In the projection from the recording mirror, the fleeing figure finally stopped running.
She turned around to face the pursuers closing in behind her.
Several faces appeared clearly in the image.
Among them, the most recognizable were a couple from one of the Four Great Families of the Dayan Empire—Second Master Li and his wife.
The man wore white robes and carried the gentle, refined appearance he was famous for.
But the moment he opened his mouth—
His voice was filled with rage.
"Ning Hanyue."
"For the sake of the years we spent as husband and wife…"
"If you cooperate and allow us to refine the child in your womb as a sacrifice—"
"I'll grant you a painless death."
Beside him stood Madam Qingwu, dressed in flowing white.
Her expression looked soft and compassionate as she gently stroked her swollen belly.
Her voice was delicate and calm.
"Sister Ning… you and my husband never truly loved each other anyway."
"So why insist on bringing that child into the world?"
"In truth… you owe me."
"My husband and I have loved each other for years."
"But because of your existence, we could love each other… yet never be together."
She sighed softly.
"Now the Ning family has been destroyed by foreign enemies."
"Perhaps that was fate."
"Perhaps it was your destiny all along."
Her gaze lowered toward the unseen woman's stomach.
"Besides… the child you carry is also my husband's bloodline."
"So naturally…"
"He has the right to decide whether the child lives or dies."
"Don't you think?"
Because the recording mirror was apparently carried by the woman being chased—
The projection showed no image of her.
Only her voice could be heard.
A voice filled with despair and fury.
"Li Su…!"
"That is your own child!"
"And you… you actually want to refine her into a substitute puppet for that bastard?!"
Her voice trembled with rage.
"Even if I die today—"
"I will never let you sacrifice my daughter's life for that illegitimate child!"
The words had barely fallen—
When the expressions of Second Master Li and Madam Qingwu suddenly changed.
Both of them staggered backward in visible panic.
And then—
The recording abruptly ended.
But the truth was already obvious.
Years ago, Second Master Li and Madam Qingwu had carried on a secret affair.
She became pregnant before he even eliminated his lawful wife.
Then came the final betrayal—
Hunting down his own wife and attempting to refine his unborn daughter into a sacrificial puppet.
Now, the fierce woman who had resisted them…
was already gone.
But her daughter—
had returned.
Ning Ruan calmly lowered the recording mirror.
She had watched that scene countless times.
Around her, the crowd stared in stunned silence, shock written across every face.
Then she looked at the girl opposite her—the Li family's young miss, eyes red with tears, veins almost bursting from rage.
Ning Ruan curled her lips slightly and delivered another blow.
"Actually…"
"Your mother might not have died yesterday."
She spoke lightly.
"But at the very last moment…"
"It was your father who snatched away her defensive artifact."
Ning Ruan tilted her head.
"Interesting, isn't it?"
Her voice wasn't loud.
But it was loud enough for everyone nearby to hear clearly.
"No… no…"
Li Yu's body trembled violently as she shook her head.
"That's not true!"
"My father loves my mother more than anything!"
"He would never do something like that!"
Her voice turned hysterical.
"It's fake!"
"It's all fake!"
Suddenly she lifted her head, eyes blood-red as she glared at Ning Ruan.
"You insult my parents—"
"You deserve to die!"
Her sword flashed.
A streak of cold light shot straight toward Ning Ruan's heart.
Ning Ruan pursed her lips.
She didn't even bother dodging.
Instead, she slowly reached into the storage jade belt at her waist and pulled out two small black spheres.
Then she casually tossed them.
Straight at Li Yu.
BOOM!
The plain black balls carried no visible spiritual energy.
No one paid them any attention.
Not until one brushed against Li Yu's robe—
And exploded.
The three core disciples of Crimson Heaven Sect beside her instantly changed expressions.
They lunged toward Li Yu at the same time.
But it was already too late.
A moment ago, Li Yu had been shouting threats.
Now—
She lay unconscious inside a freshly blasted crater in front of Ning Ruan.
The crater was brand new.
The person inside it was knocked out on the spot.
"What… what kind of weapon is that?"
"How can something be that powerful?"
"At first I didn't believe a light-element mage could kill Second Master Li and severely injure Madam Qingwu…"
"But now…"
Someone swallowed.
"It might actually be possible."
Another person spat in disgust.
"Don't call her Madam Qingwu."
"Refining an unborn child into a sacrificial puppet—that's something only evil cultivators would do."
"Exactly. Recording mirrors don't lie."
"People like that deserved to die long ago."
The crowd buzzed with discussion.
Li Yu slowly opened her eyes.
Immediately, the noise of the crowd flooded her ears.
Mockery.
Disgust.
Whispers of contempt.
Rage surged through her chest.
Her vision went black.
And she fainted again.
The Third Senior Brother who held her in his arms looked livid.
