At this moment, Zhao Zheng and Lin Miner were smiling as they welcomed the two distinguished guests from the capital city of Chang'an.
The next moment, two extremely powerful spiritual energy fluctuations shot up into the sky outside the Zhao Mansion. The imposing manner was so strong that even from such a distance, they were affected.
Zhao Zheng was just about to rush out.
But he found that among the guests brought in earlier, only Feng Zhan remained.
And Lin Miner was completely stunned at this moment.
"Miner, what's wrong with you?"
Lin Miner pointed to the previous position and stammered, "That young man in green clothes just disappeared right where he stood."
Feng Zhan said, "Don't worry. He'll come back after he's done dealing with things."
Zhao Zheng wanted to walk outside, but Feng Zhan called him back.
"Don't go. With him out there, no one can bully your precious daughter."
Zhao Zheng and Lin Miner looked at each other.
Just who were these two distinguished guests from the capital city of Chang'an?
Feng Zhan added, "It's really hot outside. Let's go inside and have some tea first."
"But what about Shuning?"
"Don't worry. It's okay. With him around, no one can lay a finger on that little girl. Besides, as her parents, you should know her better. She's not the kind of person who would let others take advantage of her."
Zhao Zheng looked at Lin Miner.
Lin Miner then looked at Feng Zhan.
Why did they feel that this young master in front of them seemed to know Shuning better than they did?
"Come on, let's go inside."
"Alright, then—"
What this young master said seemed to make sense. With Shuning's abilities, she wouldn't let others take advantage of her.
Outside the courtyard.
Xia Wanning didn't expect that this Zhao Shuning would react so strongly to Ji Qinglin's death.
She didn't care at all that Xia Wanning had once been her teacher, nor did she think about whether publicly attacking her would have any negative impact on the Zhao family.
After not seeing each other for more than a year, this little girl had become so domineering.
Zhao Shuning's hand was less than half a meter away from Xia Wanning. Xia Wanning saw Zhao Shuning's face clearly and thought that this woman was becoming more and more charming. If she was allowed to grow up, who knew how she would seduce the Emperor Venerable in the future.
Xia Wanning gritted her teeth and flipped her hand upwards, intending to take Zhao Shuning's life on the spot.
But Zhao Shuning seemed to be very familiar with her next move. Her body kept flipping with Xia Wanning's outstretched hand, avoiding all the places where Xia Wanning could attack.
"You're asking for death," Xia Wanning murmured to herself. Her hand was about to go for Zhao Shuning's vital point.
But suddenly she caught a glimpse of a figure in green clothes appearing behind Zhao Shuning. Then, Xia Wanning quickly retracted her hand.
"Snapped!"
Xia Wanning thought that Zhao Shuning would grab her neck with both hands, but what came next was the sound of a keychain breaking.
In Zhao Shuning's hand was the pendant inlaid with a red gemstone, the one Ji Qinglin had given Xia Wanning before he died.
The pendant was in her hand, but Xia Wanning's body didn't stop. She fell heavily to the ground.
Xia Wanning did it on purpose.
She deliberately wanted Yan Ruyu to see what a stubborn disciple Zhao Shuning was. She had even attacked a sect elder, her former teacher.
But when Xia Wanning fell to the ground, Yan Ruyu didn't walk towards her.
He went to Zhao Shuning's side. When he saw the pendant in Zhao Shuning's hand, his eyes turned extremely dangerous.
The next moment, Yan Ruyu was beside Xia Wanning.
Xia Wanning was just about to accuse Zhao Shuning of her crimes when she heard Yan Ruyu's deep voice.
"What are you doing here?"
"Emperor Venerable, I just, just wanted to see where you were going. I heard that it will be Zhao Shuning's birthday in three days. I didn't expect her to—"
"I'm asking, what are you doing here?"
"Emperor Venerable, just now—"
"Elder Xia, what's your purpose for coming here?"
Xia Wanning's voice choked. It seemed as if she was about to cry at any moment. Over the years, the Emperor Venerable had never spoken to her in such a tone.
"I just wanted to follow the Emperor Venerable to take a look. There's no other meaning."
On this point, Xia Wanning wasn't lying. She didn't know that Zhao Shuning was Ye Ling, so she didn't expect that Ji Qinglin's death would have such a great impact on Zhao Shuning.
Suddenly, there was a noise behind them.
Yan Ruyu didn't pay any more attention to Xia Wanning.
"Go back. Don't come here again."
"Yes, Emperor Venerable."
"She can't leave."
Zhao Shuning said sharply and was about to lean back.
"Emperor Venerable?"
"She told you not to leave, so don't leave."
The next moment, Zhao Shuning fell into Yan Ruyu's arms.
Zhao Shuning's body was trembling slightly.
She held up the pendant in her hand, her eyes red.
"Master, this is fake, right? It's fake, isn't it? I can't sense the little sidekick's aura on it."
"Ning'er."
"Master, what happened to the little sidekick? What happened to him? Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Zhao Shuning's eyes were teary as she stared fixedly at Yan Ruyu.
She didn't believe Xia Wanning. Xia Wanning said that the little sidekick was dead, but she didn't believe it. Xia Wanning had changed. She was different from before.
So it was possible for her to lie, right?
Yan Ruyu took the pendant from Zhao Shuning's hand and threw it to Xia Wanning on the ground.
Xia Wanning was completely dumbfounded at this moment.
"Go."
"Yes, Emperor Venerable."
Ning'er was in an extremely emotional state now. She couldn't be allowed to see Xia Wanning. Regardless of whether Xia Wanning was innocent or not, Yan Ruyu was afraid that Zhao Shuning might do something she would regret in her anger.
After Xia Wanning left, Zhao Shuning was still lying in Yan Ruyu's arms.
Her eyes were fixed on Yan Ruyu, afraid of missing the slightest thing.
"Master, is what she said true?"
Yan Ruyu nodded.
Zhao Shuning's heart tightened. Her hand tightly grasped Yan Ruyu's arm.
"When did it happen?"
"Just a few days ago."
"The real culprit?"
"We haven't found out yet."
Zhao Shuning's eyes were full of tears. This sixteen - year - old girl had a tear - streaked face, and her body couldn't stop trembling.
How could this be? She hadn't even told Ji Qinglin yet, hadn't even praised this little sidekick properly. There were still so many things she hadn't done. How could he just be gone?
"Ning'er."
"It can't be."
"Master, it can't be. How could it be? The little sidekick is an eighth - rank alchemist now, an eighth - rank alchemist! In this Eastern Wilderness, how could others kill him so easily? Master, take me to see the little sidekick's body. Take me to see it, okay? I'm sure I can figure out who the murderer is."
"Master, I'm begging you—"
Zhao Shuning's body was shaking constantly.
"Master, master, when I first met him, he was only this tall. At that time, he had gone through so many things and was covered in wounds. But when he stood in the darkness, he still smiled at me. I remember that when he smiled, a little tiger tooth would show. He was so sunny."
"Master, how could he just be gone? The little sidekick had grown up so much. How could he just disappear like this?"