'Here it is,' Lin Xianxei told herself, preparing her heart for what was to come. Despite the realization her trusted caretaker might have used her, the fact that Wei Wuyin was here was an unchangeable reality. A reality she must face, and from the Earthly Saints' passive stances, likely alone.
"I-"
Step!
"She's not," a voice loudly proclaimed. It belonged to none other than Lin Ming, who stood before Lin Xianxei with his eyes settled on Wei Wuyin. There was an intense light of resistance within those grey eyes of his. As the attention focused on him, he added, "It was merely an unfounded rumor propagated and exaggerated by busybodies. Do you have nothing else to do but seek out rumors? Or perhaps you were hoping that Senior Sister Lin was your fiancée?"
Wei Wuyin was taken aback by Lin Ming's sudden declaration. He couldn't help but give Lin Xianxei, who stood behind Lin Ming, another look. She was similarly shaken by Lin Ming's actions. However, there was a distinct warmth permeating her gaze.
"I remember you," Wei Wuyin said.
Lin Ming frowned, "As if you wouldn't. I'm the one you tried-"
"Not you, her." Wei Wuyin interrupted Lin Ming and pointed at Lin Xianxei. He honestly did remember her. He had seen her before, and it had etched itself in his memory for decades. She was the gorgeous woman that traveled with Lin Ming during the Myriad Yore Continent's gathering of geniuses. She had scarlet hair before, but his senses had caught a glimpse of her true form.
Right now, Lin Xianxei was in her undisguised state. She had golden-blonde hair, a resplendently alluring pair of golden eyes and a beauty that could draw one's soul from afar—unforgettable for a thousand years with but a single glance. Sensing her wearing that sundress, Wei Wuyin's heart was moved.
"..." Lin Xianxei remained silent. While Wei Wuyin's eyes were closed, she felt as if she was being thoroughly inspected by his spiritual sense. It was overwhelmingly invasive, grasping every contour, every delicate curve, slender limb, and every detail of her physical appearance.
"You're just as beautiful as the day I saw you," Wei Wuyin couldn't help but comment earnestly from his heart. She was indeed moving, and as a male, he couldn't hold back his innate desire. Furthermore, she was talented, sufficiently so to become a Saintess of her sect and generation.
"...!" Lin Ming's fists clenched. Suddenly, those words from the Grand Seer of the Golden Gate Pavilion uncontrollably spurred into his heart. Like an infestation in his Sea of Consciousness, it began to corrode his thoughts and taint his perspective. He felt threatened.
When Lin Ming looked at Lin Xianxei, hoping to see repulsion or disgust in her eyes, he saw her speechless appearance instead. His heart sank.
All this while, Zhang Ziyi and Lin Xianxian were blown away. Wei Wuyin actually knew Lin Xianxei?! They weren't the only ones shaken to their cores because Lin Xianxei had never met Wei Wuyin personally or exchanged a single word with him in her entire life. She had was no recollection of ever revealing her true appearance to anyone in the Myriad Yore Continent before, especially not to this silver-eyed young man.
Wei Wuyin heaved a soft sigh of wonderment. He didn't know whether it was the Bloodline of Sin or just a laughable coincidence, but it seemed inescapable to interact with those cherished by Blessed. Whether it was Long Chen or Yuan Longshi, he had taken what they wanted the most in this world. Moreover, he had never done so forcefully.
Whether it was Na Xinyi, Lin Ziyan, or Xue Yifei, they were all exposed to him in some form, making their own conscious choice to abandon their Blessed. Whatever the reason, these Blessed companions sought to escape. Almost all of Long Chen's entourage had left of their own free will, with Lian Yu dying in the Four Extreme Continent.
Were these women being brainwashed, guided to be these male Blessed lovers? When introduced with a foreign element that stimulated their right of choice, did it subtly allow them to regain their freedom? Was this Lin Xianxei the same? A mere puppet of the Heavenly Daos established to benefit Lin Ming?
If it wasn't for their circumstances, would Jing Jiu's cherished person—Cai Liuyang—have slowly broken free from all the Heavenly Daos' influence after meeting him? Well, there was still free will. If not, Lian Yu might not have stayed with Long Chen.
Or maybe, just maybe, Lian Yu was the only one not influenced by the Heavenly Daos to meet Long Chen. Her love was genuine and untainted by all external influences. That seemed unlikely considering her unique physique, but it was a possibility.
"What do you want, Wei Wuyin? She isn't your fiancée, so you better not try to force her!" Lin Ming bitingly said.
Wei Wuyin faintly smiled, "What if I intend to do just that? A beautiful woman like this, immensely talented, filled with endless potential and teeming with intelligence—she'll make the perfect wife and partner to conquer the entire world with."
Wei Wuyin began to walk slowly toward Lin Ming, his smile deepened to a grin.
Lin Ming didn't shrink back, his aura growing more active. His voice was glacially intense, "Then I'll-"
"Kill me?" Wei Wuyin once again interrupted, laughing with amusement. "Careful, Lin Ming, your insecurity is showing. She isn't mine, but I don't think she's yours either, right? In fact, she's not anyone's." At this point, the two were just a few feet from each other.
"..." Lin Ming's eyes were almost growling with ferocity. He stared Wei Wuyin down with open aggression. Since they last met six years ago, he had been cultivating intensely throughout, so he wouldn't back down to someone of his age. He had dominated those hundreds of years old experts and geniuses with better environmental conditions from birth, so Wei Wuyin was far less scary.
