    Whether the Crescentfell Sect disciples would encounter the monarch beast, and whether they would be able to survive such an encounter was already outside of the ambit of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s considerations right now.

    Ah, I¡¯ll leave everything up to fate.

 Chapter 203: The Audienceâ€™s Surprise, Crescentfell Sectâ€™s End

    <h4>Chapter 203: The Audience¡¯s Surprise, Crescentfell Sect¡¯s End</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Having forged ahead for slightly over five minutes, and after ensuring that they were a good distance away from the annoying, abrasive disciples from the Crescentfell Sect, Chen Feiyu turned around and addressed the Heavenly Peak disciples, ¡°Everyone has worked hard earlier. Let¡¯s take a break and adjust our conditions.¡±

    Several disciples revealed a slightly relieved expression on their face, and they began to look about at their surroundings and pick out a good spot to take a break at.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had expended a fair amount of energy disposing of the Sand Scorpions earlier. Now that the moment of danger was over, they would be wise to take some time to rest and recover to prepare for the road ahead.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she looked at the ground below. She stamped on it, and she discovered that whilst the ground here was slightly softer, it was still rtively firmpared with the rest of the marsnds.

    She still had her reservations about their current location. At the very least, from the current clues that she had gleaned from her surroundings, she knew that they had not arrived at the safest possible ce.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo walked up to Chen Feiyu and informed him of her own views.

    ¡°A monarch-grade spirit beast with earth-based spiritual roots?¡± Chen Feiyu immediately furrowed his brows. He had heard of such monarch-grade beasts before, but hearing was hardly the same as seeing, much less appreciating the extent of what these monarch-grade beasts could do.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. It could even be a monarch-grade demonic beast.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined earnestly, ¡°If my guess isn¡¯t wrong, this entire ce should have been a patch of marsnds, and it had only be what it is now because of this monarch-grade beast. As to why I say this is a monarch-grade beast...¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly, ¡°Apart from a monarch-grade beast, I really don¡¯t know any other type of spirit or demonic beast that possess the ability to transform a piece ofnd of such magnitude to an environment of its own liking.¡±

    ¡°I see. Since that¡¯s the case, we mustn¡¯t tarry any further. It would be prudent to leave this ce as soon as possible.¡± Chen Feiyu immediately made his resolve and announced his decision to the other Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Even though everyone else was tired from the battle earlier, they still possessed a sense of camaraderie and trust in each other that was far beyond the norm in any other team. Thus, as soon as Chen Feiyu announced the change of ns, everyone mbered up from their resting spots immediately, heeded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s judgment and began to forge ahead, away from the domain of the monarch beast.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled to herself. She knew that only the Heavenly Peak disciples could possess such solidarity and trust towards each other that they were willing to heed the observations of a cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery like her.

    In particr, they noticed the earnestness in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and they chose to believe her words. Furthermore, her conjectures sounded logical, and they knew that it was always better to err on the side of caution.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo made her conjectures known to Chen Feiyu, several members of the audience immediately drew a cold breath ¨C

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s conjectures were far too urate!

    The audience had gasped in shock because just as Jun Xiaomo exined her conjectures to the other disciples, the water screen revealed that the Crescentfell Sect had encountered yet another mishap.

    The Crescentfell Sect had been resting and adjusting themselves after the battle with the Sand Scorpions. Just like everybody else, including the members of the audience, the Crescentfell Sect disciples had thought that killing off the group of Sand Scorpions meant that their surroundings were now safe and devoid of any dangers.

    Despite that, just as everyone had let their guards down, a massive creature suddenly emerged from the ground with its mouth wide open, instantly swallowing three of the Sand Scorpion¡¯s corpses on the ground.

    The Sand Scorpions were enormous creatures to begin with, yet this massive creature had instantly swallowed three of the Sand Scorpions with just one gulp ¨C one could only imagine the magnitude of the massive creature¡¯s gargantuan size.

    That massive creature looked slightly longish, and most of its body remained hidden underground. The only thing that was exposed at this point was no more than its head. Its mouth was filled with powerful, incisive teeth, and as it ground up the exoskeleton of the Sand Scorpions, loud, sickening crunches that sounded like breaking bones rang out in the otherwise eerily silent surroundings.

    The Crescentfell Sect disciples stared at this horrific sight with gaping mouths. Even their leader, Tang Qiaozhu, found herselfpletely dumbstruck at this sight.

    ¡°Ahh---!¡± The first female cultivator to return to her senses immediately reacted with a shrill shriek. The gargantuan creature instantly paused, before swishing its head around and gazing straight at the Crescentfell Sect disciples.

    If not for the fact that Tang Qiaozhu had earlier directed her team members to rest some distance away from the Sand Scorpions because she found them to be too ugly and smelly, the Crescentfell Sect disciples might already have been swallowed alive by this massive creature by now.

    Their fate would have been just like those Sand Scorpion corpses ¨C not a single part of them remained.

    But they were hardly optimistic about their present predicament either. The female cultivator¡¯s shriek earlier had drawn the attention of the gargantuan creature, and it had undoubtedly noticed all of the Crescentfell Sect disciples.

    Although the Crescentfell Sect disciples did not notice any eyes on this gargantuan creature, the sensation that they got from the creature was unmistakably the one and the same as when a predator had locked its gaze on a prey. A frigid chill went down their spine, and goosebumps crept all over their skins.

    Idiot! Tang Qiaozhu swore in her heart at the martial sister who screamed earlier, before turning around as she yelled, ¡°Run!¡± As she shouted, she turned tail and led the retreat as she began to sprint away from the disgusting and fearsome gargantuan beast that looked like a massive worm.

    The other disciples came to their senses a split secondter. As soon as they realized what was going on, they immediately scattered in different directions as their hearts trembled in fear and trepidation.

    However, there were naturally some disciples who were slow to react, or slow on their feet. The gargantuan creature dove towards the ground of Crescentfell Sect disciples and instantly devoured the female cultivators who were slower than others. Several shrill shrieks rang out again, before the bodies of these female cultivators thoroughly perished in the mouth of this creature.

    Momentster, a faint but nauseating blood-stench began to waft out into the surroundings.

    Tang Qiaozhu and Luo Tianyi¡¯s legs weakened slightly, but they dared not turn back at all. They continued to run as quickly as their legs would take them under the augmentation of the Windsail Talisman, and they darted forward as far away from the gargantuan creature as they could.

    The present Luo Tianyi looked incredibly ashen ¨C her earlier smugness had beenpletely wiped off her face.

    Faced with the tragic demise of the Crescentfell Sect disciples, arge part of the audience couldn¡¯t help but sigh with resignation.

    Everyone immediately recalled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier conjectures when the Heavenly Peak disciples had first left the site of battle. If the Crescentfell Sect had just set aside their pride and built a good rtionship with the disciples from Heavenly Peak, they might not have ended up in their present plight.

    But this thought experiment could only remain as such. After all, what had happened had already happened ¨C how could any amount of regret possibly turn back time?

    Several referees among the panel of referees sat there silently as they took in and digested everything that they had just watched.

    Truth be told, the fact that the Heavenly Peak and the Crescentfell Sect were teleported to this part of the marsnds was both a good and a bad thing.

    It was a good thing because they had encountered the Sand Scorpions as soon as they had arrived on the marsnds, and these two sects were the earliest among all the participating teams to secure points for themselves. At the same time, it was a bad thing because they would meet with a far greater mishap if they were unable to assess the hidden dangers around them, just like what had happened to the Crescentfell Sect. If a team was unable to keep their cool about them when they encountered a strong spirit beast, then there was a good chance that their lives would very much be left in the hands of fate.

    Logically speaking, since both the Heavenly Peak disciples and the Crescentfell Sect disciples had joined hands to kill the Sand Scorpions, the referees should have awarded the points in real time in ordance with each sect¡¯s performance and contribution.

    However, most referees erred in terms of the points allocated to each sect.

    Given that the Crescentfell Sect disciples had already been battling with the Sand Scorpions for a long time before the Heavenly Peak disciples had arrived, some of the referees took the position that the Heavenly Peak did no more than to pick up the scraps from the efforts of the Crescentfell Sect disciples, and the Heavenly Peak disciples should not be awarded too many points in this regard.

    Yet there were some other referees who agreed with what Jun Xiaomo had said ¨C if not for her remarkable usage of her Constriction Array which bound all of the Sand Scorpions in ce, the Crescentfell Sect disciples would require much more time to be able to defeat the Sand Scorpions.

    Since they were not aligned in their opinions, the chief referee decided to resolve their dispute in the fairest possible means ¨C each referee would award these two sects with the points that they think each sect deserves, and the actual points awarded would be the average among all referees present.

    Just like that, there were several referees who initially awarded the Crescentfell Sect with substantial points. However, when they noticed the appearance of the gargantuan creatureter on, they capitted on their earlier decision and silently changed the score allocated to the Crescentfell Sect.

    One sect was able to disy incredible solidarity and trust in each other at all times, while the other scattered like dust at the earliest signs of danger. It did not take a genius to work out which of these sects were more deserving of praise than the other.

    Besides, the presentpetition was called ¡°group battles¡± for a reason. It was evident that the Heavenly Peak¡¯s disy of teamwork fell squarely within the definitions of the group battles.

    Thus, everyone was taken slightly aback when the final score for the disposal of the Sand Scorpions was disyed to the audience members.

    Heavenly Peak ¨C 30 points, first position; Crescentfell Sect ¨C 20 points, second position.

    Of course, this was not the final results. Thepetition had only just begun, and none of the other sects had even found the opportunity to disy their abilities just yet. The present ranking would almost certainly change in no time.

    That said, the participants of these group battles would have no way of determining each team¡¯s current standings, or even the number of points allocated to each team. Simrly, Jun Xiaomo and the rest were unaware of the fact that they had just taken the lead in terms of points, much less learn of the Crescentfell Sect¡¯s tragic plight shortly after they departed the scene of battle.

    They walked on for quite some time before they found themselves located amidst enormous pools of marshes and swamps. Some of them were even gurgling with bubbles. The soil under their feet had also be soft and muddy.

    ¡°Ugh...this ce is really smelly...¡± Wei Gang clutched at his nose as he remarked.

    Jun Xiaomo patted his head as she responded, ¡°It¡¯ll get better once you get used to it.¡±

    Wei Gang was by no means a spoilt kid, and he only found himself slightly nauseated by the smell of the marsnds. Thus, he very quickly adjusted himself to the surrounding conditions and got used to it.

    ¡°Xiaomo, what do you think of this ce? Everyone¡¯s already tired and weary. Perhaps it might be a good idea to take a break?¡± Chen Feiyu sought Jun Xiaomo¡¯s opinion.

    Everyone had earlier witnessed with their own eyes Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities. Despite the fact that Chen Feiyu was the appointed leader of the Heavenly Sect disciples, everyone admired Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities and trusted her judgment.

    This was particrly so for Chen Feiyu, who somehow got the feeling that Jun Xiaomo was incredibly proficient and adept with her survival skills.

    Jun Xiaomo observed her surroundings keenly, before nodding her head, ¡°It should be safe to rest here. Generally speaking, two monarch-grade beasts will not reside within the same domain. Otherwise, they would almost certainly vie with each other for the lion¡¯s share of the territory. This ce is not far away from the anomalous ce that we had just departed from, and there shouldn¡¯t be many dangers around. Of course, just to be on the safe side, I still think it would be a good idea for us to take turns to rest and recuperate. Those who aren¡¯t resting can stand guard and keep watch of the surroundings so that we can remain alert to any peculiar situations or dangers.¡±

    Chen Feiyu nodded his head as he seconded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo is right. Since that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s do as martial sister Xiaomo had suggested. Xiaocheng, Xinji, Jicheng...¡± Chen Feiyu picked out ten people, ¡°You will rest and recover your energies first. The rest whose names haven¡¯t been called shall stand guard and watch our surroundings with me so that we can remain vignt.¡±

    ¡°Yes, martial brother Chen!¡± Everyone responded in unison. Then, in ordance with his instructions, some sat around in meditation, while others stood around and kept watch at their surroundings vigntly.

    Jun Xiaomo and Wei Gang were both delegated the task of standing guard first. In order to consolidate and increase their defensive abilities, Jun Xiaomo even took it upon herself to scatter some powder around to repel spiritual beasts, as well as set up several defensive formation arrays in the surrounding before returning to their resting grounds.

    Wei Gang watched on as Jun Xiaomo busied herself. Then when she was finally done, he walked up to Jun Xiaomo and eximed to her, ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re truly amazing, you know that? You know formation arrays, talismans, and you¡¯ve even got a wealth ofbat experience under your belt. How in the world do you do it?¡±

    Wei Gang asked with a glint in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily taken aback, before she chuckled helplessly as she responded, ¡°How else do you do it? Everything is based on the umtion of experience.¡±

    ¡°But...martial sister Xiaomo is only two years older than me, yet you know so much more than I do...you make me feel rather useless...¡± Wei Gang hugged his knee and rested his chin on it as he murmured, ¡°I¡¯ve even almost ced everyone in danger earlier. If not for my recklessness you wouldn¡¯t have bothered to rescue those ingrates earlier.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled genially. She tousled Wei Gang hair as she replied, ¡°Then start umting experience right now. Make your martial sister or your other martial brothers your goal and aim to gain some experience every day. It suffices that each day, you make yourself better than yourself yesterday. It¡¯s going to be a long and lonely process, but you¡¯ll get there as long as you persevere and keep your eyes on your goals.¡±

    If not for the fact that she had been reborn, she would not have been far better than Wei Gang¡¯s current state of inexperience.

    ¡°I know. I¡¯ve been too mischievous in the past, always shirking my cultivation responsibilities.¡± Wei Gang lifted his head and stared at Jun Xiaomo with resolution in his eyes, ¡°Martial sister, I¡¯m going to focus on my cultivation in the future! I¡¯m not going to be a burden to all of you anymore!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. She believed that after today, her little martial brother would experience a qualitative change to his character and personality.

    ¡°Oh yes, martial sister.¡± Wei Gang thought about it before asking hesitantly, ¡°Does this mean that whenever we encounter someone from another sect, we won¡¯t rescue them anymore?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically, before responding with another question, ¡°What do you think? Do you think we should save them?¡±

    Wei Gang furrowed his brows with some measure of distress, ¡°I think I would be infuriated if a repeat of today urred again. But then again, I don¡¯t think the disciples from every other sect would behave in the same way as the disciples of the Crescentfell Sect...right?¡±

    As he drew towards the end of his response, Wei Gang became increasingly uncertain of his response.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, affirming his response, ¡°That¡¯s right. Not every sect would repay good with evil like those disciples of the Crescentfell Sect. Furthermore, every sect has its fair share of good guys and bad guys.¡±

    ¡°Then what do we do? It wouldn¡¯t be too good to stand idly by the side and watch others perish in danger as well, right?¡± Wei Gang scratched his head.

    Wei Gang had always had a kind heart. In fact, the reason why he had motioned to rush into the fray was not only because the person in danger was the goddess in his heart, it was also because he could not stand idly by and watch someone get eaten by a Sand Scorpion.

    That said, Wei Gang had earlier slightly overreacted. Even if none of them had rushed into the fray, the disciples of the Crescentfell Sect would not be in any danger of life and limb at all.

    ¡°Actually, the answer you seek is buried within your own question, isn¡¯t it?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she responded enigmatically.

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Wei Gang widened his eyes ¨C Have I answered my own question? Howe I still don¡¯t know it?!

    ¡°In other words...you have to use different approaches when dealing with different people.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she spoke.

    ¡°Martial sister, that answer is as good as none...¡± Wei Gang murmured in dismay. How was he going to distinguish who was good and who was evil?

    Jun Xiaomo patted his arm, before she suggested, ¡°How about...next time we encounter someone in trouble, we¡¯ll let little martial brother decide whether to save them or not.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes widened even more, ¡°Martial sister! How can you do this?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically, ¡°Why not? This is a prime opportunity to learn and develop some life skills.¡±

    Chen Feiyu happened to pass by at this moment, and he overheard thetest exchange between Jun Xiaomo and Wei Gang.

    A trace of bemusement shed across his eyes, before he sternly nodded his head in affirmation, ¡°I think that¡¯s a pretty good idea. It¡¯s about time that martial brother Wei learns to distinguish and navigate theplex nuances of human nature.¡±

    Wei Gang suddenly felt as though there were two heavy mountains pressing on his shoulders, and his tender face scrunched up like a crumpled bitter gourd as he chuckled bitterly to himself.

 Chapter 204: Weakest Team vs Dream Team

    <h4>Chapter 204: Weakest Team vs Dream Team</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After resting for approximately one hour, everyone was finally renewed and refreshed for the journey ahead.

    The deeper they entered the marsnds, the more humid and cool their surroundings grew. Each step felt as though they were going sink into the depths of the marsnds in the very next moments. From time to time, they would evene across some sticky substances in the marsnds that seemed to be the remnants of a beast¡¯s saliva or mucus. It was absolutely disgusting and nauseating.

    This was the first time that Wei Gang hade across such an environment, and it was understandable that he found it hard to get used to. If not for the fact that his martial brothers and sisters remained as cool as a cucumber about their surroundings, he might already have run to the side and thrown up violently.

    But now, he fervently suppressed that urge for the sake of his teenage pride, and his face appeared so constipated that it almost turned a sickly green.

    ¡°Little Lang, perk up a little. You¡¯ll have to be careful to avoid those swamp bubbles that are surfacing in these marsnds. If you step into the swamp bubbles, sinking into the depths of the marsnds might be the least of your concerns. Those swamp bubbles might very well be concealing a spirit beast or a demonic beast. If you rm those beasts, then it might be a problem for all of us.

    Wei Gang nodded his head listlessly. But before he finished nodding his head, his feet immediatelynded on one of these bubbles, and he sank immediately into the marsnds.

    ¡°Little Lang!¡± Jun Xiaomo was just about to pick Wei Gang back up when she noticed the flicker of a shadow ¨C Chen Feiyu had arrived in the nick of time to grab hold of Wei Gang¡¯s cor to prevent him from sinking further into the marsnds.

    Wei Gang clumsily collided into Chen Feiyu¡¯s chest. After a few seconds, he collected himself and hastily cried out, ¡°Martial brother Chen, careful below!¡±

    Before Chen Feiyu could even process what Wei Gang was cautioning him about, he noticed a massive blood-red tentacle rise up from the depths of the marsnds and sweep towards them. The blood-red tentacle was densely filled with suction cups of all sizes on it.

    Jun Xiaomo instantly retrieved the whip from her Interspatial Ring andshed out ferociously at the tentacle. The tentacle immediately recoiled in pain. Then, within moments, several other horrific tentacles began to rise up out of the marsnds.

    Then, when the unknown creature finally surfaced in front of everyone¡¯s eyes, the disciples finally got a clear look at it. They discovered that this creature resembled an octopus, but it was farrger than the normal octopus.

    Everyone armed themselves with their weapons of choice and began tounch intense attacks and strikes at the creature that was madly iling its tentacles about. Even Wei Gang began to attack the creature after he returned to his senses from his earlier shock. His weapon of choice was a steel hoop.

    Fortunately, the creature¡¯s cultivation level was not too high, and it took only three incense sticks of time before Jun Xiaomo and the rest managed to dispose of it. It was unclear whether the creature had merely passed out, or it had passed away ¨C either ways, it began to sink slowly back into the depths of the marsnds.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples heaved a sigh of relief as Chen Feiyu instructed, ¡°This ce doesn¡¯t seem too safe. I think we¡¯ve got to remain vignt and keep walking.¡±

    Everyone nodded as the followed Chen Feiyu and continued to forge ahead.

    However, after walking for a few moments, the disciples discovered that Jun Xiaomo remained standing where she was, and she did not follow them.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo?¡± Chen Feiyu turned around and saw Jun Xiaomo standing with tightly knitted brows where she had been as she stared nkly at the creature sinking into the depths of the marsnds. It was as though she were deep in thought.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Chen Feiyu returned to Jun Xiaomo and patted her shoulder as he asked with concern.

    The pat on her shoulder jolted Jun Xiaomo back from her stupor. She looked back up at Chen Feiyu, grimaced slightly. She opened her mouth, but she didn¡¯t know where to begin.

    ¡°Feel free to speak your mind with your martial brother. It¡¯s fine.¡± Chen Feiyu patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he cajoled her. To him, Jun Xiaomo was a martial sister, but he treated her more like a part of the family that every other Heavenly Peak disciple was part of. Even if the words she spoke were harsh on the ears, he would never get mad at her.

    After all, he was so much older than she was to begin with.

    Furthermore, he understood Jun Xiaomo quite well. He knew that she would not speak about the matter unless it was of the utmost importance.

    Jun Xiaomo deliberated for another few moments before she began to speak again, ¡°Martial brother Chen, do you think ourbat efficacy earlier was high?¡±

    Chen Feiyu was slightly taken aback from thisment. He lowered his head and pondered for a moment, before he sighed with resignation and shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t have the ability to assess it properly. But from martial sister¡¯s reaction, I don¡¯t think our efficacy is as high as it could have been...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled. She knew that Chen Feiyu would not mind her voicing her concerns like that. After all, Chen Feiyu was the appointed leader of the group. If the leader had been anyone else, they might well have seen Jun Xiaomo as a thorn in their side, or a threat to their leadership by now.

    Jun Xiaomo faced Chen Feiyu as she continued with earnestness, ¡°Ourbat efficacy is indeed not very high. If we worked properly with each other, I estimate that we might only have required one incense stick of time to defeat that creature earlier.¡±

    ¡°So quick?!¡± Chen Feiyu was slightly rmed.

    It was understandable that Chen Feiyu would be unaware of the secrets of group battles, group synergies and the like. Generally speaking, cultivators were individualistic in nature and rarely considered the techniques used for group battles, much less practiced them.

    After all, none of the cultivators expect to be huddled up or stick around with their group all the time, so what was the point of knowing so much about group battle techniques?

    That said, Jun Xiaomo had witnessed with her own eyes the potential of fully utilizing such group battle techniques and maximizing their synergies. There was once incident in her previous life when she encountered a team of rogue cultivators while on the run. None of these cultivators belonged to a single sect, but they nevertheless enjoyed travelling together toplete bounty-rted tasks issued by various sects in the spiritual world.

    Back then, Jun Xiaomo had already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and she recognized that the individual capabilities of that team of rogue cultivators was hardly worth considering. Thus, she grew slightlycent.

    In the end, not only did she find herself on the verge of losing that battle, she was on the verge of even losing her life.

    If not for the fact that she hade across a life-saving treasure on her previous escapades, the Lady Demoness might have perished there and then.

    Thus, ever since then, she no longer dared to undermine the potential of teams of spiritual cultivators who focused on developing their synergies with each other, even if each individual cultivator did not seem to be outrageously strong.

    Not only that, she even extended her research on teamwork to several texts and manuscripts from the mortal world.

    Why the mortal world? The reason for this was that the cultivation world hardly delved into matters such as group battles and synergies, and there was barely any research and development of skills on that front. Even though every iteration of the Inter-Sect Competitions consisted of a ¡°group battle¡±ponent, everyone¡¯s notion of a ¡°group battle¡± was none other than to focus their attention and firepower on a single target until that target was dead.

    In other words, the mereparison of a team¡¯s average cultivation level would almost invariably allow one to determine at the outset the winner or the loser.

    But Jun Xiaomo knew that if a team maximized synergies and brought out their true potential, the oue would not be as simple as ¡°1+1=2¡±. It was far more profound than that. The more they were able to coordinate their attacks, the more they would be able to bring out the hidden potential within each of their team members to do far more than what they would have been able to achieve as mere individuals.

    That said, despite all of her research, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s understanding of these matters could only be considered to have scratched the surface because she never had an opportunity to experience for herself what true teamwork could bring out. After all, she had always been battling alone in her previous life.

    But right now, she wanted to utilize the knowledge that she had gleaned back then in the present group battles.

    Jun Xiaomo exined her perspective of the matter, before suggesting that these group battles were the prime opportunity for the Heavenly Peak disciples to hone their teamwork and develop synergies. It would not be wise to simply attempt to avoid every danger possible for three days.

    Chen Feiyu immersed himself in the depths of his contemtions for a moment before he finally rxed the tensely knitted brows and announced to the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo is right. We can¡¯t just keep avoiding dangers. Furthermore, this is apetition. As disciples of the Heavenly Peak, there¡¯s no reason for us to hide in our shells like turtles in the face of danger.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo began to smile. She was overjoyed at Chen Feiyu¡¯s decisiveness.

    Chen Feiyu thought for little bit, before he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder while continuing, ¡°In the time toe, I¡¯m going to temporarily relinquish my authority as a team leader to martial sister Xiaomo. I hope that everyone will be willing to take her lead and follow her instructions.¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Chen?!¡± Jun Xiaomo widened her eyes. She had never expected Chen Feiyu to directly relinquish his authority as a leader to her.

    It had to be said that the glory to a team leader was incredibly great if one could lead his team to victory. It might potentially even earn the team leader sufficient recognition to be earmarked as Chosen Disciples of the Greater Sects.

    ¡°Martial sister, I believe in you. You¡¯ll do well. Our lives are in your hands now.¡± Chen Feiyu somewhat joked as he handed the mantle over towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Don¡¯t worry, martial sister. Do your best to lead us. We¡¯ll follow your instructions.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. We believe in martial sister¡¯s abilities...¡±

    None of the Heavenly Peak disciples objected or dissented to such an arrangement. Every single disciple trusted that Chen Feiyu had his reasons for doing do; and every single one believed in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities.

    And this was all despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo was a seventeen years-old cultivator at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery. She was younger than almost everyone present.

    ¡°Thank you, everyone.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly. Her heart was moved by the faith everyone had ced in her.

    Thus, she no longer shirked her new responsibilities. Her expressions grew stern and serious as she immediately instructed, ¡°Little Lang.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Yes, martial sister!¡±

    ¡°I want you to stand in front of a swamp bubbleter. On mymand, you¡¯ll break that swamp bubble and lure out the creature within.¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡± Wei Gang had not expected Jun Xiaomo to allocate him such a task, so he was slightly taken aback. But a few momentster, a resolute gaze filled his eyes as he responded earnestly, ¡°Yes! Martial sister, I shall fulfill my task.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo patted his head, before she began to disseminate the rest of her instructions to her other martial brothers around, ¡°As for everyone else, stand by the side of the swamp bubble, arm and prepare yourselves. I want you to attack the creature as soon as it appears. Bear in mind that I might be issuing instructions throughout this entire process.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Everyone responded in unison.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled. Then, she smacked her head as though she had just recalled something important. Momentster, she retrieved a stack of talismans from her Interspatial Ring as she continued, ¡°My voice might not reach you when we¡¯re in the midst ofbatter. I want everyone to use these Transmittance Talismans instead. One talisman canst us one full day. That way, you will be able to hear my voice and receive my instructions amidst the chaos of battle.¡±

    ¡°Martial sister¡¯s preparations sure are thorough.¡± Wei Gang eximed as he obsequiously applied one of the talismans on himself.

    Everyone also picked up these talismans in an orderly fashion as they thanked Jun Xiaomo.

    They had finally realized that the ¡°space-wasting¡± items prepared by Jun Xiaomo beforehand could actually be used so effectively duringbat.

    After applying the Transmittance Talismans on themselves, everyone began to march towards the next patch of marsnds on Jun Xiaomo¡¯smands.

    Outside thepetition grounds, several referees delved deep into their own thoughts as soon as they heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s analysis about the principles behind group battles.

    Indeed, they had instituted group battles in every iteration of thesepetitions, but from time immemorial, none of the participating teams had ever thought about implementing group battle tactics or techniques to maximize their synergies.

    Most people in the cultivation world believed that they would only be able to gain an advantage inbat if they were individually strong enough. Therefore, nobody had ever thought about relying on such alternative techniques for victory.

    But what if cultivators began to use the techniques for teamwork and synergies that was so prevalent in the mortal world?

    What kind of effects would it produce?

    Thus, the referees began to watch the Heavenly Peak disciples expectantly despite the fact that their average individual abilities in these group battles were the lowest among all teams.

    At the same time, there were several other referees who were transfixed on the performance of another team ¨C the team from the Eternal Summit Sect.

    If the Heavenly Peak disciples were to be described as the ¡°weakest team¡± around, then the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s team could only be described as a ¡°dream team¡±.

    It was evident from their performance since the start of the group battles. They were practically like a ravaging whirlwind that left a path of destruction wherever they went. In no time, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s team had already umted for themselves a massive amount of points, well in excess of the Heavenly Peak, and they now sat firmly at the first ce in their standings among all other participating teams.

    Even with their group battle tactics, the Heavenly Peak disciples could never defeat such a formidable ¡°dream team¡±, right?

 Chapter 205: Increasing Clarity on the Potential of Group Battle Tactics

    <h4>Chapter 205: Increasing rity on the Potential of Group Battle Tactics</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    At the beginning, the oues of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s implementation of the group battle tactics were hardly desirable.

    This was primarily attributable to the fact that most disciples were already used to a one-versus-one type ofbat. Even when they were all attacking the same target, everyone was simply minding their own business when they did so. Everyone focused on their own attacks, and they hardly concerned themselves with timing and coordinating their attacks with the people around them.

    Naturally, they would lend a helping hand during an emergency, but regr teamwork only extended so far. As for battle formations, rotation of offensive and defensive roles, nking attacks, nobody had heard of these things before.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that it was practically impossible to imbibe her martial brothers with these tactics the same within a short span of three days. Furthermore, such knowledge was useless if it remained as head knowledge. It was only when they internalized these practices throughbat experience that it would be something that they could wield as an advantage in battle.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo thought about it and decided to split her martial brothers up into five teams of four, depending on their individualbat styles.

    Then, within each of these smaller teams, each person would attempt to work their way through the exact style ofbat that synergized best with the rest of his teammates. At the same time, they would work on entrusting their backs to each other as well.

    That¡¯s right. The most important t of such group battle tactics was trust.

    Trust in the fact that their teammates would be able to defeat their opponents, and trust in the fact that their teammates would cover their backs. It was only through the foundation of such trust that the team could build solidarity and be oneplete, functioning unit like that of an impregnable war machine.

    The most fortuitous thing about their present circumstances was the fact that the Heavenly Peak disciples nevercked trust for each other. The only thing that theycked wasbat experience and practice on their timing and coordination.

    ¡°Little Lang! Cover martial brother Chen¡¯s back!¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Hua, take a few steps back and use long-ranged spells instead. Leave the short-ranged attacks to martial brother Qing!¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Wen, use your ice spells to help martial brother Huan block the attacks...¡±

    It could be said that Jun Xiaomo was the person most worn-out by those few battles. Not only did she have to observe the conditions of each and every single team out there, she would even have to yell out and instruct them on how they could better adjust or tweak their approaches andbat styles to improve theirbat efficacy.

    After every battle, the Heavenly Peak would always huddle together for a short debrief on the things that they had learnt and the things that could be improved on, as well as to discuss how they could better improve their coordination with each other. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo would take the opportunity to teach some of the applicable knowledge that she had gleaned from the manuscripts in her previous life.

    It had to be said that the mortal world was truly well-researched into the discipline of group battle tactics despite theirck of cultivation abilities. Her martial brothers would invariably find themselves enlightened about the situation whenever Jun Xiaomo disclosed a small nugget of wisdom to address their difficulties.

    Jun Xiaomo hade across a phrase in the past that had stuck with her ever since ¨C

    ¡°No nugget of wisdom can give rise to results overnight. Only arduous practice and fine-tuning begetsplete internalization and instinctual utilization.¡±

    Jun Xiaomopletely agreed with such a philosophy. Thus, she had never expected any of her martial brothers to be masters of group battle tactics overnight. In her mind, it sufficed that the implementation of group battle tactics allowed them to increase theirbat efficacy ever so slightly so that they could best utilize the remainder of their time within thepetition grounds.

    But, as much as their implementation of the group battle tactics was a good distance away from being considered even passable in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, the rate of improvement of theirbat efficacy was undoubtedly terrifying in the eyes of the audience.

    When the first swamp monster appeared, Jun Xiaomo and the rest had expended an incredible amount of effort over three incense sticks of time before they defeated that monster.

    When the second swamp monster appeared, and this was also the first time that Jun Xiaomo had implemented group battle tactics, they spent five incense sticks of time before they managed to im victory. This wasrgely due to the fac that they were still unfamiliar with the concept of group battle tactics and they stillcked experienced. Three martial brothers even sustained light injuries in the process. At that time, several members of the audience began to doubt what Jun Xiaomo was trying to do.

    When the third swamp monster appeared, Jun Xiaomo and the rest continued to implement their group battle tactics. Despite the growing suspicions among the audience members for what Jun Xiaomo was doing, the Heavenly Peak disciples were unaware of such matters and were thus unfazed and unaffected by all of these. This time, it took them four and a half incense sticks of time before they imed victory. Furthermore, only two martial brothers sustained light injuries.

    On the fourth attempt, they only used four incense sticks of time, and only one martial brother sustained light injuries.

    On the fifth attempt...

    Just like that, they continued to lure out the swamp monsters and battle with them to hone their skills, and they would have a short debrief between battles to collect their thoughts and discuss what could be improved. Then, they would attempt to implement these tactics in the next battle, adjust theirbat styles to best synergize with their teammates, and improve on theirbat rhythm and tempo.

    The umtion of experience from each battle gave rise to incredible results.

    Several members within the audience were initially of the view that the Heavenly Peak disciples must have lost their minds. Otherwise, why else would they be interested in the things of the mortal world? In their eyes, those without a spiritual root or talent for cultivation were relegated to living the rest of their lives as mere mortals, and the wisdom of these mere mortals could hardly be mentioned in the same breath as the wisdom of cultivators.

    Thus, they looked down on such philosophies and disciplines of the mortal world.

    When Jun Xiaomo and the rest first set out clumsily honing their group battle tactics, these audience members earnestly shifted their attention away from the Heavenly Peak disciples and focused their minds on observing the other teams. They firmly believed that the Heavenly Peak disciples were wasting their time and effort. The time spent honing these skills were far better spent attempting to locate and dig up the priceless treasures hidden by the organizingmittee beforehand and umting more points for themselves.

    But after six hours had psed and these disbelieving audience members turned their attention back to the Heavenly Peak disciples to check on them once more, they werepletely taken aback.

    Jun Xiaomo and the rest had managed to subdue and dispose of a secondary-tier, fifth-grade swamp monster in only two and a half incense sticks of time! How could they possibly be so quick?!

    At the very least, the observers knew that if they had sent their disciples of the same cultivation levels to battle against that swamp monster, there was no way they would be able to dispose of it within such a short period of time.

    Thus, they finally began to realize the veracity of what Jun Xiaomo had propounded earlier.

    In the booth beside where the panel of referees was located, a group of stern-looking old men sat elegantly at their seats as they calmly observed the proceedings on the water screen without a single ripple in their eyes.

    Even though nobody was able to sense the depths of these old men¡¯s cultivation level, not a single person dared to treat these people lightly. This was because everyone knew the status of the old men seated in the booth beside the panel of referees ¨C they were none other than the sect elders from Greater Sects. They had attended thesepetitions with the sole purpose of earmarking their next Chosen Disciples.

    Every single Secondary Sect, without exception, sincerely desired that their disciples would be earmarked as Chosen Disciples by the sect elders here. It was both their disciple¡¯s personal glory as well as their sect¡¯s glory if they were chosen as such.

    ¡°That little gal isn¡¯t too shabby. Her ideas are rather fresh.¡± Just then, one of the Greater Sect¡¯s sect elders turned to another sect elder beside him as he remarked.

    His gaze was transfixed on Jun Xiaomo within the water screen.

    The other sect elder beside him nodded his head in agreement, ¡°It¡¯s a pity that her cultivation level is a little bit on the low side.¡±

    The first sect elder smiled, but he refrained frommenting on that.

    Momentster, the first sect elder unhurriedly added, ¡°Let¡¯s keep watching. Perhaps she might surprise us even moreter one?¡±

    Wei Gang waspletely unaware that his abilities had improved by leaps and bounds over the course of thest few battles. The only thing he knew was the fact that his coordination with his martial brothers had improved dramatically, and their synergies made the battles increasingly more enjoyable for him.

    At the start, he was at aplete loss as to what he had to do, and Jun Xiaomo had to constantly remind him of what he ought to do next. But now, Jun Xiaomo no longer had to remind him of what had to be done. He knew roughly when the best time to strike was; when the best time to pull back and adopt a defensive posture was; and most of all he knew when to coordinate with his other teammates to impede and restrain the movement of the swamp monsters.

    This was a type ofbat intuition that he had developed over thest six hours.

    Truth be told, he was truly incredibly nervous when the group battles had just be. He was afraid that he would be the burden to all his martial brothers and sisters and drag them down. This was particrly so after the incident with the Crescentfell Sect disciples, when he had concluded of his own volition that he was the ¡°worst teammate¡± to have in these group battles.

    Thus, while he med himself, he sincerely prayed that there was a way of allowing his abilities to increase overnight so that he would not be such a burden to his martial brothers and sisters any longer.

    That said, he knew that this was nothing more than an impossible dream.

    But Jun Xiaomo¡¯s group battle tactics allowed this impossible dream to turn into reality. His personal abilities remained pretty much the same, but the implementation of group battle tactics had allowed him to maximize his full potential and be an asset to the team. He had now truly be a part of the whole. Although this part looked to be slightly weak andcking at times, his team would still be iplete without it.

    In fact, as his abilities flourished, Wei Gang even found himself blocking a strike on Chen Feiyu¡¯s behalf in one instance, thereby allowing Chen Feiyu to wholeheartedly focus his mind on delivering a fatal blow to the swamp monster. When that happened, Wei Gang cheered for himself in his heart ¨C Beautifully done!

    That said, Chen Feiyu walked over to him and patted his shoulder, giving credit where it was due, ¡°Well done! Thanks, martial brother Wei.¡± At that time, Wei Gang¡¯s face blossomed with a wide, radiant grin.

    If the Heavenly Peak disciples continued disposing of swamp monsters at the rate they were going, their final standing might not be too shabby, even if they failed to take the top spot.

    To the audience, it was rather impressive that a team with such low average cultivation levels were well on their way to obtaining decent results. They believed that the Heavenly Peak disciples should be content with where they were headed.

    But the Heavenly Peak disciples were never fated to calmly and uneventfully rack up points just like that. Having busied themselves honing their group battle tactics for seven whole hours, the Heavenly Peak disciples were just about to take a break when a ¡°dark cloud¡± seemed to overshadow them.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had already whipped out their dry rations and were about to tuck in when this ¡°dark cloud¡± suddenly appeared. Thus, everyone immediately turned to look in the direction that it appeared from.

    ¡°My goodness! What the hell is this?!¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes widened as he pointed in the ¡°dark cloud¡± in astonishment. Thud. The dry rations in his hands flopped over andnded neatly on the ground.

    Upon closer examination, this was not a dark cloud at all ¨C it was a hazy shadow formed by innumerable blood-red feelers iling about. These feelers were incredibly dense and each of them appeared to have a life of its own as it whipped about. It was a goosebumps-inducing sight.

    Shortly afterwards, they heard a crying out a short distance away, ¡°He-...help...help us...¡±

    Wei Gang looked at the quickly approaching cloud of feelers, and his first reaction was to turn tail and run. But as soon as he heard the cry for help, he hesitated.

    He lifted his head and looked expectantly towards Jun Xiaomo and Chen Feiyu, wondering what their decision would be.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows as she remarked, ¡°Martial brother, what are you looking at me for? Didn¡¯t we say that you would make the call the next time we encountered such a situation?¡±

    ¡°Haa--?! Do...do you really want me to decide now...¡± Wei Gang stammered.

    ¡°Do you think we were joking earlier?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she responded with another question.

    Wei Gang looked pleadingly at Chen Feiyu, but Chen Feiyu simply shook his head, indicating that he was not going to make a decision on Wei Gang¡¯s behalf.

    He looked into the distance at the cultivators running towards them with pale faces and disheveled appearances as they yelled for help at the top of their lungs, Wei Gang struggled with himself for a moment. Then, he shut his eyes with some measure of resignation as he gritted his teeth ¨C

    ¡°Then...let¡¯s save them!¡±

    After speaking, he sighed in his heart, yet he only felt the guilt in his heart towards his martial brothers and sister only seemed to burgeon even more.

    Had he chosen wrongly again this time? Would his decision cause his martial brothers and sisters to be dragged through immense danger, only to rescue some ingrates once more?

 Chapter 206: The Mutated Colossal Centipede

    <h4>Chapter 206: The Mutated Colossal Centipede</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had emphasized time and again that she would be entrusting Wei Gang with the right to decide whether to rescue the next set of cultivators in trouble. Since she had given her word, she would never dispute his decision once he had made up his mind.

    The most important thing to note was that each of them possessed several talismans with them. Even if they were unable to defeat the oing beast, they would still be able to retreat with their lives intact. Thus, there was no real risk to life and limb here.

    Chen Feiyu thought the same way as well. Thus, he waved his hand and instructed, ¡°Prepare to rescue them.¡±

    When he noticed how decisive Chen Feiyu was, Wei Gang¡¯s expressions became even more rigid. He was afraid that his decision would end up hurting his martial brothers and sisters.

    Jun Xiaomo walked over towards Wei Gang and patted his shoulders, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, since you¡¯ve already decided, then deal with it bravely. Whether it¡¯s a good or best decision, you¡¯ve got to learn to ept the decision you¡¯ve made.¡±

    Just like how she had dealt with all of her decisions in her past ¨C it was only when one etched and carved these decisions on their heart that they would be able to learn and mature.

    Wei Gang thought about what Jun Xiaomo had just said. He clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, before nodding resolutely, ¡°Alright. I understand, martial sister!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she patted his head. Then, she turned around and looked towards the feelers that were iling about madly in the sky, and aplicated look shed across the depths of her eyes.

    This kind of pressure...I¡¯m afraid only spiritual beasts at the secondary-tier, seventh grade would possess such fearsome pressure. I wonder if this creature is already in the Golden Core stage of cultivation.

    Luo Xuyuan of the Dragontiger Sect believed their team to be incredibly unlucky. As soon as they had been transported to the marsnds for the group battles, they encountered several creatures that looked like spiders that chased them wherever they ran to. These creatures even spat sticky, web-like substances at them to restrain their movements.

    It took them quite a lot of efforts before they managed to escape from the spiders and their web-like substances. Then, while they were munching on their rations, the Dragontiger Sect disciples noticed an object on the floor gleaming in the sunlight. They thought that this must be one of the treasures hidden by the organizingmittee in the marsnds. Thus, they skipped over to take a closer look in tion. To their dismay, they discovered on closer examination that this was hardly any treasure at all ¨C it was none other than a pair of eyes belonging to a monstrous creature that was staring straight back at them.

    No, it could not be said that this was a pair of eyes staring back at them, because the eyes that they saw were only two of the innumerable eyes on this monstrous creature¡¯s body.

    This creature looked almost akin to a centipede, but it was far more hideous and vicious-looking. Its body was covered with innumerable eyes, and these eyes even had the ability to gleam faintly in the dark.

    This was something that the creature did in order to lure in unsuspecting prey into its own domain.

    Just like that, the innumerable eyes on this creature locked onto the twenty disciples from the Dragontiger Sect, and they all stared transfixed at the disciples. One can only imagine the kind of feeling they got when innumerable eyes gazed straight at them with an intent to devour...

    It was chilling. It gave all of them the creeps!

    In the very next moment, the Dragontiger Sect disciples immediately began running for their lives, and the Colossal Centipede began to chase after them with its countless legs that densely filled the underside of their body. Not only did the Colossal Centipede look incredibly hideous, it even emanated an incredibly powerful aura as it began to lurch at the disciples.

    Although the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s name inspires confidence, they were in fact one of the smaller and weaker sects participating in this iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. The Dragontiger Sect had been established not too long ago, and their disciples did not possess incredible cultivation talents as well. Thus, their performance has been average at best.

    At the same time, there were no expectations or pressure that they should perform well during thesepetitions. They had only hoped to be able to obtain some small prizes for participation once thepetition ended.

    After all, it was a part of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition rules that no matter where a sect ced at the end of thepetition, everyone would be awarded with a small prize for participation. Naturally, those who ced among the top three would be rewarded with far greater prizes.

    But as things turned out, the disciples knew that they might very well lose their lives even before obtaining these rewards.

    Furthermore, what they found the most vile and astonishing was the fact that innumerable feelers began to stretch out from the back of the centipede and il about as they seemed to cover the whole sky with a hazy gloom.

    Where the hell did these feelerse from?!

    ¡°Ahh¡ª¡± A tragic cry rang out. Luo Xuyuan¡¯s heart shuddered, and he grimaced as he nced back. This single look made his heart sink and his innards lurch and retch ¨C

    Their leader had just been caught by the Colossal Centipede. With one bite, the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s leader had only half his body remaining, while fresh blood spewed from the mouth of the Colossal Centipede.

    What do we do now?! Our leader¡¯s dead. Are we going to perish here as well?!

    Luo Xuyuan knew that he did not have the luxury of time to ponder so much about this. He simply dug deep and ran ahead as fast as he could. Then, he discovered another team in the distance, and his eyes brightened momentarily.

    ¡°He-...help...help us...¡± Luo Xuyuan mustered all of his strength as he cried out to the team in the distance. His teammates did the same as well.

    They had in fact encountered another team earlier, but that team immediately turned around and ran with their tail between their legs as soon as they noticed the Colossal Centipede pursuing the Dragontiger Sect. Theypletely ignored Luo Xuyuan¡¯s earlier cry for help.

    And the truth of the matter was that Luo Xuyuan understood why they had done so. It waspletely the discretion of the other team whether they were going to save them or not. Besides, the decision to save entailed throwing themselves directly in harm¡¯s way.

    Yet despite understanding their rationale, his heart still felt incredibly bitter and astringent when the other team ran away. After all, if there was a chance for survival, who would be willing to perish? Did they not step on the path of cultivation so that they could extend their lifespan and potentially be immortals?

    Thus, having failed once before, Luo Xuyuan did not harbour much hope that this second team would respond to their cries for help and render aid to them.

    He had already braced himself for the other team turning around and running away as soon as they saw the cloud of feelers that were wildly thrashing about. Yet to his pleasant surprise, the other team responded to their call for help and ran directly towards them.

    Luo Xuyuan¡¯s heart quivered, and a wave of joy erupted from the depths of his heart as he ran quickly towards them...

    But as soon as he noticed the identity of the team that responded to their cries for help, Luo Xuyuan¡¯s heart sank to the depths once more.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s red garments were simply too striking, while Chen Feiyu, who had been crowned the champion of the Middle Category battles, was also an incredibly familiar and recognizable face to all of them.

    Anyone participating in these group battles knew that the average strength of the team sent by the Dawn Sect was incredibly weak. Their team did not evenprise of any single cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery or above. This team¡¯s participation reeked of sabotage and abuse.

    Thus, as soon as Luo Xuyuan recognized that these disciples were from the Dawn Sect, Luo Xuyuan¡¯s heart fell straight back into a state of despondence and despair. After all, even their team leader at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery had perished to the Colossal Centipede.

    In his despair, Luo Xuyuan deliberated sullenly ¨C Forget it. Since we¡¯re fated to perish, what¡¯s the point in dragging a group of innocent people down together with us?

    Luo Xuyuan steeled his resolve, before mustering the rest of his strength and yelling at the Heavenly Peak disciples who were quickly approaching them, ¡°Hey¡ªDon¡¯te over anymore! Run for your lives ¨C you won¡¯t be able to defeat this creature behind us!¡±

    His loud voice attracted the attention of the Colossal Centipede, and its tens and tens of eyes immediately shifted their deadly gaze towards Luo Xuyuan¡¯s body.

    Luo Xuyuan felt a shiver run down his spine, before he reflexively turned around and attempted to block the centipede¡¯s strike with his weapon. Crack! His weapon was struck directly by one of the Colossal Centipede¡¯s feelers which then left a huge crack running across his weapon. Massive amounts of spiritual energy began to flow out of his weapon, and his weapon very quickly lost its original luster as it faded dimly.

    He knew that he was at the end of the road. He no longer had a weapon with him, so how could he possibly block the Colossal Centipede¡¯s next attack?

    Then, another feeler on the centipede¡¯s backshed over towards Luo Xuyuan. Having epted his fate, he slowly shut his eyes and awaited death.

    But momentster, he discovered that he was still alive, and a pungent scent even assaulted his olfactory senses. This scent smelled akin to the nauseating smell of rotting flesh.

    He opened his eyes once more. In the next moment, his eyes widened inplete astonishment ¨C the Dawn Sect disciples had leapt straight into the fray and they had speedily and effectively bound the feet of the massive Colossal Centipede.

    The feeler that had earliershed straight towards him had already been cleaved in half, and putrid, green blood spewed from the remains of the feeler on the ground as wafts of nauseating scent diffused into the surroundings.

    ¡°Urgh...¡± Luo Xuyuan gagged uncontrobly, but nothing came out.

    ¡°The hell! This creature¡¯s abilities are far stronger than the swamp monsters we¡¯ve been fighting. And I can¡¯t seem to cut its feelers no matter how hard I try. How are we supposed to fight with it?!¡± Wei Gang fought as heined, ¡°Ugh...and it¡¯s so smelly too!¡±

    However, even though Wei Gang appeared to despise this Colossal Centipede¡¯s sturdy shell and disgusting appearances, it was evident that he was hardly afraid of it at all.

    Their earlier practice had borne fruit. He trusted his martial brothers and sisters around, and he firmly believed that they would be able to defeat this Colossal Centipede with theirbined efforts.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo continued to battle and restrain the Colossal Centipede¡¯s movement as she thought about the appropriate countermeasures to deal with it. Then, when she finally found the time to nce back at the Dragontiger Sect disciples who were staring at the battle unfolding before their very eyes with gaping mouths, sheshed out at the ground in front of them with her whip and chuckled coldly, ¡°Your weapon is damaged, but don¡¯t you guys know how to use spells either? Or do you guys intend to stand around there while we rescue you and subdue this creature for you?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whish had struck the ground near Luo Xuyuan¡¯s feet, and he was instantly jolted back to his senses.

    He quickly signaled to the rest of the Dragontiger Sect disciples as he instructed, ¡°Let¡¯s help out as well!¡±

    Since their official leader had perished to the Colossal Centipede, Luo Xuyuan, who possessed the next highest cultivation level, had naturally assumed the responsibility of leading the rest of his team. Thus, everyoneplied with histest set of instructions.

    The Dragontiger Sect disciples began to rush forward and render their assistance to the Heavenly Peak disciples. Those with weapons used their weapons, while those without weapons began to attack the Colossal Centipede with their spells.

    It was peculiar. The Dragontiger Sect disciples had initially thought that the Heavenly Peak disciples would be giving up their lives for nothing if they joined the fray. Yet the result was quite the opposite ¨C not only did the Heavenly Peak disciples rush into the fray boldly and bravely, they had even subdued the massive creature.

    None of them could pinpoint what exactly it was that they had done, but the Dragontiger Sect disciples knew that every attackunched against the Colossal Centipede was for some reason incredibly effective even though these attacks could not be described as incredibly strong.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ manner ofbat could even be described as a graceful dance that was elegant and pleasing to the eyes.

    With such niggling thoughts at the back of their minds, the Dragontiger Sect disciples found themselves joining hands with the Heavenly Peak disciples as they slowly but surely wore down the Colossal Centipede until it finally died.

    That¡¯s right. It had beenpletely worn down to death. Didn¡¯t the Colossal Centipede enjoy grabbing its prey with its feelers and sending them straight into its mouths? What the Heavenly Peak disciples had done was to slowly but surely cut off each and every one of these feelers until nothing else remained.

    The Colossal Centipedeypletely motionless on the ground as its putrid, green blood continued to flow profusely from the stumps on its back where the feelers originally had been. Having ascertained that the creature was nowpletely dead, the Dragontiger Sect disciples turned around and stared slightly aghast at the Heavenly Peak disciple as though they were staring a group of monsters ¨C

    What kind of strength was this?! With cultivation no higher than the eleventh level of Qi Mastery, this group of astonishing disciples hadpletely overwhelmed and worn down the Colossal Centipede just like that!

 Chapter 207: Luo Xuyuanâ€™s Gratitude, Joining Hands with Dragontiger Sect

    <h4>Chapter 207: Luo Xuyuan¡¯s Gratitude, Joining Hands with Dragontiger Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The moment of danger had finally passed. Just some moments ago, Death still loomed grimly over the heads of the Dragontiger Sect disciples, and none of them thought that they would live to see the next day. Thus, when they finally came to their senses, they were overwhelmed with immense joy, and everyone began to hug each other and cheer from the bottom of their hearts.

    They had always been cultivating hard within the safety of their sect¡¯s four walls, and this was the first time they had encountered such a dangerous situation in their lives. It was the closest shave to death they had ever had.

    When the tion from snatching their lives back from the jaws of Death subsided, Luo Xuyuan finally remembered their benefactors ¨C the Dawn Sect, Heavenly Peak disciples.

    ¡°Brother Chen, thank you for responding to our call for help earlier. Until the day we die, the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect shall never forget your magnanimity and benefaction!¡± Luo Xuyuan sincerely bowed, and even choked slightly as he thanked the Heavenly Peak disciples from the bottom of his heart.

    Their leader had already perished to the Colossal Centipede earlier. How great would it have been if they had managed to encounter the Heavenly Peak disciples that much earlier?

    Chen Feiyu nodded his head, before rifying, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s Little Lang here who made the decision to rescue you. If there¡¯s anyone you should thank, it¡¯s him.¡±

    As he spoke, he patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Haa--?!¡± Wei Gang had never expected his martial brother Chen to single him out like that. Faced with the emotional gaze from the Dragontiger Sect disciples, he scratched his head in embarrassment as he addressed them, ¡°That...helping each other is something that we all should do. Furthermore, you people are far better than the team from Crescentfell Sect.¡±

    At least you know what gratitude is. Wei Gang added in his heart. With a basis forparison now, his impression towards the Crescentfell Sect disciples had fallen to an all-time low.

    After all, there was no objectivity withoutparison.

    Jun Xiaomo walked over with a faint smile on her face as she chimed in, ¡°That¡¯s right. If not for the fact that you steeled your resolve in the heat of the moment, and you decided to stem the spread of damage by asking us to leave, we might not have gone all out to save you either.¡±

    Luo Xuyuan¡¯s loud cry to warn Jun Xiaomo and the rest had revealed the purity and honesty in the depths of his heart. Therefore, she hardly hesitated to pull out all her stops to rescue them.

    After all, the Heavenly Peak disciples had always appreciated honest and sincere people.

    This was the first time Luo Xuyuan had received such praise from a beauty like Jun Xiaomo, and he couldn¡¯t help but scratch his head bashfully and smile from ear to ear. The tips of his ear even turned slightly pink.

    ¡°Bute to think about it, you lot are truly amazing. I¡¯d never expected that a group of disciples with cultivation lower than the twelfth level of Qi Mastery would ever be able to subdue and overpower the Colossal Centipede.¡± Another Dragontiger Sect disciple eximed with admiration in his voice.

    ¡°This would be the fruit of martial sister Xiaomo¡¯sbour. If not for her, we might not have been able to defeat that Colossal Centipede that easily.¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples smiled as they exined.

    ¡°Oh? This has to do with sister Jun? What do you mean?¡± The Dragontiger Sect disciples¡¯ curiosity had been piqued.

    It was a widely known fact that Jun Xiaomo had obtained the title of champion within the Lower Category battles. However, the strength and abilities of the Lower Category contestants were nevertheless far lower than thepetitors in the Middle Category and the Open Category battles. Therefore, they had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be the linchpin of the Dawn Sect team in the group battles.

    ¡°It¡¯s because martial sister Xiaomo taught us a special method for group battles that allowed us to build on each other¡¯s strengths and bring our abilities to new heights.¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples did not reveal the details about the group battle tactics, because they knew that without seeing and experiencing the benefits of such tactics, it would be difficult for another to grasp just how powerful these tactics were.

    The Dragontiger Sect nodded their heads in slight confusion. Then, after deliberating for a moment, Luo Xuyuan looked at the Heavenly Peak disciples and asked, ¡°I wonder if our benefactors from the Heavenly Peak are willing to let us travel together with you for the remainder of the group battles?¡±

    ¡°Travel together with us?¡± Chen Feiyu had never expected Luo Xuyuan to have such considerations.

    Luo Xuyuan chuckled bitterly as he responded, ¡°Sigh, truth be told, I¡¯m not the leader of this group. Our leader was eaten by that Colossal Centipede earlier, and our group is currently without leader and without direction. Although my cultivation level is the same as brother Chen at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery, I don¡¯t have any experience with leading a team or engaging in group battles. If we encounter another situation like the one earlier, I¡¯m afraid that the odds of us returning alive would be slim to none.¡±

    Luo Xuyuan had never expected their team to ce well at the final standings of thepetition. They had only intended to make an appearance and participate in the festivities, before returning with some gifts and tokens of participation.

    Yet who could have expected them to encounter such life-threatening situations right from the outset of the group battles? They even almost lost their lives there and then.

    ¡°Of course, since we¡¯re the ones following you, all of the points that we¡¯re obtaining can be given to you. Our only hope is that we will be able to return back to our sect safely.¡±

    Luo Xuyuan revealed his bottom line immediately. He would rather give up all his points in exchange for the hope of returning alive with his martial brothers in the Dragontiger Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo could see Luo Xuyuan¡¯s sincerity and straightforward attitude from the depths of his eyes, and she could not help but be reminded of Ye Xiuwen who had vanished without a trace.

    Her heart was slightly moved. Thus, she smiled as she responded earnestly, ¡°Brother Luo doesn¡¯t need to speak so seriously. We¡¯ll leave the issue with the points aside, and they can be allocated how they should be allocated. I believe that the referees outside would make a fair decision and judgment on this regard. Since you¡¯re willing to follow alongside us, then let¡¯s do it this way instead. We¡¯ll teach you a thing or two about how to increase your overall group battle abilities. This way, whenever we encounter dangers, we can deal with them together, and we can lower the odds of injury or even death.¡±

    ¡°We couldn¡¯t ask for more!¡± Luo Xuyuan replied with bursting emotions. Then, he did a slight double take and looked hesitantly towards Chen Feiyu ¨C Chen Feiyu should be the leader of this group. Does Jun Xiaomo have the power to call the shots?

    Chen Feiyu nodded as he affirmed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s decision, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s decision represents all of our decisions.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡± Luo Xuyuan once again expressed his unending thanks and gratitude to them.

    ¡°No need for thanks. Thesepetition grounds are fraught with many dangers, and it¡¯s only right that we help each other out.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly.

    Thus, the Dragontiger Sect joined hands and began to take the lead from the Heavenly Peak disciples. In the following time toe, they would realize the importance of the decision that they had just made.

    Rumble... Suddenly, the stomach of one of the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples growled loudly. He rubbed his tummy in embarrassment as he exined, ¡°We were just about to have our lunch when the Colossal Centipede suddenly attacked us earlier, so we haven¡¯t had our lunch yet.¡±

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s rest and recuperate for a moment before continuing on our journey.¡± Chen Feiyu suggested.

    Nobody had any objections to this suggestion.

    Thus, the Dragontiger Sect disciples washed their hands, sat down on the floor and began to retrieve some dry rations from their Interspatial Ring. They looked earnestly at the dry rations, before they broke the dry rations in half and stored one half into their Interspatial Ring.

    Then, they began to gnaw and swallow the dry ration with the aid of some drinking water.

    ¡°Is that all you guys are eating?¡± Wei Gang looked at the amount of food in their hands and asked them in astonishment.

    Luo Xuyuan chuckled bitterly for a moment, before shaking his head and growing taciturn.

    When the Colossal Centipede had burst out of the ground and made its appearance, everyone had been so shocked that their they immediately discarded their dry rations earlier and ran for their lives. Thus, it was important for them to apportion their food ordingly right now.

    They might not have their fill this meal, but it was far better than starvingter on.

    Wei Gang guessed as much despite Luo Xuyuan¡¯s silence. He thought about it for a moment, before retrieving a part of his own rations from his Interspatial Ring as he told everyone, ¡°Here, you guys can share this. We might still be involved in a number of battlester.¡±

    ¡°This can¡¯t do!¡± Luo Xuyuan rejected, ¡°You¡¯ve already been extremely hospitable to us. There¡¯s no need for you to go so far. If we apportion our food properly, the food we have in our Interspatial Ring can stillst us for the remainder of the three days.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo overheard the conversation over here. She thought about it for a moment, before she stood up and walked towards the Colossal Centipede¡¯s corpse and began to circle around it.

    ¡°Martial sister, why did you run over here?¡± Having discovered that Jun Xiaomo had disappeared into the distance, Wei Gang skipped over to her, ¡°Ugh...it¡¯s smelly!¡±

    He covered his nose disdainfully ¨C I wonder what type of centipede this is? It looks so strange! And even after we cut off its feelers, its wounds would emanate such vile, putrid scent!

    ¡°Nothing much. I think I must havee across this type of centipede before. If I¡¯m not mistaken, the meat on its belly can be eaten.¡± Jun Xiaomo began to think aloud.

    ¡°Wha--...what?! Martial sister, you must be joking, right?! It smells absolutely putrid! Even if it¡¯s not poisonous, how could we possibly stomach its meat?!¡± Wei Gang was taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°creative solution¡±, and he attempted to persuade Jun Xiaomo to dispel such a notion.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know that there are many spiritual beasts and demonic beasts that have edible parts to their bodies?¡± Jun Xiaomo nced back at Wei Gang curiously.

    ¡°I know that, but...¡± Wei Gang paused momentarily before he continued, ¡°But, only those that look normal should be eaten, right? But this...¡±

    Truth be told, he would not swallow its flesh if he could help it.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightheartedly as she patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulder. Then, she retrieved a Windsail Talisman from her Interspatial Ring, ced it on her hand, before making a sweeping motion towards the Colossal Centipede¡¯s corpse ¨C

    A massive gust immediately swept over at the Colossal Centipede and lifted its corpse.

    Hong! Just like that, the Colossal Centipede was flipped over.

    Themotion on this side attracted the attention of several disciples who were resting, and they walked over to Jun Xiaomo and Wei Gang. Then, when Wei Gang ryed to them what Jun Xiaomo had said about the edible parts of the Colossal Centipede, the disciples that had walked over immediately reacted with a constipated look on their faces.

    I wouldn¡¯t eat these things even if I starved to death. It¡¯s too scary, and too...smelly!

    The only silver lining was the fact that the Colossal Centipede¡¯s abdomen looked in and t ¨C it was a far cry from what its back looked like with its countless feelers and innumerable eyes. Otherwise, one might very well lose their appetite by just looking at those eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo instructed a few martial brothers to hack open the centipede¡¯s abdomen with their swords. Then, with one strong pull, she yanked out the hard carapace protecting its abdomen.

    There was no putrid, green fluid or vile smells emanating from under the carapace. Instead, there was a thinyer of pink flesh that stretched from the centipede¡¯s head all the way to its tail.

    ¡°This is it.¡± Jun Xiaomo celebrated the fact that her memory had served her right. Then, with the aid of her few martial brothers, she began to harvest the thinyer of meat from the centipede¡¯s abdomen.

    Theyer of meat was thin, but the amount that they had harvested was still rather substantial given the massive size of the centipede.

    That said, no matter how much meat they harvested, it did not change the fact that this meat had still been harvested from that grotesque-looking centipede that emanated vile, putrid scents.

    Thus, nobody wanted to touch it.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, do we really have to eat this?¡± Wei Gang struggled with himself as he asked hesitantly.

    ¡°Of course. After spending so much time and effort harvesting its meat, why wouldn¡¯t we eat it? The Dragontiger Sect doesn¡¯t have sufficient dry rations, right? We¡¯ll naturally need to find other sources of food to sustain the energy in our bodies. Otherwise, how will we be able tost till the third day?¡± Jun Xiaomo responded nonchntly as she checked the condition of the meat that they had just harvested.

    The Dragontiger Sect disciples knew that Jun Xiaomo had considered harvesting the centipede¡¯s meat because they had insufficient rations, and they felt guilty about forcing the Heavenly Peak disciples to eat this meat in their stead. Thus, they set aside their disdain for the meat and hurried over, ¡°Sister Jun, thank you for being so thoughtful. Let us have this meat instead. You should eat the dry rations you¡¯d brought.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked curiously at them as she asked, ¡°Do you know how to eat this?¡±

    Luo Xuyuan was slightly taken aback at her question, before he hesitantly responded, ¡°This...won¡¯t we grill and then eat it?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled with some exasperation as she shook her head, ¡°If you really grilled the meat just like that, you¡¯ll be poisoned.¡±

    Everyone else: ......

    There¡¯s still poison in this?!

 Chapter 208: Cold-Hearted Du Clan Disciples

    <h4>Chapter 208: Cold-Hearted Du n Disciples</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo mentioned that the meat of the Colossal Centipede might be poisonous, nobody dared to approach it anymore. Instead, they simply stared with widened eyes as Jun Xiaomo continued to treat the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat.

    They watched on as Jun Xiaomo knocked hard on one of the Colossal Centipede¡¯s legs and retrieved a small round object. Then, she ground that object into a powder before spreading it all over the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat. Momentster, she retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring, ground it to powder and simrly scattered it all over the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat. Finally, she dug about in the marsnds before digging up a in and simple tuft of wild grass, squeezed out the pulp from within and drizzled that over the centipede¡¯s meat as well.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯ll do. We can grill it after approximately one incense stick of time.¡± Jun Xiaomo announced to the Heavenly Peak disciples and the Dragontiger Sect disciples alike.

    Everyone: ......

    Martial sister Xiaomo/sister Xiaomo, can this really be eaten? This was the thought on everyone¡¯s heart.

    When they thought about volunteering to eat the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat, the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect couldn¡¯t help but gulp down in dismay as another thought surfaced in their minds ¨C Is it toote to reject eating the meat of this Colossal Centipede? Woulddy Jun be upset, especially after the amount of effort she¡¯s put into treating the meat?

    Jun Xiaomo pretended not to notice the changes in their facial expressions. After all, she was fully aware of the fact that what she had done seemed immensely out of the ordinary.

    However, what she had done was gleaned from her previous life¡¯s experience. In her previous life, in order not to go hungry when she was on the run, she had read widely about sourcing food from the most unexpected sources. One of these sources of foods was the Colossal Centipede that could be found in the marsnds.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that she was almost dizzy with hunger in the past, she would never have attempted to eat the meat of the Colossal Centipede either. After all, the Colossal Centipede looked far too hideous and nauseating, not to mention the putrid and vile scent it emanated even after it died.

    Of course, the meat on its belly did not smell or taste strange. But as long as a person brought his mind to think about where this meat came from, one would naturally lose his appetite.

    The Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples wished that this one incense stick of time would pass slower, and slower. That way, they could think of a proper excuse not to touch this strange and vile-looking piece of meat.

    Unfortunately, time was a concept that loved to toy with people. Whenever someone longed for time to pass quickly, time would invariably crawl; and whenever someone longed for time to pass slowly, time would instead zoom by in a sh.

    Thus, no matter how much the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples prayed in their hearts, one incense stick of time passed just like that.

    Jun Xiaomo did not grill the meat beside the Colossal Centipede¡¯s corpse. Rather, she consciously set up her grill a fair distance away before she began to start grilling the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat.

    She had no choice. Its corpse was far too nauseating, and the sight of it would instantly cause anyone to lose his appetite. In order to reduce the repugnance of the meat she was grilling, Jun Xiaomo knew that she had to look for a ce which was conducive for a person¡¯s appetite.

    That said, this was more for others than for herself. If it were her, she would hardly mind eating beside the Colossal Centipede. After all, Jun Xiaomo had eaten far viler and more nauseating food in grosser environments in her previous life. This much could hardly count for anything.

    Tss... Jun Xiaomo was adept at grilling meat in the wilderness. As soon as he ced the skewers of marinated meat onto the grill, wafts of pleasant aromas began to diffuse into the surroundings.

    Jun Xiaomo would apply some oil or honey onto the grilled meat from time to time. Under the intense heat radiating from her makeshift furnace, the grilled meat began to glisten with a golden hue in no time.

    Growl... Some disciples swallowed their saliva, while their stomachs growled uncontrobly. Even though they knew that the source of the meat was rather questionable, they still couldn¡¯t help but be tempted by the meat in front of them ¨C perhaps they were too hungry, or perhaps the food just looked simply too delectable.

    Forget it. Let¡¯s fill our stomachs first. As for the future...if we really yield our lives up at this ce, then we can only count it our own dumb luck that it happened.

    The Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples all thought in the same manner. They no longer looked at the food with the same disdain as before.

    Jun Xiaomo scattered some ck pepper and white sesame on the grilled meat, and the grilled meat was finally done.

    ¡°Let me...¡± Luo Xuyuan walked up with an outstretched arm and was about to ask Jun Xiaomo to let him try the meat first when Jun Xiaomo immediately picked up the grilled meat, ¡°I know many of you are still a bit hesitant about the grilled meat, so let me test it first. You can eat once we verify that there¡¯s no issue with the meat.¡±

    Just like that, Luo Xuyuan¡¯s arm remained outstretched as he looked at Jun Xiaomo tear off a chunk of meat and ced it straight into her mouth. Her eyes slowly shut as though she were thoroughly enjoying the meat.

    Growl... Luo Xuyuan¡¯s hunger burgeoned.

    If the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples had earlier been vaciting between ¡°to eat¡± or ¡°not to eat¡±, they were all well beyond that right now and in the realms of ¡°when can we eat¡±.

    They had earlier found that time had passed by too quickly; yet now every single one of them felt as though time passed by too slowly.

    It was an incredibly ufortable feeling.

    Approximately half an incense stick of timeter, Jun Xiaomo shrugged her shoulders and smiled as she remarked, ¡°See, I¡¯m fine. You guys can rest assured and eat now, right?¡±

    Instantly, the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples rushed forward like a pack of hungry wolves as they began to cut off the meat piece by piece and distribute it to everyone around.

    Luo Xuyuan tore off a small corner of the meat with his hands and sent it straight into his mouth. Suddenly, his eyes brightened in delight. He had initially intended to shut his eyes tightly and block out his senses as he swallowed this piece of meat to fill his stomach, but once the piece of meat touched his pte, he immediately had a change of heart, and he slowly began to chew and savour the delectable piece of flesh.

    The other Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples noticed their martial brother Luo¡¯s expressions, and they also guessed that the Colossal Centipede¡¯s meat must taste incredible. Thus, they immediately began to dig in.

    ¡°Oh. Ohhhh! It¡¯s good stuff!¡± One of the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples eximed as he looked at Jun Xiaomo with a glimmer in his eyes and gave her two thumbs up.

    If this were going to be hisst meal on earth, so be it!

    Sniffle... Wei Gang¡¯s nose twitched slightly as he involuntarily looked at the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples who were eating as his heart cried out longingly ¨C I want to eat as well!

    At this moment, the Heavenly Peak disciples who were all holding onto their dry rations suddenly found their rations particrly hard to swallow and stomach.

    The Dragontiger Sect¡¯s disciples discovered that there were several pairs of eyes staring at them devour the meat, and they ate slower, and slower. Finally, Luo Xuyuan was the first one who caved, and he tore off half of the remaining grilled meat and offered it to Wei Gang as he said, ¡°Little brother, this is for you.¡±

    Wei Gang immediately received the grilled meat from Luo Xuyuan¡¯s hands as he replied chirpily, ¡°Thanks, brother Luo. That¡¯s right, these are my rations. I¡¯ll trade half of it with the grilled meat you¡¯ve just given to me.¡±

    After all, Luo Xuyuan would not have enough food for himself after giving Wei Gang half of the grilled meat that he had.

    Just like that, the other Dragontiger Sect disciples also began to share their grilled meat with the Heavenly Peak disciples, while the Heavenly Peak disciples also offered half of their dry rations back in return.

    Thus, the disciples of both sects ended up alternating between a mouthful of grilled meat and a mouthful of dry rations as they savored and devoured the rest of the food.

    As the audience members looked on at the disciples of the Dragontiger Sect and the Heavenly Peak relish and devour their food with such gusto, even they began to feel somewhat...hungry.

    Damn it! Is it really proper to turn such a seriouspetition into a grill-fest?! Several members of the audience began to curse and swear in their hearts, and some people even began to retrieve the dry rations from their Interspatial Rings and gnaw on them.

    Since the participants were going to bepeting for three days straight in the marsnds, most people in the audience had decided that they would also stay at their designated seating areas in the audience stand and watch thepetition for the full three days. Thus, most people had also brought their own share of rations along as well.

    That said, how could anyone bring themselves to swallow that dry and tasteless rations as they looked on at the golden, glistening grilled meat that the Dragontiger Sect and the Heavenly Peak disciples were eating?

    Some of the members of the audience even felt that it might not be a bad thing to trade ces with the Dragontiger Sect and the Heavenly Peak disciples right now...

    Just as the Dragontiger Sect and the Heavenly Peak disciples were mingling and deepening their bonds with each other, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples, on the other hand, had also just encountered a team that had requested for help.

    This group of disciples who appeared to be disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect were in fact Du n disciples. The person of the highest stature among them was the Du n Head¡¯s son, Du Yongxu. Ever since hisst travels outside of his n, his cultivation level had experienced a huge jump, and he had broken through straight into the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    At this moment, Du Yongxu and the other Du n disciples stood a distance away as they stared coldly at the team that had found themselves in danger. None of them had any intention to rescue them at all.

    ¡°Help...help us...please...¡± The other team had discovered their existence. However, the disciples in that team were trapped in the poisonous miasma within the marsnds and were even being attacked by a terrifying creature from the marsnds. They had no means of escape at all.

    It could be said that this team¡¯s luck was even worse than that of the Dragontiger Sect¡¯s.

    From the onset, they had seen the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples approaching them, and their hearts were filled with hope at that time. This was primarily due to the reason that the team sent by the Eternal Summit Sect was clearly the strongest of all the teams participating in these group battles, and they knew that if any team were able to rescue them, it would have to be the team from the Eternal Summit Sect.

    However, all the disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect did was to stand at the distance and watch them struggle in their plight.

    ¡°I beg you, save us. You can even take away our identity tokens...we don¡¯t want points anymore. Just take away our tokens...¡±

    This team that had found themselves in an increasingly dangerous predicament was no longer thinking about umting points or vying for a good cement in thepetitions. At this point in time, they were prepared to tap out just to save their own lives.

    Unfortunately, no matter what they said, none of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples responded at all.

    Then, the swamp monster began to furiously attack the disciples trapped in the miasma. Within moments, several disciples perished under the vicious ws of the swamp monster. The team¡¯s leader gritted his teeth as he yelled to the disciples around him, ¡°If we¡¯re going to die, then we¡¯re going to die fighting! Martial brothers, let¡¯s go out with a bang! All together now!¡±

    As he yelled valiantly, he let his actions speak louder than his words as he charged straight towards the swamp monster.

    The other disciples saw how their leader had acted, and they also decided not to run or hide any longer. They squared up against the swamp monster and began to use all forms of methods known to them to deal with it.

    The marsnds were filled with all sorts of poisonous miasma that was incredibly damaging to a person¡¯s meridians and Dantian if inhaled. This was the primary reason why this team found themselves in such a tragic predicament to begin with.

    Truth be told, if they had done what Jun Xiaomo did and stored some talismans within theirpetition Interspatial Ring, then it would not have been very difficult for them to escape their present plight. Unfortunately, none of them appreciated the importance of talismans, and most of their Interspatial Rings were dedicated to the storage of recovery pills. In fact, these disciples had even neglected to carry many types of antidotes.

    Thus, when they inadvertently stumbled into the poisonous miasma in these marsnds, they knew their fate had been sealed.

    In the audience stand, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder, Dai Yanfeng, turned around discreetly and whispered to a tall and well-built man wearing a cloak. This man¡¯s appearances could not be seen clearly. ¡°Du n Head, shouldn¡¯t we rescue that team...¡±

    ¡°Oh? Why?¡± The Du n Head respondedckadaisically.

    ¡°The...truth be told, the sect that that team belongs to is on rather good terms with the Eternal Summit Sect. If we stand idly by and watch them perish, it might strain the rtions between our respective sects.¡± Dai Yanfeng eagerly exined the situation to the Du n Head.

    ¡°Oh...so that¡¯s the case.¡± The Du n Head appeared to be moved as he pondered about the situation.

    Dai Yanfeng heaved a sigh of relief in his heart, thinking that the Du n Head must have been swayed by his exnation.

    Dai Yanfeng did not have any means tomunicate with the Du n disciples participating in the group battles right now, but he knew that the Du n Head must have his ways about this. Thus, he was hardly worried about the rying of instructions to the Du n disciples. All he needed to do was to convince the Du n Head to issue his orders...

    However, before he could finish the sigh in his heart, the Du n Head snickered coldly as he shrugged his shoulders, ¡°Nothing to do with me.¡±

    ¡°Wha-...what?!¡± Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety and his eyes widened.

    ¡°Haha, haven¡¯t we earlier agreed that the primary objective in this transaction is the Heavenly Peak disciples?¡± The Du n Head quipped, ¡°The only instructions I¡¯d given to my disciples was to kill the Heavenly Peak disciples during the course of the group battles. As for the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s reputation and pride ¨C all these things have got nothing to do with me.¡±

    Dai Yanfeng was so incensed that he momentarily forgot the truth of the Du n Head¡¯s identity. His face turned red with fury as he cried out, ¡°You!¡±

    ¡°Do you think that the Du n disciples are not only going to help you kill your enemies, but help you earn first ce in thispetition and even preserve your sect¡¯s pride and reputation, huh? Grand Elder Dai, you¡¯re not getting any younger. How could you be so na?ve to think that there would be such a profitable transaction on your end? Who do you treat us members of the Du n as, hmm?!¡±

    As he drew close to the end of his spiel, the Du n Head¡¯s anger clearly burgeoned as it manifested in the intensity of his speech.

    Dai Yanfeng was instantly shocked by the Du n Head¡¯s momentary release of his aura that was directed towards Dai Yanfeng. Then, with immense dread stered all over his face, Dai Yanfeng grewpletely taciturn. He no longer dared to raise any further objections at all.

 Chapter 209: Rift Between Two Sects! The Livid Boundless Peace Sect

    <h4>Chapter 209: Rift Between Two Sects! The Livid Boundless Peace Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Outside the marsnds, several members of the audience found themselves ncing over at the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area as they whispered to one another discreetly.

    ¡°These Eternal Summit Sect disciples are far too heartless. They¡¯ve not evinced any intention to help out the other sects in need.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Failing to help out is one thing; while attempting to help out is quite something else. These Eternal Summit Sect disciples don¡¯t even have the intention to help out to begin with, and they¡¯re content to simply stand idly by as other sects perish before their very eyes. They¡¯re practically cold-blooded. In fact, I hear that the Eternal Summit Sect and the Boundless Peace Sect had always been on good terms. I wonder why they¡¯re so heartless towards them this time.¡±

    ¡°Could it be the instructions of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders?¡±

    ¡°It could be...¡±

    Dai Yanfeng could not hear the exact details of the conversations panning out between the other audience members who were whispering to each other, but he could vaguely guess what they were gossiping about. After all, the dirty nces the Eternal Summit Sect was getting from various members of the audience were far too obvious!

    Dai Yanfeng had the urge to dere that these were not the disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect and that they were Du n¡¯s disciples to begin with. But who would believe him? And even if they believed him, this was clear evidence that he had cheated during the verification process earlier. Neither oues bode well for the future of his Sect. The other sect elders from the Eternal Summit Sect were all aware of the fact that their own disciples had been exchanged for the Du n disciples. Right now, their indignation against the culprit who had made this suggestion, Dai Yanfeng, only burgeoned.

    Did we not say that cooperating with people like the Du n was like making a transaction with the devil? Look! Just look at the bacsh it has caused! Several Sect Eldersmented in their hearts.

    The truth of the matter was that Dai Yanfeng had heard rumours that the eight great sects in the cultivation world were hardly as righteous and upstanding as they had held themselves out to be. In fact, he had heard on the grapevine that the hands of these ns or sects were far dirtier than those of any other sects that were smaller than them. However, these were no more than hearsay.

    That said, he had now finally begun to believe the veracity of these rumours ¨C they were no mere exaggeration. The fact was that the Du n disciples prided themselves in their abilities, and they had no regard for the other sects, including the Eternal Summit Sect. In other words, they were no more than simple bullies!

    Yet despite his stature as the Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect, he knew that there was nothing much he could do about this. He could only forcibly swallow this bitter pill and even continue to cajole the Du n Head as though the Du n Head were their ancestor.

    A sense of unease and remorse swelled from the depths of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart. He sincerely hoped that the Du n disciples would not tear apart the pride and reputation of the Eternal Summit Sect that they had so painstakingly built up over the years. It had to be said that even though the Eternal Summit Sect was a sect that regrly ced among the top three during the quinquennial Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, any sect that had been isted and singled out by the rest of the Secondary Sects was only bound to fall. Dai Yanfeng did not wish for the Eternal Summit Sect to achieve first ce in thesepetitions, only to find themselves at the end of their road as a sect.

    With these uneasy thoughts weighing heavily on his heart, Dai Yanfeng¡¯s gaze darkened as he turned his eyes towards the water screen as he clenched his fists tightly.

    In the water screen, the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s disciples continued to struggle in a cloud of poisonous miasma within the marsnds as they fervently battled against the swamp monster that was assaulting them.

    The Boundless Peace Sect was indeed on good terms with the Eternal Summit Sect. Their abilities ranked among the top twenty among all of the other Secondary Sects around. Unfortunately, luck was not on their side in the course of these group battles, and theirck of preparation before these group battles resulted in their present tragic predicament.

    As their disciples began to be devoured by the swamp monster one after the other, the remaining Boundless Peace Sect disciples who were at the end of their road looked towards the team from the Eternal Summit Sect with a frosty gaze. Their eyes were filled with intense hatred.

    ¡°Eternal Summit Sect! You bastards! My master will never let you off!!!¡± As soon as the disciple from the Boundless Peace Sect finished speaking, the swamp monster¡¯s tentacle wrapped itself tightly around his body and snapped him cleanly into two halves.

    Fresh blood began to fill these marsnds and dye it a striking red colour. Even though the audience was observing the battles through the water screen, they somehow felt as though they had caught a whiff of the nauseating stench of blood through the water screen.

    Most members of the audience began gaze at the Boundless Peace disciples withpassion as they witnessed their final moments. Even though they were rivals in thepetition, nobody wanted to see these young, innocent sprouts die if they could help it.

    At this moment, several members of the audience couldn¡¯t help but think of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s disciples. Compared with them, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples were truly far too cold-blooded.

    The Dragontiger Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elder had the same perspective as well. He looked at the Heavenly Peak¡¯s seating area with gratitude in his eyes, and his eyes coincidentally met with Jun Linxuan¡¯s gaze as well.

    Jun Linxuan nodded to them, and they smiled faintly at Jun Linxuan as well.

    Prior to these battles, their rtionship with the Heavenly Peak could be said to be ordinary at best, because they had not interacted much with each other. However, after this incident between their disciples, their hearts had somehow developed a deeper sense of familiarity with the Heavenly Peak, and they now viewed the Heavenly Peak with far more friendliness in their eyes.

    Conversely, the Boundless Peace Sect exploded with fury. As soon as their disciples dered vengeance on the Eternal Summit Sect, the Sect Leader of the Boundless Peace Sect stormed over towards the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area.

    ¡°Dai. Yan. Feng! Don¡¯t you think you owe us an exnation on why your disciples stood idly by while our disciples were perishing in front of their very eyes? Did you instruct them to do so before thepetition began? Since when has our Boundless Peace Sect ever offended or transgressed against you? Why do you have to treat us this way?!¡±

    The Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Ge Kaibo, stared daggers at Dai Yanfeng as he demanded an exnation.

    He had always maintained a cordial rtionship with Dai Yanfeng in the past, and he had never expected his ¡°dear friend¡± to suddenly stab him in the back when he needed him most. How could he not be incensed?!

    If not for the fact that his abilities were weaker than Dai Yanfeng¡¯s abilities, he might very well have physically confronted Dai Yanfeng and tussled with him.

    Dai Yanfeng struggled in his heart. How was he to exin the situation? Was he really going to reveal that the disciples in the marsnds were not actually from the Eternal Summit Sect? Not even a fool would do that.

    Naturally, as the Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect, he knew that both his personal abilities, as well as the sect¡¯s abilities, were well beyond something that the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s Ge Kaibo could deal with. Thus, he knew that there was no reason to fear that they would attempt any form of vengeance on the Eternal Summit Sect.

    The only remaining fear that Dai Yanfeng had was whether the other sects would simrly harden their hearts against them, especially those who were originally on good terms with the Eternal Summit Sect. His worst fear was to see everyone begin to dissociate themselves with the Eternal Summit Sect and look to the Dawn Sect with favour instead.

    After all, he could tell from the gaze in the eyes of several sect leaders around that they had begun to view the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect with different looks.

    Dai Yanfeng collected his thoughts and then steeled his resolve ¨C he had to do all he could to get the Eternal Summit Sect out of its present predicament. At the very least, he would have to provide them with a reasonable excuse ¨C

    Thus, he sighed, before responding to Ge Kaibo with resignation, ¡°Kaibo, it¡¯s not that our disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect are reluctant to rescue your disciples. Truth be told, we had overlooked the preparation of miasma repelling talismans and antidotes for our disciples earlier. If our disciples had run into the marsnds to rescue your disciples, they would undoubtedly have perished as well.¡±

    ¡°Hah, if that¡¯s the case, then why did they only stand idly by the side watching as our disciples perished? Why didn¡¯t they run away or dive in and save our disciples?¡±

    ¡°You would be aware that our disciples are undoubtedly on good terms with each other after all. I suspect they must be reluctant to see the Boundless Peace Disciples fall into such a predicament, so they had been considering their options on how they might possibly rescue your disciples.¡±

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s exnation was nothing more than a feeble attempt at making the problem go away, and it was barely believable. That said, this exnation was the only thing he could think of.

    I hope that the situation won¡¯t worsen any further. Dai Yanfeng sighed. He knew that if he clung to this story and maintained that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had not prepared miasma repelling talismans and antidotes in their Interspatial Rings, then nobody would be able to levy any further usations against them.

    Even though this incident might very well create an irreparable rift between the Boundless Peace Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect, his hope was simply to earn the benefit of the doubt from the other sects and mitigate the repercussions of the Du n disciples¡¯ actions.

    Unfortunately, things rarely go ording to n. Just as Ge Kaibo continued to re suspiciously at Dai Yanfeng, wondering whether to give him the benefit of the doubt onest time, the water screen revealed a new development to the situation ¨C

    The swamp monster that was duking it out with the remaining Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s disciples suddenly went berserk! Not only had the swamp monster been unable to subdue and consume its prey, it had even been severely wounded by its prey.

    Thus, when it drew second wind and went berserk, the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s disciples that had been standing closer to the swamp monster were immediately smashed into pieces. Those who were slightly further away where flung out violently by the shockwave of its outburst, and theynded a distance away, either incapacitated or unconscious.

    By this point in time, not more than one-third of the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s participants remained.

    Their martial brothers and sisters in the audience covered their mouths in horror as tears filled their eyes.

    However, the worst had yet toe. At this moment, everyone could see from the water screen that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples began to move as they slowly made their way towards the marsnds that were enshrouded with a thickyer of poisonous miasma.

    ¡°It¡¯s about time to clean up the mess.¡± Du Yongxu calmly remarked, ¡°Heed mymands ¨C retrieve and apply your miasma repelling talismans. We¡¯ll take the heads of the swamp monster and take its inner core.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± The Du n disciples responded in unison as they began to retrieve and apply their miasma repelling talismans on themselves. Then, they followed Du Yongxu as they entered the fray and squared off against the swamp monster that was on its final breaths.

    Naturally, there were a few surviving disciples of the Boundless Peace Sect that were still conscious who red at the Eternal Summit Sect disciples with fury in their eyes.

    Under the effects of the miasma repelling talismans, the Du n disciples strode into the miasma as though they were taking a stroll through a bed of flowers ¨C they werepletely unaffected by the miasma.

    Unfortunately, their steadfastness in the present situation appeared incredibly heinous to the onlookers in the audience.

    What was most upsetting was perhaps the fact that they were clearly reaping where they had not sown. It was clear for all to see that the Boundless Peace Sect had reduced the swamp monster to its final breaths with their blood, sweat and tears. Yet these opportunistic Eternal Summit Sect disciples interjected and strode in at the veryst moment to im their efforts for themselves.

    Yet this was no more than what the Du n disciples were used to doing after all. Furthermore, now that they were participating in thepetition as Eternal Summit Sect disciples, there were no ramifications with such actions of theirs ¨C not to them at least.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you didn¡¯t prepare those talismans for them?! What did they just apply on themselves, huh?!¡± Ge Kaibo barked. The burning inferno of rage in his eyes was so intense that one could practically see mes spewing from his eyes.

    Dai Yanfeng grew sullen. How could he have known that as soon as hemitted to his excuse, the Du n disciples would do the very opposite and tear apart his pretenses?

    His heart swelled with a deep sense of frustration and indignation, yet there was nowhere for him to ventte all of this.

    He had initially been overjoyed at the prospects of working together with the Du n earlier. But now, he sincerely and thoroughly regretted his decision. There was a good chance that after thispetition, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s reputation would bepletely torn to shreds and trampled on the ground.

    What could he do? What other excuse could he give? Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes darkened as he stared at the water screen with a heart filled with anxiety.

 Chapter 210: The Du Clan Disciplesâ€™ Exploitation of Garbage

    <h4>Chapter 210: The Du n Disciples¡¯ Exploitation of Garbage</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Dai Yanfeng watched on as the Du n disciples killed the swamp monster and retrieved its inner core, yet he simply couldn¡¯t find a suitable excuse to exin the situation away.

    Seeing Ge Kaibo¡¯s bloodshot eyes, Dai Yanfeng knew that the rtionship between the Boundless Peace Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect hadpletely broken down and reached a state where it waspletely irreparable. If not for the fact that thepetition prevented sects from shing with each other outside of thepetition itself, perhaps Ge Kaibo might well have led the rest of his sect andmenced an all-out battle against the Eternal Summit Sect for vengeance right now.

    ¡°Dai Yanfeng, you and your good Eternal Summit Sect disciples. Don¡¯t you dare think for a moment that the Boundless Peace Sect is someone to bully and walk all over. We will settle our score with you one day!¡± Ge Kaibo dered as he swished his sleeve, and an incisive wind de carved a line horizontally across the ground between Dai Yanfeng and himself.

    He was cutting off all his ties with Dai Yanfeng and the Eternal Summit Sect.

    Just then, the water screen disyed yet another development on the marsnds with the Eternal Summit Sect disciples. One of the surviving Boundless Peace Sect disciples tugged gently at the legs of a disciple from the Eternal Summit Sect, hoping that they would extend a helping hand to save his life.

    The swamp monster was already dead, and all he needed was a simple recovery medicine and some time to recover from his injuries.

    Unfortunately, he no longer had the energy to even swallow a recovery pill on his own, and he could only beg the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples for help ¨C rather, he could only beg the Du n disciples for help.

    Du Yongxu turned around and witnessed this as well, yet he responded dispassionately, ¡°Ignore him. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    In his eyes, these disciples of Secondary Sects were all a bunch of garbage, none of whom deserved any rescuing. After all, who couldpare with the value of the disciples from the eight great sects?

    Just like that, the Du n disciple nced coldly at the Boundless Peace Sect disciple tugging at his leg, before kicking him away and wresting free from his grasp.

    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me with your dirty hands.¡± He coldly stated, ¡°Trash.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he walked away quickly and caught up with the rest of the Du n disciples. Just like that, he walked away with his head held high, without turning back. The devastation behind him was horrendous ¨C every single one of the Boundless Peace disciplesy there on the floor either dead or grievously wounded.

    When the Du n disciple called the Boundless Peace disciple ¡°trash¡±, the audience immediately burst into an uproariousmotion. There were initially some sects that witnessed the struggle between the Boundless Peace Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect but chose to mind their own business. But the final straw that broke the camel¡¯s back was when the Du n disciple had called the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s disciple ¡°trash¡±.

    Although the Boundless Peace Sect did not stand at the pinnacle among the Secondary Sects, they still ranked among the top twenty. When the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciple called the Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s disciple ¡°trash¡±, was that not by extension tantamount to calling most of the other Secondary Sect disciples a piece of trash as well?

    As a cultivator, no matter how weak one¡¯s cultivation was, every single person possessed a certain sense of pride and self-worth with what they had achieved with their talents and their efforts. Could they really ept lying down the callous remark that threatened to tear down their self-worth and trample it on the ground?

    Thus, everyone in the audience began to cast furious res over at the members of the Eternal Summit Sect. Within moments, Dai Yanfeng began to feel countless people casting prating gazes straight into his back, making him feel as porous as a sieve.

    The Boundless Peace Sect¡¯s Ge Kaibo huffed coldly as he turned around and made his way back to his seating area while he fervently repressed the indignation swelling from the depths of his heart.

    He was going to settle the score with the Eternal Summit Sect once thepetition was over! How could he maintain his dignity as a sect leader if he took all of this lying down?!

    Dai Yanfeng felt another pang of desire surface in his heart ¨C again, he had the urge to just stand up and dere to everyone that the disciples that are running around in the marsnds are not from the Eternal Summit Sect!

    But he knew he could not say it. Not only that, he had to keep this secret forever buried in the depths of his heart.

    Dai Yanfeng thought about it, and he realized that the only person who could help to mitigate this problem was the Du n Head standing behind him right now.

    ¡°Du n Head, is it possible to get your disciples to spare some thought for the reputation of us Eternal Summit Sect disciples?¡± Dai Yanfeng discreetly asked with a polite and courteous attitude.

    Even though his heart was already filled to the brim with hatred for the Du n right now, he knew that there was no way he could resist the formidable Du n. Thus, he could only beg the Du n for their help.

    All of this was caused by those damned Du n disciples!

    The Du n Head opened his eyes and looked straight at Dai Yanfeng as he responded, ¡°It all depends on what the Eternal Summit Sect is willing to offer. After all, nothing in the world is free, wouldn¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Dai Yanfeng gritted his teeth. He knew that the Du n Head would most certainly take this opportunity to rip him off. But what could he do about it? He could only me himself for transacting with the devil!

    ¡°I wonder what the Du n Head is looking for? If the Du n Head¡¯s request is within junior Dai¡¯s ability to fulfill, junior would be happy to agree without hesitation!¡± Dai Yanfeng bowed down obsequiously to the Du n Head. He had stooped so low that his face was practically in the ground.

    ¡°Actually, my request isn¡¯t too outrageous. I¡¯m happy to oblige as long as you offer these things to me.¡± The Du n Head went on to set out a list of items that he hoped to obtain.

    The list was not long, but each of these requests were so hard to fulfill that Dai Yanfeng felt as though the Du n Head were skinning him alive.

    He was like a proud rooster that was having its well-groomed feathers plucked out by the Du n Head.

    Dai Yanfeng drew a deep breath, repressed the swelling rage in his chest as he muttered, ¡°Alright. Junior Dai agrees to your conditions. I only hope that the Du n Head will fulfill his end of the bargain and help to salvage the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s image.¡±

    The Du n Head was pleased with the fact that Dai Yanfeng knew what was best for himself. Thus, he responded, ¡°Naturally. The Du n never reneges on its promises.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he retrieved a Transmittance Talisman from his robes, wrote a few words on it and then chanted some mnemonics.

    After glowing with a faint blue light, the words on the Transmittance Talisman disappeared together with the blue light.

    This was the Du n¡¯s unique Transmittance Talisman, and it possessed the ability to transcend and prate the formation arrays sequestering thepetition grounds and the rest of the world.

    At the same time, the Du n disciples who were led by Du Yongxu immediately received the message transmitted by the Du n Head ¨C Ignore the points, rewards and other sects for now and focus on locating the Heavenly Peak disciples. Also, spare a thought for the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s image. Don¡¯t do anything that is out of character.

    The Du n disciples couldn¡¯t help but pout slightly, and one of them even remarked sarcastically, ¡°Won¡¯t it be very easy for us to locate the Heavenly Peak disciples? Why is our n Head being so anxious this time? Their strongest cultivator is only at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery; it¡¯s going to be far too easy for us to deal with them.¡±

    Naturally, they were not specifically disdainful of the Heavenly Peak disciples or the Eternal Summit Sect. Rather, their pride was founded upon the fact that they were disciples of the eight great sects, and that in turn meant that these small Secondary Sects were hardly worth their consideration at all.

    ¡°Alright, the n Head must have his reasons for his orders. We need only execute his instructions ordingly.¡± Du Yongxu responded dispassionately as he stored his Transmittance Talisman within his Interspatial Ring. He also despised the small and inconsequential Secondary Sects, but he knew that the n Head¡¯s instructions were still to beplied with.

    Besides, the Du n Head was also his father.

    The earlier exchange between the Du n disciples had been done through the effects of their Transmittance Talismans. These Transmittance Talismans had been imbued with the Du n¡¯s unique formation arrays, and nobody outside were able to pick up what they had said. Otherwise the audience members¡¯ impression of the Eternal Summit Sect would only worsen if it had not already hit rock bottom.

    This was a turning point for the Eternal Summit Sect. As time wore on, the audience members began to realize that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had changed slightly ¨C they would take the initiative to rescue anyone in danger that they happened toe across.

    That said, first impressions were sometimes difficult to get rid of, particrly when the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had behaved in such a horrendously wanton manner. Thus, notwithstanding their change in behaviour, several members of the audience grew suspicious as to whether they had ulterior motives in what they were doing.

    While that was the case, these suspicions remained no more than contemtions on the hearts of the audience that brewed on the backburner as they continued to observe the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples.

    As time flowed by, the audience members discovered that an interesting phenomenon was panning out ¨C

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had begun to gather for themselves a following of people from other sects, just like how the Heavenly Peak disciples had also found themselves at the heart of a group that others had built themselves around.

    Just like that, two days of the group battles psed. During this period of time, the Eternal Summit Sect and the Heavenly Peak disciples had evidently established each their own factions which garnered more strength as time went by. The points umted by these two sects had left every otherpetitor way in the lurch as well.

    It was to be expected that the Eternal Summit Sect disciples were able to umte the amount of points that they had. What was far more unexpected was the fact that the Heavenly Peak had been able to do the same.

    The Du n Head furrowed his brows. This waspletely outside of his expectations.

    The Du n possessed a unique formation array that allowed them to locate their targets without using any form of mediums or primers, and the Du n disciples participating in these group battles possessed one such formation array each.

    But two full days hadpsed, and the Du n disciples were still unable to locate the Heavenly Peak disciples. Just what in the world is going on?

    Would these three days ofpetition be wasted just like that? The Du n had sent an elite team of disciples to the group battles to achieve their main goal of dealing with the Heavenly Peak disciples ¨C they had not made their appearance just to secure the Eternal Summit Sect victory and glory!

    ¡°Yongxu, what¡¯s going on? Why haven¡¯t you encountered the Heavenly Peak disciples yet?¡± The Du n Head left the seating areas and found a secluded corner where he checked in on his son.

    ¡°Father, I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s going on either. I¡¯ve used the dowsing formation diagram three times now, and each time I¡¯ve used it, I was pointed to an erroneous location...it¡¯s almost as though something¡¯s obstructing us from locating the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ exact location.¡± Du Yongxu responded to his father through the Transmittance Talisman.

    The Du n Head squinted his eyes. He was somehow reminded of the fact that Jun Xiaomo possessed a mysterious wealth of knowledge about talismans and formation arrays.

    Could that little brat be thwarting our ns?

    Every single formation array could be countered in one way or another, and the Du n¡¯s unique formation array was the same as well. The Du n had treated these Secondary Sects withcency, so the formation arrays that they were using were of the lowest, most ordinary grade.

    It did not take more than a simple Confusion Array to counteract the Du n¡¯s attempt to locate them. Given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s depth of knowledge about talismans and formation arrays, their failure in this regard was hardly astonishing.

    ¡°Yongxu, I want you to use all of the Dowsing Arrays that the team possesses to locate the Heavenly Peak¡¯s location. Then, give instructions to the other sects that are following you and use a carpetbing method to search through those locations for the Heavenly Peak disciples.¡± The Du n Head instructed.

    ¡°Those people following us?¡± A trace of contempt flickered across the depths of Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes, ¡°There¡¯s no need to resort to those garbage, is there?¡±

    The people following him was naturally none other than the disciples of other sects that the Du n had earlier rescued who hadter pledged themselves to obsequiously following their lead.

    These people were naturally unaware that their benefactors looked down upon them with such disdain.

    ¡°Even garbage has its uses. Given the current situation, I¡¯m afraid that it¡¯s not going to get any easier locating the Heavenly Peak disciples. There¡¯s only one day left to these group battles. We have to seed within the remaining time.¡± The Du n Head reminded Du Yongxu.

    Du Yongxu deliberated for a moment before responding affirmatively, ¡°Alright, father. I understand.¡±

    It made sense. They had saved those people after all. It would be too much of a waste if they did not fully utilize the additional manpower that they had gathered.

 Chapter 211: Sneak Attack at Night

    <h4>Chapter 211: Sneak Attack at Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware that the Heavenly Peak had already be a target in the group battles. But her constant vignce for the unknown meant that she would habitually set up arge barrier protecting their campsites during the night.

    These formation arrays used by Jun Xiaomo at night prevented the spread of their spiritual energy beyond the boundaries of the array, which in turn allowed them to remain concealed from smaller and weaker spiritual beasts or demonic beasts.

    It was also for this very reason the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had not been able to locate the whereabouts of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array had coincidentally thwarted the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s attempts to locate them.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, you¡¯re too amazing. How are you so well-versed with these formation arrays and talismans?¡± An enchanting and beautiful female cultivator with a loud personality pressed her hand firmly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as she eximed.

    This female cultivator was called Meng Huanqiu, and she was the leader of the Purple Hut Sect. Just like the Dragontiger Sect, the Purple Hut Sect disciples had been rescued by Jun Xiaomo and her team on the first day of thepetition. As soon as they had been rescued, they insisted on travelling together with the Heavenly Peak disciples and following their lead.

    There was another reason why the Purple Hut Sect¡¯s disciples had insisted on following the Heavenly Peak disciples apart from the fact that the Heavenly Peak disciples were their benefactor ¨C and that was the fact that they were curious with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s proficiency with her formation arrays.

    The Purple Hut Sect was well known for their formation arrays. That said, their disciples did not possess spectacr levels of cultivation, and this was one of the main reasons why they did not generally ce well within the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions. Jun Xiaomo was five years younger than Meng Huanqiu. Yet despite how Meng Huanqiu had immersed herself into the discipline of formation arrays ever since she was a little kid, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grasp of formation arrays was far, far stronger than hers. Thus, while Meng Huanqiu was filled with admiration for Jun Xiaomo, she also wanted to peer into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind and see for herself whether she was one of the legendary geniuses in formation arrays.

    And that was exactly what Meng Huanqiu had asked.

    ¡°Genius?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled, before shaking her head, ¡°I¡¯m not any sort of genius.¡±

    If not for her previous life¡¯s experience, she would undoubtedly be confuzzled by the discipline of formation arrays right now.

    Meng Huanqiu nced back at Jun Xiaomo ¨C She¡¯s being modest.

    Regardless, Meng Huanqiu had always enjoyed interacting with people who were well-versed and knowledgeable with the discipline of formation arrays. Thus, she decided to stick close to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo did not mind this either. With Meng Huanqiu frank and boisterous personality, Jun Xiaomo found their exchanges rather pleasant and enjoyable.

    Night fell once more. The darkness of the night engulfed the marsnds. Sparse constetions surrounded the moon as they all hung high in the sky. The cool of the night washed away all their frustrations of the day.

    Nights in the wilderness were invariably more dangerous than the day. Jun Xiaomo and the rest had never prioritized cing well during the group battles, so they would always set up their campsite when dusk fell, and they would rest wherever they were for the night.

    Jun Xiaomoy on a clean fur rug made of animal skin. She rested her head on her arms as she gazed into the night sky, letting her thoughts wander aimlessly on its own.

    Two days had alreadypsed. Once tomorrow was over, they would be able to sessfully leave thesepetition grounds with their lives intact. She reflected on how they were initially incredibly resistant to He Zhang¡¯s idea of forcing them to participate in the group battles. That said, when they took things in their stride, they did benefit quite substantially from thest two days of these group battles.

    Most importantly, they had forged deeper rtions with other sects and earned their gratitude and friendship.

    Jun Xiaomo was not an expert in personal rtions. In fact, it could be said that none of the Heavenly Peak disciples were any good in this regard. This was also why the Heavenly Peak had established a reputation of harbouring cultivation fanatics to the outside world.

    But she knew that if they were to establish their own sect, then it would be important to start building rtionships with other sects. Otherwise, it would be difficult to properly establish themselves if they find themselves all alone when the timees.

    These group battles were a prime opportunity for them. Having experienced a lifetime of being on the backfoot, she no longer had muchpassion or sympathy left for others. That said, she still could not find herself standing idly by and watching innocent people lose their lives in front of her very eyes.

    Thus, if she could help it, she would help them. Fortunately, apart from their first encounter with the Crescentfell Sect, the other sects were far more normal. At the very least, they still knew how to show their appreciation and gratitude to their benefactors.

    After rescuing some of these sects, they would thank the Heavenly Peak disciples before taking their leave. On other asions, these sects that had been rescued would choose to stay behind and follow the Heavenly Peak disciples, just like the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo did not mind them tagging along as long as these sects did not harbour any ill intentions towards the Heavenly Peak. In fact, their kind act might inadvertently sow the seed for a friendship between their sects and their promise for help in times of need. This would be an unintentional benefit to their sect as well.

    I wonder what He Zhang and his old fogeys would think about this. Wouldn¡¯t they be so infuriated that they would be kicking themselves? A smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips.

    He Zhang was indeed infuriated. He had not sacrificed his dear disciple Qin Lingyu¡¯s right to participate and just so that the Heavenly Peak disciples could stand out during thispetition.

    As things were right now, the Eternal Summit Sect stood at first ce, while the Dawn Sect stood at second ce in the standings. If other sects were in their shoes now, the prospects of obtaining second ce in the group battles would almost certainly leave them overjoyed.

    However, He Zhang could hardly find any joy in his heart to celebrate these achievements. The only thing he wanted to know was why the Du n Head had not made his move yet. He was anxious to see the Heavenly Peak disciples perish in the course of these battles.

    He Zhang tapped his hands anxiously, and his brows were knitted tightly together.

    The night grew darker, and Jun Xiaomo slowly drifted off into sleep amidst heryers of thoughts and considerations. Only a few disciples remained standing guard at the edge of their campsites as they observed their surroundings for any peculiarities or causes for concern.

    Shk shk shk... The rustling sound of parting grass rang out, and one of the disciples standing guard immediately stood up vigntly as he looked in the direction of the sound with furrowed his brows.

    But he did not see anything with his naked eye in the dark of the night.

    With soft steps, he slowly and cautiously approached the source of the sound to investigate just what was going on. Just then, a tiny spirit beast crept out from the foliage, shivered slightly, before scampering past the disciple.

    ¡°So, it¡¯s just a spirit beast. I was still concerned that it would be something more.¡± The night guard muttered to himself before turning back to where he was and taking his seat once more.

    The tiny spirit beast hardly possessed any offensive abilities, so it was fine letting it live and run freely wherever it wanted.

    With that, the foliage waspletely still and silent once more, as though nothing had happened at all. However, any members of the audience observing the water screen would discover that there was a team hidden in that foliage right now.

    This team had been rescued by the Eternal Summit Sect on the second day of thepetition and had from then on followed the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples. At this moment, they had been sent on a search and reconnaissance mission by Du Yongxu.

    After all, it was about time that these sects that were tagging along be put to good use.

    ¡°Whew...that was close. We were almost discovered by that cultivator standing guard.¡± One of the disciples hidden in the foliage patted his chest as he eximed in a soft voice.

    These disciples had applied on themselves a high-quality Invisibility Talisman that concealed both their appearances and their voices. Thus, their exchange could not be heard by the disciples in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s campsite. That said, the Invisibility Talisman did not go so far as to block out the sound of the rustling grass when they walked through the foliage.

    ¡°That person earlier looked like he was from the Heavenly Peak, right?¡± Thepanion beside him spoke softly.

    ¡°It should be right this time. The emblem on his clothing is unmistakably the Dawn Sect¡¯s emblem.¡±

    Every sect possessed a unique emblem to identify them with, and the Dawn Sect was no exception to this. Apart from their respective sect¡¯s emblem marked on the identity token around their wrist, some disciples would even have emblems embroidered on their clothing.

    It so happened that the disciple that came by earlier was from the Heavenly Peak and he wore the Dawn Sect¡¯s uniform with its emblem embroidered on it, and this was noticed by the scouts sent by the Eternal Summit Sect.

    ¡°This trip hasn¡¯t been wasted after all. Let¡¯s quickly report this news to the Eternal Summit Sect.¡±

    These scouts came from the Ashen ts Sect, which was a Secondary Sect that was neitherrge nor small. Their overall abilities could be considered no more than average among all of the Secondary Sects, so they were naturally extremely content with bing runners for the Eternal Summit Sect. In fact, it they firmly believed that it bade well for their future.

    Thus, when they encountered Jun Xiaomo and the rest, they saw them as an opportunity to stand out and curry favor with the Eternal Summit Sect.

    ¡°Hang on. Let¡¯s report this to them tomorrow morning instead.¡± One of the other members of the Ashen ts Sect suggested.

    ¡°Why not now?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that this is the prime opportunity tounch a sneak attack and seize them by surprise? All of them are asleep right now. We can capture all of them under the cover of the night, before giving the Eternal Summit Sect a pleasant surprise tomorrow morning. That would be even better, wouldn¡¯t it? This would save the Eternal Summit Sect some trouble from personally handling the matter as well.¡±

    His martial brother deliberated for a moment, before nodding his head in affirmation, ¡°You¡¯re right. After all, the present team sent by the Dawn Sect onlyprises only weak cultivators, the strongest of which is only at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery. On the other hand, we have two cultivators in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery ¨C it should be more than enough to round up and capture all these cultivators here.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? That¡¯s why I believe there¡¯s no need for the Eternal Summit Sect to personally move against these opponents to begin with.

    They looked at each other before nodding at each other in tacit affirmation.

    Both disciples that had just exchanged words were in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery, and they were both co-leaders of the Ashen ts Sect. Once they had made their decision, they expressed their opinion to the rest of their team and made sure that nobody had any objections to that.

    After all, none of them believed that the Dawn Sect¡¯s team would be difficult to deal with. And besides, they possessed some talismans that the Eternal Summit Sect had handed to them within their Interspatial Rings.

    They believed that these talismans would essentially multiply their efforts and make the capture of their targets that much easier.

    Thus, each of them began to retrieve and apply these talismans on themselves. Then, under the cover of the night, they slowly snuck out from the foliage and made their way discreetly towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s campsite discreetly and cautiously.

    In the still of the night, Jun Xiaomo turned around in bed. She suddenly felt fidgety as a stifling feeling pressed heavily on her chest. She furrowed her brows as she tossed and turned in bed.

    As the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples drew closer to the campsite, they began to muster and gather their spiritual energy within their palms. Under the aid of their talismans, the intensifying spiritual energy on their body did not spread out into the surroundings, and nobody in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s campsite discovered their approach.

    One hundred meters...fifty meters...thirty meters...

    They gazed intently at the disciples who were sleeping within the campsite,pletely oblivious to their approach. At this moment, the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples looked like a pack of hungry wolves staring down helpless sheep.

    In their eyes, these ¡°sheep¡± would very soon be in their grasp.

    Jun Xiaomo turned around again, and shey on her back. She was practically on the brink of arousing from her shallow sleep.

    Just then, she felt the ripple of spiritual energy in her surroundings.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes opened ferociously, and a cold gleam flickered at the depths of her pupils ¨C someone had entered the domain of her formation array!

 Chapter 212: Heavenly Peak vs Ashen Flats Sect

    <h4>Chapter 212: Heavenly Peak vs Ashen ts Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Everyone be on alert. Someone has entered our campsite.¡± Jun Xiaomo retrieved her Transmittance Talisman and whispered into it.

    She had earlier handed everyone one Transmittance Talisman, and she even drew up a few more such talismans because there was not enough to go around. Her actions were smooth and natural, and she took only one attempt to create each talisman. Everyone around her was incredibly astonished at her actions.

    Is Jun Xiaomo of the Heavenly Peak a spell master or a talisman master? How could she be so proficient with talismans and formation arrays at such a young, tender age?!

    Regardless, they could appreciate the usefulness of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s talismans and formation arrays. Just like right now, Jun Xiaomo had discreetly warned the others of the approach of uninvited guests through her Transmittance Talisman so that they would not alert their visitors to their knowledge.

    Some of the disciples in her camp were too soundly asleep and failed to wake up to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s call. Fortunately, the others beside them nudged them and roused them from their slumber.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± They murmured as they rubbed their hazy eyes.

    ¡°Someone¡¯s approaching. Wake up.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clear and crisp voice resounded beside their ears. Her voice was like a resounding bell that immediately jolted the groggy disciples right out of their stupor.

    Someone¡¯s approaching at this time of the night? Who could it be?

    Just like that, their hard-earned rest at night was disrupted by the approach of some unknown people. Anyone disturbed like that would hardly be pleased.

    With frustration and indignation swelling from the depths of their hearts, several disciples intended to sit up and see for themselves who these immoral people were to be sneaking about behind their backs at night.

    But in the next moment, Jun Xiaomo immediately gave a further set of instructions to everyone, ¡°Don¡¯t get up yet. They¡¯ve inadvertently activated the formation array in the perimeter of our campsite, so we¡¯ve been alerted to their presence. That said, they must still be thinking that we¡¯re asleep. Since that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s continue to y along so that they will y straight into our hands.¡±

    Mei Huanqiu¡¯s eyes brightened as she immediately seconded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s idea, ¡°Sister Xiaomo¡¯s right. That¡¯s a great n. I approve!¡±

    Several others began to chime in with approvals as well. Thus, those who were standing guard around the campsite continued to stand guard; while others who were meant to be asleep remained ¡°asleep¡±. Everything at the campsite remained ostensibly the same as it had been just moments ago.

    That said, everyone had begun to release their divine sense probing around their surroundings. Then, they began to muster their spiritual energy and gather them in their palms, before applying on themselves a defensive talisman that Jun Xiaomo had earlier handed out to them.

    The Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples werepletely oblivious to the fact that the cat was already out of the bag, so they continued to slowly approach Jun Xiaomo and the rest on tiptoe. Then, when they finally arrived at where the first disciple standing guard was located, the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples nced at and signaled to the rest of his team. Within moments, they began to spread out in all directions, thereby surrounding the Heavenly Peak disciples and locking them within the area of their offensive abilities.

    It¡¯s about time. The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples thought to himself.

    ¡°Go!¡±

    With one loud cry, the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples immediately began tounch a fierce volley of attacks at the Heavenly Peak disciples who had earlier been surrounded. In the darkness of the night, a brilliant disy of colourful spell abilities shot out and lit up the otherwise ink-ck night sky. Incidentally, these spells also illuminated the vicious smiles stered all over the faces of the assants.

    Once they began tounch attacks, the Invisibility Talisman on their body would immediately lose their effects. But at this moment, none of them minded that fact ¨C in their eyes, the element of surprise would have done everything it was intended to do, and the Heavenly Peak disciples would either be dead or grievously wounded. After this volley of attack, they would no longer be any cause of concern anymore.

    Besides, they were well aware of the fact that the strongest cultivator among the Heavenly Peak disciples was Chen Feiyu, at only the eleventh level of Qi Mastery. They firmly believed that there was no way he, or any of the Heavenly Peak disciples could be a match against the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples.

    Unfortunately, in the next moment, their vicious smiles froze and stiffened up on their faces ¨C

    They¡¯re alright? The Heavenly Peak disciples are all alright?! How could this be?!!!

    The Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples were met with the cold gazes of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Before the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples could even react, they felt a sense of excruciating pain surge through their bodies and their Dantian.

    Even if they were just Qi Mastery cultivators, the damage caused by such powerful close-ranged attacks was still incredibly considerable.

    Several disciples from the Ashen ts Sect who possessed a slightly lower cultivation level immediately felt as though their Dantian had been shattered by the oing attack, and they flew back and mmed straight into the ground. Crimson red blood sprayed from their mouths.

    ¡°We¡¯ve miscalcted! Retreat!¡± The Ashen ts Sect¡¯s team leader cried out to the rest of his disciples. They had to find a safe ce to treat their injuries, or they might very well be unable to leave these marsnds safely.

    As for the Heavenly Peak disciples, they would have to leave them to the Eternal Summit Sect.

    The Eternal Summit Sect is far stronger than us. They will definitely be able to teach these vicious Heavenly Peak disciples a harsh lesson and repay them tenfold for what they have done to us! The Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples thought to themselves furiously.

    Right now, the only thing on the minds of these Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples was to retreat and escape. After all, their attempt at a sneak attack had been foiled, and they had even been seriously wounded by the opponents. Forcing the issue would not be a wise choice.

    Thus, they began to retreat into the dark of the night in apletely sorry state ¨C some mbering from the floor, only to stumble back down again; others clutching fervently at their chests; while others continued to cast spells covering their retreat. The only thought running through their minds was to leave Jun Xiaomo¡¯s campsite under the cover of darkness.

    But how would Jun Xiaomo and the rest allow their assants to leave just like that, especially when they were already wounded to such extents? Thus, they gave chase and began to round up their assants.

    The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples began to panic. He did not want Jun Xiaomo to snatch away their right to continue with the group battles at all.

    If the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples were able to persist till the end of these group battles, then they would be awarded a token for their participation, regardless of where the sect ced among the standings. On the contrary, they would no longer qualify for these tokens for their participation if their identity tokens were snatched away by others during the course of thispetition.

    Even though these tokens of participation were not things thatrge Secondary Sects would ce in their sights, these were nevertheless significant rewards to the smaller sects. These rewards would even determine the leader¡¯s standing within the sect in future.

    ¡°That...that...dear fellow cultivator, could you let us go, please? We¡¯ve made a huge blunder. We weren¡¯t thinking straight when we attacked you earlier.¡± The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples made a virtuous expression as he spoke.

    He had truly cast his pride aside and trampled on it in the hope that Jun Xiaomo and the rest would not press the issue any longer.

    ¡°Hah, let you off? Then who¡¯s going to let us off? Speak! Why did you sneak about our camp and attack us in the cover of the night?!¡± Wei Gang interrogated them incisively.

    After experiencing various interactions with other sects over thest two days, he had finally discarded the unnecessary softness in his heart and be a little bit more of a man right now.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at Wei Gang with praise in her eyes, causing Wei Gang to involuntarily scratch his head and grin. Yet in the next moment, he adjusted his emotions and red straight towards their assants with a grim expression once more.

    ¡°That...we noticed that you were fast asleep, and we were tempted by the prospects of snatching the identity token in your hands. The points we¡¯d obtained in thispetition is simply far too low to contend for a decent standing, so our thoughts went astray when we were presented with a camp of sleeping cultivators...¡± The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples began to recite the excuse that he had already prepared in his heart.

    ¡°Oh? So you thought to steal some identity tokens just because your points were far too low...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed dispassionately.

    ¡°That...that¡¯s right. We know we¡¯re in the wrong. It was really improper for us to have done what we have done, but we hope that you will be magnanimous and give us this one chance. We promise to run far, far away, so that we won¡¯t be an eyesore to you.¡± The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples bowed obsequiously as he attempted to cate Jun Xiaomo.

    He was also rather grievously injured, and the spiritual energy within his Dantian toiled furiously, while a faint stench of blood filled his mouth.

    As he lowered his head, a trace of haziness flickered across his eyes.

    Meng Huanqiuughed contemptuously. She hated these pretentious people whose words hardly reflected their state of mind. Furthermore, shouldn¡¯t such spineless people be more concerned about how they would support the weight of their actions beforeunching such surprise attacks on others?

    ¡°Tch. On what basis do you expect us to forgive you? With just this apology of yours? Do you really think that there are such profitable transactions in the cultivation world?¡± Wei Gang made a trenchant rebuttal.

    It was evident just how much Wei Gang had matured over thest two days of thesepetitions. He had already shed much of his naivete and understood how his earlier softness and kindness could not be extended to everyone alike.

    ¡°I should have known better.¡± The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples continued to bend lowly as he responded, ¡°I wonder what these fellow cultivators want in exchange for sparing our lives?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. Hand us the identity tokens on your wrists and leave thispetition, and we¡¯ll let you off.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded in an unperturbed, matter-of-fact way.

    ¡°You must be kidding?! How can you call that ¡®letting us off¡¯?¡± Another disciple of the Ashen ts Sect cried out with indignation.

    ¡°We¡¯re simply treating you how you¡¯d treated us earlier.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded nonchntly, yet the intense frigidity in her obsidian-ck eyes caused that disciple to recoil in shock.

    Thus, both parties reached an impasse.

    Just then, the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples suddenly began tough manically as he retrieved an item from his Interspatial Ring and threw it ferociously towards Jun Xiaomo and the others, barking, ¡°Go to hell!¡±

    This item was something that his master had handed to him just before the group battles. His master had cautioned him time and again that he was not to use this item unless it was absolutely necessary.

    It was because this item would attack anyone and everyone around without regard for who it was. It did not distinguish friend from foe, and it possessed the potential to harm both its own master and his people as well.

    Right now, faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s relentless aggression, the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples was convicted that Jun Xiaomo was forcing his hand. Thus, he threw caution to the wind and sent his hidden trump card flying towards Jun Xiaomo.

    He was naturally unaware of the extent of this trump card¡¯s true power when he first tossed it out.

    Jun Xiaomo was presently standing closest to the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples. Her heart trembled, and an imminent sense of danger immediately washed over her heart ¨C

    ¡°Everyone, take cover!¡± Jun Xiaomo yelled out. At the same time, she retrieved a maroon coloured talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    Jun Xiaomo only possessed three of these maroon coloured talismans within her Interspatial Ring. These were talismans that she had spent an incredible amount of time and effort preparing, and even the materials required to prepare these talismans were precious and invaluable. Thus, she would never use these talismans if she could help it.

    But at this moment, her intuition told her that everyone was going to be grievously injured if she did not resort to this talisman right now.

    Thus, the maroon coloured talisman shot forward and quicklytched onto the ink-ck pellet.

    Then, in the very next moment, the pellet erupted with a deafening crackle, and the entire area was instantly filled with a dazzling bright light...

    Those who were engulfed within the fiery light felt as though their skin was being corroded by the white-hot light. This feeling was especially intense for Jun Xiaomo who stood closest to the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples. Her skin felt like it was burning up as though he had just been doused with burning magma.

    Furthermore, she even felt a trace of demonic energy rush into her body from the explosion of light.

    The demonic energy burrowed straight through her skin and into her meridians.

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly began to recite her mnemonic to transform and subdue this incursion of demonic energy into true energy for her own use. At the same time, she felt a slight splitting sensation ring out at her ears, as though something had just been cleaved in half.

    The earrings given by brother Rong?!

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the earrings possessed an incredibly strong ability to protect her. Thus, one could only imagine what kind of immense strength this ink-ck pellet possessed to be able to crack the earrings.

    Finally, the dazzling light faded away. As expected, the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples could barely stand any longer.

    ¡°Impossible! How can you still bepletely fine?!¡± The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples was unable to ept the reality that his injuries were far more severe than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries.

    ¡°Heh, this is called ¡®shooting yourself in the foot¡¯.¡± Wei Gang dered in delight.

    They had earlier applied on themselves the defensive talismans given by Jun Xiaomo, and they damage they took from this explosion of light was naturally far lower than what it should have been. Besides, the talisman that Jun Xiaomo had retrieved earlier was clearly something special as well, and it naturally substantially mitigated the damage caused to Jun Xiaomo and the rest.

    The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples spat out arge mouthful of blood. Nobody knew whether this was from his injuries or from his anger right now.

    Wei Gang walked towards the leader and circled around him, before snickering twice as he asked Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Martial sister, how should we deal with these fes?¡±

    The Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples were powerless to do anything anymore.

    ¡°Beat them up and take their identity tokens.¡± Jun Xiaomo dered with such nonchnce that caused the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples to feel even more incensed.

    Wei Gang nodded his head, ¡°Good idea. My hands have been itching for some time now.¡± As he spoke, he began to roll up his sleeve as he made his way towards the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples.

    The leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples turned pale with shock. In the end, he stered a twisted and macabre smile on his face as he barked in despondence ¨C

    ¡°Hah! Don¡¯t be so delighted! There will be moreing for you in no time!¡±

    At the same time, he transmitted the Heavenly Peak¡¯s location to the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples.

 Chapter 213: Du Yongxuâ€™s Primary Target â€“ Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 213: Du Yongxu¡¯s Primary Target ¨C Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    If anyone asked Du Yongxu who he wished to kill the most, his answer would most certainly be Jun Xiaomo of the Heavenly Peak.

    He would always remember that incident not long ago, when he led a team of Du n disciples out of the sect for their travels and encountered Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen by the Death¡¯s Gorge, particrly how he was subsequently beaten back and forced to retreat in a tragic state.

    This was the greatest form of humiliation he had ever experienced in his entire life! Therefore, as soon as he learnt of his father¡¯s ns, he agreed to it without hesitation.

    That said, he believed that he might not even need to personally make a move if they wished to dispose of the Heavenly Peak disciples ¨C his martial brothers would suffice.

    After all, what could a team of cultivators under the twelfth level of Qi Mastery achieve by their own? They might have some hope against the Du n disciples if Ye Xiuwen were still around. But the fact was that Ye Xiuwen had already fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge, and not even his corpse could be located. The Heavenly Peak disciples were as good as dead if they encountered any other team around.

    These were Du Yongxu¡¯s thoughts about the situation. Thus, when he learnt that the Heavenly Peak disciples were stillpletely fine despite the fact that two days of thepetition had passed, he began to make a strange expression on his face.

    ¡°Father, are you saying that Jun Xiaomo is quite well-versed in her formation arrays and talismans?¡± Du Yongxu furrowed his brows as a glint flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    He was reminded about thest time that he battled against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen at the Death¡¯s Gorge. Back then, Jun Xiaomo had indeed used several powerful talismans against the Du n disciples. However, he had always thought that Jun Xiaomo was merely using talismans that she had bought. He had never expected Jun Xiaomo to know anything about making talismans.

    Most importantly, there were regtions surrounding the strength of talismans used in thesepetitions. Otherwise, everyone would simply invest heavily in equipping their disciples with powerful talismans, and thepetition would be fraught with chaos.

    It was for this reason that Du Yongxu knew that Jun Xiaomo could never resort to the talismans she had used back then at the Death¡¯s Gorge. Thus, he had never set her in his sights as an opponent to be beheld.

    Yet little did he realize he had underestimated the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities.

    ¡°If not for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence, the disciples from the Heavenly Peak would never havested so long. They might even have been eliminated right from the outset of thispetition without the Du n having to make a move at all. Who would¡¯ve thought that the Heavenly Peak¡¯s greatest asset would be none other than the one who has the weakest cultivation among them all?¡± The Du n Head Du Ruiguang broke down the situation to his son, ¡°But, Xu-er, you don¡¯t have to worry too much either. That little brat only has some little tricks up her sleeves, but that¡¯s all she has against you. This is definitely insufficient to deal with you. As long as you know where her advantage lies, you will certainly be prepared against her.¡±

    Du Yongxu squinted his eyes and deliberated for a moment before responding, ¡°Father, I¡¯ve got an idea.¡±

    ¡°What kind of idea?¡±

    ¡°From what you¡¯ve exined, the Heavenly Peak disciples seems to be building themselves around Jun Xiaomo as their core. Since that¡¯s the case, why not prioritize getting rid of the core first? Once they lose their leader and the soul of their team, that group of people would be no more than a headless chicken at ourplete mercy.¡±

    Du Ruiguang began tough heartily, ¡°That¡¯s a great idea! Indeed, you truly live up to your name as my son! Hahahaha...¡±

    A smirk crept up the corner of Du Yongxu¡¯s lips as well.

    The transmission from the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples arrived as soon as Du Yongxu ended hismunication with Du Ruiguang.

    There was a small talisman hidden in the heart of his palm that enabled him tomunicate with Du Ruiguang using his divine sense. This was incredibly discreet, and Du Yongxu simply appeared to be sleeping in the eyes of the audience members.

    Then, a blue light glowed, and Du Yongxu opened his eyes to find a transmission in his hands.

    He opened the Transmittance Talisman and saw that a single line of words was written on it ¨C We¡¯ve discovered the Heavenly Peak¡¯s whereabouts. They¡¯ve captured us. Requesting assistance.

    This was the very transmission that had been sent by the leader of the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples. He had even left the coordinates of his locations where the transmission had been sent. With that piece of information on hand, it would be extremely easy for Du Yongxu to locate Jun Xiaomo and the others.

    ¡°Hmph. These idiots are notpletely useless after all.¡± Du Yongxu chuckled sardonically as he crushed the Transmittance Talisman in his hand and tossed it into the ground.

    The ¡°idiots¡± naturally referred to the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples. In his eyes, anyone who could be captured so easily by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction could only be described as an ¡°idiot¡±.

    ¡°Stop sleeping. Get up.¡± Du Yongxu nudged the other Du n disciples around him, ¡°We¡¯ve located our target.¡±

    ¡°Ugh...We¡¯ve finally located them? Those people were rather useful after all, huh?¡± One of the Du n disciples who had just woken up stretched as he remarked, ¡°I¡¯m beat. It¡¯s sote now; don¡¯t those guys need to sleep at all?¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright. You¡¯ve got plenty of time to sleep once we¡¯vepleted our tasks. Don¡¯t dally any further. We don¡¯t want our target to give us the slip again.¡± Du Yongxu replied.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. It¡¯s not difficult to deal with them. But things might getplicated if we lose track of them again. Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go...¡±

    The Du n disciples began to rouse from their slumber and get up. As soon as they packed up their things, they stepped onto the Teleportation Array that Du Yongxu had prepared beforehand.

    Apart from the Du n disciples, there were members of other sects that wished to tag along, so Du Yongxu agreed to bring them along as well.

    After all, their intelligence told them that the Heavenly Peak disciples were not alone, and there were two or three other sects tagging along with them as well. Since that was the case, Du Yongxu decided to bring the others along to act as cannon fodder for the Du n disciples.

    How long will we need to take care of those disciples from Heavenly Peak? Three incense sticks of time? Two incense sticks of time? Or perhaps not even one incense stick of time...

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo waited expectantly for the arrival of the next wave of assants.

    ¡°Martial sister, the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples had earlier mentioned that there would be othersing to take care of us. Do you think this is true, or do you think they¡¯ve only said that to scare us?¡± Wei Gang furrowed his brows as he quipped.

    Just a few moments ago, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction had joined hands to give their sneak attack assants from the Ashen t Sect a vicious beating, before snatching the identity token from their wrists and sending them straight back out of thepetition.

    These Ashen t Sect¡¯s disciples were going to be bedridden for at least a year, if not more, because Jun Xiaomo and the rest had without hesitation damaged their Dantian and internal organs.

    Don¡¯t me Jun Xiaomo and the rest for being vicious with these people ¨C given how these people had harboured such evil intentions towards the Heavenly Peak, Jun Xiaomo was already being merciful to them by leaving them with their lives intact.

    In fact, the only reason why Jun Xiaomo had extended such mercy to them was because she was reticent to scare her young, innocent and pure martial brother Wei. Otherwise, Jun Xiaomo would not have hesitated a single moment to cripple their cultivation entirely.

    She patted her martial brother Wei¡¯s shoulder as she spoke earnestly, ¡°It¡¯s better to be safe than sorry. Let¡¯s err on the side of caution.¡±

    ¡°But...but if that¡¯s the case, why aren¡¯t we thinking of a way to leave this ce?¡± Wei Gang asked in distress, ¡°Are we going to just sit here and wait for others toe knocking on our doors?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically, ¡°Leave this ce? Little Lang, do you believe that we will be able to elude those pursuing us by hastily running away from this ce? They¡¯re well prepared, and I¡¯m afraid they must already be on their way over right now.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is...¡± Wei Gang scratched his head, ¡°Martial sister¡¯s definitely thought things through more than I have.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled, ¡°This is a result of experiences that had been foisted on me.¡±

    And this was an experience filled with bitterness and tears that nobody would ever be able to understand.

    Chen Feiyu thought for a bit before querying, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, what do you intend to do? I also believe that the Ashen ts Sect¡¯s disciples weren¡¯t lying when they said that others were after our lives.¡±

    After all, the fact that He Zhang and his old fogeys had swapped out the list of participants and enlisted all of the Heavenly Peak disciples reeked of a ploy against them. But two full days had passed without a hitch. It would hardly make any sense if the Heavenly Peak disciples were able to get through the third day safely as well.

    Having thought about these things, Chen Feiyu believed that it was about time that the schemers would be moving against them.

    A mischievous smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips as she responded with a cold gleam in her eyes, ¡°Since they¡¯re after our lives, why shouldn¡¯t we let them have a taste of their own medicine? They probably expect us to make a run for it right now, so we¡¯ll intentionally remain where we are!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re going to...lure them into the lion¡¯s den.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo slowed down towards the end of her spiel and emphasized her final few words, causing Chen Feiyu and Meng Huanqiu to be taken aback slightly. Momentster, Meng Huanqiu¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly and began to p andugh heartily, ¡°Hahahaha...as expected of sister Xiaomo ¨C your suggestions are still the best! Hahahahaha...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly.

    Wei Gang couldn¡¯t understand what Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cryptic expressions meant. When it came to matters of schemes and ploys, he was aplete greenhorn. Thus, he remained confuzzled as he scratched his head in dismay.

    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t scratch your hair anymore. If they really doe after us, you¡¯ll only need to watch, and you¡¯ll understand what exactly we meant earlier.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head as he looked back at her and chuckled sheepishly.

    ¡°Good thing martial sister¡¯s around.¡± Wei Gang smiled radiantly, ¡°With martial sister around, I don¡¯t have to worry about so many things anymore.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you wouldn¡¯t be worrying even if I weren¡¯t here either.¡± Jun Xiaomo rapped his head with some measure of helplessness.

    Wei Gang reminded herself of how she used to be in her previous life ¨C he had been far too sheltered, so much so that he had continued to maintain a pristine, clear view of the world where the sky was always blue, the grass was always green, and the world was simply a bed of roses. There was nothing to concern himself about ¨C no nuances and no considerations.

    Yet in the end, it was only when she stumbled and irretrievably fell into the ploys of others that she learnt the folly of her ways.

    But at the same time, she sincerely hoped that Wei Gang could always maintain some measure of this naivete and innocence of his. This was perhaps her gateway to the innocence that she had lost since her previous life.

    When Du Yongxu led the rest of the Du n and the other small sects that hadmitted themselves to following them to where Jun Xiaomo and the rest were, he noticed that everyone seemed to be...asleep?

    No, not all were asleep. Some were meditating, while others were standing guard around their campsite. Nevertheless, there was a small portion of their disciples that were too tired and had drifted off to sleep as well.

    ¡°Hah, these people don¡¯t know the concept of vignce at all. How can they be so soundly asleep?¡± One of the Du n disciples mocked contemptuously.

    ¡°Perhaps they might have expended too much energy in their earlier battle? But then again, to think that they¡¯d expended so much energy with just a measly team of disciples from the Ashen ts Sect. They¡¯re truly incapable.¡± Another Du n disciple chimed in disdainfully.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Du Yongxu cut them off, ¡°Do you all still remember what I¡¯ve instructed earlier?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The Du n disciples responded in unison.

    None of them dared to disobey Du Yongxu. This had to do with both his abilities, as well as his identity and stature.

    ¡°Very good. Remember, ignore everyone else for now. Leave them to those from the other sects. Our very first objective is to...kill Jun Xiaomo!¡± As Du Yongxu spoke, his eyes flickered coldly with a macabre intent.

 Chapter 214: The Cannon Fodderâ€™s Constriction by the Formation Array

    <h4>Chapter 214: The Cannon Fodder¡¯s Constriction by the Formation Array</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    One of the audience members drifting in and out of slumber suddenly jolted awake and nced around. He noticed that most others were asleep, if not drifting in and out of slumber like he had been earlier.

    They had all been in the audience booth for three nights now, and most people were starting to grow tired and feel sleepy.

    The glow from first light of dawn faintly illuminated the earth. That audience member yawned and stretched as he turned his attention towards the water screen once more. In the next moment, his eyes opened wide.

    ¡°Hey, hey. Wake up.¡± He nudged hispanion beside him, ¡°Look at the water screen. Something¡¯s happening!¡±

    Hispanion was not too pleased that his sweet dreams were being interrupted just like that. But nevertheless, he struggled to open his eyes and turn his attention towards the water screen. At that moment, his eyes opened wide as well.

    Something was truly happening! Were the Heavenly Peak faction and the Eternal Summit Sect faction going to engage in an all-out battle on thisst day of the group battles?

    Gradually, other members of the audience around them began to rouse from their slumber and discover that something was going on as well. Given how the past two days of the group battles had gone, most of the audience members had not borne much expectation for the final day of the group battles. But now, everyone¡¯s hearts toiled with excitement as they eagerly anticipated how that battle would unfold.

    Naturally, the sects that were involved in this uing battle were hardly as rxed as the rest of the audience members, whether those that were following the Eternal Summit Sect or the Heavenly Peak. Both looked nervously at the water screen as though something unexpected might ur in the blink of an eye.

    The water screen revealed that the Eternal Sect led three or four other sects towards the Heavenly Peak¡¯s campsite, and theyid hidden around where the disciples of the Heavenly Peak, the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect were.

    On the other hand, the disciples of the Heavenly Peak, the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect appeared to bepletely oblivious to the danger that was approaching them. These disciples continued to stand guard, meditate or rest as they had been doing all along, and their faces werepletely rxed and serene.

    These three sects are in trouble... Several members of the audience sighed with resignation in their hearts, especially the audience members belonging to the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect who broke out in cold sweat on behalf of their disciples.

    The Eternal Summit Sect was not anxious tomence their attack. It was as though they were waiting for the most opportune moment. The leader of the entire faction instructed the leaders of each of the other teams, ¡°Later, I want you to nk them from the side and attract their attention. We will slip through the middle of everyone amidst the chaos. All you need to do is to cause as much disturbance as you can so that they won¡¯t be able to interfere with what we¡¯re doing, understand?¡±

    The leader of the entire faction was naturally also the leader of the ¡°Eternal Summit Sect¡± disciples, Du Yongxu.

    His instructions were well received by leaders of each of the other teams following him, and they all nodded their heads respectively. If their role was simply limited to creating as much of a disturbance as they could possibly do, it was not a difficult thing at all.

    Thus, as the leaders of the other teams rejoiced in the simplicity of the task assigned to them, nobody noticed the cold and contemptuous glint at the bottom of Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes.

    Then, as day broke and the marsnds grew brighter, Du Yongxu gestured to the other team leaders and signaled them to sneak around to the sides as well as behind Jun Xiaomo¡¯s campsite.

    Everyone had applied on themselves an Invisibility Talisman that enabled them to mask their auras and appearances alike. Furthermore, they were still a considerable distance away from the Heavenly Peak faction, so none of the disciples from the Heavenly Peak, the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect noticed their approach at all.

    Du Yongxu squinted his eyes as he attempted to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts among all of the disciples within the campsite.

    The sky was now considerably bright, and to spot a disciple clothed in striking red among others who were dressed in either green or pink was not a difficult thing to do.

    Du Yongxu managed to locate his target within moments, and he turned to the other Du n disciples beside him as he instructed them, ¡°Do you see that figure dressed in striking red? That¡¯s your target, Jun Xiaomo. Once I¡¯ve given my orderster on, stay here for approximately one incense stick of time before charging straight towards Jun Xiaomo and focus all your attacks on her, understand?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The Du n disciples responded in unison.

    Then, Du Yongxu deliberated for a moment before he capitted, ¡°Cancel that. It¡¯s better to wait for my next set of orders instead. Don¡¯t rush in yet.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The Du n disciples remainedpliant with his instructions.

    Du Yongxu nodded his head in delight. Then, he picked up the Transmittance Talisman in his right hand and called out to the rest of the team leaders, ¡°Is everyone in position? Are you all prepared to strike?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re ready.¡± Several voices echoed affirmatively through the Transmittance Talisman.

    ¡°Very good. On my count, lead your teams and charge in at the same time...¡±

    ¡°Three...¡±

    ¡°Two...¡±

    ¡°One!¡±

    As soon as Du Yongxu¡¯s final count echoed out through the Transmittance Talismans, a swarm of people began to charge at the campsite from three separate directions. Yet the members of the Heavenly Peak faction remained seeming oblivious to this fact. Those who were asleep remained asleep; those who were meditating continued to meditate, and even those who were standing guard continued to chat with each other in a rxed manner. None of them were aware of the imminent dangers approaching them.

    The mass of people charging towards the Heavenly Peak faction were disciples from teams which the Eternal Summit Sect had rescued over the course of the group battles. These teams wanted to disy their abilities, and they naturally charged with invigoration. Within moments, they were at the borders of the campsite.

    A victorious, vicious smile was stered on all of their faces.

    Just then, the person furthest ahead of all who charged forward suddenly paused in his steps. His entire body quivered slightly, and then he remained still where he was.

    ¡°What happened to you?¡± Another person ran up to him and patted his shoulder. In the next moment, he felt a wave of immense pain and numbness spread from his palm throughout his entire body, and his feet instantly stopped moving.

    Just like a contagious virus, the assants that had charged en masse froze mid-charge one after another. To onlookers in the audience, this sight was incrediblyical.

    Yet those who were trapped hardly found their predicamentical at all. After all, they had instantly recognized the fact that they might very well have fallen for the schemes of the Heavenly Peak faction.

    Worse still, their Invisibility Talismans immediately lost their effects the moment they found themselves locked in ce, and their locations were immediately revealed for the Heavenly Peak faction to see. At this moment, the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect, the Purple Hut Sect and the Heavenly Peak no longer looked like sheep to the ughter. Instead, they each began to stand up and rouse from their ¡°slumber¡± as they looked menacingly towards these assants.

    Their eyes were filled with the same type of looks ¨C a frosty, marrow-prating gaze.

    The assants who were slower on their feet recognized that something was wrong, and their instincts told them to take a step back and retreat from this dastardly ce. But as soon as they attempted to take a step back, they felt like there was a solid, immovable wall behind where they were, and they were unable to take more than a single step back. There was nowhere for them to retreat to.

    Kacha... A crisp sound rang from below their feet. After a wave of intense bright blue light, everyone discovered that their appearances had been fully revealed.

    Just like that, these three teams that had viciously charged towards the Heavenly Peak faction suddenly found themselvespletely trapped within a small space that was ten meters from where the campsite was. Cold sweat began to emerge profusely from their foreheads, bead up and roll off their faces.

    The greatest fear known to Man was the unknown and the unexpected. This was exactly what the three teams were experiencing now ¨C they did not know what to expect in such circumstances, and they feared what the Heavenly Peak faction might do to them.

    ¡°Hah~¡± A crisp and victorious chuckle rang out among the Heavenly Peak disciples. As everyone turned to look at the source of this voice, they discovered ady dressed in striking red walk out among the group of tall and well-built martial brothers of hers.

    ¡°You guys are sure filled with vigor toe knocking on our doors this early in the morning.¡± A scornful smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, ¡°Tell me, what were you guys thinking of doing? Were you thinking of snatching the identity tokens on our hands? Or were you simply...trying to take our lives?¡±

    As she spoke, the smile on her face disappeared, and her gaze became as sharp and incisive as daggers as they pierced straight into the hearts of the assants.

    One of the leaders of these teams of assants was so intimidated by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s overbearing aura that he even took one step back. Then in the next moment, an immense sense of indignation swelled up from the depths of his heart ¨C

    She was only in the sixth level of Qi Mastery, while he was already in the twelfth level of Qi Mastery and on the brink of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. What was he doing being afraid of the piece of trash standing in front of him right now?!

    As he thought more about it, he took one step forward and stared straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes and forced the issue, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯d better let us off right now, otherwise we¡¯re going to teach you what regret truly means!¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that so...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin and raised her eyebrows as she quipped, ¡°But something tells me that I¡¯ll only regret it if I let you go. See, despite the fact that I¡¯ve already trapped you, you still appear as though you want to take my life as though I¡¯d previously wronged you for something.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo spoke with some ambiguity, causing everyone around her to chuckle involuntarily.

    Naturally, the ones who were bound found themselves unable tough at the situation. Their team leader only grew more incensed as he chuckled bitterly with humiliation, ¡°Keep pping your lips right now. Be careful you don¡¯t regret it and cryter!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Pray tell, how are you going to make us cry when you¡¯re trapped right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically.

    ¡°Of course it¡¯s...¡± The leader was just about to continue when a cold voice in his ear excoriated him ¨C ¡°Shut up!¡±

    This voice was naturally from Du Yongxu, and it had directly been transmitted into the team leader¡¯s ears. Nobody else heard what he said.

    Thus, in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, the vengeful team leader suddenly paused mid-sentence and grew taciturn as he continued to re at Jun Xiaomo.

    If stares could kill, Jun Xiaomo believed that her body would already have been turned into a piece of swiss cheese by now.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and thought silently for a moment, before she suddenly burst out into a lighthearted chuckle, ¡°I understand. You remain convicted that you¡¯ll be able to escape from this trap because you must still have a hidden leader that hasn¡¯t made their appearance, right? Let me guess...they¡¯re from...the Eternal Summit Sect?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words shocked the team leader who ran off his mouth earlier. His heart constricted, before he put on a fierce front to cover the growing meekness in his heart, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. What do you mean by leader...what a joke!¡±

    ¡°The joke¡¯s on you. How can you be obsequiously taking orders from another sect¡¯s leader as a team leader?¡± Without hesitation, Jun Xiaomo responded with the most provocative words that burrowed straight into the team leader¡¯s sore spot.

    These words were incredibly humiliating if spoken to any team leader. After all, it expressly puts in question their ability to lead. Unfortunately, the team leader was unable to find any words to refute Jun Xiaomo at all.

    He could only re straight back at Jun Xiaomo with indignation, before turning his head away as he grew taciturn.

    ¡°Since none of you are willing to tell me, then I¡¯ll just have to resort to some measures to wee you as our ¡®guests from afar¡¯.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke enigmatically, leaving the bound and constricted assants nervous at the ambiguity of her words. Their foreheads werepletely drenched in sweat by now.

    A deep sense of uneasiness surged from the depths of their hearts.

 Chapter 215: The Cannon Fodderâ€™s Debacle

    <h4>Chapter 215: The Cannon Fodder¡¯s Debacle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    These assants had always been running about busying themselves within thepetition grounds, and they had naturally never witnessed the formidable strengths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays.

    In fact, even the members of the audience felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities and understanding of formation arrays was extremely limited, as though she had only tapped on the tip of the iceberg.

    Thus, when Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Fettering Array bound and locked in ce the buffoons who had mindlessly charged towards them, before usingyers andyers of formidable formation arrays to torment them so much that they began to cry and howl and even call for their mother, several members of the audience began to get shivers down their spines ¨C Thisdy is far too fearsome. How in the world did she be so proficient with her formation arrays? Even the disciples in the Purple Hut Sect who are known for their formation arrays can¡¯t hold a candle to her.

    During the course of the torment, Jun Xiaomo had only slightly adjusted the formation array from time to time ¨C adding a stone to the formation array, removing a twig, shifting some spirit stones about. Yet her actions had resulted in incredible changes to the environment within her formation array. Crackles of earsplitting thunder would ring out and lightning shed, before it changed to a vicious windstorm, and then yet again to snow and hail. This waspletely out of the ordinary, and every change of the environmental condition would bring with them incredible powers of devastation.

    Amidst the chaos within the formation array, nobody in the audience was able to peer into what exactly was going on within the formation array. Notwithstanding that, they could hear cry after cry of tragic groans andmentations, each of which were incredibly shrill and bloodcurdling.

    This caused everyone¡¯s hearts to shudder in shock.

    Array masters were separated into different sses. Those who were able to discard their books and manuscripts on formation arrays and set up simple formation arrays in real life were considered to have just passably stepped onto the paths of bing an array master.

    Those who were able to build on such a foundation and set up slightly moreplicated formation arrays, such as the offensive arrays or the Fettering Array used by Jun Xiaomo, would be considered a first-grade array master.

    What Jun Xiaomo was doing right now, which was to use elements of her environment together with the resources on hand to create formation arrays, and even adjust her formation arrays from time to time, was something that had surpassed the abilities of most third-grade array masters.

    What level had Jun Xiaomo¡¯s understanding of formation arrays already reached? Not even Jun Xiaomo knew this answer, much less anyone in the audience. But this did not prevent her from using form after form of her formation array against her assants.

    The Dragontiger Sect¡¯s sect leader had alreadye looking for Jun Linxuan on the second day of the group battles. Right now, as he watched the present scene unfold before his very eyes in the water screen, heughed heartily as he remarked to Jun Linxuan, ¡°Your daughter is truly as outstanding as you are. Just look at her. She gives off the air of a great general that can hold her own against ten thousand.¡±

    Jun Linxuan revealed a faint smile on his face, yet he sighed helplessly in his heart ¨C

    Had he failed as a father for being too unconcerned about his own daughter? He was unaware of where his daughter had learnt all these strange abilities from after all.

    Regardless of what the audience members were thinking, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s torment of the assants finally ended after approximately one hour.

    As soon as the immense winds and lightning within the frightening formation array dissipated, the appearances of these assants finally became clear for all to see. Many of them had been tormented so harshly that they had passed outpletely, leaving only slightly over ten stronger disciples who remained conscious. That said, these disciples who were conscious were no longer standing and squaring off against Jun Xiaomo with the aggressive attitude that they wore earlier. All of them were lying in a tragic state on the ground with faces scrunched up tightly as they clutched at the respective parts of their bodies that were experiencing the most pain right now. Their clothing was dishevelled and covered with dirt.

    In fact, there was not a single part of their respective bodies that did not feel an ounce of pain. Their skin had even been burnt to a charred crisp by the lightning strikes earlier together with their clothing. The sight that had just unfolded gave an impression that was no different to that of a pile of corpses.

    It was almost as though these disciples had just been put though the test of tribtion lightning.

    Of course, there was no way that Jun Xiaomo could create formation arrays to call upon tribtion lightning with her present abilities. That said, this small-scale formation array was far more than enough to teach the assants a good lesson.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Do you still intend to butt heads with me?¡± Jun Xiaomo walked over to one of the still-conscious disciples as she stared down at him from up high.

    ¡°I...I¡¯ll speak. I¡¯ll confess everything to you...¡± Seeing that the Eternal Summit Sect disciples had not made their appearance after such a long time, the disciples who had been so severely tormented could no longer bother to keep mum about their secrets.

    They knew that they might not even be able to leave these marsnds with their lives intact if they continued to be stubborn. After all, none of the participants were prohibited from killing other disciples during the course of these group battles. That said, participants generally would not kill another disciple if there was no need for the same, because doing so would invariably create a rift between the two sects and even spark a war between the sects.

    Thus, the assant began to reveal everything to Jun Xiaomo, from how the Eternal Summit Sect disciples had rescued them to Du Yongxu¡¯s finalmand to attack the campsite and create as much of a disturbance as they could so that the Eternal Summit Sect disciples could take the rest of the Heavenly Peak faction by surprise and round up everyone.

    The only problem was that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples had not appeared despite the fact that they had been tormented for such a long time. This meant one of two possibilities:

    The first possibility was that the team from the Eternal Summit Sect realized that they were no match for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction, and they had decided to retreat. The other possibility was that the Eternal Summit Sect had simply been making use of the other teams following them, and they had never thought about rescuing them to begin with. In other words, the team from the Eternal Summit Sect had been using them no more as a probe or a cannon fodder to begin with.

    Whichever possibility it was, the coalition of assants formed by the three teams couldn¡¯t help but have the sudden urge to call out the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples and beat an answer out of them.

    But that was only if they had the ability to call them out and beat them up.

    Jun Xiaomo had already suspected that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples were behind all of this. Thus, when she finished listening to the assant¡¯s confessions, she only raised her eyebrow slightly, before ncing nonchntly towards where the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples were hiding as she grew taciturn.

    After all, she knew that there was nothing else she would be able to get out of these assants.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, I think it will suffice if we seize the identity tokens of these disciples and disqualify them from these group battles. What do you think?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked over at Chen Feiyu as she inquired.

    ¡°We¡¯ll do as martial sister has suggested then. They didn¡¯t manage to cause us too much harm after all.¡± Chen Feiyu nodded his head.

    ¡°Thank you...thank you...thank you...¡± On the ground, the leader of the teams of assants forcibly sat up and bowed fervently to thank Jun Xiaomo for her mercy. It was as though they were afraid that Jun Xiaomo would continue to torment them if they failed to show appreciation for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mercy at this point in time.

    Wei Gang brandished his fists as he walked over to the leader¡¯s side and...knocked him unconscious with one blow.

    ¡°Tch. So noisy. He was so aggressive and headstrong earlier, yet all he knows to do now is to fervently thank martial sister. He¡¯s practically a spineless coward.¡±

    Wei Gang began to grow even more disdainful of the members of these sects who went along with whichever way the wind blew.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled, but she did not restrain Wei Gang¡¯s action. Then, with the help of her other martial brothers, they removed the identity tokens of all these assants. As a result, the Dawn Sect¡¯s standing in the group battles shot upwards and drew even closer to the Eternal Summit Sect that was still in first ce.

    On the other side, Du Yongxu¡¯s martial brothers minced towards him as they asked, ¡°Young master, what do we do now? Those bunch of people earlier werepletely useless. They were defeated before they could even achieve anything. Do we still attack in ordance with our earlier ns?¡±

    Du Yongxu squinted his eyes and deliberated for a moment before he responded, ¡°Did all of you bring the talismans that renders you invulnerable from the effects of formation arrays?¡±

    ¡°This...we did bring them, but do we really have to resort to these talismans?¡± The Du n disciple responded with hesitance.

    These talismans were not things that could simply be created out of the blue. In fact, these Array Invulnerability Talismans were items that could fetch a hefty price in auction houses. Cultivators who enjoyed venturing into unchartered territories would generally purchase and keep a few of these Array Invulnerability Talismans as a mainstay in their Interspatial Rings. After all, these Array Invulnerability Talismans might end up saving the lives of these thrill-seekers in moments of dangers.

    The Du n disciples were hardlycking in precious resources. Ever since they were born, they were already granted ess to the insurmountable riches within their sect and given ess to these precious resources. The Array Invulnerability Talismans was one of these resources, and each and every disciple would be given three of these.

    The only problem was that using one of these Array Invulnerability Talismans in such a small battlefield seemed like aplete waste. Did they really have to resort to such measures? They were only dealing with the disciples from measly Secondary Sects after all.

    And to top it all off, the disciple with the highest cultivation level was only at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure all of you have witnessed it for yourselves earlier. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays isn¡¯t something that we can treat lightly. If the Heavenly Peak disciplesprised of only the other disciples in their team, then there¡¯s naturally no need to deal with them so seriously. However, they presently have the augmentation of talismans and formation arrays backing them, so our odds of victory are much less certain than it otherwise would have been. If we rushed headlong into the fray like what the other teams had done earlier and find ourselves bound by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays, no amount of strength or cultivation prowess would enable us to worm our way out of that situation.¡± Du Yongxu broke down the situation and exined rationally.

    He was a proud man, but that did not mean that he was a brainless buffoon. As he observed how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction had disposed of the other teams, he had at the same time discreetlymunicated with Du Ruiguang through the Du n¡¯s unique Transmittance Talisman. At that time, Du Ruiguang had admitted that even he would be unable to employ formation arrays to the level of proficiency that Jun Xiaomo did.

    After all, Du Ruiguang had channeled his time and attention towards the management of his n as well as increasing his own cultivation levels. The disciplines of talismans and formation arrays were naturally things outside of the scope of his consideration.

    ¡°Even the n Head is helpless against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays?¡±

    ¡°Father has mentioned that only array masters at the third-grade or higher would be able to understand the profundity of what Jun Xiaomo had done.¡± Du Yongxu rted to the other Du n disciples.

    ¡°Third-grade?!¡± The Du n disciples drew a cold breath, ¡°Generally speaking, a cultivator would need to hone his skills for at least two hundred to three hundred years before they can qualify as a third-grade array master. How in the world did Jun Xiaomo achieve all this?!¡±

    ¡°Who knows? She¡¯s full of secrets.¡± Du Yongxu gazed beyond the disciples of the Heavenly Peak faction and trained his eyes on Jun Xiaomo and her striking red garbs. His eyes darkened.

    It suddenly urred to him that perhaps it might be far more exciting and thrilling to dig up these deeply hidden secrets within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart rather than to kill her immediately.

    If I¡¯m able to tear apart her pretenses and expose heryer uponyer of deeply hidden secrets to her world, wouldn¡¯t she appear uncharacteristically frantic and distraught? That would be far more exciting, wouldn¡¯t it?

    A wicked smile crept up the corner of Du Yongxu¡¯s lips, and nefarious intentions were written all over his face.

    Jun Xiaomo suddenly shivered, and she furrowed her brows.

    ¡°Martial sister, what¡¯s the matter? Are you feeling cold?¡± Wei Gang noticed Jun Xiaomo shiver.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It could just be a conditioned reflex.¡± Jun Xiaomo shrugged it off. After all, how could a cultivator catch a cold so easily? They were not mere mortals who did not have the protection of spiritual energy after all.

    ¡°Conditioned reflex?¡± Wei Gang scratched his head in confusion.

    Since he was unable to understand her response, he decided to shelf that thought for now.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right, martial sister.¡± Wei Gang recalled something else, ¡°Have all of our formation arrays been depleted? If there are still hidden enemies, shouldn¡¯t we set up new formation arrays?¡±

    He had earlier been so impressed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays that the first thing that came to his mind to deal with any remaining opponents was to resort to formation arrays once more.

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it, before she suddenly smiled, ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡±

    ¡°No need? Why?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll know when the timees.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head, ¡°We¡¯ve already used sufficient formation arrays for now.¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± Wei Gang couldn¡¯t understand formation arrays, so he simply nodded his head. Since his martial sister had concluded that it was enough, then it must be enough.

    The truth of the matter was that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays had indeed beenpletely spent after that one use thest time. However, now that she had given it some thought, she believed that there was no need to set up any more formation arrays.

    Her opponents were hidden and moving in the dark, while they were exposed in the light. Their opponents had clearly sent the other teams earlier as cannon fodder to test out their formation arrays, and they would undoubtedly have thought up of some countermeasures against her formation arrays. Thus, Jun Xiaomo firmly believed that after one use, these formation arrays would no longer be an appropriate countermeasure against their opponents.

    Setting up the same formation arrays to deal with her opponents right now might just be a waste of spirit stones instead.

    Having made up her mind, Jun Xiaomo began to think of a new way to ¡°wee¡± the vermin that were hidden in the dark.

 Chapter 216: Isolating Jun Xiaomo in Combat

    <h4>Chapter 216: Isting Jun Xiaomo in Combat</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Du Yongxu was unaware of the fact that Jun Xiaomo had relegated his standing in her heart to no more than that of vermin. If he knew about this, his pride and self-image might even give rise to an urge to cleave Jun Xiaomo into countless pieces to rid himself of such a dissonant view.

    Right now, all the Du n disciples concerned themselves about was how they could quickly dispose of the Heavenly Peak faction andplete the task entrusted to them by the Du n Head.

    The Du n disciples were thoroughly confident of their own abilities. After all, there were only twenty disciples from the Heavenly Peak, and the strongest disciple there was only at the eleventh level of Qi Mastery. Even if there were three times as many such disciples from Heavenly Peak, the Du n disciples were still confident that they would have an edge over their opponents and be able to defeat them.

    ¡°I want you to draw the attention of all the other Heavenly Peak disciples awayter. I¡¯ll deal with Jun Xiaomo alone.¡± Du Yongxu instructed.

    ¡°Young master, Jun Xiaomo is only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Is there really a need for you to personally make a move?¡± one of the Du n disciples asked.

    ¡°You don¡¯t understand. She¡¯s the heart of the entire Heavenly Peak faction. Father says that she¡¯s invented a form of group battle tactics that might make them much more difficult to deal with. The quicker we get rid of her, the smoother our path will be.¡± Du Yongxu calmly explicated.

    ¡°That makes sense. I can¡¯t wait to get rid of these Heavenly Peak disciples. Thesepetitions have nothing to do with us to begin with, yet we still have to remain in this god-forsaken ce for three whole days. The other teams here are all so weak ¨C it¡¯s just too boring!¡± Another Du n discipleined.

    ¡°Alright, Ah-Wu, that¡¯s enough. This is the n Head¡¯s decision after all. Are you casting aspersions on his decision here?¡± Du Yongxu questioned with some measure of irritation in his voice.

    The disciple named ¡°Ah-Wu¡± no longer dared to run off his mouth and grew taciturn. Who dared to cast aspersions on the n Head¡¯s decision?! Had he given up on life? He was not Du Yongxu after all. Du Yongxu was the n Head¡¯s son, and Du Yongxu was naturally able to speak far more callously because he knew that there would be immense indulgence given to him on ount for the deep and profound backing behind him.

    Besides, this disciple was only rather displeased with the ufortable and disgusting environment. After all, Ah-Wu had never left the Du n¡¯s grounds, and he rarely ever came across such unforgiving environments where food was scarce, and thends were filled with disgusting creepy crawlies and the ilk.

    Du Yongxu retrieved an Array Invulnerability Talisman from his Interspatial Ring and applied it onto himself. Then, he gestured for the other Du n disciples to do the same.

    The other Du n disciples naturallyplied and did as they were instructed.

    The effect of these talismanssted for twenty-four hours, or one full day, and it would be more than enough for their purposes right now. That said, the Du n disciples felt that the use of such precious and valuables right now was too much of a waste, and their hearts ached slightly.

    Yet they could only consider this as an investment for a far greater reward once they managed toplete the Du n Head¡¯s task for them.

    Naturally, the Du n disciples considered this to be an extremely simple task of killing off some inconsequential people that were hardly going to be worth any challenge to them.

    Notwithstanding that, given that the task was directly ordered by the Du n Head, they knew that the rewards were going to be worth their while. They might even obtain several treasures that might seriously boost their cultivation efficacy and lend them a hand with their breakthroughs.

    It was no wonder a great number of Du n disciples signed up for this task as soon as it was announced to the entire n.

    But what the Du n disciples didn¡¯t know was that Jun Xiaomo had never intended to deal with them using formation arrays at all. At the very least, she did not intend to expend any further spirit stones setting up powerful formation arrays to deter their approach.

    Her enemies were hidden and moving in the dark, while the Heavenly Peak faction waspletely exposed in broad daylight. Jun Xiaomo knew that the Du n disciples had been observing their actions and she had already expected them to havee up with some countermeasures against her formation arrays.

    In other words, the Du n disciples had practically wasted their Array Invulnerability Talismans.

    While Du Yongxu was rying his instructions to the other Du n disciples, Jun Xiaomo and the rest were also brainstorming the necessary countermeasures against their opponents.

    Jun Xiaomo thought for a moment, and a fantastic idea crossed her mind. She walked over to where the leaders of the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect, Luo Xuyuan and Meng Huanqiu, were located, and she whispered some words into their ears. As she continued, the frowns on their faces slowly faded away and were reced by an expression of realization and delight.

    ¡°Great idea!¡± Meng Huanqiu patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as sheughed heartily, ¡°As expected, the feeling of oveing our opponents is great! I¡¯m truly astonished at how sister Xiaomo could¡¯ve thought of this countermeasure in such a short period of time!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows in delight as she exchanged meaningful nces with Luo Xuyuan and Meng Huanqiu.

    Outside the marsnds, the Du n Head, Du Ruiguang noticed the wicked smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face as well. It was evident that she hade up with some measures to receive the Du n disciples with. He had witnessed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s proficiency with her strategies, and he couldn¡¯t help but wish that her ns had been revealed to the audience as well. Yet to his dismay, Jun Xiaomo was far too vignt. She had particrly made it a point to soften her voice to a whisper during their battle strategy discussions, and the members of the audience werepletely kept in the dark as to the entire contents of their discussions.

    A sense of frustration swelled up in the heart of the Du n Head. Yet even then, he could onlymunicate with Du Yongxu through his Transmittance Talisman and remind Du Yongxu and the others to be careful and mindful of what strategies Jun Xiaomo might be nning.

    They had to be careful of any hidden cards in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Mm, alright. I¡¯ve got it, father.¡± After corresponding with his father, Du Ruiguang, using his divine sense, he removed the Transmittance Talisman from his hand.

    ¡°Young master, what did the n Head say?¡± The Du n disciples asked.

    ¡°Nothing much. He only wanted us to be mindful that Jun Xiaomo might still have some tricks up her sleeves.¡± Du Yongxu exined, causing the other disciples to find themselves slightly bewildered and respond rather disdainfully ¨C

    ¡°She¡¯s only a cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery...does the n Head really need to keep reminding us like that?¡± They simply could not wrap their heads around it, ¡°If her countermeasuresprised solely of her formation arrays, we¡¯ll practically be impervious to it since we¡¯ve already applied on ourselves the Array Invulnerability Talismans.¡±

    ¡°Father¡¯s never wrong.¡± Du Yongxu calmly responded, tacitly signifying his intentions not to pursue this line of discourse any further.

    The other Du n disciples picked up on his intentions and immediately grew taciturn.

    In the next few moments, Du Yongxu began to lead the Du n disciples and sneak towards the campsite where the Heavenly Peak disciples were located. The Invisibility Talismans on their bodies were still effective, so Jun Xiaomo and the rest were unable to see or sense the auras of the Du n disciples that were quickly approaching their location.

    That said, the Heavenly Peak disciples had already adopted a defensive position as well ¨C they huddled close together with their backs facing each other as they nced vigntly around at their surroundings, ready to respond at the slightest signs of an attack.

    In fact, their lines of sight and divine sense had swept across the Du n disciples¡¯ bodies several times, yet none of them had managed to discover their locations for now.

    Even then, Jun Xiaomo had a hunch that their assants were not too far away now. Her eyes gleamed coldly.

    ¡°Go!¡± Du Yongxu signaled to the Du n disciples, and all of them rushed out at the same time as theyunched fric attacks and spells at the Heavenly Peak disciples who were huddled closely together.

    The Du n disciples¡¯ offensive abilities were far greater than those who had attacked the Heavenly Peak disciples some time ago. At the very least, whether it was the range or power of their attacks, the Du n disciples were undoubtedly far stronger than any of their contemporaries from the other Secondary Sects.

    Despite being prepared for the attack, the countless spells that rained on them from all directions meant that the Heavenly Peak disciples would invariably sustain some damage and injuries.

    Fortunately, the talisman that Jun Xiaomo had earlier handed to them blocked and absorbed a substantial part of the damage from these attacks. Otherwise, many of the Heavenly Peak disciples would find themselves severely wounded by now.

    Once theyunched the attacks, the cloaking effect on the Du n disciples were naturally lost as well. Nevertheless, the Du n disciples did not give the Heavenly Peak disciples any breathing room. Moments after the opening volley of attacks, the Du n disciples immediately sent another wave of attacks straight at the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Outside the marsnds, everyone watched as the Heavenly Peak disciples were enveloped by a never-ending barrage of powerful spells that covered the skies. The visual effects of this was nearly akin to what Jun Xiaomo had achieved earlier when she had tormented the cannon fodder with her formation array.

    In fact, the parallel caused several members of the audience to think of the irony of the entire situation ¨C the Heavenly Peak disciples were getting a taste of their own medicine right now.

    Most importantly, how many of these Heavenly Peak disciples would still be able to stand after such powerful waves of attacks?

    The members of the audience all watched on with bated breaths with a variety of different emotions in their hearts. Some were worried; some delighted in their misery; and yet some others simply relished in the fact that they were mere observers as they watched expectantly at the show that was unfolding before their very eyes.

    Even though there were other teams that were still struggling at other parts of the marsnds right now, everyone¡¯s attention was undoubtedly transfixed at the battle unfolding between the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples and the Heavenly Peak disciples. Everyone could hardly wait to find out whether the Heavenly Peak disciples would rise to the asion and ovee the greatest adversity they had faced thus far, or whether they would be defeated and be beaten to the ground.

    However, the next development surprised everyone. While the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples continued tounch wave after wave of attacks at the Heavenly Peak disciples without stopping, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s leader suddenly rushed into the fray and plunged into the heat of battle.

    His speed was incredibly quick ¨C faster than anyone else in thepetition. In the blink of an eye, he arrived at where the Heavenly Peak disciples were located.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were bitterly struggling to counteract and deal with the powerful waves of attacks that were battering hard against their shields and defenses, and nobody had the time nor ability to keep track of their opponents¡¯ movements. Thus, none of the Heavenly Peak disciples managed to react on time when Du Yongxu rushed into their midst.

    This included the person being protected by the encirclement of Heavenly Peak disciples, Jun Xiaomo.

    Just as Du Yongxu had anticipated, Jun Xiaomo was the heart, soul and mind of this team of Heavenly Peak disciples. Naturally, these disciples would fervently protect the core of their team in the heart of their defensive formation.

    Perhaps even Jun Xiaomo and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had not noticed this fact. They had simply moved ording to theirbat instincts and adopted the best formation for defending against these attacks. Thus, Jun Xiaomo found herself in the center of this encirclement where her exposure to these relentless barrages of attacks was the smallest.

    Du Yongxu had precisely charged straight into the heart of this encirclement, where his eyes immediately met with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback by this sudden development, but she quicklyposed herself. A cold gleam shed across her eyes as sheshed out with her whip against the attack that had just beenunched by Du Yongxu.

    Du Yongxu had used only thirty percent of his power on this attack, but his attack made Jun Xiaomo¡¯s entire arm feel numb. Jun Xiaomo even nearly lost grip of her whip.

    So powerful! Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists and furrowed her brows as she looked at Du Yongxu in horror.

    This person is definitely not the leader of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples...the real leader doesn¡¯t possess such power...

    She gripped her whip tightly as her vignce surged and her battle intent burgeoned.

    ¡°Hah, not bad. Your reflexes are quick, and your temperament is pretty good.¡± Du Yongxu praised Jun Xiaomo in a somewhat mocking manner, ¡°Your next opponent is me. Are you ready?¡±

    As he spoke, he waved his hand, and all of the Du n disciples instantly rushed straight into the fray. As soon as Jun Xiaomo managed to react to the sudden developments in this battle, she found that she had already been separated and isted from her martial brothers.

    In other words, amidst the chaotic conditions of this battle, she was suddenly isted and left to deal with Du Yongxu alone!

 Chapter 217: Du Yongxu vs Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 217: Du Yongxu vs Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face revealed nothing more than a trace of astonishment. Within moments, she managed topose herself and began to contemte several strategies to deal with her present predicament.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stoicism in the face of danger made Du Yongxu elevate his assessment of Jun Xiaomo, albeit ever so slightly.

    In Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes, without the backing of her powerful formation arrays and her talismans, Jun Xiaomo was nothing more than a sheep to the ughter. He could practically do whatever he wanted with her, and she would not be able to do a thing against him.

    ¡°Thunderp Mantra!¡± Du Yongxu suddenly waved his arms andunched his next attack. Just like that, over ten bolts of lightning immediately struck at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    This sudden attack took Jun Xiaomo by surprise. Lightning-based spells were the quickest, second only to wind-based spells. Additionally, lightning-based spells possessed the strongest offensive powers among the spells of all elemental affinities.

    Thus, it was toote to avoid the attack by the time she reacted. She only had the time to retrieve a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and apply that talisman directly on her palm to block some of the oing damage.

    After blocking this wave of attack, the talisman immediately self-immted and burnt up ¨C it had lost its effect extremely quickly.

    Jun Xiaomo only possessed two such defensive talismans in her Interspatial Ring. Furthermore, these talismans were the strongest talismans that she could create given her current cultivation level right now. In fact, the creation of each one of these talismans was so draining to her that she would have to rest for almost half a month before she couldmence on the next one again.

    And one had immediately been used up just like that. Jun Xiaomo knew that she could not continue to rely on her talismans like this.

    These thoughts had also crossed Du Yongxu¡¯s mind as well. A smile crept up the corner of his lips as he chuckled wickedly, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you think you can keep on relying on these defensive talismans against me? Relying on talismans won¡¯t be enough if you want to deal with me...I¡¯ll let you know that that earlier attackprised of only thirty percent of my full power.¡±

    Du Yongxu¡¯s abilities were already in the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. This was several qualitative levels higher than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s levels of cultivation. Furthermore, Du Yongxu was equipped with some items that augmented the power of his abilities, making him far stronger than the average cultivator at the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo had managed to dodge slightly earlier, she might very well have been seriously injured from Du Yongxu¡¯s earlier attack notwithstanding the fact that she had applied a defensive talisman on her body.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, but her eyes glistened with an unwavering battle intent. Jun Xiaomo would never give up so easily.

    Besides, her opponent clearly came with nefarious intentions, and it was evident that Jun Xiaomo would not be able to simply escape even if she admitted defeat.

    I have to give it my all!

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo began to imbue her limbs and joints with her true energy so that she could increase her senses and reflexes to avoid Du Yongxu¡¯s oing attacks in the quickest time possible.

    In other words, Jun Xiaomo had tentatively given up on all aggression, and she had focused everything she had on her defenses.

    No, it was not right to say that she had given up on all her offensive abilities. After all, she still wielded her whip in her arms. That said, that was about all the aggression she wielded at this point in time. She did not imbue her whip with any of her spiritual energy or demonic energy, and the offensive abilities of each whish was not even at ten percent of what they could normally achieve.

    Naturally, ten percent of her usual power was clearly insufficient to hurt Du Yongxu. Jun Xiaomo knew this full well. Thus, she was certain that if she were toe out on top of her current predicament, she would have to bide her time and wait for the prime opportunity to counterattack.

    Du Yongxu discovered that Jun Xiaomo had consciously adopted a passive stance, and he began to grow disinterested in this battle. However, he was still rather intrigued by the spirited gaze in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    Du Yongxu enjoyed the game of cat-and-mouse with his opponents. The more determined the ¡°mouse¡± was, the more exciting the game would be.

    Just like those human sacrifices that the Du n was built upon ¨C they struggled to the bitter end, but they still ended up yielding up their lives to their undeniable fate.

    ¡°Spark Serpent Fetters.¡± Du Yongxu slowly muttered the mnemonics for another spell. A serpent made of electricity immediately congealed in his hands and shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo. She dodged to the side, but the spark serpent continued to give chase after her.

    It was as though the spark serpent had a spirit of its own and intended to trap Jun Xiaomo within its lightning fetters.

    The strength of this spell was not in its offensive abilities. Rather, it was in the fact that it could restrain its opponent and numb their senses with lightning, even causing them to pass out.

    Jun Xiaomo had seen such a spell before. The agility and uracy of this spell grew in ordance with its user¡¯s cultivation level and spirit.

    In other words, if Du Yongxu had already attained a cultivation level at the advanced-tier Foundation Establishment stage, he would very easily be able totch this spell onto Jun Xiaomo and bind and fetter her. However, he was only at the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and this meant that Jun Xiaomo still able to avoid this spell cast by Du Yongxu.

    Apart from the true energy within her body, Jun Xiaomo possessed an uncanny ability to predict her opponent¡¯s next moves, and she knew exactly when the spark serpent would charge at her and when it would attempt to fetter her.

    Thus, in the eyes of the audience, Jun Xiaomo looked as though she managed to ¡°fortunately¡± avoid the spark serpent¡¯s fetters in the nick of time.

    After a few moments, the spark serpent faded away, and Jun Xiaomo remained unscathed.

    A trace of fascination flickered across the depths of Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes. He did not watch the Lower Category battles at all, and he found himselfpletely disinterested by even the Middle Category and Open Category battles.

    After all, these battles were like child¡¯s y given the extent of his present abilities.

    Although he did not watch the battles, he had nevertheless learnt that Jun Xiaomo had made a name for herself over the course of the Lower Category battles. After all, a contestant at the sixth level of Qi Mastery had defeated several opponents two or three levels stronger than her to obtain the title of champion of the Lower Category battles.

    Prior to his battle with Jun Xiaomo, Du Yongxu had concluded that there was nothing special about this, because he knew that Jun Xiaomo was Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter, and he thought that she might have won because of the invaluable treasures on her body which augmented her abilities and made up for her cultivation deficiencies.

    But at this moment, he knew that he might well have underestimated this female cultivator in front of him. In fact, he had begun to suspect that Jun Xiaomo might harbour other secrets apart from her knowledge with her formation arrays and talismans.

    Du Yongxu licked his lips. His gaze sharpened, before he released a chain attack, ¡°Chain Lightning Wave!¡±

    Bolt after bolt of lightning began to arc menacingly from his hands and dense forks of lightning filled the air as they surged towards Jun Xiaomo in a wave-like manner. It was mind-numbingly fearsome.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whipshed out madly, leaving innumerable afterimages where they had been. This sight was contrasted by the relentless fluttering of her sleeves, leaving an image that looked almost like a striking-red butterfly was dancing about delicately in the midst of a wave of lightning arcs and forks. It was an incredibly stunning disy of abilities.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s dazzling performancested only a few short moments, Du Yongxu¡¯s gaze had been transfixed on his target all this while, and he had captured every moment of it. Within moments, his gaze grew profoundly deep and abstruse.

    It had just dawned on him that thisdy before his very eyes had changed very much from their earlier encounter when he deemed her nothing more than in and uninteresting. At the very least, back when he had encountered Jun Xiaomo at the Death¡¯s Gorge, she absolutely did not leave him astonished with such a breathtaking performance.

    Du Yongxu suddenly wanted to know how long his intrigue with Jun Xiaomo wouldst.

    Thus, he began tounch a series of attacks at her ¨C

    ¡°X-Lightning!¡±

    ¡°Lightning Inferno!¡±

    ¡°Violent Spark Firebolt!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo counted herself incredibly lucky that there was true energy running through her body instead of spiritual energy or demonic energy. Otherwise, with such relentless attacks, the energy in her body would have beenpletely depleted by now.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo!¡±

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples had discovered the graveness of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s plight, and they wanted so much to rush over to her aid. Yet Jun Xiaomo stopped them froming over.

    ¡°Don¡¯te over yet! Deal with those in front of you!¡± Jun Xiaomo shouted at her martial brothers.

    They had earlier agreed on the best formation to adopt to deal with their opponents so as to give rise to the highest odds of sess. She knew that she could not afford to let their strategies go up in smoke just because of her own ineptitude.

    Furthermore, she knew that she only needed to hold out for less than an hour now, and the situation might change for the better.

    Du Yongxu waspletely unaware of the contemtions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. He simply attributed her fighting spirit to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stubbornness.

    It¡¯s good that you¡¯re stubborn. This way, I can slowly y with you and torment you. Du Yongxu remarked in his heart, and the wicked smile on his face widened.

    In the audience stand, those who were supporting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction in their heart couldn¡¯t help but develop the urge to tear that wicked smile on Du Yongxu¡¯s face to pieces; while those who had expected something like this, including He Zhang and Dai Yanfeng, revealed malicious, evil grins on their faces.

    ¡°Haha, not bad at all. You truly live up to your name as the champion of the Lower Category battles despite your cultivation at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. But I¡¯m d that¡¯s the case. These games wouldn¡¯t be enjoyable otherwise.¡±

    Du Yongxu grinned wickedly as he spoke, before crying out, ¡°Heavenly Thunderwave!¡±

    Crackle! A thunderbolt crackled out of the blue and shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    Jun Xiaomoshed out with her whip again with a loud battle cry as she leaned towards the side. Her whip that had been imbued with her spiritual energy shed directly with the thunderbolt and diverted its path of travel slightly, allowing Jun Xiaomo to barely avoid being struck by it.

    ¡°Not bad.¡± Du Yongxu continued to ¡°praise¡± her, ¡°However, these are just the appetizers. I¡¯ve only used thirty percent of my energy. I wonder whether you¡¯ll be as fortunate in a while.¡±

    ¡°Ball Lightning Mantra!¡± Du Yongxu yelled as arge ball of lightning began to congeal in the midst of his palm.

    Ball Lightning Mantra was a spell where he would congeal a ball of lightning-based energy and send it straight towards his opponent where it would explode upon contact. It possessed immense destructive abilities, and if it hits Jun Xiaomo, she would bepletely incapacitated, if not instantly killed.

    The ball lightning congealed incredibly quickly. After just half a breath of time, Du Yongxuunched the ball lightning straight towards Jun Xiaomo without any warning!

    Jun Xiaomo managed to avoid it by the hair of her skin, but she was still struck by the static around the ball lightning which numbed her entire body. Just like that, she nearly fell straight onto the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she fought to stabilize her body. She could no longer suppress the swelling indignation in her heart.

    Thus, she turned around and immediatelyunched a fire-based spell at Du Yongxu. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s angle of attack was incredibly incisive, and it struck Du Yongxu squarely on the chest.

    Unfortunately, the attack was practically useless ¨C it did not even leave as much as a mark on Du Yongxu¡¯s body.

    He raised his eyebrow quizzically as he mocked, ¡°Little beauty, are you helping me to scratch an itch? Your attack was hardly painful at all.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, while the fire in her eyes burgeoned into a roaring inferno.

    ¡°Hah, you look so aggrieved. Looks like I¡¯ve got to continue teaching you a lesson on how and when you should learn to lower your head in submission.¡± As Du Yongxu spoke, he began to cast and send several other lightning spells at Jun Xiaomo.

    One after another, Du Yongxu cried out the names of these powerful lightning-based spells as heunched them straight towards Jun Xiaomo without relenting. In fact, he even slowly increased the output of power.

    From thirty percent to forty percent, and then to fifty percent...

    Then, when Du Yongxu finally increased the output to seventy percent of his maximum power, Jun Xiaomo found herself unable to avoid Du Yongxu¡¯s attacks any longer. Several wounds began to appear on her body, while several parts of her clothing were also burnt to a crisp.

    But despite that, she did not make one peep of groaning or moaning sound. She remainedpletely focused at what she needed to do in this duel, gritting her teeth and fighting through the pain as she fixed her gaze on Du Yongxu¡¯s actions and faced him without cowering in fear.

    Du Yongxu had never seen Jun Xiaomo battle. In his eyes, disciples from Secondary Sects were far too weak to bepared with the disciples from the Du n. None of them could hold a candle to the Du n disciples at all.

    Therefore, regardless of whether it was the Lower, Middle or Open Category battles, all of the Du n disciples had remained at the inn while the individual battles were ongoing. None of them watched any of the individual battles at all.

    Rather than watch the battles, my time could be better spent remaining at the inn and meditating or resting. Du Yongxu and the other Du n disciples thought at that time.

    It was for this reason that today was the first time that they hade into close contact with Jun Xiaomo or battled with her. Naturally, they had battled with each other once at the precipice of the Death¡¯s Gorge. But back then, Du Yongxu and the other Du n disciples had been so fixated on the mutated Basilisk Fruit in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands that they hadpletely ignored and overlooked Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. At that time, they had treated Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen as nothing more than two eyesores that they had to get rid of.

    But now, they were only a few meters apart from each other. As he took in the determined look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, it suddenly dawned on Du Yongxu that the changes to thisdy that he had encountered some time back was truly immense.

    At the very least, Jun Xiaomo had not caught his eye or enraptured his attention as much back then.

    It was particrly so when she was dressed in striking red, and she appeared to flutter about like a red butterfly. This butterfly upied his full attention right now, and he even had the urge to grab hold of it and restrain its movements in his grasp.

    As to what he was going to do to the butterfly after restraining its movements, Du Yongxu hadn¡¯t thought so far yet.

    Du Yongxu¡¯s gaze at Jun Xiaomo was truly far too invasive and prative. Outside the marsnds, three people found themselves furrowing their brows at this tight ¨C one was Rong Ruihan; one was Du Ruiguang, and thest was Du Yongxu¡¯s cousin, Du Lianqin.

    Du Lianqin had always been fond of Du Yongxu, and she was incredibly displeased by the look that Du Yongxu was gazing upon Jun Xiaomo with.

 Chapter 218: Secret Weapon â€“ Poison of the Thousand-Eyed Spider

    <h4>Chapter 218: Secret Weapon ¨C Poison of the Thousand-Eyed Spider</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Du Lianqin was not strong enough, so she could only silently watch the group battles from the audience seats. She gnashed her teeth in heartache as she anxiously observed the interaction between Du Yongxu and Jun Xiaomo.

    From her perspective, Du Yongxu looked as though he was about to kill Jun Xiaomo in no time, so she had concluded that these moments of feelings for her would be fleeting at best. Yet two incense sticks of timeter, Du Yongxu and Jun Xiaomo were still duking it out with each other.

    What threatened Du Lianqin the most was the fact that Jun Xiaomo was undeniably eye-catching. Her striking red garments looked as though they had been tailor made for her, and they allowed her to appear as a burgeoning fire with dancing mes gently licking at the surroundings. It was extremely attractive.

    ¡°n Head, howe brother Xu isn¡¯t killing her with one blow? What in the world is he doing?!¡± Du Lianqin tugged Du Ruiguang¡¯s sleeves as she cried out with indignation.

    She had been fond of Du Yongxu ever since she was young, and she was certain that Du Yongxu would end up marrying her one day. Yet who would have thought that Jun Xiaomo would appear mid-way and thwart her ns like that.

    Even though Du Yongxu did not expressly state that he was fond of Jun Xiaomo, Du Yongxu¡¯s gaze had undeniably been transfixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body ever since the start of the fight. It was as though Jun Xiaomo was a treasure chest full of hidden secrets, and he was slowly probing and trying to reveal its secrets.

    Du Lianqin¡¯s heart swelled with a sour and aching sensation. She did not want Du Yongxu¡¯s gaze to fall on the bodies of otherdies like that.

    And what does Jun Xiaomo have that attracts brother Xu¡¯s attention so? Du Lianqin eximed in her heart with exasperation ¨C Why must brother Xu look at her like that?!

    As his father, Du Ruiguang naturally understood Du Yongxu far better than Du Lianqin. That said, he also felt that the gaze in his son¡¯s eyes were not normal at all.

    I hope I¡¯m just thinking too much right now. Du Ruiguang squinted his eyes as he sighed in his heart. He absolutely abhorred the idea that his son might have taken an interest to a young girl from a Secondary Sect with a cultivation at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery despite being seventeen years-old.

    ¡°Alright, don¡¯t think too much about it. Xu-er knows his limits. Go back to your seat.¡± Du Ruiguang calmly shrugged off Du Lianqin¡¯s concerns.

    Truth be told, he was hardly pleased by the prospects that Du Lianqin might be his future daughter-inw. Even though Du Lianqin called Du Yongxu ¡°cousin¡±, they were merely distant cousins. In any event, Du Lianqin¡¯s abilities were average at best.

    In Du Ruiguang¡¯s eyes, his future daughter-inw needed to have stature, authority as well as abilities. None should becking. In this regard, Du Lianqin had failed to meet his expectations in each and every single one of these fields.

    Of course, he had also observed that the affection and advances from Du Lianqin werepletely unrequited ¨C his son did not appear to be interested in her at all.

    Du Ruiguang trusted in Du Yongxu¡¯s taste, and he temporarily content with taking a backseat when it came to his son¡¯s pursuit of eternal bliss. However, when it came to Jun Xiaomo...

    Du Ruiguang gazed into the water screen at the interaction between Du Yongxu and Jun Xiaomo, and ayer of fog crept over his heart.

    In the marsnds, Du Yongxu continued to use weak yet annoying attacks to strike Jun Xiaomo, just like how a confident hunter would y with his prey when he was confident that it could never escape from his grasp. He would allow her to run about fervently despite there being no way out of his current entrapment.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples also witnessed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s predicament, but they were trapped in their own predicaments as well. There was no way they were able to lend Jun Xiaomo a helping hand or even divert their attention from the battles they were faced with.

    After all, the Du n disciples following Du Yongxu were all incredibly strong. Notwithstanding the group battle tactics employed by the Heavenly Peak disciples, their teamwork was something that had only been built up over thest two days, and it was most certainly insufficient to make up for their cultivation deficiency whenpared with the Du n disciples.

    Whenever they intended to team up to beat down and subdue one of the Du n disciples, they would find another Du n disciple interfering with their tacit coordination, causing them to have to regroup and reset their formations.

    Very soon, several wounds began to appear on the bodies of the Heavenly Peak disciples. As Jun Xiaomo continued to be ¡°toyed¡± with by Du Yongxu, the mounting wounds on the bodies of the Heavenly Peak disciples appeared to cast them into an even sorrier state.

    After all, the other Du n disciples were hardly concerned about a game of cat-and-mouse. Their only goal was to dispose of the Heavenly Peak disciples as quickly as they could, and they naturally held nothing back as they attacked with all they had.

    ¡°Damn!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart roiled as though it had been tossed into a cauldron of boiling oil.

    She could almost see the scenes from her previous life sh before her eyes right now ¨C her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak fell one after another, yet she waspletely helpless to do anything to resist it.

    Just then, Wei Gang was caught out and wrapped up by a tongue made of mes, and his anxious cry snapped Jun Xiaomo back to her senses.

    ¡°Little Lang!¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out in dismay and was about to rush over to rescue Wei Gang when a bolt of lightning struck the ground in front of her, leaving a small crater in the ground.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t forget that your opponent is me.¡± Du Yongxu stood not far away and chuckled as he curled his lips wickedly.

    A fiery rage burgeoned in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Sheshed out with her whip and immediatelyunched herself towards Du Yongxu.

    ¡°Hah, so it turns out that you care for that young sprout? This much is enough to cause you to want to kill me and get revenge for him?¡± Du Yongxu hardly set Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attacks in his sights. He unhurriedly avoided each and every whish from Jun Xiaomo as he continued to attack Jun Xiaomo, ¡°But, I¡¯m quite curious. Logically speaking, at your cultivation level, the amount of spiritual energy in your body should already have beenpletely depleted. Why is it that you¡¯re still able to use your spells and stacks now? I¡¯m truly curious to know the secrets that your body contains.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily taken aback. She had never expected Du Yongxu¡¯s sensitivity to be so high.

    Just then, Wei Gang¡¯s voice called out from her side again.

    ¡°Pah! Pah! A mouthful of soot...Martial sister, I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡± Wei Gang had used a talisman in the nick of time to escape his predicament. That said, the talisman had burnt up to a crisp and left Wei Gang with a face full of soot.

    Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief. But this was only for a split second, because in the very next moment, she was squarely struck by Du Yongxu¡¯s next attack.

    A long bolt of lightning struck her shoulder, causing her to groan in pain.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    When they saw their martial sister get injured, the Heavenly Peak disciples involuntarily let out a cry of concern. Yet Jun Xiaomo raised her hand in the next moment and responded, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±

    This type of injury was well within the scope of what she was able to bear.

    Just then, rustling sounds suddenly filled their surroundings. That said, everyone was currently engaged in the heat of battle, and nobody managed to pick up on these tiny details.

    Of course, everyone else in the audience noticed this, because the ones responsible for these rustling sounds were indeed none other than the missing disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect. They had followed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s instructions and run far away from the present battleground to make some preparations, and they had finally returned.

    Du Ruiguang had been so fixated on the battle between Du Yongxu and Jun Xiaomo that he hardly noticed where the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect had gone.

    In fact, he did not even realize the fact that the Heavenly Peak faction whichprised of three whole teams suddenly had tens of people missing. In the end, when all was said and done, Du Ruiguang had undeniably growncent and underestimated his opponents. In his eyes, the Du n disciples were so strong that the ragtag faction of three teamsbined could hardly hold a candle to his dear dream team.

    That said, as soon as he saw the return of the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect, a deep sense of uneasiness immediately swelled from the bottom of his heart.

    Just as Du Ruiguang whipped out his Transmittance Talisman and was about to remind Du Yongxu to be careful, he saw the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect rush out from the foliage in the woods and charge straight into the fray.

    These disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect had applied Invisibility Talismans on themselves, so even though the members of the audience could see them clearly through the powerful arrays set up within the identity token, the disciples who were battling it out with each other could not.

    This was particrly so for the Du n disciples who had been fully immersed in their battles. None of them noticed anyone quickly approaching their position right now.

    Just as they were about to arrive at the heart of the battle, the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect suddenly whipped out a piece of talisman each from their Interspatial Rings and tossed them straight at each of the Du n disciples.

    In the next moment, the Du n disciples felt a strange sensation on their arms, neck, shoulders, and so on. They lowered their heads and immediately noticed that there was an additional talisman that had just struck their bodies.

    Naturally, the Invisibility Talismans lost their effects as soon as the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect struck the Du n disciples with the talismans. Thus, in the eyes of the Du n disciples, tens of cultivators had suddenly appeared in their surroundings. It was incredibly striking and stunning.

    Du Yongxu had also noticed the sudden development in their situation. He was momentarily taken aback, before he quickly realized the identity of these people who had suddenly appeared.

    ¡°Haha, do you think that you¡¯ll be able to take us by surprise and turn the tables? Don¡¯t forget that thepetition regtions limit the power of the talismans that you can use. The talismans that you can bring for these group battles arepletely useless against us. If you think that these talismans will allow you to turn the tables, then you¡¯re going to be sorely disappointed.¡±

    Du Yongxu had looked directly at Jun Xiaomo when he finished his spiel. His lips were even filled with a contemptuous and disdainful smile.

    Is that all Jun Xiaomo has up her sleeves? After such a long time, her schemes are only worth that much? What¡¯s the use of these few pieces of talismans?

    The other Du n disciples thought the same way, and everyoneughed sardonically. None of them were even in any rush to tear off these talismans that had just struck them.

    Their bodies were protected by the cirction of their spiritual energy after all. Furthermore, they were well-equipped with some defensive items that were unique to the Du n disciples. These essories hardly looked like anything beyond the ordinary, and it was for this reason that the Du n disciples were able to sneak them past the referees during the verification and examination process.

    That said, appearing to be ordinary did not mean that they were useless. The truth of the matter was that each of these essories greatly boosted their offensive and defensive capabilities.

    In other words, normal talismans would never be able to harm their bodies.

    Thus, the Du n disciples waited patiently for the moment that Jun Xiaomo and the rest of the Heavenly Peak faction discovered that their talismans were useless. At the same time, the Du n disciples continued to mock the Secondary Sect disciples for their ignorance and ineptitude.

    Having a lifetime of experience under her belt, how could Jun Xiaomo not be able to see the current intentions of these Du n disciples? A bright gleam shed across her eyes, while the disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect struggled hard to stifle theughter and prevent a smile from creeping up their faces.

    Du Yongxu and the Du n disciples were not the only ones waiting to watch a good show ¨C the disciples from the Heavenly Peak faction were equally waiting for a good show as well.

    Everything happened in the blink of an eye, and Jun Xiaomo hardly wasted any time either. Within moments, she raised her right hand and lightly snapped with her fingers.

    Snap!

    Bang! Bang! Bang! Instantly, the talismans on the bodies of the Du n disciples exploded.

    These minute explosions hardly even left a scratch on the Du n disciples. The Du n disciples immediately stered a haughty and disdainful smile on their faces and poised themselves to attack the Heavenly Peak faction once more. Just then, the Du n disciples felt their arms and legs seize up, and they instantly copsed onto the ground.

    What in the world is going one?!

    Every single one of the Du n disciples revealed an incredulous expression on their faces, including Du Ruiguang as he watched on in the audience booth.

    ¡°This is the poison from the Thousand-Eyed Spider, and it possesses a powerful numbing effect...what¡¯s the matter? How does it feel to have your arms and legspletely numb?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coiled up her whip and tapped it gently on her palms as she calmly questioned.

    Jun Xiaomo raised and eyebrow quizzically as a smile crept up the corner of her lips. This was her true secret weapon against the fools from the Eternal Summit Sect.

 Chapter 219: Ephemeral Success, the Du Clanâ€™s Retaliation

    <h4>Chapter 219: Ephemeral Sess, the Du n¡¯s Retaliation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The numbing effect of the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison was incredibly powerful. It only took a small bit of it to thoroughly numb and incapacitate a person, and that person would wind up with a tragic fate where he would watch in horror as he was devoured by the Thousand-Eyed Spider bit by bit.

    The Thousand-Eyed Spider liked toy out a sprawling web in a concealed ce and even ther ayer of its poison on its web. If any cultivator lower than the Golden Core stage of cultivation were to be so unfortunate as to find himself caught on the web, his fate would immediately have death written all over it.

    That said, the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison was not unrivalled. At the very least, the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison could not affect any cultivators at the Golden Core stage of cultivation or higher. If the Thousand-Eyed Spider were not careful, they might end up being killed by these stronger cultivators instead.

    Apart from that, there were also some spiritual herbs that acted as natural antidotes to the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s numbing poison. Jun Xiaomo and the rest had used these spiritual herbs as preventive medicines when they had earlier encountered the Thousand-Eyed Spider on the second day of thepetition, and they were thus able to escape a fate of certain death.

    This also formed the basis of the countermeasures that Jun Xiaomo had thought up against Du Yongxu and the rest of the Du n disciples before they showed up at their campsite. After all, if they simply pit their ability against the Du n disciples in a full-on confrontation, Jun Xiaomo knew that the odds of sess might not be very high despite their strength in numbers.

    And if they relied on formation arrays again, she was concerned that the Du n disciples would already have noticed the strength of her formation arrays and thuse prepared with the necessary countermeasures for the same.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo thought about using the poison from the Thousand-Eyed Spider. The corpse of the Thousand-Eyed Spider that they had killed earlier should still be where it was. Whether from its poison sac or the web itself, they would almost certainly be able to harvest some of its poison. If one soaked a talisman in the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison for an hour or so, the talismans would naturally also be imbued with the effects of poison when used.

    Perhaps even the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples might not have considered that we would use such a method against them, huh? The corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up as she looked at the Du n disciples who wereying therepletely numb and helpless.She raised an eyebrow at then and raised her chin at them ¨C she was filled with a delighted and pleased expression right now.

    Truth be told, it was a rather galling expression that made one have the urge to beat her up.

    Du Yongxu and the others were indeed so upset that they were on the brink of choking on their own blood ¨C especially Du Yongxu. Du Yongxu had thought that guarding against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays would be sufficient; how could he possibly have expected Jun Xiaomo to use the poison from the Thousand-Eyed Spider against them?

    Du Yongxu had earlier been fully convicted that it was going to be an incredibly simple task to round up the Heavenly Peak faction andplete their task; yet now hepletely regretted his owncency.

    This was a simple task that he was confident ofpleting with over a ny percent rate of sess. Yet these favourable odds had just decreased substantially and be very much of an unknown.

    Du Yongxu began to operate his own spiritual energy to attempt to force out the poison from his body. Yet, almost as though she knew what he was thinking about, Jun Xiaomo minced her way over to his side within moments as she remarked, ¡°You¡¯d be wise not to struggle. The more you do, the quicker the poison spreads.¡±

    Du Yongxu immediately stopped struggling. Yet the fact that he had to listen to Jun Xiaomo made his blood boil even more.

    To suffer from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s schemes in the eyes of everyone present made Du Yongxu feel as though his pride had been stripped off his face and trampled thoroughly on the ground. And what made things worse was the fact that he could hardly support his body right now without any aid, much less possess any strength for retaliation. He was now left in a tragic state through and through.

    Du Yongxu suddenly realized that he had never had his pride trampled on like that ever since he was born.

    He drew a deep breath before he smiled bitterly as he bellowed in rage, ¡°Interesting. Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯d truly underestimated you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically, ¡°Thanks for yourpliment. However, I would be even more pleased if you couldpliment me without gritting your teeth and scrunching up your face.¡±

    Du Yongxu: ......

    If he still had the ability to retaliate right now, he might well have used the fullest extent of his abilities to take out Jun Xiaomo in the quickest time possible. He most certainly regretted ying the games of cat-and-mouse earlier.

    And now, the roles had beenpletely reversed, and the hunter had now be the hunted.

    Jun Xiaomo estimated that the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison wouldst for approximately one hour. Thus, she ignored the Du n disciples that were all copsed in different positions on the ground, and she turned towards Luo Xuyuan and Meng Huanqiu as she expressed her sincerest gratitude to them, ¡°Thank you very much.¡±

    When she first broached this idea to Luo Xuyuan and Meng Huanqiu, her heart was filled with ambivalence. But could one really me Jun Xiaomo for not being able to trust the teams from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect? After all, Jun Xiaomo had experienced a whole lifetime of betrayal by the ones she was closest to, and she found it difficult to trust anyone from the bottom of her heart anymore.

    It could be said that apart from the Heavenly Peak disciples as well as Rong Ruihan, there was not a single other person who had proved themselves to be trustworthy prior to this.

    Furthermore, the journey back to the Thousand-Eyed Spider was fraught with dangers, and Jun Xiaomo was not certain if the disciples of the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect would be willing to brave these dangers for them.

    But in the end, her gamble had paid off. The disciples from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect returned sessfully with talismans soaked in the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison and sealed their victory for them.

    ¡°You¡¯re wee. There¡¯s nothing to thank us for.¡± Meng Huanqiu patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Don¡¯t you forget that you¡¯re our benefactors to begin with. If not for your assistance earlier, we would already have perished in the depths of these marsnds.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Us Dragontiger Sect disciples aren¡¯t ingrates by any means.¡± Luo Xuyuan smiled as he added, ¡°You¡¯ve even taught us a thing or two about group battle tactics, so how could we turn our backs on you after what you¡¯ve done for us?¡±

    ¡°Hahahaha, not bad, not bad at all!¡± Wei Gang ran over to Luo Xuyuan¡¯s side and ced his arm around his shoulder chummily, ¡°Henceforth, we Heavenly Peak disciples recognize all of you as our brothers!¡± As he spoke, he patted his puffed-up chest.

    However, the fact that Wei Gang had made such a haughty gesture with his tender and innocent face was incrediblyical no matter how one looked at it. At the very least, his disposition was certainly notmensurate with the effects which he was trying to achieve.

    Jun Xiaomo curled up her lips andughed helplessly.

    ¡°Oh yes, what shall we do with these fes?¡± Meng Huanqiu walked over to one of the Du n disciples and kicked him as she asked.

    Several other Du n disciples red back at her, but Meng Huanqiupletely ignored them.

    Since they could not do anything to hurt her, there¡¯s really no harm letting them re her anyway.

    Jun Xiaomo quickly swept her gaze at the other Du n disciples as she pondered over the question. Then, she retrieved a stack of Body-Binding Talismans as she suggested, ¡°Shall we bind them up? Then, we¡¯ll do the usual to them ¨C leave them withmensurate memorabilia for each and every mark they¡¯ve left on us as well.¡±

    In fact, she might very well have fed the Du n disciples directly to the swamp monsters if not for the fact that she was concerned about inviting unnecessary trouble onto the Heavenly Peak!

    After all, she had clearly sensed the killing intent emanating from the vicious gazes of these Du n disciples earlier ¨C they had evidentlye at their throats.

    That said, she knew that the Heavenly Peak was undoubtedly caught between a rock and a hard ce right now. Without the backing of a strong and powerful Greater Sect or the like, she knew that she was only in a position to make these Du n disciples suffer slightly for now.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had made her suggestion in a lighthearted tone of voice, the Du n disciples¡¯ faces immediately turned pale with fright and sickly green. They felt incredibly humiliated.

    The Du n disciples were practically infuriated by the Jun Xiaomo and Meng Huanqiu duo ¨C they had never encountered such aggravating female disciples that could cause them to nearly choke on their own blood with just their words. Yet the Du n disciples knew that there was nothing they could do to resist Jun Xiaomo and Meng Huanqiu right now.

    Conversely, every single one of the disciples from the Heavenly Peak faction esteemed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion, especially Wei Gang. He brandished his fists as he received the stack of Body-Binding Talismans from Jun Xiaomo before he hummed in delight as he made his way around the Du n disciples as he fiercely pped the talismans on their bodies.

    That¡¯s right ¨C he had pped the talismans on their body replete with the aid of his spiritual energy. When he saw how those Du n disciples simply gnashed their teeth but could not do a single thing to resist him, Wei Gang¡¯s heart leapt with joy.

    ¡°Martial sister, it¡¯s all done!¡± Wei Gang pped the dust off his hands.

    ¡°Very good. Toss them into a pile. The Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison is still effective for slightly less than an hour. We can thoroughly greet these ¡®friends¡¯ of ours with any special ¡®moves¡¯ that we can think of.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled wickedly, ¡°Then when the rest of the hour is up, we¡¯ll collect their identity tokens and send them out of thepetition grounds so that they won¡¯t receive any further punishment here.¡±

    In other words, they intended to kick the Du n disciples out of thepetition so that they would be out of their sight.

    Outside the marsnds, the old fogeys from the Eternal Summit Sect watched the water screen with apletely pale face. Theypletely regretted agreeing to the swapping out of their disciples right now.

    If they had not agreed to let the Du n disciples take their ce, their disciples might have ced reasonably well within these group battles. However, they were now faced with the prospects of being entirely disqualified from thepetitions. The Eternal Summit Sect would have their pride thoroughly trampled upon if this happened.

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s appearance was hardly any better. He had initially thought that achieving ster results in these group battles would be an extremely easy thing given the strength of the Du n disciples. Yet who could have expected the weakest team of the Heavenly Peak disciples could actually turn the situation around and im victory against all odds?

    Could it be that Jun Xiaomo was like a jinx that only brought bad luck to the Eternal Summit Sect?!

    Most importantly, Dai Yanfeng was the one who had broached the idea of swapping out their disciples for the Du n disciples to begin with. If anything went wrong with these group battles and they failed to achieve their objectives, his standing within the Eternal Summit Sect was going to fall substantially. To make matters worse, there was no way he could demand an answer out of the Du n Head if anything went wrong because his cultivation level was far weaker than the Du n Head¡¯s to begin with. He might even find himself at the receiving end of the Du n Head¡¯s oppressive aura if he tried to demand an answer.

    Thus, Dai Yanfeng grew more and more frustrated at the situation. At this point in time, he was practically hoping for a miracle.

    After all, the Du n disciples were formidable. Perhaps they might have some way out of their current predicament.

    They should have a way out...right?

    Dai Yanfeng thought with some measure of skepticism in his heart. His eyes darkened, and a cloud of gloom loomed over his head.

    Perhaps the gods of fate had heard the cries from the bottom of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart, but just as the disciples of the Heavenly Peak faction was about to introduce the Du n disciples to their fists and their spells, a deafening roar rang out in the marsnds, and a slight tremor quaked below their feet.

    ¡°Wha--...what¡¯s this?¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes widened as he cried out aloud, but nobody had an answer for him.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately furrowed her brows. Her gaze looked far into the horizon where something seemed to be moving slightly in the distance.

    ROAR! Another furious roar rang out, and the knees of several disciples buckled, including Wei Gang. They nearly knelt straight to the floor.

    It was not that they were weak; rather, it was that the roar was simply too powerful and overbearing. The oppressive aura emerged from way out in the horizon and instantly weight down heavily on their bodies.

    Any spirit beasts that possessed such overwhelming and powerful roars must undoubtedly be at the Golden Core stage of cultivation or beyond.

    ¡°Martial sister, what do we do?¡± Wei Gang reflexively looked towards Jun Xiaomo for her assistance.

    Everyone else looked straight at Jun Xiaomo as well. It was evident that she had be their de facto leader.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Let¡¯s wait and see.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded calmly as she retrieved and prepared several talismans from her Interspatial Ring.

    Du Yongxu¡¯s head was lowered close to the ground at this moment. Where nobody else could see, a vicious and wicked smile crept up the corner of his lips.

 Chapter 220: Intimidating Scarlet Heavenly Wolf

    <h4>Chapter 220: Intimidating Scarlet Heavenly Wolf</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Not long after the intense wave of oppressive aura swept across Jun Xiaomo and the rest, a fiery-red figure appeared in the horizon and grewrger andrger as it slowly but surely made its way over towards them.

    That figure was intensely red and eye-catching. It presented itself with such an overbearing disposition as though it were a roaring inferno that were quickly encroaching upon their location.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, what¡¯s that?¡± Wei Gang stammered. He could feel that the object approaching them was something well beyond the ordinary.

    At the very least, this creature was vastly different from any other creature that they had encountered in these marsnds.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke earnestly, ¡°But we¡¯ve got to remain vignt. Maintain our present formations.¡±

    Their present formation was exactly the formation that Jun Xiaomo and the rest hade up with over thest two days of practice. They were able to both attack and defend with this formation, and it was most suitable when faced with the approach of an unknown danger.

    Everyone¡¯s hearts constricted with anxiety as they watched the figure draw closer to them. Yet nobody realized that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples remainedpletely calm and unfazed. Du Yongxu¡¯s lips had even curled into a vicious and scheming smile.

    As the figure in the horizon drew closer and closer, Jun Xiaomo and the rest were finally able to make out the features on this quickly approaching creature ¨C

    This was a massive spirit beast that looked simr to the wolves in the mortal world. However, its ever-burning fur and its colossal and intimidating body revealed that its true identity were hardly even close to the rtively harmless wolf of the mortal world.

    ¡°Scarlet Heavenly Wolf?! It¡¯s a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf?!!!¡± Some of the audience members immediately recognized the identity of this spirit beast, and they couldn¡¯t help but exim aloud.

    ¡°Scarlet Heavenly Wolf? What¡¯s that?¡± Those who were unaware of such a creature stared vacantly at the audience members who had cried out earlier.

    ¡°This is a spirit beast that thrives in extreme environments such as in the mouth of a volcano. Generally speaking, once they matured, they would im the volcano and its surrounding areas as their territory. It¡¯s an extremely territorial creature as well, and any creature or cultivator that enters its territory would immediately be killed by it.¡± Just then, the person exining shivered as he began to speak with a hushed voice, ¡°I hear that these spirit beasts hate humans. There was once where a cultivator inadvertently encroached upon its territory. Within moments, it was eaten up by the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, and not a single bone of his body was left. It¡¯s simply horrifying!¡±

    ¡°Volcano? Since it thrives at the mouth of a volcano, what would it be doing appearing at the marsnds?¡±

    ¡°Who knows? Perhaps the organizingmittee intends to increase the difficulty of these group battles slightly, so they¡¯ve introduced the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to the battles.¡±

    ¡°Huh?! Do you think that this constitutes ¡®slightly increasing the difficulty¡¯? Why does it seem like the organizingmittee¡¯s after the lives of the participants!¡± The ones who had heard his conjecture drew a cold breath.

    The person who had described the characteristics of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf shrugged his shoulders ¨C he could not understand the point of introducing this to the battles either.

    But their sect¡¯s representatives were not in that part of the marsnds. Thus, no matter how vicious and savage the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was, these members of the audience merely continued to watch the group battles with a keen interest in seeing how things would y out.

    I wonder if the Dawn Sect or the Eternal Summit Sect would be able to turn the odds in their favour right now.

    If the organizingmittee could hear what these audience members were discussing right now, they would almost certainly feel wronged by them ¨C their role only extended to the organization and nning of thispetition. They certainly did not want to invite trouble upon themselves.

    If the organizingmittee had truly been the ones to introduce the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf into the group battles, and then something happened to the Dawn Sect disciples or the Eternal Summit Sect disciples, not to mention the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect, the resultant interrogation from any one of these sects would be enough of a headache to all of them.

    In thepetition grounds, Jun Xiaomo immediately furrowed her brows and grimaced when she noticed the true identity of the massive creature approaching them.

    Scarlet Heavenly Wolf?! Why would a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf appear in the marsnds?!

    Jun Xiaomo had witnessed the powerful abilities of this spirit beast before. Even a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf puppy would possess incrediblebat abilities from the moment it was born.

    Furthermore, she could see that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf approaching them right now had a blue rhombus on its forehead. This meant that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had already attained at least the Golden Core stage of cultivation. In fact, there was a good chance that it had already broken through the Golden Core stage of cultivation.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of the exact strength and abilities of a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that had broken through the Golden Core stage of cultivation. The only thing that she knew was that even if the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf were in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation, it would still be incredibly difficult for the entire Heavenly Peak faction to join hands and subjugate it.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo knew one thing ¨C things were going to be extremely bad for the Heavenly Peak faction if they did not carefully n their strategies against the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    ROAR! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf looked straight towards Jun Xiaomo and the rest as it roared ferociously. Its eyes werepletely bloodshot, as though blood were going to spill from its eyes in the very next moment.

    There was also a trace of bitterness and pain hidden in the depths of its eyes. Unfortunately, because Jun Xiaomo and the rest were too far away from it, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was also too tall, nobody could see this in its eyes.

    Du Yongxuy there on the ground as he painstakingly retrieved a talisman from his Interspatial Ring and applied it on the palm of his hands.

    The talisman immediately disappeared into his palm and disappeared. Then, he made some hand seals and murmured some mnemonics that was inaudible to anyone else.

    ROAR! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf howled in rage once more. In its eyes, the figures of Jun Xiaomo and the rest had twisted and faded away, before they finally transformed into a group of people that it hated the very most.

    These were the ones who had made me like this. Kill them!

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf immediately lunged at Jun Xiaomo and the rest, and the disciples of the three sects immediately scattered in different directions. At the same time, they began to focus their attacks on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s nose, eyes, abdomen and other ces that were slightly more susceptible to attacks. However, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf simply avoided every single one of these attacks.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s speed was incredibly quick. With the raging inferno emanating from its fur, Jun Xiaomo and the rest looked like they were being attacked by a zing inferno that swept about menacingly ¨C one misstep and they would fall straight into and be consumed by the sea of mes.

    Everyone in the audience watched with bated breaths. Profuse sweat ran down their foreheads, and they found themselves incredibly anxious and nervous for Jun Xiaomo and the rest.

    ¡°Damn! This spirit beast¡¯s speed is just too quick. It clearly possesses a fire-based spiritual root, so how can its speed be so quick?!¡± Wei Gang hurriedly extinguished some mes on his body as heined aloud.

    ¡°This is the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s unique feature. Even though it doesn¡¯t possess a wind-based spiritual root, yet from the moment it¡¯s born, its speed is alreadyparable to a wind-based cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Furthermore, its speed will only increase as it grows older and its cultivation level increases.¡± Jun Xiaomo continued to avoid its attacks as she exined.

    ¡°My goodness! That¡¯s far too heaven-defying!¡± Wei Gang scrunched up his face in disbelief, ¡°How are we supposed to fight against this thing then?! There¡¯s no way we can do this! None of our attacks are hitting it to begin with!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was sullen as well. Her only goal was to bring her martial brothers away from this ce safely ¨C she hardly wanted to see any one of her martial brothers perish in this ce.

    Just then, Du Yongxu calmly suggested to Jun Xiaomo who happened to have retreated to his side, ¡°I¡¯ve got a suggestion. Why not let us go? This way, we can join hands, and we might have a chance of defeating this creature.¡±

    Du Yongxu and the others were still afflicted by the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison, and its effects would not wear off for some time. But the fact that Jun Xiaomo and the rest had touched the Thousand-Eyed Spider¡¯s poison yet bepletely unaffected by it meant that they possessed the antidote to this poison with them.

    Thus, Du Yongxu nned to obtain the antidote from Jun Xiaomo. He hated the feeling ofying helplessly where he was right now.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at Du Yongxu and noticed the discreet smirk on his face.

    ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t ept your suggestion. I don¡¯t intend to make a deal with you people. Who knows whether you will end up backstabbing us?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo responded dispassionately.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! Don¡¯t you go too far! Do you want all of us to perish here?!¡± Another one of the Du n disciples lying on the floor cried out with indignation.

    He wanted to stand on his moral high ground and smear Jun Xiaomo and the rest with a bad reputation.

    This way, when Jun Xiaomo and the rest perish to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, the Du n disciples would hardly draw any k from the rest of the audience members. Everyone would think that Jun Xiaomo and the rest simply deserved what they got.

    However, Jun Xiaomo refused to take this lying down. She nced back at the Du n disciples indifferently before a smile crept up the corner of her lips as she chuckled contemptuously, ¡°You¡¯ll perish here? Why do I get the feeling that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf won¡¯t be attacking you guys at all?¡±

    In other words, she was insinuating that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf might very well be rted to the schemes of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples. Otherwise, why would the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf coincidentally appear in the marsnds, and why would the Heavenly Peak faction coincidentally be the target of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf?

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo spoke her mind, several members of the audience immediately connected two and two and revealed a look of realization on their faces.

    A lump swelled up in Du Yongxu¡¯s throat, and he red back at Jun Xiaomo with indignation in his heart.

    The appearance of this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was indeed linked to the Du n disciples. Back when they first encountered it, the entire Du n had expended an incredible amount of energy to subdue the young Scarlet Heavenly Wolf pup. Then, they attempted to subjugate the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to do their bidding with a series of forbidden spells.

    These spells were a type of refinement magic simr to the ones used by Situ Cang on the little packrat, and they could be used on most spirit and demonic beasts to erase their spiritual awareness so that they would be like no more than a living corpse.

    However, this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf evidently possessed an incredible spiritual awareness and a powerful soul. Despite threeplete attempts with the forbidden refinement technique, the Du n found themselves unable topletely refine and subjugate it.

    At that time, the Du n¡¯s Third Elder dered that they could no longer attempt to refine it. If they did so, this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would bepletely crippled and useless to them. Thus, they changed their strategies and decided to use other methods to control this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Du Yongxu had never intended to use the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf during the course of these group battles. It had earlier been nted in these marsnds more as an addedyer of insurance than anything else.

    As to what it insured ¨C this naturally referred to the off chance that the Du n disciples were unable to take the lives of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Du Yongxu was practically certain that these one-in-a-hundred odds would nevere to pass. Yet such a worst-case scenario had indeede to pass. After all, how could they have known that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head could be stuffed with so many ingenious ideas in that little head of hers?

    It¡¯s best if we dispose of Jun Xiaomo here and now. Who knows what she will be if we let her live right now? Ayer of frost grew over Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes as he red at Jun Xiaomo with a cold, frigid gaze.

    Even though he was curious about theyers uponyers of secrets hidden within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, he knew that the sense of danger that he got from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body far outweighed what little curiosity he had towards her. Thus, his heart was filled with an avid killing intent towards her right now.

    That said, Du Yongxu simply couldn¡¯t understand why he suddenly felt so threatened and afraid of Jun Xiaomo, a cultivator at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery.

    Nevertheless, he made a series of hand seals discreetly, and the heat and intensity of the mes of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s fur burgeoned to a whole new level. It practically looked as though the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf were nowpletely doused and immersed in a raging inferno.

    This was the foreboding sign that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was going to explode with fury.

    ROAR! It bellowed once more, before it cocked its head menacingly and stared with intense hatred at its next target, Jun Xiaomo!

 Chapter 221: Crippling the Refinement Technique

    <h4>Chapter 221: Crippling the Refinement Technique</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Du n had been unable to fully refine the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, but this did not prevent them from leaving a powerful Confusion Hex on its body. This Confusion Hex was cast by an elder of the Du n at the secondary-tier Void Formation stage of cultivation.[1] Before the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf attains the Void Formation stage of cultivation, the odds of it being able to shirk off the effects of this Confusion Hex was practically zero.

    Under the effects of this Confusion Hex, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would view the Du n¡¯s enemies as its greatest enemies ¨C members of the Du n.

    Furthermore, the fact that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had undergone the tormenting process of refinement three times meant that its bloodthirstiness was already at its peak, and its offensive abilities had also increased by several folds.

    In other words, it would draw blood as soon as it made an appearance.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances had already transformed under the effects of the Confusion Hex. The person that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf hated the most was naturally the old fogey that had attempted to refine it three times, and right now, Jun Xiaomo appeared to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as none other than that same old fogey.

    I¡¯m going to kill that man!

    An intense hatred shed across the depths of its eyes, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s fur burgeoned once more as though it were congealing a corporeal manifestation of its killing intent. Then, within the next moment, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf sent the massive fireball shooting straight towards Jun Xiaomo and engulfing her body in its entirety.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    Several cries rang out from the surroundings. Jun Xiaomoshed out with the whip in her hand and faced the fireball head on. With onesh of the whip, the entire fireball dissipated into the surroundings.

    Jun Xiaomo possessed a fire-based spiritual root, and she naturally possessed a certain level of resistance against fire-based attacks.

    Roar! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf noticed that its first strike had failed, and it immediately leapt forward and lunged towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back. Its ws looked menacing and incredibly sharp, as though one single sh with its ws would cleanly and effortlessly cleave Jun Xiaomo into two halves.

    The other disciples in the Heavenly Peak faction immediately rushed over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side as they attempted to share some of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s burdens. However, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf waspletely fixated on Jun Xiaomo, and itpletely ignored all the other disciples. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo possessed a wealth ofbat experience, had the aid of her talismans and even possessed a unique approach to battle. If not for the confluence of all these factors, she might well have be minced meat under the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s relentless attacks.

    In the audience booth, Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes instantly furrowed as he watched the battle unfold. His fists were tightly clenched together.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes grew darker and darker as time went by ¨C every time another injury or wound appeared on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, his eyes would darken by one shade.

    There was still approximately half a day¡¯s worth of time until the end of these group battles. Jun Xiaomo was evidently not a match for the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. Rong Ruihan knew that things could not go on like this.

    Thus, after deliberating for a moment, Rong Ruihan retrieved a talisman from his Interspatial Ring and discreetly applied it onto his palm.

    As soon as the talisman hit the palm of his hand, it became a faint yetplex formation diagram. Rong Ruihan closed his eyes and made some hand seals. Momentster, theplex formation diagram activated!

    In the marsnds, Jun Xiaomo was presently avoiding the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s relentless attacks when she suddenly felt a wave of warmth emanate from her earlobes.

    This warmth was just like that of spring waters that flowed beside a volcano ¨C even though the temperature was slightly on the warmer side, it was not something that would scald a person.

    This is...

    Jun Xiaomo got slightly distracted from the strange sensation she was experiencing. Yet it was precisely this moment of distraction that caused her to be fully exposed and susceptible to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf oing attack.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    The audience watched in horror as the scene unfolded in front of their very eyes ¨C the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf raised his enormous ws that were asrge as a human was tall. A dreadful fireball had congealed on the tip of its ws right now. Then, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf swiped straight at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    The fireball was so intensely hot that its mes had already be white in colour ¨C the heat was so intense that it could melt steel and copper alike, much less the pure flesh and blood that constituted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body!

    Several members of the audience felt that this was the end of Jun Xiaomo as they knew it.

    He Zhang¡¯s face revealed an expectant gaze; while a victorious smile crept up the corner of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s lips. On the other hand, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei subconsciously stood up as their worry and concern for their daughter reached their boiling point. This was especially the case for Jun Linxuan, whose face had turned a sickly green as he furiously fought against the urge to rush into the marsnds to rescue his daughter.

    Tension filled the air among all the audience members alike, regardless of whether they worried for Jun Xiaomo, or whether they delighted in her predicament.

    However, things did not pan out quite as how everyone expected it to. As soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s ws swung down towards Jun Xiaomo, a ray of intense, focused light suddenly shot out from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body and pierced the heart of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s paw.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf let out a yowl in pain as it reflexively shifted its enormous paw away and staggered two steps backwards.

    This...what just happened? Why would there be a ray of light shooting out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body?

    Everyone turned their attention to where Jun Xiaomo was right now ¨C

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was once again visible as soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf shifted its paw away. However, apart from presenting herself in a rather sorry state, there was nothing too vastly different between how she looked right now and how she was a few moments ago.

    Jun Xiaomo had initially raised her whip to her head and braced herself to receive the impact from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s powerful swipe at her. She did not want to perish here. Yet the unexpected happened ¨C nothing happened to her; and it was the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that suffered some injuries instead.

    A trace of bewilderment revealed itself on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions.

    However, she very quickly collected her emotions and refocused her mind on the present situation at hand.

    She had earlier given the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf a prime opportunity to attack her precisely because she got distracted. There was no way she was going to give the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf another opportunity like that again.

    If she did, she would most certainly lose her life.

    As she refocused her mind on her current battle at hand, shepletely shelved the earlier wave of heat that emanated from her earlobe. Outside the marsnds, Rong Ruihan opened his eyes and coughed into his fist. A dribble of blood seeped out of the corner of his lips.

    Rong Ruihan discreetly wiped off this trace of blood, before quickly turning his attention back onto Jun Xiaomo as she faced off against the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf yowled madly. At this moment, its eyes were filled with a destructive bloodlust as though it wanted to destroy everything within sight. Just like that, it began to thrash about with wanton disregard to its surroundings.

    ¡°Young master, what do we do? The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf looks like it¡¯s getting out of control!¡± A Du n disciple just beside Du Yongxu cried out with dismay.

    If the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had indeed lost its senses, the ones who had the greatest cause for concern would naturally be these Du n disciples whoid defenceless where they were with theirpletely numbed bodies.

    It did not matter that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was not actively directing its attacks towards the Du n¡¯s disciples right now. Given how the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was behaving right now, the Du n disciples knew that they might very well be seriously injured or even killed if the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf were to even inadvertently trample on their bodies.

    Du Yongxu was incredibly exasperated. If they could just maintain their control over the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, they would never be in such danger.

    But the fact that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf were thrashing about with reckless abandon certainly did not bode well for them.

    Du Yongxu¡¯s heart grew sullen. Then, he began to make a few more hand seals and murmur an inaudible mnemonic with his lips as he red coldly at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    At this moment, Du Yongxu was mustering the spiritual energy from every inch of his body and sending it straight into the formation array on his palm as he did all he could to subdue and control the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s actions.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was already in immense pain as a result of the hole in its paw caused by the focused and prating beam of light from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body earlier. Right now, Du Yongxu¡¯s actions had undoubtedly caused it even more pain, as though Du Yongxu had just rubbed salt into its wounds. At this moment, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf felt as though his entire body and mind were being torn apart to pieces.

    The Du n¡¯s method of controlling the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was an ancient Confusion Hex that had been handed down to them by their ancestors. Furthermore, an added function of the Confusion Hex was also to harm to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s soul. Thus, it was practically impossible for the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to attain the secondary-tier Void Formation stage of cultivation to dispel the hex on its body.

    Once its soul has been damaged, its cultivation path was naturally also substantially truncated.

    It was for this reason that most spirit beasts that had been refined could never wrest control of their lives back, and they were bound to spend the rest of their lives in servitude.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf yowled in fury. It had the primal urge to smash to smithereens every single person that had caused it such bitter and excruciating pain. However, it was unable to do so ¨C its head hurt so much that it felt as though it were splitting in half. Its head hurt so much that it wanted to dig out its own brains to relieve itself of the splitting pain.

    When the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf clutched helplessly at its enormous head, Jun Xiaomo immediately realised that something was wrong.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s front paw was the one that had been injured by the prating light from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Logically speaking, there was no reason for it to be clutching painfully at its own head. Furthermore, it was evident that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was experiencing an excruciating pain of sorts right now.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. A fleeting notion shed quickly across her mind, but Jun Xiaomo failed totch onto it.

    ¡°Martial sister...why do I get the feeling that this spirit beast is experiencing excruciating pain right now? Furthermore, its movements look like it¡¯s being restrained by something or someone. It¡¯s practically moving like a puppet.¡± Wei Gang mulled aloud as he observed the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s actions.

    Being restrained by something?! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart thumped wildly ¨C she finally knew what that earlier fleeting notion had been.

    Back then, her little packrat had simrly nearly been refined by Situ Cang. At that time, it had also experienced an excruciating pain.

    ¡°Martial brothers, and friends from the Dragontiger Sect and the Purple Hut Sect, could I ask you to take a few steps back? I think I might have a way to deal with it.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke in all earnestness to those around her.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, do you intend to deal with this vicious spirit beast alone?!¡± Wei Gang eximed in astonishment.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d like you all to take a few steps back. I should have a way to deal with it.¡±

    The disciples of the Heavenly Peak faction were all incredibly worried for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s safety, but they also noticed how sincere Jun Xiaomo was right now, so they naturally refrained from dissuading her any further.

    Thus, everyone gave Jun Xiaomo a huge berth of space to do what she needed to do. Then, they trained their eyes on Jun Xiaomo and watched her closely. They readied themselves and mustered their energy so that as soon as Jun Xiaomo appeared to be in the slightest of danger, they would be able to dive right in and assist her once more.

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that was writhing in immense pain. A wave ofpassion washed over her, while hatred and animosity filled her eyes against those who would resort to such inhumane practices to refine a majestic creature like the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    ¡°Perhaps a creature that had been refined like you might not know this, but there¡¯s a way to break such refinement techniques.¡± Jun Xiaomo called out to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as she prepared five talismans from her Interspatial Ring.

    These talismans were used for the purposes of controlling spirit beasts or demonic creatures. Jun Xiaomo had read about these things in the Beast-Taming Technique that she had obtained earlier, and she knew some of the basics of taming spirit beasts.

    Beast-taming techniques and refinement techniques were quite vastly different from each other. One of the primary differences was that beast-taming techniques never sought to harm the spirit beasts or demonic creatures that were being tamed.

    Most importantly, there was a certainty that the usage of these beast-taming techniques would override and cripple the effects of the refinement technique on the spirit beast or demonic creature.

    Jun Xiaomo watched for an opening. As soon as she found the best opportunity to do so, she dashed towards the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf and rushed straight towards its palm.

    Then, she pped the talisman straight onto the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s palm.

    An intense blue light shed ¨C

    Pfft! At the Du n¡¯s residence, an elder of the Du n spat out a huge mouthful of blood and copsed onto the ground.

    1. Void formation is the sixth level of nine levels of cultivation.

 Chapter 222: Du Clanâ€™s Refinement Technique Backlash

    <h4>Chapter 222: Du n¡¯s Refinement Technique Bacsh</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    A thick, pungent scent of blood emanated from within the Du n¡¯s training grounds. The Du n¡¯s Third Elder clutched tightly at his chest as he gasped for breath. Then, with quivering hands, he reached into his Interspatial Ring and pulled out a Transmittance Talisman and used thest ounce of strength remaining in his body to tear apart the Transmittance Talisman.

    This Transmittance Talisman was to be used only in emergency situations. Once torn, the Transmittance Talisman would automatically alert the other Du n members to the present situation.

    The Du n¡¯s Third Elder lost consciousness once he expended hisst ounce of energy to tear apart the Transmittance Talisman. The menagerie within the Du n¡¯s secret grounds was located just behind the Third Elder. As soon as the Third Elder lost consciousness, hundreds upon hundreds of refined spirit beasts suddenly appeared to lose control as they furiously mmed against their cages or enclosures, attempting to break free from captivity.

    Each and every single one of these spirit beasts red at the Third Elder with bloodlust in their eyes and intense killing intent toiling from their bodies, as though their deep and profound hatred could only be appeased when they tore the Third Elder¡¯s body to shreds and devoured him.

    As soon as they received the Third Elder¡¯s alert, a Du n disciple rushed over in the shortest time possible and were greeted by the sight of spirit beasts furiously nging and smashing against their cages. They did not know why the spirit beasts would suddenly lose control, but they knew that if these spirit beasts were to break out of their cages and enclosures, the consequences would be extremely dire.

    That Du n disciple braced himself against the massive oppressive aura weighing against his body and rushed over to the Third Elder¡¯s side. It was only at this moment that he discovered that the Third Elder appeared to be hanging onto life by a thin thread.

    ¡°Third Elder!¡± He panicked. He was unsure whether he ought to help the Third Elder up or to let him continue lying where he was. He was afraid of the Third Elder¡¯s condition worsening if he sat the Third Elder up. Thus, he simply continued to call out to the Third Elder, ¡°Third Elder...¡±

    The Du n¡¯s Third Elder had received a massive bacsh from his refinement technique and thereby sustained a debilitating wound. In fact, the Third Elder had fainted because he was momentarily unable to withstand the magnitude of this bacsh.

    That said, the Third Elder did not take too long toe back to his senses. After calling out to the Third Elder for a little while, the Third Elder managed toe back to his senses and regain consciousness.

    ¡°Hurry! Inform the other n members that...there...there¡¯s been a huge mishap...¡± The Third Elder panted with a ragged breath as he struggled with much difficulty to string a sentence of words together.

    ¡°Ah? Oh, okay! Alright, I¡¯m on it.¡± Seeing the Third Elder¡¯s present condition, the Du n disciples dared not dally any further. He immediately shot to his feet and motioned to inform the rest of his n members. However, the Third Elder held him back.

    ¡°And...and also, inform the n Head...¡± The Third Elder struggled toplete his sentence.

    He did not know the true reason for this bacsh. All he knew was that the damage to his body was immense, and he would need at least half a year or a full year in order to recover his strength once more.

    ¡°Ah? But...but, the n Head is still outside the sect. He¡¯s led the young master and others on a mission, and he won¡¯t be able to return so quickly.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s more important than the survival of our n?!¡± The Third Elder grew anxious and barked, ¡°Do you see the spirit beasts in the menagerie? If I can¡¯t control them anymore, they¡¯ll break out of their cages and enclosures. The Du n is strong, but how can we deal with hundreds ¨C close to a thousand ¨C spirit beasts that are seeking vengeance against us with bloodlust in their eyes? If that happens, the Du n as we know it is most certainly going to perish!¡±

    The Third Elder knew that the bacsh was still ongoing, and the bacsh had at the very least lowered his ability to control the spirit beasts in the menagerie.

    The spirit beasts behind him had been howling and yowling all this while. They charged and rammed against their cages and enclosures with bloodshot eyes. The impact of being stared at by hundreds upon hundreds of vicious eyes was truly tremendous.

    The Du n disciple shuddered in fear as he hurriedly nodded his head. Then, he clumsily staggered towards the door as he sprinted out of the room to alert the rest.

    This ce was akin to a purgatory, while the spirit beasts were like creatures that had just mbered out of the gates of hell looking for revenge.

    On the other side, as soon as Jun Xiaomo seeded in applying the talisman onto the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s paw, she immediately took out a few more talismans and applied them onto the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body.

    To the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, the application of these talismans felt like a cool, refreshing gust of wind that had just swept through a stifling, hot furnace. The cool sensation swept across its skin gently, suffusing through its meridians and Dantian, and bringing rity to its mind once again.

    It had been an incredibly long time since itst saw the world with such rity.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had been captured by the Du n since young and tossed straight into the menagerie where it was put through three instances of the Du n¡¯s refinement attempts.

    The torturous series of events confuzzled its mind and broughtyers uponyers of haze enshrouding its cognitive abilities. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf belonged to a proud species of spirit beasts that was favored by the gods and were destined to rule overrge territories as a revered monarch-grade spirit beast. It was blessed with spiritual awareness ever since it was born, and it thus possessed the abilities for logical thinking and cognitive functions. Yet these ambitious members of the Du n had captured and attempted to refine it to turn it into nothing more than a tool for their purposes.

    Now that Jun Xiaomo had broken a part of the curse on its body, it had naturally also regained a good part of its rationality.

    It lowered its head and swept its gaze across the tiny humans around him and noticed that one of these tiny human beings was dressed in striking-red as she stared at it vigntly. It knew that it was none other than this human being that had dragged it out of the mires and given rity to its mind once more.

    Awoo--... The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf tossed its head up to the sky and howled in gratitude. However, the disciples from the Heavenly Peak faction misunderstood its gesture as one of aggression, and they immediately rushed over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side once more.

    Within moments, the disciples from the Heavenly Peak faction took up a defensive formation.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf probably won¡¯t be attacking us anymore.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s shoulders as she remarked.

    ¡°Martial sister, how do you know that?¡± There was still a lingering fear for this awesome creature weighing on Wei Gang¡¯s heart.

    ¡°The bloodlust in its eyes have already dissipated, and the heat from its fur is far less intense right now. That is proof that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf possesses no ill intentions towards us.¡±

    ¡°No...no ill intentions?! That¡¯s can¡¯t be right! Why would it have attacked us earlier, then?¡± Wei Gang found it difficult to ept Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnation.

    ¡°Because it had been refined by someone. Furthermore, the refinement process was not too sessful. Otherwise, these few pieces of talismans that I¡¯d used would never have allowed it to regain its consciousness and spiritual awareness. At best, I would only have been able to temporarily relieve it from the control of its master.¡±

    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is...martial sister, you¡¯re amazing!¡± Wei Gang gave Jun Xiaomo two thumbs up.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled genially back at him.

    Truth be told, there was no way she could create these talismans with her present abilities. The talismans she had just used were in fact been the ones left behind by senior Jiang Yutong. Every piece she used meant that she would have one less for the future. Little did she know that these group battles would require her to use up to ten pieces all at once.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart ached at the fact that she had used so many pieces of these invaluable talismans. Fortunately, the usage of these talismans bore fruit, and the imminent danger had finally been dispelled.

    Du Yongxu was located just a short distance away from Jun Xiaomo, and he heard her entire exnation. Furious emotions roiled in his heart ¨C I¡¯d heard that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities with formation arrays were formidable, but I¡¯d never expect her to be equally proficient with her talismans as well!

    Most importantly, he had never expected Jun Xiaomo to break the Du n Third Elder¡¯s refinement technique with just a few pieces of talismans. Just who in the world is Jun Xiaomo? Could all of her knowledge in this regard be taught by Jun Linxuan?!

    If that¡¯s the case, Jun Linxuan would be far too formidable. He would practically be like a crouching tiger or a hidden dragon.

    That said, if Jun Linxuan truly possessed such incredible abilities, why does he still remain at the Dawn Sect? Why would he choose to hang around a bunch of people who were constantly scheming against him?

    Severalplex thoughts and considerations surfaced in Du Yongxu¡¯s heart. He suddenly realized that Jun Xiaomo might well possess far more secrets than he had initially expected.

    ¡°I wonder who was so vicious to have used a refinement technique on this majestic creature.¡± Chen Feiyu furrowed his brows as he coldly remarked, ¡°I¡¯ve heard that refining a spirit beast is incredibly harmful to the beast itself. There are many spirit beasts that have awakened their spiritual awareness who be no more than a living corpse under the effects of the refinement process. I¡¯ve even heard that this process is irreversible...¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s horrendous?!¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°Indeed. This is why refinement techniques are conventionally ssified as restricted or forbidden magic.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head.

    ¡°Then these fellows who had refined it are just far too vicious! They need to have a taste of their own medicine!¡± Wei Gang decried their actions with righteous indignation as he ventted the frustrations on behalf of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. It was as though Wei Gang hadpletely put behind him the fact that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had still been attacking them just moments ago.

    ¡°If I¡¯m not mistaken, this incident should be closely linked with these Eternal Summit Sect disciples, am I right, fellow cultivator?¡± Jun Xiaomo smirked as she nced over at Du Yongxu as heypletely motionless on the ground.

    Du Yongxu was infuriated by Jun Xiaomo. He never expected Jun Xiaomo to be so sharp to have guessed as much.

    But he knew that he could not admit it. If he did so, they would no longer have the rights to continue participating in thesepetitions.

    ¡°Hah, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, Jun Xiaomo. Don¡¯t nder or malign others if you don¡¯t have any evidence to show for it. You¡¯ll only appear tock magnanimity and make yourself aughingstock to others.¡± Du Yongxu mocked.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically, ¡°I¡¯m a woman ¨C why would I need to appear magnanimous to begin with?¡±

    Du Yongxu was taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response, and he momentarily found himself at a loss for words.

    ¡°Besides, it¡¯s not difficult to determine who it was who had been controlling the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, isn¡¯t it? I¡¯ve already dispersed a portion of the refinement technique in the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body, and it should have sufficient ess to rationality to recognize who its enemies are. I think I¡¯ll just hand the right to decide over to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf ¨C what do you think?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo slowly explicated, yet each and every word enunciatednded on the Du n disciples as though they were heavy stones that made their hearts sink.

    Let this spirit beast decide?! We¡¯re lying on the floor right now, and we¡¯ve got no way of resisting at all! One breath of me from this spirit beast is enough to burn us all to a crisp!

    Roar! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf immediately responded as though it understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf did not scrutinize all of the human beings present, and it had not realized the distinction between the human beings standing and the one lying on the ground.

    Thus, at the start, it had thought that these people were all not its enemies, and it had already intended to leave this ce in a few moments¡¯ time.

    However, as soon as Jun Xiaomo made her suggestion, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf lowered its head and took a closer look. Immediately, it discovered that the person lying closest to it was none other than one of the n members of the dastardly people who had attempted to refine it! In fact, this person had been around when it was first put through the torturous process of refinement!

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf howled madly once more, and the wisps of me on his back reignited with a fiery ze.

    The stronger the mes, the whiter the mes. Jun Xiaomo instantly recognized its intentions and hurriedly cautioned the disciples of the Heavenly Peak faction, ¡°Let¡¯s leave this ce!¡±

    As soon as she spoke, everyone began to retreat a distance away, leaving the Du n disciplespletely defenseless where they were.

    The Du n disciples stared back at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf with dread mounting in their hearts. There was only one thought in their minds at this moment ¨C We¡¯re doomed!

    How the tides have turned! They had initially intended to use the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as a tool to kill Jun Xiaomo and the others; yet who would have thought that they would be at the receiving end of their gnarly schemes right now?

    Outside the marsnds, everyone waspletely taken by surprise at the drastic turn of events.

    Everyone in the audience had heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations. As much as they were surprised that the Eternal Summit Sect would resort to such forbidden magic to refine spirit beasts, they also admired Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ability to turn such a disadvantageous situation around and gain the upper hand.

    Given how things had panned out, would the Eternal Summit Sect still be able to worm their way out of such a terrifying predicament?

 Chapter 223: Dai Yanfengâ€™s Regret

    <h4>Chapter 223: Dai Yanfeng¡¯s Regret</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    If the persons lying helplessly on the floor were truly disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect, then there was no way they would be able to survive a furious swipe from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s ws.

    However, these disciples were from the Du n. As members of the Du n, and a part of the eight great sects, these disciples would naturally have several life-preserving measures hidden up their sleeves. Many of the Du n disciples had been resigned to yielding up their lives there and then. That said, when the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s attacknded where they were, they did not experience any pain as they had originally expected.

    Hong! A massive tremor rang out. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s attack had sent a cloud of dust flying into the air and scattered debris all around. Some of the stones beneath its paws had even been melted down to molten rock by the intense heat on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s paws.

    The molten rocks congealed together to form a thinyer of what looked to be a ceramic ze on the ground.

    ¡°That...they must be dead, right?¡±

    ¡°They have to me. How could they possibly have survived such a powerful attack?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a pity. Those people were the cream of the crop among the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples. The Eternal Summit Sect has really sustained huge losses this time. It¡¯s going to take them a while to recover in future.¡±

    Everyone in the audience began to whisper to each other and discuss the plight of the Eternal Summit Sect. That said, there were several people who also treated this entire incident as something that hardly concerned them, and they simply watched on as though they were watching mere theatrics.

    The Eternal Summit Sect could only me their ¡°disciples¡± for putting up such a vile and disgusting performance during the group battles. After all, no matter which Secondary Sect it was out there, none of them could stand the prospects of their own disciples being used by others and discarded as nothing more than cannon fodder.

    And this was exactly what the Eternal Summit Sect disciples had done. It was as though disciples of the other sects were no more than tools to be used to benefit themselves.

    However, as soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf lifted its paws, everyone began to nce below ¨C

    Eh? Where are the disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect? Could they all have turned into dust? That can¡¯t be. Even if that¡¯s the case, there should still be some traces of their remnants...

    Everyone in the audience couldn¡¯t help but nce towards the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s seating area, only to discover that the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders had already disappeared. Their seating area was sparsely popted with few people remaining.

    On the other side, a tall and well-built man with a cloak over his body stood sullenly at the exit of a Teleportation Array. Momentster, a bright blue light shed across the floor, and the twenty Du n disciples appeared in the heart of the formation array. Everyone stumbled out of the heart of the formation array in an incredibly sorry state. One of the disciples had even wet his pants.

    He had been so afraid of the oing attack by the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that he had thought he was a goner.

    ¡°Father.¡± Du Yongxu, on the other hand, knew that he was not going to die. That said, he knew that their exit from the group battles meant that they would no longer be able toplete their tasks.

    As expected, in thest possible moment, Du Ruiguang activated his secret formation array to rescue the Du n disciples from within the marsnds. However, they had without a doubt failed in their mission, and Du Yongxu looked sheepishly at Du Ruiguang with a guilt-ridden face.

    Du Ruiguang roughly guessed the thoughts on Du Yongxu¡¯s heart, and he remarked, ¡°I¡¯m not ming you for this. Even I had underestimated that young little brat. Who could¡¯ve known that she would be able to cripple the ancient hex casted by the Third Elder?¡±

    ¡°Crippled the Third Elder¡¯s hex?! Doesn¡¯t that mean...¡± Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. The n has met with a mishap. The Third Elder¡¯s disciple has sent an urgent missive over requesting everyone to return to the n¡¯s grounds. The spirit beasts are going out of control.¡± Du Ruiguang spoke with a sullen voice.

    ¡°Just what has Jun Xiaomo done to cause the Third Elder so much problems?!¡± Du Yongxu had just appreciated the extent of what Jun Xiaomo had done.

    Her capabilities were far beyond what Du Ruiguang had expected was possible of a young sprout like her.

    ¡°We¡¯ll find out once we return to the n¡¯s grounds. The Third Elder¡¯s condition seems to be pretty grim. We have to return to keep the situation under control.¡±

    As Du Ruiguang spoke, he immediately retrieved another Teleportation Scroll from his Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Wait...wait a minute!¡± Dai Yanfeng had earlier noticed Du Ruiguang leave the seating areas earlier, and he and the other sect elders from the Eternal Summit Sect had followed closely behind him. Du Ruiguang couldn¡¯t be bothered with Dai Yanfeng any longer, so he had acquiesced to their eavesdropping on the contents of their conversation.

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s heart thumped heavily as he heard the entire conversation between Du Yongxu and Du Ruiguang. Then, he mustered his courage and held Du Ruiguang back ¨C

    ¡°Du n Head, are you going to just leave like that?!¡± Dai Yanfeng cried out with indignation. Even though he was afraid of the Du n Head¡¯s abilities, Dai Yanfeng was not a timid person by any means. When push came to shove, he would still allow his anger to manifest, ¡°Have you forgotten our transaction? We¡¯ve already done everything that you¡¯d asked for, yet you¡¯re going to turn away and just leave like that?!¡±

    Du Ruiguang smiled grimly as he nced back at Dai Yanfeng. His gaze was filled with contempt and disdain.

    ¡°Otherwise? Do you think that we have to pander to your every desire just because we¡¯ve got a transaction between us? Don¡¯t you forget that it was you who had of your own volition given up your rights to participate in these group battles and allowed our Du n disciples to stand in their behalf. Since that¡¯s the case, when we choose to back out of thepetition is naturally also up to us to decide. Who gives you the right to stop us?!¡±

    ¡°But didn¡¯t you say that you were going to help us kill those people from the Heavenly Peak?! This was your obligation in our transaction!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wrong. I¡¯ve only said that the odds of sess in this regard would be higher. I¡¯ve never once guaranteed that we would kill the Heavenly Peak disciples.¡± Du Ruiguang explicated as though he were expounding on a basic truth in the world.

    ¡°Du n Head, you...!¡± Dai Yanfeng was on the brink of exploding.

    ¡°Oh, but if Grand Elder Dai is not satisfied, you can still send your own disciples back into the marsnds to fight on.¡± Du Ruiguang waved his arms and twenty identity tokensnded in Dai Yanfeng¡¯s hands just like that, ¡°These are the identity tokens of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples. As long as they put on these identity tokens, they will be able to return into the marsnds through this formation array on the ground. But don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t warn you ¨C that Scarlet Heavenly Wolf has already lost control. If you don¡¯t want your entire team to be obliterated, I¡¯d suggest you shelf that lousy idea of yours.¡±

    Du Ruiguang¡¯s lips curled into a contemptuous smile.

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s face turned a sickly green and then a pale white. He knew full well that even if he sent his own disciples back into the marsnds right now, they would be as good as dead.

    But he was incredibly aggrieved right now! The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s reputation and pride had fallen to an all-time low as a result of the Du n disciples¡¯ repugnant performance during the course of these group battles. Yet notwithstanding that, the culprits from the Du n were simply going to leave and turn a blind eye to all the damage that they had caused to the Eternal Summit Sect? How could Dai Yanfeng just take this lying down?! Dai Yanfeng was so furious right now that he had the urge to tear the Du n Head to shreds!

    But the precondition was that he had to have the ability to do so first.

    Du Ruiguang knew what was going through Dai Yanfeng¡¯s mind as well. He lifted his head as he remarked disdainfully, ¡°Grand Elder Dai, I think you¡¯ve got to be clear about this. The right to choose had never been in your hands. The conduct of the battles, including when we depart from the battles, is entirely up to us. Besides, do you think that your Eternal Summit Sect disciples would be able to defeat the Heavenly Peak disciples had they made an appearance instead of the Du n disciples? Didn¡¯t you witness with your own two eyes the peculiar abilities of that little brat, Jun Xiaomo? If you want to kill them, you¡¯ll first have to find a way to understand what goes on in her mind.¡±

    Dai Yanfeng knew that every single statement from Du Ruiguang right now was none other than the truth. Yet it was precisely because of this that he felt so aggrieved and indignant about all of it ¨C if the Du n disciples were unable to deal with the Heavenly Peak disciples, who would be able to deal with the Heavenly Peak disciples?

    ¡°Ah, but you don¡¯t have to be too worried. Her little tricks are crafty and peculiar, but these won¡¯t be of much use in the face of absolute strength. You¡¯ll have plenty of opportunities to deal with them in the future.¡± Du Ruiguang enlightened Dai Yanfeng.

    As much as Dai Yanfeng knew that what Du Ruiguang was saying waspletely logical and urate, he equally felt that this was not the oue that he had desired to begin with. Just as he struggled with the tension between these two thoughts in his heart, Du Ruiguang activated the Teleportation Array.

    An intense blue light shed brightly, and the Du n members were all gone. It was as though they had never appeared to begin with.

    Dai Yanfeng was dazzled by the blue light that had emanated from the Teleportation Array. Then, as soon as he came back to his senses, a deep sense of frustration and exasperation surged and roiled in his heart ¨C this transaction had failed. They had not only failed to achieve any of their initial objectives, the Du n disciples had even left a huge mess for them to clean up afterwards. Dai Yanfeng was so incensed that a swathe of blood lodged itself in his throat.

    ¡°Grand...Grand Elder?¡± One of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples noticed that the colour of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s face was truly ugly, so he mustered his courage and stepped forward to check on the Grand Elder.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. Let¡¯s go back first. That¡¯s right, summon the martial brothers of yours who were supposed to have been participating in thepetition. At the very least, we cannot let others know that we¡¯d allowed others to take part in thepetition on our behalf.¡± Dai Yanfeng spoke to the disciple with a harsh tone of voice.

    The disciple was slightly taken aback by Dai Yanfeng¡¯s tone of voice. However, he quickly nodded his head, acknowledging his instructions.

    Dai Yanfeng stared at his back as the disciple took his leave. A deep sense of anxiety and unease swelled from the depths of his heart.

    Inside the marsnds, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had discovered that the Du n disciples had vanished just like that, and it could not help but howl at the sky with indignation. A fric intent began to surface in the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°Damn. This fe might be...¡± Jun Xiaomo realized that the situation had just taken a turn for the worse, and she hurriedly instructed her martial brothers, ¡°Martial brother Chen, could you bring everyone away from this ce quickly? The further away, the better.¡±

    ¡°Then what about martial sister?¡± Chen Feiyu quickly caught onto the hidden implications within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words, and he furrowed his brows as he rified her intentions.

    As expected, Jun Xiaomo calmly exined, ¡°I¡¯m going to remain here and set up a formation array.¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Chen Feiyu immediately rejected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion, ¡°This spirit beast is far too dangerous. Martial sister¡¯s cultivation level is only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Even if someone has to stay behind, it can¡¯t be you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°But, martial brother Chen, apart from me, who else would be able to set up a formation array to bind it and restrict its movements?¡±

    ¡°I know martial sister is capable, but...¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, I hope you¡¯ll be able to trust me this time. Furthermore, time is of the essence. If I don¡¯t have enough time to set up my formation array, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf might truly lose control before we can restrain its movements.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke with earnestness.

    ¡°Then, alright.¡± Chen Feiyu sighed, before he immediately turned to the others behind him, ¡°Follow me. We¡¯re going to leave this ce so that we don¡¯t hinder and obstruct martial sister¡¯s efforts.¡±

    The others had also heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. Although everyone was incredibly worried for Jun Xiaomo, they still decided to follow Chen Feiyu and leave in the quickest time possible.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had notpletely lost its senses yet. There were two opposite forces within its body that was vying for control right now ¨C one was the remnant powers from the refinement technique that was used by the Du n; while the other was the talismans that Jun Xiaomo had just applied onto its body.

    These two opposite forces had initially been rtively equal in their power, and the equilibriumy in favor of the beast-taming talismans applied by Jun Xiaomo. However, the sight of its objects of hatred vanishing in front of its very eyes had dealt a heavy blow to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s rationality. As a result, the equilibrium had now been broken, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was on the brink of losing its rationality once more.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo began to recite the mnemonics from the Beast-Taming Technique as she began to set up a Constriction Array where the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was.

    She did not expect to immediately be able to restrain the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. Her only aim right now was to be able to hold the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf back once it lost its rationality and began to thrash about its surroundings. If she were able to hold it back and restrain it ever so slightly, then she would be able to continue to oveyyers uponyers of Constriction Arrays over the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    As long as she was able to ovey sufficient Constriction Arrays over each other, itsbined strength would undoubtedly be able to restrain the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    This was incredibly trying to a person¡¯s understanding and knowledge of formation arrays. One wrong move and all of her previous efforts would have gone to waste. Not only that, Jun Xiaomo knew that as soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf broke free of its restraints, someone at the sixth level of Qi Mastery like her would immediately face grave, life-threatening dangers.

    Thus, time was of the essence. She had to make the best use of it all.

    Outside the marsnds, a sect elder from a Greater Sect watched Jun Xiaomo with great interest as he stroked his beard. The smile on his face widened greatly with pleasant surprise, as though he had just discovered a hidden gem.

 Chapter 224: Those Who Harm Others, Harm Themselves

    <h4>Chapter 224: Those Who Harm Others, Harm Themselves</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°This littledy¡¯s aptitude isn¡¯t too bad. Ah-Jie, take a look ¨C what do you think of me epting her as my disciple?¡±

    This sect elder from the Zephyr Sect had been observing Jun Xiaomo during the battles for some time now, and he quipped lightheartedly to another sect elder beside him as he stroked his own beard.

    The Zephyr Sect was a Greater Sect which was second to only the Limitless Sect and the Frozen Sword Sect. These three sects were the mainstay among the top three Greater Sect after every iteration of the Greater Inter-Sect Competitions. These three sects were naturally also Greater Sects that almost all disciples of the Secondary Sects dreamt of entering.

    That said, the Zephyr Sect¡¯s recruitment of disciples was extremely peculiar and arbitrary. Whilst they considered the disciples¡¯ potential, abilities, character, and the like, none of the sect elders adhered to any fixed rules when they picked out their next chosen disciples. Thus, whether past or present, nobody had been able to figure out anymon threads in how the Zephyr Sect picked out its disciples.

    Right now, this sect elder named Rong Ruizhen had obviously set his sights on Jun Xiaomo and recognized her aptitude.

    ¡°Let¡¯s keep watching. I get the feeling that she¡¯s rather reckless to be facing this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf all alone. Whether she can survive this trial is still very much an unknown for now.¡± The other sect elder criticized.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. Let¡¯s wait and see, then. We¡¯ll revisit this if she¡¯s able to survive this ordeal.¡± Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard as he chuckled heartily. His eyes gleamed with anticipation and sophistication.

    Just as the sect elders were having that exchange with each other, Jun Xiaomo had alreadypleted the first round of her Constriction Array. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf howled in fury and attempted to charge out. However, it was blocked and repelled back by the walls of the Constriction Array. At the same time, the radiance of the Constriction Array darkened slightly.

    These Constriction Arrays were incredibly powerful, but they would not be able tost for too long if Jun Xiaomo did not continue to strengthen it.

    Thus, she made full use of the downtime while the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was repelled back. Before the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf could shake of its momentary stupor, Jun Xiaomo made a few hand seals, added a few spirit stones onto her formation array, and then changed some lines within the formation diagram itself.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf charged at her once more, and it was again repelled back...

    Just like that, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf continued to charge straight towards Jun Xiaomo, yet it was time and again repelled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array. Furthermore, every time it was repelled, the amount of space for it to manoeuvre would diminish ever so slightly.

    In fact, there was one asion where the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s frenzied state escted to the next level and it nearly broke through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo managed to ovey anotheryer of Constriction Array over the others in the nick of time, and she barely averted the crisis by a hair¡¯s breadth.

    As time wore on, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf finally found itselfpletely restrained under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array, and it waspletely unable to move any longer.

    Outside the marsnds, several people finally heaved a sigh of relief on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behalf. In fact, several sighs rang out at the same time, and everyone nced at each other as they realized that everyone else in the audience had all been watching Jun Xiaomo¡¯s confrontation with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf with bated breath.

    It was truly...nail-biting and enrapturing!

    Sparse apuse began to ring out in some parts of the audience. Then, within moments, it escted into a thunderous apuse as everyone gave their sincerest adtion to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°This young sprout is pretty good! I¡¯ve decided to ept her as my disciple!¡± Tong Ruizhen¡¯s eyes curled into a delighted squinch as he eximed with joy.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too pleased with yourself just yet. My assessment of this youngdy is that she¡¯s rather stubborn and has her own way of thinking. She might not necessarily agree to be your disciple.¡± The other sect elder beside Tong Ruizhen rained on his parade.

    ¡°Hey! The Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect wishes to take her as a disciple! What else could she ask for?¡± Tong Ruizhen huffed in response.

    ¡°Nothing much. Don¡¯t forget that your specialty lies in formation arrays and talismans, but not everyone wants to be an array master or a talisman master. Don¡¯t put the cart before the horse.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen was mildly taken aback by the other sect elder¡¯s explication, and he rubbed his nose and grew taciturn.

    That¡¯s right. Most cultivators who had potential and aptitude would never consider bing an array master or a talisman master because the process of learning these disciplines took far too much time, and it would necessarily encroach on the time that these cultivators would otherwise have set aside for their cultivation.

    On the other side, havingpleted a series of transformations and oveys to her Constriction Array, Jun Xiaomo walked towards the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf tightly bound by the Constriction Array.

    ¡°I have the ability to bring you out of here and return you your freedom. Will you trust in me this once?¡± Jun Xiaomo slowly exined.

    She knew that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had already unlocked a profound level of spiritual awareness. Otherwise, its eyes would never possess such depth of personality and emotions.

    Naturally, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s eyes were presently a peculiar deep red in colour, as though blood would spurt out of it at any moment. It was repulsive to look at.

    Several members of the audience admired Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bravery and audacity to talk terms of a transaction with a vicious beast before her.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf red coldly at Jun Xiaomo as it attempted to raise its paws that were tightly bound by the Constriction Array. A breath of hot air spewed from its nostrils. It was evident that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had the urge to get up and tear Jun Xiaomo to shreds at this moment.

    But it was also evident that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf could not do so right now.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to gaze into its eyes with determination. Slowly but surely, the frenzy in the depths of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s eyes began to diminish. Its eyes were still filled with vignce against Jun Xiaomo, but it no longer possessed the intention to attack Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled at it as she retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and exined, ¡°This talisman can temporarily suppress the hex in your body, but you¡¯ll also have to cooperate with me. If you agree to let me apply this talisman on you, give me a response.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf continued to re coldly at Jun Xiaomo as it remained taciturn.

    The audience outside began to stir. Everyone thought that Jun Xiaomo must be mad. After all, how could a spirit beast in the Golden Core stage of cultivation understand human speech to begin with?

    Such maturity of spiritual awareness generally required the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, at the very least.

    But what they did not know was that spirits beasts like the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would already possess a certain level of spiritual awareness ever since it was born. Thus, after some time, it barked in response to Jun Xiaomo, and it even nodded its head slightly.

    ¡°It...did it just nod its head?!¡± Wei Gang eximed in astonishment. He was standing some distance away as he watched this scene unfold before his eyes.

    Meng Huanqiu smacked his head as she responded, ¡°Brother¡¯s observations aren¡¯t wrong. It did just nod its head.¡±

    Wei Gang stared back at Meng Huanqiu in a daze, before he gingerly rubbed his head where Meng Huanqiu had smacked.

    Meng Huanqiu smiled mischievously. The look that was stered all over her face right now was proud and arrogant,pletely destroying any image apanying her good looks.

    Alright, the truth of the matter was that she did not have much image to begin with. After all, she had on countless asions revealed her abnormal personality to the audience throughout these group battles.

    In front of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, Jun Xiaomo gingerly applied the talisman onto its body. Momentster, the talisman shone with a bright blue light as it melded into the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body.

    Thus, the coldness in the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s eyespletely vanished, and in its stead was an unprecedented calm and steadfastness.

    ¡°What the heck?! She¡¯s really seeded!¡± Someone eximed in the audience. Others were equally as astonished as they wondered where Jun Xiaomo had fished out these strange and peculiar talismans from.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of themotion outside in the audience. She simply curled her lips into a smile and attempted to pat the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯srge head.

    Roar! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf cried out once. Everyone in the audience immediately shuddered in fear as they expected the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to devour Jun Xiaomo in the next moment.

    Yet nothing happened to Jun Xiaomo. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was incredibly obedient to Jun Xiaomo. It was as though its personality had been renewed and transformed.

    It¡¯s a miracle! Several members of the audience sighed in their hearts.

    At this moment, Wei Gang and the others had also begun to huddle around the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf and surround its body. Despite that, they discovered that apart from wagging its tail in frustration, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf did not attempt to do anything else. Thus, everyone heaved a sigh of relief as well.

    ¡°Martial sister, you¡¯re amazing!¡± Wei Gang¡¯s eyes were filled with a renewed sense of admiration for Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I just got lucky.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. However, her smile was filled with cidness.

    -----------------------------------------

    As a result of the Eternal Summit Sect abandonment of thepetition, the Heavenly Peak had taken the title of champions on behalf of the Dawn Sect.

    Even though the Dawn Sect had managed to obtain the title of overall champions of this iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader He Zhang and its Sect Elders hardly revealed any expression of delight or joy on their faces.

    In fact, when the Dawn Sect was announced to be the overall champions of the entirepetition and He Zhang was invited on stage to collect their prize on behalf of the Sect, his face lookedpletely distraught. It was as though he had just tasted fecal matter.

    Then, when the chief referee presented him with the reward for taking the title of champions, He Zhang forcibly stered a stiff smile on his face. At this point in time, even he found it difficult to put on the pretenses he was usually so adept at.

    That said, it was not difficult to imagine why this was so. After all, He Zhang had done everything that he could to change the list of participants for the group battles to include only Heavenly Peak disciples. With the aid and involvement of the Du n Head, he had expected the Heavenly Peak disciples to bepletely annihted over the course of the group battles. That being the case, how could he simply ept the fact that Jun Xiaomo managed to tide through all these ordeals ande out on top of her predicament?!

    Not only that, the Heavenly peak disciples had thoroughly disyed their skills, and He Zhang knew that there were several Greater Sects who had cast approving looks at the Heavenly Peak disciples during the group battles. Conversely, the disciples of the other Peaks had simply faded into the background without a word as a result of the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ showing.

    Most of the Peakmasters harboured a grudge against He Zhang for making the decision to substitute all of their disciples with the Heavenly Peak disciples right now. As a result of that, their own disciples had lost out on the prime opportunity to disy their skills and earn the approval of sect elders from Greater Sects.

    He Zhang felt incredibly aggrieved by the unexpected turn of events.

    That said, the ones who were most aggrieved by this turn of events were none other than the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Dai Yanfeng. Over the course of these group battles, the Eternal Summit Sect had forfeited thepetition mid-way though and obtained a ¡°zero¡± score for their group battles. In one fell swoop, the Eternal Summit Sect instantly fell out of the top ten cements among thepetition¡¯s overall standings.

    Thus, not only did the Eternal Summit Sect fail to maintain their usual position among the top three, they were not even listed among the top twenty sects of thesepetitions.

    This stunning turn of events would undoubtedly make them the greatestughingstock of thesepetitions for a good time toe.

    At the same time, Dai Yanfeng continued to have a thick swathe of blood lodged in his throat as a result of these unforeseen circumstances.

    However, the matters that left him with the greatest despair and despondence was still the mess that had been created by the Du n disciples. The Du n disciples had watched idly as other sect¡¯s disciples perished in front of their very eyes; they had used the disciples of other sects as cannon fodder to whittle away at the Heavenly Peak faction¡¯s defensive capabilities; and they had even used several other insidious means to deal with the disciples of other sects. These actions hadpletely smeared and tarnished the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s reputation so much that the Eternal Summit Sect was practically at rock bottom right now.

    Several sects swore in their hearts that they would never interact or cooperate with the Eternal Summit Sect ever again. They dared not deal with the devil.

    Furthermore, the Eternal Summit Sect came under suspicion and investigation for the appearance of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as well. The truth of the matter was that the Eternal Summit Sect was not the one who had released the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf into the marsnds. However, such a spirit beast that was in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation was clearly a massive threat to the disciples who were participating in the group battles. Thus, the organizingmittee could not let this pass without proper investigations.

    And the most important thing to note was the fact that this spirit beast had gone through the process of refinement, and such refinement techniques were considered forbidden magics. Thus, despite their generally upstanding reputation, even the Eternal Summit Sect had to be investigated for the appearance of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    To top it all off, as a result of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s antisocial performance during the course of the group battles, everyone looked upon the Eternal Summit Sect with disdain and took delight in their misery.

    Indeed, those who harm others, harm themselves.

 Chapter 225: Extraordinary Performance Award

    <h4>Chapter 225: Extraordinary Performance Award</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As a result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s outstanding showing over the course of the group battles, she was even awarded an individual de called the ¡°Extraordinary Performance Award¡±.

    This special award was a discretionary award that was not handed out in every iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions. It would only be handed out when the chief referee nominates a participant, and such a nomination was voted upon and approved by the rest of the referees.

    It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s performance was undeniably ster during thesepetitions. Thus, when the chief referee announced that Jun Xiaomo would be awarded with the individual de of the Extraordinary Performance Award, none of the audience members were taken by surprise at all.

    After all, how many cultivators at the sixth level of the Qi Mastery are there that could be unanimously recognized as the de facto leader of three full teams of cultivators? Furthermore, she had even led three considerably weak-looking teams to defeat a series of strong spirit beasts, demonic creatures, and even the strongest team of the group battles! In fact, she had undoubtedly been crucial in securing the Heavenly Peak disciples the title of champion over the course of these group battles.

    To top it all off, Jun Xiaomo had been the one to broach the idea of group battle tactics to the Heavenly Peak disciples, and she had even disyed an incredibly proficient use of formation arrays and talismans over the course of the group battles which caused everyone¡¯s eyes to glisten brightly with approval.

    Viewed in totality, it might not be much of an exaggeration to say that within thest five hundred years, nobody had seen a young sprout with as much talent forbat. Even thest few disciples who had been awarded the Extraordinary Performance Award had not put on such a ster showing as Jun Xiaomo had done.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo deserved every single bit of the award that she had received.

    As soon as the chief referee announced the recipient of this award, the audience erupted with a thunderous apuse. Then, when Jun Xiaomo stood up amidst the other Heavenly Peak disciples, the apuse grew even more uproarious as it reached an unprecedented climax.

    Amidst the adtions, Wei Gang shot to his feet in excitement and leapt about as he cried out, ¡°Good showing, martial sister!¡±

    Chen Feiyu rubbed his temples in embarrassment. Then, he shook his head and smiled radiantly as well.

    Naturally, one man¡¯s meat was another man¡¯s poison. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sess was the joy and glory of all the members of the Heavenly Peak who now celebrated her achievements; yet there were also some whose faces were incredibly ck and ashen right now.

    This was particrly evident among the members of the Dawn Sect apart from those from the Heavenly Peak. Their pretentious smiles were particrly stiff and rigid, while He Zhang no longer even bothered to ster a pretentious smile on his face as he revealed a look of abject displeasure.

    It was not difficult to see why this was so. He had schemed in countless ways and means, yet everything turned out to bepletely meaningless ¨C anyone in his shoes would not be able to ept the reality before his eyes!

    Given that Jun Xiaomo had already acquired a demonic body, he had initially thought that he would be able to incite a demonic outburst from her body during the course of the Lower Category battles. This would result in Jun Linxuan being subject to the persecution of the entire spiritual world. However, nothing went ording to n. Not only did Jun Xiaomo not suffer a demonic outburst, she even eked out the Dawn Sect¡¯s favourite disciple Yu Wanrou from thepetition to obtain the title of champion of the Lower Category battles.

    His first scheme had failed. That said, with the Du n personally making a move, He Zhang was almost certain that their next move was bound to seed. Thus, he did all he could to convince the other Sect Elders and Peakmasters so that he could change the list of contestants to include all of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Yet to his dismay, not a single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples perished over the course of the group battles. Not only that, the Heavenly Peak disciples had even ovee all odds to im the title of champion of the group battles as well.

    Was Jun Xiaomo a jinx that was sent to cripple all his efforts and schemes?!

    Had he known this was going to happen, He Zhang would never have strained rtions and burnt bridges with Jun Linxuan and the rest of the Heavenly Peak. Right now, even his martial sister Liu Qingmei no longer cared to interact with him beyond a cursory level. He Zhang¡¯s losses were hefty and great, and his ns were in shambles.

    At this moment, He Zhang¡¯s heart was filled with indignation, reluctance and frustration, yet there was nowhere for him to ventte all these things. Thus, he could only stare at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back with a darkened gaze as he fervently repressed the urge to charge at her and destroy her.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s emotions were not much better either. She had always seen Jun Xiaomo as the greatest thorn in her flesh. Right now, she watched in dismay as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life blossomed and she received more and more attention from everyone around her.

    Compared with Jun Xiaomo, Yu Wanrou was nothing more than a little wildflower by the roadside that was in and discreet. It was as though she were destined to disappear among the ordinary without any opportunity to shine.

    Yu Wanrou had been filled with confidence prior to the Lower Category battles; yet now she waspletely filled with despair and despondence.

    It should not have been this way! Yu Wanrou bellowed in her heart with indignation. I¡¯ve been dealt the best possible hand with my spectral demine and my spirit spring waters. Why is Jun Xiaomo still exceeding me in every single regard? Why?!

    Why do the gods have to favour Jun Xiaomo so? Why does she have every good thing delivered straight before her very eyes?! Jun Xiaomo has already been born with a silver spoon in her mouth, so why does she still have to snatch away everything that I¡¯ve always wanted?!

    An immense fire of jealousy burgeoned in Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind. Then, when Yu Wanrou noticed the gaze with which Qin Lingyu stared at Jun Xiaomo with, her jealousy finally reached its boiling point!

    Jun Xiaomo, you slut! Lingyu is mine!

    Yu Wanrou clenched her fists tightly as her body quivered in rage. It was as though something were lodged in her throat and ready to leap out of her mouth at the shortest notice.

    Just then, the fox-shaped mark under Yu Wanrou¡¯s vicle started to emit a strangely hot sensation. In fact, it was so hot that it felt as though a branding iron had been pressed directly onto her skin, and she almost cried out in pain.

    Even though she did not squeal out loud, she still inadvertently let out a pained groan.

    ¡°Martial sister Wanrou, what¡¯s the matter?¡± The first person who discovered Yu Wanrou¡¯s peculiar condition was another fellow martial brother from the Pill Cauldron Peak located just beside her.

    ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m alright...¡± Yu Wanrou smiled grimly with a pale face as she shook her head.

    Then, the heat from the fox-shaped mark intensified once more, causing her to inadvertently let out another groan. This time, her groan was far more audible, and several other male cultivators turned to look at her with concern in their eyes.

    Even though Yu Wanrou was unable to do what Jun Xiaomo had done and obtain simrly ster results through thepetition, her dainty and pitiable image meant that she was nevertheless still the object of affection of several of her martial brothers within the Dawn Sect.

    Of those who turned around to look at her with concern, there were in fact a few of them who were discreetly fond of Yu Wanrou.

    Unfortunately, when she looked expectantly at Qin Lingyu, she noticed that Qin Lingyu did not reciprocate her longing gaze or even look at her with concern. Rather, he continued to fix his gaze on Jun Xiaomo as she slowly made her way to the stage one step at a time.

    Perhaps it was the result of the intense heat from her fox-shaped mark; or perhaps it was the result of Yu Wanrou¡¯s jealousy and frustrations breaching unprecedented levels due to Qin Lingyu nonchnt attitude towards her. Regardless, Yu Wanrou¡¯s chest pumped once ferociously, and she suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

    ¡°Martial sister Wanrou!¡± The male disciples standing around her cried out in horror as she fainted there and then.

    Yet even in that moment just before she passed out, she did not see Qin Lingyu turn his head around to look at her with any measure of concern.

    The fact of the matter was that Qin Lingyu was truly oblivious to what was going on where Yu Wanrou was. He had devoted his undivided attention to where Jun Xiaomo was, and several trains ofplex thoughts upied his mind while an extreme sense of frustration filled his heart.

    If he had known that Jun Xiaomo would be this outstanding, he would never have been so anxious to rescind the marriage arrangement with her.

    Jun Xiaomo was stunning in terms of both her appearances and her abilities. She was just like a zing fire that was so bright that it dazzled one¡¯s eyes, and yet was at the same time so eye-catching that one couldn¡¯t help but still fix their eyes on it.

    Then, when he turned his thoughts to that incident with Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart grew cold and sullen.

    He knew that he had missed his chances with Jun Xiaomo. With Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality, she would never look back anymore.

    Why did I have to rescind the marriage arrangement so soon?! Qin Lingyumented in his heart, before immediately thinking about how Yu Wanrou had time and time again pressed the issue ¨C That¡¯s right! Yu Wanrou was the one who had prompted me to rescind the marriage arrangement at every step of the way. She was the reason why I¡¯d made such a rash and reckless decision!

    And now, it was toote for regrets.

    Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t help but grow incensed at Yu Wanrou. Naturally, with his personality, he would never contemte the possibility that he might be part of the problem as well.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu shoved all the me to Yu Wanrou, and their already unequally yoked rtionship began to grow even more strained as it entered the realms of hostility and animosity.

    Yet all of Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts were neither known to the unconscious Yu Wanrou, nor Jun Xiaomo as she stood on the stage.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that there were many people looking over at her right now, some of whom even with impassioned gazes. However, what was most important was the affirmation that she had received from her family and friends. As for everyone else, they were no more than outsiders who had been momentarily dazzled and mesmerized by her appearances and performance. There was no need for her to pay particr heed to them.

    None of them knew who the real Jun Xiaomo was after all. The Jun Xiaomo that these people saw was only the side of her that she had revealed over the course of thepetition. They hardly appreciated the fact that this was nothing more than the tip of the iceberg.

    Jun Xiaomo had reason to believe that if it had been anyone else who hade up to receive the Extraordinary Performance Award instead of her right now, they would receive a simr baptism of gazes from everyone else. Thus, there was nothing for her to be proud or conceited about.

    Thus, she calmly and steadily made her way towards the chief referee.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disy of steadfastness made the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect nod his head in approval. He was now even more convicted that his decision to ept her as a disciple was a good one.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, congrattions for receiving thepetition¡¯s Extraordinary Performance Award. Thest time that this discretionary award had been handed out was over fifty years ago. I¡¯m incredibly pleased to see you receive this award this time.¡± The chief referee smiled cordially at Jun Xiaomo as he announced.

    ¡°I¡¯m humbled by the panel of referee¡¯s affirmation and approval of my abilities. I had given it my all and done my best.¡± Jun Xiaomo returned the smile and shook the chief referee¡¯s hand.

    What she omitted to say was that she had in fact no choice but to put on such a dazzling performance because the Heavenly Peak disciples had been forced into apetition which had be synonymous with a life-or-death situation to them.

    After all, their opponents had been after their lives. Had they not hunkered down and duked it out with their opponents, would they have been able to survive the ordeal ande out with their lives and limbs intact?

    The chief referee was well pleased with how Jun Xiaomo had remained stoic and steadfast. He turned around, lifted a tray and then turned back to face Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°This is your reward. You have the honour of revealing it to the audience for the very first time.¡± The chief referee revealed.

    The contents of the tray were covered with a red cloth, and nobody was able to see whaty within. Several members of the audience noticed this sight and began to crane their necks at the stage.

    In fact, everyone was curious as to whaty hidden under the red cloth on the tray.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head. She paused for a moment, before she ced her hand on the red cloth on the tray and yanked it off all at once.

    The contents were revealed ¨C a tattered old book and a little bracelety atop the tray.

    ¡°This is an Utterance Bracelet and a Novenary Immortalization Manuscript. The former allows you to recite mnemonics or spells at will without making a single sound; while thetter is an incredibly powerful cultivation technique that you¡¯ll be able to use once you¡¯ve attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.¡± The chief referee smiled faintly as he exined its contents.

    The members of the audience immediately gasped ¨C Novenary Immortalization Manuscript?! This is one of the legendary Heavenly Arts! And generally speaking, only core disciples of Greater Sects would have the opportunity to get close to such amazing refinement techniques. How could the chief referee be handing it out so readily just like that?!

    That¡¯s far too generous, isn¡¯t it?

    As for the Utterance Bracelet, most peoplepletely overlooked it once the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript was mentioned. In their eyes, the fact that one could cast spells or recite mnemonics in their hearts was hardly useful at all. After all, this would at best only slightly increase one¡¯s spell casting speed.

    Despite that, everyone thought that Jun Xiaomo had struck gold!

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily taken aback. However, when she came to her senses once more, a smile crept up the corner of her lips, and the depths of her eyes were evidently filled with joy.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Jun Xiaomo bowed politely to the chief referee, ¡°I thank the panel of referees for their generous bestowment. This was a real pleasant surprise to me.¡±

    ¡°You deserve it.¡± The chief referee quipped with a genial smile on his face.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo shook her head and immediately added a twist, ¡°But...I hope to be able to trade this Novenary Immortalization Manuscript for another prize. I wonder if the panel of referees will be willing to consider this suggestion of mine.¡±

    The chief referee was stunned by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s request. He had never expected such a request from Jun Xiaomo at all.

    At the same time, almost everyone in the audience began to whisper to each other in a hushed voice ¨C none of them could fathom why Jun Xiaomo would think of using the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript to trade for another reward.

    What kind of reward would be worth trading the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript for? Is Jun Xiaomo going to ask for the sky and the moon in exchange for this?

    Several members of the audience began to think along these lines, including some of the referees who began to furrow their brows as well.

    The chief referee hardly gave it much thought. Perhaps he did, but it would only have been a moment¡¯s thought, because there was no reason for him to outrightly reject Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion.

    He chuckled with a good-natured smile on his face as he explored her suggestion further, ¡°Would this young fellow cultivator care to provide us with a little bit more details, such as what you intend to trade your prize for? Otherwise, it¡¯s difficult for us to give you a proper response.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze remained cid and unperturbed. She waspletely unfazed by the chittering in the audience as well.

    Her lips curled up into a faint smile as she continued, ¡°Actually, the reward that I¡¯m hoping for is not something spectacr either. I¡¯m pretty sure the referees would be able to make a decision on the spot.¡±

    With this, the audience¡¯s curiosity was piqued even more.

    Jun Xiaomo paused for a moment, before she finally gave her proper response, ¡°I hope to trade the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript for the freedom of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that I had encountered during the group battles.¡±

    After the group battles had ended, thepetition¡¯s organizingmittee immediately took control of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that had earlier been bound and constricted by Jun Xiaomo. The appearance of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had been aplete ident, and everyone knew that there were traces of refinement techniques and magic on its body. Thus, the organizingmittee did not decide to simply let it off the hook like that. Instead, they restrained it in a separate location using a fresh set of formation arrays, and they had intended to observe it for some time before making the final call as to what they would do with it.

    The organizingmittee was primarily concerned that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would harm the lives of innocent people if they let it run wild just like that. Furthermore, given that it had once been subject to refinement techniques, they knew that it was near impossible for the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to assimte back into life in the wild. Thus, the most likely oue that awaited this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was to put it down and euthanize it.

    Jun Xiaomo did not wish to see the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf end up that way. Furthermore, she had previously given the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf her word that she would return it its freedom and even attempt to remove any trace of the hex or the refinement technique from its body.

    Having made a promise to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, Jun Xiaomo was determined to make good on her word and see it through.

    Thus, as soon as Jun Xiaomo made her request known, the entire audience burst into an uproar ¨C

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s truly gone mad, hasn¡¯t she?! She¡¯s using a Heavenly Art as a bargaining chip so that she can negotiate for the release of a spirit beast?!

    Could her conduct be described as something borne out of overflowingpassion, or was it in and simple idiocy?

 Chapter 226: The Refereesâ€™ Compromise

    <h4>Chapter 226: The Referees¡¯ Compromise</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The truth of the matter was that Jun Xiaomo was neither filled withpassion nor an idiot. To begin with, the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript was useless to her since she already possessed a better refinement technique that was far more suitable to her current circumstances. There was no good reason for her to obtain another manuscript for a refinement technique that was not suitable for her.

    Furthermore, it had to be said that there were distinctions between a demonic refinement technique and a spiritual refinement technique. Since the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript was awarded to her by the panel of referees, it could not possibly be a demonic cultivation technique. Thus, this manuscript waspletely useless to Jun Xiaomo.

    Most importantly, she knew that there were several sects in attendance who had already set their sights on the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript. As soon as the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript was revealed for all to see, Jun Xiaomo could practically feel the avaricious and scheming staresnd on her body in the very next moment. This was particrly apparent from some of the smaller sects. After all, possessing one of these legendary Heavenly Arts manuscripts was a dream to these small sects.

    Jun Xiaomo did not want to be made into a public enemy as a result of this refinement technique. At this point in time, not only was the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript useless to her, she knew it was like a hot potato in her hands.

    Thus, she had decided to forgo the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript and request a different reward in exchange ¨C she had hoped to use the Novenary Immortalization Manuscript to trade for the freedom of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Since she had already promised the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that she would return it its freedom, she simply had to make good on her word.

    Truth be told, she had never expected thepetition organizers to capture and restrain the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf like that. After all, why would thepetition organizers mind a spirit beast that was no longer a threat to anyone?

    That said, when all was said and done, she had still been far too careless.

    Had she known this was going to happen, she would have loosened the restraints on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf before thepetition ended so that the organizingmittee would not have the opportunity to capture and bring it away.

    Furthermore, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s coat of fur and its core were both invaluable objects. Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t imagine what kind of fate would befall it.

    The chief referee immediately furrowed his brows when he heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggested terms of exchange. If Jun Xiaomo had asked for anything else in exchange for her present reward, perhaps he might not have such difficulty requesting to such a request. But Jun Xiaomo wanted the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf...

    The greatest issue with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolfy with the fact that it had been put through several rounds of refinement technique. Nobody could guarantee whether it would once again be subjected to its previous master¡¯s control after it was freed and thus be a threat to innocent lives again.

    Furthermore, the organizingmittee had not been able to uncover who it was who had put the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf through these rounds of refinement technique to date. Even though they highly suspected the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s involvement in this matter, their few days of interrogation and investigations turned up no results and no clues at all.

    Every single one of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Sect Elders and disciples had disimed any liability in this regard with sincerity and conviction. Thus, the organizingmittee did not manage to obtain any hard evidence that the Eternal Summit Sect had been behind it all.

    In fact, the organizingmittee was even slightly suspect that their initial judgment might have been wrong.

    ¡°I know what these esteemed referees might be thinking right now, but I can swear on my life and my cultivation that this spirit beast would never be a threat to anyone in the cultivation world.¡±

    Swearing on one¡¯s life and cultivation was an incredibly serious gesture of conviction. Although one would not in fact lose their lives or cripple their cultivation, but if something did go wrong, it would undoubtedly end up affecting that person¡¯s cultivation.

    ¡°Even though you¡¯ve made a solemn guarantee in this regard, we¡¯re still rather powerless in this regard.¡± Another referee exined sincerely with some measure of difficulty, ¡°This is simply a risk we can¡¯t afford to take.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m only raising this as a suggestion ¨C I understand that the discretion still lies within the esteemed referees¡¯ hands. Besides, I¡¯m using a legendary Heavenly Art to trade for the freedom of a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf ¨C nothing else. To these esteemed referees, the exchange is but for a word on your end. Compared with other things I could have asked for, isn¡¯t this far less burdensome and effortless on your part?¡±

    In other words, this was hardly a bad deal for the panel of referees.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breakdown of the matter touched the heartstrings of several referees and moved them. Truth be told, offering up a Heavenly Art as a reward for thesepetitions was truly far too extravagant. Since the recipient of this reward had decided to forgo it in exchange for far simpler terms, why would they not be pleased?

    Jun Xiaomo took in the various expressions of each referee into her eyes, and the anxiety in her heart dwindled substantially.

    The truth of the matter was that Jun Xiaomo did not bear much hope in her heart when she first raised this suggestion. She did not think that the odds of the referees agreeing to this request was very high.

    The value of a Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was undoubtedly less than the value of a Heavenly Art manuscript. But there were other considerations involved which might mean that the panel off referees were unwilling to give up on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s life.

    But that said, Jun Xiaomo could tell that she had convinced a number of the referees at this moment.

    The chief referee¡¯s brows were still knitted tightly together. He neither evinced an approval nor a rejection of such a request. After a moment¡¯s deliberation, he turned around and began to discuss in hushed voices with the other referees.

    Jun Xiaomo was unable to hear what the referees were talking about, so she could only clench her fists tightly in eager anticipation.

    Off the stage, several members of the audience continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo with res as though castigating her for being an idiot or a lunatic.

    They simply could not understand what Jun Xiaomo was thinking.

    One incense stick of timeter, the panel of referees had finallye to some form of conclusion. The chief referee turned around and faced Jun Xiaomo once more as he solemnly rted to her their decision, ¡°We cannot simply rely in your guarantee. After all, this matter involves the lives of others. That said, we¡¯re willing to give you an opportunity to prove your point to us.¡±

    The chief referee¡¯s first statement had caused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart to sink like a rock to the depths of a vast ocean of hopelessness. That said, the chief referee¡¯stter words once again raised her up from the mires of despondence and reignited the mes of hope in her heart.

    It was good that the panel of referees had decided on apromise.

    ¡°I wonder how these esteemed referees want me to prove the point to them?¡± Jun Xiaomo bowed politely and made a fist and palm salute as she queried.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. You must cohabitate with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf for one day with no barriers or any forms of protection between the two of you. If it neither attacks you nor brandishes any hostility against you, you¡¯ll have proven your point to us.¡±

    The sight of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s obedience towards Jun Xiaomo had left an indelible impression in the hearts of the referees so much so that they were willing to offer her an opportunity to prove her point to them.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head immediately, ¡°Alright, that won¡¯t be a problem. I humbly thank the esteemed referees for offering me this opportunity.¡±

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo responded in the affirmative, everyone in the audience unanimously thought the same way ¨C Jun Xiaomo has gone mad. How could she think of epting such conditions?!

    At the same time, there were some others like He Zhang who began to curse in their hearts and hope that Jun Xiaomo would be torn to shreds by that fanatic spirit beast.

    Thus, the panel of referees led Jun Xiaomo down a winding path as they arrived at an idyllic ce at the corner of the Heavenly Crane Mountain. Jun Xiaomo took a look at her surroundings as she chuckled bitterly to herself ¨C Fortunately, this isn¡¯t the marsnds.

    In all honesty, she did not wish to step foot into those marsnds ever again. Even though she possessed a reasonable amount of fortitude against the nauseating and disgusting creatures within, the prospects of encountering all kinds of disgusting and goosebumps-inducing creepy crawlies would still cause her to lose her appetite.

    Roar! Jun Xiaomo heard the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s roar even before they drew near its enclosures. Its roar was even filled with pain and indignation.

    Jun Xiaomo grew anxious and she immediately picked up her pace and hurried over to where the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s roar came from. After making another turn, she saw a wounded Scarlet Heavenly Wolf ring viciously in confrontation against a group of people that had surrounded it.

    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out with indignation. She had never expected the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to still be tormented by mischief-makers even after it had been captured.

    Had she known this was going to happen, she would have thought of a far quicker method to rescue the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf with.

    Despite Jun Xiaomo¡¯s approach, the group of mischief-makers were hardly anxious at all. In fact, they immediately looked towards Jun Xiaomo with a vicious grin on their faces. One of them even raised his hand and motioned to attack Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately tensed up her body. She was just about to resist and defend herself when she saw someone else step right in front of her and block the oing attack.

    The tens of referees had arrived closely behind her!

    As soon as they discovered that Jun Xiaomo possessed strength in numbers, the assant was immediately taken aback. He quickly reassessed the situation and discovered that none of the referees were any weaker than them ¨C it would be wise not to provoke them any further.

    Thus, the leader of the pack of mischief-makers gritted his teeth, before signaling to his men, ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    As he finished speaking, they all retrieved Teleportation Scrolls from their Interspatial Rings and tossed them onto the ground. Several bright blue lights shed out, and the group of mischief-makers were gone.

    Before Jun Xiaomo and the others were able to react, the mischief-makers had disappeared.

    The chief referee furrowed his brows as he walked forward. He had never expected anyone to trespass the enclosure that they had used to restrain the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf like this.

    In the end, the panel of referees had been far too careless as well.

    Roar! When the chief referee drew near, the injured Scarlet Heavenly Wolf roared furiously, and the mes on its body burgeoned once more.

    It was evident that this encounter with the mischief-makers had reignited its fury against humans. If not for the presence of sequestering formation arrays around it, there was no doubt that it would have directly lunged at the chief referee and the rest!

    The chief referee had congealed some power on his palm. He was just about to knock out the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf when Jun Xiaomo stopped him in the nick of time.

    ¡°Senior, could you let me give it a shot?¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke earnestly to the chief referee.

    The chief referee furrowed his brows as he responded, ¡°Do you understand what you¡¯re doing? This spirit beast is extremely dangerous ¨C it¡¯s not something you¡¯ll be able to deal with alone. Furthermore, after what has just happened, I¡¯m afraid that it might be incredibly difficult for you to gain its trust once more.¡±

    ¡°I understand that. But I still want to give it a shot.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled.

    She did not want the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to be a pointless sacrifice as a result of human ambition and greed. As long as there was a trace of hope to save this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s life, she would cling fervently to it.

    The chief referee sighed once as he gave in, ¡°Then suit yourself. But don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t remind you ¨C once you enter the domain of the formation array, we¡¯ll no longer be able to protect you.¡±

    ¡°I understand.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head calmly.

    She had a good understanding of the discipline of formation arrays, and she naturally appreciated this.

    So what if it¡¯s dangerous? I¡¯ve still got to give it a shot to know whether it¡¯s going to work or not.

    Once Jun Xiaomo made up her mind, the other referees no longer obstructed her. Then, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a recovery pill from her Interspatial Ring as she slowly made her way over towards the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s enclosure.

    ROAR!!! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf did not lower its vignce just because the person who had approached it was Jun Xiaomo. In fact, the hatred and agitation in the depths of its eyes had already burgeoned.

 Chapter 227: Renewal of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolfâ€™s Trust

    <h4>Chapter 227: Renewal of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s Trust</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was by nature an incredibly vignt and wary spirit beast. If anyone did not appear kind and harmless enough, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would attack that person as long as it came within a ten-meter radius of it.

    In fact, there were even times when the person approaching it would still be unable to earn the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s trust even if it appeared kind and harmless enough.

    Jun Xiaomo had earlier managed to obtain the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s trust under the unique conditions during the group battles. But now, things had changed. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was captured by the organizingmittee and even restrained in this small little enclosure. This made it suddenly realize that Jun Xiaomo might very well have betrayed its trust.

    At the very least, Jun Xiaomo had not kept to her end of the bargain, which was to give it its freedom. This was the reason for the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s burgeoning hatred and animosity towards Jun Xiaomo in its heart.

    Thus, it was going to be an uphill task if Jun Xiaomo were to obtain its trust again. This was the reason why the chief referee had earlier advised Jun Xiaomo not to waste her efforts here earlier.

    To the chief referee¡¯s mind, there was no reason for Jun Xiaomo to put herself in harm¡¯s way for a spirit beast that did not appear to be particrly spectacr.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo could hardly care less about what the thought processes of other people. She lived by her own principles, and she knew that as long as she had given her word that she would do something, she would do everything she could to see it through. And this was despite the fact that the thing that she had given her word to was no more than a spirit beast.

    Roar! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf cried out once more, and the mes on its back grew even wilder. It took two steps back, its hair began to stand on end tensely, and its hind legs were cocked and ready to pounce towards Jun Xiaomo at a moment¡¯s notice.

    Jun Xiaomo walked to the border of the formation array and opened her palm to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. A beautiful, gleaming medicinal pill sat atop the center of her palm. This was a secondary-tier, fifth-grade medicinal pill ¨C it could be said that this was a rather rare and valuable pill.

    Despite that, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf continued to re vigntly at Jun Xiaomo. There was not a single trace of easing of the tension in its eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t mind this at all. She continued to smile faintly with an outstretched arm. She neither revealed any signs of further approach; nor did she reveal any signs of backing off.

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight back at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, while the referees stared nkly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back. Everyone was certain that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efforts would fail this time. The problem did not lie with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities; rather, it was an issue that had been set in stone given the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s personality.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had already lost a prime opportunity to obtain and maintain the trust with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, so how could she possibly be able to win the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s trust once more with merely a medicinal pill?

    It¡¯s not possible.

    One incense stick of time passed...two incense sticks of time passed...one hour passed... Yet all this while, Jun Xiaomo continued to stand there with an outstretched arm with the medicinal pill atop her palm. Even some of the referees behind her had begun to grow frustrated and exasperated at this ostensible stale mate.

    Logically speaking, cultivators who had attained a high level of cultivation, including these referees, would never be so easily influenced by the circumstances around them. Generally, as spiritual cultivators get stronger, they tend to be more patient and have more willpower. That said, these referees firmly believed that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efforts were going to be in vain at the end of the day.

    Yet because of their position as referees, they were forced to waste their time and wait it out with Jun Xiaomo as she made her attempts with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. It was no wonder that the referees would grow anxious and frustrated, and no longer be able to maintain the calm and peaceable state of mind that they originally would have.

    Finally, it was the chief referee who spoke first. He attempted to walk forward to persuade Jun Xiaomo that her efforts, but she immediately held him back with a hand gesture.

    ¡°Shh...¡± Jun Xiaomo ced her finger on her lips as she mouthed the following words, ¡°Dear seniors, please wait a little while more.¡±

    Another referee witnessed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction and was about to leap up in anger when he was held back by the chief referee.

    ¡°Let¡¯s y along and wait a little while more.¡± The chief referee cajoled him in a hushed tone of voice. The other referee¡¯s standing was naturally not as high as the chief referee¡¯s stature, and he naturally had to obey the chief referee¡¯s instructions. Thus, he could only suppress the indignation and frustration in his heart as he red at Jun Xiaomo and took a few steps back in a huff as he grew taciturn.

    Another hour or so passed. Just as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm was beginning to get tired, she finally noticed some movement on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s part.

    Most spirit beasts possessed an incredibly sensitive sense of smell, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was no exception to this. Thus, Jun Xiaomo firmly believed that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf would be able to tell for itself that the medicinal pill held up by Jun Xiaomo was a valuable treasure.

    As long as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was willing to consume this medicinal pill on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm, the rift between them would naturally mend and close that much more.

    Roar! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf roared once more as it attempted to shock Jun Xiaomo into retreat. Yet in the end, not only did Jun Xiaomo not retreat, she even took a few steps forward. At this moment, she was only one step away from the edge of the formation array.

    If the members of the Heavenly Peak were here right now, they would undoubtedly rush forward to Jun Xiaomo and drag her back from what she was doing.

    Fortunately, the Heavenly Peak members were not around. Those who were present right now did not overtly care about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life. Apart from their assessment that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stubbornness bordered on idiocy, none of them appeared to have much concern for Jun Xiaomo.

    As soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf noticed that Jun Xiaomo had advanced a few steps rather than back off, it immediately leapt towards Jun Xiaomo. However, it paused when it was one inch away from the edge of the formation array¡¯s domain.

    It knew that if it got any closer to the edge of the formation array, it would undoubtedly suffer from the formation array¡¯s ¡°punishment¡±. In fact, some of the injuries on its body had been caused by this very formation array.

    At this point in time, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was practically next to Jun Xiaomo.

    Their eyes met. Jun Xiaomo deliberated for a moment, before she took another half a step forward, and she stretched her hand through the formation array and essentially exposed her hand to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s attacks.

    ¡°Is this young brat nuts?¡± One of the referees murmured.

    In the very next moment, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf opened his mouth wide, and instantly mped down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm.

    Every one of the referees¡¯ eyes widened. Everything had happened too quickly, and nobody had the time to react, much less think about rescuing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm from the jaws of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    What these referees failed to notice was the fact that Jun Xiaomo hardly bore any reaction at all. In fact, she did not even cringe or groan in pain.

    Jun Xiaomo only continued to look at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf with a smile on her face. She did not retreat nor retaliate at all.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf tightened its jaws even more, but Jun Xiaomo continued to stare at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s eyes with hardly any intention to react.

    Finally, just as the referees could no longer find it within themselves to stand idly by any longer and were about to think of a way to rescue Jun Xiaomo, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf suddenly curled its eyes into a delighted squinch and spat Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm back out.

    Apart from the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sleeve had turned into a soaking wet rag, there were hardly any injuries on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm. Furthermore, the medicinal pill that had been on her palm was finally consumed by the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    The medicinal pill melted as soon as it entered the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s mouth, and it immediately curled its eyes in delight as it enjoyed the soothing power of the medicinal pill course through its limbs, its bones, its meridians and its Dantian. It even emitted some gentle, growling sounds in pleasure.

    The wounds on its body had only appeared to look serious, but they did not extend beyond the surface at all. Thus, it recovered fully in no time.

    As soon as it discovered that its body no longer had any difort with it, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf opened its eyes once more and looked back at Jun Xiaomo. Its eyes were finally no longer filled with hostility or animosity, and the zing mes on its back had also dwindled substantially.

    This was a sign that it had finally let its guard down and once again epted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s advance.

    ¡°Sigh, could it be that this little brat had actually seeded?¡± One of the referees sighed as he eximed.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she spoke to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, ¡°The referees say that if I want to bring you out of this ce, I¡¯ll have to stay with you in your enclosure for a night. Will you allow me toe in and join you? If you agree, then please show me where my ce should be.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf howled once as it stared at Jun Xiaomo, but it made no other gestures.

    Notwithstanding that, Jun Xiaomo continued to look straight into the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s eyes with sincerity and earnestness, as though she were using her perseverance to signal her intentions that she was not going to harm it.

    Thus, some time passed again, before the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf finally lifted its eyes and shifted its legs as though it were giving way, and it took one step to the side.

    Naturally, one step to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was tantamount to a fewrge steps to Jun Xiaomo. The amount of space that it had parted with was more than sufficient for Jun Xiaomo to even lie horizontally on the ground.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo walked straight past the formation array and into the enclosure without hesitation. Behind her, several referees werepletely taken aback by her audacity and bravery. Even as they sighed with admiration and approval, they couldn¡¯t help but wipe of some beads of sweat on their foreheads.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf won¡¯t suddenly pounce on this littledy and devour her, right?

    Some of the referees thought with some measure of wariness and suspicion in their heart. They felt that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sess was rather unbelievable.

    However, the dreadful scenario that they had envisioned in their minds did not take ce. Instead, Jun Xiaomo remainedpletely safe as she took her seat beside the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    When she noticed the unmistakable looks of astonishment on the faces of the referees outside, she smiled radiantly at them as she added, ¡°The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf is a very spiritually aware spirit beast that has its own principles as well. Once it has decided to trust someone, it will not go back on its word that easily.¡±

    This was why she boldly strode into its enclosure as soon as the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf made a gesture of approval to Jun Xiaomo by giving her some space.

    Compared with some human beings, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s character was far more trustworthy.

    A few of the referees appeared to be deep in thought, while the chief referee nodded his head as he addressed Jun Xiaomo once more, ¡°Since you¡¯ve already obtained its approval, you¡¯re well on your first step towards the conditions that we¡¯ve set. We¡¯ll keep observing its conduct from now onwards then. If it doesn¡¯t show any more signs of hostility or threat towards you, we¡¯ll fulfill our end of the promise tomorrow and let it go free.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled in response, ¡°I sincerely thank the esteemed referees for your magnanimity in epting my humble request.¡±

    Thus, the chief referee led the other referees as they took their leave from this enclosure, leaving Jun Xiaomo alone with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. At this point in time, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had finally also let go of the remaining tension of its body.

    Before the referees took their leave, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had still been rather vignt about them.

    Howl... The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf howled slightly before it ignored Jun Xiaomo andy down on its belly. It even swished its tail about from time to time.

    After sitting on the ground for some time, Jun Xiaomo found that discovered that the ground was too bumpy, and it was uneven and filled with stones and tiny pebbles. Thus, she looked greedily at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf ¨C that thickyer of fur looked incrediblyfortable. How nice would it be to lean against that!

    Thus, she attempted to draw closer to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. It sensed that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aura was drawing closer to it, but it simply opened its eyes and nced at Jun Xiaomozily.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly.

    Then, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf ignored Jun Xiaomo once more. It simply shut its eyes and began to rest.

    Jun Xiaomo grew emboldened. In the next moment, she minced her way over to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s side and plonked down just beside it as it leaned on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s luscious fur.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf attempted to move its legs slightly, but it discovered that it had no way of pushing away the ¡°deadweight¡± on its leg. Thus, it decided to simply turn a blind eye to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence by its side.

    She¡¯s not too heavy anyway. I¡¯ll leave her be. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf huffed lightly before it grew taciturn.

 Chapter 228: The Scarlet Heavenly Wolfâ€™s Freedom

    <h4>Chapter 228: The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s Freedom</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had always been pretty fond of furry and fluffy little things, including things such as her little packrat and this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Even though the little packrat couldn¡¯t really be considered a pet, while the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf couldn¡¯t really be considered small either, it did not change the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s had a soft spot for them as soon as she saw their soft, luscious fur.

    Afterying on the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s back for a while, Jun Xiaomo began to grow restless and bored. Thus, she got up, walked over to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s side, and began to touch its ears and pat its head. She particrly loved the soft, tactile feeling of their smooth fur.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolfzily opened its eyes once more and nced back at Jun Xiaomo. It was as though its eyes were filled with an exmation ¨C Silly humans.

    That said, it did not have any intentions to attack Jun Xiaomo at all.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled. After tousling the fur on its head for some time, she decided to lean on its head and rest there.

    If anyone else noticed this, they would most certainly sigh in their hearts and exim that Jun Xiaomo truly had immense gall to do so. After all, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s rows of razor-sharp teeth were just beside Jun Xiaomo, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf could at any time open its mouth widely and swallow up Jun Xiaomo¡¯s petite figure in one gulp.

    Jun Xiaomo was practically cing her life on the line and tangoing with a wolf.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo could hardly care less about what others thought. To her mind, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was not only obedient and obsequious, it was even incredibly spiritually aware.

    The truth of the matter was that Jun Xiaomo had encountered other Scarlet Heavenly Wolves in her previous life, some of which had even attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. That said, none of them could hold a candle to this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf in terms of their spiritual awareness and human-like personality.

    How great would it be if I could tame this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf and make it my pet! Jun Xiaomo thought hopefully in her heart.

    Taming a spirit beast was different from refining a spirit beast on a fundamental level. The process of taming a spirit beast was a two-way street ¨C both cultivator and spirit beast must equally be willing to ept the transaction. On the other hand, refining a spirit beast only required the cultivator¡¯s unteral desire, while the refined spirit beast would be unable to resist the destruction of its spiritual awareness and its subsequent subservience to the cultivator.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was letting her mind wander, the Transmittance Talisman in her Interspatial Ring shone brightly, causing her Interspatial Ring to grow warm to the touch as well.

    Jun Xiaomo promptly retrieved the Transmittance Talisman, and an anxious voice immediately called out to her, ¡°Mo-Mo, where have you gone to? Why have the referees all returned without you?¡±

    This was Liu Qingmei¡¯s voice. She had evidently grown worried seeing that her daughter had not returned yet.

    A wave of guilt washed over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. She should had informed her mother about her decision earlier so that she would not be so worried.

    ¡°Mum, I¡¯m still at the Heavenly Crane Mountain, and I¡¯m resting in the enclosure together with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. The referees mentioned that as long as I can spend a night with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf without any issues, they¡¯ll agree to return it its freedom.¡±

    ¡°Impudence!¡± This time, it was Jun Linxuan¡¯s voice that resounded from the Transmittance Talisman as he chided her, ¡°That Scarlet Heavenly Wolf has already undergone the process of refinement, and we don¡¯t even know who the culprit is. If you remain by its side, there¡¯s a possibility that it can at any time attack you without notice. Do you think you¡¯ll be able to avoid such a surprise attack?!¡±

    ¡°Dad, don¡¯t worry. Trust me, there¡¯s no danger to this ¨C haven¡¯t I already proven this during thepetition?¡± Jun Xiaomo did her best to cajole Jun Linxuan and convince him of her safety.

    ¡°How do you know that it had not simply been instructed to appear to be harmless during thepetition?¡± Jun Linxuan refuted indignantly.

    ¡°Father, do you think I really won¡¯t be able to tell if that were the case? The talismans I¡¯d used earlier have the effect of calming it down and appeasing it!¡± Jun Xiaomo grew exasperated as she continued to exin herself.

    ¡°Sophistry! How old are you right now? Do you think that you¡¯re on top of the world just because you know a thing or two about talismans? Do you know just how long it takes for a person to be a full-fledged talisman master, huh?!¡± Jun Linxuan was now evidently so infuriated that he was almost ready to recall Jun Xiaomo for a good beating.

    ¡°Alright, alright, father. Don¡¯t worry, okay? If I¡¯m truly in any danger, do you think the referees would allow me to remain behind alone while they return to thepetition grounds? You know my character, don¡¯t you? If I truly listen to you right now and was thus unable to rescue the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, I¡¯ll have to live with the guilt of my actions all my life because I did not rescue it despite knowing that I had the power to do so.¡±

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo exined it from this perspective, Jun Linxuan immediately grew taciturn.

    A father knows his daughter best after all. Having brought up Jun Xiaomo over the years, how could Jun Linxuan not be aware of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stubbornness?

    In fact, he knew that this incident might very well be a stumbling block in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart if they forcibly brought Jun Xiaomo back from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s enclosure right now. At that time, such a stumbling block that weighed heavily on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart might well even burgeon into a deadweight that would affect her cultivation progress.

    Thus, with their daughter¡¯s best interests in their hearts, Jun Linxuan finally agreed to let go and trust Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities and judgment this onest time.

    Having thought things through, Jun Linxuan sighed. He knew full well what decision rationality favored, but as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, how could he not have a lingering worry for her safety?

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it this way. If you encounter any danger, take out your Teleportation Scroll immediately. I don¡¯t want you to force the issue anymore when that timees, understand?¡± Jun Linxuan instructed Jun Xiaomo of hispromise.

    ¡°Alright! Thanks, dad~¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately gave her word, and her eyes curled up with delight.

    ¡°Hmph.¡± There was still a lingering weight on his heart given how quickly his daughter had answered.

    ¡°Linxuan...¡± Liu Qingmei wanted to continue to attempt to talk Jun Xiaomo out of it, but Jun Linxuan held her back, ¡°Our daughter¡¯s already growing up, so I believe that we should trust in her ability to make judgments for herself.¡±

    ¡°But...¡±

    ¡°Qingmei, if we don¡¯t let go, this sparrow is never going to fly.¡± Jun Linxuan spoke earnestly to his wife.

    ¡°Sigh, alright. Mo-Mo, your safety is the top priority, understand? Don¡¯t let you mother worry.¡± Liu Qingmei left Jun Xiaomo with some parting words to show her worry and concern for her.

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened slightly. She knew that her mother was making a hugepromise for her right now, ¡°I understand, mum. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s only going to be for a night. I won¡¯t let myself get hurt.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±

    After she finished conversing with her parents, Jun Xiaomo clutched tightly at the Transmittance Talisman in her hand, and her heart grew heavy and sullen. She had time and again made her resolve that she would never let her parents worry again, yet she would invariably end up doing something that worried her parents from time to time.

    She did not want to be this willful and headstrong either, but she had her own sets of principles and rules as well. When it came to certain issues, she knew that there was no room for her to back down.

    Thus, she could only time and again verbally ascertain her parents that she would not let herself get hurt.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf could vaguely guess the burdens weighing on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart at this moment, and it swished its tail over and wrapped its long, bushy tail around Jun Xiaomo, before pulling her closely into the furriest part of its body.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo was pulled into a warm embrace with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, and she could even feel thefortable strands of fine fur sweeping across her face and tickling her face slightly. It was extremelyfortable and pleasant.

    ¡°Thank you. You¡¯re too considerate.¡± Jun Xiaomo hugged the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf and rubbed her cheeks against its fur as though it were a massive pillow, ¡°I don¡¯t regret my decision to rescue you at all. Truly. It would be too much of a pity if you¡¯d perished here.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf growled slightly, as though it were echoing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. Then, she retrieved a Subsistence Pill from her Interspatial Ring and fed it straight to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. This time, it no longer resisted what Jun Xiaomo fed to it at all. Its tongue curled around the pill, and it swallowed the pill in no time.

    It had earlier expended quite a lot of its energy, and its stomach was practically empty at this moment. Thus, when it first consumed the Subsistence Pill, a refreshing sense of fullness swelled up from its stomach once more, and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf even burped slightly.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf spent one night together in the wilderness together without a hitch. When night fell, Jun Xiaomo even fell into a deep slumber as a result of the warm,fortable heat emanating from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body.

    On the second day, Jun Xiaomo woke up to a cool morning breeze gently licking her face. As soon as she woke up, she immediately discovered that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was standing in front of her and howling madly at the people standing outside the formation array.

    Jun Xiaomo walked around the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf and looked out of the formation array. It was only then that she had discovered the tens of referees standing outside together with Jun Linxuan, Liu Qingmei and the other disciples from the Heavenly Peak.

    Jun Xiaomo realized that everyone around must have noticed her sleeping ¡°etiquette¡±, and she rubbed her cheeks with embarrassment.

    In contrast, the members of the Heavenly Peak were evidently rather dispirited and dazed. It was evident that many of them had found themselves unable to rest peacefully at night because of their worry and concern for Jun Xiaomo.

    Faced with the sincerest concern of her martial brothers, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but feel moved and slightly sorry for them.

    At that moment, the chief referee took a step forward to address Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Little fellow cultivator, your suggestion has been approved on our end. You¡¯ve used your bravery and your conduct to prove to us that this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf is truly harmless. Naturally, vignce calls for us to continue to observe the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s actions for a period of time, but after some internal discussions, we¡¯ve decided that it would be best to let you have the opportunity to bring the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf away right now.¡±

    ¡°I sincerely thank the esteemed referees.¡± Jun Xiaomo extended her sincere appreciation for their acquiescence.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need for thanks. This is your reward after all, and this reward is well-deserved. That said, if I can be direct with you, the refinement technique within the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf has not beenpletely written off yet. At this point in time, it has only been temporarily suppressed by the effects of your talismans. If you don¡¯t think of a way to remove itpletely, there might still be a day when it would turn on you and attack you.¡± The chief referee cautioned.

    ¡°I thank senior for your reminders. I understand this much as well. Fortunately, junior happens to know an expert who has once mentioned in passing that he has the ability to remove thesting effects of any refinement techniques on a spirit beast. Thus, I intend to look to this expert and let him have a shot at this.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled jovially as she exined.

    ¡°Oh?! There¡¯s such a thing?! I wonder who that expert might be...¡± The chief referee¡¯s interest was piqued. After all, it was conventional wisdom and knowledge that the process of refining a spirit beast was irreversible.

    Even if one were adept and proficient with cleansing and dispelling magic, purging the full effects of refinement techniques from a spirit beast was still incredibly difficult. At the very least, the chief referee had never heard of anyone seeding in this regard at all.

    ¡°Truth be told, I¡¯m also hoping that this can be done. After all, I¡¯ve also heard that expert say that he¡¯s not seen it done before. As to the identity of this expert...forgive me for protecting his identity, because he doesn¡¯t wish to be disturbed by others as well.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked apologetic as she responded.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I understand. But from what you¡¯ve just described, I gather that this expert must be incredibly powerful. Thus, I¡¯m sure that he¡¯ll have no issues restraining the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf even if he¡¯s unable to seed in purging the effects of the refinement technique from its body.¡± The chief referee revealed signs of being assuaged.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up wryly. She knew that this matter had nowe to a proper closure, and what she had to do next was to convince old man Chi to help purge the effects of the refinement technique from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body.

    Oh...if these referees found out that the expert that I¡¯m referring to is a demonic cultivator, I wonder what kind of reaction they would have?

    Perhaps they would be astonished and attempt to convince me not to approach him? After all, opposites can¡¯t coexist in the same ne.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes flickered with a mischievous gleam.

    Just then, she thought about something else ¨C If she wanted tomunicate with old man Chi, perhaps the best way to do it would be through brother Rong, right?

    Yet how could Jun Xiaomo have known that during her group battles, Rong Ruihan had forcibly activated the strand of his soul in her earrings to block the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s attack for her, and he was now lying in the inn,pletely unconscious...?

 Chapter 229: Yu Wanrou Regains Consciousness

    <h4>Chapter 229: Yu Wanrou Regains Consciousness</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that had just regained its freedom slowly strode out of the formation array in a dignified manner. It stretched its back and kicked its foot, before it threw its head up to the sky and howled wildly ¨C Awooooo!

    Now that it was returned its freedom, it immediately released its powerful aura with abandon, frightening the innumerable spirit beasts in the locality. Within moments, the entire area was filled with a tense atmosphere.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry as she patted its head and attempted to persuade it to contain its joy and delight. Fortunately, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions, and it immediately collected and restrained its powerful aura within moments.

