Chapter 97 - 94: Ling Qingxue’s Shrewdness

Ling Qingxue was fishing for information! If she truly believed he was Mo Qianqian, why would she approach him with such an attitude? If she had actually recognized his true identity, she would have already swarmed the place with the experts of the Ling family! Clearly, she hadn’t recognized him; she was merely suspicious and wanted to bait him into slipping up. If he made a move or acted unnaturally, he would be well and truly exposed!

"What a cunning woman!" Mo Qianqian thought to himself, secretly shocked.

Ultimately, he forced himself to calm down. He glared at Ling Qingxue with a hostile gaze and said in a displeased tone, "What is the meaning of this, Miss Ling? Are you trying to attack me?"

"Mo Qianqian, you might fool others, but you can’t fool me. Because I possess your Holy Dragon Bloodline, I can sense the vitality within your body!" As Ling Qingxue spoke, her eyes turned sharp, and she assumed a combat stance, ready to strike.

Mo Qianqian’s heart jolted again. Could the Holy Dragon Bloodline sense his vitality? But in an instant, reason suppressed his panic. She had to be bluffing! Just because she possessed his Holy Dragon Bloodline didn’t mean she could detect his vitality. When he had the Holy Dragon Bloodline, he never possessed the ability to sense others’ vitality. Besides, his bloodline hadn’t been dug out of someone else’s body like hers was.

Furthermore, even if Ling Qingxue truly knew his identity, she was already on guard and ready to attack. Whether he admitted it or not, the result would be the same—a fight. So why not play dumb until the very end? Why confess it himself?

Having made up his mind, Mo Qianqian circulated his Spiritual Power, ready to react at a moment’s notice. However, he didn’t strike first. Instead, he said, "If you want to fight, Miss Ling, there’s no need to make up such an excuse.

"If the Ling family wants to capture me to threaten Mo Qianqian into showing himself, then I’m afraid you’ve miscalculated!

"I have absolutely nothing to do with Mo Qianqian!"

After those few words, Ling Qingxue clearly made no move to attack. At that moment, she suddenly changed her demeanor. "My apologies, I mistook you for someone else," she said. "Master Asura’s eyes look very much like those of someone I know—an old friend of mine, Mo Qianqian."

Mo Qianqian remained impassive and said nothing. Yet, he made sure to display a visibly angry demeanor, perfectly feigning the indignation of an offended Spirit Master.

Ling Qingxue pretended not to notice Master Asura’s anger and continued, "Back then, I treated him quite well. Everything he has achieved today is entirely thanks to my Ling family, and his status within the Ling family was all because of me."

Mo Qianqian’s heart tightened, and his fists clenched under the table. This was a blatant, barefaced lie. However, he also knew that Ling Qingxue was still testing him; she was saying these things on purpose.

Ling Qingxue’s voice carried a hint of arrogance as she continued. "Four years ago, I risked my life for him. I led the men of the Ling family to Buzhou Mountain to pick the Eight-leaf Spirit Lotus for him, nearly dying in the jaws of a Spiritual Snake.

"Three years ago, he was attacked. To protect him, I blocked a fatal sword strike, saving his life while almost losing my own.

"Two years ago, to find a Clear Spirit Pill for him, I led the experts of the Ling family to attack Fei Mountain and seize it, suffering injuries that lasted for months!"

Ling Qingxue’s tone then took on a trace of mockery. "One year ago, because of his sheer arrogance, I was implicated once again. I was besieged and struck by several swords!

"Just a few months ago, I was actually preparing a Nether Condensing Pill for him.

"Instead, he suddenly gave in to his animalistic urges. Disregarding my dignity and feelings, he acted inappropriately and tried to force himself on me.

"Tell me, doesn’t Mo Qianqian deserve to die?"

At this moment, the anger in Mo Qianqian’s heart was suppressed to its absolute limit, replaced by boundless killing intent. Right to his face, she had completely twisted the truth of everything he had sacrificed for her back then, making him sound like the ultimate villain! And Ling Qingxue actually had the audacity to say these things out loud. She flawlessly demonstrated what it meant to be utterly ruthless in achieving one’s goals!

"Miss Ling, do not treat everyone as a fool. If you only came today to tell me these things, then please leave," Mo Qianqian said in deep displeasure. Even though he was already altering his vocal cords to sound like a middle-aged man, his voice was exceptionally heavy and suppressed.

"I’ve made a fool of myself. I hope Master Asura can forgive me," Ling Qingxue apologized noncommittally. "I came this time to invite Master Asura to join the Ling family and become our Honored Guest Elder and Chief Spirit Master."

"I’m not interested. Please see yourself out, Miss Ling," Mo Qianqian said, showing her the door.

"The Ling family currently has the strongest momentum. If you join the Ling family, there will absolutely be immense benefits for you in the future, Master Asura. We might even be able to help you find the elixirs needed to break through to a Third-Grade Spirit Master," Ling Qingxue added.

"You have a silver tongue, Miss Ling, and quite the scheming mind for someone so young. I don’t trust you, nor do I trust your Ling family. Take care, Miss Ling. I won’t see you out!" Mo Qianqian replied.

"Pardon the intrusion. If Master Asura changes his mind, you can find me at any time." Ling Qingxue didn’t seem to mind the rejection as she stood up and strode out of the room.

Watching her retreating figure, Mo Qianqian’s eyes turned as cold as eternal ice, and his fists trembled from how tightly they were clenched. "Ling Qingxue, I will make you and the Ling family repay this humiliation ten times, a hundred times over!" he swore coldly in his heart.

Immediately afterward, Mo Qianqian called for Pei Hong. After giving her some instructions, he went back into secluded cultivation. He needed to rapidly improve his cultivation base! However, he had already used up all his second-grade elixirs. He could only upgrade the grades of his current elixirs first.

He still had more than thirty First-Grade Superior Elixirs on hand. Mo Qianqian activated his Spirit Body and began infusing them with spirituality. Of course, he would continue to defer on the elixir cooperation provided by the Yuling Sect and Wansai, intending to repay them double in the future.

It had to be said that after he became a Second-Grade Spirit Master, the spirituality of Mo Qianqian’s Spirit Body had grown much stronger. In less than two days, Mo Qianqian successfully upgraded all thirty-plus First-Grade Superior Elixirs to Second-Grade Junior Elixirs.

Logically speaking, he could have upgraded the Second-Grade Junior Elixirs further to Second-Grade Superior Elixirs. However, an elixir that had already been upgraded once was extremely difficult to enhance again. Elixirs could not be upgraded an infinite number of times. After all, this depended on the medicinal ingredients used; elixirs of a certain grade had a limit to how much spirituality they could absorb.

After finishing the upgrades, Mo Qianqian prepared to refine and absorb them. But right at that moment, Mo Qianqian suddenly heard a loud shout from far outside the inn: "People of the Asura Conglomerate, get the hell out here!"

Mo Qianqian furrowed his brow. It was an unfamiliar voice, belonging to a mature young man. Who was coming to his door looking for trouble? He left his room and soon arrived at the entrance outside the inn.

There, Mo Qianqian saw Pei Hong, along with a young man and eight middle-aged men, rushing to the door. Opposite them was a large group of twenty to thirty people, consisting of youths, middle-aged men, and elders.

Leading the group was an elegant, mature young man in white clothes, roughly twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old. The young man had a handsome face, a graceful demeanor, and was brimming with vitality. Walking at the forefront of the crowd, he exuded an invisible aura that immediately marked him as someone extraordinary and of remarkable standing.