57: Chapter 57 The Speculations of the Crowd, Leng Ning Shuang's Resentment

Almost as soon as Rong Qingliu left Ningyin Hall and Hua Xunhuan received the news, the report of Xiao Nianyin accessing the "Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra" for her Personal Disciple Xu Ruyu was like a drop of cold water falling into a boiling oil pan, instantly exploding among the interested parties in the high-level ranks of the Hehuan Sect!

Hall of Power Transmission, Rong Qingliu's secret chamber.

Rong Qingliu hadn't actually left; she sat cross-legged in her quiet room, with an ancient bronze mirror before her rippling like water, reflecting several blurry yet deeply powerful faces.

This was a secret communication Magical Artifact used among several powerful Elders of the Hehuan Sect.

“The news is confirmed. Xiao Nianyin indeed accessed the original copy of the ‘Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra’.”

Rong Qingliu's voice came through the bronze mirror, rigid and serious.

“For that Xu Ruyu?”

An old and sinister female voice spoke, belonging to the Second Elder in charge of punishment.

“She said so herself, that it was to guide a new Disciple's cultivation,” Rong Qingliu said. “But do you all believe this reason?”

A moment of silence.

Clearly, no one believed it.

“When things are unusual, there must be something wrong,” another slightly sharp female voice spoke; it was the Fourth Elder responsible for outer Sect affairs. “What kind of Heart-Nature does Xiao Nianyin have? For hundreds of years, she has shown no favor to men and looked down on Cultivation Techniques like the ‘Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra’.”

“Now, not only has she taken a male Disciple without a Spiritual Root, but she's also making such a grand show of accessing a core Charm Technique for him... this is definitely not her style!”

“Perhaps that Xu Ruyu isn't as simple as he appears on the surface?”

The Second Elder pondered.

“Senior Sister Rong saw him personally; did you detect anything unusual?”

The Fourth Elder asked.

Rong Qingliu slowly shook her head: “His aura is ordinary, and he indeed has no Spiritual Root. But...” She paused, “Inside Ningyin Hall, there seemed to be another feminine and powerful aura lurking, helping Xiao Nianyin withstand my probe.”

“There's another expert?”

The voices of the Elders became grave.

“Could it be a force Xiao Nianyin is secretly cultivating? Or is she colluding with outsiders?”

The Second Elder's tone was grim.

“Regardless, her unusual behavior has already exposed a flaw.” The Fourth Elder's voice carried a hint of excitement, “Perhaps she has encountered some trouble we don't know about and urgently needs certain methods from the ‘Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra’? Or even... her own cultivation might have a problem?”

This speculation made the atmosphere in the secret chamber even more subtle.

Xiao Nianyin had entered the Saint Realm at a young age, steadily surpassing these older generations, which had already caused some to secretly harbor jealousy and unease.

If she really had a problem...

“Continue to observe, do not alert the enemy,” Rong Qingliu finally set the tone. “Focus on monitoring the movements of Ningyin Hall and that Xu Ruyu.”

“At the same time, secretly investigate if Xiao Nianyin has had any injuries or unusual closed-door cultivations in recent years.”

“The Martial Arts Arena appointment in three months might be the key moment to see the truth!”

Deep within the Hehuan Sect, there was a quiet valley shrouded year-round in pale purple mist, planted with large areas of Purple Heart Bamboo that calmed the mind— “Cold Fragrance Abode”.

This was the cultivation place of the Sect Master's line's core true Disciple, the Eldest Senior Sister Leng Ningshuang.

Unlike the extravagance of Xunhuan Hall or the seriousness of the Hall of Power Transmission, Cold Fragrance Abode was filled with a cold elegance, just like its owner.

Leng Ningshuang, dressed in a pale purple waist-cinched long dress, stood on the Sword Practice Ground deep in the bamboo forest.

She had a tall figure and a peerlessly beautiful face, but her eyes were shrouded in a layer of perennial frost. Her temperament was cold and aloof, carrying some of her master Xiao Nianyin's style, though lacking some of the Sect Master's vast majesty and having more of the sharpness and persistence of a young Genius.

At this moment, she was not practicing her sword but standing quietly, holding a Jade Slip she had just received.

The message in the Jade Slip was simple, yet it was like a red-hot iron rod branded into her heart:

“The Sect Master has specifically accessed the ‘Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra’ for her Personal Disciple Xu Ruyu to study.”

A short line of words, yet Leng Ningshuang stared at it for the time it takes for a full incense stick to burn.

Her fingers gripping the Jade Slip turned white at the knuckles from excessive force, trembling slightly.

