65: Chapter 65 Death of Society

Deep beneath Liuyun Peak of Liuyun Temple, in a secret chamber rich with Spiritual Qi.

The Head of Liuyun Temple, Jing Hong, and several core Elders surrounded a stone bed, their faces grim and filled with anxiety.

On the stone bed, Zi Xiaotian looked pale as paper, his breathing intermittent. Clearly, he had suffered unimaginable injuries and was nearing the end of his life.

"Cough… cough…"

Zi Xiaotian struggled to open his eyes, scanning the crowd, his voice hoarse:

"If… if the Tianhuo and Diyuan Sects insist on destroying the orthodoxy of our Liuyun Temple… you… you must go to the Moonshadow Sect and beg for help…"

"Moonshadow Sect?"

An Elder with a fiery temper couldn't help but speak up,

"Old Ancestor, they are both Fourth-Grade Sects. Would they offend the other two for our sake?"

Jing Hong frowned, his heart equally filled with doubt:

"Old Ancestor, what if… what if the Moonshadow Sect refuses to help, or even stands by and watches? We…"

He dared not think of the consequences.

A sharp glint flashed in Zi Xiaotian's murky eyes:

"Agree to their terms… any conditions! Even if… even if our Liuyun Temple must attach itself to them and become a vassal Sect, so be it! Remember! Only by surviving… is there hope!"

"What?! A… a vassal Sect?!"

Another white-haired Elder exclaimed in shock, his body swaying.

A dignified Fourth-Grade Sect, lowering itself to become a vassal of another Fourth-Grade Sect? This was simply a great humiliation!

The other Elders also wore expressions of disbelief.

Jing Hong was even more shaken, his lips trembling:

"Old Ancestor! This… this price… is it too high? We…"

Zi Xiaotian coughed violently, suddenly raising his hand. A faint cloud-like Qi dispersed, signaling the others to withdraw:

"Jing Hong… stay… everyone else… get out… guard the entrance strictly!"

Though the Elders were full of confusion and reluctance, the Old Ancestor's prestige remained, so they bowed and retreated. Layers of Liuyun Restrictions were immediately placed outside the secret chamber, isolating the inside from the outside.

Only Jing Hong remained in the secret chamber.

Zi Xiaotian forced himself to hold on, gripping Jing Hong's arm tightly. A final burst of light erupted in his eyes, his voice dropping to a whisper:

"You must be… wondering why I am… so humble… willing to kneel… cough, cough…"

He wheezed, his eyes filled with indescribable awe and fear: "Because, Sect Master of Moon Shadow Sect, Ling Hao… he… he is not some Nascent Soul True Lord at all…"

"He is… a Spirit Severing True Venerable!!"

"S-Spirit Severing?!" Jing Hong felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He stood frozen on the spot, his pupils dilated, his blood seeming to freeze!

Spirit Severing! That was a supreme existence far beyond the Nascent Soul stage!

In this region, the most recent Spirit Severing Cultivator dated back fifteen hundred years!

The Old Ancestor was actually saying that the young Sect Master Yueying was a Spirit Severing True Venerable?!

Zi Xiaotian looked at Jing Hong's devastated appearance and used his last bit of strength. His voice was like a dream-like murmur, yet carried absolute certainty:

"Remember… this is… the only… way out for Liuyun Temple…"

As he finished speaking, the light in his eyes extinguished completely, and his breath ceased.

...

Chunyang Peak, inside the Alchemy Pavilion.

The crimson furnace fire illuminated Qin Zhaoxue's focused profile. Beads of sweat dotted her forehead as she carefully refined a Second-Grade "Red Sun Melting Snow Pill."

She had reached the critical "Cold Extraction" step, requiring a stalk of extremely Yin Profound Frost Grass to neutralize the violent Yang flame power inside the Cauldron.

Just as her fingertips were about to touch the ice-attribute medicinal herb, a fragment of what she had written previously unexpectedly surfaced in her mind—about how her Revered Master, Ling Han, personally "guided" the heroine in Alchemy...

Her focus wavered, and her slender hand mistakenly picked up a fire-attribute Blazing Sun Flower from the side!

"Oh no!"

The thought had barely formed when the Pill Furnace emitted a muffled roar!

The violent Fire Spiritual Qi instantly lost balance, the furnace walls glowing deep red and scorching hot. The violent energy was on the verge of exploding!

At the critical moment, a familiar aura instantly enveloped her.

A slender, powerful hand grabbed her wrist, which was suspended in mid-air.

His other arm swiftly wrapped around her slender waist, pulling her entire body backward and pressing her tightly into his chest.

"Disperse!"

A deep, penetrating voice sounded beside Qin Zhaoxue's ear, accompanied by warm breath, making her earlobe tingle instantly.

Ling Hao's fingers flicked skillfully, and the Blazing Sun Flower turned into powder.

