Chapter 94 - 91: Ling Qingxue’s Suspicion

"Ling Qingxue!" Mo Qianqian’s eyes narrowed, and his face instantly darkened at the sight of the approaching figure.

Ling Qingxue—the venomous woman who had feigned kindness since the age of ten to win his favor, all for the sake of stripping him of his Holy Dragon Bloodline! By the time she was twelve, she had tricked him into a secret engagement, deceiving him into hunting down various Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures and fighting battles for the Ling family!

At twelve, he should have been an innocent, passionate youth full of hope for the future. Instead, he was deceived by Ling Qingxue and forcibly molded by the Ling family into a bloodthirsty wolf who only knew how to kill! In the end, his Holy Dragon Bloodline was ruthlessly ripped away by her, and he was even framed for attempted assault.

Moreover, the Mo family’s annihilation was entirely orchestrated by the Ling family as part of their plot to steal his Holy Dragon Bloodline! Even the Nether Condensing Pill that Ling Qingxue recently used to break through to the Tongyou Realm was given to her by him! The Ling family and Ling Qingxue had deceived and manipulated him to such a sickening degree!

Seeing her again, surging murderous intent roared within Mo Qianqian’s heart. His eyes brimmed with endless killing intent. At this moment, he wanted nothing more than to rush forward and slaughter Ling Qingxue on the spot! Ultimately, however, Mo Qianqian forced himself to calm down. Now was not the time to strike. He was currently no match for the Ling family, and likely no match for Ling Qingxue herself.

Seeing Ling Qingxue, Ye Xiao’s expression also shifted. "Miss Ling, do you know Asura?" he asked.

"I do not know him. I simply felt that since you are both Second-Grade Spirit Masters, your clash should be the highlight of the Spirit Master Banquet. It would be a pity to fight here," Ling Qingxue replied.

"Since this is your wish, Miss Ling, I will show you that respect!" Ye Xiao said.

The crowd was utterly astounded. She truly lived up to her reputation as rank one on the Hidden Dragon List. Even a Second-Grade Spirit Master like Ye Xiao had to give her face.

Ye Xiao looked at Mo Qianqian with icy eyes. "Asura, I’ll show you what’s what at the Spirit Master Banquet. Let’s go!" He flicked his sleeve and strode away.

"Wait!" Before Ye Xiao could leave, Mo Qianqian called out and stopped him.

At his words, the crowd’s hearts skipped another beat. They wondered if Asura was actually going to initiate a challenge against Ye Xiao.

Ye Xiao’s face darkened. Halting in his tracks, he turned back and demanded in a deep voice, "What is it?"

"Your lost wager—twenty First-Grade Superior Elixirs!" Mo Qianqian said, holding out his hand.

Mo Qianqian wasn’t the only one collecting. An Imperial City Guard had already walked up to Zhang Yongjun and stated, "Combat Tax, ten First-Grade Superior Spirit Vein Pills."

Zhang Yongjun felt utterly humiliated; he had completely disgraced Ye Xiao’s faction and would definitely face severe punishment upon his return. He hastily handed ten pills to the guard and tossed a bottle of elixirs toward Mo Qianqian.

"Hmph!" Ye Xiao sneered with an ugly expression. Flicking his sleeve again, he marched off.

"Master Asura, may we have a word?" Ling Qingxue asked Mo Qianqian.

"I don’t have time." Mo Qianqian waved dismissively and turned to leave.

Although Ling Qingxue was showing goodwill toward his identity as Asura, it definitely wasn’t out of genuine kindness. Besides, he had no fear of Ye Xiao and didn’t need anyone’s help. He absolutely would not be polite to Ling Qingxue!

"What? Who does this Asura think he is? Ling Qingxue clearly helped him, yet he shows her zero respect?"

"What a massive ego! Even Ye Xiao had to give her face, but Asura refuses!"

"Not even a single word of thanks! This Asura is a complete ungrateful wretch!"

"Countless people dream of getting close to Ling Qingxue without any luck, yet he claims he has no time!"

"Spirit Masters are truly arrogant to the bone!"

The onlookers were practically exploding with anger, hurling a barrage of curses. The elders and disciples of the Ling family standing beside Ling Qingxue also wore extremely dark expressions.

"I will pay a visit to Senior Asura another day," Ling Qingxue said to his retreating back, showing no sign of anger.

Gazing at his back and recalling the look in his eyes earlier, a certain figure vaguely surfaced in her mind. Ling Qingxue wondered, "Could it be him?" A cold gleam faintly shimmered in her eyes.

