Volume 10, Chapter 670 – Return My Daughter

Because this matter completely overturned Ai Xing’s common sense, her first reaction was to assume that she was “seeing things” due to poor eyesight. She instinctively rubbed her eyes, entirely forgetting that her newly transplanted Yin-Yang Eyes had only just settled in and were already being overused. How could they possibly withstand such torment?

“Ah!”

A sharp, searing pain erupted from both her eyes, and Ai Xing immediately cried out in agony, instinctively clamping her eyelids shut.

“Impossible… How can a single person have two Spiritual Wisdom Souls?”

Although the pain in her eyes was nearly unbearable, Ai Xing’s curiosity surged like a raging flood, impossible to restrain. With great effort, she forced open her tear-filled, blurry eyes again to look at Qi Huang.

Her vision was almost completely clouded, but in that fleeting moment, she vaguely saw Qi Huang’s Sea of Consciousness… and inside, there were several female souls. Even more absurd, one of these so-called “female” souls seemed to have something strange protruding from its lower body, something resembling… a “rod”.

‘Could a soul… be deformed too?’

Ai Xing was bewildered and more curious than ever. Summoning every ounce of strength, she forced her eyes wider. Her face flushed crimson the moment she realized what she was actually seeing. That thing was small and slender, yes… but there was no mistaking it. That was something only men were supposed to have!

“Ah!”

By now, Ai Xing had reached her limit. She clutched her eyes tightly, wailing in pain, as tears mixed with streaks of blood streamed down her face.

That entire night, her eyes throbbed relentlessly. She could hardly sleep from the pain, and it was only by the following morning that the agony eased slightly, though it showed no sign of disappearing entirely.

When Ai Xing carefully removed the protective membrane covering her transplanted eyes, her heart sank. Everything in front of her was hazy and indistinct; her Yin-Yang Eyes had completely lost their function. She couldn’t tell whether this condition was temporary or permanent.

She knew that the Severed Immortal Sect had paid a tremendous price to obtain the Yin-Yang Eyes for her, so fear gnawed at her heart. She dared not report this to the Sect Master yet. For now, she decided to wait a while before revealing her situation, hoping things would improve.

“Was what I saw last night… real?”

Ai Xing began to ponder the question but quickly convinced herself that it must have been a hallucination caused by the excruciating pain. After all, the notion of someone having two Spiritual Wisdom Souls was absurd beyond belief. And even more outrageous, that one of Cheng Hongling’s doppelgängers had several other souls inside its own Sea of Consciousness? That was like nesting dolls within nesting dolls.

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“So are these Yin-Yang Eyes malfunctioning, or am I just going senile? This is an insult to my intelligence!”

Unable to contain her frustration, Ai Xing cursed aloud. Though she tentatively concluded that what she’d seen was an illusion, her curiosity refused to completely let go, leaving a lingering doubt in her mind.

Regardless, for now, Ai Xing couldn’t risk using her Yin-Yang Eyes to secretly observe Cheng Hongling and Qi Huang anymore.

Qi Huang and Cheng Hongling had no idea they were being spied upon and spent their days leisurely “sightseeing” around the Immortal Alliance’s main headquarters.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed.

That evening, several guards walked into the courtyard, delivering a notice: the girls would be departing for the Kapok Valley Treasure Land at dawn and were to prepare their belongings.

The moment the news spread, the girls reacted as if they’d received a death sentence. Many broke down crying, sobs rising and falling through the night.

The following morning, Zheng Chi arrived at the courtyard gate, leading a large group to collect the “bait”.

Of the twenty-two girls, most were unwilling to go, but under pressure, they packed their belongings and filed out reluctantly.

Cheng Hongling and her fellow disciples behaved far more composedly, chatting and laughing lightly as usual.

Meanwhile, Jin Xue, Tang Yuning, and Ouyang Yi clung tightly to the Honghua Sect’s female disciples, seeking their protection like frightened chicks huddling beneath a mother hen’s wings.

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Qi Huang, looking out through “Window of the Heart”, surveyed the scene. Zheng Chi had brought several hundred cultivators, all at least in the Incarnation Realm or higher. Clearly, the Kapok Valley Treasure Land was far from a simple matter.

Among the crowd, Qi Huang finally spotted a familiar face, an elder who had overseen the Evergreen Conference previously, standing back then beside Vice Alliance Leader Cao. She recalled vaguely that his surname was Ma.

“Be careful. Someone familiar is here. Hide your identity well,” Qi Huang reminded her main body.

