The enormous hand Elder Liu had conjured from spiritual power shattered with a thunderous boom less than three inches above Shen Manyi’s head, dissolving into specks of spiritual light.
“S-Sword Venerable?”
Elder Liu’s whole body shuddered. The fury on his face instantly transformed into terror.
He stiffly turned toward the main hall, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
Wasn’t the Sword Venerable supposed to enter secluded cultivation immediately every time he returned?
Why had he appeared today?
Liu Qin was even more frightened. Her face had gone deathly pale.
The resentment and smugness in her eyes had vanished, leaving behind nothing but the terror of someone whose soul had been scared out of her body.
Xiao Mo slowly stepped out of the main hall.
Shen Manyi’s eyes lit up at once.
Her brother was here! Her greatest backer had arrived!
She hurried over to Xiao Mo, then pointed at Elder Liu and Liu Qin and complained indignantly.
“Brother, they bullied me! They called me a liar and even wanted to drag me to the Discipline Hall!”
“Mm. I saw.”
Xiao Mo’s voice held no emotion, yet it made Elder Liu’s scalp prickle.
He hurriedly bowed and apologized. “Sword Venerable, please forgive me! This subordinate didn’t know… didn’t know that this young lady was your…”
He truly had no idea what word he should use.
Younger sister?
Who in the Guiyuan Sword Sect didn’t know that the Supreme Sword Venerable had no family and was a Heaven-Damned Lone Star who had practically sprung from a rock?
Xiao Mo ignored him completely. He merely raised his hand and gently patted Shen Manyi on the head.
“Were you frightened?”
“Mm, a little.”
Shen Manyi nodded repeatedly like a pecking chick.
Watching this intimate scene, Elder Liu felt as if his entire world had split apart.
The Sword Venerable…
The Supreme Sword Venerable who did not allow any living creature within three feet of him—
had actually… actually treated a woman so gently?
The jealousy in Liu Qin’s eyes was practically tangible.
Why?
Why did this woman deserve it?
She was nothing more than a good-for-nothing at the third level of Qi Refining. Why would the Sword Venerable treat her so well?
Only then did Xiao Mo’s gaze finally fall upon the two people on the ground.
There was no killing intent in his eyes, yet they were so cold that Elder Liu shuddered.
“On my territory, you wanted to capture someone who belongs to me?”
“This disciple wouldn’t dare!”
Elder Liu dropped to his knees with a thud.
Cold sweat instantly soaked through his back.
“This disciple failed to recognize greatness and offended this young lady. I beg the Sword Venerable to punish me!”
How could he still dare mention any interrogation? At this point, he only hoped to preserve his life.
Xiao Mo’s gaze shifted to the trembling Liu Qin.
“Your disciple said she was a thing I picked up and that she was going to… clean house on my behalf?”
At his words, Liu Qin’s mind rang with a loud buzz before going completely blank.
She had thought the Sword Venerable had merely picked up some random person on a whim and would not bother with her afterward, which was why she had dared to act so brazenly.
Such things were not uncommon within the sect.
She frantically slammed her head against the ground, her forehead instantly splitting open.
“Sword Venerable, spare my life! Sword Venerable, spare my life!”
“This disciple was spouting nonsense! This disciple was being insolent! I deserve ten thousand deaths!”
Watching Liu Qin’s miserable state, Shen Manyi felt immensely satisfied.
Sure enough, hugging a powerful backer was the only true path to strength!
“Brother, she also wanted to ruin my face!” Shen Manyi quietly added another accusation.
Xiao Mo lowered his head and glanced at her delicate, radiant face before looking back at Liu Qin.
This time, a trace of genuine killing intent finally entered his voice.
“Go to Reflection Cliff. You are never to leave for the rest of your life.”
At these words, Liu Qin raised her head in disbelief, completely stunned.
Spend the rest of her life confined at Reflection Cliff?
The spiritual energy there was so thin that how was it any different from a tomb for the living dead?
This was even more cruel than killing her!
