Severing Ties: The Sect Regrets My Departure

Chapter 251: Xu Wanqing: It’s Over!

The White Jade Fan? Jiang Xun raised an eyebrow. His gaze swept over Xu Wanqing, instantly catching the calculating gleam in her eyes. The discovery made him sneer inwardly.

However, playing the role of the considerate and understanding Junior Brother, he didn’t refuse. “Since that’s the case, allow me to handle it.”

With a flick of his wrist, the Heaven-Bestowed Ruyi materialized. It shot upward, hovering directly above the White Jade Fan and Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul. Immediately, radiant beams of treasure light cascaded downward, forcefully severing the master-recognition connection between the White Jade Fan and Lu Qingyao!

Violently shattering a soul-brand was an excruciating ordeal for both the master and the Dharma Treasure. For Lu Qingyao, who was currently nothing more than a malformed Nascent Soul, having her artifact stripped away like this was a catastrophic torment.

The instant the treasure light struck, Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul jolted awake. A series of shrill, blood-curdling screams tore from her ethereal lips. The agony was absolute.

Witnessing her suffering, Xu Wanqing immediately plastered on an expression of boundless compassion and pity. Eventually, she even averted her gaze. “Seventh Junior Sister, just endure it a little longer. It will be over soon…”

“Seventh Senior Sister, Junior Brother is helping you! You must hold on!” Jiang Xun chimed in, his voice laced with manufactured urgency.

Yet, beneath their masks of perfect empathy, entirely different currents swirled in their eyes. In the depths of Xu Wanqing’s gaze lay a profound sense of relief—she was finally free of the burden. As for Jiang Xun… his eyes held only frigid ruthlessness.

Over the past few days, Jiang Xun had drained a considerable amount of his own origin power and effort just to keep Lu Qingyao alive and useful. Every time he thought about it, a wave of frustrated resentment washed over him. He felt absolutely no pity seeing her suffer now. In fact, he believed teaching this wretched woman a harsh lesson was better than letting her blunder into another disaster later.

Shaking off his thoughts, Jiang Xun turned to Xu Wanqing. “Third Senior Sister, I seem to recall Seventh Senior Sister mentioning that the two of you exchanged treasures?”

Xu Wanqing’s heart skipped a beat. Her anxiety spiked as Jiang Xun pressed further.

“Speaking of which, Seventh Senior Sister suffered retaliation from the Ten Thousand Beasts’ Resentful Spirits. Those entities appeared out of thin air, completely defying reason. Third Senior Sister, you didn’t do anything to the Mountain and River Remnant Realm, did you?”

“No!” Xu Wanqing shook her head vehemently. “Junior Brother, you know me! How could I possibly do something so malicious that harms others without even benefiting myself? I—”

Before she could finish her frantic defense, Jiang Xun laughed warmly. “Third Senior Sister, you’re overthinking it. I was merely asking casually. How could I ever suspect you? In the entire Sect, if I had to name the person I trust the absolute most, it would undoubtedly be you.”

His sincere tone washed a wave of guilty gratitude over Xu Wanqing. “Junior Brother, actually, the Mountain and River Remnant Realm…”

“Well, Seventh Senior Sister can’t use the Mountain and River Remnant Realm in her current state anyway, and she desperately needs this White Jade Fan,” Jiang Xun interrupted smoothly. “I was thinking, why don’t you two hold off on swapping your treasures back? What do you think?”

“Ah?”

“What is it? Are you unwilling, Senior Sister?”

“I… of course not!” Xu Wanqing weighed her options for a split second before shaking her head. “Given Junior Sister’s current condition, since she needs the White Jade Fan far more than I do, as her Senior Sister, I absolutely cannot refuse.”

In truth, she desperately wanted to refuse. She had acquired the White Jade Fan years ago. The artifact was inextricably linked to origin energy; it could absorb the essence of all things and produce miraculous effects. Plagued by her curse, possessing the White Jade Fan would be infinitely better than suffering empty-handed.

But… Jiang Xun had asked, and she couldn’t say no. She had wanted to confess that she had lost the Mountain and River Remnant Realm. However, she suspected their Master had taken it to frame her. If she spoke the truth out loud, she couldn’t predict the catastrophic fallout.

“Done!” Jiang Xun announced.

Xu Wanqing looked up. The White Jade Fan, previously bound to Lu Qingyao, now hovered in the air as an ownerless Dharma Treasure. Jiang Xun reached out, snatching the fan from the air, and handed it directly to her without a second thought.

“Here, Third Senior Sister.”

“Yes, yes!” Xu Wanqing nodded frantically, carefully accepting the artifact. For one fleeting, treacherous moment, the urge to grab the treasure and flee to the ends of the earth consumed her.

