With a single sword strike, the cultivator rushing at Hua Jian lost all signs of life.
His heart meridian had been completely destroyed in an instant—a fatal injury beyond all hope of recovery.
And the one who delivered such a deathblow had never meant to give him a chance to resist.
Only after his life force had fully dissipated did the ambusher, who had so suddenly joined the fray, stand up and calmly pull the sword from the corpse’s back, their expression as placid as if they’d just killed a stray dog.
“Interesting…” Hua Jian eyed this unexpected helper, focusing on the diamond-shaped black sword in their grip, and felt she had finally found the culprit behind those murders.
This cultivator was dressed in plain black, hair cropped short, her appearance clearly that of a man, and yet, Hua Jian could see an unmistakable trace of delicacy she could not conceal.
A woman disguised as a man? Hua Jian narrowed her eyes. Is this trial not getting a little too complicated?
After taking care of the charging cultivator, the unknown black-clad girl raised her sword and charged at the remaining few cultivators whom Linglong had already beaten into helplessness.
It looked like she was intent on finishing them off.
“Young hero, wait!” Hua Jian quickly called out.
At the same time, she shot Linglong a glance, signaling her to hold off the black-clad girl and not let her escape.
This was the murderer they had searched so long for—how could they just let her go without getting answers?
Catching Hua Jian’s look, Linglong immediately met the black-clad girl head-on.
After ten exchanges, she had the black-clad girl on the defensive, forced to only guard against attacks.
Her strength wasn’t overwhelming, but compared to the few cultivators Linglong had just beaten, she was clearly superior.
Among ordinary spiritual practitioners, she could be counted as a formidable opponent. No wonder so many people had fallen to her along the way.
“Don’t block me!”
The black-clad girl bit her lip, her face growing more and more unwilling.
Why was this white-haired bodyguard stopping her? Weren’t those villains their common enemy?
“My lady has her reasons. Please, young hero, calm yourself,” Linglong eased up, seeing that the black-clad girl bore no real hostility.
The atmosphere shifted from before; she was now simply restraining the girl, and, after gaining the upper hand, stopped her assault to open a dialogue.
“You saved my life, and I’ve nothing with which to repay you. May I ask for your name, young hero?” Hua Jian gracefully walked over at this point, cupping her hands in thanks.
Since the other was cross-dressing, she’d best not expose her outright. One careless word could set off a landmine.
Clearly, this girl had her reasons—probably reasons she didn’t want to share. It wouldn’t do to pry rashly.
“If you want to repay me, then have your bodyguard move aside and stop blocking my way!”
Oh my, such a little wildcat—Hua Jian’s lips curled in a faint, almost invisible smile.
As for that request, she would certainly not oblige.
“Saving my life is one thing, but I can’t let you kill these people,” Hua Jian shook her head, signaling that these were two separate matters.
“They tried to kill you, and you still want to protect them? Are you an idiot?!”
The black-clad girl retorted angrily.
She really thought this black-haired, colorful-eyed young lady was out of her mind. What sort of environment would create a person like this?
When in danger, she didn’t even think to run; when it was over, she tried to stop her benefactor from killing the source of that danger. What a supreme holy saint!
How had someone like this even survived until now!
“Not at all. I still don’t know who they are. Shouldn’t we question them a bit before deciding what to do next?” Hua Jian replied with a laugh.
The black-clad girl might know who these people were, but she and Linglong didn’t.
It had been so hard to capture a few living ones; she couldn’t just watch the black-clad girl kill them all.
“Give it up. These bastards won’t say a word. There’s no one innocent in the Gang Wolf Legion.”
A familiar name drifted into Hua Jian’s ears—Gang Wolf Legion?
Wasn’t that the group she’d once crossed paths with in Tianbei City?
Right, the same lot who’d tried to rob her of treasure clues, only for Hua Jian to outmaneuver them.
She hadn’t expected to run into them here. How fateful.
“Those bastards act like tyrants in the Northern Mountains, doing every evil they please. I’m acting on behalf of heaven—don’t stop me!”
Clearly, this black-clad girl bore deep grudges against the Gang Wolf Legion.
Hua Jian finally understood why there had been so many corpses—vengeance.
No wonder the area was so quiet: the Legion, who occupied this spot, had been attacked, and everyone had gone off to hunt down the killer, leaving no one to scour for treasures outside.
Everything lined up!
“Even the most stubborn will talk eventually. Just because you can’t get answers doesn’t mean I can’t.”
“Someone as delicate as you? Have you read too many storybooks and lost touch with reality? You think this place is like a novel?” the black-clad girl scoffed at Hua Jian’s words.
Though Hua Jian’s earlier words had softened her bias a little, her initial impression of Hua Jian as a useless rich young lady was too deeply ingrained.
Enemies charged at her and she didn’t even know to run—a pampered girl who had clearly never seen any hardship.
“If you’ve read so many stories, I saved you—why don’t you offer yourself to me in gratitude?”
“Oh? If young hero wishes me to repay you with myself, that can be arranged—provided you have household registration in one of the central cities, or are a disciple of the Saint Sect. Then I could persuade my family to let me marry you.”
The black-clad girl’s face froze. What was that? So she set conditions on ‘offering herself’?
If you didn’t meet the requirements, she’d just refuse?
“My lady, I’ve brought them over.”
As Hua Jian and the black-clad girl chatted, Linglong had already dragged over the heavily wounded cultivators, awaiting Hua Jian’s orders.
If the black-clad girl hadn’t been there, she’d have acted directly, but with outsiders present, she had to play her role well.
