NOVPUBHundreds of Da Jin monks whizzed past by her side.
In the distance, the dark waves collided with the clear blue lake, thundering and shaking the heavens, stirring up countless wavelets like shattered jade.
The roar of the water, the clashing of Magic Tools, the screeches of Demonic Beasts...
Flames danced wildly, while emerald green vegetation twined around...
Countless Demonic Beasts struggled fiercely with the cultivators amid the interweaving of water and fire.
However, at this moment.
All the clamor seemed to become a silent breeze by her side.
Qin Lingxiao stood in mid-air, staring blankly at that familiar face not far away.
After nearly fifty years of absence, she had thought she had forgotten him.
She also thought that when she saw him again, she would be indifferent.
But the instant he appeared before her.
All her self-righteousness shattered into fragility.
His face, every inch of his skin, every subtle expression... reflected precisely those in her memory.
Only then did she startlingly realize.
She had never forgotten him, not even for a moment.
Time seemed not to have left any traces on him.
He was still as handsome and serene as before, still composed and calm, as if nothing could ever discompose him.
At this thought, a sudden, inexplicable resentment surged in her heart.
In her mind, the scene from that day in the Pure Yang Hall of Wanxiang Sect, where he had resolutely broken off their engagement in front of all the cultivators, suddenly resurfaced.
Shame, anger, resentment... a myriad of emotions overwhelmed her.
And just then.
With a faint smile on his face, he looked toward her and said,
"Many years have passed, Brother Qin, are you well?"
Qin Lingxiao was slightly taken aback.
The moment she heard his voice, all her previous resentment vanished into thin air.
It was as if his voice contained some kind of antidote.
She just stared blankly, wanting to say something, yet unsure how to express it.
Should she talk about how she had masochistically stayed in West Sea Country for years, spending her days in cultivation or dueling with Three Continents’ Cultivators just to avoid recalling the humiliation of that day?
Or should she talk about that small part of her heart...?
She didn’t know and couldn’t say.
She only felt an indescribable complexity and grievance in her heart.
Silence became her best defense.
Seeing Qin Lingxiao’s silence, he seemed to realize something, and the smile on his face stiffened slightly.
"Ahem... uh..."
An awkward atmosphere quietly spread between them.
Just at that moment.
"Father, this is Elder Qin Lingxiao, she is the Mistress of the Qin family... Huh? Father, you know Elder Qin?"
Wang Yi’an’s joyful voice interrupted the awkwardness between them.
"Ahem..."
Wang Ba coughed lightly.
Qin Lingxiao’s gaze shifted slightly, avoiding him.
Wang Yi’an looked at Wang Ba with some suspicion, then back at Qin Lingxiao with a hint of confusion.
He vaguely felt that the atmosphere was a bit off.
But he didn’t dwell on it and eagerly said,
"Father, it was Elder Qin who saved me earlier, don’t forget to thank her."
And to cater to Elder Qin’s emotions, he transmitted to Wang Ba,
"Father, it’s said that Elder Qin was once jilted, do you know by whom? When I become more powerful, I’ll teach that person a lesson for Elder Qin!"
Wang Ba: "..."
Suppressing the impulse to give a lesson on the spot, he said softly,
"I know... we’ll talk about it when we get back."
"By the way, Father, Uncle Fu is still inside! Go ask Guardian Shen for help..."
Wang Yi’an hastily added.
"I know."
Wang Ba interrupted Wang Yi’an’s words, his gaze avoiding Qin Lingxiao, and he said seriously,
"Brother Qin, Yi An, you two must leave this area quickly, the great battle has begun, and it is very dangerous here."
Wang Yi’an was surprised,
"Father, aren’t you leaving?"
Qin Lingxiao also felt a chill in her heart, putting aside her emotions as she instinctively looked at Wang Ba.
Wang Ba shook his head slightly, with a solemn expression,
"As the Earth Material Hall Master serving the Sect, how can I abandon my post in the face of a great enemy?"
Wang Yi’an looked at Wang Ba in astonishment as if seeing him for the first time.
"Father, you didn’t used to be like this, Mother said you were always cautious..."
Wang Ba’s face darkened involuntarily.
Suppressing the urge to discipline, he gritted his teeth and said,
"The situation is different!"
Under her veil, the corners of Qin Lingxiao’s mouth lifted into a slight curve.
But it quickly tightened again.
Wang Yi’an, however, still frowned and said,
"Father, you’re just a middle-stage Golden Core, don’t overexert. Let’s find a way to rescue Uncle Fu first and hurry away..."
Hearing this, Wang Ba no longer spoke to Wang Yi’an, but said softly to Qin Lingxiao,
"Brother Qin, you must hurry away, do not stay here any longer."
Qin Lingxiao glanced at Wang Ba and finally spoke coldly,
"My affairs are none of your business."
Wang Ba’s expression froze, then he said quietly,
"Back then, Wang Mou was wrong, but now is not the right time. After this battle ends, I will personally go to the capital of Jin to offer an apology."
Beside them, Wang Yi’an: "???"
He looked back and forth between Wang Ba and Qin Lingxiao, sensing the strange atmosphere between them, and couldn’t help but raise an unbelievable thought in his mind.
But as soon as this thought sprang up, he immediately dismissed it!
How could it be possible!
How could the heavenly Elder Qin have anything to do with his father, a mere chicken breeder...?
A huge roar erupted in the distance!
All three of them couldn’t help but look towards the sea.
They saw a huge, pitch-black crack opened in the sky far away, with Sword Qi crisscrossing and claws flashing for just an instant!
