Volume 8, Chapter 528 – I’ll Make Her Despair Completely

“This is impossible… How could this be?”

Hua Yu no longer had the confidence to argue with Qi Huang. She stood there, utterly despondent, repeating those words like a broken record.

“Why is it impossible? The facts are right in front of you. Do you think the true qi in her dantian can be faked?”

Shi Yuqi stepped forward, defending her disciple.

“Yes, yes! She must have cheated!”

Hua Yu, as if grasping at straws, began babbling nonsense.

“Uh…”

Qi Huang felt a slight pang of guilt. ‘How does this wretched woman know I cheated?’

Cheng Hongling’s expression turned even more awkward. The true qi in her body hadn’t been cultivated through her own efforts. Technically, calling it cheating wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Cheating? How, exactly? Show me how you’d cheat!”

Shi Yuqi, completely oblivious to her disciple’s unease, continued to refute Hua Yu’s claims with unwavering confidence.

“Exactly! If cultivation could be cheated, everyone here would have ascended long ago. Are you insulting everyone’s intelligence?”

Qi Huang quickly regained her composure and chimed in. ‘Faced with such a shameless woman, why should I bother with principles? Besides, whether my main body and I are considered one person or two, it’s not like it’s outright cheating, right?’

“Indeed, the path of cultivation is long and arduous. Since the dawn of creation, countless peerless geniuses have perished before reaching the threshold of the shattered void. If cultivation could be cheated, the immortal world wouldn’t have so few true immortals.”

The Grand Elder, Hua Man, nodded in agreement.

“The Grand Elder is wise. If cultivation could be cheated, the immortal world would be overflowing with descendants of immortals. With your measly nine-point bloodline, how could you have lasted this long?”

Qi Huang quickly added her own flattery.

“This…”

Hua Yu was left speechless.

Rеаⅾ on ΚαtReаdiոgСаfe

“Now, are you convinced?”

Hua Ruyi sneered.

“A day’s cultivation yielding that much true qi? Even legendary perfect-bloodline geniuses couldn’t achieve such a feat. It’s unheard of! There must be something wrong!”

Hua Yu still refused to accept it. After muttering to herself for a moment, her eyes suddenly lit up.

“I understand! She must have water accumulation in her qi sea! That’s just ordinary water, not true qi!”

“Water accumulation?”

The high-ranking elders exchanged bewildered glances. The hall fell into an eerie silence.

Shi Yuqi’s expression stiffened slightly. She hadn’t expected this woman to come up with the same ridiculous idea she’d once had.

“Water accumulation in the qi sea? More like water accumulation in your brain! Try accumulating some yourself! If you can do it and still stand here laughing and chatting, I’ll leave the Huarong Sect immediately!”

Qi Huang, now thoroughly irritated, lashed out.

“…”

Hua Yu was silenced again. She could technically do it, just strike her own qi sea and wait for the water to accumulate. But at that point, forget about laughing and chatting, she’d be lucky not to drop dead on the spot.

“Utter nonsense!”

Hua Ruyi had lost all patience. She declared coldly,

“From this moment onward, Hua Yu is stripped of her position as Holy Maiden of the Huarong Sect. The new Holy Maiden shall be Jiang Ling of the Biyu Peak. Does anyone have any objections?”

“Of course not. Such astonishing cultivation speed is more than enough to qualify her as Holy Maiden.”

“Indeed. Even a nine-point genius pales in comparison. Where else would we find someone better?”

“Congratulations, Junior Sister Shi! Congratulations, Junior Jiang! Truly, out with the old, in with the new!”

Reαԁ oո КatRеαⅾіոɡСαfе

The surrounding elders quickly voiced their support, even those who had initially sided with Elder Zhou and Hua Yu. After all, most of them genuinely cared about the Huarong Sect’s future.

“Yes! My disciple is the Holy Maiden now!”

Shi Yuqi jumped in excitement. She had only recently taken over Biyu Peak, and now she had a Holy Maiden as her disciple. This achievement was something she could boast about for the rest of her life.

“Master… After all our years as master and disciple, must you be so ruthless?”

Hua Yu’s voice was hollow, her face ashen.

“Ruthless? What ruthlessness? Isn’t this what you wanted? You were desperate to marry Cao Yang. Now you can. Shouldn’t you be happy?”

