Wind whistled through the mountains and poured into the hall, causing a wailing sound to emerge and add a sense of slaughter to the heavy and deathly silent atmosphere.
The jade hairpin on Qing Xiuyi’s curled up hair clinked, yet she still hadn’t spoken a single word.
True Jade laughed coldly when she saw this and said, “Little Fellow, have you still not seen through Xiuyi’s thoughts? Quickly commit suicide to atone for your crimes so as to avoid sullying our eyes.”
Chen Xi said calmly, “Yet she didn’t deny me either, right?”
True Jade’s expression froze, and then she glanced at Bing s.h.i.+tian out of the corner of her eye.
“Silence is the greatest form of disregard. Chen Xi, since you still refuse to give up, then fine, I’ll ask Xiuyi to give you an answer herself so that you can die in peace.” Bing s.h.i.+tian suddenly started chuckling while revealing a graceful yet smug bearing.
He turned around and stared at Qing Xiuyi with an exceedingly tender gaze as he said lightly, “Xiuyi, tell him exactly who you love.”
At this instant, the atmosphere in the hall became tense to the limit, and it caused all the great figures present in the hall to be unable to refrain from arousing a wisp of nervousness.
Only Chen Xi’s expression remained calm, and he just gazed at Qing Xiuyi like a silent, persistent, and stubborn rock.
As soon as Bing s.h.i.+tian finished speaking, Qing Xiuyi really did react. She raised her head to reveal her eyes that were clear like stars, and she walked over slowly to arrive before Chen Xi and raised her peerlessly beautiful and otherworldly face to stare at him.
A wisp of a grin couldn’t help but arise on the corners of Bing s.h.i.+tian’s mouth when he saw this while True Jade even started laughing coldly, and they looked at Chen Xi with gazes filled with pity and contempt.
However, in the next moment, no matter if it was Bing s.h.i.+tian’s grin or True Jade’s cold laughter, both of it froze.
Even the eyes of everyone in the hall that thought Chen Xi would lose focused before revealing a wisp of surprise.
Qing Xiuyi walked gracefully before turning around abruptly, and she stood by Chen Xi’s side as her cherry lips parted lightly and said a single sentence, “I didn’t drink that bowl of soup.”
These words seemed to be so sudden and so strange, yet the expressions of Bing s.h.i.+tian and True Jade changed slightly to reveal a wisp of disbelief when they heard this.
Even though this disbelief vanished in an instant, it was still acutely noticed by all the people in the hall, and all of them started pondering in their hearts.
A bowl of soup?
She didn’t drink it?
Could it be that for the sake of taking precautions against any mishaps, Bing s.h.i.+tian and True Jade used some sort of medicine on Qing Xiuyi for the sake of dealing with a situation like the current one?
When they thought up to here, the gazes everyone shot at Bing s.h.i.+tian and True Jade changed. All of them were clearly aware that if their deduction was true, that these methods were really too despicable.
It was simply unscrupulous and stopped at nothing!
Chen Xi’s eyes narrowed while killing intent surged within them. He didn’t have to confirm it before knowing clearly that Bing s.h.i.+tian and True Jade had surely utilized some despicable and shameless methods for the sake of controlling Qing Xiuyi.
Moreover, the reason they did this was none other than because Qing Xiuyi had never agreed to be united as Dao Companions with Bing s.h.i.+tian!
“Xiuyi, what nonsense are you speaking, child? Quickly come over here.” True Jade recovered her calm at this moment, and she squeezed out a smile as she spoke with a warm tone.
But this smile of hers was forced and stiff in the eyes of everyone else.
Qing Xiuyi remained unmoved, and she remained by Chen Xi’s side as she said with a light voice, “I experienced 100 reincarnations and eliminated all the karma of my previous lives to attain my current cultivation. I’m not willing to get to the bottom of the matters of the past, but… Master, this is the last time I’ll be addressing you in this manner.”
“Xiuyi!” True Jade’s face sank when she saw this, and she berated. “Think about who raised you and taught you how to cultivate. You have to understand that everything I did was for your own good!”
“For my own good?” Qing Xiuyi’s beautiful brows knit together while her clear eyes flashed with a wisp of an indescribable expression, and it seemed like utter detest, disappointment…
“What? Could it be that you doubt me?” True Jade’s face became even gloomier, and her flickering eyes were filled with undisguised rage.
“Do you really want to insist on this?” Qing Xiuyi’s beautiful brows knit together even more tightly.
“Xiuyi, your actions are treacherous and unfilial. Don’t force me to punish you according to the rules of the sect! For the sake of our relations.h.i.+p in the past, I can forgive you if you yield and admit your mistakes!” True Jade spoke with a grim voice. Never had she imagined that her disciple that she’d raised by herself would actually arouse the intention of going against her.
Everyone present in the hall was slightly surprised as they gazed at this pair of master and disciple that turned into enemies, and they were slightly unable to understand why Qing Xiuyi would actually not hesitate to utterly offend her own Master for the sake of Chen Xi because this was the greatest taboo in the cultivation world.
“Past relations.h.i.+ps…” Qing Xiuyi’s expression suddenly became indifferent, and she stared at True Jade with an icy cold gaze as she said, “True Jade, I’ve told you before. I’m not willing to make a fuss about the karma of the past, so are you sure you want me to reveal the past from all those years ago?”
“What past?” True Jade was stunned, and then she seemed to have thought of something, causing her expression to become unnatural.
