Chapter 202: Asking Who Is to Blame

Qintai Xiao fell to the ground and rolled twice, his blood spraying everywhere.

The light in his eyes also extinguished.

Feeling the pressure vanish, Qintai He let out a breath and slowly lifted his head.

His handsome face was covered in mud, looking somewhat disheveled, and he asked hesitantly, "Is he... dead?"

A Spirit Transformation Stage powerhouse.

Just like that, dead at the hands of two Yuaning and one Golden Core?

Although he had been lying on the ground unable to move ever since he entered, at least he had distracted Qintai Xiao, hadn't he?

There was still that little bit of contribution.

But he still felt that everything happening was too dreamlike and unreal.

Ruan Xing glanced at him, "Of course not."

That was a Spirit Transformation Stage!

Even Xu Shengping, whose Divine Soul had not fully merged, could obtain a second life through Yuaning shell-shedding; how could a Spirit Transformation Stage possibly end just because the body died?

It was also Qintai Xiao's own carelessness.

He looked down on this rabble entirely.

Aside from one of them having a rather tricky Spirit Tool, the others were just rotten fish and shrimp in his eyes.

He never expected to be tricked by these rotten fish and shrimp.

His Yuaning was hidden within that already dead body, hoping only that they had never reached the Spirit Transformation Stage and did not understand the life-saving methods after that stage; once they left, he would immediately go to the Ancestral Hall to seek help from the Elders.

The two-minute mark was almost up.

Ruan Xing could not wait for Qintai Xiao to come out on his own; she reached out her hand in a grasping motion.

Qintai Xiao immediately felt his Yuaning being pulled by something.

He was horrified.

This was the same feeling as when his Spiritual Power was suddenly in chaos just now! What kind of demonic art was this little girl using! It was unheard of, and there was absolutely no fluctuation of Spiritual Power to be detected; she was clearly only at the Yuaning Late Stage, so her subtle control over Spiritual Power could not possibly be this secretive!

A premonition of danger lingered in his heart, and he realized with absolute clarity that if he were pulled out by that terrifying method again, he would completely perish here! But he was a dignified Spirit Transformation True Monarch, how could he die at the hands of a few rats! This would be too shameful if it got out; perhaps after he died, the Clan would not even announce the true cause of his death for the sake of their reputation, let alone go to great lengths to avenge him.

Qintai Xiao steeled his heart, and his Yuaning infant darted out of his body, heading straight for Qintai He.

Qintai He was, after all, of his own kin, and the weakest one present; parasitizing him would be much easier than the other two, and he might even be able to possess Qintai He and occupy the Spirit Bone aptitude of this body.

The Qintai Family had not passed down any secret arts for parasitic possession.

He could only use the most primitive method, relying on the connection of bloodlines to devour Qintai He's soul, and he would not regret it even if he suffered Demonic Corruption for it.

Anything was better than death! After suffering Demonic Corruption, he might not be able to be the Clan Leader, but relying on Qintai He's aptitude and his own cultivation experience, breaking through to Spirit Severing within a hundred years would not be a problem; by then, he would be the Spirit Transformation True Monarch that everyone feared once again.

His internal calculations were well-made, but unfortunately, Ruan Xing had long been guarding against this move.

The moment his Yuaning infant rushed toward Qintai He, Sword Lai's speed was faster than his; after running quickly through the Invisibility Channel, he appeared in front of Qintai He in less than a breath, as if flashing into existence.

Qintai He looked up blankly, as if frightened out of his wits.

The Yuaning infant crashed into Sword Lai, but was blocked by the Talisman on his skin; Ruan Xing grasped her hand again, and Qintai Xiao had no chance to escape, being held in her hand.

From the chubby, glowing Yuaning infant, one could actually see his face ashen with despair.

Without the Ten Thousand Soul Banner, Ruan Xing had nowhere to store the Yuaning infant, so she could only hold him in her hand for the time being, then put his original corpse into the Storage Bag.

Puppet material plus one.

At this moment, in the silent night sky, the brilliant light formed by the intersection of Magic Arts and barriers gradually spread to the horizon.

Qintai He had already regained his senses and hurriedly scrambled up, stumbling to Ruan Xing's side, "Junior Sister, run! We've been discovered!"

Cang Lin also realized it in a flash; a look of determination crossed his eyes, and he pushed Qintai He, "Fairy Ruan and Young Master, go together! I will stay behind to cover the retreat; even if I have to self-destruct my Golden Core, I will clear a path of survival for you!"

