The sight of Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo standing shoulder to shoulder was incredibly harsh and glaring on Ye Xiuwen's eyes.“Allow me to die in the spirit tool?” Ye Xiuwen echoed contemptuously as he curled his lips into a mocking smile, “Rong Ruihan, do you think I'd really be unaware that you'd only saved me back then because you want to ingratiate me so that I wouldn't be able to prevent you from drawing closer to Little Martial Sister? That said, I've got to commend you for a job well done. Unfortunately, you've miscalculated. Things have gone south for you, and it's too little too late if you're thinking of capitulating.”Jun Xiaomo stared at Ye Xiuwen in disbelief. She could hardly believe that her beloved Ye Xiuwen were speaking such harsh and unkind words right now.“I'll admit it. There were indeed some ulterior motives undergirding my decision to rescue you earlier.” Blood continued to trickle out of Rong Ruihan's lips as he added, “But it remains a fact that I'd saved your life. Aren't you being an ingrate right now? Furthermore, I'd rescued you earlier so that you can look after Jun Xiaomo for me. But what is this?! You're currently the culprit who's hurt her most deeply!”“Hah. Look after Jun Xiaomo for you? What basis do you have to request that I look after Jun Xiaomo on your behalf? Who do you think you are? There should never have been another person between her and I from the onset! And you, you're the third wheel that's disrupting our blissful relations.h.i.+p here!”As soon as Ye Xiuwen finished speaking, innumerable fireb.a.l.l.s emerged from the darkness once more, hurtling straight towards Rong Ruihan.“Brother Rong!” Jun Xiaomo cried out anxiously as she grabbed hold of Rong Ruihan's arm and dragged him along as they avoided several fireb.a.l.l.s together. Some fireb.a.l.l.s ended up striking Jun Xiaomo squarely on her body, yet she continued to hold on tightly to Rong Ruihan's arm.Rong Ruihan was completely spent, and he no longer had the ability to protect Jun Xiaomo. He watched feebly at Jun Xiaomo as she dodged left and right, refusing to let go of his hand even if that spelt certain death for her. His heart was filled with an inexplicable mix of emotions right now.Just then, Jun Xiaomo made a misstep as she was avoiding an approaching fireball and stumbled slightly, causing both her and Rong Ruihan to collapse straight to the ground.Truth be told, it had been an incredibly long time since Rong Ruihan had been reduced to such a tragic, helpless state.Lifting his head, he looked at how Ye Xiuwen was watching them dispa.s.sionately. Rong Ruihan's heart was swamped with reluctance and anxiety.He was reluctant to lose to his love rival like this, and he was anxious because he knew that if things went on like this, Jun Xiaomo might very well perish in front of his very eyes.Thus, after an intense struggle in his heart, he finally called out, “Stop! Ye Xiuwen.”Ye Xiuwen turned his attention to Rong Ruihan, ceasing fire for a short moment.“Don't hurt Jun Xiaomo anymore. I'll back off, alright?” It pained Rong Ruihan to give in like that, yet he knew that there was no other choice right now, “I sincerely believe that hurting Jun Xiaomo isn't your intention at all. You're only doing this to force me to leave her alone. That's fine. I'll remain here within the spirit tool. Please release her.”Ye Xiuwen's eyes quivered slightly, as though he were contemplating Rong Ruihan's suggestion.Zhang Shuyue was still lying beside Ye Xiuwen right now. Her heart immediately tensed up when she noticed the hesitation in Ye Xiuwen's eyes, so she quickly interjected, “Brother Ye, don't believe his words. Jun Xiaomo will most certainly think of a way to rescue her beloved as soon as she is released. She will never wholeheartedly belong to you. In fact, she might even begin to hate you because of how you'd hurt her beloved in the spirit tool. Who knows – she might even end up seeking vengeance on you and hurting you!”“Zhang Shuyue, shut your trap right now!” Chen Feiyu truly hated Zhang Shuyue through and through. Zhang Shuyue was evidently emboldened by Ye Xiuwen's tacit acceptance of her advances, and she had begun to speak with less caution and restraint.