Under the horrified gazes of everyone present, the seemingly inconspicuous Little Black Dragon at Jiang Huai’s waist suddenly erupted with a blinding black light.
Within the radiance, a tall, peerlessly beautiful figure appeared, standing proudly in the air. She wore a black robe adorned with dragon patterns, her graceful form exuding an explosive sense of power.
Her jet-black hair, flowing like a waterfall, danced without wind, and a pair of exquisite black dragon horns shimmered with a cold, eerie luster amidst her locks.
Only her dragon tail, almost unconsciously, remained curled around Jiang Huai’s waist.
A terrifying dragon might, far more powerful than any Elder present by a thousandfold, burst forth with a roar. The sky darkened in an instant, and formless waves of pressure swept outward with her at the center.
“Thud! Thud! Thud!”
Across the marketplace, aside from Jiang Huai and Zhu Siyao, who were deliberately shielded by Qin Qingyue, every cultivator—including the arrogant Nascent Soul Stage beauty from moments ago—collapsed to their knees as if struck by an invisible giant hammer, unable to resist.
The beautiful woman bore the brunt of it. She felt an utterly irresistible, incomprehensible, unimaginable supreme pressure descend upon her very soul. Her proud Divine Transformation cultivation was as insignificant as dust before this might.
Her bones groaned under the unbearable weight, blood gushed from her seven orifices in an instant, her eyes filled with utter terror and confusion.
“G—Great… Ascension… Dragon Lord?!”
Like a chicken with its throat squeezed, the beauty managed to force out a few broken syllables from the depths of her throat.
At last, she understood what kind of terrifying existence she had provoked.
Qin Qingyue didn’t even spare her a glance. Instead, she turned to the Hehuan Female Cultivator who had acted earlier and spoke in a chilling voice:
“What did you say just now? You wanted to play with my husband?”
“Is that right?”
She had seen and remembered the licentious, sinister look in that woman’s eyes.
As a Great Ascension Dragon Lord, she should be magnanimous, graceful, above petty squabbles.
But unfortunately, flirting with her husband—this was something she could never tolerate.
She extended her slender, jade-like hand, and with a casual wave at the terrified, limp female disciple—
The gesture was as light as brushing dust from her sleeve.
There was no thunderous boom, yet in an instant, the woman was reduced to the finest powder, soundlessly and without a trace.
Not a single drop of blood, not the slightest residue remained, as if she had never existed in this world.
Body and soul annihilated.
The entire marketplace fell deathly silent; the drop of a pin could be heard.
All the cultivators kneeling on the ground trembled like autumn leaves, not daring to lift their heads for fear that they might be the next to be erased.
Some had already guessed Qin Qingyue’s identity, their faces turning deathly pale.
A Great Ascension Evil Dragon.
Only then did Qin Qingyue slowly turn, her gaze falling on the somewhat dazed Jiang Huai by her side.
The cold murderous intent in her eyes instantly melted away like ice and snow, turning into a spring-like warmth. With a mischievous smile, she reached out and tapped Jiang Huai’s forehead lightly with her jade finger. “Well done. You really make me proud.”
“I’ll reward you when we get back.”
Her voice regained its former lazy tone, even tinged with a bit of playful coquettishness.
Whenever she faced Jiang Huai, she couldn’t help but soften.
Jiang Huai looked at the Qin Qingyue before him—who had transformed in an instant from an adorable little dragon into a peerless sovereign, destroying a Nascent Soul cultivator with just a flick of her finger. Feeling the cool touch on his forehead, he was momentarily lost in a daze.
The female cultivator who had been fighting with him only moments before was now dead, reduced to dust.
To him, she hadn’t even done anything that warranted death.
Yet she died, without even a chance to beg for mercy or explain herself—just like that, turned to dust at the hands of a Great Ascension cultivator.
This was the Cultivation World. The strong possessed everything, even the lives of the weak.
Qin Qingyue could see the confusion in Jiang Huai’s heart, and her own heart struggled as well.
Husband, how I wish I could let you stay innocent and pure in my embrace forever.
Always so happy, never having to touch this cruel world, never needing to compete or fight.
Who doesn’t want to be good to their own husband?
But what can I do? Sooner or later, I must ascend to the Immortal Realm and wait for you there.
Unable to bear Jiang Huai’s lost gaze, Qin Qingyue turned away, her eyes growing even colder as she locked onto the kneeling, bloodied, trembling Nascent Soul beauty.
This woman hadn’t finished her words earlier. Qin Qingyue knew well the filthy things she had wanted to say.
She deserved death—for daring to utter vulgarities about her man.
The beauty, sensing that soul-shattering, terrifying aura, was left with only boundless despair in her eyes—she couldn’t even utter a plea for mercy.