But she couldn’t run. Leaving aside the fact that the White Jade Fan couldn’t cure her affliction, if she actually tried to flee, the terrifying curse would immediately paralyze her with agony. She couldn’t afford to be greedy. She had to dedicate herself entirely to helping Lu Qingyao recover.

“Although the Spiritual Qi within Azure Mystic is dense, it’s too chaotic due to the sheer number of cultivators,” Xu Wanqing suggested a moment later. “Guiding a Nascent Soul into a puppet requires pure, undisturbed Spiritual Qi. Let’s change locations.”

Shortly after, she and Jiang Xun smuggled Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul out of the Sect. They meticulously selected a secluded courtyard in a mortal city. The location aligned perfectly with the required feng shui, boasted the right concentration of Spiritual Qi, and was utterly devoid of other cultivators to ensure zero interference.

“Proceed with absolute confidence, Senior Sister,” Jiang Xun assured her, stepping out into the courtyard. “I will stand guard. No matter who or what approaches, I will not let a single soul disturb you.”

Xu Wanqing nodded solemnly. With everything prepared, she wasted no more time and began the treatment.

Guiding a Nascent Soul into a puppet was not a particularly complex technique, and with the faint, stabilizing glow of the White Jade Fan, the process went exceptionally smoothly. In less than half an hour, Xu Wanqing had successfully established a connection with Lu Qingyao’s weakened Nascent Soul, gently reeling it toward the vessel.

During the procedure, Lu Qingyao briefly regained consciousness twice. However, her soul was simply too frail. Unable to move or speak, she could only passively endure the treatment.

It was almost complete.

“Calm your mind, Junior Sister,” Xu Wanqing murmured softly, adjusting her hand seals. “I am about to guide your Nascent Soul into the puppet.”

But just as she spoke, a chaotic chorus of barking erupted from the street outside. The frantic snarls sounded like a pack of dogs cornering a stranger—and, as luck would have it, the commotion was happening right outside their courtyard gate.

Xu Wanqing frowned deeply at the racket.

“Keep going, Third Senior Sister. I’ll handle it,” Jiang Xun called out perceptively, immediately leaving his post to investigate.

With him gone, Xu Wanqing refocused her energy. However, just as Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul was mere inches from the carefully selected puppet, the ethereal entity suddenly snapped out of Xu Wanqing’s control without any warning.

Lu Qingyao’s soul instantly dropped to its knees, trembling violently in mid-air.

Xu Wanqing scowled, attempting to re-establish the connection several times, but to no avail. As she racked her brain for a solution—

Woof! Woof! Woof!

The barking outside the door flared up again, louder and more frantic than before.

Xu Wanqing’s frown deepened. This was a mortal city; the presence of stray dogs was entirely normal. But Jiang Xun was incredibly powerful—why hadn’t he silenced the mutt yet?

Before she could ponder it further, the barking escalated, each yelp louder and more grating than the last. The noise was maddening, and it was causing Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul to shudder violently in terror.

Instinctively, Xu Wanqing formed a lethal hand seal, fully intending to obliterate the noisy beast through the wall.

Thump.

The curse pulsed a phantom ache in her chest. Remembering her forced benevolence, she swallowed her murderous intent and dispersed the spell. With a resigned sigh, she stood up and walked to the door. She would have to step outside and amiably persuade the stray dog to leave.

But she never could have anticipated what would happen next.

The exact millisecond she pulled the door open, a streak of freezing white light shot past her shoulder from inside the room. In the blink of an eye, the light plunged directly into the body of the barking stray dog outside.

Xu Wanqing stood frozen in the doorway, utterly stunned.

What… was that?

Slowly, mechanically, she turned her head to look back into the room.

The space where Lu Qingyao’s Nascent Soul had been floating just moments ago was completely empty. There wasn’t a single trace of her soul left.

That white light… Could it be…?

Gulp.

Xu Wanqing swallowed a mouthful of nervous saliva. Then, a chilling realization hit her. The White Jade Fan had been under her direct control the entire time, actively suppressing and stabilizing Lu Qingyao’s soul. How could the soul just break free and vanish into a dog on its own?

Instinctively, she looked up toward the ceiling, searching for the White Jade Fan.

The moment her eyes tracked upward, her entire body went rigid.

The fan… Where was the fan?!

The White Jade Fan was gone!

In that agonizing second, Xu Wanqing’s mind was completely stripped of all complex thoughts, schemes, and curses. Only a single, devastating realization echoed in her skull:

It’s over!!!

…

Meanwhile, miles away in the Listening-to-Rain Pavilion of Cloud Firmament City.

Gu Xiu gave his Green Bamboo Rod a sharp tug.

At the end of the shimmering spiritual silk, tangled securely within its translucent threads, was a pristine White Jade Fan. With a final heave, Gu Xiu forcibly dragged the Dharma Treasure straight out of the dimensional void!