49: Su Qingyue's special regard

If Lin Ye's rise in the Minor Competition caused a huge stir in the Outer Sect, then his astonishing move in front of the Deacon Hall, where he decisively brought down both Steward of the Menial Servants Zhang Ping and Inner Sect Disciple Liu Feng, caused a massive earthquake throughout the entire Qingyun Sect!

The news, at a speed more terrifying than the spread of a plague, surged from the bustling Outer Sect into the usually serene and self-contained Inner Sect!

Initially, when this news arrived, almost all Inner Sect Disciples reacted the same way—with scorn.

"What kind of joke is this? An Outer Sect menial servant brought down Liu Feng? Do you even know who Liu Feng is?"

"It must be those Outer Sect ants spreading rumors and exaggerating. Although Senior Brother Liu Feng acts eccentrically, he's not someone a mere Outer Sect steward can bite at."

However, as more and more details were confirmed, supplemented, and reconstructed through various channels, the initial disdain and contempt were gradually replaced by a sense of surprise, shock, and even disbelief!

All of this pointed to one fact—

That Outer Sect Disciple named Lin Ye not only truly brought down Liu Feng, but he did so with an almost Prodigy-like, flawless cunning, toying with two self-important hunters in the palm of his hand and ultimately catching them all!

This result left all the Inner Sect Geniuses who heard about it with a deep sense of... dread!

They weren't afraid of powerful opponents, because they themselves were Geniuses. But they felt an instinctive apprehension towards such an opponent, hidden in the shadows, with a Heart-Nature as profound as an abyss!

...Inner Sect, Listening Snow Pavilion.

This was an independent Immortal Cave specially opened for Su Qingyue by the Sect, nestled in a secluded valley. The valley was a sea of verdant bamboo, with a clear stream winding through it, and the Spiritual Qi was rich, like a fairyland.

At this moment, by the swaying bamboo sea, a figure in snow-white robes, holding a three-foot green sword, danced gracefully.

Su Qingyue.

Her sword was as fast as lightning, yet as light as the wind.

Wherever the sword light passed, bamboo leaves fluttered, but not a single one was cut down. The sharp Sword Qi merely left subtle, almost imperceptible sword marks on the flying bamboo leaves, just right.

This was a manifestation of reaching an extremely profound Realm in the Dao of the sword and the control of power.

However, if one looked closely, they would find that her normally placid, clear eyes now held a subtle ripple, a hint of... unease that even she herself hadn't noticed.

"Young Miss."

A maid in green, taking small steps, silently arrived outside the bamboo forest and bowed respectfully.

"Speak."

Su Qingyue did not stop her sword, merely uttering a single word faintly.

"Outer Sect... something big has happened in the Outer Sect." The maid's voice held a hint of uncontrollable shock, "That... that Lin Ye who advanced to the top ten in the Minor Competition, today... at the Deacon Hall, he... he brought down Senior Brother Liu Feng!"

"Ding—"

A soft clang.

The long sword in Su Qingyue's hand, which had been dancing at high speed, suddenly paused!

A burst of uncontrolled Sword Qi instantly shot out, and with a "poof," it cleanly severed a thick bamboo stalk in front of her!

She slowly retracted her sword and turned around, her clear eyes, for the first time, showing obvious fluctuations.

"Tell me everything you know, word for word."

...An incense stick's time later.

After the maid finished recounting the thrilling, twist-filled confrontation that took place in the Deacon Hall, Su Qingyue fell into a long silence.

She stood there quietly, letting the mountain wind ruffle her waterfall-like black hair, her beautiful face, usually frozen for millennia, showing no trace of emotion.

But within her heart, colossal waves had already been stirred!

Her supremely intelligent mind was operating at a terrifying speed, connecting all of Lin Ye's actions and every detail from the first moment he appeared in her sight!

On the Minor Competition, that seemingly clumsy dodging, that seemingly lucky victory... In front of the Deacon Hall, that seemingly innocent bewilderment, that seemingly desperate defense... Scene after scene flashed through her mind, ultimately leading to a conclusion that even she found startling!

"I... still underestimated him."

Su Qingyue, in her heart, silently let out a sigh filled with complex meaning.

She had originally thought that Lin Ye was merely a Body Refining Prodigy with a solid Foundation, who knew how to endure and was skilled at pretending to be a pig to eat the tiger.

This seemingly ordinary Disciple, what he possessed was far more than just his mysterious strength!

"What a brilliant counter-scheme, what a brilliant move to strike after the opponent!"

Su Qingyue was incredibly intelligent; she almost instantly deduced the entire sequence of events!

She knew very well that with the Heart-Nature of people like Zhang Ping and Liu Feng, after being publicly humiliated by Lin Ye, they would absolutely not let it go! They would certainly set a poisonous trap for revenge!

And Lin Ye had clearly anticipated this point long ago!

He did not choose to passively wait, nor did he foolishly choose to seek help from an Elder.

He used himself as bait, laid a flawless trap, and then, just quietly waited for those two self-proclaimed clever hunters, step by step, overjoyed, to jump into this abyss of death tailor-made for them!

That ledger, which could almost pass for genuine, those extremely detailed pieces of evidence... This required what kind of terrifying observation skills! What kind of meticulous mind!

And also, that... acting!—on the Deacon Hall, facing the Elder's pressure, facing the condemnation of thousands, yet still able to perfectly portray "innocence" and "despair"!

Finally, at the moment of truth, the... composure and decisiveness displayed, enough to overturn the entire game!

His strength was mysterious, and his mind was far beyond ordinary people!

Su Qingyue found that her evaluation of Lin Ye was completely overturned every once in a while, and then reshaped to a new, higher level!

This young man was like a bottomless abyss shrouded in layers of mist; you thought you had seen his outline, but when you took another step closer, you realized that what you saw was merely the tip of the iceberg.

"Young Miss," the maid beside her, seeing her Young Miss's constantly changing expression, cautiously asked, "Then... that Lin Ye, what... what kind of person is he, exactly?"

Su Qingyue did not answer.

She merely slowly raised her head, her clear eyes looking in the direction of the Outer Sect, a never-before-seen, brilliant light called "interest" flickering in her gaze.

"An... interesting person."

After a long time, she softly uttered these five words.

She knew that from today onwards, the Qingyun Sect Inner Sect would probably... no longer be so peaceful.