“Jun Xiaomo, what do you think? I'll agree to release you if you're willing to leave the spirit tool alone. What do you say to that?” Ye Xiuwen coldly redirected the question to Jun Xiaomo. His voice was completely devoid of emotions, and it seemed almost as though he were negotiating the terms of a contract with a mere business partner.Jun Xiaomo's heart sank heavily. Plagued by immeasurable disappointment, she glanced at Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue. Then, her heart trembled slightly as she suddenly asked, “Martial Brother Ye, what would you do if I truly betray you in our relations.h.i.+p one day?”The vile energy in the depths of Ye Xiuwen's eyes stirred slightly, and he coldly responded, “If that happens, I'll personally send you, together with the third wheel in our relations.h.i.+p, straight to the pits of h.e.l.l.”Tears began to swell up in Jun Xiaomo's eyes, but she held it in fervently.Drawing a deep breath, she suppressed the tremors in her voice and continued, “Then, if I die, will Martial Brother Ye look after my parents and the other Heavenly Peak martial brothers and protect them from external harm?”A trace of indignation filled Ye Xiuwen's eyes once more, and he retorted impatiently and coldly, “Just say it if you're afraid of dying. Stop looking for excuses for yourself!”Ye Xiuwen's remarks sent Jun Xiaomo's heart straight to the bottom of the valley.At this very moment, she suddenly found herself overwhelmed with jadedness. What was the point of having been reborn? What meaning was there in being reborn? Shouldn't she be elated, given how her loved ones, family and friends had all experienced a stark change in their fate from how things were in her previous life?That said, the path in her present life had deviated so much from that in her previous life that she was absolutely uncertain as to her direction in life right now.“Then, alright. I'll accept your punishment towards me.” Jun Xiaomo grimaced, chuckling at herself somewhat in a self-deprecating fas.h.i.+on as she added, “I'll admit that there are two men in my heart right now, and I don't deserve the love that you've extended to me. Since you feel that death is the only way to appease your heart, then so be it.”This could be considered some form of repayment to Ye Xiuwen. After all, she had caused Ye Xiuwen's death in her previous life, so her death right now could simply be considered a form of penance for the mistakes of her previous life.“Xiaomo!” Chen Feiyu and the rest glared at Jun Xiaomo with disapprobation, while Rong Ruihan also furrowed his brows, “Jun Xiaomo, silence! I don't want your goodwill nor sacrifice!”After castigating Jun Xiaomo, Rong Ruihan turned back to Ye Xiuwen and declared bitterly, “Xiaomo had earlier informed me that Brother Ye was the only person in her heart right from the onset. Her heart has never had any s.p.a.ce for my existence. If you don't want to do something that you'll regret for the rest of your life, release her right now.”“Yoo~ Look at that display of pa.s.sion.” Zhang Shuyue continued to add fuel to fire, “Brother Ye, just look at how loving the two of them are. On the one hand, she pledges her life just so that she can remain by his side till death. While on the other hand, he does all he can to draw the line in the hope that she will be released from the spirit tool and remain alive. If this isn't true love, I wonder what is?”Zhang Shuyue's provocations were incredibly effective, and it began to stir the vile energy swirling about in the depths of Ye Xiuwen's eyes once more. Just like that, what modic.u.m of rationality remaining within his mind began to be thoroughly washed away by the baptism of the foul energy.Ye Xiuwen lifted one hand with his palm facing up as he stared at Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan. Then, he slowly gave his verdict –“Since you've caused me such pain and misery, you deserve death.”Ye Xiuwen clenched his fists as soon as he finished speaking, and a barrage of fireb.a.l.l.s rushed out from the surrounding darkness, hurtling straight towards Rong Ruihan and Jun Xiaomo from all directions!Jun Xiaomo stood motionless in the epicenter of the onslaught of fireb.a.l.l.s, casting one final look at Ye Xiuwen sorrowfully. Her eyes were as still and tranquil as pristine waters right now.