A Blade’s Descent and a Desperate Charge

“How… how could this be…?” Mu Xi muttered to herself, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

Her hands rose, seemingly against her will, frantically raking through her hair. Her fingertips wove wildly through the strands, as if she could claw away the nightmare unfolding before her eyes.

Zhang Xiaocha…

Why was it Zhang Xiaocha?!

No!

This couldn’t possibly be real! It absolutely couldn’t!

Her nails dug deep into her scalp, the sharp pain a mere whisper compared to the despair that consumed her heart. Her eyes were wide, filled with terror and disbelief, tears welling up and threatening to overflow at any moment.

“Bingning… Bingning…” She continuously whispered the name, her voice laced with despair and sorrow. She had countless times imagined spending a sweet and tender night with Luo Bingning.

Yet now, everything had been irrevocably twisted!

“It’s you!”

“It’s all because of you!”

Her sharp, piercing voice, brimming with endless hatred, echoed within the stone cave.

Tears streamed down Mu Xi’s face as she glared fiercely at Zhang Xiaocha, whose complexion was flushed and breathing ragged. A pale blue spiritual energy rapidly coalesced in Mu Xi’s palm, forming a chillingly sharp spiritual blade.

Her eyes ablaze with fury, she raised the spiritual blade high, spiritual energy surging wildly.

In mid-air, illuminated by the candlelight, the blade emitted a terrifying burst of light.

‘Even if I don’t kill you today, I’ll carve several bloody holes into you!’

The candlelight stretched Mu Xi’s distorted shadow long across the stone bed. Unaware of the impending danger, Zhang Xiaocha remained in a deep slumber.

Whoosh—

The sharp blade swiftly descended towards Zhang Xiaocha’s abdomen.

At the cave’s entrance, Shangguan Zhi, who had been closely observing Mu Xi’s every move, suddenly gasped. A fine layer of sweat subtly beaded on her back.

Hastily, she channeled her spiritual energy, skillfully bypassing the Sound-Proofing Array to clearly transmit Luo Bingning’s voice into Mu Xi’s ears.

Simultaneously, an invisible stream of spiritual energy shot from her fingertips, forming a transparent shield that quickly enveloped Zhang Xiaocha completely.

Shangguan Zhi felt a mix of urgency and exasperation, muttering inwardly,

‘Oh, for heaven’s sake! Can you stop causing me more trouble?!’

‘I woke you up so you could quickly clean up the mess and emerge as if nothing happened, not to stab Zhang Xiaocha!’

‘But you, on the other hand…’

Luo Bingning looked at Shangguan Zhi, who had suddenly blocked her path, and her delicate brows furrowed slightly. “What is the meaning of this?”

Seeing the bewildered look in Luo Bingning’s eyes, Shangguan Zhi inwardly cursed.

‘Damn it!’ She inwardly berated herself fiercely.

She could have simply used her Sect Master’s authority to casually stop Luo Bingning, yet Mu Xi’s sudden action had caused her to panic and lose her composure.

‘What exactly am I doing?!’ She silently chastised herself, though her face maintained a forced calm.

“What is it?” Shangguan Zhi slightly lifted her chin, her gaze carrying a hint of feigned authority and displeasure, as she spoke coldly, “I, the Sect Master, have not yet departed, and you are already so impatient to seek out your Xiaocha?”

Her eyes half-closed, her gaze pierced Luo Bingning like needles, her words carrying an undeniable pressure. “Do you perhaps think the offense you committed this time was too minor? Or perhaps the punishment I inflicted upon you two was insufficient? Do you require more?”

“No, this disciple knows her mistake!” Luo Bingning’s beautiful face instantly paled, and she quickly knelt.

Yet, a strange feeling couldn’t help but rise in her heart. Why had the Sect Master’s attitude towards her suddenly become so stern?

Her gaze inadvertently fell upon the deep, dark stone cave.

It was a black void, endless to the eye.

An inexplicable, strong sense of foreboding welled up in her heart, and Zhang Xiaocha’s image unconsciously appeared in her mind.

‘Could something have happened to Xiaocha?’ At this thought, her pupils sharply contracted, and she instinctively released her spiritual sense, urgently trying to perceive Xiaocha’s current state.

However, the moment her spiritual sense touched the stone cave, she felt a powerful, invisible force, like an indestructible wall, firmly isolating her spiritual sense outside.

In that instant, she felt as if she had plummeted into a bottomless abyss; her breath hitched, and her heart seemed to cease beating.

‘The array I laid down has no effect of blocking spiritual sense at all!’

‘Therefore, this barrier… could only be the Sect Master’s doing!’

‘What does she not want me to see?’

Luo Bingning’s heart filled with dread, and various terrifying thoughts surged like a tide.

‘Did Xi Xi lay hands on Xiaocha? Or did the Sect Master already punish Xiaocha before I arrived?!’

Luo Bingning’s pupils constricted sharply, her fingers digging deep into her palms. The image of Xiaocha lying in a pool of blood, barely clinging to life, incessantly flashed through her mind.

Instantly, her heart felt as if an invisible hand had seized it, and the air in her chest was slowly siphoned away, making it impossible for her to breathe.

‘No…’

‘It can’t be! Absolutely not!’

Before the stone cave.

Shangguan Zhi discreetly glanced at Luo Bingning, who was kneeling before her, and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

‘Thankfully, this Sect Master was quick-witted enough to bluff her.’

However, no sooner had this thought arisen than Luo Bingning, who had been kneeling, abruptly stood up. Her eyes blazing with determination and madness, she charged recklessly into the stone cave.

Shangguan Zhi: “!?”

‘No… are you messing with me?’

Shangguan Zhi’s eyes widened, her face filled with astonishment, and her mouth slightly agape. “Bingning, what are you doing?”

Luo Bingning’s eyes were bloodshot, her long, waterfall-like hair flying wildly behind her as she spoke coldly, “Get out of my way!”

Simultaneously, an ethereal ice phoenix emerged from her body.

The ice phoenix emanated a chilling glow, its wings spread wide as it let out a clear, resonant cry towards Shangguan Zhi. It sounded like a summons from the deepest abyss, sending shivers down one’s spine.

Shangguan Zhi: “!?”

“Bingning, what are you trying to do? I’m warning you, attacking this Sect Master, according to the sect rules, I can directly expel you from the sect and cripple your cultivation! Don’t ruin yourself!” Her eyes were wide and round.

Feeling the aura erupting from Luo Bingning, a tidal wave of shock surged in Shangguan Zhi’s heart. ‘Eighth-level Foundation Establishment?!’

‘This cultivation level? She’s only twenty-three!’

‘Even the Great Imperial Princess, hailed as a cultivation prodigy seen only once in a million years, was merely at the fifth-level Foundation Establishment at this age!’

‘How could this girl Bingning…’

Luo Bingning’s breathing was rapid and erratic as she choked out, “I am willing to accept any consequences, but Sect Master, why do you keep blocking me from entering, and why have you set up an array at the cave entrance to block spiritual sense?”

“Is it because something happened to Xiaocha?” Tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes.

Shangguan Zhi: “?!”

‘No… is it that obvious? And I, the Sect Master, am standing right in front of you, yet you dare to release your spiritual sense? Don’t you know this is a provocation to a powerful cultivator?’