Exposure

Damn it, when had this woman doubled back?

What incredible footwork.

Li Ye's heart sank, but he calmly asked, "Miss, why have you come to my room?"

"We don't know each other. You must have mistaken me for someone else."

Flower Demon pointed at Li Ye and laughed nonstop, even more delighted than before. Her slender waist shook so hard she could barely stand upright.

Li Ye frowned.

A moment later, Flower Demon finally managed to contain her beautiful mood. "I've figured out your secret too."

She clasped her hands behind her back and came up to Li Ye, gazing at him with charming eyes. "Young Master, are you wondering how I found you?"

Damn, she really had recognized me.

Li Ye's heart skipped a beat, but he still couldn't figure it out. He was utterly baffled.

Just then, a brightly colored porcelain bottle appeared in Flower Demon's hand. She opened it, and a fragrant scent wafted out. "This is the fragrance I usually wear. It's called Thousand Mile Scent."

"I blended it myself."

"It smells faint, but the fragrance seeps through clothes and clings to the skin. Water can't wash it off, and no other fragrance can cover it up."

"Last night, when you threatened me, you pressed close to me and spent so long alone with me. The fragrance had already clung to your skin."

"And I'm extremely sensitive to this scent."

The martial world was a treacherous place. Li Ye sighed. "So that's how."

No wonder Flower Demon had found him even after he'd taken off his mask.

On the way here, he'd been focused on the Golden Ginseng and those nine corpses, and had overlooked the scent of Flower Demon on him.

He'd been far too careless.

Flower Demon watched Li Ye teasingly. "Li Bai, this outfit of yours has really opened my eyes. Hehehe..."

"But I'm curious—which one is the real you, the one from last night or the one now?"

As she spoke, Flower Demon's slender jade hand darted toward Li Ye's face like lightning.

Li Ye's gaze sharpened. He raised his hand and blocked the girl's incoming fingers.

Flower Demon was surprised. She hadn't expected Li Ye to have such skill, but she didn't give up.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

She kept attacking, leaving afterimages in her wake. Li Ye kept dodging and counterattacking.

But they weren't only testing their moves; they were also competing in footwork.

Flower Demon moved like a ghost, following close on his heels. Li Ye was like wind and lightning. Their figures nearly tangled together, filling the room with countless afterimages that the naked eye could barely distinguish.

In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged dozens of moves in the cramped room.

"Flower Demon, do you want everyone to know your weakness?"

Li Ye shouted and sprang backward.

Flower Demon didn't pursue him. She said coolly, "You killed the people from the Cao Family, didn't you?"

Neither of them had used their true strength. They had only tested their moves and footwork.

But Flower Demon was an Object Manipulation Realm First Layer expert. She was confident that even without using her true strength, no one below the Object Manipulation Realm could exchange so many moves with her and end up evenly matched.

That left her no choice but to connect Li Ye with the genius from last night, the one skilled in Destructive Sword Intent who had killed a group of Cao Family experts.

Aside from the skill Li Ye had just shown, there was one more clue: he liked collecting corpses.

Last night, Flower Demon had killed a Cao Family expert at the Qi Gathering Ninth Layer for him. Afterward, he'd ordered her to collect the body.

And the other Cao Family members who died later had all vanished without a trace.

"What Cao Family people? I don't know anything about that."

"The Cao Family man from last night was killed by you. It had nothing to do with me."

Li Ye didn't even blush as he said it.

Flower Demon wasn't angry. She still wore a smile. "Destructive Sword Intent, with its unmatched Killing Power, isn't something just anyone can comprehend."

"A genius like you is willing to work as an inconspicuous Corpse Burner by day, then transform into a bold Little Thief by night. How interesting!"

"But I wonder what would happen if I told people about you."

"Would the Cao Family come after you? Would the Divine Concealment Sect suspect you of harboring ulterior motives? Would the Corpse Refining Courtyard suppress you?"

Li Ye's expression darkened, then he smiled. "I don't know what would happen to me. But if I expose your identity right now and reveal your weakness, I doubt you'll make it down the mountain today."

Flower Demon sneered. "You don't really think you're qualified to stand against me, do you?"

"Only one way to find out."

Whoosh!

With that, he blurred and darted out of the room first.

