The intelligence from Among the Colorful Clouds, after several twists and turns, finally reached Su Cheng in Liangzhou a week later.
The white dove that delivered the message sensibly flew away right after completing its task, inadvertently saving its own life.
“Broken Shadow Demon Lord and Fragmented Shadow are both dead, so Ghost Shadow Sect must be close to collapse as well.”
Su Cheng looked at the contents of the Secret Letter, speaking absentmindedly to herself.
The person who secretly conveyed information to Broken Shadow Demon Lord was Su Cheng herself.
Su Cheng had guessed that Yu Yi would choose to return to Among the Colorful Clouds.
Like a shadow, she followed Yu Yi, not only accurately predicting Yu Yi’s route, but even perfectly calculating her exact arrival time in Among the Colorful Clouds.
That was why she devised the first layer of ambush for Ghost Shadow Sect.
But the appearance of Hundred Martial Sects disrupted Su Cheng’s plan.
However, judging from the final outcome, it didn’t matter—because even if the ambush against Yu Yi had succeeded, it wouldn’t have had any effect.
Su Cheng felt not the slightest ripple of emotion over the destruction of Ghost Shadow Sect.
They were just pawns in Su Cheng’s hand to begin with. If they were lost, so be it.
And Ghost Shadow Sect wasn’t the only piece on Su Cheng’s board.
“Master, oh Master… Just what illness have you contracted?”
Leaning back in her chair, Su Cheng gazed out the window at the sky, worry and curiosity written on her face.
The Secret Letter stated that Broken Shadow Demon Lord was instantly killed by Yu Yi with a Heavenly Thunderstrike.
While this was enough to prove the power gap between them, it still made Su Cheng feel something was off.
“To deal with Broken Shadow Demon Lord, using Wind Power should have been enough. Why did Master use unstable lightning instead?”
Broken Shadow Demon Lord’s Shadow Arts were indeed powerful, but in the wind, they were powerless to hide.
Yet, the Demoness once again used an “unreasonable” method to defeat her opponent.
This left Su Cheng perplexed.
At the same time, Su Cheng was almost certain that the Demoness had contracted some sort of special illness that was limiting her strength.
Su Cheng pondered as she continued reading.
But when she read the next piece of information, her eyes widened instantly.
“The Sect Master of Hundred Martial Sects, along with dozens of disciples, were all executed, and the only female disciple, Wei Ying, was taken in and now lives in Among the Colorful Clouds??”
Su Cheng felt as if struck by lightning, staring at that line, her heart unable to calm down for a long time.
“Master… Didn’t she stop accepting disciples? Why would she keep that woman named Wei Ying?”
Confusion and doubt filled Su Cheng, and an emotion called jealousy surged up within her.
She gritted her teeth, muttering in a low voice:
“Just what kind of woman… could attract Master’s attention, and be deliberately left in Among the Colorful Clouds, kept by her side?!”
Su Cheng impatiently grabbed the bell on the table, about to ring it, when suddenly there was a knock at the door.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
As the most resourceful disciple under the Demoness, Su Cheng would never show panic or anxiety before others. She took a deep breath, doing her best to speak calmly:
“Enter.”
The person outside pushed the door open and came in—it was the Grey-robed Elder in charge of conveying messages for Su Cheng.
“Hm? I was just about to call for you, and you came on your own?”
Su Cheng glanced at him, frowning slightly, and asked curiously, “Is there something to report?”
“At this moment, outside the mountain gate, someone wishes to see Scholar Su!”
The Grey-robed Elder bowed.
Upon hearing someone wished to see her, Su Cheng was initially impatient, intending to have the Grey-robed Elder send them away.
But then she reconsidered—if it weren’t an unusual person, how could the Grey-robed Elder have come to bother her?
“Who is it?”
Su Cheng asked.
“That person’s cultivation is very high, but she gave a name I’ve never heard before. However, she claimed to be your little junior sister.”
The Grey-robed Elder replied.
“Little junior sister?”
Su Cheng was a bit surprised.
“Scholar Su, shall I send her away if you do not wish to see her?”
The Grey-robed Elder asked.
“If not, I will go drive her off immediately.”
“I’ll meet with her. Also, I have a task for you.”
