209: Chapter 209 Exposing the Lies

"Little Yun'er, I naturally believe everything you just said."

She leaned forward slightly, and the distance between them quietly closed.

Warm breath brushed against him, and her words were gentle, yet every sentence struck at his secrets.

"It's just that upon your return, your expression has been gentle, and your state of mind is calm."

"Are you truly... hiding nothing from your Revered Master?"

Master Bai Yuxue held a warm, celadon teacup.

Her gaze drifted leisurely onto Ye Yun before her.

The faint smile she held at the corners of her lips deepened and spread little by little.

She was not in the slightest hurry.

She just quietly stared at the youth.

Her long, narrow phoenix eyes were slightly half-closed.

Her lazy and scrutinizing expression was just like a stunning, dormant cat, slowly sizing up a little mouse that had fallen into its paws.

Ye Yun felt his back prickle under this penetrating gaze that seemed to see through everything.

Panic was already in his heart, but he forced a calm and gentle smile onto his face.

"Revered Master, you jest. How would this Disciple dare to hide anything from you?"

"Is that so?"

Master Bai Yuxue parted her red lips slightly, her tone slow and unhurried, revealing neither joy nor anger.

She raised her hand and gently set the celadon teacup on the bamboo table before her.

The movement was extremely gentle.

Yet, the moment the porcelain cup touched the bamboo surface, a crisp, sharp sound rang out.

The abrupt sound caused the surrounding quiet atmosphere to suddenly tighten.

She shifted her posture and slowly stood up.

Her crimson dress was tailored to fit her figure, shimmering with flowing light under the warm afternoon sun, layers of gauze skirt hanging and swaying.

She took calm steps, walking closer to Ye Yun step by step.

With every step forward, the Martial Spirit Realm Aura surrounding her grew heavier.

A piercing and concentrated Aura enveloped him in layers.

"Little Yun'er, you just said that the old deacon from Tianyang Academy was at the first level of the Martial Spirit Realm. You and your Senior Sister joined forces and killed him."

She stopped steadily in front of Ye Yun, so close that their breathing could be heard.

A slender finger, white as jade, slowly rose.

It pressed lightly against Ye Yun's chest, the touch slightly cool.

"Then tell your Revered Master, how could a Half-step Martial Spirit and a Peak Great Martial Master kill a true Martial Spirit Realm expert?"

Ye Yun's lips parted slightly, his heart tightened, and he instantly became speechless.

"Disciple..."

"And another thing."

Master Bai Yuxue did not wait for him to defend himself, her fingertip sliding slowly upward.

It brushed past his warm chest, traced his clear collarbone, and lightly grazed his bobbing Adam's apple.

Finally, it rested steadily on his jaw, applying a slight force to tilt it upward.

Forcing Ye Yun to look up and meet her deep, translucent phoenix eyes directly.

"That wound on Qingxue's shoulder was caused by a Poison Palm. The Poison Palm grazed her shoulder, and the fabric was corroded and charred black. Yet when you helped her bandage it, how was her collar torn?"

Ye Yun's Adam's apple bobbed violently under her cool fingertip.

Alarm bells rang wildly in his heart.

He forcibly suppressed the surging panic, forcing himself to steady his mind.

"Senior Sister's collar was torn by Sword Qi."

"Sword Qi?"

Master Bai Yuxue raised an eyebrow slightly, a mocking yet not quite mocking smile flashing in her eyes.

"There were four people from Tianyang Academy: one used a Poison Palm, one used a mountain-splitting axe, one used a chain, and one used a curved blade. Whose Sword Qi?"

A fine layer of cold sweat instantly beaded on Ye Yun's forehead.

He secretly groaned in his heart.

He had been too detailed and comprehensive when reporting the battle situation just now.

Now, it was full of loopholes; even if he wanted to change his story on the spot, there was simply no way to do it.

"It... it was Senior Sister's own Sword Qi. It backfired during the fight."

"Oh."

Master Bai Yuxue deliberately drew out the end of the sound, her tone carrying a rich sense of amusement.

