A ch-child?!

The child... is gone?!

When those words came from the light screen, Su Ling’er felt as if her very soul had frozen solid.

’From a biological standpoint, that’s completely impossible, right?!’

’And how in the world did Wang Xiedi even have a child...’

’But this is the Heart Demon Illusion Realm, so it’s not entirely out of the question, is it?’

’Little Junior Brother’s Heart Demon is truly terrifying.’

The Eldest Senior Brother and the Little Junior Sister glanced at each other, both seeing a sliver of utter horror in the other’s eyes.

...

After a chaotic scene, the Wang Xiedi on the light screen finally walked out of the bedroom that had thoroughly ruined his reputation.

However, the nightmare wasn’t over.

Su Ling’er watched helplessly as a gaunt old man crouched by the corner of the house outside, tears streaming down his face with a soft PITTER-PATTER.

The moment he saw Wang Xiedi, he scrambled backward in terror, covering his mouth as he frantically checked his own teeth. Trembling, he uttered words that made Su Ling’er’s scalp crawl:

"Last night... Thank you for letting me go in the end. I won’t tell anyone!"

"You... You have to let me go!"

"This old man doesn’t need you to take responsibility for me, and I won’t make you pay for the gold tooth! I won’t make things difficult for you!"

Su Ling’er was once again petrified on the spot.

’T-take responsibility?’

’A gold tooth? What happened to a gold tooth? What on earth did Little Junior Brother do last night?!’

’Just spit it out, old man!’

’Don’t just say half of it! These kinds of suggestive lines are the absolute worst!’

’Could it be that last night...’

At the foot of the Asking Dao Ladder, the crowd was already so shell-shocked by the scene with the old man that they didn’t dare to keep watching.

The Eldest Senior Brother immediately put away the "Wolf’s Gaze" artifact, afraid of seeing what other horrific things Wang Xiedi might have done.

The disciples from the Artifact Refining Pavilion who saw this scene exchanged a terrified glance, and without a second word, they activated Sword Control and fled as streaks of light.

’It’s true! Are you kidding me?! This scene actually happened after all!!!’

’Even if there’s a small chance it’s all a misunderstanding, what if he wakes up from his Heart Demon state and mistakes us for... something else? That would be a catastrophe!’

’After all, it’s better to be safe than sorry!!!’

Meanwhile, Wang Xiedi’s Heart Demon continued to rage.

In the illusion, he returned to Qingxu Temple, only to see his fellow disciples growing old and frail one by one.

He wanted to step forward and help, but he found that his own limbs were powerless—he couldn’t even lift a single bucket of water.

"Wang Xiedi, you are too weak."

An old woman with a face full of wrinkles told him weakly,

"You can’t even take care of yourself. How can you protect us?"

Next, the Sect Leader who had taken him in looked at him with sorrow.

"Child, give up. Your aptitude destines you to achieve nothing. you can’t protect anyone; you’ll only be a burden."

The scene changed again.

This time, he was dragged into a mass grave.

Ghastly white bones were scattered everywhere.

And among those white bones, he saw a figure.

It was her.

It was Miss Qin, the one who had given him a warm steamed bun when he was about to starve to death and brought him back to Qingxu Temple.

At this moment, she lay covered in wounds in the mud. Her face, which once held a gentle smile for him, was smeared with dirt, her eyes vacant.

And standing before her was none other than the Sect Leader, Daoist Xuanyuan!

"Why... Sect Leader... I clearly... completed the mission..."

"It’s not your fault. It’s just that you know... too much."

Before his words had even faded, a palm struck her in the back, right over her heart.

"SPLAT—"

Miss Qin’s body exploded into a mist of blood, which condensed into a blood-red pill in the Sect Leader’s hand. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"NO—!!!!"

’Could it be that this mission was a hopeless endeavor from the very start?!’

And he could only watch helplessly as the tragedy unfolded.

’This is impossible!’

’It’s fake... It’s all fake!!’

’No one will die... The Sect Leader is a good person... The Sect Leader took me in...’

He murmured unconsciously, as if desperately trying to convince himself.

Finally, he was completely consumed by the Heart Demon.

In the outside world, at the foot of the Asking Dao Ladder, only Su Ling’er and Lin Qingfeng remained, watching the figure who kept repeating, "It can’t be, it can’t be like this."

