Zhao Asi in the Purple Fire

The three of them watched as Zhao Xiaoya packed up the belongings of Zhao Asi.

For a relatively long period, Zhao Xiaoya behaved quite composedly.

She smoothed out Zhao Asi's hair and collected his clothes—these were the most valuable-looking things on his person.

Indeed, there was not a trace of any storage tool on Zhao Asi, nor any other valuables; this large black robe, which might fetch five or six Gold Soul Coins, was the most precious item he possessed.

Watching Zhao Xiaoya's back, Ning Rongrong recalled Zhao Asi's eyes, which had been gouged out, and asked, "What happened to your grandfather's eyes?"

"Oh, his eyes? He doesn't have any, or rather, his eyes were artificial prosthetics, the detachable kind. Because of his unique martial soul, he could see clearly without them. Before coming here, I remember he sent them off for maintenance."

Zhao Xiaoya picked up the conversation quite smoothly, as if it were truly the case.

Although Ning Rongrong did not quite believe it, she did not raise any further questions.

"Alright, all packed up." Zhao Xiaoya clapped her hands, looking innocent and carefree.

"Hey, let me ask you something. Is your grandfather... really that poor?"

Ning Rongrong could not suppress the doubt in her heart and finally asked the question she had been wanting to know.

As the host of the grand Saintess Ritual and a Spirit Douluo, how could he have absolutely nothing?

"Poor? Of course, my family has been poor for three generations." Zhao Xiaoya nodded, but this was clearly not what Ning Rongrong had in mind.

"I mean, why does he have nothing on him?" Ning Rongrong took a breath and exhaled slowly.

"You're right, actually." Zhao Xiaoya seemed to realize it only now, looking surprised. "Did you expect him to have something on him?"

"Um... let me ask you, do you know about the Holy Spirit Sect?"

Zhao Xiaoya nodded and said, "I know it. My grandfather was a member, but I am not."

"Then, why didn't your grandfather have any of those medicinal pills or scrolls from the Holy Spirit Sect?" Ning Rongrong continued to ask.

But as soon as these words left her lips, Zhao Xiaoya fell silent and looked at Ning Rongrong.

Ning Rongrong seemed to see a hint of interrogation and three parts coldness in her eyes.

Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong also sensed that the atmosphere was off and braced themselves.

They had previously been whispering to each other about whether a mole had made a move, sacrificing themselves to ensure the Saintess Ritual would fail.

But hearing Ning Rongrong's words now, the two of them recalled unpleasant memories—those were the most terrifying moments for Ning Rongrong, when she would go mad day and night, just to find someone who would admit to seeing the scrolls and pills she spoke of.

In the end, such a person never appeared.

Tang Twelve hadn't seen them; she had lied to Rongrong. It must be said, she had done the right thing.

Yet here and now, Rongrong was actually still fixated on this matter.

"Medicinal pills and scrolls... I haven't heard Grandfather mention those."

Ning Rongrong was dazed for a moment, and when she looked at Zhao Xiaoya again, her eyes were filled with utter confusion.

Ning Rongrong rubbed her eyes, checking repeatedly, but she could no longer see any expression on Zhao Xiaoya other than bewilderment.

Her father and the others had finished their conversation with Zhao Xiaoya; it seemed the Saintess Ritual was over, and they only needed to extinguish the fire—but was it truly over?

A considerable number of doubts suddenly surfaced in Ning Rongrong's mind.

From the note and Huo Shengsheng to the words of the Silver Dragon King.

Driven by an inexplicable impulse, Ning Rongrong took the note out of her spatial Soul Tool; it was still blank. However, the thickness of the paper seemed slightly uneven. It was only after her training that she had developed such a sense.

Ning Rongrong held the note up to the purple flames, but still could not see anything.

She sighed and tucked the note away. Suddenly, she realized something was wrong—a doubt she had considered before, but had been interrupted by her survival instinct.

What about Huo Shengsheng? Why on earth did she appear at that grilled fish shop?

Ning Rongrong pondered it over and over, and the only possibility was the Saintess Ritual.

She searched around the space, but found no traces of Huo Shengsheng ever having been there.

Could she have been wrong?

She frowned, feeling a bit hot.

"The only thing providing heat here is that fire, right?"

As Ning Rongrong spoke, she turned her head to look, and then froze.

That purple fire—did it seem to have grown larger just now?

What if the Saintess Ritual was still ongoing? It wasn't as if there was a rule that a Saintess candidate had to be on a cross.

Just as Ning Rongrong wanted to continue thinking, the sound of conversation stopped.

Were they done talking?

Ning Rongrong was about to turn her head, but the strange movement of the purple fire froze her in place.

She turned her head stiffly, only to see—a person walking out of the purple fire.

A hunched old man dressed in a black robe.

The old man leaned on a cane, which was embedded with a purple stone. The purple stone was absorbing the flames; perhaps it was because of this stone that the old man had not been charred.

The old man continued to step out of the purple flames, and Ning Rongrong saw his face clearly; it was a face she was very familiar with, the face of the Zhao Asi lying on the ground. The only difference was that this old man still had his eyes.

She turned to look at the corpse, which had not disappeared, and the three people beside the body were also looking at Zhao Asi in astonishment.

"Hahaha, are you surprised to see me? You fellows from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and also, my—granddaughter." It was a very withered voice, and without giving the four of them time to answer, the old man continued to explain, "It's quite a surprise, my granddaughter, that you are actually a traitor. If it weren't for Lord Holy God granting me power, I truly would have died. You must be surprised too; I had long since relied on the power of Lord Holy God to create a new body, and that one on the ground was merely a clone. The me of now is the complete Zhao Asi, the complete, me!"

As he spoke, the purple stone on the old man's cane shone brilliantly, and Ning Rongrong instinctively raised her hand to block the light.

The power of Lord Holy God? Right, that scroll.

If the one before her was the true body, then it was perfectly reasonable that he possessed the scroll and had read it.

"Traitor? Zhao Xiaoya, you?"

Ning Fengzhi's focus was elsewhere; he looked toward Zhao Xiaoya, and Zhao Xiaoya looked back at him at the same time.

But before Zhao Xiaoya could answer, Zhao Asi had already clashed with Gu Rong.

After just one exchange, Gu Rong reached a conclusion:

"This guy is much stronger than before. Be careful."

His words were directed at the three of them.

Ning Rongrong nodded, but the next second, she saw the corners of Zhao Asi's mouth curl up and the stone brighten, and she felt a tremendous suction force pulling at her.

"Kill the small ones first, then the old ones. In this space, you still can't do anything to me."

Before being sucked into the stone, this was the last sentence Ning Rongrong heard.

Even though Ning Fengzhi and Gu Rong wanted to help, Zhao Asi kept them firmly entangled, leaving them completely unable to free their hands.

In this space, even summoning a Bone Dragon was a difficult task. When Gu Rong tried to do so, he discovered he could not summon it at all.

"Without the Bone Dragon, I think you are no match for me," Zhao Asi laughed.