Atop the walls of Ziyang City, Yue Ningshuang gazed upon the formidable army dominating the north, feeling quite heavy-hearted.

She thought about her life, which was undeniably stifled.

In the past, when she had competed with Jiang Chenyu for the position of Saintess, she had tried hard enough, but talent is indeed very important, and she couldn’t surpass Jiang Chenyu. She lost the position of Saintess and, consequently, naturally lost the position of Palace Master as well.

Originally, she was honest and content, and though she failed, she never lost heart. She devoted herself to cultivation and, at last, became the second in command of Guanghan Palace, with a cultivation level only below that of Jiang Chenyu.

Had things continued to develop normally, being the second-in-command for a lifetime wouldn’t have been unacceptable. After all, she was just beneath one person and above tens of thousands in Guanghan Palace.

But fate played its tricks; the Saintess was gone, and Jiang Chenyu had lost her cultivation level. Guanghan Palace needed her to bear the brunt, and her once-stilled heart began to stir under such circumstances.

Who would want to be second when they could be the leader?

When Jiang Chenyu was around, she indeed couldn’t compete, but now that Jiang Chenyu had all but faded away, if she didn’t seize the opportunity, then what was the point of even cultivating for immortality.

Cultivation for immortality was, after all, an act against the heavens, with no room for retreat.

While the most important aspect was the comprehension of the Great Dao, if she could learn the most mysterious technique of Guanghan Palace, the Taiyin True Scripture, it would greatly aid her in comprehending the Great Dao as well.

The techniques controlled by a cultivation sect are not merely for the effects of Qi Cultivation and God Storing; the higher the level of the technique, the more it conforms to the Great Dao, and this is why major sects have more experts.

Yue Ningshuang had almost reached the end of her cultivation path, and if she didn’t carve out a new path at this juncture, then her life would likely remain as it is.

The crisis that befell Jiang Chenyu was, for Yue Ningshuang, nothing short of a godsend. The two most important figures in the lineage of the Palace Master had both suffered great losses, leaving her, the one who would benefit from the situation like a fisherman reaping the rewards of others’ strife, yet she had never anticipated that the former Saintess, with the help of Jiang Chenyu’s command token, would stand on equal footing with her through the loyalty of some of Jiang Chenyu’s diehard followers.

However, the Cultivation World is inevitably a place where strength reigns supreme. In today’s Guanghan Palace, nominally, Gu Qingmeng was in charge, but in reality, Yue Ningshuang had already become the de facto authority. Internally and externally, everyone recognized Yue Ningshuang.

Gu Qingmeng did not possess the requisite strength to represent Guanghan Palace in dealings with outsiders. Given a little more time, Yue Ningshuang would truly be able to take the reins of power and obtaining the Taiyin True Scripture would no longer be a dream.

However...

The Grassland People had attacked, and Guanghan Palace suffered devastating losses.

Although the losses of Guanghan Palace didn’t relate to her, both Shenxiao Sect and Taiqing Daoist Temple had lost their cities. Yet, as the real person in power, she could only shoulder the blame for such events.

Isn’t it said that some people are just born unlucky!

If only she had known, she wouldn’t have fought for power!

By then, the blame would fall on Gu Qingmeng, and Yue Ningshuang could quite naturally take over the big picture, and those troublesome people would realize who could lead Guanghan Palace forward.

Ah, such is fate!

As Yue Ningshuang was indulging in her melancholy, she saw from afar a field of thunder light approaching. In the blink of an eye, it was already above Ziyang City.

This turned out to be an invading warship of Shenxiao Sect, known as Thunder Pond.

Unlike Guanghan Palace, Shenxiao Sect generally did not travel by ship. High-ranking Elders and the Sect Master each had their own mounts, and as for the lower-ranking disciples, it was up to them how they got around.

Guanghan Palace was different; it had many Cloud Boats, large and small. Of course, the best one belonged to the Sect Master, comparable to an Immortal Artifact, and they had just one.

