"Since you are still willing to call me Fifth Senior Brother, I do not ask you to let me go; I just need you to promise me one thing."
"Ruhua is already pregnant, and she is also one of your Demon Sect, her mother is even your Vice Sect Leader. If all of you work together, surely you can protect the mother and child. As for me, you can take my head back in exchange for merits."
His face was full of bitterness as he tightly held Lin Ruhua’s right hand, preventing her from speaking.
Qin Yun remained silent for a long time, finally saying:
Jiang Baishan felt a sense of relief wash over him.
He looked at Qin Yun’s back, speaking softly:
In an instant, countless images flashed through his mind—the scenes of the two of them playing on True Martial Mountain in the past, their master teaching them martial arts together, everyone making fun of Qin Yun. Before Ning Qi ascended the mountain, Qin Yun was the youngest and was also deeply loved. Finally, these images settled on the white-haired back before him. He sighed softly, thinking it was better to die by his junior brother’s hands than those of an outsider.
Jiang Baishan had already closed his eyes.
"Ruhua, let’s be husband and wife in our next life."
Lin Ruhua’s tears soaked her clothes, her beautiful face distorted as she kept shaking her head.
"Think more about our child, and raise him well."
Jiang Baishan took large strides forward, ready to face death.
Elder Ye’s voice, filled with sinister anger, echoed:
"He agreed, but I did not!"
Elder Ye, with his crippled body floating in the air, exuded pure malice. He was driven mad with hatred for both Jiang Baishan and Lin Ruhua. How could he allow them to die so easily? He intended to torture Jiang Baishan, to make his life worse than death, to have him witness the demise of his unborn child, to see his beloved wife become someone else’s plaything!
Jiang Baishan’s heart tightened as he looked towards Qin Yun.
Qin Yun only spoke softly:
"Elder Ye, can you grant me some face? After all, he was once my senior brother, and Miss Lin is Vice Sect Leader Lin’s daughter. Going too far is not a good thing."
His face was cold as he stared at Elder Ye.
Elder Ye ignored him completely, having been severely injured with half his body and an arm severed. Even if he could heal these wounds upon returning, he would be a cripple, all thanks to Lin Ruhua and Jiang Baishan. He was unwilling to accept this.
"Step aside!" Elder Ye roared angrily, "Who do you think you are, deserving of my respect?"
His mind was consumed by rage. If it had been the Qin Yun of former times, a candidate for the Saint Heir, perhaps he would be shown some respect, but now, as a disgraced fugitive, he could dismiss him entirely.
Qin Yun’s expression froze:
"You really afford no respect at all?"
Elder Ye bellowed savagely:
Qin Yun’s expression returned to calm:
He turned slowly, and in an instant moved with unbelievable speed, dark energy briefly flashing in his eyes as he dashed towards Elder Ye.
"What are you..." Before Elder Ye could finish his sentence, he stopped abruptly, his eyes bulging in disbelief as he looked down.
Qin Yun’s eyes were cold and merciless, one hand already piercing through Elder Ye’s chest, grasping a still-beating heart. With a squeeze, the heart turned into a shower of blood mist.
Elder Ye’s consciousness plunged into darkness, vaguely hearing Qin Yun’s whisper:
"If there’s no respect, then die."
With a flick of his hand, Qin Yun sent Elder Ye’s body flying into the woods, where it was crushed by the Power of Heaven and Earth into a rain of blood.
Jiang Baishan and Lin Ruhua were both dumbfounded by this sudden turn of events.
Jiang Baishan’s dull voice was interrupted by Qin Yun’s wave of his hand.
"You should leave. I didn’t see you today."
Qin Yun stood with his back to them, his gaze fixed into the distance.
From the start, he had no intention of taking his senior brother back as an achievement. He had already made one mistake and couldn’t afford a second. He didn’t know why, but after killing Elder Ye, he felt much of the oppression of the past five years dissipate.
Jiang Baishan looked at Qin Yun’s back, eyes filling with gratitude.
"Ba, thank you," he said softly.
Qin Yun simply waved his hand.
Jiang Baishan paused, then continued:
"Come back to True Martial Mountain with me. Our master... has always missed you, you know. Although he took two younger disciples after you, tenth and eleventh rank."
He didn’t finish his words. Thıs content belongs to 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹·𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗲·𝗻𝗲𝘁
But Qin Yun was already tearful.
He would always be Ba in his master’s heart.
"I can’t go back, there’s no chance," Qin Yun shook his head painfully, his voice choked with emotion.
Jiang Baishan urged further:
"Everything is still possible. If you realize your mistakes sincerely and admit them to the master, he will surely forgive you. You’ve now killed the Celestial Human Realm Elder of the Demon Sect and failed your mission, and the Demon Sect cannot tolerate you."
He gazed into the distance, as the Power of Heaven and Earth started to gather.
Jiang Baishan and Lin Ruhua were still unsure of why Qin Yun suddenly entered a battle state, but in the next moment, their pupils contracted suddenly as a cold, indifferent sigh echoed from afar:
"Such deep brotherly affection; Qin Yun, you have disappointed me."
A figure approached with hands behind his back, his robes billowing, exuding an overwhelming sense of pressure. Lin Ruhua looked at that signature ghost mask, her face turning pale instantly.
"Vice Sect Leader Ghost Mask!"
This Vice Sect Leader, equal to her mother in rank, was clearly not comparable to the previous Elder Ye. If Elder Ye could still inspire some courage to resist, then the personal arrival of Vice Sect Leader Ghost Mask filled her with complete despair.