Ruan Xing could certainly leave; she only needed to enter Sword Lai's Invisibility Channel, and the two of them could escape dozens of miles away in an instant.

But this Simulation was not just for avenging Qintai He.

Through previous accumulations, she now had over a dozen Self-destruct Puppets in her Storage Bag.

The worst of them were all above the Golden Core level.

The combined power of these puppets self-destructing was enough to level the entire Qintai Manor plus the area within a ten-mile radius.

Ruan Xing scattered these puppets, then turned to ask Qintai He, "You don't have a home anymore; will you blame me?"

"Of course not! In this world, only the place where the people who care about me and the people I care about are is my home; the Qintai Family no longer has any relatives worth me lingering over!" Qintai He shook his head frantically, grabbing Ruan Xing's hand to steady his crumbling body, "But Junior Sister, I care about you very much; I beg you, please go, will you?"

Qintai He did not understand the intention behind Ruan Xing's question.

He only filled his clear eyes with tears that were about to fall, his expression sorrowful.

Being able to kill Qintai Xiao to avenge his grievances was already beyond his expectations and surprised him enough.

Junior Sister had already helped him too much.

But outside, there were still three Spirit Transformation Elders, as well as countless Yuaning and Golden Core Cultivators, all of whom were members of the Qintai Clan.

His mind was almost blank, and he could not think of any way to escape alive.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Junior Sister..." he pleaded, "I beg you, go; I cannot let you die here with me..."

"Are you an idiot?" Ruan Xing couldn't help but laugh, wiping the tear stains and dirt from Qintai He's face with some disdain, "I won't die, and neither will you."

Brilliant light filled the sky.

The gathering Qintai Clan members became more and more numerous, surrounding the perimeter of the Clan Leader's residence in circles.

They watched like tigers eyeing their prey; if it weren't for the lack of orders from the Elders, plus the fact that Qintai Xiao had activated the Formation earlier, they would have already rushed in and swarmed them.

Qintai He looked at the scene before him, already feeling somewhat desperate.

A majestic, aged voice sounded, like ripples exploding on the surface of calm water.

"What thieves dare to cause trouble in my Qintai Clan territory!"

The white-haired elder approached the group and said to Qintai He with disappointment, "I can understand that you grew up outside and are not close to the clan, but you should never, ever have colluded with outsiders to kill your own kin! This crime is grave and will never be forgiven lightly!"

"It was Qintai Xiao who first harmed my grandfather and father! What is wrong with me seeking revenge!" Qintai He roared.

He knew that saying anything now was useless. Yet, he still had to vent the anger in his heart.

"You all ignored it when he sent me a Psychic Jade contaminated with demonic Qi to harm me, but now that I want revenge, you say I am guilty. You Clan Elders, what right do you have to judge and sentence me!"

"You have fallen into a delusion!" the old man sighed and shook his head.

He seemed to feel that Qintai He was already beyond saving.

In any case, these three people were already completely surrounded and had no way to escape; by speaking a few words out of a sense of righteousness, he could further highlight the rules and hierarchy of the clan.

Ruan Xing watched the dense crowd nearby with calm composure.

All three of the Transformation Stage cultivators had arrived, and the others should have arrived as well.

Everyone was here.

"Don't be angry," Ruan Xing chuckled, "I'll show you something fun."

She let go of Qintai He's hand, first pinching a spell with her fingers; the Xumi Mirror flew into mid-air, casting down a caramel-colored barrier, which she controlled with perfect precision to wrap only around the location of the three of them, forming an eggshell-shaped barrier.

Afterward, she gripped the air with her palm, and over a dozen invisible threads were caught in her hand, drifting and extending outward; under her intentional control, all the Puppets scattered nearby self-destructed at the same time.

Boom—! The massive explosion nearly blew the entire Qintai Manor into the sky.

After the smoke cleared, there was nothing but ruins and severed limbs on the ground.

Although they were protected by the Xumi Mirror, the three of them were completely unharmed inside the barrier.

But the roaring sound caused by the explosion still made Qintai He unable to help but cover his ears.

After waiting for the echoes to fade, Ruan Xing directed A Jiao to go out and harvest the remaining health, unable to help but laugh with pleasure, "Wow, explosions are art."

A Jiao sent her good news: now, in the entire Qintai Manor, only the three Transformation Stage Elders were still breathing, with their Divine Soul remaining.

Ruan Xing immediately used a Divine Ability to grab the three Nascent Soul miniatures; the four chubby little figures were squeezed and jostled between her fingers.

