Chapter 1

Chapter 1: No One Will Believe Her

At the peak of the snowy mountain.

Li Shuang staggered forward; blood dripped from her many wounds, dyeing the snow bright red.

She had been trapped in this mountain for three days.

Three days earlier, her master had suffered a mishap while cultivating and urgently needed a Tianshan Snow Lotus to steady his mind. Someone had seen such a lotus near this summit, so she came here with her Junior Brothers and Junior Sisters.

But the climb was harder than anyone expected. The wind was razor cold, and Snow Fiends could jump out at any time.

One Junior Sister slipped up and fell into a ring of Snow Fiends. Li Shuang had finally picked the Tianshan Snow Lotus after great effort; seeing this, she handed the Snow Lotus to that Junior Sister and told her to take it, meet up with the Junior Brothers, and leave at once.

Li Shuang rushed in to shield her, blocking the Snow Fiends.

She did not know how long she fought before clearing them out. Most of her strength was gone. She should have withdrawn to regroup, but on the way she ran into another pack of Snow Fiends, drawn by the scent of the Tianshan Snow Lotus, charging toward where the others were.

The Tianshan Snow Lotus could not be lost. Her juniors had drained much of their power over these days and were wounded. As the First Senior Sister, she had to protect them. She gritted her teeth and fought the Snow Fiends again.

Alone, she swung her sword. She did not know how long she battled, or how many new cuts lined her body. In the end she barely won, but a cruel gale swept her up, and she could not find a way out.

Now, after three days, only a thread of power as thin as a needle remained in her dantian.

If she stayed trapped, she would die here.

She clenched her jaw. This was not the time to be stubborn. That last sliver of power was enough to use a Message Talisman.

By now, the juniors should have carried the Snow Lotus back. With it, Master should have passed the crisis.

They had not come to find her, likely because they did not know where she was.

She poured the last of her strength into the talisman. As it flared to life, she hurried to speak: “Master, I…”

Immortal Ling Xu’s voice came, cold and sharp: “Unfilial disciple! You still dare contact me! Zhao Zhao fought Snow Fiends to obtain the Snow Lotus, and you? You clearly saw her trapped, yet you ran away! Li Shuang, I raised you for so many years, only to raise an ungrateful wretch!”

Li Shuang froze. [What is Master saying? I do not understand. When did I run away?] She tried to answer, but the freezing wind poured into the great whirling gusts around her, and for a moment she could not force out a word.

Ye Zhao Zhao spoke softly: “Master, do not blame Senior Sister. Maybe she did not see me.”

The wind burned her face raw, yet the pain in Li Shuang’s chest hurt more. [Ye Zhao Zhao, what are you saying? Even if we were not close, at the edge of life and death I never thought to abandon you.]

Second Junior Brother, Sheng Yuan, sighed and said: “Zhao Zhao, you are too naive. First Senior Sister used to be first among our generation, but after you entered, your cultivation surged, and you surpassed her not long ago. She is narrow minded and has long resented you. When you were surrounded by Snow Fiends, she waited for you to die. She probably did not expect you to break out and even bring back the Snow Lotus.”

Ye Zhao Zhao looked stunned and said: “That cannot be. Even if Senior Sister resents me, she should know how important the Tianshan Snow Lotus is to Master. She may not like me, but would she ignore Master’s safety?”

Third Junior Brother, Shen Yue, joined in and said: “I never thought First Senior Sister could be so excessive. When Junior Sister found us, she was badly hurt, but the Snow Lotus in her hand was untouched. That shows how deeply she respects Master. But First Senior Sister is selfish and chilling.”

Fourth Junior Brother spoke with disgust and said: “If Zhao Zhao had not frightened off those Snow Fiends, we would not have escaped so smoothly. Compared with her, First Senior Sister’s behavior is shameful.”

The accusations piled up, one after another.

Inside, Li Shuang cried out: [It is not like that. It is not.] After Ye Zhao Zhao joined the sect, Li Shuang’s own cultivation stalled for no clear reason. Still, she only trained harder and never blamed Ye Zhao Zhao.

Their poor relationship had other causes. Ye Zhao Zhao was the last to join, but her sweet tongue and constant bright smile quickly won the affection of everyone on Ling Xu Peak.

At first, Li Shuang liked this Junior Sister too. Until one time.

Ye Zhao Zhao claimed something had gone wrong in her practice and asked Li Shuang to check. Li Shuang suspected nothing and stepped closer.

The instant she touched her, Ye Zhao Zhao let out a shrill cry and begged for mercy: “Senior Sister, spare me.”

By coincidence, Master was nearby and saw the scene of Li Shuang “bullying” Ye Zhao Zhao.

Faced with Ye Zhao Zhao’s tear-streaked face, Li Shuang did not know how to defend herself.

After that, the same story kept repeating.

She was clumsy with words and could not argue. Little by little, Master and the Junior Brothers formed an opinion of her, thinking she was jealous of Ye Zhao Zhao and targeted her at every turn.

Yet even if they did not get along, she had never thought of harming Ye Zhao Zhao.

[After so many years together, do Master and my juniors have no trust in me at all? Why do they believe Ye Zhao Zhao’s lies so easily?] She tried to explain and said: “It is not like that, I…”

Immortal Ling Xu cut her off, his voice colder than the wind: “Enough. Li Shuang, when I took you in, I had high hopes. You have disappointed me. Since Zhao Zhao entered the sect, you feared she would surpass you and kept pressing her. But her talent is astonishing. Even under your pressure, she still surpassed you, and you let her face danger. I, Immortal Ling Xu, have no disciple like you.” With a stir of his spiritual sense, he ended the Message Talisman.

The world fell silent again.

Li Shuang stared at the talisman in her hand, its light gone dull.

She had drained her last bit of power. She could not even trigger another Message Talisman.

She could not help thinking: [If I tell the truth, will they believe me?] A bitter smile touched her lips. [No. No one will believe me.]

This scene had happened too many times.

Whatever the Junior Sister said, everyone believed her without question.

Whatever Li Shuang said, she received endless blame.

She had already been cast aside.

With effort, Li Shuang lifted her head and looked at the Dragon Roar Sword at her side. Now only this treasured sword, which had accompanied her since the Golden Core Stage, remained with her.

She was born of the Sword Sect, known best for raising Sword Spirits. Within the Dragon Roar Sword lived the Sword Spirit she had nurtured with care.

She called softly, and a faint figure of the Sword Spirit appeared in the air.

She spoke: “Long Yan, guide the Dragon Roar Sword down the mountain and ask for help for me.”

The Sword Spirit, Long Yan, hovered in the air without moving.

Li Shuang frowned and tried again: “Long Yan, you…”

Before she finished, the Dragon Roar Sword lifted and, with a sudden thrust, stabbed into her dantian.

Li Shuang lowered her head to look at the blade tip that had pierced through her body, and her mind went blank.