330: Chapter 330 is somewhat inexplicable; the hostility from the Taihao Clan.

"Senior, about that matter..." Xu Ruyu tried to explain.

"Shut up!" the woman snapped, cutting him off. The hostility in her eyes intensified, almost manifesting into physical blades. "I don't want to hear your explanations! I'm just asking you, was it you?"

Xu Ruyu opened his mouth and nodded helplessly. "It... it was this Junior."

"Good! Very good!" The woman sneered, her smile cold enough to freeze someone to death. "You actually dare to admit it!"

Xu Ruyu groaned inwardly.

Didn't Sister Qingli say this person from the Taihao Clan was easy to get along with? This is easy to get along with? She looks at me like I'm the man who killed her father the moment we meet!

How could he know what kind of profound relationship this member of the Taihao Clan had with the Artifact Spirit of the Illusory Moon Well?

The Artifact Spirit was the Master of this Taihao Clan member.

A thousand years ago, this woman of the Taihao Clan was just an entry-level Artifact Refining apprentice. Because her Aptitude was dull, she was repeatedly mocked by her fellow disciples.

It was the Artifact Spirit who happened to pass by, saw her resilient Heart-Nature, took her as a disciple, brought her into the inner layer of the Illusory Moon Well, and taught her everything.

From the most basic identification of ores and materials to the profound engraving of Array Pattern, and then to those Mind-Cultivation Techniques for Artifact Refining that could only be understood through intuition, the Artifact Spirit had taught her personally for three hundred years.

Three hundred years was enough for an ignorant young girl to grow into a Grandmaster of Artifact Refining who could stand on her own.

Three hundred years was also enough for the bond between Master and disciple to become deeper than Bloodline.

In the heart of this Taihao Clan member, her Master was the most important person in her life—the most respected, most loved, and most inviolable existence.

Her Master was pure as ice and clean as jade, holy and flawless. Though a spiritual body, she was purer than any Mortal.

However, it was this Xu Ruyu who, during the Trial of Willpower, actually... actually did that to her Master...

When the Taihao Clan member learned of this, she nearly went on a rampage on the spot!

She wanted nothing more than to immediately charge out of the Illusory Moon Well and personally slay the bastard who had defiled her Master's purity!

But at that time, her Master was falling into a deep sleep to undergo a transformation. She didn't dare leave and could only stay in the inner layer of the Illusory Moon Well, suffering day and night, her heart full of hatred.

If not for her concern for her Master's safety, she would have charged out long ago.

And now, this Xu Ruyu had actually delivered himself to her doorstep?

The Taihao Clan member looked at the innocent-faced, even somewhat dazed youth before her, and the fury in her heart nearly burned through her chest.

"Speak," she said through gritted teeth, each word heavy. "What are you doing here?"

Xu Ruyu was slightly suffocated by her Aura, but he still braced himself and said, "This Junior wishes to find a secret Artifact Refining Room. Sister Qingli said that in the entire Tianyin Mountain, your Artifact Refining Room is the most secret, so..."

"So you came?" The Taihao Clan woman sneered. "That girl Qingli sent you? She certainly knows how to make arrangements."

Xu Ruyu's heart stirred slightly. She called Sister Qingli a "girl"; it seemed the seniority of this Taihao Clan member was indeed terrifyingly high.

"Yes," Xu Ruyu answered honestly.

The Taihao Clan woman stared at him, her gaze like a venomous snake watching its prey. She sneered and asked, "I heard you and Qingli have a good relationship? What, are those rumors all false?"

Xu Ruyu was stunned. "Huh?"

The Taihao Clan woman's smile became even more sarcastic. "Why play dumb? Your little affair has spread throughout Tianyin Mountain.

That girl Qingli, a dignified Elder of the Taihu Clan, personally acting as your Dao Protector, and even... Hmph, you men, not a single one of you is any good!"

Xu Ruyu finally understood. His Face turned slightly red, and he gave a dry cough, not daring to respond.

The Taihao Clan woman was relentless, continuing to sneer, "She told you to come to me, did she think I would be polite to you for the sake of her Face?

Let me tell you, what I, a member of the Taihao Clan, hate most are men!"

She gritted her teeth, emphasizing every word: "Especially bastards like you, who harmed my Master and then came to harm the women of my clan!"

Xu Ruyu was extremely embarrassed by the scolding but could not refute it. Harmed her Master? The Artifact Spirit was her Master? Holy crap!

He finally understood where this hostility was coming from.

You slept with someone's Master; how could they not hate you?

"Senior, that matter..." Xu Ruyu tried to explain, "That was a misunderstanding, it was an illusion..."

"Misunderstanding?" The Taihao Clan woman's voice suddenly rose, the fire in her eyes nearly erupting. "You're telling me that sleeping with someone in an illusion is a misunderstanding? Do you know what my Master..."

"What her status is? She has lived for ten thousand years, pure and untainted, without a single blemish! You... you..."

She was shaking with rage, her finger trembling as she pointed at Xu Ruyu.

Xu Ruyu was speechless. He really couldn't respond to that.

Sleeping with her was sleeping with her. Even if it was in an illusion, even if it was to break the trial, could such a thing be called a misunderstanding?

The Taihao Clan woman took several deep breaths, barely suppressing the fury in her heart, and said coldly, "You want to borrow my Artifact Refining Room?"

Xu Ruyu nodded quickly. "Yes, I beg Senior for your indulgence."

"Indulgence?" The Taihao Clan woman sneered. "No one has ever entered my Artifact Refining Room except for my Master! Did Qingli not tell you?"

Xu Ruyu was taken aback.

Sister Qingli indeed hadn't mentioned that.

"Did she send you here to die?" The Taihao Clan woman mocked. "Or does she think I'll make an exception and let you in for the sake of her Face?"