"Yin'er, no,"
Waves of spiritual energy erupted, causing Su Xianrou to rush forward desperately. Xi Yin was her most cherished daughter, and she absolutely couldn't let anything happen to her.
"Sect Master Su."
Chu Xu stepped forward to block Su Xianrou. As Chu Xi Yin fiercely resisted, a bold idea suddenly struck him. If Chu Xi Yin died now, these sects would have no reason to trouble their Xuan Xin Sect.
"Yin'er."
Su Xianrou was restrained by Chu Xu, watching helplessly as her daughter and that crawling thing were engulfed by an explosion. Her heart turned to ash.
Chu Lingwei watched with cold eyes, a smile playing on her lips. Chu Xi Yin, how did this taste?
Su Xianrou felt as though an eternity had passed. The crawling thing lay motionless on the ground, the spiritual energy in the air dissipating.
"Yin'er, my Yin'er."
Su Xianrou cried out in despair, her voice tearing through the air. Her daughter had been harmed by her own doing.
"Mother, Mother save me." Just as Su Xianrou sank into despair, a weak voice came from within the crawling thing's body – Chu Xi Yin's voice.
Su Xianrou's eyes lit up with surprise. She rushed forward and used her spiritual power to retrieve her daughter, who was missing an arm and a leg.
Chu Xu looked at Chu Xi Yin, who was still breathing, and felt a pang of regret. If Chu Xi Yin didn't die, their Xuan Xin Sect would continue to face trouble.
"Mother, it hurts so much," Chu Xi Yin whispered weakly. "It hurts all over. Am I going to die?"
"No, you won't die. Mother won't let you die." Su Xianrou took out a Spiritual Nourishing Pill from her storage bag and fed it to Chu Xi Yin. A cleansing spell washed away the sticky fluid on her. "Let's go, Mother will take you back now."
Chu Lingwei had already known that Chu Xi Yin wouldn't die immediately. Seeing her in this state now, she felt a surge of satisfaction.
She suddenly felt that making them wish they were dead would be even more satisfying.
"Sect Master Su, wait."
Just as Su Xianrou turned, Leng Xingzhi spoke.
Su Xianrou's body stiffened, and she inwardly cursed. If Leng Xingzhi were not a disciple of the Xiuling Academy, she would have made him die.
"Fellow Daoist Leng, is there anything else?"
"Sect Master Su, have you forgotten that your Xuan Xin Sect disciples stole others' spiritual herbs, destroyed the Hengtian Secret Realm, and pursued our Xiuling Academy disciples? Are you not planning to resolve these matters, Sect Master Su?"
Leng Xingzhi's voice was calm, but every word carried a weight that could not be ignored.
"Since that is the case, our Xiuling Academy will pay you a visit another day to seek an explanation from Sect Master Chu Chang."
After speaking, Leng Xingzhi waved his hand, and his artifact rose into the air, quickly disappearing.
"Yes, Su Xianrou, you stole our sect's disciple's spiritual medicine. This matter absolutely cannot be let go," Lei Hongyang of the Shenyin Sect chimed in, his words resolute.
"Our Hehuan Sect is the same."
"Our Wanfo Sect will visit you another day for guidance."
"You dare to touch our Renyan Sect's things? You must repay us tenfold."
"Zhaoyang Mountain will not be bullied so easily."
...
Su Xianrou watched as these sects departed one by one, her face contorted with anger.
She knew that today, they had given these sects a reason to attack them.
"Sect Master Su, we should return first."
Chu Xu had never felt so wronged, yet he was powerless.
These sects had made it clear that if their sect did not provide a reasonable explanation, they would attack. This could very well be a great tribulation for their sect.
"Let's go."
Su Xianrou cradled her daughter and boarded the artifact, soaring away. Saving her daughter's life was paramount now.
"Let's go too," Chu Xu sighed, calling to Su Qian and Chu Heng, and stepping onto their flying swords, they headed in the direction of their sect.
...
"Senior Brother."
Chu Lingwei arrived at Senior Brother Leng Xingzhi's room and bowed.
"Junior Sister, we are fellow disciples, there's no need to be so formal." Leng Xingzhi glanced at Chu Lingwei, thinking of the crawling thing that attacked Chu Xi Yin, and smiled inwardly. It seemed she had done quite a lot in the secret realm.
"Senior Brother, today I caused Senior Brother to lose a ten-thousand-year spiritual herb, I..."
Chu Lingwei had already reaped many rewards in the secret realm, especially the Spiritual Energy Condensation Pearls, which were even more precious than ten-thousand-year spiritual herbs and immortal medicines.
She had filled three drops into a jade bottle, intending to give them to Senior Brother.
"Junior Sister, a spiritual herb is nothing, it's not worth mentioning," Leng Xingzhi interrupted her, speaking casually.
Chu Lingwei, "..."
So rich?
Leng Xingzhi looked at Chu Lingwei's slightly stiff face, a clear smile on his lips. "Our manor has a medicinal field, filled with ten-thousand-year spiritual herbs. I'll bring Junior Sister to pick more another day."
Chu Lingwei's mouth twitched. She had a divine space and still couldn't grow ten-thousand-year spiritual herbs. Just how wealthy was this Senior Brother of hers?
She secretly wondered if she should latch onto Senior Brother's golden thigh.
Chu Lingwei coughed lightly and took out the jade bottle she had prepared from her storage bracelet. "Senior Brother, this is what I obtained in the secret realm, a gift for Senior Brother."
"Oh?"
Leng Xingzhi's lips curved into a smile as he took the jade bottle. He knew exactly what was in the Hengtian Secret Realm and didn't pay much attention to it.
Upon opening the jade bottle, a stream of pure and potent spiritual energy emanated. Leng Xingzhi's expression stiffened, and he immediately cast a barrier around them. Even though his movements were swift, some spiritual energy still leaked out.
"Let's leave here quickly."
Leng Xingzhi put away the jade bottle, his expression solemn. Once something like this appeared, it would cause a huge uproar.
"Yes."
Chu Lingwei's heart also tightened. In the secret realm, she hadn't sensed anything different about the Spiritual Energy Condensation Pearls. Seeing Senior Brother's current tension, she now understood how precious this item was.
"In the future, don't take out things like this casually," Leng Xingzhi sighed. He finally understood why the Hengtian Secret Realm had been destroyed. He hadn't expected Junior Sister to have such good fortune. "We'll set off back to the Xiuling Academy now."
"So soon?"
Chu Lingwei was surprised. She still wanted to visit the Xuan Xin Sect.
"Yes, if some old monsters discover this kind of thing, it could be very dangerous. Let's return to the academy first and report to our Master," Leng Xingzhi nodded and explained to Chu Lingwei.
"Alright, I'll do whatever Senior Brother says."
Chu Lingwei didn't insist. Senior Brother must have his reasons for acting this way.
However, to avoid suspicion, they first rested in Mu Sha Town.
With the Hengtian Secret Realm closed, besides some sects returning directly to their own, most people would choose to rest here before leaving.
Chu Lingwei stayed in her usual room and summoned her two spirit beasts.
"You two must stay by my side closely and not let anyone discover your uniqueness, understand?"
"Mm-hmm, Wei Wei, I guarantee no one will notice I'm a divine beast," the Illusion Cat said haughtily, raising its cat head. Wei Wei had said that outside the space, they couldn't transform.