Chapter Seventeen: The Woman in White is Invincible Today

Stunning—utterly, breathtakingly stunning. How could such a woman exist in the mortal world? Thinking back to Hai Qing now, Kyle finally understood the saying: *How can a firefly compete with the brilliant moon?*

"Beautiful lady, is there anything I may do for you?" Kyle squeezed out the most charming smile he could muster. Glancing at the frozen horse, he added humorously, "Truly a magnificent work of art."

"Where is Wu Yue?" the woman in white asked coldly.

"Him? That weakling?" Kyle shrugged helplessly. "I'm afraid I don't know where he ran off to either. Probably hiding in some corner like a gopher in the dirt, trying to escape an eagle."

"On such a fine day, perhaps we could share a cup of wine, or go for a stroll in the countryside. That would be a wonderful choice," Kyle said with a smile. He knew he must look incredibly charming right now, with his handsome face and lavish attire. Indeed, the woman in white seemed to show him favor, walking straight toward him.

Ah. It was beyond words. How could there be a woman this beautiful in the world? If she exhaled, her breath would surely be as sweet as orchids... She actually exhaled. Kyle took a light sniff, but before the words "sweet as orchids" could even cross his mind, he froze. Wait, why was it so cold? Why was his vision turning blurry? Looking down, Kyle realized a thick layer of frost had already coated his body.

"For his sake, I will spare your life for now," the woman in white said indifferently.

The caravan quickly caught up, discovering the horse that looked like an ice sculpture and Kyle, who was covered in frost and snow.

Hai Qing naturally witnessed this scene. Her current state of mind was a mixture of pain and secret pleasure.

The woman in white stood before them, and the hundred-strong caravan did not dare take a single step forward. Men and horses alike fell dead silent.

"My lady, what business do you have here?" Most men suffered from the delusion that they were handsome, dashing, and destined to be the center of attention. This man was no exception. Before the caravan's vanguard could speak, he leapt into the air, landing with his hands behind his back, his robes fluttering in the wind.

"Where is Wu Yue?"

"There is no Wu Yue here, only me, Hai Rui," the man said casually, brimming with confidence. The woman in white reached out her hand—a beautiful, flawless hand. *But isn't this moving a bit too fast?* Hai Rui smiled.

He desperately wanted to look back at Hai Qing's expression and shout, *Do you see this? The Kyle you fawned over was rejected, but the me you looked down upon is highly appreciated!* It was a bit of a mouthful, but that was the gist of it.

The jade-like hand tapped Hai Rui's shoulder. His expression, along with his heart, froze—and then shattered. Shattered into pieces.

"What makes you think you are worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as him?" Those were the last words Hai Rui heard. His final thought was: *Who on earth is this Wu Yue?* It seemed he was starting to remember...

The atmosphere grew oppressively heavy. As if to drive the point home, the woman in white lightly tapped the frozen horse. The horse shattered, and ice rained down upon the ground.

Boom! At that moment, the sudden roar of burning flames erupted.

"Glory!" Kyle roared. His silk robes had vanished, replaced by a suit of armor. A light like blazing fire burned around him.

"Oppressing the weak will not be tolerated by a knight!"

"Kyle, catch!" Hai Qing made her decision. Even though she was somewhat displeased with Kyle now, she still needed him and his combat strength.

The woman in white watched all of this indifferently. Aside from a flicker of surprise when she saw Kyle break free, she showed no further emotion.

Kyle charged forward, transforming into a ball of blazing fire. The slender sword in his hand gleamed with light. At the same time, the sound of a zither rang out, its sharp, metallic clangs conjuring the illusion of a vast army. Seven more people flew out from the caravan, wielding various weapons. They gathered and spun in the air, casting down a massive net from above.

Seeing this murderous display, a mocking smile touched the lips of the woman in white. Such an attack would be difficult for any Spirit-Condensing expert to withstand. Unfortunately for them, she was no longer at that level. She was a Mortal-Transcendent cultivator.

Cultivators of the Mortal-Transcendent realm were often called Perfected Beings. To observe one's true nature, to know the true self, and to detach from the mortal dust—this was what it meant to transcend the mortal realm.