But Shenxiao Sect only had one great ship, which was seldom used. It was only called into service for large-scale campaigns.

The last time it saw use was three hundred years ago.

Below the Thunder Pond were dark clouds, with thunder and lightning crackling in the middle. This ship must have used countless Thunder Spirit Stones, and many formations were engraved on it. Near the Thunder Pond, using Thunder Law could be strengthened, which made it a true battleship.

Yue Ningshuang was a bit worried that Shenxiao Sect might directly take down Ziyang City, although it was only a slight worry. After all, Shenxiao Sect belonged to the Righteous Path and wouldn’t do such a thing.

As expected, a sword light flew out from the Thunder Pond.

The arrival of the Thunder Pond caused all the defenders of Ziyang City to look up at the sky; Lin Yu could only stop the Thunder Pond outside the city and reveal herself, calling out to the city.

"Shenxiao Sect has come to support Ziyang City and defend against the external enemy together. I ask the friends from Guanghan Palace to come out for a talk."

Yue Ningshuang clenched her fists; she indeed needed help but the last thing she wanted was support from Shenxiao Sect.

However, she had no choice but to show herself.

Yue Ningshuang flew up and stopped in front of Lin Yu, greeting with a cupped fist, "Thank you for your sect’s strong support."

"You’re too polite, friend. Shenxiao Sect has always been close to Guanghan Palace, both being of the Righteous Path, and we’re just doing our part."

Yue Ningshuang: "..."

It was widely said that after Jade Sword Immortal joined Shenxiao Sect, he perfectly inherited the temperament of Shenxiao Sect—indifferent to life and death and ready to fight if not convinced.

But this was the first time she knew that Lin Yu could also be sarcastic.

Shenxiao Sect and Guanghan Palace had always been close—wasn’t this irony? Wasn’t it ridiculous that she had caused trouble, damaged the relationship, and now Shenxiao Sect had to come to assist?

That sentence was already a stab to the heart, but the next part, about being from the Righteous Path and doing their part, was clearly mocking. Even without forming an alliance with Guanghan Palace, even as rivals, Shenxiao Sect had put aside their prejudices to offer assistance. Where were your allies?

Yu Ling Sect, Sword Sect, Li Fire God Palace, Eight Tones Temple—these were all supposed to be friendly forces, yet not one had arrived.

Since the incident in the Spider Crypt, the alliance of the five sects hadn’t collapsed but had also lost the closeness of the past, with the hint of forming small cliques.

Yu Ling Sect and Eight Tones Temple had banded together, while Li Fire God Palace actually got closer to Guanghan Palace; Sword Sect, as usual, was left without anyone to join their play.

In any case, Lin Yu must have been aware of the internal situation of the alliance to have spoken such sharp and satirical words.

This sarcasm was more cutting than her sword.

However, so what if she was being mocked?

Yue Ningshuang did her reading comprehension, feeling her blood boil with anger, but no matter how mad she got, she had to endure it.

Not to mention that now wasn’t the time for internal strife, even if it were the right moment, she wasn’t a match for Lin Yu at the moment.

Oh, how infuriating. If I could beat her, would I have to take this?

Suppressing the rage in her heart, Yue Ningshuang forced a slight smile, "There’s no need for you to be modest, friend. Since you’ve come from afar, why not rest for a while? The Grassland People are amassing their forces and won’t attack soon."

"No need. Instead of waiting for the enemy to attack, we should launch a surprise attack."

Lin Yu displayed the aggressive stance vividly, whereas Yue Ningshuang did not quite fancy acting recklessly.

The Snow Maiden was too powerful, and under her command, many of the Grassland warriors fought with ferocity as if drugged. Even with the support from Shenxiao Sect, Yue Ningshuang still felt that it was more secure to just defend the city. After all, the city defense had powerful formations, and Ziyang City was a fortified city with defense capability stronger than the Mountain and Sea Pass.

"I think what Lin Yu said is correct. When did Guanghan Palace start hiding and acting like scared turtles?"