Hua Ruyi’s tone was laced with sarcasm. It wasn’t that she was heartless, she had simply lost all hope for this disciple.

Without waiting for a response, she turned to the other elders.

“Six days from now, the inauguration ceremony for the new Holy Maiden will be held at the Immortal Stele Plaza. I expect everyone to attend.”

Hua Yu’s heart twisted in pain. Her master had said “inauguration”, not “succession.” That meant her removal as Holy Maiden was now set in stone.

“As for you…”

Hua Ruyi turned back to her disciple.

“Since this is an inauguration and not a succession, your presence won’t be required. Your only task now is to wait in your chambers. After the ceremony, I will honor Cao Yang’s request and select an auspicious date to send you off to the Cao family in a grand procession, just as you wished. After all, we were master and disciple.”

Then, her tone shifted.

“Of course, if you’d rather skip the formalities, I won’t stop you. You can leave for the Cao family right now. From this moment onward, no one will restrict your freedom.”

“Now that’s adding insult to injury!”

Qi Huang was stunned. She couldn’t fathom how deeply disappointed a master must be to say such things.

Hua Yu opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing. She turned and walked out of the hall, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes, not from sorrow, but from sheer despair.

Hua Yu hadn’t clung to the Holy Maiden title for vanity or to benefit her family. She needed it to secure her position in the Cao family.

Rеaԁ oո KatRеaԁiոɡСafe

She knew the man she was marrying was a monster among monsters. Even the two other female prodigies often “flirted” with him, not to mention the countless other admirers. She had no guarantee he wouldn’t take more wives in the future. If he married another nine-point bloodline genius, her status would be at risk. After all, among the three female prodigies, she ranked last in both looks and talent.

Hua Yu knew that to secure her place as the young madam of the Cao family, she had to be exceptional. The Holy Maiden title was her lifeline, it allowed her to continue leeching off the Huarong Sect’s resources.

But now… her plans had been utterly destroyed.

“Don’t celebrate too soon. I’ll be watching you until the day I leave. Fakes can’t last forever, I refuse to believe you can maintain this cultivation speed every day.”

Before stepping out, Hua Yu turned back, her voice laced with venom.

“You’re welcome to watch all you like.”

Qi Huang smirked dismissively.

As the assembly dispersed, Qi Huang, Cheng Hongling, and Shi Yuqi were called back by Sect Master Hua.

“Congratulations, Holy Maiden Jiang!”

Hua Ruyi smiled warmly.

“All thanks to the Sect Master’s support!”

Cheng Hongling replied politely.

“I did nothing. This was all your own achievement.”

Hua Ruyi, as sect master, wouldn’t take undue credit.

Cheng Hongling, understanding the unspoken rules, didn’t press further.

“An inauguration ceremony could be prepared in three days. Do you know why I set it for six?”

Hua Ruyi changed the subject.

After a brief pause, Cheng Hongling ventured, “To give me time to reach the fourth level of the Incarnation Realm?”

Rеаⅾ oո ΚatReαⅾinɡСαfе

“Exactly. You really are a clever girl.”

Hua Ruyi nodded in approval.

“You heard what Hua Yu said before she left. Don’t disappoint me, and don’t give those with ulterior motives any openings.”

“Don’t worry, Sect Master. Let her watch. She can watch for the rest of her life. I’ll make her despair completely.”

Qi Huang cut in confidently.

“Good. I like that fighting spirit.”

Hua Ruyi smiled in satisfaction.

After a brief exchange, the trio left the hall.

Word had already spread. As soon as they stepped out, disciples and elders alike came forward to offer congratulations, their gazes filled with newfound respect.

Shi Yuqi couldn’t stop grinning. For decades, she’d been stuck in the lowest-ranked peak of the Huarong Sect. When had she ever received such treatment?

“Finally got that Holy Maiden title.”

Qi Huang exhaled deeply, then sent a mental message to her main body.

“Master, now that I’m Holy Maiden, can I inscribe my name on the Immortal Stele?”

Cheng Hongling ignored the message and instead turned to Shi Yuqi for confirmation.

“Of course! If the Holy Maiden isn’t qualified, who is? The inauguration ceremony in three days will be your moment.”

Shi Yuqi explained happily.

“Hear that? Three days until we can inscribe our names. But our identities are fake. Have you thought about what comes next?”

Cheng Hongling’s mental voice was grave.