Chapter 9: The Demonic Venerable’s Arrival

The Demonic Venerable of the Myriad Blossom Blood Palace, Ling Shuangjue.

!!!

Shen Zhaoqing’s pupils instantly constricted to pinpricks.

Her mind froze for a full three seconds, and every hair on her body stood rigidly on end.

‘Holy shit!’

“You—you—you… How did you get in here?!”

What about the Azure Cloud Sect’s mountain-protecting array, the one rumored to withstand a full-power strike from a Dao Integration expert?!

Ling Shuangjue seemed quite pleased with Shen Zhaoqing’s ghost-struck expression.

She made no move, merely sitting there quietly, her head tilted as she observed Shen Zhaoqing. Her blood-red pupils reflected the bright moon above, as well as Shen Zhaoqing’s face, which was a canvas of terror and bewilderment.

“The wine is good.”

She spoke suddenly, her voice cool and carrying a peculiar huskiness, like ice scraping across silk—beautiful, yet deadly.

Shen Zhaoqing jolted, instinctively clutching the wine gourd tightly to her chest, her gaze wary as she watched Ling Shuangjue.

“No,” she blurted out.

‘This is my last spiritual sustenance! No one is taking it!’

Ling Shuangjue seemed to pause at her words, then her smile deepened, tinged now with a hint of amusement.

“Heh.”

She chuckled softly, her gaze shifting from the wine gourd to Shen Zhaoqing. “The Azure Cloud Sect’s cage is too small; it cannot hold you,” she stated slowly.

“Have you considered it?”

“Return with me to the Myriad Blossom Blood Palace.”

She paused, her crimson pupils shimmering with an unearthly glow beneath the moonlight, as if capable of drawing one’s very soul into their depths.

“I shall bestow upon you the entire sea of flowers and fine wines of the Demonic Domain. How does that sound?”

Shen Zhaoqing stared blankly at Ling Shuangjue, momentarily forgetting her fear.

‘The sea of flowers and fine wines of the Demonic Domain?’

‘For me?’

‘Are they really for me?’

“No need, really,” Shen Zhaoqing mumbled, shrinking her neck. “I’m quite comfortable here—”

Clang—!

A clear, resonant sword chime, like the cry of a dragon and phoenix intertwined, suddenly erupted from the Frostbright Abode courtyard below!

In an instant, an icy, glacier-like sword intent surged skyward, enveloping the entire courtyard.

‘Senior Sister!!’ Shen Zhaoqing thought, discreetly tucking the sound transmission talisman in her hand behind her back.

Within the small courtyard, bathed in moonlight, a figure clad in white stood silently.

It was Gu Chang’an.

She had appeared in the courtyard at some unknown moment, holding ‘Frostbright,’ its tip angled towards the heavens, pointed directly at the crimson figure on the rooftop.

Two vastly different, yet equally suffocatingly powerful auras, collided fiercely within this small expanse of heaven and earth!

On one side was Ling Shuangjue’s domineering, sinister aura, radiating the Demonic Venerable’s oppressive might, imbued with a bloody, destructive beauty. It seemed poised to drag the entire world into her mad domain, the ‘Myriad Blossom Blood Palace’.

On the other was Gu Chang’an’s cool, aloof, and supreme sword intent, imbued with the Dao of Grand Indifference. It felt as though a single strike could freeze a thousand miles, severing all evil spirits and monsters from existence.

The air, in that moment, seemed to congeal.

The wind stilled, the clouds halted, and even the distant chirping of insects in the mountain forest ceased abruptly amidst this terrifying standoff.

Shen Zhaoqing’s body stiffened like a stone. The clashing sword energies buffeted her, making her hum, and the pressure of the ambient sword qi caused a searing pain through her internal organs.

‘Help me!’

‘Is no one going to do anything about me?!’

She now yearned desperately for Ruan Xinglin, that charlatan from the Heavenly Divination Pavilion—another control freak, perhaps, but at least one who adhered to some ‘basic principles’.

‘Sister! Divine Diviner Sister!’

‘Didn’t you say I was some ‘Calamity Responder’? Aren’t you capable of deducing heavenly secrets?’

‘Hurry up and divine something!’

‘If you don’t divine soon, your sole ‘variable’ is going to be torn apart right here on this rooftop by two formidable female powerhouses!’

