If I stay in the Hehuan Sect, I'll live off the pampered daughters of the Heavenly Pride Sect.

hum.

Just as Mo Chengyue was about to brew a cup of tea to calm his nerves, a new communication talisman landed safely on the table.

The two exchanged teleportation talismans several times.

The languidness in her voice had vanished, replaced by a playful, cat-like tone, as if she had caught a mouse.

"Chengyue, I've thought about it carefully, and your question just now was quite interesting."

Mo Chengyue's heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition welled up in his mind.

"You usually don't care about anything important in the sect, so why are you so concerned about the newly promoted Elder Leng today? Tell me, do you and her... have some kind of secret?"

Yan Chenyu's voice was like a small hook, making Mo Chengyue's scalp tingle.

"No...nothing like that! This disciple was just...just curious!" Mo Chengyue was sweating profusely.

"Oh? Is that so?"

Yan Chenyu's laughter rang out, full of the meaning of "I don't believe you for a second".

"Alright then. I'm too lazy to move, so on your day off this month, you can make a trip to Ice Soul Peak for me."

"Send this gift to Elder Leng. Even though there's no grand ceremony, we still need to show proper courtesy."

Go to Ice Soul Peak?

Sending a gift to Leng Yuexin?

Mo Chengyue's face turned pale instantly.

Isn't this tantamount to walking into a trap?

"Master! No!"

He panicked and blurted out, "Disciple...disciple has recently reached a critical juncture in cultivation and truly cannot leave!"

"Why don't you try Senior Brother Xie or Junior Brother Wenren? If that doesn't work, Senior Sister Qin could go instead!"

He regretted it as soon as he said it.

Isn't this just a classic case of protesting too much?

really.

A burst of hearty laughter erupted from the transmission talisman.

"Hahaha! Still saying there are no ghosts? Your reaction practically screams 'I'm suspicious'!"

Yan Chenyu laughed so hard her body trembled.

"Alright, stop pretending. Confess and you'll be treated leniently; resist and you'll be punished severely. You're having an affair with someone, aren't you?"

"I didn't realize you had such good taste. Come on, tell me, how far have things progressed between you two?"

"As the master of gossip in our sect, I'm definitely going to have my hands on this gossip!"

Mo Chengyue's face turned green; he felt completely manipulated.

He opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

"What? You're too embarrassed to say it? Fine then, if you won't say it, then prove it with your actions."

Yan Chenyu's tone became lazy again, but it carried an undeniable command.

"You have to send this gift, whether you like it or not. If you dare not go..."

"Then I'll have to make a trip to Ice Soul Peak myself and have a good chat with Junior Sister Leng."

"Ask her if she did anything cute to my precious disciple that made my lovely Chengyue so afraid of her!"

Mo Chengyue's vision went black.

He knew he had absolutely no other choice.

He could only manage to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth: "Disciple... obeys."

The Sutra Repository.

The communication talisman that recorded his master's merciless orders turned into the last wisp of ashes in Mo Chengyue's palm.

Yan Chenyu's mocking laughter still echoed in his mind, reverberating repeatedly.

Go to Ice Soul Peak.

Send a gift to Leng Yuexin.

"Thump."

Mo Chengyue slumped into his personal armchair, feeling as if all the bones in his body had been removed.

The person was completely numb.

He stared blankly at the sky outside the carved wooden window, his mind wandering uncontrollably.

They started replaying the devastating scene from not long ago.

That icy blue pillar of light pierced the sky.

That slowly rotating vortex of ice crystals covered a hundred miles.

And then there was that clear, melodious phoenix cry that resounded through the heavens.

Even though Leng Yuexin was only at the Core Formation stage, he could still use his cultivation techniques to restrain her and turn the tables, dancing on the edge of a knife.

But what about Leng Yuexin, who is in the Nascent Soul stage?

That's no longer human.

That was a natural disaster!

It's a moving, humanoid natural disaster!

Mo Chengyue had no doubt that the woman only needed one thought.

That would freeze him instantly into a human-shaped ice sculpture, completely erasing his soul.

The thought of facing such a being made his heart clench uncontrollably.

Especially those eyes.

It wasn't the same crazy and mesmerizing phoenix eyes I had when we first met.

Instead, it was the next morning, on the cold jade bed, that pair of eyes filled with a deep-seated murderous intent, as if they wished they could grind him to dust.

Now, the owner of these eyes has been upgraded.

He evolved from a late-stage Core Formation cultivator who could explode at any moment into a Nascent Soul monster who could crush him at any time.

What's the point of playing this game?!

"run!"

A thought, like wild grass, sprouted wildly in his heart.

run!