He also tossed out the Star Bead, muffling all sound and commotion around them.

Before last night, he should already have had no rivals below the Object Manipulation Realm.

Now that his strength had doubled, Li Ye thought he might be able to challenge Flower Demon at the Object Manipulation First Layer.

Seeing this, Flower Demon turned into an afterimage and rushed after him.

Boom!

She struck at Li Ye from a distance with her palm, unleashing her true strength.

Overwhelming Demonic Qi surged forth, the void shuddered, and immense pressure swept over everything, leaving no place untouched.

Li Ye instantly realized that none of his refined techniques would work against Flower Demon's palm.

He had only one choice: meet force with force.

He would have to break her palm strike with greater strength.

The Profound Ice Sword appeared.

Li Ye barked, "River Crossing Slash!"

Whoosh!

He raised his hand and swung his sword in one fluid motion, swift as a gale.

The aura of the Great Dao spread as Destructive Sword Intent erupted. Howling winds surged, and Heaven and Earth lost their color.

The dense Crimson Electric Arc within Li Ye poured into the Profound Ice Sword, then coalesced into a blazing sword ray that shot out.

This strike seemed poised to wither Heaven and Earth Myriad Things and shatter mountains and rivers. A chilling aura spread in all directions.

Boom!

Their forces crashed together. Sword light and Demonic Qi intertwined, erupting in a dazzling flash of light.

"Thunder Sword Power!"

Flower Demon's eyes widened in utter shock.

She sensed her palm power crackling and popping as Li Ye's pure, masculine Thunder Sword Power countered it.

Demonic Qi was a yin and cold force.

Thunder was a fierce, pure-yang force.

Naturally, the former was countered by the latter.

"Beautiful lady, your palm power looks like it's about to give out."

Li Ye smiled.

"You think this is enough to stand against me?"

"Let me show you the true power of the Object Manipulation Realm."

Flower Demon scoffed, her gaze suddenly turning sharp.

Buzz!

The next moment, a black pattern appeared in her palm. As soon as it emerged, Li Ye felt an immense aura, vast as a mountain, bearing down on him.

Then Flower Demon lightly shook her fingers. With a pop, she shattered Li Ye's domineering sword ray.

"Dao Patterns? This is bad!"

Li Ye's expression changed. He reacted instantly and shifted sideways.

Whoosh!

Flower Demon's palm power flew past his chest by a hair and struck the sky above.

Bang!

The shockwave from Flower Demon's palm strike slammed Li Ye to the ground. His blood and qi roiled, and his face flushed.

Just then, information about the Object Manipulation Realm from the Saint's memories surfaced in his mind.

For cultivators, the Object Manipulation Realm was like a heavenly chasm. Breaking through meant leaping over the dragon gate.

Dao Patterns were the Dao Fruits that Object Manipulation Realm experts condensed after sensing the Heaven and Earth Myriad Things. They joined the heavens above and the earth below.

At the First Layer of the Object Manipulation Realm, one cultivated a single Dao Pattern; at the Second Layer, two; at the Third Layer, three, and so on.

The power of Dao Patterns could no longer be measured in tons of force. It was nothing short of world-shattering.

The deeper one's comprehension, the greater a Dao Pattern's power.

"So it really is Destructive Sword Intent! Hmm, this bead of yours seems to conceal something."

"Can it hide the sound of our fight?"

"That makes it perfect for me to deal with you, my greatest threat, and take back the Golden Ginseng."

Powerful energy surged around Flower Demon. A thick Dao Pattern, coiling like a black dragon, wrapped around her and made the void ring and shudder.

Her eyes brimmed with murderous intent.

"I was thinking the same thing."

Li Ye got to his feet, wearing a brilliant smile.

Flower Demon froze for a moment, then realized what he might do and hurriedly covered her ears.

She swiftly drifted backward.

Damn it, she'd forgotten about his bizarre sorcery.

Flower Demon broke into a cold sweat. In a battle between experts, the slightest mistake could affect the outcome.

She couldn't imagine what would have happened if Li Ye had used Words Manifest Reality during their fight just now.

But Li Ye spoke so quickly, his tongue as dazzling as a lotus in bloom. By the time Flower Demon covered her ears, he had already spoken.

"Surrender!"