"Qian Sanpang is already dead. And the one who took my innocence was you."
As Ning Xue spoke, her lips trembled in a slight pout, her heart filled with unconcealable humiliation and sorrow.
She was proud and aloof. Growing up, she had seen countless young talents, innumerable so-called geniuses and prodigies, but not one had ever moved her heart.
To think she would lose her virginity in a godforsaken little place like Lianshan County.
And to a mere Level Three Martial Artist with a Tier Two Martial Soul, no less.
She wouldn't normally deign to even glance at someone like him, but now, he had been the one to take her innocence!
The more Ning Xue thought about it, the angrier she became. Primordial Power pulsed from her hand. With just a light tap of her palm, she could shatter this detestable bastard's head into a thousand pieces!
But, when it came down to it, she bit her lip, unable to bring herself to strike.
Besides, just moments ago, when Chu Qingyun was about to be killed by Jintai, she had saved him without a second thought, for reasons she couldn't explain.
'Why? Could it be... that I've fallen for him?'
The thought startled Ning Xue, and she couldn't help but blush. Fortunately, the sky had grown dark, and Chu Qingyun couldn't see the color of her face.
While Ning Xue hesitated, Chu Qingyun was in agony.
'My lady, are you going to kill me or not? Just give me a straight answer.'
'If you're really going to do it, I'll have to use my Shadow Martial Soul to escape. Even if the chance of success is less than 10%, I have to try.'
"Did you get that thing from the Martial King's Tomb?"
Ning Xue's mind was in turmoil, so she changed the subject. She didn't even realize that she had already quietly abandoned her intent to kill.
"That thing? You mean the King-level Sword Technique? I got it. If you want it, I can give it to you."
Chu Qingyun answered hurriedly. Compared to his life, a King-level Sword Technique was nothing.
Ning Xue raised a delicate brow. "Still playing dumb with me? Do you really think I came all this way to this godforsaken place for a mere King-level Sword Technique?"
A mere King-level Sword Technique...
Chu Qingyun was stunned speechless. The Four Great Clans of Lianshan County City had fought tooth and nail for this, yet to Ning Xue, it was "mere."
'If not for the King-level Sword Technique, then what was it for?'
Chu Qingyun quickly recalled what You Yun had told him aboutāthe thing that could completely change one's destiny.
'Primordial Stones? The Puppet? Primordial Spirit Liquid? The Storage Ring?... No, it doesn't seem to be any of those.'
Chu Qingyun carefully recalled everything he had obtained in the Martial King's Tomb, eliminating them one by one. Suddenly, he thought of somethingāthe one thing he had paid the least attention to before.
That map fragment!
The only thing inside the Storage Ring when he'd first gotten it!
"Are you talking about this?"
As Chu Qingyun spoke, he took the fragment out of his Storage Ring and handed it to Ning Xue.
The moment the fragment appeared, a faint but distinctly ancient aura spread through the air.
Ning Xue's hand trembled slightly as she took the fragment.
The instant she touched the fragment, she suddenly felt a sense of alarm and whipped her head around to look at the nearby woods.
She sensed carefully but found nothing. 'Strange. I could have sworn there was a flicker of movement just now. Am I just too on edge?'
Ning Xue paid it no mind and began to carefully examine the fragment in her hand.
Her beautiful eyes glinted, and then she suddenly sighed. With a flick of her slender fingers, she tossed the fragment back to Chu Qingyun. "Since you're the one who obtained this fragment, keep it safe. Don't ever let anyone else see it. As for what happened today... just forget it. Pretend it never happened. I'm leaving."
"Where are you going?" Chu Qingyun asked.
Ning Xue shot him a glance and said coldly, "It has nothing to do with you. From now on, you are you, and I am I."
"Is it because I'm too weak?"
Chu Qingyun clutched the fragment in his hand, a bitter pang in his heart. 'To think the first woman in my life... would end up like this.'
Ning Xue nodded. "That's right."
"No one is born strong! Even the most powerful expert in the world had to start as a Level One Martial Artist and cultivate step by step!"
Chu Qingyun's gaze was firm, his words filled with immense confidence.
Possessing the mysterious Devouring Martial Soul, he had discovered many of its uses as it advanced, and he was gradually coming to understand its power.
Chu Qingyun was confident that, given enough time, he would one day stand at the very pinnacle of this world!
Looking at Chu Qingyun's determined eyes and recalling the terrifying resilience he had shown under Jintai's oppressive aura, Ning Xue couldn't help but blush again.
She hesitated for a moment, then with a flick of her fingers, she took something from her Storage Ring. She laid it flat in the heart of her palm, and a familiar, ancient aura wafted out.
The object was, astonishingly, another map fragment!
Furthermore, its aura was identical to Chu Qingyun's. Clearly, the two fragments had been torn from the same map!
"Chu Qingyun, I'll give you five years. If you can reach Piaomiao Peak in the Central State within five years, I'll give you this fragment."
After speaking, Ning Xue stepped onto her cyan silk ribbon and gracefully drifted away.
"Just give me the fragment? When the time comes, I'm taking you too! Any woman I, Chu Qingyun, have slept with is my woman forever!" Chu Qingyun suddenly shot to his feet and yelled.
Ning Xue faltered, nearly falling from the sky. She turned to glare at Chu Qingyun, then accelerated away. A faint smile, however, touched the corner of her lips. 'Chu Qingyun, I hope you can do it. The man for me, Ning Xue, will not be a waste!'
Hooo...
He had escaped death yet again.
Chu Qingyun couldn't remember how many life-or-death crises he had faced in this single day.
The Martial King's Tomb was definitely a great opportunity, but at the same time, it was a great risk. Risk and opportunity went hand in hand.
"Chu Qingyun, you seem quite pleased."
An eerie voice suddenly rang out, startling Chu Qingyun so badly his legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
Turning his head, he saw a person dressed in a black robe, their head completely covered by a black hood. He couldn't see their face, but judging by their figure, it had to be a woman.
"You Yun?" Chu Qingyun's nose twitched as he asked.
"How did you recognize me? I've concealed my aura to the absolute limit," You Yun said.
Once her identity was confirmed, Chu Qingyun relaxed. At least You Yun wouldn't harm him. Moreover, with her around, his safety was guaranteed.
"I recognized your scent."
"..."
"Right, You Yun, were you waiting for me in the Cold Cyan Mountain Range this whole time?" Chu Qingyun suddenly thought of something and asked.
You Yun nodded.
"Then... when I was being attacked by Jintai and that old fiend, why didn't you come out and help me?" Chu Qingyun gritted his teeth and asked irritably.
"Why should I have helped you? Besides, your little girlfriend was hiding in the shadows and didn't even make a move. Why should I meddle?"
You Yun's tone seemed a bit sharp.