    In fact, the chief referee had earlier subconsciously furrowed his brows when he noticed the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf act with such primal and reckless abandon. However, when he saw how obedient the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was to Jun Xiaomo, he couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in wonder.

    It seems that with this youngdy around, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf really won¡¯t pose a threat to life and limb any longer.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo led the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as she made her way back to her lodging. She encountered several disciples from the other sects on the way back, and each of them were equally astonished when they saw the majestic and dignified Scarlet Heavenly Wolf walking obsequiously behind Jun Xiaomo. That said, their astonishment would quickly turn into looks of admiration and wonder.

    Jun Xiaomo actually seeded? Perhaps this spirit beast might even be Jun Xiaomo¡¯sbatpanion in future. That¡¯s not a bad deal at all! Several people eximed in their heart.

    That said, there were also a few people who found it a pity that Jun Xiaomo had not perished under the razor-sharp ws of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Faced with the baptism of gazes, Jun Xiaomo turned a blind eye to each and every one of them as she calmly walked through the midst of the crowd that had gathered around to witness this sight.

    Jun Xiaomo walked on for a moment, before she suddenly paused in her steps as though she had just recalled something important.

    Jun Xiaomo had intended to let Rong Ruihan take a look at the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf before entreating him to contact old man Chi. However, when she nced around, she discovered that Rong Ruihan was not among the members of the Heavenly Peak disciples at this moment.

    Has brother Rong gone back too his n to attend to his own matters already? Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart swelled with a sense of unease, and she thus asked the disciples around her.

    ¡°Brother Rong? He didn¡¯t appear too well a few days back, and he¡¯d returned early to the inn. Now that martial sister mentioned it...I don¡¯t think we¡¯ve seen brother Rong in thest few days.¡± Wei Gang rubbed his head as he spoke.

    Wei Gang had overheard all of this from the other Heavenly Peak disciples who had not participated in the group battles. However, he thought nothing much of it, and he very quickly forgot all about this.

    To his mind, Rong Ruihan was a powerful and formidable existence, so he was confident that there was no real cause for concern as to the condition of Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    Yet who would have thought that Rong Ruihan would ¡°disappear¡± for a few days on end. The Secondary Inter-Sect Competition had concluded for some time now, but Rong Ruihan continued to remain missing.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart immediately grew anxious and concerned.

    ¡°Father, mother, do you all know what¡¯s going on?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked the two people who would probably know best what happened to Rong Ruihan.

    Now that the question had directly been poised to Liu Qingmei, she paused for a moment to recollect what had happened, before responding with some measure of guilt on her part, ¡°Back then, Xiaomo was in the most intense part of thepetition, and unfortunately mother didn¡¯t notice what had happened to your friend.¡±

    ¡°The most intense part of thepetition?¡± Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback.

    ¡°That would be when the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf appeared in the marsnds. He spat out some blood and fainted, and I¡¯d asked the other disciples to send him back to the inn.¡± Jun Linxuan calmly responded.

    ¡°Spat blood and fainted?!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately recalled what had happened ¨C

    While she was duking it out with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, she discovered that her earrings had grown hot all of a sudden. At that point in time, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had taken a vicious swipe at her while she was distracted, and she had indeed thought that she was going to perish there and then.

    Yet in the end, she did not perish. Even she was unaware as to what exactly happened that preserved her life and limb. However, the situation had been far too intense back then, and she had conveniently shelved these thoughts and put them on the backburner.

    From what she knew, that incident might very well have been linked to brother Rong. After all, the pair of earrings had been gifted to her by none other than brother Rong.

    Having realized this, Jun Xiaomo knew that she could wait no longer. She hurriedly spoke to everyone around her, ¡°Not good! Something might have happened to brother Rong¡¯s body. I¡¯ve got to get back to the inn to take a look!¡±

    As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo immediately started sprinting towards the inn, while the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf followed closely behind her. Everyone else who remained behind looked at each other and exchanged astonished nces.

    Jun Linxuan thought of a possibility as to what might have happened as well. Thus, he addressed the other Heavenly Peak disciples around, ¡°Come on, we¡¯d best follow along and take a look as well.¡±

    Just like that, the entire entourage of Heavenly Peak disciples followed Jun Linxuan¡¯s lead as they rushed back to their inn after Jun Xiaomo.

    Her anxiety and concern for Rong Ruihan hade to a head, and Jun Xiaomo rushed straight to Rong Ruihan¡¯s room and pushed open the main door without knocking at all.

    The first sight that entered her eyes ¨C

    Rong Ruihan sat in a dignified by his table, while an agent d in ck garbs knelt courteously before him, as though Rong Ruihan were instructing him and entrusting him with some tasks. Rong Ruihan also held a bowl in his other hand.

    ¡°Eh...Rong...brother Rong, I¡¯m sorry. Am I interrupting something?¡± Jun Xiaomo was slightly embarrassed.

    She had been far too reckless. How could she have rushed straight into the room without knocking on the door first? This was particrly the case when Rong Ruihan appeared to be in the midst of something important as well.

    Seeing how Jun Xiaomo stood awkwardly at the door, not knowing whether to enter or to leave, Rong Ruihan smiled faintly, ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s nothing serious. Xiaomo,e in.¡±

    Once he finished speaking, his expressions turned cold and somber once more as he addressed the agent kneeling at his feet, ¡°So, do you understand what I¡¯ve instructed you? I want to see results within three days¡¯ time.¡±

    ¡°Understood. Your servant shall get on it now.¡± The agent bowed his head courteously. Then, in the blink of an eye, the agentpletely vanished from sight and disappeared from the room.

    Jun Xiaomo still believed that she might have interrupted Rong Ruihan with something important, and she continued to appear embarrassed. However, when Rong Ruihan looked back at her with a slightly quizzical expression on his face, she smiled radiantly back at him, walked over and took her seat at the other end of the table.

    It was only at this moment that she discovered how Rong Ruihan presented himself with a rather pale face, while the bowl that he was holding in his hand contained medicine.

    Medicine?! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted. She immediately recalled what Jun Linxuan had said earlier, and she couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°Brother Rong, your injuries...¡±

    ¡°This is just because I¡¯d been careless.¡± Rong Ruihan calmly exined.

    ¡°You know that¡¯s not true! Brother Rong, was it because you¡¯d activated the trace of your soul that you¡¯d ced on my earrings, so you¡¯ve...¡± Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know how she should continue the rest of the sentence.

    ¡°You¡¯re far too sensitive, aren¡¯t you?¡± Rong Ruihan chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s really nothing much. I¡¯ll be able to recover fully with some rest. After all, I can¡¯t stand idly by and watch you get injured during thepetition, can I?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback by Rong Ruihan¡¯s exnation. She wanted to refute him, but she could not find the right words to express her disapproval of what he had done.

    In fact, what Rong Ruihan had said was right. If their roles had been reversed, she would have done the very same thing for him as well ¨C after all, if she was presented with a choice between a light injury to herself or grievous wounds to her friend, she would undoubtedly choose the former.

    But, with this, the number of favours I now owe to brother Rong must be innumerable, huh? Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly to herself.

    Rong Ruihan thought about it for a moment, before he patted her head gently, ¡°Don¡¯t be too hard on yourself. I¡¯m truly d you¡¯re able to return right now. Oh yes, the energy within your earrings must have been depleted. Let me store some more of my energy in them.¡±

    ¡°This...brother Rong, no...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to tell him there was no need, but Rong Ruihan had already leaned over the table and ced his hand over her earlobes.

    Within moments, Jun Xiaomo once again felt her earlobes awash with a warm sensation, just like what she had experienced in the heat of the battle with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Just as her awkwardness mounted, a long howl suddenly resounded from outside of her window ¨C Awoooooo-

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s hand paused for a moment, ¡°Wolf?¡± Then, he looked out of the window and was immediately met with a pair of long, half-squinting eyes.

    It was none other than the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. Rong Ruihan¡¯s room was on the third floor of the inn, while the massive Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had leaned against the wall of the inn so that he could peep through the window. It just happened to notice Rong Ruihan draw close to Jun Xiaomo.

    Several people within the inn, including the innkeeper and his attendants, looked fearfully at the massive creature that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Everyone¡¯s first concerns were whether the tiny little inn would copse under the weight of the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Fortunately, the outer walls of the inn were incredibly sturdy, and nothing happened despite the fact that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had leaned on it for a long period of time.

    Jun Xiaomo heard the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s howl, and she was immediately reminded of why she hade looking for Rong Ruihan to begin with ¨C she wanted to implore old man Chi to purge the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf of any remnant refinement technique within its body so that it would truly be granted its full freedom.

    ¡°Brother Rong, there¡¯s something else I might have to trouble you with.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Rong Ruihan apologetically.

    ¡°Oh?¡± Rong Ruihan lowered his head and was immediately met with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s contrite expression, ¡°Does this have to do with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf?¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong, how did you guess?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was astounded by Rong Ruihan¡¯s quick-wittedness.

    ¡°Haha, I¡¯d noticed how this Scarlet Heavenly Wolf had acted during the group battles, yet now it¡¯s obediently following you and not being attacked by other cultivators outside, so I¡¯ve simply connected two and two and guessed just as much.¡± Rong Ruihan looked bemusedly at Jun Xiaomo staring back at him with disbelief in her eyes.

    Because of what had just happened, Jun Xiaomo was slightly awkward with how Rong Ruihan was looking at her right now. She smiled as she fervently suppressed the stifling feeling within her heart, before she spoke with a lighthearted tone of voice, ¡°Is that so...I guess brother Rong has already guessed what I was going to ask.¡±

    Rong Ruihan patted her shoulder in response, ¡°That¡¯s because Xiaomo has everything written all over her face.¡±

    As he spoke, he walked over to the windowsill and looked the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. As he drew closer, the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf immediately began to howl repeatedly, in a slightly unfriendly manner. It was evident that its guard was up, and it seemed to treat Rong Ruihan as an enemy.

    ¡°Xiaomo, are you certain that it¡¯s prepared to leave with me?¡± Rong Ruihan turned around and raised an eyebrow at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°This...I¡¯ll do my best to convince it. It¡¯s highly wary and vignt of people, but once you earn its trust, it bes extremely warm to you. That said, as long as there are traces of the refinement technique on its body, it would not be able to possess true freedom for itself ¨C there will always be that lingering possibility that it would once again lose its mind.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed softly.

    Having experienced these incidents with her little packrat and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s impression of the refinement technique was now at rock bottom.

    If possible, Jun Xiaomo truly hoped that everyone in the world who used refinement techniques would all suffer from a bacsh from their usage, so that they could experience for themselves a taste of the pain and torment that these poor spirit beasts had experienced during refinement.

    Rong Ruihan knew that Jun Xiaomo cherished this spirit beast of hers, and the favour only required a small amount of effort on his part. There was no reason for him not to agree to help.

    ¡°Then, Xiaomo, do your best to convince it. As long as it¡¯s willing to lower its guard and follow me obediently, I¡¯ll be able to bring it back to the Chi n¡¯s grounds. Perhaps only master will have a way to purge its body and save it.¡± Rong Ruihan agreed.

    ¡°That¡¯s great! Thanks, brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo leapt with joy and smiled radiantly at Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need to stand on ceremony between us.¡± Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder and returned a smile.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo went on to do all she could to get the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to trust Rong Ruihan and let its guard down, Yu Wanrou finally regained consciousness after a period ofatose.

    She had spat out a mouthful of blood while Jun Xiaomo had beenpeting in the group battles, before passing outpletely. At that time, her master, the Peakmaster of the Pill Cauldron Peak, had sent a thread of his spiritual energy coursing through her body to investigate the cause of her mdy, but to no avail. Thus, he simply sent Yu Wanrou back to the inn to rest and recuperate.

    He still had other disciples with him, so there was no reason for him to waste so much time on Yu Wanrou to begin with.

    When Yu Wanrou first regained her consciousness, she was incensed to discover that Qin Lingyu was not waiting patiently by her side for her to wake up. Then, in the next moment, she discovered to her surprise that the fox-shaped totem just under her vicle had transformed slightly!

 Chapter 230: Transformation of the Spectral Demiplane, Yu Wanrouâ€™s Ambitions

    <h4>Chapter 230: Transformation of the Spectral Demine, Yu Wanrou¡¯s Ambitions</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It had never urred to Yu Wanrou that the fox-shaped mark or the spectral demine could transform. She was unsure of what exactly the change was, but she firmly believed that any changes to her spectral demine would be beneficial to her. After all, the spectral demine was a nal space created by and for the members of the Fox n¡¯s bloodline, and she could very well be one of the surviving members of the same.

    The fact that she was the st one standing¡± made her heart puff up with pride. The idea of being unique made her feel special.

    In fact, in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Yu Wanrou had also led an extremely smooth-sailing life before Rong Ruihan brought the wrath of vengeance upon her. At that time, she had been able to seduce whoever she wanted, as well as sabotage and frame anyone who crossed her paths. As a result of this, she ended up as a matriarch with a massive following of male cultivators who were subject to her every beck and call.

    Unfortunately, she was up against Jun Xiaomo who had returned to the past right now, and her life now was vastly different from what it had been in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life.

    Yu Wanrou released her divine sense and began to probe about her spectral demine. Very soon, her attention was enraptured by therge patches of red and green spiritual herbs growing within.

    She took a closer look. There was first disbelief, before it quickly burgeoned into immense joy ¨C

    ¡°Mesmerizing Blossoms?! Hahahaha! These are Mesmerizing Blossoms?! Hahahaha...¡± Yu Wanrou grew so excited that she began tough uncontrobly. She was right! The spectral demine was a heaven-defying treasure, and any changes and transformations would only benefit and not harm her.

    The Mesmerizing Blossom, as the name implies, was a flower that puts people into a slight stupor and stimtes their primal, impassioned desires, to the extent that people might even begin to hallucinate as a result of its effects. These flowers could be refined into a highly potent aphrodisiac. Those who had consumed the refined Mesmerizing Blossoms, or the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill, would experience an incredible high while they tangled in intimate rtions. In fact, they would realizeter that this high sensation was something that they would never be able to experience without the aid of the refined Mesmerizing Blossoms.

    As a result of this, some people wouldter develop a reliance on such Mesmerizing Blossom Pills and relentlessly pursue that next period of high. After all, those who had experienced such highs would invariably find it hard to let go of it again.

    Additionally, the Mesmerizing Blossoms Pills acted like a form of hallucinogen. If a person had intimate rtions after consuming such pills, they would gradually be unable to distinguish whether they were attracted to the person that they were tangling intimately with, or the high that apanied the pill. As a result of this, they would even begin to find themselves ¡°falling in love¡± with their partner.

    Even though the use of such pills to manipte and control ¡°love¡± was practically building a rtionship based on deception, Yu Wanrou could hardly care less. In her eyes, it sufficed that she was able to keep her man or men tightly within her grasp. As to whether her men experience true love or not, was there really a need for her to delve into these things? After all, she only cared about whether these men would do anything to betray her.

    Most importantly, whether Mesmerizing Blossoms or the antidote to the Mesmerizing Blossoms¡¯ effects, both were extremely difficult objects to find. It had to be said that the usage and sale of the Mesmerizing Blossoms had already found its way into the list of restricted and forbidden medicines in the spiritual cultivation world. Thus, it only stood to reason that the medicines and pills built on and rting to the Mesmerizing Blossoms were incredibly hard to locate.

    Yu Wanrou looked at the fields of endless Mesmerizing Blossoms in her spectral demine with greed and avarice in her eyes. It was as though each one of these flowers were now men who were bowing down in subservience to her right now.

    She resolved in her heart to practice and properly learn how to refine and create the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill. Fortunately, her master was a pill master. Even though her pill-making talents were only average at best, a simple pill like the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill could never be too difficult for her.

    After inspecting therge patches of Mesmerizing Blossoms in her spectral demine, she turned her attention back to the spirit spring. She heaved a sigh of relief and felt far more at ease when she saw that the amount of spirit spring waters had not dwindled by a single bit.

    At this point in time, the arsenal essible to her included the Mesmerizing Blossoms, the spirit spring and the dual-cultivation technique. Thus, she firmly believed that she would be able to subjugate all the men in the world and be the matriarch of all in no time.

    ¡°It¡¯s just a pity that the dual-cultivation technique is only essible once I¡¯ve attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.¡± Yu Wanrou sighed with some measure of regret.

    She was only at the eighth level of Qi Mastery right now, and there were still four qualitative levels before she would be at the twelfth level of Qi Mastery. Then, there would still be the breakthrough required to attain the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation.

    After leaving her spectral demine, Yu Wanrou tidied her appearances before making her way towards Qin Lingyu¡¯s room. He had not checked on her at all ever since she had passed out, and she wanted to demand an exnation for what exactly he meant by his actions.

    Unfortunately, luck was not on her side. After arriving at Qin Lingyu¡¯s room, she knocked on the door for a long time, only to discover that Qin Lingyu was not at his room to begin with. She did not have a single clue where he had gone.

    A wave of immense displeasure and frustration surged from the depths of her heart. She only managed to keep her emotions in check when she cated herself and reminded herself of how she had more hidden trump cards up her sleeves right now, and there was no concern that she would not be able to lockdown Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart and affection for her.

    On the other side, after an incredible effort on her part, Jun Xiaomo finally managed to convince the stubborn and vignt Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that it needed to follow Rong Ruihan for the time being so that the refinement technique could thoroughly be purged from its body.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve just received news from my master. He¡¯s got some tasks for me, so I¡¯ve got to make a trip back to the n. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf can follow me back.¡± Rong Ruihan suggested to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°That¡¯s good as well. Every day the refinement technique remains unpurged from its body is a day that something might happen to it. The earlier we can purge its body, the better it would be.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in approval, before turning her attention to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that hadid on the floor, ¡°Be good and follow brother Rong, alright? Don¡¯t throw a tantrum.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was no longer a threat to Jun Xiaomo, nor did it intend to harm Jun Xiaomo. That said, the manner in which Jun Xiaomo treated it caused the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf to snort slightly as it swished its tail aboutzily.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was a proud creature to begin with. The fact that it could disy such obedience and respond so obsequiously was already a huge victory to her. Therefore, she smiled radiantly as she ruffled the hair on its head. The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf enjoyed this very much, and it began to make slight purring and growling sounds in delight.

    Rong Ruihan saw how the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf looked at Jun Xiaomo as it enjoyed her fawning and affection, and his heart grew slightly envious at the sight.

    Just then, the Transmittance Talisman within Rong Ruihan¡¯s Interspatial Ring glowed brightly. He retrieved the Transmittance Talisman and conversed through it for a while, before looking back up at Jun Xiaomo as he quipped apologetically, ¡°Master¡¯s hurrying me back right now. I¡¯m afraid I must take my leave right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she shook her head, ¡°You¡¯ve got important things to attend to.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she patted the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s head once more as she instructed, ¡°Be good and follow brother Rong now, alright? You¡¯ll be able toe back to my side once the refinement technique has been purged from your body.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf appeared unwilling, and it made some growling sounds as it rubbed its head gingerly against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled blissfully, before she finally took a few steps back.

    Finally, Rong Ruihan retrieved a Teleportation Scroll and tossed it out into the air. Instantly, the scroll opened up in mid-air and the formation diagram began to cast a soft, blue light that enveloped both Rong Ruihan and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf.

    Jun Xiaomo waved her hands and bade them goodbye, while Rong Ruihan nodded his head firmly as he stared at Jun Xiaomo with longing in his eyes.

    An intense blue light burst out from the formation diagram. When it faded, Rong Ruihan and the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf were gone, and even the scroll containing the formation diagram had vanished into thin air.

    Jun Xiaomo sighed to herself as she gingerly touched the earrings on her earlobes.

    Rong Ruihan had earlier suffused his energy into the pair of earrings, thus fully repairing and replenishing them. Even though Jun Xiaomo had time and again rejected Rong Ruihan¡¯s good intentions, she eventually caved into Rong Ruihan¡¯s relentless insistence.

    Sigh. The number of favours I owe to brother Rong is truly ever-increasing. Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly to herself, and aplicated feeling swelled from the depths of her heart. She felt both moved as well as sullen at the same time.

    Jun Xiaomo stood there for a while to repress and collect herself. Then, as soon as she turned around, intending to head back into her inn, she discovered Qin Lingyu standing at the door of the inn ¨C who knew how long he had been standing there and watching.

    However, it hardly mattered even if he had witnessed the entire interaction between Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan. After all, as long as Qin Lingyu was unable to secure hard evidence that her brother Rong was a demonic cultivator, nobody would be able to uncover the secrets enshrouding Rong Ruihan at all.

    Jun Xiaomo decided to ignore Qin Lingyu. There was no longer any existing rtionship between her and Qin Lingyu. Even if there were, it would be nothing more than the blood feud that they might have in the future.

    However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s decision to ignore Qin Lingyu did not mean that Qin Lingyu would ignore Jun Xiaomo in a simr fashion. In fact, Jun Xiaomo felt that Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze on her body right now was incredibly disgusting and hateful.

    Can¡¯t we just agree to act as two strangers to each other? Why do you have to look at me so intently?!

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows discreetly as she collected her roiling emotions once more. Then, she calmly walked past Qin Lingyu¡¯s side and back to the inn.

    He can¡¯t hurt me now anyway, so I¡¯ll just ignore his presence. Jun Xiaomo thought.

    However, dreams were often diametrically opposed to reality. Unexpectedly, Qin Lingyu called out to Jun Xiaomo just as she walked past him.

    ¡°Xiaomo.¡± Qin Lingyu appeared expressionless as he spoke, but his voice no longer carried any traces of being distant or proud or arrogant. In fact, it even sounded as though it was...warm?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart shuddered. She did not know why Qin Lingyu was calling out to her right now, much less why he was using such a goosebumps-inducing tone of voice.

    It had to be said that in her previous life when she had been officially married to Qin Lingyu for some time, there had not been a single instance when he had called out to her with such an intimate and soft voice. At that time, the only term of reference he had used on Jun Xiaomo had always been ¡°martial sister Xiaomo¡±.

    It was evident from the way he spoke that there were no feelings of intimacy whatsoever towards her. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely mesmerized by Qin Lingyu at that time, and she had been undiscerning in that regard.

    Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei were also technically martial brothers and sisters. However, Jun Linxuan would never be so cold as to refer to Liu Qingmei merely as a martial sister.

    Jun Xiaomo suppressed the nauseating feeling in her stomach, turned around and stered a slightly courteous yet cold smile on her face as she responded, ¡°Martial brother Qin Lingyu, what¡¯s the matter?¡±

    As much as Qin Lingyu had never referred to Jun Xiaomo as ¡°Xiaomo¡±, Jun Xiaomo had simrly never called Qin Lingyu in such a distant manner by referring to him by his full name either.

    Qin Lingyu was displeased with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intention to increase the distance between them, and his face grew cold and stern. That said, his face had always been cold and somber, and the difference between his expressions was practically indistinguishable.

    Of course, this would only be the case if he were speaking to an outsider. As his wife of over ten years in her previous life, how could Jun Xiaomo not be able to tell that he was furiously suppressing the displeasure on his face right now?

    Ah, what¡¯s this guy displeased about? I haven¡¯t even exposed his hypocrisy to the world yet. The smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face grew sardonic.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts spun around for some time, before he finally asked, ¡°Do you have some time now? Shall we find a ce to have a chat?¡±

    ¡°Oh? I don¡¯t think martial brother Qin Lingyu and I have much to talk about.¡± Jun Xiaomo shrugged her shoulders as she spoke with indifference, ¡°How about this instead, if martial brother Qin Lingyu has anything to say, you can say it to me right here, right now, hmm?¡±

    Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo were standing at the door of the inn, and there were peopleing and going all the time. Qin Lingyu could never bring himself to stoop so low as to chat in front of the inn.

    ¡°I¡¯ve booked a room at the inn. We can have a chat there instead.¡± Qin Lingyu responded.

    ¡°Eh, nope!¡± Jun Xiaomo gesticted a ¡®stop¡¯ sign, ¡°What would one man and one woman be doing inside a room alone? Besides, I don¡¯t think martial brother Qin are so close as to be seated alone in a room and chatting, do we? This is something that only people who are close to each other would do.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unbending attitude caused Qin Lingyu¡¯s pride to be slightly hurt. But he only furrowed his brows gently, before loosening them again and pressing the issue with Jun Xiaomo in a harmonious tone of voice, ¡°Then let¡¯s speak under thatrge tree in the distance, shall we? There are peopleing and going here. We might disturb the inn¡¯s business if we pause to chat here.¡±

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go there then.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head.

    She had no interest in gathering a crowd of onlookers around. This was particrly the case when several people were well aware of how there used to be a marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu, so thest thing she wanted was for ridiculous rumours of ¡°rekindling an old me¡± to be spreading around as a result of their little ¡°chat¡±.

    At the same time, she wanted to see for herself just what kind of scheme Qin Lingyu was up to right now.

 Chapter 231: Qin Lingyu is Full of Lies

    <h4>Chapter 231: Qin Lingyu is Full of Lies</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo walked over to arge banyan tree in the distance. From there, they were able to see the peopleing and going from the inn, while the people from the inn rarely looked back over at that area. Even if people did look over, it would only be a quick nce, and nobody would pay too much attention to what was going on under the banyan tree.

    This banyan tree wasced with destiny knots strewn all over it, some old and some new. The names written on these knots were still clearly visible to the eye. When the wind blew, these red coloured knots of different sizes would tango with the ebb and flow of the wind ¨C it was an incredibly eye-catching and warm sight.

    Qin Lingyu heartstrings strummed lightly at the sight. Even though it was an extremely light and fleeting twang of his heart, Qin Lingyu undoubtedly felt every split second of it.

    He had never been an emotional person to begin with. In his eyes, benefits were all that mattered. That said, he did not know why the present scene aroused such an uncharacteristic response in his heart.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze shifted from the banyan tree filled with destiny knots to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, and the sullen gaze in his eyes were filled with barely noticeable emotions.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was hardly moved by the side at all. In fact, she had hoped that there would not be too many of these trees filled with destiny knots, especially around the Heavenly Crane Mountain which boasted well of its own idyllic sceneries. That said, it was precisely because of its scenic views that several couples enjoyeding here to share pleasant memories with each other and immerse themselves in their own idyllic rtionship. These couples would naturally leave a mark where they left in the form of the destiny knot as a symbol of their hopes that their lives and destinies would be simrly intertwined in future.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo had only seen this as a ce that was convenient for their own conversations. She would never think anything more of it.

    Most importantly, the person whom she was conversing with was someone whom she dreaded having any further rtionships with.

    ¡°Speak. What did you want to talk about?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Qin Lingyu as she quipped dispassionately.

    Qin Lingyu gazed gloomily at Jun Xiaomo. This was the first time that he had spoken with Jun Xiaomo ever since she reemerged from the Heavenly Peak. This was also the first time he had been in such close proximity with his...ex-fianc¨¦e.

    Jun Xiaomo had indeed changed a lot. Quite apart from her adept abilities with formation arrays and talismans, even her disposition and aura were nowpletely different from what it had been while she had been on her travels.

    Back then, how could Qin Lingyu ever have known that a in, young sprout that Jun Xiaomo was would have blossomed to such a...mesmerizing beauty?

    That¡¯s right. Mesmerizing. Even if Jun Xiaomo did not do anything in particr to seduce or attract anyone, her striking red garbs coupled with her headstrong personality and her unbending attitude and dispassionate aura gave her a unique charm about her.

    This charm that Jun Xiaomo possessed was something natural that she was born with ¨C it waspletely different from the pretentious charms put up by someone like Yu Wanrou.

    Just like how she was right now ¨C Jun Xiaomo was smiling faintly while ncing coldly at Qin Lingyu, yet Qin Lingyu could already feel his blood boiling from the roiling emotions in his heart. This kind of feeling was something that he had never got from Yu Wanrou before.

    He truly regretted passing up on such an exquisite beauty. In fact, the reason why he hade looking for Jun Xiaomo today was precisely because he had hoped to reverse the erroneous decisions that he had made in the past.

    Over thest one month, this thought had bounced about vigorously at the back of his mind until it finally culminated with his present actions today.

    Now that Ye Xiuwen had fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge, whether he would survive that ordeal was very much an unknown. At the same time, the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom had also just left. Thus, wasn¡¯t this his prime opportunity to make a move?

    ¡°Xiaomo, the Limitless Sect¡¯s elder hase looking for me today to discuss the matter of entering their sect to pursue my path of cultivation. In a few months¡¯ time, I¡¯ll be leaving the Dawn Sect and reporting to the Limitless to be their official disciple.¡± Qin Lingyu spoke in a rare, soft and harmonious voice to Jun Xiaomo.

    Xiaomo? Such a term of endearment cause Jun Xiaomo to shudder vigorously, and goosebumps began to creep up all over her skin.

    She had simply overlooked the first time he had referred to her by her first name and attributed it to a slip of the tongue. Yet Qin Lingyu had persisted in calling her by her first name ¨C just what was he trying to do?

    Besides, so what if Qin Lingyu was going to the Limitless Sect soon? What did that have to do with her? There was nothing else between them right now, wasn¡¯t there?

    Could Qin Lingyu havee looking for her just to boast about all these things?

    Jun Xiaomo nced suspiciously at Qin Lingyu as she responded curtly, ¡°Mm. Congrats.¡±

    Apart from that, she was truly at her wits¡¯ ends as to what else she could say to Qin Lingyu right now. Most importantly, she was unaware of what Qin Lingyu was trying to do.

    Qin Lingyu was rather displeased with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s curt response. His eyes darkened, and he began to furrow his brows.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart immediately grew more vignt and wary against him ¨C This man clearly has ulterior motives.

    Qin Lingyu looked on as Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and sized her up once more. Thus, he began to release the tension between his eyebrows. He believed that this Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bodynguage meant that she was gradually opening up to him once more.

    ¡°I know that there have been some incidents in the past between us that have caused Xiaomo to misunderstand me and choose to rescind the marriage arrangement with me. However, things have happened such a long time ago, so I think it¡¯s about time to unravel these misunderstandings and let them go.¡± Qin Lingyu expounded as he gradually shifted the course of their conversation towards the main point that he was driving at.

    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve already let it go a long time ago. Otherwise, I¡¯d never have suggested the rescission of the marriage arrangement of my own volition. Since the marriage arrangement has been rescinded, whether it was a misunderstanding or not no longer matters to me.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined dispassionately.

    Despite what she had just said, Jun Xiaomo chuckled contemptuously at Qin Lingyu¡¯s hypocrisy in her heart ¨C Such a hypocrite. Don¡¯t you know full well in your heart whether it was a misunderstanding or not? Jun Xiaomo hated the fact that he was running off his mouth in such a hypocritical fashion. She was getting increasingly frustrated at Qin Lingyu now.

    Besides, what did all of this have to do with her? Even if Qin Lingyu wedded Yu Wanrou tomorrow, that hardly bothered or affected her at all.

    Qin Lingyu felt rather aggrieved by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s daft attitude towards all of this. He felt almost as though his foot had kicked a metal board. Nothing was going as smoothly as he had thought in his mind.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was getting sick and tired of engaging in this conversation and talking nonsense. This was particrly the case when she noticed that there was a person ring at them with a vile and incensed gaze in her eyes.

    That person was unmistakably Yu Wanrou who had just a little while ago been scrambling about the inn looking for Qin Lingyu. Thest thing that she had expected to see was Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo standing together under a tree full of destiny knots.

    Truth be told, the sight of this could very easily give rise to misunderstandings.

    At this moment, it suddenly urred to Jun Xiaomo these two annoying people were like ghosts that were hovering about her and haunting her. She had not even thought about how she was going to execute her revenge on them, yet the two of them continued to present themselves relentlessly before her very eyes ¨C Can¡¯t the two of you give me a little break?!

    With ever-growing frustration on her heart, she looked back at Qin Lingyu and quipped with impatience, ¡°Martial brother Qin Lingyu, do you still have any other matters to talk about? If you¡¯re just thinking of talking about the things of the past, then forget about it. I don¡¯t have a lot of time on my hands, and I¡¯d very much prefer not to talk about the past.¡±

    Especially not with a person with whom she did not have a good impression of to begin with. The feeling of such reminiscence was simply abhorrent.

    Qin Lingyu knew at this point that it was practically impossible to broach the topic by talking about the matters of the past. Thus, he decided to get straight to the point.

    ¡°The reason why I¡¯m looking for you today is actually to talk about the person who will be following me to the Limitless Sect. Are...are you willing toe to the Limitless Sect with me?¡± Qin Lingyu knew that this was tantamount to asking Jun Xiaomo to be his fianc¨¦e again. Given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present abilities right now, the prospects of being able to enter the Limitless Sect should be incredibly enticing to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Going to the Limitless Sect with you?¡± A contemptuous smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, ¡°If memory serves me well, the only person that you¡¯ll be able to bring with you is none other than your ¡®fianc¨¦e¡¯, right? Haven¡¯t we already rescinded our marriage arrangement some time ago?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s indeed the case, but nobody says that we can¡¯t establish another marriage arrangement, right? I¡¯d thought about it for some time now, and I believe that we¡¯d been too rash and reckless when it came to the matter of rescinding our marriage arrangement. I¡¯m afraid both of us hadn¡¯t thought things through when we went ahead with it.¡± Qin Lingyu did his utmost to sound as sincere and calm as possible.

    ¡°Hah. You might not have thought things through, but that doesn¡¯t include me, martial brother Qin.¡± By this point, Jun Xiaomo no longer even bothered to conceal the revulsion and contempt in her voice, ¡°Truth be told, I¡¯d already wanted to rescind the marriage arrangement with you even before I¡¯d gone on the travels outside the Sect. But back then, my cultivation level had fallen back down to square one, and my mother was afraid that I would never be able to enter a Greater Sect all my life. Thus, she insisted that I maintained my marriage arrangement with you. But now...I¡¯d like you to know that I don¡¯t regret rescinding the marriage arrangement with you at all. Even if I were still at the first level of Qi Mastery right now, I. Don¡¯t. Regret. It. One. Bit!¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions turned a sickly green, ¡°You...!¡±

    Jun Xiaomockadaisically lifted her head and nced down at Qin Lingyu with a clear and apparent look of mockery.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s chest heaved heavily, and his facial expressions vacited between pale in shock and a sickly green. Finally, he managed to eke out a stiff smile on his face ¨C

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t you think for one moment that you¡¯ve got any chances of entering a Greater Sect even if your cultivation is at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. The entry requirements to Greater Sects are that you¡¯ll have to attain the Foundation Establishment level by the age of thirty-five years-old. You¡¯re only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery now ¨C how likely do you think you¡¯ll be to satisfy these requirements within the next decade or so?!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s it got to do with you if I don¡¯t meet these requirements? Who says that I must enter a Greater Sect?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled sardonically.

    ¡°Fine, Jun Xiaomo. Very well. I hope you never regret the decision you¡¯ve made today!¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled in a simrly sardonic fashion as he responded, before flicking his sleeves and motioning to leave.

    She should have known that Jun Xiaomo would be exactly the same as her father Jun Linxuan. With their rotten and unbending attitude, none of them would ever be willing to make anypromises.

    Hah, but it¡¯s also with this kind of temperament of theirs that this father-daughter duo is going to stumble and fall hard one day. They¡¯ll just have to wait and see.

    Qin Lingyu thought in his heart, and his mind felt much more at ease.

    ¡°Hang on a minute.¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly called out to Qin Lingyu.

    The contempt in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart burgeoned ¨C See? I knew that she was just putting on a pretense of an unbending attitude. I¡¯ll bet she¡¯s regretting it now. But too bad for her ¨C it¡¯s toote for regrets. She¡¯d only got herself to me for being so headstrong earlier.

    Qin Lingyu turned around with a mocking smile on his face as he quipped, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Regretting your decision already?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s not the case.¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically as she pointed towards the inn, ¡°I only wanted to ask you whether you should have an exnation for your little lover as to why you would choose me over her as the person to bring to the Limitless Sect. Look at her eyes right now ¨C she looks like she¡¯s practically raring to devour me...I think you should settle your private matters privately, don¡¯t you think so? Don¡¯t drag me into your mess.¡±

    Qin Lingyu followed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger and noticed that Yu Wanrou was standing not too far away and ring at them with red, puffy eyes and a grave, incensed expression on her face.

 Chapter 232: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Desperate Attempt to Seize the Opportunity

    <h4>Chapter 232: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Desperate Attempt to Seize the Opportunity</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Although Jun Xiaomo no longer bothered herself with Qin Lingyu anymore, she was more than pleased to add fuel to the fire between this scheming couple, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou.

    Besides, she had not intentionally set things up for their fall this time. This incident had entirely been the result of Qin Lingyu¡¯s wandering eye and rekindling of his old me. If she remained passive and did nothing to stem the issue where it arose, this annoying man might end up obsessing over her and hovering about her incessantly.

    Now that the cuckolds had finally locked eyes with each other, Jun Xiaomo could finally slip away quietly. She chuckled softly, before walking back into the inn, leaving the two behind to sort out their mess.

    Yu Wanrou red at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back with rage in her eyes, as though she wanted to stare daggers through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body and make a sieve out of it.

    Finally, when Jun Xiaomo disappeared from her sight, Yu Wanrou turned back and red at Qin Lingyu with a castigating look in her eyes.

    ¡°Lingyu, why?!¡± Yu Wanrou choked with emotion as she cried out, ¡°When have I wronged you? Why did you choose to bring Jun Xiaomo to the Limitless Sect over me? You know how much I need this opportunity!¡±

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes, and his lips stretched out with a grimace.

    Yu Wanrou had wholeheartedly expected Qin Lingyu to bring up a bunch of excuses to appease her. It did not even matter that these excuses would bepletelyme and baseless. As long as she could tell that Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was still with her, she was willing to let this entire matter slide, albeit perhaps with a little bit of a tantrum.

    Yu Wanrou was tremendously conflicted in her heart right now. On one hand, she believed that the odds of Qin Lingyu having a change of heart was extremely low. Yet on the other hand, the fact that Qin Lingyu had recently been indisputably distracted by Jun Xiaomo was like an awl that was driven straight through her heart.

    Especially that earlier scene, when Qin Lingyu had taken the initiative to humble himself and sh the olive branch at Jun Xiaomo as he invited Jun Xiaomo to enter the Limitless Sect through his backdoor ¨C that entire incident had left an incredibly bitter and astringent taste in Yu Wanrou¡¯s mouth.

    Yu Wanrou felt sick and dizzy ¨C How could Qin Lingyu treat me like this?! Yu Wanrou bellowed in her heart.

    Then, the thought of another possibility crept up in Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart ¨C Perhaps all of this might be part of Lingyu¡¯s ploys? After all, Jun Xiaomo had be elevated to the status of a celebrity after the group battles had ended. Qin Lingyu must be thinking of drawing close to Jun Xiaomo once more to beguile the buffoons from the Heavenly Peak, right?

    That¡¯s right! This must be the exnation for his actions!

    Thus, it was only after Yu Wanrou had prepared her heart and constructed her own version of truth that she approached and demanded an exnation from Qin Lingyu. She had sincerely hoped from the bottom of her heart that Qin Lingyu would be able to provide her with a passable response.

    Unfortunately, despite having waited for some time, Qin Lingyu showed no signs of response at all.

    Qin Lingyu stared straight at her with a sullen look. Then, momentster, he simply turned around and began to walk away.

    ¡°Qin Lingyu, stop right there!¡± Yu Wanrou grew anxious. She no longer used her coquettish and soft voice to cajole Qin Lingyu. In fact, she even took a few steps forward and grabbed hold of his arm as she pressed the issue, ¡°Why! Tell me, why!¡±

    Yet Qin Lingyu slowly wrested his arm free from her grasp and simply continued to walk forward.

    ¡°Lingyu, have you had a change of heart? Answer me!¡± Yu Wanrou cried out hysterically, attracting the attention of several busybodies around.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened. His earlier encounter with Jun Xiaomo had already left him boiling and incensed, yet this Yu Wanrou continued to press his buttons incessantly. He finally turned around, grabbed a hold of Yu Wanrou¡¯s arm, before dragging her down a smaller street that was further away from prying eyes, until they were finally out of sight of onlookers.

    ¡°Lingyu, you¡¯re hurting me!¡± Yu Wanrou cried out in pain. Her eyes were already glistening with some tears.

    Qin Lingyu finally released Yu Wanrou¡¯s arm as he looked straight back into her eyes. There was neither heartache nor affection in his eyes right now.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou, just what are you trying to do?¡± Qin Lingyu questioned dispassionately.

    ¡°You¡¯ve taken the words right out of my mouth. Lingyu, just what are you trying to do? Why are you even suggesting to bring Jun Xiaomo to the Limitless Sect?¡± Pangs of bitterness and sour jealousy were emanating from the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Do I need your consent on who I can bring to the Limitless Sect?¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes grew colder.

    ¡°Who says you don¡¯t need to? Aren¡¯t we lovers? Why didn¡¯t you even tell me about such an important thing? Furthermore, why are you bringing Jun Xiaomo and not me?!¡±

    ¡°Since when did I ever say that I would bring you to the Limitless Sect?¡± Qin Lingyu responded with another question with a frosty haze over his eyes.

    ¡°Qin Lingyu, you...!¡± Yu Wanrou was so infuriated that her breath had even be ragged, ¡°Qin Lingyu, don¡¯t you want the spirit spring waters anymore?¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice grew harsher when she mentioned the spirit spring waters, as though she had intended to emphasize her worth to him.

    She red furiously at Qin Lingyu, taking in every bit of his change of expressions.

    Despite that, Qin Lingyu only remained taciturn for a few seconds, before a mocking smile crept up the corner of his lips, ¡°That¡¯s right, you only have this much you can use to threaten me. What if I say that I don¡¯t need the spirit spring waters at all?¡±

    ¡°Wha--...what?!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened. She had never expected Qin Lingyu to respond this way.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou, do you think that you¡¯ll be able to control every fiber of my being just because you have that spirit spring waters on you?¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly, ¡°You¡¯re far too na?ve. The spirit spring water¡¯s effects are merely to speed up the body¡¯s recovery functions as well as to purge and cleanse the impurities from one¡¯s body to a certain extent. But the world out there is massive, and the types of pills which perform both of these functions are innumerable. So why should I be limited to taking only the spirit spring waters from you?¡±

    That¡¯s right. This was one of the main reasons why Qin Lingyu had decided to discard the pawn that was Yu Wanrou. In his eyes, pawns will always remain as pawns. If a pawn decided to usurp the throne and even scheme in order to disce its master, that pawn can and should be discarded at the earliest possible moment.

    Lovers? What a joke. Qin Lingyu had never loved Yu Wanrou to begin with.

    In fact, this was something that Qin Lingyu had only recentlye to realize ¨C Yu Wanrou had in recent times begun to threaten him more and more with the ess to the spirit spring waters in her hands, forcing him to make the decisions that benefitted her.

    That said, Qin Lingyu had always ced himself on a pedestal. It had been fine when he failed to notice such insidious maniption by Yu Wanrou. But now that he suddenly realized the extent of what Yu Wanrou had been doing, how could he possibly allow her to continue to climb all over his head?!

    Did Yu Wanrou think that the world was her oyster just because she had some spirit spring waters? Qin Lingyu would let her fall harshly and learn the truth the hard way.

    Qin Lingyu gaze was incredibly frigid right now, almost akin to the extreme cold of the Thousand Year Frost. Yu Wanrou couldn¡¯t help but take a step back in fear.

    She had never seen this side to Qin Lingyu. The present Qin Lingyu made her heart swell with an indescribable feeling.

    Control? That¡¯s right, Qin Lingyu said ¡®control¡¯... Yu Wanrou lowered her head and a glimmer flickered across her eyes.

    She had indeed intended to control the male cultivators of the world so that they would perform her own bidding. But it was evident that even Qin Lingyu, whom she had already established an intimate rtionship, would not be so easily controlled within her grasp.

    Perhaps she had been too anxious and presumptuous, and this had resulted in Qin Lingyu¡¯s resentment and retaliation.

    Yu Wanrou lowered her head and bit down on her lower lip. Several different notions and ideas shed across her heart, before she finally decided on sealing the deal with Qin Lingyu before considering anything else.

    After all, she could only adhere to Qin Lingyu right now. There was not a single other male disciple who fulfilled her criteria.

    She needed an opportunity. She needed the opportunity to enter and infiltrate a Greater Sect so that she would have ess to more opportunities to interact with far better and more talented male disciples. She did not want to be trapped in this small and stifling Secondary Sect and mindlessly cultivate until she was thirty years of age before she had the opportunity to spread her wings and take flight.

    To Yu Wanrou, such a wait was far too long and arduous.

    Having thought things through, Yu Wanrou took a few deep breaths to appease the indignation and frustration in her heart and appease her mind. Then, she lifted her head once more and looked straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes with red, puffy eyes as she began to plead with him, ¡°Lingyu, I¡¯ve never thought about controlling you, I...I¡¯ve just been far too concerned about you. Will you please forgive me?¡±

    The truth of the matter was that Qin Lingyu¡¯s performance today had utterly disappointed Yu Wanrou. However, she could not reveal this on her face at all. She still needed the springboard that was Qin Lingyu. Thus, she decided to disy her vulnerabilities and weaknesses to Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s earlier encounter with Jun Xiaomo had left him feeling breathless and stifled as though she had viciously stamped on his windpipe. Thus, when he was faced with Yu Wanrou¡¯s earlier relentless interrogation, he was naturally infuriated and exasperated.

    But now that Yu Wanrou had finally taken a step back and disyed her vulnerabilities, his chauvinistic tendencies once again took the forefront of his mind, and he was now satisfied with her performance.

    See? Female cultivators should all learn to be like this ¨C submit to me and bepliant. Who does Jun Xiaomo think she is? To think that I¡¯d even attempted to give her face!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was filled with indignation towards Jun Xiaomo. In contrast, Yu Wanrou¡¯s transgressions towards him was far smaller, he no longer thought to pursue the matter with Yu Wanrou¡¯s attempted maniption of him.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you know your limits. Don¡¯t you dare use such things to threaten me in future. I, Qin Lingyu, hate people who attempt to control or threaten me.¡± Qin Lingyu coldly and sternly cautioned Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°I know, martial brother Qin...¡± Yu Wanrou took a few steps forward. Then, she hooked her arm around his, leaned her body in towards him before lifting her head as she pleaded, ¡°Lingyu, then...will you please bring me to the Limitless Sect? I really can¡¯t do without you...¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice even began to choke and sputter as tears began to roll from her eyes.

    She had hoped that her pitiful appearances would be able to earn Qin Lingyu¡¯s sympathy towards her. After all, Qin Lingyu had been rather susceptible to such coquettish behaviour from her in the past.

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows. For some strange reason, he was once again reminded of Jun Xiaomo ncing back at him with a smirk on her face, as well as the resplendent smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face when she was caught in a terrifying predicament.

    His heart constricted, and a raging fire burgeoned once more in his heart ¨C Are the best things in life only those that I can¡¯t have?! That¡¯s enough! Since when have I be such a lowly loser?!

    This time, Qin Lingyu¡¯s infuriation was directed at none other than himself. That said, his external appearance simply darkened sullenly.

    Yu Wanrou was slightly taken aback at Qin Lingyu¡¯s change of expression. She lowered her eyes and gritted her teeth as she thought ¨C Is this still not working?! Since when did Qin Lingyu be so impervious to all of these tricks? Hasn¡¯t he always loved how I¡¯ve behaved obsequiously by his side and feeding his ego?

    Yu Wanrou was still leaning closely by his side when Qin Lingyu swept his nce towards her. He could only see her pale expression as well as the exquisite essories on her hair.

    In fact, these hair essories were things that Yu Wanrou obtained from Qin Lingyu through various ways and means before their travels. At that time, he had willingly bought all of these things for Yu Wanrou. That said, the contemtions of his heart at that time were no more than a distant memory to him right now.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze grew ashen, and he finally remarked with a cold voice, ¡°About what you had asked for...let¡¯s shelve it for now and revisit itter. It¡¯s still several months before I leave the Dawn Sect for the Limitless Sect. There¡¯s no rush.¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s words caused Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart to thump furiously before sinking heavily...

    Qin Lingyu, are you really so infatuated with your old me?! Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth. Fine! Then, don¡¯t me me for drugging you!

 Chapter 233: Restless Night, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Promise

    <h4>Chapter 233: Restless Night, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Promise</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Approximately one month had passed since the end of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. Over thest month, the sects that had participated in thepetitions had gradually begun to make their way back to their respective sects¡¯ grounds. The Dawn Sect did so as well.

    The Dawn Sect had been the greatest winners in this iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. They had imed the titles of champions of the Lower Category, Middle Category and Open Category individual battles, and they had even been crowned the title of champions for the group battles. Thus, there was no doubt that the Dawn Sect stood head and shoulders above the rest of the Secondary Sects through thispetition.

    That said, there were few people within the Dawn Sect who were pleased by these results. The members of the Heavenly Peak had no longer considered the Dawn Sect as their home, while He Zhang and the other members of the Dawn Sect found themselves cheerless by the fact that their schemes against the Heavenly Peak had failed time and again.

    In fact, the greatest victors of this iteration of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition was not the Dawn Sect, but the Heavenly Peak within the Dawn Sect. After all, the Heavenly Peak disciples were the ones who had taken the titles of champions of the Lower Category and Middle Category individual battles, as well as the title of champions of the group battles. Everyone who had watched their battles were incredibly amazed by the abilities of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    It had to be said that He Zhang¡¯s greatest miscalction this time was to altogether swap out the list of participants for the group battles for the Heavenly Peak disciples. Had they not done so, where would the Heavenly Peak disciples have found the opportunity to disy the full extent of their abilities to the rest of the world? Their ster performance throughout the course of the group battles had drawn the attention of several Greater Sects. Thus, over thest few days, the Dawn Sect had seen several sect elders from Greater Sects call upon the Dawn Sect looking specifically for Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Just like that, He Zhang felt as though a swathe of blood had been lodged in his throat. He could neither swallow it nor spit it out.

    What was more aggrieving and aggravating than presenting his own enemies with the opportunity to shine on a silver tter? Nothing!

    The only thing that He Zhang could still celebrate about was the fact that Ye Xiuwen had remained missing, and there was no news of his whereabouts to date. Otherwise, the champion of the Open Category battles might not even have been Qin Lingyu!

    To He Zhang, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance was something delightful to be celebrated. Yet to Jun Xiaomo, this was something that brought her inexplicable pain and hurt.

    It was night. Jun Xiaomo leaned against her windowsill and stared at the moon in the horizon. She held a small ss of wine and took sips from it from time to time.

    As time passed, the moon crept upwards until it hung high in the sky. Despite that, Jun Xiaomo did not reveal any intention to retire for the night. Ever since returning to the Sect, she had meditated throughout the nights in order to tide through its immense darkness and stillness. That said, she found herself unable to still her mind and delve into her meditative state tonight.

    Her heart was in aplete mess.

    Just earlier today, the Dawn Sect had weed some guests from the second-ranked Frozen Sword Sect. They hade tomunicate their intentions to nominate her martial brother Chen Feiyu as a Chosen Disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect. This was supposed to be a joyous asion. However, while everyone was busy congratting Chen Feiyu for his achievements, Jun Xiaomo experienced a strong sense of deja vu, and a bitter and astringent sensation crept up from the bottom of her heart.

    Some time ago, Ye Xiuwen had earned the favor of the Frozen Sword Sect in a simr fashion. As soon as this piece of news spread throughout the Sect, several martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak immediately ran over to congratte Ye Xiuwen.

    In her previous life, Ye Xiuwen did indeed sessfully be a disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect. This was because Ye Xiuwen had not encountered such a life-threatening situation on his travels outside of the sect back then. Thus, he had sessfullypleted the sect¡¯s task and stepped into the Foundation Establishment stage off cultivation andter be the official disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect.

    This was not the first time that Jun Xiaomo had wondered whether her martial brother Ye would have returned to the Sect safely had she not been willful and headstrong and looked for her martial brother outside the Sect.

    Even though her intentions were not to make things worse for Ye Xiuwen, it did not change the fact that her appearance had altered the oue of their travels and changed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fate in this life.

    At this point in time, it had already been more than a year since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance, yet nobody had received any news of their martial brother to date. As time crept by slowly, Jun Xiaomo felt as though the odds of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s survival was gradually dwindling...

    Drip. A drop of tear rolled off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheek, off her chin andnded on the windowsill.

    She finished the rest of her wine in one big gulp, and she hung her head low. She batted her tear-stained eyes, and her entire being was enshrouded in an air of sorrow and misery.

    Will I still be able to see martial brother Ye in this lifetime of mine?

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly as the guilt weighing on her heart stifled her.

    Just then, a regr Transmittance Talisman glowed in her Interspatial Ring, breaking Jun Xiaomo¡¯s train of thought.

    She was momentarily taken aback. As soon as she regained her senses, she furiously suppressed the roiling emotions in her heart as she retrieved the Transmittance Talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Hello, who¡¯s that?¡± Jun Xiaomo held the Transmittance Talisman in her hand as she asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice resounded from the talisman, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you asleep yet?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d thought brother Rong had called me because you¡¯d guessed that I¡¯m still awake.¡± Jun Xiaomo quipped back with a faint smile on her face.

    That said, there was barely any joy underneath that smile of hers.

    ¡°I¡¯d only thought to try my luck. What¡¯s the matter? Can¡¯t fall asleep?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s low voice was just like a solid boulder ¨C it possessed the ability to calm a person¡¯s heart as it slowly echoed in a person¡¯s mind.

    ¡°You can say that was the case. I¡¯m much better now.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly.

    The anxiety and frustrations on her heart had indeed dwindled substantially by now.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about it. Sometimes things aren¡¯t as bad as you think they are. You¡¯ve still got some time ahead of you. You can only see hope when you loosen your mind and broaden your perspectives.¡±

    Rong Ruihan knew that there were only a few things that could possibly keep Jun Xiaomo awake at night. Thus, if Jun Xiaomo chose not to reveal them to him, he would naturally respect her choice and not ask either.

    That being the case, this was the only way he could appease her mind and calm her heart right now.

    ¡°I understand. Thanks, brother Rong.¡± Jun Xiaomo revealed a sincere smile on her face. Then, as though she just remembered something, she continued, ¡°That¡¯s right, brother Rong, is there any reason why you¡¯ve called me thiste at night?¡±

    Rong Ruihan chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°There is indeed something. In fact, it¡¯s something that¡¯s rather important.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo revealed a slightly astonished expression, ¡°What¡¯s tha--...¡±

    Before Jun Xiaomo couldplete her sentence, she immediately heard a few howls through the Transmittance Talisman ¨C Awooo! Awoooo!

    ¡°So it¡¯s got to do with the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her temples. She had roughly guessed what the problem might be ¨C

    It must be the fact that the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was not used to the Chi n¡¯s grounds, and it had begun to throw a tantrum so that it could get in touch with Jun Xiaomo, right?

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, brother Rong. It must be causing you guys a lot of trouble, isn¡¯t it?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled helplessly.

    ¡°Actually, it¡¯s not too bad. It was only when master had informed us that it might take three full years to thoroughly purge its body of all the remnant refinement technique that it might have got a shock and began to throw a tantrum.¡±

    ¡°Three years?! I didn¡¯t think it would take that much time...¡± Jun Xiaomo was surprised by this revtion.

    ¡°There¡¯s no choice. It¡¯s been put through three rounds of the refinement technique. Even though each attempt had failed, the scars remaining in its body have some measure of permanence to them. If we want to thoroughly purge its body of these traces of refinement technique, it naturally requires a fair amount of time.¡±

    ¡°Seems like I¡¯ll have to trouble old man Chi, then.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly.

    ¡°Old man Chi isn¡¯t too concerned about this. In fact, he¡¯s a little...¡± Rong Ruihan paused for a moment as he selected the right words, ¡°He¡¯s a little eager about it.¡±

    ¡°Eager about it?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Master enjoys a challenge from time to time. Don¡¯t you think that purging the refinement technique from the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s body is a pretty good challenge for him?¡± Rong Ruihan chuckled with some measure of exasperationced with bemusement.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case...then...I¡¯ll have to thank old man Chi in advance then.¡± Even though Jun Xiaomo was sincerely grateful to old man Chi, she didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at the entire situation either.

    For some strange reason, she suddenly became slightly sympathetic to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf that was residing in the Chi n¡¯s grounds. It won¡¯t be an experiment to old man Chi, right?

    But something told Jun Xiaomo that the truth was otherwise...

    ¡°I¡¯d bothered you in the dead of the night because I¡¯d hoped you would have some way of appeasing its tantrum.¡± Rong Ruihan continued.

    ¡°It¡¯s not a bother at all. Let me have a word with it.¡± Jun Xiaomo repressed theughter in her heart.

    On the other side, Rong Ruihan brought the Transmittance Talisman closer to the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf as he said, ¡°You¡¯ll be able tomunicate with Jun Xiaomo through this.¡±

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was incredibly clever, and it immediately understood what Rong Ruihan was saying.

    Awoo? The Scarlet Heavenly Wolfy obsequiously on the ground and yowled at the Transmittance Talisman.

    ¡°Little Wolf...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s crisp and clear voice began to flow out of the Transmittance Talisman, ¡°You¡¯ve got to be good and listen to them, understand? Only old man Chi can purge the refinement technique from your body. You don¡¯t want to be controlled by the bad guys anymore, right?¡±

    Awoo... The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf¡¯s voice was filled with some delight and some grievances at the same time ¨C it was delighted that it could speak with Jun Xiaomo through the Transmittance Talisman, and it was aggrieved that it would have to be trapped within the Chi n¡¯s grounds for three whole years.

    The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf was naturally not too familiar with the concept of ¡°years¡±. However, it knew that three years was a rather long time. After all, when it was bound and trapped within the Du n¡¯s grounds and forced to do their bidding, it hade across the term of reference for ¡°years¡± on asion.

    To its mind, every reference to the word ¡°year¡± would mean an incredibly long period of time. In fact, the duration felt practically as long as its current age.

    It was no wonder that it would have such an adverse reaction when it heard old man Chi mention ¡°three years¡±. The period of time that it had been trapped within the Du n¡¯s grounds had evidently left it traumatized.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too aggrieved now. I¡¯ll visit you when I have the time, understand? But you¡¯ll have to promise me to be good and listen to brother Rong and old man Chi so that they can thoroughly purge your body of the refinement technique.¡± Jun Xiaomo instructed as she gave it her word that she would visit it.

    Awooo! The Scarlet Heavenly Wolf finally appeared to be more invigorated as it howled at the Transmittance Talisman with joy.

    Apart from that, Jun Xiaomo also heard Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice through the Transmittance Talisman as he quipped, ¡°I¡¯m rather envious of what you¡¯ve just promised the Scarlet Heavenly Wolf. You¡¯ve never given us your word that you¡¯ll be visiting either me or your little packrat.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily lost for words at Rong Ruihan¡¯s response. She could neither agree nor disagree with it. In the end, she simply shook her head and chuckled helplessly.

    ¡°Alright, I was just pulling your leg. It¡¯s gettingte. Xiaomo, you should try and get some rest for the night. Don¡¯t push yourself too hard. Remember, everything in moderation.¡± Rong Ruihan left Jun Xiaomo with some parting words.

    Jun Xiaomo found it amazing that Rong Ruihan could always be so meticulous about everything.

    She curled her lips into a blissful smile as she responded, ¡°I will. Brother Rong should get some rest as well.¡±

    Awoo¡ªThe Scarlet Heavenly Wolf also minced its way forward to bid farewell to Jun Xiaomo as well.

    As she returned her Transmittance Talisman to her Interspatial Ring, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were filled with blissful emotions ¨C it was precisely because of friends like this that she would never be as despondent and hopeless like how she was in her previous life.

    Some distance away, under the same moonlit sky, another person found herself unable to sleep in her own room as well. Having extinguished all of the candles in her room, she turned to face her pill cauldron as she suffused it with her spiritual energy.

    I have to seed this time! Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth as a bright gleam shed across her eyes.

 Chapter 234: Qin Lingyu Swallows the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill

    <h4>Chapter 234: Qin Lingyu Swallows the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was a disciple of the Pill Cauldron Peak. It had to be said that the Peakmaster of the Pill Cauldron Peak was nominated based on his proficiency with refining medicinal pills, and not based on his cultivation level andbat prowess. That said, despite having been part of the Pill Cauldron Peak for most of her life, Yu Wanrou had never wholeheartedly delved into the discipline of refining pills. This was because refining pills entailed an arduous andplicated process. In order to refine a single pill, some pillmasters would remain in their room for days, or months, or even years on end.

    Yu Wanrou did not have that kind of patience. Her goal was simply to use the objects gifted to her within her spectral demine to seduce men and through that obtain anything else she desired.

    Thus, the years of her dtory attitude towards the pill refinement process meant that Yu Wanrou had spent several nights attempting to refine the most basic of Mesmerizing Blossom Pills to no avail. All that she gained over the past few nights were an ashen face and ack of sleep.

    ¡°Damn it. If not for the fact that I can¡¯t buy these things off the market, why would I need to put in so much effort to refine it myself!¡± Yu Wanrou muttered to herself in frustration. She suddenly had the urge to mash up the constituent ingredients of the pill and mix them directly into Qin Lingyu¡¯s food just to save herself the trouble.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try it onest time. If it still doesn¡¯t work, then forget it.¡± Incensed, Yu Wanrou muttered her ultimatum to herself.

    After all, there were still other ways through which she could achieve her objectives, so why was there a need for her to go through such hassle? Once she attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation and finally unlocked her ess to the dual-cultivation technique, that in itself would more than sufficiently cause male cultivators to swoon over and fall head over heels in love with her.

    This time, Yu Wanrou added some of her spirit spring waters to the mix, and she finally seeded.

    She held up the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill that she had painstakingly refined, and a wicked smile crept up the corner of her lips ¨C

    She believed that with this Mesmerizing Blossom Pill, Qin Lingyu would most certainly fall in love with her once more.

    After returning from the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, Qin Lingyu had been helping He Zhang with the Sect¡¯s matters over thest few days. Seeing how the Sect¡¯s disciples treated him courteously and with the utmost of respect, the pride and ego in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart began to burgeon once more, and he developed a fresh new perspective of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier rejection towards him ¨C

    His previous indignation and embarrassment had transformed into contempt and disdain.

    In his eyes, personally inviting Jun Xiaomo to enter the Limitless Sect with him was tantamount to providing Jun Xiaomo with the opportunity to climb the socialdder. No matter how strong her abilities were, the fact remained that her cultivation level remained at a low level within the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation. Yet notwithstanding all of this, that brat Jun Xiaomo had simply trampled on his goodwill when she rejected such a prime opportunity for herself.

    Thus, he was content waiting for Jun Xiaomo to make a fool of herself. He would wait until Jun Xiaomo turned thirty-five and remained unable to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. At that time, none of the Greater Sects would ept her any longer.

    Furthermore, with his master around, Jun Xiaomo might not even live till the ripe age of thirty-five years of age.

    Qin Lingyu thought about these things with a frigid glint in his eyes. It was as though he could already see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tragic demise.

    As for his promise towards Yu Wanrou to consider bringing her to the Limitless Sect instead, Qin Lingyu had already tossed this matter to the back of his mind.

    To Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou was no more than a ything used to upy his time. Be it stature or abilities, he considered Yu Wanrou to be aplete mismatch with himself on both fronts.

    At the same time, what he considered a mere ¡°ything¡± was in fact incredibly ambitious.

    On the second night after she had sessfully refined the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill, Yu Wanrou came knocking on Qin Lingyu¡¯s door.

    There was previously a secret passage connecting Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu¡¯s room. But ever since Qin Lingyu grew tired of Yu Wanrou and decided to increase the distance between himself and her, he unterally sealed his exit of the secret passage so that Yu Wanrou could no longer sneak into his room.

    Left with no other choice, Yu Wanrou could only take the main road to Qin Lingyu¡¯s room under the cover of the night.

    When Qin Lingyu opened his door and saw that the uninvited guest was Yu Wanrou, his facial expression immediately grew stern and cold. He had never expected thisdy to be so gutsy to tantly walk over to his room in the middle of the night. Was this not tantamount to dering to the world that there was something going on between them?!

    Yu Wanrou had already guessed that Qin Lingyu would react in this manner. After all, she knew that she would have to act submissive and obsequious towards men who were highly sought-after like Qin Lingyu. Otherwise, she would only attract his ire in bacsh.

    Thus, she very quickly adjusted her emotions and expressions and presented herself with red, puffy eyes as she sorrowfully chipped away at his heart, ¡°Lingyu, are you really going to ignore me from now on? I know I¡¯ve been in the wrong, and I¡¯m willing to change. Will you be willing to give me another chance?¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s appearances had always been her edge over others. Now that she presented herself as a weak and fragile flower with teardrops running down her face, this sight would very easily sway the heart of any men.

    At the very least, Qin Lingyu¡¯s chauvinistic attitude was well-pleased with Yu Wanrou¡¯s submissive behaviour, and his initially harsh attitude softened substantially.

    ¡°Alright, I didn¡¯t say that I was ignoring you either. It¡¯s just that if others see you calling upon my room at night, it wouldn¡¯t be good for either of us.¡± Qin Lingyu calmly explicated.

    ¡°I...It¡¯s just that I¡¯ve missed you so much. Ever since we¡¯ve returned to the Sect, Lingyu hasn¡¯t looked for me a single time.¡± Yu Wanroumented, ¡°Furthermore, the marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo has already been rescinded, and there are no longer any shackles tying you down anymore, so why can¡¯t Ie looking for you, Lingyu...?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions darkened as Yu Wanrou¡¯s questions fell one after the other. The truth of the matter was that he had never had much feeling for Yu Wanrou to begin with. Everything that had happened within them was a result of their youthful vigour and their raging passions. In fact, once the shackles of the marriage arrangement had been removed, his secret rendezvouses with Yu Wanrou at night seemed to have lost some measure of excitement apanying the fact that they used to be forbidden acts. Naturally, he began to find these tussles with Yu Wanrou far nder than ever.

    Of course, these were not matters that he would expressly tell others. He was a person who considered his self-image and reputation as matters of the utmost importance. He would consciously steer clear of any words or actions that would potentially damage his image and reputation so that others would hardly have the chance to use any of these against him.

    Yu Wanrou managed to roughly guess the contemtions on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart from his sullenness, and her heart once again began to roil with indignation and anger.

    She was truly fond of Qin Lingyu. Why else would she have revealed to Qin Lingyu one of the greatest secrets within her body? Yet to her horror, she was nothing more than a ything to Qin Lingyu. In fact, she had begun to suspect that Qin Lingyu¡¯s earlier joy and delight in her was nothing more than a pretence to get ess to the spirit spring waters on her body.

    The more Yu Wanrou thought about these things, the more infuriated she grew. However, she knew that she could not reveal any of her innermost emotions outwardly, because she still needed Qin Lingyu¡¯s help to bring her to the Limitless Sect. The Limitless Sect was where she would have ess to far more outstanding male disciples. At that time, she would adhere herself to the other outstanding male disciples, and Qin Lingyu would have no choice but toe crying back to her!

    Yu Wanrou continued to contemte about these matters in infuriation. She did not think that there was anything wrong with eyeing what was in the pot as she ate from her own bowl.

    In this regard, it had to be said that Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu were simply made for each other.

    As Yu Wanrou collected her thoughts, she also decided to appear even more fragile and weak. She leaned into Qin Lingyu¡¯s body, put her arms around the neck and lifted her head as she entreated pitifully, ¡°Lingyu, I love you. I¡¯m not asking for anything else right now. I just hope that we¡¯ll be able to have some pleasant memories together before you leave the Dawn Sect, is that alright?¡±

    Yu Wanrou was truly masterful. Apart from carrying that Mesmerizing Blossom Pill with her, she had even dressed herself with a simple silken dress that was almost translucent and scattered on her clothing some medicinal herbs that would arouse a person¡¯s passion and vigour. When she ced her fair and soft arms around Qin Lingyu¡¯s neck, the faint fragrance of the medicinal powder immediately diffused into the air around Qin Lingyu and wafted into his nose.

    Qin Lingyu looked back at Yu Wanrou who had pulled out all the stops to seduce him. His eyes grew deep and abstruse, while his body grew invigorated with passion.

    ¡°Lingyu...¡± Yu Wanrou softly called out Qin Lingyu¡¯s name beside his ears.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart was finally moved. He immediately lifted Yu Wanrou up horizontally and carried him into his room, before kicking his room door shut.

    Very soon, loud, embarrassing moaning and groaning sounds began to echo from Qin Lingyu¡¯s room in the dead of the night.

    Perhaps it had been too long since Qin Lingyu had released his tension in this manner, and perhaps it was partially a result of the enticing fragrance from the medicinal herbs on Yu Wanrou¡¯s clothing as well, but the moaning and groaning sounds did not cease until thetter half of the night. After his final release, Qin Lingyu copsed onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s body, and he very quickly fell into a deep slumber.

    Yu Wanrou had tussled in bed with Qin Lingyu for a long time now, and she had also grown weary and sleepy. That said, she knew that she could not fall asleep yet ¨C there was something that she needed to do.

    She mbered up from the bed and began to sieve through her clothes. After some moments, she managed to retrieve a single medicinal pill from her clothes.

    This pill was none other than the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill that Yu Wanrou had prepared beforehand to drug Qin Lingyu with. The only reason she had intended to retrieve the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill only after Qin Lingyu had fallen asleep was the fact that this was when Qin Lingyu was the least guarded against her.

    She had no means of feeding such arge pill to Qin Lingyu otherwise.

    She also retrieved some Drowsiness Incense and waved it about Qin Lingyu¡¯s nose. As soon as she was certain that Qin Lingyu was deep in his slumber, she cautiously pried open Qin Lingyu¡¯s mouth and ced the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill in his lips.

    The Mesmerizing Blossom Pill was a pill that was colourless and tasteless, and it melted in a person¡¯s mouth. It was the ideal pill for drugging the person of one¡¯s dreams. If not for the fact that the Mesmerizing Blossom was a difficult flower to locate and that the use of such flowers had already been restricted and forbidden by the spiritual cultivation world, the use of these pills might perhaps already have thrown the entire spiritual cultivation world into chaos.

    After all, there were innumerable infatuated men and women in the world, and many of these would not hesitate to resort to extreme measures to earn the affection and adoration of their dreams. Thus, it was not a bad thing that the usage of the Mesmerizing Blossom and the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill had been restricted and forbidden in the spiritual cultivation world.

    Naturally, the love and affection built on the usage of these pills amounted to no more than lies. So long as the person who used it possessed sufficient determination or consumed the antidote to these pills, these pills would naturally lose their effects, and the resultant false affection arising from the effects of these pills would also be dispelled.

    On the dawn of the second day, Qin Lingyu found himself waking up to an immense heat and burning sensation within his body, as though his entire body had just been tossed into the furnace. He hurriedly got up and began looking for a way to cool his body down.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind was so thoroughly assailed by the dibobting effects of the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill that a notion flickered across his mind, but he was unable totch onto it. Very soon, he found himself thoroughly sumbing to the effects of the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill.

    In his muddle-headedness, he swept his hands around his bed, and he found his arm resting on a soft and smooth skin that was cool andfortable to the touch.

    Thus, his primal instincts took over and he immediately pressed his entire body onto the body thaty beside him...

    That day, Qin Lingyu remained in his room for the entire morning. During this period of time, there was a younger martial brother who called on Qin Lingyu¡¯s room in the hope that they could discuss some Sect matters with him. As he drew closer to Qin Lingyu¡¯s room, he heard sounds echoing from the room that made him paused in his steps.

    ¡°Mm...ah...Lingyu...¡±

    Thisdy¡¯s voice was slightly husky, as though she had been crying out and moaning for a long period of time. At the same time, it was not difficult to tell how much the voice was filled with delight and pleasure.

    That disciple¡¯s heart immediately began to stir uncontrobly. Even though this disciple was young and had not experienced such matters for himself, he was not so young that he did not know about these things. These moans were undeniably rted to cries let out in the heat of the moment. A stifling heat washed over his entire being from top to toe, and his face flushed as red as a tomato.

    He immediately turned tail and ran back out.

    However, after taking a few steps out from Qin Lingyu¡¯s courtyard, a thought crashed through his mind, causing his eyes to widen in shock as he paused in his steps.

    That voice...howe that voice sounded so much like martial sister Wanrou?!

    At that moment, he realized that he had just witnessed something important.

 Chapter 235: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Successful Scheme

    <h4>Chapter 235: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Sessful Scheme</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    New of good deeds invariably remain unnoticed, while news of bad deeds spread like wildfire. The lives of the Dawn Sect cultivators had recently been dry and dreary and filled only with matters pertaining to cultivation. Every day that passed was the same, and there were hardly any surprises or exciting news. Thus, even though what happened between Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu could hardly be considered a bad deed, the news of what had urred still became the talk of the table in the blink of an eye.

    In fact, by the afternoon, practically the entire sect had been apprised of the ¡°wrestling match¡± between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou on his bed thatsted the entire morning.

    Different people reacted differently ¨C some with admiration and envy, some with remorse, some with hatred, and yet others with a look of realization.

    The truth of the matter was that everyone had begun to suspect that there was something going on between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou ever since they had returned to the sect from their travels. However, there was still a marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo at that time, and there were also no explicit signs that there was anything intimate going on between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou. Thus, most people shelved their thoughts there and then, treating their thoughts as no more than mere baseless suspicions.

    In fact, there were even some people who felt that Qin Lingyu would be far better off with Yu Wanrou at that time. After all, regardless of how good Jun Xiaomo¡¯s backing was, she was no more than a crippled cultivator. and she was bound to end up being a burden to Qin Lingyu.

    That said, these perspectives about Jun Xiaomo changed after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ster results from the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. Who would still dare tobel Jun Xiaomo as a piece of trash after her incredible performance? Had anyone ever seen a ¡°piece of trash¡± lead a team of disciples to im victory in the group battles against all odds?!

    Thus, by this point in time, most people had changed their minds and found that Qin Lingyu¡¯s rescission of the marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo was a terrible slip-up on his part. However, most people kept these thoughts to themselves and nobody spoke much about it.

    That said, now that Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had officiallye together, the disciples who were secretly fond of Qin Lingyu or Yu Wanrou found themselves indignant at thetest development; while others sported the attitude of a passive onlooker as they began topare Yu Wanrou with Jun Xiaomo.

    When they looked at both Yu Wanrou and Jun Xiaomo side by side, these disciples found themselves agreeing that Yu Wanrou was beneath Jun Xiaomo in terms of both charms as well as looks. Could Qin Lingyu have just let go of his big prize while grabbing at trifles?

    ¡°You can¡¯t say it like that. Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou have experienced several hardships together after all. How could Jun Xiaomo match up to the rtionship and bond that they have with each other? Furthermore, Yu Wanrou¡¯s abilities aren¡¯t too bad either. She¡¯s quite a good match for martial brother Qin.¡± A young female cultivator pouted her lips as she spoke. Her tender face revealed much about her youthful naivete ¨C in her eyes, the rtionship between Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu was true love. It was what she yearned for as well.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, they¡¯d gone through thick and thin together. Perhaps they¡¯ve even already gone through ¡®thick and thin¡¯ in bed together a long time ago! I mean, the marriage arrangement between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu had only been rescinded a short time ago. How could Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou already be tussling together?¡± The person who had just chimed in was a male cultivator who had secretly been fond of Yu Wanrou. His spiel was filled with sour jealousy because his dream girl just been picked up by someone.

    ¡°Hmph, posttions! Do you have any proof?!¡± The young female cultivator retorted in displeasure. She was unwilling to see the perfect picture of love in her mind be tainted by such nderous usations.

    The male cultivator coughed awkwardly. After some deliberation, he decided it would be wise not to press the issue and mention this any further.

    He knew that he did not have any hard evidence to prove his posttions. Furthermore, given Qin Lingyu identity, stature and abilities, he knew that Qin Lingyu was someone that he simply could not afford to cross at all. Thus, he decided that it would be prudent to keep his trap shut so as to minimize any possibilities of Qin Lingyu overhearing his baseless allegations and finding trouble with him.

    That said, there were few people who were as na?ve as the young female cultivator in the spiritual cultivation world. Just like that male cultivator, most of the other people had already suspected that Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had already had intimate rtions with each other from a long time ago. It was just that no one had expressed their thoughts outwardly.

    One of the disciples who found Qin Lingyu an immense eyesore was none other than Wei Gang. To begin with, Wei Gang was already displeased with Qin Lingyu because of what happened with Jun Xiaomo. Then, given how Qin Lingyu¡¯s dear master had time and again forced the Heavenly Peak into a corner during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, his displeasure had already burgeoned well into hatred.

    Today, when Wei Gang overheard the gossip that Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had tussled with each other in bed, he immediately rushed back to the Heavenly Peak. He ran straight to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abode, found Jun Xiaomo in her courtyard, and immediately began recounting what he had heard to Jun Xiaomo with indignation.

    ¡°They must have been seeing each other secretly since such a long time ago! Otherwise, how else could they have been rolling about in bed with each other within just two months of the rescission of the marriage arrangement!¡± Wei Gang cried out with fury.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly and listened patiently to Wei Gang¡¯sints, before she poured Wei Gang a cup of tea and set it before him, ¡°You must be tired from all that talking. Come, have a sip of the tea to quench your thirst.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo never drank much tea in her previous life. That said, having known Ye Xiuwen once more in this life, she had begun to learn from Ye Xiuwen the art of appreciating tea as well.

    The clear and pleasant aroma of the tea was so refreshing that it seemed to suffuse through one¡¯s body and purge the frustrations and dreariness in a person¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Martial sister, why aren¡¯t you angry at all!¡± Wei Gang looked at the cup of tea in front of his eyes as he cried out in dismay.

    Havingined for almost half a day, he found that he was the only one infuriated. His martial sister remainedpletely unperturbed by this news, as though she were not involved in this matter at all.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled to herself as she quipped in a lighthearted fashion, ¡°Why should I be angry? Wouldn¡¯t I be tormenting myself instead if I get mad at a person who¡¯s no longer rted to me?¡±

    Besides, she had already tasted Qin Lingyu¡¯s betrayal on several asions in her previous life, and everyst bit of her feelings for Qin Lingyu had remained buried in that dark and dank dungeon that she had spent the end of her previous life in.

    Today, as long as Qin Lingyu refrained from provoking her, she would be willing to temporarily shelve her vengeance against him and ignore him. Otherwise...

    Wei Gang shuddered slightly. He suddenly discovered that his martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s smile had be particrly...frigid. It was nearly akin to the frostiness of the Thousand Year Frost.

    Martial sister actually minds all of this, right? She must just find it difficult to speak about it. Wei Gang¡¯s heart felt pangs of sourness. Apart from his ever-growingpassion towards Jun Xiaomo, his hatred towards Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou burgeoned yet even more.

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear Wei Gang¡¯s thoughts right now, she might very well have rapped him hard on the head.

    Could his martial sister be so useless in his heart?! Would she be wasting her heart and soul on such a wastrel of a man?!

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo was unable to hear the voices of Wei Gang¡¯s heart, and she continued to sip at her tea with a calm state of mind.

    Qin Lingyu was unaware that his moment of indulgence and extended period of impassioned behaviour had resulted in such proliferate rumours spreading throughout the Sect.

    The truth of the matter was that the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill¡¯s effects had subsided towards the end of the morning, and Qin Lingyu had alreadye to his senses. However, having tasted the goodness of such a pleasurable experience, he naturally found it difficult to let go of the immense ecstasy apanying the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill¡¯s effects. Thus, he continued to clutch tightly to Yu Wanrou¡¯s waist as they tussled for another few rounds in bed. Finally, when Yu Wanrou could no longer take it, and in consideration of the fact that she had not consumed anything since the morning, she began to beg Qin Lingyu to spare her.

    It was a fortunate thing that Qin Lingyu had already attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. Otherwise, he could very well have perished in bed under the effects of Yu Wanrou¡¯s two invigorating medicines.

    After Yu Wanrou tidied up her appearances for a little bit, she began to make her way over to the Sect¡¯s dining hall together with Qin Lingyu. They had arrived slightlyte, and there were already not many people left in the dining hall. Despite that, Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou could still sense that several people had cast them surreptitious and discreet nces.

    ¡°The rumours must be true. See, they¡¯vee to the dining hall together.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I can even see the love bites on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body. Tsk tsk...how exciting must their tussle have been...¡±

    These disciples had intentionally lowered their volumes and whispered to each other. However, Qin Lingyu was already in the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and his divine sense was far stronger than the average disciple¡¯s. Thus, how could these exchanges between the disciples elude his ears?

    His expression immediately turned a sickly green, and he ferociously clenched his fists within his sleeves.

    ¡°Lingyu...¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s meridians had undergone the baptism of her spirit spring waters, and her senses were far stronger than the average disciple¡¯s senses as well. Thus, she had also picked up on what the disciples had whispered to each other earlier as well.

    But she pretended not to have heard it. She simply put on a concerned look as she tugged gently at Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeves.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s arm stiffened. He had the sudden urge to push Yu Wanrou to the side. He had good reason to believe that she had just schemed against him.

    He was not a fool after all. If not for the fact that he had fallen prey to her scheme, why would he have done something so uncharacteristic of him?! He was the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple! How far had he fallen to be the talk of the table during lunchtime?!

    Qin Lingyu was a person who viewed his image and reputation with the utmost importance. This was why he had always been unwilling to make his rtionship with Yu Wanrou public. After all, he firmly believed that he would have the ability to attract and marry a far stronger female cultivator with much better stature and backing than Yu Wanrou. But now that Yu Wanrou had inextricably tied herself down to him, it was going to be far more difficult for him to shed this burden weighing him down in future.

    Thus, he was infuriated. Not only by the fact that he had just been schemed against, but by the fact that he was now inextricably tied together with Yu Wanrou.

    On the other hand, Yu Wanrou was incredibly delighted. She knew that her actionsst night had brought to her some unexpected rewards ¨C the fruit of herbour was far greater than she had expected.

    With this, it was going to be far more difficult for Qin Lingyu to cast her aside and enter the Limitless Sect alone.

    She was now one step closer to her goals.

    Qin Lingyu knew full well that now was not the time to explode at Yu Wanrou. At the very least, he could not afford to be given bothbels of an ¡°impassioned man¡± and a ¡°heartless traitor¡± at this critical juncture.

    Thus, he fervently suppressed the indignation that was swelling up in his chest and used the calmest tone of voice he could muster to mutter to Yu Wanrou in a soft voice, ¡°Let¡¯s talk about this after lunch.¡±

    Yu Wanrou responded with a simple ¡°Mm.¡± Then, when Qin Lingyu lowered his head, a smile immediately crept up the corner of her lips.

    She knew what exactly Qin Lingyu wanted to talk about. However, she did not believe that Qin Lingyu would be able to escape her grasp after one night of passion under the effects of the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill.

    Qin Lingyu would only grow more and more addicted to the intense pleasure and satisfaction brought by the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill, and he would personally fall deeper and deeper in love with her, until he was finally subject to her ever beck and call.

 Chapter 236: Zephyr Sect Fifth Elderâ€™s Olive Branch

    <h4>Chapter 236: Zephyr Sect Fifth Elder¡¯s Olive Branch</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As expected, just after having breakfast, Qin Lingyu spoke to Yu Wanrou with a low, soft voice, ¡°Follow me.¡± Then, he grabbed her wrist tightly and dragged her to a quiet and secluded location. Once he stered some Noise-Cancelling Talismans in the surroundings, he could no longer suppress the outburst from his heart and he red at Yu Wanrou viciously, ¡°What in the world did you do to me yesterday?!¡±

    Even though Yu Wanrou had a thousand and one schemes in her heart, she knew that she should never reveal these things on her face.

    Her face turned pale with shock as she hurriedly grabbed onto Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeves, ¡°Lingyu, believe me, I really didn¡¯t do anything to you...¡±

    Qin Lingyu snorted as he wrested his sleeves free from Yu Wanrou¡¯s grasp, ¡°You didn¡¯t do anything? Do you take me for a fool?! With my self-control, why would I possibly resort to such behaviour that paints me in ascivious light to the public in broad daylight?! If you want me to bed you, you just have to say it. Why do you have to resort to these little actions behind my back and turn me into the greatestughingstock of the entire Sect?!¡±

    Qin Lingyu had said the word ¡°bed¡± with such humiliating intent that Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt like it had been punctured deep with an awl. Her heart had just been shattered into pieces.

    She was truly fond of Qin Lingyu. Even though the disy of her affection was aided by the implementation of some schemes, she could never deny the fact that she liked Qin Lingyu.

    That said, Qin Lingyu had casually tossed around the word ¡°bed¡± just like that. What did Qin Lingyu think she was ¨C a prostitute that one could call upon at the back alleys of the street?!

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes turned red and puffy. She looked at herself in shock and grew taciturn. Qin Lingyu¡¯s fury burgeoned more as he continued, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Do you think that I¡¯ve humiliated you? When you came looking for mest night and schemed against me, why didn¡¯t you consider the fact that I would get mad?!¡±

    After ventting his anger with a whole string of words, he suddenly thought about something, and a frigid smirk crept up the corner of his lips.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou, do you really have to use these measures to force me to bring you to the Limitless Sect? Let me tell you, fat hope! Even if these matters spread far and wide beyond the Dawn Sect, I will never bring you to the Limitless Sect with me. You can give up! Hah, do you think that I would have problems once everyone knows I¡¯ve bedded you? It doesn¡¯t prove anything! Even if I¡¯ve bedded you a hundred times, as long as I don¡¯t admit it, what can you do to me?!¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s prideful ego refused to ept the fact that he had been sessfully schemed against by a woman. Thus, he used the harshest and most vicious possible way he knew to tear down Yu Wanrou¡¯s pride and trample on it. He wanted to feel powerful and in control again; he wanted the ventte his infuriation that had been stifled for such a long time.

    Yu Wanrou was also another person who boasted an enormous ego and ced herself on a pedestal to be worshipped by others. She took pride in her abilities to grasp men tightly in her palm and control them. But now that Qin Lingyu tossed her pride to the ground and trampled on it like that, how could she not be mad?

    Yu Wanrou was not just mad; she was so mad that her entire face had be drained of colour. In fact, she had indeed been rather guilt-ridden by her actions to begin with. That said, her infuriation had well surpassed the extent of her guilt, and she flew into an uncontroble hysteria ¨C

    ¡°Enough! Qin Lingyu, whose fault is it that you weren¡¯t vignt and guarded enough? If you had been vignt, would you have fallen prey to my schemes?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve finally admitted it?¡± Qin Lingyu gritted his teeth as he red back at Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°Don¡¯t malign me, Qin Lingyu. I¡¯ve only used some colourless and scentless aphrodisiacs. You were the one who had been unable to control yourself; what¡¯s that got to do with me? Don¡¯t preach to me about your self-control. In my eyes, your self-control is nothing more than a joke!¡± Yu Wanrou snapped back viciously.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s wordsprised some measure of truth. After all, there were no guarantees when a person used love drugs on another. As long as a person¡¯s determination and willpower was strong enough, he would be able to ovee the effects of any love drugs.

    Unfortunately, it was evident that Qin Lingyu¡¯s rationality had almost instantaneously ceded control to his lustful desires.

    Qin Lingyu knew these principles as well, but he would never admit to sumbing to his primal desires. He snorted and refuted, ¡°Sophistry. Cut away all the bullshit. You¡¯ve just admitted that you were a slut that craved a warm body beside you. Thus, you had resorted to these underhanded means to get me to bed you.¡±

    Whether in herst life or her present life, Yu Wanrou had never experienced such extent of humiliation before.

    In her previous life, her mother was the mistress of another man, and she was an illegitimate daughter born out of wedlock. That said, she had been able to obtain everything that she had always wanted. Shecked nothing, and her father had never scolded her mother using such humiliating and derisory words.

    Back then, there was one instance when her father¡¯s wife had managed to locate her mother. At that time, she did scold her mother for being a vixen and being a cheap slut. However, Yu Wanrou had always felt that all of this was attributable to the fact that her father¡¯s real wife had no ability to keep her husband under check. What was the use of scolding her mother, the mistress, so much? At the end of the day, her father¡¯s heart was still with her own mother.

    Despite all of that, Yu Wanrou had never expected to hear such derisory words of humiliationing out from the mouths of the man that she was wholeheartedly fond of. And such words were even directed straight at herself!

    ¡°Qin Lingyu, have you said enough?!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s face waspletely white as she slowly articted each word with despondence, ¡°Yes, I crave men. But even if I crave men in future, I¡¯ll nevere looking for you again. How¡¯s that? Happy? Qin Lingyu, I hate you!¡±

    After Yu Wanrou was finished with her outburst, she turned around and ran back to where she came from with tears in her eyes.

    Qin Lingyu remained taciturn as he stared at Yu Wanrou¡¯s back. Momentster, he chuckled sardonically, before he turned and walked away in another direction.

    Jun Xiaomo would never have thought that the ¡°loving couple¡± from her previous life would actually experience such a massive rift in their rtionship this early on in her present lifetime.

    By now, Yu Wanrou was already thoroughly disappointed with Qin Lingyu. She had already known that Qin Lingyu was not a person who had much feelings to begin with. But even then, she had sincerely hoped that she held a special ce in his heart.

    After returning to her own room, she cried for the entire afternoon. Then, as Yu Wanrou slowly wiped off her tears, gritted her teeth and thought to herself ¨C Since the path with Qin Lingyu is such a difficult path to take, why don¡¯t I look for another man instead?

    After all, the cultivation world out there was massive. There had to be innumerable male cultivators with talents that were better than Qin Lingyu.

    Thus, Yu Wanrou traversed in her mind each and every male cultivator she knew and assessed their abilities. In the end, the only other male cultivator that she deemed to be sufficiently talented and outstanding was...the man beside Jun Xiaomo right now, Rong Ruihan; as well as the disfigured man who had vanished without a trace, Ye Xiuwen.

    As she thought about these things, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart swelled with yet even more infuriation and jealousy that practically consumed her rationality.

    She began to smash everything in her room that she couldy her hands on, and her entire room became a horrid mess.

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo!¡± Yu Wanrou gnashed her teeth as she red at the broken bits and pieces on the floor as though she were staring at her nemesis, ¡°Why do you have to be better than me at everything?! Why can¡¯t I, for once, be the person who got to know the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom?! I can¡¯t stand it! I just can¡¯t take this!!!¡±

    As shemented, sheshed out at the broken bits and pieces on the floor with her whip and smashed all of them into smithereens.

    Smashed into smithereens ¨C just like the hope in her heart; just like how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fate ought to be.

    On the other side, after having her dinner, Jun Xiaomo suddenly felt a shiver go down her spine, before she sneezed lightly. She took out her handkerchief and wiped her nose. Just as she was about to store her handkerchief, a small Messenger Paper Cranended on her arm and pecked lightly on the back of her hand.

    ¡°This is...?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at the emblem on the Messenger Paper Crane, and she discovered that she had never seen such an emblem before.

    The emblem looked almost like a cloud that was floating in the blue sky.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows while she considered whether she should open the Messenger Paper Crane or not. Her previous life¡¯s experience told her that it would be prudent to inspect the Messenger Paper Crane closely before opening it. Otherwise, the consequences could very well be dire.

    However, this Messenger Paper Crane evidently had no patience for any of that. Apart form pecking at the back of her hand, it even began to p its wings impatiently.

    Jun Xiaomo had never seen such spiritually aware Messenger Paper Cranes before, and she couldn¡¯t help but chuckle lightheartedly with bemusement.

    She thought for a moment, but she still decided to err on the side of caution and do a closer inspection of the Messenger Paper Crane. Then, she finally found two small words written on the underside of the Messenger Paper Crane¡¯s wings ¨C Zephyr Sect.

    ¡°Zephyr Sect?¡± Jun Xiaomo was puzzled.

    Having lived for two whole lifetimes, she naturally knew what and where the Zephyr Sect was ¨C it was none other than a Greater Sect that was only second to the Limitless Sect and the Frozen Sword Sect. However, she had never had any dealings with the Zephyr Sect, so why would a Zephyr Sect Messenger Paper Crane find its way over towards her?

    With such thoughts on her mind, Jun Xiaomo finally decided to open the Messenger Paper Crane. There, she saw a string of words written on it ¨C

    ¡°Hello, dear cultivator, Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯m the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Fifth Elder, Tong Ruizhen. Your performance at the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions have left an indelible mark in my heart, and I firmly believe that you¡¯re a talented young sprout, especially in the realms of formation arrays and talismans. I wonder if you have any intentions of being my disciple anding to the Zephyr Sect to learn more about formation arrays and talismans? If you agree to this, you may write the words ¡®I agree¡¯ on the underside of this paper crane; and if you disagree, I would also request that you leave your reasons on the underside of this paper crane. Yours truly, Tong Ruizhen.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips stretched out in slight astonishment, while her facial expressions grew sullen.

    Being extended an olive branch by an elder of a Greater Sect while she was only at the sixth level of Qi Master was undoubtedly an immeasurably delightful thing. If Jun Xiaomo had been a mere seventeen years-olddy, she might have immediately agreed to his request.

    However, she was no longer that na?ve seventeen years-olddy from her past. There was a soul that was hundreds of years-old trapped within her seventeen years-old physical body. Thus, her considerations were naturally far more meticulous than that of a mere seventeen years-olddy.

    The first thing that she thought about was what would happen to her parents if she went to the Zephyr Sect now? What would happen to her martial brothers and sisters from the Heavenly Peak? They did not possess her previous lifetime of experience. Notwithstanding the fact that her parents were now at loggerheads with He Zhang and no longer trusted him, she still knew the full extent of how crafty He Zhang could be. Who knows whether anything would happen in the interim?

    Furthermore, all of the other members of the Heavenly Peak were practically spitting images of Jun Linxuan ¨C all of them were cultivation fanatics that had devoted their hearts and minds to their own cultivation, to the exclusion of other things such as the nuances of human rtions, schemes and ploys. None of them would be able to hold a candle against He Zhang¡¯s vicious and crafty methods.

    The massacre of the Heavenly Peak in her previous life was like a nightmare to Jun Xiaomo. If the same exact incident urred again in this previous life, Jun Xiaomo might well and truly go mad.

    And then, there was Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was one of the other reasons holding Jun Xiaomo back from the Zephyr Sect. She had always clung tightly onto that thread of hope that Ye Xiuwen was still alive. She had hoped that one day Ye Xiuwen would show up at the foot of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s doorstep dragging his weary and dirty feet yet presenting himself with that pair of ever-warm and unchanging eyes.

    The sight of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return had appeared in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s dreams countless times. Yet every time she aroused from her dreams, she would be met with the harsh disappointment of reality.

    Jun Xiaomo wanted to remain at the Heavenly Peak to protect her parents; to protect her martial brothers and sisters from the Heavenly Peak, and to wait for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return.

    That said, she knew that these were not matters she could write onto the Messenger Paper Crane. Thus, she thought about it, before she began to pen down her reasons ¨C

    ¡°Junior thanks senior for his vote of approval. However, this junior¡¯s performance during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition had been nothing more than a fluke. Sect Elder Tong¡¯s high praise makes me feel slightly embarrassed about myself. Junior sincerely believes that she does not truly possess any talents for formation arrays or talismans. Junior had only had the fortune of being pointed in the right direction by an expert, and thus learnt a little trick or two which turned out to be useful during the group battles. Fortunately, everything went ording to n. After much consideration, this junior firmly believes that Sect Elder Tong deserves much better disciples rather than someone like junior whose cultivation level is low and whose aptitude is no more than mediocre. Once again, junior thanks Sect Elder Tong for showing interest in her. Yours sincerely, Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    After she finished writing the letter, she looked through the contents of what she had written once more and changed a line or two. Once she was satisfied that the message was sufficiently tactful and would not attract Tong Ruizhen¡¯s ire and wrath, she sent the Messenger Paper Crane on its way.

    As the Messenger Paper Crane disappeared into the horizon, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of resignation, shook her head and returned to her room.

    The Messenger Paper Crane was one that had specially been made by Tong Ruizhen. Thus, as soon as Jun Xiaomo had penned in her response, he received news from her in practically the next moment.

    He stroked his beard and chuckled to himself, ¡°This youngdy is rather special. But that¡¯s what makes it all more interesting, isn¡¯t it? Seems like I¡¯ll have to make a trip personally.¡±

    After thinking aloud, he hailed his mount ¨C a ninth-grade Heavenly Crane.

    Tong Ruizhen hollered once, and the Heavenly Crane immediately soared into the air and flew gracefully towards where the Dawn Sect was located.

 Chapter 237: He Finds it Lacking

    <h4>Chapter 237: He Finds it Lacking</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ever since the day he argued with Yu Wanrou, Qin Lingyu gradually began to realize that there was something amiss with his body.

    He had initially thought that that incident marked the end of his rtionship with the tasteless, worthlessdy Yu Wanrou, and he would then be able to focus wholeheartedly on his preparations to smoothen his transition to the Limitless Sect. Unexpectedly, every time night fell and darkness enshrouded thends, he would subconsciously begin to think about the ecstasy and rapture that he experienced with that night and day of passion with Yu Wanrou.

    Something¡¯s amiss. Something¡¯s truly amiss. This was not the first time that they had experienced a night of passion together. That said, his previous experiences with her had never given rise to such longing for more on his part.

    Was this the aftereffects of the drugs that Yu Wanrou had used, or did this feeling of longing simply arise because he had developed feelings for her?

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened. Thus, he decided to think of a way to test his theories.

    Today, after reporting to He Zhang, he left the Dawn Sect and headed straight into a small city belonging to the mortal world a few hundred miles away from the Dawn Sect.

    The female cultivators within the cultivation world all possessed a sense of pride and self-worth, and they would rarely use their own bodies as a bargaining chip for any form of transaction. This was vastly different from the brothels in the mortal world which were filled with subservientdies, some of whom were forced by circumstances, while others were captured and forced into submission.

    Qin Lingyu had always looked down on the prostitutes of the mortal world. However, he was soon about to be a disciple of the Limitless Sect, and he knew that it was far more important that the present issue with his body did not cause any trouble for him.

    Thus, bearing in mind that the female cultivators within the Sect were practically untouchables, the only way he knew how to experiment and test his theories would be to look for thesedies who sold themselves within the mortal world.

    Qin Lingyu walked into a building that was designed exquisitely and looked rtively more dignified, before he spoke to the madam there, ¡°Madam, bring me your best product here.¡±

    ¡°Ah! Right away!¡± The Madam¡¯s eyes had already lit up when Qin Lingyu first entered the brothel. She had worked in that ce for such a long time now, and she had personally seen and witnessed all sorts of peoplee by. That said, this was the first time that she had seen someone with such charms and dignity, clothed in top-quality goods from top to toe to boot.

    ¡°Oh yes, have her clean herself more thoroughly. I don¡¯t want her body smelling of cosmetics. It¡¯s hard on the nose.¡± Qin Lingyu added.

    It was only with this that he would be able to forget that this was a prostitute from the mortal world. Otherwise, how could the pride in his heart allow him to hug and embrace her to begin with?

    The Madam was slightly taken aback with the request as she stammered, ¡°This...¡±

    This was the first time she had encountered someone so picky ¨C If he can¡¯t stand the smell of our cosmetics, then what¡¯s the point of looking for a pleasurable experience here? Unreasonable!

    Qin Lingyu nced back at the Madam, before he retrieved a mid-grade spirit stone from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it to her, ¡°Hurry up.¡±

    The Madam hurriedly caught the spirit stone. Her eyes constricted and she immediately replied obsequiously, ¡°Ah, yes! Certainly, I¡¯ll be right back!¡±

    So, he¡¯s someone from the cultivation world. No wonder he appears to be so prideful. But no matter what, I¡¯ve got to get Scarlet to attend to this master well. The Madam made up her mind and smiled radiantly as she left the room.

    There were various ssifications to thedies at the brothels like this one as well. Those that were beautiful with a charming disposition and a masterful craft to top off their way with people would undoubtedly rise through the ranks andmand top respect in such ces.

    As demand for their services grow, the topdies of each brothel would naturally also develop a sense of pride apanying the fact that they had risen to the top of their game. Thus, they would generally be orded the privilege of picking and choosing the customers that they serviced ording to their whims and fancies.

    This brothel was no exception either. Just a little while ago, she had personally rejected a rich yet irascible customer. Now that the Madam had just informed her that the present patron had several requests, and even detested the smell of the cosmetics on her body, she was on the brink of also rejecting this man as well.

    ¡°Lady, go serve him, please. This master hails from the cultivation world.¡± The Madam exined.

    ¡°Cultivation world?¡± The topdy¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. If you treat him well, perhaps he might even take you along with him.¡± The Madam firmly believed that having one foot in the cultivation world like that was arguably even better than bing a concubine to the king in the capital city.

    These were the topdy¡¯s exact thoughts as well. Thus, she shelved her displeasure from before and washed herself thoroughly. Then, she put on the most alluring silken wear that she had in her wardrobe, checked herself in the mirror, before she daintily made her way towards the room where Qin Lingyu was located.

    As soon as she opened the door and took a nce at Qin Lingyu¡¯s face, the topdy¡¯s face immediately flushed red ¨C Such a handsome-looking man! She had never seen such a charming and dignified appearance man in these parts before. Compared with Qin Lingyu, all of her other customers in the past could only be described as ugly buffoons!

    He truly lives up to his reputation of being from the cultivation world. Her heart thumped vigorously as she thought to herself. At this moment, she had made up her mind that she absolutely had to win this man¡¯s heart right now.

    ¡°Come here.¡± Qin Lingyu nced at thedy that had just entered his room with a dark gaze as he called out coldly.

    What a coincidence. The silken garments worn by this topdy was almost akin to that which was worn by Yu Wanrou on that fateful night, and it reminded Qin Lingyu about that incident once again.

    It was a terrible feeling. It was as though he could not even control the thoughts of his own mind.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions grew frosty and cold, and the aura emanating from his body made the prideful topdy cower timidly.

    After all, to a frail and defenseless woman like the topdy, even a well-built mortal man would be able to crush her, much less a cultivator from the cultivation world.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t youing over yet? Do I have to personally escort you here?¡± Qin Lingyu looked with displeasure at thedy still standing motionless by the door.

    The Madam behind the topdy gave her a gentle nudge into the room as she whispered in her ears, ¡°Treat this master well. Don¡¯t be willful!¡±

    As she finished speaking, the Madam looked bashfully at Qin Lingyu and smiled, before she closed the room door with much ¡°consideration¡±.

    Even though there was some trepidation on her heart, the topdy nevertheless mustered all of her courage and walked over towards Qin Lingyu. The closer she drew to Qin Lingyu, the more she found herself mesmerized by Qin Lingyu¡¯s chiseled looks.

    How great would it be if I could charm this man and win his heart? An unrealistic thought crossed the topdy¡¯s mind.

    ¡°I¡¯m in your hands.¡± Qin Lingyu nced at her from atop as he instructed.

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± Scarlet bowed slightly and spoke with a soft voice

    There was no need for Qin Lingyu to remind her ¨C she would do all she could to please this man.

    Thedies from this brothel had been specially trained in their crafts, and their abilities to please their customers were practically top notch. Within moments, she had already got Qin Lingyu¡¯s blood boiling as they tumbled onto the bed. Then, Scarlet did all she could to pleasure Qin Lingyu with the sole aim of making him fall head over heels in love with her.

    However, after tussling in bed for over six hours, Qin Lingyu cast aside the weak and drained littledy to the side of the bed and began to put on his clothes once more.

    ¡°Master...¡± Scarlet tugged gently at Qin Lingyu¡¯s sleeves, hoping that he would stay.

    She realized that she had truly be fond of this man, and she sincerely hoped that this man would also stay behind for her.

    However, Qin Lingyu simply retrieved three mid-grade spirit stones from his Interspatial Ring and tossed them onto the bed, ¡°Take them.¡±

    After speaking, he adjusted his clothes and left the brothel without turning back.

    As he left, the heartbrokendy clutched gingerly at the three mid-grade spirit stones and buried her head in her hands, sobbing.

    Qin Lingyu was hardly pleased by the release of his frustrations over their six hours of tussling. In fact, his spirits only grew sullener as he left the brothel.

    It¡¯s still not enough. The topdy¡¯s crafts had clearly been far more masterful than Yu Wanrou¡¯s abilities, yet he still found itcking in some strange way. He simply did not get that ecstatic feeling that he got from Yu Wanrou. Could he truly have fallen for Yu Wanrou?

    Qin Lingyu found the prospects of such thoughts disdainful. After all, he had always felt that rtionships were nothing more than a burden, so what reason was there for him to have fallen in ¡°love¡± with someone?

    Furthermore, Yu Wanrou was simply too simr to himself ¨C they were both people who would resort to any means to achieve their own goals. He would never fall in love with such a selfish person like her!

    Thus, Qin Lingyu¡¯s conclusion was that he had fallen in love with Yu Wanrou¡¯s body.

    If it¡¯s her body, then so be it. I¡¯m not at the losing end of this deal anyway, right? Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes grew hazy as he thought about it, but the entanglement in his heart had dwindled substantially.

    Seems like I¡¯ll have to look for Yu Wanrou and have a good chat with her.

    Just as Qin Lingyu had grown jittery over thest few days, Yu Wanrou was simrly vexed with her predicament. She had initially thought that the use of one such Mesmerizing Blossom Pill would be sufficient to capture Qin Lingyu tightly within her grasp. How could she have known that before she could tighten the shackles around him, he would instead turn tail and leave in a fit of anger?

    Yu Wanrou maintained a fairly decent reputation around the Dawn Sect. Over thest few days, the ¡°cold war¡± between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou had been far too obvious. As a result of that, several people thought that Qin Lingyu had discarded Yu Wanrou after thoroughly having his way with her.

    Thus, many people began to believe in their hearts that Qin Lingyu was a scumbag through and through. That said, nobody spoke their minds on ount of the fact that Qin Lingyu was the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple. Who could afford to cross his path?

    Naturally, it was also a by-product of such thoughts that Yu Wanrou began to find herself beingforted and consoled by several male disciples from different Peaks. These were all male disciples who were secretly fond of Yu Wanrou, and they finally thought that they would have a chance with her now that Qin Lingyu was out of the picture.

    They firmly believed that this was a prime opportunity to set themselves up for the rebound love and earn this beauty¡¯s love through the soothing of her hurts and pains.

    On the other hand, Yu Wanrou weed these male disciples¡¯ advances with a smile on her face, yet her heart was so frustrated that she was on the brink of throwing up blood ¨C these male cultivators could hardly hold a candle to Qin Lingyu. How could she possibly fall for them?

    In particr, just two days ago, Yu Wanrou had gone out to the markets to distract her mind and ventte her frustrations, and she happened toe across a group of people belonging to the Heavenly Peak. Jun Xiaomo was among that group as well. She sat in the middle of the group like a glistening, precious gemstone. That radiant smile of hers was incredibly harsh on the eyes no matter how she looked at her.

    There were several passers-by on the market streets who couldn¡¯t help themselves but nce at Jun Xiaomo as they passed her by. At the same time, the group of Heavenly Peak disciples had bought several things from the markets and stuffed them all into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands.

    Why are the heavens so unfair to me? Why can Jun Xiaomo get her hands on everything she wants without even asking for it?

    Yu Wanrou was so jealous of Jun Xiaomo that she was on the brink of going mad. She wanted so much to trade ces with Jun Xiaomo so that Jun Xiaomo could experience for herself what it felt like to be amoner like her.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo waspletely oblivious to the fact that her birthday celebration could so seriously trip up Yu Wanrou and cause her jealousy towards Jun Xiaomo to burgeon so much.

    That¡¯s right. The reason why Jun Xiaomo and the Heavenly Peak disciples would take a stroll around the marketce was precisely because it happened to be her birthday, and her martial brothers were taking the opportunity to celebrate her birthday with her.

    Furthermore, several martial brothers had received olive branches from the Greater Sects over thest few days as a result of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s outstanding performance during the group battles in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. In order to show Jun Xiaomo their gratitude, these martial brothers had decided to buy her gifts on her birthday.

    Yet Yu Wanrou only knew what she saw. Thus, she had thought that Jun Xiaomo had always obtained what she wanted without any effort on her part, and she resolved in her heart that she was going to take any shortcuts avable to her.

    That said, this did not mean that Yu Wanrou was doomed to a life of failure ¨C she seeds on asion as well.

    Just like tonight, after several nights of jitters, Qin Lingyu finally knocked on the door to Yu Wanrou¡¯s room once more.

 Chapter 238: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Desires Fulfilled

    <h4>Chapter 238: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Desires Fulfilled</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu had called upon Yu Wanrou in the middle of the night under the cover of an Invisibility Talisman. It was only when Yu Wanrou opened the door to her room that he finally removed the Invisibility Talisman on her body.

    ¡°You...howe it¡¯s you?¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s face stiffened up slightly, and the smile that was originally on her face subsided quickly.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Not willing to see me now? That¡¯s to be expected. You¡¯ve ¡®received¡¯ several people here over thest few days, huh? Peoplee and go unceasingly. You must be a busy person, aren¡¯t you?¡± Qin Lingyu responded contemptuously.

    Qin Lingyu hadced the word ¡°received¡± with so much contempt that it was evident he was implying that Yu Wanrou had invited several men for some behind-the-scenes action.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart of solitude was immediately reced by that of a burgeoning fire, and her eyes flickered brightly as she red back at Qin Lingyu, ¡°Are you jealous?¡±

    ¡°Jealous? Hah!¡± Qin Lingyu took one step forward and grabbed Yu Wanrou around the waist and forcefully lifted her chin. Yu Wanrou drew a deep breath, and her eyes were momentarily filled with mncholy and a intive look.

    Qin Lingyu had not caused Yu Wanrou any pain. However, she knew that this was one of the ways in which she could incite the sympathy of a man¡¯s heart.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes. It was clear that Yu Wanrou was in his embrace right now, and she had even presented herself with a look that made it clear that she was ripe for the picking. That said, Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind had subconsciously wandered to another pair of eyes.

    It was another pair of eyes that were far brighter and filled with an unwavering determination and an unppable spirit. There was once a time where that pair of eyes had only been filled with his own image; but now those pair of eyes only looked at him with disdain and frigidity.

    Qin Lingyu found that it was as though he had been split into two right now. One half was mesmerized by Yu Wanrou¡¯s body, while the other half was still lingering with thoughts of his ex-fianc¨¦e ¨C perhaps he might have cut his ties with her too soon.

    ¡°Ling...Lingyu?¡± Qin Lingyu had delved into his own thoughts for far too long, and Yu Wanrou could no longer keep her pretenses. Most importantly, she knew that she could not see her own reflections in Qin Lingyu¡¯s deep and profound eyes right now.

    It was as though Qin Lingyu was looking at her, but his heart and mind had drifted off elsewhere.

    She had thought that Qin Lingyu hade looking for her sote at night because he had had a change of heart. But now, she was beginning to suspect whether Qin Lingyu was only here to mock and ridicule her! The indignation in Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes were slowly burgeoning into an aggrieved fury.

    Qin Lingyu was jolted back to his senses by Yu Wanrou¡¯s call, and his eyes immediately fixed itself back on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body.

    It had to be said that Yu Wanrou¡¯s body was incredibly alluring. At the very least, having been separated with Yu Wanrou over thest few days, he felt that his body had not had a good release for some time now. Even though he had visited the brothel and called upon a prostitute, he had not managed to derive the same sensual pleasure and ecstasy that he previously experienced with Yu Wanrou.

    Whether body or mind was more important to a man was an extremely difficult question to answer. Some men would prefer the former, while others would say that it was thetter. The only silver lining for Qin Lingyu right now was that he was not in a position where he presently had to make the choice between the two at this point in time.

    He lifted Yu Wanrou¡¯s chin slightly higher and stared straight into her eyes as he articted each worth with rity, ¡°If you can please me tonight, I¡¯ll bring you to the Limitless Sect.¡±

    ¡°Wha-...what?!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened. She had never expected the opportunity that she had always coveted would present itself right before her very eyes just like that.

    Qin Lingyu did not say anymore. He continued to embrace Yu Wanrou as he took a step into her room and shut the door with a bang.

    Very soon, Yu Wanrou¡¯s moans and groans began to resound from within the room.

    After one round of tussling, Qin Lingyu pushed Yu Wanrou aside and sat sullenly by the bed with a dark expression on his face.

    I¡¯ve just tasted Yu Wanrou once more, but why didn¡¯t I experience the same kind of ecstatic feeling as before? It felt as though something was missing...could it be those drugs?!

    Qin Lingyu knew that Yu Wanrou had drugged him that night, but he did not know exactly what drugs she had used. If it were truly the drug that was the missing ingredient to his ecstasy...

    Qin Lingyu immersed himself in his own thoughts, and a dark expression flickered across his eyes.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt rather unsettled. Qin Lingyu¡¯s appearance had been far too sudden, and she did not have the opportunity to feed the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill to Qin Lingyu at all.

    Yu Wanrou knew that Qin Lingyu coveted the ecstatic feeling that was generated by the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill when making love. Yu Wanrou did not feel good thinking about these things, but Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions made it clear to her that these were his thoughts right now.

    To think that I actually believed that he¡¯d knocked on my door because he¡¯s had a change of heart. Yu Wanrou thought in a self-deprecating manner. She liked Qin Lingyu, and she naturally hoped that Qin Lingyu would be fond of her as well.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the drug?¡± Qin Lingyu spoke suddenly with a frigid tone.

    ¡°Wha-...what drug?¡± Yu Wanrou was slightly taken aback, and her eyes widened as she did her best to appear astonished in her response.

    However, the fleeting panic in her eyes had betrayed her, and Qin Lingyu had just confirmed his suspicions that the abnormality over thest few days must have something to do with the medicines that Yu Wanrou had used.

    ¡°You know full well whether you¡¯ve drugged me that night. I don¡¯t intend to pursue this matter anymore either.¡± Qin Lingyu calmly exined, ¡°I only want to know what drug this is.¡±

    Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lip, and she looked at Qin Lingyu with an indistinct expression in her eyes. She knew that there was no longer any point in finding an excuse because Qin Lingyu would no longer believe that no drugs had been involved. In fact, she knew that if she continued to refute his allegations, Qin Lingyu might very well in a fit of rage employ some unconventional measures in order to elicit a truthful response from her.

    By then, Qin Lingyu might no longer find it within himself to forgive her even if she provided him with the drug.

    Yu Wanrou thought for a moment, before she decided topromise to a certain extent as she disclosed, ¡°I did drug you, but it¡¯s no use even if I reveal the name of the drug. You¡¯ll never be able to find that drug.¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes grew colder, ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°That drug is the same as the spirit spring waters in my Interspatial Ring. It¡¯s something that I¡¯d chanced upon, and it¡¯s also something that you won¡¯t be able to find or purchase at the marketce.¡± Yu Wanrou pretended to remain calm as she exined.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes and grew sullen and taciturn for a moment. Then, he chuckled coldly, ¡°So, without a thought on whether the drug would be harmful to my body, you threw caution to the wind and still drugged me regardless, hmm?!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s got no harmful effects!¡± Yu Wanrou knew that Qin Lingyu was on the brink of a major outburst, and she hurriedly sought to pacify him, ¡°It...it¡¯s only got the effects of causing a person to be mesmerized and impassioned with desires so that one would truly experience ecstasy and rapture!¡±

    Yu Wanrou had no choice right now ¨C she knew that she had to reveal the effects of the medicinal pill she had used. However, she was still reticent to divulge the name of the medicinal pill for fear that Qin Lingyu would guess her ulterior motives for using these drugs.

    ¡°Mesmerized...?¡± A notion flickered past Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind quickly, but he failed totch onto it.

    Yu Wanrou was afraid that Qin Lingyu would press further with his queries, so she tactfully added, ¡°Besides, you like that kind of feeling, don¡¯t you? Otherwise, you wouldn¡¯t have called upon me tonight.¡±

    When she said this, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart felt a pang of frustration and vexation echo throughout her body.

    She gritted her teeth, before once again retrieving another Mesmerizing Blossom Pill from her Interspatial Ring. Then, she presented the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill to him and lifted her head as she added, ¡°Do you want to give it another shot? You like that feeling of rapture, don¡¯t you? Lingyu...¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s body coursed with the Fox n¡¯s blood, and she could naturally imbue her voice with an irresistible charm whenever she spoke. The final sentence spoken by her wasced with an enchanting allure.

    Qin Lingyu lowered his head and looked at the medicinal pill in Yu Wanrou¡¯s hands.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he received the pill and consumed it. Qin Lingyu wanted to know for himself how such a small, harmless looking pill could give rise to such powerful effects that were still lingering in his mind to this date!

    Besides, Qin Lingyu firmly believed that Yu Wanrou would never have the guts to even think about hurting him with these medicinal pills.

    Once the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill melted in his mouth, a wave of invigorating heat began to course through his entire body. It was somewhat akin to the feeling that he got while he was meditating, yet it was ostensibly different in other ways.

    Very soon, he could no longer hold himself back. In one fell swoop, he pressed himself onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s body and began to ¡°plow¡± vigorously once more.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s body temperature gradually rose with the heat of the moment as well, but her heart remained cold and frigid. As expected, Qin Lingyu was after nothing more than the effects of the drug that she had used. Apart from that, there was nothing else he coveted.

    With a grimace on her face, Yu Wanrou mocked herself ¨C Haven¡¯t I done enough for Qin Lingyu? If not for the spirit spring waters in my Interspatial Ring, how could Qin Lingyu have broken through to the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation in such a short time?

    How could Qin Lingyu be such a heartless person?!

    Several questions began to surface in Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind about that person undting vigorously above her. Yet it never once crossed Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind that Jun Xiaomo had in fact sacrificed and done so much more for Qin Lingyu, whether in her previous life or in the present life. Even then, Qin Lingyu had thoroughly turned his back and cut off all ties with her.

    Besides, Yu Wanrou was the one who had instigated Qin Lingyu to betray Jun Xiaomo to begin with. If Qin Lingyu could betray Jun Xiaomo, then naturally he could certainly find it within himself to betray Yu Wanrou as well. If anyone was to me, Yu Wanrou could only me herself for being overconfident in her own charms and allure.

    As she turned her mind towards the ¡°promise¡± Qin Lingyu had made earlier that night, Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth and pushed aside Qin Lingyu whose rationality had been substantially consumed by the effects of the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill, and she panted as she asked, ¡°Is your promise still valid? If I please you tonight, will you bring me to the Limitless Sect?¡±

    Qin Lingyu had returned to his senses slightly as a result of the pause in their actions. He gazed straight into Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes for a moment, before a mocking smile crept up the corner of his lips, ¡°I naturally am a man of my word.¡±

    Even though Yu Wanrou had pleased him using the effects of the medicinal pill, it was still as Yu Wanrou had said ¨C he had still experienced the ecstasy and rapture that he so desired!

    As to what Yu Wanrou would be after she entered the Limitless Sect, this would no longer form part of his considerations. After all, he could hardly care less about a woman who would go through so much trouble just to scheme against himself.

    Qin Lingyu contemptuous gaze pierced straight through Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart, causing her to feel as though she had stumbled viciously.

    It was evident that Qin Lingyu viewed her as nothing more than a warm body in bed. Yet the irony of all that was that this ¡°warm body¡± had always thought that Qin Lingyu had possessed deep affection for her.

    Qin Lingyu saw Yu Wanrou bite down on her lower lips as she remained taciturn. Momentster, the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill¡¯s effects surged once more, and he threw himself onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s body again.

    Yu Wanrou had already grown used to Qin Lingyu¡¯s warm breath in bed. Under the manifestation of Qin Lingyu¡¯s passion, her body grew weak and limp, and she gave up all forms of ¡°resistance¡±.

    I¡¯ll let it be...

    As she gazed into the slightly swaying bedframe and experienced the heat burgeoning within her body with that slight tingling, pleasurable sensation emanating from her body, Yu Wanrou began to moan and groan in harmony with the tempo of Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions. At the same time, a twisted smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    Regardless of what happens, I¡¯ve achieved my goals, haven¡¯t I? After tonight, I¡¯ll be able to go to the Limitless Sect and tap into the vast pool of delectable male cultivators there!

    So what if Qin Lingyu doesn¡¯t love me? Once tonight passes, he will no longer be able to extricate himself from the ecstasy and rapture apanying the Mesmerizing Blossom Pill. At that time, I¡¯ll whittle him down one pill at a time, until he finally submits to me fully.

    At that moment, Yu Wanrou¡¯s disposition had be as sharp and incisive like a poisonous snake that was poised to strike as it slowly curled its body into a trap, waiting for its prey to fall in and apany her to the depths of the abyss of degeneration.

 Chapter 239: New Sister-in-Law and Old Sister-in-Law

    <h4>Chapter 239: New Sister-in-Law and Old Sister-in-Law</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The members of the Dawn Sect discovered that there were new developments between Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu overnight. Previously, everyone could tell that their rtionship had be incredibly strained and even icy cold after a night of passion. It was practically at the point where they had washed their hands off each other.

    As a result, several people had begun tobel Qin Lingyu as a scumbag who refused to take responsibility after the matter.

    Naturally, there were some others who delighted in their misery and kicked back as they watched the show. These people believed that Qin Lingyu could do better than Yu Wanrou, and they thus felt that it stood to reason that Qin Lingyu had abandoned her.

    Regardless, nobody expected the rtionship between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou to have recovered overnight just like that.

    In fact, their rtionship seemed to flourish and blossom even more than it did before. The two of them were now practically like Siamese twins as they went everywhere together. Yu Wanrou would even tightly wrap her arms around Qin Lingyu¡¯s in an intimate fashion with a soft and blissful smile on her face that yelled ¡°we¡¯re together¡±.

    Their public disy of affection dazzled the eyes of all the disciples within the Dawn Sect, and they also shattered the hearts of many hopefuls who were fond of either of the two.

    ¡°Martial sister, how can you not be angry! Qin Lingyu had only rescinded the marriage arrangement with you just over one month ago! Just over one month and he¡¯s already hooked up with Yu Wanrou, and they¡¯ve even been intimately involved with each other! Who in the right mind would believe that they hadn¡¯t been up to any shenanigans before this?!¡± Wei Gang waved his fist around with indignation, and he even punched the air as though he were punching an image of Qin Lingyu he projected into that space.

    ¡°Why are you getting upset about two inconsequential people, hmm? Little Lang, have youpleted your training menu for the day?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled mischievously as she questioned Wei Gang and interrupted his incessant jabbering.

    ¡°Ah! Err, err, err...! Just...just a little bit more...¡± Wei Gang cried out in astonishment before his voice grew increasingly timid as his guilty conscience suppressed his speech.

    ¡°Sigh, you only know how to busy yourself with these gossip and stories. Be careful I don¡¯t one day tell your father about the state of your training and let him deal with you properly.¡± Jun Xiaomo rapped Wei Gang¡¯s head as she quipped back.

    ¡°Ah, ah ¨C don¡¯t do it, martial sister! I...I¡¯ll get going now.¡± As he spoke, Wei Gang ran off in a jiffy as though there was fire in his pants.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head as she chuckled. Then, she picked up the teapot and made a cup of tea for herself before taking a sip out of her teacup with a gentle poise.

    ¡°Oh, as expected! The tea that¡¯s presented as tribute to royalties are different.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightheartedly.

    This was tea that Rong Ruihan had gifted her by way of a Messenger Paper Crane. He had mentioned that he had too much tea to finish on his own, so he had decided to give some to Jun Xiaomo.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo knew that Rong Ruihan was merely looking for an excuse to send tea to her. After all, Rong Ruihan could always have given some tea to his subordinates if he was unable to finish them.

    Regardless, she was thankful for Rong Ruihan¡¯s thoughtful gifts. In exchange, she tied a stack of talismans onto the Messenger Paper Crane and sent it flying back to Rong Ruihan. Even if Rong Ruihan had no use of these talismans now, Jun Xiaomo knew that he could always save them for a rainy day. Besides, the stack of talismans hardly took up any space to begin with.

    This must be what friendship is all about. Jun Xiaomo eximed in her heart, and a warm smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    On the other side, Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu¡¯s public disy of affection wasced thickly with traces of bragging.

    Back when Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo first entered into their marriage arrangement, an incredibly thick swathe of jealousy and heartachepletely engulfed Yu Wanrou¡¯s entire being. Then, after she became intimately entangled with Qin Lingyu, but before the marriage arrangement was rescinded, she would feel the urge to dere that Qin Lingyu was hers whenever she saw others cast looks of admiration, jealousy and even hatred at Jun Xiaomo.

    Yu Wanrou wanted to be the center of that kind of attention. She wanted to be the focal point of all looks of admiration within the spiritual world.

    And now, she had just taken the first baby step to meeting her ambitious goals. Qin Lingyu was the Dawn Sect Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and he was none other than the person going to seed the title of Sect Leader in the time toe. Was there any other disciple within Dawn Sect who held a higher position or stature than Qin Lingyu?

    Basking in the glory of these looks of admiration, Yu Wanrou¡¯s ambitious heart and self-confidence began to swell and grow.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, those people are talking nonsense again!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s younger sister, Qin Shanshan, came running to Yu Wanrou¡¯s side with a look of indignation on her face. She clung onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s arm as though she were feeling aggrieved for Yu Wanrou.

    If not for a scheming glimmer peeking out from the depths of her eyes, perhaps what she had just done might be rather persuasive.

    Yet, Yu Wanrou noticed every bit of the scheming glimmer that was in Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes. That said, she knew that she needed Qin Lingyu right now, and she could hardly afford to offend her little ancestor that was Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Lingyu had just left the room, so Yu Wanrou could only calm her heart and softly respond, ¡°What did they say which made our dear Shanshan so upset?¡±

    ¡°They said that brother and sister Wanrou had bullied Jun Xiaomo, and they¡¯d even said that sister Wanrou was the third wheel that had broken up their marriage arrangement to begin with. Worst of all, they¡¯d even said that brother was a scumbag!¡± Qin Shanshan decried with indignation before lowering her volume as she whispered to Yu Wanrou, ¡°Sister Wanrou, I believe that Jun Xiaomo must have been the one who had spread all of these rumours around. She must be jealous of your rtionship with brother, and so she decided to spread all sorts of false rumours about the two of you.¡±

    Qin Shanshan was the same type of person as Yu Wanrou ¨C they both hated Jun Xiaomo, and they were both jealous of what she possessed. In particr, Jun Xiaomo had on several asions torn apart Qin Shanshan¡¯s pretenses and trampled on her pride in public. Thus, Qin Shanshan viewed Jun Xiaomo as the thorn in her side that was to be removed no matter the cost.

    At the same time, Qin Shanshan could hardly hold a candle to Qin Lingyu in terms of her talent for cultivation, and she had thus always been treated as a slightly invisible existence in the Sect. If not for the fact that she had the backing of her outstanding brother, she might very well have faded into anonymity amidst the rest of the disciples. But it was also precisely because of this that Qin Shanshan hated the fact that Jun Xiaomo possessed everything she wanted ¨C strong backing in the form of her parents, as well as an immense talent for cultivation.

    It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo had in fact treated Qin Shanshan extremely well before the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu broke down. Back then, Jun Xiaomo would from time to time give Qin Shanshan delightful gifts that she had happened toe across. However, Qin Shanshan had always believed that Jun Xiaomo had always given her mere hand-me-downs or things that Jun Xiaomo no longer wanted to use.

    Thus, the more Jun Xiaomo gave, the more jealous Qin Shanshan grew. How she wished that she could have a Peakmaster as her father as well. That way, she could ask her father directly if she coveted anything, and she would no longer need Jun Xiaomo to render gifts of charity to her!

    It could be seen from the likeness of their character that an older brother truly begets a simr younger sister. Those who were overtly selfish would always view themselves as the center of the world. That was the ¡°fair equilibrium¡± of what the ideal world ought to be.

    Now that Qin Lingyu and Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly washed their hands off each other, Qin Shanshan¡¯s stream of benefits had naturally also dried up. Truth be told, she had initially regretted in the fact that she had not asked Jun Xiaomo for more before the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu broke down.

    That said, she had juste up with another idea ¨C

    She wanted to instigate and aggravate the rivalry between Yu Wanrou and Jun Xiaomo, and have Yu Wanrou teach Jun Xiaomo a lesson.

    Qin Shanshan knew that Yu Wanrou maintained a good reputation throughout the Sect, and this was one of the building blocks for her idea to begin with ¨C she believed that Yu Wanrou could capitalize on her way with people to trip up Jun Xiaomo.

    That said, how could Yu Wanrou be any less crafty than Qin Shanshan when it came to schemes and ploys? How could she not know Qin Shanshan¡¯s true motives for seeking her out today?

    Truth be told, from what Yu Wanrou understood of Jun Xiaomo, she knew that Jun Xiaomo could hardly care less about her present rtionship with Qin Lingyu, much less actively spread rumours to smear their reputation.

    If one were to consider the people in the Sect who were most likely to smear and tarnish their reputation, the littledy beside her most certainly ced higher in terms of likelihood than Jun Xiaomo did.

    That said, Yu Wanrou could hardly be bothered to be calctive about these things because she knew that she was not in a position to deal with Qin Shanshan at this point in time. Furthermore, given their respective rtionships with Qin Lingyu, she knew without a doubt that Qin Lingyu would take Qin Shanshan¡¯s side if she were to get into an argument with Qin Shanshan.

    Furthermore, every time Jun Xiaomo walked past Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu while they were publicly disying their affection, Jun Xiaomo would only cast upon them a disdainful look before walking away confidently and freely, as though they had nothing to do with her.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nonchnce made everything that Yu Wanrou had schemed and executed seem like nothing more than a circus act ¨C this thoroughly incensed Yu Wanrou.

    The person that Yu Wanrou wanted to defeat and trample on the most was Jun Xiaomo.

    There was not a single asion when she did not think about stepping over Jun Xiaomo and trampling Jun Xiaomo beneath her feet. She wanted to see whether Jun Xiaomo would reveal a sorry and tragic look on her face when that time came.

    That said, none of her schemes to date had worked. She had snatched Qin Lingyu away, won over the hearts of people within the Sect, had her way with people, thought of many ways to smear and tarnish Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reputation, and even watched on in delight as Jun Xiaomo fell from the graces of a talented cultivator when her cultivation was crippled...

    Despite all of that, Jun Xiaomo had never revealed a tragic or sorry look on her face at all. It was as though everything was within her grasp and control. The only thing that had made Jun Xiaomo lose her cool to date was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disappearance.

    All of this made Yu Wanrou feel incredibly defeated, and hardly aplished at all. It was as though she had primed her strongest attacks to strike her rival that was Jun Xiaomo, only to find out that her opponent had simply run off the arena and never had the intention topete to begin with.

    Now that Qin Shanshan brought up all of this, and notwithstanding the fact that she was displeased that Qin Shanshan was using her to deal with Jun Xiaomo, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart began to feel provoked to action.

    Since Jun Xiaomo hardly cared about her rtionship with Qin Lingyu, then there was no reason to engage her on that front either. What about the opportunity to enter a Greater Sect? Qin Lingyu had already discussed matters with He Zhang, and Yu Wanrou would very soon be able to enter the Limitless Sect through Qin Lingyu¡¯s ¡°backdoor¡± to delve deeper into her cultivation there. However, Jun Xiaomo would still have to remain here at the Dawn Sect, and her prospects of entering a Greater Sect was still very much an unknown for now.

    In fact, Yu Wanrou believed that Jun Xiaomo was no different from the other disciples from the Heavenly Peak ¨C every single one of them was a stubborn buffoon.

    Qin Lingyu had extended an olive branch to Jun Xiaomo before, yet this was outrightly rejected by Jun Xiaomo. In Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, as much as her heart ached that Qin Lingyu would pick Jun Xiaomo over herself, she also mocked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s naivete and ignorance.

    As long as one could gain entry to the Greater Sect, what did it matter what form her entry took? No matter how great their hatred and indignation, was there anything that they could not set aside temporarily when presented with such a prime opportunity?

    Furthermore, in Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo and Qin Lingyu could not be considered to have any deep animosity or hatred for each other to begin with. After all, any amount of animosity between them could only have arisen from the incident during their travels ¨C how great could that have been?

    It¡¯s amazing that Jun Xiaomo would be so insistent on picking that disfigured martial brother of hers. Yu Wanrou mocked in her heart. If it had been her, she would most certainly have picked Qin Lingyu over Ye Xiuwen any day.

    ¡°Sister Wanrou, Jun Xiaomo has spread lies and rumours to smear and tarnish both brother Qin and your names! Are you really going to take it lying down?¡± Qin Shanshan noticed that Yu Wanrou had hardly given her any form of response, so she added fuel to fire and pressed the issue.

    A trace of displeasure flickered across the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes, but this very quickly became a bright glimmer.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, Shanshan. We¡¯ll go take a look at the Discussion Hall.¡± Yu Wanrou smiled softly at Qin Shanshan as she quipped.

    ¡°Discussion Hall?¡± Qin Shanshan couldn¡¯t understand why Yu Wanrou had all of a sudden mentioned the Discussion Hall ¨C what did this have to do with Jun Xiaomo to begin with?

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t Shanshan know? There¡¯s going to be several sect elders from Greater Sectsing to earmark their chosen disciples today.¡± Yu Wanrou curled her lips into a smile as she explicated.

    ¡°Oh, but that doesn¡¯t have anything to do with me.¡± Qin Shanshan murmured.

    What did the earmarking of Chosen Disciples have anything to do with her? With her current cultivation abilities, there was no way she would be selected to begin with. Her only hope right now was that Qin Lingyu could put in a good word for her when he entered the Limitless Sectter on.

    ¡°We¡¯ll find an opportunity to inform Jun Xiaomo that some sect elders from the Greater Sects have taken an interest in her as a potential Chosen Disciple. Then, when she shows up and discovers that everything was nothing more than an ¡®illusion¡¯, she will be theughingstock of everyone present, while we¡¯ll have a good show to watch. Isn¡¯t that a good idea?¡±

    Yu Wanrou spoke with a soft and warm voice, and her expression remained just as harmless and docile as it had been. That said, the contents of what she had just said made Qin Shanshan shudder coldly.

    ¡°Hah...haha...excellent, that¡¯s really great...haha...¡± Qin Shanshan smiled as she stammered. That earlier look that she had stered all over her face while she had been scheming had beenpletely shattered to pieces.

    Qin Shanshan had suddenly discovered that her present ¡°sister-inw¡± was far less weak and soft that she appeared to be. In fact, the profound schemes of her heart were hardlymensurate with her age.

    How ignorant and daft must Qin Shanshan have been to think that Yu Wanrou was in any way an easier target than Jun Xiaomo had been in the past?

 Chapter 240: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Late Arrival

    <h4>Chapter 240: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Late Arrival</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In the blink of an eye, Yu Wanrou forged a letter from the Sect and sent it to Jun Xiaomo by way of a Messenger Paper Crane.

    As she watched the Messenger Paper Crane vanish from view, a discreet smile crept up the corner of Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips, before she began to make her way slowly over towards the Discussion Hall.

    Qin Lingyu had already apprised He Zhang as well as the Limitless Sect of Yu Wanrou¡¯s identity and capacity ¨C Yu Wanrou was going to enter the Limitless Sect together with Qin Lingyu. He Zhang and the Limitless Sect had also simrly responded with their approval.

    It was precisely because of this that Yu Wanrou had the right to enter the Discussion Hall today and sit with the Dawn Sect¡¯s Peakmasters and Sect Elders, together with the disciples that they had picked out as they waited for the arrival of the guests from the Greater Sects.

    The right to enter the Discussion Hall also represented the right to enter a Greater Sect. Those who did not possess such rights but still wished to observe the proceedings would have no choice but to stand and wait outside the Discussion Hall.

    Naturally, the Discussion Hall was an open area, and those standing outside were still able to observe the proceedings on the inside.

    Qin Shanshan gritted her teeth as she looked with a gaze filled with admiration at Yu Wanrou¡¯s back as Yu Wanrou stepped into the Discussion Hall without turning back once.

    You¡¯re only riding on brother¡¯s coattails! Qin Shanshan decried with a heart filled with bitter astringency. In fact, she even viciously cursed that one day her brother would discard and disown Yu Wanrou.

    There were several other disciples who were standing beside Qin Shanshan right now who also looked upon Yu Wanrou with a simr gaze in their eyes.

    Under the baptism of such gazes, Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was filled with even more delight as it bloated with pride.

    When Yu Wanrou¡¯s Messenger Paper Crane arrived, Jun Xiaomo had just cleared the mess on her table and was about to enter a state of meditation.

    The message was written on a paper crane that was prepared for an internal transmission of messages within the Sect. It was impossible to tell who the sender of the message was based solely on the handwriting.

    Jun Xiaomo motioned to open up the Messenger Paper Crane and read its contents. However, as soon as her fingers touched the sides of the Messenger Paper Crane, Jun Xiaomo suddenly paused, and she squinted her eyes with disdain.

    She rubbed together the fingers that had just touched the Messenger Paper Crane, before she ced her fingers under the sunlight.

    From a certain angle, she was barely able to make out ayer of glimmering substance on it. This was incredibly faint, and one would never have been able to notice it unless they looked closely enough.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo congealed a fireball on her palm and ced it under the Messenger Paper Crane as she ¡°roasted¡± it. Momentster, the Messenger Paper Crane began to give off a faint medicinal scent that could very easily be overlooked if one were not looking out for it.

    This was not a drug that was foreign to Jun Xiaomo at all. This was because she had been stumbled and tripped up by this very drug on several asions in her previous life.

    ¡°Ah, I wonder who¡¯s been so extravagant in their usage of the Threefold Spellbinding Incense on me!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled grimly.

    The Threefold Spellbinding Incense, as the name suggests, was an incense that had been crafted using three types of medicines that possess the ability to entrance a person. Its fragrance was incredibly faint, but its effects were incredibly strong.

    Its effects were to draw out and amplify the deepest and strongest desires of a person¡¯s heart and put them under the illusion that they had already obtained what they so desired. Yet the truth of the matter was that an illusion would always remain an illusion ¨C this was a reality that could never be changed.

    In fact, it was precisely this drug that had caused Jun Xiaomo to have mistaken Rong Ruihan for Qin Lingyu in her previous life.

    The more she thought about it, the more incensed she grew. The fireball on her palm flickered, as though it were primed and ready to burgeon and consume the Messenger Paper Crane above it.

    However, just as the fireball shifted towards the Messenger Paper Crane, Jun Xiaomo paused ¨C It might too much of a waste if I simply burnt it like that. After all, I wouldn¡¯t even know what the schemer was trying to aplish yet.

    Jun Xiaomo had always been a person who would never wrong other who had never wronged her. At the same time, she would hardly hesitate to repay an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth if others made the first move against her. Thus, she was rather reticent to destroy her only clue as to the identity of the schemer.

    Forget it. She had the antidote to the Threefold Spellbinding Incense after all, so what was the harm in finding out what her opponent might have been scheming behind her back?

    As she thought about it, Jun Xiaomo retrieved an exquisite jade bottle from her Interspatial Ring and sniffed at its contents. Instantly, the medicinal fumes from that bottle shot straight through her nose and dispersed the hazing effects of the Threefold Spellbinding Incense.

    The effects of the antidotest for two hours. Within these two hours, Jun Xiaomo would be immune to the effects of the Threefold Spellbinding Incense.

    With that, she set her heart and mind at ease and opened the Messenger Paper Crane, only to find one line of words written on it ¨C

    ¡°Disciple Jun Xiaomo, in light of your ster performance during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, several sect elders from Greater Sects have expressed interest in nominating you as their Chosen Disciples. Please attend to the Discussion Hall right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically. She had just recalled the fact that there were several guests from Greater Sects calling on the Dawn Sect today with the view of earmarking some Chosen Disciples for themselves. Several of her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak had also already made their way over to the Discussion Hall earlier. That said, most disciples would already have been informed of the need for their attendance at the Discussion Hall, and it was rare to hear of anyst-minute changes to the list of attendees.

    After all, the Dawn Sect had far too many disciples, and not everyone would be able to squeeze their way into the Discussion Hall. Logically speaking, the disciples like Jun Xiaomo whose cultivation was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery would never be considered for their attendance to begin with.

    That said, there were exceptions as well. For instance, Jun Xiaomo had in fact received a letter from the sect elder of the Zephyr Sect a few days back, informing her that he was keen to earmark her as a Chosen Disciple. However, after much consideration, she decided to turn down the Zephyr Sect¡¯s invitation.

    Truth be told, she was hardly interested in bing a disciple of a Greater Sect. In her eyes, rather than enter a Greater Sect and gaining ess to spiritual cultivation techniques that were not suitable to her to begin with, her time might be far better spent waiting for some Arcane Realms to open up and diving into these ces to hunt for treasures.

    Some of these Arcane Realms had indeed surfaced and opened up in her previous life. However, she had been escaping from her pursuers back then, and she did not have the luxury of time to hunt for treasures like that. However, things were different in this life, and she did not want to let up on those opportunities that were now avable to her.

    Thus, no matter what this schemer was trying to do, tempting Jun Xiaomo with the prospects of entering Greater Sects was most certainly a lost cause.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly as she burnt up the Messenger Paper Crane in her hands and pped off the remaining ashes from her hands. Then, she turned around and motioned to return back to her room.

    She was no longer interested in investigating who the sender of this letter had been. After all, regardless of whether it was Qin Lingyu, Yu Wanrou, He Zhang, or anyone else in their faction, she was going to get her revenge on them sooner orter. Thus, she was content letting them run freely for now.

    However, before she managed to step into her own room, another Messenger Paper Crane flew towards her and perched itself on her shoulder.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately grew frustrated ¨C Does this schemer know no bounds? One Messenger Paper Crane after the other just to get what he wants?

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to burn the Messenger Paper Crane on her shoulder to a crisp when she suddenly discovered that the design of this Messenger Paper Crane was one that was uniquely used by Jun Linxuan.

    This was Jun Linxuan¡¯s personal Messenger Paper Crane ¨C something that could never be forged.

    ¡°Father sent this?¡± Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. This time, she immediately opened it without hesitation.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s message was brief and sinct ¨C ¡°Come to the Discussion Hall right now.¡± There were only a few words on it, and it did not exin the reason for his instructions. In other words, this message reeked of Jun Linxuan¡¯s personality.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head in exasperation as she remarked to herself, ¡°Seem like I¡¯ll still have to make the trip.¡±

    Truth be told, she would very much prefer to focus on her cultivation than visit the Discussion Hall. Ever since she had returned from the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, her cultivation level had remained stuck at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, and there were no signs of any breakthrough yet.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that this was a result of theck ofbat experience and sparring partners. But given the limitations of her current circumstances, she knew that she could only make do with what she had.

    After all, the fact that I could leap from the first level of Qi Mastery to the sixth level of Qi Mastery within such a short span of time is already pretty good. Haste makes waste. Jun Xiaomo cautioned herself.

    With such considerations in mind, she had continued to press on in her own personal cultivation. That said, there were several incidents during this period of time that continued to interrupt her, just like the present incident.

    ¡°Just what¡¯s going on here?¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured to herself as she walked towards the Discussion Hall.

    In the Discussion Hall, numerous disciples sat tensely on their seats as they all looked to the main entrance with anticipation.

    He Zhang, the Peakmasters and the Sect Elders had gone out to receive their distinguished guests from the Greater Sects, leaving only the disciples waiting eagerly in anticipation for the arrival of the people who could potentially change their future.

    The guests this time included people from the Limitless Sect, the Frozen Sword Sect and the Zephyr Sect, namely the Greater Sects that ranked the first, second and third among all the Greater Sects respectively. This was an unusual urrence, and it was also for this reason that the turnout to this present meeting was unprecedented.

    Among the disciples seated in the Discussion Hall, Chen Feiyu leaned over towards another Heavenly Peak disciple as he asked in a hushed voice, ¡°Where¡¯s Xiaomo? Isn¡¯t she here yet?¡±

    The other disciple was seated in a seat which made it easy for him to look outwards. This was the reason why Chen Feiyu had asked such a question to begin with.

    ¡°She¡¯s not here yet. She must still be on her way.¡± The other disciple looked out and responded seriously.

    Chen Feiyu furrowed his brows, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we get martial sister to make haste? It¡¯s been quite a long time now. I believe that the sect elders from the Greater Sects should be arriving soon. It wouldn¡¯t be good for martial sister Xiaomo to make ate appearance.¡±

    Once the sect elders from the Greater Sects have taken their seats, ate arrival by Jun Xiaomo would not only look bad on her, it might even arouse the ire of these cantankerous old men from the Greater Sects and cost Jun Xiaomo the opportunity of a lifetime.

    ¡°I¡¯ll quickly send Jun Xiaomo another message.¡± The other disciple responded. However, before he could retrieve the Messenger Paper Crane from his Interspatial Ring, a group of people immediatelynded on the grounds just outside the Discussion Hall. They could even hear He Zhang¡¯s boisterousughter and traces of ttery in his speech.

    ¡°The people of the Greater Sects have arrived!¡± The disciple muttered in a low voice, causing Chen Feiyu¡¯s eyebrows to be knitted even more tightly together.

    Sigh. We¡¯ve really jinxed it there, haven¡¯t we? Even though Chen Feiyu¡¯s heart was incredibly anxious for his martial sister, he could only sigh with resignation.

    The sect elders from the three different Greater Sects were all clothed in different types of garments, and they were escorted to the Discussion Hall by He Zhang, together with the Dawn Sect¡¯s Peakmasters and Sect Elders.

    The Limitless Sect¡¯s sect elders all toted an arrogant and haughty look, and it was evident that they were extremely proud to be part of the Limitless Sect. Even though He Zhang was always chatting with them, they merely nodded or gave nothing more than curt responses. The Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s sect elders were like prized spirit swords that had been unsheathed from their covers. They stood strong and majestic; unwavering and unppable ¨C almost akin to what the Heavenly Peak disciples were like. It was no wonder why they loved picking out their Chosen Disciples from among the Heavenly Peak disciples. Finally, the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect were slightly more varied in their appearances, and each had their own unique characteristics. That said, their auras and disposition was hardly as imposing as those from the Limitless Sect or the Frozen Sword Sect.

    Despite that, no one dared to look down on the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect. After all, their abilities were undoubtedly formidable, and these sect elders could easily crush a bunch of Dawn Sect disciples with the flick of their fingers.

    After escorting the sect elders of the Greater Sects to their seats, Jun Linxuan returned to his own seat and found his ce among his disciples.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Xiaomo?¡± Jun Linxuan furrowed his brows and asked Chen Feiyu who was beside him.

    ¡°She¡¯s not here yet. She must have received the message slightly toote.¡± Chen Feiyu responded with amensurately worried tone of voice.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, send another message to her and tell her not toe. The sect elders from the Greater Sects area already all seated, and it wouldn¡¯t be good for her to make an entrance right now.¡± Jun Linxuan made a swift decision.

    However, when it rains, it pours. Just as he ryed his instructions to Chen Feiyu, ady in striking red garments appeared at the entrance of the Discussion Hall. Everyone in the Discussion Hall turned their attention back from the guests towards the entrance of the Discussion Hall once more.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry that I¡¯mte.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she apologized to the guests in an unrestrained manner.

    The faces of several onlookers immediately twitched uncontrobly. At this moment, every single person felt that Jun Xiaomo must have galls made of stone that was impervious to any situation. Quite apart from the fact that she had been tardy, she had even stered a smug andposed look on her face ¨C did she not notice how the Sect Leader and several Sect Elders¡¯ faces had all turned ck?

    On the other hand, just beside where Qin Lingyu was located, Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips stretched out into a victorious, contemptuous smile.

 Chapter 241: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Limelight

    <h4>Chapter 241: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Limelight</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Logically speaking, Jun Xiaomo should never have been given the right to enter the Discussion Hall to begin with. Given the extent of her present abilities, she should have been relegated to the standing spaces outside of the Discussion Hall just like some of the other Dawn Sect disciples whose cultivation levels were on the lower side. There, she could anticipate the arrival of the sect elders from the Greater Sects and hope to catch a glimpse of the glory of these profound experts.

    Yet it was precisely because of this that when Jun Xiaomo made her grand appearance at the entrance of the Discussion Hall, the audience began to stir and whisper among themselves.

    ¡°What¡¯s Jun Xiaomo doing here? Is this really somece she should be?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? And she¡¯s even arrived tardily. How embarrassing!¡±

    ¡°Her father¡¯s a great, big Peakmaster. That¡¯s the only reason why she thinks she can do anything she wants.¡± Another quipped with sourness in his voice.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. We can only me ourselves for not having been born with a silver spoon in our mouths.¡±

    ¡°Hey, do you think that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s doing this only to leave a deep impression in the hearts of these sect elders?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s that possibility too. Given her current cultivation level, she might even be too weak to be making tea for the distinguished sect elders here. Perhaps she¡¯s thinking of taking an unconventional gambit and using different means to draw the interest of these sect elders.¡±

    ¡°Hah, if that¡¯s the case, then she might just have achieved what she¡¯s set out to do. I wonder if the sect elders from the Greater Sects would decide to earmark her as a Chosen Disciple just because of such an impression that she¡¯s left with them?¡±

    These disciples continued to chatter with a slightly contemptuous snickering. It was evident that they all found Jun Xiaomo to be nothing more than an idiot; a dancing jester that sported incredibly thick skin.

    Jun Linxuan knew full well that his daughter¡¯s sudden appearance at the entrance of the Discussion Hall did not bode well for her. Otherwise, he would not have instructed Chen Feiyu to tell Jun Xiaomo not toe to begin with.

    That said, now that Jun Xiaomo had already made her appearance, he could no longer ask her to turn around and return to where she came from. Most importantly, he recalled the fact that he had just some time ago received a letter from a sect elder from Zephyr Sect, inspiring some hope that his daughter would be earmarked as a Chosen Disciple today.

    After all, there are no parents who did not wish the best for their children. Even though Jun Linxuan appeared to be stoic and unfazed when Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level had fallen back to the first level of Qi Mastery, the truth of the matter was that he was incredibly worried for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s future.

    He was worried that his daughter would no longer be able to qualify for a Greater Sect. Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation level had returned to the sixth level of Qi Mastery, it was still a far cry from what it should have been. Had there not have been any issues with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation to begin with, she should have already broken through to the ninth level of Qi Mastery.

    Thus, the letter from the sect elder of the Zephyr Sect was indubitably a spark of hope that lit up the dark despondence in Jun Linxuan¡¯s heart. This was the only reason why he had invited Jun Xiaomo into the Discussion Hall today to begin with.

    I only hope that this sect elder from the Zephyr Sect will be present today. Jun Linxuan thought in his heart as he nced at the few sect elders seated among the Zephyr Sect¡¯s seating area. He couldn¡¯t tell from their expression whether any of them had been the author of the letter that had earlier been delivered to him.

    If anyone was to be med for that, it would have to be Tong Ruizhen¡¯s callousness. He had sent a letter to Jun Linxuan expressing that he had the intention to earmark Jun Xiaomo as a Chosen Disciple. However, he had overlooked to append his name at the bottom of the letter.

    Thus, Jun Linxuan was still unaware of which sect elder from the Zephyr Sect it was who had taken an interest in Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Cough.¡± One of the sect elders from the Greater Sects coughed once, breaking the ufortable silence in the Discussion Hall.

    Jun Linxuan came back to his senses, stood up and made a fist and palm salute at the Greater Sects¡¯ sect elders as he exined, ¡°My daughter¡¯s misdemeanor must have offended these distinguished guests. Please forgive her.¡±

    The sect elders were initially rather displeased about the entire situation. However, having lived for such a long time, they found it beneath them to be picky about such little details and pick a fight with such a young sprout. Thus, they all waved their hands and shrugged off the matter, ¡°No matter.¡±

    Jun Linxuan observed their expressions, but he was still unable to discern which sect elder it was who had sent that letter to him.

    He thought about it slightly, before concluding that there was no point in such guesswork, and that it would be better to simply adopt a wait and see approach. Thus, he turned back to Jun Xiaomo and gestured to her, ¡°Come over and take your seat.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bowed politely to the various sect elders, before walking to Jun Linxuan under everyone¡¯s watchful gazes and taking her seat.

    Several people behind Jun Xiaomo who were eagerly anticipating theatrics couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh of disappointment ¨C they had thought that Jun Xiaomo would once again be punished by the Sect for her misdemeanors.

    Who would have thought that Jun Xiaomo would be able to avert trouble just like that?

    Yu Wanrou was also slightly disappointed by the present oue. She had hoped that Jun Xiaomo would make a fool of herself earlier. Yet despite her tardiness, Jun Xiaomo had beenpletelyposed and stoic in the face of potential trouble. Thus, Yu Wanrou couldn¡¯t help but wonder whether this was simply because of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unppable personality, or whether it was because she was a simple-minded buffoon.

    No matter. Jun Xiaomo has inhaled the Threefold Spellbinding Incense, and she will definitely go madter. Yu Wanrou cated her mind as a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes ¨C It would be best if Jun Xiaomo could receive the Sect¡¯s punishment again.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s begin with what we need to do today. Lingyu, take a step forward.¡± He Zhang stood up and made an inviting gesture to Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu stood up, bowed to everyone present, before making his way to the center of the Discussion Hall with an upright and erect posture.

    There were two main items on the agenda today:

    The first was to witness Qin Lingyu¡¯s formal change of master ceremony. Since Qin Lingyu was soon about to formally take on his new role as a disciple of the Limitless Sect, he would naturally have to transfer his apprenticeship from He Zhang to the Third Elder of the Limitless Sect. In order to do so, both masters would need to be present to for the formal ceremony.

    The second thing on the agenda would concern the rest of the other sect elders, who had alle in order to earmark Chosen Disciples for their respective Sects. There were two main ways of bing a disciple of Greater Sects. The first was like what was happening right now, when sect elder of the Greater Sects took interest in a potential disciple and earmarked them as Chosen Disciples of their respective sects. The other way of bing a disciple of the Greater Sect would be to earn one¡¯s ce through the quinquennial Greater Sect Selection Competition.

    Most of the disciples of the Secondary Sect preferred and coveted the earlier method of entering the Greater Sects. Once a disciple had been earmarked as a Chosen Disciple, just like Qin Lingyu, one could be parachuted into the ranks of the core disciples within the Greater Sects as soon as they formally became disciples of the Greater Sects. This meant that they would naturally have more attentionvished on them from the outset.

    On the other hand, those who entered the Greater Sects through the Greater Sect Selection Competition would have to slowly navigate themselves along a long and arduous journey in order to find their way into the ranks of the Greater Sect¡¯s core disciples.

    That said, since the earmarking of a Chosen Disciple of these Greater Sects carried such importance and significance, it was naturally far more difficult for a disciple of any Secondary Sect to gain recognition as such. Those who were able to do so were few and far between. Prior to this, the only Dawn Sect disciples who had managed to gain such recognition in recent history and be earmarked as a Chosen Discipleprised only of Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen.

    Thus, it can be seen that it was incredibly difficult to be earmarked as a Chosen Disciple of the Greater Sects. For this reason, few disciples bore any hope in their hearts that they would seed today.

    Under the baptism of gazes among all who were around, Qin Lingyu finallypleted his change of master ceremony and became an official disciple of the Limitless Sect. Over the next few days, he would depart from the Dawn Sect and make his way to the Limitless Sect where he would continue to delve deeper and continue on his path of cultivation.

    ¡°Lingyu, do you have anything else you wish to add?¡± The Third Elder of the Limitless Sect queried unhurriedly.

    He was incredibly pleased to have received Qin Lingyu as his newest disciple.

    Qin Lingyu paused for a moment, before lifting his head and sweeping a nce at Yu Wanrou.

    Yu Wanrou discreetly clenched her fists as she stared straight back into Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. She even gestured to him with her eyes, prompting him to make the necessary supplication.

    Qin Lingyu had previously agreed to it. Justst night, after she and Qin Lingyu shared a moment of ecstasy, he swore on oath that he would announce to everyone present today that he would be bringing Yu Wanrou together with him to the Limitless Sect to further their cultivation together.

    Yu Wanrou was afraid that Qin Lingyu would capitte, and her heart tensed up involuntarily.

    If she were to enter the Limitless Sect together with Qin Lingyu, Qin Lingyu would naturally have to first obtain the approval of the Limitless Sect¡¯s sect elder, especially from his new master. Today was the prime opportunity for that. If Qin Lingyu capittes here, Yu Wanrou¡¯s chances of entering the Limitless Sect would simply be dashed to pieces, just like that.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze paused on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body for a moment, before he shifted it away and affixed his gaze on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body instead.

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at him with indifference ¨C there was not a single ripple in the depths of her eyes.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s chest undted with a wave of indignation. This wave of indignation had been sudden and intense, and it instantly provoked him to a firm decision there and then.

    ¡°Master, disciple has something to supplement.¡± Qin Lingyu turned around and bowed slightly to the Third Elder of the Limitless Sect as he added.

    ¡°Oh? Let¡¯s hear it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d like to bring the Dawn Sect¡¯s disciple, Yu Wanrou, together with me to the Limitless Sect to pursue our path of cultivation together.¡±

    As soon as Qin Lingyu¡¯s words rang out, the Discussion Hall was instantly set abuzz. Several people even cast looks of admiration on Yu Wanrou¡¯s body immediately.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s tensed heart was instantly loosened with relief. In the blink of an eye, her earlier tension had been exchanged for a surging joy.

    She was finally going to be the disciple of a Greater Sect! She was finally going to greener pastures where she would be able to do all she had hoped to achieve!

    Most importantly, she was finally better than Jun Xiaomo at something! So what if Jun Xiaomo were the daughter of a Peakmaster? Once she entered the Limitless Sect, she would have ess to far better cultivation techniques, and far more cultivation resources. The Limitless Sect was a ce that a Secondary Sect could never hold a candle to.

    Furthermore, there were going to be innumerable male cultivators who were distinguished and outstanding in each their own ways. This meant that she was now one step closer to her ambitious life goals.

    What of Jun Xiaomo now, huh? She can only continue to il and struggle within the Dawn Sect. Whether she can qualify to enter a Greater Sect in the future is still very much an unknown right now.

    The depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes were filled with immense delight and pride. She nced over at Jun Xiaomo. As soon as Jun Xiaomo met her gaze, she immediately stered a victorious smile on her face.

    She would never pass up a chance to rub in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face the fact that she had finally exceeded Jun Xiaomo in one aspect of life.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo simply raised an eyebrow at the ecstatic Yu Wanrou, before turning her gaze away as though nothing had happened.

    Yu Wanrou felt as though her punch hadnded on a cloud of soft cotton wool; it felt as though Jun Xiaomo had just rained on her parade.

    What she hadpletely overlooked was the fact that Qin Lingyu had once invited Jun Xiaomo to go with him, and Jun Xiaomo had outrightly rejected Qin Lingyu there and then.

    Jun Xiaomo must have thought that she had a chance of being earmarked as a Chosen Disciple by the Greater Sect, huh? That must be why she¡¯s looking back at me with such a smug and indifferent look on her face. Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart burgeoned with a vicious thought, and she suddenly had the urge to let Jun Xiaomo know that the letter she had received earlier was nothing more than something that she wrote to fool Jun Xiaomo with.

    However, she knew that once Jun Xiaomo realizes that she had been fooled and flies into a frenzy under the effects of the Threefold Spellbinding Incense, she was going to be the shame of the Dawn Sect. At that time, even her Peakmaster father would be unable to salvage the situation and rescue her.

    Yet how could Yu Wanrou possibly fathom the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s considerations?

    Jun Xiaomo had experienced in her previous life exactly what Yu Wanrou was experiencing right now. In her previous life, when Qin Lingyu had announced to everyone that he was going to bring Jun Xiaomo with him to the Limitless Sect, Jun Xiaomo found herselfpletely overjoyed with the glory from the baptism of looks of admiration on her. Her body felt light, and she had practically been beside herself.

    However, it was only when she entered the Limitless Sect that she came to realize that such a backdoor entry into a Greater Sect was nothing to celebrate about. In fact, it only marked the beginning of a nightmare. At that time, anyone would be able to trample on her ¨C anyone could abuse and punish her under any and all kinds of pretexts. At the same time, she could only watch in dismay as her own fianc¨¦ became the object of affection of other female cultivators there.

    Today, Jun Xiaomo had left these matters far behind her. In fact, Jun Xiaomo could hardly fathom what she was thinking back when she was so innocent and na?ve to think that she would earn Qin Lingyu¡¯s sympathy by simply bearing with it and taking all the abuse lying down.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo hardly admired Yu Wanrou¡¯s ¡°fortune¡± right now. She simply put on a cid and indifferent smile on her face as she watched Yu Wanrou bask in the glory of these false appearances.

    In turn, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present expressions made Yu Wanrou feel like her achievements were hardly worth anything.

    Yu Wanrou bit down hard on her lower lips as she red at Jun Xiaomo and barked in her heart ¨C Just you wait! You¡¯re going to make a fool of yourselfter!

 Chapter 242: Boxed-In, An Unexpected Twist

    <h4>Chapter 242: Boxed-In, An Unexpected Twist</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou had firmly believed that Jun Xiaomo had onlye to the Discussion Hall in a rush because she had received her own forged letter. She waspletely unaware that Jun Xiaomo had by now already torn apart the farce that was her letter, much less know of the contents of the letter that Jun Linxuan had sent to Jun Xiaomo.

    After Qin Lingyu¡¯s change of master ceremony, the agenda for the day entered its second phase ¨C earmarking their Chosen Disciples.

    Those who had earned themselves seats within the Discussion Hall were undoubtedly the ones who had the greatest prospects of bing earmarked as Chosen Disciples. That said, whether they could eventually be earmarked as Chosen Disciples was very much something left up to their luck and fortune.

    In turn, this ¡°luck¡± waspletely dependent on whether any of these disciples caught the eye of the sect elders from the Greater Sects. Some sect elders prioritized talent, some fixated themselves with personality, and there were yet some other sect elders that looked at the disciples¡¯prehension and understanding.

    The truth of the matter was that it was an incredibly rare and glorious matter to be earmarked as a Chosen Disciple. On thest instance of such a visit, the only disciples who had been earmarked as Chosen Disciples numbered only two ¨C Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen.

    Thus, the disciples who had their names called out by He Zhang would make their way to the front of the Discussion Hall with eager anticipation and be asked a few questions by the sect elders. Then, they would disy some of their own abilities. Finally, they would then return back to their seats with their heads hung low.

    All of them had been rejected by the sect elders from the Greater Sects. Even though the performance of these disciples during the course of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competitions had been decent, their abilities were nevertheless a far cry from the minimum requirements of these sect elders.

    It was not particrly clear whether He Zhang had nned this all out, but He Zhang only came to the Heavenly Peak disciples after calling out all the names of the disciples belonging to the other Peaks.

    Everyone within the Dawn Sect was well aware of the fact that a rift had developed and divided the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster Jun Linxuan from the rest of the Dawn Sect. As a result of this, the Heavenly Peak had practically be isted by the rest of the Sect.

    Thus, when He Zhang began to call out the names of the Heavenly Peak disciples, meaningful and profound gazes from all around the Discussion Hall drifted overnded directly on the Heavenly Peak.

    Everyone looked at the Heavenly Peak in eager anticipation, praying and hoping that not a single person from the Heavenly Peak would be picked by the sect elders.

    However, these people would eat their words very soon. As soon as Chen Feiyu walked up to the front of the Discussion Hall, one of the sect elders from the Frozen Sword Sect immediately recognized his aptitude and dered his interest in earmarking Chen Feiyu as a Chosen Disciple.

    ¡°I wonder if you¡¯ve got any intention to be my Chosen Disciple?¡± The Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s sect elder asked Chen Feiyu.

    ¡°Junior would be honored and delighted. Junior sincerely appreciates Sect Elder Gao¡¯s nod of approval.¡± Chen Feiyu politely and courteously bowed to the Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s sect elder.

    Sect Elder Gao nodded his head, before informing He Zhang of the sessful nomination of his Chosen Disciple.

    He Zhang dared not pull any shenanigans when faced with a sect elder from the Frozen Sword Sect. Thus, he could only forcefully ster a smile on his face as Chen Feiyu turned back and returned to his seat, before announcing to the entire audience, ¡°Dawn Sect disciple Chen Feiyu has been earmarked as the Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s Chosen Disciple.¡±

    That said, no matter how one looked at it, the smile that was stered on He Zhang¡¯s face was incredibly contrived and sullen.

    It was not difficult to understand why He Zhang couldn¡¯t maintain the smile on his face. After all, he had already left the Heavenly Peak disciples to the very end with the hope that the sect elders would already have picked out all the disciples that they were looking for and thus no longer be interested in the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Yet every single one of the earlier disciples had been rejected, while Chen Feiyu from the Heavenly Peak had seeded almost instantly. How could He Zhang not be mad at how things turned out?!

    Those who harboured an immense hatred and jealousy towards Chen Feiyu included disciples from the other Peaks as well. Most were disciples who possessed abilities and cultivation that were close to Chen Feiyu¡¯s level, but they did not get picked out by the sect elders earlier. These other disciples were simply incensed.

    As soon as Chen Feiyu returned to his seat, Jun Xiaomo apuded him and gave him a sincere, heartfelt smile, ¡°Congrattions, martial brother Chen.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. All the best, Xiaomo.¡± Chen Feiyu returned a smile at Jun Xiaomo as well.

    It was only when everyone else noticed the interaction between Jun Xiaomo and Chen Feiyu that they recalled that the Heavenly Peak still included the tardy Jun Xiaomo.

    Is Jun Xiaomo here to vie for a spot as a Chosen Disciple as well? She¡¯s only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, yet she¡¯s already here to vie for a spot as a Chosen Disciple?! She must be joking, right? Some of the other disciples mocked in their hearts.

    They firmly believed that the odds of Jun Xiaomo being earmarked as a Chosen Disciple was close to zero. As for why Jun Xiaomo was here...

    Several of these disciples felt that her presence was inextricably tied to Jun Linxuan. After all, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father was a Peakmaster, and it was hardly a surprise that Jun Xiaomo would have several ¡°privileges¡± extended to her. This would naturally exin her attendance at the Discussion Hall.

    Everyone was waiting patiently for the moment when Jun Xiaomo would get rejected by the sect elders of the Greater Sects. On the other hand, Jun Linxuan continued to nce at the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect from time to time with furrowed brows.

    The sect elder who had taken a keen interest to earmarking Jun Xiaomo as a Chosen Disciple should be seated among those Zephyr Sect¡¯s sect elders, right?

    Unfortunately, he was still unable to tell exactly which sect elder it was. Furthermore, a sense of unease gued Jun Linxuan¡¯s heart incessantly.

    As expected, shortly after He Zhang announced that Chen Feiyu had been earmarked as the Frozen Sword Sect¡¯s Chosen Disciple, he dered that this iteration of the selections had finally ended.

    ¡°Ended?! What about martial sister Xiaomo? Why didn¡¯t martial sister Xiaomo get a chance to disy her abilities?!¡± One of the Heavenly Peak disciples blurted out in shock.

    By this point in time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name was the only one among all the disciples seated within the Discussion Hall that had not been called. Everyone else had already obtained the opportunity to disy their abilities to the sect elders once.

    The other Dawn Sect disciples delighted in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s misery. They were undoubtedly disappointed that they had not been earmarked as Chosen Disciples by the Greater Sects¡¯ sect elders, but the silver lining was that there was someone in an even worse predicament seated among them ¨C her name had not even been called.

    What did this mean? This meant that Jun Xiaomo simply had no business being in the Discussion Hall to begin with. She had simply entered the Discussion Hall of her own wishful thinking.

    In fact, not only had she done that, she had even boldly entered the Discussion Hall tardily. Having left the Greater Sect¡¯s sect elders with such an indelible, terrible impression, perhaps Jun Xiaomo was fated to never be able to enter the Greater Sects, right?

    After all, were there any Dawn Sect disciples who were able to present themselves before the sect elders of the Greater Sects without any fear and trepidation? Every single one of them had been apprehensive and fearful that they would leave a bad impression and cause the sect elders to reject them.

    The Heavenly Peak disciple who had eximed aloud had done so with a considerably loud voice, and the Greater Sects¡¯ sect elders and He Zhang had undoubtedly picked up on his exmation as well.

    The sect elders from the Greater Sects maintained a cid expression on their faces, while He Zhang¡¯s expressions improved substantially when he heard the Heavenly Peak disciple¡¯s exmation.

    A smile crept up the corner of his lips as he exined, ¡°Some days back, I¡¯d already sent a letter informing everyone of the list of persons who would be allowed within, and those who were not. Might I remind everyone that this is the Discussion Hall, not a ce where any person of a low cultivation level can enter as and when she liked. Let¡¯s not even talk about the fact that someone crashed the Discussion Hall on ount of the fact that her father is a Peakmaster. In fact, I had already turned a blind eye in that regard. I gave an inch, yet she demands a mile and expects the right to participate in these selections? If everyone does this, wouldn¡¯t the Sect be in chaos?! Are you challenging the rules and regtions within the Dawn Sect right now?¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s words had been harsh and unforgiving. Not only had he thoroughly mocked Jun Xiaomo and left her no room to back down, he had even taken the opportunity to tear apart and trample on Jun Linxuan¡¯s pride and reputation in front of everyone.

    In other words, he was saying that Jun Linxuan was abusing his privileges as a Peakmaster, flouting the Sect¡¯s rules and regtions, and allowing his daughter to participate in the selection process though a backdoor approach.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s face darkened, and he red coldly back at He Zhang.

    He had truly been slightly selfish. But, if not for the fact that the sect elder from the Zephyr Sect had sent that letter to him, he would never have asked his daughter to participate in these proceedings.

    Truth be told, he would not have been disappointed or harboured any ill will even if his daughter had not ended up being earmarked as a Chosen Disciple. After all, he had not borne too much hope for such an oue to begin with. In the very worst case, Jun Xiaomo would simply have to work harder during the Greater Sect Selection Competitions in future.

    Yet who would have thought that He Zhang would pick on Jun Xiaomo in public and make things difficult for her. This left Jun Linxuan incensed, and his darkened expression seemed to foreshadow an oing manifestation of his emotions in a torrential thunderstorm.

    ¡°Father, it¡¯s fine. Let me handle this.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Jun Linxuan¡¯s shoulder as she appeased him.

    As she said this, she stood up and brazenly addressed the sect elder of the Greater Sects, ¡°May I ask if any of these esteemed sect elders might be interested to pick me as their Chosen Disciple?¡±

    It had to be said that prior to this, each and every disciple had walked up to the front of the Discussion Hall to address the sect elders from the Greater Sects when He Zhang had called their names.

    This was to preserve each disciple¡¯s pride. After all, the further away they were from everyone else, the less others would be able to hear the sect elders¡¯ assessment of each disciple. Even if they ended up being rejected by the sect elders, they would not be made into aughingstock by theirpatriots.

    But what Jun Xiaomo had done right now was to address the sect elders in a loud voice from her seat. The other disciples couldn¡¯t help but think that she was either over-confident in herself, or a part of her brain must not be working properly.

    Naturally, most onlookers believed that thetter was far more possible, and they watched eagerly in anticipation for Jun Xiaomo to turn herself into aughingstock.

    As expected, the sect elders of the Greater Sects began to furrow their brows when they heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    One of the Limitless Sect¡¯s sect elders looked up. He remained in his seat and looked down at Jun Xiaomo from on high as he chuckled coldly, ¡°Little fellow cultivator, do you think that you possess anything in particr that¡¯s worth our consideration? In terms of talent, you can hardly hold a candle to most others present. In terms of abilities, your cultivation is only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. In terms of character, I don¡¯t think that a person who¡¯ste to the meeting and ords no respect to her seniors is someone who qualifies to be a disciple of the Limitless Sect.¡±

    In other words, there was not a single thing that Jun Xiaomo possessed which gave her an edge over other disciples, and the Limitless Sect was not willing to consider her as a Chosen Disciple.

    Momentster, a sect elder from the Frozen Sword Sect spoke up as well. His words were short and sinct, but it still expressed their rejection towards her, ¡°I¡¯ve personally witnessed this little fellow cultivator¡¯s performance throughout the earlierpetitions. Your abilities with the whip are pretty decent, but the Frozen Sword Sect propounds the way of the sword. Therefore, I regret to inform you that we won¡¯t consider you as a Chosen Disciple as well.¡±

    Thus, the Frozen Sword Sect had also rejected Jun Xiaomo.

    On the other hand, the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect simply remained taciturn, and nobody said a word. After some moments of silence, everyone began to think that the Zephyr Sect was also tacitly signaling their intentions to reject Jun Xiaomo. See? We knew that given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present cultivation level, none of these sect elders would be keen in picking her as their Chosen Disciple.

    Yu Wanrou had already guessed as much from the outset. She chuckled coldly in her heart as she grew more and more pleased by how her schemes were stumbling Jun Xiaomo right now.

    Her gaze was transfixed on Jun Xiaomo, and she watched and observed each of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions extremely closely, hoping to pick up traces and clues that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions were going to escte into a massive outburst.

    But Jun Xiaomo continued to maintain a cool and stoic expression on her face, as though she werepletely unperturbed and unfazed by what had happened.

    What¡¯s going on? Was the Threefold Spellbinding Incense ineffective?! Yu Wanrou bit down on her lower lip, and a dark haze loomed in the depths of Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes.

    Hah, it¡¯s fine even if it had been ineffective. After all, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s really dragged her face through the mud today. Yu Wanrou regted her thoughts and focused on the bright side of things very quickly.

    As for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cid andposed expression, Yu Wanrou firmly believed that this was nothing more than the result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fierce pretensions.

    Jun Xiaomo swept her gaze coolly across each and every one of the sect elders seated at the front of the Discussion Hall. Once she ascertained that none of these sect elders presented themselves with any intention of epting her as a disciple, she lightheartedly curled her lips into a smile ¨C

    ¡°Alright, since that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s no reason for me to be here any longer. Dear sect elders, please take your time with the rest of the other disciples. If there¡¯s nothing else, please excuse junior as she takes her leave.¡±

    As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo made a fist and palm salute to all of the sect elders present before turning around and motioning to leave.

    ¡°Wait a minute! Jun Xiaomo, how can you be so disrespectful?! The sect elders are all still seated here! How can you leave just like that?!¡±

    One of the Dawn Sect disciples pretended to be incensed as he decried her actions. His only goal here was to increase the rift between Jun Xiaomo and the sect elders from the Greater Sects.

    That disciple nced towards his own master, and he was delighted when he received his master¡¯s discreet nod of approval. It felt good to be able to cause Jun Xiaomo to stumble even further while at the same time boosting his own standing in the eyes of the Greater Sects¡¯ sect elders.

    Jun Xiaomo turned around, looked at the disciple who had cried out earlier, before she raised and eyebrow at him, ¡°Aren¡¯t these sect elders here to pick out their Chosen Disciples?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it a fact that I haven¡¯t been picked as a Chosen Disciple?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s also correct.¡± The disciple did not know where Jun Xiaomo was going with this series of questions.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, and the results have already been made clear, why do I still have to remain here? Did the sect elders say I can¡¯t leave this ce? Wasn¡¯t I respectful when I bade them farewell and took my leave earlier? And furthermore, do you really have the authority to represent the sect elders from the Greater Sects?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s series of questions left the disciple stammering speechlessly.

    ¡°Ah...this...you...you...¡±

    After stammering a whole bunch of ¡°you¡¯s¡± for some time, the disciple continued to find himselfpletely speechless, without any way of refuting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s logic.

    ¡°Besides, the Limitless Sect¡¯s sect elder had mentioned it pretty clearly ¨C the Greater Sects aren¡¯t considering me right now because my present cultivation level is far too low. As a person with lofty goals and ambitions, shouldn¡¯t I make the best of my time to increase my cultivation level? Esteemed sect elder, was junior¡¯s interpretation of your words wrong in any way? After all, junior had only intended to rush back to her room in order to devote each passing minute to her cultivation.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯sst two sentences were directed straight back at the sect elder from the Limitless Sect, and she had finished her speech with a radiant smile on her face, without a single bit of dispiritedness from her earlier rejection.

    The sect elder from the Limitless Sect red straight back at Jun Xiaomo, thinking that this young brat from the Heavenly Peak was far too unruly. After all, she had undeniably been rude and disrespectful with her actions, yet she had managed to twist her words and employ sophistry to make herself soundpletely reasonable and above board.

    One of the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect also found himself slightly taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions, before he began tough heartily, ¡°Interesting! This little brat truly has the gift of the gab. Her repartee is unmatched. Let me make the exception and make you a Chosen Disciple of mine, hahahahaha......¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples were incredibly shocked, and their hearts ran wild ¨C

    What in the world?! Is that even possible? What¡¯s the use of the gift of the gab in the cultivation world?!

    Everyone stared at the sect elder from the Zephyr Sect with astonishment in their eyes ¨C This sect elder must be kidding, right?!

    Just then, a resonant voice boomed across the Discussion Hall. The voice preceded the man¡¯s appearance.

    ¡°You old fogey, are you snatching my disciple again?!¡±

    As soon as his voice rang out, an old man with disheveled hair and a child-like countenance wearing sloppy clothes swaggered into the Discussion Hall.

    Everyone: ......Snatched his disciple? Who is this man? ......

    And could the ¡°disciple¡± that he¡¯s referring to be Jun Xiaomo?!!!

 Chapter 243: Another Master Already?!

    <h4>Chapter 243: Another Master Already?!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The fact that the Dawn Sect disciples were unable to recognize the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect, Tong Ruizhen, did not mean that He Zhang was equally unable to recognize him.

    The truth of the matter was that as soon as he heard Tong Ruizhen cry out ¡°You old fogey, are you snatching my disciple again¡±, He Zhang¡¯s heart immediately sank, and a bad premonition crept into the forefront of his mind.

    He was anxious to determine if his bad premonition was merely an illusion, but he knew that he could not make things too obvious either. Thus, he could only suppress the sense of unease in his heart as he stood up and walked forward with a stiff smile stered all over his face as he weed Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Sect Elder Tong, I was just wondering why I hadn¡¯t seen you today yet. I¡¯d never expected you to be waiting to make a grand appearance like this, hahahaha...¡±

    Tong Ruizhen snorted with a resonant humph as he responded, ¡°Alright, Sect Elder He, save your pleasantries. I, Tong Ruizhen, hate bootlickers the most.¡±

    He Zhang felt incredibly suffocated and stiffened by Tong Ruizhen¡¯s words, and he found his pretentiousughter choked in his throat. In the end, his heartyughter dwindled to nothing more than a dry chuckle, before they vanished from his lips. By this time, his face had also turned a sickly green and a pale white. It was simply a sight to behold.

    That said, even someone with as much pride as He Zhang did not dare to reveal any ridicule or contempt for someone like Tong Ruizhen.

    Who could me Tong Ruizhen for being the sect elder of a Greater Sect? The most important thing to note was that Tong Ruizhen was a highly acimed array master and talisman master. Even though his cultivation level could only be considered slightly above average among all the sect elders from the Greater Sects, his formation arrays were so highly coveted that a simple promise to set up a formation array could move throngs of people to do his bidding.

    He Zhang did not fear Tong Ruizhen as a person. Rather, he feared the throngs of powerful people who stood behind him.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples stared aghast at the scene unfolding before their very eyes. If the appearance of the unkempt old man earlier had already shocked them so much, then what more the fact that He Zhang had to maintain his appearances of cordiality despite the manner in which he had been treated? This caused the Dawn Sect disciples to be thoroughly speechless and even more curious as to the true identity of this old man.

    Who was he to treat the Sect Leader that heedlessly?!

    On the other hand, a smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. Even though she was unsure which Zephyr Sect¡¯s sect elder it had been who had taken an interest in earmarking her as his Chosen Disciple, she was beginning to suspect that the slovenly man before her eyes could be the very one.

    It had to be mentioned that the cantankerous old man¡¯s temper was a good match for her as well.

    Now that He Zhang¡¯s pretensions were thoughtlessly stripped off from his appearances, the entire Discussion Hall was filled with a thick sense of awkwardness. Just as everyone was wondering how to salvage the situation, the other sect elder seated among the Zephyr Sect members who had thought to earmark Jun Xiaomo as his own Chosen Disciple spoke up.

    ¡°Old man Tong, it¡¯s not that I¡¯m picking on you, but have you taken a look at yourself?! How are you dressed any differently from the beggars from the mortal world? Any person of the right might would pick me as their master over you, wouldn¡¯t you say? Furthermore, didn¡¯t you leave the sect two weeks before we did? Yet you still dawdled for such a long time before finally arriving at the Dawn Sect at the veryst moment ¨C don¡¯t you think you owe all of us an exnation?¡±

    Tong Ruizhen nced down and sized up his own dressing for a moment ¨C his tattered clothing was indeed no different from how the mortal world beggars who lived on the streets dressed themselves. However, he had never been a thin-skinned person. He adjusted his tattered and porous clothes, before lifting his head and raising his eyebrows once more as he retorted, ¡°Tch! What¡¯s my clothing got to do with anything. The most valuable part of me is my brain here!¡±

    This was an undeniable truth. Tong Ruizhen¡¯s way with his formation arrays and talismans meant that nobody dared to tread on his feet and offend him lightly.

    Naturally, this was the case for outsiders only. When it came to those within the Zephyr Sect, his contemporaries who knew Tong Ruizhen¡¯s temperament inside out knew that they could crack harmless jokes with Tong Ruizhen anytime they want.

    ¡°Old man Tong, you still haven¡¯t exined why you¡¯d taken so long to get here...¡±

    ¡°Cough...¡± Tong Ruizhen coughed dryly and hesitated. It was as though he were struggling toe up with a reasonable excuse.

    ¡°I think that Sect Elder Tong must have got lost along the way.¡± Another sect elder from the Zephyr Sect chuckled mischievously as he chimed in, ¡°I seem to have the impression that Sect Elder Tong¡¯s mount is pretty good, so the problem¡¯s certainly not there. Perhaps his sense of direction is the one that¡¯s slightlycking, huh?¡±

    Tong Ruizhen was truly rendered speechless. He red back at hispatriots and grew taciturn.

    ¡°Pfft! ...¡± Jun Xiaomo could no longer hold it in, and she burst out inughter. With that, everyone immediately turned their attention back to Jun Xiaomo.

    It was only at this moment that Tong Ruizhen discovered that the young girl that he wanted to make his disciple was standing not too far away from him.

    Withrge strides, he made his way before Jun Xiaomo and faced her with a spritely attitude as he asked, ¡°Hey, little fe, have you thought it through? Have you finally decided to be my disciple?¡±

    Gasps of shock could be heard in the otherwise silent surroundings. They could all tell from the earlier banter that the old man that had just arrived was certainly not a simple person. Even though nobody knew the exact identity of this old man, they knew without a doubt that he was a sect elder of a Greater Sect.

    From what he had just said, he seems to want to make Jun Xiaomo his disciple?! What has he seen in Jun Xiaomo?!

    Jun Xiaomo maintained the cordial smile on her face. That said, she made a respectful palm and fist salute to Tong Ruizhen as she addressed him with sincerity, ¡°Junior truly appreciates Sect Elder Tong¡¯s keen interest in her, but junior has already made her position clear in her letter. Junior hopes that Sect Elder Tong can understand her decision.¡±

    More gasps of shock rang out in the surroundings. After all, it was evident from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words that she had rejected the olive branch extended to her by a sect elder from a Greater Sect!

    Does thisdy have mush for brains? How could she reject such a prime opportunity? Did she get kicked by a donkey in the head?!

    Everyone stared at Jun Xiaomo in disbelief.

    Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°I don¡¯t care! I¡¯m going to stay here at the Dawn Sect until you agree to be my disciple.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback, and she found herself speechless, ¡°This...¡±

    She had never seen such a shameless, cantankerous old man, whether in her previous life or now.

    Tong Ruizhen red at her and continued in a huff, ¡°Which part of this sect elder do you despise? I¡¯m the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect, and there¡¯s arge line of people waiting to be my disciple. You, little fe, are the only one who doesn¡¯t appreciate the opportunity you have right now. How could you even think about rejecting me in your letter!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly. There were some reasons that she could not speak of at this moment. Was she to say that she wanted to protect her Peak, her parents and her martial brothers, and it was for this reason that she could not leave the Dawn Sect?

    At this moment, Jun Linxuan finally stood up. He ced his arm on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he addressed Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Sect Elder Tong, this daughter of mine has always had her own ways of thinking since she was a little kid. Let me try and have a word with her.¡±

    ¡°Go on then. I¡¯ll wait for your good news.¡± Sect Elder Tong shooed them with his hands as he hurried them along.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced slightly. She hesitated for a moment, but she still decided to leave with Jun Linxuan in the end. She knew that her father intended to convince her, and she was thinking of whether she should convince her father with some better reasons.

    After Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan left the Discussion Hall, the entire atmosphere became still and silent. The sect elders seated at the front of the Discussion Hall couldn¡¯t be bothered to engage in small talk, so they simply closed their eyes and rested where they were seated. On the other hand, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders and Peakmasters of the Dawn Sect had been thunderstruck by what had just heard, and they were still struggling toe to terms with what was going on.

    Naturally, the people who were dealt the heaviest blow by such a development was the Dawn Sect disciples who were seated in the Discussion Hall, especially Yu Wanrou and Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s face darkened as he stared nkly at where Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan had left the Discussion Hall from. Apart from aplicated look in his eyes, nobody could tell what he was thinking right now. On the other hand, Yu Wanrou clutched tightly at her sleeves, furiously suppressing the roiling emotions in her heart right now.

    She knew that if she did not do this, she might end up screaming in frustration and indignation.

    The Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect! The person who had taken an interest in Jun Xiaomo is actually the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect?! Why! On what basis?! There are so many people who are stronger than Jun Xiaomo or have better talents and abilities than her! Why did the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect have to pick Jun Xiaomo, a cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, of all people?!

    Just as much as Yu Wanrou was pleased and delighted in herself earlier, Yu Wanrou was now equally dispirited and incredibly indignant.

    Even though she had earned herself the right to enter a Greater Sect, she had undeniably entered the Greater Sect through a backdoor approach through Qin Lingyu. There was no way she could hold a candle to Jun Xiaomo who had been chosen and selected of her own merits. This was a given fact ¨C anyone who could think for themselves would be able to easily determine whose achievement was more outstanding.

    When all was said and done, she only had an edge over others in terms of her charms. Once she entered the Limitless Sect, whether she could maintain that edge over others was very much an unknown. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo was quite different ¨C as a Chosen Disciple and a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect, nobody would dare to look down on her at all.

    This was quite evident from the other Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ gazes. Their gazes which had initially been filled with contempt had now been filled instead with looks of admiration and even jealousy. In fact, these looks were filled with far greater intensity of emotion than when they had looked upon Yu Wanrou earlier.

    This made Yu Wanrou feel as though her glory and pride had once again been outstripped by Jun Xiaomo. It was as though she would always end up falling behind whenever she attempted topete with Jun Xiaomo.

    Why is this the case?! I¡¯m can¡¯t take it. I just can¡¯t take it!!!

    It will be best if Jun Xiaomo could reject the olive branch extended by the sect elder of the Zephyr Sect. In fact, it would be even better if Jun Xiaomo would offend him. With that, Jun Xiaomo would never be able to step foot into a Greater Sect in future.

    After all, none of the sect elders liked such an aloof and prideful disciple.

    Yes! It¡¯s got to be this way.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind began to wander aimlessly as she red fierily at the entrance to the Discussion Hall. It was as though she were burning a hole through the door right now.

    Time felt like it hade to aplete standstill as everyone waited in eager anticipation. At this moment, several disciples began to grow fidgety, and they couldn¡¯t help but turn their heads slightly as they began to whisper to each other. Very soon, the entire Discussion Hall was abuzz with mild, light chattering.

    After an arduous period of waiting, Jun Xiaomo and Jun Linxuan finally reentered the Discussion Hall. Jun Linxuan led the way with a stern, dignified appearance, while Jun Xiaomo followed closely behind him with her head hung low. Nobody could see the expression on her face.

    Tong Ruizhen¡¯s eyes brightened immediately, and he walked towards them as he asked eagerly, ¡°How was it?¡±

    As soon as they saw Tong Ruizhen¡¯s response, the Dawn Sect disciples immediately knew just how much Tong Ruizhen favored the prospects of having Jun Xiaomo as his disciple. Those who hated Jun Xiaomo cursed at her in their hearts ¨C Jun Xiaomo really has some dog-shit dumb luck!

    Jun Linxuan nodded his head as he addressed Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Sect Elder Tong should hear it from Xiaomo¡¯s mouth.¡± As he said that, he stepped aside and revealed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure behind him.

    ¡°Little fe, how was the talk? Are you willing to me my disciple?¡± Tong Ruizhen looked into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes and pressed the issue with a slight huff.

    Jun Xiaomo remained taciturn for a moment, before she lifted her head. Then, she bowed courteously and sincerely to Tong Ruizhen as she dered, ¡°Master, please ept a bow from your disciple.¡±

    ¡°Hahahahahaha...¡± Tong Ruizhen began tough heartily at this moment. His crisp and resonantugh filled the entire Discussion Hall.

    Everyone else present was renderedpletely bbergasted ¨C Did she just...pay her respects to her new master?!!!

 Chapter 244: Formally Becoming A Zephyr Sect Disciple

    <h4>Chapter 244: Formally Bing A Zephyr Sect Disciple</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Greater Sects had visited the Dawn Sect today with the goal of earmarking their Chosen Disciples, not to formally receive new disciples.

    Even though the terms ¡°formal disciple¡± and ¡°Chosen Disciple¡±prised nothing more than a one-word difference between the two, their meanings were vastly different. Bing a Chosen Disciple of a Greater Sect meant that one had earned themselves the right to enter that corresponding Greater Sect. It was no different from Chen Feiyu¡¯s present position, or that which Ye Xiuwen had earlier been in.

    If they were unable to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation by the time they reached the age of thirty-five, they would automatically lose their right to enter these Greater Sects. Generally speaking, Greater Sects would never ept a disciple to attain the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation before the age of thirty-five.

    In this regard, until one formally bes a disciple of the Greater Sect, they would not be able to call the respective sect elders a ¡°master¡±, notwithstanding their stature as a Chosen Disciple. Thus, the fact that Jun Xiaomo had addressed Tong Ruizhen as ¡°master¡± was evidently a ring error and mistake on her part.

    That said, Rong Ruizhen did not mind this at all. Everyone could hear that there was joy and heartiness in hisughter, and it waspletely devoid of any traces of indignation or disdain.

    What did this mean? This meant that Tong Ruizhen had tacitly approved of her ¡°error¡±.

    This tacit approval made every single one of the Dawn Sect disciples stare at the two with their mouths wide open.

    To begin with, Tong Ruizhen was a person who hardly concerned himself with trifles. Furthermore, he had wholeheartedly longed to take in Jun Xiaomo as a disciple of his. Thus, when he heard Jun Xiaomo address him as ¡°master¡±, he was truly over the moon.

    Jun Xiaomo had disyed her aptitude and proficiencies with her formation arrays and talisman throughout the course of the group battles, and Tong Ruizhen sincerely believed that Jun Xiaomo was a rare talent in the field of formation arrays. It would be too much of a waste if he did not make her his disciple.

    The more he looked at the little fellow cultivator before his eyes, the more he grew fond of her. As his heartyughter gradually subsided, he chirped, ¡°Little fe, since you¡¯ve already addressed me as ¡®master¡¯, then we may as well see things through andplete the change of master ceremony here and now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a radiant smile and she nodded in agreement.

    Despite that, a sect elder of the Zephyr Sect seated in front furrowed his brows as he interjected, ¡°Old Tong, are you certain that you want to ept her as a disciple now? Her cultivation level...¡±

    In other words, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery, and it might be putting the cart before the horse if he epted her as a disciple here and now.

    In fact, he was not the only sect elder who thought this way ¨C practically everyone else held the same view as well.

    A cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Mastery formally bing a Greater Sect disciple was somethingpletely unprecedented and unheard of. Even if the disciple happened to be the descendant of a sect elder within the Greater Sect, he would never be considered a formal disciple of the Greater Sect before he attained the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. This was an unwritten rule within the spiritual cultivation world.

    That said, Tong Ruizhen simply snorted as he rebuffed them all, ¡°So what if she¡¯s only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery? Who is to say that she can¡¯t employ formation arrays at the sixth level of Qi Mastery? Who is to say she can¡¯t draw talismans at the sixth level of Qi Mastery? This youngdy is a genius in these fields. It would be a waste to let her squander her time on those ridiculous and fancifulbat techniques.¡±

    Ridiculous and fancifulbat techniques... The audience waspletely speechless. It felt as though they had just been pierced with an arrow that was shot in the dark. After all, of all the cultivators present today, the only person who did not practice those ¡°ridiculous and fancifulbat techniques¡± was none other than Tong Ruizhen.

    The other sect elder of the Zephyr Sect sighed with some measure of resignation in their hearts. Given Tong Ruizhen¡¯s personality, they knew that he would most certainly kick up a big fuss if they did not cave in on this matter.

    ¡°Alright, since that¡¯s the case...Jun Xiaomo, are you willing to formally be a disciple of the Zephyr Sect?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at the Grand Elder of the Zephyr Sect seated at the front of the Discussion Hall. Then, she bowed politely as she sincerely responded, ¡°Yes. Junior is willing to be a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect.¡±

    The Zephyr Sect¡¯s Grand Elder nodded his head before turning to He Zhang, ¡°Then we must trouble Sect Leader He to preside over the formalities.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo would only be the formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect once the formal ceremonies had beenpleted. This was an absolutely necessary procedure.

    He Zhang was slightly taken aback. Momentster, he managed to find it within himself to eke out a smile that was stiffer than stone as he quipped back, ¡°It...it is our honour to do so.¡±

    That said, He Zhang knew full well that deep within his heart, he had hoped that all of this was nothing more than theatrics, or simply an amusingedic skit. He sincerely hoped that after everything was over, someone would skip over to his side and tell him that all of it was false.

    Who could have expected that after several twists and turns, Jun Linxuan would stille out on top of everything? Today, two Heavenly Disciples were shown favor by the sect elders of the Greater Sects, of which one had even formally be a disciple of the Greater Sect.

    He felt as though a lump was now lodged in his throat, choking and stifling him.

    Yet no matter how displeased He Zhang was with the present turn of events, he knew that he still had to maintain his pretenses and do what he needed in front of the esteemed sect elders from the Greater Sects. Thus, he drew a deep breath and he did his best to sound sincere as he asked Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Dawn Sect disciple, Jun Xiaomo, step forward and receive your orders.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly responded, before coolly making her way to the center of the Discussion Hall.

    ¡°We shall now conduct the change of master ceremony. Once the ceremony ispleted, you will formally be the disciple of the Zephyr Sect.¡± He Zhang looked at Jun Xiaomo with a soulless stare as he spoke.

    ¡°Yes.¡± Jun Xiaomo hung her head down and did her best to suppress theughter in her heart.

    The more displeased He Zhang was, the more overjoyed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt. As expected, it was important to be made a formal disciple of a Greater Sect ¨C just the look on He Zhang¡¯s face already made everything worthwhile.

    He Zhang stood up, faced Jun Xiaomo, and picked up a scroll beside his hands. Then, he began to read a lengthy passage from it.

    This passage detailed everything that had to be done in order toplete the formal change of master ceremony. Earlier, He Zhang had sent off his most delightful disciple with his greatest blessings to a Greater Sect.

    But now, he was about to use the same passage to send off the disciple he loathed the most to yet another Greater Sect.

    The experience of vaciting between an intense high and an intense low was like falling from the mirth of floating among the stars into the mires in the depths of the abyss. His heart was presently apletely train wreck.

    Although it was ast-minute suggestion, the entire ceremony was still onlypleted after one full hour.

    Even when the formal ceremony ended, most of the Dawn Sect disciples still found everything incredibly surreal, as though everything had been nothing more than a dream. That said, this were not a pleasant dream, nor a nightmare ¨C it would have been none other than a ridiculous dream of extremities. In this dream, Jun Xiaomo had actually been made a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect ¨C one of the top three Greater Sects in the spiritual cultivation world.

    Several Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but pinch themselves, wondering whether they were deep in slumber. As they yelped in pain from their vicious nip on their own skins, they began to realize that these events were nothing more than the harsh, cold reality.

    A sour jealousy began to flow from the depths of these disciples¡¯ hearts. That said, these disciples knew that there was nothing that could change the reality as it stood.

    ¡°This concludes the agenda for the day. May I invite the esteemed sect elders to make your way over to the Lotus Pavilion? We have prepared some delectable delights for your pleasure.¡±

    He Zhang truly lived up to his name as the Sect Leader. Despite the fact that he was so maddened that he was on the brink of throwing up blood, he still managed to maintain the smile on his face until the veryst moment.

    The respective sect elders from the Greater Sects nodded their heads, before they followed the usher who led the way as they slowly made their way towards the Lotus Pavilion. Tong Ruizhen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, before informing her that she should prepare to depart for the Zephyr Sect in three days¡¯ time.

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded obsequiously.

    Tong Ruizhen eyes curled up in delight as he walked away with a skip in his step. It was evident that receiving Jun Xiaomo as his formal disciple had thoroughly made his day.

    ¡°Martial sister, congrattions.¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo, congrats, congrats.¡±

    Once the sect elders from the Greater Sects departed, Jun Xiaomo found herself immediately osted by all of her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak as they began to shower her with their congrattory words.

    ¡°Thank you, martial brothers.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she received her martial brothers¡¯ sincere blessings.

    Beside them, the disciples of other Peaks red at Jun Xiaomo with unwillingness in their eyes as their lips quivered, as though they were about to spew a string of contemptuous and vile statements. Yet, they held their lips back at the veryst moment, suppressed their indignation, before taking their leave from the Discussion Hall with a stomach full of hot air.

    The disciples who were standing outside the Discussion Hall had been there for quite some time now. Given the distance between where they were and where the proceedings took ce, they werepletely unaware of the matters that had transpired within the Discussion Hall. That said, the news of Jun Xiaomo bing the formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect spread like wildfire throughout the Heavenly Peak as soon as the meeting had concluded for the day.

    Those who saw Jun Xiaomo as a thorn in their sides felt that Jun Xiaomo had struck gold by sheer, dumb luck. It was the kind of luck like those who chanced upon unguarded meat pies along their journeys in the wilderness.

    Why couldn¡¯t they have such dumb luck and chance upon suchrge meat pies on their cultivation paths as well? Hateful! Truly hateful!

    Of those who hated Jun Xiaomo, Qin Shanshan was the one who reacted the most intensely. She clutched onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s arms as she cried out shrilly with disbelief, ¡°What¡¯s going on?! How did Jun Xiaomo be the formal disciple of a Greater Sect?! Sister Wanrou, didn¡¯t you say that you had a way to deal with her?! How could things have ended up this way?!¡±

    Yu Wanrou had already been in a foul mood to begin with. Faced with Qin Shanshan¡¯s relentless interrogation, Yu Wanrou¡¯s blood began to boil once more. She furiously wrested her arm free from Qin Shanshan¡¯s grasp as she stared straight back into Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes and spoke in a low, stern voice, ¡°Enough. How would I know the answer to your insipid questions? And mind your volume. Do you want the entire world to know that we¡¯re scheming against Jun Xiaomo?!¡±

    Qin Shanshan red back at Yu Wanrou furiously, ¡°I¡¯ve truly misjudged you. Here, I¡¯d thought that you would put on a good showing. Yet in the end, all you did was to benefit that cheap slut of a woman Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    Yu Wanrou drew a deep breath and nced around at her surroundings. As soon as she ascertained that nobody was looking over, a cold grin crept up the corner of her lips as she barked back at Qin Shanshan, ¡°Since you think that my ideas are useless, then you try ande up with something on your own. It would be best if you let the world know that you¡¯re scheming against Jun Xiaomo. That way, you¡¯d be able to ride on her fame as well.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Qin Shanshan fury hade to a head. She had never expected Yu Wanrou to be to brazen and unrestrained with her.

    She was Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister after all!

    Yu Wanrou red at Qin Shanshan once more, before she flicked her sleeves and took her leave.

    So what if she was Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister? She had already secured her entry rights to the Limitless Sect, and she no longer had any reason to act obsequiously as a little mistress to Qin Lingyu.

    She would soon surround herself with several cultivationpanions. At that time, Qin Lingyu would count for nothing more than one of the many! Hah!

    On the other side, several martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak immediately made their way over to congratte Jun Xiaomo as soon as they heard the news that Jun Xiaomo had formally be a disciple of the Zephyr Sect.

    This was particr the case for Wei Gang, who leapt around excitedly, yelling at the top of his lungs. Those who didn¡¯t know better might well have thought that he was the one who had be a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect instead.

    ¡°Alright, why are you still such a hot-tempered little brat?¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Wei Gang¡¯s head with some measure of exasperation. That said, her heart was filled with warmth.

    As soon as everyone¡¯s joy and excitement subsided, Chen Feiyu was immediately reminded of the little twist in the Discussion Hall.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, martial sister Xiaomo, I¡¯d been meaning to ask why you¡¯d declined the Greater Sect¡¯s invitation earlier on, and then changed your mindter?¡±

    This was the question on most people¡¯s hearts in the Discussion Hall as well. They werepletely unaware of what transpired between Jun Linxuan and Jun Xiaomo back then, and what Jun Xiaomo was thinking when she rejected the invitation to begin with.

    ¡°Haa--?! Martial sister, you¡¯d actually rejected a Greater Sect¡¯s invitation?! Why...¡± Wei Gang had been waiting outside the Discussion Hall earlier, so he was not aware of such a twist in the proceedings.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows quizzically as she looked at the martial brothers around her who were eagerly waiting for her response.

    ¡°About that...¡± Jun Xiaomo paused for a moment, ¡°It¡¯s a secret.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled mischievously as she whispered thetter part of that sentence, leaving all of the Heavenly Peak disciples speechless.

    Martial sister¡¯s ability to irk people is simply...top-notch. Sigh, we really don¡¯t know whether tough or get mad about her response...

 Chapter 245: Departure from the Dawn Sect, Onwards to the Zephyr Sect

    <h4>Chapter 245: Departure from the Dawn Sect, Onwards to the Zephyr Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Since Xiaomo was not willing to divulge any more that what had already been said, the Heavenly Peak disciples were content to drop their line of questioning as well. After all, everyone had some secrets within their hearts that they were not willing to disclose to anyone, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faint smile had told them everything that they needed to know.

    It was night, and thends were still and silent. Jun Xiaomo sat at her table, and her surroundings illuminated by a Nightgleam Pearl. She circted the true energy within her body and sent it towards her hand, and she muttered the mnemonic for transforming true energy into spiritual energy as she continued to draw up fresh talismans on her table.

    Each stroke, each brush and each dot had to be drawn up perfectly with no mistakes in an unhurried and orderly manner. The preparation of talismans required an incredible amount of patience and focus. Otherwise, a simple mistake meant that the talisman¡¯s prowess would take a huge discount, or potentially even be renderedpletely useless.

    Another dot, and onest stroke. Jun Xiaomo finally finished thest step for this talisman.

    She set her brush down and heaved a sigh of relief.

    In just three days¡¯ time, she would be leaving the Dawn Sect for the Zephyr Sect with the Fifth Elder, Tong Ruizhen. Right now, she wanted to make the best use of time to prepare a few more talismans just to err on the side of caution. These were not meant for herself, but the members of the Heavenly Peak, especially the youngest and most na?ve cultivator, Wei Gang. In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, her little martial brother was the person that worried her the most.

    Compared with what had happened in her previous life, her present course of life had already changedpletely. As a result, Jun Xiaomo was unaware of what He Zhang and hisckeys would do to scheme against the Heavenly Peak as soon as she left the Dawn Sect.

    That said, she knew that it was practically impossible to expect He Zhang to cease fire against the Heavenly Peak. The seed of hatred against Jun Linxuan had already been sown in He Zhang¡¯s heart when Liu Qingmei chose Jun Linxuan over He Zhang. Their enmity was not something that had been developed over just a day or a single standalone incident. The seed of hatred had over time sprouted and flourished into a vile creature that was deeply rooted in He Zhang¡¯s heart. The odds of He Zhang letting go of it all was as low as if the sun were to rise from the west.

    Besides, ever since themencement of the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, Jun Linxuan and the Heavenly Peak had time and againe out head and shoulders above He Zhang and the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples. In turn, He Zhang had found his pride and ego repeated trampled on the ground. How could he possibly swallow this bitter pill and take things lying down? There was no doubt that he woulde up with something to get back at Jun Linxuan and the Heavenly Peak.

    The only silver lining was that Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had already developed some measure of vignce against He Zhang and hisckeys. They no longer blindly trusted He Zhang and hisckeys as their band of brothers, and there was a much lower possibility that they would walk straight into He Zhang¡¯s trap without even realizing that their most trusted martial brother had stabbed them in the back for his own personal gains.

    Since that¡¯s the case, the Heavenly Peak shouldn¡¯t be as susceptible to He Zhang¡¯s ploys even if I leave right now, right? Jun Xiaomo sighed as she thought to herself.

    Even though she worried for the safety of her parents, the Heavenly Peak and her martial brothers, Jun Xiaomo knew that she couldn¡¯t afford to remain at the Heavenly Peak and pass up on the opportunity to further her cultivation at the Zephyr Sect.

    She was reminded of the words that Jun Linxuan had left her with during the day ¨C

    ¡°Xiaomo, what are you thinking? Why aren¡¯t you willing to be a disciple of the Zephyr Sect?¡± Jun Linxuan¡¯s tone of voice was calm and dispassionate, yet Jun Xiaomo knew that Jun Linxuan was considerably displeased.

    ¡°Father...¡± Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know how to begin. After all, she had nned to take her experiences from her previous life to the grave with her. That said, how was she toe up with a convincing excuse to her father just like that?

    ¡°I only want to know the truth.¡± Jun Linxuan looked at Jun Xiaomo as he spoke with earnestness.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father, Jun Linxuan understood the contemtions of his daughter no less than Liu Qingmei did. Even though Jun Xiaomo was trying her best to put on a false front right now, he could very clearly see the struggle and hesitance in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    That single statement from Jun Linxuan had immediately stifled the excuses that Jun Xiaomo was fervently trying toe up with.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo sighed with resignation as she answered with another question, ¡°Father, can I keep my reasons to myself?¡± She lifted her head and looked earnestly back at Jun Linxuan, ¡°Father, I know you and mother sincerely hope that I can pursue my cultivation path in a Greater Sect. But have you ever considered whether the environment within a Greater Sect would most definitely suit my development?¡±

    Jun Linxuan began to furrow his brows, ¡°How would you know it doesn¡¯t suit you if you haven¡¯t gone there to begin with?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head, gritted her teeth and grew taciturn.

    Jun Linxuan noticed how his daughter was evidently struggling against herself. He deliberated for a moment, before speaking once more, ¡°Xiaomo, have you considered what would happen if you rejected the invitation from the Zephyr Sect¡¯s sect elder? How would others view us? And what kind of consequences would arise out of it?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo eyshes quivered momentarily. She lifted her head, and ripples could be seen in the depths of her eyes.

    That¡¯s right. She knew that she had the choice of rejecting the olive branch extended by Tong Ruizhen. Given his character, perhaps he might hold it against her after a little bit of a tantrum. However, what about the other sect elders within the Zephyr Sect? What about the other members of the Dawn Sect? More importantly, if word gets out, how would the members of all other Greater Sects view the Heavenly Peak?

    In this cultivation world, everyone had their boundaries and limits depending on both their individual cultivation level as well as the grade and ssification of their respective sects. If Jun Xiaomo rejected the Zephyr Sect¡¯s invitation to ept her as a Chosen Disciple or even make her a formal disciple, such an action might indirectly invoke the wrath and ire of the other sect elders from the Zephyr Sect.

    Some people might even begin to p their lips and say that Jun Xiaomo had only rejected the Zephyr Sect¡¯s invitation because she despised the Zephyr Sect¡¯s abilities. Not every sect elder from the Greater Sects possessed a heart asrge as Tong Ruizhen. Her rejection might be a small gesture, but the potential repercussions from the rejection was certainly something to be considered seriously. After all, it might even strain rtions and make an enemy of a Greater Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that it was important to consider these worst-case scenarios, no matter how low the odds of them bing an eventuality.

    ¡°Furthermore, Xiaomo, there¡¯s growing unrest within the Dawn Sect. Father and mother both believe that it might not be a bad thing if you left the Sect for some time.¡±

    Jun Linxuan¡¯s final words were spoken with some measure of frigidity.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart shuddered as she looked straight at Jun Linxuan. Her father¡¯s deep and profound love for her made pangs of sourness emanate from the depths of her heart.

    Ever since she had been young, Jun Linxuan had always been incredibly strict with the way he brought her up. Thus, she possessed few memories of Jun Linxuan smiling at her ¨C most time, he would simply have a stern and somber expression on his face.

    Truth be told, there were times when Jun Xiaomo would feel as though her father treated her no differently than the other Heavenly Peak disciples. Rather than a ¡°father¡±, Jun Xiaomo felt that Jun Xiaomo was at times more simr to a strict and stern master to her.

    But now, Jun Linxuan¡¯s words and the grave and concerned expression on his face made her realize that it was not that her father didn¡¯t love her. Rather, it was simply because her father was used to burying his emotions deep within his heart, and he rarely ever revealed such expressions to others at all.

    It was just like how things were right now ¨C Jun Linxuan had a hunch that things were going to escte into a huge mess in the near future, so he sincerely hoped that he could send her away to avert such a crisis.

    Jun Xiaomo found a lump swell up in her throat. It suddenly dawned on her that she should not betray her parents¡¯ hopes for her. Furthermore, she knew from this discussion that both off her parents were already alert and vignt against He Zhang¡¯s schemes. Thus, she might not be able to help too much more even if she remained at the Sect.

    Since that was the case, what was the harm in following the sect elder of the Zephyr Sect and learning a thing or two that could be used to protect the Heavenly Peak, such as formation arrays and talismans?

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo made up her mind, returned to the Discussion Hall and paid her respects to her new master, Tong Ruizhen. Then, when she turned back and saw the satisfied look on Jun Linxuan¡¯s face, Jun Xiaomo realized that this was enough for her.

    At the very least, her parents would no longer have to worry and be concerned about her unruly and willful behaviour anymore.

    As she returned to her senses from her recollection of what had happened throughout the day, Jun Xiaomo discovered that the Transmittance Talisman within her Interspatial Ring was glowing with a faint blue light.

    She retrieved the Transmittance Talisman and knocked on it. Immediately, a deep and bemused voice called out from the talisman, ¡°I heard you¡¯d sessfully paid respects to your new master today?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect brother Rong to hear about it so quickly! Let me guess...did Little Lang apprise you of this development?¡±

    ¡°Haha, that¡¯s right. Shortly after congratting you earlier, he immediately called and spread the good news to me.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have expected anything less. I knew that this little brat can¡¯t keep a secret.¡± Jun Xiaomo shook her head with some measure of exasperation.

    However, she would not me Wei Gang for this. After all, this was hardly a secret to begin with. That said, her only gripe was with the fact that Wei Gang¡¯s efficacy was far too formidable.

    ¡°How¡¯s the feeling of paying respect to a new master?¡± Rong Ruihan quipped calmly, yet this simple question made Jun Xiaomo feel like pouring out her emotions to him.

    ¡°So-so, I guess. It feels...surreal, and unsettling.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly.

    ¡°Oh? Howe?¡±

    ¡°The truth of the matter was that I¡¯d never thought of entering the Zephyr Sect to learn more about formation arrays and talismans to begin with. But my father insisted. And what he said was right ¨C if I¡¯d insisted on my position and rejected the sect elders from the Zephyr Sect, the consequences might be imensurably harsher than the act of rejection itself.¡±

    Rong Ruihan grew sullen for a moment, before he queried, ¡°Were you unwilling to enter the Greater Sect because you were worried about the strife within your sect?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, before she shook her head in resignation and chuckled, ¡°That¡¯s right...there¡¯s nothing I can keep from brother Rong, huh?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because Xiaomo makes things far too easy. Everything is written all over your face.¡±

    ¡°But brother Rong hasn¡¯t even seen my face.¡±

    ¡°I can imagine what it looks like now.¡±

    ¡°Something makes me think that this isn¡¯t apliment.¡± An exasperated smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. That said, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mood had evidently improved from Rong Ruihan¡¯s teasing.

    On the other side of the talisman, Rong Ruihan chuckled in a low voice, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll stop teasing you. Back to the topic at hand, I do think that the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages of Xiaomo furthering her cultivation at the Greater Sect.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, ¡°Why do you say that?¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo, have you thought about this ¨C senior Jun is presently caught between a rock and a hard ce, and he¡¯s surrounded on all four sides. It¡¯s practically impossible for the Heavenly Peak toe out on top of its present predicament all on its own. The Heavenly Peak has far too many enemies ¨C apart from those within the Dawn Sect, they still have to face the Eternal Summit Sect and the Du n that you¡¯d offended. If the Heavenly Peak is to stand up against the incursion of such powerful forces, it needs a far stronger backing behind it as well.¡±

    ¡°A stronger backing?¡± Jun Xiaomo repeated the crux of what Rong Ruihan was getting at as she ruminated about it.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Now that you¡¯d be a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect, and if Chen Feiyu also bes the formal disciple of the Frozen Sword Sect, it would then be undeniable that the Heavenly Peak is inextricably tied to those Greater Sects. If He Zhang is to make a move, he would have to seriously consider the bnce of powers at that time. Conversely, if you had rejected the Zephyr Sect¡¯s invitation there and then, He Zhang might ride on the fact that you had also offended the Zephyr Sect by your actions, and he might make his move with far less considerations on his part.¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong, you¡¯re right.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded sincerely, before sheughed heartily, ¡°Now that brother Rong has broken down the issue like that, I¡¯m really d that I didn¡¯t end up rejecting the Zephyr Sect¡¯s invitation earlier.¡±

    Rong Ruihan smiled to himself at the other end of the Transmittance Talisman. However, Jun Xiaomo was unable to see the smile on his face at this moment.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you understand. Furthermore, the most important thing is that Sect Elder Tong¡¯s character is not too bad. Having such a person as one¡¯s master is a pretty good thing.¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong, did you call me in the middle of the night to talk about these things because you¡¯d known that I would be brooding over these matters that urred today?¡± Jun Xiaomo queried with a half-serious expression on her face.

    ¡°What if I did?¡± Rong Ruihan responded with yet another serious question.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, and a swathe ofplicated feelings immediately began to roil in her heart ¨C the amount that she owed to Rong Ruihan had increased yet again.

    Momentster, she finally responded in all sincerity, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to sincerely thank brother Rong for that.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it.¡± Rong Ruihan shrugged.

    Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan both looked at the Transmittance Talisman before them and revealed an earnest smile on their faces. Then, neither of them spoke about this incident any further.

    -----------------------------------------------------

    Three days passed in the blink of an eye. Soon, it was time for Jun Xiaomo to depart from the Dawn Sect.

    On this day, several Heavenly Peak disciples made it a point to send Jun Xiaomo off. Liu Qingmei came as well, and she even presented herself with reddened rims as though she had spent the entire sleepless night crying.

    This was the first time her daughter would be leaving her for such a long time, and it was natural that Liu Qingmei would feel worried and unwilling to see her daughter leave just like that.

    ¡°Mother, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m only going there to further my cultivation. Once I¡¯ve arrived at the Zephyr Sect, I¡¯ll continue to send letters to you from time to time.¡± Jun Xiaomo hugged her mother and consoled her.

    By now, Jun Xiaomo was almost of the same height as Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Alright, you don¡¯t have to concern yourself with sending letters back too frequently as well. Focus on learning well from your master.¡± Liu Qingmei patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as she nagged.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head and released Liu Qingmei from their embrace. Then, she climbed onto Tong Ruizhen¡¯s mount ¨C a Heavenly Crane.

    After bidding farewell to all who were around once more, she turned to face Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Master, let¡¯s go.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen bellowed once, and the Heavenly Crane immediately soared into the air.

    As she saw how the Heavenly Peak grew smaller and smaller below her, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes grew slightly red and puffy. Her lips stretched out into a thin grimace as she thought to herself ¨C

    Please wsait for my return...

 Chapter 246: The Mystic Woods, A Fortuitous Gain

    <h4>Chapter 246: The Mystic Woods, A Fortuitous Gain</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Even though Jun Xiaomo has already had several hundred years of life experience under her belt, she hardly had any experience of flying through the sky like she was right now. After all, where would a person on the run have the time and the heart to enjoy a leisurely flight through the air like that? In order to sessfully throw off her enemies who were on her trail, Jun Xiaomo had always used a Teleportation Scroll whenever she moved about.

    Besides, there were only three ways in which a cultivator could fly through the air for long periods of time at one go ¨C the first was if they possessed a wind-based spiritual root; the second was if they were able to ride on their treasure swords; while the third was to possess a flying mount or spirit tool that enabled flight. Jun Xiaomo possessed none of the three in her previous life, and she naturally was unable to fly freely in the sky in her previous life.

    Right now, she was riding on the mount of her newly-minted master. As the winds rushed past her hair and the meandering rivers flowed slowly below her, the frustrations and burdens weighing heavily on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart also dwindled substantially. A refreshing sensation washed through her heart.

    No matter what the future beheld, Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly let herself loose from the shackles of her burdens at this very moment.

    Naturally, all of this was only possible if she ignored the person yapping beside her, her loquacious, newly-minted master.

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected her master to be such a chatterbox. It had already been over one hour since the Heavenly Crane had departed from the Dawn Sect, yet his jabbering had not ceased for a single moment. In fact, her master hardly cared for whether his ¡°audience¡± took any interest in his chatter or even listened to him to begin with.

    ¡°Sigh, disciple, do you know that master hade across these parts many years ago on his travels. The creatures here are all tough as nails like little devilish fiends. They red at me as though I owed them a huge debt. In the end, all it took was two simple talismans, and your master bound and thoroughly incapacitated all of them. That country¡¯s king even invited master to its country and treated me as one of their honoured guests...¡±

    ¡°Later, they even offered master a role as the grand vizier of their country. But when they told me about the remuneration...tch, it was far too low. Wouldn¡¯t epting such an offer be tantamount to depreciating my own value? Thus, I chose to pass up that offer...¡±

    That¡¯s right. The matters that Tong Ruizhen had incessantly jabbered on about was none other than his ¡°glorious experiences¡±. The truth of the matter was that anyone who had be Tong Ruizhen¡¯s personal disciple would invariably have to undergo this arduous rite of passage until they know like the back of their hands each and every one of Tong Ruizhen¡¯s glorious escapades. By that time, they would possess the ability to maintain a straight expression on their face, pretending to listen to Tong Ruizhen while their minds wandered.

    Jun Xiaomo was in fact somewhat distracted and not really listening to Tong Ruizhen. That said, she would still smile faintly as she responded to Tong Ruizhen, and she would nod her head from time to time. However, Tong Ruizhen mistook her responses for the fact that his newly-minted disciple was deeply interested to know more about his personal experiences.

    Thus, he began to speak with far more vigor and flourish ¨C it was rare that he could find such a good listener.

    It was a beautiful misunderstanding.

    This went on until Jun Xiaomo discovered that they were passing by a mysterious patch of woods. At this point in time, she interjected Tong Ruizhen¡¯s incessant jabbering.

    ¡°Is this...the Mystic Woods?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted and sat up straight as she craned her neck over the side of the Heavenly Crane to look down below.

    When she saw the Mystic Woods, her originally carefree and lighthearted spirits began to stiffen and tense up once more.

    The feeling of looking down at the Mystic Woods from on high was vastly different from experiencing it on the ground. After all, there was a thinyer of fog that nketed and drifted over the top of the Mystic Woods, and nobody could see exactly how the Mystic Woods looked beneath the fog.

    The only reason why Jun Xiaomo suspected that these parts were the Mystic Woods was none other than the telltale sign of the characteristically towering trees that stood erect and stretched up high into the skies.

    Tong Ruizhen noticed the peculiar expression in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. He nodded his head, ¡°This is indeed the Mystic Woods.¡± Then, he added curiously, ¡°Has disciple been here before?¡±

    An intense sorrow once again surged from the depths of her heart. Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes, and she mustered all of her strength to repress the pain.

    Even though Tong Ruizhen was now her master, it did not change the fact that they had barely known each other for more than a few days. Their rtionship was no better than mere strangers. Therefore, Jun Xiaomo had not intended to reveal any of these details to her master.

    However, she had underestimated her master¡¯s obstinacy in pressing the issue. Tong Ruizhen noticed that his disciple had not responded his earlier query, and he immediately minced his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, patted her shoulder as he added, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you can let master know what you¡¯d encountered in these Mystic Woods.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes once more and looked straight into Tong Ruizhen¡¯s wrinkled face. On this face, she could see a pair of wise yet youthful and spirited eyes. Most importantly, she could tell that these eyes were even filled with a deep concern for her.

    Through these eyes, Jun Xiaomo was once again reminded of the little packrat¡¯s great grandfather, old man Chi. The impression that those eyes gave off was incredibly simr to each other.

    Jun Xiaomo was suddenly filled with the urge to pour out her heart. In her previous life, she had gained entry to a Greater Sect through her identity as Qin Lingyu¡¯s wife. That said, none of the powerful figureheads in the Greater Sect had been willing to take her in as a disciple. In the end, she became the ¡°disciple¡± of a person in charge of managing the misceneous affairs of the Limitless Sect, and she was even made to deal with several difficult people by her master.

    This was one of the reasons why Jun Xiaomo had never trusted the ¡°masters¡± within the Greater Sects. That said, when she noticed the deep gaze in Tong Ruizhen¡¯s eyes that were filled with concern for her, Jun Xiaomo suddenly realized that everything was vastly different now.

    Tong Ruizhen was not like the ¡°master¡± in her previous life. Back then, her ¡°master¡± had only taken her in as a disciple because hecked manpower to aid him in his work. But now, Tong Ruizhen truly appreciated her as a disciple and wanted the best for her. Otherwise, there was no reason for him to make an exception and ept her as a disciple even though she was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery.

    After thinking these things through, she smiled radiantly at Tong Ruizhen as she began to exin, ¡°Disciple has indeed been here before. It was approximately one year ago when disciple followed one of her martial brothers out on his travels, and our destination was none other than the Mystic Woods. Thus, I¡¯ve got many...memories of this ce.¡±

    It was not just ¡°memories¡± that she had ¨C there were also ¡°regrets¡±. She regretted her willfulness in following her martial brother out; and she regretted her headstrong attitude in crossing people that she could not afford to cross. These were contributing factors that led to Ye Xiuwen falling down into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge and disappearing from her life.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze fell back onto the Mystic Woods below her. From up on high, she was unable to see the bottomless crevice that had swallowed up Ye Xiuwen.

    Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard meaningfully. Momentster, he quipped, ¡°Disciple, if there¡¯s anything pressing on your heart, feel free to talk to master about it. Sometimes, having too many things on your heart might also unduly affect your cultivation.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, ¡°Disciple understands as well. However...disciple doesn¡¯t know how to begin talking about it. Furthermore, disciple will do her best not to let this incident affect her own cultivation.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen appreciated the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stubbornness wasparable to his own, so he decided not to press the issue any longer.

    Just then, Tong Ruizhen cried out curiously, ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this ce the Death¡¯s Gorge? It seems to be slightly different from how it had been before...¡± Tong Ruizhen eximed to himself.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. Within moments, she collected her thoughts and quipped back in a spirited fashion, ¡°Master also knows about the Death¡¯s Gorge?!¡±

    Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°Don¡¯t look down on your master. With your master¡¯s outstanding abilities and experience, how could he not have heard of the Death¡¯s Gorge before?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips and hesitated for a moment, before she queried with a trembling voice, ¡°Then...are the legends true? Is it true that if a person falls into the Death¡¯s Gorge, he will never be able to return to the surface?¡±

    Tong Ruizhen looked back at Jun Xiaomo with an expression of realization, ¡°Could it be that disciple knows someone who¡¯s fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo could no longer hide the sorrow in her eyes. The rims of her eyes reddened as she responded, ¡°That¡¯s right. The person who fell in there is...none other than my martial brother.¡±

    ¡°Seems like he was someone fairly close to you as well, huh?¡± Tong Ruizhen nodded his head sorrowfully.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Martial brother Ye was like...my own brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly.

    ¡°Mm...¡± Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard. After some moments of silence, he began to speak once more, ¡°Actually, even though nobody has sessfully returned to the surface after falling into the Death¡¯s Gorge, it¡¯s not impossible for someone to survive, logically speaking.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head as she anxiously rified, ¡°Really? Master, why do you say that?!¡±

    ¡°The truth of the matter is that master had also travelled to the Mystic Woods when he was young. In fact, there was one asion when master was running alongside the precipice of the Death¡¯s Gorge, and I nearly even fell in...¡±

    ¡°Then?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Tong Ruizhen with eager anticipation, as though she were afraid to miss out on every single word he said right now.

    ¡°Then...master didn¡¯t fall into the Death¡¯s Gorge.¡± Tong Ruizhen finished his sentence. Jun Xiaomo was slightly stunned by the anticlimactic ending, and then she lowered her head in dismay once more.

    Her hopeful heart had once again sunk heavily ¨C

    Since master hadn¡¯t fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge, then how would he be able to state with any certainty that someone would be able to survive within the Death¡¯s Gorge to begin with?

    Tong Ruizhen continued to stroke his beard as he added a twist, ¡°But, even though master didn¡¯t end up falling into the Death¡¯s Gorge, master had undoubtedly detected a snapshot of the auras emanating from within the Death¡¯s Gorge. In other words, there are living creatures within the Death¡¯s Gorge. In fact, master knows that there are many creatures that are living within the Death¡¯s Gorge, because master had sensed the various, differing types of auras and pressures emanating from the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head once more, and her eyes were now filled with hope.

    She looked straight at Tong Ruizhen as though he were her final strand of hope right now. Tong Ruizhen could even sense the pressure and expectations mounting on his back.

    ¡°Cough.¡± He coughed dryly, before continuing, ¡°Of course, this is purely based on logical reasoning. Even if there are living creatures within the Death¡¯s Gorge, these creatures would undoubtedly be incredibly strong and powerful spirit or demonic beasts. If one were to survive, he would have to be able to avoid these creatures or even defeat them. Thus, all of this is based simply on master¡¯s logical deductions. Master has nothing to prove for it.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath as she nced back down into the fog nketing the Mystic Woods, ¡°It¡¯s fine, as long as there¡¯s hope. As long as there¡¯s even a strand of hope, no matter how small and minute it might be, I¡¯m not going to give up on it.¡±

    Tong Ruizhenughed heartily, before he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder and quipped, ¡°Not bad, not bad. You¡¯re true to your heart and loyal to others ¨C you certainly live up to your name as my handpicked disciple. Since disciple is so intent on saving her martial brother, then master shall reveal another secret to you ¨C the truth of the matter is that master has in recent years been rather curious about what goes on within the Death¡¯s Gorge, so master has always been investigating and researching how one could possibly enter the Death¡¯s Gorge safely.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened, ¡°Then, has master¡¯s researche up with any results?¡±

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± Tong Ruizhen rubbed his nose, ¡°Not for now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo felt that her heart had been vaciting between pangs of intense joy and sorrow. It was as though her heart had been tossed straight up into the clouds, beforending harshly back down on the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled bitterly.

    Tong Ruizhen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he added, ¡°You¡¯re incredibly talented. Master firmly believes that you will soon be better than master at formation arrays and talismans. Even though master is unable to discover a way to enter the Death¡¯s Gorge safely, this doesn¡¯t mean that disciple won¡¯t be able to do so. Disciple, you¡¯ve got to be confident in your own abilities. Bring out that same unwavering determination that you had before.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback. The disappointment and sorrow in her eyes lingered for a little while longer, before they gradually began to dissipate. Within moments, her eyes were filled solely with a steadfast determination.

    She nodded her head resolutely, ¡°Thank you, master. Disciple will work hard at it!¡±

    It was exactly like what she had just said ¨C as long as there was a single strand of hope, no matter how tiny it might be, she would never let it go.

    In some ways, this could be considered a fortuitous incident to mark themencement of my rtionship with my new master...

 Chapter 247: New Sect, New Enemies

    <h4>Chapter 247: New Sect, New Enemies</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The master-disciple duo, Jun Xiaomo and Tong Ruizhen, traveled for three full days and nights before they finally arrived at the Zephyr Sect¡¯s grounds. The other sect elders from the Zephyr Sect had used Teleportation Scrolls to make their way back, and they had already found their way back to the Zephyr Sect a long time ago. Overnight, the news of the Fifth Elder Tong Ruizhen epting a disciple at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery had spread like wildfire throughout the Sect.

    Everyone was curious as so what kind of person his disciple must be like to have received such favour from the Fifth Elder. After all, the Fifth Elder was even willing to make an exception and ept a disciple that was not even in the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation!

    In the midst of all the chaos and excitement and spreading of rumours, the Heavenly Crane that Jun Xiaomo was riding upon finally descended from the sky. The first sight that Jun Xiaomo saw was a lush and verdant field atop a Peak that was enshrouded with a thickyer of spiritual energy.

    In fact, they could have arrived way earlier at the Zephyr Sect. Regrettably, Tong Ruizhen¡¯s curiosity got the better of him. Whenever he noticed something peculiar or interesting, he would instruct his Heavenly Crane tond so that he could take a closer look. Whenever he noticed something that looked delicious or fun, he would drag his new disciple along to give it a go or a spin. This was the only reason why they spent three full days in the wilderness before finally arriving back at the Sect.

    Then, as they drew closer to the Zephyr Sect, Jun Xiaomo instantly felt a sense of strong pressure bearing down on her, as though there was an invisible force that was stifling and choking her, preventing her from getting any closer to those grounds.

    Jun Xiaomo instinctually operated the true energy within her body in order to withstand the overbearing pressure. Unfortunately, the closer they got to the Zephyr Sect, the stronger this invisible force that was bearing down on her. This cause Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face to only grow paler and paler.

    ¡°Aiyah, look at this old buffoon. I¡¯m getting old and muddleheaded!¡± Tong Ruizhen smacked his head, before swiftly retrieving a token from his Interspatial Ring and handing it to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Hurry and drip a drop of your blood on it. This is the Zephyr Sect¡¯s identity token. Without this, you¡¯ll never be able to enter the Sect, and you¡¯ll end up being choked to death by the protective arrays surrounding the Sect.¡±

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo received the token, she hurriedly bit her index finger and dripped a drop of blood onto it.

    Within moments, her blood seeped into the heart of the identity token and vanished. A blue light shone, and then the identity token changed from its original blue colour to a glorious golden colour. An inscription even appeared on its surface ¨C ¡°Zephyr Sect Disciple, Jun Xiaomo¡±.

    This identity token had recognized its master, and the pressure that had been bearing down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body just moments ago suddenly vanished.

    ¡°This protective array is incredible. We¡¯re still quite a distance away from the Zephyr Sect, yet I can already feel its incredible powers.¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed.

    They were still some distance away from the Zephyr Sect, and it would take them several more incense sticks of time to arrive at their destination.

    ¡°That¡¯s naturally the case. This protective formation array is set up by my grandmaster.¡± Tong Ruizhen bragged pridefully.

    Master¡¯s...grandmaster...? Jun Xiaomo looked at Tong Ruizhen¡¯s beaming, wrinkled face, and she grew taciturn.

    She simply couldn¡¯t imagine how old her master¡¯s grandmaster would look like, or how old he must be.

    In this cultivation world, one could never determine a person¡¯s looks solely based on their age. For example, Jun Xiaomo had lived to a ripe old age of several hundred years old in her previous life, yet she looked no different from other twenty-something years-old cultivators. Their looks had far more to do with the type of cultivation technique a person practiced, and when they achieved the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    As soon as a person attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and unless he meets with an ident or encounters some misfortune, the cultivator¡¯s appearance would no longer change for the rest of his life. Tong Ruizhen was an array master and a talisman master, and he rarely focused his attention on increasing his cultivation levels. This resulted in him spending quite a long time before he finally managed to breakthrough to the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. In turn, this meant that his entire face was covered with wrinkles.

    Of course, it was always avable to him to use medicinal pills or other means to change his appearances and look far younger. However, Tong Ruizhen had never been the type to mind his looks, and he was content leaving his appearances as they always had been.

    Jun Xiaomo shelved these inconsequential thoughts to the back of her mind, and she began to focus her attention on the protective array surrounding the Zephyr Sect.

    Although the protective array was no longer bearing down on her and rejecting her presence, she could nevertheless still feel a peculiar yet profound sensation emanating from the protective array. Furthermore, the closer she drew to the Zephyr Sect, the stronger the profound sensation grew.

    ¡°This protective formation array is incredible. I wonder what will happen to a person if he forces his way into the Zephyr Sect¡¯s grounds without an identity token.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened as she thought aloud.

    Tong Ruizhen chuckled, ¡°Hehe.¡± Then, he looked at Jun Xiaomo and blinked a few times, before he deliberately mystified his answer, ¡°You don¡¯t want to know.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Doesn¡¯t this just mean that the consequences would be dire?

    Finally, they were able to see the Zephyr Sect¡¯s main gate. ¡°Zephyr Sect¡± had ferociously been etched in cursive on the on the main door, giving outsiders the sense of an overbearing presence within. The Heavenly Crane cried out once, pped its wings a few times, before it soared over the Sect¡¯s main door.

    Several people heard the Heavenly Crane¡¯s cry from within the Sect. Several disciples in their Discussion Hall also looked up and turned their attention to the azure blue sky above.

    ¡°Sect Elder Tong is finally back.¡± They whispered to each other with a bright gleam in their eyes.

    Tong Ruizhen was still on the Heavenly Crane¡¯s back when some of the disciples immediately ryed the Sect Leader¡¯s message to him, requesting his presence within the Discussion Hall.

    Thus, Tong Ruizhen knew that he had no choice. After all, the Sect Leader¡¯s words were final. Once the Heavenly Cranended and stabilized itself, Jun Xiaomo and Tong Ruizhen leapt off to the ground. Tong Ruizhen patted the Heavenly Crane¡¯s head, instructing it to go find itself some food. Then, he turned to Jun Xiaomo and instructed, ¡°Disciple, master had initially wanted to show you your abode and other ces around here. Unfortunately, master has just received a missive from the Sect Leader, requiring master to make a trip to the Discussion Hall, so master has no choice but to leave you on your own for now.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Master has urgent matters to attend to. Please go on.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly.

    ¡°Then, please feel free to wander about and have a look within the Sect on your own. Remember to take only the main roads. Don¡¯t go down the smaller paths where fewer people tread. It wouldn¡¯t be good if you inadvertently trespassed some ces you¡¯re not supposed to go. Oh yes, this is master¡¯s unique Transmittance Talisman, and it can be used to determine your location or to call for help. It even possesses some defensive abilities. Hang on to it. Once master is done with his duties, he¡¯lle looking for you.¡±

    As Tong Ruizhen spoke, he ced a jade-coloured talisman onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands.

    ¡°Alright. Thank you, master. You¡¯d best be on your way ¨C it wouldn¡¯t be good to let the Sect Leader wait for too long.¡± Jun Xiaomo held the Transmittance Talisman on her hands and revealed a warm, radiant smile on her face.

    Even though Tong Ruizhen was on the talkative end of the spectrum, Jun Xiaomo could tell from his chattiness that there were strong undertones of a master¡¯s concern for his disciple within. Thus, she hardly minded the fact that Tong Ruizhen was a chatterbox. In fact, she even felt rather warm and fuzzy from his loquacious tendencies.

    Having had one lifetime of experience under her belt, Jun Xiaomo now knew what was truly important to her, and what was not.

    After Tong Ruizhen went on his way, Jun Xiaomo continued to walk down the road that stretch out in front of her. She hardly concerned herself with where she was going. After all, she had just entered a foreign ce, and her only goal was to familiarize herself with her new surroundings.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo strolled along and took in the sights and sounds around her. Very soon, she noticed a small pavilion overlooking arge lotus pond. In this lotus pond, several lotus flowers were already in full bloom, revealing bursts of colours on the otherwise cool and tranquil pond. A ripple echoed out within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, and she began to walk towards the little pavilion.

    There was a simr pavilion overlooking a lotus pond in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abode as well. This sight before her gave her a deep sense of familiarity in a foreign ce, and a wave ofplicated feelings mixed with pangs of bitter astringency washed across her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo sat down in the pavilion, and she stared vacantly at the koi fishes swimming freely within the pond. Momentster, she shut her eyes.

    The koi fishes in the pond would from time to time peek their heads out of the water, creating gently undting ripples that spread throughout the entire pond. Under the bright illumination of the sunlight, the otherwise tranquil surface of the pond twinkled yfully.

    A dazzle of light jolted Jun Xiaomo back to her senses. Almost at the same time, she discovered a peculiar sensation.

    It might have been a mere illusion, but she was almost certain she someone watching her from afar. The gaze that was trained on her body was like a sticky substance that clung tightly to her body as it slowly crept around her body.

    It gave her an indescribable sensation, causing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hairs to stand on end.

    ¡°Who is it?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze grew cold and frigid, and she whipped her body around as she nced tensely at her surroundings.

    But, even after releasing her divine sense, she was unable to find the source of this gaze.

    Just then, she heard the sound of footsteps drawing closer to her. As soon as the sound of these footsteps rang out, the earlier creepy gaze instantly vanished into thin air as well.

    Jun Xiaomo looked in the direction of the footsteps and she discovered a group of cultivators that were dressed in a simr fashion. These cultivators looked to be between twenty-five to twenty-seven years-old. Their leader was a female cultivator, and one could easily tell that the leader was of an extraordinary stature just by the looks of the embroidery on her clothing as well as the essories adorned.

    This female cultivator must be an inner disciple of a high standing. As to just how high her standing was, Jun Xiaomo was unable to tell this much for now.

    ¡°Yo, sister Lenghui, we¡¯ve found ourselves a little kitten over here.¡± One of the other female disciples chuckled lightly as she quipped.

    Little kitten?! Jun Xiaomo shuddered at their description of her.

    However, she could tell that of all the looks these people were gazing upon her with, including investigative, contempt, indifference, disdain and the ilk, there wasn¡¯t a single good and wholesome intentions in their eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it ¨C I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve offended these people before, right? At the very least, she knew that she had never encountered these people in herst seventeen years of life.

    The leader of the pack sized up Jun Xiaomo and noticed the vignce in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. A bright gleamed shed across her own eyes.

    She cast aside the earlier look of indifference and reced it with a friendly expression all over her face. Then, she walked over to Jun Xiaomo and introduced herself, ¡°This little sister must be none other than Sect Elder Tong¡¯s newest disciple, right? Wee to the Zephyr Sect. My name is Zhuang Lenghui, and I¡¯m the First-Seat Disciple of the Phoenixia Peak.¡±

    So she¡¯s the First-Seat Disciple of an entire Peak. No wonder she carries herself this way. Jun Xiaomo murmured in her heart.

    However, what Jun Xiaomo simply couldn¡¯t wrap her head around was where this First-Seat Disciple¡¯s hostility towards her came from. Logically speaking, they had never interacted with each other before this present instance.

    That¡¯s right. Hostility. Even though the smile stered all over Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s face appeared as though she had just encountered an incredible treasure or benefit, the frigidity hidden in the depths of her eyes were unmistakable.

    If I can¡¯t understand it, then there¡¯s no point thinking about it for now. After all, the truth will one daye to light. With such contemtions on her heart, Jun Xiaomo cordially stretched out her arm and shook Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s hand, ¡°Nice to meet you, martial sister Zhuang. My name is Jun Xiaomo, and I¡¯ve just arrived at the Zephyr Sect. Please look after me.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neither servile nor overbearing attitude caused Zhuang Lenghui to review her earlier assessment of Jun Xiaomo.

    Seems like Sect Elder Tong¡¯s newest disciple isn¡¯t going to be as easy to deal with as I¡¯d earlier thought. Zhuang Lenghui thought to herself. Apart from her, nobody ¨C not even her closest friends and family within the Sect ¨C could tell the manifold schemes that she had already prepared in her heart.

 Chapter 248: Despotic Princess Linglong

    <h4>Chapter 248: Despotic Princess Linglong</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Zhuang Lenghui was sizing up Jun Xiaomo, Jun Xiaomo was also silently observing thisdy standing before her.

    To Jun Xiaomo, Zhuang Lenghui was someone that she barely knew. She neither knew why Zhuang Lenghui had approach her today, nor where her hostility towards her hade from.

    Under such conditions where Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s motives were all hidden in the dark, Jun Xiaomo knew that she could only do her best to observe her closely and attempt to uncover her hidden intentions from what little clues she could unveil.

    Jun Xiaomo focused particrly on the eyes. She had always believed that a person could feign his expressions and practice to perfection the lies he told. However, the one thing that was far more difficult to conceal was the emotions and thoughts revealed in the depths of a person¡¯s eyes. If a person harboured ill intentions, he would rarely be able to present himself with a dignified and upstanding pair of eyes.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo had already discovered that Zhuang Lenghui possessed ulterior motives in her approach towards Jun Xiaomo.

    As Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s thoughts churned, she continued to address Jun Xiaomo with a warm and harmonious voice, ¡°Since martial sister Xiaomo has just arrived in town, why don¡¯t I show you around the Zephyr Sect and help you get familiarized with its surroundings? What do you say?¡±

    Nothing to say. Jun Xiaomo murmured in her heart. She hated these people whose thoughts and actions wereplete pr opposites. The feeling that she got from Zhuang Lenghui was like a poisonous snake that was primed and ready to strike. Why would anybody in the right mind agree to follow such a woman?

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo smiled politely as she responded, ¡°Thanks for the kind thoughts, martial sister Zhuang, but my master has instructed me to wait here for him. It wouldn¡¯t be good if he can¡¯t locate meter on.¡±

    It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out that this was nothing more than an excuse. If Tong Ruizhen had left in a hurry to attend to something important, there was no way he would have simply left Jun Xiaomo without any means to get in touch with her.

    Taking it one step further, even if Tong Ruizhen had truly been muddleheaded and carelessly left Jun Xiaomo behind without any means of getting in touch with her, the fact remained that Jun Xiaomo was already within the Zephyr Sect ¨C how could she possibly go ¡°missing¡± or be ¡°uncontactable¡±?

    Thus, it was clear to everyone that Jun Xiaomo was simply finding an excuse to reject Zhuang Lenghui.

    Zhuang Lenghui pretended to be good-natured and chuckled heartily, acting as though she took things at face value as she decided not to expose Jun Xiaomo¡¯s excuses. However, one of the female cultivators beside her were hardly as cool andposed. She immediately burst out with usations, ¡°Who do you think you are?! Do you think that martial sister Zhuang has invited you because she sees something in you? You¡¯re nothing more than a piece of trash that¡¯s only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery despite being at the age of seventeen. I don¡¯t understand what Sect Elder Tong sees in you. How could he ept you as his personal disciple ¨C even martial sister Zhuang, with her innate talents, ...¡±

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough.¡± Zhuang Lenghui interjected and cut off the female disciple beside her. Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s expression had darkened by several shades.

    The female disciple beside her seemed to have realized that she had spoken too much, and she obsequiously shut her trap and grew taciturn.

    However, her pping lips had revealed to Jun Xiaomo some important details that she had desired to know ¨C So, Zhuang Lenghui desires to be Tong Ruizhen¡¯s disciple? But, why? Isn¡¯t she the First-Sect Disciple of the Phoenixia Peak? Why does she want to be the disciple of an array master?

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t have the answer to all of her question. But at the very least, she now had a better grasp of where Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s enmity against her hade from.

    Zhuang Lenghui truly lived up to her name as the First-Sect Disciple of a Peakmaster ¨C even her acting and appearance was fairly convincing. Her darkened expression was fleeting. Within moments, she managed to adjust her expressions as she smiled apologetically at Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    ¡°Martial sister Shen¡¯s character has always been brash and reckless. I hope martial sister Jun doesn¡¯t take it to heart. It was true that I¡¯d previously expressed the desire to be Sect Elder Tong¡¯s disciple, but he takes the view that my talents aren¡¯t in the discipline of formation arrays, so he had rejected my request there and then. But all of that is now in the past. Since Sect Elder Tong has personally chosen martial sister Jun as his personal disciple, then this means that he¡¯s given martial sister Jun his stamp of approval for your abilities and talents. You¡¯ve got to be confident in yourself.¡±

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s spiel was fluent and convincing, and even filled with undertones of warmth and concern. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo could see the residual frigidity in the depths of Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo might very well have been convinced that Zhuang Lenghui was a warm, kind and helpful martial sister looking out for her.

    But now, even if Zhuang Lenghui were to make a thousand and one promises to her, Jun Xiaomo would never trust Zhuang Lenghui that easily.

    ¡°Thanks, martial sister.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled back politely. As she refrained from exposing Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s pretensions, she also consciously made an effort to keep her at an arm¡¯s length.

    After all, when all was said and done, she was a neer treading on foreign ground, and she knew that she had to feign and maintain cordiality at the very least.

    Just then, a coquettish voice rang out from not too far away ¨C ¡°Hmph! Zhuang Lenghui, are you pretending to be a good person again? What¡¯s the matter? Who are you trying to lure into your camp now, huh?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected anyone to speak so forthrightly without regard to Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s pride and reputation. Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically as she looked towards the source of that new voice.

    A light-gold figure drifted into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s field of vision. Complex patterns of clouds were embroidered all over her exquisite clothes, reminding Jun Xiaomo of the pce garments that Jun Xiaomo had once seen in the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce grounds.

    Pce garments? A fleeting notion shed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind, but she was unable totch onto it.

    As soon as she saw the other uninvited guest, a fleeting, scornful look surfaced in Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s eyes, before it sank back to the depths of her gaze.

    Zhuang Lenghui presented herself with an amiable countenance once more as she addressed thedy approaching them, ¡°Princess Linglong has a great sense of humour. I¡¯d noticed that martial sister Jun had only just arrived at the Zephyr Sect and might not be too familiar with its surroundings, so I had only intended to show her around. I¡¯ve never had any intentions of involving her with anything more.¡±

    ¡°Just arrived?¡± It was only now that Yue Linglong noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unfamiliar appearances, ¡°Yo, you¡¯re that fe that had be Sect Elder Tong¡¯s formal disciple even though you¡¯re only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery?¡±

    That fe?! Jun Xiaomo found herself speechless. Why don¡¯t these people seem to be able to address others properly? One calls me a ¡®little kitten¡¯, while the other calls me ¡®that fe¡¯...

    If not for the fact that she had personally seen the words ¡°Zephyr Sect¡± etched on the sign on the main gate, she might well begin to suspect whether they hade to the right ce to begin with.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s silence irked Yue Linglong. She red at Jun Xiaomo as she pressed the issue, ¡°Hey, I¡¯m talking to you. Are you Sect Elder Tong¡¯s newest disciple?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found Yue Linglong¡¯s prima donna attitude rather unbearable. That said, this was still far better than Zhuang Lenghui whose thoughts and actions wereplete pr opposites. Thus, she was still more willing to interact with Yue Linglong.

    ¡°I¡¯m indeed Sect Elder Tong¡¯s newest disciple.¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly responded, as though she were affirming a universal truth.

    Yue Linglong folded her arms and squinted her eyes as she sized up Jun Xiaomo. Momentster, she clicked her lips and remarked, ¡°Your appearances aren¡¯t too shabby. I just wonder whether your talent for cultivation is inversely proportionate to your appearances...¡±

    In other words, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances were good, but her talent for cultivation was far too shabby.

    It was evident that Yue Linglong had also heard on the grapevine that Jun Xiaomo was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery. Like most other disciples around, it was evident that she couldn¡¯t understand why Sect Elder Tong had picked a cultivator at only the sixth level of Qi Mastery as his personal disciple.

    Furthermore, Yue Linglong was in fact the princess of a kingdom, and both her talent and abilities were fairly decent. She looked up to the strong, and she despised the weak. Thus, it was clear that she had a fair amount of disdain for Jun Xiaomo, a person only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery even though she was already seventeen years-old.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was hardly mad at all. If she were to get incensed and triggered by everyone who derided her and looked upon her with contempt, her blood pressure would already have been through the roof by now.

    She looked back at Yue Linglong with indifference as she retorted, ¡°If Princess Linglong has any doubts as to my talent for cultivation, you can bring your queries straight to Sect Elder Tong and check whether he¡¯d favoured me for my looks or for my talents.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo spoke with a matter-of-fact tone of voice, causing Yue Linglong to feel incredibly aggrieved, as though her earlier jibe at Jun Xiaomo hadnded on nothing but soft cotton.

    Not only that, she even felt that Jun Xiaomo had retaliated against her with a blow of her own. Thus, she grew maddened.

    Yue Linglong snorted with contempt and haughtily raised her chin as she nced back at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°You only know how to fall back to Sect Elder Tong. Do you think its amazing that you¡¯ve be a formal disciple of the Zephyr Sect? The road ahead is still long and arduous, and fraught with many uncertainties! A newbie should act like a newbie. Otherwise, you won¡¯t even know when you stumble and fall, and perhaps even die!¡±

    On the other side, Zhuang Lenghui who had earlier acted as though she were a helpful martial sister was nowpletely silent. Together with herckeys, Zhuang Lenghui had taken a step back and were watching the present scene as mere observers, as though they wanted to see for themselves how Jun Xiaomo was going to react to the new development.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but rub her temples in dismay and sigh in her heart ¨C Why do I always find myself in such troublesome situations wherever I go?

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was deliberating about whether to duke it out with the troublemaking princess in a battle of words, the deep booming voice of a male cultivator rang out from the other end of the pavilion.

    ¡°Princess Highness, I¡¯d been searching for you for a long time. Turns out that you¡¯re here.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo turned around and discovered that the voice came from a male cultivator who wore garments that looked fairly simr to that which Zhuang Lenghui was wearing. The only difference was that his garments were made for male cultivators, while Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s clothes were made for female cultivators.

    ¡°Brother Zou, I¡¯ve finally found you. I¡¯ve also been looking for you for quite some time...¡± As soon as Yue Linglong saw the person who had just arrived, the earlier headstrong and unruly attitudepletely vanished into thin air, and she instantly transformed into an obedient and coquettish little girl. She skipped over to the male cultivator¡¯s side and began to nestle up to him as though she were weak and spineless.

    Zou Zilong swiftly pulled Yue Linglong into an embrace, but his gazended directly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    ¡°Are you Sect Elder Tong¡¯s new disciple? Princess is right ¨C if you don¡¯t wish to perish, you¡¯d do well to stay out of trouble. Otherwise, if you enter ces you shouldn¡¯t enter or step on toes that you shouldn¡¯t tread on, you won¡¯t even know what hit you when trouble arrives.¡± Zou Zilong cautioned Jun Xiaomo as a senior would chide a junior.

    Princess Linglong evidently enjoyed how Zou Zilong appeared to be protecting her, so she yed along and tugged gingerly at Zou Zilong¡¯s sleeves as she chirped, ¡°Alright, alright, she¡¯s also just arrived at the Sect after all. She¡¯s from a small, Secondary Sect, and she might not know about all these things. Brother Zou, you don¡¯t have to be so harsh on her.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo sincerely apuded Yue Linglong¡¯s ability to change her expressions just like a chameleon. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo also knew her limits ¨C each and every person standing before her right now stood on firmer ground with stronger backing than her. If she offended these people, even Tong Ruizhen might not be able to protect her.

    Thus, she knew that she had to swallow this bitter pill for now. She hung her head low and made a fist and palm salute, ¡°Martial brother Zou has the right to teach me a lesson. Thanks, martial brother Zou, for your guidance.¡±

    Princess Linglong nced disdainfully at Jun Xiaomo once more, before she tugged gingerly at Zou Zilong¡¯s clothes as she remarked, ¡°Brother Zou, I¡¯m tired. Escort me back to my room, alright?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Princess Highness.¡± The manner in which Zou Zilong addressed Jun Xiaomo and Ye Linglong was truly as different as the east was from the west. In the blink of an eye, his voice was far less harsh, andced with such harmonious undertones as though it were filled with honey. Goosebumps immediately crept all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms.

    In fact, what Jun Xiaomo found the most astonishing was Zou Zilong¡¯s gaze that hadnded on her body ¨C it waspletely different from how Zou Zilong had treated her earlier. Had she lowered her head and shut her eyes, she would still be able to feel the sticky, gooey sensation of his gaze that lingered on her body.

    In fact, his gaze was no different from the peculiar gaze that she had experienced earlier before the arrival of Zhuang Lenghui and Yue Linglong.

    Could the person who had been staring at her earlier be none other than Zou Zilong? If so, why? What did she have that Zou Zilong coveted?

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was immersed in her own thoughts, Zou Zilong left together with Yue Linglong, and the sticky and gooey gaze on her body also vanished without a trace.

    A discreet smile crept up the corner of Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s lips, as though she had just seen something interesting. Her eyes revealed a crafty, scheming glint. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo failed to notice this.

 Chapter 249: Zephyr Sectâ€™s Complex Relationships Built on Benefits

    <h4>Chapter 249: Zephyr Sect¡¯s Complex Rtionships Built on Benefits</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After Zou Zilong and Princess Linglong departed, Zhuang Lenghui continued to act like a concerned and caring martial sister as she chatted with Jun Xiaomo for a little while more. In order to prevent courting trouble in the very moment she stepped into the Sect, Jun Xiaomo endured the ordeal with extreme patience as she feigned civility with the poisonous snake that was Zhuang Lenghui.

    Fortunately, the torment didn¡¯tst too long. With the aid of the Transmittance Talisman, Tong Ruizhen managed to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts in no time.

    ¡°Sigh, that¡¯s where you are, disciple. Your master has been looking all over for you.¡± Tong Ruizhen was riding his Heavenly Crane as he slowly descended towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. She had never expected Tong Ruizhen to be riding the Heavenly Crane within the Sect¡¯s grounds. At the very least, back at the Dawn Sect, there were regtions restricting the use of mounts within the Sect¡¯s grounds. This was to prevent chaos from breaking out all over the ce.

    ¡°Disciple Zhuang Lenghui greets Sect Elder Tong.¡± Zhuang Lenghui bowed courteously to Tong Ruizhen. The earlier air of haughtiness and pride around her hadpletely vanished into thin air.

    Jun Xiaomo smacked her lips. Tong Ruizhen may be a Sect Elder of the Zephyr Sect, but was there really a need for a First Sect Disciple of a Peakmaster to stoop so low?

    It¡¯s so...contrived. But, why? Could Tong Ruizhen¡¯s identity be that much higher than the Peakmaster of the Phoenixia Peak?

    Jun Xiaomo began to find that her newly-minted master was bing more and more curious and mysterious as time went by.

    Tong Ruizhen swept a fleeting nce at Zhuang Lenghui, before responding dispassionately, ¡°Oh, so it¡¯s you, little Zhuang. Were you looking after Xiaomo earlier? Sorry to trouble you there.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no trouble at all. Looking after a younger martial sister is naturally the duty of an older martial sister. Disciple is happy to have been of assistance.¡± Zhuang Lenghui pretended not to have noticed Tong Ruizhen¡¯s dispassionate tone of voice as she imed the credit of looking after Jun Xiaomo.

    In fact, everyone around knew that all Zhuang Lenghui did was merely to stop and have a chat with Jun Xiaomo ¨C what other kind of assistance did she render? That said, nobody stood up to discredit Zhuang Lenghui ¨C Jun Xiaomo could hardly be bothered to do so, while the rest who were around were too busy currying favour with Zhuang Lenghui that they could hardly concern themselves with bursting her bubble.

    Unfortunately, Tong Ruizhen had never been an easy person to dupe. Furthermore, he was well aware of Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s true character underneath that pretentious attitude of hers.

    Thus, he hardly appeared appreciative or touched at all. He only nodded his head calmly as he responded, ¡°Little Zhuang has been thoughtful. I¡¯m going to bring Xiaomo to her abode now. You all should return to your Peak as well. It¡¯s not getting any earlier, and it¡¯s about time to get cracking on your cultivation. Don¡¯t swagger about the Sect and loiter around with those fellow disciples of yours so much.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen¡¯s words made Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s expressions stiffen up, and her faced flushed red and then turned pale in shock.

    The truth of the matter was that she had brought these disciples along and walked about the Sect precisely because she had heard that Tong Ruizhen was returning with his new disciple. She had wanted to see what kind of person Jun Xiaomo was to have convinced Sect Elder Tong to ept her as his personal disciple. How could she have expected Tong Ruizhen tobel her actions as ¡°swaggering about¡± and ¡°loitering¡±?

    He had made it sound as though she had nothing better to do.

    The level of pride in Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart was hardly any less than Princess Linglong¡¯s. However, while Princess Linglong expressed her pride outwardly, Zhuang Lenghui kept hers to herself.

    At this moment, Tong Ruizhen¡¯s blunt words had caused her to feel as though he were tearing off her pretenses and trampling on her pride ¨C and all of this in front of the newbie Jun Xiaomo to boot.

    However, Zhuang Lenghui hardly dared to reveal her displeasure with Tong Ruizhen outwardly. Thus, she furiously suppressed the indignation in her heart and directed it straight towards Jun Xiaomo instead.

    As a result, she began to find Jun Xiaomo more and more of a thorn in her side. Naturally, she kept all of this deep within the abyss of her heart.

    As the Fifth Elder of the Zephyr Sect, there was no reason for Tong Ruizhen to care about a mere disciple¡¯s pride ¨C even if that disciple were the First-Seat Disciple of a Peakmaster. Thus, after saying his piece, he immediately left together with Jun Xiaomo, leaving Zhuang Lenghui staring at the back of the Heavenly Crane with a cold and frigid gaze in her eyes.

    On the Heavenly Crane, as soon as Tong Ruizhen left the line of sight of the Phoenixia Peak disciples, he immediately softened his disposition and started to joke and jibe with Jun Xiaomo once more, ¡°Little disciple, what do you think? Wasn¡¯t master¡¯s disposition pretty good earlier? Weren¡¯t the airs about master simply incredible?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to exim about how quickly Tong Ruizhen was able to switch out that stern and somber disposition earlier. But when she heard Tong Ruizhen¡¯s words, she was immediately rendered speechless.

    Dare I ask if this old man was only putting on airs earlier?

    Jun Xiaomo bluntly rolled her eyes at Tong Ruizhen. However, Tong Ruizhen hardly minded this one bit. He simply stroked his beard and reveled in his own earlier actions for a little while longer.

    Momentster, he collected his thoughts once more and began to rte to Jun Xiaomo in earnestness, ¡°Little disciple, even if Zhuang Lenghuies looking for you next time, try your best not to have any interactions with her.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically, ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡±

    Tong Ruizhen sighed in resignation as he stroked his own beard. After deliberating for a moment, he remarked, ¡°Seems like there are some things that I should inform disciple sooner rather thanter.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo discovered a trace of gravity within Tong Ruizhen¡¯s exmation, and she immediately perked up her spirits and presented herself with all ears to what Tong Ruizhen had to say.

    As it turns out, the present Zephyr Sect was hardly as peaceful as it seemed on the surface. As the saying goes, where people gather, strife ensues. This was especially evident when a change of power was due to ur within arge sect. The Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Leader had failed in his attempt to breakthrough to Transcendence, and his life was now hanging by its final threads. Since then, most of the Sect¡¯s matters had been maintained by the Peakmasters of the Phoenixia Peak and the Stoneknife Peak, under the assistance of the Court of Elders.

    Having managed the affairs of the Sect for some time, the Peakmasters of the Phoenixia Peak and the Stoneknife Peak hearts began to grow covetous. With the Sect Leader¡¯s body in grave condition, he would need a miracle if he were to tide through it. Thus, with the potential outgoing of a Sect Leader, it was quite obvious that the iing Sect Leader might very well be one of the two Peakmasters of the Phoenixia Peak and the Stoneknife Peak.

    Most of the Sect Elders within the Court of Elders had already expressed which faction they were on, and there were few Sect Elders, including Sect Elder Tong, who had not chosen to stand on either side just yet.

    One of the other reasons why Sect Elder Tong was viewed with such importance was because he held the key to the protective formation arrays within the Sect. In other words, obtaining Sect Elder Tong¡¯s support was tantamount to holding the lifeblood of the entire Sect within their hands. At that time, unless the opposing Peakmaster were able to find a simrly capable array master to back his efforts, it would take nothing less than a miracle for him toe out on top and be made the new Sect Leader of the Zephyr Sect.

    It was no wonder both factions were desperately trying to curry favour with Tong Ruizhen, hoping to get him to stand on their side.

    That said, several years had passed since then, and Tong Ruizhen had continued to remain vague and ambiguous as to whose side he was on. He would continue to sleep well, eat well and live well, while the two Peakmasters who were locked in an insidious, fierce tug-of-war couldn¡¯t help but look with envy at the man who held the key to break their impasse.

    Then, just two years ago, Tong Ruizhen suddenly indicated to everyone that he intended to ept yet another personal disciple. After epting this personal disciple, he would do his best to impart all his knowledge about formation arrays and talismans to that disciple, before handing his duties to that disciple of his as he pursues his own path of cultivation wholeheartedly.

    His cultivation had been stuck in the secondary-tier Coalescence stage of cultivation for far too long. If he continued on like this, he might very soon find himself once again susceptible to the usual vicissitudes of life that gued the mortal world.

    Cultivators were not immortals. They only possessed the ability to increase their own lifespan as their cultivation levels grew.

    Regardless of how carefree and unrestrained Tong Ruizhen appeared to be, he could never remain the same in the face of death. Thus, he knew that he had to find a sessor so that he could turn to deal with his own personal affairs.

    There were several disciples before Jun Xiaomo, but none of them possessed the level of aptitude that he was looking for. Thus, they had at best scratched the surface of talismans and formation arrays, and they had never been able to inspire Tong Ruizhen to devote everything he had to pour out his teachings to them. As a result, Tong Ruizhen had already steeled himself for the possibility that he would be spending the next few decades or even century looking for a potential sessor. With that thought on the backburner, he attended the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition with hardly any expectations. To his surprise, he found himself a little gem in the rough there that he took a keen interest to.

    This was why Tong Ruizhen had gone all out to convince Jun Xiaomo to be his disciple. After all, he did not know how long it would take for him to find another suitable disciple if he missed out on Jun Xiaomo right now.

    As Jun Xiaomo listened to Tong Ruizhen¡¯s diatribe, she felt increasingly moved. Then, she recalled something important.

    ¡°Master, was martial sister Zhuang at some point in time interested in bing your personal disciple as well?¡± Jun Xiaomo queried.

    This was what she had gleaned from the female disciple beside Zhuang Lenghui earlier which Jun Xiaomo had noted deeply in her heart. If Zhuang Lenghui had indeed been keen on bing Tong Ruizhen¡¯s personal disciple, then that would fully exin her hostility towards Jun Xiaomo.

    With Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s pride, she could never have expected Tong Ruizhen to pick a ¡°piece of trash¡± in the sixth level of Qi Mastery over her as a disciple, right?

    Tong Ruizhen snorted as he responded, ¡°That little Zhuang brat. If she had genuinely been keen to learn from me, I might actually have considered her before I encountered you. But the problem is that she doesn¡¯t have any interest in formation arrays and talismans to begin with. epting her as a disciple would be an insult to all formation arrays and talismans in the world!¡±

    Array masters had their pride as well, especially when it came to matters within their domain of expertise. Anyone who did not treat their domain of expertise with earnest and sincerity would undoubtedly be interpreted as a form of despise and disdain for their craft.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s curiosity was piqued yet even more, ¡°If she wasn¡¯t interested in formation arrays and talismans, why did she want to be your disciple to begin with?¡±

    ¡°Hmph! Isn¡¯t it just so that her father can seed in that ridiculous war for session?!¡± Tong Ruizhen snorted contemptuously, ¡°If Zhuang Lenghui had truly be my disciple, then others would naturally view this as a sign that I¡¯m now standing on the side of the Phoenixia Peak. At that point in time, she would be able to achieve her final goals and at the same time learn from me. Who wouldn¡¯t want to enter into such a favourable transaction?¡±

    ¡°Father?¡± Jun Xiaomo homed in on the nub of the issue.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right, disciple must still be unaware of this. Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s father is none other than the Peakmaster of the Phoenixia Peak, Zhuang Hongsheng.¡± Tong Ruizhen shook his head and sighed, ¡°Speaking of Zhuang Hongsheng, this man had been an outstanding fe while he was in his youth. At that time, even though he was slightly on the morepetitive side, there was nothing too bad with his character. Unfortunately, it might have been the time he spent standing in as the Sect Leader, but his greed and ambition seem to have gotten the better of him. It¡¯s evident that he¡¯s no longer content with merely being a Peakmaster right now. Thus, he began to resort to more underhanded tactics. Over time, even his daughter began to be influenced by him and go astray.¡±

    So Zhuang Lenghui is not only the First-Seat Disciple of the Phoenixia Peak, she¡¯s even the treasured daughter of the Phoenixia Peak¡¯s Peakmaster. No wonder she has such airs about her. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart eximed in realization.

    ¡°Then what about Princess Linglong and martial brother Zou?¡± Jun Xiaomo recalled the other two persons in her earlier encounters who left her with a deep impression.

    ¡°Martial brother Zou? Disciple, are you referring to Zou Zilong?¡± Tong Ruizhen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°It should be him. Princess Linglong seem to be on rather good terms with him, so that should be right.¡± Jun Xiaomo particrly emphasized the rtionship between Zou Zilong and Princess Linglong.

    ¡°Since it involves Princess Linglong, it should be none other than Zou Zilong.¡± Tong Ruizhen nodded his head, ¡°Zou Zilong is none other than Princess Linglong¡¯s fianc¨¦ by imperial decree. Their rtionship is naturally very close.¡±

    ¡°No wonder...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed meaningfully.

    ¡°Sigh, disciple, let me tell you something ¨C don¡¯t be drawn in by Zou Zilong¡¯s good looks and charms. You can like whoever you want, except for that fe surnamed Zou. Princess Linglong isn¡¯t someone you can afford to cross. If you cross her, perhaps even master might not be able to help you.¡± Tong Ruizhen sincerely cautioned Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry as she replied, ¡°Master, you must be taking a stab in the dark right now. How could I possibly like that Zou Zilong? I¡¯ve got no interest in snatching someone else¡¯s fianc¨¦.¡±

    Besides, the way which Zou Zilong looks at her makes her feel incredibly ufortable. This was the final nail in the coffin, sealing her heart away from Zou Zilong altogether.

    ¡°Hey, you don¡¯t say. There were several young girls who braved all odds to draw close to him. Tsk tsk, let master tell you this ¨C Princess Linglong¡¯s jealousy is like a massive tidal wave that can engulf and submerge the entire Zephyr Sect. Of those girls that numbered over ten in total, none of them met with a good end, some perished, while others end up being crippled altogether.¡± Tong Ruizhen sighed, ¡°Truth be told, I don¡¯t have a good impression of that young brat, Linglong either. She¡¯s far too unruly and headstrong. Only that little fe surnamed Zou can stand her.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°To each his own, I guess.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard and grew taciturn for a moment, before he added, ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing if that fe surnamed Zou is truly fond of Princess Linglong. My main concern is that he¡¯s simply paying lip service at this point in time, and his true intentions is to make use of Princess Linglong. At that time, when thingse to a head, I¡¯m afraid that even the Zephyr Sect might not be able to withstand the unbridled fury and wrath of the king of the Greenwich Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°Make use of Princess Linglong?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Don¡¯t look down on Linglong just because she¡¯s a little girl. The king of the Greenwich Kingdom already had one foot in the grave before he finally managed to give birth to such a precious little daughter of his. This is why he spoils her so. On the first day that Linglong entered the Zephyr Sect, she immediately fell for disciple Zou, and she even coerced her father, the king of the Greenwich Kingdom, to issue an imperial decree to make Zou Zilong her fianc¨¦. At the beginning, Zou Zilong was incredibly displeased by the imperial decree, and he treated Princess Linglong with dispassion and coldness. But in recent years, it appears as though he had a change of heart, and he¡¯s beginning to treat Linglong better and better.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes darkened, ¡°Recent years. Doesn¡¯t that mean...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s precisely when the dispute between the Peakmasters of the Phoenixia Peak and the Stoneknife Peak escted and came to a head. As the First-Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Peak, it¡¯s hard to imagine that Zou Zilong doesn¡¯t have ulterior motives when he¡¯s had a change of heart. In fact, it¡¯s precisely because Zou Zilong holds the identity as the fianc¨¦ of the Greenwich Kingdom that the Phoenixia Peak and the Stoneknife Peak are still locked in an impasse. Young Linglong ispletely unaware of all these things. In fact, she continues to ignore everything that¡¯s going on around her, fixating her eyes only on Zou Zilong and sincerely believing that he loves her wholeheartedly.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen¡¯s exnation reminded Jun Xiaomo about herself. In her previous life, she had in a simr fashion walked straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s schemes and ploys, and it took her an entire lifetime before she finally realized the folly of her ways on her deathbed.

    She empathized with Princess Linglong, and she began to feel less disgusted and irked by Princess Linglong¡¯s unruly and headstrong behaviour.

    ¡°No matter what it is, disciple, you¡¯ve got to do your best to steer clear from Zhuang Lenghui, Zou Zilong and Princess Linglong. These three people are inextricably intertwined with the tension within the Sect. One misstep and you¡¯ll find yourself deep in the mires of trouble. Master can tell that you¡¯re a person who doesn¡¯t like courting trouble. If you don¡¯t want trouble, don¡¯t mix with these three people, understand?¡± Tong Ruizhen earnestly cautioned with a stern and serious tone of voice.

    ¡°I understand, master.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, sincerely taking to heart Tong Ruizhen¡¯s words of wisdom.

    However, reality would very quickly remind Jun Xiaomo that some things could not be simply avoided just like that.

 Chapter 250: Someone More Shameless Than Qin Lingyu

    <h4>Chapter 250: Someone More Shameless Than Qin Lingyu</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Two more weeks passed in the blink of an eye. Over thest two weeks, Jun Xiaomo had slowly adjusted herself to life in her new Sect.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo found that there was hardly any difference between her life in the Zephyr Sect and her life in the Dawn Sect. She had always enjoyed quietness and solitude to begin with. Furthermore, given the Heavenly Peak¡¯s current predicament where they were surrounded by enemies on all four sides, Jun Xiaomo sincerely wished there was more than twenty-four hours in a day. Apart from practicing her cultivation each day, she spent almost every other part of her waking hours studying the thick manuscripts that Tong Ruizhen had handed over to her.

    Tong Ruizhen was incredibly pleased with his disciple¡¯s diligence, yet he never failed to remind her to do all things in moderation.

    Jun Xiaomo would smile back at him but remain taciturn in tacit agreement. That said, she continued to devote most of her time to learning and her cultivation.

    Tong Ruizhen was among the best in the spiritual world in terms of his proficiency with his formation arrays and talismans. There were enough people seeking to be his disciple that if they lined up in a long line, that line would be able to surround the entire Inferno Kingdom three full times. Despite all that, Tong Ruizhen¡¯s requirements for epting one as his disciple was incredibly high. Including Jun Xiaomo, he had only taken five personal disciples to date. Furthermore, the personal disciples prior to Jun Xiaomo had already graduated with a certain level of proficiency, and most of them had already left the Sect to make a name for themselves in the rest of the world. Therefore, Tong Ruizhen only had Jun Xiaomo by his side at this moment.

    Make no mistake ¨C this was not a bad thing for Jun Xiaomo. After all, the more people there were, the higher the likelihood that Jun Xiaomo would have to deal with the buzz in the background and navigateplex human rtions. Jun Xiaomo knew that not everyone within the Sect would behave in as united a manner as her Heavenly Peak disciples.

    The pavilion overlooking the lotus pond that Jun Xiaomo chanced upon on her first day at the Zephyr Sect had left an indelible mark in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. She had thought that there would be many people who enjoyed going to that ce. After all, she was ¡°fortunate¡± enough to have chanced upon the two First-Seat Disciples of both Peaks on the very first day that she had been there. She even bumped into Princess Linglong who hailed from the Greenwich Kingdom.

    Unexpectedly, after dropping by to that tranquil ce on several asions thereafter, Jun Xiaomo discovered to her surprise that that few people would pass by the lotus pond. From time to time, she would see several disciples walking hurriedly past the lotus pond as they rushed back from outside the Sect, but they would never pause to take a break at the pavilion.

    In fact, this stood to reason. Although the lotus pond was close to the main gate of the Zephyr Sect, it was in fact quite a distance away from the heart of the Sect¡¯s grounds. Generally speaking, none of the disciples would intentionally make their way over and hang around at the lotus pond.

    That being the case, whether the three important Zephyr Sect disciples had chanced upon or intentionally crossed paths with Jun Xiaomo was something that was only privy to the three of them.

    After learning that she was the only one among all of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s disciples who enjoyed hanging around the lotus pond, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief and decided to change her favourite studying spot to the little pavilion by the lotus pond.

    Then, after visiting the pavilion for a few days and confirming that it was as peaceful and tranquil as she had hoped, Jun Xiaomo finally let her guard down. The matters within the Dawn Sect were alreadyplicated enough, and she sincerely did not wish to be further embroiled within the tension between the two Peaks in Zephyr Sect.

    That evening, just as the sun began to set and dusk fell over thends, Jun Xiaomo was still seated at the pavilion by the lotus pond with no intention of returning to her room just yet. She was almost done with the thick manuscript that she held in her hands, and she just had a little bit more to go. Her intention was to power through and finish thest bit before heading back to her abode.

    The thick manuscript contained the fundaments of formation arrays, and it was etched with the words ¨C ¡°Elementary Formation Arrays¡±. This was none other than the manuscript that every single budding array master would have to study and understand. Logically speaking, with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities, this manuscript should do nothing more than tell Jun Xiaomo what she already knew. However, Jun Xiaomo would never growcent and neglect something just because it felt ¡°simple¡± to her. After all, every skyscraper required amensurately strong and firm foundation. Jun Xiaomo appreciated the fact that it would get increasingly easier to slip up in future without a strong and firm foundation in the discipline of formation arrays.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had also studied a manuscript that was simr to the one she was reading right now. The only difference was that it was hardly asprehensive. As she pored through the present manuscript and studied it in detail, she constantly found herself gleaning something new from it.

    Finally, she finished the entire manuscript. She shut the manuscript and rubbed her slightly aching temples.

    She had been seated by the lotus pond since the morning, and that meant that she had been reading this book from dawn till dusk. When she got hungry, she would munch on some dry rations; and when she got thirsty, she would sip on some tea which she had earlier prepared within her Interspatial Ring. Despite her immense mental prowess, even she found herselfpletely worn out and drained right now.

    As she continued to rub her temples, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers suddenly slowed to a halt.

    ¡°Who?! Who¡¯s over there?!¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly stood up, and her eyes were filled with a frigid and cold gleam.

    It was that feeling again ¨C that feeling of being stared all over, as though something sticky and gooey were being drizzled all over her. It was incredibly ufortable.

    A rustling sound rang out, and a person stepped out from behind a tree some distance away. The sky was notpletely dark yet. In the faint glow which remained, Jun Xiaomo was barely able to make out the uninvited guest¡¯s appearances.

    ¡°Martial brother Zou?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had already had a vague inkling of who the person staring at her might be. After all, she had on her first day at the Zephyr Sect also experienced the exact same kind of gaze from Zou Zilong.

    That sticky, gooey gaze that crept all over her body, just like how a snake would stare at and gaze at its prey.

    The only problem was that Jun Xiaomo simply couldn¡¯t fathom what it was that she possessed that caused Zou Zilong to covet and scheme against her as such. Thus, after she returned to her abode on the first day, she shelved that incident to the back of her mind and forgot all about it, attributing it to no more than an illusion or oversensitivity on her part.

    But as it turns out, what she experienced on the first day was hardly an illusion or an oversensitivity on her part. In fact, Zou Zilong¡¯s gaze on the first day was still somewhat discreet and covert. But at this point in time, he was undoubtedly openly gazing at Jun Xiaomo and sizing her up. The faint smile that he wore on his lips particrly gave Jun Xiaomo the creeps.

    Jun Xiaomo tensed up her spirits and took a step back. Then, she lowered her eyes and did her best to remain calm and polite yet distant as she remarked, ¡°Pardon me, martial brother Zou. Your younger martial sister had earlier been unaware that martial brother Zou was here, so she may have used a slightly harsher tone of voice. Kindly forgive me.¡±

    Zou Zilong took a few steps towards Jun Xiaomo, and he only stopped when he was extremely close to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo was intensely apprehensive right now. If she could, she wanted to leave this ce immediately.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo doesn¡¯t have to be so nervous. Your martial brother Zou has always been magnanimous, and he would never get angry with martial sister Jun over such a small thing.¡± Zou Zilong spoke with a cajoling tone of voice. However, that only caused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair to stand on ends.

    She had not forgotten how Zou Zilong presented himself with a stern and somber appearance on the very first day that they had met. Who could¡¯ve thought that he would present himself with apletely disposition this time?

    Could it be that all of the disciples in the Zephyr Sect enjoy changing their appearances and dispositions this much? Or was it only the First-Seat Disciples that enjoyed it so? Jun Xiaomo was subconsciously reminded of Ye Xiuwen once more. From her memories, whether of her past life or her present life, Ye Xiuwen had never yed such games and toyed with her feelings; he had always been frank, candid and straightforward.

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath and suppressed the frustrations swelling up from the depth of her heart. She discreetly tightened her fists, looked up and responded, ¡°Thanks for your understanding, martial brother Zou. It¡¯s gettingte. I should go back now.¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Zou Zilong lifted his hands and prevented Jun Xiaomo from leaving. A meaningful smile crept up the side of his lips, and he leaned even closer towards Jun Xiaomo, ¡°If you¡¯ve got the time, why not have a nice little chat with your martial brother?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo found his advances a little bit too close forfort. She took a few steps back and increased the distance between them, ¡°I wonder what martial brother Zou wants to talk about?¡±

    A furtive expression shed across the depths of Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes. He curled up his lips and responded, ¡°I¡¯m sure martial sister knows exactly what martial brother here wants to talk about, don¡¯t you?¡± As he finished speaking, he began to draw closer towards Jun Xiaomo once more.

    ¡°Martial brother Zou, please have some self-respect!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back had already bumped into the table, and she no longer had any room to retreat. Thus, she could only lift her head and caution Zou Zilong with a fiery intensity in the depths of her eyes.

    Zou Zilong had made his advances clear as day. Jun Xiaomo would be a fool if she did not know what he was trying to do. Yet at the same time, she sincerely hoped that she was wrong.

    ¡°With martial sister Xiaomo¡¯s smarts, I knew that she would understand exactly what her martial brother Zou is talking about.¡± Zou Zilong selectively ignored Jun Xiaomo¡¯s infuriation. In his eyes, only thedies that required some coercing would end up tasting more vorsome.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely maddened by now. Back in the Dawn Sect, she had been surrounded by a bunch of martial brothers, and her martial brothers had habitually addressed her as ¡°martial sister Xiaomo¡±. However, that term of reference had never made her feel as nauseated as she presently was.

    The disgust must have emanated from the person calling my name, right?

    Jun Xiaomo retorted with fury, ¡°Zou Zilong, don¡¯t forget that you¡¯ve still got a marriage arrangement with the Princess!¡±

    Zou Zilong chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°So what if there¡¯s a marriage arrangement? That¡¯s nothing more than an agreement. Furthermore,pared with the unruly, headstrong and unreasonable Princess, I¡¯m personally far more interested in martial sister Xiaomo.¡± Zou Zilong¡¯sst statement sounded very much like something a person said to tease a street-calling prostitute.

    Jun Xiaomo had never seen such a thick-skinned and shameless person who would openly admit to turning his back on his marriage arrangement. Even Qin Lingyu would know how to cover up and conceal these shameful deeds. Zou Zilongpletely disregarded any forms of concealment in this regard. In fact, he even glorified his despicable acts and made them sound brilliant as though they were an achievement.

    Jun Xiaomo red straight back into Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes as she barked with emphasis, one word at a time, ¡°You. Absolutely. Disgust. Me!¡±

    Zou Zilong¡¯s expressions darkened immediately. Even though not all of the previousdies that he had made advances to had caved in within moments, they would nevertheless give regard to the identity of his master and leave his pride intact. After all, he was the First-Seat Disciple of a Peak. How could he have known that a little brat like Jun Xiaomo would trample all over his pride like that?

    ¡°Hmph. Disgust?! Then, let me show you just what ¡®disgust¡¯ means!¡± As Zou Zilong spoke, he charged straight towards Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t react in time and was struck squarely by Zou Zilong!

    Zou Zilong had set his sights on Jun Xiaomo on the first day that she arrived at the Zephyr Sect. A youngdy at the tender age of seventeen meant that she was at the age when she was the most tender and delicate. Her striking red garments entuated her curvaceous figure and brought out all the right lines. Jun Xiaomo even inherited her parents¡¯ best features and possessed beautiful and exquisite facial features.

    When she silently sat at the pavilion and gazed into the lotus pond, the solitude and faint sorrow within her eyes made her seem like a gem that was embedded into an ink portrait. Then, when she lifted her head and nced about at her surroundings with vignce, the aura surrounding her body would flourish, and her eyes would gleam with brilliance.

    Having been covertly peeking at Tong Ruizhen¡¯s new disciple, Zou Zilong was immediately taken aback when he saw Jun Xiaomo. His eyes immediately lit up with passion and a fiery gaze.

    Zou Zilong¡¯s marriage arrangement with Princess Linglong had never once deterred him from sneaking a few ¡°side dishes¡±. In fact, Zou Zilong thoroughly enjoyed preying on the beautiful and attractive female disciples from within the Zephyr Sect, and there were many of them had suffered from his advances before.

    Some of them had caved in and obsequiously agreed to be his secret lover, while others had been so whittled down by Zou Zilong¡¯s incessant threats that they had no choice but topromise as well.

    However, no matter what the female disciples did, all of them invariably ended up with a tragic end. Princess Linglong¡¯s jealousy was not something that a normal person could stand up against, to say the least. Furthermore, Zou Zilong was always very circumspect in terms of the female disciples he picked on. He would never make any advances against female disciples who had a strong backing behind; on the other hand, he would freely threaten those whom he perceived not to have any backing at all.

    For instance, someone like Jun Xiaomo who came from a small and insignificant ce.

    ¡°My dear martial sister, you¡¯lle to enjoy this kind off ¡°disgusting¡± feeling in no time.¡± Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes were filled with lust as he embraced Jun Xiaomo and began toy his hands on her.

    Jun Xiaomo was on the brink of tearing apart Zou Zilong¡¯s nauseating face. He didn¡¯t care about his pretenses anymore, so what was the point of leaving his face on him?! However, the harder she struggled, the tighter Zou Zilong embraced her, and the deeper the fiery intensity of covetousness that burned in the depths of his eyes.

    No! I can¡¯t panic. I have to think of something!

    Jun Xiaomo had spent the better part of her previous life battling with other cultivators, so there was no reason for her to stumble on a small predicament like what she was facing right now. Very soon, she calmed her heart down, and her mind was spinning quickly as she contemted various possible countermeasures.

    Zou Zilong discovered that Jun Xiaomo was no longer struggling, and he thought that she had finally learnt to ept her fate. His heart was immensely pleased with how Jun Xiaomo seemed to have tacitly consented to his advances, and he stered a vile smile on his face as he motioned closer to her face.

    In his passion, he failed to realize that Jun Xiaomo had already freed one of her hands from his grasp and she was already holding onto a talisman in the palm of her freed hand.

    Jun Xiaomo coldly red at the depraved Zou Zilong, and she primed herself to p the Thunderbolt Talisman in her hand directly onto his face ¨C if Zou Zilong truly dared to get any closer to her!

    However, a furious scream disrupted Zou Zilong¡¯s advances.

    ¡°What in the world are you doing?!¡±

    As it turns out, someone had surreptitiously alerted Princess Linglong, who had in turn arrived just in time to catch them ¡°in the act¡±.

 Chapter 251: Jun Xiaomo Suffers from Yue Linglongâ€™s Wrath

    <h4>Chapter 251: Jun Xiaomo Suffers from Yue Linglong¡¯s Wrath</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Princess Linglong¡¯s maidservant ran up to her clumsily as she reported that the new Zephyr Sect disciple was currently seducing her fianc¨¦ by the lotus pond. At that time, Yue Linglong hardly believed her servant at all. She had seen Jun Xiaomo before. As the princess of an entire kingdom, she had spent her formative years in the pce where internal strife, schemes and ploys abounded. No matter how well-loved she was, her ability to discern the people around her was still fairly decent.

    Even though she disliked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sharp tongue and harsh words, she assessed that Jun Xiaomo was not a person who enjoyed being a third wheel and getting between people.

    That said, Yue Linglong knew that it was not wise to judge a book by its covers. Thus, she still ended up following her little maidservant just to ascertain that her earlier judgment had been right.

    As soon as she got to the lotus pond, she immediately noticed two people locked in an embrace at the pavilion. Her initial assessment of Jun Xiaomo immediately went up in smokes, and all that was left was a singlebel ¨C Vixen!

    ¡°What in the world are you doing?!¡±

    Zou Zilong reacted immediately when he heard Yue Linglong¡¯s bellow. His spirits tensed up, and he immediately pushed Jun Xiaomo away forcefully.

    Jun Xiaomo was still struggling to free herself from his embrace earlier. Now that Zou Zilong pushed her, her back mmed into the edge of the stone table behind her, and her face instantly contorted from the immense pain that spread from her lower back.

    ¡°Martial sister Jun, please have some self-respect. I have a marriage arrangement with the Princess!¡± Zou Zilong¡¯s face immediately appeared stern and somber once more, and he chided Jun Xiaomo with a righteous and upstanding tone of voice. He was practically an entirely different personpared to how he was just moments ago.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head in shock. She had never expected the perpetrator to pretend to be the victim and throw her under the bus like that!

    If Jun Xiaomo were not the person being maligned right now, she might even have been fooled by Zou Zilong¡¯s persuasive act right now.

    She gritted her teeth in pain as she red at Zou Zilong with an incensed look.

    At this moment, Princess Linglong had already made her way into the pavilion. Under the faint glow of light from dusk, she was able to see that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pale face and her gritting teeth. She immediately interpreted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances as an expression of having her hand caught in the candy jar.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, your father is a Peakmaster. Even though you hail from a small Sect, you should still know basic propriety and manners. I¡¯d never thought that you¡¯d stoop so low to snatch someone else¡¯s husband!¡± Yue Linglong barked in rage as she red furiously at Jun Xiaomo as though she were prepared to shred her into pieces in the very next moment.

    The pain emanating from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back had finally subsided substantially, and the colours on her face returned once more.

    ¡°Princess, why don¡¯t you ask your fianc¨¦ exactly what he was doing a few moments ago? Don¡¯t you think that by criticizing me the very moment you¡¯re here, you¡¯re being far too arbitrary with your judgment of this incident?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly as she retorted. This evening¡¯s incident had thoroughly enraged Jun Xiaomo and pushed her to her limits.

    ¡°My maidservant had just moments agoe running over to me informing me that you¡¯re seducing my fianc¨¦, and brother Zou has earlier asked you to have some self-respect as well. There are two eyewitnesses standing right here. Do you still intend to dispute the veracity of my judgment?!¡± Yue Linglong barked back with a fiery intensity surging from the depths of her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists, and her entire body began to tense up. Her frigid gaze swept across to the maidservant standing behind Princess Linglong. She was the one who had reported her ¡°transgressions¡± to Princess Linglong. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze caused her to bepletely taken aback in shock. Then, she continued to shift her attention andnded her gaze on Zou Zilong himself. There, she noticed the cold, mocking expression on his face.

    By this time, she had already realized that it was not going to be an easy task to extricate herself from her present predicament.

    Since Princess Linglong was unwilling to believe her, and she would rather believe the lies of the two schemers who stood behind her, Jun Xiaomo no longer had any qualms letting loose.

    She chuckled coldly, ¡°Hah, giving a dog a bad name and then hanging him? Princess, I pity you. Even though your fianc¨¦ is an invaluable treasure in your eyes, he¡¯s nothing more than a lustful scumbag in my eyes!¡±

    When Jun Xiaomoshed out with her unbridled tongue, even old, crafty foxes like He Zhang could do nothing but sumb and wallow in infuriation, much less this tender and young Princess Linglong who had grown up knowing only praise and affirmation.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were derided two people in one fell swoop ¨C she first mocked how blind Princess Linglong was; and then she also mocked and disgraced Zou Zilong.

    Yue Linglong had never encountered a ¡°love rival¡± with such a sharp tongue before. As the fury in her heart burgeoned, it also wiped our every single bit of her remaining rationality.

    ¡°Men! Tie up this woman! If this highness doesn¡¯t show her a thing or two right now, she might still think that she¡¯s still in her trash of a sect where she can do as she pleases!¡± Princess Linglong cried out in fury, and several shadows immediately flickered and shot out from her surroundings.

    These shadows no longer masked the aura and killing intent from their bodies when they charged straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    It only took Jun Xiaomo one nce to ascertain that these men were at least in the Golden Core stage of cultivation. From their appearances, they were undoubtedly part of her pce bodyguards.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that the king of the Greenwich Kingdom would be so ¡°extravagant¡±? He even has to send a whole bunch of ndestine agents to ensure her safety at the Sect. Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly to herself. She knew full well that if she were still unable to evade the attacks of Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards, she would almost certainly have to suffer some hardship at her hands this evening.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo would never give up so easily. As long as she could drag things out long enough, there would always be the hope that Tong Ruizhen woulde looking for her and rescue her.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits tensed up, and her entire being instantly became as sharp as an unsheathed spirit sword. The disposition around her body flourished.

    Princess Linglong had already taken a few steps back from where the battle was taking ce. As she red at Jun Xiaomo, she also clung onto Zou Zilong¡¯s arm as though she were proiming her right to do so. A disdainful smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    You¡¯re just a piece of trash that hade from a small, insignificant sect. So what if you¡¯ve be Sect Elder Tong¡¯s disciple? You want to oppose me? Maybe in your next life!

    A vicious intent swirling in the depths of Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes burgeoned, and her mind had already begun to think about how she was going to torment Jun Xiaomo once she had apprehended and restrained her.

    She absolutely despised the female cultivators who attempted to snatch her dear Zou Zilong away from her. Thus, she swore in her heart that she was going to teach Jun Xiaomo a lesson she would never forget!

    With a glint in his eye, Zou Zilong looked at Jun Xiaomo battle it out with Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards. Nobody knew what ran through his mind right now.

    The chasm between the sixth level of Qi Mastery and the Golden Core stage of cultivation was simply far too wide. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo was not dealing with a single bodyguard at the Golden Core stage of cultivation; she was dealing with a group of bodyguards at the Golden Core stage of cultivation. To make things worse, these bodyguards had evidently been handpicked and put through years of arduous training to get to where they are right now. Thus, Jun Xiaomo was very quickly put on her backfoot under their relentless, coordinated attacks.

    Fortunately, she still possessed some talismans within her Interspatial Ring.

    The incredible might of her talismans temporarily prevented Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards from getting close to Jun Xiaomo. In fact, they had each even sustained differing degrees of injuries. Princess Linglong hated the fact that Jun Xiaomo appeared to be so difficult to capture and restrain, and her fury burgeoned as she bellowed, ¡°Are you all on a diet?! Why do you all need such a long time to capture a piece of trash that¡¯s only in the sixth level of Qi Mastery? Are you asking for my father to punish you?!¡±

    Princess Linglong¡¯s threats were extremely effective. Everyone from the Greenwich Kingdom knew just how much the king loved and spoilt his only daughter. If she were toin about them to the king, they would most certainly be sent to the Penal Hall by their leader. When that happened, all that awaited them was to be skinned and yed alive, if not sentenced to death there and then.

    Thus, the group of bodyguards began to unleash their attacks against Jun Xiaomo with even more vigor.

    Before Jun Xiaomo left the Dawn Sect, she had already given most of her talismans to her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak, leaving only a small stack for herself. After all, she knew that she could always prepare more for herself if there was the need to do so.

    How could she have known at that time that she would encounter such trouble within the Zephyr Sect in such a short period of time?! Thus, the small stack of talismans within her Interspatial Ring began to deplete and run out.

    As soon as the bodyguards discovered that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rate of using her talismans had decreased, the bodyguards immediately gave each other a knowing look, before swiftly surrounding Jun Xiaomo on all four sides.

    Two incense sticks of timeter, one of the bodyguards finally managed to connect a powerful attack against Jun Xiaomo, knocking her straight to the ground. A serpentine streak of blood seeped out from the corner of her lips.

    At this moment, Princess Linglong walked up and looked contemptuously at Jun Xiaomo who now presented herself in a sorry state. Her lips curled into a smirk as she spoke dispassionately, ¡°A pheasant would always be a pheasant. Even if you fly up to a low-hanging branch, you¡¯ll never be a phoenix. Look, this is the result of your overconfidence. How about it? Do you finally admit that you¡¯ve been seducing brother Zou?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo wiped away the streak of blood by her lips. She lifted her head and stared straight into Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes with a grimace, ¡°My taste isn¡¯t as unique as yours, Princess. I can¡¯t bring myself to devour just any man.¡±

    Princess Linglong¡¯s face immediately twisted and contorted, while Zou Zilong¡¯s expressions darkened as well. Both of them were used to look down on people from up high, and neither of them had ever been treated with such words of contempt before.

    ¡°Alright, since you¡¯re not willing to admit it, then this highness no longer has any reason to be courteous and kind to you any longer. I was still going to let you off on ount for Sect Elder Tong too.¡± Princess Linglong gnashed her teeth with infuriation. Her vicious expression hadpletely ruined her otherwise sharp and exquisite features, ¡°Men! Have her kneel before me!¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Yue Linglong¡¯s bodyguards held Jun Xiaomo on both sides, lifted her and then kicked her, causing her to kneel down heavily onto the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo let out a painful groan.

    She could had sworn that she had heard her kneecaps fracture. The excruciating pain emanating from both knees causedrge beads of sweat to begin to run down her forehead.

    Her clothes had already been soaked through with sweat, and the immense pain caused her to start quivering uncontrobly. However, she was still unwilling to conform and show weakness before Princess Linglong. Thus, she gritted her teeth and fought through all the pain.

    Yue Linglong hated seeing the sight of people who were unwilling to admit defeat. She firmly believed that such conduct was an affront and a challenge to her pride and authority as a princess. Thus, she stepped forward towards Jun Xiaomo, grabbed a tuft of her hair and yanked hard, forcing Jun Xiaomo to lift her head.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s limbs hadpletely been restrained by the bodyguards standing to her side, and there was no way she could retaliate or struggle any further.

    ¡°Let this highness take a look at just what it is you have that allows you to seduce my fianc¨¦!¡± Yue Linglong tugged hard at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair and red viciously into her eyes. The words that flowed from her lips were so frigid that they seemed almostpletely frozen over like Thousand Year Frost, ¡°Tsk tsk, indeed, you¡¯re rather pretty. No wonder you dare to make a move against my man right here.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo red back at Yue Linglong and snorted. She puckered up her lips and grew taciturn.

    Yue Linglong detested the expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face right now. It was as though everything she had done against Jun Xiaomo right now hardly fazed or affected her. Previously, all of the female disciples who had seduced Zou Zilong had invariably grown so afraid that they would voluntarily kneel on the floor and beg for their lives. As things were right now, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions werepletely underwhelming. There were even traces of contempt and sympathy in the depths of her eyes.

    Contempt? Sympathy? What a joke! I¡¯m the Princess of an entire kingdom! Where¡¯s the logic that I should be derided and pitied by a piece of trash from a small, insignificant sect?!

    The more Yue Linglong thought about it, the more incensed she grew.

    Pak! She gave Jun Xiaomo a tight p across her face as she growled through her gritted teeth, ¡°Slut.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears rang from the p, and she momentarily lost her auditory senses.

 Chapter 252: Princess Linglongâ€™s Malevolence

    <h4>Chapter 252: Princess Linglong¡¯s Malevolence</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo discovered that she seemed to be fated to live a life of hardship. It was as though all forms of troubles and difficult situations would follow her and haunt her incessantly wherever she went.

    ¡°Cough...cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed twice and hacked, and a dribble of blood crept out of the corner of her lips once more.

    Princess Linglong did not hold anything back when she pped Jun Xiaomo earlier. Jun Xiaomo found herself instantly dazed by the strike, as though her mind was rattled about. Her face had even begun to turn slightly red and swollen.

    Having seen the fruits of her own efforts, Princess Linglong¡¯s heart began to feel much better. She despised the female cultivators who attempted to seduce Zou Zilong based on their good looks. Since they prided themselves in their looks so much, she would do all she could to take away the only advantage that they held over others!

    Yue Linglong grabbed Jun Xiaomo by her hair and forced her to lift her head again. In fact, she did it with such force that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck had begun to look up at an odd angle.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were hazy. The image of Princess Linglong standing before her was somewhat blurry. The only thing that she could most clearly make out was the twisted and malevolent expression on her face right now.

    As the ringing in her ears gradually subsided, the first thing that Jun Xiaomo heard was Princess Linglong¡¯s threats.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, heed this highness¡¯s advice ¨C you should admit that you¡¯ve seduced brother Zou and apologize to me. Otherwise, this highness isn¡¯t going to let you off, even on ount of the fact that you¡¯re Sect Elder Tong¡¯s disciple!¡± Yue Linglong gnashed her teeth as she suggested.

    Unfortunately, Yue Linglong didn¡¯t understand Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality one bit. Jun Xiaomo was already feeling immensely stifled and aggrieved. If Yue Linglong had attempted to use softer words to cajole her into apromise, things might have gone much smoother. However, these high-and-mighty words of intimidation was something that Jun Xiaomo had never ¨C and would never ¨C take lying down.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s swollen face twitched slightly, before she revealed a contemptuous smile on her face, ¡°Dear princess, are you wheedling a three years-old child? Given your current expressions and temperament, would you let me off even if I did what you asked?¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo addressed her as ¡°dear princess¡±, her words were evidently filled with disdain and mockery.

    Princess Linglong cackled wickedly, before snorting, ¡°Smart. Truth be told, even if you admit your transgressions, this highness had never intended to let you go. At best, I might let you die a quicker death.¡±

    She had never let off alive any of the female disciples who had seduced her man. This was not simply an issue with her feelings and emotions at any particr time ¨C this concerned her image as the Princess of an entire kingdom. If she spared these ¡°love rivals¡± of hers, wouldn¡¯t others learn that they could simply step all over her head? She had to make an example of the perpetrators to warn all others out there!

    The mockery in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face burgeoned even more as she added, ¡°Princess Linglong, I really pity you. You prefer to live off the lies constructed by the man you hold dear to you rather than open your eyes and see for yourself his true, vile character.¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions were filled with contempt, her voice was incredibly calm and cid, as though she were simply expounding a universal truth.

    ¡°Silence! Do you think this highness is a fool? You¡¯re just attempting to sow discord between this highness and his fianc¨¦ so that you can slip between us through the rift you¡¯ve created! Let this highness tell you something ¨C dream on! This highness had personally seen you embrace her fianc¨¦ without any intention of letting go. Furthermore, my maidservant had also personally witnessed you making advances against brother Zou. Are you still denying all this?!¡±

    ¡°Since I¡¯ve not done it, why can¡¯t I deny your allegations?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Princess Linglong¡¯s reaction as though she had just stubbed her toe. The expressions in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes wereced with a slight bemusement, as though she had just seen a little clown attempt to bully someone.

    ¡°Good. Very good.¡± Yue Linglong nodded her head as she added, ¡°Since you insist on denying that you¡¯ve seduced brother Zou, then this highness is going to beat you until you cave!¡±

    As soon as Yue Linglong finished speaking, she immediately retrieved a long whip that was covered in spikes from her Interspatial Ring. As soon as the spiked whip made its appearance, the surrounding temperatures immediately dipped considerably, as though a cold front had just hit the surroundings.

    As soon as she saw the whip, the maidservant beside Yue Linglong immediately shivered and lowered her head as she did her best to mask the guilty-conscience and fear in her heart.

    She was the one who had called Princess Linglong over just so that Princess Linglong could witness for herself the sight of Jun Xiaomo ¡°seducing¡± Zou Zilong. The truth of the matter was that the maidservant had already been bribed by someone to act as their pawn to lure Yue Linglong out at the right time tomit an irreparable mistake.

    Today, she had received her master¡¯s instructions to bring Yue Linglong to the pavilion by the lotus pond under the pretext of capturing a ¡°slut¡± red handed. In fact, the maidservant was well aware that given the temperament of parties, the truth might be far from what they perceived it to be.

    After all, having followed Yue Linglong for such a long time, the maidservant could very much tell for herself what Zou Zilong¡¯s personality was like. It was highly likely that Zou Zilong was the one who had lusted after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s beauty and made advances against her, not the other way around.

    However, she could only keep these things in the depths of her heart. She would never reveal these things because she was not a charitable person to begin with. After all, the pce grounds were a ce where the survival of the fittest thrived, and there was no room for any unnecessary kindness to others.

    As soon as Princess Linglong retrieved the spike whip from her Interspatial Ring, the maidservant, whose name was ¡°Xiao-Er¡±, knew that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s road wasing to an end.

    This spiked whip was otherwise known as the ¡°Bonebreaker¡±, and it was a weapon forged from the tendons of the Earthsplitting Dragon. It possessed formidable offensive abilities, and it would synergize and grow in tandem with its master as his or her cultivation gradually improved.

    Even though Princess Linglong¡¯s present cultivation was only in the elementary-tier Foundation Establishment stage, tens of people had already perished from the dreadful abilities of the Bonebreaker. Her maidservant, Xiao-Er, had personally witnessed how Princess Linglong had unleashed the Bonebreaker on a martial sister, ying her skin and breaking her bones, until that martial sister finally perished from the excruciating pain of being mangled and contorted in a horrendous manner. When she finally perished, there was not a single bone in her body that remained intact.

    This was why the maidservant shuddered at the sight when she saw Princess Linglong retrieve the Bonebreaker from her Interspatial Ring to begin with.

    If Princess Linglong ever finds out that she had already turned traitorous, she would meet with an even more morbid end. At that time, even death itself would be a form of relief to her. The only thing she feared more than death was living a life worse than death.

    Thus, she kept her lips tightly shut and her expressions well hidden. She knew that she could not divulge any bit of her hidden identity.

    As for Jun Xiaomo, she could only mutter an apology to her in her heart. Under such circumstances where she was forced to choose between her life or someone else, she would naturally choose for someone else to die in her stead. Thus, Jun Xiaomo absolutely had to perish here and now!

    The maidservant whose head was lowered at this point in time revealed a vicious expression across her face ¨C Jun Xiaomo, if there¡¯s anyone you want to me, you can only me yourself for having crossed the Princess¡¯s path to begin with.

    Yue Linglong did not notice the peculiar expression and behaviour of her maidservant standing behind her. Yue Linglong¡¯s heart waspletely focused on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body right now, and she contemted the various options of how she was going to torment the bolddy who had seduced her fianc¨¦.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, this highness knows that you¡¯re a tough nut to crack. If your toughness hadn¡¯t manifested against me, perhaps I might even have increased my assessment of who you are. Unfortunately, your unyielding personality has manifested in the worst possible time and ce. Don¡¯t me this highness for not remind you to begin with. Do you see the spiked whip in this highness¡¯s hands? Do you know what it¡¯s called?¡± Yue Linglong began to walk around Jun Xiaomo. As she spoke, she chuckled sardonically, ¡°Oh, this highness forgot that you¡¯re a simpleton from a small, insignificant sect, so you wouldn¡¯t know as much. Then let this princess tell you...¡±

    ¡°This is called ¡®Bonebreaker¡¯. It¡¯s forged from the tendon of the Earthsplitting Dragon. Even a Ninefold Essenceme wouldn¡¯t be able to burn or break it. Its effects are best seen when beating up a person ¨C it would allow the person being beaten to experience the sensation of having every inch of his bone being broken and shattered.¡±

    Yue Linglong slowly explicated and littered her spiel with well-timed pauses. She wanted to take in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions at various portions of her spiel and see for herself whether she revealed any traces of fear or dread.

    But to her disappointment, Jun Xiaomo only continued to coldly re at her with a grimace on her lips.

    ¡°Hah, forget it. This highness should just let you taste its effects for yourself.¡± As Yue Linglong finished speaking, the whip in her arm immediatelyshed out towards Jun Xiaomo. Pak! A clear whish resounded, followed quickly by the sound of silk being ripped out and the sickening crunch of breaking bones.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but let out a groan, and her body began to quiver uncontrobly. It was excruciating. Blood poured out from the location of the whish, and her clothes were quickly stained red with her blood.

    Yue Linglong raised an eyebrow as she continued to deride Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Not bad at all. Most people in the past immediately caved after the very first whish. Some would beg for mercy, cry, or even faint from the pain. I¡¯d never expected you to be able to hold out so well. But since you¡¯re able to hold out so well, then keep on holding out, alright? Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t be any fun for me.¡±

    Yue Linglong revealed a macabre smile on her face. As soon as she finished speaking, she began to sendsh aftersh of her whip onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Each whish was imbued with her spiritual energy, as though she were desirous of draining the remaining life force and vitality from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo knew that her death was near. Her surroundings had already begun to twist and contort and be hazy. Then, within a few moments, everything faded to ck, and she passed out.

    Up to this point, she had not a single time let out a single cry of pain.

    ¡°Your Highness, she¡¯s passed out. Are you still going to keep on beating her?¡± One of the bodyguards restraining Jun Xiaomo reminded Princess Linglong.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disy of pure grit and sheer willpower to fight through the pain had earned the respect of the bodyguards. That said, they were no more than mere bodyguards to Yue Linglong when all was said and done, and their stature meant that they had to listen to Yue Linglong¡¯s everymand and orders. They were not at liberty to simply let Jun Xiaomo off like that.

    The bodyguard who spoke was not the only one who thought this way. In this cultivation world, it was not only the strong who earned the respect of others ¨C those with incredible determination and willpower could equally also earn the respect of others for themselves, because those with strong willpower and determination would invariably walk further down the path of cultivation than most others.

    Thus, just as much as the bodyguards were impressed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fortitude, they also reminded Princess Linglong that she had fainted in the hope that Princess Linglong would be willing to let her off.

    However, it was evident that their hopes would be dashed by Princess Linglong¡¯s awful character.

    The fact that Jun Xiaomo had passed out did please Princess Linglong. However, the fact that she had done so without making a peep of sound earlier had incensed Princess Linglong to an even greater degree.

    Thus, Princess Linglong red back at the bodyguard who spoke up as she retorted, ¡°So what if she passes out? Don¡¯t you know how to wake her up again? We¡¯ll continue until she¡¯s dead!¡±

    Thus, under Yue Linglong¡¯s orders, two of the bodyguards fetched a pail of ice water and doused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with it.

    Under the shocking temperature of the ice water, Jun Xiaomo slowly returned to her senses.

    ¡°Not dead yet, right? You¡¯re pretty strong to be able to hold it all in until you pass out. However, forcing the issue right now only means you¡¯ll have to suffer yet even more.¡± Princess Linglong continued to mock Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo had bit down on her lower lips so much that there was now a deep ring of blood stains within her lips. She red back at Princess Linglong, shut her eyes, and she grew taciturn once more.

    ¡°Hmph! Since you¡¯re so good at taking a beating, then you¡¯d better keep your mouth shut as this highness beats you to death!¡± As Yue Linglong finished speaking, she began tosh out with her whip once more.

    Crack after crack of the whip...Jun Xiaomo felt an immense wave of pain each and every time she was struck, yet she had also somewhat grown numb to the constant wave of pain emanating from all over her body. Her soul felt as though it were hanging in mid-air, floating above her as she looked at her own body being iled as she hung on to dear life. The truth of the matter was that she was indeed in her final breaths.

    Am I really going to perish here? It¡¯s such a shame...what¡¯s going to happen to father and mother, and all of the martial brothers within the Heavenly Peak? And martial brother Ye who¡¯s yet to return...

    Jun Xiaomo felt as though there was a thick swathe of air lodged in her throat. Then, gradually, the true energy within her Dantian and meridians began to spin quicker, and quicker...

    Suddenly, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body exploded with an intense blue light. The two bodyguards beside her was immediately shocked by the appearance of this blue light, and they reflexively loosened their grasp on Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the restrains on her arms had loosened, and she quickly capitalized on this prime opportunity that had presented itself. In one fell swoop, she wrested her arms free and quickly stuffed two recovery pills into her mouth.

    As the true energy in her body continued to increase, she also felt the slightly warm earrings hanging on her earlobes emanate a faint, soulless blue light.

    It appears that she was on the brink of a breakthrough, while the intense blue light earlier was undoubtedly from the earrings hanging on her ear. In that moment of crisis, the energy stored within her earrings had once again breached their restraints and preserved her life.

    Seems like brother Rong has saved my life yet again. Jun Xiaomo thought in her heart, as a bitter smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    Sigh, the debts I¡¯m owing to brother Rong is only mounting as time goes by...

 Chapter 253: Sect Elder Tong Has Finally Arrived!

    <h4>Chapter 253: Sect Elder Tong Has Finally Arrived!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yue Linglong had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be able to slip out from right under her nose at this point in time. She had earlier sent her whish straight to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face with the hope of disfiguring her. However, an intense blue light had burst out from nowhere, obstructing her view and causing her to miss. Not only that, the blue light had even provided Jun Xiaomo with the prime opportunity to shake off her restraints and make her escape.

    ¡°What are you guys waiting for?! Chase after her! Bunch of useless idiots ¨C you can¡¯t even hold down a person who¡¯s on the brink of death!¡± Yue Linglong barked anxiously. Her fiery re of indignation burgeoned, as though she were ready to consume her bodyguards within the very next moment.

    Where was Yue Linglong¡¯s dignified, royal disposition now? At this point in time, she was no better than an enraged lioness that was ventting its frustration on anything in sight.

    The bodyguards had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be able to make her escape either. At Yue Linglong¡¯s orders, all of them instantly gave chase and rushed after Jun Xiaomo.

    As Jun Xiaomo ran, she swiftly retrieved and consumed another recovery pill from her Interspatial Ring. Under the confluence of the three recovery pills she had taken so far, she gradually began to feel better, and the muddle-headedness apanying the pain and blood loss from her injuries also dwindled substantially.

    When it came to escaping from pursuers after her life, Jun Xiaomo was practically second to none. After all, she had spent several hundred years escaping in her previous life. Even if there was just a tiny shred of opportunity to make her escape, Jun Xiaomo would clutch tightly onto that thread of hope and forge herself a path for survival.

    Princess Linglong had initially thought that Jun Xiaomo would be caving and begin to beg her for mercy. Yet in the blink of an eye, she had suddenly be no less than a slippery eel, darting about furiously and bing as elusive a target as any. Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards rushed here and there and spared no efforts, yet they still found themselves at aplete loss in capturing Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Garbage! All of you are garbage!¡± Princess Linglong was so maddened that she stamped her feet on the ground.

    Zou Zilong had been watching everything pan out from the side as though the matter hardly concerned him at all. If one were unaware of how the incident transpired to begin with, nobody would be able to tell that he was in fact the main culprit who triggered the entire incident. His gazended on the unruly and headstrong Princess Linglong, and a trace of disgust flickered across the depths of his heart. Then, when he turned his attention to Jun Xiaomo, a faint sense of passion and lust crept up from the depths of his heart. However, he very quickly suppressed it and kept it under reins.

    Jun Xiaomo was covered with scars and traces of the earlier whishes that had torn her clothes and rent her flesh. Even though Jun Xiaomo was in an incredibly sorry state at this moment, the endurance and unrelenting gaze in the depths of her eyes only served to fuel Zou Zilong¡¯s sadistic tendencies. If not for the fact that the present circumstances were rather unique and special, he might well have rushed forward and begun to tear and rip Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes off her body right now.

    Zou Zilong firmly believed that it would be incredibly satisfying making love to ady with such an intense pair of eyes.

    However, Zou Zilong knew what he should do and what he should not do. Princess Linglong was evidently furious right now, and he knew that there was no need for him to offend the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s greatest backer just for a woman that he had not and most probably would never be able to devour.

    It was not as though he had never seen a beautifuldy before ¨C losing Jun Xiaomo would never be considered a great loss to him.

    Despite all the ponderances of his heart, Zou Zilong maintained a cool and cid expression on his face. He looked as though he could hardly care less about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s predicament, and this pleased and cated the earlier infuriated Princess Linglong ¨C See? Brother Zou had hardly any concern and affection for that woman. It must have been Jun Xiaomo who had attempted to seduce him to begin with.

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear the thoughts of Princess Linglong¡¯s heart right now, she would most certainly mock at her for being even more ignorant and na?ve that she was in her previous life.

    Jun Xiaomo ran out of the pavilion as Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards gave chase. At the same time, she took the opportunity to alert Tong Ruizhen of her emergency and request his assistance. Unfortunately, she found herself at the end of her road within moments after that.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. The damage to her body caused by the Bonebreaker was far too severe. Even though Jun Xiaomo had stuffed herself with several recovery pills, there was no way her body would recover so quickly in such a short time. Furthermore, there were signs that she was on the brink of breaking through the bottleneck of the sixth level of Qi Mastery into the seventh level of Qi Mastery. Under the confluence of these factors, the fact that she could hold out for such a long time was already an amazing feat.

    Just then, one of Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards finally managed tond yet another strike on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. A nauseating stench of blood surged within her body and gushed up through her throat, erupting into a fountain of blood that sprayed from her mouth. Jun Xiaomo clutched at her chest and copsed onto the ground, and Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards immediately surrounded her once more.

    ¡°Enough! Stay your hands!¡± A domineering voice called out from a distance away. This voice was imbued with its owner¡¯s oppressive aura, and it immediately caused Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards to pause in their actions. Jun Xiaomo struggled to lift her head, and she discovered that several people were running over towards her on a small path in the distance. Apart from Zhuang Lenghui, there were some others whom she did not recognize. That said, she could tell from the garments they wore that their stature within the Sect must not be too low.

    ¡°Just what in the world is going on here?¡± The domineering voice queried.

    The owner of this voice was a middle-aged man with speckles of white hair. His sharp gaze swept across Jun Xiaomo, towards the bodyguards who were beside Jun Xiaomo, and then finally ended on the little pavilion overlooking the lotus pond some distance away.

    Even though she very much wanted to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life with unendingshes of her Bonebreaker whip, Princess Linglong no longer dared to act out of line now that others had arrived on the scene.

