12: Chapter 12 My people, are you worthy of them?

In Xueluo City at night, the wind had stopped.

In a remote woodshed in the Su Family's backyard, a thick layer of white frost had formed on the wooden bed. Su Qianxue sat cross-legged on the bed, her breathing long and steady. With every breath, the chill in the surrounding air was drawn out bit by bit, entering her body through her nose.

In mid-air, a translucent phantom of an old man floated. Danqingzi stroked the illusory beard on his chin, his eyes fixed on the movement trajectory of the Spiritual Qi around Su Qianxue.

"Strange, truly strange," Danqingzi muttered, shaking his head repeatedly.

Su Qianxue stopped her Cultivation Technique and opened her eyes.

"Teacher, is there something wrong with this 'Cold Moon True Interpretation'?"

"There's a huge problem." Danqingzi floated closer and pointed at the white Jade Slip. "In my past life, I was at least a ranked Alchemy Grandmaster in the Central Region. What top-tier Cultivation Technique haven't I seen? The circulation route in this Jade Slip is practically treating the Meridians like Magic Treasures to be tempered. If an ordinary person practiced this thing, their Meridians would snap within half an hour."

Su Qianxue looked down at her palm, where a cluster of extremely pure ice-blue spiritual power was dancing.

"But as I practice, it feels incredibly smooth. The Meridians that were damaged back then are even tougher than before."

Danqingzi sighed. "This is the terrifying part about that white-skirted woman. She saw through your Physique at a glance; this Cultivation Technique is tailor-made for you. Three days, and you've recovered from having no cultivation to the seventh level of the Qi Refinement Stage. This kind of speed would cause you to be treated like a monster even in those Holy Lands of the Central Region."

Su Qianxue clenched her fist, and the ice-blue spiritual power dissipated.

"The humiliation of Xiao Chen breaking the engagement, the arrogant faces of the Ice Spirit Sect—I remember it all. The three-day deadline is approaching; I cannot let her down."

At the same time.

In the Eastern Desolation, across three continents, at Tianxuan Peak of the Piaomiao Holy Land.

Gu Sheng leaned back in the main seat, holding a white porcelain teacup. In the cup, two tender leaves from the Enlightenment Tea Tree, freshly picked from the back mountain, were steeping. The tea went down without any bitterness; instead, a cool sensation rushed straight to his head.

The System light screen before him was flickering wildly.

[Ding.]

[Detected that the Destined Daughter Su Qianxue has made a Breakthrough in her cultivation; her fate trajectory has undergone a significant shift.]

[destiny points +100.]

[destiny points +200.]

[Current Destiny Point Balance: 1,300 points.]

Gu Sheng set down the teacup, the porcelain making a crisp sound as it hit the wooden table.

"System, this return on investment is quite high. Earning three hundred points in three days is much better than just sitting here on this mountain."

[great thousand creation system's friendly reminder: The wool comes from the sheep. The host obtains destiny points by changing the established life trajectory of a Child of Destiny, which is a legal and compliant venture capital investment. Please continue to increase your efforts, host; this System thinks highly of your potential as a capitalist.]

"Calculating the time, the three days are up."

Gu Sheng turned and walked back to the center of the hall.

"System, extract the peerless-grade shell."

A golden light shone, and Gu Han, in her plain white dress, floated in mid-air. Gu Sheng separated a wisp of his Divine Soul to inhabit it; he was already much more proficient with this dual-track operation than the first time.

"Open cross-domain teleportation. Target: Xueluo City."

[Deducting 10,000 exchange points. Teleportation array activated. Wishing the host a pleasant time acting cool.]

White light engulfed Gu Han's figure.

Xueluo City, noon.

It didn't snow in Xueluo City today, but the temperature was even lower than usual. Outside the Su Family mansion, the originally spacious street was packed with a dense crowd.

The City Lord's Mansion guards, clad in armor and wielding weapons, completely surrounded the Su Family gates.

Xiao Chen stood at the very front of the group. His right arm, which had been frostbitten three days ago, was wrapped in thick bandages, and his face was so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.

Beside him stood an old man in gray robes. The old man stood with his hands behind his back, three lifelike ice flowers embroidered on his chest. This was the mark of an Ice Spirit Sect Elder. The Early Stage Golden Core Stage pressure was released without reservation, making everyone inside the Su Family courtyard walls struggle to breathe.

"Elder Master Su." The gray-robed old man spoke; his voice wasn't loud, yet it echoed through half of Xueluo City. "Zhou Tong, a deacon of our Ice Spirit Sect, was severely injured at your Su Family residence, and his Dantian was frozen. Today, I have personally made this trip to seek justice."

Inside the Su Family gates, the head of the Su Family leaned on a cane, forcing himself not to let his knees buckle.

"Elder Qi, the events of three days ago are known to the whole city. The one who injured Deacon Zhou was a mysterious Senior who has no connection to my Su Family. For you to grace us with your presence and hold my Su Family accountable—this logic does not hold up."