Everything had to go through Lady Hua Jian.
“I think you’re just wasting your time. Hmph, when you get tricked, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” The black-clad girl snorted and turned away in frustration.
She never should have helped this irritating young lady.
“Hey, young hero, I still don’t know your name!” Hua Jian called after her.
“I don’t have a name!”
“Oh, farewell then, young hero~”
The black-clad girl almost tripped over a small stone. Young hero, farewell—what sort of nonsense was that?
“I’m not called ‘I don’t have a name’, I mean I literally have no name!”
“So, you’re Hero No-name…”
“My name is Shiqi!”
Faced with Hua Jian’s endless teasing, the black-clad girl finally caved and revealed her name.
Though, rather than a normal name, it sounded more like a code or a ranking.
Hua Jian wanted to ask why she was called Shiqi, but the girl leapt away, vanishing from sight as if unwilling to stay a moment longer.
“She’s gone.” Watching Shiqi disappear, Hua Jian turned to Linglong. “Did you notice?”
“Notice what?”
“I think she’s a woman in disguise.”
So that was it—Linglong revealed an enlightened expression; of course, she’d noticed.
But, to be precise, she hadn’t seen it—she’d smelled it.
There was a great difference in the aura between males and females.
Though Shiqi was dressed without a trace of femininity, the aura she gave off was proof enough.
But since Hua Jian kept calling Shiqi ‘young hero’, Linglong simply played along.
“What do you think of her strength?”
“Quite impressive, though her swordplay is a bit rough. If she trained in a major sect for a while, she could reach the level of a Saint Sect Inner Disciple.”
That was high praise. The gap between Inner and Outer Disciples of the Saint Sect was immense; only those with undeniable talent could enter the Inner Sect.
Most disciples spent their whole lives in the Outer Sect, never getting the chance to rise.
For Linglong to say Shiqi had the potential for the Inner Sect was a clear acknowledgment of her talent.
“Geniuses really are everywhere, huh? Walk a few steps and you run into someone with Inner Sect talent.” Hua Jian muttered, nudging one of the injured men on the ground with her foot.
“You or me? I’ll say it up front, I’m not good at interrogations.”
With Shiqi gone, it was time to get some answers from their prisoners.
Despite how confidently she’d spoken to Shiqi, Hua Jian was actually clueless when it came to interrogation.
She’d never had a chance to learn such things. She was lucky not to be interrogated herself; doing it to others was wishful thinking.
After she grew up, her work was all sneaking and ambushes, never about prying secrets from people’s mouths.
Her only ‘skills’ came from torture scenes in dramas from her past life.
But now, with these cultivators barely hanging onto life, if she tried any torture, their mouths wouldn’t open before they died.
“This is troublesome.” Linglong was hesitant too—this was a tricky situation.
They stood there for a while, until Hua Jian felt a faint tremor from deep within her soul.
It was as if something was reminding her—don’t forget, she had another ability.
What else…?
“Illusory Dream Flower! How did I forget about that?” Hua Jian smacked her palm, finally remembering her trump card.
These men’s bodies were gravely injured, but their souls shouldn’t be. Why not target their souls?
She could drag their souls into her Godsoul Space and torment them as she pleased!
That reminder just now had probably come from A Meng, who had been slumbering deep in her soul.
The next instant after having this thought, Hua Jian again sensed a weak soul fluctuation from deep within.
As if to say, “Oh, so you still remember me.”
She felt a little guilty—she really had almost forgotten about A Meng.
Though she took the Lingcaifeng Master’s soul-nourishing pills every day, A Meng had never stirred, so she gradually forgot she was carrying a peak Lingwang Realm spirit beast with her.
Now A Meng was finally awake—a truly fortunate event.
“Are you going to use the Illusory Dream Flower?” Linglong’s expression was complicated. She didn’t want Hua Jian to use such a method to extract information.
Think about it: dragging a cultivator’s soul into the Godsoul Space to torture secrets out of them—that was essentially a form of soul-searching.
And once the questioning was done, would Hua Jian conveniently shatter their souls and devour them?
Not impossible, right?
Devouring other cultivators’ souls was strictly forbidden as a demonic practice, something the Hudaosi would never tolerate.
Even if Hua Jian could argue she and the Illusory Dream Flower were symbiotic, and its nature was hers, the Protectorate would not listen.
If you break the law, you’re caught first—no matter the excuse.
Linglong felt exhausted—Hua Jian’s power kept growing, her techniques multiplying, and though these were all good things, look at the abilities she now possessed: each one, if used carelessly, could pull her straight toward the demonic path.
Just the combination of Vine Absorption and Soul Devour—if outsiders saw her use them, they’d definitely think Hua Jian was a terrifying demonic cultivator.
After killing someone, she absorbed their physical energy with vines, then the Illusory Dream Flower absorbed their soul—nothing went to waste.
“What’s wrong, can’t I use the Illusory Dream Flower?”
“It’s not that you can’t, but just remember—don’t eat their souls, all right?”
“Oh, is that all? That’s nothing. I’m a picky eater anyway. These souls aren’t tasty; I’m not that desperate,” Hua Jian replied breezily.
Seeing Hua Jian so nonchalant, Linglong began to doubt herself—maybe she was too sensitive. Maybe she should trust Hua Jian more.
But with matters like these, she really couldn’t give a hundred percent trust.
Hua Jian’s skillset seemed tailor-made for the demonic path.
If she wanted to walk the righteous road, she’d have to suppress her instincts at all times.
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