Extremely Cruel

Chen Ye arrived very early, long before the lamp wick had even burned down to ash.

Princess Hongyu was still analyzing for Lan Shi why she was certain Chen Ye was a devil, and she was truly sweating buckets as she listened.

This princess, raised in the deep palace, had guessed too accurately; he had exposed himself simply by taking away those corpses.

After waiting and listening for half the night, only to end up more confused than before, Chen Ye decided to simply reveal himself.

After wandering around for so many days, he had finally found the person behind the strange occurrences in Cui County. Chen Ye did not want to waste any more time, so he decided to get to the bottom of the truth tonight.

Seeing Princess Hongyu trembling with fear, Chen Ye felt it was just as well; it saved him the trouble of having to interrogate her.

Chen Ye said to Princess Hongyu, "Forgive my rudeness for disturbing you so late. However, I need you to clear up my confusion regarding the affairs of Cui County. Please, do not refuse."

"I don't know what the Daoist wants to know."

Princess Hongyu dared not move, and she even lowered her voice, fearing she might wake Lan Shi, as if she could escape this disaster as long as the young girl remained asleep.

Chen Ye got straight to the point: "I want to know everything. Who exactly are you? Why would a princess of the palace be involved with a cultivator? Was the forced conscription of young boys and girls in Cui County your order, and for whom are you collecting so many children?"

Princess Hongyu did not answer, but instead asked with a look of grim determination: "I can tell you everything, but first tell me, what did you do to Little Stone? She could never have betrayed me; how did you know she was one of mine?"

Chen Ye had not expected the princess to care about this, so he explained: "Rest assured, I haven't done anything to the little girl. I was just guessing. Princess Hongyu, Lan Shi the little thief... I originally guessed that the little girl might be the princess in disguise. Now it seems I overthought it; it wasn't one of those cliché stories after all. A person of noble birth wouldn't show their face so easily."

Princess Hongyu had not expected this to be the reason.

However, when she named Lan Shi, she had indeed harbored such thoughts. She hoped Lan Shi would live a life completely different from her own, so if she was Hongyu (Red Jade), then the girl would be Lan Shi (Blue Stone).

Perhaps this was karma.

Seeing the look of resignation on Princess Hongyu's face, Chen Ye couldn't help but smile.

The so-called deduction based on names was just something he had made up on the spot; there were so many names in the world that linking a thief to a princess based on that alone was truly far-fetched.

In reality, Chen Ye had done something to Lan Shi.

The vengeful spirits in the Ten Thousand Soul Banner could not travel too far and could not possess Lan Shi, but the yin spirits could leave behind enough yin energy on her.

A cultivator in the Qiling Realm could see the flow of spiritual energy, and by following the traces of this residual yin energy, Chen Ye had been able to find Princess Hongyu. This was also the reason why Chen Ye had so readily let them go at the time.

Cultivators had too many ways to bully mortals; no matter how clever the little girl was, it was useless.

Of course, there was no need to tell the princess about this method; he might still be able to use it next time.

Chen Ye reminded her: "Princess, it is almost dawn. Since I have cleared up your confusion, you should now answer my questions."

"That's right, the forced conscription of young boys and girls in Cui County was indeed my order. I forged imperial documents to demand that Cui County collect three thousand boys and girls. Because someone wants to use these three thousand children as a sacrifice to set up the Infant Soul Cleansing Array."

"Infant Soul Cleansing Array?"

There were countless arrays in this world, and even the Ten Thousand Soul Banner had endless versions; it was no surprise that Chen Ye had never heard of this one.

It was just that the methods of the devilish path were mostly cruel and bloody sacrifices; he feared that not one of these three thousand children would survive.

Princess Hongyu seemed to have accepted her fate and confessed: "I took Elder Tianwu as my master. He practices devilish arts and needs three thousand boys and girls as offerings. Since I happen to have Cui County as my fief, I ordered the collection of the children to help him..."

Chen Ye interrupted her there: "Princess, there is no need for this. I arrived earlier and heard your conversation with Lan Shi. You intentionally lured the Qinghe Sword Sect here; you are not doing this for that devil of your own free will. Since things have come to this, you might as well be honest; there might still be a chance for a turnaround."

Hearing Chen Ye say this, Princess Hongyu showed no signs of joy, only sneering: "Why do you speak as if you intend to save me? Aren't you a devil yourself? People of the devilish path are selfish. What do the lives of these children or my own life have to do with you? You speak such soft words because you want to know the secrets of the array, right? Devils are all the same—greedy, selfish, cruel... You might as well just kill me and search my soul."

Chen Ye felt slightly awkward. While the identity of a devilish cultivator was true, he really didn't think much of an Infant Soul Cleansing Array; he would never use such bloody and cruel methods, even if he died.

However, how could this princess fail to see the situation clearly at a time like this?

With her life in someone else's hands, provocation was not the act of a wise person.

Chen Ye seemed to notice something; he chanted a spell and swiped his fingers across his eyes, turning his pupils gold.

Looking at Princess Hongyu again, he indeed saw countless traces of spiritual energy on her body, forming the shapes of various runes.

Chen Ye sighed: "The runes are a bit different, but they are roughly the same. Princess, so you are also a Cursed Spirit Child. If I kill you, I fear that Elder Tianwu will sense it. You want me to end up in a mutual destruction with that devil, don't you? Wait, no... how is Lan Shi also a Cursed Spirit Child!"

No sooner had Chen Ye finished speaking than Princess Hongyu threw a hidden weapon at him.

With a soft pop, what Princess Hongyu had thrown was actually a powder pouch that burst automatically.

Smoke filled the air, and the entire room became pitch black.

