But Xia Chan, she is my disciple after all

At the foot of the mountain, the corpses of Blood Butterfly Pavilion disciples lay scattered across the ground.

Xiao Mo sat on a stone, head lowered, clutching a piece of fabric in his hand, lost in thought.

After who knows how long, Xiao Mo spoke slowly: "Have you come to laugh at me?"

Xia Chan walked toward Xiao Mo step by step, stopping three meters away, tilting her head: "Is it funny?"

Xiao Mo shook his head with a bitter smile: "It really isn't funny."

Xia Chan swept her gaze over the surroundings, then fixed her eyes back on Xiao Mo: "Was it worth it?"

"You were a Sword Cultivator with boundless prospects. You abandoned your own Great Path, all for her cultivation, reducing yourself to ruin. In the end, she still learned the truth and cut ties with you."

"After she found out you were the son of her enemy, her heart nearly shattered."

"Everything you did for over a decade—all turned to nothing."

"Was it worth it?"

Xiao Mo lifted the skirt fabric in his hand and let out a faint laugh: "Who knows."

Xia Chan: "..."

Xiao Mo raised his head, meeting Xia Chan's cold eyes: "Where is she now?"

"She flew straight toward the Liang Kingdom. Where do you think she's going?" Xia Chan looked at the Young Master she once served. "The shortcut Qingyi took to the Myriad Monster Country actually hugs the Liang Kingdom border. She's a Golden Core Realm cultivator. Barring accidents, she'll reach Prince Jing's mansion within a day."

"Cough, cough, cough." Xiao Mo coughed violently, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and stood up, leaning on his longsword as he walked forward.

Xia Chan turned around, watching Xiao Mo's retreating back: "It's a miracle that Young Master is still alive. With a body like this, even if you go to Prince Jing's mansion, what can you do?"

Xiao Mo shook his head, his tone calm yet steady: "Qingyi is only at the Golden Core Realm. Her realm quality is decent enough, but Prince Jing's mansion has a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator and a Jade Uncut Realm offering. Going there is suicide. I can't let her die like that."

"Young Master still wants to meddle?" Xia Chan was puzzled. "It was the Prince who slaughtered her entire family, not you. Even if you feel responsible, you saved her, raised her, taught her cultivation—you and she are even."

"We are even, that's true."

Xiao Mo walked forward step by step, his voice carried by the wind.

"But Xia Chan, she is still my disciple..."

Prince Jing's Mansion.

Prince Jing, Xiao Jing, was playing with a bird in the courtyard.

"Father!"

A thirteen- or fourteen-year-old youth strode quickly into the courtyard. The boy's eyes had two pupils each.

"Oh, it's Han'er! Han'er, why have you returned from the sect?"

Xiao Jing looked at his son's homecoming, both surprised and delighted.

"I was out training recently and happened to pass by the Liang Kingdom Imperial Capital, so I thought I'd visit Father. Look, Father."

Xiao Han opened his mouth, and a dazzling golden core flew out from his throat.

After showing it to his father, Xiao Han swallowed the golden core back into his belly.

"Good son! Good son!" Prince Jing Xiao Jing was overjoyed. "I never imagined that at fourteen, you've already reached the Golden Core Realm. Your future is boundless, Han'er. When you reach the Immortal Realm, or even the Ascension Realm, everyone under heaven will bow their heads to you!"

"Hehehe." Xiao Han rubbed his nose. "I'm just glad I didn't disappoint Father."

"Disappoint? Han'er, you are the qilin child of our Xiao clan! I see the makings of an emperor in my son!" Xiao Jing patted his son's back firmly. "Come! Let's go find your mother. She'll be overjoyed to see you too. We'll have a good meal together."

"Alright, Father." Xiao Han nodded.

But just as Xiao Jing was about to lead his son out of the courtyard, a servant came crawling and stumbling over, losing his footing and tumbling toward Xiao Jing.

Xiao Jing frowned and kicked the servant away.

The servant ignored the pain, scrambled forward, and shouted frantically: "Master! Master! Terrible news! Terrible news!"

Xiao Han stepped forward and said loudly: "Speak plainly! What's so terrible about it!"

"Answering the young master, answering the master."

The servant hurriedly said.

"A woman just came to our Xiao Royal Mansion. Zhang Han, who was guarding the gate, asked her what she wanted, and she chopped off his head with one sword strike."

"That woman broke through the gate, indiscriminate, killing everyone in her path! She killed everyone she saw! Several of our mansion's cultivators have all died by her hand!"

"A woman?" Xiao Jing frowned.

"Arrogant! Does she think our Xiao Manor has no one?" Xiao Han bowed to his father. "Father, wait a moment. I'll go cut off her head and present it to you."

"No need. Let's go together, father and son." Xiao Jing patted his son's shoulder with a smile.

In truth, Xiao Jing already had a vague guess as to who it might be.

"Spare me, immortal!"

"Immortal, I have no grievance with you, why kill me—"

"Immortal, no!"

"Ah!!!"

"Run!"

"Madman! This person is a complete madman!!!"

The maidservants and servants within Prince Jing's estate fled in every direction.

Inside Prince Jing's residence, no living person within the woman's line of sight could escape with their life.

Corpse after corpse lay strewn across the courtyard, blood flowing freely between the cobblestones of the path, staining the soil red, turning the estate's pond into a pool of crimson.

Everything was just like the year the woman turned four.

"How dare you! Who are you, to slaughter wantonly in my Prince Jing's estate?"

Just as the woman stepped forward, Xiao Han followed his father and appeared before her, shouting in reprimand.

"So it really is you."

The moment Xiao Jing laid eyes on this woman, he recognized her.

After all, Xiao Jing had seen her portrait and personally handed it over to the Blood Butterfly Pavilion.

Jiang Qingyi slowly raised her head. The instant she saw Xiao Jing, the joints of her fingers gripping the sword hilt cracked audibly.

Found him. She had finally found him!

She would never forget—when she was four years old, in that courtyard, as her bones were being extracted, this man stood not far away, watching her as if she were nothing but livestock!

"So Prince Xiao still remembers me!" Jiang Qingyi sneered, her eyes bloodshot, like a magic beast about to devour its prey.

"Of course I remember." Xiao Jing nodded. "Your parents, your younger brother, and everyone in your estate—I was the one who ordered them all killed."

"Beast!"

Jiang Qingyi lost all reason. She charged forward with her sword, fusing icy Sword Qi into the Grass Character Sword Art, and slashed down in one stroke!

"I'll make you pay with your life!"