Jiang Yingluo looked coldly at the young master and said, "Then why don't you go kill him?"
The young master's gaze sank, and he said nothing.
Jiang Yingluo spoke calmly, "Those who cultivate must be cautious in words and deeds, and must not be arrogant."
"This Junior Brother Mo is quite talented. Your feud with him is your own affair, but you cannot let personal grudges harm the greater plan."
Had Mo Hua been present, he would have recognized that this young master, dressed in an ochre-yellow flood dragon robe with a dignified bearing, was exactly the Earth Sect's Great Young Master he had crossed paths with at the Flower Queen Banquet that day.
Hearing this, the Great Young Master did not seem to dare to defy his "cousin." He only shook his head and said, "You call him Junior Brother Mo, but he may not really regard you as 'Senior Sister Jiang.' This kid is ungrateful and deeply calculating."
Jiang Yingluo said, "That's not your concern."
The Great Young Master sneered, "But I can't just ignore it. After all, this kid thoroughly humiliated me."
His gaze turned cold. "Cousin, perhaps you don't know, but after that incident, the other noble heirs have all been whispering behind my back, saying that one Heavenly Crystal of this Earth Sect's Great Young Master isn't worth one Spirit Stone of that Taixu Mo Young Master."
"For that single remark alone, this kid deserves to die ten thousand times."
His tone was sinister.
Jiang Yingluo frowned with displeasure. "All over such petty jealousies? In the future, go less to those places of ill repute."
The Great Young Master was not angered by her rebuke. Instead, he shook his head. "Cousin, I have to go to Jade Fragrance Pavilion. I must have that girl Yu Nujiao."
"Without her body, the fire in my blood won't drain, and my cultivation technique will run into problems. I have no choice."
"Enough," Jiang Yingluo cut him off with a trace of disgust in her eyes. "What you cultivate is your own business, but don't bring such matters up in front of me."
The Great Young Master's eyelids twitched slightly, but he only smiled and did not dare to talk back.
Then, with a helpless expression, he continued, "So it's not really me being jealous and deliberately picking a fight with this Mo guy."
"If he monopolizes the Flower Queen and takes Yu Nujiao's body, preventing me from venting my fire, wouldn't that be the same as ruining my Dao lineage?"
"Then how am I supposed to cultivate to late Golden Core, and ascend to Feather Transformation?"
Jiang Yingluo asked indifferently, "What do you intend to do?"
The Great Young Master chuckled, then his gaze turned cold. "In my opinion, first cut off his wealth, then sever his connections, and leave him isolated and helpless."
"If he's sensible, he'll leave on his own, stop coveting Yu Nujiao, and get out of Houtu City forever. After a while, I'll forget about him, and this matter might be dropped. I won't hold his offense against him."
"That's good for everyone."
He glanced at Jiang Yingluo and flattered her with a half-smile. "Of course, cousin, your methods are far more brilliant."
"First cut off his wealth and make him suffer. Then dangle prospects, status, and a beautiful Dao companion in front of him, and take him in as a dog."
"Once the marriage is settled, this Mo Hua eats ours, drinks ours, uses our spirit stones, marries a woman we give him, relies on the power of our Earth Sect, and the children he sires will also be entered into the Earth Sect's genealogy."
"Food, drink, expenses, fame, power, wife, children; all of it belongs to the Earth Sect."
"He'll be bound tight to the Earth Sect, forced to live at its mercy, to toil like an ox or horse for the Earth Sect his whole life, and never be able to make waves again."
"This is the method of turning a man into a dog, refining a proud son of a humble clan into consumable goods for a noble house. Killing and destroying his heart without lifting a blade... Cousin, your methods are truly superior."
The Great Young Master smiled.
Jiang Yingluo frowned, but said nothing in explanation.
The Great Young Master went on, "I know, cousin, you have good intentions. You value talent, so you're giving him this chance."
"But, cousin..."
His gaze flickered, and his voice turned heavy. "What if this Mo guy doesn't take the bait? What if he truly fails to appreciate the Earth Sect's goodwill? What then?"
"At that point, I'm afraid we'll have no choice but to kill him."
Jiang Yingluo was silent for a moment, then looked at the Great Young Master and asked, "Are you so set on killing him?"
The Great Young Master smiled. "I told you, it's not that I want to kill him. It's that he doesn't know his place and blocks my path."
Just thinking of Yu Nujiao, that beauty he regarded as his personal forbidden delicacy, being in "intimate" company with Mo Hua, with mutual affection between them, made murderous intent well up in his heart.
Jiang Yingluo glanced at him, and her heart stirred. "No, this isn't like you."
The Great Young Master was startled.
Jiang Yingluo mused, "If it were any other time, anyone you wanted to kill, you'd have killed long ago. You wouldn't be going on and on about it. The very fact that you keep talking about it means... for now, you can't kill Mo Hua."
The Great Young Master's face instantly turned ugly.
Jiang Yingluo realized she had guessed right. She was somewhat surprised, then found it strange. "You can't kill Mo Hua? Could it be... you're no match for him?"
