After Changing Her Fate, the Vicious Female Villain and the Protagonist Got an HE! - Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Injury

In recent days, the Heavenly Secrets Peak conducted successive divinations regarding the demon calamity. In the process, they saw the future of the Lingxiao Sect.

In all forms of divination, the greater the karma involved, the higher the difficulty of the divination.

The demon calamity involved the Extra-Territorial Demon Race. The Heavenly Secrets Peak’s initial divination yielded no results. Because of this, the assembled diviners made the worst-case assumption, taking the fall of the Xuan Yuan Realm as a premise, and divined again. Combining the power of the entire peak, they finally learned something.

The divination indicated that Wu Yuan was not the only traitor in the Lingxiao Sect.

This person, during the sect’s crisis, secretly took action, destroying several important nodes of the Sect Protection Grand Array, ultimately causing the array to be breached and resulting in countless casualties.

The specific identity of the traitor was not revealed by the divination, only that they were a Soul Transformation cultivator.

When Luo Hua learned of this, after careful consideration, she finally decided to assign this as a mission to Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun, who had just returned to the sect.

Firstly, according to the divination results, the two had repeatedly performed extraordinary feats during the demon calamity and could not be the traitors. Secondly, Qin Niyun was the Daughter of Heavenly Destiny herself, with the added fortune of the unseen forces, so investigating this matter might be much easier.

The total number of Soul Transformation cultivators in the Lingxiao Sect did not exceed a hundred. In fact, if it were solely to uncover the traitor’s identity, Luo Hua had other methods. However, those methods all had a clear drawback: once used, they could easily cause instability among the people.

This was not the outcome Luo Hua wanted to see.

After explaining the entire story in her transmission, she emphasized that the investigation of the traitor must be carried out in secret and absolutely not publicized.

The elders and disciples of the Heavenly Secrets Peak who participated in the divination were also instructed to keep silent.

Outside the main hall of Green Bamboo Peak, Wen Shurong finished listening to the transmission and a thought flashed in her mind. She immediately spoke: “Senior Sister, do you still remember the Xing Yun Pavilion in Sheng Xuan Market that I mentioned to you in the Ancient Yuan Secret Realm?”

Qin Niyun nodded: “Of course I remember. At that time, I took out the flying boat artifact, and Junior Sister warned me, saying that something had happened to the Xing Yun Pavilion, and some of the flying boats they sold had been tampered with and would inexplicably self-destruct.”

Wen Shurong added: “Actually, this was something I heard in a dream. Originally, knowing that the dream was constructed by the enemy, I stopped believing it. However, the matter of the Fire Spirit Pearl made me doubt again. The dream is half-true and half-false and can be used as a reference.”

Qin Niyun had also experienced related dreams during her coma, but their perspectives were different, and the information they obtained varied in detail.

She recalled what she had seen and heard at the time and mused:

“Xing Yun Pavilion is an industry under the name of Elder Hu Yan of the sect’s Array Peak. We haven’t been to the Sheng Xuan Market near the sect since returning. Why don’t we go there now, inquire about the Xing Yun Pavilion, and according to the timeline of the dream, this pavilion should have already had an incident.”

Wen Shurong nodded: “Without further delay, let’s set off immediately.”

Due to the matter of the Innate Spiritual Treasures, they would become the focus of attention of all cultivators no matter where they went. To avoid drawing attention and to act discreetly, the two deliberately concealed their appearance with an illusion technique before entering the market.

The illusion technique was cast by both parties. In each other’s eyes, they saw their true appearance, completely unchanged.

After half a zhǎncha, they reached the Sheng Xuan Market.

Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun entered the market and found that the number of passing cultivators was much less than before.

Passing a teahouse, they overheard the discussions inside and generally understood the reason.

The news of the destruction of the Demon Subduing Grand Arrays in various regions of the Xuan Yuan Realm had completely spread. The vast majority of cultivators chose to go into secluded cultivation in their respective cave dwellings to avoid the disaster.

Before long, Wen Shurong arrived in front of the Xing Yun Pavilion.

Looking at the nine-story pavilion, which was no different from the past, she immediately transmitted a message to her Senior Sister.

“Judging from the current situation, it seems that this pavilion hasn’t had an incident yet?”

A response quickly came from the Sea of Consciousness: “From the surface, that’s true. Xing Yun Pavilion mainly sells flying treasures. After we go in, we can use buying treasures as an excuse, indirectly question the attendants inside, and see if we can find out anything.”

“Alright.”

Wen Shurong immediately agreed and walked into the pavilion with her Senior Sister.

A young attendant in blue walked up to them, lowered his eyes, and bowed to them.

