Chapter 128

Qing Zhouxue looked ahead again and froze as well.

The insect mother had been blown to pieces, leaving only a blood-red demon core wrapped in a mound of mucus, gleaming brilliantly.

Yun Shuchen's hand stiffened, then lowered, with a barely perceptible tremor. Yet her back remained straight, still composed in front of her disciple.

She closed her hand in the air, and the demon core flew into her palm, still dripping with slime. Yun Shuchen couldn't bear to look at it and immediately stored it in her ring.

The rumbling continued in her ears. Qing Zhouxue's expression turned serious. "It's going to collapse, Master. Let's go."

She took Yun Shuchen's hand and, passing Yu Ying, pulled her along as well. Every few steps, she propped up the path with ice pillars. Fortunately, they made it to the cave entrance without trouble.

As soon as they left the secret realm, bright daylight flooded in.

Having been in the dark for so long, their eyes stung at the sight of the outside world, and it took a while to adjust.

Qing Zhouxue stared at the hem of Yun Shuchen's dress. She couldn't bear to tell her master that half a dead insect was stuck to her skirt, likely splattered on during the explosion.

Yun Shuchen was about to look down when Qing Zhouxue suddenly lifted her chin. Usually, it was Yun Shuchen who did this to her.

Yun Shuchen looked at her, puzzled.

The sudden upward glance revealed the bloodstain at the corner of Qing Zhouxue's mouth. She raised a hand and gently wiped away the red mark. At that same moment, the Qingshuang Sword deftly removed the dead insect from her master's hem.

It fell to the ground with a soft thud.

Yun Shuchen turned around too quickly—Qing Zhouxue didn't have time to react before her master's hand trembled again, and she suddenly stumbled forward, pulling Qing Zhouxue into an embrace.

Holding her tightly.

Qing Zhouxue turned her head, glanced at her stunned junior sister, and gave her a look.

Yu Ying snapped out of it and hurriedly turned away.

Qing Zhouxue rubbed Yun Shuchen's back, not good at comforting. She was silent for a long while, then whispered, "Master, we're out now. You won't see it anymore."

"...Now, whenever I close my eyes, it's all I see."

All she saw was the tender, vibrant body of the insect mother.

Yun Shuchen took a moment to calm down before answering softly.

She pushed Qing Zhouxue away, feeling the sticky mess on her sleeve, and began to feel nauseous again. Even her disciple's comfort no longer worked. She flicked her sleeve and walked forward hastily, wanting to get back and wash herself thoroughly.

This time, her master returned to the peak very quickly, leaving her two disciples far behind. Qing Zhouxue had no choice but to take Yu Ying with her, not trying to catch up, flying slowly behind.

Yu Ying finally recovered from her shock. "Senior Sister... what is your relationship with Master?"

Paper couldn't wrap fire forever. Qing Zhouxue hummed in acknowledgment. "She's the one I love."

"She's your master." Yu Ying raised her eyes, frowning slightly, puzzled. "...Why?"

"Love comes from one's own heart; how can it be explained?"

"I don't understand. Senior Sister has a bright future and such talent. If you and Master formed an Immortal Marriage, outsiders would only think you gained your current cultivation by seducing your master with your looks."

Looks? Qing Zhouxue had always thought her master was prettier, and had never felt she was sacrificing anything.

"The gossip of the crowd is just noise to be ignored." Qing Zhouxue came back to herself and shook her head.

When the two returned to the peak, Yun Shuchen had already bathed and changed, coming out refreshed. Qing Zhouxue noticed a faint redness on her neck, as if she had scrubbed it hard several times.

The discarded clothes had been thrown away. The ring that had stored the demon core was also thrown away. Had Qing Zhouxue and Yu Ying not been living people, she might have thrown her slime-dripping disciples off the peak as well.

The demon core had been cleansed, now rosy and lustrous, exceptionally beautiful. But since its demonic nature hadn't been removed, it still needed to be purified in a magical artifact before it could be used.

This treasure was precious, needed for the tribulation, and couldn't afford any mistakes. Yun Shuchen set up a barrier around it to prevent outside interference, placing it in front of the bronze mirror in her bedroom.

Today, as Qing Zhouxue flew over the training grounds on her sword, she noticed the disciples below wore varied robes, unlike the Taichu Sect members.

Perhaps another sect had come for a friendly exchange.

Whenever that happened, the elders of each peak couldn't stay out of it. She remembered her master saying that these times were the most tiring.

Sure enough, the second day after their return, Yun Shuchen headed to the Main Peak again, seemingly disappearing for the whole day.

Heyi Peak was very quiet today.

Her junior sister seemed to have vanished too.

Suddenly, a figure on a sword flew from the horizon, seemingly heading straight for Heyi Peak.

Qing Zhouxue looked carefully; she didn't recognize her.

The young disciple shouted to Qing Zhouxue, "Elder Liu asks Senior Sister to come to Lingsu Peak. She says it's important!"

Elder Liu?

Qing Zhouxue immediately summoned her Qingshuang Sword and flew with the girl to Lingsu Peak. Passing through the medicine hut, she saw Bai Su and Elder Liu standing before a pill furnace.

Liu Xunqin's brows were slightly furrowed. Hearing footsteps behind, she turned around. "Bai Su said those pastries from a few days ago—did you send them?"

