I'll make you the furnace and the cauldron, so you can refine Yin and Yang and prove the Great

The corpse on the edge of the stone platform was still oozing warm blood, which spread out in a dark red stain under the cold light of the luminous pearl.

Elder Xu's expression had become extremely grim. The three disciples behind him placed their hands on their sword hilts, their spiritual energy rapidly condensing in their meridians. The sword blades were drawn half an inch from their sheaths, their silvery-white light gleaming with a chilling sharpness in the twilight.

"Your Excellency, Holy Maiden," Elder Xu's voice was extremely low, the words seemingly squeezed out between clenched teeth, "the Enforcement Hall always follows the sect's rules when handling cases. Today, you publicly killed a witness brought by the Enforcement Hall. If this matter is reported to the Elders' Hall, I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain."

Yin Yue stood at the edge of the stone platform, her silver veil fluttering gently in the twilight. She tilted her head slightly to look at him; her calm eyes were devoid of any emotion, like a deep pool of water soaked by the night, seemingly still on the surface, yet weighing down a weight that made one dare not test her further.

"Explain?" she asked, her voice as clear as ever, yet now carrying a chilling edge that demanded absolute respect. "Did your Enforcement Hall consult me ​​before investigating my people?"

Elder Xu paused for a moment.

"If you want to investigate my demon slave, you should at least ask me, his master, for my consent first." Yin Yue took a step forward, the hem of her silver-white robe brushing against the edge of the stone platform, creating a faint ripple of spiritual energy. "I killed him because he leaked things he shouldn't have said. He saw Li Hanshan in the Myriad Spirits Secret Realm and knew his true identity. Since he spread this information, it's hard to guarantee it won't reach more people's ears. If the Hehuan Sect finds out that Li Hanshan has become my demon slave, what do you think they will do to him?"

The deacon's lips moved, but he didn't reply.

Yin Yue continued, her tone unhurried, each word precise: "I plan to deepen the demonic seal and then have him return to the Joyful Union Sect. His identity within the Joyful Union Sect hasn't been exposed yet. If things go smoothly, he can become a pawn we plant within the sect. But if more people know his identity, his value will be gone. The person you brought couldn't keep his mouth shut and revealed things he shouldn't have, ruining my plans. Would it be unjust for me to kill him?"

Elder Xu knew, of course, that what Yin Yue said made sense.

The Heavenly Demon Sect and the Joyful Union Sect are both demonic sects, and their relationship is far more complex than it appears on the surface. Each of their pawns planted within the other is the result of years, or even decades, of painstaking cultivation.

If a chess piece is destroyed because of a disciple's loose tongue, not only Yin Yue, but even the other elders would not say a word in defense of that disciple.

Seeing that he remained silent, Yin Yue softened her tone: "You are from the Enforcement Hall, acting under orders. I won't make things difficult for you. But as for what happened today, I think you know what to say when you get back."

She tilted her head slightly, her gaze sweeping over the three disciples with their hands on their sword hilts, lingering on each of them for a moment. Her gaze was like the glint of a sword, unsheathed yet enough to make the air freeze for a split second.

Elder Xu took a deep breath. Although Yin Yue was in the right, he was still unwilling to accept it.

He was about to speak when Yin Yue looked in one direction, her voice even colder than before: "Ye Feiyan, I know you're here. Come out."

A very soft laugh came from behind the low-lying grove of spirit trees on the south side of the stone platform. The voice was sweet and clear, like a string of silver bells gently swaying in the night.

Immediately afterwards, a dark red figure slowly emerged from the depths of the Spiritwood Forest. She wore a dark red long dress that was extremely form-fitting, the gold patterns on the hem gleaming with a cold, eerie light in the twilight. Her face was exquisite and beautiful, her peach blossom eyes slightly upturned, and the tiny red mole at the corner of her eye was particularly noticeable in the demonic wind.

The night is full of smoke.

The "sister" who had previously intercepted her.

She walked briskly to the edge of the stone platform, her gaze first falling on the corpse on the platform, then shifting to Yin Yue, a smile with a hint of admiration appearing on her lips.

She tilted her head slightly, her long, dark red hair slipping down her shoulders, her voice as sweet as a pool of stirred honey: "Sister, you're so cruel. You killed the people brought by the Enforcement Hall without a second thought; it terrified me."

Yin Yue didn't look at her. Her gaze remained fixed on the distant, dark red mountain range, her tone as indifferent as if she were discussing something trivial: "Weren't you just watching from the shadows the whole time?"

Ye Feiyan gently covered her mouth and chuckled, the gesture carrying a perfectly charming coquettish quality, like a dark flower swaying in the night.

She took two steps forward and stopped a few feet away from Yin Yue. Tilting her head, she scanned Yin Yue's face, which was mostly covered by a silver veil, and said with envy, "Sister is so lucky to have found such a talented demon slave."

She paused, a faint, scrutinizing interest flickering in her peach blossom eyes. "I've heard that this person single-handedly killed Chen Jie and Zhao Shoudao in the Myriad Spirits Secret Realm. To suppress a Nascent Soul cultivator with a Deity Transformation cultivator—such a feat is unique even in the Demonic Sect. Where did you find out, sister? Teach me, please."

Yin Yue's eyes remained expressionless: "No need for congratulations. Don't cause trouble again."

After she finished speaking, she turned and walked towards the entrance of the cave. Her silver-white robe billowed like wings in the twilight. She did not look back, nor did she glance at the corpse again.