Chapter 6: Flaying the Soul and Melting the Bones, Just to Start Over

"Luo Mingyue!" Sheng Yuan glared at her, both shocked and furious. "What are you trying to do? Who allowed you to interfere with Lingxu Peak’s affairs!"

At the mention of Lingxu Peak’s affairs, Luo Mingyue raised an eyebrow. "It was clearly you bullying my junior sister!"

Sheng Yuan laughed in exasperation. "Who is your junior sister?"

"Naturally, it’s..." Luo Mingyue turned around, only to be met with Li Shuang’s face, a visage so pale and pristine it could rival frost and snow. Taken aback, she instinctively cried out, "Li Shuang?"

She had sensed someone’s presence and rushed over immediately, but it was only now that she finally got a clear look at the person! This peerless genius who had been initiated into the Supreme Forget Emotion Technique was actually Lingxu Peak’s former peerless genius, Li Shuang!

Li Shuang’s name had once echoed loudly throughout the sect. Upon her admission, she was tested to have a Top-grade Ice Spirit Root, which instantly sparked a frenzied bidding war among the various Peak Masters. Even the Sect Leader was eager to take her under his wing.

At that time, Master Lingxu simply said, "Come to Lingxu Peak, and you shall be my chief Senior Disciple. I believe you will be able to protect Lingxu Peak well." Moved by Master Lingxu’s trust, Li Shuang chose Lingxu Peak without a second thought.

When she first joined the sect, her progress was astonishing. It wasn’t long before she became the number one figure among the younger generation, completely unmatched in the limelight. Master Lingxu was always incredibly proud of this disciple and constantly sang her praises.

However, ten years ago, Ye Zhaozhao joined the sect. Since then, rumors sporadically seeped out of Lingxu Peak claiming that Ye Zhaozhao was the true chosen one and that her Cultivation speed was even faster than Li Shuang’s had been. The rumors also alleged that Li Shuang was so jealous of Ye Zhaozhao that she had completely lost the broad-mindedness expected of a senior sister, making her a massive disappointment. Amidst the swirling public opinion, Li Shuang gradually faded into obscurity day by day.

In the past, Li Shuang and Luo Mingyue were collectively known as the twin gems of their generation. Luo Mingyue’s strength was slightly inferior to Li Shuang’s, and she had always viewed Li Shuang as the goal she needed to chase. Yet, as a decade slipped by, Li Shuang’s Cultivation suddenly stalled completely, and even began to show faint signs of regressing. As of today, Luo Mingyue was already preparing to break through to the Divinity Transformation Stage, while Li Shuang remained stuck at the Nascent Soul Stage.

Luo Mingyue never would have imagined that the person her master wanted her to find would turn out to be Li Shuang! A trace of shock painted her face as she couldn’t help but exclaim, "Li Shuang, your Cultivation..."

"What about her Cultivation?" Sheng Yuan asked impatiently. "Senior Sister Luo, please move aside at once!"

Luo Mingyue ignored him. Her pupils constricted as she stared at the wounds on Li Shuang’s chest. "You just finished dispersing, and this is the critical moment of your reincarnation! Who did this? Who hurt you!"

Sheng Yuan froze for a moment. He wondered what she meant by dispersing. His heart skipped a beat as an ominous premonition suddenly washed over him. He couldn’t help asking, "What are you talking about? What dispersing?"

"Li Shuang has already switched to Cultivating the Supreme Forget Emotion Technique," Luo Mingyue said coldly. "All of her previous Power has been entirely dispersed! Right now, she only has the Cultivation of the Qi Cultivation Stage! These wounds were clearly left by a disciple of the Sword Sect. Who was it? Who would dare to lay a hand on a fellow sect member!"

Luo Mingyue’s expression was fierce, looking as if she were ready to kill. Sheng Yuan’s heart trembled slightly. Had she really switched to the Supreme Forget Emotion Technique? Was all her previous Cultivation Technique dispersed? Impossible. This was impossible!

Only then did Sheng Yuan remember to use his Divine Sense to probe Li Shuang’s strength, and when he did, he staggered backward.

"Eldest Senior Sister, where is your Nascent Soul? Where is your Power?!" Sheng Yuan yelled in a sudden panic.

Luo Mingyue eyed him suspiciously. "Could it be that you were the one who injured Li Shuang?"

Sheng Yuan stared fixedly at Li Shuang. "Eldest Senior Sister, what is going on here!"

Li Shuang’s expression remained calm. "Stripped of soul and burned of bone, it is merely a fresh start."

