“Are you teaching me how to handle things now? Or do you want to take over as Young Master, Elder Liang?”
The bald-headed woman opened her mouth to retort, but under Yun Suxin’s icy gaze, she faltered and lowered her head, swallowing her protest.
“…I wouldn’t dare. Young Master, you make the decisions.”
“Hmph. Best remember your place.” Yun Suxin rolled her eyes.
This Elder Liang looked like a man but was actually a woman. Once a rogue cultivator, she’d later joined Lingxi Valley. Though titled an “Elder,” it was in name only—just another dog Lingxi Valley had bought and raised.
There were a few other elders like her, but most were in secluded cultivation. Perhaps due to the Valley Master’s prolonged absence, Elder Liang had grown arrogant, thinking herself fit to speak for the Young Master.
What a joke.
Jiange wasn’t some demonic sect. Sure, they’d poached a few of Lingxi Valley’s disciples in the past, but the loss was trivial, barely a drop in the vast ocean of their resources. It didn’t even matter.
Yun Suxin had no intention of making a big deal out of it. She just wanted to give them a little scare and send them back to their sword-wielding hovel.
Only if they kept stepping out of line would she consider making them disappear for good.
With her thoughts settled, Yun Suxin leapt gracefully down from the tavern rooftop. Her lotus-like steps brought her elegantly before the suppressed Yue Qianchi. Turning slightly, she smiled and asked, “So, Sister Yue from Jiange, I hear you’re here to buy spiritual herbs?”
“That’s right,” Yue Qianchi replied, chin high. “Doesn’t Lingxi Valley welcome righteous cultivators to purchase spiritual herbs?”
“We certainly do,” Yun Suxin said with a sweet yet mocking smile. “But I never said we welcome sword-wielding lunatics who come crashing through our protective formations.”
Yue Qianchi’s face turned red, but she had no retort.
After all, it was true—their flying boat had indeed barreled straight into Lingxi Valley’s illusion array.
She looked aside, embarrassed. “It was an accident… We were both cultivating and didn’t realize the boat had flown so far…”
“Save your excuses.” Yun Suxin flicked her sleeve and summoned a golden lotus. “I’ll give you one more chance. I’m going to place you into the second layer of the illusion array. If you can break through it, you’ll be allowed to enter and purchase what you came for. But if you fail within three days…” she glanced back at the flying boat with a smirk, “then this flying boat will become compensation~”
The golden lotus exploded into a radiant bloom of light.
Golden mist enveloped everything.
A strange fragrance drifted through the air. Yue Qianchi and Li Qingran both felt their consciousness waver.
When their minds cleared, they were standing inside a deep and shadowy valley.
The flying boat was gone. The tavern was gone. Yun Suxin and her weird bald muscle-head were gone.
“Damn it. We’ve been trapped in the illusion!” Yue Qianchi slapped her thigh in frustration.
“Senior Sister, since it’s an illusion, there must be a way out,” Li Qingran said gently, taking Yue Qianchi’s hand. “Let’s not panic. If we search carefully, I’m sure we’ll find the formation’s flaw.”
Yue Qianchi shook her head. “It won’t be that simple.”
“The formation around Lingxi Valley has three layers. The first is a maze meant to keep mortals and low-level beasts from trampling the spirit fields—that’s the one our flying boat smashed through. The second layer, which we’re in now, is the Illusion Array. It’s filled with shifting visions and false realities. Even Core Formation cultivators can get stuck in here, let alone us.”
“And the third layer?” Li Qingran asked.
“The third is the Killing Array. Thankfully, it doesn’t seem to be active—or we’d already be headless corpses.”
Li Qingran’s expression turned grave.
Senior Sister wasn’t one to exaggerate. If even she felt uncertain, then the array must truly be terrifying.
But giving up was not an option.
For the sake of her master—for herself—Li Qingran couldn’t afford to back down.
She clenched her fists and took a determined step forward.
She would gather every spiritual herb needed for the Hundred Herbs Detoxification Pill.
