Sssht!
“Ugh…!”
A pitch-black sword blade pierced through from behind, and the ambushed cultivator didn’t even have time to scream before a hand covered his mouth and dragged him into the shadows.
A few breaths later, Taichi stepped out of the darkness, gripping her sword, her eyes brimming with murderous intent as she locked onto the other cultivators not far ahead.
All these cultivators bore the insignia of the Gang Wolf Legion on their robes.
They were huddled together, seemingly examining something, their attention completely elsewhere.
This was a rare opportunity for a sneak attack, and Taichi certainly wouldn’t let it slip by.
Silently, she crept up on the cultivators, aiming her sword tip at the one closest to her, and without hesitation, thrust the blade forward.
“Not good! We’re under attack!”
“Kill her, quick!”
“Bastard, you actually dare oppose our Gang Wolf Legion!”
As another life was snuffed out, a bloody battle quietly began to unfold in the pitch-black jungle.
Taichi’s combat strength was formidable among Spirit Masters, but her opponents were numerous, making up for quality with sheer numbers.
This fight was a massive challenge for her, but she was not the least bit afraid.
And her opponents showed no fear either; here, life seemed to be something easily tossed aside.
“My goodness, are you okay?”
When Hua Jian saw Shiqi again, Shiqi’s condition was simply appalling.
Her clothes were tattered and torn, clearly slashed by blades, and she bore several wounds yet to heal. Her aura was feeble beyond words.
If she hadn’t run into them, Shiqi might have died quietly and unnoticed in this forest.
“I’m fine. Just had a fight with the Gang Wolf Legion.” Shiqi coughed twice, steadying herself against a tree trunk. “I took care of all of them!”
As she spoke, her eyes brimmed with happiness; compared to her wounds, wiping out those Gang Wolf Legion cultivators pleased her more.
Unable to help herself, Hua Jian slapped Shiqi’s face twice. “You haven’t lost your mind, have you? You can still laugh at a time like this?”
In her impression, Shiqi was never so reckless. When facing strong enemies, Shiqi should’ve chosen to maneuver and wear down the enemy, not charge in like a berserker trading her life.
Only when she was affected by Hua Jian’s mist did Shiqi become so headstrong.
With two gentle slaps, Shiqi fell silent.
The fire in her eyes gradually faded, the sharp pain of her wounds overwhelming the thrill of vengeance.
Her face paled, and her arm unconsciously hung around Hua Jian’s neck.
“It really does hurt…”
“I swear, you’re truly possessed.” Hua Jian gave Shiqi a helpless glare, then turned to look at Linglong, who had been silent all along.
Ever since they reunited with Shiqi, Linglong had looked thoughtful, and Hua Jian was quite curious about what Linglong was thinking.
Sensing Hua Jian’s curious gaze, Linglong pointed at Shiqi, who was already popping healing pills into her mouth. “Do you remember those cultivators we saw earlier?”
The ones fighting fiercely over trivial things? Hua Jian nodded reflexively, then her head slowed.
If she followed this line of thought, then perhaps Shiqi was affected just like those people?
Shiqi’s sudden recklessness wasn’t her fault—she had unknowingly been influenced by some malicious thing here, which made her do things she normally wouldn’t.
“Then how did she recover, and why weren’t we affected?”
But that raised another question. Since Shiqi had already been affected, how come she seemed to snap out of it now?
Based on what Hua Jian knew, Shiqi shouldn’t have been able to escape this on her own.
She must have received some outside help, and the only thing that happened was Hua Jian’s two slaps to the face—could she really have snapped out of it because of that?
“I’m not sure. Maybe it’s because of you.” Linglong’s finger shifted, pointing at Hua Jian’s head.
“Me?”
“I definitely don’t have that kind of ability, that I can be certain of. So, the only possible problem lies with you.”
Linglong’s deduction was simple elimination. She knew her own abilities well—she couldn’t pull someone out of a trance like that.
So the only possibility left was the other person. Shiqi had been affected while outside, but the effect disappeared after returning to Hua Jian’s side.
The simplest and most direct guess was that Hua Jian passively nullified such effects—she didn’t even need to do anything consciously.
“In any case, something is very wrong here. Even without us stirring things up, the factions here are about to fight among themselves…” Linglong said softly.
And with their current mental state, once they started fighting, corpses would litter the ground. It wouldn’t stop until only one person was left standing.
“We should back away for now and tell the Protectorate Supervisor what’s happening here.”
To be safe, Linglong felt it was best to distance themselves from this powder keg, lest they get caught in the blast.
Hua Jian had no objections. They were only here to gather intel for Hudaosi.
There was no need to risk their lives. Besides, Shiqi was in no shape for trouble with the Gang Wolf Legion.
“Alright, let’s make a strategic withdrawal!”
Taking advantage of the night, the three of them ran to a secluded valley a ways off from the Flower Sea.
It was far from civilization, with few spiritual creatures even.
Presumably, other cultivators knew this place was poor, so no one bothered to stake a claim here.
Hua Jian searched the valley floor and managed to find a decent-looking cave.
After a heartfelt negotiation with the cave’s original inhabitant, Hua Jian convinced it to move out—and even voluntarily become their late-night snack on the barbecue rack.
Moved by the spiritual beast’s generosity, Hua Jian shed a tear, swearing inwardly never to waste its sacrifice.
“I told you there’d be a cave here, but you didn’t believe me.” Hua Jian, self-proclaimed master of secret realms, stood proudly by the campfire, hands on her hips.
Linglong, expressionless, rotated two iron skewers over the fire, waiting for the meat to roast.
