Forcing the Aloof Master to Madness - Chapter 52.1

Why are there so many skeletons with gouged-out hearts in the Jadefrost Sect’s forbidden area?

Who is this corpse in front of Wang Xi that looks exactly like her?

Wang Xi had no idea.

However, she had previously made some conjectures.

During that small secret realm incident, Wang Xi had vaguely sensed that she was likely not the first person to possess the Linglong Heart.

But she had never imagined that the people whose hearts were gouged out would be so numerous.

Wang Xi’s face was as cold as frost, hatred flickering in her eyes. She then walked past the corpses and suddenly saw a faint light.

To be precise, it wasn’t a light, but a faint, pale ghost-like figure that flickered past Wang Xi and then vanished.

Wang Xi immediately narrowed her eyes, concentrating to pursue it. The shadow repeatedly appeared and disappeared, beckoning Wang Xi to follow it.

Wang Xi contemplated briefly before instantly increasing her speed, catching up behind the shadow in the blink of an eye. Upon getting closer, she finally saw clearly that it was a spiritual plant—a Ginseng Branch.

Wang Xi hadn’t done much research on spiritual plants. The reason she recognized this one was because the Ginseng Branch looked extremely human-like. It was the height of a three-year-old child, but its stem was extremely thin, and it lacked human facial features.

However, if seen from a distance in the dark, it could easily be mistaken for a human.

Though the Ginseng Branch looked like it had no combat power, every plant could develop a spiritual consciousness after a hundred years, take human form after three hundred years, and already possess the cultivation of a Golden Core stage after five hundred years.

But the one before her was only a pale, ghostly shadow, not like a living creature.

It kept beckoning Wang Xi, seemingly trying to lead her somewhere.

Indeed, as Wang Xi followed it through the forbidden area, she suddenly felt that the peculiar fragrance, which had been present from the start, had now become intensely strong.

It was so strong that her entire nasal cavity was permeated with the scent, and Wang Xi finally remembered where she had smelled this odor before.

It was the sweet, seductive scent that emanated from Shen Lezhi’s body when the green wood-element spiritual power was repairing her body as she was on the verge of death.

At that time, Wang Xi was even lured by this fragrance and licked the blood oozing from Shen Lezhi’s wound.

After walking a little further, Wang Xi’s vision suddenly opened up. Countless fireflies floated in the air, and large patches of deep blue light on the ground illuminated this peculiar place.

Innumerable spiritual plants were cultivated here, which Wang Xi couldn’t identify, but the sight before her made her think of Shen Lezhi.

If Shen Lezhi saw this spiritual plant field, her pure, almond-like eyes would likely light up with dazzling stars of joy and surprise.

Wang Xi lowered her gaze and stepped closer to the spiritual field. Amidst the large patches of plants, she saw the figure of a woman in a green dress.

She hadn’t concealed her arrival or deliberately hidden her figure. The woman quickly noticed Wang Xi’s presence.

The woman had a graceful figure and hair that reached her waist. Although tied up with a hairpin, it was styled too casually, and many strands hung loose, cascading over her body.

She didn’t seem to care about her languid appearance. She was holding a hand seal to water the spiritual plants and kept murmuring words.

“Little Flower, why did you run off and fight with Little Cloud again today? Didn’t Auntie say no fighting?”

“And Little Cloud, look at you, you’ve drunk so much water, you’re getting fat like a ball. Have you seen the velvety creeper? If you grow like that, round and plump, you won’t even be able to walk when you take human form.”

“Is Qingqing feeling better today? I must find a way to completely destroy those leaf aphids sooner or later!”

Wang Xi heard a few sentences and couldn’t help but wonder, was the woman talking to the spiritual plants?

Wang Xi moved closer, and the Ginseng Branch that had guided her now ran to the woman’s side, leaping directly onto the woman’s shoulder and clinging to her ear, as if speaking to her.

The woman finally noticed Wang Xi’s presence, immediately turned around, and looked towards Wang Xi.

She looked to be about thirty years old, with a charming and graceful appearance, but her eyes were subdued.

Her face still held a smile, and as she turned, a surge of intense delight flashed in her eyes. However, after seeing Wang Xi’s appearance clearly, the delight instantly vanished.

“How can a Linglong Heart enter here?” She tilted her head, a little confused, then stared at Wang Xi for a while before walking towards her.

Wang Xi’s eyes turned instantly cold, and her aura sank when she heard the woman address her as “Linglong Heart.”

She thought of Shen Lezhi again. That person would get angry because others called her “Linglong Heart,” quarreling with them fearlessly for her sake.

Wang Xi took a deep breath. She missed Shen Lezhi terribly.

Ever since she learned of the other party’s feelings, there was a persistent itch in her heart every moment.

Wang Xi had never experienced love, and she hadn’t expected it to taste like this.

It made her so unable to restrain herself, her mind uncontrollably filled with longing for Shen Lezhi.

