He hesitated for a moment, recalling the confrontation in the room just now, and asked tentatively:
"Regarding the Saintess… if it's a matter of surveillance, wouldn't Trace Fate reveal everything at a glance? Why follow her like a shadow? And if it's an act, surely such close contact isn't necessary?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them—he had overstepped.
In the past, even inquiries about official business were often dismissed in a few words, let alone attempts to divine his superior's thoughts.
But the man on the couch spoke softly: "Trace Fate upon her is like falling into a thick fog. Her past is ethereal, her future annihilated; I cannot see through her."
He covered his eyes with his slender fingers. "Only by using these eyes to watch without pause, to discern every thread and fiber, can I see clearly whether she is true or false, who she truly is, and what she intends."
Qin Zheng was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected a response, nor did he detect any hint of anger.
However, the meaning behind the words was too elusive for him to grasp.
This superior of his usually never spoke unless asked, and even then, he was often indifferent. For him to open up today… perhaps his mood was decent?
Bolstered by this, Qin Zheng's courage grew, and he asked further: "This 'fog' sounds familiar. Is it identical to the one belonging to the person you've been searching for all these years with Trace Fate but could never see clearly?"
After asking, he held his breath, waiting for a cold rebuke.
Xie Wulei's fingers remained over his eyes; he didn't say a word.
Qin Zheng grew increasingly uneasy. "A fog that even Trace Fate cannot see through… could she be hiding an unknown Heaven-rank Divine Ability? Or is the fog itself a higher level of existence?"
"Mm."
That soft affirmation made Qin Zheng's heart leap. He couldn't help but say, "Is it really just because you can't see through her? I see the way you treat her… it seems different from how you treat others…"
"Qin Zheng," Xie Wulei interrupted him, "if even you think so, then it means the performance is convincing enough."
Qin Zheng froze in place, mulling over those words.
Convincing? Was he deceiving others, or had he deceived himself as well?
Acting?! Peerless Frost, in the corner, suddenly had an epiphany. I get it! Master is doing this to make that witch lower her guard so he can find an opportunity for revenge!
Xie Wulei: One more word, and I'll seal you for a century.
With a whimper, Peerless Frost went silent.
Qin Zheng pondered privately: Why did he say so much today? If his mood is good, he seems rather distracted; if his mood is bad, given his heavy injuries, he should have been too bothered to answer at all.
…
When Yu Huan stepped out of the guest courtyard, the night rain happened to fall.
Jidaozong was built along the mountains, its halls and pavilions layered upon one another. The ancient stone walls were darkened by the rain, and vines hung down like curtains. Witch Runes flickered faintly on the corridor pillars, and lanterns cast a hazy glow in the rain, blending with the sound of rain hitting the plantains in the distance—a scene full of Nanjiang’s characteristic humid, heavy melancholy.
Turning a corner in the corridor, the light ahead suddenly dimmed. Yan Ming, Head of the Law Enforcement Hall; Liu Qingyi, Head of the Alchemy Hall; and Mo Yan, Head of the Formation Hall, stood under the eaves. Behind them were Grand Elder Wei Cangsong and two other elders, a dark mass of figures blocking the path.
This formation caused Yu Huan to pause. Ordinary business would never disturb so many high-ranking members; one look at their expressions told her they hadn't come with good intentions.
"Why have you all gathered here? Is there something urgent?" she asked, frowning.
Wei Cangsong spoke first, his bone staff tapping lightly on the floorboards. "Lass Huan, we've finally managed to catch you alone! These past few days, you've been constantly with Lord Xie, and we've had no chance to speak. We have a few words of honest advice today. If we offend you, please do not take it to heart!"
"Junior Sister, we're doing this for your own good!" Yan Ming's small braids swayed as the others chimed in with their agreement.
Yu Huan: "…Please, speak your minds."
Yan Ming: "Junior Sister, do you know what the rumors outside have become?"
Yu Huan: "Rumors?"
During this half-month of being watched by Xie Wulei, she had been exhausted just dealing with him; she’d had no time to pay attention to outside affairs.
