Chapter 31: Zixiao Heavenly Palace and Jiang Yueshi

Jiang Yueshi looked at Lin Fan's shameless smile, and then at that familiar face, instantly falling into a state of panic.

"It's you!"

She suddenly took a few steps back, her hands tightly clenched, her eyes filled with panic and confusion, as if she wanted to scream out loud.

However, before she could utter a word, Lin Fan suddenly lunged forward and quickly covered her mouth.

"Don't scream. If you make another sound, I will take you right here and now."

Jiang Yueshi's eyes widened in panic. She hesitated for a moment before finally nodding slowly.

Lin Fan tentatively and slowly released his hand. Sure enough, Jiang Yueshi did not scream again, but instead retreated to the side, trembling, not daring to spare Lin Fan even a single glance.

Looking at her reaction, a smug smile curled on the corner of Lin Fan's mouth. "Come, rub some mud pills for your Master."

As he spoke, Lin Fan extended his finger, and a thin protective barrier of the Dao Entering Realm slowly covered Jiang Yueshi's body. After all, without a Dao Entering Realm cultivation, touching this Black Barrier Powder directly would cause one to immediately fall into a state of dormancy.

"Ah! I don't want to!"

Jiang Yueshi's expression changed dramatically. Panicking, she struggled to flee, but how could Lin Fan let her escape so easily?

"You don't want to? This is a wonderful opportunity. Your Master's 'mud pills' have extremely excellent therapeutic effects."

Jiang Yueshi's pretty face turned pale as she pleaded repeatedly, "Master, please, I beg you to spare me!"

Lin Fan snorted coldly, a flash of disdain in his eyes. "Utterly useless. In that case, there's no point in you staying alive."

Right as the words left his mouth, he suddenly grabbed Jiang Yueshi by the neck and lifted her up with one hand.

Jiang Yueshi felt her breath cut off instantly. A violent sensation of pressure surged in her chest, and her vision blurred.

She struggled desperately, feeling her life being drained away bit by bit, but even so, she still refused to relent.

"Master, just kill me. You have already ruined my purity, so why show mercy now? You might as well take your Disciple's life as well."

A cold smile appeared on the corner of Lin Fan's mouth, his eyes chilly. "What a buzzkill." Having said that, he threw Jiang Yueshi aside without mercy. "Prepare a set of clean clothes."

"Yes!" Jiang Yueshi replied tremblingly. She lowered her head and respectfully retreated.

Half an hour later.

Lin Fan had already washed off the Black Barrier Powder from his body. He was lazily lying in the spring water, floating on his back.

Looking at his relaxed manner, Jiang Yueshi couldn't help but feel a bit dazed. She covered her eyes and lowered her head, not daring to look at him.

"Master, the clothes are ready for you."

The outfit Jiang Yueshi had prepared for Lin Fan was a light and elegant, finely cloud-patterned, pure white immortal robe.

Lin Fan slowly swam to the shore and put on the clothes. For a moment, he appeared to have the air of a transcendent immortal, possessing an otherworldly aura.

"In the years since I left, how is Zixiao Heavenly Palace doing now?"

Jiang Yueshi's body visibly trembled. She lowered her head, her voice shaking slightly. "Zixiao Heavenly Palace now… now…"

"Speak!" Lin Fan's voice suddenly rose, carrying a sense of pressure. "What exactly has happened to Zixiao Heavenly Palace?"

Jiang Yueshi took a deep breath and finally summoned the courage to reply, "Reporting to Master, during the years you disappeared, Zixiao Heavenly Palace has been in decline. Under the oppression of the Boundless Fire Territory, the Dragon Soul Holy Domain, and the Dao Alliance, we are now living hand-to-mouth."

Hearing this, a cold gleam flashed in Lin Fan's eyes. "Dao Alliance!" He snorted coldly, filled with disdain.

"It seems they have become increasingly arrogant over the years. My beloved Disciple, your Master orders you to gather all the Disciples and attack the Dao Alliance with me!"

Jiang Yueshi hesitated slightly and said in a low voice, "Master, this…"

"This what? Hurry up and go."

"It's not that your Disciple doesn't want to go, but…" Jiang Yueshi's voice was faint, carrying a trace of helplessness. "Your Disciple is currently only a Utility Disciple!"

Lin Fan was slightly taken aback, his gaze turning complex. "How could an expert of the Heavenly Immortal stage like you fall to such a state?"

Jiang Yueshi lowered her head, her expression somewhat resentful. "That night, Master, your temperament suddenly changed drastically, and you forcefully took my virginity, after which you vanished without a trace.

After I married Lu Xinghe, it was discovered that I was no longer a virgin, and I began to be ostracized.

Worse still, rumors started to spread, and eventually everyone was calling me a slut behind my back, dragging my name through the mud…"

Lin Fan's brows furrowed tightly. His gaze swept coldly over Jiang Yueshi, and finally, he let out a soft sigh. "Alright, say no more. I will go personally!"

