She silently hung her identity jade token back on her belt.
By now, the inner sect martial aunt had finished assessing the situation. With a turn of her gourd, a flash of red fire spirit energy surged out.
Seeing the Xiaoyao Foundation Establishment cultivator take action, the woman in black and the man in yellow stopped their bickering and watched the pit cautiously.
Following closely behind the jade gourd, having arrived just a step behind Xiaoyao, was another group of Foundation Establishment cultivators.
They stood on the opposite side of the massive crater, remaining silent as well.
A rumbling sound echoed from the ground once more.
Once the dust settled, the crater created by the Qi Refining demon cultivator’s self-detonation had been dug even deeper, revealing an ancient cultivator's cave dwelling hidden deep underground.
Upon seeing the state of the cave dwelling, every cultivator present showed an expression of disappointment.
The group of Foundation Establishment cultivators who had arrived late cupped their hands toward the Xiaoyao cultivator and departed on their respective artifacts.
However, the two rogue cultivators who had arrived first had not yet left.
The man in yellow had already stepped onto his tobacco pipe, looking as though he intended to leave.
But when he saw that the woman in black made no move to follow, he put away his pipe and returned to his original spot.
The woman in black’s gaze was fixed on the inner sect martial aunt, her expression shifting between melancholy and sudden realization, her thoughts unreadable.
Gu Ningyun observed the martial aunt: a Foundation Establishment middle stage cultivator wearing the white-robed, blue-belted inner sect disciple uniform. Her hair was tied back with a simple blue ribbon, and she held a jade gourd in her right hand, her expression serene.
It was the standard attire for an inner sect disciple; there was nothing unusual about her.
Perhaps sensing the woman in black’s gaze, the martial aunt turned to her and asked, "Fellow Daoist... is something the matter?"
The woman in black was startled, then suddenly smiled.
Unlike her previous cold sneers, this smile seemed to come truly from her heart, like ice melting under the warmth of spring flowers.
"It’s nothing. I just... suddenly understood."
"What?" the martial aunt asked, not following.
Before the martial aunt could express further confusion, the woman in black turned to the man in yellow and said, "Wang He, let’s end things here."
"What did you say?!"
Around the crater, the Qi Refining rogue cultivators who were about to leave paused in their tracks, all of them perking up their ears to listen.
The man in yellow looked as though he had never imagined she would say such a thing. He was both shocked and enraged. "We grew up together! We were childhood sweethearts who cultivated together for so many years, and we were just about to hold our union ceremony and sign a Dao companion contract!"
"At a time like this, over a trivial matter during a tomb exploration, you want to cut ties with me?"
"A trivial matter? You used me to block a trap. If I hadn't reacted quickly, I would have lost my life. You call that a trivial matter?"
"Ehh—" Behind the martial aunt, the Xiaoyao Qi Refining disciples watching the drama hissed in collective disapproval.
The other rogue cultivators scattered behind the bushes also shook their heads repeatedly.
Hearing the sounds of disapproval, a flash of humiliated rage crossed the man in yellow’s face.
He turned his head resentfully, glaring fiercely toward the source of the noise, but he abruptly retracted his gaze when he met the martial aunt’s warning look.
The woman in black looked at him as if she were looking at an immature child. "Of course. You’ve always been like this."
"You saved my life once before. This time, I blocked a trap for you; consider it repayment for that debt."
The woman in black continued, "From this day forward, all ties of gratitude and affection between us are severed. The next time we meet, we shall be strangers."
"Why? Are you truly going to be this heartless?"
The man in yellow seemed to find it unbelievable.
His expression struggled for a moment before he gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I’ll let you beat me once to vent your anger. Just stop being ridiculous."
"Today, I saw this fellow Daoist from Xiaoyao. As a woman, she is poised and calm, acting with such composure."
"Yet I am full of bitterness and misery. Only now do I realize that the path I took was wrong."
The man in yellow quickly said, "It’s good that you know you’re wrong. I’ll forgive you."
The woman in black ignored him, seemingly answering the martial aunt’s earlier confusion while also speaking to herself. "I took the wrong path."
"There were so many paths to choose from, yet I chose a shameless scoundrel like you."
"What did you say!" The man in yellow was stunned.
The woman in black glanced at him sideways. "Loving you was merely a tribulation of the heart. From now on, I live only for myself."
With that, she nodded to the martial aunt and fluttered away gracefully.
The man in yellow slumped to the ground, looking dazed and utterly unable to accept what had happened.
The martial aunt watched the woman in black’s departing figure, opened her mouth as if to speak, then smiled beautifully after a long moment.
Ignoring the man in yellow, she took out a jade box and placed it by the pit.
"Cultivators frequently pass through this dense forest. These bones are full of strange toxins; leaving them here would easily lead to accidental injuries. Stand back. I will collect the remains and take them back to the sect for disposal."
"Be careful, Martial Aunt."
The martial aunt nodded. After a moment of hesitation, she took out a shield to cover the Xiaoyao disciples. "This shield can block divine sense attacks. Stay inside and do not come out, lest there be a remnant soul hidden in the bones plotting possession."
Hearing that someone might attempt possession, the rogue cultivators who were watching the drama immediately fled until not a single one remained. Even the man in yellow jumped onto his tobacco pipe and left.
Xiaoyao had means to defend against possession, but they did not.
The martial aunt waited patiently for the rogue cultivators to get far away before she pinched a hand seal, sending a flash of spirit light onto the jade box.
The jade box immediately generated a suction force, pulling the bones from the pit inside.
Only then did everyone see the storage ring and soul-nourishing wood that had been pinned beneath the skeleton at the bottom of the pit.
The disciples collectively gasped.
There really was a remnant soul.
"An array was carved into the soul-nourishing wood, which is why it wasn't corroded by the toxins. The soul within has already vanished."
The martial aunt said, "The storage ring has been completely destroyed by the poison; it is useless."
Once all the bones were inside the jade box, the martial aunt pinched another seal to close the lid.
To her surprise, the moment the lid closed, the spirit light on the jade box flickered and died.
Immediately after, as if the jade box had encountered some incredibly powerful corrosive substance, it instantly melted into a puddle of black sludge, revealing the bones within.
Once the bones touched the ground, they didn't stop, continuing to corrode the earth.
The martial aunt hurriedly struck out with a surge of spirit energy, blasting the bones and the surrounding soil back to their original place in the cave dwelling.
Only when the bones came into contact with the array on the soul-nourishing wood did the corrosion stop.
A disciple cried out in alarm, "The poison is actually this terrifying!"
"It is a toxin capable of killing a Body Integration powerhouse, after all. Naturally, it is extraordinary."
The martial aunt operated her identity jade token for a moment. "I have reported this matter to the sect. An Alchemy Peak elder will be coming shortly to handle this."
She turned to look at Yuan Zhi. "Martial Niece Yuan Zhi, you said earlier that you wanted to come along to see the commotion, so I brought you with me."
"But I see your expression is full of worry. Has something happened?"
"I..." Yuan Zhi’s tone was hesitant. "Martial Aunt, if one of our formal Xiaoyao disciples were to be killed, would the sect be able to sense it?"
Rate on N.U.
