CH 92

Villainous Master (14)

If it had only been Zhao Wuyou’s disappearance, it would have been an internal matter of Xun Sect. However, this incident goes beyond that as it involves two disciples from Xuan Shu Sect.

Unfortunately, these two disciples, who were at the Golden Core stage, perished. It’s highly probable that if Song Xu Yi had traveled with them, she would have met with the same fate.

Despite surviving, Song Xu Yi didn’t feel a sense of relief.

She had been traveling with these two disciples, and even though they didn’t have a close relationship, she knew they were righteous individuals who were committed to vanquishing demons and fighting injustice. It was unacceptable for them to die in a foreign land.

After contacting Xuan Shu Sect, Song Xu Yi discreetly began to investigate. It was peculiar that after Zhao Wuyou’s disappearance, no other girls were killed in the town. What made Song Xu Yi even more suspicious was that after the two Xuan Shu Sect disciples disappeared, the person who reported the presence of strange Xuan Shu Sect disciples in the town vanished without a trace.

Song Xu Yi had an intuition that this was a trap, and whoever was behind it had a big plan in mind.

However, what exactly did these people want to achieve?

Soon, Song Xu Yi would meet with the Xuan Shu Sect disciples who had come to investigate, and leading them was someone she knew – an old acquaintance who had brought her into the sect, Zeng Li. Zeng Li had been traveling outside for many years and rarely returned to the sect, so it had been years since Song Xu Yi had last seen her.

Zeng Li had extensive knowledge and quickly discovered something unusual: all the missing women had touched an ancient token in the town with a black dragon engraved on it. The token was commonly used for seeking marriage, and the townspeople didn’t suspect anything. However, Zeng Li detected a faint demonic energy on the wooden token.

As they traced the source of the demonic energy, everyone frowned in concern: the energy was emanating from Black Water Pond!

Several years ago, the sects had dispatched people to fix a rift to the immortal world in Black Water Pond after learning of its existence. Could something have gone awry once again on the other side of the pond?

The most formidable demons in the world were imprisoned in Black Water Pond, making it an issue that Zeng Li did not have the authority to handle.

After reporting the news to the sect and assigning disciples to the task, Zeng Li ignored everyone’s advice and ventured to Black Water Pond alone to gather information.

Initially, Zeng Li kept sending back updates periodically, but eventually, all communication ceased.

With a sense of unease, Song Xu Yi urged the sect to dispatch personnel immediately.

After two days, the sect’s investigation team finally arrived – Ning Jing Yu and an unfamiliar member.

At the sight of Ning Jing Yu, Song Xu Yi felt a twinge of guilt as she realized she had missed their appointment by fifteen days. Given Ning Jing Yu’s difficult personality, she worried about potential trouble.

Song Xu Yi began to think of ways to appease her difficult master, but to her surprise, Ning Jing Yu didn’t seem to care about the missed appointment. After casting a deep look at Song Xu Yi, she followed the other disciples to see the token.

Song Xu Yi breathed a sigh of relief and followed Ning Jing Yu carefully. When they were alone, Ning Jing Yu slowed down and gently patted Song Xu Yi’s head as if to console her.

Song Xu Yi lifted her gaze to look at Ning Jing Yu.

Despite her recent seclusion, Ning Jing Yu still appeared frail and pale, as if a gust of wind could easily knock her over.

“Don’t be afraid. I’ve got everything under control.”

Ning Jing Yu’s lips formed a tight line, and although her words were meant to comfort Song Xu Yi, her voice remained calm and detached. Her eyes were fixed straight ahead, avoiding Song Xu Yi’s gaze.

However, during the rare moment of silence from Ning Jing Yu, Song Xu Yi could sense the underlying concern in her words.

In recent years, Song Xu Yi thought of herself as more emotionally mature than Ning Jing Yu and sometimes treated her like a child. But upon hearing Ning Jing Yu’s words, Song Xu Yi blinked and her eyes grew hot, and she inexplicably felt like crying.

Song Xu Yi sniffled and lowered her head, not wanting anyone else to see her weakness. She muttered a quiet “okay.”

Ning Jing Yu glanced at Song Xu Yi, and her fist clenched suddenly under her sleeve-

Her little disciple appeared even more saddened.

This wasn’t what Ning Jing Yu wanted.

Ning Jing Yu couldn’t forget how she felt when she first heard about her little disciple’s peril. For the first time in her life, she felt relieved that her disciple was safe and sound.

It was then that she realized her disciple had become her vulnerability.

After learning about the incident and its link to Zhao Wuyou and Black Water Pool, Ning Jing Yu volunteered to investigate.

She believed her disciple needed her. Despite knowing that her disciple may seem gentle and delicate, she was hardworking and determined and not just a fragile flower sheltered in a greenhouse.

With her sharp eyesight, Ning Jing Yu could see the tears in her disciple’s eyes…

Despite her disciple’s hardships, she had never seen her cry. Not even when framed by Zhao Wuyou or covered in bruises from training.

Did she only cry when she was overwhelmed with sorrow?

Ning Jing Yu felt a sudden obstruction in her heart, as if it was twisting and wrenching painfully.

