Spectating the Angsty Romance of the Master and Disciple from the Sect Next Door Chapter 172

Ming Xuan was startled. He looked up in the direction of the voice, watching Jijin Sword Sovereign leap out of thin air. Her red robes were exceptionally conspicuous in the darkness, and she raised an eyebrow with interest, observing the group of black-clad figures as if they were already dead.
Flee!
She’s unstoppable!
The moment Ming Xuan saw Li Jin’an, he didn’t think; his body made the choice for him. He didn’t care about the other black-clad figures, nor did he have time to ponder why Jijin Sword Sovereign was here. His mind had only one thought: to escape this place at all costs.
Aside from Qingxiao Immortal Venerable, no one wanted to confront Jijin Sword Sovereign, a battle maniac. Let alone cultivators of the same realm, even those whose cultivation was several minor realms higher than Jijin Sword Sovereign would only get a headache when encountering her.
Tireless, rapidly improving in battle, Jijin Sword Sovereign grew more excited with each fight; her enemies would only grow more desperate…
Even though Ming Xuan was at the Mid-Integration stage, he believed Jijin Sword Sovereign was still at the Late-Integration stage at this time. He was unaware that this Li Jin’an came from the future, and had never imagined being able to defeat Jijin Sword Sovereign in battle.
Sometimes evil cultivators were far more pragmatic than righteous cultivators. Their perception of danger was second only to that group from Lingjing Sect.
Li Jin’an casually swept her hand, and the space around the Lan family’s courtyard was easily confined.
Before, her enemies always used this move to trap her. Now it was her turn, and honestly, it felt really good.
She condescendingly looked down at the black-clad figures below, who were scurrying around like headless flies with nowhere to run. She scoffed disdainfully. It was normal for their first reaction upon seeing her to be flight, but did they really think they could escape in front of her? Who were they looking down on?
Also, do all evil cultivators on the Lancang Continent like to wear black when doing bad deeds?
The demon race was like that, and so was Ming Xuan; at a glance, they had shifty eyes and the face of a bad person.
She should have known earlier and had Shang Dangge pretend to sell black clothes while secretly luring them in. Not only could they make a huge profit, but they could also catch many evil spirits.
Suddenly, Li Jin’an’s eyebrow twitched, her gaze shifted downward, and the smile on her lips became more genuine.
Ming Xuan felt an overwhelming despair. If he fell into Jijin Sword Sovereign’s hands, he would certainly fare poorly. He had never heard that Jijin Sword Sovereign had a habit for tormenting enemies or extracting memories, but he couldn’t gamble on that ‘what if’.
In the cultivation world, killing for treasures was extremely common. If the target luckily escaped or had senior sect members avenge them, that was naturally a joyous outcome. But if they died because of it, others could do nothing but perhaps offer verbal condemnation, because the fundamental law of the cultivation world was the law of the jungle and respect for the strong. Possessing a treasure brought misfortune, and weakness was the greatest sin.
But they knew their own business. Not to mention Futu Valley had long been a den of evil cultivators, completely unable to withstand scrutiny. Moreover, Jijin Sword Sovereign must have seen him tampering with Lan Ci, so the claim of killing for treasures wouldn’t hold up at all.
Ming Xuan gritted his teeth and, with extreme decisiveness and ruthlessness, gave the order, “Self-destruct!”
It wasn’t to self-destruct and kill Jijin Sword Sovereign, but simply to use this method to prevent Jijin Sword Sovereign from searching their sea of consciousness and spiritual bodies. And incidentally, to blow up Lan Ci next to them, destroying all evidence.
He wasn’t afraid that his black-clad subordinates wouldn’t obey orders. Evil cultivators had too many ways to control a person. Those who could carry out the highly classified missions personally given by the Valley Master were not only loyal, but their spiritual bodies were also in the Valley Master’s hands.
If they didn’t die now, it would be hard to die even if they wanted to after returning.
Boom—
The black-clad figures said nothing, silently carrying out Ming Xuan’s orders. Without hesitation, they instantly initiated self-destruction.
Just as Ming Xuan was about to self-destruct along with them, Li Jin’an, who had been watching the show, finally moved. She sighed and shook her head, then effortlessly reached out and remotely choked Ming Xuan by the neck. She also isolated the impact of the black-clad figures’ self-destruction, thwarting Ming Xuan’s attempt to blow up Lan Ci.
