Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The mountain wind howled, and a few birds cautiously peered at the figure by the cliff, hesitantly perching beside him.

Hong Rong stole a glance at the tall figure on the cliff. Ever since he had found Huo Wuyan this time, the lord had been in this hollow, indifferent state, like a statue devoid of feelings or emotions.

He had been standing by the cliff, letting the wind blow and birds flock, for so long that even his posture had not changed.

Hong Rong scratched his head and sighed in boredom. Lu Yuanyin might have low cultivation, but she was unexpectedly sharp. Earlier, while he was following her, she nearly noticed something unusual.

He had been spying on Lu Yuanyin through the Mystic Mirror, and as he watched, even Hong Rong himself began to feel like a creep.

He wasn’t even married yet, hadn’t found a wife—what was he doing peeping at a pretty girl all day?! If anyone found out, who knew how they would spin the story.

Hong Rong scratched his head. Though he didn’t understand why the lord had asked him to follow Lu Yuanyin, his reverence for Huo Wuyan made him instinctively obey. He yawned, opening the Mystic Mirror, and witnessed Lu Yuanyin lugging a furnace and going head-to-head with someone. His jaw dropped, and he forgot to even finish his yawn...

He stroked his chin thoughtfully. This Lu Yuanyin, though she looked delicate and frail, was actually fierce and tough inside—quite in line with their clan’s fierce style.

He felt as if he had vaguely guessed the lord’s intention. Could it be that the lord had seen the girl’s potential and planned to take her under his wing? Based on today’s performance, once Lu Yuanyin matured, she would definitely become a formidable warrior!

Hong Rong tilted his head and looked into the Mystic Mirror. He saw Lu Yuanyin ambushed by the vines, exhausted to the point of being strangled to death, about to become nourishment for the vines. He frowned.

After a moment of hesitation, he tiptoed up behind Huo Wuyan and reported softly, "My lord, that girl seems about to die—maybe half an hour left."

Huo Wuyan’s fingertips paused.

The mountain stream remained dead silent.

Hong Rong peeked up. Huo Wuyan stood by the window, slightly lowering his head, quietly watching the birds soaring in the mountain stream. Half of his face was hidden in the shadows, his lowered lashes obscuring the expression in his eyes. Hong Rong couldn’t tell his mood.

After a moment, Huo Wuyan finally spoke coldly, "Let her die, then."

His tone was as cold as struck jade, devoid of any emotion, as if he cared nothing for the girl’s life or death.

Hong Rong wasn’t surprised. In his eyes, Huo Wuyan was supposed to be like this—cold, aloof, scorning life and death.

To become Huo Wuyan’s guard, they had to pass through countless gates of death, walking the line of life and death all the while. He was already accustomed to death.

Hong Rong glanced again at the scene in the Mystic Mirror and sighed softly, "What a pity..."

He put away the Mystic Mirror. Since Lu Yuanyin was as good as dead, there was no need to keep following her. He was about to call back his brothers when he felt a few fallen leaves land on his head, tickling him. He exhaled and blew the leaves away.

The next second, he widened his eyes in surprise. The lord, who had been standing there watching the wind and birds, had vanished—dragon form and all.

Where was the dragon?

Somewhat bewildered, Hong Rong scratched his head, then instinctively rushed toward where Lu Yuanyin had been.

The emerald-green vines surged like waves toward the cliff edge, writhing crazily, raising their thorns, greedily devouring their newly caught prey.

*

As they writhed, the weaker cultivators couldn’t withstand the force—their limbs broke, blood gushed from their seven orifices, their bodies were torn ragged by the thorns, internal organs exposed. The hot blood flowed out, only to be instantly absorbed by the vines. That corner of the cliff turned into a hellish scene, a gruesome mess.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, mixed with that mysterious fragrance—somehow nauseating.

After a moment, the vines seemed to sense something. Their writhing paused, then returned to their earlier quiet state.

Ripples like flowing water appeared in the void, and a speck of crimson starlight slowly fell. Then, spiderweb-like cracks crept across the void,

suddenly tearing open.

That speck of starlight grew stronger and stronger, eventually forming a tall figure that silently appeared at the foot of the cliff. The howling mountain wind lifted his snow-white hair.

The vines seemed to sense some terrifying presence. They writhed frantically, and wherever the starlight touched, their thorns fell, leaves withered, and their emerald color quickly turned an abnormal yellow. Forgetting their unfinished prey, they retreated like a tide back into the cliff.

Several figures instantly crashed to the ground, blood mixed with bits of flesh torn off by the thorns.

Huo Wuyan lowered his gaze. His crimson eyes coldly looked at one person among them. Lu Yuanyin’s limbs were almost twisted out of shape by the vines, her pale cheeks bloodless. She was unconscious, only her brows tightly furrowed, her fair face stained with crimson blood, looking pitiful—like a dirty puppy.

Huo Wuyan looked at the blood and gore on the ground and frowned in disgust.

