Do you have any talent for me?

The battle between heaven and man was far too shocking.

Each time that colossal sword clashed with heavenly thunder, it felt as if the entire world trembled.

Lying on the ground, Cao Xueyan felt as though an earthquake was happening —

No, in the cultivation world, this should be called a earth dragon transformation, a dragon beneath the earth turning over.

If such a dragon truly existed, its body would be tens of thousands of meters long, enough to crush a mountain with a roll.

Such power was unimaginable without seeing it firsthand.

Cao Xueyan originally thought that Golden Core cultivators were already absurdly strong, yet there were beings even stronger.

Standing at the doorway, Lu Qianyun — with her higher cultivation — wasn’t blocked from watching even from dozens of li away.

This was her first time witnessing someone undergo a Nascent Soul tribulation.

The momentum was nothing like the Golden Core stage; incomparable.

At the center of the heavenly battle, all life within a radius of more than ten li had already been reduced to nothing.

Fortunately, there were no living beings in this cave-heaven — otherwise even that short period would have killed countless.

After more than an hour, the tribulation clouds in the sky finally stopped brewing new lightning.

Not only that — the clouds were shrinking rapidly, and even their dark color was becoming brighter.

Lu Qianyun regained her senses from the shock.

She understood fully — Qin Ximo had survived the tribulation and would now be a true Nascent Soul cultivator.

Once she left this cave-heaven, the entire cultivation world’s balance would change completely.

Lu Qianyun hesitated.

Was she really going to honor Cao Xueyan’s condition and let such an uncontrollable variable walk free?

In today’s demonic sects, only the old sect master of Longevity Heaven was Nascent Soul — and his was a shameful false nascent soul.

That false infant was forged from the blood and souls of countless innocents, filled with extreme yin and evil.

It had never undergone heavenly tribulation and lacked Dao-rhyme — thus he could never be called a Dao Lord.

But thinking about it, that was expected.

If he faced real heavenly tribulation, he wouldn’t even survive the first calamity — the wind disaster.

Lu Qianyun could vividly picture it:

That old master, revered as an ancestor by countless demonic cultivators, confronting Qin Ximo…

Only to have his nascent soul shattered with one sword.

His flesh destroyed with the second.

For someone so overwhelmingly powerful in the modern cultivation world to be bound by a heavenly oath and unable to harm her — this might, in fact, be a form of protection.

During the period when Cao Xueyan fainted from pain, Lu Qianyun had searched the Daoist temple and found many inheritances suitable for the Pleasure Sect.

Bringing these back would surely raise the sect’s strength significantly in time.

However — all the disciples who entered the cave-heaven with them, including those from various sects and demonic factions, were likely dead.

And even if some survived, they would be trapped in those palace halls until their lifespan ended.

Once they returned, their sects would undoubtedly hold the Pleasure Sect accountable.

As the leader of the righteous path, Qin Ximo couldn’t simply declare that she intended to destroy the Pleasure Sect.

But she wouldn’t have to.

A small excuse was enough — and greed would naturally do the rest.

Lu Qianyun thought through countless possibilities.

When she looked up again, the tribulation clouds above the temple had already dispersed.

Light — long absent — slowly returned, almost stinging to the eyes.

“When Fairy Qin comes back and sees you like this, you’d better have a good explanation.”

Lu Qianyun glanced at Cao Xueyan’s immobile legs.

“These injuries have nothing to do with me.

If she wants to blame someone, she should blame herself.”

Cao Xueyan remained silent, and Lu Qianyun accepted her quiet response.

Half an hour passed.

The two remained inside the temple — yet Qin Ximo still hadn’t appeared.

Cao Xueyan grew increasingly anxious.

The simulator had already confirmed Qin Ximo’s breakthrough.

And the tribulation clouds had completely disappeared, restoring the strange sun-and-moon sky above.

If so — where was Qin Ximo?

“Could she be undergoing a heart-devil tribulation?”

Lu Qianyun finally spoke of a possibility.

Most cultivators feared their inner demons — feared them to death.

No matter how strong one was, their heart devil was their natural nemesis.

One careless moment meant eternal doom.