Wei Wuyin couldn't help but be amused by this attitude of his. While he never intended to take Lin Xianxei as his fiancée, he cared less about this rumor, even less about Lin Ming, the urge to teach Lin Ming a lesson surfaced in his heart. However, he held back.
That was reserved for someone else.
He relented with raised hands and a shrug, "Fine. I have no intention of forcing her into anything. I didn't come here for that anyways, just curious about who the world thought was my fiancée."
Zhang Ziyi's heart experienced a wave of relief after hearing Wei Wuyin's last sentence. Since Wei Wuyin said those words about Lin Xianxei, she was incredibly tense. There was a serious doubt about whether the rumor was true or not. If it was, the Lin Clan that should suffer would experience an unreasonable, unfair rise.
"So she's not your fiancée?" Zhang Ziyi sought further clarification.
Wei Wuyin turned around, giving this Earthly Saint of the True Element Sect another look. She was the one who brought up Lin Xianxei, and, at the time, she looked as innocent as a puppy at the side of the road. But hearing the relief in her tone, he knew she wanted him more than just confirmation.
He heard that the True Element Sect was benefitting from his reputation due to the Chosen announcement; this fiancée nonsense generated a layer of protection for their interests again. It now seemed the internal complexities of the sect were quite deep, with some wanting to shred this layer.
Suddenly, Wei Wuyin was besieged by a bout of confusion. He asked: "Couldn't you have just asked her if you wanted to know? She certainly should know whether I'm her fiancée or not; even this man here is absolutely confident that it wasn't the case." He found it hard to believe that this Earthly Saint wasn't aware of the sheer bullshit of it all.
"..." Those in the know remained silent.
"Why do we have to clear up a rumor for you? Is that our responsibility?" Lin Ming defended.
"For me?" Wei Wuyin couldn't help but return his focus to Lin Ming. For him? What was this?
"Oh! I see. She was the one who started this rumor, making use of my name for her own benefit. That's what you want to slyly reveal to me, right?" Wei Wuyin straight out blasted open Zhang Ziyi's intentions. "You must want to hurt her, huh?"
That was indeed Zhang Ziyi's intent! She didn't have the slightest guilt in her eyes. As long as it wasn't true, then she could unleash all sorts of punishments and restrictions. The Lin Clan would be unquestionably finished.
"..." Han Yuhei found this situation a little tedious. He couldn't help but look in the direction of Wu Yu's aura, ignoring all of this. Whether Zhang Ziyi or Wei Wuyin punished Lin Xianxei for using him as a tool or not had little to do with him. He didn't care if the entire Lin Clan was brought down by this.
Wei Wuyin shook his head, "I once had a woman who used my name to escape from a difficult situation. Back then, I told her that I'd kill her if she did it again." At the end, his tone grew icy-cold.
Lin Ming stepped forward again, "She didn't spread any rum-"
"It was me," a voice abruptly spoke. It belonged to Lin Xianxian! "It was me who released that rumor to the world. I did it so that my daughter could escape from that hell hole. I apologize if it offended you, but she was punished unreasonably because of your actions."
"My actions?"
Lin Xianxian didn't speak like someone apologizing, and she was quite antagonistic. She wanted to bear it all herself. Lin Xianxei's fist tightened slightly. She had the urge to reveal the truth, but she knew how it would look to Lin Ming, so she hesitated. Moreover, her mother was involved regardless.
Si De, however, had no hesitation in her heart, especially since Wei Wuyin was being unfairly blamed for Lin Xianxei's situation. "It wasn't just Sect Master Lin, Holy Son. All three of us had a hand in it. I'm sorry…"
Lin Ming felt his mind rumble. Lin Xianxei was the one who created the rumor? But she…
Zhang Ziyi's excitement grew, but she remained outwardly calm. "So you released this lie out, told the entire world, then allowed everyone to think this Archaic Chosen was stealing Wei Wuyin's fiancée? Was this your intent? To humiliate him?"
"What?!" Lin Xianxian jolted violently. She hadn't expected this. She stammered as she looked at Lin Xianxei and Lin Ming, unsure what to say or how to say it.
"Enough, enough." Wei Wuyin waved his hands dismissively. To be honest, Wei Wuyin was slightly irked by this. He didn't like being someone's chess piece to checkmate or manipulate others, whether it was Zhang Ziyi, Lin Xianxei, or Na Xinyi.
"I just have two questions," Wei Wuyin stated.
Questions? They were all intrigued.
"Lin Xianxei, you haven't spoken at all. So I want to ask, without any interruption," Wei Wuyin gave Lin Ming a 'look', "if you want to be my fiancée?"
"..." Everyone turned their eyes to Lin Xianxei. Surprisingly to all, she didn't hesitate in her reply: "I don't know you well enough to give that answer right now." This was her carefully calculated, open-ended reply to secure that inkling of a possibility. She didn't look at Zhang Ziyi, but she knew the woman was likely not calm. As long as there was a possibility left, she wouldn't dare act aggressively.
But to Lin Ming's ears, this was music to the soul. When those words from the Grand Seer infested his thoughts, he dreaded her saying yes. While he would've preferred an outright never, this was better than a yes. He wasn't ignorant of Wei Wuyin's extreme reputation right now.
Wei Wuyin calmly nodded, "Then, do you know where the Divine King Han Xei is?"
This time, Lin Xianxei's serene expression shifted!
