Looking at the cocky Xue Yueliang, Qin Wen snorted, "Get her!" She ordered, and the many disciples rushed toward Xue Yueliang, hoping to capture her in one fell swoop.

"Well, since your sure you want to do this." Xue Yueliang shrugged, letting Hei Yu go, and he scurried toward the Silver Armour Sect, knowing he would only burden her if he did not leave. Qin Wen's gaze peculiarly followed him, but she did not make a move, folding her arms as she watched the attack on Xue Yueliang.

A berserk explosion sounded from her body as she let out Berserk Dragon Flame in its full force, creating a blast with her at its centre. Though most were pushed away, one of the cultivators was within arms reach of her and received the worst injuries.

His sword was dropped, and his hand released a nauseating scent of burnt flesh, watching his pale face as he bit down on his lips; not wanting to scream, Xue Yueliang laughed.

"Not a bad start, I guess." She unsheathed her sword, spinning it around a few times, before fixing her grip, "Do you want to see how much stronger I got?" She asked, waiting for them to make the next move.

She had not expected the flames to be this great, but it seemed the gain was always worth the risk as she managed to injure one of her opponents so early on.

Thinking about it deeper, this shouldn't be too bad for her; she could at least understand the depths of her new strength. The heat accumulated in the hall, beginning to affect even those who weren't battling, and the smell of sweat drifted about, and some people began using talismans or pieces of equipment to help them fight the heat, and the awe they felt for Xue Yueliang increased. Though they had seen Xue Yueliang's battles broadcasted, it was nothing compared to seeing the strength of her flames in person.

The circle surrounding her grew smaller, and they stalked close to her, not making an attack, as they were cautious, looking for an opening. Though they believed she would not defeat them all, they did not wish to be the ones sacrificed.

Unlike their nervousness, Xue Yueliang was calm, watching them as they came nearer to her, "That's close enough." She smiled, snapping her fingers, and a barrier made of flames surrounded them, trapping them in the circle with her.

"Heh, we won't be trapped as long as your dead." A callous-looking man with the face of a bandit sneered, making her wonder if they were related at all.

"Well, I'm alive, aren't I?" She said calmly while readying her stance, "Invincible Sword Swirl." She spun gracefully, and lethal waves of sword Qi flowed from her sword, rushing at the dozen or so people tightly packed around her. She had not made the firewall to trap them but to hide what was happening here; she could not share her secret and had no interest in fighting with a handicap.

Looking at the callous-looking man, Xue Yueliang felt a special disgust toward him, and while the others were defending, she rushed at him with a burst of wind, "Invincible Sword Slash." She said, aiming to cut out his heart with her sword, but he was not an easy opponent to take out, and he reacted quickly, crushing the talisman pinned onto his robes.

A faint barrier appeared, blocking her attack. She tried to retreat, but multiple swords appeared behind her, trying to skewer her. Relying on the wind energy she had summoned, she performed a flip in the air, dodging their attacks while summoning a fireball to explode between them. They seemed more coordinated this time, as two of the cultivators took the lead in defending, one forming an earth wall between them, and the other tried to snuff the fire by summoning water.

Sadly for them, Xue Yueliang's flames were not ordinary, and instead of the flames being extinguished, the spiritual Qi from the water strengthened them, causing them to burn brighter.

"Guess I know how to feed the flames from now on," Xue Yueliang joked, controlling the fire to rush at them again before locking eyes with the callous-looking man; from what she understood, he appeared to be their leader.

"Invincible Sword Cuts All," She whispered, lightly waving her sword, releasing a thin line of Sword Qi, cutting through the weak wall they built as smooth as butter before the callous-looking man could react, and before he knew it the sword Qi was coming for him and did not have much time to react to it.

Another cultivator, seeing his predicament, tripped him over, and then he was saved from being cut in half, and that fate fell to the three cultivators behind him, with two splitting in half and dying on the spot. The third got off lucky, his chest cut open, and the blood rushed out of his body, appearing like oversized red candy.

