Chapter 41

An incomprehensible call, incomprehensible words—yet they carried only a twisted, mysterious seduction. In an instant, they pierced the heart. Whoever heard them seemed to feel resonance rising from the depths of their soul, giving birth to the terrifying urge to abandon everything and follow her. No matter where she went, they would follow her with unswerving devotion.

Ning Chang'an stared pale-faced at the lonely, eerie white phantom in the dark night sky, forcibly suppressing the impulse deep within his heart. Even he felt the urge to agree, to prostrate himself in worship. He could not understand why his heart resonated with it, why he longed for everything depicted in that call. He only knew that he absolutely could not be tempted. Beads of sweat the size of soybeans silently slid down Ning Chang'an's forehead.

He saw some of the Yang Manor guards, servants, and maids unable to resist the call's demonic power. One after another, they fell to their knees and knocked their heads to the ground in incomparably devout worship.

Those among the crowd who remained awake were terrified beyond measure. Even those who practiced martial arts had never seen anything so bizarre and strange. The four words "bewitching the masses with evil words" surfaced in their minds unbidden.

When people faced the unknown, their hearts held not only curiosity and excitement, but fear as well. Especially before unknown and powerful things, that fear multiplied many times over.

"Ah, is that a ghost?"

"Please, don't say any more... ah..."

"I'll go with you, follow you to the ends of the earth..."

There were also some whose wills were firm. Like Ning Chang'an, they forcibly controlled the urges deep in their hearts and endured—but every one of them looked terrible, their faces purple-red like pig liver, drenched in sweat.

Ning Chang'an felt that this was practically a life-and-death confrontation, one that allowed not the slightest carelessness. No one knew what sort of being that white phantom truly was, what kind of demon or fiend it might be; nor did anyone know what result awaited those who answered her summons.

Ning Chang'an saw only those kneeling on the ground bowing heavily again and again. They had already smashed their foreheads open, blood streaming down without their awareness. They had completely lost themselves, like walking corpses.

"Halt! What demon is causing trouble here, disrupting the peace of my Yang family!"

A thunderous voice rang out, brimming with imposing force and chilling murderous intent. In the central courtyard, a group of sturdy men formed a stern formation, their auras linked as one, instantly locking onto White Shadow in the sky. Each of these muscular men had full foreheads, square chins, and bulging temples; all were exceptional martial experts. They wore uniform dark attire and carried standard-issue weapons, like an army. Though every one of them looked tense, their wills were exceptionally firm. White Shadow's voice was almost as though it fell on deaf ears, leaving them utterly unmoved. Sharp glints shot from their eyes as they stabbed toward the strange white phantom shifting through the air.

Before the formation stood an old man in a purple robe, upright and proud. His temples were already streaked with white, yet he was remarkably vigorous. His eyes were filled with calm and resolve as he stared fixedly into the sky, utterly unmoved. That thunderous shout had come from him. Like a bolt of startled thunder, it woke who knew how many members of the Yang family and allowed them to steady their minds completely.

This old man was Yang Qianjun, the head of Yang Manor—a veteran general.

The woman whom the Yang family guards had originally captured was now ignored by everyone. They were already too occupied dealing with White Shadow's rolling demonic voice to spare her any attention.

No one noticed that the woman suddenly flew up in an incomparably uncanny manner, suspended in midair out of nowhere. Little by little, she rose into the air. At the same time, White Shadow's demonic voice, which had bewitched people's minds, finally ceased. The figure hung mysteriously in the air, facing the woman who had suddenly risen skyward.

No lightness skill could achieve the feat of hovering in empty space. This scene was shocking beyond belief, like a trace of immortals.

"Hehe, I finally found you. Come, come to my side!"

White Shadow suddenly spoke in a sweet, alluring voice, as though a heavy burden had been lifted.

The woman drifted through the air, gradually drawing closer to White Shadow.

Behind Ning Chang'an, two doors were suddenly smashed open, wood chips flying everywhere. A disheveled, drunken man rushed out and stared intently into the night sky. He seemed to recognize the woman all at once and immediately roared, "This is impossible, impossible..." He subconsciously rubbed his eyes hard, violently shook his head, then looked again—and everything remained unchanged. His entire body began trembling. Staring at the three expressionless personal guards behind him, he bellowed, "Didn't I tell you to kill her? Tell me, why is she still alive? Why is she still alive? A weak woman who doesn't know martial arts actually escaped from your hands? What the hell am I keeping you for? What use are you? You're worse than dogs."

The three cold, wooden-faced men lowered their heads at the same time, remaining silent.

This drunken man was Yang Wudou. His face was twisted with rage as he glared fixedly at his three personal guards. When he saw their three silent, lowered heads, Yang Wudou seemed to realize something. So furious that he laughed instead, he said, "Women, because of women! My women—you dared lay your hands on them too? Fine beasts, three dogs. Did she sleep with you, so you defied my orders and let her go? Hm? Did she?"

The three men trembled all over, their faces deathly pale with fear.

In just a few sentences, Ning Chang'an, standing nearby, felt his mind quake violently. So Yang Wudou had known the woman was pregnant and intended to kill her, but the men tasked with killing her had let her escape. The woman's words rang in Ning Chang'an's heart: Women always have some advantages of their own. At last, he understood the bitter hardship behind them.