    After adjusting her own clothes, Princess Linglong slowly walked over to where Jun Xiaomo was. As soon as she saw who it was who had arrived on scene, a faint smile crept up Princess Linglong¡¯s lips. The haughtiness in her eyes remained just as thick and dense as before, and she lifted her chin as she red back down at Jun Xiaomo and ounted for her actions, ¡°Third Elder, this highness believed that this Zephyr Sect disciple had conducted herself out of line, so I had on behalf of the Sect taught her a lesson. It shouldn¡¯t be considered too much, right?¡±

    The Third Elder was slightly taken aback, and the fierce glint and oppressiveness of his eyes subsided substantially.

    It was part of the Zephyr Sect regtions that their disciples were not allowed to hurt each other. After all, unity and harmony were incredibly important to a Sect¡¯s growth and development. At the very least, they would have to maintain some measure of cordiality and harmony on the surface.

    If any other disciple had boldly treated a new Sect disciple in such a harsh manner, he would most certainly be sent to the Penal Hall instantly. But Yue Linglong was different. Her primary identity was that of a princess; and being a Zephyr Sect disciple was only her secondary identity. There was nobody present right now who had the authority or the gall to send her straight into the Penal Hall.

    Furthermore, the Third Elder was one of the Sect Elders supporting the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s faction, pushing for its Peakmaster, Wei Xingping to be made the next Sect Leader of the Zephyr Sect. The Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s support in this regard was paramount, and the Third Elder naturally knew that he ought not jeopardize their odds of victory.

    Princess Linglong appreciated the fact that she held the key to the present delicate bnce as well. Thus, when she saw that the person who had arrived was none other than the Third Elder, she was filled with confidence.

    As for Zhuang Lenghui, Yue Linglong could hardly care less about her. After all, the Third Elder¡¯s stature was the highest among all who were present, and the decision maker of all that was present would naturally be him.

    ¡°Since this disciple had offended this princess highness, then feel free to do as you deem fit, princess.¡± The Third Elder dered sternly with some measure of gravitas, but his words only made Jun Xiaomo utterly disappointed with the Zephyr Sect. Jun Xiaomo stared back at the Third Elder in shock, but she was only returned with apletely expressionless face ¨C not a single ripple of emotion could be seen in his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo finally realized that even though everyone here appeared to be upright and virtuous, they were no different from the other sects she had encountered in her previous life which had professed to be upstanding and sanctimonious, yet who would cast aside all measure of virtue and principles for any measure of profit or benefits to themselves.

    She clenched her fists tightly. At this moment, she truly regretteding to the Zephyr Sect. She was not afraid of death; rather, she was only afraid that her death would bring amount immense grief and pain to her family and loved ones.

    Princess Linglong smiled in delight. She brandished her Bonebreaker whip once more as she drew closer to Jun Xiaomo one step at a time.

    This time, she would make sure that Jun Xiaomo would be thoroughly disfigured before slowly tormenting her to death!

    Just then, one of the disciples beside the Third Elder leaned closer and whispered something into the Third Elder¡¯s ears, causing the Third Elder to furrow his brows, ¡°Sect Elder Tong¡¯s disciple?¡±

    The disciple beside the Third Elder nodded his head. The Third Elder thought aloud, ¡°Since that¡¯s Sect Elder Tong¡¯s disciple, then we¡¯ve got to reassess the situation.¡±

    ¡°Hold on, princess highness. I¡¯m afraid that you can¡¯t touch this disciple.¡± The Third Elder raised his hand, gesturing for Princess Linglong to stay her hand. By now, Princess Linglong had already raised her whip and was already poised to strike.

    Princess Linglong was naturally displeased that she had to stop, and she coldly remarked, ¡°Third Elder, what do you mean by this? Can¡¯t this highness deal with a measly, misbehaving disciple of the Sect?¡±

    ¡°Princess highness, she¡¯s Sect Elder Tong¡¯s new disciple, so I¡¯m afraid...¡± The Third Elder observed Princess Linglong¡¯s expressions keenly as he paused to pick his words.

    The authority and gravitas that the Third Elder had originally possessed was nowpletely gone. It was as though he were sincerely and carefully entreating Princess Linglong right now in order to appease her.

    ¡°This highness doesn¡¯t give a damn! So what if she¡¯s Sect Elder Tong¡¯s newest disciple? Are you saying that Tong Ruizhen is more important than the princess of an entire kingdom?!¡± Princess Linglong screamed in rage as sheshed out against the floor with her whip. A crevice immediately formed on the ground where the whip hadnded.

    One could only imagine the kind of damage this whish would have caused to Jun Xiaomo had itnded on her body! Several people who were standing around couldn¡¯t help but turn their attention towards the wounds on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body that were so deep that even her bones could be seen.

    Even though they all pitied the woundeddy who had be the princess¡¯stest target, they still chose self-preservation over interjecting.

    Jun Xiaomo looked coldly as this pathetic scene yed out before her very eyes. As Yue Linglong drew closer towards her, Jun Xiaomo began tough. Suppressing the pain emanating from her wounds, Jun Xiaomoughed hysterically, ¡°Hahahahahaha...So this is the so-called Greater Sect, where even a Sect Elder has to obsequiously listen to the orders of a princess of a small kingdom. Hahahahaha...¡±

    ¡°Shut your trap! You¡¯re not allowed to mock the Greenwich Kingdom! The Greenwich Kingdom is small?! Hmph! Do you believe me when I say that any single one of the little dogs following beside this highness would be able to crush you with hardly any efforts?!¡± Princess Linglong red straight at Jun Xiaomo with a macabre look in her eyes as she bellowed.

    Some distance away, her bodyguards discreetly clenched their fists tightly, before loosening them in the very next moment.

    At the same time, the maidservant standing behind her also lowered her head, and a trace of indignation and hatred shed across her eyes ¨C Isn¡¯t that the truth? The princess had always treated them no more than as a little dog.

    No, in fact, the princess had treated them worse than a dog. The princess¡¯s pet, Snowie, lived a life that was a hundred ¨C even a thousand times ¨C better than the rest of her servants. Apart from attending to the princess¡¯s every whims and fancies, her servants even had to act as her punching bag. From time to time, the princess would pick a servant andsh at them with her whip as and when she felt like it. Those who were lucky would barely live to tell their tale; while those who were less fortunate would sumb to their injuries and perish for no reason whatsoever.

    This was why her maidservant, Xiao-Er, had chosen to betray her master. She did not want to continue living in fear like this any longer. As soon as she had saved enough money, she nned to leave the pce and leave this part of her life behind her.

    Xiao-Er lifted her head and nced at the others who had just arrived on scene ¨C in particr, she looked straight at Zhuang Lenghui.

    Zhuang Lenghui coincidentally swept her gaze across towards Xiao-Er, before turning her attention back towards themotion between Jun Xiaomo and Yue Linglong. A faint, discreet smile crept up the corner of her lips. It was an incredibly cold and frigid smile.

    Princess Linglong¡¯s maidservant lowered her head once more and bit down on her lower lips. A bright gleam shed across her eyes.

    That idiot Princess Linglong must be unaware that several of her servants have already been bought over by Zhuang Lenghui, including me. Xiao-Er mocked Princess Linglong in her heart. She was filled with disdain for Princess Linglong.

    On the other hand, Xiao-Er¡¯s true master, Zhuang Lenghui, watched on with delight as her schemes came to fruition. She was particrly pleased with the fact that both of her enemies, Jun Xiaomo and Yue Linglong, were now inextricably embroiled in the dispute arising from the trap that she had set.

    Everything was going ording to her ns. She had bribed Xiao-Er, and Xiao-Er had in turn heeded her instructions and reported Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°seduction¡± to Princess Linglong.

    Her n was indeed to spark a war among Yue Linglong, Zou Zilong and Jun Xiaomo, so that she could sit idly by the side and reap the benefits of their tension.

    Most importantly, Zhuang Lenghui couldn¡¯t stand the fact that Jun Xiaomo had earned Tong Ruizhen¡¯s favour and be his disciple. She wanted Jun Xiaomo to taste some measure of hardship, and she would undoubtedly be delighted if she could even kill Jun Xiaomo with a borrowed knife.

    As things looked right now, her n was indeed incredibly effective.

    See? Aren¡¯t Jun Xiaomo and Yue Linglong embroiled in this mess right now? Zhuang Lenghui curled her lips into a macabre smile as she thought to herself in delight.

    At this moment, Zhuang Lenghui was waiting with bated breath for their dispute to escte to its climax; the Third Elder trembled nervously; and Zou Zilong continued to watch idly as the main perpetrator, Princess Linglong poised herself to deliver a deathblow to Jun Xiaomo. All of a sudden, an infuriated voice filled with gusto bellowed across the sky, causing everyone to cock their heads towards the owner of the voice in surprise ¨C

    ¡°Stop right there! Who dares to hurt my disciple?!!!¡±

    As the incensed bellow sent tremors across the surroundings, a massive Heavenly Crane pped its wings and descended amidst the onlookers as it threw its head back and cried, as though echoing its own master.

    Tong Ruizhen had finally arrived.

 Chapter 254: Iâ€™ve Got a Backer â€“ Masterâ€™s Behind Me!

    <h4>Chapter 254: I¡¯ve Got a Backer ¨C Master¡¯s Behind Me!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Several persons¡¯ faces turned downcast as soon as they saw Tong Ruizhen¡¯s arrival at the scene, especially the Third Elder. Faced with Tong Ruizhen¡¯s infuriated gaze, the Third Elderpletely lost his imposing aura and a trace of sheepishness and embarrassment flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    Tong Ruizhen¡¯s protective attitude towards his disciple was something that was well-known throughout the Sect. Quite apart from the fact that this entire incident had been a huge fuss unterally caused by Princess Linglong¡¯s unruly behaviour, Tong Ruizhen would most certainly protect Jun Xiaomo to the very end, even if she had been the one in the wrong.

    This was why the Third Elder hesitated and considered whether to persuade the princess to let Jun Xiaomo off when he heard that Jun Xiaomo was Tong Ruizhen¡¯s new disciple.

    In terms of personal abilities, there was no reason for the Third Elder to be afraid of Tong Ruizhen. That said, Tong Ruizhen held the key to innumerable formation arrays within the Sect. If he offended Tong Ruizhen, all Tong Ruizhen needed to do was to make some small alterations to these formation arrays, and there was no doubt that he would end up suffering at Tong Ruizhen¡¯s hands.

    In fact, suffering at Tong Ruizhen¡¯s hands was the least of his concerns right now. The worst that could happen would be to have his own actions catalyze Tong Ruizhen¡¯s support for the opposing Peak¡¯s faction.

    Since he was able to be a Sect Elder of a Greater Sect, the Third Elder was naturally a person adept at bothbat abilities as well as maneuveringplex human rtionships. In fact, in the moment that Tong Ruizhen appeared, his mind began to churn, and he knew that he would have to find a suitable excuse in order to appease the fire that was burning in Tong Ruizhen¡¯s heart.

    Yet despite all of the Third Elder¡¯s meticulous contemtions, he failed to take into consideration the variables that were standing close by in the distance. He had taken Tong Ruizhen¡¯s abilities and stature in the grand scheme of things into ount. Unfortunately, Princess Linglong had not. This was especially the case since Princess Linglong was still fuming mad that her ns had been foiled, and everything she said right now would most certainly be disastrous for their situation.

    Thus, before the Third Elder coulde up with an appropriate countermeasure, Princess Linglong fired the first verbal salvo. She pointed at Jun Xiaomo in her anger and barked at Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Sect Elder Tong, your disciple dared to seduce this highness¡¯s fianc¨¦. Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve got to give an ount to this highness for her actions?!¡±

    ¡°ount?! Hmph! I¡¯ve only seen you bullying my disciple. I didn¡¯t see her seduce your lover.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen had particrly emphasized the words ¡°lover¡± with undertones of humiliation and mockery, provoking Princess Linglong even further.

    ¡°You! You old fogey. As expected, the disciple takes after the master. You¡¯re certainly thick-skinned!¡± Princess Linglong castigated Tong Ruizhen.

    ¡°At least I¡¯m better than some princess of a kingdom who nders others!¡± Tong Ruizhen snorted as he retorted. Princess Linglong and Tong Ruizhen had rarely interacted much with each other, and Princess Linglong had never expected to find someone within the Zephyr Sect who would not take her stature into consideration when dealing with her. Thus, she was momentarily at a loss for words, and she simply gnashed her teeth as she red at Tong Ruizhen.

    Tong Ruizhen slid off his Heavenly Crane and ran towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. He furrowed his brows immediately, before retrieving a recovery pill and feeding it straight to her.

    This recovery pill was far stronger than the other three that Jun Xiaomo had earlier used. Very quickly, the excruciating pain from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body subsided substantially.

    ¡°Thanks, master.¡± Jun Xiaomo panted weakly as she thanked Tong Ruizhen. Her chest was still feeling incredibly suffocated from her injuries, and her mouth was still filled with the nauseating stench of blood.

    Tong Ruizhen patted her shoulder as he responded, ¡°Your current condition isn¡¯t great. Don¡¯t speak too much. Leave everything to master.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, and her heart was filled with a warm sensation.

    Once Tong Ruizhen ascertained that his disciple¡¯s life was no longer in danger, his expressions changed once more. He turned around and swept his sullen gaze across Princess Linglong and her entourage of people at the pavilion.

    When Jun Xiaomo first informed him that something had happened, he had only thought that a minor conflict had urred, and she would not be in any grave danger to life and limb. After all, no matter how one looked at it, nobody within the Zephyr Sect should logically dare to make a move against Jun Xiaomo on ount for Tong Ruizhen¡¯s identity and importance within the Sect.

    Thus, when Tong Ruizhen discovered that the injuries on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was far more serious than he had expected, even teetering on the edge of being life-threatening, Tong Ruizhen was thoroughly enraged.

    Don¡¯t be fooled by Sect Elder Tong¡¯s usual happy-go-lucky and warm attitude. The truth of the matter was that when he explodes in rage, even the Grand Elder and the Second Elder of the Zephyr Sect would give in to him. After all, who wouldn¡¯t be afraid to invoke the ire of Sect Elder Tong? With his abilities, Sect Elder Tong could easily construct a massive formation array to trap the sect elders in an illusion for days and nights on end, tearing down their pride and trampling on their reputation on the ground.

    This was why the Third Elder had chosen to remain taciturn.

    Unfortunately, Princess Linglong did not appreciate this fact. Even though Tong Ruizhen¡¯s darkened expressions had thoroughly frightened her, that fright lingered for nothing more than a moment. Very soon, the pride and arrogance that apanied her stature disced the frightened attitude within her, and she red back at Tong Ruizhen as she viciously pressed the issue, ¡°Sect Elder Tong, are you determined not to hand over your disciple?¡±

    ¡°What can you do to me if I choose not to hand her over?¡± Tong Ruizhen squinted his eyes as he responded with another question.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll report you to the king?!¡±

    ¡°Hahahahaha...Yue Linglong, do you think that the Zephyr Sect falls within the scope of governance of your Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s authority? You¡¯d even included me within the ranks too! Should I say that you¡¯re na?ve, or should I say that you¡¯re ignorant?¡± Tong Ruizhen mocked, causing Yue Linglong to re back at Tong Ruizhen with widened eyes.

    ¡°Insolence! You dare to tarnish this highness¡¯s good name?!¡± Yue Linglong barked back.

    Tong Ruizhen retorted with contempt, ¡°Royalty is nothing more than a fart to us cultivators!¡±

    This was true. To cultivators, the mortal world¡¯s royalty truly did not count for very much. In fact, the expert cultivators who were already at the peak of the Transcendence stage of cultivation could by themselves destroy half a kingdom with incredible ease. That said, the benefits of having ties to royalty was undoubtedly the wealth and connections that apanied it. If one cooperated with the members of the royalty, they would invariably see treasures and resources show up at their doorsteps in the form of gifts.

    This was why the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Peakmaster had sought to establish an inextricable tie to the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s king to begin with. With the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s support, they would essentially have gained for themselves a resource vein, and they would be able to obtain anything they required in future.

    This was particrly tempting, even for a Sect Leader. After all, as the Sect¡¯s ranking grows higher, their average monthly expenditure would also see amensurate increment. Having the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s support would undoubtedly mean that the pressure of maintaining a steady source of ie for their expenditures would naturally be alleviated.

    All this while, Zou Zilong had been standing at the side minding his own business. When he noticed that Princess Linglong was about to explode with rage again, he finally decided to step in.

    ¡°Princess Highness, I think that martial sister Xiaomo has already suffered enough punishments for her actions today. Why not...let this matter slide just like that.¡± Zou Zilong walked to Yue Linglong¡¯s side and warmly cajoled her.

    He could not afford to offend Sect Elder Tong because of this incident. Thus, he had hoped to write off the matter just like that.

    ¡°On what basis should I let things slide?! This slut hasn¡¯t even admitted her own transgressions!¡± Yue Linglongpletely ignored Zou Zilong¡¯s cajoling. Not only was she not appeased one bit by Zou Zilong¡¯s cajoling, she seemed to have be even more aggravated by it.

    ¡°How dare you! Who are you saying is a slut?!¡± Tong Ruizhen couldn¡¯t take it any longer, and he barked with widened eyes. This was the first time he had seen somebody humiliate his own disciple in front of his very eyes.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? Apart from your dear disciple, who else around do you think could be a called a ¡®slut¡¯?¡± Yue Linglong retorted contemptuously.

    ¡°You!¡± Tong Ruizhen was on the brink of rolling up his sleeves and giving Princess Linglong a good beating. Who cares if she¡¯s a Princess?! I¡¯ll beat her up regardless!

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo held him back in time. Tong Ruizhen turned his head back and discovered that his disciple had already stood up.

    Jun Xiaomo was far more spirited right now ¨C at least she was far better than when she was copsed on the ground earlier, covered in wounds and scars. She smiled in gratitude to Tong Ruizhen, before addressing everyone else around, ¡°I, Jun Xiaomo, can swear to the heavens that I¡¯d never made any advances towards Zou Zilong nor sought to seduce him.¡±

    ¡°You make things sound prim and proper, but at the end of the day, it¡¯s just a verbal promise. Anyone can do that much.¡± Yue Linglong mocked.

    ¡°Then, what if I use the Authentication Array on it? If there¡¯s any modicum of a lie in my words, then I¡¯ll be punished by the Authentication Array. At that time, anyone would be able to tell whether my words have been nothing but the truth, or aplete lie.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke with absolute coolness, yet her gaze towards Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong was filled with frigidity.

    ¡°Hehehe, you¡¯re truly a good disciple of mine. Even master had overlooked something like the Authentication Array.¡± Tong Ruizhen smiled in satisfaction. Then, his expression turned sharp and cold again as he barked with gusto, ¡°How about it, Princess Linglong? Do you dare to have a bet with my disciple using the Authentication Array?¡±

    ¡°Bet? Why should this highness have to make any bets with you?¡± As soon as Yue Linglong heard Jun Xiaomo suggest the Authentication Array, her heart immediately swelled with a sense of unease. Thus, she immediately rejected Tong Ruizhen before even listening to the contents of what the bet would entail.

    ¡°Hmph! As I see it, you simply don¡¯t dare to make a bet with my disciple, because you¡¯re afraid that your pride and reputation would be trampled on if you lose. And if my disciple hasn¡¯t done anything wrong like seducing your fianc¨¦, yet you¡¯ve harmed my disciple to such an extent, don¡¯t you think that I should ask you for an ount of your actions?!¡±

    ¡°You dare?!¡± Yue Linglong had never expected Tong Ruizhen to seek an ount of her actions directly from her!

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I dare? I¡¯ve lived for such a long time now, so what makes you think I¡¯ll be scared of a little Greenwich Kingdom? Besides, don¡¯t you think for one moment that the Greenwich Kingdom will be able to do anything against me ¨C do you even realize the number of people, including your father, who¡¯s been begging for me to set up formation arrays in the kingdom for them?!¡± Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°So, how about it? Are you willing to make the bet?¡±

    ¡°This highness is not betting!¡± Yue Linglong absolutely did not want to make the bet. She was afraid that the bet would reveal a result that she didn¡¯t want to see. After all, Jun Xiaomo was far too calm right now. Princess Linglong added, ¡°When this highness arrived earlier, I personally saw her leap into the arms of brother Zou. Are you saying that what this highness has seen is false?¡±

    Yue Linglong had twisted her allegations from ¡°Jun Xiaomo and Zou Zilong locked in an embrace¡± to ¡°Jun Xiaomo had leapt into the arms of Zou Zilong¡±, because this would make her seem more reasonable.

    ¡°Princess highness, when you arrived earlier, did you see me leap into your fianc¨¦¡¯s arms, or did you simply see your fianc¨¦ forcing me into an embrace, unwilling to let me go? I¡¯m afraid you already know the truth yourself. Right now, you¡¯re simply finding an excuse to bully me, so that you can ventte the frustrations in your heart at the same time ¨C am I not right?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly.

    ¡°Rubbish!¡± Yue Linglong heart winced in pain as though she had just stubbed her toe. Without hesitation, she denied Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words and red back at Jun Xiaomo as though she were about to devour her in the very next moment.

    ¡°Princess, you¡¯re personally well aware of the fact that what I¡¯m saying is not rubbish either. Otherwise, there¡¯s no reason for you to deny my words so quickly and anxiously, is there?¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke slowly in a matter-of-factly tone of voice. Yet at the same time, her words were far more persuasive than anything that Princess Linglong had said earlier in her fit of anger. Jun Xiaomo added, ¡°What do you think? Am I right, martial brother Zou?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final question was directed straight towards Zou Zilong. Her voice was filled with disdain.

    Previously, she had been all alone, and there was simply no way for her to bite back at anyone present. Thus, she could only bear with it and bide for time.

    But now, her master had arrived, and she had a backer willing to stand up for her. What reason was there for her to let these people off any longer?

    She absolutely had to settle the score!

    She was going to make certain that anyone who dragged her into a mudslinging fight had to think twice about doing so ever again. Right now, she intended to return every single bit of mud to these aggressors, replete with interest.

 Chapter 255: Tragedy Befalls the Maidservant, Xiao-Er

    <h4>Chapter 255: Tragedy Befalls the Maidservant, Xiao-Er</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    No one knew the truth of the matter clearer than Zou Zilong and Jun Xiaomo. That said, this was not the first time that Princess Linglong had caught others red-handed. There were times when the female cultivator had indeed made advances towards Zou Zilong, while there were times when Princess Linglong had simply been oversensitive. The only thing that remained constant whenever Princess Linglong caught a female cultivator ¡°red-handed¡± was the fact that these female cultivators would invariably meet with a tragic end.

    Zou Zilong had thought that this incident would end up the same as any other incident in the past, when he would end up witnessing Princess Linglong beating Jun Xiaomo to her death as he felt a slight tinge of remorse in his heart. That said, how could he have known that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s master, Tong Ruizhen, would be so protective of her?

    More importantly, Zou Zilong had never expected Jun Xiaomo to directly draw k to him.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo directed her contemptuous allegations at him, Zou Zilong felt a huge lump swell up in his throat, and his facial expressions contorted and stiffened.

    That said, this was but for a fleeting moment. As a man with ambitions no less than Qin Lingyu, his aptitude with pretenses was akin to that which Qin Lingyu possessed. In the blink of an eye, he adjusted his expressions and appeared normal once again. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo had been staring at him this whole time, she would never noticed the fact that his expressions had changed for that one fleeting moment.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t malign me. My conscience is clear. To think that you¡¯d turn around and bite the hand that fed you when I¡¯d been appealing to the princess for mercy on your behalf.¡± Zou Zilong appeared to be stoic and cid as he presented himself as though he waspletely righteous and innocent.

    ¡°Am I really the nderous one here? Very well, then would martial brother Zou be willing to testify on the Authentication Array? We¡¯ll know who¡¯s right and who¡¯s wrong when we see who ends up suffering from its punishment.¡± Jun Xiaomo curled her lips into a mischievous smile as she red at Zou Zilong coldly.

    Zou Zilong was instantly taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestions and he was renderedpletely speechless. The veins on his forehead bulged and throbbed, and his entire face turned a sickly green ¨C of course he couldn¡¯t agree to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion! He knew full well that he was lying. His pretense would be torn apart and his true colours would be exposed if he were to make a deration on the Authentication Array.

    That said, even without the use of the Authentication Array, his present hesitance and stark change of expression spoke volumes about where the truthy.

    Everyone around could tell that Zou Zilong had been lying, and his guilty conscience was manifesting in full force right now.

    Zhuang Lenghui remained incognito among the rest of the onlookers as she continued to watch the show unfurl with glee. A wicked smile crept up the corner of her lips as the plot thickened. It had truly been worth every bit of her time orchestrating the entire incident.

    Princess Linglong red at Zou Zilong with disbelief, and her breathing instantly turned haggard. After several moments of gasping for breath, she closed her eyes, and she finally managed to suppress the roiling emotions in her heart and shelf the urge to air their dirtyundry in public.

    She did not want others to know that Zou Zilong had been the one at fault.

    Then, as soon as she opened her eyes once more, Princess Linglong had already made her resolve. She spun around and addressed both Jun Xiaomo and Tong Ruizhen, ¡°Enough. This highness can¡¯t be bothered to pursue the matter any longer. This highness shall be merciful and let you off this time. You¡¯d best reflect on your own actions.¡±

    It was evident that Princess Linglong had finally realized whose fault it was in the present incident. However, her infatuation for Zou Zilong had inhibited her ability to make the right decisions, and she clearly preferred to see her mistake through to the very end and pin the me on Jun Xiaomo, just so that she could protect the man she loved.

    Zou Zilong heaved a sigh of relief. The fact that Princess Linglong was willing to let matters go was beneficial to him. After all, he knew that if his master were to sessfully secure the position of Sect Leader, he would need both the help of the royal family, as well as Sect Elder Tong.

    Even if Sect Elder Tong did not expressly support his master, he knew that he should steer clear of tipping the scales in favor of the Phoenixia Peak.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was not a fool willing to take things lying down. Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong were evidently attempting to cast aspersions on the integrity of her actions right now ¨C how could she simply swallow this bitter pill?!

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo hated third wheels who tore apart blissful marriages to begin with. Having been maligned andbelled as the vixen who had seduced Princess Linglong¡¯s fianc¨¦, how could she not do anything to clear her name? She was most certainly not prepared to leave things status quo.

    Thus, she coldly chuckled as she remarked, ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything wrong, so why should I reflect on my actions? Princess Linglong, your burdens are far too heavy for this innocentdy to bear.¡±

    ¡°Then just what do you want?¡± Yue Linglong red at Jun Xiaomo in horror.

    ¡°It¡¯s simple. I want to use the Authentication Array to prove my innocence. If the Authentication Array judges that I¡¯m lying, then I would simply deserve it. How about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo coolly made her suggestion. Herposed attitude was inplete contrast with the increased tension and anxiety stered all over Zou Zilong¡¯s face right now.

    ¡°No way!¡± Princess Linglong nced once at Zou Zilong before shifting her gaze straight back at Jun Xiaomo. Then, she added sharply, ¡°If this highness says you¡¯re at fault, then you¡¯re at fault! There¡¯s no need to use the Authentication Array!¡±

    In other words, even if you¡¯re not at fault, you would have to swallow this bitter pill.

    Yue Linglong was the princess of an entire kingdom, while Zou Zilong was her fianc¨¦. To Yue Linglong¡¯s mind, their personal identities and statures meant that there was no way they could be in the wrong. In turn, the only person who could possibly be at fault must necessarily be Jun Xiaomo.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply chuckled. Just as she was about to say something, she heard the Heavenly Crane standing beside Sect Elder Tong cry out sharply as it rushed straight towards Princess Linglong. The Heavenly Crane¡¯s beak was incredibly sharp. If it pecked viciously at Princess Linglong, it would most certainly draw more than blood from her.

    Princess Linglong was so shocked that she shrieked in fear. Itpletely slipped her mind that she was holding onto a whip in her hand as she turned to run. As she ran, she even shoved the maidservant in front of the Heavenly Crane to act as a meat shield for her.

    ¡°Ah! I was wrong. Don¡¯t kill me, don¡¯t kill me...¡± The maidservant was only a normal human being. When the massive Heavenly Crane charged straight towards her, there was not a single thought of resistance in her mind. Her feet weakened, and she immediately copsed on the ground ¨C she did not want to die.

    Fortunately, the Heavenly Crane waspletely uninterested in the maidservant. It leapt slightly, hopped over the maidservant¡¯s head, and then continued to pursue Princess Linglong. On the other hand, despite standing on the other side of Princess Linglong when all these things happened, Zou Zilong remainedpletely rooted to the ground in shock. Everything happened too quickly, and the thought of rescuing Princess Linglong hardly crossed his mind.

    As the Heavenly Crane gave chase, it continued to cleverly and nimbly peck at Princess Linglong¡¯s hair and clothes. Within moments, Princess Linglong¡¯s hair became absolutely disheveled, while her clothes appeared disorderly and messy ¨C where was the dignity and pride that apanied her stature as a princess now?

    That said, everyone could tell that the Heavenly Crane was doing nothing more than teasing the princess right now. It was evident that it was not after the princess¡¯s life. Rather, it was the princess¡¯s shrill shrieks that were far more fearsome than the cries of the massive Heavenly Crane ¨C they were so shrill that they threatened to burst the eardrums of the onlookers around.

    Finally, Princess Linglong copsed to the ground as though she were on her final breaths. It was only at this moment that the massive Heavenly Crane nced once more at Princess Linglong, let out yet another majestic cry, before it ran proudly back to Tong Ruizhen¡¯s side. ¡°Hahahaha...wonderful, wonderful! Good boy!¡± Tong Ruizhen petted his pet as he repeatedly praised its actions.

    All of this had happened in the blink of an eye. When everyone finally came to their senses and finally began to react to the situation, they quickly ran over to Princess Linglong¡¯s side and attempted to help her to her feet once more.

    ¡°Princess!¡±

    ¡°Princess!¡±

    ¡°Princess...¡±

    ¡°Get lost!¡± Princess Linglong wrested her arms free from her bodyguards and her maidservant as she cried out viciously, ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe rescue this highness earlier? What¡¯s the use ofing over only now?!¡±

    Her face was still strewn all over with a mixture of dust, dirt and tears, while her palms were filled with the mud from the ground. This was the first time in her entire life that she had been reduced to such a tragic state, and the hatred and indignation in her heart burgeoned to unprecedented levels.

    ¡°This highness will never let you off, Jun Xiaomo. Just you wait!¡± Yue Linglong barked as soon as she got to her feet. She did not even bother to adjust her clothes as she continued to re at Jun Xiaomo and Tong Ruizhen viciously as she added, ¡°Count yourselves lucky that I¡¯m letting you go with your lives intact. You won¡¯t have such fortune next time. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Her pride and reputation had all been thoroughly stripped off and trampled on the ground, and she no longer had any intention to remain at this ce and be mistreated by those around her.

    ¡°Hang on.¡± Jun Xiaomo stopped Princess Linglong in her tracks. Jun Xiaomo nced at Princess Linglong¡¯s maidservant with a somber look on her face, causing Princess Linglong¡¯s maidservant to shudder in fear as a sense of unease surfaced on her heart. ¡°Princess highness, I think there¡¯s still something else that needs to be dealt with. Before we deal with this matter, I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t let you go off yet.¡±

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t you dare step all over my head just because I¡¯m giving you sometitude right now!¡± Princess Linglong red back indignantly at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°And don¡¯t you suggest the use of any Authentication Arrays anymore. This highness is never going to ept those suggestions!¡±

    Princess Linglong had never felt as embarrassed as she had today. If the Authentication Array could prove that Jun Xiaomo was innocent, while Zou Zilong had been lying all this while, then where would she, as the princess, be going to hide her face?

    Princess Linglong feared that others would talk behind her back, gossiping about how she was unable to even keep her fianc¨¦¡¯s heart loyal to herself. To make matters worse, she was afraid that people would talk about how she had lost out to a piece of trash that was only at the sixth level of Qi Mastery.

    Jun Xiaomo could tell what was on Princess Linglong¡¯s mind. That said, the reason why she had held Princess Linglong back this time was not so that she could press the issue and make her innocence even more starkly clear. Rather, she sincerely wanted to know who the mastermind scheming against her was. After all, she had discovered the panic and anxiety surfacing time and again from the depths of the maidservant¡¯s eyes, and she knew that there was no reason for the maidservant to be scheming against her.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo ignored Princess Linglong and looked straight at the maidservant as she asked, ¡°Miss, were you the one who had earlier informed princess highness that I was seducing martial brother Zou?¡±

    ¡°Yes...that¡¯s right.¡± The maidservant couldn¡¯t tell what Jun Xiaomo was trying to get at, so she responded cautiously and carefully.

    ¡°Then, could you let everyone know how long it took you to report the alleged incident to princess highness after you ¡®witnessed¡¯ it?¡±

    ¡°I...how would I know? I didn¡¯t take notice of the time.¡± The maidservant stiffened her neck and pretended to be annoyed as she red back at Jun Xiaomo.

    However, her re was no more than a mere pretense to cover up the guilty conscience in her heart. In fact, she was unaware that her actions in this regard had already revealed far more than she was willing to say.

    The truth of the matter was that the maidservant had never personally witnessed Jun Xiaomo ¡°seducing¡± Zou Zilong at all. As soon as she received Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s instructions, she immediately executed them and reported the ¡°incident¡± to Princess Linglong without further consideration. After all, there were practically innumerable people who had died under Princess Linglong¡¯s whip as a result of simr incidents, and she had never thought that Jun Xiaomo could ever be an exception to the norm.

    Yet not only was Jun Xiaomo an exception, this exception also happened to be a person highly proficient at tearing apart pretenses and exposing schemes. When the maidservant noticed how Jun Xiaomo diverted her attention towards her, she immediately knew that the cat was out of the bag.

    Profuse sweat permeated her back. If she possessed the ability to do so, she would have immediately tied up Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips right now.

    At this stage, I can only hope that the Princess wouldn¡¯t know what I¡¯ve done. The maidservant¡¯s heart was all over the ce right now. Yet even she was unaware of the extent of the cmity that was about to strike her.

 Chapter 256: Tong Ruizhenâ€™s Resolve

    <h4>Chapter 256: Tong Ruizhen¡¯s Resolve</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo squinted as she looked at the panicking maidservant, and then she curled her lips into a smile as she suggested, ¡°Did you fail to notice how long you took, or are you in fact simply unable to tell us? I didn¡¯t require an urate timing after all. I¡¯m sure you should be able to give us an estimation, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°I...I...¡± As Princess Linglong¡¯s maidservant, she was already used to people giving her sometitude in her actions or a benefit of the doubt. She had never faced someone as overbearing as Jun Xiaomo. Now that Jun Xiaomo pressed the issue and bore down on her with relentless interrogations, the maidservant becamepletely flustered.

    ¡°Enough, Jun Xiaomo! What are you trying to say?¡± Princess Linglong gritted her teeth and barked at Jun Xiaomo as she red at her maidservant for not being able to stand up for herself.

    ¡°What I¡¯m trying to say is that the maidservant would most certainly need some time if she were to run back to the pce to personally inform princess highness, before escorting you back again, right? Since that¡¯s the case, why didn¡¯t she use a Messenger Paper Crane instead? Or is she simply saying that she thinks she can move quicker than a Messenger Paper Crane, hmm?¡±

    ¡°I...it just slipped my mind. That¡¯s right, it slipped my mind!¡± The maidservant thought that she had finally found a decent excuse, and she immediately grabbed hold of it and retorted.

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯ve forgotten, huh.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, before slowly responding, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, could you tell us what you¡¯re doing appearing around the pavilion to begin with? I¡¯ve been here every day for more than a couple of days now, and I know that few disciples would pass by the pavilion, much less stop at the pavilion as a result of its location. Therefore, I¡¯m quite curious as to the reason for which this maidservant would happen to be in the area.¡±

    Once Princess Linglong heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question, she was immediately taken aback. Then, she suddenly recalled that just prior to being informed of this incident, she had merely sent her maidservant out to fetch some things from the kitchen. There was absolutely no need for her to pass by the pavilion to begin with.

    The maidservant began to panic, and her palms grew sweaty. A lump formed in her throat, and she stiffly responded, ¡°I...I happened to pass by coincidentally.¡±

    ¡°Coincidentally? Oh, that¡¯s really coincidental then. Don¡¯t you think that the number of sheer coincidences is a little bit too much?¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted with a meaningful and mocking tone ¨C

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you just tell us the truth. This road is hardly used by anyone to begin with. It¡¯s located near the main entrance of the Sect, and I¡¯d onlye here because I¡¯d coveted its peaceful and tranquil surroundings for my formation array studies. If martial brother Zou could have coincidentally appeared at this ce, and then you also coincidentally walked past the pavilion, and then it was coincidentally at the same time that I allegedly seduced martial brother Zou...just how lucky would I have to be if all of these coincidences were to ur at the exact same time? All of my lucky stars must be aligned today, huh?¡±

    The maidservant finally knew what Jun Xiaomo was trying to get at, and she began to grow absolutely flustered.

    ¡°So what? It doesn¡¯t mean that something didn¡¯t happen just because it was coincidental, isn¡¯t it?!¡±

    ¡°When an incident is the result of too many coincidences, I¡¯m more inclined to believe that there¡¯s someone orchestrating the matter behind the scenes.¡± Jun Xiaomo nced coldly at the maidservant.

    ¡°You¡¯re ndering me!¡±

    ¡°Whether I¡¯m ndering you or not ¨C everything can be made known by an Authentication Array, can it not?¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly replied.

    This was the third time she had suggested the use of the Authentication Array by now. Her conscience was clear on this entire incident, and she had no fear of using the Authentication Array at all. On the other hand, others would tremble at its mention.

    The maidservant naturally feared the use of the Authentication Array. Thus, she turned to look at Princess Linglong pleadingly, hoping that Princess Linglong would reject Jun Xiaomo¡¯s request as she had done earlier.

    Unfortunately, Princess Linglong simply stood where she was and squinted at her without any signs of assistance ¨C

    After all, there was no need for Princess Linglong to treat her maidservant in the same manner in which she would treat someone she was fond of. Princess Linglong was fond of Zou Zilong, and she would naturally reject Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion to use the Authentication Array. However, Xiao-Er was no more than a maidservant in Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes, and there was no way she was going to stand up for her to such an extent.

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo had indeed raised some suspicions as to what her maidservant had done, including what she was doing hovering around the pavilion, and how there could possibly be so many coincidences at the same time.

    Yue Linglong also wanted to shed light on these two things raised by Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to add fuel to fire, topping off everything with the final straw that broke the camel¡¯s back, ¡°Princess highness, can you really ept the fact that one of your maidservants is doing something surreptitiously behind your back? Most importantly, we¡¯re not even aware of what her true motives for doing all these things are.¡±

    Yue Linglong¡¯s pupils immediately constricted, and she red back at her maidservant as she coldly stated, ¡°Then, let¡¯s use the Authentication Array.¡±

    She could never condone any of her servant¡¯s betrayal. If this maidservant had truly pledged her allegiance to a different master and turned traitorous, her fate would be sealed in stone ¨C be tormented to death!

    The maidservant¡¯s mind waspletely nk at this moment, and she shook her head vigorously as she firmly rejected the idea, ¡°No way! We can¡¯t use the Authentication Array. Never!¡±

    ¡°If this highness says you¡¯ll do it, then you will do it! Since when are you allowed to make the decision on behalf of this highness?¡± Princess Linglong sharply dismissed her objections.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to use the Authentication Array. I don¡¯t...ah!¡± The maidservant wanted to turn and run away, but Princess Linglong immediately subdued her movements with one quicksh of the whip that broke both of her legs.

    ¡°Princess...princess, I beg you...your servant knows that she¡¯s in the wrong...please...¡± Xiao-Er knew that she was on the verge of a cmity right now, and her only glimmer of hope was to beg for mercy and appeal to the princess¡¯s magnanimity.

    Even though Yue Linglong was arrogant and despotic, she was not a fool. How could she possibly still be unable to see for herself that her own maidservant had schemed against her? In fact, she had probably already realized that the maidservant had brought her over here to kill Jun Xiaomo with a borrowed dagger.

    Princess Linglong was infuriated, and sheshed out once more at her maidservant with the whip. Pak! A sickening crack of the whip resounded, followed shortly by the sound of flesh splitting and bones shattering. The maidservant shrieked tragically and copsed to the ground.

    She was different from Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo was a cultivator, so she was able to withstand some measure of abuse before falling. On the other hand, the maidservant was nothing more than a mere mortal, and a fewshes of the whip would be more than enough to guarantee her death.

    ¡°Traitor! How dare you scheme against this highness?!¡± Yue Linglong roared in fury.

    Lying on the floor, the maidservant felt like her mind and soul had been split in two with the whishes ¨C half of her felt every single bit of the excruciating pain that was echoing throughout her body, while the other half waspletely numb to anything that was going on. It was only at this moment of time that she came to realize what Jun Xiaomo must have experienced earlier, and she knew that her fate was only going to be worse than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fate.

    The maidservant shuddered as she lifted her head and looked at a group of people standing in the distance. There, she saw the new master whom she had pledged her allegiance to ¨C Zhuang Lenghui.

    Zhuang Lenghui locked eyes with her. Her gaze grew cold, and she immediately disappeared into the rest of the crowd that was around her.

    To her mind, the maidservant was no more than a pawn in her grand ns. It was absolutely fine if this little pawn perished. After all, the maidservant had served her purposes, and her death would hardly affect Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s ns at all.

    The maidservant was thoroughly panicked at this point. She did not want to die. She truly did not want to die. She immediately stretched out her hand and clutched tightly at Princess Linglong¡¯s sleeves as she begged, ¡°Princess highness, your servant knows the folly of her ways. Please spare your servant. This servant will tell you who the mastermind is...Ah!¡±

    An unknown sword congealed from sword intent suddenly shot over towards where she was, struck her waist, and cleaved her entire body into two. She was dead.

    The maidservant perished with widened eyes, as though she were unable to ept the fact that she was going to die just like that.

    Everyone noticed the horrific way in which she had perished, and they all got shivers down their backs.

    Logically speaking, death was not a foreign concept to cultivators, and they should never have been as shocked and astonished at such a sight. However, the fact of the matter was that the maidservant had still been begging for her life just a moment ago, yet in the very next moment, a mysterious force had cleaved her entire body into two. Blood gushed out from her body and spattered everywhere around. The impact of that final strike had been far too strong, and everyone couldn¡¯t help but shudder in shock.

    ¡°Traitor! Death was too easy for her.¡± Princess Linglong gritted her teeth with hatred, as though she werepletely unaffected by the sight before her eyes.

    Her nonchnce to the maidservant¡¯s death caused another thought to surface in the hearts of everyone around her. She must be numb to it because she¡¯s seen many such incidents before. Then, everyone turned their minds to contemte the sorry sight that Jun Xiaomo had disyed earlier, and they began to see a different side to Princess Linglong¡¯s viciousness that they had never known before.

    Naturally, everyone wanted to know who the ¡°mastermind¡± that the maidservant had referred to was. However, the maidservant was dead, and there was no one else to elicit that fact from.

    Princess Linglong continued to strike her maidservant¡¯s corpse with a few moreshes of her whip. Once she felt sufficiently ventted of her frustrations, she smiled coldly at Jun Xiaomo and cautioned, ¡°Did you see that? Anyone who crosses this highness is going to end up like that. You¡¯d best watch your step.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she led her bodyguards and left with a look of indignation all over her face. In her heart, her hatred towards Jun Xiaomo burgeoned to unprecedented heights.

    Zou Zilong didn¡¯t have the intention nor the loyalty to follow Princess Linglong as she left. He knew that Princess Linglong was still infuriated at this point in time, and anything he did now would only be met with a bacsh.

    Thus, he decided that he was going to give her a period of time to cool off. He firmly believed that with Princess Linglong¡¯s affection towards himself, he would be able to cate her and win her heart again with a few words.

    With that, Zou Zilong maintained his cidity as he pretentiously bade farewell to the few Sect Elders around, before taking his leave as well.

    That said, he discreetly nced back at Jun Xiaomo before he left. His eyes were filled with a cold intent.

    Jun Xiaomo had torn apart his pretensions and trampled them on the ground today. She had even strained the goodwill that he had built up with Princess Linglong. Therefore, there was simply no way he could look at Jun Xiaomo with any better of an expression that he had earlier done. In fact, Zou Zilong had even mentally noted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°transgressions¡± against him in his heart, and he was going to look for the best opportunity to let Jun Xiaomo have her just desserts in the near future.

    The Third Elder heaved a sigh of relief. He sincerely hoped in his heart that Sect Elder Tong would not hold this incident against Zou Zilong and the other members of the Stoneknife Peak. Otherwise, everything that the Stoneknife Peak had done to date would have gone to waste.

    After bidding farewell to Tong Ruizhen, he led his disciples away as well. Walking behind everyone else, Zhuang Lenghui took one final nce at the dead maidservant on the floor, while her lips discreetly curled into a wicked smile.

    Even though she found it rather regretful that Jun Xiaomo did not perish under Princess Linglong¡¯s hands, she knew that a seed of displeasure for Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong had nevertheless been sown deep within Tong Ruizhen¡¯s heart.

    To the members of the Phoenixia Peak, it sufficed that Tong Ruizhen was displeased with Zou Zilong. This paved the way for their future ploys to grow and nurture this seed of displeasure so that it would grow to unprecedented heights.

    When all was said and done, all the Phoenixia Peak was trying to do was to get Tong Ruizhen on their side ¨C there was never any intention to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life.

    Zhuang Lenghui left confidently, and she failed to notice how Jun Xiaomo was staring at her back the entire time with a meaningful look on her face.

    ¡°Little disciple, you¡¯ve seen it as well?¡± Arge palm firmly patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as Tong Ruizhen¡¯s voice resounded from her back.

    ¡°Master?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around.

    ¡°Master noticed that you were looking at that youngdy¡¯s back earlier. Disciple must be aware that that youngdy most certainly had a hand in this entire incident.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head, and Tong Ruizhen sighed.

    ¡°Youngsters these days are truly oveplicating things. Rather than doing things properly in an above-board manner, everyone seems to be turning to various unconventional means to obtain what they desire. Sigh.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head, but she remained taciturn. After all, it was not in her position toment on such matters to begin with.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Master¡¯s going to take you back now. It would be best if youid low for a period of time and remained indoors for your own cultivation.¡± Tong Ruizhen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders, called the Heavenly Crane over, before flying back to the Zephyr Sect atop the Heavenly Crane.

    On thisst leg of the journey, Tong Ruizhen remainedpletely taciturn and sullen ¨C it was a stark change from how he had been in the past. The deeply furrowed and knitted brows on his head clearly revealed the multitude of things on his mind right now.

    Jun Xiaomo knew not to disturb Tong Ruizhen¡¯s train of thoughts as well. Instead, she took the time to rein in her true energy and circte them within her Dantian and meridians so as to elerate the rate of her own recovery.

    With that, she had thought that this incident would havee to a satisfactory conclusion. Yet, little did she know that this incident was just the beginning of a tumultuous storm.

    Three dayster, Tong Ruizhen suddenly burst into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard and instructed Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Little disciple, gather your belongings and follow master!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had just broken through to the seventh level of Qi Mastery, and she was still working on stabilizing her foundation. She had never expected her master to interrupt her like that.

    ¡°Master, did something happen?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, and a bad premonition surfaced on the top of her heart.

    ¡°It¡¯s still that unruly princess. She had probably run back crying andining to her father, the king of the Greenwich Kingdom. Now, the general of the Greenwich Kingdom had led a brigade of troops towards the Zephyr Sect to cause trouble, insisting that the Sect Leader hands you over. They¡¯re currently at a deadlock, but I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before they barge in to capture you.¡± Tong Ruizhen summarized the situation at hand.

    ¡°A brigade of troops?¡± Why would a Greater Sect like the Zephyr Sect be afraid of a mere brigade of troops?¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand this much. Logically speaking, any cultivator within the Greater Sect would be far stronger than any of the mere mortals living in these kingdoms. Why would there be any need for cultivators to givetitude to the king of a mere mortal kingdom? Did they really need to let the Greenwich Kingdom climb all over their heads like that?

    ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s hard to exin.¡± Tong Ruizhen sighed. He realized that he had been sighing far more in thest few days than in the previous yearbined, ¡°Ever since the Sect Leader got injured, his life and sustenance had be dependent on a precious herb that happened to grow exclusively within the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s territory. It would be far easier for the king of the Greenwich Kingdom to harvest these herbs than for the members of the Zephyr Sect to do so. This is also the other reason why Princess Linglong has so muchtitude to do anything that she wants ¨C it¡¯s precisely because the Sect Leader¡¯s life is pretty much in the hands of the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s king, and he can thus only choose to turn a blind eye to the things that Princess Linglong is doing.¡±

    A sudden realization dawned on Jun Xiaomo. She had never expected things within the Zephyr Sect to be even moreplicated than the politics within the Dawn Sect.

    As expected, there would be conflict where people gather.

    ¡°Then, master, where are we going to go now?¡± Jun Xiaomo had not forgotten Tong Ruizhen¡¯s earlier instructions for her to ¡°gather her belongings¡± ¨C was this a sign that they were about to leave the Zephyr Sect?

    Tong Ruizhen was slightly taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s query. After a moment of sullenness, he finally spoke, ¡°We¡¯re going to the Proving Grounds.¡±

    ¡°Proving Grounds?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

 Chapter 257: To the Proving Grounds

    <h4>Chapter 257: To the Proving Grounds</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had heard about the Proving Grounds in her previous life.

    The Proving Grounds did not refer to a specific ce in the cultivation world. Rather, it was something that was established by certainrge sects or ns so that their own disciples could hone and develop their own skills through trials. Generally speaking, only the Sect¡¯s core disciples would be granted ess to these ces. In her previous life, even though Jun Xiaomo had managed to gain entry to the Limitless Sect as Qin Lingyu¡¯s fianc¨¦e, she never possessed the requisite qualities to gain ess to the Limitless Sect¡¯s Proving Grounds. Thus, to Jun Xiaomo, the Proving Grounds was something that she had only conceptually heard about, but it was not something that she had personally experienced.

    Who would have thought that she would be given the opportunity to enter the Proving Grounds in this life, and so early at that?

    That said, there was one thing that left Jun Xiaomo rather perplexed. Since their intention was to hide from the prying eyes of her pursuers, why would Tong Ruizhen send her to the Proving Grounds? Wouldn¡¯t the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Sect Elders and Peakmasters also know about this ce? Would she truly be able to hide from all of them?

    But she very soon got her answer to all these questions.

    ¡°Do you see the valley in that mountain range? That¡¯s the location of the Proving Grounds.¡± Tong Ruizhen stood at the edge of a mountain¡¯s precipice as he pointed out the verdant and lush grounds in the distance to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes and drew a deep breath. She could immediately feel that the thick spiritual energy emanating from the bottom of the valleys. Furthermore, she could sense that there was a faint repulsion force that was preventing anyone from entering its domain.

    This force felt strangely familiar to her. It was extremely simr to the force that was protecting the Zephyr Sect, except that this force was much more powerful.

    There was no doubt about this ¨C if not for the fact that Tong Ruizhen were going to personally take her in, she would most certainly have no means of even drawing close to these Proving Grounds.

    ¡°Come here. We¡¯re way too high up right now, and we¡¯ll need my Little Crane to bring us there.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen¡¯s ¡°Little Crane¡± was none other than his pet that also doubled as his mount, the massive Heavenly Crane. Graaagh! The Heavenly Crane stretched out its neck and cried out in joy. It pped its wings andnded directly in front of Tong Ruizhen and Jun Xiaomo, waiting obsequiously for them to climb onto its back.

    Jun Xiaomo patted its head, before following Tong Ruizhen¡¯s lead as she climbed onto its back.

    As the Heavenly Crane gradually descended towards the valley, Jun Xiaomo felt a heavy pressure adhering to her body and weighing her down. This type of force seemed to pervade her entire body as it seeped through her pores, suffusing through her limbs, marrows and innards, engulfing her entire being.

    Gradually, Jun Xiaomo felt more and more difort weighing on her body, and she began to lose her consciousness. At this point in time, she heard her master call out to her, seemingly from afar, ¡°Xiaomo, circte your energy to withstand the overbearing pressure.¡±

    She did not have thetitude to breakdown the implications of what her master was saying. Instead, Jun Xiaomo simply did as she was told, circting the true energy within her body, and she began to feel slightly better.

    But slightly better was all she felt. Since Tong Ruizhen did not say that he was going to help her withstanding this overbearing force, she knew that she could only grit her teeth, shut her eyes, and do her best to ovee the pressure that was weighing down on her entire body and stifling her.

    As time wore on, Jun Xiaomo found herself fueled by her sheer tenacity and willpower as she continued to withstand the pressure around her.

    After what must have been ages, Jun Xiaomo finally felt the force on her body suddenly ease up, and the overbearing force finally disappearedpletely. It was only at this moment that she began to regain her consciousness and rouse to her senses.

    ¡°This ce is...¡± Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes and discovered that her surroundings had changed. The view of the valley from above was beautiful, and she had initially thought that the view from within the valley would hardly be too bad either. To her surprise, the valley was eerie and damp, and her surroundings were illuminated with innumerable Nightgleam Pearls that were floating about. The foliage above was so dense that not a single ray of sunlight prated thends, and these Nightgleam Pearls that floated about aimlessly in absolute darkness looked almost like listless souls that were drifting about.

    ¡°This is the entrance to the Proving Grounds. Back then, my grandmaster took great pains to find such a well-concealed spot to act as the entrance of his Proving Grounds.¡± Tong Ruizhen dered with pride and honour.

    It had to be said that Tong Ruizhen would invariably look just as pleased and honored when talking about his grandmaster. Jun Xiaomo had grown used to his antics by now.

    ¡°Oh yes, I haven¡¯t congratted little disciple for sessfully clearing my grandmaster¡¯s preliminary test!¡± Tong Ruizhen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders in delight as he quipped.

    ¡°Great grandmaster¡¯s preliminary test? Howe I didn¡¯t even know I was tested?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened in shock.

    ¡°It was that overbearing force that I¡¯d asked you to circte your energy to withstand.¡±

    ¡°Overbearing force? Great grandmaster¡¯s test is to use an overbearing force to put pressure on us?¡± Jun Xiaomo found it rather hard to believe.

    ¡°Then, what did little disciple think it was?¡±

    ¡°That...¡± Jun Xiaomo found herself at a loss for words. After pouting for a little while, she added, ¡°I had thought that it would be a little bit more difficult than that.¡±

    Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate the overbearing pressure! The number of people who can sessfully clear it is less than one in a hundred! Besides, do you really dare say that it was easy? Disciple has been unconscious for a whole three days and nights!¡±

    As Tong Ruizhen spoke, his voice was increasingly filled with some measure of exasperation and resentment towards Jun Xiaomo, as though Jun Xiaomo had failed to meet his expectations by remaining unconscious for too long a time.

    Naturally, Tong Ruizhen was not going to reveal to Jun Xiaomo the fact that he had fainted for five whole days and nights when he first entered these Proving Grounds years ago.

    ¡°Oh...¡±

    Alright ¨C even Jun Xiaomo was unaware that she had been unconscious for such a long time.

    ¡°What would¡¯ve happened if I fail to clear the preliminary test?¡± Jun Xiaomo thought about it for a moment, before asking out of curiosity.

    ¡°If you¡¯re lucky, you might regain your senses after a period of unconsciousness. If not, there¡¯s a chance that your soul might sustain some trauma.¡± Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard as he quipped nonchntly.

    Jun Xiaomo: ...... Is this really just a ¡°test¡±?! It sounds rather savage!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions were written all over her face, and Tong Ruizhen could immediately tell what she was thinking. He coughed twice dryly as he added, ¡°Master had faith in your talent and knew that there was no way you wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand the overbearing pressure that my grandmaster had set up on the formation array. This was why master had decided to bring you here to begin with.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo grew even more speechless ¨C she didn¡¯t know whether she should thank her master for having faith and confidence in her, or whether she should thank her lucky stars that she had not be disabled as a result of the overbearing pressure instated in thesends by a great grandmaster whom she had never met.

    After thinking about it for some time, she decided to dismiss these thoughts of hers. After all, she had already cleared the first hurdle without a hitch, and there was no reason for her to pursue this matter any further.

    She looked at the dark and soulless entrance to the Proving Grounds as she changed the topic, ¡°Master, you must have brought me here to hide out from those who are after our lives because of the overbearing pressure from great grandmaster¡¯s formation array, right?¡±

    Truth be told, the dark and soulless entrance to the Proving Grounds did not give her a good feeling about this ce.

    As expected, Tong Ruizhen red at her as he barked back, ¡°Whoever said that we¡¯re here for the purposes of hiding out?!¡±

    ¡°Hah--?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was taken aback ¨C Aren¡¯t we here because there are people from the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom after us?

    Tong Ruizhen snorted once more as he retorted, ¡°If we¡¯re truly simply hiding out, master could¡¯ve simply set you up in a separate location and set up a few formation arrays around you, and the problem would already have been solved. Why would I have to go through all this hassle?¡±

    ¡°Then, master¡¯s intention for bringing me here is...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you remember the name of this ce? This is the Proving Grounds! The Proving Grounds!¡± Tong Ruizhen stared at Jun Xiaomo with some measure of disbelief, ¡°The Proving Grounds are used for cultivation and refinement. Do you think it¡¯s suitable to be used as a mere hideout?! Gosh! Such treasures are wasted on you!¡±

    Tong Ruizhen gave Jun Xiaomo another re, as though she werepletely hopeless, and Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose helplessly.

    Alright ¨C she had sincerely thought that her master had brought her here to simply hide out for a period of time until the chaos back at the Zephyr Sect died down.

    ¡°But should I really be entering the Proving Grounds under such circumstances? Would it be appropriate?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her concerns to her master. She was afraid that if these people were unable to locate her, they would bring the trouble directly to her parents and her martial brothers.

    Furthermore, it was not as though the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, Sect Elders and Peakmasters were unaware of the location of the entrance of the Proving Ground, and one could not discount the fact that they might take their search for her into the Proving Ground.

    Jun Xiaomo truly wore her heart on her sleeves, and Tong Ruizhen immediately knew the considerations of her heart with one nce at her expressions.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. With master around, nobody would be able to harm your parents and your dear martial brothers from your Peak, unless they want to risk master dispersing and deactivating all of the Sect¡¯s protective formation arrays in this area. Hmph!¡± Tong Ruizhen dered with some gusto to his voice. ¡°You, on the other hand, can rest assured and work at refining and cultivating within the Proving Grounds. Don¡¯te out until the time is ripe.¡±

    ¡°That...what would be considered the ¡®ripe time¡¯?¡± Jun Xiaomotched onto the crux of the matter in Tong Ruizhen¡¯sst statement.

    ¡°About that...the time is ripe when you¡¯ve unlocked the secrets of the Proving Grounds and be its new master. That would be considered the ¡®ripe time¡¯.¡±

    It was a good thing that Jun Xiaomo was not drinking water right now. She would most certainly have spat it out in shock.

    ¡°Be the Proving Grounds¡¯ new master?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened so much that her eyeballs were nearly falling out of their sockets. She had guessed the earlier requirement of unlocking the secrets of the Proving Grounds, but she would never have guessed Tong Ruizhen¡¯s other requirement for her.

    Did this not mean that she was going to inherit the ownership of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Proving Grounds? But could she really do this? Would the bunch of Sect Elders and Peakmasters from the Zephyr Sect not do anything to interrupt her efforts?!

    Tong Ruizhen rolled his eyes at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°These Proving Grounds have always belonged to us to begin with...Hang on. Did you actually think that these Proving Grounds belonged to the Zephyr Sect?¡±

    ¡°What else could it be? It can¡¯t be a personal Proving Ground, can it?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Tong Ruizhen suspiciously.

    ¡°It¡¯s not technically considered a personal Proving Ground, but it¡¯s pretty close.¡± Tong Ruizhen nodded his head. Without waiting for Jun Xiaomo to express her incredulity at this breaking news, he continued to snort and add, ¡°Zephyr Sect has its own Proving Grounds as well. But their Proving Grounds can hardly bepared with these Proving Grounds. This is something that was personally constructed by my grandmaster, and its most suitable for developing budding array masters. I wouldn¡¯t want this ce tarnished and tainted by those prideful and arrogant spellmasters.¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know what else she could say. If a single person could create an entire Proving Grounds, it truly spoke volumes about her great grandmaster¡¯s abilities.

    Tong Ruizhen sighed once more, before he added with some regret, ¡°If not for his establishment of this Proving Grounds, grandmaster would not have depleted so much energy, and he would not have failed to breach the bottleneck to Transcendence and perished.¡±

    ¡°So it turns out that great grandmaster is no longer around...¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly found herself rather remorseful at the thought of his sacrifice, and her heart turned sullen.

    Master¡¯s grandmaster must have been very concerned about the development ofpetent array masters. After all, he must have devoted an incredible amount of time and effort to establish such a massive Proving Grounds that¡¯s even sequestered and protected by so many formidable formation arrays.

    It was a pity that she did not have the fortune of meeting this highly respectable great grandmaster of hers.

    ¡°Alright, there¡¯s no reason to make such a sorry expression on your face. Grandmaster had already anticipated that he would fail in his attempt to breach the bottleneck of Transcendence. He¡¯d lived for over ten-thousand years, and he¡¯s had a good run. Sess in attaining Transcendence might have been great, but there¡¯s no reason to be sorry or remorseful even if he¡¯s failed.¡±

    ¡°Great grandmaster has had really good intentions.¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed.

    ¡°But of course. That¡¯s apparent if you look at whose grandmaster it is.¡± Tong Ruizhen puffed up his chest as he proudly stroked his own beard.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......She just knew that her master would give her such a reaction.

    ¡°Oh yes, once disciple enters the Proving Grounds, your master will stand outside the grounds and activate its formation array. The Proving Grounds uses an Epoch Stone at the heart of its formation array, and the ratio of time on the inside to the time on the outside is 30:1. Therefore, you don¡¯t have to be too worried if you spend an exceedingly long time on the inside. With the Epoch Stone around, it would be fine even if you spend several hundred years on the inside.¡±

    ¡°An Epoch Stone?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was once again bbergasted.

 Chapter 258: Tong Ruizhen, The Master Who Trips His Own Disciple

    <h4>Chapter 258: Tong Ruizhen, The Master Who Trips His Own Disciple</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Artefacts such as the Epoch Stone were practically existences that were rarer than supreme grade spirit stones. Generally speaking, Epoch Stones would only appear when Grand Arcane Realms appeared. The Epoch Stones could best be put to use when they were iid in the heart of any formation arrays. These stones would enable its user to control the element of time. If they were put to good use, it could even reverse time for a person and bring a person back to life.

    It was evident what kind of heaven-defying existence the Epoch Stone was.

    That said, the Epoch Stone was no more than a myth to most people. After all, it was nigh impossible toy hands on an Epoch Stone. In the first ce, the appearance of Arcane Realms was entirely up to chance and fate in terms of both time and location, and one would have to be fortunate enough to stumble upon such an incredible opportunity. Then, to make matters worse, the Epoch Stone looked extremely ordinary in its appearance ¨C in fact, Jun Xiaomo had serendipitously stumbled upon several drawings and paintings of Epoch Stones, yet...

    She was absolutely unable to distinguish an Epoch Stone from any other ordinary stone or pebble on the ground.

    With hardly any distinguishing factors, how was a person to go about looking for an Epoch Stone to begin with?

    Naturally, there were several people who had managed to chance upon and obtain the Epoch Stone. However, historical texts recorded that each of these owners of Epoch Stones had invariably met with a tragic oue simply because the number of people who were willing to do anything to get their hands on the Epoch Stones were innumerable, and bloodbaths generally ensued shortly after the appearance of an Epoch Stone.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had never seen he fabled Epoch Stone nor heard of anyone actually putting to use such Epoch Stones. How could she have expected toe in contact with such a fabled existence in her present life?

    Tong Ruizhen rapped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he cautioned, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare harbour any thoughts about the Epoch Stone. You won¡¯t be able to remove the Epoch Stone even after you¡¯ve be the master of the Proving Grounds. If you dare to even try, you¡¯ll only be faced with the wrath of my grandmaster¡¯s punishment.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed the part of her head that Tong Ruizhen had rapped as she murmured, ¡°Master, you really dock confidence in my character, huh...¡±

    Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°Master was just reminding you.¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright.¡± Jun Xiaomo knew that no matter how much she said, there was no way she could outtalk the stubborn and impish master of hers. Thus, she simply made a surrendering gesture. ¡°That said, great grandmaster sure is extravagant to use the Epoch Stone as the eye of the Proving Ground¡¯s formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed. She now had a new perspective and a deeper understanding of her great grandmaster¡¯s selfless character.

    If it were anyone else who had obtained the Epoch Stone, they would most certainly have kept it for their own use. After all, having such a heaven-defying existence with them was tantamount to gaining an additional life.

    Tong Ruizhen nodded his head, and a look of reminiscence shed across his eyes as he quipped, ¡°That¡¯s right, grandmaster had always been like that...¡±

    But his immersion in his own memories was but for a fleeting moment. In the blink of an eye, Tong Ruizhen pulled himself back to reality and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder Alright, master¡¯s already told you most of what you need to know about the Proving Grounds. Time is of the essence. You¡¯d best enter and make full use of the time inside.¡±

    As he finished speaking, Tong Ruizhen began to nudge Jun Xiaomo towards the entrance of the Proving Grounds.

    ¡°Eh...hang on...¡± As Tong Ruizhen pushed her towards the entrance of the Proving Grounds, Jun Xiaomo did her best to turn back and ask, ¡°Master, have you entered these Proving Grounds before?¡±

    ¡°Of course I¡¯ve experienced the Proving Grounds before! Your master is the Proving Grounds¡¯ current owner after all!¡± Tong Ruizhen red at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Do you think you can be the owner of the Proving Grounds without going through the Proving Grounds?¡±

    ¡°Then how long did master spend inside before he cleared the Proving Grounds?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked with some measure of exasperation on her face.

    ¡°About...five hundred years? I can¡¯t really remember anymore...¡± Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard as he thought for a moment before he responded.

    ¡°Five...five hundred years?!!!¡± Jun Xiaomo eyes widened so much that her eyeballs nearly fell out of their sockets. If her master needed five hundred years to clear the Proving Grounds, then wouldn¡¯t such a young sprout like her at only the seventh level of Qi Mastery need at least a thousand years inside before she would be able to clear the Proving Grounds?!

    Even if she had the patience to wait out an entire thousand years, the Heavenly Peak did not have such luxury of time! Who knows what those ambitious and covetous wolves would do to the Heavenly Peak in the meantime while she was inside the Proving Grounds?!

    ¡°Wait...wait a minute, master. Could disciple not go into the Proving Grounds?¡± Jun Xiaomo scrunched up her face as she responded.

    ¡°Of course not! Do you think I¡¯d let just any other person enter these grounds? Your master has taught tens of disciples to date, and you¡¯re the first one who¡¯s actually been given the privilege of entering these Proving Grounds. What are youining about?!¡± Tong Ruizhen red at Jun Xiaomo with some measure of resentment, as though Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know what was best for her.

    The truth of the matter was that only the disciple which Tong Ruizhen recognized as a potential sessor to his legacy could ever be allowed to enter the Proving Grounds for training. Apart from the innumerable formation arrays hidden within, there were also spirit beasts and demonic beasts of all shapes and sizes in the Proving Grounds. These existences were all able to stimte the hidden potential of any disciple within the Proving Grounds, and it was precisely also for this reason that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s great grandmaster had painstakingly established such a Proving Ground.

    Even though most array masters strived to excel in their craft, their devotion to their mastery in formation arrays invariably entailed amensurate trade off in their personal cultivation levels. This meant that their eventual survival was dependent on a reliance on others or allegiance to a faction. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s great grandmaster had already noticed such an issue with mastering the discipline of formation arrays, and he thus resolved to devise a way to develop his disciples¡¯ skills holistically without sacrificing one aspect of their abilities for the other. The Proving Grounds which he established was naturally his solution to the problem, and it represented the eternal legacy which he had left behind.

    When Jun Xiaomo¡¯s great grandmaster perished, the ownership of the Proving Grounds was handed over to Tong Ruizhen¡¯s master. In turn, when Tong Ruizhen¡¯s master decided that he was going to dust his hands and leave the cultivation world behind him, he handed over possession of the Proving Grounds to Tong Ruizhen.

    The truth of the matter was that Tong Ruizhen had already decided to hand over the ownership of the Proving Grounds to Jun Xiaomo in due time. He had presently only brought forward this matter as a result of Princess Linglong¡¯s overbearing attitude in forcing their hands.

    ¡°Disciple isn¡¯tining...¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose sheepishly as she exined, ¡°It¡¯s just that...disciple still has a number of affairs to attend with, and she has no means of devoting her entire heart and soul towards her cultivation and mastery of formation arrays at this point. Besides, the period of time involved is rather long...¡±

    ¡°Affairs, schmaffairs. You¡¯re such a young little girl ¨C what kind of affairs do you have to deal with so urgently?!¡± Tong Ruizhen snorted, ¡°As for the period of time involved, cultivation is an arduous, lifelong process to begin with. Are you afraid that you¡¯ll have be a wrinkled olddy by the time you manage to leave the Proving Grounds? Besides, the ratio of time in there is 30:1 ¨C spending thirty years within he Proving Grounds means you¡¯ll only have spent one year outside! What have you got to be worried about?!¡±

    Things were indeed as Tong Ruizhen had exined. Even if Jun Xiaomo spent a whopping five hundred years within the Proving Grounds, the powers of the Epoch Stone necessarily meant that only seventeen years of time would havepsed by the time Jun Xiaomo stepped out of the Proving Grounds.

    ¡°But, I¡¯m worried about by parents and my martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak...¡± Jun Xiaomo sounded her concerns out to Tong Ruizhen.

    ¡°So that¡¯s what you¡¯re worried about...¡± Tong Ruizhen stroked his beard meaningfully.

    ¡°Master knows about this matter?¡± Jun Xiaomo rified with some measure of astonishment. She had never expected her master to bother with such matters of hers.

    ¡°Since I¡¯d decided to ept you as my disciple, I naturally would have to do my research and learn of your environment and circumstances. A person is nurtured by his environment after all. Doing so would give me a glimpse into your character and personality.¡± Tong Ruizhen nced at Jun Xiaomo before slightly snorting, ¡°Alright, master understands. Master guarantees that for as long as you remain within the Proving Grounds, your family will note to any harm. Will this do?¡±

    ¡°Master...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was suddenly awash with a warm and fuzzy sensation. The truth of the matter was that entering the Proving Grounds was something that brought only immense benefits, and it was hardly detrimental to her at all. If anyone else were in her shoes, they would already have leapt at the opportunity and jumped straight into the Proving Grounds at the earliest possible time. Nobody would have rejected the opportunity or even hesitated like Jun Xiaomo did. In fact, what was most incredulous in the circumstances was how Tong Ruizhen kept his cool throughout Jun Xiaomo¡¯sints, and he even agreed to deal with the causes for her concerns for her.

    Since her master was willing to go this far for her own good, she would have to be an ignorant buffoon if she still decided not to ept Tong Ruizhen¡¯s ns for her.

    Thus, after batting her eyelids and wiping off the tears that were in her eyes, she nodded her head vigorously as she dered her resolve, ¡°Disciple understands. Disciple will not let master down.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s the spirit. Besides, the stronger you be, the more likely you¡¯ll be able to obtain the abilities to protect those who are close to you, isn¡¯t it?¡± Tong Ruizhen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder encouragingly. He was pleased with his disciple¡¯s spiritedness and the resolute look on her face.

    Jun Xiaomo understood this principle as well, and she returned a grateful smile to Tong Ruizhen.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, master, I¡¯d like to inform my family and friends about this matter so that they wouldn¡¯t be worried about me.¡± Jun Xiaomo made onest request.

    ¡°Cough...this...grandmaster has always been meticulous about keeping the location of these Proving Grounds well-concealed to the rest of the world, and the result of this is that Messenger Paper Cranes aren¡¯t able to leave this district. Transmittance Talismans don¡¯t work either.¡± Tong Ruizhen coughed dryly as he exined.

    In his hurry to bring his disciple over to these Proving Grounds, it hadpletely slipped his mind that his disciple still had a bunch of family and friends that she was extremely close to. She was unlike him who had hardly any rtional attachments to the rest of the world.

    Seems like I¡¯ll have to make a few trips and act in ce of a Messenger Paper Crane this time. Tong Ruizhen rubbed his nose as he thought to himself.

    ¡°That...Disciple, if you¡¯ve got anything you wish to ry to your family and friends, you can pen your letters here and hand them to me. Once I head back out, I¡¯ll contact them on your behalf. Will this do?¡± Tong Ruizhen felt a little bit guilty in his heart for skimming over such an important detail, so he put a cajoling smile on his face as he asked Jun Xiaomo.

    Naturally, with the sheer number of wrinkles on his face, it was rather difficult to see that his smile was a cajoling one.

    ¡°I guess this is the only way.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed. She could tell that it was going to be difficult for her to leave this ce, especially when she was only at the seventh level of Qi Mastery.

    Time was of the essence, and the earlier she couldplete her training within the Proving Grounds, the earlier she could leave this ce. Jun Xiaomo was resolved not to dally any longer.

    Thus, she suppressed her longing feeling for her family and friends and began to pen down a few letters. The contents of her letter were simr. They all reassured her family and friends not to worry, since she was living well in the Zephyr Sect, and they also informed everyone that she was about to enter the Proving Grounds, and it may be a few years before they would hear from her again. As for the other little conflicts that had urred within the Zephyr Sect, she chose to omit them.

    The main point of these letters was so that her family and friends could have a peace of mind after all.

    After penning down her letters, she folded them up and handed them to Tong Ruizhen and told her that one letter was for her parents, one was for her martial brothers in the Heavenly Peak, and one letter was for Rong Ruihan.

    As for the little packrat and his family, Jun Xiaomo sincerely believed that Rong Ruihan would ry the message on her behalf.

    Tong Ruizhen chuckled lightheartedly as he casually remarked, ¡°Disciple¡¯s letters are genuinely model letters that only reports the good and omits the bad.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled as well, ¡°Since I¡¯m about to ¡®vanish¡¯ for such a long period of time, there¡¯s no reason to make my family and friends worry for me either.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Tong Ruizhen nodded his head, ¡°Alright, then disciple should get going as well. Oh, oh! That¡¯s right, the heart of the formation array is in the middle of the entire Proving Grounds. You¡¯ll have to make your way there and get the Epoch Stone to recognize you as its new master. That would do.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s that simple?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows.

    ¡°You¡¯ll know that this is no mean feat once you enter. Don¡¯te crying to master for help at that time!¡± Tong Ruizhen red at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo thought about it and felt that it was reasonable that the path was going to be rough and tough as well. After all, Tong Ruizhen had spent a whopping five hundred years within the Proving Grounds before he managed to seed and leave its premises. The trials and tasks within must not be easy at all.

    ¡°Then, master, I¡¯m going in.¡±

    ¡°Go on, then.¡± Tong Ruizhen waved his hands as though he were shooing a fly.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t say anymore. She walked towards the pitch-ck hole that was the entrance and peered into it, and she noticed that it was impossible to see the end of it.

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath and thought to muster her courage boost her own morale.

    In her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had lived most of her life on the run, travelling from ce to ce all alone. That said, she had experienced the warmth of living within amunity with loved ones around her in this life once more. Now that she was entering the Proving Grounds, she knew that it was going to be yet another long period of time when she would be all alone again.

    How upsetting! Are the heavens not willing to have people by my side? It¡¯s like I¡¯m fated and bound to live a life of solitude.

    Just then, Tong Ruizhen suddenly hollered with gusto, ¡°Disciple, you¡¯ve got toe back alive!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was so startled by Tong Ruizhen¡¯s sudden yell that her foot slipped, and she fell straight into the entrance hole without any warning. As she slipped through the narrow entrance, Tong Ruizhen¡¯s voice echoed through the mouth of the hole ¨C

    ¡°You¡¯ve got toe back alive...¡±

    ¡°Got toe back alive...¡±

    ¡°Come back alive...¡±

    ¡°Back...a...live...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo felt as though a swathe of blood were suddenly lodged in her throat.

    Was there any master out there who would trip up their disciple like that?! At least give her a chance to prepare her heart!

    But now, no matter what, Jun Xiaomo had no path for retreat any longer, and she continued to fall through the deep, dark hole.

    As she thought about how her master¡¯s parting words were for her toe back alive, Jun Xiaomo suddenly had a bad premonition in her heart.

    And this premonition very quickly materialized.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomonded on the ground and her surroundings brightened up, she was immediately faced with a pair of bright yellow eyes. That pair of eyes were transfixed on Jun Xiaomo, while the owner of the pair of eyes had its mouth wide open, baring its long, gnarly fangs. Disgusting, gooey saliva dribbled from its mouth.

    It was evident that the owner of that pair of eyes was hungry, and it believed Jun Xiaomo to be food that had descended from the heavens.

    ROAR! It roared in fury as it lunged straight at Jun Xiaomo. Its eyes were filled with two words ¨C I¡¯m hungry!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart instantly constricted with dread ¨C

    I¡¯m doomed...master, you¡¯ve really tripped up your disciple and caused her to fall to her death.

 Chapter 259: The Proving Groundsâ€™ New Master

    <h4>Chapter 259: The Proving Grounds¡¯ New Master</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The despondence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was but for a fleeting moment. Her survival instincts immediately kicked in and took precedence, and Jun Xiaomo swiftly retrieved her whip from her Interspatial Ring and furiouslyshed towards the spirit beast that was lunging towards her, striking it straight on in its eyes.

    If she had struck any other ce, it might not have achieved any effects whatsoever. Fortunately, its eyes were the weakest points of its body. The spirit beast cried out in pain, while Jun Xiaomo quickly dodged to the side, swiftly avoiding the spirit beast¡¯s furious swipe at her.

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly sieved through the contents of her Interspatial Ring, hoping that she would be able to find a suitable talisman to use in the circumstances. In the next moment, she suddenly recalled that most of her remaining offensive talismans had beenpletely depleted and used up in the earlier tussle with Princess Linglong. Her Interspatial Ring could only be described as ¡°an empty storehouse¡± right now.

    When it rains, it pours. Jun Xiaomo was practically in tears right now.

    Yet she chose to grit her teeth and fight on. Jun Xiaomo raised her whip in front of her and stared straight back at the spirit beast that had lost one eye by now.

    As long as there was even one strand of hope remaining, she would never give up. It would be too aggrieving if she died just like that.

    Having lost one eye, the spirit beast rage only caused it to increase the intensity of its attacks. Together with its overbearing aura, it lunged at Jun Xiaomo once again as it roared with such fury that the surroundings trembled.

    Faced with the massive stature of the spirit beast that was attacking her, Jun Xiaomo looked almost like a frail little sprout that could be snapped in half at any time.

    Just then, a bright blue light flickered past in front of her eyes. Just as she thought that her eyes had been dazzled by the gripping battle, she realized that the blue image suddenly burst out with great energy and shot that bolt of energy straight towards the spirit beast. The spirit beast didn¡¯t even have the time to react when it got struck squarely on its body by the bolt of light, and it mmed back and copsed on the ground. Arge, gaping wound opened up on its neck, and nauseating blood flowed from it.

    In the blink of an eye, this massive, fearsome spirit beast waspletely dead.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely bbergasted, and she sat on the ground for a moment in shock before she finally returned to her senses. Then, she took a closer look at the bright blue light and noticed that it was a tiny, floating paper crane that was pping its wings about in front of her.

    ¡°This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo stretched out her hand and grabbed hold of one of its wings.

    ¡°Disciple~~¡± Tong Ruizhen¡¯s voice bellowed through the paper crane, startling Jun Xiaomo so much that her hands jolted, and she nearly even tossed the paper crane away.

    ¡°Master?!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at the pale blue little paper crane with astonishment in her eyes as she wondered when it had begun to follow alongside her.

    ¡°Cough, cough. Disciple, master has some things that he¡¯s forgotten to tell you about, so there¡¯s no choice but to ry this information to you through master¡¯s special Messenger Paper Crane.¡± Tong Ruizhen coughed dryly as he exined rather sheepishly.

    Jun Xiaomo chose to ignore her master¡¯s propensity for forgetting important details, as she helplessly replied, ¡°Disciple is listening. Go ahead, master.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not too difficult to clear the Proving Grounds. However, it wouldn¡¯t be right to describe it as an easy and simple task either. The locality of the Proving Grounds can be described as two squares, one inside the other. If you follow the path in front of you and keep walking along it, the path will take you around the entire Proving Grounds and end up in its center, which is also where the heart of the formation array is located. The entire Proving Grounds is a massive formation array, and it is also littered with innumerablerge and small formation arrays which disciple will have to personally break through and unlock in order to seed.¡±

    ¡°Apart from that, the Proving Groundsprise a total of seventy-two checkpoints, and each one of these would be guarded by either spirit beasts or demonic beasts. The further you go, the higher the level of these beasts. Thus, before challenging each of these checkpoints, disciple should make it a point to make sufficient preparations for each uing battle. Apart from preparing some talismans for yourself, you¡¯ll have to make sure that you raise your cultivation level to a certain extent as well.¡±

    ¡°That said, after clearing each checkpoint, you¡¯ll also be given amensurate reward. Some of these checkpoints even contain grandmaster¡¯s precious journals, and they will be particrly useful for increasing your abilities, particrly in setting up formation arrays. Oh, that¡¯s right. There¡¯s still master¡¯s Messenger Paper Crane. Apart from its ability to transmit messages, I¡¯ve also imbued it with a certain level of my own power. Disciple will be able to use it to block dangerous encounters three times. After three instances of usage...well, disciple will have to deal with matters in your own way after that...¡±

    Tong Ruizhen began to bber on like a grandmother nagging at her grandchild. After some time, he even began to digress and jabber on about everything under the sun. Jun Xiaomo nced about at the sky around her before she interrupted Tong Ruizhen mid-speech.

    ¡°Alright, master, I¡¯m losing daylight here. I¡¯d best look for a ce to retire for the day.¡± Jun Xiaomo interjected.

    ¡°Oh, oh. Then, alright, master shan¡¯t disturb you any further. Once you enter the domain of the first checkpoint, master will no longer have any means ofmunicating with you any further. Disciple has to remember to watch for your safety and do your best toe back alive~¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shuddered at Tong Ruizhen¡¯s repeated reminder for her to return alive. At the same time, she could feel her master¡¯s warmth and concern from the tone of his voice.

    ¡°Alright. Thank you, master.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. Even though Tong Ruizhen couldn¡¯t see her smile, she still patted the little paper crane¡¯s wings.

    The little paper crane pped its wings slightly, and a bright blue light shone from it. Once the blue light faded away, the paper crane became nothing more than an ordinary little paper crane.

    It was evident that Tong Ruizhen had already cut off themunication from his end.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly as she looked into the distance where the path seemed to lead indefinitely. The gaze in her eyes slowly changed from a distant and perplexed look into one filled only with resolve.

    When all was said and done, this was undoubtedly a godsent opportunity for her to elevate her abilities to new heights, and she absolutely had to make the best of it.

    She was determined toe out alive, stronger and better!

    -------------------------------------------------------------

    The days withoutpanionship were lonesome, long and arduous. At the beginning, Jun Xiaomo would count the days as time went by, keeping a close track of how long she had spent within the Proving Grounds. Yet as time went by, day after day, year after year, Jun Xiaomo gradually began to grow numb to the ebb and flow of time. Every time night fell, a sense of longing for her family and friends would once again emerge from the dark abysses of her heart and float to the surface of her mind.

    It was as though she had returned to her previous life when she was escaping for her life alone and travelling on her own. At that point of her life, the onlypany she had was the unending loneliness and solitude that continued to haunt and harass her.

    That said, her present circumstances were vastly different from the circumstances in her previous life. In her previous life, apart from the vengeance in her heart, she had absolutely no other reason to live on. The only thing she could look forward to in life was the release that apanied the full and final execution of her ns for vengeance.

    But this life was quite different. She had a whole host of loved ones waiting outside for her, including family and friends. The more she could glean from the Proving Grounds, the more she would be able to protect those whom she loved.

    This was a boundless resolve that had deeply taken root in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. It was also the bottomless well which gave her courage and strength to face the solitude and loneliness in the Proving Grounds.

    In the first year that passed, Jun Xiaomo cleared two checkpoints, while her cultivation level increased to the ninth level of Qi Mastery. At this point in time, Jun Xiaomo genuinely believed that the Proving Grounds might not be as difficult as her master had made it out to be. Perhaps she might only need several decades to clear it.

    When the second year passed, Jun Xiaomo found herself clearing only one checkpoint. In fact, in her haste and anxiety to clear the checkpoint, she even almost lost her life. It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo understood that the seventy-two checkpoints might not be as easy as she thought they would be.

    Another ten years passed, and Jun Xiaomo only managed to clear three more checkpoints. At the same time, having experienced many a close brush with death, Jun Xiaomo finally stilled her heart and began to patiently and thoroughly analyze each and every uing checkpoint as she made thorough preparations to ovee these checkpoints. The gaze in her eyes had grown steadfast and incisive by this point in time.

    One hundred years had passed, and Jun Xiaomo counted the number of checkpoints she had cleared. It was at this point that she discovered that there was approximately half the number of checkpoints remaining. From her experience, thetter half of the checkpoints were only going to get increasingly harder. Thus, she sighed in her heart, steeled her resolve, and forged forward once more...

    When three hundred and thirty years passed, the entire Proving Grounds suddenly experienced a tremendous change. The mountains and the valleys shifted, whilekes and rivers were disced. Amidst the tremors apanying these changes, the spirit and demonic beasts within the Proving Grounds invariably experienced an immense pressure emanating from the heart of the formation array sustaining the Proving Grounds. The pressure came from the formation array¡¯s master.

    The spirit and demonic beasts all cocked their heads in the direction of the heart of the formation array. Momentster, these beasts all threw their heads into the air and cried out loudly, before prostrating in the direction of the heart of the formation array.

    This signified their submission to the person standing on the heart of the formation array.

    After close to ten thousand years, the endlessnds of the Proving Grounds had finally weed their new master.

    -----------------------------------------------------

    At the edge of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s territories, a small teahouse stood at the base of the Thousand Crane Peak.

    It was noontime, and people wereing and going from the teahouse. Business was booming. Furthermore, this teahouse touted much more exquisite designs than any of the other teahouses around, and it was also far cleaner and orderly than the rest. Thus, people generally preferred this teahouse over any of the other teahouses around.

    As the saying goes, gossip thrives where people gather. This teahouse was no exception to this rule either. Arge, burly man with a gritty beard carrying a huge broadsword on his back entered the teahouse. As soon as he sat down and gulped down a few mouthfuls of his tea, he began to gossip with hispanions around.

    ¡°Did you hear that the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king is drawing near the end of his life?¡±

    ¡°Hasn¡¯t it been this way since a long time ago? He¡¯s been on his final breaths for a long time now, while those princes under him are constantly duking it out with each other. Perhaps these princes might even have forgotten their father¡¯s existence by now.¡± The burly man¡¯spanion chuckled disdainfully. What the burly man said was hardly news to him.

    ¡°Look at you. You sound just like a know-it-all. Then, let me ask you, who do you think is going to ascend the throne?¡±

    ¡°If this were a few years back, I would say that the person most likely to ascend the throne would undoubtedly be the first prince. After all, I heard that the first prince had earned the favor of a powerful master who¡¯s far stronger than even the Grand Vizier of the Inferno Kingdom. At the same time, the first prince¡¯s personal abilities are deep and immeasurable, and he¡¯s even an amazing tactician and general at that. But now...tch, it¡¯s gonna be hard to say.¡±

    ¡°Why would it be hard to say?¡±

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard? The first prince of the Inferno Kingdom has gone missing.¡±

    ¡°Missing?!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s gone missing. There are some who said that he¡¯s been assassinated by the king of the Greenwich Kingdom, while others say that he¡¯s gone into hiding to escape from the persecution of the Zephyr Sect and the Grand Vizier. Who knows where he is now? Whatever the case is, nobody has seen him in recent times. I¡¯ve got a rtive who works in the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce, so this news is absolutely urate.¡± The burly man¡¯spanion bragged as he delighted in the stunned looks on the faces of his otherpanions.

    ¡°Such a pity. Such a pity! The first prince was made of the stuff of legends!¡± The burly man stroked his gritty beard as he eximed, ¡°I hear that he treats his subordinates extremely well, and he doesn¡¯t have any airs about him. I¡¯d actually nned to enlist in his personal army when the first prince ascends the throne.¡±

    ¡°Sigh, it can¡¯t be helped. Even heroes are vulnerable to the charms of a beautiful woman.¡± The burly man¡¯spanion shook his head as he sighed.

    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±

    ¡°I hear that the first prince has a very close confidante who had, for some reason, offended Princess Linglong from the Greenwich Kingdom. In a fit of rage, the king of the Greenwich Kingdom demanded the Zephyr Sect to kill the confidante of his. As soon as the first prince learnt about this, he waspletely shattered and aggrieved. In his grief, he led his entire army and surrounded the entire Greenwich Kingdom and fought all the way into the capital of the Greenwich Kingdom. He almost singlehandedly conquered the Greenwich Kingdom.¡±

    ¡°I did hear about these things. That said, I only heard that the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom nearly conquered the Greenwich Kingdom. I didn¡¯t know anything about his reasons for waging war against them to begin with.¡±

    ¡°Haha, there¡¯s still more to this story. In the moment of crisis, the Greenwich Kingdom sought assistance from the Zephyr Sect, and nobody knows what kind of power the sect leader and the sect elders of the Zephyr Sect managed to summon, but overnight, theypletely obliterated the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s massive army of a hundred thousand and turned the situation around.¡±

    ¡°Tsk ¨C aren¡¯t cultivation sects not allowed to interfere with the matters of mere mortals?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s how things are supposed to be. But if they were to interfere, would us mortals be able to do anything about it? Then,ter on, the Inferno Kingdom fell prey to some false rumours which said that the Zephyr Sect would be thoroughly enraged andunch an all-out attack against the Inferno Kingdom if the Inferno Kingdom did nothing to put the first prince to death. As a result, the Inferno Kingdom sent over assassins in the Golden Core stage of cultivation to infiltrate the first prince¡¯s camp and take his head in order to appease the Zephyr Sect. In the end, not only did the first princee out alive, the ten assassins werepletely annihted.¡±

    ¡°The first prince is just too incredible. Just what level is his cultivation level at right now?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not too sure about that. All I know is that after this incident, the first prince waspletely disheartened and disappointed, and he immediately handed control of his entire army to his trusted aide before leaving the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s pce and vanishing into thin air. As soon as the first prince left the pce, his brothers, the other princes, began to spring into action as every single one of them attempted to vie for the title of crown prince once again. At the same time, given the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s tragic losses, the neighboring kingdoms around the Inferno Kingdom began to muster their troops and invade the Inferno Kingdom as well, surrounding the Inferno Kingdom on all four sides and wreaking havoc throughout itsnds. The Inferno Kingdom¡¯s king was thoroughly remorseful for his actions, but it was toote for regrets now.¡±

    ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s such a pity, such a pity...¡± The burly man sighed once more.

    ¡°Excuse me...the first prince you were referring to, was his name Rong Ruihan?¡± A pleasant voice called out from beside them. This voice sounded like clear spring waters striking a smooth boulder ¨C it sounded pleasant and almost enthralling.

    The burly man and hispanions were slightly taken aback, and they turned their heads around to the source of their voice ¨C a stranger had suddenly appeared and sat himself at the side of their table. This stranger donned a veiled conical hat, and nobody could see his appearances through that veil. He wore natural-white civilian garments, and he exuded an elegant and otherworldly air about him.

    When did this man sit at our table? Why don¡¯t I have any impression of him at all? Most importantly, none of them noticed his arrival nor how long the man had been sitting at the table for.

    Everyone exchanged nces with each other inplete bewilderment.

    ¡°Excuse me, was the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s name Rong Ruihan?¡±

    The man wearing civilian clothes appeared to be rather good-natured. Even though the burly man and hispanions were too bbergasted to respond to his earlier inquiry, he did not appear mad at all. Instead, he simply repeated his question.

    ¡°Ye-...yes...¡± The burly man finally responded, scratching his head sheepishly.

    I¡¯ve never seen a person with such a dignified air about him. This man must be a person from the cultivation world, right? As expected, the cultivation world is filled with handsome men and beautiful women. The burly man eximed in his heart. He felt rather inferior when hepared himself with the dignified man in civilian clothes.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± The man in civilian clothes thanked him calmly, before standing up and making his way to the entrance of the teahouse.

    The burly man and hispanions once again exchanged nces in bewilderment as they eximed in their heart ¨C When this dignified man appeared out of nowhere at our table...was it all just so that he could ask them that single question?

 Chapter 260: Mysterious Man in Civilian Clothes

    <h4>Chapter 260: Mysterious Man in Civilian Clothes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The man in civilian clothes continued to walk along the bustling street with a steady pace. Even though he donned a veiled conical hat, hisnky and upright posture coupled with his otherworldly aura caused many to pause in their steps and do a double-take at him.

    Everyone was curious how this man looked underneath the veiled conical hat of his.

    Just then, a disturbance appeared on the road ahead. As though something scary were taking ce, people began to scream and shout and scatter about in panic.

    If one listened closely, they could pick up traces of cries along the lines of, ¡°Monster...help...save me...¡± and so on.

    The man in civilian clothes continued to walk forward inplete juxtaposition with the world of chaos that ensued in the direction of where he was headed ¨C one was a realm that was in aplete mess, filled with panic and fear; while the other was a man who remained still, steadfast and immutable as time.

    The most incredulous thing was that no matter where the crowd scattered and ran, nobody collided into the man in civilian clothes at all.

    It was as though there was an invisible force protecting and sequestering this man from the others around him.

    However, as soon as the source of the chaos arrived, it stopped before this man.

    ¡°Shove off!¡± A rotten voice resounded, echoing in the ears of all who were around. If any cultivators were around right now, they would immediately be able to tell that the voice had been imbued with spiritual energy to give rise to such an effect.

    The man in civilian clothes looked up, and the veiled conical hat on his head swayed slightly. In the next moment, a massive beast that was as tall as the height of five personsbined bellowed as itnded in front of the man. A youngdy dressed in pink garments sat atop the massive beast.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you making way for me?!¡± The youngdy red down and pointed her finger at the man in civilian clothes from atop the spirit beast.

    The man in civilian clothes looked up once more, before cidly responding, ¡°Anyone can walk along this path. Why should I make way for you?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Thedy was incensed. Sheshed out with her whip, making several cracking sounds as she barked back, ¡°You¡¯re blocking my way!!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not supposed to be riding your spirit beast pet in the streets of the mortal world to begin with. Your spirit beast is a Hellfire Lion, and it¡¯s a ruthless and tyrannical creature. I wonder how many mortals have been trampled to death or eaten up by your Hellfire Lion along the way here.¡± The man in civilian clothes spoke with a tone of voice that wasced with much displeasure.

    Everyone else who had earlier been running for their lives noticed that the ferocious spirit beast had stopped in its tracks, and they no longer ran about frically. Instead, they turned back and watched themotion from afar. As soon as they heard the words from the man in civilian clothes, everyone nodded their heads in agreement, and they were filled with gratitude towards the man for standing up for all of them.

    ¡°Since you know it¡¯s a Hellfire Lion, why aren¡¯t you making way for me?! Do you believe me when I say I¡¯m going to order it to devour you?!¡± The unruly and tyrannicaldy was evidently displeased with the behaviour of the man in civilian clothes, and she began to threaten him.

    ¡°I believe you. But it doesn¡¯t have the ability to devour me.¡± The man in civilian clothes responded with nonchnce. His words were so serene and tranquil, and yet the extent of its cidity only incensed the headstrongdy even more.

    ¡°Alright, since you¡¯re being so arrogant and unreasonable, then don¡¯t me me for my impoliteness! Hellfire Lion, get at him!¡±

    Under its master¡¯s instructions, the Hellfire Lion immediately pounced towards the man in civilian clothes.

    In the blink of an eye, a spirit sword appeared in the hands of the man in civilian clothes. This sword emanated a frigid and incisive air about it, and the man¡¯s aura instantly exploded with ferocity and increased in its intensity by several levels.

    Earlier, when the man in civilian clothes remained discreet, his existence was so faint that it was barely noticeable. Apart from the dignified aura exuding from his body, nobody could feel the roaring, intense pressure emanating from his body. This caused the arrogantdy to mistake him for nothing more than a pushover that could be crushed at any time.

    Yet as soon as he armed himself with his spirit sword, the oppressive aura around his body erupted instantly and engulfed the surroundings. It was only at this point that the arrogantdy realized that she might very well have stubbed her toe.

    That said, the pride in her heart meant that she was not willing to admit defeat so easily. Besides, her mount was something that her brother had personally gifted to her, and its abilities were already in the Golden Core stage of cultivation.

    Spirit beasts that were in the Golden Core stage of cultivation were incredibly fearsome. If both were at the same level of cultivation, human cultivators would generally be unable to match up to the powerfulbat abilities of the spirit beasts.

    The arrogantdy was evidently conceited because she had the backing of the spirit beast beside her, and it was for this reason that she dared to act in such an unbridled manner.

    Unfortunately, it was also evident that the arrogantdy was unaware of the truth of life that there was always someone stronger in the vast world out there. Her ego had been puffed up to unprecedented levels within her sect, causing her to forget the fact that the world out there was filled with existences that could crush her as easily as they would crush an ant. Within one incense stick of time, the man in civilian clothes had managed to incapacitate all four limbs of the Hellfire Lion, and it was reduced to its final breaths as itid pathetically on the ground. At the same time, the arrogantdy fell from the top of the Hellfire Lion when it copsed to the ground.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister...¡±

    Over ten male disciples ran over from the distance and did what they could to support the arrogantdy and help her back to her feet.

    The arrogantdy had the Hellfire Lion as her mount, while the rest of them were on foot. Thus, they had only managed to arrive where thedy was when her Hellfire Lion was defeated by the man in civilian clothes.

    ¡°Leave me be for now. Kill that man!¡± The arrogantdy red hatefully as she pointed at the man in civilian clothes and barked through her gritted teeth.

    ¡°This...¡± The disciples exchanged sheepish nces with each other. Having noticed the state of the Hellfire Lion, how could any of them still have the guts to even attempt to duke it out with the man in civilian clothes?

    The man in civilian clothes swept his gaze across the group of men who had just arrived. As soon as he noticed their hesitance and theirck of battle intent, he flicked and sheathed his sword, ignored the group of people and continued to make his way forward.

    ¡°Bunch of useless cowards!¡± The pink-garbeddy red hatefully at the male disciples surrounding her, ¡°If you don¡¯t obey mymands, I¡¯m going to tell my brother. Let¡¯s see how he¡¯ll deal with you at that time!¡±

    The male disciples were evidently rather afraid of the ¡°brother¡± that the arrogantdy had referred to. They nced at each other, before immediately rushing towards the man in civilian clothes ¨C none of them had the confidence that they could defeat this man, and they knew that their only chance of sess stood in the fact that they could take the man by surprise.

    Unfortunately, the man seemed to have eyes on his back. He suddenly turned around, and countless des formed with sword intent immediately congealed in mid-air as they rushed straight towards the male disciples who were charging at him.

    Nobody expected the man in civilian clothes to be so nimble and quick with his reflexes. Given that they were already mid-step, the male disciples ended up scrambling to avoid the des formed by sword intent. Those who failed to avoid the des ended up with wound after wound appearing on their bodies. They were reduced to an extremely sorry state. In fact, that was most astonishing was the fact that the des formed by sword intent were even able to track and follow them ¨C and the disciples were unable to shirk off these des no matter what they did.

    ¡°Trash! All of you are trash!¡± The pink-garbeddy stamped her feet on the ground. At the same time, she recalled that there was something within her Interspatial Ring that she could use.

    This was something that her brother had given to her to be used during emergencies.

    The pink-garbeddy¡¯s eyes grew cold and frigid as she nced at the man in civilian clothes. Then, she immediately retrieved the sharp, needle-like object from her Interspatial Ring, imbued it with her own spiritual energy, and tossed it straight at her opponent.

    This was a Soulying Needle. It should never be underestimated just because of its small size. As soon as it punctures a person¡¯s body, it would immediately burrow its way into a person¡¯s meridians and find its way into its target¡¯s Dantian, crippling that person¡¯s entire cultivation. It was an incredibly devilish, vicious weapon.

    Unfortunately, the pink-garbeddy underestimated the abilities of the man in civilian clothes. Even though she was absolutely confident in the abilities of the Soulying Needle, he discovered its existence before it struck his body. The man in civilian clothes waved his sleeves, and the Soulying Needle exploded mid-flight, shattered into innumerable tiny pieces and slowly drifted to the ground.

    The Soulying Needle was gone in just an instant ¨C it waspletely destroyed.

    The pink-garbeddy grew increasingly anxious and enraged. This was a gift that her brother had given her for her birthday, and it was the object of envy of several of her friends. But now, everything was gone! She looked at what remained of the Soulying Needle, before lifting her head, ready to blurt out a string of obscenities and curse at the man in civilian clothes. But when she saw him this time, she immediately froze in shock.

    As it turns out, the shockwave from the Soulying Needle¡¯s explosion had blown the veiled conical hat off the man in civilian clothes, revealing his appearances ¨C it was a face that could be ranked among the top, even in the cultivation world where handsome men and beauties abounded. He possessed a high nose-bridge, thin, charming lips, striking eyebrows, and a cool yet abstruse-looking pair of eyes. Over and above all that, he possessed a cold and distant air about him, as though he was a deity with pristine looks that had just descended from the heavens.

    At the beginning, when the pink-garbeddy noticed that the man had hidden his appearances, she had immediately concluded that he must be hiding his face because he looked hideous. Unexpectedly, this man was not only not ugly, he was incredibly good-looking.

    He¡¯s even more handsome than brother is... The pink-garbeddy¡¯s heart began to thump with excitement, and the gaze with which she looked at this man immediately changedpletely.

    Just a little while ago, she was still arrogant and headstrong as she forced the issue. Yet, now, her gaze was simply filled with passion and vigor.

    The man in civilian clothes nced back at her cidly, before turning to leave,pletely ignoring the passion burning in the depths of her eyes.

    It was evident that the man in civilian clothes had not sought revenge for the pink-garbeddy¡¯s actions because he hardly considered them deserving of any more of his time.

    ¡°Wait a minute!¡± The pink-garbeddy noticed that the man in civilian clothes was about to leave, so she immediately gave chase after him.

    Yet, the man in civilian clothespletely ignored her.

    ¡°Mar-...martial sister, don¡¯t give chase anymore. He¡¯s too powerful. We won¡¯t be able to defeat him.¡± The pink-garbeddy¡¯s martial brothers attempted to persuade her.

    ¡°Who says I¡¯m going to look for him to settle the score?¡± The pink-garbeddy retorted in exasperation. She stamped her feet on the ground, before continuing to run after him. Within moments, she found her way in front of the man in civilian clothes and stood in front of him.

    Her breathing was slightly ragged from the running. Yet when she looked up once more at the man¡¯s pristine appearances, infatuation immediately filled the depths of her eyes.

    This man is even more gorgeous when you look at him closely. I have to make this man mine! The pink-garbeddy eximed in her heart with great resolve.

    The man in civilian clothes furrowed his eyebrows. He hated trouble, yet the troublesome pink-garbeddy had time and againe up to him looking for trouble.

    If he could help it, he did not wish to kill a person under the watchful eyes of the public. After all, even though his personality was cold, he was not so cold that he was nothing more than a bloodthirsty murderer. Besides, he could tell with one look that the pink-garbeddy was of an unusual stature.

    The pink-garbeddy looked at how the man was looking at her with furrowed brows, and she immediately recalled how she had earlier been picking a fight with this man. Her rationality was beginning to return to her.

    No! I can¡¯t let him continue to hate me!

    As the pink-garbeddy thought about it, she bit down on her lower lips and looked back at the man sheepishly as she muttered, ¡°About earlier...I¡¯m sorry. I was at fault. I apologize to you.¡±

    The man in civilian clothes never expected the pink-garbeddy to change her attitude to suddenly, and he was immediately taken aback.

    That said, he quickly collected himself and responded, ¡°I ept thisdy¡¯s apology. Then, please stand aside...¡±

    Rather thanmunicating his eptance of the pink-garbeddy¡¯s apology, it might have been more urate to say that the man had taken into ount the fact that he was unharmed from the earlier incident, and he simply couldn¡¯t be bothered to press the issue.

    The man in civilian clothes circled around the pink-garbeddy and continued to walk forward. However, the pink-garbeddy immediately grabbed hold of his arm.

    His body flickered. In the next moment, he wrested his arm free of her grasp.

    ¡°Lady, just what do you want with me?¡± The man in civilian clothes sounded increasingly displeased. He hated it when people intruded into his personal space. He hated it when anyone did so, except for one person, and this one person...

    An image of that person flickered across the depths of his heart, and a trace of warmth could be seen welling up in the depths of his pupils.

    The pink-garbeddy thought that his soft expressions were directed at herself, and her heart leapt with joy as she introduced herself, ¡°I¡¯m Qin Shanshan, a Dawn Sect disciple. My brother is Qin Lingyu, a disciple of the Limitless Sect. I wonder how I should address this brother? No discord, no concord. Let¡¯s make an acquaintance, shall we?¡±

    The man in civilian clothes suddenly trembled, and a bright, incisive gleam shed across the depths of his eyes ¨C

    ¡°You¡¯re from the Dawn Sect? Your brother is Qin Lingyu?!¡±

    ¡°Ye-...yes...what...what about it?¡± Qin Shanshan stammered in response. She was taken aback by the moment of frigid intent in the man¡¯s voice.

    She had earlier mentioned her brother¡¯s name in order to give her own introductions some gravitas; she had never expected such an intense reaction from the man in civilian clothes.

    However, the man in civilian clothes quickly collected himself. In the blink of an eye, as he looked up once more, his eyes were once again filled with a cool, distant gaze.

    ¡°Since thisdy is a disciple from the Dawn Sect, then I¡¯m sure you would know a little bit about the current condition of the Heavenly Peak right?¡±

    ¡°Heavenly Peak?¡± A look of disgust shed across the depths of Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes, ¡°I do know a little. I wonder why this brother wishes to discuss matters pertaining to the Heavenly Peak?¡±

    When she drew to thetter statement, Qin Shanshan intentionallyced her tone of voice with some measure of curiosity as she probed at his intentions.

    ¡°It¡¯s just that I¡¯d earlier heard that the Heavenly Peak had been annihted, and I was hoping to verify this for myself.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t consider them annihted just yet. That said, that band of people can be said to be in dire straits.¡± Qin Shanshan quipped with delight in her voice. She obviously had no favourable impression of the people of the Heavenly Peak.

    ¡°Dire straits...¡± The man in civilian clothes echoed, as though deep in thought.

    ¡°Does this brother want to know more? Let¡¯s have a chat at the teahouse nearby, then...oh yes, may I know how I should address this brother?¡± Since the man was interested in finding out more about the people of the Heavenly Peak, Qin Shanshan felt that she could easily use her knowledge in this regard as a hook to have a chat with this man and make an acquaintance.

    As to whether this man has any ulterior motives for finding out more about the Heavenly Peak, she was content to temporarily shelf that thought. After all, she had the backing of her brother, and she did not believe that this man would dare to make a move against her.

    ¡°How would you address me...¡± A gleam shed across the depths of the man¡¯s eyes, before he resolved to keep his real name hidden in his heart.

    ¡°My surname is Jun. You can call me Jun Ziwen.¡±

 Chapter 261: Qin Shanshanâ€™s Unrequited Love

    <h4>Chapter 261: Qin Shanshan¡¯s Unrequited Love</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Ziwen was none other than Ye Xiuwen whom everybody thought had perished. He had spent well over four thousand days and nights within the Death¡¯s Gorge, and there was not a single moment when he did not long to breach the artificial barrier formed by spirit and demonic beasts so that he could return to the surface.

    Even his master from within the Death¡¯s Gorge had warned him time and again that he was far too reckless and daring.

    But only Ye Xiuwen knew the real reason why he was willing to go so far ¨C it was the worry and the concern on his heart.

    After twelve full years, he finally eked out a painstaking victory against the throngs of spirit and demonic beasts within the Death¡¯s Gorge and found his way back to the surface. When he finally achieved all that, he felt as though he had just been reborn.

    His master thought to call upon some of the old friends of his, and they thus bade each other farewell at the precipice of the Death¡¯s Gorge. Ye Xiuwen made haste and sped towards the direction of the Dawn Sect, hoping to return to the Heavenly Peak in the shortest time possible so that he could reunite with the ones whom he cared about. In the end, he heard rumours along the way that the Heavenly Peak had been annihted.

    To Ye Xiuwen, such news was like a bolt of lightning from the blue.

    Along the way, Ye Xiuwen began to hear more and more about the Heavenly Peak. These pieces of news were purely hearsay, and it was evident that these stories had evolved as they were passed from person to person. After all, Ye Xiuwen heard varying ounts of what exactly happened to the Heavenly Peak.

    Some said that the one-hundred or so people within the Heavenly Peak were all massacred ¨C even Jun Linxuan and his wife Liu Qingmei were unable to avoid this cmity. When they perished, their blood dyed the entire Heavenly Peak a terrifying, blood-red colour.

    Some others said that the people who perishedprised only a small part of the Heavenly Peak, while the remnant managed to escape and disappeared without a trace. At this point in time, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders were discreetly activating their resources in order to track down the remnant from the Heavenly Peak who had managed to give them the slip.

    There were yet others who told a different ount, saying that not a single person from the Heavenly Peak perished. Rather, they had only been bound up and restrained for the time being. The rest of the members of the Dawn Sect were going to decide how they would deal with them after they had finished distributing the Heavenly Peak¡¯s wealth among themselves.

    These different ounts of the incident were all diverse and muddied, and there was not a single thread of consistency among them. Ye Xiuwen was none the wiser as to which version was true, and which version was false. The only thing he could glean from these rumours was the fact that He Zhang and hisckeys were responsible for Heavenly Peak¡¯s plight!

    He was reminded of what his little martial sister had earlier reminded him, particrly in respect of how He Zhang was not a benevolent and virtuous person, and that he would in due time make a move against the Heavenly Peak. Back then, despite how he was astonished at the changes to his little martial sister¡¯s constitution, he barely took her words of caution to heart.

    On hindsight, he found it truly regrettable that did not alert his master about these matters earlier...

    His heart would be filled with pangs of pain whenever he thought about his little martial sister as well ¨C he had not heard anything about his little martial sister at all. The rumours had all focused on the fate of the Heavenly Peak as a whole, and none of them addressed each individual within the Heavenly Peak. Even though his little martial sister was none other than the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, it was as though everyone seemed to have forgottenpletely about her.

    To the eyes of outsiders, Ye Xiuwen was a suave and charming young man with a cool disposition about him, yet he was also one who could only be admired from a distance because he was difficult to chat up. In his pain and solitude, Ye Xiuwen had shut himself off to outsiders, and consciously kept to himself in these days of muddle-headedness.

    He was vexed by the fact that he was receiving a baptism of nces and stares everywhere he went, and there were even severaldies who woulde up with all forms of excuses just to get close to him. Thus, Ye Xiuwen decided that he would return to how life used to be in the past when he covered his face with a veiled conical hat. With that, the annoying gazes that haunted and harassed him like flies over a rotten fruit finally diminished substantially.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life became one that was filled with solitude and serenity once more. His garrulous master who would unceasingly bber and jabber about anything and everything was no longer beside him; and his little martial sister who adhered herself to him as she bounced about like a jovial little happy pill was no longer around him either. All of a sudden, Ye Xiuwen found his life awash with an unprecedented solitude and loneliness.

    He was a person who enjoyed his time alone to begin with. Back in the days while he was at the Heavenly Peak, even though he maintained a reasonably cordial rtionship with his martial brothers, he could truly only be considered close to his little martial sister. In the preceding twenty-something years of his life, he had always been learning alone, practicing alone, and he was used toing and going alone. Back then, he didn¡¯t find anything ufortable or wrong with living a life of solitude.

    However, in that moment that the fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge and realized that he would no longer be able to leave in the near future, each and every day that passed within was a strong reminder to him that home was where the heart was ¨C in this regard, the Heavenly Peak was like an eternal home to him.

    Ye Xiuwen could hardly fathom the idea of looking for a new ce to call home if the Heavenly Peak were truly gone as the rumours had suggested.

    And there was still his little martial sister...

    His little martial sister had been so heartbroken and distressed by the fact that he was receiving these strange and peculiar nces from the public as a result of the scar on his face, and it was for that reason that she had sought out the various constituent herbs necessary to purge the curse and demonic energy from the scar on his face. Now that his appearances had returned to normal, perhaps the one who would be most delighted and overjoyed would be none other than his little martial sister, right?

    Ye Xiuwen longed to learn of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts, so much so that he had even begun to keep an ear out for news pertaining to Rong Ruihan. After all, Rong Ruihan possessed the same level of concern for Jun Xiaomo as he did. If his intuition was right, the confidante of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince would be none other than his little martial sister.

    Unfortunately, what he had just heard was undoubtedly a grave piece of news. After all, the burly man in the teahouse had earlier said that the confidante of the Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince had been put to death by the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s king, and it was precisely for this reason that the first prince had in his furyunched an all-out invasion, surrounding the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s capital.

    Could it be Xiaomo? In the moment that Ye Xiuwen heard this piece of news, his entire mind went nk with an eerie silence. His chest felt stifled as though a heavy boulder had justnded on it, so much so that his breathing had evene to aplete halt.

    After ascertaining that the ¡°Inferno Kingdom¡¯s first prince¡± referred to by the group of men in the teahouse was indeed Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen left the teahouse and continued on his way along the bustling main road. At that point in time, he waspletely taciturn.

    Sequestered by the veiled conical hat, everyone around could only tell that this man emanated a cold and distant aura that made him seem rather unapproachable. However, nobody could tell the distress and chaos that was buzzing in his mind.

    His only hope was that Rong Ruihan¡¯s confidante was not Jun Xiaomo, or that the rumours had evolved so much that they hadpletely warped the truth, and that the confidante was not actually dead.

    In his sullenness, Ye Xiuwen serendipitously encountered Qin Shanshan and the entourage of disciples that followed closely behind her. Qin Shanshan¡¯s unruly and headstrong behaviour coupled with her troublemaking character left him incredibly displeased. That said, he firmly believed in the notion of chivalry, and he was not a bloodthirsty murderer either. Therefore, he did not make a move and take Qin Shanshan¡¯s life.

    Then, as soon as Qin Shanshan disclosed her identity, Ye Xiuwen paused in his steps.

    Nobody knew better than these Dawn Sect disciples what exactly happened to the members of the Heavenly Peak. Thus, he intended to elicit more of the truth about the Dawn Sect disciples directly from Qin Shanshan¡¯s mouth.

    At the same time, Qin Shanshan was not aware of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s true identity and the purpose for which he was inquiring all these things. In fact, she had thought that Ye Xiuwen had taken an interest towards her, and she would cast meaningful, coquettish nces at Ye Xiuwen from time to time, and even broach topic after topic to learn more about Ye Xiuwen. In the end, Ye Xiuwen merely gave curt responses, such as ¡°Mm¡±, ¡°Yes¡±, or ¡°Nope¡±.

    Qin Shanshan gritted her teeth with infuriation ¨C This man is far too cold, isn¡¯t he?!

    But it wouldn¡¯t be challenging and interesting otherwise, would it? Qin Shanshan thought to herself as she steeled her resolve and dug deeper.

    ¡°Ah, brother Jun, let¡¯s have a chat inside this teahouse! Its d¨¦cor and cleanliness both seem pretty decent.¡± Qin Shanshan pointed at one of the teahouses nearby as she suggested to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen had earlier told Qin Shanshan to address him as ¡°Jun Ziwen¡±, yet Qin Shanshan had of her own volition decided to call him ¡°brother Jun¡±, because such a term of reference made it sound as though they were closer and more intimate.

    Since Ye Xiuwen¡¯s surname wasn¡¯t Jun to begin with, he could hardly be bothered to correct Qin Shanshan¡¯s manner of addressing him.

    As soon as he heard Qin Shanshan¡¯s suggestion, Ye Xiuwen calmly nodded his head, before taking the lead and walking straight towards the teahouse.

    Qin Shanshan was taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s curt and simple actions, and she stared at his back with rage in her eyes.

    Why doesn¡¯t this guy have any sense of chivalry at all?! When he bes my boyfriend in future, I¡¯m going to have to teach him a thing or two about chivalry!

    The martial brothers following behind Qin Shanshan exchanged sheepish nces with each other. Qin Shanshan¡¯s infatuation for that man was so obvious that they couldn¡¯t turn a blind eye to it even if they wanted to. However, it was clear that the man had no interest in Qin Shanshan whatsoever. Thus, everyone was concerned about whether the diva Qin Shanshan would throw a tantrum when she finally realized that she was not going to be able to obtain what she wanted.

    In fact, they were not so much afraid of Qin Shanshan as they were the firm mountain that was backing her which took the form of her brother. It was only on ount for her brother that they continued to attempt to cajole Qin Shanshan and treat her well.

    Forget it, let¡¯s deal with things one step at a time. The Dawn Sect disciples shook their heads in resignation as they followed Qin Shanshan into the teahouse.

    As her determination to win Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart manifested, Qin Shanshan truly pulled out all the stops. She cast aside her diva-like attitude and turned into a demure, politedy as she took the initiative to wash the teapot, rinse the tea leaves and then rinse the cups. Everyone around, apart from Ye Xiuwen, werepletely bbergasted by the stark change to her temperament.

    They had never seen such a side to Qin Shanshan before! It was as though the sun was going to rise from the west tomorrow!

    In order to sell her tea-making abilities to Ye Xiuwen and leave a good impression, she made sure to perform each of the tea ceremony moves with ir and poise. She would even from time to time bring her hand gracefully across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, before casting him a slightly shy and abashed look.

    However, everything that she had done seemed to have been in vain. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes continued to be fixed on the surface of the table, and his expressions remained cid. Nobody could tell what was running through his mind.

    ¡°Cough...martial sister, you¡¯ve been rinsing the tea for quite a long time now.¡± One of the other Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but remind Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s soft and tender actions were far too peculiar and incredulous, and none of the disciples could take it any longer.

    ¡°Who told you to butt in!¡± Qin Shanshan red at the disciple who spoke up.

    ¡°Let me do it instead.¡± Ye Xiuwen nimbly took over the pot of tea from Qin Shanshan¡¯s hands, and he began to make tea.

    Ye Xiuwen was fluent and proficient in his tea-making abilities, and the tea was ready in no time. He even exuded a cool and down-to-earth aura as he performed the actions in the tea-making process. Several people who stole nces at him immediately began to feel as though the fragrance of tea that was wafting into the air was imbued with a sense of otherworldliness. Qin Shanshan¡¯s proficiency in the craft of tea making could hardly hold a candle to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s, and she could even be described to have been making a fool of herself earlier.

    Even though Qin Shanshan felt that she had lost face in this regard, she was at the same time incredibly proud that her dear brother Jun truly lived up to his name ¨C even a simple action like making tea could be done with such graceful poise. By this point, she was almost certain that he must hail from arge sect.

    Qin Shanshan thought about Yu Wanrou and the group of men she had gathered about her, and she couldn¡¯t help but chuckle excitedly ¨C if she could subjugate brother Jun and make him hers, she would most certainly gain Yu Wanrou¡¯s admiration and envy.

    After all, none of the men around Yu Wanrou were a match for her brother Jun in terms of both their looks as well as their auras and dispositions. As Qin Shanshan thought about these things, she bit down on her lower lip and cast an impassioned gaze towards Ye Xiuwen.

    However, Ye Xiuwen had not agreed to enter the teahouse just so that he could act as Qin Shanshan¡¯s eye candy.

    Thus, he got straight to the point, ¡°I wonder if thisdy would be willing to discuss with me the matter pertaining to the Heavenly Peak?¡±

    Qin Shanshan was slightly taken aback at his eagerness in this regard, and her curiosity was piqued.

    ¡°Brother Jun, why do you want so much to know about the Heavenly Peak?¡±

 Chapter 262: Whereabouts of the Heavenly Peak Members

    <h4>Chapter 262: Whereabouts of the Heavenly Peak Members</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s words were borne out of curiosity, but Ye Xiuwen still had to give it some thought and consideration. After all, there was currently nobody within the Dawn Sect standing on the side of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s faction. A single slip up on his part could reveal his identity to all, and it wouldpletely dash any of his hopes of locating his master and the other disciples from the Heavenly Peak.

    Ye Xiuwen firmly believed that Jun Linxuan and the rest were not dead. His conviction in this regard was not borne out of any evidence that they were alive. Rather, it was simply borne out of the fact that he might not be able to deal with the prospects of the entire Heavenly Peak being annihted and massacred.

    Furthermore, Qin Shanshan had dropped a small hint earlier that the Heavenly Peak had not been massacred, and it would be more urate to describe them as in dire straits.

    This was sufficient constion to Ye Xiuwen. As long as there was even a single strand of hope, he would clutch tightly to it until the day he could rescue his master and fellow martial brothers.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thoughts were all buried deep beneath the cold expressions of his. His mind churned, and he thought about the encounter just before falling into the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    At that time, he and Jun Xiaomo had stepped on the toes of one of the eight great sects, the Du n, and thus ended up being surrounded and attacked by the disciples of the Du n. A moment of folly at that time had caused him to slip and fall straight into the Death¡¯s Gorge, where he would spend the next twelve years.

    Perhaps I could use this incident as a base and create an identity for myself.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his eyes, took a sip of his tea, before calmly looking back at Qin Shanshan as he exined, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s nothing much. Twelve years ago, I was passing through the Mystic Woods when I encountered two Dawn Sect disciples, a man and a woman. We had our disagreements, yet because they were unable to defeat me inbat, they began to use their identity to threaten me. When the woman introduced her backers, she mentioned that she was the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, Jun Linxuan, and she even dered at that time that she was going to lead a team of her martial brothers to settle the score with me. Thus, over thest few years, I¡¯d been wandering around the cultivation world alone, trying my best to avoid the Dawn Sect disciples just so that I could avoid another spate of conflict or attract the wrath of the Heavenly Peak. Now that I¡¯ve heard rumours that the Heavenly Peak had been annihted, I wanted to personally verify the veracity of the news.¡±

    If it were Yu Wanrou or Qin Lingyu who had been around right now, they might not believe Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spiel at this point in time. At the very least, they would not believe Ye Xiuwen so readily. This was because the two of them knew Jun Xiaomo extremely well ¨C the odds that Jun Xiaomo would resort to using her identity to threaten others when she lost inbat was slim to none.

    However, Qin Shanshan had known nothing but to use her identity as Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister to threaten others, and she possessed neither Yu Wanrou¡¯s wits nor Qin Lingyu¡¯s craftiness. Thus, as soon as she heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s exnations, she wholeheartedly believed him. In fact, she even grew indignant for him, ¡°Brother Jun, the person that you¡¯d encountered is undoubtedly Jun Xiaomo! Twelve years ago, she snuck out of the Sect without telling anyone, and she got into all sorts of trouble outside. Not only did they end up offending the Grand Vizier of the Inferno Kingdom, they¡¯d even offended the Du n of the eight great sects! Who would¡¯ve thought that the list goes on and even includes brother Jun! As expected, people like Jun Xiaomo have such rotten character that they attract the hate and wrath of people wherever they go!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen tightened his grip around his teacup and gritted his teeth as he remained silent.

    Qin Shanshan did not notice Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar behaviour, and she only continued to p her lips, ¡°Fortunately, the heavens naturally deal with the wicked. I don¡¯t know what kind of doggone fortune she¡¯de across to earn the favour of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Fifth Elder and be the Zephyr Sect¡¯s formal disciple, but there, she offended someone whom she couldn¡¯t afford to offend. In the end, she¡¯spletely perished ¨C there¡¯s not even a single bit of her corpse left behind.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s breath grew ragged for just one moment, and a ripple could be seen at the depths of his eyes, ¡°She¡¯s really...dead? ...¡±

    Qin Shanshan thought that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reaction was borne out of joy, and she didn¡¯t think too much of it as she snorted, ¡°Isn¡¯t it so? When news of her death spread to the Sect, Liu Qingmei nearly fainted there and then. Can this news be any less real? Oh, that¡¯s right. Brother Jun doesn¡¯t know who Liu Qingmei is, right? She¡¯s none other than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mother. She¡¯s aplete shrew. Every time Jun Xiaomo encounters a mishap, she would always cluck away incessantly like a mother hen, as though she were so afraid that her daughter would be humiliated or aggrieved in one way or another. If you ask me, the only reason why Jun Xiaomo had met with her fate right now was all due to her mother¡¯s unbridled spoiling of her!¡±

    The more Qin Shanshan spoke, the sharper and more vicious her tongue grew. Yet all this while, she failed to notice that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had begun to roil withyers uponyers of a raging inferno of fury.

    The person that Ye Xiuwen respected the most in his life, apart from the two masters who had taught him everything he knew, was his first master¡¯s wife, Liu Qingmei. When he lost all his kin back when he was ten years of age, Liu Qingmei was the one who had extended to him the warmth of a mother¡¯s love once more. Just as much as Liu Qingmei had already begun to see him as half a child to her, he had simrly also begun to see Liu Qingmei as an existence akin to half a mother.

    In the end, the most respecteddy in his eyes was described by Qin Shanshan as no more than a ¡°shrew¡± or a ¡°mother hen¡±. After the decline of the Heavenly Peak, Qin Shanshan had obviously felt that her personal stature within the Dawn Sect meant that she was far more high and mighty than people like Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei, which also meant that she was perfectlyfortable ndering and smearing their names without any restraint. Sometimes, when a person tells a lie too many times, they begin to be convicted of their own lies ¨C this was such an instance; Qin Shanshan had already begun to feel convicted of her spiel.

    In truth, those who knew Liu Qingmei¡¯s personality would know that even though she did have her moments where her fiery temper burgeoned and zed, she was at most times a very caring and warm person.

    Otherwise, He Zhang would not have coveted Liu Qingmei for such a long time ¨C to the extent that he still wanted to make her his own even after she had married and had children.

    The teacup in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand suddenly clinked, and a crack appeared on it. He took a sip of tea from it and worked hard to suppress the urge to sh Qin Shanshan¡¯s throat right this moment.

    ¡°Where was I? Oh! That¡¯s right, I¡¯d been talking about how Jun Xiaomo had been killed as a result of offending the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s Princess Linglong.¡± Qin Shanshan hardly noticed the faint killing intent emanating from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body as she continued to quip in delight, as though she were delighting in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s misery, ¡°After Jun Xiaomo passed away, the Heavenly Peak was thrown into chaos for a long period of time, and everyone was in a slump. As a result, even Jun Linxuan failed to notice how his youngest disciple had changed and be a demonic cultivator.¡±

    ¡°Demonic cultivator?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Even brother Jun finds it hard to believe, huh? The Heavenly Peak¡¯s Jun Linxuan had spent his entire life fishing forpliments and feigning righteousness. Who knew that when misfortune struck, it was in fact his own daughter and his youngest disciple, Wei Gang, who would tarnish and smear his name?¡± Qin Shanshan mocked contemptuously.

    Ye Xiuwen thought about how his younger martial sister¡¯s constitution changed to that of an acquired demonic body and was thus forced to be a demonic cultivator.

    Perhaps there might be more than meets the eye as to why Gang had turned to demonic cultivation...

    Having been reminded of Jun Xiaomo once more, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart began to feel pangs of pain spreading through it. He had already known for a long time that he had feelings for Jun Xiaomo. But before he could reunite with his little martial sister, everything had changed.

    Ye Xiuwen did all he could to still the roiling emotions in his heart. He knew that he still couldn¡¯t afford to do anything against Qin Shanshan at this moment, because he needed to learn about his master and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples from the horse¡¯s mouth.

    If Jun Xiaomo were no longer living right now, the only thing that he could do was to help her protect those that mattered most to her. Thus, at the very least, he would have to rescue his master and the other disciples from their current predicament and bring them to a safe ce.

    As to what next, Ye Xiuwen truly didn¡¯t know. His heart was incredibly stifled right now, and he could not find a direction in life at this moment.

    One of the main fuels motivating him to push himself so hard to elevate his abilities was Jun Xiaomo. But now, hearing the news of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s death felt as though one of the foundations of his heart had copsed.

    Qin Shanshan interpreted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sullenness as a form of affirmation and approval, so she raised her eyebrows in delight as she continued, ¡°And also...ever since the discovery that Jun Linxuan¡¯s youngest disciple had be a demonic cultivator, other spiritual cultivating sects began to lead a crusade against the entire Heavenly Peak ¨C even some hidden sects were involved. Do you still remember the Du n? The n that the evil Jun Xiaomo had offended ¨C they were the ones who had dered to everyone that they had every intention to purge evil from the world and kill the demonic cultivator within the Heavenly Peak. Yet who would¡¯ve thought that Jun Linxuan would be so stubborn in his desire to protect that disciple of his? Not only did he hide that disciple away, he evenmanded all of the disciples within the Heavenly Peak to obstruct the march of the crusaders...and that only made things worse for them. Everyone from the Heavenly Peak involved were pped with an additional charge of harbouring a demonic cultivator, and they were all doomed to be captured and destroyed.¡±

    ¡°Surrounded on all sides, huh...then, did they manage to escape?¡±

    This was what Ye Xiuwen was most concerned about. He finally looked up once more and stared straight into Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes.

    All these while, Qin Shanshan felt like she had been unable to get Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention. Thus, when Ye Xiuwen finally looked up at her, her heart immediately leapt with joy.

    She couldn¡¯t help but reveal a slightly abashed look on her flushed face as she continued, ¡°That...they did manage to escape...¡±

    Just a little while ago, she had still been speaking with conviction, as though with righteous indignation, yet now her attitude hadpletely changed to that of a demure, dainty youngdy, causing all of the other male disciples sitting around the table to shudder in shock. They couldn¡¯t take the stark contrast; and they couldn¡¯t ept this new side to Qin Shanshan.

    Was Qin Shanshan beautiful? Of course she was. Was Qin Shanshan of a high stature? Of course she was. However, if anyone asked whether any of these male disciples was willing to take Qin Shanshan as his wife, they would most certainly respond with, ¡°Over my dead body¡±.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s temper was far too unruly and headstrong, and she was used to doing what she wanted and getting her way simply by riding on her brother¡¯s coattails. There was not a single male disciple in the Dawn Sect who had not been forced to treat her as though she were their ancestor.

    Everyone was afraid of stepping on her toes, because that was only because everyone was afraid that she would report them to her brother.

    Ye Xiuwen hardly concerned himself with Qin Shanshan¡¯s demure temperament and her bashfulness, and he simplytched onto the most important detail ¨C ¡°They¡¯ve escaped? Where did they escape to?¡±

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s fake bashfulness waspletely lost on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s blockheadedness, and she fired right back, ¡°How would I know where they are?! I¡¯m not sure when they managed to create a Teleportation Array out of nowhere, and they managed to give everyone the slip just as they were surrounded.¡±

    Even though Qin Shanshan¡¯s words were filled with annoyance, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely unmoved.

    He was finally relieved. As long as his master and the other disciples had made it out, that was enough.

    However, Qin Shanshan¡¯s next statement made Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constrict once more.

    ¡°Hmph!¡± Qin Shanshan snorted, ¡°But, not everyone managed to get out safely. With so many people surrounding them, wouldn¡¯t master and the rest be absolutely disgraced if every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples got out? There are over ten Heavenly Peak disciples who had been seriously wounded that have been detained by us, and we¡¯ve kept them restrained within the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. When Jun Linxuan and his disciplese over to rescue the remnant who had been detained, we¡¯re going to activate the constriction array to bind all of them up in one fell swoop. At that time, not a single one of the Heavenly Peak members will be able to escape!¡±

    Qin Shanshan ventted all of her anger and frustrations on the Heavenly Peak disciples, and her words were vicious and incisive. It was as though she took pleasure in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s misfortune.

    Crack. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s teacup emanated a clear and crisp cracking sound, and it finally shattered.

 Chapter 263: Qin Shanshanâ€™s Invitation, Onwards to the Dawn Sect

    <h4>Chapter 263: Qin Shanshan¡¯s Invitation, Onwards to the Dawn Sect</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Shanshan was stunned by the fact that a calm, cool and dignified person like Ye Xiuwen would suddenly crush and shatter a teacup.

    In the blink of an eye, shepletely forgot about how she had just moments ago been garrulously jabbering about the Heavenly Peak and delighting in their misery, and she simply stared at Ye Xiuwen with a bbergasted look in her eyes. It was almost as though someone had choked and stifled her speech, muting her.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen simply raised an eyebrow cidly as he called the waiter over, ¡°Waiter, could you please bring me a new teacup?¡±

    ¡°Mm, mm. I¡¯ll be right over...¡± The waiter hurriedly ran over and cautiously swept the shattered pieces of the teacup into a bin, bowed to Ye Xiuwen, before running off.

    Momentster, the waiter brought a fresh new teacup over to their table, and he politely and gingerly ced the teacup in front of Ye Xiuwen. He did these things with an extremely light touch, as though he were afraid to startle Ye Xiuwen.

    While the waiter was doing all these things, the entire table remainedpletely silent, as though they were all on edge right now. The only thing that the male disciples did from time to time was to cast a curious, inquisitive nce at Ye Xiuwen.

    The tension at the table continued until Ye Xiuwen received a new cup and made himself a new cup of tea.

    ¡°Why are you all staring at me?¡± Ye Xiuwen sipped at his tea as he nced about at his surroundings, asking curiously.

    He did not exin why he had earlier shattered his teacup. At the same time, it was precisely because of his broad and levelheaded attitude that caused everyone at the table to begin to cast aside any measure of suspicions for him.

    Perhaps the teacup was just of poor quality. One of the Dawn Sect disciples thought to himself. He attempted to tighten his grip around the teacup to the point where his hands were starting to feel pain, yet the teacup did not even reveal a single crack on it.

    Qin Shanshan had never felt any measure of suspicion towards Ye Xiuwen to begin with, and the sudden urrence of the teacup shattering has simply broken her train of thought. Now that everything seemed to be back to normal, she was once again filled with the desire to continue her earlier spiel.

    She had bottled up these thoughts in her heart for far too long now. After all, she had since time immemorial found Jun Xiaomo to be a thorn in her side. She felt that Jun Xiaomo was truly fortunate to have been born with a silver spoon in her mouth, so much so that she could get anything she wanted if she just asked for it. How could anyone be so blessed like that? In contrast, she was like a little star that was struggling hard to twinkle just so that she could draw others¡¯ attention away from the bright moon that was Jun Xiaomo, and she had continued to look upon Jun Xiaomo with envy and abject jealousy.

    As a result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s close connection with the Heavenly Peak, Qin Shanshan naturally grew to hate the entire Heavenly Peak as well. Back when the Heavenly Peak was still at the peak of its heights, Qin Shanshan could only talk about these things discreetly or using innuendoes. But now that the Heavenly Peak had declined and fallen from its heights, she could tantly nder them all she wanted ¨C why wouldn¡¯t she jump at any such opportunities to vent her frustrations?

    Qin Shanshan continued to p her lips as she talked about the Heavenly Peak and Jun Xiaomo with delight, and her face was filled with vigor and passion. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen merely drank a few cups of tea and took a few small bites of the dishes that had been served to their table. As Qin Shanshan continued to jabber on, he did not even respond to a single one of her statements.

    However, Qin Shanshan didn¡¯t mind this one bit. To her mind, Jun Ziwen was by nature a cold and distant person. In fact, she would find it much more suspicious of he began to show passion and interest in what she was saying.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s current attitude only served to increase Qin Shanshan¡¯s desire to win over his heart for himself. There was not a single shred of suspicion in her heart.

    Thus, for the rest of this entire meal, Ye Xiuwen sat at the sidepletely taciturn; Qin Shanshan continued garrulously with passion and vigor; while the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples faded into the background until the peculiar lunch ended.

    That said, Qin Shanshan did begin to find that Ye Xiuwen was simply far too cold as they drew close to the end of the meal. He had not made more than ten statements over the course of the entire meal. Apart from that, he had remainedpletely silent as he listened to Qin Shanshan, and she couldn¡¯t even see a single ripple of emotion on the cid expression on his face.

    Qin Shanshan gritted her teeth. It was difficult toe across such an outstanding male cultivator ¨C even the male cultivators surrounding Yu Wanrou could hardly hold a candle to Jun Ziwen. Thus, she was extremely reluctant to let him run off just like that.

    That said, she had already said everything there was to say about the Heavenly Peak, and she was certain that the man was going to suggest that they part ways from here. What else could she do to keep him around?

    Qin Shanshan steeled her resolve once more ¨C No! I¡¯ve got to find an excuse to keep this man around by my side. That¡¯s the only way I can continue to wear him down until he sumbs to my charms. With my beauty, I don¡¯t believe that he would be able to resist me for such a long time!

    Thus, Qin Shanshan¡¯s mind began to churn and spin as she considered several options avable to her. Finally, she settled on one ¨C What if I find a reason to bring him back with me to the Dawn Sect?

    Qin Shanshan softened her voice and gazed at Ye Xiuwen with eyes filled with emotions as she suggested, ¡°That¡¯s right, brother Jun, would you be keen to make a trip back to the Dawn Sect with me?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand that was holding on to his teacup quivered slightly, and he tilted his head as he asked cidly, ¡°Follow you back to the Dawn Sect? What for?¡±

    He did want to make a trip back to the Dawn Sect with her, but the vignce in his heart meant that he could not readily agree to Qin Shanshan¡¯s suggestion just like that.

    Qin Shanshan was Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister after all. With Qin Lingyu¡¯s scheming mind, how would he know whether she had something up her sleeves or not?

    Besides, ¡°Jun Ziwen¡± and Qin Shanshan had only just got to know each other for a short period of time, and there was no reason for Qin Shanshan to suddenly invite him to the Dawn Sect as a guest.

    It had to be said that Ye Xiuwen had overestimated Qin Shanshan¡¯s intellect and underestimated his own charms.

    ¡°I was just thinking...¡± Qin Shanshan bit down on her lower lips. With brother Jun¡¯s cold and distant personality, she might just scare him off if she made her feelings for him known explicitly. Thus, she thought to keep him back under a different pretext, ¡°I was just thinking that since brother Jun is so interested in the oue of the Heavenly Peak disciples, why not follow me back to the Dawn Sect to have a look? Even though Jun Xiaomo, thedy who offended you, is dead, seeing the plight of the other disciples is still the same.¡±

    Qin Shanshan firmly believed that the bait she had just dangled in front of Ye Xiuwen was rather tempting, and she looked at Ye Xiuwen expectantly.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s bait was indeed attractive. However, the real reason for which Ye Xiuwen desired to infiltrate the Dawn Sect waspletely inconsistent with what Qin Shanshan thought it was.

    ¡°Martial sister, the holding ce for the Heavenly Peak disciples are the forbidden grounds within the Dawn Sect. We can¡¯t step foot within its locality.¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but remind Qin Shanshan about this.

    This disciple was not like the simple-minded buffoon that Qin Shanshan was. Even though Jun Ziwen had stated that he was an enemy of Jun Xiaomo, was anyone really able to verify the veracity of what he had alleged?

    Furthermore, the forbidden grounds, as the name suggested, was a ce that not even the ordinary disciples within the Dawn Sect were allowed to enter. How could Qin Shanshan simply allow an outsider like Jun Ziwen enter the forbidden grounds just like that?

    Who did Qin Shanshan think she was? Was she the Sect Leader of the Dawn Sect?

    Qin Shanshan was incredibly displeased by how that disciple had raised a countervailing consideration against her earlier suggestion. She red at him as she barked, ¡°Isn¡¯t it just a holding ce where a few convicts are being held? What¡¯s the harm in letting him take a look? I don¡¯t believe that master He Zhang would punish me for something as small and insignificant as this. My brother is still his disciple after all!¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples exchanged nces sheepishly once more, beforepletely sealing their own lips shut.

    They knew that people like Qin Shanshan could never be persuaded otherwise once they had made up their minds. In fact, the more one attempted to persuade them, the more she would attempt to do otherwise. Besides, they couldn¡¯t risk offending her, because she would hardly hesitate to smear and tarnish their good name before her brother. They only had everything to lose.

    Thus, as they thought about it, the Dawn Sect disciples simply looked down and twiddled their thumbs as they washed their hands off the entire matter.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his eyes and looked at the swirling tea in his teacup as he collected his roiling emotions.

    Given how things had turned out, this was his best shot. If he sought to infiltrate the Dawn Sect using other means, he might not even be able to breach the outermostyer of Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    After that incident with the Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen had reason to believe that He Zhang would already have changed the protective formation array that sequestered the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds from the rest of the world. He Zhang would never allow Jun Linxuan and the other Heavenly Peak disciples to bypass the formation arrays so easily and enter the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds so that they could rescue the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples that had been captured.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen made up his mind to follow Qin Shanshan back to the Dawn Sect.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen nodded his head in agreement, Qin Shanshan¡¯s heart thumped with joy. Her ears even flushed red as she thought to herself ¨C Has Jun Ziwen taken an interest in me as well? Isn¡¯t that why he epted my invitation so readily?

    No matter what, she firmly believed that she would be able to win the heart of this man in the period of time toe!

    --------------------------------------------

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen joined up with Qin Shanshan¡¯s expedition group and they slowly made their way back towards the Dawn Sect.

    Qin Shanshan knew that Ye Xiuwen hated seeing her wreak havoc on the streets with her Hellfire Lion, so she kept the Hellfire Lion back in the specially made cage for her, before storing it back into her Interspatial Ring. Then, they began to trek back on the road where they hade from.

    The other reason for her decision was the fact that she would not be able to draw close to Ye Xiuwen had she chosen to ride on her Hellfire Lion. That was most certainly not what she wanted.

    Unless Ye Xiuwen was willing to climb onto the back of the Hellfire Lion and ride the lion whilst holding Qin Shanshan around the waist, Qin Shanshan knew that she had to abandon any notions of riding her mount. Going on foot was the only way she could draw closer to Ye Xiuwen.

    That said, Qin Shanshan¡¯s mind did pause and linger for a moment on the thought of how blissful it would be if they shared the same mount. That said, she knew that Ye Xiuwen heart was not moved by her just yet, and he would never harbour any intentions for intimacy like that.

    Over thest next days of interaction, Qin Shanshan discovered more about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold and distant attitude ¨C she discovered that not only was Ye Xiuwenpletely unfazed and unmoved by the things around him, he also had a slight over-obsession about cleanliness, and he would never make skin-to-skin contact with anyone around if he could help it.

    Every time Qin Shanshan attempted to ¡°stumble¡± and ¡°fall¡± onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom, she would feel a gust of wind sweep past her ear, and Ye Xiuwen would appear at a location that was three meters away from where she was, and he would then continue plodding along on the way without even casting a nce back at her. She could not even touch the sleeves of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes.

    Qin Shanshan was both embarrassed and upset. On the one hand, she was infuriated that she had fallen for someone as unmoving as a still boulder, while on the other hand, she wanted so badly to steal Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart and make him fall head over heels in love with her.

    After all, if a blockhead like brother Jun falls in love with a person, he would most certainly be wholeheartedly loyal and devoted to that person, right? Qin Shanshan bit down on her lower lip and the fire in her eyes reignited with even greater passion as she stared at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back. It was as though she were a raging fire that was about to consume Ye Xiuwen.

    It was not that Ye Xiuwen waspletely oblivious towards the impassioned gaze in Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes. Rather, he simply found Qin Shanshan¡¯s desire to win his heartughable.

    Ye Xiuwen did not have any deep or profound impression of Qin Shanshan to begin with. Otherwise, he would not have failed to recognize her back when they first encountered each other on the streets.

    But he had previously heard of Qin Shanshan¡¯s propensity for mockery and ridicule. Qin Shanshan was not fond of Jun Xiaomo, and she had in a simr fashion disdained every single person hailing from the Heavenly Peak. Even he, the First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak was made the object of her ridicule withbels such as ¡°disfigured¡± and ¡°terrifying¡±.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities at the time were simr to Qin Lingyu¡¯s abilities, and Ye Xiuwen had perhaps even had a slight edge over Qin Lingyu¡¯s prowess. As Qin Lingyu¡¯s younger sister, Qin Shanshan naturally didn¡¯t mind helping her brother smear and tarnish the reputation of his rivals.

    If Qin Shanshan ever learnt that Jun Ziwen was none other than Ye Xiuwen, she might well be so regretful of her present actions that even her face would turn green.

 Chapter 264: Trapped in a Strange Land

    <h4>Chapter 264: Trapped in a Strange Land</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It¡¯s here again. It¡¯s that watchful gaze again...

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he nced around. Yet apart from Qin Shanshan¡¯s entourage and the wilderness on all four sides, nothing else could be seen.

    This was the tenth day that Ye Xiuwen had been travelling together with Qin Shanshan, but ever since the fourth day began, Ye Xiuwen had discovered a peculiar, discreet gaze watching them from afar.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation had improved by leaps and bounds while he was within the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge. The density of spiritual energy within the Death¡¯s Gorge was incredibly thick. In fact, the density in those grounds was almost a thousand times thicker than the density of spiritual energy within some of the bestnds for cultivation on the surface. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s talent for cultivation had been pretty good to begin with. Thus, Ye Xiuwen had experienced an explosive transformation over the years he was stuck within the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    Right now, Ye Xiuwen had already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and the sensitivity of his five senses far exceeded Qin Shanshan and the others who were only in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation. Thus, what Ye Xiuwen had picked up on might not necessarily have been simrly noticed by Qin Shanshan.

    And this was the reality as well ¨C Qin Shanshan and the others had failed to notice the gaze that was trained on their entourage. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen did not intend to alert the group to this either.

    Rather, he was merely curious who the owner of this gaze was. After all, every time he released his divine sense to probe about at his surroundings with the hope of uncovering the owner of this gaze, the gaze would mysteriously vanish into thin air. No matter what he did, he would never be able to discover the existence of that person watching them.

    This meant one of two possibilities. The first possibility was that the owner of the gaze possessed a stronger cultivation level than he did, while the other possibility was that the owner of the gaze had applied on himself a high-level Invisibility Talisman that had the ability to conceal both their aura and appearances.

    Ye Xiuwen was once again reminded of how his little martial sister loved to use Invisibility Talismans, and his heart once again swelled up with a stifling sense of frustration. There was still a tiny strand of hope left within his heart, and he clung fervently and furiously to this. He sincerely hoped that Jun Xiaomo was still alive and well. He Sincerely hoped that the bad news from Qin Shanshan¡¯s mouth was merely the result of news that had taken on a different shape and meaning after several iterations of spreading from person to person.

    But the present state of affairs told Ye Xiuwen that the odds of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s survival was truly miniscule. If she were not dead, there would have been no reason for Rong Ruihan to have invaded the Greenwich Kingdom and surrounded its capital in a fit of anger. If Jun Xiaomo were not dead, Jun Linxuan would never have been so fraught with grief to the extent that he would neglect the dangers and threats around him and allow the scheming ones to take advantage of the situation.

    At the very least, news of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°death¡± was a ubiquitous one. This was something that Ye Xiuwen could not deny no matter how much he wanted to do so.

    ¡°I can¡¯t go on anymore! Didn¡¯t you all say that we¡¯d see signs of human habitation after one day? Why are we still surrounded by wilderness on all four sides?! Do we really have to spend the night in the wilderness again?!¡± Qin Shanshan bellowed as she berated the Dawn Sect disciple beside her with raging fury in her eyes.

    Previously, she had always travelled on her mount, the Hellfire Lion, while her other martial brothers ran along and followed her. At that time, she hardly felt weary or tired at all, and she even found travelling in the outdoors a rather enjoyable thing.

    But now that her Hellfire Lion had been incapacitated by Ye Xiuwen, and she had stored it back into its cage, she was left with no choice but to make the rest of the journey on foot. Thus, it had only just dawned on her how tiring travelling out of the Sect truly was.

    She longed to find a town, a county, a vige or just any ce with human habitation so that she could get a nice bath and have a good night¡¯s sleep. She was at her limits right now. She could no longer bear with the prospects of sleeping under the stars and eating in the wilderness, and her frustrations in this regard had long overtaken and disced any of her efforts to worm her way into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s good books.

    ¡°This...our earlier estimations might have been a mistake...it should have been tomorrow. That¡¯s right, we should see signs of human habitation tomorrow.¡± The disciple that was singled out and given a dressing down by Qin Shanshan looked sheepishly at Qin Shanshan¡¯s intense, furious gaze as he swore on his new estimation.

    The truth of the matter was that everyone had been involved in the earlier estimation of where human habitation might have been. Unfortunately, he was the one who had been arbitrarily singled out by Qin Shanshan, and he could only swallow the bitter pill as he took the k for everyone around.

    Qin Shanshan cast a suspicious look at him, before gritting her teeth and barking back, ¡°You¡¯d better not be lying to me this time! How could you even get these things wrong?! You¡¯repletely useless!¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciple was so angry that he didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry. If he were truly that ¡°useless¡±, then why did Qin Shanshan have to ask him these questions to begin with? Why couldn¡¯t she make her own estimations?

    She relies on others; and yet she calls others useless. I¡¯ve had it with this woman! If not for the existence of her brother...

    As soon as Qin Lingyu came into the equation for his considerations, the infuriated Dawn Sect disciple mustered all of his strength to swallow the words that he was just about to blurt out.

    Regrettably, he knew that she had a backer that stood far taller and higher than any of them could ever fathom, and he could do nothing against that.

    The other Dawn Sect disciples felt sympathetic towards the disciple who had just been berated. However, they knew better than to express their sympathy in front of Qin Shanshan, because they knew that doing so would do nothing more than to draw the k directly to themselves.

    The path that they were on right now was something that they had taken on the way out of the Sect as well. After some calctions, they concluded that they would be able to leave this part of the wilderness behind by tomorrow, at the verytest.

    However, reality proved them wrong. The next day, and the next, and the fourth day after that, and then the fifth day...after a whopping ten days, the entourage found that they were not able to leave the vicinity of this part of the wilderness, and their surroundings had be incredibly familiar to them.

    Even though they had done nothing more than to forge ahead on the road straight ahead of them, it was evident that they had not been able to leave the vicinity of this part of the wilderness. They had essentially been making circles around the area.

    ¡°This...what the hell is going on?! We¡¯d taken this exact same route on the way to the Mystic Woods, but we¡¯d never encountered anything like this...¡± One of the bolder Dawn Sect disciples stammered.

    Everyone grew taciturn at his remark. No one was able to give a proper response to his exmation.

    The tension in the air weighed down and stifled everyone¡¯s heart. They nced around at their surroundings once more. They hade across these parts so many times over thest ten days that they could even tell where each tree, each stone, and even pebble would be!

    The realization made a wave of horror and dread wash over all the disciples.

    The mortals believed in ghosts and spirits, and they constantly told stories of the supernatural, while the cultivation world had always treated these stories with some measure of contempt and disdain. This was because they felt that the ¡°ghosts¡± that the mortals talked about were far too benign in what they did, and they firmly believed that these ¡°ghosts¡± could never harm cultivators.

    But now, these inexperienced Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but think about the mortals that they had always been mocking andughing about, and they began to find goosebumps creeping up all over their skin.

    We¡¯ve not encountered such...unnatural things, have we?

    A few of the disciples shuddered in fear. A gentle breeze swept by, and all the disciples began to huddle close together, as though that would give them a better sense of security.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was hardly as terrified as the other disciples. From his experience, there were simply too many things that could give rise to such an illusion. And besides, even if there were ¡°ghosts¡± around, these ¡°ghosts¡± would be nothing more than the spirits of human beings, and they could never be as fearsome and terrifying as the spirit beasts and demonic creatures he had encountered in the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    Ye Xiuwen recalled the peculiar gaze that would appear from time to time over thest few days. If this illusion were indeed caused by man, then it would most definitely have been something set up by the owner of that gaze, right?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s calmness and steadfastness stood out amidst a group of shuddering and shivering Dawn Sect disciples. Everyone began to see him as the stoic and rational person in the group, and they began to look up to him as the decision maker.

    ¡°Brother Jun, do you think...what do you think we should do?¡± The Dawn Sect disciple who had earlier been berated by Qin Shanshan minced over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and grabbed hold of his right hand as he asked.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were trained on Ye Xiuwen, as though he were their only hope in the circumstances.

    Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a moment, before suggesting, ¡°Let¡¯s take a break for now, then. We¡¯ll continue on our way once we find a way out of this ce.¡±

    Everyone found Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion to be rather reasonable, except Qin Shanshan. She immediately rejected the notion of remaining here any longer as she shrieked, ¡°Why should we stop here?! How long do we have to stop in this ghastly ce for?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced at her before coldly remarking, ¡°If you can find a means of exiting this ce right now, I¡¯ve no issues with departing and leaving right this moment. And if you disagree with what I¡¯m saying, you can always leave this ce first, and anyone who wants to follow you can follow you as well. It doesn¡¯t concern me at all.¡±

    Ever since getting to know Ye Xiuwen, this was the first time that Qin Shanshan had seen such a cold side to him. Qin Shanshan shuddered when Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold gaze swept across her body.

    It suddenly dawned on her that it might be far harder to win Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart than she had earlier thought. It¡¯s a pity I don¡¯t have any dirt on him that I could use. Otherwise...

    The Dawn Sect disciples were evidently not willing to leave this ce with Qin Shanshan, and they all began to gravitate towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side until there was approximately only an arm¡¯s length between them.

    Everyone knew that Ye Xiuwen hated it when people got too close to him, so they all made a conscious effort to keep a reasonable distance from him so as not to offend the only person who might be able to extricate them from their current predicament.

    Thus, the Dawn Sect disciples had undoubtedly made their intentions clear in a tacit manner ¨C no matter what, they would never leave this ce with Qin Shanshan. If Qin Shanshan wished to court death itself, she could do it alone. They were not interested in joining her.

    Qin Shanshan waspletely incensed and vexed. She was vexed that Ye Xiuwen had not left her any room to back off gracefully when he berated her earlier; and she was incensed that her martial brothers were all standing on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side rather than hers.

    Under the confluence of these two factors, Qin Shanshan felt that her pride had been trampled thoroughly on the ground. Thus, her rage immediately burgeoned and surged from the depths of her heart.

    ¡°So be it ¨C I¡¯ll leave! Bunch of cowards! You all just wait and see when I manage to leave this ce!¡± As she barked, Qin Shanshan swept a gaze of indignation across all of the other Dawn Sect disciples. She no longer gave Ye Xiuwen any impassioned gaze either. Instead, she simply snorted coldly, turned around, and began to make her way down the path that they had trodden so many times.

    The other disciples watched on as Qin Shanshan¡¯s silhouette grew gradually smaller and smaller, and one of the Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but look at his martial brothers worriedly, ¡°Are we really going to let her go alone? What if she meets with an ident? How are we going to ount to her brother, then?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve had enough. If you want to go after her, you can go alone. I don¡¯t wish to serve thatdy who¡¯s no better than a cantankerous old ancestor any longer. Who does she think she is? If not for the fact that her brother is martial brother Qin, she¡¯s just a nobody. Her cultivation level is the result of the innumerable pills, medicines and herbs that martial brother Qin had showered upon her; and the Hellfire Lion was something that martial brother Qin had subjugated on her behalf. Do you think there¡¯s a single person in the Dawn Sect who would treat her the way they do if not on ount for martial brother Qin? That said, we give her an inch of indulgence, and she tries to take a mile. The team leader on these travels was martial brother Chen to begin with, yet she usurped the leadership and ended up barking orders to everyone. Can you stand what she¡¯s doing anymore? I most certainly can¡¯t.¡±

    Several other Dawn Sect disciples were of the same mind as well. They could no longer be bothered to serve their ¡°little ancestor¡±, Qin Shanshan. Besides, Qin Shanshan might not necessarily encounter any danger. At best, she would most probably return to the rest of them after encountering some trouble on her own.

    ¡°That¡¯s true. Then, I¡¯m not going either.¡± The Dawn Sect disciple who had earlier suggested to follow Qin Shanshan shook his head, and like the rest, they all sat down, retrieved some of their dry rations and began to munch at them as they spaced out.

    All this while, Ye Xiuwen sat with his legs crossed and his eyes closed, and nobody knew exactly what was on his mind. The other disciples wanted very much to know how confident he was in leaving this part of the wilderness, but Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold and distant disposition made all of them hesitate to approach him.

    The most important consideration on their minds right now was the fact that they did not want to offend Ye Xiuwen. After all, ¡°Jun Ziwen¡± was nothing more than an acquaintance to them, and there was no obligation on his part to take them safely out of this ce either.

    Just as they began to think that Ye Xiuwen was going to remain seated with his eyes closed for a long time, Ye Xiuwen suddenly opened his eyes and gazed into the distant with a bright gleam in his eyes.

    Several disciples who were discreetly casting nces at Ye Xiuwen were taken aback by his sudden movement.

    ¡°Something might have happened.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly stated, and not a single ripple could be seen in the depths of his eyes.

    As though affirming his suspicions, a loud, shrill shriek suddenly rang out from afar. The shriek wasced with surprise, shock and fear.

    The tang in the shriek was not unfamiliar to them ¨C who else¡¯s voice could it be apart from Qin Shanshan?

    The Dawn Sect disciples knew that they could dally no longer, and everyone immediately mbered to their feet and made haste towards the direction from which the shriek came. Thest person to move was Ye Xiuwen.

    He stood up and adjusted his clothing first, before he steadily made his way towards the source of the shriek as well.

 Chapter 265: Qin Shanshanâ€™s Insanity, Mysterious Black Figure

    <h4>Chapter 265: Qin Shanshan¡¯s Insanity, Mysterious ck Figure</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The only reason why Ye Xiuwen had detected something amiss before Qin Shanshan¡¯s shriek rang out was that his sensitive divine sense had picked up a faint ripple in the energy of his surroundings.

    The ripple was faint, slow and protracted. In fact, it was barely discernable at all. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had shut his eyes and been adjusting his temperament and collecting his thoughts, he might well have glossed over the faint shift in the energy of his surroundings.

    Could this have been caused by the person who had been observing us in the dark? A point of interest crossed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind. He was curious about that person¡¯s identity and intentions.

    As for Qin Shanshan¡¯s safety, that was well outside of the considerations of his heart.

    The other disciples sped towards the source of Qin Shanshan¡¯s voice with chaotic, roiling emotions in their hearts.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s earlier shriek had been far too shrill and grave, and the disciples couldn¡¯t help but think the worst of what could have happened.

    These disciples weren¡¯t afraid of the prospects that something might have happened to Qin Shanshan. Rather, they were afraid of how they were going to answer to Qin Lingyu afterwards and face his overbearing wrath and ire.

    Then, in the moment that everyone finally saw Qin Shanshan, they immediately stopped in their steps and paused where they were.

    They had expected to see a bloody, gory sight in front of them, but the sight that they were greeted by was something quite different from their expectations. In the narrow path that was surrounded by trees and thick shrubbery on both sides, the only thing they saw was Qin Shanshan scrambling and floundering in the mud on the floor,pletely disheveled. As she crawled backwards, she stammered to something in front of her, ¡°It¡¯s got nothing to do with me...it¡¯s got nothing to do with me...don¡¯te near me. Everything was Yu Wanrou¡¯s idea. It¡¯s got nothing to do with me...¡±

    The reason why Qin Shanshan had been described to be addressing a ¡°thing¡± was because the disciples could not see anything apart from air that was in front of Qin Shanshan.

    Everyone exchanged peculiar nces, and they were at aplete loss as to whether they should make their way forward and help the insane-looking Qin Shanshan back up onto her feet.

    ¡°Ahh!¡±

    It was another shrill shriek. Just as everyone was hesitating, Qin Shanshan suddenly retrieved a short sword from her Interspatial Ring and menacingly shed at her own arm!

    Fresh blood immediately spurted out, and a gaping wound opened up on Qin Shanshan¡¯s arm. Her flesh and blood began to mix with the thickyer of dirt and mud on her body, turning her into a red-and-ck being that was caked in mud. It was a disgusting and horrific sight.

    Yet perhaps the most terrifying part of this all was how Qin Shanshan didn¡¯t even appear to feel any pain at all. A twisted expression filled with delight and pleasure was stered all over her face as she stared vacantly into the open space in front of her and barked, ¡°I¡¯ve told you that I was going to have my revenge. Qin Shanshan, whatever you did to me back then, I¡¯m going to pay it back to you right this moment. I¡¯m going to have you experience what a life worse than death feels like!¡±

    As she said that, Qin Shanshan gripped her short sword tightly and plunged it straight into her abdomen.

    Shk! The sickening sound of metal slicing through flesh rang out into the surroundings. Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes widened once more. The immense, excruciating pain from her fresh wounds had wiped off the earlier zed and vacant look over her eyes, as she slowly looked down at her abdomen with disbelief. As soon as she realized that the arm gripping the short sword was her very own, her pupils constricted immediately, and an abject fear filled the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°Help...help me...¡± Qin Shanshan¡¯s spirits ckened. She noticed that there were some people standing in the distance, and they appeared to be the fellow martial brothers who had apanied her on these travels.

    It was only at this moment that the Dawn Sect disciples were jolted back to their senses, and they immediately scrambled towards where Qin Shanshan was as they attempted to help her.

    Everyone had beenpletely stunned and dazed by the sight of what had just happened. For that brief moment, it hadpletely slipped their mind what they had earlier rushed over for to begin with ¨C they could not let Qin Shanshan die. At the very least, they could not let Qin Shanshan perish under their very eyes. Otherwise, if Qin Lingyu were to press the issue and hold them ountable, not a single one of them would be able to escape unscathed.

    ¡°Damn! It seems like this short sword is imbued with the ability to suck blood from its victim!¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples discovered the peculiar attributes of this short sword.

    Even though cultivators possessed a far stronger constitution than mere mortals, they would still perish and die if they lost a critical amount of blood. This was particrly the case when it came to cultivators with a low cultivation level like Qin Shanshan.

    ¡°Let¡¯s pull it out, then.¡± Another disciple who appeared to be slightly older furrowed his brows as he suggested with a heavy heart.

    This was the only reasonable option they had left. He ced his quivering hands on the hilt of the short sword and drew a deep breath. Then, in the next moment, he pulled!

    A shower of blood sprayed from the fresh, gaping wound that was on Qin Shanshan¡¯s abdomen. Another disciple who had been squatting just beside Qin Shanshan immediately pressed his palm over Qin Shanshan¡¯s wound, applying pressure and stifling the flow of blood. Then, yet another disciple picked up the recovery medicines that they had earlier prepared and stuffed it all straight into Qin Shanshan¡¯s mouth.

    The quality of these recovery medicines was not low at all. Truth be told, it was impossible not to feel a tinge of heartache feeding all of these medicinal pills to Qin Shanshan. However, they all knew that the usage of these pills was far better than allowing Qin Shanshan to perish before their very eyes. After all, the resultant wrath from Qin Lingyu would be far, far worse than the prospects of simply losing a few high-quality medicinal pills.

    ng. The short sword was tossed aside to the ground a distance away, and the other disciples all huddled around Qin Shanshan as they examined the extent of her injuries.

    The medicinal pills that they had fed to Qin Shanshan were incredibly effective, and they could see how the wound on Qin Shanshan¡¯s body was closing up at a speed that was apparent to the naked eye. Within just one incense stick of time, the entire gaping would hadpletely closed up and mended itself.

    ¡°Whew...that¡¯s fortunate. I didn¡¯t think we¡¯d make it.¡± The disciple squatting beside Qin Shanshan patted his chest as he eximed. He was evidently rather astonished by what had happened.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Had we known that this was going to happen, we would¡¯ve simply bound and tied her up so that she can¡¯t run off all on her own.¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple chimed in with some measure of displeasure in his voice. It couldn¡¯t be helped. Everyone was already vexed and frustrated by the fact that they were trapped in the vicinity of this part of the wilderness to begin with. Then, to make things worse, Qin Shanshan had in her tantrum willfully run off on her own and got herself into a terrifying mess. How could any of the disciples simply suppress the anger and indignation in their hearts?

    On the other hand, the original leader of this entourage had a far more holistic assessment of the situation. That Dawn Sect disciple instructed, ¡°I think it would be better if we left this ce quickly. Qin Shanshan¡¯s condition earlier was far too peculiar, and it makes me wonder whether there¡¯s anything dirty and unwholesome around these parts.¡±

    Everyone immediately thought about the earlier scene when Qin Shanshan was continually apologizing to something in the air, and they immediately shuddered as a frigid chill washed over their hearts. It was as though they could sense countless pairs of eyes staring at them from out of nowhere.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, we¡¯d best leave this ce quickly.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s leave right now.¡±

    ¡°This ce is too scary.¡±

    All of the other disciples began to chime in withplete support of their leader¡¯s suggestion. Within moments, one disciple took charge of carrying, while another disciple took charge of lifting, and yet another disciple took charge of pulling ¨C each and everyone scrambled to help as they began to carry Qin Shanshan and left behind the ce where the horrific incident took ce. The only trace of the incident which they left behind was the short sword that was imbued with the ability to absorb its victim¡¯s blood.

    Ye Xiuwen did not immediately leave together with the rest of the disciples. Instead, he walked over to where the pool of bloody and picked up the short sword.

    He lifted the short sword and took a closer examination of it, and he soon discovered that there were three small words inscribed on the hilt of the sword ¨C Song Xiaoqing.

    Ye Xiuwen had some vague recollection of who Song Xiaoqing was. He recalled that this female cultivator was rather talented, but she had always been extremely introverted, and she enjoyed keeping to herself. As to how this female cultivator looked, Ye Xiuwen could not recall that much. After all, Song Xiaoqing was not a fellow martial sister of the Heavenly Peak.

    From Qin Shanshan¡¯s earlier words, Ye Xiuwen guessed that Song Xiaoqing must have fallen to an evil scheme against her, and the culprits could very well have been both Qin Shanshan and Yu Wanrou. Not only had she fallen to an evil scheme, even her personal weapon was robbed and taken away by Qin Shanshan.

    It was not umon to hear of people murdering others and taking their loot and treasures for themselves. That said, Ye Xiuwen sincerely disagreed with the morality of such actions, particrly when the victim was a fellow member of the same sect.

    He sighed in his heart. Ye Xiuwen unsheathed his own sword and swung it in the air. Instantly, arge crevice opened up on the ground in the direction where he had shed.

    Ye Xiuwen gingerly ced the short sword into the crevice in the ground, before waving his sleeves. In the blink of an eye, the crevice was filled with a freshyer of mud.

    It wouldn¡¯t take too long for grass and wildflowers to grow over this patch of mud. At that time, the short sword that had lost its master would forever be lost to this world. Ye Xiuwen sincerely felt that this would probably be the best and most appropriate resting ce for the short sword.

    After doing all these things, Ye Xiuwen lifted his head once more, and he nced about at his surroundings. As soon as he ascertained that there was nobody else around, he took his leave from this ce.

    Shortly after Ye Xiuwen departed, the air suddenly rippled as though a stone had justnded in ake of still waters. Then, a graceful and svelte figure stepped out into the world out of nowhere.

    The ck figure waspletely clothed in ck, and nobody could see her true appearances. The only part of her features that were revealedprised a beautiful pair of striking eyes and her fair, jade-like skin. The extraption of these perfect features would most certainly leave others with an impression that thisdy was a beauty through and through.

    She walked over to where Ye Xiuwen had just buried the short sword and looked down at the ground. Momentster, she chuckled to herself.

    ¡°I¡¯d never thought that Qin Shanshan would manage to retain such a kindhearted person around her. That¡¯s such a rarity. Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯ll make an exception and spare your life when I take care of these disgusting dregs and scum of the earthter on. I just hope you know what¡¯s best for you, and you don¡¯t interfere with the things that I¡¯m trying to achieve here.¡±

    The female¡¯s voice was tactile and musical, and it was incredibly pleasant to the ears. At the same time, the words that flowed from her mouth seemed to beced with an icy, frigid intent.

    She looked int the direction where Ye Xiuwen had departed in, and a bright gleam flickered across her eyes. Even though her eyes were cold and frigid, they strangely also possessed some level of charm to them.

    Momentster, she waved her hands slightly, and a translucent formation array revealed itself in the air. Under the effects of this formation array, her body and aura once again vanished from thin air.

    As Ye Xiuwen continued to walk on in the distance, he suddenly paused in his steps and turned back to look at where he came from.

    He could no longer see with his naked eyes the ce where the incident with Qin Shanshan had taken ce, but he could nevertheless feel the slight ripple of energy emanating from that location.

    Is it that person again? Whoever it is, I wonder what his motive is for trapping all of us here?

    -------------------------------------------------

    As soon as they returned to their earlier resting ce, the Dawn Sect disciples quickly set Qin Shanshan back down onto the floor, and they had the disciple with the highest cultivation level among all of them check on Qin Shanshan¡¯s condition once more.

    Naturally, everyone had thought about asking Ye Xiuwen for his assistance in this regard. After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were the strongest among everyone present. However, it was evident that Ye Xiuwen would not be willing to help them in this regard.

    Truth be told, they believed that Jun Ziwen did not have a favourable impression of Qin Shanshan to begin with. They knew that he was only travelling together with them because Qin Shanshan had so eagerly adhered herself to him.

    In this regard, they sincerely hoped that Qin Shanshan had not invited a wolf into their home. Otherwise, even they might end up being implicated by her folly.

    ¡°Martial sister Qin should be fine now. Her earlier injuries had been nothing more than flesh wounds that can recover over time. However, martial sister Qin would most certainly have been frightened by the earlier incident. I think it would be best not to let her run about on her own in the near future.¡± The disciple checking on Qin Shanshan¡¯s condition concluded.

    The other disciples nodded their heads eagerly with some measure of lingering fear from the earlier incident. They eximed in their hearts ¨C We most certainly won¡¯t let her run about even if we have to tie her up!

    However, would things really be resolved as easily as they thought? Over the next few days, the Dawn Sect disciples would thoroughly experience the true meaning of helplessness. Qin Shanshan appeared to have be possessed by something, and she would break out into a spate of insanity every now and then. Furthermore, every time her insanity manifested itself, Qin Shanshan would start to empty the contents of her Interspatial Ring. Then, as soon as she was done emptying its contents, she would then pick up a weapon of choice and cut and abuse herself as she spoke to an invisible entity before her. It was as though Qin Shanshan were facing a vengeful spirit that hade back from the dead to haunt her.

    As time wore on, everyone began to notice amon thread among these incidents ¨C the things that Qin Shanshan had emptied from her Interspatial Ring had all been snatched and obtained from somebody else. Some objects bore the identity seals of their true owners, while other objects appeared familiar to the other disciples, yet they just couldn¡¯t ce a finger where exactly they hade across these artefacts.

    It had to be said that the number of artefacts that Qin Shanshan had seized from others was not few in number. As she began to take out artefact after artefact, the Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ eyes began to widen as they grew dazzled by the sheer magnitude of what she had done over the years.

    In fact, there were a few covetous Dawn Sect disciples who had thought to steal those items from under Qin Shanshan¡¯s nose as soon as her insanity manifested itself. At that time, it was Ye Xiuwen who calmly reminded them, ¡°These treasures might all have been cursed. Whoever takes them might end up with the same fate as Qin Shanshan. If you guys want to experience this for yourselves, then go on ahead.¡±

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen dropped this bombshell on them, the covetous Dawn Sect disciples immediately retracted their outstretched arms.

    What a joke! Who would want to risk heaping such trouble onto himself for these treasures that aren¡¯t even particrly valuable? Just look at Qin Shanshan right now ¨C she looks like aplete madwoman. I don¡¯t want to be a second Qin Shanshan! Heaven forbid!

    Since nobody dared to seize possession of these treasures, they remained exposed to the air on the ground where they were. Ye Xiuwen recognized that some of these valuables belonged to the disciples of the Heavenly Peak, and he began to stash them into his own Interspatial Ring with a heavy heart. Then, he buried the rest of the items in the ground where the incident took ce.

    It would be befitting if these items should apany each their respective masters and vanish off the face of their world.

    It was incredibly frightening whenever Qin Shanshan¡¯s insanity manifested itself. That said, whenever she regained her sensester on, she would have absolutely no recollection whatsoever about the things that happened during the time that she went mad.

    Thus, she was simply under the impression that for some strange reason, her body was getting weaker and weaker and she was getting more easily tired than she had been before. She couldn¡¯t understand why this was happening, while none of the other Dawn Sect disciples were willing to apprise her of exactly what had urred either.

    Furthermore, Qin Shanshan discovered over the next few days that the Dawn Sect disciples had begun to look at her with a different kind of gaze in their eyes, including that of contempt, disgust, vignce, disbelief. Yet when she attempted to get a closer look and examination at these nces, they all seemed to be nothing more than an illusion to her.

    She never would have thought that her deepest, darkest secret pertaining to her propensity to murder and seize treasures from other disciples had already been exposed to the world. As members of the same sect, her martial brother would most certainly develop their own judgment and contempt for her character and personality.

    Previously, they had despised the fact that Qin Shanshan would ride on her brother¡¯s coattails and act all unruly and headstrong within the Sect. Yet, who could¡¯ve thought that Qin Shanshan possessed such a devious heart like that of a poisonous snake, and that she would even resort to murdering her own martial brothers and sisters just to seize their personal belongings?

    This woman is far too fearsome. The Dawn Sect disciples thought in their hearts, as they resolved to keep Qin Shanshan at an arm¡¯s length.

    Qin Shanshan couldn¡¯t understand what was going on. Furthermore, the fact that they continued to be trapped in this area made the vexation in her heart continue to burgeon with each day that passed. At this point in time, she no longer had the patience to even cajole and curry favour with Ye Xiuwen any longer.

    Just as everyone thought that Qin Shanshan¡¯s insanity was going to continue indefinitely, a new development suddenly urred.

    That night, while everyone was sound asleep, several faint waves of energy rippled through the air. A ck figure appeared out of nowhere and stepped out amidst the resting bodies where all the disciples were.

    This ck figure walked slowly among the disciples who were soundly asleep until the ck figure finally arrived beside Qin Shanshan.

    A fair hand with a jade-like luster stretched out from the ck garments. With a graceful flick of the wrist, Qin Shanshan appeared to have been ¡°hooked¡± and ¡°lifted¡± up in tandem with the movement of the wrist. At the same time, Qin Shanshan remained deep in slumber, without showing any signs of awakening at all.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The ck figure whispered lightly. Then, the ck figure turned around and left together with Qin Shanshan who appeared like a fish that clung tightly to its bait, and they disappeared into the dark of the night.

    Sleeping a short distance away, Ye Xiuwen immediately opened his eyes wide and looked at the direction where the ck figure had vanished together with Qin Shanshan. Then, he squinted his eyes ¨C there was not a trace of weariness in his eyes at this moment.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately got to his feet and applied an Invisibility Talisman on himself. Finally, he imbued himself with his wind-based spells and made haste after the ck figure.

 Chapter 266: Qin Shanshanâ€™s Remorse-Filled Death

    <h4>Chapter 266: Qin Shanshan¡¯s Remorse-Filled Death</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Qin Shanshan was tossed to the ground without any regard to her, she had still been sound asleep.

    She felt as though she was dreaming. In her dream, there was a person hounding her for her life, and she could hardly make out any features on that person¡¯s face. She was so frightened that she scrambled all over the ce, trying to get away from the madman after her.

    The sudden feeling of free falling followed quickly by a painful sensation of mming into the ground jolted her right back to her senses, and she opened her eyes immediately.

    She nced about her surroundings and gradually began to discover that her surroundings were quite different from the ce she had been at when she first fell asleep.

    Her dream and reality had seemed to coincide, and she couldn¡¯t help but let out a shrill shriek in fear. She was now as wide awake as she had ever been.

    ¡°What is this ce? Who dares y a prank on me and bring me here while I¡¯m asleep?!¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Chen?¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Hua?¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Ke? ...¡±

    Every time she shouted the name of one of her martial brothers, Qin Shanshan¡¯s heart constricted with increasing fear. On the one hand, she absolutely did not believe that any of the Dawn Sect disciples would have the gall to y such a prank on her in the middle of the night. Yet, on the other hand, she sincerely hoped that this was nothing more than a prank. That way, she could relieve herself of her present consternation and dread after giving the culprit of this prank a harsh excoriation. At the very least, she would not have to worry for her life.

    But as reality would have it, things were hardly as rosy as she had hoped they were. This was hardly a prank at all; and she had truly encountered an enemy whose appearances could not be clearly seen.

    The more Qin Shanshan thought about it, the more tense and fearful she got. The eerie silence from her surroundings seemed to close in on her heart and stifle its regr beats. At this moment, she felt as though a massive beast were hidden in the dark of the night as it stared transfixed at her, ready to pounce at her and devour her at any moment.

    She did not want to die. Qin Shanshan wanted to live well and live long. She was only slightly over twenty years-old right now. To cultivators, this was merely the beginning of their long lives. How could anyone be willing to perish just like that?

    A gentle breeze swept across, and her surroundings were immediately filled with rustling noises. Qin Shanshan¡¯s heart constricted even more, and her fear escted to unprecedented heights. In that single moment, it was as though something within her had snapped, and she began to scream and bellow at the top of her voice ¨C

    ¡°Come out! Come out right now! Don¡¯t you think for one moment that I can¡¯t sense your existence just because you¡¯re hiding in the dark. If you dare to bring me to this ce, why don¡¯t you dare to show yourself? You¡¯re just a coward!¡±

    ¡°Oh? If I¡¯m a coward, then what does that make you and your present reactions?¡± A crisp, soft voice resounded from behind Qin Shanshan¡¯s body, sending chills down her spine and causing her to shudder in fear. Qin Shanshan whipped her head around, and she was immediately greeted with a pair of bloodshot eyes. She once again let out a shrill shriek as she scrambled to retreat on all fours.

    ¡°You, you, you...who are you?!¡±

    Qin Shanshan could not see the appearance of the person who had just appeared because that person was fully wrapped up in ck. The only thing that was revealed was an enthralling pair of ck eyes with a peculiar tinge of red within them.

    ck eyes with red hues... Qin Shanshan¡¯s heart thumped ferociously as she eximed with a trembling voice, ¡°You...you¡¯re a demonic cultivator!¡±

    Qin Shanshan had once heard from Qin Lingyu that the most ubiquitous feature among all demonic cultivators was the redness in their eyes. After all, regr spiritual cultivators would never possess any forms of red hues in their eyes.

    That said, it was not true that all demonic cultivators would present themselves with a pair of distinct red eyes. The truth of the matter was that there were many ways in which a person could conceal the red hues within their eyes. This was one of the reasons why most people were unable to tell apart regr spiritual cultivators from demonic cultivators to begin with.

    If her other martial brothers were around right now, Qin Shanshan would most certainly havemanded all of her martial brothers to suppress the demonic cultivator in front of her. However, she knew that her martial brothers were not anywhere nearby, and the two of them were alone in the midst of the wilderness. Furthermore, the demonic cultivator appeared to be far stronger than she was. Thus, she cast all thoughts of capturing or suppressing the demonic cultivator to the back of her mind.

    The demonic cultivator facing her chuckled lightheartedly and quipped, ¡°Not bad. At least you¡¯re able to tell that I¡¯m a demonic cultivator.¡±

    Despite its contents, the demonic cultivator was most certainly not praising Qin Shanshan at all. In fact, her words even seemed to beced with contempt and disdain. Beads of sweat started to form on Qin Shanshan¡¯s forehead. She stared back at the demonic cultivator as she stammered, ¡°I...I¡¯ve got no grievance with you. Why did you bring me all the way here?¡±

    ¡°No grievance? Really?¡± The demonic cultivator raised an eyebrow curiously and gazed meaningfully into Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes as she responded, ¡°If I say that...I¡¯ve got a whole load of grievance with you from our respective previous incarnations, do you believe me?¡±

    ¡°Wha--...what kind of nonsense are you spouting right now?!¡± Qin Shanshan grew infuriated and anxious, ¡°Who would possess memories of their previous lives?! Are you toying with me right now?!¡±

    ¡°If you insist that I¡¯m toying with you right now, then there¡¯s nothing I can do either. Or...perhaps you can simply consider my actions the result of finding you to be an eyesore. I wonder if you¡¯ll feel better if you think this way?¡± The demonic cultivator calmly suggested.

    ¡°But I¡¯m not the only one you think of as an eyesore, right? You must see all of the spiritual cultivators as an eyesore! Do you think I don¡¯t know the perverse mentality that you demonic cultivators have? You see people as nothing more than steppingstones, and you would resort to all means to increase your own cultivation level. Can you even call yourself a human? Look at you! You¡¯ll most certainly be persecuted if you show your face to the world right now!¡± Qin Shanshan¡¯s infuriation had reached her boiling point, well exceeding the amount of fear in her heart. Thus, she began to look on the demonic cultivator with disdain and antipathy.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to remind me about being persecuted. I¡¯ve experienced a fair amount of that by now. That said...I can¡¯t believe people like you can even find it within yourself to allege that I view people as steppingstones. That much is an eye-opener to me.¡± The demonic cultivator chuckled lightly; her tone of voice was clearly nuanced andced with innuendoes.

    ¡°People like me? You...speak clearly! What do you mean by that?!¡± A trace of guilty conscience flickered across the depths of Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes, yet she continued to berate the demonic cultivator with an arrogant look on her face.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure someone like you would know just exactly what I mean, isn¡¯t that right? Or do you need me to...remind you once more?¡±

    Without waiting for Qin Shanshan to analyze what exactly ¡°remind¡± meant, the demonic cultivator waved her hands, and five talismans shot up and hovered above Qin Shanshan¡¯s head. Instantly, the air rippled with intense energy, and aplicated pattern began to congeal and form within the boundaries of the five talismans, connecting them together to form a small formation array.

    Then, a beam of red light shot straight from the heart of the formation array onto the ground, and Qin Shanshan, who stood directly under the formation array, immediately clutched at her head and cried out in pain, ¡°Ahh!¡±

    The incidents that had urred over thest few days which had earlier been omitted from her memories suddenly gushed straight back into her mind like waters bursting out of an overflowing dam, sending a wave of immense pain and dread surging through every crevice in her mind. It was as though she had just been forced to relive all of those dreadful memories once more. The victims who had been hurt or even perished under her schemes once again appeared before her very eyes, demanding repayment and revenge as they snatched back their respective treasures and tools which Qin Shanshan had stolen, before stabbing and plunging them into various parts of her body.

    Qin Shanshan began to tremble and convulse as she curled up on the ground. Her tears, mucus and sweat were strewn all over her face in a gooey mix. She wanted to open her mouth to beg for mercy, but every time she opened her mouth, she found that the only sound she could make was unintelligible squeals and groans ¨C this was the result of the excruciating pain she was experiencing right now.

    The demonic cultivator standing right in front of her watched every moment of her torment with a cool, frigid stillness in her eyes.

    Qin Shanshan continued to convulse in pain for an extremely long time. Perhaps it had been as short as one or two incense sticks of time, or perhaps it could have been as long as an entire hour of excruciating pain and torment. Then, when the throbbing pain in her mind began to subside, she remained helplessly on the floor. The earlier pain and torment had taken the life and vigor out of her body, and she felt as though her life were already hanging by the thread.

    Just then, the demonic cultivator that seemed almost to blend into the dark of the night began to walk towards Qin Shanshan once more. The demonic cultivator stood beside Qin Shanshan and looked down at her as she cidly stated, ¡°Qin Shanshan, do you know something? All of this is but repayment for what you¡¯ve done. You reap what you sow. Back when you began to oppress people using Qin Lingyu¡¯s identity, you should already have prepared your heart for such an oue.¡±

    ¡°You...you know my brother?!¡± Qin Shanshan widened her eyes.¡±

    ¡°Mm, I guess you can say that.¡± The demonic cultivator gave an ambiguous response with hardly any undtions in her tone of voice.

    ¡°You dare treat me this way despite knowing who my brother is?!¡± Qin Shanshan red furiously at the demonic cultivator in front of her, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that my brother will look to settle the score with you?!¡±

    The demonic cultivator raised an eyebrow, ¡°Qin Shanshan, do you really think that your brother is number one in the entire world? And, since I dare to make a move against you despite knowing your identity, do you think I would be concerned even if Qin Lingyu came looking for me for revenge? Besides, I¡¯m a demonic cultivator to begin with ¨C why would I have to have regard to your brother who is a spiritual cultivator? In fact, I do hope that he wille looking for me for revenge. Hah. That way, it¡¯ll save me some time personally locating him.¡±

    ¡°Just what have us brother-sister duo done to offend you? Why do you have to treat us this way?!¡± Qin Shanshan¡¯s fear finally took over her heart once again, and she began to cry out in despondence.

    ¡°You¡¯re going to die soon anyway. What¡¯s the point of asking so many questions?¡± The demonic cultivator looked back at Qin Shanshan as she disclosed the bombshell of the fate she had prepared in store for Qin Shanshan.

    The demonic cultivator took in Qin Shanshan¡¯s expressions with her cold and frigid eyes, yet there was not a single trace of emotion in her eyes ¨C neither joy, nor hatred.

    ¡°You...you¡¯re really going to kill me?!¡± Qin Shanshan was astounded, and she began to bawl at the top of her lungs. She suddenly mustered all of her strength and mbered over to the demonic cultivator and clung to her leg as she cried out with tears and mucus streaking down her face, ¡°Please, I beg you...I beg you not to kill me. I¡¯ve got a lot of treasures in my Interspatial Ring. I can give them all to you! As long as you spare my life, I¡¯m willing to give everything I have to you...¡±

    A trace of contempt finally flickered across the depths of the demonic cultivator¡¯s eyes. She squatted down as she slowly quipped back, ¡°Qin Shanshan, tell me, how much of your Interspatial Ring contains things that you¡¯ve obtained by killing and stealing? Didn¡¯t those people beg you for their lives before they died as well? And did you spare them their lives? Have you ever considered how these people felt at that point? These people have all died with a remaining grievance, do you know that?!¡±

    Qin Shanshan was taken aback by the demonic cultivator¡¯s rhetoric. Twisted, horrendous images of the faces of those who had perished to her schemes once again surfaced in the forefront of her mind ¨C each of them wearing an expression of hatred and indignation. All of them red back at Qin Shanshan with bloodshot eyes that were filled with judgmental looksced with an irreconcble, insatiable vengeance.

    If all of these people were able to turn their hatred and vengeance into something corporeal, Qin Shanshan would most certainly have perished under their curse a long time ago.

    Qin Shanshan recalled the first time she killed a person to seize a treasure. That was the first time that her hands had been dyed red with the blood of her fellow sect mate ¨C back then, what did she feel?

    That¡¯s right, she was intensely afraid and fearful. In fact, she trembled so much in fear that she was unable to sleep for a few days straight. Every time she closed her eyes, the image of the fellow disciple she had murdered would surface in her mind, staring at her with bulging, bloodshot eyes and relentlessly haunting her. That disciple had died with a remaining grievance.

    At that time, Qin Lingyu consoled her, saying that he would deal with everything and sweep everything under the rug on her behalf, and nobody would ever find out that she had murdered that fellow disciple.

    Then, when everything blew over, and the Sect¡¯s investigations did not reveal that the disciple had perished as a result of an unnatural death, Qin Shanshan grew emboldened. It was as though a notion in her heart had now surfaced ande to the forefront of her mind ¨C as long as she sees something that she likes, she would seize it by any means. After all, her brother would always be there to clean up the mess on her behalf.

    Thus, over time, she gradually became numb to the feelings of killing and stealing. Whenever her greed and avarice resulted in the death of a fellow disciple, she would no longer feel any remorse or grief in her heart.

    Crack! Qin Shanshan¡¯s recollection ended there and then. Her neck had been twisted and bent beyond belief, and she was unmistakably dead.

    Just before dying, Qin Shanshan finally understood one of the undeniable truths in life ¨C there was always someone stronger out there. As long as a personmitted crimes unceasingly, he was bound to step on the toes of a person he could not afford to offend, and he was bound to get retribution.

    However, that realization hade far toote.

    The demonic cultivator released her hands, and Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse slumped to the ground.

    She knew that Qin Shanshan had already received sufficient punishment in the form of the remorse tearing away at her heart, and thus she chose to allow Qin Shanshan the reprieve of a quick and painless death.

    After dusting her hands, she turned around and faced a group of trees and shrubs beside the path a distance away.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you seen enough yet?¡± The demonic cultivator asked coldly. Even though the tang in her voice was pleasing to the ears, the contents of what she said was so frigid that it could freeze hell over.

    Her gaze swept across the dense foliage. In the next moment, a figure stepped out from behind the trees and revealed itself.

    This figure was clothed in civilian clothes ¨C who else could it be apart from Ye Xiuwen?

 Chapter 267: The Vacillation Between Hope and Despair in Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Heart

    <h4>Chapter 267: The Vacition Between Hope and Despair in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Heart</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as she saw Ye Xiuwen, the demonic cultivator appeared as though she recalled something important, and a fleeting trace of absent-mindedness flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    But she quickly collected herself, and the depths of her eyes became still and iced-over once more. Her pupils quivered with vignce.

    Over thest few days, she gathered from her observations that this man¡¯s surname was Jun, and his full name was Jun Ziwen. Jun Xiaomo could not recall from her memories of her previous life any person in the cultivation world with such a name. Furthermore, she was unsure whether this man simply liked to keep to himself, or he was just unwilling to interact with Qin Shanshan and the others.

    That said, she could tell that Jun Ziwen was different from Qin Shanshan and the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples. At the very least, Qin Shanshan and her martial brothers would never of their own volition bury the artefacts that had lost their master into the ground instead of keeping them for themselves. Yet, despite all of that, Jun Xiaomo knew that this was not a determinative as to whether this man was harmless or not.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand why Jun Ziwen wanted to travel together with Qin Shanshan and the rest of her entourage. She knew that Jun Ziwen must have his own reason for doing so, and before eliciting and making clear what exactly his purposes were, she knew it would be imprudent to let her guard down around him.

    Just as the ck-garbeddy was sizing up Ye Xiuwen vigntly, Ye Xiuwen was simrly sizing up the ck-garbeddy as well.

    The first thing that he noticed was the distinct pair of eyes on the ck-garbeddy. Even though thedy was covered in ck material from top to toe such that she seemed almost to blend into the dark of the night, thedy¡¯s sparkling pair of eyes gleamed so brightly with rity as though they were a pair of twinkling stars in the night sky. From her eyes, he could see a sense of unwavering resolution and determination.

    The pair of eyes that was transfixed on himself was incredibly frigid, and the slight squint in her almond-shaped eyes seemed to imbue her gaze with a certain sense of sharp incisiveness to it.

    For some reason, when he saw this pair of eyes staring at him, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but think of his little martial sister, Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo had a pair of almond-shaped eyes as well. When she stared at others with her eyes, her eyes were so emotive that they appeared as bright and gleaming as the morning dew on the stamen of flower petals. Under the illumination of the sunlight, the refraction of light from these dews would undeniably cut through the heart and tug at a person¡¯s soul.

    At the same time, her eyes would appearpletely different when she looked at her enemies. Her gaze would be as sharp and incisive as an unsheathed sword, and the frigid glint in her eye was so oppressive that it could stifle the breaths of her opponents.

    And this was how she appeared right now.

    Ye Xiuwen tightened his fists. He suddenly had the urge to find out thisdy¡¯s true appearances ¨C could she possibly be her little martial sister whom everyone alleged had already perished? If thisdy were not Jun Xiaomo, then what reason did she have toe after the Dawn Sect disciples with such a roaring vengeance?

    The ck-garbeddy squinted her eyes. She was rather displeased with how Ye Xiuwen was sizing her up. Thus, without any warning, she suddenlyunched an attack at Ye Xiuwen. Her appearances that seemed to almost fade into the dark of the night meant that Ye Xiuwen nearly failed to respond in time.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s richbat experience coupled with his wind-based spiritual root meant that he still managed to react nimbly to the oing attack. He quickly came to his senses and dodged the ck-garbeddy¡¯s attack. Then, in the very next moment, the ck-garbeddy capitalized on the momentum of the first attack to immediately send a second strike straight towards Ye Xiuwen. Thus, both of them began to duke it out with each other in battle, and their figures became nothing more than a flurry of images that seemed to fade in and out of the dark and otherwise still night scenery.

    Ye Xiuwen chose to hold back the strength of his attacks because he was still suspicious of the true identity of thedy in ck, and he was thus reticent to risk injuring her. As a result, the duel became increasingly more difficult for him.

    At the same time, thebat abilities of the ck-garbeddy startled Ye Xiuwen. He recalled that when he was separated from his little martial sister back then, she only had a cultivation level of the fifth level of Qi Mastery. Thus, it suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen that the prospects of thedy in ck being his little martial sister waspletely ridiculous.

    Unless she had encountered some form of miracle, it was nigh impossible that his little martial sister could have improved to such an extent within a short span of twelve years. It could not be understated that he had only managed to attain the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation within such a short period of time because of his fortunate encounter after falling into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    If thisdy in ck were really his little martial sister, it was reasonable to conclude that she would be unable to withstand even ten percent of his total abilities. But as things were right now, he had already used up to sixty percent of his overall abilities, and yet his opponent still seemed to be going strong.

    As he thought things through logically and rationally, Ye Xiuwen grew more and more disheartened. With a flick of his wrist, a spirit sword emanating a frosty, frigid intent appeared in his hands. Ye Xiuwen had used this spirit sword to y the lives of innumerable spirit beasts and demonic creatures within the Death¡¯s Gorge. Under the baptism of the blood of these creatures, the spirit sword had already begun to develop a frigid sword intent of its own.

    The ck-garbeddy was caught slightly off guard, and the frigid sword intent expelled by the spirit sword forced her back a few steps. She struggled to keep her bnce.

    ¡°Don¡¯t force my hand, otherwise I won¡¯t hold back anymore.¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned coldly. His eyes were now devoid of the earlier multitude of emotions.

    Thedy in ck looked back up and stared at the spirit sword in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, and a trace of bewilderment and shock flickered across her eyes.

    ¡°Hang on a minute.¡± Thedy in ck noticed that Ye Xiuwen had already turned around and was motioning to leave this ce, so she called out to him and held him back, ¡°I noticed that you¡¯re not like the rest of the other Dawn Sect disciples. Why did you choose to travel together with them? Also, why didn¡¯t you stop me when I killed Qin Shanshan earlier?¡±

    ¡°Lady, I don¡¯t even know you, so is there really any reason why I should ount for these details to you?¡± Ye Xiuwen looked back at thedy in ck as he responded cidly.

    ¡°This...¡± Thedy in ck knew that there was simply no reason for her opponent to reveal these details to her.

    In fact, she was even slightly astonished by her own actions in this regard. After all, why did she feelpelled to ask all these of this stranger? The only thing she knew was that this urge in her heart had only arisen after she noticed the spirit sword in the man¡¯s hand.

    After deliberating for a moment, thedy in ck nced at Ye Xiuwen as she asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to leave these haunted grounds? You must have realized by now, haven¡¯t you? You¡¯ve all been walking around in circles over thest few days, and there¡¯s no way of leaving the vicinity of these parts of the wilderness at all.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, ¡°Isn¡¯t this a result of your efforts?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. This is indeed a result of my efforts.¡± As she imed credit for her efforts, thedy in ck seemed to puff up her chest in pride, and her eyes gleamed brightly in joy. She lifted her chin and nodded affirmatively as she added, ¡°How about it? Let¡¯s make an exchange, shall we? You tell me your motivation for travelling together with the Dawn Sect disciples, and I¡¯ll tell you how you can get out of this bewildering ce.¡±

    The behaviour of thedy in ck once again reminded Ye Xiuwen of Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen shifted his gaze away from thedy in ck as he fervently suppressed the stifling feeling swelling up from the depths of his heart. Without looking back at thedy in ck, he calmly added, ¡°I wish to gain entry to the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds through these disciples so that I can deal with my own affairs within.¡±

    Thedy in ck had expected Ye Xiuwen to reveal much more than that. How could she have expected the man¡¯s exnation toprise of only one simple statement?

    ¡°Is that it?!¡± Thedy in ck eximed with widened eyes.

    ¡°I can only say this much. Forgive me for not being able to reveal any more than that.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded with an intransigent tone of voice.

    Just like how thedy in ck appeared to be guarded against Ye Xiuwen, Ye Xiuwen was simrly vignt against the intentions of thedy in ck. After all, he was unclear of the identity of thedy in ck and her true motives, and there was thus no way he could establish and determine whether thedy in ck was of no threat to him.

    Most importantly, Ye Xiuwen had already ruled out the possibility that thedy in ck was none other than Jun Xiaomo. Thus, he was hardly interested in the identity of thedy in ck any longer.

    On the other hand, thedy in ck was evidently rather displeased with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response to her question. She raised an eyebrow curiously and pretended to be vicious as she quipped, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll trap you guys here for the rest of your lives?¡±

    ¡°If thisdy indeed has that kind of intention, then I will capture you and use unconventional means to force you to reveal the method to leave this ce.¡± Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely unfazed as he responded to her hypothetical question.

    ¡°You...you¡¯re unscrupulous!¡± Thedy in ck had never expected a person with such dignified appearances to even think about using such despicable means to achieve his own goals.

    ¡°That would be the easiest method, wouldn¡¯t you say? Besides, I¡¯ve not got any grievances against you to begin with, yet you¡¯ve trapped me in these parts without any reason. I¡¯m a human as well ¨C am I not allowed to get angry over this incident at all?¡± Ye Xiuwen rebuked thedy in ck, leaving herpletely speechless.

    ¡°Alright, you got me there.¡± Thedy in ck shrugged her shoulders.

    She had never thought to treat Jun Ziwen as one of her enemies to begin with. She hated the people from the Dawn Sect, particrly Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters. On the other hand, Jun Ziwen was to her no more than a mere stranger who had sprouted up out of nowhere. She did not recall any such character from her memories, so she knew that there was no reason for her to hate this man to begin with.

    It would suffice if this man refrained from interfering with her ns.

    ¡°Since your objective is to infiltrate the Dawn Sect, then let me tell you my objective as well. The reason why I had earlier trapped all of you was to steal and assume Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity so that I can infiltrate the Dawn Sect. You can say that our goals are somewhat aligned.¡± Thedy in ck exined to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Steal and assume Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity?¡± Ye Xiuwen casted aplicated look at thedy in ck, before ncing over at Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse that was on the floor.

    Thedy in ck smiled provocatively as she quipped, ¡°Watch and learn.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and walked over to Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse. Then, she shed Qin Shanshan¡¯s wrist and collected a few drops of her blood on the talisman itself.

    The blood in Qin Shanshan¡¯s body had mostly coagted and hardened, but it was nevertheless possible to harvest some of her blood if she squeezed her wrist.

    As soon as the talisman absorbed Qin Shanshan¡¯s blood, it glowed with a soulless blue light. Thedy in ck picked up the talisman and prepared to apply it to the back of her arm.

    ¡°Hang on a minute.¡± Ye Xiuwen called out to thedy in ck, ¡°Could...could I please take a look at your true appearances first?¡±

    He already knew what thisdy in ck was about to do. He had been introduced to that talisman by his little martial sister some time ago. The talisman was called a Masquerade Talisman, and it allowed a person to assume and wear theplete appearance of another person.

    Ye Xiuwen also know why he had just called out to thedy in ck ¨C he wanted to ascertain his suspicions so that he could have a peace of mind.

    He knew that he could not reveal his identity before he rified the origins of her whereabouts. If the ambit of thisdy¡¯s hatred and vengeance epassed the entire Dawn Sect, including the Heavenly Peak, then the revtion of his identity would undoubtedly jeopardize his efforts to infiltrate the Dawn Sect to rescue his martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak.

    Thedy in ck raised her eyebrows curiously as she sized up Ye Xiuwen once more. Then, she gave a curt and straightforward response, ¡°Alright.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she stored her talisman within her Interspatial Ring, before proceeding to remove the ck garments on her body.

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait!¡± The veins on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s head throbbed as he waved his hands for her to stop, ¡°Are you just going to remove all of your ck clothes in front of me?¡±

    A crafty gleam shed across thedy¡¯s eyes as she responded with another question, ¡°Why can¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to cover up first?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Why should I cover up?¡± As thedy in ck spoke, she yanked the ck garments off her chest. Ye Xiuwen was astounded by thedy¡¯s brazen attitude, and his entire body stiffened up. Just as he was about to look away, he discovered that under thedy¡¯s ck garments...was yet another set of garments.

    Not only that, this set of garments appeared to be exactly the same as the set of pink garments that Qin Shanshan had always been wearing. It was evident that thisdy had been well prepared for the execution of her schemes.

    Ye Xiuwen finally realized that thedy had been toying with his feelings. Yet, at the same time, he also began to see even more simrities between thisdy and his little martial sister.

    And it was precisely because of this that he wanted even more to see the appearance of thisdy under her ck scarf.

    Then, as thedy in ck began to untie the ck scarf concealing her appearances, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils began to constrict and tense up. Unwittingly, he even held his breath as he watched expectantly for the great reveal.

    He couldn¡¯t wait to find out whether her appearances under the scarf was none other than the person that he had hoped to see. This person, could she be...

    However, as soon as thedy undid the ck scarf and tossed it to the ground, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart instantly sank, and his heart began to twinge in pain ¨C It¡¯s not her. It¡¯s really not her...

    Ye Xiuwen noticed that thisdy touted apletely foreign set of features to her. Apart from the fact that her eyes were astonishingly simr to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, there was not a single other feature that appeared to match Jun Xiaomo¡¯s features. Thus, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hopes werepletely dashed.

    Ye Xiuwen did not know how to deal with the immense disappointment in his heart. Thus, he simply shut his eyes and turned his head around.

    At the same time, it was also because he broke eye contact with thedy that he failed to notice the trace of craftiness in the depths of her eyes ¨C

    It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯d already used another Masquerade Talisman before this. Otherwise, I might have been forced to reveal my identity to this stranger. After all, how would I know whether this person is telling the truth, or whether he is simply lying through his teeth?

 Chapter 268: Temporal Alignment of Interests

    <h4>Chapter 268: Temporal Alignment of Interests</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Without thinking too much about why Ye Xiuwen had suddenly turned around, thedy in ck made her way to Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse once more. As soon as she drew close, she raised her hand and flicked a finger, and a white-hot spark appeared to fly straight onto Qin Shanshan¡¯s body, where it erupted into a huge fire that consumed Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse in the blink of an eye.

    The ground was left with nothing more than ash that was shaped in the figure of a person¡¯s silhouette. A gentle wind swept past, and the final traces of Qin Shanshan¡¯s existence was swept away with the wind just like that.

    Finally, thedy in ck walked to where Qin Shanshan had been lying and picked up the Interspatial Ring that was lying on the ground. After Qin Shanshan¡¯s death, this Interspatial Ring had once again be an artefact without a master.

    Truth be told, thedy in ck was hardly interested in the contents of the Interspatial Ring to begin with. However, since her intention was to assume Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity, it was in her best interests to pay attention to the little details so that her cover would not be blown as easily. Thus, she considered things such as Qin Shanshan¡¯s clothes, essories, weapon of choice, and other simr details. This was one of the reasons why thedy in ck had picked up the Interspatial Ring and stashed it in her own Interspatial Ring.

    She did not intend to wear Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring to begin with. After all, she had her own means of making her own Interspatial Ring appear like Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring.

    After addressing her mind to these little details, thedy in ck finally retrieved the Masquerade Talisman from her Interspatial Ring and pped it on the back of her arm. Within moments, her entire being transformed, and she became an exact replica of Qin Shanshan.

    ¡°Hey, do you intend to keep looking at me through the back of your head?¡± Thedy in ck noticed how Ye Xiuwen was still looking away from her, and she couldn¡¯t help but quip spitefully.

    After all, this man did not even bother turning his head around earlier when she had been ¡°changing her clothes¡±. Why would this man be looking away with disinterest right now? What was he trying to do?

    At this point in time, Ye Xiuwen was the only person who knew that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was not really Qin Shanshan. As a result of this shared secret between then, thedy in ck began to treat Ye Xiuwen more casually, with diminishing vignce and distance between them.

    Ye Xiuwen turned around and noticed that another ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had appeared before him, and he was slightly taken aback.

    It was only at this moment that he realized the extent of disguise ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had adorned. Not only was her appearance exactly the same as Qin Shanshan¡¯s appearance, even her cultivation level and aura emanating from her bodypletely matched Qin Shanshan¡¯s in those regard. If Qin Shanshan were still alive and stood motionless beside the imposter Qin Shanshan, no one would be able to tell which was real and which was an imposter.

    This gave Ye Xiuwen a renewed assessment of thedy¡¯s abilities with talismans. At the very least, he had never heard of a talisman that could change a person¡¯s appearance, disguise their cultivation level and alter their aura and disposition all at once.

    Could thisdy be a talisman master?

    Before Ye Xiuwen could answer his own question, he saw thedy turn around and curl her lips into a mischievous smile as she queried provocatively, ¡°How about that? Thisdy¡¯s proficiency with the talisman isn¡¯t too shabby, is it?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen: ...... He failed to notice the intended humour in thedy¡¯s voice, and he concluded that thisdy was simply being narcissistic.

    He ignored thedy¡¯s self-praise, turned around and began to walk back to where he came from.

    He had left the Dawn Sect disciples for far too long. If they woke up and discovered something amiss, it would most certainly arouse their suspicions.

    Thedy shrugged her shoulders with disinterest and pouted. Then, she skipped along and minced her way towards Ye Xiuwen, asking, ¡°Hey, could I ask you something? Is Jun Ziwen your real name?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen paused in his steps, turned around and looked sullenly at thedy who had just caught up to him. Then, he responded with yet another question, ¡°Why are you suddenly asking me this?¡±

    ¡°You could say that I¡¯m curious?¡± Thedy looked at Ye Xiuwen and blinked her eyes curiously.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback. He had never expected thedy¡¯s personality to be so...bubbly. This was apletely different side to the unapproachable disposition that thedy had exuded just moments ago.

    Perhaps the icy, frigid front was just a means of self-preservation, and her present attitude was closer to her actual character and personality. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself.

    As he took in the familiar spirited gaze and bubbly personality, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes grew sullen once again.

    ¡°Then, what about you? What¡¯s your name?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked suddenly, and he gazed straight into the depths of thedy¡¯s eyes.

    Thedy was slightly taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s prative gaze, and she broke eye contact with him and bit down on her lower lip nervously. After deliberating for a short moment, she nced at Ye Xiuwen again as she responded, ¡°I can¡¯t tell you my real name just yet. But you may call me Xiaotong for now.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen: ¡°...Xiaotong?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Xiaotong.¡± Thedy nodded her head. The main reason for this was that her master¡¯s surname was ¡°Tong¡±, so she had thought to borrow her master¡¯s surname for the time being. Forgive her for her insolence ¨C it was difficult for her toe up with a conventional name on such short notice.

    Ye Xiuwen nced once more at thedy, before growing taciturn and forging forward once again.

    What kind of name is that? Xiaotong? It sounds almost like an attendant at an inn...

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t go yet! You haven¡¯t told me whether your real name is ¡®Jun Ziwen¡¯!¡± Thedy yelled out in frustration behind Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen paused in his steps, before turning around once more, ¡°If you think it¡¯s real, then it¡¯s real. If you don¡¯t think so, then it isn¡¯t.¡±

    As he said that, he confidently and resolutely made his way forward again, leaving thedy rooted to the ground,pletely bbergasted. Momentster ¨C

    What difference does his answer make? It¡¯s as though he¡¯s not answered my question at all! Thedy huffed in frustration as she red at Ye Xiuwen for a while, before finally running after him once more.

    The Dawn Sect disciples were all still deep in their slumber, and they werepletely unaware that Qin Shanshan and Ye Xiuwen had already left their midst for a considerable amount of time. Thus, they were simrly unaware of the fact that the ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who had returned together with Ye Xiuwen once more was no longer the same Qin Shanshan that they knew.

    As soon as the first light of day struck the earth, the Dawn Sect disciples began to rouse from their sleep once more. They felt that they had slept extremely well ¨C better than they had on any other day in the wilderness prior to this. Thus, they all awakened from their slumber with renewed vigor and spirits, and the tension built up in their bodies over thest few days had dissipated substantially as well.

    Naturally, they would never have guessed that their deep slumber was partially attributable to an imposter within their midst. At this point in time, the imposter had alreadypletely blended herself into their midst, and she pretended yawn and stretch as she ¡°woke up¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen nced cidly at thedy whose actions were incredibly calm and natural, before turning his gaze away.

    Thisdy possesses a strong and tempered mind. To think that she could act so naturally and calmly in the midst of so many enemies.

    In fact, he even suspected that thisdy had taken a nap whilst waiting for all of the other Dawn Sect disciples to awaken from their slumber.

    And it had to be said that Ye Xiuwen was spot on in this regard.

    ¡°Oh yes, brother Jun, we¡¯ve rested for the entire day now; have you managed toe up with a method of leaving this dastardly ce?¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples minced his way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as he asked expectantly.

    The other Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but look towards Ye Xiuwen with gazes filled with hope. It could not be understated that these disciples hailed from a Secondary Sect that constantly ranked top three among all Secondary Sects. Thus, it was a rather disgraceful thing that these disciples had unanimously looked to a mere rogue cultivator for the solution to their predicament. However, these disciples could tell from the incidents over thest few days that the rogue cultivator travelling together with them was far stronger, more capable, and moreposed than all of thembined.

    Thus, in their desire to leave this seemingly haunted ce far behind them, the disciples had unanimously decided to listen andply with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions. They had hoped to leave this ce sooner rather thanter.

    Ye Xiuwen nced discreetly at the culprit who had set them up to begin with, before calmly responding, ¡°I haven¡¯t thought of any good solutions yet.¡±

    Everyone immediately sighed with resignation.

    If even the formidable ¡°brother Jun¡± was powerless to do anything to extricate them from their predicament, what could these cultivators in the Qi Mastery and Foundation Establishment stages of cultivation possibly do?

    ¡°Since we¡¯ve got no feasible solution, let¡¯s just keep on walking, then.¡± Having stretched herself, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±zily swept a disinterested gaze across all of the Dawn Sect disciples as she interjected.

    ¡°Shut up. Martial sister Qin, don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve caused us enough trouble over thest few days already?¡± The appointed leader of the Dawn Sect disciple barked in anger. He had finally had enough of Qin Shanshan.

    Over thest few days, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would simply break into a fit of insanity from time to time. Quite apart from cutting and shing and otherwise abusing herself, she would even retrieve several items that seem to have been stolen or seized from other fellow disciples of the Dawn Sect.

    It had to be said that these disciples were not saints in their own rights. To them, the act of killing and seizing treasures was not in and of itself a thing to be despised. However, they had habitually seized objects only if they belonged to disciples of other Sects, not the treasures and artefacts of their own fellow martial brothers or sisters.

    As Qin Shanshan poured out more and more stolen and seized artefacts from her Interspatial Ring, the other Dawn Sect disciples began to wonder just how many atrocities Qin Shanshan hadmitted in reliance on her brother¡¯s support and backing.

    In turn, this realization caused the Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ assessment of Qin Shanshan¡¯s personality and character to fall to rock bottom. By this point in time, none of them could be bothered to continue feigning civility with her any longer, and they let loose their retorts and refutations with reckless abandon. In fact, they sincerely hoped that Qin Shanshan would simply keep her pping lips shut.

    As to whether Qin Shanshan wouldin about their conduct to her brother, Qin Lingyu, this was hardly a consideration to the Dawn Sect disciples for now. After all, they did not even know whether they would be able to leave their current vicinity to begin with.

    Despite the Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ refutations, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± did not erupt in fury and berate everyone around as she tossed the weight of her brother¡¯s name around like she usually did. Rather, she simply nced at the Dawn Sect disciples nonchntly as she cidly quipped, ¡°Since you think I¡¯ve been a troublemaker, why not you tell us what solution you have for getting out of this ce?¡±

    ¡°I...how would I know how we should get out of this ce?!¡± The leader of the Dawn Sect disciples red at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± as he retorted.

    If he had known the solution to their problem, would there be any need for them to continue being trapped and vexed here for so many days on end?

    ¡°If you don¡¯t even know the solution to our current problem, what¡¯s the urgency in refuting me so anxiously? Yes, I do admit that I must¡¯ve caused you a lot of trouble over thest few days, but there were no real losses, were there? Rather than waiting around like sitting ducks, wracking our minds for a possibly solution while hidden, unknown danger looms over our heads, why not give it another shot and try our luck?¡±

    ¡°If forging forward is really the solution, we would have left this ce behind us a long time ago!¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple interjected with indignation. He obviously felt that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was simply applying rhetoric here.

    Besides, who was to say that Qin Shanshan¡¯s behaviour over thest few days had not caused them any real losses? Over thest few days, they had plied Qin Shanshan with several expensive and invaluable medicinal pills of their own whenever her insanity manifested and she resorted to self-abuse. Their hearts ached whenever they thought about their losses over thest few days.

    Despite that, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±pletely ignored them. Instead, she simply gave Ye Xiuwen a knowing smile.

    She could tell that the only person whose words still carried weight right now was the man she was looking at, Jun Ziwen. At the same time, she knew that he was aware of what was going on as well.

    Thus, after receiving ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± gaze, he remained silent for a little while longer, before putting the nail on the coffin of this discussion ¨C

    ¡°Then, let¡¯s follow down this path and give it another shot.¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples exchanged sheepish nces with each other once more. In the end, without much hope on their hearts, they reluctantly eded to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestion and trotted down the path once more.

 Chapter 269: Imposter Qin Shanshanâ€™s Wicked Tendencies

    <h4>Chapter 269: Imposter Qin Shanshan¡¯s Wicked Tendencies</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As a result of their imposition of trust and reliance on Ye Xiuwen, everyone reluctantly epted his and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± suggestion to make another attempt down the path once more.

    To their minds, they would already be out of this peculiar vicinity if the solution were as simple as making their way down that path once more. After all, would they really be lingering around these parts for a such a long time if they could help it? In fact, the truth of the matter was that they had already grown so frustrated with their predicament that they had all begun to question life and its purposes over thest few days.

    The only silver lining was that Qin Shanshan seemed to have recovered from her insanity today. As they walked down the path, she no longer flew into a fit of self-abusing frenzy. In fact, she had be far sullener than before, and she no longer annoyed and vexed people with her incessant pping lips.

    In the eyes of the Dawn Sect disciples, Qin Shanshan¡¯s name had already be synonymous with that of a troublemaker. If not for the fact that Qin Lingyu were Qin Shanshan¡¯s brother, they might well have already left Qin Shanshan behind tonguish in the wilderness and fend for herself.

    Yet these Dawn Sect disciples who spurned Qin Shanshan could never have guessed that the present ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was no longer the Qin Shanshan that they knew. While they were all still sound asleep, the real Qin Shanshan had already perished from the face of this earth.

    As they walked down the path, the Dawn Sect disciples had expected the same thing to happen as before, and they would find themselves arriving back at their starting point. However, somethingpletely different happened this time.

    ¡°Eh? Do you guys get the feeling that the fog around us seems to have thickened quite substantially?¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples suddenly remarked.

    ¡°Now that you¡¯ve mentioned it, that does seem to be the case...¡± Another disciple paused in his steps and furrowed his brows.

    Everyone paused where they were and began ncing about at their surroundings. They had just realized that the fog around them had thickened substantially, and visibility was now at an all-time low.

    The Dawn Sect disciples were already incredibly frustrated and displeased at the peculiar predicament that they had found themselves in over thest few days. Now that a peculiar fog had joined the fray, the worsening of their predicament had substantially amplified the annoyance weighing on their hearts. Moreover, the escting quandary that they were in also caused the disciples to reveal the traces of fear and anxiety that were stirring in the bottom of their hearts.

    Would they really be able to leave this ce? Would the fog be concealing something dangerous within or behind it?

    It was as though the peculiar fog had followed the anxiety in their gaze and flowed straight into their hearts, clouding their minds and enshrouding their hearts with panic.

    Ye Xiuwen swept a meaningful gaze towards ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±; and she detected his gaze on her body as well. She turned around and locked eyes with Ye Xiuwen, before raising her eyebrows smugly.

    It was as though she were saying ¨C That¡¯s right. I did all of this. What can you do about it?

    Naturally, Ye Xiuwen was the only one who could read the underlying meaning behind the imposter Qin Shanshan¡¯s expressions right now.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in his heart. Truth be told, he hardly wanted to dally for too long at this ce. After all, he was none the wiser as to the whereabouts of his master and the other Heavenly Peak disciples; and he was unsure of whether the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples who had been caught and captured by the Dawn Sect were still alive or not. Thus, every moment that he dallied meant that his martial brothers would be in danger for a longer period of time.

    However, he knew that this was something which he could not afford to disclose to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. For some strange reason, Ye Xiuwen found that the imposter Qin Shanshan possessed a personality that seemed to vacite between good and evil, and he was unable to put a finger on where her moralsy. More importantly, Ye Xiuwen knew that he was unable to deduce whether ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was a friend or foe as yet. Thus, he had no choice but to continue observing her as things panned out.

    The fog thickened. Gradually, their visibility becamepletely obscured by the thick fog, to the extent that they were not even able to see their own outstretched hands. By this time, the disciples could only make out the vague silhouettes of theirpatriots in the fog, and they were only able to ascertain each other¡¯s existences around them by the asional sleeves that flickered into vision, or by the sound of their voice in the nearby vicinity.

    This unexpected development weighed heavily on their hearts like a giant boulder. Their heightened spirits were now incredibly tense, as though they were afraid that a spirit beast would leap out at them and take their lives in the very next moment.

    Of everyone present, the calmest people were none other than Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. Ye Xiuwen waspletely calm and collected because he knew who the culprit behind this unexpected development was. At the same time, he was also confident in his own abilities, so he knew that there was no need for him to feel afraid or panicked to begin with. On the other hand, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was the person orchestrating this entire unexpected development, and there was even less of a reason for her to be afraid of what she had personally created.

    In fact, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had already released her divine sense and sent it probing about her surroundings as she delightfully ¡°observed¡± the expressions of the Dawn Sect disciples. She could see that some were trembling, while others were masking their fears by their incessant chattering with each other. At the same time, they would nce nervously at their surroundings from time to time. It was as though these disciples couldn¡¯t help but wish that they would faint and pass out in the next moment in the hope that they would wake up to find out that this had been nothing more than a nightmare. As she took in all of these expressions, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± heart was filled with delight and pleasure.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had for the longest time despised these Dawn Sect disciples who had sucked up to the strong and influential, while despising the weak. A person was the byproduct of his environment. Their respective masters were not saints to begin with, and it was no surprise that these disciples turned out worse than their masters, each in their own rights. That said, apart from Qin Shanshan whom she had already dealt with, she had no personal vendetta against each of these disciples. Thus, she adopted a measured approach and felt that it sufficed to put them through some hardship and torment their hearts for now.

    This was also the only way she could temporarily ventte some of the frustrations and indignation weighing on her heart.

    ¡°I¡¯ve had enough! What kind of a strange, peculiar ce is this?! I don¡¯t want to keep going anymore!¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples eximed amidst all the fog. In his anger, he stamped his feet and plonked his butt to the ground as he sat down.

    ¡°That¡¯s right! Whose stupid idea was it to go down this path again? We¡¯ve never seeded before to begin with. And look what kind of trouble we¡¯ve got ourselves into now? With this peculiar fog in our eyes, we can¡¯t even see where we¡¯re going. Heck, we don¡¯t even know whether we¡¯ll be able to make it out alive right now!¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple echoed in frustration.

    It was as thought the first disciple had triggered the opening of the floodgates. Soon, each of the Dawn Sect disciples began to cry out andin with indignation and frustration. At the same time, they began to me Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± for having made the decision to make another attempt down the path.

    Ye Xiuwen chose not to refute their allegations. After all, he was already well aware of the true characters and personalities of these disciples from outside the Heavenly Peak, and he knew that these were not people that he would have consciously associated himself with. Thus, Ye Xiuwen knew that there was no reason for him to be enraged by their nderous speech.

    In any event, Ye Xiuwen was after one oue and one oue only ¨C and that was to infiltrate the Dawn Sect and rescue his martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak with the help of these Dawn Sect disciples.

    On the other hand, it was ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who grew increasingly displeased the Dawn Sect disciples continued toin. She had always hated it when people forced her to swallow a bitter pill. If others gave her an inch, she would give them a mile; but if others took a bite at her, then she would most certainly do all she could to even the score.

    Besides, it was not as though she had brandished a knife at their throats and forced these Dawn Sect disciples to walk down this path. It was these cowards who had insisted on following Jun Ziwen to begin with ¨C who else could they me but themselves?

    Thus, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± snapped her finger. The fog had initially only surrounded the disciples and obscured their vision, and it did not harm them by any means. But now that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had snapped her fingers, the fog suddenly came to life and began to attack the disciples.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± One Dawn Sect disciple felt as though he had been pushed by an immense force, and his entire body was thrown forward as he mmed face forward into the ground so hard that his organs felt like they were forcibly shifted.

    ¡°Who was that?! Who¡¯s attacking me?!¡± He clutched at the most painful parts of his body as he turned his head around and cursed and swore. Yet apart from the thick, roiling fog behind him, he saw absolutely nothing else.

    Then, one by one, the other disciples began to cry out in pain, as though echoing him in response ¨C ¡°Ah--!¡± ¡°Argh!¡± ¡°Ow, that hurts!¡± These cries continued to ring out around them incessantly. It was evident that others had suffered the same fate ¨C they had all been pushed and tossed about by an unknown force.

    Arge bead of sweat rolled off the forehead of the Dawn Sect disciple who sustained the first blow as he struggled to get up once more. Just as he was about to berate the invisible assant, he was one again sent flying by the unknown force.

    This time, he saw it clearly. The entity that attacked him was not a person ¨C it was the fog that was around him. The fog had congealed into a massive, fist-shaped figure and struck him on the back, sending him flying a distance away.

    ¡°This...what the hell is this damned thing?!¡± Fear washed over the heart of the Dawn Sect disciple, and he immediately sprinted away as far as he could with his tail tucked between his legs. At the same time, the fog behind him transformed into a massive mouth that was filled with razor-sharp teeth as it gave chase after the Dawn Sect disciple.

    The disciple hardly wished to find out what would happen if he were swallowed by the ferocious being with vicious-looking teeth. He simply ran for his life as fast as his feet would take him. His earlierining attitude waspletely gone by now, and it had well been disced by the abject fear in his heart.

    The other Dawn Sect disciples amidst the thick, roiling fog ended up with a simr fate as well. All of them began to run for their lives as though they were being chased by a ferocious, faceless beast,pletely casting aside any considerations for their own dignity and image.

    Their floundering acts werepletely juxtaposed with the unppable calmness which Ye Xiuwen possessed as he remained rooted to the ground. Ye Xiuwen was already in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and he was fully aware that there was nothing the fog could do to hurt him.

    Even though the fog around him had simrly congealed into a strange-looking spirit beast that was gnarling and hissing at him, he hardly felt threatened by the beast one bit.

    Thus, he red back at the spirit beast with a cid expression on his face and hardly a ripple in the depths of his eyes.

    Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the spirit beast simply vanished, and another silhouette gradually appeared and took its ce ¨C it was ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. She nced at Ye Xiuwen before curling her lips into a mischievous smile as she remarked, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to bepletely unfazed by this.¡±

    ¡°Why should I be afraid? It can¡¯t do anything to hurt me, can it?¡± Ye Xiuwen explicated dispassionately.

    ¡°Hehe. Alright, I¡¯d thought that there was a chance that its appearance would give you a shock.¡± The orchestrator of the entire incident pouted her lips and shrugged her shoulders.

    ¡°I¡¯ve seen worse. This isn¡¯t considered too much to me.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was telling the truth in this regard. He had seen far more fearsome creatures within the Death¡¯s Gorge. In fact, there were several encounters within the Death¡¯s Gorge which had caused him to think for a fleeting moment that he was at the end of his road. Fortunately, his master was an incredibly formidable cultivator who dabbled with the discipline of refining pills in his spare time, and he had time and time again been rescued from the jaws of death through his master¡¯s miraculous medicines.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had taken a keen interest to knowing more of these allegedly ¡°worse¡± spirit beasts that Ye Xiuwen had just briefly mentioned. Thus, she blinked her eyes curiously and minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side as she asked what these creatures looked like.

    Ye Xiuwen nced at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who revealed a quizzical look in her eyes, before he cidly retorted ¨C

    ¡°Before I go on, aren¡¯t you going to stop teasing these people for a little while? First, you trapped me together with them in your peculiar formation array, and then you attempt to scare me with your strange fog. Do you still have many of these tricks up your sleeves?¡±

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± raised her eyebrows quizzically, and her eyes were now filled with a trace of coldness. A grimace crept up the corner of her lips as she retorted, ¡°What is that to you? Are you very close to these people? Can you not bear to see them suffer any longer?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, ¡°After observing us for such a long time, aren¡¯t you able to judge for yourself what kind of rtionship I maintain with these people? Furthermore, I¡¯ve got some urgent matters to attend to at the Dawn Sect, and I¡¯ve got no time to waste patronizing you and your wicked fetishes right now.¡±

    ¡°Wick--...wicked fetishes?!¡±

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was renderedpletely speechless by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s refutations ¨C she was in a rush as well! That said, she knew that her actions were carefully crafted and calcted not to waste too much time, and she knew that she could afford to let these disciples suffer a little bit to receive the just desserts for their actions.

    Who could have thought that Jun Ziwen would describe her actions as ¡°wicked fetishes¡±?!

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± widened her eyes and gritted her teeth, ¡°Rex! It¡¯s going to end soon!¡±

    Her intention had always been to use the fog to send the Dawn Sect disciples running in the direction that they had to travel to begin with. After all, given the initialckadaisical and lethargic attitude of the disciples, who knew how long it would take them before they could finally arrive at the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds? When all was said and done, the fearsome fog might well have forced them to move quicker than they otherwise would have.

    After ring at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± walked on in a huff. Then, having taken a few steps forward, she suddenly whipped her head around and red at Ye Xiuwen once more as she barked, ¡°If you continue to behave like such a boring old man, you can dream on if you¡¯re thinking of attracting a life partner!¡±

    As she finished speaking, she walked away with long strides, leaving Ye Xiuwen with the image of her willfulness and headstrong attitude.

    Of course, what ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had failed to consider was the fact that the real Qin Shanshan had initially conscripted Ye Xiuwen to her team precisely because she had taken a fancy towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s looks.

 Chapter 270: The Mutually Loathing Duo

    <h4>Chapter 270: The Mutually Loathing Duo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Frightened by the works of the imposter Qin Shanshan, the disciples couldn¡¯t help but think that this was the end of their road for them. Just then, the surroundings shifted once more, and the fog vanished quickly before their eyes. As it vanished, the sight that entered their eyes was an idyllic scenery filled with towering mountains with sprawling trees, verdant grass and flowing waters, and sheepckadaisically grazing on the grass. It was as though this ce had beenpletely untouched by time.

    The tense and unnerved disciples paused in their steps in shock, and their eyes widened. They looked around vacantly at the surroundings inplete disbelief.

    Momentster, as their spirits returned and they rposed themselves, they realized that all of their martial brothers around them were ounted for, and not a single person missing.

    Even Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who were well behind where they were had caught up to them with a steady gait in their steps. In contrast with the disciples whose tears and mucus were strewn all over their face, replete with disheveled hair and ruffled clothing, Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± appeared to be eye-catchingly impable in their steadfastness.

    However, the Dawn Sect disciples could hardly be bothered with how the two had managed to keep their cool all this while. Their minds were simply filled with an intense rush from the realization that they had ovee the cmity; and this realization superseded any other thoughts in their minds right now.

    ¡°Look over there! I think I see some traces of a settlement there!¡± After he finally caught his breath, the leader of the Dawn Sect disciples looked up and immediately pointed into the distance as soon as he noticed smoke rising into the sky.

    Everyone immediately looked in the direction which he was pointing ¨C he was right! The wisps of chimney smoke were a clear sign that there was human habitation in the near distance!

    Even though their legs were weary and worn out from all the running, the notion that they were soon arriving at human habitation reinvigorated them and renewed their spirits once more. Thus, the Dawn Sect disciples mbered to their feet, and they continued to hobble and stumble on as they forged forward.

    After a little while, the disciples saw a row of buildings within a vige.

    In other words, they had finally left behind them the ghastly vicinity that had trapped them for close to half a month. That said, they were stillpletely baffled by how they had managed to do it.

    Thud. The leader of the Dawn Sect disciples could no longer take it anymore. His knees buckled and his legs gave way, and he instantly fell onto the ground. The moment of crisis had passed, and they were temporarily at a safe haven. Thus, his tense, anxious heartstrings finally loosened once more, and he could no longer muster any strength to run forward anymore.

    Just like a contagion or a trigger of sorts, the disciples behind him all copsed to the ground in an instant.

    For the next few moments, everyone grew taciturn and reveled themselves in the joy oveing the earlier crisis as reality finally sank in.

    ¡°We...we¡¯ve finally..e..e out?¡± After what must have a been a rather long time, one of the Dawn Sect disciples finally broke the silence.

    He was still panting and catching his breath, so his statement sounded almost disjointed.

    ¡°We¡¯re out...¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple eximed in both shock and astonishment ¨C he couldn¡¯t suppress the roiling emotions in his heart.

    Then, they turned around and looked behind them, and they noticed that there was only a hill covered with lush, verdant grass, as well as flowing waters by the side. It was like a piece of art that was untouched by time ¨C where was the thick, rolling fog and the vicious spirit beast that had been chasing them just moments ago?

    This...what¡¯s going on over here? Their limited experience with the outside world meant that they were unable to exin their peculiar experience at all.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± smiled discreetly, and a delighted look gleamed in her eyes.

    She had earlier set up a massive formation array in the wilderness where they had passed through. Yet with their limited knowledge of formation arrays, none of the Dawn Sect disciples were even aware that they had just been tripped up by a formation array ¨C they were all still clinging tightly to the notion that they had just been haunted and pursued by a spirit or a soul of sorts.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen did guess that the fog and the spirit beast was nothing more than the result of a formation array. That said, he did not have a deep and profound understanding of formation arrays, and he did not have any ways of unlocking or breaking the entrapment of the formation array. Thus, he had earlier simply waited for the owner of the formation array to appear before him once more just to see what exactly the culprit was seeking to achieve.

    Ye Xiuwen cast a meaningful look at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, and a set ofplicated emotions filled the depths of his eyes.

    His only hope was that thisdy of unknown origins did not have ill intentions towards the Heavenly Peak. Otherwise, her aptitude with her formation arrays and talismans would most certainly act as a serious impediment to his rescue ns.

    Sensing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze on her, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± turned around and looked straight back at Ye Xiuwen. She raised her eyebrows in a challenging manner, and the gaze in her eyes looked as though she were asking ¨C What do you want?

    Ye Xiuwen turned his gaze away silently. Thedy behaved far too simrly to his little martial sister, and there were times when her actions would cause him to develop some unrealistic expectations, hoping that thedy would be none other than Jun Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately, his rationality told him that this was nigh impossible. No matter how high her talent for cultivation was, there was simply no way that his little martial sister would have improved by such leaps and bounds within the short span of only twelve years.

    Thus, he chose to forcibly repress the sour feelings of frustrations and despair in his heart, and consciously elected not to listen, see nor think about these things. This was the only way he could stay afloat and not sink into the depths of the mires of despondence.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± snorted softly as she rolled her eyes at him behind his back. She had initially assessed his personality to be pretty decent, only to find out that this man was nothing more than a bitter gourd bogged down with the contemtions of his heart.

    She found these people the most tiresome ones to deal with. After all, she could never understand what they were thinking about. Even if they did not mean any ill will or harm to others, their downcast attitude might give rise to misunderstandings from those around them.

    That said, what ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± waspletely unaware about was the fact that she was simrly cold, distant, and difficult to get along with in the eyes of others as well. In fact, her casual and carefree attitude was only revealed to those with whom she was closest and most familiar.

    After the series of peculiar incidents, the Dawn Sect disciples seemed to havee to a unanimous, tacit agreement that they would do their utmost and make haste back to the Sect.

    Even though their recent experiences had built up a mountain of tension and anxiety in their hearts, and there was a lingering temptation to spend several days resting and rxing in the vige, the encounter with the fog had etched itself far too deeply in their bones. Whenever midnight struck, they would invariably dream of a faceless monster chasing after them, and they would always wake up startled, withrge beads of sweat rolling off their foreheads.

    Thus, they no longer entertained any thoughts of rxing or sight-seeing, and their minds werepletely fixated on how they could return to the Sect in the shortest possible time so that they could truly feel at ease and safe within the confines of the Sect¡¯s grounds.

    On the other hand, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± thoroughly enjoyed how the looks on the faces of these disciples darkened day after day with ever-increasing anxiety and tension. All shecked right now was a box of popcorn and a lounging chair to watch the show.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen could hardly understand ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± mischievous thoughts, and he continued to turn a blind eye to her actions.

    Just like that, the entire entourage made haste for another half a month before they finally arrived at a little town at the foot of the mountain where the Dawn Sect was located. From there, it would take them approximately two or three more days before they would finally be back at the Dawn Sect.

    The knowledge that they would be arriving back in the Dawn Sect in the next few days thoroughly loosened the tense and anxious hearts of the Dawn Sect disciples. The townprisedrgely of mortals, and there were asionally a few cultivators who would pass through quickly en route to their own destinations. That said, there was no reason for these cultivators to hurt them, especially when they were so close to the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds.

    Thus, the Dawn Sect disciples finally felt rxed enough to let loose and have some fun. Sight-seeing was out of the question to them. After all, the town was not far away from the Dawn Sect, and the disciples had already been here innumerable times and seen all the sights there was to see. Thus, the only remaining ce where they could make merry was the mortal world¡¯snd of vices.

    While the Dawn Sect disciples were all prideful people, these disciples in the entourage were at the same time young, impassioned creatures filled with raging hormones, and they experienced the very same carnal desires that mortal men do as well. Furthermore, the female disciples within the Sect were invariably entities who were ced on a pedestal which they could only look on and admire from afar, and not physically touch and y with. After all, each of these female cultivators were equally prideful beings. Unless they possessed sufficiently strong abilities and talent for cultivation, these male disciples could never stand out among theirpetition and win the hearts of these coveted existences. Thus, the disciples whose abilities and talents were no more than average had no choice but to resolve their own little ¡°pent up issues¡± through other ways and means.

    Of all the male disciples among them right now, apart from Ye Xiuwen, each and every one of these disciples could be considered tainted, vulgar beings who had tasted and experienced the forbidden fruit in exotic locations. Whenever these disciples called upon simr ces, even in this little town that was so close to home, their hearts would flutter, and their passions would roil ever so strongly.

    In fact, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters were well aware of these Dawn Sect disciples¡¯ escapades. However, they consciously chose to turn a blind eye to these acts of theirs.

    Thus, as soon as night fell over thesends, the Dawn Sect disciples began to gather in small groups as they made their way towards their chosen ce of release, and the only people who were left in the inn that they had put up in were the unromantic Ye Xiuwen, and thedy wearing the guise of Qin Shanshan whom Ye Xiuwen waspletely uninterested in.

    Logically speaking, now that all of the Dawn Sect disciples had left to settle their own businesses, Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would essentially have been given free rein to sit down in the open to discuss their ns after infiltrating the Dawn Sect. However, as reality would have it, Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± each upied one table on opposite ends of the inn¡¯s dining hall, as though they were separated by a rift that was ten thousand miles apart; as far as the east was from the west. If anyone entered the dining hall right now, they would never have guessed that these two people knew each other.

    That said, nobody could me Ye Xiuwen or ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± for behaving like this. After all, even if they knew each other, they could not be described as anything more than acquaintances. While they were on the journey back to the Dawn Sect, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had beenpletely focused on enjoying the show that she had orchestrated, while Ye Xiuwen waspletely disinterested with the pranks that she was ying. As a result, both parties hardly interacted with each other at all. Thus, despite having travelled together for a reasonable period of time, their rtionship with each other was hardly any better than the day that they had first encountered each other.

    Most importantly, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was hardly used to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold and expressionless face, replete with his somber and silent personality; while Ye Xiuwen could hardly understand why ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± relentlessly pranked the Dawn Sect disciples despite allegedly being in a rush to get to the Dawn Sect. Therefore...

    The rift between the mutually loathing duo was at an all time high. Both thought to mind their own business, and neither saw any reason for any interaction beyond what had to be done for their mutually aligned interests. This would help to reduce the awkwardness at the table when they were eating as well.

    This happened to be an off-season for the inn, and human traffic was at an all-time low. Most of the patrons would promptly leave the dining hall after finishing their food. In no time, the only people remaining in the dining hall were Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    As the innkeeper ounted for the profits for the day, he stole nces at Ye Xiuwen and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± as he eximed to himself ¨C These two people are really strange. I¡¯d clearly seen them arriving together with an entire group of people earlier today. However, they¡¯re clearly seated as far away from each other as they possibly could right now. Could it be that they¡¯ve had a lovers¡¯ tiff or the like?

    Ye Xiuwen did not have any delectable delights before him right now. There were only a few small dishes of food on his table that paired well with wine. At the same time, there were also a few empty jade bottles set on the table near his food while his cup was half-filled with wine. He gazed sullenly out of the window beside him, into the distant night sky. Nobody knew what was on his mind.

    The wine beside him was not from the inn; it was something that Ye Xiuwen had retrieved from his own Interspatial Ring. His master within the Death¡¯s Gorge was also a wine connoisseur of sorts, and he had always kept with him a healthy stash of aromatic, delicious wine that he brewed himself. As a result of his master¡¯s influence, Ye Xiuwen had over the years developed a habit of drinking wine as well. That said, his drink of choice was still tea, and wine was something that he would only asionally partake of when the urge sets in and the mood was right.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had initially thought to ignore Ye Xiuwen and return to her room after she was done with her meal. However, for some strange reason, she found herself rooted to her seat when she looked at Ye Xiuwen sitting alone.

    As the diners in the inn began to depart and the moon crept up higher in the sky, the desire to stay became particrly strong when the fragrance of the wine set in front of Ye Xiuwen wafted over to where she was...

    Finally, she could no longer resist the urge, and she began to walk over to where Ye Xiuwen¡¯s table was ¨C

    She had her eye on his wine!

 Chapter 271: A Coincidental Clash of Personality

    <h4>Chapter 271: A Coincidental sh of Personality</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was a person who loved the taste of a good wine to begin with. That said, she had not had the right opportunity to appreciate a good wine for a long, long time. Her days, months and years had been spent learning and cultivating while hiding and escaping for her life. One slight slip up in her vignce could mean the difference between life or death under the ws of a spirit or demonic beast. Where could she find the time or heart to brew her own wine and appreciate it to begin with? It was already very much of a miracle how she had managed to preserve her life over this long, arduous period of time.

    It could not be understated that one of the necessary preconditions for enjoying a good wine was a safe environment. If a person¡¯s life were in constant danger, there was no way he could possibly pause and immerse himself in the pleasures of life.

    Back then, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had only one condition for the food that she consumed ¨C it sufficed that it did not cause her to die. As to the taste and textures, these were matters that were outside the ambit of her consideration. If she were too particr about these things, she might well have perished in the wilderness from hunger before the spirit or demonic beasts could even strike at her.

    But now that the period of crisis was over, and there was nothing in the region that could threaten her life, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± couldn¡¯t help but find herself drawn to the prospects of enjoying a good cup of wine.

    Thus, she remainedpletely transfixed on the wine set on the table in front of Ye Xiuwen as she drifted over to his table. By now, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± stomach had already started to rumble and grown in anticipation.

    Her nose twitched, and she followed the scent of the wine¡¯s fragrance,pletely ignoring the fact that she and Jun Ziwen were no more than mere acquaintances as she thickened her skin and approached Ye Xiuwen once more.

    ¡°Brother Jun, the fragrance of your wine is amazing. Do you mind sharing a little bit with me, please?¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± sat in front of Ye Xiuwen and craned her neck out as she took in the fragrance and licked her lips. She looked straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes expectantly.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand which was holding his wine cup paused momentarily just as the cup touched his lower lips.

    He lifted his eyes and looked at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± once more.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was slightly startled. She noticed that there was a sense of familiarity from Jun Ziwen¡¯s eyes that caused her heart to feel slightly stifled.

    But...what could it be? Aren¡¯t we no more than strangers who have just met? We hardly know each other at all!

    Just as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± thought to take a closer look at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, he shifted his gaze away. Even though thisdy wore the exact same appearance that Qin Shanshan bore, he somehow also felt that there was a sense of familiarity in thisdy¡¯s expressions.

    However, Ye Xiuwen simply concluded that he must have gone mad.

    It was not that he had not considered the possibility that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was his little martial sister. Rather, unless a miracle had taken ce, he knew that his little martial sister could not have attained a cultivation anywhere near the Nascent Soul stage within such a short span of time.

    Besides, it was not as though he had not seen thedy¡¯s true appearances...

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind was once again drawn to the fact that the imposter Qin Shanshan also possessed a pair of almond-shaped eyes. He felt that the uncanny semnce in this regard must have caused him to draw a connection between ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± and his little martial sister.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was perplexed why Ye Xiuwen would shift his gaze away and immerse himself in his sullenness for such a long time. The stifling feeling in her heart had already dissipated as soon as Ye Xiuwen shifted his gaze away, and all that remained was the effusion of the wine¡¯s fragrance that only served to whet her appetite and escte the rumbling sensation in her stomach.

    ¡°Hey, brother, say something. If you don¡¯t say anything, I¡¯ll take it that you¡¯ve tacitly agreed to my request.¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± waved her hand in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face for a while. Then, when she realized that he had no intentions of responding to her, she immediately retrieved a little porcin cup from her own Interspatial Ring, picked up a bottle of wine on the table and poured herself a cup of wine. Then, she lifted the cup to her sharp nose, shut her eyes and took a deep whiff of the wine¡¯s aroma. Instantly, her lungs were filled with the wine¡¯s intense fragrance.

    ¡°It¡¯s truly a good wine...¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± eximed, before sticking out her tongue and licking the wine in her cup. An intensebination of vours immediately burst out on her tongue and permeated all of her senses, filling her with unprecedented delight.

    As soon as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± picked up the bottle of wine, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze had once again returned to her body ¨C It truly resembles her ¨C her poise, her expression, and her little actions in appreciating wine...

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened by several shades once more. No matter how simr they were, he knew that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± could not possibly be Jun Xiaomo.

    A sense of stifling frustration washed over his heart. He had initially intended to wash away the frustrations and worries weighing on his heart with wine. Yet, despite all the wine he had consumed, his frustrations had only seemed to be more pronounced in the forefront of his mind. He had thought to wash away and dilute the roiling emotions in his heart; yet his heart had only be increasingly chaotic and fric as time wore on.

    Ye Xiuwen had never been a person who wore his expressions on his sleeves. That said, this did not mean that he was an unfeeling and emotionless person. Conversely, the more intense the emotions in his heart, the colder and more emotionless the expression on his face.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his eyes and finished the remaining wine in his cup, before calmly stating to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, ¡°Could you kindly leave once you¡¯re done with your cup of wine? Forgive me, but I¡¯m really not in the mood to enjoy a drink with someone right now.¡±

    More urately, he simply did not wish to continue facing a stranger who somehow constantly reminded him of his memories with Jun Xiaomo.

    As suddenly as Ye Xiuwen dropped the bombshell on ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, she also identally swallowed an entire mouthful of the wine without any warning. The alcohol within was so sharp and spicy that she almost instantly teared up.

    She stared straight back at Ye Xiuwen with widened eyes. However, her throat was burning from identally swallowing the wine, and she found herselfpletely speechless at the moment. Thus, she could only continue to stare at Ye Xiuwen with a face flushed with fury.

    ¡°You...you...do you have to be so petty?!¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± finally managed to eke out an exmation after remaining silent for some time.

    She had noticed that Jun Ziwen would always shift his eyes away after just a short moment of eye contact, and she had attributed this to the fac that Jun Ziwen was not too fond of her. That said, she had only taken a few mouthfuls of wine from Jun Ziwen right now ¨C did he really have to be such a petty person?!

    Despite her exmation, Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn, and his eyes remained shut as he continued to hold onto the cup of spirit wine in his hands.

    ¡°Alright. Very well.¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± red at Ye Xiuwen in anger, ¡°Do you think you¡¯re the only person who has good wine? I¡¯ve got the same as well! Innkeeper!¡±

    ¡°Oh,ing...¡± The innkeeper ran over obsequiously. He had been observing their interaction from the side, and he knew that this was the time for his business to shine.

    ¡°Bring me a few bottles of the best wine that you have. Remember, I want aged and vorsome wine.¡± ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± patted the table as she ordered.

    ¡°Right-o!¡± The innkeeper immediately instructed an attendant to fetch a few bottles of wine from their wine cer.

    Momentster, two of his attendants carried five bottles of wine that were covered in dust as they returned to the dining hall. Then, they began to set these bottles down on the table that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± and Ye Xiuwen were seated at.

    ¡°Dear guests, these are the best wines that our inn has. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can open them up to take a whiff first.¡± The innkeeper suggested cheerily.

    ¡°Alright, I believe you. This is for the wine.¡± After ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± handed some money over to the innkeeper, he smiled radiantly as he returned to his front desk.

    Then, as soon as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± uncapped the bottles that had been sealed with wax, she lifted the bottles to her nose and took a good whiff of the wine ¨C Damn, the best wine in this inn is still miles away from the quality of that fe¡¯s personal stash of wines.

    In fact, this was to be expected. The old fogey in the Death¡¯s Gorge had always been a wine connoisseur. He was incredibly particr about the wines that he consumed, and his wines were naturally brewed with the best ingredients which were invaluable and difficult to locate even by the standards of the cultivation world. Furthermore, these wines would only develop aplex vor if it was given sufficient time for brewing. Even though the innkeeper was a reasonably rich person, he was still an insignificant mortal when all was said and done. Thus, whether based on constituent ingredients or brewing time, the innkeeper¡¯s wines could hardly hold a candle to the old fogey¡¯s wines in both regards.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± sighed in her heart, consoling herself by the fact that less was better than nothing. However, as soon as she nced back at the unperturbed and unfazed person sitting opposite her at the table, her heart constricted with fury once more.

    It had to be said that she was always the one provoking and aggravating others. Who would have thought that after emerging from the Proving Grounds, the first person she would encounter was such a cold and distant person whose every action seemed to annoy and upset her?

    Had she cleared every single arduous trial and hurdle within the Proving Grounds, only to be angered to death by this insipid person?!

    That¡¯s right. ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was none other than thedy who had spent well over three hundred years within the Proving Grounds before recently re-emerging to the cultivation world. She was none other than Jun Xiaomo.

    When she first emerged from the Proving Grounds, she had intended to look for her master, Tong Ruizhen, to apprise him of the good news. In the end, before she even arrived at the Zephyr Sect, she overheard on the grapevine a piece of tragic news that struck her like a bolt of thunder ¨C Tong Ruizhen had disappeared, and nobody knew whether he was dead or alive!

    Not only that, rumours had it that even Jun Xiaomo was proimed to be ¡°dead¡± to the entire cultivation world. As a result, Rong Ruihan had attempted to seek revenge for her and ended up offending the entire Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom, before finally departing from his encampment in sorrow, vanishing off the face of this earth.

    When she first heard this series of bad news, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart had already begun to tremble with fear. Thus, as soon as she got wind of the rumours that the Heavenly Peak had been annihted, her mind went nk, and any modicum of rationality within her was cast aside.

    She wanted revenge! She was going to take revenge on all the culprits who were responsible for these things. She was going to settle every bit of the score that she was unable to settle in her previous life, replete with interest!

    With a raging inferno zing in her heart, Jun Xiaomo switched out her characteristic striking-red clothes and applied an Alteration Talisman on herself as she began to move and act incognito. After asking around in many ces, she finally caught wind of Qin Shanshan¡¯s entourage and made contact with them.

    Jun Xiaomo was not a brainless person. She knew that if she wanted to subdue and shake up such a massive entity that the Dawn Sect was, she could not tackle the problem head on.

    Fortunately, her three hundred and thirty years within the Proving Grounds had taught her practically everything there was to know about formation arrays and talismans, and she was well equipped to set up some tremendously powerful formation arrays. With the backing of these powerful formation arrays, she knew that she could deal some massive damage against the Dawn Sect even if she were not able to uproot thempletely.

    Most importantly, since the members of the Dawn Sect sincerely believed Jun Xiaomo to be dead, they wouldn¡¯t even know what struck them.

    Thus, she could go all guns zing and trap all of her enemies within her formation arrays.

    With these thoughts in mind, she began to tail Qin Shanshan¡¯s entourage. Along the way, she also gradually learnt more about the details of how the Heavenly Peak hade to be ¡°annihted¡±.

    As it turns out, her parents and her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak were not dead, and it was only a remnant portion of her martial brothers who had been trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. He Zhang had consciously made the decision to hold them within the forbidden grounds as hostages in an attempt to lure the rest of the Heavenly Peak so that he can capture them in one fell swoop.

    After learning about these things, Jun Xiaomo temporarily shelved her initial ns for revenge and prioritized rescuing her martial brother instead.

    There was still a raging inferno zing inside her chest. However, despite her continuing fury, her rationality had returned to her substantially.

    In her previous life, she began absolutely frigid and fric as soon as she realized that she had lost everything. The primary reason for that was because there was nothing left to fear, because there was simply nothing else she could lose. However, in this life, as soon as she learnt that she had not lost everything, her heart was once again filled with hope.

    She had teased and pranked the Dawn Sect disciples along the way because she hated how they were badmouthing the Heavenly Peak. She had killed Qin Shanshan without any mercy nor hesitation because she was one of her nemeses who had irretrievably wronged her, whether in her previous life or in her present life...

    Ye Xiuwen waspletely unaware that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was Jun Xiaomo. If he knew this fact, perhaps he would have been able to understand why she did what she did. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo was simrly unaware that Jun Ziwen was none other than Ye Xiuwen. If she knew this fact, perhaps she would understand where his cold and distant attitude wasing from.

    Thus, for some strange reason, the two of them found themselves locked in a sh of personalities.

 Chapter 272: An Idyllic Scenery Deserves a Good Wine-Pairing

    <h4>Chapter 272: An Idyllic Scenery Deserves a Good Wine-Pairing</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t stand how Jun Ziwen perpetually looked annoyed or displeased, and she red furiously at him. However, when it became apparent to her that Jun Ziwen was hardly even looking at her, her mind spun, and a mischievous thought floated into her mind.

    Doesn¡¯t this guy find me annoying and want me to leave? Then I¡¯m going to stay right here and annoy you to no end!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes gleamed, and a wicked smile crept up the corner of her lips. Then, she suddenly pped the table and called out, ¡°Innkeeper!¡±

    ¡°Hey~~ Coming~~¡± The innkeeper had just returned to his desk and was still in the midst of counting through his profits for the day when Jun Xiaomo summoned him once more.

    Jun Xiaomo had all at once ordered five bottles of aged wine from the innkeeper and paid for them without batting a single eyelid. It had to be mentioned that the price of one such bottle of wine was equal to half of the inn¡¯s average monthly ie. Thus, Jun Xiaomo was a massive golden cash cow in the innkeeper¡¯s eye ¨C one that he would not want to offend in the least bit.

    ¡°Bring me a few of yourrgest bowls here.¡±

    ¡°Large--..rgest bowls?¡± The innkeeper couldn¡¯t understand Jun Xiaomo¡¯s request.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Thergest bowl ¨C the kind that I can use to drink to my heart¡¯s content.¡± Jun Xiaomo confirmed in a singsong manner, yet her eye gleamed with a crafty look.

    ¡°Oh, oh. I understand. Certainly, certainly. I¡¯ll be right back with it.¡± The innkeeper turned around again and eximed in his heart as he trotted along to his store ¨C Who would¡¯ve expected this dainty and demure lookingdy would be such a heavyweight drinker? She¡¯s most certainly extravagant with her consumption!

    Respect, respect! A hero among women! Two thumbs up!

    Within moments, the innkeeper touted a fewrge bowls as he trotted back to the table and set the bowls in front of her as he ndished her, ¡°Dear guest, what do you think about these bowls?¡±

    ¡°Mm, mm. Not bad, not bad.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she picked up a bowl and chuckled mischievously as she stroked her chin. Her present appearances looked no different from that of a crafty little fox, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve got no other requests for now. Thanks, innkeeper.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes. No need for any thanks at all. Feel free to give me a holler if you¡¯ve got any other requests.¡± The innkeeper bowed slightly as he took his leave, before returning to his desk and resuming his count of the spirit stones he had taken for the day.

    Jun Xiaomo began to set the bowls out on the table. In the blink of an eye, three-quarters of the entire space on the table was covered by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bowls and wine bottles, relegating Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wine cup and bottles of wine into a small, miserable little corner.

    Ye Xiuwen, who had earlier retreated into his own silence as he doused himself with spirit wine, paused in his actions and nced at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow at Ye Xiuwen, as though challenging him, before flicking open the stopper on one of her own wine bottles and pouring a generous portion of wine into a bowl in a cavalier fashion.

    Then, as she continued to fill up every single bowl on the table, the intense fragrance of wine began to diffuse throughout the entire dining hall.

    The innkeeper subconsciously gulped down the saliva in his mouth as he eyed the bowls of wine set out in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    Even though he had personally brewed those bottles of wine, he had not tasted a single drop of the wine before. His hope was that these bottles of wine would one day fetch a hefty price and profit for him. Who would ever have thought that this demure and dainty lookingdy would be so extravagant ¨C not only did she purchase five bottles of wine at one go, she even poured out and disyed the wine in front of her in such a hearty fashion!

    It¡¯s so fragrant...if only I could have a taste of it...

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wine possessed a far moreplex and indulgent aroma than the wine that Jun Xiaomo had purchased, it could never measure up to the sheer quantity of wine that Jun Xiaomo had disyed. Thus, as the intense scent of alcohol and fragrance of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wine permeated every corner of the dining hall, even the cup of spirit wine in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands began to turn nd and pale inparison.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Jun Xiaomo particrly enjoyed seeing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s speechless expression on his face. Notwithstanding the fact that there was hardly any change to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cool disposition, Jun Xiaomo felt as though she could sense the slight shift in the hidden intent in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo picked up one of the massive bowls on the table and brought it up to her nose, before taking a huge whiff of it. Then, her eyes curled into a squinch as she eximed heartily, ¡°So fragrant...¡± As she finished speaking, she lifted the bowl to her lips and took one big gulp from it, instantly finishing a tenth of its contents. She even smirked as she licked her lips in delight.

    After all that, she opened her eyes once more and nced back at Ye Xiuwen, hardly bothering to mask the delight and arrogance in her eyes. It was as though she were saying ¨C See, I¡¯ve got some good wine as well. Not giving you any!

    Despite all that, how good could a wine made by mere mortals really bepared with spirit wine? She was doing nothing more than putting on a pretense right now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present actions were no different from how a kid pulled pranks on others just to get their attention ¨C it made others feelpletely exasperated by her actions, yet at the same time nobody could find such actions hateful or disgusting.

    Faced with such a pair of innocent and na?ve-looking eyes, for some strange reason, Ye Xiuwen felt that the frustrations weighing on his heart had diminished quite substantially.

    The iciness and distance in his heart had now dissipated slightly, but this was hardly revealed on his equally stoic expression on his face.

    He lifted the cup in his hand and slowly took a swig of the wine, suppressing the softening of the gaze in his eyes.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo began to grow anxious. She had done so many things to trigger Jun Ziwen, yet he seemed to remainpletely unperturbed as he minded his own business. This made Jun Xiaomo feel as though everything she had just done had been done in vain ¨C not only had she not managed to trigger Jun Ziwen, she felt as though she had triggered herself for wasting her own time!

    Alright, alright. There¡¯s no need for me to be incensed over such trivialities. Isn¡¯t it just some wine? Having one less sip isn¡¯t too much of an issue. Besides, I¡¯ve got a spread of wine in front of me.

    While it¡¯s true that itcks in taste and kick, it¡¯s still better than nothing.

    After denouncing her own childish behaviour from just moments ago, Jun Xiaomo turned a blind eye to the man seated opposite him as she began to drink in frustration.

    It had to be said that the alcohol brewed by mortal man could hardly do a thing to tickle the throats of cultivators, much less intoxicate and inebriate them. Thus, the innkeeper looked on with respect as Jun Xiaomo continued to chug down the wine in her bowl as though it were nothing more than water. Within moments, Jun Xiaomo hadpletely emptied out the contents of an entire bottle of wine.

    Unfortunately, even though she had chugged down the wine inrge mouthfuls, Jun Xiaomo hardly felt satisfied by the alcohol she had just consumed. Earlier, when she had consumed a small cup of Jun Ziwen¡¯s aged spirit wine, she experienced an explosion of vours and aromas that suffused through every part of her mouth, lingering for ages before it dissipated. Yet, despite having bought over arge quantity of the wine from the innkeeper, there was not a single bottle of wine that could hold a candle to the small cup that she earlier consumed.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart feltpletely stifled, and she sought to wash away her frustrations with the help of the wine she was chugging down. That said, the irony was that the wine brewed by mortals could do nothing of the sort apart from aggravating matters and worsening her frustrations. She found no form of reprieve whatsoever from the wine she was consuming.

    At the same time, even though Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely stoic and unperturbed where he was, the truth of the matter was that he had on several asionsid his gaze on ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± as he was lifting his own wine up to his mouth.

    As he continued to observe how thedy seated opposite him appeared to be throwing a tantrum like a spoilt little child, a thought suddenly crossed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart ¨C Have I been far too sensitive and petty earlier? After all, I¡¯m a grown man. Is there really any reason for me to outrightly reject this youngdy¡¯s earlier request?

    And it¡¯s just a small bottle of wine at that...

    Thus, a slight sense of guilty conscience washed over his heart, and Ye Xiuwen retrieved a jade bottle from his Interspatial Ring. This jade bottle contained a sealed, full bottle of wine that his master had personally brewed. Ye Xiuwen pushed the bottle of wine towards Jun Xiaomo and remarked, ¡°Take it. There¡¯s no need to get vexed over such trivial matters.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was still furiously attempting to chug away her frustrations when Ye Xiuwen extended this gesture of goodwill. She was immediately taken aback, and her eyes widened in disbelief. She looked back up at Ye Xiuwen as she eximed, ¡°This is for me?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn. Instead, he simply shifted his hand away as he picked up his cup and began to drink his wine again.

    Jun Xiaomo looked suspiciously at Jun Ziwen, thinking ¨C Why did he suddenly give me a bottle of wine when he wasn¡¯t even willing to part with a cup or two earlier? And it¡¯s still a fresh, sealed bottle of wine to boot. Does he have any ulterior motives?

    Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely stoic as Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suspicious gaze swept across his body.

    After struggling against her own thoughts for a little while, Jun Xiaomo let her craving for a good spirit wine get the better of her and her rationality. Besides, no matter how Jun Xiaomo looked at it, she just couldn¡¯t think of any reason why Jun Ziwen would possibly scheme against her. Thus, she shelved her thoughts and picked up the jade bottle and removed its seal within an instant.

    As soon as the seal came off, a delectable waft of aromatics sprung out of the bottle, gently caressing and tickling Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose. Her nose twitched as she inhaled the fragrance, allowing it to suffuse gently through her body, bones and marrows alike.

    It¡¯s truly incredible!

    Jun Xiaomo anxiously picked up the small cup and poured herself a small cup of the spirit wine. Her actions right now were incredibly dainty and gentle ¨C aplete contrast with her earlier actions.

    Of course she had to be gentle and careful with the precious spirit wine she now possessed! It would be far too much of a waste of good wine if she chugged it as she had done with the wine brewed by the innkeeper.

    Ye Xiuwen watched how ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± disposition suddenly changed. She now act so cautiously as though she were afraid of wasting even a single drop of his spirit wine, and he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head helplessly as a trace of bemusement surfaced in the depths of his eyes.

    Once she filled the small cup with some spirit wine, Jun Xiaomo gingerly held the cup up to her lips and licked the spirit wine. Instantly, her eyes brightened and curled into a squinch.

    As expected, it¡¯s the same wine as earlier!

    No, I think this might even be purer and less filtered than the one earlier! Jun Xiaomo took another small sip in astonishment. Within moments, goosebumps crept up all over her body in sheer delight.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo recoiled slightly when it once again dawned on her that the bottle of wine had essentially been bestowed upon her by the man seated opposite her. Thus, her earlier displeasure with Jun Ziwen dissipated substantially.

    Lifting her head, she openly sized up Ye Xiuwen once more, before lifting the cup of wine in her hands and awkwardly addressing Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Hey, that...thanks for this...¡±

    This was also the first time Ye Xiuwen revealed a radiant and warm smile to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    ¡°No need for thanks.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded dispassionately, yet it was obvious that the coldness and distance in the depths of his eyes had diminished substantially.

    Jun Xiaomo widened her eyes in bewilderment. Her heart was once again filled with a strange sense of familiarity for that man.

    Unfortunately, before she could make out where this sense of familiarity came from, the innkeeper¡¯s voice rang out from the side, ¡°That...dear guests, could I check if you still need the things on the other table? If not, shall I clear them for you?¡±

    It was starting to gette, and there were still dishes of leftovers sitting on the table that Jun Xiaomo had earlier been seated at. The innkeeper was evidently thinking of clearing up the dishes on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s table so that they could start washing up earlier.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need them anymore. Thanks.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hands, signifying that they could clean up after her.

    With the innkeeper¡¯s interjection, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier sense of familiarity had once again faded away. She looked at Jun Ziwen once again, and she noticed that under his usual cool and stoic expressions, his eyes were unusually heavy and sullen. In fact, they were deep and abstruse, as though they were a bottomless abyss.

    Does he have that many things weighing on his heart...? Jun Xiaomo tapped her finger on the table.

    This man had earlier given her a precious bottle of wine that was difficult toe by, even by the standards of cultivators. Its aged, raw aroma had washed away the frustrations and uneasiness on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    A good deed begets another after all. Jun Xiaomo resolved to reciprocate Jun Ziwen¡¯s act of kindness with another act of kindness of her own.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and blinked eagerly at him as she made an enigmatic suggestion, ¡°Brother Jun, do you want to go to a ce that is the most suitable for drinking away all your worries?¡±

    ¡°Suitable for drinking away my worries?¡± Ye Xiuwen murmured as he repeated Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. He looked back at Jun Xiaomo with a bewildered gaze in his eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a pretty good ce, and you can treat this as my thanks for the bottle of wine you¡¯ve given to me. How about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo curled her lips into a smile.

    He looked at the peculiarly familiar smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips as he deliberated for a moment, before finally agreeing, ¡°Alright.¡±

    ------------------------------------------------------

    The ce that Jun Xiaomo brought Ye Xiuwen to was on top of a little hill a short distance away from the town.

    There was a little pavilion atop the hill. Nobody knows who had constructed this pavilion, or when. That said, the peeling paintwork on the pavilion was evidence that this pavilion had seen a fair number of years.

    However, night had fallen, and these ws in the pavilion were barely noticeable in any event. As a whole, the pavilion¡¯s design could still be described to be rather exquisite. Ye Xiuwen waved his sleeves slightly, and the dust and dirt on the stone chairs and table were all swept away in an instant.

    I never knew that wind-based spells could be used like that. Jun Xiaomo remarked curiously in her heart.

    The air atop the hill was cool and refreshing, and it swept away the frustrations of the entire day. As they sat in the pavilion, they were able to get a bird¡¯s eye view of thends beneath it ¨C silhouettes of towering mountains in the distance; and grasnds and forests sitting stoically around a well-lit town at the foot of the hill. The picturesque view from the pavilion was like a beautiful ink painting of a night scene that stretched on endlessly. As Ye Xiuwen took in the marvelous sight around him, the tension in his heart loosened substantially.

    ¡°How about it? It¡¯s pretty good, isn¡¯t it?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she remarked proudly.

    ¡°Mm, it¡¯s not bad at all. Thank you.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded with sincerity, before addressing his mind to an incidental thought, ¡°You¡¯ve been here before?¡±

    ¡°You can say that.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. This smile was quite different from the look of vignce or the mischievous, prankster smile that she had earlier given to Ye Xiuwen. Right now, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± expressions could be described more to be filled with reminiscence and solitude.

    This was a ce that Jun Xiaomo had previously escaped to in her previous life. Back then, she and Ye Xiuwen had happened to chance upon this ce while they were escaping from their persecutors. Even though they were incredibly weary and worn out from running for their lives each and every day, the amazing view from the top of the hill would invariably provide them with a boost to their spirits and uplift their hearts.

    In fact, she had intended to bring her martial brother Ye to this ce to enjoy the scenery together as well. Unfortunately, ...

    Forget it, I¡¯d best not think about it. Jun Xiaomo shook her head and shrugged off the stifling feeling on her heart.

    She knew that she could not afford to delve too much into the indelible wounds of her heart. At this point in time, her mission to rescue her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak was of paramount importance.

    ¡°Do you still have any wine?¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly turned around and asked Jun Ziwen.

    Ye Xiuwen had just been slightly taken aback by the solitude in ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± eyes. Now that Jun Xiaomo had suddenly changed the topic, he was once again jolted back to his senses.

    ¡°Wine?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Such a beautiful scenery like this should naturally be paired with the appreciation of a cup of good wine~¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she exined; the earlier solitude and listless expression on her face hadpletely faded into thin air, ¡°Besides, I did mention earlier that this ce was the most suitable for drinking away your worries.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you have told me instead that you were looking for a better ce to coax me into sharing more of my spirit wine with you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. She had not expected the frigid looking wooden block before her to be capable of cracking jokes at times.

    But with that joke of his, the earlier rift that seemed to put a distance of ten thousand miles between them seemed to havepletely faded away into nothingness.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled as she shrugged her shoulders, ¡°If you want me to ask formally, that¡¯s fine as well. Would brother Jun be willing to share some of his delectable spirit wine with me?¡±

    ¡°Naturally.¡± Ye Xiuwen waved his sleeve, and arge tun of spirit wine appeared on the stone table in the pavilion.

    ¡°This is a precious, one-hundred years-old spirit wine from my master¡¯s personal collection. I wonder if this tun of spirit wine would suffice as the foundation of our friendship?¡± Ye Xiuwen quipped.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened, before affirmatively nodding her head, ¡°It¡¯s enough, it¡¯s enough!¡±

    As she finished speaking, she ran straight towards the tun of spirit wine!

    Thus, this very night, a particr person who professed herself to be a wine afficionado copsed on the ground,pletely inebriated.

    On the other side, having discovered something wrong with his sister¡¯s Origin Locket, Qin Lingyu kicked open a door within a brothel in the middle of the night and pulled the leader of the Dawn Sect disciples out of the bed while he was midway through his act of intimacy. Qin Lingyu bellowed, ¡°Where¡¯s my sister?!¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciple who had just been saturating himself with the ecstasy of carnal rtions was so astonished by Qin Lingyu¡¯s sudden appearance that he began to tremble in fear. It was as though his soul had just left his body.

    ¡°Sis--...sister?¡± His mind had only registered these two words, and he was unable to give Qin Lingyu a proper response.

    ¡°I¡¯m. Asking. You. Where. My. Sister. Is?!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s voice grew grim and sullen as he repeated his question to the Dawn Sect disciple he had just grabbed onto.

    The disciple¡¯s spirits finally returned to his body, and he was now thoroughly awake.

    My goodness?! Isn¡¯t martial brother Qin supposed to be at the Limitless Sect? Why would he be here right now?!

 Chapter 273: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Rage, A Drunk Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 273: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Rage, A Drunk Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Back when Qin Lingyu was ten years-old and Qin Shanshan was two years-old, their parents had crafted for each of them an Origin Locket. One belonged to Qin Lingyu, and they hung it around Qin Shanshan¡¯s neck; while the other belonged to Qin Shanshan, and it was stored within Qin Lingyu¡¯s Interspatial Ring.

    Then, in the very same year, Qin Lingyu entered the Dawn Sect in the same year and formally became He Zhang¡¯s disciple.

    Even though Qin Lingyu¡¯s parents were no more than two mere mortals, this did not change the fact that their Qin n ancestors had in the past left an indelible mark in the historical annals of the cultivation world. Yet for some strange reason, the Qin n experienced a tragic decline, and their lineage¡¯s aptitude for cultivation continually worsened. Finally, from the generation of Qin Lingyu¡¯s great, great grandfather, everyone born thereafter were mere mortals who werepletely ipatible with cultivation. Thus, Qin Lingyu and Qin Shanshan became the Qin n¡¯s hope for a revival and resurgence in the cultivation world. This was particrly the case for Qin Lingyu, whose talent for cultivation exceeded even the strongest one among all of his ancestors.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu¡¯s parents handed to the siblings the most valuable treasures handed down from generation to generation over the centuries. Amongst other things, these treasures included the Origin Lockets.

    The Origin Locket could not be considered a high-grade spirit tool to begin with. After all, any spirit tool craftsman of the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation would already be able to create a high-quality Origin Locket. Furthermore, the demand for the Origin Locket was extremely low, because it possessed neither offensive nor defensive abilities; its sole purpose was to keep others informed of whether its master was dead or alive. Once the Origin Locket¡¯s master passed on, the Origin Locket would also shatter and lose its sheen and luster.

    Truth be told, most spirit tool craftsmen could hardly be bothered with crafting tools such as the Origin Locket. After all, these items were hardly sought after by cultivators to begin with, and even if they sessfully crafted these items, they might not be easy to sell. Thus, apart from some spirit tool craftsmen who had sought to familiarize themselves with their new abilities after they had just stepped into the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, it was in fact incredibly difficult to find Origin Lockets sold on the open market.

    Qin Lingyu and Qin Shanshan¡¯s parents had hoped that the siblings could mutually support and lend each other a helping hand in the cultivation world. After all, the cultivation world was a perilous ce, and every bit of help that they could get mattered.

    Unfortunately, Qin Shanshan and Qin Lingyu were both unable to appreciate the extent and expression of their parents¡¯ love for them. Qin Shanshan despised the fact that her parents were mere mortals, and the things that they could provide for her and her brother were incredibly limited. She despised their gifts for having mere anciry effects; and she despised the fact that her parents were not like Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents who showered Jun Xiaomo with gifts that were both invaluable and useful at the same time. Thus, Qin Shanshan was filled with both admiration and jealousy whenever she saw Jun Xiaomo or her parents.

    Then,ter on, Qin Shanshan discovered how Jun Xiaomo had developed feelings for Qin Lingyu. After swindling item after item from Jun Xiaomo on various pretexts of putting in a good word for her and the like, she began to despise her parents¡¯ gifts even more.

    See?! What Jun Xiaomo could afford to part with on any other day is already far more valuable and powerful than the gifts that my parents are able to give me. What¡¯s the use of having such parents?! I hate how my luck with reincarnation was horrible! I hate how I wasn¡¯t born with a silver spoon in my mouth!

    Thus, Qin Shanshan grew up with a toxic mentality enshrouding her through her formative years until she reached full maturity. Then, it finally pushed her over the precipice, onto a path of no return.

    In contrast, Qin Lingyu was far cleverer than Qin Shanshan ever was. He, too, despised the things which his parents gave to them. However, he was hardly filled with jealousy or admiration for others like Qin Shanshan was. This was because he knew that with his talent and aptitude for cultivation, he would most certainly be able to go the distance and achieve great things in life as long as he was willing to put in amensurate amount of hard work.

    In fact, Qin Lingyu hardly held his sister Qin Shanshan in any special regard. After all, Qin Lingyu had already left his family and friends for the Dawn Sect back when he was ten years of age. When Qin Shanshan finally entered the Dawn Sect, he was already eighteen years of age ¨C in other words, he was already at the age where he could be married to others. On the other hand, Qin Shanshan had always ridden on the coattails of his brother¡¯s identity as the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, imposing her way onto others and having no form of restraint whatsoever. In turn, she had only served to cause Qin Lingyu much trouble as a result.

    If not for the fact that they were rted by blood, Qin Lingyu would never recognize Qin Shanshan as a rtive to begin with.

    It had to be said that by this point in time, Qin Lingyu had already shoved Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket into a deep corner of his Interspatial Ring and forgotten about it a long time ago. To Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind, whether Qin Shanshan was dead or alive was hardly of any concern to him.

    However, everything changed as soon as he learnt of a particr matter. That was also when Qin Lingyu began to concern himself with Qin Shanshan¡¯s life and safety once more.

    As it turns out, one of the Qin n ancestors had been an incredibly clever and powerful spirit tool craftsman, and these Origin Lockets were one of his most prized creations.

    On the surface, these two artefacts looked just like any other ordinary Origin Lockets. However, these Origin Lockets possessed a secret ¨C they were two parts of a single spirit tool that had been cleaved in half, one half representing the yin, while one half representing the yang. As soon as these Origin Lockets were joined together once more, they would be the key to unlocking an entire Arcane Realm.

    ess to an Arcane Realm was indubitably synonymous with immeasurable riches and treasures. It was an existence that would cause innumerable people in the world to drop any missions or tasks that they were doing and make a mad scramble for it. With such prospects of possessing the riches of an entire Arcane Realm, how could Qin Lingyu¡¯s ambitious heart not be moved?

    To date, the two Origin Lockets had already recognized their owners, and it would not be as easy to join them together once more. In fact, the preconditions for reforming the key could even be described as exacting and onerous, to say the least. Thus, before Qin Lingyu could figure out the most appropriate way to reform the key, he decided that he would do his best to keep everything status quo.

    At the same time, this meant that he could not afford to let Qin Shanshan perish. If Qin Shanshan perished, Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket would also shatter and lose its luster. At that time, Qin Lingyu¡¯s ns would all have been reduced to nothing.

    Thus, when Qin Shanshan travelled out of the Dawn Sect on an expedition, Qin Lingyu had time and time again instructed the Dawn Sect disciples travelling together with Qin Shanshan to take good care of his sister. If anything happened to Qin Shanshan, their necks would be on the chopping block.

    The Dawn Sect disciples had thought that Qin Lingyu had made these threats because of their inseparable ties as brother and sister. Who could ever have imagined that Qin Lingyu possessed such treacherous ulterior motives under the pretext of a caring older brother?

    Having made some slightly over the top threats against the group of martial brothers, Qin Lingyu had expected Qin Shanshan to bepletely fine over the course of the travels. Besides, he had already provided Qin Shanshan with so many life-saving treasures.

    Yet, unexpectedly, when he coincidentally retrieved and took a look at Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket, he discovered that Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket had lost quite a bit of its luster, and there were even faint traces of cracks on it!

    What in the world does this mean?! The bbergasted Qin Lingyu dared not dally any longer. After ounting for his leave of absence to his master from the Limitless Sect, he rushed day and night to where Qin Shanshan¡¯s location was, and he arrived in the little town near within just two days¡¯ time.

    He had been unable to contact Qin Shanshan using his Transmittance Talisman, and he had only managed to locate their whereabouts by contacting another one of the disciples who had travelled out on the expedition together with Qin Shanshan.

    Then, as soon as he arrived and learnt that the entire group of martial brothers had gone out to make merry, Qin Lingyu waspletely overwhelmed and infuriated ¨C Could they have left Qin Shanshan alone in the inn just like that?! If anything happened to Qin Shanshan, where would I find another recement Origin Locket to match my own?!

    Thus, Qin Lingyu barged into the brothel and yanked the Dawn Sect disciple straight out of bed while the disciple was in the midst of his euphoria, and Qin Lingyu bellowed, ¡°Where¡¯s Qin Shanshan?!¡±

    ¡°Qin...Qin Shanshan, she...she¡¯s at the inn...she¡¯s inside the inn...¡± The Dawn Sect disciple was so frightened by Qin Lingyu¡¯s sudden appearance that he nearly passed out from shock and fear. Qin Lingyu¡¯s present imposing appearance was incredibly fearsome.

    ¡°Did you all just decide to leave her alone at the inn, huh?!!¡± Qin Lingyu threw the Dawn Sect disciple out of the room. His throw had been backed by the strength of his spiritual energy, and the Dawn Sect disciple instantly felt his organs tremble and shift about slightly in the moment his back struck the pir outside his room.

    In fact, he had sustained a fractured bone as a result of Qin Lingyu¡¯s manhandling. A peculiar, grotesque-looking lump protruded from the top of his shoulder, right above where his arm was. Yet the disciple dared not reveal his displeasure or put up any form of resistance. He knew that with Qin Lingyu¡¯s present abilities, Qin Lingyu could very easily squash him like nothing more than a tiny and insignificant ant.

    ¡°Summon all of the disciples around and return to the inn with me!¡± Qin Lingyu coldly ordered, before turning around to leave.

    The Dawn Sect disciple dared not dally any longer. After stuffing a recovery pill into his mouth, he painstakingly mbered to his feet, put on his clothes, and tossed a few low-grade spirit stones to thedy on his bed. She was still reeling in shock from what had just happened. Then, he retrieved the Transmittance Talisman from his Interspatial Ring and transmitted an urgent message to all of the martial brothers around, before running out of the room in a tragic, disheveled state.

    As soon as the other Dawn Sect disciples received his message, they also ran out in a simr disheveled state as they made their way towards the entrance of the inn where Qin Lingyu was waiting for them.

    Within a few moments, all of the Dawn Sect disciples who had travelled out of the Sect on the expedition had gathered there. All but one ¨C Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s suppression of the oppressive aura around his body was at an all-time low. As soon as he swept his nce at the group of martial disciples staring at him apprehensively, the pressure emanating from his body made all of the disciples tremble in fear.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Qin Shanshan?¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze finallynded on the leader of the present expedition, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say she was at the inn? Where¡¯s she?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s tone of voice was incredibly calm. Yet everyone around right now could feel that this was the calm before the storm.

    The leader of the Dawn Sect disciples shuddered, before stammering in response, ¡°I...I¡¯ve already transmitted a message to her. Per--...perhaps she¡¯s still resting in her room upstairs...¡±

    ¡°Hah. Resting?¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly, ¡°Ah Che, go knock on Qin Shanshan¡¯s door and see if she¡¯s resting upstairs.¡±

    The disciple singled out by Qin Lingyu immediately nodded his head, before rushing upstairs as quickly as he could, as though there was a wild beast chasing after him.

    Momentster, he ran back downstairs and faced Qin Lingyu once more as he responded with a tremor in his voice, ¡°Qin...martial brother Qin...it seems like martial sister Qin is...she¡¯s disappeared...¡±

    Bang! The table below Qin Lingyu¡¯s palm instantly became nothing more than a pile of sawdust. All of the disciples who were looking at this shuddered once more.

    ¡°Great. This is just great.¡± Qin Lingyu stood up and began walking towards the entire group of Dawn Sect disciples, ¡°So this is how you¡¯d thought to look after and protect my sister, huh? All of you go out looking for a good time, leaving herpletely alone at the inn, not even knowing when she disappeared from the inn. Is this what you call protecting her, huh?!!!¡±

    Faced with Qin Lingyu¡¯s burgeoning fury that seemed to loom over their heads like a sword of Damocles, all the disciples shrank back and began to retreat, remainingpletely taciturn out of fear.

    Truth be told, they had their reasons for doing so as well. Back when Qin Shanshan ran off alone as they were travelling through the wilderness, she still managed to return to them with her life and limb intact. Apart from the period of madness and self-abuse, Qin Shanshan did not appear to have any issues looking after herself or returning to the group thereafter.

    Yet for some strange reason, it was only after they had returned to this seemingly safe ce that she disappeared without any trace.

    Regardless of what it was, they sincerely hoped that Qin Shanshan had only sneaked out to have some fun of her own in the middle of the night, and that she would be back soon. Otherwise, they might very well have to bear the brunt of the manifestation of Qin Lingyu¡¯s burgeoning rage.

    That said, would anyone even think about sneaking out to y in the middle of the night? The more the disciples thought about it, the less they believed in such a possibility.

    Thus, the Dawn Sect disciples began to feel a sense of dread and despair washing over their bodies.

    Just as the disciples were praying for the safety of their martial sister Qin Shanshan, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was simply going wild in her drunken stupor at the pavilion seated atop the hill just outside the town.

    The tun of aged spirit wine that Ye Xiuwen brought out was far too potent. Jun Xiaomo only managed to drink a grand total of five cups of it before she sumbed to the effects of the alcohol. Naturally, this was partially due to the fact that Jun Xiaomo had hardly touched a single drop of spirit wine in her present life. After all, those who were neither born with the ability to hold their liquor nor frequently drank alcohol would never be able to withstand the potency of what Ye Xiuwen had provided. On the other hand, those who possessed both these qualities, like Ye Xiuwen, would have no issues keeping their rity of mind even if they guzzled one-fifth of the entire tun of spirit wine.

    Thus, the result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ineptitude meant that Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely sober, having no choice but to put up with the little madwoman¡¯s antics as she tormented him. At times, she would tug at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, cajoling him join in the chorus as she sang out-of-tune nursery rhymes at the top of her voice; at times, she would attempt to grab at the stars in the sky, iming that she was catching fireflies; and at times, she would slip under the stone table in the middle of the pavilion, asking Ye Xiuwen to y hide-and-seek with her. If he ¡°spotted¡± her too quickly, she would feel displeased; yet if he ¡°spotted¡± her too slowly, she would say that Ye Xiuwen was an idiot and slow like a sloth...

    As time wore on, Ye Xiuwen grew increasingly worn out and weary from all of her tormenting ways. At one point in time, he was even tempted to leave her here at the pavilion to sleep off her intoxication. That said, when he looked at the pair of bright eyes that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± possessed once more, for some strange reason, he held himself back.

    Forget it, it¡¯s just for one night only. Let¡¯s just treat it as though I¡¯m ying with an old child for now. Ye Xiuwen consoled himself in exasperation, before taking his seat on the stone chair once more and pouring out another cup of spirit wine for himself. Thus, he continued to drink his spirit wine as he did his best to look after the ¡°old infant¡± that was Jun Xiaomo.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo wore herself out from her ying, and she copsed onto the stone table. With eyes that were now zed over, she looked at the wine cup in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands in bewilderment as she murmured, ¡°Big brother, is the drink in your hands tasty?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand that was holding onto his wine cup paused momentarily, and he looked with some measure of exasperation at the intoxicated mess that Jun Xiaomo had been reduced to as he responded, ¡°It¡¯s not tasty.¡±

    ¡°Since it¡¯s not tasty, why are you drinking it?¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured with a tilted head, acting as though she were a child.

    ¡°It¡¯s because big brother here isn¡¯t happy. So, big brother is drinking it so that he will feel happier.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡± Jun Xiaomo tilted her head once more. Her eyes curled up joyfully, and her a smile crept up the corner of her lips, before she sprang to her feet once more, ¡°Then I want to drink it as well!¡±

    ¡°What?! No way!¡± Ye Xiuwen fervently opposed that idea. Unfortunately, there was no way he could reason with an intoxicated person. As soon as Jun Xiaomo sprang to her feet, she immediately pounced towards Ye Xiuwen and attempted to snatch away the wine cup in his hands, while Ye Xiuwen did his best to retract his hand that was holding the wine cup.

    Jun Xiaomo pounced directly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, and she began to bite and scratch and w at him with the sole aim of obtaining the little porcin cup in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen had the urge to throw the intoxicateddy onto the floor, but he only held back because he was afraid that he would hurt her.

    Thus, with unequal ying fields, Jun Xiaomo finally managed to snatch the cup of spirit wine from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand after some time. At this moment, there was only about half a cup of spirit wine left; the rest had been spilt onto their clothes amidst the tussle.

    Gulp. In her muddle-headedness, Jun Xiaomo swallowed the remaining wine in the cup in one gulp, and she began to cough and sputter as a result of the intense heat of the alcohol in the wine.

    ¡°Cough cough cough...it¡¯s...it tastes horrible...¡± Tears began to run from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she threw the porcin cup away. Then, she continued to cough as she cried and choked and sputtered ¨C all whilst gasping for breath.

    Ye Xiuwen had never expected such an oue, and he didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at the sight. After deliberating for a while, he walked over to Jun Xiaomo and began to pat her gently on the back, attempting to alleviate some of the difort from choking and sputtering.

    Instantly, Jun Xiaomo turned around, grabbed onto his clothes, and began to wipe her tears on his body.

    ¡°You!¡± Ye Xiuwen never liked the prospects of people getting too close to him, and he could even be described to be a little bit of a germophobe. Yet Jun Xiaomo had ignored all of these aspects of his preferences in her intoxication and wiped her tears on his body.

    Then, Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and looked into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes with tears in her eyes as sheined, ¡°That thing tastes absolutely horrible...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen rubbed his temples as he coaxed her, ¡°Alright, alright. It tastes horrible, so let¡¯s not drink it anymore, alright?¡±

    ¡°Alright...¡± As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she buried her face into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom, causing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s entire body to stiffen up and reflexively have the urge to push Jun Xiaomo aside! After all, Jun Xiaomo was a mere stranger to him at this point in time!

    Unfortunately, the intoxicated Jun Xiaomo possessed an unworldly strength, and Ye Xiuwen found that there was simply no way of pushing her away from her bear hug without hurting her. Furthermore...

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that the person in his bosom seemed to be crying ¨C and it was even the sorrowful type where she was sobbing and whimpering silently.

    For some strange reason, it suddenly urred to Ye Xiuwen that this person was quite simr to another person whom he knew ¨C both appeared to be carrying several burdens all on their own; and both appeared to have these burdens weighing heavily on their hearts, stifling them.

    As he was hesitating, Ye Xiuwen heard what sounded like a soft, choking sounding from his chest. If not for the fact that the surroundings were absolutely silent, he might not have heard it at all.

    ¡°...I miss you...will you never be returning again? ...¡±

    In that one single moment, a simr kind of sorrow washed over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart as well.

 Chapter 274: Ye Xiuwen Shows Up, Qin Lingyuâ€™s Restraining Fear

    <h4>Chapter 274: Ye Xiuwen Shows Up, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Restraining Fear</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The first light of dawn burst through the rolling clouds in the sky and shone straight at the little pavilion on the hill, painting the aged pavilion with a beautiful golden sheen.

    The fog and cool air from the night lingering on within the pavilion began to dissipate with the rising of the sun. At the same time, the thick fragrance of wine in the pavilion also gradually thinned out as well.

    The glow of the new morn had cued in the cacophonous chorus of chirruping birds and buzzing insects which enveloped the pavilion with their tunes filled with bright vigor. As the stirring hum continued to echo on, a person leaning on the stone table finally moved, and he gradually began to open his eyes.

    ¡°Ugh...¡± Ye Xiuwen groaned. The difort from his hangover stood in his way between slumber and rity of mind.

    Last night, Jun Xiaomo had in her drunken stupor made a racket and tormented Ye Xiuwen for close to an hour, then clutched tightly to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes and wept for an equally long time before she finally managed to cry herself to sleep.

    The only thing that Ye Xiuwen heard at that time was ¡°I miss you, will you never be returning again?¡± Apart from that, all other murmurs from Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely unintelligible.

    Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen had not thought to analyze what Jun Xiaomo had meant by those words. Rather, when those words echoed out from within his bosom, it acted like an awl that stabbed straight through his heart, causing his heart to wrench with agonizing pain.

    Those words were stolen right out of his mouth ¨C there was not a single moment that he had not thought to ask his little martial sister the same question, ¡°Will you never be returning again?¡±.

    However, if his little martial sister were indeed never returning again, to whom would he be able to direct that question of his? Who would answer this question of his?

    As he fixated his mind on these thoughts that surfaced on his heart, Ye Xiuwen gradually began to overlook the existence that was in his bosom, clutching tightly onto his sleeves as she fell asleep like a heavy log.

    He, on the other hand, gazed into the distant night sky as he began to pour out and drink cup after cup of spirit wine for himself, until inebriation got the better of him and washed over the roiling emotions in his heart, and he copsed onto the stone table and fell asleep as well.

    Just like that, he slept for the entire night and only awakened when the sun shone brightly in the sky.

    Ye Xiuwen gently rubbed his throbbing forehead as he slowly regained his senses. Then, as soon as he attempted to stand up, his knees buckled, and he fell back down onto his seat.

    It was only at this moment that he finally realized the existence of a heavy object on his legs. That object resting on his legs had weighed heavily on his legs for the entire night and caused his legs to bepletely numb by now.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his head, and the first thing he saw was ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± sound asleep on hisp ¨C as it turned out, Jun Xiaomo had treated hisps as her pillow for the entire night, and she was still deep in her slumber right now.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, and he instinctively stretched out his arm, motioning to push thedy away from hisp.

    He hated the owner of this disgusting face!

    However, just as his hands touched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, he suddenly recalled the fact that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was no longer Qin Shanshan. Furthermore, he also recalled how he had over the course of thest night buried his differences with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± over several cups of his spirit wine.

    Thus, he retracted his hand and expelled some of the turbid air from his lungs as he rubbed his temples once more. Then, after thinking about it for a while, he retrieved a medicinal pill from his Interspatial Ring and consumed it.

    This was not a valuable, high-grade medicinal pill. Rather, it was used solely for the purposes of cleansing the body of any residual effects of intoxication, and its effects were ordinary at best. That said, this was exactly what Ye Xiuwen needed right now. Within moments, the lingering alcohol within his body werepletely purged and expelled into the surroundings.

    Unfortunately, he only carried one single medicinal pill with such effects along with him. In fact, this medicinal pill was something that his master had forced him to ept some time ago, on the pretext that it mighte in handy one day. It had to be mentioned that Ye Xiuwen had never been a person who drank excessively to begin with, and the extent of his intoxicationst night was truly a rare urrence.

    If he possessed another one of these alcohol purging pills, he would have immediately fed it to thedy still resting on his legs right now. That way, she would not appear to be sopletely wasted and dazed.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face gently, calling out to her, hoping that she would wake up. In the end, all Jun Xiaomo did was to shift her sleeping posture slightly and smack her lips ¨C there was not a single sign that she would be waking up anytime soon.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen rubbed his forehead again, deliberating over just how he was going to bring ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± back to the inn. Remaining at this pavilion was most certainly not a viable solution. After all, if the Dawn Sect disciples discovered that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was missing when they woke up, they might very well make a mountain out of a molehill.

    Ye Xiuwen waited for approximately one more hour, and the sky gradually brightened even more. During this period of time, Ye Xiuwen attempted various means of waking Jun Xiaomo up, yet to no avail at all. Thus, he finally gave up.

    Resigned to his fate, he bent down, hefted Jun Xiaomo onto his back, and began to make his way down the little hill towards the inn where they had been staying at.

    When Ye Xiuwen picked up Jun Xiaomo, she instinctually wrapped her arms rightly around his neck. At that moment, her ¡°obsequious¡± action almost caused Ye Xiuwen to reflexively toss her back onto the floor.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped ¨C Ye Xiuwen had never seen someone able to wrap her arms around another person¡¯s neck whilst deep in her slumber. Besides, he had never liked people getting too close to him to begin with, and it so happened that this youngdy whom he barely knew seemed hell bent on encroaching into his personal space at every possible turn.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and looked behind him, only to discover that thedy was still deep in sleep, and her breath was still filled with the stench of alcohol. There was not a single trace that she had aroused from her state of intoxication yet.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in exasperation ¨C he was resigned to his fate of bringing thispletely knocked outdy back to her inn.

    The sun shone brightly on their bodies, casting a long, long shadow behind them as he began to make the trek down the hill...

    When Ye Xiuwen finally arrived at the inn, the innkeeper and his attendants were all huddled together and trembling in a corner of the dining hall as they gingerly observing the actions of an imposing fiend who sat in the middle of the dining hall.

    The imposing fiend had been seated here since earlyst night, and he appeared to be the person in charge over all of the other cultivators around him. In front of this imposing fiend, the group of cultivators appeared extremely cautious and reticent in their actions, and they had been incredibly silent, ostensibly from fear.

    These cultivators appeared to be looking for something important to them. However, despite searching high and low for the entire night, their efforts seemed to have been in vain, and their spirits were now at an all-time low.

    At the same time, the innkeeper and the attendants did not dare to leave the imposing, fiendish-looking man here in the middle of the dining hall while they retired for the night. Thus, after hanging around for the entire night, each of them presented themselves withrge, heavy eyebags around their eyes.

    They sincerely hoped in their hearts that this man would be able to locate what he was looking for in the shortest possible time, and leave their inn far, far behind him. They did not wish to see this man ever again.

    The ¡°fiend¡± in the eyes of the innkeeper was naturally Qin Lingyu, who had spent the better part of thest night searching high and low for his sister, Qin Shanshan. Every time he thought about the Origin Locket in his Interspatial Ring which belonged to Qin Shanshan, creases would form between his eyes as he knitted his brows ever more tightly together.

    These useless buffoons had better pray hard that Qin Shanshan is alright. Otherwise...

    Just as Qin Lingyu¡¯s patience was wearing thin, and a fiery intent seemed to seep out through the slit in his eyes, a Dawn Sect disciple who had gone out searching for Qin Shanshan finally stumbled back into the inn as he dered at the top of his voice, ¡°They¡¯re back! They¡¯re back!¡±

    Naturally, ¡°they¡± referred to the missing ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± and Jun Ziwen.

    As soon as everyone heard this piece of good news, they immediately heaved a sigh of relief. Several disciples lifted their heads discreetly and examined Qin Lingyu¡¯s expression ¨C as expected, as soon as he learnt of Qin Shanshan¡¯s return, the frigid intent emanating from Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions had diminished substantially.

    Just as much as they rejoiced over the fact that Qin Shanshan had returned safe and sound, there were simrly a few Dawn Sect disciples who began to mutter begrudgingly in their hearts ¨C What¡¯s a girl like her doing gallivanting in the night with a man whom she barely knew? Doesn¡¯t she have any sense of danger? How can she be so reckless?!

    Thus, with a begrudging attitude in their heart, everyone looked towards the entrance of the inn. Qin Lingyu also squinted his eyes as he gazed at the front door of the inn.

    The Dawn Sect disciples had earlier suggested that Qin Shanshan might have left the inn in the middle of the night with a man whom she barely knew. Furthermore, it was evident to these Dawn Sect disciples that Qin Shanshan was fond of that man.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu wanted to see for himself just what kind of man he was to be able to steal the heart of his younger sister, whom he knew had always possessed high expectations of any potential suitors.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen drew closer to the inn, he immediately sensed a very different atmosphere within from whenst arrived at this ce. Generally speaking, there would usually be peopleing and going from the inn by this time of the day. However, he could tell that there was not a single person entering or leaving the inn right now.

    Faced with a peculiar silence and still atmosphere like this, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but increase his vignce as he approached the inn. Then, as he drew closer to the main entrance of the inn, he began to release his divine sense.

    As a result, he noticed Qin Lingyu¡¯s presence before anyone else noticed him.

    Qin Lingyu? It¡¯s actually Qin Lingyu?! The First-Seat Disciple of the man who had hurt master and the Heavenly Peak?!

    An intense hatred immediately burgeoned and raged in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, and the aura around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body flourished for an instant.

    As the oppressive aura gushed out from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, Qin Lingyu was immediately taken aback, and his eyes immediately darkened and grew frigid and icy ¨C

    This man¡¯s abilities are no less than my own! What¡¯s his motive for drawing close to Qin Shanshan?!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s wariness was not unexpected. He had always been a man who could resort to any means possible just to achieve his own lofty goals and ambitions. By extension, he had always seen others through the lens of his own world view, and he couldn¡¯t help but wonder whether this man whom Qin Shanshan was fond of had any ulterior motives.

    Besides, he knew his sister¡¯s character full well ¨C she was not an easily likeable person. Thus, he sincerely believed that any person who allegedly fell in love with his sister could very possibly possess ulterior motives for drawing close to Qin Shanshan.

    However, Qin Lingyu failed to bring his mind to one tiny detail ¨C the Dawn Sect disciples had earlier mentioned that Qin Shanshan was fond of Jun Ziwen; but they had never mentioned that Jun Ziwen was simrly fond of Qin Shanshan.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu¡¯s concern was practically unfounded and needless. That said, Qin Lingyu could be considered to have stumbled upon the truth in the dark. This was because Ye Xiuwen did possess ulterior motives for following and travelling with the entourage of Dawn Sect disciples. It was just that he had never revealed any of his ulterior intentions before.

    Ye Xiuwen paused at the entrance of the inn for a little while before properly entering the inn. As soon as he entered the main gate of the inn, he would already have collected his roiling emotions and rposed himself.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that he could not let Qin Lingyu notice anything amiss at this point in time. This was not because he was afraid of Qin Lingyu. After all, given his strength right now, defeating Qin Lingyu was an extremely easy task for him. However, his main goal right now was to rescue the martial brother who had been trapped in the forbidden grounds within Dawn Sect, and he could not afford to be indiscreet with his actions and alert the leaders of the Dawn Sect.

    Having collected and suppressed his imposing, oppressive aura, Ye Xiuwen presented himself as an existence that was harmless and hardly a threat to anyone. Yet even then, the oppressive aura that leaked out from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body earlier had already cast a of restraining fear over Qin Lingyu.

    Then, as soon as Ye Xiuwen entered the inn and finally made his appearance, the restraining fear weighing on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart burgeoned and escted to unprecedented heights!

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s good looks and charming appearances were foreign to him, his cool, dignified disposition was simply all too familiar to Qin Lingyu. The image of a person immediately surfaced in Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind.

    The image that appeared his mind was of a person who should have died twelve years ago in the Mystic Woods; it was Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Ye Xiuwen!

 Chapter 275: Clash Between Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu

    <h4>Chapter 275: sh Between Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen caught every moment of the frigid and vignt gaze in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. In fact, Ye Xiuwen received Qin Lingyu¡¯s lingering gaze with a cool stoicism, causing Qin Lingyu¡¯s hatred to only burgeon and roil.

    Just like how He Zhang had always despised Jun Linxuan¡¯s existence, Qin Lingyu, as He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, had always hated and despised Ye Xiuwen¡¯s existence as well.

    Qin Lingyu was the Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, and he was also the person most likely to be He Zhang¡¯s sessor as the next Sect Leader of the Dawn Sect. That said, he saw Ye Xiuwen as a threat because he knew that Ye Xiuwen was rather well-regarded by the rest of the members of the Dawn Sect. After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities exceeded even that of Qin Lingyu¡¯s.

    Thus, despite the fact that Ye Xiuwen hardly harboured any thoughts of usurping Qin Lingyu¡¯s position as the sessor, Qin Lingyu nevertheless considered Ye Xiuwen as his strongest rival and the greatest threat to him.

    Furthermore, after the incident involving Jun Xiaomo during their travels, Qin Lingyu¡¯s hatred for Ye Xiuwen had only continued to burgeon and fester.

    Back then, Qin Lingyu had already been thinking of various ways and means of rescinding the marriage arrangement with Jun Xiaomo. That said, he loathed the thought that he might have been made into a cuckold by Jun Xiaomo before the rescission of their marriage arrangement. To make matters even worse, the target of her affection was his greatest rival for session to boot!

    Truth be told, news of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ¡°death¡± had been like a passing shower on a hot day ¨C it was much-needed good news.

    He did not believe that a person who had fallen into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge would ever be able to make it out alive again. However, the person standing right before him possessed a disposition that was uncannily simr to Ye Xiuwen. Thus, Qin Lingyu immediately thought the worst of him, and Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t wait to chase this person out from within the entourage of Dawn Sect disciples.

    At the same time, the Dawn Sect disciples also noticed the tense atmosphere between Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen, but they did not think too much of it. After all, they thought that the tense atmosphere and Qin Lingyu¡¯s evident hatred for Jun Ziwen had all arisen as a result of Qin Lingyu¡¯s realization that his little sister had been ¡°abducted¡± by an unknown man.

    Then, having recalled the fact that Jun Ziwen had once saved their lives, the leader of the Dawn Sect disciples stepped out to the foreground and made his way between Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen, before bowing slightly to Qin Lingyu as he smiled, ¡°That...martial brother Qin, this must be your first time meeting brother Jun, right? We were lucky enough to have encountered brother Jun; he was the one who had saved us from our earlier predicament. Shall I make introductions for everyone to get to know each other?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn, while Qin Lingyu nced coldly at the Dawn Sect disciple who had taken the initiative to make introductions.

    As he resisted the overbearing pressure of Qin Lingyu¡¯s deadly gaze, the Dawn Sect disciple wiped off the sweat on his forehead, eked out another smile, before addressing Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Jun, this is our Sect Leader¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, martial brother Qin Lingyu. He also happens to be martial sister Shanshan¡¯s biological brother, and he is presently one of the core disciples within the Limitless Sect. He has made the trip back this time just so that he could check on martial sister Shanshan.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head cidly, acknowledging the introductions made by the Dawn Sect disciple.

    The Dawn Sect disciple wiped off the profuse sweat on his forehead once more, before turning to address Qin Lingyu, ¡°That...martial brother Qin, brother Jun is a man whom we had the fortune of encountering on our journey. When we were on our way back to the Sect, we entered a rather strange part of the wilderness where we ended up being trapped for several days on end. No matter how and where we walked, we always ended up back where we started. Fortunately, with brother Jun¡¯s help, we were able to break out of that ghastly ce. Otherwise, perhaps all of us, including martial sister Shanshan, might have be nothing more than a pile of bones by now.¡±

    The reason why the Dawn Sect disciple particrly emphasized the fact that Jun Ziwen had also rescued Qin Shanshan was because he had hoped that that would earn Jun Ziwen some favor in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. He did not want Qin Lingyu to sh directly with Jun Ziwen right now.

    A burgeoning hostility might be a small matter between two people, but what the disciple was more concerned about was if Jun Ziwen would draw the rest of the Dawn Sect disciple into the fray. Even though the Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t tell exactly what level Jun Ziwen¡¯s cultivation was in, they knew that it could not be very low. After all, this man hadpletely incapacitated Qin Shanshan¡¯s Hellfire Lion in two or three swift strikes. This was something that even their martial brother Qin might not be able to do.

    Unfortunately, the disciple¡¯s efforts fell on deaf ears, and they werepletely in vain. When Ye Xiuwen collected and suppressed his sharp, incisive aura, he appeared no more than a gentle, dignified and harmless schr-like cultivator. Even though his expressions were hardly filled with any warmth, it still sufficed to give others a misimpression of the true extent and depth of his abilities.

    The truth of the matter was that Qin Lingyu did underestimate his opponent, and this turned out to be one of his greatest stumbling blocks in the end.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu hardly bothered to even keep his hostility against Ye Xiuwen under wraps. In fact, he intentionally allowed it to flourish and burst out from his body, making it stark and evident as he interrogated Ye Xiuwen coldly, ¡°Since you¡¯re mere acquaintances with my sister and the other Dawn Sect disciples, why do you insist on travelling together with them? What purpose do you have for drawing close to them?¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples immediately exchanged tense nces. They had never expected Qin Lingyu to interrogate Jun Ziwen like this right from the outset.

    However, Ye Xiuwen merely chuckled lightly as he retorted, ¡°I believe it was Miss Qin who had invited me to tag along. What ulterior motive are you suggesting I could have?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s cold and incisive gaze immediately crawled all over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body as he quipped back, ¡°Invited? Do you like my sister?¡±

    Not only was this a query, it was also a probe into his real intentions. Having dangled an easy exnation out of the situation, Qin Lingyu believed that any person attempting to conceal his ulterior motive would readily admit to this.

    Unfortunately for Qin Lingyu, Ye Xiuwen was far more truthful than Qin Lingyu had expected him to be.

    Ye Xiuwen simply shook his head as he inly responded, ¡°We¡¯ve only known each other for slightly over a month. How could I know whether I like your sister or not?¡±

    To begin with, Ye Xiuwen was not a person who enjoyed treating matters of feelings as bargaining chips to be exchanged for his own personal gains. This was one of the areas where he differedrgely from Qin Lingyu.

    Even if he did not like Qin Shanshan, he would not intentionally pretend to like her just so that he could gain ess to the Dawn Sect. If Qin Shanshan grows frustrated by the fact that her feelings were not being reciprocated and thus denies him ess to the Dawn Sect, he would simply ept the rescission of the invitation and find another route into the Dawn Sect.

    Naturally, that would make things a little bit more troublesome for him, but it was far better thanpromising on his personal principles. This was one of Jun Linxuan¡¯s greatest requirements in his disciples.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response was clearly outside of Qin Lingyu¡¯s expectations, and Qin Lingyu was slightly taken aback. Yet momentster, his tone of voice grew even more frigid and aggressive as he barked, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then there¡¯s no reason for you to ept my sister¡¯s invitation, right? You had agreed to my sister¡¯s invitation for no good reason whatsoever ¨C if this isn¡¯t a sign of your ulterior motive, what else could it be?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was hardly fazed by Qin Lingyu¡¯s incessant questioning. He smiled cidly, before slowly but certainly exining his position with clear and concise artiction, ¡°I¡¯ve always been a rogue cultivator, and I don¡¯t belong to any particr Sect ¨C the four corners of thends are both my teachers and my home. Truth be told, I¡¯ve always been rather curious as to what a Sect¡¯s grounds would look like. That said, a rogue cultivator like me never had any means of gaining entry to a Sect without risking injury to life and limb. In this regard, you can say that I¡¯m curious about what the Dawn Sect looks like. At the same time, this curiosity most certainly does not justify me attempting to break through the defensive formation arrays of sects and offending the high powers within the Sect. That said, now that I¡¯m presented with a prime opportunity to take a looksee around the internal workings of a Sect, why wouldn¡¯t I take it? Am I not right, brother Qin?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response was logical and reasonable. Furthermore, there were precedents for such behaviour ¨C this was not the first time a Dawn Sect disciple had invited their friends from outside the Sect as guests to the Sect.

    That said, perhaps as a result of the confluence of factors including Jun Ziwen¡¯s disposition that was uncannily simr to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s, as well as Qin Lingyu¡¯s bad impression of Jun Ziwen, Qin Lingyu found himself unable to believe what Jun Ziwen had said regardless of how cogent his exnation had been.

    On the other hand, the Dawn Sect disciples standing around unanimously felt that Jun Ziwen¡¯s reasons were sufficiently logical and reasonable, and they began to feel that their martial brother Qin appeared to be nit-picking at this point in time.

    Actually, given Qin Shanshan¡¯s temperament, he should thank the gods that someone would even take a fancy to her. Why does Qin Lingyu have to be so overprotective of his little sister? Some of the Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but wonder to themselves. Naturally, they did not dare to reveal any form of quizzical expression before Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu was still thinking of nit-picking on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s exnation when, out of nowhere, Jun Xiaomo groaned. Instantly, all eyes shifted from the tense atmosphere between Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen to her body.

    It suddenly dawned on everyone around that Jun Ziwen had carried Qin Shanshan all the way back to the inn. In other words, a single man and a single woman had spent an entire night outside, and one was even brought back to the inn on another¡¯s back...

    The thoughts in everyone¡¯s hearts began to run wild.

    A bright gleam shed across the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes ¨C he had finally found the perfect excuse to extricate himself from his present predicament.

    ¡°Miss Qin¡¯s heart was a messst night, so I had apanied her for a walk outside the town, before sitting down and having some wine. She¡¯s still fast asleep at this point in time. I personally think that this ce isn¡¯t too conducive for Miss Qin to awaken from her drunken stupor. Rather than standing around and chatting, why not let me put Miss Qin down in her room upstairs first before resuming our discussions? What do you say?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions seemed to have ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± best interests at heart, and this meant that Qin Lingyu could not find a single reason not to agree to his requests.

    Furthermore, Qin Lingyu also wanted to learn from the horse¡¯s mouth just what had happened. He wanted to know the real reason why Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket would suddenly lose its luster and even reveal faint cracks on it.

    Thus, after deliberating for a while, Qin Lingyu agreed to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions. With the leader of the Dawn Sect disciples taking the lead, all of them made their way upstairs towards Qin Shanshan¡¯s room.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was limp and ck like a pile of mud when she was drunk. When Ye Xiuwen carried her, all he experienced was a deadweight hanging heavily from his back. Earlier, Ye Xiuwen hadpletely overlooked the weight on his back during his confrontation with Qin Lingyu. But now that he had finally set this deadweight back down on the bed, Ye Xiuwen suddenly felt a refreshing lightness on his back. It was as though he could breathe properly once more.

    However, just as he attempted to set Jun Xiaomo down on the bed, her arms tightened themselves, and her legs shifted slightly and mped down heavily around his waist. Just like that, she refused to let go of Ye Xiuwen, like how a ko refused to let go of its tree.

    The veins on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s forehead bulged and throbbed as he spoke sternly to the person behind him, ¡°Let go!¡±

    Unfortunately, this statement had fallen on deaf ears. Jun Xiaomo was so intoxicated and deep in her slumber that she did not register anything that Ye Xiuwen had said. Thus, she continued to cling tightly to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s lips twitched as well. Even though the Dawn Sect disciples had already apprised him of the fact that Qin Shanshan had taken a fancy to this man, seeing it for himself was quite something else.

    She¡¯s not letting go of this man even in her sleep?! Just how much does she fancy this man?

    Left without any other choice, Ye Xiuwen wrested Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms off his body, before twisting his own body slightly. Finally, he managed to extricate himself from her vice-like grasp. And, having lost her grip on Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo naturally slumped down and copsed onto the bed below her.

    Despite the rough actions she had just been put through, Jun Xiaomo was so intoxicated that she still did not wake up from her slumber.

    Ye Xiuwen was just about to remove Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoes, ce a nket over her body before taking his leave, when he suddenly recalled that he had just expressed to Qin Lingyu that he was not fond of Qin Shanshan. Thus, he dispelled any thoughts of these considerate actions.

    After all, her ¡°brother¡± was here with her, and there was no need for him to go out of his way and arouse his suspicions.

    ¡°Brother Qin, the matters that we were talking about earlier ¨C do you still want to continue the discussion right now, or do you wish to take a closer look at your sister before we continue our discussion?¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly looked at Qin Lingyu as he provided him with two options.

    Qin Lingyu was displeased with the fact that Ye Xiuwen had somehow cleverly retained the control of the conversation within his grasp.

    ¡°Let¡¯s continue our discussionster. I¡¯ve not seen Shanshan in a long time, and I want to see what kind of mess she¡¯d got herself into this time.¡± Qin Lingyu made his decision.

    He intended to check the condition of her body at the same time to better understand why the strange symptoms had shown up on her Origin Locket.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine with me. Then, I¡¯ll take my leave.¡± As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he turned around and motioned to leave without ncing even once at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    Just then, almost as though Jun Xiaomo sensed something strange, she immediately made a grab at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeve and muttered with a quivering voice, ¡°Don¡¯t go...I was wrong...please don¡¯t leave me...please don¡¯t leave me all alone...¡±

    Her words were filled with intense fear and dread, as though she were afraid that Ye Xiuwen would leave her for good.

 Chapter 276: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Suspicions

    <h4>Chapter 276: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Suspicions</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo felt as though she had fallen into a deep and long dream. In her dream, she had returned to her childhood years and turned back to a little toddler that was still stumbling around as she yed with her dolls. She was dressedpletely in pink as she yed with an older brother whose appearances she could not see clearly.

    This intoxicated dream was not a rational or logical one by any means. As she dreamt, she knew that she was extremely happy and chirpy ¨C it had been an incredibly long time since she had experienced such contentment and bliss.

    The brother ying with her was clearly extremely good-natured. She was evidently ying with things that only little children would be fascinated by, yet this older brother had yed along with her, apanying her as she sang nursery rhymes at the top of her voice, ying hide-and-seek together, and even catching fireflies with her. In this moment of bliss, Jun Xiaomo felt as though she was the luckiest little child on the.

    Then, she noticed that her brother was drinking something from his cup in sips. He was so concentrated on the drink in his hands that he seemed to almost have neglected her existence entirely.

    Is the drink very tasty? Why does brother seem so obsessed with drinking it?

    In her curiosity, she snatched her brother¡¯s cup and took a huge gulp from the cup. Within moments, she began to choke and sputter.

    A burning sensation immediately washed over her entire throat, as though she had just swallowed a ball of fire. She coughed and hacked with all her might in the hope that she might be able to expel the zing heat from her throat. For some strange reason, she began to feel a strong sourness in her heart, as though she had just been humiliated or wronged. In turn, this feeling causedrge drops of tears to begin to roll from her eyes.

    She immediately clutched at her brother¡¯s clothes, hugging onto her brother tightly and burying her entire being into his bosom. In her difort as she wept and whimpered, she began to wipe her tears on the clothes of her brother.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know what overcame her and made her do all these things. Yet for some strange reason, she feltpelled to rify an inkling of hers ¨C an inkling that no matter how willful she acted, her brother would always continue to pamper her and not grow angry at her.

    The clean and dignified fragrance of the person in her bosom did bring some rity back to her mind for an instant. However, in the dibobtion caused by her intoxication, she found that she waspletely unable to wrangle herself free from her entanglement of thoughts. The only thing she knew was that the clean, dignified fragrance wafting into her nose from time to time was incredibly familiar.

    It feels...it feels like someone I know...a person...a person who makes my heart cringe with pain every time I think of him.

    Ye...martial brother Ye...

    Jun Xiaomo opened her mouth, thinking to call out this name that was buried deep in her heart. However, even though the words were already at her lips, she found herselfpletely speechless, and the only thing that continued to flow out from within her were the tears that continued to gush like a broken dam. Silently, but surely, her tears continued to flow out from her reddened eyes as they dripped onto her brother¡¯s clothes. Amidst her dibobtion and intoxication, Jun Xiaomo could no longer distinguish between dream and reality. Thus, Jun Xiaomo thought that she was still dreaming at this point in time.

    In her dreams, her martial brother Ye had returned to her, and he was seated silently and still before her. The sense of familiarity filled her heart with an aching sensation, yet at the same time it enveloped her heart with a sense of security.

    ¡°...I miss you...will you never be returning again? ...¡± Jun Xiaomo choked and sputtered as she cried aloud. Yet Ye Xiuwen did not give her any response in her ¡°dreams¡±.

    After crying for the better part of the night, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s consciousness finally faded into a deep slumber. She knew that she was in a deep slumber, and she would only from time to time hear some buzzing sound around her.

    She was no longer aware of where she was, and she was unaware of where or what the buzzing noises around her came from. She only felt that she was being carried about by a person on his back, and she knew that the cool air about this person had set her heartpletely at ease.

    In her stupor, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but think about the dreams she hadst night, and she thought that this were but a mere continuation of that dream ¨C The one carrying me right now should be Ye Xiuwen, who had appeared in my dreams, right?

    With some measure of intoxication lingering in her body, Jun Xiaomo was unable to distinguish her dreams from her reality. She simply felt as though she were trapped in an immeasurably long dream right now.

