Sha Strikes!

"You... bitch!! You only have this because you were born into a good family!!" "If you're so capable, kill me!! Kill me!!!" "Aaaahhh!!!" With disheveled hair and a face drenched in blood, where was there any trace left of Song Zhi'ang's once elegant, dignified poise? Her nose was caved in and mangled, while her arms and shoulders hung limply at her sides. Her bloodshot eyes glared up at the immaculate, empress-like woman standing right before her, burning with pure jealousy. "How am I worse than her?!" "Why her?!" Meng Wanshu frowned slightly as she met the rabid envy in Song Zhi'ang's eyes. That venomous gaze made her deeply uncomfortable. Frost crept outward, gradually encasing Song Zhi'ang's limbs in solid ice. The origin spirit within her dantian was likewise slowly being frozen. The sheer horror of watching oneself die inch by inch was far more terrifying than a swift death. Song Zhi'ang's pupils trembled violently, her entire body shaking from fear. Only she knew how much torment she had endured to reach this point. That bone-eating agony was something she had faced daily until she grew numb to it, sustained only by the lingering obsession in her heart. And now, she had finally broken through to the Void Refining Realm, with the Body Integration Realm already within reach. Yet at this very moment, Meng Wanshu had somehow tracked her down! "No... no... I can't die!!!" "I haven't stood before him yet! I can't die here!!!" "Aaaaargh!! You bitch!! Let me go!! I can't die here!!!" All of Song Zhi'ang's struggles were futile before Meng Wanshu. Since she had tracked Song Zhi'ang down, she had never intended to let her leave alive. Meng Wanshu slowly turned her back, remaining completely calm from start to finish. The moment she turned, terrifying frost surged out frantically! Suddenly! A blood-red palm print spanning several hundred feet abruptly manifested right beside Meng Wanshu. The spiritual palm appeared without the slightest warning. Caught off guard, Meng Wanshu reacted on pure instinct, drawing her sword and slashing outward! "Apocalypse: Snow Shadow!" *Boom!!!* The azure phantom of a woman materialized beside Meng Wanshu as a tempestuous sword intent erupted from the ground! A sword intent capable of freezing all creation swept across heaven and earth. A brilliant sword light burst forth! A glint of hope flashed in Song Zhi'ang's eyes, as though grasping at a life-saving straw. "Save me!!! Save me!!!" *Boom!!!* The sword light cut barely three inches into the palm print before abruptly detonating. Meng Wanshu's eyes narrowed, and she vanished with a teleportation shift, reappearing several thousand feet away. A ghostly figure materialized right behind Meng Wanshu, slowly reaching a hand toward her. Yet just as his fingers were about to graze her, he abruptly drew his hand back, wheeled around, and darted toward Song Zhi'ang. And through all of this... Meng Wanshu had not sensed his presence at all! *Boom!!!* The palm print exploded, instantly obliterating thousands of feet of surrounding void! In the outside world, most of a lush landscape of green hills and clear waters vanished in a flash, leaving behind only scorched earth churning with demonic qi. A crimson silhouette flickered and disappeared, taking Song Zhi'ang along with it. Meng Wanshu's face paled. A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of her lips as her eyes remained fixed on the empty void. "Sha?" Her murmur was laced with doubt and unease. She felt that Sha's arrival was far too coincidental... Or rather... From the start, she had never expected to actually find this palace, nor had she expected the person here to be Song Zhi'ang. When Ye Xuan gave her the spatial coordinates, he had even warned her that she likely would not find anything. After all, once discovered, it was utterly bizarre for an operative of Sha to remain in place. Standing in the void, Meng Wanshu even suspected that they had intentionally allowed her to find Song Zhi'ang! The moment the thought arose, it spread uncontrollably. Meng Wanshu narrowed her eyes. She knew that Song Zhi'ang had been expelled from the sect by Li Guanqi after love curdled into hatred. She had never imagined that the Sha organization had nurtured Song Zhi'ang to such a level. In an instant, many things clicked into place. Meng Wanshu sheathed her sword and said coldly, "Well played, Sha. Did you calculate even me into your schemes?" "Or perhaps..." "Had anyone other than me come today, they probably would never have located this palace at all." "Using me to provoke Song Zhi'ang... what a scheme!" *Whoosh!!