“It shouldn’t be.”

Cao Xueyan shook her head.

“Qin… Fairy Qin is a pinnacle sword cultivator.

A mere heart devil cannot trap her.”

“Oh? You seem to know her well.”

Lu Qianyun chuckled lightly.

“Tell me, does Fairy Qin know your true identity?”

Lu Qianyun sauntered closer, her seductive fragrance spreading.

Cao Xueyan felt a burning heat rise in her lower abdomen — she recognized this sensation.

The Pleasure Sect’s specialty: refining one’s natural scent into top-grade allure magic, controllable at will.

This witch was trying to force a reaction, to make her slip.

Cao Xueyan refused to fall for it — remaining utterly silent.

But someone like Lu Qianyun didn’t rely on words alone.

The body’s reactions, eye-avoidance, breathing patterns, even heartbeat — with Cao Xueyan only at Qi-refining stage, none of these could truly be hidden.

Lu Qianyun began to piece things together, finding it more and more amusing.

Her smile widened, as though she had discovered some enormous secret.

“In the future, try not to fall into the hands of someone like me.

With your level of cultivation, a few little tricks would be enough to make you spill all your secrets.”

“Tell me — if Fairy Qin learns that you’re actually one of her sect’s disciples, how do you think she’d feel?”

Cao Xueyan froze as if struck by lightning.

She was certain she had revealed nothing.

Yet this demoness pieced it together anyway?

Could she really have guessed it just from subtle reactions?

That was terrifying.

Cao Xueyan forced herself to calm down.

Lu Qianyun hadn’t exposed her immediately — meaning she intended to use this as leverage.

“This has nothing to do with you.

Do you really have so much free time?”

Cao Xueyan said coldly.

Lu Qianyun laughed.

“You all call me a demoness, don’t you?

If I don’t act like one, how could I live up to the name?

But you — you’re an outer disciple of the Qingyun Sword Sect, doing all this to help Qin Ximo defy destiny…

Yet unwilling to let her know who you are.

Tell me — what kind of shameful secret is that?

I’m getting more curious.

Should I tell her…?”

Cao Xueyan immediately snapped back:

“You think she’d believe you?”

Lu Qianyun shrugged.

“Since you’ve dual-cultivated together, she won’t believe a demoness like me.

In fact, she’d only think you’re insulting her — implying she slept with someone like me.

That would make things awkward for you, wouldn’t it?

And some words, once spoken, can never be unsaid.”

Her meaning was clear.

Cao Xueyan understood perfectly.

Even a casual hint from Lu Qianyun would plant suspicion in Qin Ximo’s heart.

Especially since the “Shen Yuemian” identity looked so similar to her real appearance.

Who wouldn’t start imagining things?

“So?”

Lu Qianyun leaned close with a bright smile.

“Want to hear my other conditions?

I can pretend I never noticed anything…

The choice is yours.

If you want to keep your little secrets, you’d better cooperate.”

Cao Xueyan clenched her teeth, glaring at her.

This demoness truly lived up to her reputation.

As a demonic saintess, she was anything but easy to handle.

Meanwhile — just as Lu Qianyun predicted — after the lightning tribulation, Qin Ximo encountered her inner-devil tribulation.

She normally dismissed inner demons.

As a sword cultivator, her heart was straight as her blade.

Every time a heart devil appeared, she simply beheaded it with one strike.

This time, however, things were different.

Within the illusion created by her heart devil, she saw someone—

“Yue’er?!”.

Qin Ximo couldn’t help calling out.

Though they had not known each other long, they truly connected.

She knew the girl hid secrets, but so what?

Someone willing to give you every good fortune you had yet to encounter in life…

How could such a girl ever harm her?

Even knowing it was an illusion, after ten days apart, Qin Ximo couldn’t help staring a moment longer.

This heart devil really knew how to tempt.

Qin Ximo thought — maybe she could kill it later.

But she never expected that the figure in the illusion would bow to her and address her not as “Fairy Qin”…

But as—

“Uncle Qin.”

The girl was respectful.

Yet those words struck Qin Ximo like falling into an icy abyss.

Her voice trembled.

“You… what did you just call me?”.