She felt a hint of pleasure when thinking of the other party, but when she realized Shen Lezhi was not by her side, that she couldn’t see her, and that they might be estranged for life, her heart ached sharply.

“That’s not right. The entrance has a formation to stop outsiders. No one can break it. No one but my baby could possibly force their way in.” The woman frowned deeply. “Did the formation loosen?”

She muttered to herself while focusing on investigation, still watching Wang Xi intently, her face full of suspicion and wariness.

“The formation is fine, so how did you get in?” The woman was now standing in front of Wang Xi. Her gaze held little goodwill towards Wang Xi, but it wasn’t malicious either.

Just displeasure.

A slight frown expressing annoyance that someone had trespassed into her territory.

“I walked in,” Wang Xi replied, although her face was cold, she didn’t intend to be confrontational.

Although the woman’s tone was slightly displeased, her surrounding spiritual power was very stable, without a trace of hostility. Furthermore, this spiritual power was similar to Shen Lezhi’s wood spirit. Rather than dwelling on the woman’s rudeness, Wang Xi wanted to find out the truth right now.

“How is that possible? Unless you have my baby’s spiritual power on you, but how could you have…” The woman suddenly stopped there, then her eyes widened, staring at Wang Xi with disbelief.

“Did the baby practice Dual Cultivation with you?!” She gasped out loud, then nodded to herself, so shocked that her wide eyes seemed eager to see right through Wang Xi. “That’s the only possibility. Only then could you enter here.”

Wang Xi understood this and, after a moment’s thought, also became suspicious of the woman’s identity.

“Who are you?” Her clear, cold voice was like an ice-bound spiritual spring in winter, so cold that no warmth could be discerned.

The woman involuntarily shivered, frowned, and then said, “You can call me Auntie Hua.”

After saying this, Auntie Hua examined Wang Xi. Seeing Wang Xi’s extraordinary demeanor and aloofness, she frowned even deeper and asked, “Have you and the baby become Dao Companions?”

With such a familiar tone and question, along with the wood-element spiritual power carrying an exotic fragrance, Wang Xi could basically determine that the woman called Auntie Hua was likely Shen Lezhi’s relative.

Since she was related to Shen Lezhi, Wang Xi’s cold demeanor softened.

She patiently shook her head, responding to Auntie Hua.

Unexpectedly, Auntie Hua misunderstood. Her expression immediately turned angry. “Do you refuse?!”

Wang Xi didn’t know how the other party could conclude that she was the one who refused. She didn’t want to explain further, and the expression that had just softened a little now turned cold again.

She was not a person with a good temper to begin with, and even more so after her rebirth.

However, Auntie Hua’s words did make her think of other matters. She and Shen Lezhi were in a master-disciple relationship. If they were to truly become Dao Companions, it might not be tolerated by the world. Feng Nianzhen’s attitude toward them was indifferent, merely concerned that Wang Xi would get too deeply involved and turn to the path of evil.

But the righteous path of the world scorned and even condemned such a relationship.

However, Wang Xi didn’t care about others’ condemnation. If she could survive and take revenge, if Shen Lezhi was still willing to be with her no matter what she looked like then, why couldn’t she enter into a contract with Shen Lezhi and become Dao Companions?

Thinking of this, a hint of expectation, a glimmer of hope, arose in her heart.

Wang Xi had originally thought her reborn life would end after revenge. She no longer wished to live long, only to uncover the full truth and kill everyone who deserved to die.

Then, her soul would return to dust, unwilling to endure the torment of this mortal world again.

But now, Wang Xi desired a life after revenge—a life with Shen Lezhi, a life for Shen Lezhi.

She gently exhaled and still answered Auntie Hua’s question: “I am certainly willing.”

Auntie Hua’s tightly knitted brows finally relaxed a little.

Perhaps because Auntie Hua knew of Wang Xi’s intimate connection with her “baby,” and out of the principle of loving the person and everyone associated with them, her attitude towards Wang Xi immediately improved significantly.

However, she had too many things she wanted to know, and even though she was still quite unfamiliar with Wang Xi, she couldn’t resist asking her questions.

“What is her name?”

Wang Xi wasn’t surprised that the other party didn’t even know Shen Lezhi’s name. When the Sect Master found Shen Lezhi, she was severely injured. She looked every bit like a baby who had been born safely. Perhaps in the chaos, Shen Lezhi’s relatives hadn’t even had the chance to name her.

“Shen Lezhi,” Wang Xi answered.

“Surname Shen? Which two characters for the given name?” Auntie Hua pressed.

Wang Xi paused slightly, then lowered her gaze and said, “Optimistic and open-minded, profound talent and wisdom.”

Shen Lezhi’s name in the previous life was given by the Sect Master. Wang Xi didn’t know the meaning behind it and hadn’t deeply investigated it. But now, she only spoke of the meaning of Shen Lezhi’s current name, just as the other party had told her.