Once Zheng Chi confirmed all twenty-two girls were present, he began his pre-departure briefing.

“Everyone, we set out today. Once we reach the Kapok Valley Treasure Land, your task is simple: follow us closely, and we will do everything in our power to keep you safe.”

His voice was calm and untroubled, deliberately avoiding any mention of the word “bait.”

“Elder Zheng, aren’t we being sent to lure the Lightning Hawks so that you can obtain the Golden Fate Blossom seeds?” Yun Fei boldly asked, refusing to let the matter slide. She felt they had the right to know the full truth so they could prepare.

“That’s correct,” Zheng Chi replied casually, shrugging shamelessly. “But that’s just a minor detail, nothing worth dwelling on. Besides, anyone who performs exceptionally will be rewarded.”

“If we’re only bait, how exactly can we ‘perform exceptionally’?” Yun Fei pressed further.

“Good question! This young lady has quite the thirst for knowledge,” Elder Ma interjected insincerely, offering a hollow compliment before continuing. “Exceptional performance means that when the Lightning Hawks appear, if you manage to capture one, you’ll earn great merit for the Immortal Alliance.”

“Capture… them? What for?”

The girls exchanged confused looks.

“You see,” Elder Ma explained patiently, “the Kapok Valley Treasure Land is shrouded in dense Yin energy. Divine Sense cannot be used there. To track the Lightning Hawks’ movements, we must first capture one and attach a tracking talisman to it.”

The girls nodded in understanding, and Qi Huang’s lingering question was answered too. So that was why they needed bait: Divine Sense was suppressed, leaving them reliant on indirect tracking methods.

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‘I wonder how dense the Yin energy is there… If my Divine Sense as a late Heavenly Tribulation Realm cultivator can still function, then bait wouldn’t even be necessary,’ Qi Huang mused.

“Are the Lightning Hawks very strong?” Yun Fei asked again.

“Some are, some aren’t,” Elder Ma replied. “But they’re all incredibly fast. That’s why only you, acting as bait, have the chance to catch them. Work hard, everyone. If you succeed, you won’t be treated unfairly.”

Zheng Chi revealed just enough to reassure them but still kept most details hidden.

“I refuse to go!” a slightly plump girl shouted angrily. “I heard the Kapok Valley is one of the most dangerous places in the cultivation world. Only an idiot would go there to die!”

“Since your parents have already accepted compensation, withdrawing isn’t an option,” Elder Ma lied without batting an eye.

“Lies! I was abducted! I never agreed to any of this!” the plump girl retorted fearlessly.

“Same here!” another girl cried out. “I was kidnapped too! You Immortal Alliance people claim to be the cultivation world’s ‘government office’, yet you resort to such shameless acts! Aren’t you afraid the outside world will find out?”

“Let us go now, or my family will never forgive you!”

“Help! Someone save us! Let us out!”

Several of the abducted girls began shouting and sobbing.

“How dare you slander the Immortal Alliance… courting death!”

Elder Ma’s face twisted into a snarl. With a thought, he conjured a blade of Divine Sense and sent it slashing toward the plump girl.

Squelch!

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Before she could even react, her right arm was severed cleanly at the shoulder. Blood gushed like a fountain, sending the surrounding girls into a panic, scrambling away in terror.

“Ahhh!”

The plump girl finally registered the pain and collapsed, screaming and writhing on the ground.

Qi Huang wanted to intervene but hesitated, knowing someone in the crowd might recognize her. She couldn’t afford to expose herself.

Cheng Hongling held back as well. If she acted rashly, not only would she fail to save anyone, but Elder Ma would definitely recognize her, and the consequences would be disastrous.

“Well? Anyone else here who was ‘abducted’?” Zheng Chi asked coldly.

The kidnapped girls went pale, trembling silently, not daring to speak further.

“Hmph! Let this be a lesson. Those who defame the Immortal Alliance meet this fate,” Elder Ma warned grimly before tossing a pill to a nearby female disciple. “Give her this. Treat the wound.”

“Yes, Elder!” The disciple hurried over, fed the pill to the plump girl, and quickly bandaged her wound.

“Everyone, onto the carriages. We leave now.”

Reluctantly, the twenty-two girls boarded the carriages, and the Immortal Alliance’s forces began their march.

Qi Huang thought the situation had finally stabilized, but just as the convoy exited the main gates, hundreds of people suddenly surged from both sides, blocking the road ahead.

“Return my daughter!” someone roared from within the crowd of uninvited guests.