Volume 1, Chapter 46: The Time Has Come

"Are you really enjoying it that much? Sister Qinghan, please mind your expression."

Dongfang Jue followed right behind Ye Qinghan, feeling as though the sky were falling. Usually, Ye Qinghan seemed reasonably composed, but the moment she shared a frame with Su Cheng, she turned into an entirely different person.

Ye Qinghan gave Dongfang Jue a sideways glance, simply leading the two women outside.

Before the gates of Nanding City, Ye Qinghan stopped them both. "Alright, let us part ways here."

Dongfang Jue looked at Li Shiyao, Li Shiyao looked at Ye Qinghan, and the three of them exchanged a circle of glances.

"Are you chasing us away?"

Heh, Ye Qinghan's temper flared up instantly. "What, do you treat the Lingxian Palace as your own home?"

Pulling Li Shiyao close, Ye Qinghan spoke with earnest sincerity, "Shiyao has been out for several days now, it is time for her to return. Otherwise, the elders will surely be worried about you, won't they?"

Li Shiyao was sharp! Although Ye Qinghan had explained the whole story to her, right now she simply felt that her senior sister was telling a well-intentioned white lie!

She was just trying to spare her from worry, but such petty tricks couldn't fool her at all!

Right in front of her, her sister had even received a spanking! If she wasn't around, what on earth might happen next?

"Shiyao wants to stay with Sister, I don't want to return to the Holy Mountain..."

Ye Qinghan wore an expression of utter helplessness. No matter how she explained it now, Li Shiyao refused to believe a single word, so she had no choice but to let the misunderstanding roll along...

"Shiyao, you cannot help Sister, nor can you take Sister's place. This is a path Sister must walk."

With these few words, Li Shiyao was completely bewildered...

"In that case, let Sister and Shiyao run away together!"

Fine, Ye Qinghan concluded that Li Shiyao's condition was somewhat severe; it seemed it would take time to cure her...

Deciding to deal with the dangerous element Dongfang Jue first, she said, "Dongfang Jue, I asked Master about you. Master said she dislikes you and told you to get lost immediately."

"Nonsense, I don't believe it."

"Whether you believe it or not is irrelevant. If you keep lingering, I will beat you up—every time I see you, I'll beat you!"

"Wait, why are you being so unreasonable!"

"Are you trying to reason with a fox demon? If you aren't convinced, come and try!"

Dongfang Jue was left speechless. Once outside the gates of the Lingxian Palace, this Ye Qinghan was nothing short of an absolute hooligan!

From a certain perspective, Su Cheng taking her in as a disciple could be considered an act of ridding the world of a pest! If Ye Qinghan were left wandering outside unchecked, she would probably plunge the mortal realm into chaos and devastation!

Dongfang Jue couldn't afford to provoke her. Since Su Cheng wanted her to go to the Heavenly Dao Pavilion, continuing to impose herself would indeed show a lack of tact.

Yet, the moment she took a step forward, she was grabbed back by Ye Qinghan.

Before she could even process it, the three of them were completely surrounded...

Although the surrounding streets appeared completely normal on the surface, Ye Qinghan could sense that both ahead and behind them, experts were lying in wait everywhere!

"Sister Qinghan, what do we do?"

Ye Qinghan remained unmoved, her fair hand resting lightly on the Lingshuang Sword. It was obvious they were targeted, but since Li Shiyao and Dongfang Jue were by her side, they would likely not be spared either.

"Let's observe for a moment. No need to rush."

Dongfang Jue was momentarily stunned. Just a moment ago, she had been exasperated by Ye Qinghan, but now she too sensed the presence of countless formidable cultivators. Even the weakest among them was at the late Foundation Establishment stage...

Although Dongfang Jue carried a token capable of mobilizing troops, in the current situation, the enemy was hardly the type to stop and chat, making it impossible to fetch reinforcements.

"Shiyao, stand close to me and don't run around." Ye Qinghan looked at the little blockhead beside her, who was now visibly panicking.

"Sister, don't worry, Shiyao will protect you!"

Gently tapping her jade pendant to summon the Soul-Locking Mirror, she simultaneously retrieved a jade slip just in case of an emergency.

There were many of them, and they were strong...

Ye Qinghan estimated that with her current strength, she probably couldn't handle so many enemies simultaneously. This was completely different from wiping out the Pingyun Sect; she simply didn't have that much time to prepare.

