Rewards Don't Matter, Staying Alive Does!

Ye Zhirou's face darkened as she flew on her sword.

When she reached the mountain farmstead where Bai Yue had been ambushed many days ago, she released her divine sense from the sky.

Broken courtyard walls, burned-down houses...

Ten li north of this farmstead was precisely where Bai Yue had fallen.

Ye Zhirou searched continuously from above, and soon spotted some strange footprints.

Those footprints looked somewhat like a man's. Judging by their size, he should have been a burly man, weighing at least two hundred jin!

Ye Zhirou furrowed her brows, reaching down to touch the mud around the prints. Something felt off.

After pondering for a moment, she flew away.

The instant she reached the sky, her expression tightened. She turned around and flew back to the farmhouse.

Entering the courtyard, Ye Zhirou's expression trembled. "Where are the bodies..."

She clearly remembered killing four people with her own hands that day: A Xiang's family of three, along with a devilish cultivator.

She looked around again. Not a single corpse remained.

Only some bloodstains were left on the ground.

Could wild beasts have dragged them away?

Impossible...

There were no beast tracks at all.

Ye Zhirou raised a detection artifact and controlled it with her divine sense.

The artifact instantly released a circular glow of dharma light, and the surrounding space seemed to turn black and white.

Ye Zhirou closed her eyes and searched. Before long, she found something unusual.

After Bai Yue had been ambushed that day, someone had returned to this place.

And taken away the bodies of those four dead people.

A cultivator had definitely done it!

An ordinary person could never have taken four corpses away at once.

Ye Zhirou instinctively looked toward the north of Jiangliu Mountain. Should she visit the Hehuan Sect Branch?

This was the only place nearby where those dogs of the devilish path could be found.

Who exactly would collect the bodies of those four people?

Either someone who had an immense connection to Xiao Yu, that Body Tempering Stage cultivator, such as his master.

Or a cultivator who had ties to those three mortals!

But what was with those enormous footprints...

Ye Zhirou's pupils suddenly constricted. Her fists clenched tightly around the dharma sword in her hands.

"Form-Shifting Escape... She used Form-Shifting Escape to flee!"

An unnatural, crazed smile rose at the corners of Ye Zhirou's lips.

When she had once studied under Bai Yue, she had heard Bai Yue explain several survival methods.

Escaping with a remnant soul, escaping through form-shifting, feigning death...

The light of Bai Yue's Soul Lamp had dimmed by a huge margin again. That meant Bai Yue had now lost all her cultivation!

Whoever found her would obtain supreme secret treasures!!!

The magical treasures, spirit herbs, and cultivation methods that woman possessed were riches every cultivator dreamed of!

If she, Ye Zhirou, could refine Bai Yue, would not all the treasures in Bai Yue's cave abode become hers?

Ye Zhirou looked toward the Hehuan Sect Branch, the corners of her mouth lifting to an exaggerated degree.

Such a stroke of fortune was enough to let Ye Zhirou defy fate and change her destiny!

She dared to conclude that Bai Yue was nearby.

Either she was hiding within the Hehuan Sect Branch, or she had been refined into a cultivation furnace by someone.

Having thought this far, Ye Zhirou directly took out a mask and covered her face. Her appearance slowly transformed into that of a female devilish cultivator.

She then picked up a pink fan and hung a token, previously obtained from a Hehuan Sect cultivator, at her waist.

She tried to play the part as convincingly as possible.

But she still carried the scent of rouge. Taking out a Dust-Cleansing Talisman, she flicked it against herself.

Then she found a wild beast and bathed in its blood.

Suppressing her cultivation to the Qi Refining Middle Stage, she flew toward the Hehuan Sect Branch.

Her heart pounded wildly with excitement the entire way.

She stared ahead with a mad smile, cold light flickering in her eyes.

Bai Yue's cultivation was definitely gone. She was probably the only one who knew this.

Shen Mengya still wanted to find Bai Yue's cave abode?

Hehe, she, Ye Zhirou, was the greatest contributor to this operation.

If not for her, would the Hehuan Sect Master have come?

Only a fool would share such fortune with others.

She was already nearly unable to wait.

Soon, relying on the token, she passed through the checkpoint without incident and arrived before the gates of the Hehuan Sect Branch.

The moment she arrived, she happened to brush past the masked Xiao Yu.

To avoid alerting the enemy, Ye Zhirou hastily lowered her head.

Xiao Yu, meanwhile, headed toward the Sect Affairs Hall.

Before he even reached the Sect Affairs Hall, Xiao Yu froze for a moment.

Why did he not remember the Hehuan Sect Branch having such a good-looking female cultivator?

The Hehuan Sect Branch had only so many disciples. He remembered every female cultivator's appearance perfectly.

Just as Xiao Yu was lost in thought, the system notification sounded in his mind.

[System Notification: A new wicked woman, Ye Zhirou, has been detected. Host, please judge her as soon as possible!]

[Name] Ye Zhirou

[Age] 28

[Cultivation] Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer

[Appearance] Beauty score: 91 points. Height: 172 cm. Weight: 110 jin.

[Aptitude] Supreme Wood Spiritual Root.

[Personality] Ungrateful and treacherous, driven by profit. She could abandon everything for cultivation, betray her master and destroy her ancestors, and harm all living beings.

[Background] Second disciple and personal disciple of Bai Yue, Sect Master of the Jade Maiden Sect.

[Crimes] Killed 36 fellow disciples, 6,821 mortals, her savior's entire family, and her parents.

After seeing the system notification, Xiao Yu immediately shifted his gaze away.

Suppressing the shock in his heart, he walked step by step toward the Sect Affairs Hall.

How had this woman's cultivation become so high...

Why had she suddenly come here?

