“Don’t move! Both of you retreat, or I’ll kill her with one sword stroke!” Hua Mengshi had almost lost her rationality, screaming loudly.
Yun Shimo stared at Hua Qiyue, awaiting her decision.
Hua Qiyue gave a light sigh. “Hua Mengshi, if Grandma and Father knew how you are, they’d be terribly heartbroken. Have you forgotten that you were the most talented girl in the Changjing Capital? If you hadn’t schemed against and tried to kill me and Tianci, you wouldn’t have come to this sorry end.”
Hua Mengshi panted, her short sword pressing against the girl’s throat. She had slit the girl’s skin a little, and some blood oozed out.
“At that time, you were beautiful and generous, gentle and lovely. You weren’t jealous of other women. Sure, it was only your appearance, but you still had many suitors. And they were all handsome and suave men,” Hua Qiyue said quietly.
Her gentle tone left Hua Mengshi in her memories.
“Yes, how wonderful… it was then.”
Hua Mengshi lost herself somewhat. She thought about her past and suddenly missed the past days.
Even though Hua Qiyue had won the title of the most talented girl, had Hua Mengshi not schemed against Hua Qiyue with Second Madame, the two might still be living their peaceful, ordinary lives in Hua’s Mansion now.
Those days would be much better than what she was experiencing now.
Hua Mengshi now was neither a human nor a ghost… Her hands were stained with blood.
Her chastity had been taken by Lin Qi. If she had not schemed against Hua Qiyue, she would not have ended up in Green Mountain Temple, nor would she fall prey to Lin Qi…
While Hua Mengshi was in a daze, Hua Qiyue took out the Spirit-summoning Mirror from her sack.
This mirror gave her a wondrous feeling. She was taking this opportunity to test its power.
“Spirit-summoning Mirror, do your work!” Hua Qiyue opened her mouth coldly.
Hua Mengshi came to herself and glanced toward the cave entrance. She saw a blinding, bright light. Her spirit seemed to have departed from her body, and her entire person stood there in a confused trance. She seemed unable to control her own body!
“So, this Spirit-summoning Mirror is quite useful. You can freeze a person without using spiritual energy.” Hua Qiyue had to nod. She was most satisfied with the Spirit-summoning Mirror.
Yun Shimo stared at the frozen Hua Mengshi and walked over, taking the short sword from her hand.
“According to Long Shen, the Spirit-summoning Mirror will only work against Qi Artists at and below the first level of Holy God. Not anyone above. It looks like the higher your Qi Art level is, the less you’ll be restricted by divine or spirit weapons.” Hua Qiyue put the Spirit-summoning Mirror back into her sack and glanced at Hua Mengshi in a trance.
Her spirit had been trapped inside the Spirit-summoning Mirror. As long as Hua Qiyue kept it trapped, her body would remain in this state forever.
“How would you deal with her?” Yun Shimo glanced at Hua Mengshi with some disgust. “A nice girl turning out this way because of jealousy.”
Hua Qiyue felt somewhat disconsolate. After all, they were sisters. She discovered that despite undergoing so many ordeals, she still could not be as merciless as she would like.
“In the past, Hua Mengshi and Second Madame had tried repeatedly to have me and Tianci thrown out of Hua’s Mansion. They even tried to murder me… To deal with such a beastly sister, I can only keep her spirit trapped forever in the mirror,” Hua Qiyue said quietly.
There was nothing wrong with this Hua Mengshi right now. She would not have a chance to do evil. If Grandma and Hua Liting knew that she was still alive, they would feel better.
“You still want to take Hua Mengshi back to the Changjing Kingdom?” A tinge of sarcasm flashed across Yun Shimo’s eyes. “Qiyue, when have you become so merciful?”
Hua Qiyue gave a helpless smile. She and Hua Mengshi were linked by blood. Yun Shimo had no siblings and would not understand the hurt involved in all these. After all, they were born of the same father. It would be a big joke if they had ended up killing each other.
“Such a person will be a scourge if kept alive… ” Suddenly, an old voice rang out from inside the cave!
Hua Qiyue and Yun Shimo were astounded. They had not expected someone else to be in the cave with them!
And yet Hua Qiyue and Yun Shimo had not detected the speaker. They saw a black figure whizzed past behind Hua Mengshi. Hua Mengshi’s body shuddered and she collapsed heavily to the ground with a thud.
The action was instantaneous. Hua Mengshi had been killed before Hua Qiyue could know her assailant!
If a physical body was destroyed, its spirit might still survive. But they must find it an intact body and let the spirit enter it.
But Hua Qiyue could not give Hua Mengshi’s spirit another chance to emerge. In other words, Hua Mengshi was well and truly dead.
Yun Shimo’s face turned grim. He swiftly blocked in Hua Qiyue’s front.
The assailant was too dangerous, hiding himself in the cave noiselessly. And he had killed Hua Mengshi instantaneously. What kind of person was this man, really?
Hua Qiyue and Yun Shimo focused their eyes and found two old people standing before their eyes, a man and a woman. They were between 60 and 70 years old and were sprightly, their eyes gleaming with cold light.
Hua Qiyue frowned. She did not recognize these two elderly folks. Then, she looked toward Yun Shimo but he shook his head as well, indicating the same.
“Ho ho, of course you won’t know us. Forthright people will speak openly. We’re from the Murong Family. I am the House Master and she is my wife. Our family has always been in mortal opposition with the Dark Sect. That was why we made use of Hua Mengshi to obtain information on the Dark Sect,” the old man remarked. He was indeed the master of the Murong Family, Murong Yuan.
