Chapter 101
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Just as Lou Yuqing and Ling Yunxiao were staring at the wilted white flower on the ground in stunned silence, Lou Yuqing caught sight of the impostor wearing Chu Qingyang's face trying to sneak away.
The moment she shouted, five arcs of lightning shot from her fingertips.
After so many battles, her combat instincts had improved dramatically.
The impostor's heart lurched. He immediately accelerated, desperate to escape, but in his panic he forgot the most important thing—protecting himself.
The lightning struck him head-on.
His entire body went numb, and he crashed to the ground with a miserable thud.
Before he could recover, several ropes woven from spiritual energy shot forward.
Ling Yunxiao bound him tightly, dragged him back, and sealed his spiritual energy to make sure he couldn't cause any more trouble.
Only then did Lou Yuqing turn her attention back to the flower.
She crouched beside it, studying it thoughtfully.
"It really does look like a Snow Lotus. Could the Snow Lotus we're searching for actually be—"
"Pick it up and find out," Ling Yunxiao said.
Lou Yuqing reached out.
Drawn by the lingering current around her fingers, the white flower floated obediently into her palm.
The instant she touched it, a line of text appeared before her eyes.
Her eyes widened. "A thousand points?!"
"So it really is a Snow Lotus."
Understanding flashed through Ling Yunxiao's eyes as he looked at the wilted flower.
"That middle-aged man turned into a Snow Lotus after he died. He was probably a Snow Lotus spirit who cultivated into human form, and this flower is his true body."
As he spoke, the scattered clues rapidly connected in his mind.
"The Snow Lotus mentioned in the trial prompt wasn't Hu Ruoyan's mother after all. It refers to Snow Lotus spirits like him."
He paused briefly before arriving at the conclusion.
"In other words, the key to earning points is finding Snow Lotus spirits."
Lou Yuqing immediately understood.
"And if we can find enough of them, we'll have a constant source of points."
"Exactly." Ling Yunxiao nodded. "The only problem is figuring out how to find them. This one practically delivered itself to us. We only discovered it by accident."
Lou Yuqing's eyes immediately began darting around.
"So you've already thought of something?"
Ling Yunxiao smiled faintly and tilted his chin toward the unconscious impostor.
"Isn't there a hostage right there?"
Only then did Lou Yuqing realize why he had spared the man's life earlier.
Their eyes met.
A knowing smile slowly spread across each of their faces.
From a distance, the sight was strangely unsettling.
Unfortunately, neither of them noticed.
When the impostor Chu Qingyang finally regained consciousness, the first thing he saw was two faces hovering above him.
Both were smiling.
Both looked absolutely terrifying.
To him, they resembled a pair of demons discussing how best to torture their next victim.
His face went white.
What are they planning to do?!
Panicking, he immediately tried to crawl backward. Unfortunately, before he could get far, a hand landed on his shoulder.
The pressure was overwhelming.
Ling Yunxiao casually pinned him in place as if he were pressing down a struggling chicken.
Then he heard Lou Yuqing murmur thoughtfully, "His companion turned into a Snow Lotus after dying. Do you think he'll do the same?"
Ling Yunxiao chuckled. "There's a simple way to find out."
The smile on his face remained perfectly pleasant.
"We kill him and see."
The impostor nearly stopped breathing.
What kind of tone was that?!
That was the same tone people used to discuss what they wanted for dinner!
He hadn't even possessed this body for very long. He still had plenty of life left to enjoy.
Just as he was about to beg for mercy, Lou Yuqing suddenly frowned.
"Maybe we should let him go instead. What if he doesn't turn into a Snow Lotus?"
The impostor's eyes lit up instantly.
Yes!
Exactly!
Killing me would be completely pointless!
Unfortunately, Ling Yunxiao shattered his hopes just as quickly.
"It doesn't matter." His voice was calm and matter-of-fact. "He's going to die eventually anyway. We might as well get some use out of him first."
Lou Yuqing considered it for a moment before nodding in agreement.
"You're right."
The impostor almost coughed up blood.
What kind of reasoning was that?!
Even worse, she accepted it immediately.
Not only did she fail to object, she seemed completely convinced.
A dangerous gleam entered her eyes as she looked him up and down.
"So... should we send him on his way now?"
Ling Yunxiao actually appeared to think about it seriously.
"How do you want him to die?"
Lou Yuqing didn't hesitate for even a second.
"We can steam him, boil him, stew him, fry him, roast him, and deep-fry him."
She paused, then generously added, "Let's do all of them."
The impostor froze on the spot.
Every muscle in his body locked up.
Did she hear herself?!
Ling Yunxiao fought down a laugh.
"Not a bad idea. We can start with steaming."
He glanced at the impostor thoughtfully.
"As it happens, I have a large steamer that's been sitting unused for years. It's just the right size."
The moment he finished speaking, a streak of white light shot out of his storage bag.
With a heavy boom, a gigantic steamer more than ten feet tall crashed onto the ground.
It was so large that fitting several adults inside wouldn't be a problem.
The impostor's last shred of hope instantly crumbled.
They were serious.
Actually serious.
What kind of normal person carried a steamer around?
And not just any steamer—a monstrosity this size?
His mind raced before arriving at the only explanation that made sense.
This man definitely steamed people on a regular basis.
Otherwise, why would he carry around something that looked so perfectly suited for torture?
The more he thought about it, the more horrifying it became.
His legs began to shake uncontrollably.
No.
This wasn't a cultivator.
This was a demon.
Even Lou Yuqing was stunned.
