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Cheng Yogun's eyelid twitched slightly at Qing Linxi's words. He let out a small sigh as he intensified the power of his Sword Qi.
Qing Linxi wanted to charge immediately upon seeing this, but Qing Xuanling stopped her and instead looked at Cheng Yogun with curiosity. "You can't defeat us—not anytime soon, at least—so you won't be able to save your subordinates anyway. Instead, how about answering a few questions while you take the chance to replenish your Qi?"
"You must've used quite a bit fighting Sister Linxi. You won't get another opportunity like this."
Qing Xuanling wore a mischievous smile on her face.
Cheng Yogun blinked in confusion before suddenly laughing. "Qing Xuanling, the Rainbow Swordswoman. Though I already knew you were quite skilled from our last encounter, I can now see you truly deserve that extravagant title they gave you. I didn't expect you'd try to extract information even in this situation."
"Isn't it mutually beneficial? Maybe you'll think of a way out of this mess," Qing Xuanling said without a hint of shame—as if she weren't the one putting Cheng Yogun in a tight spot. "Come on, tell me—how did you find out we'd attack this mine? Only a few people in our clan knew about this."
A deep glint flashed in Cheng Yogun's eyes. He didn't answer right away; instead, he first scanned his surroundings to ensure no other Qing clan members were nearby. Luckily for him, Instructor Huan's orders were absolute within the platoon—no one dared disobey them.
Not even the Crimson Sword Squad members, who clearly saw Qing Xuanling heading toward Qing Linxi, dared follow her.
Realizing only the two women before him remained as opponents seemed to calm Cheng Yogun. He pulled a pill from his sleeve and swallowed it with a relaxed expression.
Qing Linxi watched him warily, but since Qing Xuanling had spoken, she would follow her lead.
Cheng Yogun nodded in satisfaction after swallowing the pill and finally began to speak. "I suppose you're worried there's a traitor among you—but rest assured, the Ink Sword Sect wasn't aware the Qing clan planned to attack one of our spiritual mines."
Both Qing Linxi and Qing Xuanling frowned at those words. The reinforcements Cheng Yogun brought didn't make his claim very credible.
He laughed when he realized that they were suspicious of his words.
"Coming to reinforce this spiritual mine was my own initiative. You could say I hold considerable admiration for your Young Master. I have a rough idea of how someone like him usually operates. It was highly unlikely he'd be satisfied merely starting a war against the Mo clan while my sect stayed out, waiting for the perfect moment to strike."
"That's when I realized he must have another objective besides the Mo clan's spiritual mine—especially since it is unlikely that the Qing clan will be able to seize that mine." Cheng Yogun smiled slightly.
"But you can't afford to do without that mine. The mine is no longer just a valuable resource for you—it's also something that affects the morale of your members and allies. It's the reward the Qing clan earned through great effort; failing to claim it would be a clear sign of weakness in the eyes of others. Therefore, given the low chances of obtaining the Mo clan's mine, the next best option was to seize the mine belonging to the other power who'd never expect the Qing clan to suddenly attack them—my sect, the Ink Sword Sect. All that remained was guessing which mine was most likely to be targeted… something quite simple, really."
"It was a bit difficult gathering troops—the fools in my sect didn't believe the Qing clan would dare strike us first—but I managed to rally a few by leveraging my late master's reputation. And that's how we ended up here."
Qing Xuanling swallowed hard after hearing all this. Her gaze towards Cheng Yogun had changed slightly.—her caution toward him had increased severalfold. Though she'd always considered him dangerous due to his cruelty, she hadn't realized he was this intelligent.
He had even analyzed things from the Qing clan's perspective better than many members of the clan. At least, she hadn't fully grasped the importance of securing the spiritual mine for the clan.
He had managed to predict the actions of the Qing clan, fully understanding what they needed or could not abandon. It was impossible to achieve something like this without a great capacity for observation and a great understanding of human psychology.
Yet there was one thing she didn't understand.
"Are you really so loyal to the Ink Sword Sect?" Qing Xuanling mocked slightly, masking her caution. "It's not just a sect that lost most of its original leaders—it's now merely a puppet of that mysterious demonic power. Most of all, I find it hard to believe a cold-blooded snake like you possesses something like loyalty."
Cheng Yogun wasn't offended—in fact, he laughed. "You're right. I have no loyalty to a weak, pathetic sect like the Ink Sword Sect. Frankly, I don't care whether you seize this mine or not."