The pain she felt in her heart was different from the physical pain she was used to. This pain seemed to radiate from within her, strange and unfamiliar. It made her yearn even more intensely to embrace her disciple and soothe her, to protect her from any harm and keep her from ever shedding tears again…

Unaware of the turmoil in Ning Jing Yu’s heart, Song Xu Yi had recovered from her initial grief and turned her gaze towards the disciple who had accompanied them.

The disciple who introduced himself as Wang gave Song Xu Yi a sense of familiarity, despite her certainty that she had never seen him before.

The group had now reached the ancient temple where the token was kept.

Several more days had passed, and the dark energy emanating from the token seemed to have weakened even further. The ominous black token now sat in a corner of the altar, exuding its malevolent aura.

As Ning Jing Yu’s eyes passed over the black dragon on the token, she squinted before suddenly extending her hand.

The obsidian token crumbled to powder in Ning Jing Yu’s palm.

“Let’s go!” The disciple called Wang introduced himself and stated, “The token is imbued with two types of energy, one from Black Water Pool and the other from the hidden Demon Clan. If these two powers conspire, the consequences will be dire. We should head to Black Water Pool first to investigate.”

Wang pulled out a specially crafted whistle and blew it into the sky. The sky promptly turned black, and a colossal spirit bird, as massive as a mountain, descended and landed before them.

The spirit bird unfurled its wings, obscuring the sky and traversing thousands of miles in one day. It swiftly arrived at the rumored location of Black Water Pool.

Black Water Pool was actually a vast lake nestled among towering mountains, scarcely visited by humans.

Despite Song Xu Yi’s low strength within the group, she noticed the unusual nature of Black Water Pool at once. The entire pool was shrouded in dark energy, with almost no vegetation surrounding it. Dead fish and layers of water grass drifted on the lake’s surface, emitting an overpowering fishy stench.

“Get in touch with Zeng Li,” Wang, the disciple, said.

The other disciples blew their unique signal contact whistle, but they received no response for a long time.

Song Xu Yi’s gaze shifted towards the center of the lake. She was now knowledgeable in history and no longer the naive girl who didn’t know about the Black Water Pool. She knew the historical background of the place.

In ancient times, the Demon Clan wreaked havoc on humanity. Kind-hearted people sacrificed their lives and exhausted countless resources to create a powerful formation in Black Water Pool, which suppressed the demons that brought calamity to the world.

However, the demons were too numerous, and people feared that the formation in Black Water Pool could not hold them back for long. Someone came up with a solution and used up all the world’s precious materials to make the formation’s core. Legend has it that the core of the formation could automatically consume demonic energy, gradually weakening the suppressed every Demon Lord…

After countless millennia have passed and the world has undergone tremendous changes, the techniques of immortal cultivation have also evolved several times. No longer are there cultivators with the same formidable power as those of ancient times. The potential devastation that the world could face if the demons from Black Water Pool were to escape is not hard to imagine.

Yet, the current circumstances are far from optimistic. The demonic energy at the center of the lake continues to seep out.

Could there be another issue with the formation?

Song Xu Yi’s eyelids twitched suddenly, and she recalled the scene from the original novel where Ning Jing Yu was defeated and killed by the new Demon Lord. The summary of the original plot was ambiguous, stating only that Ning Jing Yu was killed by the new Demon Lord, but did not clarify who exactly this new Demon Lord was…

It is worth noting that strength is paramount to the Demon Clan. As long as one kills the previous Demon Lord, they can ascend to become the new Demon Lord.

In the plot summary, what if Ning Jing Yu’s opponent is the demon that escaped from Black Water Pool?

Song Xu Yi was startled and looked at Ning Jing Yu without thinking.

Ning Jing Yu was also looking towards the center of the lake. She lowered her head and closed her eyes, and her long eyelashes covered the expression in her eyes. As the only person to have survived Black Water Pool, no one knew what she was thinking as she faced this nightmare once again.

“I want to go into Black Water Pool to find Zeng Li,” said the disciple surnamed Wang behind Ning Jing Yu. As time passed, he seemed to have been greatly disturbed, with a pale face and trembling voice. He turned his gaze towards Ning Jing Yu and said, “If something happens to me, Xuan Shu Sect will…”

The reason for being unable to contact Zeng Li now is likely one of two possibilities: either she has entered the Black Water Pool, which cuts off all communication, or she has already passed away.

“I’m probably the reason for all of this,” Ning Jing Yu interjected, her lips curling but her eyes devoid of any humor. “I have to go into the Black Water Pool and meet with them.”

As Ning Jing Yu took a step towards the center of the lake with narrowed eyes, someone unexpectedly grabbed her sleeve from the side–

Ning Jing Yu turned her head and saw her nervous disciple.

She didn’t know when the little girl who had only reached her waist had grown so tall.

Ning Jing Yu was taken aback and found herself gazing at Song Xu Yi’s face.

Song Xu Yi’s eyes were red and her expression was stubborn as she held onto Ning Jing Yu’s sleeve tightly, and said in a hoarse voice, “I want to go in with master!”