118: Chapter 118: Now that my cultivation has been restored, it's time to fulfill our promise.

Madam Qingli paused, her gaze seemingly piercing through the palace walls toward the figure in the courtyard who might not have gone far yet, and she let out a soft sigh:

"Sigh, I truly feel it's not worth it for that foolish Disciple of yours."

"I warned him last night. You, a Saint Realm Sect Master who Cultivates the Mystic Maidens Sun-Stealing Art and has long since frozen your seven emotions—once your cultivation is restored, your Heart-Nature is bound to return to its coldness, perhaps even more so than before."

"But what about that silly boy? Even knowing it might be a pit of fire, he jumped in without hesitation, risking the depletion of his own being just to transfer his power back to you and save your life."

"And the result? Affection is always wasted on the heartless."

"What he got in exchange was this palm strike of yours, erasing all traces, and a cold sentence of exile."

Madam Qingli put away her playful expression and looked directly at Xiao Nianyin, her voice turning cold as well:

"However, Xiao Nianyin, I can't be bothered with these sordid affairs."

"I've come only to remind you of one thing—"

"Since you've restored your cultivation, shouldn't our original agreement be fulfilled now?"

Xiao Nianyin's gaze fell upon the heavenly fox tripod in Madam Qingli's palm, which was slowly emitting a heart-palpitating Aura, and her pupils contracted imperceptibly.

To take Xu Ruyu away, this old fox actually brought out the Taihu Clan's Clan-stabilizing Treasure Artifact? It seemed she had planned this long ago, determined to take him.

"Agreement?" Xiao Nianyin's voice betrayed no emotion. "This seat naturally remembers."

She slowly raised her eyes, her gaze scraping over Madam Qingli like an icy blade:

"But do you think that with just a single heavenly fox tripod, you can take this seat's Personal Disciple and leave the Hehuan Sect safely?"

The Saint Realm's Aura permeated the air once more. This time, it wasn't just pressure, but carried a restrained, murderous intent.

The temperature in the bedchamber plummeted again. Frost thickened at a visible rate, and even the airflow became slow and viscous.

Madam Qingli seemed completely unfazed; she even let out a "pfft" and burst into laughter, shaking with mirth.

"Look, just look! This is the most disgusting thing about you top Cultivators of the Human Race!"

She pointed at Xiao Nianyin, mocking her without restraint: "When you're weak, you're so easy to talk to, so 'reasonable,' and the promises you make are sweeter than the last."

"But once you regain your strength, you immediately feel you can control everything, turning clouds into rain with a flip of your hand. You want to overturn and wipe away all previous promises and agreements with a single stroke!"

She stopped laughing, and for the first time, a cold expression appeared on her charming face:

"However, Xiao Nianyin..."

"You wouldn't be so naive as to think that the Taihu Clan's reliance for standing firm in the expert-filled Demon Realm, with a Legacy spanning ten thousand years, is just this single heavenly fox tripod, would you?"

The moment her words fell, the majestic Demonic Qi belonging to a Transformed Great Demon, which Madam Qingli had been deliberately suppressing, was released without reservation!

That Demonic Qi was ancient and vast, carrying a primordial Aura. Although it was slightly inferior in quality to Xiao Nianyin's Saint Realm spiritual power, it was not lacking in quantity at all, even faintly resonating with the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi!

What made Xiao Nianyin's heart tighten even more was—

At the same moment Madam Qingli released her Demonic Qi, the nine-colored radiance of the heavenly fox tripod in her hand suddenly surged!

Ancient and mysterious runes lit up one after another on the tripod's body. The interior of the tripod seemed to connect to some unfathomable space, emitting a... sense of summoning that made even the Soul tremble?

Xiao Nianyin's cold brows truly knitted together for the first time.

She looked at Madam Qingli, whose Aura was completely different as if she had changed into another person, and felt the increasingly clear, terrifying throb crossing through space from within the heavenly fox tripod. An almost absurd yet alarming thought surfaced in her mind.

Her voice, carrying an unprecedented gravity, asked one word at a time:

"That... Heavenly Fox powerhouse of your Taihu Clan..."

"She wouldn't be descending in person, would she?"

Facing Xiao Nianyin's clearly grave and probing question, Madam Qingli merely curled her lips into a meaningful smile but did not answer.

Her wrinkled fingers continued to unhurriedly stroke the heavenly fox tripod floating above her palm, which was circulating with nine-colored radiance.

The tripod's body shimmered with light, breathing the air solidified by Xiao Nianyin's Saint Realm pressure as if it were alive, quietly dissolving that invisible force.

Answer?

Naturally, she wouldn't.

How could she easily tell Xiao Nianyin about the hidden trump cards and safety nets she had prepared? What she wanted was this unresolved deterrence, to make this Hehuan Sect Master, who had just restored her cultivation and whose Heart-Nature was still unsettled, feel some wariness.

She wanted her to know that in this world, she, Xiao Nianyin, was not the only one who could stand at the Peak.

Their Taihu Clan, with its ten-thousand-year Legacy, had its own reliances and Foundations to occupy a place in a cruel land like the Demon Realm.

That Ancestor Tianhu, who had long since stopped concerning herself with worldly affairs and possessed heaven-reaching cultivation, was one of their greatest sources of confidence.

Madam Qingli's cloudy old eyes scrutinized the subtle changes in Xiao Nianyin's expression through the soft glow of the heavenly fox tripod.

She could feel that the aggressive, icy killing intent on the other woman had quietly withdrawn a bit after sensing that faint, terrifying throb crossing through space from deep within the heavenly fox tripod.

That was enough.

What she wanted was never to tear off the mask and fight to the death with Xiao Nianyin right now.

"Xiao Nianyin," Madam Qingli stopped beating around the bush. Her voice returned to its previous calmness, yet it carried an unquestionable persistence. "This old woman doesn't want to say any more nonsense. I'll only ask you one thing—"

She looked directly into Xiao Nianyin's ice-sealed eyes:

"Does our previous agreement still stand?"

The freezing air in the bedchamber seemed to stagnate for a moment.

Without waiting for Xiao Nianyin's answer, Madam Qingli continued on her own:

"We had a deal back then."

"When your cultivation was completely lost and you were at your weakest, I would conceal your Qi and block the probes from the outside world—especially from those arch-enemies of yours."

"In exchange, once you restored your cultivation, I would take Xu Ruyu away."

"During this time, I consider myself to have been diligent and responsible."

"That vixen Liu Rurao tested you several times and even came knocking today. If I hadn't acted in secret, with your state at the time, she would have likely seen through your true state long ago, and the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I saved your life, would it?"

She paused, her gaze becoming sharp:

"Now, your cultivation is restored, and you've even gained a blessing from the disaster; your Foundation seems even stronger than before."

"What, is Grand Sect Master Xiao going to... burn the bridge after crossing it and go back on her word?"

Xiao Nianyin listened in silence, her face devoid of any expression.

Only the slight tightening of her lips betrayed a hint of inner turmoil.

A brief silence fell over the bedchamber, broken only by the humming of the heavenly fox tripod as it slowly rotated.