“Dragon Lord, please calm your anger! Spare her life!!”
A cry, urgent and pleading, rang out from deep within the Huanhuan Sect’s gates.
Before the voice had faded, a streak of pink light tore through the sky at a speed surpassing teleportation, crashing down onto the marketplace and coming to a stop between the Nascent Soul beauty and Qin Qingyue.
The light dispersed, revealing a woman.
She appeared no more than twenty, her beauty so dazzling that she outshone the Nascent Soul beauty a hundredfold. Her skin was fair as snow, her features like a painting, but her aura was not the seductive charm typical of the Huanhuan Sect—instead, she radiated an indescribable sanctity and ethereal grace, like a fairy from the moon palace who had descended to the mortal world.
She wore a simple, elegant pink gown, and though she didn’t deliberately display any overwhelming power, a natural aura of dignity and composure surrounded her.
She was none other than the current Sect Master of the Huanhuan Sect, Su Yingman.
The moment Su Yingman landed, she didn’t spare a glance at the limp Elder behind her. Instead, she bowed deeply to Qin Qingyue, lowering herself as much as possible, her tone respectful to the extreme:
“Junior Su Yingman, Sect Master of the Huanhuan Sect, greets the East Sea Dragon Lord! My lack of discipline has led my disciples to offend the Dragon Lord and her Dao Companion. This is a crime deserving of death!”
“I beg the Dragon Lord to show mercy and spare her life. My entire sect will be eternally grateful and is willing to offer everything we have to compensate the Dragon Lord and your honored husband!”
She spoke rapidly and sincerely, sweat beading on her forehead.
Facing an enraged Great Ascension Dragon Lord—especially one as famously ruthless as Qin Qingyue—even the Sect Master felt unprecedented pressure.
But as the leader of the sect, it wouldn’t do to simply sit by and watch an Elder be killed without stepping forward.
Qin Qingyue’s jade finger paused slightly, her dragon eyes sweeping indifferently over Su Yingman.
Consolidation Stage? The Huanhuan Sect really had fallen—there wasn’t even a single Great Ascension Sect Master left.
She wondered if they had any Supreme Elders in closed-door seclusion.
Still, the other party’s attitude and that address of “Dao Companion” did soften the ice in her gaze somewhat, and she rather enjoyed it.
“Compensation?” Qin Qingyue’s voice betrayed no emotion.
“Do you think I need your compensation?”
Su Yingman’s heart tightened. She hurriedly replied, “Of course not, Dragon Lord. It’s only this junior’s heartfelt apology.”
“There are too many people here. Why not let me invite the Dragon Lord to the sect, so I can fulfill my duty as Sect Master?”
“Also, I’ve noticed there’s a very unique Yin-Yang Power circulating within your honored husband’s body.”
“I suppose the Dragon Lord’s visit today is for this very reason, isn’t it?”
To be honest, Su Yingman had a million reasons not to let Qin Qingyue come to the Huanhuan Sect.
Who didn’t know that the East Sea Dragon Lord was born under an evil star? Misfortune followed wherever she went.
But at this moment, there was no other choice.
Qin Qingyue’s dragon eyes narrowed slightly, examining Su Yingman.
Her dragon tail was still wrapped around Jiang Huai’s waist, radiating a comforting strength.
She looked at Jiang Huai and asked:
“Husband, what do you think?”
Jiang Huai looked at the saintly Sect Master who ruled over a sect like the Huanhuan Sect, then at the Nascent Soul beauty on the ground, nearly scared senseless. His heart was complicated.
“I’ll listen to you.”
A trace of gentleness flashed in Qin Qingyue’s eyes. She turned to Su Yingman, her voice regaining its lazy authority:
“Lead the way.”
“If you’re useful, I won’t treat you poorly.”
“And also……”
Qin Qingyue took Jiang Huai’s hand, her dragon tail still affectionately wrapped around his waist, as if the terrifying being who just erased a Nascent Soul cultivator with a flick of her finger was nothing but an illusion.
She walked up to Su Yingman, leaned in close to her ear, and whispered:
“Don’t be so afraid or resentful. My misfortune is gone.”
“Understand?”
Behind her, Zhu Siyao finally snapped out of her trance. She looked at the peerless figure with dark robes and dragon horns, then at Jiang Huai, whose hand was held by the Dragon Lord and whose expression was complex.
A sense of indescribable disappointment and emptiness rose in her heart.
So, there’s no more story. He’s been taken away—he’s the Dragon Lord’s husband.
She still wanted to say a few more words.
As for the pearl, Qin Qingyue had already taken it away in secret, leaving the scene in utter chaos.
Too bad for the girl! I hope she gets a chance