The night breeze was slightly cool, blowing away the clamor left behind after the procession ended.
The lingering fear from that absurd procession still coiled in Su Lingâerâs heart.
She was partly relieved that her innocence remained intact, and partly worried about what new stunt her Eldest Brother would pull next.
"Junior Sister,"
"After the procession, I imagine your understanding of the âGreat Daoâ has reached a new level of enlightenment, has it not?"
He walked ahead with his hands behind his back, his tone leisurely.
It was as if he wasnât the same person who had just been running around, carrying his Junior Sister like a briefcase.
âEnlightenment?â
âEnlightenment my ass!â
âThe only thing Iâm enlightened about is the endless variety of ways you demons have to torment people!â
Su Lingâer screamed internally, but her reply was demure:
"Yes. Your Junior Sister is slow-witted and still needs much more experience."
"Letâs go. Next up..."
However, before he could finish his sentence, disaster struck!
The entire Guixi Sect exploded in an instant, as if it had been plunged into a vat of boiling oil!
All sorts of exclamations erupted one after another in the sectâs communication channel:
[Yan Buliu: Holy shit! Look at the map! Look at the map!]
[Shi Gandang: Weâre rich! Weâre rich! Looks like the warm-up was just small fry, this is the main course! They all spawned! Oh my god!]
[Lu Wu: Over a hundred! Iâm not miscounting, am I?! Over a hundred little red dots!]
[Shen Nong: If one is worth 400 contribution points, isnât that at least forty or fifty thousand in total?! We canât let our Junior Sister miss this!]
[Ji: Quick, quick, quick! Eldest Brother! Tell Junior Sister to make her move! Donât let them get away!]
[The Handsomest Flame Wolf: Eldest Brother! Weâre going to the border to intercept them! If Junior Sister misses any, weâll have to clean them up!]
Su Lingâer looked at the disciples around her, who had once again fallen into a strange silence, completely bewildered.
âYouâve got to be kidding me.â
âWhy are you all acting like this again?â
âWhy do you always freeze up in the middle of moving?â
âDid I really not join some kind of ghost sect?â
âIs this really a demonic sect, and not some place that specializes in necromancy?â
Then, she watched as those silent disciples, as if injected with adrenaline, suddenly had their eyes gleam with light!
With the exception of a few who remained nearby, the majority of the disciples scattered in an instant, transforming into dozens of streaks of light and shooting off in all directions.
The plaza, which had been bustling just a moment before, was now empty except for her, her Eldest Brother, and a few disciples who had not yet reached Foundation Establishment.
It seemed vast and eerie.
Su Lingâer watched the direction in which they had disappeared, feeling somewhat at a loss.
âWhat is wrong with these people?â
âOne second they were fine, the next they all seemed to have a collective psychotic break, just up and leaving like that?â
âWhat happened?â
An absurd chill crept into her heart.
âAre these people... even "human" anymore?â
âCould they actually be a group of bizarre creatures wearing human skin, hiding amongst Cultivators?â
âNo matter how well they disguise themselves, do they instantly reveal their true nature when they encounter a certain stimulus?â
Just as her imagination was running wild, Lin Qingfengâs incredibly grave voice sounded in her ear.
She turned around and saw that his face, which usually wore a gentle smile, was now unprecedentedly stern.
His gaze swept across the surroundings as he said in a low voice:
"Junior Sister, it seems our sect is in trouble."
âWhat?â
âI donât see any trouble.â
âHow could *you* guys possibly have trouble?â
"A great tribulation, the likes of which has never been seen before, has descended upon us!"
"The very survival of our Guixi Sect is at stake!"
???
âWhat did I just hear?â
âThinking back on the expressions of those senior brothers before they left...â
She recalled the words an older senior brother from the outer sect of Qingxu Temple often used to sayâ
âThis... This is a great thing!!!â
âWhich band of righteous heroes has come to deliver justice on behalf of heaven?!â
âAre you scourges finally getting your comeuppance?â
âCan something this wonderful really be happening?!â
Although she was inwardly blooming with joy, her expression remained extremely solemn and sorrowful:
"How could this be?!
What kind of villains possess such outrageous audacity, daring to challenge the divine might of our Guixi Immortal Sect?!
Eldest Brother, quickly take your Junior Sister to the front lines to see!
Though your Junior Sisterâs Dao heart may be weak, I am willing to become a sharp sword and cut down all invading enemies for the sect. Even if it means death, I will have no regrets!"
âQuick, take me to the front so I can rendezvous with the forces of righteousness! Let me coordinate with them from the inside so we can achieve this grand undertaking together!â
"The enemies in this invasion are numerous, spread everywhere, and hidden from sight.
Your senior brothers have already gone to guard all directions and lay an inescapable dragnet for the sake of the sectâs safety.
But, the real threat is not yet over!"