His face darkened as he shouted coldly:
"Silence!"
The authority of a core disciple was still intimidating.
The crowd reluctantly quieted.
Then the man swept his gaze over the testing elders and spoke in an icy tone.
"She has not even joined the sect yet—"
"And she has already injured a core disciple of Broken Cloud Peak."
His voice turned murderous.
"That alone is reason enough for death."
"Anyone who dares to stop me…"
"…is making an enemy of Broken Cloud Peak."
The moment his words fell—
The testing elders looked like they wanted to say something.
But in the end, they simply sighed and stepped aside.
Ning Ruan stood upright where she was, calmly tapping the storage jade belt at her waist with her fingers.
She was already preparing to blow the place up if necessary.
However—
Just then—
A streak of red light suddenly descended from the sky.
A wave of scorching heat swept across the platform.
And in the next instant—
A woman appeared.
She stood atop the reception platform in flowing red robes, a wine flask dangling lazily from her hand.
Her face was breathtakingly beautiful, her eyes slightly unfocused with intoxication.
"Interesting," she drawled.
"Very interesting."
Her gaze swept across the scene below.
"A whole group of sword cultivators…"
"Bullying a light-element mage who can't even lift a chicken?"
She chuckled softly.
"What impressive talent."
"No wonder you're Lu Xuanyuan's disciples."
"Greetings, Peak Master Liu!"
The testing elders hurried forward to salute her, though their expressions looked rather strained.
The Third Senior Brother from Broken Cloud Peak lowered his head slightly, his tone far from respectful.
"Peak Master Liu…"
"Are you planning to interfere in the affairs of Broken Cloud Peak?"
Liu Yun curved her lips into a lazy smile and lifted the wine flask to take a long drink.
Then her half-lidded eyes drifted toward the crowd below.
"Interfere?"
She tilted her head.
"That wouldn't really be appropriate."
A brief pause.
Then her gaze suddenly landed on Ning Ruan.
"You there, little girl."
"Want to take a master?"
Ning Ruan blinked once.
Then immediately changed her tone.
"Master."
Liu Yun nodded in satisfaction, her smile dazzling.
"Well then."
"That means I'm not interfering anymore, right?"
She gestured casually toward the disciples of Broken Cloud Peak.
"My little disciple beating up a few hypocritical trash bags—"
"Seems perfectly reasonable to me."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"But if you think she's alone and easy to bully…"
"I wouldn't mind bullying you instead."
The three core disciples' faces darkened instantly.
The Third Senior Brother spoke first, his voice cold as ice.
"Peak Master Liu."
"This person injured our junior sister."
"Are you truly planning to protect her?"
"Annoying."
Liu Yun flicked her sleeve lazily while still holding the wine flask.
The next second—
BOOM.
The three core disciples of Crimson Heaven Sect—along with the unconscious Li Yu—were sent flying through the air.
A terrifying pressure of spiritual energy crushed down on them.
They slammed into the ground, completely unable to move.
All they could do was glare at Liu Yun with venomous eyes.
Liu Yun clicked her tongue.
"Lu Xuanyuan really gets worse the older he gets."
"Accepting nothing but useless disciples."
She glanced down at them lazily.
"You're sword cultivators."
"And yet you can't even beat a light mage."
"Honestly…"
"You'd be better off working in the sect kitchens chopping vegetables."
With another amused snort, Liu Yun moved.
In the blink of an eye, she appeared beside Ning Ruan.
Her slightly drunken voice rang across the entire testing plaza.
"Let's go, disciple."
"There are too many useless idiots on Broken Cloud Peak."
"We'd never finish beating them all."
"Okay."
Ning Ruan nodded obediently.
The arrogance she'd shown moments earlier while blowing people up had completely disappeared.
She behaved like a perfectly well-behaved junior.
Liu Yun grabbed the back of her collar—
And in the next second—
They vanished in a flash of red light.
Below the platform, the testing elders finally recovered from their shock.
They looked at the Broken Cloud Peak disciples still struggling and shouting angrily under Liu Yun's restriction.
Then they looked at the red streak disappearing into the distance.
All of them felt their heads begin to ache.
"This… this is bad."
"Wasn't Peak Master Liu supposed to be away from the sect for the past year?"
"Why did she have to return today of all days?"
One elder sighed heavily.
"We should report this to the Sect Master immediately."
"Today's matter… probably won't end peacefully."
Another elder swallowed nervously.
"It can't be that serious, right? Just because of a few disciples?"
The first elder stared at him like he was an idiot.
"Those were core disciples."
"And Peak Master Lu of Broken Cloud Peak is rumored to be coming out of seclusion soon."
He rubbed his temples.
"If those two peak masters clash…"
He exhaled slowly.
"Then the entire sect is going to have a very big problem."
"..."