Lin Xinyi was called out from behind.
When she turned her head, her eyes could hardly contain their excitement.
That small, frail figure stood there among those foolish mortals—such a weak body that she could easily run it through with a single, simple strike of her sword.
“You know I’ve come to kill you~?”
Lin Xinyi, already confident of victory, even felt like toying with her prey a little.
Seeing the other appear before her so defenseless, she was in no hurry to strike her down.
Bai Qianqian’s expression remained calm, as if she viewed life and death with indifference.
Her disheveled hair and thin, weak frame could not conceal the resolute determination in her eyes.
Whenever Lin Xinyi saw those eyes, she grew irritated—for some reason, looking at them always made her feel a twinge of guilt.
“Immortal Master’s strength is great. This remote village has nothing worth coveting. If an Immortal Master comes here, it’s either for revenge… or to repay kindness…”
“Then why couldn’t I be here to repay kindness~”
A warm smile curled at the corner of Lin Xinyi’s lips as she slowly bent down, as if she were truly a kind older sister in this moment.
But Bai Qianqian only gazed coldly at Lin Xinyi before her, then let out a faint sneer.
“Do you believe that…?”
These three simple words from Bai Qianqian exploded like a bombshell, instantly stirring the previously quiet crowd into agitation.
Even the village elder nearby couldn’t restrain himself from berating her.
“You jinx! Get on your knees and apologize to the Immortal Master this instant! I’ve let you live too long…!”
Bai Qianqian did not apologize.
Instead, an even more arrogant smile appeared on her face as she swept a cold glance over the crowd behind her, who continued to curse at her relentlessly.
She had already stepped forward to face this alone, yet these people still berated her to protect their own interests.
Lin Xinyi said nothing.
Bai Qianqian’s composed demeanor only irritated her further.
What she wanted to see was a child weeping in fear and pain, not a Bai Qianqian who, facing death, still dared to mock her.
Lin Xinyi waved her hand.
The village elder, who had been loudly cursing Bai Qianqian, instantly dissolved into a pool of blood.
At this, the clamoring crowd fell instantly silent.
“I don’t like others interrupting when I’m speaking…”
As Lin Xinyi slowly straightened up, the silence around her became terrifying.
Even infants in swaddling clothes were tightly gagged by the adults.
A benevolent smile played at the corner of Lin Xinyi’s lips.
Yet seconds later, another person in the crowd burst apart, becoming a pool of blood.
“Dead… someone’s dead… someone’s dead!!”
One villager, watching a living person explode before his eyes, flesh and viscera fragments splattering onto his body, finally could bear it no longer and screamed in mental collapse.
But like a stone dropped into water, the surrounding crowd all began screaming in terror, scattering like headless flies outside the village.
Some even tried to throw themselves into the sea to escape.
“Aren’t you afraid?”
“I just find it a bit noisy…”
“I think so too~”
Bang… bang…
Like watermelons, one human body after another burst apart among the crowd.
The sounds of screaming, crying, and begging for mercy rose one after another.
The moment Lin Xinyi arrived here, this village’s fate was already sealed—no one would survive.
“This way, no one will know what happened today. After all, demon cultivators are truly cruel—they’d actually massacre an entire village…”
All evil deeds were committed by demon cultivators—a reason that never failed.
Lin Xinyi surveyed the scene before her without any ripple of emotion.
Instead, she turned to look at Bai Qianqian standing beside her.
This young child remained utterly unperturbed.
“Even in such circumstances, she won’t show weakness…”
Though thinking this, Lin Xinyi noticed the slight trembling of the other’s body.
When she saw that Bai Qianqian trembled from fear, a smug smile crept onto her lips again.
No matter how monstrous her talent, she was still just an immature child.
“So you do get scared after all~”
Lin Xinyi slowly drew the long sword from its sheath.
Bai Qianqian seemed to understand her fate and resignedly closed her eyes.
Lin Xinyi’s blade could reflect the other’s shadow.
“What a pity to kill you~”
“Then… are you willing to spare me…?”
Hearing these words, Bai Qianqian opened her eyes in confusion, even tentatively asking in a whisper.
Seeing her open her eyes, Lin Xinyi’s lips curved into a benevolent smile.
“Of course~”
Before Bai Qianqian could react, the sharp long sword sliced across her neck.
Her perspective immediately spun wildly.
She couldn’t understand why the world had suddenly turned upside down until her head rolled several times on the ground—then she realized she was already dead.
“Of course not~”
Lin Xinyi began forming hand seals.
Flames several hundred feet high instantly enveloped both the head and body.
Still not reassured, as the blazing fire consumed everything, she extracted the innate Dao seeds from Bai Qianqian’s body as well.
“Such excellent spiritual root and Dao seeds—it would be a shame to waste them. Keeping them to aid my cultivation isn’t bad either~”
Lin Xinyi looked at the treasures in her hand.
Once she absorbed and refined them, her strength would surely increase significantly.
If this girl hadn’t encountered her, she would definitely have become a monstrous existence in the future.
“At this point… she shouldn’t be able to revive, right…?”
Lin Xinyi stared somewhat uneasily at the ashes left on the ground after the fire had consumed everything.
With a wave of her hand, a wind technique scattered even the ashes.
She had also sealed the space and checked for any residual soul fragments.
Only after confirming there was nothing wrong did she slowly breathe a sigh of relief.