Yan Ming said urgently, "You actually don't know?! Naturally, they're about you and that man! Lord Xie cultivates the Path of Heartlessness, yet the rumors say he's become a devoted lover who spends every day intimate with you! My Law Enforcement Hall just intercepted three groups of cultivators trying to storm the mountain, all of them here just to see the spectacle! It's simply preposterous!"
Yu Huan: "?"
Liu Qingyi, dressed in emerald green silken robes with anger in her beautiful eyes, added: "Outside, they say he's suffered qi deviation for you and is drowning in a sea of tenderness! They say he's ignoring the major cases just to accompany you to see the mountains and rivers by day and admire the moon by night—that his Dao heart is in shambles! Now, even the Witch Market is selling dolls of the two of you, and news of your affair on the Universal Communication Array has even surpassed news of the Transformation Disk! Half of the Ten Great Immortal Sects and Twenty-Four Great Clans have sent messages asking if a wedding is being prepared!"
Yu Huan: "??"
The formation disks all over Mo Yan's body clattered. "Some even say you've disregarded the Sect's dignity just to cling to a powerful official! Even more terrifying are the rumors that he intends to use you as a Tribulation Cauldron. Once your feelings are deeply rooted, he’ll draw his sword and sever his emotions to attain his Dao!"
Yu Huan: "???"
Mo Yan handed over a bronze formation disk. "Junior Sister, see for yourself."
In the projections of the formation disk, the rumors were explicit and absurd. There were even fantasies about "bathing together under the moon" and "cultivating secret methods together."
Yu Huan only glanced at it twice before feeling a wave of nausea. Being linked in such scandalous rumors with a cold-blooded executioner whose hands were stained with blood was both terrifying and disgusting—and beyond ridiculous!
Xie Wulei was the man who wanted to kill her; where would any romance come from? There was absolutely nothing between them, so how could such foul rumors exist?
Suppressing the doubt in her heart, she realized that these people had come to hold her accountable.
She said calmly, "You need not trouble yourselves; these reports are fundamentally biased! You must know that there are two paths to the Path of Heartlessness. One is Supreme Detachment: severing all emotions and desires, a heart like cold stone, acting only according to law and reason without a shred of personal feeling. The other is Heart-Tempering Severance: one must enter the mortal world and experience the seven emotions. When the bond is etched into the very bone, one must personally sever it—killing the one they love, abandoning their kin, and using that heart-wrenching pain to break through to the next realm. However, the latter often presents a facade of warmth, which is entirely different from the icy slaughter Lord Xie displays."
She emphasized her tone: "He clearly cultivates the former. Otherwise, how did he earn the title 'Heartless God of Slaughter'? That name itself is proof that his emotions are extinct!"
Moreover, the few lines about him in the original book stated in black and white: Cultivates Supreme Detachment, shall never touch love for all eternity, and shall never go near women for his entire life.
With him being like that, how could she believe the words "moved by emotion"? Who would harbor fantasies about an executioner?
She said, "You need not worry about the rumors. He has no feelings for me, and there is absolutely no affection between us!"
But the elders' expressions did not soften.
Zhou Mingyuan stopped smiling, his tone turning cold. "If he truly cultivates Supreme Detachment, why does he drag you to see pavilions and waterscapes every day? He requires your presence while he heals, he follows you while you practice your cultivation, and when the Commandery Princess went missing, disciples saw him waiting doggedly outside your secluded cultivation chamber—is that the behavior of someone who has severed all desires?"
Mo Yan said, "The word from White Jade Capital is that he follows the path of Heart-Tempering Severance! Two days ago, I eavesdropped on the source of the rumors and traced them back to several Central Plains clans; I couldn't have misheard!"
Wei Cangsong's stone bone staff slammed heavily onto the floorboards, splashing water everywhere. "If it wasn't for the sake of tempering his heart through tribulation, why would he be inseparable from you? Now, even your former suitors have sent letters asking if you are being coerced, saying they are willing to form an alliance to demand justice and risk their lives to protect you!"