Mo Qianqian had a very good relationship with Shi Muyao, whom he married into, and Asura was also remarkably kind to Shi Muyao. The aura he just gave off felt eerily familiar to her. A deep sense of suspicion had already sprouted in Ling Qingxue’s heart.

"I will thoroughly investigate this matter," Ling Qingxue scoffed coldly in her heart. "Mo Qianqian, if it really is you, I will make sure there is no return for you." She then strode away.

Not long after, Mo Qianqian found an inn within the Imperial City—the Wind Shelter Inn. Just as he booked a room and was about to head upstairs, a familiar female voice suddenly rang out from behind him.

"Elder Asura!"

Mo Qianqian’s heart jolted. It was Shi Muyao! He hurriedly turned around, only to see two familiar faces standing before him.

One wore a red dress, radiating beauty and graceful elegance. The other wore a light cyan gown, standing slender and tall with a stunning, pure, and charming figure. It was evidently Pei Hong and Shi Muyao from the Yuling Sect. At this moment, as Mo Qianqian looked at Shi Muyao, he felt that she had become even more refined and breathtaking.

"Elder Asura, we finally found you," Shi Muyao said with an excited expression.

"Elder Asura!" Pei Hong also greeted him.

"Why are you two here?" Mo Qianqian asked in surprise.

"We came with the Sect Leader to attend the Spirit Master Banquet. The Sect Leader happened to have business and took us to the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion. The moment we heard about your situation, we rushed over," Shi Muyao replied. Facing Asura, her face was filled with eagerness, her eyes shining brightly.

"Attending the Spirit Master Banquet?" Mo Qianqian was astonished. He wondered if the Southern Wilderness Jade Spirit Sect had also been invited to the banquet.

Shi Muyao was about to answer when Pei Hong beat her to it. "Elder Asura, there are too many prying eyes out here. Why don’t we talk in your room?"

"Alright." Mo Qianqian nodded, then led the two of them upstairs into his newly booked room.

Once the door was closed, Shi Muyao began to explain, "Elder Asura, you don’t know this, but recently, seven Tongyou Realm experts from the Ling family came to the Yuling Sect to capture me."

Hearing this, Mo Qianqian’s expression instantly tightened. Seven Tongyou Realm experts went to the Yuling Sect to capture Shi Muyao? He realized they were trying to repeat their old trick, using Shi Muyao to threaten him into showing himself. If the Yuling Sect had refused to hand her over, the Ling family would likely have annihilated the sect entirely.

"It was our Yuling Sect’s hidden expert who appeared and frightened away the Ling family’s masters," Shi Muyao continued. "Then, a senior named Chu Yiming showed up and gave the Yuling Sect an invitation letter."

"That Senior Chu Yiming is said to be a Third-Grade Spirit Master and an Honored Guest Spirit Master of the royal family!" Pei Hong added from the side.

"I see!" Mo Qianqian exclaimed in amazement.

No wonder the Yuling Sect was qualified to participate. It turned out a hidden expert had emerged. It also made sense why Wansai had previously claimed that if push came to shove, even the major families couldn’t touch the Yuling Sect. To think the sect possessed such a formidable trump card.

"We were even attacked on our journey, but a masked man in black appeared and repelled the assailants. That was how we managed to reach the Imperial City safe and sound," Shi Muyao further explained.

Mo Qianqian’s face sank once more. So they had been ambushed on the road as well! It seemed those people still hadn’t given up on capturing Shi Muyao to threaten him. Fortunately, it was a close call, and they had entered the Imperial City safely. With the protection of the Yuling Sect Master and that masked man in black, their enemies likely wouldn’t dare make a move lightly within the city limits.

As for the masked man in black, Mo Qianqian couldn’t be sure if it was the same masked man who had helped him last time. He didn’t know if the person was the Yuling Sect’s hidden elder, Wansai, or someone else entirely. Regardless, Shi Muyao, the Yuling Sect Master, and the others had someone protecting them, and that was enough.

"Elder Asura, we heard you’ve reached the cultivation level of a Second-Grade Spirit Master?" Pei Hong suddenly asked.

"I managed a lucky breakthrough." Mo Qianqian nodded.

"It really is true!" Shi Muyao’s face lit up with joy, the admiration in her eyes growing even stronger.

"I wonder if Elder Asura has any interest in establishing a financial syndicate?" Pei Hong asked with a sudden smile.