Shen Qing frowned coldly. "What does my background matter to you?"
A hint of surprise flashed in Han Ze's eyes. "Oh? So you've had suspicions for a while."
Shen Qing wasn't a fool. Since she advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, her connection with this world had deepened, and her perception of all things had sharpened. Naturally, she wondered how ordinary mortals could give birth to a child with spiritual bones.
However, despite her suspicions, Shen Qing didn't really care.
No matter what her origin was, it wouldn't stop her from living her life well.
With Kunlun Mountain as a barrier, her parents couldn't reach the Nine Desolate Continent, and she wouldn't go back either. They were people she'd have no more ties with in this life, so why should she care?
But now that Han Ze had brought up the matter, an uneasiness welled up inside Shen Qing. She both wanted to know and was afraid to.
"It seems you're not as stupid as I thought. But Shen Qing, since you've suspected, why don't you look into it? Maybe your parents' identities will surprise you."
"I don't want to know. Why should I look into it!" Shen Qing refused firmly, her voice cold.
But Han Ze saw through Shen Qing's disguise and chuckled. "Shen Qing, it's not that you don't want to know. You're just scared, aren't you?"
"I know your background. I brought it up on purpose. You're afraid that your parents might be from the Main God's Temple and that they might stand against you now. So you'd rather not know anything."
"Shen Qing, I misjudged you. You're not stupid, but you're a coward."
Shen Qing wasn't bothered by Han Ze's taunts.
"What's wrong with being a coward? Cowardice can protect myself. I can just focus on myself. Do you want me to be like Nan Zhijin and become a pawn of your Main God's Temple because of my parents' instigation?"
Han Ze shrugged, noncommittal.
"Since you don't trust me and don't want to know your parents' identities from me, I'll make sure you find out. It's a pity that I've been entrusted by someone and can't tell you myself."
"Otherwise, I'd really like to see your shocked and disappointed face when you learn the truth."
"Shen Qing, go and see Elder Xing Ling. He's the only one who knows your background."
After saying that, Han Ze's figure turned into an ice sculpture. When the wind blew, the ice sculpture cracked and soon turned into pieces.
Han Ze's last words faded away in the air, but they hit Shen Qing hard in the heart.
As Han Ze disappeared, the temperature in the yard returned to normal in an instant. The ice in the yard melted into water immediately. With the rising temperature, the air became moist and sticky.
"This is the Body Double Technique."
Looking at the ice sculpture turning into pieces, Li Xian immediately knew that the Han Ze in front of them wasn't the real one but just an ice double.
But this double made Li Xian feel even more worried.
This double had stayed in the Azure Cloud Sword Sect for so long, but no one in the sect, not even Elder Honghua, had noticed anything wrong.
It was obvious how powerful Han Ze was.
If they were against him, they wouldn't have an advantage.
Moreover, the Main God's Temple had existed for tens of thousands of years. If Han Ze had been around for that long, his power and strength were far beyond what the current Sect Alliance could compete with. What was his purpose?
Seeing Shen Qing bowing her head in silence, Li Xian asked, "Do you want to go and see Elder Xing Ling?"
"If you want to go, I'll go with you."
Shen Qing was a bit confused, but after a moment, she shook her head.
"Han Ze just wants to mess with my mind. The more he wants me to know, the less I'll find out."
"The Main God's Temple has its plans. We in the Sect Alliance don't have the strength to stop them. I really don't know why he came here on purpose."
"Li Xian, send a message to Xiao Jinglan. Ask the people from the Five - Element Dao Sect and the Azure Cloud Sword Sect who have joined the Sect Alliance to go to the mortal world. Clear the demons the Main God's Temple brought there and help the common people rebuild their homes."
"Okay, it's not difficult," Li Xian replied. Then he immediately took out his sound - transmitting jade pendant and sent a message to Xiao Jinglan, who was working hard.
When Xiao Jinglan received the message, he felt a headache.
Originally, with Yu Xuzi in seclusion and the Main God's Temple poaching several senior disciples from the Five - Element Dao Sect, there were so many things to do in the Sect Alliance. Xiao Jinglan couldn't remember how long it had been since he last practiced.
Fortunately, Hong Chaoyang from the Azure Cloud Sword Sect had come to help him, which made him feel a bit better.
Forget it. There was no time to complain.
After giving the orders, Xiao Jinglan started to deal with the affairs again.
When Shen Qing and Li Xian walked out of the guest courtyard, they learned that Pei Xuanjing and the others had returned to the Azure Cloud Sword Sect.
These three were lucky. Except for He Yu, who was still injured by Shen Qing and hadn't recovered yet, the other two were unharmed.
Shen Qing cursed her bad luck. Not wanting to meet them, she planned to hide on Elder Hongdie's mountain peak.
But as the saying goes, if you're afraid of something, it will come. Before Shen Qing could reach Elder Hongdie's mountain, Elder Xing Ling was standing in front of her with Pei Xuanjing and the others.
Shen Qing turned around and wanted to leave, but Elder Xing Ling's words stopped her in her tracks.
"Shen Qing, don't you want to know what the system is?"
Shen Qing turned back, her eyes filled with frost. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."
A smile curled on Elder Xing Ling's lips. "If you really didn't know, you'd have left. But you didn't, which means you want to know."
Pei Xuanjing and the other two stood behind Elder Xing Ling in confusion. As soon as they returned, they were called by Elder Xing Ling and told to go and find Shen Qing together.
Pei Xuanjing was overjoyed at first, thinking that his master had finally come to his senses and was going to invite Shen Qing back in person.
But now, as soon as they saw Shen Qing, Elder Xing Ling said such a strange thing.
The system?
What was that?
What did it have to do with Shen Qing?
With many questions in mind, Pei Xuanjing plucked up the courage and asked, "Master, aren't you here to invite Shen Qing back?"
He Yu's face was pale. Since he was hit by Shen Qing's ice dragon, his meridians had been aching from time to time. The pain was like being pricked by needles. Although he could still practice and use spiritual power, he felt very uncomfortable.
Originally, he planned to heal his wounds properly after returning, but as soon as he came back, he was dragged by Elder Xing Ling to see Shen Qing. He really felt unwell.
His feelings towards Shen Qing were very complicated now. He couldn't be as thick - skinned as Pei Xuanjing and Shen Chuyun to beg for Shen Qing's forgiveness, nor could he order Shen Qing around as before without a care.
Needless to say, Shen Chuyun was scolded by Shen Qing on the boat. He couldn't bear the blow and fainted.
Not long after waking up, he had to face Shen Qing again. He felt so ashamed.
Li Xian knew that Shen Qing didn't want to have anything to do with these people, but she didn't turn around and leave, which meant that the system was really important to Shen Qing.