Chapter 40

"They won't." Yuan Yao said firmly.

Nie Lie slightly furrowed his brows, "Little girl, you're still young, don't be too naive. When I was alive, I saw countless people fight and kill each other over treasures—killing relatives, friends, lovers—all of it. Human hearts are unfathomable."

Although she hadn't experienced these things, she had seen plenty in storybooks, but recalling the past ten years of getting along, she smiled and said, "I trust them."

Nie Lie was momentarily speechless.

Seeing her so firmly believe in her senior brothers and sisters, he stopped advising and merely said in a low voice, "Before you have completely mastered this Saint-grade sword manual, I forbid you from telling anyone that you possess it."

Upon meeting Nie Lie's stern gaze, Yuan Yao lightly nodded and replied, "Okay."

She also knew that Senior Nie Lie was doing this for her own good.

If so, then she would learn as quickly as possible.

By then, Eldest Senior Brother and the others would be able to learn earlier!

Yuan Yao patted her chest and promised, "Senior Nie Lie, don't worry too much—our Carefree Sect people are all fine! Once we learn the sword techniques from this Saint-grade manual, we will surely make a name for ourselves under heaven!"

"Carefree Sect?" Nie Lie raised his eyebrows; the sect's name was somewhat unfamiliar to him.

He searched his memory and finally recalled that a few hundred years ago, the Ninth Province indeed had a small sect called the Carefree Sect.

Nie Lie asked doubtfully, "Are you from the Carefree Sect?"

"Yes."

Nie Lie: "..." Such a small sect still wants to make his sword techniques famous under heaven?

Yuan Yao said proudly, "Don't worry, our Carefree Sect is very strong!"

Nie Lie showed a complex expression.

"Just make a name for yourself under heaven." He held no hope for that Carefree Sect, paused, and couldn't help urging, "No matter whom you meet or what happens in the future, always stay vigilant and on guard—never die prematurely."

"Also, while staying in the Carefree Sect, you must keep a low profile—outstanding trees attract wind. If you later find a great sect to rely on, leave the Carefree Sect..."

"Senior!" Yuan Yao interrupted him; seeing Nie Lie's surprised look, her expression turned unusually solemn, and she said word by word, "I will always be a member of the Carefree Sect—I will never abandon the Carefree Sect!"

The Carefree Sect is her home.

How could she possibly abandon her home?

Yuan Yao said earnestly, "Senior, I understand you want me to improve. But if the way to improve is to betray my sect, I cannot and do not want to. In the future, I will make sure everyone knows that I, Yuan Yao, come from the Carefree Sect of the Ninth Province!"

Nie Lie was clearly shaken by her words.

His expression shifted, and he finally laughed.

In the past, he had grown accustomed to seeing people abandon their sect for resources and power, so he also regarded this phenomenon as natural and expected.

He never expected that, after his death hundreds of years ago, he would be 'lectured' by a little girl.

What a pure, innocent heart!

"Hahahaha..." Nie Lie suddenly burst into loud laughter.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Nie Lie's cloudy old eyes now gleamed with bright light as he stared at Yuan Yao and laughed, "Well then, I'll stake my bet on you—that you can always keep your original intention and make a name for yourself under heaven!"

Yuan Yao smiled, revealing dimples on her cheeks, "Senior trusts me; I will absolutely not let down your expectations."

Nie Lie stroked his beard, smiling narrowly, "Then I will die without regret."

After a pause, his gaze swept toward a certain direction, "Someone is coming not far away—quickly put the manual away and then leave."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao immediately put away the Saint-grade sword manual, then stepped back three times and bowed deeply three times to Nie Lie.

"Thank you, Senior Nie Lie."

Nie Lie gave a slight nod in response.

In the next instant, his remnant soul's phantom began to fade.

Yuan Yao looked up once more at the massive peak, then turned and left.

The moonlight was hazy, and everything around grew dim.

Yuan Yao walked forward.

As she walked, she heard a few people cursing ahead.

"Damn Xiao Lingwei! She actually struck so ruthlessly!"

"Does she think we're afraid of her? We only fear her master! One day, I'll torture her until she wishes she were dead!"

"Exactly, a lowly wretch dares to act arrogant before us?"

Yuan Yao's face instantly darkened.

Suddenly, the 250 System's voice rang in her sea of consciousness: 【Target persons Zhang Zhengchu, Gong Shan yuan, Cui He, Awakening Value 0】

Upon hearing it, Yuan Yao's mood worsened.

Does she have to deal with such people too?

Just as she was about to ask the 250 System if she could change targets, a thought suddenly popped into her mind.

The corner of her mouth instantly curled up.

Perfect—she wanted to try whether she could awaken them by force.

Footsteps and curses drew nearer; Yuan Yao knew her current strength was still weak, so she couldn't confront them head-on.

She thought of setting up a formation in advance to deal with them.

Having thought of that, she immediately began laying it out.

Once the setup was complete, she quickly followed the activation method marked on the Heaven-Earth Shock Diagram to form one seal after another.

Hum!

At the same time, it emitted a dazzling beam of light.

Seeing this, Yuan Yao silently thought, "Not good," and darted toward the large thicket beside the road; the moment she hid in the thicket, the voices of Zhang Zhengchu and the two others arrived.

"What kind of light is that?!"

"Quick, let's go take a look!" Gongshan Yuanyuan thought a treasure had appeared ahead, his eyes instantly lit up, and he exclaimed eagerly.

Cui He immediately reached out to block him, saying, "What if it's a trap?!"

Upon hearing that, Gongshan Yuanyuan finally calmed down a bit, saying, "We just need to be careful."

Zhang Zhengchu also agreed, saying, "Exactly."

Cui He was thin and small, with sunken cheeks; in the darkness he looked like a starving ghost, his eyes still gleaming with sharpness. Suspicious, he picked up a stone from the roadside, tossed it in his hand, then threw it toward the place where the disturbance came from ahead.

With a clang, the spot where the stone landed instantly burst into roaring flames that sprang from nowhere, burning the air with a crackling sound.

Seeing this, Zhang Zhengchu and Gongshan Yuanyuan's eyes widened slightly, and they suddenly felt a surge of fear.

"It's a fire-element formation." Cui He narrowed his eyes slightly, wondering who had set up such a formation here.

His gaze swept sharply over the surroundings.

There was nothing unusual.

"Let's go take a look." Cui He wanted to find clues from the fire-element formation.

Gongshan Yuanyuan and Zhang Zhengchu swallowed nervously, then followed behind Cui He with trembling hearts.

They arrived before the fire-element formation.

Just as Cui He was about to crouch down to study it, he seemed to sense something, and his face suddenly changed.

He quickly rose to his feet and shouted, "Retreat… wuu wuu wuu kai wuu wuu wuu……"

His voice instantly turned into an electronic sound.

Only to see the three of them struck violently by the lightning-element within the formation, their bodies stiffening and trembling, their poses looking especially comical.