    It even urred to her that she might have dreamt about the matters of her previous life. After all, back when she was at her lowest and most vulnerable point in her previous life, she had in a simr fashion been carried by Ye Xiuwen on his back.

    Thus, when she discovered how Ye Xiuwen was about to set her down, Jun Xiaomo reflexively grabbed onto his sleeves. Even though this were but a dream of her past, she could not bring herself to let him go just like that.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s desperation at that time was something that nobody had evere close to experiencing ¨C it was the kind of desperation from a person drowning in rapid rivers when he suddenly realizes that he had managed to grab onto a stalk of straw growing out of the riverbank.

    In her previous life, after witnessing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death in front of her very own eyes, she had lived the next three hundred years or so all alone as she ran for her life. Then, she encountered Qin Lingyu and was soon afterwards set-up, captured and thrown into the dank, dark dungeon.

    In this life, having retained the memories of her previous life, she was now equipped with the ability of ¡°irvoyance¡±, and she was able to nudge her loved ones in the right direction before they were framed and set up. Thus, she thought that her fate would changepletely. Then, she encountered a series of unfortunate events ¨C not only did Ye Xiuwen fall into the Death¡¯s Gorge, she even offended Princess Linglong of the Greenwich Kingdom, and ended up being sent into the Proving Grounds by her master.

    Over the next three hundred and thirty years, Jun Xiaomo thoroughly experienced the true meaning of solitude. There was nobody around to chat with her and nobody around to share her joys and pains. Every single day, and every single moment, apart from immersing herself in learning and her cultivation, she would be spending the rest of her time inbat,bat and morebat.

    It was a destion no different from death, arguably even worse than the solitude and tension she experienced in her previous life. If not for the fact that she was now equipped with strong principles and a foundation of hope in her heart that kept her going, she might well have gone insane from the alienation of her heart and mind.

    Then, when she finally managed to ovee the Proving Grounds and thereby leave its premises, she discovered that the mere passage of eleven years in the outside world had made everythingpletely different.

    Her master from the Zephyr Sect had vanished into thin air. Rong Ruihan had sought revenge on her behalf and ended up being pushed back by the joint forces of the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom. As things were, she had no news whatsoever of Rong Ruihan¡¯s whereabouts. To make matters worse, her parents and her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak were unable to escape from He Zhang¡¯s scheming clutches, and they had now be the prime target of all spiritual cultivators out there.

    And then, there was her martial brother Ye. She had learnt from various sources that there was not a single person who had ever returned alive from the Death¡¯s Gorge, ever.

    Thus, wave after wave of tragic news struck her, and she felt like she was sinking into the mires of despondence. Her mind was in tatters, and she almost broke down.

    Was she really that helpless? Why couldn¡¯t she change her fate even with all the experience from her previous life?

    Fortunately, her trials and tribtions over the years had refined and forged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soul into a fortress of determination. After the initial outburst of her emotions, Jun Xiaomo managed to collect andpose herself and gird her mind on her goals at hand ¨C save her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak first, before searching for the rest of her missing family and friends.

    Thus, she cast her panic and anxiety into the deepest part of her being and trudged along slowly towards her goal, one step at a time. That said, it was only when she grew intoxicated with this incident that these emotions that were locked up in the deepest parts of her being burst out into the forefront once again and manifested themselves strongly.

    Jun Xiaomo clutched tightly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeve, begging him not to leave her behind.

    She could not see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances because her eyelids felt so heavy that she could not open her eyes. However, the clear, dignified fragrance emanating from his body was unmistakable ¨C it was Ye Xiuwen.

    As the intoxication continued to toy with her heart, Jun Xiaomo sincerely thought that she was still stuck in the dreams of her previous life. It was as though she had been transported back in time to the day when Ye Xiuwen flicked his sleeves in anger and left her behind ¨C by this time, she could no longer recall just how many times she had stirred Ye Xiuwen¡¯s anger as a result of her willfulness. The only thing she knew was that she did not want Ye Xiuwen to leave her and forsake her.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go...I was wrong...please don¡¯t leave me...please don¡¯t leave me all alone...¡±

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± repeated pleas made Ye Xiuwen find it difficult to leave just like that. For some strange reason, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± always reminded him of histe little martial sister. Under such circumstances, he found it incredibly difficult to turn a blind eye to her pleas and leave her alone. Thus, for a protracted moment, Ye Xiuwen stood there motionless as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± continued to grab onto his sleeves.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes flickered. As long as Jun Ziwen remained here in the room, he would be unable to carry out his ns. After all, he could not afford to let Jun Ziwen see Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu walked up to Ye Xiuwen and addressed him once more, ¡°Brother Jun, it seems that this little sister of mine ispletely messed up by her intoxication, and she¡¯s even begun to talk a bunch of gibberish in her drunken stupor. How about this ¨C let me think of a n to expel the alcohol in her body. Perhaps you can wait outside in the meantime?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked back at Qin Lingyu with a slight look of curiosity in his eyes, but he remained motionless.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, brother Jun? Are you worried? Do you think that I will harm my own little sister?¡± Qin Lingyu chuckled sardonically.

    If this were the real Qin Shanshan, she naturally wouldn¡¯t be in any form of danger whatsoever. However, Ye Xiuwen knew that the ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± lying on the bed were a mere imposter. If Qin Lingyu discovered this fact as well, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would not be able to do anything to resist any of Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions in her state of intoxication.

    Forget it. If I stayed here any longer, the suspicion on ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would be even greater, and her life would naturally also be in more danger.

    As he thought about this, Ye Xiuwen twisted his arm and wrested free of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± grip on his sleeve.

    ¡°I¡¯ll head out first.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded at Qin Lingyu before walking out of the room.

    Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly as he stared at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back. Then, he turned his head back and sized up his ¡°sister¡± as sheid in bed.

    He couldn¡¯t tell in the least bit that there was anything wrong with his sister. That said, Qin Lingyu¡¯s cursory examination of Qin Shanshan only caused his disdain for her to burgeon. After all, she had not shown any signs of growth despite the experience of her present expedition out of the Sect. Instead, she had somehow grown attached to a troublesome character ¨C Qin Lingyu was fully convinced that Jun Ziwen was more than meets the eye, and he still could not figure out Jun Ziwen¡¯s true motives for travelling together with the other Dawn Sect disciples.

    With disdain and frustration in his heart, Qin Lingyu walked towards ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. He looked at the person curled up in bed with some measure of difort, and a cold gleam flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    He retrieved Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket from his Interspatial Ring and ced it on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    After some time, the Origin Locket remained just asckluster as it had been, and the cracks on its surface remained just as pronounced.

    What happened to this Origin Locket? Why doesn¡¯t it have any form of reaction or resonance?

    As Qin Lingyu pondered over these details, he sat down beside the bed, stretched out his fingers and ced them on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist. Then, Qin Lingyu began to send a thread of spiritual energy probing about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian. Despite that, he did not find any traces of peculiarities at all.

    Qin Lingyu had initially expected to discover something wrong with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± body ¨C perhaps traces of schemes and plots, or a serious mdy of sorts. This would in turn exin the peculiar change on the Origin Locket. However, his assessment of her body revealed none of these things. Apart from her state of intoxication, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± body waspletely fine.

    That¡¯s really strange...

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes, and a sullen gaze crept up the bottom of his eyes.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo discovered that the familiar fragrance had departed, her heart began to swell with a sense of frustration and unease.

    Additionally, she could sense that there was an aura in the room that was not unfamiliar to her, and yet it was clearly something that she found hateful and disgusting. It was absolutely repulsive.

    In turn, this sensation gave rise to a reflexive and intuitive manifestation of a sense of crisis.

    Thus, as the sense of crisis grew stronger, it suppressed the remaining intoxication in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, and she finally aroused from her drunken stupor.

    Even though her eyes were still shut, her mind was already alert enough to distinguish between dreams and reality. Furthermore, she could sense that there was a person in this room whose existence thoroughly displeased her.

    As she fervently suppressed the throbbing sensation on her temples, Jun Xiaomo suddenly opened her eyes.

    Her eyes were as deep and abstruse as a bottomless abyss. In that instant, and without any warning, her prating gaze stared straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s pupils instantly constricted, and his body immediately tensed up.

    This sister of mine seems slightly different from before...

 Chapter 277: A Strange Domain? Somethingâ€™s Fishy!

    <h4>Chapter 277: A Strange Domain? Something¡¯s Fishy!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had snapped out from her drunken stupor as a result of thebat and survival instincts developed over the years within the Proving Grounds. After all, there was not a single moment over thest three hundred and thirty years when her life was not in all types of danger, where a single slip up on her part could cause her to end up in the stomach of a spirit or demonic beast. Thus, it was absolutely paramount that she remained vignt at all times.

    In this regard, she would constantly leave a thread of her spirit keeping watch on the outside even when she was asleep or meditating, just so that she could be ready at the moment¡¯s notice.

    Last night¡¯s intoxication was something that waspletely outside of her expectations. In fact, even Jun Xiaomo was unaware that the sense of familiarity emanating from Jun Ziwen¡¯s body made her subconsciously let her guard down. As a result of that, Jun Xiaomo ended up being so thoroughly intoxicated in front of a man whom she hardly knew that there was not a single trace of awareness remaining within her.

    But now that Ye Xiuwen had stood up and left the room, leaving Qin Lingyu remaining all alone with Jun Xiaomo, the earlier sense of familiarity and its corory sense of security had also vanished entirely. In turn, Jun Xiaomo naturally put her guard back up subconsciously.

    Qin Lingyu cast an investigative look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body ¨C particrly focusing on her eyes, which acted as though a lens to a person¡¯s heart. For some strange reason, he found thisdy seemingly foreign to him.

    Was this truly his sister, Qin Shanshan?

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes had always been filled with arrogance and restlessness, and this was in stark contrast to her present deep, abstruse gaze that was filled with a sense of stillness and tranquility. This was something that he had never seen in Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes before.

    As Jun Xiaomo shrugged off the haziness of her vision apanying her grogginess right now, focus began to return to her eyes, and the first thing she noticed was Qin Lingyu¡¯s figure appearing right before her.

    Qin Lingyu?! It¡¯s him?!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted slightly, and the surging killing intent in her heart nearly seeped out from her body.

    He Zhang had undoubtedly been involved in the Heavenly Peak¡¯s present plight. As He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Qin Lingyu naturally fell within the ambit of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s revenge.

    That said, now was not the time to make her move yet. If she killed Qin Lingyu here and now, it would most certainly rm the entire Dawn Sect, and they would in turn increase their vignce and security. That was something she could not afford right now.

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes again as she deliberated about what she ought to do. Truth be told, Qin Lingyu¡¯s return was something that waspletely outside her expectations. If Qin Lingyu had not returned, it would have been an extremely easy task for her to infiltrate the Dawn Sect given Qin Shanshan¡¯s rtional advantage over others. The odds of revealing her identity as an imposter would have been rather low.

    But now that Qin Lingyu was back, things were most certainly going to be a lot more difficult. After all, Qin Lingyu was Qin Shanshan¡¯s biological brother to begin with. A single slip up on her part could very easily expose her identity as an imposter.

    Qin Lingyu noticed how Qin Shanshan avoided his gaze silently, and he immediately squinted as he put Qin Shanshan under closer scrutiny.

    ¡°Shanshan, why do you have such a cold and indifferent expression on your face? You¡¯ve not seen your brother for such a long time. Don¡¯t you miss your brother at all?¡± Qin Lingyu smiled faintly as he interrogated ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. At the same time, he maintained his deep, intense gaze transfixed on the top of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± head as he scrutinized her every response.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced, and a sullen look flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    Even though she was not unfamiliar with both Qin Shanshan and Qin Lingyu as individuals, she had never noticed in detail their interactions with each other. If she did something or reacted in a manner that was uncharacteristic of Qin Shanshan in her interactions with Qin Lingyu, it would most certainly arouse Qin Lingyu¡¯s suspicions.

    Just what should I do?

    Qin Lingyu noticed that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had remained unresponsive, keeping her head down inplete silence. Thus, his heart began to spin with thoughts of suspicions.

    Something¡¯s wrong. Something must have happened to my sister!

    That said, Qin Lingyu had not considered the possibility that Qin Shanshan had already been murdered by someone, and the person seated in front of him was no more than an imposter.

    Rather, the only thing that had crossed his mind at this point in time was that something must have happened to his sister, resulting in the significant change to her personality and behaviour.

    ¡°Shanshan, look up at me. Tell your brother what you¡¯ve encountered on these travels which had resulted in such immense changes to your personality.¡±

    Qin Lingyu presented himself with a concerned and caring expression on his face.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to feel much more at ease. After all, it did not seem like Qin Lingyu was suspicious about her identity. Rather, he appeared to be more concerned about what had caused the change in her personality and behaviour.

    That makes things much easier. I just need to y along.

    Jun Xiaomo steadied her heart once more as she lifted her head and gave Qin Lingyu a timid look. Then she shook her head as she muttered in a soft voice, ¡°Nothing much. We didn¡¯t encounter anything much...¡±

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows. ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± response was incredibly strange and peculiar.

    Didn¡¯t she appear sharp and incisive as an unsheathed sword earlier? Why has she be as timid and withdrawn as a rabbit now? Isn¡¯t this an incredibly stark change in her personality?

    Besides, neither of the two dispositions shown by ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± were characteristic of her original persona.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disy of hesitance did cause some of the suspicions weighing on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart to dissipate. Instead, he began to believe that Qin Shanshan had encountered something peculiar in her travels which had resulted in such a massive change to her personality and behaviour.

    What was most important to Qin Lingyu right now was to figure out just what exactly had happened, and whether these incidents would affect his ns for the future.

    When all was said and done, what Qin Lingyu was most concerned about was not his sister¡¯s condition ¨C it was still the pursuit of his own ambitions and his potential gains.

    Jun Xiaomo could clearly see the cold, frigid gaze in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and she couldn¡¯t help but chuckle sardonically in her heart ¨C This man must have fed his heart to the dogs. He doesn¡¯t even have a single trace of concern for his own little sister!

    Jun Xiaomo knew that if Qin Lingyu remained here in the room, she would only continue to feel more and more difort in her heart. Thus, she lowered her head and clutched tightly at the sleeves of her clothes as she muttered, ¡°Brother...I¡¯m feeling quite tired. Could you leave me be for now? I¡¯d like to rest for a while.¡±

    It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo had taken the words right out of Qin Lingyu¡¯s mouth. Having ascertained that Qin Shanshan¡¯s life was not in any danger or crisis, he wanted to know more than anything just what Qin Shanshan had experienced during these travels. This was not something that he could unravel by simply guessing and making conjectures. His best bet was to ask the eye-witnesses, or in other words, the Dawn Sect disciples who had travelled together with Qin Shanshan.

    ¡°Then, alright. Brother shan¡¯t disturb you anymore. We can continue where we left offter when you¡¯re feeling better.¡± Qin Lingyu patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder. Then, before Jun Xiaomo could respond, he hurriedly left the room.

    Jun Xiaomo watched with a cold gaze in her eyes as Qin Lingyu left the room. As soon as he shut the door to her room, she immediately dusted her shoulder where Qin Lingyu had earlier touched in disgust. It was as though she were patting away something dirty.

    After leaving Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, Qin Lingyu located the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples in the dining hall of the inn. He swept his gaze across all of their bodies and noticed that their expressions were generally dark and somber.

    On the other hand, the Dawn Sect disciples had initially thought that things would be much better with Qin Shanshan¡¯s return, and all of them had already heaved a sigh of relief. But now that they noticed Qin Lingyu approaching them with a darkened, almost-fiendish expression on his face, their hearts couldn¡¯t help but start to wrangle and constrict in fear once more ¨C Did something happen? Otherwise, why would Qin Lingyu present himself with such a fearsome expression?

    As Qin Lingyu drew closer, the listless Dawn Sect disciples immediately began to cower as though they had done something wrong. They looked nervously towards the ground, and they would from time to time cast an anxious look at Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Speak. Did something peculiar ur during these travels?¡±

    Qin Lingyu spoke with an incisive tone of voice, and his gaze was imposing and oppressive.

    ¡°That...that...something peculiar?¡± The leader of the Dawn Sect disciples was forced by the discreet looks of the other disciples to stand up and give an ount on their behalf. After collecting his scattered, panicking heart, he began to stammer once more, ¡°That...there was something peculiar that had happened. More urately, it was almost ghastly.¡±

    Everyone lowered their heads and revealed a bitter expression on their faces. They were almost certain that she must haveined about the incident to Qin Lingyu, causing him to appear before them with such indignation. Having thought that the jig was up, they knew that there was no point concealing the fact any further.

    Thus, the leader of the Dawn Sect disciples began to recount the story about how they were trapped in a part of the wilderness that they couldn¡¯t seem to get out of, no matter what they did. Then, they informed Qin Lingyu of how Qin Shanshan had thrown a tantrum and left the group, before going insane with self-abusive tendencies momentster.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyebrows were tightly knit, and they continued to crease and furrow more as the disciple continued to recount the incident. Then, at the end, Qin Lingyu mmed the table in rage and bellowed, ¡°And you all thought to let her leave the group just like that, huh?! What did you promise me before leaving the Sect? Is this how you look after my sister?!¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples instantly shrunk back in fear as soon as Qin Lingyu exploded in rage. None of them dared to speak a single word. From what they could see of Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions, they firmly believed that the first person to break the silence right now would most certainly face the fullest manifestation of Qin Lingyu¡¯s wrath and rage.

    Qin Lingyu stood up from the table and began to pace around anxiously.

    The part of the wilderness that the Dawn Sect disciples had talked about was an area that he had been through before. In fact, it was a locality that every expedition would have to pass through in order to get to the Mystic Woods. Compared to the Mystic Woods, that locality was incredibly safe, and there was no logical reason for the peculiar circumstances to havee up to begin with.

    But the impossible and the unexpected had all urred. What did this mean? This meant that there was something fishy about all of this!

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu felt like a lump has swelled up and lodged itself in his throat, and there was simply no ce he could ventte his frustrations. Truth be told, he sincerely wished to throw all of these Dawn Sect disciples into the pill-refining cauldron to freshen their minds. After all, with circumstances as fishy and peculiar as that, how could all of these buffoons not put two and two together and take the initiative to seek out the true cause for the peculiarity? Why did these useless disciples have to rely on an outsider to break them free of their predicament? This waspletely shameful!

    Furthermore, from the disciples¡¯ recount of the incident, they seemed to bepletely oblivious to how they had managed to break free of their predicament and leave the peculiar part of the wilderness. It was almost as though they had broken through by a pure stroke of luck! In other words, they might well have perished in that locality had their luck been any worse!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind was in a mess right now. He sincerely believed that Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket must have something to do with the incident in the wilderness.

    However, he knew that mere guessing wouldpletely be in vain. He would still be none the wiser as to why Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket would crack and lose its luster. He would simrly be none the wiser as to what exactly went on in the wilderness when the incident urred.

    Just what was it that made Shanshan go mad in the wilderness? Just what is it that caused Shanshan¡¯s behaviour to undergo such a massive change?

    Then, Qin Lingyu¡¯s foot paused for a moment, and a possibility struck him.

    Formation array! It must have been a formation array!

    Only a formation array could have caused such a wide area influence over an entire group of different people like that!

    Qin Lingyu had not delved too much into the discipline of formation arrays in the past. However, after witnessing what Jun Xiaomo could do with formation arrays during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, he began to learn more about it of his own volition, and it was there that he began to realize just how formidable and fearsome formation arrays can be.

    With the aid of formation arrays, an array master in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation could possess destructive abilities that were potentially even greater than an average cultivator at the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. They were undoubtedly a fearsome existence.

    That said, not everyone possessed the aptitude for mastering the discipline of formation arrays. This had to dorgely with a person¡¯s willpower and personality. After all, the process of mastering formation arrays was incredibly dry and arduous. Qin Lingyu had personally attempted to delve into the discipline himself, but he barely scratched the surface.

    The more he considered the possibility of formation arrays, the more firmly he believed that it was the cause of it all. After all, everything that had urred could be exined using formation arrays.

    Then, as he turned his considerations towards the outsider, Jun Ziwen.

    Jun Ziwen was indubitably the prime suspect in all these things. Otherwise, how could anyone exin how he had remainedpletely calm and unfazed amidst the chaos in the wilderness? Furthermore, he had been the one who had sessfully led the entire entourage out of the entire ce.

    Hah! Jun Ziwen must have been both the director and an actor of this performance in the wilderness, wasn¡¯t he? Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly in his heart as she nced up at the stairs towards the rooms. Coincidentally, Ye Xiuwen happened to be walking down the stairs at that very moment.

    Qin Lingyu squinted at Ye Xiuwen, and the depths of his eyes were filled with hostility and suspicion.

 Chapter 278: The Duo with A United Front

    <h4>Chapter 278: The Duo with A United Front</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Dawn Sect disciples could all see with pristine rity the cold, bitter tension between Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen.

    They could understand why Qin Lingyu harboured such feelings of hostility towards Jun Ziwen. After all, who could allow their own sister to be seduced by a man that had picked her up on the streets by chance? Anyone would get maddened by those prospects. But, what about Jun Ziwen? Where did his hostility towards their martial brother Qine from? Logically speaking, if Jun Ziwen had truly fallen for his sister, Qin Shanshan, should he not be thinking of various ways and means to appease his potential brother-inw, Qin Lingyu?

    With some measure of perplexity in their minds, the Dawn Sect disciples looked at Qin Lingyu, and then they swept their gaze back towards Ye Xiuwen. At that instant, all of the disciples unanimously resolved to remain silent and quietly observe how things would develop and unravel.

    After pausing for a moment on the steps, Ye Xiuwen continued to make his way down to the dining hall. Then, he walked over to the table where the disciples were located, before helping himself to a seat and pouring himself a cup of tea.

    He was the first one to break eye contact with Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes in displeasure. Jun Ziwen¡¯s nonchnce thoroughly annoyed him.

    In particr, Qin Lingyu felt that this man¡¯s disposition, personality and behaviour was far too simr to that man, Ye Xiuwen, who should already have perished in the depths of the Mystic Woods.

    ¡°Speak. Tell us your true motive for travelling together with the expedition from the Dawn Sect. Don¡¯t tell me that you¡¯d agreed to my sister¡¯s invitation just because you¡¯re curious about the inside workings of the Dawn Sect. This excuse might work with my na?ve, innocent little sister, but it¡¯s ridiculous if you think that that excuse is going to work with me.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked up once more and stared straight at Qin Lingyu ¨C Na?ve and innocent? Is that really how you would describe Qin Shanshan?

    The other Dawn Sect disciples thought in the same manner. Each and everyone of them believed that a person who had habitually killed and seized the belongings of others could never be considered an innocent and kind person at all.

    And, rather than saying that she was a na?ve person, perhaps it might be more urate to describe her as a simpleton, easily enthralled and mesmerized by a person¡¯s looks.

    Qin Lingyu noticed that Ye Xiuwen had responded with a mere cid look in his gaze. Apart from that, there was no indication whatsoever that Ye Xiuwen was prepared to exin himself to Qin Lingyu at all. Thus, a fiery indignation began to burgeon in his heart.

    Does he not have any regard for what I¡¯ve just said?!

    ¡°Hah, brother Jun, you must be mistaken if you still think that you¡¯re able to enter the Dawn Sect with just my sister¡¯s invitation. I¡¯m the First-Seat Disciple of the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader. If you want to enter the Dawn Sect, you¡¯ve got to clear this hurdle of mine first. Do you believe me when I say that you won¡¯t be able to take a single step into the Dawn Sect¡¯s territory as long as I give the word?!¡± Qin Lingyu smiled coldly as he threatened Ye Xiuwen with a frigid gaze in his eyes.

    ¡°I believe you.¡± Ye Xiuwen took a sip from his teacup, before setting it down gently on the table, ¡°But, so what? I¡¯ve never said that I simply must enter the Dawn Sect, did I? Let me make this clear to you ¨C it was Qin Shanshan who had invited me to the Dawn Sect, and I had never at any point brandished a knife to her neck demanding her to extend such an invitation to me. It doesn¡¯t matter to me whether I visit the Dawn Sect or not. Thus, your threats don¡¯t mean a thing to me.¡±

    ¡°Pfft...¡± One of the attendants who had been silently watching at a corner of the dining hall couldn¡¯t contain hisughter and let slip a slight chuckle.

    Qin Lingyu was incensed and frustrated. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s simple retort made him look like aplete fool in front of everyone. At the same time, Qin Lingyu felt that his earlier threats and interrogation were all like punches that hadnded on a bed of cotton ¨C there was neither any impact nor damage done.

    The juxtaposition between his outrageous reaction and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cool indifference made it evident that Ye Xiuwen had once againe out ahead of him.

    In his avid anger and frustration, Qin Lingyu found himselfpletely lost for words. At the same time, he cast an incensed look at the attendant chuckling silently at the corner of the dining hall.

    In the very next moment, Qin Lingyu waved his sleeves, and a powerful wave of energy instantly surged towards the attendant in the corner, smashing to smithereens every single table, chair and bench in its way.

    This was something that had urred in the blink of an eye, and even the Dawn Sect disciples were unable to react to the situation, much less a mere mortal.

    The attendant¡¯s mind went numb at the sight, and he stared nkly at the iing wave of energy with his feetpletely rooted to the ground in fear.

    Even though everything urred in the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen managed to react to the situation within a split second. In a simr fashion, Ye Xiuwen also waved his sleeve, and another, more powerful wave of energy immediately surged out and shot straight at Qin Lingyu¡¯s wave of energy, instantly engulfing and consuming Qin Lingyu¡¯s wave of energy.

    Hong! As the two energies collided and exploded, everything within a two-meter radius of the attendant was instantly reduced to sawdust. However, the attendant remainedpletely unharmed.

    Thud. The attendant¡¯s knees buckled, and he copsed on the floor as he stared vacantly at how everything around him had disintegrated just like that. His pupils constricted tensely, and he nearly wet himself.

    The Dawn Sect disciples watched in amazement as the sh of powers unfurled. Then, in the next moment, they couldn¡¯t help but gasp in shock and awe.

    Not only had Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wave of energy consumed and overpowered Qin Lingyu¡¯s attack, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attack had been so well timed and controlled that he had managed to intercept Qin Lingyu¡¯s attack whilst leaving the attendantpletely unharmed. What did this mean? This meant that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were well above that which their martial brother Qin possessed!

    The Dawn Sect disciples had originally already suspected that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities would be slightly stronger than their martial brother Qin¡¯s abilities. However, this incident revealed that the difference in extent of their abilities was more than just a ¡°slight¡± bit.

    If the simple-minded Dawn Sect disciples were able to deduce as much from the incident, Qin Lingyu was most certainly able to do the same as well. In fact, he had hardly held back in his earlier strike. In other words, in his anger and frustration, he had used a hundred percent of his strength to attack a mere mortal.

    Unexpectedly, his ferocious attack was so easily deflected and neutralized by the man in front of him.

    Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t help but look at Jun Ziwen in a new light. For some strange reason, the desire to suppress Jun Ziwen had diminished substantially. This did not mean that he hade to wholeheartedly believe in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier exnation. Rather, he had simply acknowledged the fact that he did not have sufficient power to deal with Jun Ziwen, and he knew that he had to escte this issue to higher powers.

    In other words, Qin Lingyu knew that he had no choice but to send a message to his master in the shortest time possible, alerting him to the suspicious man that was Jun Ziwen. Then, if need be, they could work together to dispose of Jun Ziwen discreetly.

    Qin Lingyu firmly believed that the changes to Qin Shanshan¡¯s personality must have had something to do with Jun Ziwen. Rather than to drag things out and let the problem fester, it would naturally be prudent to nip the problem in the bud.

    It had to be mentioned that Ye Xiuwen did have other means of neutralizing Qin Lingyu¡¯s wave of energy earlier. However, he consciously chose to do so in the most uncharacteristic, explosive and ostentatious disy of might.

    The main reason why he chose to do so was because he could tell what Qin Lingyu was thinking. Quite apart from what he had said, he knew that he needed to find a way into the Dawn Sect, and things would be far more troublesome if Qin Lingyu were to obstruct his means of infiltration through ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    Thus, he decided to use the disy of his might to shock and awe everyone from the Dawn Sect, especially Qin Lingyu. He knew that Qin Lingyu was a person who treasured his own life more than anything else in the world. Rather than to continue to butt heads with the arrogant and scheming man, he knew that the option he had chose would most certainly silence him in the shortest and swiftest possible manner.

    As expected, Qin Lingyu immediately shut his trap after witnessing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disy of abilities.

    However, the hostile nces that Qin Lingyu cast at Ye Xiuwen from time to time told Ye Xiuwen that Qin Lingyu was not going to leave things lying where they were.

    Ye Xiuwen shut his eyes and immersed himself with his thoughts.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand that was holding his teacup trembled slightly, and the silhouette of a person¡¯s figure flickered across his heart.

    His mind had been made up.

    -------------------------------------------------

    Third floor of the inn, at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room.

    Moments after Qin Lingyu departed from the room, Jun Xiaomo began to rub her head that was throbbing from her hangover. Supporting herself with the bed frame, Jun Xiaomo stood up and slowly made her way to the window in her room.

    She pushed open the window. Instantly, a gust of cool, fresh air swept into the room, alleviating some of the throbbing, painful sensation weighing heavily on her mind. The cool breeze also helped her to calm her emotions that were roiling as a result of Qin Lingyu¡¯s earlier appearance.

    Jun Xiaomo could tell that Qin Lingyu was no longer a match for her, given her current abilities. However, she was still wary of the entire Dawn Sect who stood firmly behind Qin Lingyu.

    Jun Xiaomo knew her limits. There was no way that Jun Xiaomo was going to be able to escape from the Dawn Sect¡¯s concerted attacks against her, much less ovee and subjugate the entire Dawn Sect. She knew that as soon as she arouses Qin Lingyu¡¯s suspicions and starts to draw k from the entire Dawn Sect, infiltrating the Dawn Sect would most certainly be an impossible task.

    Apart from the issue with Qin Lingyu, she couldn¡¯t stop thinking about the dreams that she hadst night as well. Jun Xiaomo had already forgotten most of the dream by now. All she could remember was the fact that she was ted and blissful in that dream.

    She could vaguely also recall that she had seen her martial brother Ye in the dream. In fact, she could sense that the familiar feeling of being at ease in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s presence had somehow seemed to linger on after the dream. Despite having already aroused from her slumber, there was still a warm sensation lingering in her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she massaged her forehead.

    I must have missed martial brother Ye too much. That¡¯s the only exnation why I¡¯d fallen into such a deep, long dreamst night that even left me with a lingering feeling of martial brother Ye¡¯s aura and presence.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was fully immersed in her own thoughts, two knocks resounded on her door.

    ¡°Come in.¡± Jun Xiaomo reflexively called out as soon as it urred to her that she had a visitor. She turned around and looked in the direction of the door.

    The door swung open. Ye Xiuwen stood at the door.

    The sun shining into her room from behind her door meant that Jun Xiaomo could only see the silhouette of a figure standing at that door. That said, the garments and the familiar cool, dignified aura about the visitor tugged strongly at her heartstrings.

    Her heart pounded, and her pupils constricted. She almost blurted out the word, ¡°Ye¡±.

    However, as Ye Xiuwen walked into the room, allowing Jun Xiaomo to get a closer look at his appearances, Jun Xiaomo held herself back from addressing her visitor as ¡°martial brother Ye¡±.

    It¡¯s not martial brother...it¡¯s just a person who presents himself simr to martial brother Ye...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart sank heavily once more. However, at that moment, a voice in her heart cried out ¨C

    Is this really not martial brother Ye? If he¡¯s not martial brother Ye, why would I feel so much at ease around him, revealing my innermost, vulnerable self to him?

    I don¡¯t ce my trust in people easily after all...

    The cry of her heart reverberated strongly throughout her mind, and Jun Xiaomo found that she was unable to ignore it; and powerless to silence it.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with a gaze that was nowced with something more. However, Ye Xiuwen failed to notice this.

    After shutting the door, Ye Xiuwen walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and asked, ¡°You were quite severely inebriatedst night. Are you feeling better?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°As you can see, I¡¯m more or less alright now. Oh yes, you must have been the one who¡¯d sent me backst night, right?¡±

    With some measure of exasperation, Ye Xiuwen nodded his head, ¡°We were the only two around at that time. Who else do you think could have sent you back if not for me?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo eximed in her heart ¨C As expected...

    ¡°Then how did you send me backst night? By carrying me like a princess?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked half-jokingly as she scrutinized Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± peculiar gaze made him feel rather ufortable. Even then, he responded cidly, ¡°Naturally, I had carried you back on my back.¡±

    On your back... Jun Xiaomo recalled the dream that she hadst night, and the sensation of feeling at ease once again surfaced in her mind, together with the incessant cry of the voice of her heart.

    She could now vaguely recall that she had dreamt of her martial brother Ye carrying her on his back as well.

    With clenched fists, Jun Xiaomo fervently suppressed the urge to press this line of questions. She knew that now was not the time for this.

    Furthermore, she could see from Jun Ziwen¡¯s expressions that if he continued to press the issue, he could very well develop a misunderstanding or get upset.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, brother Jun, did youe looking for me for anything in particr?¡± Jun Xiaomo tactfully changed the subject.

    As soon as she brought the conversation back to the issue at hand, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instantly refocused his eyes as he stared back at Jun Xiaomo and exined, ¡°Miss Tong, we have amon goal, and that is to infiltrate the Dawn Sect. Since that¡¯s the case...shall we cooperate in this regard?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows quizzically, ¡°Cooperate?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Cooperate.¡± Ye Xiuwen looked intently at Jun Xiaomo as he added, ¡°Qin Lingyu¡¯s already bing suspicious of my actions right now. I¡¯m not sure how things are on your side, but on my side, I¡¯m afraid that the chances of entering the Dawn Sect are growing slimmer by the minute. Thus, I hope to be able to cooperate with Miss Tong and rely on your current identity to enter the Dawn Sect.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo turned and stared vacantly out of the window as she rubbed her chin, ¡°So that¡¯s how it is...¡±

    Indeed, if Qin Lingyu had already be suspicious of the changes to her personality, there¡¯s no need to say what kind of scrutiny Jun Ziwen would be under. It¡¯s most certainly going to be an uphill task for him to get Qin Lingyu¡¯s approval. In turn, if Qin Lingyu doesn¡¯t give his approval, there¡¯s no way He Zhang would give his approval either.

    It was much easier with her present identity. As long as Qin Lingyu fails to discover any proof that she was not Qin Shanshan, there was no way he could keep her out of the Sect.

    On the other hand, it was quite different for Jun Ziwen ¨C he could very well be the target of Qin Lingyu¡¯s schemes before he even took a step into the Dawn Sect.

    Forget it. An additional pair of hands make quick work. Since this isn¡¯t an unfavorable transaction, why shouldn¡¯t I agree to it? Besides...

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m not opposed to the prospects of cooperating. However, you¡¯ve got to agree to a condition of mine first.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she blinked at Ye Xiuwen with a crafty gaze in her eyes.

    ¡°Condition? What condition?¡±

    ¡°Once you¡¯ve attended to your matters and achieved your goals within the Dawn Sect, you must tell me your true identity. How about it?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a smile.

    After deliberating for a moment, Ye Xiuwen nodded his head, ¡°Alright.¡±

    What Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know right now was that sometime in the near future, he would be incredibly d that he had made this decision today.

 Chapter 279: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Big Reveal

    <h4>Chapter 279: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Big Reveal</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Now that they had formally stepped onto the same path, Jun Xiaomo turned her mind to another practical problem that had arisen ¨C since Qin Lingyu was already suspicions of Jun Ziwen¡¯s identity and intentions, how were they going to ovee this hurdle and gain entry to the Dawn Sect?

    ¡°Do you have any suggestions?¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked curiously at Ye Xiuwen.

    After some moments of deliberation, Ye Xiuwen spoke up, ¡°Back then, Qin Shanshan had invited me to the Dawn Sect as a guest because she appeared to have some feelings for me. Now that Miss Tong has taken on Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity, perhaps you could y along in this regard and bring me in under that pretext...¡±

    ¡°Oh~~ So you wish to put your charms to good use, huh~~¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she nodded her head meaningfully.

    Ye Xiuwen nced back at her with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°Alright, I understand, I understand.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, ¡°In other words, you hope that I can continue to act as though I¡¯m head over heels in love with you, so much so that I would die without you, and thus force Qin Lingyu into apromise?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s descriptions, ¡°You naturally don¡¯t have to go to such an extent to appear as though you would die without me. That said, if you¡¯re able to stand your ground and insist on seeing through your earlier invitation, my odds of entering the Dawn Sect would naturally be higher.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo snapped her fingers, as she forthrightly agreed, ¡°Alright. This isn¡¯t anything too difficult. Besides, given Qin Shanshan¡¯s personality, falling head over heels in love with a man isn¡¯t something that is uncharacteristic of her. As long as I don¡¯t go too far...hahaha...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled warmly, ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo curled up her lips as she shrugged it off, ¡°Don¡¯t stand on ceremony! Aren¡¯t we partners in crime? Just don¡¯t forget what you¡¯d agreed to earlier. You¡¯re not allowed to shirk responsibilityter on!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t do that.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled as he made a vow.

    It was already noontime when they were done with their discussions, and it was soon time for lunch. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stomach growled timeously.

    She rubbed her nose with some measure of embarrassment, while Ye Xiuwen smiled meaningfully as he suggested that they head down to the dining hall for lunch.

    While Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were making their way down the stairs, they noticed that Qin Lingyu and the rest were still at the dining hall. As soon as he saw ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± and Jun Ziwen walking down the stairs together, Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions darkened immediately. The other Dawn Sect disciples instantly exchanged nervous nces, before tacitly lowering their heads in the hope that they would not attract any k to themselves.

    It was evident that Qin Lingyu was in an extremely bad mood, and it would not be wise to step on his toes.

    ¡°Brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo pretended to be an obsequious little sister as she greeted Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Come here!¡± Qin Lingyu coldly ordered Jun Xiaomo, before ring viciously at Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and stepped towards her left slightly, sticking close by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Then, she cautiously looked up once more at Qin Lingyu.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s acting was on point ¨C she put on a perfect presentation of ady faced with the fear that her kin would not ept her rtionship with the love of her life. In that moment, Qin Lingyu could hardly tell that everything she was doing was a mere pretense.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen knew that everything was a mere pretense, even he might have bought Jun Xiaomo¡¯s acting.

    The veins on Qin Lingyu¡¯s forehead bulged and throbbed, and he mmed his palm on the table as he bellowed, ¡°Qin Shanshan,e here right now!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo instantly clutched tightly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves and hid behind him as she murmured, ¡°Why are you being so fierce?! I¡¯m not going over.¡±

    A trace of bemusement crept up the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. Qin Lingyu noticed it, and the fiery rage in his heart burgeoned even more.

    Just as Qin Lingyu was about to erupt in fury and pull ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± to the side to give her a good beating and dressing down, Ye Xiuwen smiled faintly as he interjected, ¡°Brother Qin, Miss Qin didn¡¯t have much to eat yesterday, and she was even intoxicated for the better part ofst night, so she¡¯s hungry and tired now. If you¡¯ve got anything you wish to say to Miss Qin, I¡¯m sure it can wait till after she¡¯s had some food, right? What do you say?¡±

    Qin Lingyu chuckled coldly, ¡°I¡¯ve got nothing much to say to you. What gives an outsider like you the right to interfere with the matters between us siblings?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo discreetly rolled her eyes at Qin Lingyu as she hid behind Ye Xiuwen. Then, she peeked out once more and red at Qin Lingyu as she barked, ¡°I hate you! How can brother Jun be considered an outsider? He¡¯s someone I¡¯m fond of!¡±

    Qin Lingyu squinted his eyes. He was getting increasingly incensed by this little sister of his who couldn¡¯t even seem to distinguish friend or foe.

    If not for the fact that you possess the other half of the key to the Arcane Realm, do you think I¡¯d even care about you?!

    Jun Xiaomo keenly picked up on the emotions that were roiling within the deepest parts of Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart, and she slightly raised her eyebrows with a quizzical expression as she thought to herself ¨C So much for blood rtions. I don¡¯t sense any sibling love from Qin Lingyu at all.

    After coldly ring at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± for a little while, he finally decided to take a step back andpromise as he barked, ¡°Well? Take a seat then! Do you intend to eat while standing?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened, and she grabbed hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and began to drag him to the side of the table furthest away from Qin Lingyu.

    The seats there were already filled with Dawn Sect disciples. However, Jun Xiaomo decided to capitalize on Qin Shanshan¡¯s usual bossy, headstrong attitude, as she red at the disciples and barked, ¡°Hurry up and make way for us!¡±

    The Dawn Sect disciples thought to themselves in displeasure ¨C Isn¡¯t there still space over there beside martial brother Qin? Why don¡¯t you take a seat over there instead? Why do you have to squeeze here with us?

    Nobody wants to sit next to martial brother Qin!

    Even though they harboured these thoughts in their hearts, they knew that they could not afford to upset ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, particrly when her strongest backing was just in front of them. Thus, they did their best to swallow the bitter pill as they began to nudge each other towards Qin Lingyu. Finally, they managed to create sufficient space for two people to take their seats, and Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen took their seats ordingly.

    Qin Lingyu sat on the other end of the table, as far away from Jun Xiaomo as he possibly could be. His face looked so ashen that it was practically the same colour as burnt coal.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo continued to act as though she was hell bent on provoking and angering Qin Lingyu. As soon as the waiter began to serve dishes on the table for their lunch, Jun Xiaomo began to pile up the food onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bowl until it looked like a tiny mountain. Then, she began to softly and warmly coax Ye Xiuwen to eat all the good stuff before they were taken by the others.

    The Dawn Sect disciples who were seated around the table stared at the sight with gaping wide mouths. Their eyes had widened so much that they seemed almost to have fallen out of their sockets ¨C What the hell happenedst night?! Even though Qin Shanshan appeared to be fond of Jun Ziwen previously, she had never been so close and clingy to him! Has this entire world changed after just one night? Is the sun going to rise from the west tomorrow?!

    Jun Xiaomo thoroughly took pleasure in the increasingly ashen expression on Qin Lingyu¡¯s face. To her, the greatest pleasure in the world was to see her nemeses¡¯ displeasure.

    ¡°What are you all looking at?! Haven¡¯t you seen a public disy of affection before? Eat your food!¡± Jun Xiaomo barked resentfully at the Dawn Sect disciples around her once more. It had to be mentioned that she was clearly channeling to perfection the unruly and headstrong attitude that Qin Shanshan had always disyed.

    The other disciples were immediately taken aback. Then, they obsequiously shifted their gaze away and began to munch away quietly at their own food.

    I knew it. Qin Shanshan¡¯s obnoxious behaviour has surfaced once again as soon as martial brother Qin appeared. It¡¯s just so unbearable... The Dawn Sect disciples smeared Qin Shanshan¡¯s name in their heart.

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu felt as though his own reputation were being tarnished by his sister¡¯s obnoxious behaviour. Bang! He mmed his chopsticks onto the table in a fit of anger and barked, ¡°I¡¯m not eating anymore! I¡¯m already filled to the brim with anger. How can I possibly stomach any more food?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked up and gave Qin Lingyu a charitable nce, before lowering her head and piling up more food on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bowl again.

    Seriously, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bowl was thoroughly filled to the brim by now.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan,e look for me when you¡¯re done eating. I¡¯ve got something to talk to you about.¡± Qin Lingyu coldly demanded of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± with an unyielding and intolerant tone of voice.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going.¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted with insistence. Her tone of voice was upromising yetced with a slight measure of fear for her ¡°brother¡±, ¡°I know what you¡¯re going to say, and I¡¯m not going to agree to it. I¡¯m not going to leave brother Jun behind. No matter what, I want him toe back to the Dawn Sect with me!¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo spoke, her heart trembled with slight disgust ¨C My gosh. Did I really just say that? That¡¯s far too soppy!

    The veins on Qin Lingyu¡¯s forehead throbbed once more. However, this time, he did not respond to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. Instead, he turned towards Ye Xiuwen as he coldly stated, ¡°Brother Jun, you¡¯re pretty formidable, aren¡¯t you? You knew that you couldn¡¯t convince me, so you thought to circumvent the issue by gaining ess through my sister. Before today, she has never dared to be disobedient to me before. Yet after just one month of interacting with you, not only is she being disobedient, she¡¯s already directly opposing me. If this goes on, who knows what might happen? Maybe she might even end up selling out the Sect and tarnishing the honour of our ancestors!¡±

    Just like that, Qin Lingyu redirected all the k to Ye Xiuwen and began to cast aspersions on his intentions.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze instantly darkened. Qin Lingyu¡¯s words had reminded her of her fate in her previous life.

    Oh, the irony. You¡¯ve hit the nail on the head. I had in my previous life pushed my entire Peak off the precipice and caused their fall, all just because of a scumbag like you, Qin Lingyu! Truly, a person¡¯s worldview is always tainted by the ponderances of their hearts. Qin Lingyu has always acted like that ¨C he¡¯s not changed one bit!

    Bang! Jun Xiaomo also mmed her chopsticks down onto the table. Tears could be seen seeping out of the corners of the reddened rims of her eyes as she red at Qin Lingyu with great indignation, ¡°Brother! Why are you always picking on brother Jun? If not for him, we¡¯d already be dead in the wilderness by now!¡±

    Yet Qin Lingyu simply chuckled coldly, ¡°Who knows whether he had rescued you on purpose or whether he was the perpetrator who had trapped all of you within that ce to begin with? How do you know he was not just putting on an act when he ¡®rescued¡¯ you? Back when you first departed the Sect and made your way to the Mystic Woods through that part of the wilderness, you¡¯d never encountered anything like that, isn¡¯t that right? Then, it was only after you encountered this strange man on the way back that you¡¯de across such a strange encounter in that part of the wilderness again. Is there anything more ¡®coincidental¡¯ than that?!¡±

    ¡°Brother Jun would never do something like that! Brother, don¡¯t malign him!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Qin Lingyu in frustration as she stered a stubborn, disbelieving look on her face.

    ¡°Hah. It doesn¡¯t matter whether you believe me or not. As long as I¡¯m here, he¡¯s not taking a single step into the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds.¡± Qin Lingyu gave the ultimatum ¨C there was no way he was letting Ye Xiuwen into the Dawn Sect at all, ¡°Or perhaps...you could let him attempt to break into the grounds and see if he can do so sessfully.¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯sst statement was directed straight at Ye Xiuwen, and his eyes were filled with contempt and mockery.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes in displeasure. Her hatred for Qin Lingyu¡¯s pettiness hade to a head ¨C Isn¡¯t Qin Lingyu only saying all these things because he wants to unt his identity as He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple?

    Riding on her earlier momentum, Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and hardened her heart. Then, she grabbed Jun Ziwen¡¯s hand that was under the table and raised her chin as she stared back at Qin Lingyu with indignation in her eyes, ¡°Brother, I¡¯ve already done the deed between married couples with brother Jun. I might already be bearing his child right now. I¡¯m not leaving him behind. If you¡¯re going to continue to prevent him from entering the sect, then I¡¯m going to remain outside the Sect with him and be a rogue cultivator and a nomad. Do as you please.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Dawn Sect disciples: ......

    Qin Lingyu: ......

    If only I could just crush this insipid sister of mine right now! Unfortunately, I really need the key to the Arcane Realm!

 Chapter 280: He Zhangâ€™s Suggestion, Qin Lingyuâ€™s Ploy

    <h4>Chapter 280: He Zhang¡¯s Suggestion, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Ploy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± grew increasingly aggravated in her spiel earlier, Ye Xiuwen had already begun to develop a bad premonition of what was toe, and his eyelids had also started twitching. Then, before he could do anything else, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± grabbed his left hand and dropped the bombshell like a bolt of lightning that struck out of the blue.

    Even though he knew that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was doing all of this to help him, he was unable to stop his face from twitching uncontrobly when the disciples around him began to cast peculiar nces at him. It took him almost all of his strength to suppress the urge to retract his hand from ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± grasp.

    Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen had never held hands with anyone after all these years. Even Jun Xiaomo, with whom he could be described to be the closest to, had only ever grabbed or clung on to his arms, and the physical contact was still separated by the thinyer of his clothes at that time.

    This was primarily due to the fact that Ye Xiuwen was somewhat of a germophobe, and he did not appreciate it when a person drew too close to him. Despite that, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had done the outrageous deed out of the blue, leaving him so perplexed and shocked that he did not even have the time to react to her actions.

    Then, as he examined the peculiar gazes which he was receiving, he could tell that all of them sincerely believed without any modicum of doubt ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± allegation that they had done the deed between married couples. Moreover, he knew that if he stood up right now and denied this, not only would he stand in the own way of his goals, others might even begin to think that he was trying to shirk responsibility for what he had done.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen sighed in his heart, and he gradually collected and repressed the instinctual thoughts of any rejection and denial.

    The Dawn Sect disciples continued to sweep their peculiar and suggestive gazes on Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, vaciting between the two for some time. Then, finally, as though in tacit agreement, a knowing, mischievous smile crept up the corner of their lips ¨C No wonder they vanished from the inn for the entire nightst night! So they had been indulging in the carnal pleasures of this world as well. But truth be told, Qin Shanshan is rather pretty. It¡¯s just that her personality is the worst. Otherwise, I¡¯m sure that the number of people lining up for Qin Shanshan¡¯s attention and affection would be sufficient to circle around the entire Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds twice.

    Such a pity...such a pity...

    Several Dawn Sect disciples concluded that it was a pity in their hearts. However, it was unclear whether they found it a pity that the flower that was Qin Shanshan had finally been picked up by an outsider; or whether they found it a pity that such an outstanding character like Jun Ziwen who possessed the trifecta of strength, character and dignified looks would fall for such a willful and rambunctiousdy like Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Lingyu was even more incensed. Regardless of whether Qin Shanshan¡¯s words were truth or lie, he could tell that she had only spoken about such shameful deeds in front of everyone just so that she could fight for Jun Ziwen¡¯s rights to enter the Sect.

    At this moment, Qin Lingyu felt as though his authority as the older brother among the two was being challenged, and there was no ce for him to hide his face at all. To make matters worse, this problem was particrly aggravated by the fact that the people on their neighboring tables who had overheard themotion here had begun to chime in, suggesting that he acknowledges the young couple in front of them. He had reached his boiling point.

    Bang! Qin Lingyu mmed on the table in front of him, causing it to crack in several locations. The entire dining hall was silenced, almost as though a Noise-Cancelling Talisman had just been applied at the same time to everyone around. The busybodies who were chiming in had immediately turned back to their own tables to mind their own businesses.

    Qin Lingyu stood up. The veins on his head and neck were ostensibly bulging and throbbing as he red at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, ¡°Qin Shanshan, I know you¡¯re obstinate, and I can¡¯t outtalk you. But don¡¯t me me for not warning you ¨C this man isn¡¯t the right person for you. When the dayes that he abandons you, don¡¯t you daree crying back to me. This is all on you!¡±

    As he finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves and stormed off back to his own room.

    After he left, the Dawn Sect turned their attention back to the table that was now full of broken cups, shattered dishes and food that was all over the ce. They exchanged nces sheepishly, before standing up silently and leaving their seats. They were going to look for a different ce to settle their own lunch.

    On the other hand, the innkeeper looked at the cracked table and shattered pieces of cups and dishes with a pained expression in his eyes as he thought ¨C What a misfortune! When I saw how these people were so well-dressed and dignified-looking earlier, I¡¯d thought that I¡¯d struck a pot of gold. Yet these people have already destroyed a number of tables and dinner wares in just half a day.

    The profit from those dishes can¡¯t even begin topensate the losses for these tables. What dumb luck. What a misfortune...

    As the innkeeper immersed himself in his misery, a long, outstretched arm suddenly appeared in front of him, holding out several mid-grade spirit stones.

    ¡°Innkeeper, this is for you. Consider it ourpensation for the trouble we¡¯d caused today.¡± The cool, clear voice echoed from above the innkeeper¡¯s head. The innkeeper looked up. To his surprise, he discovered that the person speaking right now was none other than the person at the heart of all the gossip today! Who would have thought, despite this man¡¯s cold and distant appearances, that he still possessed such a warm heart? He was the only one who had noticed all of the inn¡¯s losses so far.

    The innkeeper received the spirit stones from Ye Xiuwen gratefully and thanked Ye Xiuwen repeatedly. Then, waving his arms, Ye Xiuwen turned to leave.

    There was a little, obsequious character skipping alongside him ¨C it was none other than ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who had yed her role earlier to perfection.

    ¡°Pleased?¡± After walking for a bit, Ye Xiuwen suddenly turned to ask Jun Xiaomo as she strolled alongside him.

    ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right. Very pleased.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes curled up as she replied. Her delight was so evident that it was difficult to ignore, even if Ye Xiuwen wanted to.

    However, Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously, ¡°Why?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her tongue at Ye Xiuwen as she mischievously responded, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that Qin Lingyu¡¯s multitude of brilliant expressions earlier were incredibly funny? And he looked so stifled because he had to bottle up everything too! There was no ce for him to vent his frustrations! It¡¯s just hrious! Hahahaha...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head in exasperation, but a simr trace of bemusement crept up the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, you don¡¯t seem to like Qin Lingyu very much, do you?¡± Ye Xiuwen recalled ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± earlier attitude, and something told him that she had not done all of that just to help him.

    Rather than to say she was fulfilling her own desires; it might be more urate to say that one of her goals was simply to antagonize Qin Lingyu.

    A smile crept up Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, ¡°That¡¯s right. He¡¯s a thorn in my side. As for the reason...I can¡¯t tell you for now.¡± As she finished speaking, she picked up her pace and walked ahead of Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was taken slightly aback by her response. He chuckled to himself helplessly, before picking up his pace and catching up to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Oh yes, where are we going to now?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned towards Ye Xiuwen once more as she blinked curiously.

    ¡°We haven¡¯t had lunch, had we? Let¡¯s go grab lunch elsewhere.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true. It¡¯s all Qin Lingyu¡¯s fault. My stomach is still growling right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips. Then, momentster, she turned towards Ye Xiuwen once more with a mischievous smile on her face, ¡°It¡¯s your treat! Take it as payment for the favour I¡¯d lent to you earlier, hmm? What do you say?¡±

    ¡°Certainly. Let¡¯s go.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled warmly.

    ¡°Oh yeah! I wanna go take a look at the street food shops there...¡±

    ------------------------------------------

    On the other side, Qin Lingyu stormed off back into his room after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s relentless provocations. As time wore on, the roiling rage in his eyes gradually diminished.

    After deliberating for a moment, he retrieved the internal correspondence Transmittance Talisman and sent a message to He Zhang. Within moments, He Zhang responded.

    ¡°Lingyu, what¡¯s the matter?¡± He Zhang spoke through the other end of the Transmittance Talisman with a frigid tone of voice.

    ¡°Master, I¡¯d returned early this year. On the way back, I crossed paths with Shanshan and the rest of her entourage, and I noticed that Shanshan¡¯s condition is rather strange. Furthermore, there¡¯s a stranger travelling together with them.¡±

    ¡°Stranger?¡± He Zhang paused mid-sentence, as though pondering about something, ¡°Tell me more. What kind of a stranger is this?¡±

    ¡°His strength is formidable. Even with my abilities at the Golden Core stage of cultivation, I can¡¯t see what level his cultivation is at. Most importantly, his disposition and aura are both extremely simr to that of a person that I hate.¡±

    ¡°...and that is?¡±

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen.¡±

    The other end of the Transmittance Talisman grew silent. In fact, it remained silent for such a long time that Qin Lingyu had thought that theirmunication had been cut off when He Zhang finally responded, ¡°Are you referring to...Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple who had fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge, Ye Xiuwen?¡±

    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s him.¡±

    At this moment, He Zhang began tough wildly at the other end of the Transmittance Talisman. Even though hisughter was loud, it was a cold and chillingughter, ¡°Lingyu, what are you being so worried about? Do you think there¡¯s any possibility that a person is able to return alive after falling into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge?¡±

    ¡°This...¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Even someone in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation is fated to perish if he fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge, much less the young sprout that Ye Xiuwen is! Back when he fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge, he wasn¡¯t even at the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, was he? What do you have to be afraid of?!¡± He Zhang retorted with some measure of resentfulness.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions darkened. However, when all was said and done, He Zhang was his master, and he dared not refute his words at all. ¡°Disciple isn¡¯t afraid. Disciple just thinks that we¡¯re in a slightly more delicate situation right now. We¡¯re already prepared and poised to capture Jun Linxuan and his men should they take our bait. Then, all of a sudden, a person with the same disposition and aura as Ye Xiuwen appears without any warning. Is this really just a coincidence? Disciple thinks that there¡¯s no reason not to be vignt against this man.¡±

    ¡°So what? Even if he¡¯s Ye Xiuwen, do you think that he can enter the Dawn Sect all by himself?¡± He Zhang retorted disdainfully.

    ¡°The problem lies with my sister.¡± Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows as he exined, ¡°Shanshan has fallen for that man, and she¡¯s even proimed that they¡¯ve done the deed between married couples. She insists on bringing him as a guest into the Dawn Sect.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about that troublemaking sister of yours?¡± He Zhang evidently despised Qin Shanshan, and his tone of voice was incredibly frigid, ¡°Disciple, if you¡¯re going to achieve great things in life, you¡¯ve got to shed this unnecessary baggage of yours. If your sister bes too willful and headstrong, there¡¯s no reason for you to continue to watch over her and protect her like that.¡±

    In other words, He Zhang was suggesting for Qin Lingyu to let her live and die of her own ord.

    A cold gleam flickered in the depths of Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. However, through the Transmittance Talisman, He Zhang was unable to see the contempt in the depths of Qin Lingyu eyes.

    Qin Lingyu was far more mindful of such a principle than He Zhang thought he was. In fact, he had already been prepared to cut off all ties with his sister Qin Shanshan since a long time ago. Unfortunately, he needed the Origin Locket that was in Qin Shanshan¡¯s possession in order to unlock the Arcane Realm. Thus, he knew that he could not afford to let Qin Shanshan perish.

    At the very least, he could not let Qin Shanshan perish before he managed to reforge the key to the Arcane Realm.

    That said, he knew that all of these were not things he could disclose to He Zhang at all. After all, the Arcane Realm was a highly coveted ce that everyone longed to gain ess to. He knew that if He Zhang learnt about this potential ess to the Arcane Realm, there was no way he would let Qin Lingyu or Qin Shanshan off alive. In other words, the day that He Zhang learnt of the Arcane Realm was also the day when the siblings¡¯ fate was sealed.

    It was evident that a like master begets a like disciple.

    Qin Lingyu drew a deep breath, before addressing the issue from a different perspective, ¡°She¡¯s still my sister after all...¡±

    ¡°Master knows that. I¡¯m not asking you to cut off all ties with your family.¡± He Zhang exined with a harmonious tone of voice, almost as though he did not bear any disdain for Qin Lingyu¡¯s lingering familial ties, ¡°How about this ¨C if Qin Shanshan insists on bringing that man back into the Sect, why not just let her?¡±

    ¡°But, master...¡± Qin Lingyu had never expected his master to just agree to Qin Shanshan¡¯s request. Qin Lingyu was still thinking of how he would use He Zhang to get rid of Jun Ziwen.

    ¡°Lingyu, if master personally makes a move against that man, perhaps Shanshan might hate you for the rest of her life. But, if he perished in the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, then there¡¯s no reason for her to me you at all. Do you understand what I¡¯m getting at?¡± He Zhang patiently broke down the gist of his suggestion.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes brightened, ¡°Master is saying...¡±

    ¡°Everyone passing through the Sect¡¯s protective formation array needs to carry the Dawn Sect¡¯s identity tokens with them. Otherwise, the formation array would attack them, and any trespassers might even find themselves trapped within the Sect¡¯s formation array and left to die alone. You¡¯ve got a few extra identity tokens with you on hand, right? You could pretend to allow that man to enter, but discreetly tamper with the identity token you hand over to him. Don¡¯t worry. Even if he were so fortunate to be able to breach the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation arrays, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that he¡¯s just but a single person. Do you think he¡¯ll be able to leave the Sect so easily? He might be strong, but is he stronger than the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders,bined?¡±

    As realization swept across Qin Lingyu, it also washed away the earlier darkened expression on his face.

    ¡°Disciple finally understands. Thank you, master!¡±

    ¡°Haha, you little brat. You¡¯re still far too young and inexperienced...hahahahaha...¡± Just as He Zhang¡¯s boisterousughter began to fade away from the Transmittance Talisman, a macabre smile began to creep up the corner of Qin Lingyu¡¯s lips.

    Jun Ziwen, you¡¯re dead!

 Chapter 281: Exchange of Identity Tokens, Qin Lingyuâ€™s Ploy

    <h4>Chapter 281: Exchange of Identity Tokens, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Ploy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Given Qin Lingyu¡¯s unrelenting personality, Jun Xiaomo had initially expected him to incessantlye up with different ways and means of obstructing Jun Ziwen¡¯s entry into the Dawn Sect. Unexpectedly, over the next few days, Qin Lingyu appeared to havepletely forgotten about this entire incident. He neither sought Jun Xiaomo for a ¡°heart-to-heart¡± discussion, nor did he insist that Ye Xiuwen leaves the entourage of Dawn Sect disciples. Apart from casting frigid, incisive nces at Ye Xiuwen from time to time, he did not appear to show any signs of making any other moves.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin as she eximed in her heart ¨C Something¡¯s wrong. I¡¯ve got to expect the unexpected. Just what in the world is Qin Lingyu scheming this time?

    With a mind full of suspicion, Jun Xiaomo followed the entourage as they finally arrived at the foot of the mountain where the Dawn Sect was located.

    As she looked at the dense and thick forest ahead of them, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes suddenly gleamed, and she finally though of what Qin Lingyu was nning. How could she have forgotten the fact that the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds were sequestered by a protective formation array?

    In the cultivation world, every single sect, whetherrge or small, would invariably be sequestered from the rest of the world by a protective formation array. The Dawn Sect was no exception to this either.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array was set up within the forest surrounding its grounds. As long as an outsider without the Dawn Sect¡¯s identity token enters the forest, they would find themselves trapped and lost within the domain of the protective formation array. In serious cases, they might even get attacked and lose their lives.

    Jun Xiaomo had always carried with her an identity token whenever she came and went from the Dawn Sect in the past. Thus, she had overlooked the fact that the forest outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds was none other than the protective formation array sequestering its grounds from the outside world. Additionally, she had spent thest three hundred and thirty years in the Proving Grounds, and her recollection of the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array had naturally be even fainter.

    That said, even though she was no different from a mere mortal in the disciplines of crafting spiritual tools or refining medicines, formation arrays and talismans were two fields of disciples which she was extremely confident with. After all, she would not be standing here if she had not thoroughly mastered all that her master and her great grandmaster had to teach her within the Proving Grounds over thest three hundred and thirty years.

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo had good reason to believe that the formation arrays within the Proving Grounds were far more formidable and fearsome than the meagre protective formation array of the Dawn Sect. At the same time, it was a fortunate thing that nobody knew of the Proving Ground¡¯s whereabouts. Otherwise, the mere prospects of being able to examine the peculiar, ancient formation arrays set up by her great grandmaster would be sufficient to entice throngs of ambitious cultivators to lead a crusade through the Proving Grounds, trampling it underfoot and tearing it apart.

    As Jun Xiaomo thought about these things, she began to sieve through the contents of Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring... What?! There¡¯s none?!

    She had initially thought that Qin Shanshan would carry a few spare identity tokens with her, given that she was travelling out of the Sect on an expedition. However, after searching through Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring for some time, she only managed to find a single identity token.

    Jun Xiaomo thought to herself in frustration ¨C Qin Shanshan¡¯s far too careless! Only one identity token? Isn¡¯t she afraid of the prospects of losing that single identity token and not being able to return to the Dawn Sect?

    After all, it was not like there was no precedent for such incidents. Some time ago, one of the disciples going out on the expedition had carelessly lost his identity token, and he ended up being trapped in the forest outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds for days on end. Then, when the Sect finally managed to locate him, he had already been so weary and worn out by the formation array that he was already on his final breaths.

    But how would Jun Xiaomo have known that the reasons for which Qin Shanshan had not brought spare identity tokens along with her? Apart from Qin Shanshan¡¯s firm belief that she would never lose her identity token, she did not think much of losing her identity token because she knew that her martial brothers travelling together with her would most certainly be carrying a few spare tokens with them as well. When that timees, all she had to do was to seize one of these tokens from her martial brothers, and everything would be alright.

    In any event, this was in line with Qin Shanshan¡¯s life principles of seizing things from others, and it was also the cause of her earlier downfall. If a person relentlessly seizes things from others, to the point where he starts to even take it for granted, there will most certainlye a time when everyone, including family, begins to turn their back on him, leaving him to fend for himself in the lurch.

    Qin Lingyu noticed how ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had been furrowing her brows as she searched through the contents of her Interspatial Ring. His eyes gleamed brightly, and he made his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, lowered his head and slowly asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Shanshan? Did you lose something? Do you need your brother¡¯s help to look for it, hmm?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes. Then, in the next moment as she lifted her head, she stered a perfect, hesitant expression on her face as she met Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze and murmured, ¡°Brother...I...I didn¡¯t bring my identity token.¡±

    Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows as he responded meaningfully, ¡°Did you not bring your identity token, or did you not bring a spare for your lover? You¡¯d only prepared one set of identity token for yourself, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    Qin Lingyu knew his sister very well. With her headstrong and reckless personality, it would be considered peculiar if she remembered to prepare two additional identity tokens before travelling out of the Sect. This was one of the main reasons why he was content setting up Jun Ziwen¡¯s demise in the forest outside the Sect.

    That¡¯s right. He sincerely believed that it was insufficient to merely trap Jun Ziwen within the formation array. His goal was to thoroughly vanquish Jun Ziwen whilst putting the me on the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    As for Qin Shanshan, Qin Lingyu knew, given her personality, that Qin Shanshan¡¯s infatuation for Jun Ziwen could very easily reced by another cultivator in no time. All that she needed was for the next cultivator to look decent and possess formidable strength. It just so happened that Jun Ziwen had fulfilled both of these criteria. That said, Jun Ziwen would be quite sorely mistaken if he expected Qin Shanshan to extend any form of sacrificial love to him.

    Qin Lingyu thought about all these things in his mind as a contemptuous smile crept up the corner of his lips.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo keenly picked up on all of Qin Lingyu¡¯s wicked expressions. She thought to herself ¨C Damn! This person is a sly, scheming fox! What should I do?

    Jun Xiaomo thought about the training that she had received in the Proving Grounds, before turning her attention to assess Jun Ziwen¡¯s ability to deal with formation arrays. There was undoubtedly a very low possibility that Jun Ziwen would be able to escape from the trappings of the Sect¡¯s protective formation array all on his own.

    Thus, having thought about these things, Jun Xiaomo made her resolve.

    She lowered her head and gripped her sleeves tightly as she stered a ¡°look of unease¡± on her face. Then, she mumbled to Qin Lingyu, ¡°Brother...you...do you have an identity token to spare brother Jun? I know you definitely carry some spares with you...¡±

    ¡°Hah. I knew you didn¡¯t bring any extra identity tokens. But why should I give that little lover of yours my spare identity token? I¡¯ve never epted or considered him as my brother-inw.¡± Qin Lingyu coldly retorted.

    ¡°You can¡¯t do this! We¡¯re already here at the foot of the mountain. Is brother still unwilling to approve of our rtionship?!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked up at Qin Lingyu with some measure of indignation. Her eyes were glistening with tears, and the rims of her eyes were red and puffy. She presented herself with an expression of humiliation, as though she were being wronged.

    ¡°Approval? Why should I approve of him? I don¡¯t know where hees from; and I don¡¯t know why he wants to enter the Sect. Yet despite all of that, he had even dragged my sister into bed with him without even making any form of promise or vow. Do you think he deserves any benefit of the doubt, hmm?!¡± Qin Lingyu presented himself as a good brother being protective of his sister.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand why Qin Lingyu seemed to be so adamant about standing in the way of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± and Jun Ziwen¡¯s rtionship when he did not even appear to possess any deep feelings of protectiveness for Qin Shanshan to begin with.

    Forget it. I shouldn¡¯t think about things I won¡¯t ever understand. Shelving these thoughts, Jun Xiaomo stiffened her neck and retorted with adamance, ¡°I don¡¯t care! If you don¡¯t allow him to enter the Sect, then I¡¯m going to stay right here with him. I¡¯ll never return to the Dawn Sect again!¡±

    Qin Lingyu red at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± with an outraged look. Momentster, he feigned disappointment as he sighed, saying, ¡°Forget it, forget it. I¡¯m partially to me for your current unruly personality. Had I known this was going to happen, I would never have spoilt you with so many things and given in to you all the time.¡±

    As Qin Lingyu spoke, he took out an identity token from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it to Jun Xiaomo.

    After receiving the identity token, Jun Xiaomo flipped it in her palm as she examined it. On a cursory nce, nothing was peculiar about it.

    After tossing the identity token to Jun Xiaomo, Qin Lingyu put on an expression of ¡°the heart isn¡¯t moved by what the eye doesn¡¯t see¡±, leading the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples back to the Sect and leaving Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen behind.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows, ncing at the stiff, blockhead-like Ye Xiuwen standing in the distance as she pouted, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything earlier? You don¡¯t have any spirit of cooperation at all.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled, ¡°Your acting was already on point and perfect. There was no reason for me to step in, was there?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rolled her eyes, withholding any furtherment on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier passiveness.

    ¡°Oh yes, this is for you.¡± Jun Xiaomo retrieved another identity token from Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring and tossed it to Ye Xiuwen.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen received it, he flipped the token to its back, ¡°Is this Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, asking, ¡°If I take Qin Shanshan¡¯s token, then what about you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the remaining identity token in her hands as she responded, ¡°See? I¡¯ve got the identity token given by Qin Lingyu.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen retorted with disapproval, ¡°Qin Lingyu¡¯s identity token might very well have been tampered with. Why are you holding on to that?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got to hold onto it precisely because it¡¯s been tampered with.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded matter-of-factly, ¡°I¡¯ve got a strong foundation in formation arrays and talismans ¨C do you have the same? Can you guarantee that you won¡¯t perish here in this forest if you hold onto Qin Lingyu¡¯s identity token?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions darkened, ¡°Even if that¡¯s the case, you shouldn¡¯t be holding on to that identity token. Hurry and change it with me!¡±

    ¡°Why are you being so obstinate about this, you blockhead?!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°I¡¯ve already told you that this is the best arrangement! If you hang onto Qin Shanshan¡¯s personal identity token, you¡¯ll be able to pass through the forest safely. On the other hand, even though holding onto this identity token that has been tampered with means that it would take slightly more for me to pass through the forest, I will still be able to leave this ce alive! Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?!¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t! I only know that you should take Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token because you¡¯re wearing Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity right now!¡± Ye Xiuwen insisted with a tone of voice that was growing cold and harsh.

    Jun Xiaomo was getting increasingly infuriated by Jun Ziwen¡¯s obstinacy. She suddenly had the urge of splitting open Jun Ziwen¡¯s head so that she could get her reasoning through that thick skull of his.

    As she red at Ye Xiuwen amidst their impasse, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart suddenly skipped a beat, and a bright gleam flickered across her eyes.

    Having known ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± for such a long time, Ye Xiuwen could roughly already tell from her impish expressions the thoughts on her mind, just like right now ¨C

    What is this little, crafty imp scheming right now?!

    As expected, in the next moment, Jun Xiaomo simply stuck out her tongue at Ye Xiuwen as she quipped, ¡°I¡¯ll give this to you if you can catch me.¡± As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo immediately pped a Windsail Talisman on her body and shot straight into the forest.

    This fe!!

    The veins on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s forehead immediately bulged out and throbbed. Then, in the very next moment, he picked up Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token and followed her straight into the forest.

    On the other side, as the Dawn Sect disciples walked on, they began to realize that Qin Shanshan and Jun Ziwen were not following them. They turned back and looked behind them a few times, only to find out that the path behind them appearedpletely empty; and not a single person could be seen, even in the distance.

    ¡°That...martial brother Qin, martial sister Qin seems to begging behind. Should we wait a little while for them?¡± One of the other disciples asked Qin Lingyu.

    Qin Lingyu paused in his steps and deliberated for a moment, before responding, ¡°Alright then. Let¡¯s wait for a moment. I wonder why they¡¯re dallying about behind.¡±

    Even though he spoke with a slightly impatient tone of voice, his face had a concerned expression stered all over it.

    The Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but sigh in resignation ¨C Martial brother Qin is always treating his sister Qin Shanshan so well. It¡¯s amazing that he hasn¡¯tined about her attitude and behaviour a single time. If anyone of us here had been given such a willful and spoilt little sister, our heart would have been overwhelmed with frustration by now.

    Over thest few days, their admiration for Qin Lingyu¡¯s patience and personality had only continued to grow, and they felt that Qin Lingyu was a caring and protective brother, concerned for his younger sister. On the other hand, they sincerely viewed Qin Shanshan as a martial sister that was far too willful and headstrong, and she was simply unappreciative of the treasure of a brother she possessed.

    A bright gleam shed across the depths of Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, and he quickly shut his eyes, concealing it from the rest of the disciples.

    Heh. It¡¯s not going to be too long before we hear news that Jun Ziwen has been trapped in the Sect¡¯s protective formation array...

 Chapter 282: Trapped in the Dawn Sectâ€™s Protective Formation Array!

    <h4>Chapter 282: Trapped in the Dawn Sect¡¯s Protective Formation Array!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen was a cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation with a wind-based spiritual root. Logically speaking, even if Jun Xiaomo applied a Windsail Talisman on herself, it should not have been a difficult thing for him to catch up to her.

    However, despite having chased after her for some time, he still lost sight of Jun Xiaomo altogether.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. Having searched for Jun Xiaomo everywhere, he then attempted to use a Transmittance Talisman to get in touch with Jun Xiaomo, but to no avail. For some strange reason, Jun Xiaomo seemed to have simply vanished amidst the thick foliage within the forest ¨C any message that he had attempted to send out through the Transmittance Talisman was like a tiny pebble that simply sank into the depths of the vast oceans.

    A sense of unease washed over his heart. Ye Xiuwen had intended to personally hold onto the identity token given by Qin Lingyu. In the end, not only had ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± denied him that opportunity, she had even vanished altogether. For all he knew, she might well already have been trapped by the Sect¡¯s formation array by now.

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced. After deliberating for another few moments, he began to muster the spiritual energy within his body and sprint towards Qin Lingyu and the rest.

    At this moment, only Qin Lingyu had the power to bring ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± out of the formation array. From his assessment of their rtionship, he knew that as long as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± true identity was not exposed, Qin Lingyu would never turn a blind eye to Qin Shanshan if she were trapped by the Sect¡¯s formation array.

    In the very same moment that Ye Xiuwen lost sight of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, Jun Xiaomo had simrly also noticed that Jun Ziwen, who had been hot on her tails, had simply vanished just like that.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and nced about her surroundings with vignce...

    Something¡¯s amiss. It¡¯s too quiet here. It¡¯s so quiet that I can¡¯t even hear a single sound ¨C even the winds have ceased blowing, and the rustling of the leaves have stopped.

    As expected, the identity token that Qin Lingyu had handed over to be given to Jun Ziwen had indeed been tampered with. She was now trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was already prepared for this. Truth be told, she was rather excited by the prospects of being trapped by the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array. This way, she would roughly be able to determine the level of the formation arrays used by the Dawn Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo slowly licked her lips as she released the restrictions binding her true cultivation level. Then, she released her divine sense into her surroundings, and her eyes gleamed with a sharp and eager gaze ¨C

    Bring it on, formation array! Let¡¯s see whether you can ovee me, or whether I can breach your defenses and subjugate you!

    On the other side, having waited for Qin Shanshan for an imensurably long time, Qin Lingyu had begun to grow impatient and annoyed.

    In his eyes, Qin Shanshan was simply a reckless, simple-minded little brat. As soon as she discovered Jun Ziwen¡¯s disappearance, she would most certainlye running to him for help. At that time, he would take charge of the Dawn Sect disciples, pretending to search high and low for Jun Ziwen for the next few days, before finally releasing the protective formation array on the veryst day in order to reveal Jun Ziwen¡¯s corpse.

    With that, no matter how upset Qin Shanshan was going to be, she would never be able to pin the me for Jun Ziwen¡¯s death on him. Then, over time, Qin Shanshan will gradually begin to forget the fact that she had ever met this man to begin with.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s calctions were very thorough. If his target was the real Qin Shanshan, while Jun Ziwen was none other than who he said he was ¨C a mere outsider that was a rogue cultivator, Qin Lingyu¡¯s ns would most certainly have seeded.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was not Qin Shanshan, and Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen already had Qin Lingyu dancing in the palm of their hands. Thus, things hardly went ording to Qin Lingyu¡¯s calctions.

    Just as Qin Lingyu began to grow impatient, intending to lead the entourage of Dawn Sect disciples back down the path they came from to search for Qin Shanshan and Jun Ziwen, he noticed a figure speeding straight towards them.

    Then, as soon as he noticed that the figure wore Jun Ziwen¡¯s characteristic clothes, Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart immediately sank, and a bad premonition surfaced at the forefront of his mind.

    As expected, as soon as Jun Ziwen stopped in front of him, his expressions were incredibly sullen and dark, and Jun Ziwen cast a prating, frigid gaze on Qin Lingyu ¨C

    ¡°Just what did you do to the identity token you gave Qin Shanshan?¡± Ye Xiuwen bellowed harshly.

    Yet Qin Lingyu¡¯s gaze was equally frigid as he rebuffed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s allegations, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. What do you mean by that?¡±

    ¡°Stop acting, Qin Lingyu. If not for the fact that you¡¯d tampered with the identity token, why would Shanshan disappear like that?¡± Ye Xiuwen barked back, particrly emphasizing the fact that Qin Shanshan had disappeared.

    ¡°What?! Martial sister Shanshan has disappeared?!¡± The other Dawn Sect disciples eximed as their eyes widened. They evidently had not expected Qin Shanshan to disappear into the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s expressions turned a sickly green and a pale white. How could he have expected his perfect ns to have such a massive loophole to it?

    What he failed to consider was the fact that Qin Shanshan would hand her own identity token to Jun Ziwen and instead personally use the identity token which Qin Lingyu had given to her. He had indeed tampered with the identity token. To make matters worse, he knew that there was not a single chance that Qin Shanshan would be able toe out of the Sect¡¯s protective formation array alive given her present abilities.

    ¡°And what about you? Why are you holding onto Shanshan¡¯s identity token instead of using the one that I had given to Shanshan to be handed to you? Did you threaten her or coax her into handing her own identity token over to you, huh?!¡± As soon as Qin Lingyu considered the prospects that Qin Shanshan would perish, which in turn meant that his key to the Arcane Realm would vanish ordingly, a fiery inferno of indignation immediately consumed all measure of rationality in his mind.

    He couldn¡¯t resist the urge to cast aspersions back onto Ye Xiuwen. Yet, while he did so, he implicitly also admitted that he had in fact tampered with the identity token.

    Ye Xiuwen coldly responded, ¡°When you tampered with that identity token, you should already have expected something like this to happen. Anything you say right now is useless. If we dally any longer, Qin Shanshan might really perish in the formation array and never return.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tone of voice was incredibly calm and stoic. It was only through his tightly clenched fists and his slightly trembling hands that one could tell the amount of anxiety and fear on his heart right now.

    He did not know why he would experience such an intense anxiety and fear, but he knew that these emotions were consuming him ¨C if something really happened to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, he would never be able to pull himself back from the darkness that was consuming him right now.

    Nothing must happen to her! Nothing!

    On the other hand, the simrly concerned and anxious Qin Lingyu hardly had any heart to observe Jun Ziwen¡¯s reaction and expression right now. Jun Ziwen¡¯s words had reminded him that there was no time to lose right now ¨C they needed to make haste if they were to rescue Qin Shanshan.

    Even though Qin Lingyu was able to tamper with the identity tokens, he had no means of essing and rescuing anyone trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. Thus, he was left with no choice but to seek his master and the Sect Elders for assistance, in the hope that they would be able to rescue Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Shanshan hated Qin Shanshan¡¯s idiocy; and he was at the same time incredibly frustrated by his own carelessness that was resultant from his eagerness to seed. This was the only reason why Qin Shanshan had slipped straight through the massive loophole in his ns.

    After sending an urgent message to He Zhang and the Sect Elders of the Dawn Sect, Qin Lingyu instructed the rest of the disciples to remain where they were and await the arrival of the Sect Leader and the Sect Elders.

    Thus, everyone began to pick their spots in the forests as they sat down to rest.

    Truth be told, not a single one of the disciples could be bothered with Qin Shanshan. If Qin Shanshan ended up with an undesirable oue after exchanging her identity token with the one that Qin Lingyu had handed to her, it was her own problem ¨C she had courted her own doom and demise.

    Furthermore, when they turned their minds to consider how Qin Lingyu had tampered with the identity token, several disciples couldn¡¯t help but sigh with resignation as they shook their heads.

    Schemes don¡¯t pay. After all, there¡¯s bound to be a day when the schemes end up biting the schemer in the ass.

    Qin Lingyu immediately retrieved Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket and held it tightly in his hands as he gazed into the distant with a darkened expression ¨C

    Qin Shanshan. Don¡¯t you die on me now!

    Time trickled by slowly. Jun Xiaomo had already been trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array for one whole hour by now. During this period of time, Jun Xiaomo had already experienced several ¡°gifts¡± prepared by Qin Lingyu for Jun Ziwen.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes as she brandished the whip in her hands. As the spirit beasts pounced towards her, she struck the spirit beast with her whip that was immting with an intense, fiery ze. A single strike was all it took to split the skin of the spirit beast.

    Roar! The spirit beast bellowed. The excruciating pain from itsceration caused it to fly into a fit of frenzy.

    The most peculiar thing about all of this was how the injuries inflicted by Jun Xiaomo on the spirit beast healed at such a speed that it could be seen by the naked eye. In fact, despite the fact that its injuries hadpletely healed, the spirit beast¡¯s frenzied state meant that its abilities had increased by a whopping onefold!

    The spirit beast roared again as it pounced at Jun Xiaomo. However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nimble reflexes meant that it had time and again failed to connect any of its attacks.

    ¡°Tch. Is that all you¡¯ve got? You¡¯re a far cry from some of the spirit beasts I¡¯d encountered in the past!¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly. It was unclear whether Jun Xiaomo were mocking the spirit beast in front of her right now, or whether she was mocking the sorelycking ¡°gifts¡± that Qin Lingyu had prepared for her.

    After ¡°teasing¡± the spirit beast for a little bit more, Jun Xiaomo retrieved an Origin Thunderbolt Talisman from her Interspatial Ring and shot it straight into the spirit beast¡¯s abdomen.

    She had earlier already discovered that no matter how the spirit beast attacked her, it would never allow her to get anywhere close to the upper right portion of its abdomen. Thus, she had reason to believe that this was the spirit beast¡¯s most vulnerable spot on its entire body.

    Just as she had thought, as soon as the Origin Thunderbolt Talisman exploded on the upper right portion of the spirit beast¡¯s abdomen, it let out a miserable cry. Momentster, its massive body flopped over and copsed onto the ground,pletely lifeless.

    Jun Xiaomo walked over to it and swept her gaze across its entire body. In the depths of the pool of blood and gore where the heart of the explosion earlier was, she noticed the core of the spirit beast peeking out from where the spirit beast¡¯s heart had earlier been.

    Jun Xiaomo made a grabbing motion, and the saffron-coloured core appeared in her hand just like that.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Jun Xiaomo stored the spirit beast¡¯s core into her Interspatial Ring, shut the spirit beast¡¯s eyes for it, before moving on.

    She had nearly figured out thews of this formation array. If she had another one hour¡¯s time, she would even be able to unlock and alter the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array on a fundamental level. At that time...

    Qin Lingyu waspletely unaware that he had just trapped such a dangerous opponent within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. At this point in time, he was still stressing over how he was going to rescue ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± in the shortest time possible. How could he have known that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was still well alive and kicking, and she was even nning to help the Dawn Sect refurbish its protective formation array?

    As Qin Lingyu and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s anxiety continued to escte, He Zhang and the Sect Elders finally arrived.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Did that brat Shanshan get trapped by the Sect¡¯s protective formation array?¡± The Second Elder got straight to the nub of the issue as he sized up Ye Xiuwen. He had noticed that this was the only person around that was not a Dawn Sect disciple ¨C But why does his aura and disposition seem so familiar?

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d hoped that the Sect Leader and the distinguished Sect Elders could lend disciple a hand and rescue Shanshan. She¡¯s disciple¡¯sst surviving kin...¡± Qin Lingyu spoke with an anxious tone of voice, inadvertently interrupting the Second Elder¡¯s intense gaze on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    A long time had passed since hest sent out the message, and he could no longer suppress the anxiety in the depths of his heart. Even though the Origin Locket in his hands had not continued to crack further, Qin Lingyu was nevertheless incredibly worried that everything would be lost in the very next moment.

    ¡°Lingyu, you¡¯ve got to pull it together. Shanshan is the Dawn Sect¡¯s disciple after all. There¡¯s no reason that we wouldn¡¯t be rescuing her.¡± He Zhang patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder as he assured him.

    ¡°Thanks, master...¡± Qin Lingyu gave a polite fist and palm salute, before he discreetly stored Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket back into his Interspatial Ring.

    He could not afford to let He Zhang discover the Origin Locket¡¯s existence. Even if He Zhang was unaware that the two Origin Lockets could be forged into a key to an Arcane Realm, Qin Lingyu simply couldn¡¯t afford to take any such risks.

    His only hope was that with the arrival of his master and the various Sect Elders, Qin Shanshan could be rescued post-haste.

    Unfortunately, the Fifth Elder immediately dashed his hopes in the next moment ¨C

    ¡°Unfortunately, the Sect¡¯s protective formation array cannot simply be deactivated and reactivated. Rescuing that little brat Shanshan isn¡¯t going to be easy, and it¡¯s going to take some time. We can only hope that the little brat Shanshan can hold out until then.¡± The Fifth Elder sighed.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart sank, and he hurriedly asked, ¡°Fifth Elder, how much time does she need?¡±

    ¡°With your master and us Sect Elders around, we will need approximately three hours¡¯ time...¡± The Fifth Elder did a quick estimation of the total time needed.

    Three hours¡¯ time...will Qin Shanshan still be alive after three full hours...? Everything in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes began to fade to ck. He felt as though the ns that he had clung to for such a long time were on the brink of going to waste.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen also reacted with a gasp, and he suddenly stood up ¨C This won¡¯t do! I¡¯ve got to find ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±! I can¡¯t just sit here and wait for her to perish within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array!

 Chapter 283: Ye Xiuwen Throws Himself into the Fray

    <h4>Chapter 283: Ye Xiuwen Throws Himself into the Fray</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array was first established by a well-renown array master many years back. Back then, the array master had left with his remuneration as soon as he was done setting up the entire protective formation array he had beenmissioned to, leaving the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders with only the method for deactivating and reactivating the formation array

    Several hundred years have passed since then, and the Dawn Sect had continued to use the same protective formation array to date. Whenever the Sect Leaders or Sect Elders handed the mantle of authority to their sessors, they would in a simr fashion also hand over the know-how to deactivating and reactivating the formation array. This was to enable their sessors to prevent or mitigate incidents like the one that had urred today, when Dawn Sect disciples unwittingly stumbled into and get trapped within its protective formation array.

    Since it was a massive formation array, the method to deactivate and reactivate the formation array was naturally not simple. He Zhang and the other Sect Elders each retrieved a scroll from their own Interspatial Rings, opened them up and began to piece them together.

    Then, He Zhang ced his palm on the center of the opened scrolls and began to recite an ancient mnemonic. An intense, bright light shone, and the scrolls melded into each other, forming a massive diagram. It was only at this moment that everyone realized what the scrolls had just be.

    As it turns out, it was only when the individual scrolls werebined together would it be a massive formation diagram that was filled withplex inscriptions and lines drawn all over it.

    In fact, the formation diagram was soplex that it dazzled the eye! How could an array master possibly think about and process all these details?! The Dawn Sect disciples couldn¡¯t help but exim in their hearts.

    As soon as the formation diagram wasplete, He Zhang turned once again to Qin Lingyu and asked, ¡°Lingyu, do you have anything with you belonging to Shanshan? It¡¯s fine as long as it carries Shanshan¡¯s lingering aura on it.¡±

    Qin Lingyu was slightly taken aback by the sudden question. As soon as he came to his senses, he began to rummage through his Interspatial Ring.

    In the end, apart from the Origin Locket, he could not locate a single other object that bore Qin Shanshan¡¯s aura. It couldn¡¯t be helped ¨C he did not consider Qin Shanshan a dear sister of his to begin with.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he retrieved the Origin Locket and handed it to He Zhang.

    ¡°Origin Locket?¡± After receiving it, He Zhang reflexively weighed it in his hands.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s an Origin Locket. This was something that our parents had left to us. Shanshan has one, and I¡¯ve got one as well. My Origin Locket is with Shanshan, while Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket is with me. Our parents had intended for us to support and help each other in our path of cultivation.¡± Qin Lingyu exined to He Zhang.

    He Zhang nodded his head, acknowledging Qin Lingyu¡¯s exnation. The Origin Locket were not a spectacr treasure in any event, and he was hardly interested in learning any more about it.

    That said, he did notice some slight cracks on the surface of the Origin Locket that he had just been handed, and a strange thought flickered across his mind.

    After deliberating for a moment, He Zhang shelved his thoughts and ced the Origin Locket at the heart of the formation diagram anyway. Then, together with the other Sect Elders, they each took their position at five different spots around the formation diagram.

    It had to be mentioned that this formation diagram did not represent the entire protective formation array. After all, the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array was set up across the entire forest surrounding the Dawn Sect, while the formation diagram merely represented the key to deactivating and reactivating the entire formation array.

    In fact, He Zhang did not intend topletely deactivate the entire protective formation array. With Jun Linxuan and the other members of the Heavenly Peak prowling about in the dark and scrutinizing the Dawn Sect¡¯s movements with their watchful eyes, it was imprudent, to say the least, to deactivate the entire protective formation array just so that they could rescue a single disciple of the Sect. They could not risk presenting Jun Linxuan and the members of the Heavenly Peak such a prime opportunity for them to slip into the Dawn Sect just like that.

    That said, there was another way that could allow them to rescue Qin Shanshan apart from shutting down the entire protective formation array ¨C with this formation diagram, they were empowered to open a path between the formation array¡¯s domain and the outside world, and make that path avable to a specific, select person. This was also why they needed an artefact with Qin Shanshan¡¯s aura on it.

    Thus, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders began to circte their spiritual energy and send it straight into the formation diagram. They even began to mutter in unison some ancient mnemonic as they continued to do so.

    One incense stick of time passed...two incense sticks of time passed...three incense sticks of time passed...gradually,rge beads of sweat began to form on the foreheads of He Zhang and the other Sect Elders. Yet despite all of that, the formation diagram remainedpletely still and showed no signs of change.

    The Dawn Sect disciples who were standing some distance away began to exchange nervous nces as they thought to themselves ¨C Is this really working?

    Approximately one hourter, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders opened their eyes ferociously and furrowed their brows as they adjusted their spiritual energies once more.

    ¡°Master, how was it?¡± Qin Lingyu ran over and inquired for updates.

    ¡°Something¡¯s not right.¡± He Zhang furrowed his brows.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart began to roil with intense emotions as a grave premonition surfaced in his mind.

    ¡°Earlier, your master and the other Sect Elders had attempted to open a path in the heart of the formation array so that your sister could leave the domain of the formation array and return to the outside world. However, despite searching for an hour, we¡¯d not been able to locate a single trace of your sister in the formation array. Are you certain that this Origin Locket belongs to your sister?¡±

    ¡°How could this be...this is indeed Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket. I¡¯ve got one, while Shanshan¡¯s got one as well. There¡¯s no mistake about it.¡± Qin Lingyu spoke affirmatively.

    After hesitating for a moment, a thought struck him, and Qin Lingyu supplemented his earlier response, ¡°Master, Shanshan did encounter a strange incident during her earlier travels, and there were some peculiar changes to her Origin Locket as a result. I wonder if that¡¯s got anything to do with this?¡±

    ¡°Are you talking about the cracks on your sister¡¯s Origin Locket?¡± He Zhang picked up the Origin Locket and took a closer examination on it.

    ¡°It¡¯s exactly that. There¡¯s also the Origin Locket¡¯s luster, which has also faded substantially. Master, do you know what might have caused all these changes to the Origin Locket?¡±

    ¡°Your master doesn¡¯t have a very deep understanding of the way Origin Lockets work. However, I do vaguely recall hearing that these symptoms will surface on an Origin Locket if its owner suffers grievous injuries or gets embroiled in a scheme.¡±

    ¡°Embroiled in a scheme?! Does this mean that back when Shanshan was trapped in the peculiar part of the wilderness without any means of leaving that ce, she might well have been plotted against there and then?!¡± Qin Lingyu gritted his teeth as he eximed, ¡°It could very well have something to do with the man who has been travelling together with her!¡± As he finished speaking, he turned around, intending to demand an answer from Ye Xiuwen. In the end...

    ¡°Where¡¯s he?! Where has Jun Ziwen gone?!¡± Qin Lingyu bellowed at the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples. However, after exchanging sheepish nces, the Dawn Sect disciples all lowered their heads as they grew taciturn.

    They had earlier been so entranced by the formation diagram that none of them even realized that Jun Ziwen had already disappeared.

    ¡°I knew that this man had ulterior motives for following us back to the Dawn Sect! That¡¯s just great! He might have made use of the fact that everyone was distracted earlier to slip into the innermost part of the Sect right now!¡± Qin Lingyu exploded with fury. He wanted nothing more than to ventte all of his anger and frustrations on Jun Ziwen right now.

    If not for Jun Ziwen, his stupid sister would not have been trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array right now.

    ¡°Lingyu, calm yourself down. So what if he¡¯s slipped into the innermost part of the Sect? He¡¯s just a single person. Do you think he¡¯d be able to cause any chaos on his own?¡± He Zhang calmly exined, ¡°Ah Cheng.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Leader.¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples immediately ran over and bowed obsequiously to He Zhang.

    ¡°Take the other Dawn Sect disciples and head back to the Sect first. There, I want you to ry my instructions to everyone tob through every part of the Sect and see if there are any suspicious persons who had infiltrated the Sect. Give particr attention to the innermost parts of the Sect.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Leader.¡± The disciple who had just received his instructions immediately led the rest of the disciples as they hurried on their way back to the Sect.

    As soon as the other disciples left, He Zhang once again turned his attention to Qin Lingyu. As soon as he noticed Qin Lingyu¡¯s tightly knit brows, he patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Your sister¡¯s Origin Locket appears to be fine. This proves that she¡¯s not encountered any life-threatening situation within the protective formation array just yet. Your master still has other methods of bringing her out. Don¡¯t be too anxious.¡±

    ¡°Master has other methods?!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart instantly leapt with joy as his spirits perked up once more.

    ¡°To be exact, master has one other method, but this method would require disciple¡¯s cooperation.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not an issue. What does master need disciple to do?¡±

    ¡°Master can create a safe passage and send you into the formation array. Once you locate your sister, you¡¯ll bring her out from the same way which you hade from.¡±

    Qin Lingyu was slightly taken aback by the suggestion, and some measure of hesitation surfaced in his heart ¨C even if He Zhang had given his assurance that the passage would be safe, he was still going to enter the formation array. Furthermore, none of the Sect Elders present were experts in the discipline of formation arrays, so how would he have any assurances that there would not be any unforeseen circumstances or incidents urring within the formation array?

    After all, weren¡¯t they unable to locate Qin Shanshan earlier? What would happen if he entered the formation array, an unforeseen circumstance or incident urs, and it turns out that he could no longer leave the formation array?

    The hesitance in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes did not escape He Zhang¡¯s keen gaze. However, He Zhang was hardly anxious at all. After all, he could hardly care less whether Qin Shanshan lived or died. He had only been pretending to be concerned because she was his disciple¡¯s sister.

    After deliberating for some time, Qin Lingyu steeled his resolve and made up his mind ¨C High risk, high reward. Compared with the potential risks and dangers within the protective formation array, the prospects of securing the key to the Arcane Realm is far more important. If Qin Shanshan perishes within the formation array right now, all of my ns would have gone to waste.

    After thinking things through, Qin Lingyu turned to He Zhang and nodded his head resolutely, ¡°Master, I¡¯ve thought about it. Let¡¯s do as you¡¯ve suggested. Shanshan is my sister after all. I can¡¯t sit idly by and allow her to die like that.¡±

    As Qin Lingyu spoke, he made certain to reveal a sorrowful and pained expression on his face, as though he were incredibly concerned about Qin Shanshan¡¯s safety.

    He Zhang sighed as he patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder once more, ¡°Sigh, disciple. I¡¯ve always said that you possess far too much emotional baggage. Since you¡¯ve already made up my mind, then let master do all he can to lend you a hand.¡±

    As He Zhang spoke, he made a grabbing motion in the air, and Qin Lingyu felt a strong wind rush past his head. In the next moment, several strands of his hairnded on He Zhang¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Since I¡¯m going to open a path for disciple, it¡¯s important to hang onto something with your aura on it. This is why master has taken a few strands of your hair. If disciple thinks that this amount of insurance isn¡¯t sufficient, you can leave something else behind for master¡¯s safekeeping.¡±

    Qin Lingyu treasured his own life more than anything, and he was more than willing to go out of his way to preserve his own life and safety.

    Thus, he immediately retrieved his identity token from his Interspatial Ring and handed it to He Zhang as he queried, ¡°Master, would this be enough?¡±

    ¡°This is the best, since it possesses a drop of your blood over and above its strong retention of your aura.¡± He Zhang nodded his head, before setting Qin Lingyu¡¯s identity token, together with his hair, onto the heart of the formation array.

    Then, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders began to circte their spiritual energy and direct it into the formation diagram once more. As they increased the amount of spiritual energy suffused through the formation diagram, it began to float into the air and spin slowly.

    Momentster, a rift suddenly opened up in front of Qin Lingyu. The domain within the riftprised of scenery that seemed to stretch on endlessly into the horizon that waspletely different from the surroundings within the forest.

    Qin Lingyu clenched his fists and drew a deep breath. Then, with immense indignation and frustration directed at Qin Shanshan, he walked straight into the rift.

    As soon as I locate this disobedient sister of mine, I¡¯m most certainly going to give her a good fixing up!

    After Qin Lingyu stepped into the rift, it immediately closed up. However, the formation diagram continued to hover in mid-air as it spun slowly...

    On the other side, mistaken by everyone to have entered the innermost part of the Sect, Ye Xiuwen had just found his way back into the heart of the forest. There, he scrambled to search for any traces of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± who had vanished just like that.

    As he released his divine sense, Ye Xiuwen discovered that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± aura seemed to have vanished in a particr location.

    After searching about its vicinity for a bit to no avail, Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a moment, before retrieving Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token.

    It was this token that enabled him to avoid the snare of the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array, allowing him to enter these forests to begin with.

    He knew that if he continued to hold onto Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity token, he would never be able to ascertain ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± whereabouts. After all, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was holding onto an identity token that had been tampered with, and it was more likely than not that she was already trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array by now.

    Having thought about these things, he opened up his palm and flipped it around, and the identity token on his palm fell onto the ground.

    As soon as he dropped the identity token, Ye Xiuwen saw a thick, roiling fog begin to rise and enter his field of vision. Slowly but surely, the fog grew thicker and thicker...

    Ye Xiuwen knew that the protective formation array had already begun to draw him into its domain.

    He knew that this was an incredibly risky and potentially even dangerous move to make. However, he simply couldn¡¯t stand by idly as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± remained trapped within the protective formation array.

    After all, his abilities were slightly stronger than ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± abilities. If they cooperated, they should have a better chance against the formation array, right?

    With such thoughts in mind, Ye Xiuwen found his way into the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    Having spent the better part of thest hour or two on her ¡°refurbishments¡± to the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, Jun Xiaomo sat, resting on the ground within the domain of the formation array. She intended to stay there for a little while longer before returning to the physical world.

    During this time, she knew that she would have toe up with a reasonable exnation why she managed to escape the protective formation array¡¯s entrapment so that she could quell any suspicions from the Dawn Sect disciples. Otherwise, they might begin to point fingers at her.

    Jun Xiaomo sat cross-legged on the ground and began to y a tune on a de of grass. If the others who had been searching high and low for Qin Shanshan saw her idle and rxed expression right now, they might very possibly spit out a mouthful of blood in rage.

    Jun Xiaomo was seated on the heart of the formation array right now.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo appeared to be idling about, the truth of the matter was that she was observing everything that was happening within the formation array¡¯s domain through the heart of the formation array right now.

    She had already modified the formation array to serve her own purposes. In other words, as long as she remained at the heart of the formation array, the entire protective formation array would be under her control. Thus, she had not spared any expenses when she sacrificed a considerable amount of valuable resources within her Interspatial Ring to make modifications to the protective formation array.

    She firmly believed that it would all be worth it. After all, the sly old foxes within the Dawn Sect had always held the firm belief that the Sect¡¯s protective formation array was an impregnable fortress keeping out any dangers. If they wake up one day and discover to their horror that all of the disciples of the Dawn Sect had been trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array...

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up with a wicked smile. She eagerly anticipated the arrival of that day.

    Just then, she discovered that another person had just entered the formation array. In fact, it was not just a single person!

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and as she wondered ¨C I wonder if the intruders are friend or foe?

    As she mulled over her question, Jun Xiaomo began to release her divine sense. Under the amplification of the heart of the formation array, she could very clearly ¡°see¡± the two figures that had just entered the formation array ¨C

    One was Jun Ziwen, while the other was Qin Lingyu.

    Interesting...interesting... Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow as she mischievously rubbed her chin. Who would have expected both of them to enter the formation array at the same time? From the looks on their faces, it was evident that they had bothe looking for her.

    In fact, she had somewhat expected Jun Ziwen toe chasing after her like that. After all, she could tell that Jun Ziwen was a virtuous man of principle, and he was most certainly not the sort to live on while others sacrificed their lives for him.

    As for Qin Lingyu...Jun Xiaomo found it slightly puzzling why he would do this. After all, she could tell that there was hardly any care or concern for Qin Shanshan within Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. However, Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions had time and again suggested otherwise.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo found Qin Lingyu¡¯s uncharacteristic actions extremely puzzling and bewildering.

    Forget it. I should make my appearance known for now. At the very least, I can¡¯t let Jun Ziwen continue to worry over my safety.

    Jun Xiaomo stood up and dusted the dirt and grass off her palms before leaving the heart of the formation array as she slowly made her way towards where Ye Xiuwen was located.

 Chapter 284: Ye Xiuwen Falls into An Illusion

    <h4>Chapter 284: Ye Xiuwen Falls into An Illusion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Amidst the roiling white fog, Ye Xiuwen released his divine sense and walked forward silently and gingerly.

    Visibility was so bad that he was unable to even see the fingers on his own outstretched arm. The surroundings were deathly silent ¨C there were no sounds of rustling leaves with the wind, and there was no chirping of the crickets or cooing of the birds. In fact, one could hardly even hear his own footsteps in this peculiar ce.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that he had undoubtedly already entered the domain of the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array. That said, his understanding of formation arrays was limited, and he did not know exactly what awaited him within the formation array.

    Then, the white fog gradually dissipated, and an exit seemed to open up ahead of him. Thus, Ye Xiuwen began to walk through the opening. An intense bright light shone, and he discovered that he had just been transported to a rather familiar ce.

    This is...

    ¡°Martial brother Ye!¡± A clear, crisp voice rang out from behind. Ye Xiuwen immediately turned around ferociously and saw ady dressed in a faint pink skirt skipping into his scope of vision.

    ¡°Xiaomo...?¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils constricted as he transfixed his gaze on thedy.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, what¡¯s the matter? Why do you appear so shocked to see me?¡± Thedy in pink stretched out her hand and waved it about in front of him.

    He immediately grabbed hold of her wrist. Intense emotions could be seen roiling ferociously in the depths of his eyes, as though they were slowly escting into a massive hurricane.

    ¡°You¡¯re Xiaomo?!¡± Ye Xiuwen barked, spitting out each syble with aplex gaze in his eyes. There was no longer any coolness or cidity to his voice. Rather, it seemed very much like he was suppressing something within him.

    ¡°Ow...martial brother, you¡¯re using too much strength. It hurts.¡± Thedy in pink pouted her lips and furrowed her brows with a slight measure of displeasure.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes flickered, before he slowly loosened his grip around her wrist.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen let go of her wrist, thedy in pink began to rub the parts that had already begun to turn red. As she rubbed her wrist, she began to mutter under her breath, ¡°Martial brother Ye, you¡¯re kinda strange today...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze remained deep and abstruse. He took one step forward, before cing his palm gently on thedy¡¯s head, just as he had done so many times in the past.

    Thedy in pink lifted her head and stared back at him with some measure of bewilderment in her eyes. Then, almost as though she had thought of something, she smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Martial brother Ye, you must¡¯ve been too excited because you¡¯ve not seen me for far too long, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Her bubbly eyes glistened faintly in the warm radiance of the sunlight, making them seem like the brightest of stars scattered throughout the night sky. As Ye Xiuwen gazed into her eyes, he was momentarily dazzled by the brilliance of her expression.

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced as he refocused his eyes. Then, slowly, his gaze shifted down thedy¡¯s tender, white cheeks and paused on the luscious pink lips.

    His heartstrings twinged lightly as he continued to gaze at her. Then, his long arm slid down from the top of thedy¡¯s head, following the lines of her beautiful cheeks, until he finally stopped at where her lips were.

    Almost as though he waspletely enthralled, Ye Xiuwen bent over and motioned towards thedy in pink.

    Thedy¡¯s fair cheeks began to flush with a gentle red hue. She stretched out her hands and grabbed tightly onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes, but she did not push him away.

    Then, as Ye Xiuwen gradually drew closer, she fluttered her long, beautiful eyshes at him with some measure of bashfulness.

    Finally, when Ye Xiuwen¡¯s breath were but a few centimeters away from thedy, he suddenly paused. She could already feel the warm breath from his nostrils on her face.

    ¡°Even though you look a lot like her, you¡¯re still nothing more than an illusion. You¡¯ll never be able to rece the real her.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice resounded in her ears, thedy in red widened her eyes in astonishment. She looked back up, straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen backed away from thedy in pink once more. He smiled at her again. However, there was some measure of bitter astringencycing his smile this time, ¡°If she were still alive, she would no longer be merely fifteen or sixteen years-old anymore.¡±

    In fact, he had already known from the onset that thedy who had appeared were nothing more than an illusion. However, despite knowing that truth, he had still been unable to repress the urge to get closer to her.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice echoed out, the tactile sensation on his hand suddenly vanished, and the image of thedy in pink began to blur and fade into the surroundings.

    Gradually, his surroundings were enshrouded with the white fog once more, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze began to be obscured and blurred by the fog...

    ¡°Strange. Why hasn¡¯t he woken up yet? I¡¯ve already let him sniff the essence of the Soul-Awakening Grass a few times...¡± A voice muttered to herself beside Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Then, with a groan, Ye Xiuwen began toe to as he slowly opened his eyes once more.

    ¡°Eh? You¡¯re finally awake...¡± A blurry figure entered the scope of his vision. It took him a few moments to regain sufficient rity of mind to recognize the person staring back at him with wide eyes.

    ¡°Tong...Miss Tong?¡± Ye Xiuwen found it a little strange, because he noticed that thedy staring at her was squatting down. Then, it took him yet another few seconds to register the fact that he was lying on the ground. He didn¡¯t even know when he hadid down on the ground like that!

    ¡°Hmph! I¡¯ll say. I¡¯ve told you to go on with the identity token I¡¯d given you, yet you insist oning back to look for me. See what happened to you? You were almost trapped forever in the protective formation array¡¯s illusion earlier!¡± The pink-garbed ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± muttered with disapprobation under her breath.

    Ye Xiuwen curled his lips into a wry, weary smile as he responded, ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. I couldn¡¯t just stand there and watch Miss Tong get trapped in the Sect¡¯s protective formation array without doing anything either.¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright. I know you did this out of the goodness of your heart.¡± Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips as she flicked the Dogtail Straw in her hands. Then, her eyes gleamed as she waved it in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s nose, ¡°Do you have the strength to get up now?¡±

    ¡°Achoo...¡± Ye Xiuwen let out a small sneeze. He felt rather exasperated by ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± childish, impish behaviour. However, when he looked straight back at her, he could only see a pleased look in her eyes.

    With a lighthearted chuckle, Ye Xiuwen discovered that the earlier sullenness apanying the illusion he had just seen had dissipated quite substantially. Then, when his strength began to return to his body, he mbered up to his feet and massaged his limbs as he patted the grass and dirt off his body, ¡°I¡¯m thinking, given Miss Tong¡¯s proficiency with formation arrays, you must know what we¡¯ve got to do to leave this formation array, right?¡±

    The surroundings still appeared to be rather peculiar, so Ye Xiuwen was almost certain that they were still trapped within the domain of the Sect¡¯s protective formation array right now.

    ¡°Hmph! Of course I do! How can such a simple formation array confound me?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her chin and boasted pridefully.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled at her amusing expression, and he curled his lips into a smile as he shook his head helplessly.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo stretched herself and immediately stood up, but her legs buckled slightly. ¡°Ahh!¡± She cried as she lost her bnce and fell forward.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen stretched out his arm and caught her with his quick reflexes.

    In that moment, Jun Xiaomo could feel that she had been enveloped by a cool, refreshing aura. In turn, this aura was something that seemed incredibly familiar to her.

    She suddenly grabbed hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves. Her pupils flickered vigorously, and she almost let slip a reflexive question that had arisen in the heat of the moment ¨C Are you martial brother Ye?

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± A voice called out from above Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, breaking her train of thought and jolting her back to her senses.

    In the very next moment, she remembered that she still had duties and responsibilities to fulfil right now. In any event, there was no rush if she really wanted to determine his true identity. After all, there was still the agreement with Jun Ziwen. On the other hand, if she failed to urately guess his identity and instead disclosed her own through her insipid questions instead, she might risk jeopardizing her ns to rescue the Heavenly Peak martial brothers of hers.

    Thus, she fervently suppressed the urge to blurt out the question for Jun Ziwen, shook her head and responded, ¡°Nothing much. I¡¯d just been squatting down for too long, and my legs are numb.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. For a moment there, he was almost certain that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± spirits had dipped substantially.

    ¡°Do you need to take a rest before we continue on our way?¡± Ye Xiuwen lent Jun Xiaomo a hand as he asked softly.

    With her head hung low, Jun Xiaomo shook her head somewhat listlessly.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ye Xiuwen warmly asked, wondering why her spirits had fallen so much.

    Once more, it urred to Jun Xiaomo that when this man in front of her softened his tone of voice andced it with some measure of warmth, his disposition and aura became an almost exact replica of her martial brother Ye¡¯s...

    She bit down on her lower lips as she furiously suppressed the chaotic thoughts wreaking havoc in her mind. Then, she looked back up with a grimace as she muttered, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. Time¡¯s of the essence. We should be on our way...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen understood that the real cause was tied to something that she could not speak of just yet. Or perhaps, something which had urred earlier was tugging at her heartstrings right now.

    ¡°Alright. If you¡¯re really upset about something, you can consider speaking about it as well.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder. He discovered that he had a soft spot for thisdy who seemed rather simr to his little martial sister.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head. Then, suddenly, her spirits perked up once more as she furrowed her brows, ¡°Somebody¡¯s nearby.¡±

    ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°Shh...¡± Jun Xiaomo put her finger to her lips as she softened her voice, ¡°It should be Qin Lingyu. I¡¯d almost forgotten about him.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s here as well? I presume he¡¯s here to look for Qin Shanshan, right?¡±

    ¡°That should be the case. But I do find it strange. I don¡¯t think he bears such deep feelings of concern for his sister. Why would he do so much to ascertain that Qin Shanshan is alive?¡± Jun Xiaomo remarked with disdain.

    ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s just because they¡¯re brothers and sisters.¡± Ye Xiuwen shrugged.

    ¡°No, brother Jun, you don¡¯t understand Qin Lingyu. Apart from himself, there¡¯s nothing else in his heart that¡¯s worth his time and efforts. The day that he develops affection for his kin is the day that the sun rises from the west.¡± Jun Xiaomo refuted contemptuously.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s harshments, and a trace of perplexity arose in his heart.

    ¡°You...seem to hate Qin Lingyu?¡±

    ¡°Hate? I wouldn¡¯t say that. He¡¯s an inconsequential person to me. At best, you can say I dislike him very much.¡± Jun Xiaomo explicated with a frigid expression. She seemed apletely different person than before.

    ¡°Inconsequential person huh...but...it seems like you¡¯re rather familiar with him?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned around and looked at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo nced back at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s inquisitive gaze as she shrugged it off, ¡°I¡¯ve done my research on him. Can¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Is that so...¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled to himself, but he knew better than to press the issue.

    ¡°Shh...soften your voice. He¡¯sing over.¡± Jun Xiaomo did a shushing gesture once more. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen released his divine sense, and he also discovered Qin Lingyu¡¯s approach.

    Jun Xiaomo nced about at the surroundings, before she suddenly pointed towards the tallest tree nearby as she quipped, ¡°You¡¯re a wind-based spiritual cultivator, right? Are you able to fly up there?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head, ¡°I could do that. Why do you ask?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows. A mischievous glint could be seen in her eyes as she responded, ¡°Take me along and fly up there. Then, we¡¯ll perch at the highest point and watch a good show.¡±

    ¡°A good show?¡± Ye Xiuwen paused for a few moments, before he chuckled lightheartedly, ¡°Alright.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he put his arm around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder and flew up to the highest branch of the tallest tree nearby.

    Thus, as Qin Lingyu followed ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± residual aura and finally arrived at the spot that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had been just moments ago, he was greeted by nothing more than a bunch of dried leaves on the ground...together with the ¡°weing gift¡¯ that Jun Xiaomo had prepared for him.

 Chapter 285: Qin Lingyuâ€™s Madness, Key to the Arcane Realm

    <h4>Chapter 285: Qin Lingyu¡¯s Madness, Key to the Arcane Realm</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Therge tree selected by Jun Xiaomo had sturdy branches, a thick foliage, and such a massive trunk that it would require five grown men with outstretched arms if they were topletely hug the circumference of the tree.

    As theyid on one of the tree¡¯s branches and peeked through its dense foliage, Jun Xiaomo could make out Qin Lingyu¡¯s ink-ck hair. She could tell that Qin Lingyu hade all this way in order to search for Qin Shanshan.

    Qin Lingyu looked about at his surroundings, hoping to locate any traces of Qin Shanshan. Unfortunately, his efforts were in vain.

    ¡°What are you thinking of doing?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± with a hushed voice. Jun Xiaomo turned around with a finger on her lips ¨C ¡°Shh...¡±

    She blinked with a crafty expression in her eyes. Then, she stretched out her hand and snapped once in mid-air.

    Pak!

    As the snap echoed through the otherwise still and silent air, a thick fog began to fill thends below, obscuring the surroundings and blurring their vision.

    ¡°This is...¡±

    ¡°This is a formation array within a formation array. It¡¯s also the illusion-inducing formation array that had earlier trapped and stumbled you. However, I¡¯ve already taken the liberty to alter this formation array slightly to increase its effects.¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her chin slightly and curled her lips into a mischievous smile. She looked almost like a proud little cat that was brandishing its ws, bragging about the fish it had just stolen.

    That said, such a prideful expression was hardly hateful. In fact, it could even be considered...rather adorable?

    As he gazed into the expression that was vastly different from what the original Qin Shanshan could ever disy, Ye Xiuwen felt a wave of realization wash across him ¨C It¡¯s still that same face even if the person within has changed. How could their expressions be so vastly different? After all, the original Qin Shanshan had only incited feelings of hatred and thoughts of distancing himself; but the present ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±...

    Truth be told, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to hate her right now.

    As soon as she discovered that Jun Ziwen was slightly distracted, Jun Xiaomo nudged him slightly and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you still trapped within that earlier illusion?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately returned to his senses and smiled faintly, ¡°Nothing much.¡±

    ¡°When someone says ¡®nothing much¡¯, he always means ¡®there¡¯s something much¡¯.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded affirmatively, causing Ye Xiuwen to feel like bothughing and crying. ¡°Come to think of it...I¡¯m pretty curious as to what you¡¯d seen in the illusion earlier. When I discovered youpletely dazed on the ground, you were making an expression that seemed to be both joyful as well as sorrowful.¡± Jun Xiaomo quipped curiously.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression immediately darkened, and his gaze grew deep and abstruse.

    Even after a long time, he couldn¡¯t find the words to answer Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question.

    The atmosphere had turned slightly awkward as a result of the earlier question. However, Jun Xiaomo decided to break the awkward silence as she patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Alright, alright, I know you don¡¯t want to talk about it. Let¡¯s not talk about it then. I won¡¯t ask about it anymore. Oh yes, that illusion is designed to surface the memories that are buried deepest within a person¡¯s heart and create an environment that the victim desires to see the most. If there¡¯s something that you really desire, you have to work hard at it, alright? Life is too short for regrets!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo volunteered some words of advice to her partner in crime.

    Something that I really desire... Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes looked slightly dazed.

    He thought about the kiss that he had nearly nted on her lips. Had it not been a mere illusion, would he have gone all the way?

    A resolute, affirmative response echoed softly in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Unfortunately, his heart feltpletely empty and miserable because he didn¡¯t even know whether that person was still alive or not...

    ¡°Brother! You¡¯ve finallye to get me, huh?¡± A clear voice resounded from below them, interrupting Ye Xiuwen¡¯s train of thoughts.

    Ye Xiuwen looked down and was slightly taken aback by the sight that unfolded.

    Another Qin Shanshan?

    ¡°That¡¯s just an illusion.¡± Jun Xiaomo minced her way towards Ye Xiuwen as she whispered into his ear.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warm breath tickled his ear, causing him to recoil slightly and avoid the close contact with Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t Miss Tong just say that the illusion would create an environment that the victim desires to see the most? Howe we¡¯re able to see the illusion that is seen by Qin Lingyu?¡± Ye Xiuwen leaned to the side as he asked.

    The brash and sometimes simple-minded Jun Xiaomo glossed over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s little gestures. Instead, she raised her chin slightly and spoke with a bright glint in her eyes, ¡°With me here, do you think there¡¯s anything we can¡¯t do with formation arrays?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly, ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right. Miss Tong had also messed with us all in a simr fashion earlier, huh? Trapping us in a ce and then watching us struggle while you roll on the ground,ughing at our predicament.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly as she pointed back down on the ground at Qin Lingyu, ¡°Let¡¯s keep watching the show.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled once more as he shook his head helplessly.

    Under the tree, Qin Lingyu was conversing with the second ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± that had been created by the formation array. As they kept their divine senses released and trained on their surroundings, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were able to clearly pick up the contents of their conversations.

    ¡°Are you saying that...you¡¯ve already broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation?¡± Qin Lingyu looked at Qin Shanshan with a glint in his eyes.

    Qin Shanshan was evidently very pleased as she replied, ¡°That¡¯s right, brother. I¡¯d not expected that as well. It turns out that the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array has other functions as well. I got bored after being trapped for such a long time, so I decided to sit down and start meditating. Unexpectedly, I discovered that my cultivation speed in here was much quicker than my normal cultivation speed outside the formation array. Thus, I managed to breakthrough to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation in no time.¡±

    ¡°Is that so? Give me your hand. Let me take a look.¡± Qin Lingyu instructed Qin Shanshan.

    Without any hesitation, Qin Shanshan stretched out her arm. Qin Lingyu held Qin Shanshan¡¯s hand tightly and began to release a thread of his own spiritual energy, sending it swimming through her meridians and Dantian.

    She¡¯s really broken through...

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes instantly gleamed with a maddened joy and delight!

    If Qin Shanshan has broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, doesn¡¯t this mean that our Origin Lockets can already bebined and fused into one?!

    ¡°Ahh...brother, it¡¯s hurting. Why are you using so much strength!¡± Qin Shanshan cried out in pain. She felt as though her wrist were about to be snapped by Qin Lingyu¡¯s vice-like grip.

    It turns out that Qin Lingyu had failed to control his strength in all his excitement, and he had nearly inadvertently crushed Qin Shanshan¡¯s wrist.

    He immediately released Qin Shanshan¡¯s wrist. At this moment, his eyes suddenly darkened, and the depths of his pupils appeared hazy and murky, as though it were concealing something that could never be revealed to the world.

    ¡°Shanshan, do you have brother¡¯s Origin Locket with you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got it with me. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°Could brother take a look at it?¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s voice had suddenly be incredibly harmonious, as though he were a concerned brother looking after his younger sister.

    As she watch the entire scene unfold, Jun Xiaomo could hear the fishy undertones hidden in Qin Lingyu¡¯s voice.

    For some strange reason, a peculiar thought surfaced in her heart, and she had an inkling of what Qin Lingyu was trying to do. But is this really possible? It¡¯s his own dear little sister...

    The illusory Qin Shanshan created by the formation array did not possess even the most basic cognitive functions that human beings did. Instead, it would simply y along and do anything that its victim, Qin Lingyu, desired most. Thus, without any hesitation, she immediately retrieved her brother¡¯s Origin Locket from her Interspatial Ring and handed it over to Qin Lingyu.

    Then, as soon as Qin Lingyu received the Origin Locket with his own hand, a long, sharp spirit sword ferociously plunged through Qin Shanshan¡¯s chest.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s hand could be seen firmly gripping the hilt at the other end of the sword.

    Qin Shanshan¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief, ¡°Brother...why...¡±

    ¡°Because I¡¯ve already had enough of you.¡± Qin Lingyu calmly stated. At this moment, there was only a cold, frigid gaze left in his eyes.

    Qin Shanshan copsed onto the ground with her eyes wide open. Even on her deathbed, she still couldn¡¯t believe that her own brother would murder her.

    She had died with a remaining grievance.

    Qin Lingyu held his own Origin Locket in one hand. Then, he retrieved Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket from his own Interspatial Ring, squatted down, and ced it directly on the gaping wound on her chest.

    The blood on the wound had not coagted yet. As soon as Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket touched the liquid blood on her chest, the blood immediately adhered to it. Momentster, a bright, red light shone intensely, and Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket turned a striking, blood-red hue.

    Then, he began to treat his own Origin Locket in the exact same manner. Naturally, he did not plunge a sword through his chest. Instead, he cut open a wound on his palm and dripped a drop of his own blood on his Origin Locket.

    Within moments, his Origin Locket also began to turn a striking, blood-red hue.

    Finally, Qin Lingyu put both Origin Lockets together. Within moments, waves of red light began to shine, and the two began to fuse together.

    ¡°Interesting...interesting.¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked her chin as she thought aloud.

    ¡°What¡¯s interesting?¡± Ye Xiuwen discovered from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions that she was ruminating about Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions.

    ¡°The items on Qin Lingyu¡¯s hands are called Origin Lockets. I¡¯d seen something like this in Qin Shanshan¡¯s Interspatial Ring as well. However, I¡¯d always thought that Origin Lockets could only be used to tell whether a person was dead or alive. From Qin Lingyu¡¯s actions right now, it seems that they serve another purpose as well. Let¡¯s watch and see.¡±

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, the Origin Lockets in Qin Lingyu¡¯s hands began to transform and meld together. Finally, they became apletely new locket.

    Qin Lingyu ran his finger along the surface of the locket for a little bit. Then, with a crisp click, the locket opened and revealed a secretpartment within it.

    From this secretpartment, Qin Lingyu went on to retrieve a silken cloth from it. Then, as he opened up the silken cloth, a diagram could be clearly seen on its surface.

    ¡°Hahahahaha...¡± Qin Lingyu threw his head into the air as heughed madly, ¡°I¡¯ve finally got my hands on the key to the Arcane Realm! Hahahahaha...¡±

    Qin Lingyu looked like he had just gone insane. The revolting expression on his face made Jun Xiaomo rub her nose in disgust.

    How blind must she have been in her previous life to have fallen for such a fiend like Qin Lingyu? This man was even willing to kill his own biological sister!

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was unable to appreciate what Qin Lingyu was holding in his hands right now, ¡°Key to the Arcane Realm?¡±

    ¡°The silken cloth on Qin Lingyu¡¯s hands should be a formation diagram that can be used to open an Arcane Realm. This is why it¡¯s called a ¡®key to the Arcane Realm¡¯.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined.

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head in realization. He had initially thought that such a ¡°key¡± would be like the physical keys that mortals used. In any event, he would never have thought that such a key would be in the form of a formation diagram.

    ¡°Hmph. Qin Lingyu must have been dreaming about obtaining this key for such a long time. Unfortunately for him, he¡¯ll probably never be able to revel in the joy of having the key anymore. Qin Shanshan is already dead, and the Origin Locket in his hands right now is nothing more than a useless piece of junk.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly as she stared at Qin Lingyu.

    As she watched how Qin Lingyu presented a twisted, macabre smile on his face, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but furrow her brows in disgust.

    Then, a wicked smile crept up the corner of her lips. She raised her hand and snapped once more.

    A light breeze swept across the surroundings gently, causing the trees around to start swaying to the rhythm of their rustling leaves. Within moments, a fog began to creep up over the surroundings once more.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s maddenedughter suddenly seized up. This was because Qin Shanshan¡¯s corpse had suddenly vanished, and the piece of silk with the formation diagram had vanished like a wisp of smoke.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?! Where¡¯s my Arcane Realm key?!¡± Qin Lingyu immediately acted like a maddened demonic beast, scrambling about, trying desperately to retrieve that piece of silk that had been in his hands just moments ago.

    Jun Xiaomo allowed herself to indulge in Qin Lingyu¡¯s panic and anxiety for a little while more. Then, she flicked her sleeves, and five talismans appeared over Qin Lingyu¡¯s head, forming yet another formation array.

    ¡°Pfft. You¡¯re going crazy already? That was just the starter. The main dish is going to be served shortly!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo calmly articted with a soulless, frigid gaze in her eyes. At this moment, her gaze was so incisive that it appeared to prate Qin Lingyu¡¯s body and stab straight through his soul.

 Chapter 286: Qin Lingyu Gets Frightened and Faints

    <h4>Chapter 286: Qin Lingyu Gets Frightened and Faints</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Qin Lingyu was truly on the brink of going mad. Anyone would go mad if he had craved something for an immeasurably long time before finally obtaining it, yet only to witness it vanish in smoke in the very next instant.

    Where was Qin Lingyu¡¯s suave and dignified appearance right now? His eyes were bloodshot, akin to a wild beast thrashing about after discovering that it had been trapped. He was scrambling about, looking for the formation diagram that had disappeared just like that. If there was anyone else who did not know the cause for his rage around right now, they might even suggest that he was experiencing a demonic upheaval.

    In fact, the demons in his heart were indeed on the brink of tipping Qin Lingyu over the precipice and into the abyss of a demonic upheaval.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly, and she flicked her sleeves from the tree. Instantly, some gold-coloured powder gently drifted down andnded on Qin Lingyu¡¯s body.

    Under the effects of the gold-coloured powder, Qin Lingyu began to calm down andpose himself once more.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo had not done this for Qin Lingyu¡¯s good. The only reason why she had lent Qin Lingyu a helping hand topose himself and pull himself back from the abyss of a demonic upheaval was only so that he could retain his rity of mind to relish the far more fearsome and dreadful incidents toe.

    Once he managed to rpose himself, Qin Lingyu discovered that the white fog around him had once again thickened substantially, and he immediately discovered that something was wrong. However, before he could put a finger on it, an earsplitting beast¡¯s roar rang out just beside his ear - ROAR!!!

    In the instant that the cry rang out, the surroundings trembled. Qin Lingyu¡¯s head throbbed and his eyes spun. He felt as though something had hammered directly on his brain several times, and his eardrums began to ring. It was as though a wave of stupefaction had swept over and suffused through his entire being.

    Just then, a sharp wind seemed to sweep straight towards him, and Qin Lingyu reflexively twisted his body and dodged a potentially fatal strike from this mysterious force.

    As soon as he regained his footing, he immediately shook his head vigorously as he attempted to shake off the stupor. Then, as soon as he lifted his head, he saw an incredible astonishing and dreadful sight ¨C a spirit beast that was eight-storeys high, almost akin to a small mountain, stood squarely in front of him, staring at him with an intent look to devour as saliva dribbled from the orifice where its mouth seemed to be.

    Each of its clear, yellow eyes wererger than Qin Lingyu¡¯s entire body. When they gazed transfixed at Qin Lingyu¡¯s body, it sent chills down his spine ¨C particrly when he did not know what kind of creature this was to begin with. His knees buckled, and he copsed onto the floor like a coward.

    ROAR!! The monster bellowed again. Then, it opened its mouth wide as though it was about to swallow Qin Lingyu¡¯s entire being with one massive gulp in the very next moment.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s pupils constricted. He could no longer care less about the key to his Arcane Realm right now. He turned around and scrambled for a retreat desperately, while the strange-looking spirit beast continued to pursue him relentlessly, swiping at him from time to time, sending a shower of dust and dirt over his body. Even his hair had been swept and tussled about into an incredibly disheveled state.

    However, if anyone else were present right now, they would quickly discover a strange phenomenon ¨C despite the fact that Qin Lingyu appeared to be running furiously, and the spirit beast appeared to be chasing fervently, they were nevertheless unable to leave the domain of the Pentastar Array hovering overhead.

    From the look of things right now, both Qin Lingyu and the spirit beast appeared to be bound within the domain of the Pentastar Array, and the resultant sight was incredibly peculiar from the perspective of onlookers ¨C slightly tragic, but mostlyical.

    Jun Xiaomoughed so much that she was practically in tears and rolling over. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had supported her by her shoulders, she might very well have fallen off the tall tree!

    Although Ye Xiuwen was much calmer and steadfast than Jun Xiaomo was right now, he was unable to suppress a little smile from creeping up the corner of his lips either.

    ¡°What kind of a creature is that? Why does it look so peculiar?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had seen innumerable several spirit and demonic beasts during his time in the Death¡¯s Gorge. That said, after taking a closer and more thorough examination of the spirit beast chasing Qin Lingyu, he ascertained that this was a spirit beast which he had never seen before.

    ¡°This spirit beast? Its name is ¡®Illusory Fiend¡¯, and it¡¯s a spirit beast that can only live within an illusion created by a formation array. It will die as soon as it leaves the formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she exined.

    ¡°There¡¯s such a thing?¡± Ye Xiuwen had just learnt something new.

    Jun Xiaomo floated a nce towards Qin Lingyu as she smirked proudly, ¡°But of course. There are so many strange and peculiar things in this vast world out there; it¡¯s quite a normal thing not to have heard about these creatures. Have you heard of the Night Mare? It¡¯s a spirit beast thattches onto a cultivator through his dreams to absorb his spiritual energy and vitality. Those who find themselves haunted and entrapped by Night Mares would invariably find themselves lethargic and weary throughout the entire day. If the problem is allowed to persist, the cultivator might experience a drop in his cultivation level, or even die.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen found it remarkable that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was so knowledgeable, and he couldn¡¯t help but remark, ¡°It¡¯s amazing just how much Miss Tong knows; even your grasp of formation arrays and talismans are incredible. I imagine it mustn¡¯t have been an easy road learning about these things, right?¡±

    ¡°But of course. Thisdy has trained in her master¡¯s formation array for well over three hundred years. Wouldn¡¯t I naturally be formidable after such a long, arduous training?¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her chin as she boasted of her achievements proudly.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Three hundred years... He had thought that thisdy before him was but a youngdy. Who would have thought that their respective age differed by one entire digit?

    For some strange reason, Jun Xiaomo understood what Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar expression meant. She coughed dryly and pointed back at Qin Lingyu sheepishly, ¡°Let¡¯s continue watching the show instead. He¡¯s putting on a good showing, huh? Hahaha...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo continued to chuckle in a rather contrived manner. That said, she managed to shift Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention away from his astonishment at the revtion of her age.

    On the other side, a little while after He Zhang and the Sect Elders sent Qin Lingyu into the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, they also began to discover that something was wrong.

    Logically speaking, once Qin Lingyu enters the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, his location in the formation array would show up via an indicator on the formation diagram in front of the Sect Leader and all of the Sect Elders. However, no matter how hard they looked, they could not locate a single trace of this indicator at all.

    In fact, when He Zhang attempted to use his special Transmittance Talisman tomunicate with Qin Lingyu several times, his efforts were entirely in vain, and all of his messages elicited no response at all.

    It was as though Qin Lingyu had just vanished within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. Put differently, Qin Lingyu might very well have be trapped within the formation array.

    He Zhang furrowed his brows. Qin Lingyu was his First-Seat Disciple that he had so painstakingly groomed and nurtured, and he possessed the potential to seed He Zhang as the next Sect Leader. How could he afford to allow Qin Lingyu to encounter such a tragic incident like that? It would be too much of a waste if Qin Lingyu perished here and now.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s Grand Elder looked at the formation diagram meaningfully, before he finally spoke up and made his conjectures known, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that...our Sect¡¯s protective formation array has been altered by someone.¡±

    ¡°What?! How is that possible? Who would possess such abilities to alter our Sect¡¯s protective formation array?!¡± The Fifth Elder was the most hot-tempered one among all of them, and his eyes instantly widened with disbelief.

    ¡°I can¡¯t be sure of that...but I¡¯d only made such a conjecture because I can¡¯t think of any other possibility apart from that.¡± The Grand Elder spoke with an enigmatic look on his face.

    ¡°This...then shall we contact and consult the array master who set up this formation array for us right from the onset?¡± The Fifth Elder scratched his head and furrowed his brows as he suggested.

    ¡°It¡¯s already been several hundred years; how can we possibly locate him anymore?¡± The Second Elder replied with a somber expression on his face.

    ¡°Then, what do we do?¡±

    ¡°The only thing we can do right now is to see if there¡¯s any array master in the vicinity that we can get in touch with, and let¡¯s hope that they¡¯re willing to make the trip down to have a look.¡± The Grand Elder sighed in resignation.

    Just as the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader and Sect Elders were discussing which array master they could potentially call upon, Jun Xiaomo was also just about done with teasing Qin Lingyu.

    That¡¯s right ¨C teasing. Jun Xiaomo had never intended to kill Qin Lingyu to begin with. After all, if He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple were to perish within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, he would most certainly seek out and investigate any suspicious persons in his rage. In turn, she would find it far more difficult to move about in the dark and carry out her ns.

    Thus, from the onset, she had only intended to let Qin Lingyu experience some hardship and ¡°savour¡± the feeling of being at his wits¡¯ end.

    That said, it would be quite uncharacteristic of Jun Xiaomo to simply allow Qin Lingyu to returnpletely unharmed. So, she pped her hands, and the spirit beast that had been chasing and toying with Qin Lingyu immediately pounced onto him, opened its mouth and bit down ferociously upon Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°Arrgghhhh!¡± Qin Lingyu cried out in pain, and his neck stiffened. Under the confluence of his intense fear, anxiety and excruciating pain, Qin Lingyu finally passed out.

    Roar! The spirit beast released Qin Lingyu, tilted its head and blinked its eyes as though it was curious why Qin Lingyu was suddenly renderedpletely motionless.

    As Ye Xiuwen observed the actions of the Illusory Fiend, it suddenly dawned upon him that the ferocious and vicious looking spirit beast appeared to...possess some human-like features as well?

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled. With one leap, she hopped off the tallest branch of the tree. Ye Xiuwen looked at her in horror. Just as he was about to reach out and attempt to grab hold of her, he realized that she had alreadynded safely on the floor.

    With a skip in her step, Jun Xiaomo made her way over to where Qin Lingyu was. Seeing this, Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and followed her as well.

    Roar! As soon as it noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s approach, the Illusory Fiend roared and pounced straight towards her. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spirits immediately tensed up. Just as he was about to step in front of Jun Xiaomo to protect her, Jun Xiaomo calmly patted his shoulder and shook her head, tacitly assuring him that there was no need to be so anxious.

    In the next moment, the Illusory Fiend leapt onto Jun Xiaomo and both of them copsed onto the floor. Then, it used its massive, furry head and began to nuzzle against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body as it purred.

    ¡°Good boy, good boy!¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked its head in response, causing the Illusory Fiend to be even more excited.

    ¡°This is...¡± Ye Xiuwen walked towards the peculiar sight in shock. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo turned around and smiled radiantly as she exined, ¡°This Illusory Fiend is something that I had personally brought up! I call him ¡®Little Illu¡¯.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen once again sized up the towering creature that was almost eight-storeys tall as he echoed with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Little Illu?¡±

    He had particrly emphasized the word ¡°little¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed twice dryly as she retorted, ¡°It likes to be called that anyhow! Isn¡¯t that right, Little Illu?¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed the Illusory Fiend¡¯s ears, causing it to purr in delight. Then, as though it were responding to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier question, it roared obsequiously ¨C Roar!

    ¡°Good boy~~¡± Jun Xiaomo patted its head once more.

    ¡°Oh yes, didn¡¯t Miss Tong say that the Illusory Fiend can only survive within an illusion?¡± Ye Xiuwen looked at the Illusory Fiend on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body that was behaving like arge dog as he asked curiously.

    ¡°Uh-huh. That¡¯s why I¡¯d created a cage using an illusion-generating formation array before calling him out.¡± Jun Xiaomo stroked Little Illu¡¯s head as she responded cidly.

    ¡°Illusion-generating formation arrays can be used as cages as well?¡± Ye Xiuwen had begun to realize the extent of his ignorance in front of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± right now.

    However, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± age and experience were a form of constion to him ¨C they were almost three hundred years of age apart after all.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and looked at Jun Ziwen once more as she quipped, ¡°What¡¯s so strange about that? There are countless other creative ways that formation arrays can be used. Learn well, young man.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo eximed, she stood up, extended an arm and patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm as a senior would to a junior.

    In fact, she had intended to pat Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder. Unfortunately, given how tall Ye Xiuwen was, she was unable to reach it, and she could thus only settle for the arm.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback by her serious attitude. Momentster, he lowered his head, not knowing whether tough or cry in response as he uttered, ¡°Alright, alright. Thanks for the enlightenment.¡±

    ¡°Tch. This child is worth teaching.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head before pping her hands, adding, ¡°Alright, it¡¯s about time to clean up the mess. We can¡¯t leave such arge man lying here, blocking the way.¡± As she finished speaking, she began to make a series of hand seals as she mouthed some mnemonics on her lips.

    The Illusory Fiend stood up and howled again before rubbing its face on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms in an endearing manner. Momentster, a bright blue light shed intensely, and the five talismans that were floating overhead in mid-air once again returned to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. At the same time, the Illusory Fiend vanished into thin air.

    ¡°Could it be that the Illusory Fiend is living within those five talismans?¡± Ye Xiuwen questioned out of curiosity.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted a finger and wagged it in response, ¡°No-no. Those talismans only serve to provide it with some nutrients. It¡¯s currently living within my Interspatial Ring.¡±

    ¡°Living within your Interspatial Ring?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s simple. You can do it as long as you draw an illusion-generating formation array within the Interspatial Ring.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded cidly with a matter-of-factly voice, making it sound like something as simple and ubiquitous like having a meal.

    Ye Xiuwen was momentarily rendered speechless. The extent of his ignorance was growing ever more stark right now, and he couldn¡¯t help but wonder whether everyone who had lived for over three hundred years would possess the same level of insights and experience that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± possessed, or whether this was something particr to array masters of her age.

    If he learns that the age of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± soul were far more than just three-hundred years-old, perhaps his reaction might be quite different from what it was now.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo squatted down, stretched out her finger and began to poke and prod at Qin Lingyu.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Qin Lingyu groaned. He was still lying on the ground when he finally awakened to waves after waves of excruciating pain.

    Jun Xiaomo was currently prodding the wound on his shoulder.

    As soon as Qin Lingyu began to stir, Jun Xiaomo immediately retracted her finger and stered an innocent look on her face as she stared at Qin Lingyu.

    The first thing that entered Qin Lingyu¡¯s field of vision was a blurry pink figure. Then, after some time, his eyes gradually began to regain some focus, and he finally noticed the identity of the person standing in front of him.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan?¡± Qin Lingyu was momentarily taken aback. His gaze suddenly grew sharp and frigid as he eximed, ¡°You¡¯re Qin Shanshan?!¡±

    Anyone who had just witnessed a person ¡°die¡± before his very eyes would most certainly get chills down his back if he sees that same person alive and kicking in front of him in the very next moment. This was exactly what Qin Lingyu was experiencing right now.

    Jun Xiaomo tilted her head as she responded in a perplexed fashion, ¡°Brother, don¡¯t you recognize me anymore?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s entire body was aching, while the wound on his shoulder was sending the most excruciating pain echoing throughout his entire body. At the same time, it was this very wound which was testament to the fact that he had not been in a dream earlier.

    What in the world is going on? If the earlier monster were real, then what about Qin Shanshan? Haven¡¯t I already killed her? Qin Lingyu¡¯s thoughts were aplete mess right now.

    ¡°Brother, what¡¯s the matter? You were already lying here when I discovered you earlier.¡± Jun Xiaomo lied through her teeth.

    ¡°You were the one who found me?¡±

    ¡°More urately speaking, ¡®we¡¯ were the ones who had found you.¡± Jun Xiaomo sincerely nodded her head.

    Qin Lingyu had just realized that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± waspletely unharmed right now.

    ¡°You...you¡¯re alright?¡± Qin Lingyu reflected once again on how the identity token which was meant to be handed over to Jun Ziwen had been tampered with. If Qin Shanshan had indeed been trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array for such a long time, it didn¡¯t make sense that she waspletely unharmed.

    Is this person really Qin Shanshan? It wouldn¡¯t be another illusion, would it?

    Jun Xiaomo had already noticed the suspicion and hesitance in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes. Thus, she lifted her chin and nced proudly at Ye Xiuwen as she quipped, ¡°Your sister has a knight in shining armor protecting her. Of course she would be alright!¡±

    Qin Lingyu followed ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± line of sight and turned his attention to Jun Ziwen as he stood silently beside ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. Instantly, his gaze turned even frostier as he barked, ¡°What are you doing here?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately stood up and grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm as she red straight back into Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, ¡°Brother, why are you being so fierce?! If not for brother Jun, we¡¯d both be dead right now!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced discreetly at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± with a peculiar expression in his eyes. He had never expected her to give him all the credit for their ¡°safety¡± right now.

    Jun Xiaomo turned towards Ye Xiuwen and blinked meaningfully at him.

    However, Qin Lingyu simply turned a blind eye to their open exchange of meaningful gazes. After all, his heart was filled with inexplicable frustrations and resentment right now. After all, he hade all this way to rescue Qin Shanshan, only to discover that his sister waspletely fine, while he, on the other hand, had tarnished his own reputation by fainting in the middle of nowhere.

    Qin Lingyu had selectively forgotten his original intention for rescuing Qin Shanshan entirely.

    He red coldly at Ye Xiuwen as he derided, ¡°Hmph. Ridiculous! He¡¯s helped us? Without him, we wouldn¡¯t even be trapped in this formation array to begin with. Everything that has happened today had been caused by this person!¡±

    Qin Lingyu unleashed all of his anxiety and frustrations from the earlier events on Ye Xiuwen. He didn¡¯t find his behaviour unreasonable at all; and he hardly believed that making such allegations would only cause others to lower their assessment of a First-Seat Disciple like him.

    Right now, rather than conceding that Jun Ziwen was innocent, he would sincerely rather insist on his perspective, even if that perspective were as unreasonable as insisting that the sun was going to rise from the west tomorrow!

 Chapter 287: He Zhang and Qin Lingyuâ€™s Grasp on the â€œTruthâ€

    <h4>Chapter 287: He Zhang and Qin Lingyu¡¯s Grasp on the ¡°Truth¡±</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Enough! Brother, you¡¯ve never been able to show any evidence that brother Jun is a bad guy! How can you simply base everything off your own intuition and determine that he possesses ulterior motives?!¡±

    Turning his attention back to his incensed ¡°sister¡±, Qin Lingyu grew even more exasperated as he coldly rebuked her, ¡°Well done, Qin Shanshan. Your feathers aren¡¯t even fully grown and mature, and yet you¡¯re already sticking out your head for outsiders. Why can¡¯t you use your useless brain for once and think for yourself ¨C can there really be anything as coincidental as this?! Within a few days of meeting him, you¡¯d found yourselves trapped within the peculiar part of the wilderness, only to be saved by this man. And now, after arriving at the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds, and before we¡¯d even stepped through the Dawn Sect¡¯s gates, he¡¯s put on such a good show to make you fall head-over-heels in love with him. How can incidents like a prince charming rescuing a damsel-in-distress happen time and again like that? Besides, do you think that the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array is something that¡¯s just for show?!¡±

    ¡°When all is said and done, everything that you¡¯ve just said is nothing more than your own conjectures!¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted without yielding any ground.

    ¡°Conjectures?! Hah, Qin Shanshan, let me tell you something ¨C I¡¯d only been able to enter this ce with the assistance of my master and the other Sect Elders. In fact, even after they had all worked together to create a safe passage for me, I still fell prey to the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. If this man here doesn¡¯t possess any hidden and concealed abilities, how could he possibly remain unscathed? How do you think he had located you in such a short time and kept youpletely safe?!¡± The more Qin Lingyu said, the more he was convinced he was right, and the more his suspicions towards Jun Ziwen burgeoned.

    Jun Xiaomo had the urge to roll her eyes right now ¨C It¡¯s only because you¡¯re too weak! That¡¯s how you ended up being toyed by me without even realizing it!

    However, Jun Xiaomo knew that she had to keep these things to herself. As ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, she knew that she could not afford to make any expression that was uncharacteristic to her present identity.

    Looking straight at the infuriated Qin Lingyu, Jun Xiaomo was content with simply rubbing more salt into his wounds.

    ¡°Brother, you can¡¯t be so unreasonable! Your own inability had caused you to fall prey to the formation array, but that doesn¡¯t mean that others would possess such inabilities as well. In fact, I was that close to being swallowed alive by a spirit snake earlier. If not for the fact that brother Jun arrived just in the nick of time to rescue me, you wouldn¡¯t even be seeing me right now! And look at how you¡¯ve repaid his gesture of goodwill? Quite apart from failing to show brother Jun some appreciation for saving my life, you¡¯d even ndered him with these baseless usations. Brother, you¡¯re being extremely hateful and obnoxious here!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had said all of these things to make a pointed attack at Qin Lingyu¡¯s ego. With his level of ego, how could he ept the fact that he could not measure up to a mere outsider, even if this were the indubitable truth?

    He red furiously back at Jun Xiaomo with eyes that werepletely bloodshot. It was almost as though he were prepared to pounce at Jun Xiaomo in the next moment and snap her neck in half.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo continued to stare back at Qin Lingyu in an unyielding fashion. On the surface, she presented herself with a stubborn frustration at Qin Lingyu¡¯s behaviour; yet deep within her heart, she was wagging her little tail in delight at how Qin Lingyu was reacting to her provocations.

    At the same time, it was Ye Xiuwen who realized that there was no meaning in letting the present argument go on. Thus, momentster, he stepped between the impasse and interjected, ¡°Alright, Miss Qin, your brother is just being concerned for you. There¡¯s no need to pursue the matter either. As for your brother¡¯s allegations, time will naturally reveal the veracity of my character.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shook his arm and looked at him with slightly pouted lips as she objected, ¡°Brother Jun, we¡¯ve already done the deed between married couples...how can you still be addressing me as Miss Qin...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soft and husky voice caused goosebumps to creep all over her body ¨C My word! I¡¯d gone slightly overboard with that. It¡¯s far too soppy and disgusting!

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips twitched at almost the same time. In that single instant, Ye Xiuwen almost failed to maintain his usual cool andposed image.

    If ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± hadn¡¯t reminded him, Ye Xiuwen would already have forgotten this excuse that they had used earlier.

    Thus, patting ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± head, Ye Xiuwen forcibly eked out a more endearing manner of addressing her, ¡°Shanshan...¡±

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu watched coldly as this sight unfolded. In his eyes, it was clear that Ye Xiuwen had only done the deed in the heat of the moment, yet he possessed no intention whatsoever for any protracted rtionships. Qin Lingyu sincerely believed that Qin Shanshan was merely blinded by her infatuation right now ¨C Can¡¯t she see for herself that this man has no lingering feelings towards her?

    If not for the fact that Qin Shanshan¡¯s death right now would foil his grand ns, Qin Lingyu would never have bothered or concerned himself with his idiotic sister¡¯s life. He would rather let her die on her own than allow her to be a deadweight, weighing him down and smearing his reputation within the Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s stiff expression, and her heart blossomed in ever-growing delight.

    Alright, forgive her for her propensity to pull prank on others. After all, she had been far too bored and stifled after having been locked within the Proving Grounds for over three-hundred years ¨C she did not have a single person to even talk to during that entire period of time. Now that she hade out alive and kicking, she was raring to reward and indulge herself with some delightful human interactions, which naturally included things such as teasing and pulling pranks on others.

    After discreetly calcting the amount of time that they had been trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, Jun Xiaomo decided that it was about time that they left and headed back to the Sect. Just then, Qin Lingyu had finally managed to mber to his feet, somewhat revitalized after having consumed some recovery pills. Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly in her heart ¨C Do you think you¡¯re off the hook now? Just wait till I¡¯ve rescued my martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak. I¡¯ll return both you and your master everything I owe you at that time, replete with interest! None of you are going to get away from me!

    As she thought about these things, Jun Xiaomo waved her hand, and a talisman appeared between her fingers. Then, with a simple flick of her wrist, a beam of light shot straight into Qin Lingyu¡¯s body.

    Qin Lingyu waspletely oblivious to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions at this moment. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen saw it, and he raised his eyebrows curiously at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo discreetly batted her eyelids back at Ye Xiuwen.

    Seeing how the two had begun to exchange meaningful nces once again, Qin Lingyu¡¯s infuriation burgeoned.

    Forget it. Out of sight, out of mind. Once we¡¯re outside, master and the Sect Elders will naturally have their ways to deal with this man of unknown origins.

    As he thought about these things, Qin Lingyu barked in a low voice, ¡°Let¡¯s go. If we still remain in here, the passage opened by master is going to shut on us.¡±

    After saying his piece, Qin Lingyu turned around and walked ahead.

    Having noticed how Qin Lingyu was no longer butting heads with her, Jun Xiaomo grabbed hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and dragged him along as they followed behind Qin Lingyu with a steady gait.

    [Why did you make me sound so mysterious and skillful earlier? Wouldn¡¯t Qin Lingyu be even more wary of me this way?]

    Since they could not afford to let Qin Lingyu overhear the contents of their conversation, Ye Xiuwen had directly conveyed his message to Jun Xiaomo through a thread of his own spiritual energy.

    [Even if I didn¡¯t say that, he would still be wary and suspicious of you. Conversely, now that I put it this way, they might even hesitate to act against you for fear that they don¡¯t know the extents of your abilities. On the other hand, I¡¯m in a slightly more precarious position. As soon as they discover that I¡¯m the cause for all these things, my cover would be blown. At that time, the jig would be up for both of us.]

    Jun Xiaomo had responded through a thread of her own spiritual energy as well. At the same time, she turned her head around and looked at Ye Xiuwen as she blinked meaningfully.

    [What you¡¯ve said does make some sense. That¡¯s right, what did you send into Qin Lingyu¡¯s body earlier?]

    [About that...] Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a smile as she raised an eyebrow, [it¡¯s a secret!]

    Ye Xiuwen looked as though he was about to ask something more when Jun Xiaomo suddenly ced her fair finger on her lips, ¡°Shh...you¡¯ll know next time.¡±

    Seeing ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± enigmatic expression, Ye Xiuwen smiled faintly and shook his head helplessly.

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that the number of times he had stered an exasperated smile on his face had increased ever since he had encountered ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    He Zhang and the others were waiting outside impatiently. They had thought that all was lost ¨C Qin Lingyu and his sister were both trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, and they would never be able to leave. Then, just as they were about to cease the flow of their spiritual energy into the formation diagram and close the safe passage that they had opened for Qin Lingyu, they saw three figures appear in the distance in within the rift.

    Three figures? He Zhang and the other Sect Elders furrowed their brows, wondering where the third person hade from.

    Then, as soon as the person drew closer, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders discovered that the third person was none other than the man called Jun Ziwen, whom they unanimously thought had already slipped into the deepest parts of the Dawn Sect!

    ¡°Little fellow cultivator, what are you doing in there? Weren¡¯t you spared from the Sect¡¯s protective formation array earlier?¡± The Fifth Elder was frank and candid, and he asked whatever was on his mind. Thus, before Ye Xiuwen had even managed to steady his feet after leaving the formation array, the Fifth Elder had already asked what was on everyone else¡¯s minds.

    Ye Xiuwen calmly nced back at the Fifth Elder as he responded, ¡°I was worried for Shanshan¡¯s safety, so I had tossed away my identity token and entered the Sect¡¯s protective formation array to look for her.¡±

    There were a few other Dawn Sect disciples who were around as well. When they heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response to the Fifth Elder¡¯s query, they instantly revealed a look of realization on their faces. At the same time, they couldn¡¯t help but find themselves deeply moved by the extent of his love and passion.

    After all, this man before their very eyes had been willing to throw himself in harm¡¯s way for the person he loved ¨C what else could this be if not true love?

    I¡¯d still been thinking that Jun Ziwen was a person with ulterior motives. In the end, he¡¯s just an idiot who¡¯s deeply in love. I really wasn¡¯t able to tell this much at the start.

    The disciples¡¯ masters noticed the expressions on his disciples¡¯ faces, and the veins on their foreheads began to bulge and throb as well.

    Their masters were all crafty old foxes that had seen their days. Such allegations of ¡°true love¡± might be able to dupe the na?ve and innocent disciples of theirs, but it was going to take much more if Ye Xiuwen was going to fool them.

    Most importantly, Jun Ziwen¡¯s aura and disposition made him an exact doppelganger of Ye Xiuwen, and they couldn¡¯t help but reflexively put up their guards around him.

    Then, recalling the peculiarities with the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, the Grand Elder asked Qin Lingyu, ¡°Lingyu, did you encounter anything special after entering the formation array?¡±

    As he looked at stern and somber expression stered all over the Grand Elder¡¯s face, it took Qin Lingyu only a brief moment to guess roughly what had happened.

    Something must have gone wrong with the formation diagram or the formation array...

    Qin Lingyu deliberated for a moment, before ncing at Ye Xiuwen as he responded, ¡°There was indeed a peculiar incident that I¡¯d like to talk about. Logically speaking, since master had opened a safe passage for me, I shouldn¡¯t have been targeted by the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. However, I was attacked by a spirit beast within the protective formation array, and I¡¯d even sustained injuries. When Shanshan found meter on, I was in an unconscious state, while Shanshan and Brother Jun werepletely unharmed.¡±

    ¡°Attacked by a spirit beast? That¡¯s not possible...¡± The Grand Elder analyzed the situation, ¡°There are previous incidents of Dawn Sect disciples getting trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation arrays. Generally speaking, in order to prevent injuring our own disciples, the formation array would never attack anybody within the first three days of trapping them. Thus, when we located those disciples in the past, the worst state that we had ever found them in was a state of unconsciousness. We had never found them with injuries before.¡±

    ¡°In other words, this incident is rather suspicious, and somebody must have had a hand in it, am I not right?¡± Qin Lingyu smirked coldly at Ye Xiuwen as he chimed in.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately stood in front of Ye Xiuwen and red straight back at Qin Lingyu, ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to suspect brother Jun!¡±

    ¡°Shanshan, enough! Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve caused us enough trouble yet?!¡± The Grand Eldermbasted ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. As the urge to refute the Grand Elder suddenly arose within her, Jun Xiaomo instantly red back at the Grand Elder.

    However, she managed to consciously repress the reflexive urge to butt heads with the Grand Elder.

    After all, with Qin Shanshan¡¯s personality and character, she could not possibly possess the guts to contend with the Grand Elder¡¯s words.

    Thus, she pouted her lips, lowered her head and discreetly made a face back at the Grand Elder.

    As a result, everyone simply witnessed how ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was so afraid of the Grand Elder¡¯s excoriation that she was nowpletely dispirited and silent.

    Ye Xiuwen looked with bemusement at the top of ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± head. He could somewhat imagine how she was discreetly rolling her eyes or sticking out her tongue at the Grand Elder in the dark right now.

    In the spur of the moment, Ye Xiuwen subconsciously patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Jun Xiaomo was momentarily taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions. That said, the simple gesture had helped dissipate a fair amount of indignation bottled up in her heart.

    He Zhang squinted his eyes as he continued closely observe Jun Ziwen¡¯s behaviour. At this point in time, he was still unable to determine whether this man had ulterior motives for drawing close to the Dawn Sect disciples.

    That said, he knew for a fact that the Sect¡¯s protective formation array had earlier disyed an anomalous reaction, and Jun Ziwen was the only outsider present.

    Thus, rather than finding an excuse to stave off Jun Ziwen and keep him out of the Sect, He Zhang decided that he would allow Jun Ziwen to enter the Dawn Sect so that he could keep him under closer observation. After all, as the saying goes, keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer. Even if this man possessed ulterior motives, did the entire Dawn Sect really have anything to fear of what one man could achieve?

    The Nascent Soul stage of cultivation couldn¡¯t be considered low by any means. That said, there were several stages of cultivation that were well above the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation as well. In fact, if one looked solely among the members of the Dawn Sect, there were already at least ten members of the Dawn Sect who possessed cultivation levels that were well in excess of the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    Having thought things through, He Zhang turned to address Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Dear fellow cultivator, since you¡¯ve got such affinity with the Dawn Sect¡¯s disciples, we would sincerely like to invite you to stay with us as our guest. This would be the little brat¡¯s dreame true as well. Us old fes shouldn¡¯t be interfering with you love birds here.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen bowed graciously as he responded with a stoic expression on his face, ¡°Thank you, Sect Leader He for approving of us.¡±

    At this instant, Qin Lingyu¡¯s face darkened as he began to clench his fists tightly ¨C Why would master allow this man to enter the Dawn Sect?!

    However, He Zhang simply patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder, assuring him and tacitly telling him not to be impatient.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo immediately eximed, ¡°Oh yeah!¡± Then, she minced her way to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and clung onto his arms once more as she addressed He Zhang and the rest, ¡°Then I want brother Jun to stay over at my ce. After all, we¡¯ve already done the deed between a married couple.¡±

    ¡°Qin Shanshan, have you no shame at all?!¡± It suddenly dawned on Qin Lingyu that this little sister of his was getting increasingly out of hand.

    ¡°What¡¯s there to be ashamed of? Aren¡¯t you and sister Wanrou the same, having tussled together in bed just like us?!¡± Not to be outdone, Jun Xiaomo refuted as she puffed up her cheeks.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrow quizzically ¨C ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± also knows about the things between Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou?

    In a fit of anger, Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t find any words to bite back at ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. After all, with her brother disying such an ¡°exemry¡± behaviour, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± suggestion for cohabitation seemed topletely pale inparison.

    From how things were developing, it seems that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± is ying straight into Jun Ziwen¡¯s hands. If anything happens in the near future, things are most certainly going to get messy.

    He Zhang thought that his disciple was simply concerned about his sister¡¯s emotional well-being, and he patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder as he assured him, ¡°Alright, Lingyu, Shanshan¡¯s a grown up now. As an older brother, you¡¯ve got to let go at some point in time. Let¡¯s do it this way ¨C since our disciple Qin Shanshan and brother Jun have an affinity for one another, then there¡¯s no harm in staying together. If need be, we can even help to select an auspicious date and time for the two of you to get married. What do you think?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips began to twitch slightly. Things were developing much more quickly than he could ever have expected.

    Slightly exasperated, he swept a nce at Jun Xiaomo, only to receive a tacit response in the form of a few meaningful blinks from her. Thus, ying along and feeding the lie, Ye Xiuwen calmly responded to He Zhang, ¡°That would be great. Thanks, Sect Leader He for your approval.¡±

    He Zhang began tough heartily, ¡°Seems like there¡¯s going to be a lively celebration in our Sect soon!¡±

    As he finished speaking, he pped his hands and rounded everything up, ¡°Alright, alright. If there¡¯s nothing more to attend to, let¡¯s call it a day.¡±

    Thus, everyone began to make their way back to the Dawn Sect, leaving He Zhang and Qin Lingyu behind.

    ¡°Master, why did you agree to Shanshan¡¯s willful request? Disciple doesn¡¯t understand.¡± Qin Lingyu furrowed his brows as he asked He Zhang directly.

    ¡°If Jun Ziwen truly has ulterior motives, what do you think his goal is?¡±

    ¡°This...disciple is unsure of that. I can¡¯t tell for now.¡±

    ¡°The only thing of interest within the Sect right now is the matter pertaining to the Heavenly Peak. If he truly has ulterior motives, it¡¯s hard to say whether he¡¯s working with others.¡±

    ¡°By ¡®others¡¯, does master mean...the people from the Heavenly Peak who had managed to escape?¡±

    ¡°Not just them. The most important thing is that Jun Ziwen¡¯s aura is far too simr to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura. None of us are expecting Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return, and it would be imprudent if we remained just as unguarded against him as before. That said, I sincerely believe that if Jun Ziwen¡¯s appearance has to do with the Heavenly Peak, he cannot possibly be working alone and courting death like that ¨C there must be others who are behind him right now.¡±

    ¡°Disciple understands. In other words, by keeping him around under observation, master is thinking to determine whether there¡¯s anyone else supporting him in the dark?¡±

    ¡°Haha, you¡¯d finally seen the light. It¡¯s good that you have. Remember, don¡¯t be too fixated on a single issue that you neglect the big picture.¡± He Zhang left Qin Lingyu with some words of wisdom as he patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder.

    He Zhang¡¯s words hadpletely dispelled the earlier anxiety and frustration weighing on Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. At this moment, he felt thoroughly assured knowing that He Zhang was not letting Jun Ziwen off scot-free.

    Just like that, He Zhang and Qin Lingyu both firmly believed that they already had a firm grasp on the truth. Yet the irony of it all was that they were getting only further and further away from the truth. In particr, none of them harboured any suspicions that Qin Shanshan was aplete imposter at this moment!

    At almost the same time, Ye Xiuwen began tomunicate with Jun Xiaomo through a thread of spiritual energy.

    [Miss Tong, why did you make the earlier request to stay together?] Ye Xiuwen nced at Jun Xiaomo with some measure of exasperation as he rified.

    [Don¡¯t you think that this would make for far easiermunication between us two? We¡¯re partners after all. This would allow us to look out for one another as well.] Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen as she responded. Ye Xiuwen choked slightly at the response and paused in his steps ¨C

    [Just like that?]

    [Of course it¡¯s just like that! What did you expect? Are you letting your thoughts run wild now?] Jun Xiaomo batted her eyelids at Ye Xiuwen mischievously.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Alright. How could possibly he refute such reasoning?

 Chapter 288: Uninvited Guests at Qin Shanshanâ€™s Abode

    <h4>Chapter 288: Uninvited Guests at Qin Shanshan¡¯s Abode</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The news of Qin Shanshan bringing a handsome, charming man back with her from her travels spread like wildfire across the entire Sect. Over the next few days, whenever and wherever ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± walked around within the Sect, she could feel countless looks of all sortsnding on her, some of which were investigative, while others were filled with admiration and jealousy.

    In fact, the ones jealous of Qin Shanshan evenprised some of her martial sisters-cum-friends who were generally on closer terms with Qin Shanshan. Even though they hadn¡¯t seen the physical appearances of the man that Qin Shanshan had brought back, they could tell from the other martial brothers who had travelled out of the Sect together with Qin Shanshan that this man was even more handsome and charming than Qin Shanshan¡¯s brother, Qin Lingyu. Furthermore, they had even described the depth of his strength and potential to be immeasurable ¨C he was a person that none of the disciples could afford to offend.

    With this, Qin Shanshan could be said to be at the heart and core of everyone¡¯s envy right now. To begin with, she had already possessed a formidable biological brother who might very well be the sessor of the entire Dawn Sect in future. And now, she had even been able to win the heart of a man even more powerful than her brother. With Qin Shanshan¡¯s rotten personality and character, just how many stars had to be aligned for such an incredibly fortuitous turn of events to ur to her?

    Thus, having heard all about the mysterious man, Qin Shanshan¡¯s friends grew increasingly curious about just what this man looked like. After restraining themselves for several days, they could no longer hold back their curiosity any longer, and they gathered together and began to make their way towards Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    They had also learnt that Qin Shanshan¡¯s lover was cohabiting with Qin Shanshan at her abode.

    After sessfully entering the Dawn Sect, Ye Xiuwen hadid low over the next few days. He was not in any hurry to learn more about the situation within the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. After all, he knew that the Dawn Sect¡¯s upper echelons were incredibly vignt against him, and they were probably scrutinizing his every move. Therefore, a single slip up on his part could very well expose his identity and foil his ns ¨C everything he had done to date would have beenpletely in vain.

    Thus, he had temporarily chosen to remain within Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, cultivating and honing his skills while he bided his time and devised a strategy to slip into the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds without being noticed.

    As for ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, Ye Xiuwen had noticed that thisdy had been incredibly elusive ever since returning to the Sect. Every day, she would leave her abode early in the morning, only to returnte at night, bringing back a faint and musky scent of dirt with her.

    Truth be told, his interaction with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± over thest few days had been far scarcer than those days while he was travelling out in the wilderness with her. After all, they each had their own agendas after sessfully returning to the Dawn Sect.

    Despite living under one roof with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± now, they had always been under the tacit understanding that they would never interfere nor stand in the way of the other¡¯s objectives and goals. This was because there was a mutual understanding between them that neither of them was able to fully trust the other with the full details to their ns yet, even after working with each other for some time now. At best, they were but friends with amon goal in certain respects. That said, neither of them was ready to disclose the extent of their responsibilities or any of their personal secrets to each other just yet.

    ¡°Is this the ce? It¡¯s been so long since I¡¯vest been here, that I¡¯ve even begun to forget where Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode is.¡± A sweet and delicate voice resounded in front of Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. Another female disciple with a slightly more curt and candid tone of voice responded, ¡°This is unmistakably her abode.¡±

    Shortly after their exchange, the group of female disciples dressed in pink stepped through Qin Shanshan¡¯s gate and strode brazenly into her abode.

    They were on pretty good terms with Qin Shanshan in the past; and inviting themselves into her abode was something that they had regrly done in the past. Unfortunately, ever since Qin Shanshan¡¯s return from her expedition outside the Sect, she had neither sought out nor caught up with her friends. Thus, these friends of hers had only learnt the news of these juicy developments with Qin Shanshan¡¯s life from the other martial brothers who had travelled together with Qin Shanshan on the expedition.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Shanshan?¡± The female disciple with the sweet and delicate voice quipped.

    ¡°Who knows? Perhaps she¡¯s too busy exchanging sweet nothings with her lover in their room right now.¡± Another voice that was filled with strong undertones of jealousy chimed in.

    ¡°That can¡¯t be it. Their room¡¯s door is still open. They should be outside.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps they¡¯re in the backyard? Let¡¯s go there and take a look.¡± This final statement was made by the tallest female disciple among the group of martial sisters that had just entered Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. She also appeared to be the most cool-headed and rational one among all of them.

    Everyone found her conjectures reasonable. Thus, they began to make their way around Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode and to her backyard. None of them felt that their act of trespassing and entering Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode uninvited was impolite at all.

    Ye Xiuwen was busy practicing his sword arts in the backyard of Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. His habit of waking up early every morning to practice his sword harts was already deeply etched into his bones. This was something that he had done every day, without fail ¨C even after he had fallen into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    As the group of female disciples drew close to the forest in Qin Shanshan¡¯s backyard, their keen ears immediately began to pick up the swooshing sounds of a de slicing through the air ¨C it was the sound of someone practicing his sword arts.

    After making another turn, their eyes brightened ¨C a figure dressed in green instantly entered their sights.

    ¡°How graceful and handsome...¡± The female disciple with the sweet and delicate voice couldn¡¯t help but exim aloud. Even though they were still unable to see the man¡¯s appearances, they were mesmerized by the sight of the man¡¯s clothes fluttering coolly behind his body as he darted about with a sharp, incisive aura, almost as though he were aplete manifestation of the sword.

    At this point in time, they wanted more than ever to see what this man¡¯s appearance looked like.

    Shk! Shk! Without any warning, several des congealed by the man¡¯s sword intent came flying directly towards the female disciple with the sweet and delicate voice. As she screamed in fear, she felt her body move as a result of someone tugging at her clothes behind her, and she barely managed to avoid the man¡¯s attack.

    If not for the quick reflexes of the tallest female disciple in the group, the female disciple with the sweet, delicate voice would no longer have her right arm at this moment.

    ¡°Who are you? Why did you enter this ce uninvited?¡± Ye Xiuwen sheathed his sword as he demanded an exnation.

    The man was dressed in green, and his appearances were handsome and suave. The man wearing his sword behind him bore a cool, dignified disposition as he gazed straight at the group of female disciples with his deep, abstruse eyes. In that moment, all of the female disciples found themselvespletely dazzled by this man¡¯s perfection.

    In fact, these female disciples had each painted in their hearts a picture of what they thought this man which Qin Shanshan brought back with her would look like. However, it was only after they personally saw the man¡¯s appearances that they began to realize how much their imagination wascking. If this man stood silently and motionless where he was right now, the entire sight before their very eyes would be no different from an exquisite ink painting that brilliantly illustrated the man¡¯s cool disposition in perfect harmony with the nature surrounding him. At the same time, the man would undoubtedly be the focal point of this painting as well.

    ¡°That...that...you must be Qin Shanshan¡¯s friend, right?¡± The female disciple with the sweet, delicate voice looked at Ye Xiuwen bashfully with flushed cheeks.

    She knew full well Qin Shanshan¡¯s rtionship with this man. However, she still couldn¡¯t bring herself to ask whether he was Qin Shanshan¡¯s cultivationpanion. This was because she sincerely believed that a man as outstanding as the one standing in front of her right now could not possibly have fallen for Qin Shanshan, given her willful and untamable behaviour ¨C there must be a mistake or a misunderstanding somewhere.

    Ye Xiuwen was no fool, and he knew exactly why this female disciple had reacted in the way she did.

    However, he found her shallow behaviourpletelyughable. Back when he habitually donned his veiled conical hat, everyone apart from the Heavenly Peak disciples had avoided him like the gue. Back then, he did not even have a single friend outside of the Heavenly Peak, much less any suitors.

    Then, after he managed to restore his appearances and rid himself of the scar on his face, he instantly received the advances of suitors who were lining up one after the other just to get close to him. These suitors were undoubtedly only attracted to his looks and appearances.

    Truth be told, if not for his little martial sister, he would not even harbour any thoughts of restoring his appearances to begin with. After all, if a person had made advances towards him just because of his external appearances, how much sincerity could that person possibly have?

    Thus, no matter how beautiful these potential suitors were, and no matter what they did, they were unable to generate even the slightest ripples of response within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    He loathed the prospects of a shallow rtionship built on external appearances. After all, if his appearances were ruined again in future, he was almost certain that these shallow people would immediately leave and abandon him.

    ¡°Shanshan isn¡¯t around. If you¡¯re looking to discuss anything with her, pleasee back another day.¡± Ye Xiuwen could hardly be bothered to chat any further with these female disciples. Thus, he flicked his sleeves and turned around, intending to take a stroll elsewhere.

    As for this abode, it was Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode to begin with, and it had nothing to do with either him or ¡°Miss Tong¡±. Thus, he could hardly be bothered if these female disciples were to stay on and make themselves at homepletely uninvited. After all, there was nothing secretive for them to discover to begin with.

    ¡°Hey, hold on a minute.¡± The female disciple with a sweet, delicate voice had not expected Ye Xiuwen to be so cold and distant. Filled with disappointment, she quickly called out to Ye Xiuwen once more.

    Ye Xiuwen paused in his steps and looked back at the female disciple. There was only nonchnce in his eyes.

    ¡°That...Could I at least know your name?¡± The female disciple was still flushed with embarrassment as she asked.

    ¡°Jun Ziwen.¡±

    ¡°So your name is Jun Ziwen. This name suits you well...Then, my name is Du Zhn, and these others around me are my martial sisters. We¡¯re all very close to Shanshan. It must be fate that we¡¯ve encountered each other today. Why don¡¯t we make an acquaintance?¡± Du Zhn blurted out in one breath. Her watery eyes were ostensibly filled with passion and desire. Anyone unaware of the fact that this was their first encounter with each other would undoubtedly be under the impression that she had already been secretly fond of this man for a long time.

    Regrettably, Ye Xiuwen swept a cid nce across at the female disciple as he responded curtly, ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s such a need.¡±

    ¡°Wha--...why?¡± Du Zhn¡¯s face immediately became drained of colour, as though her blood had flowed away from her face in a concerted fashion.

    Although this female disciple was not as adept with navigating and manipting human rtionships as Yu Wanrou was, she was still considered rtively good in terms of her way with people. After all, she was a young and beautiful female disciple who possessed an exquisite and dainty body, and she even spoke with a soft and sincere tone of voice. Unfortunately, her soft words had met their match when itnded on the wooden block, Ye Xiuwen.

    Her eyes immediately reddened around the rims as she murmured with some measure of humiliation, ¡°Why...I only wanted to make an acquaintance with you...¡±

    Du Zhn¡¯s friends were not used to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold and arrogant attitude. Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances were suave and handsome, his disposition was far too cold and distant ¨C Who does this man think he is? He¡¯s nothing more than a rogue cultivator with no Sect to call his home. What does he have to be proud or arrogant about?! Thus, one of the female disciples couldn¡¯t take it anymore ¨C

    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m talking to you! Do you not even know how to be ¡®polite¡¯? All sister Zhn wanted was to make an acquaintance with you, not demand a pound of flesh from your body. There¡¯s no need to look all haughty, high and mighty with us, as though we¡¯re undeserving of even being acquaintances with you, huh?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were immediately filled with a frigid intent. To begin with, he was already filled with displeasure against the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples as a result of what had happened to the Heavenly Peak over thest few years. Now, he had even encountered some willful and unruly female disciples who could not be reasoned with. Thus, he coldly rebutted, ¡°In the first ce, you were the ones who had trespassed this ce without its owner¡¯s approval. Do you think you¡¯ve got the rights to be preaching to me about ¡®politeness¡¯, huh?!¡±

    ¡°You...why are you being like this?!¡±

    ¡°What about it? Was anything I said wrong?¡± Even though Ye Xiuwen was now arguing with the female disciples, his tone of voice was still cid and calm. In fact, his cool and unperturbed disposition seemed to somehow add fuel to the raging fire in the hearts of the female disciples.

    ¡°You! We¡¯re good friends with Shanshan, and it¡¯s always been like this! Who do you think you are? Don¡¯t you think for one moment that you¡¯re the owner of this ce just because you¡¯re living here!¡± The female disciple grew anxious and began to ramble irresponsibly.

    ¡°Oh? So you¡¯ve always been like this, huh? Coming in whenever I¡¯m not around?¡±

    A clear, crisp voice that was pleasant to the ears resounded from behind where the group of female disciples were located.

    The female disciples were all slightly taken aback, and the looked behind them with disbelief, only to see ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± slowly make her way towards them. The sun was shining directly behind ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, and none of the female disciples could see the expression on her face. That said, their intuition told them that something about ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± seemedpletely different from thest time they saw her.

    Then, as soon as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± drew closer, they were finally able to make out the expressions on her face. However, before they could examine her appearances more closely, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± walked straight past them and made her way before Ye Xiuwen, before ncing at him as she remarked, ¡°Womanizer.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled and patted ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± head without any further response. However, everyone could tell from the depths of his eyes that this smile wasced with sincere, genuine intentions. It was so sincere and genuine that it dazzled Du Zhn¡¯s eyes.

    She had thought that it was simply in this man¡¯s nature to treat everyone around him with such a cold and distant attitude. How could she have expected him to reveal such apletely different, warm side to him in front of Qin Shanshan?

    What does Qin Shanshan have that deserves such a different treatment from the rest of us?! Is it only on the basis that they¡¯ve known each other for a longer time?!

    Du Zhn scrunched up her lips and stared at this sight with reddened rims around her eyes. Her heart was filled with resentment, contempt, and other roiling emotions.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo turned around and smiled grimly as she red at Qin Shanshan¡¯s dear friends as she quipped, ¡°What a bunch of friends you are. First, you show yourself into my abode from time to time when I¡¯m out; and now, you attempt to undermine me and seduce my man while I¡¯m out. Dear ¡®good¡¯ friends, I, Qin Shanshan, don¡¯t deserve such friends like you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had deliberately paced out her spiel and articted each and every word clearly, causing the group of indignant female disciples who were attempting to paint themselves as the victims to turn red in anger. Even though their minds spun desperately as they sought the words to refute Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allegations, they simply couldn¡¯t find any basis for any refutation. After all, there was nothing that they could pick on within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel.

    At the same time, it was precisely because there were no ws in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arguments that the group of female disciples felt even more stifled and frustrated ¨C there was simply no outlet for their vexation.

    ¡°Shanshan, are you going to cast aside our friendship for so many years over a man you¡¯ve just met?!¡± One of the more hot-tempered female disciples barked in the heat of the moment.

    ¡°Oh? I don¡¯t think anyone who would seduce my man can be considered a good friend of mine.¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked contemptuously as she red straight at Du Zhn.

    As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. These people were evidently all eggs from the same basket as Qin Shanshan and Yu Wanrou, and they were all just as selfish as the other. What was ¡°friendship¡± to these people was nothing more than a pretext for mutual benefits and gains to others.

    If one looked at Du Zhn¡¯s soulless, indignant gaze in her eyes, anyone unaware of the matters that had just transpired might even conclude on a whim that she was the victim in the present incident.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s contemptuous spiel and derisory gaze made the entire group of female disciples feel as though their pride had been stripped away and trampled upon. One of the female disciples red madly at Jun Xiaomo as she retorted, ¡°What do you mean seduce anyway?! That¡¯s all your conjecture. Sister Zhn has never said anything of the sort. But since you¡¯re so adamant about your perspective, there¡¯s no reason for us to continue sticking around and take this kind of abuse. You can spend the rest of your day with your little lover! Let¡¯s go!¡±

    Just like that, the group of female disciples left in a manner as mboyant and pompous as when they first arrived.

    Just before they left, Du Zhn couldn¡¯t help but turn back and give Ye Xiuwen a parting gaze, only to notice him lowering his head as though he were discussing something with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± in hushed tones. However, the earlier frigid gaze in his eyes had seemed to have melted into a gaze that was filled with warmth and a sparkle of light.

    Her heart constricted in fury. She stomped her feet ferociously on the ground, before picking up her pace and running back to join up with the rest of her group.

 Chapter 289: He Zhangâ€™s Secret Agent

    <h4>Chapter 289: He Zhang¡¯s Secret Agent</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After Du Zhn and the others left Qin Shanshan¡¯s premises, Jun Xiaomo yfully punched Ye Xiuwen with a mischievous smile on her face as she remarked, ¡°Not bad, aren¡¯t you? It¡¯s only been a few days, yet all of these female Dawn Sect disciples are already head over heels in love with you.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced with some measure of exasperation, ¡°I¡¯d rather these sorts of things not happen to me.¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright. I know brother Jun isn¡¯t the sort to take advantage of others. Just be careful not to take things too far. Otherwise, those people who don¡¯t manage to get their way with you might just think about beating you up!¡± Jun Xiaomo brandished her fistically as she quipped.

    Ye Xiuwen was thoroughly amused by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions, and he coughed twice into his fist just to suppress the desire tough that was surging within him.

    ¡°Oh yes, why did youe back so early today?¡± Ye Xiuwen finally managed topose himself after some time. Then, it suddenly urred to him that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had returned unusually early today. After all, it was not even lunchtime yet ¨C this was quite different from her usual modus operandi.

    Generally speaking, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would never return to the abode until it waste at night, when it was time for everyone to retire for the night.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows mischievously as she quipped back, ¡°If I didn¡¯te back earlier today, how could this hero rescue the ¡®damsel¡¯ in distress?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen mimicked Jun Xiaomo and raised his own eyebrow back at her, ¡°Rescuing a damsel in distress? Are you the hero? Am I the ¡®damsel¡¯?¡±

    ¡°But of course! If not for my assistance, you would already have been engulfed and smothered by all of those beauties earlier!¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her chin and looked at Ye Xiuwen somewhat proudly as she added, ¡°Didn¡¯t you see how timeously I¡¯d made my appearance earlier?!¡±

    ¡°Alright, I guess I¡¯ve got to thank this little hero, then.¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled as he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair

    ¡°Enough, enough. Why do you enjoy tousling hair so much? My hair is bing a bird¡¯s nest because of you.¡± Jun Xiaomo clutched her head as she murmured.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback by herment, and a trace of realization and bewilderment flickered across the depths of his eyes. Then, suppressing the ripples that had surfaced in his heart, he smiled faintly as he responded, ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s just a little habit of mine. I¡¯ll take note in future.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had very keenly noticed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s smile had grown substantially fainter than before, and she couldn¡¯t help but probe a little bit further, ¡°About that...are you angry?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not. Don¡¯t think too much about it.¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly. However, Jun Xiaomo could tell from his expression that there were much stronger emotional undertones than what he was willing to reveal.

    ¡°Alright...I was just kidding. Feel free to tousle my hair next time.¡± Jun Xiaomo messed up her own already-disheveled hair as she murmured, ¡°Wonder why you got angry at that...¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not angry.¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair once more. As she red back at him with some measure of annoyance, he began to feel slightly better as well.

    He could never reveal to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± that this action of his was something that he had often done to his little martial sister, and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± earlier question had reminded him of Jun Xiaomo.

    Perhaps he might have begun to subconsciously interact with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± in this manner because ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± reminded him of his little martial sister.

    His only hope was that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would be sessful in whatever she was striving to do within the Dawn Sect, and not die in a foreignnd like his little martial sister did.

    As Ye Xiuwen delved into his own thoughts, the stifling feelings of frustration and lingering woes continued to weigh heavily on his heart.

    --------------------------------------------

    On the other side, after leaving Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, the group of female disciples did not immediately return to their own abodes. Instead, they sat down at another ce some distance away and began to discuss and ventte their frustrations from before.

    ¡°That Qin Shanshan is too much of a bully! Who does she think she is?! If not for the fact that she has a powerful and strong brother, she might already have been emunicated from the Dawn Sect by now, given herck of talent!¡± The female disciple that was most hot-tempered blurted with indignation as she gulped down the cup of tea in front of her.

    ¡°Alright, Guiyan. Actually, what Qin Shanshan said wasn¡¯t wrong either. We did enter her abode without her permission, and it was our fault to begin with. Furthermore, Qin Shanshan¡¯s cultivationpanion doesn¡¯t seem like a very easy person to get along with as well. We¡¯ve been far too reckless with our actions.¡± The other, more rational female cultivator offered a different perspective. She had not spoken much from the onset because she could tell that the male cultivator in Qin Shanshan¡¯s backyard did not wee their arrival at all.

    ¡°Hmph. If you ask me, Qin Shanshan¡¯s just being conceited and arrogant right now. She thinks that she¡¯s amazing just because she¡¯s got a cultivationpanion who¡¯s formidable and handsome. She should take a good look at herself in the mirror ¨C with her abilities, it would be absurd if she thinks that she will be able to keep that man around her. Who knows, she might even end up like her ex-sister-inw Jun Xiaomo and get dumped by the man.¡± Xu Guiyan mocked contemptuously. She had obviously taken ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± earlier attitude towards her to heart.

    ¡°Alright, Guiyan, it wouldn¡¯t be wise to run off your mouth like that. No matter howcking Qin Shanshan¡¯s abilities are, she still has a formidable brother we can¡¯t afford to offend. Can we hold a candle to her in this regard? Besides, by talking about her ex-sister-inw, aren¡¯t you indirectly implicating martial brother Qin? Be careful now ¨C walls have ears. We don¡¯t want anyone taking anything out on us.¡± Yet another female disciple chimed in with a peculiar yet slightly jealous tone of voice.

    ¡°What do I have to fear? I¡¯m just speaking the truth by any means.¡± Xu Guiyan retorted with indignance, ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s father was a Peakmaster as well. What does Qin Shanshan have? She¡¯s got nothing!¡±

    ¡°Guiyan, let¡¯s not talk about it anymore. I...it¡¯s hard for me to hear all this.¡± Du Zhn¡¯s eyes reddened once more as she chipped in, as though she had just suffered the most humiliating defeat.

    ¡°Sigh, Zhn, why are you crying again?¡± Xu Guiyan hated it when Du Zhn¡¯s tears started flowing, because it never seemed to end. At the same time, she would give in because Du Zhn was the youngest one among all of them, ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ll stop talking about it, okay? If you ask me, that man surnamed Jun doesn¡¯t know what¡¯s best for him. Sister Zhn¡¯s only trying to be friendly with him. Why does he have to put on airs like that to begin with? Hmph, if you ask me, Zhn¡¯s personality is far, far better than that unruly, willful Qin Shanshan by a mile! Yaoxue, don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Shen Yaoxue was none other than the tallest female disciple of the group, and she also appeared the coldest and most distant. All this while, she had been sitting at the side, listening in on the conversation, but she had refrained from chipping in entirely.

    But now that the question was directed straight at her, she simply smiled and shook her head.

    ¡°I¡¯m gonna faint over here. Yaoxue, what exactly do you mean by the shaking of your head?¡± Xu Guiyan red at her.

    ¡°Alright, alright. Don¡¯t bother pressing the issue with Yaoxue. Aren¡¯t you well aware of the fact that you won¡¯t be able to even beat an answer out of Yaoxue? We all think your opinions are reasonable, alright?¡± The more rational female disciple patted Xu Guiyan¡¯s shoulder, and she finally managed to restrain herself from speaking any further.

    At the same time, Shen Yaoxue¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly, and she immediately lowered her head slightly, masking the glimmer from the rest of her martial sisters.

    It was night. Shen Yaoxue knocked on the door to He Zhang¡¯s room. After entering the room, she began to report everything that she had seen and witnessed at Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    ¡°Are you saying that Jun Ziwen was simply practicing his sword arts, and there was nothing suspicious about his actions?¡± He Zhang nced thoughtfully through his window at the night sky outside and tapped his fingers as he summarized the gist of Shen Yaoxue¡¯s report.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Sect Leader. Disciple didn¡¯t observe anything peculiar from Jun Ziwen¡¯s actions. Furthermore, his rtionship with Qin Shanshan doesn¡¯t appear to be one built on mutual benefits. The gaze with which he looks at her was far warmer and more sincere than how he looks at other people.¡±

    Even though Shen Yaoxue was not a female disciple with many words, she had a particrly keen observation, and she could urately grasp the minutest of details and ry that to another person at ater time. Thus, she had be He Zhang¡¯s secret agent, acting as eyes and ears for discreetly observing the situation within the Sect.

    ¡°Then, what about Qin Shanshan? Do you think there¡¯s anything strange or peculiar with her?¡± He Zhang squinted his eyes as he asked.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan?¡± Shen Yaoxue did not expect He Zhang to be inquiring about Qin Shanshan. She recalled the earlier incident once more, before responding with some measure of hesitance, ¡°It seems that...there¡¯s a little bit of change to her. She¡¯s somewhat matured. Even though her manner of speech is just as wild and brash, her arguments are based on sound logic and reasoning now, and she¡¯s able to silence others with just that sharp tongue of hers.¡±

    ¡°Is that so...¡± He Zhang slowly echoed his response as though he were deep in thought.

    Shen Yaoxue refrained from interrupting He Zhang¡¯s thoughts, and she continued to bow her head low as she awaited her next instructions.

    After some time, He Zhang waved his hands and instructed, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ve got the gist of the situation now. You may take your leave.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Leader.¡± Shen Yaoxue bowed once more before backing out of the room and shutting He Zhang¡¯s door.

    ¡°It seems like we¡¯ve got to pick up the pace and locate an array master even more quickly now...¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s voice echoed eerily within his room as he continued to mutter to himself. A frigid gleam flickered across the ink-ck pupils of his eyes.

    -----------------------------------------------------

    At about the same time, several Dawn Sect disciples were patrolling the boundaries of the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds just as they had regrly done in the past.

    Ever since He Zhang trapped the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples within the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds, patrolling this area had be a regr duty to all Dawn Sect disciples. All of them were rostered to patrol the boundaries of the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds approximately once every half a month.

    ¡°Argh, I¡¯m sleepy. For some strange reason, I¡¯ve been incredibly sleepy today. I wonder why...¡± One of the Dawn Sect disciples on duty yawned as he eximed.

    ¡°Did you go looking for a good time at the massage parlor again? That must be why you¡¯re feeling so sleepy.¡± Another Dawn Sect disciple joked in response, incitingughter from the other disciples around.

    ¡°You knew that you were on duty today, and yet you still visited the mortal world to look for women?¡± Another disciple yawned as he chimed in.

    ¡°Alright, perk up, guys. Once this is over, we¡¯ll be off the hook for the next half a month.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± The other disciples agreed in unison.

    However, after a few moments ¨C

    ¡°What day is it today? I suddenly feel somewhat sleepy too...¡±

    ¡°Me too...so sleepy...¡±

    ¡°Same here...¡±

    As soon as each of the disciples remarked aloud, they realized that theirpanions were saying exactly the same things as well. As their minds grew increasingly dazed, it took them a while before they managed to put two and two together ¨C Something¡¯s wrong!

    How could everyone on patrol be falling asleep at the same time? Something must be going on!

    Unfortunately, none of them managed to perk up their spirits. In the very next moment, their heads dipped slightly, and all of them began to copse and slump to the floor as they fell into a deep, deep slumber.

    If one looked closely just above their heads, he would be able to see that there was a formation array formed by five talismans glowing with a deep, blue light, hovering silently overhead. The formation array was so well-concealed that it seemed to assimte into the dark, night sky.

    ¡°It¡¯s done!¡± A figure in ck slipped out of the shadows and pped her hands in delight. Who else could it be if not Jun Xiaomo?

    Naturally, she was still wearing Qin Shanshan¡¯s appearances right now.

    Jun Xiaomo swept a nce across the pitch-ck forbidden grounds as she rubbed her chin meaningfully, ¡°I wonder whether this visit of mine will bear any fruit tonight?¡±

 Chapter 290: Visitor in the Night

    <h4>Chapter 290: Visitor in the Night</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Over thest few days, Jun Xiaomo had continued to go back and forth from the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground with an Invisibility Talisman on her body, just so that she could familiarize herself with the situation within the forbidden grounds.

    She was different from Jun Ziwen. Jun Ziwen had at best a shallow understanding of formation arrays and talismans, so he dared not enter the forbidden grounds recklessly without a good n. Otherwise, he might find himself in a highly disadvantageous position even before he manages to rescue his martial brothers from within.

    On the other hand, the number of formation arrays that Jun Xiaomo had breached within the Proving Grounds alone numbered in the thousands, if not the ten-thousands, and breaching formation arrays was something that was almost second nature to her. The formation array sequestering the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds could hardly be considered anything more than a starter to her.

    That said, it would still take some effort on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part if she were to prepare this starter for her consumption.

    From her observations, Jun Xiaomo discovered that on every alternate day, He Zhang or his Sect Elders would enter the forbidden grounds and remain within its premises for the next four to six hours before leaving once more. That said, she remained unaware of what they were doing within its premises.

    However, these were all things that were done during the day. As soon as night fell, it would be rare to see anyone else going near the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds apart from the Dawn Sect disciples who were rostered to patrol the area.

    After a few days of continuous observation and surveince, Jun Xiaomo discovered that there was a certain order to which things were taking ce. Thus, she decided that it was time to make her move tonight.

    Naturally, she was not about to make a grand entrance right this moment. After all, the forbidden grounds were mysterious and filled with secrets. Instead, she intended to keep a low profile and make slow and steady progress so as to prevent alerting the enemy inadvertently.

    At the same time, like all other nights before this, Ye Xiuwen remained within Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    Usually, by this time, Ye Xiuwen would already be making preparations to enter a meditative state for the purposes of his cultivation. But tonight, for some strange reason, his heart felt rather stifled and anxious, and he was unable to quieten his restless heart and wholeheartedly pursue his cultivation.

    Thus, he walked over to his windowsill and nced over at the entrance to Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode with aplicated feeling in his heart.

    It was alreadyte, yet ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was not back yet. Even though he had only serendipitously encountered ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± not too long ago, and even though they had a tacit agreement not to interfere or intervene with what the other was doing to achieve their own personal goals, he couldn¡¯t help but feel rather worried for her when he noticed that she was not yet back from her endeavors. After all, he had already begun to consider ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± a friend of his.

    Then, in the moment that Ye Xiuwen decided to get in touch with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±, he suddenly felt his Interspatial Ring grow warm to the touch.

    Has someone entered the premises?

    Ye Xiuwen immediately shut his windows and retreated from the windowsill. Then, he sat on the stool by the table within the room and immediately released his divine sense at his surroundings.

    Having already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, the range of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s divine sense was naturallymensurably wide. At this moment, his divine sense could not only cover the entire courtyard, it was able to stretch beyond Qin Shanshan¡¯s entire abode and cover a radius of one kilometer around it.

    It was precisely for this reason that he had already begun to hone in his divine sense and observe a sneaky figure that was lingering about outside of Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. Then, when he took a closer look at this person, he discovered that it was none other than one of the female cultivators who had earlier trespassed and entered Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode uninvited. It was the tallest female disciple of the earlier group.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly.

    After the encounter with the group of uninvited guests this morning, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had decided to set up a number of formation arrays around her abode so as to prevent something simr from happening again.

    Then, after Jun Xiaomo linked up all of her formation arrays with her talismans, she handed one such talisman to Ye Xiuwen and kept one for herself. This way, if anyone entered Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode uninvited again, setting off the rm on one of her formation arrays, she and Ye Xiuwen would both be the first to know about it.

    As he continued to observe the uninvited guest, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but apud in his heart ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± foresight in this regard.

    However, he chose not to chase the uninvited guest away just yet. Instead, he simply retrieved a talisman from his Interspatial Ring and held it in his hands. Then, he continued to observe the uninvited guest¡¯s movements to see just what this person was up to.

    The person who had just arrived at Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode was none other than Shen Yaoxue. He Zhang had instructed her to sneak into Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode at night to observe and investigate more on what Jun Ziwen and Qin Shanshan were up to at night.

    He Zhang was still guarded against Jun Ziwen, and he had even begun to develop some measure of suspicions against Qin Shanshan. Sure, Jun Ziwen might be practicing his sword arts in the morning, but what about at night? Would he slip out of the abode at night to go about his ¡°main business¡± here?

    With such thoughts pressing on his mind, He Zhang decided to send his secret agent, Shen Yaoxue to investigate further.

    Shen Yaoxue was unaware that her movements had already been discovered by someone. She had also released her divine sense to probe about the environment and surroundings within Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, and she had discovered that everything appeared to be still and silent within. Not a single sound was to be heard in the premises.

    Could they really be out at night? Or are they both in their room right now?

    Once Shen Yaoxue ascertained that there was nobody around in the courtyard, she began to step through the gate and sneak into the abode.

    Then, as soon as Shen Yaoxue drew closer to the door of Qin Shanshan¡¯s room, the suspicion on her heart burgeoned. Summer had just arrived, and generally speaking, most people would find the weather too hot to sleep with their windows closed. That said, she noticed that Qin Shanshan¡¯s windows were shut so tightly that there was not even a single gap for her to peek through right now.

    Shen Yaoxue mentally noted this peculiarity as something she wouldter report to He Zhang.

    Then, rather than walk over to the main door of the room, she sat dun under arge tree near Qin Shanshan¡¯s room and began to release her divine sense to uncover what was going on within Qin Shanshan¡¯s room. In the end, she discovered that her divine sense appeared to be blocked by something, and it could only hover about around the perimeter of the room, unable to prate the blockade by any means.

    Could they have pasted a talisman on the door to obstruct my divine sense? Shen Yaoxue eximed in her heart as she made a mental note to report this to He Zhangter as well.

    She was clearly incredibly adept at capturing the smallest, suspicious details in her surveince attempts. This was why He Zhang had particrly favored sending her out on surveince missions.

    On the other side of the wall, within the room, Ye Xiuwen had in a simr fashion sent his divine sense out of the room to observe Shen Yaoxue¡¯s actions. When he discovered how Shen Yaoxue had sat down at a tree not too far away and attempted to observe what was going on inside Qin Shanshan¡¯s room, he could already roughly guess Shen Yaoxue¡¯s objectives.

    Jun Xiaomo had indeed pasted a talisman on her room door. Under the effects of this talisman, the divine sense of any cultivator up to the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation would not be able to prate its blockade and enter the room. This would also make things more convenient if she needed to discuss any private and confidential matters with Jun Ziwen within the room.

    Having realized that her attempts with her divine sense waspletely obstructed at the perimeter, Shen Yaoxue collected her divine sense with some measure of resignation as she pondered about her next move.

    Finally, she decided that she would press on and creep over towards the door to Qin Shanshan¡¯s room and put her ear to the door to see if she can hear anything going on within.

    After all, a talisman obstructing the pration of her divine sense did not necessarily prevent physical sounds from spreading and being picked up by her auditory senses. If Jun Ziwen and Qin Shanshan were truly inside their room, there was no reason that they would not be making any sounds.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen discovered that Shen Yaoxue was approaching the door to their room, a glint flickered in his eyes. With a quick flick of his wrist, he shot the talisman in his hand straight at the room door.

    Earlier, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had informed him that if anyone attempted to listen in on what they were doing inside, he could use this talisman.

    The talisman immediately glowed with a faint light and then faded away. Shen Yaoxue did not notice the glow of light, and she continued to make her way up the steps towards Qin Shanshan¡¯s room door. When she finally arrived at the door, she slowly and gingerly ced her ear to the door.

    ¡°Mm...ah...faster...faster...mmm...¡± A series of impassioned moans and groans instantly echoed within Shen Yaoxue¡¯s ears, causing her body to tremble slightly. Just like that, her entire being stiffened and remained rooted in ce.

    ¡°Mm...I...I can¡¯t take it anymore...¡± A coquettish, delicate voice pleaded disjointedly, interspersed only by the panting and gasping of her breath and a man¡¯s light chuckle. Having never experienced such affairs herself before, Shen Yaoxue instantly found her heart thumping wildly.

    She was unaware that her entire face was as red as a tomato right now, and that same, bashful lookpletely destroyed her usual cool andposed disposition.

    Something told her that she should leave this ce immediately. After all, she had already confirmed that Jun Ziwen and Qin Shanshan were ¡°busying¡± themselves within their room, and they had not slipped out of the abode under the cover of the night to attend to any form of ¡°main business¡± whatsoever. However, her shoes simply appeared to be glued to the floor, and her feet refused to move.

    She bit down furiously on her lower lips and then inched closer to the door once more.

    ¡°Mm...mm...ahn...brother Jun...ahh...¡± Qin Shanshan¡¯s voice appeared to be getting higher pitched and more anxious, almost as though she were trying to catch her breath. At the same time, Shen Yaoxue could hear the quickening squeaks of the bedframe.

    ¡°Ahhhhhh---¡± After an intense and shrill shriek, the entire room became silent once more.

    Momentster.

    ¡°What do you think about it tonight? Passable, isn¡¯t it?¡± The man chuckled lightly. After his release, his voice appeared to be filled with a slight measure of huskiness and crispness.

    ¡°......¡±

    Shen Yaoxue couldn¡¯t hear nor process thedy¡¯s response anymore. She had finally slipped away as quickly as her feet would take her as she made a beeline towards the entrance to Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. Her face waspletely flushed and so warm that one could even cook an egg on it right now.

    On the other side of the room door, having discovered Shen Yaoxue¡¯s departure from the premises, Ye Xiuwen finally stood up and tore down the talisman on the door and stuffed it back into his Interspatial Ring with a grim expression on his face.

    He had never expected ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± to hand him this type of talisman. He waspletely unprepared to listen to such ¡°provocative conversations¡± that the talisman had generated.

    Whenever he thought about how the talisman had mimicked his voice and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± voice, the veins on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s forehead would bulge and throb uncontrobly. Only the heavens would know how thatdy had created such a talisman to begin with. After all, even though he and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± were residing within the same room, they had never done such a deed before. Every night, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± would sleep on the bed on the inner quarters of the room, while he would sleep on a mattress on the outer quarters of the room. There was hardly any form of contact with each other at all, much less such adulterous behaviour.

    Yet, in the end, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had done the impossible and created something out of nothing. That said, the more Ye Xiuwen thought about it, the more embarrassed and awkward he got.

    He rubbed the temples to disperse the onset of the headache he was getting. There was a sudden urge rising from the depths of his heart to call ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± back from whatever she was doing right now to rap her heavily on her head.

    On the other side, Shen Yaoxue continued to run as quickly as her feet would take her from Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode for a long time, before finally slowing down. Even then, her heart was still thumping as quickly and furiously as before.

    Whenever she closed her eyes, her ears would begin to ring once more with the sounds that Jun Ziwen and Qin Shanshan had earlier been making. In particr, her mind would focus on the sounds that Jun Ziwen had made ¨C his indolent yet maic voice that was slightly husky after making merry had seemed to etch its way into her heart like a demonic curse.

    She had never thought that a person as cool and distant like Jun Ziwen would actually... Shen Yaoxue bit down furiously on her lower lip, and her eyes quivered with some bashfulness.

    Had she known this was going to happen, she would never have ced her ear anywhere close to the door. At this point in time, her heart was in aplete mess.

    Just as Shen Yaoxue was fighting hard to wrestle back control of her own emotions that were presently running amok, a Transmittance Talisman within her Interspatial Ring began to glow brightly, causing her to be taken aback slightly. Then, as she finally regained her senses, the blood that had earlier all rushed straight to her head had finally begun to subside.

    She finally remembered that she was on an important mission, and it was about time to report her findings to He Zhang.

    Collecting her thoughts and suppressing the still-roiling emotions in her heart, she began to steadily make her way towards He Zhang¡¯s abode once more.

 Chapter 291: Breaching the Forbidden Grounds; An Injured Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 291: Breaching the Forbidden Grounds; An Injured Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In his abode, Shen Yaoxue was reporting her findings to He Zhang, while He Zhang¡¯s expression remainedpletely stoic and indolent. There was neither joy nor sorrow on his face.

    ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that you¡¯d noticed that the door to their room as well as their windows were tightly shut, and they had even stered a talisman on their door to obstruct the pration of divine senses. Thus, you decided to walk close to the door to determine whether they were in their room?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Leader. That¡¯s exactly it.¡±

    ¡°But since you didn¡¯t see their physical persons, how do you know that they must be in their room? Under normal circumstances, why would anybody need to obstruct the pration of divine senses?¡± He Zhang pressed the issue.

    ¡°Disciple thinks that the reason why they had closed their windows and even consciously obstructed the pration of divine senses had very much to do with what they were doing at that point in time.¡± Shen Yaoxue postted.

    ¡°Oh? What were they doing?¡± He Zhang raised his eyebrows.

    ¡°This...¡± Faced with such a question, Shen Yaoxue couldn¡¯t help but recall the exact contents of what she had heard at that time once more. Her face flushed once more, and her eyes trembled slightly as she began to stammer, ¡°When disciple drew closer to the door, they...they were...¡±

    ¡°What were they doing? Don¡¯t sputter on like this!¡± He Zhang barked coldly.

    ¡°They...they were having intercourse.¡± Shen Yaoxue took a deep breath before blurting out what she was trying to say. Her skin felt hot like it just been roasted, while her mind waspletely dazed and disoriented by the blood that had rushed into her brain once more.

    There was no need to look in the mirror ¨C she knew full well how red her face was right now.

    He Zhang squinted his eyes as he echoed meaningfully, ¡°Intercourse...¡±

    Momentster, ¡°Alright, you may take your leave first.¡± He Zhang waved his hand and dismissed Shen Yaoxue.

    Seeing that He Zhang did not appear to be too upset, the tension in Shen Yaoxue¡¯s heart eased slightly, and she heaved an immense sigh of relief. If He Zhang were to find any fault in her report, she would most certainly be left debilitated after the manifestation of his wrath.

    After Shen Yaoxue took her leave, He Zhang remained taciturn for a little while longer, before he finally retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane, wrote some words on it, and then released it.

    ¡°Seems like the need to locate an array master has be something of even greater urgency...¡±

    ----------------------------------------------------------

    The first light of dawn that illuminated the earth and scattered the darkness also marked the end of a sleepless night. Ye Xiuwen rubbed his forehead, attempting to dispel some of the lingering weariness. Finally, after he perked up his spirits, he picked up the Transmittance Talisman that was ced just beside him once more.

    He had attempted to get in touch with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± the entire night, yet to no avail.

    Where exactly has ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± gone? A sense of unease enshrouded Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    As though echoing and affirming Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suspicions, the Transmittance Talisman in his hands suddenly brightened. Ye Xiuwen instantly picked up the Transmittance Talisman, only to hear ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± feeble voice echoing from within.

    ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m on the path to the abode...I can¡¯t hold up any longer. Come get me, alright...?¡±

    As soon as ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen heard a dull thud ring out from the Transmittance Talisman, as though something heavy had justnded on the floor. Then, no matter how much he called out, he did not receive any form of response whatsoever from ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately stored his Transmittance Talisman, imbued his body with his wind-based spells and sped towards the location that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had earlier described.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± body was still concealed by her Invisibility Talisman, so Ye Xiuwen was unable to see her physical body right now. Fortunately, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had earlier made some fundamental alterations to her Invisibility Talisman, so that Ye Xiuwen would be able to discover her whereabouts as long as uses his divine sense.

    Very quickly, Ye Xiuwen discovered someone lying on the groundpletely motionless, almost as though she were dead.

    ¡°Shanshan? ...Shanshan? ...Miss Tong? ...¡± Ye Xiuwen tried various ways of shaking awake the person lying unconscious on the ground. However, he received no response whatsoever.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that he could not dally any further. Thus, he knelt down and picked up the person on the ground, before speeding straight back to Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    If others were around right now, they would most definitely find this a strange sight to behold ¨C it was a sight of a handsome and charming looking man appearing as though he were carrying someone horizontally in his arms with an intense, grim expression on his face as he sped along, yet there was nothing visible in his arms.

    As soon as he returned to Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, Ye Xiuwen set ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± gingerly down onto the bed. Then, he was faced with another problem ¨C even though he could sense where ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was using his divine sense, the fact remained that he was unable to see her. If he could not see her, how was he going to know just what problems had surfaced on ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± body right now?

    Fortunately, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± gradually roused from her state ofatose, and the first thing she thought to do was to tear of the Invisibility Talisman on her body. Thus, what appeared to be an empty bed suddenly presented itself with a person lying on it.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± sudden appearance didn¡¯t astonish Ye Xiuwen. Rather, it was the plentiful wounds,cerations and injuries on her body that rendered Ye Xiuwenpletely bbergasted, and his body instantly seized up where he was.

    It was only after the Invisibility Talisman had lost its effects that Ye Xiuwen finally discovered just how serious ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± injuries were. Apart from the plentiful wounds on her body, he could even see traces of serpentine blood streaking out of the corner of her lips ¨C it was evident she had earlier coughed out blood.

    ¡°What were you doingst night?!¡± A fiery gaze ignited in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. As he questioned her in anger, he immediately retrieved a bunch of bottles from his Interspatial Ring, all of which were filled with invaluable recovery pills.

    He had already discovered that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was simr to his little martial sister in many respects. Yet, today, he had just discovered that even her reckless, bold and headstrong attitude resembled that which his little martial sister possessed.

    She must have done something incredibly dangerous to have sustained all these wounds. Otherwise, by the mere fact that she¡¯s wearing Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity right now, there¡¯s no way she should have sustained such serious injuries.

    ¡°Cough, cough...¡± After consuming some of the recovery pills, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was no longer as disoriented. As focus slowly returned to her eyes, she managed to look straight back at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing too much. I was just attempting to breach the defenses of a formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled weakly as she spoke in a lighthearted and rxed manner.

    It was as though she refused to recognize what she was doing as something dangerous, as she shrugged it off as something simple as having a meal.

    ¡°Breaching a formation array? Do you think formation arrays are to be simply breached just like that?! Do you think that you¡¯re unrivalled just because you¡¯re an array master?!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he castigated her behaviour.

    ¡°Alright, alright. Don¡¯t get angry. Aren¡¯t I fine now?¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm. The recovery pills she had just consumed were incredibly effective, and she had already recovered a substantial portion of her strength.

    To be able to encounter such a reliable friend like Jun Ziwen in such dire circumstances isn¡¯t too bad. Jun Xiaomo remarked in her heart.

    Even though their rtionship had been founded on the basis of mutual benefit and cooperation, they had already begun to develop some level of understanding for each other over their days of cooperation ¨C they were each undoubtedly of the character and personality that the other person admired and respected. Thus, they had over time begun to recognize each other as true friends.

    Although they had not made these thoughts of theirs explicit, they knew in their hearts that the other thought the same way about them as well. Thus, they had begun to tacitly treat each other as friends as well.

    Just like now, Jun Xiaomo could see very clearly the kind of worry that was highly evident in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°You call this ¡®fine¡¯? If I weren¡¯t around to pick you up and bring you back here, you might very well have been spotted by someone else!¡± Ye Xiuwen began to realize just how gutsy and reckless thisdy was ¨C it was as though she were unafraid of even death itself.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, they won¡¯t be able to discover me. I¡¯ve already made preparations.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled, causing Ye Xiuwen to re at her with disapproval once more.

    Realizing that her efforts to dispel the rage in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart had all been in vain, she sighed with some measure of resignation as she added, ¡°Trust me, if there were any way to breach the defenses of a formation array without putting my life in danger, I would be the first to jump in on it. Unfortunately, there¡¯s none.¡±

    ¡°What kind of formation array is this that is so important for you to breach that you would even risk your life?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    After all, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had proven so formidable that even the Sect¡¯s protective formation array was unable to stand against her assault. What other formation array was there that could possibly be even more dangerous than the Sect¡¯s protective formation array?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened, but she immediately shut her mouth. This was because the answer to this question was somewhat rted to her identity that was a secret for now. Thus, she was unable to reveal something like that to Jun Ziwen.

    Ye Xiuwen understood ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± unwillingness to respond to his question. Thus, he decided to approach the issue from a different perspective, ¡°Then, having attempted to breach the formation array¡¯s defenses for an entire night, apart from reducing your life to its final breaths, did you discover the way to breach its defenses?¡±

    This was most certainly something that Jun Xiaomo could answer.

    She rubbed her cheeks, ¡°I might have to make two more probative attempts like earlier before I can ascertain the way to breach the formation array¡¯s defenses.¡±

    ¡°Another two attempts?!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, and a burgeoning rage could once again be seen in the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°Alright, alright. Don¡¯t get mad just yet. I can¡¯t say this about anything else, but I¡¯m almost certain that you can¡¯t possibly be more familiar than I am with formation arrays and talismans, are you? At this moment, my goal is to investigate and decipher the abilities and functions of this formation array so that I can set up the appropriate countermeasures. I¡¯m confident that there aren¡¯t many formation arrays in this world that is able to stand up against my abilities. Even if there are some around, you would probably never find any of these within the Dawn Sect, because the Dawn Sect will never be able to set up a formation array that can stymie me. Don¡¯t be too astonished by the sheer number of injuries on my body. These are but surface wounds, and they¡¯re nothing that won¡¯t recoverpletely after a few days¡¯ rest.¡± Jun Xiaomo sincerely exined everything to Ye Xiuwen. When it came to matters pertaining to formation arrays, her eyes would invariably be filled with pride and confidence.

    She knew that she had the right to be prideful and confident in her abilities. After all, she was Tong Ruizhen¡¯s handpicked disciple, and she had fully immersed herself in the discipline of formation arrays and talismans within the Proving Ground for a whopping three hundred and thirty years. If she were unable to even breach the defenses of a formation array sequestering the forbidden grounds of a meagre Secondary Sect, her master Tong Ruizhen would most definitely give her an earful for three whole days and nights when he discovers this.

    Unfortunately, the precondition to breaching the defenses of any formation array was first to learn of and identify the formation array¡¯s functions and abilities. It was just like counteracting any poison ¨C even if a person knew the antidote to every single type of poison in the world, he would still have to decipher what kind of poison it was before he could deliver the appropriate antidote to the person. Otherwise, everything would be done in vain.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo had already braced herself and made sufficient preparations before attempting to breach the formation array¡¯s defenses. She had already known that the road ahead would be fraught with danger, and she would also have to face a period of hardship in the near future.

    Ye Xiuwen realized that he was unable to refute what Jun Xiaomo had said, and he simply stared at her with a cold look on his face. In the end, he sighed with resignation.

    ¡°Oh yes, what about your goals here? I¡¯ve noticed that you¡¯ve remained within the abode all this while, almost as though you¡¯ve not thought to make your move just yet.¡± Jun Xiaomo queried curiously.

    Ye Xiuwen grew sullen for a moment, before responding, ¡°I¡¯d also encountered a formation array, and I don¡¯t know how I¡¯m going to deal with it.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with some measure of surprise, before nodding her head in understanding.

    ¡°Then, do you need my help?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen as she mischievously batted her eyelids.

    Ye Xiuwen hesitated. He was evidently caught between a rock and a hard ce right now. However, after deliberating about it for some time, he was unable to think of a single way to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds apart from asking ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± for her assistance.

    ¡°Perhaps...I might really need Miss Tong¡¯s assistance in this regard.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed softly.

 Chapter 292: The Proud and Arrogant Array Master

    <h4>Chapter 292: The Proud and Arrogant Array Master</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After deliberating about it, Ye Xiuwen decided to expose his intentions and dered, ¡°I intend to enter the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. I wonder if Miss Tong would be willing to help me in this regard?¡±

    ¡°So you¡¯re also looking to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened.

    ¡°Also?¡± Ye Xiuwen picked up on the crux of the issue, ¡°Could Miss Tong have also attempted to enter the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden groundst night?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed twice dryly and rubbed her nose as she responded, ¡°Yeah...that...¡± She looked at Jun Ziwen again, but was still unaware of what his true motives were, and at the same time, she was not prepared to alert him to the fact that she was here to rescue the Heavenly Peak disciples. Thus, her mind spun, and she supplemented with an excuse, ¡°I¡¯d heard that there are priceless, invaluable treasures hidden within the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. That¡¯s why I¡¯de here to begin with.¡±

    ¡°Is that all?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°That¡¯s all.¡± Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes wide and stared straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, doing all she could to seem that little bit more persuasive.

    ¡°Ridiculous!¡± Ye Xiuwen exploded again, ¡°Do you think the forbidden grounds is somewhere you can trespass and enter just like that?!¡±

    ¡°That...¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and murmured, ¡°But I¡¯d made sufficient preparations before attempting it...¡±

    ¡°Would you still get injured if your preparations were sufficient?¡± Ye Xiuwen snorted coldly.

    ¡°Believe it or not, it¡¯s natural to get injured...After all, I¡¯ve got to decipher the abilities and purposes of the formation arrays involved...¡± Jun Xiaomo stubbornly maintained.

    Ye Xiuwen was once again reminded of his little martial sister. Back then, his little martial sister had also trespassed upon the Sect¡¯s forbidden ground after being tempted by others. That was the genesis to the issue with her body, and that was what forced her to acquire a demonic body and be a demonic cultivator through and through. Who would have expected that yearster, he would encounter another person that was just as daredevil as his little martial sister?

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard of the saying ¡®curiosity killed the cat¡¯?!¡± Ye Xiuwen castigated with displeasure.

    Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and red back at Ye Xiuwen as she rebutted, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to enter the forbidden grounds as well? How can you berate me like that? If you¡¯re still going to continue, I¡¯m not going to tell you how to enter the forbidden grounds anymore!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately found a lump lodged in his throat, and he began to panic, ¡°I¡¯m going in for a different purpose! How can youpare our purposes like that?!¡±

    ¡°How is it any different? We¡¯re both going to trespass and enter the forbidden grounds either way!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m entering because I¡¯m...¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Jun Xiaomo stared at Ye Xiuwen with a bright glimmer in her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback. After retracting his words and remaining taciturn for a moment, he cut himself off, ¡°Nothing much. You should have some rest.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo pouted, evidently displeased with how Ye Xiuwen had just changed the topic like that as she muttered under her breath, ¡°You want me to help you, yet you¡¯re not even willing to tell me this much.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was momentarily taken aback, and he grimaced, as though deep in thought, before finally responding with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Once everything ends, I¡¯ll tell you everything, alright?¡±

    He truly couldn¡¯t afford to gamble with the safety of his martial brother¡¯s lives. After all, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± identity and motives were too mysterious and secretive, and something told him that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was still hiding something from him. That said, out of pure respect for her, he chose to refrain from asking her about it if she was not willing to talk about it.

    His only hope was that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± did not harbour any ill intentions towards the members of the Heavenly Peak. Otherwise, even if he were able to rescue the martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak, he might no longer be able to maintain this friendship of theirs once the truth hade to light.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped that Ye Xiuwen no longer considered the possibility that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was Jun Xiaomo. After all, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had previously affirmatively dered that she had already lived for thest three hundred years. On ount of this fact alone, Ye Xiuwen could already justifiably rule out the possibility that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was Jun Xiaomo.

    After receiving Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pledge to reveal the truth to her, she nodded her head in delight as she responded, ¡°Alright, then. I¡¯ll make an exception and give you a hand in this regard.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was amused by the way Jun Xiaomo described how she was ¡°making an exception¡±, and he curled his lips into a smile.

    ¡°But, let me put this out there first. Entering the forbidden grounds isn¡¯t an easy feat, and sustaining injuries is part and parcel of the process. You¡¯re not allowed to make a mountain out of a molehill in this regard.¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly put on a stern and somber face as she instructed Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions stiffened as he stared vacantly at Jun Xiaomo,pletely speechless ¨C Is this really considered making a mountain out of a molehill?

    However, he sighed with resignation as he decided to give in, ¡°Alright. But you¡¯re not allowed to enter the grounds alone. Since I need to enter the forbidden grounds as well, I¡¯m going to move together with you.¡±

    ¡°No way!¡± Jun Xiaomo rejected that notion entirely, causing Ye Xiuwen to furrow his brows and re at Jun Xiaomo with a disapproving look.

    Jun Xiaomo stuck out her finger and wagged it in front of Ye Xiuwen as she exined, ¡°It¡¯s not that I¡¯m being haughty or arrogant, but with brother Jun¡¯s abilities, you wouldn¡¯t be able to leave with your life and limb intact if you follow me into the formation array before I can set up the appropriate countermeasures. In fact, if you follow me into the formation array, I¡¯ll be distracted by the fact that I¡¯ve got to look after you as well. Conversely, it¡¯s only if I enter the formation array alone that I¡¯ll be able to wholeheartedly focus on my own safety. In any event, we¡¯ll need to leave someone here to deal with any uninvited guests.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel was based on sound logic and reasoning, but for some reason, Ye Xiuwen continued to find it uneptable to him.

    ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ll give you a special Transmittance Talisman as well. When I enter the formation array, you¡¯ll still be able to contact me, and it won¡¯t be obstructed by the existence of the formation array at all. Will this do? Then, if I really encounter any life-threatening dangers, you¡¯ll be able toe running after me like a hero rescuing a damsel in distress.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo batted her eyelids at Ye Xiuwen as she cajoled him.

    Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t think of a single reason to raise in objection to what Jun Xiaomo had just said. Thus, after an extended period of silence, he had no choice but to agree with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestions with some measure of exasperation.

    If she were to thoroughly understand the forbidden ground¡¯s formation array, Jun Xiaomo still needed to enter and probe about within the formation array twice.

    Under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instructions, Jun Xiaomo rested within Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode for the next few days and prepared several life-preserving talismans for herself at the same time. After approximately one week, when Jun Xiaomo felt like she was almost in the pink of health, she decided to enter the forbidden grounds to probe at its formation arrays once more.

    At about the same time, the array master that He Zhang was looking so desperately for had finally also arrived within the Dawn Sect.

    Ever since time immemorial, array masters and talisman masters were existences that were few and far between within the spiritual cultivation world. After all, the pursuit of such disciplines invariably required a person to sacrifice a substantial portion of time that he could be using to elevate his cultivation level to the next level or even next stage of cultivation. To most people, the trade off was practically a no-brainer. Unless a person¡¯s talent for cultivation were too low, most people would never choose to pursue the disciplines of bing an array master or a talisman master.

    However, it was precisely also because they were few and far between that the stronger the array master or talisman master, the more highly sought after they were. As long as his abilities were sufficiently strong, even an array master at merely the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation could be more well regarded than the average cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    The array master invited by He Zhang to resolve their issues possessed abilities that were only slightly above average among all of the array masters within the spiritual cultivation world. However, time was of the essence. Furthermore, the stronger array masters would usuallye and go as they pleased, and they were in such high demand that they would never be idling about, waiting for the next Sect to call upon them. Thus, He Zhang had no other choice but to contend with an array master that was no more than passable.

    However, as soon as he saw the array master they had invited, He Zhang¡¯s eyelids immediately began to twitch ¨C this array master¡¯s expressions were far too deserving of beating. This array master walked about with an air of haughtiness around him, as though anyone around werepletely beneath him. Even when he looked at the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader, there was not a single trace of respect within his eyes.

    ¡°Sect Leader, this is Chen Taiguang. He is the thirty-second generation¡¯s sessor of the Chen n formation array arts. Brother Chen, this our Sect¡¯s Sect Leader He.¡±

    ¡°Pleased to meet you, brother Chen.¡± His guest was an array master when all was said and done, so He Zhang had consciously set aside his pride as a Sect Leader and bowed politely to Chen Taiguang.

    However, Chen Taiguang simply lifted his chin and nodded in response to He Zhang.

    The Sect Elder that had brought Chen Taiguang back disyed a rather embarrassed and awkward look on his face. From their interactions on the way back, he had already discovered this array master¡¯s problematic behaviour. However, he had not had the opportunity to inform He Zhang of the same.

    Furthermore, he had never expected that Chen Taiguang would not even give their Sect Leader any respect.

    He Zhang was infuriated by Chen Taiguang¡¯s arrogance. However, he knew that he needed Chen Taiguang¡¯s assistance right now, so he had no choice but to suppress the burgeoning rage in his stomach.

    ¡°Men, bring brother Chen to his room so that he can get a good shower and clean up after his long journey here.¡± He Zhang coldly demanded of the Dawn Sect disciples who were awaiting his instructions.

    ¡°Eh, hang on.¡± Chen Taiguang raised his hands and interrupted He Zhang, ¡°I¡¯m hungry. I¡¯d prefer if you guys made something for me to eat for now. Oh yes, remember to include some meat as well ¨C and make sure that the meat is from a spirit beast that is at least of the fifth-grade. Otherwise, the food wouldn¡¯t have any vour.¡±

    The veins on He Zhang¡¯s forehead instantly bulged and began to throb, and he gnashed his teeth as he instructed the disciple who had run over to him, ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear the man? Go prepare it right now!¡±

    ¡°But...but, Sect Leader, we don¡¯t have in stock any meat from spirit beasts that are in the fifth-grade or higher.¡± The disciple receiving his new set of instructions stammered as he exined the issue with such a request.

    Before He Zhang could say anything, Chen Taiguang immediately eximed, ¡°As expected, a small sect is a small sect indeed. You don¡¯t even have meat of spirit beasts at the fifth-grade. Tsk tsk.¡±

    His words were clearly filled with disdain for the Dawn Sect.

    He Zhang and the other Sect Elders¡¯ faces immediately darkened with rage ¨C if not for the fact that they needed his assistance right now...

    Suppressing his fury once more, He Zhang bellowed and ventted his anger at the Dawn Sect disciple, ¡°Even if we don¡¯t have any in stock, don¡¯t you know how to obtain something like that? Don¡¯t tell me that you can¡¯t even defeat a fifth-grade spirit beast after practicing your cultivation for such a long time?!¡±

    The disciple at the receiving end of He Zhang¡¯s rage felt incredibly aggrieved and humiliated right now. However, the person instructing him was none other than his Sect Leader, and he was not in any position to put up a contrarian perspective to matters. Thus, he hurriedly bowed inpliance and ran off with his tail between his legs.

    If I really can¡¯t find a fifth-grade spirit beast, I¡¯ll have no choice but to use money to buy the meat from the market. The Dawn Sect disciple thought in his heart.

    When he thought about how valuable the meat of fifth-grade spirit beasts was, the disciple couldn¡¯t help but feel pangs of pain emanating from his heart. The more he thought about it, the more he was determined to hunt for the meat if that was possible.

    After the disciple left, Chen Taiguang brazenly walked over to the seat that was meant for the chairman presiding over any meeting and took his seat there. Then, he retrieved a scroll from his Interspatial Ring and began to scribble some words onto it.

    Shortly after that, he tossed it to He Zhang. Puzzled, He Zhang received it and opened the scroll once more.

    As he skimmed over the contents of what was written within, He Zhang¡¯s face grewpletely ashen.

    Chen Taiguang slowly exined, ¡°These are my fees. I¡¯d already agreed this with your Sect Elder on the way here. Sect Elder He, please prepare these things in advance. Once I¡¯m done with the work here, I¡¯ll be leaving immediately.¡±

    ¡°But this ispletely different from what we¡¯d previously agreed!¡± He Zhang¡¯s fists tightened around the scroll. It was evident that he was almost unable to control his anger anymore, ¡°This is fifty percent more than what I¡¯d prepared!¡±

    ¡°So what? You¡¯re the one with the request, not me. In fact, what I¡¯m requesting for is considered quite little already. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can ask the others who had engaged my services in the past just how much they had paid me. You¡¯re from a Secondary Sect after all, I don¡¯t think you¡¯d be unable to fork over just this much, would you? If you really can¡¯t afford this much, then you¡¯ll have to forgive me, but I won¡¯t be able to help you out.¡± Chen Taiguang looked at He Zhang with a derisory gaze in his eyes.

    He Zhang waspletely incensed. He had only intended to locate an array master to check on and identify what was wrong with the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. But as things were right now, they seemed to have inadvertently invited a tyrant to their midst!

    Ever since he had be the Sect Leader, who else, apart from the Du n Head, had dared to treat him with such contempt and disrespect?!

    Forget about the Du n Head for now. After all, his abilities were way in excess of He Zhang¡¯s abilities, and it was only natural for him to be unting his arrogance about He Zhang. That said, what did this puny array master count for? With his abilities, He Zhang could squash him as easily as an ant right now!

    The Sect Elder standing beside He Zhang noticed that He Zhang¡¯s rage was ever increasing, and he quickly tugged at his sleeves and whispered in a hushed voice, ¡°Sect Elder, bear with it for now. We¡¯ve got no choice ¨C he¡¯s the only one who can help us right now. If we chase him away, the issue with the Sect¡¯s protective formation array will remain unresolved. Without knowing where Jun Linxuan and the rest of the Heavenly Peak are, it would be imprudent to leave the issue with the Sect¡¯s protective formation array unresolved.¡±

    With the aid of the Sect Elder¡¯s persuasive reasoning, He Zhang finally managed to repress his rage and regain some measure of his rationality.

    He nced at Chen Taiguang once more with a deep and abstruse gaze, before stering a stiff smile on his face as he quipped, ¡°Brother Chen makes sense. Since we¡¯re the ones with the request, we¡¯ll naturally have to show sufficient sincerity for your assistance.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly how it should be. Oh yes, if you¡¯ve got any good spirit wine with you, don¡¯t forget to bring some to meter as well.¡±

    It had to be mentioned that Chen Taiguang truly knew no bounds. He was the very embodiment of the idiom ¡°give an inch, take a mile¡±. As he continued to present himself with the delighted, pleased look on his face, the Sect Elders standing around couldn¡¯t help but develop an urge to tear him to shreds.

    However, none of them acted on their thoughts.

    At the same time, even though He Zhang responded obsequiously, his eyes nced coldly at Chen Taiguang once more.

    This man¡¯s abilities had better be as formidable as he makes himself out to be. No, he¡¯d better pray that he can do something about the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. Otherwise...

    A trace of killing intent surfaced on He Zhang¡¯s heart.

 Chapter 293: Chen Taiguangâ€™s Methods, Jun Xiaomo Faces Danger

    <h4>Chapter 293: Chen Taiguang¡¯s Methods, Jun Xiaomo Faces Danger</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had managed to enter and leave the forbidden ground¡¯s formation array for the second time without alerting the Dawn Sect to her efforts. That said, she had once again returned with her bodypletely covered with wounds and injuries.

    Ye Xiuwen waited impatiently for her at the road leading from Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. From afar, he could sense Jun Xiaomo¡¯s approach using his divine sense.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo still had an Invisibility Talisman stered on her body, so Ye Xiuwen could not see her physical appearances. Thus, he could only wait where he was with a cold, cid expression on his face. Nobody knew what he was thinking at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aura continued to draw nearer and nearer to him.

    Then, as soon as Jun Xiaomo made her way in front of Ye Xiuwen, she removed the Invisibility Talisman on her body and smiled weakly and feebly at Ye Xiuwen.

    At that very moment, her vision faded to ck, and she immediately copsed forward, falling directly into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms.

    As he supported the limp body in his arms, Ye Xiuwen knitted his brows tightly together ¨C he had thought that with the first experience within the forbidden ground¡¯s formation array, her injuries would no longer be as severe. Unexpectedly, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± current injuries appeared to be even worse than the previous time.

    If not for the talismans and recovery pills that were preserving her life right now, he truly would not be able to say with any certainty whether ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± could have returned in one piece to begin with.

    Is this really what she meant by ¡®she¡¯ll be fine¡¯?! Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart immediately burgeoned with an intense, boiling rage.

    If not for the fact that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had already fainted, he would most certainly have given her an earful by now! However, as he stared nkly at the unconscious Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen could only sigh with some measure of resignation as he carried her horizontally and made his way back towards Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    Right now, the most important thing was not to castigate this person, but to set her down in a safe ce and heal her injuries so that they do not worsen or aggravate.

    Ye Xiuwen ced her down onto her bed gingerly once more, before feeding her almost half a bottle¡¯s worth of recovery pills. Approximately five hourster, Jun Xiaomo came to her senses again.

    Her lips were dry, and her injuries were still afflicting her with intense waves of pain. Even though she had experienced all types and forms of different injuries before, she would still knit her brows tightly together as a result of the intense pains he was experiencing.

    ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked calmly. He did not let his emotions seep out with his cid tone of voice.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intuition told her that he was angry. The onset of her intuition was strange and peculiar, but Jun Xiaomo trusted it anyways.

    ¡°That...are you angry?¡± Jun Xiaomo would habitually speak her mind with those she considered her friends. Thus, she cautiously asked as she observed the expressions on Jun Ziwen¡¯s face.

    However, Ye Xiuwen did not respond to her query. He simply continued to look at her coldly, causing her to feel increasingly awkward.

    After swallowing her saliva, Jun Xiaomo weakly asked, ¡°That...could you pour me a cup of tea? My throat is parched. Thanks.¡±

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen walked towards the outer quarters to boil the cup of tea, Jun Xiaomo managed to let out a tense breath of air as sheined in her heart ¨C Did this guy eat something wrong? His gaze is far too intense!

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen returned with a cup of tea in his hands and handed over the tea to Jun Xiaomo without a single word. Then, he took his seat at the stool beside the bed and continued to stare intently at Jun Xiaomo.

    Fighting against the pain, Jun Xiaomo sat up and began to sip at her tea slowly, ncing over at Ye Xiuwen from time to time, as though looking for answers on his face.

    In the end, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions remained as cold as ever, and Jun Xiaomo could hardly figure out why he was upset.

    Finally, just as Jun Xiaomo was mustering her courage to ask Ye Xiuwen about it once more, Ye Xiuwen took the initiative to break the silent and tense atmosphere, ¡°Do the injuries on your body still hurt?¡±

    Pouting, Jun Xiaomo responded with some measure of humiliation, ¡°Of course they hurt. How could the pain possibly subside so quickly?¡±

    No matter how good the recovery pills were, it was impossible to make such grievous wounds heal and close up so quickly. Thus, Jun Xiaomo was naturally still experiencing excruciating pain with her body.

    ¡°Pain? I¡¯d still thought you don¡¯t know how to experience pain!¡± Ye Xiuwen snorted coldly. His tone of voice was ostensibly filled with so much displeasure that only a fool would be unable to hear it.

    Jun Xiaomo found herself taken aback at hisments, and she had finally figured out why this man was so angry.

    ¡°That...I¡¯d slightly underestimated the formation array¡¯s abilities and strength. As for my preparations...I assure you that my injuries won¡¯t be as severe next time.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined herself with a meek voice.

    Truth be told, it might have been better if Jun Xiaomo had remainedpletely silent. But now that she had spoken, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rage stirred and burgeoned uncontrobly.

    ¡°There¡¯s still a next time?!¡± Ye Xiuwen red at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°There¡¯s no choice, is there? The forbidden ground¡¯s formation array isn¡¯t easily breached. The fact that I can reduce the number of probative attempts to three instances is already not too bad...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered softly.

    Ye Xiuwen grew taciturn.

    He did not know too much about formation arrays to begin with. Even though he had always used ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± of being gutsy and reckless, growing angry at the fact that she appeared to be throwing her life away, he knew full well that the forbidden grounds could never be such an easy ce to enter just like that. To demand that she returnedpletely unharmed was practically asking for the impossible.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen was even unsure as to why he would feel so upset by the fact that she had got herself injured to such an extent. Perhaps it was because he treated her as a friend, and he most certainly did not wish to see her perish before his very eyes.

    Just like his little martial sister ¨C once she was dead, everything becamepletely meaningless.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go with you the next time.¡± After a long period of silence, Ye Xiuwen spoke with an unyielding and adamant voice.

    It was an intransigent statement, as though he were merely informing Jun Xiaomo of his unteral decision ¨C he was insistent on going with Jun Xiaomo the next time.

    ¡°What?! No way!¡± Jun Xiaomo objected without any hesitation.

    ¡°There¡¯s nopromise this time. Or, do you want me to tie you up and keep you here so that you can¡¯t enter the formation array at all?¡± Ye Xiuwen stared at Jun Xiaomo with a sullen expression on his face as he gave her an ¡°option¡±.

    ¡°You! On what basis are you saying this?!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°You don¡¯t know a thing about formation arrays at all. If you follow me in, aren¡¯t you just going to be a deadweight?!¡±

    ¡°I do know nothing about formation arrays, but at the very least, I¡¯ll be able to prevent you from forcing the issue and drag you back from the formation array when pushes to shove.¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly remarked.

    Jun Xiaomo was renderedpletely speechless by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arguments. This was particrly so when she realized that she was faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intense re. Thus, she began to shrink back and pout her lips as she grew taciturn.

    This time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries were evidently worse than thest time she had attempted to enter the forbidden grounds, and she was bedridden for three whole days before she managed to get out of bed. And even then, her feet would ache whenever she walked.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he continued to ply Jun Xiaomo with countless recovery pills. In the end, the result was the same ¨C it still took some time for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries to recover.

    ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. I don¡¯t even know what kind of traps the old fogeys had set up within the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. They¡¯ve even injured by bones. It¡¯s no wonder I¡¯m recovering so slowly. Furthermore, there are still some elements involving demonic energy and curses, and in a moment of slip up, I¡¯d sustained some injuries from one of these.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed with some measure of denial.

    Ye Xiuwen rapped her gently on the head as he replied, ¡°Don¡¯t make light of things. You might not be as lucky next time.¡±

    ¡°Alright, alright. I¡¯ve encountered far more formidable formation arrays in the past. These kinds of things can¡¯t stop me at all. The most that is going to happen to me is to sustain some injuries and other forms of hardship in the process of investigation.¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hands, shrugging off the issue.

    In fact, there was some measure of truth in what she had just said. After all, the formation arrays within the Proving Grounds were far more formidable andplex than the formation array sequestering the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds from the rest of the world. While she was inside the Proving Grounds, there were several instances where her life had practically hung by a thread as she sessfully breached the formation arrays within. At that time, she even wondered what the true motive of her great grandmaster was for setting up such incrediblyplex formation arrays within the Proving Grounds.

    Could he have simply intended to torment anyone who enters the Proving Grounds?

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo managed to sessfully clear the Proving Grounds and thus leave its premises in the end. Now, whenever she thought about the long, arduous years she had spent within the Proving Grounds, she would always sigh in her heart.

    At the same time, she also possessed the sincerest form of gratitude towards her great grandmaster for providing his disciples and their disciples such a perfect ce for pursuing their craft.

    However, all of this was something that Ye Xiuwen was unaware of. Thus, whenever he saw how ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± appeared to throw caution to the wind and put her life in harm¡¯s way, he would always feel swamped with rage and anger.

    This was what gave rise to his insistence to enter the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds with ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±.

    Since Jun Xiaomo was unable to get out of bed, Ye Xiuwen had personally taken it upon himself to order food from the kitchen and bring it back with him so that he could partake of meals together with Jun Xiaomo. At the beginning, the people from the Dawn Sect were curious as to why Qin Shanshan had seemed to have vanished into thin air. Later, when Ye Xiuwen exined that she was bedridden, they began to give Ye Xiuwen a meaningful look of realization, replete with a mischievous, knowing smile on their faces.

    It was evident that everyone¡¯s minds were wandering astray.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen could hardly be bothered to exin and correct their misunderstanding. After all, he could not really speak of the real reason why ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was bedridden either. If these people learnt more about it, they might even begin to suspect that something was amiss.

    Therefore, since everyone¡¯s minds had wandered off the beaten path and ¡°filled in the gaps¡± on his behalf, Ye Xiuwen simply yed along together with everyone. After all, it sufficed that he and ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± knew the truth of the matter.

    Today, just as Jun Xiaomo sat in her bed, eating rice from her bowl, her hand suddenly jolted, and a peculiar glimmer flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ye Xiuwen keenly noticed from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction that something was wrong, ¡°Is there something wrong with the food?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯ve discovered that someone¡¯s tampering with the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo faintly furrowed her brows.

    ¡°Protective formation array? Why would they be tampering with their own protective formation array?¡±

    ¡°Cough, cough, back when I was trapped within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, I¡¯d secretly made some alterations and modifications to it as well.¡± Jun Xiaomo pinched her fingers together, disying a ¡°small¡± gesture.

    But the truth of the matter was that her ¡°small¡± alterations and modifications had allowed her to take control of the entire protective formation array for her own usage.

    ¡°Did you leave any clues behind? Would they be able to determine that you were the culprit?¡± Ye Xiuwen was truly sharp ¨C he knew exactly where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s concernsy in almost an instant.

    ¡°Hmph. If they want to trace the culprit to me, it really depends on whether they¡¯ve got the ability to do so.¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her chin and stuck her nose high up in the air.

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head with some measure of exasperation. He knew that whenever ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± expertise was mentioned, she would invariably disy that look of pride and haughtiness.

    That said, even though Jun Xiaomo gave Ye Xiuwen the impression that it was going to be difficult for them to find traces of her handiwork from her alterations, a trace of worry and concern still surfaced in the depths of her eyes as soon as she lowered her head.

    Meanwhile, having eaten his fill and drank to his heart¡¯s content, Chen Taiguang, who had been ying and enjoying life over thest few days while inadvertently wearing thin He Zhang and the Sect Elders¡¯ patience, finally got down to things and retrieved a formation diagram from his Interspatial Ring.

 Chapter 294: Battle of the Arrays; Chen Taiguangâ€™s Act

    <h4>Chapter 294: Battle of the Arrays; Chen Taiguang¡¯s Act</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    With a Dawn Sect identity token hung around his neck, and armed with a regr sized formation diagram, Chen Taiguang strode towards the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    The identity token would guarantee that he would not be targeted by the protective formation array¡¯s attacks, while the formation diagram allowed him to easily locate the heart of the protective formation array itself, which was also where the eye of the formation array was located.

    If Jun Xiaomo witnessed this sight right now, she would most certainly despise Chen Taiguang for his ineptitude.

    Quite apart from his heritage as a sessor of the Chen n, it was aplete disgrace to his abilities as an array master if he needed to rely on the formation diagram in order to locate the heart of the formation array.

    However, Jun Xiaomo did not notice these actions of his, so she was presently still wary of the unknown array master¡¯s true abilities. After all, she was unaware of who He Zhang had invited to look into the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, and she was naturally also unaware of the depth of his abilities.

    Within a few moments¡¯ time, Chen Taiguang managed to find his way to the heart of the formation array without a hitch.

    ¡°Did the person who set up this formation array for you leave behind an Origin Diagram for your reference?¡± Chen Taiguang asked He Zhang and the rest who were following behind him.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have an Origin Diagram. However, the array master did leave us a formation diagram. Using this diagram, we¡¯re able to deactivate and reactivate this protective formation array.¡± He Zhang exined.

    ¡°That formation diagram will do as well. Bring it here.¡± Chen Taiguang instructed bluntly. Even though He Zhang and the other Sect Elders were severely displeased with Chen Taiguang¡¯s attitude right now, they knew that they could not afford to offend him as yet. After all, they still needed his assistance to check on the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    Thus, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders retrieved from their Interspatial Rings their respective parts of the formation diagram and began to piece them together. Within moments, the parts had been rejoined to form the whole formation diagram

    Then, Chen Taiguang retrieved a sharp spirit tool and stabbed it straight into the heart of the formation diagram, before slowly suffusing his spiritual energy through the spirit tool and into the formation diagram.

    The entire sheet of formation diagram began to emit a faint, blue glow, and this glow only continued to intensify as Chen Taiguang continued to pour out his spiritual energy. If one took a closer examination right now, he would realize that the glowing light had begun to slowly course through the inscriptions on the entire formation diagram.

    He Zhang and the other Sect Elders watched the blue light intensify with an enigmatic expression in the depths of their eyes.

    It was only going to be a matter of moments before they would finally know with some certainty whether or not the Sect¡¯s protective formation array had been tampered by someone.

    On the other side at Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, having discovered the movements around the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, Jun Xiaomo had also retrieved a corresponding formation diagram from her Interspatial Ring and unfolded it on the table in front of her.

    After pondering for a moment, she picked up a talisman brush dipped in bright red ink and added a few strokes onto the formation diagram without any hesitation.

    Then, having done that, Jun Xiaomo immediately retrieved an amber, translucent pebble and set it carefully on the formation diagram, before operating her true energy and suffusing the formation diagram with her spiritual energy.

    The pebble was something that she had earlier removed from the heart of the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. At the same time, she had reced it and embedded the heart of the formation array with another pebble of her own.

    With such alterations, not only would she be empowered to make any changes to the Sect¡¯s protective formation array as she desired; she would even be able to monitor the situation at and surrounding the Sect¡¯s protective formation array at any time she desired.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo suspended her hands above the formation diagram, closed her eyes and began to release her divine sense.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s understanding had barely scratched the surface of the deep and profound discipline of formation arrays, and he did not know what Jun Xiaomo was up to right now. Thus, he sat silently at the side, doing his best not to interrupt or disturb her present actions.

    Sending her divine sense probing through the formation array, Jun Xiaomo began to see several figures appear before her very eyes. Gradually, these blurry figures became clearer, and clearer, until Jun Xiaomo could finally recognize the minutest details on these persons¡¯ faces. She could see that He Zhang and the other Sect Elders were huddled around a stranger, while the stranger was standing before the Dawn Sect¡¯s formation diagram and appeared to be muttering some mnemonics.

    This must be the array master they¡¯d invited to check on the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. I wonder how formidable this person is... Jun Xiaomo remarked in her heart curiously.

    Ever since she had been locked up within the Proving Grounds, Jun Xiaomo had over those three hundred years developed a joy and passion for all forms of challenges. Truth be told, she was very curious as to what level she was in terms of her proficiency with formation arrays right now.

    Thus, as soon as the fleeting moment of anxiety had passed, Jun Xiaomo began to develop some feelings of expectancy for the challenge that awaited her.

    Then, with her divine sense, Jun Xiaomo began to examine the sharp spirit tool that Chen Taiguang had stabbed into the heart of the formation array, hoping to identify the purposes it was used for.

    Back when Jun Xiaomo was in the Proving Grounds, she hade across a manuscript which detailed every single spirit tool that was used for or in rtion to formation arrays, and she spent a whopping three months memorizing its contents before returning the manuscript to its original ce.

    This manuscript was something that had been left behind by her great grandmaster, and it was intended to be passed on from generation to generation of disciples. Jun Xiaomo did not have the rights to take possession of it to the exclusion of all others.

    Very soon, Jun Xiaomo managed to recall the manuscript¡¯s introduction to the spirit tool that Chen Taiguang was using right now. This spirit tool was used particrly for the purposes of determining whether the heart of the formation array was identical to that of the formation diagram. The array master would use the spirit tool by suffusing his own spiritual energy through the spirit tool and into the formation diagram. If the flow of spiritual energy is obstructed by the formation diagram, it would mean that the formation array had been tampered with by others, and it was no longer the same as it originally had been.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her chin and curled her lips into a discreet smile.

    This array master must be sorely mistaken if he thinks that he would be able to discover traces of her handiwork with such a simple, shallow tool.

    With such thoughts on her mind, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes once more, and she began to paint a few bright red brush strokes over the top of the formation diagram. Then, she increased the output of her spiritual energy that was being suffused into the formation diagram.

    On the other side, at the perimeter of the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds within the forest, Chen Taiguang¡¯s eyes were tightly shut, and his eyebrows were being knitted more tightly by the minute.

    As soon as they noticed Chen Taiguang¡¯s expressions, He Zhang and the other Sect Elders immediately began to grow worry and anxious, wondering if things were going to be moreplicated than they had earlier expected.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. They wereplete idiots when it came to matters of formation arrays, and they knew they could only ce all of their hopes on Chen Taiguang at this moment.

    Chen Taiguang continued to operate the spiritual energy within his body, sending it through the formation diagram thrice. Finally, he ignited the energy, and it exploded on the formation diagram, causing the entire heart of the formation array to tremble.

    He Zhang¡¯s pupils immediately constricted at the massive, ensuing tremor. Then, in the very next moment, his gaze turned incredibly deep and abstruse ¨C If only I could have this level of power at my disposal...

    Chen Taiguang finally opened his eyes. However, his eyebrows were still tightly knitted together as he sighed with some measure of profundity, breaking He Zhang¡¯s train of thought.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Did the Sect¡¯s protective formation array get tampered by someone?¡± He Zhang immediately took a few steps forward to seek an answer.

    He Zhang was evidently deeply anxious and concerned about this. As Chen Taiguang nced at He Zhang, a mischievous notion surfaced on his mind ¨C

    Truth be told, he had not discovered any peculiarities or issues with the formation array at all. At the very least, his spirit tools had not revealed any abnormalities with the formation array. However, since the few old fogeys from the Dawn Sect hade looking for him with such urgency, this meant that the formation array had shown some signs of abnormality. If he told them that there were no issues with it right now, did this not mean that his abilities were simply sub-par?

    Most importantly, if he told them that there were no issues with the formation array right now, how could he still justify the receipt of payment from the leaders of the Dawn Sect?

    The Chen n had historically always been well-acimed and well-reputed in the discipline of formation arrays. Unfortunately, Chen Taiguang was the only child and sessor to their craft in his entire generation. Having been spoilt by his parents while growing up, he was incrediblyzy ¨C barely bothering to spend any time learning, understanding and mastering the Chen n crafts that had been passed down from generation to generation. In the end, he barely skimmed the surface of it, and his abilities right now were aplete disgrace and a mockery to the glories of his entire n.

    In fact, his abilities might not even earn him a ce among the array masters that were slightly below average, if not for the set of highly useful tools his ancestors had left him. To make matters worse, whenever others invited him to set up a formation array for them or diagnose an issue with the existing formation array, he would always take advantage of their ignorance in the field of formation arrays and pull a veil over their faces, before exaggerating the amount of blood, sweat and tears it took him to aplish the grand feat that they had asked of him ¨C all so that he could reap much more than what he sowed.

    In this regard, he intended to do the very same thing on this visit to the Dawn Sect as well ¨C his intentions were to bag a handsome profit for doing absolutely nothing.

    Thus, Chen Taiguang stered a solemn expression all over his face as he sternly addressed He Zhang and the rest, ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that you¡¯d called me over when you did. Otherwise, you¡¯ll soon see massive issues with this formation array.¡±

    He Zhang swept an investigative gaze across Chen Taiguang¡¯s body as he rified, ¡°Massive issues?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Massive issues.¡± Chen Taiguang nodded his head as he added with a somber expression, ¡°The alterations to your formation array have been incredibly discreet, but the resultant effect is that the perpetrator now has substantial control over the formation array. If not for the fact that I¡¯d noticed a slight peculiarity in the formation array, leading to my discovery of all this, I might very well have been fooled as well.¡±

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo was observing Chen Taiguang through the formation array as he spouted this bunch ofplete nonsense.

    If Jun Xiaomo were not the perpetrator who had altered the formation array to begin with, she might very well have been fooled by Chen Taiguang¡¯s present act ¨C even though this man¡¯s abilities in the field of formation arrays were average at best, his abilities in the field of pretension and bullshit were second to none.

    In other words, Chen Taiguang¡¯s acting was so convincing that he could even fool someone as adept at the discipline of formation arrays as Jun Xiaomo, much less He Zhang and the rest who barely understood a thing about formation arrays.

    Rather erring on the side of caution, He Zhang furrowed his brows as he asked, ¡°Then, what do we do? Do you have any means of resolving this issue for us?¡±

    ¡°Solutions...there are a few. After all, I¡¯m a descendant and a sessor of the Chen n formation array arts. This isn¡¯t an issue to someone like me.¡± Chen Taiguang assured He Zhang and the rest. When he mentioned the Chen n formation array arts, he even puffed up his chest in pride, as though he were glorying in his ancestor¡¯s achievements.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then we¡¯ll have to trouble brother Chen.¡± He Zhang suppressed the earlier impatience in his heart and spoke with a harmonious tone of voice.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine by me. That said...I might have to expend a substantial amount of spiritual energy in this regard, and I¡¯ll even have so use up some valuable treasures, so your earlier remuneration...I¡¯m afraid it won¡¯t be enough.¡± Chen Taiguang was implicitly asking He Zhang for an increased payment for his services.

    He Zhang¡¯s facial expression immediately grew ashen. He had already agreed to Chen Taiguang¡¯s increased charges once, yet this person is thinking of increasing his fees again?!

    ¡°Brother Chen, it would be wise not to be too greedy!¡± The Fifth Elder immediately castigated Chen Taiguang.

    ¡°I¡¯m simply saying it as it is. This problem won¡¯t be easily resolved. Furthermore, if you can¡¯t pay up, then don¡¯t ask for my services to begin with. I¡¯m a busy man, and I don¡¯t need to undertake any assignments that aren¡¯t profitable to me.¡± Chen Taiguang stood idly by as he respondedzily, ¡°But, don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t warn you ¨C it¡¯ll be toote for regrets once you pass up on this opportunity. Your formation array is being continually ruined by others. If you leave this be, it¡¯ll sooner orter bepletely destroyed.¡±

    ¡°Continually ruined?¡± A haze was pulled over He Zhang¡¯s heart.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Why would I lie to you? This kind of damage to the formation array isn¡¯t something that can develop over just one or two days.¡± Chen Taiguang continued to spin his tale.

    On the other side, in Qin Shanshan¡¯s room, Jun Xiaomo was practically in stitches from herughter. She had initially wanted to give the swindler some just desserts for his ineptitude, but when she noticed how this man hadpletely duped He Zhang and the rest, she decided to let him off the hook.

    Besides, the irony of He Zhang paying good money just to invite a swindler to take more money off his hands made her heart feel incredibly satisfied.

    ¡°Then do you know who the culprit is?¡± He Zhang was still suspicious of Jun Ziwen, but he had no means of confirming his suspicions.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a god that can calcte these sorts of things like that. Unfortunately, Sect Leader will have to go look for the culprit on your own. I can only be responsible for resolving the issue with the formation array.¡±

    ¡°Then, alright. Name your price.¡± He Zhang¡¯s heart was so torn by the prospects of forking out more payment to this man that he was on the brink of tearing him to shreds. However, he knew that he had to continue feigning civility as long as the problem remained in ce.

    Then, as Chen Taiguang began to list his conditions and prices, He Zhang¡¯s face darkened and grew more ashen with each condition listed.

    Jun Xiaomo could hardly be bothered to care about what happened next. She retracted her divine sense and pulled back from Sect¡¯s protective formation array. Then, after sitting at her table for a while, she began to burst out into an uproariousughter once more.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously.

    Jun Xiaomo waved her hands and replied whileughing, ¡°Nothing much. It¡¯s just that I¡¯ve just witnessed someone getting swindled, and I¡¯m feeling good about how things are panning out.¡±

    ¡°Is the person getting swindled...He Zhang?¡± Ye Xiuwen was not a fool. After analyzing the situation for a moment, he could roughly already guess the gist of what had happened.

    ¡°Hahahahaha...that¡¯s right, it¡¯s He Zhang, hahahahaha...¡± Jun Xiaomo struggled to catch her breath as she continued tough uncontrobly.

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°Then what about the matter with the formation array?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. That fe that they¡¯d invited is no more than a swindler. He didn¡¯t even manage to discover the fact that I¡¯d tampered with the formation array. What else would I need to do?¡± Jun Xiaomo waved her hands dismissively.

    Ye Xiuwen was finally able to set his heart at ease. Then, he began tough heartily together with Jun Xiaomo as well.

    ¡°But, that said, this fe might have bitten off more than he could chew. I wonder if He Zhang would kill and dispose of him after using him...should I lend this man a hand?¡± Jun Xiaomo thought aloud as she rubbed her chin mischievously.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows, but he decided not to burst her bubble at this moment.

    After all, he couldn¡¯t deny the fact that he also derived some pleasure seeing He Zhang suffer like that as well.

 Chapter 295: Night-Time Assassination; Returning Alive

    <h4>Chapter 295: Night-Time Assassination; Returning Alive</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Indeed, as soon as Chen Taiguang¡¯s avarice manifested once again, and he bit off more than he could chew, He Zhang had already mentally branded Chen Taiguang with the death penalty.

    To begin with, He Zhang was not an easy person to get along with. After all, he was a calctive man who valued his personal gains over anything else. To this date, several hundred years from the date of the incident, he still bears a grudge against Jun Linxuan for nearly snatching the position of the next Sect Leader that he was coveting. Chen Taiguang had undoubtedly crossed He Zhang¡¯s bottom line when he had time and again increased the fees for his services, while threatening to leave things as they were if he did not receive his increased fees.

    In fact, as a Sect that was ranked among the top three of all Secondary Sects, the Dawn Sect was in a good position to afford all of the remuneration listed by Chen Taiguang, despite the extravagant increments to his fees. However, He Zhang considered all of the Dawn Sect¡¯s wealth as his own personal wealth. ordingly, Chen Taiguang¡¯s requests were undoubtedly perceived as a request for a pound of He Zhang¡¯s own flesh and blood.

    Anyone who asked for a pound of He Zhang¡¯s flesh would naturally be He Zhang¡¯s next target.

    As He Zhang stood by Chen Taiguang¡¯s side, his gaze began to creep all over Chen Taiguang¡¯s body like that of a poisonous snake staring at its prey.

    Yet Chen Taiguang waspletely oblivious to the kind of trouble he had just got himself into. In fact, he was even gleefully thinking of how he was going to enjoy life for some time after making off with the resources that the Dawn Sect was going to pay to him as remuneration.

    After He Zhang agreed to his revised fees, Chen Taiguang stood at the heart of the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array and pretentiously retrieved a bunch of spirit tools from his Interspatial Ring. Then, he began to load these spirit tools with a number of objects that even He Zhang was unable to name, before suffusing these spirit tools with his own spiritual energy.

    Within moments, the spirit tools began to emit a cacophony of buzzing sounds as they each emitted and glowed with their own characteristic lights. Immediately after that, Chen Taiguang ced the formation diagram that He Zhang and the other Sect Leaders had earlier handed over to him into the midst of where all of the spirit tools were located. Just like that, the lights emitted by the spirit tools shot straight into the heart of the formation diagram.

    In the very next moment, He Zhang and the rest felt the ground beneath their feet tremble slightly, and they realized that their surroundings seemed to have mysteriously and miraculously changed slightly.

    Finally, after an intense, bright blue light burst out and faded away, everything went back to normal once more.

    ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Chen Taiguang opened his eyes and began to collect the spirit tools that were strewn all over as he reported to He Zhang and the other Sect Elders.

    The Sect Elders immediately exchanged looks of disbelief with each other.

    Is that it?! That didn¡¯t even take one incense stick of time!

    That said, from Chen Taiguang¡¯s earlier expression, as well as the slight changes to their surroundings, it did seem rather believable that something had already been done.

    On the other hand, He Zhang simply squinted his eyes as he cidly rified, ¡°Brother Chen, are you certain that everything has been resolved?¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s enigmatic gaze did cause a trace of sheepishness to surface in Chen Taiguang¡¯s heart. However, for the sake of his remuneration, Chen Taiguang battled to repress the guilt in his heart as he confronted He Zhang¡¯s oppressive gaze head on.

    ¡°You...you don¡¯t believe me? Hah! Are you guys trying to renege on the deal after I¡¯ve resolved your problem for you so that you don¡¯t have to pay me my fees?¡± Chen Taiguang widened his eyes as he responded with another allegation of his own, pretending to bepletely infuriated.

    In fact, the only reason why he pretended to be infuriated was to conceal the guilt weighing on his heart.

    ¡°It¡¯s just that everything seemed to be resolved so quickly, so I had thought to make sure that it was all fine. After all, we did agree to pay you almost an arm and a leg for your services, wouldn¡¯t you say?¡± He Zhang¡¯s gaze was still filled with traces of inquisition and suspicion.

    ¡°Hah. Don¡¯t worry. As a person from the Chen n, you can trust that I¡¯m a man of my word. Since I dare to ept your remuneration, you can naturally count on it that everything has been resolved.¡± Chen Taiguang patted his chest as he gave his word.

    ¡°You¡¯d best hope that that¡¯s the case. Otherwise, in the same way that you¡¯ve guzzled the remuneration, I¡¯ll see to it that you¡¯ll spit everything out in the exact same fashion.¡± He Zhang remarked coldly.

    Chen Taiguang¡¯s heart shuddered as he thought ¨C What¡¯s up with this Sect Leader¡¯s attitude? How is it that it haspletely changed just like that? I recall that his earlier attitude to me was still pretty good...

    But how would he know that he was already no more than a dead person in He Zhang¡¯s eyes? After all, he had already outlived his use, while He Zhang remained unwilling to part with the remuneration he had earlier agreed to.

    In turn, what reason was there for He Zhang to be polite to a ¡°dead person¡±? There was naturally none. Thus, He Zhang no longer suppressed and masked his attitude towards Chen Taiguang.

    Chen Taiguang suddenly shivered, and he ran his fingers over the goosebumps that were creeping up all over his arms as he eximed in his heart ¨C I wonder why I suddenly got the chills even though it¡¯s such a warm day? It¡¯s truly strange...

    Then, after assuring and reassuring He Zhang with guarantee after guarantee that the formation array would no longer have any issues, He Zhang¡¯s expressions finally began to soften once more.

    After that, He Zhang informed Chen Taiguang that he was unfortunately unable to prepare all the remuneration just yet, and he invited Chen Taiguang to continue to reside within the Dawn Sect¡¯s premises over the next few days as his guest. As soon as he manages to prepare everything, he would hand them over in one go to Chen Taiguang.

    Chen Taiguang also took the view that receiving all of his remuneration at one go was the best arrangement for him. After all, it would save him from having to make a few trips just to collect his dues.

    Thus, without suspecting that anything was amiss, he dly agreed to stay at the Sect for the next few days as He Zhang¡¯s guest. Regrettably, he failed to notice the trace of killing intent in the depths of He Zhang¡¯s eyes, as well as the roiling hatred in He Zhang¡¯s heart.

    It was night. Chen Taiguang was sound asleep and having a beautiful dream where he had be a formidable array master like the first of his entire n had been, and there was a long line of people queuing up, eagerly anticipating the day when they could hand over their valuables and priceless treasures to him in exchange for his services.

    As he looked at the mountain of treasures lying in store for him, a dribble of drool seeped out of the corner of his mouth, and Chen Taiguang smacked his lips in delight as he thoroughly enjoyed his dream.

    A ck shadow shed past, and just like that, Chen Taiguang¡¯s room now contained an uninvited guest as well. This uninvited guest satzily on the table in the middle of the room. Then, the uninvited guest lifted her chin, looked at Chen Taiguang and clicked her lips.

    ¡°Tsk. Your head is already on the chopping board, yet you can still sleep so soundly. I wonder if it would be more urate to say you¡¯re a fool, or that you¡¯re simply far too na?ve.¡±

    The intruder¡¯s voice was incredibly pleasant to the ears, just like a stream of waters gently trickling down a bed of rocks. That said, the content of what was said was clearly not as pleasant. In fact, it was evidently filled with disdain for the person lying on the bed right now.

    ¡°To think that you even dare to call yourself an array master. I think your Chen n ancestors must be stirring in their graves right now.¡± As the intrude spoke, she flicked her wrist and shot a talisman towards the person lying on the bed.

    As soon as the talisman struck Chen Taiguang¡¯s body and faded into his body, he immediately began to rouse from his slumber ande to his senses.

    ¡°Ungh...is it already time to wake up? Howe I still feel so weary and tired...¡± Chen Taiguang muttered to himself. The intruder sitting on the table was so taken aback by his statement that she almost fell off the table.

    This...what kind of a buffoon is this?! How unlucky must He Zhang be to call upon such a person to inspect the Dawn Sect¡¯s formation array?

    However, the more of a fool this man was, the more delighted and pleased her heart felt. The thought that He Zhang was duped by this man thoroughly satisfied Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    That¡¯s right. The intruder was none other than Jun Xiaomo. She knew that He Zhang was going to make a move against this man very soon. At the same time, she knew that anything which caused He Zhang misery would invariably give her some sense of satisfaction and pleasure. Thus, Jun Xiaomo had decided to lend Chen Taiguang a hand and rescue him without much hesitation. This was why she had intruded on Chen Taiguang¡¯s room tonight.

    ¡°You...who are you?! What are you doing in my room?!¡± Chen Taiguang mbered out of bed quickly and stared at the intruder as he stammered. It had taken Chen Taiguang some time before he finally realized Jun Xiaomo¡¯s presence in his room.

    As a result of the dim lighting in the room, he could not see the appearance of the intruder very well. In fact, the only thing he saw right now was the silhouette of a person sitting on the table. The sudden appearance of such a foreign figure would naturally scare anyone in Chen Taiguang¡¯s shoes.

    ¡°Tsk tsk, you¡¯re such a coward.¡± Jun Xiaomo leapt off the bed and began to walk towards Chen Taiguang as she added, ¡°Would you believe me if I said that I was here to rescue you?¡±

    Chen Taiguang gulped down his saliva with some difficulty as he responded, ¡°That...this..dy, I don¡¯t even know who you are, this...don¡¯t you think it¡¯s going to be difficult for me to believe you? Furthermore, my life isn¡¯t even in danger right now.¡±

    ¡°The fact that your life isn¡¯t in imminent danger doesn¡¯t mean that your life won¡¯t be in danger over the next few days.¡± Jun Xiaomo explicated as she continued to walk forward slowly.

    Just then, the cloud cover in the night sky drifted apart, allowing the moon to peek through, gently illuminating thends with a faint light. In turn, this allowed Chen Taiguang to see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances for the very first time.

    More urately speaking, what he saw was ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± appearances. Jun Xiaomo had not torn off the Masquerade Talisman from her body just yet.

    Chen Taiguang¡¯s jaws dropped slightly. He had never expected the person who hade to ¡°save his life¡± would actually be so beautiful.

    As a result, his face hadpletely flushed, and he began to stammer uncontrobly.

    ¡°That...that, you...you mentioned that I would be in danger? Also, you...you...why did youe save me in the first ce?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically. Having already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, she had no troubles seeing Chen Taiguang¡¯s exact appearances, even with the present dim lighting in the room.

    And it was for this reason that she could tell how Chen Taiguang¡¯s face was filled with a look of...innocence.

    ¡°If I say...I¡¯m attracted to you?¡± A faint smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips.

    Chen Taiguang¡¯s face immediately grew as red as a tomato. His mind went nk, and he found himselfpletely at a lost for words, ¡°That...that...¡±

    ¡°Pfft...hahahahaha...you¡¯re really cute, hahahahaha...¡± Jun Xiaomo burst outughing. Even though Chen Taiguang was a swindler who loved to idle around, she could tell from his present response that his heart was filled with innocence and purity.

    Truth be told, she did not loathe people with such characters. At the very least, it was hardly as tiring to interact with these peoplepared to conniving schemers.

    ¡°Alright.¡± As herughter subsided, a stern and somber look returned to her face as she got back to the crux of the matter, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to be killed by He Zhang and the rest, you¡¯d be wise to leave this ce now, under the cover of the night.¡±

    ¡°Under...under the cover of the night? Why?¡± Chen Taiguang¡¯s eyes widened with some measure of disbelief.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at him as she cidly exined, ¡°Do you think that you¡¯ll be able to live to tell the tale after asking He Zhang an arm and a leg? I¡¯m afraid that the day you receive your remuneration is also going to be the day your fate is sealed.¡±

    ¡°Ah? Aren¡¯t they all from an upstanding, righteous Sect? The Dawn Sect is even ranked the first among all of the Secondary Sects! Such things don¡¯t happen here, do they?¡± Chen Taiguang shook his head as he retorted.

    ¡°Upstanding and righteous Sect? Hah! Thatbel is the greatest joke ever. The number of atrocitiesmitted by these so-called upstanding and sanctimonious sects are even greater than that which the demonic sects and ns would even consider.¡± Jun Xiaomo derided.

    ¡°You dislike He Zhang and the rest?¡±

    ¡°Dislike is probably too weak a description. I think it would be more urate to say that I hate them.¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly responded. For some strange reason, Chen Taiguang discovered that thisst statement from the intruder wasced with roiling undertones of emotions.

    ¡°But if that¡¯s the case, how would I know you¡¯re not deceiving me? Maybe you just hate them, and so you want to...smear them and tarnish their reputation?¡± Chen Taiguang looked at Jun Xiaomo curiously as he postted.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at him once more as she shrugged her shoulders, ¡°It¡¯s up to you whether you want to believe me. After all, what you want to do with your life is up to you. I¡¯d only decided to give you a word of caution because I¡¯m in a good mood, seeing how you had earlier duped He Zhang.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?! You...how do you...¡± Chen Taiguang¡¯s face instantly turned pale.

    ¡°How do I know, you ask?¡± Jun Xiaomo grinned at him, ¡°How do you think I know about it, hmm?¡±

    ¡°You...¡± Chen Taiguang¡¯s mind began to spin quicker and quicker, ¡°Could you be the array master that tampered with and altered the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly and bared her teeth at Chen Taiguang as she quipped, ¡°You¡¯d best keep this to yourself. Otherwise, I¡¯ll make certain that you don¡¯t live to see the light of day tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I won¡¯t say a word! Not a single word!¡± Chen Taiguang immediately raised his hands with a ¡°surrender¡± gesture. At the same time, he muttered, ¡°There¡¯s no benefit to me if I talk about it anyway. Wouldn¡¯t speaking about it be tantamount to admitting that I¡¯d duped Sect Leader He?¡±

    ¡°Hmph. d that you know that much.¡± Jun Xiaomo snorted.

    ¡°That..dy, do I really have to leave tonight?¡± Chen Taiguang did not have much on his mind at this moment. His goal in life had always been to rely on the treasures that had been left behind by his ancestors to dupe others for afortable living. As long as there was food on the table and clothes to wear, he did not bog his mind down with other matters that were tooplicated.

    At the same time, he found Jun Xiaomo very believable, so he immediately chose to believe what Jun Xiaomo was saying right now.

    ¡°Why? You still want to remain here so that He Zhang can take care of you?¡± Jun Xiaomo replied with yet another question.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that...it¡¯s just that I find it a waste to leave before I receive my remuneration...¡± Chen Taiguang muttered.

    ¡°Do you think your remuneration would mean much if you¡¯d lost your life? Besides, does it really sit well with your heart and soul that you continue to swindle people for a living?¡± Jun Xiaomo nced at him with a gaze filled with disdain. She lived by a personal philosophy that everyone should work hard for their own personal goals. Conversely, she found such dishonest acts of swindles and trickerypletely contemptible.

    ¡°But I don¡¯t have any talents in this area. Your mastery of the formation array arts is just too formidable ¨C you¡¯re even able to ovee the spirit tools left by my ancestor. I imagine you must have a lot of talents in this field to begin with, right?¡± Chen Taiguang responded with a tone of voice filled with respect for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities.

    ¡°If you¡¯rezy, just admit it. Don¡¯t use pretexts and excuses to cover it up. The Chen n has always been renowned for its achievements in the discipline of formation arrays. There¡¯s no reason for the talent to have beenpletely drained out in your generation all of a sudden, is there?¡± Jun Xiaomo derided.

    Chen Taiguang rubbed his nose with some measure of embarrassment.

    ¡°Besides, I¡¯ve only attained my present proficiency with the formation arrays after over three hundred years of arduous, painful training. What about you? Do you even have thirty years under your belt?¡±

    ¡°Three...three hundred years?!¡± Chen Taiguang stammered in disbelief.

    He had thought that thedy was only in her twenties. How could he ever have imagined that she was already well over three hundred years-old?!

    That said, it was a fact that the number of people within the cultivation world who did not look their age were dime a dozen.

    Chen Taiguang suddenly felt incredibly ashamed of what he had been doing over the years. In fact, he felt that he could not even lift his head in front of this ¡°senior¡± of his right now.

    ¡°Someone¡¯sing.¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly whispered in a hushed voice, jolting Chen Taiguang back to his senses.

    ¡°There¡¯s...there¡¯s still someone else?! Who would being over thiste at night?¡±

    ¡°Seems like He Zhang doesn¡¯t even intend to let you live to see the light of day tomorrow. I¡¯d still thought that you would have a few days of buffer period too.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked out of the window pensively as she thought aloud.

    ¡°Then, what do we do?¡± Chen Taiguang no longer cared about the matters pertaining to his remuneration. The only thought on his mind right now was to leave this ce as far behind as he could.

    Jun Xiaomo nced at Chen Taiguang once more, before retrieving an Invisibility Talisman and tossing it over to him.

    ¡°Take it.¡±

    ¡°This is...?¡±

    ¡°This is an Invisibility Talisman that can conceal both your physical appearances as well as your aura and disposition. It¡¯s only effective for two hours, but that should be enough time for you to make your getaway.¡±

    ¡°But...I¡¯ll have to pass through the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective array if I want to leave this ce. Without the Sect¡¯s identity token, I won¡¯t be able to leave...¡± Chen Taiguang responded in dismay.

    ¡°The Sect¡¯s protective array has already been altered by me. I can allow ess to anyone I wish. You¡¯d best be on your way.¡± Jun Xiaomo assured him.

    ¡°Oh! You can actually take control of the formation array and make it your own? That¡¯s too amazing! You¡¯re even more formidable than my great grandfather!¡± Chen Taiguang waspletely filled with amazement at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities at this point.

    ¡°Alright, alright. You can start working hard at it if you want to be as strong as I am. Don¡¯t treat formation arrays with such nonchnce and tarnish the name of all array masters. If I see you like that again, I¡¯ll make sure to give you a good spanking.¡± Jun Xiaomo left Chen Taiguang with some motivating words of advice.

    ¡°Hehe...¡± Chen Taiguang had already begun to see Jun Xiaomo as a mentor of sorts, and he did not get upset at how Jun Xiaomo was chiding him. In fact, he even rubbed his nose with a slight measure of embarrassment.

    ¡°Hurry on and go then. If you don¡¯t leave now, you¡¯ll be blocked by the intruders soon.¡± Jun Xiaomo hurried the fool in front of her.

    ¡°Ah? Then what about senior?¡± Chen Taiguang hurriedly asked.

    ¡°Me?¡± Jun Xiaomo curled her lips into a smile as her eyes gleamed brightly, ¡°A rare opportunity has just showed up for me. Of course I¡¯m going to remain here and ¡®y¡¯ with these intruders.¡±

    As he looked at the wicked expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, for some strange reason, Chen Taiguang began to pity the intruders that were making their way over right now.

    Sigh...it¡¯s true. Thest person you¡¯ll ever want to offend is a formidable array master...

 Chapter 296: A Grand Gift for Sect Leader He

    <h4>Chapter 296: A Grand Gift for Sect Leader He</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Array masters were known to generally be on the weaker side in terms of theirbat abilities. Chen Taiguang was no exception to the norm either. Having lived for decades, his cultivation level was stillnguishing and stagnating at the elementary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, without any signs of improvement or development whatsoever.

    Thus, He Zhang hardly considered Chen Taiguang a threat at all, and he had only sent several Dawn Sect disciples in the eleventh and twelfth levels of Qi Mastery to silence him.

    Even though these disciples were only in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation, they were nevertheless armed with the spirit tools that He Zhang had provided them with. With that, He Zhang firmly believed that theirbined strength was more than sufficient to deal with Chen Taiguang¡¯s meagre abilities.

    If the one that they were facing right now was indeed Chen Taiguang, the disciples¡¯ odds of sess would in fact be rather high, even if one considered thecency in their hearts. Unfortunately, their ns were foiled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s masterful bait-and-switch tactics, and these disciples were heading straight for a train wreck.

    ¡°Argh.¡± As they walked on, one of the disciples suddenly cried out softly as he tripped and fell onto the ground.

    ¡°Shh...what¡¯s going on? Are you trying to alert our target?¡± Another disciple red at the disciple on the floor as he shushed him.

    ¡°Nothing...I just tripped on something.¡± The disciple looked at the in, t ground as he muttered in bewilderment.

    ¡°Be careful. We can¡¯t afford to rm our target now!¡± The leader of the disciples chided him with displeasure.

    ¡°Oh...alright.¡± The disciple who fell down picked himself up again as he winced in pain.

    His fall had been rather harsh and severe, and it might take him some time before he could continue on his way at the same pace as before.

    At the same time, a man bared his teeth and made a face at the group of disciples some distance away, before whistling a happy tune as he walked away, leaving the group of disciples far, far behind him.

    This man was none other than the man that Jun Xiaomo had rendered aid to ¨C Chen Taiguang. Under the effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Invisibility Talisman and his own Windsail Talisman, he had just slipped out from right under the noses of his assants and made his grand escape.

    Even though it was a pity that he was unable to collect his remuneration for his ¡°efforts¡±, he knew that preserving his own life was far more important than that. After all, what was the use of having riches if he did not have any life to enjoy it with?

    Thus, after a brief moment of deliberation, Chen Taiguang took Jun Xiaomo¡¯s advice, slipped out from his room under the cover of night, and made his way towards the woods surrounding the Dawn Sect.

    Then, on his way out of the Sect, he coincidentally encountered the group of disciples which He Zhang had sent to take his life, and he was reminded once again of how he had just been forced to give up a juicy remuneration just like that. Thus, as his vexation manifested, he casually tripped one of the disciples, appeasing his heart ever so slightly.

    When he turned back and saw the disciple¡¯s dumbfounded look, Chen Taiguang felt incredibly pleased, and his heart was much more at ease. With that, he pped his hands and was satisfied to continue making his way out.

    We¡¯ll leave it at that. After all, the things I¡¯ve got within my Interspatial Ring is still more than sufficient to tide me through a long, long time. We¡¯ll just take it that I¡¯d slipped up just this once. As Chen Taiguang changed his perspective about the matter, the tune he was whistling gotmensurately merrier.

    After being slightly tripped up by Chen Taiguang, the Dawn Sect disciples continued to make their way towards Chen Taiguang¡¯s room and began to surround it.

    The disciples werepletely focused on taking out their target right now. Yet, how could they possibly know that their target was already getting further and further away from them, and the person waiting for them in Chen Taiguang¡¯s room was someonepletely unexpected?

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo waspletely busying herself within Chen Taiguang¡¯s room ¨C pasting things here and dabbing the brush there. In the end, with the little time she had, Jun Xiaomo had turned Chen Taiguang¡¯s room into the heart of a massive illusion array.

    This particr illusion array was something that Jun Xiaomo had practiced innumerable times within the Proving Grounds, and she was so proficient with it right now that she could even draw it with her eyes closed. To the average array master, this illusion array was something that would require approximately five hours to set up. However, to Jun Xiaomo, all she needed was a matter of a few incense sticks worth of time.

    Furthermore, this was a slightly modified illusion array, and the number of spirit stones required to power the array had been reduced substantially as a result of her modifications. Thus, Jun Xiaomo had managed to save a substantial amount of resources with the use of this array.

    After setting up the formation array, Jun Xiaomo pped the dust off her hands and rubbed her chin and she pondered about her preparations. Then, she retrieved a human-shaped Humanoid Puppet Talisman, dripped a single drop of Chen Taiguang¡¯s blood onto it, before cing it onto the ground. Then, with two fingers on the side of her lips, she began to mutter a set of mnemonics to activate the talisman.

    Within moments, a bright blue light shone inside the room, and a figure began to mber up from the floor. If Chen Taiguang were here right now, his jaws would most certainly drop to the ground.

    There was now another ¡°Chen Taiguang¡± in the room who looked exactly like him.

    ¡°Be good and y with the kids who¡¯reing over now, alright?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she patted ¡°Chen Taiguang¡¯s¡± shoulder.

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± ¡°Chen Taiguang¡¯s¡± expressions were stiff and rigid, and his voice was monotonous and strange. After bowing obsequiously to Jun Xiaomo, he simply remained rooted in the ground where he was.

    ¡°Sigh, looks like it¡¯s not a simple task if I want a decent Humanoid Puppet.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured with some measure of exasperation as she suffused more spiritual energy into the Humanoid Puppet.

    As the suffusion of spiritual energy increased, ¡°Chen Taiguang¡¯s¡± expressions were no longer as stiff, and he gradually became more nimble and human-like.

    Of course, no matter how lively he appeared, this imposter was still built on a mere talisman when all was said and done. He possessed neither the breath of life, nor any soul within him, and he waspletely subject to the control and whims and fancy of its master.

    Then, when she was finally satisfied with the amount of spiritual energy she had suffused into the Humanoid Puppet, she removed her hand from the puppet. By this time, her face had grown several shades paler as a result of drawing down a substantial amount of spiritual energy, and she was even panting slightly.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. She had not fully recovered from the injuries to her body, and the sudden usage of such a great deal of her true energy was naturally rather taxing on her body.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m taking my leave now. You¡¯ll stay here. Remember, don¡¯t let theme in too easily.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled as she patted ¡°Chen Taiguang¡¯s¡± shoulder once more.

    ¡°Yes, master.¡± The puppet responded. This time, its actions were incredibly life-like ¨C almost akin to that of a human.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo applied an Invisibility Talisman on her body and left Chen Taiguang¡¯s room. When she released her divine sense once more to observe her surroundings, she discovered that the Dawn Sect disciples were still a distance away. Thus, she took the opportunity to set up various formation arrays outside the room, in Chen Taiguang¡¯s yard as well.

    Jun Xiaomo was not thinking of taking the lives of these assants for now. The power of these formation arrays was not too great, and they were used more for trickery and toying with a person rather than to injure and debilitate.

    After doing the needful, Jun Xiaomo pped the dust off her hands once more, before leisurely making her way back to Qin Shanshan¡¯s room.

    When she arrived back at Qin Shanshan¡¯s room, she discovered that Ye Xiuwen was not sleeping yet. Instead, he was simply sitting at the table, enjoying a cup of tea.

    In fact, it might be more urate to describe him as holding a cup of tea as his mind wandered. After all, the truth of the matter was that he had only taken two sips of the tea, before pausing for an imensurably long time. He did not even realize that his tea had already gotten cold by now.

    Squeak. The door opened, and Ye Xiuwen immediately cocked his head and looked at the direction of the door.

    ¡°Eh? Brother Jun, you¡¯re still awake?¡±

    ¡°Why does your face look so pale?¡±

    The two questions had been asked at almost the same time, and both of them couldn¡¯t help but be slightly taken aback by the other¡¯s question.

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced, and he had a somber expression on his face. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo minced her way over thoughtlessly as she quipped, ¡°What¡¯s up? Is brother Jun concerned about me?¡±

    That said, Ye Xiuwen simply ignored Jun Xiaomo. Earlier tonight, ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had slipped out of the room again for an insignificant reason ¨C just to help an array master whom she did not even know avoid He Zhang¡¯s assassination attempt. Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t think too much of this at first. However, after ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± left the room, he began to regret the fact that he hadn¡¯t stopped ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± rash, spur-of-the-moment actions.

    To begin with, her injuries had not yet fully recovered. Slipping out at night to deal with a group of assants in such circumstances was far too reckless and irrational.

    That said, what Ye Xiuwen had failed to consider was the fact that the ¡°little brat¡± was also a formidable array master. Dealing with a group of assants that hade charging towards a single location meant that she did not even have to make a move against them personally.

    ¡°How did everything go?¡± Ye Xiuwen sipped at his tea as he changed the topic.

    He had chosen not to respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question. Truth be told, even he was unsure why he was sitting here, waiting for ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± return thatte at night.

    Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips, ¡°Tch.¡± She was evidently displeased with how Ye Xiuwen had simply changed the topic just like that. However, she decided not to press the issue either.

    ¡°With me there, everything naturally went smoothly.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath in response.

    ¡°Is that so? So ¡®smooth¡¯ that you¡¯d even run back with such a pale face?¡± Ye Xiuwen cidly retorted, causing Jun Xiaomo to be taken slightly aback as she red at Ye Xiuwen,pletely lost for words.

    In the next moment, Ye Xiuwen retrieved a recovery pill from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Take it. We¡¯re going to have to make a move in the next few days. The more we drag things out, the more variables we¡¯ll have to deal with. There¡¯s no way we can enter the forbidden grounds with your current condition.¡±

    As he finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen stood up and walked over to the mattress in the outer quarters of the room andid down.

    After staying up for the better part of the night, he was beginning to get tired as well.

    Jun Xiaomo toyed with the recovery pill in her hands for a while. Then, after some moments, her eyes curled into a squinch as she tossed the pill into her mouth and swallowed it with a mouthful of tea.

    She could sense that the pill was slowly melting in her stomach and slowly replenishing the supply of true energy within her body. At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt warm and full ¨C this was the first time she had experienced someone else¡¯s worry and concern for her after over three hundred years ofplete solitude.

    On this basis alone, she considered herself to have already found a true friend in Jun Ziwen.

    Following that, Jun Xiaomo quietly walked into the inner quarters and washed up. After stretching herself and several yawns, she fell asleep with a light, uden heart.

    At the same time, Chen Taiguang¡¯s yard resounded with a series of ghastly, horrific howling and crying, all of which were mind-numbingly shrill. However, under the effects of a sequestering Noise-Cancelling Array, nobody outside of Chen Taiguang¡¯s yard was able to hear these blood-curdling screams.

    It was a long, dreary night...

    On the second day, the first light of dawn struck thend, ending the misery of the long, arduous night. All this while, over the span of the entire night, He Zhang had been waiting patiently in his own room. However, his wait had evidently been in vain.

    He had initially thought that disposing of Chen Taiguang was going to be a simple, easy task that required no more than two hours¡¯ time. That said, having realized that the disciples still had not reported back to him after an entire night, his intuition told him that something must have gone wrong.

    The sun continued to rise higher into the sky. As noon quickly approached, He Zhang finally caved to his impatience, left his abode, and began to make his way towards where Chen Taiguang was residing.

    As soon as he drew closer to Chen Taiguang¡¯s courtyard, He Zhang immediately paused in his steps. This was because he could feel the thick lingering traces of spiritual energy in the area.

    Thus, He Zhang slowed his approach. As he gradually drew closer and closer to Chen Taiguang¡¯s courtyard, the lingering traces of spiritual energy became more and more evident.

    Then, when he finally arrived at Chen Taiguang¡¯s courtyard, it appeared as though nothing had changed at all.

    That said, he did notice a tiny, little difference ¨C he noticed that there were traces of a massive formation diagram lingering in the center of the courtyard. This was where the lingering traces of spiritual energy wasing from. However, the formation diagram evidently appeared spent. Otherwise, it would never leak and diffuse spiritual energy into the surroundings like that.

    The door to Chen Taiguang¡¯s room waspletely ajar.

    He Zhang immediately skipped over to where Chen Taiguang¡¯s room was located. As soon as he peered into the room, his heart instantly constricted, and he almost passed out from shock.

    All of the disciples which he had sent to do the deed werepletely covered in scars and wounds as theyid in a miserable state on the ground. The spirit tools which He Zhang had armed them with were scattered and strewn all over the ce.

    In fact, He Zhang could even sense that the spirit tools were all devoid of any spiritual energy within them right now. In other words, they had all be spent, and they were now reduced to nothing more than a bunch of useless equipment.

    And that was not all. He could sense that the Dawn Sect disciples appeared to have something wrong with their bodies. He Zhang¡¯s spirit tensed up once more as he quickly made his way over and squatted down among the disciples as he began to examine the condition of their bodies. To his horror, he discovered at all of the disciples ¨C without exception ¨C have had their cultivationpletely crippled.

    He Zhang¡¯s heart immediately surged with an intense wave of vicious energy. These disciples could be considered the strongest ones among all of the Dawn Sect disciples, and they were already on the brink of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation! Everything had been ruined!

    Just then, his eye caught notice of some cursive-looking words.

    These words were scrawled on the ground, and he had only noticed them after squatting down.

    ¡°This is my ¡®gift¡¯ to Sect Leader He. Please ept it with gratitude~~~ I sincerely thank you for your ¡®kind treatment¡¯st night!¡±

    Bang! He Zhang flicked his sleeves in fury, ferociously shattering the table beside him.

    However, no amount of anger and infuriated would make the crippled Dawn Sect disciples return back to normal once more.

 Chapter 297: The Dawn Sectâ€™s Schemers

    <h4>Chapter 297: The Dawn Sect¡¯s Schemers</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    He Zhang had sent the Dawn Sect disciples out on an urgent mission in the dead of the night. Naturally, he was responsible for the well being of all of the disciples.

    In the cultivation world, there was no doubt that the prospects of having one¡¯s cultivation crippled was far worse than the prospects of being killed. The former resulted in a life worse than death, and thetter was a form of relief once and for all. After all, a dead person would no longer need to bother with the gazes of smug people delighting in their misery.

    Thus, He Zhang could already imagine the kind of repercussions the crippling of these Dawn Sect disciples was going to cause within the Sect.

    If he had a choice, he would much rather sacrifice half of everything he owned in order to turn back time than have such an irretrievable incident ur under his charge. Furthermore, such an incident could not simply be swept under the rug and forgotten over time. After all, these disciples were already in the eleventh and twelfth levels of Qi Mastery, and they were well-loved disciples that could be considered the core disciples within the entire Sect. Unless he could somehow pull their cultivation levels back out of nowhere and stuff them back into the bodies of these disciples, the thoughts of concealing this incident would remain as nothing more than a mere fantasy.

    Without any other choice, He Zhang began to turn his thoughts to whether it was possible to use another outrageous incident to capture everyone¡¯s attention in the hope that the shock of the second incident would dilute the impact caused by the first incident.

    Then, as expected, once He Zhang alerted the incident to the Sect Elders and Peakmasterster that morning, all eyes were on him, and he immediately became the object of wrath of every single other person in the room, as though they hadpletely forgotten or overlooked his identity as the Sect Leader. Everyone began to make sharp, incisive remarks bringing his judgment into question, ming him for the Sect¡¯s irretrievable loss of several core disciples on whom the hope of their Sect was built upon.

    At the same time, He Zhang¡¯s was infuriated as well. He sincerely believed that this incident was not entirely attributable to his fault. No matter how he thought about it, the only miscalction on his part was the fact that the array master would actually be so formidable that he couldpletely cripple several core disciples using his formation arrays within just a few hours of time.

    That said, what would happen if he did nothing to deal with this array master? They would undoubtedly be forced to part ways with an incredulous number of valuables and treasures as remuneration for his services ¨C this was an equally undesirable oue. This being the case, there was no harm attempting to dispose of this array master in the hope that they could save the Sect some resources.

    ¡°Sect Leader He, I don¡¯t care what you say about this matter. I¡¯ve got two dear disciples who have lost everything because of your horrendously erroneous decision this time. Tell me what you¡¯re going to do about this.¡± The Sixth Elder stated with a cold, unyielding tone of voice. The Sixth Elder was known to prefer to keep his thoughts to himself. Thus, the fact that he had even decided to speak up in public at the meeting spoke volumes about just how infuriated he was.

    ¡°This Sect Leader will personally apologize to the two disciples of yours, and I¡¯ll make an appropriate arrangement to settle them down and give them sufficient living expenses so that they don¡¯t have to worry aboutcking anything for the remainder of their entire lives.¡± He Zhang was left with no choice but to make such a promise in an attempt to appease all of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters around.

    Unfortunately, this incident was far too severe, and the Sect Elders and Peakmasters could never be appeased with such a simple, thoughtless arrangement.

    The Sixth Elder coldly chuckled, ¡°Sect Leader, are you trying to stave off a beggar? They¡¯ll get some living expenses, but what about me? The disciples that I¡¯d wholeheartedly nurtured for years and years had bepletely crippled just like that ¨C don¡¯t you think you should make an expression of contriteness to me as well, huh?!¡±

    He Zhang suppressed the frustrations that were roiling in his heart as he responded with some measure of disdain, ¡°Sixth Elder, I¡¯d never expected something like this to ur as well. Furthermore, when I¡¯d earlier suggested to dispose of that array master, didn¡¯t all of you decide to hold your tongue in tacit agreement to such an arrangement as well? What¡¯s the matter? Do you think you have the right to push all the me to me now that something has happened?¡±

    The Sixth Elder was just about to refute He Zhang¡¯s allegations when Qin Lingyu interjected.

    Qin Lingyu bowed politely as he addressed all of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters, ¡°Dear Sect Elders and Peakmasters, pardon the interjection, but I pray you¡¯ll allow disciple to make his thoughts known. Disciple thinks that even though master is partially to me for the slight oversight on his part, the fact remains that the result was something that master never wanted either. There were just a multitude of factors that had resulted in the unforeseen, undesirable circumstances. However, if we take a step back from this incident and look at the big picture, it would be well apparent that our greatest enemies are still staring at us like a tiger waiting to strike. If this incident resulted in an internal strife, this might just give our enemies the opportunity that they need ¨C the potential losses at that time would be immeasurable. Therefore, rather than pressing this issue and ignoring the more imminent threat to us, would it not be more prudent to take a step back from the present issue and focus on what¡¯s more important right now? Once the imminent, pressing issues have been resolved, we can set out hearts at ease and have a good sit down once more to properly talk about what needs to be done. I wonder what the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters think of disciple¡¯s suggestions?¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s spiel had silenced everyone and put them deep in thought.

    He was right. This was a crucial period of time for the Sect. Jun Linxuan of the Heavenly Peak was presently breathing down their necks, ostensibly devising a n to return to the Dawn Sect to rescue his disciples. If an internal strife erupted within the Sect, this might give Jun Linxuan the prime opportunity that he needs to make his move. At that time, the losses to the Dawn Sect would truly be immeasurable.

    The Sixth Elder nced at Qin Lingyu once more, before snorting at He Zhang, ¡°Sect Elder He, you should count yourself lucky that you¡¯ve got a wise disciple.¡±

    The Sixth Elder had always addressed He Zhang as the ¡°Sect Leader¡±, and the fact that he was so insistent on distancing himself and addressing He Zhang as ¡°Sect Leader He¡± spoke volumes about just how mad he was right now.

    He Zhang¡¯s heart was finally set at ease. He gave Qin Lingyu a discreet, affirming look, before turning back to the Sect Elders and Peakmasters as he made a fist and palm salute, ¡°I, He Zhang, am a man of my word. I assure you all that I¡¯ll properly ount for this incident as soon as we manage to deal with Jun Linxuan and the Heavenly Peak.¡±

    Everyone was evidently still displeased by the fact that there was no satisfactory conclusion to the incident today. However, they knew that the big picture was of the utmost importance right now. Thus, they decided to shelf their thoughts and tacitly agreeing to the present arrangement for now.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, I still think that this incident isn¡¯t as simple as meets the eye.¡± Qin Lingyu suddenly spoke up once more.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Back when master agreed to his increased fees, there was undoubtedly a look of joy on the face of this array master. Thus, I¡¯ve got reason to believe that he was sincerely after the Sect¡¯s remuneration for his services. Since that¡¯s the case, why would he choose to leave under the cover of night and forgo the remuneration for his services entirely?¡±

    ¡°Hmph! We¡¯ve already sent people after his life. Why wouldn¡¯t he leave the ce?¡± The hot-tempered Fifth Elder immediately rebutted Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestions.

    ¡°I still think that there¡¯s something fishy about this. If he was truly that capable, he could have locked up all of the disciples within the formation array, use them as hostages and threaten to cripple their cultivation if we refused to hand over his remuneration. But he did not do so. Instead, all he did was to painstakingly set up a whole bunch of formation arrays to deal with the intruders before leaving the ce in a hurry, forgoing everyst bit of his remuneration. Don¡¯t you think that this doesn¡¯t really cohere with his avaricious personality and character?¡±

    ¡°Young man Qin, what are you trying to suggest? I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re getting at.¡± The Fifth Elder red at Qin Lingyu with some measure of impatience.

    ¡°What I¡¯m suggesting is that someone within the Sect might have helped him escape under the cover of night, and these formation arrays was not solely set up by him alone.¡±

    ¡°Hah?! Young man Qin, your imagination is too rich and wild. If our Sect had such formidable array masters, would we need to spend so much time and money inviting other array masters to look into our Sect¡¯s protective formation array to begin with?!¡± The Fifth Elder chuckled contemptuously.

    ¡°Indeed, the Dawn Sect doesn¡¯t have any array masters at all. But, has Fifth Elder already forgotten? At this moment, there is in fact one other outsider within the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds right now...¡±

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestions were all alluding to one single ¡°outsider¡± of the Sect ¨C none other than the man known as Jun Ziwen.

    The Fifth Elder knitted his brows together. His instincts told him that there might be issues with what Qin Lingyu was suggesting at this moment, yet he could not put a finger on just where these gaps in his suggestionsy.

    On the other hand, it was the Second Elder who hadtched onto the crux of what Qin Lingyu was suggesting as he exined, ¡°Lingyu, your words aren¡¯t illogical, but everything is a mere conjecture on your part. Without any proof or evidence, there¡¯s simply nothing for your allegations to stand on.¡±

    Qin Lingyu smiled as he responded, ¡°But, Second Elder, we don¡¯t have to wait for something to base our allegations on before we make a move, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°Oh? What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Disciple has always been incredibly suspicious of Jun Ziwen¡¯s true identity and motives. Unfortunately, I¡¯ve never been able to find any proof or evidence putting his character and identity in question. Now that something has happened within the Sect, disciple thinks that it would be imprudent not to put our guard up around him. Thus, I believe that the best way to deal with this matter is to test that man, Jun Ziwen.¡± Qin Lingyu calmly exined his thoughts. As soon as he finished speaking, the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters immediately appeared to be deep in thought.

    Some momentster, the Fifth Elder chuckled loudly as he patted Qin Lingyu¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Not bad, littled. You¡¯ve got some brains there. You¡¯re right. Rather than to continue being suspicious of Jun Ziwen¡¯s identity, we could simply put him through a test. If there¡¯s something wrong with his identity, it¡¯s only a matter of time before he reveals that much.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Furthermore, there wouldn¡¯t really be any issues if we identally caused his death, is there? This is the Dawn Sect after all. It¡¯s our territory. Do we really have to be so hesitant moving against such a small, insignificant rogue cultivator?¡± The Third Elder chimed in, registering his approval as well. Then, everyone began to respond with a simr measure of approval.

    Just like that, the entire group of leaders of the Dawn Sect began toe up with a scheme to deal with the outsider, Jun Ziwen.

    Once they formted a n and concluded their discussions, they adjourned the meeting, and everyone left the meeting hall. On the other hand, He Zhang walked over to Qin Lingyu¡¯s side and patted him on the shoulder as he praised him, ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that you were around. This meeting would not have gone so smoothly otherwise. It¡¯s a huge sense of constion to your master that you¡¯re so outstanding. Your future prospects are great.¡±

    Qin Lingyu smiled faintly as he responded, ¡°It¡¯s disciple¡¯s duty to share master¡¯s burdens after all.¡±

    Qin Lingyu appeared to bepletely genuine and honest in his response. Yet when he lowered his head, a bright glimmer flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    Truth be told, he could hardly be bothered even if something happened to He Zhang earlier. His main goal for doing what he did was simply to kill with a borrowed knife.

    Ever since their first encounter, he had already detested how Qin Shanshan would stick closely by Jun Ziwen¡¯s side. After all, he knew that as long as Jun Ziwen remained around her, the implementation of his own ns would only be an increasingly uphill task.

    That said, he had managed to get the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and the Peakmasters on his side right now. Jun Ziwen¡¯s fate had to be sealed in stone. After all, when all was said and done, Jun Ziwen was only at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and he could hardly hold a candle whenpared with some of the Sect Elders or He Zhang.

    Discreetly, Qin Lingyu curled his lips into a wicked smile, and a vicious expression surfaced in the depths of his cold eyes.

    They would be making a move against Jun Ziwen in three days¡¯ time.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders firmly believed that their n was wless. Yet how would they have known that a massive ¡°w¡± would surface in their schemes the moment their devious n was hatched and set in stone?

    In order to better understand the ns of these Dawn Sect leaders over the next few days, Jun Xiaomo had secretly imbued the Humanoid Puppetst night with a crafty spell.

    Apart from distracting and confusing the Dawn Sect disciples, the Humanoid Puppet that had taken on Chen Taiguang¡¯s appearance served yet another purpose ¨C and that was to eavesdrop. In the moment that He Zhang stepped into the room, a humanoid-shaped talisman that hadrgely been burnt to a crisp silently and discreetly adhered itself to He Zhang¡¯s clothes.

    Two-thirds of the humanoid-shaped talisman had already been burnt up, leaving one-third of its whole remaining. It was incredibly small, and it could be easily glossed over if one did not particrly take notice of it. In fact, it was for this very reason that He Zhang had failed to notice the existence of this little humanoid-shaped talisman on his body this entire time.

    Just like that, He Zhang carried the remnants of the little humanoid-shaped talisman along with him as he summoned all of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters, informed them of the incident resulting in the crippling of several disciples¡¯ cultivations, as well as discussed and finalized how they were going to ¡°test¡± Jun Ziwen¡¯s identity.

    Even though the pretext was to ¡°test¡± Jun Ziwen, He Zhang and the other Dawn Sect leaders had most certainly already determined that Jun Ziwen¡¯s fate was sealed. In their eyes, it was better to kill an innocent outsider than to risk having an enemy living within their midst.

    That said, none of them could ever have expected the main perpetrator, Jun Xiaomo, to have picked up on every single detail of their ns through the remnant humanoid-shaped talisman on He Zhang¡¯s body at all.

    ¡°Jun Ziwen, since they intend to dispose of you, shall we simrly make our move in three days¡¯ time as well?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she suggested to Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows, asking, ¡°Move? What move?¡±

    ¡°Of course it¡¯s the most important part of why we¡¯re here ¨C breaching the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded with a glint in her eye and undertones of eagerness in her voice.

 Chapter 298: A Familiar Call

    <h4>Chapter 298: A Familiar Call</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion to breach the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds was immediately met with a strenuous opposition from Ye Xiuwen because it hadn¡¯t been long since herst attempt, and she had not fully recovered from her injuries yet. To make matters worse, she had clearly overdrawn her spiritual energyst night while resolving the matter with Chen Taiguang. Thus, Ye Xiuwen firmly believed that her suggestion to breach the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds in three days¡¯ time waspletely reckless. Even if one were courting death, this would not be the way to do it.

    ¡°Alright, alright. It¡¯s fine. I know my own body the best. The injuries might seem severe, but I¡¯m certain that I would be fully recovered by then. Furthermore, He Zhang and the others are determined to dispose of you. If you don¡¯t make a move within the next three day, it¡¯s going to be nigh impossible to find a more suitable time to slip into the forbidden grounds after that. With He Zhang and the rest chasing you around the Dawn Sect, where are you going to find the energy to both deal with your assants while thinking of a way to slip into the forbidden grounds under their very noses? You have to realize that the forbidden grounds aren¡¯t something easy to break into. Even I needed to divide my probative attempts into three segments in order to determine just how the formation arrays within the forbidden grounds should be individually dealt with.¡± Jun Xiaomo persuaded earnestly.

    ¡°No way! I mean it when I said no earlier. We can deal with things as theye. Right now, I only know that your body is not ready for the third attempt to breach the defenses of the forbidden grounds¡¯ formation arrays.¡± Ye Xiuwen retorted with a look of disapproval.

    ¡°My word! Why are you so hardheaded?! I¡¯d already said that I¡¯ll be fine by that time. Do you think you know the condition of my body better than I do? You...you¡¯re so darn infuriating!¡± Jun Xiaomo huffed as she red back at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°It¡¯s all cause of how you¡¯ve been treating these dangers and injuries as nothing more than a game. Quite apart from the fact that you always return with life-threatening injuries, you always im that these injuries aren¡¯t severe at all. From past experience, the reliability of your promises is now at an all-time low, and I don¡¯t believe a single word that you¡¯ve just said.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly explicated with an intransigent tone of voice.

    ¡°You!¡± Jun Xiaomo red back at Ye Xiuwen. She was so boiling mad that her emotions had consumed all the words she was about to spew out.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen cidly sipped at his tea, ignoring Jun Xiaomo as she continued to stare daggers at him.

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks as she plonked down onto the stool, ncing at Ye Xiuwen from time to time as though observing whether there was any room forpromise. At the same time, she appeared as though she were calcting something on a mental abacus.

    Finally, her eyes glistened as she rolled her eyes at Ye Xiuwen and pouted her lips as she quipped, ¡°Alright. Since I don¡¯t have your blessings, I¡¯ll be left with no choice but to go in secret. You can stay here and deal with He Zhang and the rest on your own.¡±

    This time, it was Ye Xiuwen who found himselfpletely speechless. He set down the teacup in his hands and retorted with some measure of exasperation, ¡°I¡¯m only doing this for your sake! Lady, why are you being so difficult?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo noticed the softening of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude towards her, and she smirked as she quipped mischievously, ¡°This is called being ¡®flexible¡¯, not ¡®difficult¡¯. Besides, my earlier suggestion was the best arrangement for both of us, yet youpletely rejected it withoutpromise. Since that¡¯s the case, I¡¯d naturally had to take a different approach to things.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lively expressions, and he suddenly began to consider the possibility that her injuries were truly not as serious as they looked ¨C Perhaps she might really be fine within three days¡¯ time.

    Thus, he lowered his eyes. After some moments of deliberation, Ye Xiuwen finally relented.

    ¡°Then, alright. But we can¡¯t force the issue. If we can¡¯t go on any longer, let¡¯s save ourselves first and revisit our ns again after that.¡± Ye Xiuwen solemnly instructed Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo patted his shoulders, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I know my limits. I won¡¯t die. I¡¯ve not lived life to the fullest yet!¡±

    As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo mischievously blinked her eyes at Ye Xiuwen.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether to continue being angry at Jun Xiaomo or simply tough at herical behaviour. Thus, he simply picked up his teacup and took a sip from it as he suppressed the urge to smile back at her.

    Three days passed in the blink of an eye. After making the necessary arrangements for the disciples whose cultivation had been crippled, He Zhang gathered the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters and ran through the n to dispose of Jun Ziwen once more.

    Even though Jun Ziwen¡¯s cultivation level at the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation could hardly hold a candle to the old monsters who were hundreds or even thousands of years old, they were nevertheless under the belief that Jun Ziwen was an array master. In other words, they were apprehensive of the strange and peculiar methods with which he could employ and draw upon the powers of formation arrays. Thus, they decided that the best way to deal with this unwanted cancerous cell that had infiltrated their midst was to turn up in full force to force his hand.

    In the dead of the cold, windy night, while the moon hung high, dimly lighting up thends, several shadows flickered past and appeared in front of Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode.

    For fear of the array master¡¯s abilities, He Zhang and the rest did not immediately charge into Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. Instead, they chose to send several Dawn Sect disciples in first to understand the situation on the inside. On the other hand, the rest of them simply remained outside, readying themselves to lend a hand at a moment¡¯s notice.

    The vanguard disciples were personally led by Qin Lingyu. These disciples were so delighted by the fact that they could undertake a mission personally led by Qin Lingyu that their hands and feet were trembling as they followed closely behind Qin Lingyu.

    Yet how would the disciples ever know that their masters and the Sect Leader had thought of nothing more than to use them as cannon fodder when they assigned them to lead the strike as the vanguard of their assault?

    On the other hand, Qin Lingyu was initially reluctant to undertake such a role to begin with. Unfortunately, the person instructing him to take the lead this time was his own master, and he had no choice but toply. Naturally, there was an incredible amount of indignation on his heart right now, and his entire being appeared much more imposing than he usually was.

    ¡°Master, Jun Ziwen should be inside. I can see his shadow on the window, and I can also sense his aura emanating from within. Likewise, Shanshan is also inside there.¡± As Qin Lingyu led the disciples under the cover of the night, he cautiously nced in the direction of Qin Shanshan¡¯s room, beforemunicating what he saw to He Zhang on the other end of a Transmittance Talisman.

    ¡°Very good. Don¡¯t alert them to the fact that you¡¯re around. Conceal your aura and slowly approach their room.¡± He Zhang instructed.

    Acting in ordance with He Zhang¡¯s instructions, Qin Lingyu and the other Dawn Sect disciples slowly drew closer to the door to Qin Shanshan¡¯s room. They had previously all applied a talisman on their bodies to conceal their auras, and they were confident that the people within Qin Shanshan¡¯s room were unable to detect their presence at all.

    Just then, the disciple that was walking furthest behind paused in his steps and stopped moving.

    As the other disciples continued to make their way forward, they discovered that there was one lesspanion beside them, and they turned around curiously and asked, ¡°Ah San, why have you stopped?¡±

    In the very next moment, they witnessed the most unforgettable sight in their entire lives ¨C

    A massive man-eating nt suddenly erupted from the ground below and bit off the upper half of that disciple¡¯s entire body. Apart from the cloud of blood and gore that sprayed everywhere, the only other thing that they saw was the horrific sight of what remained of the bottom half of that disciple¡¯s body.

    ¡°Ahh!!!¡± All of the disciples practically screamed in unison. Their cries cut through the tense, heavy atmosphere in the air, filling the dark, night sky with echoes of terror and fear.

    Momentster, several more man-eating nts burst through the ground, opened their mouths wide and began to swoop towards the closest Dawn Sect disciples around them.

    The group of disciples acting as the vanguard to the assault were thrown into chaos.

    ¡°Master, not good. We¡¯ve been set up!¡± Qin Lingyu hurriedly reported to He Zhang on the other side, ¡°Jun Ziwen is indeed an array master. We¡¯ve been trapped, and we can¡¯t leave this ce. I don¡¯t know what other damned formation arrays he¡¯s set up at this ce, but I know that as soon as we attempt to take a step out of this ce, we¡¯d be eaten alive by a man-eating nt!¡±

    As soon as He Zhang heard this, he was filled with anxiety, anger and hatred.

    ¡°Jun. Zi Wen! How many of my disciples are you going to kill?!¡± He Zhang clenched his fist around the Transmittance Talisman as intense killing intent flowed of his eyes. After what had just happened, he would be a fool if he did not immediately draw the conclusion that Jun Ziwen was an array master with ulterior motives.

    ¡°Wait there. We¡¯reing over right now.¡± As He Zhang spoke, he waved his hands and led the entire troupe of Sect Elders and Peakmasters as they made a beeline towards Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. As a Sect Leader, no matter how dire the situation was, he could never stand idly by as he watched his disciples fall into a deadly trap without doing a single thing. Thus, despite knowing the risks involved, he knew he had no choice but to rush towards them.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had already broken through twoyers of protective formation arrays sequestering the forbidden grounds from the rest of the Dawn Sect, and they were in the process of working at breaking through the thirdyer of protective formation arrays.

    As long as they could break through the thirdyer of protective formation arrays, they would be able to sessfully breach the defenses of the forbidden grounds and enter its restricted areas.

    Just before leaving Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode and making their way towards the forbidden grounds, Jun Xiaomo had not only set up innumerable formation arrays around Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, she had even set up several talismans so that she could keep tabs on how the situation was panning out in the area.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo knew exactly what had just urred at Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode, and she couldn¡¯t help but smile to herself in delight.

    Ye Xiuwen also noticed the wicked smile on ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± face right now, and he shook his head with some measure of exasperation ¨C he knew that someone¡¯s luck had just run out.

    Furthermore, he knew that the only ones whose misery could cause ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± so much delight at this moment were undoubtedly the people from the Dawn Sect.

    That said, on his way into the forbidden grounds, he could be said to have truly witnessed the depth of this youngdy¡¯s mastery over formation arrays. Each and every single one of the immeasurablyplex and dazzling formation arrays were quickly unraveled and dealt with ease on her part. At times, she would change the constitution of the formation array; at times, she would flick a few talismans onto the heart of the formation array, thereby suppressing all of its effects; and at times, she would simply add or adhere some objects to her body, thus ensuring safe passage through the entire formation array...

    Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but exim in his heart. Thisdy was truly formidable. If he had been in her shoes, he would have beenpletely dazzled and destroyed by the very first formation array that they had encountered.

    Just as they drew closer to the heart of the forbidden grounds, Jun Xiaomo suddenly paused in her steps and looked at a little bridge with furrowed brows. A bloodcurdling, crimson red fluid coursed ceaselessly under the bridge, looking almost as though it were a flowing river of blood.

    ¡°This is...¡±

    ¡°This is an Enchanting Bridge. I¡¯d never thought I would see something like this over here.¡±

    ¡°Enchanting Bridge?¡±

    ¡°This is a bridge made of special materials. As soon as one sets up a formation array around it, it can achieve the effects of bewitching a person¡¯s soul. When you step onto this bridgeter, you will immediately begin to hear all kinds of sounds and noises, all of which are in fact no more than a mere illusion. The most important thing to note is that you should never respond to any of these sounds. Otherwise, you will forever be trapped within this formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnly apprised Ye Xiuwen of its dangers.

    ¡°Don¡¯t respond to any sounds I hear? Alright. I got it.¡± Ye Xiuwen nodded his head and took her cautionary words to heart.

    ¡°Follow my lead. Remember, follow closely. Speak only after I say you may speak. No matter what you hear, you must always, always remind yourself that it is nothing more than an illusion and a lie. Don¡¯t respond at all.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡±

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo took the lead and walked ahead, while Ye Xiuwen followed closely behind.

    As soon as they stepped onto the bridge, a cacophony of sounds and noises began to flow into their ears incessantly. These sounds and voices were filled with familiar memories and traces of the past, causing Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits to tense up uncontrobly.

    However, both of them possessed resolute hearts, and they were able to collect their emotions in no time. They steadied their hearts once more, before forging forward with determination in their eyes.

    The Enchanting Bridge was something that Jun Xiaomo had not even encountered within the Proving Grounds. However, she knew about this formation array imbued artefact from her great grandmaster¡¯s manuscripts and records, which were replete with drawings and descriptions. Thus, she also knew how to decipher when they had finally made it out of the domain of the Enchanting Bridge.

    As they walked on, Jun Xiaomo continued to focus her mind on looking for clues to determine whether they had finally made it out of the domain of the Enchanting Bridge, while Ye Xiuwen continued to stare closely at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back, doing his best to ignore the sounds and voices that were slowly but surely getting clearer and more distinct.

    Just as they were soon about to make it out of the Enchanting Bridge, a fearful voice that was trembling in trepidation suddenly rang out just beside Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ear ¨C

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, save me!¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo?!¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and in that moment of folly he forgot everyst bit of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier caution and he reflexively looked behind him.

    Jun Xiaomo had also heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response, but she simply shrugged it off and ignored it, thinking that it was a mere illusion. However, when she noticed from the corner of her eye how the crimson red fluid surged up like a tidal wave and swept towards them, it suddenly dawned on her that his earlier cry was no mere illusion!

    Why would he call out the name, ¡®Xiaomo¡¯?!

    As she whipped her head around, she saw the wave crash directly onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body and engulf himpletely.

    ¡°Careful!¡± Jun Xiaomo leapt towards Ye Xiuwen, and she managed to grab hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist in the veryst moment.

    Thus, just like that, both of them were dragged under the Enchanting Bridge by the receding wave, sending them deep into the abyss of the crimson red fluid.

 Chapter 299: So, Itâ€™s You!

    <h4>Chapter 299: So, It¡¯s You!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Ye Xiuwen next came to his senses, he discovered that he was already lying on a bed of striking red sand, and he could hear the babbling sound of running waters nearby.

    He rubbed his forehead as he struggled to sit up. As he looked around him, he realized that everything around was painted a striking red colour ¨C a red sky, a red flowing river, red grounds scattered with red sand, and the redness continued to stretch far into the horizon.

    This ce is...

    ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± A voice filled with displeasure rang out beside his ear. Ye Xiuwen looked back, only to see a pair of ink-ck eyes staring straight at him. It was evident that the owner of those eyes was slightly annoyed at this moment.

    ¡°Miss Tong? Ungh...¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s temples throbbed in pain, and he couldn¡¯t help but lower his head and let out a soft groan.

    Jun Xiaomo could see that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were filled with multitude ofplex emotions right now.

    ¡°I¡¯ll advise you not to use or operate your spiritual energy for now. When you fell into the river below the Enchanting Bridge earlier, you¡¯d sustained some rather severe injuries. If not for the fact that I had been around, you would already be dead by now.¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly stated. As she finished speaking, she tossed a handful of leaves of unknown origin onto the ground.

    ¡°Thanks, Miss Tong.¡± Ye Xiuwen sincerely thanked her. Then, he turned his attention to the pile of leaves on the floor as he asked, ¡°This is...?¡±

    ¡°These are leaves used to purge demonic energy from your body. Do you see the river over there? That¡¯s not just any river. It¡¯s filled with immeasurable amounts of demonic energy within. This river isn¡¯t dangerous to a demonic cultivator like me. In fact, it can even be used to nourish and replenish the demonic energy in my body. However, if a spiritual cultivator like you falls into the river, you¡¯re bound to be severely injured even if you manage to survive. It¡¯s a good thing I know how to purge the demonic energy within your body, otherwise...hmph!¡±

    As she finished speaking, Jun Xiaomo ignited a bonfire on the ground and tossed the leaves into it.