‘Send someone, quick!’

Ling Shuangjue slowly withdrew her gaze from Shen Zhaoqing, redirecting it towards Gu Chang’an below. Her blood-red pupils gleamed with keen interest.

“The swords of the Azure Cloud Sect,” she uttered, her thin lips parting, a note of mockery in her voice. “Still so fond of meddling.”

Gu Chang’an remained silent.

Her only reply was an even sharper, more piercing sword chime!

Buzz—!

The ‘Frostbright’ sword vibrated with a fierce tremor, and a visible white sword qi burst forth from its tip, soaring straight into the sky!

That chilling sword intent had already locked firmly onto every vital point of Ling Shuangjue.

The smile on Ling Shuangjue’s face deepened further.

She slowly rose to her feet, her black and crimson cape fluttering wildly in the night wind. A terrifying oppressive might, far more potent than before, erupted from her with a thunderous force!

“Excellent.”

She licked her lips, the light in her crimson eyes burning with an almost fervent intensity.

“This Venerable One shall see if your current swordsmanship is capable of protecting the one This Venerable One has set her sights on.”

The moment her words fell, the air around her began to twist, and blood-red roses, formed from condensed demonic energy, slowly bloomed behind her.

Simultaneously, the ground beneath Gu Chang’an’s feet began to crack inch by inch, and a thin layer of chilling frost spread rapidly outwards from her, encompassing the surroundings!

A world-shaking battle was about to erupt!

Caught in the eye of the storm, Shen Zhaoqing had but a single thought.

Silently, her hands trembling, she brought the half-full wine gourd to her lips.

‘To hell with this hellscape.’

‘Even if I die today, I’ll die a full and satisfied ghost!’

She closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and prepared to chug down this last vestige of hope.

But just then, a cool hand, adorned with obsidian finger guards, gently pressed against her wine gourd.

At the same time, a voice, cool yet tinged with a hint of playfulness, whispered in her ear.

“This wine, you should save it… for This Venerable One’s victory celebration later.”

Ling Shuangjue’s hand, still adorned with obsidian finger guards, rested lightly on the Return Brew Gourd. Her touch was delicate, almost gentle, yet Shen Zhaoqing felt as if a venomous snake had coiled around her wrist, rendering her immobile.

“What is it?” Ling Shuangjue tilted her head, her blood-red pupils shimmering under the moonlight. The smile playing on her lips held a touch of mischievous mockery. “Afraid I won’t win?”

Shen Zhaoqing shook her head frantically.

‘No, no, no, what I’m afraid of is neither of you winning.’

‘I really don’t like either of you, okay?!’

Below, Gu Chang’an had clearly run out of patience.

She was not one for idle talk, especially when someone attempted to lay claim to her ‘possessions’ right before her eyes.

“Release her.”

Substantial, frost-white sword qi erupted from Gu Chang’an, countless incomparably sharp tendrils soaring skyward from her center, weaving behind her into a vast tapestry of ice and blades.

The Grand Indifference Sword Art—Heavenly Frost for Ten Thousand Miles!

“You, alone?”

She spat out the two words contemptuously.

The next second, an overwhelming surge of demonic energy violently erupted from within her!

Myriad Blossom Blood Palace Secret Art—Myriad Blossoms Overwhelming the World!

Boom—!!!

A deafening roar split the air!

Shen Zhaoqing saw a flash of white light, immediately followed by an engulfing crimson. A furious storm of energy exploded outwards from the two women, sweeping in all directions!

Sword qi, like frost and snow, tore through the sky!

Demonic flames, like blood-red lotuses, incinerated all things!

The light barrier of the Azure Cloud Sect’s mountain-protecting array flared into life instantly, flickering violently in the night sky as if on the verge of shattering. Countless streaks of light shot up from various peaks of the Azure Cloud Sect, their gazes fixed with alarm and uncertainty towards the Frostbright Abode.

“Who dares to act so brazenly within my Azure Cloud Sect!”

“What powerful sword intent! It’s Senior Sister Gu!”

“That demonic energy… it’s a Demonic Venerable-level powerhouse! Heavens! Have the demons attacked our mountain gate?!”

The distant shouts, alarm bells, and the whizzing of magical artifacts mingled into a chaotic din, but none of it concerned Shen Zhaoqing anymore.

She now had only one thought—run!