Mira's expression immediately returned to her usual impassive look, and she turned around to greet the "intruder".
There stood a tall woman with her iconic violet eyes and a faint smile on her face.
"Hello, Sect Master," Mira said, giving her a light nod, but her neutral, distant tone caused Aelina to frown slightly.
Glancing at the unconscious girl on the bed, Aelina formed her own conclusions but decided not to comment, at least for now.
"I've heard a lot about your adventures over the last few months." Aelina said, "From attacking the Crimson Slayer Sect to fighting with Aryan from the Yin-Yang Sect, and there are even some rumors you had a run-in with the Mercenary Association! You truly have a knack for making enemies in high places." She said jokingly to lighten the mood.
Mira tilted her head at that last part as she didn't remember fighting anyone from the Mercenary Association.
'Hmm? Could she be talking about those people who fought alongside Zhou Yuan?' She speculated but pushed it aside for now as Aelina asked her another question.
"While I'm glad you're back, as this war with the Crimson Slayer Sect would be a great way for you to make a name for yourself, I figured you'd be gone a little longer, and I'd have to send someone to bring you back."
Mira hesitated to answer for a moment, taking quick glances at the unconscious Dominique before she made up her mind.
"I originally planned on coming back later, but then some guy named Zehir Aporos showed up-"
"Aporos!" Aelina interrupted, her eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. Her body flashed and slammed into Mira's as she held her by the shoulders.
"Are you sure you heard him right? That his last name was Aporos?" She asked, her usual cool and sly violet eyes no longer as calm as they were just a few moments ago.
Mira nodded, "There's no way I would mistake it. That man's bloodline was too strong for me to forget him."
Aelina sighed, letting go of Mira's shoulders, before saying, "You really do have a thing for making enemies with high statuses."
"Anyways, I'll get to that later. Continue with what you were saying."
Mira nodded and began giving Aelina a brief overview of her journey, what she did, and what she experienced, leaving out most of the juicy details.
However, when she explained her fight with Zehir and how it happened earlier today, along with Dominique, her unofficial adoptive daughter and disciple, getting kidnapped by several Sects from the Unorthodox Faction and then possibly drugged, even she couldn't help but frown.
'So, it wasn't only Cyrus that decided to cause trouble.' Aelina's eyes went cold for a moment before she shook her head, 'No, it seems Cyrus and his Crimson Slayer Sect were the only ones to come, apart from that Nightshade Assassin. The rest were just targeting that little girl, Dominique.'
"It seems the one behind all this is a woman named Sue Ming, who, to put it lightly, is here for nothing else than to be a thorn in my side," Mira said, finishing her story.
Aelina raised an eyebrow at the mention of Sue Ming. "Sue Ming... I haven't heard of this woman before. Can you tell me a bit about her?"
Mira put on an awkward expression, as she knew very little, if anything, about Sue Ming, "...I don't know much about her specifically, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that she came from the Immortal Realm, and her backing isn't small. As for her goals… well, I doubt she has any other than wanting to see my life fall to ruins."
"..."
Aelina stood there, rooted to the ground, faltering slightly as if she had just gotten hit in the chest. She looked at Mira as if she were some sort of wild animal who only knew how to cause trouble.
While she could sense that there was definitely a story behind Mira's words, she didn't ask about it, despite being curious.
Mira tried to hide it, but how could Aelina miss the rage and anger behind those blood-red eyes?
Still, knowing that Sue Ming was from the Immortal Realm was more than enough information to piece bits of information together that didn't make sense before.
"...I see." Aelina regained her bearings and muttered with a wry smile, "You've really dragged quite a few enemies down to my little Sect, huh? I might need to confine you within the Sect out of concern that you might inadvertently offend a literal god next time you leave."
"..."
An awkward silence filled the room after she said that.
Aelina looked at Mira, hoping for some sort of response, but all she saw was the woman avoiding eye contact with her.
"You… D-Don't tell me…"
"AHEM!" Mira cleared her throat, "Anyways, can you look at Dominique for me? I want to know whether that guy was telling the truth or not."
Hearing Mira's question, and the concern laced in her voice, Aelina put aside her suspicions and nodded. Considering it happened right under her nose in her own Sect, it was the least she could do.
'Now that I think about it, I didn't even sense that that guy had left with this little girl. Are the Nightshade Assassins that good?' Aelina thought as the situation seemed to become more and more complicated every time Mira opened her mouth.
'Damn! After this war, I'm going to make sure Mira stays in the Sect until all the preparations for the second phase of the Prime Disciple Selection is ready.'
Walking up to Dominique, placed her hand on her chest, and sent her Qi and Divine Sense inside her body. In an instant, countless details about Dominique's body flowed through her mind, and it didn't take long before her expression turned grim, a look of disgust and pity glinting in her eyes.
"This… I'm not really sure what they did to her or what kind of poison they fed her, but right now, she's no different than a breathing corpse. From what I can tell, her body is slowly decaying. A toxic sludge-like poison entered her bloodstream and has even dug so deep that it's infiltrated her bone marrow. Aside from that, a parasitic… thing has latched onto her brain, taking full control of her body, keeping her in this unconscious state."
Mira's expression didn't change, but the clenching of her fists and slightly widened eyes told Aelina that she wasn't happy.
"Is there… anything you can do to help her?" Mira asked, feeling ashamed that she even needed to ask, but this wasn't about her.
It was about Dominique.
Aelina pondered for a moment before shaking her head, "Messing with unknown poisons is dangerous, especially ones that affect the person on such a deep level. I could try to get rid of it, but not only would I have to drain all the blood from her body, including her bone marrow, to fix this issue, but I'd also have to pick around in her brain. If I did all that, she might end up worse than she already is!"
Watching Mira scowl, Aelina further explained, "You have to realize that even an iota of my strength can vaporize this little girl. Despite how precise my Qi manipulation is, it's impossible for me to reduce my strength enough to where I won't hurt her."
"I can have some of the elders study her body to look for a solution, but right now, there's not much I can do."
Mira's frown deepened as she stared at Aelina. Although Mira had expected something like this, she was still disappointed to know that even the strongest person she knew couldn't help her.
Taking a deep breath, a murderous glint showed in Mira's eyes as she shook her head, "I'll tell you or one of the elders if I ever need assistance, but for now, I'll deal with this on my own. I already have a lead, and I'm sure I'll be able to find more during this upcoming war."
Aelina nodded, then took out a token and tossed it to Mira, "The enslavement technique you're looking for is in the Inner Court's library."
Now that she had checked up with Mira and learned a bit more about the mastermind behind all this, and all the parties involved, Aelina was ready to leave as she had to prepare for the meeting in two hours.
However, before she did, she left Mira with these final words, "I don't know if you heard, but I'm gathering all the top disciples at the summit of the mountain in two hours. If possible, I'd like you to be there as we will be discussing the war, as well as the future of the Sect."
With that said, Aelina vanished just as quickly as she came.
Mira didn't say anything. She just glanced at the token, then back up at Dominique, before disappearing from the room as well.