Princess Hongyu had been prepared; she grabbed Lan Shi and threw her toward the door. The princess had clearly practiced martial arts, and Lan Shi was petite, so she was easily snatched up.

But just as she was about to exert force, Princess Hongyu felt something touch her shoulder.

The next moment, Princess Hongyu's entire body went rigid, and she couldn't even move her fingers.

"Princess, what..."

When Lan Shi woke up, the dust in the room had already settled.

The little girl only saw Chen Ye sitting by the bed, while Princess Hongyu lay on the bed, stiff as a board.

Lan Shi wanted to save her without a second thought, but unfortunately, she soon followed in Princess Hongyu's footsteps, becoming rigid after a light touch from Chen Ye.

Chen Ye brushed the powder off his clothes; the stuff seemed to have some toxicity, but fortunately, it didn't affect cultivators much.

Having eavesdropped for half the night, Chen Ye hadn't been idle; he had spent quite a bit of effort practicing spells and had finally managed to draw the Immobilization Curse on his palms, just enough for one person each.

Looking at the two panicked young girls, Chen Ye spoke again: "Princess, was the big scene you just made all to save Lan Shi? You are the one of noble birth, yet you were willing to sacrifice yourself. It seems you truly have your reasons. I know you don't trust me, but since you aren't even afraid of death, why not take a gamble and believe in me once?"

Chen Ye spoke as he lifted the Immobilization Curse from the two of them.

The young girl hurriedly shielded Princess Hongyu behind her, a small dagger appearing in her hand at some point.

Of these two, one had sacrificed herself to send Lan Shi away, and the other had loyally protected her mistress the moment she regained her freedom; Chen Ye couldn't help but feel a shred of admiration.

Chen Ye had no choice but to say to Lan Shi, "Miss Lan, you should know that if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't need to go through all this trouble. If you want the princess to survive, then persuade her. I truly want to save people—not just those three thousand innocent children, but the two of you as well."

Although Lan Shi still didn't understand what was happening, hearing Chen Ye speak this way made her believe him a little.

Having witnessed Chen Ye's mysterious ability to subdue a large group of martial artists in an instant, Lan Shi knew she was no match for him.

If there was truly a glimmer of hope, it would be better to listen to him and give it a try.

Lan Shi lowered her dagger and whispered into Princess Hongyu's ear, "Princess, why don't we give it a try? We can't resist him anyway."

Princess Hongyu sighed; mortals were ultimately unable to contend with cultivators. If this person truly had any malicious intent, they would be powerless to resist, so they might as well take the gamble.

Princess Hongyu smoothed her robes and said to Chen Ye, "Since you are magnanimous enough not to hold my previous offense against me, I will not hide anything either. However, what exactly is it that you wish to know?"

Chen Ye let out a sigh of relief, glad that he had finally gotten her to open up, and asked, "Princess, in truth, you and Miss Lan are not mistress and servant, but blood sisters, aren't you?"

Lan Shi's eyes widened in surprise, but Princess Hongyu, as if she had known this all along, said in a sorrowful tone, "That is correct. Lan Shi is my younger sister, the youngest of all my siblings, and the only one among them who has survived. That Old Devil prepared many vessels for his soul possession. Ever since I can remember, he would bring home one or two of my brothers or sisters almost every year."

"I knew they were my own flesh and blood; I could feel the bond of our bloodline. The Old Devil didn't hide it from me either; instead, he forced me to personally draw the runes on them, turning them into puppets just like me. However, not every one of them could withstand the ritual. Over all these years, only Lan Shi has survived."

"The others... they all died by my hand. I killed them myself."

Princess Hongyu seemed to recall that tragic past; her body trembled incessantly, and her fingernails dug deep into her palms, blood staining her dress.

Chen Ye could not help but sigh. The methods of the demonic sects were truly cruel, forcing a teenage girl to kill her own siblings—it was truly devoid of humanity.

Chen Ye asked, "So, you intentionally lured the Qinghe Sword Sect here, hoping that a righteous cultivator could save you from this sea of misery. Forcing the abduction of young boys and girls was just to blow the matter out of proportion, wasn't it?"

Princess Hongyu nodded and said helplessly, "That is indeed the case. Unfortunately, it only lured you, Daoist. I suspect you are not actually a cultivator from the Qinghe Sword Sect, but are merely posing as a righteous practitioner, correct?"

"A good guess. I am indeed not a righteous cultivator."

Chen Ye's words left Princess Hongyu feeling deeply desperate, her last shred of hope extinguished. In a few more days, Elder Tianwu would emerge from seclusion, and by then, he would either forcibly abduct the children or immediately proceed with the soul possession.

No matter which path it took, the sisters would ultimately be unable to escape death.

Chen Ye had no perverse pleasure in admiring the girl's despair, so he said to Princess Hongyu, "However, I do know a cultivator from the Qinghe Sword Sect. They despise evil and will certainly be able to save you from this sea of misery."

Princess Hongyu looked at Chen Ye in disbelief and asked excitedly, "Is that true?"

"Naturally, it is true. I have no reason to lie to you. However, she will not return for a few more days. Before then, please tell me everything you know about that devil so I can prepare. What is his current cultivation realm?"

Princess Hongyu didn't bother to question the truth of his words and hurriedly said, "I don't know much about cultivation, but I heard him say that he is already in the Tongxuan Realm, and this time he hopes to refine his soul and break through to the Spirit Transmutation Realm."

Chen Ye laughed, "Still only in the Tongxuan Realm? Then that makes things simple."

Su Chunyi was also in the Tongxuan Realm, but the Qinghe Sword Sect was the best in the world, after all.