The woman in white thrust a palm toward Kyle from afar. There was no fluctuation of spiritual energy, yet Kyle's charge ground to a visible halt. Thick layers of ice sealed the flames, sealing Kyle within. "Quite an interesting cultivator," the woman in white murmured. Then, with a soft cry, a freezing gale swept up, blowing toward the seven Core Formation cultivators in the sky. They fell one by one, shattering upon impact with the ground. The vast army conjured by the zither music vanished instantly.

A look of misery washed over Hai Qing's beautiful face. She looked down at the zither in her hands, grit her teeth, and a flash of madness crossed her brow. Her ten fingers struck the zither with immense force, snapping five of the thirteen strings instantly. Unable to withstand the overwhelming aura, the carriage collapsed into powder.

The others had already retreated dozens of feet. If they had possessed the resolve to fight to the death during the previous bandit attack, seeing people die so effortlessly now had completely terrified them.

Five flood dragons materialized, roaring as they lunged at the woman in white. Five more of the remaining eight strings snapped, and a faceless figure slowly stepped forward, unleashing a sky-rending aura.

The woman in white threw a punch and took ten steps forward; the five flood dragons vanished into nothingness. She threw another punch and took another ten steps forward; before the faceless figure could even strike, it dissolved back into musical notes. By then, the woman in white stood right before Hai Qing, looking down at her. She did not even need to throw a third punch.

Hai Qing stared blankly, her fingers already dripping with blood. The zither, now with only three strings left, was covered in cracks.

Hai Qing looked up at the woman, and two thoughts suddenly crossed her mind.

*This woman is peerless in her grace.*

*While I am utterly eclipsed.*

"My lady, what grievance do we share?" Hai Qing gathered her wits. She did not want to die.

The woman in white shook her head. "There is no grievance. I only wish to know where Wu Yue went. I am his friend."

Hai Qing let out a bitter laugh. Was this not a disaster out of nowhere? There was no one named Wu Yue in her caravan. Who was Wu Yue? There were thousands of Wu Yues in the world; how could she possibly know?

No, wait! There might be many named Wu Yue, but there were certainly not many who could slay a Mortal-Transcendent cultivator! The one who had slain two Mortal-Transcendent cultivators outside of Dark Curtain City and wiped out the entire Black Cloud Stockade—there was only one such Wu Yue.

"I can sense a faint trace of his aura here. Meeting an old friend in a distant land is something to look forward to, and I wish to see him very much right now. Therefore, I do not want this lead to vanish. Tell me, where did he go?"

The woman in white extended her right hand and slowly pressed it down. The air grew colder than the depths of winter. Although they were both women, the woman in white showed no trace of tenderness or mercy.

Her body grew cold, degree by degree, and her soul stiffened, inch by inch. Hai Qing frantically searched her memory, faces flashing through her mind like a spinning lantern before suddenly stopping on one. She had met that man twice.

The first time, he was unconscious, his spiritual energy incredibly weak. In order to win over Kyle, or perhaps to display her own benevolence, she had taken him in.

The second time, she and Kyle had gone to see them. He had seemed rather cold, while she, standing high and mighty, had not even bothered to remember what he looked like.

Hai Qing's face turned stark white, filled with utter disbelief. She dared not think of what she and her caravan had done. How could she have been so blind? Her sharp mind raced; she had not offered help when he needed it, but had instead added insult to injury.

"Tell me where he went." The woman in white pressed her hand down another half-inch.

"He left last night," Hai Qing said, looking as if she had lost her soul.

"Release your divine sense. Find him, and tell him."

"My divine sense can only cover a few dozen miles. I fear I cannot reach him. Perhaps you should search yourself."

The woman in white offered a faint smile, so beautiful that even Hai Qing, a woman herself, was momentarily dazed. "It is too much trouble. You find him."

Hai Qing could not refuse. The zither beneath her hands finally gave out completely, shattering into fragments.

Hai Qing closed her eyes and projected her divine sense, a trickle of blood escaping the corner of her mouth.

A woman's cruelty toward another woman was always the most merciless.