Qing Qing followed Elder Lianshan out of the house. Jiang Zhiyun trailed behind them, dazedly chasing after them.
"Qing Qing..."
Jiang Zhiyun watched worriedly as Qing Qing staggered while leaving. She wished she could cling to him and leave with him.
Shen Qing saw that Elder Lianshan seemed in an odd state. She quickly pulled Qing Qing and whispered, "Where is he taking you?"
Qing Qing gave Shen Qing a reassuring look and said, "Don't worry. Elder Lianshan won't harm me."
"Yes, Elder Lianshan won't harm you," Shen Qing said warily, eyeing the obviously strange Elder Lianshan. She put something in Qing Qing's hand.
Qing Qing looked up in surprise. "This is..."
Shen Qing shook her head, signaling him not to speak.
Qing Qing knew Shen Qing meant well and didn't refuse. He flipped his hand and put the thing away.
Elder Lianshan turned around, looking intently at Qing Qing. He urged, "Hurry up. There's not much time left."
His tone was normal. Apart from the unusual tiredness on his face, everything seemed fine.
Li Xian pulled Qing Qing and whispered in his ear, "Protect yourself. Be careful."
In Li Xian's eyes, the Green Wood Sect was extremely unsafe at the moment. Qing Qing's status as the young sect master couldn't protect him at all, especially since his body was so weak.
The only thing that reassured Shen Qing and Li Xian was that Qing Qing still had the Wansheng, a magical weapon passed down from ancient times that could protect him to some extent.
Elder Lianshan urged Qing Qing to leave with him. But after Qing Qing left, Xu Yanxi gave Li Xian's sword to Banfenghe. Banfenghe quickly turned around and followed Elder Lianshan.
"Wait! Where are you taking my sword!"
Li Xian was about to chase after them when Xu Yanxi grabbed her. "Xian'er, don't be in a hurry. Extracting this bead isn't that simple. I need to set up a magic formation first and offer sacrifices to the heavens. I'm just taking the sword first. Don't worry. Mother won't harm you!"
Li Xian still wanted to chase after them, but Xu Yanxi, whose cultivation had temporarily regressed, could easily suppress her. So Li Xian could only watch Banfenghe leave with a gloomy face.
Seeing Li Xian being suppressed, Shen Qing intended to chase after them herself.
"Wait. I'd like you to stay too," Xu Yanxi said, holding not only Li Xian but also Shen Qing.
The moment Shen Qing was grabbed, she immediately felt her spiritual power stop flowing.
She tried to pull her hand out but felt weak all over.
Shen Qing looked at Xu Yanxi in surprise, with a dark look in her eyes.
"What do you want?" Shen Qing asked in a deep voice.
Xu Yanxi pulled Shen Qing and Li Xian's hands over and made their hands overlap. She looked kind and said, "I want to get along well with Li Xian. In the future, when you marry Li Xian, I'll treat you like my own daughter."
"So give me a chance to build a relationship with you, okay?"
Xu Yanxi looked at Shen Qing lovingly, holding their hands tightly.
Shen Qing and Li Xian looked at each other, exchanged glances, and then nodded in agreement.
Xu Yanxi happily pulled them into the house. As she walked, she said, "I know my previous actions made you unhappy. But as an elder, I need to teach you some things. Come!"
"Especially you, Shen Qing. As a daughter - in - law and a wife, you still have a lot to learn."
After entering the house, Xu Yanxi sat down at the table. She saw the food on the table at a glance.
When she saw those things, a flash of anger crossed Xu Yanxi's eyes, but she quickly concealed it.
"This was made by Xian'er, right?"
"Back then, your father would often make mortal food to amuse me to make me happy. It's exactly the same as what you've made now."
"You... really are father and son..."
Xu Yanxi reminisced for a while, then her tone changed. She looked at Shen Qing sternly. "But you're the daughter - in - law. You can't always let your husband make things for you. Well, I'll teach you how to make a bowl of cheese first. It's what Xian'er likes to eat the most..."
As she said this, she was about to pull Shen Qing outside, but Li Xian blocked her.
"I don't need Shen Qing to cook for me. It's my choice to want to do things for her. I don't expect her to give me the same in return."
Xu Yanxi tried hard to hold back but couldn't pretend anymore. She broke down and shouted at Li Xian, "Why do you treat Shen Qing so well? I'm your mother. You should treat me well! Your father is gone, and it's your responsibility to take care of me!"
Li Xian stared into Xu Yanxi's eyes. There was an indescribable feeling in his heart. Then he laughed self - deprecatingly. "I knew... I shouldn't have had any illusions about you."
Li Xian wanted to pull Shen Qing away but found that Shen Qing's spiritual power was suppressed.
"What did you do to Shen Qing?" Li Xian immediately realized that it was Xu Yanxi's doing.
Shen Qing listened to their conversation and felt her head getting more and more dizzy. The moment her spiritual power was suppressed, she felt like a walking corpse.
She clearly knew it was Xu Yanxi's doing but couldn't break free from her grasp.
In the end, she could only let Xu Yanxi drag her along.
Xu Yanxi curled her lips into a cold smile. "What? Are you feeling sorry for her?"
"Let go of your hand!" Li Xian was about to instinctively summon his natal sword but found that the sword wasn't on him.
Xu Yanxi noticed Li Xian's intention and sneered, "What? Do you want to take out your sword and be rude to your own mother? Where in the world is there a son like you?"
Li Xian was almost driven crazy by Xu Yanxi's turning the tables. "I'm like this because I have a mother like you!!"
"You've never liked me since I was a child. I finally got to live a peaceful life, and you come to disrupt it. Why can't I get rid of you!"
Li Xian's roar startled Xu Yanxi. She was stunned for a moment, then shouted back, "You're my son. You're doomed to never get rid of me in your life. You just wait to be haunted by me!"
At that moment, Li Xian felt as if he had returned to the small dark room of his childhood. The suffocating feeling made it hard for him to breathe. His chest felt as if it was being pressed by a big rock.
"Why do you treat me like this..."
Xu Yanxi seemed crazy. Her emotions seemed out of control, and she let out a low, strange laugh. "Because you killed the man I loved the most in my life!"
"How could I allow you to have a beautiful love!!"
Shen Qing couldn't hold on anymore and fell to the ground, but her wrist was still tightly held by Xu Yanxi.
"Li Xian..."
Li Xian's chest was filled with negative emotions. Seeing Shen Qing couldn't hold on, he couldn't bear it anymore and wanted to take action. But at this moment, a loud noise came from outside.
"Bang!!!"
Along with the noise came a huge wave of spiritual power.
This wave almost toppled the fence of the yard.
Seeing this, Xu Yanxi let go of Shen Qing's hand and laughed. "Hahaha! Success!!!"