    As the leaves began to burn, Ye Xiuwen could sense that the air in his surroundings was getting ostensibly fresher, and there was much less difort in his body right now.

    ¡°Thanks Miss Tong. And...I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen knew that he had failed to follow ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± instructions and responded to the voice on the Enchanting Bridge, and he knew that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was upset at him because of this.

    After all, if he were in her shoes, he would have been simrly angry as well. Thus, he sincerely apologized for his mistake this time.

    She red back at Ye Xiuwen, before lowering her head once more and growing taciturn. Then, she picked up a stick and began to prod and poke the bonfire, causing it to burn with greater intensity.

    ¡°Are you still mad at me?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled bitterly as he added, ¡°But I can understand why. Given the condition of your body, I earlier been so insistent on preventing you from entering the forbidden grounds in the hope that you wouldn¡¯t get injured anymore. Yet, after all that, who would¡¯ve thought that the deadweight and burden was actually me?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo tightened her fists around the stick in her hand, yet the tight grimace on her lips seemed to loosen ever so slightly. At the same time, one could see emotions in the depths of her eyes that seem to have been repressed for an incredibly long time, only to have their restraints loosened at this very moment.

    That said, her eyes were closed right now, so Ye Xiuwen was unable to sense or detect the fluctuations to her emotions.

    After a long period of silence, he finally heard ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± speak in a soft voice, ¡°Earlier...when we were on the Enchanting Bridge, you called out a name, ¡®Xiaomo¡¯. Who is she to you? Is she...very important to you?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was taken aback. He had not expected ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± to ask him something like this.

    His heart was incredibly heavy now. That earlier cry he had heard on the Enchanting Bridge was still ringing loudly in his ears right now. All of the deep and profound sorrow and grief that Ye Xiuwen had locked away in the depths of his heart had been unlocked by that clear, crisp cry earlier as they swept through his body once more. That said, he knew that there were some things in this world that simply couldn¡¯t be controlled or repressed by a man¡¯s rationality.

    Then, when he turned his mind to the fact that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had just saved his life, Ye Xiuwen sincerely felt that it wouldn¡¯t be right if he continued to withhold so many things from her. Thus, he decided toe clean with the truth.

    ¡°Xiaomo, she¡¯s...she¡¯s my martial sister.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and her entire mind went nk at this instant.

    She had already been suspicious of Jun Ziwen¡¯s identity for the longest time, yet she simply had no proof or evidence substantiating these suspicions of hers. In fact, after this incident at the Enchanting Bridge, she had already nned to ask him about it in the hope that she would learn the whole truth about his identity. In other words, she had already prepared her heart for whatever answer he was going to give. That said, when he expressly dropped the bombshell on her, it still managed to wash away all modicum of rationality from her mind in that one single instant.

    However, since Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head was still lowered to the ground, Ye Xiuwen was unable to see her reaction to his answer.

    Ye Xiuwen continued, ¡°My rtionship with Xiaomo was very good. Then, about twelve years ago, we got separated. I had onlye to learn of here whereabouts in recent times. Unfortunately, everything is toote. She¡¯s already dead.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed, ¡°There are times when I think whether I would be able to rescue her from the dangers that took her life had I not been separated with her. That way, she wouldn¡¯t be trapped in a foreignnd and pass away all alone.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was evidently filled with sorrow and regret, even to the point of self-deprecation, ¡°Earlier, I heard her voice calling out for my help on the Enchanting Bridge. Perhaps the regret for her death had already taken root and be a stumbling block in my heart. Whatever the case is, when I heard her voice calling out to me, I was unable to retain any form of rationality whatsoever in that single instant, and I unfortunately also forgot Miss Tong¡¯s instructions.¡±

    ¡°No! It¡¯s not like that!¡± Jun Xiaomo hurriedly lifted her head, thinking of revealing the truth of her own identity at this instant as well, ¡°Actually, I¡¯m...¡±

    ROAR! A creature¡¯s ferocious cry interrupted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words. She immediately turned around and realized that a massive demonic beast had just appeared right in front of her.

    That¡¯s right ¨C a demonic beast. She had never expected that He Zhang would be rearing demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds!

    Wasn¡¯t He Zhang a spiritual cultivator through and through? What¡¯s he doing rearing demonic beasts here?! What kind of a sick joke is this?!

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo found herself unable tough at the situation. No matter how she looked at it, the demonic beast was not something easy to deal with. To make matters worse, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body had just been doused in the demonic energy from the red river, and it would still take approximately one hour before she couldpletely purge the demonic energy from his body so that he could once again muster his spiritual energy. Thus, the burden of facing the demonic beast fell directly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders alone.

    She quickly picked herself up from the ground, stood between the demonic beast and Ye Xiuwen and adopted a defensive posture. She was ready to duke it out with the demonic beast at the moment¡¯s notice.

    Ye Xiuwen began to scramble to his feet, thinking to lend Jun Xiaomo a hand as well. However, as though she knew what he was thinking, Jun Xiaomo turned around and red indignantly at Ye Xiuwen as she barked, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to be my deadweight anymore, stay there and don¡¯t move! You¡¯re only allowed to make a move after one hour has psed!¡±

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo had not wanted to speak to Ye Xiuwen with such a harsh tone of voice either, particrly after she had ascertained that ¡°Jun Ziwen¡± was none other than Ye Xiuwen.

    However, thest thing she wanted was for Ye Xiuwen to put his life in harm¡¯s way just because of her. To any spiritual cultivator, the incursion of demonic energy was an incredibly dangerous thing ¨C light incidents of such incursions would take several days of rest for full recovery, while serious incidents might even result in a person¡¯s cultivation beingpletely crippled. Thus, she had no choice but to sternly warn Ye Xiuwen this way in order to keep him safe and sound.

    In fact, this was the first time that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had spoken to Ye Xiuwen with such a harsh tone of voice, and it caused Ye Xiuwen to bepletely taken aback.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo did not have the luxury of time to exin anything else to Ye Xiuwen because the demonic beast came charging directly at her in the very next instant. She whipped her body around, brandished her whip and began tosh it straight towards the demonic beast.

    It had to be mentioned that Jun Xiaomo still possessed a wealth of powerful talismans within her Interspatial Ring, and it would hardly be a difficult thing for her to use her talismans to dispose of this demonic beast in front of her right now. However, Jun Xiaomo knew full well that there were many more difficult battles that would being up in the near future. Every talisman she used meant one less for the battles ahead; and that would mean cing her life in greater danger in future.

    Thus, she knew that she had to be more conservative in her usage of talismans.

    As he watched the demonic beast engage in an all-out battle with Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen grimaced in pain, and a trace of mixed,plex emotions flickered in the depths of his eyes.

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen continued to attempt to breach the final line of formation arrays within the forbidden grounds, He Zhang and the rest had finally also managed to break through the formation array surrounding Qin Shanshan¡¯s abode. It had been an arduous process, but they had finally done it after losing over ten disciples.

    The preparation of such formation arrays involved the usage of several valuable resources and materials. It was regrettable that Jun Xiaomo had not carried enough resources and materials within her Interspatial Ring. Otherwise, she would have liked to set up far more powerful formation arrays that could even trap and devour He Zhang and the rest of the Sect Elders around as well.

    After He Zhang and the other Sect Elders finally managed to break through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays, he led the remaining Dawn Sect disciples and surrounded every single part of Qin Shanshan¡¯s room. He Zhang stood at the door to her room and yelled out, ¡°Jun Ziwen, this Sect Leader is well aware that you¡¯ve got ulterior motives for entering the Dawn Sect. We¡¯ve already broken through your defensive formation array. If you know what¡¯s best for you, you¡¯d do well to surrender yourself ande out now. Don¡¯t make use in there and invite you out ourselves.¡±

    Yet, the room remainedpletely still and silent, and the door to the room did not open up. That said, when they released their divine sense, they could still detect traces of Jun Ziwen and Qin Shanshan¡¯s auras within the room. Thus, He Zhang sincerely believed that the two of them were still situated within the room, and they were simply not willing to leave the room right now.

    He Zhang shouted for a few more times, yet there was not a single trace of movement.

    What¡¯s going on? He Zhang furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Master, why don¡¯t we just barge in and take a look for ourselves?¡± Qin Lingyu suggested to He Zhang, ¡°Waiting here isn¡¯t going to do us any good either.¡±

    ¡°Barge in there? Who knows whether we¡¯ll fall prey to more formation arrays lying in wait for us if we barge in there now?¡± The Fifth Elder huffed in exasperation.

    Of the disciples that had perished today, the Fifth Elder¡¯s losses were the greatest, and he was incredibly frustrated. Unfortunately, the person giving orders was none other than He Zhang, and he knew that it was not in his position to make a fuss out of this either. Thus, he was content with taking out his frustrations on He Zhang¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, Qin Lingyu.

    That said, He Zhang did find Qin Lingyu¡¯s suggestion rather logical, and he nced back at Qin Lingyu as he instructed, ¡°Lingyu, bring a few disciples with you and take a look inside.¡±

    Qin Lingyu was slightly taken aback by He Zhang¡¯s instructions. However, momentster, he managed to suppress the indignation swelling within his heart.

    He knew that he didn¡¯t have a choice. After all, who else could he me but himself for possessing the highest stature among all of the disciples, yet the lowest cultivation level whenpared to the leaders of the Sect?

    Just wait till I get my hands on the key to the Arcane Realm... Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes flickered with a trace of viciousness ¨C he was going to trample everyst one of these people underfoot!

    Even though he was unwilling, he stillplied with He Zhang¡¯s instructions and led several disciples as they cautiously approached the door to Qin Shanshan¡¯s room. Every step of the way, they would continue to probe around thoroughly with their divine senses, in the hope that they would not fall prey to yet another formation array.

    Fortunately, they managed to make it to the main entrance without a hitch, and all of the disciples heaved a sigh of relief unanimously. On the other hand, Qin Lingyu¡¯s spirit was incredibly tense right now.

    He carefully ced a hand on the door ¨C nothing happened.

    Then, he gingerly pushed opened the door slightly ajar ¨C still, nothing happened.

    Finally, he mustered all his courage and opened the door wide open. Then, he noticed that the room waspletely dark, and there was not a single thing within the room!

    A sudden sense of unease washed over his heart. He strode brazenly into the room and began to take a look around. Even after entering the inner quarters of the room, he was unable to see any traces of Qin Shanshan or Jun Ziwen.

    ¡°Master! Not good! Jun Ziwen isn¡¯t here at all ¨C both he and Shanshan have vanished!¡± Qin Lingyu rushed out and ryed this important piece of news to He Zhang.

    ¡°Could Jun Ziwen have abducted Qin Shanshan and left the Sect?¡± The Fifth Elder thought aloud.

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes darkened immediately. A swathe of blood shot up his throat, and he almost passed out ¨C this was the key to his Arcane Realm that they were talking about!!!

    ¡°No, they haven¡¯t left the Dawn Sect.¡± He Zhang coldly stated, reviving some measure of hope in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart. However, in the next moment, He Zhang¡¯s words stifled the me of hope in Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart so much so that it was nothing more than a little wisp.

    ¡°They¡¯ve not left the Dawn Sect, but they¡¯ve entered the forbidden grounds! I¡¯ve been too careless! I¡¯ve only just realized that the formation arrays within the forbidden grounds have been activated by others! Summon all of the Dawn Sect disciples, pronto! We¡¯re going to the forbidden grounds right now!¡±

    Forbidden grounds?! With Qin Shanshan¡¯s abilities at the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation, how could she possibly survive a trip through the forbidden grounds? Several people eximed in their hearts at the same time.

 Chapter 300: The Separated Duo

    <h4>Chapter 300: The Separated Duo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was unable to wrap her head around why the Dawn Sect would set up all of these formation arrays just to confinerge amounts of demonic energy and rear demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds.

    In fact, the demonic beast that Jun Xiaomo was battling right now was merely one of the demonic beasts that He Zhang had been rearing within the forbidden grounds. It had been feeding off the river filled with demonic energy that was designed to detect and attack any intruders, just like it had done with Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    The demonic beast possessed fangs that were as thick as a person¡¯s arm, and its blood-red eyes were filled with what seemed to be a hazy, viscous substance which swirled slowly around. The beast¡¯s incredibly nimble tongue was also forked like that of a vicious snake. Whenever itshed out with its tongue, it would be able to strike anything that was within a five meters radius from it without any warning.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, and her spirits were tensed up to the extreme as she did her level best to avoid the relentless attacks by the demonic creature. Dealing with the demonic beast was still an incredibly difficult thing to her despite her elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. However, this only stood to reason. After all, in all the years that she was trapped within the Proving Grounds, most of her time was spentpletely focused on increasing her mastery of formation arrays and talismans, and she had inadvertently neglected the training and mastering of her offensives abilities.

    In other words, even though Jun Xiaomo possessed a high cultivation level right now, herbat abilities were no more than average at best. If this were the Jun Xiaomo of her previous life, a mere demonic beast in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation could hardly be considered a threat to her. However, she had neglected her other offensive abilities for far too long. After three hundred years ofplete focus in the disciplines of talismans and formation arrays, all of her offensive abilities had be totally strange and foreign to her.

    Right now, the better part of one hour had passed since Jun Xiaomo first ordered Ye Xiuwen not to intervene. That said, Ye Xiuwen had also begun to notice that the fight was getting increasingly difficult for Jun Xiaomo, and he could no longer bring himself to sit idly by and not do a single thing. Besides, the demonic energy had almost beenpletely purged from his body by this point in time.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen stood up and unsheathed his sword. Then, his clothes fluttered and flickered, and he suddenly appeared directly in front of Jun Xiaomo, sending a massive wave of sword intent slicing straight towards the demonic beast!

    ¡°You! Didn¡¯t I tell you that you can¡¯t use the spiritual energy within your body for one full hour?!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°If I don¡¯t make a move soon, you¡¯re going to be hurt.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined himself. As he finished speaking, his body flickered again, and with incredible speed, he cleaved the demonic beast¡¯s tongue in half, before slicing it off entirely.

    In that instant, poisonous, green blood spewed from the demonic beast¡¯s tongue and spurted towards Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. With one arm wrapped around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s waist, Ye Xiuwen carried her to a ce that was several meters away, swiftly dodging the poisonous blood spewing from the demonic beast¡¯s tongue.

    As Ye Xiuwen¡¯s strong arms wrapped around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s waist, she discovered that her ears had begun to grow warm for some strange reason.

    Back when she was unaware that Jun Ziwen was none other than Ye Xiuwen, things had all been well and good. However, as soon as she realized that Jun Ziwen was Ye Xiuwen, she suddenly felt ill at ease around him.

    Could this be a result of not interacting with martial brother Ye for such a longtime? Jun Xiaomo found herself slightly distracted with her own thoughts.

    ¡°Wait here and don¡¯t move. I¡¯ll take care of the demonic beast.¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed Jun Xiaomo. Then, he gently nudged Jun Xiaomo behind his body before turning back to the demonic beast once more.

    Back when he was trapped within the Death¡¯s Gorge, Ye Xiuwen had practically battled with all forms of different spirit and demonic beasts on a daily basis. Thus, with his cultivation level at the advance-tier Nascent Soul stage, dealing with and disposing of this demonic beast was as easy as the flick of a wrist.

    Meanwhile, Jun Xiaomo stamped her foot on the ground as she muttered aloud, ¡°One slip up and this guy seizes the opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Doesn¡¯t he even care about the demonic energy in his body?!¡±

    Then, when she thought about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s exnation that she was going to get injured if he had not intervened, the rage in her heart subsided substantially. That said, she continued to murmur to herself with indignance, ¡°So what if I get a little bit injured? I won¡¯t die. You should¡¯ve just remained still for one hour before moving!¡±

    After the demonic beast¡¯s tongue was cut off, it exploded into a frenzied state. Yet, despite that, it remained unable to touch even a corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes, while its injuries only continued to increase under the relentless barrage of attacks from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Frostburn Sword.

    Finally, the demonic beast was felled by a fatal strike that cleanly sliced off its head, and it drew its final breath there and then.

    As the demonic beast copsed onto the ground, blood-like waters began to rain from the sky. Jun Xiaomo immediately shot towards Ye Xiuwen, retrieving a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and shouting at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Take this talisman. The demonic beast¡¯s blood is filled with demonic energy. You can¡¯t afford to let it seep into your body!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately retreated towards Jun Xiaomo as well. But just then, something bizarre urred ¨C the ground under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s feet suddenly softened, and manyrge whirlpools began to appear around her.

    ¡°Ahh!¡± Jun Xiaomo let out an anxious cry. Her foot had begun to sink into one of the whirlpools on the ground. In the blink of an eye, half of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was already pulled into the ground.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constricted, and he immediately darted towards where Jun Xiaomo was located. Unfortunately, he was toote.

    Jun Xiaomo had already been almostpletely swallowed up by the whirlpool by the time he arrived, and he could only touch the tip of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger that were barely sticking out from the ground.

    ¡°Miss Tong!¡± Without pausing for a moment to think, Ye Xiuwen also leapt into the same whirlpool and vanished into its depths.

    After swallowing up two people, the strange grounds gradually returned to normal, and the bizarre whirlpools that had appeared out of the blue seemed like nothing more than a fleeting dream.

    Meanwhile, He Zhang and the others had finally just arrived at the border to the forbidden grounds. No one else was aware of the fact that He Zhang was rearing demonic creatures within the forbidden grounds, and this was something that He Zhang knew he could not afford to let anyone know either. After all, if anyone ever discovered this secret of his, he would never be able to retain his position as the Sect Leader of the Dawn Sect.

    He Zhang immediately knew when one of his demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds was felled by Ye Xiuwen. To begin with, he had formed a contract with that demonic beast of his, so the demonic beast¡¯s death instantly struck him with a powerful bacsh, inflicting him with an internal injury. Thus, as soon as his demonic beast died, He Zhang immediately spat out a mouthful of fresh blood!

    ¡°Master!¡± Qin Lingyu hurriedly supported He Zhang.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± He Zhang held up a hand and gritted his teeth as he shrugged it off. His eyes were filled with a vicious gaze and killing intent, all of which were directed straight towards Jun Ziwen.

    The only person who could possibly kill his pet demonic beast would be none other than Jun Ziwen who had already breached the forbidden grounds. He Zhang had used human blood and demonic energy to secretly cultivate and groom several powerful demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds in the hope that he could use these beasts to dispose of the people that he hated in future.

    Nobody would expect a spiritual cultivation Sect Leader to groom and nurture such vicious, evil beings to begin with. Thus, he knew that as soon as the demonic beasts had served their purpose, he could simply pin the me on demonic cultivators in order to clear his own name.

    That said, how could he have expected Jun Ziwen to be able to kill one of his demonic beasts within several hours of breaching the forbidden grounds¡¯ domain? Even though the demonic beast that Jun Ziwen had just killed was the weakest one of them all, He Zhang was still incredibly frustrated by this fact.

    ¡°Damn. You! Jun Ziwen, don¡¯t ever let me catch you!¡± He Zhang gnashed his teeth and brandished his fists as he muttered under his breath.

    ¡°Master, what¡¯s the n now? Shanshan¡¯s still inside as well.¡± Qin Lingyu anxiously quipped as he nced at the Origin Locket in his hands from time to time.

    If Qin Shanshan perished within the forbidden grounds, his ns would be renderedpletely wasted. Thus, no matter what, he had to do all he could to cajole He Zhang to save Qin Shanshan in the shortest possible time.

    He Zhang nced back at Qin Lingyu, before looking at the other Sect Elders and Peakmasters. All of them were waiting for He Zhang¡¯smand.

    ¡°All of you wait here. I¡¯ll go in and take a look.¡± He Zhang cidly instructed everyone behind him.

    ¡°Master, wouldn¡¯t it be best if you took a few more people with you? After all, Jun Ziwen is a formidable array master...¡± Qin Lingyu felt that the odds of sess would be higher with more people around.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need. It might only make things worse. So what if he¡¯s an array master? The formation arrays within the forbidden grounds are tens or hundreds of times moreplicated than the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. He cannot possibly have unlocked and disabled all of the formation arrays within such a short span of time. Besides, none of you are familiar with the forbidden grounds. If any of you get lost within, I¡¯ll still have toe looking for you. Instead, it would be better if you stay here. This way, if hees out, all of you can work together to apprehend him.¡±

    ¡°Yes, master.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Sect Leader.¡±

    He Zhang¡¯s words were logical, and everyone wholeheartedly epted He Zhang¡¯s suggestion as well as the reasoning behind it, including the Second Elder and Qin Lingyu, both of whom were usually more thorough with their thoughts and schemes.

    Not a single one of them suspected He Zhang to have ulterior reasons for disallowing the rest to enter the forbidden grounds together with him. Truth be told, He Zhang was hardly concerned about the fact that they would be a burden and a deadweight to him ¨C his only concern was that he wanted to keep his personal secret well-hidden and under wraps.

    He Zhang was incredibly familiar with the forbidden grounds. When the previous Sect Leader passed on and appointed He Zhang as the next Sect Leader, he had also handed over the forbidden ground¡¯s formation diagram to He Zhang. With that, He Zhang was able toe and go from any ce within the forbidden grounds as he wished. On the other hand, the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters were only granted ess to limited parts of the forbidden grounds, and their understanding of that ce was far more limited than what He Zhang knew.

    In fact, the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds was also the burial ce of all the previous Sect Leaders of the Dawn Sect. As soon as each of these Sect Leaders knew that they were drawing near their final breaths, they would of their own volition enter the forbidden grounds and await their own death inside. Then, with their lingering souls, they would continue to protect the Sect from where they were.

    In order to prevent others from stumbling upon this ce unwittingly and interrupting the eternal slumber of these previous Sect Leaders, all of the previous Sect Leaders had continually and incrementally added to the formation arrays sequestering the forbidden grounds, thus, increasing theplexity of its defenses and making it increasingly harder for trespassers to enter those grounds.

    That said, this practice hadpletely changed as soon as He Zhang assumed the mantle of Sect Leader. He Zhang treated the forbidden grounds as his own personal space. Not only did he begin to rear demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds, he even set up some forbidden formation arrays in the areas where he was rearing the demonic beasts to be used for the sole purposes of suppressing and whittling away at the demonic beasts¡¯ rationality, allowing him to fully control them. His voracious designs were abundantly clear from his actions.

    His intentions were to capitalize on the forbidden grounds to increase his wealth and personal gains. That said, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had unexpectedly stumbled upon the darkest parts of the forbidden grounds that were core to He Zhang¡¯s ns ¨C they had begun to uncover more than the tip of the iceberg.

    After disseminating his instructions, He Zhang strode into the forbidden ground with a quick gait. As he walked ahead, he steeled his resolve and made up his mind ¨C if Qin Shanshan had also seen those things within the forbidden grounds, she most certainly could not be allowed to live any longer either. He was determined not to allow anyone who could potentially threaten his grand ns live to tell the tale.

    With such thoughts on his mind, He Zhang¡¯s expressions darkened and grew vicious and sullen.

    -------------------------------------------

    Ye Xiuwen had thought that by jumping into the same whirlpool as Jun Xiaomo, he would be sent to the same ce that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had been sent to. Unexpectedly, when he came out at the other end of the whirlpool, he was unable to see ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± anywhere in sight.

    ¡°Miss Tong!¡± Ye Xiuwen shouted. Yet, his surroundings werepletely silent. There was not a single response to his cry.

    Could I still have been separated from Miss Tong? Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, and a sense of unease washed over his heart.

 Chapter 301: The Dark Prison; Reunion Between Martial Siblings

    <h4>Chapter 301: The Dark Prison; Reunion Between Martial Siblings</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    There was no turning back. He could only continue to forge forward.

    Ye Xiuwen released his divine sense and followed the only path forward. As he walked along that path, he realized that his surroundings werepletely deste, and there was not even a single strand of grass around.

    The further along he went on that path, the narrower it got. At the same time, he began to start seeing traces of bones appearing on the sides of the path. When he took a closer examination of these bones, he noticed that while they mostlyprised of beast bones, there were some human bones strewn together with the mix as well.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately unsheathed his sword and held it in his hands, and his lips grimaced tightly.

    Suddenly, a gentle breeze swept across his surroundings, and he could smell the undeniably nauseating stench of blood wafting through the air. Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes, and his spirits tensed up even more.

    As he walked on, the stench of blood only grew stronger and stronger. Then, as the path suddenly broadened into arge za, it became apparent to Ye Xiuwen where the stench of blood came from ¨C that za contained an entire pool of bubbling blood, as though it was being boiled. There even seemed to be some living creatures moving about within the pool of blood, agitating it from time to time.

    What in the world is this?! Ye Xiuwen gripped his spirit sword tightly, and misgivings began to arise in his heart about the secrets hidden within the depths of the forbidden grounds.

    -------------------------------------------

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of the fact that Ye Xiuwen had followed her into the whirlpool earlier. As she got washed into the whirlpool, there was even a brief moment of time when she thought that she hade to the end of her road.

    How regrettable. She had just been reunited with her martial brother Ye, and she had not even had the opportunity to reveal to him the fact that she was his little martial sister. Did she have to leave this world now? What about her nemeses who were all living and well? They had not yet suffered any form of retribution for the deeds they had done!

    Fortunately, she was not fated to yield up her life in this very ce. Just as her despondence and reluctance came to a head, she discovered that the whirlpool shifted her about and spat her out elsewhere into a ce which appeared foreign to her. At the very least, it was a ce that waspletely different from the ce she was just at moments ago.

    Here, there was no red sky; there was no red grounds; and there was no red river. There was only a single, dark corridor that seemed to stretch on and on into the distance.

    There was what looked like a prison located just beside the corridor. This prison was filled with blood stains, and each and every cell seemed empty. The only traces of its usage in the past were the stains from the blood and gore that was sttered all over the walls and the floor.

    It was an incredibly unsettling ce, and Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but think about where she was at the end of her previous life.

    I wonder what this used to hold, and what the prisoners had experienced within... As she looked at the sight of what remained of the prison cells, Jun Xiaomo had an inkling that the people who used to be held here would undoubtedly have perished. In fact, from the looks of things, they must have suffered an incredible amount of torment and pain before they were even allowed to yield up their lives.

    Wait a minute. Prison?!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and she immediately picked up her pace and walked forward ¨C why didn¡¯t she connect two and two together earlier? If this were a prison, wouldn¡¯t her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak naturally be held here?

    Thus, she moved hastily through the prison as she made her way towards thergest prison cell. There, she finally noticed tens of familiar figures within the cell, all of whom were shackled by two massive hooks that had pierced their bodies.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen! Martial brother Huo!¡± The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened as she sprinted towards her martial brother. However, the Heavenly Peak disciples had been tormented so badly that they were already on their final breaths, and they werepletely oblivious to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cries.

    As Jun Xiaomo rushed closer and ced her hand onto the door, and massive surge of energy suddenly welled up from an invisible barrier and repelled her back, shooting her far from where the door was.

    ¡°Ungh!¡± Jun Xiaomo mmed onto the ground a distance away with a loud groan. In the next moment, a dribble of blood seeped out of the corner of her lips.

    Some of the Heavenly Peak disciples finally woke up as a result of thismotion, and they struggled to open their eyes as they looked outside of their prison cell.

    Layers uponyers of crusty blood stains had blurred their vision, and they could barely make out who it was who hade calling upon them. All they could see was a blur figure.

    ¡°You are...?¡± Chen Feiyu¡¯s voice sounded like it had been shattered by his captors. It sounded incredibly hoarse, almost akin to the sound of sandpaper grating against each other. It was harsh to the ears.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, it¡¯s me!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she mbered to her feet. At the beginning, her feet were still slightly unsteady as a result of the earlier impact. However, she still managed to steady herself.

    She had been far too careless. She should have known better. She should have expected He Zhang to set up a formation array at the door to this prison cell, waiting for her father and mother to fall into his trap.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved a few talismans, pasted them on the door and she began to recite a mnemonic in an attempt to disable the formation array.

    This was a process that took some time.

    She knew that He Zhang and the others would already have discovered that Qin Shanshan¡¯s room was empty, and there was a high likelihood that all of them should be rushing over to the innermost parts of the forbidden grounds right this moment. Thus, every second mattered.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo continued to recite the mnemonics in an attempt to disable the formation array sequestering the prison cell door, Chen Feiyu did his best to open his eyes a little bit more as he looked at the unexpected visitor.

    From her voice, he knew that this person was ady. However, thatdy¡¯s voice was foreign to him, and he was unable to tell just who it was.

    Gradually, his vision became clearer and clearer, and he managed to focus his attention on the visitor that was standing at the door ¨C

    ¡°Qin Shanshan? Why are you here...¡± Chen Feiyu struggled hard to speak, and each word that he spoke seemed to consume substantial amounts of energy from his body.

    Yet, his query was met with silence. Jun Xiaomo had remained wholeheartedly focused on disabling the formation array.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples had heard Chen Feiyu¡¯s words as well, and each and every one of them began to reveal a contemptuous smile on their faces as they decided no longer to care about the person standing at the door to their prison cell.

    Qin Shanshan was Qin Lingyu¡¯s sister to begin with. If Qin Shanshan would reallye to this disgusting ce, she would most certainly only possess the same intention as He Zhang, and that was to continue tormenting them. How could she possibly possess any good intentions for calling upon them?

    ¡°It¡¯s done!¡± A smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. As the talismans burnt up and vanished, the formation array at the door of the prison cell had simrly been disabled and ceased working as well.

    ¡°Seems like He Zhang had never expected father and the rest to be able to enter the deepest parts of the forbidden grounds to begin with. That¡¯s probably why the formation array on the door to the prison cell wasn¡¯tplex, and I was able to disable it in less than half an incense stick of time.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered to herself as she thought aloud. Her face finally revealed a rxed smile as she heaved a sigh of relief.

    That said, her face appeared rather pale at this moment as a result of expending too much true energy earlier.

    The door to the prison cell opened, and Jun Xiaomo walked in with great strides. Then, as soon as she looked more closely at the Heavenly Peak disciples, all of whom were shackled and restrained by the hooks, her eyes reddened once more, and she couldn¡¯t help but begin to shed tears of pain for them.

    Her martial brothers had suffered more in this life than they had in her previous life. In her previous life, her martial brothers had perished as they sought to protect her, and they were barely tormented before they perished. But now, seeing the sight of her martial brothers within the prison cells, she could tell just how much torment and pain they had suffered over since they had been captured.

    She hated it! As fury washed across her heart, the resolve in her heart hardened and becamepletely set in stone ¨C she was going to see to it that He Zhang and the rest of hisckeys were going to be put through the same kind of misery and pain as her martial brothers! Then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes began to grow bloodshot. At this point in time, it was no longer clear whether it was the precursor to a demonic outburst, or whether it was simply the manifestation of immense rage.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan, why are you here? Are you here to watch us suffer?¡± Chen Feiyu asked with a cold, frigid voice. Even though his voice was weak, there was no mistaking the hatred and indignation that filled his voice.

    Jun Xiaomo wiped off her tears and began to mutter another mnemonic. Within moments, a talisman began to appear on the surface of her skin.

    She tore off the Masquerade Talisman immediately. As soon as it was torn off, her appearances began to shift and change once more ¨C her skin turned slightly more pale and supple; her lips looked like it was just dyed red with blood, and it looked even more stark in contrast with her pale, jade-like skin; her original round, pearly eyes elongated slightly and lifted slightly at the ends. Apart from how her lips were still locked in a tight grimace, there was hard any other expressions on her face at this moment. Yet, even then, her entire appearance was incredibly cold and mesmerizing.

    ¡°Little...little martial sister?!¡± Chen Feiyu waspletely taken aback. For that singly instance, it was as though the pain on his body had been ovee by the overwhelming shock to his mind.

    With some measure of heartache flickering in the depths of her eyes, Jun Xiaomo looked at them with damp eyes as she responded, ¡°It¡¯s me. Sorry about that. I¡¯ve been tardy.¡±

    ¡°If master and his wife know you¡¯re alive...No! Xiaomo, you shouldn¡¯t be here!¡± Chen Feiyu barked intently as he struggled against his shackles, ¡°Xiaomo, hurry up and leave this ce! I don¡¯t know how you made it in with Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity, but He Zhang isn¡¯t someone you can deal with. It¡¯ll be dangerous as soon as he discovers you here!¡±

    Chen Feiyu was initially overjoyed by the discovery that Jun Xiaomo was not dead. Yet, in the very next moment, he realized his present predicament and the ce they were in right now.

    Jun Xiaomo should never havee in here! If his little martial sister meets with a misfortune or some life-threatening danger, they would never be able to ount for this to their master and his wife!

    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what I should or shouldn¡¯t do! Since I¡¯m able to enter, I¡¯ll naturally be able to leave this ce with you!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she spoke. As she finished speaking, she walked over to Chen Feiyu¡¯s side and began to dismantle the metal shackles on his body, together with the two massive hooks that had punctured their bodies.

    ¡°Little martial sister, don¡¯t bother. These hooks can¡¯t be removed. They¡¯re all inscribed with a formation array, and their purpose is to constantly drain our spiritual energy. You¡¯ll only be able to release the formation arrays if you can obtain the formation diagram from He Zhang¡¯s hands. Naturally, he¡¯s not going to hand that over to you.¡± Chen Feiyu chuckled bitterly as he spoke.

    The other disciples had roused from their dazed states as well. Their cultivation level was not as high as Chen Feiyu¡¯s cultivation level, so their injuries had been far worse than that which Chen Feiyu suffered as well. At this moment, none of them could speak, and they could only hold their tears back as they watched their little martial sister¡¯s futile efforts at dismantling the shackles restraining them.

    There was a multitude of emotions culminating in their tears, including gratitude, agitation, and worry.

    If they could open their mouths and speak right now, they would all unanimously persuade their martial sister to leave this ce and not bother with such futile efforts. How could they allow their precious martial sister to risk getting captured by He Zhang and be tormented by his sick and twisted mind.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced and grew taciturn. Time passed slowly, and several beads of sweat began to form on her forehead.

    Click. A small sound rang out from the shackles on her martial brother. Jun Xiaomo released the tension on her heart, and she looked back at Chen Feiyu and the rest as she smiled and remarked, ¡°Martial brother, it¡¯s open.¡±

    Chen Feiyu was thoroughly taken aback. After all, they could still recall the day when He Zhang paraded in front of them, bragging that these shackles can never be opened unless they possessed the key that was in his hands. Furthermore, they had witnessed with their very own eyes how He Zhang had expended quite some time in order to release the shackles, even with aid of the formation diagram!

    Who could¡¯ve imagined that little martial sister could open the shackles just like that?! How did she manage to do it?

    Jun Xiaomo held onto the hooks in Chen Feiyu¡¯s back as she addressed Chen Feiyu once more, ¡°Martial brother Chen, this might be a little bit painful. You¡¯ve got to hang in there.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she began to operate her true energy and sent it straight to her palm. Then, with one powerful tug, she pulled out the entire hook that had prated Chen Feiyu¡¯s body.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Chen Feiyu groaned, and he nearly passed out.

    His body was already incredibly weak to begin with. Thus, when faced with such excruciating pain all of a sudden, he was nearly unable to hang in there.

    That said, this little bit of pain could hardly bepared with the freedom that he obtained in exchange for it. He immediately grabbed hold of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and sincerely thanked her, ¡°Xiaomo...thank you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t stand on ceremony with me. I¡¯m not here to save my martial brothers just so that I could elicit a word of thanks from you guys. We¡¯re family.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. We¡¯re family.¡± Chen Feiyu smiled as he added, ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯d best quickly rescue the others as well. Otherwise, when He Zhang discovers something is up, we all won¡¯t be able to leave this ce anymore.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true. Here ¨C this is a medicine for the replenishment of your body¡¯s vitality and strength. Take one for yourself, and then help me distribute it to the other martial brotherter on.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stuffed the entire bag of medicinal pills to Chen Feiyu, before motioning towards the rest of her martials brothers.

    Practice makes perfect. Jun Xiaomo managed to rescue all of the remaining martial brothers in less than an hour. However, she could tell that all of them had been captured and tormented for far too long, and some of her weaker martial brothers found themselves unable to adjust to their new circumstances and operate the spiritual energies within their bodies. Furthermore, the debilitating injuries on their bodies were an issue as well. Even though Jun Xiaomo had given them some recovery pills, these were insufficient to restore them to full health.

    With Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current abilities, she would never be able to bring them very far.

    What do I do now? Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips, and she began to grow frustrated at herself for her own inability and ineptitude.

 Chapter 302: Breaking Out of the Predicament; Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Plans

    <h4>Chapter 302: Breaking Out of the Predicament; Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    He Zhang had all of his innumerable deep, dark secrets hidden all over the forbidden grounds, and could not afford to let anyone take these secrets out of the ce alive with them.

    Thus, He Zhang had gone all out to ensure that anyone who breached the forbidden grounds would find it all the more difficult to leave. After all, it was not as though nobody had attempted to enter the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds in the past to begin with. That said, all of these trespassers had invariably found themselves being trapped by the formation arrays within the forbidden grounds, eventually bing fresh food and nutrients that were fed directly to He Zhang¡¯s pet demonic beasts.

    If Jun Xiaomo were on her own, it might not have been too tall a task for her to breakthrough the formation arrays and escape from the forbidden grounds. However, she knew that it was going to be far more difficult if she were to do so while looking after ten grievously wounded martial brothers.

    ¡°Martial sister, if there¡¯s really no way, then you should just leave this ce. It¡¯s already incredible that you¡¯re able to remove those spirit-draining hooks that were on our bodies. At worst, if He Zhang at the otherse in and discover that we¡¯ve been released, we¡¯ll just go all out and fight with him! Even if we die, we¡¯re going to take a few of them down with us!¡± Chen Feiyu gnashed his teeth as he made an extreme suggestion, and a deep trace of hatred could be seen in the depths of his eyes.

    He didn¡¯t know what He Zhang had done to his martial brother Wei to transform his entire constitution into that of an acquired demonic body, making him an existence that the spiritual cultivation world could never co-exist with. But he knew that if He Zhang had not done all these things, the Heavenly Peak would never have ended up in its current predicament.

    Thus, Chen Feiyu¡¯s hatred was at an all time high, and he could hardly resist the urge that was roiling within his body to tear He Zhang and hisckeys to shreds.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, enough! Don¡¯t get consumed by the hatred. With your current condition, do you think you could even do a single thing against Qin Lingyu, much less He Zhang?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she added, ¡°Besides, we¡¯d expended so much time and energying in here to rescue you, not just so that I could watch all of you end up perishing to He Zhang¡¯s demonic ws.¡±

    ¡°We? Xiaomo, apart from you, did anyone elsee in here with you? Has master and the reste as well?¡± Chen Feiyu asked with some measure of agitation.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly stunned by the question as she suddenly recalled how she had been separated from Ye Xiuwen.

    That¡¯s right! Martial brother is still located beside the demonic river. I wonder if the demonic energy emanated by the river is causing any harm to his body. Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows in concern for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s safety.

    ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo?¡± Chen Feiyu discovered that Jun Xiaomo seemed to have grown distracted and taciturn, and he couldn¡¯t help but press the question again.

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes, shook her head and responded with a soft voice, ¡°It¡¯s not father and mother and the rest. It¡¯s martial brother Ye.¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Ye?! Martial brother Ye isn¡¯t dead?! He¡¯se back from the Death¡¯s Gorge? That¡¯s great news!¡± Chen Feiyu eximed with joy. The other Heavenly Peak disciples also looked towards Jun Xiaomo with eyes filled with gratitude, excitement, joy and other like emotions. There was even a trace of disbelief in their eyes.

    After all, rumours had it that nobody had ever returned alive after falling into the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge. Yet Ye Xiuwen had done the impossible ¨C and he was even here to rescue them!

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and smiled with her slightly-pale face, ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d never expected to encounter martial brother Ye on my way in either.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great! Martial sister Xiaomo isn¡¯t dead, and neither is martial brother Ye. If master and his wife learn of this news, how overjoyed would they be?!¡± Chen Feiyu eximed as tears filled his eyes, ¡°Oh yes, if martial sister is here, then what about martial brother Ye? Where¡¯s he?¡±

    ¡°He...¡± Jun Xiaomo paused. Ye Xiuwen was still trapped in that ce that was filled with demonic energy, and she was unaware of whether he would meet with any mishaps or not.

    ¡°What¡¯s happened to him? Don¡¯t tell me that he¡¯s encountered a mishap because he¡¯de in here to rescue us?¡± Chen Feiyu asked anxiously, and pangs of remorse began to manifest outwardly in an instant.

    If martial brother Ye had truly met with a mishap as a result of his attempts to save them, how could they possibly rejoice even if they could leave this ce alive?

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. Don¡¯t worry too much, martial brother Chen.¡± Jun Xiaomo steadied her spirits and suppressed the concern in her heart as she consoled Chen Feiyu with a smile, ¡°Martial brother Ye and I have just employed the tactics of divide and conquer. He¡¯ll be reunited with us in no time. Oh yes, we¡¯d best leave this ce quickly. This isn¡¯t some ce that we should be hanging around for no reason. He Zhang has already discovered the fact that we¡¯d entered the forbidden grounds, and I¡¯m afraid that he¡¯ll be here in no time.¡±

    ¡°But how are we going to leave in our current state?¡± Chen Feiyuined, evidently worried for the condition of his other martial brothers, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, there¡¯s no way you¡¯re going to be able to bring us out of here like this. We might even end up bing your deadweight and burden you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Since I can make my way in here, I¡¯ll definitely have a way to bring you out. These few years I¡¯ve been missing from the world hasn¡¯t been lived in vain after all.¡± Jun Xiaomo assured Chen Feiyu with confidence. It was both to bolster the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ confidence in her, as well as to boost her faith in her own abilities.

    Thus, Chen Feiyu no longer harped on the issue. That said, he did remind Jun Xiaomo that if they encountered with any dangerous situations that were not easily resolved, it would be fine if she left them behind and went on her own. After all, they could always live to fight another day ¨C He Zhang needed the Heavenly Peak disciples around as hostages, and he would never kill them off so easily. There was no need to implicate Jun Xiaomo and drag her into the mess at this stage.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was once again filled with warmth. This was the Heavenly Peak martial brothers whom she knew after all, and there was not a single moment when they would ce their own interests over others. The other Dawn Sect disciples were far more selfish and self-interested than them.

    Jun Xiaomo stuffed another bag of recovery pills to her martial brothers. Then, she retrieved over ten yellow-coloured human-shaped talismans, one for each of the martial brothers she had just released from their shackles. She collected one drop of blood from each of her martial brother, dripped them onto one talisman each, and then she began to recite the mnemonics for creating Humanoid Puppets.

    In the blink of an eye, the prison cell was filled with over ten doppelgangers of her martial brothers.

    These Humanoid Puppets mimicked the auras of each of her martial brothers, yet they did not possess any life. Thus, Jun Xiaomo began to ce each of these Humanoid Puppets onto the hooks, making it appear as though Chen Feiyu and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples were still trapped within the prison cell.

    ¡°This is...?¡± Chen Feiyu was taken aback at the sight.

    ¡°This is a Humanoid Puppet. It¡¯s basically made from a slightly moreplex talisman, and it¡¯s not a real human being. With them, He Zhang won¡¯t be able to discover so easily the fact that you¡¯ve all been released. This can buy us some time.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! I¡¯d almost forgotten the fact that martial sister had gone to the Zephyr Sect to learn more about talismans and formation arrays!¡± Chen Feiyu smiled radiantly, taking pride in what his little martial sister had achieved.

    Having lived for over six hundred years now, Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at the fact that her martial brothers were still treating her as the young and immature little martial sister that they thought she was. That said, she knew that all of this was a manifestation of the fact that they saw her as a loved one.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s not dally any further. Let¡¯s get going.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Chen Feiyu¡¯s shoulder as she prompted them. After consuming the recovery pills given by Jun Xiaomo, the Heavenly Peak disciples finally managed to muster enough strength to ambte.

    After Jun Xiaomo resealing the prison cell with the same formation array, she led the Heavenly Peak disciples and began to make their way out along the long corridor leading out from the prison cell. However as soon as they arrived at the ce from which Jun Xiaomo had arrived through the whirlpool, Jun Xiaomo noticed another problem with her ns ¨C she had arrived at this ce serendipitously through a whirlpool to which she possessed no form of control whatsoever. How could she possibly know the way back?

    Right now, when she looked up at where she had earliere from, she could no longer see a whirlpool swirling there. It was evident that the whirlpool had urred serendipitously, and it might well have been a one-way street at that, allowing a person to enter but not leave the premises.

    What could she do now?

    No. Since He Zhang cane and go as he wishes, there must be a way to leave this ce. I¡¯ll just have to find it.

    ¡°Martial sister, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Chen Feiyu had noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hesitance by now.

    ¡°Nothing much. Martial brother Chen, I¡¯ve got some high-quality Invisibility Talismans here, and they can be used to conceal both your appearances as well as your auras. Wait for me here while I scout ahead. That¡¯s right. If you encounter martial brother Ye, leave with him first. I¡¯ll have my own means to leave this ceter on.¡± Jun Xiaomo pulled out a wad of talismans and stuffed them into Chen Feiyu¡¯s hands.

    However, Chen Feiyu was worried for her. He knew that his little martial sister would never abandon them and run off on her own, and it was precisely because of this that he was all the more worried Jun Xiaomo would be running off to do something dangerous on her own.

    As soon as she discovered what Chen Feiyu was thinking, Jun Xiaomo did her best to dispel his suspicions as she remarked, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, martial brother Chen. With martial brother Ye around, are you still worried that I¡¯ll run into some mishap or a dangerous situation? I¡¯ve already thoroughly discussed the ns with martial brother Ye beforeing here to rescue you. Nothing¡¯s going to go wrong.¡±

    Chen Feiyu pondered over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words and realized that she was right ¨C with Ye Xiuwen around, he would never allow Jun Xiaomo to take risks on her own. Thus, he trusted in the ns that the two had earlier discussed and made with each other.

    With that, Chen Feiyu no longer held Jun Xiaomo back. He did ording to what Jun Xiaomo had suggested and applied the high-quality Invisibility Talismans onto his bodies, and the other martial brothers followed suit as well.

    Once Jun Xiaomo ensured that they were well-concealed and well-hidden, she turned to leave. As Chen Feiyu watched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure pull further and further away from them, for some strange reason, he began to find a trace of uneasiness surface on his heart.

    How could he have known that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had only serendipitously encountered each other through their hidden identities prior to this? Furthermore, even though Jun Xiaomo had now learnt of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s true identity, it was not the same of Ye Xiuwen ¨C he did not know that ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was none other than Jun Xiaomo; and he was still under the impression that Jun Xiaomo was dead!

    After leaving Chen Feiyu and the rest behind her, Jun Xiaomo walked along the long path, past the prison cells, as she searched for the possible locations where the heart of the forbidden grounds¡¯ formation array could be.

    This was a thought that had just urred to Jun Xiaomo. The Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds were filled with so manyplex formation arrays, yet He Zhang seemed to be able toe and go to and from this ce with such ease. This naturally pointed to one likelihood, and that was the fact that there was a main formation array that was tying all of these smaller formation arrays together. In turn, it was because He Zhang had control over this main formation array that he could safely traverse through all of the various,plex formation arrays without sustaining attacks from any of them.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo had thought to search for the heart of the main formation array. As long as she could locate it and alter it to suit her needs, she would essentially be able to control the entire forbidden ground to do her bidding.

    Jun Xiaomo might not necessarily be able to defeat He Zhang and the rest if she fought them alone, based solely on herbat abilities. However, when it came to the realm of formation arrays, Jun Xiaomo sincerely believed that there were no more than ten people in the entire cultivation world that could best her abilities in this regard.

    As Jun Xiaomo walked along, she continued to probe and assess the location of the heart of the formation array using some of the specialized talismans within her Interspatial Ring. Gradually, as she made more and more headway in that regard, she also grew more and more certain about her earlier guess.

    As long as she could alter and take control of the master formation array within the forbidden grounds, she would have nothing to fear even if a hundred exact replicas of He Zhang showed up.

    With such thoughts dancing around in her heart, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips began to curl into a delighted smile.

    On the other side, the surface of the pool of blood immediately began to undte violently as soon as Ye Xiuwen drew close to it. Then, in the very next instant, innumerable creatures that appeared to be little worms began to congregate and huddle together to form a flesh heap in a goosebumps-inducing fashion.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spirits tensed up and he immediately retreated, cing his sword in front of him in a defensive stance as he did so.

    Swoosh! Arge lump of flesh suddenly leapt out of the pool of blood and shot straight towards Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen flicked the sword in his arm and sliced the massive heap of flesh in half. As soon as the two halves crashed onto the ground, countless red worms could be seen writhing on the ground.

    It was only at this moment that Ye Xiuwen discovered that the lump of flesh was actually the husk of human being that had thoroughly been digested by these worms!

    Just what exactly is He Zhang nurturing in these grounds?!

    A profound sense of disgust lurched within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest, and the sharp, incisive gleam in his eyes grew incredibly harsh and frigid.

 Chapter 303: Altering the Formation Array; He Zhangâ€™s Despondence

    <h4>Chapter 303: Altering the Formation Array; He Zhang¡¯s Despondence</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The blood-red worms that were squirming about were spirit beasts known as the Spirit Devouring Worms, and they were spirit beasts reared by He Zhang within the pool of blood for the purposes of feeding his demonic beasts.

    The Spirit Devouring Worms were creatures that are particrly drawn to the spiritual energy emanating from a spiritual cultivator¡¯s body. As long as they could sense the existence of a spiritual cultivator, the Spirit Devouring Worms would immediately charge towards the source of spirit energy in a massive swarm, overwhelming and consuming the spiritual cultivator with their sheer numbers and prating his body through every crevice or orifice possible.

    Even though the Spirit Devouring Worms were one of the greatest nightmares of any spiritual cultivator or spirit beast, it was one of the best sources of nutrients to demonic beasts. To the demonic beasts, the Spirit Devouring Worms were incredibly juicy and tender ¨C an existence that was almost a delicacy. Thus, He Zhang had constantly fed any trespassers of the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds directly to the Spirit Devouring Worms, nurturing and encouraging their growth, before feeding the fattened Spirit Devouring Worms to his demonic beasts within the forbidden grounds. It was a circle of life.

    If Ye Xiuwen was aware of what He Zhang was doing with these creatures, his hatred for the pretentiously upstanding and sanctimonious man would most certainly burgeon to unprecedented heights. If he could, he would have tossed He Zhang into the pool of blood so that he could experience the taste of having his innards devoured by these Spirit Devouring Worms.

    At the same time, the Spirit Devouring Worms were not creatures that possessed a high cultivation level. Faced with an opponent in the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, its only fate was to be killed ¨C there was no chance of the disgusting, nauseating creatures getting close to Ye Xiuwen at all.

    However, killing Spirit Devouring Worm was a process that left behind a thick, nauseating scent of blood. As the scent wafted out, the blood in the pool of blood began to undte once more.

    This time, Ye Xiuwen could feel the oppressive pressure from a high-grade demonic beast which continued to spew from the depths of the pool of blood.

    Seems like a bloody battle is on the horizon...

    Ye Xiuwen thought coldly to himself as his fingers tightened around the spirit sword in his hands.

    Having been though the baptism of blood from the countless battles he has been through within the Death¡¯s Gorge, Ye Xiuwen was hardly concerned that the demonic beast that was approaching would be too difficult to deal with. Rather, his only concern was that there would be too many of them to deal with. In such cases when it became a pure battle of attrition, he knew that there was always a risk that he might simply perish under the relentless attacks of innumerable demonic beasts.

    His only hope right now was that the recovery pills within his Interspatial Ring was sufficient to tide him through such an ordeal...

    --------------------------------------------------

    Meanwhile, Jun Xiaomo continued to fumble her way through the heart of the formation array for some time before she finally came across what she was looking for. The heart of the formation array was set within a circr indentation in the ground, surrounded by long, cylindrical pirs around it. The cylindrical pirs were covered byplex patterns etched all around it, and it formed part of the master formation array that connected all of the formation arrays within the forbidden grounds.

    The indentation on the ground, together with the six pirs that stood around it, formed the heart of the formation array altogether. This was unmistakably how He Zhang had managed to control every single part of the forbidden grounds.

    Jun Xiaomo had now drawn incredibly close to uncovering one of He Zhang¡¯s greatest secrets that he had been doing so much to keep under wraps.

    The indented portion in the ground was also covered withplex inscriptions that formed part of the master formation array. Jun Xiaomo examined everything closely. After some time, she could vaguely tell just what kind of a formation array this was.

    ¡°Hah. I¡¯d never thought that He Zhang possessed the ability to create such a massive andplex cluster formation array.¡± Jun Xiaomo snorted coldly, yet she continued to face the formation array without a single shred of fear in her eyes.

    She had already seen something like this in the Proving Grounds. In fact, she had seen far worse than such a meagre cluster formation array within the Proving Grounds.

    Immediately, she retrieved several talismans from her Interspatial Ring and applied them to her own body, before motioning to enter the area of indentation where the heart of the master formation array was located.

    As soon as the master formation array detected a foreign body close by, the entire formation array began to emit beams of red light. If Jun Xiaomo had not applied the talismans on her body earlier, the beams of red light would have severed her body into several parts by now.

    However, with the aid of the talismans that she had applied earlier, it was as though the beams of red light were unable to determine her location at all. Thus, they could only glow and shine threateningly as they remained in a constant state of vignce withoutunching even a single attack at the surroundings.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo made her way into the indentation that was the heart of the formation array. There, she retrieved an ink-ck stone and tossed it into the indentation. Instantly, the beams of red light within the indentation began to shine more intensely with far greater ferocity.

    Jun Xiaomo smiledckadaisically at the beams of red light. Then, she began to walk to the pirs that were situated around the indented areas, where she began to paint over certain parts of theplex inscriptions on each of these pirs using her talisman brush that was dipped in vermillion paint, thereby altering entire constitution of the inscriptions.

    After doing all that, Jun Xiaomo returned to the center of this master formation array. Then, she began to muster all of her true energy towards her palms, where she would transform them into a massive amount of demonic energy.

    As soon as the demonic energy began to burst from within Xiaomo¡¯s body, the intense aura apanying such a massive swathe of energy immediately attracted the attention of the formation array¡¯s defensive mechanisms. Within an instant, innumerable red beams of light shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo, attempting to cleave her into two.

    At practically the same time, Jun Xiaomo pped several more talismans onto her body and diverted a part of her demonic energy to form a barrier that shielded her body from the assault of the red beams of light.

    Under thebined protection of her talismans and her demonic energy, Jun Xiaomo remained unharmed under the formation array¡¯s attacks. Thus, seeing that everything was going ording to n, Jun Xiaomo began tounch her own counterattack and offensive against the formation array ¨C

    She was going to thoroughly transform the master formation array within the forbidden grounds!

    Just like that, as Jun Xiaomo continued to suffuse her demonic energy into the heart of the forbidden ground¡¯s master formation array, the number of beams of red light that were attempting to attack Jun Xiaomo gradually decreased. Then, beams of ck light began to appear and hover about the surroundings of the formation array. As time went on, these ck beams of light motioned to protect Jun Xiaomo, and they even began to swallow and consume the red beams of light that were now feebly attempting to attack Jun Xiaomo.

    Just then, the indentation in the ground suddenly trembled ferociously, and the surrounding pirs echoed with the aftershocks of the intense tremor, as though it was shuddering in itsst moments of struggle.

    Profuse sweat had already formed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead by now. With the current condition of her body, it was quite a strain to her mustering so much demonic energy at one go. However, she knew that she had to persist and persevere ¨C given what she had been trying to achieve, she knew full well that if she were to give up right now, the bacsh from the formation array would be incredible.

    Thus, she not only maintained the rate of output of demonic energy from her body ¨C she even increased the amount of demonic energy she was suffusing into the formation array at this moment.

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo was attempting to alter the master formation array, He Zhang had finally found his way into the prison where the Heavenly Peak disciples had all been held. With Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Invisibility Talismans applied on each one of their bodies, He Zhang was unable to detect the presence of any of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Instead, he very quickly walked past where Chen Feiyu and the rest were hidden and hurriedly made his way into the depths of the prison with an incredibly ashen expression.

    Chen Feiyu and the rest watched He Zhang brush past their hiding ce with bated breaths as they furiously suppressed the urge tounch a surprise attack on him. Their eyes gleamed with a frigid gaze ¨C One day. One day, we will most definitely make you pay for this blood debt!

    Finally, He Zhang arrived at where Chen Feiyu and the rest had earlier been held. When he saw how the Heavenly Peak disciples appeared to still be shackled to the walls, he couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh of relief.

    ¡°Hah, I¡¯d said it once, and I¡¯ll say it again ¨C no matter how formidable Jun Ziwen is, he cannot possibly have already made it through the innumerable formation arrays sequestering this ce from the rest of the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds. Perhaps he might already have perished along the way. It seems like I might have been worried over nothing.¡±

    As He Zhang muttered to himself under his breath, a bright, vicious gleam flickered in the depths of his ashen, wicked eyes.

    However, his delight was premature and short-lived. In the very next moment, He Zhang suddenly experienced an excruciating, splitting pain that surged from deep within his chest. This pain was incredibly foreign to him, yet He Zhang could practically tell in an instant just what had urred.

    The master formation array in the heart of the forbidden grounds is being tampered by someone?!

    In fact, he could tell that the perpetrator was even attempting to wrestle away from him and seize control of the entire forbidden grounds!

    He Zhang could no longer care to examine the condition of Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples. With one wave of his hands, a quicksand-like whirlpool appeared on the ground before him, akin to the one that had consumed Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen earlier.

    He Zhang stepped into the whirlpool. In the blink of an eye, his entire being vanished from the prison cell without a single trace.

    All this while, He Zhang remainedpletely oblivious to the fact that there were over ten pairs of eyes that were trained on his very actions, all of which were from none other than Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples.

    ¡°Did you guys get the feeling that He Zhang has left in a huff, almost as though he were in an incredibly bad mood?¡± Chen Feiyumented thoughtfully.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that good? Seeing him angry makes me happy.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple stared vacantly in the direction where He Zhang had vanished as he remarked wickedly with some measure of pleasure on his face.

    ¡°I¡¯m just worried that martial sister has done something...I only hope that she won¡¯t be caught or captured by that hypocrite He Zhang.¡± Chen Feiyu sighed to himself as he began to berate himself for being useless ¨C how could they, as older martial brothers, be imposing such heavy burdens on their little martial sister like that?

    But, in light of the present circumstances, it seems like our only ray of hope remains with martial sister Xiaomo and martial brother Ye.

    --------------------------------------------

    As soon as He Zhang arrived at the heart of the master formation array, Jun Xiaomo was already in the final step of seizing control of it ¨C she had just cut her palm and pressed her bloodied palm onto the heart of the formation array. In turn, the formation array that had been altered and transformed by Jun Xiaomo vermillion inscriptions and her demonic energy began to furiously absorb Jun Xiaomo¡¯s blood. At this very moment, the traces of He Zhang¡¯s control over the heart of the formation array was weakening more and more.

    ¡°No!!!¡± He Zhang bellowed with all his might. Ignoring and fighting through the paining from his Dantian, he charged straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    This was something that he had nurtured and groomed for decades by now. How could he just stand idly by and watch the fruits of decades of his own painstakingbour be destroyed and seized by someone else right now?!

    He was going to kill this usurper!!!

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply smiled coldly back at He Zhang. With the flick of a wrist, she tossed out a powerful explosive talisman at He Zhang. Hong! He Zhang was sent flying with the impact of the explosion ¨C his skin burst open, his flesh rent, and his clothing was burnt to a crisp.

    The final step of the process waspleted at approximately the same time that the exploding talisman blew up. Thus, as the smoke settled, Jun Xiaomo stood up from her earlier half-knelt position and began to make her way towards He Zhang one step at a time.

    He Zhang had not realized who the person half-knelt on the floor earlier was. All this time, he had wholeheartedly been under the impression that the person who had trespassed the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds and tampered with his formation array was none other than Jun Ziwen.

    Then, as the perpetrator walked closer, He Zhang noticed a pair of elegant legs standing directly in front of him. The red skirt ensemble told He Zhang that the person that had entered the heart of the formation array was evidently a girl, and it could not possibly be Jun Ziwen.

    When Jun Xiaomo forcibly wrested control of the master formation array away from He Zhang earlier, the ensuing bacsh from his loss of control over the powerful formation array had already dealt He Zhang a grievous wound. To make matters worse, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s high-grade explosive talisman had struck He Zhang squarely, mounting several more grievous wounds on his body and aggravating his condition.

    Thus, as He Zhang recoiled from the sudden debilitating impact of these wounds and spat out mouthful after mouthful of blood, He Zhang struggle hard to fight against the excruciating pain in his body. Finally, he managed to open his eyes once more to identify the perpetrator standing before him.

    His eyes were vaciting between moments of blurriness and moments of focus, and his head staggered from side to side as he attempted to maintain his bnce.

    ¡°You are...martial sister Qingmei?¡± He Zhang coughed as he feebly asked.

    It was not unforeseeable that He Zhang was unable to immediately recognize Jun Xiaomo. After all, Jun Xiaomo looked rather simr to Liu Qingmei to begin with. Now that He Zhang was groggy and dibobted as a result of his injuries, it was naturally very possible that he would mistake Jun Xiaomo for Liu Qingmei.

    ¡°Ah? Martial sister Qingmei? Sect Leader He, should I be moved that you haven¡¯t forgotten my mother? To think that you¡¯d still have your heart set on her on your deathbed.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled sardonically.

    ¡°No...that can¡¯t be!¡± He Zhang¡¯s eyes instantly widened, ¡°Jun Xiaomo?! You¡¯re Jun Xiaomo?!!!¡±

    It might well have been due to the sudden shock from this bombshell that he had just heard, but He Zhang¡¯s practically aroused from his stupor in that very instant and carefully examined the appearances of the person standing in front of him ¨C it was undoubtedly Jun Xiaomo!

    ¡°How could this be?! Aren¡¯t you already dead?!¡± He Zhang¡¯s eyes were bloodshot, as though he were apletely crazed and frenzied spirit beast.

    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s right. The entire world has been spreading rumours that I¡¯m dead.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled cidly, ¡°Unfortunately for you, I¡¯m not dead, and I¡¯vee back for revenge on behalf of my parents. How about it, martial uncle He, do you think this is a ¡®pleasant surprise¡¯ to you?¡±

    It had to be said that Jun Xiaomo truly looked simr to Liu Qingmei when she smiled. However, her aura and disposition werepletely different.

    Dressed in striking red, Jun Xiaomo looked like she was a demoness who had crept out from the depths of hell ¨C she was incredibly beautiful and mesmerizing, yet she was filled with a sharp and incisive air about her as she radiated a vicious aura.

    It was as though she were prepared to snap her enemy¡¯s neck in the very next moment without a single shred of hesitation!

 Chapter 304: Depths of the Prison, Reunited Martial Brothers

    <h4>Chapter 304: Depths of the Prison, Reunited Martial Brothers</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After holding the position as Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Leader for such a long time, this was the first time that He Zhang had found himselfpletely at someone¡¯s mercy. To make matters even worse, he had found himself stumbling to what he had always thought was an insignificant sprout of the younger generation.

    As Jun Xiaomo stared down at him from on high, He Zhang felt the onset of a d¨¦j¨¤ vu. It brought his mind back to another incident that urred years ago ¨C back when he waspeting in a Sect tournament for the rights to be the next Sect Leader, he had found himself beaten to the ground by his opponent, Jun Linxuan. Back then, he could sense that all looks of admiration had fallen upon Jun Linxuan, while he was simplyying on the ground like a family pet, receiving neither looks of respect nor looks of contempt.

    It was a feeling of beingpletely ignored and glossed over.

    He was unwilling. He couldn¡¯t take it! He had a far better way with people than Jun Linxuan did, and he was better at negotiating the nuances of human rtions. How could a single battle outweigh all these qualifications of his to be a Sect Leader?

    Then, as though rubbing salt in his wounds, Jun Linxuan made the decision to relinquish the rights to be Sect Leader after defeating him in thepetition.

    In Jun Linxuan¡¯s words at that time, he did not understand the nuances of politics between Sects, and he had concluded that his deficiencies in this rendered him unsuitable to be a good Sect leader. Thus, he was content relegating himself to a lifetime of being a Peakmaster.

    Despite that, He Zhang was hardly grateful towards Jun Linxuan for ceding the opportunity to be a Sect Leader to him. In fact, he had always maintained that what Jun Linxuan had done had been a form of disrespect and humiliation to him! And what did the other Sects say about this? They whispered behind his back, alleging that he had not earned his rights to his title as Sect Leader, iming that all of this was a mere gift from Jun Linxuan.

    Whenever he thought about these things, He Zhang would never be able to suppress the rage swelling up in the depths of his heart, urging him on to tear Jun Linxuan to shreds!

    Then, to make matters even worse, Jun Linxuan even went on to snatch thedy whom he had secretly been eyeing for the longest time ¨C their martial sister Liu Qingmei. In fact, there was not even a single shred of indication they had been together, and the moment their rtionship was open to all to know was the moment that they had announced their marriage to each other. He Zhang did not even get the chance to confess to Liu Qingmei!

    How could He Zhang not be incensed by this?!

    Thus, the fruit of their marriage, Jun Xiaomo, was a living proof that constantly reminded He Zhang of the fact that he had lost out time and again to Jun Linxuan. In turn, He Zhang had previously, time and again, devised and schemed against Jun Xiaomo in order to wipe her off the surface of this world.

    In fact, he had thought that he had seeded, and Jun Xiaomo had perished. Unfortunately, reality proved otherwise. A few hundred years ago, he was tripped up by Jun Linxuan; and a few hundred years after that incident, he was tripped up by Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter. What a tragedy!

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and sized up the expressions on He Zhang¡¯s face. As she slowly watched how his expressions of extreme hatred slowly transformed into a look ofplete despondence, she slowly chirped, ¡°Martial uncle He, actually, you shouldn¡¯t hate me. The person you should hate the most is yourself, since it¡¯s your greed that hasnded you in your current state. If not for the fact that you¡¯d forced the Heavenly Peak to a corner, and if not for the fact that you¡¯d been eyeing my mother all this time, I might have looked the other way on ount for the fact that you¡¯re my martial uncle. But now, I¡¯m sorry, I won¡¯t even let you have the reprieve of an easy death.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo drew near the end of her spiel, her lips curled up into a vicious smile.

    On the other hand, He Zhang¡¯s eyes widened instantly as he stared at Jun Xiaomo with disbelief, ¡°You know about me intentions towards Qingmei...¡±

    ¡°Shh. Don¡¯t say my mother¡¯s name. You¡¯re not worthy!¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke with a distinct displeasure in her voice, ¡°Your version of ¡®love¡¯ that says that nobody can have it if you can¡¯t have it is not love at all. It¡¯s in, unbridled selfishness!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved the whip from her Interspatial Ring andshed it out viciously towards the ground twice as she added with a soft and light tone, ¡°What do I do now? Whenever I think about the kind of nauseating intentions that you harbor against my mother, I can¡¯t resist the urge to incapacitate you. Even if you¡¯re my martial uncle, I don¡¯t think I have any modicum of respect left for you.¡±

    Dressed in striking-red, and with a vicious smile stered all over her face, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were filled with frigid intent as she slowly shifted her gaze down from He Zhang¡¯s face, sliding slowly down his body until she finally stopped at a certain ce...

    In her previous life, after He Zhang had murdered her father Jun Linxuan, he had used precisely those parts to humiliate and tarnish her mother¡¯s body. Even though several hundreds of years had passed by now, the bloody sight of that incident was still deeply etched in the depths of her mind. Nothing she did could erase that horrific memory of hers.

    Since that¡¯s the case, it might be good to have some finality in this regard!

    Jun Xiaomo was incredibly decisive ¨C she raised her hand and immediately sent her whipshing down. In the very next moment, He Zhang shrieked with a tragic howl as a pool of blood began to seep out from the lower part of his body.

    He had already discovered the strange gaze in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and the thought of dodging aside had already urred to him. However, what he did not expect was how deep and profound Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities were. In that instant, he realized that he had been immobilized, and he could onlyy there stiffly on the floor,pletely subject to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mercy.

    Right now, could He Zhang still be called a man? He did not even possess the pride and crown jewels of men any longer!

    He Zhang¡¯s hatred towards Jun Xiaomo had just reached new, unprecedented heights, exceeding even his hatred towards Jun Linxuan.

    Is this father-daughter duo a curse to my existence?! Why am I always forced into such a plight whenever I encounter these two people?!

    The excruciating pain apanying such brutal incapacitation was not something that normal men would be able to withstand. He Zhang curled up into a ball. Within moments, the electrifying pain spread throughout every bit of his entire body and numbed his brain. In that instant, He Zhang found himself unable to repress that horrific sensation or distract his mind with other thoughts.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled as she slowly quipped, ¡°Martial uncle He, don¡¯t me me. If I don¡¯t do this, you¡¯ll continue to harbour ill intentions towards my mother. This is for the better. I can finally set my heart at ease at this instant.¡±

    The pain was getting so bad that He Zhang¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and bulging out of his sockets. It was an appalling sight.

    The bulging veins on his forehead throbbed uncontrobly as he gnashed his teeth in retort, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t be so pleased with yourself. Do you think you¡¯ll be able to leave the Dawn Sect on your own ord? I¡¯ve already informed Qin Lingyu and the rest. Once you leave this ce, you¡¯ll bepletely surrounded and destroyed by the rest who are waiting for you outside!¡±

    He Zhang knew that Jun Xiaomo was never going to let him go. In fact, he knew that there was a high likelihood that this was the end of his road. Since that was the case, he was determined to do anything and everything within his capacity to drag his nemesis down to hell with him!

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply chuckled coldly, ¡°Martial uncle He doesn¡¯t have to worry about that much. I¡¯ve made my own arrangements in this regard. As for your life...hah, don¡¯t worry. Before the Dawn Sect crumbles and falls into the annals of history, I can¡¯t bear to see you pass on just like that either. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to let you witness the downfall of the Sect with your very own eyes? I¡¯ve already arranged for a far better ending to this story than you could ever have imagined.¡±

    He Zhang had chuckled coldly at Jun Xiaomo in a simr fashion. However, his face appeared absolutely contorted and twisted due to the pain he was suffering from.

    He gritted his teeth and spasmed on the ground from time to time as he eximed in his heart ¨C As expected, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s far too na?ve. Her hesitation to take my life is going to be her downfall. This is for the best. As soon as Qin Lingyu and the otherse in to rescue me, I¡¯ll bepletely safe from harm.

    He was determined to rise from the ashes again!

    Jun Xiaomo nced at He Zhang curiously, and a mischievous smiled crept up the corner of her lips. However, He Zhang did not notice this. If he did, he would never have been under the impression that Jun Xiaomo had not thought to kill him because of the benevolence of her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo was now able to control and manipte the entire forbidden grounds through the master formation array she had just taken over. In fact, she could even alter and repurpose the formation arrays within the forbidden grounds.

    He Zhang was already a spent force by now, so Jun Xiaomo was not too concerned that he would be able to y any cards up his sleeves within the near future. Thus, she knew that her most pressing need at this moment was to locate her martial brother Ye, and then direct him to be reunited with Chen Feiyu and the rest.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved from her Interspatial Ring a formation diagram for tracking people down and connected it together with the heart of the master formation array. Then, she retrieved some items that possessed lingering traces of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura with it, such as the teacups that he had previously used, and set them onto the formation diagram.

    Finally, she began to suffuse her demonic energy through the formation diagram. As she began to do so, the formation diagram began to float and hover in mid-air, where it projected a holographic image of the forbidden grounds on the ground below.

    He Zhang was slightly taken aback. Then, fighting through the pain still lingering in his body, he began to cackle wildly in delight, ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought; who would¡¯ve thought! Jun Linxuan has always been an upstanding and righteous man, yet his very own daughter is nothing more than a demonic cultivator! I¡¯d been wondering why there was no apparent effects even after the incursion of demonic energy into your body. To think that this was all because you¡¯ve already embraced the power and be a fully fledged demonic cultivator! Hahahaha...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nced back at He Zhang silently with a faint, cold smile on her lips.

    It was simply a person on the brink of death making noise right now, and there was no need for her to get angry or upset about anything he was saying.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo focused all of her attention on locating Ye Xiuwen.

    On the other end of the forbidden grounds, Ye Xiuwen was barely hanging on by a thread. Even though he had been baptized by the endless battles against the powerful demonic creatures within the Death¡¯s Gorge, no amount of experience could make up for the relentless wearing down in a battle of attrition where waves after waves of demonic creatures kepting at him in sheer numbers.

    Over thest several hundred years that he had been a Sect Leader, He Zhang had transformed the entire forbidden grounds into a gathering ground for demonic creatures. Almost all of the demonic creatures were at least in the Golden Core stage of cultivation, and there were some that had even attained the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    Furthermore, it had to be mentioned that thebat abilities of demonic creatures were second to none. If a demonic creature battled with cultivators at the same cultivation level, the cultivators would invariably lose out in terms ofbat abilities to these demonic creatures. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had slightly over a decade¡¯s worth of experience dealing with powerful demonic creatures, he would very well have perished under the ws of these demonic creatures a while ago.

    And now, he was already drawing on thest bits of his strength.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen found himself on the brink of sumbing to the relentless waves of attacks, a familiar whirlpool suddenly appeared underfoot.

    Back then, it was also this whirlpool that had brought him here to this ce.

    Before Ye Xiuwen could even react to the situation, the whirlpool had already consumed his entire being. At the same time, having noticed how their prey had vanished like that, the demonic creatures standing around immediately stared at where Ye Xiuwen was just moments ago and roared in fury.

    Unfortunately, no matter how much they cried out in anguish, nothing was bringing back their prey to them.

    In the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen found himself expelled by the whirlpool at yet another location.

    Having experienced this already once, Ye Xiuwen managed to collect himself very quickly as he nced nervously at his surroundings once more.

    He discovered that he had just arrived at a ce that appeared like a prison. He stood on a path that seem to stretch on endlessly, while both sides of the path were surrounded by cells enclosed by bars.

    Ye Xiuwen consumed some recovery pills before making his way into the depths of the prison ¨C his intuition told him that the Heavenly Peak disciples ought to be held within this ce.

    The amount of recovery pills in his Interspatial Ring was running low. He knew that he had to locate the Heavenly Peak disciples as soon as possible and bring them away from this ce.

    As expected, the moment he neared the end of the prison cells, he could see ¡°Chen Feiyu¡± and his other Heavenly Peak martial brothers being hung on hooks extending from the prison walls.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen!¡± Ye Xiuwen immediately ran towards the prison cell. However, just then, he felt a person grabbing his arm.

    ¡°Who is it?!¡± Ye Xiuwen found it strange that he had not discovered the existence of any other person within the prison cells despite his divine sense that was actively probing about at his surroundings. Thus, it was evident that this person had concealed both his appearance was well as his aura.

    Chen Feiyu tore off the Invisibility Talisman on his body and he looked in surprise and delight at Ye Xiuwen as he cried out with some measure of disbelief, ¡°Martial brother Ye?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was taken aback ¨C There¡¯s another martial brother Chen in the prison cell?

 Chapter 305: He Zhangâ€™s End

    <h4>Chapter 305: He Zhang¡¯s End</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Ye Xiuwen continued to be gued by questions of how there were two Chen Feiyu¡¯s in the prison, the ¡°Chen Feiyu¡± within the prison cell suddenly burst into mes, and its fiery ze extended towards the other ¡°martial brothers¡± around him, burning everyone to a crisp.

    In an instant, over ten burnt human-shaped talismans began to float to the ground, leaving the rest of the cells and the hookspletely empty and vacant. The earlier illusion hadpletely vanished.

    So, the martial brothers outside the prison cell are the real ones, while the one inside are nothing more than Humanoid Puppets. Ye Xiuwen finally grasped the truth of the matter.

    As he watched the human-shaped talismans float to the ground, Ye Xiuwen could already roughly guess the person responsible for this ¨C Seems like that little brat of ady has alreadye through this ce and helped me rescue my martial brothers.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was filled with gratitude towards ¡°Qin Shanshan¡±. Had hee into this ce alone, he might not even have been able to break the formation array on the door of this prison cell holding his martial brothers, much less breach the surrounding defensive formation arrays within the forbidden grounds. It was evident just how much help ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± assistance had been.

    Thus, he resolved in his heart that he would sincerely express his gratitude towards ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± the next time they met.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t think too much about ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± disappearance for now. After all, she seemed to have have taken off to attend to her own matters after rescuing his martial brothers.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, I didn¡¯t think you¡¯d make it out of the Death¡¯s Gorge alive! And your face...¡± Chen Feiyu began to bber with excitement as soon as he ascertained that it was Ye Xiuwen, and his heart was immediately filled with delight at their reunion.

    Their martial brother Ye was alive; and their martial sister Xiaomo wasn¡¯t dead. Furthermore, both hade here together just to rescue them ¨C was there anything more joyous and worth celebrating than this?!

    ¡°Xiaomo helped me with my face.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was crestfallen, but he did not reveal any of this outwardly.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case...I understand, I understand.¡± Chen Feiyu nodded his head.

    Chen Feiyu was not privy to the fact that Ye Xiuwen was still kept in the dark as to ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± true identity. Rather, he thought that Ye Xiuwen had met up with Jun Xiaomo as soon as he escaped from the Death¡¯s Gorge, and Jun Xiaomo had then healed his scar as they made their way to the Dawn Sect together.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled calmly and remarked, ¡°Let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll find a way out of this ce.¡±

    Chen Feiyu was instead slightly taken aback by this statement ¨C Didn¡¯t martial sister Xiaomo earlier mention that she had already discussed with martial brother Ye how they were to escape from this ce? Why do we still need to find a way out of this ce? Where has martial sister Xiaomo gone to?

    ¡°Eh? Didn¡¯t we say...¡± Just then, the entire prison cell trembled violently, interrupting Chen Feiyu¡¯s rifications.

    Then, wave after wave of powerful tremors began to echo throughout the prison cell, and stones and ash began to fall from the ceiling and walls of the prison cells. The entire ce looked like it was about to crumble any minute.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go! This ce is going to copse soon!¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple eximed anxiously.

    Thus, with Ye Xiuwen taking the lead, everyone began to make their way out of the long corridor.

    The tremors within the prison cells only continued to worsen and grow more powerful. As they ran forward, they could hear that cell after cell behind them had already begun to copsepletely, sending clouds of dust, ash and stones scattering everywhere as it buried the traces of blood, gore and evil that used to gue these ces.

    Just as everyone believed that they were going to perish in this ce, they noticed arge whirlpool swirling on the ground just ahead of them. That said, it was so dark that nobody knew what this whirlpool was or where it led.

    ¡°Jump in.¡± Ye Xiuwen curtly ordered. The Heavenly Peak disciples had always been incredibly obedient to their martial brother Ye¡¯smands because they firmly believed in his abilities, and they knew that he would never make a rash or reckless decision in the spur of the moment. Thus, as soon as Ye Xiuwen barked out his instructions, the Heavenly Peak disciples immediately leapt into the dark, swirling whirlpool on the ground.

    None of them questioned for a single, brief moment what the whirlpool was or where it went.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen waited till every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples had entered the whirlpool, making sure none were left behind, before he finally leapt into the whirlpool as well.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen was consumed by the whirlpool, the swirling began to slow down and fade away without leaving a single trace of its existence.

    Within moments, the whirlpoolpletely vanished just as suddenly and mysteriously it had earlier appeared.

    The tremors within the prison cell continued to rumble and escte. Momentster, a loud rumble echoed through thends, and the prison cells were reduced to nothing more than a pile of stone and dirt.

    The vile, evil ce that had existed for several hundred years had finally seen thest of its days. It had finally been buried in the depths of the earth, fated to be forgotten with the effluxion of time.

    Back at the heart of the master formation array, Jun Xiaomo watched with a soft gaze the figures belonging to martial brother Ye and the others, and her lips curled into a faint, radiant smile.

    ¡°Hah, you¡¯re really na?ve. You¡¯d sent all of your martial brothers out to a ce where nobody else is. Do you think you¡¯ll be able to stand alone against the hundreds of people within the Dawn Sect with your meagre abilities? Don¡¯t you forget that the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders have lived for thousands of years now. Their cultivation level is far stronger than yours right now. Any single one of them would be able to squash you as easily as they would an ant!¡± He Zhang chuckled coldly as he quipped.

    Jun Xiaomo turned her attention from the formation diagram back at He Zhang. Then, she smiled genially as she responded, ¡°Like I said, martial uncle He doesn¡¯t have to worry about all these things. In fact, you¡¯d best reserve any capacity to worry to yourself for now. Let me put this in the most sincere and genuine fashion I can ¨C I hope you¡¯ll be able to walk out of this ce alive.¡±

    ¡°What...what do you mean?!¡± He Zhang¡¯s eyes widened, and his pupils constricted.

    ¡°I mean exactly what I¡¯d said.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. However, a trace of viciousness could be heardcing her voice, ¡°I¡¯d earlier mentioned that I wasn¡¯t going to let martial uncle He die so easily, but I never said that I was going to let you continue living a good life. Rather than repay evil with good, I would much prefer to see my nemeses suffer a fate that is worse than death. I wonder what you think of my suggestions, martial uncle He?¡±

    Beads of sweat immediately filled He Zhang¡¯s forehead profusely, yet nobody could tell whether this was borne out of pain or fear.

    ¡°You...you...just what are you going to do to me...¡±

    He Zhang had finally revealed the first traces of a vulnerable expression before Jun Xiaomo. There was fear, anxiety and panic in his eyes, and his voice was even trembling in trepidation.

    Jun Xiaomo muttered a mnemonic and pointed lightly to the formation diagram on the ground. In an instant, a massive whirlpool began to swirl in an open space nearby. The whirlpool was filled with innumerable crimson-red worms that were writhing and squirming incessantly.

    ¡°Martial uncle, I wonder if you know what these worms are?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked quizzically at He Zhang.

    ¡°Spi-...Spirit Devouring Worms?!¡± He Zhang could vaguely already guess what Jun Xiaomo was nning to do, and he immediately began to scramble on all fours as he retreated from Jun Xiaomo as quickly as his hands and feet would take him.

    Demoness! This woman is a demoness! How could martial sister Qingmei¡¯s daughter be such a demoness?!

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her chin slightly as she pointedzily at He Zhang. Instantly, a tidal wave of Spirit Devouring Worms surged and swept towards He Zhang,pletely engulfing him in the blink of an eye. The Spirit Devouring Worms thrashed and squirmed about furiously as they all mored for their nourishment. At the same time, a tragic, shrill scream could be heard echoing from deep within that mound of flesh.

    Jun Xiaomo looked cidly at how He Zhang was writhing on the ground in pain as she softly remarked, ¡°Martial uncle He, back when you fed other cultivators to these worms, have you ever thought about the day when it woulde back and bite you on the ass?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were filled with a frigid intent as she smiled grimly, ¡°Little worms, don¡¯t take his life just yet. Leave him a breath of life to cling onto. I still want him to witness the day when Dawn Sect crumbles into nothingness with his very own eyes!¡±

    Almost as though the worms could understand what Jun Xiaomo was saying, as soon as He Zhang was reduced to his final breaths, the Spirit Devouring Worms began to scatter to the side, leaving a considerable berth of space between He Zhang and the encirclement of worms.

    He Zhang¡¯s Dantian was alreadypletely drained of spiritual energy by now, and he was no better than a crippled cultivator. Not only that, his body waspletely covered with the grisly remains of half-eaten flesh, and there was not a single bit of his skin that remained intact.

    His eyes bulged in a disgusting fashion, and his pupils stared vacantly into the sky. His mind was aplete nk right now.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cold voice seemed to echo from afar, ¡°Hmph. Take care, and enjoy my parting gift to you.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she flicked her wrist, and anotherrge whirlpool appeared in the middle of nowhere. She stepped into it and vanished into its depths.

    He Zhang was had fallen into the mires ofplete despondence at this moment. He knew full well that as soon as his body recovered even a little bit of its strength, the Spirit Devouring Worms surrounding him right now were going to pounce on his body once more and reduce him to his final breaths yet again. And this was going to continue indefinitely until Jun Xiaomo was willing to allow him the reprieve of death.

    He had finally understood the meaning of a life far worse than death.

    He suddenly recalled the words that his master had left him with just before he passed on ¨C

    ¡°He Zhang, truth be told, I don¡¯t feel at ease leaving the Dawn Sect in your hands, but I¡¯ve got no choice given how Linxuan isn¡¯t interested in taking up the mantle as the Sect Leader. Sigh, I wish that you martial brothers can be united as one and work together in harmony as you bring this Sect to new heights. Don¡¯t end up fighting and treating each other as enemies after I die. Don¡¯t make me die with a remaining grievance.¡±

    ¡°He Zhang, I don¡¯t have many days remaining ahead of me. The only thing I wish to impress upon you is this ¨C having ambitions isn¡¯t a bad thing, but everything must be done in moderation. Remember, you reap what you sow.¡±

    He had shoved his master¡¯s teachings into the deepest corner of his mind after the effluxion of several hundreds of years, and it was only at this moment of despondence that his master¡¯s wise teachings had finally surfaced and returned to the forefront of his mind. He finally understood what his master was truly getting at several hundred years ago.

    Unfortunately, it was far toote for regrets now.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    Jun Xiaomo did not choose to reunite with Ye Xiuwen and the rest. Instead, she had sent herself through the whirlpool to the entrance of the forbidden grounds where she was immediately confronted by Qin Lingyu and the others.

    She knew full well that her Heavenly Peak martial brothers were all grievously wounded, and Ye Xiuwen could not possibly run far if the rest of the Dawn Sect disciples were to pursue them right now. Thus, Jun Xiaomo had unterally taken it upon herself to remain behind in order to hold Qin Lingyu and the rest back so that she could buy the others time for escape. As long as her martial brothers were able to make their way outside of the forest where the Sect¡¯s protective formation array was located, the rest of the Dawn Sect would never be able to pursue and chase after them.

    Qin Lingyu and the other Sect Elders surrounded the only entrance to the forbidden grounds that they knew of, thinking of obstructing Jun Ziwen and the other Heavenly Peak disciples as soon as they left the ce. They had never expected Jun Xiaomo to be able to take control of the entire forbidden grounds and open a new exit for her martial brothers¡¯ escape.

    Thus, Qin Lingyu and the rest werepletely unaware of the fact that Ye Xiuwen and the rest left via another exit, and they remained none the wiser to the exigencies that had already arisen.

    That said, He Zhang did send all of them a missive earlier while he was still within the forbidden grounds, instructing them to make their way to the forest to obstruct and capture any escapees if he was not out of the forbidden grounds within two hours¡¯ time.

    He Zhang¡¯s message was slightly unexpected, leaving Qin Lingyu and the rest slightly confused as to why He Zhang had left such standing instructions. Nevertheless, given He Zhang¡¯s stature, everyone chose toply anyway.

    Yet, to their immense surprise, they discovered that the person leaving the forbidden grounds after approximately two hours was not He Zhang. Instead, it was a person that they had never expected to see.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo?! You¡¯re Jun Xiaomo?!!!¡± Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief as he looked atdy dressed in striking-red garbs hovering in mid-air. Jun Xiaomo smiled grimly at the other members of the Dawn Sect who were waiting just outside the forbidden grounds.

    Despite not having seen Jun Xiaomo for over ten years, and despite the fact that Jun Xiaomo had matured and changed slightly over the years, he could tell exactly who she was with just one nce.

    After all, her appearance right now was far too simr to thedy he had been seeing in his dreams all this while.

 Chapter 306: Want to Kill Me? Come Play Hide-and-Seek with Me!

    <h4>Chapter 306: Want to Kill Me? Come y Hide-and-Seek with Me!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As he gazed upon thedy with a peculiarly familiar disposition standing some distance away, a swathe ofplicated emotions washed over Qin Lingyu¡¯s heart.

    Ever since Jun Xiaomo left for the Zephyr Sect, he would from time to time find himself falling into a series of simr dreams. In these dreams, Jun Xiaomo had be his wife, and the trajectory of her life therein had beenpletely different from her present circumstances.

    Qin Lingyu was well aware that if Jun Xiaomo had not presented herself with such a stark personality change after escaping from the Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds years ago, her fate might well have ended up akin to that which he had been dreaming about ¨C she would be his wife, and he would cast her aside and abandon her.

    As conventional wisdom would have it, one tends to dream about their most prominent thoughts throughout the day. Even though Qin Lingyu was unaware of why he had such a dream, he shrugged it off as nothing more than a one-off dream that was never going to ur again. Unfortunately, this dream did persist on, and it even persisted through a series of his dreams.

    The series of dreams appeared to be an alternate reality that yed out and presented itself in front of his very eyes. During this entire period of time, his life felt as though it had been cleaved in two halves ¨C one of which was lived through that series of dreams, while the other was lived through the present reality.

    In his dreams, he had taken Jun Xiaomo as his wife in ordance with their marriage arrangement, and he had brought her to the Limitless Sect with him. However, at the Limitless Sect, he would stand idly by as she suffered from all forms of abuse from those who were around, and there would not be a single ripple in his heart.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo treated him incredibly well in his dreams, giving him anything and everything that he demanded immediately on a silver tter, he had always reacted to her actions with disdain, treating her as nothing more than a fool.

    After all, what else could one call a person who did everything sacrificially for another who simply refused to reciprocate such love? Qin Lingyu firmly lived by the mantra ¨C ¡°every man for himself¡±. Thus, he didn¡¯t think that his actions were wrong in any way. If Jun Xiaomo had to me someone, the only person she could me was herself, for how easily she had trusted and been used by others.

    Just as Qin Lingyu had expected, as his dreams went on, Jun Xiaomo would experience a demonic outburst, resulting in the Heavenly Peak bing the target for a unified crusade led by various spiritual cultivating sects in the world. Everyone wanted to purge the world of such a demonic cultivator. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s parents and the Heavenly Peak stood foolishly by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side against the relentless attacks by the rest of the spiritual cultivation world, attempting to protect her. At that time, Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple Ye Xiuwen had also rushed back from the Frozen Sword Sect in order to bear the burden that his little martial sister had turned out to be, as they began their journey together on what would be a long, arduous escape from persecution.

    At that time, where did Jun Xiaomo¡¯s husband disappear to? Qin Lingyu had simply hidden in the dark as he watched all of this pan out with a cold, unwavering gaze in his eyes. He had even silently cheered in his heart as his master¡¯s n came to fruition.

    In his dreams, he had been given a share of the spoils from Heavenly Peak for his part to y in this grand scheme. They had even raised wine cups together to celebrate their sess after everything happened.

    Just like that, Qin Lingyu thought that his dreams hade to an end, and he would no longer have any interactions with Jun Xiaomo after that. In the end, several yearster, he chanced upon Jun Xiaomo once more.

    At that time, Jun Xiaomo appeared just like she did right now. She was dressed in striking-red garbs as she stood magnificently in front of everyone with only looks of contempt and disdain in her eyes. Just like a lotus flower that had bloomed in the depths of a dark and dank dungeon, she was mesmerizing, yet dark and demonic. She was enshrouded by such an intense aura of danger, yet one couldn¡¯t help but allow their gaze to linger intently on her.

    In his dreams, Qin Lingyu had remained frozen in his steps for an extremely long time upon their first reunion after such a long time. In a simr fashion, Qin Lingyu found himselfpletely speechless right now.

    Theplex emotions swirling about in his heart rendered him unable to find any words to express himself.

    But his speechlessness did not extend to the other Sect Elders at all. The hot-tempered Fifth Elder bellowed almost immediately, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, your parents have already betrayed the Sect and the rest of the spiritual cultivation world. Are you thinking of going down the same road as them?! Quite apart from breaching and trespassing the forbidden grounds, do you know just how much chaos you¡¯ve caused to the Dawn Sect this time?!¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply nced at the Fifth Elder with a disdainful smirk, ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been considered or treated as part of the Dawn Sect to begin with. How can I possibly ¡®betray¡¯ the Dawn Sect?¡±

    ¡°You arrogant brat! Looks like if I don¡¯t teach you a lesson today, you won¡¯t understand what ¡®modesty¡¯ means. Have a taste of my fist! I¡¯m going to teach you a lesson right now!¡± The Fifth Elder charged straight at Jun Xiaomo with an infuriated gaze in his eyes and sent a series of three palm strikes towards Jun Xiaomo, each filled with more vigor than the other.

    The Fifth Elder could be considered one of the weakest ones among all of the Sect Elders in terms of his cultivation level. Yet despite that, everyone firmly believed that it was an incredibly simply feat for a person of the senior generation like the Fifth Elder to severely injure a junior that Jun Xiaomo was.

    After all, where were their respective cultivation levels? No matter how gifted and talented Jun Xiaomo was, she could not possibly have already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation within the short span of just over ten years, right?

    The Fifth Elder was already in the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. Unless Jun Xiaomo possessed a simr cultivation level, she would never be able to receive even a single palm strike from the Fifth Elder, much less three palm strikes.

    Thus, everyone eagerly anticipated the bloodshed that awaited Jun Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately for them, everyone witnessed the impossible in the very next instant ¨C Jun Xiaomo avoided the Fifth Elder¡¯s three palm strikes withplete ease.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo went on to avoid over ten series of attacks over the next few moments. By then, not even the dumbest simpletons would be able to attribute all of this to in, dumb luck on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part.

    ¡°Damn! It must be your talismans! Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯ve used a talisman on yourself, isn¡¯t that right?!¡± The Fifth Elder berated with rage, pausing in his attacks as he began to pant and catch his breath.

    He had almost forgotten the fact that Jun Xiaomo had entered Zephyr Sect with her new master, Tong Ruizhen, just to master the arts of formation arrays and talismans.

    At this moment, he had just recalled the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s proficiency with formation arrays and talismans was already quite decent to begin with. Now that over ten years hadpsed, she must have be more powerful than before. She must have been able to escape from the joint efforts of the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom with her mysterious formation arrays and talismans.

    Hah. So what if she¡¯s got her talismans? Her cultivation level still can¡¯t hold a single candle to our Sect Eldersbined. Does she think she can use talismans for her entire life?! The Fifth Elder mocked in his heart.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply raised her eyebrows quizzically as she quipped, ¡°Fifth Elder, what makes you so certain that I¡¯ve used a talisman?¡±

    ¡°Hah! What else could it be? Are you saying that it¡¯s more believable that you¡¯re able to avoid my attacks based on your own abilities? Little brat, you¡¯ve still got a thing or two to learn in telling a believable lie. I¡¯m already in the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. What about you? You¡¯ve probably just scraped past the bottleneck of the Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation only, haven¡¯t you? Hahahaha!¡± The Fifth Elderughed heartily. He wasughing at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s underestimation of her own abilities.

    ¡°Oh? Is that right? Then I¡¯ve got an idea that would make the situation clearer to the Fifth Elder ¨C why don¡¯t you have a taste of a whish of mine?¡± As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she immediatelyshed out at the Fifth Elder with a fiery-red whip in her hands, fully backed by her surging energy.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± The Fifth Elder shifted his body, but he was still slightly too slow to react. His shoulder was struck directly by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whish, and a gruesome, ck wound split open on his shoulder just like that. In fact, the injury was so deep that even his bones could be seen!

    Everyone standing around immediately gasped in shock ¨C how powerful must Jun Xiaomo be right now to be able to cause such damage to someone at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation?!

    Jun Xiaomo had earlier already applied a high-grade talisman on her body to conceal her cultivation level. Thus, not even the strongest cultivator present, the Grand Elder, was able to sense the depths of her abilities right now.

    The most fearsome thing was the fear of the unknown. This was what Jun Xiaomo had capitalized on. Several people began to perceive an unknown force and pressure weighing on their hearts as they began to contemte just how deep and profound Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities must be.

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo did not pause to let anyone take a breather, and she continued to attack the Fifth Elder relentlessly. Having sustained one painful strike from Jun Xiaomo, the Fifth Elder no longer dared to becent around her, and he quickly adjusted himself as he began to exchange blows with Jun Xiaomo.

    As the battle wore on, the Fifth Elder¡¯s heart burgeoned with ever greater disbelief and astonishment. Given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s current abilities, and even if she had applied some powerful talismans on herself prior to this battle, her cultivation level could not be any lower than the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation ¨C But is this even possible?!

    Jun Xiaomo had left for the Zephyr Sect only eleven years ago. How could she possibly have increased her cultivation level to the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation, or even higher?! How talented must she be to achieve this?!

    Impossible! This is absolutely impossible! If Jun Xiaomo was so incredibly talented, we would have noticed it ever since she was a child. How could it only have appeared after she had entered the Zephyr Sect?!

    Such thoughts continued to gue the Fifth Elder¡¯s mind, and he grew distracted for a slight moment. That said, a single moment was all the opening that Jun Xiaomo needed. She grasped that very opportunity that presented itself, imbued her whip with her demonic energy, and plunged it straight through the Fifth Elder¡¯s chest.

    That¡¯s right. The greatest part of this modified Firescale Whip that Jun Xiaomo was using right now was the fact that it could be used both as a whip, and as a longsword. As soon as her Firescale Whip was imbued with demonic energy, it would be a sharp, vicious weapon in an instant that could slice through the hardest of materials as though they were warm butter, much less human flesh and bones.

    In an instant, her demonic energy perfused through the Fifth Elder¡¯s Dantian, sending it into a chaotic state.

    Pfft! The Fifth Elder spat out arge mouthful of blood, staggered two steps back, and then copsed onto the ground.

    ¡°Fifth Elder!¡± Everyone began to sprint over towards the Fifth Elder.

    ¡°Enough! Don¡¯t go courting death like that!¡± The Grand Elder barked, causing all of the Dawn Sect disciples to pause in their steps in fear of facing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s dreadful abilities. They immediately shuddered in fear before retreating slightly again.

    The Grand Elder flicked his sleeves in mid-air, and the Fifth Elder¡¯s body immediately flew back to their encampment.

    After quickly examining the Fifth Elder¡¯s body, the Grand Elder furrowed his brows as he cast aplicated gaze at Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    ¡°You¡¯ve be a demonic cultivator?¡±

    It was evident that the Fifth Elder¡¯s body was currently being gued by the incursion of roiling demonic energy. If they did not do anything to purge this demonic energy from his body quickly, the Fifth Elder¡¯s cultivation was bound to sustain some irretrievable damage.

    The Grand Elder¡¯s words stunned everyone ¨C What¡¯s going on? Jun Xiaomo is also a demonic cultivator?! Didn¡¯t Wei Gang of the Heavenly Peak already turn to demonic cultivation? Could it be that Jun Xiaomo was the same as well?!

    In other words, was the Heavenly Peak a breeding ground for demonic cultivators?

    As the Dawn Sect disciples began to let their imaginations run wild, their gazes on Jun Xiaomo were now filled with indignation and hatred.

    They were an upstanding and righteous Sect that prided itself on grooming spiritual cultivators. Of course they would hate demonic cultivators who resorted to underhanded means of elevating their own abilities, just like Jun Xiaomo probably did. It was no wonder Jun Xiaomo had appeared with apletely different disposition as she had before ¨C demonic and wild, with a stark change in her personality. All of these were exined by the fact that she had be a demonic cultivator.

    Jun Xiaomo swept her gaze at all the disciples¡¯ change of expressions with some measure of bemusement as a smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    This was such a familiar sight to her. After all, this was something that she had received too much of in her previous life. Back then, especially the first time she experienced this, she felt incredibly pained seeing someone else stare at her with such an expression on their face, and she reacted with disbelief and denial. But now, she was absolutely unfazed by it.

    So what if she had be a demonic cultivator? Compared with these people standing in front of her, some of the demonic cultivators she knew were far less heartless! The Chi n were a prime example of this.

    As he took in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s unrepentant attitude, the Second Elder pretended to grieve bitterly as hemented, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I knew that your parents were muddleheaded, but I¡¯d never expect you to be even more stubborn and unrepentant than them. We¡¯re left with no choice. We¡¯ve got to purge the Sect of any blemishes. After all, the Dawn Sect doesn¡¯t need any disciples that have turned to demonic cultivation!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Alright, are you alling for me at once?¡± Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously, ¡°Bring it on.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arrogant attitude had thoroughly enraged all the Sect Elders and disciples. Thus, without a consideration for the dishonor in fighting many against one, everyone began to charge straight at Jun Xiaomo, attempting to surround her!

    Yet, despite all that, Jun Xiaomo simply chuckled lightheartedly as she flicked her wrist. Then, in the next moment, she vanished into thin air.

    Where¡¯s she?! Everyone began to exchange nervous nces.

    A light chuckle rang out in mid-air once more ¨C

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my hand slipped, and I idently applied an Invisibility Talisman on myself. If you want to catch me, you¡¯ve got to put in more effort than that.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice rang out, a faint breeze carrying traces of demonic energy within swept past their bodies, yet they were unable to locate the direction from where the demonic energy came from.

    Everyone: ......

    Damn! Ten years¡¯ time, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ability to irritate and annoy has only escted to new heights!

 Chapter 307: Revelation of Identities

    <h4>Chapter 307: Revtion of Identities</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had drawn the attention of all the Sect Elders, Peakmasters, as well as all of the regr disciples of the Dawn Sect onto herself. Thus, Ye Xiuwen and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had managed to arrive at the boundary of forest just outside the Dawn Sectpletely unobstructed. Unfortunately, when they looked at the thick, dense woods in standing in front of them, the Heavenly Peak disciples found themselves faced with yet another obstacle.

    ¡°What do we do now? The forest is also where the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array is located. We won¡¯t be able to pass through this ce if we don¡¯t have an identity token with us.¡± Chen Feiyu eximed in frustration.

    Their identity tokens had already been seized by He Zhang as soon as they were captured. He Zhang had been determined not to let them go, and they knew that it was very likely that He Zhang might even have altered the effects of the formation array to restrict ess by the rest of the members from the Heavenly Peak. How were they possibly going to break out of this barrier given the current state they were in?

    Ye Xiuwen pondered about it for a short moment, before he spoke resolutely, ¡°We¡¯ll just walk straight through.¡±

    ¡°What?! Walk straight through?! Martial brother Ye, we don¡¯t know a single thing about formation arrays, so how are we going to be able toe out of this alive?¡± Chen Feiyu sincerely believed that this was going to be a task nigh impossible.

    However, Ye Xiuwen simply smiled calmly as he responded, ¡°Believe me. We have the blessings of someone powerful.¡±

    The reason why Ye Xiuwen was so certain of this fact was because he recalled how ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± had managed to trap and stumble Qin Lingyu using the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array just a little while ago.

    Thus, since ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± was able to send them out of the forbidden grounds, he had reason to believe that she would be willing to allow these disciples to pass through the Sect¡¯s protective formation array unharmed as well.

    When he thought about how the mysterious girl was still trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but feel somewhat worried for her. That said, his martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak were with him right now, and there was no way he could deprioritize their safety just like that.

    I¡¯ll see them to a safe ce outside beforeing back to take a look. I can¡¯t just leave this mysteriousdy in the lurch like that after she¡¯d done so much to rescue my martial brothers. Ye Xiuwen resolved in his heart.

    Seeing how Ye Xiuwen was so certain that they had the blessings of someone powerful, the Heavenly Peak disciples who hadplete trust in their martial brother Ye naturally set down their tense and anxious hearts, and they began to follow Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lead as they walked straight through the forest just outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds.

    As expected, none of them were captured or attacked by the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array, and none of them found themselves trapped within the domain of the same.

    This was because Jun Xiaomo had already fundamentally altered the logic and permissions of the formation array. In other words, Jun Xiaomo was the new owner of the protective formation array located here.

    Once they managed to pass through the forest safely, everyone unanimously heaved a huge sigh of relief.

    As soon as they had left the boundaries drawn up by the Sect¡¯s protective formation array, they would essentially have left the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds, which in turn meant that they were now able to use Teleportation Scrolls anytime they wished.

    That said, the Heavenly Peak disciples that had just escaped from captivity would never possibly possess a Teleportation Scroll with them. This was something that only Ye Xiuwen possessed at this moment.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen retrieved a Teleportation Scroll from his Interspatial Ring andid it out onto the ground as he stated, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    Just as Chen Feiyu took a step forward, he suddenly recalled something important ¨C

    ¡°Eh? Martial brother Ye, don¡¯t we have to wait for martial sister Xiaomo as well?¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen was taken aback.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Didn¡¯t you twoe together? She was the one who had handed us the Invisibility Talismans, asking us to wait by the prison for you.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple exined the situation.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils suddenly constricted, and his mind drew a nk ¨C Martial sister Xiaomo? Wasn¡¯t the person who rescued martial brother Chen and the rest Miss Tong?

    Having discovered how his martial brother Ye¡¯s expressions seemed to be growing rather peculiar, Chen Feiyu furrowed his brows, ¡°Martial brother Ye?¡±

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart felt as though a massive stone was weighing on it, stifling him so much that even his breathing had gone ragged.

    ¡°Are you saying that the person who rescued you was martial sister Xiaomo?!¡± Ye Xiuwen took arge stride forward and stared straight into Chen Feiyu¡¯s eyes. In that instant, the oppressive aura apanying his cultivation at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation flourished uncontrobly, causing the knees of several Heavenly Peak disciples to buckle as they fell to the ground.

    They looked at Ye Xiuwen inplete astonishment. It had only been a short span of twelve years, yet their martial brother Ye¡¯s abilities had improved to such an astonishing level.

    Chen Feiyu had only just broken through the secondary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and it was difficult for even someone like him to resist Ye Xiuwen¡¯s oppressive aura right this instant. That said, the thing that confused him the most was why Ye Xiuwen was reacting like this right now.

    Why doesn¡¯t martial brother Ye seem to be aware of the fact that martial sister Xiaomo had rescued them? Didn¡¯t martial sister Xiaomo say that she had already discussed the n with martial brother Ye beforemencing their rescue operation?

    As Chen Feiyu struggled hard to resist Ye Xiuwen¡¯s oppressive aura, he queried with bewilderment, ¡°Martial brother Ye, didn¡¯t youmence the rescue operation together with martial sister Xiaomo? When she rescued us earlier, she mentioned that the two of you had been working together, and they had asked us to wait by the prison cell for you. Oh, that¡¯s right, when martial sister Xiaomo appeared, she was wearing the appearances of Qin Shanshan.¡±

    ¡°Damn! That¡¯s little brat!¡± Ye Xiuwen collected his oppressive aura, and the indignation in the depths of his eyes ostensibly flourished.

    After what his martial brother Chen had just mentioned, how could he not connect two and two and realize just what was going on?

    Jun Xiaomo isn¡¯t dead! Not only is she alive, she had been travelling beside me all this while! And perhaps the only reason why she was unwilling to reveal her identity was because she wanted me to bring the Heavenly Peak disciples away to safety while she remained within the Dawn Sect, holding everyone back!

    While Jun Xiaomo was still wearing Qin Shanshan¡¯s appearance and identity, Ye Xiuwen had already discovered how reckless and daredevil thedy underneath Qin Shanshan¡¯s skin was.

    By this time, everyone had be well aware of the ugly expression on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, and they couldn¡¯t help but exchange puzzled nces with each other.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, did something go wrong?¡± Chen Feiyu couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°Could martial sister Xiaomo have perhaps met with an ident?¡±

    When all was said and done, Chen Feiyu was growing anxious at the developing situation. Right now, it was obvious to him that Ye Xiuwen had been keptpletely in the dark about the fact that Jun Xiaomo had rescued them. Thus, he was worried that his little martial sister might have met with a mishap.

    If his little martial sister had truly met with a mishap in the course of rescuing them, they would sincerely and truly be unable to ount to their master and his wife for their loss ¨C even a thousand deaths would not be able to clear their guilt and remorse.

    ¡°She¡¯ll be fine. Wait here. I¡¯m going back in to bring her out.¡± Ye Xiuwen spoke in a low voice, ¡°I¡¯ll leave this Teleportation Scroll with you. If any pursuers from the Dawn Secte chasing after you, activate it and leave this ce first.¡±

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, why don¡¯t we go back together? A few additional pairs of hands could make quick work of things.¡± Chen Feiyu suggested.

    ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± Ye Xiuwen curtly rejected his suggestion.

    ¡°But...¡±

    ¡°In your current condition, you won¡¯t be able to do much even if you go in. Instead, we might even get distracted by the need to keep you safe.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined, ¡°Believe me. I¡¯ll bring Xiaomo back out safely.¡±

    This was a vow, not just to the Heavenly Peak disciples standing in front of him, but to his master and his master¡¯s wife as well. Most importantly, it was also a vow to Jun Xiaomo as she remained trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds,pletely oblivious to the fact that her identity had already been exposed.

    He was determined to rescue Jun Xiaomo, no matter the price. His hope had once again been rekindled, and he did not wish to live with any more regrets in his life.

    Chen Feiyu was slightly taken aback when he saw the extent of unwavering determination within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    As though something within him clicked, Chen Feiyu revealed a faint smile on his face that was filled with understanding and blessings, ¡°Then alright. We¡¯ll be waiting here. Martial brother Ye, we wish you Godspeed as you bring martial sister Xiaomo back out safely.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head and activated his Windwalk ability. Then, with two or three quick leaps, Ye Xiuwen vanishedpletely from sight as he sped back into the heart of the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds.

    ¡°Martial brother Chen, can martial brother Ye possibly rescue martial sister Xiaomo all alone?¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple couldn¡¯t suppress the concern in his heart as he queried.

    ¡°He can, and he most definitely will. Since martial brother Ye has said that he can do it, let¡¯s give him ourplete trust and faith.¡± Chen Feiyu stated resolutely.

    Most importantly, given the extent of martial brother Ye¡¯s feelings towards his little martial sister, he would never let anything bad happen to her.

    ------------------------------------------------------------

    Meanwhile, as Ye Xiuwen began to make his way back to the Dawn Sect, Jun Xiaomo discovered that she had met with a slight mishap on her end.

    After handing the wad of high-grade Invisibility Talismans to her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak, she realized to her horror that her stock of high-grade Invisibility Talismans had been drainedpletely dry. The only ones remainingprised the Invisibility Talisman she had just applied on her own body. Although the Invisibility Talisman could conceal her appearances, it was unable to conceal her aura.

    In other words, as long as the old fogeys from the Dawn Sect released their divine sense and sent it probing around their surroundings, they would still be able to locate her whereabouts.

    To make matters worse, on the twenty-fifth time that Jun Xiaomo managed to avoid their attacks, the Invisibility Talisman that she had applied also lost its effects.

    This was the downside of a low-grade Invisibility Talisman ¨C not only was it unable to conceal her aura, its effective duration was also incredibly low. The Invisibility Talisman that had just expired had onlysted for the better part of an hour.

    At the same time, this hour of time that she had bought for the Heavenly Peak disciples had been more than enough for them to escape from the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds and pass through the forest where the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array was located. This hour of time was also sufficient to provoke the ire and wrath of the old fogeys of Dawn Sect to unprecedented heights.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, let¡¯s see where you can run to now!¡± The Second Elder bellowed as he surrounded Jun Xiaomo with a few other Sect Elders, ¡°Go on then! Why don¡¯t you run! Use your dear Invisibility Talismans to run! Let¡¯s see whether you wear us down first, or whether we deplete the number of Invisibility Talismans you have at your disposal first!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo began to coil her hair around her finger leisurely as she chuckled lightly, ¡°Oh? Is that right? Then, let me first congratte all of you, because the Invisibility Talismans within my Interspatial Ring have all been depleted.¡±

    The Second Elder was taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocations, and he was rendered slightly speechless.

    Was there any person who would possibly reveal his vulnerabilities after being threatened by his opponents? How could something like that even be possible?

    What¡¯s Jun Xiaomo trying to do? Does she have something else up her sleeve?

    Something must be amiss! Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cid,ckadaisical disposition caused the Second Elder and the others to grow slightly hesitant, and all of them hesitated to charge straight at her.

    Having tussled with Jun Xiaomo for one hour, none of them dared to underestimate the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mysterious and demonic abilities, and nobody couldprehend or understand just what she was up to.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow quizzically as she smirked victoriously, ¡°Oh? What¡¯s the matter? Could it be that you old farts that have lived for hundreds or even thousands of years is afraid of this young sprout that I am?¡±

    Old...old farts?! The lips of the Dawn Sect disciples twitched and contorted slightly. None of them knew whether they shouldugh or grow indignant at her description of the Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tongue was far too unbridled.

    As expected, the Fifth Elder was the first one to sumb to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocations. Casting aside Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier disy of abilities against him, he rushed straight towards Jun Xiaomo in the heat of his rage.

    Jun Xiaomo remainedpletely calm and collected as she dodged left and right, almost as though she were teasing a little pet cat. The Fifth Elder was unable to connect any blows, while Jun Xiaomo refrained fromunching any attacks at the Fifth Elder either.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s truly formidable! The Dawn Sect disciples gasped in shock as they watched the peculiar sight unfold before their eyes.

    ¡°What are you bunch of old farts doing standing around?! There¡¯s no longer an Invisibility Talisman on her body now, so what are you guys waiting for?! Do I need to roll out a red carpet for you?!¡± The Fifth Elder bellowed at the other Sect Elders and Peakmasters.

    The Second Elder¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly. He was unable to tell just what Jun Xiaomo was plotting from her current actions.

    ¡°We should lend a hand as well. Otherwise, the Fifth Elder is going to blow his top soon.¡± The Grand Elder made the final call.

    Thus, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters instantly charged straight towards Jun Xiaomo andunched a concerted attack against her!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled into a wicked smile ¨C this was the moment she had been waiting for.

    She suddenly paused in her steps and turned her whip into a sword as she ced it onto her palm.

    Everyone was stillpletely lost as to what Jun Xiaomo was trying to do.

    Then, with one forceful tug, Jun Xiaomo cut a deep gash onto her own palm, causing crimson-red blood to flow out and drip onto the ground below.

    In the very next moment, a red light exploded from the ground below, and a massive formation diagram suddenly appeared underfoot, capturing all of the Sect Elders and Peakmasters within its domain.

    Formation array?! The Second Elder¡¯s pupils suddenly constricted as a fleeting notion flickered across his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips gradually curled into a brazen, grim smile. As the blood continued to flow from her palm and fall onto the ground, the formation array glowed increasingly brighter.

    This was the final gift she had prepared for the old fogeys of the Dawn Sect!

 Chapter 308: Reversal, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Appearance

    <h4>Chapter 308: Reversal, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Appearance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As the formation array under their feet sprang into effect, the Sect Elders and Peakmasters who were all caught within the domain of the formation array discovered in an instant that they could no longer move their bodies. This was especially true for their legs, which felt as though they had beenpletely adhered to the ground. Lifting their legs seemed practically an impossible task at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo stood at the heart of the formation array and smiled grimly at them. As the red light shone from below, it imbued Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances with an ostensibly eerie gleam, rendering her expressions peculiar and fearsome.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters red at Jun Xiaomo as they immediately began to operate the spiritual energy within their bodies to resist the formation array¡¯s restrictions.

    As their spiritual energy begun to flow through their bodies more vigorously, they felt as though the restraints binding their body were gradually being loosened, and they began to be able to move again. Their hearts immediately leapt with joy, and they began to increase the amount of spiritual energy that they sent coursing through their bodies.

    However, Jun Xiaomo was hardly flustered at all. She curled her lips into a smile as she made a few hand seals. In an instant, the red light on the ground began to congeal into extremely thin threads as they prated the skins of the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters and burrowed its way into their bodies.

    ¡°What the hell is this thing?!¡± The Fifth Elder¡¯s eyes widened as he barked while attempting to do all he could to prevent the threads from entering his body. Even though his feet remained stered to the ground, the Fifth Elder could already move his hands under the operation of his spiritual energy. That said, he discovered to his dismay that there was nothing he could do to these red threads ¨C he could see them, but he couldn¡¯t touch them at all.

    The other Sect Elders were hardly as ill tempered as the Fifth Elder. However, they had in a simr fashion also revealed an anxious, focused look in the depths of their eyes.

    Their intuition told them that nothing good woulde out of these threads that had burrowed into their bodies.

    As expected, as soon as these threads burrowed into their bodies, they began to tunnel through and course along their meridians, heading straight towards their respective Dantians.

    ¡°Demonic energy! This is actually congealed by demonic energy!¡± This time, even the Second Elder was unable to maintain the cid and cool expression that was usually on his face.

    If this was demonic energy, then it was abundantly clear just what Jun Xiaomo was attempting to do to them ¨C Jun Xiaomo was attempting to cripple their cultivation using the threads of demonic energy!

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, how dare you?!¡± The Second Elder red viciously at Jun Xiaomo as though he were prepared to stake all he had in order to take Jun Xiaomo down with him.

    Jun Xiaomo cidly responded, ¡°Oh? Second Elder, why don¡¯t you tell me why I wouldn¡¯t dare instead? I¡¯ve always been a demonic cultivator, and using demonic energy to deal with you should be something that is quite expected in the circumstances, isn¡¯t it? Besides...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze turned frigid, and her smile grew deeper and more profound, ¡°Isn¡¯t this something you and your dear Sect Leader He Zhang have always wanted? After all, I¡¯d only be a demonic cultivator because of you!¡±

    The Second Elder began to muster his spiritual energy, sending it straight to his Dantian to fight against the incursion of demonic energy in his body as he rebutted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allegations, ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about! You¡¯re the one who has corrupted yourself. What has that got to do with me or the Sect Leader?¡±

    ¡°Hah, Second Elder, you know it full well. You¡¯re just acting right now. And there¡¯s still the other Sect Leaders and Peakmasters as well. Could you all really have been unaware of the changes to my body or martial brother Wei¡¯s body? No. You all knew it all along. Yet, despite all that, you chose to turn a blind eye to everything. For a share of the wealth of the Heavenly Peak, you wereplicit in altering my body¡¯s constitution and forcing upon me a demonic body.¡± Even though Jun Xiaomo calmly and tranquilly made her usations known to everyone, theck of emotional fluctuations or inflexions in her voice made her usations that much more dreadful and fearsome.

    ¡°You¡¯re making baseless usations! Jun Xiaomo, stop ndering people!¡± The Second Elder bellowed with indignation.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply nced back at him with a contemptuous and disdainful gaze, ¡°Baseless? I¡¯m sorry, it¡¯s true that I¡¯ve got no hard proof. However, I¡¯ve never thought of proving my allegations to begin with. You¡¯re all going to be crippled in just a few moments. Why should I even bother bringing up evidence to a bunch of crippled men?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± The Second Elder panicked. He knew that there was nothing he could do against her.

    As things were right now, he knew that the only thing he could do was to continue operating his spiritual energy in an attempt to resist the incursion of demonic energy. After all, it had taken him such a long time to attain his present level of cultivation, so how could he allow this little brat Jun Xiaomo to ruin it all just like that?

    However, the harsh reality was that with every part of demonic energy he was able to expel from his body, more woulde pouring in to take its ce. The demonic energy appeared to be boundless and incessant, and there was no way of telling where the source of all this energy was.

    As a result of the formation array¡¯s bright glow, none of the people from the Dawn Sect noticed the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was growing increasingly paler by the second.

    This formation array was a form of blood rite, somewhat akin to the formation array she had used in her previous life just before she perished. Even though its abilities were incredible, it had to be activated and powered by a constant flow of blood and energy.

    She clenched her fists tightly. The earlier gash on her palm was still bleeding profusely. Once the formation array has been activated, she would have to hang in there and keep feeding the formation array with blood and energy. Otherwise, if the formation array¡¯s ability gets interrupted mid-way, everything she had done would bepletely in vain.

    Thus, no matter how painful and arduous it was, she absolutely had to hang in there until the formation array¡¯s purposes wereplete. She had to hang in there until the old fogeys from the Sect had beenpletely wasted and crippled!

    After one incense stick of time had passed, the difort and giddiness apanying the massive outflow of her true energy and her blood loss escted and became increasingly unbearable. Thus, Jun Xiaomo decided to find something to jabber on about to remain awake.

    Whilst distracting herself from her pain and difort, she could even provoke and anger the old fogeys from the Sect. What was there to lose?

    ¡°Are you all curious as to where He Zhang has gone to?¡± Jun Xiaomo opened with a question. Even though the world was beginning to spin as a result of overdrawing her true energy and her blood loss, she did her best to maintain an erect back. On the surface, nobody could tell the kind of struggle Jun Xiaomo was going through right now.

    By this time, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters were already harbouring thoughts of sentencing Jun Xiaomo to the most painful and long-drawn death that they could possibly think of once they escaped from their present predicament. As the incursion of demonic energy mounted within their Dantian and meridians, all of them had gradually begun to experience a bloated, immting sensation spreading from their Dantian and flowing through every corner of their bodies through their meridians.

    This was proof that the demonic energy was already beginning to wreak havoc within their meridians and Dantian.

    The Third Elder had always maintained rather good terms with He Zhang. Thus, as he struggled to hang on, he looked at Jun Xiaomo and barked coldly, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that the Sect Leader has fallen to your ploys as well?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly as she responded, ¡°How could you say that it¡¯s been my ploy? I¡¯ve simply trapped up within the forbidden grounds and allowed some of his dear, cute, little pets apany him. He¡¯s having a whale of a time right now.¡±

    His crown jewels had been crushed, and he was even getting well-acquainted with his swarm of Spirit Devouring Worms. Why wouldn¡¯t he be having a ¡°whale of a time¡±?

    In fact, he was having such a ¡°whale of a time¡± that he simply couldn¡¯t wait for the ecstasy apanying the reprieve of death.

    For some strange reason, when the Dawn Sect disciples who were standing a distance away from the domain of the formation array noticed the macabre expressions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, all of them got chills down their back.

    He Zhang must have met with a mishap. Look at how pleased this Lady Demoness is...

    The Fifth Elder immediately bellowed, ¡°That¡¯s impossible! The key to the forbidden grounds is with He Zhang. How could you possibly have trapped him within the forbidden grounds?!¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply raised an eyebrow, challenging the Fifth Elder¡¯s rationalization, ¡°Oh? Why can¡¯t I? Could the Fifth Elder be unaware that someone else can forcibly seize control over a formation array? As long as the array master is capable enough, nothing is impossible.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± The Fifth Elder was both astonished and enraged, ¡°How could you possibly possess the ability to take control of the forbidden ground¡¯s master formation array?! That¡¯s impossible! This is something that even a sixth-grade array master can¡¯t achieve!¡±

    Logically speaking, it was impossible for someone at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s physical age to have attained such mastery over formation arrays. However, she had already spent over three hundred years within the Proving Grounds, and her abilities had already exceeded that of a sixth-grade array master a long time ago. With her current level of proficiency and master over formation arrays, not even theplex, heaven-defying formation arrays in the Proving Grounds could withstand her advances, much less this meagre formation array controlling the forbidden grounds of a mere Secondary Sect.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly again as she retorted, ¡°Fifth Elder, it doesn¡¯t really matter to me whether you believe me or not. It doesn¡¯t even tickle me, much less hurt me. Whatever the case is, all that matters to me is that I know the truth. Mark my words, I will repay everything that you¡¯ve done to my parents and my martial brothers, replete with interest. Not a single one of you will be getting away.¡±

    ¡°Jun Linxuan has harboured and nurtured a demonic cultivator! He deserves every bit of his punishment and more!¡± The Fifth Elder continued to bark incoherently.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze grew cold and frigid as she chuckled once more, ¡°Fifth Elder, you¡¯d best look after yourself for now. Even if you want to punish my father, we¡¯ll have to see whether you¡¯ve got the ability to do so in the first ce.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± The Fifth Elder¡¯s anxiety hade to a head.

    ¡°Fifth Elder, cool your head. Focus on expelling the demonic energy.¡± The Third Elder was far more cool-headed than the Fifth Elder, and he immediately reminded the Fifth Elder of the most important task at hand.

    With that, the Fifth Elder managed to suppress the indignation on his heart and focused his mind on expelling the demonic energy within his body.

    However, was Jun Xiaomo really going to let them focus their minds on the important tasks just like that? She was determined to have these perpetrators pay for what they had done! It would be best if they becamepletely crippled!

    ¡°Oh yes, do you want to take a look at He Zhang¡¯s current condition?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled with a wicked grin on her face. Then, before the members of the Dawn Sect could respond, the retrieved a mirror from her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°Kunlun Mirror?! Jun Xiaomo possesses a Kunlun Mirror?!¡± The Seventh Elder eximed, attracting the attention of all the other Sect Elders.

    Everyone¡¯s gazes were transfixed on the Kunlun Mirror in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands, and their eyes revealed indubitable traces of avarice and greed.

    Hah. What a bunch of greedy buffoons. Jun Xiaomo mocked in her heart.

    Within moments, everyone waspletely stunned by the sight of He Zhang¡¯s condition ¨C they could see patches of blood-red worms swarming around He Zhang, crawling around and burrowing in and out of his body. If not for the fact that they could still vaguely make out He Zhang¡¯s features on what was left of his face, nobody around would for a single moment believe the kind of tragedy that had befallen their dear Sect Leader.

    There were even some disciples who were unable to withstand the nauseating sight, and they ran to the side and threw up. It couldn¡¯t be helped; the sight was just far too grotesque.

    ¡°The worms on He Zhang¡¯s body are called the Spirit Devouring Worms, and they feast on the spiritual energy within a person¡¯s body. Don¡¯t look at me like that. These Spirit Devouring Worms weren¡¯t something nurtured and cultivated by me. It¡¯s something that your dear Sect Leader has been keeping under wraps from all of you. You can say that it¡¯se around to bite him on the ass right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly.

    ¡°You¡¯re spouting nonsense!¡± The Fifth Elder red at Jun Xiaomo with disbelief.

    ¡°You know full well whether I¡¯m lying or not. In fact, I sincerely believe you know even better than I do just what kind of person He Zhang is. Unfortunately, you viins collude together for your own nefarious ends, and you simply turn a blind eye to his idiosyncrasies and vile behavior. No, perhaps you even respect him for his decisiveness in that regard.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she grew taciturn. Her blood loss had be far too severe, and she had also begun to overdraw on her true energy as well.

    After all, this was the first time she had used this formation array, and she had not expected such severe side effects after a prolonged usage.

    Seems like I¡¯ve overestimated my own abilities. However, I can¡¯t afford to let these old fogeys know about this. Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to suppress them any longer.

    The Grand Elder had been waiting silently at the side all this while without making a single peep of sound. He was focusing all his energies on expelling the demonic energy from his body. At the same time, he was observing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition extremely closely.

    He squinted his eyes, before opening his mouth for the very first time, ¡°Actually, I¡¯m rather curious. Just how did you manage to slip into the Dawn Sect without alerting any single one of us?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo retorted cidly, ¡°Why should I tell you?¡±

    The other members of the Dawn Sect were incensed by her unruly responses, but the Grand Elder simply kept his cool.

    He had lived for a far longer time than anyone else around, and his heart was naturally far more steadfast. Otherwise, how could he live up to his name as the Grand Elder?

    Thus, he continued to speak ¨C

    ¡°Since you refuse to tell us, then why don¡¯t I make a guess instead? You snuck in using Qin Shanshan¡¯s identity, right? That man, Jun Ziwen, is not someone whom you¡¯ve simply encountered along the way. Rather, he¡¯s your partner in crime. Moreover, the only reason why you¡¯ve trapped us here is because you¡¯re buying time to allow your partner in crime to lead your martial brother from the Heavenly Peak out of the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds, am I right?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes quivered momentarily. She had never expected the Grand Elder to guess every single one of her moves almost spot on.

    Old fox! As expected, the ones with a bite don¡¯t bark. Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth as she eximed in her heart.

    The Grand Elder closely observed every single bit of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reactions, and he was now almost certain of the veracity of his conjectures. Then, a warm, radiant smile appeared to creep up his old, wrinkled face. Yet this smile sent chills down Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back and goosebumps creeping all over her skin.

    This was the ring foreshadowing of danger.

    ¡°And, if my guess isn¡¯t wrong, you¡¯re already at your limits right now.¡± As the Grand Elder finished speaking, he immediately sent an attack flying straight towards Jun Xiaomo!

    Not good! Jun Xiaomo immediately thought to dodge his attack. Unfortunately, she reacted toote and sustained a powerful blow from the Grand Elder squarely on her body, and she flew back like a kite with its string cut.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you affected?¡± Jun Xiaomo spat out arge mouthful of blood, but her eyes revealed an intense, unyielding gaze.

    ¡°It¡¯s because of something that all Grand Elders of the Dawn Sect are given since time immemorial.¡± The Grand Elder unhurriedly retrieved a piece of jade token from within his clothes.

    ¡°Chimeric Jade...no wonder...haha, despite all of my calctions, I¡¯d never expected the Grand Elder to possess a piece of Chimeric Jade on your body.¡±

    As long as a person wore or carried a piece of Chimeric Jade with him, not only would he be protected from the incursion of any demonic energy, he would even be far more resistant to the offensive abilities of formation arrays as a whole. No matter how powerful Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation arrays were, it was still powered by demonic energy when all was said and done. Thus, anyone carrying a piece of Chimeric Jade would naturally find themselves practically unaffected by the formation array to begin with.

    Now that Jun Xiaomo had been sent flying by the Grand Elder, her formation array had been forcible halted just like that. Just like that, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters gradually regained their senses and mobility.

    Am I really going to die here today? It¡¯s such a pity!

    As the stench of blood in her mouth grew increasingly stronger, it was with sheer willpower that Jun Xiaomo fought back against her quickly encroaching unconsciousness.

    She fought against the pain and stood her ground. Even if she lost, she was going to lose on ount of herbat abilities, not her proficiency with her formation arrays. This was her personal philosophy that echoed her pride.

    As the silhouettes in her eyes grew increasingly blurry, she bit down ferociously on her tongue, forcing herself to remain conscious. She saw that the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters had begun to make their move, and they were now surrounding her with delighted eyes that were hell bent on revenge.

    On the other hand, it was the Grand Elder who remained exactly where he was. After thwarting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns with a ferocious palm strike, he remainedpletely motionless where he was as he let others take over the job of cleaning up the mess.

    In his eyes, Jun Xiaomo was no different from a dead person right now. There was nothing she could do to create a reversal of the situation. Thus, he thought to simply make way so that the other Sect Elders and Peakmasters could ventte their anger on this little troublemaking brat that was on her final breaths.

    I¡¯m afraid these people are all intent on giving me death by a thousand cuts. A self-debasing smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips.

    Fortunately, she had already sent her martial brother Ye and the rest out of this ce. Furthermore, the demonic energy guing the bodies of the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters were going to stifle their efforts at elevating their cultivation any further. With that, her death would be well worth it.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! Hand over your life!¡±

    A furious bellow echoed out beside her. Jun Xiaomo shifted her attention to the side ¨C Who would¡¯ve thought that the first person to attack me would actually be the one who had watching the show on the side all this while? Who would¡¯ve thought it would be Qin Lingyu?

    Ah, that¡¯s right. He must¡¯ve guessed that I¡¯d killed Qin Shanshan, and the key to his Arcane Realm can never be restored. Otherwise, why would he be so consumed by rage right now?

    If she had not sustained such grievous injuries, a mere cultivator like Qin Lingyu in the Golden Core stage of cultivation could hardly be a threat to her.

    Unfortunately, her injuries were far too severe, and she knew she wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid this blow from Qin Lingyu.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes.

    She waited silently for the moment an excruciating pain washed through her body and inundated all her senses. However, in the next moment, she found herself tugged into the embrace of a warm bosom.

    ¡°Whoever dares to hurt Little Mo, it¡¯ll have to be over my dead body!¡± The stern, imposing voice was cold and deep. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo could hear that the person speaking was suppressing his rage right now.

    It¡¯s martial brother Ye...

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly. The pain emanating from the wounds on her hands told her that this was not a dream.

    Her resolute will had finally been broken by the softest touch. Her eyes grew warm, and tears of joy began to flow incessantly.

 Chapter 309: Dream and Reality, Qin Lingyuâ€™s Internal Struggle

    <h4>Chapter 309: Dream and Reality, Qin Lingyu¡¯s Internal Struggle</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen had taken Chen Feiyu¡¯s words with a pinch of salt.

    ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± is little martial sister? How is this possible? Didn¡¯t ¡°Qin Shanshan¡± previously say that she had lived for over three hundred years? Furthermore, if Miss Tong is none other than little martial sister, then where does her mysterious mastery and way with formation arrays and talismanse from? After all, both disciplines of talismans and formation arrays aren¡¯t things that can be mastered over a single decade. At the very least, it¡¯s not possible to attain ¡°Qin Shanshan¡¯s¡± level of proficiency within such a short span of time.

    Yet all of these questions in his heart werepletely washed away in that single moment that he saw Jun Xiaomo. That figure dressed in striking red that was standing in the encirclement right now was undoubtedly and unmistakably his little martial sister.

    Unfortunately, the moment that Ye Xiuwen recognized Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure was also the moment that he noticed that Jun Xiaomo was barely hanging on by the skin of her teeth.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen increased the output of his Windwalk ability to the limits and arrived by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side in the blink of an eye. Fortunately, he managed to catch her before she fell to the ground and parry one of Qin Lingyu¡¯s oing attacks.

    Qin Lingyu was only at the Golden Core stage of cultivation, while Ye Xiuwen had already attained the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. Their abilities were separated by an entire qualitative level.

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen had arrived in the nick of time, parrying a fatal blow, and he was now staring coldly at everyone around while supporting Jun Xiaomo in his arms. As he looked at ¡°Jun Ziwen¡±, Qin Lingyu felt a mix of emotions washing through his heart.

    This man, Jun Ziwen, had never appeared a single time within his dreams. In fact, the only person able to win Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart from the start to the end of the entire series of dreams had been him, and him alone. But now, it was apparent that Jun Ziwen possessed an unusual rtionship with Jun Xiaomo. After all, it was evident that Jun Xiaomo had be thoroughly rxed as soon as Jun Ziwen made his appearance. She had rested her entire being on Jun Ziwen¡¯s body, burying herself in his bosom, and nobody could see the expression on her face right now.

    As he observed coldly how Jun Xiaomo appeared to be so reliant on Jun Ziwen, Qin Lingyu felt a sudden wave of displeasure wash through his heart.

    Back when Qin Lingyu just awakened from his dreams, he couldn¡¯t help but ask himself whether he had truly never developed an affection for Jun Xiaomo in his dreams? At that time, his answer was most certainly in the negative.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo was a demonic cultivator, her unconstrained lifestyle and her cold, demonic dispositionced every single move she made with mesmerizing ir. Who could possibly not find themselves moved and grow fond of such a person?

    Truth be told, back when Jun Xiaomo was fervently under persecution, several persecutors had in fact secretly fallen for her. Unfortunately, with their reputation as members of upstanding and righteous Sects, none of them would ever consider confessing to such a Lady Demoness whose life everyone was after.

    After all, getting together with a Lady Demoness was tantamount tomitting himself to a lifetime of being persecuted by association as well ¨C who would possibly be so infatuated as to agree to something like this? If not for the fact that Qin Lingyu had used the pretext of lulling Jun Xiaomo into a sense of security to lure her into a fatal trap at that time, he would almost certainly have beenbeled as a co-conspirator and suffered the exact same fate as her.

    In his dreams, Qin Lingyu had found himself time and againpletely mesmerized by Jun Xiaomo, and he had struggled hard to fight against the urge, reminding and cautioning himself not to fall any deeper into the mires of love because nothing good woulde out of it for his personal growth. He was not prepared to be treated as vermin and persecuted wherever he went.

    After all, Qin Lingyu was fated to be the next Sect Leader of the Dawn Sect, so how could he let the blemish that Jun Xiaomo was tarnish his reputation and smear his existence?

    Most importantly, Yu Wanrou had been by his side all that time. He was not a saint, and he had never thought to keep himself pure andpletely faithful to Yu Wanrou. However, Yu Wanrou had threatened to deny him rights to her backroom if he truly fell in love with Jun Xiaomo.

    Yu Wanrou possessed a unique, powerful dual-cultivation technique, and practicing this dual-cultivation technique, would allow his cultivation to soar. However, the catch was that this was only possible if performed with someone possessing the Fox n¡¯s bloodline. From what he knew, Yu Wanrou was the only one who possessed such a bloodline.

    Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t help but be even more moved by the prospects of elerated cultivation speeds under the effects of this dual-cultivation technique. Thus, even though Yu Wanrou had openly allowed several men ess into her backroom, each of them had consciously decided to turn a blind eye to this fact in favor of their own personal cultivation abilities. This was what kept a delicate bnce between the one matriarch that Yu Wanrou was, as well as the harem of men beneath her skirt.

    In other words, they had always despised Yu Wanrou¡¯s unfaithfulness to them. However, they were willing to be used by Yu Wanrou and be part of her harem for the sake of their own cultivation.

    For the sake of the dual-cultivation technique, he could not bring himself to be wholeheartedlymitted to Jun Xiaomo. At best, they would merely be married in name as he carried out his ndestine, ulterior motives in secrecy.

    Later, Jun Xiaomo fell prey to Qin Shanshan¡¯s ploys and bore a child. When Qin Lingyu knew about this in his dreams, he waspletely incensed, and he even nearly killed his own sister for what she had done.

    How can Jun Xiaomo bear a child?! How can she bear someone else¡¯s child?!

    In his fury, Qin Lingyu hadpletely overlooked the fact that he wasrgely to me for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s predicament to begin with. After all, when Jun Xiaomo had mistaken another man for him, he had still been tussling and tangling in Yu Wanrou¡¯s bed inpletely ecstasy.

    From thereon, whenever Jun Xiaomo looked blissfully in Qin Lingyu¡¯s eyes, telling him about how she nned to bring up the child and groom and nurture the child, his heart would always wrench viciously in pain.

    That was not his child to begin with! The fact that his wife was bearing someone else¡¯s child was aplete disgrace to him!

    Thus, when Yu Wanrou suggested to murder the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb and deal a grievous injury to Jun Xiaomo at the same time, Qin Lingyu agreed without a single moment of hesitation. Quite apart from the fact that he had no means of rejecting Yu Wanrou¡¯s request if he wished to retain his ess to her backroom, he was already incensed by the fact that the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb was not his to begin with!

    The child¡¯s existence was undoubtedly a constant reminder that his wife-in-name, Jun Xiaomo, had made him a cuckold and turned him into a massiveughingstock.

    Muchter on, when he visited the dark and dank dungeon where Jun Xiaomo was being held, and he saw how she was shrunken into a corner like a discarded, crumpled piece of rag, his remorse and lingering affection for Jun Xiaomo waspletely extinguished just like that.

    The person he was fond of was the dignified, imposing Jun Xiaomo, not the one in the dungeon covered in bloodstains and so dispirited that she could hardly even hold a candle to a mere mortal.

    Then, Yu Wanrou also proposed their marriage at approximately the same time, and he immediately agreed. He knew that Yu Wanrou had done it on purpose, but what did he have to lose? He had always been on the same boat as Yu Wanrou, and their lives werepletely inextricable from the other.

    On their wedding day, a bright red bolt of light shed out of the blue, and Qin Lingyu perished. Qin Lingyu was immediately jolted awake from his dreams there and then.

    When he first woke up, he was almost unable to distinguish reality from dream. After all, his long, protracted series of dreams had taken ce over ten full years, each of which seemed to be of more rity and depth than the other. At some point, it even began to feel as though this was something had had truly happened in the past.

    Yet, after Qin Lingyu once again adjusted his spirits and collected his thoughts, he realized that this series of dreams had ended there and then, and he no longer fell back into the same dream again.

    Thus, he began to think that he would finally forget about the dreams he had been having over time. After all, it was rumoured that Jun Xiaomo had already perished, and he was no longer having the series of dreams. Yet, as though a never-ending nightmare that continued to gue him, Jun Xiaomo suddenly reappeared before his very eyes out of the blue, and she even looked exactly the same as the Jun Xiaomo in his dreams.

    What can this possibly mean? Could the dreams be real? Is this something that¡¯s going to happen in future? Ripples of undting emotions began to surface on Qin Lingyu heart.

    Naturally, these ripples were merely small undtions, and they could hardly bepared to the massive tidal wave of emotions in his heart when he first learnt that Qin Shanshan had perishedpletely.

    If Qin Shanshan¡¯s dead, doesn¡¯t this mean that my Arcane Realm key is gone forever?!

    Qin Lingyu peered into his Interspatial Ring and retrieved Qin Shanshan¡¯s Origin Locket. In the end, all he could retrieve was what remained of an Origin Locket that had beenpletely shattered.

    It was over. Everything that he had worked for had beenpletely ruined by Jun Xiaomo!

    Thus, when heunched that vicious strike against Jun Xiaomo, his only thoughts were to kill Jun Xiaomo and wipe her off the surface of the world!

    But now, when he saw Jun Xiaomo leaning against Jun Ziwen¡¯s bosom with such reliance, his rationality returned to him once again.

    Right now, he could no longer make out the exact emotions roiling in his heart ¨C he knew that indignation and anger was definitely there, but what else was there?

    He was not prepared to admit that there was even some measure of jealousy and heartache right now.

    After all, in his dreams, Jun Xiaomo had given him her wholehearted affection, so why would reality be so different? Why did Jun Xiaomo have loving suitor after loving suitor? First, it was Ye Xiuwen, then it was Rong Ruihan, and now there¡¯s even a Jun Ziwen...

    That said, Qin Lingyu had never paused for a single moment to consider what right he had to think of Jun Xiaomo as his rightful possession to begin with.

    At this time, Ye Xiuwen was coldly ring at the members of the Dawn Sect who were surrounding Jun Xiaomo. His arms subconsciously tightened around Jun Xiaomo.

    Almost. He had almost lost Jun Xiaomo again. If not for martial brother Chen¡¯s reminder, the consequences would have been absolutely dire.

    Now that Jun Ziwen had made his appearance once more, none of the members of the Dawn Sect dared to continueunching reckless attacks at Jun Xiaomo. This was because none of them had seen Jun Ziwen¡¯s abilities, much less be able to even estimate the depths of his abilities.

    ¡°Jun Ziwen, do you know what the person in your bosom is? She¡¯s a demonic cultivator! Do you really want to be implicated with such a person like her?!¡± The Fifth Elder bellowed as though with righteous indignation, making a feeble attempt to win Jun Ziwen to his camp.

    However, Ye Xiuwen cidly retorted, ¡°So what if she¡¯s a demonic cultivator? I already knew since a long time ago that she was a demonic cultivator.¡±

    ¡°You!¡± The Fifth Elder cried out with anguish, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid of being persecuted by the entire spiritual cultivation world?!¡±

    ¡°Hah, persecution?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly, ¡°Aren¡¯t you already persecuting the members of the Heavenly Peak to begin with? As a fellow member of the Heavenly Peak, I, Ye Xiuwen, am already part of your ambit of persecution, am I not?¡±

    ¡°You...you¡¯re Ye Xiuwen?!¡± The Fifth Elder¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief, ¡°Impossible! Isn¡¯t Ye Xiuwen¡¯s facepletely disfigured as a result of the incursion of demonic energy? That¡¯s an incurable scar!¡±

    ¡°Your incapability of doing so doesn¡¯t mean that everyone else in the world doesn¡¯t have the ability to do so either. Truth be told, if not for my little martial sister here, I wouldn¡¯t have had my eyes opened to the extent of incapability of the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders. You can¡¯t even cure a simple scar caused by the incursion of demonic energy.¡±

    Perhaps it was due to their protracted interactions, but Ye Xiuwen seemed to have picked up a thing or two from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sharp tongue and her ability to provoke and incense people with just her words. At the very least, the Sect Elders and Peakmasters were already boiling from what Ye Xiuwen had just said.

    ¡°Hah! Since that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s nothing more for us to talk about. You martial siblings can leave your lives here today!¡±

    As soon as the Fifth Elder finished speaking, he immediatelyunched an attack at Ye Xiuwen, and the other Sect Elders charged towards him at about the same time.

    Ye Xiuwen was Jun Linxuan¡¯s First-Seat Disciple, while Jun Xiaomo was Jun Linxuan¡¯s daughter. If they could kill both of them today, it would undoubtedly deal a massive emotional trauma to Jun Linxuan. Thus, the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Eldersunched ferocious attacked with great vigor as they gazed upon their targets expectantly.

    As Jun Xiaomo remained in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom, she felt both moved as well as anxious. After all, she did not want any harm toe to her martial brother Ye.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo grabbed tightened her arm around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s neck slightly and she struggled to lean closer to him as she whispered into his ears, ¡°Lure them to the surrounding woods. I¡¯ve got a way to deal with them.¡±

    A swathe of anger immediately swelled up Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest and he muttered with some measure of indignation, ¡°Nonsense! Are you going to tell me that your ¡®way¡¯ is to continue overdrawing the energy within your body?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had not expected Ye Xiuwen to berate her like that, and her heart began to feel slightly aggrieved.

    However, she simply shook her head slightly as she exined, ¡°It¡¯s not that. I¡¯d done that previously so that I could draw their attention and buy you time to run away. This was why I didn¡¯t lure them to the woods to begin with. But now that you¡¯re here, the best way would naturally be to trap them within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.¡±

    As he looked into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gleaming eyes, his heart softened ¨C Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t bring himself to continue berating her.

    ¡°You¡¯re not allowed to push yourself.¡± Ye Xiuwen sincerely warned her. This was already the umpteenth time he was cautioning Jun Xiaomo this way.

    Unfortunately, he knew that it was going to be incredibly difficult protecting Jun Xiaomo while fending off the relentless attacks from all of the Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders with his present abilities. Thus, he knew that the only thing he could to was to trust Jun Xiaomo one more time and hope that she would not force the issue.

    At least she was not dead. At least she was alive and well ¨C this, to him, was enough.

 Chapter 310: Dawn Sectâ€™s Old Fogeys Pay the Price

    <h4>Chapter 310: Dawn Sect¡¯s Old Fogeys Pay the Price</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    On Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suggestion, Ye Xiuwen lifted her up, activated his Windwalk abilities and immediately sprinted towards the woods outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds.

    The Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders were unaware that something was up. After all, given how they had the advantage both in terms of numbers as well as their overall cultivation level, they unanimously thought that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intention was to retreat and escape. Thus, all of them immediately gave chase.

    Ye Xiuwen could sense Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grip weakening, and he immediately noticed that she was beginning to slump, almost as though she were gettingpletely drained of energy.

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he called out to her gently.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled bitterly, ¡°I¡¯m getting a bit lightheaded. I don¡¯t think I can hang in there anymore. I¡¯m going to sleep for a bit first. Wake me up when we¡¯re at the woods.¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo was still fighting alone, she would with sheer willpower grit her teeth and fight through the pain, no matter how harsh her environment and how grievous her wounds. But now that she was in the arms of someone whom she wholeheartedly trusted, her spirits subconsciously loosened up, and her grit soon gave way.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo fell into a deep slumber...

    ¡°Damn!¡± Ye Xiuwen cursed aloud as he hurriedly retrieved a bottle of recovery pills from his Interspatial Ring and forced Jun Xiaomo to ingest the pills.

    How could I have forgotten something so important? Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but berate himself.

    ¡°Xiaomo, don¡¯t sleep yet. Let¡¯s wait till we get to a safe ce before you sleep, alright?¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks lightly.

    However, Jun Xiaomo appeared to havepletely passed out, and she did not give any form of response whatsoever.

    A trace of heaviness flickered across the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. His little martial sister was among the youngest of all of them, yet she still had to carry such heavy burdens all on her own.

    Then, an unwavering determination washed over his heart ¨C No matter what happens, I¡¯m going to bring Jun Xiaomo out of this ce alive!

    As they drew closer to the forest outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds, Ye Xiuwen resolved in his heart not to awaken Jun Xiaomo if she remained unconscious, because he did not want her to bear with such a heavy burden on her own any longer. Furthermore, he knew that if Jun Xiaomo overdrew the energy within her body in such a condition, the consequences would truly be dire! If he could, he would most certainly hope to leave with Jun Xiaomo just like that.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo regained consciousness on her own ord as soon as they arrived at the forest.

    ¡°Martial brother, bring me to the ce where the spiritual energy is the thickest. That is where the heart of the formation array is located.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke softly.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he responded, ¡°Rest for a little bit more. I¡¯ll bring you to a safe ce right now.¡±

    As soon as they were out of the forest, they would be able to leave using a Teleportation Scroll. At that time, even the old fogeys from the Dawn Sect would not be able to track down exactly where they had gone.

    ¡°No, don¡¯t! Martial brother, this is a prime opportunity. I don¡¯t want to give those bastards another opportunity to recover.¡± Jun Xiaomo spoke with a resolute, unppable determination. It was as though she were drawing on a mysterious source of energy as she lifted her head once more and stared straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. It was a look filled with pleading and hope.

    Faced with such a gaze from his little martial sister, Ye Xiuwen found himself unable to reject her earnest pleading.

    ¡°Alright, but you can¡¯t force the issue, and you must never overdraft your energy, understand?¡± Ye Xiuwen cautioned in all seriousness.

    He had no choice. He knew that he could only relent when Jun Xiaomo pleaded with him like that. He could sense the deep, immense hatred against the Dawn Sect¡¯s old fogeys that was buried in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. If she were not given the opportunity to deal a heavy blow to those old fogeys right now, he knew full well that Jun Xiaomo would be downcast for a very long time.

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen brought Jun Xiaomo over to the part of the forest where the spiritual energy was the thickest, and slowly set her down there.

    ¡°Martial brother, there¡¯s something else that I would like your help with.¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated before asking.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the hesitance in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and he patted her head as he cajoled, ¡°Speak your mind. What¡¯s there that you¡¯re unable to tell your martial brother about?¡±

    ¡°The Grand Elder possesses a piece of Chimeric Jade on him. As long as that piece of Chimeric Jade is on him, he will be practically impervious to the effects of the formation array, so...¡±

    ¡°Are you asking your martial brother can help you to break the piece of Chimeric Jade, or are you asking your martial brother to deal with the Grand Elder and keep him busy?¡± Ye Xiuwen gave Jun Xiaomo an indulgent look.

    ¡°Actually, both are fine. I¡¯ll be trapping the others using the formation array, isting the Grand Elder. That way, it will be convenient for you to go about doing what you need to do. That said, the Grand Elder is far too powerful, and I¡¯m quite afraid that this arrangement will endanger martial brother.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined the concerns on her heart.

    Truth be told, there was truly no rush to deal with the old fogeys from the Dawn Sect. However, this was undoubtedly a prime opportunity that had presented itself. If they missed out on such an opportunity like this, the old fogeys from the Dawn Sect would have all the time they need to rest and recuperate. By then, it would be much more difficult if Jun Xiaomo wished to deal with them again.

    This was why Jun Xiaomo was so determined to deal a heavy blow to the old fogeys right now.

    ¡°Alright. Then, leave the Grand Elder to your martial brother. You have to be careful.¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed.

    Jun Xiaomo deliberated for a little while more, and then she suddenly grabbed onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand and quipped, ¡°Martial brother, scratch that. It would be best if you don¡¯t go instead. It¡¯ll suffice if I trap the others within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array. We can leave the Grand Elder be and deal with him another time.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo gazed earnestly into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes with a grimace on her face as she tugged at his hands. It was as though she were concerned that he would engage in a life-or-death battle with the Grand Elder in the very next moment.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed and pulling his hand out. Then, he lightly hugged her and patted her back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, your martial brother still has a high-grade Invisibility Talisman which you had given earlier. Little Mo, I¡¯m your older martial brother. You don¡¯t have to bear all of the burden yourself; let your martial brother help you with some of that, alright? Believe me, nothing will go wrong.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart soured. The rims of her eyes turned red and she fought back her tears as she responded, ¡°Alright. Martial brother is not allowed to lie to me. Come back if you¡¯re unable to deal with the Grand Elder. You¡¯re not allowed to disappear again just like that.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled, ¡°Alright.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he paused for a moment, and then bent down and gave Jun Xiaomo a gentle peck on the top of her head.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart trembled slightly. Then, before she could react, Ye Xiuwen spun around and sped off into the distance. Jun Xiaomo immediately lifted her hand and grabbed at the air, but all she saw was a green-garbed figure speeding into the distance.

    Ye Xiuwen possessed a wind-based spiritual root, and his movements were simply too quick ¨C Jun Xiaomo was unable to catch a hold of him.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, you¡¯ve got toe back.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered softly as a trace of resolute determination filled her eyes.

    On the other side, the Dawn Sect¡¯s old fogeys followed Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo into the forest just outside the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds before losing sight of the two.

    ¡°Damn! It¡¯s just been slightly over ten years. How in the world did Ye Xiuwen be so formidable in such a short span of time?!¡± The Fifth Elder decried with indignation.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s talent for cultivation had always been rtively high, they knew that it was not very much different from Qin Lingyu¡¯s standards. That said, it was evident that there was a massive rift between Ye Xiuwen and Qin Lingyu¡¯s abilities right now.

    This was something that had been bugging everyone around, especially Qin Lingyu. Qin Lingyu had previously seen Ye Xiuwen as his greatest rival because Ye Xiuwen was the only one whose talent for cultivation wasparable with his own.

    But as things were right now, Ye Xiuwen had already left him in the dust. Was there still any hope of catching up to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities?

    These thoughts left a sour taste in Qin Lingyu¡¯s mouth and a stifling feeling in his heart. Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t help but curse Ye Xiuwen in his heart, hoping that Ye Xiuwen would wake up one day only to find that his cultivation level had been entirely crippled. That way, Qin Lingyu would finally be able to trample on Ye Xiuwen underfoot.

    As they continued to walk on, Qin Lingyu suddenly discovered that the scenery around had changed, and the Sect Elders and Peakmasters around him had also suddenly vanished.

    Damn! This must be the Sect¡¯s protective formation array!

    Qin Lingyu¡¯s mind immediately red with warning signs, and he began to berate himself for being toocent and careless earlier.

    He should have known this. Since Jun Ziwen was none other than Ye Xiuwen, then the Sect¡¯s protective formation array could not have been altered or tampered with by him, and it was far more likely that the culprit for that initial incident was Jun Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately, he had been overwhelmed by the rage guing his mind, and such a realization hade far toote.

    Now that he thought about things more clearly, it was evident that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had rushed straight towards the forest surrounding the Dawn Sect¡¯s grounds precisely because they had a clear n in mind. They had always intended to trap the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array and deal with them using the formation array¡¯s abilities.

    What should I do now? How do I get out of here? What¡¯s Jun Xiaomo thinking of doing to us here? Is she going to kill us?

    Qin Lingyu couldn¡¯t help but recall how horrific the sight of He Zhang¡¯s endless torment was, and he shuddered as chills went down his back.

    What do I do? I don¡¯t want to die! I¡¯ve got to get out of here!

    The present Qin Lingyu no longer thought about his nuanced schemes and ploys any longer. As the Sword of Damocles dangled dangerously over his head, this was the first time he had realized just how fearsome a powerful array master was. To think that a formidable cultivator in the Golden Core stage of cultivation like him would find himself in such a powerless situation!

    As worry and anxiety mounted in his heart, a tendril covered in spikes suddenly shot out from the ground and bound up his entire body and limbs. At the very next moment, another tendril instantly swept towards Qin Lingyu andshed him across the face.

    ¡°Ahh--!!¡± Qin Lingyu cried out in pain, and a gash so deep that his bones could be seen instantly syed across his face from his left forehead all the way to the right side of his lower jaw.

    To make matters worse, he instantly began to feel a painful and itchy sensation spreading across his entire face. He felt so much like scratching his macabre wound to relieve himself of the unbearable itch, yet his limbs were entirely bound and restrained by the first tendril.

    Just like that, Qin Lingyu¡¯s handsome and suave appearances werepletely ruined, and he also fainted from the overwhelming pain that spread throughout his body.

    As the tendril continued to bind and restrained the unconscious Qin Lingyu, the little spikes on the tendril that had already prated his skin began to divert threads of spiritual energy from his meridians and absorb them into the tendrils.

    On the other side, at the heart of the formation array, Jun Xiaomo sat cross-legged on the ground, and a holographic disy of the protective formation array¡¯s domain was floating in front of her eyes. As she silently observed Qin Lingyu¡¯s present appearances, a cold, frosty smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    A simr sight was ying out at different parts of the protective formation array¡¯s domain. Apart from the Grand Elder who possessed the Chimeric Jade, all of the other old fogeys from Dawn Sect had met with the same fate of being attacked by the mysterious tendrils that had sprouted out of nowhere.

    These tendrils were not in fact real spirit nts that existed in the cultivation world. Rather, they were simply a material manifestation of the illusion-inducing formation array¡¯s effects. Through these tendrils, the illusion-inducing formation array would absorb the spiritual energy from their prey in order to continually sustain its own formation array. This was an ability that the illusion-inducing formation array had gained after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s modifications to it.

    Jun Xiaomo intended to use it to thoroughly drain all of them of spiritual energy and turn them into nothing more than crippled cultivators!

    Didn¡¯t you all strut around, priding yourself in your powerful abilities and formidable cultivation whilst oppressing the Heavenly Peak? I¡¯m going to watch with my own two eyes how you¡¯re going to live your life after being stripped of all of your abilities!

    She had no intentions of killing these old fogeys to begin with. Instead, she had trapped them within the formation array just so that they could pay their dues. At that time, even death would be a form of reprieve to them.

 Chapter 311: Awakening, Ye Xiuwen Settles the Score

    <h4>Chapter 311: Awakening, Ye Xiuwen Settles the Score</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Under the effects of the Invisibility Talisman, Ye Xiuwen managed to sessfully apprehend the Grand Elder and shatter the Chimeric Jade on his body without a hitch.

    As the Grand Elder faded away into the formation array¡¯s roiling fog, Ye Xiuwen did not even bother staying to fight. Instead, he immediately turned around and made his way back to Jun Xiaomo.

    Without the protection of the Chimeric Jade, the Grand Elder was bound to suffer the same fate as everyone else ¨C he would be trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s protective formation array, only to have his body slowly drained of spiritual energy until it was finally dry and withered up.

    With that, Ye Xiuwen began to make his way back in the direction where the spiritual energy was the thickest, and he soon arrived back at the heart of the formation array. As soon as he arrived, he saw Jun Xiaomo copsed on the ground,pletely unconscious.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen quickly rushed forward and gently sat her up again as he checked on the condition of her meridians and Dantian.

    In the end, she still failed to make good on her promise ¨C she had overdrawn her energy, and her body waspletely drained at this moment. Everything had been used to power the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.

    If Ye Xiuwen had not returned as quickly as he did, the consequences for Jun Xiaomo might have been dire.

    ¡°When will you stop forcing the issue like that?¡± Ye Xiuwen sighed as he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair before lifting her up horizontally.

    He could no longer care about what happens to the Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders. At this point in time, the only thought pressing on his mind was to find a safe ce for his little martial sister to recover from her injuries. Otherwise, his little martial sister would be at risk of losing all of her hard-earned cultivation once more.

    When Chen Feiyu and the rest saw Ye Xiuwen returning with an unconscious Jun Xiaomo, all of them were slightly taken aback.

    They had waited such a long time for Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen that their patience had long worn thin, and they were even thinking of rushing in themselves to save their martial siblings. Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo reemerged from the forest just moments before their patience had worn out.

    ¡°What happened to martial sister Xiaomo?¡± Chen Feiyu tookrge strides forward and looked worriedly at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°She¡¯s dealt with the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders and Peakmasters all on her own. Unfortunately, in so doing, she has over-drafted her own energy and passed out.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined sinctly.

    ¡°This...¡± Chen Feiyu looked at Jun Xiaomo,pletely speechless.

    Those who were more familiar with Ye Xiuwen could tell that he was slightly upset at Jun Xiaomo.

    It was evident that his anger had stemmed from everything that Jun Xiaomo had done, from concealing her identity, to shouldering the burden of dealing with the Dawn Sect¡¯s leaders all on her own, and to how she had even over-drafted her own energy, nearly sacrificing own life for all she was trying to achieve.

    Why can¡¯t this little brat learn to take her own life seriously?!

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know what Jun Xiaomo had been through, and why she would treat her own life with such reckless abandon just to achieve her own goals.

    That said, he knew that everything which Jun Xiaomo had done had caused him anger, exasperation, and some measure of heartache.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, what should we do now? Will the people of Dawn Sect still be pursuing us?¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple quipped in concern.

    ¡°They won¡¯t being after us for the moment. Martial sister Xiaomo has trapped all of them within the Sect¡¯s protective formation array.¡± Ye Xiuwen explicated, ¡°Let¡¯s find a safe ce andy low for now. Xiaomo has been dealt a grievous wound by the Grand Elder and her condition isn¡¯t too good. Furthermore, she¡¯s overdrawn her energy, and she appears to be hanging on by the skin of her teeth.¡±

    ¡°Alright, then we¡¯d best be on our way quickly.¡± Chen Feiyu nodded his head and summoned the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Then they adopted a defensive formation and surrounded Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen as they sped off into the distance.

    As for the Teleportation Scroll, Ye Xiuwen stashed it once again in his Interspatial Ring. Now that they were certain nobody would be pursuing after them anytime soon, they knew that there was no longer a need for them to waste yet another Teleportation Scroll.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo remained in a state of unconsciousness for three full days. On the dawn of the fourth day, she finally regained consciousness and opened her eyes again.

    ¡°This is...¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked her eyes wearily as she looked at the unfamiliar d¨¦cor around her. For a single second there, she was unable to tell whether she was still in a dream or whether she had finally returned to reality.

    She had the vague impression that she had just experienced an arduously long-drawn dream that was filled with grotesque and variegated scenes. Yet when she awakened from the dream itself, she could no longer recall a single thing about those dreams.

    At this moment, all she knew was that she had been asleep for a long time, and she had been dreaming a lot.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± She rubbed her throbbing temples as she struggled to sit up. Then, it took Jun Xiaomo some time before she managed to finally suppress the nausea that was relentlessly swelling up from the depths of her stomach.

    The things around feel real. I¡¯m no longer dreaming.

    Seems like I¡¯m still a little bit overdrawn. Jun Xiaomo grimaced.

    Squeak. The door opened, and a person dressed in green entered the room. Jun Xiaomo looked up immediately, but the person who just entered the room was not the person she was hoping to see.

    ¡°Ah! Little martial sister, you¡¯re finally awake! That¡¯s great news! I¡¯ve got to let everyone know!¡± The person who had entered his room eximed in joy and delight.

    ¡°Martial brother Zhou? So, it¡¯s you...um, about that, where¡¯s martial brother Ye?¡± Jun Xiaomo hesitated for a moment before asking the question that was weighing on her heart.

    She had hoped very much that the first person she would see when she first came to would be Ye Xiuwen. How could she have expected the first person she saw to be another Heavenly Peak disciple, Zhou Huaqing instead?

    ¡°Oh, martial brother Ye? He¡¯s attending to something right now, and he¡¯ll be hereter on.¡± Zhou Huaqing chuckled dryly as he vaguely glossed over his response.

    It had to be mentioned that all of the Heavenly Peak disciples took after Jun Linxuan in more ways than one, and they would never do anything to obscure the contemtions of their heart. Thus, how could Jun Xiaomo not be aware of the contrived expression on Zhou Huaqing¡¯s face? However, she trusted everyone from the Heavenly Peak. She was not going to force them to give an answer if they were not prepared to disclose something.

    This was a form of basic trust and respect.

    That said, Zhou Huaqing felt rather guilty about all of this because he was evidently concealing something from Jun Xiaomo. Thus, he simply looked back at Jun Xiaomo sheepishly,pletely lost for words.

    Just like that, the atmosphere in the room became sullen and awkward.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right!¡± Zhou Huaqing smacked his head as he finally found something else to talk about to defuse the awkwardness in the air, ¡°Martial sister Xiaomo, you¡¯re amazing. Just a little while ago, we were allpletely unaware of just what you had done to the leaders of the Dawn Sect. But now, we¡¯ve just heard some news on the grapevine that the Sect Elders and the Peakmasters have all experienced a fall in their cultivation by a few qualitative levels. Furthermore, their Sect Leader has gone missing entirely. Thetest news is that everyone around seems to be eyeing the Dawn Sect¡¯s territory and their wealth right now.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled and chuckled as she responded, ¡°That¡¯s only natural. After all, when have these self-professed upstanding and sanctimonious sects ever acted with any restraint? The only thing they know to do is to seize and steal the wealth of others under the pretext of a righteous crusade. Didn¡¯t their targets include the Heavenly Peak earlier? Right now, they¡¯ve turned their eyes away only because arger target has just presented itself.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true! Back then, we were truly blind to have thought that the Sect Leader and the Sect Elders were upstanding and righteous people. But now, after this incident, we¡¯ve finally seen for ourselves their vile, disgusting characters.¡± Zhou Huaqing huffed indignantly. The close brush with death in the forbidden grounds had snapped them right back to their senses ¨C not all spiritual cultivators were morally good; and not all demonic cultivators were morally bad. Everything depended on how they used their abilities.

    Jun Xiaomo sighed and grew taciturn.

    Wasn¡¯t she once like that as well? It was only after she had experienced an entire lifetime of mistakes that she came to her present realization of the whole truth.

    The atmosphere grew tense and heavy once more. Zhou Huaqing discovered that ever since Jun Xiaomo had awakened, her spirits had somewhat been downcast. Even after he informed her about the tragic predicament that the leaders of the Dawn Sect had found themselves in, Jun Xiaomo had remained just as unmoved, and there was hardly any trace of joy or delight in her expressions at all.

    Zhou Huaqing scratched his head; he had never been too good with matters of the heart to begin with. Seeing his little martial sister like this truly made his head hurt. Should I ask for reinforcements in this regard?

    Or does this simply mean that little martial sister only wants to see martial brother Ye right now? Zhou Huaqing¡¯s eyes brightened ¨C he seemed to have seen the light.

    But, martial brother Ye is currently...

    As soon as he thought about where Ye Xiuwen could be right now, Zhou Huaqing began to find himself caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    Just as he was deliberating about what to do next, the door squeaked and opened once more.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits were indeed rather low right now, so when she lifted her head and noticed another person standing at the door, her eyes instantly widened with a pleasant surprise.

    It¡¯s martial brother Ye!

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen entered the room, he was simrly greeted with a pleasant surprise. Just a few days ago, Jun Xiaomo had been lying on the bedpletely motionless, and her life was evidently hanging by just a thread; but now, she was staring straight back at him with an equal measure of surprise. Instantly, a wave of warmth washed through his heart.

    Seems like it was the right decision to enter this valley. Otherwise, how could Xiaomo have recovered from her injuries so quickly?

    Ye Xiuwen immediately walked into the room with an expectant gait.

    Zhou Huaqing had already slipped out of the room as soon as he noticed the stark change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions ¨C Seems like only martial brother Ye can coax little martial sister here. I¡¯d best be on my way and let everyone else know the good news that little martial sister has alreadye to!

    Ye Xiuwen walked towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bedside, pulled a stool over and sat beside her.

    ¡°You¡¯re finally awake?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly as he quipped. His eyes were filled with a genial gaze.

    Even though he had earlier been thoroughly infuriated by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behaviour, his anger had already substantially dissipated over thest three days that Jun Xiaomo had been unconscious.

    Over thest three days, Ye Xiuwen slowly came to the realization that nothing else really mattered as long as Jun Xiaomo could regain her consciousness once more. After all, everything was already in the past, was it not? All he had to do in future was to remind Jun Xiaomo time and again not to recklessly put her life in danger; was there really a need to pick on what she had done in the past and berate her for it?

    Furthermore, they could take things one step at a time and deal with the matters in future when they arose.

    Meanwhile, Jun Xiaomo had wholeheartedly longed to see Ye Xiuwen again before their present reunion. However, when Ye Xiuwen finally sat in front of her like he did right now, she suddenly found herselfpletely at a loss for some strange reason.

    She had never expected to feel this lost.

    Could they have grown distant to each other after all these years of being apart? But weren¡¯t they getting along just fine earlier when her martial brother Ye was still Jun Ziwen?

    Then, when she began to contemte the matters that had urred while Ye Xiuwen was still Jun Ziwen, Jun Xiaomo felt a hot wave of embarrassment wash over her face.

    Back then, she had even made the outrageous deration that she and Jun Ziwen have done the deed between married couples. How would her martial brother Ye view her after all of that?

    Would he think of her as a cheap woman? But that was an exnation that she had toe up with in the spur of the moment; would her martial brother Ye be able to understand all of that?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was in a mess, and her thoughts were all over the ce. Yet at the same time, she felt that none of these thoughts could be shared and discussed with Ye Xiuwen in an open space.

    Thus, she could only lower her head with some measure of embarrassment.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes ¨C she had earlier been looking at him with delighted expectancy, yet now she had lowered her head so much that all he could see was the whorl on the top of her head. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened slightly.

    ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Ye Xiuwen rapped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head lightly.

    Jun Xiaomo clutched at her head in pain as she looked back up with an usatory, aggrieved expression.

    ¡°I¡¯m still recovering from my injuries! Martial brother Ye, aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯ll pass out again if you knock my head like that?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled mischievously, ¡°If I didn¡¯t give you a good knock on the head, wouldn¡¯t you remain sullen until the end of time?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo muttered, ¡°It¡¯s because we¡¯ve just been reunited under such conditions, and I didn¡¯t know where to begin...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen pinched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks lightly as he retorted, ¡°Can this really be considered ¡®just reunited¡¯? I wonder who¡¯s been concealing her identity all this while, hmm?¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen spoke, the smile on his face began to give way to his imposing, older-martial-brother disposition.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed twice dryly, ¡°That...I was only forced by circumstances back then...¡±

    She truly felt rather guilt-ridden for keeping her identity concealed all this time.

    That said, it was precisely because of such a digression that the air of awkwardness between the two vanishedpletely into thin air.

    Slowly, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief.

 Chapter 312: Love Rival from the Previous Life, Zhang Shuyue

    <h4>Chapter 312: Love Rival from the Previous Life, Zhang Shuyue</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it difficult for you to remain seated upright given that you¡¯ve just regained consciousness?¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed, ¡°Lie down for a while. I¡¯ll make you something to eat. You must be hungry after sleeping for so many days.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo held her nose high in the air and proudly retorted, ¡°I¡¯m already in the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation! I wouldn¡¯t be hungry even if I didn¡¯t eat anything.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen found her reaction slightly amusing. That said, he also found himself rather helpless in front of her as he tousled her hair once more as he quipped, ¡°That¡¯s right, little martial sister has grown up.¡±

    Over eleven years had passed in the blink of an eye, and this young girl who had only been chest-height to him had finally blossomed into a beautiful, fine figure with gracious curves and mature appearances replete with an unwavering, steadfast determination.

    That said, he had also discovered that she would subconsciously disy some childish behaviour whenever she was around him. This caused Ye Xiuwen to feel a swathe ofplex emotions washing through his heart.

    Was he fated to remain as nothing more than a trustworthy martial brother in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes?

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo began to feel rather embarrassed by the slightly indulgent gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, and she lowered her head once more and rubbed her nose. Then, she covered her mouth and yawned.

    ¡°Are you tired? You should get some more rest if you¡¯re feeling tired?¡± Ye Xiuwen suggested.

    Truth be told, there were so many things that he wanted to ask Jun Xiaomo, including about her recent developments, about where she had been over these ten years she had ostensibly been missing from the world, and especially about where she had developed such proficiency over her formation arrays and talismans.

    However, when he saw how Jun Xiaomo presented herself with such a pale, weary face with listless eyes, he decided to shelf his thoughts for another day.

    There was no rush after all. Rest was the most important thing to Jun Xiaomo right now. After all, she was still recovering from her injuries.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was oblivious to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s thoughts and considerations. She had just been reunited with her martial brother, and she was absolutely unwilling to lie back down and rest just like that.

    Besides, her heart was also filled with all sorts of questions and queries, and she knew that she would be unable to sleep if she had no answer to these thoughts weighing on her heart.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, I don¡¯t feel like resting just yet.¡± Jun Xiaomo shook her head and rejected Ye Xiuwen¡¯s suggestions. Just as Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and thought to persuade her, Jun Xiaomo patted the empty part of her bed beside her, asking, ¡°Martial brother Ye, can you sit here so that I can lean on you?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was taken aback. He had not expected such a request from Jun Xiaomo.

    When she received no response from Ye Xiuwen apart from seeing him frozen stiff, she began to pout. Then, with a swift grab, she began to tug at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, dragging him over to her side.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes and leaned to the side, resting her head on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder as she remarked with a sigh, ¡°This is morefortable.¡±

    She had already thought to do this since a long time ago. After all, the cool, dignified air about Ye Xiuwen somehow brought peace to the undting emotions in her heart.

    The fact that Ye Xiuwen was none other than Jun Ziwen suddenly sank into her heart, and she realized that it had been none other than Ye Xiuwen who had carried her back to the inn while she was drunk just a little while ago. At that time, she had even dreamt about the time when she was young, and how she had yed with such a carefree attitude, without a single burden on her mind. At that time, she had simply thought all of this were a mere illusion.

    On the other hand, the astonishment in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart began to dissipate as he looked at how Jun Xiaomo was resting against his shoulder in bliss.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair once more and received a warm snuggle from her.

    This little brat is still just like a child. Who would believe that this is none other than the array master who had singlehandedly dealt with an entire Sect¡¯s leaders all on her own? Ye Xiuwen smiled faintly, and his eyes were filled with a trace of warmth and delight.

    ¡°Oh yes, martial brother, what happened after you fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge? Howe it took you so long to get out of there?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and asked curiously.

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback. After thinking for a moment, he responded, ¡°After falling in, I encountered a new master within the Death¡¯s Gorge. If I hadn¡¯t encountered him, I might not have been able to get out alive.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart instantly constricted as she grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm anxiously, ¡°It¡¯s that dangerous?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled, ¡°That¡¯s right. There are throngs of powerful spirit and demonic beasts there. The Death¡¯s Gorge is filled with thick, dense energy, which in turn stimted and elerated the growth of the spirit and demonic beasts alike. There¡¯s no way of returning to the surface until one is able to breach the artificial barrier formed by the multitude of ferocious beasts within.¡±

    ¡°Is that why martial brother spent twelve years within the Death¡¯s Gorge before finally making it out alive?¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she muttered dolefully, ¡°It¡¯s all my fault. If I hadn¡¯t run out of the Sect willfully, martial brother wouldn¡¯t have fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge while protecting me and end up suffering for so many long, arduous years.¡±

    Over thest three hundred years, there was not a single day that Jun Xiaomo had not been ming herself for this. Then, after returning from the Proving Grounds, her heart was filled with both hope and worry ¨C she had hoped to hear news rting to Ye Xiuwen, but she was at the very same time worried that Ye Xiuwen was still trapped within the Death¡¯s Gorge, unable to return to the surface ever again.

    Then, to her horror, not only did she fail to hear any news about Ye Xiuwen, she even learnt that the entire Heavenly Peak had fallen into a tragic predicament.

    As he observed the miserable expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but pat her shoulder and console her, ¡°It wasn¡¯t little martial sister¡¯s fault. Furthermore, if there¡¯s no pain, there¡¯s no gain. If not for the fact that I¡¯d fallen into the Death¡¯s Gorge, my cultivation strength would never have experienced such a meteoric rise to the extent that I can even stand toe-to-toe against the Dawn Sect¡¯s Sect Elders right now.¡±

    ¡°But I still feel bad.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered exasperatedly.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s vexed expression, and he couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly helpless and bemused.

    ¡°Alright, martial brother has already ounted for the things he¡¯s done over thest twelve years. Isn¡¯t it about time for Xiaomo to exin what she¡¯s encountered over this period of time as well?¡± Ye Xiuwen knew that his constion was hardly bearing any fruit, so he decided to change tact and segue into something different, ¡°Little Mo had earlier mentioned that she had already lived for over three hundred years ¨C was this all a lie? Martial brother Chen had mentioned that Little Mo had gone missing for some time, and nobody knew where you had gone at all.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly as she responded, ¡°Actually, I¡¯m not really lying to martial brother there.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously.

    ¡°Eleven years ago, I¡¯d inadvertently offended Princess Linglong from the Greenwich Kingdom, thereby stepping on the toes of the rest of the Zephyr Sect. In order to protect me, my master from the Zephyr Sect decided to send me into his Proving Grounds on the pretext that I had entered a period of closed-door cultivation. At that time, I¡¯d even sent a letter to father and mother to exin this to them. Then, eleven years after entering the Proving Grounds, I graduated and left the Proving Grounds, only to realize that there had been a massive upheaval in the outside world. I¡¯d be a ¡®dead person¡¯, while my master had vanished into thin air as well.¡±

    ¡°Proving Grounds?¡±

    ¡°The Proving Grounds was something that my great grandmaster had created for the purposes of developing and honing the skills of budding array masters and talisman masters. The most prominent thing to note is that the heart of the formation array was crafted using a special material. As a result, time within the Proving Grounds is dted and passes at a different rate as the outside world. Spending thirty days within the Proving Grounds is equivalent to spending only one day in the outside world. Cough...thus, while eleven years had passed in the outside world, I¡¯ve already spent three hundred and thirty years in the Proving Grounds...¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen and blinked her eyes expectantly.

    Ye Xiuwen found himself rather speechless at her exnation. After all, he had always thought that his little martial sister had just matured ande of age. How could he have expected that she had already lived for well over three hundred years?

    Would this not mean that her age was one whole digit in excess of his own age?

    Ye Xiuwen immediately dispelled any thoughts and contemtions in this regard. After all, where was he going to start if he were to pursue this train of thought seriously? How should he even begin to treat this little martial sister of his who had suddenly be much older than him?

    ¡°Truth be told, it was really difficult for me at the start.¡± Jun Xiaomo curled up into a ball and hugged her knees tightly, ¡°I was the only person within the Proving Grounds, and each day that passed was more difficult than the next. There wasn¡¯t a single moment when I didn¡¯t think about you guys, but I could not leave the Proving Grounds until Ipleted all of the checkpoints. At that time, reunion seemed just so far away...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart wrenched in pain. He had only considered the fact that Jun Xiaomo had spent over three hundred years within the Proving Grounds, but he had not considered how Jun Xiaomo felt over this span of time.

    He did experience a moment of despair and despondence back when he fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge. Fortunately, he encountered his new master who brought his thoughts away from all that and gave him hope once more. That said, there was not a single moment that he did not yearn to leave the Death¡¯s Gorge so that he could see those whom he loved and cherished once more.

    But what about his little martial sister? She had spent over three hundred arduous years all on her own within the Proving Grounds! How did she spend her time there? When she got injured, was she scared? When she realized she was all alone in the middle of the night, would she feel lonely?

    He patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head gently. After hesitating for a moment, he embraced her.

    ¡°Martial brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo leaned in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom and blinked her eyes at him with some measure of bewilderment.

    ¡°It¡¯s all in the past now.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted her back and consoled her.

    ¡°Mm, that¡¯s right. It¡¯s all in the past. Once we locate father and mother and all of the other Heavenly Peak disciples, we can all be reunited once more.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes curled into an arch as she stretched out her arm and embraced Ye Xiuwen around the waist as well.

    Ye Xiuwen saw the measure of trust and reliance reposed in him from her actions, and his gaze softened slightly.

    That said, his heart still ached when he noticed how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was so pale as a result of her earlier blood loss. Thus, he knew that she still needed a period of time to rest and recuperate before they could be on their way to reunite with the rest of the Heavenly Peak.

    He pinched her pale, anemic-looking cheeks once more, and received an aggrieved look from Jun Xiaomo, as though asking why he was pinching her cheeks. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyshes were long and expressive, as though they were the beautiful wings of a butterfly. In that moment, Ye Xiuwen found his gazepletely transfixed and enthralled by the expression in her eyes.

    When she noticed how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes werepletely entranced and filled with her own image, she could feel her cheeks flushing slightly with warmth.

    The atmosphere in the room became awkward once more. Then, Jun Xiaomo suddenly realized that she had been locked in an embrace with her martial brother Ye for far too long, and she immediately scrambled to sit back upright. Even though Ye Xiuwen was somewhat unwilling, he still reluctantly released his embrace as well.

    Naturally, none of his expressions were revealed on his cool,posed face.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was about to sit up, the door to the room was opened once more, and a clear, spritely female voice rang out, ¡°Martial brother Ye, I heard that sister Xiaomo is awake. I¡¯ve made some soup to nourish sister Xiaomo¡¯s body.¡±

    Sister Xiaomo? Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. She couldn¡¯t recall where or when she had encountered a sister. With such thoughts on her mind, she looked straight back up at the door.

    In the very next moment, her eyes widened immensely, and her voice grew hoarse!

    ¡°Zhang. Shu. Yue! Why are you here?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth as she barked.

    This was the very same woman who had cheated Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings and caused his demise in the end! Could she be here to fool her martial brother Ye a second time?!

    When Zhang Shuyue opened the door earlier, she was immediately met with two unexpected urrences. The first was when she witnessed Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo locked together in a tight embrace; and the second was when Jun Xiaomo called out her name ¨C how could she possibly know her to begin with?

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s smile instantly stiffened up slightly, but she recovered andposed herself very quickly and covered up her pretenses.

    ¡°I¡¯d not expected sister Xiaomo to already know my name. I wonder if it¡¯s because brother Ye has already told you about me.¡± As Zhang Shuyue remarked, she cast a bashful nce at Ye Xiuwen.

    It was evident that Zhang Shuyue bore the same intention towards Ye Xiuwen in this present life.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely incensed. Ever since she had been reborn into this present life, she had sworn on her heart that she would do all she could to increase the distance between her martial brother Ye and this cheap woman. Her martial brother Ye could pick anyone he liked ¨C the only person he was not allowed to extend his affection towards was the traitorous woman, Zhang Shuyue!

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, die!¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly retrieved her whip from her Interspatial Ring and rushed out of her bed, charging straight towards Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Martial sister!¡± Ye Xiuwen reacted almost immediately and attempted to hold Jun Xiaomo back. Unfortunately, he was still toote, and all he managed to grab was a corner of her sleeves.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her whip andshed viciously towards Zhang Shuyue.

    Unfortunately, she had not fully recovered from her injuries, and the whish onlyprised less than a tenth of the total energy she could usually muster. Thus, the strike waspletelyckluster.

    Zhang Shuyue should have been able to avoid such an injury with ease. However, she nced at Ye Xiuwen out of the corner of her eye, and a split-second ploy immediately surfaced on her heart. She dispelled the strength within her body and tilted her body slightly, putting her vital organs out of harm¡¯s way.

    Just like that, the whish struck her squarely, instantly leaving a deep wound on her body.

    The pain apanying this strike was hardly light to begin with, and Zhang Shuyue groaned in pain as she clutched at her fresh injury. Blood began to pour out of her wound profusely.

    Even though she appeared to be in a tragic state, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes were filled with a victorious gleam.

 Chapter 313: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Ambitions, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Predicament

    <h4>Chapter 313: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Ambitions, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Predicament</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hatred towards Zhang Shuyue could be said to be so deep that they had already prated her marrows and bones. In fact, her hatred was as deep as the extent of the remorse and guilt weighing on her heart for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death in her previous life. If one were to say that her willfulness and headstrong behaviour had been one of the contributing factors leading to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death, then Zhang Shuyue¡¯s betrayal would undoubtedly be the main cause of his death. Jun Xiaomo had experienced what it was like to have been betrayed by the ones she loved the most, and she couldpletely empathize with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s dread and despondence in his previous life when he had simrly been sent to the depths of hell by the person he loved wholeheartedly.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo had resolved in her heart that she would never allow Zhang Shuyue the opportunity to get close to Ye Xiuwen as long as she remained by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Unfortunately, she had just discovered to her horror that three short days of her unconsciousness was all it took for Ye Xiuwen to once again chance upon Zhang Shuyue. To make matters worse, their rtionship had appeared to already be on rather good terms.

    Ye Xiuwen was allowed to fall in love with anyone he liked ¨C as long as it was not Zhang Shuyue. Had thisdy not caused enough harm to Ye Xiuwen yet? Did she truly have to send him to the pits of hell in this life as well?

    The more Jun Xiaomo thought, the more incensed she got. After striking out with the first whish, she immediately raised her whip again, preparing herself for the second whish.

    ¡°Xiaomo, stop!¡± Ye Xiuwen dashed over in the nick of time and held back Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands.

    Jun Xiaomo struggled for a little while in vain, before turning back to Ye Xiuwen with gritted teeth as she cried out with indignation, ¡°Martial brother Ye, why are you stopping me?!¡±

    ¡°Then, tell me first ¨C why are you attacking Miss Zhang?¡± Ye Xiuwen looked cidly at Jun Xiaomo as he asked with a calm tone of voice.

    ¡°Because she deserves to die!¡± Jun Xiaomo exploded with rage. The rims of her eyes were now reddened and bloodshot.

    As he looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s enraged and aggrieved expressions, Ye Xiuwen trembled, and a trace of unwillingness surfaced on his heart.

    He knew that his little martial sister was not an irrational person to begin with. Even though she would at times end up doing something infuriating and heart-wrenching that causes him to feelpletely helpless, he knew that Jun Xiaomo would never beat or injure another for no good reason. Furthermore, he had already noticed how his little martial sister had directly called out Zhang Shuyue¡¯s name. This implied that she already knew Zhang Shuyue from before. As to why Zhang Shuyue was unaware of who Jun Xiaomo was, this was a query to be resolved and addressedter on.

    That said, these grounds which Jun Xiaomo was using for her recovery and recuperation was provided for by Zhang Shuyue. Before he could understand the reason for her actions, Ye Xiuwen could not afford to allow Jun Xiaomo to continue attacking Zhang Shuyue. Thus, he had no choice but to step in and stop her attacks.

    Zhang Shuyue clutched at her injuries and stood at the side. She noticed that all Ye Xiuwen did was to hold Jun Xiaomo back, yet there was not a single bit of attention on her as the injured victim. In that instant, her heart surged with a trace of unwillingness.

    Did she not avoid Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attack precisely so that she could stand between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen in their rtionship to begin with?

    Zhang Shuyue had fallen for Ye Xiuwen from the moment sheid eyes on him. He was handsome and suave, and possessed a cool and dignified disposition. Moreover, she could see that he was warm and conscientious when he looked after his little martial sister. There was not a single thing that Ye Xiuwen did which did not move Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart.

    At the beginning, she had thought that the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were that of mere martial siblings. Thus, she had willingly allowed Ye Xiuwen to bring Jun Xiaomo to this ce to recover and recuperate from her injuries. In this regard, she had never expected to see Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo locked in a tight embrace like they did earlier.

    She had learnt over thest few days of interaction with Ye Xiuwen just how much he did not like others getting close to him. Zhang Shuyue was not upset by this. In fact, she thought that this was for the better.

    After all, if someone like Ye Xiuwen fell in love with her, he would most likely bepletely loyal and devoted to her, right?

    Furthermore, Zhang Shuyue was confident in her abilities to make Ye Xiuwen fall for her.

    Unfortunately, her confidence waspletely torn asunder when she noticed the interactions between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo ¨C it was obvious that Ye Xiuwen had someone else in his heart right now.

    Was their rtionship really just between that of a martial brother and a martial sister? Anyone with eyes would be able to tell for themselves that the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was something extraordinary. After all, Zhang Shuyue had never seen Ye Xiuwen gaze at someone with such soft, indulgent eyes.

    As for Jun Xiaomo, it was clear that she possessed simr feelings for Ye Xiuwen as well. That said, the only silver lining for Zhang Shuyue was that Jun Xiaomo was still unsure of the nature and extent of her own feelings towards Ye Xiuwen.

    This caused Zhang Shuyue to feel incredibly indignant and defeated. It had to be mentioned that there was nock of suitors by her side to begin with. However, she had never encountered any suitor who had moved her heart before, and it was for this single reason that she had not reciprocated anyone¡¯s feelings to date. Who could have thought that the very first person who managed to moved her heart was also someone as oblivious and deadpan as a block of wood?!

    She was unwilling to let this go just like that. Thus, she resolved in her heart that she was going to snatch Ye Xiuwen from right under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose. She was going to capitalize on the fact that they had not made their feelings known to each other just yet!

    Zhang Shuyue looked at the impasse between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen with a gleam in her eyes. Clutching her wound, Zhang Shuyue weakly made her way towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and tugged at his sleeves, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t me sister Xiaomo anymore. She¡¯s still young, and it¡¯s understandable that her actions are brash and reckless.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was enraged at Zhang Shuyue¡¯s pretenses. She wrested her hand free from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s grip and immediately sent another whish flying towards Zhang Shuyue as she bellowed, ¡°Who allowed you to touch martial brother Ye?!¡±

    ¡°Enough! Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen waved his sleeves and sent a wind de out, intercepting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whish.

    The whish struck the floor, etching a deep mark into the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°You¡¯re really going to take her side?¡±

    Faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s usatory stare, Ye Xiuwen found his heart wrenching with pangs of pain. He softened his tone of voice and asked, ¡°Xiaomo, tell me why you¡¯re so affronted by Miss Zhang? Can you at least tell me the reason, please?¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply turned her head away and grew taciturn.

    How was she going to exin it all? Was she going to say that Zhang Shuyue had killed him in her previous life, so she was hell bent on getting revenge in this life?

    Who would believe her even if she exined it like that? And even if she said this, she was almost certain that Ye Xiuwen would use her of being ridiculous and absurd.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened ¨C It¡¯s this feeling again. It¡¯s the same feeling that had arisen and persisted since a long time ago. Jun Xiaomo simply locks away all her most important secrets in the depths of her heart, and nobody is allowed to get anywhere close to them.

    He knew that Jun Xiaomo had some things hidden in the depths of her heart that she was unwilling to share with anyone. If Jun Xiaomo were unwilling to talk about it, he would respect her decision and not press the issue at all.

    That said, he felt incredibly helpless as a result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s behaviour.

    Just like right now ¨C Zhang Shuyue was the one who had provided them with a ce that bolstered one¡¯s rate of recovery. If he allowed his little martial sister to continue harming Zhang Shuyue, would that not make them a group of people that repaid kindness with evil?

    Ye Xiuwen sighed with resignation, stretched out his hand and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair as he remarked, ¡°You¡¯ve just regained consciousness, and it wouldn¡¯t be good if you got too agitated and harmed your body as a result. Let¡¯s talk about any issuester, alright? This is Miss Zhang¡¯s ce after all. You shouldn¡¯t hurt the owner of this ce no matter what.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s warm, persuasive spiel caused a sour, astringent feeling to course through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose, and her heart began to feel aggrieved once more.

    What was she going to do if Ye Xiuwen truly fell in love with Zhang Shuyue again? The matters of her previous life had note to pass in her present life, and there was simply no basis for her to reasonably argue against such a behaviour. Was she going to just force her martial brother to relive her own memories?

    Ye Xiuwen noticed that Jun Xiaomo appeared to have calmed down substantially, so he turned back to Zhang Shuyue and apologized, ¡°Miss Zhang, I¡¯m really sorry. I apologize on my martial sister¡¯s behalf. Here are some recovery pills. Please have them now.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen spoke, he retrieved a third-grade recovery pill and handed it over to Zhang Shuyue.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier whish looked incredibly vicious, it was not backed with much strength or energy to begin with. After all, she had just regained consciousness from her grievous injuries. Given Zhang Shuyue¡¯s present cultivation base, the horrific-looking injuries she had just sustained were in fact hardly serious at all.

    Having experienced countless battles and injuries himself, how could Ye Xiuwen be unable to assess this much for himself? He knew that as long as Zhang Shuyue consumed the recovery pill that he had just handed over to her, she would be fully recovered in no more than half a day¡¯s worth of time.

    On the other hand, Zhang Shuyue waspletely incensed by this. She had expected Ye Xiuwen to step up and console her, not to speak and apologize for his little martial sister instead.

    Even though the recovery pill was more than enough to nurse her back to full health, she found a swathe of indignation lodged at her throat right now.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude towards Jun Xiaomo and Zhang Shuyue made it extremely clear who he was closer to. It made Zhang Shuyue feel as though she had been dangling a juicy bait in an attempt to gain an advantage, only to lose the bait and end up being worse off than she had been at the start.

    She received the recovery pill that Ye Xiuwen handed to her and returned him with a warm, genial smile. At the same time, she secretly gnashed her teeth and eximed in her heart ¨C No! I¡¯ve got toe up with something else!

    After consuming the recovery pill, Zhang Shuyue looked back at Ye Xiuwen and muttered with a soft voice, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯ve truly never crossed paths with sister Xiaomo prior to this, so I think there must be some form of misunderstanding between us two. But given that sister Xiaomo has just regained consciousness, perhaps this might not be the best time to discuss these heavy-going matters. How about this, brother Ye, let¡¯s go cook something that is nourishing for sister Xiaomo, and she can get some rest here in the meantime?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need anything you¡¯re going to make for me! Who knows what kind of ingredients you¡¯re going to use?!¡± Jun Xiaomo barked back at her.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. His tone of voice had grown harsher, and he once again disyed his disposition as an older martial brother.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart trembled slightly. The scenes of her previous life shed before her eyes once more ¨C every time a dispute arose between her and Zhang Shuyue in her previous life, Ye Xiuwen would always end up siding with Zhang Shuyue, not her.

    That said, back in her previous life, she had been unable to see Zhang Shuyue¡¯s true character while all of that was happening. At that time, the only thing on her mind was simply the thought that nobody else apart from herself should have her martial brother Ye¡¯s attention. After all, Ye Xiuwen was the only strand of hope that she could cling onto, and she was afraid that Zhang Shuyue¡¯s appearance would make Ye Xiuwen distance himself from her.

    In her present life, even though she no longer had the same kind of reliance on Ye Xiuwen, she simrly did not want Ye Xiuwen to suffer the same fate as he did in her previous life.

    But how could she go about broaching the subject to Ye Xiuwen? Something like that had not even urred, so where was she going to go about finding evidence to show that Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character wasn¡¯t all that it appeared to be?

    Would history repeat itself again? Would Ye Xiuwen once again perish under Zhang Shuyue¡¯s de?

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes reddened as she lowered her head softly, ¡°Sorry, I¡¯d been too rash earlier. Please leave me be for a while. I¡¯d like a moment of silence.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced as he looked at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pale face and ink-ck hair, and his eyes grew deep and abstruse.

    As the atmosphere in the room grew thick and tense, Ye Xiuwen lifted his hand and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder once more as he spoke with a low voice, ¡°Then have a good rest, Xiaomo. Don¡¯t think too much about it. We can talk about things once you¡¯re better.¡±

    ¡°Mm.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded softly with her head still hung low.

    A victorious gleam shed past Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, and she continued to y along to her pretense as she uttered to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Sigh, everything¡¯s my fault. Had I known this would happen, I wouldn¡¯t havee here and aggravated sister Xiaomo. Brother Ye, we¡¯d best make some soup for sister Xiaomo to nourish her body. Perhaps she¡¯s reacted with an outburst because her body is unwell. Once she¡¯s fully recovered, her spirits will be better as well.¡±

    Even though Zhang Shuyue was iming to be at fault, it was evident that she was implicitly pushing all the me to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s willful and brash behaviour.

    However, Ye Xiuwen simply responded cidly, ¡°There¡¯s no need. I¡¯ll send Miss Zhang back to have a rest as well. Our martial brothers have already gone out to buy some things.¡±

    After all, when all was said and done, Jun Xiaomo had been the perpetrator who had injured Zhang Shuyue. As the oldest martial brother among all of them, there was no way Ye Xiuwen could sit by idly and treat Zhang Shuyue with discourtesy.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine as well. Then, sister Xiaomo, have a good rest. I¡¯lle visit you again when you¡¯re in better spiritster.¡± Zhang Shuyue bade Jun Xiaomo farewell with a soft, warm voice.

    Yet, Jun Xiaomo simply turned her head away, evidently unwilling to respond to her.

    At the same time, Zhang Shuyue mocked Jun Xiaomo in her heart for being foolish. Zhang Shuyue was confident that she had thoroughly gained an advantage over Jun Xiaomo after the entire incident that had just urred.

    After all, the juxtaposition between Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rotten temperament and her own warm and conscientious should undoubtedly win Ye Xiuwen over to her side in no time!

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen took her leave together with Zhang Shuyue. As soon as Ye Xiuwen stepped out of her room, Jun Xiaomo forcefully mmed shut the door to her room ¨C BANG!

    Ye Xiuwen turned around to look at the tightly shut door, and his eyes grew sullen and abstruse.

    ¡°Sigh, little girls like that love throwing tantrums after all. Brother Ye, you don¡¯t have to be too worried. A little bit of coaxing and cajoling will bring her spirits back up once more.¡± Zhang Shuyue chuckled lightheartedly as she gave some unsolicited advice.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen barely entertained Zhang Shuyue¡¯s efforts at a conversation, and he responded curtly and simply, ¡°Let¡¯s go, Mis Zhang. I¡¯ll send you back.¡±

    Even though Zhang Shuyue noticed that Ye Xiuwen appeared cold and expressionless at this moment, she did not feel discouraged in the slightest. She knew that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were martial siblings for a long time now, and the rtionship and feelings between the two of them was not something that had been built up over the span of just a single day. Thus, it would take much more than a single incident to dismantle the foundations of their rtionship as well.

    It was only with patience that she would be able to slowly whittle away at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart and earn his affection.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo leaned against the door with her head hung low as she eavesdropped on the conversations between Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue.

    As their footsteps drew further away from her door, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head continued to hang low, drooping and listless.

    After some time, a glistening bead of tear rolled off her cheek, disappearing into her clothes.

 Chapter 314: First Encounter, Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Dedication and Obsession

    <h4>Chapter 314: First Encounter, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Dedication and Obsession</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen had encountered Zhang Shuyue on their journey away from the Dawn Sect. Back then, Ye Xiuwen was carrying an unconscious Jun Xiaomo, leading the Heavenly Peak disciples away from the Dawn Sect when they noticed Zhang Shuyue being pursued by a group of masked men. At the same time, Zhang Shuyue had spotted the group of Heavenly Peak disciples ahead of her and also rushed straight at them.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s intentions were simple, and that was to draw the group ahead of her into the conflict as well in the hope that she might be able to escape amidst the ensuing chaos. After all, the masked men were a group of bandit demonic cultivators who thrived on seizing treasures and valuables from others. They had noticed that she was travelling alone, and they thought to kill her to seize her treasures.

    At that time, Zhang Shuyue sincerely believed that it would be best if the group of people ahead of her would possess the ability to fend off the group of demonic cultivators. Even if they were unable to do so, she would be able to slip away once the two groups locked in battle with the other.

    However, as soon as she drew closer to the group and noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances, she was instantly mesmerized by his suave and charming looks.

    Ye Xiuwen had never liked getting embroiled in the disputes between others. Thus, he had initially simply nced back at her and thought to avoid her. Unexpectedly, Zhang Shuyue could tell what he was nning, and she intentionally yelled, ¡°Fellow cultivators, save me!¡± Then, she continued to charge straight towards the group of Heavenly Peak disciples.

    The masked men immediately got the impression that Zhang Shuyue was affiliated to this group of people. In their avarice, they expanded the ambit of their killing and seizing intentions and implicated the entire group of Heavenly Peak disciples as well. With that, they decisively charged straight towards Ye Xiuwen and the rest as well.

    At that moment, Ye Xiuwen knew it was no longer possible to avoid the band of bandits any longer. He set Jun Xiaomo down onto the ground gently, instructed one martial brother to look after her, and charged straight into the fray together with his other martial brothers.

    After all, he was the strongest one among all of the Heavenly Peak disciples, and he was the one who would be able to make the most impact in this battle.

    Fortunately, none of the demonic cultivators from the band of bandits possessed a strong or powerful cultivation level. As soon as they realized that they had bitten off more than they could chew, they immediately dispersed into the surroundings and vanished without a trace.

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t bother to give chase either. He knew that his priority at this stage was still to locate a good ce to settle down at over the next few days so that Jun Xiaomo and the other Heavenly Peak disciples can fully recover and recuperate from their injuries.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen lifted Jun Xiaomo up and summoned the other Heavenly Peak disciples to get ready to depart once more, a soft voice called out from beside him, ¡°Um, brother, thank you for saving my life. I wonder if I¡¯ve got the pleasure to invite you as my guest to the valley where I reside?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked towards the direction of the voice and immediately noticed a beautiful face replete with a soft gaze staring straight back at him.

    That said, the cultivation world was filled with handsome men and beautiful women to begin with. On top of that, Ye Xiuwen had never been the sort to be so concerned about external appearances. Thus, her advances in this regard were bound to fail.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and responded, ¡°There¡¯s no need for thanks; it¡¯s all in a day¡¯s work. We¡¯re in a rush, so we¡¯ll part ways now.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue remained cool and cid on the outside, yet she was incredibly anxious in her heart. She had never encountered a man who moved her heart so much, and she sincerely believed it would be too much of a waste if he slipped away just like that.

    Besides, the disy of his strength in the earlier battle was simply astonishing. If he could dispose of a group of demonic cultivators in the Golden Core stage of cultivation with such ease, it was evident that his abilities must have been at least in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    Zhang Shuyue was thoroughly moved and enthralled by Ye Xiuwen. Then, she noticed how Ye Xiuwen was carrying Jun Xiaomo out of the corner of her eyes, and her heart instantly sank.

    Is this man already taken? He¡¯s gingerly carrying thedy as though she¡¯s a precious treasure after all...

    The wave of sour astringency in her heart immediately became a sense of unwillingness to yield, and Zhang Shuyue eximed in her heart ¨C So what if this man already has a cultivationpanion? It¡¯s not umon to hear of men having multiple cultivationpanions in this world! Who says I don¡¯t have any hope at all?

    With such thoughts on her heart, the fire of desire began to burgeon with ever greater intensity.

    Her mind spun, and she addressed Ye Xiuwen once more as she pressed the issue, ¡°Um, brother, you guys appear to be heading somewhere? How about this ¨C it¡¯s gettingte, so why don¡¯t youe over to the valley where I reside to rest for the night? The spiritual energy there is rather thick, and it might be helpful with the injuries sustained by thedy in your bosom as well.¡±

    If Zhang Shuyue was merely inviting them to her residence as guests, Ye Xiuwen would have rejected her suggestion outright. However, his considerations extended to Jun Xiaomo who remained unconscious right now ¨C indeed, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition was hardly great, and there is an increasing possibility ofplications if they dallied any longer.

    Even though he couldn¡¯t fully trust Zhang Shuyue, the dire circumstances they were in called for more drastic measures.

    Furthermore, even if Zhang Shuyue did harbour ill intentions against them, Ye Xiuwen sincerely believed that he could protect Jun Xiaomo and guarantee the safety of all of his martial brothers.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen epted Zhang Shuyue¡¯s invitation to stay at her residence in the valley. Once they entered her residence, they continued to remain there for the next few days. Over thest three days, Ye Xiuwen could tell that the condition of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had indeed recovered very quickly. Even though she was still unconscious, he knew that it would not take too much longer for her to regain her consciousness once more.

    During this time, Ye Xiuwen learnt from Zhang Shuyue that the valley which they resided in was something that belonged to her master. Her master¡¯s wanderlust had carried her to faraway ces, and she rarely returned to the valley these days. Thus, Zhang Shuyue assured Ye Xiuwen that it was fine if they wished to stay as long as they wanted.

    Ye Xiuwen had thought that Zhang Shuyue was only repaying her benefactors what she owed them, and he didn¡¯t think too much of it. Furthermore, in order not to owe too much to Zhang Shuyue, he would always do what he could to help out around the valley.

    All this while, Ye Xiuwen had put hisplete focus on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition and the rate of her recovery, and he naturally couldn¡¯t care less about what others thought. That said, onlookers generally had the best perspective of the matter ¨C his Heavenly Peak martial brothers could tell from Zhang Shuyue¡¯s conduct that she had already fallen for their martial brother Ye.

    To make matters worse, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s willingness to help out with the little things around the valley was interpreted by his martial brothers as a reciprocation of her feelings towards him.

    Even though they would much prefer if Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo got together, they knew that it was not in their ce to interfere with the matters of the heart between others. Thus, they resolved in their hearts to conceal the matter between Zhang Shuyue and Ye Xiuwen from Jun Xiaomo.

    However, what the Heavenly Peak disciples were unaware about was the fact that Zhang Shuyue was hardly passive in her approach at all. Since she was already determined to win Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, she would never sit around and wait for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart to wander onto her. Instead, she would actively do all she could to snatch Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart as soon as she could.

    Thus, as soon as Jun Xiaomo regained consciousness, Zhang Shuyue did all she could to sow discord between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    From what she could see, it was a sess ¨C Ye Xiuwen had relented and sent her back to her room, leaving Jun Xiaomo alone in her own room,pletely dispirited after the event.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely taciturn on the journey back with Zhang Shuyue as well. Just like that, his cold, distant disposition had increased yet even more in intensity, giving him an air of being absolutely unapproachable at all.

    Zhang Shuyue cursed herself for not having known Ye Xiuwen earlier. She was confident that she would have won his heart a long time ago had she had known him earlier.

    At the very least, things would not be as they were right now, with Ye Xiuwen being as rigid and immovable as a piece of bone. Truth be told, she sincerely didn¡¯t know where to start even if she wanted to seduce him.

    Just like that, Zhang Shuyue did her best to broach topic after topic in a feeble attempt to make conversation with Ye Xiuwen, hoping that he would somehow warm up to him. That said, it was evident that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was not with her right now; no matter what she said, nothing elicited any form of reaction from him.

    Then, when they finally arrived at the door to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s room, Ye Xiuwen finally looked back up at Zhang Shuyue.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart leapt with joy, and her face flushed with a radiant, pink hue. This was the first time they had been in such close proximity with each other, and her heart fluttered with joy when she saw his gaze filled with her own image.

    How great would it be if such a handsome man could belong to her? That way, she could enjoy the expressive looks of his indulgent gaze every single day without exception. She sincerely believed that once Ye Xiuwen fell in love with someone, his object of affection would wholeheartedly be the apple of his eye ¨C just like how his little martial sister was right now.

    She fervently suppressed her vicious thoughts against Jun Xiaomo in the depths of her heart as she gave Ye Xiuwen a bashful look, waiting expectantly for what he was about to say next.

    Her heart began to thump wildly. Yet, she had clearly selectively obviated one thing from her mind ¨C Ye Xiuwen was not a person to let his heart and mind wander to begin with. Would he really turn his back on Jun Xiaomo so readily and have a fling behind her back?

    In the very next moment, she heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s simple, cid statement, ¡°Martial sister must have stepped on your toes today. I sincerely hope Miss Zhang can forgive her.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I believe that there must have been some form of misunderstanding between sister Xiaomo and I. Once she¡¯s better I¡¯ll go rify things with her and clear the air.¡± Zhang Shuyue hated the fact that Ye Xiuwen seemed to be thinking of Jun Xiaomo at every step of the way. However, in front of Ye Xiuwen, she could only persist with her pretentions and continue to act magnanimous.

    ¡°These are three fourth-grade recovery pills. I hope Miss Zhang can ept them. They represent a token of my apology.¡± Ye Xiuwen retrieved a small jade bottle from his Interspatial Ring and handed it over to Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Hah--?! Actually, there¡¯s no need. Brother Ye has already given me one earlier. I¡¯m much better after consuming that one.¡± Zhang Shuyue chuckled, slightly confused as to why Ye Xiuwen was insisting on handing yet another three recovery pills to her.

    ¡°Miss Zhang, please ept it. The earlier pill was to make amends for my martial sister hurting you, while these three pills can be considered a form ofpensation for all the troubles we¡¯ve caused you, as well as my apology for causing you to get hurt.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined without a single ripple of emotion in the depths of his eyes.

    The smile on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face began to stiffen up. She had never expected Ye Xiuwen to draw the line between the two of them so clearly. It was evident that Ye Xiuwen was trying to ensure that they, including Jun Xiaomo, did not owe her anything.

    Ye Xiuwen had indeed done everything to settle the ounts on behalf of Jun Xiaomo, and this only caused the envy and jealousy in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart to burgeon even more.

    ¡°That...brother Ye, I...¡± Zhang Shuyue was just about maintain her position when Ye Xiuwen suddenly cut her off, ¡°Miss Zhang, I, Ye Xiuwen, don¡¯t like to owe people favours. Back when I¡¯d agreed to stay at this ce on behalf of all my martial brothers, the main consideration on our mind was my little martial sister¡¯s condition. But now that she has regained her consciousness, I think it¡¯s about time for us to leave this ce as well. Even though these three recovery pills aren¡¯t priceless treasures, they¡¯re still sufficient to represent our gratitude to you for your hospitality.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re about to leave soon?!¡± Zhang Shuyue widened her eyes with disbelief.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. We¡¯ve imposed on your for far too long, and it¡¯s time that we took our leave as well.¡± Ye Xiuwen explicated.

    ¡°It¡¯s no trouble! You¡¯ve not been imposing on me at all!¡± Zhang Shuyue hurriedly quipped, ¡°Since you¡¯ve saved me, it¡¯s only right that I allowed you to stay here!¡±

    ¡°But little martial sister isn¡¯t too pleased with this arrangement.¡± Ye Xiuwen finally revealed the nub of the issue, causing Zhang Shuyue to be taken aback, ¡°Since she¡¯s not too pleased, it would be best if we took our leave.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue opened her mouth reflexively, but she found herself unable to say anything. Everything she wanted to say seemed to be lodged in her throat.

    ¡°I, Ye Xiuwen, have other things to attend to now. I¡¯ll take my leave first.¡±

    As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand gently, and the bottle of recovery pill flew over andnded gently on a stone table just beside the door to her room. That way, there was no way Zhang Shuyue could reject this token of appreciation anymore.

    Then, he imbued his body with his Windwalk ability and departed quickly, vanishing from Zhang Shuyue¡¯s line of sight in no time.

    In her stupor, Zhang Shuyue only noticed a sh of green before her eyes. Then, when she finally managed to return to her senses, Ye Xiuwen had already left for some time.

    ¡°Damn!¡± Zhang Shuyue stamped her feet on the ground in rage. Then, she turned to the little jade bottle sitting on the stone table beside her, walked over and smashed it onto the ground.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, do you think I¡¯m going to give up just like that? Never! I must make you mine!¡± Zhang Shuyue stared into the horizon as she bellowed in rage. Her earlier bashfulness had scattered with the wind.

    Yet, the only thing that echoed in response was the rustling breeze that swept through the lonely woods around.

 Chapter 315: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Injury, Night-Time Controversy

    <h4>Chapter 315: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Injury, Night-Time Controversy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was a still, dark night. The dim glow of the moonbeams painted a faint sheen on thends.

    Jun Xiaomo tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep. Finally, she decided to get up. She climbed out of bed, opened the door to her room and walked out into the cold, chilly courtyard just outside.

    Although several hours had passed by now, the earlier events in the day had nevertheless left an indelible mark in her heart, sending pangs of frustration and pain echoing through the fibers of her body. This type of pain wasn¡¯t something a simple, light twitching sensation; rather, it felt as though something pressed heavily on her chest, causing her breathing to grow ragged and shallow.

    Ye Xiuwen did not return to her after sending Zhang Shuyue back to her room. This left Jun Xiaomo thoroughly aggrieved. It was as though everything in her past had once again resurfaced to haunt her ¨C she knew exactly what was going to happen, yet she feltpletely powerless to do anything about it.

    Is martial brother Ye going to fall in love with that woman again?

    Jun Xiaomo removed her shoes and set them on the ground. Then, barefooted, she curled up into a ball and held her head to her knees as she sat on the stone table in the middle of the courtyard.

    She truly felt aggrieved by the entire situation. They have been martial siblings for over twenty years now, yet it seemed as though their rtionship could hardly hold a candle to a woman whom Ye Xiuwen had barely met. How could her martial brother Ye just defer to Zhang Shuyue like that?

    That said, after Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue took their leave earlier today, she had also heard about another important piece of information from the other martial brothers. As it turns out, the valley they were residing in right now belonged to Zhang Shuyue, and they were temporarily putting up at her ce. That being the case, hurting Zhang Shuyue earlier for no good reason had only made her seem as though she had been throwing a fuss and repaying good with evil.

    Several Heavenly Peak disciples noticed it when Ye Xiuwen sent Zhang Shuyue back to her room. On the one hand, they couldn¡¯t help but exim in their hearts how the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue had been blossoming incredibly quickly; and on the other hand, they also wondered why Zhang Shuyue appeared to have been injured by a whish.

    Was there really anyone else in this valley apart from Jun Xiaomo who preferred the whip as her weapon of choice?

    Just like that, the Heavenly Peak disciples began to smell the scent of aplicated love triangle in the air, and they voluntarily called upon Jun Xiaomo to better understand the situation. Thus, they heard about the entire incident from the horse¡¯s mouth.

    Even though they empathized with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s plight, they knew they had to give regard to the fact that they were imposing on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s hospitality for their recovery as well. To hurt one¡¯s host like that could truly be considered going overboard.

    Therefore, they began to persuade Jun Xiaomo to shelf her thoughts about Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue and focus on her recovery.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think about it...? How do you expect me to do that...?¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured to herself as pangs of sourness filled the rims of her eyes.

    After all, ever since the day she had been reborn, she had resolved in her heart that she would do everything she could to ensure that her martial brother Ye would find true happiness. At the same time, she had also sworn in her heart that Zhang Shuyue would pay the price if she dared to make a move against Ye Xiuwen again.

    Yet, despite all that she had done, she simply couldn¡¯t ept the fact that Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue appeared to have fallen in love at first sight.

    She had gathered from her martial brothers that Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue could always be found by each other¡¯s side over thest few days. Furthermore, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s intentions towards Ye Xiuwen was evident from any onlooker¡¯s perspective.

    Ye Xiuwen was not a sloppy person who liked beating about the bush. If he did not reject a person¡¯s advances, it was more than likely that his intentions were to reciprocate her feelings.

    Just like today, when a dispute arose between Jun Xiaomo and Zhang Shuyue, Ye Xiuwen had evidently stood on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s side and even berated Jun Xiaomo as a result.

    ¡°Damn that love at first sight!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she cursed softly. Her fists were tightly clenched, and she rubbed her reddened, puffy eyes.

    Just then, she suddenly saw out of the corner of her eye the figure of a person quickly flickering past and entering the neighboring house.

    Damn it! Who could it be thiste at night?!

    Jun Xiaomo had never taken a single step out of her courtyard since she had arrived at this valley. That said, she could vaguely guess that the neighboring house must have been upied by one of her martial brothers.

    Without thinking, Jun Xiaomo leapt down from the table and applied on herself an Invisibility Talisman and a Windsail Talisman, and she dashed into the adjacent house as well.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    After bidding farewell to Zhang Shuyue, Ye Xiuwen made his way straight towards the other side of the valley.

    Back when they first entered the valley, Ye Xiuwen had already noticed the fiery-red field located on the other side of the valley filled with high-grade wild meridge Flowers. At that point in time, he had already made a mental note that he was going to harvest some of these before they left the valley.

    The meridge Flower was a main constituent ingredient in the refinement of many high-quality recovery medicines. The higher the grade of the meridge Flower, the better the quality of the recovery medicine.

    In fact, high-grade meridge Flowers could even be consumed directly, and its restorative effects were particrly strong when consumed or used by a cultivator with a fire-based spiritual root. Even though the its medicinal qualities would naturally be higher if it had first been refined into a medicinal pill, consuming it directly would still give rise to rather decent effects.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen had the mind to harvest some. He had nned to give a portion of what he harvested to his little martial sister in order to nourish her body and restore her to full health, and he would store the rest in his Interspatial to be refined into medicinal pills when he next encounters a pillmaster.

    Ye Xiuwen had expected that the simple task of harvesting some meridge Flowers would hardly take up any time. Unfortunately, five Firescale Snakes in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation had made their nests within the field of meridge Flowers. Thus, he had only managed to harvest a few meridge Flowers when he suddenly found himself surrounded by the five Firescale Snakes.

    Ye Xiuwen was already at the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. That said, thebat abilities of spirit beasts were generally already stronger than that of a cultivator at the same cultivation level. Furthermore, he had found himself up against five powerful spirit beasts. Thus, under the confluence of these factors, a long, arduous battle unfolded and went on for a long time.

    Then, about two hours ago, Ye Xiuwen finally managed to conclude the long-drawn battle and deal a final deathblow to thest remaining Firescale Snake.

    After harvesting the cores within the bodies of the Firescale Snakes, Ye Xiuwen continued to harvest some more meridge Flowers before finally returning to his abode in the middle of the night.

    Injuries caused by Firescale Snakes were nothing tough at. Even though Ye Xiuwen had already consumed some recovery pills, his wounds still looked just as macabre and horrific. Dark, charred scars syed across various parts of his body, covering his chest and back with a grotesque sight. Some of these scars were even still bleeding at this point in time.

    Ye Xiuwen did not enter his room immediately. Instead, he had stopped outside at the courtyard to his home, intending to attend to some of these wounds that were still bleeding and change his clothes before entering the room.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, why is your entire body covered with wounds?!¡± Jun Xiaomo tore off the Invisibility Talisman on her body and ran over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Theplicated thoughts of the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue had instantly been washed aside and reced by the grotesque wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    She stretched out her hand, thinking of touching the wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body. Then, she hesitated. She did not want to hurt him.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately grabbed at her outstretched right arm and furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Why have youe out without wearing your outer coat?¡± Ye Xiuwen chided.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sudden appearance had indeed shocked him for just a moment. But as soon as that moment passed, his heart was immediately filled with concern and anger ¨C Just how long as she been outside without her outer coat? Her hands are so cold!

    She was still recovering from her injuries right now. Did she really want to risk falling sick and aggravating things?

    The truth of the matter was that cultivators were not impervious to illnesses and ailments. Rather, it was simply that they had a much lower propensity of falling sick because the constitution of their bodies was vastly different from that of mere mortals.

    That said, someone like Jun Xiaomo who had been injured and bedridden for three whole days would naturally be at her weakest right now, and she was ordingly at risk of falling sick.

    ¡°I¡¯d just been idling about at my own courtyard when I noticed someone enter your courtyard. I was just worried that it would be someone with ill intentions, so I had hurried over here.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head obsequiously as though she were a child that had just done something wrong.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s grip around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand tightened, and his eyes were filled with aplicated gaze. That said, Jun Xiaomo failed to notice all of this because her head was lowered right now.

    ¡°Come here.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly stated.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her head and looked at Ye Xiuwen once more, before taking a few steps forward and lowering her head again.

    Then, Ye Xiuwen retrieved a thick outer coat from his Interspatial Ring, stood up and ced it around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    This outer coat was made from the fur of spirit beasts, and it was particrly warm. However, since Jun Xiaomo was a fair bit shorter than Ye Xiuwen, the coat appeared slightly toorge around Jun Xiaomo, and it looked as though she were a little kid wearing an adult¡¯s clothing.

    As the fur of the spirit beast cost tickled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks, she could detect wafts of her martial brother¡¯s cool fragrance emanating from the coat. Thus, her pale, white cheeks instantly flushed with a pink hue.

    Perhaps it was because of the warmth of the coat; or perhaps it was some other reason... For some strange reason, she felt rather awkward and embarrassed at this moment, and she clutched tightly at the coat¡¯s cor.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze darkened. In fact, he could very easily have instructed Jun Xiaomo to take out her own coat and put it on. After all, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Interspatial Ring would most definitely contain a change of outer coats, and there was no need for Ye Xiuwen to do all this to begin with.

    However, he had still done it. As he looked at how his little martial sister wore his own outer coat in an obsequious fashion, a mysterious sensation of joy washed over his heart.

    ¡°Ah! That¡¯s right, martial brother hasn¡¯t told me where these injuries hade from.¡± Jun Xiaomo finally realized that her earlier question had been sidestepped by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier exmation.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. I¡¯d just gone out to harvest something and unfortunately encountered a few spirit snakes.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head lightly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, even though these wounds look grievous, they¡¯ll recover in no time.¡±

    ¡°Liar! I can still see that they¡¯re bleeding!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you treat and wrap them up even after you¡¯ve returned? Are you waiting for your wounds to fester before treating them?!¡±

    She could tell that these injuries had not been left by merely ordinary spirit beasts, and it would naturally be best if they could treat them as soon as possible.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Hadn¡¯t I been nning to treat my wounds and wrap them up before you¡¯d arrived?¡±

    In other words, if Jun Xiaomo had not suddenly arrived in his abode, he would already have been done treating his wounds and wrapping them up.

    Thinking about this, Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose with some measure of embarrassment.

    She turned her attention to the injuries on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body and murmured softly, ¡°And to think that you¡¯d chided me for being too reckless and throwing my body in harm¡¯s way. Aren¡¯t you the same as well?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows quizzically ¨C This little gal does make sense from time to time...

    ¡°Cough...¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed into her fist as she tugged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves, ¡°Um, martial brother Ye, it¡¯s not getting any earlier. Let me help you clean and wrap up your wounds. It wouldn¡¯t be good to leave them as they are.¡± As she finished speaking, she lifted her eyes and stole a nce at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expression.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the careful, apprehensive look in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and he couldn¡¯t help but look back at Jun Xiaomo with a slightly bemused gaze.

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Then I¡¯ll have to trouble little martial sister.¡±

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo retrieved some medicinal powder and bandage, and she began to loosen Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shirt.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body wasnky yet well-built; and his abundant, well-defined muscles were most definitely mesmerizing, to say the least.

    Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly and rubbed her flushed cheeks as she lifted the medicine that was in her hands.

    ¡°Are you falling ill? Why do you keep coughing?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned to Jun Xiaomo and ced his hand on her forehead to check her temperature. She immediately recoiled in shock.

    ¡°No...I¡¯m fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head to prevent Ye Xiuwen from noticing her peculiar behaviour.

    Her face was boiling hot right now, and she knew that it must bepletely red. What if her martial brother Ye really thinks that she had fallen ill? Furthermore, how could she let him know the real reason why her face was so flushed?

    How could she tell him that her face had flushed red because she had seen her martial brother¡¯s chiseled body? Wouldn¡¯t her martial brother think she was very lustful?

    Jun Xiaomo bit down forcefully on her tongue, suppressing the peculiar sensation that was welling up from the depths of her heart.

    Unfortunately, the redness on the tip of her ears betrayed her. In fact, the redness had extended all the way down her neck.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exquisite, delicate looking ears that were slightly pink in colour, and his expressions darkened instantly. Then, he lifted his hands and caressed it gently.

    Sensitive to the touch, Jun Xiaomo cried out in shock as she lifted her head and stared back at Ye Xiuwen with astonishment.

    Ye Xiuwen was jolted back to his senses by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exmation. It suddenly dawned on him that a fire had been lit in the depths of his heart, and his actions right now were uncharacteristic of a regr interaction between a martial brother and his martial sister.

    Ye Xiuwen was worried that his actions had gone overboard and would induce hatred and a bacsh from Jun Xiaomo. Thus, he closed his eyes and furiously collected his roiling emotions. Then, when he finally opened his eyes once more, everything had returned to his usual, cool andposed state.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. Your hair seemed to be blocking your view earlier, and I was helping you tuck it behind your ears.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled warmly with a usual, cid expression on his face.

    ¡°Oh, haha, so that¡¯s the case.¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly once more, ¡°Then, martial brother, could you turn around? I¡¯ll help you wrap up your wound. It¡¯s going to sting slightly, so you¡¯ve got to bear with it.¡±

    ¡°Alright.¡± Ye Xiuwen went with the flow and turned around.

    After he turned his back around, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief as she suppressed the peculiar sense of disappointment that had arisen in her heart.

    Strange. What am I so disappointed about?

 Chapter 316: Night-Time Candor, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Misery

    <h4>Chapter 316: Night-Time Candor, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Misery</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It was only when Jun Xiaomo turned her attention back to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injuries that she finally discovered just how deep the wounds were. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest and back were filled with injuries that were so deep that even his bones could even be seen. And that was not to mention the other innumerable shallow wounds which appearedpletely charred and burnt on the outside. On a whole, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s injuries lookedpletely grotesque.

    ¡°How did you get yourself that severely wounded?¡± Jun Xiaomo ced her hand gently on one of the wounds as a wave of sorrow washed across her heart.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cool fingers ran along Ye Xiuwen¡¯s skin, he couldn¡¯t help but stiffen up the muscles on his back.

    ¡°Ah! Martial brother, did I hurt you?¡± Jun Xiaomo noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s peculiar reaction, and she immediately released her right hand and rubbed her nose bashfully as she added, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ll apply some medicine on your wounds right now.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head as he responded with a soft, low voice, ¡°Nothing to worry about. It¡¯s not a problem.¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo had earlier ced her hand on his back, it felt as though a light feather had gentlynded on the surface of his still heart, sending a single ripple sweeping out into the horizon.

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with a bewildered gaze, wondering whether she had misheard Ye Xiuwen ¨C his voice had sounded slightly hoarse earlier.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo cast aside her bewilderment in the blink of an eye. She picked up the medicinal powder, poured it onto her hand and began to scatter it onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back. Afterwards, she began to distribute the scattered powder evenly across the wounds.

    Jun Xiaomo was extremely careful with her actions because she was afraid that she would idently brush against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wounds. It had to be said that the medicinal powder was rather effective. As soon as Jun Xiaomo began to apply the medicinal powder, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wounds stopped bleeding in no time.

    Then, just as Jun Xiaomo continued to apply the medicinal powder, Ye Xiuwen suddenly drew a cold breath softly.

    ¡°What happened? Did I use too much force there?¡± Jun Xiaomo quickly lifted her hands again. Then, cautiously, she used a single index finger to rub the medicinal powder and distribute it across the wound she was presently working on.

    However, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t help but tense up his back muscles even more.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo no longer dared to rub the powder across her wounds anymore. She was worried that the more she did so, the more pain Ye Xiuwen would feel. Thus, she simply scattered the medicinal powder on the remaining wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body without rubbing them in.

    Ye Xiuwen finally heaved a sigh of relief, yet he couldn¡¯t help but chuckle bitterly in his heart.

    Had he been possessed earlier? Otherwise, why would the image of his little martial running her finger across his back surface and linger in his mind like that earlier? He spurned the dirty thoughts that had surfaced on his mind, yet he knew that there were certain things he just couldn¡¯t control.

    After all, he was a normal man through and through, and he was not impervious to the thoughts and fantasies that all men possessed, particrly when a person dear to his heart drew close to him.

    In particr, when his little martial sister had touched the parts of his back that were slightly more sensitive than others, the reaction in his mind had beenmensurately more intense.

    That said, he knew that these were not things that were kosher for their discussion, so he simply shrugged it off on the pretext that Jun Xiaomo had used too much strength when rubbing the medicinal powder into his wounds and hurt him. In fact, the truth of the matter was that Ye Xiuwen had experienced injuries that were a hundred or even a thousand times worse, yet he had managed to grit his teeth and fight through the pain at that time. In other words, these wounds could hardly be considered unbearable to him.

    Jun Xiaomo spent one full incense stick of time cleaning out the wounds on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back. Then, when she was finally done, both she and Ye Xiuwen heaved a massive sigh of relief.

    In her heart, Jun Xiaomo was relieved that she was finally done with the difficult part, and she would no longer be clumsily bumping into her martial brother¡¯s wounds, causing him pain. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was relieved by the fact that he no longer had to endure the torment of the sweet and somewhat-alluring sensation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s finger running across his back.

    As to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wounds on his chest and abdomen, these wounds were something that he could see full well, and there was no need for Jun Xiaomo to attend to them to begin with.

    After Jun Xiaomo handed the medicinal powder to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, she sat directly in front of him, hugged her knees and grimaced as she watched intently as Ye Xiuwen applied the medicine on his own body.

    Ye Xiuwen continued to apply the medicinal powder on his own body for a while before he finally noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intent gaze on himself. He lifted his head and stared straight back at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly peculiar expression.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled softly, ¡°Why are you always so somber and serious? Are you thinking of something important?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo locked eyes with Ye Xiuwen, yet she found herselfpletely lost for words.

    ¡°Speak your mind. Are there really things you still can¡¯t tell your martial brother, hmm?¡± The gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes softened slightly.

    As she looked at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s soft and warm disposition, the disappointment in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart burgeoned uncontrobly ¨C Martial brother¡¯s good at everything, but why, of all people, would he fall in love with that scumbag Zhang Shuyue?

    Blinking her eyes at Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she murmured, ¡°Martial brother Ye, did you sustain those wounds on behalf of Zhang Shuyue?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or to get mad at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s baseless conjectures ¨C What makes this little brat think that I would go so far to duke it out with several Firescale Snakes at the Golden Core stage of cultivation for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s sake? Does she think that I¡¯ve got nothing better to do with my life?!

    ¡°What gives you the impression that I¡¯d sustained these injuries for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s sake?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked with some measure of exasperation as he looked at the whorl on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it so?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked up and stared at Ye Xiuwen with widened eyes.

    ¡°Then, tell me what basis you have for making such conjectures.¡± Ye Xiuwen sincerely found it both aggrieving and amusing at the same time. Yet despite all that, his tone of voice remained cid at best.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t tell what was on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind from his cid expression, and she could only puff up her cheeks as she murmured, ¡°Isn¡¯t it because...because...¡±

    ¡°Because of what, hmm?¡±

    ¡°Because...¡±

    Because you¡¯d also sustained injuries for Zhang Shuyue in my previous life as well! Jun Xiaomo eximed in her heart. Her heart was throbbing with pangs of sourness and bitter astringency, and yet she found herselfpletely speechless at the moment.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze darkened momentarily. His little martial sister had always been like this, unwilling to reveal the contemtions on her heart, and always choosing to bury all of her deepest, darkest secrets in the depths of her heart.

    Jun Xiaomo looked up with an aggrieved look in her eye as she asked, ¡°Then, martial brother, where did the wounds on your bodye from? You¡¯d clearly gotten injured shortly after leaving together with Zhang Shuyue.¡±

    She finally found some basis for her earlier conjectures, and the displeasure in her heart only grew as a result of that ¨C she sincerely hoped that her martial brother would prove her wrong in the very next moment.

    At the same time, the exasperation in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes only burgeoned as well. He gestured to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Come over here.¡±

    After hesitating for a moment, Jun Xiaomo stood up and walked over.

    Then, when she went closer to Ye Xiuwen, he rapped her hard on the head as he exined, ¡°Just because I¡¯d left your room with Miss Zhang, you¡¯d immediately concluded that I¡¯d sustained all these injuries for her? Where¡¯s your logic? Have you gotten dumber over the years?¡±

    ¡°But martial brother wasn¡¯t willing to reveal anything about it. I¡¯d asked you so many times prior to this, yet you¡¯ve only responded with silence.¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her head, feeling even more aggrieved than ever before.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed once more as he retrieved a bunch of meridge Flower from his Interspatial Ring, exining, ¡°I¡¯d gone out to harvest these meridge Flowers earlier, and I didn¡¯t expect to see so many spirit snakes living among the field of meridge Flowers. I only sustained such serious injuries because I wasn¡¯t prepared to deal with so many spirit snakes all of a sudden. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re fully aware of what these meridge Flowers are used for. I didn¡¯t say anything earlier only because I didn¡¯t want you to feel remorseful or guilty about these injuries.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo held the bunch of meridge Flowers in her hand, and tears began to fill the rims of her eyes.

    That¡¯s right. After living for so many years, how could she possibly be unaware of what these meridge Flowers were used for? The meridge Flowers were most effective in elerating the rate of recovery of cultivators with fire-based spiritual roots. Her martial brother had undoubtedly harvested all of these for the sake of her recovery.

    To think that she had thrown a childish tantrum for such a long time, causing her martial brother such headache and worry.

    When he noticed how Jun Xiaomo clutched tightly to the bunch of meridge Flowers with her head hung low, Ye Xiuwen knew that she waspletely guilt-ridden right now.

    The reaction he had wanted to see was not Jun Xiaomo¡¯s guilt or remorse. However, the multitude of considerations guing his heart had time and again prevented him from making that first step, thus, resulting in misunderstanding after misunderstanding.

    Regardless, Ye Xiuwen decided to interrupt Jun Xiaomo¡¯s train of thoughts in order to snap her out of her guilt-ridden state of mind.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you were going to help your martial brother wrap up his wounds? Why have you be seized up there now, hmm?¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair.

    Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses. She quickly stuffed the bunch of meridge Flowers into her Interspatial Ring and retrieved a roll of bandage. Then, she walked over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and began to wrap up the wounds on his body.

    Jun Xiaomo had been injured innumerable times in the past now, and she was incredibly proficient with wrapping up wounds by now. That said, she also subconsciously slowed down her actions because she was afraid of causing pain to Ye Xiuwen.

    As she covered and concealed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s manifold injuries with the bandages, she couldn¡¯t but agonize over his sacrifice.

    That¡¯s right, she had felt aggrieved by the prospects of Ye Xiuwen getting injured because of Zhang Shuyue. However, she hardly felt any better knowing that Ye Xiuwen had sustained injuries for her sake either.

    Simply put, it distressed her seeing injuries on her martial brother Ye¡¯s body, no matter the cause.

    Ye Xiuwen discovered that Jun Xiaomo still seemed to be rather dispirited, so he turned his head and looked towards Jun Xiaomo.

    In the very next moment, he was immediately taken aback by what he saw.

    The rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes werepletely reddened ¨C it was evident that she was on the brink of tears.

    ¡°Martial brother hadn¡¯t picked the medicine for you just so that he could see you cry, alright?¡± Ye Xiuwen consoled her with a soft voice before he segued into a more serious matter, ¡°I¡¯m your older martial brother after all, and it¡¯s my duty to look after you when all is said and done. There¡¯s no need to feel so burdened by all this. In fact, I should be the one feeling aggrieved having left you alone at the Sect to deal with He Zhang and hisckeys earlier.¡±

    ¡°But that¡¯s not martial brother¡¯s fault to begin with. I was the one who had concealed my identity to begin with.¡± Jun Xiaomo hurriedly exined.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, so by extension, this shouldn¡¯t concern Xiaomo either, right? Martial brother was just bearing his own burden when he went out harvesting for medicines, and martial brother had only gotten injured because he had underestimated the dangers in doing so. Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡± Ye Xiuwen backed up his constion with sound reasoning as he exined everything slowly, with clear, distinct artiction.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, before she softly uttered, ¡°Mm.¡± As she nodded her head in understanding, she also tied the final knot on the bandages on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed once more. It suddenly dawned on him that he had been sighing far more than usual over tonight.

    ¡°Little Mo, you¡¯re still thinking about something else, hmm? Why are you still keeping things to yourself? Also, has there been any animosity between you and Miss Zhang previously? Is that why you hate her so much?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked up and gazed straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s concerned eyes.

    Martial brother Ye is always like that ¨C even if I¡¯m merely considered a burden to him, he¡¯s like an immovable fortress that will never hesitate to carry my burdens as well.

    She really shouldn¡¯t conceal the truth from her martial brother Ye any longer, should she? After all, her martial brother Ye didn¡¯t deserve to be deceived by Zhang Shuyue in this life as well.

    Having made her resolve, Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips as she looked back at Ye Xiuwen with determination in her eyes, ¡°Martial brother, I don¡¯t want to see you get deceived by her again.¡±

    ¡°Again?¡± Ye Xiuwen grasped the nub of the issue.

    ¡°Some time ago, I had a dream. I dreamt that you fell for Zhang Shuyue and you got together with her. Yet in the end, she turned on you and plunged a sword straight through your chest.¡± By the time Jun Xiaomo got to thest phrase, tears had begun to roll out from the rims of her eyes, trickling down her cheeks.

    This was one of the most painful memories in her heart; and this was one of the memories that had tormented her for countless days and nights on end.

    The tears in her eyes had caused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s vision to grow blurry, and she didn¡¯t notice when exactly Ye Xiuwen had stood up and made his way over to her side.

    Lifting his hands to wipe the tears off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, Ye Xiuwen sighed yet another time as he carefully asked, ¡°Little Mo, are you more concerned of the fact that I¡¯d fallen for Zhang Shuyue in your dreams, or are you more concerned of the fact that I¡¯d been murdered by Zhang Shuyue in your dreams?¡±

    What? Is there a difference between the two?

    Jun Xiaomo was unable to process the difference between the two in the spur of the moment.

    She lifted her and gave Ye Xiuwen a bewildered look once more, only to realize that she was faced with a deep, abstruse andplicated gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart tensed up. For some strange reason, Jun Xiaomo felt as though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was like a powerful whirlpool which absorbed and devoured all of the ponderances of her heart and mind in just an instant.

 Chapter 317: A Moonlit Confession; A Settled Heart

    <h4>Chapter 317: A Moonlit Confession; A Settled Heart</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen heart was deeply tormented, and his gaze grew deep and abstruse.

    Thedy that had held his heart captive for such a long time was now standing right in front of him, and he would be able to touch that tear-stained face and immerse himself in her soft, enchanting fragrance if he just lowered his head or lifted his arm. Ye Xiuwen could heart the thunderous beats of his heart thumping away with crescendo.

    Previously, he had always been under the impression that Jun Xiaomo had always viewed him as nothing more than a dear martial brother, devoid of any affection or feelings as between a couple. Thus, he had always been afraid of overstepping his boundaries and jeopardizing their existing, cordial rtionship.

    But now, as Ye Xiuwen gazed into the vacant, puzzled look in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, it suddenly dawned on him that things would never depart status quo if he did not actively make that first step. His Little Martial Sister would forever treat him as nothing more than a mere martial brother, and he might even be relegated to the sidelines when another man steps in and confesses to Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s emotions right now were like a beast that had been caged for far too long ¨C stifled and bound, yet always waiting expectantly for the day when it could break free of its shackles.

    ¡°Martial Brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo discovered that the atmosphere between them had grown thick and dense, to the extent that it was almost stifling. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits tensed up uncontrobly as she continued to gaze into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s deep, abstruse eyes. She could see that his eyes were filled with her own image.

    Then, Ye Xiuwen stretched out his arm and ced it gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks. His index finger gently caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s long eyshes that were still damp from her tears.

    Jun Xiaomo held her breath. Her mind was aplete nk at this moment, and hershes fluttered lightly like the wings of a butterfly.

    As Ye Xiuwen¡¯s emotions escted to unprecedented heights, they tugged ferociously at his heartstrings, sending the feelings that had been suppressed in the depths of his heart bursting forth like waters breaching a dam, overwhelming all of his rationality. Ye Xiuwen lifted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, and then slowly and softly kissed her.

    Even though this was not the first time Ye Xiuwen had kissed Jun Xiaomo, the previous instances were all on her hair or her forehead. At best, those kisses would have evinced nothing more than trace levels of affection that could be easily shrugged off as an older brother¡¯s disy of affection for a younger little sister.

    But this time, Ye Xiuwen had kissed Jun Xiaomo directly on her lips, indubitablymunicating his feelings for her through his actions.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen had kept his kiss to a gentle peck on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips so as not to frighten her. At the same time, his eyes werepletely trained on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions and slightest of reactions as he had done so.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely taken aback. His kiss had been so sudden and abrupt that her heart waspletely unprepared for it.

    She could smell Ye Xiuwen¡¯s faint yet distinct fragrance permeating through her olfactory senses, and she could vividly feel the sensation of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips lingering on hers. As she looked up at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, the intense, passionate gaze in his eyes instantly sent her heart spinning and fluttering about once more.

    So, it¡¯s like that...

    A numb, ticklish sensation burgeoned in her chest ¨C it felt as though an earlier void in her heart had just been filled.

    The urge to cry washed over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart once more.

    His Little Martial Sister¡¯s lips had been softer than he had expected, and it even carried a slight fragrance as though a cherry blossom. Even though he felt like fully immersing himself in that experience, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s strong sense of rationality told him that it was prudent to stop at a probing peck for now.

    ¡°Do you hate this kiss?¡± Ye Xiuwen backed off slightly and released Jun Xiaomo, yet his eyes continued to remain fixated on the expressions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    In the next moment, he noticed that the rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes had now grown red and puffy, as though she was about to cry. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart sank, and bitter astringency began to pour in and fill his heart with emptiness.

    Have I misinterpreted the signs? Perhaps it¡¯s true that Little Martial Sister only treats me as nothing more than an older martial brother.

    Having made his move, Ye Xiuwen knew that the rtionship between him and Jun Xiaomo would never be able to return to its previous state again. That said, he knew that he still remained the First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak, and Jun Xiaomo would continue to remain part of his responsibility in her capacity as a little martial sister to him. He could not afford to let Jun Xiaomo fear him or distance herself from him. Thus, he had said all these things in order to salvage the situation as much as he possibly could.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality had once again returned to the forefront of his mind, and he knew what exactly he had to say in order to break the awkward tension between them right now. However, he waspletely stunned by what Jun Xiaomo did next.

    Jun Xiaomo propped herself up on tiptoe, embraced Ye Xiuwen around the neck, closed her eyes, and returned a light kiss on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart trembled slightly, and his pupils constricted instantaneously.

    ¡°This is my answer.¡± After the kiss, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes once more and smiled brightly at Ye Xiuwen. Every trace of her previous expressions of disappointment, anxiety, distress and pain had all been wiped out by this single, radiant smile of hers.

    It suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen that he might very well have underestimated his Little Martial Sister earlier. And it stood to reason ¨C after all, how could a person with the fortitude to endure over three hundred years of painful solitude within the Proving Grounds be stumbled by something so rtively insignificant like an older martial brother¡¯s feelings?

    Perhaps Jun Xiaomo has never needed my concern or constion to begin with. Perhaps I¡¯d been unable to discern these things because I¡¯d not seen her nor been part of her life for such a long time.

    When all was said and done, it was unmistakably a good thing that he had still taken this first step.

    Furthermore, it was fortunate that the result of his gamble was positively the result he had always been hoping for ¨C at the very least, his affection had not gone unreciprocated.

    Ye Xiuwen gently pulled Jun Xiaomo into a warm, sincere embrace, cing his chin gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s petite frame snuggled into his bosom, he could feel the warmth from her embrace filling up the emptiness in his heart. In fact, his heart felt incredibly full right now ¨C it felt as though everything he had done back in the Death¡¯s Gorge, where he had been painstakingly cultivating day and night just to fight his way out and return to the surface, had culminated in this very moment.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s long hair dangled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders, mingling harmoniously with her hair.

    Jun Xiaomo hesitated for a moment, and then she lifted her hands and wrapped them around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s firm, muscr waist.

    As she carefully avoided the bandaged areas on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, Jun Xiaomo locked her fingers tightly around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back in a feeble attempt to conceal her trembling right now.

    ¡°Why are you crying again?¡± Ye Xiuwen discovered some dampness on his shoulders. When he released his grip over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body once more, he discovered that there were traces of tears around her damp, moist eyshes.

    ¡°Can¡¯t you allow me to enjoy my moment of bliss?! These are tears of joy, understand?!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen. It was as though the confirmation of their feelings for each other had disced all need for decorum, and Jun Xiaomo no longer treated Ye Xiuwen as she would have an older martial brother.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in relief, before chuckling with some measure of exasperation as he quipped, ¡°Alright, Little Mo is right. Tears of joy arepletely understandable.¡±

    ¡°Then, are you still going to fall for Zhang Shuyue?¡± Jun Xiaomo red at him as she demanded an answer. It was as though she had turned into a little cat baring its teeth in just the blink of an eye.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows quizzically as he rapped Jun Xiaomo hard on the head, ¡°Since when have I given you the impression that I¡¯d fallen for Zhang Shuyue?¡±

    ¡°That...didn¡¯t Martial Brother Chen and the rest all say that you and Zhang Shuyue have be a couple? After all, they¡¯d seen you two spend an inordinate amount of time together over thest few days.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured.

    Ye Xiuwen rubbed his temples in exasperation as he responded, ¡°She¡¯s been the one approaching me all this while. How else should I have reacted under everyone¡¯s watchful eye? Besides, this is her ce of residence to begin with, and I don¡¯t have the right to chase her away.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo puffed up her cheeks as she continued to press the point, ¡°But she obviously likes you. Are you saying that I¡¯ll have to bear with her hanging around by your side now?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, ¡°Sorry. Martial Brother had been too concerned looking for a ce for your recovery and recuperation, and I¡¯d overlooked all of these considerations, including Miss Zhang¡¯s feelings towards me. That said, since you seem to have recovered substantially now, why don¡¯t we depart this ce tomorrow? That way, we won¡¯t risk leading others on.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at the bandages on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body in dismay as she quipped, ¡°I¡¯m certainly much better now. However, you¡¯ve just got yourself injured. Perhaps it might be better if we leave after another few days? After all, the thick spiritual energy here will aid in your recovery speed as well.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled, ¡°These injuries are nothing. Furthermore, since I¡¯ve got no feelings towards Miss Zhang to begin with, there¡¯s no reason in overstaying our wee and owing others a favour. After all, repaying a debt is easy, but repaying a favor isn¡¯t. Getting embroiled in such rtions might give rise to a misunderstanding on Miss Zhang¡¯s part.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head in agreement as she contemted the schemes and ploys implemented by Zhang Shuyue in her previous life.

    Zhang Shuyue was hardly a saint in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. Back then, Zhang Shuyue had been willing to resort to any and all means necessary just so that she could achieve her own ends. In her present life, Zhang Shuyue was undoubtedly still the exact same person that she had been before; and there was nothing suggesting that her character had changed a single bit.

    Thus, she knew that it would be prudent to nip the budding problem now. After all, if they allowed Zhang Shuyue¡¯s feelings for Ye Xiuwen to continue to deepen any further, she might resort to some extreme measures just to get what she wanted, and things would be far more problematic and troublesome at that time. Furthermore, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s master was a vicious person who was over-protective of her own disciples, and she would be even more difficult to deal with than Zhang Shuyue was. Were they really going to wait till her master was back before they left?

    When that time came, whether they could leave with life and limb intact would be a whole other issue to be dealt with altogether.

    ¡°Martial brother, I think it would be best to leave tomorrow. We can¡¯t let Zhang Shuyue have any more chances to scheme against us.¡± Jun Xiaomo grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms as she looked at Ye Xiuwen with a deep gaze in her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, tacitly signifying his assent as he reassured her.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but curl up her eyes brightly as she revealed yet another radiant smile.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart stirred, and he caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face once more as he gently nted another kiss on her lips.

    This time, Jun Xiaomo was no longer caught unaware. Instead, she closed her eyes, tipped her toes and embraced Ye Xiuwen around his neck as she received Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gesture of affection with open arms.

    On this clear, ordinary night, the two lovebirds who had already developed feelings for each other since a long time ago finally confirmed their feelings for each other andmitted themselves to the other.

    Hourster, the first light of dawn scattered the darkness of the uneventful night.

    It might have been a result of her injuries; it might have been a chill she had caught as a result of the cool night; or it might have been an automatic reflex of her body as a result of the extreme undtion of her emotions between the heights of great joy and the abyss of great sorrow ¨C but regardless of the reason, the fact remained that Jun Xiaomo had fallen asleep amidst an impassioned kiss with Ye Xiuwenst night.

    When Ye Xiuwen first realized that Jun Xiaomo had passed outpletely, his heart raced with intense anxiety. Then, when he finally discovered that she had simply fallen asleep, and there was nothing wrong with her body, Ye Xiuwen heart reacted with ambivalence ¨C he didn¡¯t know whether tough or get mad at her.

    The injuries on his body were still echoing with throbs of pain, and Ye Xiuwen could hardly be bothered to carry Jun Xiaomo back to her own room. Under the confluence of these factors, Ye Xiuwen carried Jun Xiaomo straight back to his own room.

    There, he set Jun Xiaomo down on the bed gingerly and tucked her into bed. He stood at the door and watched her affectionately as she slept, and a warm, tender smile crept up the corner of his lips. In this blissful moment, his heart feltpletely warm and fuzzy.

    After adjusting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s posture for herfort, Ye Xiuwen retreated to the outer room where he retired for the night on a mattress.

    Several hourster, Ye Xiuwen found himself jolted awake by the intrusion of a stranger¡¯s aura. His eyes opened wide as he nced vigntly outside of his room. However, his vision was obstructed by the door to his room, and he couldn¡¯t see who it was who had entered his courtyard.

    ¡°Oh...I think we¡¯ve got a visitor?¡± Jun Xiaomo had also awakened from her slumber, and she sat at the side of her bed as she rubbed her eyes. She was still wearing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s outer coat and wrapped up in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s nket at this moment.

    ¡°You can sleep for a little while more if you¡¯re tired. I¡¯ll go take a look.¡± Ye Xiuwen walked over to the bed and patted Jun Xiaomo on the head.

    Jun Xiaomo was evidently still groggy from her slumber as she blinked her eyes vacantly.

    As Ye Xiuwen opened the door and walked out, he discovered that the visitor waiting in the courtyard outside was none other than Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°I wonder what brings Miss Zhang over to my ce this early in the morning?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked courteously, carefully measuring his response to keep his distance and interaction as that between a guest and his host.

    ¡°I was just looking to discuss with Brother Ye about what Brother Ye had mentioned yesterday. I¡¯ve thought about it for some time, and I really think that there¡¯s no need for brother Ye to be in such a hurry to leave.¡± Zhang Shuyue uttered softly, ¡°Perhaps there¡¯s some misunderstanding between Sister Xiaomo and I, or perhaps she¡¯s got some misgivings against me, but everything will be resolved once I have a chat with her. Brother Ye has saved my life after all. I¡¯ll feel really bad if you¡¯d left because of such a small hup.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she looked sorrowfully at Ye Xiuwen, hoping that he would be moved by her spiel.

    ¡°Now¡¯s a better time than any. If Miss Zhang wants to rify any misunderstanding or misgivings with me, you can do it right here, right now.¡± A clear, crisp voice rang out from within the room. Momentster, with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s outer coat still around her, Jun Xiaomo stepped out just beside Ye Xiuwen and revealed a meaningful smile at Zhang Shuyue.

    Zhang Shuyue was taken aback,pletely bbergasted. After reeling in shock for some time before she finally managed to let out a shrill shriek in horror, ¡°Why would you be in Brother Ye¡¯s room?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically, ¡°Oh? Can Miss Zhang please tell me why I can¡¯t be in Brother Ye¡¯s room?¡±

    The cocky look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face right now was truly deserving of beating.

 Chapter 318: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Infuriation, Xiang Guqingâ€™s Ploy

    <h4>Chapter 318: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Infuriation, Xiang Guqing¡¯s Ploy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zhang Shuyue was so infuriated that her face flushed, and her heart palpitated, sending boiling blood coursing throughout her body.

    How dare Jun Xiaomo ask me why she couldn¡¯t be in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room?! Rather than sleeping, what was she doing running off into a man¡¯s room at night?! Where is her propriety?!

    Most importantly, Zhang Shuyue could see that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was still covered by an outer coat that was ostensibly toorge for her ¨C it was obvious that coat belonged to Ye Xiuwen. Zhang Shuyue had always had feelings for Ye Xiuwen, so how could she possibly remain inert and unfazed when Jun Xiaomo had evidently stepped ahead and stolen Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart? Zhang Shuyue waspletely incensed right now!

    ¡°You...what have you been doingst night?!¡± Zhang Shuyue eyes reddened as she blurted out without restraint. If a person who did not understand the parties involved in this matter witnessed this scene right now, they might even begin to think that Zhang Shuyue was here to catch a third party in a rtionship red-handed.

    That said, it didn¡¯t matter how ambiguous the situation looked since there were only three of them around now.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrow and smiled meaningfully as she slowly walked over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Then, she wrapped her arm around his arm, leaned her head on his shoulder and then responded to Zhang Shuyue, ¡°What do you think we were doingst night?¡±

    How could Zhang Shuyue be unaware of the fact that Jun Xiaomo was intentionally triggering her? Anyone would be able to tell that the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was well beyond the ordinary rtionship between a martial brother and a martial sister.

    It had only been one night! How can these two people experience such earth-shattering changes to their rtionship within the span of just one night?!

    Jun Xiaomo was now the target of both jealousy and hatred in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart. Having previously noticed that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had not professed their fondness for each other, she had initially thought that time was on her side, and she could slowly work her way into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart. How could she have expected Jun Xiaomo to y by her own rules and flip things around in her favour overnight? How could she have expected them to transform their pure rtionship between martial siblings into that of a couple without any prior warnings?

    She had misjudged Jun Xiaomopletely! How thick-skinned must Jun Xiaomo be to have done all of these things?!

    If Jun Xiaomo could hear that thoughts of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart right now, she would most certainly burst out withughter. After all, it was the embodiment of the pot calling the kettle ck ¨C in fact, the truth of the matter was that Zhang Shuyue was far more thick-skinned than Jun Xiaomo!

    After all, Jun Xiaomo could never bring herself to stoop so low to manipte the sincere affection of others just to satisfy her own ends.

    As she looked at the lovebirds, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, Zhang Shuyue realized that she would only be making a mockery of herself if she continued to remain here. Ye Xiuwen was fond of Jun Xiaomo to begin with. Now that they had confessed their feelings for each other and brought the rtionship to the next level, wouldn¡¯t there be even less room left for Zhang Shuyue to even attempt to worm her way into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart?

    Zhang Shuyue bit down on her lower lips and red begrudgingly at Ye Xiuwen for a moment. Then, she turned around and left in a huff without another word.

    If only Zhang Shuyue were to learn that it was her appearance that had catalyzed the next step in the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen ¨C how much more frustrated and incensed would she be?!

    ¡°Is she really leaving just like that? And to think that I was even thinking of sussing out just how powerful herbat abilities are.¡± Jun Xiaomo murmured as she turned towards Zhang Shuyue¡¯s silhouette in the distance and stuck out her tongue at Zhang Shuyue, making a face.

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bizarre and mystifying behaviour. Nevertheless, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he redirected her focus onto the matter at hand, ¡°Alright, stop pretending to be innocent after gaining an edge over others. Go pack your things. We¡¯ll leave this ce today.¡±

    ¡°Are we really leaving today?! That¡¯s great!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes brightened as she pped her hands in joy. A gleam of delight shed across the depths of her eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows quizzically, ¡°Did you think I was lying to youst night?¡±

    ¡°Not at all. Martial Brother Ye never lies.¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately smiled radiantly at Ye Xiuwen, pretending to be innocent.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly as well as he gently flicked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier possessive behaviour made him feel special and at ease. He had been concerned that his Little Martial Sister would be unable to distinguish the differences between a generic rtionship between martial siblings and a loving rtionship between a couple, to the exclusion of all other potential suitors. But, from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier interactions with Zhang Shuyue, he might have oveplicated matters in his own mind ¨C after all, if his martial sister did not appreciate these differences, her earlier interaction with Zhang Shuyue would not have beenced with such protectiveness and jealousy.

    Naturally, these were not things he was going to discuss with Jun Xiaomo for fear that he would attract her ire.

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo reveled in the delight that she could finally wash her hands of Zhang Shuyue and no longer have to worry about history repeating itself, Zhang Shuyue finally returned to her room. As she gnashed her teeth in rage, she retrieved a Transmittance Talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    She bit her finger and dripped a drop of fresh blood onto the Transmittance Talisman. After glowing with an intense blue light, the Transmittance Talisman projected an image of a person directly above it.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Shuyue, did something happen in the valley? Why did you contact Master so urgently...?¡± A female cultivator with a stern and somber disposition appeared above the Transmittance Talisman. She wore her hair in a perfect bun, and not a single strand of hair was out of ce. Thisdy was ostensibly someone incredibly strict, disciplined and rigid person ¨C clearly not someone that anyone in the right mind would want to cross.

    ¡°Mas-...Master...wu-wu-wuuu...¡± As soon as she heard her master¡¯s voice, Zhang Shuyue immediately started bawling, and tears began to flow from her eyes like the trickling waters of a stream.

    ¡°Shuyue! Why are you crying? What happened?!¡± Zhang Shuyue¡¯s master immediately knitted her brows together, and her expression instantly darkened and became fearsome and terrifying.

    Zhang Shuyue was her favourite disciple, one that she doted upon the most. She would not even beat or scold Zhang Shuyue if she could help it. In fact, she had only left the valley just a few days ago, so she could hardly fathom why her dear disciple bawling so sorrowfully now.

    ¡°Master, I was wrong. You were right ¨C men are no good things. I should never have let my heart be moved by a man...wu-wu-wuu...¡± Zhang Shuyue continued to bawl intensely, appearing as though she had been abandoned by someone.

    And it was precisely because of her bawling that Xiang Guqing developed a misunderstanding ¨C she immediately thought that her beloved disciple was bawling because she had fallen in love with a man, only to be used and then abandoned by him.

    ¡°Stop crying! What has happened, has happened. There¡¯s no use crying over spilt milk. This was why Master had time and again cautioned you that men can be used, but never invested in. But you never quite understood what Master meant anyway. Look at how you¡¯re suffering the consequences of your disobedience now! Come, tell Master exactly what has happened.¡± Xiang Guqing sternly chided Zhang Shuyue.

    If this man had truly bullied her disciple, she would do everything within her abilities to yank out his nerves and y his skin on behalf of her disciple.

    Zhang Shuyue wiped her eyes and began to recount with a choking, whimpering voice, ¡°Over thest few days, I¡¯d encountered a group of travelers outside the valley. They appeared in a rather tragic state, and they even sported innumerable injuries on their bodies. When I saw them, I was immediately spellbound by their leader. As my fascination for the man burgeoned, I brought them back to the valley, thinking that the thick spiritual energy within the valley would be helpful to their recovery and recuperation. Then...¡±

    ¡°You silly brat! How can you let outsiders into the valley like that? Even if they don¡¯t harbour any ill intentions towards you, what are you going to do if they begin to covet the resources and treasures within the valley? Do you think you can defeat a whole group of people?!¡± Xiang Guqing barked in exasperation. She could practically see a reflection of her younger self in Zhang Shuyue. Back then, she had been equally as daft and innocent, and she had simrly fallen for a man and ended up being used by him, ¡°Then, what happened? Are they threatening you to give the valley to them?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue shook her head. With puffy eyes, she continued, ¡°No, they¡¯re thinking of leaving this ce.¡±

    ¡°Leaving the valley? That¡¯s a good thing, isn¡¯t it? What¡¯s there to cry about?¡± Xiang Guqing couldn¡¯t understand why Zhang Shuyue was dismayed right now.

    ¡°But...but I really want to be with him. I didn¡¯t know that he had only agreed to enter the valley because he wanted to stimte the recovery rate of thedy he liked. And now that his Little Martial Sister had recovered, he¡¯s already thinking of leaving. Thenst night, while I was unaware, the two of them even spent the entire night together. When I questioned them on what they were doing, thatdy even began to unt her ¡®achievements¡¯ in front of me, wu-wu-wuu...¡±

    It can be said that Zhang Shuyue hadpletely twisted the facts by her description of the events. She had carefully omitted the fact it was Ye Xiuwen who had rescued her to begin with, and that she had brought Ye Xiuwen back to the valley as guests in order to repay her debt of gratitude to him. Furthermore, she had intentionally glossed over the fact that Ye Xiuwen had nevermunicated his affection to her so that her master would misunderstand the situation and think that Ye Xiuwen had manipted her feelings. Finally, she had intentionally used the word ¡°questioned¡± so that she would seem like the reasonable party in the entire sequence of events.

    Anyone listening to her right now would undoubtedly get the impression that there was a messy love triangle to begin with, and the ensuing drama had ended with the sacrifice of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s affection and feelings in favour of the other two. One could only imagine Xiang Guqing¡¯s reaction when she heard this.

    In fact, it was precisely because Xiang Guqing had previously been hurt by a man while she was young that she now made it a point not to ept any male disciples under her charge. Furthermore, she would time and again caution her disciples that men were no good creatures, warning them never to invest their own true feelings in vile men.

    Unfortunately, a single trip out of the valley had left her favourite disciple being ¡°led astray¡± by a man, leaving hernguishing in the mires of her emotions ¨C how could Xiang Guqing not be mad at this?

    That said, most of her indignation was not directed at Zhang Shuyue. Rather, it was directed at the man who had deceived her disciple, as well as the third wheel involved in their rtionship. Xiang Guqing knew that her disciple had just begun to venture out into the world, and it was rather foreseeable that she encountered a scumbag or two in her travels, and they ended up sweet talking her and taking advantage of her emotions. After all, it was in the exact same fashion that Xiang Guqing had herself been deceived as a result of her inability to discern between authenticity and pretensions.

    Thus, Xiang Guqing didn¡¯t me Zhang Shuyue for not taking heed her cautions, and she ced all the me on Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo despite not having heard their side of the story.

    Zhang Shuyue was well aware that her master¡¯s ire had been stirred, and her heart began to calm down slightly.

    It had to be mentioned that Zhang Shuyue did not think that there was anything wrong with involving her master in all these affairs. After all, Jun Xiaomo had recovered under the effects of the thick spiritual energy within these valleys, and Jun Xiaomo should owe a debt of gratitude towards her to begin with. Yet all Jun Xiaomo had done ever since regaining her consciousness was to anger and infuriate her, and even steal the heart of her man!

    Had she known this was going to happen in the first ce, she would have let Jun Xiaomo perish in the wilderness altogether. That way, nobody would steal her Ye Xiuwen from her anymore.

    ¡°Master, what should we do now? I really like him, but he seems intent on leaving.¡± Zhang Shuyue whimpered. Her eyes were so puffy from all the crying that they almost looked like walnuts.

    ¡°Insolence! Is this all worth it for just a stinking, vile man?!¡± Xiang Guqing castigated her, ¡°Tell me, what do you see in the man that makes you so willing to pursue him, even to the extent of defying your Master¡¯s standing cautions and orders?¡±

    ¡°This...I don¡¯t know either.¡± Zhang Shuyue continued to weep.

    ¡°Hmph. This man must have the gift of the gab. I imagine your heart must have fluttered after just a few phrases of cajoling on his part.¡± Xiang Guqing remarked coldly, ¡°Then, what¡¯s his name, and what sect is he from? Master will check on him.¡±

    Xiang Guqing was no fool. Even though she was incensed by the fact that her disciple had been deceived, she would never make a move recklessly before investigating the background of the perpetrator. After all, it would be imprudent to get herself embroiled in a dispute she could not afford to.

    At the same time, it was only at this point in time that Zhang Shuyue realized how she had not even bothered to ask Ye Xiuwen about his background or which sect he came from. She had been so entranced by his appearance and dignified disposition that she had pounced straight on him without much consideration.

    Besides, none of her suitors so far could hold a candle to Ye Xiuwen.

    After a period of long, inordinate silence, Xiang Guqing grew maddened once more, ¡°Shuyue, don¡¯t tell me you brought the group back to the valley without even checking on their background at all?¡±

    ¡°I...I only know his name is Ye Xiuwen, and his Little Martial Sister is called Jun Xiaomo. Apart from that...I¡¯m not too sure.¡± Zhang Shuyue revealed a sheepish, flustered look.

    Even though Xiang Guqing doted on her, it didn¡¯t mean that she did not have a bottom line. Zhang Shuyue¡¯s mistake was simply far too severe this time ¨C she had recklessly brought the group back into the valley without even checking on their identities.

    ¡°Hmph! Master knew that this was going to happen! When will you grow up?! You¡¯re such a useless disciple!¡± This was the first time Xiang Guqing had been so thoroughly disappointed by Zhang Shuyue, ¡°I¡¯ll deal with you when I¡¯m back!¡±

    Zhang Shuyue lowered her head pitifully.

    This was Xiang Guqing¡¯s favourite disciple after all. When she saw Zhang Shuyue looking down in dismay, and when she considered how Zhang Shuyue had just sustained an emotional trauma, Xiang Guqing could no longer bring herself to continue berating her dear disciple. Thus, she turned to the names Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo and pondered about them. Their names sounded familiar, and she seemed to have heard it somewhere before...

    ¡°It¡¯s them?!¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes widened instantly.

    Zhang Shuyue immediately lifted her head and asked, ¡°Master, you know them?¡±

    ¡°Ah, I don¡¯t think you can say I know them personally. That said, their names are quite widely known within the spiritual cultivation world. In particr, the Heavenly Peak that theye from is incredibly notorious.¡± Xiang Guqing chuckled contemptuously as a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°Notorious?¡± Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart constricted slightly ¨C Could there be more than meets the eye?

    ¡°Disciple, you rarely step out of the valley, and it¡¯s natural that you don¡¯t know about these things. These two martial siblings have made quite the name for themselves. Quite apart from the fact that they had feigned their deaths for over ten years, they immediately made ripples in the spiritual cultivation world as soon as they reemerged from where they were hiding. They¡¯d wreaked havoc within their own Sect, and now everyone from the Sect that they were originally from is looking to kill them.¡±

    ¡°Wreaked havoc? Why would they want to harm the people from their own Sect? Is this not an act of ingratitude?¡± Zhang Shuyue chimed with some measure of righteous indignation.

    ¡°They used to be disciples from the Dawn Sect, under the helm of their Heavenly Peak. Have you heard of the Heavenly Peak? Not long ago, news about them was spreading like wildfire across the entire spiritual cultivation world, saying that someone among their midst had turned to demonic cultivation. Then, in order to protect the single disciple that had turned to demonic cultivation, the Peakmaster of the Heavenly Peak turned against the rest of the cultivation world and ended up being persecuted by them all. Right now, nobody knows where they¡¯re hiding. I¡¯d never expected that the responsibility of dealing with these two ill-reputed disciples would one day get foisted on me just like that!¡± Xiang Guqing coldly eximed.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s gaze darkened for a moment, before she feigned an expression of fear and dread as she asked Xiang Guqing anxiously, ¡°Then, Master, what do we do? They must be widely persecuted by everyone in the spiritual cultivation world now, right? Is it really alright for us to have allowed them to reside in our valley? I¡¯m so stupid! If I¡¯d known this earlier, I would never have allowed them entry into the valley...¡±

    ¡°Now, do you finally see the gravity of what you¡¯ve gotten yourself into? You should¡¯ve listened to me right from the start!¡± It just dawned on Xiang Guqing again that her disciple was still fond of Ye Xiuwen, and she couldn¡¯t help but re indignantly at Zhang Shuyue.

    Hmph. A cultivator that is widely persecuted by the rest of the spiritual cultivation world actually dares to tarnish my disciple¡¯s name?! He must be tired of living!

    Xiang Guqing thought about it for a little bit more, before addressing Zhang Shuyue once more, ¡°Don¡¯t worry for now. Find a way to keep them at the valley. Master will rally the troops and head back right now. We¡¯ll make sure that these people get their just desserts!¡±

    ¡°Master, you¡¯re thinking of...¡± Zhang Shuyue asked with a whispering voice.

    ¡°Hmph. They¡¯re probably still unaware that the rest of the spiritual cultivation world have already ced a bounty on their heads. As long as Master tells the right people that we¡¯ve located the people that they¡¯re looking for, we will most certainly gain the attention of the interested parties. At that time, we¡¯ll catch for ourselves a turtle in a jar.¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes glistened as she explicated coldly. Then, she nced back at Zhang Shuyue, ¡°Disciple, all I ask is that you won¡¯t harbour any lingering feelings for that man when crunch timees. It¡¯s not worth it for just a vile, dirty man.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll heed Master¡¯s instructions this time.¡± Zhang Shuyue immediately bowed obsequiously as she eximed in her heart ¨C So, that¡¯s how it is. To think that they were in the midst of escaping for their lives...

    Could Itch onto this and escte matters?

 Chapter 319: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s â€œBrillianceâ€

    <h4>Chapter 319: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°Brilliance¡±</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zhang Shuyue had initially intended to strike fear in the hearts of Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen by revealing the fact that they were currently being persecuted, just so that they would remain at the valley and not leave for fear of persecution. However, after brooding over it for a little while longer, she discovered that this method might not necessarily work as well as she had hoped. After all, she was the only person in the valley right now. Her life might well be at risk if she attracted the ire of the Heavenly Peak disciples in any way.

    This was particrly so with Jun Xiaomo, who evidently couldn¡¯t see eye to eye with her. After all, if Jun Xiaomo embellished her story to her martial brothers and presented herself as the party who was being bullied, there was a good chance that the Heavenly Peak disciples would all direct their anger straight towards Zhang Shuyue.

    Thus, Zhang Shuyue revisited the drawing board and thought for a long time, before she finally came up with a far more effective n.

    Her lips curled into a wicked smile, and a gleam shed in the depths of her eyes.

    The sun was already shining brightly on thends. Approximately one hour had already passed since Zhang Shuyue returned crying to her room. She adjusted her clothes andposed herself. When she was finally certain that she appearedpletely fine, Zhang Shuyue stered a warm smile on her face and made her way out of her room once more.

    Her destination was not Ye Xiuwen¡¯s courtyard this time; instead, it was where the other Heavenly Peak disciples were residing.

    ¡°Brother Zhou, are you guys heading out so early again?¡± Zhang Shuyue called out to another one of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Zhou Zilong was just about to head out with another two Heavenly Peak disciples when he saw Zhang Shuyue walking towards them. He smiled brightly as he responded, ¡°That¡¯s right. Martial Sister Xiaomo has already regained consciousness yesterday. She¡¯s just tided over the most difficult phase of recovery from her grievous injuries, and her body must be incredibly weak right now. That¡¯s why we¡¯re thinking of heading out to buy some herbs and tonics to nourish her body a little bit.¡±

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s abilities ranked among the top five of all of Jun Linxuan¡¯s disciples. He was one of the archetypical disciples under Jun Linxuan¡¯s charge, possessing a straightforward and forting character, while his heart remainedpletely free of schemes and ploys.

    ¡°Sister Xiaomo is really blessed to have such caring martial brothers watching over her.¡± Zhang Shuyue eximed aloud. Then, she lowered her head slightly, ¡°It¡¯s a pity that I¡¯ve got neither any older martial siblings nor martial brothers...¡±

    It was a fact that Zhang Shuyue did not have any martial brothers. But this was simply due to the fact that Xiang Guqing had never been willing to ept male disciples. However, to those who were unaware of this fact, Zhang Shuyue appeared to be envious of the fact that Jun Xiaomo had others who doted on her, while she was relegated to guarding the valley all by herself.

    Zhou Zilong scratched his head with some measure of distress as he quipped, ¡°Actually, it¡¯s because Martial Sister Xiaomo has been really good to us as well. If not for her, we¡¯d all be dead by now.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue cursed with bitter resentment in her heart ¨C I didn¡¯t expect that. Did Jun Xiaomo really rescue their lives before? I¡¯d still thought that Jun Xiaomo was just an unruly and wild little brat that doesn¡¯t know any better.

    If Jun Xiaomo was simply just an unruly and brashdy that she had thought, it wouldn¡¯t take as much on her part to create a rift dividing Jun Xiaomo from her Heavenly Peak martial brothers. But if her martial brothers owed Jun Xiaomo a debt of gratitude for saving their lives, things were going to be far more difficult for Zhang Shuyue.

    That said, Zhang Shuyue had only just begun to carry out her ns, and she would never be able to live it down if she were to simply give up now without attempting anything more. Thus, she gritted her teeth and resolved to power on.

    Zhang Shuyue smiled gracefully towards Zhou Zilong and the other disciples once more, ¡°Seems like Sister Xiaomo is just a really endearing person through and through, isn¡¯t she? When I visited her yesterday and saw her pale face that was drained of the colour of blood, my heart broke. How about this, I¡¯ve got some time to spare today as well. Shall I apany Brother Zhou and the rest out for a walk to see if there¡¯s anything good to buy back for Sister Xiaomo?¡±

    ¡°Wouldn¡¯t this be too much trouble for Miss Zhang? We¡¯re aware of the path out of this valley too.¡± Feeling sorry for inconveniencing Zhang Shuyue, Zhou Zilong rejected her suggestion politely.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it at all. After all, Sister Xiaomo isn¡¯t only your martial sister; she¡¯s also Brother Ye¡¯s martial sister.¡± As she finished speaking, her face flushed slightly with some pink hues, and she lowered her head bashfully.

    So she¡¯s doing all of this for Martial Brother Ye... Realization dawned on all of their hearts at the same time, and they all felt as though they had grasped the truth of the matter.

    From what we can tell, Miss Zhang must like Martial Brother Ye very much, doesn¡¯t she? Sigh, I pity Little Martial Sister. I think she likes Martial Brother Ye as well.

    The small group of Heavenly Peak disciples couldn¡¯t help but sigh in their hearts for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s plight. To their minds, they had already assumed that Zhang Shuyue and Ye Xiuwen had already confessed their feelings for each other by now.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, then we¡¯ll have to thank Miss Zhang on behalf of our Little Martial Sister for now.¡± Zhou Zilong sincerely thanked her from the bottom of his heart.

    ¡°No need for thanks! I¡¯m very happy to be able to do something for Sister Xiaomo as well.¡± Zhang Shuyue revealed a faint smile on her face, yet her heart was cursing and swearing at Jun Xiaomo hatefully!

    Thus, Zhang Shuyue and Zhou Zilong headed out of the valley with some other martial brothers, and into the trap that Zhang Shuyue had carefullyid out for them.

    On the other side, after a verbal tussle with Zhang Shuyue at the break of dawn, Jun Xiaomo returned back to the room and fell straight back into a deep slumber.

    Perhaps it was the release apanying the assurance that she had finally disposed of something that had been weighing on her mind for the longest time, but Jun Xiaomo slept unbelievable well andfortably this time. In fact, she slept so soundly that she slept through the most part of the morning, and only woke up closer to lunch-time.

    ¡°Ungh...I think I¡¯ve never slept like that for the longest time.¡± Jun Xiaomo stretchedzily as she eximed.

    A cool, deep chuckle echoed from the side, ¡°Seems like thest few days of sleep still hasn¡¯t been enough, huh?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body stiffened slightly as she turned her head to where the voice came from. There, she saw Ye Xiuwen seated by the tableside, sipping at a cup of tea leisurely as he teased her with a gentle yet mischievous smile on his face.

    ¡°Cough.¡± Jun Xiaomo coughed dryly, and she immediately retracted her arms from mid-stretch, concealing her earlierzy disposition as she responded, ¡°You can¡¯t me me either. I¡¯d been in a state ofatose due to my grievous injuries. That can¡¯t be considered proper sleep!¡±

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s not counted as proper sleep. It can only be considered passing out.¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled as he went along with the flow, ¡°It¡¯s such a pity. Martial Brother was still thinking that you might find this bed particrly nice to sleep in.

    It was only at this mention that Jun Xiaomo recalled how this bed was not exactly hers. Put differently, she hadpletely taken over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bed for the entirety of thest night plus the better part of the morning. Given what she had done, perhaps her martial brother might not even have had a ce to sleep for thest night.

    Slightly embarrassed, Jun Xiaomo rubbed her nose as quipped awkwardly, ¡°Erm, actually...Martial Brother could have just carried me back to my room too...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his eyebrows curiously, before his smile deepened. However, he consciously refrained from discussing this matter any further.

    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s not getting any earlier. Go get yourself washed up, and we can head out. We won¡¯t want to keep the other martial brothers waiting.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he tactfully changed the topic.

    ¡°Mm, mm. Alright.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded her head and she mbered out of bed in a hurry. Yet in her haste, her legs got caught in her nket, and she fell from the bed.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen was able to catch her in time. Thus, Jun Xiaomo fell straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom, causing Ye Xiuwen to let out a pained groan.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped ¨C Ye Xiuwen had not fully recovered from his injuries. Now that Jun Xiaomo had bumped straight into his bosom where some of the injuries were located, how could Ye Xiuwen not wince in pain?

    Jun Xiaomo immediately apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry! Martial Brother, did I aggravate your injuries?¡± As she spoke, she scrambled to do all she could to mber back up from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom.

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry as he tousled her hair, quipping, ¡°And to think you¡¯ve trained diligently in the Proving Ground for over three hundred years. How can you still be so clumsy after all that? And given how you¡¯re scrambling about right now, are you just looking to trip and fall again?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo finally stopped scrambling about, and she stuck out her tongue and lifted her head once more, ¡°It¡¯s not like I want to trip and fall and be so clumsy. It¡¯s just that for some strange reason, my idiocy seems to take over my mind whenever I¡¯m in front of Martial Brother.¡±

    As he gazed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes gleam brightly as she unabashedly imed to have been ovee with her own idiocy, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heartstring were moved once more. In the next moment, he embraced Jun Xiaomo around her waist, lowered his head slightly, causing his gaze to be deep and abstruse, and then he lifted his hand to caress Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    Jun Xiaomo was stillpletely oblivious to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions, and she was stillughing at herself in a self-deprecating manner.

    Silly little girl... Ye Xiuwen sighed lightly, before immediately nting a kiss on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. Then, he released Jun Xiaomo and patted her head, ¡°Let¡¯s go. Don¡¯t let the other martial brothers wait for too long.¡± As he finished speaking, he immediately walked out of the door to his room.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes instantly widened as she stared vacantly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back as he left the room. After a long time, her heart began to thump quicker and quicker ¨C

    This...is this really the cold, distant Martial Brother I once knew? What...what kind of a sneak attack was that?!

    That said, even though her mind wasining about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions, the true reaction of her heart was ostensibly revealed through the redness of her face right now.

    On the other side of the door, Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly to himself.

    Since his Little Martial Sister was so slow to react to the situation, then all he had to do was to make up for it by being slightly more active ¨C this was the conclusion that Ye Xiuwen hade to after dallying for so long and missing out on so many opportunities in the past.

    After all, there was a good possibility that their rtionship would forever remain as nothing more than that between mere martial siblings if he were going to wait for Jun Xiaomo to take up the mantle as the active one.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware that she was already being led by the nose by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions. She patted on her red, flushed cheeks as she hurriedly ran forward, catching up to Ye Xiuwen. Then, shoulder-to-shoulder, they made their way towards the dining hall.

    It was already about time for lunch, yet Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had not appeared in the dining hall yet. Thus, the other martial brothers who were all already waiting at the dining hall couldn¡¯t help but consider sending people to call upon the two of them.

    Just as they were hesitating and deliberating further, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo appeared on the horizon at the same time. In fact, what was most astonishing was how Jun Xiaomo even appeared to be linking arms with Ye Xiuwen as they both made their way over to the dining hall!

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Is there something on my face?¡± Jun Xiaomo released Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm and rubbed her face in bewilderment.

    Jun Xiaomo found it strange that all of her martial brothers appeared to be staring at her in astonishment. Was it very surprising to see her appearing at the dining hall to begin with? Could they be under the misimpression that she was still unconscious, and thus be astounded to see her awake and kicking right now?

    It can¡¯t be. Martial Brother Zhou and the rest had even visited me yesterday. Jun Xiaomo continued to process the situation as she nced back at everyone with a perplexed gaze.

    As Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze swept across their bodies, her martial brothers couldn¡¯t help but cough dryly. Then, one of the Heavenly Peak disciples asked awkwardly, ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, why have youe together with Martial Brother Ye?¡±

    He was not a gossipmonger to begin with. However, everyone had initially thought that Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue were already an item, only to discover now that their Little Martial Sister and their Martial Brother Ye appeared to be on even closer terms. Just what is going on?

    Jun Xiaomo nced back curiously as she responded innocently, ¡°Is it strange that I¡¯de over together with Martial Brother Ye? I¡¯d been sleeping in his roomst night.¡±

    Pfft! Several Heavenly Peak disciples spat out the tea in their mouths as though in a concerted fashion. One of the disciples even stared at Jun Xiaomo with great astonishment ¨C

    Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo have already slept together?! They¡¯re really too quick, aren¡¯t they!!! Then what about Zhang Shuyue?

    ¡°Cough cough...¡± Ye Xiuwen coughed dryly into his fist as he fought hard to suppress the swelling bemusement in his heart.

    He had previously already thought that Jun Xiaomo was slow to catch on, but who could have expected her to be this unbelievably ¡°amazing¡± and ¡°brilliant¡±?

 Chapter 320: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Scheme; Change of Circumstances

    <h4>Chapter 320: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Scheme; Change of Circumstances</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After Ye Xiuwen¡¯s meticulous exnation of the situation, everyone around finally understood that they had misinterpreted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier words.

    As it turns out, Jun Xiaomo had been far too tired at night that she had decided to remain in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room and retire for the night there. Nothing else happened between the both of them, and their rtionship waspletely clean and pure.

    That said, everyone still had their doubts whether their rtionship was still nothing more than that between mere martial siblings. Could there have been something else that had happened that everyone is unaware of?

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had to be given credit for their acute and keen senses in this regard. After all, they could already smell the love in the air early this morning.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face flushed slightly with a pink hue. She had never expected her own responses to give rise to such a horrendous misunderstanding on the part of her martial brothers.

    Most importantly, after that earlier misunderstanding, it would be rather awkward for her to reveal thetest developments in the rtionship between her and Martial Brother Ye, even though things were stillpletely innocent and pure.

    Ye Xiuwen could see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bashfulness, and he smiled faintly as he patted her head, saying, ¡°What are you guys still standing around for? Let¡¯s take a seat. It¡¯s difficult to eat while standing around.¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples couldn¡¯t help but smell something fishy about Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. After all, they had not sensed anything out of the ordinary while Jun Xiaomo was still in a state ofatose. At best, Ye Xiuwen could only be described to be slightly more doting and concerned for his dear Little Martial Sister of his. But now that Jun Xiaomo had regained consciousness, the interaction between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo appeared to have crossed the limits of that between that of ordinary martial siblings. At the very least, they would never interact with Jun Xiaomo in the same manner that Ye Xiuwen was acting with Jun Xiaomo right now.

    And to think that they had all been innocently assuming all this while that Ye Xiuwen had taken an interest in Zhang Shuyue. Compared to his interactions with Jun Xiaomo right now, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s interactions with Zhang Shuyue could be described to be cold and distant at best ¨C how could they possibly have misinterpreted it as ¡°taking an interest¡± to begin with? Seems like we¡¯ve all been mistaken earlier...

    The Heavenly Peak martial brother coughed dryly once more as they turned their gaze away from Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. None of them could bear to continue watching their interaction any longer.

    Besides, wouldn¡¯t the intimacy between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen only entuate the loneliness and solitude of the other martial brothers around? They were far too pitiful right now.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo failed to notice her martial brothers¡¯ peculiar behaviour. She nced around, before asking with some measure of bewilderment, ¡°Eh? Where¡¯s Martial Brother Zhou and the rest? We seem to be missing some people here.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s query sessfully shifted their attention away from the ¡°intimate¡± problem at hand. Chen Feiyu turned back to Jun Xiaomo and responded, ¡°Oh, about them. Earlier this morning, they had headed out of the valley in order to harvest and procure some herbs and tonics. Martial Sister Xiaomo¡¯s body is still very weak right now, and everyone thought that it would be best to give it some nourishment.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was moved. She saw the Heavenly Peak martial brothers like part of her family, and she was incredibly pleased and relieved that her martial brothers had not perished in the earlier crusade against the Heavenly Peak. In fact, it was an incredibly fortunate thing that she had managed to arrive in the nick of time and rescue them from the evil clutches of He Zhang and hisckeys.

    It was a good thing that they were fine. It was a blessing that all of her martial brothers were still alive and well, and not a single one had lost their lives.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples felt a little bit embarrassed when they saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intensely touched gaze staring back at them. Truth be told, they should be the ones who were touched and moved instead. After all, if not for their Little Martial Sister who had returned for them, they might well have perished to He Zhang¡¯s evil schemes.

    ¡°Then, shall we wait for Martial Brother Zhou before having lunch?¡± Jun Xiaomo suggested, ¡°Martial brothers, are any of you hungry yet?¡±

    ¡°Not yet. We¡¯d taken a slightlyter breakfast today anyway.¡± Chen Feiyu exined, ¡°Let¡¯s do that then. It¡¯s more fun when everyone eats together anyway. Zilong and the rest have gone out for quite some time now, and I imagine that they will be back shortly.¡±

    Speaking of the devil ¨C just then, the sound of scrambling footsteps drew close. In the next moment, a martial brother covered with injuries burst into the dining hall.

    ¡°Quick...quick...something¡¯s happened to Martial Brother Zhou!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples immediately shot to their feet in unison, including Jun Xiaomo. Her anxiety hade to a head.

    Zhou Zilong had gone out of the valley in order to procure herbs and tonics for her after all. If anything happened to them in the course of doing so, she would never be able to live it down.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get anxious just yet. Speak slowly. Tell us where they are, and what exactly happened?¡± Ye Xiuwen was the most cool-headed right now, and he reined in the tense atmosphere with his controlled response.

    ¡°We were heading out of the valley to procure the herbs and tonics when we¡¯d encountered a group of people waiting to ambush us. I¡¯d only managed to break out of the encirclement after putting my life on the line. I¡¯d thought tomunicate these things to you through a Transmittance Talisman earlier, but I¡¯d never expected those bandits toe at us so furiously. I was nearly even unable to make it back in one piece!¡± He was covered in top to toe in wounds, and it was apparent just how ferocious the bandits¡¯ attacks had been.

    Ye Xiuwen quickly made a decision on the spot as he began to direct roles ordingly, ¡°Little Cheng, take some recovery pills for now, and then bring us back to where the incident had urred. Once we¡¯re there, I want you to stay out of the fight and remain on the side, understand?¡±

    Cheng Guanyu nodded his head. After consuming the recovery pill that Ye Xiuwen had handed over to him, he began to prepare himself to lead the rest of his martial brothers back to where they had earlier been ambushed.

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to follow along when Ye Xiuwen tapped Jun Xiaomo on the neck, causing her to pass out.

    ¡°Martial Brother, you...¡±

    ¡°Sorry, Xiaomo, you can¡¯te with us. You¡¯re still recovering from your injuries; it¡¯s too dangerous.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined quickly.

    In the next moment, with infuriation burgeoning in her heart, Jun Xiaomo passed outpletely.

    When Ye Xiuwen and the rest finally arrived at the location of the ambush, the fight had already escted to its climax. The assants were all cultivators at approximately the Golden Core stage of cultivation. Dealing with such assants was hardly a difficult thing for Ye Xiuwen. However, the other Heavenly Peak disciples would naturally find it much harder to fend off the assants¡¯ attacks.

    Thus, Zhou Zilong and the others were barely holding on when they finally arrived.

    Ye Xiuwen and the other immediately dove straight into the fray as soon as they arrived, turning the situation aroundpletely.

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen heard a shrill cry calling out from beside him, ¡°Careful!¡± Ye Xiuwen immediately turned around, only to see Zhang Shuyue rushing to his side while an assant stabbed straight towards him.

    Truth be told, there was no need for Zhang Shuyue to have done all these things. After all, given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level, such a weak level of attack from the assant was something he could avoid with his eyes closed. In fact, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s appearance had disrupted hisbat rhythm, impeding his battle with the assants.

    As she drew closer and closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure, a glint shed across the depths of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes.

    At about the same time, Zhou Zilong had also just managed to fend off the attack of an assant in front of him when he witnessed the situation urring where Ye Xiuwen was. Thus, he also charged straight towards Ye Xiuwen...

    -----------------------------------------------------

    When she woke up again, Jun Xiaomo discovered that she was already lying on a bed. After ncing around at her surroundings, she concluded that she must be back in her own room.

    I wonder if it was Martial Brother Ye who carried me back into the room. Jun Xiaomo thought with some lingering grievance in her heart. She had been disallowed from tagging along or participating in the fight, and she waspletely in the dark as to how Martial Brother Ye and Zhou Zilong were.

    Did Martial Brother Ye sessfully manage to rescue Martial Brother Zhou? Or are they still furiously fighting their way out of the encirclement right now?

    As the tension and anxiety on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart mounted, she got out of the bed and walked towards her door.

    When she opened the door to her room, she discovered that everything outside waspletely still and silent, and not a single person could be seen in sight. To make matters worse, she noticed that the sky had already darkened by now, which meant that she must have passed out for an entire afternoon.

    Logically speaking, having skipped both breakfast and lunch, Jun Xiaomo should already be famished by now. However, there was hardly a trace of such feelings in her body. In this very moment, she waspletely held captive by thoughts of the safety of her martial brothers.

    She stepped out of her courtyard and began to examine the other courtyards around her. To her dismay, all of the courtyards were empty, and not a single person was in sight.

    Her heart sank, and a bad premonition surfaced at the forefront of her mind ¨C Could something really have happened to Martial Brother Ye and the rest?! What should I do? Where should I go about looking for them?

    With her heart on fire with anxiety, Jun Xiaomo began to run towards the main courtyard of the entire valley. As she ran along, it suddenly dawned on her that she could first attempt to use her Transmittance Talisman to contact her martial brothers to check in on them.

    That said, if Ye Xiuwen and the others had truly found themselves on the backfoot of the fight, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attempt to contact them using the Transmittance Talisman would have been in vain. After all, they would never be able to respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Transmittance Talisman if danger was staring at them straight in the face.

    Thus, truth be told, Jun Xiaomo did not bear much hope in her heart when she attempted to contact her martial brothers. After all, the empty courtyards told her that her martial brothers had evidently not returned back just yet.

    Fortunately, and to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present surprise, she heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice in no time after attempting to contact them.

    ¡°Is that Xiaomo?¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, where are you guys? When I woke up and saw nobody around, I¡¯d thought all of you had been restrained by the assants.¡± Jun Xiaomo blurted anxiously. It was almost as though she were raring to be transmitted in her entirety to where Ye Xiuwen through the Transmittance Talisman right now.

    She dreaded the prospects of not being able to see her martial brothers ever again. It was as though she had returned to her previous life once more, where she waspletely alone, and all of her loved ones had vanished off the face of the world.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was initially rather stern. However, after picking up on how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was trembling slightly, he couldn¡¯t help but soften his tone of voice and speak in a slightly more cajoling manner.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we haven¡¯t been trapped or encircled by our enemies. It¡¯s just that we¡¯ve encountered a slight hup on our side that has to be resolved before we can return.¡± Ye Xiuwen assured Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°What¡¯s the problem? Is it serious? Can I go over to render any help?¡± Jun Xiaomo felt rather aggrieved. Theck of rity on the situation was tearing her apart from the inside.

    I¡¯m no longer a little child that can¡¯t take care of herself, alright? Can you please stop standing in front of me whenever the slightest signs of danger arises?!

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in his heart as he shrugged it off, ¡°It¡¯s nothing big. Xiaomo, wait for us at the courtyard, alright? We¡¯ll be back soon.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip as she reluctantly epted thepromise, ¡°Alright. Martial Brother Ye, I¡¯m going to ignore you if I discover that you¡¯ve tricked me.¡±

    She loathed the prospects of being made a simple porcin doll that always had to be handled carefully. After all, she sincerely believed that she had already done enough to prove that she possessed the strength to fight by her martial brothers¡¯ side.

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tantrum. At the same time, he also felt rather pained by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had to carry such a heavy burden on her shoulders at such a tender age ¨C after all, she was the youngest one among all of them, yet she was also the one who had always worried over all her martial brothers.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen had obviously selectively chosen to obviate from his mind the fact that Jun Xiaomo had already spent a whopping three hundred and thirty years within the Proving Grounds. In his eyes, Jun Xiaomo would forever be the little martial sister that they would all dote on and protect.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed the rest of his martial brothers, ¡°We¡¯ve already dealt with the assants and elicited whatever information we could from the interrogations. It¡¯s time to head back. Otherwise, Martial Sister Xiaomo is going to start worrying for us.¡±

    ¡°Ah? But Miss Zhang is still injured.¡± Zhou Zilong remarked in distress.

    Ye Xiuwen responded calmly, ¡°Since Miss Zhang is still injured, isn¡¯t there even more reason to return to the valley to rest and recover? Zilong, why don¡¯t you carry her back?¡±

    ¡°Me?¡± Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened slightly as he stared back at Ye Xiuwen with some measure of disbelief. Then, when he noticed the resolution in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, he rubbed his hair and responded, ¡°Then...then...alright.¡±

    There was a deep, gaping wound in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chest right now, and she was fighting hard for her life, even after consuming some recovery pills. Zhou Zilong walked over to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s side and assured her, ¡°Miss Zhang, hang in there, alright? We¡¯ll treat your injuries once we get back to the valley.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue revealed a weak yet determined smile on her face as she softly responded, ¡°Then, I¡¯ll have to trouble Brother Zhou.¡±

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s face suddenly flushed red as a tomato. Regardless, he lifted Zhang Shuyue and held her close to his bosom.

    As he experienced the feeling of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s warmth spreading through his bosom, Zhou Zilong stammered, ¡°No...no problem. If not for what Miss Zhang had done earlier, I would have been injured instead. Thus, I should be the one thanking Miss Zhang.¡±

    The expressions on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face stiffened slightly. But since her face was overwhelmed by the weak and pale look, nobody noticed the subtly peculiar expression on her face right now.

    Zhang Shuyue cursed in her heart ¨C Who¡¯s saving you, you big buffoon?! The person I¡¯d wanted to rescue was Ye Xiuwen! Damn it, why did you appear out of nowhere and ruin everything?!

    Zhang Shuyue gnashed her teeth as grave, vicious thoughts festered in her heart.

 Chapter 321: Zhou Zilong Is Moved, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Agony

    <h4>Chapter 321: Zhou Zilong Is Moved, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Agony</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The group of assants that had ambushed the Heavenly Peak disciples had been hired by Zhang Shuyue through Xiang Guqing¡¯s contacts.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s intention had always been to first ambush Zhou Zilong and the other Heavenly Peak disciples in order to lure out Ye Xiuwen, and then she would coordinate with the assants so that she could y the part of a hero rescuing a ¡°damsel in distress¡±. Given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s righteous and kind personality, there was no doubt that he would want to return the favour. In turn, he would likely remain within the valley and even personally look after Zhang Shuyue until she recovered.

    At that time, even if Jun Xiaomo wanted to object to such an arrangement, Ye Xiuwen might not stand on her side anymore. A victorious sensation washed through Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart whenever she contemted the prospects of snatching Ye Xiuwen out from under Jun Xiaomo¡¯s nose that way.

    Besides, if she ended up rescuing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life, wouldn¡¯t he be touched and moved by her sacrifice as well? Right now, all she wascking was the perfect opportunity to leave an impression in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart so that she could gain a foothold and foster a deeper rtionship with him.

    Therefore, this ambush should have presented an ideal opportunity for everything she had contemted and nned. Unfortunately, her ns were thrown intoplete chaos when Zhou Zilong rushed into the fray at the veryst moment.

    In the end, she failed to ¡°rescue¡± Ye Xiuwen. To make matters worse, she instinctively paused in her steps when Zhou Zilong came charging straight into the fray clumsily, causing what would originally have been a minor cut on her body to be a grievous wound caused by a spirit sword plunging straight through her chest. In that very moment, she even heard death knocking on the door to her heart.

    If not for the fact that she had consumed several high-grade recovery pills in the nick of time, she would most certainly have perished there and then. It was a double whammy; aplete disaster.

    Then, when Zhou Zilong carried Zhang Shuyue back to the valley, shey there in Zhou Zilong¡¯s bosom with her eyes half-opened, staring longingly at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s figure that was just a short distance away. Her heart was filled with unwillingness.

    It shouldn¡¯t have been this way. Why is Ye Xiuwen still being so cold to me? It was evident that I¡¯d rushed in to save him, wasn¡¯t it?

    Even though the person she inadvertently saved was Zhou Zilong, and not Ye Xiuwen, she couldn¡¯t understand how Ye Xiuwen was oblivious to the fact that her early cry of warning was directed at him.

    At that time, Zhou Zilong had noticed that the person in his bosom appeared to be rather sullen, and he couldn¡¯t help but lift her slightly and ask softly, ¡°Miss Zhang, are you in pain? Am I hurting you by the way I¡¯m carrying you?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue had half the mind to ignore Zhou Zilong. However, Zhou Zilong was still a disciple of the Heavenly Peak and Ye Xiuwen his martial brother when all was said and done, and she knew that she still had to feign some measure of civility here and there.

    Thus, swallowing the burgeoning frustrations in her heart, she grimaced at Zhou Zilong and spoke with a softened tone of voice, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m much better after taking those recovery pills.¡±

    When Zhou Zilong saw how Zhang Shuyue fought against the pain and muttered that she was alright despite her incredibly pale face, his heart melted.

    In that moment, Zhou Zilong resolved in his heart that he was going to remain at the valley and look after Zhang Shuyue until she had fully recovered.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed it as soon as Ye Xiuwen and the others appeared on the path leading up to the main courtyard in the valley, and she immediately ran forward to receive them.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye! Are all of you alright? Did anybody get hurt?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked anxiously as she gasped for breath from running over to them.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as he gripped Jun Xiaomo by the shoulders and chided, ¡°Why are you already up and running about? You¡¯re not fully recovered yet!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo replied intively, ¡°It¡¯s because you guys didn¡¯t allow me to tag along earlier! You don¡¯t know how anxious I was earlier when I saw how dark the sky was, yet nobody had returned. If not for the fact that Martial Brother Ye had earlier mentioned that the battle had already ended, I would¡¯ve gone out looking for you already!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Let¡¯s talk when we¡¯re back.¡±

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo noticed the blood stains on Zhou Zilong¡¯s body.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, what happened to you?¡± As Jun Xiaomo hurried over to his side, she finally noticed that Zhou Zilong was also carrying someone in his bosom.

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. As soon as she noticed Zhang Shuyue¡¯s present, weak and pale appearances, a bad premonition immediately surfaced on her heart.

    Zhou Zilong exined of his own volition, ¡°Earlier, there was an assant that suddenlyunched an attack towards Martial Brother Ye and I during the ambush. Fortunately, Miss Zhang jumped in front of me and took the blow. Otherwise, I might have perished there and then. It¡¯s just a pity that Miss Zhang suffered grievous injuries as a result of that. I feel horrible for putting her through this.¡± Zhou Zilong¡¯s voice was filled with remorse and guilt.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced. Given what she understood of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character, she knew that it was nigh an impossibility to expect her to sacrifice herself for others. Rather than to say that she had rescued martial brothers Zhou and Ye, it might be far more usible to posit that the ambush and her injuries were merely part of the grand ns she had hatched.

    Zhang Shuyue coughed twice dryly. Replete with her weak expressions stered on a face that was drained of the colour of blood, she presented herselfpletely pitiful and heartbreaking. She looked up at Zhou Zilong weakly as she interjected, ¡°Brother Zhou, don¡¯t say that. I¡¯m just d that I was able to rescue you and brother Ye. It¡¯s good as long as the two of you are fine.¡±

    As Zhang Shuyue finished speaking, she looked at Ye Xiuwen with such a soft, dear gaze that only a fool would be unable to understand her feelings towards him.

    Seems like Miss Zhang¡¯s still thinking about Martial Brother Ye at this moment of crisis, huh... The Heavenly Peak disciples who noticed this sight couldn¡¯t help but exchange nces sheepishly.

    Zhou Zilong had also noticed this, and his hands stiffened up slightly as a swathe of bitter astringency washed through his heart.

    Truth be told, his heart had already been touched and moved when Zhang Shuyue jumped in front of him and took the potentially fatal blow on his behalf. Later, when she fought through the pain and insisted that she was fine, her kindheartedness tugged powerfully at his heartstrings, leaving an indelible mark etched in the center of his heart.

    However, it was evident that Zhang Shuyue was still fond of Martial Brother Ye, and he knew that there was hardly any hope of him earning the affection of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart. After all, he could hardly hold a candle to Martial Brother Ye in any respects, whether disposition, aura or cultivation prowess.

    That said, the thick-headed Zhou Zilong hardly felt jealous or envious of Ye Xiuwen at all. He simply swallowed the bitter pill and shrugged off these hopeless thoughts of his.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze remained cid and cool all this while, and nobody could see the thoughts in his mind right now.

    The developments between him and Jun Xiaomo were only known to the Heavenly Peak disciples who had been around earlier during lunch time. In other words, Zhou Zilong and the other martial brothers who had gone out to procure herbs and tonics for Jun Xiaomo had beenpletely kept in the dark as to these fresh developments. Thus, Zhou Zilong was still under the mistaken impression that Zhang Shuyue and Ye Xiuwen were already an item.

    If only Zhou Zilong would turn his mind to consider why Ye Xiuwen had allowed him to carry Zhang Shuyue back to the valley! After all, which man would allow another man to carry the person he loved in his bosom?

    It could only be said that most disciples from the Heavenly Peak had much to learn about the things of the heart.

    ¡°Zilong, you¡¯d best take Miss Zhang back to her room and give her some more recovery pills to boost her rate of recovery. I¡¯ll bring the rest of the disciples back to the main hall to treat their wounds and rest there.¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed Zhou Zilong.

    ¡°Mm, alright.¡± Zhou Zilong responded obsequiously,pletely overlooking the fact that Ye Xiuwen seemed to be treating his ¡°benefactor¡± Zhang Shuyue far too dispassionately.

    As Zhou Zilong left with Zhang Shuyue, she cast a parting nce back at Ye Xiuwen with some grief and reluctance in her eyes. Yet, in the end, all she saw was that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attention was on all of his other martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak ¨C there was not a single trace of care and concern for her in his eyes.

    None of the Heavenly Peak disciples sustained any serious injuries apart from the martial brothers who had initially been ambushed. After all, with Ye Xiuwen, a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, as the bulwark of their reinforcements, how could the assants at the Golden Core stage of cultivation do a thing against the Heavenly Peak disciples? Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arduous years within the Death¡¯s Gorge had not been for naught.

    With that, the Heavenly Peak disciples began to support one another and make their way towards the main hall in the valley. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo intentionally slowed their pace and fell behind the rest of the pack.

    Jun Xiaomo kept her head low as though she were low in spirits. At the same time, it looked as though she were deep in thought.

    ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Ye Xiuwen patted her head as he broke the silence.

    Once everyone had walked ahead of them, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s originally stern and somber gaze softened substantially, and his eyes were once again filled with warmth and coolness.

    ¡°Martial Brother, did Zhang Shuyue really rescue the both of you?¡± Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and asked, as though agonizing over this issue.

    ¡°I could you could say she did.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded somewhat enigmatically.

    ¡°I can say she did?¡± Jun Xiaomo pouted her lips with displeasure, ¡°If she saved you, she saved you; and if she didn¡¯t, she didn¡¯t. Why is the answer soplicated?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen deliberated for a moment before responding once more, ¡°The truth of the matter is that if she hadn¡¯t rushed over, I wouldn¡¯t have faced any life-threatening situation either. I¡¯d already discovered the existence of the assantying in wait to make his move. I was just pretending to be ignorant to lure him into a trap. Unfortunately, I didn¡¯t expect Zhang Shuyue to dive in just as he made his move, indirectly thwarting my ns to dispose of that assant.¡±

    ¡°Pfft...¡± Jun Xiaomo was initially rather displeased by the prospects of Zhang Shuyue rescuing Martial Brothers Ye and Zhou, because this would mean that they would owe her a favour in turn. Most importantly, Martial Brother Ye might begin to feel remorseful and guilty about Zhang Shuyue getting injured on his behalf.

    But as it turns out, Martial Brother Ye had never needed Zhang Shuyue to make a move in the first ce. In other words, her efforts had all been for nothing.

    Ye Xiuwen stared with some measure of exasperation at how Jun Xiaomo appeared to be stifling augh, and he rapped her lightly on the head as he continued, ¡°Even though I didn¡¯t need her to rescue me, the fact remains that she did take a blow for Zilong and I. On ount of this alone, we can¡¯t just leave her behind and not see her through her injuries.¡±

    Now that Ye Xiuwen had reminded her, Jun Xiaomo also turned her attention to the main issue at hand, and her smiled faded away, only to be reced by furrowed brows.

    ¡°Does this mean that our initial ns to leave the valley today would have to be pushed back?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked in frustration.

    She knew the characters and personalities of her Heavenly Peak martial brothers full well ¨C none of them would be willing to abandon their benefactors. Unless she could prove with hard evidence that Zhang Shuyue possessed ulterior motives, they would never put up their guard around Zhang Shuyue even if she were to attempt to persuade them with an unending soliloquy of logic and reasoning. In fact, she might even end up beingbelled as an ingrate by her martial brothers at that time.

    ¡°This is agonizing!¡± Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips and gnashed her teeth as she murmured, ¡°Why do I get the feeling that Zhang Shuyue just doesn¡¯t have good intentions? I¡¯m starting to believe that she might even have something to do with this ambush to begin with. This way, we won¡¯t be able to leave the valley until she recovers. After all, given Martial Brother Zhou¡¯s character, he would never abandon Zhang Shuyue. In turn, we can¡¯t just leave Martial Brother Zhou here and leave on our own.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair as he broke her begrudging spiel, ¡°Don¡¯t think about it so much just yet. If you¡¯re ill at ease around Zhang Shuyue, we could always unterally take up precautions on our part.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately lifted her head and looked at Ye Xiuwen with gleaming bright eyes, ¡°Martial Brother believes me?¡±

    She had been worried that once Ye Xiuwen owes a debt of gratitude towards Zhang Shuyue, things would return to how they were in her previous life, and he would begin to slip away and distance himself from Jun Xiaomo once more.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s smiled helplessly as some measure of exasperation flickered across the depths of his eyes, ¡°What makes you think that your martial brother wouldn¡¯t believe in you? Do you think that your Martial Brother would set aside our rtionship that was built on a foundation of decades for a person that your Martial Brother had just met for a few days?¡±

    In other words, he would believe anything that Jun Xiaomo said.

    ¡°Martial Brother is the best!¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly as she leapt towards Ye Xiuwen and embraced him around the waist.

    Ye Xiuwen received Jun Xiaomo with open arms and patted her on the back as well.

    ¡°What are you doing?!¡± Just then, a low voice bellowed some distance away. Jun Xiaomo turned around in shock, only to see Zhou Zilong staring back at them with eyes filled with disbelief.

    After Zhou Zilong sent Zhang Shuyue back, he had noticed that Zhang Shuyue appeared to be somewhat downcast, and he knew that it might have had something to do with Martial Brother Ye¡¯s earlier cold and distant attitude towards her. Thus, he had thought to look for Martial Brother Ye and see if he was willing to call upon Miss Zhang to cheer her up.

    Yet as soon as he turned the corner, he witnessed Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo locked in a sweet embrace.

    Aren¡¯t Martial Brother Ye and Miss Zhang an item?! What¡¯s going on here?!

 Chapter 322: Burden of a Martial Brother, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Grievance

    <h4>Chapter 322: Burden of a Martial Brother, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Grievance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was not thick-skinned by any means. Thus, when she was caught in an embrace with Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo felt thoroughly embarrassed even though she did nothing wrong.

    She immediately released Ye Xiuwen and ced her arms behind her back and lowered her head just like a child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Her ears werepletely flushed with a red hue.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely cool andposed. He had been bitterly suppressing his feelings for Jun Xiaomo all this while because he was afraid that she would react with disgust and distance herself from him if she found out his feelings for her. But now that everything was out in the open, and they had confirmed their mutual feelings for each other, he didn¡¯t see any reason to keep things under wraps any longer.

    Thus, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head indulgently before lifting his head and exined candidly, ¡°Zilong, the rtionship between Xiaomo and I is exactly what you¡¯ve just seen.¡±

    Zhou Zilong furrowed his brows and immediately responded, ¡°But if Martial Brother Ye and Xiaomo are an item, where does that leave Miss Zhang?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed in exasperation, ¡°Why do all of you think that there¡¯s something going on between Miss Zhang and I? Have I done something that would lead to such a misunderstanding?¡±

    Zhou Zilong found himself rather lost for words at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response.

    Indeed, upon closer examination of the matter, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude towards Miss Zhang had never been considered particrly affectionate or endearing. At the very least, it could hardly be considered on the same level as his present attitude with Jun Xiaomo. On the other hand, it was Zhang Shuyue whose feelings for Ye Xiuwen were patently clear.

    That said, they had always attributed the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to nothing more than that between close martial siblings. Furthermore, the fact that Ye Xiuwen generally treated everyone with the same amount of coolness and distance naturally gave rise to the misunderstanding that there was something special in the interaction between him and Zhang Shuyue.

    Thus, everyone began to think that Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue both had feelings for each other. Who would¡¯ve thought that this was merely unrequited love on her part?

    After Ye Xiuwen shed light on situation, Zhou Zilong found himself reacting to the situation with ambivalence. Truth be told, the fact that Ye Xiuwen had no feelings for Zhang Shuyue was a good thing for him. After all, he could never bring himself to vie for a same woman as his own Martial Brother Ye to begin with.

    However, as soon as he thought about how Miss Zhang would appearpletely grief-stricken and hurt when she learned about the truth between Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo, a stifling, frustrated sensation would burgeon in his heart and stuff up his throat.

    Right now, Zhou Zilong found himself caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    Ye Xiuwen walked towards Zhou Zilong and patted him on the shoulder, ¡°Don¡¯t just stand therepletely stunned. There are still quite a number of martial brothers in the main hall who need treatment. Go see what you can do to help them.¡±

    ¡°Oh, alright. I¡¯ll head there right now.¡± Zhou Zilong scratched his head as he chose to shelf these thoughts for now.

    After all, someone with a personality as straightforward as his was simply not suited to delve into the nuances of human interactions.

    Zhou Zilong took only two steps before he turned around once more. There, he retrieved some things from his Interspatial Ring and held them up to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, these are some things we¡¯d bought for you earlier. They¡¯re beneficial for your recovery. Please take them.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Thank you, Martial Brother Zhou.¡± Jun Xiaomo received the porcin bottles that Zhou Zilong had held out with gratitude. Smiling, Zhou Zilong waved his hands and made his way towards the main hall once more.

    As Jun Xiaomo stored Zhou Zilong¡¯s gifts back into her Interspatial Ring, she sighed once more.

    ¡°Why are you sighing so much at such a young age?¡± Ye Xiuwen lowered his head and nced at Jun Xiaomo as he asked with some measure of exasperation.

    Jun Xiaomo looked into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, but she found herself tongue-tied.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her head, ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t want to talk about it now. Let¡¯s go help the others as well. Zhou Zilong has brought back some herbs and tonics that have restorative purposes. Now would be a good time to use them.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she walked alongside Ye Xiuwen silently as they made their way towards the main hall.

    Whenever she thought about the manner with which Zhou Zilong spoke about Zhang Shuyue, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart would feel ill at ease, as though a storm were currently in the brewing in the horizon...

    -----------------------------------------------

    Since Zhang Shuyue had sustained injuries on behalf of Ye Xiuwen and Zhou Zilong, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns to leave the valley had to be temporarily shelved for now.

    However, the fact that her ns were dyed didn¡¯t mean that she was unable to take other precautions. For instance, now that her body had substantially recovered, she had set aside some time during this period of lull to prepare more talismans for a rainy day. Furthermore, in her remaining free time, she would explore and wander about the rest of the valley, searching for things which she could use in her formation arrays.

    Jun Xiaomo had never let her guard down around Zhang Shuyue a single time. In fact, her vignce against Zhang Shuyue had only increased with time.

    Yet what was most aggrieving to Jun Xiaomo was the fact that Zhang Shuyue had now earned herself abel as Ye Xiuwen and Zhou Zilong¡¯s benefactor. With that, none of the Heavenly Peak disciples were willing to contemte the possibility that Zhang Shuyue harboured ulterior motives for what she had done. Even Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attempts to remind them to remain guarded around Zhang Shuyue had fallen on deaf ears.

    ¡°Miss Zhang isn¡¯t as bad person. Little Martial Sister, don¡¯t let your mind wander too much.¡± One of the Heavenly Peak disciples remarked in an attempt to reassure Jun Xiaomo and ask her to be more magnanimous.

    ¡°If Miss Zhang truly had ulterior motives, she wouldn¡¯t have stepped in harm¡¯s way and rescued Martial Brothers Ye and Zhou.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple chimed in.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister, are you still worried that Miss Zhang will snatch Martial Brother Ye from you? Don¡¯t worry, Martial Brother Ye isn¡¯t the type to have a change of heart like that.¡± This was what a third Heavenly Peak disciple responded with when she attempted to warn him to remain cautious of Zhang Shuyue.

    Jun Xiaomo felt thoroughly aggrieved ¨C what exactly did she have to do to alert her martial brother to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s true colours?

    In particr, Jun Xiaomo was renderedpletely speechless at the third martial brother¡¯s response, and she didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry at it. Was she such a petty woman in his eyes? Did he really think she couldn¡¯t ept the fact that Martial Brother Ye would have more than one suitor?

    Jun Xiaomo realized that the number of times she had sighed in despondence and desperation had increased manifold after entering these valleys.

    That said, it was a fact that Zhang Shuyue had not done anything outrageous during this period of time. Most of her time was spent within her room, recuperating and recovering from her injuries, while all of her needs were attended to by Zhou Zilong. Apart from stepping out of her room from time to time, and feebly and weakly waving at the passing Heavenly Peak disciples before turning back into her room, she did nothing else. Thus, she had Jun Xiaomopletely confuzzled as to what her true intentions were.

    From Jun Xiaomo¡¯s understanding of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character, she knew that Zhang Shuyue would never give up so easily.

    At the same time, she had begun to notice how Martial Brother Zhou Zilong would appear to have something to say whenever he crossed paths with Jun Xiaomo, yet end up bottling it up anyway, as though he were unwilling to talk about it.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo could no longer resist the urge to clear the air, so she blocked Zhou Zilong¡¯s path of travel and pressed the issue, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, do you have something that you want to talk to me about?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked with a serious tone of voice as she stared straight into Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes, attempting to glean some information from his gaze and his expressions.

    Zhou Zilong looked at Jun Xiaomo and his lips quivered slightly, as though he were about to say something. Then, after a moment¡¯s hesitation, he chuckled dryly, ¡°There¡¯s nothing much. Little Martial Sister, don¡¯t think too much about it.¡±

    In her exasperation, Jun Xiaomo continued, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, don¡¯t you know that everything is already written all over your face? What you¡¯ve said might passably fool people who don¡¯t know you, but you¡¯re going to need more if you wish to hide something from me. We¡¯ve been martial siblings for such a long time; are there really things you can¡¯t speak to me about? Why must you go about in such a furtive manner...¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo spoke, her voice was increasingly filled with disappointment.

    After all, she had always treated her Heavenly Peak martial siblings as her kinsmen, and thest thing she wanted was for a rift to develop between them.

