On Five-Pass Plain, not far from the center of the Burning Heart Secret Realm, a fierce battle was taking place.
A young female cultivator dressed in a black robe was mercilessly beating a Two-Headed Black Tortoise.
The tortoise had already been beaten half to death.
It had retreated into its hard shell and refused to come out, so the female cultivator repeatedly threw it high into the air and roasted it with flames. Gradually, even the sturdy shell developed three or four cracks running all the way through it.
The young woman stood bathed in fire.
She seemed completely enraged by the tortoise’s cowardly behavior. While continuing to beat it, she shouted furiously,
“Stop hiding!”
Watching from the side, Ning Qiubai wiped away cold sweat.
“Terrifying. I absolutely never want to make her angry.”
Unable to speak aloud, Hong Zhui nevertheless nodded with a serious expression.
Fuchuan stared at the figure and asked worriedly,
“Will she be okay?”
Ning Qiubai sighed.
“She’s still angry.”
“Her temper isn’t as gentle as it used to be. If she doesn’t vent it, things may get even worse.”
“I think you shouldn’t interfere. Just let her keep beating things.”
Ever since Fuchuan told them about meeting Sunwheel, Zhu Mingyan had been in a dark mood.
Perhaps yesterday’s battle with the Three-Tailed Fish Dragon had awakened her old fighting instincts.
She completely abandoned her previous strategy of avoiding unnecessary battles.
Now, whenever she saw a demon beast, she rushed forward and beat it up.
The spiritual energy rampaging through her body caused constant pain, making her increasingly irritable.
As a result, she wanted even more to kill every demon beast that stood in her way.
The terrifying killing intent she released without restraint frightened many beasts away.
Unfortunately, seeing them deliberately avoid her only reminded her of Sunwheel.
The more she thought about him, the angrier she became.
And the harder she hit.
Finally, after a deafening crash, the tortoise shell shattered completely.
The Two-Headed Black Tortoise collapsed onto the ground and stopped moving.
Without hesitation, Zhu Mingyan delivered the finishing blow.
The wooden token hanging at her waist flashed with white light.
Her kill count increased once more.
At last, her anger seemed to have eased.
With a cold snort, Zhu Mingyan called over Fuchuan, who had earlier been sent by Ning Qiubai to rescue some spiritual plants.
The pain from the spiritual energy running wild through her body finally outweighed her desire to fight.
She leaned weakly against Fuchuan’s enlarged back.
After a long silence, she quietly murmured,
“…Why do you think Sunwheel won’t come see me?”
Fuchuan cautiously asked,
“Are you angry with him?”
Zhu Mingyan looked absent-minded.
Truthfully, she did not know where this nameless anger was coming from.
She lowered her head and remained silent.
If Sunwheel could appear, then why had he gone to Fuchuan first instead of coming directly to her?
Of course she wanted Sunwheel to be alive.
She had always hoped he could free himself from their past and start over.
But now that those wishes might actually have come true, she suddenly realized she still could not completely let go.
Perhaps Sunwheel had never forgiven her for being the one who broke their contract all those years ago.
…
To Fuchuan, her silence looked like confirmation.
He had already disliked Sunwheel.
Sunwheel had called him ugly and weak.
He had practically insulted him from beginning to end.
Yet at the same time, Sunwheel’s words suggested that he shared a deep connection with Zhu Mingyan.
That made Fuchuan both intimidated and insecure.
He had never dared to openly complain.
But now, seeing how upset Zhu Mingyan was, he felt strangely encouraged.
Gathering his courage, he finally said,
“Don’t be angry.”
“I… I’ll be better than him!”
Zhu Mingyan was silent for a moment.
Then she finally smiled.
“Okay.”
“I believe you.”
No matter why Sunwheel refused to see her, they could never form a contract again.
Clinging to past regrets would not solve anything.
That had never been her way.
Sunwheel had the right to choose his own path.
As for her, there was only one thing she wanted to do.
She wanted to find the person who had forced her to break the contract all those years ago.
She wanted revenge against the person who had dragged her into a pit of misery.
Only then could she finally bring an end to the pain and loss of both her past and present lives.
…
After regaining her composure, Zhu Mingyan and her companions continued their journey.