“All those years ago, you pa.s.sed by Dreamcloud Swamp’s Qing Clan, and for the sake of forcefully taking me who was an infant at that time as your disciple, you didn’t hesitate to kill over 4,600 members of the entire Qing Clan. Could it be that you’ve forgotten such an incident?” Qing Xiuyi said indifferently, “If it wasn’t for the 100 reincarnations that I experienced, and my infant memories being suddenly unlocked upon eliminating the karma of my past lives, I probably wouldn’t dare believe that all of this was done by you.”
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the hall was shocked, and all of them didn’t dare believe that the relations.h.i.+p between this master and disciple would actually be so complicated.
She wiped out the entire Qing Clan only for the sake of taking Qing Xiuyi as her disciple? If it’s really like this, then this True Jade is truly ruthless and despicable to the limit.
Even Chen Xi was slightly stunned and felt slight disbelief.
“Nonsense!” True Jade’s expression changed repeatedly before she berated furiously.
“I have proof in my possession. Are you sure you want everyone present to see it?” Qing Xiuyi’s expression was indifferent as before. “I’ve already said it before, I’m not willing to make a fuss about the matters of the past. True Jade, don’t force my hand!”
True Jade’s furious expression was instantly replaced by a wisp of dejection, and she stood there while staring blankly and was unable to say another word.
Obviously, the ‘proof’ Qing Xiuyi spoke of had already squeezed on her weak spot, causing her to not dare continue pursuing the matter because the eyes of many great figures were watching.
But even then, everyone present was roughly aware that Qing Xiuyi’s words were true, and when they realized this, the gazes they shot at True Jade carried disdain, surprise, contempt…
“Martial Aunt True Jade, withdraw yourself for now.” Bing s.h.i.+tian who’d kept silent all along suddenly raised his head and glanced coldly at True Jade, and his voice emanated an indisputable tone.
He as well had never imagined that the situation would unfold to such a state and that all of this would be caused by that bowl of ‘Immortal Bewitchment!’
If Qing Xiuyi had drunk that bowl of medicine, she would naturally not stand by Chen Xi’s side, and it would be impossible for her to become enemies with True Jade, so no one would know about the murder of the entire Qing Clan from all those years ago.
Of course, he as well wasn’t aware that True Jade had actually annihilated Qing Xiuyi’s entire clan all those years ago.
But becoming infuriated at this moment was useless. He was unable to tolerate the situation continuing like this, and the only method was to make True Jade withdraw herself for now.
True Jade was stunned and was indeterminate. But when she encountered Bing s.h.i.+tian’s icy cold and emotionless gaze, she instantly didn’t dare hesitate any longer, and she flicked her sleeve with rage before flas.h.i.+ng out of the hall.
As soon as True Jade left, the attention of everyone in the hall descended onto Bing s.h.i.+tian because they wanted to see exactly how he would deal with the situation.
As they thought about the grand and solemn ceremony from before and compared it with the situation before them, all of them couldn’t help but sigh endlessly with emotion in their hearts. The scenes that occurred today can really be considered to be filled with ups and down.
The cause off all this change lay on Chen Xi because since the moment he stepped foot into the hall, Bing s.h.i.+tian and True Jade seemed to have started to gradually lose control of the entire situation.
Everyone was very curious about what sort of reaction Qing Xiuyi would have made if Chen Xi was a step later.
The answer to this was extremely difficult to guess. But Chen Xi was indifferent towards this because he knew since a long time ago that Qing Xiuyi would surely wait for him, and it was just like how he firmly believed that she wouldn’t become Dao Companions with Bing s.h.i.+tian.
A wave of uncomfortableness surged out from Bing s.h.i.+tian’s heart as he gazed at Chen Xi and Qing Xiuyi that stood side by side, and there was even deep rage and dissatisfaction in his heart. He took a deep breath and forcefully restrained these feelings before he said slowly, “Xiuyi, return to my side. So long as you’re willing to do this, I’ll instantly bring you along to ascend into the Immortal Dimension, and I’ll give you everything you want. You can take everything I possess!”
“If I was willing, I could have ascended into the Immortal Dimension before I experienced 100 reincarnations.” Qing Xiuyi replied indifferently.
“Why? Is it because of this little ant?” Bing s.h.i.+tian frowned, and he still tried hard to maintain his graceful bearing.
Meanwhile, Chen Xi spoke abruptly. “Bing s.h.i.+tian, you’ve already lost. So according to the agreement from all those years ago, you shouldn’t be thinking about how to return to the Immortal Dimension. You should cripple your own cultivation, lower yourself back to a mortal and leave yourself at my will!”
As soon as these words were spoken, the hearts of everyone in the hall shook, and they gazed at Bing s.h.i.+tian in unison.
It was indeed as Chen Xi had said, the situation was already clear now. Bing s.h.i.+tian had lost the bet completely, yet would he cripple his cultivation according to the bet?
Bing s.h.i.+tian’s expression sank bit by bit from being stared at by so many people, and the veins on his forehead bulged. He was unable to maintain his graceful bearing any longer, and he glanced at the indifferent Qing Xiuyi before he glanced at Chen Xi while all the flames of rage, dissatisfaction, and resentment in his heart transformed completely into coldness.
He suddenly roared with laughter. “Thousands of years of waiting, thousands of years of work, yet I receive such an outcome in return. Love really does cause harm!”
His voice didn’t have the slightest bit of emotion, and there was only icy cold and deathly still indifference.
After that, he restrained his laughter and said word by word. “Yes, I really have lost. But I never said that I would surely cripple my cultivation! Did I make a vow? No! Stupid little b.a.s.t.a.r.d, you’ve already been played with in the palm of my hand since long ago in the Primeval Battlefield!”