Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Cocoon of Resentment

After leaving the prison in the Cold Abyss, I couldn't calm my mind for a long time. The intricate emotions intertwined with my shattered heart, slowly reviving feelings that had once grown cold. I was astonished at the drastic change in my state of mind, so different from when I first entered Qiongyun.

The way I viewed things and my emotions had changed drastically from back then, and I hadn't even noticed this transformation until today.

Why had I become like this?

Unconsciously, I had begun to see things through a lens of malice, handling troubles with negative emotions, and I believed that this cold-bloodedness was justified.

Could it be the "poison" that Quan You had made me take?

Thinking carefully, all the changes began after I encountered Quan You, and my temperament had shifted after Da Xian's death. Everything since my rebirth seemed to have flowed seamlessly, even my pact with Xian Xian, who used her cultivation to restore my human form, felt like a deliberate arrangement.

"How long will I remain foolish...?"

I muttered to myself, lowering my head.

"Xiao Qingyue, what are you muttering about?" A slightly amused voice interrupted my thoughts. Quan You had suddenly appeared before me, his clean clothes and bandaged arm indicating he had taken time to tidy up.

All of this is your doing.

I swallowed these words, forcing a smile and shaking my head.

"Seems like you're in a good mood?" His gaze darkened as it fell on me.

"It's too dark in there, and I accidentally fell." I couldn't be bothered to come up with a better excuse and just made up something to brush him off.

"Oh, I see." He smiled, "Then you'd better not visit him again to avoid getting hurt."

"You don't believe me?"

"Of course, I believe whatever Xiao Qingyue says." He chuckled softly and clapped his hands. "Besides this dress, I have another gift for you."

At that moment, three people emerged from behind Quan You. Two disciples of the Moon Shadow Sect were escorting a woman in purple robes towards me.

When I saw her face, I was shocked.

The woman in front of me was none other than Ling Lu, and she was wearing a dress identical to mine.

"I originally wanted to see who would look better in the same dress. But it turns out, Xiao Qingyue, you are still the best." Quan You glanced at Ling Lu and shook his head, sighing. "As expected, Xiao Qingyue is superior."

As he finished speaking, he ambiguously ran his hand through my hair, gently stroking it.

Ling Lu glared at Quan You with resentment, then looked at me with a mix of shock and fear. She uneasily moved her arms but to no avail.

Catching my gaze, Quan You waved his fan, "Oh, seems like an old acquaintance. You two have a good chat." With that, he signaled to the two disciples and walked away with them.

Freed from her bonds, Ling Lu immediately summoned her celestial sword and tried to fly away on it. However, the sword lost its glow after a few meters, and Ling Lu fell to the ground with it.

Covered in blood and dirt from the fall, Ling Lu struggled to push herself up, but after a few moments, she flashed a golden light, as if something like ropes were binding her to the ground.

"Ugh!"

Ling Lu finally let out a muffled groan of pain, spitting out a mouthful of blood as she struggled to rise again, this time unable to stand up, likely having broken several bones in the fall.

It seemed Quan You had placed a spell of enslavement on her. Such a spell would severely harm the afflicted if they disobeyed the caster's orders. Of course, this would only work if there was a significant disparity in their cultivation levels.

I couldn't stand to watch any longer, but I didn't want to dirty my own hands, so I called over a disciple nearby to help Ling Lu up. The disciple nodded and went over to assist Ling Lu, only to be slapped hard by her, causing him to stagger backward. Perhaps her powers were restrained, as the disciple was only startled and not seriously harmed.

"Enough, you can go rest now." I gently reassured the disciple and then walked over to Ling Lu, asking with some confusion, "Why do you torment yourself like this?"

"If you want to kill me, then kill me! Spare me the disgust!"

Ling Lu's tone was unexpectedly defiant. As I met her resentful and hateful gaze, I couldn't help but laugh mockingly.

"Why would I want to kill you?"

"Don't pretend to be kind here. You've always known that I despised you from the moment you entered the sect. I wished you dead immediately. Surely, you aren't so oblivious that you haven't noticed all the things I've done?" Ling Lu raised her head proudly, her smile full of malice.

With a resounding slap, my hand struck her face, leaving her staring at me in disbelief, tears welling up in her reddened eyes. Another slap followed swiftly. My movements were smooth and unhesitant as I looked down at her swelling cheeks, speaking coldly, "No one here will pity your tears. You'd better keep those useless things to yourself."

"I am a proud disciple of Qiongyun Sect. How dare you humiliate me like this!"

She suddenly raised her head, gripping my arm tightly, and shouted, "Kill me! Don't you hate me? Don't you want to avenge the Luoxi siblings? Do it!"

Seeing her like this, I couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration for her.

"I do detest you. Everything you've done is utterly repulsive. Any one of your actions is enough to disgrace the entire Qiongyun Sect. You're jealous by nature, colluding with Xinghuo Hall to harm fellow disciples. You have no humanity left in you." I pried her fingers off my arm, looking at her indifferently.

"I really do want you dead."

Ling Lu's eyes widened at my words, her tear-streaked face twisted into a wicked smile, "Then do it! My loyalists will tell my brother that you, a demoness from an evil sect, killed me. When my brother finds out, he will tear you apart. I want my brother to remember me forever and hate you for a lifetime."

Hearing this, I realized her earlier words about facing death bravely were false.

She didn't want to die at all. On the contrary, she was forcing me to suppress my desire to kill her, ensuring her safety within the Moon Shadow Sect.

She was so obsessed with love that she almost married her beloved. How could she resign herself to such a miserable end?

But she was playing a dangerous game. What if I couldn't control my hatred and killed her outright? Could someone like her truly have loyalists?

"You're wrong. I'll expose all your crimes to the public, so you can see how much Da Xian despises you once he knows your vile deeds."

Ling Lu glared at me with a mixture of horror and defiance, her tone almost threatening, "You can't do that."

I scoffed and stepped away from her, leaving her with a parting remark, "Don't worry, you won't die before that happens. At least not until you leave the Moon Shadow Sect. Every second here will be a living hell for you."

As I walked away, I heard her scream behind me, filled with bitter resentment.

I instructed a few disciples to keep an eye on her, not wanting to waste any more words, and returned to my room to rest.