39: Chapter 39 Was he...dead?

[When you woke up again, what greeted your eyes was an expanse of red firelight.]

[That white figure was sitting cross-legged in the void, with a giant cauldron right in front of Wangyue.]

[You subconsciously touched your waist; the storage bag was still there, but you found that your own spiritual power could not be mobilized at all.]

["Awake?"]

[It was still that familiar, aloof voice from the auction house.]

["Master Wangyue?"]

[You asked tentatively.]

["Indeed, it is I."]

[The figure in white turned around, and only then did you see Wangyue's appearance clearly.]

[With clear brows and eyes, fair skin and red lips, and soft contours combining feminine gentleness and masculine handsomeness, there was even a somewhat gender-ambiguous feel to it.]

["You little girl have quite some nerve, daring to snatch something this seat has set its eyes on."]

[Hearing this, you offered an awkward smile under immense pressure.]

["I wonder how Master discovered it?"]

["Heh~"]

[Master Wangyue chuckled lightly, a hint of banter in Wangyue's expression.]

["All your schemes are crystal clear within this seat's divine sense. Schemes... are completely useless in the face of absolute power."]

[You fell silent, actually treated like a clown jumping up and down.]

[Glancing at the surrounding environment, you should be inside some cave at the moment, so you tentatively spoke:]

["Since Master didn't kill me directly, you must want something, or do I still have some use?"]

["Not bad, you are a smart person, and being a direct disciple of the Tianxuan Sword Sect also allows this seat to have a bit more patience."]

[Wangyue nodded appreciatively and glanced at you.]

["Hand over the breath-concealing technique, and this seat will let you leave safely."]

[You understood in your heart; your previous few changes in cultivation technique circulation and the transformation of your aura were far too perfect, clearly arousing the interest of this Core Formation cultivator.]

[But that was a talent trait; even if you wanted to hand it over, you couldn't.]

[Just as you were pondering how to deal with this, Master Wangyue suddenly materialized in front of you, its gaze deep.]

["Don't force this seat to resort to soul-searching."]

[Soul-searching! In this realm of cultivation, it was a forbidden art that required consuming the user's luck. High-level cultivators placed extraordinary importance on such invisible and intangible things.]

[Unless driven by necessity, ordinary people would not use it, but clearly, in Wangyue's view, your miraculous breath-concealing technique was worth paying such a price.]

["Has Master's poison been cured?"]

[You suddenly chuckled lightly, the corner of your eye sweeping toward the giant pill cauldron.]

["Hmm?"]

[Hearing this sudden question, Master Wangyue slightly narrowed its eyes, but thinking back that your spiritual power had been sealed by it, it let go of the trace of unease in its heart.]

["So what if it hasn't been cured?"]

[What was being refined inside the pill cauldron was precisely that Spirit-Washing Liquid.]

["Then... go to hell!"]

[Your lowered brows and eyes suddenly snapped open, your eyes filled with ruthlessness.]

[The next moment, a blood jade appeared out of thin air, and the coercion of the Nascent Soul stage completely erupted. A translucent giant palm enveloped everything inside the cave dwelling except for you.]

[You no longer thought too much; if you could directly crush to death this peak Core Formation Master, you would obtain a huge treasury.]

[Failure... death is death, which is still much better than dying from soul-searching.]

["You!"]

[Master Wangyue suddenly widened its eyes, looking in disbelief at the Qi Refinement Stage ant before it.]

[It truly could not figure out how you opened your storage bag, and furthermore, it had already checked your storage bag, and that blood jade was not there.]

["Damn it!"]

[Cursing inwardly, Master Wangyue's aura completely erupted.]

["Ah!!!"]

[You, being at the center of the coercion, let out a miserable scream as the bones all over your body cracked, seeming as if you would be ground into meat paste the next moment.]

[This was definitely not the might a Core Formation cultivator should possess! At the very least, Zicha fell far short of doing so.]

[Half-step Nascent Soul? Or a true Nascent Soul cultivator?]

[You knew nothing about these realms and could only roughly judge based on your own level of fear.]

[In your haze, you only saw a white figure completely block out all your vision. Your mind grew increasingly chaotic, and before losing consciousness, you seemed to lock eyes with a pair of blood-red eyes.]

[In the darkness, you felt as if you had returned to your mother's embrace, warm and comfortable.]

["Mmm~"]

[You let out a soft hum involuntarily, and after slowly opening your eyes, you locked gazes with a pair of aloof, bloodshot eyes.]

[What is going on?]

[For a moment, you were actually unable to judge the current situation.]

[Master Wangyue's fingertips were still continuously channeling spiritual power into your body, looking as if it were... healing your injuries?]

["Awake?"]

[Its voice was dry and deep, as if it was desperately suppressing something.]

[You couldn't help raising your head to take another look, discovering that two extremely alluring flushes had unexpectedly bloomed on that aloof face.]

["Gulp~"]

[You swallowed hard, secretly lamenting that you were no longer male.]

[As an outstanding graduate of the Hehuan Sect, you naturally understood the current person's state; that old fellow from the Red Mansion really hadn't lied.]

["Master, I... I am a woman. How about you let go of this junior and let me go catch a few people to come help you ease this?"]

["Heh~ Of course this seat knows you are a woman."]

[Taking a Nascent Soul-level attack with a half-step Nascent Soul cultivation base—even though it was only rootless magic power—still caused it to suffer massive losses, and the pill cauldron naturally couldn't be protected.]

[Now its spiritual power was nearly exhausted, making it completely unable to suppress the toxins within its body.]

[Master Wangyue gave up the intention of suppressing the aphrodisiac poison, which was precisely the reason it protected you. The next moment, the cave dwelling, which had been reduced to ruins, was shrouded by a powerful formation.]

["Rip~"]

[The garments of the two of you shattered in response.]

["Holy shit~!"]

[The scene appearing before your eyes made you widen your eyes involuntarily, unable to help crying out in exclamation—Master Wangyue, who was as aloof as a fairy of the Moon Palace, turned out to be a man!]

[Looking at its crimson eyes, you swallowed subconsciously.]

[Peak Core Formation? No! A fake Nascent Soul cultivator...]

[But the other party did not give you time to think; the next moment, a crisp and cool fragrance completely overwhelmed you.]

[Half-asleep and half-awake, you felt the spiritual power within your body being tempered and enhanced by a violent force.]

[Qi Refinement Stage 7th Layer Peak, Qi Refinement Stage 8th Layer Early... Qi Refinement Stage 9th Layer...]

[In the end, it actually went straight into the Qi Refinement Stage 9th Layer Peak. Just as your dantian was about to undergo a transformation, it was blocked by another layer of an invisible barrier.]

[Yet the energy within your body was still continuously accumulating, and your body was like a rootless fallen leaf, being frantically ravaged by the fierce wind and heavy rain.]

[After a long while, your consciousness grew increasingly blurred...]

[You died!]

[Simulation ended!]