In a beautiful and tranquil valley within the Taixu Secret Realm, the sound of a zither gently echoed.
The valley was filled with blooming flowers and flowing streams.
At the center of the valley stood a lakeside pavilion, where a veiled woman in white robes sat playing the zither.
Beside the lake stood a wooden sign that read: Those who step into this lake shall die.
Next to it, a stone stele stood with three large characters carved into it: Taiyin Lake.
Though the lake's surface was not frozen, it emitted an eerie chill. Yet the flowers and plants by the lakeside were completely unaffected—instead, they thrived and flourished.
It was as if some unseen force had created a special balance within this valley, making the spiritual energy here dozens of times denser than elsewhere.
And the place where the spiritual energy was most concentrated was right at the pavilion in the lake's center.
Rustle…
Suddenly, hurried footsteps broke the silence of the valley.
A group of cultivators appeared within the valley. The leading cultivator scanned the surroundings and said, "This should be the Taiyin Valley marked on the map. Rumor has it that this valley contains the Law of Taiyin, which makes the spiritual energy here stronger than in other places."
A disciple beside him said, "Senior Brother, that means there must be Taiyin Stones in this valley. If we bring one back, it'll be a great merit."
"Exactly. Everyone, search carefully with me—but remember this above all: do not disturb anything in the valley. The Taixu Sect must have laid a powerful formation to trap the Taiyin Law here," the senior brother warned.
"Senior Brother, isn't our Qianji Sect best known for formations? What's there to worry about?" a lively and charming young girl chimed in playfully.
"Junior Sister Lan, don't be careless. We of the Qianji Sect are only a half-saint sect. The Taixu Sect is stronger than even the holy lands. Compared to them, our inheritance is barely worth mentioning," the senior brother reminded her seriously.
As everyone continued discussing, someone in the group suddenly asked, "Senior Brother, shouldn't we check who's playing the zither?"
"Hou brat, why are you so nosy? If you want to go, go by yourself," the senior brother replied—completely forgetting that they had been drawn here by the sound of the zither in the first place.
"Oh."
Junior Brother Hou scratched his head in embarrassment.
The group began searching through the valley, but their steps, consciously or not, gradually moved toward the direction of the zither.
An hour later, they arrived at the edge of Taiyin Lake.
Junior Sister Lan suddenly exclaimed, "Senior Brother, look at the center of the lake!"
Everyone turned to look toward the pavilion in the center. A massive vortex of spiritual energy had formed above it, continuously drawing in the valley's spiritual energy.
In the middle of the lake, the veiled woman sat playing the zither as if unaware of everything around her.
"Senior Brother… is she cultivating?" Junior Brother Hou was stunned by the scene before him.
He had seen much of the world, but this sight still left him in awe.
"Senior Brother, look—there's a sign."
A sharp-eyed disciple of the Qianji Sect pointed ahead.
Everyone looked in the direction of his finger. When they read the words on the sign, each of them gasped in shock.
Hiss...
Even the previously rebellious Junior Sister Lan dared not speak out anymore. She was arrogant, not brainless.
Junior Brother Hou lowered his voice. "Senior Brother, what should we do now?"
Just as he finished speaking, a loud shout echoed from the sky:
"Qin Qin! Let's see where you run this time!"
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn toward the voice.
They looked up and saw a group of disciples flying in on swords, wearing the robes of the Dayan Holy Land. Behind them were many disciples from half-saint level forces.
Judging by their clothing, they were all from subsidiary forces of the Dayan Holy Land. Counting them roughly, there were several dozen people, some of whom were cultivators at the Heaven Origin Realm.
The once peaceful valley instantly became lively.
Yet inside the pavilion at the heart of the lake, Qin Qin continued playing her zither, her tone calm as she said, "You've come."
The leader of the Dayan Holy Land group was a Heaven Origin cultivator. He looked down at Qin Qin in the lakeside pavilion with a cold gaze.
"Since you know we're here, hand over the disciples from Wendao Academy!"
Qin Qin replied unhurriedly, "To deal with the likes of you, there's no need for my fellow disciples to act. I alone am enough."
"Arrogant!"
A chorus of angry shouts erupted from over a dozen Dayan disciples.
"Senior Brother Du, leave this girl to me," said a True Fate cultivator from the Dayan group.
"Don't underestimate her. She placed second in Wendao Academy's inner sect competition. She's not someone you can take on alone."
Though Senior Brother Du was eager to slay Qin Qin and bring back her head for merit, he didn't act recklessly.
"Surround Taiyin Lake! Don't let her escape."
"Yes!"
In an instant, dozens of cultivators encircled the lake's heart pavilion so tightly not even water could pass.
The music continued.
Qin Qin didn't even spare them a glance. She had been sitting in the lakeside pavilion for more than ten days. During that time, several other factions had come to cause trouble, and all of them now rested at the bottom of Taiyin Lake.
"Kill!"
With a shout from Senior Brother Du, all the cultivators in the sky moved at once.
But in the very next second, the cultivators of the Qianji Sect watching from the sidelines were dumbfounded—the group that had just threatened Qin Qin suddenly turned on one another in mid-air, engaging in a chaotic slaughter.
Cries of battle echoed endlessly above Taiyin Lake.
Moments later, only a few figures remained standing in the sky.
But those few were all covered in wounds, looking utterly disheveled.
Senior Brother Du snapped out of it with a jolt. As he saw several people flying toward him in attack, his expression changed drastically and he roared, "What are you doing?! Where is everyone else?!"
His shout seemed to rouse the few remaining people. They looked around in confusion, then at themselves, and asked in unison, "Senior Brother Du, what just happened to us?"
Du wanted to lash out, but upon hearing that, he found himself momentarily speechless.
His eyes turned toward the pavilion in the center of the lake, and he spoke coldly: "It was you. You used the zither to interfere with our minds!"
"You're not too slow. I hadn't planned to dirty my hands… but since you were the first to break free, I'll let you witness the treasure your Dayan Holy Land has been chasing."
Qin Qin's tone remained as calm as ever, as if she were simply stating a fact.
The people in the sky froze momentarily, then turned their eyes toward the pavilion. There, they saw Qin Qin's blindfold gently slip off—revealing a pair of twin pupils glowing in the light.
"Natural twin pupils!"
Senior Brother Du cried out instinctively.
"Why so surprised? Isn't that the very thing you came for?"
As Qin Qin spoke, beams of light shot from her eyes into the sky, and in that moment, strange phenomena erupted in the valley. Wind and clouds churned wildly.
Everyone watched as the spiritual vortex above the pavilion transformed into a grand Tai Chi diagram of black and white.
"Perish."
As Qin Qin uttered this word, the Tai Chi diagram erupted with dazzling brilliance, engulfing the entire force from the Dayan Holy Land…
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