The blood had not yet cooled.
Four corpses lay strewn across the bluestone pavement, blood pooling in the cracks between the bricks and winding into tiny streams.
The air was thick with the heavy scent of rust, mingled with the lingering fragrance of spiritual herbs that permeated the marketplace, creating an eerie atmosphere.
Shen Mo stood at the edge of the blood, red droplets still dripping from his robes.
Qin Shuying stood beside him, her frost-white Daoist robes spotless.
Her sword had already been sheathed. She stood with her hands behind her back, her gaze passing over the guards kneeling on the ground to look toward the entrance of the marketplace.
She was waiting.
Shen Mo did not know what she was waiting for, but he vaguely sensed that something was about to happen.
As expected.
After half a stick of incense, a streak of light suddenly lit up the horizon.
The light moved incredibly fast. Before Shen Mo could even blink, it had already landed in the middle of the street.
The light faded to reveal a woman. She looked to be in her 30s, wearing deep purple Daoist robes. Her features were beautiful, yet they carried an indescribable sharpness.
Her gaze swept over the four corpses on the ground, pausing for a moment on the severed head of Zhou Yunying.
Then she looked up at Qin Shuying.
The moment she saw that face, the sharpness on her own face vanished instantly, replaced by a smile that was almost excessively bright.
“Ayaya, I was wondering who it was! It turns out to be Senior Sister Qin of Heavenly Sword Peak! Your junior sister failed to welcome you from afar. I hope the Peak Master can forgive me.”
Her voice was soft and sweet, like a glutinous rice ball.
Her posture was extremely low, nearly to the point of being humble.
As the dignified Peak Master of Chaoyun Peak and a Mid-Nascent Soul cultivator, she now bowed her head and bent her waist like a minor disciple, not even daring to breathe loudly.
Qin Shuying did not speak.
She simply looked at her.
That gaze was as cold as a winter wind, causing the smile on the woman’s face to stiffen for a moment. But she recovered quickly, her smile growing even more radiant as she stepped forward to bow attentively.
“Yun Fuling of Chaoyun Peak greets Senior Sister Qin. Since Senior Sister has graced us with her presence, why didn’t you say so in advance? Your junior sister could have prepared some tea to entertain you properly.”
Shen Mo stood to the side, watching this scene, his mind unable to keep up.
Peak Master of Chaoyun Peak.
Yun Fuling.
Mid-Nascent Soul.
This woman, who smiled like a sweet treat, was actually the Peak Master of Chaoyun Peak?
Just moments ago, Zhou Yunying had repeatedly claimed she would “take him back to Chaoyun Peak and lock him up,” boasting about the people backing her and the power of Chaoyun Peak. Shen Mo had expected some arrogant and domineering figure to arrive.
But the person before him —
“Senior Sister Qin, please don’t be angry.” Yun Fuling had already moved closer to Qin Shuying, her attentiveness bordering on sycophancy. “These people were blind to offend you. They deserved to die! It was a wonderful death! If it were me, I would have dealt with them personally as well!”
As she spoke, she looked down at the four corpses and suddenly let out a small “oh.”
“This one…” She pointed at Zhou Yunying’s body, the smile on her face faltering slightly. “Isn’t this the new manager of the Spirit Treasure Pavilion? I just saw her a few days ago, why…”
Before she finished, she jerked her head up to look at Qin Shuying, her smile piling up again.
“But since she offended Senior Sister, then her death is well-deserved! Senior Sister killed well! Such blind fools are nothing but a nuisance if left alive!”
Shen Mo looked at her radiantly smiling face, and a layer of cold sweat suddenly broke out on his back.
‘This woman.’
She was clearly a Peak Master at the Mid-Nascent Soul stage, yet she smiled so obsequiously in front of Qin Shuying. What was hidden beneath that smile? Was it fear? Respect? Or something else?
He did not know.
But he knew that someone who could make a Peak Master this afraid was 10,000 times more terrifying than those female cultivators who merely bullied the weak.
Qin Shuying finally spoke.
“Your person,” she said, her voice flat.
Yun Fuling’s smile stiffened, but it quickly returned to normal.
“Senior Sister must be joking.” She gave a forced laugh. “Although this Spirit Treasure Pavilion is opened within the territory of my Chaoyun Peak, this manager came from the outside. Your junior sister doesn’t even know her, so how could she be my person?”
Qin Shuying did not speak.
She only looked at her.
That gaze was so cold that the smile on Yun Fuling’s face began to fall away layer by layer. Finally, unable to keep up the act, she lowered her head sheepishly.
“Yes, yes, it was this junior sister’s poor management. Since this person opened a shop in my territory, I should have kept her under control. The fact that she didn’t know any better and offended Senior Sister is my fault.”
She looked up again, back to her radiant smile.
“Senior Sister, how about this — I will have people clean up these four corpses. I guarantee not a single trace will be left. As for this…”
She suddenly looked at Shen Mo.
Shen Mo’s heart tightened as he met her gaze.
Yun Fuling sized him up from head to toe, her gaze no different from Zhou Yunying’s — it was the look of someone inspecting merchandise.
Only, her gaze held one more thing.
Curiosity.
“Is this the Lord of Jiaoyue Peak?” she asked, her tone carrying a hint of playfulness. “Su Wan’er’s husband?”
Qin Shuying did not answer.
But Yun Fuling already had her answer from the silence.
She laughed and walked a few steps closer to Shen Mo, looking him up and down.
“Tsk, tsk.” She clicked her tongue. “He really is handsome. No wonder my blind manager developed such crooked thoughts.”
Shen Mo said nothing.
He kept his eyes downcast, standing at the edge of the blood as it continued to drip from his robes. He knew he was trembling, but he could not control it.
