Chapter 8: The Unseen Force

‘Crazy.’

‘My Senior Sister is also crazy.’

Shen Zhaoqing stared, dumbfounded, at the scene unfolding before her.

Ning Jihe’s expression darkened completely.

“Stubborn fools!” She scoffed, bringing her hands together with a sharp motion. “Decree: Suppress!”

As her command rang out, the colossal magical net flared with brilliant light. Innumerable intricate decree runes swirled within it, transforming into heavy shackles. These bore down relentlessly upon Gu Chang’an’s sword domain!

“Crack… crack…”

Under the might of the decreed power, Gu Chang’an’s sword domain groaned, overwhelmed. Fissures began to spread across its surface.

Her face had paled slightly. Evidently, confronting a grand formation conjured by over a dozen elite disciples of the Enforcement Hall was no simple feat for her.

However, just as the magical net was about to breach the sword domain and envelop the entirety of Frostbright Abode, a sudden anomaly occurred!

Everyone witnessed it. The net of ordered power, woven from decree runes, had, the instant it approached Frostbright Abode’s courtyard, reacted as if a searing brand had plunged into snow.

Those decree runes, once sharp, ruthless, and radiating an ominous aura, began to visibly transform, becoming… gentle?

‘No, they were melting.’

It was as if an unseen hand had gently smoothed away all their sharp edges and cutting points. The cold power of order was quietly neutralized by an invisible, vibrant, and warm essence, dissipating into nothingness.

The originally overwhelming Clear Decree Heart Lock Array, hovering above Frostbright Abode, was forcibly ‘melted’ into a gaping hole.

‘Absurd, preposterous, and utterly incomprehensible.’

“Wh-what in the world is happening?!”

“The formation… it failed?”

“My spiritual energy… it feels soothed?”

The Enforcement Hall disciples forming the array were utterly bewildered. They could still feel their spiritual energy circulating, yet the core essence of ‘judgment’ and ‘restraint’ within the formation refused to coalesce.

In the entire courtyard, only two individuals understood what had transpired.

One was Gu Chang’an.

She could distinctly feel it. The vibrant life force behind her, which brought her immense peace and even perfected her *Supreme Emotion-Severing Sword Art*, was gently enveloping the entire courtyard like a tide.

The other was Ning Jihe.

Her pupils constricted sharply for an instant!

She stared intently at Shen Zhaoqing, who was shielded behind Gu Chang’an. On her perpetually frigid, unreadable face, a torrent of frantic emotions — a mix of horror, greed, apprehension, and… yearning — surfaced for the very first time.

Three years ago, during that clandestine test in the back mountains, she had felt it before!

That force could quell all unrest, mend flaws in one’s Dao heart, and quietly fill the emotional void in her *Supreme Emotion-Severing Sword Art: Enforcement Chapter*—a void born from excessive detachment. It was a supreme life force!

For the past three years, she had relived that fleeting moment of perfection in her dreams every night. It was a sensation more intoxicating than even achieving immortal ascension.

This menial disciple, Shen Zhaoqing, was destined to be the greatest variable on her path to Dao, and the singular… opportunity of her life!

A terrifying thought began to fester wildly within Ning Jihe’s mind.

‘If she couldn’t be destroyed.’

‘Then she must be obtained!’

‘No, she must be brought within the “rules”!’

Only by imprisoning her by her side, deep within the Snow Decree Forbidden Courtyard, and ensuring she could never leave her sight, could Ning Jihe constantly bask in this aura and perfect her own Great Dao!

As for the sect’s safety? As for any demonic entanglements?

‘Those were merely excuses!’

‘The most righteous and grandiloquent excuses to claim this supreme treasure for herself!’

“…Disperse the array.”

After a long silence, Ning Jihe finally snapped out of her profound shock and ecstasy. She practically gritted her teeth, forcing the words out from between them.

Though the Enforcement Hall disciples were utterly baffled, they promptly deactivated the formation.

Ning Jihe took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the tumultuous waves of emotion surging within her, and regained her usual ice-cold demeanor.

“Gu Chang’an, I have taken note of today’s incident,” she stated, her gaze fixed on Gu Chang’an, enunciating each word distinctly. “But remember this: the sect rules stand above all, and no one is an exception. This matter will absolutely not end here.”

Having spoken, she then cast her chilling, piercing gaze upon Shen Zhaoqing.

Shen Zhaoqing shivered under her stare, instinctively shrinking further behind Gu Chang’an.

‘Holy crap.’

‘There’s something off about that senior sister’s gaze! Why does it feel… even more terrifying than that deranged Demonic Venerable?’

Ning Jihe uttered not another word. With a sharp flick of her sleeve, she turned and led the Enforcement Hall disciples away, departing with crisp efficiency.

It wasn’t until the oppressive, chilling aura had completely receded that Shen Zhaoqing finally let out a long breath. She felt as though she had just been pulled from water, her back drenched in sweat.

“Senior Sister…” She had just begun to speak.

“To your room.”

Gu Chang’an, however, interrupted her without even turning her head.

She sheathed her sword, then turned, took Shen Zhaoqing’s wrist, and led her inside.

That hand, accustomed to wielding a sword, cold and powerful, now trembled with a barely perceptible tremor.

****

The night at Frostbright Abode was so quiet one could almost hear snowflakes fall… if it were winter, that is.

Alas, it was late summer. Thus, Shen Zhaoqing could only hear the thumping of her own heart, and the occasional rhythmic breathing from the ice-cold Senior Sister in the adjacent room.

Ever since Gu Chang’an had pulled her away from that group of ‘walking sect rules’ from the Enforcement Hall, Shen Zhaoqing had entered a state of profound contemplation.

She sat on her small bed, knees hugged to her chest, her eyes vacant as she stared at a spider weaving its web in the corner.

“Sigh…”

A long, drawn-out sigh escaped her.

Shen Zhaoqing was terribly bored. She felt an urgent need for some spiritual solace.

Her only remaining source of spiritual comfort was that half-gourd of ‘Return Brew’.

Staying cooped up inside was simply too stifling.

She stealthily pushed open the window. Like a nimble cat, she clambered onto the rooftop in a few swift movements.

The night scenery of Qingyun Sect was breathtaking.

The moon shone like a silver disk, the starlit river sparkled brilliantly. Mist swirled among the mountains, imbued with an ethereal aura. The evening breeze carried the fresh scent of grass and trees, refreshing the heart and mind.

Were it not for the ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ playing out below the mountain, centered around her, this simple life would actually be quite pleasant.

Shen Zhaoqing found a comfortable spot to sit. She unhooked the wine gourd from her waist, carefully removed the stopper, and brought it to her nose for a sniff.

‘Mm, the familiar aroma of wine.’

‘The taste of freedom.’

She tilted her head back.

Just then.

A faint, almost imperceptible scent of blood, mingled with the cool freshness of the night dew, drifted silently to her nostrils.

Shen Zhaoqing’s movements abruptly froze.

‘That scent…’

Slowly, frame by frame, she turned her head, her neck creaking with sounds like rusted machinery.

Then, she saw a pair of eyes.

A pair of eyes, even under the stark moonlight, were still so red they seemed to drip blood, both eerie and beautiful.

A figure, at some unknown moment, had appeared silently beside her.

Frost-white hair stirred gently in the night breeze. Clad in a white battle robe, with a black and red cloak draped over it, the figure’s slender and imposing silhouette was etched against the moonlight.