Perhaps her brutal beating of the Two-Headed Black Tortoise had been too intimidating.
For the rest of the trip, they did not encounter a single demon beast.
By evening, they arrived at Mount Ciwang.
Many cultivators had already set up camp there.
Mount Ciwang was located in the central region of the Burning Heart Secret Realm.
It was rich in spiritual energy and filled with demon beasts.
After two days of exploration, the conditions of every area were no longer a secret.
As a result, many people came here hoping to find opportunities and treasures.
Neither Zhu Mingyan nor Ning Qiubai wanted to squeeze into the crowds.
So they walked halfway around the mountain and found a relatively quiet and secluded place to rest.
The mountain was cold at dusk.
After warming themselves by the campfire for a while, the familiar bell rang once again.
It was time to announce the daily rankings.
Ning Qiubai poured spiritual energy into her wooden token.
While waiting for the scoreboard to appear, she said,
“You killed so many spirit beasts today. Your ranking should be pretty good.”
Zhu Mingyan neither agreed nor disagreed.
She leaned over with Ning Qiubai to look at the ranking list.
The moment she saw it, she was stunned.
Her name was clearly listed in third place.
Today’s rampage had pushed her directly into the top three.
Ning Qiubai exclaimed,
“I think you should start deciding which treasure you want from the Treasure Pavilion.”
Zhu Mingyan opened the detailed ranking list.
Her number of kills was astonishingly high.
Only Guan You, who ranked second, had killed more beasts than she had.
She had nearly seventy kills.
Immediately, she frowned.
“That’s strange.”
“Yesterday I had fewer than ten kills.”
“How did I suddenly get this many today?”
Ning Qiubai waved it off.
“Why worry about it?”
“The wooden token can’t count wrong.”
“Maybe you got so carried away killing things that you didn’t even notice.”
“Maybe…” Zhu Mingyan replied doubtfully.
Just as Ning Qiubai put away the ranking list, a voice suddenly called out from nearby.
“Isn’t this Senior Sister Zhu? What a coincidence!”
Zhu Mingyan looked up.
The newcomer was Guan Congnan.
Several disciples followed behind him.
Among them was the shortest and youngest one, who was glaring at her fiercely.
Zhu Mingyan immediately became cautious.
“Junior Brother Guan, weren’t you heading north?”
“Why are you here?”
Guan Congnan smiled sincerely.
“We already explored the northern area.”
“Now we’re on our way back.”
“Who would’ve thought we’d run into Senior Sister here?”
As if I’d believe that!
Zhu Mingyan silently complained.
There was no way such a coincidence existed.
Her face clearly showed her disbelief.
Guan Congnan casually sat down beside Zhu Mingyan as though they were old friends.
At the same time, he instructed the disciples behind him to rest there as well.
Ning Qiubai twitched slightly.
“You’re staying here tonight too?”
Duan Qingyang immediately became angry.
“Why do you sound so disgusted?”
Guan Congnan, however, showed no anger.
Instead, he looked puzzled.
“Isn’t this a good place?”
“We’re close to the center of the secret realm. There are plenty of demon beasts around.”
“If more people stay together, we can look after one another.”
“Don’t you agree, Senior Sister Zhu?”
At that moment, Fuchuan finally lost his patience.
“Don’t sit so close to her!”
That’s my spot!
Guan Congnan’s eyes widened.
“Huh? A spirit beast that can talk?”
“Senior Sister is amazing!”
“If I could continue traveling with Senior Sister, then surely—”
Zhu Mingyan forced out an awkward laugh.
“No need to flatter me.”
“And I don’t enjoy traveling with other people…”
Guan Congnan continued trying to be friendly several more times.
But Zhu Mingyan remained guarded.
Finally, he sighed.
“Senior Sister Zhu, I would never harm you.”
“Please believe me.”
Zhu Mingyan sneered.
“And why should I believe you?”
It seemed as though he had been waiting for that question.
Looking directly at her, he answered seriously,
“Because I have always admired Senior Sister Zhu.”
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone froze.
The phrase “always admired” hit them like a bolt of lightning.
Zhu Mingyan herself looked completely stunned.
Unable to stop herself, she blurted out,
“…Huh?”