At her words, Xiao Qingxuan’s eyes sharpened.
“You want to apologize? What does this have to do with Ah Qing?”
She said coldly, staring at Ruyi Pei before her.
Anything related to Ah Qing was the utmost priority in her eyes.
Seeing Xiao Qingxuan instantly take it seriously, Ruyi Pei’s lips pressed into a thin line.
If only Senior Sister Xiao could care for her like this.
But even if Senior Sister Xiao had lost interest in her, her feelings had never changed.
So being misunderstood by the other side didn’t matter.
“The night before last, I took some Inner Sect disciples to Biluo Peak for an exchange and sparring session. I was defeated by Golden Core Realm disciple Ye… Junior Sister. This damaged our peak’s prestige. I hope the Chief will punish her.”
She didn’t come straight out to complain about Ye Luqing.
Given Ye Luqing’s position in Senior Sister Xiao’s heart, her words would surely be seen as slander.
“Defeated?” Xiao Qingxuan’s expression shifted in surprise.
If Ah Qing had been a Nascent Soul late-stage cultivator before losing her memory, it would be understandable that Ruyi Pei lost.
But now, after Ah Qing’s memory loss and her cultivation falling almost an entire realm, she still managed to defeat Ruyi Pei, who had broken through to Nascent Soul?
Watching Xiao Qingxuan’s slightly changed expression, Ruyi Pei breathed a small sigh of relief.
It seemed Senior Sister Xiao hadn’t been completely bewitched by Ye Luqing’s beauty. She could still see through such obvious abnormalities.
After returning to Heavenly Sword Peak yesterday noon, she reviewed everything that had happened over the past two days.
Many things felt normal at the time, but on reflection, some were off.
Among those oddities, she sensed something was wrong with Ye Luqing.
How could the once harmless Ye Luqing have done something as outrageous as making her serve as a stool?
She originally thought it was an insult against her intrusion into Biluo Peak, but then Ye Luqing made her wear Senior Sister Xiao’s clothes—as if the real target hadn’t been her all along.
Though the truth remained unclear, she knew she had to warn Senior Sister Xiao.
“Senior Sister Xiao, I…”
However, as Ruyi Pei was about to continue, a flicker of reluctance rose within her, as if unwilling to expose these matters.
The next moment, she seemed to sense something and turned her head to the side.
There, a green figure—without her noticing when—had already arrived at the Sword Trial Platform, watching her and Xiao Qingxuan with interest from a short distance.
“!”
Ruyi Pei’s heart suddenly felt gripped by some invisible force; her true qi seemed to drain away, leaving her barely able to stand her ground.
“Junior Sister Pei, what’s wrong?”
Xiao Qingxuan frowned, noticing something was off with her junior sister.
Ruyi Pei’s body trembled slightly, as if struggling against something.
Torn between the pleasure of obeying Ye Luqing’s orders and telling Senior Sister Xiao the truth, she hesitated.
“No, I—I must tell Senior Sister Xiao…” she thought to herself.
Ye Luqing was dangerous now!
Suddenly, she raised her head, determination shining in her eyes:
“Senior Sister Xiao, you have to be careful…”
The next instant, a crisp finger snap cut through the noisy voices of the Heavenly Sword Peak disciples, reaching her mind from dozens of yards away.
Her entire body froze, immediately seized and controlled.
The snap sounded like a command, silencing her completely.
Though she had no memory of such things, she knew clearly.
That snap was Ye Luqing telling her to [Shut up].
She felt as if a gentle but firm hand was pressing down on her spirit platform, crushing any thought of resistance.
“Mm… mm…”
Though Senior Sister Xiao was right in front of her, not a word could pass her lips.
“Senior Sister Xiao, I’m sorry…” she silently shed two clear tears in her heart.
For some reason, she found it even harder to resist Ye Luqing than yesterday.
“Junior Sister Pei?”
Xiao Qingxuan’s brows knitted tightly.
Ruyi Pei’s true qi suddenly became chaotic, but her divine sense at half Nascent Soul Realm detected no true qi or mental attack on her junior sister.
