Chapter 163: Stop Acting, I Beg You (6)
“Kill me? A joke. I am an elder of the dignified Yuxiao Sect, and you think you can kill me just because you want to?”
Zheng Wei smiled fearlessly.
“No one whom I, Cheng Hong Ling, want to kill has ever escaped death.”
Cheng Hong Ling said, placing her jade-like hand back on the sword hilt.
“Is that so? With so many people present, I’d like to see how you plan to kill me!”
Zheng Wei sneered, then turned to Liu Lei and said, “Sect Leader Liu! It’s fine that my disciple is dead, but I am an elder of the Yuxiao Sect. If you stand by and watch me get killed by her, how will you continue to be the Sect Leader? How will the Yuxiao Sect remain standing in the Cultivation World?”
Liu Lei fell into a brief silence upon hearing this, seeming to weigh the gains and losses.
“Ling’er, I’m not seriously injured anyway, let’s go.”
Cheng Yuan did not want his daughter to be implicated because of him, so he suggested.
“My daughter, Cheng Hong Ling, is not someone you can kidnap as you please. Moreover, this guy is responsible for your current state.”
Cheng Hong Ling replied firmly.
“Yes, Dad! He even provoked us through the Thousand Li Sound Transmission Device. If we don’t make an example of him, who will take us seriously in the future? How can your safety be guaranteed?”
Qi Huang chimed in. This cheap father, for the sake of his main body, constantly led his merchant caravans between the prefecture capital and the prefectural capital. If they let the surnamed Zheng go this time, the three of them, mother and daughters, would probably not be able to sleep at night.
Cheng Yuan looked at his two daughters, a gratified smile on his face, and then remained silent.
“Junior Nephew Cheng, although Elder Zheng’s actions of kidnapping your father and seizing the Blackgold Lily were wrong, you have already killed someone to vent your anger. I think it’s best to let this matter go. After all, we are all sects under the Immortal Alliance, and we share the same roots. I will have the Blackgold Lily returned to you as it is.”
Liu Lei finally made a decision after a long period of consideration.
“You think so? Excuse me, it is I who thinks now! The person who just died was an accomplice and deserved to die. But the main culprit has yet to be apprehended, so how can we just let it go?”
Cheng Hong Ling was unmoved.
“Cheng Hong Ling, I’ve said all I can. If you continue to be aggressive, don’t blame me for turning hostile. Although you are at the late stage of the Huashen Realm, our Yuxiao Sect is not to be trifled with. We have four experts in the Huashen Realm alone, plus tens of thousands of other disciples. If we were to attack you all at once, we might not fear you.”
Liu Lei’s old face was grim, looking even worse than a dead man.
“I believe you! But I don’t think you’re that foolish!”
Cheng Hong Ling sneered and said, “I guarantee that if a fight breaks out, your Yuxiao Sect will suffer heavy casualties, and his shameful deeds will also be quickly publicized. From then on, let alone being in the top five in Yongning Prefecture, you won’t even have a foothold in the top fifty. Is it worth it for an elder who has already broken sect rules?”
Liu Lei fell into silence again upon hearing this. He now had to make a difficult choice: to take a gamble or to cut his losses.
“Have you considered it carefully? Hand over this person’s life to me! I can guarantee that I will not publicize this matter, and your Yuxiao Sect can continue as before without worrying about your reputation being affected. Losing an elder of the Guiyi Realm like him should not be a significant loss for you, right?”
Cheng Hong Ling persuaded him.
“Sect Leader Liu, don’t listen to her honeyed words. If you just watch me being killed, the Yuxiao Sect’s authority will be completely disgraced.”
Zheng Wei instinctively felt something was wrong, so he spoke up again to remind them.
“What do we do now? Attack?”
“Attack? You should know that although we have numbers on our side, when cultivators reach the Huashen Realm, the gap between each level is like a divine punishment. If we fight her, at best it will be mutually destructive. If the losses are too great, what will happen to the Yuxiao Sect in the future?”
“But if we just watch Elder Zheng being killed, the Yuxiao Sect’s authority will be completely disgraced.”
“Are you stupid! Authority can be re-established! But once a person is dead, they can never be brought back!”
“That’s right, as the saying goes, ‘As long as the green hills remain, there will be wood to burn’!”
…
After intense discussions among several high-level figures, a conclusion was quickly reached.
