Xue Xue worked her hand seals, and her entire body gradually turned upright. Xun Ming cast her a pitying glance and withdrew her hand. Xue Xue's long lashes trembled faintly, and only after several hours did she descend from midair.
The instant Xue Xue opened her eyes, she threw herself to the ground and kowtowed. "Thank you, Master, for saving my life!"
"Alas, Xue Xue! Get up first!" Xun Ming looked at her with complicated eyes and waved a hand. Xue Xue was helplessly lifted to her feet, her face filled with alarm.
Xun Ming stared at Xue Xue for a long while before saying sternly, "Xue Xue, I made it clear to you: with your aptitude, if you cultivated step by step, Foundation Establishment would not be difficult, and even forming a Golden Core would be possible. So why did you refuse to heed my words during this secluded cultivation? Was this secret art for breaking through to the eleventh layer of Qi Cultivation a secret transmission of your Misty Mountain?"
"Yes..." Xue Xue bit her lip and said softly, "I await Master's punishment!"
"Why would I punish you?" Xun Ming sneered. "It was not I who made my own decisions and failed to hold my own future in my eyes!"
"This disciple... knows she was wrong!" Xue Xue murmured with her head lowered.
"Hmph. Before entering seclusion, you promised me that you would absolutely not rush ahead recklessly! Why did you suddenly change your mind? Not only did you advance rashly, you even used Misty Mountain's secret art!" A cold gleam swept through Xun Ming's eyes as she sternly said, "Do you not know that breaking through two realms at once will make your future cultivation far more difficult?"
Upon hearing this, Xue Xue's face turned pale. With