Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Then I’ll Scare Her Too
Ye Chu Xue’s pupils shook. She had never imagined Song Wan Ning would actually dare to Soul-Search.

The instant she tasted death, her first instinct was to rip every life-saving item from her storage ring.

But the space around her had already been sealed. She couldn’t even stir it.

Despair swallowed her. Shaking so hard she could barely stand, she turned to Gu Qing Yuan, eyes wide with pleading.

Several attacks struck at once.

Song Wan Ning didn’t even glance over.

A Little Golden Sword shot out from her sea of consciousness, humming with cold delight. In a blink, it split into hundreds of long swords that wrapped around Song Wan Ning and Ye Chu Xue, layering into a shimmering golden shield.

Every strike rebounded.

Light rippled. Power snapped back like a whip.

Aside from those ripples, not a trace remained.

Song Wan Ning’s palm descended.

Ye Chu Xue squeezed her eyes shut.

“No! Master!”

“Senior Sister Ye!”

Gu Qing Yuan and the others’ eyes went red as they charged, unleashing their strongest strikes without regard for anything else.

But in the next moment, Song Wan Ning’s hand landed lightly on Ye Chu Xue’s head.

Not a strike.

A touch.

She stroked once, then again—soft, careful, almost tender.

Ye Chu Xue’s eyes flew open.

There was no joy in them, only a trembling horror that wouldn’t stop.

She looked up.

Song Wan Ning was smiling at her.

Gently.

“Gag—”

Ye Chu Xue vomited from fright and crumpled toward the ground.

What was Song Wan Ning doing?

She was terrifying.

Gu Qing Yuan and the others were flung back again by the Little Golden Sword. Gu Qing Yuan had just been heavily injured by that sword strike, and now he couldn’t even withstand a mere Sword Spirit.

Absurd.

Seeing Ye Chu Xue still alive, Bai Yang and An Ze sagged as though all their strength had drained away.

Just now…

Just now, they had truly thought Song Wan Ning would kill her.

Even the Sect Master and the elders had gone pale. Only the Second Elder watched with a faint, satisfied look, silently praising Song Wan Ning.

“Gag—”

Ye Chu Xue was still retching, her whole body shaking. No one could know how close to death she’d felt.

Song Wan Ning’s smile only softened further. She crouched, slow and deliberate, and touched Ye Chu Xue’s head again.

Ye Chu Xue went rigid, every hair on her body standing up. She didn’t dare meet Song Wan Ning’s eyes.

Song Wan Ning leaned in, her breath brushing Ye Chu Xue’s ear.

“I told you I was only scaring you.” Her voice was a whisper, warm as breath and cold as a blade. “Why are you so nervous?”

Ye Chu Xue’s blood seemed to run backward.

Then Song Wan Ning laughed—bright, sudden, almost cheerful—and rose to her feet.

So Ye Chu Xue could be afraid, too.

With a casual motion, she withdrew the Little Golden Sword and strode back toward Li Ruo.

Only then did Gu Qing Yuan and the others rush in, checking Ye Chu Xue from head to toe, over and over, as if counting her breaths.

“Song Wan Ning, have you had enough?!” the Sect Master roared, his voice raw.

After watching that farce, he felt more certain than ever: Song Wan Ning was lawless beyond measure.

If this continued, the Heaven-Questioning Sect would be torn apart by her.

“Why are you in such a hurry, Sect Master?” Song Wan Ning’s tone was languid. “I was only joking with Ye Chu Xue.”

Her gaze slid over him, cold and bright.

“Song Wan Ning! Don’t go too far!”

The Sect Master ground his teeth. “You are still a disciple of the Heaven-Questioning Sect. You must obey the Heaven-Questioning Sect’s rules! Hurting fellow disciples for no reason means you must accept punishment!”

Right now, he wanted one thing—to teach Song Wan Ning a lesson and make her understand who truly ruled the Heaven-Questioning Sect.

“Oh?” Song Wan Ning’s mouth twisted, her eyes dark. “What impressive authority you have.”

“They bullied my disciple while this lord was in seclusion. This lord acted with reason and proof. What wrong did I do?”

“And you… you keep favoring Gu Qing Yuan.” Her smile turned sharp. “Someone who didn’t know better might think you’re his lover.”

Her gaze flicked, almost careless.

“It’s just a pity Gu Qing Yuan likes Ye Chu Xue.”

“You—!”

The Sect Master nearly toppled over with rage.

“Outrageous! Outrageous!”

Ye Chu Xue—still shaken—went deathly pale. Fury flashed in her eyes.

What kind of filth was Song Wan Ning spewing?

Gu Qing Yuan was her Master!

Half her father!

And yet…

No one looked shocked. Not truly.

When Ye Chu Xue met Song Wan Ning’s teasing gaze, she instinctively looked away. She didn’t dare meet Gu Qing Yuan’s eyes, her mind in chaos.

She had noticed before. She had even felt proud, secretly, thinking she was charming.

But it could never see the light. It could never be spoken aloud.

All she needed was Master’s silent protection for the rest of her life.

“By the way,” Song Wan Ning said, as if remembering something trivial, “this lord already knew you’d side with Gu Qing Yuan and Ye Chu Xue, Sect Master.”

“So I specially invited the Ancestor out of seclusion.”

Her voice stayed light.

“I hope you’ll be just as tough in front of the Ancestor.”

“What did you say? The Ancestor is coming out of seclusion?”

“Song Wan Ning!” The Sect Master’s face went white. “It’s a small matter—why would you invite the Ancestor out of seclusion?!”

Everyone knew the Ancestor was extremely close to Song Wan Ning’s master.

And speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrived.

Ancestor Liu Lan Yi drifted in from the distance like a breeze, landing in the center without a sound.

“Ancestor!”

“Greetings, Ancestor!”

Everyone bowed together, not a single one daring to be careless.

The Heaven-Questioning Sect’s Ancestor, Liu Lan Yi, was at late Divine Transformation cultivation—only one step from the Ascension Stage, only one step from ascending to the Spirit Realm.

The Heaven-Questioning Sect had three Divine Transformation cultivators holding the fort. The other two were only at mid Divine Transformation and had been unable to break through.

So Liu Lan Yi could only suppress her cultivation, not daring to ascend at this time.

The other two Divine Transformation Ancestors could roam the world searching for opportunities, but she could only remain, guarding the rear mountain.

For the sect’s safety, she had spent the best years of her life as an anchor.

She had given far too much to the Heaven-Questioning Sect, yet because of being dragged down by it, she ended with a tragic fate—dying, her dao dissipating.

Song Wan Ning’s chest tightened with dull pain.

How ridiculous.

Whether it was a Divine Transformation Ancestor who had cultivated to the peak, or the Song Family that had flourished for tens of thousands of years, once they ran into Ye Chu Xue and her group, they became fragile as glass.

Destroyed with ease.

Anyone who opposed Ye Chu Xue was destined for a miserable end.

Violent malice stirred again, and demonic aura roiled in her sea of consciousness.

The Little Golden Sword buzzed with warning.

Only then did the demonic aura shrink back, obedient and cowed.

“Rise.” Liu Lan Yi lifted her hand, her voice cold. A gentle force helped everyone stand.

From the moment she arrived, the entire crowd became well-behaved.

Her gaze settled on Song Wan Ning first.

“Girl.” Her tone softened by a fraction. “Tell me. What happened?”

She made no effort to hide whose side she was on.

If her friend hadn’t acted quickly back then, Song Wan Ning would have been her treasured disciple.

Of course she would protect her.