Those eyes, which were always calm and even somewhat proud, now saw their pupils contract violently, churning with shock, confusion, disbelief, and... a deep sense of being stung and desecrated by anger!

“Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra...”

Leng Ningshuang squeezed these words through her teeth, her voice bone-chillingly cold with an uncontrollable tremor.

That was one of the most profound charm Mind-Cultivation Techniques of the Hehuan Sect and one of the Foundations of the Sect.

But in the hearts of Leng Ningshuang and the Disciples of her line who upheld Xiao Nianyin's philosophy, this technique symbolized the “primitive” and “desire” side of the Hehuan Sect that they more or less deliberately avoided.

They preferred to control everything with absolute strength and a cold Dao Heart, rather than relying purely on physical allure.

And the Sect Master, Xiao Nianyin, had carried this philosophy to the extreme, leading by example like a Mysterious Maiden of the Nine Heavens, untainted by dust, and was the supreme, flawless faith and goal in Leng Ningshuang's heart.

But now... her pure and holy Sect Master, high above the clouds, was actually for a man... a trash man who had just entered the Sect two days ago, had no Aptitude, and was heard to be frivolous, personally accessing and studying the “Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra”?!

This was simply... absurd! Ridiculous! And even more... a desecration of the sacred faith in her heart!

“Xu Ruyu...”

Leng Ningshuang almost wanted to grind this name to pieces.

The image of the boy from yesterday at the outer Sect assessment plaza appeared before her eyes—he had been unremarkable in the crowd, even somewhat cowering.

How could such an ant-like Mortal be worthy? Why should he receive such special treatment from the Sect Master?

To the point where the Sect Master would not hesitate to break her own principles to touch that technique she had always disdained?

Could it be that the Sect Master really... took a fancy to him?

This thought was like a venomous snake slithering into Leng Ningshuang's heart, making her feel a sharp sting and nausea.

Impossible! What a person the Sect Master was! How could she be so shallow!

It must be that Xu Ruyu used some despicable means, or possessed some secret, to deceive or blackmail the Sect Master!

Yes, it must be so!

Perhaps the Sect Master has some unavoidable difficulties!

She was forced, or she was deceived by that cunning brat!

Leng Ningshuang tried hard to find reasons for her collapsing faith, but the raging fire of anger and jealousy in her heart only grew stronger.

It was a hatred and contempt for Xu Ruyu, a deep confusion and disappointment in the Sect Master's actions, and a sense of humiliation that something she cherished had been easily taken away and trampled upon.

“Three months... Martial Arts Arena...” Leng Ningshuang slowly raised her head and looked toward Ningyin Hall, the coldness in her eyes almost condensing into physical ice blades. “Xu Ruyu, you'd better pray you have some real skill, or... pray the Sect Master can protect you forever.”

She spoke each word deliberately, her voice as cold as if it came from the depths of the Nine Nether Frost Abyss:

“Otherwise, I will let you know what a true Core Disciple of the Hehuan Sect is, and who is worthy of standing by the Sect Master's side.”

“As for the ‘Heavenly Charm Mysterious Maiden Heart Sutra’... that is not something a piece of trash like you is qualified to have the Sect Master touch for your sake.”

“I will personally tear apart everything you've obtained through dirty means in front of everyone, and let you, and those who are watching for a joke, know—”

“The Sect Master's reputation and principles are not to be desecrated!”

“And they are certainly not something an ant like you can covet or pollute!”

The aura around her body surged uncontrollably, and sharp Sword Qi spontaneously overflowed, cutting deep marks into several nearby tough Purple Heart Bamboos, with bamboo leaves fluttering like purple snow.

At this moment, Leng Ningshuang's hostility toward Xu Ruyu was no longer just from the competition for the “Personal Disciple” position; it was mixed with the anger of wounded faith, heartache over the Sect Master's “fall,” and a sense of being offended that was extremely personal.

Xu Ruyu didn't yet know that he had invisibly become the focus of various forces in the Hehuan Sect, and even more, the number one target this proud and cold Eldest Senior Sister wanted to eliminate.

The undercurrents of the Sect surged because of him; the storm was coming, and how would he, this butterfly who had accidentally entered the eye of the storm, handle himself?

Inside the side hall of Ningyin Hall, Xu Ruyu, who had just finished a night of cultivation and broken through to the First Level of Qi Refining, was still immersed in the joy of the initial success of “air cultivation” and had fallen into a deep sleep due to physical weakness, completely unaware of all this.

The sky outside the window gradually brightened, and his true crisis and challenge had only just begun.