* Meng Jiangchu's heart leaped into his throat as he arrived and saw the obliterated void. His brow furrowed deeply, and his sharp gaze swept across the surroundings as he asked in a low voice, "What happened?" Looking at the man who had arrived right on her heels, Meng Wanshu felt a wave of lingering dread. It seemed she had just escaped death by a hair. The intruder had clearly sensed Meng Jiangchu's approach, which was why he had hurriedly executed a single strike and fled with Song Zhi'ang. If Meng Jiangchu had not been nearby, the consequences would have been unthinkable. Meng Wanshu took a deep breath, cast a profound look at the void, and made a silent vow. *The next time I encounter her, I will kill her instantly!* Meng Jiangchu asked heavily, "Was it someone from Sha?" Meng Wanshu nodded, then recounted all of her deductions to him. Meng Jiangchu's expression grew exceedingly solemn. He gritted his teeth, eyes glinting as he realized the enemy was plotting something enormous. "Phew..." "Let's go! To the Great Xia Sword Sect. We need to tell Guanqi about this so the lad stays on guard. The methods they showed today are far too insidious. Without precautions, he'll suffer a massive loss down the line." *Hum!!* Qin Wushang suddenly emerged from the void. Catching sight of the ruined emptiness around them, his face darkened slightly. Bowing in salute, he looked at the pair and said softly, "Domain Lord Meng, I must make a trip to the Seven Domains to report what happened here. Will you join me?" After a brief thought, Meng Jiangchu nodded. "Very well, we'll go together." "Wanshu, you'll be fine heading to the Great Xia Sword Sect on your own, won't you?" Meng Wanshu smiled lightly upon hearing this. "Don't worry, Father. I'm a cultivator of the Body Integration Realm now. Why do you still treat me like a child?" Meng Jiangchu chuckled. His daughter had progressed so fast that even he could hardly wrap his head around it at times. Still, the contingencies he had placed on her were more than enough to handle unexpected crises; even across two domains, he could arrive in an instant. With that, the two sides parted ways and set off on their respective paths. *** Great Xia Sword Sect, Purple Spirit Grotto-Heaven. "Aaaahhh!!! A-Song!! What happened to you?! Wake up!!" A shrill scream rang out. Gu Li, who had just awakened, turned his head and immediately spotted a frail, utterly drained Li Congxin lying inside the medicinal pool. Standing stark naked in the pool with tears welling in his eyes, Gu Li grabbed Li Congxin by the shoulders and shook him vigorously. Just then, the crisp sound of someone cracking melon seeds reached Gu Li's ears, accompanied by a chorus of noisy chatter. "Tsk, tsk. Look how pale he is." "And that backside—perky, isn't it? A shame he isn't a kept pretty boy... To be honest, his figure's even better than Old Four's." "Haha, you're not wrong!" "Piss off!!" "Tsk, Boss, this guy doesn't have some weird fetish, does he?" A chilly breeze blew past, bringing a sharp draft down below. Gu Li turned his head stiffly, only to see several figures clad in white robes sitting atop the boulders, eyeing him up and down with grinning faces. Ye Feng crouched on a rock, cracking melon seeds as he smirked teasingly. "Cold? Look at you, covered in goosebumps." Xiao Chen, carrying Cao Yan over his shoulder, pointed at Gu Li and roared with laughter. "Yo, yo, yo, why'd it shrink? Hahahahahaha!" Resting on his shoulder, Cao Yan muttered to himself, "He's gotta be freezing, obviously." Pengluo, perched on Li Guanqi's shoulder, chimed in with a mysterious air, "Can that thing just shrink and grow at will?" Li Guanqi stood up with a chuckle, produced a set of sect robes for Gu Li, and smiled. "How about you get dressed before we talk?" Gu Li's face flushed crimson. Like a modest maiden who had just been caught completely undressed, he snatched the robes like a gust of wind and scrambled into hiding. "Hahahahaha!!" "Hahaha!! That kid!!" "Hilarious, hahaha! Look at him squirm, hahahaha!"