In the teahouse ahead of Ye Qinghan, Mo Chenfeng sat quietly in a corner against the wall, while thirty of his elite subordinates had already blocked Ye Qinghan's retreat.

The attendant stood silently to the side, not daring to utter a word, merely listening quietly.

"Go bring my heavy broadsword! Once I capture that wretched woman, I will carve her up myself to avenge my son!"

In the alleys behind Ye Qinghan, assassins dispatched by Liu Jingcheng were also lurking—over fifty of them, sealing off her escape route entirely.

Liu Jingcheng himself stood atop a distant rooftop, accompanied by the traveling Fifth Elder.

"Patriarch, she is merely a woman at the Foundation Establishment stage. Is it really necessary to dispatch so many people?"

Liu Jingcheng twirled two walnuts in his hand, the shells grinding together with a clicking sound.

"Have you forgotten what happened to the Pingyun Sect? This is the very woman who did it!"

Where Ye Qinghan stood, the three of them formed a triangle with their backs to each other as dark figures emerged from all directions.

In front were the Mo family's death row bodyguards, clad in black armor and each wielding a long saber.

In the rear were the Liu family's cultivators, all dressed in white robes and carrying immortal swords.

Hm? Not the same group? Ye Qinghan had originally guessed they were likely the Liu family, who had been inactive until now, but the current situation clearly exceeded her expectations.

Judging by this posture, they had no intention of capturing her alive; they meant to kill her.

"Shiyao, do you recognize these people?"

"I don't recognize the ones in the back. The ones in front are most likely death bodyguards raised by the Mo family."

Dongfang Jue drew her spear to prepare for a desperate fight, adding, "The ones in the back are cultivators of the Liu family. Although they changed their clothes, those flying swords are a dead giveaway."

Ye Qinghan silently patted Shiyao's shoulder, signaling her not to be afraid.

The Mo family was based in the Eastern Region, while the Liu family was a local power in the Southern Region. Since they were traveling in plain clothes, they probably didn't recognize each other either.

Back in the teahouse, the attendant gravely reported to Mo Chenfeng, "Patriarch, the targets also have quite a few people with them, and their cultivation levels are not low!"

Mo Chenfeng froze. That was impossible!

"Didn't the intelligence report state that the Lingxian Palace is a tiny sect with only two people?"

"The person beside Ye Qinghan is the Holy Maiden of the Holy Mountain, and the other is the daughter of the Human Emperor; they likely have deep connections. As for the group of cultivators behind them, their affiliation is currently unknown."

Mo Chenfeng flew into a rage, slamming his palm against the table. "Do not act rashly just yet! Find out who is backing them."

On the other side, Liu Jingcheng was equally baffled. Wasn't this supposed to be a covert assassination? This setup was all wrong!

"Who are those people on the opposite side?"

"Judging by their appearance, they do not seem to be from the Southern Region... That Ye Chenmeng possesses natural alluring bones; she likely used some fox-demon sorcery to enlist helpers."

The Fifth Elder narrowed his eyes, gazing into the distance. Those black-armored bodyguards indeed appeared to possess formidable cultivation.

Liu Jingcheng realized this as well. To avoid taking pointless losses, he needed to play it safe.

"Hold your ground for now and find out who they are!"

"Patriarch, perhaps we should withdraw. For all we know, this might be a trap set for us by Cheng Liang!"

"Are you saying this is meant to weaken the Liu family's influence?"

"Indeed. Even Cheng Liang himself dared not provoke that madman of the Lingxian Palace. If this comes to light in the future, the Heavenly Dao Pavilion will likely just sit back and watch the fire burn, especially since Su Cheng shares the same master."

"No matter what, we must probe their true strength first! If we leave just like this, I can answer neither to Cheng Liang nor to the old master!"

On Ye Qinghan's side, the arrows were already nocked on the bowstring. Two factions had sandwiched the three great beauties in the middle, leaving enemies above in the sky and below on the ground.

With no other choice, if things turned physical, even with her absurdly high strength she could never match so many experts at once. She would simply have to gamble...

She had to gamble that these two groups were not working together.

Adopting her master's posture, Ye Qinghan placed her hands behind her back and shouted with full force.

"Charge! Don't let a single one of them escape!"