    Zhou Zilong scratched his hair and furrowed his brows. After hesitating for several more moments, he finally sighed, ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to talk about it. Rather, it¡¯s more than I don¡¯t know where to begin talking about it. On the one hand, I¡¯m afraid that speaking about it would only strain rtions between us as martial siblings; yet on the other hand, if I don¡¯t talk about it, my heart feels stifled and frustrated.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows. She couldn¡¯t recall when such a rift had ever developed between her and Martial Brother Zhou in her previous life. And now that something like that had happened, the only possibility which Jun Xiaomo could think of was the variable, Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Is it because of Zhang Shuyue?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked sternly at Zhou Zilong, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, are you really going to strain our rtionship for an outsider like Zhang Shuyue?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s...it¡¯s not like that.¡± Zhou Zilong explicated, ¡°Little Martial Sister, I know you¡¯re a kindhearted person, not sinister or malicious by any means. But what I can¡¯t understand is your attitude towards Miss Zhang. Miss Zhang has told me that she¡¯s always wanted a younger sister since she was young. Unfortunately, to her great frustration and disappointment, she¡¯s the youngest disciple among all of her master¡¯s disciples. She sees your appearance as the prime opportunity to fill the void in her heart, so she¡¯s always been desirous of establishing a good rtionship with you. However, you¡¯ve always been treating her with such coldness and distance, so...¡±

    ¡°So, she¡¯s sent Martial Brother Zhou to be her mouthpiece, hasn¡¯t she?¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly remarked, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, tell me ¨C can our rtionship built on decades of being martial siblings really notpare to your rtionship with an outsider? A single remark from her saying that she sincerely wants a younger sister, and youp it up with such eagerness, wholeheartedly believing it to be the incontrovertible truth. Then, what if I say that she¡¯s a bad person with ulterior motives ¨C will you believe my words in the same fashion?¡±

    ¡°This...Miss Zhang doesn¡¯t have any reason to deceive us, does she?¡± Zhou Zilong furrowed his brows, ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, are you simply being biased against Miss Zhang here? Actually, Miss Zhang is a really good person. In fact, I think that Martial Sister Xiaomo shouldn¡¯t be too harsh on her on ount of the fact that she¡¯s saved Martial Brother Ye and I.¡±

    Yet Jun Xiaomo shrugged it off dispassionately, ¡°I think it¡¯s still too early for that conclusion before we even figure out where those masked assants hade from.¡±

    At this point, Zhou Zilong¡¯s patience had begun to wear thin, ¡°Little Martial Sister, what do you mean by that? Are you suggesting that the masked men had been sent by Miss Zhang to begin with?¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t discount that possibility, can we?¡± Jun Xiaomo expounded on her allegation, ¡°Martial Brother Ye and I had nned to leave the valley with everyone on that very day ¨C Zhang Shuyue was fully aware of this. If her intentions were to keep us here, then wouldn¡¯t the best way to do so be to make us owe her a debt of gratitude? Furthermore, why did Miss Zhang have to follow you out to procure medicine to begin with? She wouldn¡¯t have a good impression of me since she¡¯s of the view that I¡¯d snatched Martial Brother Ye from her. And to think that she¡¯s even alleging that it was her dream to have a younger sister ¨C don¡¯t you think that such an excuse is far too contrived?¡±

    Zhou Zilong was unwilling to ept Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations in his heart, and he felt that Jun Xiaomo was merely employing sophistry here.

    ¡°Xiaomo, Miss Zhang has never med you for anything. She¡¯s thought things through over thest few days, and she¡¯s willing to give up on Martial Brother Ye. Why do you have to keep harping on this? Why can¡¯t you just let go?¡±

    ¡°The person who¡¯s harping on this is you, not me!¡± Jun Xiaomo was at her limits, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, we¡¯ve already shelved our ns to leave the valley because of her injuries. What else do you want from us? Besides, I¡¯ve never picked on her during this period of time to begin with. Why do you think she¡¯s always disying such a hurt, pitiable look to everyone?! Martial Brother Zhou, you can¡¯t expect all of us to like her just because you like her yourself!¡±

    Having had his innermost thoughts exposed, Zhou Zilong¡¯s revealed a slightly embarrassed and awkward look on his face. After all, he knew that he was in the wrong to criticize his Little Martial Sister so harshly. However, his heart wrenched in pain whenever he saw Miss Zhang appear so distressed and despondent.

    This was the reason why he had decided to confront his Little Martial Sister about all these things.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough.¡± A cool, stern voice echoed from behind Zhou Zilong. In the next moment, Ye Xiuwen walked past Zhou Zilong towards Jun Xiaomo as he patted her shoulders, consoling her. Then, he turned back to Zhou Zilong and quipped, ¡°Zilong, I don¡¯t care about anything that happens between you and Miss Zhang, but I hope that you don¡¯t get blinded by your feelings and lose your rationality.¡±

    Zhou Zilong furrowed his brows. Isn¡¯t Martial Brother Ye spoiling Martial Sister Xiaomo too much? This was all Martial Sister Xiaomo¡¯s fault to begin with. Why isn¡¯t Martial Brother Ye ming her?

    However, Ye Xiuwen was the oldest martial brother in terms of stature, and Zhou Zilong did not have the authority to say anything more. Thus, with indignation weighing heavily on his heart, he simply turned around and began to make his way towards Zhang Shuyue¡¯s abode.

    This was almost a routine for him by now ¨C everyday, he would visit Zhang Shuyue with some delectable delights or fun trinkets to help her kill time and distract her mind from the pain of her injuries.

    As she looked at Zhou Zilong depart in a huff, Jun Xiaomo muttered with deep perturbation, ¡°I really hope Martial Brother Zhou doesn¡¯t fall prey to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s schemes.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, reserving anyments he had.

    Truth be told, he didn¡¯t quite understand where his Little Martial Sister¡¯s hostility towards Zhang Shuyue hade from. But blood was thicker than water after all, and there was no need for him to grow cold and distant from his Little Martial Sister just for an outsider. Besides, Zhang Shuyue hardly appeared to bepletely innocent to begin with. The fact that she would manipte Zhou Zilong and drive a wedge between Zhou Zilong and Jun Xiaomo was already evidence that her heart was not filled with pure and innocent intentions.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen had chosen to remain silent.

 Chapter 323: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Relentless Schemes

    <h4>Chapter 323: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Relentless Schemes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The reason why Zhang Shuyue had done nothing apart from making an appearance from time to time to make her existence known was because of her master¡¯s instructions.

    Xiang Guqing was already heading back with an entourage of reinforcements, and hertest instructions were for Zhang Shuyue to keep the Heavenly Peak disciples where they were, as well as to refrain from alerting them to the potential dangers that were headed straight towards them.

    Thus, she did as her master had instructed. Besides, there was simply no way Zhang Shuyue would be able to deal with the entire group of Heavenly Peak disciples with just her own abilities. If she made a move and inadvertently alerted them to the fact that something was up, there was no doubt that she would be the one suffering the most.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had begun to treat Zhang Shuyue extremely well over thest few days, ever since she earned herself the title of Ye Xiuwen and Zhou Zilong¡¯s benefactor. In fact, as long as Zhang Shuyue said the word, they would do it with the utmost diligence, no matter what the task was.

    This was a form of rpense to Zhang Shuyue as well. After all, now that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were already officially together, they knew that it would be improper for Ye Xiuwen to overstep his boundaries and be too caring or concerned for her.

    At the same time, Zhang Shuyue was particrly adept at tapping on her advantages. She was conscious of the fact that she had to act in moderation if she were not to attract the disdain and hatred of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Therefore, she had refrained from troubling the Heavenly Peak disciples over every little thing, only stepping out of her room from time to time and disying her weak, feeble state for all to see. She knew that such seemingly insignificant actions on her part would slowly whittle away at the hearts of the Heavenly Peak disciples and invoke their pity and sympathy for her. In turn, this would ensure that they would never leave the valley until she had fully recovered from her injuries.

    Yet, despite all of this, the person that she desired to see the most was still Ye Xiuwen.

    It is Man¡¯s innate desire to want more. Even though the Heavenly Peak disciples had been fawning over her and treating her especially well during this period of time, she still felt that something was missing. As she pursued this train of thoughts and eliminated the various possibilities, she began to conclude that the only other thing shecked right now was Ye Xiuwen.

    Perhaps it was due to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s consideration for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s feelings, but Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude towards Zhang Shuyue during this period of time had been cold and distant, to say the least. In fact, it wouldn¡¯t be inurate to say that their rtionship during this period of time was even colder than it had been before Jun Xiaomo had regained consciousness.

    After all, before Jun Xiaomo awakened from heratose state, Ye Xiuwen would still politely exchange a few words with her out of courtesy whenever they crossed paths. But now, whenever she crossed paths with Ye Xiuwen, and quite apart from the fact that Jun Xiaomo was always hovering about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, Ye Xiuwen would keep his distance and only nod to her, or at best acknowledge her existence by addressing her coldly, ¡°Miss Zhang¡±.

    This caused Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart to feel incredibly stifled, as though it were being grilled slowly over an intense me. She sincerely desired for Ye Xiuwen to understand that she could be far more courteous, caring and even soft and warm than Jun Xiaomo could ever be!

    But in the end, she was not even granted the opportunity to draw near to Ye Xiuwen. How was she going to disy her soft and caring side to Ye Xiuwen like that?

    In contrast, Jun Xiaomo hovered by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side almost all the time. Whenever she desired to link arms, they would link arms; whenever she desired to be piggy-backed by Ye Xiuwen, she would hop on his back without restraint; and whenever she raised even the slightest of requests to Ye Xiuwen, he would assent without hesitation, and his eyes would even be filled with indescribable warmth and indulgence towards her.

    Whenever Zhang Shuyue saw Ye Xiuwen disy such uncharacteristically warm expressions on his charming, chiseled face, a glimmer of hope would invariably surface on her heart that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indulgent and warm attitude would be directed towards her one day.

    However, this remained nothing more than a mere sliver of hope, and she knew that it would remain so as long as Jun Xiaomo was still around.

    In her heart, Zhang Shuyue had already cursed, sworn and even torn Jun Xiaomo to pieces countless times. Yet on the surface, Zhang Shuyue still had to present herself as a magnanimous, kindhearteddy. This vexed and frustrated her immensely.

    This morning, Zhang Shuyue received her master¡¯s missive and learnt that her master and her entourage were already halfway towards the valley, and they would arrive in approximately two days¡¯ time. Her master had checked in with Zhang Shuyue and encouraged her to hang in there in this final stretch and continue to hold the Heavenly Peak disciples where they were. All their efforts would have been in vain if Zhang Shuyue slipped up right now.

    Zhang Shuyue agreed with renewed vigor. That said, the reluctance in her heart had also continued to burgeon.

    She could hardly care less if the Heavenly Peak disciples perished right here and right now. After all, they hardly fell into the ambit of her consideration. However, as the prospects of Ye Xiuwen perishing grew more and more real to her, she began to find it a pity if such a rare find were to disappear from the world just like that.

    Truth be told, if Ye Xiuwen were willing to spend the rest of his life with her, she was more than willing to beg her master for mercy on his behalf. Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart waspletely fixated on Jun Xiaomo right now.

    What¡¯s so good about Jun Xiaomo? She¡¯s neither warm nor caring, and she even habitually leverages on her status as the little martial sister to do anything she desires. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had watched her grow up, how could he possibly have fallen for her?

    Zhang Shuyue could tell that Ye Xiuwen was a responsible man. Without extreme measures and the right impetus, and unless Jun Xiaomo had a change of heart, Zhang Shuyue knew that she would have no chance with Ye Xiuwen even if Ye Xiuwen remained at the valley for years on end.

    Thus, hundreds and even thousands of schemes and ploys began to flicker through Zhang Shuyue¡¯s mind until she finally gritted her teeth and decided on one of the more extreme measures.

    She wasn¡¯t willing to wait idly and passively without doing anything to get what she wanted. Instead, she was determined to give it her all. If she failed in this attempt, then she would ept her fate and allow her master to deal with the Heavenly Peak disciples as she wished. There was no loss to her either ways.

    Steeling her resolve, Zhang Shuyue finally calmed down and collected her thoughts. A vicious sparkle gleamed in the depths of her eyes.

    ---------------------------------------------------

    Jun Xiaomo sat at the table in her room. With a talisman brush in one hand, and her head bent low, she focused all her attention and energy on the talisman paper set neatly on the table in front of her.

    Finally, as she finished thest stroke of the brush, Jun Xiaomo heaved a sigh of relief. She released her the brush from her slightly tense and stiffened hand as she gently massaged each of her fingers.

    She could also hear sounds of metal slicing through the air echo gently from outside her window. As the dancing sword intent flourished about a particr epicenter, leaves began to descend from height gracefully as though confetti celebrating the brilliant swordy.

    Jun Xiaomo walked to her windowsill and sat on it. Propping her chin on her hand, she looked out of her room with a slightly vacant stare in her eyes.

    As Ye Xiuwen finished the final movements of his swordy, he sheathed his sword and walked towards Jun Xiaomo and waved his hand in front of her vacant eyes. Then, he rapped her gently on the head.

    ¡°What are you thinking about? Why do you look so lost in thought?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed her head as she murmured with some measure of frustration, ¡°What else could it be? I¡¯m just thinking of when we¡¯ll finally be able to leave this damned ce. Don¡¯t you think that Zhang Shuyue has been injured for an inordinately long time? The extent of her injuries doesn¡¯t mean much to cultivators to begin with. And besides, we¡¯re not mortals, so why does she still appear as though she¡¯s just as weak and feeble after such a long time?¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou feels bad for Miss Zhang, and we¡¯ll naturally have to wait till Miss Zhang is fully recovered before we can leave. Have some patience, we¡¯ll wait a little while longer.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he reassured her.

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows in distress, ¡°But the longer we wait, the more variables we¡¯ll have to deal with. Furthermore, I¡¯ve recently been developing a bad hunch about all these waiting for some strange reason.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much about these things. If you keep furrowing your brows like that, the wrinkles on your face are going to make you look like an old granny soon.¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly.

    Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Even if I be an old granny, you¡¯re not allowed to despise me!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised an eyebrow curiously and smirked back at Jun Xiaomo, reserving anyments that he had. That said, it was only at this point in time that it dawned on Jun Xiaomo the implications of what she had just said, and she rubbed her nose bashfully.

    Even though they had already confessed and confirmed their feelings for each other, their interactions had still remained the same as it always had been. Jun Xiaomo still felt incredibly awkward talking about their future together. Thus, as soon as she realized what she had just said, she was so embarrassed that she could no longer properly keep her eye affixed on Ye Xiuwen, and her gaze drifted away slowly.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed slightly. He knew that there was still some way to go in his rtionship with Jun Xiaomo. After all, he had not forgotten the fact that there were still other love rivalsying outside the valley awaiting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emergence, including Rong Ruihan and the little packrat from the Chi n.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were both deeply immersed in their own thoughts, Zhou Zilong suddenly burst into the courtyard, ¡°So Martial Brother Ye and Little Martial Sister are here. I¡¯ve been looking for you two for a long time now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back up and blinked her eyes curiously as she quipped, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, what¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Even though Zhou Zilong had stormed off as a result of Zhang Shuyue thest time they met each other, Jun Xiaomo was never one to harbour any grudges against her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak. Overnight, the anger in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart had already dissipated substantially.

    Thus, she was able to speak calmly to Zhou Zilong once more.

    Zhou Zilong scratched his head as he exined, ¡°Martial Brother Zhuo and some other martial brothers were looking for Martial Brother Ye earlier, and I vaguely recall them mentioning something about the matter being quite urgent. They¡¯re currently at the woods just outside the main courtyard. Would Martial Brother Ye care to take a look there?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, ¡°If there¡¯s something urgent, why didn¡¯t they use the Transmittance Talisman?¡±

    Zhou Zilong shrugged, ¡°I don¡¯t know either. All I know is that they appeared rather anxious as they headed eastwards. I¡¯m not even sure if they¡¯re still there right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, ¡°Perhaps Martial Brother Zhuo and the rest have met with some mishap. Martial Brother Ye, let¡¯s go take a look.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s go take a look then.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded decisively, and he turned around and left immediately.

    Jun Xiaomo had also walked out of the room behind Ye Xiuwen. Just as she was about to follow after him, Zhou Zilong stepped in front of her and cut her off, ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, there¡¯s something that I wanted to talk to you about. Let¡¯s leave the matter in the woods to Martial Brother Ye.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at Zhou Zilong with a peculiar gaze, ¡°Something you want to talk to me about? What is it?¡±

    ¡°Uh...it¡¯s got to do with formation arrays. There¡¯s some things that I wanted to consult Martial Sister about.¡± Zhou Zilong scratched his head again as he borated.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly astounded as she red back at Zhou Zilong, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, can¡¯t this wait till we resolve the emergency that Martial Brother Zhuo and the rest are facing right now? Is there really a need to resolve your query pertaining to the formation arrays right now?¡±

    Zhou Zilong was slightly taken aback by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reasoning. Momentster, with some measure of shiftiness in his gaze, he maintained his point, ¡°Actually, there¡¯s nothing much to worry about. With Martial Brother Ye there, I¡¯m sure the emergency that Martial Brother Zhuo and the rest are facing will be resolved in no time.¡±

    A realization suddenly washed over Jun Xiaomo, and she sighed profoundly, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, do you know you¡¯re really bad at telling lies? Your assertions are full of loopholes. And do you know that the more nervous you get, the more you like to scratch your head? Tell me truthfully, what¡¯s your true motive for sending Martial Brother Ye out and holding me back here?¡±

    ¡°This...¡± Zhou Zilong was lost for words. He had never expected to be exposed by Jun Xiaomo so quickly. Now that the cat was out of the bag, what else could he say?

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she probed further, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, you wouldn¡¯t be here on Miss Zhang¡¯s behalf, would you?¡±

    ¡°Not at all, not at all!¡± Zhou Zilong immediately waved his hands, rejecting that notion.

    However, Jun Xiaomo simply squinted her eyes as she remarked, ¡°Do you know that such an overreaction makes things all the more suspicious? I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯ve never been looking to discuss anything proper with me. Are you luring Martial Brother Ye to the woods on purpose? Is Miss Zhang waiting for him in the woods outside?¡±

    ¡°I...¡± Zhou Zilong could no longer find the words to refute Jun Xiaomo¡¯s conjectures because she was spot on with every single one of her guesses. As Jun Xiaomo had earlier mentioned, he had never been good at telling lies to begin with.

    Jun Xiaomo red at Zhou Zilong and barked, ¡°I wonder whose martial brother you really are! Do you know that you¡¯re only going to get Martial Brother Ye in deep trouble like this?!¡± As she finished speaking, she motioned to run after Ye Xiuwen, only to be obstructed by Zhou Zilong once more.

    ¡°Xiaomo, don¡¯t be too anxious. Miss Zhang doesn¡¯t have ill intentions. She only wants to clear the air with Martial Brother Ye.¡± Zhou Zilong hurriedly attempted to appease Jun Xiaomo in the hope that she would dispel any thoughts of going after Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Are you kidding right now?! If her intention was truly to clear the air, does she really need to use you to separate Martial Brother Ye and I? That¡¯s far too contrived, even for a lie, isn¡¯t it?!¡± Jun Xiaomo bellowed.

    Zhou Zilong waspletely taken aback, and his face flushed purple at this moment.

 Chapter 324: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Scheme; Ye Xiuwen is Trapped!

    <h4>Chapter 324: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Scheme; Ye Xiuwen is Trapped!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t be bothered to butt heads and p lips against Zhou Zilong any longer, and she motioned to follow after Ye Xiuwen once more. Yet to her dismay, Zhou Zilong stepped in front of her, obstructing her movements again.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, just what are you trying to do?!¡± Jun Xiaomo had discovered for the very first time how this martial brother of hers could bepletely impervious to reason.

    ¡°I...I¡¯m just trying to ask Little Martial Sister to give Miss Zhang some time. She really doesn¡¯t have any ill intentions. She...she¡¯s incredibly hurt by the turn of events, and she wishes to have one final attempt to clear the air so that she would be willing to give up.¡± Zhou Zilong¡¯s face flushed red as he exined.

    He sincerely felt that his actions were not being fair to his Little Martial Sister. However, he also believed in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character ¨C he believed that she would know her limits and act in moderation, and he believed that she would never do anything that would hurt his Little Martial Sister.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo simply chuckled coldly, ¡°Isn¡¯t the fact that Martial Brother Ye and I are officially together sufficient for her to give up? What else is she looking for? Are you saying that she wants to attempt snatching Martial Brother Ye from right under my nose, and she¡¯s only willing to give up when her efforts end in failure?¡±

    Zhou Zilong was renderedpletely speechless by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel. After all, he hardly gave the matter much thought back when Miss Zhang sought out his help in this regard. At that time, the only considerations weighing on his mind was the fact that Miss Zhang appeared to be in such pain, distress and hurt, so he had assessed that there was simply no harm in letting her make one final attempt to clear the air before giving up.

    After all, he was certain that Zhang Shuyue¡¯s thoughts would no longer run wild once Martial Brother Ye had cleared the air regarding his intentions with her.

    Jun Xiaomo noticed that Zhou Zilong had grown taciturn, so she continued snidely, ¡°I¡¯d never seem someone as magnanimous as Martial Brother Zhou. You¡¯re evidently fond of Zhang Shuyue. Yet quite apart from confessing your feelings to her, you¡¯re even obsessed about creating an opportunity for her to get closer to Martial Brother Ye. Anyone who¡¯s unaware of your identity might even think that Zhang Shuyue is your martial sister.¡±

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart was incredibly stifled, and he was overwhelmed by guilt at this stage, ¡°I know I¡¯ve acted on impulse, but I¡¯m willing to hedge everything on Miss Zhang¡¯s character. She¡¯s promised that this will be thest time, and she will no longer harass Martial Brother Ye after this.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t call me ¡®martial sister¡¯ anymore. I can¡¯t bear the burden of such a title.¡± Jun Xiaomo had reached her boiling point, yet her mind had never been any clearer or moreposed, ¡°Zhou Zilong, you only give regard to the fact that Zhang Shuyue has rescued you once, yet have you ever considered the fact that Martial Brother Ye and I have saved all of your lives? We¡¯d done so much to infiltrate the Dawn Sect and rescue you from the horrific prison, only to be treated like this? Martial Brother Zhou, I¡¯m thoroughly disappointed!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart felt as though it had been washed over by sleet and snow. In her previous life, she wasrgely to me for why Ye Xiuwen would fall in love with Zhang Shuyue. If not for the fact that she had time and again disappointed and let down Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expectations, Martial Brother Ye would never have found himself so deeply embroiled in the rtionship with Zhang Shuyue and been unable to extricate himself from the situation when push hade to shove.

    In this life, she sincerely thought that she had done more than enough, particrly when it came to her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak. After all, she had never done anything to wrong or disappoint them.

    In her heart, they were all part of her family, and she was disinclined to be calctive with her martial brothers at all. But just what did she receive in return?

    Were her martial brothers going to overlook their rtionship that had been build on decades of being martial siblings just because of a single outsider? Just what hypnotic pills had Zhang Shuyue fed them to make their hearts, minds and souls wander like that?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cold, distant words had only made the overwhelming guilt in Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart burgeon even more. On the one hand, he was bent on maintaining his belief in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character; yet on the other hand, he acknowledged that everything which his Little Martial Sister had said up to this point in time waspletely right, and his actions right now were akin to repaying good with evil. Martial Brother Ye and his Little Martial Sister were already an item, yet he had resorted to deceitful measures just to separate them so that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s love rival could have some time alone with Ye Xiuwen.

    Even if Zhang Shuyue stuck to her words and refrained from doing anything untoward or improper to Ye Xiuwen, he knew that his Little Martial Sister would still feel ill at ease by such an arrangement.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry...¡±

    Apart from repeatedly apologizing, Zhou Zilong didn¡¯t know how else he could continue to face his Little Martial Sister.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need your apology.¡± Jun Xiaomo calmly stated, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, if you¡¯re still not going to step aside, don¡¯t me me for making a move against you. I¡¯ve already recovered substantially over thest few days. Right now, you¡¯re no longer my match.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had already attained the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and someone like Zhou Zilong in only the twelfth level of Qi Master was not somebody who could possibly be a threat to her.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister, I¡¯ll never raise a finger against you.¡± Zhou Zilong responded with agony in his voice.

    He was already overwhelmed with guilt right now, so how could he possibly make a move against his Little Martial Sister?

    ¡°Hah, you won¡¯t be able to do a thing even if you attempt to make a move.¡± Jun Xiaomo curtly responded. Then, she immediately walked around Zhou Zilong¡¯s body andnded a swift, calcted blow on his neck.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart constricted slightly. But before he could properly respond to the situation, he saw his surroundings fade to ck, and he passed outpletely.

    Jun Xiaomo looked down at Zhou Zilong as hey motionless on the floor, and her heart was filled with dismay.

    She had never wished for an internal conflict with her martial brother if she could help it. But who could have expected Zhang Shuyue to be so insidious to be able to sow such seeds of discord and create a rift between the Heavenly Peak disciples?

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Zhang Shuyue had done the exact same things as well.

    With a grimace on her lips, Jun Xiaomo retrieved a Windsail Talisman from her Interspatial Ring, applied it on herself, and then swiftly charged out of the courtyard, following in the direction that Ye Xiuwen had departed in.

    ----------------------------------------------------------

    Ye Xiuwen was so worried about the emergency faced by Martial Brother Zhuo that he hadpletely overlooked the fact that Jun Xiaomo and Zhou Zilong had not followed behind him at all.

    Besides, given that he had the aid of his Windwalk ability, he was running at speeds that were well above that possessed by Jun Xiaomo and Zhou Zilong to begin with. Thus, he hardly thought too much about the others falling behind at all.

    That said, it was only when he arrived at the woods that he discovered something slightly amiss.

    The feeling that something was wrong struck him quickly and suddenly. Yet, it was not a logical process that he could put a finger on. Rather, it was more akin to an intuitive feeling.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen slowed down his steps and released his divine sense into the surroundings as he slowly followed the path forward and into the woods.

    Just then, a scent of blood wafted through the air and swept past his nose.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constricted, and he no longer moved with caution. Releasing his Windwalk ability once more, he sprinted through the woods in the direction where the scent of blood came from.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen was about to arrive at his destination, his surroundings suddenly changed, and the scent of blood vanishedpletely. Instead, his surroundings had transformed into a light pink coloured peach blossom forest.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately eximed in his heart, ¡°Something¡¯s wrong.¡± Thus, he began to muster more spiritual energy with thoughts of retreating.

    Having engaged with so many battles with his Little Martial Sister in the past, he was now well acquainted with formation arrays. At the very least, he knew that the present sight he saw was something that could only be created by a formation array.

    Unfortunately, leaving the domain of a formation array was hardly as easy as entering it. In the very next moment, Ye Xiuwen noticed a figure flutter across his line of sight, before a wave of severe drowsiness hit him.

    Very soon, his surroundings faded to ck, and he copsed to the ground,pletely unconscious.

    When Ye Xiuwen came to his senses once more, he discovered that he was now lying on an exquisite-looking bed, and even the mattress was pink in colour. It was obvious that this was ady¡¯s residence.

    The gentle aroma of incense filled the room. As Ye Xiuwen breathed in the smoky scent, it seemed only to haze his mind, distracting and dibobting him.

    He began to muster his spiritual energy once more, thinking to expel the smog that seemed to enshroud his mind. However, it quickly became apparent that the incense seemed to possess special properties, and the more he attempted to resist it, the more it clouded his mind.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen gave up on resisting the haziness in his mind, and he relied solely on his willpower to forcibly regain some rity of mind.

    At the same time, he began to feel slightly better having ceased operating the spiritual energy in his body.

    Just then, the door to the room opened up, and a set of gentle footsteps echoed out. Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, thinking of sitting up so that he could see who this person was. But to his dismay, he suddenly discovered just how weak and feeble his body was right now ¨C it was as though all of his strength was gone!

    Ye Xiuwen cursed himself at being far too reckless and careless. He had let his guard down and assumed that his surroundings were safe on consideration of the fact that he was in a valley, and there were no traces of human habitation in a radius of one hundred miles. Otherwise, how could he have possibly allowed himself to slip into such a straightforward trap?

    The only questions that remained were who the perpetrator was; and whether Martial Brother Zhou was involved in this at all.

    His bed curtains were quickly drawn open. In the very next moment, Ye Xiuwen noticed a pink coloured dress entering his field of vision. This dress was so thin that it was practically translucent, and he was able to see thedy¡¯s undergarments through the dress.

    ¡°It¡¯s you?¡± Ye Xiuwen finally recognized the perpetrator¡¯s appearance, and he immediately furrowed his brows.

    He should have guessed it ¨C after all, was there really anyone else apart from Zhang Shuyue who possessed sufficient control over Zhou Zilong to use him as a mouthpiece? Besides, the valley belonged to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s master to begin with, and outsiders would never be able to make their way in that easily.

    A warm, radiant smile was stered all over Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face. She looked at Ye Xiuwen as she assured him, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m only here to have a nice little chat with you, and perhaps have a heart-to-heart talk.¡±

    ¡°Hah, is there really a need to go to such an extent just for a ¡®little chat¡¯?¡± Ye Xiuwen red coldly at Zhang Shuyue as he refuted.

    ¡°Of course there is. Brother Ye has been so entranced and obsessed by Sister Xiaomo in recent times that I¡¯ve got absolutely no opportunity to talk to you at all. Otherwise, why would I have resorted to such measures?¡± Zhang Shuyue gave Ye Xiuwen a distressed look. If her suitors saw this expression on her face right now, they would most certainly feel their heart wrench with pity and sympathy for her.

    However, these ¡°suitors¡± obviously did not include Ye Xiuwen.

    He cidly responded, ¡°If Miss Zhang doesn¡¯t want to risk burning bridges with me, I¡¯ll advise you not to do anything foolish.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to do anything foolish either. But, if I don¡¯t do anything foolish, how would Brother Ye be willing to remain by my side?¡± Zhang Shuyue responded with a coquettish voice as she took another step forward. Then, she removed the top part of her dress seductively. With her shoulders revealed, she sat beside Ye Xiuwen and gently caressed his chest as she quipped, ¡°Brother Ye, tell me, if Sister Xiaomo sees us tussling in bed together, will she still remain by your side?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spirits suddenly tensed up, and he lifted his hand with all the might he could muster and smacked Zhang Shuyue¡¯s palm off his chest. Pak!

    As she rubbed her hand that had just been pped away, a sense of indignation washed over her heart. ring back at Ye Xiuwen, she no longer spoke with the soft, coquettish voice as she had earlier. Instead, she mocked contemptuously, ¡°You¡¯re not bad, aren¡¯t you? I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re still able to muster that much strength to resist me.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen continued to re frigidly at her, ¡°If I¡¯ve got any more strength remaining in my body right now, your hand wouldn¡¯t simply have been struck to the side.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue was initially infuriated by his response. However, after thinking about it for a moment, she suddenly smiled again, ¡°Brother Ye, stop with your futile resistance. Why don¡¯t you just take things in your stride and try to enjoy yourself? Don¡¯t worry, even though you don¡¯t have much strength in your body right now, I¡¯ll release the restraints on your body¡¯s strength once the effects of the incense kicks in.¡±

    ¡°Effects of the incense?¡± Ye Xiuwen had initially thought that the incense was only used to render him incapacitated. How could he have known that there was an additional purpose to the incense?

    ¡°It¡¯s something that will send us both over the moon...¡± As Zhang Shuyue exined, she slowly leaned closer to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, gazing at his stunning looks with a twinkle in her eye as she added coquettishly, ¡°Brother Ye, shall we ascend to the peaks of ecstasy together?¡±

 Chapter 325: An Imminent Threat, Jun Xiaomo Arrives in the Eleventh Hour

    <h4>Chapter 325: An Imminent Threat, Jun Xiaomo Arrives in the Eleventh Hour</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    It didn¡¯t take much time for Ye Xiuwen to learn about the effects of the incense which Zhang Shuyue was talking about.

    As time passed, the temperature in the room seemed to slowly increase, and Ye Xiuwen began to find his surroundings scalding hot, as though he had been tossed into a cauldron of boiling hot water. As the heat continued to assault his senses, it began to draw a haze over his mind, stifling its rity and senses as well.

    He groaned in frustration, and the veins on his head bulged and throbbed asrge beads of sweat trickled down his forehead andnded on the pillow he was lying on.

    A still, small voice called out feebly in his heart ¨C Stay focused. You can¡¯t do anything that would hurt Little Mo.

    That said, since Zhang Shuyue was hell bent on obtaining Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, body and soul right now, she naturally resorted to extreme measures. The drugs she had resorted to were hardly easy to resist at all.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen began to feel his rationality and rity of mind slowly slip away from his body. At the same time, as his body grew ostensibly warmer, he instinctually thought of grabbing something to reduce the heat swelling up from within his body.

    Just then, a cool, soft voice rang out just beside him. In fact, this voice was so close to him that he could even feel the breath of thedy gently and coolly tickling his ear, ¡°How about it, Brother Ye? Are you still going to try and resist me? Your body is at its limits, isn¡¯t it? Why don¡¯t you let me help you?¡±

    Fortunately, the fact that her voice sounded different from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice was like a bolt of lightning that struck his vignt heart, and he was somewhat jolted back to his senses. Some measure of rationality had now returned to his mind.

    Ye Xiuwen bit down on his tongue viciously, and the stench of blood began to suffuse throughout his mouth. In turn, this allowed him to clear his mind even more.

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, you won¡¯t be able to get what you want today.¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly barked at thedy beside him.

    Zhang Shuyue had never expected Ye Xiuwen to suddenly return to his senses like that, and she felt incredibly frustrated and infuriated.

    ¡°Hmph, it¡¯s not bad that you can still retain your rationality under the intery of all these drugs. But I wonder whether you¡¯ll still be able to hang on once I add another potent drug to the mix!¡± Zhang Shuyue dered with rage. As she finished speaking, she retrieved another small packet of powder from her Interspatial Ring and scattered it onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body was already incredibly weak under the effects of all the drugs to begin with. Unfortunately, with the incessant battering of the waves of heat washing through his body, his mind was unable to register and react to the scattering powder in time, and he took in a deep breath and began coughing and spattering, ¡°Cough cough cough...¡±

    Zhang Shuyue raised her eyebrows victoriously as she waited for Ye Xiuwen to sumb to the drugs¡¯ effects.

    Truth be told, even Zhang Shuyue was unsure just what she was trying to achieve here anymore. She knew full well that even if something happened between her and Ye Xiuwen today, and even if this event sessfully tore Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo apart from each other, she would still never be able to obtain Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    After all, with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s current seething rage and rejection towards her right now, she would already be incredibly fortunate if she were to escape after the incident with her life intact. Was there even the remotest possibility that he would agree to spend the rest of his life with her after the event?

    At this moment, the only goal that was constantly at the forefront of her mind was simply this ¨C since she was unable to obtain Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, Jun Xiaomo could not have his heart either!

    After inhaling the powder scattered by Zhang Shuyue, Ye Xiuwen suddenly experienced an electrifying sensation surge from his spinal cord, shooting straight into his mind.

    He tightened his fingers around the bedsheets below him, furiously fighting and resisting the mild, numbing sensation that was coursing through his body right now.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s lips curled up victoriously. She suddenly discovered that the ability to reduce such a cool andposed man to such a tragic sense gave her an incredible sense of achievement.

    At the same time, despite the fact that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes werepletely bloodshot and the veins on his head were bulging and throbbing, Ye Xiuwen still appeared incredibly handsome and striking to her ¨C enough to move her heart and stir her soul.

    As Zhang Shuyue gazed at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reactions, a trace of passion and lust began to surface in the depths of her eyes. She stretched out her hand and began to loosen his shirt, revealing his strong, muscr chest.

    How many times had she dreamt of leaning on his chest at night, listening to the strength of his thumping heartbeat as she relished in the security of his embrace? Unfortunately, this was a privilege extended exclusively to Jun Xiaomo. The fire of jealousy raged in her heart, stirring her emotions to a boiling point. Fortunately, she still had this very opportunity to experience and obtain what she had always desired.

    Just like she was caressing a fine ornament, she began to run her fingers all around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, attempting to arouse the deepest carnal desires within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, causing him to finally sumb to the effects of the drugs within his body.

    At the same time, the gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gradually grew hazier and hazier.

    Zhang Shuyue had been observing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reactions all this while. Thus, when she saw the state of his eyes and expressions, she knew it was about time ¨C she had never intended to allow Ye Xiuwen to remain limp and weak on the bed all this time. After all, what meaning would there be if all he could do was to remain limp and motionless in bed?

    Thus, she retrieved another bottle from her Interspatial Ring, opened its cap and ced it under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s nose.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes instantly zed over as he caught a whiff of its contents. Yet, at the same time, strength seemed to return to his body once more.

    Zhang Shuyue revealed a delighted smile on her face. Then, she began to take off her own clothing, beforeying on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Right now, all Zhang Shuyue had on was a thin, undergarment that revealed her jade-white, delicate shoulders and arms.

    She stretched out her arms and wrapped them around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s neck gently as she mbered on. Then, she minced closer to those juicy lips of his, and her body also began to tangle and intertwine with his...

    ¡°Actually, you can just think of me as Jun Xiaomo.¡± Zhang Shuyue remarked with vicious delight as she chuckled melodiously, ¡°This way, your heart won¡¯t be tormented as you¡¯re doing the deed, and we can both immerse ourselves in this experience of depravity and ride the waves of ecstasy together.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn as though his rationality hadpletely left his body. Then, moving on impulse, he slowly began to stretch out his hand and wrap them around Zhang Shuyue¡¯s waist.

    A victorious, expectant smile crept up the corner of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face instantly.

    Then, just as Zhang Shuyue was about to nt a devilish kiss on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips, she suddenly found her world spinning as a massive force shoved her from the side. Without warning, she lost her bnce, flipped over from the bed and mmed onto the ground painfully.

    In that very instant, Zhang Shuyue was at aplete loss as to what exactly had happened, and she sat nkly on the floor, wondering what was going on.

    Then, before she coulde to any form of conclusion, she noticed Ye Xiuwen grit his teeth and painstakingly mber up from bed, ring at Zhang Shuyue as he uttered, ¡°You¡¯re revolting.¡±

    It had to be mentioned that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality had always been of the cool,posed sort, and he had never used such strong, powerful words against anyone, even against a person whom he had never met before. This was the very first time he had described ady as ¡°revolting¡±.

    If not for the striking scent of the perfume Zhang Shuyue had worn, he might not have regained his consciousness in that very moment of crisis, and he might well have ended up doing something that would hurt Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes hung loosely from his body, exposing his chest, while his forehead was percting with sweat. Yet what one might describe as a disheveled, sorry state was simply something that was incredibly seductive and alluring in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes.

    She hated the fact that she had been unable to devour this man, even at this point of time.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you experiencing immense difort right now? Why are you still gritting your teeth and fighting against the pain?¡± Zhang Shuyue stood up and walked towards Ye Xiuwen once more, ¡°How about this, I can set up a formation array outside to prevent Jun Xiaomo froming in. This way, we can privately enjoy a night of bliss, and I promise that I¡¯ll nevere looking for you after this night. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo will never know that anything had happened between the two of us.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue was now negotiating with Ye Xiuwen.

    After all, men were all the same, weren¡¯t they? Who would be able to resist the temptation of a forbidden fruit that was dangling so low? Ye Xiuwen must have resisted all of this because he was afraid that Jun Xiaomo would discover the fact that he had stolen a bite at this forbidden fruit and ignore him for the rest of his life.

    Thus, one could argue that Zhang Shuyue had essentially taken a step back inpromise right now. With a promise to keep anything that happened within this roompletely secret, Ye Xiuwen should be willing to give up all forms of resistance, right?

    That said, whether Zhang Shuyue had any intention to keep her word was something that was only privy to her right now.

    Ye Xiuwen red coldly at her, remaining taciturn as he continued to muster and store spiritual energy within his palms.

    However, Zhang Shuyue could guess what Ye Xiuwen was trying to do. She chuckled lightly, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t resist me anymore. Under the effects of these drugs, the more you use your spiritual energy, the stronger the bacsh when it breaks free of the restraints you¡¯ve set on it. At that time, you might even end up suffering brain damage and be a fool.¡±

    These were not empty threats designed to rm Ye Xiuwen either. After all, these medicines had been left to her by her master before she left the valley. Back then, her master had informed her that she could use these medicines to deal with men who were prone to wander.

    At that time, the more these drugged men forcibly suppressed the medicine¡¯s effects, the stronger the bacsh when the effects were finally released. In serious circumstances, the bacsh could directly burst straight through a person¡¯s mind, turning him into aplete fool.

    Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists. He had originally intended to release his spiritual energy after hearing Zhang Shuyue¡¯s threats. However, when he saw her approaching him again, he began to muster his spiritual energy once more.

    This time, it was not to resist the effects of the drugs; this time, it was so that he could kill Zhang Shuyue.

    Zhang Shuyue had utterly incensed him!

    Without noticing the killing intent roiling in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart began to flutter with eager anticipation and delight. All she saw right now was how Ye Xiuwen was staring at her sullenly without making any moves of his own, and she had simply assumed that Ye Xiuwen had given up all forms of resistance ¨C he was ready topromise.

    More thoughts flitted through her mind at this instant ¨C she would appeal to her master to spare Ye Xiuwen once she had done the deed with him, while Jun Xiaomo would remain fated to perish amidst her heartbrokenness and fury!

    Just as the spiritual energy within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s palm reached its limits, and Zhang Shuyue drew immeasurably close to the bed, a massive sound echoed out from outside the door to her room.

    Zhang Shuyue turned around, and her pupils immediately constricted ¨C How could Jun Xiaomo arrive here so quickly?!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intense, cold gazended directly on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body. A few secondster, and with a flick of her sleeves, Zhang Shuyue spat out a huge mouthful of blood as she struck a wall in the room!

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, I¡¯ve already warned you to rein in your thoughts and never to cross the line.¡± Jun Xiaomo barked coldly as she walked towards Zhang Shuyue one imposing step at a time.

    Dressed in striking red, Jun Xiaomo appeared to be a fiendish beast that had just crawled up from the depths of hell. Her eyes were frigid and filled with killing intent right now.

    If she had arrived just one minuteter, would Zhang Shuyue have had her way with Ye Xiuwen? When she contemted the prospects of Zhang Shuyue lying stark naked in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom, an urge to tear Zhang Shuyue to pieces instantly swept across her heart!

    Zhang Shuyue knew that she had lost her opportunity as soon as Jun Xiaomo arrived. However, she suddenly threw her head into the air as sheughed manically, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you think you¡¯ve won? Once my master arrives with reinforcements, you will all perish! Hahahahaha...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits red, and her intense gaze transfixed on Zhang Shuyue instantly grew colder.

 Chapter 326: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Revenge, Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Fury

    <h4>Chapter 326: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Revenge, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Fury</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, it looks almost as though you¡¯re not afraid of death at all.¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly remarked as gave Zhang Shuyue a soulless gaze, almost as though Zhang Shuyue were no more than a dead person.

    Zhang Shuyue paused midway through her shrill cackle and mocked back, ¡°Afraid of death? You¡¯re the ones who are going to die, not me. What do I have to fear? Do you know something? You Heavenly Peak disciples are already notorious among the rest of the spiritual cultivation world, and there¡¯s already a huge bounty on all of your heads. Right now, everyone is vying for the opportunity to kill you to im the juicy bounty. Where do you think you¡¯re going to hide from all these people?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had already expected an oue like this, so Zhang Shuyue¡¯s provocations did nothing more than tickle Jun Xiaomo, much less cast fear or dread into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    Jun Xiaomo smirked, ¡°So what? Zhang Shuyue, rather than spending all your time and energy worrying about whether we will be able to escape from our persecutors, why don¡¯t you worry about whether you¡¯ll even be able to see the light of day tomorrow?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue wiped a streak of blood trickling out the side of her lips as she retorted, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you think that you¡¯ll be able to kill me just because your cultivation level is higher than mine? Let me tell you something ¨C it¡¯s no use. Do you think I¡¯d do something as reckless as what I¡¯d done today if I¡¯ve got no life-preserving measures up my sleeves? As long as I remain here in this valley, there¡¯s no way you¡¯ll ever be able to kill me. You can try it if you wish. Let¡¯s see whether you end up killing me first, or whether you end up expending all of the reserves in your body first.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo raised an eyebrow quizzically, and a peculiar glint surfaced in the depths of her eyes.

    She had never contemted such a possibility before.

    In her previous life, she had once heard others speak of cultivators who had modified the constitution of a valley by establishing someplex formation arrays and contraptions, thereby redirecting the vitality of the entire valley to benefit the cultivator and his people.

    This way, as long as his people remain within the valley, they would be granted absolute protection ¨C not only would their injuries recover more quickly, they would even be shielded from perishing even when they receive injuries which would otherwise be fatal.

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Jun Xiaomo did end up personally avenging Ye Xiuwen by killing Zhang Shuyue when herbat abilities had risen to immeasurable levels. However, Zhang Shuyue had been outside of the valley at that time, and it hardly took much effort on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part to execute her. Thus, she had never expected Zhang Shuyue to possess such a powerful, life-preserving measure within the valley.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and sized up Zhang Shuyue once more. Then, in the next moment, she revealed a wicked smile on her face, ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯d just reminded me of this. After all, I would be going far too easily on you if I¡¯d let you perish just like that as well. Well then, since you¡¯re not going to perish that easily, then I¡¯ll let you have a glimpse of how exactly I¡¯m going to turn the greatest asset, your life-preserving valley, into your greatest nightmare.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue was slightly taken aback, before she beganughing uproariously again, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, oh Jun Xiaomo, you must have hurt your brain from all those injuries of yours. Are you building castles in the air now? This valley was something that had been built upon by every previous iteration of masters and grandmasters. Who do you think you are? Do you think it¡¯s something you can change just like that? Don¡¯t me me for not reminding you ¨C if you even try to move a single bit of the hidden protective formation array, you¡¯ll perishpletely without a single trace!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo continued to smile faintly as she looked down at Zhang Shuyue¡¯s feeble performance, as though she were looking at a little clown dancing in her very palms right now.

    Once Zhang Shuyue was done with her spiel and ceasedughing, Jun Xiaomo shrugged it all off, ¡°Have you finished speaking? I guess it¡¯s about time I make my move then.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue was slightly taken aback, and she immediately red at Jun Xiaomo with widened eyes.

    I didn¡¯t hear it wrongly, did I? Did Jun Xiaomo just say that she was going to ¡°make a move¡±?

    Zhang Shuyue thought that Jun Xiaomo had given up on making any form of moves against her. How could she have known that Jun Xiaomo was still going to attack her after all that?

    Jun Xiaomo began to walk towards Zhang Shuyue in an imposing fashion once more. Then, with one arm firmlytched onto Zhang Shuyue¡¯s neck in a vice-like grip, Jun Xiaomo leaned towards Zhang Shuyue¡¯s ear and whispered, ¡°I can let you live, but I don¡¯t intend to let you live well. Didn¡¯t you say that your master was bringing reinforcements over right now? I wonder if she¡¯s willing to trade your life for our freedom, hmm?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief. However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grip around her throat was so tight that she no longer had the ability to refute Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    ¡°Hah, you¡¯d really gone all out in your attempt to win Martial Brother Ye¡¯s heart. Look at the clothing you¡¯re wearing right now ¨C how is that any different from the street callers in the mortal world?¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked contemptuously as she ran her other hand along Zhang Shuyue¡¯s exposed shoulder, down her arm until she grabbed hold of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s right wrist.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body trembled as Jun Xiaomo did all these things, and goosebumps began to creep all over her skin.

    These were borne out of both fear and fury. She feared the prospects of Jun Xiaomo tormenting her with a life that was worse than death, and she was furious by the fact that Jun Xiaomo was humiliating her with both words and actions.

    Just then, a dark glint flickered across the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eye, and her left arm tensed up suddenly. In the very next moment, a sickening crunch resounded in the otherwise still and quiet surroundings ¨C Zhang Shuyue¡¯s wrist was now broken.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Zhang Shuyue cried out shrilly as excruciating pain coursed throughout her body. A drop of tear instantly rolled out of her eyes.

    Painful. It was incredibly painful. She had never expected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation to be at such a level that Jun Xiaomo could break her wrist with just a simple tightening of her grip.

    Unfortunately, that was not the end of the matter for Zhang Shuyue. With her grasp still on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s wrist, Jun Xiaomo seemed to be sending a peculiar, foreign source of energy straight through her meridians and into her Dantian. At the same time, Zhang Shuyue could tell that this source of energy was incredibly destructive. Within moments, she felt as though every inch of her meridians and Dantian were being ripped apart and torn to shreds by this energy.

    ¡°What is this?! What are you doing to me?!¡± Zhang Shuyue bellowed at Jun Xiaomo. Her voice was now trembling in trepidation and dour in dismay.

    She was not afraid of any form of physical torment that Jun Xiaomo could dish out on her. After all, as long as she remained within the valley, her injuries would undoubtedly recover in no time.

    That said, her intuition told her that the destructive energy coursing through her meridians and Dantian right now were hardly a benign force, and it was not something that could be expelled very easily either. Most importantly, this force was harming the most precious parts to any cultivator ¨C their meridians and their Dantian!

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly as she remarked, ¡°Demonic energy. Have you heard of it before?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes instantly widened, and her pupils constricted, ¡°You...you¡¯re...¡±

    ¡°Haha, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m a demonic cultivator.¡± Jun Xiaomo whispered in a hushed voice as she continued to lock eyes with Zhang Shuyue, taking in every bit of fear, trepidation and horror surfacing in the depths of her eyes, ¡°That¡¯s something you didn¡¯t expect, is it? When you lured Martial Brother Ye to this ce, did you ever think that you¡¯ll suffer such a tragic fate? Oh, that¡¯s right, I¡¯ve forgotten to tell you that this isn¡¯t the end. As time goes on, you¡¯ll only slowly begin to experience more and more of the demonic energy that I¡¯ve just sent into your body at thetter stages of your torment.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips curled up into a vicious smile.

    Having demonic energy coursing and shing through a spiritual cultivator¡¯s meridians and Dantian was an incredibly unbearable experience. At this moment, Zhang Shuyue was already experiencing so much pain that she could no longer respond to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s provocations. If Jun Xiaomo had continued to grip tightly onto her broken wrist, the totality of the pain might even cause Zhang Shuyue to convulse uncontrobly on the ground.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s keen auditory senses picked up a stifled groan that rang out from behind.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo nced back, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s condition instantly threw her into a state of panic. She could see every single vein on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s forehead bulging and throbbing asrge beads of sweat percted his head, dripping onto the mattress below ever so frequently. She knew at an instant that Ye Xiuwen was bearing with something painful within right now. After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were so bloodshot that he could even easily be mistaken as a cultivator experiencing a demonic upheaval within his body.

    ¡°You vermin!¡± Jun Xiaomo pped Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face in rage, sending her face recoiling to the side as it instantly swelled up with tenderness. Jun Xiaomo bent down once more and red at Zhang Shuyue with gritted teeth as she uttered, ¡°If anything happens to Martial Brother Ye, I¡¯ll skin you alive, sever your nerves and pluck out your bones until nothing is left of you!¡±

    Zhang Shuyue red back at Jun Xiaomo with hatred in her eyes.

    In the very next moment, Jun Xiaomo mustered the true energy within her body, and lifted Zhang Shuyue with one hand, and sent a palm strike straight to her abdomen with the other.

    Massive amounts of demonic energy instantly prated Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Dantian, and copious amounts of blood spurted out from her mouth. At the same time, Zhang Shuyue flew back, through a window within the room until she struck the ground outside the courtyard outside.

    As the demonic energy shed about furiously within her body, it caused Zhang Shuyue so much pain that she had even begun to pray that she would simply ck out and go unconscious. Unfortunately, she remained as wide awake and conscious as ever, and she could onlyy there, ring at Jun Xiaomo with immense hatred in her eyes as she continued to bear with the excruciating pain and agony.

    Jun Xiaomo menacingly drew a line across her own neck as she took one final nce at Zhang Shuyue. Then, she shut the window and obviated Zhang Shuyue¡¯s view of the inside of the room.

    As soon as Zhang Shuyue discovered that the fiendish Jun Xiaomo no longer cared to bother about her, she bellowed with indignation, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯ll make sure you get your just desserts once my masteres back!¡±

    As she finished speaking, Zhang Shuyue attempted to stand up from the ground and retrieve a Transmittance Talisman from her Interspatial Ring so that she could ry another message to her master.

    Yet, to her dismay and horror, no matter how many times she attempted to grit her teeth and move her limbs, she discovered that her entire body simply remained motionless, as though it had been shackled in ce!

    What in the world is going on?! What did Jun Xiaomo do to me?!

    Zhang Shuyue was unaware of the fact that in the single moment when Jun Xiaomo sent her flying, Jun Xiaomo had also attached two talismans on her body ¨C the first was an Awakening Talisman; while the other was a Petrification Talisman. The effect of each talismansted two full days.

    Her intention was to allow Zhang Shuyue to remain fully conscious as she experienced the lingering pain that suffused throughout her body, as well as to prevent Zhang Shuyue from reporting any such incident to her master.

    This was more than sufficient to overwhelm Zhang Shuyue with a sense of despair and despondence.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯ll never let you off that easily! Never!!!¡± Zhang Shuyue red into the shadowy depths of the room as she bellowed with seething rage.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly within the room. Then, with another flick of her sleeves, the room¡¯s door shut as well,pletely shutting out Zhang Shuyue, leaving her outside on the ground, all alone.

    Outside the courtyard, the cherry blossoms outside of the courtyard continued to flourish with a radiant brilliance, and everything else remainedpletely still and silent.

    This was supposed to be Zhang Shuyue¡¯s uninterrupted moment of ecstasy to be shared and enjoyed with Ye Xiuwen inplete bliss, immersing themselves in the romance of the sea of cherry blossoms replete with the tranquility of the wilderness. This was supposed to be the perfect ce for making love.

    Yet in the end, Zhang Shuyue had found herself lying motionless on the ground in apletely tragic state, while Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were locked in her room.

    Had she just given her love rival her blessings?

    As Zhang Shuyue contemted these things in abject resentment, her eyes reddened with ever-increasing fury.

 Chapter 327: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Hesitation, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Resolve

    <h4>Chapter 327: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Hesitation, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Resolve</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo expelled Zhang Shuyue from the room, she shed her cold, vicious expression and immediately returned to the side of the bed. Then, looking anxiously at Ye Xiuwen, she asked helplessly, ¡°Martial Brother, what happened to you? Don¡¯t scare me, please. Was it Zhang Shuyue who made you be like this?¡±

    It stood to reason that Jun Xiaomo was panicking. After all, despite her incredible proficiency in the disciplines of formation arrays and talismans, she was no better than a toddler in the realm of medicines. At best, all she knew were the basics that wasmon to all cultivators. Thus, she had no way of discerning what was wrong with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body right now.

    Ye Xiuwen had been so tormented by the effects of the drugs that his eyes werepletely bloodshot, almost as though he were a cultivator experiencing a demonic upheaval, and there was not a single bit of rationality left in the depths of his eyes.

    He did not respond to Jun Xiaomo. Instead, he simply continued to stare at Jun Xiaomo, as though a frenzied beast that had just locked onto its prey.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted. While she was concerned and anxious about Ye Xiuwen¡¯s current plight, she also felt a flicker of danger for a fleeting moment.

    Gritting her teeth, she stretched out her hand and reached for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist. Even though this was probably one of the silliest things she could do right now, she waspletely at a lost.

    She needed to know for herself whether Ye Xiuwen¡¯s meridians and Dantian were showing symptoms of any problems.

    Then, in the moment that her hand contacted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist, Ye Xiuwen suddenly grabbed her wrist instead and gave her a great tug, pulling her straight into the bed as he flipped around and pinned her onto the bed.

    Before Jun Xiaomo could react to the situation, she felt herself m into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest. Then, in the very next moment, she felt the world spin around, and she ended up lying on the bed, pinned down by Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s breath was slightly ragged, and the redness of his eyes only deepened and grew more abstruse.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, let me go. It hurts...¡± Jun Xiaomo wrist was locked in a peculiar position by Ye Xiuwen, and she was unable to wrestle her hand free no matter what she did. Thus, she looked up pleadingly at Ye Xiuwen, hoping that her bitter expression would jolt Ye Xiuwen back to his senses.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen had been fighting back the effects of the drugs for far too long, and he was now suffering from an overwhelming bacsh that was powerful enough to sweep away everyst bit of his rationality.

    Thest thing that Ye Xiuwen saw just before he lost all rationality was how Jun Xiaomo had barged into the room like a fiendish war god hell bent on revenge.

    At the same time, he might very well have let down his guard and ceased resisting the drug¡¯s effects precisely because he knew Jun Xiaomo had arrived. After all, Zhang Shuyue would never be able to have her way as long as Jun Xiaomo had arrived.

    Right now, Ye Xiuwen could no longer be described to be of ¡°dignified appearances¡±. In fact, rather than describe him as a cultivator, he was far more akin to a frenzied beast that had been shackled and restrained.

    As Jun Xiaomo struggled hard to free her wrist, she bit down fiercely on her lower lip. She hated the vixen, Zhang Shuyue; she hated how Zhang Shuyue had created a situation which rendered herpletely helpless.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo managed to extricate her hand from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s grasp. But when she looked up again, she was immediately faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bestial, expectant eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo felt a swathe of rage lodged in her throat.

    How could she possibly be unable to piece two and two together given the present circumstances? Jun Xiaomo cursed Zhang Shuyue in her heart once more asplicated emotions in the depths of her heart began to roil.

    Should she be furious or relieved right now? Perhaps both?

    She was furious that Zhang Shuyue would use such underhanded means to scheme against Martial Brother Ye; but she was also relieved that she had arrived just in the nick of time. Otherwise, given how the effects of the drugs were looking, Ye Xiuwen might very well have ended up doing somethingpletely irreversible.

    But, that said, how could she possibly deal with the effects of the drugs within Martial Brother Ye¡¯s body now? Use a Heart Purging Pill?

    Jun Xiaomo spaced out slightly as she filtered through her options. But, without any warning, a heavy object suddenly pressed on her body, and her entire vision was instantly upied by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s charming face.

    ¡°Martial Brother? Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately felt a sharp paining from her upper lips ¨C Ye Xiuwen had bitten hard on both her lips.

    It was at this moment that it suddenly dawned on Jun Xiaomo how fearsome the present Ye Xiuwen truly was. The expression that she had just seen in the depths of his eyes was that of a person ready to devour, and her mind couldn¡¯t help but wander to images of Ye Xiuwen devouring her, bite by bite.

    Truth be told, even though Jun Xiaomo did have a child in her previous life, she was nevertheless extremely pure and innocent in such carnal matters. Her mind had beenpletely enshrouded by the effects of drugs when she and her child¡¯s father had done the deed, and the entire process had been nothing more than a haze. Consequently, she hardly remembered a thing she did under those circumstances.

    Thus, she was presently caught in a dilemma, and she was none the wiser as to whether it would be better to push Ye Xiuwen aside, or whether it would be better to let Ye Xiuwen continue with what he was doing. If she allowed Ye Xiuwen to simply continue, would she be able to live to see the light of the next day?

    Fortunately, for some strange reason, Ye Xiuwen regained some measure of rationality as soon as he bit down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips.

    This trace of rationality was incredibly weak, and it feebly eximed in his heart ¨C It¡¯s her. It¡¯s undoubtedly her. Yet, it was precisely because of this still, soft voice in his heart that he had managed to restrain himself and cease whatever he was doing.

    At this moment, Jun Xiaomoy below Ye Xiuwen,pletely pinned down. Trembling slightly, she gripped tightly onto his sleeves and gently shut her eyes.

    She was both anxious and afraid.

    Then, as though sensing the change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions, Ye Xiuwen suddenly rxed the strength in his body, bent over and gently nted a fleeting kiss just above her eyes.

    It was a simple and in kiss, yet it managed to achieve the effects of reassuring Jun Xiaomo that there was nothing to be afraid of.

    It felt just like a feather that strummed lightly across her heartstrings, causing her to tremble slightly before setting her heartpletely at ease.

    Instinctually, Ye Xiuwen noticed the change in his ¡°prey¡¯s¡± disposition, and he began to slowly move down Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, first from the eyebrows, to the eyes, and then to the cheeks, nting gentle kiss after gentle kiss, causing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body to tremble lightly each time he did so.

    This time, she was nervous, but no longer afraid. Her heart began to beat quicker and quicker.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grip around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves tightened, and she subconsciously held her breath ¨C even she was unsure why exactly she was feeling what she was feeling right now. Was it a feeling of expectancy? Or was there something else in the mix?

    Finally, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s scalding hot lips found their way to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s soft, luscious lips. Jun Xiaomo reflexively opened her eyes, and her eyshes fluttered at him.

    Her heart was still incredibly nervous, but her body had begun to rx itself, as though it had given up all thoughts of resisting his advances.

    Then, after gently prying open Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips with his, Ye Xiuwen forcefully pressed his lips against hers. This time, he no longer did so cautiously. Instead, he went all out at it, as though he were doing his utmost to taste and experience Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sulence through that orifice of hers.

    This kiss swept Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breath away, and her mind wentpletely nk. Almost as though she were no longer in control of her body, she feeblyy there as she permitted Ye Xiuwen to passionately devour her through the locking of their lips.

    By the time Ye Xiuwen finally released Jun Xiaomo again, she was gasping for breath, and her face had flushedpletely red from the kiss. It took her several moments of time before rationality returned to her mind again. Then, in the next moment, a wave of embarrassment and awkwardness immediately washed across her mind.

    To her mind, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s kisses had always been cool and fleeting, and they were more often than not a simple peck on her cheek or the lips. In other words, he had never disyed such passion in his actions of affection before.

    But how could Jun Xiaomo ever have known that Ye Xiuwen had merely been restraining himself intentionally all this while? In fact, the only reason why Ye Xiuwen had refrained from making his advances too quickly was because he was afraid of scaring off Jun Xiaomo.

    Right now, as the effects of the drugs washed away the inhibitions on his heart, the self-imposed restraints were all unlocked, and Ye Xiuwen naturally grew far more brazen with his actions.

    Jun Xiaomo felt like her face was burning up. She didn¡¯t need a mirror to know just how ashamed and embarrassed she looked right now.

    At the same time, Ye Xiuwen also discovered that his rationality had somewhat returned after the intense, impassioned kiss. His originally dted, hazy pupils regained some measure of rity and focus once more, and his gaze immediatelynded on the person in front of him. He noticed just how embarrassed she was as she bit down on her lower lips.

    He could smell the familiar, gentle fragranceing from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, which waspletely different from the choking scent of perfume which Zhang Shuyue wore.

    Jun Xiaomo never enjoyed using perfume to begin with. Thus, the fragrance of her body was the most natural, clean and clear type of fragrance.

    But it was also the recognition of this fragrance that whetted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appetite for more. In fact, it began to set his mind abuzz far more than any of the previous drugs his mind and body had been afflicted with.

    He gently ced his hand on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks. Then, mustering all of the strength in his body to suppress the basal urges and desires of his body, he uttered, ¡°Little Mo, if you¡¯re not willing to ept this, then push me away. I¡¯ll think of something else.¡±

    He was truly reluctant to take advantage of the situation and force it upon Jun Xiaomo. After all, even though he had barely regained control of his own mind, he neither knew when he wouldpse into another spate of fanaticism, nor what would happen when such a time came. Thus, he was willing to remain in this state of abject suffering rather than cause Jun Xiaomo to fear and shun him as a result of this incident...

    When all was said and done, Ye Xiuwen still saw Jun Xiaomo as the innocent and na?ve little martial sister from the past, and having only made clear their feelings for each other recently, he felt that it was practically an impossibility to expect his Little Martial Sister to ept such intimacy with him.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart quivered slightly, and she gazed straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were still as bloodshot as ever. However, beyond the haze of wild fricism zing over his eyes, she saw a profound warmth hidden within its depths.

    Indeed, she did somewhat fear how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind and body was being swayed about by the effects of drugs, because she knew that the mindless pursuit of carnal rtions would never give rise to the true ecstasy built on the bliss of pleasure and joy. In fact, it might even end up being a painfully torturous experience.

    However, she knew that the little bit of fear as to what might result from such an incident could hardly hold a candle to the amount of heartache and worry roiling within her heart as a result of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present predicament.

    She was tormented from the inside out by the fact that Ye Xiuwen had once again fallen prey to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s schemes, and he had even fallen to such a tragic state. At the same time, she was immensely concerned that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s condition might even worsen and leave permanent,sting consequences on his body.

    Besides, it was not as though she loathed Ye Xiuwen. She was unable to put her finger on when exactly it was, but she was certain that her heart had already been inextricably intertwined with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    Since that was the case, why should she fear such an incident? As long as they were mutually in love and invested in this rtionship, then it was only going to be a matter of time before they shared such intimate moments with each other. Moreover, this was her dear Martial Brother Ye ¨C he could never possibly do anything to hurt her.

    As Jun Xiaomo gradually steeled her resolve, she began to motion closer to Ye Xiuwen and give him a light peck on the lips, signifying her decision.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body trembled. Then, he tightened his arm around the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and once again pressed his lips against hers, immersing themselves in a deep, passionate kiss.

 Chapter 328: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Enervation; Zhou Zilongâ€™s Passion

    <h4>Chapter 328: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Enervation; Zhou Zilong¡¯s Passion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The exuberance of life filled the room as the couple moved to the passion of their emotions. Outside the room, Zhang Shuyuey listlessly on the ground as her heart continued to seethe with rage. Her beautiful, almond-shaped eyes were now consumed by jealousy and humiliation. Where was the warmness and softness in her eyes with which she had previously entreated Ye Xiuwen with?

    ¡°Miss Zhang, what happened to you?¡± A voice filled with genuine concern rang out overhead. Zhang Shuyue had been so immersed in her own thoughts that she hadpletely failed to notice when Zhou Zilong had arrived just beside her.

    Zhou Zilong had regained consciousness approximately one hour ago.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples began searching for Zhou Zilong as soon as they had discovered his disappearance. Then, after some time, they found him unconscious on the floor in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s courtyard. At the same time, they realized that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were both missing. Worried that a mishap might have urred to the both of them, they immediately roused Zhou Zilong back to his senses.

    As soon as he regained consciousness, Zhou Zilong remorsefully came clean to his martial brothers about everything that had transpired, leading up how he had been knocked unconscious by Jun Xiaomo. Then, overwhelmed by concern that Jun Xiaomo would do something rash or reckless in the heat of the moment, he chased after Jun Xiaomo.

    Apart from Zhou Zilong, the other Heavenly Peak disciples also tagged along. They were worried that the conflict between Jun Xiaomo and Zhang Shuyue would escte to an altercation, and they all thought to follow along to see if they could help mediate the situation in any way.

    Truth be told, all of the other Heavenly Peak disciples thought in their hearts that what Zhou Zilong had done was unkind and dishonest. After all, despite knowing that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were already an item, he still went ahead to separate the couple just so that Zhang Shuyue could meet with Ye Xiuwen alone. Wasn¡¯t this something deserving of rebuke? Even if Zhang Shuyue posed no ill intentions towards Ye Xiuwen, such a furtive rendezvous would still cause Jun Xiaomo to feel ill at ease, and it would most certainly strain the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    However, the Heavenly Peak disciples all knew that Zhou Zilong had inextricably fallen into the trappings of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s charms. As an outsider to their rtionship, all of the knew that it was not in their ce to say anything about it or castigate him. Thus, as soon as Zhou Zilong recounted the entire incident to the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples, all of them decided to deal with the more pressing issue at hand and follow Zhou Zilong as they headed into the woods.

    Then, as soon as they arrived at their destination, the first thing that caught their eye was how Zhang Shuyue was lying motionless on the ground. Her body was covered with innumerable wounds and grievous injuries, and there were even traces of blood strewn all over the floor. It was a blood-curdling sight.

    Zhou Zilong immediately rushed forward and squatted helplessly beside Zhang Shuyue. He thought to help her up, but he immediately capitted, for fear that he would only aggravate her injuries by doing so.

    However, all of the other Heavenly Peak disciples remained a good distance away with an awkward look stered all over their faces, because they had discovered that Zhang Shuyue was barely clothed at this moment. The only thing that Zhang Shuyue was wearing was an extremely thin undergarment that covered her privates, leaving her exquisite cor, svelte shoulders and slender legspletely exposed. If they didn¡¯t know any better, they might have likened her to a street caller of the mortal world.

    ¡°What are you all doing here?!¡± Zhang Shuyue red at Zhou Zilong with gritted teeth.

    Her body waspletely petrified right now, and she was resigned toying in the courtyard sporting an incredibly tragic state. The fact that there were onlookers present only served to rub salt into her wounds ¨C it was apletely hateful situation.

    ¡°I...I¡¯d worried that something untoward might happen to Miss Zhang if Martial Sister Xiaomo came here. Thus, we¡¯d all chased after her and found our way to this ce.¡± Zhou Zilong stammered as he exined.

    Zhang Shuyue was so infuriated and frustrated right now that she felt as though a swathe of blood had lodged itself within her throat ¨C this was not what she had meant by her exmation!

    To begin with, she had set up countless formation arrays sequestering these parts of the woods so that none of the Heavenly Peak disciples would stumble upon this ce identally. That way, she would be able to thoroughly enjoy her blissful union with Ye Xiuwen with aplete peace of mind.

    She could overlook the fact that Jun Xiaomo had managed to avoid theyers uponyers of formation arrays and enter the sequestered zone ¨C all of that could be attributed to pure, dumb luck for finding the right way to circumvent the formation arrays. But even if that were the case, how could it possibly exin how the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples had entered this part of the woods as well?!

    How could Zhang Shuyue ever have known that it would take her much more than this just to keep Jun Xiaomo out? At the very least, she would have to rely on her own abilities and incapacitate Jun Xiaomo in frontal sh. After all, if she were able to keep Jun Xiaomo down with just some simple formation arrays, wouldn¡¯t Jun Xiaomo¡¯s three hundred and thirty years within the Proving Grounds have beenpletely in vain?

    Zhou Zilong had earlier rushed to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s side, thinking to shower her with some concern and affection. Yet to his dismay, all Zhang Shuyue had done was to re disdainfully at him and give him an unweing gaze, sending all of the words he had thought to say to her back down to where they came from.

    Hate one, hate all. Zhang Shuyue thoroughly despised Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen right now, and the ambit of her disdain and contempt naturally extended well beyond the couple to include the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples as well. Seeing Zhou Zilong¡¯s concern andpassion for her hardly brought a single trace of joy to her heart. Instead, she had thought to take out all her hatred and anger and frustration against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen directly onto Zhou Zilong.

    However, just as she were about to let loose a verbal assault of contemptuous words, she capitted and forcibly repressed the urge to do so.

    No. I¡¯m not their opponent right now. Master will only be arriving in two days. Until then, I¡¯ll need to secure myself some life-preserving measures.

    As soon as Master returns, all of these people are going to get their just desserts!

    With these thoughts bouncing about at the back of her mind, Zhang Shuyue reined in her roiling emotions and collected herself. Within moments, her eyes grew red and puffy, and she finally looked back up at Zhou Zilong, choking up as she muttered, ¡°I don¡¯t want to live anymore. I¡¯d merely wanted to have a sincere, heart-to-heart chat with Brother Ye to draw the curtains on these hopes of mine. But as soon as Sister Xiaomo appeared, she immediately attacked me without asking, and she even stripped me of my clothing and cast me out here, saying that she would embarrass me in front of all of you...wu-wu-wuu...I¡¯ve never been so embarrassed in my entire life...¡±

    Zhou Zilong had initially been incredibly remorseful for what he had done to separate Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to give Zhang Shuyue such an opportunity to be alone with Ye Xiuwen. But now, having heard everything that Zhang Shuyue had just said, a sense of fiery indignation began to burgeon in his heart.

    This fiery indignation was directed straight at Jun Xiaomo. As far as he was concerned, his Little Martial Sister had crossed the line this time!

    ¡°This...Little Martial Sister wouldn¡¯t do something like that, right?¡± Fortunately, some of the Heavenly Peak disciples managed to keep a rational mind, and not all of them believed Zhang Shuyue off the cuff, ¡°Even though Little Martial Sister has a temper, she¡¯s never been one to overstep her boundaries or do anything outrageous. Martial Brother Zhou, don¡¯t let others drag you by the nose like that.¡±

    Zhou Zilong furrowed his brows. He was never one to contemte the fine nuances of human interaction to begin with. Now that he was personally embroiled in such a difficult situation, he was utterly confused as to whose side he should be taking ¨C Jun Xiaomo was his Little Martial Sister after all, and she had even saved his life; yet on the other hand, Zhang Shuyue was thedy who had stolen his heart, and he also owed her his life as well. He was well and truly caught between a rock and a hard ce. No matter whose story he chose to believe, his heart would never feel at ease.

    That said, there was still another Heavenly Peak disciple who had been convinced by Zhang Shuyue, and he began to advocate for her, ¡°But,e to think of it, Little Martial Sister does have a pretty bad temper. Do you still remember the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition? It was precisely because the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Grand Elder had stepped on Little Martial Sister¡¯s toes that she ended up being tormented so ferociously.¡±

    In other words, there was the possibility that Jun Xiaomo had dealt these grievous wounds to Zhang Shuyue in a fit of rage.

    The Heavenly Peak disciple who had just spoken up was one of the martial brothers who had tagged alongside Zhou Zilong and Zhang Shuyue when they went out of the valley to procure herbs and tonics from Jun Xiaomo just a little while ago. He had adjudged that Zhang Shuyue possessed a wholesome personality and character from his limited interactions with Zhang Shuyue, and he therefore took the view that his Little Martial Sister could possibly be the perpetrator who had overstepped her boundaries in this very instance.

    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll discuss who¡¯s right and who¡¯s wrongter on. Aren¡¯t Martial Sister Xiaomo and Martial Brother Ye inside the room over there? We¡¯ll know once we check in with them.¡± Chen Feiyu coolly concluded the pointless discussion at hand.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples immediately ceased their chattering as well. None of them had a bad impression of Zhang Shuyue to begin with. That said, such a fact had to be bnced by the countervailing consideration that their rtionship with Jun Xiaomo ran far deeper than that of a stranger whom they had only recently met. Thus, none of them could refute their Martial Brother Chen¡¯s conclusion that all their conjectures were pointless until they could fully assess the situation.

    As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Feiyu began to walk towards the room where Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were located. It had to be mentioned that the door and the windows to the little room were all shut tightly, giving off a peculiar, strange vibe about it.

    Chen Feiyu started out withrge strides towards the room. However, as he drew closer and closer, he began to slow down substantially, evidently bogged down by some measure of hesitation.

    Just then, he began to hear faint traces of light moaning sounds, as though someone were fiercely repressing a particr sensation.

    A notion shed across Chen Feiyu¡¯s heart, and he immediately stopped where he was.

    ¡°Mm...ungh...mar-...martial brother...don¡¯t...¡±

    This was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice; but it wasced with a slightly different tang from her normal voice. Her present voice sounded slightly hoarser, and it seemed to beced with a slight, sobbing intent, and it instantly caused Chen Feiyu to be overwhelmed by a sense of awkwardness.

    He finally understood what Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo were up to inside. How could he have expected Martial Brother Ye to be so formidable? After all, it still felt like it had been just yesterday that he and Martial Sister Xiaomo had just confirmed their feelings for each other, yet in the blink of an eye, they had alreadypleted thest step of intimacy with each other.

    What kind of speed is this?

    Most importantly, Jun Xiaomo had just beaten up Zhang Shuyue and left her in the lurch outside the room. Yet, without any ostensible trace of sympathy for Zhang Shuyue, Ye Xiuwen went on to indulge in their thunderous, resounding passion for each other. Was this really appropriate?

    At this moment, Chen Feiyu was simply bbergasted ¨C he didn¡¯t know whether to admire the godly rate at which Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rtionship with Jun Xiaomo had progressed with; or whether he should simply be castigating them for picking the worst possible time and ce to do the deed.

    Truth be told, he had never expected Martial Brother Ye to be so impassioned and impatient given the nature of his cool andposed character.

    When they noticed Chen Feiyu returning to the rest of them, the other Heavenly Peak disciples immediately surrounded him and asked, ¡°Martial Brother Chen, are Martial Sister Xiaomo and Martial Brother Ye not in the room? Why didn¡¯t you go in there?¡±

    Chen Feiyu rubbed his nose awkwardly as he replied, ¡°They¡¯re in there alright. But...¡±

    ¡°But what?¡±

    ¡°But Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo appear to be ¡®busying¡¯ themselves. It would be best if we didn¡¯t disturb them.¡±

    With that, all of the Heavenly Peak disciples immediately understood what Chen Feiyu was trying to convey to them. However, they still couldn¡¯t help but exim in their hearts ¨C Who could¡¯ve thought that someone as cool andposed as Martial Brother Ye would be so brazen?!

    Everyone immediately revealed an awkward, embarrassed expression on their faces.

    Zhou Zilong overheard Chen Feiyu¡¯s ount of his observations as he fed a recovery pill to Zhang Shuyue. Instantly, the already fiery indignation in his heart exploded into a raging inferno!

    I don¡¯t care if Martial Sister Xiaomo and Martial Brother Ye dislike Miss Zhang; how can they insult Miss Zhang¡¯s dignity like that?! How could they leave Miss Zhang outside to brave the elements while they pleasure and immerse themselves with reckless abandon inside?!

    Is this all calcted? Are they doing all of this to spite Miss Zhang?!

    The more Zhou Zilong thought about it, the more infuriated he got. Finally, he set down Zhang Shuyue and began to takerge strides towards the room where Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo were both located ¨C

    Who cares what they¡¯re doing?! They¡¯d better have a good exnation for all of this!

 Chapter 329: A Coupleâ€™s Confirmation, Zhou Zilongâ€™s Interrogation

    <h4>Chapter 329: A Couple¡¯s Confirmation, Zhou Zilong¡¯s Interrogation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    With an imposing air flourishing about him, Zhou Zilong marched over to the room. Then, when he finally arrived at the room and ced his hand on the room¡¯s door, the tug of rationality began to return to his mind.

    It¡¯s Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo in the room, and they¡¯re ¡°busying¡± themselves right now...

    As this notion flickered across Zhou Zilong¡¯s mind, he immediately pulled back his hand as though he had touched something scalding hot.

    I...I think I¡¯d still better wait for them to finish ¡°busying¡± themselves before confronting them. There¡¯s no rush after all. Zhou Zilong thought to himself with some measure of awkwardness in his heart. He had hesitated as soon as he considered the sight which he would be greeted with as soon as he barged into the room, as well as the cool, unwavering gaze from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    After all, Zhou Zilong couldn¡¯t bring himself to barge in when he had begun to even hear the intermittent moaning and groaning sounds echoing out from the depths of the room. Thus, he immediately turned tail and returned to the rest of the group.

    When she saw how Zhou Zilong had returned to the group without having achieved anything, a trace of disdain and disappointment flickered across the depths of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes ¨C I knew that this man could never be entrusted with anything!

    Yet, within the room, Jun Xiaomo did not particrly enjoy the experience as everyone outside had expected. In fact, she began to regret her decision almost immediately after giving her word.

    Before she had given her word, Ye Xiuwen had still managed to forcibly hang onto the single strand of rationality remaining in his mind so that he would refrain from unduly hurting his Little Martial Sister. However, as soon as she gave her permission and agreed to the mutual pursuit of passion, Ye Xiuwen loosened his grasp of any modicum of rationality remaining in his mind, and he was instantly overwhelmed by the effects of the drugs instead. In turn, his primal instincts immediately sprung forth from the depths of his heart without restraint.

    This was the first time Jun Xiaomo had engaged in such an act of intimacy in her present lifetime. As Ye Xiuwen continued to passionately kiss Jun Xiaomo, as though sucking the innocence out of her, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s panting also grew more and more ragged. Then, finally, and without any warning, Ye Xiuwen prated her body.

    That feeling which made her feel as though her entire body were being cleaved right in half...it was better not to describe these things in detail.

    Jun Xiaomo felt such immense pain surge through her body that she immediately bit down fiercely onto Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder. Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen could no longer care less about such minor sensations on the inconsequential parts of his body. Right now, there was only one thought on his mind ¨C and that was to devour Jun Xiaomo and thoroughly make her his!

    At the same time, right after she bit down on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder, she almost immediately caught a whiff of the stench of blooding from the bite mark she had just left. However, she could no longer care less about how much hurt she was causing to Martial Brother Ye either. After all, the electrifying pain coursing through her body was excruciating and nigh unbearable.

    The matters that ensued left Jun Xiaomo both embarrassed and vexed. She was embarrassed by how she had finally taken this step of intimacy with Martial Brother Ye. At the same time, she waspletely vexed by how Ye Xiuwen had neither bothered with any measure of forey, nor given her any caution or warning. That was what resulted in the immense, excruciating pain that was coursing through her body right now. In fact, pain was all she felt right now!

    At the same time, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware of the matters that were taking ce just outside of the door to her room. After all, she was doing all she could to suppress the pain in her body. If she knew that her Heavenly Peak martial brother had suddenly arrived at this ce and even overheard them doing the deed, she would be so overwhelmed by shame that she wouldn¡¯t know how to face them in future!

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo continued to experience the torment for what seemed to be an eternity. Perhaps it had been two hours; or perhaps it had been four. Whatever the case was, Jun Xiaomo had initially thought to give Ye Xiuwen the release that he needed quickly so that she could relieve herself from the pain of the experience. Unfortunately, how could she have known that a cultivator¡¯s endurance in this regard could never be benchmarked by the endurance of mere mortals?

    Then, as time wore on, she began to grow numb to the sensation of pain in her body. The protracted torment had caused a wave of weariness to wash over and overwhelm her body.

    Finally, just as Jun Xiaomo was about to pass outpletely from the weariness, Ye Xiuwen chanced upon a sensitive spot of sorts, and an electrifying, numbing sensation immediately surged through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spinal cord, shooting straight through to her head.

    ¡°Ungh-ahh...¡± Jun Xiaomo gasped lightly, and a particrly coquettish groan that she didn¡¯t even know she was capable of echoed uncontrobly from her mouth.

    Jun Xiaomo reflexively released her grasp on Ye Xiuwen and held her mouth. She opened her previously shut eyes once more as she stared straight back at Ye Xiuwen with widened eyes.

    However, she was simply faced with an expression on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face that had passion and desire written all over it. Large droplets of sweat continued to roll off his forehead, across his chiseled cheeks, beforending on the part of the pillow just beside where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head was.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes were filled with some measure of bashfulness and shame, yet it was also glistening andced with a slight hazy stupor apanying the electrifying sensation she had just experienced. This change in her disposition thoroughly excited Ye Xiuwen, reinvigorating his body and setting his passion aze once more. His actions grew even more vigorous, and he would from time to time brush against the sensitive spot within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    As though encouraged by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intense moans, Ye Xiuwen quickly matured from a young fledgling into a majestic bird ¨C he instinctually learnt to seek out the sensitive spot to pleasure Jun Xiaomo, and he even began to adjust the tempo of his body to move in tandem and harmony with hers.

    It was at this moment that Jun Xiaomo finally understood that there were other sensations apart from pain that one could experience from such tussles.

    That said, such a conscious notionsted but an ephemeral moment. Very soon, she was drawn into the whirlpool of pleasure that gradually drew her deeper and deeper in, and she no longer had the rity of mind to bother with such concerns any longer.

    In the end, after a long ordeal of pain and pleasure, Jun Xiaomo found herself passing out from the weariness of the entire experience. After all, she had not been doused withyers uponyers of drugs, and neither her physical nor mental endurance could hold a candle to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s at this point in time. Thus, when push came to shove, her consciousness began to fade away until everything went ck.

    Before she passed out, the only notion that crossed her mind was simply that she should have found an easier, simpler solution to Martial Brother Ye¡¯s problem earlier.

    When Jun Xiaomo woke up once more, dusk was already setting over thends. The sky glowed warmly across the horizon, bathing thends with a brilliant, golden hue.

    ¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± A familiar, gentle voice called out overhead. At the same time, she could tell that this voice had lost some of its earlier coolness to it, and it was now filled with much more warmth to it.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart constricted, and a wave of intense heat surged straight to her mind once more. She hurriedly shut her eyes in a feeble attempt to hide her embarrassment like an ostrich sticking its head in the ground. That said, the radiant, pink hues glowing from her cheeks were a telltale sign of the true emotions roiling in her heart right now.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly, but he chose not to provoke the ¡°ostrich¡± with her head in the ground right now. Instead, he simply continued to gaze meaningfully at her limbs and her corbone that were exposed outside the nket, and his eyes began to grow deep and abstruse.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had shut her eyes, her five senses were still incredibly sensitive, and she could tell without even releasing her divine sense that Ye Xiuwen was gazing at her body right now.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip and fought against the urge, until finally, she could resist it no longer. She opened her eyes and red back at Ye Xiuwen, barking, ¡°What are you looking at! It¡¯s not the first time you¡¯ve seen me anyway!¡±

    Rather than describing Jun Xiaomo as overwhelmed by impatience, it might be more urate to say that she was overwhelmed by shame right now.

    However, when she noticed how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indulgent smile was evenced with a hidden trace of satisfaction, her body stiffened up.

    Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn, but she could tell that his eyes were already filled with the multitude of things he wanted to tell her.

    Then, it suddenly dawned on her that she might be making a mountain out of a molehill. After all, what they had just done was simply to take their rtionship to the next level, so was there really a reason to make a fuss over something like that? Besides, this was undoubtedly Martial Brother Ye¡¯s first time as well, yet he was still able to remainpletely steadfast after the incident!

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo stered a steadfast look on her face as she coughed dryly. Then, shifting her gaze away, she murmured, ¡°I didn¡¯t think that we¡¯d dally for such a long time. My stomach is growling now. I think we¡¯d best show our faces to our other martial brothers soon. Otherwise if they discover our disappearance, they might grow worried for us.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen raised his hand and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair gently, ¡°Wait here a while. I¡¯ll go prepare some water for you to wash up first.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback, before she finally realized that she was not quite in the state to meet people right now. Thus, she nodded her head and responded with an obsequious, ¡°Mm.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen knew that Jun Xiaomo was still trying to process everything that had happened in the heat of the moment, so he consciously allowed her the space and time she needed. After putting on his outer coat and adjusting his apparel, he turned around and nted a gently kiss on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead before turning to leave.

    Given how ashamed and hesitant his Little Martial Sister looked right now, he knew that she needed some time alone.

    Jun Xiaomo rubbed the part of her face that Ye Xiuwen kissed. Then, momentster, her eyes curled up, and a warm, blissful smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen opened the door to the room, he immediately noticed a group of people seated outside the room. From their expressions, he could tell that they had already waited for a long time now, and their patience had long worn thin.

    Ye Xiuwen swept his gaze across the group of Heavenly Peak disciples, before finallynding his gaze on Zhou Zilong and Zhang Shuyue. Zhou Zilong was embracing Zhang Shuyue with an anxious and concerned gaze, and they were both located a reasonable distance from the room.

    Several disciples noticed it when Ye Xiuwen opened the door and walked out of his room, and they immediately nudged one another to alert everyone to the fact that Ye Xiuwen was finally out. Thus, as Ye Xiuwen drew closer to them, everyone grew alert to his presence.

    ¡°Cough...Mar-...Martial Brother Ye.¡± Several disciples coughed dryly as they addressed Ye Xiuwen listlessly.

    Ye Xiuwen shifted his gaze and nodded at them, before turning back to Zhou Zilong once more.

    Zhou Zilong had initially intended to interrogate Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo as to why exactly Zhang Shuyue was lying outside in the courtyard with a plethora of injuries ridden all over her body. However, as soon as his martial brother¡¯s intense gazended on his body, he found himself renderedpletely speechless and lost for words.

    An older martial brother was almost akin to a father. Ye Xiuwen was Jun Linxuan¡¯s first disciple, and he was also the First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak. Even though he rarely castigated his fellow martial brothers, there was always an unmistakably intense and imposing air about him. Practically all of the other Heavenly Peak disciples would cower in awe and respect whenever faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s dignified disposition.

    Besides, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s character and abilities have always been highly respectable, and all of the Heavenly Peak martial brothers naturally orded him with the due respect that he so deserved.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gazended on Zhou Zilong¡¯s body, he naturally shrank back into his shell, and the words that he had prepared for such a long time found themselvespletely lodged in his throat.

    However, the fact that he remained silent did not necessarily mean that Ye Xiuwen would also remain taciturn either. Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen already had a good grasp on why he had fallen prey to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s schemes, and why his Little Martial Sister had appeared in this ce as well.

    He only wanted to hear Zhou Zilong¡¯s personal admission right now.

    ¡°Zilong, don¡¯t you have something to ount for to your Martial Brother?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked dispassionately; there was not a single ripple of emotions in his eyes.

    However, it was precisely because these words were spoken with suchck of emotion that caused Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart to be filled with incredible tension.

    How could I have forgotten about that! I¡¯d been the one who had lured Martial Brother Ye to this ce to begin with. I guess it¡¯s time to...face the music?

    He knew that the cidity in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tone of voice was by no means any assurance that nothing had gone wrong. In fact, he was fully aware that there was something fishy about the entire situation.

    That¡¯s right. Before it was his turn to interrogate Martial Brother Ye, Martial Brother Ye had every first right to interrogate him. Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart grew tense and anxious, and he stammered in response, ¡°I...I...¡±

    Everyone else exchanged sheepish nces with each other, and the same doubt filled their minds ¨C Does this incident have something to do with Martial Brother Zhou to begin with?

 Chapter 330: Zhou Zilongâ€™s Distress, Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Disapprobation

    <h4>Chapter 330: Zhou Zilong¡¯s Distress, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Disapprobation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zhang Shuyue had noticed Ye Xiuwen from the moment that he had stepped out from the room. In fact, her gaze had been transfixed on the tightly shut door to the room all this while, and there was a deep sense of hatred and reluctance boiling within the depths of her eyes. She couldn¡¯t bear to think of what Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo might be doing within the room during this entire period of time.

    She could no longer tell whether her reluctance was a result of just how smitten she was with Ye Xiuwen, or simply her inability to get her way with Ye Xiuwen. However, what she was certain about was the fact that Jun Xiaomo had dished out on her an unprecedented, grave humiliation that she had never tasted before ¨C nobody had ever dared to treat her like that!

    Zhang Shuyue looked at how Ye Xiuwen continued to press Zhou Zilong for answers, before turning her attention towards Zhou Zilong as she watched Zhou Zilong feebly cower in fear,pletely unable to stand up for himself. Zhang Shuyue cursed Zhou Zilong in her heart for being so useless, and her mind began to contemte various ways in which she could employ in order to extricate herself from her present predicament.

    At the very least, she could not afford to allow everyone present to discover anything amiss before her master arrives.

    With that goal in mind, Zhang Shuyue steadied her spirits and collected her thoughts. Then, suppressing the urge to tear everyone to shreds, she held Zhou Zilong¡¯srge, beefy hands as she interjected with tears in her eyes, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t me Brother Zhou. He¡¯d only lured you here after hearing what I¡¯d said. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m really sorry. I¡¯d only wanted to speak to you in private to clear the air and find some closure to this chapter on my life. I¡¯d never expected Sister Xiaomo to be so angry. I¡¯m really sorry...wu-wu-wuu...¡±

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s hands trembled slightly when he felt Zhang Shuyue¡¯s soft hands gripping his right hand.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s hands were incredibly soft and weak, and this gave rise to an intense, all-consuming desire to protect her ¨C to protect thisdy that was in his arms right now.

    Thus, Zhou Zilong overlooked the fact the person standing before him was the older Martial Brother Ye Xiuwen whom he respected so much. Stiffening his neck and tightening his embrace around Zhang Shuyue, he red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°That¡¯s right, Martial Brother Ye, all Miss Zhang wanted to do was merely to speak with you in private. She¡¯d never harboured any ill intentions at all. How could Martial Sister Xiaomo inflict such grievous wounds on her? She¡¯s truly gone overboard this time.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s earlier spiel was truly wily and crafty, and it could very easily create a misunderstanding with anyone who had heard it. What she had done was to ept responsibility for what she had done, but at the same time downy and misrepresent the severity of why she had lured Ye Xiuwen over in the first ce. This was carefully crafted so that everyone would believe that Zhang Shuyue waspletely innocent, while heaping me on Jun Xiaomo for going overboard and inflicting such grievous wounds on her.

    However, no matter how convincing her words were, Zhang Shuyue would never be able to pull a veil over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s head because he knew full well the entire truth of the matter. Ye Xiuwen nced cidly at Zhang Shuyue, before calmly retorting, ¡°If Miss Zhang¡¯s intentions were only to exchange a few words with me, was there really a need to fill the room with incense that would draw out the primal, carnal instinct of man? Was there really a need to dress yourself so skimpily in front of me?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s simple statement here made several Heavenly Peak disciples reel in shock, instantly affecting their earlier assessment of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character.

    They had been under a misunderstanding from the onset. They had thought that Zhang Shuyue was dressed this way because Jun Xiaomo had beat her up and then dealt with Zhang Shuyue in the most humiliating fashion by stripping her of her clothes.

    Truth be told, they were not willing to believe that Jun Xiaomo was such a type of person. That said, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s acting had been far too convincing, and they hadpletely bought her pretensions of innocence. It was for this very reason that everyone had begun to sympathize with her.

    But now that an eye-witness had provided a countervailing ount of the matter, everyone immediately knew in their hearts that they had misunderstood their Little Martial Sister. They should have known better ¨C even though their Little Martial Sister was at times unruly and willful, she was by andrge a principleddy, and she would never resort to something as low as that.

    Zhang Shuyue immediately grew anxious. As she secretly sent a message to her master, asking her to make haste, she wore a puffy-eyed expression and softly pleaded with Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, I know that you like Sister Xiaomo and you¡¯re willing to speak up to defend her. However, you can¡¯t lie through your teeth like that! Since when have I ever seduced you? Would I, Zhang Shuyue, stoop so low to be no more than a cheap slut?!¡±

    As she drew near the end of her spiel, she began to cover her face and bawl uncontrobly.

    With that, several Heavenly Peak disciples began to grow hesitant once more ¨C especially Zhou Zilong. After all, he had always firmly believed in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character. Thus, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s tears immediately softened his heart once more.

    That said, most of the Heavenly Peak disciples consciously continued to side with Ye Xiuwen because they knew just how much Ye Xiuwen stood by his principles. At the very least, he would never, over his dead body, nder an innocent person for his own personal gains.

    Thus, they knew that if Ye Xiuwen could bring himself to say that Zhang Shuyue had drugged him with intense, passion-inducing incense, then that must be the case. Otherwise, there was no reason for Jun Xiaomo to have gotten so infuriated either.

    Zhou Zilong struggled in his heart once more, before lifting his head and addressing Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, I...I think that even if Miss Zhang has done something wrong, there¡¯s still no reason for Martial Sister Xiaomo to treat Miss Zhang in such a harsh manner.¡±

    He no longer knew who to believe. Thus, he settled for taking the middle ground, hoping to gain apromise between the two.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen was about to respond to Zhou Zilong, the door to the room suddenly flew open, and a fully-clothed Jun Xiaomo strode out of the room pridefully.

    Everyone lifted their heads and looked at Jun Xiaomo. Anyone with eyes would be able to tell that something was different about her.

    It wasn¡¯t something tangible. Rather, she simply appeared more charming right now. It was as though she had just matured from an innocent, young girl to a woman withdy-like charms. Her smile now possessed a form of sharp incisiveness to it, and there was also a blissful air of springtime about her.

    Somewhat mesmerized by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s new look, several Heavenly Peak disciples couldn¡¯t help but cough dryly as they fought to suppress the awkwardness in their hearts.

    After all, their Martial Brother Ye was still in their midst, and they would be wise to act with a little bit more propriety.

    Jun Xiaomo found her way to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and nced at Zhang Shuyue as shey helplessly in Zhou Zilong¡¯s embrace. Then, she turned her attention to Zhou Zilong, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, do you think that everything that Miss Zhang has done can be simply forgiven like that? Then, if she ended up bearing Martial Brother Ye¡¯s child, do I have to suppress the infuriation and indignation in my heart and give them my blessings just like that?¡±

    ¡°No, I only...¡± Zhou Zilong made a feeble attempt at a refutation.

    ¡°You just think that I¡¯ve been a little bit too heavy-handed, isn¡¯t it? But, let¡¯s say it was you, and you had returned home one day only to find a wild, lustful man lying in bed locked in a deep, intimate embrace with your wife. Would you not be overwhelmed with anger and do anything you can to beat him up and cast him out, or would you simply brandish your fist at him and not do a single thing?¡±

    Men could never agree to being made a cuckold. Yet, despite how much the prospects of being made a cuckold were met with disapprobation, few had ever paused to consider what women thought about sharing a man with others as well ¨C were they simply to suffer in silence and swallow their anger with magnanimity?

    If the third-wheeling man could never be forgiven, then what about a third-wheeling woman? On what basis could a person justifiably argue that beating up a third-wheeling man was fine, whereas beating up a third-wheeling woman was simply being too heavy-handed? Was this not tantamount to having double standards?

    Zhou Zilong immediately grew flustered. He opened his mouth, desperately finding the words to refute her, but the only words he found were a feeble response, ¡°But...but Miss Zhang is ady.¡±

    ¡°So does this mean that alldies have to be forgiven? If ady does something wrong, is she exempted from paying the price? Besides, I¡¯d only left her outside to cool her head for a moment. I didn¡¯t do anything else to her, did I? The injuries on her body only appear to be serious, but they¡¯re not life-threatening by any means. She¡¯ll recover in a few days. Martial Brother Zhou, do you have to be so overprotective of her? Are you her martial brother, or are you my martial brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo heaped a barrage of questions on Zhou Zilong, leaving himpletely speechless and bbergasted.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, signaling to her to cool off, before he addressed Zhou Zilong as well, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, Xiaomo is right. If not for the fact that she¡¯d arrived in the nick of time, Zhang Shuyue would have seeded in her schemes. I can responsibly say that she drugs that she had used on me were no simple aphrodisiac, and they¡¯re not something that can be controlled so easily. I can forgive any and all of her other transgressions, but this is somethingpletely unforgivable. It¡¯s good that Miss Zhang suffers the consequences of her actions now. Otherwise, she might be led astray in her ways.¡±

    With Ye Xiuwen¡¯s supplementation, Zhou Zilong finally began to be convinced of Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reasoning.

    That said, he was still unwilling to believe that Zhang Shuyue was this sort of person. After all, she had even thrown herself in harm¡¯s way just to rescue them some time ago. Furthermore, when they went out to procure herbs and tonics for Jun Xiaomo, Zhang Shuyue had voluntarily tagged along with the crew as well.

    How could such a kindhearted person possibly harbour such ill intentions within her heart?

    Jun Xiaomo sighed with some measure of resignation. She knew that Zhou Zilong only knew matters pertaining to cultivation, and he waspletely oblivious to theplexities of a person¡¯s heart, much less possess the ability to peel through theyers of pretension to see Zhang Shuyue¡¯s true nature.

    Forget it. We¡¯ll take things one step at a time. I just hope that Martial Brother Zhou won¡¯t end up suffering the same fate that Martial Brother Ye did in the past.

    As she thought about this, she red at Zhang Shuyue once more. Then, after a moment¡¯s deliberation, she waved her sleeves and removed both talismans on her body.

    With that, Zhang Shuyue could move her limbs freely once more.

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, on ount for Martial Brother Zhou¡¯s pleading, I¡¯ll let you off the hook just this once. I sincerely hope you don¡¯t betray his good intentions and use Martial Brother Zhou for more vile ns of yours. You¡¯d best wise up to your actions.¡± Jun Xiaomo coldly cautioned Zhang Shuyue. Then, she turned to Ye Xiuwen and tugged gently at his sleeves, ¡°Martial Brother, let¡¯s go. It¡¯s gettingte, and we should return and retire for the night.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nodded his head. But in the very next moment, he furrowed his brows, ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you earlier to rest for some time beforeing out?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had been thoroughly tormented by the ordeal with Ye Xiuwen, and there were still traces of his scent on her body. Thus, it was hardly prudent for her to be out and about like that.

    Some of the Heavenly Peak disciples also understood the implications in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s enigmatic words, and they coughed awkwardly as they inched further away from Jun Xiaomo.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. As soon as they had dealt with the incident with Zhang Shuyue, they immediately discovered the faint, peculiar scenting from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. This scent made their facespletely flushed with shame.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face turned red as a tomato ¨C far more than any of the other disciples around right now. She red back at Ye Xiuwen and barked, ¡°Isn¡¯t it because of you?!¡± As she finished speaking, she tugged at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s sleeves once more as she coughed dryly, ¡°We¡¯d best leave this ce quickly. We can save any talk forter on.¡±

    Bemused, Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he agreed, ¡°Alright.¡±

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples couldn¡¯t stand looking at the couple any longer. Even their teeth were beginning to ache from just how sweet the couple were acting. Goosebumps were already creeping up all over their bodies...

    Zhang Shuyue also witnessed the sight unfolding before her eyes. She lowered her head, and a vicious gleam shed across her eyes.

    Just then, something in her Interspatial Ring glowed brightly, and she retrieved it to take a nce. In the very next moment, the ashen expression in her facepletely dissipated, and a wicked smile crept up the corner of her lips ¨C

    The message was from her master, Xiang Guqing, informing her that they were picking up the pace right now, and that they would be arriving in just one day¡¯s time.

    Let¡¯s see how Master deals with you then! Zhang Shuyue red at Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s backs, eagerly anticipating joy of vengeance that awaited her.

 Chapter 331: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Insomnia, Xiang Guqingâ€™s Ploy

    <h4>Chapter 331: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Insomnia, Xiang Guqing¡¯s Ploy</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    That very night, a vexatious feeling constantly gued Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart and mind, keeping her awake and tossing and turning in bed. Thus, she got up, left her room, and leapt up to the tallest building in the region nearby.

    Jun Xiaomoy on her back on the building¡¯s roof. cing her hands below her head as a pillow, she stared vacantly at the full moon hanging high in the sky. At this moment, she felt as though she had be but one of the wisps of clouds floating in the sky under the moon, drifting about aimlessly.

    The full moon represented unity or reunion in the mortal world. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind had been consumed by the incidents urring over thest few days, and it was only on this night that she finally found the time to slow down and process everything that had happened in the blink of an eye. At the same time, it was only when she slowed down and assessed her goals and targets that she realized just how much more she had to do.

    ¡°Sigh, I wonder where Father and Mother are right now? And I wonder where Brother Rong and Master have gone to as well...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed as she thought aloud.

    It was reasonable to expect the news of how she and Martial Brother Ye had rescued the previously captured Heavenly Peak disciples to already have spread far and wide throughout the entire cultivation world. Unfortunately, she still hadn¡¯t heard anything from Jun Linxuan or Liu Qingmei. It was as though the Heavenly Peak, together with its Peakmaster, had simply vaporized into thin air.

    Then, there was Rong Ruihan and Tong Ruizhen. In a simr fashion, nobody seemed to know of their whereabouts either ever since news of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°death¡± spread throughout the cultivation world. These were two people which Jun Xiaomo owed a great debt of gratitude to ¨C she had an immense amount of remorse in her heart for what happened to Rong Ruihan after all he had done; and she also possessed a hefty amount of respect for her master, Tong Ruizhen. Thus, she knew full well that as long as she remained unable to locate them, their existences would always be a stumbling block of regret in her heart.

    Her intuition told her that her master¡¯s disappearance might well have had something to do with her. Unfortunately, she had to date been unable to learn anything of her master¡¯s whereabouts.

    Just this moment, a long andnky shadow suddenly leapt up to the roof just beside Jun Xiaomo. Shocked, Jun Xiaomo was jolted back to her senses and she immediately sat up and adopted a defensive posture when she heard a cool, calm voice call out.

    ¡°It¡¯s me.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately recognized the owner of this voice ¨C who else could it be apart from Ye Xiuwen?

    She heaved a sigh of relief, loosened her tense spirits and pouted slightly as she muttered, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, why¡¯d you sneak up on me like that?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sat down and rubbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, responding, ¡°It wasn¡¯t that Martial Brother Ye was sneaking up on you. Rather, you¡¯d just been so deep in thought that you failed to notice even my approach. What¡¯s the matter? Can¡¯t sleep at night?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hugged her knees and rested her chin on her kneecaps as she muttered in frustration, ¡°Mm.¡±

    ¡°Why? Do you want to talk about it?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was soft and harmonious, and it immediately set Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirit at ease. The earlier frustration on her heart had also dissipated substantially from his cool coaxing.

    ¡°I was thinking about Father and Mother, as well as Brother Rong and Master. I¡¯ve not managed to hear even a peep of news about them, and I can¡¯t help but feel incredibly worried.¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she quipped with a grave expression on her face.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be too worried. Sometimes, no news might be good news instead. After all, this also means that none of their enemies are able to locate them either.¡± Ye Xiuwen consoled. Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and muttered under her breath, ¡°Perhaps that might be the case...¡±

    The baggage from her previous life was weighing down heavily on her shoulders, and she knew that she could only truly set her heart at ease when all of her loved ones were safely by her side.

    ¡°Is that all? That can¡¯t be the only thing that¡¯s keeping you up at night, right?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled slightly as he quipped.

    ¡°Indeed, that¡¯s not all.¡± Jun Xiaomo continued with some measure of frustration. She nced at Ye Xiuwen as she added, ¡°I¡¯m starting to regret letting Zhang Shuyue off the hook as well.¡±

    Earlier this evening, she had relented and reluctantly peeled off the two talismans from Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body in light of Zhou Zilong¡¯s repeated pleas for mercy. In doing so, she had essentially let Zhang Shuyue off the hook. After all, her physical injuries would recover after a short period of rest and recuperation.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart would sour and feel stifled whenever she thought about what Zhang Shuyue did in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life. It was a niggling feeling in her heart that told her something terrible would happen if she simply lets Zhang Shuyue off just like that.

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t have a good impression of Zhang Shuyue either. Furthermore, he knew that Jun Xiaomo had made thepromise on ount for her rtionship with Zhou Zilong, and not Zhang Shuyue. If not for the fact that Zhou Zilong had fallen prey to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s charms and repeatedly begged Jun Xiaomo for mercy, Jun Xiaomo would never have allowed this matter to slide just like that.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much about it. We¡¯ll deal with any trouble when ites alongter. After all, there¡¯s no way we can prevent her from scheming against us unless we kill her. Rather than doing that, wouldn¡¯t it be better to let her off the hook and lull her into a false sense of security? This way, there¡¯s a greater likelihood that she will let slip her ns, and we can naturally control and restrict her movements more easily.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly broke down the situation.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately brightened and she snapped her fingers, ¡°Martial Brother is right! We¡¯ll do things that way!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Then will you finally be able to sleep tonight?¡±

    ¡°Mm, mm, I¡¯ll be able to sleep soundly now.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly back at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Then, would you like me to carry you down the roof, or do you prefer to make your way down on your own?¡± Ye Xiuwen raised an eyebrow mischievously.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately coughed dryly, ¡°That...I think I¡¯ll make my way down on my own...Eh! Hang on a minute!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to leap off the building when she paused in her steps.

    ¡°I can¡¯t go back to bed just yet. Even though we¡¯ve decided not to torment Zhang Shuyue anymore, I think it would still be prudent to take precautions against her. I¡¯m going to check out the formation arrays within the valley and see if I can unlock and dispel their effects.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen rubbed his temples with some measure of vexation, ¡°Is this really so urgent? Do you really need to sacrifice your sleep for it?¡±

    ¡°Of course!¡± Jun Xiaomo red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Zhang Shuyue is like a poisonous snake that¡¯s poised to strike right now. Who knows when she¡¯ll be pouncing at us to deliver her deadly poison? It would be imprudent if we didn¡¯t do anything right now.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sighed slightly as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, ¡°Alright, then Martial Brother will tag along with you for your little stroll.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled brightly, ¡°Martial Brother Ye¡¯s the best! Let¡¯s go!¡±

    --------------------------------------------------

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo began to traverse, observe and identify the various formation arrays within the valley under the cover of night, Zhang Shuyue once again made contact with her master Xiang Guqing. Her master was still some distance outside of the valley right now.

    Despite having consumed various recovery pills, Zhang Shuyue could still feel pain echoing throughout her entire body, especially her meridians and Dantian. After all, the incursion of demonic energy had destroyed several vital meridians within her body, and she was beginning to show symptoms of a decline in her cultivation level.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯m going to tear you to shreds!¡± Zhang Shuyue gritted her teeth as she barked aloud.

    ¡°Disciple, what happened to you?¡± Xiang Guqing furrowed her brows as she asked with concern. She could tell that Zhang Shuyue appeared extremely pale, as though she were ailing from a chronic disease. Zhang Shuyue was her most beloved disciple, and Xiang Guqing naturally extended an additional measure of care and concern towards her.

    ¡°Master...¡± With the imminent arrival of her bulwark that was her master, the feelings of humiliation and grief bottled up within Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart finally burst out like waters flowing out of a broken dam, and she began to choke and sputter uncontrobly, ¡°It¡¯s Jun Xiaomo! Jun Xiaomo has grievously wounded your disciple! I truly regret bringing them into the valley. Disciple has invited a band of bandits into our home!¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s tragic and sorry disposition caused a swathe of fury to rise from the depths of Xiang Guqing¡¯s heart immediately.

    ¡°What happened? Tell Master!¡±

    ¡°Disciple had been so taken by Ye Xiuwen that she had thought to invite him to the peach blossom woods to have a private little chat. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo managed to follow us into the woods, and she even ended up injuring disciple grievously, wu-wu-wuu...¡±

    ¡°Peach blossom woods? How could she possibly enter the peach blossom woods just like that? Isn¡¯t that an area protected by formation arrays?¡± Xiang Guqing furrowed her brows as she asked curiously.

    ¡°Disciple isn¡¯t sure either. It could just be pure dumb luck that she might have managed to slip through the trappings of the formation arrays around the peach blossom woods.¡± Zhang Shuyue gritted her teeth with displeasure.

    ¡°That¡¯s not possible. The formation arrays around the peach blossom woods can¡¯t be broken through so easily like that.¡± Xiang Guqing shrugged off Zhang Shuyue¡¯s posttions, and her expressions grew grim and serious, ¡°She must know a thing or two about formation arrays. Otherwise, there¡¯s no way she could possibly slip through the formation arrays around the peach blossom woods in such a short span of time.¡±

    ¡°Now that Master has mentioned it, disciple recalls that Jun Xiaomo had once threatened to even alter and change the formation arrays within the valley.¡± Zhang Shuyue hurriedly alerted her master to the possible threat.

    ¡°Hmph. What insolence! Does she really think that the valley¡¯s formation arrays are on the same level as the formation arrays outside the peach blossom woods? If she even attempts to make any alterations to the valley¡¯s formation arrays, she¡¯ll most certainly be trapped by its defenses. At that time, Master will most certainly allow her to perish within the formation array. She won¡¯t even have her body intact when we¡¯re done with her!¡± Xiang Guqing snorted with disdaincing her eyes.

    After all, the valley¡¯s formation arrays had been built on by generation after generation of its owners. Even though their Sect was not one that specialized solely in formation arrays, they could hardly be said to be mere infants in the disciplines of formation arrays either. How could a young sprout like Jun Xiaomo possibly hold a candle to the culmination of generations of efforts?

    Perhaps the fact that Jun Xiaomo was handpicked by the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Elder Tong to be his disciple lent credence to the talent Jun Xiaomo possessed in the discipline of formation arrays. But, so what? The process to bing a fully fledged array master was a long and arduous journey, and it necessitated an investment of time. How old was Jun Xiaomo right now? Not even thirty years-old? Does she really think she can breach and unlock the secrets of the valley¡¯s formation arrays? Preposterous!

    ¡°Disciple, you don¡¯t have to worry so much about this empty threat of hers. Focus on your recovery. Tomorrow, master will arrive in the valley at approximately dusk. Remember to keep the Heavenly Peak disciples where they are and don¡¯t let slip that anything is amiss. Once night falls, we will begin our approach and nab them in one fell swoop.¡± Xiang Guqing sincerely instructed Zhang Shuyue.

    Zhang Shuyue nodded her head. A glimmer of joy could be seen in the depths of her eyes, ¡°Everything will be done in ordance with master¡¯s instructions.¡±

    ¡°Oh yes, there¡¯s something else.¡± Just as Zhang Shuyue was prepared to break the transmission with her master, Xiang Guqing spoke up once more, ¡°Master¡¯s got a packet of medicinal powder in her room. It¡¯s located within master¡¯s hidden chest, at the thirdpartment from the left. The powder is colourless and odorless. If you can, do your best to spike the food of the Heavenly Peak disciples with the powder. If you can do this, it will guarantee that the operation tomorrow will go on even more smoothly.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly as she bowed slightly towards Xiang Guqing, ¡°Disciple will definitely adhere to Master¡¯s instructions.¡±

    Xiang Guqing nodded her head with approval before finally breaking contact with Zhang Shuyue.

    Then, acting in ordance with Xiang Guqing¡¯s instructions, Zhang Shuyue left her room and found her way to her master¡¯s room. There, she beganbing through the room.

    Zhang Shuyue took some time to sieve through the contents of her master¡¯s room because she was unsure of where her master¡¯s hidden chest was located.

    ¡°Found it!¡± Zhang Shuyue finally retrieved the medicinal powder from the thirdpartment of her master¡¯s hidden chest. On the surface, the powder lookedpletely unassuming, in and simple. However, there was a small slip of yellow coloured paper attached to the bag of medicinal powder with some words written on it ¨C ¡°Roots of the Spirit Devouring Grass¡±.

    ¡°Hahahahaha...so this is actually the powdered form of the roots of the Spirit Devouring Grass! That¡¯s amazing!¡± Zhang Shuyue immediately eximed in delight.

    The powdered form of the roots of the Spirit Devouring Grass could be used to refine Spirit Devouring Pills which can be used to whittle away at the spiritual energy within a person¡¯s body.

    Xiang Guqing had initially procured this bag of medicinal powder with the intention to refine Spirit Devouring Pills. The fact that she changed her ns and instructed Zhang Shuyue to use this in her schemes against the Heavenly Peak disciples spoke volumes about just how much she was determined to incapacitate and round up Jun Xiaomo and the rest.

    The Spirit Devouring Grass could maintain its effects for a maximum period of four hours, and it was hardly as strong as the Spirit Devouring Pills. Thus, Zhang Shuyue had to properly time the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ consumption of the medicinal powder.

    In this regard, Zhang Shuyue knew that Jun Xiaomo had already begun to grow suspicious of her, and making her move was hardly going to be an easy thing. However, she remainedpletely calm. After all, she had a trump card up her sleeves right now ¨C

    ¡°Hmph. It seems that I¡¯ll have to use the fool Zhou Zilong again.¡± Zhang Shuyue curled her lips into a wicked smile,pletely obviating from her mind the fact that Zhou Zilong had been the one pleading for mercy on her behalf just moments ago.

 Chapter 332: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Apology, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Suspicion

    <h4>Chapter 332: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Apology, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Suspicion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    On the second day, Jun Xiaomo woke up and left her room only when it was time for lunch, and she yawned as shezily made her way towards the great hall.

    Last night, both she and Ye Xiuwen spent the better part of the nightbing through the entire valley, roughly identifying and grasping the nature and effects of all of the formation arrays around them. Unfortunately, even though eliciting a cursory understanding these formation arrays was an easy task, grasping a deeper understanding of the detailed aspects of these formation arrays was far more difficult. At the very least, it was not a process that could bepleted in the span of a couple of days. Thus, she decided after gleaning a cursory understanding of the formation arrays that it would be wise to return to her room to make up for the loss of sleep.

    With that, she slept straight through breakfast and only awakened at noontime.

    Since it was time for lunch, all of the other Heavenly Peak disciples had already gathered in the great hall, and the great hall was also abuzz with chatter and conversations. Then, as soon as Jun Xiaomo appeared, the atmosphere in the great hall seemed to pause for a little bit, before everyone began nudging each other in the ribs as they cast mischievous nces at Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows, wondering what exactly these mischievous nces meant.

    One of the livelier martial brothers coughed dryly as he poked fun at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Little Martial Sister, seems like your escapade with Martial Brother Yest night was rather fruitful, wasn¡¯t it?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. How were her martial brothers aware of where she had gone with Martial Brother Yest night? Were they secretly stalking her and Martial Brother Ye?

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen also found his way to the great hall, and he shook his head with some measure of exasperation as he dispelled their wild conjectures, ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense. Xiaomo was sleeping in her own roomst night.¡±

    ¡°Ohh¡ªSo that¡¯s how it is now...¡± The disciples dragged out their exmation meaningfully, and the mischievous grin on their face grew even more apparent.

    It was only at this moment in time which Jun Xiaomo finally understood what all of her martial brother were getting at. Her face instantly flushed as red as a tomato, and she gritted her teeth as she red at them, ¡°Why don¡¯t you focus your efforts in your cultivation instead of letting your minds wander in the gutter like that?!¡±

    ¡°Will do, Martial Sister-in-Law~¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple suddenly blurted out a different manner of addressing Jun Xiaomo. Within moments, the term of reference began to spread like wildfire, and the Heavenly Peak disciples began to start referring to Jun Xiaomo as ¡°Martial Sister-in-Law¡±.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face turned purple from all the teasing. Unfortunately, given that these were her martial brothers, there was hardly any threat or incisiveness to her gaze. Thus, she stomped her feet on the ground in rage, took her seat and chose to ignore their teasing altogether.

    On the other hand, a faint smile crept up the corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips. However, he did nothing to deny the new term of reference that his other martial brothers had just coined for Jun Xiaomo.

    Martial Sister-in-Law? That¡¯s got a pretty good ring to it.

    Just as the Heavenly Peak disciples gradually took their seats, the three disciples who had been rostered to prepare their meal for the day began to bring in the dishes that they had prepared. Zhang Shuyue and Zhou Zilong followed shortly behind them.

    Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows curiously as her gazended directly on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body ¨C Zhang Shuyue wasn¡¯t lying when she said that injuries tend to recover more quickly in this valley. Zhang Shuyue¡¯s injuries had recovered incredibly quickly. At the very least, there was no way Zhang Shuyue would have recovered from her injuries overnight under ordinary circumstances.

    That said, what was Zhang Shuyue doinging out of the kitchen with the other Heavenly Peak disciples? Was this just a mere coincidence?

    After everything that happened in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but feel suspicious for everything which Zhang Shuyue did which seemed out of the blue. There was no way she was letting her guard down around her so easily

    As soon as the Heavenly Peak disciples took their seat, Zhang Shuyue smiled warmly to everyone, ¡°I¡¯d made a fool of myself yesterday when I¡¯d presented myself in such an improper manner in front of everyone. Thus, I¡¯d thought to prepare some soup and dishes as a way of making amends. This is particrly so for Sister Xiaomo. I¡¯m sorry for the misunderstanding yesterday. If I could turn back time, I would never have done something so uncharacteristic.¡±

    One of the disciples who had been rostered to prepare food chimed in as well, ¡°That¡¯s right. Miss Zhang here has personally prepared five of the dishes served today. She¡¯s really spent a considerable amount of effort here. And I think we can all count it a blessing that we¡¯ve got Miss Zhang¡¯s help in this regard. Otherwise, with just the three of us here, I¡¯m afraid everyone would have to go hungry again today.¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had already decided on the roster for preparing their meals ever since they had made their escape from their prison cell within the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen have already attained the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and they could survive for a few days without food or sustenance with no issues at all. However, the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples were not the same. At the level of intensity with which they were escaping from any potential persecutors, there was no way the Heavenly Peak disciples would be able to go a single day without any food or sustenance.

    In turn, these three Heavenly Peak disciples were well-reputed to be horrendous at preparing food. Unfortunately, they had coincidentally been rostered to prepare food on the same day. Thus, everyone¡¯s appetites would invariably fall whenever it was their turn to prepare food for the rest of the disciples. That said, none of the other martial brothers were willing to put them down andin about the food, and they were content burying their grievances with the food in the depths of their hearts.

    Unexpectedly, it was evident from the apologetic manner that the rostered disciples had spoken that they too were conscious of theck of their culinary skills.

    ¡°Sigh, is there really a need for pleasantries between us martial brothers? We can already count ourselves lucky that we¡¯ve got sufficient food and sustenance every day while we¡¯re on the run for our lives. Who cares about the vour of the food that we consume?¡±

    Another Heavenly Peak disciple consoled the rostered disciple as others nodded in agreement.

    ¡°That said, these dishes do look sumptuous and tempting. Miss Zhang, you¡¯ve really outdone yourself this time.¡± Chen Feiyu scanned the feast that was disyed across the table as he praised Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Brother Chen tters me. These are nothing more than simple, humble dishes that I¡¯ve prepared, and I would be most satisfied as long as everyone enjoys it. It¡¯s also a form of my penance for my transgressions against Sister Xiaomo and Brother Ye.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue had intentionallybelled these dishes as a form of ¡°atonement¡± repeatedly in order to present herself as the lowest among all who were present. Yet at the same time, this was designed specifically to achieve the effects that she had desired.

    After all, anyone who had witnessed the incident yesterday would be well aware of the fact that Jun Xiaomo had undoubtedly been the one who had injured Zhang Shuyue. Now that Zhang Shuyue had wholeheartedly entreated Jun Xiaomo with an ostensibly apology, there was no reason for Jun Xiaomo to continue pressing the issue. Otherwise, Jun Xiaomo would end up looking like a petty person.

    This would be the logical thought process of an ordinary person. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was obviously not just any other ¡°ordinary person¡±, and she obviously treated Zhang Shuyue differently as well. Thus, she curled her lips into a slight grimace as she quipped, ¡°Miss Zhang didn¡¯t do anything wrong. You¡¯d only wanted to draw close to a person you like; drugging is just a natural extension of that. Is there really a need for you to prepare all these dishes for an apology? I don¡¯t think so.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had particrly emphasized the word ¡°drugging¡±, implicitly revealing her suspicions that Zhang Shuyue might have drugged the food that she had prepared.

    Unfortunately for Zhang Shuyue, Jun Xiaomo had never seen a need to be magnanimous to a hypocritical nemesis of hers.

    Zhang Shuyue cursed with some measure of exasperation in her heart ¨C I knew it. Jun Xiaomo is the hardest one to deal with.

    Thus, Zhang Shuyue began to force tears to her eyes as she began to respond to Jun Xiaomo in a slightly choking manner, ¡°Sister Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯d truly been acting out of character when I¡¯d drugged Brother Ye, but I¡¯m determined to change for the better. Besides, I¡¯ve found someone who can provide me with true happiness now...¡±

    As Zhang Shuyue finished speaking, she looked up bashfully at Zhou Zilong. Instantly, Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart fluttered and flourished with passion. In the spur of the moment, he stretched out his hand and gingerly held Zhang Shuyue¡¯s right hand. His gesture of affection was tacitly epted by Zhang Shuyue.

    Zhang Shuyue turned back and looked straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she continued to speak with reddened rims, ¡°Therefore, I hope that Sister Xiaomo can forgive me for the things I¡¯ve done that day and treat these dishes as the mark of a new beginning between us, please?¡±

    ¡°No way. I¡¯m not going to eat it.¡± Jun Xiaomo articted her simple, curt response one word at a time, putting the nail in the coffin in this discussion.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart hadpletely been taken by Zhang Shuyue. As soon as he noticed the aggrieved expression on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face in response to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reply, an overwhelming desire to protect his loved one began to swell from the depths of his heart.

    He furrowed his brows and began to chide Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, it¡¯s not right to be so calctive. Even though Shuyue¡¯s actions yesterday did cross the line, she¡¯s nevertheless recognized you and Martial Brother Ye as an item now, hasn¡¯t she? Besides, I can personally vouch that Shuyue is sincerely remorseful and repentant. I¡¯d witnessed her boiling the soup and preparing the dishes for everyone tonight. Look, she¡¯d even identally burnt her hand in the process. How could you just gloss over her efforts like this?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rage burgeoned, and she finally hit her boiling point. She shot to her feet and barked back, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, I don¡¯t understand you at all. Are you willing to put the lives of your martial brothers in danger just because of your infatuation with one person? From the onset, every single one of your statements have been borne out of your own personal belief. You believed that Zhang Shuyue was a pitifuldy who stood in the way of harm in the name of love, so you willingly lured Martial Brother Ye to her trap,pletely ignoring my feelings. You believed that Zhang Shuyue was a person of principles, so you stood in my way, preventing me from chasing after Martial Brother Ye just so that you could buy Zhang Shuyue some more time to ¡®interact¡¯ with him. And now, you believe that she¡¯s a kindhearted, repentant and remorseful person, so you¡¯re forcing me to ept her apology without even giving any consideration to the possibility that the food might have been spiked with poison. Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re the one going overboard now? Are you still the same Martial Brother Zhou that I know?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spiel left Zhou Zilongpletely speechless. To begin with, he was never a person who had been good with rebutting others in a verbal tussle. Thus, he found himself tongue-tied when faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s impable rhetoric and arguments.

    But this stood to reason as well. After all, if even schemers like Qin Shanshan and Yu Wanrou would find themselvespletely stumped by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s incisive and sharp tongue, how much more would Zhou Zilong find himself at the mercy of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arguments?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was infuriated. She nced disdainfully at the table filled with dishes as she dered to everyone present, ¡°Whatever the case is, I¡¯m not eating this. Martial brothers, you do so at your own risk.¡±

    As she finished speaking, she stormed off in a huff, brushing past Zhou Zilong¡¯s shoulder as she left him behind without even casting a second nce back at him.

    Ye Xiuwen stared nkly as though deep in thought as Jun Xiaomo took her leave.

    Momentster, he stood up as well, and he addressed the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples, ¡°I¡¯m going to check on her. Go ahead without me.¡±

    Since Martial Brother Ye had given the go ahead, the rest of the disciples no longer stood on ceremony. After expressing their apologies to Zhang Shuyue for the altercation, everyone picked up their chopsticks and started on the sumptuous spread that had left them salivating for a long time now.

    Zhang Shuyue lowered her head as well. Discreetly, a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes ¨C

    Have more...have more. The more you eat, the better for me.

    Even though it was a pity that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen did not eat the food which she had prepared, plying such arge group of disciples with the medicinal powder was still quite a desirable result in any event.

    Jun Xiaomo walked on aimlessly as she stormed off away from the great hall. After some time, she began to slow her footsteps, and she could vaguely make out the sound of light footsteps that wereing after her.

    As she turned around, she saw Ye Xiuwen standing right behind her, just as she had expected.

    ¡°I knew that Martial Brother Ye would follow after me.¡± Delighted, Jun Xiaomo smiled as she remarked aloud. The rims of her eyes were still red and puffy. It was evident that her earlier outburst of emotions had been real.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her on the head, ¡°You¡¯ve done this on purpose, haven¡¯t you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo sighed and smiled bitterly, ¡°Nothing eludes your keen eyes, does it?¡±

    Then, collecting her spirits, she added, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, do you believe me?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen responded with some measure of exasperation, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t havee after you like that if I didn¡¯t believe you.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°That¡¯s good...¡±

    After a brief period of silence, she added, ¡°Truth be told, I know Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character better than anyone else. Quite apart from whether her apology was even sincere to begin with, there¡¯s really no reason for her to have prepared such a feast for us, even if it were to be used as an apology...I can only say that she¡¯s been too anxious to carry out her ns to stumble us. Something tells me that something big is going to happen soon.¡±

 Chapter 333: Who Has the Right to Take Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Life?

    <h4>Chapter 333: Who Has the Right to Take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Life?</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The night was eerily silent. It was so silent that even the usual chirruping of bugs in the middle of the night hadpletely vanished into thin air. The only sound that broke the stifling stillness in the air was the asional gentle breeze that swept through the forest, stirring one¡¯s soul with the suffocating sounds of rustling leaves.

    Jun Xiaomo was wide awake.

    She couldn¡¯t understand why she was unable to rest properly over thest few nights. A niggling feeling with her heart troubled her to no end, giving her the inclination that something massive was going to happen soon, keeping her awake at night, tossing and turning in bed in frustration.

    Her mind was filled with a particr incident in her previous life.

    In her previous life, Zhang Shuyue had tagged along with them as soon as she managed to obtain Ye Xiuwen¡¯s trust. As she travelled alongside them, she would act as an informant and discreetly update herpatriots with their whereabouts. Thus, no matter how and where Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen hid, their persecutors would always discover and attack them.

    This time, she was sincerely reticent to have her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak interact with Zhang Shuyue any more than was necessary. Zhang Shuyue was far too good an actress, and her Heavenly Peak martial brothers were regrettably cultivation fanatics who knew nothing about the intricacies and nuances of schemes and ploys. A simple, pitiful pretense on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s part was already more than sufficient to fool them into confuse right from wrong.

    After all, this was exactly how Ye Xiuwen was fooled and tripped up in her previous life.

    Jun Xiaomo sincerely loathed the prospects of her Heavenly Peak martial brothers being led by the nose by Zhang Shuyue without even knowing it, and she abhorred the prospects that they might well only learn of her true colours just before their deathbeds. But, what could she possibly do to expose Zhang Shuyue¡¯s rancid nature?

    It was incredibly frustrating.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was wallowing deep in her bitter thoughts, she suddenly discovered the peculiar ripple of energy in the air. That said, such a movement of energy was not foreign to her at all. In her previous life, she had relied precisely on the ripples of such strange energies to evade the capture of persecutors and assants on innumerable asions.

    Something¡¯s amiss!

    Jun Xiaomo hurriedly got out of bed and dressed herself properly. Then, after hesitating for a moment, she retrieved a Humanoid Puppet Talisman and dripped a drop of her own blood on it. When the Humanoid Puppet Talisman transformed into her image, sheid it carefully on the bed and covered it with her nket. Finally, she applied an Invisibility Talisman on her own body before slipping out of her room under the cover of the night.

    Zhang Shuyue was wide awake as well. However, the reason for her insomnia was naturally vastly different from Jun Xiaomo. Jun Xiaomo was unable to sleep at night because of her keen premonition that danger was looming over her head; while Zhang Shuyue was simply too excited by the prospects of being reunited with her master Xiang Guqing and capturing all of the Heavenly Peak disciples in one fell swoop.

    Zhang Shuyue sat at the table in her room and contacted Xiang Guqing through her Transmittance Talisman.

    ¡°Shuyue, did you manage to spike their food with the packet of powder?¡± This was something that Xiang Guqing was most concerned about at this point in time.

    ¡°Most of them have eaten it, and none of them discovered anything amiss.¡± Zhang Shuyue imed credit for the sess of her mission, ¡°However, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t fall prey to this scheme.¡±

    ¡°They didn¡¯t eat the food? Why?¡± Xiang Guqing furrowed her brows.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s extremely guarded against me. Furthermore, she¡¯s still harbouring some bitter resentment against the fact that I¡¯d invited Ye Xiuwen for a ¡®little chat¡¯ at the peach blossom woods, so she refused to ept the food which I had prepared.¡±

    ¡°Then, what about Ye Xiuwen?¡±

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, he...¡± A trace of indignation flickered across the depths of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, ¡°He practically listens to everything Jun Xiaomo says. If Jun Xiaomo says not to eat it, then he wouldn¡¯t eat it either.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. How good can a man be if he only knows how to listen to a woman? Sounds like apletely useless person. Disciple, there¡¯s no need to feel hurt about this incident. These men aren¡¯t worth your efforts and time. Once you leave the valley, you¡¯ll encounter many more men who are far more outstanding in all ways than Ye Xiuwen is. At that time, you¡¯ll finally learn that all men are the same, and not a single one of them are deserving of your love and affection.¡± Xiang Guqing coldly remarked. Her voice was clearlyced with intense rancor and bitterness against all men.

    ¡°Disciple understands Master¡¯s teachings. Would the fact that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t consume the medicine affect Master¡¯s ns tonight?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, your master isn¡¯t so useless that she can¡¯t even deal with two fledgling cultivators. Besides, Master has brought an entourage of people with her, all of whom harbour immense hatred for the two of them. With their help, I don¡¯t believe that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen would be able to survive the intense onught awaiting them tonight!¡± Xiang Guqing barked with a vicious gleam in her eyes. She would get an intense urge to torment Jun Xiaomo and tear her to shreds whenever she was reminded of how Jun Xiaomo had injured her most beloved disciple!

    Zhang Shuyue felt much more appeased with her master¡¯s reassurance. It seems that her guess was right ¨C the medicinal powder was simply employed in order to smoothen the operation that would be carried out tonight. Things would hardly change much even if Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen did not consume it.

    Then, as Zhang Shuyue turned her mind to consider how Jun Xiaomo wouldtery prostrate on the ground, begging for her life like a dog, a sick sense of joy and delight began to creep up from the inner crevices of her heart ¨C Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯ve embarrassed and tormented me in front of so many people...I¡¯m never going to let you die such a simple death!

    On the other side, as soon as Zhang Shuyue and her master ended theirmunication through the Transmittance Talisman, Xiang Guqing turned around and looked at the entourage of people behind her, ¡°You¡¯ve heard it for yourselves, haven¡¯t you? Right now, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and the other traitors are all residing within my valley. If you want me to open the path for your entry into the valley so that you can personally capture them, you¡¯d best bring out some tokens of your sincerity for me.¡±

    Xiang Guqing was no fool. Even though she was incensed by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had injured Zhang Shuyue, she had never considered doing such menial,borious work on her own. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had also betrayed Zhang Shuyue¡¯s affection and hurt her, she would never have harboured such intense hatred for the group of Heavenly Peak disciples, and she would never have considered doing so much just to put them to death.

    That said, she had to give credit where credit was due ¨C the entire Heavenly Peak appeared to be incredibly adept at making enemies wherever they went. In fact, it practically seemed as though the entire spiritual cultivation world was against them, and there were innumerable people who were willing to spend a substantial amount of money and resources for the mere opportunity to take their lives.

    In particr, the ones who appeared to hate Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen the most included the Sect that the Heavenly Peak originated from, the Dawn Sect, as well as their rivals, the Eternal Summit Sect.

    Jun Xiaomo had led a band of Heavenly Peak disciples and utterly defeated and humiliated the Eternal Summit Sect in the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition some years ago. This naturally resulted in a deep grievance and resentment for Jun Xiaomo.

    Therefore, as soon as they heard the news that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were still alive, and that they had even rescued a group of Heavenly Peak disciples from right under the Dawn Sect¡¯s noses, they immediately announced that they were putting up a bounty for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head!

    Xiang Guqing had responded precisely to this bounty, inviting the members of the Eternal Summit Sect to her valley with the intention ofunching a sneak attack on Jun Xiaomo and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples under the cover of night.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± The Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect, Dai Yanfeng, remarked dispassionately, ¡°The Eternal Summit Sect is a sect that keeps its word. The reward that we¡¯ll be giving has already been posted on the bounty that we had earlier announced to the rest of the spiritual cultivation world. There¡¯s no way we can renege on that agreement.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. That would be for the best.¡± Xiang Guqing harboured a peculiar distrust for men in general, and she naturally couldn¡¯t find it within her to trust Dai Yanfeng¡¯s words. Fortunately, the bounties announced to the rest of the spiritual cultivation world were all invariably imbued with formation arrays. If Dai Yanfeng failed to keep his promise, the consequences for him would indubitably be dire.

    Thus, under Xiang Guqing¡¯s leadership, the entourage of people walked through a shortcut and made their way into the depths of the valley. ording to Xiang Guqing, the shortcut would take them into the heart of the valley within one hour¡¯s time.

    Naturally, they would need to carefully follow Xiang Guqing¡¯s guidance in this regard. Otherwise, even leaving the valley would be nigh an impossible task, because even a single misstep along the way could mean the difference between life and death.

    Xiang Guqing cautioned the entire entourage about these matters with a wry smile on her lips, sending shivers down the backs of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples ¨C It seems like this woman isn¡¯t someone easy to deal with, much less swindle. I just hope that the Grand Elder doesn¡¯t offend her. Otherwise, the consequences could truly be dire.

    After taking a few steps, Xiang Guqing turned around and addressed Dai Yanfeng once more, ¡°Leave Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lives to me. I¡¯ve already decided their fate on behalf of my disciple. You can deal with the rest of them however you wish.¡±

    Dai Yanfeng immediately furrowed his brows, ¡°I don¡¯t care about what happens to Ye Xiuwen, but I want to take Jun Xiaomo captive for my daughter¡¯s sake.¡±

    After all, Jun Xiaomo had crippled Dai Yue¡¯s cultivation during theirst encounter at the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, and Dai Yue¡¯s cultivation levels were stillnguishing in the rut to date. Since then, whenever Dai Yanfeng witnessed his beloved daughter bawling and wailing as she smashed everything around her in resentment, he would be unable to repress the desire to incapacitate Jun Xiaomo and reduce to her final breaths, before capturing and presenting her to Dai Yue as a gift just so that Dai Yue could ventte her emotions on Jun Xiaomo.

    Then, when Dai Yanfeng first learnt that Jun Xiaomo had already perished, he hastily broke the news to his daughter with a skip in his step, and his daughter¡¯s emotional trauma appeared to show signs of marked improvements over the next few years. Unexpectedly, Jun Xiaomo was far more resilient than he had ever expected her to be, so much so that even the relentless persecution of the Zephyr Sect was unable to wipe her off the surface of the cultivation world!

    Thus, he resolved in his heart that the Eternal Summit Sect was going to finish what the Zephyr Sect was unable to. After all, he didn¡¯t believe that someone of his strength and abilities would not be able to take care of a rotten brat like Jun Xiaomo!

    Most importantly, Jun Linxuan was not around right now. There was undoubtedly no better chance to get rid of the group of Heavenly Peak disciples than now.

    Having heard Dai Yanfeng¡¯s response, Xiang Guqing slowly furrowed her brows as she turned around, ¡°Elder Dai, I think we should set things straight from the onset ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life is for my disciple to take. This is the only way my disciple can resolve her hatred for the humiliation Jun Xiaomo had dished out upon her.

    ¡°Sect Leader Xiang, I know that you¡¯re infuriated that your disciple has been bullied by Jun Xiaomo, but my disciple has equally suffered under the hands of this rotten brat Jun Xiaomo as well. In fact, her cultivation had beenpletely crippled by Jun Xiaomo! If you wish to discuss the hatred in their hearts, my daughter¡¯s hatred for Jun Xiaomo runs straight through her marrows. She¡¯s the one who has the right to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life.¡±

    Nobody around could ever have expected Dai Yanfeng and Xiang Guqing to sh over who should possess the right to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life. In fact, they were already starting to show signs of a breakdown in their partnership over this unusual dispute.

    This was thest thing that the Eternal Summit Sect disciples wanted to see right now. They were already mid-way through their journey through the shortcut into the heart of the valley. If Xiang Guqing decided to abandon them in a fit of anger as a result of this dispute, they would undoubtedly be the ones holding the shorter end of the stick.

    Thus, an Eternal Summit Sect disciple mustered all of his courage and stepped forward. Then, with some trepidation in his voice, he suggested, ¡°Grand Elder, senior Xiang, if...if junior may speak his mind, why don¡¯t both of you take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life jointly? This way, there¡¯s no need to fight over this matter anymore.¡±

    ¡°Jointly take her life? How can one possibly take a person¡¯s life together with another?¡± Dai Yanfeng furrowed his brows.

    Xiang Guqing pondered for a moment, before she chuckled heartily, ¡°That¡¯s not a bad suggestion. Since we both hate this rotten brat to the marrow, why not torment her together and see just how much of it she can withstand?¡±

    Dai Yanfeng shut his eyes and deliberated for a moment before concluding that there was no reason not to ept this suggestion. It was a good idea after all.

    With that, both leaders had finally seen eye to eye, and they continued to lead their entourage into the depths of the valley.

    At the back of the entire entourage, a tall and well-built man wearing the Eternal Summit Sect disciples¡¯ clothing kept his head low the entire time, keeping his presence to a minimum.

    He had heard the entire conversation between Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng earlier, and a bright gleam of light flickered across the depths of his eyes discreetly.

 Chapter 334: Sneak Attack at Night, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Decision

    <h4>Chapter 334: Sneak Attack at Night, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Decision</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo personally patrolled around the courtyard outside but to no avail ¨C she did not discover the movements of any assants or enemies.

    Nevertheless, she had a hunch that something big was going to happen tonight.

    Thus, she retrieved approximately ten ck-coloured paper cranes from her Interspatial Ring and waved her hand over them, imbuing each of them with a little bit of her demonic energy. Just like that, the paper cranes all ¡°came to life¡±.

    ¡°Go forth. Scout on ahead and patrol the borders of this valley and see if there are any peculiar movements that I should be aware of.¡± After Jun Xiaomo disseminated her instructions to the paper cranes, they each pecked obsequiously on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm before taking to the skies and melding into the dark of the night.

    Then, after deliberating for a moment, Jun Xiaomo turned around and made her way towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room.

    Ye Xiuwen was in a light slumber because he was in a foreign ce right now.

    There was the massive burden of the safety of his martial brothers weighing heavily on his shoulders, and he was unable to set his heart at ease and sleep without a care in the world. After all, he couldn¡¯t afford a singlepse in his vignce at all.

    Thus, he woke up as soon as Jun Xiaomo opened the door to his room.

    ¡°Who¡¯s there?!¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows and nced at the door to his room as his hand instinctually tightened around the hilt of his spirit sword.

    Yet, despite the door opening on its own, he saw nobody at the door.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, it¡¯s me.¡± Jun Xiaomo tore off the Invisibility Talisman, revealing her physical appearance to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Xiaomo? What are you doing looking for me thiste at night?¡± Ye Xiuwen queried with some measure of perplexity in his voice.

    ¡°For some strange reason, I keep getting the feeling that danger is quickly approaching us tonight. I don¡¯t know where this feelinges from, but it¡¯s guing me, so I¡¯d thought to approach Martial Brother Ye to tell you about it.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined hastily. As she did so, she nced anxiously at the door behind her.

    Looking out, everything appeared to be still and silent as any other night should be. There were no telltale signs that anything was peculiar with this night.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo knew better than to conclude that there were no dangers lurking in the dark just because they were unable to sense it. After all, both of them sincerely believed in what their instincts told them.

    ¡°Then, Xiaomo, what do you n to do? Do you have any ideas?¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly asked Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips before looking back up to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°I think it would be best if we awaken our other martial brothers and leave this ce pronto. I¡¯ve drawn up another bunch of Invisibility Talismans over thest few days, and they should be sufficient for all of our usage.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. I was thinking of the same as well.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, gently calming her anxious spirits.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s unconditional trust and support in her sent a wave of soothing warmth washing through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    This was enough for her. Even if her other martial brothers couldn¡¯t understand her thoughts, she found security in the knowledge that Martial Brother Ye would always be standing by her side.

    Then, just as they motioned to alert all of their other martial brothers to the impending dangers that she had sensed, one of the little paper cranes that Jun Xiaomo had earlier sent out returned to her and perched itself on the back of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand.

    Jun Xiaomo understood what this meant. She tapped on the little paper crane¡¯s head, and its little eyes instantly came alive, glowing brightly. In the next moment, it began to project an image onto a nearby wall.

    She could see from the projection that there were several ck shadows rushing straight towards their present location right now.

    ¡°Seems like we¡¯ve really got ourselves some uninvited guests.¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, ¡°I wonder who these people are. Their movements are far too quick for my paper cranes to keep up with.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who they are. The most pressing thing now is to awaken all of our martial brothers right now.¡± Ye Xiuwen made the call. Jun Xiaomo agreed immediately. After giving Ye Xiuwen an Invisibility Talisman, she left the room together with Ye Xiuwen.

    However, after taking just two steps, Jun Xiaomo paused again. She retrieved a Humanoid Puppet Talisman and had Ye Xiuwen drip a drop of his blood onto it. Within moments, a Humanoid Puppet bearing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s image appeared on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bed.

    ¡°This is just a precautionary measure. It might also serve to buy us some time.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined as Ye Xiuwen smiled in approval and tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair. Then, the both of them finally left Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room and made a beeline towards where their other martial brothers were resting.

    In order to speed things up, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo chose to divide and conquer and awaken all of their martial brothers in the quickest way possible.

    Gradually, all of the Heavenly Peak martial brothers began to assemble in their agreed meeting point, wondering why Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo would summon them in the middle of the night.

    ¡°We¡¯ve got uninvited guests in the valley tonight. It would be prudent to leave this ce under the cover of night.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined sinctly.

    Everyone instantly snapped out of their grogginess.

    Uninvited guests? Who could it be at this time of the night?

    The most agitated one of all the Heavenly Peak disciples was undoubtedly Zhou Zilong. He immediately eximed anxiously, ¡°We¡¯ve got to alert Miss Zhang about the uninvited guests! We can¡¯t afford to let her perish to these assants.¡± As he finished speaking, he immediately motioned to run towards Zhang Shuyue¡¯s abode.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, hang on a minute.¡± Jun Xiaomo sternly held Zhou Zilong back, ¡°Zhang Shuyue might very well have been involved in or even caused this exigency to begin with. Going to her right now could very possibly alert her to our movements.¡±

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes reddened with anxiety as he red indignantly at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°That¡¯s not possible! Martial Sister Xiaomo, you can¡¯t keep casting aspersions on Miss Zhang¡¯s character. She¡¯s not even a threat to you anymore right now!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo released a paper crane from her hand and allowed it to fly to Zhou Zilong¡¯s hand as she curtly exined, ¡°Take a look for yourself who the person in the image is.¡±

    Zhou Zilong looked at the projected image and saw a female cultivator with pristine, orderly appearances wearing a stern expression on her face. She was clothed in garments that looked somewhat simr to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s clothing, yet it appeared slightly darker in colour than Zhang Shuyue¡¯s.

    ¡°Who¡¯s she? I don¡¯t know her.¡± Zhou Zilong shook his head.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou, didn¡¯t you notice the embroidery on her clothing? Thisdy none other than Zhang Shuyue¡¯s master. She¡¯s leading a team of men into the valley under the cover of night right now, and there¡¯s no reason not to believe that their goal is to capture us. Don¡¯t you know what this means?!¡± Jun Xiaomo barked coldly.

    Zhou Zilong shook his head in denial, ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo hasn¡¯t seen Miss Zhang¡¯s master before. How can you possibly make such allegations just based on the simrity in their clothing?¡±

    ¡°Who says I¡¯ve never seen her before?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth and red back at Zhou Zilong.

    In her previous life, this woman had worked in tandem with Zhang Shuyue to lead wave after wave of men to surround and capture Martial Brother Ye and her. Even if Jun Xiaomo tried her best, she would never be able to forget her exact appearances.

    Zhou Zilong continued to cast aspersions on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allegations, ¡°Martial Sister has seen Miss Zhang¡¯s master? Are you certain?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly, ¡°It¡¯s your call whether you believe me or not.¡±

    She had never deigned to strain her rtionship with Martial Brother Zhou like that. Regrettably, it seems that Zhou Zilong had fallen head over heels in love with a wolf in sheep¡¯s clothing, and it was impossible to tear his impression of Zhang Shuyue away from his rigid mind.

    Given Zhang Shuyue¡¯s character, Jun Xiaomo knew full well that Zhang Shuyue would never reciprocate Zhou Zilong¡¯s good intentions. After all, men were nothing more than bragging rights and expendable resources in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, and it was only a matter of time before she turned around and bit the hand that fed her.

    Unfortunately, Zhou Zilong had fallen inextricably for her charms, and he had already sunken deep into the mires of her trappings.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen finally interjected, ¡°Alright, stop arguing. This is Miss Zhang¡¯s territory, and the leader of the quickly approaching assants could very well be Miss Zhang¡¯s master. No harm shoulde to her. It would be best if we acted prudently and left this ce in the quickest time possible.¡±

    ¡°How are we going to leave this ce?¡± Chen Feiyu furrowed his brows, ¡°From the paper crane¡¯s projected image, it seems that the entrance to the valley has already been blockaded by the uninvited guests. It seems that we¡¯ll be forced to sh with them no matter what we do.¡±

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples had also thought about these matters, and they began to reveal looks of anxiety on their faces.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. Don¡¯t we have Teleportation Scrolls with us? We can use them to leave this ce directly.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined.

    ¡°Teleportation Scrolls? I recall that the valley doesn¡¯t allow us to use Teleportation Scrolls, right?¡± Chen Feiyu reminded Jun Xiaomo.

    This was something that wasmon and natural, particrly within a Sect¡¯s territory. After all, where was the security if anyone could juste and go from a Sect¡¯s territory using Teleportation Scrolls? Everything would be a mess!

    Thus, Sects would invariably engage array masters to set up formation arrays, negating the effects of a Teleportation Scroll within their territories.

    However, Jun Xiaomo stretched out her finger and wagged it slightly, ¡°It impossible to use the Teleportation Scrolls right here, right now. Thus, I intend to head into the depths of the valley to alter the master formation array slightly so that it would temporarily allow the use of Teleportation Scrolls. That way, we¡¯ll be able to leave this ce without a hitch.¡±

    It was incredibly difficult to take ownership or alter the entire master formation array governing the valley. At the very least, Jun Xiaomo knew that it was an impossible thing with the few hours of time that they had avable right now. Nevertheless, it was still highly possible to alter the master formation array slightly to allow them temporary ess to their Teleportation Scrolls, giving them a way out of the valley immediately.

    Everyone had witnessed the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s prowess with formation arrays before. After all, they were well aware that the plight of He Zhang and the other Dawn Sect members had been a result of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s maniption of the formation arrays.

    Thus, none of them had any doubts to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words at this time. If she said it was possible, then it was most certainly possible.

    Seeing that none of the other disciples had any objections to her suggestion, Jun Xiaomo knew that everyone had unanimouslye on board with her ns.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled, ¡°I¡¯d previously taken a walk around the heart of the valley¡¯s master formation array with Martial Brother Ye. The offensive abilities of the master formation array aren¡¯t too high. At the very least, they¡¯re not as high as the ones within the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Therefore, I¡¯ve decided that we¡¯ll all head into the depths of the valley where the heart of the formation array is located. This way, as soon as I unlock and alter the relevant part of the master formation array, we¡¯ll immediately be able to leave this ce with our Teleportation Scrolls. We won¡¯t have to waste time going back and forth this way.¡±

    ¡°I think this is a good idea.¡± Chen Feiyu immediately seconded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns.

    ¡°I also agree.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple chimed in with agreement.

    Thus, after all of the Heavenly Peak disciples had unanimously agreed with the ns, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and the rest began to make their way into the depths of the valley.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen failed to notice Zhou Zilong¡¯s suspicious disposition as he walked silently behind the rest of the disciples with his head hung low.

    After some time, Zhou Zilong lifted his head and looked at Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s backs as he grappled with the shing thoughts in his heart. The image of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s dainty smile surfaced on his mind once more.

    He wholeheartedly believed that Zhang Shuyue was not an evil person by any means.

    Gritting his teeth, Zhou Zilong retrieved a Messenger Paper Crane from his Interspatial Ring and wrote a few words on it before releasing it.

    Regardless of what anyone said, his heart told him that he simply had to remind Miss Zhang of the impending dangers. He could not afford to let her get hurt.

 Chapter 335: The Mysterious Man, Wu Xiaochang Perishes

    <h4>Chapter 335: The Mysterious Man, Wu Xiaochang Perishes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zhang Shuyue had already left her room and sessfully linked up with her master Xiang Guqing when Zhou Zilong discreetly released his Messenger Paper Crane to warn Zhang Shuyue about the possible assants.

    ¡°Master, this is where the Heavenly Peak disciples are residing. Apart from Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, all of the other disciples have already ingested the powdered roots of the Spirit Devouring Grass together with the food I had earlier prepared. In other words, they¡¯re like fattenedmbs ready for the ughter.¡± Zhang Shuyue curled her lips into a wicked smile as a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°Mm, you¡¯ve done well.¡± Xiang Guqing patted Zhang Shuyue¡¯s shoulders in delight, ¡°I heard you¡¯ve been injured by that cheap slut Jun Xiaomo? Let master take a closer look at your wounds.¡± As she finished speaking, Xiang Guqing ced her fingers onto Zhang Shuyue¡¯s wrists.

    As soon as Zhang Shuyue thought about the humiliating things Jun Xiaomo had done to her, she couldn¡¯t help but reveal a thoroughly aggrieved expression on her face ¨C Jun Xiaomo, you slut! I¡¯m going to sentence you to death by a thousand cuts tonight! I¡¯m going to y off your skin and expose your grotesque, disgusting features for the world to see!

    Meanwhile, Xiang Guqing released a thread of spiritual energy and sent it through Zhang Shuyue¡¯s meridians and Dantian. Gradually, she began to furrow her brows more and more, and the indignation written on her face grew increasingly pronounced.

    ¡°Vile! That brat deserves to die!¡± Xiang Guqing flicked her sleeves in fury as her anger reached its boiling point, shattering a massive stone ten meters away into dust.

    ¡°Master, did something happen to my body?¡± Zhang Shuyue asked about her own condition anxiously.

    ¡°That brat Jun Xiaomo has damaged your meridians and Dantian using her demonic energy. In other words, she¡¯s damaged the foundation for your cultivation. It¡¯s a good thing that Master has arrived in time. Otherwise, if the incursion of demonic energy spreads and worsens any further, the consequences could be incredibly dire.¡± Xiang Guqing exined.

    ¡°That vile and wicked woman! I knew that she would never let me off that easily!¡± Zhang Shuyue gritted her teeth as she looked pleadingly at Xiang Guqing with indignation in her eyes, ¡°Master, you¡¯ve got to settle the score for me!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, master won¡¯t let that brat off that easily.¡± Xiang Guqing solemnly promised her disciple before turning to Dai Yanfeng, ¡°Elder Dai, I suggest that we stand guard around the entrance to the valley, and then you can send your disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect to apprehend those vermin that are running wild within the valley. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°Sending the Eternal Summit Sect disciples? This would be far too easy on your part, wouldn¡¯t it? You wouldn¡¯t even have to lift a finger!¡± Dai Yanfeng rejected the suggestion with some measure of displeasure.

    ¡°Are you suggesting that I deal with the fifteen-odd Heavenly Peak disciples with the meagre number of disciples that I have? Elder Dai, you overestimate our abilities.¡± Xiang Guqing did not have many disciples. Including Zhang Shuyue, she only had a total of seven disciples.

    ¡°Hmph!¡± Dai Yanfeng snorted. Despite his displeasure, he set aside his personal feelings for the greater goal and relented. Thus, he began to disseminate his instructions to his disciples to discreetly make their way towards where the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ rooms were located.

    ording to Zhang Shuyue, all of the Heavenly Peak disciples would already have consumed the powdered roots of the Spirit Devouring Grass, so apprehending them would hardly be a difficult thing at all.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Which rooms are Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen residing in?¡± Xiang Guqing brought her mind to the fact that they had not consumed the Spirit Devouring Grass yet, and she knew that the Eternal Summit Sect disciples would never be able to deal with the two main perpetrators.

    ¡°It¡¯s those two rooms that are adjacent to each other.¡± Zhang Shuyue pointed at the two courtyards some distance away.

    ¡°Hmph. Very well. Dachang, Xiaochang, you¡¯ll be in charge of them. Don¡¯t kill them; just make sure you incapacitate them and leave them with their lives dangling by a thread.¡± Xiang Guqing instructed the two disciples who were standing just behind her.

    ¡°Yes, Master!¡± A pair of twins acknowledged her instructions in the same manner and at the same time. Then, after bowing politely to Xiang Guqing, they sprinted towards the courtyards where Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rooms were located.

    The twin sisters were already in the secondary-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation. To Xiang Guqing¡¯s mind, these twin sisters were going to be more than enough if they were to apprehend the two fledgling cultivators that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were.

    How could she have possibly guessed the immense levels of cultivation that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen possessed? They were already in the elementary-tier and advanced-tier Nascent Soul stages of cultivation respectively. Even if Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were still residing within their rooms right now, these twin sisters could never possibly defeat either of them with their present abilities.

    A man standing at the back of the pack lifted his head and looked at the pair of twin sisters that had shot off to perform their tasks. Then, with a glint in his eyes, he faded into the darkness and followed closely behind the twin sisters as well.

    This man had been wearing the uniform of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples all this while. Thus, nobody discovered anything amiss with him.

    The twin sisters, Dachang and Xiaochang, divided up their responsibilities very quickly. Dachang made a beeline straight towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s room, while Xiaochang shot straight towards the room where Jun Xiaomo was allegedly residing in.

    Then, as soon as she arrived at the courtyard where Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room was located, Xiaochang reduced her speed and proceeded much more cautiously.

    Slowly, she drew closer to the door to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. Then, as soon as she was infinitesimally close to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, she suddenlyunched an attack, intending to barge straight through the door and into her room.

    To her dismay, Xiaochang found her attackpletely parried and botched by a man wearing the uniform of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples. She was unable to see the appearances of the Eternal Summit Sect disciple in the dark of the night. The only thing she knew was that this disciple appeared to be unusually tall,rge and well-built.

    ¡°Who are you?! Why are you standing in my way?! Aren¡¯t you from the Eternal Summit Sect?¡± Xiaochang¡¯s heart sank when her attack failed. But in the very next moment, she found herself ring viciously at the man standing in front of her, questioning his intentions incessantly.

    However, this man remainedpletely taciturn. Shortly after parrying Xiaochang¡¯s initial attack, the manunched his own attack at Xiaochang without much warning.

    Wu Xiaochang¡¯s heart sank. This was because she could tell with one nce that the man¡¯s abilities were hardly beneath hers at all.

    Does the Eternal Summit Sect have disciples who are stronger than the secondary-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation? What¡¯s he doing in such a small sect if he¡¯s already surpassed that level of cultivation?!

    Unfortunately, before Wu Xiaochang could wrap her head around just what was going on, the man¡¯s wing attack plunged straight through her chest, leaving a huge, gaping wound where her flesh and heart used to be.

    ¡°Ungh...urgh...¡±

    When she first agreed to participate in this operation, Wu Xiaochang had never even considered the possibility that she would die so easily, much less perish at the hands of a man whose appearances she could hardly even see.

    Then, when Wu Xiaochang copsed to the ground, she finally saw the man¡¯s appearances out of the corner of her eyes ¨C under the dim illumination of the moonlight, the man¡¯s blood-red pupils glistened with an eerie sheen.

    ¡°Demon-...demonic cultivator...¡±

    Wu Xiaochang¡¯s neck slumped as she muttered her final words. She had just drawn her final breath.

    The man tossed Wu Xiaochang¡¯s corpse onto the ground before making his way into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room.

    ¡°Xiaomo?¡± The man called out with a deep, booming voice. However, he did not receive any response whatsoever.

    The man could see what appeared to be a lump under the nkets, as though someone were still deep in slumber,pletely oblivious as to what was going on right now.

    The man¡¯s heart suddenly skipped a beat. Then, slowly, it began to thump stronger and faster, and with ever-increasing vigor.

    Ever since the man first learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s death, his heart became to die to the rest of the world. Then, consumed by the notion of vengeance, he led an army, fighting his way straight into the heart of the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s capital. Yet, whenever night fell, his emotions would emerge from the depths of his heart once more, amplifying the void in his heart and causing him to feel like an empty husk.

    Years ago, his mother was murdered by his selfish father, yet he continued to look expectantly to his heartless father for love andpassion.

    Unfortunately, his father caught wind of some rumours and ordered that his rights to lead an army be rescinded once more. To make matters worse, his father even decided to exchange his head for the support of the Zephyr Sect. This thoroughly embittered him, and his heart grew frigid and cold.

    Thus, he abandoned his station. After leaving a few standing instructions to ensure continuity, he departed from them.

    The man knew that the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom had never given up their search for him over thest few years, and they were eager to locate him so that they could repay whatever blood debt they had to repay. However, this man was determined not to be found.

    This was because he now lived for vengeance, and he knew that he had to remain alive to carry out his life¡¯s goals. With his eyes on the prize, he did everything he could as he looked forward to the day when he would finally have sufficient power and abilities to uproot the entire Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom, razing both to the ground!

    However, what surprised the man the most was the fact that he would be given yet another opportunity to reunite with Jun Xiaomo once more. When he first heard the news that the daughter of the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster was still alive, and that she had even wreaked havoc and chaos in the Dawn Sect, he thought that everything was simply too good to be true.

    If this were a dream, the man sincerely hoped that he could stay in this dream for as long as possible. He was willing to remain in his slumber and dream on for the rest of eternity if that was even possible!

    Shortly after that, he began to follow the leads he had on the whereabouts of the Heavenly Peak disciples who had just escaped from the Dawn Sect¡¯s imprisonment. During this period of time, he began to hear more and more rumours about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s role in their escape, and he began to grow more certain of the fact that Jun Xiaomo was still alive.

    Jun Xiaomo isn¡¯t dead! She¡¯s actually still alive!!

    Words were unable to describe the feelings within the man¡¯s heart at that time. The only thing the man knew was that he needed to locate Jun Xiaomo and do his utmost to ensure that she remained safe and sound in this world.

    There were many people in the spiritual cultivation world looking for Jun Xiaomo, some of which had even decided to pledge great rewards and post a bounty on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. Amidst his rage and indignation at the disgusting acts of the spiritual cultivation world, an idea struck the man ¨C it would be far easier locating Jun Xiaomo if he followed anyone who was looking to im the bounty on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    Thus, the man remained around the vicinity of the bounty board until Xiang Guqing finally showed up and imed the bounty on the board.

    The bounty which Xiang Guqing imed was none other than the bounty which was jointly posted by the Eternal Summit Sect and the Dawn Sect. Theirmon grievances against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had caused the two rival sects to finally set aside their multitude of differences and cooperate, thereby boosting the bounty to unrivalled levels.

    Just like that, the man discreetly tailed Xiang Guqing as soon as she first epted the bounty, and he began to learn more and more about just what exactly had happened over thest few days. Concurrently, he began to hatch a grand n to assist and rescue Jun Xiaomo.

    Sometimeter, Xiang Guqing led Dai Yanfeng and his men towards the valley and made the decision tounch a sneak attack on the Heavenly Peak disciples under the cover of night.

    Dai Yanfeng had brought with him a total of over fifty disciples. However, he did not recognize every single one of the disciples by their appearances.

    Thus, he had failed to discover that one of the male disciples which he had brought together with him had been killed without a single trace.

    The man possessed a very simr build to the Eternal Summit Sect disciple whom he had killed. Thus, under the dim illumination of the moonlight, Dai Yanfeng waspletely unaware that a mysterious man had surreptitiously snuck into the midst of all his disciples under the guise of one of histe-disciples.

    The man steadied his spirits as he made his way towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed.

    He would very soon be reunited with Jun Xiaomo.

 Chapter 336: Xiang Guqingâ€™s Fury, Rong Ruihanâ€™s Appearance

    <h4>Chapter 336: Xiang Guqing¡¯s Fury, Rong Ruihan¡¯s Appearance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was wholeheartedly invested in breaching the master formation array in the depths of the valley. The master formation array was locked byyers uponyers of defenses, and Jun Xiaomo was well aware of the fact that she couldn¡¯t afford to make any mistakes in the process of unlocking these defenses. After all, a single mistake couldy waste to all of her efforts so far.

    Then, out of nowhere, a little paper crane flitted over to her and began to peck on the back of her hand.

    Jun Xiaomo had initially thought to ignore the little paper crane. However, she relented after noticing the patterns on the little paper crane¡¯s wings. She picked it up, ced it in her palm, and began to suffuse some spiritual energy through the little paper crane.

    The little paper crane¡¯s eyes immediately glowed. Momentster, it began to project an image in front of them.

    Jun Xiaomo could see from the image that there was a man who was sneaking up on her bed where her Humanoid Puppet was resting. However, the man¡¯s appearances were hidden by the cover of night.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes. For some strange reason, she felt that this man who was approaching her bed seemed incredibly familiar to her. Yet at the same time, she just couldn¡¯t put a finger as to who this man was.

    That said, it was understandable that Jun Xiaomo was unable to recognize who this man was. After all, it was reasonable for Jun Xiaomo to assume that the man sneaking up on her Humanoid Puppet right now was an enemy assant.

    Jun Xiaomo snorted coldly. Just as she was about to keep her little paper crane and return it to her Interspatial Ring, she noticed the man lift the sheets off the bed.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately furrowed her brows ¨C Lift the sheets? Is that man a fool? Why would anybodyunching a sneak attack on me lift the sheets first?

    If Jun Xiaomo were to sneak up on an enemy who were resting in bed, she would most certainly have sent her attacks flying at her target from ten meters away, or perhaps even more. Otherwise, how could it possibly be called a ¡°sneak attack¡±? Wasn¡¯t this man simply alerting his target to his intentions right now?

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo was also slightly disappointed that the man had notunched a powerful attack at her Humanoid Puppet from afar. After all, she had slightly altered the constitution of her Humanoid Puppet and imbued it with a new ability ¨C as long as it sustained any attacks from an external source, it would be able to repel eighty percent of the force of the attack straight back to the assant.

    In other words, the stronger the sneak attack on her Humanoid Puppet, the more seriously the assant would be hurt. From her experience, the fact that this man was standing so close to her right now meant that any attack on her Humanoid Puppet would simply beckluster.

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was about to curse in her heart, the man made his move once more. He bent down, stretched out his hand, and began to gently caress the face of the Humanoid Puppet.

    It was pertinent to note that this Humanoid Puppet had been created using a drop of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s own blood, and it bore the exact same appearances as Jun Xiaomo. Thus, as soon as the man caressed the Humanoid Puppet¡¯s face, she felt her own face began to burn up with embarrassment.

    ¡°What the hell is that fe doing?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she eximed aloud.

    Ye Xiuwen had been waiting outside of the master formation array all this while, and he noticed how Jun Xiaomo had paused midway and begun to mutter to herself while looking at a little paper crane. He could even tell that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions were a mix of embarrassment and indignation right now.

    Thus, he made his way over towards Jun Xiaomo and asked, ¡°Xiaomo, is something wrong?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo noticed that Ye Xiuwen had made his way over. Then, thinking about the image that had revealed itself on the little paper crane, she began to feel a wave of guilt wash over her heart, so she coughed dryly and responded, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. I¡¯ve just encountered a slight problem.¡±

    ¡°A slight problem?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, ¡°Is there an issue with the formation array? Take a break if it¡¯s too difficult to deal with. Don¡¯t force the issue.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. I¡¯ll just need approximately one more hour to finish what I need to do. It shouldn¡¯t take too long.¡±

    As she finished speaking, her eyes subconsciously drifted towards the little paper crane in her hands again. She wanted to know who exactly this assant was; she wanted to know why he did not attack the Humanoid Puppet on her bed; and she wanted to know why he was doing something so improper that could very easily lead to a misunderstanding.

    Just then, she saw a scene unfold which made her eyes widen in shock and horror. After that man caressed the face of her Humanoid Puppet for a little while more, he suddenly lowered his head and nted a light kiss on its lips.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely taken aback. Momentster, biting onto her lower lips, she put her palm over her own lips as a swathe ofplicated emotions surfaced on her heart.

    There was that of embarrassment, and there was that of rage. At the same time, there was also a sense of familiarity for some strange reason.

    Standing in close proximity, Ye Xiuwen naturally discovered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s peculiar reaction. He furrowed his brows and immediately plucked the little paper crane from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms.

    ¡°Eh! Martial Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously remarked.

    The image that the little paper crane had been projecting immediately disappeared from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s view as soon as it left Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen saw with his very own eyes the image which was privy only to Jun Xiaomo just moments ago.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s initially furrowed brows began to loosen slightly. However, his lips began to stretch into a thin grimace, and his eyes began to grow deep and abstruse.

    Jun Xiaomo began to look nervously at Ye Xiuwen, wondering whether he would form any misunderstanding as a result of the image he saw from the little paper crane right now.

    Truth be told, she felt wronged by this entire incident. Jun Xiaomo had never desired to cheat on Ye Xiuwen, and she waspletely bbergasted when she noticed such a lustful wastrel appearing out of nowhere. Why didn¡¯t she have any recollection of who this man was?

    After Ye Xiuwen finished watching the projection of images by the little paper crane, he returned it to Jun Xiaomo. At that time, Jun Xiaomo also noticed for an instant that the Humanoid Puppet on the bed appeared to havepletely vanished into thin air.

    Vanished? Could this man have brought it away? Jun Xiaomo tilted her head slightly with perplexity guing her mind.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo, and his gaze was as deep and abstruse as ever. Nobody could tell what was going on in his mind right now.

    ¡°Xiaomo, do you recognize the man in the projection is?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo responded with yet another question, ¡°Who is it?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chose to ignore her question. After a brief period of silence, he suddenly smiled and tousled her hair, ¡°It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t know him.¡±

    ¡°Haa--?! I thought that Martial Brother recognized who it was. Otherwise, why would you ask if I recognized who the man was?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked curiously at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Nah, I didn¡¯t recognize who he was either. It¡¯s hard to tell when it¡¯s so dark in the room.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined, yet a glint of light flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s the case. That¡¯s alright then.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded somewhat listlessly, before turning back to examine the master formation array she was trying to break into.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo still felt somewhat wronged about this entire incident because she simply couldn¡¯t figure out just where and when she attracted such a lustful man from the Eternal Summit Sect ¨C It¡¯s so strange. I don¡¯t recall having much interactions with people from the Eternal Summit Sect to begin with. And to think that this man had taken advantage of the fact that ¡°I¡± was asleep to do such things to ¡°me¡±. That¡¯s going slightly overboard, isn¡¯t it?!

    That said, she knew that there was no reason for her to pursue such pointless thoughts. Thus, Jun Xiaomo shelved these thoughts of hers and began to immerse herself in the world of her formation arrays once more.

    Ye Xiuwen looked at the serious expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face as she resumed her work on the formation arrays. For an instant there, a trace of an internal struggle surfaced in the depths of his eyes.

    He didn¡¯t know whether he was doing the correct thing right now. Truth be told, he did recognize the identity of the perpetrator within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room right now. In particr, the striking, blood-red eyes of his were a characteristic sign of a demonic cultivator.

    Perhaps it was a result of the angle under which she had viewed the projection earlier, but Jun Xiaomo had failed to notice the fact that his eyes werepletely blood-red. Thus, she had failed to recognize his identity.

    This was the first time that Ye Xiuwen had consciously concealed something from Jun Xiaomo, and his heart felt ill at ease.

    That said, he was certain that he found the notion of revealing the man¡¯s identity to Jun Xiaomopletely repugnant. This was because the kiss which he had nted on the Humanoid Puppet that bore Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exact image was simply too harsh and ring on the eyes!

    The fact that he bore an outwardly cold personality did not trante to the fact that he was unfeeling, emotionless and did not know jealousy. He wouldn¡¯t be human if he remainedpletely expressionless when he saw someone kissing Jun Xiaomo, even if the object being kissed were a mere Humanoid Puppet.

    Ye Xiuwen shut his eyes and cajoled himself ¨C Let¡¯s wait and see. After all, that fe¡¯s going to realize sooner orter that the person in his arms right now is nothing more than a Humanoid Puppet.

    Meanwhile, after finally reuniting with Jun Xiaomo and nting a heartfelt kiss on her lips, Rong Ruihan discovered that Jun Xiaomo appeared to be in a deep slumber and showed no signs of waking up. Thus, he picked her up horizontally, intending to leave the valley with her.

    That¡¯s right. The perpetrator who had snuck up on Jun Xiaomo was none other than Rong Ruihan, the man rumoured to have vanished from the face of the cultivation world. Rong Ruihan had led a nomadic lifestyle over the years. Apart from checking in with his fellow nsmen from time to time, he had spent most of his time improving his own cultivation and elevating his own abilities.

    His sole desire was to take the fight to the Greenwich Kingdom and the Zephyr Sect one day, exacting vengeance for what they had done to Jun Xiaomo.

    That said, before he could achieve these goals, he discovered to his pleasant surprise that rumours had begun to spread, stating that Jun Xiaomo was still alive.

    Therefore, he had resolved in his heart that he was going to do all he could to bring Jun Xiaomo to a safe ce this time.

    Unfortunately, he immediately discovered something amiss as soon as he picked up ¡°Jun Xiaomo ¨C this ¡°person¡± was far too light. In fact, ¡°she¡± was so light that it almost felt as though ¡°she¡± were weightless.

    Furthermore, the fact that ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± appeared to remain in a deep slumber despite hisrge movements was hardly normal at all.

    After a moment¡¯s deliberation, Rong Ruihan set ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± back down onto the bed and patted ¡°her¡± cheeks, ¡°Xiaomo? Xiaomo?¡±

    The Humanoid Puppet that Jun Xiaomo had created this time was of the most basic level. Apart from taking on its owner¡¯s appearance and repelling a single attack back to its assant, the Humanoid Puppet possessed no other abilities. This stood to reason as well. After all, with a party of close to twenty people, where would she have the time to prepare so many Humanoid Puppet Talismans of higher levels?

    Therefore, no matter what Rong Ruihan did, ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± failed to respond to his calls.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart immediately sank. He hesitated for a moment, before stretching out his hand and cing his finger under ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± nose to check for breath.

    As expected, he detected no signs of life from her body!

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart constricted with anxiety. Without considering any of the other telltale signs on the body of the Humanoid Puppet, he immediately retrieved several Soul Redeeming Pills from his Interspatial Ring and began to stuff them into ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± mouth.

    Soul Redeeming Pills were priceless pills that were minimally of the seventh-grade, and one would never be able to buy them on the market even if one had all the wealth in the world. If his master, Old Man Chi, discovers that he had squandered a whole bunch of Soul Redeeming Pills just like that, he would most certainly denounce his disciple¡¯s actions.

    Fortunately, Rong Ruihan heard the scattering sounds of hurried footsteps from outside the room before he could stuff the pills into ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± mouth ¨C

    ¡°Xiaochang! Xiaochang?! Who is it?! Who¡¯s the one who¡¯s murdered my dear disciple?!!!¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s shrill shriek rent the still cloak of silence that enshrouded thends at night. Her sudden appearance was like that of a horrific banshee seeking vengeance for her lost family member.

    Rong Ruihan squinted his eyes. Within moments, he flipped the nket up once more, concealing ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± presence.

    Just then, a woman barged into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room. This person was none other than the master of the valley, Xiang Guqing.

    Xiang Guqing had expected to see Jun Xiaomo standing in the room, waiting for her arrival. At the very least, she had never expected to be greeted by a man wearing the garments belonging to an Eternal Summit Sect disciple.

    ¡°Who are you? Where¡¯s Jun Xiaomo?!¡± Xiang Guqing red viciously at Rong Ruihan as she began to muster and congeal a threatening ball of spiritual energy in her palms.

 Chapter 337: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Disappearance, Xiang Guqing Sustains an Injury

    <h4>Chapter 337: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Disappearance, Xiang Guqing Sustains an Injury</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    A cold gleam flickered across the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes as he retrieved a weapon from his Interspatial Ring and adopted a defensive posture in front of ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡±.

    Although Rong Ruihan remained silent to Xiang Guqing¡¯s questions, it was evident from his posture that he was a foe, not a friend.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a disciple of the Eternal Summit Sect? Does Elder Dai know that you¡¯ve turned traitor for the sake of the Lady Demoness?¡± Xiang Guqing barked coldly with a contemptuous tone of voice.

    Rong Ruihan continued to remain silent to Xiang Guqing¡¯s questions. Right now, he was fully focused on sizing up Xiang Guqing and assessing his odds of defeating her in a full-on confrontation.

    Unfortunately, his assessment told him that he was only barely able to match her abilities. Furthermore, this was contingent on himying everything on the line and not making a single mistake at all.

    After all, his cultivation level was one qualitative level lower than Xiang Guqing¡¯s cultivation level. This single level of difference should never be underestimated ¨C the further on a person was in his path of cultivation, the more significant the difference in cultivation level, and the less such a difference can be made up with by pills, medicines or spirit tools.

    That said, Rong Ruihan was a demonic cultivator, and thebat abilities of demonic cultivators were naturally stronger than that of a spiritual cultivator. It was for this reason that he had assessed that he would barely be able to stand up to Xiang Guqing if he put everything on the line.

    By this time, Xiang Guqing had already realized Rong Ruihan¡¯s adamance in refusing to answer any of her questions. Thus, she could no longer be bothered to p her lips, and she immediately charged straight towards Rong Ruihan. Her target? Undoubtedly the ¡°person¡± Rong Ruihan was shielding!

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart constricted, and he swung his weapon at Xiang Guqing.

    Xiang Guqing snorted contemptuously, ¡°Young sprout. Insolence!¡±

    Rong Ruihan remained taciturn as he focused all of his energy on the duel against Xiang Guqing. He consciously ced himself directly between Xiang Guqing and ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡±, not giving Xiang Guqing a single change to get anywhere close to her.

    As their battle drew them to the side of the room, the dim moonlight shone through the window to reveal a glimmer of the blood-red hues in the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Demonic cultivator! You¡¯re a demonic cultivator?!¡± Xiang Guqing eximed in a shrill voice as her battle intent flourished in an instant, ¡°Was it you?! Was it you who killed my dear disciple?!¡±

    Xiang Guqing never trusted men to begin with. On the other hand, she loved and cherished each and every single one of her disciples as she would her own daughter, and she could hardly tolerate the possibility that Rong Ruihan might well have been her disciple¡¯s murderer.

    In Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes, Rong Ruihan¡¯s silence was a tacit admission to his atrocities.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you! I¡¯m going to send you to the grave on behalf of my dear disciple!!!¡± Xiang Guqing charged towards Rong Ruihan with a crazed vigor. Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly. As he continued to avoid Xiang Guqing¡¯s relentless attacks, he also began to gradually draw her further and further away from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed.

    That¡¯s right. His goal was not to kill Xiang Guqing, because that was nigh an impossible task. Therefore, he chose to adjust his objectives to lure Xiang Guqing¡¯s attention away from Jun Xiaomo instead, hoping that as long as Jun Xiaomo was out of sight, she would also be out of mind.

    That said, why was Jun Xiaomo still sound asleep despite the increasingly heated battle?

    Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows. When he considered how Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t show any signs of breathing earlier, a lump formed in his throat once more ¨C Could Jun Xiaomo truly be...

    Just then, another one of Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples came running into the room. After recovering from the initial shock from the duel unfolding between Xiang Guqing and Rong Ruihan, she quickly reported, ¡°Master! It¡¯s terrible! Martial Sister Zhang says that something¡¯s gone wrong!¡±

    ¡°Wrong? What¡¯s gone wrong?¡± Xiang Guqing paused for a moment and furrowed her brows solemnly.

    Rong Ruihan eyes gleamed. When Xiang Guqing turned her attention away from him, he quickly stole a nce at ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡±. His intention was to bring Jun Xiaomo safely away from this valley.

    Xiang Guqing had initially thought to deal with Rong Ruihan after listening to what her disciple had to say. Unfortunately, Rong Ruihan had capitalized on her distractedness to dart across the room towards where Jun Xiaomo was. The rage in Xiang Guqing¡¯s heart immediately burgeoned, and she no longer cared about what her disciple had to report as she bellowed, ¡°Thinking of running? Dream on!¡± As she finished speaking, she flicked her sleeves and sent countless icicles flying towards Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan twisted his body and swiftly avoided the wave of icicles that had shot straight towards him.

    Xiang Guqing snorted as she waved her hand again. This time, a massive ball of congealed energy shot straight towards the mattress that ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± was lying on. Her target? It was precisely the Humanoid Puppet lying on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed.

    Naturally, Xiang Guqing was unaware of this. In her eyes, the person lying on the bed was none other than Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°No!!!¡± Rong Ruihan wailed hoarsely. He immediately motioned to rescue Jun Xiaomo, but he knew it was toote. In the blink of an eye, Xiang Guqing¡¯s powerful attack connected with ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± right in front of his own eyes.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart stopped in that instant; while Xiang Guqing revealed a macabre, victorious smile.

    A loud explosion ensued, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed was instantly shattered to pieces and reduced to sawdust. Everyone expected to see blood and gore spatter everywhere as a result of the carnage from Xiang Guqing¡¯s powerful strike. However, everyone found themselvespletely bbergasted by what they saw.

    Where¡¯s she?! The three pairs of eyes in the room stared nkly at the pile of sawdust that remained. Yet despite darting their eyes around and about the pile of sawdust, none of them found what they were looking for.

    Then, in the very next moment, a powerful ball of energy suddenly shot back out from the sawdust, straight towards Xiang Guqing, taking her byplete surprise. Just like that, the ball of energy struck her squarely on her body and sent her flying.

    Pfft--! Arge mouthful of blood sprayed from Xiang Guqing¡¯s mouth as she mmed onto the ground.

    ¡°Master!¡± Her disciple ran over to her side and tried to help her up.

    ¡°Damn! Looked like we¡¯ve been set up!¡± Xiang Guqing red at the pile of sawdust with a vicious expression stered all over her face. It was evident that she could hardly wait to tear Jun Xiaomo to bits and pieces norger than each speck of sawdust.

    Her mind had drawn aplete nk earlier when she was struck by the powerful st of energy. That said, how could she possibly still be unaware of what was going on now that the rationality and judgment had returned to her mind?

    Quite apart from the strange, unexined disappearance of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°corpse¡± from the bed, the ball of energy that had struck her was evidently one and the same as the one she had attacked earlier attacked Jun Xiaomo with! The problem obviouslyy with ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± on the bed earlier!

    ¡°Mas-...Master, Disciple had earlier wanted to ry Martial Sister Zhang¡¯s message to you. Something big is going on. She has received a Messenger Paper Crane that was sent to her by a Heavenly Peak disciple saying that there are assants who have infiltrated the valley, asking her to leave this ce and head towards...¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier?!¡± Xiang Guqing berated her disciple, cutting her off mid-sentence.

    If her disciple had reported this matter earlier, she would not have wasted her energy on her earlier attack, and she would not have been injured in turn.

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciple lowered her head sheepishly and grew taciturn.

    When Rong Ruihan saw Xiang Guqing¡¯s ball of energy strike ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡±, causing everything around to explode, sting everything into smithereens, he nearly lost control of the powerful demonic energy in his body to a demonic upheaval there and then.

    Fortunately, he managed to hang in there until the dust finally settled. Then, when he discovered that there were no traces of a person seen among the scattered sawdust, he managed to scramble together a posttion of what was going on.

    His conjectures were then further affirmed by the report given by Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciple.

    It seems that Xiaomo and the other Heavenly Peak disciples have already left the vicinity a while ago. Rong Ruihan couldn¡¯t help but chuckle lightheartedly when he considered the peculiar expression that would be stered all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face right now.

    It¡¯s a good thing...It¡¯s a good thing she¡¯s still alive... But I wonder just where they¡¯ve gone to?

    Xiang Guqing also asked the question that was pressing on Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart, ¡°Where did Jun Xiaomo and the rest go to? Why have you stopped your report mid-way?¡±

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s tone of voice was extremely stern and harsh, causing her disciple to feel somewhat aggrieved ¨C Master, wasn¡¯t it you who had interjected and cut me off earlier? Why are you ming me now?

    However, her disciple naturally kept these thoughts to herself and dared not reveal a single trace of her displeasure outwardly.

    After collecting her thoughts, the disciple continued with her report, ¡°Earlier, Martial Sister Zhang mentioned that the Heavenly Peak disciples have made their way towards the depths of the valley. The male disciple who¡¯s fond of Martial Sister Zhang has left her a lifeline, and Martial Sister Zhang says that she¡¯ll be able to locate the group of Heavenly Peak disciples as long as she follows its trace.¡±

    ¡°What?! To the depths of the valley?!¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes widened in horror. She quickly swallowed the recovery pill she had earlier prepared, sat upright and instructed, ¡°Quick! Help me up! Things are going south very quickly. Do they already know of the secrets of the valley? Are they trying to breach the valley¡¯s master formation array?¡±

    ¡°Breach the valley¡¯s master formation array?¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciple was slightly taken aback. After all, she knew just how important the valley¡¯s master formation array was to all of them.

    Is it even possible to breach the valley¡¯s master formation array to begin with?

    Regardless, the disciple quickly helped her master to her feet.

    Then, as Xiang Guqing took two steps towards the door to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, she suddenly recalled the existence of the demonic cultivator who was wearing the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s uniform.

    Immediately, she whipped her head around and nced back at where the man had been just moments ago. Unfortunately, the room waspletely empty, and not a single trace of any other person could be seen within the room.

    ¡°Hmph! At least he¡¯s quick at running. No matter. He can run from me now, but he¡¯ll never be able to escape the valley and its formation arrays. It¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before I capture him. At that time, I¡¯m going to slowly pluck his nerves and y his skin and repay everything he has done to my disciple replete with interest!¡± Xiang Guqing swore under her breath. Then, flicking her sleeves, she left hurriedly with her disciple.

    Momentster, Xiang Guqing and her disciple returned to their initial rendezvous point. When they arrived, Xiang Guqing discovered to her surprise that the disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect had all sustained injuries of varying degrees. Dai Yanfeng immediately strode furiously towards Xiang Guqing. His face waspletely ashen, as though he had already reached his boiling point.

    Truth be told, Dai Yanfeng¡¯s rage was hardly surprising. After all, Xiang Guqing had previously given him her word that all of the Heavenly Peak disciples had already consumed the powdered root of the Spirit Devouring Grass, and tonight would be the best night to act, since all they had to do was to y themb to the ughter. None of the Heavenly Peak disciples should have been able to escape from their grasp to begin with.

    But what was the result? Not only did they fail to harm even a single strand of hair on the Heavenly Peak disciples, the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s disciples even sustained injuries to varying degrees. How could Dai Yanfeng not be mad at all of this?!

    Most importantly, given that the operation was personally led by the Grand Elder of the entire Eternal Summit Sect, it was an absolute disgrace to fail so miserably.

    ¡°Sect Leader Xiang, don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve got some exining to do? What exactly is going on?!¡± Dai Yanfeng could no longer repress his outburst of question as he red furiously at Xiang Guqing.

    ¡°You can consider this an oversight on my part. I sincerely apologize to Elder Dai.¡± Xiang Guqing was well aware that rtions between their sects break down irretrievably if she did nothing to salvage the situation, ¡°I¡¯d never expected Jun Xiaomo and the rest to anticipate our arrival. They¡¯ve gone deeper into the valley, and they should be at the very heart of it right now.¡±

    ¡°The heart of the valley? Sect Leader Xiang, you must be kidding me! The members of the Eternal Summit Sect have already sustained some serious injuries; how can you expect us to follow you to the depths of the valley right now?! There¡¯s another thing ¨C we¡¯ve done all we could to keep our movements tonight under wraps, so how did the Heavenly Peak disciples possibly anticipate our arrival like that? I can¡¯t help but wonder if there¡¯s a mole among us right now!¡± As Dai Yanfeng barked, hended a vicious, usatory gaze directly on Zhang Shuyue¡¯s body.

    ¡°Elder Dai, just what do you mean by that?!¡± Xiang Guqing has always had a short fuse, and she naturally blew her top when Dai Yanfeng began casting aspersions on her dearest disciple.

    ¡°Sect Elder Xiang is well aware of what exactly I mean.¡± Dai Yanfeng snorted, ¡°I hear this disciple of yours has taken a fancy to the Heavenly Peak disciple named Ye Xiuwen, isn¡¯t she? Who knows whether she¡¯s disclosed our movements to them in order to curry favor with the object of her affection, hmm?¡±

    ¡°Impossible!¡±

    ¡°Are you certain that this is impossible? Then, can Sect Leader Xiang prove that your disciple is truly innocent?¡± Dai Yanfeng continued to press the issue.

    ¡°Elder Dai, I can also make the allegation that there are traitors among your midst. Earlier, when I went to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room, my efforts were stymied by a man who was wearing the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s uniform. Heck, this man even killed my third disciple! I¡¯ve still got that score to settle with you!¡± Xiang Guqing barked back in an unyielding fashion.

    Just like that, the alliance that had quickly been scrambled together looked like it was about to fall apart even before they could locate Jun Xiaomo and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    ¡°Master, Elder Dai, I beseech you to take a step back and listen to what junior has to say.¡± Zhang Shuyue hurriedly interjected, breaking the tense confrontation between the two leaders, ¡°One of the Heavenly Peak disciples has left me a ¡®lifeline¡¯, and I can capitalize on this ¡®lifeline¡¯ to locate their exact whereabouts. If we set off now, we might still have a chance of locating and capturing them before they manage to make their escape. Disciple fears the worst if we dally for too long.¡±

    ¡°The Heavenly Peak disciples have always stood with a united front, so how could they possibly leave you with a lifeline as you¡¯ve alleged?¡± Dai Yanfeng queried with some measure of disbelief in his voice.

    ¡°Hah, that fool has beenpletely mesmerized by my charms, and he¡¯s still of the opinion that I¡¯m merely a victim in this entire incident. He¡¯s thinking of bringing me away from the ¡®assants¡¯ to safety, so he naturally left me with a means of contacting and linking up with them.¡± Zhang Shuyue mocked disdainfully without a single ripple of emotion in her eyes.

    A bright gleam flickered in the depths of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes ¨C

    ¡°If that¡¯s really the case, I do happen to have an idea to dy their movements and buy us a little bit more time.¡±

 Chapter 338: Zhou Zilongâ€™s Infatuation, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Exasperation

    <h4>Chapter 338: Zhou Zilong¡¯s Infatuation, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Exasperation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Rong Ruihan made a beeline for the heart of the valley as soon as he learnt that Jun Xiaomo and the rest had already made their way there.

    However, it was only when he began making his trek down the paths towards the heart of the valley that he discovered just how deep the valley stretched on for. To make matters worse, the paths leading into the heart of the valley were filled with turns and forks in the roads, and a single misstep could cause him to lose his bearings and get lost.

    Rong Ruihan looked up, searching for a different way to keep his bearings. To his dismay, he discovered that he was surrounded by massive trees that seemed to extend into the sky indefinitely, obfuscating the sky with its massive expanse of foliage, blotting out any traces of the stars and the moons.

    Without the moon anchoring his bearings, it was going to be much more difficult for him to navigate his way around the woods.

    After pondering for a moment, Rong Ruihan retrieved a Fluorescent Globe from his Interspatial Ring. With the aid of its dim illumination of light, Rong Ruihan could finally see up to a distance of ten meters away from where he was.

    Just then, he discovered a small and peculiar pattern on the bark of a tall tree nearby. He could tell at one nce that this pattern hardly looked like it was naturally formed; someone had obviously etched the pattern onto the bark of the tree.

    Thus, he brought the Fluorescent Globe closer to the pattern to take a closer examination. To his pleasant surprise, he immediately recognized that the pattern as something that the Heavenly Peak disciples would habitually use for pathfinding. In fact, he had even seen the exact same pattern embroidered on one of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s garments before.

    As he made his way forward along the path, he began to find more and more of these patterns etched onto trees every now and then.

    This must be the right direction!

    Thus, with renewed vigor, Rong Ruihan lifted the Fluorescent Globe high into the air and continued to look out for these patterns etched on the bark of trees as he followed the winding paths deeper into the heart of the valley.

    Meanwhile, as Rong Ruihan continued to make his way closer and closer into the heart of the valley, Jun Xiaomo was doing her best in breaching the defenses of the master formation array. With her eyes shut, Jun Xiaomo sent various threads of her own spiritual energy into the formation array, carefully filling out the grooves and recesses where the heart of the formation array had been etched.

    Not only did she have to fill the grooves and recesses, she also had to use her spiritual energy to simultaneously shift ten ink-ck pebbles resting on the surface of the formation array into the positions that she needed them to be in. This was a delicate, continuous process, and she could not afford to let anything distract her mind right now.

    After all, such incredible multitasking required immense focus on her part. Fortunately, having lived for two whole lifetimes, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mental fortitude had already been thoroughly forged by the fires of life and refined to unprecedented levels. This was the only reason why she could possibly aplish such aplicated process in such a short period of time.

    Yet, even then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead was percting with profuse sweat, and waves of giddiness constantly battered against her head, sending her mind spinning. She was hanging on steadfastly by her sheer willpower right now.

    All eyes were on Jun Xiaomo. Her Heavenly Peak martial brothers couldn¡¯t help but feel disheartened by the fact that their dear Little Martial Sister had time and again shouldered the entire burden of rescuing all of them from the jaws of death. If possible, all of them wished to share this burden of hers.

    They were her older martial brothers after all, so how could they possibly allow Little Martial Sister to bear such a heavy burden on all of their behalf?

    In particr, Ye Xiuwen experienced the strongest and most profound emotions among all of his martial brother. After all, he did not merely wear the hat of an older martial brother; he also wore the hat of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lover.

    There were few men in this world who could ever bring themselves to rest at ease, doing absolutely nothing while watching their loved ones slog it out on their behalf just so that they could reap what they did not sow.

    If possible, Ye Xiuwen would have liked to tell Jun Xiaomo to take a break. However, Jun Xiaomo had from the onset already cautioned them that this process was incredibly important, and she should never be interrupted midway. In other words, she needed to seed in one attempt. Otherwise, all of her efforts up to this point would have beenpletely wasted, and she would have to restart the entire process from the very beginning.

    To make matters worse, she knew that it was only a matter of time that Xiang Guqing and the rest would discover that the ones resting in their beds right now were no more than mere Humanoid Puppets and give chase after them. Thus, Jun Xiaomo knew that there was simply no time for any redoes.

    Besides, she did not possess the spiritual and mental fortitude to redo the entire process in any event ¨C her mind would most certainly break down if it came to that.

    Under the confluence of such tense factors weighing on their shoulders, Ye Xiuwen found himself growing increasingly tense, and he consciously refrained from making any peep of sound that might distract Jun Xiaomo.

    Zhou Zilong was currently experiencing the mostplex swathe of emotions of all the disciples present right now ¨C on the one hand, he worried that Jun Xiaomo would get hurt during this entire process; yet on the other hand, there¡¯s a lingering sense of regret and remorse that was guing his heart.

    He knew that Jun Xiaomo hated Zhang Shuyue, yet he still chose to leave a lifeline for her, asking her to leave together with all of them.

    Little Martial Sister had dered on no uncertain terms that she did not trust Zhang Shuyue. However, Zhou Zilong simply couldn¡¯t wrap his mind around how such a pleasant, kindhearteddy could possibly attract the ire and disdain of Little Martial Sister. If this were a result of the incident involving Martial Brother Ye, Miss Zhang¡¯s apology should have sufficed, shouldn¡¯t it?

    Zhou Zilong tightened his fists subconsciously. There were two little men arguing in his mind, and his heart felt like it was being rent into two halves. At the same time, both halves experienced the same wrenching pain.

    The little man on the left would say ¨C Aren¡¯t you being ungrateful to Little Martial Sister? Here she is, doing all she can to bring everyone out safely, yet you selfishly chose to disclose everyone¡¯s whereabouts. Are you going to be able to live it down if something really happened?!

    Yet the little man on the right would attempt to justify Zhou Zilong¡¯s actions ¨C That little paper crane was only sent to Miss Zhang. Nothing¡¯s going to go wrong. Besides, won¡¯t you equally be unable to rest at ease if Miss Zhang met with a mishap had you chosen not to extend a measure of grace towards her?

    The little man on the left would then retort ¨C What if the enemies followed the lifeline you¡¯d dropped to Miss Zhang and found their way here? Are you trying to put everyone¡¯s lives at risk?

    Zhou Zilong searched his increasingly vexed heart for a way out of this conundrum. At the same time, there was a burning desire developing in his heart to tell the two little men to simply shut up. Unfortunately, no matter what he attempted to do to appease his heart and quieten the two little men, they continued to argue incessantly, neither giving in to the other.

    As the stifling sensation in his heart continued to mount as though steaming his heart in a pressure cooker, a Transmittance Talisman suddenly glowed in his Interspatial Ring.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart skipped a beat. For some reason, his intuition immediately told him that this must be Miss Zhang¡¯s plea for help. After all, his Heavenly Peak martial brothers were all by his side, so who else could it be at this time of the night?

    Miss Zhang must have received by little paper crane, right? She might even be on her way here right now!

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart began to get drawn into a spiral of what might have happened to Zhang Shuyue, and he quickly retrieved the Transmittance Talisman, walked to the side and listened to the message that Zhang Shuyue had sent to him.

    ¡°Brother Zhou...sa--...save me...wu-wu-wuu...¡± Zhang Shuyue¡¯s voice sounded both hoarse and tense, as though she were being tormented by something.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart immediately constricted as he hurriedly asked, ¡°Miss Zhang, where are you right now? Did you run into the assants?¡±

    ¡°I...I don¡¯t know...I¡¯m so scared right now. I was going to look for you when I suddenly ran into a group of men whose origins I don¡¯t know about. They threatened me, asking me to reveal your whereabouts. When I refused to disclose anything to them, they even threatened to kill me...wu-wu-wuu...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, don¡¯t worry!¡± Zhou Zilong attempted to console her, ¡°If you¡¯re able to send a Messenger Paper Crane to us right now, then do so. We¡¯lle save you immediately.¡±

    ¡°Wu-wu-wuu...alright, brother Zhou. You¡¯re the best. It¡¯s a good thing you haven¡¯t left yet, otherwise...otherwise I really won¡¯t know what else I can do...wu-wu-wuu...¡± Zhang Shuyue whimpered and wailed on her end, hoping to elicit the greatest amount of urgency and sympathy from Zhou Zilong. How could Zhou Zilong possibly resist the relentless battering of her masterful pretenses?

    ¡°We¡¯ve not left yet, so we¡¯ll immediately head over to rescue you before leaving together.¡± Zhou Zilong solemnly made a promise to Zhang Shuyue, unaware that he was ying right into her hands.

    On the other end of the Transmittance Talisman, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s lips curled into a wicked smile as she cursed him in her heart ¨C Fool. Finally, she put on her pathetic voice once more and added meekly, ¡°Mm,e quickly. I¡¯m really scared right now.¡±

    Then, ending off her masterss with icing on the cake, she squealed urgently and cut off the transmission midway through the squeal.

    Xiang Guqing chuckled softly after the transmission ended, ¡°Disciple, master has to admit that she¡¯d taken your words with a pinch of salt back when you¡¯d mentioned that this man was a fool. After all, how many men are there in this cultivation world that could truly be so foolish? Most of them would merely be putting on a pretense. But having heard the conversation that¡¯s just transpired, I truly believe you¡¯ve encountered a fool among fools.¡±

    ¡°Hah, isn¡¯t that so?¡± Zhang Shuyue chuckled coyly ¨C not a single peep of pretension remained.

    ¡°Miss Zhang? Shuyue, Shuyue?!¡± Zhou Zilong continued to shout at his Transmittance Talisman on the other end. When he realized that the transmission had been cut off, he began to grow incredibly anxious, as though an ant on a hot pan.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on over here?¡± Given Zhou Zilong¡¯s ostensibly loud outburst, Ye Xiuwen immediately walked over and checked in with Zhou Zilong on the situation. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s brows were slightly furrowed, and there was a measure of displeasure in his voice.

    He rarely spoke to his martial brothers in such a stern, harsh fashion. However, Zhou Zilong¡¯s actions this time were truly going overboard. Little Martial Sister was doing all she could to unlock the formation array. What reason did he have to cause such a huge ruckus over here? What if he ended up distracting Little Martial Sister?

    Zhou Zilong realized btedly that he had created quite the scene with his outburst of reaction, and he couldn¡¯t help but blush with some measure of embarrassment. That said, in the very next moment, when he thought about Zhang Shuyue¡¯s predicament right now, he immediately suppressed his feelings and grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, Miss Zhang has just contacted me via a transmission, pleading for me to rescue her. She appears to have been caught and trapped by the assants, and she¡¯s in a very dangerous situation right now. Should we...¡±

    ¡°You want to go save her?¡± Ye Xiuwen cut off Zhou Zilong andpleted the sentence for him. His gaze had grown ashen, and his eyes were deep and abstruse.

    Faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s imposing gaze, Zhou Zilong began to sense some measure of coldness emanating from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s overall disposition.

    Martial Brother Ye has never looked at us Heavenly Peak martial brother with such a gaze before. Is this an illusion?

    Yet Zhou Zilong quickly shelved these thoughts to the backburner and continued pleading with Ye Xiuwen, ¡°That¡¯s right, Martial Brother Ye. I would like to rescue her. If we don¡¯t do anything to rescue her urgently, who knows what kind of danger might befall her?¡±

    ¡°Enough! Zilong, are you losing your rationality to your emotions?!¡± Ye Xiuwen castigated him coldly, ¡°You hope that we can go rescue Zhang Shuyue, but have you ever given any consideration as to just how much time and effort Xiaomo needs to break this formation array over here? Are you even aware of just how much preparation Xiaomo has made just so that tonight¡¯s operation can go on smoothly? You casually fling around your intention to ¡®rescue Miss Zhang¡¯, but have you even considered the gravity of the situation we¡¯re in right now? You might very well be leading us into the enemies¡¯ entrapment! Can you really bear to see all of us go down in one fell swoop like that?! Can you bear to see all of Xiaomo¡¯s efforts go to waste just like that?!¡±

    ¡°I...I¡¯m not...but, Miss Zhang has refused to disclose our location despite having been captured. If we don¡¯t go rescue her right now, wouldn¡¯t her sacrifice be in vain?¡± Zhou Zilong was slightly taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s indignation, but he continued to maintain that his point of view was right.

    ¡°Zilong, I¡¯m disappointed in you.¡± The coldness in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes was suddenly reced by a sense of immense loss, ¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you ¨C one of the assants tonight is Zhang Shuyue¡¯s master. This is something that Xiaomo has told me, and it¡¯s up to you whether to believe it or not. However, I¡¯m not going to throw caution to the wind and bring all of our martial brothers back right now, because I¡¯ve got to be responsible for everyone¡¯s lives. As for you...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen paused for a moment, before a trace of grief and resolution flickered across the depths of his eyes, ¡°If you really must go, you¡¯ll have to go alone. Once we open the passageway, we¡¯ll wait for another hour. If you still don¡¯t appear then, we¡¯ll leave without you.¡±

    This was thergestpromise that Ye Xiuwen could afford to make.

    Zhou Zilong paused for a moment, before he fell to his knees and gave Ye Xiuwen a resounding kowtow, ¡°I sincerely thank Martial Brother Ye for giving in to me...and...once Martial Sister Xiaomo is done with the needful, please give her my apologies.¡±

    As Zhou Zilong finished speaking, he stood up and sprinted back to where they hade from, vanishing into the long, dark road before them.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, where has Martial Brother Zhou gone?¡± One of the Heavenly Peak disciples noticed Zhou Zilong¡¯s departure and asked Ye Xiuwen curiously.

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. He¡¯s just gone off to attend to a small matter. He¡¯ll be backter.¡± Ye Xiuwen gave an enigmatic response.

    ¡°Oh.¡± The disciple nodded his head and shelved his thoughts for now as he continued to transfix his gaze on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips stretched out to a thin grimace as intense grief began to surface in the depths of his eyes.

    Truth be told, both Zhou Zilong and Ye Xiuwen were well aware that Zhou Zilong might never return again. After all, Zhou Zilong could never resist the assants¡¯ attacks all by himself.

    When he made the decision to head back to the valley, Zhou Zilong had already embraced the prospects of death. His heart and mind were both at peace with the notion of sacrificing himself to protect the person he loved. At the very least, he knew his death would not have been in vain.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen needed to consider the lives of the other seventeen martial brothers who were with him right now. He simply couldn¡¯t afford to risk everyone¡¯s lives just because of a simple, selfish request on Zhou Zilong¡¯s part. This was a burden that he had to shoulder alone as the First-Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak.

    ¡°I just hope that the sense of unease guing my heart is nothing more than an illusion.¡± Ye Xiuwen sighed softly and muttered to himself as he turned his gaze back towards Jun Xiaomo. A trace of warmth and hope began to fill the darkness in his eyes once more.

 Chapter 339: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Appearance, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Misery

    <h4>Chapter 339: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Appearance, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Misery</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Not long after Zhou Zilong¡¯s departure, Jun Xiaomo gradually collected the threads of spiritual energy that she had suffused through the grooves and recesses of the master formation array.

    She had expended an incredible amount of mental energy shifting each of the ink-ck stones onto the positions she needed them to be. Thus, when she collected her spiritual energy, she discovered that she had already pushed herself beyond her limits.

    Jun Xiaomo took a few steps back from the heart of the master formation array, thinking of taking a break before continuing. Just then, a powerful wave of weariness washed over her, sending her mind spinning. Her body swayed slightly, and her knees buckled. Then, everything in front of her suddenly went ck, and she fell backwards.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    Several martial brothers cried out at the same time. Ye Xiuwen was standing closest to Jun Xiaomo right now, and he immediately extended his arm to support Jun Xiaomo. Unexpectedly, there was someone whose actions were quicker than his.

    A ck shadow flickered across in front of him, and Jun Xiaomonded safely in the bosom of a man wearing the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s uniform.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister! Who are you? What are you trying to do to Martial Sister Xiaomo?!¡± Another one of the Heavenly Peak disciples immediately barked as he adopted a threatening, offensive stance with his body.

    There were so many of them around, yet not a single person had detected the man¡¯s sudden and swift arrival! Just when did this person slip into their midst?

    The man calmly lifted his head and nced dispassionately at the Heavenly Peak disciples. Then, he quickly lowered his head and gazed deeply at Jun Xiaomo as she rested in his bosom. His deep and abstruse eyes were evidently filled withplex and profound emotions right now.

    ¡°Brother Rong, it¡¯s been a while.¡± Ye Xiuwen walked towards the man and greeted him casually.

    So, it¡¯s someone that Martial Brother Ye knows. As soon as the Heavenly Peak disciples heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s casual greeting, they began to lower their stances.

    Rong Ruihan lifted his head once more and sized up Ye Xiuwen. It was evident that he could no longer recognize Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled faintly, ¡°I¡¯m Ye Xiuwen.¡±

    ¡°So, it¡¯s you.¡± A trace of realization surfaced in the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s blood-red eyes as he curtly responded, ¡°It¡¯s been a while.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he ignored Ye Xiuwen and turned his gaze back to Jun Xiaomo as she continued to lie in his bosom.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows. The manner that Rong Ruihan was embracing and supporting his Little Martial Sister made it seem as though she were his possession. It was far too ring to his eyes.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen was contemting how he could ask Rong Ruihan to set his Little Martial Sister down, Jun Xiaomo began to stir. After groaning slightly, Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes once more.

    ¡°You are...?¡± The first thing Jun Xiaomo noticed was the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s uniform, and a trace of bewilderment surfaced on her heart.

    She was still slightly groggy from having overused her mind and spirit, and her reactions were naturally slightly more retarded at this moment.

    ¡°Xiaomo.¡± Ye Xiuwen took a few steps forward, thinking to pull Jun Xiaomo back from Rong Ruihan¡¯s embrace. Unfortunately, with one quick leap, Rong Ruihan moved several paces back with Jun Xiaomo, increasing his distance from Ye Xiuwen again.

    Rong Ruihan looked up and sized up Ye Xiuwen once more. It was evident that there was some measure of disdain in the depths of his blood-red eyes right now.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze immediately grew frigid and cold. He was an item with Martial Sister Xiaomo, so what was Rong Ruihan doing cutting in between them like that?!

    The Heavenly Peak disciples watched Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan with bated breaths. Even as outsiders, all of them could tell that their present interactions reeked of a confrontation over the right to love.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo finally regained rity of mind, and she immediately recognized the man who was supporting her.

    ¡°Brother Rong?¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked curiously as she muttered.

    Was she still asleep? Why was Brother Rong carrying her? No, what was she doing earlier...?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s greeting tugged strongly at Rong Ruihan¡¯s heartstrings. He lowered his head once more and gazed into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clear, pristine eyes. He could see his very own reflection in her eyes.

    ¡°Xiaomo.¡± Rong Ruihan appeared to have just encountered a gust of warm wind, melting away the thickyer of ice encasing his heart, revealing its soft tenderness once more.

    I guess this man still knows how to smile, huh... The Heavenly Peak disciples eximed in their hearts.

    In fact, Rong Ruihan was hardly a stranger to any of them. After all, they had all interacted with Rong Ruihan during the previous Secondary Inter-Sect Competition. However, that period of interaction was far too short, and they had not seen Rong Ruihan for the years toe since then. Thus, they could hardly be med for having forgotten his appearances and mistaking him for one of the assants.

    Jun Xiaomo groaned again and furrowed her brows. Then, scratching her dazed head, she muttered to herself, ¡°Why does this dream appear to be so real? Is this an illusion that my mind has constructed in my stupor?¡±

    Rong Ruihan began tough heartily, ¡°What do you think? Is this an illusion, Xiaomo? Or are you saying that you dream of me all the time?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face grew ashen as soon as Rong Ruihan¡¯s words echoed out ¨C I¡¯m Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rightful lover! How can Rong Ruihan be teasing Little Martial Sister under my nose like that? What does he take me for? A dead person?!

    The Heavenly Peak disciples exchanged sheepish nces as their eyes vacited between Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan ¨C No way. Are we really going to get into an internal tussle before our enemies even arrive?

    Rong Ruihan was unaware of the icy cold gaze that Ye Xiuwen had trained on his body. To the best of Rong Ruihan¡¯s knowledge, the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen was still the same as that which it had been since ages ago ¨C there were feelings for each other, but the extent of their rtionship was stillpletely unclear. That being the case, he knew that he still had a chance to slip in and steal Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart before it was toote.

    Gradually, Jun Xiaomo began to realize that she was not in fact in a dream. She looked about nkly at her surroundings and began to recall just what she had been doing moments ago ¨C she had earlier been breaking through the valley¡¯s master formation array, and she had only passed out momentarily because of the intense strain to her mind and spirits.

    Then, she noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ashen expression, before turning her eyes to how Rong Ruihan appeared to be carrying in his bosom right now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face immediately flushed awkwardly, and she hurriedly pushed Rong Ruihan away as she scrambled back to her feet. Then, coughing dryly, she attempted to avoid the elephant in the room, ¡°Brother Rong, I¡¯d never expected to see you here.¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind hadpletely returned to normal right now.

    A victorious gleam flickered across the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as he strode over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side. Then, cing his arm around her shoulder, he added, ¡°I¡¯d previously already suspected that the person in the paper crane¡¯s image was brother Rong. Unfortunately, the lighting was too dim for me to state that with any certainty.¡±

    ¡°Is that so?¡± Jun Xiaomo turned to look curiously into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. For some strange reason, something told her that there were implications hidden behind the express meaning of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words.

    Ye Xiuwen patted her head and smiled, remaining silent.

    Rong Ruihan could feel the lingering warmth in his bosom gradually fading away. When he witnessed how the interaction between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen left no room for a third party, his heart felt incredibly empty, as though a piece of his heart had been irretrievably carved out and crushed to pieces.

    A pained expression surfaced in the depths of Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes. Unfortunately, neither Ye Xiuwen nor Jun Xiaomo noticed this.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples exchanged sheepish nces once more. In that instant, everyone felt at aplete loss as to how they should deal with Rong Ruihan. He was Martial Brother Ye¡¯s love rival, and yet he was also ostensibly on good terms with Little Martial Sister.

    In the end, it was Chen Feiyu who broke the silence first as he addressed Rong Ruihan, ¡°Brother Rong, you appear to be rather familiar with Little Martial Sister and Martial Brother Ye. I presume you knew each other from somewhere?¡±

    Rong Ruihan turned his gaze away from Jun Xiaomo and looked at Chen Feiyu.

    ¡°I guess you can say we¡¯ve experienced some things together.¡± Rong Ruihan responded cidly. However, his face no longer gleamed with the same radiance it had earlier when he was first reunited with Jun Xiaomo just moments ago.

    ¡°So that¡¯s the case...¡± Chen Feiyu was struggling to make conversation, but he could sense that the atmosphere was getting increasingly tense and awkward, ¡°Then are you from the Eternal Summit Sect? I noticed that you¡¯re wearing their uniform.¡±

    ¡°No. I was here to look for an old friend. Donning the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s uniform was something I¡¯d done in order to slip into their ranks.¡± Rong Ruihan explicatednguidly. Then, turning his gaze to Jun Xiaomo, a swathe ofplex emotions surfaced in the depths of his blood-red eyes, ¡°Since you¡¯re well and good, I guess it¡¯s time for me to take my leave.¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s final statement was evidently directed straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Hang on a minute, brother Rong. Since you¡¯re already here, why are you leaving in such a hurry? Besides, it¡¯s not safe back there. You should leave together with us.¡± Jun Xiaomo anxiously tugged at Rong Ruihan¡¯s sleeves as she attempted to persuade her.

    Rong Ruihan looked at his sleeves that Jun Xiaomo was holding. Then, sweeping his gaze across to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders where Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms were resting, his heart sank once more.

    He had begun to realize that he might well have missed his opportunity. This was a sight that he was least willing to see.

    Since Jun Xiaomo already has someone around her, is there really a need for me to remain around here? Rong Ruihan mocked himself contemptuously. He thought about the series of dreams that had gued him for such a long time, before turning his mind to contemte all the thoughts of vengeance in his heart over thest ten years. All of a sudden, everything felt like a dream ¨C a dream that he would soon wake up from, only to realize that everything which he had done for the girl of his dreams had been in vain. Everything that he had done had been borne out of mere unrequited love.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s blood-red eyes deepened slightly in colour, and they appeared as though they were about to bleed in the very next moment.

    After gazing into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes once more with deep contemtion, Rong Ruihan finally responded, ¡°We¡¯ll leave it at that. I¡¯d onlye here to ascertain the veracity of the rumours. I¡¯m satisfied knowing that you¡¯re still alive and well.¡±

    As Rong Ruihan finished speaking, he turned around, motioning to head back on the path that he hade from.

    ¡°Wait a minute, brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart bemoaned in anguish, and she rushed forward and held Rong Ruihan tightly by his arm, ¡°Don¡¯t go out that way ¨C it¡¯s dangerous. The Eternal Summit Sect and Zhang Shuyue¡¯s sect will be waiting for you. You¡¯re only going to end up walking into an ambush if you keep going on like that.¡±

    ¡°Their target isn¡¯t me. Furthermore, I¡¯ve got Invisibility Talismans with me.¡± Rong Ruihan cidly responded, evidently unmoved by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words.

    Jun Xiaomo burst out with rage, ¡°Do you think that Invisibility Talismans make you invulnerable? Do you really think that they wouldn¡¯t have thought of the possibility that you would be using an Invisibility Talisman? Since you¡¯re already here, why don¡¯t you want to leave together with us? Are you trying to distress me with the worry and concern that something¡¯s happened to you after I leave this ce?!¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s cold and stoic expressions finally cracked slightly at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s final statement.

    ¡°Would you worry for my safety?¡± Rong Ruihan stared at Jun Xiaomo, taking in every slightest shift in expression on her face, ¡°Tell me truthfully ¨C does my life mean anything to you?¡±

    Rong Ruihan waited expectantly for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s answer. Her answer would determine whether he stayed, or whether he left.

 Chapter 340: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Bitterness, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Misery

    <h4>Chapter 340: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Bitterness, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Misery</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo red at Rong Ruihan with her fists tightly clenched. As the indignation burgeoned in her heart, her chest began to undte in tandem with her heavy breath. Her eyes began to grow red and puffy.

    A slight reservation began to surface on his heart when Rong Ruihan first noticed the redness around the rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. However, he forcibly suppressed those feelings of his ¨C he needed an answer, right here, right now.

    Jun Xiaomo drew a deep breath, and with an incredibly cid tone of voice, she muttered disdainfully, ¡°Brother Rong, I never knew that I was such a cold-blooded person in your heart.¡±

    Even though she had sessfully repressed the urge to explode on Rong Ruihan, the multitude of ferociously shing emotions in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was evident through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly trembling voice.

    Truth be told, such a sight was incredibly heart-wrenching.

    This was not the response that Rong Ruihan had been looking for. He knew full well that his life meant something to Jun Xiaomo. What he truly wanted to know was just how much his life meant to her. After all, when Ye Xiuwen vanished, he could see with his own two eyes the extent of the despondence and hurt in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    Therefore, the question that had been guing his heart and his mind was whether Jun Xiaomo would react in the very same way had he been the one to vanish instead? Or was he simply no more than a sojourner in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, forever relegated to ying second fiddle after Ye Xiuwen?

    However, he would never intentionally falsify a disappearing act just to ascertain the weight of his existence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. After all, he had even contemted the possibility that he might one day earn himself a ce at the center of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart if Ye Xiuwen remained missing forever.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo ¡°perished¡± from the world before he could get any form of response from her. Then, yearster, he learnt that both Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had returned to the world at approximately the same time. To make matters worse, he learnt that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen only appeared to have grown closer to each other despite having been apart for such a long time. At that point in time, Rong Ruihan suddenly began to question whether he had been nothing more than a supporting cast in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life.

    In his series of dreams, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart had always belonged to Qin Lingyu, and there was no room for his existence at all. No matter how much he did for her, and no matter how much he sacrificed in order to get vengeance against the world for Jun Xiaomo and their child, he was no more than a sojourner in her life. At that point in time, Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t even know of his existence at all.

    Then, in this life, he finally had the chance to meet and interact with Jun Xiaomo, and he had even managed to establish a reasonably cordial rtionship with her. Unfortunately, it seemed that Ye Xiuwen was already in the center of her heart ¨C Rong Ruihan had still been a step toote.

    Since the oue had already been decided, what use was there running into Jun Xiaomo time and again? Was it merely so that he could see Jun Xiaomo get together with someone else other than himself over and over again? Was he truly fated to stand at the side and give her his blessings from the shadows?

    Rong Ruihan was not Ye Xiuwen ¨C he could never repress the deepest feelings in his heart. He was unable to deny himself and sacrifice everything he had and did in order to be that responsible ¡°older martial brother¡± to Jun Xiaomo like Ye Xiuwen could. In Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes, as long as the oue was already decided, he would much prefer if everything ended here and now, so that he could start afresh with someone else.

    All in all, he was tired. Thus, he wanted Jun Xiaomo to give him her response right now ¨C a response that would determine whether he shouldpletely give up on her or continue to pursue her.

    However, he could tell from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions that she might not even be aware of the answer he was seeking right now. After all, Jun Xiaomo was indeed somewhat slow to catch onto the matters pertaining to the heart.

    Rong Ruihan grimaced, and a sense of bitterness began to fill his mouth. However, his gaze remainedpletely cid. He continued to gaze upon Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reddened rims, pretending to bepletely unfazed and unaffected by everything she had just said.

    Ye Xiuwen could be considered both an outsider and an insider to the situation. He could be considered an outsider because he waspletely out of the loop as to the interactions between Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan while he was missing in the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    However, he was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s main suitor right now. In fact, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had unmistakably already confessed their feelings for each other. Therefore, it was natural for him to feel aggrieved seeing Rong Ruihan¡¯s present interaction with Jun Xiaomo. In these regards, he could be considered an insider.

    No man could ever tolerate the sight of their better halves getting their lives inextricably intertwined with another man. Ye Xiuwen was no exception to this either. That said, Jun Xiaomo was also more than just ady whom Ye Xiuwen was fond of ¨C she was also his dear martial sister.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen was already used to giving Jun Xiaomo a wide berth of indulgence, almost to a fault.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instincts told him that apromise was necessary if they were to derive a temporal resolution to the tense situation at hand. In this regard, Ye Xiuwen knew that he was in the best position to do so.

    Sighing in his heart, he walked to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and covered her eyes with his hands, ¡°Alright, don¡¯t be mad. Brother Rong had said all those things in a fit of muddle-headedness. After all, nobody likes to see their own friends get into a dangerous predicament, right?¡±

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words were directed at Jun Xiaomo, his gaze had beenpletely fixated on Rong Ruihan.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was evenced with a trace of threatening intent ¨C Don¡¯t you dare push your luck too far.

    Rong Ruihan found the term of reference, ¡°friends¡±, used by Ye Xiuwen incredibly harsh to his ears. Even though this was a factual statement, it sounded especially distasteful when it came right out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips.

    After all, if he were merely a friend to Jun Xiaomo, then what about Ye Xiuwen? Was he merely a martial brother as well?

    Rong Ruihan did all he could to repress the turbulent feelings within his heart. After a moment of silence, he shifted his attention back to Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands were still covering Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, and she did nothing to resist or struggle either. Thus, Rong Ruihan was neither able to see the expression hidden in the depths of her eyes, nor read the expression on her face.

    That said, Rong Ruihan could vividly feel the hurt in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart for some strange reason.

    His tightly clenched fists finally loosened up, and the fortress that he had built around his heart crumbled to the ground in just an instant. s, he still had a soft spot for her...

    Reluctantly, Rong Ruihan sighed and announced hispromise, ¡°Alright, we can talk about these things next time. I¡¯ll leave this ce with you for now. It¡¯s not going to be an easy task for you to resist Xiang Guqing and the other assants with just your strength alone anyway.¡±

    Rong Ruihan had finally found a passable excuse for staying behind, and Ye Xiuwen also removed his hands from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes at about the same time.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen had done so without warning at all, and Jun Xiaomo involuntarily drew a deep breath in surprise. She had wanted him to keep his palms over her eyes for a little while longer. Unfortunately, his movements were far too quick, and her surroundings revealed itself in the very next moment.

    That said, her surroundings appeared somewhat hazy ¨C everyone around could immediately see the tear-stains strewn all over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s red, puffy eyes.

    ¡°Xiaomo, you...you¡¯re crying?¡± It suddenly dawned on Rong Ruihan that he might very well have gone overboard earlier. Otherwise, he knew, given Jun Xiaomo¡¯s resilient personality, that there was no way she would shed tears so easily.

    From what Rong Ruihan knew, thest time that Jun Xiaomo cried like that was when Ye Xiuwen had disappeared into the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    ¡°None of your business!¡± Jun Xiaomo red indignantly at Rong Ruihan as she bellowed. At the same time, her tears began to flow uncontrobly from the rims of her eyes, rolling off her cheeks and into the soil below her feet.

    Jun Xiaomo had never been a person who exposed her vulnerabilities to people so easily. Yet for some strange reason, when Ye Xiuwen put his soft, tender hands around her eyes, her tears began to flow uncontrobly, like waters bursting out of an overflowing dam.

    She had never wanted others to see her crying as a result of such trivial matters, much less that damned perpetrator, Rong Ruihan!

    However, Ye Xiuwen had removed his hands without warning, causing her to be unable to react to the situation in time.

    Rong Ruihan took arge step forward and pulled Jun Xiaomo into an embrace. Then, patting her back, he began to coax her, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry. Brother Rong had gone overboard earlier. I¡¯m sorry...¡±

    A multitude ofplex emotions washed across the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. Then, grimacing, he forcibly repressed the urge to stretch out his arm to break up their interaction.

    Jun Xiaomo remainedpletely taciturn all this while. As soon as Rong Ruihan began to console her, more tears began to flow from her eyes.

    Truth be told, she had never desired to weep like that in front of so many onlookers. Unfortunately, she was unable to control her tear. After all, she couldn¡¯t help but feel incredibly aggrieved in her heart, as though something unknown were stifling and frustrating her.

    Rong Ruihan soon began to feel the dampness in his clothing. At this moment, his heart was filled with a confluence of exasperation, tenderness, and bitterness.

    Perhaps his fate was so inextricably intertwined with Jun Xiaomo in these lifetimes because he owed a great debt of gratitude to Jun Xiaomo two lives ago.

    Forget it. We¡¯ll take things one step at a time. Rong Ruihan thought to himself.

    Then, when Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tears began to dry up, Rong Ruihan gently released her from his embrace. Then, cing his hand on her shoulder, he looked into her eyes and told her in all seriousness, ¡°Xiaomo, brother Rong won¡¯t force an answer out of you now, and I¡¯ll give you my word that we¡¯ll leave this ce together. Once we manage to find a safe ce, I¡¯ll let you have a good think about it. At that time, I¡¯ll decide once more whether to stay or to leave, alright?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked at him in bewilderment, wondering what exactly Rong Ruihan wanted her to give a ¡°good think about¡±. Nevertheless, she still nodded her head.

    Rong Ruihan smiled with some measure of helplessness. Then, he patted her head, ¡°Didn¡¯t you mention that you¡¯re going to bring us out of this ce safely? I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve still got some work to do on the formation array, don¡¯t you? What are you waiting for? Let¡¯s get going, then.¡±

    ¡°Oh! That¡¯s right!¡± Jun Xiaomo rubbed her eyes hastily, before scrambling back towards the heart of the master formation array.

    Once Jun Xiaomo began to immerse herself with the intricacies of breaching the master formation array¡¯s defenses once more, Rong Ruihan turned his attention back towards Ye Xiuwen, and they locked eyes with each other.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was hardly a friendly one. After all, both saw each other as a rival in love, and neither could stand the other¡¯s existence. If not for the fact that their present circumstances were rather peculiar and delicate, and if not for the fact that both knew the importance of the other in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, they might well already have exchanged blows with each other.

    Just you wait and see. I¡¯m going to make sure that you pay for making Jun Xiaomo cry this time. These were the words spoken through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intense gaze.

    Bring it on. When Jun Xiaomo abandons you and chooses me, you¡¯d do well not to continue pestering her like an annoying little fly. Rong Ruihan raised an eyebrow, epting Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ¡°deration of war¡±.

    As the other Heavenly Peak disciples watching the tense drama unfurl wiped off the sweat on their foreheads, they couldn¡¯t help but exim in their hearts ¨C What intense, overbearing pressure! Just what is it with Martial Sister Xiaomo¡¯s luck with men? Why is it that every single man she attracts seems to be stronger than the other?

 Chapter 341: A Heroic Zhou Zilong, Xiang Guqing Employs A Scheme

    <h4>Chapter 341: A Heroic Zhou Zilong, Xiang Guqing Employs A Scheme</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as Jun Xiaomo was working hard to unlock the master formation array, Zhou Zilong was following the paper crane which Zhang Shuyue had sent him back to the location it hade from. Stumbling and fumbling about, he gradually drew closer and closer to where Zhang Shuyue and the othersy waiting for him.

    Zhou Zilong had taken the very same route connecting Zhang Shuyue¡¯s residence to the heart of the valley just a little while ago. Back then, he hardly noticed the environment around him because his martial brothers were all around him at that time. But now, as he travelled alone, he began to discover the eerie, deafening silence around him ¨C neither rushing winds nor the rustling of leaves, and not a single chirrup from bugs or birds either. The only thing that Zhou Zilong could hear were his own heavy breaths and thundering footsteps.

    He knew that returning on his own might very well mean his own demise. After all, there was hardly any chance he could possibly rescue Zhang Shuyue given his own abilities. However, he did not mind this. In fact, he was prepared for this ¨C he wanted more than anything to follow his heart and live without regrets.

    Zhou Zilong did not me Martial Brother Ye and the others for not tagging along for this selfish request of his. He knew that Martial Brother Ye had his responsibilities and duties, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s considerations were far greater than his own. If Zhou Zilong were in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoes, he might have made the same decision as well.

    Thus, Zhou Zilong made peace with his decision and returned alone. Even though he knew full well that he might be walking straight back into the lion¡¯s den, he still returned with naught a single hesitation in his heart.

    Zhang Shuyue and Xiang Guqing were already waiting for him along the way back. They had set up an ambush, eagerly expecting Zhou Zilong¡¯s return together with the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples so that they could pounce on all of them and capture them in one fell swoop.

    In fact, it was fine even if only half of them returned to ¡°rescue Zhang Shuyue¡±. They knew that they could always capture Zhou Zilong and his group, before interrogating them for the location of the rest of their martial brothers. At that time, they would most certainly be able to capture everyone without fail.

    Unfortunately, reality clearly fell outside of their expectations. None of them had expected the only person returning to be Zhou Zilong. In other words, they had painstakinglyid out a massive ambush, only to capture no more than a shrimp in the grand scheme of things.

    Xiang Guqing looked around and about Zhou Zilong with disbelief. Yet, no matter how hard she strained her eyes, she found no traces of others returning with Zhou Zilong. Thus, she immediately turned to her disciple Zhang Shuyue and queried, ¡°Shuyue, are you certain that you¡¯ve impressed upon Zhou Zilong that your present situation is extremely dire and dangerous?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve positively ryed that to him.¡± Zhang Shuyue felt rather aggrieved, ¡°He¡¯d even sworn that he would bring all of the Heavenly Peak martial brothers with him to rescue me.¡±

    Who could have known that this man was such ackluster fool? Why has he returned all alone? Did he not tell anyone else that he was returning to save a life?

    ¡°Hah, it seems that we¡¯ve underestimated their leader, Ye Xiuwen.¡± Xiang Guqing chuckled coldly.

    ¡°Master, why do you say that?¡± Zhang Shuyue couldn¡¯t understand what Ye Xiuwen had to do with all of this. Her heart would always burn with great indignation and reluctance whenever his name was mentioned.

    ¡°From what I can see, it¡¯s not that Zhou Zilong failed to inform his other martial brothers about your predicament. Rather, Ye Xiuwen must have prevented his other martial brothers froming back, telling Zhou Zilong that he has to return alone, if at all. In other words, he might already have been suspicious of you all this while.¡±

    ¡°He suspects me? That can¡¯t be right. What¡¯s there for him to be suspicious about? I¡¯ve never done anything to arouse any form of suspicion to begin with.¡± Zhang Shuyue retorted adamantly.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you forgotten that there¡¯s still the cunning Jun Xiaomo who¡¯s always acting like an advisor beside him. I¡¯ve heard from the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Dai Yanfeng that this little brat must not be underestimated, and she has many bizarre yet brilliant strategies and tricks up her sleeves. Ye Xiuwen has always deferred to everything that Jun Xiaomo says, and it could very well be the case that Jun Xiaomo has been badmouthing you behind your back.¡± Xiang Guqing analyzed the situation icily.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, that cheap slut! If I manage to get my hands on her ¨C when I manage to get my hands on her, I¡¯m going to tear that pping mouth off her face! We¡¯ll see what she can still do then!¡± Zhang Shuyue bellowed with indignation as her hatred for Jun Xiaomo burgeoned to new heights, ¡°Master, what do we do now? The other Heavenly Peak disciples aren¡¯ting. Are we going to continue waiting like this?¡±

    ¡°Of course we¡¯re not going to wait any longer. If we continue to wait like this, even a cooked pigeon is going to start flying again.¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s expressions darkened as she spoke. Then, a vicious, contemptuous smile crept up the corner of her lips, ¡°Even though Ye Xiuwen has adamantly refused to allow his martial brothers toe here and rescue you, I wonder how his reaction is going to be like when the person to be rescued is none other than his dearest martial brother, Zhou Zilong?¡±

    A bright gleam shed across Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, ¡°Great idea, master! Let¡¯s do it that way.¡±

    Thus, as soon as Zhou Zilong stepped into the epicenter of their ambush, a massive barbed suddenly appeared overhead, threatening to envelop and incapacitate him. Zhou Zilong was already prepared for exigencies like this. As soon as the appeared, he immediately rolled to the side, attempting to avoid the domain of the barbed.

    Unfortunately, the was massive, and it appeared to have some homing abilities ¨C no matter where Zhou Zilong dodged and rolled to, the would change its direction and continue to home in on him.

    Then, before Zhou Zilong could do anything to fight off the, itnded directly on his body, and its barbs viciously punctured his skin, lodging themselves well into his flesh, causing Zhou Zilong to cry out in pain.

    These barbs were no ordinary barbs. They formed part of a spirit tool that had been forged and refined time and again. As soon as the barbs stabbed into Zhou Zilong¡¯s body, he discovered that his entire body waspletely bound and constricted, and waves of intense heat even began to seep through his skin, surge through his meridians until they reached his Dantian.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s mind was overwhelmed by the electrifying waves of pain that were coursing through his body, and he began to fade in and out of consciousness. He knew that he was punching well above his weight ss bying back for Zhang Shuyue all alone, but he never expected to be so thoroughly inept and useless.

    Within moments, several figures stepped out of the shadows. Zhou Zilong was unable to lift his head to identify the persons responsible for the ambush he was caught in.

    However, even though he was unable to identify these perpetrators, Zhou Zilong could already guess that they were the one and the same as the assants who had infiltrated the valley under the cover of night earlier.

    By this time,rge beads of sweat had already begun to percte Zhou Zilong¡¯s forehead, rolling into his eyes from time to time, stinging them and blurring his vision.

    Then, he vaguely heard a woman instruct the rest with an icy cold voice, ¡°Drag him back.¡±

    As soon as she finished speaking, the figures that surrounded him immediately grabbed hold of the corners of the and began to drag him along the ground. The barbs on the dug deeper into Zhou Zilong¡¯s flesh, tearing his skin and causing him to cry out with even more pain.

    After what seemed like an eternity, Zhou Zilong finally felt the assants stop in their tracks, and they removed the barbed from his body.

    At this moment, Zhou Zilong discovered that his body was so mangled by the barbs on the that even his nerves felt as though they had beenpletely severed. The pain was so excruciating that he convulsed uncontrobly.

    ¡°Hmph. You¡¯re pretty brave, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯d even run back on your own in a feeble attempt to rescue others.¡±

    It was that same female voice again. This time, Zhou Zilong could see that there were several other men standing with thedy; their garbs swaying slightly in tandem with the wind.

    Zhou Zilong struggled hard to lift his head before he finally caught a glimpse of that woman¡¯s appearances ¨C it was a somber and stern lookingdy who was ring back at him with a cold glint in her eyes. Her gaze felt that like of an almost lifeless being, and there wasn¡¯t a single trace of warmth in them.

    ¡°Where...where¡¯s Shuyue?¡± Zhou Zilong licked his dry lips as he muttered with a hoarse voice.

    ¡°Shuyue? Who¡¯s Shuyue?¡± Xiang Guqing raised her eyebrows as she lied through her teeth, putting on a perfect pretense that Zhang Shuyue was ady whom she had never known.

    This man can still be of use to us if we don¡¯t disclose Zhang Shuyue¡¯s true identity to him. We can continue to pull the wool over his eyes and manipte him to do Zhang Shuyue¡¯s bidding. Xiang Guqing thought to herself.

    ¡°Shuyue...Shuyue is thatdy which you have captured. Where is she? What have you done with her?!¡± Zhou Zilong crawled towards Xiang Guqing and asked anxiously as he grabbed her around the ankle.

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s expressions immediately turned dark and disdainful. In the very next moment, she kicked Zhou Zilong¡¯s hands away and berated him, ¡°Who allowed you to get near me like that? You dare to touch me with your filthy hands? Do you believe that I¡¯ll have your hands severed in the next minute?!¡±

    Xiang Guqing had hated men ever since she was hurt by one in her youth. As long as a man drew too close to her and intruded on her personal space, she would invariably overreact and fly into a frenzy, much less when they directly touched her.

    If not for the fact that she still had some use for Zhou Zilong, she might very well have already sliced off Zhou Zilong¡¯s hands for his transgressions!

    Yet Zhou Zilongpletely ignored Xiang Guqing¡¯s attitude towards him. Instead, he simply looked up anxiously, entreating Xiang Guqing to respond to his earlier question, ¡°Tell me, where is Shuyue? What have you done with her?¡±

    As Xiang Guqing fought hard to repress the nauseating feeling in her belly, an idea struck her, and a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    She red at Zhou Zilong from on high as she cidly responded, ¡°Ohh, so that¡¯s who you¡¯re talking about ¨C that silly girl that remains unwilling to disclose your location despite having been captured by us. What¡¯s this? Are you trying to be a hero, rescuing a damsel in distress?¡±

    As soon as Zhou Zilong learnt that Zhang Shuyue had refused to disclose the whereabouts of the Heavenly Peak martial brothers to the group of assants, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of bitter astringency swell up from the depths of his heart. His desire to rescue Zhang Shuyue right now was stronger than ever.

    Even if he was unable to rescue Zhang Shuyue, everything was worth it if he could perish together with her.

    Thus, Zhou Zilong lifted his head once more and locked eyes with Xiang Guqing, ¡°The ones you¡¯re looking for are us, and she¡¯s got nothing to do with us. Please release Miss Zhang.¡±

    ¡°Hah? Release her? For what? So that she can warn those martial brothers of yours? I don¡¯t think so. I¡¯m not so dumb.¡± Xiang Guqing put on a perfect, disdainful pretense.

    Zhou Zilong grew anxious, and he began to repartee nervously, ¡°But there¡¯s no use keeping her either, is there? If you give me the chance to speak with her, I¡¯m sure I can convince her not to report any news to my martial brothers.¡±

    Xiang Guqing curled her lips into a sardonic smile, ¡°How are you so certain that she won¡¯t run to your martial brothers just because you¡¯ve told her not to? You¡¯re not a parasite living within her body; how could you possibly know what runs through her mind?¡±

    ¡°Then what do you want in exchange for her release? Tell me!¡± Zhou Zilong barked with indignation. His eyes had grown red and bloodshot by now.

    A bright gleam flickered in the depths of Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes, and she curled her lips into a wicked smile as she quipped meaningfully, ¡°You want me to release her...that¡¯s not an impossible request.¡±

    A trace of hope shone brightly in Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Hah. How about this ¨C you lure out your Heavenly Peak martial brothers to us, and we¡¯ll release Zhang Shuyue in exchange.¡± Zhang Shuyue stated her conditions clearly and sinctly as the grim smile on her face widened.

    What?! Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief. He had never expected Xiang Guqing to set such terms for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s release.

 Chapter 342: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Heart of Steel, Zhou Zilongâ€™s Sacrifice

    <h4>Chapter 342: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Heart of Steel, Zhou Zilong¡¯s Sacrifice</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zhou Zilong lowered his head,pletely sullen.

    He sincerely desired Zhang Shuyue¡¯s release. However, his martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak were equally important to him. Thus, he was evidently caught between a rock and a hard ce.

    Xiang Guqing knew that Zhou Zilong would never be able to provide her with a response so quickly. Thus, she pressed the issue with an ultimatum, ¡°Young man, you¡¯d best make a decision quickly. I don¡¯t have much patience. If you don¡¯t give me your response soon, I¡¯m going to start cutting Zhang Shuyue up into pieces right in front of your very eyes, and I¡¯m going to slowly torment her until she dies. What do you think? Make your decision ¨C do you want to see your beloved beauty perish, or do you wish to cooperate with us and lure your Heavenly Peak martial brothers to this ce?¡±

    Zhou Zilong gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly. His face began to twist and contort slightly in tandem with the struggle in his heart.

    Xiang Guqing watched Zhou Zilong¡¯s expressions with delight in her eyes and disdain in her heart ¨C See? Men are all the same. What¡¯s the use of putting on all these pretenses? As soon as something happens, they¡¯re always wavering and cing their own self-interests first.

    That said, Xiang Guqing was ny-percent confident that she was going to be able to extract apromise from Zhou Zilong. After all, she simply didn¡¯t believe that Zhou Zilong was willing to see Zhang Shuyue being tortured to death in front of his very own eyes.

    After what seemed like an eternity, the contorted expressions on Zhou Zilong¡¯s face finally faded, and in its ce was an expression of peace and tranquility.

    He lifted his head once more. His expressions were miserable, but his eyes were now filled with unprecedented resolution ¨C it was evident that he had made his decision.

    As to just what this decision was, Xiang Guqing was unable to adjudge this from merely his expressions.

    ¡°Let me see Miss Zhang first. I¡¯ll discuss the terms with you once I ascertain that she¡¯s safe and sound.¡± Zhou Zilong calmly stated his conditions. Xiang Guqing smiled victoriously, ¡°Alright. A wise man submits to his circumstances. You¡¯re clearly deeply in love with her.¡±

    Despite her ostensibly positive term of reference, only Xiang Guqing herself knew whether she was praising Zhou Zilong or whether she was mocking Zhou Zilong when she said that he was ¡°deeply in love¡±.

    At this moment, Xiang Guqing summoned two of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples standing closest to her, ¡°You two, go help the young man to his feet. It¡¯s evident that he won¡¯t be able to stand on his own strength right now.¡±

    The two Eternal Summit Sect disciples were well aware that Xiang Guqing¡¯s abilities were simr to Elder Dai¡¯s abilities. Thus, they dared not dally, and they immediately ran over to Zhou Zilong¡¯s side, squatted down and began to help him to his feet.

    Xiang Guqing turned around and walked past Zhou Zilong and the two disciples helping him up. Then, as soon as she was out of Zhou Zilong¡¯s line of sight, she cast a meaningful nce at one of her own disciples.

    Her disciple instantly knew what she meant and slipped away discreetly.

    The disciple was to locate Zhang Shuyue. In order to keep pretenses up, Zhang Shuyue had hidden herself elsewhere while the rest of them were capturing Zhou Zilong. Thus, Zhang Shuyue was kept in the dark as to what was going on right now.

    Since Zhou Zilong wanted to ascertain with his very own eyes that the ¡°captured¡± Zhang Shuyue was alive and well, they would have to make the necessary preparations so that Zhou Zilong wouldn¡¯t discover anything amiss.

    On the other side as soon as Zhang Shuyue learnt of Xiang Guqing¡¯s ns, she began to mutter to herself begrudgingly, ¡°Do I really have to keep putting on an act in front of that stupid fool? It¡¯s frustrating dealing with him!¡±

    ¡°Martial sister, bear with it for now. Don¡¯t you want Master to capture Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo so that you can have your revenge? The sess of our operation hinges on this scheme right now. If you can convince that fool to do all these things for you, we will most certainly be able to capture Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo. They value the lives of their own Heavenly Peak disciples the most. Otherwise, they would never have risked their lives to rescue their martial brothers from the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds to begin with.¡± The disciple rying the news did her best to persuade Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Sigh, alright, alright. Martial Sister Shuo, I understand. It¡¯s just an act of sympathy, nothing too difficult for me. I¡¯ll make the best of the situation.¡± Zhang Shuyue responded somewhat impatiently.

    If she could have it her way, she would much rather torture Zhou Zilong until he gives in and agrees to lure Ye Xiuwen out on their behalf.

    Just then, Xiang Guqing¡¯s footsteps and the chattering of voices began to draw closer to them. Zhang Shuyue and the other female disciple exchanged nces and nodding knowingly to each other.

    The female disciple walked out of the room and stood guard outside, while Zhang Shuyue put on a weak, feeble look on her face as sheid on the ground pathetically.

    As the footsteps drew even closer, Zhang Shuyue began to tear and rip apart some of her clothes, presenting herself in a much more tragic state than before.

    ¡°Is the little girl still in there?¡± Xiang Guqing asked her disciple that was standing guard outside the door meaningfully.

    In other words, Xiang Guqing was asking her disciple whether Zhang Shuyue was ready with her preparations.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Master. She¡¯s been in here all this time.¡± The female disciple responded politely with a knowing nod.

    With that, Xiang Guqing opened the door and walked straight into the room, only to be greeted by Zhang Shuyue¡¯s pitiful gaze as sheid weakly on the ground.

    ¡°How about it? I¡¯ve kept my word and let you see her.¡± Xiang Guqing turned around and addressed Zhou Zilong as he remained propped up on the shoulders of the two Eternal Summit Sect disciples, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you stick to your end of the deal and lure out your other martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak?¡±

    Zhou Zilong looked at Xiang Guqing and responded, ¡°I¡¯d like some time to speak with Miss Zhang in private. Once I¡¯m done with that, I¡¯ll discuss the terms of my cooperation with you.¡±

    A trace of disdain and indignation flickered across the depths of Xiang Guqing¡¯s eyes. However, she fervently suppressed any impulses to beat up Zhou Zilong and made a gesture to the rest as she quipped, ¡°All of you, stand down.¡±

    As soon as the others left the room, Xiang Guqing followed suit. Just before closing the door, she gently threatened him once more, ¡°You¡¯d best make things quick here. My patience is wearing thin.¡±

    Zhou Zilong curtly acknowledged Xiang Guqing¡¯s threat. Then, as soon as Xiang Guqing stepped out of the room and shut the door, he slumped to the ground. Fighting through the pain sweeping through his body, he managed to finally scramble to where Zhang Shuyue was lying on the ground. Holding her closely, he asked nervously, ¡°Miss Zhang, are you alright? What have they done to you?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue had been putting on a weak and feeble pretense all this while as she observed Zhou Zilong¡¯s approach. Then, when Zhou Zilong finally held her in his arms, a wave of disdain and disgust surged violently in her heart.

    She was hardly moved by the fact that Zhou Zilong hade looking for her all on his own. In fact, she found him to be aplete fool for having fallen for their pretenses time and again.

    And now, she was even forced to maintain her pretenses with this fool.

    ¡°Brother Zhou.¡± Zhang Shuyue feebly called out Zhou Zilong¡¯s name with reddened, puffy eyes, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯d never thought that they would hurt you to such an extent. Perhaps you should never havee back for me.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s disy of weakness tugged hard at the softest spot in Zhou Zilong¡¯s heart, and he responded, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I would regret it for the rest of my life had I note back for you. I...I don¡¯t want Miss Zhang to fall prey to any dangers.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue secretly felt pleased in her heart that she could mesmerize a fool to such an extent. However, she continued to ster an expression of being touched and moved on her face, ¡°Thank you, Brother Zhou. I¡¯m...I¡¯m so useless...wu-wu-wuu...¡±

    Zhang Shuyue buried her face in her palms, pretending to be despondent. However, the truth of the matter was that she was merely concealing herck of tears right now.

    ¡°Don¡¯t...don¡¯t say that. Miss Zhang has already done very well.¡± Zhou Zilong immediately consoled her. Then, with his arms wrapped around Zhang Shuyue¡¯s shoulders, he patted her back, ¡°You¡¯ve remained strong and refused to disclose our location.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue finally managed to eke out some tears from her eyes. She looked up and stared into Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes once more, ¡°Brother Zhou, I overheard your conversation with those guys earlier. Do you have a way to get us out of here?¡±

    Zhou Zilong hesitated for a moment, before nodding, ¡°I do have a way, but there¡¯s no certainty that it would work.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart leapt with joy, thinking ¨C Sess! She immediately added, ¡°Then, what n does Brother Zhou have?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re asking me to lure out my martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak. That way, they¡¯ll agree to release you.¡± Zhou Zilong informed Zhang Shuyue of the decision that he had to make.

    ying along, Zhang Shuyue gasped in horror as she furrowed her brows, ¡°How could they make you do that?! Brother Zhou, you must never give in! That would be tantamount to luring your martial brothers into a trap!¡±

    Zhang Shuyue had said all these things in order to disy her magnanimous and kindhearted nature. Unfortunately, she had never expected Zhou Zilong to nod inplete agreement ¨C

    ¡°Miss Zhang is right. Therefore, I¡¯ve never had the intention to lure my martial brothers to this ce.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue was instantly taken aback by Zhou Zilong¡¯s words, and her eyes widened slightly with disbelief. In that single instant, she was nearly unable to maintain her pretenses any longer ¨C Didn¡¯t you say that you had a way out for us?! Why have you denied the prospects of this solution now? Aren¡¯t you going to rescue me anymore?

    Regrettably, Zhou Zilong failed to notice the peculiar expression in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, and he simply continued, ¡°Miss Zhang, I¡¯m sorry. I know you¡¯ve sacrificed a lot for us, and you¡¯ve even kept our secrets for us all this while. However, my martial brothers are like my family. Even if I die, I cannot afford to lure them into a trap and send them to their deathbeds. Thus, even though they¡¯ve required these conditions of me, I¡¯ve never once entertained the thoughts ofpromising.¡±

    Zhou Zilong had lowered his head out of guilty conscience as he exined his thoughts. Thus, he failed to notice Zhang Shuyue¡¯s increasingly twisted and contrived expressions.

    Since you¡¯ve never thought of agreeing to our master¡¯s conditions to begin with, what¡¯s the use ofing here to see me?! Aren¡¯t you just wasting my time now?!!!

    As Zhou Zilong finished exining his present predicament and the guilt that was weighing on his heart, he retrieved a Humanoid Puppet Talisman and an Invisibility Talisman and added, ¡°Miss Zhang, these talismans are a Humanoid Puppet Talisman and an Invisibility Talisman respectively. Martial Sister Xiaomo had given these to me a little while ago, but I¡¯ve saved them just so that you can use them instead. You can first create a Humanoid Puppet that looks simr to you andy it on the floor, before using the Invisibility Talisman to conceal your appearances. Then, as soon as I open the door to leave this ce, you can take the chance to slip out as well. That way, they won¡¯t be able to capture you, and you¡¯ll be able to leave this ce safely.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue stared at the two talismans in Zhou Zilong¡¯s hands with apletely ashen expression.

    Humanoid Puppet Talisman...Invisibility Talisman...have we been utterly fooled by these two talismans tonight?! Damn! Jun, Xiao, Mo, you and your dastardly bizarre ideas!

    ¡°Miss Zhang?¡± Having noticed Zhang Shuyue¡¯s silence, Zhou Zilong prompted her once more.

    Zhang Shuyue was immediately jolted back to her senses. She lifted her head and gazed straight into Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes as she received the two talismans from him. Then, she lowered her head once more and muttered, ¡°Thanks, Brother Zhou.¡±

    With that, Zhou Zilong finally heaved a sigh of relief, and he revealed a pure, innocent smile on his face, ¡°No need for thanks. I can rest assured as long as Miss Zhang can leave this ce safely.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue curled her lips into a wicked smile. Then, as she stored the two talismans in her Interspatial Ring, she also retrieved a spirit sword and plunged it straight into Zhou Zilong¡¯s chest.

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened in horror, and the smile on his face stiffened up as blood began to flow incessantly from the gaping wound in his chest.

    ¡°Miss Zhang, you...¡±

    ¡°You idiotic buffoon! Everything would¡¯ve been fine and dandy had you obediently lured out Ye Xiuwen and the rest. You chose this road for yourself.¡± Zhang Shuyue coldly remarked as she stood up and nced disdainfully at Zhou Zilong with some measure of macabre delight in her eyes, ¡°Since you¡¯re about to die soon, then let me tell you everything ¨C I¡¯m none other than Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciple. Do you think I¡¯d really conceal the whereabouts of your martial brothers? From the onset, you¡¯ve done nothing more than to betray the Heavenly Peak and nudge your dear martial brothers closer and closer to the precipice of no return! Hahahahaha...¡±

    Zhou Zilong¡¯s throat grew increasingly dry and hoarse. He had words that he wanted to say, but nothing came out of his mouth.

    Where was Zhang Shuyue¡¯s weak and feeble disposition right now?

    I¡¯d been wrong. I¡¯d been wrong from the start...Martial Sister Xiaomo was right. Zhang Shuyue isn¡¯t a good person... Unfortunately, the realization hade far toote.

    Fortunately...fortunately, I¡¯d chosen not to betray my martial brothers for this woman.

    As soon as his mind contemted the one silver lining of his actions, the world around him faded to ck, and he sank deep into the dark abyss of no return.

    Zhang Shuyue pulled out the sword from Zhou Zilong¡¯s chest and flicked off his blood from the sword disdainfully.

    ¡°Hah. There are innumerable people lining up to sacrifice themselves for me. You¡¯re no more than an insignificant digit to me.¡± Zhang Shuyue mocked contemptuously as she strode out of the room, leaving Zhou Zilong¡¯s corpse lying motionless in the center of the room.

    If Jun Xiaomo were present right now, she would discover to her horror just how simr this scene was to something that had urred in her previous life. The only differencey in the fact that in her previous life, the person who had perished was none other than Ye Xiuwen...

 Chapter 343: Surrounded on All Sides, Jun Xiaomo Breaches the Master Formation Array

    <h4>Chapter 343: Surrounded on All Sides, Jun Xiaomo Breaches the Master Formation Array</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Xiang Guqing noticed Zhang Shuyue brazenly walking out of the room, leaving Zhou Zilong nowhere to be seen, she immediately took two steps forward and asked with a hushed voice, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Aren¡¯t you letting the cat out of the bag by walking out like that?¡±

    Reviling her pretenses, Zhang Shuyue pouted, ¡°I don¡¯t want to feign civility with that man anymore, so I killed him.¡±

    ¡°You! You silly girl! Who¡¯s going to lure the Heavenly Peak disciples into the trap now that he¡¯s dead?!¡± Xiang Guqing huffed in exasperation, fervently resisting the urge to rap her disciple hard on the head.

    Zhang Shuyue snorted, ¡°That fool had never thought to lure his martial brothers over to begin with. His sole intention was to deceive Master and create an opportunity for my escape.¡±

    Xiang Guqing bellowed in rage, condemning Zhou Zilong¡¯s actions, ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯ve said time and time again that men are no good things! None of them do anything apart from deceiving those around them!¡± As she finished speaking, she looked at Zhang Shuyue with some measure of resentment as she chided, ¡°And you, why did you act on such impulse? Even if he¡¯s not willing to lure out the Heavenly Peak disciples, we could at least torture him for a little and see what useful information we could glean from him. But everything is back to square one now that you¡¯ve killed him.¡±

    Aggrieved, Zhang Shuyue pouted slightly as she murmured, ¡°What else can we do? I¡¯ve already killed him...¡±

    Xiang Guqing deliberated for a moment before responding, ¡°In the circumstances, the only thing we can do is to rush straight towards the heart of the formation array in the depths of the valley. That brat Jun Xiaomo shouldn¡¯t be able to break through the formation array¡¯s defenses so quickly. We cane up with the contingencies once we¡¯re there.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fine as well. Given how much we outnumber them, there¡¯s no way that those vermin in the Qi Mastery stage of cultivation will be able to resist us in a full-on confrontation!¡± Zhang Shuyue barked viciously as an evil gleam shed across the depths of her eyes.

    When Xiang Guqing and the men from the Eternal Summit Sect finally made their way to the depths of the valley, Jun Xiaomo was already in the final phase of breaching the defenses of the master formation array.

    Jun Xiaomo had underestimated theplexities of the master formation array. Furthermore, given how well Xiang Guqing knew the way to the heart of the master formation array, they had arrived in the shortest time possible. Thus, the Heavenly Peak disciples found themselves squaring off directly against Xiang Guqing and the rest.

    Ye Xiuwen quickly swept his gaze across the group assants who had just arrived on the scene. He saw Xiang Guqing and Zhang Shuyue, but he didn¡¯t see Zhou Zilong. In that instant, his heart sank.

    He knew that Martial Brother Zhou might very well have met with his demise.

    As soon as Zhang Shuyue arrived at the heart of the master formation array, she immediately noticed Ye Xiuwen scanning the persons that had arrived on scene, and she could roughly guess what Ye Xiuwen was looking for. Her lips curled into a cold, wicked smile as she provoked Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Brother Ye, you wouldn¡¯t perchance be looking for that fool, Zhou Zilong, would you?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen red silently back at Zhang Shuyue with a tight grimace on his lips.

    Zhang Shuyue smiled knowingly as she continued to press the issue, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t waste your time. I¡¯ve already killed that fool. I¡¯d even plunged a sword straight through his heart.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils immediately constricted, and he coldly barked at Zhang Shuyue, ¡°Zhang Shuyue, do you know that Martial Brother Zhou has gone back just for you?¡±

    ¡°So what? Does that mean that I should shed tears of gratitude and spare his life?¡± Zhang Shuyue chuckled coquettishly, yet there was hardly a single trace of bemusement in her eyes, ¡°I don¡¯t need his saving to begin with. Why should I be grateful to him?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve tricked him. You¡¯d even mentioned that you were in a dangerous predicament.¡± Ye Xiuwen reminded Zhang Shuyue of the exact words she had used to fool Zhou Zilong.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. That fool fell for it and came running back to rescue me right away, only to end up perishing under my de. He can only me himself for being so useless. Master wanted him to lure you back to the valley, but he simply refused to do so.¡± Zhang Shuyue spoke with an incredibly cid tone of voice, as though she found nothing wrong with killing a person who truly and sincerely had feelings for her.

    All of the other Heavenly Peak disciples red furiously at Zhang Shuyue with intense hatred in their eyes.

    The Heavenly Peak was like a big family nucleus to them, and they treated each of their members as their kin. How could they possibly remain calm after learning that their family member had just been killed for no good reason?!

    None of them could fathom the thoughts running through Zhou Zilong¡¯s mind as Zhang Shuyue¡¯s sword ran straight through his heart. Just how despondent and confused would he have been?

    Zhang Shuyue ncedzily at the Heavenly Peak disciples as she mocked, ¡°Want to kill me? It¡¯s a pity that you¡¯ll have no chance to do so. Do you know what you¡¯ve consumed together with the food earlier today? It¡¯s Spirit Devouring Grass. Do you think you¡¯ll still be able to resist my attacks after consuming so much Spirit Devouring Grass earlier?¡±

    ¡°You!!!¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples cast an infuriated re at Zhang Shuyue as they attempted to operate the spiritual energies within their bodies. To their horror, they discovered that their bodies felt like nothing more than an empty shell, and there was not a single thread of spiritual energy to be found within their bodies.

    Chen Feiyu was in a slightly better state than the rest of his martial brothers. After all, he had already stepped into the elementary-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, and he could still muster a fraction of the energy within his body. However, the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples were unable to muster even a single thread of spiritual energy right now.

    Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan instinctively inched closer to Jun Xiaomo and stood guard in front of her. After exchanging a knowing nce with each other, they nodded, signifying their mutual understanding in this regard ¨C prioritize protecting Jun Xiaomo. As soon as Jun Xiaomo breaches the defenses of the master formation array, they would all be able to leave this ce safely.

    Given their numbers and their strength right now, dealing with a massive group of assants with abilities ranging from the twelfth level of Qi Mastery to the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation was undoubtedly an impossible task. Therefore, they knew that the best strategy they could adopt right now would be to hinder their movements as much as they could and prevent any of them from interfering with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s efforts.

    Thus, mustering his spiritual energy, Ye Xiuwen began to convey a series of orders directly into the Heavenly Peak disciples through a thread of his spiritual energy ¨C

    ¡°Martial brothers, use the talismans given by Xiaomo and stall for time. We cannot afford to let them interrupt Xiaomo right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had already anticipated that Zhang Shuyue would make a move against them during this crucial period of time. Thus, she had prepared several talismans beforehand and distributed them among her martial brothers. There were talismans of all kind, serving a multitude of purposes, including defensive, offensive, concealment, and so on. Her original intention was for these talismans to be used as anciry tools to supplement their individualbat abilities. Unexpectedly, given how Zhang Shuyue had spiked her martial brothers¡¯ food with Spirit Devouring Grass, the talismans had now be their main source of strength against the assants right now.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples immediately knew what Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions were. Like Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan, they began to consolidate their ranks and position themselves in front of Jun Xiaomo, bracing themselves to shield her from any oing attacks.

    Zhang Shuyue was filled with both envy and hatred seeing Ye Xiuwen protect Jun Xiaomo with his own body.

    ¡°Hmph. A bunch of useless vermin who overestimate their own abilities. Do you think that this would be sufficient to obstruct us?¡± As Xiang Guqing chuckled coldly, she made a single gesture in the air, and all of their disciples, including both hers and those from the Eternal Summit Sect, charged straight towards the Heavenly Peak disciples!

    In that very instant, the entire sky was filled with all forms of spells and abilities as though it were a massive tidal wave, seeking to engulf the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Fortunately, the Heavenly Peak disciples immediately retrieved the defensive talisman which Jun Xiaomo had given to each of them and tossed them into the air in a concerted fashion. These defensive talismans instantly began to rotate in the sky, creating asplex formation diagram in the air, enveloping and shielding the Heavenly Peak disciples with its abilities.

    ¡°That¡¯s not bad. You guys actually know to utilize a defensive formation array. Seems like you¡¯ve got some ss.¡± Xiang Guqing muttered coldly. It was evident that she was fuming mad right now, much less praising them.

    Oh, how she wished she could tear apart the talismans floating in the air to shreds!

    ¡°Focus your offensive abilities in one location. Once a single talisman gives way, the entire formation array would fall apart.¡± Xiang Guqing bellowed a fresh set of instructions to everyone around.

    As the master and owner of the valley, she was naturally reasonably well-versed in the discipline of formation arrays.

    Thus, both Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples as well as the Eternal Summit Sect disciples began to focus their offensive abilities on a single location.

    With their sheer numbers raining powerful spells down on the defensive formation array floating in the sky, it began to show traces of cracks and shattering in just an instant.

    We can¡¯t let it go on like this! Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan immediately eximed in their hearts at the same time.

    There was no doubt that the two strongest sources of abilities raining havoc down on the defensive formation array emanated from Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng. Thus, they made the same decision at the same time ¨C they had to interrupt the two leaders at all costs!

    Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan dashed out of the domain of the defensive formation array at practically the same time, and they were quickly greeted by the powerful offensive abilities of thebined assants.

    ¡°Hah! I was wondering when you¡¯d show up. Take this!¡± Xiang Guqing sincerely wished to get revenge for her dearest disciple, and she immediately charged towards Ye Xiuwen with a mind to injure and incapacitate him so that she could leave him for her disciple¡¯s pleasure.

    Ye Xiuwen brandished his sword and shot straight towards Xiang Guqing, shing directly against her.

    As long as Xiang Guqing ceases tounch attacks at the defensive formation array, the formation array would be able tost for that little bit more time.

    On the other side, Dai Yanfeng instantly recognized Rong Ruihan as soon as he dashed out of the defensive formation array as well.

    ¡°It¡¯s you?!!!¡± Dai Yanfeng bellowed hoarsely at Rong Ruihan as a fiery inferno of rage flourished in his heart.

    Back then, Dai Yue had only been at loggerheads with Jun Xiaomo because she had fallen for Rong Ruihan. In other words, it was this man that caused Jun Xiaomo to inflict such grievous injuries on Dai Yue that she had been unable to recover from to this date.

    With such intense hatred festering and brewing in his heart for over a decade, how could he possibly let things slide just like that?!

    That¡¯s right. Not only did Dai Yanfeng hate Jun Xiaomo; he also hated Rong Ruihan. Jun Xiaomo had directly inflicted grievous wounds on Dai Yue¡¯s body, but Rong Ruihan was the one who had undoubtedly scarred Dai Yue¡¯s heart.

    Back then, he had heard his dear daughter wailing and shrieking in her own room, ¡°Why have you fallen for Jun Xiaomo and not me?! What¡¯s so good about Jun Xiaomo to begin with?! Why---?!!!¡±

    Thus, Dai Yanfeng wanted very much to know from the horse¡¯s mouth what was wrong with his own daughter, and why he chose that brat Jun Xiaomo over Dai Yue.

    And, regardless of what his answer was, one thing was certain ¨C anyone who hurt his daughter must pay. He was hell bent on breaking Rong Ruihan¡¯s limbs and incapacitating his meridians, before dragging him back to kneel before his daughter and apologize to her!

    Rong Ruihan remainedpletely silent. However, he made his response patently clear with his actions ¨C You want to fight? Sure! Bring it on!

 Chapter 344: A Successful Escape from the Valley! Rong Ruihan is Captured

    <h4>Chapter 344: A Sessful Escape from the Valley! Rong Ruihan is Captured</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After approximately one incense stick of time, Xiang Guqing began to realize that she had sorely underestimated Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities.

    No wonder Zhang Shuyue would fall for this little brat despite her usually high standards ¨C who would have thought that this little brat could exchange blows with her on an equal footing despite his young, tender age?

    Furthermore, his appearances and disposition were all top-notch to boot. Given Zhang Shuyue¡¯sck of experience in the world outside of the valley, it was hardly a surprise that she would fall for such an outstanding man.

    Despite that, Xiang Guqing held the firm belief that all men were the same, and not a single one of them could be trusted. In her eyes, it didn¡¯t matter one bit whether the man¡¯s appearances were spectacr or dismal ¨C his heart would invariably be ink-ck and wicked.

    Thus, she was hell bent on ridding the world of the vermin standing before her right now!

    On the other side, Dai Yanfeng had encountered the very same issue. He had initially thought that disposing of Rong Ruihan were going to be an incredibly easy task. To his surprise, Rong Ruihan showed no signs of letting up despite their protracted duel. In fact, Rong Ruihan¡¯s attacked only appeared to grow more vicious and powerful with time, and Dai Yanfeng began to find himself increasingly on the backfoot.

    That said, all things considered, this was hardly a surprising urrence. Combat was the forte of all demonic cultivators, and it was naturally not an easy thing to dispose of a demonic cultivator, even if the spiritual cultivator possessed cultivation that was several levels higher. Therefore, Dai Yanfeng had just begun to realize that he had bitten off more than he could chew.

    Meanwhile, as Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng were duking it out with Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan respectively, Zhang Shuyue red viciously at the defensive formation array surrounding the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples as she struck it relentlessly with spell after spell.

    She had to break that defensive formation array. She was determined to wound Jun Xiaomo grievously so that she could inflict Ye Xiuwen with the greatest pain and remorse!

    Even though Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan had drawn the attention of Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng away, the defensive formation array continued to be battered by a relentless barrage of spells from the rest of the assants.

    Finally, after two more incense sticks of time, an earsplitting crackle resounded, and one of the defensive talismans hovering about in the sky shattered into pieces. The defensive formation array began to flicker dimly, before fading away and vanishing into the dark night sky. The other defensive talismans immted in mid-air shortly afterwards, turning into ash and drifting away into the darkness.

    Jun Xiaomo had only prepared one wad of these defensive talismans that could bebined to form a defensive formation array. The other defensive talismans were all designed to be used on the individual person. With that, the Heavenly Peak disciples knew that push had nowe to shove. Each of them immediately retrieved their own personal defensive talismans, applied them onto their own body, and they began to throw themselves in the way of the waves of attacks from the Eternal Summit Sect disciples.

    However, without the defensive formation array in ce, Jun Xiaomo was now also exposed to the attacks from the assants. Within moments, several ice arrows slipped through the group of Heavenly Peak disciples and shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan cried out at about the same time as they scrambled to dash back to shield Jun Xiaomo from the attacks. Fortunately, they arrived in the nick of time and managed to block the wave of ice arrows from striking Jun Xiaomo. However, this also meant that they had just left their backspletely exposed to Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng¡¯s attacks. In the very next moment, several powerful spells struck them directly on their backs.

    Pfft--! Both Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan spat out arge mouthful of blood. Nevertheless, they turned around and once again stood valiantly in front of Jun Xiaomo, protecting her.

    Unfortunately, given the extent of their injuries, their offensive and defensive abilities were now far lower than they had earlier been. In the blink of an eye, the Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ defensive line had practically crumbled, and everyone began to sustain injuries to varying degrees.

    The only person unharmed right now was the person that everyone was valiantly trying to protect ¨C Jun Xiaomo.

    The ice arrows directed at Jun Xiaomo earlier had been fired by none other than Zhang Shuyue. She had noticed that nobody was shielding or protecting Jun Xiaomo anymore, and she had hoped to capitalize on the loopholes in their defenses to kill or grievously wound Jun Xiaomo.

    She had not expected Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan to be keeping an eye out for Jun Xiaomo as they dueled with Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng respectively. Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan noticed it when Zhang Shuyue loosened her ice arrows and sent them straight towards Jun Xiaomo, and they immediately darted towards Jun Xiaomo in the shortest time possible, protecting her from the potentially deadly strikes.

    Having lost the element of surprise, Zhang Shuyue knew that it was going to be far harder to seed a second time if she did not dispose of the other meat shields that were standing between her and Jun Xiaomo.

    As she thought about these things, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart once again swelled with intense hatred and frustration. Most pertinently, one of the ¡°meat shields¡± standing in front of Jun Xiaomo right now was none other than Ye Xiuwen!

    ¡°Hmph, you¡¯re just a bunch of fools drawing down thest bits of your energy to force the issue. Inconsequential fools. Everyone, we¡¯ll take them down all at once!¡± Xiang Guqing roared on the battlefield, igniting the morale of the assants on her side and increasing the ferocity of their attacks.

    Just as the Heavenly Peak disciples were on the brink of copsing, Jun Xiaomo suddenly sped her hands together, and a bright light instantly shot out from her palms.

    This beam of light shot straight into the formation array beneath her feet, and the formation array immediately began to tremble, sending reverberations rumbling throughout the entire valley.

    ¡°Damn! That brat Jun Xiaomo has actually seeded. Hurry! We¡¯ve got to stop them!¡± Xiang Guqing barked as she gravely stared daggers at the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    She knew that if the Heavenly Peak disciples were to slip out from right under their nose, capturing them in future was going to be far more difficult.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen was already prepared for this. After all, Jun Xiaomo had already briefed him on the exact details of her ns before they had entered the heart of the valley.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately retrieved a Teleportation Scroll from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it under everyone¡¯s feet. In the very next moment, the Teleportation Scroll began to glow with a bright light, casting aside the darkness in the air like a bright beacon of hope.

    ¡°Jump in!¡± Ye Xiuwen instructed the other Heavenly Peak disciples anxiously.

    The Heavenly Peak disciplesplied immediately.

    The Teleportation Scroll was designed to transport a maximum of two persons at a time. Thus, everyone had to take turns jumping into the Teleportation Scroll.

    Xiang Guqing was anxious to seize the Teleportation Scroll from underneath their feet or take the lives of some of the Heavenly Peak disciples before they managed to get away. Therefore, she and the rest of the assants began tounch attacked with unprecedented ferocity at the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan had already expected something like this to happen. They immediately stood in front of the Heavenly Peak disciples and adopted a defensive posture, fending off the relentless attacks as they gradually retreated and made their way towards the Teleportation Scroll.

    ¡°Bring Xiaomo away! Quickly!¡± Ye Xiuwen directed the remaining disciples. Jun Xiaomo had pushed her mind and spirit past their limits, and she had copsed onto the ground moments after seeding with the master formation array. Nodding his head, Chen Feiyu helped Jun Xiaomo up and leapt towards the Teleportation Scroll. In the blink of an eye, both Jun Xiaomo and Chen Feiyu vanished from the valley.

    ¡°No!¡± Zhang Shuyue bemoaned with indignation. Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do to reverse the situation right now ¨C Chen Feiyu had already sessfully brought Jun Xiaomo out of this ce.

    Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan were thest to leap into the active Teleportation Scroll. Both had expected this to go on without a hitch. After all, they were already on the brink of escape, and the end was within reach. Unfortunately, things were never as simple as they seemed. In that critical moment, Dai Yanfeng reached into his Interspatial Ring and retrieved a powerful spirit tool and threw it at Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan.

    This spirit tool could only be used once every one-hundred years. Unless they were able to disable to source of energy powering the spirit tool, the spirit tool would trap its target within its domain and continuously torment him for a period of forty-nine days until he melts into nothing more than a pool of blood.

    Rong Ruihan had primarily been dealing with Dai Yanfeng all this while. Thus, he noticed every single one of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s moves.

    Naturally, Rong Ruihan also noticed that very instant when Dai Yanfeng reached into his Interspatial Ring and pulled out the spirit tool. Even though Rong Ruihan was uncertain of the effects of this spirit tool, he could nevertheless tell that it was not something that one would be able to easily escape from.

    The spirit tool had been aimed directly at both Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen at the same time. Rong Ruihan knew in an instant that if everything went ording to Dai Yanfeng¡¯s ns, both he and Ye Xiuwen would undoubtedly be captured.

    But what¡¯s going to happen to the other Heavenly Peak disciples and Jun Xiaomo if both Ye Xiuwen and I get trapped within this spirit tool? The Heavenly Peak disciples are too weak right now. They won¡¯t be able to protect Jun Xiaomo at all.

    Thus, Rong Ruihan made his resolve in an instant. He mustered his strength and suddenly threw a palm strike at Ye Xiuwen, sending Ye Xiuwen flying into the Teleportation Scroll. Ye Xiuwen was already injured to begin with, and he immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.

    Immediately, Ye Xiuwen turned around and red at Rong Ruihan, wondering why he would suddenlyunch such a sneak attack at him. However, it was also in that instant that he saw a massive spirit tool envelop Rong Ruihan, consuming him entirely.

    ¡°Take care of Xiaomo for me!¡± Rong Ruihan yelled as he was sucked into the spirit tool.

    After an intense beam of light burst out from the ground, Ye Xiuwen was finally sent to the other side of the Teleportation Scroll with Rong Ruihan¡¯s final words echoing in his ears ¨C Take care of Jun Xiaomo.

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen found himself falling from a height where he appeared. The injuries he had sustained were grievous and debilitating, so he was unable to adjust his posture as he fell from the sky, and he mmed straight into the ground.

    Fortunately, the ground was covered by a bed of lush, verdant grass which softened thending.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡± The Heavenly Peak martial brothers dashed over to him straight away, helping him back up to his feet.

    Pfft--! Ye Xiuwen spat out another mouthful of blood that had been lodged in his throat for some time. He could finally breathe properly again.

    ¡°Xiao--...where¡¯s Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked, somewhat breathlessly. Both he and Rong Ruihan had acted as the rearguard for their escape, and their injuries they had sustained were naturally the most severe.

    Unfortunately, he was the only one among the rearguard who had made it into the Teleportation Scroll. Rong Ruihan had been captured, and nobody knew what the spirit tool would do to him.

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo is here, but she appears to be unconscious right now.¡± Chen Feiyu responded anxiously.

    He had ced Jun Xiaomo on the ground and even fed her with some recovery pills. Unfortunately, the recovery pills seemed to have little to no effect. Jun Xiaomo had fainted because she had pushed her mind and spirits to the limits, and this was not something that could be resolved with any simple, ordinary recovery pills.

    Suppressing the nauseating stench of blood from within his mouth, Ye Xiuwen walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and embraced her. Then, gently patting her face, he called, ¡°Xiaomo? Xiaomo? ...¡±

    Perhaps as a result of the familiar fragrance of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s scent setting her heart at ease, Jun Xiaomo roused from her stupor and came to her senses as she slowly opened her eyes.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye?¡± Jun Xiaomo blinked her eyes wearily, ¡°Did we...did we manage to get out alive?¡±

    She had beenpletely focused on breaching the defenses of the master formation array all this while, and she waspletely unaware of just what had happened while she was doing so. Then, after sessfully dealing with the master formation array, she heard two people call her name, ¡°Xiaomo¡±, before her consciousness quickly faded away.

    ¡°We¡¯ve made it out, Little Martial Sister, we¡¯ve made it out...¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple choked slightly as he remarked. There was tion in his voice from having narrowly escaped death; and there was also grief in his voice from having lost Zhou Zilong in the process.

    ¡°That¡¯s good...¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed with relief as she scanned her surroundings. Then, without any warning, she suddenly furrowed her brows again ¨C

    ¡°Where¡¯s Martial Brother Zhou...and Brother Rong?¡±

    Everyone was taken slightly aback as they exchanged sheepish nces. Finally, as though in a concerted fashion, everyone lowered their heads sullenly in tacit response to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier question.

 Chapter 345: Hatred in her Heart, Resolution in her Eyes

    <h4>Chapter 345: Hatred in her Heart, Resolution in her Eyes</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart immediately swelled with a deep sense of unease when she noticed the concerted sullenness in her martial brothers¡¯ responses.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, where¡¯s Brother Rong?! Where¡¯s Martial Brother Zhou?!¡± Jun Xiaomo grabbed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes and tugged ferociously as she looked at him nervously.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice trembled slightly. They had battled throughout the entire night, so his eyes werepletely bloodshot at this point. He had so much to tell Jun Xiaomo, but he simply couldn¡¯t bring himself to do so right now.

    Even though they had sessfully escaped the valley of death, none of them could bring themselves to celebrate their victory. Everyone felt as though a massive rock were weighing heavily on their hearts, tightening and tensing their spirits to the limit.

    All of the disciples couldn¡¯t help but reveal an expression of grief and sorrow on their faces.

    ¡°They...have they been killed?¡± Jun Xiaomo was on the verge of tears. Her voice trembled as she asked the single, most dreadful question weighing on her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen pulled Jun Xiaomo into an embrace and buried her in his warm bosom. Then, with a hoarse voice, he confirmed her worst fears, ¡°Martial Brother Zhou has indeed perished. Brother Rong sacrificed himself to push me into the Teleportation Scroll right at thest minute. He¡¯s now trapped and bound within a spirit tool back at the valley.¡±

    Tears began to flow uncontrobly from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes like waters bursting out of a dam, soaking Ye Xiuwen¡¯s clothes.

    Ye Xiuwen had already known that this was going to happen. Sharing the same measure ofmiseration, he patted and stroked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back ceaselessly, doing all he could tofort her and share her pain.

    ¡°Truth be told, Martial Brother Zhou has been very kind to me...¡± Jun Xiaomo whimpered, ¡°When I was young, he would always stand up for me when I was isted and bullied by the kids from the other Peaks. At that time, he would always wrack his brains toe up with jokes to humor me and lift my spirits.¡±

    ¡°There was even once when I was punished by Father for my misbehavior and told to kneel for an entire night in the Penitence Hall. At that time, that silly Martial Brother Zhou even saved some of his dinner so that he could share it with me secretly. He didn¡¯t have to do that at all. The punishment had always been to kneel in the Penitence Hall, but Father never said that I couldn¡¯t be given food to begin with. He¡¯s such a fool to think that I¡¯d not eaten dinner yet...¡±

    The more Jun Xiaomo reminisced about the times she shared with Martial Brother Zhou, the more her tears flowed uncontrobly.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zhou has always been a fool like that. Whenever someone treats him nicely, he would go out of his way to repay that person tenfold the kindness he had received. If only he wasn¡¯t so foolish. Otherwise, how could he have fallen into Zhang Shuyue¡¯s trap?¡±

    ¡°Even though I¡¯m mad at him for speaking up for Zhang Shuyue time and again, I¡¯d never thought that he would perish as a result of his foolishness...why...why was our final exchange of words over such a heated argument? And it was even an argument over that slut Zhang Shuyue...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo considered all of her martial brothers from the Heavenly Peak a part of her extended family. They might have differing points of view; they might argue at times; and they might even get angry at each other. Yet, these were all but temporal matters. At the end of the day, were there truly any grudges worth bearing overnight?

    Jun Xiaomo had been incredibly confident in leaving the valley safely earlier tonight. Thus, how could she possibly ept the fact that she had lost one of her extended family members just like that?!

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo, it¡¯s not your fault. If not for you, we¡¯d all have fallen prey to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s vicious ploys.¡± One of the other Heavenly Peak disciples added with some measure of righteous indignation.

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked up from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom and turned around to face the disciple as she asked with a cold, soulless gaze, ¡°What does our escape have to do with Zhang Shuyue?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯d spiked the food we¡¯d eaten with powdered Spirit Devouring Grass, causing us to be unable to operate our spiritual energy. If not for the fact that Martial Sister Xiaomo had given us a bunch of talismans to use beforehand, we might not have been able to hold out against the relentless onught from the assants until you managed to break the master formation array.¡± Another disciple sighed ruefully.

    ¡°Truth be told, we¡¯ve been far too careless. Had we believed Martial Sister Xiaomo and treated Zhang Shuyue with more vignce to begin with, our losses this time would have been far lower.¡± The disciple who spoke up first lowered his head. His heart was filled with guilt and remorse right now.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples heard hisments as well, and their hearts were also gued by the same kind of bitter astringency. If only they had just believed Martial Sister Xiaomo and refused to consume the food prepared by Zhang Shuyue.

    Unfortunately, they had thought better of their own judgment and shrugged off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words of caution, thinking that they were words borne out of mere jealousy. This mistake had nearly cost all of them their lives.

    Jun Xiaomo was at aplete loss as to how she should react. It would be a lie if she said that she didn¡¯t mind it one bit. After all, she had always considered her martial brothers a part of her extended family, yet they had consciously chosen to believe the words of a woman that they had known for no more than a few days over her own words. They had even dismissed her behaviour as one borne out of petty jealousy! However, when she saw how the martial brothers were awash with weariness and covered with a multitude of injuries, she couldn¡¯t bring herself tosh out at them.

    Truth be told, she knew that she might well have been fooled had she been in her martial brothers¡¯ shoes as well. If not for the fact that she had the benefit of an additional lifetime of experience, she would never have been able to look beyond Zhang Shuyue¡¯s immacte pretenses and uncover her true colours.

    ¡°How did Martial Brother Zhou perish?¡± Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly as she asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s Zhang Shuyue. She pretended to be captured so that Martial Brother Zhou would return to rescue her. In the end, it was all a trap. Not only did Zhang Shuyue deceive Martial Brother Zhou, she even personally...killed him.¡± Chen Feiyu choked up as he drew close to the end, and he only barely managed to utter his final few words.

    ¡°Zhang. Shu. Yue! It¡¯s her again?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gnashed her teeth in fury, fighting hard to repress the violent vortex of hatred in her heart.

    Zhang Shuyue had done the exact same thing to Ye Xiuwen in her previous life, lulling Ye Xiuwen into a false sense of security before taking his life by plunging a sword straight through his heart. In this life, she had done all she could to prevent Ye Xiuwen from falling into the same trap, only to discover that Zhou Zilong had met with the exact same fate.

    Jun Xiaomo resolved in her heart that she would do all she could to make Zhang Shuyue pay for these two lifetimes¡¯ worth of blood debt!

    Ye Xiuwen covered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes with his hands once more. He couldn¡¯t stand seeing such a fric, crazed look in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart trembled slightly as her vision was obscured by a warm, soothing palm, and the mounting hatred in her heart began to gradually subside once more.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo lifted her hands and peeled away Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands slowly. Her eyes were no longer filled with the earlier crazed desire for vengeance.

    There was still an immense amount of hatred festering in her heart, but she would no longer lose all sense of rationality to the primal sense of hatred.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, you mentioned earlier that Brother Rong has also been captured, didn¡¯t you?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as she queried.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Ye Xiuwen came clean with his response, ¡°He saved me in the veryst moment. Otherwise, both of us would have been trapped within the spirit tool.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart would be overwhelmed with a multitude ofplex emotions whenever he thought about Rong Ruihan¡¯s parting words ¨C ¡°take care of Jun Xiaomo for me¡±.

    Truth be told, at the very core of it all, his rtionship with Rong Ruihan was no more than that of rivals in love.

    He knew full well that Rong Ruihan was fond of Jun Xiaomo. That said, he had always been of the view that Rong Ruihan could snag himself any girl he wanted, given his status and appearances. Furthermore, he sincerely believed that Rong Ruihan¡¯s love for Jun Xiaomo was hardly anywhere close to his.

    Thus, he had never expected Rong Ruihan to do so much for Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen knew that Rong Ruihan must have tossed him into the Teleportation Scroll earlier because Rong Ruihan was concerned that nobody else could properly look after Jun Xiaomo. The extent of his love and affection for Jun Xiaomo were well evident from his parting words.

    Right now, Ye Xiuwen could tell that Rong Ruihan¡¯s love for Jun Xiaomo might not necessarily have been any less than his.

    I even owe him a debt of gratitude right now. Ye Xiuwen thought to himself with some measure of exasperation.

    For some strange reason, Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t shake off the feeling that Rong Ruihan¡¯s actions were somewhat intentional as well.

    After all, Rong Ruihan¡¯s sacrificial actions were certain to leave an indelible mark in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, and it was going to be increasingly more difficult for Jun Xiaomo to deny his advances in future.

    At the same time, tears began to flow from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as soon as she learnt that Rong Ruihan was trapped within the domain of the spirit tool.

    She recalled what Rong Ruihan had told her when they were first reunited with each other ¨C he hade from afar just to ensure that she was fine.

    Jun Xiaomo was not daft. She could tell full well the kind of feelings Rong Ruihan had for her. However, she sincerely felt that she was unable to reciprocate his feelings fairly. Thus, she had time and time again acted as though she were oblivious and slow to catch on, hoping that he would give up on his advances and that they would be able to preserve their friendship.

    She had done the same in this instance of reunion as well. Rong Ruihan had repeatedly pressed the issue, asking, ¡°Does my life mean anything to you?¡± At that instant, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was unmistakably flustered.

    Back then, the only thing weighing on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was the notion that she could not allow Rong Ruihan to die like that. She could not bring herself to stand idly by, watching Rong Ruihan tread the long, lonesome road back to the valley, into the arms of danger. That said, she was unable to tell Rong Ruihan just how important his life was to her.

    In fact, rather than to say that she was unable to do so, it was far more urate to say that this was something she was not prepared to explore yet, and it was thus a question that she didn¡¯t have the answer to.

    But now that Rong Ruihan had been captured by the enemy, Jun Xiaomo finally knew just how much the prospects of losing Rong Ruihan pained her heart.

    She curled up into a ball and buried her head into her knees, as though immersing herself into the mires of despondence.

    A trace of heartache flickered across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. He owed Rong Ruihan a great debt of gratitude now; and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions right now also spoke volumes about the importance of Rong Ruihan¡¯s existence to her.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples failed to notice the undercurrents hidden beneath the sullen atmosphere between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo right now. They merely thought that Jun Xiaomo was grieving at the fact that Rong Ruihan had been captured and Zhou Zilong had been killed.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister, don¡¯t be too upset. Brother Rong has only been captured, but this doesn¡¯t mean that he has perished. We can take this time to regroup, strategize ande up with a n to rescue him again.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right. As long as Brother Rong holds some form of value as a hostage, I don¡¯t think that they would murder Brother Rong just yet. This means that we¡¯ll still have an opportunity to rescue Brother Rong.¡±

    One by one, the Heavenly Peak disciples consoled Jun Xiaomo.

    After crying for a little while longer, Jun Xiaomo managed to pull herself together.

    She looked up once more with her red, puffy eyes. However, a trace of unwavering determination could be seen undergirding her gaze now, ¡°Martial brothers, all of you are right. As long as there¡¯s even a single strand of hope left, we¡¯ll never give up on Brother Rong. We can¡¯t let Brother Rong perish to those scumbags!¡±

 Chapter 346: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Predicament, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Sorrow

    <h4>Chapter 346: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Predicament, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Sorrow</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    This night had felt particrly long and dreary.

    Everything began when they were first awakened in the middle of the night for a long trek into the heart of the valley. There, Jun Xiaomo pushed her mind and spirit beyond their limits in order to breach the defenses of the master formation array. Meanwhile, her martial brothers were forced to endure a painful, arduous battle in order to buy her the little bit of time she needed to aplish what she needed to do.

    All in all, several hours hadpsed from the time that they had woken up to the time that they managed to leave the valley and arrive at a slightly safer location. Thus, everyone expected dawn to be arriving soon.

    Yet, these moments of waiting were so painful and arduous that it felt like another eternity had passed before the first light of dawn struck the world once more.

    After a night of emotional and physical trauma, Jun Xiaomo leaned on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body and fell into a deep slumber.

    Even though she slipped straight into a deep slumber, Jun Xiaomo could not be said to have rested well either. Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo had spent the better part of the night gued by unending nightmares from both her previous life and her present life. Variegated parts and pieces of her two lives seemed toe together to form a horrific alternate reality, battering her mind with unavoidable tragedy after unavoidable tragedy.

    Ye Xiuwen was unable to catch a single wink of shuteye either. His injuries were incredibly severe, and he felt incredibly weary. Unfortunately, he remained seated where he was the entire night, wide awake.

    From time to time, he would nce at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sleeping posture for a while, before shifting his gaze to the distance, staring vacantly into the horizon. Just like that, Ye Xiuwen spent the entire night with his bloodshot eyes wide open.

    Since Jun Xiaomo was unable to rest well, she immediately aroused from her weird, bizarre nightmares as soon as the first light of dawn illuminated the world.

    She opened her eyes somewhat wearily, just in time to notice the bright morning sun creep up across the horizon, painting the outlines of the clouds in the sky a fiery-red hue, as though setting them aze.

    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful...¡± Jun Xiaomo remarked aloud softly. The powerful, magnificent sight immediately melted and washed away the multitudinous burdens weighing on her heart.

    A warm hand gently patted her on her head. Jun Xiaomo lifted her head, only to be med with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abstruse gaze and warm, jovial smile.

    ¡°Are you awake? Feeling better today?¡± Ye Xiuwen chirped.

    ¡°I¡¯m feeling much better.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded subconsciously. Truth be told, her focus was not on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words right now. Rather, it was on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bloodshot eyes.

    A ring of heavy eyebags darkened Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. His face looked incredibly pale, and his entire disposition appeared to be distraught and weary.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, didn¡¯t you manage to catch a single second of restst night?!¡± Jun Xiaomo immediately mbered to her feet and minced closer to Ye Xiuwen. There, she stretched out her hand and caressed the dark shadows under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gently.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly and grabbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands, squeezing them lightly as he responded, ¡°It¡¯s nothing much. I might have been too weary from the battlest night that I was unable to catch any rest.¡±

    His response was immediately met with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disapprobation, ¡°Martial brother Ye, you can¡¯t treat your body like a joke. Even though we¡¯re cultivators, we still need to give our bodies the requisite rest it needs.¡±

    As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she ced her hand on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s wrist and sent a thread of spiritual energy probing through his meridians and Dantian.

    ¡°Martial brother, why didn¡¯t you say anything about the extent of your injuriesst night?!¡± Jun Xiaomo burst out in exasperation as she red at Ye Xiuwen.

    No wonder he looks so pale right now! Jun Xiaomo had been unable to see him clearlyst night, and she had only been stunned by the paleness of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face this morning.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. Martial Brother has already consumed some recovery pills for his injuries.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair, reassuring her.

    ¡°That won¡¯t do! What¡¯s the use of merely consuming recovery pills? You¡¯ve got to get some rest as well!¡± Jun Xiaomo blurted with a disapproving tone of voice, almost like how Liu Qingmei would chide Jun Linxuan for his behaviour sometimes.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s smile widened slightly, and he pinched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks slightly as he cajoled her, ¡°Alright, alright. As soon as we find a suitable ce to rest, Martial Brother will get all the rest he needs, okay?¡±

    They were still in the wilderness right now, and there was always a risk that a spiritual beast might pounce at them at any moment without notice. It was hardly the conducive ce for rest and recuperation.

    None of them had the strength to fight another battle, and they knew that the best thing to do right now was to find a safe ce so that they could restore their bodies to full strength.

    Thus, the Heavenly peak disciples came to a consensus very quickly and began to walk along the side of a river, hoping that they would encounter a vige or a settlement quickly.

    Fortunately, luck was on their side this time. After approximately one hour, they came across a bustling small town. The town appeared somewhat prosperous, and there were several inns designed for travelers located in the heart of the town.

    That said, the Heavenly Peak disciples were starting to run low on their spirit stones. Thus, after some discussions, the Heavenly Peak disciples decided to share rooms in pairs. This way, they would be able to save some expenses for their journey ahead.

    There were an even number of disciples, so arrangement was perfect for them. Everyone was also well aware of the rtionship between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. Thus, they were no issues with allocating them to the same room either.

    However, despite residing in the same room, none of them had any heart or intention to make merry with each other.

    Truth be told, Rong Ruihan¡¯s appearancest night appeared to have created a rift in their rtionship, and the interactions that used to be so natural between them appeared to have be far more contrived.

    ¡°Martial brother Ye, you haven¡¯t rested at allst night, so you should get some rest first.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled softly at Ye Xiuwen as she suggested.

    Ye Xiuwen looked back at Jun Xiaomo and asked, ¡°Then, what about you?¡±

    ¡°Me? I¡¯ll restter tonight. I did manage to get some restst night after we left the valley, so I¡¯m still not too tired right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled wryly at Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Then alright. Don¡¯t push yourself too hard.¡± Ye Xiuwen tousled Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair in an understanding manner, before heid down and shut his eyes.

    Then, as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s breath rxed and grew deeper and longer, traces of grief and sorrow began to creep slowly back into the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    She walked over to the windowsill and sat on it, staring vacantly as people hustled past on the street just outside.

    It was daytime, and the streets outside were bustling. That said, their room was imbued with a Noise-Cancelling Talisman, keeping the noise from the streets out of the room.

    The disquieting difference between her room and the street outside caused Jun Xiaomo to feel as though she seemed to be living in a different reality ¨C the mortals pacing about on the streets outside had a joyful expression stered all over their faces, while she remained trapped in a different realm altogether. And this was despite having iled and floundered about for hundreds of years.

    She was tired; and she was weary.

    The dreams of her previous life once again surfaced to the forefront of her mind. In these dreams, Rong Ruihan had always been secretly and silently watching over her. Then, in a peculiar turn of events, she bore Rong Ruihan¡¯s child, before falling prey to Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou¡¯s evil schemes.

    Afterwards, Rong Ruihan did everything he could to exact vengeance for her and their child. However, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware to all these things in her previous life.

    If not for the fact that Rong Ruihan had told her about these things; and if not for the dreams that revealed the truth of her previous life to her, she might still be unaware of the fact that someone had done so much for her in her in the shadows of her previous life.

    In this life, things were hardly different either. As soon as Rong Ruihan learnt about her death, he led an army and fought straight into the capital of the Greenwich Kingdom. Despite having been abandoned and betrayed by his own family and forced by the Greenwich Kingdom and the Zephyr Sect into a life of persecution, Rong Ruihan never gave up on the notion of revenge for her.

    What had she ever done to deserve so much from Rong Ruihan?

    Rong Ruihan had pressed the issuest night, asking just how much his life meant to her. Back then, Jun Xiaomo merely sidestepped the question ¨C she did not have an answer for him.

    Now, she finally knew the answer to the question. Unfortunately, this answer had alsoe at a cost.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that if Rong Ruihan truly perished as a result of what he did, she would have to carry this burden for the rest of her life; she would have to re-live the same kind of guilt and remorse which she did in her previous life.

    Behind Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen slowly opened her eyes once more, gazing at her doleful disposition while a massive weight hung heavily on his heart.

    Last night, Jun Xiaomo had cried out a single name repeatedly in her dreams ¨C Brother Rong.

    Xiaomo, just what exactly does Rong Ruihan¡¯s existence mean to you? Is he really nothing more than an older brother to you?

    ----------------------------------------------------

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo and the rest were resting and recuperating in the hope that they could do their best to rescue Rong Ruihanter on, Rong Ruihan was also doing his utmost, looking for a way to disable the formation array within the spirit tool so that he could escape from the spirit tool¡¯s domain.

    Unfortunately, he was not Jun Xiaomo, and his understanding of formation arrays was limited at best. His blind bashing methods did no more than to deplete the reservoir of demonic energy in his body even more quickly.

    ¡°Where did that old fogey Dai get his hands on such a peculiar spirit tool?!¡± Rong Ruihan cursed aloud as he did his best to avoid several molten fireballs that hurtled his way.

    Truth be told, he had never expected the spirit tool to have been imbued with such a powerful formation array before he entered it. For instance, the molten fireballs generated by the formation arrays was so powerful that it would undoubtedly melt him into nothing more than a pool of blood in time.

    Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t know just how long he would be able to hold out for. However, he knew that he didn¡¯t want to die.

    If he were trapped in the spirit tool beforest night, he might not have been struggling quite as hard against the prospects of death as he did right now. But now that he knew for certain that Jun Xiaomo was still alive, his heart was reignited with the will to live once more ¨C at least until Jun Xiaomo gave him a clear response to the question he had posed to her earlier!

    This was the type of person Rong Ruihan was ¨C as long as he desired something, he would actively do everything he could to obtain it, and not passively wait for it to end up in hisp. Truth be told, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s assessment of his character was hardly far from the truth.

    Back when Rong Ruihan flung Ye Xiuwen towards the Teleportation Scroll, Rong Ruihan did consider the fact that such an act would cause Ye Xiuwen to owe him a debt of gratitude as well.

    This way, not only would he leave an indelible mark in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, Ye Xiuwen would also find it difficult to restrain him from drawing closer to Jun Xiaomo in future.

    Unfortunately, Rong Ruihan¡¯s calctions were off the mark. He had never expected the spirit tool to be imbued by such a powerful offensive formation array. Dai Yanfeng¡¯s act of trapping him inside this spirit tool was obviously a death sentence, not merely to fetter him and hold him a hostage.

    ¡°Seems like I¡¯ve drawn the shorter end of the straw again.¡± A corner of Rong Ruihan¡¯s sleeves was singed by yet another passing molten fireball as he chuckled bitterly to himself.

    Just then, Dai Yanfeng cackled loudly outside the spirit tool. Rong Ruihan could hear his voice clearly through the reverberations that echoed in the domain of the spirit tool ¨C

    ¡°Hahahahaha...Jun Xiaomo, I can¡¯t kill you just yet, but I sure can kill that lover of yours who has scarred my daughter¡¯s heart! Hahahaha...¡±

    Rong Ruihan raised an eyebrow quizzically ¨C Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lover? That¡¯s got a pretty good ring to it.

    However, he knew that he had to remain alive if he desired to make such a term of reference a reality.

 Chapter 347: Dai Yanfengâ€™s Evil Ploy, Rong Ruihanâ€™s Whereabouts

    <h4>Chapter 347: Dai Yanfeng¡¯s Evil Ploy, Rong Ruihan¡¯s Whereabouts</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Even though their hard work had resulted in the Rong Ruihan¡¯s capture, Xiang Guqing and Zhang Shuyue were hardly pleased by such an oue.

    The ones who had offended them were the Heavenly Peak disciples to begin with, while Rong Ruihan was merely a meddlesome interloper who had interjected midway through the conflict. In other words, the only fruit of theirbour had been a mere inconsequential person ¨C how could they possibly swallow this bitter pill?!

    ¡°Inconsequential?¡± Dai Yanfeng mocked contemptuously, ¡°You only think this way because you don¡¯t fully understand Jun Xiaomo. What if I tell you that the man we¡¯ve caught is none other than Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lover? Would you still think that this man is inconsequential?¡±

    ¡°What?! That¡¯s not possible!¡± Zhang Shuyue bellowed, ¡°Aren¡¯t Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen an item? How could she possibly have another lover?!¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Just take a look at her. Does Jun Xiaomo look like a faithfuldy to you?¡± Dai Yanfeng retorted tly, ¡°You would never be able to understand the thoughts of demonic cultivators through a spiritual cultivator¡¯s worldview and perspective. Back then, my daughter was grievously hurt by Jun Xiaomo precisely because she¡¯d fallen for the brat trapped within my spirit tool right now. Do you think that the manifestation of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s jealousy would be so vile and ferocious if their rtionship were merely tonic?¡±

    Dai Yanfeng had selectively obviated from his mind the fact that his daughter was the one who had first provoked Jun Xiaomo to begin with as he continued to smear and tarnish Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reputation.

    ¡°Damn! What a vixen! How can Brother Ye fall for such a woman like her?!¡± Zhang Shuyue eximed with indignation as her heart began to smolder with fury once more.

    ¡°Enough, Yue-er. Do you still have lingering feelings for that man?¡± Xiang Guqing chided Zhang Shuyue resentfully, ¡°Can¡¯t you see that men are no-good things? Perhaps Ye Xiuwen might not have fallen for Jun Xiaomo if she were truly faithful to him to begin with. Hah. Men are all the same ¨C they only covet what they cannot have.¡±

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s past had once again surfaced in the forefront of her mind, and her tone of voice grew increasingly contemptuous and derisive.

    That said, she had clearly forgotten that there were still several men standing around her right now. To make matters worse, Dai Yanfeng had once cheated on Dai Yue¡¯s mother, Qiu Laifeng, when he tussled in bed with Qiu Laifeng¡¯s very own disciple. Thus, when Xiang Guqing condemned all men like that, Dai Yanfeng couldn¡¯t help but think that she was taking a direct jibe at him, and his face instantly flushed red with embarrassment and exasperation.

    Fortunately, Xiang Guqing was unaware of the peculiar expression on Dai Yanfeng¡¯s face right now, and she merely continued to re sternly at Zhang Shuyue as she added, ¡°Shuyue, remember, don¡¯t ever let men toy with your heart. It¡¯s not worth it.¡±

    Zhang Shuyue suppressed the reluctance in her heart as she lowered her head and acknowledged, ¡°Yes, Master.¡±

    At this moment, Dai Yanfeng interjected awkwardly with a dry cough, before changing the topic in a somewhat contrived manner, ¡°Moving forward, I think we should formte a n around that brat, Rong Ruihan, in order to lure Jun Xiaomo and the others back out from their hiding ce.¡±

    ¡°Rong Ruihan?¡±

    ¡°Hmph. That¡¯s Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lover ¨C the man who¡¯s currently trapped within my spirit tool.¡± Dai Yanfeng snorted with a disdainful gaze in his eyes, ¡°Since Jun Xiaomo has crippled my daughter, I¡¯m going to torment her little lover until he perishes!¡±

    Xiang Guqing also harboured a huge amount of resentment and hatred for Rong Ruihan because he was the one responsible for killing her precious disciple, Xiaochang. Thus, to her mind, the more misery and torment Rong Ruihan was put through before he perished, the better.

    ¡°Then, I wonder if Elder Dai has any ns to lure Jun Xiaomo and the rest out of hiding?¡± Xiang Guqing queried Dai Yanfeng.

    ¡°There are many methods we can employ, including one which is readily avable to us right now.¡± Dai Yanfeng curled his lips into a vicious smile, ¡°As long as we let Jun Xiaomo have a glimpse of Rong Ruihan¡¯s sorry state within the spirit tool right now, I¡¯m pretty sure she wouldn¡¯t be able to bring herself to ignore and abandon Rong Ruihan whilst she lives atrge.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good n.¡± Xiang Guqing seconded it with a glint in her eyes.

    -----------------------------------------------

    After a full day and night of rest and recuperation, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits were once again restored to peak conditions.

    Early this morning, when she opened the door to her room and made her way into the bustling great hall of the inn they were putting up at, she noticed that the Heavenly Peak disciples were already seated at the table, waiting for them. Furthermore, breakfast had already been served ¨C a spread of buns and dim sum were already set on the table neatly.

    ¡°Martial brothers, I intend to make a trip back to the valleyter.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered with a soft voice after a protracted period of silence.

    Even though the term of reference used referred to all of the martial brothers at the table, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words had indubitably been directed straight at Ye Xiuwen.

    As soon as she finished speaking, she lifted her head and gazed straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes with unwavering resolution in her own.

    Ye Xiuwen had already known that Jun Xiaomo would make such a decision. However, he still found his heart gued by pangs of bitter astringency when he noticed the unyielding, resolute gaze in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°You should. He was trapped in the spirit tool for your sake after all.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled cidly, keeping the true emotions within his heartpletely concealed.

    Truth be told, he knew that he should be far more understanding and magnanimous in this regard. After all, he would have been trapped within the spirit tool had it not been for Rong Ruihan¡¯s sacrificial actions.

    However, knowing was one thing, but having that level of control over the emotions rippling through his heart was quite something else. Rong Ruihan was still a rival in love pursuing after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart when all was said and done. It would be a lie if Ye Xiuwen said that he didn¡¯t mind seeing the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s care and concern for Rong Ruihan.

    Nevertheless, Ye Xiuwen had still said what he needed to say.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded, preparing her heart and mind for the journey ahead as she filled her stomach. Just then, Ye Xiuwen added, ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯ll go with you.¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t let you go there alone.¡± Ye Xiuwen smiled cidly as he added, ¡°Besides, if not for Brother Rong, I would have been trapped within the spirit tool as well. I know that much is true.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, we¡¯lle along as well¡± The other Heavenly Peak disciples jumped on the bandwagon in an instant, ¡°Little Martial Sister, we¡¯ll head towards the valley together with you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, ¡°Martial Brother Chen, it would be best if you didn¡¯t tag along this time. This operation is going to be incredibly dangerous. If all of you tag along as well, our escape from the valley might well have beenpletely in vain.¡±

    ¡°What kind of a statement is that? If Brother Rong hadn¡¯t protected and covered us in the valley, we might not even have been able to escape from it to begin with.¡± Chen Feiyu retorted, ¡°Us disciples from the Heavenly Peak aren¡¯t ingrates who repay good with evil.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Little Martial Sister. You won¡¯t be able to rescue Brother Rong with just the two of you. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if we came along as well? After all, there¡¯s strength in numbers.¡± The other Heavenly Peak disciples began to persuade Jun Xiaomo.

    Tears began to well up in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes within moments, ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll have to sincerely thank all my martial brothers for your support.¡±

    Just then, a Messenger Paper Crane flew into the room andnded in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo looked curiously at the Messenger Paper Crane. She could tell that the patterns and inscriptions on this Messenger Paper Crane was something that she had never seen before.

    For some strange reason, something within her strongly resisted the urge to open the Messenger Paper Crane. She had an inkling that it was going to contain something she did not want to see.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, Ye Xiuwen picked up the Messenger Paper Crane and opened it on behalf of Jun Xiaomo.

    The Messenger Paper Crane was imbued with a small formation array. As soon as it was opened, the formation array immediately emitted a bright light. Then, in the very next instant, it projected an image in the space above their table, causing a smallmotion within the great hall ¨C

    The projection revealed a man covered in blood, struggling against fireballs that were hurtling towards him. Almost half of the skin on his right arm had been burnt off, while the bulging veins on his forehead spoke volumes about the pain he was experiencing right now. It was an incredibly grotesque and terrifying sight.

    The man¡¯s surroundings appearedpletely hellish. There were several corroding corpsesying about on the ground as though they had been decaying there for an eternity, while the rest of the floor was covered with blood stains and remains of human innards.

    The projection almost immediately attracted loud gasps and shrill shrieks from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s surroundings. However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s gaze remainedpletely transfixed on the man in the projection as she clenched her fists tightly into balls.

    It¡¯s Brother Rong!

    She had initially only expected Rong Ruihan to be trapped within the spirit tool. How could she have known that the spirit tool served a far darker purpose than that?!

    The projectionsted for a full five minutes. After that, it flickered for a moment, before vanishingpletely.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, do you want to rescue your lover? Come back to the valley at midnight tonight. Otherwise, we¡¯ll be sending you his corpse in a while...ah, sorry, he might not even have a corpse remaining by then. Do you see the pools of blood and broken limbs on the ground? That¡¯s the fate that awaits your lover. Hahahahaha...¡±

    Dai Yanfeng¡¯s voice boomed out from the Messenger Paper Crane, and hisughter sounded incredibly harsh to the ears. It was evident just how much pleasure Dai Yanfeng was taking in Rong Ruihan¡¯s misery right now.

    Jun Xiaomo flicked her sleeves in rage, consuming the Messenger Paper Crane with an intense ball of me, turning it into ashes in an instant.

    ¡°Xiaomo...¡± Everyone turned to look at Jun Xiaomo with concern in their eyes.

    ¡°I won¡¯t let them have their way!¡± Jun Xiaomo articted each word with utmost determination girding her eyes. The mes of vengeance in her heart had just burgeoned to unprecedented levels, ¡°Mark my words ¨C I¡¯m going to make them pay for whatever they¡¯ve done to Brother Rong, replete with interest!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and patted her on the shoulder, ¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked back at Ye Xiuwen and nodded her head.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister, I¡¯m worried that they¡¯ve already set a trap for us back at the valley, and they¡¯re just waiting for us to fall right into their ambush.¡± One of the Heavenly Peak disciples couldn¡¯t suppress the worry in his heart as he made his thoughts known to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I know. I had initially wanted toe up with some countermeasures before heading back into the valley as well. However, Brother Rong might not be able to hold out that long.¡± Jun Xiaomo was evidently torn in her heart right now.

    Just then, their surroundings were once again ignited abuzz with moring as over ten people dressed in dark maroon garbs strode proudly into the inn. These people carried themselves with a cold, frigid disposition, almost as though they were killers.

    The inn¡¯s guests were already high strung and skittish as a result of the projection they had just witnessed. When the men in dark maroon strode intently into the inn, evidently with an agenda, several guests immediately dropped what they were doing and left the inn, for fear that they would be implicated in a troublesome situation.

    As for the innkeeper and his attendants, all of them had already taken cover behind the main desk of the inn as soon as the first sign of trouble surfaced. None of them dared to even poke their heads out to take a nce at this moment.

    Jun Xiaomo had initially thought to ignore the group of people who had just entered the inn. However, as soon as they noticed Jun Xiaomo, the people dressed in dark maroon immediately walked straight towards her.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± Chen Feiyu stepped forward in front of Jun Xiaomo as he barked.

    Unexpectedly, the group of people dressed in dark maroon fell to their knees in the very next instant and urged Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Mistress, please save our master!¡±

    Mis...mistress?

    Everyone looked at each other,pletely dumbfounded.

 Chapter 348: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Subordinates, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Countermeasure

    <h4>Chapter 348: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Subordinates, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Countermeasure</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo was equally dumbfounded by the situation, and she furrowed her brows, rifying, ¡°Mistress? Who¡¯s your mistress?¡±

    The leader of the maroon-garbed troupe looked up at Jun Xiaomo. Just as he was about to respond, Ye Xiuwen immediately interjected, ¡°This isn¡¯t a good ce to discuss such matters. Let¡¯s find ourselves a private room before we continue our discussion. Innkeeper!¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes,ing right away.¡± The innkeeper knew that he could not afford to step on the toes of people in the cultivation world, so he immediately ran over to Ye Xiuwen obsequiously.

    ¡°Do you still have arge room avable right now? We need arge, quiet ce that is more conducive for discussing important matters.¡± Ye Xiuwen informed the innkeeper of his requirements.

    ¡°Yes, yes, we still have a premium room avable. Dear guests, please follow me.¡± The innkeeper nodded his head and bowed politely as he responded. Then, as he walked ahead, he discreetly wiped off the sweat that had beaded up on his forehead.

    I¡¯ve got to give them a room even if there are none right now. It¡¯s obvious that these people aren¡¯t ones that I can afford to cross.

    Then, when everyone finally made their way into the room, Ye Xiuwen shut the door and applied a Noise-Cancelling Talisman on the seams of the door.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were still busy trying to put two and two together, and none of them could wrap their heads around why Ye Xiuwen had gone through all the trouble for a simple discussion like that. On the other hand, a vague, murky idea did surface in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind for a fleeting moment, but she failed totch onto it either.

    ¡°Speak. What business do you have with Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen noticed that Jun Xiaomo was still silently sizing up the troupe of maroon-garbed men, so he took the initiative to rify matters on her behalf, ¡°While you¡¯re at it, do exin the term of reference, ¡®mistress¡¯ as well.¡±

    The leader of the troupe was about to kneel with the rest of his men when Jun Xiaomo held them back, ¡°Hang on a minute, don¡¯t kneel down. You may speak your mind while standing. Why are you calling me ¡®mistress¡¯? And just who are you referring to by ¡®master¡¯?¡±

    The leader retrieved something from his Interspatial Ring and politely presented it to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted as soon as she saw the blood coloured jade pendant.

    Ye Xiuwen also recognized the jade pendant immediately, and he eximed in his heart ¨C As expected...

    ¡°Our master is none other than the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom, Rong Ruihan. Before he left our n¡¯s grounds and made his way towards the valley to look for Mistress, he had left a standing order that we should all take instructions from Mistress should he encounter any danger or lose his life in the process. We¡¯re already aware that our master is in danger right now. That¡¯s why we hade looking for Mistress, hoping that you¡¯d be able to rescue our master.¡±

    ¡°Since you¡¯re Brother Rong¡¯s nsmen, why didn¡¯t you move together with him two nights ago?¡± Jun Xiaomo responded with a trace amount of criticism in her voice.

    In fact, rather than saying her criticism was for Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen, it would be far more urate to say that she was condemning Rong Ruihan¡¯s idiocy for infiltrating Dai Yanfeng¡¯s ranks alone. How could he treat his own life so lightly?!

    ¡°Master had mentioned that it would be far too obvious if everyone moved at the same time, and it would have been far more difficult to slip into the enemy¡¯s ranks undetected. Thus, he had instructed us to wait outside while he entered the valley alone.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo began to choke up as soon as the leader finished speaking. Just like that, Jun Xiaomo found herselfpletely speechless and unable to express her emotions for a protracted period of time.

    ¡°He must have been prepared for the possibility for death, right? That¡¯s why he¡¯s made such arrangements with you, asking you to take orders from me if anything happened to him, right?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s voice trembled.

    The leader of the troupe lowered his head slightly, tacitly acknowledging Jun Xiaomo¡¯s conjectures.

    ¡°Hah! What a distasteful joke!¡± Jun Xiaomo exploded with indignation, ¡°Who told him to make such sacrifices? Who told him that I want to owe him such a debt of gratitude?! It was the same in the past, and it¡¯s the same right now ¨C is he trying to force my hand here?! Is he trying to force me to ept the term of reference, ¡®mistress¡¯?!¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples exchanged nces sheepishly as they wondered just how Little Martial Sister, Martial Brother Ye and Rong Ruihan became so inextricably entangled with each other.

    ¡°Mistress, please save Master!¡± The leader of the troupe suddenly knelt down again, and his maroon-garbed subordinates instantly followed suit.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rage had only manifested for an instant. Right now, she was calm once again, and she looked at the troupe as she instructed, ¡°Don¡¯t call me ¡®mistress¡¯, because that¡¯s not what I am! If you want to address me, call me ¡®Miss Jun¡¯.¡±

    She did not wish for such a contrived title to be forced upon her just because she owed Rong Ruihan a great debt of gratitude.

    ¡°Then, Miss Jun, what about Master...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we intend to rescue him either ways. Do you know what kind of predicament he is in right now?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked.

    ¡°We¡¯re not too certain of the exact situation. However, we¡¯ve got a spirit tool in our n¡¯s grounds that gives us an insight to his condition.¡± The leader exined.

    ¡°Alright, no matter what the case is, the fact of the matter is that time isn¡¯t on our side.¡± Jun Xiaomo solemnly ryed to the leader. Although she was slightly miffed about the term of reference, mistress, she knew that there were far more important things to focus her mind and attention on right now. After all, when all was said and done, she was undeniably worried about Rong Ruihan¡¯s predicament, ¡°We n to make our move this evening. However, the perpetrators should already be expecting us within the valley, and they would most certainly have made preparations. Who knows ¨C they might already haveid out several traps and ambushes against us by now. It¡¯s good that you¡¯re here. Our odds of sess have increased slightly with this.¡±

    ¡°I wonder if Miss Jun has any ns of action?¡±

    ¡°Have you heard of the idiom, ¡°the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind¡±? I¡¯ve deliberated over this matter a little while earlier, and I think that we can employ some smoke and mirrors.¡± Jun Xiaomo stated with a determined voice.

    ¡°The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind?¡±

    ¡°That right. That¡¯s exactly right. That said, we¡¯ve got to make some preparations for now.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined as a cold gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes.

    How dare these perpetratorsy a hand on Brother Rong. We¡¯re going to serve them their just desserts!

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo and the others were busy making preparations for the operation to save Rong Ruihan, Xiang Guqing and the rest were also busy making preparations to wee their guests.

    Truth be told, Xiang Guqing and the rest hardly believed Jun Xiaomo and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples to be a threat to them. After all, had Jun Xiaomo been unable to breach the defenses of the master formation arrayst night, not a single one of them would have been able to live to see the dawn of the next day. If Xiang Guqing and the rest were able to defeat the Heavenly Peak disciples once, they could most certainly defeat them again.

    Since Xiang Guqing was the master and owner of the valley, she was in charge of the operations tonight. Even Dai Yanfeng had to listen to hermands.

    ¡°I think that it would be best if we ridded the world of these Heavenly Peak disciples tonight in one fell swoop.¡± Xiang Guqing told Dai Yanfeng.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Weren¡¯t we going to capture them and take them captive?¡± Dai Yanfeng asked in response.