“If she can come back from this, then I should call you Master…”
Lin Xinyi slowly turned around.
The crimson blood had begun staining the surrounding sea red.
She set another fire, ensuring no evidence remained.
Lin Xinyi wouldn’t bother checking for survivors in the village.
Whenever she did this kind of thing , she always set up a Spirit-Severing Array—any living being within the array would lose their lives.
Leaving even one survivor would make things very troublesome.
If she didn’t go all the way, Lin Xinyi couldn’t rest easy.
“Heh, no matter what kind of monstrous prodigy you were, I’ve lived several lives—what could you possibly do to me now…”
Lin Xinyi formed hand seals, letting the breeze blow away the ashes, when she noticed a silver-white ring remaining among the residue cinders.
She had just lifted her foot to leave but immediately stopped.
Bending down, she picked up the silver ring from the pile of ash, and a sly smile slowly crept across her lips.
“Almost forgot about you, old fellow~”
Lin Xinyi mobilized her spiritual energy completely.
Nascent Soul stage spiritual energy, as massive as a small mountain, enveloped the entire ruined village.
As she continuously poured energy into the ring in her hand, its light grew increasingly bright.
“How much could you absorb from a child who hadn’t even reached Qi training? Want spiritual energy? This sovereign will give it to you~”
“YOU SEEK DEATH!”
With the infusion of spiritual energy, a powerful force instantly exploded outward.
A woman materialized from within the ring.
Before Lin Xinyi could speak, the woman attacked directly, her overwhelming pressure instantly covering the entire area.
“I’ve heard of the fairy’s peerless beauty—truly, one smile from her intoxicates ten thousand miles~”
Lin Xinyi struggled to raise her head under the immense pressure, but still managed to stand, looking at the woman before her.
A pair of emerald-blue eyes burned with inexhaustible fury, and her gradient blue-green hair was as beautiful as jewels.
“RETURN MY DISCIPLE!! I’LL MAKE YOU PAY WITH YOUR LIFE!”
“Hey hey hey, the spiritual energy inside you came from me…”
“GO TO HELL!”
“A mere remnant soul, and so arrogant!”
Seeing that communication was impossible, Lin Xinyi finally swept her sword forward.
The intact ring split in two like tofu.
The remnant soul before her could only watch with tearful eyes and unwillingness as its final wisp of soul burned away, dissipating into the air.
“What a pity. I thought this might also serve my purposes…”
The name Bai Qianqian, which had nearly become her inner demon, was eliminated so easily—like crushing an ant.
Lin Xinyi’s eyes showed slight emptiness, but correspondingly, indescribable joy.
Lin Xinyi looked at the village where not a single living soul remained.
She merely took a breath, then rode her flying sword back to the sect.
She had been gone less than half a day; no one had even noticed her departure.
Only after returning to her secluded cave dwelling did she finally relax.
“Master…”
As soon as Lin Xinyi returned to the cave, a girl holding a jade pipa emerged from within.
The girl’s light purple hair shone like precious gems.
Her closed eyes were wrapped in black silk, and she stood holding the pipa, awaiting Lin Xinyi’s orders.
“Returning to this dwelling, only you can truly ease my heart~”
This girl was Lin Xinyi’s first disciple.
Lin Xinyi slowly approached, gently lifting the girl’s chin to admire her doll-like delicate features.
Her white robe was dressed entirely according to Lin Xinyi’s preferences.
Lin Xinyi looked at her eldest disciple, liking her more with each glance.
Even when the girl was young, Lin Xinyi had recognized her as a beauty—charming in speech, dignified in bearing.
“Whatever pleases Master brings this disciple peace…”
Seeing the girl’s potential for beauty, Lin Xinyi had accepted her as a disciple and raised her by her side.
Since the girl had followed her from childhood, she later bestowed upon her the name Huaiyin.
Her family was from the noble Qin clan among mortals, thus giving her the melodious name Qin Huaiyin.
“The hour isn’t early, but … It’s not too late,Play a tune on the pipa for me to hear~”
Lin Xinyi approached the soft bed and lay down without further ado.
With one major obstacle removed from her heart, she felt exceptionally relaxed, so she casually requested a pipa piece.
Qin Huaiyin stood aside, pulled over a chair, and sat by the bed.
She gently played the pipa in her arms.
Like raindrops or dragonflies, the sounds drifted through the cave dwelling, so intoxicatingly soothing that Lin Xinyi had to hear them every night to fall asleep.
“Master seems in good spirits, having the leisure to listen to my playing…”
Qin Huaiyin’s soft question blended seamlessly with the gentle pipa melody.
Lin Xinyi slowly opened her eyes upon hearing it, turning her head to glance at Qin Huaiyin, who usually spoke little.
She hadn’t expected her mood to be so obvious that even the girl could tell.
“Removed a scourge—of course I’m relieved~”
“Since Master is happy, could Master fulfill that promise… to grant me freedom…?”
“What? Tired of me already~?”
Lin Xinyi turned her head, looking at Qin Huaiyin playing softly beside her.
The girl’s words were ordinary , but they sounded like a plea.
Piqued by this statement, Lin Xinyi sat up slightly by the bed and extended a fingertip to lift Qin Huaiyin’s chin.
“You are mine. You’ll be mine for this entire life. Don’t think about leaving~”
“Huaiyin… understands…”