"Logic?" Elder Qi sneered. "In the Beiming Land, the words of my Ice Spirit Sect are logic. Hand over Su Qianxue, then truthfully reveal the whereabouts of that enchantress, and I will leave your Su Family a way to live."

Xiao Chen took a step forward and pointed at the Su Family gates, cursing, "Su Qianxue! You bitch, colluding with outsiders to injure our sect's deacon—get out here and face your death!"

Before he could finish, crisp footsteps echoed from inside the Su Family gates.

A green skirt brushed over the threshold. Su Qianxue walked out, carrying a rusted iron sword.

She didn't look at Xiao Chen; her gaze landed directly on Elder Qi.

Elder Qi's originally contemptuous gaze suddenly froze the moment it swept over Su Qianxue.

"Seventh level of Qi Refinement?" Elder Qi cried out in shock.

The entire crowd went into an uproar.

Three days ago, everyone in the city had seen with their own eyes that Su Qianxue's Meridians were destroyed, making her a Mortal who couldn't even draw Qi into her body. After only three days, she had actually crossed seven minor Realms and returned directly to the Late Stage of the Qi Refinement Stage!

This kind of cultivation speed could no longer be described as a Genius; it was a Prodigy.

"Good, very good." The shock in Elder Qi's eyes quickly turned into undisguised greed. He had lived for over three hundred years and had been stuck at the Early Stage of the Golden Core Stage for a century. Su Qianxue definitely possessed a massive secret or an extremely Heaven-Defying Cultivation Technique. As long as he captured her and tortured her, that Opportunity would be his.

"Su Qianxue, you have indeed cultivated a Demonic Path evil art. Today, I shall act on behalf of heaven and cripple you, you enchantress!"

Elder Qi curled his fingers into a claw, and his Golden Core Stage spiritual power transformed into a massive ice-blue True Qi palm, grabbing down toward Su Qianxue's head.

Su Qianxue stood her ground without dodging. She gripped the iron sword, the "Cold Moon True Interpretation" circulating wildly within her. Even if she were to die, she would bite off a piece of the opponent's flesh.

Just as that True Qi palm was less than three feet from the top of Su Qianxue's head...

A single snowflake landed on the True Qi palm without any warning.

There was no loud bang, no shockwave.

The massive palm condensed from Golden Core Stage spiritual power began to be covered in white frost from where it touched the snowflake. In less than half a breath, the entire palm turned into a piece of lifeless dead ice, then shattered into ice shards all over the ground.

The air on the street was bone-chillingly cold.

Elder Qi let out a muffled groan and retreated two steps, a thin layer of ice forming on his right wrist.

"Who is it?" Elder Qi shouted sharply, looking around warily.

"I left a message three days ago."

A cold voice came from above.

Everyone looked up.

In mid-air, Gu Han wore a thin, plain white dress, her bare feet stepping on a floating ice crystal. She looked down at Elder Qi, her gaze like she was looking at a piece of dead wood.

"My people—are you even worthy of touching them?"

Gu Han lightly tapped her toes and drifted down from mid-air, landing right in front of Su Qianxue.

When Xiao Chen saw Gu Han's face, he was so terrified that he retreated repeatedly and fell onto his backside in the snow. The fear of being dominated three days ago surged back into his heart.

Elder Qi stared intently at Gu Han. He couldn't see through the other's cultivation. On the surface, she only appeared to be at the Great Perfection of the Qi Refinement Stage, but the way she had casually broken his Golden Core Stage strike just now was definitely not something a Qi Refinement Stage cultivator could do.

"Who exactly are you, Your Excellency?" Elder Qi cupped his hands, his tone softening slightly. "I am Qi Shan, an outer sect Elder of the Ice Spirit Sect. This Su Qianxue has an old grudge with my Ice Spirit Sect, so I ask Your Excellency to..."

"You are very noisy."

Gu Han interrupted him.

She raised her right hand, pressed her index and middle fingers together, and made a light slashing motion toward Qi Shan.

"Cold Moon True Interpretation," Second Form: Severing Current.

The Spiritual Qi shield around Qi Shan didn't even last for a breath before it split down the middle. A streak of extremely cold Sword Qi, invisible to the naked eye, slashed across his right shoulder.

Qi Shan didn't even feel any pain. He looked down and saw his entire right arm severed at the root, falling to the ground. No blood flowed out, because the blood at the wound had been instantly frozen into red ice crystals.

The surroundings were deathly silent.

The City Lord's Mansion guards didn't even dare to breathe. In a single encounter, a Golden Core Stage Elder's arm had been crippled. What kind of monster was this woman?

Qi Shan clutched his severed arm, his face pale as pea-sized beads of sweat rolled down. He didn't dare to say anything harsh or fight back. After struggling in the Cultivation World for so many years, he knew very well what kind of hardened steel he had kicked. If the opponent had wanted to kill him, that sword strike would have slashed his neck, not his shoulder.

"Begone." Gu Han said only one word.

Qi Shan picked up his severed arm and squeezed through the crowd without looking back, not even daring to leave a parting threat. Xiao ChenSeeing, scrambled to follow him.