Wushuang Sect.
This was the sect founded by Sumei, the Wushuang Fairy, holder of Wushuang Sword, the second sword of Tai Xu.
Back then, Sumei had joined forces with the other six swords and, with the help of a girl calling herself Jiang Muyue, slew the invincible true immortal Yuan. Afterward, they burned Mount Tai Xu, and the Seven Swords of Tai Xu went their separate ways.
Now, Wushuang Sect had received an uninvited guest.
"Jiang Muyue, it has been over ten years since we parted at Mount Tai Xu, hasn't it? You still look exactly as I remember. Eternal youth is every girl's dream, after all." Sumei smiled at the green-haired girl before her. "What is it? Have your injuries healed? Or do you need medicinal herbs and want to make use of Wushuang Sect's connections to obtain them?"
Though her face was wreathed in smiles, there was no emotion in Sumei's eyes. After all, her relationship with Jiang Muyue had merely been one of mutual exploitation. Other than Yuan, the person she feared most was Jiang Muyue. During that battle, she had personally seen Jiang Muyue use Yanri, the Xuanyuan Sword, to block one of Yuan's Tai Xu Sword God attacks head-on. The strike had been so powerful that Yanri shattered into fragments in an instant.
Jiang Muyue had suffered grave injuries as a result. The other six swords might not have noticed, but Sumei had seen that not a single drop of blood had flowed from the wound Yuan inflicted on Jiang Muyue. Instead, there had only been intricate mechanisms.
In other words, Jiang Muyue was actually a puppet.
Sumei recalled Jiang Muyue once saying that even Yuan at her peak might not have been confident of defeating her. Sumei had assumed Jiang Muyue was boasting, but only then had she realized that Jiang Muyue might not have been lying.
Then why had she used the Seven Swords of Tai Xu to kill Yuan?
Sumei did not know. She only knew that Jiang Muyue's appearance before her now likely meant trouble.
Quietly, she placed a hand on Wushuang Sword at her back.
Jiang Muyue did not miss Sumei's little movement. She gave a derisive laugh. "Sumei, Sumei, what am I supposed to say about you? Too clever by half, and you've only brought ruin upon yourself? I have some news here whose answer you desperately want to know. Aren't you going to hear it out?"
"Hmph. What news could there be that Wushuang Sect does not know?" Sumei sneered. Since Jiang Muyue had already seen through her pretense, there was no need to keep acting. Still, there was indeed one matter she had been pursuing all this time.
After the Seven Swords had parted beneath Mount Tai Xu that year, Sumei had returned to the mountain, only to discover that Yuan's body had vanished from the coffin where it had been placed. The Xuanyuan Sword that had been buried alongside Yuan had disappeared as well.
Fearing that Yuan had not truly died, Sumei had established Wushuang Sect to investigate Yuan's whereabouts.
A teasing smile curled Jiang Muyue's lips. "Your master Yuan has returned."
Sumei's pupils contracted, yet she remained composed. "Mere words prove nothing."
"Yes, mere words prove nothing." Jiang Muyue shrugged. "But you'll receive the news soon enough. There is no longer a Yijian Villa in this world, nor is there any more Yixin Swordplay."
"Junior Sister..." Sumei frowned. She did not doubt the truth of Jiang Muyue's news, because such a lie could not deceive her. What concerned her more was whether Qin Suyi was dead or alive, though she had even less hope that Qin Suyi had survived.
She swiftly deduced that the one responsible was either Yuan or Jiang Muyue. Whether it was Yuan or Jiang Muyue, both had ample motive.
Yuan might have come to purge her sect over what had happened that year and reclaim the Xuanyuan Swords. Jiang Muyue was even more likely to be killing witnesses, ensuring that no one in the world knew there was still someone capable of matching Yuan, while also seizing the Xuanyuan Swords.
But Sumei quickly concluded that Yuan was probably responsible, because Jiang Muyue had less reason to do such a thing. Killing Qin Suyi offered Jiang Muyue little benefit. After Qin Suyi murdered her master, her sword heart had shattered and she had nearly died. If Jiang Muyue had wanted to act, she could have done so while Qin Suyi was recuperating.
It never occurred to Sumei that Jiang Muyue might have needed time to recover. What injuries did someone who moved about in a mechanical body need to recover from?
"We at Wushuang Sect will verify your news ourselves. You must have another purpose for coming here, right?" Sumei stared at Jiang Muyue.
"Some people always suspect another's good intentions." Jiang Muyue sighed theatrically. "I merely came to tell you that Yuan has revived and is coming for you, so that when Yuan arrives at your door, you won't lack even a chance to resist."
"Hmph, you have such a kind heart?" Not a trace of a smile remained on Sumei's face. "Don't forget that you helped us murder our master back then as well!"
Jiang Muyue burst into wild laughter. "So what if I did? Yuan wants to kill you now. If she wants to kill me, she first has to find me. How can she talk about killing me if she cannot even find me?"
Sumei gritted her teeth. She began to believe Jiang Muyue's words. Yuan had always been her nightmare.
"Of the Seven Swords of Tai Xu, two have now fallen. Qin Suyi's Xuanyuan Sword has already been taken by Yuan. Though Jiang Wanru died after suffering a cultivation deviation, her body can still be used..."
Before Jiang Muyue could finish, Sumei placed her sword against Jiang Muyue's throat. "What did you do?!"
"Heh... Sumei, stop playing the hypocrite with me. Do you have any idea how difficult it would be to kill Yuan a second time?" Jiang Muyue mocked. "I suggest you immediately find Lin Zhaoyu and gather the Tai Xu Sword Sect under her command. That might give you a sliver of hope."
Sumei stared at Jiang Muyue, took several steps back, and sat down in a chair. Her mind frantically calculated what she should do, but no matter how she considered it, she could only reach one conclusion: Jiang Muyue was right.
"Sect Master, bad news! Yijian Villa has been attacked by unknown assailants. Not a single person in the entire villa survived!" A Wushuang Sect disciple rushed in and reported.
This was undoubtedly the final straw that broke Sumei.
Not a single survivor...
Whenever Yuan acted, she exterminated everyone.
"Jiang Muyue... We need your help..." Her face was deathly pale as she spoke, as though the words had drained all her strength. "I will find Lin Zhaoyu and Jiang Wanxi. Go to the Northern Desert and find Ma Yanqing for me. He is there now. Ling Shuang is there too, along with Junior Sister's daughter. We... need to kill Yuan once again!"
"Fine, fine. For the sake of our pleasant previous cooperation, I'll reluctantly help you one more time." Jiang Muyue shrugged. "You'd better move quickly. After all, I can afford to wait, but Yuan might not be able to."
After leaving Wushuang Sect, Jiang Muyue turned her gaze northward. "So she is in the Northern Desert? It seems I need to find a way to send Yuan a message."
Purple threads in her hand extended into the shadow beneath her feet, transmitting an order to her puppet thousands of miles away.
Somewhere, a woman opened her eyes. Half her hair was pale white, the other half purple; her eyes were crimson, and her cheeks bloodless. Had anyone been present, they would have recognized her as the fourth sword of the Seven Swords of Tai Xu, Jiang Wanru, holder of Luo Wuzhuo, the Xuanyuan Sword.
There was no life in her eyes now, and her movements were sluggish. Her sword had long since been taken away by her older sister Jiang Wanxi when she died from a cultivation deviation. But that did not matter, because her duty was only to deliver a message to Yuan.
And... kill Jiang Wanxi.