Ye Chuxue’s pupils quaked with terror. She never imagined Song Wanning would actually dare to perform a Soul Search.

Sensing she was in mortal danger, her first instinct was to pull every life-saving item from her Storage Ring.

But the space around her had already been sealed, and she was utterly powerless to affect it...

In her desperation, she could only cry out to Gu Qingyuan for help, her body trembling uncontrollably with fear.

Several attacks shot toward them at once.

Song Wanning, however, didn’t even glance their way as a Golden Small Sword suddenly flew out from her Sea of Consciousness.

The Golden Small Sword trembled slightly, instantly manifesting hundreds of longswords that enveloped Song Wanning and Ye Chuxue, forming a golden shield.

All the attacks were instantly repelled, leaving nothing but shimmering ripples of light in their wake.

The large palm descended.

Ye Chuxue shut her eyes in despair.

"NO!!! Master!!!"

"Senior Sister Ye!!!"

Gu Qingyuan and the others, their eyes burning with fury, charged recklessly toward Song Wanning and unleashed their most powerful attacks.

In the next moment, however, Song Wanning’s hand landed gently on top of Ye Chuxue’s head.

She stroked her head gently, again and again.

Tender and deliberate.

Ye Chuxue’s eyes snapped open, but she felt no joy. Instead, an uncontrollable tremor wracked her entire body.

She looked up at Song Wanning.

She was met with a gentle smile.

"GACK—"

Ye Chuxue was so terrified that she started to retch, her entire body slumping to the ground.

’What on earth is Song Wanning trying to do?’

’She’s terrifying!’

’So terrifying!’

Gu Qingyuan and his companions were all sent flying by the Golden Small Sword.

He had just been gravely wounded by a sword, and now he couldn’t even contend with a mere Sword Spirit. The whole situation felt utterly absurd.

Seeing that Ye Chuxue was unharmed, Bai Yang and An Ze sank to the ground, their strength completely gone.

’Just now...’

’They were truly afraid she was going to kill her!’

The Sect Master and the others were also pale with fright. Only the Second Elder looked pleased, silently cheering Song Wanning on.

"GACK—"

Ye Chuxue was still dry heaving violently. No one could possibly know the terror she had felt just moments ago...

Song Wanning’s smile grew even more gentle. She slowly crouched down and once again placed her hand on Ye Chuxue’s head.

Ye Chuxue froze instantly, the hairs all over her body standing on end.

She barely dared to meet Song Wanning’s gaze and was completely unable to suppress her inner terror.

Seeing this, Song Wanning’s smile became even more serene as she leaned in, her breath ghosting past Ye Chuxue’s ear.

"I told you I was just trying to scare you. What’s there to be so tense about?"

Though her breath was warm, Ye Chuxue felt an icy chill seep into her bones, as if the blood in her veins had begun to flow in reverse.

"Hahaha—"

Song Wanning suddenly burst out laughing, then rose gracefully to her feet.

’So, Ye Chuxue can feel fear after all...’

With a flicker in her eyes, she casually dismissed the Golden Small Sword and strode back to Li Rao’s side.

Only then did Gu Qingyuan and the others rush over to Ye Chuxue, frantically checking her over from head to toe several times.

"Song Wanning, have you caused enough trouble yet?!"

Having witnessed the entire farce, the Sect Master felt that Song Wanning was becoming utterly lawless.

’If this continues, she’s going to tear the Heavenly Inquiry Sect apart!’

"What’s the hurry, Sect Master? I was merely playing a joke on Ye Chuxue."

Song Wanning toyed with a lock of hair falling over her chest, her icy gaze settling on him.

"Song Wanning! Don’t you go too far!"

The Sect Master gritted his teeth in fury.

"You are still a disciple of the Heavenly Inquiry Sect, which means you must abide by its rules! Harming a fellow sect member without cause warrants punishment!"

All he wanted now was to teach Song Wanning a lesson, to make her understand just who was in charge of the Heavenly Inquiry Sect!

"Oh, what an impressive display of authority, Sect Master."