Her gaze drifted from the towering steamer to Ling Yunxiao, and her expression became increasingly strange.
"You..."
Before she could finish, Ling Yunxiao hurriedly sent a voice transmission.
"I was only trying to scare him."
Seeing that she was clearly about to misunderstand something, he quickly explained, "This steamer belonged to the dining hall of a sect I joined before. Later the sect collapsed and couldn't afford to pay the disciples' monthly stipends, so they used it as compensation."
Lou Yuqing's lips twitched.
That explanation somehow sounded even worse.
At least the sect had remembered to settle its debts before going under.
But being so poor they had to pay their disciples with kitchen equipment, that was a level of poverty she had never imagined.
Curious, she walked around the giant steamer and inspected it from every angle.
After a thorough examination, she reached a firm conclusion.
It was exactly what it looked like.
A completely ordinary steamer.
Not a hidden treasure.
Not a disguised magical artifact.
Just a cooking utensil.
Sensing that her expression was becoming increasingly sympathetic, Ling Yunxiao tried desperately to salvage the situation.
"It does have advantages. Cold mountain wood is extremely durable. You can use it as a weapon."
Seeing that she remained unconvinced, he continued, "And when enemies suddenly see someone pull out a giant steamer, they're usually so shocked they can't react in time. That's the perfect moment to attack."
He paused, racking his brains for more selling points.
"And besides..."
Lou Yuqing immediately raised a hand.
"That's enough. No need to keep explaining."
The look in her eyes softened even further.
Poor thing. How difficult must life have been for him?
The fact that he could discuss the combat applications of kitchen equipment with such confidence clearly wasn't something an ordinary cultivator developed overnight.
Life must have forced him down this path.
Ling Yunxiao fell silent.
Some things truly became less convincing the more you tried to explain them.
Still...
The concern in her eyes stirred something unexpectedly soft inside him.
It felt like a feather brushing lightly across his heart.
A little ticklish.
A little warm.
And accompanied by a faint ache he couldn't quite describe.
He hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth.
"I..."
For some reason, he suddenly wanted to tell her that his life hadn't actually been as miserable as she imagined.
Unfortunately, Lou Yuqing beat him to it.
"It's alright." Her voice was unexpectedly gentle. "I understand."
Everyone had their own hardships.
There was no need to force him to revisit painful memories.
Looking at her utterly sincere expression, Ling Yunxiao slowly swallowed the explanation that had reached his lips.
In the end, he said nothing.
Perhaps... some misunderstandings really weren't worth correcting.
The strange warmth in his chest only deepened.
For the first time, he realized something.
Sometimes, appearing vulnerable was far more effective than constantly trying to appear reliable.
The entire exchange had taken only a few moments.
For the impostor lying on the ground, however, it felt like an eternity.
His mind was already teetering on the edge of collapse.
Were they seriously planning to steam me alive?
Even death should come with some dignity.
If he had to die, he wanted a proper death—a glorious one.
Like Old Ji.
Not death by steamer.
The more he thought about it, the more determined he became. His expression hardened, and he shot Ling Yunxiao a look of utter contempt.
"You brat, what are you so proud of? If you've got the guts, just kill me already. Stop yapping, you're making me sick."
Ling Yunxiao paused.
Then the man swung his glare toward Lou Yuqing.
"And you! You hypocrite! You said you'd let me go, but the moment someone talked you into it, you switched sides. Not only that, you came up with all those torture methods yourself. You're completely heartless!"
Lou Yuqing froze.
Ling Yunxiao froze.
The two exchanged a bewildered glance.
Had they really just been lectured by their own prisoner?
"Oh?" Ling Yunxiao leaned forward slightly. "You want to die that badly?"
A flicker of joy flashed across the impostor's face.
Then Ling Yunxiao smiled.
"Too bad. I won't grant your wish."
The joy instantly vanished.
The impostor nearly spat blood.
You son of a—
The rest of the curse remained trapped in his throat.
Lou Yuqing folded her arms and clicked her tongue.
"Your acting is awful. First you put on a brave face, then you start provoking us into killing you. You're obviously fishing for a quick death."
She looked him up and down before delivering the final blow.
"Did you really think we'd fall for that?"
The impostor trembled with rage.
"You... you two..."
"See?" Lou Yuqing sighed. "You're so angry you can't even speak properly anymore."
Then her expression turned solemn.
"Fine. We'll give you two choices."
The impostor's eyes lit up immediately.
At last.
A choice.
Lou Yuqing raised one finger.
"Choice one: die."
Then she raised a second.
"Choice two: also die."
The impostor stared at her in disbelief.
Silence hung in the air for a long moment before he finally exploded.
"Is there any difference between those two choices?!"
"Of course there is," Lou Yuqing replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "The methods are different."
Ling Yunxiao nodded in complete agreement.
"One option is a quick death. The other..." He casually gestured toward the pile beside him. "Is being steamed, boiled, stewed, fried, roasted, and grilled before you die."
The impostor's throat tightened.
Before he could even respond, Ling Yunxiao flicked his sleeve.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Kitchen utensils rained onto the ground in an endless stream.
Pots. Pans. Steamers. Cleavers.
The pile grew higher and higher until it resembled a small mountain, metal crashing against metal and filling the air with a relentless cacophony.
The impostor stared blankly.
A cold shiver crept up his spine.
The torture devices were already prepared.
These two weren't bluffing.
They were completely serious.
As his gaze swept over the mountain of cookware, only one thought remained in his mind:
If he somehow survived this ordeal...
He was leaving.
Immediately.