Hua Qiyue and Yun Shimo were quietly astounded. They did not expect these two supreme masters to still intervene in worldly affairs. Their cultivation was probably at the medium level of Holy God.
“You can’t let such a scourge off. Princess Jinghua, you won’t blame us for killing Hua Mengshi, will you?” Old Madame Murong said quietly. “In order to master our family’s forbidden art, Hua Mengshi had schemed to win our trust. But the Murong Family know all we need to know about Hua Mengshi’s background. We had wanted her to master the Art of Melting and Absorbing Spirit to absorb the power of Qi Artists above her, so that she could promote more rapidly in her Qi Art. Then, she would rule over the Dark Sect and oppose that murdering fiend…”
Old Madame Murong sighed lightly. “But we’re too late. Before we can hurry here, you people have already slain a few Palace Leaders.”
Hua Qiyue heard her and was greatly shocked. Yun Shimo could not hide his astonishment either. “In other words, you’re using Hua Mengshi as a pawn?”
“Of course. Such a person will try to kill you even without our interference.” Sarcasm flashed across Old Master Murong’s eyes. “After turning into a revenge machine, she is no longer human. So why keep her alive? If she turns into a Devil one day, she will probably claim more victims.”
Hua Qiyue heard him and thought that his words made sense. Even if she let Hua Mengshi off today, Hua Qiyue might still change her mind and release her because of her father’s entreaty. Her release might lead to another bloodbath.
“You’re right, sir. So don’t be too upset, Qiyue. After all, so many had died in Hua Mengshi’s hands. Do you want her to claim more victims?”
Yun Shimo also concurred with the old couple.
“No, I won’t blame the two elders. But sir, how would you deal with that murdering fiend? If I guess right, he must be related to the Dark Sect.” The moment Hua Qiyue heard about the murdering fiend, her heart shuddered.
Tianpi had claimed that he might be the most difficult person to deal with right now.
“That murdering fiend, Chu Qianzhao, is indeed the grandfather of the Dark Sect’s Leader. He lost control during his cultivation and went berserk, killing his entire family. But his granddaughter hid in the back mountains and escaped the massacre. Later, when Chu Qianzhao recovered, he kept saying that he had been framed. So he picked a few important sects and razed three major sects to the ground in one night,” Old Master Murong said.
Hua Qiyue frowned. Such a man would have lost his humanity long ago.
“I also heard the same from my father. Chu Qianzhao was rumored to have been tricked by a mysterious man to practice a forbidden art. He went out of control and turned berserk, causing his temperament to change. He slew his wife, three sons and two daughters, leaving only a granddaughter alive… That girl is now the Leader of the Dark Sect, Chu Cangye. When he recovered his senses, he swore to eliminate everyone who had set him up. Then he went on a killing spree. Although he only suspected certain people, he still ended up killing all of them without exception,” Yun Shimo said in a recollection.
Hua Qiyue’s blood curdled. She did not expect that practicing forbidden arts was so dangerous. She had mastered quite a few and also understood that she might go berserk if she was careless.
“It is indeed so. Right now, we must find a way to deal with that murdering fiend. They say that he will come out of his retreat a year later. But the Dark Sect is so powerful now. We strained our minds and came out with a scheme to trap Chu Cangye. But our plot is quite naive,” Old Master Murong said.
They were both Qi Artists at the medium level of Holy God, yet they were still wary of Cangye.
“In other words, we were too naive in the past,” Hua Qiyue said embarrassedly.
They had wanted to slay all the members of the Dark Sect and then leave the Yuewu Kingdom. They had not expected their Sect Leader to have some affinity with that strange old man.
“But it doesn’t matter. The elder of our Murong Family is about to emerge from his retreat. He might be able to restrain that fiend. Miss Hua and Master Yun, you two are very famous. Be careful, or they’ll come after you,” Old Master Murong said with a smile.
He took out a deep purple scroll from the inner lining of his robe and threw it over to Yun Shimo. Yun Shimo had no scruples and caught it directly.
Old Master Murong saw this and nodded with a smile. Yun Shimo was not wary of him. It looked to him that the latter had a strong sense of righteousness. At least he knew that the Murong Family was not wicked.
“This scroll is a record of an ancient elixir. Unfortunately, no one has managed to refine it. If you have the time and guts, Nephew Yun, try refining it!” Old Master Murong said.
Old Master Murong said. His eyes clouded over mysteriously.
Yun Shimo thanked him and the two elders no longer exchanged pleasantries with him. Their figures whizzed and they immediately disappeared from their sights.
So fast!
Hua Qiyue had to gasp inwardly. Surely, there would always be consummate masters in another sphere. When she started to tail Hua Mengshi, she had never thought they would encounter other people.
Yun Shimo unfurled the scroll. Five large, golden words were written on the scroll—”Spirit Elixir of the Underworld.”
What followed was an introduction to the elixir.
This elixir could make a person advance two whole levels. For example, someone at the Great Completeness of Moon Eclipse would end up at the Great Completeness of Holy God.
Such a pill must have never appeared before in this world.
“Do you dare to refine this elixir? Yun Shimo, please don’t flaunt your abilities. Our main task now isn’t to refine pills, but something else.”
Hua Qiyue glanced through the introduction and realized that all the conditions were very demanding.
