Night was falling.
As Su Ling’er sat on a dical bed, stained by blood countless tis over, treating the strangely plainly-dressed Mr. Qian...
The Contracted Spirit Insect she had planted in the soil earlier awakened right on schedule.
It then shot off in the direction of the east gate, making a swift escape!
With a soft BUZZ, it vanished into the night.
Everything was going according to plan.
However, a short while after the Contracted Spirit Insect had left the vicinity of the NPC residential area...
A small red dot abruptly appeared on the sect map.
In the Alchemy Dao consultation area’s chat channel:
[Disciple J: "Holy crap, look at the map! A red-nad monster spawned!"]
[Disciple Q: "I knew it! Everything before this was just a warm-up for the event!"]
[Disciple K: "Coordinates (XXX, XXX)! It’s right above Hundred Herbs Valley! Quick, have the little junior sister get the kill! With double contribution points, that’s 400 points!"]
In an instant, almost everyone’s eyes turned to Su Ling’er, who was in the middle of treating Mr. Qian.
Su Ling’er froze.
She saw countless pairs of eyes staring at her, and the fan she was holding for her Pill Furnace nearly caused her to spill a whole batch of ruined pills onto the ground.
???
’Why is everyone suddenly looking at ?’
’Did they find out about the Contracted Spirit Insect?!’
’Do they know I’m the one who released it? Are they going to execute now?!’
’How did they find out?!’
’This fast?!’
’Is my undercover career over already?!’
A roar filled Su Ling’er’s head as countless wild thoughts flooded her mind.
’It’s over, it’s over! They’re dropping the act! They’re going to lay their cards on the table!’
Just as her heart was pounding with terror, Lin Qingfeng’s figure suddenly appeared behind her again.
"Little Junior Sister!"
Su Ling’er felt as if she’d been struck by lightning. She stiffly turned to look behind her.
"Senior Brother! Why do you keep popping up behind ?!"
"Little Junior Sister, don’t just space out!"
Lin Qingfeng’s tone was urgent.
"It’s ti for you to do your ’special’ job!"
’’Special’ job?!’
’What does that an?!’
Countless horrible scenarios flashed through Su Ling’er’s mind. ’Could it be...’
She looked around. ’No, it can’t be... Is it...?’
She was about to use her patient as an excuse.
"But... but, Senior Brother, I’m still treating Mr. Qian here..."
But her Senior Brother didn’t even glance at the "patient," Qian Buyu.
In his eyes, this was just a low-ranking patient NPC. Letting him get in the way of his junior sister farming contribution points was unacceptable!
And so, to Su Ling’er’s horror, her Senior Brother grabbed the patient, Qian Buyu, by the ankles. Then, with his hands rotating like he was performing so kind of Tai Chi, he began to swing him back and forth!
"Off you go!"
After spinning Qian Buyu around and around, head down and feet up, he gave a mighty shove!
"WHOOSH—THUD!"
The "patient," Qian Buyu, was thrown directly onto the rafters of a distant hall, where he hung, motionless.
’What are you doing?’
’How could you just hang an elder from the rafters?’
’Aren’t you afraid he’ll hunt you down like he did to when I first arrived?’
’This is bad, this is really bad!’
Then.
As Su Ling’er watched, the patient, Qian Buyu, stood up, jumped down from the rafters, ran over to the nearest Pill Master’s bed, and lay down.
’A senior of the righteous path, turned into a flesh-and-blood puppet and treated this way by these demonic scoundrels!’
’Even after being thrown that far, Mr. Qian just went and found the closest spot to resu his role as a patient.’
’The mastermind of this sect is actually humiliating a righteous senior like this!’
’This demonic sect is truly beyond redemption!!!’
"There, now you don’t have a patient to treat anymore."
Lin Qingfeng dusted off his hands and turned to the dumbfounded Su Ling’er.
"Quick! Use the Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell I taught you and attack the coordinates..."
He trailed off, rembering that his junior sister probably didn’t know what coordinates were.
So he changed tack, pointing a finger toward a patch of pitch-black night sky in the southeast corner of the plaza.
"Never mind that!"
"Use that spell I taught you—the Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell—and attack in the direction I’m pointing!"
Su Ling’er looked where he was pointing, completely baffled.
’Is there anything there?’
’Besides the distant lanterns, the shadows of trees, and the fading glow of fireworks, there’s nothing there!’
’Senior Brother... what are you asking to do?’
’Are you telling to attack thin air?’
’Or is this so kind of test?’
"But Senior Brother, there’s nothing there."
"Hurry up! Faster! When I tell you to fire, you fire!"
Lin Qingfeng’s tone left no room for argunt. He adjusted his aim slightly.
"If you keep dawdling, your opportunity will be gone!"
’Opportunity?’
’What opportunity?’
’Could it be... is there another reward for attacking that spot?’
Su Ling’er had no choice. She knew she was in no position to refuse.
So, she extended a finger, channeled all of her imnse Spiritual Power, and launched the bizarre spell she had just learned into the empty void.
The Thousand Threads Seeking Karma Spell!
With a soft cry, a black-and-green beam of energy erupted from her fingertip like a monstrous python, shooting off in the direction her Senior Brother had indicated.
Su Ling’er was still utterly confused.
...
The Contracted Spirit Insect was still flying through the night sky, oblivious to the doom that was about to befall it.
Suddenly, a beam of light shot toward it from behind.
Sensing the mortal danger, it imdiately swerved to evade!
But the black-and-green beam from the distance seed to have a mind of its own. It traced a bizarre arc through the air—it could actually turn!
PFFT—!
The beam instantly struck the area where the insect was.
The tiny insect’s body—along with all the intelligence and hope it carried, and even the nearby mosquitos and flies—was instantly annihilated by the beam, leaving behind only a wisp of green smoke.
...
SNAP!
At the sa ti, a sharp pain erupted in Su Ling’er’s soul, and her vision went black.
’What happened?’
’Wait!’
She realized one of the Contracted Spirit Insects linked to her very lifeblood was gone.
’This is...’
’That Contracted Spirit Insect is dead.’
’Dead just like that.’
She could even feel the final thread of connection in her soul snap as the Contracted Spirit Insect perished.
’It seems... the Contracted Spirit Insect... died from my own attack.’
’What’s going on?’
She looked at the expressions on the faces of the people around her...
’I understand now!’
She had killed her own hope with her own two hands.
She looked at Lin Qingfeng, her face a mask of terror.
’He found out!’
’He really did find out!’
’He made attack the very insect I was using to send my report!’
’No wonder!’
’No wonder he was so ’kind’ before, feeding that pill and teaching this profound spell!’
’It was... it was all for this mont!’
’All to make snuff out my own hope with my own hands!’
’All to enjoy the look of despair on my face right now?!’
’What a demonic scoundrel!’
’He’s utterly sinister and devious!’
Then, an even more terrifying thought struck her...
’What about the hundred-plus other Contracted Spirit Insects still out in the wilderness, lying dormant in the soil, waiting for the appointed ti to awaken on their own!’
Her pupils lost focus...
’It’s over...’
’It’s all over...’
"Hm? Little Junior Sister? What’s wrong with you now?"
At the sa ti, Lin Qingfeng’s voice rang out, laced with both delight and confusion.
He was looking at the sect panel, extrely satisfied to see that the total NPC contribution score had increased by another 400 points.
But when he turned, he saw his junior sister clutching her head, staring at him in terror as if she had just seen a ghost.
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