231: Chapter 231 Lady Qingli makes her move, defeating the Nascent Soul Elder in one strike.

Wang Tiexin and the others looked at each other, momentarily speechless.

Agree? Of course they weren't willing!

Disagree? That would be openly opposing the Ancestral Master's decree, confirming the suspicion of "Sect rebellion"!

Moreover, although Granny Liu's cultivation wasn't top-tier, her significance within the Sect was no small matter. Her attitude could likely influence those neutral Elders who were still watching from the sidelines, and might even draw intervention from other reclusive old monsters!

Just as they were caught in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat, a pleasant female voice filled with a hint of mockery rang out leisurely:

"Granny Liu asks a good question."

"This Palace also wishes to ask everyone as well."

Everyone looked over in shock, only to see Lady Qingli, who had been standing quietly behind and to the side of Xu Ruyu, had at some point gracefully stepped forward, faintly forming a supportive stance with Granny Liu.

The Soul-captivating seductive smile remained on her face, but the depths of her eyes were ice-cold:

"Just now, Sect Leader Xu was humble, saying his strength was insufficient and asking everyone to 'choose another worthy person'."

"But how is it that as I listen and watch, I feel like you all aren't 'choosing a worthy person', but rather... fighting over a bone?"

"Fighting until your faces are flushed, fighting until your true colors are revealed, fighting until you're about to lift the roof off this Council Hall."

Lady Qingli covered her mouth and chuckled, but her laughter held no warmth: "What? Do you think the Founding Ancestor and Old Ancestor Qingtian's judgment is inferior to yours?"

"Or do you think... the two Old Ancestors are no longer here, so their decree can be treated as waste paper, to be crumpled and discarded at your whim?"

Her beautiful eyes shifted, her gaze slowly sweeping across the faces of Wang Tiexin, Li Wancai, and the others. Every person she looked at felt as if thorns were pricking their backs.

"Granny Liu is highly respected and single-mindedly maintains the Sect's legal tradition. Her question is also my question." Lady Qingli's tone grew colder. "Today, in this Council Hall, in front of all our fellow disciples, let's make things clear."

She raised a slender, jade-like hand and pointed toward the high platform at Xu Ruyu, who had slightly lowered his eyelids and whose expression was unreadable since Granny Liu had spoken. Her voice was clear and resonant:

"Xu Ruyu is the new Sect Master of the Hehuan Sect, jointly designated by the Founding Ancestor Mo Hehuan and Old Ancestor Qingtian!"

"This position is legitimate and mandated by heaven!"

"Who agrees? Who opposes?"

She didn't raise her volume for those last six words, yet they carried an invisible Spiritual Pressure that instantly swept through the entire Council Hall!

Agree? Or oppose?

This was no longer just about their attitude toward Xu Ruyu personally; it was about their attitude toward the Founding Ancestor Mo Hehuan, the mysterious Old Ancestor Qingtian, and the eight-thousand-year legal tradition of the Hehuan Sect!

Wang Tiexin and the others' expressions turned completely dark. They knew they had been backed into a corner. Lady Qingli's words, combined with Granny Liu's previous questioning, had turned "whether to honor the Ancestral Master" into a matter of taking sides that had to be declared on the spot!

Some Elders who were still hesitating or harboring hopes of luck now realized the gravity of the situation and turned their gazes toward the leaders.

Huo Lianzi had the most explosive temper and was the first to lose his cool. He craned his neck, his face red as he roared, "I just don't accept it!"

"Lady Qingli, you are not a member of my Hehuan Sect. Although you had some personal history with our Sect's ancestor, that was just personal history after all. Today, are you trying to use personal feelings to interfere in the public affairs of my Hehuan Sect?"

"Also, Xu Ruyu is just a brat at the Qi Refinement Stage. Why should he ride over my head?"

"So what if the Old Ancestor designated him? Maybe the Old Ancestor was just temporarily..."

Before he could finish his sentence, a sudden change occurred!

On the high platform, Xiao Nianyin, who had been standing still like a puppet, suddenly snapped her head up. Her ice-blue eyes stared fixedly at Huo Lianzi. Although there was no fluctuation of spiritual power, the majesty belonging to a former Saint Realm Sect Master still caused Huo Lianzi's words to come to an abrupt halt, and his heart felt a mysterious chill.

At the same time—

"Obstinate and foolish."

Lady Qingli softly spat out those four words. The seductive smile on her face vanished instantly, replaced by an icy disregard for life.

She didn't even make any major movements, merely pressing her fingers together like a lotus and pointing lightly across the air in the direction of Huo Lianzi.

"Buzz—!"

An invisible and intangible, yet vast and boundless Divine Thought that made the Soul tremble with terror, like an invisible mountain or a precise scalpel, instantly crossed space and descended upon Huo Lianzi!

Huo Lianzi didn't even have time to react before he felt an irresistible, mighty force crash down!

The flaming spiritual power burning around him was instantly extinguished. The imposing phantom of the Heaven-Burning Hammer shattered like a bubble. His Mid-Nascent Soul Stage protective spiritual light couldn't even last for a second!

"Pfft—!"

Huo Lianzi felt as if he had been struck by a heavy blow. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his burly body flew backward like a broken sack, slamming hard into a thick Ironwood Pillar in the Council Hall. A dull thud echoed, and then he slid limply to the ground. His eyes rolled back, and his aura instantly withered to the extreme. Although he wasn't killed, he was clearly heavily injured and would have no strength to act again in the short term.

Silence!

A deathly silence!

Everyone, including Wang Tiexin, Li Wancai, and the others, was pale with horror. They looked at Lady Qingli, who had acted, in disbelief, and then at the fallen Huo Lianzi.

One blow!

With just one blow, a single finger pointing across the air, she had heavily injured a Mid-Nascent Soul Stage Elder known for his formidable combat strength?!

This Lady Qingli... just what is her cultivation?!

She usually kept a low profile. Who could have imagined that she hid herself so deeply?!

Now that she had stepped forward to support Xu Ruyu, it seemed today's matter would be difficult to handle...