Yet this didn’t seem to be Ruyi Pei’s own doing.
“What are the two Senior Sisters talking about?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Xiao Qingxuan instinctively turned back, her gaze caught firmly by the dazzling green figure.
“Ah Qing? Why are you here?”
She looked at Ye Luqing with surprise.
This was Ah Qing’s first visit to Heavenly Sword Peak since losing her memory.
“I came to learn swordsmanship from Senior Sister Xiao,” Ye Luqing smiled slightly.
“Yesterday’s Qi Sword Technique was too exquisite; I haven’t fully mastered it yet.”
Then she turned to Ruyi Pei beside her.
“Hello, Senior Sister Pei.”
Upon hearing Ye Luqing speak, Xiao Qingxuan suddenly remembered Ruyi Pei was still in that strange state.
But when she looked back, she found Ruyi Pei’s complexion gradually returning to normal.
Only a fleeting trace of despair in her eyes revealed her predicament, unnoticed as Xiao Qingxuan focused on Ye Luqing.
At the moment Xiao Qingxuan turned, Ye Luqing moved her mind, implanting the Six Desires Marionette Array into Ruyi Pei’s Soul Palace.
After reaching Corruption Value Stage Two, Ruyi Pei’s “obedience” toward Ye Luqing had risen to a new level—she had basically opened her heart.
Ye Luqing used the Six Desires Marionette Array to divide Ruyi Pei’s emotions.
No matter what Ruyi Pei thought inside, her outward behavior matched Ye Luqing’s will.
Under control, Ruyi Pei nodded slightly.
“Hello, Junior Sister Ye.”
Seeing Ruyi Pei return to normal, Xiao Qingxuan asked again:
“Junior Sister Pei, what were you trying to warn me about just now?”
She recalled Ruyi Pei saying she lost to Ah Qing and tried to warn her, but never finished.
“Nothing. Senior Sister Xiao is about to break through to the Dharma Combat Realm, with outstanding cultivation and Master’s protection on Heavenly Sword Peak. There’s no need to worry,” Ruyi Pei said, her words hollow and untrue.
Why was she saying such things when she clearly sensed something wrong with Senior Sister Ye…
Xiao Qingxuan frowned slightly, vaguely sensing something amiss.
But since Ruyi Pei said so, she didn’t probe further.
“Then… is there anything else you want to say?”
“No, I just wanted to ask Senior Sister Xiao to punish me for losing the peak’s prestige.”
Though she should have warned Senior Sister Xiao, under Ye Luqing’s control, Ruyi Pei could only say these insincere words.
“Dharma combats have winners and losers. If I had to punish every loss to outsiders, I’d have no time to cultivate,” Xiao Qingxuan waved her hand, showing no intention to punish.
“Yes…”
Ruyi Pei bowed her head, hiding her flushed face in shadow.
Silently, Ye Luqing had already lifted the [Order] from her.
But her heart no longer resisted. Even without the command, she instinctively obeyed Ye Luqing.
“Junior Sister Pei, don’t forget our promise. Remember to come find me this afternoon.”
Ye Luqing smiled at Ruyi Pei, her fingertips gliding over the other’s waist muscles, causing her to tremble but struggle to control herself.
“A promise?”
Xiao Qingxuan’s face darkened, looking at Ye Luqing with surprise and a hint of loss.
Why would Ah Qing have a promise with someone else?
She didn’t even know what it was.
[Detected Destined Female Lead Xiao Qingxuan’s Blackening Value rising to 111%]
“It’s actually a bet. The night before last, Junior Sister Pei lost to me on the platform. According to the bet, she has to teach me a technique related to offense,” Ye Luqing said with a sly smile, looking at Ruyi Pei.
Besides Heavenly Sword Peak’s secret transmissions, Golden Core and Nascent Soul disciples had also exchanged some external techniques and divine abilities on Scroll Peak.
Xiao Qingxuan glanced at Ruyi Pei, who nodded silently.
After a moment’s thought, she slowly said:
“Since it’s a transmission of techniques, can I come along as well?”
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