“Martial Sister Xiaomo!”“Little Martial Sister!”Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples wailed in horror and anxiety, as though they wanted to dive straight into the spirit tool to pluck Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan back from the jaws of death!As the fireb.a.l.l.s hurtled towards Jun Xiaomo, she slowly shut her eyes, awaiting the arrival of a moment of excruciating pain before her death.She had thought that her premature death was going to be incredibly painful and filled with bitter resentment. However, as death quickly approached her, she found herself awash with peace and tranquility in her heart.Perhaps it was the manifestation of the guilt and remorse towards Ye Xiuwen in her heart that had made everything somewhat easier to accept. After all, it remained a lifelong regret that she had caused Ye Xiuwen's death in her previous life. To die by Ye Xiuwen's hands in this life would undoubtedly be a form of penance for that.That said, she sincerely hoped that Ye Xiuwen wouldn't make Zhang Shuyue his own cultivation companion after her death. After all, Zhang Shuyue was far too unreliable as a person…Just then, Jun Xiaomo discovered to her surprise that the excruciating pain she had been expecting never arrived. Instead, she found herself pushed to the ground by someone who held her in an incredibly tight embrace.She could feel the powerful force of the fireb.a.l.l.s striking the warm body covering her, and she could feel the intense heat radiating from each fireball that landed relentlessly.“Brother Rong…” Jun Xiaomo's tears burst out of her eyes, melding together with the blood that had begun to scatter all over her face.She returned the embrace, before exerting some force and rolling Rong Ruihan around so that her body was on top.Rong Ruihan's life aura had already vanished completely as soon as he s.h.i.+elded Jun Xiaomo from the potentially fatal blow earlier. His back was a grisly, mangled mess; his hair had been singed off; and his bones were even exposed to the air. It was a terrifying, grotesque sight.Jun Xiaomo could already tell that Rong Ruihan's heartbeats had grown undetectable. She feared the worst, but she refused to check for Rong Ruihan's breath.As she sobbed and wept uncontrollably, more and more fireb.a.l.l.s began to rain down towards them. Now that she had flipped Rong Ruihan around, the fireb.a.l.l.s crashed down directly onto her back.However, she could no longer feel any pain from the fireb.a.l.l.s because the excruciating pain spreading from her heart had already numbed all her senses.“Ye Xiuwen, are you really trying to kill Little Martial Sister?!” Chen Feiyu charged at Ye Xiuwen, placing his life on the line in the hope that he could s.n.a.t.c.h the spirit tool from Ye Xiuwen's hands. However, Ye Xiuwen simply sent him flying with the flick of his sleeves.Several Heavenly Peak disciples also followed suit, charging straight towards Ye Xiuwen. All of them knew full well that they were no match for Ye Xiuwen. However, there was only one thought on their minds right now – and that was to rescue their Little Martial Sister.Despite that, every single one of the Heavenly Peak disciples were sent flying and slamming into the ground.Some distance away, Xiang Guqing snorted contemptuously as she watched the internal strife among the Heavenly Peak disciples play out.Blinded by their fury, Chen Feiyu and the other Heavenly Peak disciples had failed to notice that the fireb.a.l.l.s had already ceased raining upon Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan.Jun Xiaomo lay completely motionless on Rong Ruihan's body as though she were dead. Her body was a mangled mess, covered in b.l.o.o.d.y wounds and grisly injuries.As Ye Xiuwen looked at how Jun Xiaomo was lying motionless in the projection, a trace of hesitation surfaced his eyes for an instant, and his emotions were frozen over once more in the very next moment.Zhang Shuyue had expected Ye Xiuwen to continue hurtling fireb.a.l.l.s onto Jun Xiaomo and Rong Ruihan until there was nothing left of their corpses. At the very