The corners of Song Wanning’s mouth dropped, her gaze turning grim. "They took advantage of my seclusion to bully my disciple. My actions were perfectly justified. Where is the error in that?"

"You, on the other hand, do nothing but favor Gu Qingyuan. Anyone who didn’t know better might think you were his lover... A pity, really, since Gu Qingyuan fancies Ye Chuxue..."

"You—"

The Sect Master was so enraged he nearly fell over backward.

"How outrageous! Simply outrageous!"

’If he could actually defeat Song Wanning, he would make her pay right this instant!’

Nearby, the still-shaken Ye Chuxue heard this, and her face went deathly pale. She looked up at Song Wanning, her expression a mixture of shock and fury.

’What nonsense is this bitch spouting?!!!’

’Gu Qingyuan is my Master!’

’He’s like a father to me!!’

’But for some reason, no one else’s face showed any surprise...’

Meeting Song Wanning’s mocking gaze, Ye Chuxue instinctively looked away. She didn’t dare to look at Gu Qingyuan, her thoughts a tangled mess.

’Actually...’

’It wasn’t as if she was completely oblivious... She had even been secretly pleased, thinking it a testament to her own charm...’

’But it was something that could never see the light of day, something that couldn’t be brought out into the open. All she had to do was accept her Master’s silent, lifelong protection, and that would be enough.’

"Oh, by the way, I knew you would be biased toward Gu Qingyuan and Ye Chuxue, Sect Master. That’s why I took the liberty of asking the Ancestor to come out of seclusion."

"I hope you can maintain this same backbone in front of the Ancestor."

Song Wanning nonchalantly straightened her robes, dropping a bombshell on the crowd.

"What did you say? The Ancestor is coming out of seclusion?"

"Song Wanning! This is a trivial matter! Why would you ask the Ancestor to come out of seclusion for this?!!!"

The Sect Master was starting to panic. Everyone knew the Ancestor had been extremely close with Song Wanning’s master...

However, speak of the devil...

The Ancestor, Liu Lan Yi, glided in from the distance, landing as silently as a gust of wind in their midst.

"Ancestor!"

"Greetings, Ancestor!!!"

Everyone present bowed in unison; no one dared to show the slightest disrespect.

The Heavenly Inquiry Sect’s Ancestor, Liu Lan Yi, was a Late-stage Divinity Transformation cultivator, only a single step away from ascending to the Spirit Realm.

The Heavenly Inquiry Sect was currently presided over by three Divinity Transformation cultivators. The other two were only at the Mid-stage Divine Transformation Cultivation, and had been unable to break through to the late stage for a long time.

Therefore, Liu Lan Yi could only suppress her Cultivation, not daring to ascend at this time.

While the other two Divinity Transformation Ancestors could roam the world in search of fortuitous opportunities, she could only remain to guard the back mountain.

She had wasted the best years of her life for the Sect’s safety.

’The Ancestor gave so much for the Heavenly Inquiry Sect, yet in the end, she was dragged down because of me, her body destroyed and her Dao obliterated.’

A dull ache throbbed in Song Wanning’s chest.

’It was laughable, really.’

’Whether it was a Divinity Transformation Ancestor at the peak of her power or the Song Family, which had been illustrious for tens of thousands of years, they all became utterly fragile after encountering Ye Chuxue and her cohort.’

’So easily destroyed.’

’Anyone who dared to oppose Ye Chuxue was destined for a tragic end.’

The viciousness in her heart surged once more, and the Demonic Qi in her Sea of Consciousness began to stir restlessly along with it.

The Golden Small Sword sensed that something was amiss and trembled with a low BUZZ.

Only then did the Demonic Qi obediently recede, not daring to stir again.

"Rise."

Liu Lan Yi raised her hand with a coolly indifferent expression, and a gentle force lifted everyone to their feet.

Ever since her arrival, everyone had become perfectly docile.

"Lass, you tell me. What exactly happened here?"

She made no attempt to hide that she was there to back Song Wanning.

’If her good friend hadn’t been quicker on the draw, Song Wanning would have been her own treasured disciple.’

’Of course she had to protect her!’