She wanted her master to live. To live well. To live long.
She wanted to see him with her own eyes, not through some ethereal projection.
She wanted to touch him—to feel the warmth of his presence.
Seeing the determination on Li Qingran’s face, Yue Qianchi sighed and followed after her. “Let’s go. Who knows, maybe even a blind cat can catch a dead mouse.”
Despite her words, she had little confidence.
The Lingxi Valley’s protective array was famous across the Cangyun Realm. It was not just some gimmick—it was a true ancient formation meant to deceive, trap, and test the hearts of intruders.
Outside the formation.
“Young Master, if they really manage to break the array… will you actually let them go?” Elder Liang asked nervously, eyeing the spirit crystals powering the flying boat.
Just one of those spirit crystals could power her cultivation for two months.
If only she could get her hands on even one…
Yun Suxin, however, remained focused on the illusion, watching the two slowly advancing figures.
“I mean what I say. If they can break the Heart Demon Illusion Formation… I’ll give them all the herbs they want.”
Because it was impossible.
This formation wasn’t just a maze or simple mirage. It compressed spiritual senses to the point that even a Nascent Soul cultivator could barely scan a few hundred meters ahead. And that wasn’t even its real danger.
The true terror lay in what it revealed.
It would force intruders to confront their deepest, darkest fears.
Even Yun Suxin herself wouldn’t dare enter lightly.
As for two mere disciples from Jiange?
Please.
[Your electronic girlfriend ‘Li Qingran’ has entered the second layer of Lingxi Valley’s illusion array. Her deepest fears are being drawn out…]
[Your teammate ‘Yue Qianchi’ has entered the illusion. Her deepest fears are being drawn out…]
[Voice transmission disabled. Recharge ¥88 to override.]
Two pop-ups appeared on Chen Huaian’s phone.
In his sleep, he murmured something about “Qingran, baby…” and turned over, completely unaware.
The illusion deepened. The air turned cold.
Li Qingran kept walking, but the path never ended.
Suddenly, a voice echoed from ahead.
“Li Qingran! You betrayed your sect and disrespected your master. What punishment should you receive?!”
A figure materialized. Taoist Qingxuan—his green robes neat, expression stern.
“I’m innocent,” Li Qingran replied flatly, walking past without a glance.
“Didn’t you swear to follow your Senior Brother forever?!” Lu Changtian appeared next, voice filled with accusation.
Li Qingran glanced at him… and laughed.
Then more voices followed—
“You stabbed your Junior Sister!”
“You took my pills, now give them back!”
“Li Qingran! Traitor!”
“Li Qingran—”
Figures crowded the path. Screaming. Accusing. Laughing.
She ignored them all.
Her steps didn’t falter.
There was a sliver of moonlight in her eyes. And within that moonlight stood a figure in white robes, white hair, sword at his waist, hands behind his back.
Her master.
The sword that danced beneath the moonlight.
The unparalleled sword cultivator—
Chen Huaian.
She walked forward without pause.
For him, nothing else mattered.
Two pairs of bloodstained boots appeared before her.
Boots worn by soldiers. Thick with mud, ragged, cracked—yet familiar.
“Ran’er… are you doing well? Has anyone bullied you since joining the sect? Ah… don’t seek revenge for your parents… We only ever wanted you to live a peaceful life…”
Li Qingran stopped. Her throat tightened. Standing before her were two gray-haired, bent figures, leaning on one another for support. Their eyes, though cloudy, were kind.
Tears silently rolled down her cheeks.
“Dad… Mom…”
The old man and woman looked at her, and with deep sorrow, whispered, “Qingran, you’ve been unfilial…”
Cultivators regard mortals as pawns.
Wars between nations were no more than strategic games between sects. While cultivators toast and laugh above, entire battlefields are swallowed in blood and ash.
A single flick of a wine cup could bring drought to a nation. The whims of the powerful left thousands to starve.
To them, a country was a toy. And with a few words, it could be erased from existence.
