章 14: Yu Mingling

Three years after the brutal death of Yu Xuelan, Yu Yang's reign over the cultivation world expanded. His desire to achieve his goal had caused many sects to collapse and fall, though he did it with good intentions in mind. Absolutely, purely, righteously, good intention. They all praised the man as the world's saviour after he killed Yu Xuelan. But that was all on the surface.

"Why did you let them in?!" Feng Yi yelled.

"I thought they were Wu Zhitian, I mean Sect Master Wu's friends!"

Feng Yi scolded, "You! How could you believe people so easily!"

"I didn't know! I didn't know she was going to bring an army of people with her!"

Yu Mingling was the second daughter of Yu Yang and Yu Xuelan's cousin. She stood across from the people of ShenMing Wu, examining and picking on her long nails as the other party gripped the hilts of their swords.

"Show your manners to the Second Young Madam!" Liu Bu demanded, as he released a beam with the slash of his bamboo fan.

The disciples flinched when the beam penetrated a hole in the ground. Wu Zhitian stared at the blue-robed girl with a dull disinterest, yet Yu Mingling's face blushed in all shades of red in what she perceived to be a soft and loving gaze.

"Now, no need to be so upset!" She replied innocently.

"Out of all the temples, I like this temple the best," Yu Mingling commented while still examining the pavilions and gardens while she strolled back to her original position.

"Of course, it's because you're here, Wu Zhitian!" she mumbled and she clasped both of her cheeks with her palms, swaying her hips from side to side.

Wu Zhitian stared at her in silence as his eyes followed wherever she moved to, making sure she did not act rashly.

"I'll take this temple!" She declared excitedly.

"What?"

"Watch what you say!"

"Who do you think you are?!"

Wu Zhitian glared at her in disgust at what she had professed, but few noticed he was even feeling this way since his face stayed indifferent.

"Calm down! No need to get so feisty," she laughed.

"Please leave," Wu Zhitian sighed.

"Now, I just want to chat with you. Wu Zhitian, to think you became this sect's leader after you disappeared for an entire three years! After all, the old master died because of that witch Yu Xuelan, so I would understand if you were mourning for those two years."

"What does Yu Xuelan have to do with this?" A senior questioned.

Yu Mingling's puppy-faced expression rapidly transformed into a murderous wolf and scowled, "Don't mention that witch's name!"

She blasted a crack through the floor with her palm which left everyone speechless. The girl's words confused the cultivators since she was the one who mentioned her name first.

"Where did you disappear to in those three years, Wu Zhitian? I missed you so much. I destroyed so many of the temples that belonged to ShenMing Wu just because I wanted to lure you out," she pouted and swayed side to side.

The words Yu Mingling spouted did not reach the boy's head, let alone making it past the surface of his ears.

"You sure have changed. Your luscious black hair has become all white and your expressions are like a stone wall now, but I still accept you." She said as she drooped her eyes and pouted even harder to display her worry, but Wu Zhitian just continued to silently stare at her in contempt.

Yu Mingling cleared her throat and regained her composure, "To also think that the Sky Demon God had also been defeated and replaced after that witch's death. So many things have happened in such a short amount of time! Why don't you accept my offer? Behave nicely and hand this temple over to me and it'll be under the name of HaiShen Yu. I heard this temple produces very high-quality spirit stones! If you don't acce-"

"As if we would humiliate ourselves and hang another sect's flag on our residence!" One interrupted.

"Yeah, we'd rather die than have you order us around!"

Everything quietened. The ragged breaths and the palpitations of their hearts that beat amongst the breeze's howl filled the silence. Even with the silence, the birds continued to chirp with sorrow with each other.

"I guess I have no choice," she grumbled.

Yu Mingling spread her right arm to the front and emitted a glow of spiritual light.

At once, the scintillating light became a beam and illuminated the area, almost capable of blinding peoples' eyes. Magically, a powerful and piercing explosion was released.

Everyone flinched and covered their face with their arm as they heard a loud crash of a building. The cultivators expected them to get blown apart as she pointed her palm towards them, but despite that, they realized they were still unharmed and slightly lowered their arms.

Their bodies trembled in shock upon seeing Wu Zhitian in front of Yu Mingling.

He had smacked her arm up into the air during that second, causing the beam to blast off to the eastern residence. Unfortunately, the building collapsed and fell onto another, and then another, and then another, like a catastrophic cycle.

It was never ending.

Yet, as long as none of the disciples were harmed, then it was fine.

"Sect Master Wu!" they called out in distress.

Yu Mingling's body trembled in heat when the distance between her and Wu Zhitian shortened.

She took a step back and smirked, muttering under her breath. "If I can't have you alive, then I'll have you dead."

A sword formed by spiritual energy appeared in her hands and she pierced Wu Zhitian through his chest before violently pulling it out, causing blood to gush out of both the wounded area and his mouth.

Though he did not produce such reactions to how someone would normally behave when they get stabbed, he simply raised his brows and fumbled back. Yet, he could still feel the burning fire of the injured area.

"Sect Master!!" they all shouted, running up towards the white hooded boy, but he raised his arm out to stop them.

Wu Zhitian's body wobbled as he attempted to stand straight with a numbing pain coursing through his cold body.

He whispered to Yu Mingling's ear, "It's strange."

Yu Mingling looked at him in confusion and he continued, "Your fake hand."

"SECT MASTER!"

"WU ZHITIAN!" The senior disciples yelled.

Yu Mingling's eyes widened at his words as his body collapsed in front of her. His blood soaked through his white robes, staining them with a dull, crimson colour.

"AHHH!!!"

Yu Mingling clenched her jaw and screamed in pain. She stepped back and gripped onto her wrist tightly, so hard like she was about to twist her whole arm off.

"MY, MY WRIST! MY HAND!" she exclaimed.

The cultivators ran towards Wu Zhitian's injured body as his vision blurred.

The elders immediately rushed out and carried his body away to the Healing Room while the girl was still yelling in excruciating pain.

The cultivators of both HaiShen Yu and ShenMing Wu looked in the direction of the piercing scream, seeing as how she wouldn't stop.

"MY, MY HAND!!"

"Lady Yu!!" Liu Bu exclaimed as he ran up to the lady.

Both sects widened their eyes in extreme shock as they froze in their spots while the girl continued screaming.

Her hand was gone.

The moment she withdrew her 'sword' that pierced through Wu Zhitian's chest, he had cut her wrist off. Despite this, he made sure it was fast and smooth, so he did not leave any jagged edges.

Blood gushed out of the empty area as her hand lied on the ground. Mingling's cries resonated throughout the entire temple, that the birds had no choice but to fly away from the pain of her voice.

She yelled out her confidant's name as she subconsciously grabbed Liu Bu by the collar, shaking him vigorously.

"Se, Second Young Madam Yu!! I'm suffocating!"

"Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian Wu Zhitian!"

---

Two days had passed since the incident with Yu Mingling's fallen hand. Wu Zhitian's thin eyelids gradually lifted themselves and he examined his surroundings through his lashes that were slightly lowered.

He was lying in the darkness of the Healing Room, not knowing how much time had passed.

A humid wind travelled through the window, lifting the translucent curtains which blew past his blank-white hair. However, the usual, fresh breeze was dyed with the colour of smoke, something sweet yet so nauseating, so rich yet so putrid, as if a piece of leather was being tanned over a scorching flame.

He glanced down at his chest, noticing there were bandages wrapped around it. Nevertheless, the wound was no longer there.

Upon hearing screams and yells, his eyes widened at the sudden noises as he immediately threw aside the blanket that covered him and ran to the window...

Only to see that half of the temple was drowning in flames.