“Sword Venerable! No, Sword Venerable! This disciple knows she was wrong! Please give this disciple another chance!”
Liu Qin let out a shrill scream.
Elder Liu panicked as well and hurriedly pleaded, “Sword Venerable! My disciple is young and ignorant. Please—”
“Do you want to go keep her company?” Xiao Mo cut him off coldly.
The rest of Elder Liu’s words caught in his throat. He could not utter another syllable.
He lowered his head in despair and did not dare say anything more.
Before the Supreme Sword Venerable, an Elder of the Discipline Hall like him truly amounted to nothing.
Xiao Mo stopped looking at them and turned toward the side hall with Shen Manyi.
“Within fifteen minutes, I do not want to see any unrelated people on Supreme Peak.”
“Yes… yes!” Elder Liu replied as if he had just been pardoned.
He scrambled to his feet on all fours, dragged Liu Qin along like a lump of mud, and fled Supreme Peak.
Inside the side hall, Shen Manyi gazed at Xiao Mo with sparkling eyes.
“Brother, you’re amazing!”
“I really admire you so much!”
“You’re even better at being an undercover agent than the real Sect Master is at being the Sect Master! That presence, that authority—you’re incredible!”
Shen Manyi unleashed her flattery without the slightest hesitation, one compliment after another.
Looking at her excited expression, the faintest trace of amusement flashed through Xiao Mo’s eyes, vanishing too quickly for anyone to catch.
His gaze swept over the room, which had been decorated in a gaudy and colorful manner, and his brows furrowed once more.
Shen Manyi followed his gaze and stuck out her tongue guiltily.
“Brother, is it too tacky?
“I just thought the room was too cold and empty before, so I wanted to make it livelier.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Xiao Mo said indifferently. “As long as you like it.”
He paused, then took a token from his storage ring and handed it to her. The token was jet-black all over, engraved with intricate sword patterns.
“Carry this token, and you may travel unhindered throughout the sect.”
The token felt cold in Shen Manyi’s hand.
She knew it must be extremely valuable and quickly said, “Thank you, Brother! I’ll take good care of it!”
“Mm.”
Xiao Mo looked at her.
“If you encounter any fools who don’t know their place again, you needn’t waste words with them.”
Shen Manyi nodded vigorously. “I understand! I’ll send Tangyuan straight at them!”
At the mention of its name, Tangyuan leaped onto her shoulder and transmitted smugly, “With this divine beast here, you can run rampant below the Foundation Establishment stage.”
Shen Manyi curled her lip. “Hmph. You can only beat up the weak. If someone strong shows up, won’t I be finished?”
“Can you blame me for that? Your cultivation is simply too low and is suppressing this Divine Venerable’s power!”
Tangyuan roared indignantly before transforming into a streak of white light and vanishing.
Xiao Mo was already accustomed to it and did not ask any questions.
“Grrr—”
Shen Manyi’s stomach growled at the worst possible moment.
Only then did she remember that she had not eaten anything all day. Her cheeks instantly flushed bright red.
“Brother, are… are you hungry? I can make sweet-and-sour spare ribs for you! I’m really good at cooking!”
“No need.” Xiao Mo refused. He had long since stopped needing food.
Just as Shen Manyi was beginning to feel disappointed, Xiao Mo suddenly reached out and lightly touched her cheek.
There was a speck of dust on it that she had picked up earlier.
His fingertip was cold, carrying a strange sensation that made Shen Manyi’s heartbeat skip.
Xiao Mo withdrew his hand, his voice deepening slightly.
“Within this sect, there is no one I fear. If anyone comes looking for trouble, send them to me.”
With that, he turned and left the room.
Shen Manyi stood there in a daze, touching the place he had just brushed, her cheeks growing hotter and hotter.
Had her brother… been comforting her just now?
And what had he meant by that last sentence?
Shen Manyi thought about it for a long while before finally reaching a conclusion.
Her brother was telling her that his undercover identity was completely secure. He wanted her to feel free to throw her weight around here—he would back her up!
Once she figured that out, Shen Manyi’s spirits soared again.