    ¡°Hmph. What¡¯s the use of that? There¡¯s no profit in keeping them alive to begin with. Elder Dai, you would be wise to remember your promised payment to us after the event.¡± Xiang Guqing snorted.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, that little bit of payment isn¡¯t something that the Eternal Summit Sect would be stingy about.¡± Dai Yanfeng retorted snidely, ¡°But, I¡¯d still like to keep Jun Xiaomo alive.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Have you fallen for that littledy?¡± Xiang Guqing mocked.

    ¡°Hah. Fallen for her?! Not over my dead body!¡± Dai Yanfeng gnashed his teeth as a vicious gaze filled with evil intentions shed across his eyes, ¡°I simply think that a simple death sentence would be far too light for all the transgressions on her part!¡±

    ¡°If you ask me, I¡¯d still advise Elder Dai to kill her once and for all. The fact that she is capable of breaking through the defenses of the valley¡¯s master formation array means that she¡¯s got tricks aplenty up her sleeves. She¡¯s the greatest variable among all of the Heavenly Peak disciples.¡± Xiang Guqing nced at Dai Yanfeng as she cautioned him.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to remind me of that.¡± Dai Yanfeng muttered coldly, ¡°I know just how to deal with that. Once I pluck out the nerves in her limbs and cripple her cultivation, she wouldn¡¯t be able to do a single thing no matter how capable she is.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to grant her a life sentence ¨C one that is worse than death itself!¡±

    As Dai Yanfeng barked, he mmed his hand resoundingly onto a nearby stone table, turning it to a pile of stone powder and rubble in an instant.

    It was as though the stone table were a foreshadowing of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s future.

    Just like that, the day passed quickly, and night slowly crept up over thends once more. Jun Xiaomo tookmand over the Heavenly Peak disciples and Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen and they soon arrived at the area just outside Xiang Guqing¡¯s valley.

    ¡°Are you truly prepared to ept the ns I¡¯d made earlier? Please be mindful that tonight¡¯s operation is going to be incredibly dangerous.¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around, asking Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen bowed politely as they responded, ¡°Miss Jun doesn¡¯t have to be concerned about us. We¡¯ve been prepared to follow your orders right from the onset. After all, our lives belong to Master ever since the day we were born.¡±

    ¡°Then, alright. Please take care. Even though I¡¯m using you as bait, I don¡¯t want you shing with them in a life-and-death battle either. You¡¯ve got to do your best to preserve your own lives, understand?¡±

    ¡°Yes. We understand Miss Jun¡¯s orders.¡± The leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen responded politely. Then, he retrieved a talisman from his Interspatial Ring and applied it onto his own body. In the blink of an eye, his appearances turned into that of Ye Xiuwen.

    The other nsmen also followed suit. Very soon, the nsmen turned into the entire group of Heavenly Peak disciples ¨C there was even a member who possessed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances.

    This was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions ¨C Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen would act as bait, luring out Xiang Guqing and the other perpetrators, while the real Heavenly Peak disciples would hide some distance away, surrounding and nking the rest of the perpetrators while they are preupied with the nsmen.

    One of the main reasons why she had asked Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen to act as bait was because they possessed far greaterbat experience and abilities than the Heavenly Peak disciples. That being the case, she knew that there was going a much higher likelihood that they would be able toe out alive when they duked it out with Xiang Guqing and the rest.

    That said, no matter how muchbat experience they possessed, the fact remained that Xiang Guqing and the rest possessed cultivation that were several qualitative levels higher than the nsmen. Thus, despite having issued such orders to the nsmen, Jun Xiaomo continued to be gued by the guilt and remorse weighing heavily on her heart.

    Moved by the desire to keep Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen alive, Jun Xiaomo even handed all of her remaining defensive talismans to the nsmen, leaving only a few remaining for her Heavenly Peak martial brothers and herself.

    ¡°We have to seed in tonight¡¯s operation.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. We will definitely seed.¡±

    Everyone had the same thoughts in their hearts just as they were walking brazenly into the valley. Their eyes were now filled with immense courage and fearlessness, as though they were prepared to face death with equanimity.

    On the other side, Xiang Guqing and the rest remainedpletely oblivious to all of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ns. What was an inevitable sess to them would soon turn out to be one of the greatest regrets in their lives.

 Chapter 349: Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Provocation, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Heart Wavers

    <h4>Chapter 349: Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Provocation, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Heart Wavers</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The bright, round moon hung high in the sky, enveloping the world with its stifling, deste and frosty glow.

    The eerie silence in the surroundings were only broken up by the asional rustling leaves with a gentle, passing breeze that sounded almost like the stirring of footsteps.

    ¡°Master, do you think that Jun Xiaomo and the rest will really return tonight?¡± Zhang Shuyue¡¯s gaze remained transfixed on the trap that they had alreadyid out for Jun Xiaomo and the rest, as though she were a hunter waiting expectantly for her prey.

    ¡°If what Dai Yanfeng said was true, Jun Xiaomo will most certainly return tonight.¡± Xiang Guqing calmly responded.

    ¡°She might return, but what about the others? They¡¯re not rted to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lover; would they return as well?¡± Zhang Shuyue asked with a glint in her eyes.

    ¡°Hmph. Jun Xiaomo is their Little Martial Sister, and she¡¯s also the daughter of their master. If Jun Xiaomo is truly determined to return, there¡¯s no reason that they would sit idly by either. Otherwise, how are they going to ount to Jun Linxuan if anything happened to Jun Xiaomo?¡± Xiang Guqing snorted.

    ¡°That¡¯s good then...¡± Zhang Shuyue acknowledged cautiously.

    ¡°I¡¯ll say it again ¨C you¡¯d do wise to set aside those unnecessary feelings for Ye Xiuwen. How can you still be coveting a tattered shoe that¡¯s already been worn by Jun Xiaomo? You¡¯re doing nothing more than degrading yourself right now. I don¡¯t relish having such a useless disciple.¡± Xiang Guqing chided Zhang Shuyue with some measure of resentment.

    Zhang Shuyue bit down on her lower lip with some measure of reluctance, ¡°I know, Master...¡±

    Just then, they heard some rustling sounds echo out in the distance. When they looked up, they vaguely noticed a slender figure stepping out from the shadows.

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo! She¡¯s reallye back!¡± A multitude ofplex emotions instantly surged into Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart when she saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s figure. Zhang Shuyue¡¯s gaze grew frigid and vicious, as though she couldn¡¯t wait to tear Jun Xiaomo to shreds.

    ¡°Yue-er, hang on a minute. The others haven¡¯t appeared yet.¡± Xiang Guqing held Zhang Shuyue back.

    ¡°Others? That¡¯s right, where are the others?¡± Zhang Shuyue furrowed her brows, before she suddenly smiled coldly, ¡°Seems like Jun Xiaomo¡¯s promiscuous behaviour has attracted the ire of her martial brothers. None of the others were willing to walk right to their death after all.¡±

    ¡°Disciple, don¡¯t jump to conclusions just yet. Something tells me that this little gal isn¡¯t someone we should underestimate. She¡¯s crafty and cunning. Perhaps she¡¯d already instructed the rest to hide in the shadows, waiting for us to make a move.¡± Xiang Guqing reminded her disciple.

    Just then, the svelte figure in the distance spoke aloud, ¡°Sect Leader Xiang, Elder Dai, I¡¯m here as you¡¯ve instructed. Tell me what you want in exchange for Brother Rong.¡±

    Then, before Xiang Guqing could even respond, Dai Yanfeng stole the limelight and chuckled coldly.

    ¡°Want us to release Rong Ruihan? Sure. Take your own life before our very eyes, and we might just consider releasing Rong Ruihan.¡±

    The svelte figure standing in the distance was ostensibly taken aback by the terms of offer. Then, suppressing her speechlessness, she uttered, ¡°Very well. Then it seems we¡¯ve got nothing more to talk about.¡± After she finished speaking, she turned around and began to walk away!

    Shk! Shk! Out of nowhere, two ice arrows immediately struck the soil in the ground inches away from where the sveltedy was walking towards.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, where do you think you¡¯re doing? Aren¡¯t you going to rescue your lover anymore?!¡± This time, the person who cried out to stop Jun Xiaomo in her tracks was Zhang Shuyue.

    ¡°Since you¡¯ve not got any intentions of releasing Brother Rong, then there¡¯s no meaning in remaining here either. That said, let me put this out there ¨C if anything happens to Brother Rong, I¡¯m going to personally see to it that none of you are going to live to see the light of day! You¡¯d best make the necessary preparations for others toe here and collect your corpses.¡± In the eyes of Xiang Guqing and the rest, the sveltedy¡¯s threats werepletely preposterous.

    ¡°Collect our corpses? Hahahaha...Jun Xiaomo, have you gone mad? Do you actually think you¡¯ll be able to leave this valley alive tonight? Perhaps the person who should make arrangements for others to collect your corpse is you!¡± As Zhang Shuyue finished speaking, she leapt straight towards the sveltedy in the distance. This time, Xiang Guqing no longer obstructed her movements. Instead, she made another gesture, signaling for several other disciples to dash straight towards Jun Xiaomo together with Zhang Shuyue.

    That said, Xiang Guqing remained where she was, hidden in eaves of the trees as she cast a soulless gaze at the sight unfolding as distance away.

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you make a move as well? Jun Xiaomo is already in the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. Those few disciples of yours might not be enough to deal with her.¡± Dai Yanfeng sneered.

    ¡°It¡¯s not my intention to crush her immediately. After all, if we crush her right here and now, how are we going to lure out the other Heavenly Peak disciples that are hidden behind her?¡± Xiang Guqing coldly retorted, ¡°In fact, I¡¯m going to bide for time and make my move only after Yue-er and the rest whittles down Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities. I don¡¯t believe that the others will still remain hidden in the shadows when they see Jun Xiaomo facing the very real prospect of deathter on!¡±

    ¡°That makes sense. Let¡¯s wait and see, then.¡± A vicious smile crept up the corner of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s lips as he took an interest in Xiang Guqing¡¯s ploy to lure the rest out of hiding.

    Over the next few moments, it became more and more apparent that the person battling with Zhang Shuyue and the others was getting increasingly pushed onto his backfoot.

    Had the person not been an imposter Jun Xiaomo, there was no way he would have been pushed onto the backfoot like this. After all, Jun Xiaomo was already in the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and even if she were surrounded by several assants at the Golden Core stage of cultivation, she would still have a reasonable chance of defeating them. However, this person was not Jun Xiaomo; he was merely one of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen, and he was only at the Golden Core stage of cultivation. The fact that he could still hold his ground against several other assants at the same cultivation as himself was in and of itself a pretty impressive feat to boot.

    Unfortunately, he knew that he could not afford to fall right now. If he fell, the jig would be up, and everything that Jun Xiaomo had prepared in store for Xiang Guqing and the rest would bepletely wasted.

    After all, the real Jun Xiaomo would never be so weak as to be felled by the concerted attacks of several cultivators at the Golden Core stage of cultivation. Therefore, if he copsed to the relentless attacks in such a short span of time, his identity would most certainly be exposed.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo had provided him with some defensive talismans beforehand, and he was barely able to hang on with the aid of these talismans.

    Then, just as the imposter Jun Xiaomo drew close to his limits, Xiang Guqing finally made her move.

    She leapt down from the tree she was at and immediately sent a vicious palm strike flying straight into ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± back. Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsman who was masquerading as Jun Xiaomo instantly spat out blood as he was sent flying away, until he finally struck a tree in the distance. There, he slumped to the ground weakly and almost passed out.

    If not for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s defensive talismans, Xiang Guqing¡¯s palm strike might very well have sent him straight into the afterlife.

    ¡°Hmph. Jun Xiaomo, you¡¯re not all that much either.¡± Zhang Shuyue snorted as she slowly strode over towards Jun Xiaomo.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were still nowhere to be seen despite ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡¯s¡± ostensibly grievous wounds. Thus, Zhang Shuyue had begun to entertain the possibility that perhaps the Heavenly Peak disciples were not even going to arrive on scene.

    That¡¯s right. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s return tonight had ¡°death¡± written all over it ¨C who in the right mind would possibly want to return with her just to be buried together in a mass grave? Perhaps not even Brother Ye can be bothered to deal with the promiscuous Jun Xiaomo any longer!

    Then, just as Zhang Shuyue drew immeasurably close to the prospects of taking Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, several persons flickered out from the shadows in the nick of time, sending deadly attacks straight towards Zhang Shuyue! The leader of the reinforcements that had just appeared was none other than Ye Xiuwen!

    More urately speaking, the leader of the reinforcements was none other than the leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen who had donned the appearances of Ye Xiuwen with a Masquerade Talisman.

    ¡°Yue-er, be careful!¡± Xiang Guqing wrapped her whip around Zhang Shuyue and immediately pulled her back from harm¡¯s way.

    It was close. The spirit sword in ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡¯s¡± hands had been a hair¡¯s breadth away from plunging straight through Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chest.

    ¡°Brother Ye, you¡¯ve arrived.¡± Zhang Shuyue looked at ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡± with aplex gaze that was filled with sorrow and disappointment, joy and hatred.

    She was filled with joy to see Ye Xiuwen again, especially after contemting the possibility that he might not show up tonight.

    At the same time, she hated the fact that he had showed up again, because that meant that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was still with the promiscuous Jun Xiaomo.

    Why is Brother Ye doing so much for Jun Xiaomo?! Why can¡¯t he do something for me for once?! At the very least, aren¡¯t I far more faithful than Jun Xiaomo ever was?!

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡± ignored Zhang Shuyue¡¯sments. Even though he wore Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances, he was neither aware of the history between Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue, nor could he care less about Zhang Shuyue¡¯s feelings towards Ye Xiuwen.

    There was only one thought in his heart right now ¨C and that was to execute Miss Jun¡¯s ns and lure out every single person in Xiang Guqing¡¯s faction so that they could rescue Rong Ruihan.

    Thus, ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡± began tounch a series of attacks towards Zhang Shuyue. As the head of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen, he had already attained the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and it was more than enough to deal with a young sprout like Zhang Shuyue.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s other nsmen followed closely behind him. Wearing the appearances of the other Heavenly Peak disciples, the nsmen immediately began to duke it out with Xiang Guqing and her disciples.

    ¡°Elder Dai, does the Eternal Summit Sect really intend to sit idly by, waiting to reap what you have not sown?!¡± Xiang Guqing bellowed as she nced at Dai Yanfeng.

    Indeed, Dai Yanfeng had intended to sit idly by for a little while longer. However, now that Xiang Guqing had called him out on his ¡°ignorance¡±, he knew that he could no longer justifiably maintain it.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go help out.¡± Dai Yanfeng gesticted, instructing the other Eternal Summit Sect disciples to join the fray.

    ¡°Yes, Grand Elder.¡±

    Within moments, tens of people flickered out of the shadows and joined the fray, all of whom were disciples from the Eternal Summit Sect. With the arrival of more reinforcements, the situation quickly turned advantageous for Xiang Guqing and her faction.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen! Are you still going to stand by the side of that cheap slut, Jun Xiaomo? Do you know why she¡¯s here today? She¡¯s here to rescue her lover! Do you really want to keep such a promiscuous, fickledy by your side? Do you really have to cheapen yourself like that?!¡± Zhang Shuyue anxiously and resentfully berated Ye Xiuwen, hoping to snap him out of his stupor.

    However, her words didn¡¯t even cause a single ripple in ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡¯s¡± expressions, and he continued to battle with Xiang Guqing¡¯s faction as though he werepletely deaf to her cries.

    ¡°Brother Ye, can you please open your eyes and look at me? Don¡¯t be blinded by Jun Xiaomo anymore! She¡¯s not worth your time and affection!¡± Zhang Shuyue pleaded, ¡°I¡¯m the one who truly loves you! In fact, I¡¯ve fallen for you the moment I saw you, and even now, my feelings for you remainpletely unchanged. Does my presence mean nothing to you at all? Are you really unmoved by my feelings for you?¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t be able to escape tonight. If you¡¯re willing to remain here and stay by my side, I¡¯ll ask Master to spare your life, alright?¡±

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen! Are you really so infatuated by Jun Xiaomo?! Jun Xiaomo might even already have shared a bed with that man she¡¯s so desperately trying to rescue now. Do you really want to be with a woman like that?!¡±

    ......

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡± remainpletely impervious to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s relentless barrage of curses and pleas. However, some distance away, the real Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen heard everything Zhang Shuyue said as well.

    Jun Xiaomo and the other Heavenly Peak disciples were hidden by Invisibility Talismans, and they would nce up from time to time to observe the battles that were panning out just a short distance away from where they were. Then, when Zhang Shuyue began to curse Jun Xiaomo and plead with ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡±, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart immediately trembled vigorously.

    Faced with Zhang Shuyue¡¯s relentless barrage of allegations, she found herselfpletely speechless for the very first time.

    Was her rtionship with Rong Ruihan truly pure and innocent as she had always maintained? Was her rtionship with Rong Ruihan a purely tonic one? If so, why would she lose her mind like that as soon as Rong Ruihan was captured by Xiang Guqing and the rest?

    Jun Xiaomo had never dared to delve too deep into these thoughts. Instead, she had simply told herself again and again that she would shelf these thoughts for now and only deal with them after they had rescued Rong Ruihan.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo resolved in her heart that as soon as they had sessfully rescued Brother Rong, she would make everything clear to him, telling him that she was already an item with Martial Brother Ye in the hope that they would still be able to retain the friendship with Brother Rong that she treasured so much.

    She bit down on her lower lips, seizing her thoughts and forcing herself to calm down.

    Momentster, she looked up and nced at Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was not looking back at her right now. Instead, he was staring vacantly at the battlefield some distance away with a gaze that was cold and sullen, deep and abstruse.

    It looked as if his gaze was transfixed on Zhang Shuyue, yet nk at vacant at the same time.

    Jun Xiaomo closed her eyes and suppressed the roiling emotions in her heart.

    Now is not the time to discuss these things. Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly as she reminded herself of the pressing issues at hand.

    Once this battle ends, we¡¯ll resolve things once and for all.

 Chapter 350: The Shifting Tides of War

    <h4>Chapter 350: The Shifting Tides of War</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Outnumbered three to one, Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen gritted their teeth and fought hard for their lives.

    They knew that Jun Xiaomo and the others were waiting for the prime opportunity to strike, and none of them could afford to let the cat out of the bag if they wanted the operation tonight to seed.

    Approximately one hour into the battle, one of the nsmen copsed onto the ground. He was not dead yet, but he was practically on the verge of death.

    Almost like a contagion, the other nsmen began to copse to the ground soon after, and the nsmen still standing grew fewer and fewer in number.

    Seems like the battle ising to an end soon. Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng could almost smell their victory.

    The lead nsman wearing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances was one of the few who were still standing. However, the number of wounds on his body was increasing at an rming rate. Zhang Shuyue was no longer yelling or pleading with him anymore. Instead, she now had a cold smirk on her face as she stood idly by the side, watching her master and the others surround and attack ¡°Ye Xiuwen¡±.

    From what she could tell, Ye Xiuwen was inextricably and hopelessly in love with Jun Xiaomo, and her heart would no longer be gued by remorse if Ye Xiuwen were to perish right here, right now.

    The nsmen wearing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances had already copsed onto the ground, losing all ability to resist the assants. From the looks of things, ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± was nothing more than amb to the ughter right now, and she was no longer a variable that could influence the tides of battle or pull another trick out of the bag.

    Then, at the tail end of the battle, Dai Yanfeng finally made his appearance and stepped out of the shadows, and he slowly walked towards ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± with a vicious, macabre smile on his face.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, back when you crippled my daughter¡¯s cultivation, did you ever think that you were going to perish this way, hmm?!¡±

    He could already taste the joy of revenge. He gazed intently at ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡± as shey weakly and feebly on the ground, and his mind began to churn with the innumerable ways he was going to torment Jun Xiaomo in order to repay everything she had done to him and his daughter.

    At the very least, he was not going to let Jun Xiaomo have a simple and easy death!

    However, just as he arrived beside ¡°Jun Xiaomo¡±, their surroundings suddenly trembled slightly, and a powerful force suddenly appeared overhead and weighed heavily on their bodies!

    Dai Yanfeng reflexively summoned every bit of spiritual energy within his body to resist the overbearing energy weighing down heavily on him. Unfortunately, it was apparent that everyone else who possessed a lower cultivation level found themselves in a far more tragic situation. In particr, almost every one of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples suddenly found themselves crushed by the force and crumbling to the ground as mouthful after mouthful of blood sprayed from their mouths.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?!¡± Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes widened as he barked viciously.

    This was something that Xiang Guqing demanded to know as well. Unfortunately, she had expended far too much spiritual energy in the earlier battle, and the spiritual energy remaining within her body was a far cry from what Dai Yanfeng had. Thus, when the overbearing pressure appeared overhead, she almost copsed to the ground like a broken doll as well.

    Right now, even speaking a single word had be an incredibly difficult task to Xiang Guqing.

    Just then, one of Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples lifted her hand weakly and pointed to the sky as she eximed, ¡°Look...look up! A formation array!¡±

    Looking up, Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng immediately noticed that a massive formation array looming overhead in the ink-ck night sky. This formation array appeared to be formed by over thirty pieces of talismans, each of which were connected to the other by a single golden thread. With the pitch-ck night sky as a backdrop, theplicated patterns formed by the golden thread appeared to be immactely beautiful, possessing an almost godly luster to it.

    Unfortunately, none of the ones looking up at the formation array had the heart to appreciate its beauty. In fact, none of the persons carrying the weight of the overbearing pressure could even tell where or when this massive formation array had appeared overhead.

    Soon after, Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng discovered to their horror that spiritual energy was beginning to pour out of their bodies, almost as though it was being absorbed by something.

    Just as their bewilderment hade to a head, something else which left thempletely stupefied urred in the next moment ¨C

    Approximately twenty familiar figures suddenly emerged from the shadows of the woods some distance away and begun to make their way over.

    After all, Xiang Guqing and the rest had just defeated the very same people just moments ago! How could they possibly have appearedpletely unharmed from the shadows of the woods in the very next moment?!

    ¡°What in the world is going on?!¡± Dai Yanfeng was almost on the brink of insanity.

    He swept his gaze across the people lying on the floor right now ¨C There¡¯s no mistake! It¡¯s Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo and the rest. How could there possibly be another group of the same people?!

    Jun Xiaomo looked at Dai Yanfeng cidly as a mischievous smile crept up the corner of her lips, ¡°Elder Dai, I¡¯m pretty sure you already have the answer to all your questions, don¡¯t you? After all, it¡¯s not like you¡¯ve never heard of a Masquerade Talisman. Those people whom you battled with earlier werebatants who had simply assumed the identity of us Heavenly Peak disciples using Masquerade Talismans. Our battle is only just beginning.¡±

    ¡°Hmph! Do you think that a single formation array is sufficient to derail our ns? Insolence. Let me show you the vast difference in the levels of our abilities right now!¡±

    As Dai Yanfeng spoke, he retrieved a dark-green, pagoda-shaped spirit tool and threw it straight towards Jun Xiaomo with all his might. At the same time, he began to mutter a series of mnemonics under his breath as he suffused the spirit tool with his own spiritual energy.

    Jun Xiaomo remained rooted to the ground as she looked at the spirit tool flying towards her. Then, in the instant right before the spirit tool struck her, she made a hand seal, causing the formation diagram hovering above them to tremble slightly. Just like that, the spirit tool collided heavily with what appeared to be an invisible barrier. Unable to fly out of the domain of the formation array and strike its target, the spiritual energy within the spirit tool began to leak out profusely as well.

    As the spiritual energy flowed out of the spirit tool, the formation array hovering above them also began to glow with an even brighter luster.

    Pfft! Dai Yanfeng spat out a fresh mouthful of blood. He was the owner of the spirit tool. Naturally, he would suffer from a massive bacsh when the spiritual energy within the spirit tool was forcibly extricated by the oppressive formation array hovering above them.

    ¡°Would you like to give other spirit tools a try?¡± A mischievous smile crept up the corner of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips again, ¡°Don¡¯t say that I didn¡¯t warn you, Elder Dai. The higher the grade of spirit tool used, the more spiritual energy this formation array will absorb from it, and the more intense the bacsh suffered on your end. You can give it another shot if you don¡¯t believe me. We can see whether you manage to use a spirit tool sessfully first, or whether you perish as a result of all the bacshes first.¡±

    ¡°You! Jun Xiaomo! You did this on purpose!¡± Dai Yanfengmbasted Jun Xiaomo, ¡°You¡¯d used others to lure us out just so that you could deal with all of us using the formation array in one fell swoop!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re spot on, Elder Dai. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Haven¡¯t you heard of such tactics before?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled.

    ¡°So what, Jun Xiaomo? Do you think you¡¯ll be able to keep us trapped and bound here with your formation array forever? Dream on! I know that the effects of these formation arrays built on talismans won¡¯tst for more than a few hours. Once the formation array loses its effects, I¡¯ll show you how we¡¯re going to take care of you!¡± Dai Yanfeng continued to berate Jun Xiaomo furiously.

    ¡°You¡¯re on a roll! It is indeed true that the effects of formation arrays built on talismans don¡¯tst for more than a few hours. I¡¯d never expected Elder Dai to be so well-informed in this regard... Unfortunately, did you really think that I¡¯d be giving you the opportunity to walk away from the formation array with your lives intact?!¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes widened.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo finished speaking, she immediately retrieved a ferocious looking whip and charged headlong towards Dai Yanfeng. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen and the other Heavenly Peak disciples took cue from Jun Xiaomo and also charged into the domain of the formation array, attacking Xiang Guqing and the rest as well.

    Ye Xiuwen and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had already applied on themselves a talisman provided by Jun Xiaomo beforehand. Thus, they remainedpletely unaffected by the powerful formation array hovering above them. On the other hand, Xiang Guqing and Dai Yanfeng were much less fortunate. Not only were they unable to escape the domain of the formation array, the oppressive effect of the formation array even meant that both their offensive and defensive abilities were massively suppressed, while the amount of spiritual energy within their bodies were constantly being drained away as well.

    Xiang Guqing and the rest had already expended a substantial amount of the spiritual energy within their bodies through their earlier arduous and long battle. Thus, under the draining and suppressive effects of the formation array, they discovered that their overallbat abilities were greatly reduced and muted ¨C those who originally possessedbat abilities at the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation had now found themselves possibly weaker than the average cultivator at the elementary-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation.

    Under such circumstances, it was obvious that the tides had turned, and the goddess of victory was shining favorably on Jun Xiaomo and the rest right now.

    In the blink of an eye, Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciple was felled, and he was no longer able to stand up.

    Momentster, another disciple from the Eternal Summit Sect was also felled by a powerful whish, and his arms and legs were twisted into a mangled mess. He, too, was unable to stand up again.

    After Ye Xiuwen plunged his sword straight through Xiang Guqing¡¯s shoulders, he joined hands with Jun Xiaomo and beat Dai Yanfeng back until he copsed on the ground.

    As Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen worked hand in hand to suppress, defeat and incapacitate all their enemies, Zhang Shuyue began to boil with hatred and jealousy.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo! Do you really not care about your lover Rong Ruihan anymore?!¡± Dai Yanfeng could no longer suppress the hatred in his heart, and he bellowed at the top of his voice in a manic fashion when he saw yet another Eternal Summit Sect disciple sent flying by Jun Xiaomo, mming heavily into the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo paused momentarily and turned back around, gazingnguidly at Dai Yanfeng as hey on the ground in a sorry state. Coldly, she quipped, ¡°I¡¯ll spare your life if you¡¯re willing to let Rong Ruihan out. How about that?¡±

    Dai Yanfeng was naturally opposed to that idea. After all, he had done so much just to trap Rong Ruihan within the spirit tool, and he was eagerly anticipating the time when Rong Ruihan would be reduced to no more than a pool of blood. How could he possibly entertain the idea of releasing Rong Ruihan?

    Furthermore, the spirit tool could only be used once every one-hundred years, and there was no reason to release Rong Ruihan and render that single usepletely wasted.

    As she observed the hesitation creeping into the depths of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes, Jun Xiaomo snorted coldly, ¡°Elder Dai, you would be wise to recognize that things aren¡¯t really going in your favor right now. If you hesitate any longer, I¡¯m just going to end up crippling each and every single one of you. You¡¯d better believe it!¡±

    Dai Yanfeng was unsure of whether Jun Xiaomo possessed the ability to cripple everyone present right now. That said, he knew that Jun Xiaomo was resourceful, and she might very well still have tricks up her sleeves.

    Dai Yanfeng was a prideful man. He was a person who would very much rather choose death than to be rendered a crippled person.

    As his heart and mind began to churn with his thoughts and deliberations, Dai Yanfeng squinted to conceal his eyes that were intensely filled with hatred.

    Finally, he looked back up at Jun Xiaomo. Coughing weakly, he addressed Jun Xiaomo once more, ¡°Hah, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to release him either. It¡¯s just that the spirit tool I have is rather unique, and it only allows entries, not exits. If you think that you can save him yourself, you¡¯re wee to give it a shot.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked coldly.

    ¡°You¡¯ll know when you see it.¡±

    As Dai Yanfeng finished speaking, he retrieved the spirit tool from his Interspatial Ring and tossed it straight towards Jun Xiaomo!

 Chapter 351: Dai Yanfengâ€™s Death, Jun Xiaomo is Trapped!

    <h4>Chapter 351: Dai Yanfeng¡¯s Death, Jun Xiaomo is Trapped!</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as Dai Yanfeng tossed out his spirit tool, its eerie, ck orifice immediately turned to face Jun Xiaomo and locked onto her. In the very next moment, the darkness began to burst forth from the dark orifice and expand in all directions, as though a massive spirit beast had just opened wide its mouth, intending to swallow and devour all that were in its path.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart trembled, and she immediately retreated, thinking to avoid the expanding domain of the spirit tool.

    Unfortunately, Dai Yanfeng had aimed the spirit tool straight at her, and it had already locked onto her scent. Thus, by the time Jun Xiaomo reacted to what was happening, it was already toote.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo was sucked into the domain of the pagoda-shaped spirit tool in the blink of an eye, and the spirit tool immediately returned to its original form and dropped onto the ground.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Little Martial Sister!¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples dashed over towards where Jun Xiaomo was from all directions. Unfortunately, apart from the pagoda-shaped spirit tool, nothing remained where Jun Xiaomo was just moments ago.

    ¡°Hahahaha...¡± Dai Yanfeng began to cackle madly. Streams of blood began to trickle from the corners of his lips, but Dai Yanfeng ignored thempletely, ¡°Jun Xiaomo! You¡¯ve miscalcted! You¡¯d never thought that I would actually sacrifice my own life in order to exact vengeance on you, huh! You¡¯ve crippled my daughter. I would never let you lead a good life if I could help it! Hahahaha...¡±

    ¡°You! What did you do to Little Martial Sister?!¡± Chen Feiyu stormed over in rage and grabbed Dai Yanfeng by his cor, yanking him up from where he was.

    Dai Yanfeng was already in his final breaths now, and he was naturally no threat to Chen Feiyu despite the vast chasm between their respective cultivation levels.

    Dai Yanfeng nced at Chen Feiyu with a mocking gaze and began tough sardonically, ¡°If I¡¯m still at my peak right now, I would have squashed you like an ant for disrespecting me like this!¡±

    Thud! Chen Feiyu struck Dai Yanfeng ferociously with his fist, and a resounding thud echoed out when Dai Yanfeng¡¯s face mmed into the ground.

    ¡°Do you think that you¡¯d get the reprieve of death more quickly by provoking me? Let me tell you something, as long as you¡¯ve still got a breath within you, I¡¯ll do everything I can to make your life far worse than death!¡± Chen Feiyu threatened.

    However, Dai Yanfeng remainedpletely unfazed. Despite looking frailer and feebler by the minute, he still revealed a victorious smirk on his face as he looked at Chen Feiyu, ¡°There¡¯s no harm telling you either, since you¡¯ll never be able to rescue her. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen what¡¯s be of Rong Ruihan within the pagoda? Very soon, Jun Xiaomo will be following right after his footsteps.¡±

    ¡°You! Release them at once!¡± Chen Feiyu bellowed.

    ¡°Hah. Release them? Why should I when I can¡¯t wait to see them perish?!¡± Dai Yanfeng chuckled coldly as more and more blood began to flow out of the corner of his lips. At the same time, his voice grew increasingly hoarse, ¡°Do you know the price I¡¯d paid to trap Jun Xiaomo within the spirit tool? This spirit tool is something that can only be used once every one-hundred years. I¡¯d already used it once previously when I¡¯d trapped Rong Ruihan within its domain. Of course, that¡¯s the normal rule for its usage... Hah, there¡¯s yet another way of circumventing those rules ¨C do you know what that is?¡±

    ¡°If the spirit tool¡¯s user offers up his own life, he can forcibly open the spirit tool one additional time. That would also forcibly destroy the contract between the spirit tool and its owner, allowing the spirit tool to be an object without an owner.¡±

    ¡°Hahahahaha...how about it? Even if I¡¯m going down, I¡¯m hell bent on dragging Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan down to hell with me!¡± Dai Yanfeng red at Chen Feiyu with a manic expression on his face. Momentster, Dai Yanfeng spat out a huge mouthful of blood, and his eyes began to dte.

    ¡°He...Hehe...Yue...Yue-yue, your father has finally exacted vengeance for you, hehe...¡±

    As soon as he finished uttering his final words, his head slumped down in front of his chest, and his entire body became limp, motionless and lifeless.

    ¡°You! Dai Yanfeng, don¡¯t die just yet! Release them, Dai Yanfeng!¡± Chen Feiyu shook Dai Yanfeng¡¯s corpse vigorously, as though that would recall him from the gates of hell.

    Unfortunately, there was no way that a dead person could ever be brought back to life, even if he were a cultivator. No matter how incensed and infuriated Chen Feiyu was, Dai Yanfeng was nevering back.

    ¡°Damn!¡± Chen Feiyu mmed Dai Yanfeng¡¯s corpse back onto the ground.

    Just then, an ice-cold hand grabbed onto Chen Feiyu¡¯s shoulder, causing his body to tremble slightly. He turned around, only to be met with a profoundly deep and abstruse gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ink-ck eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s usually calm and cid gaze appeared like the eye of a superstorm right now, and the profundity within his eyes seemed to engulf everything as though they were two bottomless whirlpools.

    ¡°Ye...Martial Brother Ye?¡± For some strange reason, Chen Feiyu discovered goosebumps creeping up on his skin ¨C this was the first time he had sensed such immeasurable danger emanating from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    ¡°Round everybody up and bind them up at the ancient tree over there.¡± With the wave of his hand, Ye Xiuwen instructed the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    ¡°Yes, martial brother.¡± Everyone immediately did as they were told. Xiang Guqing thought to struggle and put up a fight, but Ye Xiuwen immediately shed out with his sword and cut off her arm, causing Xiang Guqing to shriek in pain.

    ¡°Master!¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s other disciples rushed over and began to help her up.

    That said, Zhang Shuyue was not one of the disciples who helped her master this time. She remained rooted to the ground, gazing intently at Ye Xiuwen. For some strange reason, she discovered that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present decisiveness appeared far more mesmerizing and attractive than ever before. Thus, even when the Heavenly Peak disciples bound up her hands and pushed her over towards the corner of the ancient tree, she hardly put up any form of resistance whatsoever.

    When she noticed the infatuation in Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes, Xiang Guqing spat out a clump of blood in rage.

    This was her most beloved disciple! Yet she had just turned a blind eye to her master for the sake of a man!

    Xiang Guqing and the rest of her faction were all akin to a spent arrow right now. Faced with the imposing threat of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities apanying his cultivation at the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage, none of them dared to put up any form of resistance at all. Thus, the Heavenly Peak disciples managed to round up everyone and bind them up without a hitch. Very soon, arge number of people wereying by the side of the ancient tree, restrained and bound by ropes.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen were also gingerly shifted to the base of yet another tree, where they rested after having consumed several recovery pills.

    They were punching above their weight ss earlier. The fact that they had not lost a single person was practically a miracle.

    While the other disciples were busying themselves, Ye Xiuwen walked over to the spirit toolying on the ground and picked it up. Then, he suffused some of his own spiritual energy into the spirit tool.

    Very soon, he discovered a powerful force resisting his spiritual energy.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, how¡¯s that going? Do you have any way of opening the spirit tool and rescuing Martial Sister Xiaomo?¡± As soon as Chen Feiyu was done with all that was instructed of him, he minced his way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and asked.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to attempt to refine the spirit tool.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, before he suddenly swept a cold, frigid gaze towards Xiang Guqing and the rest who were bound and restrained ¨C

    ¡°If my refinement fails, and if I¡¯m unable to rescue Jun Xiaomo from this spirit tool, then kill every single one of them. We¡¯ll leave none alive at all!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s frigid killing intent was like a frozen dagger that stabbed straight into the hearts of Xiang Guqing and the rest, sending chills down their spines.

    None of them doubted the veracity of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s instructions. None of them doubted the fact that Ye Xiuwen and his martial brothers werepletely capable of doing what they said.

    Some of the Eternal Summit Sect disciples had even begun to turn green with remorse. After all, Dai Yanfeng was the Grand Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect, while Xiang Guqing was the Sect Leader of a small sect. With two powerhouses backing their operations, none of them had ever entertained the remotest possibility that they would fail this time.

    Yet, their worst fears had be an eventuality against all odds. Not only did they fail in their operation, their Grand Elder Dai Yanfeng had even perished as a result of the botched cause. It was very much an unknown right now whether they would still be able to return to the Eternal Summit Sect in one piece.

    Had they known this was going to happen, they would never have volunteered for this operation with such enthusiasm.

    Xiang Guqing coughed a few times beforeughing wildly, ¡°Ye Xiuwen, you can try to kill me. Let¡¯s see whether you¡¯ll truly be able to kill me or not!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced coldly back at Xiang Guqing as he responded cidly, ¡°I know that you¡¯re leaning on the powers of the valley which we¡¯re in now. And as long as we¡¯re here, I won¡¯t be able to kill you. But, isn¡¯t this even better?¡± Ye Xiuwen suddenly smiled. Even though his smile looked incredibly sincere and elegant, it caused Xiang Guqing and every single one of her disciples to tremble in fear and trepidation.

    ¡°Since it¡¯s not possible to perish here, then I¡¯ll just have to break your limbs repeatedly, again and again. I¡¯ll let you taste and experience what a life worse than death feels like.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined his intentions sinctly.

    Xiang Guqing, Zhang Shuyue and the others immediately widened their eyes with disbelief, and blood started to drain from their faces.

    None of them would ever have expected a cool and dignified looking man like Ye Xiuwen to be so vicious when thoroughly provoked and angered.

    It was almost as though Jun Xiaomo were manifesting her savagery through him right now!

    At this moment, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s infatuation for Ye Xiuwen finally began to dwindle. At the same time, the earlier infatuation in her heart was beginning to be reced with waves of intense fear and dread.

    Had I known this was going to happen, I would never have gone out of my way to entangle myself with this man! If only there were some way to reverse the situation right now...

    -------------------------------------

    After getting sucked into the spirit tool, Jun Xiaomo discovered that she had been transported to a ce that was covered with a thick, nauseating stench of blood. Her surroundings werepletely pitch-ck in colour, and there was no way to orientate herself either.

    Jun Xiaomo retrieved a Nightgleam Pearl from her Interspatial Ring, looped a string through it and hung it around her neck. This enabled her for the first time to see with some measure of rity what her surroundings looked like ¨C to describe this ce as ¡°hell on earth¡± would not be too much of an exaggeration. As far as her eyes could see, the surroundings were scattered with the remains of human innards and limbs. She could even see a few faces on the ground that were permanently contorted and twisted with pained expressions. Some of these faces had been mangled to a pulp, while others appeared whole and untouched.

    The scariest part about all of this was the fact that these people appeared to still be alive despite having been reduced to such a tragic state.

    That¡¯s right. The most fearsome part of this spirit tool was not the fact that it would melt and corrode a person¡¯s physical being, but the fact that it would trap a person¡¯s soul. Even after a person was reduced to nothing more than a pool of blood, he would still be unable to attain the reprieve of death. The only fate that remained was to suffer an eternity after an eternity of excruciating pain and torment in absolute darkness, without a single hope of extrication and absolution.

    Jun Xiaomo could hear the voices of countless vengeful spirits and souls crying, howling and bawling here. It was evident that these people had already gone insane after an eternity of suffering.

    Her head suddenly began to spin and throb with pain, and she immediately bent over, hacking and coughing in revulsion. However, nothing came out of her body.

    Just then, she heard the distinct sound of the rushing of air, and she immediately detected an oing danger. Reacting to her instincts, she dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a massive fireball that shot straight past her.

    This fireball appeared like a congealed mass of moltenva, and it was evident that a person¡¯s body would instantly melt as soon as the fireball brushed against his body.

    Momentster, Jun Xiaomo heard a cry echoing from the depths of the spirit tool. This cry sounded incredibly fearful and dreadful, yet at the same time it also appeared to beced with some measure of ecstasy.

    It suddenly dawned on Jun Xiaomo that if a person remained trapped within the spirit tool for too long, the dark, vile energy lingering within would most certainly cause people to go mad, even if their bodies were not consumed by the powerful fireballs.

    After the appearance of the first fireball, several more began to hurtle towards Jun Xiaomo in quick session. Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cultivation was already at the elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage, and both her reaction speed and defensive abilities allowed her to react timeously. Otherwise, she would already have been reduced to a pool of blood by now.

    Then, after evading the spirit tool¡¯s attacks for what seemed to be an incredibly long time, Jun Xiaomo suddenly tripped over something on the ground, and the fireball that would otherwise have been easy to avoid hurtled straight towards Jun Xiaomo!

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils constricted anxiously.

    ¡°Careful!¡± A low voice boomed out behind her. In the very next moment, she felt a powerful force pull her from behind, narrowly avoiding the fireball by a hair¡¯s breadth.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back mmed into a firm, steadfast chest.

    ¡°Brother Rong?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately recognized the voice of the person who had rescued her, and she whipped her head around.

    Instantly, she was greeted by the macabre sight of Rong Ruihan¡¯s bloodied appearance.

 Chapter 352: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Grievous Injuries, Ye Xiuwen Slips into A Comatose

    <h4>Chapter 352: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Grievous Injuries, Ye Xiuwen Slips into A Comatose</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Cough...¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s throat gurgled, and he spat out a mouthful of blood, ¡°Xiaomo?¡±

    His vision was already substantially obscured by his own blood, and everything appeared blurry to him at times. It was only moments ago that he saw ady who bore simr appearances to Jun Xiaomo busy avoiding fireballs in the distance, so he immediately rushed over towards her. Who would¡¯ve thought it would actually be Jun Xiaomo in the flesh?!

    ¡°It¡¯s me, Brother Rong. Are these injuries on your body all from the fireballs?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked anxiously.

    Under the illumination of the Nightgleam Pearl, Jun Xiaomo could see that there was not a single part of Rong Ruihan¡¯s body that was unharmed by the fireballs. His clothes were torn and tattered and charred in many ces, while the skin underneath had be nothing more than a mangled mess. It was evident just how much he had been battered by the relentless onught of fireballs.

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows and sidestepped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s question, ¡°This ce is extremely dangerous. What are you doinging into this ce?!¡±

    ¡°I was initially thinking of rescuing you from this spirit tool. Unfortunately, Dai Yanfeng trapped me inside before I could do anything.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined sinctly.

    Just then, several other fireballs began to rush towards them, and Rong Ruihan immediately pulled Jun Xiaomo towards himself and dodged to the side. Although he managed to protect Jun Xiaomo, he had also inadvertently exposed his back to the fireball¡¯s attack.

    With a muffled groan, Rong Ruihan copsed to the ground under the excruciating pain from the fireball¡¯s corrosive, burning effects.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo could feel Rong Ruihan slumping to the ground, and she reflexively put her arms around Rong Ruihan¡¯s back, thinking to support him back up.

    Unfortunately, Rong Ruihan¡¯s back had just sustained a fresh wound from the fireball¡¯s strike. When Jun Xiaomo wrapped her arms around his back, she inadvertently touched the raw, fresh wound, drawing yet another muffled groan from Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips.

    She immediately retracted her hand. Then, when she stole a nce at her hands, she noticed that her entire palm was covered in a striking-red colour of blood.

    It was only at this moment that Jun Xiaomo realized just how much Rong Ruihan¡¯s back was covered in his own blood.

    ¡°Brother Rong, hurry! Take this recovery pill right now.¡± Jun Xiaomo retrieved several bottles of recovery pills from her Interspatial Ring and poured out a few pills with her trembling hands, stuffing them straight towards Rong Ruihan¡¯s mouth.

    ¡°No...it¡¯s no use.¡± Rong Ruihan steeled his spirits and pushed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands away slowly. Then, cing his palms gingerly around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks, he looked straight into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as he spoke, ¡°Xiaomo, listen to me. The attacks here are periodic and cyclical. Furthermore, they would generally only target a single person. Once the attacks begin to mount againter on, I want you to apply an Invisibility Talisman on your own body and run to the right. This way, the attacks would remain here, and you would be able to hang in there a little while longer. Ye Xiuwen would never forsake you in here.¡±

    ¡°No! I can¡¯t let Brother Rong remain here, dealing with all the fireballs alone. If we¡¯re going to run, we going to run together!¡± Jun Xiaomo barked unyieldingly.

    ¡°Running together will never work!¡± Rong Ruihan coughed several times, spitting out a few mouthfuls of blood, before anxiously furrowing his brows, ¡°If we run together, the number of fireballs around us will only increase, and we might not even be able to survive a single wave of attacks.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t Brother Rong say that Invisibility Talismans work in this ce? If that¡¯s the case, we can both use Invisibility Talismans!¡± As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she retrieved several Invisibility Talismans from her Interspatial Ring and attempted to apply one onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    ¡°Don¡¯t! Don¡¯t waste your Invisibility Talismans on me.¡± Rong Ruihan rejected vehemently as he looked sternly at Jun Xiaomo, ¡°I¡¯m not sure how long its going to take them to open up the spirit tool from the outside. Xiaomo, the longer you can hold out, the more hope there is.¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong, I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯s going to take for us to leave this ce either. That said, we¡¯vee today with the goal of rescuing you. If I leave this ce alone, then everything that we¡¯ve done up to now would bepletely meaningless. Thus, please will stop ceding the opportunity to live on to me. If we¡¯re going to leave this ce, we¡¯ll leave this ce together!¡± Jun Xiaomo looked up and stared straight back into Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes as she uttered every single word with an unyielding resolve and a glimmer in her eyes.

    The immense pain guing Rong Ruihan¡¯s body had already begun to mess with his vision, causing things to appear blurry at times.

    However, it was precisely under such circumstances that the prating gaze in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes became even starker and more incisive, cutting through the blurry vision and piercing straight into his heart, as though dering that they would most certainly make it out alive!

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart trembled slightly. For the very first time, he recanted on his earlier intention to sacrifice himself for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sake, and he was once again filled with a flourishing vigor undergirding his renewed will to live.

    ¡°Alright. Then let¡¯s escape this ce alive.¡± Rong Ruihan caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks lightly for a moment before setting his hand down again.

    Then, he received an Invisibility Talisman from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and applied it onto his own body.

    These were high-grade Invisibility Talismans which allowed a person to conceal both his appearances as well as his aura. Jun Xiaomo smiled, before applying a piece of the same on her own body as well.

    As soon as they appeared to vanish into thin air, the spirit tool¡¯s attacks also thinned out substantially, allowing Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan to avoid the attacks with ease.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. We¡¯ll take a look at whether there¡¯s any means of leaving this ce from the inside.¡± Jun Xiaomo addressed the still-invisible Rong Ruihan.

    A spirit tool¡¯s offensive abilities were the manifestation of a formation array when all was said and done. Spirit tool craftsmen would often inscribeplex diagrams on various parts of the spirit tools. In turn these mysterious, profound diagrams were invariably built upon the same rules that formation arrays were built on.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo sincerely believed that there might be a possibility of escaping the spirit tool¡¯s domain on their own strength as long as she was able to locate such a formation array and deactivate it.

    Even though the possibility of sess was low, this was still far better than sitting idly while waiting for their deaths.

    Jun Xiaomo would cling onto any strand of hope she could find!

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan set out searching for a means of extricating themselves from the spirit tool¡¯s domain, Ye Xiuwen had also begun to attempt his refinement of this spirit tool.

    He knew that the only hope of releasing Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan from the spirit toolid in bing the spirit tool¡¯s new owner through the sessful refinement of the spirit tool.

    However, refining Dai Yanfeng¡¯s spirit tool was easier said than done. After centuries upon centuries of its existence, the spirit tool had already begun to develop a certain sense of self-awareness. To make matters worse, the spirit tool had already devoured and absorbed a substantial amount of grievances and resentment from the souls of the persons it had trapped within its domain. At this point in time, it might be far more urate to describe this spirit tool as a demonic tool than a spirit tool. It was most certainly going to be an uphill task if one were to ovee the vile energies swirling within it and refine it with spiritual energy.

    Ye Xiuwen had already discovered this. When he first attempted to infuse the spirit tool with his spiritual energy, his probative attempt was immediately met with a fierce resistance, and he suddenly felt a burst of intense, vile emotions surge through in his mind.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constricted, and he immediately fought hard to keep the rity of his own mind, furiously battling against the powerful emotions of rage, hatred, resentment and grievance swelling in his heart.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen had always been a man of steel resolve, and he did not sumb to the influence of these intense, vile emotions. Slowly but surely, he began to suppress the vile emotions and send them straight back into the heart of the spirit tool once more.

    Then, as Ye Xiuwen continued to suffuse his spiritual energy through the spirit tool, his spiritual energy began to wash away the traces of Dai Yanfeng¡¯s spiritual energy remaining within the spirit tool.

    This was an important process in refining any spirit tool ¨C that is, to erase any traces of the spirit tool¡¯s previous owner before indelibly etching one¡¯s own spiritual energy onto the same.

    Fortunately, the spirit tool¡¯s previous owner, Dai Yanfeng had already passed on. Otherwise, his spiritual energy would never have been erased so smoothly and easily.

    Afterpleting the process of washing away Dai Yanfeng¡¯s spiritual energy, Ye Xiuwen retrieved a small shiv from his Interspatial Ring and cut his own wrist.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡± Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples looked worriedly at Ye Xiuwen. None of them could shake off the feeling that Martial Brother Ye was treading on thin ice right now.

    However, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely taciturn and ignored his martial brothers¡¯ anxious cries. Instead, he calmly ced his bleeding wrist on one of the grooves on the spirit tool. As soon as he did so, the spirit tool began to absorb the energies from his body furiously.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Ye Xiuwen groaned. The feeling of having his energy forcibly extricated from his body was incredibly painful, almost akin to the feeling of having one¡¯s nerves plucked and pulled. Ye Xiuwen copsed onto the ground as he struggled hard to hang in there.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples looked at Ye Xiuwen with immense concern in their eyes. However, given the delicate situation Ye Xiuwen was in right now, none of the other martial brothers dared to interrupt him.

    After all, it was far more dangerous to Ye Xiuwen if the process of refinement were interrupted midway.

    This spirit tool was one that was of an incredibly high grade and quality, and the amount of energy and strength required to refine it was alsomensurately much higher than most others. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had already attained the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, his body might already have been drained dry of all its energy by now.

    Ye Xiuwen gritted his teeth and hung on bitterly. Gradually, his eyes grew more and more bloodshot, and the bulging veins on his forehead began to throb uncontrobly as well.

    There was only a single thought in his mind right now ¨C Jun Xiaomo was waiting for him to rescue her, and he could not afford to be felled by a simple spirit tool!

    Perhaps it was the immense willpower that allowed him to ovee the spirit tool¡¯s powerful force, but as the pain in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body gradually began to subside, he also began to discover a gentle pulse emanating from the heart of the spirit tool.

    This was evidence that the spirit tool had begun to yield to his authority.

    Then, after what felt like an eternity, and just as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s strength and energy began to wane and run dry, the spirit tool suddenly let out an ear-piercing shriek, reverberating endlessly throughout his eardrums. Then, in the very next moment, an intense wave of dark energyprising all of the vile, intense emotions within the spirit tool surged into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body through the spirit tool.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind went nk, and he fell straight to the ground, copsing just beside the spirit tool.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples ran over immediately, scrambling to help Ye Xiuwen back up.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face was incredibly pale; his eyes were tightly shut; his lips were devoid of any colour of blood; and his limbs were freezing cold. The Heavenly Peak disciples were awash with distress and fright.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, Martial Brother Ye?¡± Chen Feiyu patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cheeks, attempting to rouse him from his stupor.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen appeared to have slipped into aatose, and he did not respond to any of his martial brothers¡¯ calls.

    ¡°Seems like Martial Brother Ye haspletely passed out.¡± Chen Feiyu furrowed his brows.

    ¡°That...then has Martial Brother Ye seeded in the refinement of the spirit tool? Will Little Martial Sister be able to escape?¡± Another one of the Heavenly Peak disciples wondered aloud with worry stered all over his face.

    The other Heavenly Peak disciples who heard hisments exchanged nces sheepishly, responding with nothing more than their silence.

    Back in the spirit tool, Jun Xiaomo suddenly looked up and murmured under her breath, ¡°I thought I sensed Martial Brother Ye¡¯s aura for a moment there...¡±

 Chapter 353: Deviant Ye Xiuwen, Pounding Hearts

    <h4>Chapter 353: Deviant Ye Xiuwen, Pounding Hearts</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo had muttered her thoughts under her breath. Unfortunately, Rong Ruihan had heard everything she said.

    His eyes darkened. Just as much as the excruciating pain perfused throughout his entire physical body, an electrifying sensation shot straight through his heart, causing his heart to constrict with pangs of acute pain.

    He knew that the rtionship between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was not something that was built up overnight, and it was naturally not something that could be torn apart easily either. However, Rong Ruihan had never thought himself to possess less feelings for Jun Xiaomo than Ye Xiuwen did. He could do anything for Jun Xiaomo that Ye Xiuwen could as well.

    Since that was the case, why was the person standing beside Jun Xiaomo always Ye Xiuwen, not him?

    Right now, despite being physically beside him, Jun Xiaomo still continued to ¡°sense Martial Brother Ye¡¯s aura¡±. Where did that leave him? What did this mean for him?

    Rong Ruihan wasn¡¯t aware that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exmation was not a mere figment of her imagination.

    Ye Xiuwen had earlier suffused his own spiritual energy into the spirit tool, and it was a natural phenomenon that the spirit tool would begin to be filled with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s spiritual energy.

    One could only say that this was simply a byproduct of the amount of time that Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen had spent together. After all, she could still keenly pick up on the faintest traces of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura despite the dank and vile environment that they were in right now.

    ¡°Xiaomo, do you have any inkling where the spirit tool¡¯s formation array is located?¡± Rong Ruihan no longer wished to think or talk about Ye Xiuwen, and he actively interrupted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s train of thought.

    ¡°I¡¯ve not located it yet. The stench of blood in this ce is far too overwhelming. Furthermore, my understanding of spirit tools isn¡¯t too great, so I¡¯m not sure where these formation arrays would usually be located within a spirit tool.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered with some measure of exasperation.

    Rong Ruihan stretched out his arm and ced it around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders as he cajoled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. No matter what happens, it¡¯s fine as long as we give it our best.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo smiled bitterly, ¡°I guess that¡¯s all we can hope to do given the circumstances right now.¡±

    That¡¯s right. There was nothing more they could do to extricate themselves from their current predicament. They were living on borrowed time now, and they knew full well that the depletion of their Invisibility Talismans would also spell the end of their road.

    On the other side, the Heavenly Peak disciplesid Ye Xiuwen down onto the ground gingerly and stuffed several recovery pills into his mouth, hoping that these pills would restore his mental fortitude.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face waspletely drained of the colour of blood. The spirit tool which had trapped Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan rested just by his side. If one looked closely enough, one would be able to make out wisps of ck corporeal energies seeping out from the spirit tool itself, enough to send chills down a person¡¯s spine.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples had previously attempted to separate the peculiar spirit tool from Ye Xiuwen as well. Unfortunately, it seemed to have recognized Ye Xiuwen as its master, and no matter what they did, none of them were able to shift it outside a half-meter radius from where Ye Xiuwen was.

    Did this mean that the refinement was sessful? Or did this mean that the refinement was still ongoing right now? None of the Heavenly Peak disciples had a definitive answer to these questions.

    They knew that only Ye Xiuwen had the answer to these questions, and everything would have to wait until he awakened.

    Ye Xiuwen remained unconscious for a full two hours. After a full two hours, he suddenly snapped out of his stupor without any warning.

    In fact, he had suddenly snapped his eyes wide open, giving a rude shock to some Heavenly Peak disciples just as they were about to attempt to arouse him from his stupor once more.

    ¡°Ye...Martial Brother Ye?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s reawakening should have been an immensely joyous development to the Heavenly Peak disciples. However, as soon as they noticed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present appearances, none of them could be sure anymore.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was transfixed at the sky above him, and there was not a single ripple of emotion in the depths of his eyes. It was almost as though his stoicism had reached new heights, and he had shed off everyst bit of emotion within his body.

    Chen Feiyu¡¯s heart sank slightly, and he immediately noticed something amiss with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disposition right now.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye?¡± Chen Feiyu lifted his hand and waved it in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face, attempting to catch his attention.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils shifted slightly, before turning to Chen Feiyu¡¯s hand.

    Still expressionless, Ye Xiuwen lifted his arm and pushed away Chen Feiyu¡¯s hand before sitting up slowly.

    Every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples had their gazes fixed on Ye Xiuwen right now, hoping that his change of disposition was temporary and praying that he would at least say something about their martial sister¡¯s situation within the spirit tool.

    Slowly, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze shifted over towards the spirit toolying by his side. Then, he picked up the spirit tool and held it gingerly in his hands. Despite thepse of a long pause, Ye Xiuwen showed no signs of making any other moves.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, you¡¯ve been refining this spirit tool earlier. Were you sessful?¡± Chen Feiyu asked somewhat cautiously.

    Ye Xiuwen nced at him dispassionately and responded, ¡°Yes, I¡¯d seeded.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Chen Feiyu heaved a sigh of relief and smiled, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, does this mean that you¡¯ll be able to release Little Martial Sister and Brother Rong very soon?¡±

    At this moment, a peculiar, contemptuous smile crept up the corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips. This expression was something that none of the Heavenly Peak disciples had ever seen on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face before ¨C

    ¡°Let Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan out? Why would I do that?¡± Ye Xiuwen retortednguidly, as though his heart hadpletely iced over, ¡°Isn¡¯t it better if I let that dog couple perish within the spirit tool? That way, I can send them straight to hell with my blessings, where they can continue to be a pair of lovey turtledoves for the rest of eternity.¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were dumbstruck by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response, and they immediately stared at him with disbelief ¨C Is Martial Brother Ye even capable of saying such things?!

    Doesn¡¯t Martial Brother Ye dote on Little Martial Sister the most? Why would he wish death and hell upon her?!

    Nobody knew just what happened to Ye Xiuwen to cause such earthshattering changes to him. However, when they turned their attention to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold, expressionless gaze once more, they finally managed to grasp the nub of the situation.

    That¡¯s right. Something must have happened when Martial Brother Ye was refining that peculiar spirit tool. Otherwise, there¡¯s no way that Martial Brother Ye would be capable of such cold, heartless speech.

    Unfortunately, given the current circumstances they were in, was there anyone else who could save their little martial sister?

    The Heavenly Peak disciples exchanged troubled nces, only to discover the immeasurable anxiety and despondence in the depths of each other¡¯s eyes.

    It was evident that Ye Xiuwen did not intend to unlock the spirit tool and release Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen anytime soon. In the meantime, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan had no choice but to continue iling about in the vast ocean of despondence as they attempted to rescue themselves.

    The Invisibility Talismans used by Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihansted for a period of four hours each. As soon as four hourspsed, they would have to change for a new set of Invisibility Talismans in a timeous fashion. Otherwise, they would immediately be targeted by the spirit tool¡¯s fireballs once more.

    Ever since she discovered Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura in the spirit tool, Jun Xiaomo would release her divine sense from time to time to probe at her surroundings, checking if she could detect any more signs of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura was incredibly faint after the very first wave that Jun Xiaomo detected. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo could sense a stark change in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura. In the past, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s aura would always have a soothing and warm disposition. But now, it seemed to possess a bloodcurdling, marrow-chilling intent.

    It was as though all the warmth within his aura had been sieved and filtered away, leaving only a frozen, icy whirlwind that only knew destruction.

    After walking for what felt like an eternity, Jun Xiaomo discovered that her body was gradually nearing its limits. She had already been through an arduous battle before being suddenly trapped within the domain of this spirit tool. To make matters worse, the spirit tool¡¯s domain was pitch-ck and littered with mounds of corpses, and the nauseating scent of blood constantly and ceaselessly assaulted her senses.

    Under the overwhelming stress on both mind and body, it was natural that Jun Xiaomo was finally at her limits.

    Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo were unable to see each other, and they were only able to sense each other¡¯s presence from their breaths and their speech.

    In fact, their breaths were particrly perceptible given the eerie silence in their surroundings.

    It didn¡¯t take long for Rong Ruihan to discovered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s increasingly ragged breath, and he knew that she was already nearing her limits.

    ¡°Xiaomo, let¡¯s take a break for now. Going on aimlessly like this isn¡¯t a solution.¡± Rong Ruihan suggested, ¡°Rather than to walk about without a goal in mind, it might be better to take a break and rally our minds before deciding what to do next.¡±

    ¡°But we don¡¯t have much time left.¡± Jun Xiaomo made a bitter expression, ¡°I¡¯ve only got six Invisibility Talismans left in my Interspatial Ring. In other words, we¡¯ll only be able to hold out for another twelve hours. If we can¡¯t find a way out of this ce within the next twelve hours, we¡¯ll have to face the fury of the spirit tool¡¯s fireballs again. Brother Rong, you¡¯re personally aware of how incredibly destructive those fireballs are. We won¡¯t be able to avoid them forever.¡±

    ¡°But the more anxious our hearts are, the less likely we are to be able to find a solution, isn¡¯t it? Xiaomo, given the gravity of the situation, we need to pull ourselves together and stay calm.¡± Rong Ruihan continued to coax Jun Xiaomo.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s persuasion was sessful. Jun Xiaomo lowered her head and responded obsequiously, ¡°Mm.¡±

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had already died once before, it did not mean that she was now unafraid of death. She was willing to put her life on the line and duke it out with her nemeses for the sake of her family and loved ones. However, Jun Xiaomo found the prospects of being slowly tormented to death within the domain of a mere spirit tool far too humiliating and aggravating.

    Truth be told, she would much rather perish together with Dai Yanfeng in a full-on confrontation than perish in such a humiliating, anticlimactic fashion.

    Rong Ruihan mbered about until he found his way before Jun Xiaomo. There, he lifted his hands and gently pulled Jun Xiaomo into an embrace, resting his chin softly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head.

    ¡°Brother Rong?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breath paused momentarily, wondering why Rong Ruihan was hugging her so tightly.

    Rong Ruihan remained silent and simply continued to embrace Jun Xiaomo tightly. Even though the raw wounds on his body were screaming in agony and pain, he continued to hold her tightly to his heart.

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly. For some reason, she began to pick up traces of sorrow and grief exuding from Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    And it was precisely because of these traces of sorrow and grief that Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t bring herself to push Rong Ruihan away either.

    ¡°Sometimes, I wonder if perishing together in this ce like this might be the best oue that I can ever hope for.¡± Rong Ruihan whispered softly into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears.

    As a result of the Invisibility Talisman, Jun Xiaomo was unable to see Rong Ruihan¡¯s physical appearances right now.

    That said, she could hear the powerful thumping of Rong Ruihan¡¯s heartbeats, and she could feel the soothing warmth emanating from Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    His heartbeats and his warmth were indubitably real. In this cold, deste and vile ce, Rong Ruihan¡¯s existence was like a beacon of hope in a vast ocean of despondence, soothing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s anxious heart and calming her mind.

    Ever since she first knew Rong Ruihan, he had always managed to show up when she needed him most, calming her heart and mind when she was the most distressed.

    ¡°Unfortunately, after thinking about this for an extremely long time, I¡¯ve discovered that I still can¡¯t bear to see you perish.¡± Rong Ruihan sighed softly.

    After pausing for a protracted period of time, Rong Ruihan suddenly quipped, ¡°Xiaomo, if Ye Xiuwen weren¡¯t real, would the person in your heart right now be me?¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was taken aback. She had not expected Rong Ruihan to suddenly pose such a difficult question to her.

 Chapter 354: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Change, Rong Ruihanâ€™s Decision

    <h4>Chapter 354: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Change, Rong Ruihan¡¯s Decision</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    If not for Martial Brother Ye, would she like Brother Rong? Jun Xiaomo sincerely didn¡¯t know the answer to this question.

    More urately speaking, she wasn¡¯t even sure of the extent of her present feelings towards Rong Ruihan right now. Everything that Rong Ruihan had done for her in her previous life had left her touched and remorseful. In this life, for the protracted period of time that Ye Xiuwen had gone missing, Rong Ruihan had been the one who hade calling upon her time and again, keeping herpany when she felt most alone. Then, when the news of her death spread far and wide throughout the cultivation world, Rong Ruihan had even tapped on the veryst bits of his strengths and resources to exact vengeance on her behalf.

    Truth be told, even Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t understand why Rong Ruihan would do so much for her. All things considered, they had hardly interacted much with each other, right?

    It was as though she were a demon residing within Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart ¨C something that seized his heart and was difficult to rid the body of.

    If this were a few days ago, Jun Xiaomo would undoubtedly have responded that there was only gratitude towards Rong Ruihan in her heart, not love. However, she waspletely flustered and out of her wits as soon as she learnt that Rong Ruihan were trapped within the spirit tool¡¯s domain, and a burning desire to rescue Rong Ruihan instantly arose in her heart. In fact, her heart was even gued by a sense of bitter astringency during this period of time. Jun Xiaomo was dumbfounded by how she had reacted to the news.

    At this point in time, she could no longer responsibly say that there was nothing more than gratitude in her heart towards Rong Ruihan.

    Truth be told, this was somewhat to be expected. After all, women were easily moved by men who treated them well and made them feel special. It was just like what Ye Xiuwen did in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life ¨C perhaps the seed of love had already been sown in her previous life when Ye Xiuwen extended a great measure of unconditional, sacrificial love to her. Perhaps she had already lost her heart to Ye Xiuwen at that point in time.

    This would also have exined why her reaction was so extreme when Ye Xiuwen fell in love with Zhang Shuyue. After all, she did not want to see her source of warmth andfort stolen away by another woman.

    That said, she was already an item with Ye Xiuwen in this life. Jun Xiaomo had always despised and hated people who were fickle minded and quick to switch allegiances. If she reciprocated Rong Ruihan¡¯s feelings here and now, where would that leave her rtionship with her Martial Brother Ye?

    If she did that, how would she be any different from people like Qin Lingyu and Yu Wanrou?

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and silently drew a line in her heart so that she would no longer be swayed by the battering of emotions.

    Rong Ruihan felt Jun Xiaomo¡¯s petite frame tense up slightly, before he found himself pushed away by Jun Xiaomo. In that very instant, his heart began to throb with pangs of bitter astringency and pain.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry...¡± Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes, furiously suppressing the painful emotions stirring in her heart, ¡°Brother Rong, there¡¯s no meaning in pursuing this line of inquiry because Martial Brother Ye and I are already an item. The only person I have ever loved is Martial Brother Ye.¡±

    The only person she¡¯s ever loved is Ye Xiuwen...

    It was as though her words were like a sharp awl that had stabbed straight through his heart. Even though his heart was still physically beating, it felt as though it had already died in essence.

    If Jun Xiaomo had ever loved him, even if just for a fraction of a moment, he would do everything he could to chase his dreams and pursue her. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo had just revealed to him that she had only ever loved Ye Xiuwen.

    In other words, he had been the sole actor in his love story, and no other person cast in this y of his. His had been an unrequited love from the onset.

    If that were the case, what was he pursuing right now? What was all of this anticipation and expectancy leading to?

    ¡°I understand.¡± Rong Ruihan stated with a deep, low voice as he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder. He no longer thought to embrace her, ¡°Once you¡¯re done resting, we¡¯ll continue on our way.¡±

    Even though it was unclear whether their feeble struggle within the spirit tool¡¯s domain would give rise to any results, they knew that they still had to give it a shot.

    No matter how much Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words had hurt him, he still couldn¡¯t bear to see her perish in such a ce like this.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was incredibly forlorn right now. However, she suppressed her feelings and nodded her head, responding with a simple, ¡°Mm.¡±

    Meanwhile, Ye Xiuwen continued to hold up the spirit tool with his arm with a grimace on his face. At the same time, his eyes were cold and vacant, as though staring into the distance.

    It was also evident that there were neither rity nor focus in his eyes right now.

    Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciplese up to Ye Xiuwen would from time to time and prompt him to release Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan before they be reduced to nothing more than a pool of blood.

    However, Ye Xiuwen would simply ignore them. His frigidity thoroughly anguished Chen Feiyu.

    What¡¯s going on?! What happened to Martial Brother Ye?!

    If Chen Feiyu had paused to take a closer examination of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, he would discover a peculiar wisp of dark, vile energy swirling in the depths of his eyes.

    This was a corporeal manifestation of the vile emotions from the spirit tool. In the very same instant that Ye Xiuwen seeded in his refinement of the spirit tool, that clump of vile energy also shot straight through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body, prating into the depths of his mind and usurping the ce of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s consciousness.

    Ye Xiuwen had neither forgotten who Jun Xiaomo was nor their objectives in returning to the valley.

    However, the usurpation of the vile energy sought to amplify the deepest, darkest emotions hidden in the corner of his heart, consuming his mind and rationality like it did now. In other words, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s originally warm and calm disposition had now been consumed by the amplification of his irrational, ruthless and ill-tempered self that would otherwise have been repressed to the depths of his mind.

    His mind was currently filled with recollection of the scenes of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s interactions with Rong Ruihan. Right now, what was otherwise an inconsequential and harmless interaction to Ye Xiuwen was presently ¡°evidence¡± of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheating in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes!

    In particr, Ye Xiuwen saw this present incident as particrly strong evidence of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s transgressions against him. After all, they were already an item, yet she still chose to disregard her own safety and return to the valley just to rescue an inconsequential man ¨C what could this possibly mean?! Dare she say that there is no intimacy nor feelings between her and that man?

    Since Jun Xiaomo enjoys being with Rong Ruihan so much, they can remain within the spirit tool for all I care. That pair of lovey turtledoves can consider this a form my blessings to them.

    Ye Xiuwen cursed them in his heart. At this point in time, his heart was so consumed by the feelings of jealousy that he waspletely inert and unaffected by the possibility that Jun Xiaomo was suffering in pain.

    Jun Xiaomo was unaware of the major setback happening outside the spirit tool right now. She simply thought that Ye Xiuwen and the rest were unable to discover a way to release them as yet.

    Very soon, yet another four hours passed. As time trickled by, the despondence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart only continued to burgeon and intensify.

    She had managed to uncover a portion of the spirit tool¡¯s formation array during this period of time. Yet, to her dismay, she discovered that she had absolutely no clue as to how she was going to go about disabling the spirit tool¡¯s formation array. After all, spirit tools were a whole other discipline,pletely different from that of talismans or formation arrays. Thus, even though she had now discovered a formation diagram, she waspletely at a loss as to what needed to be done to disable it.

    Besides, she was still unable to locate the heart of the spirit tool¡¯s formation diagram. Thus, even if she managed to identify the purpose of the formation diagram, there was nothing she could do about it until she found the heart of the formation diagram.

    It was difficult for Jun Xiaomo to estimate the passage of time within the spirit tool, and the only thing that gave her an inkling as to the time that had passed was the expiration of her Invisibility Talismans.

    Right now, she had only two more Invisibility Talismans in her Interspatial Ring. In other words, once everything was expended, both she and Rong Ruihan would once again be at the mercy of the relentless waves of fireballs once more.

    When that timees, how long could they possibly hold out for?

    Rong Ruihan was unable to see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sullen expression. However, he could roughly guess the extent of her emotions from her increasingly despondent behaviour and disposition.

    At this moment, Rong Ruihan¡¯s emotions started to roil once more, and his initial ns once again took root in his heart.

    ¡°Xiaomo.¡± Rong Ruihan suddenly paused and addressed Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Do you want to leave this ce?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo paused momentarily and turned towards the source of Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice. Then, chuckling bitterly, she responded, ¡°Of course I do. Why wouldn¡¯t I want to leave this ce? It¡¯s just that I¡¯d never thought that this ce would be so peculiar and difficult to deal with.¡±

    ¡°Back when you¡¯de to rescue me, I¡¯ll bet that you¡¯d never contemted the possibility of being trapped in here as well, right?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice was lighthearted and candid, as though he were making small talk with an old friend.

    Jun Xiaomo found Rong Ruihan¡¯s casual talk rather peculiar in the circumstances. However, she chose not to press the issue, and she simply chuckled with some measure of exasperation, ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯d then thought that rescuing Brother Rong was going to be an easy task. Who would¡¯ve known that the wily old fox Dai Yanfeng would have so many tricks up his sleeves?¡±

    ¡°Sorry for implicating you, Xiaomo.¡± Rong Ruihan apologized.

    ¡°What are you talking about? We might not even have been able to escape the valley the first time if not for Brother Rong!¡±

    ¡°Hah, that¡¯s not the case. Xiaomo¡¯s a clever person. You¡¯ll most certainly have thought of something.¡± Rong Ruihan smiled, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, I wonder whether Xiaomo had anticipated running into any dangers before making the decision toe back for me?¡±

    ¡°Of course! I would never be socent as to undermine Xiang Guqing, Dai Yanfeng and theirckeys.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded affirmatively. That said, she began to find it increasingly suspicious ¨C Why does Rong Ruihan want to talk about these things?

    ¡°In other words, despite knowing that you might be running into danger, you¡¯d still decided toe back for me?¡± Rong Ruihan softly queried.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Jun Xiaomo responded matter-of-factly. This was the truth of the matter after all, and she did not think anything strange about it. After all, hadn¡¯t she done the same for her Heavenly Peak martial brothers when they were all trapped within the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds as well?

    Back then, the road was possibly fraught with even more dangers than it was now, since she had nned to infiltrate the Dawn Sect and rescue her Heavenly Peak martial brothers all on her own. At the very least, she had never expected to encounter an ally, Ye Xiuwen, in the process of doing so.

    ¡°That¡¯s good, then.¡± Rong Ruihan echoed. Even though his voice was still and soft, the silence all around ensured that Jun Xiaomo heard every single word he said.

    ¡°That¡¯s enough for me.¡± Rong Ruihan added ¨C his heart was full and at peace. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart instantly constricted with a deep sense of unease, and a bad premonition washed over her mind immediately.

    However, before she could address her mind to this hunch, a peculiar fragrance whiffed into her olfactory senses, nauseating stench of blood in an instant.

    Unfortunately, the fragrance also instantly sent her mind spinning, and her knees buckled in the very next moment.

    Just as she was about to copse onto the ground, she found herself wrapped in an embrace that she was all too familiar with. This was an embrace that she had consciously rejected just some time ago because she couldn¡¯t bring herself to do something that would hurt Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry that I won¡¯t be able to apany you to the very end.¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice echoed softly beside Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ear, ¡°I give you and Ye Xiuwen my eternal blessings...¡±

 Chapter 355: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Disappearance, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Heartache

    <h4>Chapter 355: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Disappearance, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Heartache</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo came to her senses, she immediately sat up and nced anxiously around. Unfortunately, her surroundings werepletely pitch-ck.

    She could tell that the ce she was presently at was different from the ce that she had been when she first passed out. This was because her surroundings right now were clean ¨C so clean that it almost seemed as though she had left the hellish prison within the spirit tool¡¯s domain.

    That said, the faint stench of blood wafting through her nose told her that she was undoubtedly still trapped within the spirit tool¡¯s domain.

    She was unable to see Rong Ruihan anywhere in sight. In fact, despite probing around at her surroundings with her divine sense, she could hardly detect even a single living thing around her.

    Everything waspletely still and silent.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know how long she had passed out for, and she didn¡¯t know how long it had been since Rong Ruihan had abandoned her and headed out on his own. That said, there was one thing she knew for certain ¨C Rong Ruihan¡¯s life would be in danger if she didn¡¯t find him quickly!

    This was because there were still two Invisibility Talismans within her Interspatial Ring. In other words, Rong Ruihan had unterally chosen to face the wrath of the fireballs on his own, leaving both remaining Invisibility Talismans for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s use.

    It was also for this reason that Rong Ruihan had drugged Jun Xiaomo, causing her to pass out. After all, he knew full well that had he not done so, Jun Xiaomo would never have allowed Rong Ruihan to make such a decision on his own.

    ¡°Brother Rong...¡± Thinking about these things, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart grew so heavy that even her breath was getting increasingly ragged. A drop of tear rolled out of her eyes, slid off her cheeks and scattered on her clothes.

    No! I¡¯ve got to look for Brother Rong! I can¡¯t allow him to die in here!

    Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth and tightened her fists. After drawing a deep breath, she steeled her resolve and marched deeper into the darkness.

    She absolutely had to find Rong Ruihan!

    Outside the spirit tool, Ye Xiuwen shut his eyesnguidly, almost as though he were resting.

    Every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples werepletely dumbfounded when they saw Ye Xiuwen shut his eyes so cidly! There they were, waiting for Ye Xiuwen to return to normal. Yet, despite having waited for several hours on end, Ye Xiuwen only seemed to grow colder and colder towards Jun Xiaomo, much less show any signs of returning to normal.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, can you at least give us an indication?! When in the world are you going to release Martial Sister Xiaomo? Are you really going to sit by idly and watch her perish in the spirit tool?!¡± Chen Feiyu stepped forward indignantly and began to press the issue with Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen opened his eyes again and smirked as he cast Chen Feiyu a cid nce, ¡°Since when did I ever say that I was going to release her? Haven¡¯t I always taken the position that those two lovebirds can perish together within the spirit tool?¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, you--!¡± Chen Feiyu¡¯s eyes were zing with fury as the bulging veins on his forehead began to throb, ¡°Ye Xiuwen, have you already forgotten how Martial Sister Xiaomo has always been treating you? Why have you suddenly be so unreasonable?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen snorted, ¡°Of course I¡¯ve not forgotten how she¡¯s always been ¡®treating¡¯ me. On the one hand, she¡¯d profess her love for me and sleep with me; and yet on the other hand, she would inextricably entangle herself with other men behind the scenes. Hasn¡¯t she always been treating me this way?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d never thought about it this way before!¡± Chen Feiyu ced his hand onto the spirit tool as he continued tombast Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Is it this thing?! Did this thing make you be like this?!¡±

    A cold gleam shed across Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. With a sweep of his arm, Ye Xiuwen shot a powerful wave of energy, striking Chen Feiyu squarely on the body and sending him flying back tens of meters until he collided into the trunk of a tree, snapping the trunk cleanly in two.

    Pfft! Chen Feiyu spat out a huge mouthful of blood and nearly passed out.

    ¡°Martial Brother Chen!¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples immediately ran over and began to help him up. Their expressions were all incredibly ashen right now ¨C If even Martial Brother Chen can¡¯t speak some sense into Martial Brother Ye, is there really anyone who can rescue Martial Sister Xiaomo right now?

    Is this going to be how Martial Sister Xiaomo perishes?

    Themotion among the Heavenly Peak disciples attracted the attention of Xiang Guqing and the rest, especially Zhang Shuyue. Even though Ye Xiuwen had previously threatened to kill all of them if Jun Xiaomo perished within the spirit tool, Zhang Shuyue refused to believe that such a dignified, charming man would do such a vicious thing.

    It had to be said that Xiang Guqing and her disciples were the most fortunate among the group of captives as they were under the blessings of the valley¡¯s master formation array. As long as they remained within the valley not only were they much more difficult to kill, they would even experience elerated recovery from any injuries they sustained.

    Thus, despite the fact that they had initially sustained rtively more grievous injuries, Xiang Guqing and her disciples were already well on their road to recovery after thepse of approximately ten hours.

    Right now, Zhang Shuyue was the closest to a full recovery among their numbers, given that her injuries were also the least severe to begin with. Naturally, her heart and mind began to grow livelier once more.

    ¡°Master, do you have any way of loosening the ropes on our bodies?¡± Zhang Shuyue discreetly whispered to Xiang Guqing.

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s heart was still irked by the fact that Zhang Shuyue had failed to help her up when she was injured by Ye Xiuwen earlier. Thus, she simply ignored the ingrate of a disciple that Zhang Shuyue was.

    Zhang Shuyue bit down on her lower lip. She knew that what she had done earlier was wrong, so she softened her voice as she began to plead with her master, ¡°Master, Disciple was wrong earlier. That said, it appears that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo are having a tiff right now. Why don¡¯t we take the chance to provoke him and instigate him to stand on our side? This might be the only way to extricate ourselves from this predicament.¡±

    Xiang Guqing chuckled sardonically, ¡°From what Master can see, all of this is just a pretext, isn¡¯t it? The truth of the matter is that you¡¯re still obsessed with that man over there, hmm?¡±

    Xiang Guqing had hit the nail on the head, exposing the intentions hidden in the depths of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart and causing her face to flush in embarrassment. Nevertheless, suppressing the stirring feeling within her heart, Zhang Shuyue maintained, ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter how Master puts it. Right now, this seems to be our best bet if we were to get out of this predicament. Didn¡¯t Master hear what Ye Xiuwen mentioned earlier? If anything happens to Jun Xiaomo, we¡¯re all going to be sent to the grave together with her. Even though Ye Xiuwen appears to be mad at Jun Xiaomo right now, who knows whether he will have a change of heartter and me Jun Xiaomo¡¯s death on us again? Besides, what¡¯s there to lose if Disciple heads over now to sow some more discord and widen the rift between Ye Xiuwen and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples?¡±

    Xiang Guqing red at Zhang Shuyue with a protracted pause.

    Seeing that her master was staring at her for such a long time as though sizing her up, Zhang Shuyue once again began to be gued by the guilt in her heart, and she subconsciously shifted her gaze away.

    Finally, Xiang Guqing sighed softly, ¡°Since you¡¯re so intent on going over there, Master will help you out just this once more.¡± As Xiang Guqing finished speaking, she retrieved a small shiv from her Interspatial Ring. Then, with a small flick of her wrist, she cut the rope binding up Zhang Shuyue¡¯s hands.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face brightened immediately. After softly thanking her master, she began to slowly make her way over towards Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Master, you were actually able to remove these restraints all this while?¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s other disciples were astonished by thetest development. They had initially thought that their master was so tightly bound by the ropes and restraints that all of them had no choice but to sit idly and wait under the tree.

    Who would have thought that Master actually had a way of loosening the ropes in such a clean and swift fashion?! Since that was the case, why didn¡¯t she take out this shiv earlier and loosen all of the restraints on our hands?

    Almost as though she could guess the thoughts on her disciples¡¯ hearts, Xiang Guqing sighed softly, ¡°Disciple has grown up. Master can no longer take care of her.¡±

    Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples exchanged puzzled nces with each other. None of them knew what Xiang Guqing meant with that enigmatic expression of hers.

    ¡°It¡¯s not that Master didn¡¯t want to loosen the ropes for you. Rather, the fact remains that none of us would be able to escape under Ye Xiuwen¡¯s watchful gaze even if we loosened the ropes restraining us earlier. Don¡¯t underestimate Ye Xiuwen. Under the suppressive effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array, there¡¯s no way that any of us would be able to defeat Ye Xiuwen without Dai Yanfeng¡¯s aid.¡±

    Then, turning her attention towards Zhang Shuyue as she slowly made her way over towards Ye Xiuwen chirpily, Xiang Guqing continued, ¡°Over thest five hours or so, Master has been thinking and reflecting about this entire incident. Shuyue¡¯s behaviour has disappointed Master time and again, and Master can¡¯t help but wonder whether Shuyue had yed up her innocence and grievances with Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen in order to instigate Master to action in the first ce.¡±

    ¡°Master...¡± Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples invariably possessed deep feelings towards their master. After all, they had been abandoned by their respective parents since they were young, and it was Xiang Guqing who had adopted them and given them a home in the valley. It was only under Xiang Guqing¡¯s ceaseless care and doting that her disciples had managed to find their footing in life and found a reason to live on.

    Thus, Xiang Guqing was almost akin to a mother to all of them.

    It was for this reason that Xiang Guqing was so thoroughly embittered by the fact that she had been used by Zhang Shuyue. Back then, if not for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s misleading representation that she had been used and abandoned by Ye Xiuwen, she would never have responded to the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s bounty in fury and stirred the collective wrath of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    This is fine. She¡¯s a growndy now. It¡¯s still undoubtedly a good thing if Zhang Shuyue can persuade Ye Xiuwen to release us. Consoling herself with these thoughts, Xiang Guqing shut her eyes and grew silent.

    After sending Chen Feiyu flying through the air, Ye Xiuwen shut his eyes, folded his arms and sat by a tree, leaningzily against its trunk.

    With a heart filled with anxiety, Zhang Shuyue slowly walked towards Ye Xiuwen. Right now, she was so nervous that her palms were dripping with sweat.

    Tightly clenching her fists, she continued to make her way towards Ye Xiuwen, only rxing her fists when she finally arrived by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side.

    Zhang Shuyue did not bother to muffle the sound of her footsteps. Thus, Ye Xiuwen opened his eyesnguidly and looked at her just as she arrived by his side.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s breath grew disorderly, and her heart began to thump faster and harder. In that very moment that they locked eyes, she discovered that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze was now so deep and profound that it appeared to devour her soul.

    She was somewhat frightened, yet also somewhat expectant.

    She was frightened by the prospects that Ye Xiuwen would treat her in the same manner that he did Chen Feiyu, sending her flying with the flick of his sleeves. At the same time, she was also somewhat expectant and hopeful that Ye Xiuwen would indulge her and entertain her advances.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen currently no longer seemed to care about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life or death. Did this not also mean that she would have a chance to earn Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart once more?

    Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t ask Zhang Shuyue how she managed to loosen her restraints and walk over to his side. All this while, he simply continued to gaze cidly at Zhang Shuyue as though everything were within his expectations. There was neither astonishment nor indignation in his heart.

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart began to thump quicker and quicker, and her face began to flush with a pink hue.

    Then, mustering all of her courage, she boldly sat down just beside Ye Xiuwen and leaned into his arm slightly. Lifting her head slightly, she caressed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chiseled face as she gazed hazily into his eyes, ¡°Brother Ye, have you finally realized that Jun Xiaomo is no longer deserving of your love and affection?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen neither brushed her hand away nor denied her suggestions.

    In other words, Ye Xiuwen appeared to have tacitly agreed with Zhang Shuyue.

 Chapter 356: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Indifference, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Despondence

    <h4>Chapter 356: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Indifference, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Despondence</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo continued to trudge along within the spirit tool, searching for any traces of Rong Ruihan she could find. Every single step that she took felt incredibly painful and arduous.

    As time continued to trickle by, her heart began to sink deeper and deeper into the mires of despondence.

    She was unsure of whether Rong Ruihan had already torn off the Invisibility Talisman on his body. If not, Rong Ruihan would still be rtively safe for now. However, this would also make it much more difficult for Jun Xiaomo to locate Rong Ruihan. After all, she was unable to see Rong Ruihan nor sense the aura emanating from his body. Thus, she could only trudge along aimlessly throughout the domain of the spirit tool as she continued to call out Rong Ruihan¡¯s name, hoping and praying that he would respond to her.

    Unfortunately, despite forging ahead for a long time, her surroundings were still enshrouded in pitch-ck darkness, and faint whiffs of blood stench persistently assaulted her olfactory senses from all directions.

    She was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of abject dread, loneliness and despondence. These feelings began to wrap tightly around her spirit, causing her chest to feel heavy and burdened, as though a massive rock were weighing on her chest. Her breathing began to grow ragged and shallow.

    Some time ago, when she thought she lost Ye Xiuwen to the Death¡¯s Gorge, she had spent the better part of two years waiting expectantly for his return. However, she was saved from the mires of despondence at that time because her loving family and friends stood beside her, showering her with care, allowing her to experience warmth and hope once more. Building on this foundation of hope, she steeled her heart and firmly believed that Ye Xiuwen would one day gain the ability to escape from the clutches of the Death¡¯s Gorge and return to the surface once more.

    Then, she was tossed into the Proving Grounds by her Master, Tong Ruizhen. There, she would apportion her time learning the disciplines of formation arrays and talismans while she battled with the curious creatures contained therein. Isted from the rest of the world, Jun Xiaomo spent over three-hundred arduous years within the Proving Grounds. However, she hardly felt a shred of despondence there because she knew that her friends and family were all waiting for her return outside the Proving Grounds, eagerly anticipating the fruit of herbour and their reunion.

    But right now, as she stood alone and took in the boundless darkness stretching out endlessly before her in all directions, hearing nothing but the echoes of her own voice, the destion of her istion began to nket and envelop her, amplifying the magnitude of loneliness and despondence within her heart.

    She felt incredibly despondent because she was unable to locate any traces of Rong Ruihan no matter what she did; and she felt incredibly lonely because she feared that she would be awaiting the very real prospects of death, all alone.

    That¡¯s right. Once Rong Ruihan vanished from sight, Jun Xiaomo began to lose hope that she could ever escape from the domain of the spirit tool, because she no longer had the heart to ¡°rescue herself¡±.

    Her only hopey with her martial brothers who were outside of the spirit tool¡¯s domain right now. That said, what were the prospects of that? Given Dai Yanfeng¡¯s character, he might not even consider releasing both Brother Rong and her even if her martial brothers were able to defeat Dai Yanfeng and reduce him to his final breaths.

    After all, she was well aware of the extent to which Dai Yanfeng hated both her and Brother Rong. This was akin to the hatred she experienced when she first learnt that someone had murdered the child within her womb back in her previous life. Any parent that loved their child would never be able to tolerate and suppress the fury in their hearts when their child was harmed by another.

    Notwithstanding that it was Dai Yue who had first attempted to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, and was thus the instigator and perpetrator on all ounts, Jun Xiaomo would nevertheless havemitted an unforgivable atrocity in Dai Yanfeng¡¯s eyes.

    Right now, the only thought on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was to locate Rong Ruihan. As for whether she could escape the domain of the spirit tool, these were outside of her ambit of considerations. For now, she was content leaving that much to fate.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo yelled into the pitch-ck surroundings, yet she heard no response whatsoever.

    Just then, the Nightgleam Pearl worn around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck flickered and began to glow once more, illuminating the corners of her garments ¨C the Invisibility Talisman on her body had finally expired once more!

    Jun Xiaomo only had two Invisibility Talismans remaining within her Interspatial Ring. Her original intention was to leave one for Rong Ruihan and use the other for herself. That way, both of them would be able to elude the spirit tool¡¯s attacks for a period of another four hours.

    Whoosh! A fireball rushed straight towards Jun Xiaomo, and she swiftly avoided its trajectory.

    The fireball vanished instantly when it struck the ground. Jun Xiaomo looked vacantly at the ce where the fireball had vanished into. Then, with a grimace on her lips, she made her resolve.

    She no longer applied the next Invisibility Talisman on her own body. Instead, she began to fend off the fireballs as she rushed straight towards the location of spirit tool¡¯s domain where the fireballs¡¯ attacks were the most concentrated at!

    Rong Ruihan had previously mentioned that the fireballs would generally only attack a single person. By extension, if she used her Invisibility Talisman right now, Rong Ruihan would most certainly receive the full brunt of the spirit tool¡¯s attacks on his own.

    Thus, she chose not to apply the next Invisibility Talisman on her own body so that she could expose herself to the fireballs¡¯ attacks. This way, she could divert some of the spirit tool¡¯s attacks away from Rong Ruihan, and at the same time determine where Rong Ruihan was located based on the location of the fireballs¡¯ attacks.

    After thinking through these thoughts, Jun Xiaomo rushed valiantly towards where the fireballs were most concentrated, pursuing the firm thread of belief on her heart.

    Outside, Ye Xiuwen suddenly opened his eyes and gazed straight into the spirit tool.

    His eyes were cold, deep and abstruse. A trace of vile, almost-corporeal emotions could be seen swirling viscously in the depths of his eyes, almost like a slow-moving whirlpool. Unfortunately, nobody recognized the source of the peculiarity in his eyes right now.

    Zhang Shuyue was still lingering about beside Ye Xiuwen at this moment. Her earlier probative advances were merely met with no more than a dispassionate nce from Ye Xiuwen. Thus, growing emboldened, she brazenly took her seat right beside Ye Xiuwen.

    That said, it was evident that Ye Xiuwen had simply turned a blind eye to her actions. Ever since she minced her way over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, he had simply shut his eyes dispassionately, as though shutting himself off to the rest of the world. Nothing she said or did attracted any form of reaction from him.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples were incensed by this new development. One of the disciples even strode up to Zhang Shuyue in a huff, calling her a vicious, poisonous snake as he pointed straight at her face. Was she not satisfied with stumbling and murdering their Martial Brother Zhou? Was she really intent on taking Ye Xiuwen¡¯s life as well?!

    However, Zhang Shuyue simply chuckled coquettishly as she gingerly wrapped her arm around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s firm, sturdy waist. Then, leaning her face gently on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm, she nced furtively at the Heavenly Peak disciple and quipped, ¡°Brother Ye hasn¡¯t said anything about my advances, so why are you getting so mad? Jun Xiaomo is greedy and promiscuous, and she¡¯d gone out searching for another man despite already having earned Brother Ye¡¯s heart. Certainly, you can call me opportunistic for worming my way into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart while he¡¯s hurting from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s betrayal. But everything is still Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fault when all is said and done. There¡¯s no reason to me me, is there? Furthermore, you allege that I¡¯m going to hurt or even take Brother Ye¡¯s life ¨C but why would I? I¡¯m far better than women like Jun Xiaomo. At the very least, my love for Brother Ye has never changed once...Brother Ye, don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced over at hernguidly, before shutting his eyes without giving any form of response whatsoever. However, Zhang Shuyue was hardly disheartened at all.

    She found Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present attitude towards her much better than it had ever been. At the very least, he was no longer looking out for Jun Xiaomo at every turn.

    At this moment, she firmly believed that she would most certainly be able to win over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart as long as she had enough time.

    As for Jun Xiaomo, she can perish within the spirit tool for all I care. Just like what Ye Xiuwen said earlier, both she and Rong Ruihan can go be a pair of lovebirds in the depths of hell together!

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen opened his eyes once more, but his attention was not on Zhang Shuyue.

    He had just discovered traces of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s aura within the spirit tool once more. Furthermore, he had also detected traces of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s suitor, Rong Ruihan.

    Ye Xiuwen red coldly at the spirit tool in his hands. it was evident that his heart was roiling with indescribable emotions.

    Zhang Shuyue noticed Ye Xiuwen staring at the spirit tool in his hands as soon as he opened his eyes, and she immediately began to grow anxious that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart would soften; that he would release Jun Xiaomo.

    If that happened, she would no longer have a ce beside Ye Xiuwen anymore.

    A vicious, hateful gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes, and Zhang Shuyue did everything she could to adjust her expressions before leaning into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms once more. Then, gently cing her palm over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm that was holding the spirit tool, she expressed with some measure of anguish, ¡°Brother Ye, stop wasting your spirits on women like Jun Xiaomo ¨C it¡¯s not worth it. Look at her. She¡¯s willing to do so much ¨C to sacrifice so much ¨C for that man, yet has she ever considered your feelings at all? I know that you¡¯re not willing to see her suffer. However, if you simply release them right now, aren¡¯t you essentially giving them your blessings?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen finally turned his attention away from the spirit tool in his hands and looked at Zhang Shuyue.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen was staring straight into Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes right now, causing Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face to flush bashfully as she subconsciously tightened her grip around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm.

    Then, without any warning, Ye Xiuwen curled his lips into a smile. This smile was ostensiblyced with vicious intentions, and Zhang Shuyue was momentarily dazed when she saw it.

    As he continued to gaze deeply into her eyes, he stretched out his hand and gently lifted Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chin, before leaning closer and whispering, ¡°Would you like to watch a good show?¡±

    ¡°Good...good show?¡± Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart was all over the ce right now. Their present proximity and the intense scent of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fragrance had sent her mind spinning.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bold actions had caused her to brace herself as she eagerly anticipated a kiss from him, and her mind was already thinking about how she would react when that happened.

    However, Ye Xiuwen released her in no time. Then, with the flick of his sleeves, a projection instantly appeared right above the spirit tool. The projection waspletely dark. At first nce, nothing could be seen at all.

    That said, looking at the spirit tool in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands, Zhang Shuyue knew better. She searched expectantly at the projection, and she finally barely made out Jun Xiaomo¡¯s characteristically striking-red garments in the dark.

    Jun Xiaomo appeared to be in a tragic state. It was evident that there were even parts of her body that were charred and burnt, having been struck by the fireballs from the spirit tool.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo dashed ahead as she continued to avoid the fireballs hurtling towards her. Unfortunately, she slipped up slightly in her eagerness to reach Rong Ruihan, and a fireball struck her squarely on her arm.

    Instantly, her arm was burnt, and a gory chunk of flesh waspletely melted off her skin.

    That said, she did not appear to feel any pain at all. Instead, she rushed straight into her target as innumerable fireballs continued to hurtle after them. With an arm around him, she leapt to the side, barely avoiding the potentially fatal barrage of fireballs.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Nightgleam Pearl fell off her neck, illuminating the appearances of the man in her bosom for a single, fleeting moment. Even though Zhang Shuyue desperately wanted Jun Xiaomo to perish, she couldn¡¯t help but be astonished by the man¡¯s appearances right now.

    Half of his face had already been melted off by the fireballs, leaving only the other half of his face intact ¨C barely enough to identify who the man was.

    Zhang Shuyue felt a pang of nausea shoot up from her belly. That man had clearly been disfigured, yet Jun Xiaomo continued to embrace him without letting go. Was there something wrong with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind?!

    Regardless, Zhang Shuyue turned to look victoriously at Ye Xiuwen as she eximed in her heart ¨C That¡¯s great. Feast your eyes on this, Brother Ye. Lap it all up, because your heart is going to be mine soon.

    Jun Xiaomo, do carry on as you please!

 Chapter 357: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Sacrifice, Punishment for Betrayal

    <h4>Chapter 357: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Sacrifice, Punishment for Betrayal</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Rong Ruihan had chosen to leave Jun Xiaomo behind because he no longer wished to be a burden to her. Jun Xiaomo only had two pieces of Invisibility Talismans remaining within her Interspatial Ring. If both were left to her for her use only, she would be able to survive for another eight hours before their effects finally wore off. However, if Jun Xiaomo gave one of her two remaining Invisibility Talismans to him, they would each only be able to hold on for another four hours.

    There was a period of time when Rong Ruihan thought in his heart that he wished to perish together with Jun Xiaomo. However, as he continued to be exposed to more and more people who appeared to have been tormented within the spirit tool for hundreds and even thousands of years on end, he simply couldn¡¯t tolerate the notion of allowing Jun Xiaomo to perish with such a fate.

    The spirit tool¡¯s domain was incredibly peculiar. It was evident that the reprieve of death would never be on the horizon even if one were felled by the relentless barrage of fireballs. As long as a person remained within the spirit tool, his fate was to live a life worse than death itself.

    Rong Ruihan had seen the remnants of some captives who had already been reduced to nothing more than a pile of bones, yet these bones continued to cackle madly, almost as though they had begun to enjoy the ecstasy apanying the immense, excruciating pain of their torment.

    Rong Ruihan could not bear to see Jun Xiaomo be like this. Thus, he steeled his resolve and decided to cede the hope of living on to Jun Xiaomo, resigning himself to a fate of being tormented for all eternity.

    He had already braced himself for death as soon as the Invisibility Talisman on his body lost its effects. He did his best to avoid the fireballs hurtling towards him. However, the number of fireballs and the speed at which they hurtled towards him only continued to increase. Thus, as time went on, he began to find more and more fireballs striking him squarely on his body.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Rong Ruihan could no longer hang on, and he copsed to the ground.

    His mind and body were already numb to the excruciating pain by now. As he gnashed his teeth, he also eximed in his heart ¨C I guess I¡¯d still ended up drawing the shorter straw this time. I¡¯d thought that this was the prime opportunity to soften Xiaomo¡¯s heart while ingratiating Ye Xiuwen. Who would¡¯ve thought that I would meet my demise like that?

    Ah, that¡¯s right. Perhaps I wouldn¡¯t die just like that. My soul would remain trapped here, subject to an endless torment until I grow mad.

    Rong Ruihany motionless on the ground amidst the pitch-ck darkness. He had already lost all use of his limbs by now, and he waspletely subject to the mercy of the relentless barrage of fireballs.

    He had always thought that his final moments would be filled with thoughts of reluctance, regret and disappointment. However, the only thing that was on his mind right now were the images of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s radiant smile ¨C those that he had seen in both her previous life and their current life.

    She wouldn¡¯t forget me after such a huge sacrifice on my part, would she?

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had mentioned that the only person she had ever loved in this life was only Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan knew better. He knew the extent of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s softheartedness, and he knew that his death in the spirit tool would most certainly leave an indelible mark within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    Perhaps such an end isn¡¯t too bad either.

    Rong Ruihan cated himself by focusing on the silver linings right now. That said, he could never deny the lingering regrets and remorse that were stirring slightly in the depths of his heart.

    He found it rather remorseful that the only thing that apanied him in the final moments of his life were the unending darkness and intense stench of blood, while the person whom he wanted to see the most was probably still fervently scrambling about, searching high and low for him. Unfortunately, he would never be able to see her again...

    Rong Ruihan shut his eyes with some measure of despondence. The faint whistling sounds of hurtling fireballs gradually drew closer and closer. However, he was at peace ¨C he was as ready to face death as it got.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± A familiar, choking voice resounded just beside his ears. Rong Ruihan¡¯s fingers trembled, and he struggled to open his eyes once more.

    He was hoping that the voice beside his ear was nothing more than an illusion. Yet in the very next moment, he felt himself pulled into the warm embrace of a soft bosom. As soon as he opened his eyes, he noticed the corners of a fiery-red garment flowing before him.

    ¡°Brother Rong...¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out miserably as she embraced Rong Ruihan. She knew no other emotions at this very instant apart from the pain and sorrow that was gripping her heart.

    Arge bead of tear slid off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks andnded on Rong Ruihan¡¯s clothes.

    No, perhaps what remained could no longer be considered clothes. After all, the relentless battering of fireballs on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body had already left his body covered in grotesque wounds and gruesome burns, and the parts of his body that Jun Xiaomo was embracing right now was nothing more than his raw, exposed flesh.

    ¡°Invisibility Talisman...¡± Rong Ruihan opened his eyes and painfully eked out a few words, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you use...Invis...Talisman...¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t use it, so why should I?!¡± Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth as she castigated Rong Ruihan. Her bloodshot eyes were filled with sorrow and grief.

    ¡°Use...use it...¡± Rong Ruihan struggled to catch his breath as he finally managed to speak a few more words.

    He had already noticed the wounds on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, and it was obvious to him that Jun Xiaomo had rushed straight over while dodging the relentless fireballs as soon as the previous Invisibility Talisman had lost its effects.

    ¡°I¡¯ll only use it if you use it!¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered resolutely as she stared at Rong Ruihan, ¡°Otherwise, I¡¯m not going to use it either.¡±

    ¡°No...¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows, ¡°Not enough...¡±

    ¡°Who says that there won¡¯t be enough? Two Invisibility Talismans would be sufficient for another four hours of usage. We¡¯ll leave it to fate whether we can escape within the next four hours or not.¡± Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly as she continued unyieldingly.

    Rong Ruihan mustered all of the strength in his body and gripped tightly onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist. He felt as though he had so much to say, yet nothing came out, no matter how hard he tried.

    The fireballs had already damaged his throat and his vocal cords, and speaking was naturally getting increasingly harder for him.

    Jun Xiaomo grabbed Rong Ruihan¡¯s hand and peeled it off her arm with some strength. Then, she retrieved the Invisibility Talismans from her Interspatial Ring and attempted to apply it right onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s body.

    ¡°Don¡¯t...¡± Rong Ruihan finally eked out yet another word. He wanted so much to tell Jun Xiaomo not to waste her Invisibility Talismans any further.

    ¡°Brother Rong, I¡¯ve said it before, and I¡¯ll say it again ¨C I¡¯m not going to leave you behind like that.¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Rong Ruihan as she dered.

    Her words struck Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart like a bolt of lightning, and feelings of bitter astringency began to spread from the depths of his heart once more.

    If the only person you¡¯ve ever loved was Ye Xiuwen, why do you continue to treat me like this...

    Outside, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze only grew more frigid by the minute ashe continued to watch the interaction between Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan. The swirling darkness in his eyes appeared to have grown deeper and more intense in colour as well.

    Recognizing the prime opportunity unfolding before her very eyes, Zhang Shuyue began to add fuel to fire as she remarked, ¡°Brother Ye, look there! Look at what Jun Xiaomo is doing! Is that really the behaviour of a woman without feelings for the man?¡±

    ¡°Shut up! Zhang Shuyue, how could you possibly know anything about Xiaomo¡¯s feelings towards Martial Brother Ye?! Back when Martial Brother Ye fell into the Death¡¯s Gorge, Jun Xiaomo was so stricken with grief that she had time and time again even thought to dive right into the Death¡¯s Gorge just to look for him!¡± Chen Feiyu bellowed indignantly, interrupting Zhang Shuyue¡¯s spiel.

    Chen Feiyu had finally realized that Ye Xiuwen was not truly unconcerned for Jun Xiaomo. Rather, he had for some strange reason simply begun to grow jealous of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s interactions with Rong Ruihan, and his decision to leave Jun Xiaomo to suffer within the spirit tool was clearly borne out of spite.

    Thus, Chen Feiyu¡¯s intention was to stir Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings for Jun Xiaomo that were presently locked away in the deepest parts of his heart, reminding him of the sacrifices Jun Xiaomo had made for Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°But she didn¡¯t jump down in the end, did she?¡± Zhang Shuyue continued to mock contemptuously, ¡°You make her sound so noble. But when all is said and done, hasn¡¯t everything she¡¯s done been nothing more than a calcted act to stir Brother Ye¡¯s guilt and remorse so that he would reciprocate her feelings?¡±

    In that instant, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils constricted, and his emotions red up.

    ¡°Silence!¡± Ye Xiuwen barked. Nobody knew whether he was addressing Zhang Shuyue or Chen Feiyu when he exploded in rage.

    Regardless of who it was directed to, the fact remained that the oppressive aura bursting out from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body right now was simply far too intense, and neither Zhang Shuyue nor Chen Feiyu dared to provoke him any further. Both of them immediately shut their traps and silenced themselves.

    Zhang Shuyue red hatefully at Chen Feiyu as she cursed in her heart. At the same time, she made a mental note to herself that she would most certainly continue to smear Jun Xiaomo¡¯s name if the opportunity aroseter. She was hell bent on keeping Jun Xiaomo trapped forever within the spirit tool if she could help it!

    Meanwhile, just as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intense emotions zed in the depths of his eyes, tens of fireballs that were already hovering about in mid-air immediately shot straight towards Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart and mind were fixated on the man in her bosom right now, and she hardly bothered to avoid the barrage of fireballs at all. That said, there was no doubt that Jun Xiaomo would be thoroughly disfigured or even perish if these fireballs were to crash onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers tensed up slightly. In the veryst moment, just before the fireballs struck Jun Xiaomo squarely on the body, they changed trajectory and swerved mid-flight, striking a spot that was merely one meter away from where Jun Xiaomo was.

    Zhang Shuyue and Chen Feiyu did not notice the slight movement in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers. That said, they clearly saw the tens of fireballs change trajectory mid-flight, just before it crashed onto Jun Xiaomo. Thus, both of them immediately turned to stare at Ye Xiuwen,pletely aghast.

    After all, who else apart from Ye Xiuwen possessed the ability to change the trajectory of the fireballs like that?

    Whilst jealousy and hatred poured into Zhang Shuyue¡¯s heart once more, Chen Feiyu heaved a huge sigh of relief in his heart ¨C It seems like Martial Brother Ye¡¯s feelings for Little Martial Sister still runs deep, and he still can¡¯t bring himself to hurt her.

    That said, I wonder when Martial Brother Ye is willing to release Little Martial Sister?

    Inside the spirit tool, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s focus remainedpletely transfixed on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body and the innumerable wounds guing him. Thus, she waspletely oblivious to the peculiar sight that had just unfolded.

    Currently, she was gripping tightly onto the Invisibility Talisman, motioning to apply it onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s body. Outside, it was obvious that Ye Xiuwen had clearly noticed every single bit of her movements. Zhang Shuyue smirked knowingly as she cast a contemptuous gaze at Jun Xiaomo, while Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples looked worriedly at Ye Xiuwen.

    Given Ye Xiuwen¡¯s condition right now, it was obvious that he was only going to grow more incensed the more Jun Xiaomo did for Rong Ruihan.

    Presently, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality had already been consumed by the darker, vile energies within his body, and his conduct could no longer be interpreted through the lenses of a normal, rational person. In fact, none of the onlookers had any doubt that the manifestation of his intense jealousy might very well cause him to do something that he would regret for the rest of his life.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen noticed how Jun Xiaomo was motioning to ce the Invisibility Talisman onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s body, his eyes turned incredibly frigid.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips thinned out into a tight grimace as he waved his hands. Just like that, yet another barrage of tens of fireballs hurtled straight towards Jun Xiaomo once more!

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples cried out in unison. None of them were a match for Ye Xiuwen, and there was no way they would be able to snatch the spirit tool away from him. Thus, they simply watched in despondence as the fireballs swept towards Jun Xiaomo in a concerted fashion.

    What¡¯s going to be left of Martial Sister Xiaomo if these fireballs hit her?!

    Although Jun Xiaomo was oblivious to the impending barrage of doom that was converging right in her position, Rong Ruihan noticed everyst bit of it. Mustering the veryst reserves of his energy, he charged straight into Jun Xiaomo, knocking her back several inches. Just like that, the fireballs swept right past their arms and crashed directly into the ground.

    Truth be told, the fireballs had changed trajectory just as they were about to crash into Jun Xiaomo, and Rong Ruihan¡¯s attempt to rescue Jun Xiaomo had nearly sent her straight into the fireballs new path of travel.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan were naturally unaware of this fact. Right now, Jun Xiaomo could only feel the weight of Rong Ruihan¡¯s body pressing against hers. Rong Ruihan¡¯s actions had depleted the veryst reserves of energy within his body. If not for the fact that he possessed an immeasurably strong fortitude and willpower, he would have passed out long ago.

    ¡°Brother Rong...¡± Jun Xiaomo struggled to push him away slightly.

    On the other hand, as the orchestrator of this event, Ye Xiuwen was hardly ignorant about what had just happened. His cold, frigid gaze wasced with a fiery intensity right now. Then, as soon as Jun Xiaomo attempted to apply the Invisibility Talisman onto Rong Ruihan¡¯s body once more, the raging inferno of jealousy in his eyes burgeoned yet again with greater intensity!

    With a single wave of his sleeves, three Wind des shot straight through the darkness, slicing up the Invisibility Talisman in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hand and leaving three deep gashes on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palm.

    Rather than describing this as a manifestation of his fury, it might be far more urate to say that this was a warning of sorts ¨C one that cautioned Jun Xiaomo not to cheat on him any further.

    Jun Xiaomo stared at her wounds in bewilderment for a moment before ncing anxiously about at her surroundings ¨C Why did these three Wind des possess Martial Brother Ye¡¯s aura?! Could Martial Brother Ye be trapped in this ce as well?!

    Outside, as Ye Xiuwen stared intently at the nervous expression on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, his eyes began to be zed over by an intense frostiness.

    Not enough...they haven¡¯t been sufficiently punished yet...

    Traitors must be punished for their betrayal!

 Chapter 358: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Fury, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Sorrow

    <h4>Chapter 358: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Fury, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Sorrow</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo strained her eye and searched for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s whereabouts for some time, but to no avail. She sighed in her heart.

    It was good that her Martial Brother Ye was not trapped in this ce. The domain of the spirit tool was akin to a massive pitfall, and anyone who fell into it would find it incredibly difficult to extricate themselves from the situation. Both she and Brother Rong had already been stumbled by the spirit tool, and there was no reason for her Martial Brother Ye to follow suit and put his life in danger.

    That said, she couldn¡¯t help but feel a wave of bitter astringency wash across her heart when she turned her mind to consider how she and Ye Xiuwen had already made known their feelings for each other, yet she still remained somewhat entangled with Rong Ruihan¡¯s life.

    Perhaps it would be for the best if she remained trapped in the spirit tool forever, right? At the very least, her Martial Brother Ye would no longer have to bother with her intractable rtionships. At the very least, her Martial Brother Ye would be able to freely pursue a person who was truly worthy of his love ¨C one who would be able to fully and exclusively reciprocate his love; one who was not caught in a web of rtionships with others.

    Tears began to well up in the rims of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, blurring her vision as she retrieved herst and final Invisibility Talisman from her Interspatial Ring.

    There were initially two Invisibility Talismans within her Interspatial Ring, just sufficient for Rong Ruihan and her to each have one. That way, both of them would be able to survive for another four hours in the hope that her martial brothers outside would be able to rescue them.

    But now, one of the remaining two Invisibility Talismans had been ruined, leaving only one remaining for two people.

    ¡°Brother Rong, thanks for everything you¡¯ve done for me. Now, it¡¯s my turn to return the favor and do something for you as well.¡± Jun Xiaomo remarked softly as she gently caressed the half of Rong Ruihan¡¯s face that was still intact.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief. He could already guess what Jun Xiaomo was intending to do, but he sincerely hoped with all his heart that his intuition was wrong!

    He struggled to sit up in a feeble attempt to restrain Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo did not give him any opportunity to resist. In the blink of an eye, she had already applied the remaining Invisibility Talisman onto his body.

    An Invisibility Talisman was not transferable once it had been used. In other words, even if Rong Ruihan tore off the Invisibility Talisman on his body, he would not be able to use it on Jun Xiaomo anymore.

    Jun Xiaomo had just bought Rong Ruihan another four hours of time.

    She had already braced herself to face the wrath of the fireballs. In fact, she knew, deep within her heart, that she was now infinitesimally closer to death right now.

    After Jun Xiaomo carried Rong Ruihan¡¯s limp body to the side, she scrambled to her feet and prepared her heart for a long, arduous journey ahead. Just like what Rong Ruihan had done for her, she intended to draw away the fireballs from where Rong Ruihan was, leaving him safe and sound while the Invisibility Talisman was still active.

    ¡°Xiaomo! Hurgh...hurgh...¡± Rong Ruihan yelled out in excruciating pain. He wanted so much to tear off the Invisibility Talisman, catch up to Jun Xiaomo and prevent her from rushing headlong into danger. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t do a single one of these things with the state of his body right now. Thus, he gazed dismally as he watched Jun Xiaomo sprint off into the distance.

    Outside, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rage had evidently reached new heights. He found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sacrificial acts for Rong Ruihan incredibly harsh to his own eyes. After all, hadn¡¯t he just witnessed how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s love for Rong Ruihan ran as deep as the depths of the oceans?

    Did they act with such wanton disregard for his feelings because they had simply thought that he was not present?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were now filled with the dark, vile energy that continued to swirl about slowly, as though stirring and consuming his soul.

    Then, without any warning, a vicious smile crept up Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips. This smile immediately sent chills down the spines of the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Martial Brother Ye has never revealed such a macabre expression before. What¡¯s he thinking of doing now?

    They soon got the answer to their question. With a flick of his sleeves, Ye Xiuwen caused the spirit tool to emit a bright beam of light, shining directly onto his own body.

    Then, Ye Xiuwen turned around and lifted Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chin with his finger. Raising his eyebrows slightly, he leaned closer towards her ear and whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t you hate Jun Xiaomo very much? I¡¯m going to give you an opportunity to stir her emotions and exasperate her right now. Will you do it?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue immediately responded with joy, ¡°Of course I¡¯ll do it!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had leaned in so close to Zhang Shuyue¡¯s face that she could feel his breath scattering on her earlobes. Her heart skipped a beat, before thumping quicker and quicker.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightly, ¡°That¡¯s good. We¡¯ll have to see your performance then.¡± As he spoke, he released Zhang Shuyue¡¯s chin and turned his gaze straight back to the projection of Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan hovering above the spirit tool.

    He had just linked up the projections from the spirit tool. In other words, just as much as he could see Jun Xiaomo¡¯s actions, Jun Xiaomo was also able to see his every move right now.

    Inside the spirit tool, a projection suddenly appeared right in front of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face, revealing a projection of Ye Xiuwen leaningzily on the trunk of a tree, rendering her momentarily dumbfounded.

    The thing she found most bewildering and inexplicable was how Zhang Shuyue was leaning closely by her Martial Brother Ye¡¯s side, almost as though they were an intimate couple.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t help but call out his name, yet her quivering pupils revealed some measure of disbelief.

    A part of her even wondered whether this was merely an illusion created by an illusion generating formation array within the spirit tool.

    Ye Xiuwen stared at Jun Xiaomo with an incredibly frigid gaze, almost as though Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence werepletely inconsequential to him. Curling his lips into a thin smirk, he quipped, ¡°How¡¯s it in there? Are you having fun with your lover yet?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief as she blurted in shock, ¡°What?!¡±

    She couldn¡¯t believe her ears! How could such unfeeling words being out of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips?!

    Maintaining his smirk, Ye Xiuwen continued to mock Jun Xiaomo contemptuously, ¡°Were my words that difficult toprehend? Your acts of sacrifice borne out of your deep love for that man have opened my eyes to the world. It was a truly moving sight.¡±

    Waves of giddiness began to wash over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind. She simply couldn¡¯t fathom how a warm and kind person like Ye Xiuwen could possibly bring himself to say such intentionally hurtful words.

    Then, as though the impact on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind were not great enough, Zhang Shuyue leaned in closer to Ye Xiuwen and hooked her arm around his as she added, ¡°We¡¯ve both witnessed your lovey-dovey interaction with that hideous monster earlier. My word. Why do you continue to lead Brother Ye on when the person you love is that hideous monster? Why are you trying to hurt Brother Ye¡¯s heart?¡±

    ¡°Hideous monster?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Zhang Shuyue with some measure of bewilderment before turning her attention to Ye Xiuwen. She had noticed that Ye Xiuwen was no longer rejecting Zhang Shuyue¡¯s advances, and her heart was now flushed with an aching, sour sensation, so much so that she even began tough manically.

    Hideous monster...Zhang Shuyue is actually calling Brother Rong a hideous monster? That¡¯s right ¨C didn¡¯t she use the exact same term on Martial Brother Ye in my previous life?

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, Zhang Shuyue had coldly cursed at Ye Xiuwen just before plunging her sword straight through his heart, ¡°Hideous monster, do you think I¡¯d really love you with those terrifying looks off yours? You¡¯re like a toad lusting after the flesh of a swan!¡±

    Scenes of her previous life began to pour into her mind, interpting with the present scene.

    She finally knew why Zhang Shuyue¡¯s attitude towards Ye Xiuwen was vastly different in this life. It was because Ye Xiuwen had already shed his ¡°hideous appearances¡±, regaining his original suave and charming appearances and bing the apple of Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo was initially thoroughly aggravated by Zhang Shuyue¡¯s words. However, as she began to process these thoughts and consider all possibilities, her other emotions began to subside, leaving only roiling sorrow guing her heart.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, you¡¯ve already gained control of the spirit tool, haven¡¯t you?¡± Jun Xiaomo looked at Ye Xiuwen with a pained expression in the depths of her eyes.

    She clung tightly to the single thread of hope that this projection was nothing more than an illusion. However, her intuition told her that there were no illusion generating formation arrays within the spirit tool to begin with. Furthermore, she had just realized that she had not been struck squarely by a single fireball ever since being trapped within the domain of the spirit tool.

    This could only mean one thing ¨C the spirit tool was already under the control of a person from the Heavenly Peak.

    That said, why didn¡¯t her Martial Brother Ye release them if he didn¡¯t want to hurt them to begin with? Could he have no intention to release them to begin with? Was he thinking of tormenting them and sending them spiraling down the abyss of despondence before he would finally relent and release them?

    The prospects of thetter possibilities hurt so much that they cut straight through her heart. She couldn¡¯t understand what she had done to cause Ye Xiuwen to hate her so much!

    Faced with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sorrowful gaze, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely cid as he smiled faintly, ¡°Not bad, you¡¯ve managed to guess that much. That¡¯s right, your life is now in my hands.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen spoke with a casual,ckadaisical tone of voice, as though he were simplymenting on the weather today.

    Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, do you really hate me so much that you want me to die?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve betrayed our rtionship. Don¡¯t you think I¡¯m allowed to punish you for that?¡± Ye Xiuwen retorted spitefully.

    Tears began to flow from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes once more. She found herself at aplete loss for words when faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s harshments. Was she to say that she had never loved Rong Ruihan right now? She simply couldn¡¯t bring herself to say these words, especially not to Ye Xiuwen.

    She could never bring herself to lie to her Martial Brother Ye. She could never lower herself to speak such hypocritical words just because she wished to live.

    However, what Jun Xiaomo remained unaware of was the fact that Ye Xiuwen was presently being controlled by the vile energies from the spirit tool. If she were to appease and cajole Ye Xiuwen with the words that he wanted to hear, she might gain herself some ground to turn the entire situation around in her favor. Unfortunately, her silence would only be interpreted as a tacit admission to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s allegation, indubitably adding fuel to the already zing inferno in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart!

    Ye Xiuwen waited for some moments for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s response. When he realized that no denial was going to be forting, the vile energies within his eyes began to swirl with great intensity, turning almost corporeal.

    ¡°Hah. Very well. I see that you¡¯ve tacitly admitted to your crimes. You¡¯ve sealed your fate. You and your lover Rong Ruihan can enjoy being a pair of lovebirds for the rest of eternity in hell very soon!¡± Ye Xiuwen bellowed hatefully. Each of the words spoken were incredibly incisive, stabbing straight through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart like knives, causing her heart to bleed profusely.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he immediately clenched his fists tightly without waiting for any further response from Jun Xiaomo. In that instant, countless fireballs began to hurtle straight towards Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan from all directions. It was clear that Ye Xiuwen was intent on turning them into nothing more than charred corpses right now!

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo!¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples shrieked hopelessly as they witnessed the fireballs hurtling towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tears had dried up by now. By the time she managed to react to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions, it was already toote to do anything. Thus, she simply stood where she was, watching despondently as the fireballs hurtled straight towards her.

    Then, just as the fireballs were about to strike Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, a shadow flickered from the distance, charging straight into Jun Xiaomo and creating a weak barrier right in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    The fireballs rained onto this man¡¯s back, causing his already bloodied back to look even more grisly in an instant.

    Rong Ruihan spat out a fresh mouthful of blood.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo had never expected Rong Ruihan to tear off the Invisibility Talisman from his own body, much less charge straight towards her to rescue her.

    This was thest Invisibility Talisman that she had. In other words, the veryst Invisibility Talisman had been wasted as soon as Rong Ruihan had torn it off his own body.

    ¡°Fortunately, I¡¯ve still got some recovery pills in my Interspatial Ring. I¡¯ve arrived in the nick of time.¡± Rong Ruihan grimaced, before turning to Ye Xiuwen and censuring him, ¡°Had I known that this was going to happen, I would¡¯ve allowed you to die in this spirit tool to begin with!¡±

 Chapter 359: Jun Xiaomo Gives Up, Zhang Shuyueâ€™s Death

    <h4>Chapter 359: Jun Xiaomo Gives Up, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s Death</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The sight of Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo standing shoulder to shoulder was incredibly harsh and ring on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Allow me to die in the spirit tool?¡± Ye Xiuwen echoed contemptuously as he curled his lips into a mocking smile, ¡°Rong Ruihan, do you think I¡¯d really be unaware that you¡¯d only saved me back then because you want to ingratiate me so that I wouldn¡¯t be able to prevent you from drawing closer to Little Martial Sister? That said, I¡¯ve got tomend you for a job well done. Unfortunately, you¡¯ve miscalcted. Things have gone south for you, and it¡¯s too little toote if you¡¯re thinking of capitting.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo stared at Ye Xiuwen in disbelief. She could hardly believe that her beloved Ye Xiuwen were speaking such harsh and unkind words right now.

    ¡°I¡¯ll admit it. There were indeed some ulterior motives undergirding my decision to rescue you earlier.¡± Blood continued to trickle out of Rong Ruihan¡¯s lips as he added, ¡°But it remains a fact that I¡¯d saved your life. Aren¡¯t you being an ingrate right now? Furthermore, I¡¯d rescued you earlier so that you can look after Jun Xiaomo for me. But what is this?! You¡¯re currently the culprit who¡¯s hurt her most deeply!¡±

    ¡°Hah. Look after Jun Xiaomo for you? What basis do you have to request that I look after Jun Xiaomo on your behalf? Who do you think you are? There should never have been another person between her and I from the onset! And you, you¡¯re the third wheel that¡¯s disrupting our blissful rtionship here!¡±

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, innumerable fireballs emerged from the darkness once more, hurtling straight towards Rong Ruihan.

    ¡°Brother Rong!¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out anxiously as she grabbed hold of Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm and dragged him along as they avoided several fireballs together. Some fireballs ended up striking Jun Xiaomo squarely on her body, yet she continued to hold on tightly to Rong Ruihan¡¯s arm.

    Rong Ruihan waspletely spent, and he no longer had the ability to protect Jun Xiaomo. He watched feebly at Jun Xiaomo as she dodged left and right, refusing to let go of his hand even if that spelt certain death for her. His heart was filled with an inexplicable mix of emotions right now.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo made a misstep as she was avoiding an approaching fireball and stumbled slightly, causing both her and Rong Ruihan to copse straight to the ground.

    Truth be told, it had been an incredibly long time since Rong Ruihan had been reduced to such a tragic, helpless state.

    Lifting his head, he looked at how Ye Xiuwen was watching them dispassionately. Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart was swamped with reluctance and anxiety.

    He was reluctant to lose to his love rival like this, and he was anxious because he knew that if things went on like this, Jun Xiaomo might very well perish in front of his very eyes.

    Thus, after an intense struggle in his heart, he finally called out, ¡°Stop! Ye Xiuwen.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen turned his attention to Rong Ruihan, ceasing fire for a short moment.

    ¡°Don¡¯t hurt Jun Xiaomo anymore. I¡¯ll back off, alright?¡± It pained Rong Ruihan to give in like that, yet he knew that there was no other choice right now, ¡°I sincerely believe that hurting Jun Xiaomo isn¡¯t your intention at all. You¡¯re only doing this to force me to leave her alone. That¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll remain here within the spirit tool. Please release her.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes quivered slightly, as though he were contemting Rong Ruihan¡¯s suggestion.

    Zhang Shuyue was still lying beside Ye Xiuwen right now. Her heart immediately tensed up when she noticed the hesitation in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, so she quickly interjected, ¡°Brother Ye, don¡¯t believe his words. Jun Xiaomo will most certainly think of a way to rescue her beloved as soon as she is released. She will never wholeheartedly belong to you. In fact, she might even begin to hate you because of how you¡¯d hurt her beloved in the spirit tool. Who knows ¨C she might even end up seeking vengeance on you and hurting you!¡±

    ¡°Zhang Shuyue, shut your trap right now!¡± Chen Feiyu truly hated Zhang Shuyue through and through. Zhang Shuyue was evidently emboldened by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tacit eptance of her advances, and she had begun to speak with less caution and restraint.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, what do you think? I¡¯ll agree to release you if you¡¯re willing to leave the spirit tool alone. What do you say to that?¡± Ye Xiuwen coldly redirected the question to Jun Xiaomo. His voice waspletely devoid of emotions, and it seemed almost as though he were negotiating the terms of a contract with a mere business partner.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart sank heavily. gued by immeasurable disappointment, she nced at Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue. Then, her heart trembled slightly as she suddenly asked, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, what would you do if I truly betray you in our rtionship one day?¡±

    The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes stirred slightly, and he coldly responded, ¡°If that happens, I¡¯ll personally send you, together with the third wheel in our rtionship, straight to the pits of hell.¡±

    Tears began to swell up in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, but she held it in fervently.

    Drawing a deep breath, she suppressed the tremors in her voice and continued, ¡°Then, if I die, will Martial Brother Ye look after my parents and the other Heavenly Peak martial brothers and protect them from external harm?¡±

    A trace of indignation filled Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes once more, and he retorted impatiently and coldly, ¡°Just say it if you¡¯re afraid of dying. Stop looking for excuses for yourself!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s remarks sent Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart straight to the bottom of the valley.

    At this very moment, she suddenly found herself overwhelmed with jadedness. What was the point of having been reborn? What meaning was there in being reborn? Shouldn¡¯t she be ted, given how her loved ones, family and friends had all experienced a stark change in their fate from how things were in her previous life?

    That said, the path in her present life had deviated so much from that in her previous life that she was absolutely uncertain as to her direction in life right now.

    ¡°Then, alright. I¡¯ll ept your punishment towards me.¡± Jun Xiaomo grimaced, chuckling at herself somewhat in a self-deprecating fashion as she added, ¡°I¡¯ll admit that there are two men in my heart right now, and I don¡¯t deserve the love that you¡¯ve extended to me. Since you feel that death is the only way to appease your heart, then so be it.¡±

    This could be considered some form of repayment to Ye Xiuwen. After all, she had caused Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death in her previous life, so her death right now could simply be considered a form of penance for the mistakes of her previous life.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Chen Feiyu and the rest red at Jun Xiaomo with disapprobation, while Rong Ruihan also furrowed his brows, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, silence! I don¡¯t want your goodwill nor sacrifice!¡±

    After castigating Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan turned back to Ye Xiuwen and dered bitterly, ¡°Xiaomo had earlier informed me that Brother Ye was the only person in her heart right from the onset. Her heart has never had any space for my existence. If you don¡¯t want to do something that you¡¯ll regret for the rest of your life, release her right now.¡±

    ¡°Yoo~ Look at that disy of passion.¡± Zhang Shuyue continued to add fuel to fire, ¡°Brother Ye, just look at how loving the two of them are. On the one hand, she pledges her life just so that she can remain by his side till death. While on the other hand, he does all he can to draw the line in the hope that she will be released from the spirit tool and remain alive. If this isn¡¯t true love, I wonder what is?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue¡¯s provocations were incredibly effective, and it began to stir the vile energy swirling about in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes once more. Just like that, what modicum of rationality remaining within his mind began to be thoroughly washed away by the baptism of the foul energy.

    Ye Xiuwen lifted one hand with his palm facing up as he stared at Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan. Then, he slowly gave his verdict ¨C

    ¡°Since you¡¯ve caused me such pain and misery, you deserve death.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists as soon as he finished speaking, and a barrage of fireballs rushed out from the surrounding darkness, hurtling straight towards Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo from all directions!

    Jun Xiaomo stood motionless in the epicenter of the onught of fireballs, casting one final look at Ye Xiuwen sorrowfully. Her eyes were as still and tranquil as pristine waters right now.

    ¡°Martial Sister Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Little Martial Sister!¡±

    Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples wailed in horror and anxiety, as though they wanted to dive straight into the spirit tool to pluck Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan back from the jaws of death!

    As the fireballs hurtled towards Jun Xiaomo, she slowly shut her eyes, awaiting the arrival of a moment of excruciating pain before her death.

    She had thought that her premature death was going to be incredibly painful and filled with bitter resentment. However, as death quickly approached her, she found herself awash with peace and tranquility in her heart.

    Perhaps it was the manifestation of the guilt and remorse towards Ye Xiuwen in her heart that had made everything somewhat easier to ept. After all, it remained a lifelong regret that she had caused Ye Xiuwen¡¯s death in her previous life. To die by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands in this life would undoubtedly be a form of penance for that.

    That said, she sincerely hoped that Ye Xiuwen wouldn¡¯t make Zhang Shuyue his own cultivationpanion after her death. After all, Zhang Shuyue was far too unreliable as a person...

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo discovered to her surprise that the excruciating pain she had been expecting never arrived. Instead, she found herself pushed to the ground by someone who held her in an incredibly tight embrace.

    She could feel the powerful force of the fireballs striking the warm body covering her, and she could feel the intense heat radiating from each fireball thatnded relentlessly.

    ¡°Brother Rong...¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s tears burst out of her eyes, melding together with the blood that had begun to scatter all over her face.

    She returned the embrace, before exerting some force and rolling Rong Ruihan around so that her body was on top.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s life aura had already vanishedpletely as soon as he shielded Jun Xiaomo from the potentially fatal blow earlier. His back was a grisly, mangled mess; his hair had been singed off; and his bones were even exposed to the air. It was a terrifying, grotesque sight.

    Jun Xiaomo could already tell that Rong Ruihan¡¯s heartbeats had grown undetectable. She feared the worst, but she refused to check for Rong Ruihan¡¯s breath.

    As she sobbed and wept uncontrobly, more and more fireballs began to rain down towards them. Now that she had flipped Rong Ruihan around, the fireballs crashed down directly onto her back.

    However, she could no longer feel any pain from the fireballs because the excruciating pain spreading from her heart had already numbed all her senses.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, are you really trying to kill Little Martial Sister?!¡± Chen Feiyu charged at Ye Xiuwen, cing his life on the line in the hope that he could snatch the spirit tool from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands. However, Ye Xiuwen simply sent him flying with the flick of his sleeves.

    Several Heavenly Peak disciples also followed suit, charging straight towards Ye Xiuwen. All of them knew full well that they were no match for Ye Xiuwen. However, there was only one thought on their minds right now ¨C and that was to rescue their Little Martial Sister.

    Despite that, every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples were sent flying and mming into the ground.

    Some distance away, Xiang Guqing snorted contemptuously as she watched the internal strife among the Heavenly Peak disciples y out.

    Blinded by their fury, Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had failed to notice that the fireballs had already ceased raining upon Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan.

    Jun Xiaomoypletely motionless on Rong Ruihan¡¯s body as though she were dead. Her body was a mangled mess, covered in bloody wounds and grisly injuries.

    As Ye Xiuwen looked at how Jun Xiaomo was lying motionless in the projection, a trace of hesitation surfaced his eyes for an instant, and his emotions were frozen over once more in the very next moment.

    Zhang Shuyue had expected Ye Xiuwen to continue hurtling fireballs onto Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan until there was nothing left of their corpses. At the very least, she had not expected Ye Xiuwen to halt his barrage of attacks this early on.

    Zhang Shuyue she was stricken with fear that Ye Xiuwen would have second thoughts about killing Jun Xiaomo, so she immediately sought to egg him on, ¡°Brother Ye, look at how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s so intent on rescuing that man even in her dying breaths. It¡¯s evident just how much that man¡¯s existence means to her. You should never be merciful to a woman like that.¡±

    However, Ye Xiuwen remained unresponsive. His gaze was still transfixed on Jun Xiaomo, but there were already countless images and scenes rting to her that were cycling through his mind furiously.

    It shouldn¡¯t be this way...she should never by lying there like that...

    A tiny peep of voice called out feebly within his heart, halting the relentless barrage of fireballs towards Jun Xiaomo.

    As this tiny voice grew increasingly louder, so did Zhang Shuyue¡¯s incessant bbering beside his ear, ¡°Brother Ye, I¡¯m the only one who truly loves you, and I¡¯m also the only one who¡¯s deserving of your love. Can you please turn around and look at me?¡±

    Zhang Shuyue pleaded pitifully with Ye Xiuwen.

    He turned around and gazed straight into Zhang Shuyue¡¯s eyes. His eyes werepletely still and clear right now, and his pupils silently reflected Zhang Shuyue¡¯s image straight back at her.

    Zhang Shuyue interpreted this to mean that her cajoling was getting through to Ye Xiuwen. Thus, with traces of joy flickering in the depths of her eyes, she began to smile radiantly and gently caress Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cheeks as she called out to him coquettishly, ¡°Brother Ye, won¡¯t you kill Jun Xiaomo and be with me, hmm?¡±

    Shk! As she finished speaking, she felt a splitting pain surge through her body, and her mind instantly went nk...

    Her body stiffened up. As she lowered her head slightly, she noticed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s entire arm had already plunged straight into her Dantian and crushed her Golden Core within.

    ¡°You¡¯re too noisy.¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered cidly as the vile energy in his eyes continued to swirl about threateningly.

    ¡°You...¡± Zhang Shuyue choked and sputtered as blood trickled out from her lips.

    With her Golden Core crushed, Zhang Shuyue¡¯s cultivation would be crippled even if she managed to survive the ordeal. She looked up and gazed into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes once more. For the very first time, she began to thoroughly fear and dread Ye Xiuwen.

    Why does Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes look like it¡¯s hazed over? The dark, viscous haze is so scary...

    Realization suddenly dawned on Zhang Shuyue. Unfortunately, before she could rationally process those thoughts, her neck cracked, and she slipped into the unending abyss of darkness.

    Ye Xiuwen had not only crushed her Golden Core ¨C he had also decisively snapped her neck.

    Zhang Shuyue was dead through and through. She would never be able to return to life again.

    All of these things had happened in the blink of an eye, and not a single person around managed to react to the sudden development of the situation.

    Weren¡¯t Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue still acting all intimately just moments ago? Why did suddenly have a change of heart and Ye Xiuwen kill Zhang Shuyue in the blink of an eye? Nobody could understand what instigated these sudden twists.

    That said, it had never been Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intention to exin his actions to anyone around. After all, the present Ye Xiuwen waspletely devoid of all rationality, and everything he did was based purely on his most primal instincts.

    Zhang Shuyue existence no longer pleased him. In fact, her incessant bbering had already begun to annoy him immensely. Thus, he decided to kill her off to dispose of the problem. As Ye Xiuwen was right now, he hardly saw any issues with such a course of action.

    Ye Xiuwen picked up the spirit tool once more and gazed at Jun Xiaomo. His eyes flickered momentarily.

    Unfortunately, the fact that Ye Xiuwen saw no issue with murdering Zhang Shuyue did not mean that nobody else did. In the very next moment, the gravity of what Ye Xiuwen had just done finally sank into Xiang Guqing¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen! You killed my dear disciple?! I¡¯m going to kill you!!!¡± Xiang Guqing bellowed as she charged ferociously at Ye Xiuwen with a murderous intent.

 Chapter 360: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Departure, An Unconscious Jun Xiaomo

    <h4>Chapter 360: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Departure, An Unconscious Jun Xiaomo</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    In her fury, it slipped Xiang Guqing¡¯s mind that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s overbearing formation array was still active and suppressing her abilities right above her head. As long as she remained within the domain of the formation array, her abilities would be greatly reduced, and she would not even be able to muster a tenth of the strength that she would otherwise be able to.

    Besides, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were hardly weak to begin with. He was already in the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, and he naturally stood a good chance against Xiang Guqing, even when Xiang Guqing was at the peak of her abilities.

    Under the influence of the vile energies within his body, Ye Xiuwen held nothing back as soon as he saw Xiang Guqing charge straight towards him. After a mere ten moves or so, Xiang Guqing found herself reduced to her final breaths once again. In fact, her injuries were even worse than they had been before.

    By the time Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples collected themselves and managed to react to the sudden developments in the situation, they realized that their master had already been beaten to the ground, heaving and gasping for breath.

    Ye Xiuwen raised the spirit sword in his hand. Just as he was about to deal the final blow to Xiang Guqing, all of her disciples rushed forward and knelt before Ye Xiuwen, shielding their master and begging Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Senior Ye, we sincerely entreat you to spare our master. She was a victim of Martial Sister Shuyue¡¯s schemes as well. She¡¯s already learnt her lesson, and she will never lift a finger against you ever again.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was still a young cultivator. Based solely on his age alone, he shouldn¡¯t have been referred to as a ¡°senior¡±.

    That said, his cultivation was already on the same level as Xiang Guqing¡¯s. Thus, it was still justifiable for Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples to be addressing him as a ¡°senior¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen cast an indifferent gaze at the disciples. Truth be told, he could hardly care less about empathizing with this group of disciples and their master. The only thing running through his mind right now was whether it was worth his time going through all the trouble to kill off all the disciples kneeling before him in exchange for a more uninterrupted course of action.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen stared at Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples, they also felt a chill go down their spine, as though something vicious and poisonous were staring at their plump, juicy necks.

    Just then, Chen Feiyu¡¯s voice resounded from some distance away, interrupting the tense atmosphere between Ye Xiuwen and Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples.

    ¡°Little Martial Sister! Wake up...¡±

    Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had run over towards the spirit tool as soon as Ye Xiuwen left the its side. Even though they were unable to open the spirit tool and release Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, they were nevertheless able to stare into its projection and yell at Jun Xiaomo.

    Inside the spirit tool, Jun Xiaomoypletely motionless. Her body was covered in fresh, bloody wounds, and she appeared to be limp and lifeless. The Heavenly Peak disciples¡¯ hearts constricted with fear.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ears twitched slightly, and pangs of heartache began to emanate from his heart for some strange reason. The aching sensation was extremely faint, yet he was unable to shake it off no matter what he did.

    Acting on the tug of his instincts, Ye Xiuwen turned around and began to make his way back to the spirit tool. Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples immediately heaved a sigh of relief as they scrambled to their feet and helped their master up, before plying her with several recovery pills.

    Truth be told, this battle had dealt their little Sect an incredibly heavy blow. Not only did theye out with no gains at all, they had even lost two disciples of theirs.

    Nevertheless, it was a good thing that they had managed to escape with their lives intact. At the very least, they would learn from their lesson and not presumptuously step on others¡¯ toes without properly assessing their odds of sess first.

    As for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s corpse, Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples had decided to leave it as it was for now. After all, they would not have invited such cmity upon their Sect if not for Zhang Shuyue¡¯s instigation to begin with.

    Furthermore, they had all witnessed how Zhang Shuyue had turned a blind eye to their master and their sect when they all needed her most. This had thoroughly embittered their hearts.

    Thus, they neither thought to exact vengeance for Zhang Shuyue, nor were they willing to allow their master to make a move against Ye Xiuwen again. After all, they had learnt with their bodies that Ye Xiuwen was a person that they could not afford to offend.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen arrived back at the spirit tool, he immediately turned his gaze towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body in the projection.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, will you please let Martial Sister Xiaomo out of the spirit tool quickly? I think she¡¯s not going to be able tost much longer in there. Her injuries are life-threatening, and she hasn¡¯t even consumed a single recovery pill yet!¡± Chen Feiyu begged Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, Martial Brother Ye, do you know that while you were trapped in the Death¡¯s Gorge, Martial Sister Xiaomo had often stood by the window, gazing into the horizon as she shed tears for you? Her feelings for you run incredibly deep. It¡¯s something that all of us have witnessed with our very own eyes.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple chimed in, persuading Ye Xiuwen to act quickly.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils quivered slightly, and an indescribable sensation swelled up from the depths of his heart.

    This sensation was vastly different from the previous overwhelming rage that threatened to destroy all traitors. At this very moment, his heart had begun to show traces of anxiety and concern.

    His attention turned to Jun Xiaomo once more. From the projection, he could see that Jun Xiaomo was hardly even showing signs of breathing.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze darkened, and he stretched out his arm and reached for the spirit tool once more.

    Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples reflexively thought to stop Ye Xiuwen. After all, if Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rage manifested again, Jun Xiaomo would most certainly perish with the slightest of attacks given the condition she was presently in. However, when they noticed how Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disposition appeared to be slightly different from how it had been just moments ago, they held back.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen picked up the spirit tool, and he slowly shut his eyes.

    As he began to suffuse the spirit tool with his body¡¯s spiritual energy, the spirit tool began to hum faintly, and the ancient seals on the spirit tool began to shift about slightly.

    Chen Feiyu and the rest watched on with bated breath. A glimmer of hope shone brightly in their eyes, and they sincerely prayed for the best.

    Then, a bright line exploded from the spirit tool before fading away quickly. In an instant, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan vanished from the spirit tool¡¯s projection, leaving only a puddle of murky blood where they had been just moments ago.

    Yet another bright light exploded beside them. This time, as soon as the light faded, Chen Feiyu and the rest noticed Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan appearing just beside them.

    Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan were stillpletely still and motionless right now. The skins of their bodies had already been burnt off by the onught of fireballs earlier, and blood continued to trickle from their wounds, dyeing the dry patch of grass under them a deep, striking red.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Chen Feiyu and the others rushed towards Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, attempting to separate them. Unfortunately, they discovered that whether Rong Ruihan or Jun Xiaomo, both were holding onto the other in an incredibly tight, vice-like grip, and none of the disciples were able to separate one from the other.

    Back then, both Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo were already on the brink of death, yet the only thought on their minds were to protect the other from the onught of the fireballs. It was thereforepletely natural that they were holding onto each other so tightly.

    Ye Xiuwen began to make his way over to Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan slowly. As the nauseating stench of blood wafted over towards him, it began to stir the vile energies swirling about in the depths of his eyes once more.

    As soon as Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples discovered Ye Xiuwen¡¯s approach, they immediately stood in front of Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, adopting a defensive posture.

    They knew that Ye Xiuwen would never be able to stand how Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan looked right now.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen was still far too powerful. A chilling gaze flickered across in eyes. In just an instant, Ye Xiuwen flicked his sleeves and sent Chen Feiyu and the rest flying and mming into the ground a distance away. Several Heavenly Peak disciples spat out huge mouthfuls of blood.

    Ye Xiuwen finally made his way to Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan¡¯s side. Then, when he finally noticed how tightly the two were holding onto each other, his gaze grew incredibly bitter and icy.

    That said, he neither hurt Jun Xiaomo any further, nor did he kill Rong Ruihan. He simply squatted down and ced his hand on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist, before swiftly dislocating it. That way, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist would no longer have the strength to cling onto Rong Ruihan.

    Then, he did the same to Rong Ruihan.

    Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan appeared like two effigies that were covered in blood right now. No matter how Ye Xiuwen manhandled them, none of them aroused from their presentatose.

    Finally, Ye Xiuwen managed to extricate Jun Xiaomo from the tight embrace, and he lifted her gently into his bosom. Jun Xiaomo slumped lifelessly into his bosom. Her aura was incredibly faint.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his head slightly and cast a deep, abstruse nce at Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°I¡¯m taking her away.¡± Ye Xiuwen ounted to his martial brother as he retrieved a Teleportation Scroll from his Interspatial Ring.

    Before the Heavenly Peak disciples could even scramble to their feet, a bright light exploded from where Jun Xiaomo had been just moments ago. As the light faded and vanished, so did the Teleportation Scroll on the ground, together with Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo.

    Ye Xiuwen had left without any warning, and none of the disciples were able to do anything about it.

    The Heavenly Peak disciples exchanged nces sheepishly. None of them had expected something like this to happen, and none of them knew what they were going to do next.

 Chapter 361: Reunion Between Master and Disciples, Rong Ruihan Nears Death

    <h4>Chapter 361: Reunion Between Master and Disciples, Rong Ruihan Nears Death</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Shortly after Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s departure, Chen Feiyu led the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples away from the valley with the use of a Teleportation Scroll. As they left, they also brought Rong Ruihan and his nsmen together with them.

    Both the Eternal Summit Sect disciples and Xiang Guqing¡¯s disciples watched passively as the Heavenly Peak disciples took their leave. None bothered to do anything to stop them.

    The former hardly possessed the ability to stand in the way of the Heavenly Peak faction to begin with, while thetter were simply so disheartened by the cmity that had befallen their sect that they could hardly be bothered with anything else right now.

    The Teleportation Scroll brought the Heavenly Peak faction to a distant, foreignnd. Thesends were covered with rice crops that were ripe for the harvest, and the rolling fields were covered with a bright, golden sheen as far as their eyes could see. It was an incredibly pleasing sight.

    Unfortunately, none from the Heavenly Peak faction had the heart to admire the idyllic scenery right now. Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had gone missing again, and most of their numbers were now wounded or incapacitated. In this very moment, there was no doubt that a single enemy ambush was all it took to send all of them to their graves.

    ¡°Master, Master, wake up, please. Master...¡± Rong Ruihan was lying on the ground. There was not a single piece of his skin which was intact and well, and even half of his face had been thoroughly mangled and disfigured. The leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen did not dare to touch Rong Ruihan¡¯s body, for fear that he would only aggravate his wounds. Thus, they all knelt on the floor, repeatedly crying and calling out Rong Ruihan¡¯s name, doing all they can to arouse Rong Ruihan from hisatose.

    Truth be told, none of the nsmen knew whether Rong Ruihan was still alive at this point in time. Rong Ruihan¡¯s chest was no longer undting from his breaths, while none of the fear-stricken nsmen had the courage to even ascertain whether their worst fears were true or not.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Chen Feiyu walked over to the leader of the nsmen and held out a bottle of recovery pills, ¡°These are the remaining recovery pills in my Interspatial Ring. Please have your master consume them.¡±

    Chen Feiyu¡¯s apology was evidently spoken on behalf of Ye Xiuwen. The leader of the nsmen¡¯s heart was fraught withplex emotions, and his mind was all over the ce. Thus, he simply received the bottle of recovery pills from Chen Feiyu without thanking him.

    He simply couldn¡¯t bring himself to thank Chen Feiyu. After all, if not for Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, their master would never have been injured so grievously and be lying here on the brink of death.

    ¡°You¡¯d best have Brother Rong consume the medicinal pills first. He wouldn¡¯tst much longer with those wounds.¡± Chen Feiyu earnestly stated.

    The leader of the nsmen nodded his head slightly, before he supported Rong Ruihan¡¯s body, forced open his jaws and began to ce the recovery pills into his mouth.

    Fortunately, the medicinal pills provided by Chen Feiyu did not have to be ingested, as they melted as soon as they entered a person¡¯s mouth. Thus, as soon as the pills were ced into Rong Ruihan¡¯s mouth, they quickly melted and began to course through his meridians and Dantian, before suffusing through every corner of his body and limbs.

    ¡°That¡¯s great. The fact that the recovery pills are melting means that Brother Rong is fine. At the very least, his life isn¡¯t in danger.¡± Chen Feiyu¡¯s face brightened up, and the other Heavenly Peak disciples heaved a sigh of relief as well.

    Rong Ruihan had only sustained such grievous wounds because of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions to begin with. Thus, it was natural that the Heavenly Peak disciples would feel incredibly remorseful for Rong Ruihan¡¯s predicament. After all, there was no way Rong Ruihan could have imagined falling into such a cmitous situation when he first thought to rescue the Heavenly Peak disciples from the valley.

    The leader of the nsmen nodded his head sullenly. It was evident that he was still unable to face the Heavenly Peak disciples with anything apart from his dark, ashen expression.

    He knew that it was not right for him to me the Heavenly Peak disciples for their master¡¯s predicament. Unfortunately, his heart told him otherwise ¨C as long as their master remained unconscious, it was practically impossible for him not to ventte his indignation on the Heavenly Peak disciples.

    Just then, several beams of light suddenly burst out in their surroundings. The Heavenly Peak disciples and Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen immediately tensed their spirits and scrambled to their feet, each adopting a defensive stance.

    They recognized the beams of light that had appeared. These beams were undoubtedly explosions of light that were characteristic of the use of formation arrays. In other words,pany had arrived through the use of Teleportation Scrolls.

    That said, who could it possibly be? Would it be friend, or foe, or just a few mere strangers or passers-by?

    Most of their numbers were wounded or incapacitated right now, and they were all well aware that none of them would be able to withstand an enemy attack.

    Unfortunately, it was also a fact that there were many people out in the spiritual cultivation world who were after the lives of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Thus, all of them knew that there was a far greater possibility that theirpany was foe, rather than friend. As these thoughts crossed their minds, their hearts began to sink into the mires of dread and despondence.

    Then, as the intense light faded, everyone began to be able to make out the appearances of the people that had arrived.

    ¡°Master?!¡± The Heavenly Peak disciples had never expected to be reunited with their long lost Peakmaster Jun Linxuan and the rest of their Heavenly Peak martial brothers.

    In other words, apart from Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo and Zhou Zilong, the rest of the Heavenly Peak had just been reunited in its entirety.

    ¡°Feiyu, Pengze? You¡¯re here? Where¡¯s Xiaomo and Xiuwen?¡± Jun Linxuan immediately recognized his disciples when he first arrived. However, as he strode quickly towards them and swept his gaze around, he suddenly noticed a peculiarity, and he instantly furrowed his brows and rified.

    As they continued to escape from their persecutors, Jun Linxuan had heard on the grapevine about how Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had stirred a massive upheaval within the Dawn Sect. At that time, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei had just located a suitable ce for the Heavenly Peak to settle down at toy low for a period of time, where they would bide their time and n to rescue the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples still trapped within the Dawn Sect. That said, their ns werepletely cast out of the windows as soon as they learnt that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had not only returned, but rescued the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples from the Dawn Sect. Reinvigorated by the incredibly good news, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei immediately uprooted the entire Heavenly Peak once more, hastening their journey back to be reunited with Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, as well as the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples who had managed to escape.

    Yet, despite having been reunited with the remnant Heavenly Peak disciples, who would have thought that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo would be missing once more?

    Could the rumours have been wrong? Could it be that Xiuwen and Xiaomo had never appeared to begin with?

    Concern begets confusion. Even though Jun Linxuan was a Peakmaster, he was still faced with the very same human emotions of dread and despondence when faced with the prospects that his daughter and First-Sect Disciple might very well still be dead.

    Chen Feiyu lowered his head as he sullenly apologized to Jun Linxuan, ¡°Disciple¡¯s deepest apologies to Master. Xiaomo and Martial Brother Ye have gone missing once again.¡±

    ¡°Gone missing once again?! Why?!¡± Liu Qingmei was evidently the one who was suffering from the greatest emotional trauma right now. Jun Xiaomo was her beloved daughter, and she had always considered Ye Xiuwen as her adoptive son. She had been clinging ever so tightly to the very real prospects of being reunited with her daughter and adoptive son, only to have her hopes dashed to the rocks like that. How could Liu Qingmei tolerate such immense undtion of emotions?

    ¡°Sigh, it¡¯s a long story. But the silver lining is that Martial Brother Ye and Martial Sister Xiaomo are now incredibly strong, and there shouldn¡¯t be many people in the cultivation world who would be able to do anything to them off the cuff. You don¡¯t have to be too worried for now.¡± Another Heavenly Peak disciple spoke reassuringly.

    These words were not intended to console Liu Qingmei. Rather, they were to console themselves ¨C That¡¯s right, Martial Brother Ye¡¯s abilities are so strong right now. I¡¯m sure he wouldn¡¯t allow others to hurt Little Martial Sister so easily.

    Naturally, the Heavenly Peak disciples had not forgotten the fact that Ye Xiuwen was clearly in a peculiar state of mind when he had left with Jun Xiaomo. However, they knew that the only thing they could do right now was to pray and hope that Ye Xiuwen would not do anything untoward to Jun Xiaomo during this period of time.

    After all, the fact that Ye Xiuwen had softened his heart towards Jun Xiaomo once meant that there was always a possibility of it happening a second and a third time. At least, that was what the Heavenly Peak disciples told themselves as they tried hard to appease their mind and still their hearts. Yet, despite all of that, they were simply unable to dispel that lingering trace of concern and worry that was stirring deep within their hearts.

    ¡°In other words, are you saying that you¡¯d encountered Xiaomo and Xiuwen, and you¡¯ve been rescued by them?¡± Jun Linxuantched onto the implications of their responses.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Chen Feiyu nodded affirmatively, ¡°Little Martial Sister and Martial Brother Ye must each have encountered a miraculous opportunity in the time they were missing. Their abilities are incredibly profound right now. If not for them, none of us could ever have thought of escaping with just our own abilities.¡±

    Jun Linxuan sighed, before patting Chen Feiyu¡¯s shoulder reassuringly, ¡°I¡¯m d that you¡¯re alive.¡±

    The rumours were right ¨C Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen were still alive. Unfortunately, they had now gone missing again for some reason.

    Jun Linxuan¡¯sst statement was not merely addressed to Chen Feiyu and the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples, it was also addressed to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen ¨C as long as they remained alive, then there was most certainly a hope for reunion one day.

    Liu Qingmei drew the same conclusion at practically the same time as well, and she wept silently as she wiped off the tears from her eyes.

    Truth be told, Liu Qingmei had nearly cried her tears dry in the thousands of days ever since she first learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°death¡±. Had she not found hope once more in the rumours of Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reappearance, Liu Qingmei might have taken a far longer time to extricate herself from the mires of sorrow.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, they are...¡± After collecting herself, Liu Qingmei turned her attention to the nsmen dressed in dark maroon.

    They could detect a strong sense of murderous intent emanating from these men. However, they could also tell that the murderous intent was not directed at them. Rather, it was something that had be almost second nature to them ¨C it was evident that these men were not to be trifled with.

    ¡°They are Brother Rong¡¯s nsmen, and they¡¯ve been sent by Brother Rong to protect Martial Sister Xiaomo.¡± Chen Feiyu exined, ¡°I wonder if you remember the man who appeared to be on rather good terms with Martial Sister Xiaomo during the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition? That¡¯s Brother Rong.¡±

    ¡°So it¡¯s him. He¡¯s truly thoughtful.¡± Liu Qingmei eximed, ¡°That¡¯s right, I wonder where that little fellow cultivator is? Is he together with Xiuwen and Xiaomo right now?¡±

    The Heavenly Peak disciples paused for a moment, before tacitly stepping aside.

    They had earlier sensed the possible approach of enemies, and they had thus surrounded Rong Ruihan and adopted a defensive posture together with Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen so that they would best be able to protect him in his most helpless and vulnerable state.

    Now that they had ascertained that there was no threat of an enemy attack, they naturally felt at ease to reveal Rong Ruihan¡¯s location and condition.

    Liu Qingmei gasped as soon as she saw Rong Ruihan¡¯s condition. She immediately eximed, ¡°How did Brother Rong end up like that?! Was he nked by enemies?!¡± She immediately ran over and knelt down beside Rong Ruihan as she gingerly ced her hand on his wrist.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s wounds were incredibly grievous. Even though he had already consumed several recovery pills, the thread of life was still flowing feebly within his body, and his pulse was barely detectable.

    ¡°His condition is incredibly grim.¡± Liu Qingmei furrowed her brows.

    Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples nced at each other sheepishly, wondering just how they were going to reveal the true reason for Rong Ruihan¡¯s injuries.

    Rong Ruihan had not been injured by enemies. Rather, it was Martial Brother Ye who had reduced Rong Ruihan to such a tragic state as a result of his jealousy. That said, would such an ount of the incident truly be believable?

    After all, Martial Brother Ye had always carried himself with a warm and dignified disposition. Everything that he had donest night waspletely uncharacteristic of him ¨C almost a thing of nightmares.

    ¡°Sigh, forget it. Let me exin everything.¡± Sighing, Chen Feiyu turned to Liu Qingmei and Jun Linxuan as he exined the entire incident from the beginning.

 Chapter 362: Your World Can Only Have One Person

    <h4>Chapter 362: Your World Can Only Have One Person</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    After listening to Chen Feiyu¡¯s ount of their entire experience leading up to their reunion with the rest of the Heavenly Peak, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei couldn¡¯t help but feel incredibly rueful and guilt-stricken.

    Truth be told, if they had any say in the matter, they would naturally prefer to see Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo get together. After all, Ye Xiuwen was a child that they had personally nurtured and taught, and they knew that they could hardly find fault with his character and abilities. In turn, there was no doubt in their mind that Jun Xiaomo would be safe in his hands.

    Unfortunately, they could also tell from Chen Feiyu¡¯s recount of the matter that the other cultivator named Rong Ruihan also possessed feelings for Jun Xiaomo that ran incredibly deep. Otherwise, there was no way that Rong Ruihan would have done so many things for Jun Xiaomo, all of his own volition.

    Most importantly, they could also tell that Jun Xiaomo did not necessarily have no feelings for Rong Ruihan at all. In fact, it was precisely because she couldn¡¯t bring herself to cut ties with Rong Ruihan that they had gotten themselves into such a huge mess right now.

    ¡°My disciple Xiuwen has wronged your master. He should never have made a move against your master, much less reduce him to his final breath, when it was your master that had saved everyone present. Please ept my sincerest apologies on behalf of my disciple. In this regard, as a token of my apology, I hope that you¡¯ll extend to us the opportunity of looking after your master until he fully recovers.¡±

    The leader of the nsmen grimaced slightly as he nced sullenly at Rong Ruihan. His chest waspletely still and motionless right now, devoid of any traces of the heaving of his breath.

    If he had a choice in this, the leader of the nsmen would most certainly be reticent to leave the safety of his master in the hands of outsiders. Unfortunately, the collective strength of the nsmen was far from strong. At the very least, he knew that they would be unable to defeat most of their enemies with their present abilities.

    Thus, if they chose to go their separate ways, an enemy encounter might well spell the demise of what remained of their n.

    Instead, would it not be more prudent to ept the kind offer from the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster and tag along with them until they had fully recovered from their injuries? Furthermore, Jun Linxuan and the members of the Heavenly Peak were well-reputed for their upstanding character, so there was no fear that they would do something untoward them behind their backs.

    ¡°Alright, it seems that we¡¯ll have to impose on the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster for now.¡± The leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen bowed politely to Jun Linxuan as he responded.

    ¡°It¡¯s no trouble at all. It¡¯s our responsibility to bear in the first ce, given how Xiuwen had injured Brother Rong to such an extent.¡± Jun Linxuan added as he retrieved a bottle of sixth-grade recovery pills from his Interspatial Ring, ¡°I¡¯ve just checked on Brother Rong¡¯s condition. Fortunately, his injuries are limited to surface wounds, so his cultivation isn¡¯t affected. Furthermore, it¡¯s a good thing that you¡¯d fed to him some recovery pills in the nick of time, since his life is no longer at risk. This bottle contains some sixth-grade recovery pills. I hope that it will be helpful in expediting Brother Rong¡¯s recovery.¡±

    With that, Jun Linxuan presented the bottle of sixth-grade recovery pills to the leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen.

    The loyal leader of the nsmen finally revealed a joyful expression on his face, and he bowed sincerely to Jun Linxuan once more, ¡°I sincerely thank Peakmaster Jun for all your aid. We will never forget your magnanimity.¡±

    Patting the leader¡¯s shoulder, Jun Linxuan replied, ¡°Alright, it wouldn¡¯t be wise to dally any longer in this ce. Our hideout isn¡¯t far from here. We¡¯ll bring you there right now. It¡¯s much more conducive to rest and recuperate there as well.¡±

    ¡°Alright, thank you.¡±

    With that, Jun Linxuan instructed the Heavenly Peak disciples to lead Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen back to their hideout, while both he and Liu Qingmei intentionally fell behind the rest of the pack.

    Watching the group of reunited Heavenly Peak disciples walking ahead of them, both Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei couldn¡¯t help but feel an indescribable warmth swell up from the depths of their hearts.

    ¡°Linxuan, I¡¯m still incredibly worried about Xiuwen and Xiaomo. I wonder how they¡¯re faring right now.¡± Liu Qingmei finally revealed a vulnerable, worried expression to Jun Linxuan.

    Even though Chen Feiyu had time and again assured them that both Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen currently possessed incredible abilities, there was still no doubt that their enemies were equally as strong, if not stronger.

    After all, how many people were there in the spiritual cultivation world who were actively looking to im the bounty on Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heads? Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had offended several powerful entities before her disappearance, including the Du n from the eight great sects. Liu Qingmei was naturally concerned that she would run into these people once more.

    ¡°Take heart. Our daughter has always been a person blessed by the gods. After all, she¡¯s even been able to e back to life¡¯. She deserves our trust.¡± Jun Linxuan patted Jun Linxuan¡¯s shoulder as he consoled her.

    ¡°I hope that¡¯s the case...¡± Liu Qingmei continued to furrow her brows, unable to set aside the uneasiness in her heart.

    It would be great if we could somehow get in touch with Xiuwen and Xiaomo...

    Yet, could Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei truly get in touch with Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo? The answer was a resounding ¡°no¡±.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen left with Jun Xiaomo, he immediately broke off allmunication with the Heavenly Peak disciples. Thus, no matter how many times Chen Feiyu attempted to contact him through a Transmittance Talisman, the message would simply vanish into a wisp of smoke, as though he had just tossed a small pebble into a huge ocean.

    Where has Martial Brother Ye brought Little Martial Sister to? Why does he have to break off all forms ofmunication with us? Chen Feiyu couldn¡¯t understand what Ye Xiuwen was trying to do.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s change in personality was so earth-shattering that nobody could understand just what was going through his mind anymore.

    Elsewhere, in an idyllic and tranquil ce, a man with eye-catching appearances walked slowly along on the streets.

    This man was tall andnky, and he was both handsome and suave. His cool and dignified disposition caught the eyes of many, yet he also seemed so otherworldly that none dared approach him.

    At the same time, the man appeared to be carrying a bloodieddy in his bosom. She presented herself in an incredibly tragic state. Notwithstanding that, the man continued to carry her gingerly as though he were carrying a precious object.

    Given the outstanding and dignified appearances of the man, everyone was incredibly curious as to how thedy in his bosom looked like. Unfortunately, thedy¡¯s face had all this while been turned towards the man¡¯s bosom, and nobody could even catch a glimpse of her looks.

    The man walked past all of the bystanders indifferently and made his way to a nearby inn.

    ¡°Innkeeper, I would like a premium room.¡± The man spoke cidly. Notwithstanding that, the innkeeper was so captivated by the man¡¯s disposition that he immediately instructed his attendants to bring the man to an avable room without even collecting a down-payment first.

    After all, a mere mortal could hardly afford to offend anyone from the cultivation world, much less a person ostensibly possessed distinguished cultivation levels.

    Within moments, the attendant showed the man to a premium room on the second storey and informed him that he could always call upon any attendant if he wanted hot water. Then, the attendant considerately shut the door behind him.

    The man nodded slightly, before he proceeded to gentlyy thedy down onto the bed.

    Once she was lyingfortably on the bed, the man stretched out his hand and gently straightened out thedy¡¯s disheveled hair, revealing thedy¡¯s pale appearances. Thisdy was none other than the missing Jun Xiaomo, while the man beside her was none other than Ye Xiuwen. Both had departed from the valley some time ago using a Teleportation Scroll.

    Perhaps it was a result of leaving that environment, or perhaps it was a result of stashing the spirit tool within his Interspatial Ring. Whatever the case was, the thick, vile energy that was originally swirling in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had grown still and calm, and it was evident that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality had somewhat returned to him.

    Naturally, this did not mean that the vile energy had waned or weaned from his body. The demons guing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart were still lying dormant within his body.

    Ye Xiuwen gently caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. He ran his fingers along her eyebrows, past the eyes, down the sharp nose, before resting at her lips...

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind was presently filled with the memories of their first kiss, which was also one of the only two times he had ever kissed Jun Xiaomo on the lips.

    He leaned over, closer to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pale lips. Then, as soon as his lips touched a small part of her skin, Ye Xiuwen discovered to his horror that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were icy cold.

    It was as though his lips had just touched a block of ice. This was not something that a living person should possess.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened, and he pried open Jun Xiaomo¡¯s teeth and blew gently into it, as though hoping to breath the warmth of life back into her body. Unfortunately, apart from wafts of blood stench that diffused outwardly from her mouth, he drew no reaction from Jun Xiaomo whatsoever.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s injuries were far too serious ¨C so serious that she remained in aatose state even after a few days of rest. Ye Xiuwen had been plying her with more than sufficient recovery pills during this entire period of time. Yet, no matter what he did, nor how frequently he sent a thread of spiritual energy probing throughout her body to check on her body¡¯s condition, Jun Xiaomo remained in a perpetual state ofatose.

    Her wounds have already healed rather substantially by now, so why isn¡¯t she waking up yet? The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to stir slightly.

    He desired for Jun Xiaomo to wake up. He wanted everything to return to how it had always been, when Jun Xiaomo would remain by his side, vulnerable and trusting. At the very least, he did not want things to remain status quo, with Jun Xiaomo lying motionless on the bed, showing no signs on exactly when she wille to her senses.

    During this period of time, Ye Xiuwen had also contacted the aid of his master from the Death¡¯s Gorge for the purposes of consulting his experience on why Jun Xiaomo remained unconscious all this while.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen made contact with his master, his master began to ramble on and on,ining about how his disciple had forgotten all about his master as soon as he found himself a cultivationpanion. Once he was done ventting his frustrations, he heard Ye Xiuwen out and immediately grew sullen.

    After pondering for a while, he made a rather urate conjecture ¨C

    ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s not because of her injuries to begin with? Maybe she just doesn¡¯t want to wake up?¡±

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to wake up? Why?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master gazed at his disciple meaningfully for a moment. Then, as soon as he noticed the slightly stirring vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, he eximed in his heart.

    It seems like this li¡¯l kid has got demons in his heart! No wonder he seems to have grown dumber. Otherwise, he shouldn¡¯t have a problem seeing something so obvious as this!

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master sighed slightly, ¡°Why don¡¯t yer ask yerself what ye¡¯ve done to her to give her a reason not to wake up?¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything. The only thing I¡¯ve done was to ensure that the only person she has in her life is me.¡± Ye Xiuwen explicated coldly. There was hardly a single ripple of emotions in his eyes right now.

    This was the reason why he had left the valley with Jun Xiaomo to begin with ¨C he did not want Jun Xiaomo to have any further interactions with any other person.

    In other words, he was doing all he could to ensure that he was the only person in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life! After all, he sincerely believed that Jun Xiaomo only needed him and him only.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master had already begun to notice that something was wrong with his disciple right now, and he hurriedly informed Ye Xiuwen through the transmission, ¡°Yer condition ain¡¯t good right now. Where are ye? I¡¯ll go look for ye.¡±

    Look for us?! Ye Xiuwen immediately furrowed his brows. The thought of another person appearing in their lives caused a wave of disdain and contempt to swell from the depths of his heart!

    No! Nobody must be allowed toe between us ever again!

    As his emotions came to a head, Ye Xiuwen tore up the Transmittance Talisman, leaving his master stomping his feet on the ground in fury ¨C This damn disciple! Doesn¡¯t he know he¡¯s already being controlled by the demons in his heart?! Does he want to kill that young gal with him?!

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen was unable to hear the innermost cries of his master¡¯s heart. He turned his attention back to Jun Xiaomo once more.

    ¡°Whether you wake up or not, you¡¯re always going to remain by my side from now on.¡± Ye Xiuwen leaned over and nted a gentle kiss on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead as the vile energy continued to swirl intently in the depths of his eyes.

 Chapter 363: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Escape, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Fury

    <h4>Chapter 363: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Escape, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Fury</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen decided to settle down in the inn for a while, seeing that Jun Xiaomo remained in aatose state. In the day, Ye Xiuwen would leave the small town and head into the woods nearby to hunt for some spirit animals which he would then sell to the butchers or shops around in exchange for expenses for the future. At night, Ye Xiuwen would stay by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, waiting expectantly for her toe to her senses. At times, he would even wait for the entire night by her side, just like that.

    News quickly spread that a handsome man had taken up lodge within the inn, but he neither ate nor drank, nor did he even interact with anyone around. While the town was small in size, the number of people passing through the town each day were not few in number. That said, nobody had seen a man with better looks or disposition than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s. Thus, the ¡°inarticte aristocrat¡± began to attract the attention of several youngdies looking for a potential suitor.

    Unfortunately, the ¡°inarticte aristocrat¡± was far too reserved. Not only did he ignore them, he even consciously turned a blind eye to their existences despite their advances. He would invariably look straight past these women as though their existences were as transparent as air. This thoroughly infuriated thedies.

    Thesedies had previously heard rumours that the man already had a lover who was residing within the same room that he had taken up lodging in. However, after patrolling about the vicinity and keeping watch for a period of time, none of thedies ever noticed ady appear beside the man at all. Thus, they concluded that the rumours were baseless, and they simply shrugged off the ¡°misinformation¡±.

    Ye Xiuwen seemed to be unaware that his existence had already attracted so much attention within the small town. Or, perhaps he already knew about it, yet he chose to turn a blind eye to it.

    In his eyes, life right now was absolutely blissful. Even though Jun Xiaomo remained in a state of perpetutose, she still remained obsequiously by her side. He could never condone the appearance of a third party in their world. Thus, he was hardly in a rush to wake Jun Xiaomo up, and he would simply feed Jun Xiaomo with some recovery pills from time to time, ensuring that the wounds she had sustained within the spirit tool would heal properly.

    Finally, on the morn of a cool, clear day, Jun Xiaomo came to once more. The warm morning light shone through the windows, dusting her cheeks with a faint, golden hue.

    Her longshes fluttered slightly, as though the wings of a butterfly. With that, she slowly opened her eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo scanned the foreign surroundings. Her mind drew aplete nk, and her eyes looked dazed and zed over.

    Ye Xiuwen was a light sleeper. As soon as Jun Xiaomo opened his eyes, he immediately detected the faint movement around him and snapped out of his slumber as well. He immediately turned towards Jun Xiaomo and gazed at her with his pair of ink-ck eyes. He was ostensibly wide awake once more.

    Jun Xiaomo sensed a pair of eyes staring at her, so she nced around, before resting her gaze on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body.

    Furrowing her brows, a bewildered expression began to surface on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± Pupils constricting slightly, Jun Xiaomo asked after sizing up Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°You¡¯ve forgotten who I am?¡± Ye Xiuwen walked over towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bedside and leaned over, cing a hand on her bed as he asked.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s characteristic cool and distant disposition had vanishedpletely. Instead, there was an air of tyranny around him right now, almost as though he were intent on trapping and shackling Jun Xiaomo within a prison cell, preventing her from leaving his sights.

    His gaze was transfixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. He was evidently intent on not letting a single flicker of emotions slip past his eyes.

    Jun Xiaomo knitted her brows together even more. For some strange reason, this man exuded a sense of familiarity, but this sense of familiarity was alsoced with a shred of heartache which was barely noticeable, yet also undeniable.

    But, if she knew this person, why couldn¡¯t she remember a single thing about him?

    ¡°Should I know you?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked, evidently gued with bewilderment, ¡°Who are you?¡±

    The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to stir once more. He gripped onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower jaw and coldly muttered, ¡°You¡¯ve actually forgotten who I am?! Then, who can you remember? Rong Ruihan, hmm?!¡±

    ¡°Rong...Ruihan?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyebrows remained tightly knit together. Her temples and her heart suddenly began to throb with a splitting pain, ¡°Rong Ruihan? Who¡¯s he? I knew him before...but...who is he?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo began to struggle in pain. She wanted to extricate herself from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tight grip, but Ye Xiuwen simply tightened his fingers around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower jaw even more.

    ¡°You¡¯ve forgotten me, and you¡¯ve forgotten Rong Ruihan? That¡¯s fine. This way, we¡¯ll be able to create memories that belong exclusively to us once more.¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled coldly as he bent over and bit down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips, abrading them with his teeth.

    ¡°Ungh...ungh...let go of me!¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out in pain. Her lips were mped down so hard that she could barely make out a few words, so she furiously pushed Ye Xiuwen away from her.

    Yet Ye Xiuwen refused to allow her even the opportunity to struggle. He restrained both of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s iling hands with one of his own, and he forced Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck up with his other hand, forcing her to ept a deeper and more intense kiss from him.

    Jun Xiaomo was hardly pleased by this impassioned kiss. Instead, she began to feel stifled and swamped by the intense pain and fear of having lost her memory. The sense of familiarity that this man exuded just moments ago had vanishedpletely, and he had be as foreign and estranged as any other ¨C so incognizant that she began to feel a sense of dread and unease swell from the depths of her heart.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo bit down furiously, leaving a deep impression of her teeth parks on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips.

    Ye Xiuwen finally backed off, and a faint stench of blood began to spread from his mouths immediately. At the same time, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were also incredibly red and swollen as a result of his furious abrading with his teeth earlier.

    Ye Xiuwen was hardly infuriated by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had just bitten him. In his eyes, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s struggle was futile. She would never be able to escape from the palm of his hands, and there was naturally no need for him to take her resistance to heart.

    Ye Xiuwen stretched out his hands and let his fingers linger on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips for a little while more, before he softly added, ¡°It¡¯s fine. We¡¯ve still got plenty of time in the future. Even if you can¡¯t ept me now, you¡¯ll slowly learn to ept me in time toe.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s breathing grew ragged and heavy. Turning her eyes back to Ye Xiuwen, she hardened her heart and asked once more, ¡°Just who are you? What rtionship do we have?¡±

    The vile energy was still swirling intently in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, and his lips slowly drew out into a thin smirk. In that instant, Ye Xiuwen appeared to exude an intense aura of malice.

    ¡°We¡¯ve already kissed so passionately, so what kind of rtionship do you think we¡¯re in?¡±

    ¡°You!¡± Jun Xiaomo burst out in exasperation, ¡°You¡¯d forced that onto me!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes grew cold and frigid once more as he mocked contemptuously, ¡°So I¡¯d forced that kiss on you? Then, tell me ¨C whose kiss wouldn¡¯t be considered as ¡®forced upon you¡¯? Rong Ruihan¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°Rong Ruihan?¡± This was the second time that Jun Xiaomo had heard that name ever since she came to her senses. She couldn¡¯t locate any memories of the person known as ¡°Rong Ruihan¡± within her mind. Yet, for some strange reason, her heart would wrench in pain whenever she heard that name.

    It was as though Rong Ruihan was an existence which had previously upied an incredibly important part of her memory. Unfortunately, these memories had ostensibly vanished into thin air.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s stupor was interpreted as a form of tacit acknowledgement by Ye Xiuwen. Thus, a swathe of fury instantly surged from the depths of his heart, manifesting in actions in the very next moment.

    ¡°I won¡¯t allow you to think about him!¡± Ye Xiuwen gripped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower jaw tightly once more, ¡°I won¡¯t allow you to look for him either! If you dare, I¡¯ll break off all your limbs, and you¡¯ll have no choice but to remain by my side forever!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s disposition right now was incredibly fearsome and dreadful. Yet at the same time, she felt pangs of heartache and bitterness as well.

    Something told her that this man did not use to be like this. Gradually, she began to contemte another possibility ¨C Could this person have be like this because of me?

    Isn¡¯t this why I would feel upset, and perhaps even remorseful?

    ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t go looking for him.¡± Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes and did her best to suppress the feelings that were roiling in her heart, including pain, bitterness, and remorse.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen released Jun Xiaomo in a huff. He took his seat at the side of the bed, and the vile energy began to subside once more.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s fine that you¡¯ve lost your memory. Some things aren¡¯t worth remembering anyway.¡± Ye Xiuwen remarked enigmatically. His tone of voice had be cid and indifferent once more, as though he were expounding on the truths of life.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled to herself bitterly, choosing not to respond to his remark.

    It¡¯s fine that I¡¯ve lost my memory? That¡¯s easy for you to say. Right now, apart from a hazy recollection of her name and her identity, everything else was nothing but a blur to her.

    This was a different kind of despondence ¨C a feeling which left her feeling stifled and uneasy all the time.

    Could this man really understand what I¡¯m going through right now? Probably not.

    As Jun Xiaomo thought about these things, her heart sank, and she her heart began to be ovee with hopelessness and dread.

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s private life continued for some time. Apart from the fact that Jun Xiaomo was now awake, nothing much else had changed.

    No, there was one other difference. Back while Jun Xiaomo was still in a state ofatose, Ye Xiuwen would always watch over her by her side, refraining from doing anything overboard towards her. But, as soon as Jun Xiaomo regained her consciousness, it was almost as though something within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart snapped.

    Jun Xiaomo had lost her memories, but her primal survival instincts were very much still intact. As soon as she noticed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze at her was growing increasingly intense, meaningful and impassioned, the fear and dread in her heart also began to escte.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen had time and again reminded her that they were lovers, and they had even done the deed between married couples, she couldn¡¯t help but feel an increasing sense of disdain and revulsion for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fricism.

    Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen was presently being controlled by the demons in his heart, and he was growing colder day by day. Right now, his heart waspletely preupied with thoughts of restraining Jun Xiaomo in order to keep her by his side, and he had never once considered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s feelings in this regard. Naturally, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to drift further and further away from Ye Xiuwen.

    Finally, this very night, Jun Xiaomo bought a small packet of drug and spiked Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tea with it. As soon as Ye Xiuwen passed out onto the table, she began to carry out her own ns.

    Truth be told, having lost her memory, Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know where she could possibly run towards. However, her heart told her that escaping throughout foreignnds without a destination in mind was still undoubtedly better than remaining by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side for the rest of her life.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo leapt out of the window and departed from the inn, Ye Xiuwen immediately opened his eyes and straightened his body once more.

    Looking out of the window, a cold, vicious smile crept up the corner of his lips. The vile energy within the depths of his eyes began to swirl once more, filling his eyes and consuming his mind.

    Seems like the disobedient lover has to be taught a lesson after all...

 Chapter 364: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Fanaticism, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Fear

    <h4>Chapter 364: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Fanaticism, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Fear</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo continued to run along aimlessly. Her heartbeats thundered in her ear ¨C heavy, yet powerless.

    Having lost her memory, she felt as though her life were akin to the path she was on, extending endlessly into the darkness. It was most certainly not a path she could call her own.

    She had thought that things would be much easier after leaving Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side. Unfortunately, the further she ran from Ye Xiuwen, the more lost she felt, and the more intense the dread and uncertainty guing her heart.

    Even though the shackles imposed by Ye Xiuwen made her feel incredibly stifled, it remained a fact that the only person she hade into contact after regaining consciousness was Ye Xiuwen himself. In other words, just like what Ye Xiuwen had mentioned, it was a fresh start, and the only person in her memory since this fresh start was Ye Xiuwen alone.

    Thus, the tension in her heart hardly eased up when she drew further and further away from Ye Xiuwen. Instead, it only sank deeper into the mires of loss and dread.

    Who is she? Where did shee from? Who else did she use to have in her life before she lost her memories?

    Jun Xiaomo began to slow down to a crawl, before she finally stopped dead in her tracks.

    As she surveyed her surroundings once more, she discovered that nothing, and no one, around her appeared familiar.

    Just then, a burst of immense, excruciating pain shot straight from her abdomen through her head. This intensely debilitating pain caused her knees to buckle, and she copsed onto the ground.

    What¡¯s going on? Did somebody poison me?

    This was the only exnation that Jun Xiaomo coulde up with.

    Jun Xiaomo had thought that the pain would dissipate after a while. Unfortunately, the burst of pain was just the beginning. Momentster, waves after waves of excruciating pain began to surge throughout her entire body, filling her limbs, afflicting her with so much pain that she involuntarily curled up.

    As she squatted on the floor in pain, sweat began to flow out of her pores profusely.

    The anguish of losing of her memory; the fear of being shackled and bound by Ye Xiuwen; and the peculiar, physical pain that were sweeping through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body caused her eyes to grow red and puffy in an instant.

    Pain. It was truly too painful ¨C so painful that she wished she would just pass out.

    The strangest part of this entire experience was the fact that she could vaguely recall another instance in her life when she had experienced such intense pain in her body. That said, she knew in her heart that there was no feeling of dread or despondence apanying the previous time she experienced such pangs of pain.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo groaned. Having squatted down for a long time, her legs had finally grown numb. Her body swayed slightly, and she copsed onto the ground in the very next moment.

    ¡°It hurts...¡± Jun Xiaomo drew another deep breath, hoping to suppress the pain emanating from her belly, yet to no avail.

    Her surroundings began to blur, as though the darkness were eating away at her rationality.

    Finally, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head slumped down, and she passed outpletely.

    Just before she passed out, she vaguely noticed a pair of shoes that appeared foreign to her. It was not Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoes ¨C these shoes belonged to someone whom she had never met before.

    ¡°Agh! How coincidental! This is actually Disciple¡¯s wife.¡± An old man with a bubbly, chirpy voice eximed, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, I think I¡¯d better bring ye to safety before ye get brought away by ill-hearted people.¡±

    As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hands, and Jun Xiaomo floated up and began to hover about in front of him.

    Then, with another flick of his sleeves, both he and Jun Xiaomo vanished into the dark of the night.

    Ye Xiuwen arrived in the very next moment. Unfortunately, he was toote. The only thing he saw was a red shadow flicker past him, and Jun Xiaomo had vanishedpletely.

    In that instant, the storm of jealousy began to brew in the depths of his eyes. It was as though two swirling whirlpools had appeared within his dark, abstruse eyes, threatening to swallow all light and heat around him!

    Ye Xiuwen immediately released his divine sense, sending it probing about his surroundings, but to no avail.

    That said, he did discover the aura of a man who had been here just moments ago. It must have been that man who had taken Jun Xiaomo away.

    If I know who it was, I¡¯m going to...

    Just as the vile and evil energies sought to consume his mind once more, a little paper crane suddenly flitted out of the darkness and made its way clumsily towards him.

    Ye Xiuwen snatched the paper crane out of mid-air, nearly crumpling it.

    ¡°Aiyah, Disciple, do ye have to be so cruel?!¡± The voice of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master echoed out from the paper crane ¨C that impish old man who was young at heart.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes quivered slightly as he opened the paper crane and gazed straight at it.

    ¡°Why are you contacting me?¡± Ye Xiuwen barked coldly. His attitude hardly cohered with that which any disciple would treat his master with.

    The sprightly old man could see Ye Xiuwen¡¯s appearances through the paper crane, and he immediately discovered the stark changes to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s character that had urred just over the span of thest few days.

    He had be far colder and unreasonable.

    The old man was rmed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s changes. He instinctually knew that something had happened to his disciple¡¯s body. Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen was evidently impervious to logical reasoning and cajoling right now. In fact, Ye Xiuwen had even forbidden his own master from calling upon him and interrupting his private life with Jun Xiaomo.

    Thus, the sprightly old man decided to take a different, more unconventional approach, and lure his disciple to himself.

    ¡°Disciple, are ye looking for yer wife?¡± The sprightly old man raised his eyebrows somewhat smugly as he asked.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes grew ashen, ¡°Do you know where she is?¡±

    ¡°Of course I know where she is. I¡¯m the one who took her.¡± As though he were oblivious to the fury in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, the old man casually chirped in response.

    ¡°Return her to me!¡± Ye Xiuwen bellowed, ring coldly at the old man as though he were ring at a nemesis.

    However, the old man waspletely unfazed by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attitude. Instead, he simply nodded his head and responded, ¡°That¡¯s fine. Come look for me, and I¡¯ll return her to ye. I¡¯ve got no use for her anyway.¡±

    ¡°Where are you?¡± The incisiveness in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had diminished substantially, but it had not faded awaypletely yet.

    ¡°Ye know the mountain just behind the little town here? I¡¯m in a cave on the southwestern part of it. It¡¯s easy to find. Master is residing there for now. Come find me.¡± As soon as the sprightly old man finished speaking, he cut off the transmission with Ye Xiuwen.

    Furious, Ye Xiuwen crushed the paper crane into a ball, before sweeping a barrage of Wind des through it, slicing and dicing the paper crane to pieces.

    Anyone who takes Jun Xiaomo from me shall not be spared ¨C even Master! Ye Xiuwen bellowed in his heart as the vile energy filled the depths of his eyes.

    After cutting off hismunication with Ye Xiuwen, the sprightly old man looked down at Jun Xiaomo as shey unconscious on the stone bed. Her body was still curled up into a ball because of the pain. The old man sighed as he muttered under his breath, ¡°What a pity; what a pity. I wonder what demons my disciple has in his heart to have tormented such a beautifuldy to this extent. Just look at her sunken cheeks and bony arms! Thisdy must have been under so much stress over a protracted period of time.¡±

    Then, turning his mind to the reason for which Jun Xiaomo had passed out, a bright, mischievous gleam flickered across the depths of his eyes ¨C Hehe, I wonder how Disciple is going to react when he discovers what¡¯s guing her body? I look forward to it.

    But, before that, I should first tend to her and nourish her body.

    With such thoughts on his mind, the old man stood up, set up several defensive formation arrays at the entrance to the cave, before heading out.

    He knew that Ye Xiuwen would be arriving soon, so he was not too concerned that Jun Xiaomo would be in any danger even if he left her here alone. At the same time, he was also not too worried that Ye Xiuwen would decide to leave with Jun Xiaomo, because he had already scattered some Tracing Powder on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, so there would be no issues with locating them once againter on.

    Unfortunately, what the sprightly old man had failed to consider was the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s greatest threats were hardly the spirit or demonic beasts residing on the mountain ¨C it was his very own disciple, Ye Xiuwen.

    Just as the old man had anticipated, Ye Xiuwen found his way to the cave in no time at all. The old man had consciously allowed Ye Xiuwen ess through his formation arrays when he had set them up. Thus, Ye Xiuwen was able to slip into the cave without a hitch at all.

    There was a bonfire burning in the center of the cave, radiating a pleasant warmth to its surroundings. Ye Xiuwen scanned his surroundings, and he quickly found Jun Xiaomo lying on a stone bed by the side.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forehead was percting with so much sweat that even her disheveled hair had been soaked through. She clearly appeared to be in a tragic state.

    Despite that, Ye Xiuwen still managed to perceive some traces of beauty in her weakness and feeble disposition.

    Then, as soon as his mind turned to contemte the fact that she had spiked his tea earlier this evening before slipping away, the vile energy in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to swirl once more.

    Why did you have to run? Why aren¡¯t you willing to remain by my side for the rest of your life? Isn¡¯t such an arrangement perfect for the both of us? Who were you thinking of running to? Were you thinking of running to Rong Ruihan?!

    The demons in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart cried out for any such further instances of betrayal on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s part to be nipped in the bud ¨C no matter the price to be paid!

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen began to walk towards Jun Xiaomo as swirling storm of rage and oppressive aura flourished all about his body.

    Jun Xiaomo stirred slightly, and she turned toy on her back. The agonizing pain from her belly and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s flourishing aura had just caused her to snap out of her stupor ande to her senses again.

    ¡°You...¡±

    When Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Ye Xiuwen marching towards her threateningly like a fiendish war god.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already said it before ¨C if you dare to run from me again, I¡¯ll break off all your limbs and do everything it takes to keep you by my side. Don¡¯t you remember that?¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered cidly to Jun Xiaomo. Under the faint illumination of the bonfire, the swirling, vile energy in the depths of his eyes appeared to be even more peculiar and devious than ever.

    Jun Xiaomo mbered up from the bed and began to scramble backwards in fear, until her back finally hit the wall of the cave.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t imprison me like that. I despise a life without freedom.¡± Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips as she retorted indignantly.

    ¡°Ah? Freedom? What do you want freedom for?¡± Ye Xiuwen finally stopped when he was just in front of Jun Xiaomo. His gaze was trained on her body, yet Ye Xiuwen hardly showed a single trace of sympathy or heartache despite the fear and dread in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°I¡¯ve said it before, you must remain by my side. You don¡¯t need ¡®freedom¡¯.¡±

    As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen grabbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s right hand, forcing her back down onto the stone bed amidst her cries of anguish!

 Chapter 365: News of Pregnancy, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Transformation

    <h4>Chapter 365: News of Pregnancy, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Transformation</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The sprightly old man hummed a chirpy little tune as he made his way back to the cave, toting the carcass of a fifth-grade spirit beast in one hand and a bunch of nourishing herbs in the other. If all goes well, the formless mass of spirit energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body would most certainly be developing into a fetus soon.

    His disciple was soon to be a father. This naturally meant that he was also going to be a grandmaster soon. The sprightly old man had personally never been able to have a child of their own with his own cultivationpanion. Given his ripe, old age, the hope for a new lease of life to seed his legacy was naturally an incredibly joyous asion worth celebrating.

    Thus, he pulled out all the stops and went out searching for herbs and tonics to nourish his disciple-inw¡¯s body.

    Then, as the old man drew near to the entrance to the cave, he began to hear a rustling and scrambling noiseing from within, interspersed by groans of pain. However, these sounds were intermittent and hardly distinct at all.

    Damn! Could Disciple-in-Law¡¯s fetal energy be stirring again?! The old man immediately dropped everything he had and dashed into the cave, leaving everything he had collected outside.

    ¡°Disciple-in-Law, what happened?¡± The old man hollered as he entered. However, the first thing he saw was Ye Xiuwen mounted on Jun Xiaomo, holding down both of her hands with one of his own, with their clothes disheveled and loosened. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were filled with a primal gaze, intent on devouring his prey.

    ¡°Aiyah, I didn¡¯t see anything, I didn¡¯t see anything.¡± The sprightly old man hurriedly turned around and ced both hands over his eyes as he muttered to himself in self-hypnosis.

    The swirling vile energy had already consumed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, and he had been intent on ¡°devouring¡± Jun Xiaomo just like that. Who would have thought that his own master would interrupt them in the most inopportune time, thwarting his actions?

    Ye Xiuwen nced at his master coldly. When he discovered that his master had tactfully turned his back to him, Ye Xiuwen proceeded to ignore his master¡¯s presence, motioning to finish what he had started.

    ¡°Release me!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abdomen was getting increasingly painful, andrge beats of sweat had started to form on her forehead, roll off her cheeks andnd onto the stone bed below, almost as though they were tears.

    Ye Xiuwen hardly bothered to engage in verbal discourse with Jun Xiaomo. Instead, he simply responded through his actions ¨C he was evidently intent on keeping Jun Xiaomo restrained. Notwithstanding the fact that there was someone else around, he was still intent on making Jun Xiaomo his own, right here, right now!

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lip furiously. The indignation and humiliation in her heart and the excruciating pain washing through her body was tearing her mind apart. If not for the fact that her body¡¯s debilitating condition diminished herbat abilities substantially, she would most certainly have plunged a sword straight through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart by now!

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cry for release jolted the old man back to his senses, and he was instantly reminded about the delicate situation that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was faced with, and how her body would never be able to stand up to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s torment. Thus, he immediately turned around and shouted at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Aiyah, Disciple! No, no, no. Ye can¡¯t do these kinda things to her now!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand had already found its way to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders, loosening Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes even more right now. Unfortunately, having been interrupted twice, Ye Xiuwen began to lose interest in pursuing his carnal actions.

    He cast an ashen gaze at the old man once more, before pulling over an outer coat from the side of the stone bed and covering Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body with it.

    With that, he covered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exposed shoulders with the outer coat.

    ¡°Reason?¡± Ye Xiuwen barked coldly and curtly, with hardly any trace of respect for his master.

    The sprightly old man was taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions ¨C Is this disciple of mine getting madder by the minute?

    Then, the old man¡¯s astonishment only burgeoned as soon as he turned his gaze to Jun Xiaomo and examined the condition of her body once more ¨C It had only been one hour! How could Disciple-in-Law appear so horrendous in just a short span of time? Look at how swollen her lips are! How hard did Disciple have to bite them to cause that? And there are those faint teeth marks on her neck as well. Poor sod!

    Is Disciple loving or tormenting his wife?!

    However, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master knew that the most pressing issue right now was to prevent Ye Xiuwen from tormenting Jun Xiaomo any further whenever his mind was consumed by the demons in his heart. Thus, he hurriedly blurted the news to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Ye can continue if ye are really prepared to destroy the child in her womb.¡±

    The old man¡¯s voice was filled with some measure of indignation as well.

    ¡°Child?¡± Ye Xiuwentched onto the most important word that the old man had said, and a trace of bewilderment surfaced in the depths of his eyes.

    He waspletely dumbfounded.

    ¡°Chi-...child?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances were somewhat haggard right now. She had earlier even attempted to fight off Ye Xiuwen when he forced himself upon her. Unfortunately, her abilities were a far cry from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities to begin with. To make matters worse, her body was incredibly weak from the pangs of pain that incessantly gued her. Thus, there was simply no way she would have been able to defeat Ye Xiuwen.

    As soon as she learnt that she was with child, Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly, and a sharp pain suddenly shot straight through her mind.

    This jolt of excruciating pain was far more agonizing than the pain spreading from her womb.

    ¡°Ungh...it hurts.¡± Jun Xiaomo groaned once more as she curled up into a ball involuntarily. Her mind was suddenly flooded by countless images of all sorts, including sweet, painful and bitter ones. Yet, whenever she attempted to focus her mind and examine a specific image, everything would be wiped out, and her mind would draw aplete nk.

    It hurts...why does the word ¡°child¡± cause me such pain...

    As time went on, Jun Xiaomo gradually became unable to tell where exactly the pain was emanating from ¨C her forehead, her womb, and even her heart were all throbbing with pangs of intense, acute pain.

    ¡°Xiaomo.¡± Ye Xiuwen finally realized that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition was abnormal, and he hugged Jun Xiaomo with some measure of helplessness, stiffening his body slightly as he allowed Jun Xiaomo to curl up in his embrace. He did not go overboard this time.

    The vile energy in the depths of his eyes appeared to be roiling and struggling, as though an extraneous force were forcible suppressing them and pushing them back where they came from.

    The old man¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly. He had keenly noticed that his disciple¡¯s fricism had diminished by a fair amount as soon as he had learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pregnancy.

    Thus, the old man decided to ride the wave of sess, and he continued, ¡°That¡¯s right. Disciple-in-Law is pregnant. If my calctions are right, the child is most likely Disciple¡¯s. Ye can ce yer hand on her abdomen and see for yerself if there¡¯s a clump of formless energy swirling about within her womb.¡±

    As he spoke, the old man was briefly reminded of his own wife.

    Truth be told, his wife had simrly been pregnant before. Otherwise, there was no way he would have known from a nce that Jun Xiaomo was pregnant as well. Unfortunately, his wife was unable to endure her difficult pregnancy, and she perished together with their child.

    The old man¡¯s heart was awash with a sense of bitter astringency as he recalled his past.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen did just as the old man suggested. After hesitating for a moment, he ced his hand gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen and released his divine sense, feeling the clump of formless energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb, otherwise known as ¡°fetal energy¡±.

    He could feel it ¨C it was a clump of slowly swirling energy that appeared almost like wisps of a cloud. Yet at the same time, the energy possessed a huge amount of vitality, and it was incredibly lively.

    Furthermore, the fetal energy was warm and pleasing to his senses. It was as though it had directly bypassed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s flesh, skin and clothes and cordially greeted him with a gentle touch.

    ¡°This is...my child?¡± Somewhat dumbfounded, Ye Xiuwen repeated with disbelief in his voice.

    ¡°Naturally. Do ye think that I¡¯d fool ye with something like that? This fetal energy is still in its nascent stages; and it¡¯s probably less than a month old. Did ye two share any intimate moments during this period of time?¡± The sprightly old man smiled mischievously as he quipped.

    Intimate moments? Of course there was ¨C back when Ye Xiuwen was drugged by Zhang Shuyue, Jun Xiaomo had been the one who had bailed him out with her own body.

    It was as though the floodgates of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s memories had suddenly been opened wide, and memories locked in the deepest crevices of his mind began to surface in his mind once more. Previously, his heart had been frozen over, and these memories would only stir in him a sense of furious indignation and an intense sense of possessiveness over Jun Xiaomo. But right now, the reality of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pregnancy had tugged powerfully at his heartstrings, and he could no longer bring himself to maintain his originally icy attitude towards her.

    At this very moment, his heart was like a frozen river on a warm, spring day, and it had begun to show signs of melting once more.

    ¡°This is our child...Xiaomo, we¡¯ve got a child.¡± Ye Xiuwen no longer treated Jun Xiaomo violently. Instead, he ced his hand gingerly on her abdomen as he gently squeezed her in an embrace, ¡°We¡¯ve finally got a child...¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen murmured over and over again, the vile energy within his eyes slowly subsided once more.

    Jun Xiaomo turned around slowly, unable to bring herself to reciprocate the joy and excitement that Ye Xiuwen had right now. To her, the reality of having a child without her memories was hardly a good thing.

    In fact, she sincerely hoped with all her heart that the old man was only kidding right now!

    That said, Ye Xiuwenpletely turned a blind eye to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s apathy and weariness. To his mind, the fact that Jun Xiaomo had his child undoubtedly meant that Jun Xiaomo was her woman ¨C that was now an inescapable truth.

    As a result, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier bigotry and fricism dwindled substantially, and his eyes were once again filled with some measure of warmth.

    Unfortunately, this was not something that Jun Xiaomo could appreciate for the time being. The difort guing her body, the dread of losing her memory and the bewilderment of her pregnancy weighed heavily on her mind and caused a peculiar sensation to surface on her heart.

    At the very least, these sensations were devoid of any joyous emotions that usually apanied a mother¡¯s discovery of the news of her pregnancy.

    The old man noticed the difference in reactions between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to the news of pregnancy, and he couldn¡¯t help but sigh in his heart ¨C Seems like a blissful union is still a long way away for Disciple and Disciple-in-Law.

    Tch, this kid. How can he still be worrying Master after all these years? The old man eximed in his heart with some measure of resignation as he wracked his mind toe up with an appropriate countermeasure.

    On the other side, having remained in a state ofatose for approximately half a month, Rong Ruihan suddenly jolted awake from his multitude of dreams. His forehead was percting with sweat.

    ¡°Xiaomo...¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows. Recalling the contents of his dreams, a sense of unease washed across his heart.

 Chapter 366: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Obstinance, His Masterâ€™s Anxiety

    <h4>Chapter 366: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Obstinance, His Master¡¯s Anxiety</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Master, have you finally regained consciousness?!¡± The leader of Rong Ruihan¡¯s nsmen was so excited that he quickly set down the bowl of medicine on the table and made his way towards Rong Ruihan¡¯s bed to help him up.

    ¡°This ce is...?¡±

    ¡°This is a ce where the Heavenly Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, Senior Jun, is temporarily putting up at. We ran into Senior Jun shortly after escaping from the valley, and he was the one who led us here. Truth be told, if not for the fact that we had run into Senior Jun, Master might not have been able to tide through the most critical part of your injuries.¡± The leader of the nsmen choked up slightly as he exined ruefully.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s injuries had truly been well beyond the realms of grievous. To make matters worse, the nsmen had consumed far too many spirit stones and recovery medicines in the battle at the valley in order to rescue Rong Ruihan, and they did not possess the means to give Rong Ruihan the appropriate level of care he needed.

    Fortunately, it was only through their serendipitous encounter with Senior Jun that they managed to pull Rong Ruihan back from the jaws of death.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Xiaomo?¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice was filled with anxiety. He knew that he had just woken up from a long, arduous nightmare that was rted to Jun Xiaomo. However, no matter how much he tried, he could not recall the details of the dreams.

    The only thing he knew was that the dream constantly afflicted him with a deep sense of uneasiness. In turn, he eagerly desired to see Jun Xiaomo to ensure her safety with his very own eyes ¨C If we¡¯ve been rescued by Xiaomo¡¯s own father, she should be fine, right?

    The leader of the nsmen revealed a slightly troubled expression on his face. He knew that it was only going to be a matter of time before his master learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disappearance again. Unfortunately, his master¡¯s body had not fully recovered yet, and there was still a high risk of injury if his master acted impulsively and attempted to search for Jun Xiaomo.

    As Rong Ruihan¡¯s loyal servant, he couldn¡¯t bear the thought of seeing Rong Ruihan sacrifice the wellness of his own body to go about searching for Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Xiaomo?!¡± Rong Ruihan barked with a harsher voice. Despite his severe injuries, his body¡¯s aura instantly flourished, bearing down heavily on the leader of his nsmen.

    ¡°She...she¡¯s been brought away by Ye Xiuwen, and we¡¯re unable to locate her right now.¡± The leader of his nsmen bowed obsequiously as he reported. He knew that there was no hiding it anymore.

    ¡°Ye. Xiu. Wen!¡± Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes were zing with fury, ¡°To think that this is how you¡¯d repay me after I saved you from being trapped by the spirit tool. Great! Just great!¡±

    Rong Ruihan had not forgotten that moment when he and Jun Xiaomo were trapped and struggling for their lives within the spirit tool, while Ye Xiuwen hadckadaisically sat outside the spirit tool with Zhang Shuyue with such a vile and vicious expression on his face.

    Rong Ruihan had never felt so desperate and despondent before ¨C not even when his own father had turned against him and decreed his death. He wanted to rescue Jun Xiaomo, yet he waspletely powerless to do so. He wanted to release Jun Xiaomo from the spirit tool, yet they remained helplessly trapped within the spirit tool, fated to be toyed about by Ye Xiuwen.

    And now, Ye Xiuwen had even taken Jun Xiaomo away, abandoning the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples in search of his own life.

    Was he not aware just how many people were after Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life?! Was he trying to get Jun Xiaomo killed?!

    The bulging veins on Rong Ruihan¡¯s forehead began to throb uncontrobly when he recalled how Jun Xiaomo was persecuted in his dreams.

    ¡°No! This won¡¯t do. I¡¯m going to go look for her right now.¡± Rong Ruihan scrambled to get out of bed, only to be stopped by the leader of his nsmen.

    ¡°Are you trying to stop me?!¡± Rong Ruihan red coldly at the leader as though frost wereing out of his eyes.

    ¡°Master, please don¡¯t be anxious.¡± The leader resisted the intense pressure bearing down on his body as he exined, ¡°Your servant thinks that it¡¯s not going to be easy for you to search for Miss Jun right now. Besides, Senior Jun might well be more anxious to locate Jun Xiaomo than you are. If he¡¯s unable to locate Jun Xiaomo, there¡¯s no reason we would be able to do better than him in any event.¡±

    ¡°Then what do we do?¡± Rong Ruihan knew that his subordinate¡¯s exnations were rational, so he clenched his fists as he suppressed the urge to go searching for Jun Xiaomo.

    The leader of the nsmen sighed briefly, ¡°Senior Jun has mentioned that the only thing we can do right now is to wait. If someone with malicious intentions locates their whereabouts, we will definitely hear news of it.¡±

    Rong Ruihan drew a deep breath, and a trace of reluctance and indignation flickered across the depths of his eyes.

    ---------------------------------------------

    Meanwhile, just as Jun Linxuan and Rong Ruihan were desperate to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had just embarked on their trek along the winding paths leading towards the mountain ranges. He had heard that the mountain ranges were incredibly idyllic and tranquil, perfect for calming the heart and soothing the mind. Thus, he thought to bring Jun Xiaomo there to foster the growth of their unborn child.

    Naturally, they were followed by an obsequious tail that couldn¡¯t be shaken off no matter what Ye Xiuwen did. This tail was none other than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master, the sprightly old man.

    Jun Xiaomo still got cramps from time to time over thest few days, albeit the intensity of these cramps had already begun to fade. Notwithstanding that, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master had never ceased to remind Ye Xiuwen that this period of time was incredibly delicate and special, and Ye Xiuwen had to do all he could to ensure that Jun Xiaomo was emotionally stable, so as to establish a good foundation for the unborn child¡¯s growth and development. Thus, Ye Xiuwen consciously suppressed his possessiveness over Jun Xiaomo, and he also grew to be more caring and considerate to her as well.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen would on rare asions still experience an outburst of emotions. Whenever that happened, Jun Xiaomo would always appear before the sprightly old man in a tragic state with deep purple marks on her hands, evidently caused by the manifestation of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rage.

    Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t wrap her mind over how she could possibly have Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child. She could hardly locate a single shred of memory of Ye Xiuwen in her mind, and her impression of Ye Xiuwen only worsened as time went on.

    She personally felt that there was no way she could have fallen for such a manic, egotistical person, and the best exnation for her pregnancy was that he had forced himself upon her.

    Whenever she considered the possibility of this, Jun Xiaomo would feel incredibly disgusted and nauseated, and thoughts of escaping would once again surface on her mind.

    Unfortunately, once bitten, twice shy. Ye Xiuwen had kept a close eye on her ever since her very first, botched attempt at an escape. He had even pledged to shackle and bind her to himself using chains if she ever attempted to escape again.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart grew sullen and mncholic. Even though she were pregnant, her body only grew slimmer and slimmer, as though she werepletely malnourished.

    The sprightly old man noticed all of these things, and he began to grow anxious once more. He knew that his disciple¡¯s rtionship with Jun Xiaomo must have been incredibly good in the past. Otherwise, there was no way that his disciple would have struggled and worked so hard over the twelve years he was trapped within the Death¡¯s Gorge, cultivating and battling day and night with the sole goal of being reunited once again with Jun Xiaomo.

    Sigh, I¡¯d only left him for a short while to look for an old friend. Who would¡¯ve thought that his personality would experience such a massive upheaval? It¡¯s tragic!

    No matter how the old man pondered and thought about things, his mind was only drawn to one conclusion ¨C and that was that the problemy with his own disciple. After all, was there anydy who would be able to put up with him, given his present attitude?

    ¡°Disciple, do ye think that there¡¯s been any changes to yer personalitytely?¡± The sprightly old man could no longer repress the urge to question Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Changes? What changes could there be?¡± Ye Xiuwen quipped back with a slightly darkened gaze.

    Ye dare say that there aren¡¯t changes? It¡¯s so stark! Would ye ever have treated me this way to begin with, hmm?! The old man snorted in his heart as he red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Don¡¯t ye think yer personality has changed? If not for the fact that I can verify yer identity through yer memories and yer soul, I might even have suspected someone seized yer body!¡±

    ¡°Seized my body?¡± Ye Xiuwen chuckled coldly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s nobody who can do so for now.¡±

    Hmph! Such arrogance! The sprightly old man suddenly realized that his disciple was getting increasingly less adorable, so he furrowed his brows, ¡°Don¡¯t ye find yer present personality a problem?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced dispassionately at his master as he responded, ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I even know why my personality has changed.¡±

    The old man widened his eyes as he barked, ¡°Ye know the reason for yer change?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen retrieved from his Interspatial Ring the spirit tool that had previously held Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, ced it on his palm and exined, ¡°My personality has changed ever since I¡¯d seized control of this spirit tool.¡±

    The old man immediately furrowed his brows. He could sense strong traces of vile energy emanating from the spirit tool in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hands.

    He knew immediately that the spirit tool was not a simple tool. If possible, he would much prefer it if his disciple could sever his connection with the spirit tool once and for all.

    However, almost as though he could guess the old man¡¯s train of thoughts, Ye Xiuwen continued, ¡°However, even though my personality has experienced a massive change, I don¡¯t think that this is a bad thing. I didn¡¯t like my previously hesitant and passive self. If I¡¯m fond of someone, there¡¯s no reason not to fight and seize her for myself. Hesitance and worry would only lead to missed opportunities. See, isn¡¯t Xiaomo by my side right now?¡±

    As he finished speaking, a peculiar grin crept up the corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips.

    The old man reached out with his hand, intending to snatch the spirit tool straight from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms. Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen pre-empted the old man, and he immediately stored the spirit tool within his Interspatial Ring before the old man could reach it.

    ¡°Master, don¡¯t bother trying to seize this spirit tool from my hands. I¡¯ll never sever my contract with it.¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered impertinently.

    ¡°Ye brat!¡± The old man red infuriatedly at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Ye¡¯ll get yer just desserts if ye carry on like this! Xiaomo might run from ye even after she has yer kid!¡±

    ¡°She won¡¯t be able to do so.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly responded, as though expounding a universal truth.

    The old man could no longer be bothered to butt heads with Ye Xiuwen any longer. Disciple¡¯s going to be the death of me one day! Thus, he drew the curtains and returned to the carriage in a huff.

    Jun Xiaomo was pregnant, so they had hired a horse carriage to facilitate their travels towards the mountain ranges.

    Jun Xiaomo sat inside the horse carriage, leaning against the window with her eyes shut. Dark rings could be seen around her eyes.

    It was evident that the multitude of things weighing on her heart, coupled by the long journey towards the mountain range, had taken its toll on her spirits.

    The sprightly old man sighed in his heart ¨C This won¡¯t do. I¡¯ve got to think of something to correct that unruly disciple of mine!

 Chapter 367: Sprightly Old Manâ€™s Past, Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Predicament

    <h4>Chapter 367: Sprightly Old Man¡¯s Past, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Predicament</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Before the sprightly old man could devise a way to correct his disciple¡¯s problematic personality, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body copsed under the weight of the pressures weighing on both her mind and body.

    Earlier today, Jun Xiaomo had sat by the window of the carriage, staring nkly at the passing scenery with an emotionless look on her face. The only two people in the carriage were Jun Xiaomo and the sprightly old man. They hardly knew each other, and there was therefore no impetus to break the silence with each other either. The atmosphere within the carriage was thus incredibly stifling.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master had forced him to take the reins of this horse carriage as well. After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master was already an old bag of bones, and such hardbour was naturally not suitable for someone like him. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was young and strong, and there was no one more suited to taking the reins than he was.

    As for Jun Xiaomo, the old man had time and again assured Ye Xiuwen that he would be keeping a close eye on her, and nothing would go wrong.

    Ye Xiuwen was initially reticent to agree to the old man¡¯s arrangement. He knew that he would never be able to set his heart at ease unless he personally looked after Jun Xiaomo. Otherwise, if Jun Xiaomo took the opportunity to slip away, where was he going to go about looking for her?

    That said, he was also aware that whenever he was around Jun Xiaomo, she would always re at him with a vindictive look in her eyes, causing the hatred in his heart to burgeon and the vile energy to begin roiling and swirling in the depths of his eyes. In order to prevent another unwanted outburst of emotions on his part, Ye Xiuwen knew that it was also in both their best interests for him to leave the carriage itself and take the reins so that both of them could take the time to ease their minds.

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s worst fears became an eventuality. As Jun Xiaomo gazed out at the passing scenery, her eyes suddenly rolled back without any warning, her neck slumped, and her head mmed heavily onto the table within the carriage,nding with a sickening, loud thud.

    ¡°Disciple-inw!¡± The old man had never expected Jun Xiaomo to pass out just like that, and he immediately hurried over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, attempting to help her back up. However, someone else beat him to it. In the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen dashed straight back into the carriage and pulled Jun Xiaomo into a warm embrace, ring threateningly at his master at the same time.

    The old man rubbed his nose sheepishly, muttering in his heart ¨C Disciple, do ye really have to be so overprotective? Do ye really think that yer master would make a move against his own disciple¡¯s wife? How could ye think so lowly of yer master?

    After ring intimidatingly at his master, Ye Xiuwen turned his attention back towards Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Over thest few days, Jun Xiaomo would always re at him with hateful, vignt eyes whenever he drew close or attempted to embrace her, tensing up her body as though a cornered animal that felt threatened by an impending danger.

    Ye Xiuwen hated such a reaction from Jun Xiaomo. She had lost her memory, but he hadn¡¯t. Previously, Jun Xiaomo would always linger by his side joyfully with eyes curled into beautiful arches. Back then, he could tell that the depths of her eyes were invariably filled with trust and reliance on him. It was a marked change from what it was right now, where she would view him as an existence almost akin to an archnemesis.

    Yet, despite all of that, Ye Xiuwen did not think that he was the problem at all. He stubbornly maintained that Rong Ruihan was the problem, so his mind was constantly dwelling on the notion that he absolutely had to keep Jun Xiaomo by his side so that she would have no further opportunity to go out searching for Rong Ruihan.

    Ye Xiuwen was so mired by his jealousy that hepletely overlooked the fact that Jun Xiaomo had already lost her memory ¨C how was she to go about looking for Rong Ruihan in the first ce?

    Right now, Jun Xiaomoy motionless in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s bosom,pletely limp and devoid of energy as though she were nothing more than a humanoid puppet. She was incredibly ¡°obedient¡± right now. At the very least, she no longer red at Ye Xiuwen with the usual looks of indignation and vignce she did. However, it was at this moment that Ye Xiuwen discovered that such ¡°obedience¡± did not bring him any joy either.

    ¡°Tsk, tsk. Look at that. I¡¯ve already warned ye about this earlier. If ye continue to torment her like that, something was bound to happen to her sooner orter. Look at yer wife¡¯s condition now. Look at how haggard and sallow she looks. Are you really going to continue tormenting her like that, until she bes nothing more than a living corpse by your side?¡± The old man snorted coldly, attempting to yank his disciple back to his senses with the shocking truth.

    ¡°Enough.¡± Ye Xiuwen interjected coldly. His eyes were filled with a deep, abstruse gleam as he hugged Jun Xiaomo tightly in his bosom.

    It had only just dawned on his just how thin and haggard Jun Xiaomo had be. The clothes she wore on a day to day basis were slightly on the looser side, sufficient to conceal the thin and pallid shape of her body.

    For some strange reason, this realization made Ye Xiuwen feel as though his heart had just been pricked by a needle. In fact, it felt as though the needle was stabbing deeper and deeper with each beat of his heart, afflicting him with the maximum pain possible.

    Have I been wrong all this while? This was the first time such a thought urred to Ye Xiuwen after sticking obstinately to his ways for more than a month.

    He ced his hand gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist, sending a thread of spiritual energy coursing through her meridians and Dantian, probing about for potential problems.

    He discovered no issues with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s meridians and Dantian, yet her pulse remained incredibly weak. In fact, it was as though her heart would stop beating at any moment now.

    Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, and his heartache became that much more apparent to him.

    ¡°Master, something appears to be wrong with her body.¡± Ye Xiuwen nced sullenly at the sprightly old man. The vile energy in the depths of his eyes had subsided even more.

    The old man sighed in his heart ¨C It seems that whoever hung the bell on the tiger¡¯s neck must untie it. Disciple has gone mad because of Jun Xiaomo, and it seems that Disciple is recovering also because of Jun Xiaomo. I just hope that this recovery would continue.

    As the old man mulled over the matter in his heart, he instructed, ¡°Make way for me. Let me have a closer look at her.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen refused to give way. However, as apromise, he tilted his body slightly, allowing the old man to draw closer to Jun Xiaomo for the purposes of a closer examination.

    After cursing Ye Xiuwen in his heart for being overprotective, the old man made his way beside them, stretched out his arm and ced his fingers on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist.

    As soon as the old man ced his fingers on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist, Ye Xiuwen subconsciously squinted his eyes at the old man.

    ¡°Don¡¯t stare at me like that. If I don¡¯t do this, how would I know what happened to yer wife? Your master isn¡¯t a god.¡± The old man rolled his eyes at Ye Xiuwen as he made a snarky remark.

    Ye Xiuwen finally shifted his gaze away, alleviating the pressures of his overbearing stare on the old man¡¯s body.

    Then, the old man sent a thread of his spiritual energy coursing throughout Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. At the beginning, he did so somewhat indifferently. However, as time went on, the old man began to furrow his brows, and the expression on his face grew increasingly sullen.

    ¡°Is there really a problem with her body?¡± Ye Xiuwen noticed the change in the old man¡¯s appearances.

    ¡°Thest time I¡¯d checked the condition of yer wife¡¯s body, I¡¯d only noticed that she was pregnant. However, it seems that I¡¯d overlooked another problem.¡± The sprightly old man collected his spiritual energy and looked solemnly into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as he genuinely queried, ¡°Do ye know that she possesses an acquired demonic body?¡±

    ¡°Acquired demonic body? I think she¡¯s mentioned that before.¡± As Ye Xiuwen responded, the vile energy in the depths of his eyes began to swirl once more, ¡°It¡¯s He Zhang. He Zhang was the one who had changed the disposition of her body. If not for the fact that He Zhang is already dead now, I would make sure that his life is no worse than death itself!¡±

    The old man solemnly exined, ¡°Things are going to be a lot moreplicated if she possesses an acquired demonic body.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was gued with a deep sense of unease.

    ¡°As ye would know, the main difference between a demonic cultivator and a spiritual cultivator is the fact that one absorbs demonic energy, while the other absorbs spiritual energy. These are two fundamentally and diametrically opposed types of energy that will never be able to exist in harmony together. Disciple-in-Law possesses an acquired demonic body, which means that her body can only absorb and contain demonic energy. In other words, spiritual energy is to her an existence that is akin to a poison ¨C her body is still able to handle small amounts of it, but things will get problematic when the amount of spiritual energy within her body increases. Disciple, ye¡¯ve impregnated her with a child that thrives on spiritual energy. The fetal energy within her body is filled with spiritual energy. As the fetal energy grows and congeals into human form, it will naturally require more and more spiritual energy to be drawn into yer wife¡¯s womb. I¡¯m sure ye can understand just what kind of damage this will cause to her body.¡±

    ¡°In other words, the fact that the child¡¯s constitution is different from that of her body is what¡¯s causing her body to react with such intense rejection?¡± Ye Xiuwen sought to rify the nub of the issue.

    ¡°It¡¯s exactly that.¡± The old man muttered as he sighed, ¡°Back then, it was the same for yer master and his wife. I¡¯m a spiritual cultivator, but she¡¯s a demonic cultivator. Our child happened to possess a different constitution from her body, and her body sought to reject our child as well. Then, as the fetal energy congealed and our baby grew in her womb, the rejection grew so intense that it even began to threaten her life.¡±

    As he exined these matters, a trace of grief and heartache flickered across the depths of the old man¡¯s eyes, ¡°Finally, when push came to shove, and she was perpetually in a state ofatose, I finally made the unteral decision to abort the child. Even though the loss of a child was painful, yer master couldn¡¯t bear the thought of losing his wife... Unfortunately, the news of this incident dealt my wife a heavy blow when she woke up. No matter how much I tried to cate her, saying that we can attempt to have another child that would not attract the same kind of rejection from her body, she was unable to bring herself to forgive me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d thought that the passage of time would lessen the impact of this incident on my wife¡¯s heart. Unfortunately, it was far more serious than I thought. Her mind and body copsed before she could think things through, and she perished. I¡¯m not even sure she forgave me before she passed on.¡±

    As the old man recounted these facts, tears began to stream out of his eyes, filling every crevice between the wrinkles on his face. He looked at Ye Xiuwen as he solemnly added, ¡°This is why Master had reminded ye time and again never to take yer wife for granted. If ye truly love her, ye would respect her opinion and her belief, and not unterally decide things for her without consulting her feelings. Take heed, Disciple, before ye repeat yer master¡¯s mistakes and lose yer loved ones.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils quivered slightly, and he lowered his head and fixed his gaze on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ashen, pale face once more. His heart was incredibly stifled right now.

    ¡°Then, what must we do right now? Do we have to abort the child?¡± Ye Xiuwen ced his hand gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abdomen and immersed himself in the faint warmth that was emanating from the other side. The fact that he was soon to be a father had finally sunk in for the first time.

    Unfortunately, was this opportunity to be a father about to be lost almost as suddenly as it had appeared?

    This notion stabbed straight through Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart like an awl, afflicting him with such heartache that even his breathing began to grow ragged.

 Chapter 368: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Decision, A Delicate Cry Outside the Carriage

    <h4>Chapter 368: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Decision, A Delicate Cry Outside the Carriage</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Seeing the agony in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes, the old man sighed deeply in his heart ¨C Seems like there¡¯s hope for Disciple yet. At the very least, he¡¯s not irreversibly mad.

    Wiping off the tears on his face, the old man deliberated for a moment, before continuing, ¡°Truth be told, there are solutions to this problem. Back then, my wife and I had pored through countless manuscripts in order to search for solutions. Unfortunately, we were stuck within the Death¡¯s Gorge, and we were limited by our circumstances. We knew the solutions, but we didn¡¯t have ess to the right materials, so there was no way for us to refine the necessary medicinal pills to counteract the issue.¡±

    ¡°What materials do we need? I¡¯ll go look for them.¡± Ye Xiuwen spoke without a single trace of hesitation in his voice.

    After another protracted pause, the old man exined, ¡°There are two methods. One is a means to alleviate the symptoms, while the other eliminates the problem entirely. There is a lotus pond located at the Sunset Mountain Range near the Greenwich Kingdom. A particr flower called the Rainbow Lotus Flower grows in the heart of the pond. The Rainbow Lotus Flower blooms once every hundred years, and bears seeds in the next hundred years. Its lotus seeds possess the powers of harmony and fusion, which in turn will enable a person to improve their body¡¯s constitution. A mortal who consumes these seeds would be able to extend his lifespan by a hundred years; while cultivators who consume these seeds would find their meridians and Dantian cleansed and refined by the seeds¡¯ energy, smoothening their cultivation path and boosting their cultivation levels. Thus, whenever a Rainbow Lotus Flower bears seeds, it would invariably attract an incredible amount of attention from the cultivation world, and blood would usually be spilled in the ensuing tussle for the ownership rights of these seeds.¡±

    ¡°Can these seeds resolve the problem we¡¯re facing at hand?¡± Ye Xiuwen looked intently at his master as he asked.

    ¡°Unfortunately, it won¡¯t be able to resolve the issue entire. It will only be able to alleviate some of the symptoms yer wife is showing. That said, it will most certainly ensure that yer wife¡¯s life won¡¯t be in danger before she¡¯s ready for childbirth.¡± The old man stroked his beard as he exined.

    ¡°Then, what if I want to eliminate the problem once and for all? What kind of materials would I need?¡± Ye Xiuwen continued to press the issue.

    Ye Xiuwen had captured the crux of the old man¡¯s exnation ¨C this was only a method to alleviate the symptoms. In other words, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life would still be in danger if the other solution had not been found before Jun Xiaomo was ready for childbirth.

    ¡°If Disciple wishes to eliminate the problem once and for all, I¡¯m afraid ye¡¯ll have to find a Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill.¡± The old man shook his head as he added, ¡°This pill is only useful to a demonic cultivator who¡¯s pregnant with a spiritual cultivating child, or a spiritual cultivator pregnant with a demonic cultivating child; it¡¯s useless to everyone else. Thus, this pill is rarely seen in the world. The very first time that such a pill appeared in this world was precisely because a renown pillmaster¡¯s wife was a demonic cultivator pregnant with a spiritual cultivating child. He dug deep and sacrificed everything he had before he finally created the first ever Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill for his wife. In the end, his wife delivered his child safely, and this was why it was recorded in the annals of history. Unfortunately...¡±

    The old man sighed as he added, ¡°These pills are far too rare. Yer master is already over a thousand years old, yet he has never seen a single Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill in his life. I¡¯m afraid that we¡¯ll have to source for the constituent ingredients necessary to create such a pill andmission a ninth-grade pillmaster to refine such a pill for us. Otherwise, the odds of finding a readily avable Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill is close to none.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced. He ced his had gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen once more. His body was incredibly stiff, and his facial expressions exuded traces of a heartfelt, agonizing struggle.

    He finally realized that certain things were outside his control even if he kept Jun Xiaomo by his side.

    If he decided to keep the child, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life would be in constant danger, and she might not even be able to survive the entire duration of her pregnancy.

    On the other hand, he knew that he would never be able to make the decision to abort the child because he had just begun to taste the joy of being a prospective father....

    Did he really have to say goodbye to his child just like that? After all, his child had done nothing wrong within its mother¡¯s womb. It had done nothing more than to remain obediently as a clump of fetal energy while gently emanating the soothing warmth of life, dering its existence to the world.

    It was as though his child were gently calling out to him.

    Ye Xiuwen held Jun Xiaomo closer to his bosom. The vile energy in the depths of his eyes had already begun to fade once again, reced by an intense flux of emotions undergirded by the pain and distress in his heart.

    Perhaps Ye Xiuwen had hugged Jun Xiaomo a little bit too tightly and caused her pain, because she began toe to her senses once again at this very moment as well.

    As Jun Xiaomo opened her eyes and saw Ye Xiuwen¡¯s present state, she was instantly dazed and taken aback.

    Ye Xiuwen lifted his hands and ran it lightly across her eyelids. Jun Xiaomo blinked several times, somewhat uneasily.

    This was the first time that Ye Xiuwen had behaved so warmly towards her ever since she had lost her memories. It was as though he were now apletely different person.

    Even though Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was just as deep as it had been before, it was far less harsh than it had been. He softly muttered, ¡°You¡¯d passed out again.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Jun Xiaomo answered curtly, hardly surprised by that fact.

    After all, her body had already been in extreme difort over thest few days. To make matters worse, her head had felt incredibly bloated and heavy, and there were innumerable things weighing on her heart and ebbing away at her spirits as well.

    Thus, she knew that it was only going to be a matter of time before she passed out, and she was hardly surprised by the fact that she had indeed done so during this carriage ride.

    That said, she was still unable to suppress the waves of sorrow and grief echoing from the depths of her heart ¨C when will her days of being shackled by others finally end?

    Ever since his personality changed, Ye Xiuwen would always keep a close eye on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotional fluctuations, doing his best to keep her by his side and convince her to ept his ns for her. To Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, he had simply thought to slowly chip away at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s resilience bit by bit, until she finally conformed to his ideas. Yet the reality of the matter was that his actions only served to widen the rift between them.

    Now, Ye Xiuwen had finally just realized that he might not possess the ability to protect Jun Xiaomo or their child even if Jun Xiaomo remained obsequiously by his side. In other words, he had finally begun to doubt the efficacy of keeping Jun Xiaomo in captivity.

    He gently caressed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks as he reassured her, ¡°Don¡¯t be sad. I¡¯ll never attempt to restrain you again.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately nced back up at Ye Xiuwen with some measure of bewilderment, thinking to call his bluff. Yet, when she locked eyes with him, she could tell that his eyes were filled with sincerity and honesty,pletely devoid of any trace of mockery or deceit.

    ¡°Will you really stop restraining me?¡± Jun Xiaomo questioned with some measure of suspicion.

    ¡°I won¡¯t. That said, given the state of your body right now, you¡¯re in no condition to be running about either.¡± Ye Xiuwen ced his palm gingerly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen as he added.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thoughts were immediately drawn to her child as well. ording to Ye Xiuwen, he was the child¡¯s father as well.

    All along, she had been under the impression that the child was the result of Ye Xiuwen forcing himself upon her. Thus, she had never been too eager to have this child either.

    That said, she couldn¡¯t understand why she could never bring herself to entertain the thought of aborting the child either.

    Seeing that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo had both grown silent, the old man decided to interject to exin the situation to Jun Xiaomo ¨C

    ¡°Ye possess an acquired demonic body. Unfortunately, your child is a spiritual entity, and that¡¯s shing and causing issues of rejection with your body. Right now, ye have two choices. The first is to abort yer child. That way, yer life won¡¯t be in danger, and ye can attempt to have more children with Disciple in future. As long as yer future children possess demonic bodies, ye¡¯ll be able to go through with the pregnancy. The other choice is to attempt to locate the medicine that will eliminate the root of the problem. However, this option is going to take time, and ye might not be able to hang on till them. Disciple-in-Law, what will yer choice be?¡±

    ¡°My body is shing with my child and rejecting it?¡± Jun Xiaomo had never expected something like this to happen.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. This is why ye had passed out to begin with. Logically speaking, given that ye are already in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, ye aren¡¯t supposed to pass out no matter how much mental and physical strain ye had been put trough recently. I¡¯d only discovered the sh and rejection after a closer examination of yer body. Furthermore, as the spiritual energy surrounding yer fetus begins to congeal, the sh and rejection is only going grow more and more intense. It might even be life-threatening in future.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to keep this child!¡± Jun Xiaomo made her decision without any hesitation at all. It was as though her decision were almost reflexive and instinctual ¨C something she had arrived at before any logical processes.

    Thus, she was slightly dumbstruck when she realized how she had just reacted. She had never expected herself to make such an important decision with hardly any thought to it.

    Jun Xiaomo ced her hand softly onto her own abdomen. The gentle warmth that was radiating from her womb made the rims of her eyes turn red and puffy, and a sense of gratitude began to fill her heart.

    She had thought that she would despise her child and loathe to let it see the light of day. However, as soon as the sprightly old man told her about the real possibility that she might have to abort the child to preserve her own life, she immediately chose to save the child without any hesitation.

    As it turns out, she loved the child, notwithstanding the amount of pain and distress the child¡¯s father had put her through.

    At this moment, Ye Xiuwen tightened his embrace around Jun Xiaomo once more. The vile energy had continued to dwindle in his heart. At the same time, his heart was gradually beginning to be filled by a sense of fullness and abundance.

    He did not want to lose Jun Xiaomo. If Jun Xiaomo had indicated that she did not want the child, he would have agreed to the abortion as well.

    But now that Jun Xiaomo had affirmatively indicated that she was going to keep this child, no matter the dangers she might face, he was once again reinvigorated with a sense of responsibility, determined to be the source of their strength. He was ready to ce his trust in both Jun Xiaomo and himself once again.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do everything I can to protect both of you.¡± Ye Xiuwen whispered into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears, as though he were speaking a solemn vow straight through Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, etching it directly onto her soul.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart quivered slightly. Ever since she had lost her memories, this was the first time that she had felt the urge and desire to trust this man once again.

    And this was despite the fact that this man had been the prime source of her distress and despondence over thest few weeks.

    Shutting her eyes, Jun Xiaomo nodded softly.

    A rare, faint smile crept up the corner of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was unaware of this. The only other person who saw it was the other person seated in the horse carriage right now ¨C the sprightly old man.

    The sprightly old man¡¯s heart felt full. He could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel in his disciple¡¯s road to recovery.

    Just as a pleasant, soothing atmosphere began to fill the carriage, a delicate cry from outside the carriage interrupted their warm, harmonious moment ¨C

    ¡°Whose damn horse carriage is this?! Why isn¡¯t there anyone taking the reins at the helm?! You¡¯re blocking This Highness¡¯s path. Hurry up and make way for This Highness!¡±

 Chapter 369: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Killing Intent, Yue Linglongâ€™s Isolation

    <h4>Chapter 369: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Killing Intent, Yue Linglong¡¯s Istion</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The delicate cry was shrill ¨C almost earsplitting. Jun Xiaomo, whose mind was already almost on the brink of crumbling, furrowed her brows even more.

    Ye Xiuwen noticed the slight changes on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions, and his gaze darkened.

    He set Jun Xiaomo gingerly back down onto the cushion in the carriage and helped her to lean against the window. Then, he turned to the old man and told him, ¡°I¡¯m going outside to take a look.¡± With that, he drew the curtains and stepped out of the carriage.

    As soon as he stepped out, he saw a group of people who were ostensibly part of an aristocratic family or n. Over and above the fact that these people donned garments made of expensive, luxurious materials, Ye Xiuwen could detect faint traces of spiritual energy emanating from their bodies. If his guess was right, these traces were characteristic of spirit tools.

    The leader of the group outside the carriage was even more ostentatious. She was dressed garishly from head to toe, and even her whip and her mount were exquisite-looking. The spiritual fluctuations emanating from her body was the highest, and it was naturally evident to Ye Xiuwen that everything she wore were spirit tools of at least the fifth-grade or higher.

    From the way she habitually referred to herself as ¡°this Highness¡±, she might very possibly be the actual princess of a kingdom. It was no wonder she was able to be so extravagant, even with her clothes. This was a clear indication that she probably had been pampered since young.

    Ye Xiuwen managed to roughly guess the identities of this group of people with just one nce. Meanwhile, just as Ye Xiuwen was sizing them up, the group was also attempting to identify and size up Ye Xiuwen from the little details they could glean from his appearances ¨C

    He wore ordinary clothes that appeared to be the uniform of a regr sect of cultivators. There was some simple embroidery on his sleeves. That said, they were unable to detect any modicum of spiritual fluctuation from his clothes.

    His essories were incredibly ordinary as well. Ye Xiuwen wore nothing more than a jade pendant, and this pendant hardly appeared to be a valuable one, much less be a spirit tool.

    The Interspatial Ring on his hand was even more of a telltale sign ¨C it was something that was extremelymon in the cultivation world, not imbued with any abilities at all, and it was no different from something that anyone would be able to purchase from a run-of-the-mill shop.

    After sizing up Ye Xiuwen from his appearances, the group unanimously concluded that he was nothing more than a ¡°poor sod¡±. Naturally, they grew more arrogant than they had been before.

    ¡°Hey! I¡¯m talking to you. Why didn¡¯t you even bother to address us after stepping out of the carriage? Are you deaf, dumb or both?¡± With her nose in the air, the leader of the group castigated Ye Xiuwen as she pointed her whip at him.

    Ye Xiuwen turned his gaze cidly towards her. Slowly, yet inconspicuously, traces of vile, dark energy began to swirl in the depths of his eyes once more.

    Faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s deep, abstruse gaze, thedy was slightly taken aback. Her heart skipped a beat or two, evidently flustered.

    She had only just realized how handsome and striking this man¡¯s appearance was. He possessed a chiseled face, deep, profound-looking eyes, and a thin grimace on his lips. His dignified disposition was second to none ¨C even among all who were present right now.

    As a princess of an entire kingdom, thedy undoubtedly arrogant. However, she was no fool. She knew that there were many hidden experts in the cultivation world, and it would be imprudent to simply judge a book by its covers. In this instance, the man¡¯s disposition alone spoke volumes about how he was no mere ordinary cultivator.

    Thedy¡¯s heart began to thump with ever-increasing vigor. Collecting herself, thedy nced over at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s horse carriage, before turning her gaze back onto Ye Xiuwen once more. This time, she changed the expressions on her face and began to smile genially as she continued, ¡°I¡¯d been a little ill-tempered earlier. I hope this brother can overlook my earlier misgiving against you. I noticed that you¡¯re heading in the same direction that I am. Why don¡¯t we travel together since that¡¯s the case? This way, we¡¯ll be able to look after each other on the way.¡±

    The men behind thedy immediately exchanged nces sheepishly ¨C What¡¯s Princess thinking? How could her disposition have changed in just a blink of an eye?

    Ye Xiuwen hated the idea of third parties intruding upon his private time with Jun Xiaomo. It was enough that the sprightly old man had done so, much less an entire entourage of people. Thus, he immediately rejected thedy¡¯s suggestion, ¡°We don¡¯t have to travel together. There¡¯s no need. If you¡¯re in a rush, we can shift our carriage to the side of the road so that you can go on ahead first.¡± Ye Xiuwen had not forgotten the fact that this entire incident had arisen because their horse carriage had been blocking the path.

    If not for the fact that thedy had changed her attitude for the better in a timeous fashion, he might not even have entertained the request to make way for them. After all, notwithstanding the fact that these people carried several powerful spirit tools with them, the vast chasm between their respective cultivation levels and that which Ye Xiuwen possessed made them hardly a threat at all.

    On the other hand, the group confronting them had never expected Ye Xiuwen to react so impolitely. This was especially the case for their leader. After all, she had never really faced a rejection like this before. Yet, today, a nobody had just rejected her in front of everyone, humiliating her and trampling on her pride and dignity alike. Thus, thedy¡¯s heart began to fume with fury.

    ¡°Impudence! I give you an inch, yet you take a mile?! Do you know who This Highness is?! Hah. Look at your shabby appearances. It¡¯s your privilege and glory that This Highness had looked favorably upon you to suggest travelling together to begin with. Who knows, if This Highness in good spirits, This Highness might even bestow upon you a decent spirit tool for your service. Otherwise, be prepared to face This Highness¡¯s wrath!¡± Thedy exploded in fury, throwing around her title as she mocked Ye Xiuwen derisively.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze instantly turned cold and frigid, while the men behind thedy revealed looks of realization on their faces ¨C Ah! So it turns out that Princess has taken a liking to this man.

    Unfortunately, Princess already has a husband, and her husband¡¯s stature isn¡¯t low either. Even if this man agrees to follow Princess, he can only remain a secret lover of hers, one that is fated toe and go ording to her beck and calls, right? As these thoughts crossed the men¡¯s minds, they began to reveal sympathetic looks on their faces.

    Just as the confrontation appeared toe to an impasse, the curtains of the horse carriage drew open once more, and ady dressed in red stepped out of it.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on here? What¡¯s themotion all about?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked somewhat weakly. She could hear themotion from within the horse carriage, and she had thought to ignore it and remain inside. Unfortunately, themotion only seemed to get more and more heated, while the princess¡¯s voice was sharp and shrill, ringing and reverberating endlessly in her eardrums and sending waves of splitting pain straight through her mind.

    Thus, unable to tolerate it any longer, she decided to step out of the carriage to check on the situation herself.

    The princess¡¯s men immediately drew a deep breath as soon as Jun Xiaomo stepped out of the horse carriage. It was not that they were blown away by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances. Rather, they had immediately recognized Jun Xiaomo, especially her characteristically striking red garments that left an indelible mark in their memories.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo?! How could it possibly be you?!¡± The princess, also the leader of the men, shrieked in shock.

    That¡¯s right. Thedy standing before Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo was none other than the princess of the Greenwich Kingdom that Jun Xiaomo had previously had a tussle against ¨C Yue Linglong. Back then, Yue Linglong¡¯s fianc¨¦ had taken a fancy to Jun Xiaomo because of her looks. Unfortunately, just as he was teasing and making advances on Jun Xiaomo, Yue Linglong appeared and caught them ¡°red-handed¡±. If not for the fact that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s master, Tong Ruizhen, found a way to send Jun Xiaomo deep into hiding within the Proving Grounds, Jun Xiaomo would already be dead by now!

    What incensed Yue Linglong the most was the fact that Jun Xiaomo somehow knew the first prince of the Inferno Kingdom. When he learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°death¡±, he immediately fixed his gaze on the Greenwich Kingdom like a maddened dog, and he led an entire army to march against the Greenwich Kingdom, causing them to retreat back into their capital. If not for the fact that the Zephyr Sect finally agreed to lend them a hand in the nick of time, the Greenwich Kingdom might very well have been wiped off the surface of this world.

    All this while, Yue Linglong thought that Jun Xiaomo had perished for all eternity. Unexpectedly, about a month ago, news began to spread that Jun Xiaomo was not dead at all. In fact, rumours had it that both she and her martial brother had singlehandedly caused a massive upheaval within the Dawn Sect. At that time, Yue Linglong gnashed her teeth and swore on her heart that she would give Jun Xiaomo a piece of her mind the next time she saw her!

    Who would have thought that they would truly cross paths, and within such a short span of time to boot! Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo appeared to be weak and feeble, almost as though she were afflicted with a chronic illness ¨C the heavens were on Yue Linglong¡¯s side!

    ¡°Men, get her! Whoever catches Jun Xiaomo will be greatly rewarded!¡± Yue Linglong barked her orders at her men.

    Rewards inspire courageous heroism. Besides, there was nothing holding the men back given how they had assessed that neither Ye Xiuwen nor Jun Xiaomo possessed abilities that were beyond the ordinary. Thus, Yue Linglong¡¯s men immediately scattered from their positions and surrounded Jun Xiaomo¡¯s horse carriage in the very next moment.

    ¡°Do I know you?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she stared at Yue Linglong. She had earlier lost her memories, so was naturally unaware of who Yue Linglong was.

    ¡°Hmph, Jun Xiaomo, stop pretending. You¡¯re such a vile person that this Highness will still be able to identify you from a mile away, even if you¡¯d already turned into ash!¡± Yue Linglong gnashed her teeth with seething hatred. Then, she turned her gaze to Ye Xiuwen and smiled coldly, ¡°Since you¡¯re with her, you must be aplices, huh? This Highness is going to give you a choice ¨C if you¡¯re willing to abandon her and stand on my side, this Highness will spare your life and even pamper you. Otherwise...hah, don¡¯t me me for being discourteous!¡±

    Yue Linglong both brandished her stick threateningly and dangled a carrot in front of Ye Xiuwen, thinking that it would most certainly deal Jun Xiaomo a heavy blow if she could win Ye Xiuwen over to her side. After all, she hardly believed the existence of any men who couldn¡¯t be bought out by the temptation of riches.

    Unfortunately, Yue Linglong had underestimated both Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feelings towards Jun Xiaomo as well as the extent of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities. As soon as she finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen made his move. His body vanished in a flicker, and his sword intent shed by so quickly that none of the men surrounding the horse carriage even had a chance to react properly to the sudden development. Just like that, a shadow flickered about, and several men were beheaded in the blink of an eye. Some of the men who possessed a slightly stronger cultivation base andbat abilities were able to evade the fatal strike in the nick of time. However, they were still grievously wounded and incapacitated by Ye Xiuwen.

    The tides had turned in the blink of an eye. Yue Linglong¡¯s men were either dead or incapacitated. Each of them had several powerful spirit tools at their disposal, but what use were these spirit tools when faced with such overbearing, absolute strength?

    Yue Linglong¡¯s pupils constricted instantly, and an intense chill went down her spine. She still had a whole bunch of derisive words to say to Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo, but the sudden development in the situation and stuffed the words straight back into her throat.

    Yue Linglong had always been pampered ever since she was young. Whether in the pce or in the sect, she would always find herself surrounded by people who were willing to be at her beck and call and do her bidding, and she was hardly ever exposed to the cruel reality of the cultivation world atrge. This was the reason why this incident stumbled her so greatly, dealing her such a heavy blow in her heart.

    She began to take a few steps back in fear. Her earlier arrogance had thoroughly been washed away by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s frigid killing intent.

    rms of dread and fear of Ye Xiuwen were ring in her heart right now.

    ¡°You...don¡¯te any further! This Highness is Princess Linglong of the Greenwich Kingdom. The King will never let you off if harm this Highness!¡±

    Yue Linglong stammered uncontrobly. Even though she were speaking words of threat right now, the result was hardly intimidating or imposing given her present disposition.

    Most importantly, there was nobody by her side able to stand up against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s absolute strength right now. If Ye Xiuwen were truly intent on killing her, there was no way she would be able to stop him.

    ¡°Greenwich Kingdom?¡± Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes. He was reminded once again of the Rainbow Lotus Flower that the sprightly old man had referred to. This was something that would able to regte the symptoms of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present condition.

    ¡°Since you¡¯re the princess of the Greenwich Kingdom, then you must know where the Rainbow Lotus Flower grows, don¡¯t you?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked cidly, temporarily suppressing the frigid intent in his heart. It was almost as thought the killer earlier was someonepletely different.

    ¡°Rain...Rainbow Lotus Flower?¡± Yue Linglong was slightly dumbfounded. After all, her residence was deep in the depths of the pce, and she could ask her servants to deliver anything she needed to her ¨C how could she possibly know where such a thing was located?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips stretched out into a thin grimace, and a seething, frigid intense began to seep out of his eyes once more ¨C Since you don¡¯t know, then there¡¯s no reason to keep you alive either.

    The notion of courtesy was as far removed from the present Ye Xiuwen as it got. After all, the present Ye Xiuwen was devoid of all rationality, and he simply acted on his impulses under the influence of the demons in his heart.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s killing intent began to flourish again, one of Yue Linglong¡¯s men grew anxious and he immediately ran over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side and pleaded, ¡°Senior, please don¡¯t be rash! I...I know where the location of the Rainbow Lotus Flower is...¡±

    ¡°You know?¡± Ye Xiuwen squinted at him. The frigid gaze caused Yue Linglong¡¯s servant to burst out in cold sweat.

    ¡°This junior knows.¡± He had subconsciously changed his term of reference from ¡°me¡± to ¡°this junior¡±, treating Ye Xiuwen with the humblest of attitudes he knew.

    ¡°Bring me there right now. You¡¯d best not be deceiving me. Otherwise, you¡¯re going to end up in the same fate as all those people.¡± Ye Xiuwen pointed at the dismembered bodies on the ground threateningly.

    ¡°Ye...yes.¡± The man wiped off the cold sweat that was percting off his forehead as he thought in his heart ¨C I just hope I haven¡¯t remembered wrongly. Otherwise, this is going to be the end of my road...

    Yue Linglong noticed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s killing intent was subsiding once more, and she couldn¡¯t help but heave a sigh of relief. Yet, in the very next moment, her heart began to be filled with fuming rage and indignation once more ¨C Why is it that nothing good ever happens when I encounter Jun Xiaomo?!

    Whenever she turned her mind to address the fact that he had been humiliated so thoroughly by nobodies in front of her followers, the rage in her heart would surge straight through her mind.

    No! I must get my revenge!

    With those thoughts weighing heavily on her mind, Yue Linglong discreetly bit her thumb and sent her sect and her pce an emergency paper crane, pleading for help.

    As she watched the paper cranes flying away, disappearing into the horizon, a victorious smile crept up the corner of Yue Linglong¡¯s lips once more.

 Chapter 370: Yue Linglongâ€™s Schemes, The Old Manâ€™s Miscalculation

    <h4>Chapter 370: Yue Linglong¡¯s Schemes, The Old Man¡¯s Miscalction</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Sunset Mountain Range near the Greenwich Kingdom was an incredibly idyllic destination. Every year, towards the end of the autumn season, the Sunset Mountain Range would see its fair share of romantic couples and sight-seeing cultivators enjoying its sights and sounds. Its fiery red maple forests and the rolling white clouds in the azure blue sky overhead, replete with a cacophony of chirruping birdspleted an all-consuming atmosphere that seized the mind and dispersed any tensions in the heart.

    That said, the Sunset Mountain Range saw far more visitors this year than all previous years. To be more precise, there were far more powerful cultivators visiting the Sunset Mountain Range this year, many of whom could be seen patrolling the region on a daily basis.

    ¡°Who would¡¯ve thought that so many people would make the trip down to the Sunset Mountain Range this year?¡± One of Yue Linglong¡¯s remaining bodyguards muttered aloud as he nced at a cultivator whose cultivation level he was unable to decipher.

    ¡°Ah, don¡¯t you know, dear guests? This year is precisely the year when the Rainbow Lotus Flower in the Sunset Mountain Range¡¯s lotus pond is supposed to bear seeds. This urs only once every one-hundred years, so there are naturally cultivators who havee from far and wide just to seize the seeds for themselves. These people are not here for sight-seeing.¡± The attendant exined in a loud voice.

    ¡°The year that the Rainbow Lotus Flower bears seeds?¡± Yue Linglong¡¯s bodyguard couldn¡¯t help but turn his gaze towards Ye Xiuwen ¨C If memory serves me well, the Rainbow Lotus Flower was exactly the fiendish war god¡¯s objective, wasn¡¯t it? I wonder how he would react when he hears what the attendant has to say? There are so many people vying for the lotus seeds after all!

    After observing Ye Xiuwen for a little while longer, he discovered that Ye Xiuwen remained calm and cid, as though he had already expected the intensepetition in this regard. The bodyguard sighed in his heart ¨C Sigh, no wonder they say that strong people are invariably in a league of their own. How could they face the intense circumstances with such ease?

    Then, he nced discreetly at Princess Linglong.

    As Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguard, he could not wrap his mind around what Princess Linglong was thinking right now. The fiendish war god had only requested of them to lead him to this ce, so that request had already been fulfilled as soon as they entered the Sunset Mountain Range. Why was the Princess still lingering around like this? Was the Princess thinking of vying for the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower as well? The bodyguard simply couldn¡¯t wrap his mind around these thoughts.

    Unfortunately, the bodyguard would never be able to understand Princess Linglong¡¯s thoughts. He was not one of the bodyguards who had watched over Princess Linglong as she grew up. Thus, he naturally wouldn¡¯t understand the extent of the blow that Ye Xiuwen had dealt Princess Linglong by trampling on her pride and humiliating her in front of all her entourage of people.

    Furthermore, the thing that irked Princess Linglong the most was the fact that this was the second time she had found herself stumbling before Jun Xiaomo. In Princess Linglong¡¯s mind, Jun Xiaomo was miles behind her, whether in terms of beauty, identity, stature or wealth. Thus, she could neither understand why her own fianc¨¦ would be so enraptured by Jun Xiaomo; nor why the strikingly handsome man would appearpletely unfazed by her own beauty. After all, Ye Xiuwen had hardly even deigned to cast a passing nce at her.

    Princess Linglong had been given anything she desired ever since she was young. How could she understand the truth of the matter, that rtionships had to be nurtured, not seized? Perhaps one might experience a temporal infatuation by a certain object of beauty, but true,sting rtionships are things that are nurtured over the investment of time. There were no shortcuts in this regard.

    Overwhelmed by the desire to earn her dignity back, Yue Linglong naturally bore no thoughts of returning as yet. She was simply biding for time while waiting for reinforcements to arrive from both her father and her sect. When that happens, she would finally show Jun Xiaomo who was on top!

    Princess Linglong didn¡¯t have to wait for long. On the third day of their arrival at the Sunset Mountain Range, her fianc¨¦ Zou Zilong arrived, leading a group of Zephyr Sect disciples. One of the disciples who had appeared together with Zou Zilong was a person that Princess Linglong could hardly stand ¨C Zhuang Lenghui.

    ¡°Why are you here as well?¡± Princess Linglong furrowed her brows and asked when she saw Zhuang Lenghui walking alongside Zou Zilong.

    Zhuang Lenghui curled her lips into a smile as she quipped, ¡°I heard that the Sunset Mountain Range is pretty scenic, so I¡¯d thought to tag along.¡±

    ¡°Is that so...¡± Princess Linglong made her way over to Zou Zilong¡¯s side, hooked his arm around hers and pulled him in closer. Then, ncing back at Zhuang Lenghui, she barked, ¡°You¡¯d best keep your thoughts that way. Don¡¯t you dare let your heart wander.¡±

    Zhuang Lenghui smiled meaningfully, before turning and walking away, ignoring Princess Linglong¡¯s threats entirely.

    Just as much as Princess Linglong disliked her, she, too, disliked Princess Linglong. She found Princess Linglong an incredibly willful, headstrong yet na?ve person. Does she really think that everyone was like her, perpetually bogged down by useless thoughts about rtionships and love?

    Does she think that Zou Zilong is like a steamed bun that everyone wants to take a bite out of? Zhuang Lenghui thought disdainfully to herself. She had no respect for men who sold themselves through marriages just so that they could earn themselves stature and power.

    The only reason why she hade today was because her master had instructed her to take charge of several Zephyr Sect disciples and seize the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower. In other words, it had nothing to do with Princess Linglong whatsoever, much less Jun Xiaomo who had returned from the dead.

    As she walked past Jun Xiaomo, Zhuang Lenghui cast a fleeting nce at her and noticed how feeble and frail she looked, as though she would be battered and swayed about by a gentle breeze. She immediatelyughed at her sardonically in her heart.

    So what if you¡¯ve be Elder Tong¡¯s disciple? Look at how decrepit you¡¯ve be! You¡¯re not even a worthy opponent to me right now.

    With such thoughts on her mind, Zhuang Lenghui walked upstairs to her room in a good mood.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo waspletely unaware that she had just beenbelled a ¡°weak and frail¡±dy by her previous ¡°martial sister¡±. In fact, even if she were aware of this, she would hardly have the energy to address her mind to these trivial matters. After all, she was being incessantly tormented by the child in her womb. Even though her child were no more than a clump of fetal energy right now, it still remained a fact that their respective bodies were built on different and opposite energies, and the fetus would constantly draw in the surrounding spiritual energy in order to fuel its own growth. Thus, Jun Xiaomo was growing noticeably feebler and frailer by the day.

    Ye Xiuwen had already personally witnessed Jun Xiaomo passing out a few times without any warning. Each time, his gaze would darken as he turned his attention to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen as he toyed with the notion of aborting the child.

    If the cost of pregnancy was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, he would much rather the child perish within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb.

    The sprightly old man could see the thoughts guing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, and he would time and again remind Ye Xiuwen not to act rashly. After all, the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower were just in front of their eyes. They had coincidentally arrived at the Sunset Mountain Range at the most opportune time, and it would be too much of a waste to give up on seizing it right now.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo had time and again reiterated her position to Ye Xiuwen as well ¨C no matter what happened, she would never abandon her child. Thus, under both Jun Xiaomo and the old man¡¯s constant reminders, Ye Xiuwen managed to forcibly suppress the urge to act impulsively.

    Jun Xiaomo had once again passed out without warning today. The Rainbow Flower Lotus was going to bear fruits in just a few days¡¯ time, and Ye Xiuwen had intended to bring Jun Xiaomo out for a stroll so that they could check on its situation and survey their surroundings as well. Unfortunately, those ns would naturally have to be shelved for the time being, given how Jun Xiaomo had passed out again.

    ¡°Alright, is there really a need to be so distressed and troubled? Can¡¯t ye just leave your wife here and survey the surroundings on your own?¡± The sprightly old man poured out a cup of wine and took arge swig from it, before adding, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Nothing is going to go wrong with this old man watching over her.¡± The old man patted his chest as he reassured Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was well aware of the old man¡¯s abilities, so he knew that protecting Jun Xiaomo was hardly an issue for him. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t shake off the uneasiness guing his heart for some strange reason.

    ¡°Alright, alright. What¡¯s going to happen if ye don¡¯t make this trip to the lotus pond to survey yer surroundings? Who are ye going to run crying to when ye fail to seize the lotus seeds at that time? Even if ye are able to deal with the failure, yer wife most certainly can¡¯t.¡± The old man continued to coax Ye Xiuwen until Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was finally moved.

    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll leave her here with you. I hope that she¡¯ll still be safe and sound by the time I return.¡± Ye Xiuwen nced back at the tightly shut door to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s room as he finally relented.

    The old man waved his hand dismissively, signaling that everything was going to be alright.

    With that, Ye Xiuwen activated his Windwalk ability and made his way straight towards the lotus pond, intending to quickly survey the surroundings there before making a beeline back to the inn.

    The old man hupped as he pulled a chair over to the side closest to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bed. There, he hummed a chirpy little song as he continued to indulge himself with food and drinks.

    Unfortunately, the old man had miscalcted. After all, how could he have ever expected someone to spike his food like that? Shortly after Ye Xiuwen¡¯s departure, his body swayed slightly, and his vision faded to ck. Momentster, his head slumped andnded with a resounding thud onto the table in the room.

    ¡°Foolish old man.¡± Princess Linglong strode brazenly into the room and nudged the old man slightly. Once he ascertained that the old man was dead asleep, her lips began to curl up into a wicked smile.

    Then, turning her gaze towards how Jun Xiaomoy unconscious on the bed with her eyes tightly shut, Princess Linglong revealed a victorious gleam in the depths of her eyes ¨C she was intent on seeing just how smug Jun Xiaomo could be when she finally realized that she was waltzing in the palm of her hand!

    ¡°Men, take Jun Xiaomo away!¡± Princess Linglong instructed the men behind her.

    ¡°Yes.¡± None of them dared to disobey Princess Linglong. Even though they were afraid that Ye Xiuwen woulde after them as soon as he realized something amiss, they still obeyed Princess Linglong¡¯s instructions.

    Let¡¯s just hope that Ye Xiuwen wouldn¡¯t be able to do a thing against Princess Linglong now that her husband¡¯s around. Princess Linglong¡¯s men hoped for the best.

    The ¡°husband¡± that they referred to naturally referred to the First-Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Peak, Zou Zilong. In their eyes, Zou Zilong was already incredibly distinguished and powerful in his own right. After all, his cultivation level was well above that of most of his contemporaries. Yet, despite all of that, Zou Zilong¡¯s abilities were only in the elementary-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation.

    His abilities could not even bepared with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abilities, much less Ye Xiuwen!

    Thus, it was evident that Princess Linglong and her faction had once again underestimated Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities, and they were fated to pay the price for such a costly mistake.

    The old many on the table,pletely knocked out, even after Princess Linglong took Jun Xiaomo away.

    Trapped in a long-drawn dream, the old man continued to smack his lips casually,pletely ignorant to the fact that his own disciple would soon rain hellfire on him for his oversight.

    Jun Xiaomo awakened from her stupor to an immense wave of nausea. As soon as she opened her eyes, she discovered that her surroundings hadpletely changed. She was no longer in her own room within the inn. Instead, she noticed that she was now located within an old wooden hut that was filled with logs and other scrap materials.

    She was hungry, and she could feel the twinges from cramps in her abdomen. It was very likely that she had naturally roused from her stupor because she needed food and sustenance.

    Truth be told, a person in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation should generally be able go on for a few months on end without consuming any food. That said, there was a clump of fetal energy that was struggling furiously to form its own body. Naturally, the amount of nutrition that her body required was far more than that of any other cultivator in her shoes. If she continued to simply stave off the hunger without feeding herself, the fetal energy within her body would quickly deplete her body¡¯s energy, and her body¡¯s condition would only worsen more quickly.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced slightly, thinking tob through her Interspatial Ring for some sustenance. To her horror, she discovered that both of her hands had been tightly bound using a peculiar set of chains. These chains were so secure that she was unable to loosen or free her fetters no matter what she did.

    Just as she was struggling to break free of her shackles, the door to the wooden hut swung open, and a person walked through the door with his back to the light.

    ¡°Stop struggling. You won¡¯t be able to break those shackles.¡± The person spoke slowly as his gaze slowly slithered about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body like a vicious snake.

    Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, attempting to identify the person who had just entered the room. Unfortunately, with his back to the light, she was unable to see any identifying features right now.

    Was this someone that she knew?

 Chapter 371: Zou Zilongâ€™s Lust, Yue Linglongâ€™s Fury

    <h4>Chapter 371: Zou Zilong¡¯s Lust, Yue Linglong¡¯s Fury</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Zou Zilong ced his hands behind his back and slowly bent over as he looked down upon Jun Xiaomo. She was bound and restrained on the floor right now. Faced with the unyielding and resentful look in her eyes, a fire once again ignited in his belly, burning with an impassioned ze.

    He squinted his eyes and began to size up Jun Xiaomo as he searched through his own memory for what little he remembered of her.

    They had only crossed paths for a short time within the Zephyr Sect. After that, it was a long period of separation of eleven whole years. Naturally, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances had begun to somewhat fade in his mind. That said, her striking red garments had left a deep impression in his mind, and its colour only seemed to grow more and more striking with each passing night, as though a raging fire that was zing and burning an indelible mark in the depths of his memories.

    Perhaps the notion that the unobtainable were the best things was particrly strong in Zou Zilong¡¯s mind. Even though he now held the title of Princess Linglong¡¯s husband, having been married to Princess Linglong five years ago, theirs was nothing more than a paper marriage. Princess Linglong rarely hung around him, spending most of her time within the pce, surrounded by an entire harem of men. At the same time, Zou Zilong would maintain discreet, ndestine rtionships with several women behind her back all at once.

    As a distinguished disciple of the Zephyr Sect, Zou Zilong had nevercked women by his side. Even though they knew full well that Princess Linglong would personally y their skin and pluck their nerves if she discovered their existence, these women were still willing to take the risk to flock to Zou Zilong¡¯s side. Zou Zilong had never thought to reject their advances either.

    Unfortunately, repetition breeds a waning interest, and even the most delectable of foods would grow in and insipid after protracted consumption. When Zou Zilong looked at the women around him who were lying patiently at his beck and call, he began to find these womenpletely dull and vapid.

    At these times, he would subconsciously turn his mind towards Jun Xiaomo once again. Back then, when Jun Xiaomo first entered the Zephyr Sect, her striking red garments immediately caught Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes. At that time, his intention was to seduce her for one-time tasting before discarding her like a used rag. Unexpectedly, not only were his advances met with disdain and contempt, she even began to avoid him like the gue.

    Moreover, he discovered to his surprise that Jun Xiaomo continued to be just as unyielding and resolute even when facing Princess Linglong, ady of much higher stature with much stronger backing. At that time, despite being beaten bloody, Jun Xiaomo had continued to refuse to acknowledge the wrong that she had notmitted.

    Zou Zilong had initially hated just how much Jun Xiaomo ¡°didn¡¯t know what was good for her¡±. She had even smeared his own name before Princess Linglong and the others within the Zephyr Sect. Yet, as the days went by, and all traces of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence within the Zephyr Sect seemed to vanish into thin air, traces of remorse and regret began to creep back into his heart.

    He had even attempted to look for women who bore simr appearances to Jun Xiaomo or possessed simr fiery temperaments just to satiate his thirst and lust. Unfortunately, no matter how fiery their temperament, he discovered to his dismay that he was still able to make them dance in the palm of his hand somewhat effortlessly ¨C all it took were a few months of effort at best. In fact, some of these women would even end up pestering him after he won their hearts, vexing and frustrating him to no end.

    At these times, he couldn¡¯t help but think of Jun Xiaomo again ¨C if this were Jun Xiaomo, how much time would he need before he could win her heart? And how much time would he need to discard and abandon her afterwards?

    Zou Zilong had thought that he would no longer have the opportunity to find the answers to these questions within his heart. Unexpectedly, Princess Linglong had actually outdone herself this time ¨C she had delivered Jun Xiaomo straight into his hands!

    As Zou Zilong slowly made his way towards Jun Xiaomo, he discovered that the present Jun Xiaomo appeared much feebler and frailer than the Jun Xiaomo of his memories. She no longer possessed her cold, haughty gaze in her eyes nor carried herself with an imposing disposition.

    However, even though Jun Xiaomo appeared much frailer right now, her exquisite appearances replete with a pair of unyielding, resolute eyes on her pale face seemed to exude a different type of beauty ¨C one that was weak and feeble, yet tenacious and stubborn.

    At the very least, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present appearances gave Zou Zilong the urge to devour her once again.

    Having deflowered so manydies before, Zou Zilong naturally knew that he couldn¡¯t afford to be anxious or impatient at such a critical moment. After all, rather than force people to ept his advances, he much preferred it when others threw themselves into his arms or leaned into his bosom willingly.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. I won¡¯t hurt you.¡± Zou Zilong bent over and ced his right arm over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, gently squeezing it as he reassured Jun Xiaomo with a soft and warm voice.

    She¡¯s be far too skinny. It might not be sofortable to embrace herter. Zou Zilong eximed in his heart as he toyed with the idea of fattening her up before devouring herter on.

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced as she struggled slightly to shake off Zou Zilong¡¯s palm. She cast a furious gaze at Zou Zilong,ced with a threatening, murderous intent.

    Despite having lost her memories, Jun Xiaomo was no fool, and she was still able to tell whether a person harboured ulterior motives towards her. At the very least, no matter how perfect this man¡¯s pretensions were, he would never be able to mask the disgusting, greasy and slimy lookcing the depths of his gaze. Just this fact alone was sufficient to sound the rms in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart and raise her vignce against him to the maximum.

    ¡°Hah, you¡¯re still just as vignt as before.¡± Zou Zilong curled his lips into a wicked smile as he continued to grip Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders tightly, ¡°I¡¯d heard from Princess Linglong that you¡¯ve lost your memory, so I was wondering whether I could treat you a little bit better so that you would throw yourself into my arms of your own volition. But from how things look right now, it seems that the odds of seeding in that regard might not be too high, hmm?¡±

    His gaze was transfixed on the grimace on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. A vicious gleam flickered across the depths of his eyes, ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, don¡¯t you think I might as well just ¡®devour¡¯ you first? After all, you¡¯ve already been living on borrowed time ever since you were captured by Princess Linglong.¡±

    As Zou Zilong spoke, he licked his lips greedily, all the while keeping his eyes fixed on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face like a poisonous snake poised to strike.

    Yet Jun Xiaomo hardly revealed a single trace of fear or anxiety. Looking at Zou Zilong, she coldly barked, ¡°Mark my words, I¡¯ll drag you down to hell with me if you dare do anything to me.¡±

    ¡°Oh, is that so? But from what I can tell, those words hardly carry any weight behind them. Look at yourself. How could you possibly drag me to hell like that...?¡± Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes gleamed with a fiery, passionate gaze as he mocked and teased Jun Xiaomo.

    That¡¯s right. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s rejection was stoking the mes of his fiery passion and stirring his heart. If one were to describe the previous state of his heart as lukewarm, then right now, it would most certainly be at its boiling point ¨C he could hardly contain his desire to devour Jun Xiaomo any longer.

    With one leap, Zou Zilong pounced onto Jun Xiaomo, pinning her body down as he began to make his move against her.

    ¡°What are you doing?! Let go of me!¡± Jun Xiaomo was both shocked and infuriated. If only she had ess to a whip right now, she would have made minced meat out of Zou Zilong! Unfortunately, her hands were tightly shackled by chains, and she could only feebly attempt to push Zou Zilong away with her knees.

    However, Zou Zilong simply pushed back down on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s knees as he coldly quipped, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you finally afraid of me? To think that you¡¯d been thinking of dragging me down to the depths of hell with you earlier. I¡¯d like to see just how you¡¯re going to do that!¡±

    As Zou Zilong finished speaking, he stuck out his tongue and licked Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks. Her cheeks had turned red from anger by now.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was awash with revulsion. Just a little while ago, she was still mad at Ye Xiuwen for binding and restraining her, and she her heart would always be filled with thoughts of resisting whenever Ye Xiuwen drew close to her.

    Yet no matter how much her heart was gued by thoughts of resisting, she had never found Ye Xiuwen¡¯s advances revolting and uneptable. It was only at this very moment when the strange, revulsive man climbed onto her body that she finally understood the fine distinctions between these emotions of hers.

    Drawing a deep breath, Jun Xiaomo lifted her head ferociously, striking Zou Zilong directly on the head with a resounding thud. Zou Zilong was caughtpletely unaware by her sudden attack. His mind jolted about, momentarily stupefying him, and he even identally bit off a third of his outstretched tongue, filling his mouth with the nauseating stench of blood.

    ¡°You slut!¡± Zou Zilong waspletely incensed. He pped Jun Xiaomo on the cheek, causing her face to swell up, and blood began to trickle out of her mouth.

    Jun Xiaomo continued to re coldly at him. Even though her mind was sent spinning by Zou Zilong¡¯s vicious p, she nevertheless gritted her teeth and hung in there.

    ¡°Haha, it seems like you¡¯re different from everyone else. That¡¯s fine. This would only make things more exciting.¡± Zou Zilong barked with a manic look in his eyes. He promptly retrieved a pill from his Interspatial Ring and consumed it, and his wounds recovered in no time.

    Stretching out his hand once more, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly swollen cheek, ¡°If you don¡¯t wish to receive any more punishment, you could always ept your fate and try your best to enjoy the process, you know? Once I¡¯m through with you, I¡¯m not going toe back for more even if youe crying to me.¡±

    Gritting her teeth, Jun Xiaomo barked, ¡°Dream. On.¡±

    Zou Zilong intentionally pinched Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly swollen cheek as he added, ¡°You¡¯ll find out soon enough whether I¡¯m truly dreaming or not.¡±

    The pain caused tears to seep out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. That said, she continued to re at Zou Zilong with an unyielding gaze despite her red, puffy eyes, stirring the sadistic tendencies in Zou Zilong¡¯s heart.

    He once again gripped Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower jaws tightly, stemming all forms of resistance whatsoever as he lowered his head and bit down furiously onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. Then, he began to grind his teeth against her lips.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fists tightened, and she began to struggle intensely. She secretly hated how she was so weak and unable to defend herself. If possible, it was her sincere desire to split Zou Zilong¡¯s head like a watermelon with one ferocious palm strike right now.

    Just then, a faint rustling of footsteps and chittering of voices resounded from afar. Slowly, but surely, one could make out words and phrases such as ¡°princess¡±, ¡°she¡¯s inside¡±, or ¡°we saw your husband head that way¡±.

    Zou Zilong immediately pushed Jun Xiaomo away and turned his head to look at the door. Almost simultaneously, the door to the wooden hut swung open, and Princess Linglong stared at the two people within with an ashen gaze. Her bodyguards craned their necks to peer into the hut as well.

    They were immediately greeted by the sight of Zou Zilong half-kneeling by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side with his upper body still pinning down Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. Their clothes were disheveled and disorderly, and it was well apparent that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were even swollen and red.

    It didn¡¯t take a genius to guess just what the two had been up to.

    ¡°Zou Zilong! You¡¯d stoop so low to even tussle with a prisoner? Have you any respect for This Highness here?!¡± Princess Linglong shrieked at the top of her voice.

    Zou Zilong stood up slowly, adjusting his clothes, and he presented himself immacte and dignified within mere moments.

    Then, he slowly responded, ¡°Princess, aren¡¯t you personally well aware of the kind of rtionship we maintain? You were nning to take Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life sooner orter, weren¡¯t you? Since that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s no harm in letting me have a little taste of her before you kill her, is there?¡±

    Princess Linglong chuckled coldly, ¡°Zou Zilong, do you think I¡¯d be unaware of the fact that you¡¯ve been coveting her for a long time? That¡¯s why you¡¯d been keeping a whole bunch of lookalikes by your side. Hmph. It¡¯s a good thing that you¡¯re not so hopelessly infatuated that you¡¯ve released her. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t let you off even if you¡¯re my husband!¡±

    As Princess Linglong finished speaking, she turned her gaze towards Jun Xiaomo. She had reached her boiling point right now.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, I¡¯ve underestimated you. To think that you were able to seduce my husband despite having been reduced to such a state. Let¡¯s see if there¡¯s still any person who¡¯s willing to take pity on you once I gouge your eyes, pluck your nerves, cripple your Dantian and toss you to the whorehouses in the mortal world!¡±

 Chapter 372: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Murderous Intent, Rescued by the Sprightly Old Man

    <h4>Chapter 372: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Murderous Intent, Rescued by the Sprightly Old Man</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Bang! A thunderous noise caught the attention of all who were in the courtyard. Everyone craning their necks and looking into the small wooden hut could practically feel the tremors echoing through their internal organs. As they turned their heads around reflexively, they saw Ye Xiuwen standing in the middle of the courtyard. To their horror, everything within a ten-meter radius had beenpletely reduced into nothing more than sawdust.

    One step at a time, Ye Xiuwen began to march towards Princess Linglong and the rest. His ink-ck, abstruse eyes were barely able to conceal the two immeasurably deep whirlpools intent on consuming and destroying everything in his path.

    ¡°Who were you saying you were going to toss to the whorehouses in the mortal world? Repeat it for me.¡± Ye Xiuwen stared at Princess Linglong with a gaze so frigid that it sent chills straight down her spine.

    ¡°I...I never...¡± Princess Linglong had never expected Ye Xiuwen to appear so suddenly at this ce. The exigency hadpletely stripped away her ability to think on her feet, and she found herself stammering and stuttering in response to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cold interrogation.

    ¡°Are you trying to say that you¡¯ve never said you were going to throw anyone into the whorehouses in the mortal world, or are you trying to say that you¡¯ve never capitalized on my absence to drug my master and capture Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen uttered coldly as he continued to march towards Princess Linglong and her men with an aura that was growing all the more imposing by the second.

    He was already in the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, while Princess Linglong had only just broken through to the advanced-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation. In other words, hepletely crushed her in terms of his cultivation abilities.

    Finally, when Ye Xiuwen was merely meters away from Princess Linglong, her bodyguards finally managed to collect themselves and rally together as they yelled at the other Zephyr Sect disciples around, ¡°This man is formidable. Quickly, protect the Princess!¡±

    The Greenwich Kingdom and the Zephyr Sect were in a symbiotic rtionship. With her distinguished status in the Greenwich Kingdom, Princess Linglong was naturally also entitled tomand a portion of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s ordinary disciples to do her bidding, just like she did right now.

    At the very least, these Zephyr Sect disciples knew that they could not stand idly by as they watched Princess Linglong perish before their very eyes.

    Thus, each of them began to retrieve their own weapons of choice and stood in front of Princess Linglong, attempting to dissuade Ye Xiuwen from taking a further step forward.

    ¡°If you don¡¯t wish to die, stand aside.¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered coldly as the vile energy continued to swirl vigorously within his eyes.

    Princess Linglong stared nervously at Ye Xiuwen. Her heart was filled with both hatred and fear right now. She hated that Ye Xiuwen had arrived so quickly that she had been unable to do a single thing to Jun Xiaomo. At the same time, she also feared the expression that was on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face ¨C she could tell that he did not intend to let her off the hook lightly, if at all.

    Princess Linglong was unable to tell the exact extent of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation level. The only thing she knew was that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were well above her own.

    Ever since learning that Jun Xiaomo was still alive, Princess Linglong had conducted her own investigations and learnt that there was a man who stood beside Jun Xiaomo, supporting her. This man was none other than Ye Xiuwen, the Heavenly Peak¡¯s First-Seat Disciple. Amongst other things, Princess Linglong had learnt that Ye Xiuwen was only in his thirties right now, hardly any older than Jun Xiaomo was.

    A person in his thirties was considered incredibly young within the cultivation world. In fact, some would even consider him akin to a newborn in the mortal world.

    Thus, Princess Linglong firmly believed that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were limited. After all, conventional wisdom dictated that no matter how talented he was, there was no way he would be able to achieve much with the meagre number of years under his belt. At best, his cultivation level would be no more than the Golden Core stage of cultivation, right?

    At the same time, there were several Zephyr Sect disciples standing around Princess Linglong whose cultivation levels were already in the secondary-tier Golden Core stage and above. Thus, Princess Linglong assessed that Ye Xiuwen was hardly a threat to her any longer.

    With those thoughts in mind, her heart began to feel much more at ease.

    Princess Linglong nced at Ye Xiuwen once more, and a contemptuous smile crept up her face, ¡°You must be Ye Xiuwen, right? This Highness has already checked out your identity. What¡¯s the matter? Are you thinking of exacting vengeance for your martial sister by killing This Highness? s, it¡¯s such a pity. Do you think you¡¯d be able to aplish that with your present cultivation level? Dream on. That said, This Highnessmends you for your courage ining to this ce alone. Perhaps if you wagged your tail obsequiously and pleaded for sympathy, This Highness might just extend that measure of mercy to you and spare your damned life.¡±

    Princess Linglong had noticed the several formidable Zephyr Sect disciples standing on her side, and she stood by her assessment that Ye Xiuwen would be unable to deal with her reinforcements. It was for this sole reason that she had provoked Ye Xiuwen without hesitation.

    That said, the Zephyr Sect disciples standing in front of Princess Linglong hardly appeared at ease at all. In fact, their backs even began to be covered by profuse, cold sweat when Princess Linglong began to threaten Ye Xiuwen thoughtlessly.

    Princess, even if you¡¯re looking for death, that¡¯s not the way to do it! None of the Zephyr Sect disciples were able to perceive the depth of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation!

    In other words, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation was most certainly well above theirs. In fact, it would hardly be a surprise if Ye Xiuwen could singlehandedly dispose of a group of cultivators at the Golden Core stage of cultivation like they were.

    Just as the Zephyr Sect disciples were contemting whether to abandon Princess Linglong and save their own skin, Ye Xiuwen made his move.

    He had moved without any warning at all, and no one was able to react in time. In the blink of an eye, Princess Linglong found herselfpletely at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mercy. Ye Xiuwen had wrapped his fingers firmly around Princess Linglong¡¯s slender neck in a chokehold, lifting her up with ease, leaving her feet dangling and iling about in mid-air. Furthermore, Ye Xiuwen had retreated from the group of bodyguards and Zephyr Sect disciples as soon as he captured Princess Linglong, leaving them with hardly any opening to rescue Princess Linglong.

    ¡°Uhk...huurk...¡± Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes were bulging and forced to stare at the ground as she struggled furiously to pry Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers apart. Unfortunately, her efforts were futile. No matter what she did, she found that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s grip around her neck only grew tighter and tighter.

    As soon as the rest motioned to charge forward to rescue Princess Linglong, Ye Xiuwen swept a cold, threatening gaze at all of them, sending chills down their spines and halting any further movements.

    ¡°You...let go of the Princess. We can discuss matters civilly. There¡¯s no need to resort to violence.¡± The bodyguard responsible for Princess Linglong¡¯s safety stammered sheepishly, hoping to convince Ye Xiuwen to release Princess Linglong.

    Ye Xiuwen nced cidly back as he muttered, ¡°A life for a life. If you don¡¯t wish for your princess to die by my hands, bring Jun Xiaomo back out and release her to me.¡±

    Princess Linglong¡¯s gaze slowly shifted towards her bodyguards that stood a distance away, sending them a pleading look.

    It was the first time that she had found herself in a truly life-threatening situation, and she finally realized how all those people who were tormented by her had felt just before they perished tragically. Her neck felt incredibly weak and frail in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s tight grip ¨C it was as though he need only slightly tighten his grip in order to snap and crush her neck.

    Unfortunately, none of her bodyguards found themselves able to sympathize with Princess Linglong at this moment. In fact, some of them even felt a peculiar sense of joy seeing her plight.

    After all, Princess Linglong had never treated them with any measure of mercy or sympathy. In fact, they would invariably suffer whenever Princess Linglong was in a bad mood. Those who were lucky would escape from her wrath with just a few whishes, while those who were less fortunate would find themselves crippled by Princess Linglong and cast out of the pce grounds.

    That said, the joy in their heart manifested but for a fleeting moment. As her bodyguards, none of them could afford to stand idly by and watch as tragedy befell Princess Linglong.

    Thus, they reacted almost immediately. Some remained in the courtyard, attempting to appease Ye Xiuwen, while the rest immediately ran into the wooden hut, thinking to bring Jun Xiaomo back out for the trade that Ye Xiuwen had earlier proposed.

    Unfortunately, those who ran into the wooden hut ran back out clumsily within moments, shouting at the top of their voices, ¡°Damn it! Damn it! The two in the wooden hut have vanished!¡±

    Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes widened. At the same time, she could feel Ye Xiuwen¡¯s grip slowly tightening around her neck.

    Save me...quick, save me... The fear and anxiety in Princess Linglong¡¯s heart burgeoned as she beckoned to those standing around with bulging eyes. She appeared no different than a choking frog right now.

    ¡°Dear senior, we beg of you to release the Princess. It¡¯s not that we don¡¯t want to release Miss Jun. It¡¯s just that we don¡¯t know where Miss Jun might be right now...¡± One of the Princess¡¯s bodyguard began to entreat Ye Xiuwen, fearing that Ye Xiuwen might snap Princess Linglong¡¯s neck in the very next moment.

    ¡°If you¡¯re unable to produce and hand over my Little Martial Sister, then you leave me with no choice but to dissect your Princess.¡± Ye Xiuwen¡¯s voice was cold as Thousand-Year Frost.

    ¡°Esteemed senior, esteemed senior, your martial sister must have been taken by Zou Zilong. They were the only two people remaining within the wooden hut earlier. He must have been the culprit responsible for that.¡± Another one of Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards hurriedly revealed his posttions to Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Who is he? Where is he right now?¡± Ye Xiuwen turned his icy gaze towards the bodyguard who had just spoken up, sending shivers down his back.

    ¡°I...I don¡¯t know. But he should be nearby. He¡¯s the Princess¡¯s husband, so he probably wouldn¡¯t have brought your martial sister too far away from us.¡±

    ¡°Since he is your Princess¡¯s husband, then the Princess is going to have to follow me for a trip.¡± Ye Xiuwen continued to hold Princess Linglong¡¯s neck with a vice-like grip.

    He intended to use Princess Linglong to lure out Zou Zilong.

    As Princess Linglong continued to struggle, she managed to loosen one of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s fingers slightly, and she sputtered, ¡°This Highness can call Zou Zilong back if you release this Highness now.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen sized her up sullenly, evidently skeptical of her words.

    Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes reddened slightly, before she swore resolutely, ¡°This Highness speaks the truth! This Highness swears on it! And Zou Zilong would never dare to disobey this Highness unless he wants to risk losing his title as my husband.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes slightly, sizing up Princess Linglong once more, before he finally conceded, ¡°You¡¯d best make good on your word.¡±

    He threw Princess Linglong onto the ground as soon as he finished speaking.

    Princess Linglongy on the ground, coughing and hacking as the breath of fresh air filled her with second wind. Her bodyguards and the Zephyr Sect disciples also immediately ran up to her and helped her back up to her feet.

    Ye Xiuwen folded his arms and watched the scene unfold dispassionately, waiting for Princess Linglong to fulfill her end of the deal to recall Zou Zilong.

    Unfortunately, Princess Linglong had never been a woman of her words. As soon as she felt safe and secure in the numbers that they had, her expression changedpletely, and she pointed at Ye Xiuwen as she ordered those around her, ¡°Capture that man right now! This Highness will greatly reward anyone who does so!¡±

    In the blink of an eye, the atmosphere grew tense and harsh once more.

    On the other side, as soon as Zou Zilong realized that somebody had arrived to rescue Jun Xiaomo, he was immediately awash with reluctance to see his ¡°fresh meat¡± seized from right under his nose. Thus, he took Jun Xiaomo and escaped the wooden hut from a back door.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and feet were still shackled and bound, and she had no ability to resist Zou Zilong at all.

    Zou Zilong had thought that everything would go without a hitch once he had left the wooden hut from the back door. Unexpectedly, after travelling only a short distance, he bumped into a spirited, sprightly old man.

    ¡°Young brother, may I know where ye might be runnin¡¯ with my disciple¡¯s wife?¡± The old man smiled radiantly as he asked. If one ignored the content of the words he was saying, it would be easy to mistake him for a warm-hearted, friendly old man.

    That¡¯s right ¨C this old man was none other than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master. After receiving a harsh dressing down from his own disciple, he took it upon himself to resolve the problem that his indiscretion had given rise to.

 Chapter 373: A Crushing Force, Princess Linglongâ€™s Miscalculation

    <h4>Chapter 373: A Crushing Force, Princess Linglong¡¯s Miscalction</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The sprightly old man had only aroused from his stupor after Ye Xiuwen returned from his reconnaissance mission.

    Despite being the old man¡¯s disciple, Ye Xiuwen was hardly courteous with his master. He poured a bucket of cold water over the old man¡¯s, engulfing his headpletely, causing the old man to think for a moment that he had been tossed into a pond of sorts. Naturally, if there were a pond near the inn, Ye Xiuwen might well have done even that instead.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Jun Xiaomo?¡± Ye Xiuwen cast an ashen look at the old man. His voice was incredibly cid, but the old man could sense the flourishing of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s oppressive aura.

    Faced with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s imposing gaze, the old man turned his head around sheepishly and nced towards the bed. In the next instant, his eyes widened with disbelief ¨C Where¡¯s Disciple-in-Law?!

    Ye Xiuwen pressed the issue coldly, ¡°Who¡¯s the one who had assured me time and again that he would help me to look after Jun Xiaomo and prevent anything from happening to her?¡±

    ¡°But...that...Disciple, please listen to Master¡¯s exnation. Master¡¯s usually very good at holding his alcohol, and he doesn¡¯t get drunk easily at all. This incident must have been an ident...an ident...¡±

    ¡°ident?¡± Ye Xiuwen repeated his master¡¯s words coldly, ¡°Since there could be an ident, why did you assure me time and again that nothing would go wrong? Is your guarantee so cheap that it¡¯s subject to just about any and every exigency and ident?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was incredibly disrespectful. If he had done this at any other point in time, the old man would most certainly have mmed his fist on the table andshed back, saying that Ye Xiuwen has no respect for his master. Unfortunately, the old man knew that he was at fault this time, and there was no way he could justify getting angry.

    Shrinking his head back slightly, the old man braced himself to face the music with a slightly pitiful expression on his face.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen did not castigate his master for too long, because the more pressing issue at hand was to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts.

    Ye Xiuwen walked to the tableside and sniffed at the wine cup, before tossing about the old man¡¯s leftovers with a pair of chopsticks.

    ¡°You¡¯ve been schemed against.¡± Ye Xiuwen threw his chopsticks onto the table and red coldly at the old man, ¡°Master, I truly wonder whether all your years of experience has been for naught. How could you fall for such a clumsy scheme? Take a look for yourself ¨C what¡¯s different about these dishes today?¡±

    The old man picked up his chopsticks and tossed the leftovers about before bringing some of it close to his nose for a gentle whiff.

    ¡°Triple Torpor?¡± The old man¡¯s eyes widened slightly.

    These dishes contained a type of drug called the Triple Torpor. The scent of the drug is extremely simr to that of the fragrance of wine, which was why the mildly intoxicated old man had failed to detect it when the dishes were served.

    It was only with the lens of suspicion that he finally detected the scent of Triple Torpor within the dishes.

    The old man set his chopsticks down gingerly. He was absolutely unable to retort a single word of his disciple¡¯s criticism.

    ¡°I¡¯ll deal with you when I¡¯m back.¡± Ye Xiuwen barked coldly. He was far more ill-tempered than he had ever been before. The fact that the old man¡¯s oversight had directly caused Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disappearance was something that Ye Xiuwen could never tolerate. Thus, notwithstanding the fact that the old man was his master, Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t think to let him off the hook so easily.

    The old man shrunk his head back even more, responding in silence.

    Truth be told, his cultivation and abilities were several levels higher than Ye Xiuwen¡¯s, and Ye Xiuwen was naturally no match for the old man in a proper battle. That said, the old man was incredibly guilt-ridden for the present incident, so he simply epted without putting up a fight when Ye Xiuwen said that he was going to deal with him.

    Ye Xiuwen was incensed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disappearance. Fortunately, he had always been vignt against Jun Xiaomo¡¯s escape, and he had previously already scattered on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body a type of powder that was useful for tracking purposes. Thus, he was able to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts in no time.

    This was why he had suddenly appeared in the courtyard that Princess Linglong was holding Jun Xiaomo in so quickly. It had taken Ye Xiuwen only slightly more than four hours between Jun Xiaomo¡¯s capture and his arrival.

    Ye Xiuwen possessed a wind-based spiritual root, and his movements were naturally much quicker than that of the old man. Yet, it was also because he wasgging far behind his own disciple that the old man happened to catch Zou Zilong red-handed just as he was about to shift Jun Xiaomo to a different location.

    Zou Zilong was neither aware of the extent of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities, nor certain of whether Ye Xiuwen would possess the ability to break out of Princess Linglong¡¯s encirclement. The only thought in his mind was simply that it would be far too much of a waste if his ¡°prey¡± was snatched away from right under his nose.

    As to whether Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disappearance would anger Ye Xiuwen, this was something that waspletely outside Zou Zilong¡¯s ambit of consideration. In his eyes, Ye Xiuwen possessed neither stature nor authority. So what if his cultivation level was higher than others? Without backing nor people skills, Ye Xiuwen could never create sufficient ripples to even touch him, much less affect him.

    Zou Zilong always viewed his identity as the First Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Peak an immunity pass of sorts, and he was certain that Ye Xiuwen would never dare to raise a finger against him, no matter how angry he was. This was one of the main reasons why Zou Zilong had brazenly removed Jun Xiaomo from the wooden hut, thinking to bring her to a safe ce where he could have his way with her before discarding her.

    Unfortunately, Zou Zilong had failed to consider the existence of a variable. After taking a mere few steps from the wooden hut, an old man stood right in front of him, obstructing his way. He was unable to see the old man¡¯s cultivation level, so it was immediately apparent to him that the old man¡¯s cultivation level was above his.

    Zou Zilong squinted his eyes, thoroughly displeased by the fact that his ns were being interrupted.

    ¡°I wonder if Senior would care to look the other way, and not interfere with business that is not your own.¡± Zou Zilong spoke rather discourteously.

    The old man red at him, so infuriated that he began to chuckle sardonically, ¡°Interfering with business not my own?! Young man, are ye deaf or just in stupid? Didn¡¯t ye hear what I said? Thedy ye are carrying is my Disciple-in-Law. If ye carry her away, my disciple would be all alone. How can ye call this ¡®interfering with business not my own¡¯?¡±

    Zou Zilong cast an unfriendly gaze at the old man, ¡°Since Senior is Ye Xiuwen¡¯s master, then Senior must have a pretty passable stature, right? I wonder what sect Senior hails from?¡±

    In other words, the old man hardly looked like a cultivator from arge sect no matter how Zou Zilong looked at it. So what if his abilities were strong? Can an individual¡¯s abilities trulypare with the power of an entire sect? Besides, practically all of Sect Elders and Peakmasters within the Zephyr Sect were in the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation or higher. For instance, Zou Zilong¡¯s master was already in the advanced-tier Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation.

    Thus, Zou Zilong hardly ced the old man in his sights at all.

    However, the old man simply snorted and chuckled coldly, ¡°This bag of bones had never thought that the younger generation would be so brazen after spending a mere several hundred years within the Death¡¯s Gorge. Since ye arecking in so many aspects, this Senior is going to take it upon himself to teach ye young sprout yer ce. Ye are going to learn the hard way that old is still gold!¡±

    ¡°Death¡¯s Gorge?! Impossible!¡± Zou Zilong eximed. From what he knew, nobody had ever escaped from the Death¡¯s Gorge alive.

    Unfortunately, the old man hardly deigned to debate with Zou Zilong whether a person could escape from the Death¡¯s Gorge alive. Instead, the sprightly old man simply made his move, leaving Zou Zilong no chance to react whatsoever. In the blink of an eye, a massive wave of pressure engulfed Zou Zilong¡¯s entire being like a tidal wave, causing his body to seize up momentarily, unable to escape.

    Zou Zilong¡¯s heart constricted slightly. It was only at this moment that he realized that the old man¡¯s abilities were well above his earlier estimations.

    Before Zou Zilong could think of an appropriate countermeasure, a shadow flickered by, and Jun Xiaomo vanished from his bosom, while he was sent flying back like a kite with a broken string.

    After striking several massive trees around and spitting out a huge mouthful of blood, Zou Zilong passed outpletely.

    The old man snorted dispassionately at Zou Zilong before looking back down at the still-unconscious Jun Xiaomo in his arms. When he saw Jun Xiaomo¡¯s appearances, he couldn¡¯t help but reel in horror as he eximed aloud, ¡°That li¡¯l brat! No wonder he was in such a hurry to take Disciple-in-Law away ¨C he was actually thinking of doing such a vile deed to her!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s outer coat had already slipped down past her corbone, and her pair of swollen lips was particrly striking on that pale face of hers. If one looked closely, he would even be able to make out some teeth marks on them ¨C Jun Xiaomo was evidently ferociously bitten by a person. With all these telltale signs in tow, Zou Zilong¡¯s intentions were markedly clear.

    ¡°Tsk tsk, it seems that Disciple-in-Law is quite a highly coveted person. As expected, Disciple¡¯s got good taste.¡± The sprightly old man chirped aloud. Just then, a thought suddenly struck the old man, and he smacked his own head, ¡°Damn! I forgot to send word to Disciple telling him that I¡¯ve already located Jun Xiaomo.¡±

    As he eximed, the old man retrieved a Transmission Talisman and imbued it with a thread of his own spiritual energy.

    On the other side, despite Princess Linglong¡¯s fierce orders, neither Zephyr Sect disciples nor her bodyguards made a move against Ye Xiuwen.

    What kind of a joke is this?! This man¡¯s abilities are clearly well above ours. If it were really so easy to capture him, how could he have possibly gained an edge over us and captured Princess Linglong earlier?! All of them knew the gravity of the present situation ¨C all, save for Princess Linglong. In fact, it might be more urate to say that Princess Linglong¡¯s rational mind had already been so consumed by rage that she had lost all ability to assess the situation at hand by now.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?! Are you all dumb?! This Highness has just ordered you to capture him! Didn¡¯t you hear me?!¡± Princess Linglong shrieked at the top of her voice. As the inferno of rage in her heart burgeoned to unprecedented levels, she spat furiously, ¡°You! If you still refuse to obey my orders, this Highness is going to ask the King to deal with you!¡± Princess Linglong pointed directly at her bodyguards.

    She did not possess the authority to threaten the Zephyr Sect disciples.

    Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards exchanged nces helplessly. Left with no choice, they braced themselves and began to surround Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s expressions darkened. As soon as the bodyguards settled down in the encirclement, Ye Xiuwen made his move ¨C a glint from his sword flickered quickly, leaving countless afterimages in the wake of his flurry of attacks. At the same time, all of his attacks were interspersed by innumerable Wind des that popted the air like an all-consuming mesh of destruction.

    Within a few moments, and after a cacophony of agonizing cries, Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards were all incapacitated and reduced to nothing more than a bunch of bloodied bodies on the floor. None of them had even the strength to hold their weapons anymore.

    This was the manifestation of the vast chasm between their abilities. If Princess Linglong were that little bit brighter, she would have realized that the fact that Ye Xiuwen dared to intrude upon her affairs all alone meant that he had no fear and hesitation to begin with ¨C it meant that he possessed the ability to crush them with his absolute strength at any time he wished.

 Chapter 374: Yue Linglongâ€™s Death, The Hopping Mad Old Man

    <h4>Chapter 374: Yue Linglong¡¯s Death, The Hopping Mad Old Man</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yue Linglong had never expected all of her men to be felled by Ye Xiuwen in just the blink of an eye, while Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely unharmed and unaffected.

    A bunch of useless things! Yue Linglong thought angrily to herself as she hollered at the Zephyr Sect disciples standing around, ¡°Which of you are willing to apprehend him? This Highness will reward greatly whoever captures him!¡±

    Unfortunately, the Zephyr Sect disciples simply exchanged sheepish nces as they thought to themselves in vexation ¨C Do you think we don¡¯t want your rewards? The only problemys with the fact that this man is far too strong! How could we possibly have the ability to capture and restrain him? What¡¯s the use of rewards if we¡¯ve lost our lives?

    Thus, despite having hollered for some time, not a single Zephyr Sect disciple responded to Princess Linglong¡¯s call. She stamped her feet in fury.

    ¡°You¡¯re all a bunch of no good things!¡± Princess Linglong cursed at them aloud.

    Just then, Ye Xiuwen suddenly made his move. Under the augmentation of his Windwalk ability, Ye Xiuwen was so fast that nobody was able to see his movements ¨C the only thing they saw was a shadow flicker about. Princess Linglong¡¯s spirits had always been incredibly tense. Thus, as soon as she noticed Ye Xiuwen making his move, she immediately shrieked at all of the surrounding Zephyr Sect disciples once more, ¡°Quick! Hurry up and protect This Highness!¡±

    Unfortunately, how could Princess Linglong possibly know that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s target this time was not her, but all of the other Zephyr Sect disciples who were standing around her?

    Before any of them could react, the Zephyr Sect disciples felt a gust of cold wind rush past their bodies. In the very next moment, each of them felt an excruciating pain surge straight from their kneecaps through to their minds ¨C Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Wind des had sliced cleanly through each of their limbs, severing the nerves within their knees and their wrists. As the electrifying pain coursed throughout their body, the Zephyr Sect disciples felt their knees buckle, and their bodies copsed to the ground under their own weight.

    ¡°Aaaaghh!¡±

    Several cries immediately rang out around Princess Linglong. As soon as she managed to collect herself and react to the situation, Princess Linglong discovered that all of the Zephyr Sect disciples had already copsed to the ground, bloodied and incapacitated. These injuries were hardly considered serious to cultivators in the grand scheme of things ¨C as long as their meridians and Dantian were not damaged, they would be able to recoverpletely after a few days of rest.

    However, these injuries undoubtedly meant that it was now impossible for them to stand up and fight against Ye Xiuwen once more.

    Ye Xiuwen had effortlessly incapacitated all of Princess Linglong¡¯s troops. Ye Xiuwen was presently only in his thirties. How could Princess Linglong have expected Ye Xiuwen to have such depth of abilities at such a tender age, however talented he might be?

    Of all the Zephyr Sect disciples present right now, the weakest was in the advanced-tier Foundation Establishment stage of cultivation, while the strongest was already in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation. How strong did Ye Xiuwen have to be to take out all of them in the blink of an eye?!

    Princess Linglong was finally afraid ¨C so much so that the fear resonated and shook the core of her very being. Ye Xiuwen stood cidly in the center of the aftermath, staring at Princess Linglong silently. In her fear, she began to retreat.

    There was no one else standing in this courtyard apart from her and Ye Xiuwen. Even if she cried out for help and reinforcements right now, nobody would be able to arrive in time.

    The frigid gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes sent chills down Princess Linglong¡¯s spine, and she began to stammer, ¡°You...don¡¯t take another step. If you dare hurt This Highness, Master and the King would never let you off lightly!¡±

    The Zephyr Sect disciplesying on the floor began to snicker coldly in their hearts ¨C Isn¡¯t it a little bit toote to realize what true fear really means? Furthermore, its precisely because you throw the weight of your father and your master¡¯s name about so freely that everyone despises you.

    Truth be told, all of them had each their own grievances against Princess Linglong. After all, every single one of them were cultivators who had painstakingly earned their ce in a Greater Sect, and they naturally possessed abilities that were well above most of their contemporaries. Naturally, there was good reason for them to be proud of their own achievements. When they learnt that they were suddenly forced to take orders from an arrogant, useless princess just because of her immensely deep backing, how could they possibly swallow their pride just like that?

    Unfortunately, the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King was a rich resource vein for the Zephyr Sect, and he would send countless spirit tools, medicines and other treasures to the Zephyr Sect every year. On ount of this alone, the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Elders would not only turn a blind eye to Princess Linglong¡¯s willful behaviour, they even condoned her tyrannical ways.

    Thus, there were several disciples who saw Princess Linglong¡¯s existence as an eyesore to them. Regrettably, none of them were able to find a basis to rid themselves of the little demon among their midst. They knew that they would have to put up with Princess Linglong¡¯s tyranny unless were prepared to leave the Zephyr Sect once and for all.

    Right now, their injuries gave them a pretext not to obey Princess Linglong¡¯smands anymore, so they began to watch the show unfolding before their very eyes with keen interest.

    Naturally, they still hoped in their hearts that Ye Xiuwen wouldn¡¯t kill Princess Linglong. Otherwise, none of them present today would be spared the wrath of the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King.

    Ye Xiuwen slowly raised his right hand as he drew closer and closer to Princess Linglong. His eyes were so deep and profound that they appeared to be two bottomless whirlpools, slowly swirling and threatening to devour everything around.

    ¡°I...I¡¯ll definitely locate Jun Xiaomo for you, alright? Please don¡¯t kill me...¡± Princess Linglong spirit was finally broken. She feared death the most ¨C she still had a long life ahead of her, so how could she possibly perish just like that?

    Unfortunately, she had earlier already recanted on her promise to locate Jun Xiaomo, so her present words bore no powers of persuasion whatsoever.

    Just like the boy who cried wolf, her promises were no longer credible.

    Just as a glint of murderous intent flickered across the depths of his eyes, a Transmission Talisman within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Interspatial Ring suddenly glowed brightly. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he paused in his steps and retrieved the Transmission Talisman.

    ¡°Master?¡± Ye Xiuwen cidly addressed his master.

    ¡°Cough cough...Aiyah, Disciple, are ye still at the courtyard where yer wife was originally being held?¡± The old man¡¯s voice echoed out from the Transmission Talisman.

    Ye Xiuwen squinted slightly as he barked, ¡°Master, please say whatever you have to say quickly.¡±

    The old man was slightly taken aback by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s impatience and impudence, and he eximed in his heart ¨C This damn li¡¯l brat is far too disrespectful of his master! After berating Ye Xiuwen in his heart, the old man responded, ¡°Disciple, Master has already found yer wife for ye. Don¡¯t dally there any longer. Come find yer master.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart constricted slightly, and emotions began to ripple in the depths of his eyes. After a protracted pause, he finally replied, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll head over there right now.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he returned the Transmission Talisman to his Interspatial Ring.

    Princess Linglong and the other bodyguards heaved a sigh of relief in their hearts. Since Jun Xiaomo had been found, they would finally be able to send this fiendish war god Ye Xiuwen away as well.

    As expected, Ye Xiuwen retrieved a Teleportation Scroll andid it out on the floor shortly after ending the transmission with his master. Evidently, he intended to leave the courtyard with the aid of the Teleportation Scroll.

    Princess Linglong finally loosened her tense spirits. As Ye Xiuwen was busy preparing the Teleportation Scroll, she discreetly cast Ye Xiuwen a vicious gaze ¨C Just you wait! I¡¯m not going to let you nor Jun Xiaomo off the hook just like that!

    Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen looked back up at the most inopportune moment for Princess Linglong. She was slightly taken aback, and she immediately attempted to collect the vicious cast in her eyes. However, it was toote.

    Ye Xiuwen waved his arm gently, sending innumerable Wind des surging straight towards Princess Linglong.

    Just like that, Princess Linglong¡¯s body was turned into a beehive without any warning. One of the Wind des had even sliced straight across her throat, sending blood spurting everywhere.

    Princess Linglong¡¯s eyes were ostensibly filled with horror as she slowly fell backwards, mming heavily into the ground.

    ¡°Princess!¡±

    ¡°Princess!¡±

    The Zephyr Sect disciples immediately mbered over towards Princess Linglong, attempting to help her up and prevent any more blood from flowing out of her wounds, while others stuffed all sorts of recovery pills into her mouth.

    Unfortunately, just as theymenced their attempt to rescue her, tens of Wind des shot out from deep within Princess Linglong¡¯s chest once more, sending her blood sttering all over the faces of the Zephyr Sect disciples.

    This was the killing blow which Ye Xiuwen had left within Princess Linglong¡¯s body. He had never intended to spare Princess Linglong¡¯s life right from the onset because her harsh, usatory remarks against Jun Xiaomo had thoroughly enraged him.

    Princess Linglong¡¯s limbs convulsed slightly, and her neck slumped down lifelessly. Even as she drew her final breath, her eyes remained wide open, as though filled with a horror and disbelief that lingered beyond death.

    Perhaps she had never expected to perish so cleanly and swiftly. Perhaps she had thought that the road ahead was long and promising, and she would be able to live long and live well under the dual-protection of the Zephyr Sect and the Greenwich Kingdom.

    Unfortunately, she clearly didn¡¯t understand the important principle that undergirded the cultivation world ¨C there are always people out there more talented than oneself. As long as she continued to provoke others in her tyrannical ways, she was sooner orter bound to meet a person who would without hesitation shrug off the threat of the two powers backing her in order to protect his boundaries and baselines.

    ¡°Princess!!!¡± The Princess¡¯s bodyguards burst out into tears instantly. They weren¡¯t crying out of sorrow for Princess Linglong¡¯s passing. Rather, they were crying because they feared the fate that awaited them.

    Princess Linglong had perished. As mere bodyguards whose sole role was to protect the Princess, how could they possibly survive the wrath of the King of the Greenwich Kingdom when he learns of the death of the Princess?

    The Zephyr Sect disciples had an equally ashen expression on their face. They, too, knew that not a single person would be spared the punishment for Princess Linglong¡¯s death.

    Practically everyone present were filled with worry and concern for the fate that awaited each of them. Ironically, the catalyzing event that was Princess Linglong¡¯s death hardly caused a single ripple in each of their hearts. Not a single one of them grieved Princess Linglong¡¯s passing at all.

    On the other side, Ye Xiuwen swiftly arrived by the old man¡¯s side with the aid of the Teleportation Scroll. Once he packed up his Teleportation Scroll, Ye Xiuwen strode quickly towards where the sprightly old man and Jun Xiaomo were located.

    The sprightly old man was not carrying Jun Xiaomo right now. He knew that Ye Xiuwen was hardly in the right frame of mind, and his madness made him so territorial that he would explode in rage at any men who dared to even draw close to Jun Xiaomo. Thus, the old man knew better than to let Ye Xiuwen see any part of his body touch Jun Xiaomo, for fear that he might suffer from his disciple¡¯s wrath again.

    Ye Xiuwen quickly made his way towards Jun Xiaomo, only slowing down slightly as he drew close to her.

    Jun Xiaomo was lying feebly on the ground. Her face was pale and devoid of the colour of blood, while her hands and legs were still shackled and bound tightly.

    ¡°This is...¡± Ye Xiuwen nced at the chains as he furrowed his brows.

    ¡°This should be something that the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s Princess Linglong had restrained her with. Master¡¯s ability is unfortunately limited. At the very least, Master has no way of unlocking the fetters.¡± The old man sighed with resignation as he exined. He knew that he was guilty for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s present predicament.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed with a frigid gaze, ¡°So it was her after all! Death was too easy for her!¡±

    ¡°What?! Ye¡¯ve killed that Princess?!¡± The old man¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. So what about it?¡± Ye Xiuwen nced dispassionately at the old man as he quipped back.

    ¡°So what about it...what about it...ye snotty li¡¯l brat! Ye don¡¯t even know the kind of trouble ye¡¯ve just gotten yerself into?! Even I don¡¯t dare toy a hand on that First-Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Peak, yet ye went ahead and recklessly murdered the beloved daughter of an entire kingdom?! How strong do ye think ye are?! Do ye think ye can stand up to the wrath of both a kingdom and a Greater Sect?! Ye are going to be the death of me!¡± ring daggers, the old man exploded at Ye Xiuwen.

 Chapter 375: Thoroughly Crippled, Zou Zilongâ€™s Despair

    <h4>Chapter 375: Thoroughly Crippled, Zou Zilong¡¯s Despair</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Ye Xiuwen hardly noticed what his master was saying at this point in time. Even if he heard the contents of what was said, he barely took it to heart.

    His gaze was trained on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body right now. As soon as he noticed how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s clothes appeared disorderly and slightly loosened, and her lips showed traces of being bitten, his pupils immediately contracted, and he squinted his eyes.

    For some strange reason, the old man felt a chill down his spine and goosebumps creeping up the back of his arms.

    Ye Xiuwen squatted down, pulling Jun Xiaomo into a tender embrace as he gently ran his finger across her lips. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were bleeding slightly from Zou Zilong¡¯s earlier roughhousing, and she appeared incredibly frail and feeble.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked dispassionately. His voice appeared calm, devoid of any undtions in his intonations. However, the old man knew that this were a mere cover for the roiling emotions within that were ready to explode in an instant. After all, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s territorialism was obviously at an all-time high.

    ¡°Cough...Disciple has to promise to keep his cool when I exin everything.¡± The old man stated his precautions upfront.

    ¡°Mm.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded cidly. Unfortunately, the old man found his assent hardly persuasive at all.

    ¡°The culprit is Zou Zilong, the First-Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Peak. It seems like he was going to do the unthinkable to yer wife. When I obstructed him earlier, he was still adamant about bring yer wife away from this ce.¡± The old man recounted the incident to him, before cing his hand on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder, coaxing him, ¡°Disciple, yer master has already taught him a lesson and given him what he deserves. Maybe ye can drop it given that yer wife isn¡¯t too injured either? Zephyr Sect is a Greater Sect after all. There¡¯s no need for us to make the entire sect our enemy.¡±

    However, Ye Xiuwen clearly had his own mind, and he simply glossed over the old man¡¯s coaxing, ¡°Where¡¯s he right now?¡±

    Infuriated, the old man red at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Why can¡¯t you take my word for it? Do ye treat everything that Master has said as rubbish?¡±

    ¡°Where is he?!¡± Ye Xiuwen suddenly cocked his head around and stared straight at the old man, uttering one word at a time as the vile energy swirled dreadfully in the depths of his eyes.

    The old man was momentarily taken aback. However, he knew in an instant that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality had once again been consumed by the vile energy in his eyes.

    He sighed with exasperation ¨C Sigh, this won¡¯t do. Given Disciple¡¯s current condition, he might even start treating me like an enemy if I continue attempting to persuade him.

    Sigh, forget it, forget it. Whose fault was it to begin with? If not for the fact that I¡¯d been such an alcoholic, this wouldn¡¯t have happened in the first ce. Furthermore, since Ye Xiuwen has already killed Princess Linglong, it¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before we¡¯ve got to deal with the Zephyr Sect anyway.

    The old man suddenly realized that he had never had a peaceful nor restful day ever since he epted Ye Xiuwen as his own personal disciple.

    With some measure of frustration in his heart, the old man pointed at a tree nearby, ¡°I was afraid that ye would immediately hack him into pieces, so Master has hidden him behind that tree. He¡¯s already unconscious right now. Go do what you must. Master can¡¯t give a damn anymore!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed coldly. After cing Jun Xiaomo down gently, he slowly marched towards therge tree a distance away. As expected, he located an unconscious Zou Zilong just behind the tree¡¯s trunk.

    At one nce, Ye Xiuwen immediately noticed the bite marks on Zou Zilong¡¯s lips and scratch marks on his arms. These were evidently traces of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier struggle against him.

    The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to seethe and practically seep out of his eyes. Mustering his spiritual energy, Ye Xiuwen gripped onto Zou Zilong¡¯s throat and lifted him high into the air.

    The choking and suffocating sensation snapped Zou Zilong out of his stupor. With much difficulty, he opened his eyes and barely made out the image of a man with chiseled appearances gazing coldly at him. The most striking thing about this man was the roiling, dark energy in the bottom of his eyes.

    ¡°You...cough cough...you are...¡± As his surroundings became gradually clearer, he began to recognize the man that was standing before him, lifting him in a chokehold, ¡°You¡¯re Ye Xiuwen?! Cough cough cough...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen chose not to snap Zou Zilong¡¯s neck in an instant. Rather, he left him hanging in mid-air, allowing him to suffer the torturous sensation of being on the brink of death.

    Zou Zilong was suffocating so hard that even his eyeballs had started to bulge out. He barked hatefully, ¡°Ye Xiuwen! Do you know who I am? If you kill me, my master will never let you off lightly! Just you wait!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen remained taciturn. Instead, he simply waved his hand lightly, sending a Wind de slicing precisely through Zou Zilong¡¯s mouth, cutting open the sides of his lips.

    ¡°Aaghh!¡± Zou Zilong cried out in pain, before he shut his mouth entirely. Blood trickled down the sides on his mouth profusely, and he would be afflicted with an immense, electrifying pain whenever he opened his mouth. Thus, Zou Zilong was effectively silenced with just one strike from Ye Xiuwen.

    ¡°Pfft...¡± The old man watching at the side couldn¡¯t help but secretly give his own disciple two thumbs up in his heart ¨C This move is brilliant! Silencing his opponent¡¯s pping lips with just one simple strike!

    After squelching Zou Zilong, Ye Xiuwen red coldly at him as he quipped, ¡°Do you think that a person who dares to even kill Princess Linglong would deign to let you off on ount for your measly master?¡±

    Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened and he stared at Ye Xiuwen with disbelief ¨C Ye Xiuwen has killed Princess Linglong?! He actually killed Princess Linglong?! Is he not afraid of death at all?!

    Ye Xiuwen continued dispassionately, ¡°What a couple. One wanted to cripple my wife and send her to a whorehouse in the mortal world; while the other wanted to do the unthinkable and tarnish my wife. There¡¯s no way I would be able to let you off on ount of just these things alone.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he sent a powerful punch imbued with wind force smashing straight towards Zou Zilong¡¯s Dantian. Zou Zilong had ayer of spiritual energy protecting his body. Unfortunately, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abilities were well above his, and he was able to punch straight through the protectiveyer of spiritual energy and shatter the Golden Core within Zou Zilong¡¯s Dantian.

    As the excruciating pain coursed through his entire body, Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened and bulged so much that they looked almost as though they had fallen out of their sockets. The extreme pain even caused his hands and feet to start convulsing uncontrobly.

    After the initial wave of intense pain, the only thing that numbed Zou Zilong¡¯s mind was the overwhelming, endless despair and despondence in his heart ¨C My cultivation has been crippled? My cultivation has been crippled?!!!

    There was nothing more painful to a cultivator than having their cultivation crippled. Zou Zilong had initially expected Ye Xiuwen to only have been slightly more powerful than he was. Thus, he had hardly thought to ce Ye Xiuwen in his sights.

    Who would have thought that Ye Xiuwen possessed the ability to cripple his cultivation entirely?! Just what level is Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivation in? Elementary-tier Nascent Soul stage? Or secondary-tier Nascent Soul stage?!

    If Zou Zilong had earlier known that Ye Xiuwen was already in the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, perhaps he might not have been so hell bent on capturing and devouring Jun Xiaomo in the first ce.

    Most importantly, he had never expected Ye Xiuwen to dare to treat him this way.

    ¡°My master...will never let you off...¡± Zou Zilong spat out several mouthfuls of blood as he red hatefully at Ye Xiuwen.

    Even though his lips hurt immensely, the despair and rage in his heart was far more intense than the rtively slight measure of pain inparison. He knew that even if his master got revenge for him, the fact would always remain that his entire life ahead of him had been thoroughly and irreversibly ruined.

