The first glimmer of morning light filtered through the carved window lattices, scattering mottled shadows across the large agarwood bed in Quiet Heart Dwelling. A faint scent of sandalwood permeated the air, but it could not mask a trace of an extremely peculiar, metallic smell—the scent of rust.
Xia Lingshuang’s long eyelashes trembled slightly, like the wings of a startled butterfly.
She woke from her deep slumber and subconsciously moved to cover her chest. There should have been an agonizing pain there, like ten thousand ants devouring her heart—the nightmare that had haunted her every night since her rebirth.
However, where her palm touched, there was only calm.
Xia Lingshuang snapped her eyes open, her pupils shrinking slightly. In a panic, she circulated her spiritual power, which had been dry for a long time, and cautiously probed deep into her meridians.
Smooth.
Incredibly smooth.
Her originally shattered meridians, which had resembled a parched riverbed, were now being slowly nourished by a warm and overbearing medicinal power. That power possessed an eerie dark-red hue and carried an intense vitality, repairing her damaged foundation bit by bit.
“Nine Nether… Blood Lingzhi?”
Xia Lingshuang murmured to herself, her voice hoarse. She stuck out the tip of her tongue and subconsciously licked her dry lips. The taste of the medicinal soup that had been forced down her throat last night seemed to linger there.
It was bitter, but with a sweet aftertaste. That was the unique flavor of the Nine Nether Blood Lingzhi.
That was the Nine Nether Blood Lingzhi. In her previous life, she had never even seen this legendary wonder capable of repairing meridians until the day she died.
“Wu Yan…” Xia Lingshuang’s fingers gripped the silk bedsheets tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force. “What on earth are you trying to do?”
In her previous life, this wicked disciple had been willing to push a fellow junior brother into a bottomless abyss just to snatch a hundred-year-old spirit herb. In this life, she was actually willing to use such an exotic treasure to save her.
“Is this a ruse? Do you want to heal me just to torture me to death bit by bit?” A flash of gloom and hatred flickered in Xia Lingshuang’s eyes, but beneath that hatred, an indescribable sense of confusion arose for the first time.
Tap, tap, tap.
Three extremely rhythmic knocks came from outside the door, neither hurried nor slow, conveying a deep-seated respect.
“Master, your disciple Yu Qingyao requests an audience.”
Xia Lingshuang collected her thoughts and resumed her usual cold and majestic demeanor.
“Enter.”
Yu Qingyao pushed the door open and walked in. She had not dressed up intentionally today, wearing only the most standard disciple uniform. Her expression was solemn, with a perfectly measured hint of gravity between her brows.
She walked to the front of the room and performed a proper salute. After standing up, she did not speak immediately but kept her eyes lowered, as if weighing her words.
“What is it?” Xia Lingshuang asked coolly.
“Reporting to Master, news has come from the outer sect.” Yu Qingyao’s voice was steady, revealing little emotional fluctuation. “Senior Brother Wang Teng died in his room last night at the hour of the rat.”
Xia Lingshuang’s eyelid twitched slightly, and her sharp gaze swept toward Yu Qingyao. “How did he die?”
“The Law Enforcement Hall’s initial examination stated that he was impatient in his practice and suffered Chi Deviation, causing his spiritual power to flow backward and rupture his heart meridians.”
Yu Qingyao looked up, her gaze clear yet deep as she looked directly at Xia Lingshuang. “But your disciple took the opportunity to look at Senior Brother Wang Teng’s body under the guise of arranging his remains.”
She paused, her tone lowering slightly. “Although there were bloodstains on Wang Teng’s facial orifices, the distorted expression on his face did not look like Chi Deviation. Instead, it looked as if… his vitality was instantaneously shredded by something while he was in a state of extreme terror. Your disciple vaguely sensed a trace of residual Sword Chi at his brow.”
Sword Intent.
Xia Lingshuang did not speak. She only tapped her finger lightly against the edge of the bed, creating a rhythmic “thump, thump” sound.
Wu Yan.