And she? She was just a grasshopper that had jumped off the game board. Any moment now, she could be crushed underfoot.
She walked on eggshells—just trying to survive.
She had once believed that cultivating immortality meant freedom.
But only after stepping into the immortal path did she truly understand despair.
Above her were inner disciples. Above them were core disciples. Then elders. Then sect masters. Then great sects. Then the sacred lands. Then the Ruins of Return. And finally—Ascension.
Every level was a chasm of blood and corpses.
The heavens were magnificent. She was but an ant.
But…
Her eyes lifted, drawn toward a lone figure standing tall beneath moonlight—white hair, white robes, hands clasped behind his back, a sword at his waist.
Her master.
Chen Huaian.
With him there, no mountain of blades or sea of fire could stop her.
One day, she would take revenge for her parents.
—
The illusion deepened.
Snowflakes drifted from the sky, the wind howled.
A voice echoed in her ears.
“Li Qingran… I don’t have much time left… and I still haven’t received the detoxification pill…”
“It’s not your fault. Blame only the merciless heavens and the dangers of this chaotic world.”
“Master… I—I can’t let you go…”
In the vision, her master lay in a pool of blood.
Monsters circled around his body, ravenous. Flesh and bone flew into the air.
As they tore into him, his eyes dimmed, his breath vanished.
“No… no!! Master—don’t go!”
“Get away from him!! DON’T TOUCH HIM!”
“AHHHHHHHH!”
Li Qingran screamed.
Her eyes bloodshot, she lunged forward—Suxian sword in hand. Crawling. Stumbling.
But no matter how she moved, she couldn’t reach him.
She could only watch as the man she revered… was devoured.
His soul dissolved into nothing.
She collapsed to her knees, numb.
Eventually, the monsters vanished, leaving only the mangled corpse.
And finally, she could touch it.
She reached out—her hands trembling—and pressed her palms to the face she knew so well.
It was ice cold. Colder than the sword she held.
“Master…”
She frantically rubbed his face with her bloodied hands, hoping to warm him. Hoping—desperately—that warmth could bring him back.
But nothing changed.
He was gone.
There were so many things she had wanted to say.
But now… she would never get the chance.
Snow fell like knives.
In her life, it had always snowed.
Her master had once held an umbrella for her. Beneath it, she’d seen stars, sunrise, and the beauty of the world.
But in the end…
He was taken from her too.
She had no more master.
Never again.
The snow bit into her skin. Her tears fell onto the broken sword in her hands.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…”
“Father… Mother… Master… I—”
“I was too weak…”
“That’s why everyone I love… dies.”
“But…”
Suddenly, she laughed—wild, bitter laughter that echoed through the valley.
“If I were stronger—strong enough—none of this would’ve happened!”
Her sword hummed. Her tears burned hot.
She looked up at the dark sky.
Eyes like steel pierced the clouds.
Her grip tightened on the Suxian Sword.
Slowly, she stood.
A terrifying killing intent surged up with her.
It soared into the heavens!
—
In the real Lingxi Valley, thunderclouds suddenly rolled overhead.
Crackling lightning danced across the sky. Spiritual pressure surged wildly.
Yun Suxin, who had been sipping tea in her pavilion, suddenly paled.
“The wrath in this cloud… it’s condensing fast!”
“Who’s provoking heaven’s will?!”
She didn’t dare remain. In a flash, she disappeared into her room, lest she become collateral damage in whatever tribulation was about to unfold.
—
Within the illusion array—
Li Qingran raised her sword to the sky.
Her eyes burned with fierce determination.
“I, Li Qingran, will use this sword… to slay all—!”
But before the final word could leave her mouth—
A majestic, thunderous voice exploded in her mind:
【Wake up!!!】
BOOM!!!
Like a thousand temple bells ringing at once, the sound echoed through her soul.
Her vision shattered.
And with it, the illusion crumbled.
Her eyes flew open.
Clear. Awake. Alive.