At the same time, a cold Spiritual Qi surged from his palm into her Meridians, helping Qin Zhaoxue forcibly suppress the rampaging energy inside the Pill Furnace.

Ling Hao's fingertips continued to guide Qin Zhaoxue's Spiritual Qi, quickly tracing complex seals on the Pill Furnace.

The furnace fire miraculously stabilized, the violence turning gentle.

"Focus, draw in the Gui Water Qi, and counter-surge into the Li Palace."

The voice was right by her ear, carrying a calming power, yet it seemed exceptionally… flirtatious due to the proximity.

Qin Zhaoxue couldn't help but shiver, her heartbeat completely losing its rhythm. With her back pressed against his warm chest, she could almost feel her Revered Master's steady heartbeat.

"Now, Cold Extraction…"

"The heat is still three parts short…"

"Condensing the liquid…"

...

Half-leaning against Ling Hao, Qin Zhaoxue dizzily completed the subsequent "Cold Extraction" and "Condensing the liquid" steps.

When the final wisp of medicinal fragrance coalesced into a pill, and the rich medicinal Qi permeated the air, she was startled to realize she was nearly exhausted, her entire weight leaning into the arms of the person behind her.

It succeeded…

Qin Zhaoxue let out a sigh of relief. Just as she wanted to break free from this embarrassing and heart-racing confinement, the strength around her waist did not loosen.

"Ma… Revered Master?"

Her voice carried a trace of trembling and confusion.

Ling Hao did not let go immediately. Instead, keeping the posture of holding Qin Zhaoxue in his arms, he lowered his head slightly, his chin brushing against the top of her hair, his gaze examining the round, plump Red Sun Melting Snow Pill in the furnace.

"The pill is High Grade,"

"However…"

Before he finished, Ling Hao's hand, which was wrapped around Qin Zhaoxue's waist, suddenly slid down and gave her pert buttocks a slap, neither too heavy nor too light!

"Smack!"

The crisp sound was exceptionally clear in the silent Alchemy Pavilion!

Qin Zhaoxue's body suddenly stiffened as if struck by lightning!

An indescribable sense of shame exploded instantly from the place where she had been hit, rushing straight to the top of her head! Her cheeks, ears, and neck instantly turned red as blood!

"Refining such a dangerous Medicinal Pill, yet you dared to be distracted and grab the wrong main ingredient,"

Ling Hao's voice was steady, even carrying a hint of sternness, "You deserve to be punished."

'Grabbed the wrong main ingredient… deserve to be punished…'

Qin Zhaoxue's mind was buzzing, these two sentences circling like a curse.

Wait! This plot… this dialogue… this tone… and this slap… why is it so familiar?!

She suddenly remembered something, her pupils shaking!

Isn't this… isn't this the segment she wrote before about the "cold and aloof Revered Master punishing the muddled little disciple"?

Even the lines are the same?!

Overwhelmed by shame and anger, she almost instinctively blurted out, her voice urgent and shy:

"Revered Master! This disciple knows she was wrong! This disciple… this disciple will never dare to let her mind wander again, writing those… those messy things… and getting distracted!"

As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized what she had said. She hurriedly covered her mouth, wishing she could faint on the spot!

It's over! Isn't this a confession without being asked?!

Behind her came a meaningful low chuckle.

The laughter seemed to carry an electric current, instantly piercing through Qin Zhaoxue's last shred of luck.

She stiffened and turned her head little by little.

Ling Hao had let her go and was standing a step away, watching her with composure.

There was no extra expression on his handsome face, only his deep eyes clearly reflecting her current state of utter shame and embarrassment, and even carrying a hint of… playfulness?

He spoke slowly, his cold voice sounding like a demon's whisper in Qin Zhaoxue's ears:

"Oh? Writing things and getting distracted?"

Ling Hao raised an eyebrow slightly, as if purely curious,

"What kind of things did you write that made my dear disciple grab the wrong main ingredient while refining a Medicinal Pill?"

The air froze instantly.

Qin Zhaoxue felt all the blood in her body rush to her head, only to drain away in an instant, leaving only cold despair and an overwhelming sense of social death.

Looking at her Revered Master's eyes, which seemed to see through everything, only one thought screamed in her mind:

It's over! Revered Master knows! Revered Master definitely knows! Revered Master must have read it!!!

Senior Sister Chi Wanhe—! I am not done with you!!!

She could no longer stay, let out a weak whimper, covered her face, and rushed out of the Alchemy Pavilion without looking back.

Ah… this damned social death scene!

Ling Hao watched the green-robed figure fleeing in panic disappear outside the door, the corners of his lips curling into a pleased arc.

Hmm, heaven really is helping me! I was still thinking about how to recreate the novel's plot, and she "delivered herself" right to me.

The effect was even better than he had expected!