Liu Lei also listened to their opinions seriously, and the struggle on his face gradually faded. He then turned to Zheng Wei with an apologetic expression and said, “Elder Zheng! I’m sorry, I, Liu Lei, am incompetent and cannot save you.”
“Sect Leader Liu, what do you mean? Are you abandoning me?”
Zheng Wei questioned incredulously.
“You have seen the situation now. As the Sect Leader, I can only consider the overall picture. Therefore, for the sake of the entire Yuxiao Sect, I ask you to sacrifice yourself.”
Liu Lei explained painstakingly, his hypocrisy reaching its peak.
“Liu Lei, you can’t do this! You are the Sect Leader!”
Zheng Wei became agitated, shouting like a madman.
“Elder Zheng has sacrificed his life for our Yuxiao Sect. Let us send him off.”
Liu Lei did not want the situation to escalate, so he said to the high-level figures around him.
“Farewell, Elder Zheng!”
Several high-level figures exchanged glances, then echoed Liu Lei’s words.
“Now do you know how I’ll kill you?”
Cheng Hong Ling narrowed her beautiful eyes and said sarcastically.
“No, no, no, you can’t do this! I will not accept my fate.”
Zheng Wei suddenly stood up from the ground, preparing to resist.
“Rest in peace!”
Qi Huang’s face showed contempt as her powerful Spiritual Sense immediately suppressed him.
Zheng Wei, who had just managed to stand on his legs, immediately knelt down again. He instinctively felt that something was wrong and wanted to break free from the spiritual pressure, but it was too late.
Cheng Hong Ling, with her telepathic connection, instantly vanished from her spot. Then, a blue sword light flashed across Zheng Wei’s neck.
Zheng Wei touched his neck in confusion, and only after a few breaths did he feel the pain. He desperately tried to cover the wound, but blood gushed out moments later, and he fell down like a pig being slaughtered during the New Year.
After Zheng Wei’s death, the Seven Vital Souls, symbolizing “life,” immediately dissipated. The three souls of heaven, earth, and man, however, survived and attempted to escape.
Qi Huang, who was prepared, transformed her Huashen Realm spiritual sense into several large hands and, in front of the Yuxiao Sect’s high-level figures, tore Zheng Wei’s three souls apart in mid-air, ensuring no loose ends.
The Yuxiao Sect’s high-level figures were terrified and secretly rejoiced that they had not stepped forward earlier.
Next, Liu Lei consciously ordered his men to search Zheng Wei’s residence. They soon found the Blackgold Lily and returned it to Cheng Yuan intact.
“Fairy Cheng, we have now fulfilled our promises. I hope you will keep your word and not publicize this matter.”
Liu Lei pleaded in a low, humble voice.
“Naturally!”
Cheng Hong Ling replied coldly, then called her father and clone to leave.
“Wait!”
Qi Huang suddenly spoke.
“What is it?”
Cheng Hong Ling asked in confusion.
“My father’s debt is settled for now! What about your debt with me?”
Qi Huang turned and questioned Liu Lei.
“Are you trying to cause trouble?”
Cheng Hong Ling was startled and quickly conveyed her thoughts via telepathy.
“I’m acting! I haven’t had enough yet!”
Qi Huang replied nonchalantly.
“I beg you, stop acting, okay? Everything has a happy ending now.”
Cheng Hong Ling said helplessly.
“A happy ending? I don’t think so.”
Qi Huang replied stubbornly.
“Debt? What other debt do we have with you?”
Liu Lei finally reacted from his confusion.
“Are you playing dumb? Who in the great hall just now wanted to silence me?”
Qi Huang questioned in her clear voice.
Liu Lei opened his mouth but couldn’t refute it for a moment. He then exchanged glances with the high-level figures behind him.
“What else does Fairy Cheng want?”
After a moment of thought, Liu Lei tentatively asked. He felt he had already lost enough face for the day and it was best to resolve the matter with minimal fuss.
“I was frightened by you all, so I require compensation for emotional distress. Bring me a basin of Snow Pig Blood, the eggshells of ten Blue-crowned Finches, and fifty bottles of Cat’s Eye Tears. Otherwise, this matter is not over!”
Qi Huang made an exorbitant demand.
“How much? Say that again?”
Liu Lei’s mouth gaped open, wide enough to fit a fist.