Liu Qingyi: "Regardless of which Path of Heartlessness he cultivates, his entanglement with you is dangerous! Junior Sister, you must stay away from him!"
Yu Huan: "…"
Did they think she didn't want to stay away from him? But under the pressure of such power, she had no choice.
Zhou Mingyuan let out a long sigh. "That position of his was carved out through a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood! In his early years at the Shangqing Immortal Sect, any disciple who dared to compete with him was torn to pieces. They were either dead or crippled! Later, when he entered the National Dao Academy, he suppressed all the brilliant geniuses of Jiuzhou single-handedly until they couldn't lift their heads. Half of them had their Dao hearts shattered and were never able to advance again, effectively becoming useless! After that, he was sent to the Ximo to fight the Sand Barbarians and to the Beihuang to suppress demons. He climbed to the position of Jiangyaosi Commander-in-Chief one step at a time over a mountain of bones! The people who have died by his sword could stretch from Jidaozong to White Jade Capital! He executes high officials and nobles without hesitation, and even members of the Imperial family are no exception—half of the princes of the previous dynasty fell to his blade! Even the late Emperor… sigh, let's not speak of it!"
"In the ten thousand years since the founding of the Immortal Dynasty, only two people have had their hands so soaked in blood—the first was the Master of the Law Enforcement Celestial Palace a thousand years ago, who cultivated the Path of Slaughter and ascended once he had killed enough. The second is this Xie Wulei!"
He suddenly clenched his fist. "Where do you think the title 'God of Slaughter' came from? With such a ruthless temperament, and yet he's taken an interest in you—how could you dare not be on your guard?!"
Looking at the pained faces before her, Yu Huan laughed out of sheer frustration.
Giving up entirely, she raised her voice and asked in return, "Have you all never considered? This constant presence of his isn't because he has feelings for me, but because he suspects me and is monitoring me?!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the corridor fell silent.
A moment later, Wei Cangsong let out a cold laugh. "Lass Huan, you've become muddled! Who would believe he's monitoring you? Which Jiangyaosi Commander-in-Chief would get personally involved with a suspect? These rumors actually prove your innocence—after all, given his status, why would he choose a compromised Tribulation Cauldron for his enlightenment? The fact that he tolerates you by his side already explains everything. In the eyes of outsiders, you are as clean as can be!"
Mo Yan also sneered. "If you were a suspect, he would know the moment he used Trace Fate. Why would he waste time accompanying you to look at mountains and water?"
"Exactly!" Zhou Mingyuan said with conviction. "If he really suspected you, he would have seized you for interrogation long ago! Why use such self-deprecating words to brush us off?"
Yu Huan's fingertips felt icy; she felt utterly powerless.
The truth was right in front of them, but no one believed it. Everyone had been brainwashed by the rumors!
Did she actually have to thank these rumors for clearing her of suspicion??
How could they know that what Xie Wulei couldn't find was precisely the anomaly of her being a "transmigrator"? Her soul, which came from outside the book, might not fall within the scope of his Trace Fate deductions.
Years ago, while investigating the Imperial Bone Case, he had suspected the Director of the Qintianjian of the previous dynasty. That man was a first-rank civil official and the National Teacher, holding the human race's fortune on behalf of the Emperor. It was precisely because his body's fortune could shield him from Trace Fate's prying into heavenly secrets that Xie Wulei spent three years "accidentally" encountering him until he finally found a flaw and killed him.
That "accidental encounter" was exactly the same as the surveillance tactics he was using on her now.
She just wasn't sure: was her status as a transmigrator blocking his gaze, leaving him without ironclad proof? Or had he already seen through it and was deliberately stalling for some other purpose?
She didn't dare think too deeply. If he had evidence but didn't act, this half-month of surveillance hid an even more terrifying scheme; if he lacked solid proof, his constant presence meant his suspicions hadn't faded and he was still searching for a weakness. Neither case was the "affection" the elders spoke of.
But she couldn't say a single word about the secrets of being a transmigrator or communicating with demons. She could only let them misinterpret suspicion as infatuation.