"Qingxue cultivates the Ice Sword; for backfiring Sword Qi to tear open a close-fitting collar, that is truly a rare and novel occurrence."

Ye Yun simply shut his mouth and stopped explaining.

He understood completely at this moment.

The more he explained, the more loopholes appeared, and the easier it was to be exposed.

Master Bai Yuxue lowered her eyes, catching sight of the dense cold sweat on his temples.

The smile at the corners of her lips grew richer, and the inquiry in her eyes deepened a few notches.

She did not expose the youth's clumsy lie on the spot.

She simply slowly withdrew her finger, stepped back two paces, and sat back down lazily on the bamboo chair.

The next instant, she slightly raised her right hand and gently spread her five fingers.

A massive, vast, and nearly suffocating Mystic Power Aura suddenly exploded outward.

It crushed down fiercely toward Ye Yun like a mountain or sea.

This was by no means the Aura that a normal Martial Spirit Realm expert should have.

It was a higher Realm than the Martial Spirit Realm!

Ye Yun's whole body tightened instantly, clearly sensing this terrifying pressure.

The spiritual energy, condensed to the extreme, almost turned into substance, pressing heavily upon his limbs and bones.

It was more than ten or a hundred times stronger than that first-level Martial Spirit Realm old deacon from Tianyang Academy.

He subconsciously mobilized all the Mystic Power within his body.

The golden Mystic Core of the first-level Martial Spirit, which had already quietly broken through, spun rapidly.

The pure and domineering Pure Yang Mystic Power instantly surged through his Meridians.

The expected feeling of suffocating and being crushed did not arrive.

It was only that his chest felt slightly stuffy, and his breathing was slightly obstructed.

He understood instantly in his heart.

The current him was no longer a Great Martial Master to be trampled upon.

A first-level Martial Spirit fighting against a Peak Martial Spirit, although the gap was still vast.

It was no longer the situation of being crushed like the difference between clouds and mud as before.

Thoughts flashed rapidly through Ye Yun's mind.

He immediately deliberately restrained his Aura, wanting to pretend to be unable to bear it and appearing wobbly.

But his body's instinct had already taken the first step.

The Martial Spirit Realm protective Aura operated autonomously, steadily withstanding this wave of pressure.

His whole person merely stumbled back two steps, but his posture remained upright.

Master Bai Yuxue slowly withdrew the Aura around her.

A trace of genuine shock and surprise flashed instantly in her deep phoenix eyes.

"Your cultivation... has broken through again?"

Ye Yun's heart jolted violently, secretly thinking this was bad.

He frantically suppressed all the pure Mystic Power in his body.

Forcibly causing his Realm to drop back, disguising it as the Half-step Martial Spirit level.

He quickly piled a strained and weak expression onto his face, deliberately making his breathing rapid.

"Reporting to Revered Master, this Disciple was lucky enough to break through to Half-step Martial Spirit on the return journey. Revered Master's Aura is too terrifying; this Disciple almost couldn't hold on just now."

While speaking, he raised his hand and feigned holding his chest.

His brows slightly furrowed, and he gasped for breath heavily.

That weak and strained appearance was acted vividly, without any flaws.

Master Bai Yuxue quietly watched this practiced performance of his.

A faint smile floated in her eyes, but she did not expose his little schemes.

"A mere Half-step Martial Spirit, able to only retreat two steps under my Peak Aura. Little Yun'er, this Half-step Martial Spirit of yours is not watered down at all; its true value is very high."

"It is all thanks to Revered Master's excellent teaching!"

Ye Yun immediately climbed up the pole, his face filled with a sincere and obedient expression.

"This Disciple's meager cultivation is not worth mentioning before Revered Master. Your Aura just now was truly terrifying; this Disciple's legs are still weak and trembling."

"Legs weak?"

Master Bai Yuxue tilted her head slightly, her gaze playfully landing on his straight and upright figure.

"When you were resisting my Aura just now, your back was straighter than anyone's; there was not a hint of weakness."