Chapter 17: The Demonic Woman’s Captive

After the initial surge of panic, Ye Cha slowly regained his composure.

At this point, any further alarm would be entirely futile.

Only by confronting the situation with a clear mind could he hope to find a sliver of hope.

Whether he had been ensnared by a scheme or if the demonic woman possessed a uniquely captivating allure, Ye Cha resolved to remain calm, ready to meet any changes with an unwavering mind.

He considered the facts: the demonic woman was imprisoned here, her body tightly bound by Spirit-Sealing Ropes. She should have been utterly incapable of using any spiritual energy. Yet, she had managed to transmit her words clearly out of the cave, suggesting she had employed some means to subtly compromise the ropes.

If that were the case, her intention in luring him here must be for a different purpose entirely.

This implied he wouldn’t simply be killed the moment they met.

Even knowing he possessed the Heavenly Net Physique, Ye Cha had never given in to despair. Now, on the verge of falling into the demonic woman’s hands, he refused to give up until the very last moment.

“You’ve come. I…”

As Ye Cha finally reached the deepest part of the cave, the demonic woman’s voice was right beside him. However, her words faltered, abruptly cutting off midway.

Ye Cha raised his eyes to look at her. The ‘demonic woman’ often spoken of by the disciples of Lingtian Sect actually possessed a dignified and refined appearance.

Her apricot-shaped eyes held a spring-like warmth, complementing her delicate nose and cherry lips.

Under the flickering orange glow of the torch, her fair skin seemed to radiate light.

Her clothes were worn impeccably, without the slightest hint of exposure.

Of course, it was also possible that the Lingtian Sect stewards had proactively changed her clothes to prevent disciples from seeing her in disarray.

Observing her, she resembled not a wicked figure from the demonic path, but rather an ordinary female cultivator of the righteous sects.

While Ye Cha scrutinized the demonic woman before him, Ke Qian, for her part, gazed at the man who had appeared. Though her expression remained impassive, her heart churned with turmoil.

‘Lingtian Sect actually has such a handsome man!’

When she was first escorted to Lingtian Sect, Ke Qian had observed the male cultivators she encountered along the way. Their appearances were unremarkable, their physiques unappealing—a stark contrast to the male cultivators of the demonic path.

This had made Ke Qian reluctant to even spare them a glance, thinking she wouldn’t accept such men even if they were freely offered as cultivation cauldrons.

Yet, at this very moment, the man before her, seemingly radiating a halo, completely shattered Ke Qian’s perceptions.

‘This man is simply too handsome!’

She found herself unable to bring herself to harm him.

However, she couldn’t afford to remain here. She needed to return to the Ziyan Sect as quickly as possible to relay the crucial information she had acquired to her Sect Master!

With this thought, Ke Qian calmed her mind, immediately casting aside her extraneous emotions.

The mission was paramount.

Worst case, when she departed Lingtian Sect, she would simply take this man with her.

As the Left Protector of the Ziyan Sect, supporting one man was trivial; even ten more would pose no issue.

She would just need to be cautious not to let the other women of the sect see him, lest it invite a host of fresh troubles.

However, the person she needed to guard against the most was undoubtedly the Ziyan Sect Master.

The Sect Master’s Purple Yin Spirit Physique was exceptionally peculiar. Every time she prepared to harvest yin to supplement yang, before she could even remove her clothes, merely touching a man’s hand would cause him to instantly die.

Regardless of a man’s cultivation level, not a single one had been spared.

After countless men had perished this way, the Ziyan Sect Master was forced to abandon using cultivation cauldrons to advance her realm. Instead, she diligently followed the cultivation methods of the righteous path, steadily increasing her strength step by step.

Fortunately, the Purple Yin Spirit Physique was wondrously potent; even without the aid of a cultivation cauldron, her progression speed was far from slow.

Coupled with the Sect Master’s single spirit root aptitude, cultivating was as effortless as eating and drinking.

There were no obstacles whatsoever.

Nevertheless, perhaps what one cannot obtain always causes agitation. As a renowned figure in the demonic path, the Ziyan Sect Master was incredibly stubborn. Despite every man she touched dying, she refused to admit defeat.

Aside from her own personal hunts, the sect disciples were also ordered to search far and wide for men to capture and bring back.

Alas, the fate of these men was always the same…

This led to the Ziyan Sect’s infamous reputation.

Male cultivators would blanch at the mention of their name, turn tail, and flee, daring not to linger for even a moment.

After a vast number of men had died, apart from the persistently resolute Sect Master, the other members of the sect carefully guarded their own cultivation cauldrons, fearing that one day they might be touched by the Sect Master and meet their end.

Unless, that is, they possessed the exceedingly rare Heavenly Net Physique, capable of resisting the Purple Yin Spirit Physique.

As Ke Qian considered this, her gaze fell upon Ye Cha’s handsome face, and she immediately decided: ‘I’m keeping him all to myself!’