Yun Jin spoke without the slightest attempt to hide her words.
Not only Lin Xiao, even Ji Wusi and the others were caught off guard.
This… was she really being that blunt?
Lin Xiao's face darkened with anger. He stepped forward. "Yun Jin, do you even understand what you are saying? You are questioning Qingxiao Pavilion, questioning me! What is your identity compared to mine? How dare you disregard rank and propriety!"
As his words fell, Lin Xiao suddenly struck out with his full strength. His palm lashed toward Yun Jin like a crashing storm.
"Pavilion Master Lin, why lower yourself to anger over a child?" Ji Wusi dispelled the attack without betraying any emotion.
Lin Xiao's expression turned colder. "This Yun Jin is your disciple, Sect Master Ji. She dares speak without respect, and now Sect Master Ji intends to shield her before everyone? Yun Jin has publicly spoken wild accusations, heard by all present. If Sect Master Ji protects her like this, how can the others be convinced?"
Ji Wusi raised an eyebrow. "She is young. It's normal for the young to be hot-blooded. But you, Pavilion Master Lin, with your identity, do you really need to argue with a sixteen-year-old child?"
Lin Xiao's face sank further. The feeling was like dealing with a brat who caused trouble, only to have the brat's parents step in and defend her without reason. It was infuriating.
But Yun Jin's age was indeed far too young.
Normally, anyone who had cultivated to the Mahayana realm would have lived for hundreds or even thousands of years.
Yet Yun Jin was only sixteen, and she already wielded such power. If he pressed the matter, he would appear petty. If he let it go, he felt a burning dissatisfaction in his chest. Where on earth had this monstrous freak come from?
Lin Xiao clenched his teeth. "Qingxiao Pavilion cannot be slandered at will. I may personally let her words pass, but if Yun Jin cannot give a proper explanation, where will Qingxiao Pavilion's honor remain? Where will the honor of the Holy Land remain? Should anyone be allowed to speak recklessly of the Holy Land from now on?"
Yun Jin met his glare without fear. "Pavilion Master Lin, are you certain you want me to explain in detail?"
Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes. "I want to see what you can possibly say."
Yun Jin gave a cold laugh, her voice laced with sharp irony. "Then let us examine Qingxiao Pavilion's recent record. Months ago, your disciple Li Heng came to Tianxing Sect, attempting to interfere with our internal competition by force. If not for my Master arriving in time, he would have run rampant. And the result? It was proven that Li Heng had colluded with the demon race.
After that, when the secret realm of Wushuang Sect opened, everyone here knows what happened. Five disciples of Qingxiao Pavilion again colluded with demons. What does this prove? That, so far, the probability of Qingxiao Pavilion's disciples colluding with demons is one hundred percent! With a sect like this, should I not be on guard? In my eyes, not only should I be vigilant, but this truth should spread across the entire world so everyone remains on guard!"
"Utter nonsense!" Lin Xiao roared. "Sect Master Ji and the others already came to investigate Qingxiao Pavilion. No trace of demonic energy was found, nor any problem with our immortal artifacts. The demons who infiltrated Qingxiao Pavilion have already been captured by me and destroyed!"
"Is that so?" Yun Jin sneered. "Just because you cannot detect it, does that mean it does not exist? That Xue Daoren showed no trace of demonic energy before he revealed himself, deceiving even Senior Qin and the others. Sect Master Ji also found several demonic cultivators near Tianxing Sect, yet even after exhausting every secret technique, no flaws were discovered. The only thing this proves is that demons now possess methods to conceal their aura. It does not prove Qingxiao Pavilion is innocent!"
Lin Xiao's voice was cold. "So according to you, no matter what Qingxiao Pavilion does, there is no way to clear our name?"
Yun Jin arched an eyebrow and ignored him. She pulled out a small vial and handed it to Ji Wusi. "Master, after beheading Xue Daoren, I preserved his Primordial Soul. According to Zhao Wuji's confession, the potion he drank to hide his aura came from Xue Daoren. His Primordial Soul is here. Master can examine it thoroughly."
Ji Wusi accepted the vial and glanced at Qing Yun.
Qing Yun nodded knowingly.
Lin Xiao's eyes flickered, but he made no move to stop them.
He was confident Xue Daoren's Primordial Soul would not reveal the true secret.
After all… only he himself knew what the liquid really was.
Ji Wusi flicked the stopper open.
Xue Daoren's Primordial Soul shot out immediately, not even glancing around before trying to escape.
Yun Jin did not move. With so many powerful figures present, this was no longer her concern.
In the next instant, Ji Wusi extended a strand of spiritual power, binding Xue Daoren's Primordial Soul with ease and dragging it before the crowd.
Xue Daoren's eyes darted fearfully around. Only then did he realize…
Every presence here was more terrifying than the last. Not one of them could be compared to ordinary Mahayana cultivators. Where had Yun Jin found such a terrifying group of experts?
"I know I was wrong! I still have treasures hidden—" Xue Daoren began in panic.
Before he could finish, his mouth opened involuntarily.
Qing Yun flicked a pill into it.
The pill melted instantly, and Xue Daoren's expression twisted in unbearable agony. His Primordial Soul, once tightly condensed, rapidly turned transparent.
A heartbeat later, he was gone.
His soul scattered, erased forever.
Above them, the sky itself unfolded into scenes of Xue Daoren's life.
Images flickered rapidly, showing his journey from an ordinary phantom demon into a powerful figure among the Illusion Demon race.
What drew attention most were the glimpses involving the Demon Sovereign.
This Demon Sovereign had always been a mystery.
He was not a high-born demon, nor did he possess a mutated bloodline. He had simply appeared out of nowhere, rising in a shockingly short time to become a peak expert. He even defeated the previous Demon Sovereign, a high-born demon, and claimed the throne.
Now, from Xue Daoren's memories, a secret was revealed.
Just as Yun Jin had said, this Demon Sovereign possessed some kind of Nirvana technique. In Xue Daoren's recollections, the Demon Sovereign had twice suffered devastating injuries, yet each time he recovered in an impossibly short period, stronger than before.
The more grievous the wound, the stronger he became. Was this the true secret behind the Demon Sovereign's strength?
But surely, such a method had its limits? Could one really grow stronger without end?
Watching the memories, Yun Jin's heart reached its own conclusion. That Nirvana method could only be used nine times in total. From the Primordial Soul's memories, Yang Yun had already used it twice. But in truth, when the story began, Yang Yun had already reached his sixth Nirvana.
Later, at Tianxing Sect, Lao Huo forced him into a seventh.
Afterward, when Master broke free of her cocoon, Yang Yun did not use Nirvana then. But after being carried off by a remnant soul and vanishing from sight, he must have resorted to an eighth.
Which meant…
Yang Yun had already used Nirvana eight times.
All that remained for him was…
His final chance.