The Great Young Master's face darkened, then he sneered. "That's because Rong Zhenren stopped me, so I couldn't easily make a move."
"Rong Zhenren?" Jiang Yingluo's brow twitched.
The Great Young Master nodded. "Rong Zhenren's face must be respected. As for this kid himself..."
His eyes narrowed, and he sneered, "The day I fought him, I saw through his tricks. He only had some movement and concealment arts, and never dared to take a single blow from me head-on."
"His foundation is unstable, his Dao arts are sloppy, and he only knows how to run for his life. That does fit his pretty-boy style."
Jiang Yingluo looked at him, listening quietly. Her dignified eyes condensed, and she shook her head. "Still not right..." "A Zhenren is a Zhenren, and a Golden Core is a Golden Core."
"By the usual rules of noble houses, if a Golden Core does not offend, a Zhenren may not strike at a Golden Core."
"Other Zhenren might ignore the rules, but Rong Zhenren would not. Rong Zhenren is the most particular about rules and propriety."
"Rong Zhenren only concerns herself with matters between Zhenren."
"You are a Golden Core. If you wanted to kill Mo Hua, Rong Zhenren could not stop you, nor would he protect Mo Hua."
"Yet even so, you failed to kill him, and afterward you didn't make a move against him either. Instead, you come here and vent useless threats."
Jiang Yingluo's gaze grew sharp.
The Great Young Master's face was ugly. He said coldly, "This Mo Hua just hides in the Small Blessed Land and doesn't dare to come out."
"And just now?" Jiang Yingluo said. "He was right there on this high platform, on our Earth Sect's ground. Why didn't you kill him?"
The Great Young Master fell silent.
"Tell me the truth," Jiang Yingluo pressed, her gaze piercing. "What exactly are you worried about?"
"Or rather... what does this Mo Hua have on him that gives you pause?"
Under Jiang Yingluo's relentless questioning, the Great Young Master's expression grew gloomy, his face changing color several times. But in front of this keen-minded senior sister of the Earth Sect—the "big cousin" he had feared since childhood—he could hardly conceal anything.
The Great Young Master's face turned cold, but he slowly spoke. "Bloodline intuition..."
Jiang Yingluo frowned slightly. "Bloodline intuition?"
"Mm," the Great Young Master said. "The intuition within my blood tells me... I cannot kill him."
Jiang Yingluo thought for a moment and became even more puzzled. "Why?"
In cultivation, techniques, Dao arts, Golden Core quality, bloodline might... An ordinary Mo Hua could never be a match for her cousin, who had been extraordinarily gifted since childhood and possessed deep bloodline power.
Comparing the two, besides formations, Mo Hua's only advantages were probably his handsome face and his knack for charming Flower Queens. For a moment, Jiang Yingluo could think of no reason at all why Mo Hua could defeat her cousin.
The Great Young Master was silent for a while, then slowly said, "I've thought carefully about this Mo Hua's background. The only possibility is... his magic treasure... has something off about it."
Jiang Yingluo's eyes flickered. "Mo Hua's... magic treasure?"
The Great Young Master nodded and slowly said, "The Flower Queen Banquet that day was a fierce fight, but this Mo guy, from start to finish, never revealed a magic treasure."
"When others attacked him, he didn't use a magic treasure to protect himself. When he attacked others, he didn't activate one either. He only tossed a few Fireball spells."
"I sent people to investigate. Since this Mo guy arrived in Houtu City, whether in sparring or in any public fight, he has never shown the slightest trace of a magic treasure."
"Either he uses formations, or he uses spells and movement arts. It's as if... he isn't a Golden Core cultivator at all, but just an oversized Foundation Establishment."
Jiang Yingluo frowned. "How is that possible?"
How could a Golden Core not have a magic treasure? Without a magic treasure, how could he have broken through to Golden Core? And on what basis would he fight other Golden Core cultivators?
The Great Young Master nodded. "So, the warning in my blood has two possibilities."
"Either this Mo guy's foundation is too weak, and his magic treasure is too poor, so even if he showed it, it would be useless, which is why he keeps it hidden and is ashamed to reveal it."
"Or it's the other extreme: his magic treasure is so powerful that even he doesn't dare to use it lightly. Once he uses it, someone will die or be injured, and he himself would have to pay an enormous price."
The Great Young Master's tone was cold and sinister.
These were almost the two most extreme cases. Either Mo Hua was so weak as to be beneath mention, or Mo Hua was so strong as to be heaven-shaking and earth-destroying. Both extremes—the very weak and the very strong—were concentrated in Mo Hua alone. The Great Young Master then thought of some faint, ambiguous rumors, and his heart was filled with doubt and unease.
Jiang Yingluo's expression also turned serious. "Taixu Sect... has such a legacy? Or does he have some other master?"
The Great Young Master shook his head. "Hard to say."
Jiang Yingluo thought for a moment, then understood. "So, unless you force out his magic treasure and see through his trump card, you don't dare to kill him casually?"