Yang Wudou truly deserved to die! Ning Chang'an was already certain of that.

Yang Wudou said in a deep voice, "Do you know that the mistake you made is enough to get you killed? That woman carried my seed, yet she deliberately hid it from me, thinking I didn't know. Hmph, but you three pieces of trash failed to handle what I ordered, leaving behind this future calamity. Go, seize her and bring her back. I want to learn where that child is, then wipe them all out! You must know that if this matter spreads, the consequences will be grave. Father's indulgence has its limits... and my other brother won't let me off either..."

All three hesitated, unwilling to move. At a time like this, how could they dare go capture that woman?! Even if they had the will, they could not reach midair—so how could they capture her? Besides, that white phantom, impossible to distinguish between demon and ghost, stood in the night sky. Rushing out would be no different from seeking their own deaths.

"You have only one chance. If you fail, wait for death!"

Yang Wudou threatened sternly, one hand already pressed against the saber at his waist.

The three men's faces shifted from green to white, changing constantly. They knew full well how fearsome Yang Wudou's blade was. If he wanted to kill them, there was nothing they could do. The three of them had merely stayed at Yang Wudou's side to do his dirty work, every deed aiding a tiger in its evil. Yang Wudou stared coldly at them, ferocity flashing chaotically in his eyes. The three hesitated and wavered, but in the end, they finally gritted their teeth and prepared to steel themselves and jump down from the building to carry out Yang Wudou's order.

At that instant, White Shadow suddenly said, "Remember, your name is You Ye!"

The woman nodded. "My name is You Ye?!" A faintly cold smile appeared on her face, carrying an eerie calm amid despair. Her eyes turned slightly as she looked around, and she discovered that she was beginning to enjoy this feeling of standing high above, making others look up at her, tremble, even worship her.

Just as White Shadow finished speaking, the figure suddenly looked toward Yang Wudou. Within the broad white sleeve, slender fingers flicked lightly three times. Invisible force tore through the air in a covert attack, answered by three muffled groans. Yang Wudou's three guards fell straight down from the building, never to rise again. Their entire bodies seemed coated in frost. They were not even worthy of one exchange, their souls flying beyond the nine heavens in the blink of an eye.

Ning Chang'an's pupils contracted as he thought in alarm, Another Essence Cultivation technique. It was no less formidable than the mysterious assassin's Essence Qi of Gangsha. Who exactly was this person? What did she want to do? His shock only deepened his confusion.

You Ye knew no martial arts, much less possessed the ability to tread the void and walk through the air. Yet she crossed the sky while suspended in midair, standing in the heavens without falling. It was all due to White Shadow's unfathomable means.

Such means could practically rival the legendary Earthly Immortal. But what realm was an Earthly Immortal? No one knew. Thus, no one could see through what technique or method White Shadow had used.

Everything could only be described as eerie and unfathomable.

Yang Qianjun's expression was grave. Seeing the miserable sight of so many servants, guards, and family members kneeling on the ground, their heads broken and bleeding, his face darkened with gloom. From top to bottom, all of Yang Manor was a scene of misery—blood everywhere, less like the human world than an inferno.

He had no solution either. Men were not winged birds and had no ability to fly; the sky was forbidden territory to most people. Nor could he seize the eerie white phantom from the air and execute her on the spot. Yang Qianjun let out a furious roar and glared at the sky. "What demon are you, bewitching the masses with evil words in my Yang family? If you do not quickly descend and submit to execution, do not blame this old man for showing no mercy and using extraordinary methods!"

White Shadow laughed disdainfully. "Old man Yang, do you truly want me to descend and submit to execution? Could it be that you want blood to flow like a river through Yang Manor, corpses carpeting the ground?! Hmph, if you wish to show no mercy, then go ahead. I will not show you the slightest mercy either. I will accompany you to the bitter end!" White Shadow yielded not an inch in speech, incomparably arrogant and overbearing.

Yang Qianjun glared at the figure, his expression cold and grim. "Who exactly are you? My Yang Manor has held no old grudges or recent enmities against you. Yet you raid my manor at night with such cruel methods. What exactly is your purpose?"

White Shadow said, "Lowly ants like you are unqualified to know who I am. As for my purpose here, it is for You Ye—to do something she wishes to do but lacks the power to accomplish, something she must do."

Suppressing the anger of being humiliated, Yang Qianjun asked in a deep voice, "What is it?"

White Shadow said, "To kill someone named Yang Wudou, along with the pack of dogs around him!"

Yang Qianjun roared, "You want to kill my son? What wrong has my son done?" Yang Qianjun had spent his life in the army before retiring in old age to Yongan Prefecture. His descendants were not numerous; he had only two sons. His eldest, Yang Wukui, had joined the military and was leading troops far away at the border. His second son, Yang Wudou, remained at home. Neither of his sons was mediocre. In commanding troops and conducting campaigns, both had earned Yang Qianjun's approval, and he had nurtured them in the belief that their future achievements would not fall below his own. He valued both sons immensely. How could he allow others to speak so casually of killing them?