Chapter Four: A Tragic End

On the other side, Liu Ruyan was grabbed by the Danfeng Sect Leader and rushed out of the Yaoguang Sacred Land. Due to the swift pace and the deliberate lack of spiritual power protection, Liu Ruyan’s hair was disheveled, her clothes in tatters, a far cry from her usual radiant and graceful celestial maiden appearance.

With a casual toss from the Danfeng Sect Leader, Liu Ruyan immediately fell face-first to the ground, inhaling a mouthful of dust. After a long while, she gradually regained consciousness and, staggering to her feet, glared with resentment.

“How dare you treat me this way?”

“I do dare. So what?”

The Danfeng Sect Leader suddenly unleashed the formidable aura of a Nascent Soul realm, silencing whatever Liu Ruyan wanted to say. Taking a deep breath, she ground her teeth and hissed, “You will regret this. All of you will regret it.”

Then she turned away in a sorry state.

“Bah! What a worthless thing!” The Danfeng Sect Leader spat disdainfully before returning directly to the Yaoguang Sacred Land.

Liu Ruyan’s face was filled with misery, but even if she wanted to argue, the Sect Leader had no intention of entertaining her. All she was left with was a heart full of dissatisfaction.

Now that her Supreme Bone had been removed and her cultivation severely compromised—barely a tenth of her strength remaining—she could no longer even fly by spiritual means. Fortunately, she still had some rare talismans which she could activate with spirit stones. After exhausting her resources, she quickly made her way back to the Butian Pavilion.

This was a top-tier sect whose overall strength rivaled some ordinary sacred lands. Moreover, her master was one of the Pavilion’s ten elders, holding high rank and formidable power. She firmly believed her master would stand up for her!

Worried about drawing attention, she concealed her presence all the way until she finally reached her master’s cave dwelling. The moment she entered, she sensed something was wrong.

Her master sat coldly on a high platform, face dark and forbidding, the entire cave frozen in icy stillness.

Was this anger over unfair treatment?

“Master, please stand up for your disciple!” Liu Ruyan knelt on the ground, tears streaming down her cheeks, soon soaking her chest.

Silence—deadly and absolute.

Her sobbing gradually quieted. Even with her slow wits, she sensed something was amiss.

Why?

Why was her master so indifferent?

Confused, she looked up.

Boom!

A heavy palm struck her body. In her weakened state, she could not withstand the blow and screamed in pain as she was sent flying, crashing hard onto the ground.

“You useless thing! Who do you think you are? How dare you defy the Yaoguang Sacred Land and provoke the Red Dust Sect Leader?”

“Do you know that if the Red Dust Sect Leader hadn’t come to find me personally, I would never have accepted a waste like you as my disciple? You have the Supreme Bone but no skill in using it, poor comprehension so unbearable to look at, stirring trouble and spreading lies!”

“At first, I thought you just lacked talent, but now it seems you don’t even know how to be a decent person.”

“Get out!”

In a daze, Liu Ruyan barely remembered how she left the Butian Pavilion. Thinking of her master’s current attitude, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave.

Her master had once praised her as an outstanding genius, a rare prodigy in a millennium.

How had she suddenly become a helpless waste?

Liu Ruyan wore a painfully conflicted expression, half crying, half smiling.

Since leaving the Yaoguang Sacred Land, nothing had gone right. Now, even the Butian Pavilion refused to help her. Who else could she turn to?

Ye Chen?

A handsome face suddenly appeared in her mind, instantly lifting her spirits.

Yes, she still had Ye Chen. They had once sworn eternal loyalty, never to abandon each other, to share life and death.

Thinking of this, she hurriedly gathered her strength and headed toward a nearby city outside the Butian Pavilion.

There, Ye Chen had found her a place to settle.

In a small courtyard, she finally saw the man she longed for.

“Ye Chen!”

Without hesitation, she threw herself into his arms, holding him tightly.

Ye Chen looked a little embarrassed at the scene, finally prying her loose gently.

“Yaner, what’s wrong?”

“Ye Chen, take me away. Let’s live in another realm. I don’t want to stay here anymore, okay?”

Liu Ruyan’s eyes were full of hope, but she noticed Ye Chen’s gaze kept avoiding hers, unwilling to meet her eyes.

A foreboding feeling rose instantly. Sure enough, Ye Chen said:

“Yaner, I have reasons I must stay here. But don’t worry, even if you become an ordinary person, I will take good care of you and ensure your life is filled with endless wealth and glory.”

Liu Ruyan stared blankly at Ye Chen, silent for a long time. At last, she gave a bitter laugh and turned away toward the door.

Until her figure vanished, Ye Chen showed no intention of following.

Forget it.

Yaner is an ordinary person now. When she comes to terms with it, she’ll come back. I’d better focus on training so I can avenge her!

With this thought, Ye Chen entered a cultivation state.

Liu Ruyan wandered the city with vacant eyes. Only after leaving the city did she suddenly wake up.

It’s all fake—everything is fake!

She forced a smile more painful than tears. At this moment, she deeply realized that Xiao Chenxin was truly her destined soulmate.

“Did you do all this just to make me face the truth?”

Tears streamed down her cheeks. She only wanted to live her own life. Why treat her like this? This was not true love!

Yet it seemed surrender was the best option.

After a long breath, before her spiritual energy completely faded, she hastily used a talisman and rushed toward the Yaoguang Sacred Land again.

---

Meanwhile, atop the Red Dust Peak, all was joyous and harmonious.

The night passed quietly.

The next morning, Xiao Chenxin awoke to the smell of cooking in the air.

Getting up, he found Meng Yao had prepared breakfast and greeted him with a sweet smile.

“Sect Leader, I made breakfast for you. Come and try it.”

“Good!”

Although he was already in a state of fasting due to his cultivation, he didn’t want to discourage the little girl’s enthusiasm. Besides, having just transmigrated, he wasn’t quite used to not eating.

“How is it?”

After sipping the porridge, Xiao Chenxin smiled at Meng Yao’s eager gaze and nodded.

“Not bad, very good!”

Meng Yao smiled again cautiously as she drank her own porridge.

After finishing breakfast, Xiao Chenxin began tidying up.

“Sect Leader, let me do these chores!” Meng Yao said anxiously, even grabbing his arm.

Seeing this, Xiao Chenxin laughed and gently pulled her away.

“You cook, I wash dishes. Fair!”

When Meng Yao tried to protest, he pretended to be stern, wagging a finger before getting back to tidying.

Looking back, he saw Meng Yao’s “adoration meter” had risen to seventy.

The two then went outside to bask in the sun. Watching Meng Yao staring blankly at the sky, Xiao Chenxin suddenly asked,

“Meng Yao, do you want to cultivate immortality?”

Startled by the sudden question, Meng Yao nervously clutched her clothes.

“Huh?”

“But they say I have a mixed spiritual root and will never reach the Foundation Establishment stage no matter how long I cultivate?”

“That’s what they say. But I’m me. I’ll find a way for you to cultivate properly.”

Seeing Xiao Chenxin’s earnest expression, tears welled up in Meng Yao’s eyes.

“Sect Leader, why are you so good to me? I don’t know how to repay you.”

Xiao Chenxin glanced at her “adoration meter”—seventy-five—and smiled, gently touching her forehead.

“As long as you live well, that’s the greatest reward for me.”

Meng Yao’s eyes reddened. She pressed her lips together and nodded firmly.

“Yes!”