The Great Young Master was unwilling to admit that he didn't dare to kill Mo Hua, as that would seem like a sign of weakness. He only said, "A son of a thousand gold does not sit beneath a dangling eave. This young master is different—I have a bright future. A mere Mo Hua, with his worthless life, isn't worth my taking that risk."
"But, if one day..."
His eyes were icy. "If he really reveals his magic treasure and exposes his trump card, and I come to know it, then his life will surely end at my hands."
Jiang Yingluo frowned when she heard this, thought for a moment, and sighed. "After all, he is Zixi's junior brother, and he has ties to the Bai family. You'd best be cautious. The current situation is delicate. Don't drag the Bai family into it."
The Great Young Master sneered. "Cousin, you don't really believe that a brat surnamed Mo has any real connection to the Bai family, do you?" "Whether he's truly 'senior and junior fellow apprentice' with that... unmentionable legitimate daughter of the Bai family is hard to say."
Jiang Yingluo was briefly startled, then her brows slowly knitted, and a nameless irritation and unease stirred in her heart.
The Great Young Master trailed off, then suddenly thought of something. Desire grew in him, and he asked Jiang Yingluo, "Cousin, you are familiar with that legitimate daughter of the Bai family. Is she..."
His nature got the better of him. His gaze trembled, and his voice turned hoarse. "Truly as beautiful as the rumors say—stealing heaven's very creation, like a banished immortal descending into the mortal world, incomparably lovely?"
"I have wandered among flowers all my life and seen countless peerless beauties, but never..."
As he spoke to himself, he suddenly felt cold all over, and the flow of blood in his veins slowed. He looked up, and his pupils contracted in shock.
The Jiang Yingluo across from him seemed to have become a different person. Her aura was icy and savage, and her pupils had turned golden-brown. Those were not human eyes—they were filled with the disdainful killing intent of one looking down upon ants. On her fair skin, ancient phoenix-like and dragon-like patterns emerged, and as her blood flowed, it gave off an astonishing pressure.
Below the high platform, all the Earth Sect's direct disciples sensed this savage aura, realized their senior sister was angry, and their faces all changed, turning pale.
The Great Young Master, standing closest, also felt his bloodline being suppressed. His heart trembled, and the color drained from his face. He hurriedly held his breath and clamped his mouth shut, not daring to say another word, afraid of triggering his cousin's wrath.
The entire Kunhua Courtyard became oppressively silent. Under the pressure, everyone's bloodline trembled. No one dared the slightest defiance, not even a single loud breath.
In the silence, who knew how long passed before the pressure gradually faded. The atmosphere in the courtyard slowly returned to normal. The patterns on Jiang Yingluo's fair skin receded, and her earthy-brown eyes gradually returned to normal. But her face still bore an indescribable coldness, and her voice was as low as the Nine Abysses, "Don't entertain such thoughts. Otherwise, I will kill even you."
The Great Young Master's heart shook violently, and his expression shifted several times before he gritted his teeth and whispered, "Yes, cousin."
Seeing his response, Jiang Yingluo's expression softened a little. The strange light in her eyes vanished completely, and her temperament returned to normal. She became once more that somewhat overbearing, somewhat domineering, yet dignified and serene senior sister.
Beyond the high platform, all the Earth Sect's direct disciples breathed a sigh of relief. Even the Great Young Master stood there with a wooden expression, his head slightly lowered.
Jiang Yingluo glanced at him and said calmly, "In daily matters, think more for the sect and resolve its worries. The grand plan for a thousand years rests on this. We are all disciples of the Earth Sect—when one prospers, all prosper; when one suffers, all suffer."
"Go less to those pleasure quarters. Indulging in women will rot your mind and make you say foolish things."
The Great Young Master's face twitched, and he nodded. "Yes, cousin."
Jiang Yingluo nodded slightly and added, "I'm a little tired. I'm going into seclusion. You and the inner disciples may stay here, admire the flowers, drink wine, socialize, or discuss the Dao as you please."
The Great Young Master cupped his hands and said in a low voice, "Yes."
Jiang Yingluo said no more. Clad in a palace gown of aloeswood gold and treasure flower pattern, she rose gracefully and left the high platform of Kunhua Courtyard.
All the Earth Sect's direct disciples rose and bowed their heads. "Farewell, Senior Sister..."
Jiang Yingluo nodded slightly. Her dignified and beautiful figure passed through the crowd and walked step by step into the distance, disappearing into the depths of the moonlight.
Only after her figure had completely vanished did the disciples dare to raise their heads, let out sighs of relief, and continue the banquet.
Only the Great Young Master, in his ocher-yellow flood dragon robe, stood on the high platform staring blankly at the place where Jiang Yingluo had disappeared, unable to calm down for a long time.
He knew that this cousin of his, ranking as the Earth Sect's senior sister, could suppress all the disciples of the sect, and that both her strength and her bloodline were extremely powerful.
There was a slight gap between his own bloodline and hers. He had known this since childhood, and he knew the gap was not actually large. But...
Why...
The Great Young Master's pupils trembled slightly.
"Why has cousin's bloodline suddenly matured to... this degree?"
"This... isn't right..."
"What exactly... happened?"