As the Saintess of the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect, Ye Bingxin was certainly no pushover. A few turns of thought were all it took for her to understand why Qin Wushang had come looking for her.
Dressed in an ornate black gown, her face was like frost. Her beautiful eyes were icy, narrowing slightly as she spoke in a low voice. "Qin Wushang, have you lost your mind? You couldn't possibly think I killed Zhao Bin, could you?"
Qin Wushang glanced at her and sneered. "Why wouldn't I?"
Ye Bingxin laughed in exasperation at his words. Laughter like silver bells drifted through the air, yet it was steeped in ridicule. "Hahahaha! What good would killing Zhao Bin do me? Or... to put it another way, what would be my motive for framing Li Guanqi?"
Qin Wushang gave a cold smile. His profound eyes fixed on Ye Bingxin as he said indifferently, "You'll have to ask yourself that."
Seeing that he remained obstinately convinced, Ye Bingxin was infuriated. Pointing at Qin Wushang, she hissed, "Qin Wushang! You really are a dog, aren't you? Just because you became a candidate for the Seventh Domain's Eight Generals, you're this desperate to protect your master?"
Before her words finished echoing, an unimaginably swift flash of cold sword light erupted! The blade was so fast that Ye Bingxin could not even follow it, caught completely off guard. A chill struck her wrist, and the hand pointing at Qin Wushang was cleanly severed at the joint! Hot blood sprayed. Qin Wushang's gaze remained placid as he looked at Ye Bingxin.
"Protecting my master? Heh. Aside from Venerable Su, I doubt there is anyone in this world I would ever acknowledge as my master! And I came here today because your hands dared to reach into my Qin Imperial City."
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
Several extraordinarily powerful auras erupted from the ground! Pitch-black rifts opened in midair, faintly hemming Qin Wushang into the center.
*Roar! Roar!*
Nine colossal flood dragons, nearly two hundred zhang in length, soared into the sky! Jet-black scales covered their bodies, dark-gold slit pupils glinting with cold venom as a ferocious aura surged to the heavens.
A full nine old eccentrics in the Body Integration Realm rose into the sky atop the black flood dragons! Carrying terrifying pressure that smothered heaven and earth, the nine elders glared furiously at Qin Wushang.
"Qin Wushang, you've gone too far!"
"This is the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect, not your Qin Imperial City!"
An elder with his hands clasped behind his back narrowed his eyes and spoke coldly. "The juniors of today are truly arrogant. Damaging our sect's mountain gate was already a grave taboo! In deference to your status as an Imperial Son, we overlooked it, yet now you dare strike and wound our Saintess! Hmph! It seems the Qin Emperor's discipline is still lacking!"
Terrifying pressure rippled across heaven and earth, shattering even the resilient void into fractured fissures. Surging billows of energy relentlessly battered Qin Wushang. From beginning to end, Qin Wushang's expression remained utterly calm. With his hands hanging loosely at his sides, his cold gaze swept over the crowd, and then he suddenly burst into wanton laughter.
*Clang!*
An immensely terrifying aura of the sword path rose from the earth and pierced straight into the clouds! The coiled forms of the nine black flood dragons stiffened slightly, their massive slit pupils shrinking to fine lines.
*Boom!*
A violent pressure erupted outward in an instant. Though it fell short of any single opponent present, it still sent a chill through their hearts!
Mid Body Integration Realm!
Gripping a three-foot green blade, Qin Wushang faced the crowd without the slightest trace of fear. He flicked his tongue over his lips and murmured with feverish intensity, "Tell me... who among you will die?"
The moment those words were uttered, everyone's breath caught in their throats...
The only reason they had appeared was to intimidate Qin Wushang. Actually lay hands on Qin Wushang... they did not dare. Doing so would mean an all-out war between Qin Imperial City and the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect!
Suddenly!
A terrifying pressure that suppressed heaven and earth abruptly descended! The massive bodies of the nine black flood dragons sank violently, crashing uncontrollably toward the earth!