    Ye Xiuwen ignored Zou Zilong¡¯s feeble threat. Whether Princess Linglong or Zou Zilong, it seemed that the only thing they knew was to toss around their master¡¯s name ¨C they were truly made for each other.

    Zou Zilong looked at the calm and collected gaze in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes as the hatred for Ye Xiuwen etched its way into his heart ¨C Ye Xiuwen has just ruined my life, yet he seemspletely unfazed by my threats. Does he have something else up his sleeves?

    These thoughts brewing in Zou Zilong¡¯s mind caused a sense of begrudging attitude and resentment to fill his heart, and he couldn¡¯t help but take a jibe back at Ye Xiuwen.

    Turning his gaze back to Jun Xiaomo as shey unconscious on the ground, Zou Zilong suddenly smiled wickedly, ¡°No wonder you¡¯d be so mad. Jun Xiaomo is truly a premium prey. Those tender cherry lips of hers...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze stiffened momentarily. Then, he waved his hand, sending a Wind de swishing straight towards a particr spot just between Zou Zilong¡¯s legs.

    Zou Zilong was unable to avoid Ye Xiuwen¡¯s attack, and itnded exactly where it was designed to hit, causing Zou Zilong to cry out in intense pain ¨C this time, Ye Xiuwen had not only crippled his cultivation, he had even crippled his manhood.

    This crushing wound was not something that could simply be described by the word ¡°pain¡±. The kind of pain that washed throughout his body caused him to break out in profuse cold sweat. At this moment, Zou Zilong could only be described to be living a life worse than death.

    ¡°Kill me...just kill me already...¡±

    Zou Zilong¡¯s arrogance and fiery passion had finally been crushed. Instead, he was simply filled with remorse and regret for all of his actions. He suddenly realized that he should never have offended such a fiendish man just to indulge himself in the passionate pursuit of ady.

    ¡°I won¡¯t kill you. After all, I¡¯ll still have to trade you for the key to the chains on Xiaomo¡¯s limbs.¡± As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he knocked Zou Zilong unconscious so that Zou Zilong wouldn¡¯t tarnish his own clothes with the tears from his eyes.

    Just before Zou Zilong passed out, the only things awash in his heart were an intense sense of despair and regret.

    ¡°Hehe, who would¡¯ve thought that my mild-mannered disciple would have such a vicious, aggressive side to him?¡± The old man shook his head seemingly ruefully. Yet, his voice was hardlyced with the intention to criticize or condemn Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions. In fact, it was even filled with some measure of praise and approbation.

    Truth be told, the old man was pretty pleased by how Ye Xiuwen had taken care of the arrogantd Zou Zilong. As for whether doing so would attract the wrath of the Zephyr Sect, this was a problem that could be dealt with muchter. After all, it was already far toote for regrets right now.

    Ye Xiuwen returned to the old man and lifted Jun Xiaomo before turning to his master, ¡°Master, let¡¯s go. Bring that useless fool from the Zephyr Sect.¡±

    ¡°Eh? Go? Where are we going to?¡± The old man lifted Zou Zilong with some displeasure.

    ¡°We¡¯re going back to where the Zephyr Sect is so that we can trade him for the key to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shackles.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined cidly.

    The old man was astounded by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s response, and he stared at Ye Xiuwen with widened eyes ¨C Bringing a half-dead Zou Zilong back to where the Zephyr Sect is located? Isn¡¯t that tantamount to turning himself in?!

    ¡°Eh, Disciple, I say, why don¡¯t we think of another n to remove the shackles from Disciple-in-Law¡¯s limbs, huh? ...eh? Disciple, wait up...¡±

    The old man was just about to persuade Ye Xiuwen when he simply walked away.

    ¡°Argh! This Disciple is going to be the death of me!¡± The old man shook his head in exasperation before lifting Zou Zilong and running after Ye Xiuwen.

 Chapter 376: The Loosened Shackles, Zhuang Lenghuiâ€™s Hatred

    <h4>Chapter 376: The Loosened Shackles, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s Hatred</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Just as the Zephyr Sect disciple and Princess Linglong¡¯s bodyguards were wallowing in the mires of self-pity and crying their eyes out at their bleak future as a result of Princess Linglong¡¯s death, Ye Xiuwen returned without any warning and appeared before their very eyes once again.

    The limbs of the Zephyr Sect disciples were still severed, and none of them possessed any ability to stand against Ye Xiuwen. Thus, all of them shrunk back in fear the moment they saw Ye Xiuwen.

    They also noticed that Ye Xiuwen was carrying Jun Xiaomo in his arms right now. She wore a striking red garment, yet her face appeared pale and her aura seemed feeble and frail. Worrying that something bad might have happened to Jun Xiaomo, everyone turned their cautious gazes back to Ye Xiuwen, wondering if he was back here for revenge. Everyone present had the exact same concern in their hearts ¨C it was as though they could all see the light at the end of their roads.

    Thunk! A loud thud resounded, and a person whose appearances couldn¡¯t clearly be seen was tossed down right in front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feet. Momentster, a sprightly old man skipped over to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side, ¡°Argh, I wonder what that youngd ate growing up. He¡¯s so heavy. I pity this old bag of bones of mine.¡± The old man massaged his shoulders as he remarked aloud. It was evident that he had carried that man back from where he was.

    Very soon, the Zephyr Sect disciples noticed the characteristic garments worn by the man on the ground.

    ¡°Look! It...it seems to be Martial Brother Zou.¡± One of the disciples eximed aloud, directing everyone¡¯s gaze towards the person lying on the ground.

    ¡°It certainly looks like Martial Brother Zou¡¯s garments.¡±

    ¡°Could that man have killed Martial Brother Zou?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s too much! Do you not have any regard for the Zephyr Sect at all?!¡±

    Within moments, everyone began to cast infuriated looks at Ye Xiuwen. Unfortunately, as soon as they locked eyes with Ye Xiuwen and noticed the dispassionate gaze in his eyes, they immediately shuddered coldly and turned their gaze away once more. Even the disciple who first criticized Ye Xiuwen for his actions dared not speak any further.

    After all, who in the right mind would dare to stir the wrath of a fiendish war god who would even kill Martial Brother Zou or Princess Linglong?

    Ye Xiuwen nced at everyone cidly for yet another protracted moment before he addressed them, ¡°The person surnamed Zou isn¡¯t dead yet, but he¡¯s most certainly on the brink of death. If you don¡¯t want to see him perish before your very eyes, you¡¯d best tell me a way to release the shackles on my wife¡¯s limbs. Otherwise, you¡¯d best be prepared to collect his corpse.¡±

    The Zephyr Sect disciples looked sheepishly at each other, evidently with hesitation in their eyes.

    Ye Xiuwen squinted slightly, before adding, ¡°And, you¡¯d be wise not to try anything funny. Otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t mind staining my hands with the blood of several more Zephyr Sect disciples.¡±

    Finally, after a moment of hesitation, a Zephyr Sect disciple stepped forward and stammered, ¡°Dear Senior, it¡¯s not that we don¡¯t want to hand you the key to these shackles. It¡¯s just that way to open those shackles have only been known to Princess Linglong, Martial Brother Zou and Martial Sister Zhuang. We don¡¯t know how to open these shackles at all.¡±

    Princess Linglong had already been killed, while Zou Zilong wasying motionless on the ground on the brink of death. Even if he were to wake Zou Zilong from his stupor, Zou Zilong might not remain unwilling to reveal the way to release those shackles. Thus, the only usible solution right now was to locate the third and final person who knew the means to release the shackles.

    ¡°Martial Sister Zhuang?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows.

    ¡°It¡¯s...It¡¯s Martial Sister Zhuang Lenghui. Would you like us to locate her for you?¡± The Zephyr Sect disciple mustered his courage and responded to Ye Xiuwen¡¯s question. However, his voice continued to tremble with trepidation.

    ¡°Summon her.¡± Ye Xiuwen ordered dispassionately. The Zephyr Sect disciple heaved a huge sigh of relief. It felt as though he had just been extended the hope of second wind, and he sincerely prayed that Zhuang Lenghui would respond to his call and arrive promptly on scene to turn the situation around.

    He didn¡¯t use a Transmittance Talisman. Instead, he released an emergency signal to Zhuang Lenghui. This was a signal that was designed for the Zephyr Sect¡¯s internal usage so that anyone in an emergency could immediately alert all who were nearby and receive assistance in the quickest time possible.

    As expected, Zhuang Lenghui appeared soon after the emergency signal was released. She rushed quickly into the courtyard, leading a team of Zephyr Sect disciples.

    Zhuang Lenghui had briefly heard of Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong capturing Jun Xiaomo. However, this was a matter that merely distracted her from her task at hand, so she cast these thoughts onto the backburner in no time.

    That said, she had never expected Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong to have bitten off more than they could chew ¨C and the dire bacsh had taken one¡¯s life and crippled the other.

    Zhuang Lenghui roughly managed to guess what transpired as soon as she saw the devastation in the courtyard.

    She swept a surveilling nce across everyone present, before finally resting her gaze on the man standing in the middle of the courtyard, raising her eyebrows curiously ¨C she had never expected such an unassuming man who clearly had no backing behind him to be so capable to injure the Zephyr Sect disciples to such an extent. After all, the injured Zephyr Sect disciples were generally in the Golden Core stage of cultivation, and they could hardly be considered pushovers to begin with.

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s own abilities were in the bottleneck of the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation, and she had recently detected signs of a breakthrough into the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. Despite that, she assessed that she was still no match for Ye Xiuwen at all.

    Zhuang Lenghui was no fool. She understood far better than Yue Linglong and Zou Zilong how best to act in order to maximize profits and shrug off trouble. Thus, notwithstanding the fact that Ye Xiuwen had injured so many Zephyr Sect disciples, she still bowed politely to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Dear Senior, I¡¯m unaware of what the Zephyr Sect disciples might have done wrong to offend you, but as the daughter of the Phoenixia Peak¡¯s Peakmaster, please ept my apology.¡±

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s status in the Zephyr Sect was hardly any lower than that of Zou Zilong. Thus, her apology carried quite a substantial amount of weight behind it.

    Having encountered an ostensibly reasonable person, the frigid intent in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to subside gradually.

    ¡°This is my wife. The Zephyr Sect¡¯s disciples had captured her for no reason and even locked her up within the wooden hut, dering that they were going to cripple her and sell her to a whorehouse in the mortal world. As her husband, I had in a spate of fury taught these members of the Zephyr Sect a lesson. This wouldn¡¯t be considered going overboard, would it?¡± Ye Xiuwen cidly exined.

    ¡°Naturally not. The Zephyr Sect disciples have been ill-behaved. We¡¯ve made a fool of ourselves in front of outsiders.¡± Zhuang Lenghui bowed once more.

    ¡°That¡¯s good. Right now, my wife¡¯s limbs are still bound and restrained, and I want to release those shackles of hers. I¡¯d heard that only you know the method to opening these shackles. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°Naturally, it would only be right to help Senior release those shackles.¡± Zhuang Lenghui went with the flow. With that, she retrieved a small token from her Interspatial Ring and dripped a drop of her own blood on it. Then, as soon as she made a hand seal, the shackles around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s limbs made a resounding click, and they fell off her limbs onto the ground below.

    With another wave of her hand, the shackles below Ye Xiuwen¡¯s feet flew back to her own hands.

    ¡°I wonder if Senior is satisfied with that?¡± Zhuang Lenghui smiled faintly at Ye Xiuwen as she stored the shackles back into her Interspatial Ring.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll return this man back to you.¡± As Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, he kicked Zou Zilong back towards Zhuang Lenghui and the rest, before turning around and taking his leave.

    Ye Xiuwen was moving under the influence of his Windwalk ability, so he quickly vanished from the courtyard before the old man could even react to the situation.

    ¡°This disciple! How could he forget his master now that he has a wife? Infuriating!¡± The old man snorted aloud, before quickly following behind Ye Xiuwen.

    Just like that, three people vanished from Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s vision in the blink of an eye, leaving only a group of injured and weak disciples behind.

    ¡°Martial Sister Zhuang, are we going to let them off just like that?¡± One of the Zephyr Sect disciples asked somewhat reluctantly.

    That man had killed Princess Linglong, crippled Martial Brother Zou, and even injured so many of our Zephyr Sect disciples. He obviously doesn¡¯t ce the Zephyr Sect in his sights at all. Are we really going to let him get away like that? This is far too humiliating!

    ¡°What can we do but let them off? If he can singlehandedly cause so much trouble for Martial Brother Zou, do you think we¡¯ll be able to beat him all on our own?¡± Zhuang Lenghui chuckled coldly as she nced back at the disciple.

    Recognizing that Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s words made sense, the disciple shrunk back sheepishly.

    ¡°Then, Martial Sister Zhuang, what are we going to do about Martial Brother Zou?¡± Another disciple behind Zhuang Lenghui couldn¡¯t help but ask when he noticed Zou Zilong¡¯s tragic state.

    Zhuang Lenghui walked over towards Zou Zilong¡¯s side and stepped on his wound, grinding the grotesque injury with the sole of her feet.

    Ugh! It hurts to even look at that!!! The disciples standing behind Zhuang Lenghui broke out in cold sweat as soon as they saw Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s actions.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Zou Zilong regained consciousness as a result of the immense pain surging throughout his body. Then, as soon as he noticed Zhuang Lenghui standing directly above him, his entire body shivered intensely.

    His master and Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s father had been furiouslypeting with each other to gain the upper hand in the fight to be named as the next Sect Leader. Naturally, he could never see eye to eye with Zhuang Lenghui either. Zou Zilong despised the fact that his rival was standing directly above him while he was in his most tragic state.

    If there were only a river beside him right now, he would have flopped into the river and drowned himself. Death would be much better than presenting himself defenseless to his rival.

    Zou Zilong knew better than anyhow just how cold-blooded and hardhearted Zhuang Lenghui was. Any descriptions of her in the ilk of warm and gentle were nothing but mere pretenses.

    ¡°You...what are you going to do to me?¡± Fighting through the pain and dread in his heart, Zou Zilong red at Zhuang Lenghui with apprehension as he asked.

    ¡°What am I going to do? Haven¡¯t you already guessed?¡± Zhuang Lenghui chuckled lightly as she stated without a single ripple of emotion in her eyes, ¡°Your master would be incensed and maddened if he ever learnt that you¡¯d perished, wouldn¡¯t he? I heard that he¡¯s been in closed door cultivation over thest few days. I wonder what will happen if he learns of your death during this period of time. Maybe such news would stumble his cultivation, causing him to experience a demonic upheaval? Perhaps his cultivation might even be crippled as a result of these news...¡±

    ¡°You! You¡¯re going to kill me?!¡± Zou Zilong¡¯s eyes widened as he red at Zhuang Lenghui with disbelief.

    ¡°Hehe, the person who¡¯d killed you wasn¡¯t me. It¡¯s Jun Xiaomo¡¯s martial brother, the First Seat Disciple of the Heavenly Peak, Ye Xiuwen.¡± Zhuang Lenghui curled her lips into a wicked smile as she added, ¡°Unfortunately, you were killed by him after attempting to seize his woman from right under his nose ¨C I wonder if such an exnation sounds logical enough?¡±

    ¡°But I¡¯m not dead yet!¡± Zou Zilong barked indignantly.

    ¡°But you¡¯re about to die very soon, aren¡¯t you? The Zephyr Sect doesn¡¯t need a useless disciple like you.¡± As Zhuang Lenghui spoke, her gazended on Zou Zilong¡¯s chest.

    There was a gaping hole right where Zou Zilong¡¯s Dantian was located. It was obvious that his Golden Core had been crushed by someone.

    ¡°Zhuang Lenghui, you dare?!¡±

    ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I? After all, I wasn¡¯t the person who killed you, so I wouldn¡¯t be the object of your master¡¯s wrath and vengeance in any event.¡±

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s smile at this moment was incredibly icy and peculiar. Then, she turned to another Zephyr Sect disciple and barked at him, ¡°Ah Cheng,e here. Send Martial Brother Zou on his way.¡±

    ¡°Ahh?! Me?!¡± The disciple nicknamed ¡°Ah Cheng¡± asked back in disbelief.

    ¡°You¡¯re the only one here who possesses a wind-based spiritual root, so you¡¯re naturally the only person who can create a wound that wouldn¡¯t attract any suspicion. Go on then. Hurry up.¡± Zhuang Lenghui prompted.

    Ah Cheng was hardly willing to do so. Yet, faced with Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s oppressive, icy-cold gaze, his body shuddered intensely, and he knew he had toply. Thus, he began to walk forward in trepidation.

    ¡°Martial Brother Zou, I¡¯m sorry, this is all under Martial Sister¡¯s instructions. I hope you don¡¯t me me...¡± Ah Cheng put his palms together and apologized to Zou Zilong.

    Then, prompted by yet another intense, cold gaze from Zhuang Lenghui, Ah Cheng closed his eyes. Hardening his heart, he sent another few Wind des shooting straight towards Zou Zilong.

    These Wind des sliced cleanly through several of Zou Zilong¡¯s arteries, causing his blood to spray everywhere. Reeling in fear, Ah Cheng took a few steps back from him.

    Zou Zilong¡¯s throat gurgled slightly. He continued to gaze icily at Zhuang Lenghui, as though he were determined to seek her out in his next incarnation as a vengeful spirit.

    Yet Zhuang Lenghui simply continued to stare at him with a frigid smile on her face until he finally stopped breathing.

    ¡°Remember, when the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Peakmaster asks about this incident, tell him that the perpetrator is Ye Xiuwen.¡± Zhuang Lenghui instructed the other Zephyr Sect disciples standing around. Despite having killed her own sect mate, her eyes remained still and tranquil,pletely devoid of any ripple of emotions.

    ¡°Yes, we understand Martial Sister Zhuang¡¯s instructions.¡± The Zephyr Sect disciples standing around immediately knelt before her, pledging allegiance to her.

    Zhuang Lenghui smiled.

    She had never liked killing others with her own hands. Instead, what gave her the most pleasure was to kill using a borrowed knife.

    Ye Xiuwen, if you have to me someone, you can me yourself for attempting to seize the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds from me. Zhuang Lenghui chuckled coldly in her heart. It was as though she could already smell her victory.

 Chapter 377: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Distress, The Little Packratâ€™s Appearance

    <h4>Chapter 377: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Distress, The Little Packrat¡¯s Appearance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    At night, Zhuang Lenghui wrote up a situation report, detailing exactly how Ye Xiuwen had arrogantly tortured and killed Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong,pletely disregarding the existence of the Zephyr Sect. In so doing, she victimized the Zephyr Sect and condemned Ye Xiuwen¡¯s actions. She firmly believed that anyone who saw her report would be unable to suppress their emotions and repress the urge to tear Ye Xiuwen to shreds, much less Zou Zilong¡¯s master and Princess Linglong¡¯s father.

    At the same time, she masterfully wrote herself out of the picture, swearing that shepletely unaware about what went on behind her back, stating that everything was already toote when she discovered what had happened ¨C Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong had already perished.

    Zhuang Lenghui sent her report back by way of a Messenger Paper Crane. By her estimations, it would take approximately six or seven days for the Peakmaster of the Stoneknife Peak to rush over after receiving the Messenger Paper Crane. This would coincide perfectly with the day that the Rainbow Lotus Flower is expected to bear seeds.

    The seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower werergely useless to cultivators of the Nascent Soul cultivation and higher. Zhuang Lenghui had detected signs of arriving at the bottleneck of her cultivation, and the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower were perfect for giving her the boost needed to push her through the bottleneck of the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation and into the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. This was why she was so determined to seize the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower for herself.

    She had initially thought that most people vying for these seeds would be in the Golden Core stage of cultivation and below. To her dismay, Ye Xiuwen had showed up to join the fray, thereby throwing a wrench in her works. Thus, she had thought up the n to kill with a borrowed knife in order to ensure that she would be able to sessfully seize the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower.

    Naturally, she could have sent a transmission back and requested reinforcements from her father. However, her father was the Peakmaster of the Phoenixia Peak, and he had his duties to attend to as well. Since she could kill with a borrowed knife, was there really a reason to bother her father?

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly as a victorious smile crept up the corner of her lips.

    Temporarily shelving the reactions of the King of the Greenwich Kingdom and the Peakmaster of the Stoneknife Peak, we turn to Ye Xiuwen. Ye Xiuwen had sped away from the courtyard with Jun Xiaomo as soon as he released the shackles around her limbs, only stopping when he drew close to the Sunset Mountain Range¡¯s lotus pond.

    The Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s petals would immediately wither up as soon as it begins to bear seeds. Right now, the Rainbow Lotus Flower was sitting in the center of the lotus pond with its brilliant, vibrant petals in full bloom. Thick spiritual energy hovered about the surface of the pond, creating a somewhat misty scenery, giving the lotus pond an almost otherworldly vibe. It was an amazing sight.

    Ye Xiuwen picked a slightly cleaner rock andnded on its surface. Then, he retrieved a rug made out of a spirit beast¡¯s fur andid it gently on the surface of the rock, before taking his seat.

    Jun Xiaomo was still in a deep slumber within his bosom. Earlier, in order to bring Jun Xiaomo away safely without a hitch, Zou Zilong had drugged Jun Xiaomo with sufficient drugs to keep her in a stupor for several hours. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind and body had already been incredibly worn out by then. Thus, under the confluence of these factors, Jun Xiaomo remained within a deep slumber all this time.

    Ye Xiuwen lowered his head, watching Jun Xiaomo as she slept. The swirling vile energy had begun to fade away, revealing rare traces of warmth in the depths of his eyes.

    The old man squatted some distance away, watching his disciple showering Jun Xiaomo with love and affection as he sighed in his heart ¨C Disciple has really tripped up this time. And he¡¯s tripped up to his wife no less.

    Sigh, back then, I¡¯d had my fair share of such springtime of love as well... The sprightly old man scratched his head as he reminisced on the past. s, the effluxion of time had begun to ebb away at these memories of his, making them all the more scarcer and dearer to him.

    His dead lover could never be brought back to life again. At the same time, after all those years within the Death¡¯s Gorge, his body had already been severely damaged and worn down, and there was no longer any way for him to improve his cultivation any further. That said, the old man had no regrets. After all, he had personally sent news to his lover¡¯s family and ounted for her death, thus fulfilling everyst wish in his heart. Right now, he was simply living life to the fullest and taking each day as they came.

    He could see a glimpse of his own past through Ye Xiuwen. Like Ye Xiuwen, the old man was simrly a person who could do everything for the sake of the person he loved. This was why he was so willing to do all he could to help Ye Xiuwen cross difficult hurdle after difficult hurdle. After all, he sincerely desired for Ye Xiuwen to have the blessings and favor of life that he was personally unable to have.

    It was also a means of penitence and absolution.

    As the sun rested warmly on the horizon, it lit the surface of the lotus pond with a fiery-red hue, seamlessly painting a stroke of red from the waters straight through to the sky, idyllic as a beautiful dream.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo woke up. She opened her eyes with a muffled groan, and her gaze was immediately met with a pair of ink-ck eyes that appeared so deep and abstruse that they seemed to contain a pair of swirling whirlpools that were ready to devour a person¡¯s soul at any time.

    Her heart trembled, and her fingers twitched slightly. She was nearly on the verge of reaching out and caressing that pair of eyes in front of hers.

    ¡°Awake? Are you feeling hungry?¡± Ye Xiuwen adjusted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hair for her and helped her up to a morefortable posture.

    Jun Xiaomo had never seen such a warm side to Ye Xiuwen ever since she lost her memories. As snapshots of the events urring just before falling unconscious flowed back into her mind, Jun Xiaomo recalled that she had somehow ended up in the hands of a stranger.

    Lifting her hands, Jun Xiaomo touched her own lips slightly, only to discover that the wounds on her lips had already formed scabs. This was a telltale sign that these were not mere figments of her imagination ¨C these incidents had truly just urred to her.

    In other words, Ye Xiuwen had been the one to rescue her from the hands of the stranger.

    As that realization dawned upon her, Jun Xiaomo felt an indescribable sensation wash through her heart. It was only after having been forcible kissed by that stranger that she realized how little she despised Ye Xiuwen¡¯s presence and touch. Perhaps there were indeed some traces of disgust at Ye Xiuwen¡¯s territorial behaviour, but she had never despised his presence in and of itself.

    Could she really have been Ye Xiuwen¡¯s cultivationpanion before she lost her memory? If that¡¯s the case, why would Ye Xiuwen treat her so harshly?

    Ye Xiuwen gazed sullenly at Jun Xiaomo as she remainedpletely taciturn. Slowly, the vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to roil once more.

    ¡°Do you still have lingering feelings for that man?¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered sternly. The rare warmth in his voice was icing over once again, ¡°Are you saying that it¡¯s not enough for you to have both me and Rong Ruihan, so you still need the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s First-Seat Disciple in your life? Jun Xiaomo, don¡¯t you think you¡¯re being far too greedy?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Puzzled, Jun Xiaomo nced back up at Ye Xiuwen.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind still drew aplete nk when Ye Xiuwen mentioned Rong Ruihan¡¯s name once more. That said, it did cause pangs of pain to echo throughout her heart.

    Her heart was empty and vacant right now. She couldn¡¯t understand just why she lost her memory and just what kind of important people in her life she had forgotten all about.

    The dazed look in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes stirred the vile energy in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart once more, so he barked at Jun Xiaomo ferociously, ¡°There¡¯s no use thinking about it anymore! He¡¯s already dead. I was the one who made sure of that!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was referring to Zou Zilong here. Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention had all this while been on Rong Ruihan, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s abrasive remark caused a flurry of images to flicker quickly across the depths of her mind, stirring immense pain within her heart ¨C Dead? He¡¯s dead? Rong Ruihan is dead?! ...

    Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t sure just why the notion of Rong Ruihan¡¯s death would trigger such a powerful response in the depths of her heart. She tried hard totch onto some of the images that were quickly flickering about, yet everything appeared incredibly blurry. It was as though whenever she attempted to focus on a single one of these images, that very image would simply dissipate from the depths of his heart without a trace.

    By the time Jun Xiaomo managed to collect herself from the situation, she realized that tears were already streaming out of her face.

    Ye Xiuwen flicked his sleeves angrily, shooting out a massive burst of energy into the distance which cleaved and ravaged through the woods, leaving a massive path of destruction in its wake.

    With that, he tossed Jun Xiaomo onto the rock, and leapt into the air, leaving her behind.

    It suddenly dawned on Ye Xiuwen that if he continued to stay by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side any longer, he might very well end up killing her one day before taking his own life just so that they could be together in death, once and for all. Thus, he decided to temporarily leave Jun Xiaomo before he did something truly irreversible.

    The sprightly old man stood up from where he was and pped off the grass on his hands. Sighing with resignation, he quickly set up a defensive formation array around Jun Xiaomo, before giving chase after his unfilial disciple.

    Sigh. A master worries most during his disciple¡¯s courtship. The old man had been handling the dispute between Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo so much that he had almost be as though a nanny to his disciple.

    Jun Xiaomo sat up slowly where she was. It took her quite some time before she finally managed to collect herself once more.

    She wiped off the tears strewn all over her face. Her heart was gued with distress and weariness.

    Jun Xiaomo was distressed by the fact that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s emotions would fluctuate between extremities without any warning at all; and she was weary of how lost she would remain if she couldn¡¯t regain her memory ¨C where did shee from? What was she trying to do?

    If not for the child in her womb forcing her to keep herself together, she might well have crumbled to bits and pieces by now.

    As time passed, Jun Xiaomo discovered that her initial hesitance about this child had already developed into expectancy.

    No matter what it was, the child was undoubtedly hers ¨C they were rted by blood. Whenever she found herself at her wits¡¯ end, she would think about how helpless the child in her womb was, and she would once again be reinvigorated to press on.

    Squeak squeak... All of a sudden, Jun Xiaomo noticed a bright light flicker by in front of her eye, and a furry ball shot straight into her bosom in the very next moment.

    Somewhat curiously, Jun Xiaomo lifted the little ball of fur in front of her and began to examine it, muttering aloud, ¡°You seem like a little demonic packrat!¡±

    Squeak squeak squeak! The furry little packrat waved its ws about, and its beady ck eyes were gleaming with tears of joy from their reunion. Unfortunately, it was difficult for a person to understand a rat. No matter how much it squeaked, Jun Xiaomo was unable to understand just what it was trying to say to her.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak! ...

    If one were to trante that, it would mean, ¡°Xiaomo, Xiaomo, I¡¯m your little packrat, yo! Have you already forgotten all about me? I¡¯m hurt...¡±

    Faced with the puzzled look in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes, the little packrat curled itself up into a ball and began to gnaw on its own ws.

    He had been afraid of the possibility that Jun Xiaomo would be unable to recognize him if he had appeared before Jun Xiaomo in human form, so he elected to appear in his present form, as a little packrat. How could Jun Xiaomo have forgotten about him in his present state?

    Yet, for some strange reason, Jun Xiaomo noticed that the little packrat appeared to be hurt. Her heart melted slightly, and she picked up the little packrat and nuzzled it in her bosom as it stroked her hair, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It appears that I¡¯ve lost arge part of my memory, so I¡¯m not sure whether you knew me from somewhere before, or how you¡¯d appeared by my side. Regardless, would you like to stay by my side until we locate your master, hmm?¡±

    Squeak squeak? The little packrat looked up in bewilderment, only to gaze into a pair of eyes that were both warm and soft, yet somewhat dazed and confused. In that instant, the little packrat¡¯s heart constricted with pain, so it nuzzled its cheeks on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s palms lovingly.

    So you¡¯ve lost your memory?

    That¡¯s fine. Since that¡¯s the case, we can get to know each other all over again.

    When he had mistakenly consumed the Shapeshifting Fruit andnded himself in a predicament, Jun Xiaomo was the one who had protected him. This time, it was his turn to return the favor and protect Jun Xiaomo instead.

 Chapter 378: Chi Jingtian Hits the Nail on the Head

    <h4>Chapter 378: Chi Jingtian Hits the Nail on the Head</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Unlike Rong Ruihan, the little packrat had only managed to discover Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts after several twists and turns. Old Man Chi had always been concerned about the little packrat¡¯s body. Furthermore, Old Man Chi knew that the quasi-great-granddaughter-inw of his was a ma for burdensome rtionships. Afraid that the little packrat would be hurt in this pursuit of passion of his, Old Man Chi issued a standing order to all of his nsmen that nobody was to divulge Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts to the little packrat. Thus, the little packrat had only learnt of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ¡°resurrection from the dead¡± after quite some time.

    Then, it was only after he threw a tantrum for an incredibly long time that Old Man Chi finally relented and agreed to let him leave the n¡¯s grounds. At the same time, Old Man Chi secretly instructed a group of nsmen to tail the little packrat and protect him from the shadows.

    The little packrat was the only one bearing Old Man Chi¡¯s bloodline in his generation. Naturally, Old Man Chi was incredibly protective and couldn¡¯t bear to let anything happen to the little packrat. In particr, Old Man Chi could not afford to risk the little packrat consuming a Shapeshifting Fruit again.

    In fact, the little packrat had only worked so hard on his cultivation because he had fixed his eyes on the goal of being strong enough to be able to protect Jun Xiaomo. Otherwise, given the extent to which Old Man Chi and the rest of the n spoilt the little packrat, he would most certainly have be a profligate.

    Right now, the little packrat¡¯s abilities were already in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation. Thus, Old Man Chi felt much more at ease letting him out of the n¡¯s grounds. At the very least, he knew that the little packrat would not simply fall to an average joe cultivator.

    Nuzzling in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s warm embrace, the little packrat gnawed slightly at its ws and thought to himself ¨C I wonder when Jun Xiaomo would finally realize once again that I¡¯m a human, and not just a demonic packrat? This is distressing...

    Just as the little packrat was anguishing over his thoughts, Ye Xiuwen returned. As he drew closer to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts, he immediately detected a foreign aura near her.

    Someone¡¯s there?! Ye Xiuwen immediately rushed over towards Jun Xiaomo. It was only when he arrived before her that he noticed a round ball of fluff nestled in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom.

    Packrat? Ye Xiuwen squinted slightly, before quickly dismissing it.

    No, that¡¯s no mere packrat. Ye Xiuwen immediately recalled the Jun Xiaomo¡¯s little ¡°pet¡± that had found its way to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side years ago. This packrat was clearly one and the same as that one ¨C even the colour of its fur was the same!

    Ye Xiuwen was infuriated. He had left in a huff earlier, and it was only after the sprightly old man had painstakingly cajoled and cated him that his rage abated slightly. Who would have thought that he would catch Jun Xiaomo together with yet another love rival as soon as he returned?!

    More urately speaking, this was an old rival in love ¨C one that Ye Xiuwen had forgotten all about.

    Ye Xiuwen immediately stretched out his hand and motioned to grab at the little packrat. Yet his disposition was so intimidating that it could not have been to merely cast out the little packrat. Rather, it was evident that Ye Xiuwen intended to crush the little packrat in one fell swoop.

    Jun Xiaomo reacted in the blink of an eye, rolling to the side with the little packrat as she yelled at Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Ye Xiuwen, what are you doing?!¡±

    ¡°Exterminating a rival in love.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded cidly, yet his grave gaze revealed just how serious he was.

    ¡°What nonsense are you bbering about? Can¡¯t you even allow the existence of a small pet?¡± Jun Xiaomo barked back as she shot to her feet and confronted Ye Xiuwen directly.

    Ye Xiuwen red at Jun Xiaomo with a fiery gaze in his eyes, ¡°Do you even know his identity? How could you assume he¡¯s a pet just like that?¡±

    ¡°What other identity could a little packrat possibly have?¡± Jun Xiaomo found Ye Xiuwenpletely absurd.

    Squeak squeak! Infuriated, the little packrat brandished and waved his ws threateningly about at Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes darkened. Just as he was about to operate his Windwalk ability and swipe the little packrat away, Jun Xiaomo let out a muffled groan and curled up her body quickly.

    Squeak squeak squeak! The little packrat cried out anxiously in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s bosom, wondering what happened to her body.

    Then, everything happened in the blink of an eye. Just as Jun Xiaomo stumbled and fell backward, the little packrat leapt out of her bosom, turned into a charming, handsome man and caught Jun Xiaomo just before she struck the ground.

    ¡°You...¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, staring in bewilderment at the man who had suddenly appeared.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get to know each other again. My name is Chi Jingtian. I¡¯m the youngest child of the Hidden Sect, Chi n, and I¡¯m also the little packrat who¡¯s been following by your side just a little while ago. Oh, that¡¯s right, Little Packie was what you used to call me back when I was stuck being a little demonic packrat.¡± The charming man smiled radiantly at Jun Xiaomo, dazzling her with his gleaming eyes.

    ¡°Little Packie...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered under her breath, somewhat detecting a sense of familiarity with that term, ¡°Then, between us...what¡¯s our rtionship?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked after some hesitation.

    ¡°We¡¯re naturally master and pet...ah, no.¡± The charming man bit down on his own tongue and decided to change tact, ¡°If possible, I¡¯d like Xiaomo to think of me as a quasi-husband.¡±

    As soon as the man finished speaking, he smiled brightly at Jun Xiaomo once again.

    Jun Xiaomo realized that he was quite the fun person. Not only did he like smiling, he was also rather self-amused. Furthermore, his radiance almost seemed contagious, and watching him seemed to make all of her troubles disappear into the back of his mind.

    Jun Xiaomo had recently been thoroughly tormented by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intense emotional fluctuations, so encountering such an interesting man was like a breath of fresh air to her. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo knew that there was a reasonable possibility that this was someone whom she knew in the past. Thus, she couldn¡¯t help but smile brightly at the pleasant turn of events.

    ¡°Then, how should I address you?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo selectively glossed over the reference to ¡°quasi-husband¡±. This was not merely due to the fact that Ye Xiuwen grew ostensibly fuming mad at the term. Rather, what was most important to her was to find out more about the matters that had urred in the past before she had lost her memory. In particr, she wanted to know more about the kinds of rtionships which she had embroiled herself with.

    At the very least, Jun Xiaomo had resolved that she would close off her heart to anyone before she could ascertain all these things.

    ¡°You can call me Jingtian. My name is Chi Jingtian after all. Addressing me as ¡®Little Packie¡¯ would make it sound like you¡¯re calling a pet.¡± The charming man shrugged with some measure of exasperation.

    ¡°Pfft...¡± Jun Xiaomo burst out intoughter, curling up her eyes, and the colour of blood even began to return to her otherwise pale face.

    The sprightly old man looked at his disciple worriedly. As expected, the swirling, vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes had almost be corporeal by now.

    That said, what was most surprising was the fact that Ye Xiuwen had managed to hold himself together and refrain fromshing out despite the intensely roiling vile energy in the depths of his eyes.

    The old man was prepared to leap out at the moment¡¯s notice to intercept any attacks from his disciple against the charming young man. At the very least, he could not allow his disciple to ughter indiscriminately in his rage. Otherwise, Jun Xiaomo would never be able to forgive his disciple. After all, it was natural that Jun Xiaomo would have so many suitors. What was most important right now was to think of way to allow his disciple to stand out among all of the other suitors so that he can securely win Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart once and for all.

    But, given his disciple¡¯s current condition right now, it¡¯s going to be an uphill task if I want him to realize all these things. The old man sighed as he shook his head.

    Indeed, it was true that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was being battered incessantly by the vile energy right now. However, as soon as he noticed the brilliant smile on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face that he had not seen in such a long time, the vile energy seemed to lose its hold over his heart.

    How long has it been since I¡¯ve seen Little Martial Sister smile like that? It feels almost like an eternity. In fact, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen her smile ever since she was trapped within the spirit tool and almost perished inside together with Rong Ruihan, much less that brilliant a smile.

    Little Martial Sister is always brooding over something in her heart. Perhaps if she hadn¡¯t lost her memory, she might not be able tough so heartily and carefreely, would she?

    A wave of bitter astringency suddenly washed over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart, causing it to ache in pain. Although this sensation was faint, it was sufficient to prevent him from attacking Chi Jingtian directly.

    After Chi Jingtian helped Jun Xiaomo regain her footing, he suddenly eximed, before grabbing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist and sending a thread of demonic energy probing through her meridians, ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯re pregnant?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback. She had never expected Chi Jingtian to be so keenly observant.

    ¡°You¡¯re indeed pregnant!¡± Chi Jingtian ced his hand down and squatted down excitedly as he motioned to ce his ear on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s belly, ¡°Let me listen if this baby is making a racket inside!¡±

    The sprightly old man raised his eyebrow curiously, ¡°Li¡¯ld, this isn¡¯t even your child, so why are you so excited about it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because it¡¯s Xiaomo¡¯s child!¡± Chi Jingtian exined matter-of-factly, before ncing over at the old man with a slightly bewildered look, ¡°Since it¡¯s Xiaomo¡¯s child, I¡¯ll naturally like it. Old man, don¡¯t you know the idiom ¡®love me, love my dog¡¯?¡±

    The old man - ...Isn¡¯t this li¡¯ld being a little bit too magnanimous here? At the same time, he nced back at his disciple sympathetically. This, alone, was sufficient for Chi Jingtian to pull ahead of Ye Xiuwen in the race for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    Compared with Disciple, this li¡¯ld that has suddenly appeared appears to be far more suitable to be a father. He¡¯s clearly showing signs of love towards the unborn child. At the very least, he¡¯s not behaving like Disciple, who either presents himselfpletely emotionless or makes a grave expression like he¡¯s just lost his father every time he sees the slight bump in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abdomen... The old man rubbed his temples in exasperation, before shelving his thoughts to the side.

    ¡°This child would probably be yours and Xiaomo¡¯s, right?¡± Chi Jingtian stood up and addressed Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen nced cidly back, before muttering, ¡°Mm.¡±

    ¡°Hey, what kind of an attitude is this?¡± Chi Jingtian reacted with displeasure, ¡°Is there any prospective father who acts like you? Look at how skinny Xiaomo has be. And I clearly noticed Xiaomo¡¯s disdain towards you earlier. The child isn¡¯t the result of you forcing yourself upon her, is it?¡±

    The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes began to roil intensely, ¡°What did you say?! Are you suggesting that I would force Xiaomo to have my child?!¡±

    ¡°Hehe, I¡¯m just making a passing remark. There¡¯s no need to get so angry, right? After all, your personality wasn¡¯t like this in the past...¡± Chi Jingtian took a step to the side and stood directly between Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, ¡°Truth be told, I most certainly wouldn¡¯t feel at ease leaving Jun Xiaomo in your hands if you remain like this. Look at how Xiaomo is right now ¨C is she truly living the blissful life that every prospective mother deserves? Furthermore, the enemies that are after your lives aren¡¯t getting any weaker. Do you think that your abilities alone are sufficient to protect Xiaomo and your child?¡±

    Chi Jingtian had struck the nail on the head, yet the vile energy within Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes only continued to roil more intently.

 Chapter 379: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Escape, Zhuang Hongshengâ€™s Ambition

    <h4>Chapter 379: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Escape, Zhuang Hongsheng¡¯s Ambition</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Having noticed the escting tension, the sprightly old man immediately stepped forward and broke up the confrontation between Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian, raising his hand with a ¡°stop¡± gesture, ¡°Li¡¯lds, stop arguing and listen to what I have to say.¡±

    Chi Jingtian had always respected his elders, especially someone like the sprightly old man who appeared to be of simr age to his grandfather. This gave him a sense of familiarity with the old man. Thus, he heeded the old man¡¯s suggestion and shut his mouth obsequiously. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen also temporarily suppressed the roiling emotions in his heart on ount for the fact that his own master had just interjected.

    The old man addressed Chi Jingtian first, ¡°Li¡¯ld, don¡¯t me my disciple for his poor attitude. The recent times have been rather stressful for him as well. The problems with Xiaomo¡¯s body aren¡¯t entirely caused by my silly disciple. The main reason is the child in her womb.¡±

    ¡°The child in her womb?¡± Chi Jingtian furrowed his brows.

    He had personally witnessed several pregnancies within his n, yet not a single pregnantdy had been reduced to skin and bones like Jun Xiaomo was.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that he detected the faint traces of an aura that did not belong to Jun Xiaomo when he was helping her back to her feet earlier, he would never have guessed that she was pregnant. After all, Jun Xiaomo was far too frail right now. It was a far cry from how he had remembered her to be just some time ago.

    The old man sighed as he exined, ¡°This disciple of mine is a spiritual cultivator, and his cultivation is built upon and fueled by spiritual energy. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo is a demonic cultivator, and her body is built upon and fueled by demonic energy. Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo possessed an acquired demonic body, which means that she is entirely ipatible with spiritual energy. This creates a lot of problems with the union between my disciple and Jun Xiaomo. If the child in her womb possesses a demonic body, things would still be alright, and it wouldn¡¯t be rejected by her body either. But the worst-case scenario has urred ¨C the child in her womb possesses a spiritual body, entirely ipatible with her body, so her body has also been constantly rejecting its existence.¡±

    ¡°A cultivator¡¯s child is different from that of a mortal¡¯s child. At its nascent stages, a cultivator¡¯s child would be nothing more than a formless clump of fetal energy. In turn, this clump of fetal energy requires an immense amount of energy in order to congeal and form its own body. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body is devoid of spiritual energy to begin with, so she has no choice but to absorb the spiritual energy from the surroundings and channel it straight into the womb. This process is incredibly harmful to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. This is why her body, especially her womb, would experience intense cramps every now and then ¨C this is all the result of her body¡¯s rejection of the growing clump of spiritual energy within.¡±

    Pangs of heartache struck Chi Jingtian as soon as he heard this.

    ¡°Then is there any way to resolve this? Does Xiaomo have to wear down her body like that in order for the child to thrive and grow?¡±

    He finally understood why Ye Xiuwen was unable to smile whenever he looked at the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. If this child¡¯s survival was potentially at the expense of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, even he might be unable to look upon the child with any measure of expectancy.

    It stands to reason that the child¡¯s father, Ye Xiuwen, would naturally be the one most distressed by all of this. On the one hand, the love of his life had her life on the line; while on the other hand, his biological child¡¯s life was at stake.

    No wonder he finds himself unable to smile at the situation... Chi Jingtian thought he finally understood the situation.

    ¡°There are a few ways of circumventing this issue. In fact, this is why we hade to the Sunset Mountain Range in the first ce. Do ye see the lotus pond in front of us? The Rainbow Lotus Flower in the center of the pond is Xiaomo¡¯s hope.¡± The old man pointed at the lotus pond as he spoke.

    A brilliant patch of glistening, pristine lotus flowers sat in the middle of the lotus pond, enshrouded by wisps of thick spiritual energy slowly swirling about. Of these lotus flowers, the most dazzling ones possessed petals farrger than that of any others around, and its colours were incredibly striking ¨C red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. When the gentle breeze passed by, its bright petals looked almost like seven beauties swaying their bodies in tempo and swishing their rolling skirt ensembles as they danced harmoniously with the wind.

    ¡°Since those seven lotus flowers are Xiaomo¡¯s hope, why aren¡¯t we picking it for her yet?¡± Chi Jingtian hardly deigned to enjoy the idyllic view from the side of the lotus pond. As soon as he heard that the Rainbow Lotus Flower was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hope, he immediately thought to pluck it from the center of the pond.

    However, the old man simply shook his head with some measure of exasperation, as he supplicated, ¡°The thing that we want is not the Rainbow Lotus Flower itself, but its seeds. The Rainbow Lotus Flower blooms once every hundred years, and bears seeds after the next hundred year. Each coloured flower will bear only one seed, and the effects of these seeds can only be seen when a person consumes all seven seeds of different colours. As ye can probably tell, the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds is incredibly precious. If not for the fact that the seeds are only useful for improving the constitution of cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation, I¡¯m afraid that there would most certainly be a bloodbath every time the Rainbow Lotus Flower bears seeds. After all, who wouldn¡¯t want something that would change their constitution on a fundamental level and make the process of cultivation that much easier and smoother?¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, it¡¯s not going to be easy for Xiaomo to get her hands on the lotus seeds.¡± Chi Jingtian rubbed his chin as he spoke.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Li¡¯ld, this is why ye can¡¯t underestimate the problem with Xiaomo¡¯s body just because it¡¯s caused by a formless clump of energy. This isn¡¯t a problem that can be easily resolved.¡± The old man patted Chi Jingtian¡¯s shoulder.

    ¡°I understand. Don¡¯t worry. Leave it to me. I¡¯ll make sure that Xiaomo obtains the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds.¡± Chi Jingtian dered proudly as he puffed out his chest and patted it.

    ¡°Huh?¡± The old man nced at Chi Jingtian suspiciously, ¡°Are ye sure? Ye are only in the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation. Ye can¡¯t even hold a candle to my disciple!¡±

    Chi Jingtian was slightly dumbstruck by the old man¡¯sments. He was just about to retort, saying that there were several more nsmen supporting him from the shadows, but he immediately had his reservations about that. After all, it was hardly a glorious thing to rely on his nsmen. In fact, he even felt that it entuated his weaknesses if he did so right in front of Jun Xiaomo. Thus, he swallowed the bitter pill and silently epted what the old man was saying ¨C We¡¯ll deal with this again once we¡¯ve obtained the lotus seeds. He murmured in his heart.

    The old man patted his shoulders, adding, ¡°Young man, don¡¯t make promises ye can¡¯t keep. Otherwise, ye¡¯ll only embarrass yourself when pushes to shove.¡±

    Even though the old man was reticent to see Ye Xiuwen crush the young man in front of him, it didn¡¯t change the fact that Chi Jingtian was his own disciple¡¯s love rival when all was said and done. Thus, the old man naturally had no qualms putting him on the backfoot and highlighting his ws in order to ce Ye Xiuwen bad in thepetition.

    As soon as the old man finished speaking, Ye Xiuwen coldly addressed Chi Jingtian, ¡°You don¡¯t need to interfere in the things between Jun Xiaomo and I.¡±

    Chi Jingtian folded his arms and barked back bluntly, ¡°Will you be able to properly protect her if I don¡¯t butt in? Are you certain you¡¯ll be able to fend off all thepeting powers and obtain the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower?¡±

    ¡°This isn¡¯t something that an outsider like you needs to concern himself with. Whether I seed or fail, everything is between Xiaomo and I.¡± Ye Xiuwen walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and pulled her into an embrace, intending to forcibly bring her away from Chi Jingtian¡¯s presence.

    Yet Chi Jingtian stood directly in front of him, obstructing his path and castigating him, ¡°Are you saying that you don¡¯t even care if Xiaomo gets hurt? You don¡¯t care one bit if the child in her body torments and wears down her body?! What kind of love is this?!¡±

    ¡°If we¡¯re unable to obtain the Rainbow Lotus Flower, we¡¯ll abort the child.¡± Ye Xiuwen stated calmly, devoid of any ripple of emotions in his voice even when he spoke of the possible abortion of his own child. It was almost as though this were nothing more than a simple act of discarding trash to him.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body had already stiffened up slightly when Ye Xiuwen thought to forcibly bring her away from the lotus pond. Then, as soon as she heard Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intention to abort the child in her womb, she immediately began struggling against Ye Xiuwen, ¡°No! I¡¯m never going to agree to that! This is my child! Nobody is allowed to take my child away from me!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen had never expected Jun Xiaomo to struggle like that. With this momentarypse of attention, Jun Xiaomo managed to wrestle free of his grasp, and she instantly shot off, fleeing into the distance.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    ¡°Disciple-in-Law!¡±

    Chi Jingtian and the old man called out at practically the same time. However, the person who reacted the most quickly was still undoubtedly Ye Xiuwen. In the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen operated his Windwalk ability and shot straight after Jun Xiaomo!

    Jun Xiaomo could sense that someone was hot on her tail. However, there was only one notion on her heart right now ¨C that was, nobody must hurt her own child!

    Almost instinctually, Jun Xiaomo reached into her Interspatial Ring and retrieved an Invisibility Talisman and applied it onto her own body. Thus, just as Ye Xiuwen was about to catch up to Jun Xiaomo, she suddenly vanished in front of his eyes.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± A trace of panic finally filled the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes. He paused in his steps and nced around, ¡°Xiaomo!¡±

    Unfortunately, no matter how much he called out for her, he couldn¡¯t see any traces of her in sight at all.

    Meanwhile, the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King and the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Elders had finally received Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s transmissions and learnt of the grave news that two Zephyr Sect disciples had perished to Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. It would be too much of an understatement to simply state that they had reacted furiously to the news.

    Most pertinently, the identity of the two disciples who had perished were incredibly special. One was the beloved princess of the Greenwich Kingdom who formed the basis of their cooperation with the Zephyr Sect, while the other was the First-Seat Disciple of the Stoneknife Sect. The death of either disciple undoubtedly dealt a massive blow to the Zephyr Sect, much less both disciples.

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo! Back then, we should never have agreed to Elder Tong¡¯s request and allowed him to take her in as his disciple! A like master begets a like disciple. Both of them are ingrates who betray the sect as soon as they learn to fly!¡± One of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Sect Elders cursed indignantly, nearly crushing the missive in his hands.

    ¡°Hmph. Are you still calling him Elder Tong? He¡¯s no longer an elder of the Zephyr Sect ever since that day he betrayed us!¡± Another Sect Elder bellowed in rage, ¡°If not for the fact that he¡¯s hidden himself so well all this while, we would already have crushed that old ingrate by now!¡±

    ¡°Killing his disciple is the same. I refuse to believe that we won¡¯t be able to kill that measly Jun Xiaomo with the backing of our entire sect!¡±

    Just as all of the Sect Elders were fleshing out their ns to kill Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, a man who had been remaining silent all this while finally spoke up. This man was none other than Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s father, Zhuang Hongsheng, ¡°Esteemed Sect Elders, please hold onto that thought for a moment. Rather than mobilizing our entire sect for an insignificant traitor of the Sect, why don¡¯t we leave this matter to Xingping and afford him the opportunity to exact vengeance for his own disciple? What do you think?¡±

    The man referred to by Zhuang Hongsheng was none other than Wei Xingping, the Peakmaster of the Stoneknife Peak, and thete Zou Zilong¡¯s master.

    ¡°Xingping? Isn¡¯t he still locked in his closed-door cultivation?¡±

    ¡°Then shouldn¡¯t we shelve these thoughts and discuss them once he¡¯s out of his closed-door cultivation? After all, matters of exacting vengeance are best left to the ones directly involved or implicated.¡± Zhuang Hongsheng calmly exined with a bright gleam in his eyes.

    Truth be told, he had already thought of a way to reach out to Wei Xingping, circumventing his closed-door cultivation measures. Thus, it wouldn¡¯t be a long time before he finally learns about the death of his beloved First-Seat Disciple.

    I wonder how heavy a blow the sudden news of Zou Zilong¡¯s death would be to him? Will it cause his spiritual energy to flow in reverse and damaging his vitality?

    No matter what happens, all the Phoenixia Peak needs to do right now is to wait and watch the good show that is soon to unfold. It was indeed as his daughter mentioned ¨C in the fight between the snipe and the m, the fisherman has the best of it.

 Chapter 380: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Madness, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Realization

    <h4>Chapter 380: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Madness, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Realization</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Things happened just as Zhuang Hongsheng had expected. As soon as Wei Xingping ¡°incidentally¡± learnt that his First-Seat Disciple had been murdered by a young sprout, he immediately flew into a fit of manic fury and sustained a demonic upheaval.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen! Jun Xiaomo! I won¡¯t let you off. I¡¯m going to get revenge for my dear disciple!!!¡± After spitting out arge mouthful of blood, Wei Xingping passed out.

    ¡°Master!¡±

    ¡°Martial Uncle!¡±

    The two Zephyr Sect disciples who hade to deliver the bad news to Wei Xingping hurriedly stuffed several recovery pills into his mouth. Unfortunately, Wei Xingping¡¯s cultivation was still affected. Not only had all his efforts from his closed-door cultivation been negated, he even lost decades¡¯ worth of cultivation.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. A First-Seat Disciple¡¯s existence was akin to that of a sessor to a Peakmaster, and the rtionship between them was naturally different from that of other disciples. In fact, it might not even be an exaggeration to describe theirs a rtionship that was akin to that of father and son. Right now, his quasi-son had just been killed by others ¨C how could Wei Xingping not be infuriated by this news?

    Wei Xingping remained unconscious for a full three days and night before he regained consciousness once more. However, the first thought that urred to him in that very moment he awakened was the thought of exacting vengeance against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen!

    Even though the bacsh from the horrific news had dealt a heavy blow to his cultivation core and caused a fall in his cultivation level, these things were no more than inconsequential matters in light of the fact that his beloved disciple had just perished. He absolutely had to shred Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to pieces if he were to resolve this grudge of his!

    Just as Wei Xingping was preparing to leave the Sect in search for the objects of his vengeance, he also learnt of the fact that Princess Linglong had also perished in the hands of Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen. The Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King had just issued an imperial decree, summoning all the experts in theirnds to capture Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen so that he could break their limbs and pluck their nerves, exacting vengeance for thete Princess Linglong.

    Princess Linglong was Zou Zilong¡¯s wife. Naturally, she could also be considered Wei Xingping¡¯s disciple-inw. Regardless of whether the marriage was one of convenience, Princess Linglong was still Wei Xingping¡¯s inw in name.

    In other words, this was a double whammy. Having learnt of such news, Wei Xingping¡¯s hatred towards Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen shot straight through the roof and hit unprecedented heights. Two dayster, he personally took charge of the entourage of Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s experts and began to make his way towards the Sunset Mountain Range with an unbending will to make Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen pay for their crimes.

    When Zhuang Lenghui received her father Zhuang Hongsheng¡¯s update about the situation, she curled her lips into a vicious, cold smile.

    Meanwhile, Jun Xiaomo had already vanished for a total of five days.

    Ever since she vanished from right under their noses, Ye Xiuwen, his master, and Chi Jingtian had never paused once in their efforts to locate Jun Xiaomo¡¯s traces. However, it almost seemed as though Jun Xiaomo were intent on hiding from them. No matter how much they called out to her, nody in striking-red was forting.

    Initially, the sprightly old man and Chi Jingtian couldn¡¯t help but me Ye Xiuwen for having pushed Jun Xiaomo past her limits and snapping that cord of tension within her. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had insisted on aborting the child, Jun Xiaomo would never have fled in a fit of fury and disappeared without leaving any traces behind.

    Most importantly, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition right now meant that things would be incredibly grave if she ended up being captured by any of her nemeses. Even if she was still atrge out there, the child in her womb was more than sufficient to torment and drain her body of all vigor and vitality.

    With these thoughts in their mind, everyone began to panic, praying that they would find a trace of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts in the very next moment. Chi Jingtian had even secretly sent a missive to his nsmen, seeking their help in his search for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts.

    That said, a full five days had alreadypsed, yet they saw no traces of anydy in red, much less Jun Xiaomo.

    By now, the old man and Chi Jingtian were so worried that they had even lost the heart to pin any me on Ye Xiuwen. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen grew increasingly sullen over thest few days of incessant searching. If he saw no reason to speak, he could even remain silent for an entire day.

    Truth be told, Jun Xiaomo was hardly far away from where they were. Unfortunately, they were unable to locate her because Jun Xiaomo had an Invisibility Talisman applied on her body at all times.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo gave Ye Xiuwen the slip, she clumsily stumbled and fumbled her way into a cavern not far from the lotus pond. There, an excruciating pain surged from her womb, and she copsed onto the ground.

    Jun Xiaomo curled up on the ground, clutching at her own womb in pain. For some reason, she found this pain an oddly familiar sensation. In fact, it was so familiar that it seemed to trigger severalplicated emotions in her heart.

    There was infuriation, bitter astringency, and even resentment...

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes slowly, and a bead of tear rolled slowly out of her eyes. It suddenly dawned on her just how feeble and weak she was ¨C she possessed no ability to protect both her and her child.

    Gradually, despite the dull pangs of pain that constantly echoed through her body, Jun Xiaomo fell into a deep slumber, and countless images and snapshots of her memory flickered quickly before her eyes.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, Lady Demoness, vicious killer and reaper of souls, you are sentenced to death today!¡±

    ¡°Hahahahaha...what¡¯s the matter, are you still thinking of protecting that monstrosity in your womb? Let me tell you, there¡¯s no hope. You¡¯re the Lady Demoness, so your child is naturally a demonkin. It should never be allowed to see the light of this world to begin with. I¡¯m only sending it on its way sooner rather thanter...¡±

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, what¡¯s the matter? Have you finally tasted the sensation of despair and despondence? Do you finally know how all those people you¡¯ve killed felt when they were on the brink of death?¡±

    Pain...so painful...

    It was both painful and hateful. Her child ¨C her unborn child ¨C had actually been forcibly carved out of her body! It had be nothing more than a puddle of bloodied liquid!

    I hate it. In my next life, I¡¯m going to make sure to teach all these people the true meaning of despair and despondence!

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes snapped open once more. Her eyes had be incredibly bloodshot, and the depths of her eyes were filled with hatred and resentment.

    In fact, Ye Xiuwen and the rest hadbed through the cavern she was in several times in their search for Jun Xiaomo. Unfortunately, they failed to discover Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts because Jun Xiaomo still had the Invisibility Talisman on her body.

    Right now, five days had already passed, and the Invisibility Talisman on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body was soon wearing out. In fact, she came back to her senses as soon as the Invisibility Talisman wore out, and she immediately shot out of the cavern she was in.

    By this time, Ye Xiuwen and the rest were already thinking of expanding their search radius to include the surroundings around the Sunset Mountain Range. Unexpectedly, just as they were making ns together, Jun Xiaomo suddenly appeared before their eyes once again. Unfortunately, her eyes werepletely bloodshot. It was evident that she was experiencing a demonic upheaval.

    ¡°Return my child to me!¡± Jun Xiaomo charged at Ye Xiuwen and threw a vicious attack at him. Both the old man and Chi Jingtian were incredibly taken aback, and they immediately rushed forward, thinking of restraining Jun Xiaomo.

    Unfortunately, the abilities of a cultivator experiencing a demonic upheaval cannot be measure by conventional wisdom. Ye Xiuwen¡¯s callousment of aborting her child might well have been the one responsible for triggering her demonic upheaval. Regardless, Jun Xiaomopletely ignored the old man and Chi Jingtian, and she only relentlessly pursued Ye Xiuwen, crying out resentfully that she was going to exact revenge for her lost child.

    ¡°Disciple-in-Law, calm down! Isn¡¯t yer child still in yer womb?¡± The old man attempted to restrain Jun Xiaomo as he tried to talk some sense into her ¨C What is going on?! Disciple isn¡¯t even back to normal, and Disciple-in-Law has gone mad?

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo was impervious to all forms of reasoning. Insisting that Ye Xiuwen had murdered her child, she went for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s jugr viciously, intent on taking his life in the swiftest manner. Even though the sprightly old man was the strongest of the four, he knew that he had to take care not to hurt Jun Xiaomo either. Thus, under the circumstantial limitations of his abilities, Jun Xiaomo ran circles around the old man without him being able to do anything in return.

    Ye Xiuwen refrained from attacking Jun Xiaomo either. Instead, he simply operated his Windwalk abilities and avoided Jun Xiaomo to the best of his ability as he gazed intently and sullenly at her. Nobody could see the expression in his eyes right now.

    Jun Xiaomo was only able to chase after Ye Xiuwen for such a long time because she was fueled by the hatred and resentment in her heart. However, the truth of the matter was that her body was getting weaker by the minute. In particr, having passed out in the cavern for such a long time without consuming any form of sustenance whatsoever, her body was at the weakest state it had been ever since her pregnancy.

    Thus, her face grew paler by the minute as she continued to chase after Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen was facing Jun Xiaomo all this while, so he was well aware of the ostensible changes to the colour of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face. Finally, he stopped in his steps when he noticed that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face was almost as pale as a semi-translucent sheet of paper.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attack naturallynded squarely on his body.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Ye Xiuwen let out a muffled groan, and blood trickled out of the corner of her lips, dripping down onto his garments.

    Yet, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes continued to remain transfixed on Jun Xiaomo, his gaze remaining dark and abstruse.

    Jun Xiaomo was momentarily taken aback. It was almost as though she were puzzled as to why Ye Xiuwen would suddenly pause in his steps and allow her attack to connect; yet it also seemed that she was considering whether to chain her attacks with several others as well.

    Just then, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb began to contract with intense pain once more, and waves of energy rippled out from her womb. It appeared that the fetal energy was getting destabilized.

    ¡°That¡¯s not good. If this goes on, the lives of both Xiaomo and her child would be in danger!¡± The old man anxiously bellowed. Chi Jingtian rushed forward and decisively hacked down at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s neck, knocking her unconscious.

    Jun Xiaomo fell back into his bosom, and her eyelids fell heavily over her bloodshot eyes, as though the curtains drawing at the end of a y.

    ¡°Aiyah, what¡¯s going on?!¡± The old man barked anxiously, ¡°Yeds are all just as reckless as the other!¡±

    He walked over towards Ye Xiuwen and tossed a bottle of recovery pills to him as he muttered with some measure of exasperation, ¡°Hurry up and take this. Now¡¯s not the time for guilt tripping her.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen looked at the recovery pills in his hands and deliberated for a moment, before he poured out a pill and consumed it.

    ¡°I¡¯m not trying to guilt trip her.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined after consuming the medicinal pill, ¡°I just didn¡¯t want to see her face get any paler than it already was.¡±

    ¡°Heh. Do ye finally know how to feel pained for yer wife? Why couldn¡¯t ye have realized this earlier?!¡± The old man barked angrily, ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯d told ye that the spirit tool ye have isn¡¯t a good thing. If ye don¡¯t void the contract with yer spirit tool soon, it¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before ye do something ye are going to regret for the rest of yer life.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils quivered slightly. After a moment¡¯s deliberation, he responded, ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡±

    The old man was taken aback, ¡°Ye¡¯ll think about it?!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ll consider it.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded cidly, ¡°I¡¯ve been doing a lot of thinking over thest few days. Perhaps it really is time for me to regain my rationality. At the very least, I shouldn¡¯t allow a spirit tool to control me to the point where I lose all measure of rationality.¡±

    ¡°Not bad. Once you void the contract, ye might experience a period of weakness in yer body. Ye will have to consider this carefully.¡± The old man reminded.

    ¡°Mm.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded, inciting the old man¡¯s annoyance with his curt response once more.

    What does ¡°mm¡± even mean?! Does he understand me or does he not?! Master is simply telling you to do so only at an opportune time!!!

 Chapter 381: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Emancipation, Jun Xiaomo Regains Consciousness

    <h4>Chapter 381: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Emancipation, Jun Xiaomo Regains Consciousness</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind was already back to normal when she regained her senses once more. Her mind was littered with snapshots and images of her memories, both of her previous life and of her present life. However, these snapshots of memories were all over the ce, and she was unable to organize her thoughts into a linear or chronological sequence of events. To make matters worse, her mind would seize up with intense pain every time she tried her best to recall what happened in the past, forcing her to let go of any notion of recalling the past.

    Of all the scattered snapshots of her memories, the single memory that was most intact andplete was that of her falling prey to the schemes of a group of people, being surrounded and attacked by them in an ambush, before losing her child in a horrific turn of events. The heart-wrenching, gut-spilling pain that ensued was something that lingered on endlessly in her heart, and she continued to experience pangs of echoing pain, even now.

    Was there previously another child in here? Jun Xiaomo caressed her lower abdomen gingerly as she contemted the possibility. As though recognizing the blood connection, her lower abdomen responded with a sense of warmth, bliss and contentment.

    Regardless of what happened in the past, I would never allow this child to encounter the very same fate as the one in my memories! Jun Xiaomo swore in her heart!

    Gradually, a sense of resolve filled the depths of her eyes.

    ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯ve been unconscious for some time now. Have some food to nourish your body. The child in your belly must be so hungry that even its unformed belly is growling.¡± A charming man strode over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and handed her a skewer of roasted meat as he cajoled her.

    Who else could this sprightly person be apart from Chi Jingtian? Perhaps it was a result of the time they had spent together as master and pet, or perhaps it was just a part of Chi Jingtian¡¯s personality. Whatever the case was, he hardly minded the fact that the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child. Instead, he would chirpily take care of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s need for sustenance every day, and he would even ce his hand gingerly over Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen from time to time, feeling for the child¡¯s gentle warmth.

    Anyone who didn¡¯t know any better mind even get the misunderstanding that Chi Jingtian was none other than the child¡¯s father.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled. Receiving the skewer of roast meat, she took a big bite out of it. Truth be told, Chi Jingtian¡¯s culinary abilities with roasted meat was mediocre at best. In fact, his first attempt at a skewer of roast meat ended up being raw on the inside. That said, Jun Xiaomo was touched by his little gesture of care and concern, and she still finished the entire skewer in its entirety.

    It didn¡¯t matter if it tasted good or not, as long as it filled her belly with the nutrients she needed. The meat of the spirit beast she had just consumed was filled with spiritual energy, and it was just what the child in her womb needed for its growth. Besides, Chi Jingtian was clearly well aware of the mediocrity of his culinary skills, and he had over thest few days been experimenting with different ways of roasting meat, such as by using various differentbinations of seasoning when doing so. Giving credit where it was due, the roast meat skewers had most certainly been improving in its vor.

    Chi Jingtian smiled brightly when he saw Jun Xiaomo meticulously polish off the food he had prepared. Taking his seat beside her bed, Chi Jingtian ced his hands behind his head, leaned back slightly and began to talk drivel to her as she continued to eat.

    Chi Jingtian had been pampered and spoilt by his n members, so he had always acted in ordance with his heart¡¯s desires. Perhaps there would be few people, if any, who would be able to understand why Chi Jingtian was able to do so much for Jun Xiaomo right now. After all, the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb wasn¡¯t even his.

    However, he was content with such interactions of theirs. Back then, when he turned into a little fluffy packrat, he realized that there was nobody he could safely rte his dread and anxiety to. Finally, as his despondence came to a head, Jun Xiaomo was the one who pulled him out of the mires and rescued him. As long as he remained by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, he felt safe, secure and at peace.

    Thus, he yearned for such feelings. Then, when he learned from his nsmen that Jun Xiaomo had perished, apart from the overwhelming pain that gued him endlessly, it even felt as though a void had opened up right in the center of his heart, filling it with emptiness no matter what he did.

    Fortunately, Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t dead, and she had ¡°returned to life¡±. Overwhelmed with thankfulness, Chi Jingtian hardly thought too much about her pregnancy. As long as Jun Xiaomo was alive and well and essible to him, this was enough for him. In fact, he didn¡¯t even require Jun Xiaomo to reciprocate his feelings towards her.

    If Old Man Chi learnt about these intentions of his, he might very well re at Chi Jingtian and castigate him for not living up to his potential.

    Ye Xiuwen stood from afar, keenly gazing at the blissful interaction between Chi Jingtian and Jun Xiaomo. He clenched his fists in an instant, snapping a thick twig in his hands.

    Shaking his head, the old man sighed in resignation, walking away.

    He had said all that needed to be said. Whether his disciple woulde to his senses was entirely up to fate at this point in time.

    He was old, and he could hardly be bothered by the things between young people. As long as there was nothing life-threatening at hand, he would much prefer to spend his golden years peacefully, fishing, enjoying idyllic sceneries and practicing his martial arts from time to time.

    Just as quickly as the vile energy began to pour into the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes and swirl viciously, he forced it back where it came from. At this moment, his eyes were incredibly deep and abstruse.

    Over thest few days, in order to prevent provoking Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen had consciously avoided appearing before her when she was awake. Apart from visiting her at night while she was asleep, he would simply watch her from afar, and asionally hunt for spirit beasts for her meals.

    Then, whenever he saw how Chi Jingtian could interact with Jun Xiaomo as though without a single care in the world, the vile energy in his heart would always roil intensely, triggering a primal urge within him to tear Chi Jingtian to shreds!

    However, as soon as he turned to how Jun Xiaomo was smiling so radiantly and with such a rxed disposition, he would by sheer willpower repress the vile energy to where it came from.

    Ye Xiuwen had not lost his memories. Rather, it was only his personality that had shifted and be twisted under the influence of the vile energy from the spirit tool. He was well aware of the fact that his personality in the past was vastly different from what it was right now. At the very least, he knew that he would never act recklessly on impulse or have the urge to indiscriminately wipe out any person or even object that drew remotely close to Jun Xiaomo.

    It was fine if Chi Jingtian perished. But if he was the only one left by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, would she still be able to live on? And even if she were able to live on, would she ever have such bright, radiant smile stered all over her face again?

    Ye Xiuwen mulled over these things. He knew one thing for sure ¨C if he remained passive about the source of the problem, his rationality would soon be irreversibly overwhelmed by the vile energy that was locked away in his heart. He couldn¡¯t even begin to fathom the kind of things he might end up doing at that time.

    Turning away from Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian and their blissful interaction, Ye Xiuwen walked off into the distance, far from where the lotus pond was located.

    Chi Jingtian was telling Jun Xiaomo about the interesting things that urred in his n¡¯s grounds. Tickled by it, Jun Xiaomo burst out into brightughter. Just then, she noticed a person¡¯s shadow flicker by from the corner of her eyes. As soon as she turned around to take a closer look at it, the person¡¯s shadow had already vanished.

    ¡°Xiaomo, what¡¯s the matter?¡± Chi Jingtian noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯sughter pause prematurely, so he couldn¡¯t help but ask if anything was wrong.

    ¡°Nothing much.¡± Jun Xiaomo was stunned for a moment, before she curled her lips into a gentle smile and shook her head slightly.

    She had already sensed the same person staring at her from behind several times now. However, whenever she turned around, she would only be met with an emptiness behind her ¨C not a single trace of a person could be seen where the gaze hade from just moments ago.

    Truth be told, she could already guess who this person gazing at her was. Her feelings towards Ye Xiuwen was still incrediblyplex right now.

    She had already recovered bits and pieces of her memory. From these pieces of her memory, she could glean the fact that her rtionship with Ye Xiuwen was hardly as poor as she had thought it was. In fact, she knew that she had been rather reliant on Ye Xiuwen in her past.

    That said, she was also aware that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s personality in her memories was vastly different from his personality right now. It was almost as though she were dealing with apletely different person.

    Jun Xiaomo sighed, thinking that some distance between them right now would be for the best. At the very least, Ye Xiuwen would no longer stifle her with his strict territorialism.

    After leaving Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side, Ye Xiuwen operated his Windwalk ability and flew to a wide, open ins some distance away from the lotus pond, and he retrieved the spirit tool from his Interspatial Ring.

    Almost as though it knew what its master was about to do, the spirit tool began to emit a low, humming sound, and it even began to vibrate intensely.

    The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes appeared to resonate with the spirit tool¡¯s reactions, and it began to surge violently as well, enshrouding his mind with an ashen haze in an instant.

    A metallic voice rang out from the depths of his mind, as though warning him not to abandon the spirit tool ¨C never to abandon the spirit tool.

    The metallic voice tugged strongly against Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality, momentarily blocking Ye Xiuwen¡¯s earlier intentions.

    Ye Xiuwen gripped the spirit tool firmly with his hands so tightly that the veins on his arms had begun to bulge and throb.

    The palm-strike from Jun Xiaomo some time ago had left an indelible mark on Ye Xiuwen, and it began to echo and throb in pain once more. In turn, the pain from this wound caused Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind to turn to consider the kinds of wounds he had afflicted and etched onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart as a result of his recent words and actions towards her.

    Ye Xiuwen had initially thought that it was sufficient to keep Jun Xiaomo restrained by his side. However, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s disappearance over thest few days had stirred the anxiety in the depths of his heart, which had in turn repressed the vile energy and allowed some measure of his rationality to return to his mind.

    Could he really employ such extreme measures to keep Jun Xiaomo by his side? Even if he kept Jun Xiaomo by his side like that, could he ensure that Jun Xiaomo would not employ equally extreme measures to extricate herself from his tight grasp over her?

    For instance, suicide.

    If that happened, what was the point of keeping Jun Xiaomo by his side? Was it all just so he could force her to a path of no return?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expression of resentment surfaced in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind once more, shattering all the restraints shackling his rationality and imbuing his mind once more with rity.

    Even though this were only a brief reprieve from the usual haziness enshrouding his mind, this was more than sufficient for what Ye Xiuwen needed to do. Immediately, Ye Xiuwen cut a deep wound on the palm of his hand and firmly held onto the spirit tool¡¯s handle.

    In order to void an existing contract between a spirit tool and its master, one would have to pour into the spirit tool far more blood and spiritual energy than when the contract was made, until the invisible connection point between the spirit tool and its master breaks apart. As soon as the connection between the spirit tool and its master is broken, the contract will also have been voided.

    However, there was a hefty price to pay for such an action ¨C the spirit tool might very well be renderedpletely broken and useless, while the master might very well sustain some damage to his body as well. Thus, most people would never consider doing something that was so highly risky as breaking an existing contract with his spirit tool.

    For the very same reason, Ye Xiuwen also began to face a fierce resistance from his spirit tool as soon as he embarked on the process of voiding their contract. Wave after wave of corporeal vile energy surged out from the spirit tool and began to enshroud Ye Xiuwen in an instant.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils grew hazy and dted. It was evident just how much of a stronghold the vile energy had over Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart.

    When it rains, it pours. Just then, a variablepletely outside of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s contemtions began to stir. Just as Ye Xiuwen was attempting to void the contract with his spirit tool, Zhuang Lenghui had also just managed to link up with the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Wei Xingping. Within moments, they had begun their march towards the Sunset Mountain Range¡¯s lotus pond.

 Chapter 382: The Rainbow Lotus Flower Bears Seeds, Wei Xingping Seeks Vengeance

    <h4>Chapter 382: The Rainbow Lotus Flower Bears Seeds, Wei Xingping Seeks Vengeance</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The Rainbow Lotus Flower was soon to bear seeds over the next few days. As the day drew nearer, more and more powerful forces began to show up by the side of the lotus pond. None of them took any action to wipe out or suppress theirpetition actively. They were all wise to the fact that doing so might leave them worn for wear when the time came to vie for the seeds. Thus, they simply waited and watched.

    Jun Xiaomo, Chi Jingtian and the sprightly old man numbered three in all. Compared with others, their faction was hardly sizeable at all. Thus, they hardly drew any attention from the rest of the factions around at all.

    ¡°He¡¯s already been gone several hours now. Are you sure we don¡¯t need to look for him?¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her eyes and asked the old man.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo had not explicitly mentioned who ¡°he¡± referred to, everyone knew full well that Jun Xiaomo was referring to Ye Xiuwen.

    The old man silently shed a tear in his heart ¨C Disciple-in-Law still seems to be rather concerned about that foolish disciple of mine, huh? That¡¯s something praiseworthy.

    After collecting his own thoughts, the old man gazed into the sky and he began to furrow his already-wrinkled brows ¨C It¡¯s already getting dark. Why hasn¡¯t Disciple returned yet? Logically speaking, he wouldn¡¯t need such a long time even if he were hunting spirit beasts. After all, how could the spirit beasts herepare with the beasts we encountered in the Death¡¯s Gorge? Disciple probably wouldn¡¯t run into any form of trouble here.

    Thinking about these things, the old man began to grow worried for his disciple. Thus, he stood up and prepared to leave the group to search for traces of Ye Xiuwen. Just then, he noticed all the groups around burst out intomotion.

    ¡°I¡¯d just learnt that the Peakmaster of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Stoneknife Peak has just arrived at the Sunset Mountain Range, and he¡¯s rushing over to the lotus pond right now.¡±

    ¡°The Peakmaster of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Stoneknife Peak is here?! Then what¡¯s the point of even attempting to vie for the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower? There¡¯s no way we¡¯ll be able to beat him. But what¡¯s he doing here to begin with? Aren¡¯t the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds useful only to cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation? He should already be in the Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation or even higher, right? What¡¯s he doing vying for the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds with us?¡±

    ¡°Perhaps it might be for his disciples.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense. However, isn¡¯t there an unwritten rule that nobody in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation should be vying for the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds? This is to preventpetitors from being too severely wounded. What he¡¯s doing is breaking the rules, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°Who knows? Rules are made for people to begin with. If he insists on vying for the Rainbow Lotus Flower seeds against us, there¡¯s nothing we can do about it either. How could we possibly stand in the way of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s overwhelming prowess? They¡¯re ranked among the top of all the Greater Sects after all!¡±

    Everyone sighed with resignation, thinking that they had just been ousted from thepetition with the Zephyr Sect¡¯s presence.

    That said, there were some who kept their further intelligence on the matter to themselves, exining that the Peakmaster of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Stoneknife Peak was here in search for vengeance, not to participate in thepetition for the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds. As they nodded to each other knowingly, they began to delight in the misery of others, wondering which faction it was who had offended the Peakmaster of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Stoneknife Peak to such an extent that he would personally make a move against that faction.

    As soon as the old man heard the contents of discussion around him, he began to furrow his brows even more ¨C Who would¡¯ve thought that the worst-case scenario is happening at the worst possible time?

    He had never thought that the Zephyr Sect would be seeking vengeance so swiftly. At the very least, if they were able to seize the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds and depart from the Sunset Mountain Range before the Zephyr Sect arrived, the Zephyr Sect would no longer be able to locate their whereabouts as easily.

    Unfortunately, the Zephyr Sect moved much quicker than he had anticipated, and it seemed that a bloody battle was inevitably on the horizon this time. The old man wracked his mind, searching hard for a possibility to avoid the imminent dangers and deal with other exigencies as they came along.

    Jun Xiaomo had also heard the chatter amongst the other factions gathered around the lotus pond. She grimaced and clenched her fists tightly together.

    It had surfaced in her memory again ¨C that dream where she would be surrounded and attacked by enemies on all fronts, causing her to lose her child. Would this nightmare happen here, at this ce?

    Just as Jun Xiaomo and the old man were each gued by their ownplex thoughts, a radiant beam of light suddenly shot through the clouds, illuminating the lotus pond and casting a spotlight directly on the seven bulbs of the Rainbow Lotus Flower. The bulbs glimmered brilliantly, as though they had just been brushed over with a golden, glitteryyer of wax.

    Everyone was instantly dazzled by the sight. In the very next moment, the seven bulbs began to bloom even more. Just like that, the already-massive flowers began to grow even bigger, dwarfing the rest of the lotus flowers around. In fact, the splendor of the vibrant Rainbow Lotus Flower caused all of the other white lotus flowers in the pond to seem like nothing more than a mere contrasting backdrop.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to bear seeds soon!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s time!¡±

    The surroundings were once again set abuzz with activity. Everyone watched the Rainbow Lotus Flower with bated breath, eagerly anticipating the very moment that it would bear seeds.

    Jun Xiaomo and the old man¡¯s attention were instantly drawn to the Rainbow Flower Lotus. Jun Xiaomo ced her hand softly over her lower abdomen, wondering somewhat nervously whether this was her child¡¯s only hope.

    The beam of light that struck the Rainbow Lotus Flower was as though a trigger that set the process of bearing seeds in motion. Once each of the bulbs opened up to a full bloom, the petals began to wither away slowly.

    The withering began from the outermostyer of the petals. Then,yer byyer, they sublimated into wisps of golden light, dissipating into the air with a dazzling gleam. At the same time, the number of petals that remained grew fewer and fewer...

    Everyone standing around by the lotus pond began to prepare their weapons of choice, bracing themselves to pounce as soon as the seeds appeared. They all knew that the moment the seed appeared was also the instant that marked themencement of a massive bloody battle with all of the other factions around.

    Then, just as a fewyers of petals remained on the Rainbow Lotus Flower, a fierce bellow resounded from the side ¨C

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, hand over your life!¡±

    The bellow was fortified with an incredible amount of spiritual energy, and everyone around who heard the booming roar nearly copsed to the ground under the immense pressure.

    Before they could react to what was going on, they saw a shadow flickered by with extreme speed and rush straight towards a beauty dressed in striking-red!

    The beauty in striking-red was naturally Jun Xiaomo. These people didn¡¯t know who Jun Xiaomo was. However, Jun Xiaomo stood out from the crowd precisely because of her striking-red garments. All who had gathered around the lotus pond had invariably noticed the outstanding beauty dressed in striking-red when they surveyed their potentialpetitors. That said, they could also tell that the beauty¡¯s body was hardly in a good condition. After all, they could see that she needed the help and support of the others around her from time to time.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that the person who had offended the Peakmaster of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s Stoneknife Peak was in fact the seemingly frail beauty? What could this beauty have done to incur such wrath and hatred from the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Peakmaster?

    That¡¯s right. Practically everyone around could guess the identity of the assant who had shot out of nowhere. After all, was there really anyone else apart from the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Peakmaster who was able to fortify their voice with such incredible spiritual power, causing it to affect everyone else present?

    The old man¡¯s gaze stiffened, and he immediately took a huge step forward, standing between Jun Xiaomo and Wei Xingping as he bellowed to Chi Jingtian, ¡°Continue observing the Rainbow Lotus Flower and ignore me. I¡¯ll deal with him!¡±

    The old man¡¯s cultivation level incredibly deep and profound. However, he had always habitually kept his aura and disposition hidden under wraps so that nobody could ascertain the true depths of his abilities.

    Right now, faced with such a powerful opponent, there was no longer a reason for the old man to continue masking the true depths of his abilities. Thus, his aura flourished greatly, and the suppressive effects of his burgeoning aura even began to weigh heavily on the other factions who were standing around, waiting for the prime opportunity to seize the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds.

    ¡°My word! Who is this old man? Why weren¡¯t we able to detect the extent of his abilities earlier?¡± One of the bystanders stammered as he stared at the old man,pletely terrified.

    ¡°He¡¯s been watching closely by the red-garbed beauty¡¯s side all this while. I¡¯d initially thought that he was nothing more than an insignificant speck. Who could¡¯ve thought that this old man is actually a crouching tiger, hidden dragon?¡± Another bystander trembled under the terrifying suppressive effects of the old man¡¯s aura as a wave of irresistible dread washed across his heart.

    ¡°How could we possibly contend against them for the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower?¡± Another man whimpered.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It looks like they¡¯re about to fight with each other.¡±

    The surrounding bystanders were all distracted by the appearance of two powerhouses, and they no longer watched the Rainbow Lotus Flower in the center of the lotus pond. At this moment, everyone sincerely hoped in their hearts that the old man and the Stoneknife Peak¡¯s Peakmaster would duke it out with each other. After all, that was the only hope they had to keep any overwhelming powers out of thepetition for the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds.

    Wei Xingping and the sprightly old man didn¡¯t disappoint the bystanders around. Just as Wei Xingping¡¯s attack was about to strike Jun Xiaomo, the old man intercepted it with a slight chuckle, ¡°This old bag of bones hasn¡¯t had a good stretch in a while. Would this young man care to go a round or two with this old man here?¡±

    Wei Xingping furrowed his brows. He had initially thought that killing Jun Xiaomo was going to be an incredibly easy feat. How could he have expected such a huge stumbling block to stand in his way all of a sudden?

    ¡°Who are you? Why are you helping the traitor of the Zephyr Sect?!¡±

    ¡°Traitor? Hehe, are ye saying that Disciple-in-Law is a traitor? Then, let me apologize in advance. This old man could hardly care less aboutbels such as traitors and the like. I only know that the person ye are trying to kill is my disciple¡¯s wife, so you leave this old bag of bones no choice but to flex and fight.¡± The old man smiled radiantly as he slowly returned a blow against Wei Xingping. While his movements seemed soft and weak, it was backed with an incredibly powerful force behind it. Thus, when Wei Xingping moved away and avoided the attack, he was still struck by the powerful energy that surrounded the old man¡¯s attack.

    This old man is powerful! Probably more powerful than I am! Wei Xingping was slightly taken aback, before he quickly steeled his resolve with a trace of hatred and resentment.

    So what? I¡¯ve got countless spirit tools up my sleeves. Even if I have to expend every single spirit tool I have in my possession, I¡¯m going to take down this old man. Anyone who stands in the way of my revenge must die!

    Wei Xingping shot forward once again and began to tussle with the old man.

    Meanwhile, just as the battle between the two powerhouses grew increasingly heated, Zhuang Lenghui led her group of disciples and ran straight up to one of the Sunset Mountain Range¡¯s peaks.

    Zhuang Lenghui pointed at Jun Xiaomo and barked, ¡°Look over there! Thatdy dressed in striking-red is the person who killed Princess Linglong and Martial Brother Zou. Quickly! Go capture her!¡±

    The entourage that Zhuang Lenghui ledprised of both the experts rallied by the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King as well as a select group of elites from the Zephyr Sect. To put things into better perspective, the team led by Princess Linglong some time ago could hardly even begin to hold a candle to the strength of the present coalition.

    At the very least, the present coalition was not a group of assants that Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian would be able to deal with alone. In fact, this was a predicament that they might find difficult to extricate themselves from.

    As the coalition drew closer, stirring the feelings of dread and despondence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, she steeled her heart, resolving that she would ce everything on the line and fight for her life.

 Chapter 383: The Sudden Appearance of a Koi, Chaotic Warfare

    <h4>Chapter 383: The Sudden Appearance of a Koi, Chaotic Warfare</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Chi Jingtian took a step forward and stood directly in front of Jun Xiaomo. Then, turning his head slightly, he whispered, ¡°Xiaomo, don¡¯t be afraid. I¡¯ll protect you.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was touched, yet her heart was also awash with a sense of bitter astringency. She was touched because Chi Jingtian had not left her side despite the fact that the odds of victory were slim. Even though she still drew a nk whenever she tried to recall who Chi Jingtian was to her, he still stubbornly remained by her side in the face of adversity. At the same time, she was awash with a sense of bitter astringency because the situation looked grim, and the prospects of surviving the attack felt close to zero.

    Regardless, Jun Xiaomo curled her lips into a blissful smile as she acknowledged Chi Jingtian¡¯s feelings, ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Slightly embarrassed, Chi Jingtian rubbed his nose. He found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s sincere thanks far too warm and soft, almost as though a soft pair of hands were caressing his ears, causing the area around his ears to flush a gentle red hue.

    Jun Xiaomo waspletely oblivious to the fact that her simple expression of appreciation would cause Chi Jingtian¡¯s heart to grow all antsy like that. As she continued to stare at Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s coalition drawing closer, her gaze began to grow increasingly steely and determined.

    Women were like water, soft and fluid. Yet, when push came to shove, their hearts could also transform into cold, frigid ice with its incredibly sharp tips pointed straight towards their enemies.

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s gaze vacited between Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian¡¯s bodies for a bit, before she furrowed her brows ¨C she didn¡¯t expect Ye Xiuwen to be missing today.

    After all, if Ye Xiuwen were willing to do so much for Jun Xiaomo, there was no reason for him to be missing on the day when the Rainbow Lotus Flower bore seeds. Could there be more than meets the eye here?

    Zhuang Lenghui thought for a moment, before she simply shrugged it off with a sardonic chuckle, attributing it to nothing more than an oversensitivity on her part.

    So what if there were something more than meets the eye? She was not here alone today. The coalition standing behind her were partially formed from experts called to arms in response to the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s promise for great rewards, and their average abilities were in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. On the other hand, how many cultivators in the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation did Jun Xiaomo have on her side? No matter how scheming and crafty they are, was there truly any way they could possibly turn the situation around?

    With these reassuring thoughts on her mind, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart felt much more at ease. Thus, she pointed at Jun Xiaomo and barked, ¡°She¡¯s the one whose head the King has ced a bounty on. If anyone of you can take her head today, the King will most certainly reward you greatly!¡±

    These cultivators had responded to the call of the Greenwich Kingdom¡¯s King because they coveted the promised rewards. Naturally, they responded to the motivation of wealth with much enthusiasm. As soon as Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s prompt echoed out, they immediately charged straight towards Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits tensed itself to its limits. The child in her womb seemed to have sensed the imminent danger as well, and it also stilled itself, entirely alleviating from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body what would ordinarily be pangs of torturous pain.

    Jun Xiaomo released her divine sense as far as they went, and the movements of the assants immediately flowed into her mind. Her forehead began to bead up with sweat, and something clicked within the depths of her mind.

    Almost instinctually, Jun Xiaomo reached into her Interspatial Ring and retrieved several talismans and tossed them into the sky quickly. As soon as they were high enough, Jun Xiaomo made a hand seal and the talismans split open, forming a massive circle, revealing aplex formation diagram among them.

    ¡°It¡¯s a floating formation array! Jun Xiaomo has already mastered the floating formation array?!¡± Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart was instantly swamped with a deep sense of jealousy. She had longed to be made Tong Ruizhen¡¯s disciple, yet Tong Ruizhen was unwilling to reciprocate those feelings of hers. Instead, he chose the young sprout Jun Xiaomo as his very own disciple. Right now, when she saw Jun Xiaomo proficiently tossing out the talismans and forming a floating formation array, Zhuang Lenghui knew immediately that this was something that Jun Xiaomo had learnt from Tong Ruizhen.

    Tong Ruizhen must have taught her all these things! Who would¡¯ve thought that, despite feigning her death, Jun Xiaomo would have channeled all of her time into mastering the discipline of formation arrays?

    Zhuang Lenghui cursed resentfully in her heart as she red at Jun Xiaomo indignantly.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo hardly had the time to entertain Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s intense re. All of her attention was focused on the group of assants that were charging straight towards her. As soon as she tossed out the five talismans, slightly over ten assants were instantly trapped and bound by her floating formation array, and they remainedpletely motionless where they were.

    ¡°I¡¯d never thought that the red-garbed beauty is actually an array master.¡± One of the bystanders eximed.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Looks like her mastery over formation arrays isn¡¯t too shabby either. At the very least, I¡¯d never seen anyone form a formation array just by scattering several talismans into the air. That formation array is pretty formidable too. Look ¨C those people have all been trapped.¡± Another man chimed in.

    Several onlookers standing by the lotus pond subconsciously retreated several steps, intending to watch the ensuing battle from afar in the hope that they wouldn¡¯t incidentally be drawn in or hurt by coteral damage.

    Not only was their curiosity for Jun Xiaomo¡¯s identity piqued, they were also eximing in admiration for her mastery over the discipline of formation arrays.

    However, what Jun Xiaomo had done was hardly sufficient. After all, the King of the Greenwich Kingdom was hell bent on sending Jun Xiaomo to the grave to apany, so how could he possibly have sent only ten assants? The fact of the matter was that there were several more people lying in wait around the lotus pond, waiting eagerly for themand to charge straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    Thus, as soon as the first wave of assants were trapped by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array, Zhuang Lenghui calmly waved her hand, directing a second wave of assants to rush towards Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian once more.

    ¡°Damn! Why are there so many people!¡± Chi Jingtian couldn¡¯t help but curse aloud. Then, he retrieved an enormous spirit tool from his Interspatial Ring and covered both Jun Xiaomo and himself in an instant.

    Under the effects of this defensive spirit tool, the second wave of assants who had rushed to their side found themselves immediately repelled backwards.

    ¡°It¡¯s actually a Diamond Bastion?!¡± Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief as a trace of avarice flickered across the depths of her eyes. She immediately turned around and instructed the remaining assants of the coalition lying in wait, ¡°All of you are to attack her at once! The Diamond Bastion can block all attacks from cultivators weaker than the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation. Those who had attacked them earlier won¡¯t be able toy even a scratch on this spirit tool. I want you to kill those two within the Diamond Bastion. Anyone who does so will be greatly rewarded!¡±

    Even though the effects of any attacks would be greatly diminished by the Diamond Bastion, it can only protect its user from attacks for a total of two hours. After two hours, the Diamond Bastion¡¯s effects would expire, and it would only be usable after a cooldown of three full days.

    Yet, even then, Zhuang Lenghui sincerely desired to seize the Diamond Bastion for herself. After all, such high-grade spirit tools were hard toe by to begin with.

    Moved by the promise of wealth and rewards, the other assants lying in wait immediately charged towards Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian. At the same time, they began to rain down an intense barrage of attacks and spells on the Diamond Bastion.

    Chi Jingtian¡¯s forehead began to grow percted with sweat. He had never expected Zhuang Lenghui to have such a massive army of assants behind her, and each wave of assants were stronger than thest to boot.

    Damn it. Is there an end to this?!

    Chi Jingtian began to pull out more spirit tools from his Interspatial Ring, while Jun Xiaomo began to duke it out with the assants with her abilities at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.

    Then, just as everyone¡¯s attention waspletely captivated by the battle between Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction and Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s faction, the Rainbow Lotus Flower finally finished shedding all of its petals, revealing the massive lotus seeds in the middle of each bulb of flower. The intense spiritual fluctuations from the lotus seeds had attracted not only the cultivators around the lotus pond ¨C it had even attracted some spirit beasts as well.

    Swoosh! A massive koi suddenly leapt out of the lotus pond, attempting to swallow the lotus seeds. It was only at this instant that everyone realized that the Rainbow Lotus Flower had alreadypleted its process of bearing seeds!

    ¡°Damn! Hurry! Stop that koi!¡± Those who were standing further from the lotus pond immediately roared at the top of their voices, while those standing closer to the pond immediately rushed forward, thinking to kill the koi that was vying for the seeds against them.

    Unfortunately, the Spirit Koi¡¯s abilities were incredibly strong. It was a spirit beast of at least the eighth-grade. Those who rushed forward recklessly soon discovered to their dismay that the Spirit Koi possessed rows of incredibly sharp teeth within its mouth, and it could effortlessly cleave a nine-foot tall cultivator in two halves.

    In fact, there were several cultivators who were indeed unable to avoid the Spirit Koi¡¯s attacks, and they lost their lives to its powerful jaws in an instant. There were other cultivators who attempted to nk the Spirit Koi and cleave its skin, only to realize just how solid its scales were. As soon as their attacks struck the Spirit Koi¡¯s scales, these attacks would be repelled backwards. Some of these cultivators were even injured or killed by their own spells and attacks.

    How are we supposed to fight against this thing?!

    Then, before the cultivators coulde up with a n, the Spirit Koi began tounch its counterattack. With one massive sweep from its tail, the Spirit Koi sent a massive eight-foot wave surging straight towards the cultivators. Those who were further away from the Spirit Koi were able to react in time and leap out of the way. However, those who were closer to the Spirit Koi found themselves being consumed by the tidal wave and dragged deep into the depths of the pond. With another vicious p of its tail, the Spirit Koi beat them to a bloody pulp underwater, before devouring them entirely with its powerful bite.

    Zhuang Lenghui clenched her fists tightly. She had initially expected seizing the Rainbow Lotus Flower to be an incredibly easy thing. Yet, an unexpected variable had arisen, throwing her ns intoplete chaos.

    Despite that, a bright gleam flickered in the depths of her eyes, and she decided to adopt a wait-and-see approach to the problem. She was different from those fools who were throwing their lives at the Spirit Koi recklessly. If she had a choice in the matter, she would most certainly choose to devise a foolproof n before making her move. Ideally, she was hoping that the cultivators around the lotus pond would whittle down the Spirit Koi bit by bit until it was at its final breaths before she made her move. This way, the entire operation would go much more smoothly.

    The Spirit Koi¡¯sbat abilities were incredibly strong. That said, there were innumerable cultivators standing by the side of the lotus pond as well. Furthermore, many of these people belonged to each the same sect. Thus, as soon as they witnessed the Spirit Koi hurt or even kill their fellow sect mates, their hearts immediately roiled intensely with indignation and murderous intent.

    Just like that, wave after wave of cultivators charged headlong towards the Spirit Koi, as though intent on carving its flesh for their dead brethren.

    In an instant, the lotus pond had turned into a bloody battlefield, and the nauseating stench of blood began to fill the air.

    Even though the Spirit Koi was incredibly powerful, it was still slowly but surely whittled by the relentless attacks of all the cultivators around. As time went by, not only did it begin to show signs of weakening, the number of injuries on its body also began to increase more and more.

    Zhuang Lenghui squinted her eyes, contemting whether it was time for her to make her move. She was calcting the risks involved in discreetly harvest the lotus seeds from the center of the lotus pond while capitalizing on the fact that everyone was preupied by the Spirit Koi.

    Yet in that moment of hesitation, a shadow suddenly shot through the crowd amidst all the chaos, making a beeline straight for the lotus seeds in the middle of the pond.

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart constricted slightly ¨C Is that person thinking of the same thing that I am?! Who is he? How could he possibly move so quickly to elude even my eyes?!

    In her rage, Zhuang Lenghui imbued her eyes with her spiritual energy and stared at the center of the lotus pond.

    Then, she finally recognized the identity of the man who had just appeared ¨C who else could it be apart from the ¡°missing¡± Ye Xiuwen?

 Chapter 384: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Predicament, Zhuang Lenghuiâ€™s Delight

    <h4>Chapter 384: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Predicament, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s Delight</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    I knew something was amiss when Ye Xiuwen was nowhere to be seen. Look! Isn¡¯t he trying to slip in and take advantage of the situation here? He must have been lying in wait and observing the situation for a long time before making his move when everyone¡¯s attention is captivated by the Spirit Koi! Zhuang Lenghui thought resentfully to herself. Her mind spun furiously, contemting any and every possible countermeasure she coulde up with ¨C there was no way she was letting Ye Xiuwen seize the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds just like that!

    Truth be told, Zhuang Lenghui had misunderstood Ye Xiuwen¡¯s intentions. Ye Xiuwen had never thought so much about the situation to begin with. As soon as Ye Xiuwen sessfully voided the contract with his spirit tool, his rationality immediately returned to his mind.

    When he recalled all the things he had done while under the influence of the spirit tool, he sincerely wanted to beat himself up over and over again.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen recalled what the sprightly old man had said ¨C they absolutely had to get their hands on the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds if Jun Xiaomo were to safely deliver her child. Thus, the first thing he did as soon as his rationality returned to his mind was to rush straight back to the lotus pond. Incidentally, the moment he arrived was also the moment when the Spirit Koi was locked in the heat of battle with the rest of the cultivators around.

    Just like that, Ye Xiuwen shot straight towards the center of the lotus pond without much thought. The only thing on his mind was naturally the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower.

    Unexpectedly, the Spirit Koi was still keeping a keen eye on the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds despite having been slowly worn down by the cultivators around. Thus, as soon as Ye Xiuwen drew close to the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds, the Spirit Koi went berserk!

    Everyone surrounding the Spirit Koi was instantly thrown back by the massive surge in the Spirit Koi¡¯s energy. To make things worse, the exploding wave of energy wasced with innumerable beads of waters that shot out at an incredible speed, sufficient to prate and puncture a person¡¯s body.

    Those who were lucky found their bodies punctured in several locations, and they began to bleed profusely. Fortunately, those wounds were hardly life-threatening. Unfortunately, there were also a handful who were much less fortunate, and they were instantly turned into a sieve by these beads of water pellets. Within moments, several cultivators copsed to the ground,pletely motionless.

    Pools of blood began to spread all over the ground. It was a blood-curdling, macabre sight.

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart shuddered as she thought ¨C It¡¯s a good thing I didn¡¯t rush in earlier. I¡¯d earlier thought that the Spirit Koi was already at the end of its road. Who could¡¯ve thought that it still had such a powerful attack at its disposal?

    The Spirit Koi had expected everyone around it to be sent flying by its powerful attack. After all, thatst strike had depleted two-thirds of all of its remaining strength. Unexpectedly, there was still one man who remained floating in mid-air,pletely unharmed. It appears that this man hadpletely avoided the Spirit Koi¡¯s previous attack.

    This man was none other than Ye Xiuwen. Having already voided the contract with the spirit tool, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s gaze on the Spirit Koi was incredibly cid right now. In fact, it was calm and tranquil,pletely devoid of any ripple of anxiety.

    He was able to avoid the Spirit Koi¡¯s earlier attack not merely because his cultivation level was high ¨C he was also aided by the immeasurablebat experience he had gleaned from the countless battles in the depths of the Death¡¯s Gorge.

    The Death¡¯s Gorge wascking in everything ¨C everything save for spirit and demonic beasts. This was precisely why Ye Xiuwen was able to maintain cool andposed despite facing such a vicious Spirit Koi and its devastating attacks.

    The Spirit Koi had been living in the lotus pond for thest fifty years in eager anticipation to devour the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds. It had been a long and arduous wait, but its goal was undoubtedly in front of it right now. Unfortunately, it was being impeded by innumerable insignificant beings that even ended up injuring it. Thus, it was naturally so infuriated that it could no longer repress the desire to swallow everyone up!

    As the intense fury roiled in the depths of its eyes, the Spirit Koi pped the surface of the pond with its tail and instantly leapt out of it with its mouth gaping wide open. Its target? The man who was hovering in mid-air ¨C Ye Xiuwen.

    Some distance away, Zhuang Lenghui watched the battle ensue with a bright, vicious gleam in her eyes. It would be ideal if the Spirit Koi could devour Ye Xiuwen once and for all. That would eliminate one of the greatest obstacles standing between her and the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds.

    As for the Spirit Koi, Zhuang Lenghui sincerely believed that she would be able to slowly torment it to death in a battle of attrition, especially given the arduous battles it had already been through.

    As the Spirit Koi drew closer to Ye Xiuwen with its mouth wide open, Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely still where he stood, almost as though he were waiting for the Spirit Koi to devour him.

    ¡°This man is crazy. Why isn¡¯t he avoiding it?¡± An injured cultivator on the ground eximed as he stared at Ye Xiuwen in disbelief, coughing out a few mouthfuls of blood.

    Indeed, in the eyes of most people around, the fact that Ye Xiuwen had remainedpletely rooted to the ground was akin to a death wish. After all, so many people had already perished to the Spirit Koi. It was evident just how vicious and unrelenting the Spirit Koi was.

    That said, they had all underestimated something ¨C Ye Xiuwen¡¯s speed. The Spirit Koi was indeed zing fast to the normal person. However, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s speed was even faster!

    Just as the Spirit Koi was about to shut its mouth, Ye Xiuwen suddenly shifted. Under the effects of his Windwalk ability, he immediately dodged to the Spirit Koi¡¯s side and plunged his sword straight into the Spirit Koi¡¯s eye.

    The Spirit Koi had never expected Ye Xiuwen to be so crafty and cunning, so it waspletely unguarded. In an instant, a shower of blood sprayed everywhere, and the Spirit Koi was blinded in one eye.

    The Spirit Koi fell into the water in pain, sending a massive tidal wave sweeping across the surface of the lotus pond. As it continued to convulse in pain underwater, the surface of the water was very soon dyed a deep, red hue by its blood.

    That said, Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t pause to give it a chance to catch its breath. He immediately dove straight after it, making the best of the opening he was presented with. Another sh of the swordter, the Spirit Koi¡¯s other eye was cut through andpletely blinded as well.

    Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Just as everyone around thought that Ye Xiuwen was about to be swallowed by the Spirit Koi, everything changed, and the entire situation was reversed within moments.

    Everyone began to cast looks of admiration on Ye Xiuwen ¨C Why didn¡¯t we think of it earlier? The Spirit Koi¡¯s scales have the effect of repulsion, but its eyes would naturally be its weakest points. As long as we blind both its eyes and take away the sense of sight, it would no longer have the ability to fight against us anymore!

    Ye Xiuwen no longer cared about the Spirit Koi floundering in the depths of the water. Instead, he skimmed straight across the surface of the lotus pond, stopping right where the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds were located. There, propped gingerly atop the lotus leaves were seven seeds ¨C exactly what the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s abdomen needed.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes gleamed warmly, and he reached out towards the seeds...

    Just then, a shrill shriek resounded from afar, ¡°You imbeciles! Don¡¯t just focus on Jun Xiaomo anymore. That person over there is Ye Xiuwen. He¡¯s the culprit who killed Princess Linglong and Zou Zilong. Jun Xiaomo is a mere aplice!¡±

    The person screaming was none other than Zhuang Lenghui. It finally dawned on her that she had dallied for far too long as soon as she noticed that Ye Xiuwen was about to obtain the seven lotus seeds. After all, she had never expected Ye Xiuwen to possess the ability to dispose of the powerful Spirit Koi. Thus, as soon as Ye Xiuwen reached out for the seven lotus seeds, she immediately resorted to killing with a borrowed knife once more.

    This was one of the main reasons why she had called in the cavalry to begin with. She was well aware that she would never be able to kill Ye Xiuwen given her own abilities, and she knew that she would have to borrow the strength of the Greenwich Kingdom and the Zephyr Sect in this regard.

    With Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s shrill shriek, several assants immediately paused in their attacks against Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian and rushed straight towards Ye Xiuwen.

    In fact, they were not the only ones who charged towards Ye Xiuwen. Wei Xingping immediately joined in the fray as soon as he heard Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s shriek. After all, he could still remember vividly Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s description of how Ye Xiuwen had tormented his dear disciple in the missive she had sent back to the Zephyr Sect!

    Wei Xingping cried out in rage, and he retrieved a pill bottle from his Interspatial Ring, poured out its contents and swallowed it immediately.

    This type of medicinal pill was something that temporarily increased a cultivator¡¯s abilities for two hours. However, its side effects were equally immense. After the medicinal effects wore off, the person who consumed this medicinal pill would experience weakness for a period toe, which may range from several months to even several years.

    One single pill would enable a person to increase his abilities by fifty percent. Wei Xingping had swallowed three of these pills at once, meaning that his cultivation level naturally experienced a surge of one-hundred and fifty percent. In other words, there was no longer a single person around that was his match right now.

    Wei Xingping would naturally have to pay amensurate price as soon as the medicinal effects wore off, given how incredibly harmful its side effects were to a cultivator¡¯s body. However, Wei Xingping didn¡¯t mind this one bit ¨C his only goal right now was to kill the person who had murdered his disciple!

    Wei Xingping¡¯s cultivation was initially slightly lower than the cultivation of the sprightly old man. However, his abilities exploded as soon as he swallowed the medicinal pill, and even the old man couldn¡¯t stand in his way any longer.

    Just like that, Wei Xingping sent the old man flying with one simple palm strike, causing the old man to m heavily into the ground, spitting out a huge mouthful of blood.

    The old man¡¯s age was showing. Given the injuries of all sorts that the old man had sustained in his protracted stay within the Death¡¯s Gorge, he no longer had the stamina and resilience for a long, drawn-out battle. Now that Wei Xingping struck him squarely with a powerful palm strike, his mind was immediately sent spinning, and his vision began to fade away. He was practically unable to pick himself up again.

    ¡°Disciple...careful...¡± The old man thought to warn Ye Xiuwen. Unfortunately, apart from the breathless, raspy sounds escaping from his lips, nothing else came out.

    Wei Xingping shot straight towards Ye Xiuwen. On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen was already struggling to fend off the concerted attacks of the assants around. Thus, one could only imagine how grave the situation was for Ye Xiuwen as soon as Wei Xingping appeared.

    ¡°Xiaomo, where are you going?!¡± Chi Jingtian noticed that Jun Xiaomo was about to rush out of the spirit tool, and he could help but hold her back.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to save him!¡± Jun Xiaomo turned around and yelled.

    She couldn¡¯t understand why her heart was so incredibly anxious seeing Ye Xiuwen in such a predicament. In fact, she had initially thought that her heart was still mad at Ye Xiuwen for keeping her restrained all this while. However, as soon as she noticed Ye Xiuwen in imminent danger, her heard began to constrict with intense pain.

    The only exnation she coulde up with was the fact that Ye Xiuwen hadnded himself in this predicament because of her, so she couldn¡¯t bring herself to see Ye Xiuwen suffer for it.

    Chi Jingtian grew anxious, and he immediately added, ¡°Xiaomo, given how you are right now, going out would spell certain death for you. Please wait a little while more, alright? If you can do just that, an opportunity for a reversal might arise soon.¡±

    Reversal? Where is the reversal going toe from? Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t believe Chi Jingtian because she couldn¡¯t see any prospects of a reversal lying anywhere.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo was not the only one who didn¡¯t believe in the possibility of a reversal ¨C Zhuang Lenghui was the same as well.

    As soon as she saw Ye Xiuwen engulfed in a swarm of attacks, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s lips began to curl up victoriously.

 Chapter 385: Jun Xiaomoâ€™s Memory, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Injuries

    <h4>Chapter 385: Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Memory, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Injuries</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The assants rushed towards Ye Xiuwen. At the very same moment that they began their charge, they also saw Ye Xiuwen shoot out a Wind de, slicing off the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds and pulling them into his grasp.

    ¡°Damn! We were toote. He¡¯s already obtained the seeds!¡± Zhuang Lenghui gritted her teeth as she immediately brandished her sword and rushed towards Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen had just seized the seeds. How could she stand idly by and not do a thing to stand in his way?

    Ye Xiuwen attempted to store the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds within his Interspatial Ring before fighting his way out of the encirclement. Yet, to his dismay, his Interspatial Ring appeared to reject the existence of the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds altogether. It was as though there were an invisible barrier preventing the seeds from entering the Interspatial Ring.

    Having no other choice left to him, Ye Xiuwen was relegated to holding the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds in one hand while fending off the encirclement of assants with his other hand.

    Right now, amidst all the chaos, it was evident that Ye Xiuwen had finally been pushed onto the backfoot. Not only did Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s men go straight after his jugr, even the other cultivators who had coveted the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds were unwilling to see Ye Xiuwen seizing all the seeds for himself. Thus, in the blink of an eye, Ye Xiuwen became the target of all concerted attacks all at once.

    As the saying goes ¨C even ant bites can kill an elephant. Even though Ye Xiuwen was already in the advanced-tier Nascent Soul stage of cultivation and his cultivation level were well above that of the assants, he had already expended an incredible amount of spiritual energy and mental fortitude on voiding the contract with his spirit tool earlier before rushing over without any rest or recuperation. If there were only a handful of assants, he would most certainly have been able to deal with them all on his own. However, he was faced with an entire encirclement of relentless assants. Thus, it didn¡¯t take long before wounds and injuries of all sorts began to appear on his body.

    Wei Xingping had charged straight towards Ye Xiuwen as soon as he wounded the sprightly old man. His eyes were already bloodshot to begin with. With an impassioned battle cry, the aura around his body flourished impressively, sending a number of the surroundings assants flying, some of whom even passed out immediately.

    Those who managed to retain their consciousness nced at Wei Xingping¡¯s fiendish disposition and immediately understood that he was a man none of them could afford to cross. Thus, everyone immediately scattered and scrambled away.

    Ye Xiuwen was originally surrounded and concealed by arge encirclement of assants. But now, with some injured and others scattering in all directions, Ye Xiuwen could finally be seen again.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, return my disciple¡¯s life!¡± Wei Xingping bellowed as the energy about him flourished, and he threw a vicious palm strike at Ye Xiuwen.

    Wei Xingping¡¯s palm strike was imbued with an immensely chilling energy, and frost immediately formed on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s chest the moment he was struck by it. In the very next moment, Ye Xiuwen felt an intense chill creep through his bones and marrows, spreading through his limbs. Then, an electrifying pain surged straight through his mind. It felt almost as though his body were being torn apart, inch by inch, and it waspletely debilitating.

    With that, Ye Xiuwen passed out and fell straight into the depths of the lotus pond.

    ¡°No!!!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind drew a nk in the instant she saw Ye Xiuwen fall into the lotus pond. Gentle ripples of water echoing out where Ye Xiuwen had been just moments ago.

    An immense pain shot straight from the depths of her heart into the trenches of her mind where all of her locked memories were buried. In an instant, all of her lost memories came surging back to her like a fierce tidal wave.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo cried out with a muffled groan. Her knees buckled, and she nearly copsed to the ground.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Chi Jingtian held up Jun Xiaomo anxiously. He was both upset and infuriated as he cursed in his heart, wondering why there were no signs of his nsmen just yet.

    That¡¯s right. Chi Jingtian¡¯s reinforcements were none other than the members of the Chi n. Logically speaking, his nsmen should have arrived in the blink of an eye as soon as he released the call for help. That said, it had been quite some time now, yet not a single person was to be found yet ¨C Just what in the world is going on?! Are they lost?!

    Wei Xingping waited for a short while. When he noticed that Ye Xiuwen remainedpletely submerged in the depths of the lotus pond, he immediately concluded that Ye Xiuwen was finally dead.

    That¡¯s right. There¡¯s no way he could survive with such heavy injuries, after falling straight into the depths of the pond.

    Zhuang Lenghui red hatefully at the surface of the pond which was tranquil once again. It was as though she couldn¡¯t suppress the desire to dry up the pond all at once at this moment ¨C Damn it! How could Ye Xiuwen have held onto those Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds to the very end? Where am I going to go about looking for these seeds now that they¡¯ve vanished into the depths of the lotus pond now? Do I really have to start fishing for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s corpse?

    On the other hand, Wei Xingping was hardly interested in the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds that Ye Xiuwen was holding in his hands to the bitter end. He was only interested in exacting revenge for his dear disciple.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen vanished, he turned around, and his gazended directly on Jun Xiaomo some distance away.

    There once still one more perpetrator. Once he kills this other perpetrator, he would have exacted revenge for his dear disciple.

    Wei Xingping began to march slowly towards Jun Xiaomo, step by step. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence was already no different from that of a dead person in those bloodshot eyes of his.

    Chi Jingtian took a step forward and stood directly in front of Jun Xiaomo.

    Wei Xingping smiled disdainfully. In his eyes, a mere cultivator at the advanced-tier Golden Core stage of cultivation was an existence he could crush with his fingers given the extent of his abilities right now.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye...¡± Streams of tears began to roll out of her eyes and fall into the soil underfoot.

    Jun Xiaomo could finally recall her memories. The pain apanying the inflow of memories caused her to feel almost nauseous. That said, no amount of pain couldpare with the excruciating pain tearing apart her heart right now.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s ¡°death¡± had dealt her such a heavy blow that she had even lost her memories. Naturally, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ¡°death¡± was hardly going to be any easier on her heart.

    Having just regained her memories, the pain in her heart was so intense that Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t suppress the urge to perish in the very next moment.

    ¡°Xiaomo, hang in there. Our reinforcements will be arriving soon.¡± Chi Jingtian knew that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s condition right now was incredibly concerning, and he immediately turned around and ced his hand reassuringly on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head as she muttered, ¡°Jingtian, leave me. I don¡¯t want you to sacrifice yourself for me like that.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?!¡± Chi Jingtian exploded, ¡°You were the one who had saved my life to begin with. How can you spout such nonsense at a time like this?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo grimaced slightly, ¡°Little Packie, I¡¯d rescued you back then because I wanted you to continue living a good, long life, not so that you would make such a meaningless sacrifice for me.¡±

    ¡°You...you¡¯ve regained your memories?¡± Chi Jingtian¡¯s eyes widened.

    Jun Xiaomo lifted her head and gazed straight into Chi Jingtian¡¯s eyes, ¡°Jingtian, will you give me your word that you¡¯ll continue to live well?¡±

    Chi Jingtian was taken aback. He could see the suicidal despondence in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ashen eyes.

    Gritting his teeth, he responded, ¡°Don¡¯t you have any modicum of will to live on anymore? Death is a reprieve for you, but what about the child in your womb? He wasn¡¯t even given a chance to see the world yet. Are you going to cut him off and seize his rights to enjoy the world just like that?!¡±

    Chi Jingtian had never wanted to castigate Jun Xiaomo like that. However, the dispirited gaze in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes had caused his heart to grow incredibly anxious.

    ¡°Child...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered softly as she ced her palm gingerly on her lower abdomen.

    ¡°Hmph, have you all finished saying yourst words? Once you¡¯re done, I¡¯m going to make my move.¡± Wei Xingping grinned viciously. Lifting his hands, he began to congeal a massive amount of energy in the heart of his palms once more.

    He intended to destroy both Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian in one fell swoop.

    Chi Jingtian stood valiantly in front of Jun Xiaomo once more, while Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes with resignation.

    At this very moment, despondence was the only thing that engulfed their hearts.

    Then, in the very moment that Wei Xingping was about to shoot the congealed energy straight at Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian, an intense bright light burst out in the surroundings, and everyone around immediately shut their eyes reflexively.

    Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian must be dead, right? Several people thought in their hearts.

    Then, when the light faded away and everyone opened their eyes once more, they immediately nced towards Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian ¨C they had originally thought that they would be greeted by no more than two lifeless corpses. Unexpectedly, Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian were standing perfectly fine where they had been all this while. Furthermore, there was now yet another old cultivator standing right in front of them ¨C an old man with frazzled hair and a somewhat young countenance.

    ¡°Great-Grandfather!¡± Chi Jingtian immediately eximed when he saw the old man.

    The old man turned around and red at him resentfully as he barked, ¡°You¡¯re causing trouble again! If not for the fact that Great Grandfather had arrived in the nick of time, you¡¯d be nothing more than a pile of ash by now!¡±

    The old man was naturally the overprotective Old Man Chi, n head of the Chi n, Rong Ruihan¡¯s master as well as Chi Jingtian¡¯s great-grandfather.

    Wei Xingping had practically depleted all of his spiritual energy with thisst attack of his. He had initially thought that Jun Xiaomo and Chi Jingtian would be utterly crushed by this final attack of his. Yet the unexpected urred, and an interloper interfered with his ns, even blocking off his powerful strike all at once.

    Incensed by the sudden turn of events, the anger and hatred in his chest roiled so intensely that Wei Xingping suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

    At this moment, the three pills which he had swallowed to increase his cultivation level had finally begun to show signs of wearing off, giving way to the intense bacsh of the side effects. Just like that, Wei Xingping staggered backwards several steps and nearly copsed to the ground.

    His body was now incredibly weak and feeble.

    However, the manifestation of the intense bacsh from the medicine¡¯s side effects hardly meant that Old Man Chi was going to let Wei Xingping off the hook just like that. Truth be told, the Chi n members were renown in their own rights for being overprotective. How could they simply let a man intent on killing the dear great-grandson of their n off the hook just like that?

    Old Man Chi snorted and struck Wei Xingping with three sessive palm strikes. These three palm strikes appeared incredibly slow to the eyes, almost as though they were but weak, gentle taps on Wei Xingping¡¯s body.

    However, it was evident from Wei Xingping¡¯s expressions that the three palm strikes were far more than meets the eye. With every strike, Wei Xingping¡¯s eyeballs would bulge that much more ¨C and his eyeballs appeared almost as though they had fallen right out of his sockets after the third and final strike.

    ¡°Pfft!¡± Wei Xingping spat out arge mouthful of blood as he copsed into the ground.

    Old Man Chi flicked his sleeves before looking up and surveying everyone else who was watching the battle unfold at this moment.

    The onlookers immediately quivered in fear, and the surroundings were filled by pin-drop silence.

    In their eyes, Wei Xingping was already incredibly powerful. With the appearance of yet another master who dwarfs Wei Xingping inparison, everyone immediately knew better than to provoke him unnecessarily.

    Who would have thought that the seeds of the Rainbow Lotus Flower would attract such incredible contenders? At this moment, there was not a single cultivator who still harboured any thoughts of seizing the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds for themselves. After all, even if they managed toy their hands on the seeds, they might not even live long enough to be able to consume it.

    Old Man Chi nced back at the Chi nsmen behind him and instructed, ¡°Go. As long as they are members of the Zephyr Sect, capture them. If they resist, kill them. Especially that youngdy. She must never be let off the hook.¡±

    Old Man Chi wagged his finger at Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s silhouette in the distance as he instructed his nsmen. Immediately, his nsmen responded with a united front, ¡°Yes, n Head.¡± Then, they scattered, pursuing everyst remnant of the Zephyr Sect disciples and rounding them up.

    The Zephyr Sect disciples were easy to spot since they were all wearing their uniform.

    In the blink of an eye, the entire situation had been reversed. The hunter became the hunted, and the prey became the predator.

    Ignoring the situation around him, Old Man Chi walked over towards the sprightly old man as he snorted disdainfully, ¡°You old fogey. To think that I¡¯d see you like this one day.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be cocky. Hurry up and give me a few recovery pills. I¡¯ve still gotta go check on my disciple.¡± The sprightly old man barked discourteously back at Old Man Chi.

    ¡°Great-Grandfather, you know Brother Ye¡¯s master?¡± Chi Jingtian¡¯s eyes widened slightly.

    ¡°Hmph.¡± Both old men snorted at the same time.

    Aiyah, don¡¯t snort at me! How do you know each other? Chi Jingtian¡¯s curiosity was piqued.

    Finally, Old Man Chi exined, ¡°How could I not know that old fogey? He was the one who eloped with my dear sister years ago! I¡¯ll never forget his face even when I turn to ash!¡± Old Man Chi barked as he red daggers at the sprightly old man.

    Eloped with Great-Grandfather¡¯s sister? Chi Jingtian stared at the sprightly old man in disbelief ¨C Then, isn¡¯t he my...Great-Granduncle-in-Law?

    Having discovered yet anotheryer of connections between the two old man, Chi Jingtian found himself a little bit dumbstruck by the situation.

    Distracted by these incidental details, none of the bystanders noticed Jun Xiaomo stumbling about clumsily as she found her way to the side of the pond, copsing onto the ground by its side.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye...¡± Jun Xiaomo clenched her fists tightly as she gazed into the depths of the lotus pond with puffy eyes, doing all she could to search for that familiar silhouette that she knew all too well.

 Chapter 386: Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Return, News of Rong Ruihan

    <h4>Chapter 386: Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Return, News of Rong Ruihan</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    When Ye Xiuwen was struck by Wei Xingping and fell into the depths of the lotus pond, he thought he was a goner for sure.

    His mind drew a nk in that moment of crisis. His hand was still tightly gripping onto the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds when the scent of death swept over him like an all engulfing nket.

    Bang!A massive ripple echoed outwards where he struck the waters. His wounds and injuries were aggravated as he plunged powerfully through the surface of the waters. His ears rung eerily, and everything turned dark. In that very instant, he nearly passed out.

    Yet he remained conscious. The marrow-piercing cold of the waters in the lotus pond caused him to tremble slightly, and his mind remained awake against all odds.

    It was also this brief moment of rity of mind which allowed him to cling strongly to the thread of hope. Ye Xiuwen immediately reached into his Interspatial Ring and pulled out a Water Repulsion Orb before cing it straight into his mouth. Just like that, fresh air immediately filled his lungs once more, providing him with a reprieve from the stifling sensation of the waters engulfing him.

    However, this was all Ye Xiuwen was able to do. The surface of the lotus pond drew further and further into the distance. Ye Xiuwen no longer had the strength to swim back upwards. Fortunately, the Spirit Koi had already turned tail and escaped as soon as it lost its vision. Otherwise, Ye Xiuwen would have no chance to survive this ordeal at all.

    As Ye Xiuwen gazed at the bubbles float up to the surface of the lotus pond, he vaguely made out the reddish silhouette of a person staring back down at the lotus pond.

    Is it Xiaomo?

    Ye Xiuwen grimaced with a slight sense of bitter astringency. He found it hard to forgive himself for all the mistakes he had made back when he was being controlled by the spirit tool.

    And if he felt this way, how much more aggrieved would Jun Xiaomo feel, especially since she was the one bearing the brunt of the mistakes he made? As expected, the image on the surface of the waters must be an illusion...

    With these thoughts weighing heavily on his heart, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind slowly faded into the abyss of darkness.

    On the side of the lotus pond, Jun Xiaomo slowly mbered back up to her feet with a poise that looked as though she were about to dive deep into the waters. As soon as the sprightly old man and the rest noticed that Jun Xiaomo were missing, they looked up and noticed what Jun Xiaomo was trying to do. They were instantly scared witless, and they sprinted straight towards Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Disciple-in-Law, don¡¯t be foolish!¡± The sprightly old man ran the quickest, and he immediately grabbed hold of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm in the nick of time, preventing her from doing anything foolish.

    Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback when something grabbed her arm. She looked back, only to notice a wrinkled old man staring at her anxiously.

    She had just recovered her memories, and her entire mind was still frazzled and confused. Thus, it naturally took her some time to recognize the person standing in front of her.

    ¡°Master?¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered softly.

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, she was already Ye Xiuwen¡¯s woman. Thus, calling the sprightly old man ¡°Master¡± could hardly be considered going overboard. On the side, Chi Jingtian heard the term of reference used by Jun Xiaomo, and he felt somewhat bitter in his heart. However, he chose to keep these feelings to himself.

    He knew that the foothold he had in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart could never be as firm as that which Ye Xiuwen or even Rong Ruihan had. This was something he had already begun to ept as a fact.

    However, eptance of a fact was one thing, yet matters of future developments were quite something else. After all, there were many, many days ahead of their lives, and he firmly believed that he would be able to make Jun Xiaomo ept him for who he is one day.

    Going with the flow, the sprightly old man sighed and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have faith that my disciple¡¯s resilience is much more than just that. At the very least, I don¡¯t think he¡¯d fall to a mere lotus pond.¡±

    ¡°But he¡¯s already sustained grievous wounds.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered in dismay. Her heart would echo with pangs of bitterness whenever she reyed in her mind that moment Ye Xiuwen crashed into the waters.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯d earlier given to him a Water Repulsion Orb. He won¡¯t have any issues underwater with that. Furthermore, this lotus pond might in fact be a prime opportunity to him.¡±

    ¡°A prime opportunity?¡± Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t wrap her mind around what the sprightly old man was saying.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t ye noticed? The spiritual energy around the lotus pond is incredibly thick. The surface of the pond is covered with wisps of congealed spiritual energy all year round. Furthermore, the fact that this lotus pond could nurture and nourish a Rainbow Lotus Flower means that it¡¯s not to be underestimated. Otherwise, why wouldn¡¯t Rainbow Lotus Flowers grow in other lotus ponds as well? If my guess is right, the lotus pond¡¯s waters might even possess rehabilitative properties that might elerate his recovery. Let¡¯s wait and see. He should return to us in no more than a few days¡¯ time.¡± The old man reassured her, before adding his words of caution, ¡°Furthermore, Disciple-in-Law cannot go down there because you possess an acquired demonic body. The lotus pond is filled with thick spiritual energy, and this spiritual energy isn¡¯t a tonic to yer body. Rather, it¡¯s a form of poison. Thus, ye¡¯ll have to be good and remain by the side of the lotus pond at best. Don¡¯t do anything unnecessary. Otherwise, ye might be finished even before Xiuwen returns to us.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo finally returned to her senses, and she lowered her head remorsefully, ¡°I understand. Thank you, Master. I¡¯ve made everyone worry.¡±

    Chi Jingtian walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and ced his arm around her shoulder, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. With Brother Ye¡¯s Master and Great-Grandfather around, are you really still afraid that something might happen to him? Since Brother Ye¡¯s Master says he¡¯s going to be fine, there¡¯s no reason to suspect otherwise.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head and finally shelved her anxiety for now. Taking up the sprightly old man¡¯s suggestions, she resolved in her heart that she would wait by the lotus pond for the next few days before deciding what to do next.

    Just like that, Jun Xiaomo waited by the side of the lotus pond for half a month. Every day, Jun Xiaomo would be unable to resist the urge to walk towards the lotus pond and gaze deep into its depth, hoping with all her heart that she would see Ye Xiuwen surface from the lotus pond once more.

    One day passed. Two days passed. Half a month passed. The thread of hope in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart grew fainter and fainter by the day, and the despondence in her heart grew stronger and stronger.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s patience was wearing thin, and she was on the brink of asking the sprightly old man to help check on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s condition underwater. Fortunately, as soon as Jun Xiaomo woke up that very morning and opened her eyes, she immediately noticed a familiar silhouette seated at the table inside her room.

    Ye Xiuwen sat silently at the table with several lotus leaves beside his arm, and these lotus leaves had arge lotus seed ced right in the center of each one of them.

    As soon as Jun Xiaomo woke up, ripples could be seen in the depths of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye!¡± Jun Xiaomo sat up from the bed immediately. Unfortunately, she sat up too quickly, and a wave of lightheadedness washed across her mind, and she fell back down onto the bed once more.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen couldn¡¯t hold himself back any longer, and he immediately rushed over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and helped her up. Then, he ced a pillow behind her back so that she could sit up morefortably.

    After doing everything, Ye Xiuwen hesitated for a moment, before retracting his hand. He was uncertain of whether Jun Xiaomo has recovered her memory, and he was all the more unsure of whether Jun Xiaomo was still mad at him.

    However, Jun Xiaomo immediately grabbed hold of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm. Lifting her head, Jun Xiaomo presented herself with reddened, puffy eyes, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, is it really you? You¡¯re alright, aren¡¯t you?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart trembled slightly, and he lowered his head, ¡°Xiaomo, are you concerned about me right now?¡±

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I be concerned about you? If it¡¯s not you, then who should I be concerned about?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes turned red and puffy in an instant, ¡°Have you remained hidden all these days because you think that I¡¯m not worrying about you day and night?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen immediately grabbed Jun Xiaomo and pulled him into a tight, warm embrace as he muttered softly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry...Xiaomo, I¡¯m sorry...¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re really sorry, you would¡¯ve returned earlier...¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered sorrowfully. The vtile amalgamation of worry and distress and fear finally exploded, and tears began to pour out of her eyes, soaking the front of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s garments.

    Jun Xiaomo was overwhelmed right now. In fact, she was afraid that all of this was nothing more than a dream, and she would still be stuck waiting for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return when she awakened from it.

    ¡°It¡¯s alright. Everything is alright now...¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back as he consoled her.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reaction was well outside of his expectations. Even he felt bad for the things he had done when his rationality waspromised. Thus, he didn¡¯t expect to ever be able to earn Jun Xiaomo¡¯s forgiveness ever again.

    Unexpectedly, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was only filled with worry and concern for his return.

    This moved Ye Xiuwen, yet it also caused his heart to be awash with bitterness.

    ¡°Xiaomo, has your memory returned?¡± Once Jun Xiaomo¡¯s emotions settled down and she stopped bawling, Ye Xiuwen patted her head, sat by her side and asked sincerely.

    ¡°My memory returned in the instant that your lifeless body struck the surface of the lotus pond.¡± Jun Xiaomo lowered her head as she responded. She bit down on her lower lips and paused for a moment before continuing, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, I don¡¯t me you regarding Brother Rong. After all, you were being controlled by the demons in your heart, while my attitude towards Brother Rong hasn¡¯t been the most appropriate either. Truth me told, the one I¡¯m unable to forgive is myself...¡±

    She hated herself for how fickle her heart was in her rtionships. She knew that her feelings for Ye Xiuwen for her were as real and sincere as it got, but she was nevertheless uncertain of the extent of feelings she had for Rong Ruihan either. And it was precisely because of this uncertainty in her heart that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart would be gued by demons to begin with.

    Thus, the person she hated and med for Rong Ruihan¡¯s ¡°death¡± was not Ye Xiuwen. Instead, it was herself.

    Ye Xiuwen was heavyhearted. Even though he was somewhat apologetic for how he had treated Rong Ruihan, he nevertheless disliked hearing the words ¡°Brother Rong¡±ing from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips. That said, he knew deep within his heart that unless they could turn back time, it was practically impossible to ask Jun Xiaomo to forget Rong Ruihan altogether.

    Forget it. We can talk about these things next time. What¡¯s most important right now is Xiaomo¡¯s body.

    As Ye Xiuwen thought about these things, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°We¡¯ll discuss these things next time. All you have to know right now is that he¡¯s not dead.¡±

    ¡°Brother Rong is alive?!¡± Jun Xiaomo suddenly looked up at Ye Xiuwen in disbelief.

    Jun Xiaomo had already passed outpletely back when Ye Xiuwen first released her from the spirit tool. Thus, she waspletely unaware that Rong Ruihan was still alive. Otherwise, she would never have lost her memory from the severe mental blow his ¡°death¡± had dealt her.

    Ye Xiuwen sighed as he exined, ¡°That¡¯s right. He¡¯s alive. The injuries on his body should have recovered substantially after such a long time now. But whatever the case might be, the most important thing is for you to focus on your own recovery.¡±

    As Ye Xiuwen spoke, he picked up the lotus leaves on the table and handed them to Jun Xiaomo, ¡°Your body¡¯s condition is worsening. It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯ve been able to return with the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds this time. Otherwise, I¡¯d really be at my wits¡¯ end as to what we would do.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo received the lotus leaves with a heart filled with gratitude.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return, coupled with news that Rong Ruihan was still alive, caused her heart to feel thoroughly released from all forms of tension. A radiant smile slowly surfaced on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks.

    ¡°Thanks, Martial Brother Ye.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered softly, eyes gleaming with sincerity.

 Chapter 387: Consequences of Oneâ€™s Actions, Zhuang Lenghuiâ€™s Plight

    <h4>Chapter 387: Consequences of One¡¯s Actions, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s Plight</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief when they finally learnt of Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return. This was especially the case for Chi Jingtian. After all, with each and every day that passed, he would have to look after Jun Xiaomo closely, ensuring that she did not jump in after Ye Xiuwen. Thus, his mind and spirit had been incredibly worn out after all this while, and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s safe return naturally also meant release for him.

    However, this hardly meant that he was pleased to see Ye Xiuwen appearing by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side again either. Love rivals naturally scrutinized each other¡¯s actions. Chi Jingtian was unable to agree to what Ye Xiuwen had done in the past which led to Jun Xiaomo losing her memory. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen holds a strong foothold in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, Chi Jingtian might well have simply requested his great-grandfather to kidnap Jun Xiaomo, leaving Ye Xiuwen behind all on his own.

    That¡¯s right. Chi Jingtian had the desire to ask his Old Man Chi to crush and repel his love rivals because he was personally unable to defeat Ye Xiuwen. It was a helpless situation.

    At the same time, Old Man Chi was somewhat displeased with his quasi-great-granddaughter-inw. Everything would still be alright if Jun Xiaomo was not pregnant with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child. But now that Jun Xiaomo was pregnant with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child, the fact that his great-grandson was still lingering about by her side caused his heart to feel incredibly bitter.

    It was as though he could see his great-grandson being made a massive cuckold right now.

    On the other side, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was thoroughly loosened and at ease from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s return, and her spirits were much better. Furthermore, given the fact that she had consumed the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds now, her body¡¯s rejection of the fetal energy in her body had somewhat been resolved and shelved for the moment. Thus, her disposition grew increasingly better, and colour had once again returned to her cheeks.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, where¡¯s Wei Xingping and Zhuang Lenghui?¡± Ye Xiuwen had been looking after Jun Xiaomo over thest few days, and he hadpletely forgotten about the people from the Zephyr Sect as a result of this.

    ¡°They¡¯ve been locked up in a ce that nobody can find.¡± Old Man Chi snorted, ¡°How dare they harm my great-grandson? They¡¯re courting death!¡±

    Chi Jingtian clenched his fist and coughed dryly at the side. To his mind, being spoilt like a child in front of Jun Xiaomo was somewhat embarrassing.

    ¡°Won¡¯t the Zephyr Sect memberse looking for them? Quite apart from the ordinary disciples of the Zephyr Sect, Wei Xingping and Zhuang Lenghui are particrly weighty existences within the Zephyr Sect. One is a Peakmaster, while the other is the daughter of the other Peakmaster.¡± Ye Xiuwen exined his concerns.

    ¡°Hmph. This old man hardly deigns to care about such an insignificant Zephyr Sect.¡± Old Man Chi snorted, ¡°They¡¯ve made several attempts at a rescue, but I¡¯ve rebuffed their efforts each time.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen was slightly taken aback. Then, after pondering about the situation for a little bit more, he finally understood the situation.

    Even though the Zephyr Sect was a Greater Sect and held a reasonably esteemed position within the cultivation world, the Chi n had an even stronger foundation than them. After all, the Chi n was one of the top Hidden ns within the demonic cultivation world. It was an existence that wasparable to the eight great sects of the spiritual cultivation world.

    If not for the fact that Old Man Chi had been standing guard here all this while, perhaps Jun Xiaomo might never have been able to survive the relentless barrage of attacks from the Zephyr Sect or escapepletely unscathed.

    Having thought about these things, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes were filled with ripples of emotions.

    ¡°Old Man Chi, I¡¯d like to visit Wei Xingping and Zhuang Lenghui. I wonder if arranging something like that would be convenient?¡± Ye Xiuwen bowed politely to Old Man Chi.

    Old Man Chi snorted lightly in response, ¡°Go on, go on. Just don¡¯t make any trouble in there. Cleaning up is the difficult part.¡±

    Old Man Chi couldn¡¯t find it within himself to treat his great-grandson¡¯s love rival cheerily.

    ¡°Alright. Much thanks, Old Man Chi.¡±

    ¡°Martial Brother?¡± Jun Xiaomo happened to walk in on their conversation, and she overheard Ye Xiuwen saying that he wanted to visit Wei Xingping and Zhuang Lenghui. Thus, she looked at him with some measure of bewilderment.

    ¡°That¡¯s not a ce that¡¯s suitable for someone like you. Wait here. I¡¯ll be back shortly.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, before turning around to address Chi Jingtian, ¡°I¡¯ll have to trouble you to look after Xiaomo.¡±

    ¡°Hmph. Do you even need to instruct me in this regard? I¡¯ve been the one looking after her while you were gone to begin with!¡± Chi Jingtian snorted in a very simr fashion to Old Man Chi. No wonder they were great-grandfather and great-grandson.

    Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly. Then, following the lead of a Chi n¡¯s nsman, Ye Xiuwen made his way towards where Wei Xingping and Zhuang Lenghui were being held.

    Inside a dark and dank dungeon, Zhuang Lenghuiy on the ground with her hairpletely disheveled. Her frigid eyes were transfixed on the ground, as though she were trying to create ayer of frost if she stared hard enough. Wei Xingping was located in a cell adjacent to Zhuang Lenghui. His condition was far worse than hers. After all, he was still suffering from the bacsh of the cultivation-boosting pills when he was struck by Old Man Chi¡¯s powerful blows. Ever since then, he had been lying on the ground clinging onto the final threads of life within him.

    Zhuang Lenghui nced at Wei Xingping hatefully, cursing at him in her heart ¨C How could a Peakmaster be so disgracefully weak? How could such a person be even standing on equal footing with my father in the fight for the position of Sect Master?!

    Just then, the door to the dungeon swung open, letting in a bright beam of light from outside. Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart skipped a beat, and she immediately nced towards the main door ¨C there was not a single moment that passed when she wasn¡¯t eagerly anticipating the appearance of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s members.

    The beam of light was so bright in contrast to the dark dungeon that Zhuang Lenghui was forced to squint her eyes. Then as her eyes slowly limatized to the brightness of the light, she discovered to her dismay that the person entering the dungeon was not here to rescue her at all.

    Why aren¡¯t the Zephyr Sect members here to rescue me yet?! Father can¡¯t have remained still for so long after learning of my capture!

    It had never crossed Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s mind that this was not because the Zephyr Sect members were unwilling to rescue her, it was simply that they were unable to do so. She didn¡¯t truly understand the bnce of power in the spiritual cultivation world, much less a Hidden Demonic n like the Chi n. Even though they were a n of demonic cultivators, the Chi n had always maintained a very low profile. Thus, Zhuang Lenghui naturally wouldn¡¯t have heard anything about the Chi n to begin with.

    Finally, Zhuang Lenghui managed to see the appearances of the person who had just entered the dungeon, and she exploded with a shrill shriek, ¡°Why are you here?! Aren¡¯t you already dead?!¡±

    A cold grin crept up Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips, ¡°I apologize for the disappointment, but I¡¯m not dead. That¡¯s right, you¡¯d been thinking of killing with a borrowed knife all this time just so that you could obtain the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds smoothly, haven¡¯t you? Unfortunately, your ns didn¡¯te to fruition this time.¡±

    Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s eyes quivered slightly as she barked back coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re trying to say.¡±

    ¡°Since you ¡®don¡¯t understand¡¯, then let me make things clearer.¡± Ye Xiuwen calmly exined, ¡°Back then, when Zou Zilong mistreated my Little Martial Sister, I¡¯d only severely wounded him. However, his life was never at risk. I¡¯d even personally returned him back to the members of the Zephyr Sect. Logically speaking, there¡¯s no reason he would die. As long as his wounds were treated in a timeous fashion, he might in the worst-case scenario sustain a fall in his cultivation level. In fact, I do recall you swearing on oath that the Zephyr Sect was at fault for that incident, and the matters wouldy where they lie. Yet, in the blink of an eye, news of Zou Zilong¡¯s death spread to the Zephyr Sect, causing Zou Zilong¡¯s master toe seeking revenge on me. Zhuang Lenghui, do you think nobody¡¯s aware of the schemes you¡¯re ying at?¡±

    ¡°Hmph. So what? As long as I can achieve my goals, who cares about the process?¡± Zhuang Lenghui chuckled coldly, maintaining that there was nothing wrong with her intentions.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, but you didn¡¯t achieve your goals in the end, did you?¡± Ye Xiuwen responded cidly. The reminder of the plight she was in caused Zhuang Lenghui to swallow her pride as she red back at Ye Xiuwen,pletely taciturn.

    ¡°Besides, you were the one who had killed Zou Zilong, weren¡¯t you?¡± Ye Xiuwen gazed dispassionately at her as he continued, ¡°I¡¯m fully aware of how harsh I was with my actions. Zou Zilong¡¯s injuries only look serious, but they were hardly life-threatening at all. If he really perished, then the only possibility was that he had perished in your hands.¡±

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, don¡¯t nder me!¡± Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s heart skipped a beat as she nced guiltily at Wei Xingping in the adjacent cell.

    ¡°I¡¯m not ndering you. You know full well what you¡¯ve done, don¡¯t you? There were several other Zephyr Sect disciples around at that time as well. They would be eyewitnesses as to whether Zou Zilong¡¯s injuries were life-threatening or not. There¡¯s even the possibility that they¡¯ve personally witnessed you killing Zou Zilong in front of them, isn¡¯t there?¡± Ye Xiuwen continued to exin as his ink-ck eyes stared straight at Zhuang Lenghui, as though staring straight through her soul. gued by her guilty conscience, Zhuang Lenghui found herself unable to refute Ye Xiuwen¡¯s allegations.

    Ye Xiuwen nced cidly at Wei Xingping. Even though he was lying on the groundpletely motionless, Wei Xingping¡¯s fingers had twitched slightly when Ye Xiuwen first mentioned Zou Zilong earlier.

    It was evident that he had heard the exchange between Ye Xiuwen and Zhuang Lenghui.

    Nobody liked being schemed against. Ye Xiuwen was no exception to this either. After all, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s schemes had even almost cost Jun Xiaomo her life.

    Since Zhuang Lenghui liked scheming so much, she should have a taste of her own medicine too.

    Ye Xiuwen curled his lips up into a faint, wicked smile as he retrieved a medicinal pill from his Interspatial Ring. With a light flick of his finger, he tossed the medicinal pill into Wei Xingping¡¯s cell.

    This was done incredibly discreetly, and Zhuang Lenghui failed to notice all of this.

    Since Wei Xingping was already at the end of the line, Ye Xiuwen had decided to lend him a hand and offer him one final chance to exact vengeance for his dear disciple.

    After doing this, Ye Xiuwen turned around and left the dungeon. Behind him, Zhuang Lenghui continued to stare daggers into his back with a gaze filled with hatred.

    As she continued to stare at Ye Xiuwen, Zhuang Lenghui failed to notice Wei Xingping¡¯s movements in the adjacent cell. Slowly, Wei Xingping¡¯s hands shifted slightly to pick up the medicine that Ye Xiuwen had tossed to him, ced it in his mouth, and swallowed it.

    After leaving the dungeon, Ye Xiuwen squinted his eyes against the light. Momentster, he sighed with resignation.

    He was not a person who liked scheming against others either. Unfortunately, Zhuang Lenghui had crossed his bottom line this time, so he had no qualms giving her a taste of her own medicine.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye.¡± A clear, crisp voice rang out beside his ear.

    ¡°Xiaomo, why have youe here?¡± Ye Xiuwen looked at Jun Xiaomo in bewilderment.

    ¡°You looked a little bit strange and uncertain in your disposition earlier. I was worried, so I¡¯d decided toe after you to check on you.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled warmly.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was filled with a sense of warmth, and he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and responded, ¡°Let¡¯s go. This isn¡¯t a ce we should dally at.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded and left together with Ye Xiuwen.

    Not long after they left, a powerful wave of spiritual energy fluctuations rang out from the heart of the dungeon, before everything faded into quietness once more.

 Chapter 388: Chi Jingtianâ€™s Persuasion, Ye Xiuwenâ€™s Relief

    <h4>Chapter 388: Chi Jingtian¡¯s Persuasion, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s Relief</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo returned to where everyone was, they discovered an unexpected person waiting for them.

    ¡°Brother Rong?!¡± Jun Xiaomo was momentarily unable to suppress the sudden surge of joy in her heart, and she immediately ran towards Rong Ruihan.

    Ye Xiuwen gazed at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s back as she ran towards Rong Ruihan. His eyes were filled with aplex swathe of emotions right now.

    Rong Ruihan also noticed Jun Xiaomo at the same time, and he, too, tookrge strides forward towards her. Before Jun Xiaomo could stabilize her footing before Rong Ruihan, he pulled her into a tight embrace.

    ¡°Rong...Brother Rong?¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body stiffened up instantly at the embrace.

    It was in this instant that she finally realized that the sight of Rong Ruihan being alive and well had caused her to shelf everything else for the moment, and she had even left Ye Xiuwen behind her.

    How would Martial Brother Ye feel witnessing me being pulled into a tight embrace right in front of him like that? He must be displeased and upset, isn¡¯t he?

    Even though Jun Xiaomo was overjoyed to see Rong Ruihan alive and well, she still didn¡¯t want to disappoint Ye Xiuwen.

    After all, Ye Xiuwen had only lost his mind due to the spirit tool¡¯s controlling influence over his mind. Jun Xiaomo sincerely didn¡¯t want Ye Xiuwen to fall prey to the demons in his heart again.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo struggled, thinking to break free of Rong Ruihan¡¯s tight embrace.

    However, Rong Ruihan refused to let go of Jun Xiaomo. Instead, he only hugged her tighter, and his arms even began to tremble.

    ¡°Brother Rong?¡± Jun Xiaomo was slightly taken aback.

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you¡¯re alright.¡± Rong Ruihan finally spoke. His voice was slightly hoarse.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart was embittered, and tears began to swell up in her eyes. She could hear the concern and fear in Rong Ruihan¡¯s voice.

    Was there truly ever a moment when she was not worrying for Rong Ruihan¡¯s safety either? Ever since she regained her memory, she would wake up abruptly to a nightmare every night without fail. In these nightmares of hers, Rong Ruihan had perished in her arms within the spirit tool, while she continued to be battered and mutted by the innumerable fireballs hovering about her.

    In fact, there were a few instances when she personally witnessed Rong Ruihan melt into nothing more than a puddle of blood and water, yet she remainedpletely helpless. It was under the intensely stifling sensation of despondence that she woke up from these nightmares.

    If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had informed her that Rong Ruihan was still alive, she might never be able to interact so harmoniously with Ye Xiuwen ever again.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s death would have built an insurmountable barrier between their hearts, keeping their hearts separate for the rest of their lives.

    Furthermore, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mind would be filled with other thoughts ¨C if Rong Ruihan didn¡¯t die after being released from the spirit tool, then what happens next? When Ye Xiuwen¡¯s rationality sumbed to the vile energy from the spirit tool, he made the conscious decision to cut off all forms of contact with the rest of the Heavenly Peak disciples. Thus, he was naturally unsure of whether Rong Ruihan managed to recover from all of his injuries afterwards or not.

    Truth be told, Rong Ruihan had undeniably sustained grievous wounds from the spirit tool, and they were in a dangerous predicament given their status as escapees. Thus, it was very much an unknown whether they would be able to remain alive. At the very least, things were hardly optimistic in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s assessment of the matter.

    That said, these concerns of hers were not things that she could freely express at all times, for fear that she would trigger the demons in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart again.

    Right now, she was truly and thoroughly relieved. Yet, amidst the joy and tion, her rapture was alsoced with trace amounts of worry and constraints.

    She knew that Ye Xiuwen would never be able to ept Rong Ruihan¡¯s existence by their side. However, having gone through so much together, could she really bear to break off all contact with Rong Ruihan just like that?

    Jun Xiaomo knew that this was something she could never do. Jun Xiaomo was unsure of when exactly it began, but Rong Ruihan¡¯s foothold in her heart had slowly but surely be weightier and firmer. In fact, it was so secure right now that even Jun Xiaomo was unsure the extent of feelings she had for Rong Ruihan.

    Besides, whether in herst life or the present, Rong Ruihan had always staked everything on the line for her, to the point that he was even willing to sacrifice his own life for her. While she didn¡¯t want to put her beloved martial brother in a difficult spot, she simrly didn¡¯t want the tall burly man in front of her to reveal that heart-shattering expression of despondence ever again.

    Jun Xiaomo shut her eyes and fervently suppressed the tears in her eyes and struggle in her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen stood not far away, silently watching Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan as they continued to be locked in a deep, profound embrace. He had thought that he would feel incredibly bitter about the situation. Yet, to his surprise, apart from some mild feelings of being stifled, there weren¡¯t any other intense emotional fluctuations in his heart.

    Perhaps it was because he had already expected something like this to happen sooner orter. Thus, he was hardly affected by it when it actually happened.

    Just then, someone patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder, and Ye Xiuwen heard a long-drawn sigh echo from beside him ¨C

    ¡°Sigh, us two are really destined to be impoverished in love...¡±

    Ye Xiuwen turned around and discovered that Chi Jingtian had already made his way over to his side.

    Chi Jingtian also liked Jun Xiaomo, so there was technically nothing wrong with describe himself as a person ¡°impoverished in love¡± either. That said, there was hardly any disappointment in his expression at all.

    ¡°But can we really me Jun Xiaomo for being so lovable? I guess this indirectly proves that we¡¯re also men of good taste, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Chi Jingtian patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder chummily.

    Ye Xiuwen: ......

    Truth be told, he had never been able to understand the logic running through Chi Jingtian¡¯s mind. If Chi Jingtian didn¡¯t like Jun Xiaomo, he would never have done so many things for her. But if Chi Jingtian truly loved Jun Xiaomo, how could he possibly seem so unaffected by the fact that she seemed so inextricably intertwined with other men?

    Chi Jingtian had even expressed his heartfelt joy and affection towards the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wombs despite the fact that it was a child of another man. These emotions of his were no mere pretension ¨C they were undeniably genuine and from the bottom of his heart.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen found himself unable toprehend what went on in Chi Jingtian¡¯s mind. To Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, matters of the heart were not matters to be shared. If they were shared, they were no longer pure and genuine.

    Almost as though he heard the contemtions on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s mind, Chi Jingtian sighed briefly and patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulder once more, ¡°Come with me. I¡¯d like to have a chat with you.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen nced at Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan once more. After deliberating for a moment, he decided to follow Chi Jingtian to the side.

    ¡°Truth be told, I envy you and Rong Ruihan.¡± After making their way to a cooler, shaded area, Chi Jingtian plonked his bottom onto the floor and gazed at the distant clouds in the sky as he began to chatter with Ye Xiuwen.

    After pausing for a moment, Ye Xiuwen sat down beside Chi Jingtian as well.

    ¡°Why do you envy us?¡±

    ¡°Both of you have been through so much with Xiaomo. It¡¯s evident that both of you have found your way into the depths of Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Both of you are existences that are incredibly important and crucial to her ¨C perhaps equally so as well.¡±

    Chi Jingtian revealed the truth to Ye Xiuwen in an instant, yet Ye Xiuwen was hardly pleased by it.

    He was the one who had known Jun Xiaomo for the longest time after all. How could he be pleased by the fact that someone else had appeared midway through her life and taken residence in her heart as well?

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened between Brother Ye and Xiaomo, but I¡¯m personally aware that Brother Rong and Xiaomo have been through a lot. After all, Brother Rong is my great-grandfather¡¯s disciple, and he can also be somewhat considered a martial brother to me. Truth be told, he¡¯s really done a lot for Xiaomo, and these are things that you won¡¯t be able to see. Even I, as a love rival, can¡¯t help but exim and be astonished by the things he¡¯s done. After all, not everyone is able to love with such abandon and sacrifice.¡±

    ¡°What are you trying to say?¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows, ¡°If you¡¯re asking me to leave Xiaomo¡¯s side because Rong Ruihan has done a lot for her, I can¡¯t do it.¡±

    Chi Jingtian nced back at Ye Xiuwen as though he were an alien, before rolling his eyes as he responded, ¡°Who¡¯s asking you to back off? If even you have to back off, then shouldn¡¯t I already be packing and be on my way by now?¡±

    Chi Jingtian hardly concealed his envy for Ye Xiuwen¡¯s ce in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Then, what are you trying to say?¡±

    ¡°Have you ever thought about it? Will you be able to protect Xiaomo properly with your abilities alone?¡± Chi Jingtian plucked up a stalk of Sweetgrass and put one end of it into his mouth as he continued, ¡°Xiaomo has managed to offend quite a number of powers over thest few years. To make matters worse, the Heavenly Peak has already been pped with the charge of harbouring demonic cultivators. In other words, you can consider the entire spiritual cultivating world your enemies right now. If you¡¯re bent on living alone with Xiaomo, are you certain that you¡¯ll be able to protect Xiaomo under the concerted attacks from the powers within the spiritual cultivating world? Put differently, are you going to insist that Xiaomo be exclusively yours even if this means that you¡¯ll have to expose her to innumerable risks and dangers?¡±

    Ye Xiuwen grew sullen.

    If he were still under the control of the spirit tool, he would undoubtedly have chosen thetter ¨C that is, to make Jun Xiaomo exclusively his even if that meant that he would see Jun Xiaomo perish with his own two eyes.

    However, he was in full control of his rational mind right now, so he knew full well that Chi Jingtian¡¯s words were logical and reasonable. In fact, if Chi Jingtian had not called in reinforcements from the Chi n in the nick of time, he would never have been able to protect his Little Martial Sister from the relentless waves of assants with just his master alone. In fact, they might well have perished to Wei Xingping there and then.

    They managed to escape with their lives this time, but what about next time? Did he really have to see his beloved Little Martial Sister perish before his very eyes?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart grew vexed and stifled ¨C he understood the logic behind those words, but was it really that easy to ept these circumstances? After all, was there really anyone willing to share his loved one with others?

    ¡°I know you¡¯re not willing to share Xiaomo with others, but it¡¯s evident that Brother Rong exists in the depths of Xiaomo¡¯s heart as well, isn¡¯t it? Why don¡¯t you leave the choice entirely to Xiaomo? Besides, Xiaomo is already pregnant with your child. While the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds are temporarily able to halt the deterioration of her body¡¯s condition, it doesn¡¯t get to the root of the problem, and there¡¯s always a risk that her condition will worsen at any time. Since that¡¯s the case, what¡¯s the harm in having more people protect Xiaomo and your child? Isn¡¯t there safety in numbers?¡±

    In fact, Chi Jingtian¡¯s voice grew ostensibly bitter when he spoke of the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb, ¡°Besides, she¡¯s already got your child, while Brother Rong and I have never evene close to even touching her body before. So, why would you even feel threatened that Xiaomo¡¯s heart would be seized by other men to begin with?¡±

    Chi Jingtian¡¯s arguments essentially implied that Ye Xiuwen was the principal, while they were the secondaries. Hearing this, Ye Xiuwen chuckled lightheartedly. His heart was no longer gued by its earlier distress.

    Perhaps Chi Jingtian is right. Rather than distressing myself over this kind of things, why not focus on the child in Xiaomo¡¯s womb right now? No matter what, Xiaomo¡¯s health and safety is of the utmost importance. Everything else can wait, and we can let nature take its course.

    ¡°Thanks.¡± Ye Xiuwen patted Chi Jingtian¡¯s shoulder, before mbering to his feet and making his way back to the great hall.

    Given the expression of release on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s face as he departed, Chi Jingtian knew that Ye Xiuwen had finally thought things through.

    As soon as Ye Xiuwen¡¯s back disappeared into the main door of the great hall, Chi Jingtian spat out the stalk of Sweetgrass in his lips and murmured aloud, ¡°No need for thanks. How else could I possibly remain by Xiaomo¡¯s side so brazenly if you can¡¯t think things through this way?¡±

    So much for being a ¡°caring little brother¡±. This was the true reason why he had done what he had done.

 Chapter 389: Rong Ruihanâ€™s Fury, A Bloody Dungeon

    <h4>Chapter 389: Rong Ruihan¡¯s Fury, A Bloody Dungeon</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    ¡°Cough, cough. How long do you intend to hug each other for?¡± An old, wizened voice echoed from behind Jun Xiaomo, causing Jun Xiaomo to stiffen up and blush slightly. She pushed Rong Ruihan gently, and Rong Ruihan finally released her from his embrace.

    ¡°Old Man Chi.¡± Jun Xiaomo greeted somewhat awkwardly.

    ¡°Master.¡± Rong Ruihan addressed Old Man Chi as well.

    ¡°Hmph.¡± Old Man Chi snorted as he red at Rong Ruihan ¨C he was the one who had informed Rong Ruihan of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s whereabouts to begin with. But when he saw Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo locked in a tight embrace, he couldn¡¯t help but feel embittered in his heart as well.

    It would seem that he had just invited yet another troublesome love rival of his great-grandson to join the fray. What should he do?

    The sprightly old man had arrived together with Old Man Chi. His heart was filled with displeasure at this sight as well. To his mind, Jun Xiaomo was already his disciple¡¯s wife. The appearance of yet another love rival stepping between his disciple and his wife made it seem as though someone else was trying to take advantage of his disciple.

    Most importantly, the person who was stepping between them was none other than Old Man Chi¡¯s personal disciple!

    ncing over, the sprightly old man couldn¡¯t help but entertain with displeasure the thought that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan looked quite good together. Then, an idea struck him. Suppressing the disdain in his heart, he smiled faintly at Jun Xiaomo and quipped, ¡°Xiaomo, is the child in yer womb fine now?¡±

    ¡°Child?¡± Rong Ruihan was taken aback, and he nced down to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lower abdomen.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t notice the strange expression on Rong Ruihan¡¯s face. She lowered her face and rubbed her lower abdomen gently before smiling softly and radiantly, ¡°I¡¯m feeling much better after consuming the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds. Thank you, Master...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo looked up and gave the sprightly old man a nod of appreciation.

    On the other hand, Rong Ruihan found the warm, pleased smile incredibly harsh and ring to his eyes. He had never expected to hear such an outrageous news the moment he was reunited with Jun Xiaomo.

    If the child wasn¡¯t his, then it could only mean that it was Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child.

    What a joke. Here I am, worrying for Xiaomo¡¯s safety, rushing here to check on her despite the fact that I¡¯m still recovering from my injuries, yet there she is, already with somebody else¡¯s child. Am I no more than an essory to her now?

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s forehead throbbed slightly, and his eyes grew slightly bloodshot. He tightened his fists, and then loosened them again. Finally, suppressing the roiling fury and indignation in his heart, he flicked his sleeves and stormed off without another word, brushing gently past Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo finally detected the peculiar expression in his eyes, and she thought to grab hold of his arm. Unfortunately, her fingers merely slid past the corner of his sleeves.

    Somewhat dumbfounded, Jun Xiaomo watched as Rong Ruihan stormed away. Her heart wrung in pain, and she lowered her head and began to mock herself contemptuously.

    She shouldn¡¯t be expecting too much more than this, should she? After all, she was already with Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child. This oue might be best for everyone around.

    As Rong Ruihan stormed out of the room, he coincidentally bumped into Ye Xiuwen who was returning from outside. His bloodshot eyes deepened even more in the instant he noticed Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s existence was a mockery to everything he had done. In fact, maybe Jun Xiaomo had never needed him to do so much for her to begin with.

    Rong Ruihan paused momentarily and nced coldly at Ye Xiuwen, before storming off in silence once more.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen thought that this was a mere manifestation of the enmity between love rivals, and he didn¡¯t think too much of Rong Ruihan¡¯s behaviour. Thus, he continued ahead and walked into the great hall.

    ¡°Old Man Chi, Master.¡± Ye Xiuwen greeted the two elderly folks as he entered the great hall, before making his way over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side.

    Jun Xiaomo was staring at the ground, sullen and silent. It was only when she noticed a familiar silhouette enter her peripheral vision that she looked back up again.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ye Xiuwen lifted his hands and massaged the side of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes. He could see the hurt andplex emotions roiling in the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Nothing much.¡± Jun Xiaomo forced a smile to her face as she ced an arm around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s waist and buried her head into his chest.

    She knew that Rong Ruihan had sacrificed a lot for her, but it was a fact that she was bearing Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child right now. This meant that she was fated to spend the rest of her life with Ye Xiuwen going forward.

    ordingly, she was fated to be unable to reciprocate Rong Ruihan¡¯s intentions, and she also had no choice but to discard these unnecessary emotions of hers.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head. His eyes now gleamed with understanding as to why Rong Ruihan had stormed out of the room earlier with a disdainful expression on his face.

    The sprightly old man and Old Man Chi exchanged awkward nces at each other, only to realize that their presence was no longer needed here. After all, what were two old fogeys like them doing interfering with the passion and vigor between youngsters?

    Thus, both old men coughed dryly as they motioned to take their leave.

    Just then, a Chi nsman burst into the great hall and hurriedly addressed Old Man Chi, ¡°n Head, something has happened in the dungeon!¡±

    Old Man Chi¡¯s spirits immediately tensed up as he responded, ¡°Something happened? Exin yourself?¡±

    ¡°You...you¡¯d best take a look for yourself.¡± The nsman found it difficult to describe the situation to Old Man Chi.

    Old Man Chi furrowed his brows and made a beeline towards the dungeon. At the same time, the sprightly old man, Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo followed closely behind him.

    As soon as they arrived in the dungeon and saw the sight within, Old Man Chi and the sprightly old man immediately drew a cold breath. At the same time, Ye Xiuwen turned around rapidly and covered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes immediately.

    ¡°Martial Brother Ye, what happened?¡± Jun Xiaomo asked in bewilderment.

    Even though she was unable to see the sight within, the thick, nauseating stench of blood told her that it was a gory, grotesque sight within.

    Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms and persuaded, ¡°Martial Brother Ye, it¡¯s fine. Let me take a look.¡±

    After all, Jun Xiaomo had seen all types of gory, grotesques sights in her two lifetimes¡¯ worth of experience. Thus, her heart and mind were already prepared for the worst as soon as she detected the faint stench of blood.

    ¡°You¡¯re with child right now. It¡¯s best if you don¡¯t see such things.¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered to Jun Xiaomo with a soft voice.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Jun Xiaomo patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arm once more, before slowly peeling his hands away.

    As light poured into her eyes once again, the first thing that Jun Xiaomo saw was the gory sight within the dungeon. A wooden statue separating the two prison cells had been broken in pieces, and there were bits of broken teeth on the remains of the statue. Wei Xingping had somehow found his way to Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s cell, and hey lifelessly on the ground, eyes bloodshot, heaving his final breaths. His surroundings were filled with bits and pieces of what used to be parts of a human body, as well as streaks of dried blood that painted the walls and the floor of the dungeon a dark red hue.

    Urgh... Several Chi nsmen immediately ran back out of the dungeon to throw up.

    On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t throw up. Instead, she simply furrowed her brows and stretched her lips out into a thin grimace.

    ¡°Please go out if you can¡¯t bear the sight.¡± Ye Xiuwen muttered warmly to Jun Xiaomo.

    Shaking her head, she smiled faintly to Ye Xiuwen, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Don¡¯t worry, Martial Brother.¡±

    ¡°The person who perished must be that young gal surnamed Zhuang, right?¡± The sprightly old man asked with gusto. He had never visited the dungeon before. But, seeing that the two adjoining cells only contained Wei Xingping, he could already hazard a guess that the other person held captive in this cell should be none other than Zhuang Lenghui.

    ¡°It¡¯s indeed that gal named Zhuang. She must have been blown to bits by Wei Xingping.¡± Old Man Chi exined cidly.

    ¡°That¡¯s strange. Old Man Chi, didn¡¯t ye already beat Wei Xingping down to his final breaths? His cultivation level had even fallen to the Golden Core stage of cultivation. How could he possibly have blown that Zhuang brat to pieces?¡± The sprightly old man rubbed his chin as he thought aloud.

    ¡°You might have to ask your dear disciple in this regard.¡± Old Man Chi cast a nce at Ye Xiuwen.

    Ye Xiuwen curled his lips into a faint smile and admitted, ¡°I was responsible for this. All I did was to give her a taste of her own medicine.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± The sprightly old man was hooked by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s enigmatic exnation.

    ¡°Zhuang Lenghui intended to vie for the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds against us, and she thought to pit Wei Xingping against us and kill with a borrowed knife. More urately speaking, I had never killed Wei Xingping¡¯s disciple, Zou Zilong. Back then, when I tossed him back to the Zephyr Sect¡¯s disciples, he was still alive and well. When I found out that he had perished, the only conclusion I could draw was that Zhuang Lenghui had killed him. What I¡¯ve done right now was only to reveal the truth to Wei Xingping, as well as provide him with a recovery pill that would temporarily restore his abilities.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen exined with a matter-of-fact tone of voice, as though he werepletely disjointed from the perfectly pitched scheme.

    The sprightly old man smacked his head and remarked, ¡°Ye brat-...ye...what do ye want yer master to say? With this, we¡¯ve most certainly ced ourselves on the top of the Zephyr Sect¡¯s list. Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s father will never take this lying down!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen remained silent. To his mind, it was only a matter of time before they became sworn enemies with the Zephyr Sect either. He had never thought of running or hiding to begin with, since the Zephyr Sect¡¯s actions had thoroughly stirred his wrath.

    ¡°Alright, there¡¯s no need to worry. With the Chi n¡¯s abilities backing you, do you really have to fear a measly Zephyr Sect?¡± Old Man Chiughed aloud, ¡°Old fogey, you¡¯re being far too stern and serious here. It¡¯s a surprise your disciple doesn¡¯t take after your boring old personality. An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth ¨C that¡¯s the only way to live enjoyably and without regrets. I approve of his personality! Hahahaha...¡±

    Having just been forced to swallow his words, the sprightly old man red furiously at Old Man Chi.

    Didn¡¯t he know just how powerful the Chi n was? The sprightly old man was simply displeased that the number of favours he owed to Old Man Chi was simply increasing by the minute.

    ¡°However, you¡¯ve got to inform us before doing such things in future. Wei Xingping¡¯s abilities aren¡¯t weak. It would be a problem if he took the opportunity to escape as well. The consequences could be dire.¡± Old Man Chi patted Ye Xiuwen¡¯s shoulders as he chided.

    ¡°Understood. Senior Chi makes sense. Junior will take Senior¡¯s guidance to heart.¡± Ye Xiuwen bowed obsequiously towards Old Man Chi.

    The sprightly old man snorted with displeasure. The thought of his discipleplying with Old Man Chi¡¯s instructions filled his heart with disdain.

    Ye Xiuwen smiled cidly as he shut his eyes and did his best to conceal the sullenness in his heart.

    Truth be told, the recovery pill he had given to Wei Xingping wasn¡¯t something good either. After all, such pills with enabled a person to temporarily regain his abilities would only give rise to amensurately powerful bacsh once its effects wore off. This was the reason why Wei Xingping was lying motionless on the ground right now.

    He would never let Wei Xingping escape the dungeon alive.

    Wei Xingping knew this as well. However, he still chose to consume the pill because he desired to personally kill his disciple¡¯s murderer before she was rescued by the Zephyr Sect.

    He had achieved his goal of exacting vengeance, and there were no longer any regrets in his heart.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulders, ¡°Let¡¯s go. It wouldn¡¯t be good to remain here for too long.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head.

    Soon after leaving the dungeon, Jun Xiaomo stretch out her arm and gently held Ye Xiuwen¡¯s right hand as she muttered, ¡°Thank you, Martial Brother Ye.¡±

    She knew that Ye Xiuwen was not a person who killed and murdered recklessly. He had only done so this time because they had gone too far and crossed the line.

    Ye Xiuwen patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head and smiled warmly back at her.

 Chapter 390: Birth of the Arcane Realm, Whereabouts of the Green Lotus Pill

    <h4>Chapter 390: Birth of the Arcane Realm, Whereabouts of the Green Lotus Pill</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Thousands of miles away, back at the Zephyr Sect, Disciple Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s identity token suddenly lost its luster and shattered into pieces in the instant that she was murdered. The other Zephyr Sect disciples who saw this immediately reported back to the Sect Elders. In turn, Zhuang Hongsheng also learnt about this in no time.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo, I, Zhuang Hongsheng, will never let you off the hook! I¡¯m going to make you pay, blood for blood!!!¡± Zhuang Hongsheng¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and zing with fiery rage as his aura instantly flourished, shattering all of the surrounding furniture, reducing them to nothing more than sawdust.

    Zhuang Hongsheng knew that Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s entourage had captured Zhuang Lenghui. Over thest few days, he had been wracking his brains thinking of a feasible n to save his daughter. Unfortunately, Zhuang Lenghui¡¯s identity token had just beenpletely shattered.

    In the Zephyr Sect, the shattering of an identity token could only mean one thing ¨C the owner of that identity token had perished through and through. Thus, the Zephyr Sect disciples immediately knew that Zhuang Lenghui died the moment her identity token shattered.

    Zhuang Hongsheng didn¡¯t know that the culprit for his daughter¡¯s death was none other than Wei Xingping. Regardless, given his personality, he would still have med his daughter¡¯s death on Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo even if he knew the truth behind her death. After all, had Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo not captured Zhuang Lenghui in the first ce, she would never have been murdered by Wei Xingping.

    Zhuang Hongsheng¡¯s authority within the Zephyr Sect was arguably even higher than that which Wei Xingping held. Under his instructions, the Zephyr Sect disciples assembled in full strength within the short span of six hours¡¯ time and they all began to make haste towards the Sunset Mountain Range.

    No matter the cost, they were hell bent on locating Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo and delivering the wrath of the entire Zephyr Sect for their transgressions.

    Unfortunately for them, the Zephyr Sect¡¯s response was already well within Old Man Chi¡¯s calctions. Thus, the entire Chi n entourage was already gone by the time Zhuang Hongsheng and the rest arrived at the Sunset Mountain Range ¨C not a single person was still around.

    Truth be told, they knew full well that it was only going to be a matter of time before they faced each other in a full-on confrontation. That said, there was no rush for that right now. After all, the most crucial thing right now was to find a solution for the issue within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. While Jun Xiaomo had already consumed the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds, her body¡¯s rejection of her child would still be an issue if they were unable to locate the Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill before she was due to give birth.

    ¡°Green Lotus Pill?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her head. She did vaguely recall hearing the name of the pill before. Unfortunately, she couldn¡¯t recall where exactly she had heard this name from.

    ¡°Has something happened to Xiaomo¡¯s body?¡± Rong Ruihan walked into the room and his gaze immediatelynded on both Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen.

    Right now, Jun Xiaomo was leaning on Ye Xiuwen as they sat together. The atmosphere between them was so intimate that it was ring to Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze darkened slightly. Suppressing the disdain in his heart, Rong Ruihan walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s other side and sat down beside her silently.

    Just some time ago, he had stormed off in rage after learning that Jun Xiaomo is expecting Ye Xiuwen¡¯s child right now. However, after spending the next few days cooling his head off, he still decided to return to her side.

    This was the problem of being fond of a person for such a long time ¨C it would be increasingly difficult to give up on and forget that person as time went on. In Rong Ruihan¡¯s case, his feelings for Jun Xiaomo spanned across two entire lifetimes. One could only imagine just how difficult it could be to let her go just like that. In fact, given the kinds of troubles Jun Xiaomo was presently faced with, he found it all the more difficult to erase her from his mind.

    Thus, he decided to return in the end.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s spirits tensed up for a moment, before rxing once more.

    On the other hand, Ye Xiuwen appeared to turn a blind eye to Rong Ruihan¡¯s existence. In fact, he consciously chose not to react even when Rong Ruihan sat beside Jun Xiaomo.

    Squeak squeak~ A tiny voice broke apart the tense atmosphere in the room. Chi Jingtian had once again turned into a little packrat and leapt into Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms, curling himself up into a ballfortably as he swished his tail around.

    This is why I say that, among us three love rivals, it¡¯s going to be easiest for me to get close to Xiaomo! The little packrat squinted his eyes as he thought in delight and capitalized on his furry and cute appearances to gain an advantage over the other two.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that the ¡°little pet¡± in her bosom was a man. However, she couldn¡¯t help but curl her lips up into a smile as she stretched out her hand and tickled the little packrat behind his ears.

    After all, that plump ball of fluff that was no more than the size of a fist was simply too adorable ¨C she simply couldn¡¯t bring herself to chase it away.

    The little packrat was incredibly delighted, and it wrapped its tiny paws around Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers and refused to let go.

    Old Man Chi noticed how his great-grandson had decidedly turned back into an obsequious little ¡°pet¡±, and he red at Chi Jingtian as the bulging veins on his forehead throbbed, ¡°Grow up!¡±

    The little packrat blinked twice as it returned an ¡°innocent¡± look to Old Man Chi, as though pretending it had not heard a single thing he said.

    Old Man Chi snorted once more, before looking away.

    With the short interruption by the little packrat, the tension in the air between Rong Ruihan, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen subsided substantially. Rong Ruihan recalled what Old Man Chi had just mentioned some time ago, and he couldn¡¯t help but press the point, ¡°Master, what¡¯s wrong with Xiaomo¡¯s body now?¡±

    ¡°This young gal¡¯s body doesn¡¯t really have an issue. The real issuey with the child in her womb.¡± Old Man Chi stroked his beard as he exined.

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rong Ruihan furrowed his brows.

    ¡°Miss Jun possesses an acquired demonic body, while the fetus in her body possesses a spiritual constitution. As it grows, she will require the suffusion of more and more spiritual energy through her body. This process is incredibly debilitating to Miss Jun¡¯s body. Back when you were still away, Miss Jun has already experienced a period of intense weakness. If not for the fact that Ye Xiuwen had managed to seize the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds and fed them to her, Miss Jun¡¯s life might already be at risk by now.¡± Old Man Chi exined.

    Rong Ruihan was unaware of theplexities of her pregnancy, and he was slightly taken aback.

    ¡°Now that Miss Jun has consumed the Rainbow Lotus Flower¡¯s seeds, her body is already much better. That said, the problem isn¡¯t resolved yet. Unless we can find the Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill, it¡¯s only going to be a matter of time before her body shows signs of rejection again. When that timees, her life would be in danger once more.¡±

    Old Man Chi¡¯s exnations caused Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyebrows to furrow deeper and deeper, and he nced over at Jun Xiaomo. Detecting a gazending on her body, Jun Xiaomo looked up and immediately locked eyes with Rong Ruihan.

    Faint echoes of emotions rippled in her heart as soon as she noticed Rong Ruihan¡¯s deep, abstruse gaze on her.

    She didn¡¯t know what she should do. Thus, she smiled back faintly, as though reassuring him that everything would be alright.

    Yet the faint smile of hers only served to tug powerfully at Rong Ruihan¡¯s heartstrings. He recalled that their child in the previous life had failed to see the light of day, and if possible, he sincerely wished that Jun Xiaomo did not have to go through such pain and sorrow of losing a child ever again.

    Thus, with a somewhat darkened, ashen gaze, he sighed briefly, before patting Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he reassured her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We¡¯ll do our best to locate the Green Lotus Pill for you.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen picked up his teacup and took a sip from it, not knowing what else he could add.

    Old Man Chi rubbed his temples ¨C I guess I¡¯m getting on in my years now. I can no longer tell what young people are thinking these days. Just some time ago, they were each still fraught with immense envy and jealousy, yet overnight, they appear to bepletely harmonious. If I didn¡¯t know better, I might even mistake them for mere siblings right now.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled back at Rong Ruihan in gratitude. Suddenly, an ephemeral notion flickered past the depths of her mind in an instant so quickly that she failed totch onto it.

    Lowering her head, Jun Xiaomo mulled over it for a little bit more, before looking back up and dering, ¡°I think I know where the Green Lotus Pill might be. I¡¯ve briefly heard of it before.¡±

    ¡°What?!¡± Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were like a stone that shattered the tranquil atmosphere in the room. Even the sprightly old man widened his eyes in disbelief as he barked, ¡°Where did ye hear of this?!¡±

    It wasn¡¯t hard to see why the sprightly old man found Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words so hard to believe. Back then, his wife had passed on precisely because they were unable to locate the Green Lotus Pill and the Rainbow Flower Lotus. Even though his wife had already passed on years ago, he had to date been unable to learn much of the Green Lotus Pill. In fact, the whereabouts of the Green Lotus Pill had even be somewhat of an obsession to him after all these years.

    How could he have imagined that a young sprout that Jun Xiaomo was could actually know of the Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill¡¯s whereabouts?! As much as the sprightly old man was astonished, he was simrly rather disappointed.

    If it had truly been that easy to find, why wasn¡¯t he able to locate it after all these years? Could the problem be with his own capabilities?

    As he thought about these things, the sprightly old man couldn¡¯t help but feel an urge to flip the table in the room.

    Naturally, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s following words were even more astonishing, ¡°Even though I know where it is, we won¡¯t be able to obtain it just yet.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo spoke with earnest.

    ¡°Why?¡± Old Man Chi furrowed his brows, ¡°Could it be in the hands of a Hidden Sect?¡±

    If that were the case, it would be absolutely reasonable if they were unable to obtain it just yet. After all, even a powerful n like the Chi n would hardly deign to provoke an equally powerful Hidden Sect in the spiritual cultivation world. The potential losses in such a tussle could be dire.

    Jun Xiaomo paused for a moment, before shaking her head, ¡°It¡¯s not that it¡¯s in the possession of a powerful entity, but...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo paused.

    ¡°But what?¡± Everyone looked at Jun Xiaomo with bewilderment.

    Jun Xiaomo looked straight back at them with some reservations in her heart.

    Ye Xiuwen stretched out his arm and held Jun Xiaomo¡¯s right hand gingerly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. If you don¡¯t want to talk about it right now, we could always discuss this another time.¡±

    The hesitation in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart began to wash away as she reveled in the firm sense of security washing through her heart from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s touch.

    Finally, she mustered her courage and continued, ¡°The Green Lotus Pill hasn¡¯t appeared yet, but I know of its whereabouts. Furthermore, it won¡¯t be too long before the powerhouses in the world will make a beeline towards its whereabouts.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡± Old Man Chi was getting somewhat annoyed by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s enigmatic exnations.

    ¡°It¡¯s an Arcane Realm. In three months, a new Arcane Realm will surface in the world in the south-western direction. The powerhouses of this world would undoubtedly be striving to obtain the ownership rights of the Arcane Realm. If memory serves me well, there are several pills and medicines in this Arcane Realm, one of which is a Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined one word at a time.

    ¡°Haa--?! What kind of a joke is this? Miss Jun, how could you possibly know of an Arcane Realm¡¯s location before it even appears? Do you have the powers of irvoyance now?¡± Old Man Chi shrugged off Jun Xiaomo¡¯s exnations with displeasure. He disliked boastful people the most. To his mind, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s words were as incredible as if the sun were to rise from the west.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head as she maintained, ¡°I know that Old Man Chi finds this difficult to believe. However, this is the truth.¡±

    Because, she had experienced the very same contention for ownership to the Arcane Realm in her previous life. At that time, Yu Wanrou had managed to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm with the aid of her following of men.

    If not for her possession of the Arcane Realm acting as a springboard for her ambitions, Yu Wanrou would never have been able to obtain the favor of such arge following of menter in her life. In fact, it would not be too farfetched to say that the possession of an Arcane Realm was akin to bing the Sect Leader of arge, powerful sect. After all, many people would hardly hesitate to serve under the owner of an Arcane Realm just so that they could gain ess to its riches and treasures.

    But this time, I¡¯ve got to seize ownership of this Arcane Realm for the sake of my child! Jun Xiaomo thought to herself as a bright gleam flickered across the depths of her eyes.

 Chapter 391: Previous and Present Life, A Three-Way Yoke

    <h4>Chapter 391: Previous and Present Life, A Three-Way Yoke</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Old Man Chi and the sprightly old man had both taken Jun Xiaomo¡¯s allusion to the Arcane realm with a pinch of salt. After all, since time immemorial, the number of appearances of Arcane Realms were few and far between. Furthermore, these Arcane Realms had appeared suddenly and without warning. Nobody had ever heard of a person able to predict the appearance of an Arcane Realm unless that person was already the Arcane Realm¡¯s owner to begin with.

    That said, the only thing that they did know for certain was that there would be great bloodshed in the cultivation world if an Arcane Realm were to appear. Arcane Realms were synonymous with incredible wealth and power. They might even contain jaw-dropping, earth-shattering treasures that cultivators might nevere across in their entire life spanning thousands of years.

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected others to believe these derations of hers given that she had no means to substantiate the same. Regardless, she was content in the fact that the truth would be revealed as soon as the Arcane Realm appeared. At that time, she would do all she could to be the next owner of the Arcane Realm for the sake of the child in her womb.

    Rong Ruihan sat beside Jun Xiaomo and gazed at her with a meaningful expression on his face.

    As soon as the rest of the crowd departed, Rong Ruihan ran after Jun Xiaomo and stood in front of her as he asked, ¡°Xiaomo, can I speak with you for a moment?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was just about to head out with Ye Xiuwen to stock up on some resources. Faced with Rong Ruihan¡¯s deep, abstruse gaze, her heart constricted slightly and wrung with pain.

    That said, she still looked over to Ye Xiuwen, seeking his consent.

    She knew that she should no longer be fickle-minded now that she was together with Martial Brother Ye. She wouldn¡¯t agree to Rong Ruihan¡¯s request if Martial Brother Ye didn¡¯t like the notion of her speaking in private with Rong Ruihan.

    Although Ye Xiuwen didn¡¯t feelfortable with the idea, he was quickly reminded of what Chi Jingtian mentioned just a little while back.

    If what Xiaomo exined about the Arcane Realm is real, then the road ahead is most certainly going to be fraught with dangers and trouble. There¡¯s no way I would be able to amply protect Xiaomo with just my own abilities.

    Besides, he knew that Little Martial Sister was unable to let go of Rong Ruihan just yet. If he forced her to immediately cut Rong Ruihan out from her life right here and now, Little Martial Sister was not going to be pleased. In fact, she would only continue to be cheerless as she had been over thest few days.

    Forget it. Ye Xiuwen chuckled bitterly in his heart whilst doing his best to keep his emotions hidden. Then, he patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head as he responded warmly, ¡°Since Brother Rong has something to talk about, go have a chat with him first. We can always head outter.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was surprised by Ye Xiuwen¡¯s change of heart. However, she knew deep within that her martial brother had only agreed topromise like that because of her.

    Blinking her watery eyes back at Ye Xiuwen, Jun Xiaomo nodded her head with a grimace, ¡°Mm. I¡¯lle back to Martial Brother Ye once I¡¯m done with our chat.¡±

    With a nod, Ye Xiuwen turned and walked off into the distance.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart hardly felt at ease. Instead, it felt heavier than ever, as though a massive stone was weighing on her lungs, causing her breathing to grow ragged and shallow.

    Matters of the heart were the mostplicated. Whether Ye Xiuwen or Rong Ruihan, both were parties that had etched themselves indelibly in the deepest parts of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Thus, no matter who she chose, the other would most definitely be hurt. Her heart would also be hurt either way.

    ¡°Brother Rong, is this a convenient ce for your discussion, or should we take this elsewhere?¡± Jun Xiaomo did her best to smile faintly at Rong Ruihan.

    Pausing for a moment, Rong Ruihan tugged gently at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s wrist, ¡°Follow me.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo hesitated for a moment before following along without any resistance.

    After Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan departed, Ye Xiuwen appeared once again. As it turns out, he hadn¡¯t walked too far, and he had simply paused behind arge tree in the distance.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to follow them?¡± Chi Jingtian¡¯s voice echoed outckadaisically from the branches above. He was munching casually on a fruit.

    A grimace spread slowly on Ye Xiuwen¡¯s lips. The aura and disposition around Ye Xiuwen¡¯s body had grown incredibly cold and distant.

    ¡°Tsk. You¡¯re so frustrating. You¡¯re evidently worried that Xiaomo¡¯s going to be abducted by Brother Rong, yet you still refuse to admit it.¡± Chi Jingtianmbasted Ye Xiuwen disdainfully as he leapt down from the tree. Finishing up the fruit in his hands, he added, ¡°I¡¯m going even if you¡¯re not. There¡¯s no loss to me either ways.¡±

    As soon as Chi Jingtian finished speaking, he began to walk briskly in the direction that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan had headed towards.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s pupils quivered as he hesitated for a moment. Yet, in the end, he still chose to follow after Chi Jingtian.

    Rong Ruihan led Jun Xiaomo some distance before they finally arrived at a ce with an idyllic, pleasant scenery. Clear waters flowed calmly along a gentle creek, while both sides of the creek were lined with willow trees swaying in tandem with a light breeze. A bridge sat stoically across both sides of the creek, as though holding together the twonds separated by waters.

    As she took in the beautifully tranquil scenery, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart finally began to loosen up.

    ¡°Xiaomo, can you tell me where your predictions about the Arcane Realm hase from?¡± Rong Ruihan sincerely asked Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected Rong Ruihan to ask her something like this, and she was momentarily taken aback.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze deepened and grew abstruse. Caressing Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face gently, he asked again, ¡°Xiaomo, do you have memories of your past life?¡±

    Memories of her past life?

    Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian were both watching this some distance away, and they were both immediately taken aback.

    Lifting her head, she gazed straight into Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes with tears in her own ¨C here was a man who had sacrificed so much for her in his previous life that he had even given up his life for her. Yet she didn¡¯t even know of his existence in her previous life.

    Her heart was filled with sourness and bitterness. It suddenly dawned on her that she would be far too cruel to him if she continued to keep her knowledge of her previous life a secret.

    At the very least, she hoped that her acknowledgement of everything Rong Ruihan had done for her in her previous life would give Rong Ruihan some vindication for his efforts.

    ¡°Indeed, I do have the memories of my past life.¡± Jun Xiaomo sighed as she admitted, ¡°Brother Rong, about ourst life...thank you...¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart instantly skipped a beat and trembled vigorously. It was as though he could see his past life sh before his very eyes once more, and he looked back at Jun Xiaomo with a gaze that was far and distant, yet altogether warm.

    ¡°So that series of dreams had turned out to be reality. It had actually been the truth of our previous life.¡± Rong Ruihan muttered withplicated feelings in his heart, ¡°Then, that child...did it really exist before as well?¡±

    Deep,plex emotions were sent rippling through the depths of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she revealed a look of pain and sorrow.

    Despite having lived through two full lifetimes, the loss of her child was still an eternal scar that was indelibly etched within her soul. It was something that she would never be able to recover from.

    Jun Xiaomo chose to remain taciturn, yet Rong Ruihan could pretty much tell from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s expressions what her answer would have been ¨C It turns out that the child was indeed real as well. That entire series of dreams that has gued my mind for thousands of nights had indeed urred in the past. And Jun Xiaomo shares the very same set of memories I have.

    ¡°My rebirth has brought be back to when I was sixteen years-old.¡± Jun Xiaomo slowly exined, ¡°It was like an incredibly long and arduous dream. That nightmarested for an entire lifetime. That said, I didn¡¯t know about Brother Rong¡¯s existence initially. If not for the fact that you¡¯ve shared with me your experiences some time ago, perhaps the truth might well have simply slipped out from between our fingers.¡±

    Sixteen years-old...

    Ye Xiuwen suddenly recalled how Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality experienced a massive upheaval ever since she was punished by the Sect Elders for trespassing the Dawn Sect¡¯s forbidden grounds. Back then, not only did she mature substantially, she even began to draw closer to him.

    At that time, Ye Xiuwen was incredibly curious as to what caused the stark change in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s personality. However, since Jun Xiaomo was unwilling to speak much about it, he decided not to press the issue, and simply attributed it to her maturity.

    Who would have thought that Little Martial Sister had actually already experienced an entire lifetime while she was unconscious back then?

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was equally filled withplex emotions. He could tell from Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan¡¯s conversation that their previous lives must have been incredibly intertwined with the other. In fact, she had even been pregnant with his child.

    Ye Xiuwen did not have any recollection of the memories from his previous life, and the thought ofcking the same frustrated him very much. It was as though an invisible wall has suddenly appeared, creating a rift between him and Jun Xiaomo.

    What happened between us in our previous life? And what happened between Rong Ruihan and Xiaomo in their previous life? The innumerable questions in his heart thoroughly vexed Ye Xiuwen.

    Rong Ruihan fought the urge for a little while, but eventually gave in, took a step forward and pulled Jun Xiaomo into a tight, warm embrace.

    His heart was swamped with both emotions of tion and sorrow. He was ted that his life was indeed inextricably intertwined with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s life, yet he was also disappointed that having been in pursuit of the samedy for two full lifetimes, he was still unable to make her his.

    She was even with somebody else¡¯s child right now, while the child that they had together in their previous life was fated to never see the light of day.

    It was as though Rong Ruihan¡¯s intense sorrow poured out straight through his arms and into Jun Xiaomo. In an instant, tears streamed out of her eyes and seeped through Rong Ruihan¡¯s clothes.

    ¡°Sigh, what in the world. All of you love rivals are more deep and profound than the other. What am I going to do about these things?¡± Chi Jingtian squatted down on the floor and red at Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan with displeasure.

    Chi Jingtian¡¯s voice caused Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan to be slightly taken aback. Their cultivation levels were not low to begin with. That said, they had been too caught up in their own emotions that they hadpletely failed to detect Chi Jingtian and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arrival nearby. It was only with Chi Jingtian¡¯s exmation that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan both detected the arrival of the other two.

    Most importantly, Ye Xiuwen had never thought to conceal his aura or disposition. Otherwise, Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan would never have been able to notice him so easily.

    Jun Xiaomo immediately noticed that Ye Xiuwen was staring straight at her with a dark expression on his face, and her face instantly paled in colour.

    She immediately shoved Rong Ruihan away and lowered her head in guilt. In that instant, she felt as though she were a traitor in her rtionship with Ye Xiuwen. After all, she had already decided to be with Ye Xiuwen in this life, so how could she continue to be so inextricably entangled with Rong Ruihan?

    If she remained like this, how was she being any different from Yu Wanrou?

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart sank to the mires of guilt and despair, and she bit down hard on her lower lips.

    The atmosphere in the air grew tense and thick.

    Momentster, Ye Xiuwen walked over towards Jun Xiaomo and stood straight in front of her. There, he caressed her cheeks and gently wiped off the dampness under her eyes with his thumb.

    ¡°Could you tell me about the things that I¡¯m not aware of?¡± Ye Xiuwen asked softly. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils quivered slightly, before she looked up and stared straight into Ye Xiuwen¡¯s eyes.

    She could tell from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s deep gaze that there was not a single trace of anger or suspicion. His gaze was almost akin to a deep abyss that simply consumed everything around it.

    Thus, Jun Xiaomo lifted her hands and squeezed Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms tightly.

    ¡°I¡¯ll exin everything.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo was incredibly guarded and vignt by nature, and she never trusted people easily. However, this was naturally to the exception to the two men standing before her right now. After all, both men were entities who were an important existence to her, whether in her previous life or in the present life.

    Thus, she sincerely felt that both of them had the right to know the deepest secrets in her heart, and she naturally felt at ease revealing the truth to them as well.

    ¡°Me too. I¡¯d like to hear about it as well.¡± Chi Jingtian entered the mix and looked at Jun Xiaomo pitifully, ¡°Xiaomo, is that alright with you? If you think it¡¯s difficult to speak of these things directly to me, I can alter my form.¡±

    As Chi Jingtian spoke, he immediately turned himself back into a plump little packrat.

    This peculiar interjection by Chi Jingtian substantially dissipated the heaviness weighing on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart. Not knowing whether tough or to cry, she picked up the little packrat and rubbed it behind its ears as she added, ¡°You can listen in if you must. This isn¡¯t an outrageous secret anyway.¡±

    Squeak squeak~~ The little packrat hugged Jun Xiaomo¡¯s thin, slender fingers tightly and gnawed gently on it. Nobody knew whether his intentions were to console Jun Xiaomo, or whether he was simply taking advantage of the situation to get close to her.

 Chapter 392: Arcane Realm Appears, The Gathering of Forces

    <h4>Chapter 392: Arcane Realm Appears, The Gathering of Forces</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Hugging the little packrat in her arms, Jun Xiaomo spent the next two hours or so describing in detail everything that had urred in her previous life to the two persons and one little packrat seated in front of her.

    As Jun Xiaomo recounted her experiences, the images of Rong Ruihan¡¯s dreams began to sh past his mind once again, as though he were reliving the very same experiences from his perspectives at the same time.

    As it turns out, everything that he had seen in those dreams were incredibly real. There was not a single thing that Jun Xiaomo spoke of which did not cohere with his own personal experiences from the dreams. The only thing Jun Xiaomo did not speak of was about the matters that urred after her own death in her previous life.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s deep gazended on Jun Xiaomo once more. She was truly carrying too many burdens in her heart. If possible, he would love to be given the opportunity to share some of these burdens, rather than to add to the burdens weighing down her shoulders.

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was equally rippling withplicated emotions, and he found himself unable to suppress these multitude of emotions no matter what he did.

    He did not have any memories of his previous life, but he could tell from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s short recount of her experiences just how difficult and trying her previous life must have been.

    It was no wonder Jun Xiaomo would present herself with such earth-shattering changes back when she was sixteen years-old. It was no wonder Jun Xiaomo bore such intense hatred and enmity towards Zhang Shuyue.

    After hearing everything that Jun Xiaomo had been through, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s heart was filled with a profound, aching sensation. He finally understood exactly why Jun Xiaomo couldn¡¯t find it in her heart to let go of both himself and Rong Ruihan.

    Ye Xiuwen pulled Jun Xiaomo into a tight embrace and patted her gently on the back, ¡°What¡¯s most important now is your health and the child in your womb. Don¡¯t think too much about these things anymore and focus on yourself. Once the Arcane Realm appears, we¡¯ll do our best to obtain the Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill for you. Don¡¯t worry.¡±

    When Ye Xiuwen mentioned ¡°we¡±, he was naturally referring to both himself and Rong Ruihan.

    He had finally thought things through. Rather than press Jun Xiaomo for an answer right now, there was no harm in pushing back the decision-making process until the dust had finally settled on her childbirth and the matters pertaining to the Arcane Realm. After all, she was only going to suffer and debilitate her body if she continued to worry about everything like she did now.

    Rong Ruihan contemted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ount of the matter sullenly as well. He could finally understand that Ye Xiuwen¡¯s existence was far more profoundly rooted in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart than he had ever imagined, and he knew that it was going to be impossible to snatch Jun Xiaomo from Ye Xiuwen¡¯s side entirely.

    Since that¡¯s the case, why not take a step back and let Xiaomo deliver the child safely first?

    Rong Ruihan also patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, signifying his eptance of apromise to the situation for now.

    Squeak squeak squeak! Squeak squeak squeak!

    Meanwhile, the little packrat was displeased ¨C incredibly displeased. He had never expected Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life to bepletely devoid of his existence. They had not even encountered each other as mere passers-by!

    In his frustration, he grabbed hold of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers and bit down hard on it, leaving a deep imprint of its teeth on her fingers.

    Jun Xiaomo scratched its ears in a mix of anger and bemusement, selectively choosing to close her mind off to the fact that this little packrat was a man and treating him as nothing more than a pet.

    In the very next moment, the little packrat grabbed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s fingers again and licked it obsequiously, almost as though consoling her in the midst of his tantrum.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s smile widened.

    Truth be told, she was hardly filled with sorrow or despondence anymore. Even though the matters in her past life had left an indelible mark in her heart, the effluxion of time had also caused these scars to grow fainter ¨C she could appreciate the fact that her present life was vastly different from her experiences in her previous life.

    In fact, if they managed to achieve their goals within Arcane Realm this time, she would be able to say with absolute conviction that she had truly walked out from the shadows of her past life and onto the frontiers of a new life ahead.

    Besides, aren¡¯t all of the persons important to her still well, alive and by her side? What¡¯s there not to be content about?

    Just like that, Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen and the others eagerly awaited signs of the Arcane Realm¡¯s appearances, while Old Man Chi and the sprightly old man took everything with a pinch of salt. Then, finally, on one still, tranquil night, an incredible flux of spiritual energy erupted powerfully in the south-western direction, sending tremors through the world. Then, as soon as the tremors subsided, a piercing beam of light shot straight through the sky like a pir connecting heaven and earth, scattering the clouds around. It was an incredibly foreboding phenomenon.

    ¡°Heaven-seizing and earth-shattering transformations ¨C it¡¯s actually the appearance of an Arcane Realm!¡± Old Man Chi was in the midst of cultivating when he suddenly snapped out of his meditative state and ran towards the window in his room, staring aghast at the pir of light.

    Various sects and ns in the world, bothrge and small, also sensed the peculiar eruption of energy ¨C even the usually elusive Hidden Sects were shaken and leapt to action.

    Overnight, news of the appearance of an Arcane Realm spread throughout the four corners of the cultivation world. An Arcane Realm¡¯s appearance was ubiquitously seen as a gift from the gods above. Not only did an Arcane Realm contain incredibly treasures, some people would even manage to seize incredible opportunities within the Arcane Realm and see their cultivation levels improve by leaps and bounds. Was there any person in the cultivation world who were able to resist the temptation of such potential yields? It was practically a thing of dreams!

    That said, such opportunities and treasures often came withmensurate risks. Everyone coveted the same, but the winners were only the ones who had thestugh.

    Even though Old Man Chi had taken Jun Xiaomo¡¯s predictions of the Arcane Realm¡¯s appearance with a pinch of salt, he still decided to err on the side of caution and made all the necessary preparations he could. First, he instructed an elite team of Chi n members to be ready to mobilize at all times. Then, he also had his nsmen purchase and stockpile arge amount of pills, medicines, talismans and formation array scrolls.

    The Chi n members were initially dumbfounded by his orders. Some had even wondered whether Old Man Chi was making preparations to wage war against the eight great sects of the spiritual cultivation world. Otherwise, why would the Chi n need all the pills, medicines, talismans and formation array scrolls for?

    Then, as soon as the Arcane Realm appeared, everyone in the Chi n immediately understood Old Man Chi¡¯s intentions. In fact, their respect for their n head shot to unprecedented heights almost instantly.

    As soon as Old Man Chi learnt of these things, he coughed dryly and brazenly epted thepliments from his n members.

    After all, these were rumours that he had gleaned from his quasi-great-granddaughter-inw. There was hardly any difference hearing the news from him either. After all, they were for all intents and purposes one and the same family.

    Jun Xiaomo didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry when she learnt that Old Man Chi had begun to see her as a part of the Chi n. On the other hand, the little packrat was incredibly delighted.

    Meanwhile, everyone knew that the gates to the Arcane Realm would open three days after the Arcane Realm first surfaced in the cultivation world. Thus, powerful forces began to gather and congregate at the entrance to the Arcane Realm in no time. Each of these forces would eagerly size up the different powers gathered around them, earnestly scheming against the others that they deemed to be a threat to them.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction was neither sizeable nor attention-grabbing whenpared with the other forces around. After all, having lived for so many years, Old Man Chi deeply understood the importance ofying low and not drawing attention to themselves. Thus, their faction had consciously applied on themselves talismans used to conceal their cultivation levels so that they couldy low and not stand out in the crowd. After all, thest thing they would want right now was for others to paint a target board on their backs before they had even stepped into the Arcane Realm.

    ¡°Look there, look there! Isn¡¯t that the Du n of one of the eight great sects?¡± Someone eximed aloud, incidentally attracting the attention of everyone around.

    Jun Xiaomo looked into the direction that he was pointing. As expected, she saw several familiar faces among their midst.

    Not only did she see the nemeses of her present life, Du Yongxu and Du Lianqin, she even saw the nemeses of her previous life, including the Du n Head and the n Elders of the Du n.

    It stood to reason. This was the appearance of an Arcane Realm after all. The Du n were all greedy and avaricious people, so how would they be able to pass up on a prime opportunity to take a profit for themselves? They were most certainly here with an intention to seize as much as they could.

    I wonder how many people are going to perish to them this time, given how they are such seasoned thieves and robbers who enjoy seizing from others. Jun Xiaomo snickered coldly in her heart.

    Having heard Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ount of her experiences with the Du n in her previous life, Ye Xiuwen naturally knew the significance of the Du n¡¯s existence to her. After all, Jun Xiaomo had been hounded and relentlessly persecuted by the eight great sects of the cultivation world. It could be said that there was not a single person within the eight great sects that did not form Jun Xiaomo¡¯s list of nemeses right now.

    That said, the only reason why Jun Xiaomo was not being hounded by them in this life was because she now possessed the ability to conceal the demonic energy in her body.

    Ye Xiuwen stretched out his hand and squeezed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s right hand, silently providing her with strength and encouragement.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly, and she gripped Ye Xiuwen¡¯s hand tightly as well.

    The Du n was not the only powerful force that was drawn to the Arcane Realm. In fact, the other seven constituent ns of the eight great sects, the Limitless Sect, the Zephyr Sect, the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect were all present as well.

    Naturally, since Jun Xiaomo had changed their faction¡¯s appearances using several Masquerade Talismans, none of the other forces around were able to recognize anyone within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction.

    Their goal was hidden in the depths of the Arcane Realm, and there was no reason for them to get into a fight before they had even entered the Arcane Realm. After all, that would be far too disadvantageous to them.

    ¡°A map will appear somewhere in the Arcane Realm once it opens up. If we can obtain that map, it will enable us to locate our goal within the Arcane Realm much more easily. That way we wouldn¡¯t have to flounder about like a headless fly in the vast spaces of the Arcane Realm.¡± Jun Xiaomo addressed everyone from experience.

    The Arcane Realm would only remain open for a limited period of time. Furthermore, everyone would be rejected from the Arcane Realm¡¯s domain as soon as the Arcane Realm recognized its new master. At that time, unless the Arcane Realm¡¯s new master approves of their presence, nobody else would be able to enter the Arcane Realm.

    When the Arcane Realm opened in her previous life, both she and Ye Xiuwen had spent some time within its domain as well. However, their strength back then could only be described as frail and feeble, and they were unable to seize many treasures or opportunities for themselves. That said, they had nevertheless learnt that Yu Wanrou was the one who had managed to im the Arcane Realm¡¯s map for herself.

    In this life, Jun Xiaomo was determined to seize the opportunity for herself. If possible, she sincerely wanted to im ownership and seize the Arcane Realm for herself.

    ¡°Where are we going to go about locating the map?¡± Old Man Chi looked at Jun Xiaomo with an impassioned gaze.

    ¡°I¡¯m not clear of its exact location. I only heard that the map is enshrouded with such thick and vile energies that people perish from its poison before they can evene close to the map.¡± Jun Xiaomo recalled her previous life¡¯s experiences and exined.

    Old Man Chi nced at Jun Xiaomo with some measure of bewilderment, ¡°Why does it sound like you¡¯ve been in the Arcane Realm before?¡±

    Jun Xiaomo coughed awkwardly and grew taciturn.

    ¡°Alright, Great-Grandfather. Xiaomo has her reasons for knowing so much about this Arcane Realm, and I know of her reasons as well. There¡¯s no need to press the issue.¡± Chi Jingtian hurriedly defused the situation, proving Jun Xiaomo with a way out.

    Old Man Chi red at Chi Jingtian, as though denouncing his act of preferring his ¡°wife¡± over his great-grandfather.

    Chi Jingtian rubbed his nose and shifted his gaze away from Old Man Chi.

    Snorting in his heart, Old Man Chi decided not to press the issue ¨C I¡¯m not a busybody to begin with. I¡¯m satisfied as long as we can achieve our goals.

    Then, on the dawn of the third day, the entrance to the Arcane Realm finally opened. A bright light shone from the heart of the Arcane Realm, illuminating everyone waiting expectantly outside.

    ¡°It¡¯s open!¡± Someone yelled at the top of his voice. As though a trigger had just been pressed, innumerable cultivators began to dive straight into the Arcane Realm in that very instant!

 Chapter 393: Cooperation Between Two Sects, Sprightly Old Man Takes a Backseat

    <h4>Chapter 393: Cooperation Between Two Sects, Sprightly Old Man Takes a Backseat</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    The appearance of an Arcane Realm was the confluence of both destiny as well as the heavenlyws.

    If the entire cultivation world were likened to an entire universe, then the Arcane Realm could be likened to a parallel, small-scaled universe. Its internal workings wereplex and profound, and even powerful cultivators would find it practically impossible tob the entire Arcane Realm in the short span of three months. This was why the map of the Arcane Realm was of such importance.

    Even though Jun Xiaomo sincerely desired to obtain the Arcane Realm¡¯s map, she knew that encountering such opportunities was entirely up to one¡¯s luck and fate.

    After fending off some bandit cultivators for the umpteenth time, Chi Jingtian eximed with some measure of exasperation, ¡°We can¡¯t carry on like this. The Arcane Realm is just toorge! There¡¯s no way we¡¯ll be able tob through its entirety. Why don¡¯t we split up and search instead? This way, we will be able to cover more ground over a shorter span of time.¡±

    ¡°Moving separately is far too dangerous. I won¡¯t agree to it!¡± Old Man Chi snorted, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m unaware that you¡¯ll insist on moving with Miss Jun if we decide to move separately?¡±

    Chi Jingtian rubbed his nose silently, tacitly assenting to Old Man Chi¡¯s suspicions.

    ¡°I, too, think that it¡¯s a good idea to move separately. Locating the Arcane Realm¡¯s map is but a secondary objective. The most important thing right now is to obtain the Ninth-Grade Green Lotus Pill.¡± Ye Xiuwen furrowed his brows as his heart was overwhelmed by worry and concern once more.

    ¡°Since that¡¯s the case, why don¡¯t we split ourselves into teams? I¡¯ll be in the same team as Xiaomo.¡± Rong Ruihan quipped.

    Old Man Chi red at Rong Ruihan indignantly. He had never expected to be contradicted by his own disciple.

    ¡°Alright, ye old fogey, don¡¯t be so worried and concerned. Yer great-grandson is already well over twenty-years of age. Do ye think he¡¯s still a little brat suckling on milk? Do ye really have to follow him so closely to watch over him? Besides, we¡¯ve got plenty of Transmission Talismans and Teleportation Scrolls within our Interspatial Rings. If we encounter any danger, ¡®shk¡¯, and ye¡¯ll be here. What¡¯s the worry?¡± The sprightly old man couldn¡¯t help but mock Old Man Chi, triggering his angst.

    Thus, despite Old Man Chi¡¯s disapprobation, their entire faction still agreed to split up into two groups and move separately. Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen, Chi Jingtian and the sprightly old man formed one team, while Old Man Chi and the other elites from the Chi n formed the other team, and each team went their separate ways.

    Just their luck ¨C not long after going their separate ways, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s team immediately encountered the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect.

    The Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect were consistently ranked in the top two among all the Secondary Sects in the spiritual cultivation world, and they had historically never been able to see eye to eye. Yet, nothing was eternal. Both sects happened to be united on one front, and that was the fact that they both hated Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen to the core. Thus, as soon as they encountered Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen, both the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect immediately moved with a united front under a tacit agreement to crush theirmon nemeses.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen, today is the day you¡¯re going to die! You¡¯ve killed Sect Leader He; the Dawn Sect is going to make you pay blood for blood!¡± Several Sect Elders of the Dawn Sect bellowed with rage at the same time as they adopted offensive stances, trapping Jun Xiaomo and the rest in their encirclement.

    The Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Elders also quickly retrieved their own spirit tools and braced themselves for a fight. The death of their Grand Elder, Dai Yanfeng, was like a heavy p to their faces. How could they continue to exist in humiliation if they didn¡¯t get their revenge against Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen either?!

    Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian positioned themselves around Jun Xiaomo in tacit agreement that they were going to protect her. Even though Jun Xiaomo wasn¡¯t weak, it remained a fact she was still with child, and she should not be over-exerting herself.

    Jun Xiaomo held several talismans in her palm, coldly surveying the assants surrounding her as she clenched her fists tightly.

    Then, what the sprightly old man did next left everyone bbergasted. With three quick leaps and bound, the old man leapt out of the encirclement, before running tens of meters away to arge tree. There, he leapt onto arge branch, hugged his knees and adopted an idling pose, as though he were intent on being a mere observer, watching the fight from a distance.

    ¡°Hmph, old fogey, it¡¯s good that you know what¡¯s best for you. Otherwise, you¡¯ll be apanying them to the grave shortly.¡± One of the Sect Elders from the Eternal Summit Sect snorted, thinking that the sprightly old man had left the encirclement because he was afraid of dying.

    The sprightly old man squinted his eyes with displeasure and flicked his sleeves aggressively. In the next instant, a loud smack resounded on the face of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Elder, ¡°I hate it when people address me as ¡®old fogey¡¯, especially whening from someone who has more wrinkles than I do. Ye make it sound as though yer much younger than I am. Do ye wanna count andpare the number of wrinkles on our faces?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re asking for it!¡± The Sect Elder who spoke charged straight at the sprightly old man, casting Ye Xiuwen and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existences to the back of his mind in an instant.

    The sprightly old man snorted coldly, allowing the aura around his body to flourish in an instant. The Sect Elder¡¯s heart sank immediately when he detected the depths of the sprightly old man¡¯s abilities, but it was already toote.

    The sprightly old man threw a powerful ball of energy straight towards the Sect Elder, sending him flying and mming into the ground. Within one single move, the Sect Elder¡¯s nerves and bones were shattered, while the Nascent Soul within his body waspletely crushed.

    Fear...fearsome! The disciples of the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect began to harbour thoughts of retreating almost instantly.

    This was the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Fifth Elder, and his abilities were well ahead of some of the other Sect Elders within the Eternal Summit Sect. Who would have thought that the sprightly old man could cripple his entire cultivation with just one move? How strong must this old man be?

    If such tiny shrimps like us charge at the sprightly old man, we might not evenst half a move against him, right? He would probably be able to crush us with just the flick of his thumb!

    Just then, the sprightly old manckadaisically dropped his stance and picked at thergest fruit on the tree. Then, taking a bite out of the fruit, he instructed Jun Xiaomo and the rest, ¡°Master isn¡¯t going to interfere anymore, mmkay? This is a good chance for ye to hone yer abilities. If yer life isn¡¯t in danger, Master isn¡¯t going to help ye with these little problems around.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen smiled faintly. He knew that his master had his reasons for acting this way.

    The remaining Sect Elders of both sects exchanged nces once more, wondering whether they should continue fighting or not. In fact, most were contemting escape right now.

    Unfortunately, as soon as they recalled He Zhang and Dai Yanfeng¡¯s tragic deaths, they couldn¡¯t bring themselves to let Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen slip out from their grasps again.

    ¡°Let¡¯s attack together! I refuse to believe that two entire Sects aren¡¯t able to take out four snotty brats that haven¡¯t even begun to experience the world!¡±

    One of the Eternal Summit Sect¡¯s Sect Elders bellowed indignantly. With him taking lead, a barrage of innumerable spells began to nket Jun Xiaomo and the rest. Several other Sect Elders even began to charge straight towards the sprightly old man in a concerted fashion, attempting to hinder him so that he would be unable to rescue the four trapped in the encirclement.

    In their eyes, Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen and the rest were fated to die as long as they were able to hold down and hinder the sprightly old man¡¯s movements.

 Chapter 394: A Small World

    <h4>Chapter 394: A Small World</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    With the sprightly old man watching over them from the side, Jun Xiaomo and the others were hardly too concerned that the alliance between the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect would be too much of a threat to them. Besides, with Jun Xiaomo¡¯s powerful formation arrays augmenting their abilities, their battle went incredibly smoothly.

    That said, even Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian didn¡¯t expect theirbined prowess to be so immense. In fact, they were so strong that several disciples from the alliance were felled within a few breaths of time.

    Amidst the heat of battle, the three of them exchanged meaningful nces and formed a tacit resolve between them ¨C

    They were going to protect Jun Xiaomo. Nobody was going to harm her.

    Perhaps it was an extension of the firm resolve of theirs, but the three men stood shoulder to shoulder and fought with ever increasing rapport and coordination.

    As Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian fought more and more valiantly, it became all the more evident just how much the members of the alliance were harbouring thoughts of retreating. Fear and anxiety began to mount on their hearts as the number of disciples and Sect Elders bing crippled by Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction only increased.

    It was evident that they would be unable to harm a single hair on the heads of Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian even without the sprightly old man¡¯s interference, much less Jun Xiaomo as she continued to be sandwiched among the three.

    ¡°Retreat!¡± Finally, the Third Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect could no longer resist the urge to order a retreat.

    After all, things were only going to get worse if they stayed on.

    ¡°Trying to run? It¡¯s toote!¡± Chi Jingtian snorted as he gave chase, deeply intent on striking down his foes.

    Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan were hardly any more merciful either. The alliance had gone all out at their throats right from the onset. If not for the fact that theirbined abilities were well beyond the alliance¡¯s expectations, and if not for the fact that they had an additional insurance in the form of the old man sitting in the distance and watching over them, they would most certainly have met with a tragic fate had they ended up in the hands of the alliance.

    At the very least, they would have been severely wounded and incapacitated. If they were unable to break free of the predicament for an extended period of time, they might even end up perishing to the alliance.

    Despair and despondence washed over the members of the alliance in an instant. Just as the Sect Elders of the alliance intended to stake everything on the line and at least drag someone down to hell with them, Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes and tossed out five talismans.

    The five talismans hovered in mid-air, forming a Pentacle Array, trapping and binding everyone within its domain instantly. In fact, the Sect Elders of the alliance almost immediately began to feel an outflow ¨C of spiritual energy from their bodies. When they looked back up at Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian in horror, they noticed that the three werepletely unaffected by the formation array at all.

    ¡°Demoness! You¡¯re truly a Lady Demoness!¡± The Third Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect bellowed.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly. There was clearly no intention on her part to deny thebel she had just been given.

    So what if she were a Lady Demoness? She was more than happy to live her second life as a Lady Demoness as well!

    Under the restraining effects of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s formation array, Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian took down the rest of the members of the alliance with ease, before tying up their arms and legs firmly with rope. They didn¡¯t need the sprightly old man¡¯s assistance at all.

    ¡°Xiaomo, you could¡¯ve saved thest five talismans you used for another time. We could¡¯ve taken down this bunch of weaklings without your formation array at all. They¡¯re truly too weak!¡± Chi Jingtian waved his fist in mid-air smugly, stirring the wrath and rage in the hearts of the alliance¡¯s Sect Elders.

    Having lived for hundreds of years, how could they possibly swallow their rage after being taken down by a group of young brats?! That said, they could only me themselves for their inadequate abilities to resist.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly, before tipping on her toes and smacking Chi Jingtian lightly on the back of his head, ¡°I don¡¯tck talismans in my Interspatial ring to begin with. It¡¯s not a waste at all. Besides, were we really going to have to go through the trouble of catching them one by one? Isn¡¯t it much better to capture them in one fell swoop like this? It¡¯s so much easier!¡±

    Alright, the Sect Elders of the alliance were so infuriated by their banal exchange that they were soon about to choke up blood.

    ¡°Xiaomo makes sense. Then, how should we take care of them now? Do we roast them, grill them, boil them or deep fry them?¡± Chi Jingtian brandished his fists as he asked eagerly.

    The veins on the Sect Elders¡¯ necks were all bulging right now as they red wrathfully at Chi Jingtian ¨C Chi Jingtian¡¯s attitude was aplete humiliation to them.

    However, they would very soon realize that the fate which awaited them was far crueler than just the mere humiliation they had received.

    ¡°Cripple their cultivation. If we leave them as they are right now, they¡¯re just going to continue bully the sects that are weaker than them. Let¡¯s give them a taste of their own medicine and let them understand with their bones how it feels to be trampled on by others.¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled smugly as she revealed the punishment that awaited the alliance.

    This was a side of Jun Xiaomo that Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian had rarely seen. However, they couldpletely understand her actions.

    After all, anyone who had experienced the totality of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life would never possess much naivete nor mercy in their hearts either.

    ¡°You dare?!¡± The Third Elder of the Eternal Summit Sect was both astounded and infuriated.

    ¡°Hmph. Why wouldn¡¯t we? Do you have the ability to resist us?¡± Chi Jingtian mocked as he walked towards the members of the alliance, basking in the baptism of their wrathful gazes.

    Indeed, none of them had any more fuel within them to put up any form of resistance anymore. Quite apart from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s peculiar formation array that was hanging overhead, the mere existence of the sprightly old man watching them from afar meant that there was practically no chance of their escape right now.

    This was the first time, and quite possibly also thest time that they had felt so despondent and hopeless. After all, if they were to have their cultivation crippled in such a dangerous environment within an Arcane Realm, was there truly any certainty that they would be able to escape from it alive at all?

    ¡°Please...I beg you, let us go...I¡¯ve got a lot of precious treasures in my Interspatial Ring. I can give them all to you. I¡¯ll give them all to you.¡±

    One of the Sect Elders of the Eternal Summit Sect finally broke down in fear and began to cry as he begged for mercy.

    ¡°So now you want us to let you off? Then, why didn¡¯t you ever consider letting us off earlier? You were the ones who had hounded us relentlessly time and again before, and even Dai Yanfeng was the one who made the first move against me. His death was only a result of his own actions. And you? Had the tables been turned, would you have given us a way out with our lives intact?¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked contemptuously as she delivered a firm but powerful palm strike straight towards the Sect Elder.

    With that, the Sect Elder¡¯s Dantian waspletely shattered. The Sect Elder spat out a huge mouthful of blood, before passing out.

    Just like that, the others soon had their cultivation levels crippled as well. Some passed out, while others remained conscious, yet so miserable they wished they were dead.

    Crippled. Our entire life has been crippled...had we known this was going to happen, would we have disturbed this Lady Demoness to begin with? How could a woman possibly be so vicious?!

    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The sprightly old man leapt down from the tree and tossed the pit of the fruit he was eating away. Then, pping the dirt off his hands, he walked off into the distance.

    Jun Xiaomo and the rest also followed along,pletely turning a blind eye to the ground of despondent people who were still tightly bound and restrained behind.

    Ever since then, the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect vanished entirely from the cultivation world. Some said that they lost their way within the Arcane Realm and were thus trapped within the same for the rest of eternity. Others said that they stepped on the toes of forces they could never have afforded to cross, and they were thuspletely annihted overnight. And, there were yet others who said that they had the misfortune to stumble upon a powerful trap within the Arcane Realm, and theirbined numbers were consumed by the Arcane Realm just like that.

    As for the real truth of the matter, who knows? Regardless, nobody within the cultivation world ever identified themselves with the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect ever again. Furthermore, the things that each sect left behind were soon after raided and seized by other powers, leaving nothing behind. Thus, just like that, the Dawn Sect and the Eternal Summit Sect ended their chapter in the annals of history.

    Jun Xiaomo and the others continued along their way. Along the way, they encountered several foreign powers of all sizes. However, as long as they remained passive, the other was content leaving them be as well. Just like that, they would pass along each other with a tacit acknowledgement of life-preservation.

    Additionally, as they fought more and more battles together, Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan, Chi Jingtian and Jun Xiaomo managed to increase their rapport and synergy with each other so much that they were practically invincible against any powers assailing them.

    That said, their ¡°invincibility¡± was naturally only limited to powers that were unable to overwhelm them with absolute strength. In other words, these were battles that didn¡¯t require the sprightly old man¡¯s interference to begin with.

    Then, on one fine day, just as they finished their breakfast and intended to be on their way, Jun Xiaomo suddenly paused in her steps and furrowed her brow, ¡°Something¡¯s amiss. The air here isn¡¯t right.¡±

    ¡°Air?¡± Chi Jingtian sniffed about hard with his nose, ¡°I don¡¯t sense anything wrong around me. The only thing I smell is the scent of fresh grasnds.¡±

    ¡°Let me take a look.¡± Jun Xiaomo was still ill at ease, so she retrieved a talisman from her Interspatial Ring and waved it about. Instantly, the talisman caught fire in mid-air and burned with a dark-blue me.

    ¡°As I thought. There¡¯s miasma in the air.¡± Jun Xiaomo eximed with realization.

    ¡°Miasma?!¡± Chi Jingtian¡¯s eyes widened slightly.

    ¡°If there¡¯s no miasma in the air, the talisman should have burned with a bright-red me. It¡¯s only because there¡¯s miasma in the air that the me would burn with a dark-blue hue.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined.

    ¡°Xiaomo, you¡¯re truly incredible to have prepared even such talismans with anciry effects.¡± Chi Jingtian gave Jun Xiaomo two thumbs up out of respect.

    Chuckling lightly, Jun Xiaomo pushed down his thumbs and responded, ¡°If I didn¡¯t do these things despite having already lived life once, then my previous life¡¯s experiences would¡¯ve beenpletely wasted.¡±

    Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan knew exactly what Jun Xiaomo was referring to, and their eyes quivered with a trace of bitterness.

    Just then, a female voice resounded from afar.

    ¡°Brother Du, I¡¯m feeling a little bit tired. Would now be a good time for a rest?¡±

    This voice sounded incredibly melodious and delicate, and it sounded like the owner of the voice was coaxing someone coquettishly. Anyone without a stoic heart and a firm resolution hearing this voice would immediately tremble and get goosebumps all over his body.

    Fortunately, Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian were all men with ady in their hearts, and none of them were tripped up by the coquettish voice.

    ¡°This voice sounds familiar.¡± Ye Xiuwen paused and pondered aloud.

    Jun Xiaomo curled her lips into a wry smile, ¡°Martial Brother Ye would naturally find this voice familiar. It belongs to someone we¡¯re both extremely familiar with after all.¡±

    ¡°Familiar...Yu Wanrou?¡± Ye Xiuwen thought about it for a moment before responding with uncertainty.

    ¡°Who else could it be?¡± Jun Xiaomo smiled coldly, ¡°We¡¯ve traveled far and wide, only to find that the world is a small ce after all...¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s gaze flickered slightly as he contemted a certain possibility...

    In the very next moment, Jun Xiaomo blinked her eyes and smiled radiantly, ¡°Since Yu Wanrou is in the Arcane Realm as well, it¡¯s quite likely that she will end up obtaining the map to the Arcane Realm as well. Rather than fly aboutbing the entire Arcane Realm like a headless fly, why don¡¯t we just tail them discreetly?¡±

    Everyone immediately understood Jun Xiaomo¡¯s intentions.

    Follow Yu Wanrou until she obtains the Arcane Realm¡¯s map, before seizing it straight from her.

    Even though others might find such actions vile and inappropriate, Jun Xiaomo had never had any qualms seizing resources from Yu Wanrou ¨C ever.

    Not only that, she was incredibly pleased by the prospects she could do so.

    After all, this could simply be considered a form of ¡°repayment¡± for what Yu Wanrou had done to her over her two entire lifetimes.

 Chapter 395: Still Voice at Night, Map of the Arcane Realm

    <h4>Chapter 395: Still Voice at Night, Map of the Arcane Realm</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Under the cover of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s Invisibility Talismans, Yu Wanrou waspletely oblivious to the fact that there were now several additional tails following closely behind her.

    Truth be told, if not for the fact that Qin Lingyu had stumbled to Jun Xiaomo some time ago, Yu Wanrou might well have forgotten about Jun Xiaomo¡¯s existence altogether. To her mind, she had already left Jun Xiaomo far behind her in the dust, and Jun Xiaomo was no longer worth her consideration at all.

    ¡°Wanrou, are you hungry? Have something to eat.¡± A well-built, handsome male cultivator retrieved a pack of dry rations from his Interspatial Ring and handed it to Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°Thanks, Brother Hui.¡± Yu Wanrou smiled sweetly at him as she received the dry rations and began to munch on it.

    The man instantly got felt numb all over from the coquettish manner in which Yu Wanrou had thanked him, and he couldn¡¯t help but wonder whether he would be so lucky to sneak off with Yu Wanrou to a hidden ce tonight to engage in a session of dual cultivation.

    The other male cultivators around noticed his interaction with Yu Wanrou as well, and they couldn¡¯t help but cast looks of envy and jealousy at him.

    That¡¯s right. The men surrounding Yu Wanrou were no longer men of a single sect. Her harem of men was already taking form, and this was the beginning of her massive following of men.

    Yu Wanrou had still ended up treading the same path as she did in her previous life, relying on the draw of her spectral demine as well as her dual cultivation technique tomand an entire following of male cultivators behind her. Naturally, her following included the Du n Head¡¯s own son, Du Yongxu.

    After all, was there really any man out there unwilling to pass up on the opportunity to improve their cultivation by leaps and bounds while indulging in the ecstasy of carnal rtions? Even if this meant that they would have to share a singledy with other men, they were still willing to ept this.

    Furthermore, Yu Wanrou possessed spiritual waters within her spectral demine that enabled their injuries to recover incredibly quickly. Having a small bottle of these spiritual waters was akin to possessing hundreds of superior medicinal pills. This was something that one could only dream of ¨C only a fool would think to reject such an amazing opportunity.

    Naturally, Yu Wanrou¡¯s expectations of her following of men were incredibly high as well. First and foremost, the men must be handsome, charming, and possess an exquisite, dignified disposition. Then, they must also possess both spectacr cultivation abilities as well as stature and backing. Lastly, she required that they remainpletely loyal to her to the exclusion of all other women.

    Men like Qin Lingyu who got irretrievably injured were immediately discarded by Yu Wanrou without any hesitation whatsoever.

    To Yu Wanrou¡¯s mind, Qin Lingyu was already a thing of the past. After all, she had surrounded herself with a following of all types of handsome men now, so where was the need to go looking back to Qin Lingyu?

    As night fell, Yu Wanrou and that male cultivator snuck out from their encampment and made their way to a secluded spot some distance away.

    ¡°It¡¯s already sote. Where are they going?¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows as she gazed upon their backs.

    Jun Xiaomo and the rest took turns to stand guard and observe Yu Wanrou¡¯s entourage, and it happened to be Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan¡¯s turn to watch them through the night.

    ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s because they¡¯ve discovered traces of the Arcane Realm¡¯s map. Come, let¡¯s go take a look.¡± Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he whispered back.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded and slipped off into the darkness together with Rong Ruihan.

    After Yu Wanrou and the other male cultivator travelled some distance into the wilderness, they darted behind a massive stone. Within moments, they were all over each other, taking off each other¡¯s clothes and devouring each other¡¯s lips as they moaned and groaned in tandem.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Rong Ruihan: ......

    Alright, they had truly underestimated Yu Wanrou¡¯s bottom line. Just some days ago, they had still witnessed how she was acting all coyly and coquettishly with Du Yongxu. Yet just a few dayster, she was already tussling carnally with another male cultivator.

    Most importantly, she had even deigned to do the deed in the wilderness filled with faint traces of miasma...

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. I don¡¯t want to watch anymore. It¡¯s ring to the eyes.¡± Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder as he added, ¡°You¡¯re still with child too. We won¡¯t want it to learn from such bad influence.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo snickered softly, ¡°Alright, alright. How could it possibly know such things of carnal rtions? Don¡¯t speak of such nonsense.¡±

    Yu Wanrou and the man had obviously been holding it in for far too long, and they delved straight into the actual deed without much forey. Just as Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan were exchanging their lighthearted banter, Yu Wanrou had already begun to moan at the top of her voice from behind the massive rock.

    ¡°Faster...faster...¡±

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s cheeks instantly burned up with a red hue.

    She recalled the things of her previous life, and she happened to lock eyes with Rong Ruihan as she cast him an awkward nce.

    In that moment, the atmosphere between them was sullen and still.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart skipped a beat. she immediately turned around, motioning to leave anxiously for fear that she might no longer be able to face Rong Ruihan normally if she continued to lock eyes awkwardly with Rong Ruihan.

    On the other hand, Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart trembled slightly as soon as he noticed Jun Xiaomo¡¯s reddened cheeks and anxious disposition. He quickly took a few steps forward, grabbed hold of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm and pulled her to the side of another massive rock nearby.

    Rong Ruihan covered Jun Xiaomo¡¯s ears. In an instant, everything went silent, and the only thing Jun Xiaomo could hear was the heavy thumping of Rong Ruihan¡¯s heart just beside her own ears.

    Jun Xiaomo bit down on her lower lips and pushed Rong Ruihan slightly, ¡°Let go. We should head back.¡±

    Rong Ruihan responded sullenly, ¡°But I don¡¯t feel like letting go.

    Jun Xiaomo: ......

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s eyes darkened even more when he swept his gaze across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s slightly reddened lips.

    In the next instant, Rong Ruihan lifted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s chin and swiftly delivered a firm kiss to her lips. Jun Xiaomo¡¯s grip around his clothing tightened. The thought of pushing him away crossed her mind. Yet, in the face of his firm and slightly savage act, she found herself unable to do a single thing.

    After all, even if she did something, it would barely tickle Rong Ruihan.

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s kiss was tyrannical and forceful at the start, but it gradually became soft and protracted. As time went on, Jun Xiaomo began to immerse herself fully in the kiss, and the thought of pushing Rong Ruihan away was cast to the back of her mind.

    After some time, Rong Ruihan finally let go of Jun Xiaomo and gently rubbed her reddened lips.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s pupils trembled slightly as she opened her eyes.

    Rong Ruihan caressed her cheeks, ¡°Let¡¯s go back. You¡¯re still with child, so this is as far as I can go right now.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo immediately red at Rong Ruihan ¨C What do you mean ¡°as far as you can go right now¡±? What were you thinking of doing?!

    It was as though he simply assumed that she was willing to go further as well.

    Rong Ruihan smiled indulgently and patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s head, before tugging at her arm and making their way back to their own encampment.

    Jun Xiaomo struggled slightly, but she was unable to loosen Rong Ruihan¡¯s grip on her hand.

    Forget it. I won¡¯t be able to wrestle free of his grip no matter how hard I try. Jun Xiaomo thought to herself with a slightly defeatist attitude as she continued to be gued by the thoughts of the future.

    Meanwhile, on the other side, Ye Xiuwen happened to awaken from his slumber at the very same moment that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan departed from the campsite.

    He knew that Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan had left the campsite because they were tailing Yu Wanrou. However, he also knew that both Yu Wanrou and the man she was with were weaker than Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan, so he was assured that Jun Xiaomo was going to be safe.

    Thus, he decided not to follow after them.

    Then, as soon as he saw Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan return to the campsite hand in hand, Ye Xiuwen began to collect his divine sense and keep it under wraps once more.

    He didn¡¯t know why he chose to do this.

    That said, he soon discovered that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s lips were slightly reddened and swollen.

    As Jun Xiaomo drew closer back to their campsite, Ye Xiuwen also quickly collected all of his divine sense and pretended to still be asleep.

    Thus, from start to end, Jun Xiaomo waspletely oblivious to the fact that Ye Xiuwen had been awake and watching them.

    Rong Ruihan patted Jun Xiaomo¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I¡¯ll take care of the rest of the night. You¡¯re still with child right now, so you should rest early.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo epted his good intentions. Nodding her head, she retrieved a rug made of animal skin from her Interspatial Ring andid down on it.

    Gradually, her eyelids began to droop heavily, and she fell into a deep slumber before long.

    Just beside her, Ye Xiuwen opened his eyes once more to watch her sleep. After an incredibly long time, he sighed with some measure of resignation and tousled her hair helplessly.

    Forget it. I¡¯ll leave it be for now. Who else can I me but myself for not having the ability to protect her?

    Meanwhile, after Yu Wanrou managed to satiate her thirst, their entire entourage began to move with much more gusto as well. Just as Jun Xiaomo had guessed, Yu Wanrou managed to snag the map of the Arcane Realm like she did in her previous life. Naturally, she was only able to cross the innumerable hurdles protecting the map with the aid of her following of men.

    Yu Wanrou was incredibly delighted, and she felt as though she were blessed by the gods. Not only had she transmigrated to this cultivation world, she was even blessed with a series of incredible opportunities.

    Yu Wanrou picked up the map eagerly as she searched for the heart of the Arcane Realm ¨C the means to seizing ownership of the entire Arcane Realm.

    If everything went ording to n, she would be able to obtain ownership of the Arcane Realm like she did in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, and she would then use it as a springboard to ascend to the peak of the entire cultivation world.

    Unfortunately, fate was going to rear its ugly head in just a moment.

    This was because Jun Xiaomo and the rest were following closely behind, and they, too, were eyeing the map of the Arcane Realm in her possession.

 Chapter 396: Difficulty, the Art of Seizing the Map

    <h4>Chapter 396: Difficulty, the Art of Seizing the Map</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou had over twenty people in her faction, some of whom were in the Nascent Soul or even Immortal Ascension stage of cultivation. On the other hand, Jun Xiaomo only had five people in her faction. Seizing the map from right under Yu Wanrou¡¯s nose was most certainly something out of the question. Even if they managed to seed, the losses on their end would be incredible.

    Thus, keeping in mind that a forceful approach would never yield the results that they desired, they were forced to turn to a battle of the wits.

    That said, engaging in a ¡°battle of the wits¡± was much easier said than done. In fact, this was particrly difficult for someone like Jun Xiaomo who had never thought of seizing something from the hands of someone else in two full lifetimes. In other words, the art of seizing was a concept almostpletely foreign to her.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s team of five continued to snoop around behind Yu Wanrou¡¯s entourage, following them for more than ten days, yet they still couldn¡¯te up with any feasible ns to seize the map of the Arcane Realm from them. Not only that, Jun Xiaomo had personally witnessed Yu Wanrou¡¯s personal flings and affairs on several asions, and she feltpletely embarrassed and speechless by Yu Wanrou¡¯s brazen attitude.

    The only silver lining was that Yu Wanrou and her men were most certainly making their way closer and closer to the heart of the Arcane Realm. Jun Xiaomo knew that even if they did not possess the map of the Arcane Realm, they would still be able to locate the heart of the Arcane Realm if they continued this way.

    ¡°Are we going to continue like this? Without the map of the Arcane Realm, we might not even be able to locate the heart of the formation array even if we can locate the heart of the Arcane Realm.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered aloud in vexation.

    Typically, the heart of the Arcane Realm would be surrounded by innumerable traps andplex formation arrays, and even someone adept at formation arrays like Jun Xiaomo might not find it so easy to breach its profound andplex defenses.

    Most importantly, the Arcane Realm would only be open for a limited amount of time. If nobody seized control of the Arcane Realm after three full months, it would close up and vanish from the surface of the world.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea to carry on like this either. I wonder if Brother Rong has any ideas to deal with our current predicament?¡±

    After pondering for a moment, Rong Ruihan quipped, ¡°Why don¡¯t we call Master back here to assist us?¡±

    Rong Ruihan¡¯s master was naturally Old Man Chi. Old Man Chi had left in another direction together with the team of elite Chi n members so that they could increase their search efficacy to begin with. Now that they had located the map of the Arcane Realm, recalling Old Man Chi to their present location was hardly any loss on their part either.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea.¡± Jun Xiaomo furrowed her brows, ¡°Even if we recall Old Man Chi and the rest of the Chi n members, we might not be able to obtain the map of the Arcane Realm. Yu Wanrou¡¯s holding on to the map very tightly. Apart from retrieving and examining it for short periods of time at night, she would always stash it safely within her Interspatial Ring. If we attempted to seize it in a full-on confrontation, she might even choose to perish together with the map when all else fails. That would be highly undesirable. Besides, we¡¯re only going to face more and more obstacles as we draw closer to the heart of the Arcane Realm. It wouldn¡¯t be toote to recall Old Man Chi for his helpter on.¡±

    The sprightly old man rubbed his chin meaningfully on the side. After listening to the conversation between the juniors around him, an idea surfaced in his heart.

    ¡°I¡¯ve thought of a method, but I fear that ye brats might not want to resort to it because it¡¯s devious.¡± The sprightly old man blinked his eyes at the juniors around him as he remarked enigmatically.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled helplessly, ¡°Master, speak your mind. Let¡¯s see what the n entails.¡±

    The sprightly old man smacked his lips as he exined, ¡°I imagine that there are quite a lot of people coveting the map to the Arcane Realm, right? What if we spread the news that Yu Wanrou has obtained the map to the Arcane Realm and muddy the waters even more?¡±

    In other words, the sprightly old man was suggesting to fish in troubled waters.

    Jun Xiaomo was taken aback for a moment. Then, somewhat helplessly, she rubbed her temples as she muttered, ¡°That truly is a devious ploy.¡±

    That said, it would most certainly be incredibly effective...

    Jun Xiaomo did not immediately agree to the sprightly old man¡¯s suggestion. After all, if Jun Linxuan ever learnt that she resorted to such devious ploys, he would most certainly give her a good rap on the head.

    In fact, Jun Xiaomo simply couldn¡¯t find it within herself to ept the old man¡¯s devious n. Notwithstanding the fact that she was the so-called ¡°Lady Demoness¡± that was widely persecuted by the spiritual cultivation world, the truth of the matter was that she had never done anything which betrayed her conscience before, much less resort to such devious ploys to seize from someone else.

    Just like that, they continued to follow closely and passively behind Yu Wanrou.

    One fine day, as they were packing up and preparing to follow after Yu Wanrou and her entourage once more, they suddenly discovered amotion ahead, almost as though someone had started a fight.

    More urately speaking, Yu Wanrou¡¯s faction was unterally abusing another force that had happened to cross paths with them.

    The head of the other force was ady. As she fought, she also berated one of the men beside Yu Wanrou wearing brocaded garments, ¡°Feng Wenyao, are you truly going to be so heartless?! How could you even steal the sagely treasure from our n just because of this promiscuous woman?!¡±

    Feng Wenyao flicked open his fan and nced dispassionately at thedy as he retorted, ¡°Us two are already a thing of the past. Right now, my heart belongs to Wanrou, so what does the sagely treasure of your n have to do with me? Since the person I love is Wanrou, I¡¯d naturally do all I can to obtain it for her.¡±

    ¡°Feng Wenyao! I knew you were a fickle-minded person, but I¡¯d never thought you would stoop so low and be so heartless. Aren¡¯t you afraid of retribution?!¡±

    ¡°Retribution? Hah. This world has always been the oyster of the strong. The stronger one is, the more ess he naturally has to resources and treasures. You were unable to protect your n¡¯s sagely treasure because your n was weak. Who else can you me? To my mind, what I¡¯ve done ords full well to the heavenlyws of the cultivation world.¡± Feng Wenyao exined matter-of-factly. One wouldn¡¯t be able to tell at a nce he was once affectionately entangled with thedy berating him.

    ¡°You!!!¡± Thedy was practically on the brink of tears when her nsmen stepped forward and consoled her, ¡°Young mistress, don¡¯t be sad. Even if we have to stake our lives on the line, we will do everything we can to seize back our n¡¯s sagely treasure today! So what if it costs us our lives?¡±

    As the nsmen finished speaking, they immediately retrieved their weapons and charged straight towards Yu Wanrou¡¯s faction.

    Yu Wanrou smirked wryly as she took a few steps back and left the heat of the battlefield. At the same time, the other men around her immediately charged right in to join the fray.

    From the look of things, this was the start of a bloody battle.

    ¡°What do ye think? Should we help them?¡± The old man asked with a glimmer in his eyes as he continued to gnaw on some seeds.

    It was evident that he was finally itching for a fight after holding himself back for so many days on end.

    Whilst they might be unable to defeat Yu Wanrou¡¯s entire faction, it still wasn¡¯t a bad thing to keep his muscles warm from time to time. After all, they could always escape if things took a turn for the worse against them. Jun Xiaomo had plenty of Invisibility Talismans in her Interspatial Ring anyway.

    Jun Xiaomo watched the battle unfold with aplicated gaze in her eyes. It was almost as though she had seen a scene from the past.

    ¡°Let¡¯s fight.¡± Momentster, Jun Xiaomo made her resolve, ¡°The enemy of an enemy is also our friend. Furthermore, it looks like thatdy and her nsmen aren¡¯t evil people by any means. It should be worth our efforts.¡±

    ¡°Alright-o!¡± The old man tossed the seeds away, tore off the Invisibility Talisman on his body and shot straight into the fray.

    Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian followed closely behind him and dove into the heat of battle in an instant as well.

    Invisibility Talismans would lose their effects as soon as they engaged inbat. Thus, in the blink of an eye, several unknown men appeared before Yu Wanrou¡¯s faction, lending a helping hand to their opponents.

    ¡°Who are you?! Why are you meddling in the business of others?!¡± Feng Wenyao barked furiously.

    ¡°Ye¡¯ve already said it. Since we¡¯re meddling, do we still need a reason to help them?¡± The old man retortedzily.

    Feng Wenyao was so irked by the old man¡¯s response that he nearly puked blood.

    Yu Wanrou had never expected the appearance of several interlopers just like that. Furthermore, these interlopers all appeared to be incredibly powerful.

    She bit down furiously on her lower lips as she cast a profound gaze on Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian.

    Just as the battle approached its climax, and both sides began to show signs of injuries and wounds, Yu Wanrou suddenly felt something cold pressing against her neck. In fact, it felt as though something cold and sharp were pressing against her neck.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart constricted nervously. She understood in an instant that someone was trying to assassinate her.

    Her heart was filled with regret for not retaining a few men behind to protect her ¨C she had been far toocent.

    ¡°Fellow cultivator, could you let me know why you¡¯re restraining me?¡± Having contemted her options, Yu Wanrou ended up resorting to the methods she knew best just to buy herself more time ¨C pleading for sympathy.

    The reddened rims of her eyes looked puffy and watery, almost as though she were ready to burst into tears at any moment. It was truly a pitiable sight.

    However, the person standing behind Yu Wanrou simply chuckled contemptuously, ¡°Yu Wanrou, you¡¯ve not changed a single bit after all these years. Aren¡¯t you sick of doing the same thing all the time?¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened in an instant.

    Jun Xiaomo?! How could it be her?!!!

 Chapter 397: Yu Wanrouâ€™s Fate

    <h4>Chapter 397: Yu Wanrou¡¯s Fate</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou gnashed her teeth. She could ept falling prey to the ploys of just about anyone. So, why did it have to be Jun Xiaomo of all people?! The fact that she was now at Jun Xiaomo¡¯s mercy made her feel incredibly aggrieved and humiliated.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo, just what do you want?¡± Yu Wanrou gritted her teeth as she asked.

    She knew that there was no meaning acting pitiful in front of Jun Xiaomo. After all, Jun Xiaomo hated her to the core. It was fine if they hadn¡¯t crossed paths. But she knew that, as soon as they crossed paths, there was a good chance that only one of them woulde out of it alive.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled coldly, before slowly exining, ¡°What do you think? Do you want to hazard a guess as to what I¡¯m about to do?¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart began to thump quickly. She was incredibly fearful that Jun Xiaomo would slit her throat in the very next moment. After all, her spiritual waters were unable to stem fatal injuries.

    In fact, she could even tell that her present abilities could hardly hold a candle to Jun Xiaomo, and it was going to be an incredibly easy thing for Jun Xiaomo to take her life.

    Unfortunately, her following of men were just too far away right now, and none of them were in rage to rescue her.

    Du Yongxu stood in a daze within the frontiers of battle as he gazed past his allies and enemies alike, staring straight at Jun Xiaomo with an impassioned ze in his eyes.

    Ever since the Secondary Inter-Sect Competition, he already found Jun Xiaomo incredibly mesmerizing, especially when she was clothed in that striking-red garment of hers. Now that ten years had passed since then, he was already under the impression that Jun Xiaomo had perished some time back. How could he have expected to encounter Jun Xiaomo in such a ce right now?

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo looked far more mesmerizing now than ever.

    Unfortunately, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s attention was evidently not on him right now. Du Yongxu was unable to repress the wicked desires in his heart, so he raised his voice and yelled across the battlefield, ¡°Jun Xiaomo, release Yu Wanrou. Let¡¯s talk things through calmly.¡±

    As he said these things, Du Yongxu¡¯s gaze had never once shifted towards Yu Wanrou ¨C it remainedpletely transfixed on Jun Xiaomo.

    Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen noticed the evidently peculiar gaze in his eyes as well, and their hearts began to burn with the mes of rage.

    Jun Xiaomo nced over at Du Yongxu and smirked, ¡°Release her? I wouldn¡¯t dare. Aren¡¯t you guys already brandishing your weapons against us right now? If I release her, aren¡¯t I going to be turned into a sieve in just an instant?¡±

    ¡°Then, Jun Xiaomo, just what do you want?!¡± Another one of Yu Wanrou¡¯s followers barked indignantly. Unlike Du Yongxu, this follower¡¯s heart waspletely captivated by Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°What do I want? It¡¯s simple. Drop your weapons, back off ten miles away, and hand over the map of the Arcane Realm to us. If you do that, I¡¯ll release her. What do you say?¡±

    ¡°Map of the Arcane Realm?!¡± Yu Wanrou grew rmed and she shrieked, ¡°I don¡¯t know what map you¡¯re talking about! I don¡¯t know!¡±

    ¡°Yu Wanrou, stop acting. We¡¯ve been tailing you for over ten days now. It¡¯s just that you¡¯ve failed to discover us all this while. What¡¯s the matter, are you going to continue this act in denial?¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly. Her tone of voice was casual, yet it was precisely because it was so casual it drew out the ire of Yu Wanrou¡¯s faction even more.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes quivered momentarily. Truth be told, she sincerely did not want to hand the map of the Arcane Realm over to Jun Xiaomo. After all, she could ascend to the peak of the cultivation world once she seizes ownership of the Arcane Realm. If she hands over the map right now, the odds of seeding would be far, far lower.

    ¡°I can give you anything else, apart from the map of the Arcane Realm. I¡¯ve got some spiritual waters with me that can heal wounds almost miraculously. These waters are evenparable to ninth-grade recovery pills. If you release me, I¡¯ll give you ten bottles of it. What do you say?¡± Yu Wanrou attempted to barter.

    ¡°What¡¯s this? Are you saying that the map worth more than your own life?¡± Jun Xiaomo refused to budge.

    Yu Wanrou gnashed her teeth, ¡°The map was something that we¡¯d obtained from all of our hard-earned efforts. Don¡¯t you think you¡¯d be taking an unfair advantage if we just gave it to you like that?!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Taking an unfair advantage? I think we can hardly hold a candle to you, the masters of that, can we? After all, you¡¯re someone who¡¯d even stoop so low to seize the sagely treasure of another person¡¯s n.¡± Jun Xiaomo retorted.

    ¡°Pfft...¡± Thedy who was first attacked by Yu Wanrou¡¯s entourage burst out intoughter as she gave Jun Xiaomo a grateful nce.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart was so incensed that she felt a clump of blood lodged in her throat.

    ¡°Ten miles is too far. We can do three miles.¡± One of Yu Wanrou¡¯s followers bargained, ¡°As for the map to the Arcane Realm, we can give that to you as long as you don¡¯t harm Yu Wanrou at all. If you harm even a hair on her head, we¡¯ll never let you off!¡±

    With tears in her eyes, Yu Wanrou cast that man a deeply emotional gaze, evidently touched by his actions.

    ¡°Deal.¡± Jun Xiaomo nodded as she held Yu Wanrou even more tightly, ¡°You may leave now.¡±

    There were several men in Yu Wanrou¡¯s following who still couldn¡¯t bear to part with the map of the Arcane Realm. However, as more from their entourage began to depart, and their numbers dwindled, they knew that there was no other option avable to them.

    ¡°Remember, don¡¯t you dare pull a fast one of us. Otherwise, I¡¯ll make her blood flow like a river.¡± Jun Xiaomo left them a casual reminder. One of Yu Wanrou¡¯s men paused momentarily in his steps, before shooting off into the distance.

    That said, Jun Xiaomo remained ill-at-ease, so she quickly retrieved a Tracking Talisman and tossed it onto the back of one of the departing cultivators.

    This way, she would know if they were attempting to pull a fast one on her.

    Yu Wanrou continued to clench her fists so tightly that her fingers dug deep into her palms. She was overwhelmed by both fear and hatred. She had never been ckmailed or threatened like that ever since she earned the following of men behind her.

    After a few incense sticks of time, Jun Xiaomo cidly muttered, ¡°Alright, they¡¯re already three miles away. You can retrieve the map of the Arcane Realm now.¡±

    Yu Wanrou struggled in her heart for a moment, but under the threat of potentially losing her life, she reluctantly retrieved the map of the Arcane Realm from her Interspatial Ring.

    Jun Xiaomo tossed the map over to Ye Xiuwen. After Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan opened and examined the map, they nodded back to Jun Xiaomo, confirming the authenticity of the map.

    Smiling radiantly, Jun Xiaomo tapped Yu Wanrou¡¯s neck as she added, ¡°You might as well bring out the ten bottles of spiritual waters also.¡±

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened as she cried out in disbelief, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you only wanted the map of the Arcane Realm?!¡±

    Jun Xiaomo continued with a stoic gaze, ¡°Since you¡¯d offered to fork out a bunch of spiritual waters, we wouldn¡¯t mind taking some with us for the journey ahead either. After all, your life is in our hands right now. We can naturally do anything we want with you.¡±

    ¡°You! You¡¯re shameless!¡± Yu Wanrou was so infuriated that she was on the brink of tearing Jun Xiaomo to shreds.

    ¡°I still can¡¯t hold a candle to you in terms of shamelessness. Stealing someone¡¯s fianc¨¦e, snatching someone¡¯s lover, and seizing another n¡¯s sagely treasure, Yu Wanrou, I wonder if your heart is truly made of stone. Furthermore, I¡¯ll bet that you¡¯ve never truly had feelings for the men following you right now, have you? You¡¯re just keeping them by your side like spoils of war for bragging rights, as though you¡¯re afraid that others wouldn¡¯t know how charming you can be.¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked.

    ¡°You!¡± Yu Wanrou was incensed and frustrated by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had just exposed the deepest secrets in her heart. However, seeing that her following of men were not around, she began to ramble on irresponsibly as she snickered coldly, ¡°So what? At least I¡¯m not like you, unable to even keep my fianc¨¦ obsequiously by my side. It is my aplishment that these men are all willing to follow me. It is my triumph that they are willing to take orders from me and be at my beck and call. And you, Jun Xiaomo, all you know to do is simply to p your lips.¡±

    ¡°It turns out that the person you love the most is still none other than yourself.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled coldly, ¡°Apart from pping my lips, I¡¯m also good at killing people. Are you going to hand over the spiritual waters or not? Don¡¯t you dare me me for not giving you fair warning!¡±

    Yu Wanrou red hatefully at Jun Xiaomo. However, she knew that her life was in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands, so she had no choice but to give in to her.

    Reluctantly, Yu Wanrou reached into her Interspatial Ring and retrieved ten bottles of spiritual water and handed it to Jun Xiaomo.

    ¡°Can you finally release me now?¡± Yu Wanrou gnashed her teeth.

    Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she released her, ¡°Yes, I can.¡±

    Rong Ruihan and Ye Xiuwen continued to watch from a distance, and the immediately furrowed their brows.

    They had all learnt about the things of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life from her recount of it. Neither of them would dare underestimate someone like Yu Wanrou, and they were all concerned that releasing her right now would only serve to invite trouble onto themselves in future.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s face immediately gleamed in delight, as she reached into her Interspatial Ring for a Teleportation Scroll in order to reunite with her following of men. Unexpectedly, Jun Xiaomo hacked at her neck with a powerful blow. Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes faded to ck, and she passed outpletely.

    ¡°And here I was, thinking that you were really going to let her go.¡± Chi Jingtian walked over to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s side and prodded Yu Wanrou¡¯s limp body with his foot.

    It was not because he was unsympathetic to the plight of a demure, daintydy. Rather, he simply couldn¡¯t bring himself to sympathize with a vicious, cold-hearted woman to begin with.

    ¡°We¡¯re still going to release her in the end. But I¡¯m going to give her a huge ¡®present¡¯ before I do so.¡± Jun Xiaomo exined as she squatted down before delivering a powerful blow straight towards Yu Wanrou¡¯s abdomen.

    Pfft! A huge mouthful of blood spurted down from Yu Wanrou¡¯s mouth in an instant. As she snapped awake from the excruciating pain once more, she red at Jun Xiaomo with her eyes wide open. Yet, this time, her eyes were only filled with dread and fear.

    ¡°This is something I¡¯m returning to you.¡± Jun Xiaomo muttered dispassionately as she forcefully pressed both hands onto Yu Wanrou¡¯s abdomen, causing the energy within Yu Wanrou¡¯s body to flow out like streams of water in an instant.

    Compared with what happened to her in her previous life, Jun Xiaomo had presently only crippled Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation and plucked out her spiritual root. It could be said that Jun Xiaomo was already being merciful to Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Yu Wanrou shrieked in pain, and she finally passed out from the intense, electrifying pain once more.

    After crippling Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation, Jun Xiaomo stood up again, retrieved her silken handkerchief and cleaned off the blood on her hands.

    Some distance away, the nsmen stared at Jun Xiaomo with rm in their eyes. They had never expected someone so beautiful like Jun Xiaomo to possibly be so vicious in her actions.

    That said, as soon as they recalled the fact that Jun Xiaomo had essentially rescued them with their intervention, they immediately shelved their assessment of her.

    ¡°Fellow cultivator, we sincerely thank you for your earlier assistance. We intend to take our leave now. We will never forget your kindness and favour.¡± The leader of the nsmen bowed respectfully to Jun Xiaomo and the others.

    They were hardly interested in the map of the Arcane Realm to begin with. After all, they knew that there was no way they would be able to sessfully enter the depths of the Arcane Realm with their abilities alone.

    Besides, Jun Xiaomo and the rest had just saved their lives. They should never covet something that belonged to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo gave them a friendly smile.

    After they took their leave, the sprightly old man enthusiastically minced his way over to take a peep at the map of the Arcane Realm. He rubbed his hands together, as though eager to dive straight to the depths of the Arcane Realm in an instant.

    ¡°What are we going to do with her?¡± Chi Jingtian kicked Yu Wanrou once more.

    ¡°Those men are going toe looking for her in due time.¡± As Jun Xiaomo spoke, she tossed another talisman over to Yu Wanrou¡¯s side.

    This was a Voice Recording Talisman. All of the heartless things that Yu Wanrou had said earlier had been recorded and left behind by Jun Xiaomo.

    With a faint smile on her lips, Jun Xiaomo wondered in her heart whether Yu Wanrou¡¯s following of men would continue to treasure her the same way once they discover Yu Wanrou¡¯s crippled cultivation and learn of her true character.

 Chapter 398: No True Feelings, Only Mutual Benefit

    <h4>Chapter 398: No True Feelings, Only Mutual Benefit</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s men waited for her for a long time. Then, when they still saw no signs of her appearance at all, they immediately realized that something might have happened. Thus, they rushed back to where they came from, only to notice Yu Wanrou lying by the side of the road on the brink of death as blood continued to flow from her lips.

    ¡°Wanrou!¡± Feng Wenyao was the first one to leap over and help her up. He immediately ced his fingers on Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist to check for her pulse.

    Fortunately, there¡¯s still a pulse, albeit slightly weaker. She should be fine after a few days¡¯ rest. Feng Wenyao heaved a sigh of relief.

    Momentster, his face stiffened slightly because he noticed a peculiarity in her body¡¯s condition. He immediately sent a thread of spiritual energy through Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist, intending to probe about her meridians and Dantian, only to discover that all of her meridians and Dantian have already been shattered and torn asunder, unable to hold any spiritual energy anymore.

    In other words, Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation had beenpletely crippled by Jun Xiaomo!

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo! I¡¯m going to kill you!!!¡± Feng Wenyao gnashed his teeth as he looked up with an intensely, fiery gaze, as though a raging inferno intent on consuming all in its path were burning within his eyes. There was no doubt that if Jun Xiaomo were in in sight right now, he would have charged straight towards her in an instant, yed her skin and plucked her nerves, causing her to experience a life worse than death.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± The other men rushed over to his side. When they noticed how Feng Wenyao was acting, their hearts immediately dropped.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo has crippled Wanrou¡¯s cultivation. Whether she can recover from this is another question altogether.¡± Feng Wenyao exined the situation as he continued to seethe in rage.

    The other men were instantly thunderstruck by the news. Several refused to believe Feng Wenyao¡¯s assessment of the situation, and they shot over to Yu Wanrou¡¯s side to take a closer look for themselves. Unfortunately, to all of their dismay, none were able to draw any other conclusion apart from the one that Feng Wenyao had stated upfront.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation had truly been crippled by Jun Xiaomo!

    ¡°Damn! What are we going to do now? The map of the Arcane Realm has been seized by them, so we won¡¯t even know where they¡¯re headed right now.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve already memorized the map¡¯s details in my mind, so locating them won¡¯t be a problem. But right now, the most important thing is to resolve the issue with Yu Wanrou¡¯s body. Otherwise, she might not even be able to reach into her Interspatial Ring anymore.¡± Feng Wenyao muttered coldly.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes turned cold and frigid as their thoughts cohered instantly.

    Truth be told, the only reasons why they agreed to remain by Yu Wanrou¡¯s side was for her perpetual source of spiritual waters within her Interspatial Ring, as well as their ess to Yu Wanrou¡¯s dual cultivation technique.

    What if Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation waspletely crippled and she could no longer ess her Interspatial Ring? At that time, would they still be willing to trample on their own pride and share a promiscuousdy with several other men? After all, thisdy was hardly attractive in her own right to begin with.

    That said, everyone simply kept their thoughts to themselves, and nobody was any wiser as to what the rest thought.

    ¡°It¡¯s not like everything is lost. After all, Wanrou has a formidable dual cultivation technique, and it¡¯s not going to take too much effort on her part to regain her cultivation.¡± Another man chimed in, ¡°The only thing we can do right now is to find and locate a Ninth-Grade Energy Rejuvenation Pill to repair and restore Yu Wanrou¡¯s shattered meridians and Dantian.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s much easier said than done. Do you think that the Ninth-Grade Energy Rejuvenation Pill is something so easy to find? Even the Limitless Sect doesn¡¯t have one in its store.¡± Another male cultivator mocked contemptuously.

    ¡°No matter what happens, our hope rests in the future. Given the state that Wanrou is in right now, those who wish to back out of this operation may do so. I¡¯ve got no opinions in this regard.¡± Feng Wenyao stated cidly.

    The other male cultivators were slightly taken aback. Yet, after a moment of silent contemtion, everyone tacitly agreed to remain behind regardless of the circumstances.

    Despite her grim condition right now, who knows what the future holds? In fact, if she could retrieve such enormous quantities of precious spiritual waters in the past, perhaps she might even be able to do something about her own situation now, right? Everyone thought hopefully in their hearts.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. Anyone with spiritual waters with them, take them out now. Wanrou is present still unconscious, but she mighte to her senses as soon as she drinks some spiritual waters.¡± Feng Wenyao stated.

    Everyone exchanged sheepish nces with each other. Nobody knew whether Yu Wanrou was still going to be able to provide them with bottles of spiritual water in the future. In other words, every bottle they used now possibly meant less for their own consumption in future. Thus, would anyone in their right mind offer up a bottle now?

    It was evident just how much Yu Wanrou truly meant to these male cultivators. Rather than describe their rtionship as one built on mutual feelings, it might be far more urate to describe their rtionship as built on mutual benefit.

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you taking out a bottle yourself?¡± Another male cultivator asked back in displeasure.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have anymore within my Interspatial Ring.¡± Feng Wenyao responded dispassionately.

    He knew that nobody had the right nor capacity to open up his Interspatial Ring to check its contents. In other words, this was an unverifiable statement.

    Thus, everyone began to follow suit, stating that they had already depleted thest of their spiritual water in their Interspatial Ring. Nobody wanted to offer up the spiritual water in their Interspatial Ring for Yu Wanrou.

    In the end, one of the men who harboured some genuine feelings towards Yu Wanrou finally relented and offered up his own bottle of spiritual water.

    Just like that, Feng Wenyao fed Yu Wanrou with the spiritual waters.

    The other men heaved a sigh of relief in their hearts, thinking that they had at the very least managed to retain the spiritual waters in their own Interspatial Ring. Besides, wouldn¡¯t Wanrou¡¯s cultivation be restored extremely quickly with the aid of the spiritual waters? Everyone thought hopefully in their hearts.

    Just then, one of the men noticed a small strip of paper lying just beside Yu Wanrou¡¯s body.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± He picked it up and opened it. Instantly, the strip of paper shone with a bright blue light. In his shock, the man nearly tossed the strip of paper away. But, just then, Jun Xiaomo and Yu Wanrou¡¯s voices began to echo out from within the strip of paper.

    ¡°I still can¡¯t hold a candle to you in terms of shamelessness. Stealing someone¡¯s fianc¨¦e, snatching someone¡¯s lover, and seizing another n¡¯s sagely treasure, Yu Wanrou, I wonder if your heart is truly made of stone. Furthermore, I¡¯ll bet that you¡¯ve never truly had feelings for the men following you right now, have you? You¡¯re just keeping them by your side like spoils of war for bragging rights, as though you¡¯re afraid that others wouldn¡¯t know how charming you can be.¡± Jun Xiaomo mocked.

    ¡°You!¡± Yu Wanrou was incensed and frustrated by the fact that Jun Xiaomo had just exposed the deepest secrets in her heart. However, seeing that her following of men were not around, she began to ramble on irresponsibly as she snickered coldly, ¡°So what? At least I¡¯m not like you, unable to even keep my fianc¨¦ obsequiously by my side. It is my aplishment that these men are all willing to follow me. It is my triumph that they are willing to take orders from me and be at my beck and call. And you, Jun Xiaomo, all you know to do is simply to p your lips.¡±

    Jun Xiaomo had intentionally left Yu Wanrou¡¯s following of men with the most ¡°heartfelt¡± message from Yu Wanrou herself. This was the parting gift which Jun Xiaomo had left behind.

    As soon as they listened to the conversation between Yu Wanrou and Jun Xiaomo, the men standing around all grew silent and withdrawn.

    They knew that their rtionship with Yu Wanrou was built on nothing more than mutual benefits. Yet, men were strange creatures. If nobody exposed their intentions, they would be happy and content living with such thoughts in their hearts. But when these intentions were exposed to public, their hearts would immediately feel displeased about such an arrangement.

    In fact, Yu Wanrou had spoken about them with such disdain and disregard, almost as though she were simply speaking of using some tools and object. This thoroughly trampled on the pride of the men.

    In this very moment, every single one of them was looking at Yu Wanrou withplex emotions roiling in their hearts.

    Approximately one incense stick of timeter, Yu Wanrou groaned softly and snapped out of heratose. She slowly opened both eyes.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Yu Wanrou furrowed her brows. The pain washing across her body almost caused her to pass out once more.

    ¡°Don¡¯t move yet. Jun Xiaomo has crippled your cultivation. If you don¡¯t look after yourself properly, you might never be able to recover from the debilitating wound.¡± Feng Wenyao cautioned Yu Wanrou.

    ¡°Crippled my cultivation?!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened with disbelief, and a sympathetic, pitiable look was stered all over her face in an instant, ¡°That damn Jun Xiaomo! I¡¯m going to tear her to shreds!!!¡±

    ¡°Wanrou, don¡¯t be mad. We¡¯ve already fed you with some spiritual water, so you should be recovering very soon.¡± Another male cultivator chimed in to console her.

    ¡°You¡¯ve already fed me with spiritual waters?¡± Yu Wanrou was slightly taken aback as she anxiously checked on the condition of her body, ¡°That¡¯s strange. If you¡¯ve already given me some spiritual waters, why am I still unable to detect any traces of spiritual energy in my body?¡±

    ¡°Your meridians and Dantian have already been ruinously destroyed. Naturally, you wouldn¡¯t be able to detect the traces of spiritual energy in the early stages of your recovery.¡± Feng Wenyao consoled her.

    ¡°That¡¯s impossible! The spiritual waters possess restorative abilities that can even repair damaged or shattered meridians and Dantian. It¡¯s not possible that I still can¡¯t detect any traces of spiritual energy after having consumed the spiritual waters. What¡¯s going on here?!¡± Yu Wanrou began to grow anxious as she gripped tightly onto Feng Wenyao¡¯s sleeves.

    Feng Wenyao was slightly taken aback by what she said, and he quickly stretched out his hands to check on Yu Wanrou¡¯s condition once more.

    As expected, Yu Wanrou¡¯s meridians and Dantian had already been restored, yet they were for some strange reason stillpletely empty.

    Logically speaking, given the sheer number of years Yu Wanrou had been practicing her cultivation, there was no reason that her body would remainpletely devoid of spiritual energy as soon as her crippled meridians and Dantian were restored. However, this was the exact situation that Yu Wanrou was facing right now ¨C what in the world was going on?

    Du Yongxu thought of yet another possibility, and he took a few steps forward and uttered, ¡°Make way. Let me have a look.¡±

    He didn¡¯t ce his hand on Yu Wanrou¡¯s wrist. Instead, he ced his palms directly on Yu Wanrou¡¯s back, slowly and gently suffusing spiritual energy straight through her spinal column.

    Momentster, Du Yongxu¡¯s expressions darkened as he concluded, ¡°Wanrou¡¯s cultivation has beenpletely and utterly destroyed.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?!¡± Everyone was astonished.

    ¡°Jun Xiaomo has uprooted Wanrou¡¯s spiritual roots andpletely severed any possibility of further cultivation altogether.¡± Du Yongxu exined sinctly.

    ¡°Impossible!!!¡± Yu Wanrou finally understood the gravity of the situation. She had initially thought that she would be able to dominate the entire world with her spiritual waters and her spectral demine, and nobody would be able to touch her, much less harm her to begin with.

    Who would have thought that she would be thoroughly stripped of her ess to cultivation altogether and be no different from a mere mortal in the blink of an eye?!

    ¡°Wenyao, help me take a look, please. I don¡¯t believe this. I refuse to believe that any of this is real.¡± Yu Wanrou eyes were filled with tears once more. But this time, she was no longer pretending. She was truly and sincerely concerned about her future now.

    Feng Wenyao sincerely hoped that none of this was real either. Unfortunately, after checking on her condition once more, he had to admit that Du Yongxu was hardly exaggerating in his assessment of her condition.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s cultivation had been destroyed ¨C utterly andpletely destroyed. Even her spiritual roots had been plucked and obliterated.

    When she noticed the ashen expression on Feng Wenyao¡¯s face, Yu Wanrou immediately began to bawl and weep. Clutching onto Feng Wenyao¡¯s arm, she began to plead, ¡°Wenyao, you have some way to reverse this, don¡¯t you? I don¡¯t want to be a crippled mortal. I don¡¯t want to...¡±

    Feng Wenyao asked with some measure of difficulty, ¡°Is it impossible to cure this with your spiritual waters?¡±

    ¡°Spiritual waters? That¡¯s right! My spiritual water might be able to heal me. Wenyao, do you still have any spiritual water within your Interspatial Ring? Give me some. I¡¯ll get better once I drink more of it.¡±

    Where was the legendary elegance that Yu Wanrou was rumoured to possess now? At this moment, tears were streaming all over her face in apletely tragic and pitiful manner.

    This was the first time Feng Wenyao found Yu Wanrou truly vile and nauseating.

    ¡°Are you certain that your wounds would recover once you consume more of your spiritual waters?¡± Du Yongxu queried cidly. Anyone who didn¡¯t know any better would be unable to tell that he had just been interacting intimately with Yu Wanrou merely hours ago.

    ¡°I¡¯m absolutely certain!¡± Yu Wanrou swore on it.

    Truth be told, she knew full well that if her spiritual roots had beenpletely ruined by Jun Xiaomo, they would never be restored again no matter how much spiritual waters she consumed. However, she had no choice but to insist on this. Her only hope remained with these male cultivators following her right now. As soon as they ascertained that she would no longer be able to dish out any more spiritual waters, they would most certainly abandon her, leaving her to perish alone within the Arcane Realm.

    That said, were these men really unable to tell the deceit in Yu Wanrou¡¯s voice? After all, these men were all highly proficient in the art of extracting benefits from people.

    I guess we¡¯ll just watch and observe for now. Who knows, we might actually be able to find a solution for her problem.

    With these thoughts on his mind, Feng Wenyao patted Yu Wanrou¡¯s hair and warmly consoled her, ¡°Unfortunately, we no longer have any spiritual waters within our Interspatial Rings. But, don¡¯t be anxious. Having your spiritual roots destroyed isn¡¯t the end of the world. As long as we can locate the Ninth-Grade Root Revivification Pill, we will be able to reconstruct your spiritual root from scratch.¡±

    ¡°Ninth-Grade Root Revivification Pill?¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes glimmered as soon as she caught wind of the thread of hope.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. As long we manage to locate it, we will be able to reconstruct your spiritual root.¡± Du Yongxu maintained.

    ¡°Then, what are we waiting for?! Let¡¯s go find it quickly!¡± Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart burned with anxiety, and itpletely slipped her mind the kind of predicament she was in ¨C in an instant, her voice was once again filled with an imperative, demanding tone.

    A trace of disgust and frustration flickered across the eyes of each of the male cultivators surrounding her, but they quickly suppressed and concealed this.

    ¡°Let¡¯s do it this way. We¡¯ll continue to forge forward towards the heart of the Arcane Realm as we continue to search for the Ninth-Grade Root Revivification Pill along the way.¡± Du Yongxu suggested, ¡°Jun Xiaomo and the rest should already be well on their way towards the heart of the Arcane Realm. It would be a problem if we dallied any longer and give them the opportunity to seize the Arcane Realm for themselves.¡±

    ¡°Jun. Xiao. Mo!¡± Yu Wanrou gnashed her teeth with seething hatred as soon as her name was mentioned, ¡°I¡¯m going to show her who¡¯s boss as soon as we find her again!¡±

    As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately turned towards Du Yongxu and the rest with a pitiful expression on the face, ¡°Brother Yongxu, you¡¯ll help me exact vengeance for all of this, won¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Naturally.¡± Du Yongxu¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly as he patted Yu Wanrou¡¯s shoulder, ¡°How could we let her off the hook given how she had treated you, Wanrou? I¡¯m even going to summon the other Du n members and have them rendezvous with us at the heart of the Arcane Realm. Even if Jun Xiaomo has ten wings, she¡¯s not going to be able to elude our grasp this time.¡±

    Du Yongxu dered profoundly.

    That said, Yu Wanrou failed to notice the implicit meaning behind his words. She simply smiled manically, almost as though she could already see the look on Jun Xiaomo¡¯s face when she was finally tormented to death.

 Chapter 399: The Final Battle (First)

    <h4>Chapter 399: The Final Battle (First)</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    Yu Wanrou was incensed and filled with resentment because her hard-earned map of the Arcane Realm had been suddenly seized from her. After some discussions with her following of men, they decided to disclose and spread the news that the map of the Arcane Realm was in the possession of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction.

    Jun Xiaomo had never expected her modicum of mercy to be met by such ingratitude. Back then, she thought that the n of spreading such news to incite a bloodbath was far too devious, and that was the only reason she thought not to use it on Yu Wanrou and her following of men. Who would have thought that they would end up using the same n on her?

    After fending off the third group of attackers in quick session, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction finally overheard the attackers mentioning the map of the Arcane Realm.

    ¡°Yu Wanrou¡¯s faction must have spread the news that we¡¯ve obtained the map of the Arcane Realm.¡± Chi Jingtian muttered with hatred boiling in his heart. He tightened his clenched fists, fervently resisting the urge to beat up Yu Wanrou and her faction.

    ¡°This is why I¡¯d said that this n is highly effective, but all ye young sprouts thought that it was just too devious or ineffective. Look at where we are now? Someone has stolen even our ploy!¡± The old man took arge bite out of another fruit as heined.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled bitterly, ¡°Master is right. We¡¯ve been far too soft-hearted.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing we still showed that damn Yu Wanrou a thing or two earlier.¡± Chi Jingtian waved his fists about in the air angrily.

    A gleam flickered across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s eyes as she thought to herself ¨C That might not be just ¡°a thing or two¡±.

    Interjecting, Ye Xiuwen broke the disheartening spiral of chatter by offering a suggestion, ¡°Why don¡¯t we send a transmission to Old Man Chi? With him around, our odds of survival and victory is going to be much higher.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m of the same mind as well.¡± Rong Ruihan seconded the idea.

    Shortly after receiving the message, Old Man Chi led his team of elite nsmen to where Jun Xiaomo and the rest were located using Teleportation Scrolls. As soon as she appeared, he immediately patted Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian¡¯s shoulders with approval, ¡°Well done, youngds. You¡¯d actually managed to obtain the map of the Arcane Realm, hmm?!¡±

    The sprightly old man coughed dryly as he shorted, ¡°Don¡¯t make it sound as though yer dear disciple and great-grandson were the only ones who had done all the heavy-lifting.¡±

    ¡°Tsk. How old are you now? Why are you still vying with others over credit for the work?¡± Old Man Chi retorted unyieldingly.

    Jun Xiaomo knew that there was never going to be an end to all the bickering once the two old men fired up their engines, so she rubbed her temples slightly and interjected, ¡°Might I suggest the two esteemed old men to shelf the issue of credit and leave its discussion to another time? Right now, the map of the Arcane Realm is of the utmost importance, is it not?¡±

    Several factions had already learnt of the whereabouts of the map of the Arcane Realm by now, and Jun Xiaomo¡¯s faction was most certainly going to face many more dangerous encounters on their way to the heart of the Arcane Realm. Rather than dally about here, it would make far more sense to make haste towards the heart of the Arcane Realm. After all, Jun Xiaomo had reason to believe that the resistance they would encounter there would be thergest yet.

    ¡°Disciple-in-Law makes sense. We should make haste.¡± The sprightly old man nodded his head as he snatched the map from Jun Xiaomo¡¯s hands and directed everyone to follow him as he motioned to leave.

    Old Man Chi was displeased by the fact that the sprightly old man was holding onto the map, and he immediately red at the sprightly old man, thinking to seize the map from his hands. Sensing the ¡°threat¡± behind him, the sprightly old man took off with the map. Naturally, a mindless and pointless chase ensued.

    That said, it was precisely because of this that the atmosphere in the group lightened up, causing everyone¡¯s hearts to be far more at ease than it had been just moments ago.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled radiantly, and her face was awash with warmth.

    On the other side, Yu Wanrou¡¯s followingprised of men who were blessed by the gods. Each and every single one of them was well-known throughout the cultivation world, and they possessed both stature as well as looks that were top-notch. Back then, they had gathered by Yu Wanrou¡¯s side for the personal gains they could potentially reap. But now, with an incredible twist of fate, Yu Wanrou¡¯s body was now faced with a critical problem, and there was a good chance that she would never be able to dish out any benefits for each of them any further. Thus, the hearts and minds of these men naturally began to run wild.

    They were not prepared to be hung and sacrificed together with Yu Wanrou. Without Yu Wanrou as the glue holding all of them together, the rtionship among her followers grew more and more strained. In fact, they were almost akin to enemies travelling together whilst treading on thin ice.

    In Jun Xiaomo¡¯s previous life, the person who ended up seizing ownership of the Arcane Realm was Yu Wanrou, and these men were naturally willing to submit themselves to her and be at her beck and call. Thus, there were no issues with conflicts among her following of men.

    But as things were right now, the men were already beginning to have a change of heart. Naturally, their differences also began to surface, giving rise to tension and conflict within the group.

    None of them were willing to cede the opportunity to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm to the other, and every one of them wanted the throne for themselves. Thus, each of them secretly transmitted news about the Arcane Realm to their own backers ¨C including Greater Sects, Hidden Sects, as well as two powerful nations from the mortal world.

    All of them desired to seize the Arcane Realm for themselves with the aid of the powers backing them.

    Yu Wanrou was unaware of the tension and undercurrents within her following of men. Instead, she simply continued to drink whatever spiritual waters she couldy her hands on over the next few days. Unfortunately, her body showed no signs of improvement whatsoever, and she gradually began to sink into the mires of despondence.

    Without a spiritual root, she would no longer be able to cultivate. Without cultivation, she would no longer be able to muster, operate and direct spiritual energy. Without the ability to do so, she would never again be able to open the spectral demine within her body!

    Furthermore, she felt as though the colour and luster of the totem demarcating her spectral demine had slightly darkened and grown fainter. It was almost as though it was showing signs of fading into nothingness.

    Impossible! I can¡¯t let things continue like that!

    Yu Wanrou cried out despondently in her heart. Her disposition was filled with ever-increasing anxiety, and she began to grow manic and fric as days passed.

    After tasting what life on the peak of the cultivation world was like, could she ever return to normal life once again?

    There must be a way. There has to be a way! Yu Wanrou tightened her grasp around the silken handkerchief in her hands as she gnashed her teeth. Even though the Ninth-Grade Root Revivification Pill could reconstruct and restore her spiritual root to pristine condition, she knew it was going to be a nigh impossible task to obtain one.

    After all, did anyone really know where to start looking for something as rare as the Ninth-Grade Root Revivification Pill?

    After some moments of deliberation, Yu Wanrou knew that the only possible way out of her present predicament was to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm.

    Perhaps her spiritual roots would be restored as soon as she seizes ownership of the Arcane Realm. As Yu Wanrou thought about these things, her gaze darkened slightly.

    Meanwhile, after linking up with Old Man Chi and his troupe once more, Jun Xiaomo and the rest found their journey much, much easier. Finally, they had managed to find their way to the locations stipted to be the heart of the Arcane Realm on the map. Unfortunately, all they saw was a patch of barrennd in the wilderness. Nothing else notable was around.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on here? Could the map be wrong?¡± The sprightly old man ruffled his own hair as he eximed aloud.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head, ¡°The map isn¡¯t wrong. Unfortunately, there is a massive formation array here that is concealing the entrance to the heart of the Arcane Realm.¡±

    The sprightly old man rubbed his chin as he muttered, ¡°Formation array, huh...I guess we¡¯ll have to count on Disciple-in-Law, then...¡±

    After all, none of the others around were as well-versed as Jun Xiaomo was in the discipline of formation arrays.

    Jun Xiaomo naturally wouldn¡¯t reject such a suggestion. That said, as soon as they recalled the condition of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan still each took a step forward and hugged her gently about her waist before she entered the formation array.

    ¡°Be careful.¡± Both Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan said at the same time.

    Jun Xiaomo smiled faintly and nodded her head, before walking into the formation array without any hesitation.

    Chi Jingtian squatted on the floor and propped up his chin with his palms as he puffed up his cheeks with displeasure ¨C he was unable to squeeze himself into that situation earlier. He, too, wanted to tell Xiaomo to be careful.

    After Jun Xiaomo walked some distance towards the heart of the Arcane Realm, everyone detected a faint disturbance of the spiritual energy in the area, and they noticed the air ripple slightly. Just like that, Jun Xiaomo disappeared into the space in the barrennds.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan cried out. Just as they were about to charge forward, Old Man Chi and the sprightly old man both held them back.

    ¡°Don¡¯t be anxious. Xiaomo has always been incredibly talented in the field of formation arrays, so nothing is going to happen to her even if she enters that ce. On the other hand, ye two would¡¯ve perished if ye had dove right in like that!¡± The sprightly old man chided them, dispelling any thoughts of running after Jun Xiaomo in the minds of both Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan.

    However, this also meant that they would have to remain outside where they were unable to keep an eye on Jun Xiaomo. The feeling of uncertainly gued them and weighed their hearts down heavily, and they began to castigate themselves for having allowed Jun Xiaomo enter the formation array alone.

    They hadcently thought that disabling the formation array was going to be a simple task. Who would have thought that Jun Xiaomo would vanish entirely from sight?

    To make matters worse, the thing which left them most ill at ease was the fact that the formation array prevented Transmission Talismans from working. In other words, there was no way ofmunicating with Jun Xiaomo as long as they remained on the outside.

    Just like that, they waited outside the formation array for three whole days. Over the three days, Rong Ruihan, Ye Xiuwen and Chi Jingtian found themselves so worried that they were practically unable to rest at all. The three of them were on the brink of breaking down.

    ¡°Just wait for a little while more. Perhaps today is finally the day that Xiaomo will be able to make it out.¡± Old Man Chi and the sprightly old man found themselves consoling the rest for the umpteenth time.

    Truth be told, none of them knew this with any certainty anymore. After all, three full days had psed now, and anything could have happened during this time.

    That said, the consequences would be even more dire if they simply allowed the three young men to dash into the formation array after Jun Xiaomo. After all, none of the three men were adept or even well-informed in the discipline of formation arrays, so diving in right after Jun Xiaomo would spell only certain death for them.

    Just as their patience finally wore thin, arge group of people suddenly appeared.

    That¡¯s right. This was not Jun Xiaomo. Instead, it was arge group of people ¨C arge group of their nemeses. Yu Wanrou stood in the midst of the multitude that had arrived as she stared hatefully at Ye Xiuwen and the rest, as though she couldn¡¯t resist the urge to tear them to shreds.

    ¡°Ye Xiuwen, if you know what¡¯s best for you, then hand over the map of the Arcane Realm quietly. Otherwise, don¡¯t me us for what we¡¯re soon about to do!¡± One of the men barked loudly at Ye Xiuwen with a grim, vicious expression on his face.

    Ye Xiuwen cidly replied, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, the map of the Arcane Realm isn¡¯t with me right now. Besides, even if it was, I would never hand it over to you.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re asking for it!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen¡¯s words had thoroughly irked Yu Wanrou¡¯s following of men, and they immediately retrieved their spirit tools and weapons and charged straight towards Ye Xiuwen¡¯s faction.

    ¡°It looks like there are quite a lot more people than before.¡± The sprightly old man quipped as he rubbed his chin meaningfully. There wasn¡¯t a single modicum of fear in the depths of his eyes. In fact, one could even make out some traces of excitementcing his gaze.

    ¡°I¡¯m afraid that they¡¯ve all summoned the various forces backing them as well. All of them desire to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm for themselves.¡± Ye Xiuwen responded coldly.

    If they had not recalled the Chi n and consolidated their forces, this battle would have been incredibly difficult for them. They might even have lost to the oing force and consequently lost their lives.

    But now, with Old Man Chi and his team of elites joining the fray, there was nothing to fear at all.

    No matter what, they had to do their best to keep the assants clear of the entrance to the heart of the Arcane Realm before Jun Xiaomo made her way out of it.

 Chapter 400: The Final Battle (Middle)

    <h4>Chapter 400: The Final Battle (Middle)</h4>

    Trantor: Minotauruz

    As the number of people joining the fray outside the heart of the Arcane Realm increased, the battle crept closer to its climax. Even though the Chi n¡¯s elites were incredibly strong, they were still unable to deal with the increasing number of enemies. After all, they were no longer merely facing Yu Wanrou and her following of men. The eight great sects had also joined the fray after hearing of the whereabouts of the map of the Arcane Realm.

    Thus, Ye Xiuwen¡¯s faction began to struggle more and more.

    Meanwhile, within the heart of the Arcane Realm, it took Jun Xiaomo three full days of investigation without rest before she finally understood how to disable the formation array surrounding the entrance to the Arcane Realm.

    She retrieved five sharp, pagoda-shaped spirit tools from her Interspatial Ring and ced them on the five corners of the heart of the formation array. Once she did so, she pped her palms together and began to suffuse her energy through the spirit tools.

    Instantly, five beams of light converged between the spirit tools and shot straight into the sky above.

    Under the effect of this brilliant light, the surrounding smoke and mirrors began to slowly disperse...

    Shortly after Jun Xiaomo began this process of dispelling the formation array, she began to feel difort in her body, and the light shooting into the sky weakened immediately.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped ¨C she was still with child, and its existence alone continually depleted the energy within her body. How could she possibly sustain such levels of output of energy over a protracted period of time?

    No! Martial Brother Ye and the others are still outside. If I give up now, everything is going to go to waste!

    As she thought about the number of forces who were ring covetously at the heart of the Arcane Realm, Jun Xiaomo gritted her teeth, steeled her heart, and immediately increased the output of her energy. In that instant, a majestic, oppressive energy exploded and flourished from her body.

    The brilliant beam of light shooting into the sky grew brighter and brighter. The bright light first punctured what appeared to be a minute rift in the sky. Then, slowly, the rift opened wider and wider, and the smoke and mirrors around faded away slowly into nothingness.

    Jun Xiaomo¡¯s strength had run dry by this point. Her eyes cked out, and she copsed onto the floor...

    Ye Xiuwen and the others were already tired and weary by now. Yet, the only thought that remained in their heart was nevertheless to protect the entrance to the heart of the Arcane Realm so that she would not be attacked from all sides as soon as she appeared once more.

    Just then, someone suddenly cried out, ¡°Look there! The heart of the Arcane Realm has finally appeared!¡±

    This cry was almost akin to a ¡°pause¡± button, casing everyone to halt their attacks immediately and turn their gaze to the empty space behind Ye Xiuwen and the others.

    Nobody knew when it had appeared, but what was originally an empty, barrennd was now the foundation for an imposing, majestic pce. The towering main gate to the pce was already wide open, as though it were weing its guests from afar.

    ¡°It¡¯s truly the heart of the Arcane Realm!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll be able to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm once we reach the center of the pce. Let¡¯s go!¡±

    In an instant, everyone ignored Ye Xiuwen¡¯s faction and the Chi n members and charged straight into the pce, hoping in their hearts that they could seize ownership of the Arcane Realm for themselves.

    ¡°Damn! Why haven¡¯t we seen Xiaomo yet?!¡±

    Ye Xiuwen could hardly care less about the Arcane Realm. Instead, what he desired to know were where his wife and child was, why the pce had suddenly appeared, and why Jun Xiaomo had vanished.

    ¡°Could Miss Jun still be inside?¡± Old Man Chi remarked aloud as soon as he thought of the only possibility that urred to him.

    ¡°Then let¡¯s hurry in and look for Xiaomo.¡± Chi Jingtian acted immediately, dashing straight towards the entrance of the pce as well.

    ¡°Stupid brat! What¡¯s the hurry? Come back here!¡± Old Man Chi tried to grab hold of Chi Jingtian, but he only managed to only grab the corner of his sleeves. Chi Jingtian had shot off far quicker than he had expected.

    Practically everyone was dashing madly towards the entrance to the grand pce right now.

    Practically everyone was salivating as they dreamt of being the first person to enter the heart of the grand pce.

    Then, the unexpected urred ¨C the group of people furthest ahead of the race suddenly let out a shrill shriek as their respective bodies burst into mes. In the blink of an eye, they werepletely reduced to ashes.

    Everyone behind the first wave of people immediately paused in their steps, trembling in trepidation as they looked at the ashes on the ground that were living beings just moments ago, and thanking their lucky stars that they had not been part of the first wave.

    That said, they were caught in yet another bind right now. If they were going to burn up as soon as they drew close to the pce doors, how could they possibly enter the pce?

    Thus, the various factions began to gather their forces just meters away from the door to the pce as they examined the dark entrance anxiously, wondering how they should go about dealing with the sudden twist in the situation.

    It was as though someone was dangling an incredibly tempting but poisonous cake right in front of their eyes, so no one dared to take even a single bite out of it.

    ¡°You there. Apply an Invisibility Talisman on yourself and try it out.¡± One of the Limitless Sect¡¯s Sect Elders instructed his disciple.

    His disciple stammered, ¡°Are...are you sure? You...you want me to go?¡±

    ¡°Are you going to disobey your master?¡± The Sect Elder nced back threateningly at his disciple.

    It was not his ce to disobey his master. Left with no other choice, the Limitless Sect disciple applied an Invisibility Talisman on his body as he made his way towards the entrance with trembling.

    At the beginning, he dared not walk in at all, and he simply paced about at the front of the door. However, as soon as he thought about the ways in which his master was going to punish him if he disobeyed his master¡¯s instructions, he bit the bullet and took the first step.

    Nobody could see where the disciple with the Invisibility Talisman was. Thus, as soon as they noticed no reaction whatsoever at the pce door, they immediately concluded that an Invisibility Talismans was effective in circumventing this issue. Just like that, everyone began to retrieve Invisibility Talismans from their Interspatial Ring, thinking to apply them to themselves as well.

    However, before they could do so, they heard a shrill shriek echo out from the pce doors. In the very next moment, they saw a fireball appear in mid-air, and they could vaguely make out a person struggling within the fireball. Within moments, the person was reduced to nothing but ashes.

    Thus, everyone who had just taken out their Invisibility Talismans immediately returned them to their own Interspatial Rings.

    Ye Xiuwen and the rest witnessed this sight as well. However, Ye Xiuwen chose to turn a blind eye to everyone around. Instead, he simply walked to the front of the pce doors, retrieved an Arctic Spirit from his Interspatial Ring and ced it directly in his mouth.

    This was done pursuant to Jun Xiaomo¡¯s earlier instructions to him ¨C if he ever encountered a door that would immte a person as soon as he drew close, he would be able to circumvent the problem by cing an Arctic Spirit in his mouth as he passed through the door.

    Naturally, this was information that Jun Xiaomo had learnt from others in her previous life, and this information had finallye in handy.

    Just as Ye Xiuwen walked towards the main door to the pce without any hesitation, the sprightly old man grabbed his shoulders and held him back, ¡°Are ye looking to die?!¡±

    The old man red at his own disciple as he barked.

    Ye Xiuwen shook his head and responded cidly, ¡°I trust in Xiaomo.¡± As he finished speaking, he walked straight towards the pce doors.

    ¡°Argh, this buffoon. That Jun brat hasn¡¯t even been here before, so how can ye listen to everything she says so easily? Ye must be possessed!¡± The sprightly old man huffed in frustration.

    Chi Jingtian walked to his side and patted the sprightly old man¡¯s shoulders, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. If Xiaomo says that you can circumvent the obstacle this way, it must be right.¡±

    As he finished speaking, he also retrieved an Arctic Spirit and ced it in his mouth before making his way straight towards the ominous-looking pce doors. Rong Ruihan followed closely behind him in the same manner.

    Just as everyone thought that the three brave souls were going to be consumed by fire, a miracle happened ¨C they managed to pass through the pce doorspletely safely, and they vanished into the darkness of the pce in an instant.

    ¡°So, it works like that. Let¡¯s give it a shot quickly!¡±

    News of their methods quickly spread like wildfire throughout the factions that had gathered outside the pce doors. In an instant, cultivators from several other factions did the same thing and ced an Arctic Spirit in each of their mouths as they charged straight into the pce doors.

    That said, not all of the factions gathered outside the pce doors had prepared an Arctic Spirit in their Interspatial Rings. Relegated to the sidelines by their circumstances, these factions simply continued to gaze nkly at the doors with resignation.

    Unless they could discover a second way to ovee the pce doors¡¯ defensive mechanism, they had no choice but to give up on seizing ownership of the Arcane Realm for themselves.

    Under Yu Wanrou¡¯s intent pleading, one of the men beside her finally relented and handed her an Arctic Soul.

    ¡°It¡¯s only going to get more dangerous inside. Wanrou, are you sure you want to do this?¡± The man asked with some uncertainty in his heart.

    ¡°I¡¯m certain!¡± Yu Wanrou dered with determination.

    This was her only remaining shred of hope. As long as she could seize ownership of the Arcane Realm, she would most certainly be able to restore her position as the queen to be served by the rest of the world. Thus, she had to give it her all no matter what the case was.

    As soon as she thought about these things, she nced resentfully at the following of men behind her.

    She could tell that their attitudes towards her had grown far colder than before as soon as she lost all ess to her spiritual waters.

    I¡¯m going to make these men beg for my forgiveness once I manage to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm!

    Just like how Yu Wanrou¡¯s following of men had earlier cautioned, the number and magnitude of strength of the traps and the formation arrays only increased as they drew closer to the heart of the pce where the heart of the entire Arcane Realm was located.

    That said, for some strange reason, Yu Wanrou seemed to be clothed by the blessings of gods, and she was able to avoid perishing to the traps and formation arrays as she continued to draw closer and closer to the heart of the entire Arcane Realm. On the other hand, some of the men following her perished, while others were hurt and incapacitated. As time went on, the number of men following beside Yu Wanrou gradually dwindled, until they numbered not more than ten.

    Fortune was sometimes a mysterious thing. As soon as these men discovered how lucky and fortunate Yu Wanrou was, they couldn¡¯t help but stick closer to her side once more as they slowly made their way closer and closer to the heart of the entire Arcane Realm.

    At the same time, Yu Wanrou¡¯s self-belief only continued to inte beyond belief. Deep in her heart, she began to think once more than luck was on her side, and she was the one chosen by the gods.

    Finally, after three full days, Yu Wanrou and her men finally arrived at the heart of the pce, which was also the ce where one would be able to seize ownership of the entire Arcane Realm.

    A splendid throne seated in the center of the Arcane Realm, apanied only by a marvelous, gleaming scepter that signified authority and status.

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes brightened. Unfortunately, she quickly also noticed that there was already another group of people located not far from the throne. It was evident that they had arrived before she did!

    Jun. Xiao. Mo! How could it be her?! Yu Wanrou¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief.

    That said, she soon realized the peculiar situation they were in ¨C Jun Xiaomo was lying on the ground with a bloated stomach, almost as though she had been force fed copious amounts of water. Her forehead was drenched with sweat, and her disheveled hair was sticking all over her face.

    ¡°Ungh...¡± Jun Xiaomo groaned painfully as tears began to roll out of her eyes.

    It¡¯s...too...painful!

    Ye Xiuwen and the others were all standing around Jun Xiaomo. One was holding onto Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arm tightly from one side, while the other was hugging Jun Xiaomo and supporting her body so that she could feel slightly morefortable. None of them had expected to see Jun Xiaomo lying on the floor grabbing her abdomen as soon as they entered the pce¡¯s throne room.

    After all, her pregnancy was hardly even obvious just days ago, so why did she look almost as though she were ready to give birth within the short span of three days?

    Jun Xiaomo knew the answer to this question, but she was going through far too much pain to exin herself. The only thing she could do right not was to grit her teeth and fight through the pain, hoping that the pain would die down soon.

    Ye Xiuwen had discovered the presence of outsiders standing nearby, but he could hardly care less about them right now. The only thought on his mind was to bring Jun Xiaomo to a safe ce. That said, the pce was filled with traps and dangerous formation arrays, so where could they possibly bring Jun Xiaomo to?

    On the other side, Yu Wanrou simply snorted in her heart ¨C Jun Xiaomo truly has some terrible luck. She can¡¯t even im ownership of the Arcane Realm despite having arrived at the throne room before us.

    Meanwhile, the Yu Wanrou¡¯s following of menpletely ignored the existence of the other group of people in the room. After all, their attention was immediately captivated by the throne and scepter of authority in the middle of the room as soon as they entered the throne room.

    Then, as though a concerted effort, the men charged straight towards the throne and scepter of authority all at the same time!

    Unfortunately, each of them immediately felt their hearts constrict in pain in the very next moment, and they copsed on the ground, spitting out copious amounts of blood.

    Yu Wanrou chuckled derisively, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Don¡¯t you think that the spiritual watersced with my ¡°secret ingredients¡± is just delicious?¡±

    ¡°You?!¡± All of the men nced back at Yu Wanrou with bewilderment. Nobody had expected Yu Wanrou to have a final trump card up her sleeves!

    ¡°Truth be told, I wasn¡¯t going to be calctive about these things if you had just chosen to serve me obsequiously. Unfortunately, all of you were well out of line when you sought to seize the Arcane Realm for yourself. Thus, I had no choice but to resort to my trump card.¡± Yu Wanrou explicatedckadaisically.

    The spiritual waters she had given to these men were allced with ¡°extra ingredients¡±. The men would be alright as long as they did note into contact with Kudzu Vine, whether in ground or powdered form. However, as soon as they touched these things, even if just a tiny speck of it, the poison in their bodies would be activated, and their effects would spread throughout their bodies within just a few incense sticks of time.

    Yu Wanrou knew that these men had consumed quite a substantial amount of her spiritual waters in the process of oveing the traps and formation arrays on the way to the throne room. To her mind, the more these men consumed, the higher her odds of sess.

    See, aren¡¯t they all lying helplessly on the ground right now?

    Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips curled into a twisted, manic smile.

    Slowly but surely, she walked over towards the throne and the scepter of authority in the center of the room. There was a semi-circr groove in the center of the scepter.

    As long as she dripped a drop of her blood on the groove, she would immediately be the owner of the Arcane Realm.

    A smile crept up the corner of Yu Wanrou¡¯s lips. It was as though she could already see the day when all men were finally at her beck and call as she sat on the throne,vishing in the splendor of her authority.

 Chapter 401: The Final Battle (End) [Grand Finale]

    <h4>Chapter 401: The Final Battle (End) [Grand Finale]</h4>

    Without hesitation, Yu Wanrou slit her palm and pressed it firmly against the groove on the scepter.

    Her expression right now was incredibly vicious and manic ¨C a stark juxtaposition from her earlier softness and pitiful disposition.

    All of the men lying on the ground couldn¡¯t help but feel incredibly frustrated at the situation as they berated themselves ¨C how could they have been so blind to fall for such a crazy, vile woman? At the same time, their hearts were also gued by pangs of regret and reluctance. They simply couldn¡¯t bear the thought that Yu Wanrou was soon about to im the throne for herself without any effort on her part at all.

    Meanwhile, Yu Wanrou could feel her blood slowly trickle out of her wound, filling the groove at the top of the scepter. Soon, the scepter began to glow with a faint, red hue.

    Am I about to seed? Am I going to be the owner of this entire Arcane Realm? Yu Wanrou¡¯s heart began to thump quicker and quicker.

    Just then, the scepter suddenly shone with an intense, harsh light. The resplendence of the light instantly illuminated the otherwise dimly lit throne room.

    ¡°Ahh--!¡± Yu Wanrou began to shriek in pain. Without any warning, blood suddenly began to pour out of her body and into the scepter. At the same time, her skin began to burst and split open all over her body, turning her into a bloody, mangled mess within moments.

    Is this the ceremonial process of seizing ownership of the Arcane Realm? Why is it so terrifying?! The men lying on the ground eximed in their hearts as their eyes widened with disbelief. That said, everyone desired to know the final oue of Yu Wanrou¡¯s efforts.

    The cruel processsted for two full incense sticks of time. As the intense, resplendent light began to fade from the scepter, Yu Wanrou¡¯s body slumped powerlessly onto the ground. She now looked decades older than she had just been moments ago, almost as though she were already in her twilight years.

    The poisoned men who wereying on the ground were immediately taken aback, and they couldn¡¯t help but exim in their hearts ¨C Looks like the process of seizing ownership of the throne isn¡¯t so simple. It¡¯s a good thing that I didn¡¯t make a move earlier. Otherwise, the person copsing to the ground right now could very well have been me.

    On the other hand, Yu Wanrou had experienced far more than what anyone else could ever have fathomed. Over thest two incense sticks of time, she felt as though a particr type of energy was forcibly being drained out from her body. In turn, it was precisely because her body was unable to withstand the immense energy that was flowing through it that it began to wither and age at an elerated pace.

    Yu Wanrou had an inkling as to what this source of energy was, and she immediately unfastened the top of her garments and nced at her corbone where the fox-shaped totem was located.

    Things were far worse than she had expected ¨C the fox-shaped totem hadpletely vanished!!!

    Yu Wanrou spat out arge mouthful of blood. Her heart was overwhelmed with hatred and regret right now. She sincerely hoped that this entire series of unfortunate events she had just experienced was nothing more than an incredibly long and arduous nightmare.

    Meanwhile, the child within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb appeared to be at its limits of its patience, and it was raring to leave its mother¡¯s womb. Jun Xiaomo could feel pangs of electrifying pain shoot straight to her mind from her womb, and she clenched her fists and groaned uncontrobly.

    ¡°Xiaomo!¡± Ye Xiuwen clutched tightly onto her hands, worried that she might identally hurt herself in her pain.

    ¡°I¡­I think I¡¯m¡­inbour¡­¡± Jun Xiaomo painstakingly uttered.

    ¡°We know. Don¡¯t worry, Xiaomo. We¡¯re all here by your side right now.¡± Chi Jingtian consoled her.

    Jun Xiaomo stretched out her lips in a feeble attempt to eke out a smile back at Chi Jingtian. Unfortunately, her smile was stiff and rigid, and it appeared no better than a grimace.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about unnecessary things. Adjust your breathing and focus on pushing.¡± Rong Ruihan recalled the things which he had overheard from the wet nurses in the pce while he was still young. Even though he had never seen how the entire process ofbour was being done, he still had a vague inkling of what the process entailed.

    Jun Xiaomo did as Rong Ruihan instructed, and she regted her breathing and focused on pushing. Beads of sweat percted her forehead, rolling off every now and then onto the hardwood floor below.

    With their attentionpletely focused on Jun Xiaomo, Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian failed to notice a faint, blood-red light flicker from the scepter in front of the throne. As the light slowly intensified and grew, it engulfed Jun Xiaomo and her consorts and enshrouded them within.

    Fortunately, this light waspletely different from the light that had attacked Yu Wanrou and drained her energy. Instead, this light was incredibly soft and warm, and it even began to ease the pain that Jun Xiaomo experienced.

    After approximately four hours, Jun Xiaomo felt her child finally slip out from between her legs, and the sound of a crying infant instantly filled the room. A sense of relief washed across Jun Xiaomo¡¯s heart, as though a heavy weight were just lifted off her shoulders.

    ¡°Child¡­I want to see my child¡­¡± Jun Xiaomo stretched out her arms feebly.

    Just then, the scepter in the throne room suddenly transformed into a beam of bright light and shot straight into the body of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s newborn child!

    Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian were immediately rmed, and they anxiously checked on the newborn child¡¯s condition, worried that something might have happened to him.

    Fortunately, apart from amplifying the vitality and spirit of the child, the scepter did nothing to harm the child at all.

    Ye Xiuwen and the others heaved a sigh of relief. At the same time, they found themselves somewhat bewildered by the situation.

    ¡°It seems like the Arcane Realm has recognized our child as its owner.¡± Jun Xiaomo chuckled. Even though she was incredibly worn out right now, she still received the child in Ye Xiuwen¡¯s arms with love and rubbed her cheeks against her child, ¡°It looks like you were the one who had suffused your spiritual energy into the scepter earlier.¡±

    Her child immediately stopped crying as soon as he felt his mother¡¯s touch, perhaps as a result of the resonance of the tacit understanding between mother and child. Instead, with glowing spirits, he smacked his lips in contentment as he gazed straight into his mother¡¯s eyes with a pair of abstruse, ck, beady eyes.

    How intelligent.

    ¡°This child¡­why does he seem as though he¡¯s already deep in thought as soon as he¡¯s born? This is simply incredible.¡± The sprightly old man minced closer as he eximed in astonishment.

    Jun Xiaomo chuckled lightly as she responded, ¡°Isn¡¯t that so? Earlier on, when I was just about to be repelled by the scepter¡¯s might, he was the one who had rescued me. If he¡¯s already so intelligent while he was still within my womb, how much more intelligent would he be once he¡¯s born?¡±

    ¡°Hah? What happened then? Tell us, tell us.¡± The old man asked curiously and expectantly.

    They had located Jun Xiaomo only when they entered the throne room earlier. At that time, Jun Xiaomo was already lying on the ground in pain, so nobody was aware of what transpired moments before that.

    As it turns out, Jun Xiaomo was the first one who had found her way into the throne room. Like Yu Wanrou, she had thought that the way to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm was simply to fill the grooves of the scepter with her own blood. Unfortunately, things were never as simple as they seemed.

    As soon as she filled the grooves with her own blood, the scepter immediately began to furiously absorb the energy within Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body. At that time, she was practically on the brink of ending up with the same fate as Yu Wanrou.

    Then, just as her body was on the brink of breaking down, the scepter suddenly stopped absorbing the energy from within her body. Instead, it began to pour energy into her body in a strange turn of events. Slowly, but surely, the energy suffusing through her body flowed faster and faster.

    It was as though an unknown entity within her body was furiously absorbing the scepter¡¯s energy, forcibly overpowering the scepter¡¯s absorption of energy from her body.

    The unknown entity within her body evidently had the upper hand in the intense tug-of-war of energies. Not only did it end up pulling back all the energies that the scepter had drawn out of Jun Xiaomo¡¯s body, it even ended up absorbing all of the energy within the scepter for itself.

    Finally, when the scepter lost all of its luster, Jun Xiaomo also copsed onto the ground.

    As it turned out, the scepter was only ready to submit to an owner who was able tomand its respect and control its energies. In turn, it was evident that the scepter had recognized the child in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s womb as its owner after he absorbed the scepter¡¯s energies and made it his own.

    In other words, the child was instantly recognized as the owner of the Arcane Realm as soon as he was born.

    Not only that, the scepter had even forcibly absorbed all of the energies from Yu Wanrou¡¯s fox-shaped totem and turned it into a source of ¡°nutrients¡± to its new master in order to facilitate and smoothen its growth.

    The entire throne room was filled with pin-drop silence as soon as Jun Xiaomo finished recounting everything that transpired before the rest had arrived.

    ¡°This child¡­is truly blessed by fate itself¡­¡± Old Man Chi eximed.

    Yu Wanrou couldn¡¯t believe what she saw. In a fit of intense rage, she spat out anotherrge mouthful of blood and passed outpletely.

    As to the men behind her? Reeling from the poison in their bodies, they were unable to do anything else but lie on the ground helplessly as they red enviously at Jun Xiaomo and her child.

    Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian smiled radiantly as they minced their way forward and took turns embracing Jun Xiaomo and her newborn child.

    Whatever happened, everything was fine as long as Xiaomo and the child were safe.

    They had originally sought to seize ownership of the Arcane Realm in search for the elusive Green Lotus Pill. Yet, by some stroke of luck, they were able to achieve their objectives even without the need for the Green Lotus Pill.

    The baby in Jun Xiaomo¡¯s arms continued to make spittle bubbles as his agile eyes darted about, ncing at Ye Xiuwen, Rong Ruihan and Chi Jingtian.

    I wonder which one of them is my biological father? How odd¡­

    After deliberating for another few moments but to no avail, he yawned wearily, before nestling in his mother¡¯s arms and falling into a deep, deep slumber.

    -------------------------------------------

    Many yearster, at the residence where Jun Xiaomo and the rest lived in seclusion.

    ¡°Ye Jiayi,e out right now! How many times have I told you that you can¡¯t bring your younger brother out to those kinds of dangerous ces? Why won¡¯t you listen to me? Come out now!¡± Jun Xiaomo folded her arms as she red infuriatedly at a boy. She was holding onto a cane right now, and ¡°displeasure¡± and ¡°anger¡± was written all over her face.

    Ye Jiayi, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s first child, stuck out his tongue and discreetly applied an Invisibility Talisman onto his own body, and¡­vanished right in front of his mother¡¯s eyes.

    This Invisibility Talisman was something that he had personally modified, and he knew that his mother would never be able to dispel its effects so quickly.

    Unfortunately, after taking just a few steps, a bright light immediately shone underfoot, aplicated formation diagram appeared below, and his entire body was constricted and bound in ce.

    His eyes widened as he stared madly at a location just behind a tree nearby ¨C

    There, a figure dressed in bright yellow stepped out of the shadows of the tree. Even though he was small in stature, he already had an aristocratic, royal disposition about him.

    This was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s second son, Rong Junnian, a child that she had together with Rong Ruihan. As it turns out, Rong Ruihan had ended up ascending the throne and bing the next king of the Inferno Kingdom. Naturally, as the first and only prince of the Inferno Kingdom, Rong Junnian was also the crown prince of the Inferno Kingdom, and he had from a young age shadowed his own beloved father closely, learning the arts of reigning over a nation, mastering the skills of politicking and discerning when to act harshly and benevolently.

    In fact, when Rong Junnian was younger, there were several asions when he was bullied by his naughty older brother, Ye Jiayi, and he would often attempt to fight back feebly, but to no avail.

    However, as soon as Rong Junnian turned three years-old, Ye Jiayi found himself unable to bully Rong Junnian anymore. Instead, Ye Jiayi would always find himself drawing the shorter end of the straw in most situations, unable to do anything but gnash his teeth in anger.

    Unfortunately for him, Rong Junnian was almost always in the right ¨C just like this time.

    ¡°Ma, I¡¯ve found Big Brother for you.¡± Rong Junnian called out obsequiously as he curled his lips into a faint smile.

    Yet, in Ye Jiayi¡¯s eyes, this smile was provocative and vile no matter how he looked at it!

    Ye Jiayi was infuriated. Having grown up as a ¡°young master¡±, it was only when his younger brother had arrived that he began to find himself increasingly on the backfoot in every predicament he was in.

    It was almost as though Rong Junnian were born a jinx to him!

    Rong Junnian walked slowly towards Ye Jiayi¡¯s side and patted his shoulder dispassionately, ¡°Try harder next time, Big Brother.¡±

    Ye Jiayi: ¡­¡­

    As Jun Xiaomo marched over towards him with an ashen expression on her face, Ye Jiayi looked up into the sky sheepishly with tears in his eyes as he thought to himself ¨C I wonder if I¡¯ll be spared the harsh spanking if I turn to Third Father for help once more?

    Meanwhile, Jun Xiaomo and Ye Xiuwen¡¯s second child, Ye Zimo toted some ointment as he gently applied it on his youngest brother, Chi Yuze. Chi Yuze was born with a plump face and puffy cheeks, yet one side of his face looked all the more swollen as a result of the wasp stings. Replete with his tear-filled eyes, Chi Yuze looked incredibly pitiful yet adorable at the same time.

    Ye Zimo was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s third child, and his personality was akin to Ye Xiuwen ¨C quiet and warm. If he had not discovered something amiss and secretly followed his eldest brother, his silly younger brother might not even have realized it if his eldest brother sold him off for peanuts.

    It couldn¡¯t be helped. Ever since he was born, Ye Jiayi had been the exact opposite of the definition of ¡°obedient¡±. Fortunately, the second child, Rong Junnian, would from time to time teach him a harsh lesson about overstepping his boundaries. Otherwise, he might well have blown off the top of their home¡¯s roof with his disobedience by now.

    Chi Yuze was Jun Xiaomo¡¯s youngest child because it took Jun Xiaomo several years before she finally epted Chi Jingtian wholeheartedly as well.

    That said, this was something that Ye Xiuwen and Rong Ruihan had already expected to happen a long time ago. Thus, they had no strenuous objections to this. In fact, they even epted it as an eventuality that was only a matter of time.

    Right now, they could be considered one big family.

    The only regret that Jun Xiaomo had was that they had been unable to birth a daughter for the family. That said, Ye Xiuwen and the others had a united response to this ¨C That¡¯s fine. We just need to work harder at it, and we¡¯ll have a daughter one day!

    Jun Xiaomo: ¡­¡­ Something in her heart gave her a bad feeling about this.

    With that, Jun Xiaomo¡¯s night life was¡­simply too blessed and fruitful. We can leave things at that.

    Ever since the final battle at the Arcane Realm concluded, Jun Xiaomo and the rest became widely known throughout the rest of the cultivation world. News that Jun Xiaomo¡¯s child Ye Jiayi was made the owner of the Arcane Realm spread far and wide, and there was a time when various forces attempted to even seize her child. Fortunately, all of the covetous assants were beaten back by Old Man Chi.

    Over time, Jun Xiaomo and the rest even began to set up innumerable formation arrays around their secluded residence, preventing even a single fly from entering the ce unnoticed, much less potential assants. With the effluxion of time, people began to ept things as they were, and they also dispelled any further thoughts of seizing her child anymore.

    Meanwhile, Jun Linxuan and Liu Qingmei finally established a new sect. With everyone¡¯s concerted efforts, their new sect slowly blossomed and found its foothold within the cultivation world. In fact, they even managed to take the title of champions among all of the Greater Sects in the most recent iteration of the Inter-Sect Competitions.

    On the other hand, Yu Wanrou¡¯s injuries from the Arcane Realm expedition were far too severe, and she didn¡¯t receive the necessary medical intervention in a timeous fashion. Thus, she copsed in a nondescript street in the mortal world and passed away shortly after leaving the Arcane Realm.

    Meanwhile, the poison that Yu Wanrou had afflicted her following of men with was also incredibly potent, and it was something that only the waters from her spirit spring could cure. With Yu Wanrou perishing, where else were they to find another source of spiritual waters?

    Thus, Yu Wanrou¡¯s surviving followers, including Du Yongxu, perished before long as well.

    A person like him who had always had his eyes fixed lofty ambition as high as the stars above had never expected to perish in such a tragic fashion.

    When Jun Xiaomo learnt of these things from Ye Xiuwen, she couldn¡¯t help but smile faintly as she tousled the hair of her second son, Rong Junnian.

    Rong Junnian¡¯s birth had allowed her to step out of the shadows of her past once more.

    Her life had finally changed its trajectory altogether, and the prospects for her future looked increasingly brighter and brighter.

    That¡¯s right, there was still the matter of her elusive master, Tong Ruizhen. All this while, Jun Xiaomo had been unable to locate him, and she had grown increasingly worried that Tong Ruizhen would have met with a mishap.

    Unexpectedly, all Tong Ruizhen had done was to leave the Zephyr Sect in search for some old friends of his. Just like that, Tong Ruizhen vanished for a few years without thinking of leaving a single letter to Jun Xiaomo.

    Jun Xiaomo shook her head helplessly, reeling slightly from her new appreciation for just how willful her master could be.

    Regardless, this newfound life was the life she had always been seeking ever since she was reborn, right?

    It was one without outbursts or upheavals. Instead, it sufficed that she had a stable life with all of her loved ones living harmoniously together with her.

    A light zephyr swept across thends, causing the orderly rows of willow trees to sway about neatly and tranquilly.

    The years of peace had finally arrived.

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