"No, no!"
A hysterical scream echoed from the sky as a few struggling survivors instantly lost all signs of life, their bodies dropping into the Lunar Lake below.
Silence. Absolute stillness surrounded the shores of the Lunar Lake.
The disciples of the Thousand Mechanisms Sect no longer dared to stir up trouble. Each of them stared at the woman playing the zither in the lake with reverence and awe.
As the Taiji pattern in the sky slowly faded, only one thought remained in their minds—run. This was not a place where minor sects like theirs could linger.
No matter how precious the Lunar Stones were, they were only valuable to those who could live to take them.
"Qin… Senior Sister Qin, we were merely passing through and have disturbed your peace. We hope Senior Sister can be magnanimous and not lower yourself to our level," said the senior brother of the Thousand Mechanisms Sect, Zhuge Zheng, with utmost respect.
His junior brothers and sisters didn't find his submissiveness shameful. On the contrary, they admired his courage and sense of responsibility.
In a situation like this, it took real bravery to step forward. If it had been them, they wouldn't have even dared to look the zither woman in the eye.
Qin Qin stopped playing and slowly put on her blindfold again. She said calmly, "It's fine. I'm not someone who slaughters the innocent. You came here searching for some kind of treasure, didn't you?"
Zhuge Zheng cupped his fists and said, "If Senior Sister Qin has her eyes on the treasure in this Lunar Lake, we dare not covet it."
Qin Qin smiled gently. "So you're saying… you know what treasure is in this lake?"
The Thousand Mechanisms Sect disciples froze for a moment. Wasn't this woman here for the Lunar Stones in the lake?
Though puzzled, Zhuge Zheng still explained, "Replying to Senior Sister Qin, if our readings are correct, this lake contains Lunar Stones. And after all these years, they must be infused with the power of the moon, engraved with traces of lunar Dao."
Qin Qin's eyes lit up. The power of the moon was one of the two energies she cultivated.
'Master was right. These people from Dayan Holy Land really came to deliver me treasures.'
She parted her lips slightly and said, "I see. So, you want to enter the Lunar Lake and collect the stones?"
The Thousand Mechanisms Sect disciples were first delighted, but then a sudden thought flashed through their minds.
Was she… fishing for fools? After all, the wooden sign clearly said: Whoever enters the Lunar Lake shall die.
Qin Qin instantly saw through their hesitation and said with a smile, "Don't worry. There's no blood feud between us. As long as you retrieve all the corpses from the lake, I'll let you enter once to search for Lunar Stones. But half of what you obtain goes to me."
"Are you serious?"
Zhuge Zheng blurted out without thinking.
The disciples behind him looked at Qin Qin with curious expressions. Just who was this woman? She had a blood feud with Dayan Holy Land and yet was still alive and well, even a member of Wendao Academy?
"Of course," Qin Qin replied unhurriedly, as if speaking of something trivial. "If I wanted to kill you, why would I bother with so many words?"
"Senior Sister Qin has a point. In that case, we'll get to work. We hope Senior Sister will honor your word," Zhuge Zheng replied, casting a glance at the juniors behind him.
"This mission is entirely voluntary. If anyone doesn't want to participate, you're free to leave the valley now."
Everyone exchanged looks, but no one spoke.
In the end, it was Junior Brother Hou who stepped forward. "Senior Brother, count me in."
Junior Sister Lan gritted her teeth. "Senior Brother, I'm going too."
"Alright. In a moment, the rest of you will come into the water with me. You, go retrieve the storage pouches and weapons from the cultivators of Dayan Holy Land and the other factions, and hand them over to Senior Sister Qin."
Zhuge Zheng quickly assigned the tasks.
"Understood!"
With a unified response, the disciples of the Thousand Mechanisms Sect began entering the water to retrieve the corpses.
Meanwhile, outside the Taixu Secret Realm...
At the Dayan Holy Land encampment, a group of elders and the head of the Dark Hall were seated in meditation inside a tent. Before them were arranged one hundred soul lamps.
Bang! Bang! Bang...
A series of explosions came from the soul lamps.
Everyone snapped their eyes open and looked closely—over a dozen soul lamps had shattered at the same time.
The head of the Dark Hall's expression darkened. "What happened? Why have so many disciples of Dayan Holy Land died in such a short time?"
An elder said, "Perhaps someone discovered a supreme treasure and clashed with other factions. I don't know which brat was leading them, but to lose so many people at once..."
The surrounding elders didn't speak, but they all nodded slightly.
Each time the Taixu Secret Realm opened, even a Holy Land suffered casualties. Typically, losing a third of the disciples was considered normal.
But this time, over a dozen had been lost all at once. The elders couldn't help but feel something was wrong. A sense of ominous foreboding clouded their hearts.
...
"Senior Sister Qin, these are your spoils."
Junior Sister Lan carefully placed a pile of storage pouches and rings several feet in front of Qin Qin.
Qin Qin glanced at the pile and said calmly, "Pick out a few weapons for your senior brothers and sisters—one for each person."
"This... wouldn't that be inappropriate?"
Junior Sister Lan hadn't expected such a benefit. It seemed this Senior Sister Qin wasn't as cruel and ruthless as they had imagined.
Qin Qin replied, "I said pick, so pick. If you don't want them, you may leave."
"I'll pick! I'll pick!"
Junior Sister Lan quickly selected ten weapons based on her fellow disciples' needs. She then respectfully said, "Thank you, Senior Sister Qin! You're a truly good person!"
"Hm."
Qin Qin responded calmly, though for some reason, hearing the words 'good person' made her feel a little strange.
While the Thousand Mechanisms Sect disciples searched for Lunar Stones, Qin Qin used her spiritual sense to erase the lingering traces of consciousness from each storage pouch and ring.
Looking at the wealth of items inside, her lips curved up slightly.
'These people really are treasure-delivering children. Saves me the trouble of searching for loot myself.'
Time passed slowly.
Three days and nights later, Zhuge Zheng emerged from the lake, carrying a Lunar Stone the size of a wooden stake—crystal clear and radiating intense cold.
Not wanting to leave a poor impression, he had used spiritual power to evaporate all the moisture from his clothes beforehand.
"Senior Sister Qin, we found a Lunar Stone in the lake engraved with nine Dao marks. Please accept it."
"Leave it there," Qin Qin replied, her tone completely calm, as if it were just an ordinary stone.
"Understood."
Zhuge Zheng didn't dare say anything more. Inwardly, he thought, 'Senior Sister Qin truly lives up to her reputation as a prodigy of Wendao Academy—so composed even in front of such a rare treasure.'
'If only we were stronger, we could've taken the lunar spiritual vein from the lake.'
'Forget it, one must know contentment.' After placing the Lunar Stone down, Zhuge Zheng turned and left.
Once she was sure they were gone, Qin Qin calmly stored the Lunar Stone into her ring.
Then, she resumed cultivating—wondering if more people from Dayan Holy Land would show up to deliver more treasures.
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