He took a step closer to Su Lingâer.
"Junior Sister, this very moment is a test of your Dao heart and your loyalty to the sect!
The sect has raised you for many days, taught you supreme skills, and bestowed upon you Spirit Pills and miraculous medicines. Now is the time for you to render meritorious service to the sect!"
âThatâs right!â
âFor the sake of all life under heaven and for Mr. Qian, I must do my utmost to eradicate you, this ancient demonic sect!â
But what she said aloud was righteous and awe-inspiring:
"Rest assured, Eldest Brother!"
"As a member of the sect, your Junior Sister will live and die with it!"
"My loyalty is as clear as the sun and moon!"
"Loyalty! Loyalty! Loyalty!"
âYour Junior Sister will definitely send your demonic sect straight to its doom!â
"Good!"
Lin Qingfeng was full of praise upon seeing his Junior Sisterâs demeanor.
"Truly a disciple of my Guixi Immortal Sect! In that case..."
"From right where you stand, you can slay our sectâs mighty foes.
Quickly, use the Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell! Donât be stingy with your Spiritual Power, and exterminate all of them at once!
For the peace of the world, for all life under heaven!
And even more, for the everlasting prosperity of our Guixi Immortal Sect, and so that the righteous path may forever prevail in the mortal realm!
Quick, use your Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell and exterminate them!"
???
âWait a minute???â
âSomething seems wrong here?â
It was only then that Su Lingâer came back to her senses.
âThe Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell?â
âEldest Brother, this is...â
An extremely ominous premonition suddenly rose in her heart.
âCould it be...â
âCould it be that the "invading enemies" Eldest Brother mentioned, the ones who want to destroy the sect, arenât some righteous Immortal Masters, but are instead...â
â...my last hope, those hundred-plus Contracted Spirit Insects?!â
âThose hundred-plus Contracted Spirit Insects have been activated?â
The look of righteous indignation on Su Lingâerâs face instantly froze.
Her Eldest Brother then stretched out his hand, drew a circle in the surrounding night sky, and looked at her:
"Hm? Junior Sister, whatâs with you...?"
His junior sister quickly snapped back to form:
"I... Eldest Brother, I was just so overcome with anger at the thought of so many powerful enemies!
And I never imagined that I, your Junior Sister, could contribute to the sect just by standing here!
I... I... I... Iâm just... so thrilled!"
His junior sister was grinding her teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
"Thatâs good!"
Lin Qingfeng gestured in a circle at the night sky.
"Hurry! Do a full sweep of the entire area! Quickly!"
Su Lingâer could only brace herself and frantically circulate her Spiritual Power.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry!!!"
Her fingers formed a sword sign, and one by one, beams of pitch-black light shot out according to her Eldest Brotherâs commands, flying into various parts of the seemingly empty night sky.
SNAP!
SNAP!
SNAP...
Innumerable threads connected to her soul snapped in response!
Excruciating pain surged through her!
Before she could even recover, Lin Qingfeng continued to shout:
"Over there! Over there! Shoot, quickly! Donât let them escape! Faster!"
Su Lingâer wailed in her heart, but her hands dared not stop as she shot out several more beams of light!
SNAP!
SNAP!
SNAP...
"And over there! There! Quick!"
SNAP!
"There! And there!"
SNAP! SNAP! SNAP...
One after another, beams of the spell shot from her hand, and each one was accompanied by soul-tearing agony.
The hundred-plus Contracted Spirit Insects that carried all her hopes were being annihilated by her own hand, batch after batch.
Although a few scattered ones were spared, she still felt like her head was about to explode.
But that damned Supreme Heart-Clearing Soul-Stabilizing Skill kept her conscious, preventing her from fainting on the spot from the pain.
It was precisely this damned divine skill that made her experience every iota of the soul-tearing agony, exquisitely and without fail!
She couldnât faint, couldnât escape; she could only remain conscious and experience this endless torture!
Pain!
It was too painful!
She even felt that being able to faint on the spot would be a kind of salvation.
Su Lingâerâs face was already deathly pale. Cold sweat slid from her temples, dampening her sideburns and soaking the red clothes on her back.
She leaned on a nearby stone bench, gasping for breath, her body on the verge of collapse.
âI canât take it anymore, I really canât!â
âIf this keeps up, I suspect Iâll become the first Qi Refining Stage Cultivator in the history of the Cultivation Realm to be driven insane by soul-tearing pain!â
Then, she saw Lin Qingfengâs face slowly turning toward her.
âItâs over, itâs over, I canât let him see me in this state!â
âI have to keep up the act, no matter what!â
The instant her Eldest Brother turned around, the pain-twisted expression on Su Lingâerâs face was forcibly contorted, within three seconds, into a look of extreme, righteous indignation.
It was just that this look... appeared exceptionally strange... and distorted.