Crimson blood flowed from her wounds. He could sense that if things continued like this, she would die within half an hour.

He should have killed her directly, ground her bones to ash, and destroyed her soul.

Yet, looking at the dying, barely breathing Lu Yuanyin, Huo Wuyan was silent for a moment, then slowly crouched down, reached out, put his arm around her slender waist, and pulled her into his arms.

He would kill her himself, but not now.

Hot blood soaked through his robe, sticking damply to his body. Huo Wuyan only lowered his eyes, quietly looking at the woman in his arms. Her waist was so thin, just a handful—delicate in his grasp.

When Hong Rong rushed over, this was what he saw. His eyes widened in shock.

In her coma, Lu Yuanyin seemed to sense something. She instinctively curled up, trying to ease the pain all over her body, her face scrunched up like a steamed bun, "It hurts..."

Huo Wuyan paused. His fingertips rested on her slender waist, his brows slightly furrowed. Seeing this, Hong Rong inexplicably sensed a hint of helplessness in the lord’s actions. He raised an eyebrow, finding it absurd.

Seeing Huo Wuyan holding her in silence, and remembering that the Dragon Lord had only ever killed in his life, never saved anyone, Hong Rong quickly ran over, eager to explain, "My lord, in her condition, we need to find a healer first. The vines broke all her bones."

Huo Wuyan looked at her limp limbs. His eyes darkened, but he carried her in his arms and strode away from the chaotic cliff.

A speck of golden-red flame slowly fell into the vines. The flame grew with the wind, in an instant turning into a sea of fire, engulfing the vines. The vines twisted madly, emitting sharp, baby-like cries, and a stench of decay spread across the entire cliff.

A moment later, several figures followed the scent of blood and hurried down to the cliff. They saw the burning vines, surprise flickering in their eyes.

But the next second, seeing the carnage at the bottom of the cliff, their expressions changed. They rushed over, anxiously checking on the wounded, "Junior sister! Are you alright?"

"Damn, something happened! Notify the elders quickly! How did so many people get hurt?"

Gu Lingqiu helped up the unconscious Lu Sisi. She was covered in still-fresh blood, her limbs twisted at unnatural angles, her body full of wounds deep enough to show bone, flesh turned outward. Worst of all, the meridians in her body were severed, and her inner core had shattered.

Gu Lingqiu’s eyes showed worry. His gaze swept over the crowd, then his expression changed. Ignoring the severely injured Lu Sisi, he quickly searched other parts of the cliff.

He roughly grabbed a disciple, his expression grim, "Where’s Lu Yuanyin?"

The disciple, suddenly pulled by his clothes, felt displeased. But seeing Gu Lingqiu’s face—black as a thundercloud—he swallowed the words on the tip of his tongue. Suppressing his annoyance, he said, "I didn’t see her... Since I got here, I haven’t seen her at all."

A vague sense of unease crept into Gu Lingqiu’s heart. Where had Lu Yuanyin gone? Irritated, he looked at the suddenly changed scene, then his pupils contracted sharply.

Lying quietly in the blood and mud was a fish-shaped jade pendant. The faded red string at its tail was again stained with crimson.

Gu Lingqiu’s heart trembled. This was the jade pendant that Granny had given Lu Yuanyin. She had always valued it more than her own life, never letting it leave her side.

Dazed, Gu Lingqiu picked up the blood-soaked jade pendant, his eyes turning red. "Lu Yuanyin..."

At the same time, inside the Chongyao Sect, the lights were still blazing. Several elders looked solemnly toward the direction of the Cloud-Receiving Platform, where lights flickered around one of the secret realms, the surrounding spiritual energy was turbulent and unstable.

The leader of the Chongyao Sect pinched his fingers in calculation, his expression darkened. "What is happening with this secret realm?"

The Grand Competition was about to conclude, and they were preparing to handle the subsequent matters, but unexpectedly, the spiritual energy within the Foundation Establishment realm grew chaotic and seemed on the verge of collapse. The Chongyao Sect had stood for thousands of years and had never seen such an anomaly!

The Chongyao Sect Master stroked his snow-white beard, and the more he calculated, the stranger his expression grew. "Has a Senior appeared within the Foundation Establishment realm?"

Several elders could hardly believe their ears; their expressions were strange. The Chongyao Sect Master was already one thousand eight hundred years old, with profound cultivation, and was considered a top expert in the entire cultivation world. Those he would address as "Senior" could be counted on two hands across the entire cultivation world.

But no matter how hard they racked their brains, they could not understand why a powerful expert with such cultivation would enter this small secret realm.

Could it be this Senior was so bored he came to mess with them?!

The looks on their faces were impossible to read. As they exchanged glances, they saw deep confusion and apprehension in each other's eyes.

The Chongyao Sect Master pondered for a moment, then raised his voice and said, "Stop the Grand Competition at once and welcome the distinguished guest."

First, bring out the disciples from the Foundation Establishment realm; we'll handle the rest later.

Author's note:

None.