Shiqi had already closed her eyes to enter cultivation mode, clearly not wanting to engage with Hua Jian’s antics.
Getting no response, Hua Jian was frustrated. Why couldn’t these two have a sense of humor? They were so rigid, it was boring!
As she stewed, she felt the White Flower Bracelet on her wrist move slightly.
‘Look at that sword.’
A clear voice rang out in Hua Jian’s mind.
Following the guidance, Hua Jian saw that Bai Hua Zun Zhe was referring not to Linglong’s Ling Sword, but to Shiqi’s black longsword.
Strange. Could Shiqi’s black sword actually be a peerless artifact?
Hua Jian didn’t understand, but did as Bai Hua Zun Zhe wished—after all, there was no harm in it.
“Shiqi, let me take a look at your sword.”
“Okay.”
After spending these days together, Shiqi trusted Hua Jian quite a bit and had no reason to refuse her request.
She only used this sword because it was her father’s keepsake; in terms of value, it wasn’t especially precious.
It’s not like Hua Jian would try to steal it.
Sitting down with the black sword, Hua Jian drew it from its scabbard, but wasn’t sure what to do next.
Look at it—and then what?
As she wondered what to do, a soft white glow radiated from her bracelet, covering her hand and making her feel as though it was held by another warm hand.
Then, her hand was guided to stroke the blade inch by inch.
The black sword felt cold to the touch, and its material was unusual—Hua Jian couldn’t tell what it was, but it clearly wasn’t cheap.
But… why did Bai Hua Zun Zhe care so much about this sword?
Hua Jian was curious, but dared not ask. Bai Hua Zun Zhe’s attitude toward the black sword seemed… off.
Like seeing an old lover after a long separation.
Was there really a story here?
Hua Jian spent nearly half an hour caressing the sword before returning it to Shiqi under Linglong’s increasingly complicated gaze.
Linglong’s look reminded Hua Jian of the sword lunatics from Jian Sect.
If those guys saw Hua Jian just now, they’d scream about her being fated with their sect and chase her to the ends of the earth.
“Don’t look at me like that—it was her idea.” Hua Jian pointed at her bracelet to explain to Linglong.
She wasn’t a fetishist. While Shiqi’s black sword was pretty, Ling Swords had never been her thing.
If not for Bai Hua Zun Zhe’s request, she wouldn’t have bothered.
After that, Bai Hua Zun Zhe fell silent again, and Hua Jian spent the whole night resting, waiting for the senior to speak up again, but no word came.
It really seemed as though she’d just been acting on a whim.
But soon, Linglong made a discovery that shattered Hua Jian’s guess.
Early that morning, Linglong returned from a stroll with another White Flower Bracelet.
“This bracelet was left just outside the cave—very conspicuous. It’s definitely meant for us,” Linglong said, holding up the bracelet.
She’d tried it on herself, but it didn’t fit. Clearly, it wasn’t for her.
Then who was it for? Surely not Hua Jian, who already had one?
Hua Jian took the bracelet from Linglong and walked over to Shiqi.
Hearing the movement, Shiqi opened her eyes in confusion. “What are you doing?”
“Got you something good.” Hua Jian took Shiqi’s right hand and slid the White Flower Bracelet onto her wrist.
As expected, the bracelet fit perfectly, a stream of light adjusting it to her arm.
Shiqi looked even more puzzled, not suspecting Hua Jian of ill intent—just not sure what it was for.
“What’s this?” She turned her wrist to examine the bracelet, eyes full of curiosity.
Hua Jian waved her own wrist. “Just treat it as a protective charm.”
A charm from a Ling Beast Venerable! That should be trustworthy, right?
“Weird.” Seeing Hua Jian had an identical bracelet, Shiqi was curious but not enough to lose sleep over it.
And after putting on the bracelet, she felt a warm energy seeping into her body, slowly healing her wounds.
Maybe this was Hua Jian’s healing method, she thought.
Seeing Hua Jian and Shiqi each with a White Flower Bracelet, Linglong felt a pang of envy.
Two out of three members had one, and she alone was left out—it made her feel a bit excluded.
She could understand Hua Jian getting one, since she was the same race as the Venerable, but why Shiqi?
Was there some connection between the two?
“A senior brother from Jian Sect told me the Hudaosi team is ready and heading this way. We just need to keep observing,” Linglong said to Hua Jian, suppressing her odd feelings.
To avoid alarming powerful spirit beasts, Hudaosi’s capture team wasn’t large—just two Ling Emperors and five Ling Kings.
More than enough to handle Hei Long Gang, but not quite a full-scale Hudaosi operation.
Hudaosi never lacked experts; there would always be at least one Ling Emperor on their teams.
Sometimes, it was all Ling Emperors.
That would show the Magic Path what it means to be outnumbered.
“That’s good news. The way’s clear—they should arrive in a few days?”
“At most, three days.”
Good, as long as nothing goes wrong… tch, shouldn’t jinx it by saying that now?
Whenever you say “nothing will go wrong,” something always does.
Let’s hope not this time.
……
“Is everyone ready?”
Inside the Hei Long Gang’s territory, the first to arrive was a sword cultivator Ling Emperor, who called out to the large force behind him.
The other six Hudaosi experts answered loudly, “Ready!”
They were the strongest that Hudaosi could muster in the area, with rich experience battling the Magic Path. This time, their operation should have been foolproof.
The action squad had two Ling Emperors, and one Ling Emperor stayed behind in Hei Long Gang’s territory—this one from Wanling Sect, tasked with uprooting the Longxueteng along with his sectmates from Lingcaifeng.