"You know, this isn't a bad result either?" Xue Yueliang laughed, watching as that cultivator took out a Blood Clotting Pill, but before he could swallow it, she waved forward the flames behind him, engulfing him whole. The callous-looking man was enraged by the sight of his fellow cultivators dying because of him, and the shameful way by which he survived with his life, "I will never let you off for this!" He exclaimed, rightfully angry, but Xue Yueliang was not too bothered.

"It's not like I planned on letting you out alive." She sighed, wanting to absorb the spiritual Qi from the surroundings, but nothing seemed to enter her body.

Was she pretending to be cultivating? She clearly had seen Qin Wen cultivating when she entered, but the spiritual Qi here appeared stagnant, unable to be refined. How pathetic.

She neglected the thought that Qin Wen might have just been mediating to calm her thoughts, but that did not matter much to her at all. Xue Yueliang felt worried underneath her cool demeanour; if she could not recuperate her losses, this battle would be more uphill than expected.

Glancing at the crowd surrounding her, Xue Yueliang grinned, taking the opening left by the dead cultivators as an opportunity to escape their entanglement, rushing to the flames surrounding them, but did not make a move to flee further. The flames obscured her figure, making them not know where she was in the circle or whether she was in it at all.

Stolen story; please report.

The callous-looking man waved his hand, ordering, "Get in formation!"

The cultivators quickly rearranged themselves, the cultivators specialising in defence being at the perimeter, with the ones specialising in long-distance attacks at the epicentre. Xue Yueliang was impressed not many people could calm themselves in such a situation or react as quickly.

As expected of a noble family. Xue Yueliang took the opportunity to look at Qin Wen and the few other Qin Clan members that did not make a move, and she noticed they had blocked the exit, making it hard for her if she wanted to slip away.

Guess I should have learnt the Ethereal Wind Steps before I left, she lamented.

Projectiles of attacks flew from the centre, rushing in all directions since they couldn't ascertain where she was. She knew she couldn't dodge all of them. If she defended, it would also give away her location.

Let's see if you can figure it out. "Blood Moon Waves!" She exclaimed, three waves of spiritual Qi leaving her sword, blocking three different attacks that rushed toward the firewall.

She smiled, watching the confusion in their eyes as they looked around cautiously, "Maybe she has a technique allowing her to clone herself?" Asked one of them worriedly.

I wish.

"Don't be foolish," the callous-looking man cursed, "Where would a rogue cultivator like her get such a technique?"

Hearing this, they quieted down; but his words did little to convince them. Where did she get the other techniques? The thought, but did not dare say. Xue Yueliang noticed their mood, knowing she had the psychological upper ground, but that would do little to help her if she ran out of spiritual Qi.

I could use the poison heart. She thought, but she was apprehensive. Ignoring everyone else, the Silver Armour Sect's people were here, and she did not wish to harm them. They can probably protect themselves. The loner she dragged this out, the more of a disadvantage she would end up being, she could feel her spiritual Qi drying out, already having consumed half of it, and the flames continued to drain it out.

Forget it; I'll try something else first. Lifting her palm, she began condensing the fire burning around into her hand, attempting to cause an explosion like she had many times before, but this time she did not have Hei Yu to protect her, so she was planning to let it out prematurely.

"What is going on?"

A confused voice asked, belonging to the only person who still remained on the trial - Li Hua.

Qin Wen cupped her fists in greeting, saying, "Fellow Daoist Li Hua, our Qin Clan is dealing with a traitor from within our clan; I hope you won't interfere."

"Traitor?" Looking at the maroon flames burning wildly in the centre and the absence of her friend, "Do you mean Xue Yueliang?"

"Hey, Li Hua." Xue Yuelian greeted, dissipating the flames, as a standstill occurred. No one would attack her, while Li Hua's stance was unsure.

She took the quiet as a chance to take out a spiritual stone, recovering her strength.

