Chapter 60: Is the Hidden Beauty Discovered?

Inside the cavern.

Su Yuexi walked in slowly, her eyes as gentle as water as they swept over Hua Lingyue.

Her brows furrowed slightly.

“Lingyue, why do you look so strange? Did something go wrong with your cultivation while I was away?”

Su Yuexi’s tone held a hint of concern.

“No… No,” Hua Lingyue shook her head quickly.

“I just… I spent too much focus on refining medicine earlier. I’ll be fine after some rest.”

“Is that so?”

Su Yuexi’s gaze moved past her and fell upon the steaming medicinal pool.

A flicker of suspicion crossed her eyes.

“I saw you soaking in the pool and thought you were injured.”

“You misunderstand, Master,” Hua Lingyue explained hurriedly.

“I recently had a breakthrough in my insights and thought I would use the power of this pool to overcome my bottleneck in one go.”

“Oh?” Hearing this, a gratified smile appeared on Su Yuexi’s face.

“My Lingyue has finally seen the light and knows how to work hard.”

She walked to the edge of the pool and reached out a slender finger to tap the water, sensing the medicinal properties.

“Not bad. This pool contains many rare spirit herbs; it will be very beneficial for consolidating your cultivation,” Su Yuexi praised.

“Your talent was never inferior to mine. If you are willing to apply yourself, the Hundred Flowers Valley will surely reach new heights under your leadership.”

Hearing her master’s praise, Hua Lingyue felt no joy.

Instead, she became even more nervous.

“However…”

Su Yuexi’s tone suddenly shifted, and a sharp light flashed in her gentle eyes.

“Why do I smell a hint of aphrodisiac poison in this medicinal pool?”

“Lingyue, though you are mischievous, you have always been rigorous in the Dao of Alchemy. You shouldn’t make such a low-level mistake.”

Upon hearing the words “aphrodisiac poison,” Hua Lingyue’s body trembled violently.

The color drained from her face instantly.

‘It’s over! Master found out!’

“Ma… Master, you… you must have smelled it wrong,” Hua Lingyue’s voice shook.

“How could I use that… that kind of thing for cultivation?”

“Is that so?”

The corners of Su Yuexi’s mouth curled into an arc.

Her gaze slowly drifted down, eventually fixing on the calm surface of the water in front of Hua Lingyue.

Glub… glub…

A few tiny bubbles abruptly rose from the bottom of the pool.

Although they were faint, they sounded exceptionally clear in the deathly silent cavern.

Su Yuexi’s smile widened.

She reached out and gently patted Hua Lingyue’s shoulder, her movement as tender as if she were comforting a child who had made a mistake.

“Lingyue, oh Lingyue, how long do you plan to keep lying to me?”

Su Yuexi’s voice remained gentle, yet it made Hua Lingyue’s skin crawl.

“Tell me, which junior sister in the valley is so lucky that you would go to such great lengths?”

“How dare you play the game of hiding a beauty right in front of me?”

This sudden interrogation was like a bolt from the blue, instantly shattering all of Hua Lingyue’s mental defenses.

Her mind went blank, and her body shook so violently from fear that the pressure she was using to hold Lu Ning down slackened.

At the bottom of the pool, Lu Ning, who was on the verge of fainting from holding her breath, felt the pressure release.

She struggled instinctively.

Splash!

With a loud sound of water, a drenched, slender figure emerged messily from the medicinal pool under Su Yuexi’s interested gaze.

Lu Ning gasped for air.

Her beautiful, flushed face was exposed defenselessly before Su Yuexi.

Lu Ning looked at Su Yuexi’s gentle, pretty face and saw the shock in the woman’s eyes turn into realization, and finally, into endless mockery.

She felt as if the sky were falling.

Su Yuexi looked at Lu Ning’s disheveled, soaking wet, and dazed state.

She finally couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.

“Hehe…”

Her laughter was crisp and pleasant, yet it made Lu Ning feel a chill throughout her body.

“Sect Master Lu, I didn’t expect us to meet again so soon. We truly are fated.”

Su Yuexi’s voice carried a hint of joy, the mockery in her tone unconcealed.

“To think that you were showing off your great power outside Heaven’s Capital City not long ago, only to be hiding secretly in my tiny Hundred Flowers Valley now.”

“It truly is… an eye-opener for me.”

Hearing this, Hua Lingyue finally snapped out of her shock.

Looking at this bizarre scene, she hurriedly explained, “Master! Let me explain!”

“I didn’t do this out of lust! I… I just happened to pick up this great demon lord by chance!”

“I heard that she… she defiled you, Master, and she even insisted that she was your woman! I was so angry that I attacked her!”

“Everything I did was to avenge you, Master!”

Hua Lingyue’s voice was full of grievance.

She wanted nothing more than to clear her relationship with the “hot potato” that was Lu Ning as quickly as possible.

After hearing this excuse full of loopholes, Su Yuexi didn’t get angry.

Instead, she smiled gently.

“Is that so?”

She walked over to Hua Lingyue and reached out to stroke her head dotingly.

“My good disciple, you’ve done a great deed this time.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t hold this matter against you for now.”

Hua Lingyue felt a surge of wild joy.

‘Master… forgave me?’

However, before her joy could last, a sly light flashed in Su Yuexi’s eyes.

With a flick of her wrist, an unremarkable gray cloth bag appeared out of thin air.

The bag expanded in the wind, instantly swallowing the dazed Hua Lingyue inside.

“Ma… Master?”

Trapped inside the sack, Hua Lingyue was completely dumbfounded.

She didn’t understand why her master would suddenly attack her.

Su Yuexi ignored the struggling and shouting inside the sack.

She simply tied the opening, leaving only Hua Lingyue’s head exposed.

Then, she took out a black cloth and blindfolded the girl.

“Lingyue, although I won’t hold it against you, you should stay here and listen quietly as punishment.”

Su Yuexi’s voice sounded very mild, but the words filled Hua Lingyue with an inexplicable fear.

“Rest assured. Next, I will personally take action to properly deal with this uninvited great demon lord.”

Su Yuexi turned slowly.

Her gaze fell upon the shivering Lu Ning in the medicinal pool, and the corners of her mouth curled into a meaningful arc.

Then, Su Yuexi spoke again.

“It seems Sect Master Lu thinks quite highly of a small Sect Leader like me, even claiming to be my person to the outside world. Since you have been so proactive, I must respond properly.”

Lu Ning: “!!!!!”