Jiang Yueshi looked up at him, sensing his resolute aura, and nodded silently.

Following behind Lin Fan, she took a few steps, feeling a wave of familiar yet foreign emotion welling up in her heart.

Lowering her head, her steps faltered for a moment, but she still followed him onto the path, heading toward the main hall of the Zixiao Heavenly Palace.

On the plaza of the main hall, a group of Disciples was practicing their swordsmanship, sword light flashing as they brandished their weapons.

Seeing Lin Fan's return, everyone was stunned at first, and then cheered in wild joy, "The old Sect Master… It's the old Sect Master! The old Sect Master is back!"

The news spread rapidly, and the entire Zixiao Heavenly Palace instantly boiled with excitement.

Not long after, Lin Fan's other six Disciples also rushed over. They all held important positions now, being either Elders or Grand Elders.

As for Lu Xinghe, he had even become the new Sect Master, which explained why Jiang Yueshi had been ostracized to such an extent.

Lu Xinghe stepped forward with a respectful and gentle smile, holding a long sword, cupping his hands and bowing as he said:

"Master, you are finally back. Where have you been all these years? Have you encountered any difficulties?"

Lin Fan stood calmly on the high platform of the plaza, his gaze fixed on Lu Xinghe, seemingly weighing something in his mind.

Reasonably speaking, since he had taken Jiang Yueshi's virginity the night before her wedding, Lu Xinghe should have immediately drawn his sword against him. To his surprise, however, Lu Xinghe showed no hostility whatsoever.

Could it be… that Jiang Yueshi did not expose him? Lin Fan's heart stirred, and a slight smile played on his lips, clearly not surprised.

As expected, to protect herself, Jiang Yueshi had chosen to endure everything in silence.

"Master!" Lu Xinghe asked once more.

Lin Fan finally spoke, his voice carrying a hint of weariness. "Your Master was harmed by a treacherous person and spent several hundred years in seclusion to force out the poison. I have only emerged today."

A flash of surprise crossed Lu Xinghe's eyes. "I wonder what kind of poison it was, Master, to actually cause you to remain in seclusion for several hundred years? Who was the culprit? Have you found them?"

Lin Fan fell silent for a moment, having already figured out how to fabricate his story, and said coldly:

"I do not know the name of this poison either. When it flares up, one's temperament changes drastically, making self-control impossible. It attaches itself to the Immortal Root and deepens continuously as one Cultivates. It is truly terrifying. The person who poisoned me is also impossible to trace."

As he spoke, Lin Fan unobtrusively glanced at Jiang Yueshi, feeling somewhat gratified by her forbearance. As expected of my beloved Disciple, hehe.

Jiang Yueshi's heart trembled slightly upon hearing this. No wonder her Master's behavior that night had made him seem like a completely different person.

"Master, that is indeed terrifying." Lu Xinghe pondered for a moment and then said, "Congratulations to Master for successfully expelling the poison. We must host a grand banquet today to celebrate Master's return."

Lin Fan waved his hand and said indifferently, "No need. I have just emerged from seclusion and heard that you have demoted Junior Sister Jiang Yueshi to a Utility Disciple. Is this true?"

As soon as his voice fell, the Disciples on the plaza began to whisper indignantly, "That slut Jiang Yueshi is lucky enough not to have been expelled from the Sect!"

Lin Fan's expression froze as an invisible wave of Qi shook everyone into silence. "Bastards! Jiang Yueshi is my beloved Disciple, how could she mess around with others!"

The crowd of Disciples was intimidated and fell to their knees one after another. Lu Xinghe also hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Master, please appease your anger. I was the one who discovered it; she was not a virgin. Yet when I asked her the reason, she remained completely silent."

Lin Fan snorted coldly, continuing to fabricate, "Foolish! I adopted Jiang Yueshi when she was a child, how could she not be a virgin? Unless the size was wrong."

Lu Xinghe listened and suddenly realized, a flash of surprise crossing his eyes. "Thank you for your guidance, Master. I will go back and try again."

Jiang Yueshi was so angry her pretty face turned pale, and she almost coughed up blood. Her body had long been taken by the Master standing right in front of her; how was it a matter of "the size being wrong"?

Forcing down the humiliation in her heart, she had no choice but to play along. "Don't touch me! Haven't I suffered enough grievances all these years? I am no longer your wife!"

Lu Xinghe wanted to continue his pestering, but Lin Fan coldly interrupted, "Since Junior Sister is unwilling, do not force her any longer. I declare that starting today, Jiang Yueshi's status as an Inner Sect Elder is restored!"

Hearing these words, Jiang Yueshi couldn't help but feel a wave of warmth in her heart. At least she was still that pampered little Disciple.