Xiao Yu simply brushed past her, his heart filled with alarm.

Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer—higher than even his master!

His master was only Foundation Establishment, Fifth Layer.

What was Ye Zhirou doing here?

Xiao Yu walked away and headed toward the inner hall of the Sect Affairs Hall.

He had to report this!

That bitch had come here to find Bai Yue.

Bai Yue's cave abode contained so many treasures that anyone would be green with envy upon seeing them.

If Bai Yue's Judgment Score had already been full, Xiao Yu would have gone looking for those cave abodes long ago.

No...

This woman was too troublesome. Even her younger sister, Ye Zimei, possessed so many magical artifacts despite only being at Qi Refining, Eighth Layer.

Ye Zhirou's cultivation was even higher than before, which meant she had gained some enormous benefit after Bai Yue went missing.

Xiao Yu soon arrived at the inner hall. After seeing Zhang Ziling, he glanced at the disciples and elders on both sides, then quickly clasped his fists. "Disciple Xiao Yu greets Master and all the elders!"

Zhang Ziling smiled faintly. "Mm... not bad. You returned after only a few days. Your master truly did not misjudge you!"

Xiao Yu clasped his fists again while transmitting his voice to Zhang Ziling. Master, a spy has infiltrated the sect. Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer... Do not show alarm. I suspect she has contacts here as well!

Zhang Ziling was far more composed now than when she had first arrived at the branch. Hearing Xiao Yu's voice transmission, she did not react too strongly.

Looking around at the disciples, she said softly, "You performed well this time. Come with your master to the study and collect your reward!"

Xiao Yu bowed and followed her, continuing to transmit information about Ye Zhirou to Zhang Ziling along the way.

Zhang Ziling frowned upon hearing it.

Once they reached the study, she raised her hand and deployed a soundproof barrier.

As Xiao Yu took out the Ghost Wolf Chain forged by Fire Monk, he spoke in a low voice. "Before this disciple left, I also saw many cultivators from the Profound Spirit Sect and Jade Maiden Sect carrying numerous storage bags to Fire Monk to have magical artifacts forged!"

"Furthermore, on my way back, I barely saw any cultivators from the righteous path. I suspect they are planning something!"

"If they are not preparing to attack us here, then they must be planning a surprise assault on the front lines of the war between righteousness and evil... Master, you must be on guard!"

Zhang Ziling nodded. "Mm, I have already constructed a teleportation array in the west. Should we prove unable to resist them, we can retreat to the Demon Island main sect! As for the front lines, your master will send word to warn them. If this information proves true, you shall be handsomely rewarded!"

"By the way, tell me about Ye Zhirou. Even if she is Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer, this is still far too risky. Could there be something here that she values immensely?"

"She is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, yet she came here alone. This is too abnormal..."

Xiao Yu lowered his head in thought. If this matter was mishandled, it could become extremely troublesome.

Previously, when the system had told him to judge Mei Chunlan, he had simply killed her.

There were no penalties anyway.

Ye Zhirou's cultivation was truly difficult to handle. If he could not take her in, he could only eliminate her!

Rewards did not matter.

Staying alive was more important!

If all else failed, after she died, refining her body into a human puppet would not be impossible either. It would be warm anyway.

"Mm... This disciple suspects Ye Zhirou intends to uproot us entirely. It is likely because Master raided the Jade Maiden Sect not long ago and seized quite a few of their sect's magical artifacts and supplies, so this woman bears a grudge against us!"

"Moreover, she is the second disciple of the Jade Maiden Sect Master, while our Sect Master killed her master. Old hatred and new enmity combined have surely made her wish to slaughter us all..."

Zhang Ziling's expression turned grave. She was only at Foundation Establishment, Fifth Layer.

If a fight broke out, she could only rely on the other two elders for help.

The three of them, all at Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, should be able to defeat Ye Zhirou if they joined forces.

Yet she felt that something was wrong. Even if Ye Zhirou hated them deeply, she should not have come here alone to take such a risk.

And how had Xiao Yu discovered her?

Looking at Xiao Yu, whose cultivation had already reached Qi Refining, Sixth Layer, Zhang Ziling raised the corner of her eye. "Good disciple, the speed at which your cultivation has risen is truly like the sun at its zenith. I fear it will not be long before you reach Foundation Establishment..."

"How did you discover that Ye Zhirou had infiltrated us?"

Xiao Yu stepped forward with clasped fists and met Zhang Ziling's eyes without hiding anything. "For Master, this disciple would brave boiling water and tread on blazing fire. Once this disciple reaches the Foundation Establishment Realm, I will certainly do everything in my power to help Master form a Core!"

"This disciple previously investigated spies within the sect and looked into the names, appearances, and backgrounds of every senior sister and junior sister! As long as she is a woman, even an eighty-year-old granny cannot escape this disciple's discerning eyes!"

"Besides, that woman carries the smell of beast blood. The scent of a Hehuan Sect disciple is not something an ordinary person can imitate..."

A hint of suspicion entered Zhang Ziling's eyes. "What I asked was, how did you know she was Ye Zhirou? With your cultivation, if you investigated her, she would surely notice, would she not?"

Xiao Yu bowed again. "Master should have heard something about this. Many disciples in the sect have drawn portraits of Jade Maiden Sect female cultivators into erotic picture books... studying them day and night... Bai Yue, Ye Zhirou, Shen Mengya—every one of them is an outstanding cultivation furnace..."

"This disciple is lacking in talent, but I looked through them before and naturally remembered her appearance!"

Zhang Ziling was speechless for a moment. "Filthy..."

The moment she finished speaking, Xiao Yu walked over and looked sincerely into her eyes. "Master... didn't you say that once I returned, you could grant one of my wishes?"