Stepdaughter of a wealthy family? The little darling of a Beijing tycoon

"I underestimated you. Such high cultivation at such a young age. It seems I should use my true abilities too."

Having said that, he flicked his sleeve, took out a completely black bell, and laughed menacingly: "You have a treasure, and I have a magical artifact. Today, let's see who is superior!"

The man in black robes circulated his malevolent energy, his wrist trembled violently, and the Soul-Capturing Bell rang in response.

"Ring—ring—"

An eerie bell rang throughout the ancestral hall. Lin Feng and Ye Shuang, who were meditating and regulating their breathing nearby, suddenly turned pale. They felt their souls stirring within them, as if they were about to break free of their bodies and drift away. They quickly gritted their teeth and circulated their spiritual energy to suppress it.

The man in black robes curled into a savage, triumphant smile: "I'd like to see how you're going to withstand my Soul-Capturing Bell!"

The bell rang incessantly, but Shen Jingshu, standing opposite, remained firmly rooted to the spot, her expression calm, her breathing steady, and her soul showing no signs of being disturbed.

The man in black robes then realized something was wrong and was terrified. This Soul-Capturing Bell was extremely powerful; many cultivators with higher cultivation levels than him had encountered it and their souls had been disturbed. Yet, this little girl seemed completely unaffected by the bell's sound.

"How could this be...?"

Shen Jingshu's gaze turned slightly cold as she recognized the bell at a glance. "The Soul-Capturing Bell is indeed a treasure. How did it end up in your hands?"

"You have no right to inquire about the origins of this treasure! Prepare to die!"

The man in black robes shouted sharply, channeling his full power and chanting obscure incantations. Black mist surged across the surface of the Soul-Capturing Bell, and a series of soul-stirring ringing sounds, imbued with malevolent energy, hurtled towards Shen Jingshu.

Just then, Shen Jingshu swiftly flipped her fingers, picked a leaf from a branch beside her, and gently blew on it.

A clear and melodious tune flowed from between the thin leaves, ethereal and graceful. The captivating bell-like sound was steadily suppressed by the music played on the leaves, and the black mist dissipated layer by layer.

The man in black robes' expression changed drastically, his eyes filled with disbelief: "Impossible! It's just a leaf, yet the melody it produces can suppress my Soul-Capturing Bell? Just who are you?!"

"You are not worthy to know my identity."

Seeing that the Soul-Capturing Bell had completely lost its effect, the man in black robes immediately put the bell back into his sleeve, his five fingers condensing into sharp claws covered in black energy, and fiercely grabbed at Shen Jingshu's face.

Shen Jingshu neither dodged nor evaded, but stepped forward and firmly grasped his wrist as he attacked. It looked like she was just giving him a slight twist, but with a crisp crack, the black-robed man's right arm was broken off.

The man in black robes groaned in pain and raised his left hand to retaliate. Shen Jingshu had already anticipated his move. She moved swiftly and instantly appeared behind him, grabbing his left wrist with her other hand.

Another ear-piercing cracking sound rang out, and his left hand was also broken.

Before the other person could fall to the ground, Shen Jingshu raised her foot and struck in quick succession. After two muffled thuds, the black-robed man's legs were completely broken.

With all four limbs crippled, the man in black robes crashed heavily onto the cold ground, writhing in excruciating pain and utterly incapacitated. His wide bamboo hat rolled to the side with the fall, revealing a wrinkled, ashen-faced old man beneath, his eyes still brimming with endless resentment.

The bamboo hat rolled off, completely exposing the old man's face to everyone. Shen Jingshu's gaze swept over his face, instantly seeing through the truth—this body did not belong to him at all, but was a body that had been taken from someone else.

Knowing that all was lost, the old man's eyes flashed with determination. He suddenly bit his tongue and began to chant an obscure incantation.

Lin Feng and Ye Shuang, who were meditating nearby, paled upon seeing this and hurriedly shouted a warning: "Master Shen, be careful! He's going to self-destruct!"

A near-maniacal grin spread across the black-robed elder's face. If he couldn't win, he would drag everyone down with him; even in death, he would reduce these people before him to pieces. The murderous aura and resentment within him surged wildly, his flesh visibly bulging outwards, the force of his self-destruction poised to erupt.

Just as the explosion was about to take shape, Shen Jingshu stepped forward, her fingertips flashing like lightning, and struck several key acupoints on his body in succession.

The body, which had been expanding continuously, deflated at a speed visible to the naked eye. The surging and chaotic evil energy was forcibly locked within the meridians, and the momentum of self-destruction was completely extinguished.

The old man was both shocked and furious, staring intently at Shen Jingshu: "You...how could you even break through my final killing move!"

Lin Feng and Ye Shuang were dumbfounded, their hearts filled with shock. Even the evil cultivator's desperate self-destruction could be so easily neutralized. The admiration in their eyes as they looked at Shen Jingshu deepened.

Shen Jingshu glanced down at the fallen old man, her tone tinged with mockery: "Trying to self-destruct in front of me, don't you find that laughable? Besides, this body was something you forcibly took over, and you still want to destroy it."

The thought of the carnage and mangled remains after a self-destruction filled Shen Jingshu with disgust. These evil cultivators, once defeated, readily chose to self-destruct and perish together with their enemies.

This technique of sealing acupoints was something she learned from her master, Xuanjizi, when she was young. At that time, her master captured an evil cultivator who was committing a heinous crime. After the cultivator was defeated, he self-destructed on the spot, and the flying blood and flesh splattered all over her.

Afterwards, she complained to Xuanjizi with a look of disgust, saying that the scene was too dirty. Xuanjizi then specially taught her this method of acupoint sealing. When encountering evil cultivators who attempt to self-destruct, accurately sealing a few key acupoints can lock the evil power running rampant in the body and cut off the possibility of self-destruction.

Since then, over the years, no enemy she has faced has ever been able to detonate themselves in front of her again.

Just as the old man in black robes was in utter despair, Shen Jingshu suddenly turned her head and spoke calmly to the empty air beside her: "After watching the show for so long, it's time to come out. Are you still going to hide?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Feng and Ye Shuang looked around in confusion, completely unaware of who she was talking to.

These are none other than the Black and White Impermanence of the underworld.

With their whereabouts completely exposed, the two no longer concealed their presence and slowly stepped out of the shadows. Dressed in their distinctive official robes, they exuded a solemn and awe-inspiring aura, with the chilling presence unique to underworld officials quietly spreading out.

The moment they recognized the person, Lin Feng and Ye Shuang were shocked, their pupils contracted, and a storm raged in their hearts.

As cultivators, they knew best the identities of the Black and White Impermanence—the righteous gods of the underworld who govern Yin and Yang and restrain the souls of the dead, whom ordinary cultivators might never even see in their entire lives. Yet today, in broad daylight, they had actually witnessed the true forms of the two Impermanences!