Just a fresh start... Sheng Yuan’s lips trembled. Why had it turned out like this? At the Snow Mountain, hadn’t his Eldest Senior Sister fled early on? Then what did her words just now mean? Stripping the soul and burning the bones? Who had stripped her soul! Who had burned her bones! Sheng Yuan tightly gripped the Sinking Water Sword in his hand.

He had been single-handedly raised by Li Shuang. He knew better than anyone just how much agonizing effort she had poured into attaining her Cultivation. When he woke up, his Eldest Senior Sister would always have already started practicing her swordplay. When he rested, his Eldest Senior Sister would still be training. Even during the past ten years when her Cultivation stagnated, she never slacked off for a single moment. It took so many days and nights of Cultivation for his Eldest Senior Sister to achieve her current Cultivation.

This hard-earned Cultivation... she had just thrown it away like it meant nothing? A boundless wave of panic began to swallow Sheng Yuan bit by bit.

Ye Zhaozhao was also somewhat surprised by Li Shuang’s current situation. However, very quickly, an imperceptible smile tugged at the corners of her lips.

Originally, Li Shuang had the Cultivation of the Nascent Soul Stage at the very least. But now, she had gone out of her way to switch to some Forget Emotion Technique, and her Cultivation had plunged all the way down to the Qi Cultivation Stage. Under these circumstances, wouldn’t it be even easier to suppress Li Shuang?

Ye Zhaozhao spoke up, "Eldest Senior Sister... how, how could you be so impulsive! None of us wanted to blame you for what happened that day. Master hasn’t even handed down a punishment yet, so how could you act out of spite first?"

Ye Zhaozhao’s voice dragged Sheng Yuan’s rationality back to the present.

Sheng Yuan’s eyes were red as he stared fixedly at Li Shuang. "Eldest Senior Sister, if you did something wrong, you have to admit it! You have to obediently accept the punishment! You shouldn’t act willfully like you’re doing right now! Today, you must come with me to see Master."

Since his Eldest Senior Sister had just finished dispersing, he didn’t know if there was still room for salvation. As he spoke, he reached out to grab Li Shuang’s hand.

Luo Mingyue swatted his hand away and let out a cold snort. "Li Shuang has just been too good to you ungrateful wretches. Otherwise, how would you—someone she raised—dare to speak to her like this!"

As if he couldn’t hear Luo Mingyue at all, Sheng Yuan merely looked stubbornly at Li Shuang. "Eldest Senior Sister! Return to Lingxu Peak with me!"

Sheng Yuan’s voice was remarkably stubborn. Ye Zhaozhao’s gaze flickered with a hint of displeasure. She had spent so much time laying out her schemes, but from the looks of it now, the people of Lingxu Peak still held a certain degree of affection for Li Shuang. Still, it wasn’t a huge problem. She had plenty of time to slowly plot her next moves.

"Li Shuang, are you going back with them?" Luo Mingyue turned to ask Li Shuang. The junior sister their master valued so highly turned out to be Lingxu Peak’s Li Shuang. This complicated things quite a bit, leaving Luo Mingyue momentarily unsure of what to do.

Li Shuang shook her head and calmly replied, "Master no longer recognizes me as his disciple. Lingxu Peak is no longer my home. I returned to the sect this time solely to seek an audience with the Sect Leader."

"He no longer recognizes you as his disciple?" Luo Mingyue exclaimed, a sliver of unmistakable joy slipping into her voice. Li Shuang gave her a somewhat perplexed look.

Luo Mingyue coughed lightly. "It’s nothing, it’s nothing! I mean, I’ll accompany you to see the Sect Leader!"

Shielding Li Shuang behind her, Luo Mingyue glared fiercely at Sheng Yuan and Ye Zhaozhao. "Li Shuang doesn’t want to go back, so don’t force her!"

Sheng Yuan’s face immediately darkened.

"Let’s go." Luo Mingyue took Li Shuang’s hand and pulled her away directly.

Watching their retreating backs, Ye Zhaozhao’s eyes flashed with calculation. "Second Senior Brother, we should still tell Master about Eldest Senior Sister’s return as soon as possible."

Sheng Yuan snapped back to his senses and nodded repeatedly. "Right! Once Master gives the word, I don’t believe she’d dare refuse to return!" Forgetting his original purpose for coming to the Scripture Pavilion, he hurriedly dashed back the way they came.

A viper-like glint flashed through the depths of Ye Zhaozhao’s eyes. Everyone knew that Master Lingxu was the person Li Shuang respected and cared about the most. Ye Zhaozhao knew this better than anyone else. Every time, it was the pain inflicted by Master Lingxu that always drew out the most intense negative emotions from Li Shuang. Since Sheng Yuan was so useless, she would just let Master Lingxu handle it.