“Good, a good name.” Auntie Hua smiled lightly. “Is she doing well now? How did she survive? With that kind of constitution, who could save her?”

Auntie Hua urgently asked many questions. After asking, she looked up at Wang Xi. She naturally knew the Moonlit Immortal Venerable. Wang Xi already had some reputation when she died.

Moreover, she herself had died because of the Linglong Heart, and her feelings towards Wang Xi were very complex.

Then she thought for a moment and said to Wang Xi, “How about this: you tell me about Lezhi, and I’ll tell you the truth about the Linglong Heart?”

“This place should be the Jadefrost Sect’s forbidden area. You broke in alone, and you seem injured. You must also be looking for the truth. You all have been searching, but you are the only one who has entered this place alive.”

Wang Xi had already noted Auntie Hua’s choice of words. Since just now, the other party had used the plural when referring to the “Linglong Heart,” affirming that Wang Xi was not the only one, and her tone suggested she knew the truth about the “Linglong Heart.”

This was one of the reasons Wang Xi was still willing to stand here and talk to the other party.

Since this person offered an exchange for the truth, why not?

However…

“Who are you to her?” Wang Xi asked coldly.

Auntie Hua didn’t intend to hide it. “Her mother is my sister. We are of the Divine Wood Clan, naturally possessing unique wood spirits and connected to nature. Our ancestors were of the same origin as the power of life. Our spiritual power and blood have the effect of bringing the dead back to life.”

“However, by our generation, our clan has already become extinct. Our wood spirits are only slightly stronger than ordinary cultivators. Lezhi should be the last living member of the Divine Wood Clan in this world.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Xi recalled an ancient book that did indeed mention such a clan, but that was a tale passed down from ten thousand years ago. Regardless of whether Auntie Hua was telling the truth, Wang Xi was more eager to know why Shen Lezhi was on the verge of death when she was found.

Perhaps her gaze was too obvious. Auntie Hua already knew her confusion and continued, “Lezhi is the child my sister gave birth to by exhausting her life force. The ancestors of the Divine Wood Clan were of the same origin as life, but it became extremely difficult for later generations to conceive a new life.”

“My sister used the Divine Wood to conceive a child, but Lezhi was born lacking a heart and simply couldn’t survive. My sister used her own life to extend Lezhi’s life. After she passed away, Lezhi still couldn’t live long, and I also met with an unfortunate end.”

“I thought she wouldn’t survive.” Auntie Hua spoke, her expression full of sorrow. However, now seeing Wang Xi enter this place proved that Shen Lezhi was still alive, which instantly filled her with joy. “But how did she survive? Even with the residual life force poured into her by my sister and me when she was an infant, barely keeping her alive, she shouldn’t have been able to live long.”

Wang Xi lowered her gaze as she listened and answered this question for Auntie Hua: “She has half a Linglong Heart inside her.”

Half a Linglong Heart.

Auntie Hua’s eyelids twitched. She knew the truth that there was only one Linglong Heart in this world, so there was no need to guess who had given Shen Lezhi the half heart in her body.

Auntie Hua was speechless for a moment. She had been unhappy with Wang Xi earlier. After all, her Lezhi was only in her twenties, and this Moonlit Immortal Venerable was over a thousand years old. She even thought Lezhi had been misled.

Moreover, this person looked cold, aloof, and heartless. Would she perhaps make Lezhi suffer countless grievances?

But the other party was willing to carve out half of her Linglong Heart to save her, so what right did she have to criticize her?

Thus, she fell silent and listened to Wang Xi speak of Shen Lezhi.

On the other side, Shen Lezhi and Senior Sister Yunsha had already left Canfeng City and arrived near the Jadefrost Sect.

Shen Lezhi wanted to personally ask Feng Nianzhen where Wang Xi was.

She had, of course, tried to contact her with a spiritual message, but the other party consistently refused to say. With such a secretive attitude, Shen Lezhi speculated that Feng Nianzhen at least knew Wang Xi’s approximate location, so she came to ask in person.

However, she didn’t dare to rashly barge into the Jadefrost Sect. Combining Wang Xi’s last instructions and the fact that she was ambushed, Shen Lezhi could roughly guess that the Sect Master had already noticed the anomaly between her and Wang Xi.

She and Senior Sister Yunsha hid and sent another spiritual message to Feng Nianzhen, telling the other party her location and threatening that if she didn’t come to see them, they would go directly to the Jadefrost Sect to find Wang Xi.

She was gambling with her own life, but she didn’t know if Feng Nianzhen would take the bait.

Shen Lezhi didn’t know Feng Nianzhen well and could only rely on Senior Sister Yunsha’s description that Feng Nianzhen was a good friend of Wang Xi.

Shen Lezhi bet that Wang Xi had entrusted something to Feng Nianzhen before leaving; she bet that Wang Xi truly cared about her, which in turn would make Feng Nianzhen unable to stand idly by regarding her life and death.