Bai Yang had always stood on the side of reason and integrity. Lying about the facts was never his way.
After several thorough checks, he still hadn't found anything unusual. So he simply shook his head and said, "This is definitely the same host from that day. I'm certain. If Junior Sister Ye is still unsure, she can ask other participants from the auction to confirm."
He understood that Junior Sister Ye was always cautious. His words alone might not convince her. As expected, Ye Chuxue's expression darkened. Beneath the disappointment in her eyes was a deeper suspicion.
"Bai Yang, have you lost all sense of right and wrong too? This has to be a setup. She planted a lookalike ahead of time to impersonate the host, which is why they seem identical! Her schemes run deep—why can't any of you see that?" Her instincts couldn't be wrong. This had to be Song Wanníng's doing.
"My storage ring is definitely in her hands! Please, Senior Aunt Song, return it to me!" Ye Chuxue reached out toward Song Wanníng, hatred burning in her gaze.
From the very first meeting, she had disliked Song Wanníng, especially her aloof, untouchable attitude. Just looking at her made her skin crawl.
It had taken so much effort to slowly chip away at her pride. But lately, something about her had changed—she had become impossible to predict.
Could it be that someone else had transmigrated into Song Wanníng's body?
The seed of doubt took root. Ye Chuxue couldn't shake the feeling that someone had seen right through her. It left her exposed, unsafe.
"Tch." Song Wanníng glanced at her, a sigh slipping from her heart. As expected of the female lead. That intuition was terrifyingly sharp. Still, so what if she was right? Who could actually prove it?
"Sect Master, look at this. This is what passes for a true disciple of Wentian Sect—flinging accusations without evidence, and in front of outsiders no less, publicly claiming that I, her Senior Aunt, am harboring a demonic cultivator.
Tell me, what exactly is going through her mind?" She wore a mask of confusion, even letting out a soft sigh.
"I've let things slide so many times for the sake of our sect ties. But now, it seems that only enabled her behavior." She rubbed her forehead in mock frustration, putting on such a false display of regret that both the Sect Master and Ye Chuxue could hardly contain their fury.
Her sarcasm was so blatant, it barely pretended to be subtle.
"Stop pretending! You're the one who took my storage ring!" Ye Chuxue wanted to argue calmly, but the sight of Song Wanníng's fake act made her anger impossible to suppress.
"Ye Chuxue." The smile vanished from Song Wanníng's face. Her voice turned cold and sharp, her eyes locked onto Ye Chuxue like blades.
"If you have proof, slap it in my face. If you don't, shut your filthy mouth. Don't push me into slapping you again." Her tone was icy, and the killing intent in her words surged straight toward Ye Chuxue.
Overwhelmed, Ye Chuxue instinctively stepped back, her frustration and rage flaring up even stronger.
The Sect Master was no less annoyed. He had arrived in a blaze of righteous fury, only to be left looking like a fool.
But thinking of Gu Qingyuan, still unconscious, he couldn't help but speak in a gentler tone.
"Junior Sister Song, I know you're still angry with Junior Brother Gu, but it's been a long time. Isn't it time to let it go?
Your auction house has the Heavenly Origin Heart-Nourishing Pill. Why not give it to him? If we keep delaying, I fear his foundation might be damaged!" Gu Qingyuan was one of Wentian Sect's top Nascent Soul cultivators, and well-known outside the sect. If something happened to him, it would reflect badly on all of Wentian Sect.
Song Wanníng clearly had the pill. Why wouldn't she use it? Was she really that stingy?
Song Wanníng had expected the Sect Master to at least say something reasonable, but she had underestimated how shameless he could be.
She blinked innocently and replied, "Oh, that's a shame. The last Heavenly Origin Heart-Nourishing Pill was sold to Ye Chuxue.
And besides, it's not that I didn't want to give it to you. You never said you were willing to buy it. These pills go for hundreds of thousands of mid-grade spirit stones. I can't just hand it over for free, can I?" Clearly, she had been too generous in the past. It had made these ungrateful fools forget the true value of what she offered.
The Sect Master's expression darkened. He shot back, displeased, "We're all from the same sect. Why be so calculative? Besides, Gu Qingyuan grew up with you, and he's your Senior Brother. How can you put a price on that?"
Song Wanníng had never been so stingy before. Was she regressing?
The Song family was wealthy beyond measure, and Song Wanníng lacked for nothing. Yet now she was hung up on a few spirit stones?
"Tch. Since Sect Master put it that way, why not give me your Blood Moon Blade? We've been fellow disciples for years, and we're quite close. Surely you won't charge me for it?" Song Wanníng tilted her head with a bright, mocking smile.
What a thick-skinned man. No wonder he was a loyal lapdog to the female lead.
"Absolutely not!" The Sect Master refused without hesitation. The Blood Moon Blade was a priceless treasure, his own personal weapon. He would never give it away.
"Don't twist my words. That's not the same thing!" He frowned, annoyed. The more Song Wanníng spoke, the more unreasonable she seemed. Alchemy came easily to her—why was she being so difficult?
"Hmph. Sect Master, maybe don't be such a hypocrite. You sure love acting generous with things that don't belong to you." Song Wanníng had run out of patience. Arguing with this idiotic man was a waste of time.
"If you care so much about your fellow disciple, then you pay for the pill. You're the righteous and benevolent Sect Master. I'm just a petty and selfish woman, remember?"
Her face went cold, and her words turned sharp.
"You—!"
"Three hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones will do. And that's with a discount, just because we're from the same sect. So? Are you buying it or not?" She crossed her arms, expression icy and provocative, cutting him off before he could continue.
The Sect Master held back his response. But he still couldn't bring himself to agree. Three hundred thousand was too much. What if Gu Qingyuan didn't repay him after waking? And as Sect Master, how could he go around asking Gu Qingyuan for the money later?
Ye Chuxue hadn't expected him to hesitate. Her heart sank with bitter disappointment. She had believed he supported their side of the sect. But it turned out, he was selfish too.
No one could be trusted.
She pressed her lips together, committing this humiliation to memory.
Her expression shifted. Then, eyes red, she pleaded in a soft, pitiful voice:
"Senior Aunt Song, I know the storage ring is with you. Please, can you return it to me? I shouldn't have made you angry, but everything I own is in that ring. And there's a pill inside that can save my Master. I beg you, please give it back."
A flicker of calculation passed through her teary eyes. She lowered her voice and added:
"I placed a tracking mark on the ring. I can sense that it's on you right now."