Qing Zhouxue saw her serious expression and felt a slight chill. "Elder, is there a problem?"

That day, after Qing Zhouxue entrusted the matter to her, Bai Su had tested several times but found no poison. She wanted to know what had caused the "inch grass" to wither. After trying several times without success, she brought it to Liu Xunqin.

Thankfully, Bai Su was meticulous and asked her own master.

"Indeed, there's no poison." Liu Xunqin picked up a translucent blade of grass from her hand, quite tiny, and held it before Qing Zhouxue.

"This one ingredient was added. The grass is called Linglongzi. It's colorless and odorless. For cultivators, consuming it has no effect. But it has a counteractive effect on the inch grass."

When Liu Xunqin said "for cultivators," she paused slightly, her gaze fixed on Qing Zhouxue—the half-demon blood in Yun Shuchen's body could potentially be triggered by overconsumption.

There were still some junior disciples here, and Bai Su was present, so some matters weren't convenient to speak of openly. She also didn't know if Yun Shuchen had discussed this with Qing Zhouxue, and she found it a headache.

Qing Zhouxue's brows furrowed slightly. For now, she didn't connect her master with the Demonic Race.

But this thing was colorless, odorless, had no effect, and wasn't a common herb. Yu Ying had put it in the pastries, clearly not for flavor, so her intentions were certainly malicious.

Qing Zhouxue said coldly, "Yes, I'll go inform my master right away."

Just as she left Lingsu Peak and flew over Heyi Peak, a thought struck her—Yu Ying was currently alone on the peak, unguarded. She'd better restrain her first.

With that thought, her heart leaped, and an ominous sense of crisis enveloped her entirely.

So the Qingshuang Sword descended, landing her in the courtyard. Qing Zhouxue's heart pounded, her steps urgent, feeling something was about to happen.

Yu Ying wasn't in the front yard or the back yard. Not in the pavilion, not in the corridor.

Where is she?

Suddenly, Qing Zhouxue heard a faint sound from her master's bedroom. She tightened her grip on her sword and walked over slowly.

What could be in the bedroom? Only some worldly possessions.

No, Qing Zhouxue remembered something—the demon core was placed there. It was for the tribulation, to be refined into a pill later.

The tribulation required utmost care; any slip could ruin everything. She couldn't allow anyone to tamper with it.

The door creaked open.

The demon core had indeed been taken, now in Yu Ying's hands. Qing Zhouxue didn't know how she'd broken through the barrier Yun Shuchen had set. Hearing the sound behind her, Yu Ying suddenly turned, and with a cold wind by her ear, a sword thrust straight at her shoulder.

Yu Ying dodged, narrowly avoiding being hit. The sharp sword energy messed up her hair, but she was still slower than her attacker. She glared at the newcomer—Qing Zhouxue, who had thrust her sword forward, almost a blur, right at Yu Ying's throat.

"Give me the demon core."

She said coldly.

Yu Ying was stunned for a moment, probably not expecting her to notice, and tightened her grip on the demon core. "If you make a move on me, I'll crush it."

"You don't have that ability."

Qing Zhouxue didn't waste words. Instead of piercing her throat, her Qingshuang Sword changed direction and slashed at the wrist. Before the sword arrived, the cold air preceded it, freezing her wrist, making it impossible for her to hold the demon core.

Yu Ying raised her other hand. Her hand gestures when casting spells were almost exactly like Yun Shuchen's. Flames quickly sprang up around her, loosening her frozen wrist. The ice turned to water, which she then manipulated, shooting it like a sharp sword toward Qing Zhouxue's heart.

With a clang, even the softest water deflected the sword's edge. It was at that moment Qing Zhouxue realized Yu Ying's true strength was far beyond that of a novice disciple.

But in such a small, close-quarters fight, a sword cultivator had a natural advantage. For her next thrust, before reaching Yu Ying's chest, she suddenly released her grip, then used her palm to strike Yu Ying's chest with spiritual energy. Yu Ying had intended to dodge the sword, but perhaps lacking combat experience, she sidestepped and took the palm strike square on.

She spat out a mouthful of blood, and her hand was forced open. The demon core was tossed up, quickly caught by Qing Zhouxue, who grasped it tightly.

She put it away and swung her sword horizontally across Yu Ying's neck. At that moment, she caught sight of Yu Ying's open palm, where five faint light points flickered, identical to Yun Shuchen's.

Qing Zhouxue averted her gaze, her eyes turning cold. "In all these years, has she ever mistreated you?"

Yu Ying was still trembling and coughing up blood. That palm strike had been heavy, leaving her dizzy for a long time. Hearing Qing Zhouxue's question, she let out a snort, then laughed lowly.

"Qing Zhouxue."

The frost on the sword gradually spread to her throat, making it harder for her to speak. In her eyes, there was no fear of death, only a hoarse laugh. "You don't really think your master is some celestial fairy, noble and pure, do you?"

She struggled to move her lips and spat out with blood, "Back then, Yun Shuchen colluded with the Demonic Race and slaughtered nearly a hundred members of my Xu family... A hundred disciples! Such a ruthless, demon-blooded person deserves to be killed by all. How does she have the face to sit as an elder of this immortal sect!"

Qing Zhouxue was taken aback, then frowned. "What nonsense are you spouting?"