It was only because of that trump card that she managed to escape wave after wave of pursuing cultivators.
But before Gu Qingyuan and the others, she still fell short. Trapped inside the sword formation, she was eventually subdued by Gu Qingyuan himself.
Each strike, each move, had been etched into her soul. She did not dare forget.
After spending a century observing Gu Qingyuan, she came to understand his strength thoroughly. Through countless rounds of study and analysis, she grasped the essence of his techniques and demonstrated them first during her sparring with Lu Xingyao.
She gave him time to study how to counter it.
Lu Xingyao, gifted in both perception and talent, fully mastered it within just half a month.
And he was smart.
He immediately understood her intentions and cooperated perfectly, striking straight at Gu Qingyuan's mental defenses and planting a seed of heart demon within him.
With his Dao heart damaged and a heart demon taking root, if Gu Qingyuan failed to defeat Lu Xingyao again, it would be nearly impossible for him to advance—not just to Divine Transformation, but even to the late stage of Nascent Soul.
Song Wanníng's expression was gentle, her smile soft and serene, yet something about it sent chills down the spine.
"How laughable. The deeper you love, the better you understand. I bet Gu Qingyuan is absolutely seething inside. Hahahaha—"
The sword spirit laughed along with her.
"He deserves it. He'll never figure out the truth behind this. Once he wakes up, he'll be questioning his entire existence!"
After all, it was a hidden trump card he had never revealed to anyone. Who would have expected it to be broken so easily? Who could bear that?
Song Wanníng picked up her pace, mood visibly lifted.
What a pity she couldn't see Gu Qingyuan's expression when he woke up.
"Sect Master, my master has yet to regain consciousness. Elder Lan has gone into seclusion and refuses to come out. I beg you to intervene."
Ye Chuxue arrived at the Sect Master Hall, frustration clouding her voice. Never had she felt this humiliated.
The looks the other disciples gave her—like arrows boring through her—made her skin crawl.
She rubbed the storage ring on her finger, her eyes dark and cold.
Her master had given her this ring, allowing her to survive a year inside the Devouring Wind Cavern and even reach the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
But now, all the pills were gone.
She had taken the remaining spirit stones down the mountain in hopes of buying more pills, but the shops had none of high grade. The low-grade ones were useless for her master. She bought a few for herself and rushed back to the sect.
She had intended to beg Elder Lan for help, but as soon as Elder Lan caught wind of her coming, she went into closed-door cultivation without even letting her through the door.
Ye Chuxue knew he still held a grudge.
Clenching her fists, she couldn't understand how things between her and her master had become like this.
"Heh... Nephew Ye, it's not that I don't want to help, but I've already given all the pills we had in storage to Junior Brother Gu. I thought he could win honor for our sect. Who knew..."
The Sect Master stared at Ye Chuxue with a mocking smile that didn't reach his eyes. He had a mountain of issues to deal with, and now this girl came to stir up more trouble.
"You know how it is. Ever since Junior Brother Gu and Junior Sister Song fell out, she stopped providing pills for the sect. There's nothing I can do either. How about this, I have a few Recovery Pills left. Take them." He pulled out a small porcelain bottle and shoved it into her hand.
"Let's hope Junior Brother Gu recovers quickly. Our Wentian Sect still needs him." With that, he turned and left, completely ignoring the dark shadow that crept over Ye Chuxue's face.
Inside the porcelain bottle were only a pitiful few Recovery Pills, barely third-grade.
A clear dismissal. Like tossing scraps to a beggar.
Ye Chuxue's knuckles turned white around the bottle, fingers trembling with anger.
How dare he?
He never used to treat her master like this!
This was the truth of human nature, wasn't it?
The world of cultivation was colder than frost.
Still clutching the bottle, Ye Chuxue stormed back toward her peak.
"Tsk. She's got the nerve to come beg for pills?"
"I heard the Sect Master even gave the sect's only eighth-grade pill to Elder Gu for this duel, and look how disgracefully he lost!"
"No kidding. I wanted to crawl into the ground yesterday. Losing is one thing, but to lose like that…"
"'Sword Sovereign Qingyuan' my ass. I bet any random Nascent Soul elder wouldn't have lost so miserably."
"Typical, isn't it? Blinded by beauty. I heard Elder Gu took several serious injuries because of Ye Chuxue, and his cultivation stagnated for years."
"For real??"
"Of course it's real! My brother tends spirit herbs on Elder Gu's peak, and he says Elder Gu treated Ye Chuxue like the apple of his eye!"
"Tsk, tsk…"
The disciples whispered among themselves, not bothering to hide their stares as they looked at Ye Chuxue.
Shameless dogs.
She pushed down the killing intent that surged in her chest and walked away without looking back.
Today's humiliation—she would return it a hundredfold.
Wentian Sect... this cursed place deserved to collapse.
Failing to secure medicine, Ye Chuxue returned to her peak. She looked at her unconscious master, emotions churning inside her.
There was pain, but also a faint trace of weariness.
She was done with this sect.
Once her master woke up, she would leave.
The world was vast. Somewhere, there had to be a place for her.
She opened the small porcelain bottle and fed her master one of the meager pills. Her lips pressed into a thin line, eyes flashing with determination.
If no one would give her pills, then she would make them herself.
Last time had just been a fluke. As long as she focused and studied, she would prove herself.
Let Wentian Sect regret turning her away.
Turning on her heel, she threw herself into the pill refining chamber.
"Master, I heard Ye Chuxue went to ask the Sect Master for pills and got sent away with scraps."
Li Ruo bounced in with a cheerful grin, carrying a fat little rabbit.
She had just returned from the back mountain and overheard some disciples gossiping. None of them thought Ye Chuxue had any right to beg for pills.
Song Wanníng didn't respond. She glanced at the cuts on Li Ruo's arms and smiled.
The girl might look soft and fluffy, but she didn't hold back. She must have encountered another beast in the back mountain.
Song Wanníng reminded herself to pay more attention to Li Ruo. She needed proper guidance.
Li Ruo wasn't just a pawn she brought in to annoy Bai Yang and the others. She wasn't a pet to be kept on a whim either.
Song Wanníng refused to make the same mistake again. She wouldn't raise another ungrateful brat.
As for Ye Chuxue, none of this was unexpected.
All she could do now was hope Ye Chuxue mastered alchemy soon, so she could "nurse" Gu Qingyuan back to health.
"Come on. Let me take you to the training platform."
News of Lu Xingyao's crushing defeat of Gu Qingyuan spread quickly.
There were always those willing to sell out their sect for a few spirit stones. The Sect Master couldn't suppress the news.
With so many eyes watching, there was nothing he could do.
"Hah, Myriad Sword Sect already fired the first shot. We of the Seven Star Sect can't fall behind. Tomorrow, we'll head for Wentian Sect with Junior Brother Mingyue!"