Lin Qingfeng turned his head with difficulty and asked Su Ling’er:

"That old man... could he have been... by our Little Junior Brother..."

"I don’t know," Su Ling’er’s voice was just as hoarse. "I think... he probably was."

Lin Qingfeng pointed down the mountain. "Maybe... we should leave first?"

Without a second thought, Su Ling’er nodded frantically. "Yeah, let’s go."

’This is too scary!’

The two of them sighed in unison. In that moment, they had reached a bizarre consensus:

They had to stay away from their Little Junior Brother!

Just then, Wang Xiedi, still on the Asking Dao Ladder, snapped his eyes open.

A warm current poured into him from the top of his head, and his Cultivation instantly broke through to the fourth level of Qi Refining!

He looked around in a daze, only to find the mountaintop, which had been crowded with people moments before, was now completely empty. He could only see the retreating backs of Su Ling’er and Lin Qingfeng.

"Senior Sister! Eldest Senior Brother! Wait for me!"

He hurriedly ran toward the two of them.

Hearing his shout, not only did Su Ling’er and Lin Qingfeng not stop, but they both instinctively picked up the pace, going from a walk to a power walk, and finally breaking into a light jog.

"Hey! Don’t just leave like that!"

"Don’t leave me all alone!"

...

「After touring the final sword mound, the day had grown late.」

Su Ling’er had finished showing Wang Xiedi all the required areas. Eldest Senior Brother Lin Qingfeng looked at the mission notifications on the light screen, quite satisfied.

[Sect Mission: Guide (Su Ling’er) - Complete. Reward: 500 Contribution Points.]

[Sect Mission: Welcome New Disciple (Su Ling’er) - Complete. Reward: 100 Contribution Points.]

Even though his Little Junior Sister hadn’t done much work today, she had still easily earned six hundred contribution points.

Besides, with a new disciple in the sect, his Little Junior Sister’s workload would be a little lighter in the future.

Thinking of this, Lin Qingfeng didn’t push her too hard for the rest of the day.

After night fell, the three of them had dinner at the Dining Pavilion, and then the Eldest Senior Brother led the other two into a stretch of wilderness in the heart of the sect’s grounds.

Su Ling’er’s dilapidated thatched hut was long gone. In its place stood an elegant, two-story bamboo lodge.

Whoa!

’Has Little Junior Sister finally come to her senses?’

’She’s not going to live in a thatched hut anymore?’

’She knows how to improve her own living conditions now?’

’Looks like she’s really turned over a new leaf!’

’Excellent, excellent!’

In truth, she had built this little lodge with her own hands on the day of her Foundation Establishment, after realizing that escape was hopeless.

She was quite satisfied with it herself.

Her only dissatisfaction was with the "Cloud Silk Immortal Crane Quilt" she had set her eyes on before.

After resigning herself to a long-term stay, she had gone to buy it, only to find it had already been sold, which she regretted for quite a while.

But now, she discovered that not far from her lodge, a new... thatched hut had abruptly appeared.

She looked at her Eldest Senior Brother, her eyes full of questions.

’You guys secretly built another thatched hut here while I was gone?’

Eldest Senior Brother Lin Qingfeng expertly tilted his head up at a forty-five-degree angle to gaze at the sky, as if contemplating the profound truths of the universe.

"One more person in the sect naturally means one more abode for returning to one’s true nature."

Su Ling’er gave her Eldest Senior Brother a disbelieving look and tsked.

Her thoughts then turned to the terrifying scenes involving Wang Xiedi, and a wave of fear washed over her.

Without a word, she activated her Foundation Establishment Stage Spiritual Power with a surge, scooping the entire thatched hut up, foundation and all.

Then, with a loud CRASH,

she hurled it toward the edge of the wilderness!

The thatched hut traced a parabolic arc through the air before landing with a final BOOM at the edge of the wilderness.

Wang Xiedi’s face fell with disappointment. Ever since the incident on the Asking Dao Ladder, his Senior Sister seemed to have grown much more distant.

Just then, a telepathic message entered Wang Xiedi’s mind:

[Su Ling’er: Wang Xiedi, tonight at midnight, you will give me the Heart-Connected Fruit.]