Su Cheng said coolly.
“What are your orders, Scholar Su?”
The Grey-robed Elder bowed.
“Hundred Martial Sects, Wei Ying.”
Su Cheng’s face was dark, and she spoke each word clearly.
“Investigate this person for me. I want all her information.”
“As you command.”
The Grey-robed Elder bowed again, then withdrew to carry out his duty.
***
Meanwhile.
At the foot of Tianshui Manor’s mountain gate.
A black-haired girl with a sword at her waist paced anxiously, waiting for someone.
Every Heavenly Water Sect disciple passing by couldn’t help but glance at her figure and face.
For those without any fellow female disciples, having such a beautiful girl of similar age come visiting was a rare event.
Quite a few Heavenly Water Sect disciples coveted the beauty of “Scholar Su.”
They trained day and night, hoping to grow stronger, climb higher within the sect, and have a chance to speak a single word with Scholar Su.
To become a squad leader, and receive missions directly from Scholar Su, would be the greatest honor for them.
Because of this, ever since Su Cheng joined the Heavenly Water Sect, the motivation of the disciples to train had greatly increased, which indirectly led to the sect’s continuous growth.
“Hello, miss. We’re all disciples here. Did you run into some trouble?”
A few Heavenly Water Sect disciples gathered their courage and approached the black-haired girl, trying to start a conversation.
“I’m fine.”
Chi Ming glanced at them, answered casually, then turned her head away again.
“Look… We saw her face!”
“She’s so beautiful… She’s in the same league as Scholar Su!”
“I wonder if she’d make it into the Absolutely Beautiful Ranking?”
“Of course she would, but who knows what place. Except for the number one Lady Demon Yu Yi Jue, the rest of the rankings can be however you like.”
This was what they called “Yu Yi Jue’s whim.”
The male disciples whispered among themselves, their words reaching Chi Ming’s ears.
She hadn’t expected to hear the Demoness’ name here, and it instantly put Chi Ming in a bad mood.
A week ago, Huang Doudou had tracked down Chi Ming, who’d been secretly following her, and told her everything that happened in Among the Colorful Clouds.
Although Chi Ming had doubts about the Demoness’ actions, what puzzled her even more was why the Demoness deliberately had Huang Doudou bring a message to her.
“That Demoness’ behavior is just too strange… Is she scheming something again?”
As Chi Ming was thinking this, the male disciples, unsatisfied with only seeing her face once, edged closer.
“Miss, if you’re really in trouble, you can ask us for help.”
“That’s right, that’s right. We’re heading up to the sect now. If you want to meet someone, or deliver a message, we can help.”
The male disciples spoke with enthusiasm and goodwill.
“Get lost, don’t bother me!”
Chi Ming, already frustrated and confused, exploded at the noisy male disciples, her eyes fierce as she yelled at them.
Her “explosion” was quite literal.
For a brief moment, the male disciples saw a strand of her black hair turn red, flickering with flames.
Their only intention had been to try to befriend Chi Ming, with no ill will or evil intent.
But Chi Ming’s outburst was so intimidating that they all shrank back immediately, retreating several steps.
Realizing she’d lost control, Chi Ming’s fierce expression faded, and she hurriedly apologized.
“Sorry, sorry, I couldn’t control my emotions just now. I’m really sorry for scaring you!”
Her gaze was sincere, as if she truly hadn’t meant to lose her temper.
But the male disciples didn’t dare approach her anymore.
Her sudden change in attitude made her seem like she had a split personality.
Having never encountered someone like her, they thought it best to keep their distance.
“It’s, it’s fine…”
“If the young lady doesn’t need our help, then we’ll just go!”
With apologetic smiles, the male disciples slowly backed away, then fled up the mountain.
Watching their retreating figures, Chi Ming deflated like a punctured ball, letting out a deep sigh.
“Ah… I messed up again. Why does this always happen…”
As Chi Ming blamed herself and sighed, a pleasant female voice came from ahead.
“Little junior sister, why are you sighing here?”
Looking up, she saw a graceful woman with deep orange hair tied back, her elegant figure wrapped in a white-and-black cheongsam, standing before her.
Chi Ming composed herself and saluted respectfully.
“Greetings, Senior Su.”