Qing Xuanling's confusion grew. "Then why go through the trouble of bringing reinforcements here?"
Cheng Yogun smiled mysteriously. "That's not something you can know yet—but let's just say I want to leave this city. I'm tired of seeing the same scenery for over a decade."
Cheng Yogun's words clearly held a deeper meaning Qing Xuanling couldn't decipher. She grimaced, wanting to demand clarity—but Qing Linxi spoke first, looking at the young man before her with surprise.
"Is that worthless sect really so negligent that a brat like you learned something like this?" Qing Linxi seemed incredulous. "No—wait. Even they wouldn't be that stupid. Was it those demonic cultivators who recently joined your sect?"
Cheng Yogun laughed. "Close, but no. It was my master who told me these things. And no—he wasn't from the Ink Sword Sect. He was a demonic cultivator who stayed at the sect for a few years for some reason."
A cold light flashed in both Qing Xuanling's and Qing Linxi's eyes. Cheng Yogun's words revealed that the Ink Sword Sect had already begun conspiring with demonic cultivators for at least several years.
Qing Linxi raised her warhammer, her eyes filled with killing intent. "Enough talk. Chatting too long with someone like you might give me mental demons for free."
Qing Xuanling's expression soured—several things still confused her, and she wanted to ask more—but she didn't contradict Qing Linxi. As she said, talking too long with Cheng Yogun was dangerous. Who knew what scheme he might concoct with the time they'd given him?
Furthermore, she realized that there were some things Qing Linxi preferred to avoid mentioning in front of her. Although it was somewhat annoying, she wouldn't throw a tantrum and contradict Qing Linxi.
She wasted no more time and began forming hand seals at astonishing speed.
Two-meter-tall earth spikes erupted from the ground beneath Cheng Yogun, aimed at all his vital points. He immediately leapt, narrowly dodging the spikes and using them as footholds to spring backward, putting distance between himself and Qing Linxi, who charged at him with great speed.
Qing Xuanling gritted her teeth and pursued him, conjuring lifelike fire hawks as she ran. The hawks, as if alive, took flight and split apart, chasing Cheng Yogun.
At the same time, rows of earth spikes appeared right along Cheng Yogun's escape route.
Cheng Yogun scoffed and swung his sword ,cutting the earth spikes—but that move cost him a crucial instant. Suddenly, a large shadow covered him. He looked up to see Qing Linxi's massive warhammer descending rapidly toward him!
Cheng Yogun's instincts screamed in alarm. He immediately lunged forward, rolling across the ground. The spot where he'd stood moments before exploded under the warhammer's impact. A chill ran down his spine as he felt the shockwave from the attack.
He stood instantly, determined to put distance between himself and Qing Linxi—but several fire hawks dove from the sky, pinning him in place. Cheng Yogun's eyes turned icy as he dodged and sliced the hawks in half with his sword, inevitably losing precious time.
"Eat this, you creepy little freak!"
Qing Linxi appeared again, this time swinging her warhammer wreathed in an orange membrane emitting intense pressure. Qing Linxi wasn't just a body cultivator—she was a dual cultivator!
Clearly, she could also use spirit cultivator techniques!
The pressure from Qing Linxi's warhammer instinctively made Cheng Yogun retreat—but a tug on his foot stopped him. He looked down to see a thornless vine tightly gripping his ankle, cold sweat dripping down his back.
"No…!"
Qing Linxi's smile widened as she brought down her hammer. Wind rippled where it descended, making Cheng Yogun's hair flutter.
He tried raising his sword to defend—but to his horror, he realized the hammer's pressure had suddenly multiplied, momentarily paralyzing his arms.
Helplessly, he could only watch as the warhammer crashed into his body.
BOOM!
A cloud of smoke enveloped them instantly as the ground cracked and stone debris flew into the air. Qing Linxi, the source of all this destruction, emerged from the smoke seconds later.
But her expression wasn't good.
Qing Xuanling reached her side and asked with concern, "What happened?"
"… That."
Qing Linxi looked at her trembling arms and lifted her gaze toward the dissipating smoke cloud—revealing a dark, deathly aura growing in size.
In the center of that sinister darkness stood Cheng Yogun, covered in wounds and disheveled—but his expression didn't seem to belong to the living.
He turned toward them…
And disappeared.