“Welcome two guests to Xing Yun Pavilion. May I know what grade of treasure the guests wish to purchase?”

Qin Niyun said calmly: “Artifacts or Spiritual Treasures are both acceptable. The specific choice depends on the appearance of the treasure.”

The blue-clothed attendant’s expression became even more respectful upon hearing this.

“Artifacts are located on the fifth to seventh floors of the pavilion, and Spiritual Treasures are on the eighth to ninth floors. Please follow me.”

Qin Niyun nodded, walking side-by-side with Wen Shurong, following the blue-clothed attendant up the wooden stairs.

Along the way, she asked seemingly casually: “With the demon calamity breaking out outside, the number of Fellow Daoists coming to Xing Yun Pavilion to purchase flying treasures must be much less than before?”

The blue-clothed attendant paused slightly in his steps and responded respectfully: “To be honest with the guests, the number of treasures sold has actually increased instead of decreased. I also find this strange, but my status in the pavilion is low, and I dare not ask.”

Qin Niyun was slightly curious: “But the pavilion seems to have very few Fellow Daoists today?”

The blue-clothed attendant lowered his voice: “Lately, the vast majority of treasures sold are personally delivered to the guests’ residences by the steward. That’s why the pavilion looks a bit deserted, but business is actually very good.”

Wen Shurong looked confused: “Did Xing Yun Pavilion do this in the past?”

The blue-clothed attendant hesitated: “I have been in the pavilion for nearly ten years, and I have never encountered this kind of thing before. However, my position is humble, and the information I can access is limited. Perhaps the facts are different from what I know.”

The moment he finished speaking, a reprimanding voice came from the third floor of the pavilion.

“Lin Si, don’t forget your place, and don’t talk nonsense to the guests!”

The blue-clothed attendant clearly flinched when he heard this voice and quickly apologized.

“Steward Zhao, it was my slip of the tongue. I won’t dare to do it again.”

The voice on the third floor of the pavilion continued to reprimand him for a few more sentences, and finally snorted: “Temporary deduction of one month’s stipend. If there is a next time, you don’t need to stay in the pavilion anymore!”

The blue-clothed attendant quickly gave his assurance, his face pale. He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, turned to Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun with an apologetic smile, and silently led the way to the fifth floor of the pavilion.

For a moment, no one spoke again.

Regardless of the true nature of Xing Yun Pavilion, the lower-level attendants were not involved in the core conspiracy. Staying here was merely to earn a living.

Out of apology, Qin Niyun and Wen Shurong purchased five artifacts in a row. The blue-clothed attendant received a reward from the pavilion because of this, which not only offset the deducted stipend but also left him with a surplus.

As they were leaving, a loud quarrel suddenly erupted on the ninth floor of the pavilion, attracting their attention.

Wen Shurong listened for a while, her heart growing increasingly surprised.

One party in the quarrel was actually the long-missing Young City Lord of Fountain Ancient City.

Judging from the tone, the other party held a high position within the pavilion.

The two seemed to be arguing over uneven profit distribution.

Fountain Ancient City was tens of thousands of li away from the Lingxiao Sect. They had never heard of this Young City Lord having any connection with Xing Yun Pavilion. They hadn’t expected to stumble upon their argument today.

Wen Shurong transmitted a message to her Senior Sister as she walked:

“Back then, the City Lord of Fountain Ancient City was killed by Zhou Kong. When we entered the city, it coincided with this Young City Lord leaving. Afterward, this person disappeared. I’m thinking, if he hadn’t known about the City Lord’s murder back then, he would surely rush back after learning the truth. But he didn’t do so, clearly knowing about it all along but keeping it a secret from the outside world. Is there a possibility that he is working with Zhou Kong? Or perhaps, he has already become a puppet controlled by Zhou Kong?”

Qin Niyun pondered for a moment and transmitted a response:

“The voice of the person arguing with the Young City Lord in the pavilion just now is quite familiar. I thought back carefully and confirmed that it is Elder Hu Yan of the Array Peak. What Junior Sister said, I had considered before, but I never had any evidence. Now that the Young City Lord has appeared in Xing Yun Pavilion, we can try to follow him when he leaves. We might get an unexpected gain.”

If they could confirm that the Young City Lord of Fountain Ancient City was connected to Zhou Kong, they could confirm that Elder Hu Yan was the traitor.

The two left Xing Yun Pavilion, found a relatively nearby teahouse in the market, ordered a pot of spiritual tea, and sat by the window on the second floor to observe slowly.

About a zhuxiang later, a Core Formation cultivator wearing a black bamboo hat flew out from the ninth floor of the pavilion and sped toward the outside of the market.

Seeing this, Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun immediately followed.