Seeing him shake, Yun Fuling suddenly let out a soft laugh.
“Don’t be afraid,” she said, her voice soft as if coaxing a child. “This Peak Master doesn’t eat people.”
As she spoke, she took a Jade Box from her sleeve and held it out to Shen Mo.
“Take it.”
Shen Mo looked up at her.
“These are Talismans I drew personally. They are ten times better than that other batch,” Yun Fuling said with a smile. “I won’t charge you any Spirit Stones. Consider it an apology on behalf of that blind fool.”
Shen Mo did not reach out.
He looked at the Jade Box and then at Yun Fuling’s face, unsure of how to react.
No Spirit Stones?
Personally drawn Talismans?
An apology?
He didn’t believe it. He didn’t believe a single word.
Would a Peak Master at the Mid-Nascent Soul stage personally deliver Talismans as an apology to a husband she didn’t even know?
She was afraid of Qin Shuying.
But why was she trying to curry favor with him as well?
Seeing that he wouldn’t take it, Yun Fuling didn’t get angry. She simply shoved the Jade Box into his hands and smiled.
“Just take it. In the future, if anyone else tries to bully you, just mention the name of my Chaoyun Peak. Say that you are a friend of Yun Fuling and see who dares to touch you.”
As she spoke, her eyes were fixed on Qin Shuying.
Shen Mo understood.
The friendship and the apology were all meant for Qin Shuying to hear.
He was merely a pretext.
A reason for Yun Fuling to show her loyalty to Qin Shuying.
He lowered his head and looked at the Jade Box in his hands.
The jade was warm and smooth, faintly glowing with spiritual light. The Talismans inside were likely more valuable than those thirty-six combined.
But he could not feel any joy.
Because he knew this “kindness” was not for him.
It was for Qin Shuying’s benefit.
“All right.” Yun Fuling clapped her hands and turned around, calling out to the guards who were still kneeling. “What are you still standing there for? Clean this place up! Don’t leave a single trace!”
The guards felt as if they had been granted a grand amnesty and scrambled to get to work.
Yun Fuling turned back to Qin Shuying with a bright smile.
“Senior Sister Qin, is this all right? If there is anything else you are dissatisfied with, just say the word and your junior sister will handle it.”
Qin Shuying did not look at her.
Her gaze fell on Shen Mo.
It fell on the Jade Box in his hands.
It fell on his blood-stained robes.
It fell on his lowered eyelashes.
“Let’s go.”
She said that single word.
A long sword flew from the sky and landed before her.
She stepped onto the blade and cast a glance back at Shen Mo.
He hesitated for a second, but Qin Shuying had already reached out, grabbing his wrist and pulling him up.
The blade was wider than he had imagined, with more than enough room for two people.
However, they were too close — so close that he could smell the cold, sharp scent on her, like a pine forest after a snowfall.
“Hold on tight.”
She said.
Then the blade shuddered and soared into the sky.
Shen Mo didn’t have time to react, his body jerking backward. Instinctively, he reached out and grabbed her sleeve.
Qin Shuying looked down at his hand.
She did not push him away.
The sword flew higher and higher. The marketplace below shrank to the size of a palm, and clouds rushed toward them, cold as knives.
Shen Mo squinted as the wind poured into his collar, making him shiver. But he didn’t dare let go, his knuckles turning white as he gripped her sleeve.
After flying for an unknown amount of time, a mountain peak suddenly appeared.
The peak was extremely high, its summit hidden in the clouds. The mountain was covered in pure white snow, glowing with a faint blue light in the dusk.
The sword began to descend.
It landed on a plaza in front of a palace.
The plaza was large, paved with bluish-gray stone bricks.
Several old pine trees stood at the edges, their branches bowing under the weight of the snow.
Disciples could be seen moving in the distance; upon seeing them, they all stopped to bow.
Qin Shuying stepped off the sword, walked a few paces, and then stopped.
“Follow me.”
She didn’t look back.
Shen Mo blinked and hurried to keep up.
They crossed the plaza, walked through a long corridor, and entered a courtyard.
Several plum trees were planted in the yard, their flowers in full bloom, sending a faint fragrance through the air.
Qin Shuying pushed open a door.
“Go in.”
Shen Mo stood at the door, hesitating.
Inside was a quiet room with very simple furnishings. There was a low table, two futons, a landscape painting on the wall, and soothing incense burning in the corner.
He stepped inside.
Qin Shuying followed him, and the door closed behind her.
Only the two of them remained in the quiet room.
Shen Mo kept his head down, not daring to look at her. His hands were still trembling, though he wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or fear.
The blood on his robes had already hardened into crusts, feeling horribly uncomfortable against his skin, but he didn’t dare move.
“Look up.”
The voice wasn’t loud, but it was impossible to disobey.
Shen Mo raised his head.
Qin Shuying stood before him, her eyes fixed on him.
She wasn’t just glancing; she was watching him.
Like she was looking at a vessel, an object, or something placed before her for her to dispose of as she pleased.
That gaze reminded Shen Mo of Yun He.
Yet it was different.
When Yun He looked at him, there was a fire in her eyes. He recognized that fire — it was desire, possession, and a greed that wanted to devour him whole.
But Qin Shuying’s eyes held none of those things.
There was nothing.
Only coldness.
A coldness like the eternal snow atop this mountain peak.
“Take off your clothes,” she said.
Shen Mo froze.
“What?”
Qin Shuying did not repeat herself.
She only looked at him.
That gaze felt like an invisible force pressing down on his shoulders, making his spine stiffen.
He wanted to say something, but his throat felt blocked.
He wanted to retreat, but his legs felt as if they had taken root.