“Cui Guangling kept soul-possessing until his body finally couldn’t hold up, and he set his sights on Lan Ci’s mutated spiritual body, did he? Oh, Qingxiao Immortal Venerable is coming over soon. Perhaps Cui Guangling is about to gain another Immortal Venerable’s disciple’s body.” Li Jin’an’s light, smiling voice echoed in Ming Xuan’s mind. She sighed, full of regret, and continued, “Encountering this Venerable is your greatest misfortune.”
“Too much cleverness in plotting backfires, leading to one’s demise.”
“So eager to die, yet you couldn’t even wait for Cui Guangling.”
You bastard, what’s with only targeting Qingxiao Immortal Venerable? If you’ve got guts, try to scheme against me!
What, the title of Jijin Sword Sovereign’s disciple isn’t enough to satisfy that insidious old scoundrel Cui Guangling, is it?
Even her direct disciples like Qi Lingzi, Tan Yanyi, and Ling Qiu sometimes wanted to run away from home; wandering outside was better than falling into their master’s hands, let alone those with ulterior motives.
Li Jin’an naturally knew that Cui Guangling’s covert scheming was certainly guided by the demon race hiding in deeper shadows. But that didn’t stop her from feeling heartache for Xie Huaixue and Qingxiao Peak, as these bastards had forcibly turned a perfectly fine place into a pigsty for mad wild boars.
Ming Xuan’s sea of consciousness was forcefully broken open by Li Jin’an. However, at this moment, he no longer cared about the excruciating pain of his shattered sea of consciousness, nor the fact that Jijin Sword Sovereign had displayed Great Ascension cultivation. A chilling sensation swept through his entire body, and his eyes were filled with terror and fear. The next instant, his consciousness was completely erased by Li Jin’an.
Killing one Ming Xuan didn’t require such a grand effort; that would be giving him too much face.
Li Jin’an allowed Ming Xuan’s corpse to crash to the ground. She turned to look at Lan Ci, whose eyes were still tightly closed, and asked in a good mood, “Awake?”
Lan Ci knew she couldn’t pretend any longer. She opened her eyes, her small face pale, her eyelashes fluttering. She looked like a fragile, pathetic waif, and respectfully knelt down to Li Jin’an, honestly kowtowing with a loud thud. Then, with a tearful voice, she spoke gratefully:
“Immortal, your immense kindness and virtue, Little Ci has no way to repay it. If not for you, Little Ci would not know when she could personally avenge the murderers of her entire family…”
She still spoke wrongly. When it came to being pragmatic, Lan Ci was truly at her peak.
This was what it felt like to be a villain, being knelt to by the protagonist beasts?
It was indeed good.
Li Jin’an didn’t listen closely to Lan Ci’s false gratitude and sickening self-address. Instead, she slightly raised an eyebrow and looked into the distance.
She withdrew her gaze, then chuckled, her eyes sparkling with affection. “She’s here.”
Lan Ci stopped speaking, looking at her with confusion but caution.
“Do you know the difference between me and these people?” Li Jin’an casually pointed at Ming Xuan’s corpse, whose eyes were wide open in extreme shock.
Lan Ci had her doubts, but as the saying goes, ‘one must bow one’s head when under someone else’s eaves’. She respectfully bowed again before tentatively saying, “Immortal, your cultivation is profound and unfathomable, your heart is benevolent, and you aid the wronged. Their cultivation and conduct cannot be compared to yours; they are as different as clouds and mud, incomparable.”
Li Jin’an shook her head as if playing coy. “No, no, no.”
“They killed your entire family, but didn’t want your life.” Li Jin’an mysteriously wagged her index finger, and ignoring Lan Ci, whose face changed dramatically as she repeatedly backed away, continued, “But I only want your life.”
Lan Ci tried to flee, but the next second, her neck was remotely choked. Her face turned red and purple, and she let out hoarse gasps, her eyes uncontrollably showing hatred, as she struggled to ask, “Wh-why?”
She wasn’t just asking why Li Jin’an was killing her, but also why Ming Xuan and his group attacked the Lan family.
The little beast was utterly perplexed at this moment.
