Dual Cultivation System: The Villainous Servant’s Rise

Chapter 235: Fairy Li Qingyu, Are You Here to Serve Yourself on a Platter?

“Not good!”

Han Lie slapped the table and shot to his feet.

Caught off guard by the sudden revelation, he realized he had no idea where Xiao Qingge or Han Feng were. Zhuo Hongyi and Qin Lan were accounted for, but the others might have taken on sect missions to defend the sect or launch counterattacks.

Or worse, they might have already been targeted.

“See? Impatient again.”

Grand Elder Chi Lian waved a graceful hand, signaling him to sit back down. “What is the art of strategy? It is predicting every move your enemy could possibly make. Since I can sit here and casually mention their names, do you really think…”

“…I haven’t made preparations?”

Han Lie paused, blinking. “What does the Grand Elder mean?”

Chi Lian flicked a finger, and a spiritual screen materialized in the air.

The image showed Xiao Qingge sitting cross-legged on a bed inside an elegant, antique-style room. Her eyes were closed in meditation, her expression peaceful.

“She is safe under my protection,” Chi Lian said calmly. “As for your brother, Han Feng, he is still within the Myriad Pill Hall. He hasn’t stepped foot outside the sect gates, so you have no need to worry.”

“Sister Chi Lian, you are my goddess!”

Han Lie was so relieved he nearly lunged across the table to hug her.

Now he understood why she had been so composed. She hadn’t just predicted the enemy’s moves; she had already checkmated them before the game even began.

“Oh, stop it. Don’t be so mushy.”

Chi Lian gracefully deflected his hug. “If you really want to thank me, come find me at the Moon Rain Pavilion after this is over. For now, focus on the business at hand.”

“Right. Tell me, Sister Chi Lian—what do I need to do?” Han Lie sat back down, his patience restored now that he knew his family was safe.

“Zhao Batian wants to eliminate you. Do you think your Big Sister is any different?”

Chi Lian’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous, cunning glint flashing within them. “He was lucky enough to survive the Sect Leader’s wrath last time. I wonder if his luck will hold out again? Hehehe…”

“Next, I want you to turn his own scheme against him, Little Brother.”

“Please elaborate.”

Chi Lian laid out the plan concisely.

While the real Xiao Qingge was safely hidden away, Chi Lian had dispatched a decoy: the Second Seat of the Elder Council, Sha Zui.

Using advanced disguise techniques, Elder Sha Zui had impersonated Xiao Qingge and accepted a mission to “reinforce the front lines.” Predictably, she had allowed herself to be captured by the Sun Moon Sect’s ambushers.

Han Lie’s role was simple: play the desperate lover. He was to frantically search for “Xiao Qingge,” track her to the city where she was last seen, and walk straight into the enemy’s trap.

“Wait,” Han Lie frowned. “Sister Chi Lian, what if they’ve already taken Elder Sha Zui back to the Sun Moon Sect’s headquarters?”

“Hehe. That won’t happen.”

Chi Lian spoke with absolute certainty. “They need to give you hope. Why would you walk into a trap if you knew it was hopeless? If she were deep in their territory, you wouldn’t go.”

“Remember, we are a Demonic Sect. But they assume we are bound by basic attachments. They will hold ‘Xiao Qingge’ in a compromised location—a city they control—dangling the bait just close enough to make you think you can save her.”

“That makes sense,” Han Lie agreed.

As for how Zhao Batian knew about his relationship with Xiao Qingge? That was simple. The one who knows you best is often your enemy. Basic intelligence gathering would have revealed their connection easily.

With Elder Zhu Xuan guarding Qingzhou City, Bai Ling in secluded cultivation, Zhuo Hongyi at Saint Ghost City, and the others safe within the sect, Xiao Qingge was the only viable target.

“Alright. The plan is set. This is our first cooperation, Little Brother. Do not disappoint me.”

“Count on it, Sister Chi Lian.”

Han Lie grinned, his eyes cold. “When this is over, I will repay you properly.”

…

Han Lie left the Elder Council in a feigned panic.

To sell the performance, he first rushed to the Spirit Treasure Hall, frantically asking Xiao Qingge’s senior sisters about her whereabouts. Once he “confirmed” she had gone missing on a mission, he flew straight for Tiangang City, 10,000 miles north of the sect.

Tiangang City was a subsidiary city of the Heavenly Void Sect, though far less strategic than Saint Ghost City.

It had fallen to the Sun Moon Sect days ago.

To capture “Xiao Qingge,” the enemy had laid a brutal ambush, wiping out the entire reinforcement team. Apart from the disguised Elder Sha Zui, everyone else had been slaughtered.

As the outline of Tiangang City came into view, a wave of deathly silence washed over Han Lie.

Black smoke billowed from the ruins. The city walls were shattered, the buildings reduced to rubble.

The streets were a charnel house. Corpses were piled high, limbs severed and scattered like refuse. It was a scene from a living hell.

Even Han Lie, hardened by the cruelty of the cultivation world, felt his stomach churn. He couldn’t imagine the despair the citizens must have felt as they were butchered.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The moment he entered the airspace above the city, over a dozen figures shot up from the ruins, surrounding him.

They wore the robes of the Sun Moon Sect.

Han Lie hovered in the air, hands clasped behind his back. His gaze swept over the group before landing on the leader.

It was an old acquaintance.

Li Qingyu. The woman who had intercepted him in Qingzhou City, only to be driven off by Zhuo Hongyi.

“Long time no see, Han Lie. I thought you were going to be a coward and hide in your shell,” Li Qingyu sneered, looking down at him like a cat toying with a mouse.

She clearly thought he was already caught in her jar.

“Heh. Fairy Li Qingyu…”

Han Lie’s expression remained calm, almost bored. “The first time we met, you could have crushed me like an ant. But now?”

He glanced at the surrounding disciples.

“With just this trash? Are you here to serve yourself up on a platter for Lord Mo?”

Li Qingyu’s expression didn’t waver. “I know I am no longer your match. But so what? Your precious sister Qingge is in our hands.”

“If you harm a single hair on anyone here today, you can wait to collect her corpse.”

Hearing this, Han Lie’s face darkened, and his voice dropped to a terrifying chill.

“Is this the extent of your lowly tricks? Where is she!”