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
*Rumble!*
The earth trembled. The nine elders strained with all their might just to keep from falling out of the sky.
*Riiip!*
The void tore open into a ten-zhang rift. A man clad in an ornate dark-gold robe stepped out of the nothingness.
"Kill my son? Heh. Has the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect grown so wild these days?"
His low voice drifted out, carrying a chilling frost. The man had resolute features and a lean face, walking forth from the void with tiger-like eyes that held the entire audience in contempt. A light tap of his toe in the void unleashed a violent force that suppressed the atmosphere. In an instant, the nine elders fell from the sky like kites with severed strings. Roaring crashes echoed unceasingly as one after another slammed into the ground, completely immobilized. Even Ye Bingxin paled slightly.
The Qin Emperor, Qin Xiao! A top cultivator at the late Mahayana realm!
At the same time, another aura shattered a tall mountain, bursting forth from secluded cultivation. A man in white robes released his pressure to contend on equal footing with Qin Xiao. Handsome in features and ethereal in temperament, he gave off the immortal air of one unblemished by the mundane world. This tall man was none other than the Sect Master of the Nine Dragons Immortal Sect—Ye Bingxin's father, Ye Xuan!
Qin Xiao stepped up beside Qin Wushang and gave the man a scoffing laugh. "What? Want to play around with me?"
Ye Xuan knitted his brows slightly and said softly, "There is no need to exchange blows with Brother Qin. Since nothing major has occurred, let us disperse." After a slight pause, Ye Xuan's clear eyes swept over Qin Wushang as he said coolly, "In the future, I hope Nephew Qin will have evidence before coming to our door to demand answers!"
Under the man's gaze, Qin Wushang remained outwardly calm, but fine beads of sweat seeped onto his forehead. Just as he was about to speak, the broad, heavy hand of the man beside him pressed down on his shoulder. Qin Xiao looked at Ye Xuan and sneered, "My son doesn't need you to teach him how to conduct himself."
Ye Xuan shook his head with a sigh. With a wave of his hand, a powerful force pushed the two of them back a thousand zhang. He flicked his sleeves, turned around, and said, "Very well. We take our leave here. Don't contact us if there's no reason to."
Hearing this, Qin Xiao burst into hearty laughter and mocked, "With that pathetic look of yours, you still hope to break through to Tribulation Transcendence in seclusion?"
With his back to Qin Xiao, the corner of Ye Xuan's mouth twitched. Though he longed to retort, he could not deny that Qin Xiao's talent far surpassed his own. Just like that, Qin Xiao departed safely with Qin Wushang. Ye Bingxin gritted her teeth, staring at their departing silhouettes as her chest heaved violently. Her severed hand had already regenerated, but she still felt utterly humiliated.
Ye Xuan glanced back and said softly, "Xin'er, come with me."
Ye Bingxin lowered her head. "Yes, Father."
The crowd dispersed, and the nine old men clambered out of the deep craters, looking somewhat comical as they trembled. Toward that Qin Emperor... they were genuinely terrified in the depths of their hearts. The Qin Emperor's renown was somewhat like Li Guanqi's—prestige piled up purely through severed heads.
On their way back, Qin Xiao clasped his hands behind his back and chuckled. "Why did you suddenly decide to come cause trouble for Ye Bingxin?"
Qin Wushang shrugged and answered frankly, "It has something to do with Li Guanqi, but not much. It's mainly that someone pulled this stunt in Qin Imperial City, and it makes me feel like I've lost face."
Hearing this, Qin Xiao roared with laughter, patting his shoulder. "Then did you figure out why in the end?"
Qin Wushang shook his head. The corner of Qin Xiao's mouth curved slightly. "Sometimes, things aren't as complicated as you think. Perhaps it was just a passing whim on their part. Still... this matter really does need a thorough investigation. Daring to stir up trouble in my Qin Imperial City?"
Chapter 838