"Are they... all dead...?" Qintai He still had undried tears on his eyelashes, his face full of disbelief.

Cang Lin silently helped him up.

What kind of monster is this Junior Sister of the Young Master... she always does such unbelievable things. She is not to be trifled with, not to be trifled with. It is fortunate that Fairy Ruan is the Young Master's Junior Sister and not an enemy; otherwise, even if he exhausted all his strength and risked his life, he could not protect the Young Master.

"Yes," Ruan Xing answered casually, "What are your thoughts right now?"

"What thoughts?" Qintai He repeated blankly, "I don't understand."

This was the ultimate goal of Ruan Xing's Text Simulation this time.

If she wanted to completely rescue Qintai He from the Qintai Family, it would inevitably mean exposing almost all of her trump cards.

These were things Qintai He did not know.

She could not be sure that Qintai He would still stand by her side without hesitation after knowing all of this.

In Ruan Xing's heart, she herself was always the priority; she was the most important. Even if Qintai He had always been close to her and helped her, she would not risk putting herself in danger to save him.

If Qintai He's performance did not satisfy her, she would still save him, but she would not take him with her to escape the Qintai Family.

She would just quietly help Qintai He kill this Clan Leader, and then let the Sword take her away through the Invisibility Channel.

After that, whatever Qintai He encountered in Xizhou would have nothing to do with her.

She was not a cold-blooded and heartless person, it was just that emotions did not rank very high in her heart.

If something had a negative impact on her, it could be discarded at any time.

Especially... Qintai He's closeness to her was something she had calculated from the very beginning; using him to leave the Xuanbing Sect was never pure to begin with.

Cang Lin saw things much more clearly than Qintai He; he whispered a tactful reminder in Qintai He's ear: "Fairy Ruan may have a very mysterious background; her methods and power have already exceeded the imagination of ordinary people... Young Master, Fairy Ruan showing these things in front of you means she trusts you completely."

Qintai He did not speak, so Ruan Xing simply laid it out for him, "I have two Spirit Tools. You should know the importance of Spirit Tools; even a top-tier major family in Xizhou like the Qintai Clan might not have two. And those things that exploded just now were Puppets I refined using an Evil Cultivator Secret Art. I instigated you to come to Xizhou with me because the Peak Master has always suspected and guarded against me. The Peak Master's position in your heart is very important, right? This time I have destroyed the entire Qintai Family, and you can only return to the Central Province. When you see the Peak Master then, and she asks about me, will you tell her everything truthfully?"

Qintai He was stunned.

He hesitated, not knowing how to answer.

After a long while, he asked with trembling lips: "So, was everything before just a lie to me?"

It had already reached this point, yet what he cared about was whether he had been lied to.

No matter what the initial purpose was, everything experienced along the way was real. If Ruan Xing only had the intention of using him, she would never have wasted points and time to come and save him.

Ruan Xing could not help but shake her head.

Qintai He was too simple; even when he knew the Clan Leader was his enemy, he had no guard against the things he sent.

He also lacked his own opinions. Previously, this was an advantage for Ruan Xing; she could make up any reason to coax him and make him follow her arrangements.

But now that it was truly his turn to make a decision, this had become a disadvantage.

"Indecisive," Ruan Xing commented, somewhat helplessly, "Now I only ask you, do you still consider me your younger sister? When I come into conflict with the Peak Master, can you manage to turn a blind eye?"

One was the Master who picked him up when everyone else abandoned him, raised him, and taught him to cultivate.

The other was the adopted sister who encouraged him to go home to see his grandmother for the last time when he was distraught, and who came specifically to save his life.

"... I don't know," Qintai He finally said.

This sentence sounded extremely difficult coming from his mouth.

He couldn't even lie to himself and say things like there was a misunderstanding between his Master and his adopted sister.

To save him and help him seek revenge, his adopted sister had used all her Evil Cultivator methods right in front of his face.

To talk about a misunderstanding now would be too pale and weak.

"Think about it some more," Ruan Xing sighed and turned to go into Qintai Xiao's house to see if there were any valuable items left behind.

Thanks to the Xumi Mirror, half of these buildings were still quite intact.

She would also look for Qintai Xiao's Storage Bag to see if there were any items inside worth her spending points to obtain via Simulation.

She had already put away the Xumi Mirror.

Qintai He and Cang Lin outside could see the tragic state of Qintai Manor.

Cang Lin's experience and life history were far greater than Qintai He's; he knew that the real self Ruan Xing was showing was no longer the lively and cute little girl she had been at six years old.

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