A cultivator in the Nascent Soul stage, their spiritual energy and physical body were integrated, their aura contained, making them difficult to detect unless one's cultivation was far superior.
This was why the Yu family ancestor, standing before the gates of the Oddities Pavilion, had failed to perceive Xu Yi's significantly higher cultivation and had chosen to provoke her.
Conversely, Xu Yi could easily discern the Yu family ancestor's weakened aura and unbalanced spiritual energy, thus concluding he was merely a pseudo-Nascent Soul cultivator.
When Xu Yi's teaching of Zhang Tianbao within the Oddities Pavilion was disrupted, she retaliated.
However, this retaliation, in her view, was merely a minor lesson. Otherwise, the Yu family members wouldn't have merely fainted.
What she hadn't anticipated was that the Yu family ancestor's internal state was even more precarious than his external appearance suggested. A mere attack with three parts of her strength had caused his spiritual energy to backlash and his blood and qi to flow in reverse.
The Yu family ancestor's face was purplish-blue, his breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible, the vitality within him rapidly draining away. A lingering aura of death enveloped him.
Anyone could see that the Yu family ancestor was in a dire state.
"Ancestor! Ancestor!"
The Yu family members surrounded him, loudly calling out the Yu family ancestor's name, like ants on a hot pan, in utter disarray.
The Yu family ancestor was the backbone of the Yu family. With the backbone broken, the disintegration of the Yu family was not far off.
"Patriarch, quickly fetch the spirit pill!"
A middle-aged cultivator with a beard, disregarding propriety, shouted at Yu Datong.
"Spirit pill! Right, spirit pill!"
Yu Datong hastily released his grip, retrieved a jade bottle from his storage bag, took out a spirit pill, and prepared to feed it to the Yu family ancestor.
This pill was a treasured family heirloom, only to be used in situations of life and death for the family. It had been passed down through three generations to Yu Datong.
Although Yu Datong was somewhat displeased, he understood the gravity of the situation and did not hesitate.
However, just as he pulled out the jade stopper and produced the pill, he was halted by a voice.
"This pill will be useless to him."
Yu Datong followed the direction of the sound and saw a woman in a green daoist robe standing within the Oddities Pavilion.
The moment the woman appeared, the first thing Yu Datong noticed was not her appearance, but her eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through all things.
Those eyes contained infinite magic, encompassing everything, yet piercing directly into the heart.
Yu Datong's mind went momentarily blank, then he sobered up. Realizing the woman's identity, his eyes immediately showed apprehension and deep fear.
As for what she had just said...
Yu Datong looked at the pill, already being brought to the ancestor's lips, and hesitated.
"Patriarch, our ancestor was injured by her. Don't listen to her words!"
"Patriarch! She must be doing it deliberately, she wants to kill the ancestor!"
"Patriarch, don't hesitate, quickly give the ancestor the pill!"
The other members of the Yu family spoke out upon seeing this, their tones urgent, their words filled with suspicion that Xu Yi had ulterior motives.
Hearing this, Yu Datong gritted his teeth and sent the pill into the Yu family ancestor's mouth.
The pill entered his body, instantly transforming into pure spiritual energy, flowing into the Yu family ancestor's limbs and bones.
Xu Yi shook her head subtly. She had already warned them, but if they didn't believe her words, there was nothing she could do.
After Yu Datong administered the pill, he stared intently at the Yu family ancestor's face, his heart filled with unease.
Although he also believed Xu Yi had malicious intent, for some reason, something felt amiss, causing his heart to pound like a drum.
However, the Yu family ancestor's gradually improving complexion forcefully dispelled his unease.
"It's better! It's better! The ancestor is better!"
The Yu family members also noticed the changes in the Yu family ancestor and were ecstatic.
Some bolder ones even began to point fingers at Xu Yi.
"Patriarch, I said that person must have had ill intentions."
"That's right, she did it deliberately, deliberately preventing us from rescuing him!"
The cultivators who witnessed everything from the side had their own opinions.
Some believed Xu Yi's actions were justifiable, while others thought she had gone too far.
Luo Chunniang belonged to the former group.
In her opinion, the Yu family ancestor's death was not anyone else's fault. If he hadn't indulged his clansmen's tyrannical behavior, he wouldn't have met such a grim fate.
Upon hearing the surrounding murmurs, she felt injustice for Xu Yi.
However, Xu Yi was not as wronged as she imagined, because Xu Yi knew she had spoken the truth. The Yu family ancestor's recovery was merely a facade; the moment of revealing the consequences was yet to come.
"Ah!!!"
A piercing scream erupted from the Yu family ancestor's mouth. Before the Yu family members present could react.
The Yu family ancestor, whose eyes had been tightly shut, suddenly sat up from Yu Datong's embrace. After a scream, he spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes bulging outwards, his features contorted.
"Ancestor, An..."
Yu Datong's unfinished cry was abruptly silenced by the Yu family ancestor, who collapsed again.
The Yu family ancestor's face, previously dark and purplish, like that of a dying person, was now as white as a rakshasa, devoid of any color, resembling a living corpse.
"Ah."
A timid Yu family member cried out in alarm, falling to the ground, trembling like a sieve.
Yu Datong shakily extended his finger to the Yu family ancestor's wrist. The icy touch made his hand tremble. The next moment, it was like a basin of cold water being splashed directly onto him, causing his heart to stop.
The ancestor's pulse was gone?
The ancestor was dead?
Yu Datong's eyes widened, unable to believe what he was seeing.
The ancestor was the first Nascent Soul cultivator their Yu family had produced in thousands of years. How could he be dead!
However, the weeping sounds that gradually arose from the surroundings reminded him that none of this was his illusion. The ancestor was truly dead, killed by a woman whose name they didn't even know.
"Who are you! Who are you! Why do you inflict such a deadly blow upon my Yu family!"
Yu Datong put down the Yu family ancestor's corpse, staggered to his feet, and ran to the entrance of the Oddities Pavilion, glaring fiercely at Xu Yi.
He was no longer afraid of death.
Because he knew that with the Yu family ancestor dead, the Yu family was finished. The other two great families would not let go of this rare opportunity. They had made too many enemies recently, and with others kicking them when they were down, the Yu family had no chance of survival.
Yu Datong merely wanted to understand who this woman was and why she had treated them in this manner.
Xu Yi looked at the Yu Datong, who was in a state of frenzy. Her expression was neither joyful nor sorrowful, and she said faintly, "The patriarch of the Yu family did not die at my hands. You are the ones who killed him."
"You!" Yu Datong was furious at Xu Yi's distorted account. He took a few deep breaths before finally regaining his voice, "You're the villain crying foul! We clearly saw everything that happened today. Are you going to deny it? Aren't you afraid of being ridiculed if this gets out! Or has your ill repute already spread across the Kyushu Continent, preventing you from showing your true face!"
Yu Datong was not afraid of Xu Yi causing trouble for him. He even wanted to use his own life to expose Xu Yi's true colors to everyone inθε (Huangcheng), so that at least he would die with purpose.
Xu Yi's gaze swept across the resentful faces of the Yu family members and the wary, fearful faces of the surrounding cultivators. Then, the corner of her mouth curved into a smile.