“Good, very good! Truly a good disciple who listens to her Master.” Xia Lingshuang’s tone was laced with a few hints of irony.
“On the Martial Arts Platform, she promised me she wouldn’t kill him, even putting on a show of respecting her teacher. In the end, she secretly planted a lethal move in someone else, ensuring he wouldn’t live past the third watch.”
Xia Lingshuang’s voice was as cold as tempered ice. “She is making a show of force to me. She is telling me that in this Piaomiao Sect, no one can protect the person she, Wu Yan, wants to kill! The so-called sect rules are nothing more than toys in her hands!”
“Master…” Yu Qingyao looked up. “Then what should we do now…”
Xia Lingshuang shook her head. “Leave it be. If even you can see that the way Wang Teng died wasn’t Chi Deviation, then the elders of the Law Enforcement Hall can see it too. Since the sect announcement says it was Chi Deviation, then we will treat it as Chi Deviation.”
She wanted to see what kind of tricks this demon was playing in this lifetime.
—
Sunset Clouds Peak, Wu Yan’s cave dwelling.
Inside the cave, the air was bitingly cold. A night-luminescent pearl emitted a faint, cold light.
Wu Yan was sitting cross-legged on the Cold Jade Bed she had obtained from somewhere unknown.
“Hahahahaha! Did you hear that? Did you hear that!”
A sharp, frantic, yet strangely alluring voice suddenly exploded in Wu Yan’s mind.
The phantom of Wu Yan in red appeared out of thin air. She was dressed in fire-red robes, her feet bare, tossing a non-existent skull in her hand. She laughed so hard she doubled over, tears nearly coming to her eyes.
“That idiot’s body was discovered~ The Law Enforcement Hall actually said he died of Chi Deviation, hahahaha! It was clearly such obvious Sword Intent, yet because it involves you, no one dares to mention it~”
Phantom Wu Yan floated in front of Wu Yan. That face, identical to Wu Yan’s, was filled with a twisted excitement. “I say, little Wu Yan, you’re clearly more ruthless than I am. Why do you insist on pretending to be a man of integrity?”
Wu Yan slowly opened her eyes. Her dark pupils showed no ripple of emotion.
She stood up, her movements somewhat sluggish. She walked to the stone table, poured herself a cup of cold tea that had long since lost its warmth, and drank it in one gulp.
“That wasn’t ruthlessness.” Wu Yan’s voice was calm, as if stating an objective fact.
“Indiscriminate killing of the innocent; he deserved his death.”
“Tch, excuses. Hypocrite!” Phantom Wu Yan floated onto her shoulder and made a face. “A kill is a kill, yet you find so many reasons for it. But I love the result! Now, the whole sect is afraid of you.”
“That precious little junior sister of yours probably has a pale face from fear. She’s likely shivering under her covers right now. Hehehehe~”
At the mention of her junior sister, Wu Yan’s eyes, which were like an ancient well, finally showed a flicker of emotion.
According to Wu Yan’s memories from the previous life, her little junior sister’s cultivation was likely still stuck at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Moreover, this junior sister was quite timid; it was indeed possible she would be frightened by this incident.
Buzz—!
The restriction outside the cave dwelling rippled slightly.
A Communication Talisman transformed into a flash of fire, penetrated the stone wall, and hovered in front of Wu Yan.
Xia Lingshuang’s characteristic icy voice emerged from it, devoid of any emotion:
“Come to the Main Peak Council Hall immediately. There is an anomaly in the West Barren Mineral Vein; you will lead the team there.”
There was not a single question regarding the cause of Wang Teng’s death.
Once the message was delivered, the magic in the Communication Talisman vanished, and it fell into her palm like a piece of ordinary paper in an instant.
Wu Yan looked at the talisman, the corners of her mouth curling into a faint, indiscernible smile.
Master truly did hate her to the extreme; she didn’t even bother to interrogate her for her crimes. Or perhaps, she wanted to use this trip to the West Barren to send her away, or even… to kill with a borrowed knife?
“Understood.”
She whispered a response, as if speaking to herself.
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