"Look, even your Martial Sister knew her mistake," Li Rong sneered, her eyes narrowed into slits as she shot a withering glare at Ji Wuye. Her delicate brows furrowed, creasing the smooth skin of her porcelain forehead as she silently scrutinized his stoic profile, impatiently waiting for his response.

The flickering ashes from the burning corpse danced in the night breeze before scattering into the inky black sky, twinkling like ephemeral stars. Ji Wuye raised his head, his chiseled jawline taut as he stared intently at the vast darkness blanketing them.

Gradually, the murmurs of the villagers faded into the distance along with their retreating footsteps. The night crept deeper as the clock inched towards midnight. The village chief, Xu Ma, clasped his hands together and bowed respectfully before taking his leave, the aged coachman following close behind. An uneasy silence descended upon the trio - Ji Wuye, Song Jia, and Li Rong.

"But..." Li Rong's melodic voice sliced through the tense quiet, laced with a dangerous edge. The sharp chill of metal pressed against Ji Wuye's neck.

"Senior!" Song Jia gasped in panic, her eyes wide with alarm as she caught sight of Li Rong unsheathing her jian, the razor-sharp tip now aimed squarely at Ji Wuye's exposed throat.

"Your mistakes, Junior... are way too deep." Li Rong continued.

Unflinching, Ji Wuye simply flicked his gaze to meet Li Rong's steely glare, reading the solemnity burning in her eyes depths.

"How did you know about the changes in the shift? Where did you hide or kill your missing Senior Brothers?" Li Rong demanded, her grip tightening on the jian's hilt. "And why did you come here so suddenly when your task was only to collect herbs?"

"Senior Sister, Brother Ji did no—" Song Jia tried to interject, to defend Ji Wuye, but her words caught in her throat under the scorching weight of her Senior Sister's glare.

"Silence." Li Rong's reprimand sliced through the air like a whip crack. Pinning Song Jia with a pointed look, she continued, "You don't understand, Junior Sister. The severity of your Junior Brother's knowledge is way too advanced, as if he were a spy."

Once known as the "flower boy" - weak and powerless - Ji Wuye's drastic transformation after surviving the deadly Tower challenges and advancing into the second realm set tongues wagging with suspicion throughout the sect. His mere presence alone tonight raised too many unanswered questions.

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Those insidious rumors had been spreading like wildfire through the sect's halls, fanned mostly by the jealous whispers of the male disciples. While many acted out of petty envy, such salacious gossip could not escape the keen ears of Li Rong.

'And there is also a rumor that he was the one who reminded all the Sisters about the last Floor 5 challenge,' she thought inwardly, jaw clenched.

Now, witnessing firsthand how her Junior Brother had seemingly predicted this Dungeon, shift and many mores on this village, Li Rong's suspicions only deepened. He, who should know nothing of the outside world, possessed far too much specific information.

"Senior Sister," Ji Wuye's low timbre finally broke the tense silence, his head turning to face Li Rong as he'd been staring contemplatively at the night sky. As he moved, the firmly pointed jian at his neck pressed ever so slightly into his flesh, yet strangely, no blood was drawn. It seemed the blade was not nearly as sharp as it should be, briefly confusing Li Rong.

Yet her attention immediately shifted to his crimson eyes. Calm and composed, they met her tense, frowning gaze unflinchingly. An air of indifference hung about him, utterly unbothered by the threat at his throat.

"All of this... is it Elder Qiao's decision, command, or intention?" Ji Wuye asked, his tone flat yet his piercing stare causing Li Rong's pupils to tremble almost imperceptibly, catching her off guard.

But she was an Inner Disciple, the direct pupil of the Elder Qiao. Swiftly regaining her resolve, Li Rong's startled reaction vanished as swiftly as it had come.

"What do you mean? Your actions, behavior and knowledge are far more suspicious, and you have no right to question me," she retorted sharply. "As an Inner Disciple, even though I'm not tasked with enforcing the law, I shall bring you to the Hall of Insight!"

Her authoritative voice rose as if to assert her dominance, her grip on the jian's hilt tightening until her knuckles paled.

Glaring at Ji Wuye's maddeningly indifferent mien, Li Rong's heart pounded in her chest as an inexplicable sense of threat emanated from his unflinching gaze.

On the sidelines, Song Jia watched the tense exchange with bated breath, mouth agape yet no words coming out. Confusion clouded her features as she pondered her Senior Sister's accusatory words, but deep down, her heart knew Ji Wuye would never betray them - he was no spy or traitor.

"Se—" She began, intent on voicing her objection, but the heated atmosphere between the two froze the words in her throat. Ji Wuye's suddenly stern, unruffled demeanor gave her pause.

"So, you are saying this is your own decision as an 'Inner Disciple'," Ji Wuye stated flatly, his calm gaze locked onto Li Rong. Taking her lack of response as confirmation, he shook his head. "This is ridiculous."

CRUSH!

The abrupt sound of shattering metal rent the air as the jian aimed at Ji Wuye's neck instantaneously broke apart. In that same moment, a shimmering bluish aura of Qi enveloped his outstretched hand - the one he'd used to destroy the blade.

"You pointed your jian at your Martial Sibling, and you have endangered me based on your assumption that I'm a spy," Ji Wuye's voice rang out, reverberating with quiet power.

Li Rong's eyes widened in shock, but she swiftly regained her composure, immediately alert and withdrawing the broken jian to unsheathe another in one fluid motion. Her wary gaze never left Ji Wuye's unnervingly still form.

"But what I did so far is... to save common people. If saving common people is a mistake, is against the sect rules, then are our hearts chivalrous, or are we in line with the unorthodox? Only saving when money is involved?" Ji Wuye continued, his crimson eyes glinting with something wholly unfamiliar to Li Rong in the darkness.

As she stared at the burning disdain, the mockery simmering in their depths - a look that seemed to scornfully judge the world itself - a shudder ran through her.

Gone was the soft, caring Junior Brother she once knew, replaced by a man whose very presence exuded a disquieting aura of untamed power.