least, she had not expected Ye Xiuwen to halt his barrage of attacks this early on.Zhang Shuyue she was stricken with fear that Ye Xiuwen would have second thoughts about killing Jun Xiaomo, so she immediately sought to egg him on, “Brother Ye, look at how Jun Xiaomo's so intent on rescuing that man even in her dying breaths. It's evident just how much that man's existence means to her. You should never be merciful to a woman like that.”However, Ye Xiuwen remained unresponsive. His gaze was still transfixed on Jun Xiaomo, but there were already countless images and scenes relating to her that were cycling through his mind furiously.It shouldn't be this way…she should never by lying there like that…A tiny peep of voice called out feebly within his heart, halting the relentless barrage of fireb.a.l.l.s towards Jun Xiaomo.As this tiny voice grew increasingly louder, so did Zhang Shuyue's incessant blabbering beside his ear, “Brother Ye, I'm the only one who truly loves you, and I'm also the only one who's deserving of your love. Can you please turn around and look at me?”Zhang Shuyue pleaded pitifully with Ye Xiuwen.He turned around and gazed straight into Zhang Shuyue's eyes. His eyes were completely still and clear right now, and his pupils silently reflected Zhang Shuyue's image straight back at her.Zhang Shuyue interpreted this to mean that her cajoling was getting through to Ye Xiuwen. Thus, with traces of joy flickering in the depths of her eyes, she began to smile radiantly and gently caress Ye Xiuwen's cheeks as she called out to him coquettishly, “Brother Ye, won't you kill Jun Xiaomo and be with me, hmm?”Shk! As she finished speaking, she felt a splitting pain surge through her body, and her mind instantly went blank…Her body stiffened up. As she lowered her head slightly, she noticed that Ye Xiuwen's entire arm had already plunged straight into her Dantian and crushed her Golden Core within.“You're too noisy.” Ye Xiuwen muttered placidly as the vile energy in his eyes continued to swirl about threateningly.“You…” Zhang Shuyue choked and sputtered as blood trickled out from her lips.With her Golden Core crushed, Zhang Shuyue's cultivation would be crippled even if she managed to survive the ordeal. She looked up and gazed into Ye Xiuwen's eyes once more. For the very first time, she began to thoroughly fear and dread Ye Xiuwen.Why does Ye Xiuwen's eyes look like it's hazed over? The dark, viscous haze is so scary…Realization suddenly dawned on Zhang Shuyue. Unfortunately, before she could rationally process those thoughts, her neck cracked, and she slipped into the unending abyss of darkness.Ye Xiuwen had not only crushed her Golden Core – he had also decisively snapped her neck.Zhang Shuyue was dead through and through. She would never be able to return to life again.All of these things had happened in the blink of an eye, and not a single person around managed to react to the sudden development of the situation.Weren't Ye Xiuwen and Zhang Shuyue still acting all intimately just moments ago? Why did suddenly have a change of heart and Ye Xiuwen kill Zhang Shuyue in the blink of an eye? n.o.body could understand what instigated these sudden twists.That said, it had never been Ye Xiuwen's intention to explain his actions to anyone around. After all, the present Ye Xiuwen was completely devoid of all rationality, and everything he did was based purely on his most primal instincts.Zhang Shuyue existence no longer pleased him. In fact, her incessant blabbering had already begun to annoy him immensely. Thus, he decided to kill her off to dispose of the problem. As Ye Xiuwen was right now, he hardly saw any issues with such a course of action.Ye Xiuwen picked up the spirit tool once more and gazed at Jun Xiaomo. His eyes flickered momentarily.Unfortunately, the fact that Ye Xiuwen saw no issue with murdering Zhang Shuyue did not mean that n.o.body else did. In the very next moment, the gravity of what Ye Xiuwen had just done finally sank into Xiang Guqing's heart.“Ye Xiuwen! You killed my dear disciple?! I'm going to kill you!!!” Xiang Guqing bellowed as she charged ferociously at Ye Xiuwen with a murderous intent.
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