She was stunned for a moment. She quickly shook her small head and tried to refuse, her eyes full of nervousness. "Master, no! These are too expensive, I cannot take them!" Having lived a hard life of running away, she had never seen such beautiful treasures and instinctively wanted to push them away.
Ye Lingyun did not give her a chance to say no. He put the dress and the sword directly into her small hands and said with a fake sigh, "It's okay. These things are nothing to me. If I don't give them to you, they are useless to me. Unless... you want to see your Master wear this dress?"
"Pfft..." Luo Wu couldn't help but laugh out loud. But a second later, she realized something, and her cheeks turned as red as a ripe apple.
She whispered to herself in her heart, "How can Master give me a dress? In my hometown, when a man gives a woman a dress, it means he likes her..." Her heart started beating faster. She stole a quick look at Ye Lingyun and immediately looked down again, her long eyelashes shaking. She didn't dare to look into his eyes anymore.
Ye Lingyun looked at her with a half-smile. "Since you are now my disciple, shouldn't you show your Master what you really look like?"
Luo Wu felt embarrassed and touched her head. She gently tapped her face with her finger, and something magical happened!
The dirt on her face vanished as if moved by an invisible power. It revealed a face of incredible beauty,curved eyebrows, eyes as clear as a stream, and skin as white as snow. With the soft light from her new power glowing around her, she looked like a fairy who had fallen from the sky.
Afraid that Ye Lingyun might be angry, she quickly explained, "Master... I... I didn't mean to hide it from you!"
She squeezed the dress in her hands. "This is a hiding spell from the Luo family. It can change how I look. When I was running away, I was afraid the bad people would recognize me and do bad things, so I used this spell to cover my real face..."
Ye Lingyun understood her worries immediately, and his heart felt a pang of pity. This girl was only eighteen or nineteen years old. She should have been living a peaceful life, but instead, she had to carry the pain of her family's death and live in fear every day.
He didn't say much. He simply pulled Luo Wu into a gentle hug, treating her like a precious treasure. He patted her back and spoke with a firm, serious voice: "Don't worry. Since you are my disciple, from now on, no one but me can bully you. And I promise, I will help you get your revenge."
Luo Wu buried her head against Ye Lingyun's neck and nodded hard.
"Mm!"
Then, Ye Lingyun turned with Luo Wu and flew quickly toward the Xiaoyao Sect.
....
At the front gates of the Xiaoyao Sect on the Tianxuan Continent.
The peace was broken by heavy footsteps. A man in expensive silk clothes stood at the gate. He had a handsome face, but his eyes were cold and arrogant. Next to him stood an old man in a black robe, followed by dozens of powerful warriors.
Not far away, the Leader of the Xiaoyao Sect stood with a serious face. Behind him were many nervous disciples. At the front of the group was a beautiful girl in a white robe. She was Yun Siling, Ye Lingyun's junior sister. She looked worried but stubborn.
If Ye Lingyun were there, he would recognize the man in expensive clothes immediately. It was Qin Kun, the Young Master of the Qinglan Sect—the man from the dead hunter's memories. Because of his high status, Qin Kun was brave enough to come here and act like a bully.
Qin Kun's eyes scanned the crowd and stopped on Yun Siling. He looked at her body with greed and a dirty smile. He took a step forward and teased her, "Hey, Yun Siling, don't you want to see your senior brother, Ye Lingyun?"
Yun Siling's body went stiff. "What did you do to him?!" she asked quickly.
Qin Kun laughed, enjoying her fear. "Don't worry, he is safe at my Qinglan Sect. I am treating him very well. I promise—if you come with me and marry me, I will let you see him immediately!"
"You have no shame!" Yun Siling shouted. Her face was red with anger. "My brother would never be caught by a person like you! Stop telling lies. I would rather die than go with you!"
The Sect Leader, Li Xian, stepped forward and slammed his staff on the ground. THUD! "Qin Kun! Our sect has no problems with yours. You keep coming here and bothering our people. Do you really look down on the Xiaoyao Sect this much?"
"Look down on you?" Qin Kun laughed. "Your sect is just a broken, second-rate group. Why should the Qinglan Sect care about you? Listen carefully: Yun Siling leaves with me today, or I will destroy your entire sect!"
The dozens of warriors behind Qin Kun took a step forward. Their powerful energy (Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing levels) exploded, making the air feel heavy. Many weak disciples turned pale and stepped back.
Yun Siling held her sword tight. Even though she was shaking, she stayed at the front. "You talk big! Do you think we are easy to bully? If you dare to attack us, aren't you afraid the Holy Lands will punish you?"
"The Holy Lands?"
Hearing those words, the mean look on Qin Kun's face froze. He looked worried. In this world, the four Holy Lands are much stronger than any sect. They have "Emperor" level masters who make the rules. Even the Qinglan Sect would be destroyed in a second if the Holy Lands got angry.
The Xiaoyao Sect wasn't directly protected by a Holy Land, but no one knew for sure if they would step in. If Qin Kun killed too many people and crossed the line, he—and his father—could be in big trouble.