"What's happening here?" Li Hua asked, puzzled. "They're blocking me from leaving." Xue Yueliang said, pointing at the people near the door.

Seeing the puzzlement on her face not leave, Xue Yueliang added, "I used to be from a noble family." A look of understanding dawned on Li Hua's face.

"I'm sorry, Young Lady Qin Wen, but Liang'er is a close friend of mine," Li Hua said, stepping forward, "I cannot allow you to harm her."

At this moment, the aura around Li Hua changed from her usual carefree one to one that was cold and strict, and her hand inched toward her bow.

Whatever the insight was, it seemed to have benefited her greatly.

Xue Yueliang thought, not saying a word, as Qin Wen glared hatefully at her, upset she wasn't giving her any face.

"And is this your stance or the Silver Armour Sect?" She asked pointedly, wanting to clear herself of the blame if she attacked her.

Li Hua understood this, but she did not back down, "It's mine." Her words were icy, startling Xue Yueliang, "Um, you know you don't have to do this?" Xue Yueliang interjected, finding Li Hua's change peculiar.

"It's okay; if I don't help you out, the one time you're not in the wrong, when will I ever help you?"

Hearing this, Xue Yueliang stayed silent, knowing that this was about more than her; perhaps something had irked Li Hua, and she wanted to get it out in a fight or something else personal.

The tension in the air rose to a stifling degree, making Xue Yueliang wish they could go back to fighting rather than staying at a standstill. Li Yuan led the others to stand behind Li Hua, indicating their stance in this manner too.

"Young Lady Qin Wen, if it's not a bother to you, my Hidden Ocean Sect can block Li Hua and her people," said Sun Wei, interjecting when he felt things were not going anywhere. He had wanted to get his revenge on Xue Yueliang but was biding his time until they exhausted each other, but with how slowly things were proceeding, it would e forever until all this ended.

Though he and Qin Wen were not friends, he could follow the thought of an enemy of an enemy is a friend. Qin Wen frowned, her gaze sweeping over Zhong Xi as she considered the matter before slowly nodding. He made a huge bow, saying, "It'll be a pleasure working with you, miss."

His over-the-top actions made her feel uncomfortable, but this situation was unfavourable to her now; his backing would be worth the unease.

Hmm? I guess he really hates me now? Xue Yueliang thought, unbothered, knowing he would have ended up her enemy anyway.

It's important to make more connections from now on; it seems my idea of making friends was a good one.

She was glad she had opened up to Li Hua when they first met. This predicament would have been so much worse without her help, as it became clear the Hidden Ocean Sect would not let her off easy, either. She had methods to ensure her safety, but the price was one she would rather not pay, especially considering Hei Yu's state.

Sun Wei moved his dark gaze toward Xue Yueliang, looking at her with a murderous gaze, "I'll make sure you will beg for death." He informed, his words dripping with killing intent, only to be met with a shy voice.

"If you look at me with such a passionate gaze, people would think I'm someone who steals people's husbands." She giggled in a low tone, angering him further.

He took out his cutlass, appearing to want to charge at her, but Xue Yueliang carelessly pointed at Qin Wen, "I'm her target, remember?"

At the same time, Qin Wen frowned, "You promised to block the Silver Armour Sect; Xue Yueliang is still mine."

"I think siding with a man like him would tarnish your reputation," Xue Yueliang said in a caring tone, "Why don't we team up to get rid of him first?"

The amount of composure Sun Wei had gotten during the past few days seemed to have been stripped away, as he looked like a beast about to rage, the veins in his head popped out as he rushed at her with no regard for his previous words, "I'll fucking kill you!"

"You will kill who?"

The doors to the hall opened up, and the people blocking it moved out of the way, letting the newcomer in. The misty whiteness of the outside world made the perfect backdrop for her otherworldly appearance, and a quiet fell upon the crowd. It wasn't the tense one they had earlier, but one filled with calmness and the desire to appreciate art.

The person who walked in was none other than Qinxia Kingdom's First Princess, a face no one here expected to see.