The Many Faces of Beauty (3)

Just then, the door to the guest quarters was gently pushed open, and one of the retainers previously sent out to gather information hurried inside. His expression was grave, and every step carried a crushing weight that instantly drew everyone's attention.

"Your Highness, we found out." The retainer bowed, keeping his voice extremely low.

Beiming Xuan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his turbulent emotions, then raised a hand. "Speak."

"That female cultivator's Daoist title is Yuqin. She is the second elder of the Profound Heaven Sect, and currently the most senior elder in the sect." The retainer paused, his Adam's apple bobbing. "It is said... even the sect master, True Person Yu Qing, must show her considerable deference."

That single sentence made every heart in the hall sink completely. A chill shot up from the soles of their feet straight to their scalps. The indignation and resentment they had felt after being publicly humiliated were, at that moment, washed to pieces by a far greater and more tangible lingering terror.

The retainer paused slightly, seemingly arranging his words before he continued. His voice carried a faint, almost imperceptible dryness. "Also... it is said that when Yu Qin True Person was young, she had an exceptionally fierce and decisive temperament. Once, for some reason, she charged alone into Nether Swan Hall. The scar on her face was left behind then."

"Though it was a reckless act, her courage and strength earned her the admiration of cultivators throughout the Heavenly Domain. Her prestige is immense; with one call, hundreds answer."

When this happened, the righteous and demonic paths were locked in fierce conflict. The news had barely spread before it shook the world, becoming the focus of the entire cultivation realm.

Several hundred years had passed, yet this old tale had