Must run!

They fled overnight!

He suddenly jumped up from his chair and paced anxiously back and forth in the library.

But where can we run to?

To the north lies the Righteous Alliance, to the south the Demon Realm, to the west the Endless Desert, and to the east the Unknown Ocean.

Those are all dead ends.

In the vast world of cultivation, there wasn't even a place for a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator like him!

The more Mo Chengyue thought about it, the more desperate he became. He punched the bookshelf next to him, shaking off a cloud of dust.

"Yan! Chen! Yu!"

He gritted his teeth and uttered the name of his cheap master.

"You old bastard! You're the ultimate hooligans!"

"So, you think my life is just something you use to eat with your rice?!"

What good would it do you if I died?

Mo Chengyue was furious.

He felt like a compressed biscuit sandwiched between two mountains, ready to be crushed into powder at the slightest movement.

After a moment of internal struggle, Mo Chengyue abruptly stopped.

He stood in the shadow of the bookshelf, breathing heavily, his chest heaving with anger and fear.

No.

Don't panic.

Mo Chengyue, calm down!

You're the kind of guy who's had his boss make those frantic calls at 3 a.m., asking him to change the logo bigger and smaller, only to eventually revert to the original version!

You've seen it all!

It is precisely in times like these that we must remain calm!

He forced himself to take a deep breath, inhaling the familiar scent of the library, a scent mingled with the dust and the scent of old books.

His wildly beating heart finally calmed down a little.

He sat back in his Grand Tutor's seat.

He sat on the chair, but this time, his eyes no longer showed panic, but rather an unprecedented solemnity.

He began to rapidly analyze the pros and cons at hand.

Running away is the worst possible option.

This is pure suicide.

A Foundation Establishment stage rogue cultivator who has no sect or school and practices demonic techniques.

Outside, he's just a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered, a walking spiritual stone.

Let alone encountering a Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivator, even a random late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator could kill him on the spot.

Therefore, one must not betray one's sect.

Not at least not now.

No matter what, the Hehuan Sect is a giant of the demonic path. As long as he is still a disciple of the sect, no one will dare to openly touch him.

This tiger skin is his only talisman at the moment.

His last trump card was his cheap master, Yan Chenyu, who had pushed him into the fire.

That woman was incredibly lazy and extremely unreliable.

But she's strong!

Peak of the early Nascent Soul stage!

Suppress Leng Yuexin, who has just broken through!

Moreover, Yan Chenyu must have sensed something, otherwise she wouldn't have given this order.

She sent him to Ice Soul Peak, ostensibly to deliver a gift, but in reality, to test him.

Is this a test of Mo Chengyue, or a warning to Leng Yuexin?

—This is my disciple Yan Chenyu. Even if he is to die, I will kill him with my own hands. You try to touch him.

Having figured this out, Mo Chengyue's icy hands and feet finally warmed up a bit.

He realized it.

This trip to Ice Soul Peak appears to be a trap, a suicide mission.

But in reality, it was his only chance.

An opportunity to find out Leng Yuexin's true attitude!

Does she still need him as the "antidote"?

Has the potential for demonic possession within her body truly been completely eradicated?

How much of her murderous intent towards herself remained?

These questions can only be answered by going there in person.

"Let's gamble!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Mo Chengyue's eyes.

Rather than sitting and waiting to die, or running away like a headless fly and eventually dying in some unknown corner.

Instead of taking the initiative, we should confront the greatest threat head-on!

Since I'm going to get stabbed whether I stick my neck out or not, I might as well die knowing why.

Besides, he might not even die!

What he needs to do now is not to be a sacrificial lamb.

Instead, it's a job presentation that concerns your very life and livelihood!

Report your value to your boss's boss and demonstrate your indispensability!

Thinking of this, Mo Chengyue's entire demeanor changed.

He forcefully suppressed that deep-seated fear, replacing it with a cold and rational approach typical of seasoned veterans struggling to survive in dire straits.

He stood up and walked to his own small tea table.

He calmly took out a brand-new celadon tea set from his storage bag, and then took out a small can of top-grade "Cloud and Mist Spirit Tea".

He started boiling water, warming the cup, placing the tea leaves, and brewing.

The movements were fluid and seamless, without the slightest tremor.

The delicate aroma of tea filled the air.

Mo Chengyue poured himself a cup of hot tea, but he didn't even flinch when the tea entered his mouth.

He carried his teacup, walked to the railing on the second floor, and looked towards the direction of Ice Soul Peak.

There, the wind and snow continue.

His eyes, after the rising steam of the tea, became deep and unfathomable.