To avoid being discovered by the other party, they both cast the Invisibility Spell to conceal their figures.

When the teahouse attendant came over, he only saw a pile of spiritual stones left on the table for payment.

After leaving the market, about half a zhuxiang later, Wen Shurong sensed that the speed of the person flying ahead suddenly slowed down, and she and her Senior Sister quickly stopped.

At this moment, they were in the Jue Xian Valley.

Five li ahead was the Soul Severing Cliff.

A ripple-like wave suddenly rose from the surroundings, immediately followed by the abrupt appearance of an island suspended in the air.

The person wearing the bamboo hat jumped and disappeared into the island.

At the same time, a series of continuous squeaking sounds reached Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun’s ears.

Countless blood-colored bats flew out from the island and attacked the two.

Clearly, their whereabouts had been exposed.

Casting the Invisibility Spell with Soul Transformation cultivation should have made it impossible for a Core Formation cultivator to detect them. However, this Young City Lord had a trace of Zhou Kong’s Soul Consciousness on him, so they were discovered shortly after they started following.

Zhou Kong, angered by the failure of his plan to seize Destiny, deliberately led the two to this location.

Jue Xian Valley was a desolate area. In the dream, Qin Niyun had fallen off the Soul Severing Cliff right here.

Wen Shurong remembered this deeply. While taking out the Shan Hai Zither and playing in unison with her Senior Sister to fight the blood bats, she remained vigilant of the surroundings, preventing a sneak attack from the enemy.

As the sound attack continued, the blood bats fell one by one.

However, what they hadn’t expected was that the fallen blood bats instantly turned into wisps of Demonic Qi, coiling around them like living things.

The moment the Demonic Qi touched their surrounding defense, a sizzling corrosive sound was heard.

The spiritual power of the two was rapidly consumed.

Seeing the unfavorable situation, the Zither Spirit and Flute Spirit appeared one after another, assisting their masters in fighting the enemy.

Demonic Qi raged, and the surrounding spiritual qi was gradually devoured. As spirit bodies, they relied on spiritual qi to maintain their strength. Affected by the Demonic Qi, it wasn’t long before signs of being unable to sustain themselves appeared.

Once the spirits of the treasures were injured, the power of the Shan Hai Zither and Cang Lan Flute would immediately be greatly reduced.

Wen Shurong and Qin Niyun knew this well and simultaneously ordered the two spirits to return to the treasures to reside.

Due to the appearance of Demonic Qi, they had confirmed that Zhou Kong was secretly at work. Unfortunately, the fiend had not shown his face yet. Otherwise, they could shatter the jade pendant given to them by Elder Jiu Xuan and permanently lock onto his trace.

As time passed, the besieging blood bats grew more numerous, and the Demonic Qi became increasingly dense.

Spiritual power was rapidly being consumed. Fortunately, they carried many medicinal pills. Continuously taking them allowed them to sustain themselves for a while longer.

Although Jue Xian Valley was eight hundred li away from the Lingxiao Sect, the commotion of this battle was still sensed by the Lingxiao Sect’s Mahayana cultivators.

Immediately, several streaks of light flew up from the sect’s station, rushing toward this location.

Seeing that the rescue was about to arrive, Zhou Kong was unwilling to give up. He paid a certain price, used a forbidden technique to temporarily conceal his aura, and materialized his figure. Attached to the Demonic Qi, he quietly approached the two.

At this instant, an alarm suddenly went off in Wen Shurong’s heart.

Focusing her divine sense to survey the surroundings, she found no one approaching besides the Demonic Qi and blood bats.

However, the chilling sense of crisis grew increasingly intense.

While raising her guard to the extreme, she quickly transmitted a warning to her Senior Sister.

A moment later, behind the two, the dense Demonic Qi instantly condensed into a human figure and struck Qin Niyun with a palm.

It was also at this moment that Wen Shurong discovered the enemy’s trace. Her body acted faster than her mind, instinctively pushing her Senior Sister away and blocking the attack.

The Shan Hai Zither’s defense was instantly shattered. An irresistible force sent her flying, causing her to fall off the Soul Severing Cliff.

Before her consciousness fell into darkness, Wen Shurong used all her remaining strength to shatter the jade pendant she carried.

The secret technique to track the enemy was instantly activated, thereby locking onto Zhou Kong.

Almost simultaneously, Qin Niyun used the sect’s secret transmission technique to inform the Sect Master of the traitor’s identity, and then, without hesitation, jumped down the ten-thousand-foot cliff.

By the time the Lingxiao Sect’s Mahayana cultivators arrived at Jue Xian Valley, the two were nowhere to be seen…

Support After Changing Her Fate, the Vicious Female Villain and the Protagonist Got an HE!