Wei Xueru's expression didn't change at all as she listened to the suggestion. She kept smiling, her gaze steady and bright, as she spoke to the group gathered around her on the vessel.
"That's actually a great idea you gave me," she said, her voice sounding light and pleasant. "If Master sees me bringing friends back to the sect, she at least won't punish me in front of you. Since that's the case, it wouldn't be appropriate to invite only Ji Hui Daoyou. Why don't all of you come along with me?"
The crimson robed female cultivator beside her was Ji Hui. She hadn't expected this female cultivator who called herself Xue'er to be so generous, inviting everyone present to go meet her Master at the Heavenly Sword Sect.
"Xue'er, you still haven't told us who your Master is," someone among them asked, their curiosity piqued by the sudden invitation.
"If I tell you now, there won't be any surprise left. Do you want to meet my Master or not?" she asked with a small, playful tilt of her head. "Master might be strict with me, but she is very generous to guests. If you go, you will definitely get a welcome gift for your visit. You should think it through. Once this chance is gone, it's gone."
Wei Xueru spoke openly while secretly mobilizing her Wind Spirit within her dantian, covering her entire body with a thin wind shield as light as cicada wings. It was a subtle defensive technique from the Wind and Cloud Art she cultivated with great proficiency.
One shouldn't underestimate that thin layer of wind circling her. It could shred any hidden attacks that might be aimed at her person. Especially since she had summoned the Wind Spirit, the little fellow had already gained intelligence and shared her thoughts. It clung to the wind shield and flowed around her body in a protective swirl.
Jade sensed the internal shift too and immediately entered a combat ready state on the girl's wrist. If the Master's youngest disciple got hurt while she was present, she wouldn't have the face to go back to Tianyue Peak.
Excluding Xueru, the remaining six people discussed whether they should follow her to meet her Master. The two male cultivators in the group were secretly pleased by the offer. Her being willing to bring them along might mean she was already open to accepting their pursuit, so they were more than willing to go.
Among the remaining four female cultivators, the one in white didn't really want to go, but the other three insisted on taking the opportunity, especially Ji Hui, who urged her to join them. She said it would be bad to split up the group and hinted that letting Xue'er travel alone with those two men wouldn't be appropriate for a young cultivator.
In the end, the white robed female cultivator reluctantly agreed to move together with the others. Seeing that everyone had reached a consensus, Wei Xueru warmly welcomed them as guests of her sect. She then summoned a flying boat from her storage, invited everyone aboard the deck, casually slid a mid grade spirit stone into the control slot, confirmed the direction of travel, and sped toward the Heavenly Sword Sect at full speed.
In fact, a year ago, after receiving Lü Se's message and learning that Master had returned from the spatial rift, she had already begun subtly adjusting her route toward the Heavenly Sword Sect. If she hadn't received her Second Senior Brother's message today, she had planned to part ways with these six people tomorrow anyway.
But that message made her raise her guard against those around her. Who knew if someone among them harbored ill intentions toward her? She couldn't restrain everyone alone if a conflict broke out, but with Jade Senior by her side, she had some confidence in the outcome.
That was why, when Ji Hui suggested accompanying her to meet her honored Master, she had gone along with it and invited everyone to join. If they were truly just ordinary cultivators she had met during her travels, then it was fine. If they had ulterior motives, she and Jade would join forces and leave none of them alive on the boat.
Wei Xueru wasn't the five year old girl who couldn't cultivate anymore. She was already a Yuányīng Zhēnjūn with her own power and standing.
The journey was fairly smooth as the flying boat moved through the clouds. Following this direction, everyone on board began to speculate about her status. One of the male cultivators asked, "Xue'er, you're a disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect, aren't you?"
"Oh my, you figured it out already," she said with a smile, not denying the truth of the matter.
The two male cultivators grew even more excited at the revelation. They came from small families, so having ties with a Heavenly Sword Sect disciple was already beneficial to their future prospects. And Xue'er had a Master. With her current Nascent Soul cultivation, her Master's cultivation had to be at least at the Divine Soul stage or higher.
The four female cultivators exchanged looks among themselves. Saying they weren't jealous of her background would be a lie, but for now they had to suppress their envy and resentment and get along well with her.
"Xue'er, you're really low key. You kept us in the dark for so long," the white robed female cultivator said, sounding half playful and half reproachful as she spoke.
"I just wanted to sincerely make friends with everyone. I didn't want to flaunt my sect or my Master. Don't be mad," she explained with a smile on her face.
"Fine, seeing how sincere you are, we will let it slide this time," the female cultivators said with deliberate laughter. The atmosphere on the flying boat turned quite harmonious for a while.
"Huh? Look at that. What is it? My divine sense can't detect it, but I can see it with my eyes," the white robed female cultivator suddenly pointed into the air, sounding surprised by what she saw in the distance.
Everyone looked where she pointed and instinctively released their divine sense to investigate. The next instant, a brown pill shot toward Wei Xueru with lethal intent. It barely touched the corner of her clothes before an invisible vortex of wind shredded it into dust.
A scream rang out across the boat. Immediately after, a Yuányīng burst out of a body that Jade had slapped into minced flesh and tried to flee the flying boat through the sky.
At the same time, Xueru was already exchanging blows with the white robed female cultivator in a flurry of moves. Ji Hui restrained another female cultivator nearby. The one who had launched the initial attack had already been dealt with by Jade. The spirit beast then transformed into a green flood dragon, coiling around the flying boat and glaring menacingly at the two stunned male cultivators who remained onboard.
Wei Xueru slashed out with her sword, eight wind blades surging toward the white robed female cultivator. Seeing the situation was hopeless and with the sixth rank Jade glaring nearby, the woman crushed a random teleport talisman before the wind blades reached her.
Jade didn't hold back her power. With a flick of her tail, she smashed the white robed female cultivator and the teleport talisman into ashes. Not even a Yuányīng escaped from the impact.
Seeing the fate of her two companions, the last female cultivator screamed in terror as she watched the scene. "Don't kill me. I surrender. I will tell you who wants to harm you."
Before she could finish speaking, the fear froze on her face. The next instant, she collapsed stiffly onto the flying boat.