Li Jin’an indeed felt the spiritual energy controlling Lan Ci’s neck loosen slightly. She feared that the protagonist beast’s strange destiny was acting up again, trying to pull the plot back on track. It didn’t matter whether Ming Xuan died or not, but if Lan Ci couldn’t become Qingxiao Immortal Venerable’s disciple, what kind of protagonist would she be?
The more fiercely Lan Ci struggled, the more radiantly Li Jin’an smiled. Then, with an indifferent look in her eyes, she closed her fingers, decisively ending Lan Ci’s sinful life.
Jijin Sword Sovereign believed herself to be quite benevolent. Unlike those evil cultivators, she never engaged in massacres or torturous killings. At most, she would leave her enemies dead with unclosed eyes, unable to tell if they died from a strike or from anger. What more could one be dissatisfied with?
Lan Ci could even get along peacefully with Ming Xuan, who had slaughtered her entire family; there was no reason for her to resent Li Jin’an.
Li Jin’an, clad in red robes, stood alone amidst the blood and rainwater, blending into the curtain of rain. She was untainted by dust, and leisurely took out a handkerchief to wipe her fingers.
Although it was done remotely, she feared being tainted by the beast’s ill fortune; after all, she still had to return to Qingxiao Peak.
Suddenly.
Li Jin’an slowly turned, her brows slightly raised, gazing steadily at the newcomer. She crossed her arms and proudly said, “What a coincidence. Immortal Venerable, you’re a step too late. You can’t be a copycat and take in your first disciple just like this Venerable did.”
If she hadn’t turned from darkness to light halfway through, Jijin Sword Sovereign’s sarcastic mouth wouldn’t have spared Qingxiao Immortal Venerable, or rather, she would mostly be sarcastic towards Qingxiao Immortal Venerable.
If there truly was such an inexplicable thing as fate, then she would only break through all illusions with her sword, enveloped in sword energy and frost, and skip to Xie Huaixue’s side.
Their encounter, acquaintance, and love were true destiny.
Xie Huaixue’s eyes trembled. She looked up and directly met the gaze of the person opposite her, who was smiling with curved lips. She pursed her lips before softly saying, “It’s fine.”
Li Jin’an clicked her tongue impatiently.
Not only because the damned time and space were starting to squeeze her again, trying to push her out of this timeline, but also because she knew from Xie Huaixue’s reaction that Xie Huaixue had guessed the purpose of her trip.
She knew Xie Huaixue had guessed it, Xie Huaixue also knew that she knew Xie Huaixue had guessed it, she knew… never mind, no more beating around the bush.
Li Jin’an waved her hand grandly and said understandingly, “Immortal Venerable, there’s no need to regret. It’s just an undeveloped ice spiritual root; there are plenty in the cultivation world. At worst, this Venerable’s disciples can be lent to you, so you won’t be without someone to serve you in your old age.”
The same sentence could have completely opposite meanings when spoken at different times: it could be a provocation between arch-rivals, or a flirtation between dao companions, incredibly versatile.
Let alone the deceased Lan Ci would think Jijin Sword Sovereign killed her to spite Qingxiao Immortal Venerable. Even if anyone from the cultivation world were randomly pulled in at this moment, they would think the same, deeply believing that Jijin Sword Sovereign had gone mad. Unable to defeat Qingxiao Immortal Venerable, she took out her anger on others, attempting to achieve her goal of striking at the Qingxiao Peak lineage by choking to death someone with an ice spiritual root who might have been taken as a disciple by Qingxiao Immortal Venerable.
They might even sigh that this group of sword cultivators had actually learned to use schemes and tricks. Killing an Immortal Venerable’s disciple without cause, and killing an unknown person, had vastly different consequences and charges.
Xie Huaixue stood between heaven and earth, her white robes fluttering, lightly deflecting Jijin Sword Sovereign’s taunts as usual. “Qingxiao is extremely grateful for the Sword Lord’s generosity.”
Li Jin’an lowered her head and chuckled.
As expected of her dao companion; they truly had a tacit understanding.
“Immortal Venerable, did you miss a word?” Li Jin’an prompted.
Xie Huaixue tilted her head in confusion. “Hmm?”
“No way to repay, so offer yourself?”