Yu Huan sighed. "Fine. Since it's like this, haven't you all been watching in secret? The truth should be clear; the rumors are nothing but fabrications out of thin air!"
Yan Ming clenched his fist. "It's precisely because we've seen so much that we're even more certain! Is that look in his eyes when he watches you what surveillance is supposed to look like?!"
Liu Qingyi said, "He doesn't ask about the case, but instead asks about your birthday and age. He's clearly trying to find out your background to find a chance to get close!"
Shi Wanshan fingered his string of Gu: "It rained the day before yesterday, and he even took off his outer robe to cover you—a figure like him, when has he ever shown such consideration to anyone?"
Yu Huan met their gaze calmly. "Senior Brother Yan, the way he looks at me is no different from how he looks at a prisoner, he's just wearing a gentler mask." That probing and scrutiny had never diminished for a single moment beneath his refined facade.
Yan Ming was stunned, silenced by the clarity in her eyes.
She turned to Liu Qingyi. "He asked for my birthday because he wanted to deduce the connection between my fate and the Transformation Disk. Those seemingly casual inquiries were merely the prologue to an interrogation, having nothing to do with personal feelings."
Liu Qingyi opened her mouth, but for a moment, she couldn't find the words to respond.
Finally, Yu Huan looked at Shi Wanshan. "He took off his outer robe because 'the weather is humid and muggy, and wearing it is a hindrance.' He knew full well that I am a cultivator and do not fear the wind and rain, yet he insisted on handing it over—if that's not a humiliation, what is? He thinks my cultivation is so shallow that I can't even withstand a bit of rain?"
Everyone was stunned, their faces filled with disbelief.
"You girl!" Yan Ming was so anxious that his small braids shook. "You're clearly feigning ignorance!"
Shi Wanshan's face turned beet-red. "No matter how muggy it was, I've never seen him take off his outer robe before…"
Liu Qingyi's voice rose: "Junior Sister! Then let me ask you, if he has no feelings for you, why would he protect you and get injured in the Forbidden Land Turbulence? That's a turbulence that can tear apart the soul. Why would he block it for you?"
Yu Huan's voice was saturated with exhaustion. "What he protected was the identity of the Garrison Envoy. If anything happens to me, the clues to the demon conspiracy will be severed."
"You!" Liu Qingyi's face turned pale with anger, but she couldn't find a way to argue back.
Yu Huan's heart felt cold as she finally understood completely—they would rather believe the rumors, deluding themselves with the story of the "Heartless God of Slaughter falling for the Saintess" to prove Jidaozong's innocence. This was clearly more comforting to them than Xie Wulei's malice toward the sect.
Yet, they were also unwilling to let her truly become a sacrifice for Xie Wulei's path of severing emotions. Rather than an interrogation, this was more of a probe and a warning, ultimately for the sake of the sect and for her.
She simply stopped talking. She couldn't exactly tell them that Xie Wulei would kill her in the future; nor could she pull out the original book to prove he cultivated Supreme Detachment, not Heart-Tempering Severance.
Zhou Mingyuan sighed. "We came today specifically to gauge your attitude. Since you have no feelings for him, that is good, but you must tread as if on thin ice! You are so certain he won't fall for you, but you don't realize that he might be doing this on purpose to make you lower your guard!"
Wei Cangsong added: "Anyone with eyes can see that his actions are exactly those of Heart-Tempering Severance! He's luring you into falling for him, only to kill you and prove his Grand Dao! This old man reminds Her Highness to distinguish right from wrong, to reduce contact, and not to let your heart be stolen by a man's tricks! Lest you end up with your life and cultivation extinguished, falling into eternal ruin!"
The others chimed in: "Your Highness, we're all doing this for your own good!"
Yu Huan: "…"
Suddenly, an Acacia Fan whirled through the rain, circled under the eaves, and landed steadily back in its owner's hand.
Gu Qianli fanned himself, smiling with a rakish air:
"Oho, is this a denunciation rally? What heavenly law has Sister Yu broken that deserves such a collective lecture from you all?"
The author has something to say: