281: In the illusion

The Heart Demon illusion, time flows by.

Within the Yin Yang Sect, Yao Delong was still that radiant and highly respected Head of the Core True Disciples,

the future successor to the Sect Head, and even more, the Dao Companion of Leng Yuekui.

He enjoyed the unparalleled respect of the entire Sect,

and the cold yet warm bond of being Dao Companions with Leng Yuekui.

On this day, the Sect accepted a new batch of Disciples.

Among them, a little girl, as delicate as carved jade, with a timid yet slightly stubborn look in her eyes, was brought under Leng Yuekui's tutelage.

"Clear Snow, why haven't you greeted your Grandmaster yet?"

Leng Yuekui's cold voice rang out as she gestured to the little girl.

The little girl looked up, her ice-blue eyes clear as water,

and with the innocence and curiosity unique to a child, she looked at Yao Delong, who sat beside Leng Yuekui with an aura as deep as the sea.

She nervously pinched the corner of her clothes, still clutching a somewhat worn-out storybook in her hand.

"Disciple Lin Qingxue greets Grandmaster!" Her crisp, childish voice rang out.

Yao Delong looked toward the sound and saw a delicate little girl about eight years old, kneeling respectfully on the ground.

She was wearing a brand-new Yin Yang Sect Outer Sect Disciple uniform.

Her small face was tense as she tried to look serious, but deep within those ice-blue eyes,

there hid a trace of nervousness and curiosity that was hard to detect.

In her hand, she tightly clutched a somewhat worn, thread-bound book.

Yao Delong's gaze fell upon that book, and his pupils shrank slightly.

The handwriting on the cover was all too familiar to him—"The Legend of Mortal Cultivation"!

It was the very storybook he had transcribed word by word in his past life's memories to make a living in the Mortal world!

"Clear Snow, what book is that in your hand?" Yao Delong's voice carried a hint of strangeness that even he didn't notice.

Lin Qingxue's face turned slightly red as she held up the book, feeling a bit embarrassed:

"Answering Grandmaster, it's... it's the storybook I loved reading most when I was in the Mortal world,

which tells the story of how a Mortal step by step Cultivates to achieve Immortal Ascension... I found it very interesting, so I secretly brought it with me..."

A ripple stirred in Yao Delong's heart. In reality,

he had indeed told these stories to the young Lin Qingxue; they were one of the few comforts in his bleak life.

In this illusion, he was still that omnipotent Grandmaster,

and in his leisure time, he would also tell this little Grand-disciple some novel stories, including these "storybooks."

"Hmm, although the story is fictional, it contains some truth. There's no harm in reading it in your spare time."

Yao Delong suppressed that inexplicable throb in his heart and spoke gently,

but his gaze lingered on that familiar handwriting for a moment.

An indescribable sense of familiarity, mixed with a subtle sense of incongruity, quietly emerged.

Time flew by, and under the tutelage of Yao Delong and Leng Yuekui, Lin Qingxue gradually grew up,

becoming graceful and elegant, with skin like ice and bones like jade; her temperament was cold yet spirited, and her cultivation level steadily improved.

As Yao Delong looked at her, that strange emotion in his heart became clearer and clearer.

It was definitely not just a Grandmaster's care for a Grand-disciple, but a kind of... appreciation and palpitation a man feels for a woman.

This feeling was so familiar, yet so out of place!

He clearly loved his Dao Companion, Leng Yuekui, so why would he have such inappropriate thoughts about his Grand-disciple?

The same sense of incongruity appeared when facing another Yin Yang Sect Disciple—Liu Ruyan.

In the illusion, Liu Ruyan only had heartfelt respect and admiration for him, her Grandmaster; her eyes were clear and free of stray thoughts.

But as Yao Delong looked at her exquisite face and graceful figure,

an indescribable ripple would always rise in his heart,

as if in reality, there was some deeper, more ambiguous bond between them.

"Why is it like this?"

The doubts deep within Yao Delong's heart grew like vines, entangling him.

This perfect illusion seemed to start showing traces of unreality.

Finally, during a Sect mission,

Yao Delong took Lin Qingxue, who was already at the Early Golden Core Stage, out to hunt down a group of roaming Demonic Cultivators.

The mission itself wasn't difficult; with Yao Delong's Late Nascent Soul Stage cultivation in the illusion, it should have been easy.

The battle erupted, and Yao Delong was like thunder descending upon the world; with a wave of his hand, the Demonic Cultivators were turned to ash.

However, just when he thought the dust had settled, an extremely hidden demonic needle dipped in an eerie, ghostly light

shot out from the shadows like a venomous snake, aimed directly at Lin Qingxue behind him!

"Clear Snow, watch out!"

Yao Delong reacted instantly, striking out with a palm; his powerful essence energy blasted the attacker and the boulder they were hiding behind into powder!

But he was half a beat too slow after all!

Pfft!

That ghostly demonic needle still grazed Lin Qingxue's shoulder, leaving a tiny wound.

"Grandmaster... I..."

Lin Qingxue's face instantly turned as pale as paper; her body swayed, and she slumped backward.

At the wound, an eerie blackness rapidly spread,

and wherever it passed, the skin lost its luster, and her life force drained away at high speed!

"Clear Snow!"

Yao Delong was horrified and appeared by her side in an instant, catching her in his arms.

She was cold to the touch, and Lin Qingxue's breath was as weak as a candle in the wind.

"Soul-Eroding Bone-Corrupting Needle?!"

Yao Delong's expression changed drastically as he recognized this extremely vicious Demonic Path poison!

This poison specifically eroded the Divine Soul and corrupted the dao foundation; it was incredibly malicious!

He immediately took out all the top-grade detoxifying Spirit Pills he had,

and even risked exhausting his Life Essence to try and force the toxin out.

However, the ghostly black toxin was like a maggot on a bone, exceptionally stubborn!

The Medicinal Pills melted upon entering her mouth, but it was like a stone sinking into the ocean, having no effect at all!

The impact of his essence energy only stimulated the toxin to spread faster!

Lin Qingxue's breath grew weaker and weaker,

her ice-blue eyes began to lose focus, and the flame of her life seemed ready to go out at any moment.

"No... it can't be like this!"

A huge sense of panic and helplessness welled up in Yao Delong's heart; this feeling... was so familiar!

It was as if in some distant past, he had also faced such desperate death!

In his despair, a thought flashed through his mind like lightning—Yin and Yang helping each other, drawing the poison into one's own body!

A Yin Yang Sect secret technique, using oneself as a Cauldron, through the most primitive Yin-Yang intercourse,

to draw the foreign energy (including lethal poison) from the other person's body into one's own, and then neutralize it with one's own cultivation!

This method was dangerous, had extremely high requirements for the practitioner, and... was extremely intimate!

Looking at the semi-conscious, dying Lin Qingxue in his arms,

a flicker of struggle flashed in Yao Delong's eyes, but it was instantly replaced by determination.

He couldn't just watch her die!

"Clear Snow..."

Yao Delong's voice was slightly raspy as he looked into Lin Qingxue's hazy eyes,

"Grandmaster... this is to save you; there is no other way. This method... requires performing... the way of Yin-Yang Harmony."

Although Lin Qingxue's consciousness was blurred, as a Yin Yang Sect Disciple, she naturally understood what "Yin-Yang Harmony" meant.

An extremely faint blush appeared on her pale face, her long eyelashes trembled,

and a trace of complexity flashed in her ice-blue eyes.

Finally, she gave an extremely slight nod and let out an almost inaudible "Mm."