The Ten Heroines are Insane! - Chapter 121:

Chapter 121: Shocked, The Holy Maiden Smiled!:

Chaos collapsed, and everything turned to nothingness. 

Xu Ze did not know that while he spent less than half an hour inside the chaos, a full day and night had passed outside.

At this moment, outside West Point, everyone was waiting quietly. A day and a night might be fleeting for cultivators, but for Qu Qinghan, Nalan Qing, and Nalan Yun, it was a torment that gnawed at their hearts. Qu Qinghan stared at the faintly flickering light. Even with two love rivals standing in front of her, her heart was filled with worry for Xu Ze. 

These two rivals had, at this moment, become her only confidants.

“Holy Son, Holy Son has been inside for a whole day. It’s all my fault. I’m useless… I can’t even help him…” Nalan Qing wiped away her tears and choked softly. Nalan Yun stayed silent, her face full of anguish, unable even to continue reading.

Seeing Nalan Qing crying, Qu Qinghan gritted her teeth, stepped forward, and pulled her up from the ground. 

Qu Qinghan said coldly, “Nothing will happen to the Holy Son! He is the man of destiny. How could he die at the hands of that madwoman!” She turned her eyes back to the flickering light and continued, “Besides, with the personality of that woman Gu Ling, she would never harm Xu Ze.”

Nalan Qing and Nalan Yun glanced at Qu Qinghan, regaining a bit of courage. 

After wiping her tears, Nalan Qing nodded firmly and lowered her head without speaking. 

Qu Qinghan sighed. She wished she could give in to despair as they did, but seeing their miserable state, an unspeakable irritation rose in her heart.

The Holy Lord stood nearby, smiling at the three. 

He had thought they would quarrel, but at this critical moment, they unexpectedly stood united. 

Was it because Xu Ze had taught them well, or was it that Qu Qinghan naturally commanded respect?

The Holy Lord smiled without saying anything. 

Watching them reminded him of his younger days. Like his disciple Xu Ze, he too had left behind many romantic entanglements. But it seemed that Xu Ze was even better at it than he had been.

Buzz~

While everyone was anxiously waiting, the faint light suddenly expanded several times. A surge of powerful spiritual energy burst forth from the white light, stirring a violent wind. 

The Holy Lord waved his sleeve, shouting, “Everyone be careful!” 

Xuanli immediately enveloped the white light, but the fierce impact cracked even the Holy Lord’s profound energy.

“What a strong spiritual Qi!” The Holy Lord was secretly shocked. The strength that could shatter Mystic Sovereign Realm power clearly exceeded the ordinary.

The Holy Lord unleashed his full strength again, finally managing to contain the massive force within his profound energy. Gradually, the power weakened, and the light dispersed. Two figures began to emerge from the distortion of the light.

“Holy Son!” Qu Qinghan cried out in surprise the moment she saw one of them. It was Xu Ze, walking out from the fading light. 

He blinked at the surrounding scene, still trying to understand what had happened when Qu Qinghan rushed into his arms.

“Holy Son, you’re finally back!” Qu Qinghan’s heart, strained to its limit, finally relaxed. She could no longer suppress her emotions nor care about the many people around them. All she wanted was to hold onto Xu Ze and never let go again.

Xu Ze froze for a moment, then smiled helplessly, “Qinghan, I’m sorry… for making you worry.” 

Qu Qinghan clutched his robes, her eyes full of worry and grievance, “You should be sorry! Do you know? You’ve been missing for an entire day and night. Do you know how worried everyone was about you?”

“One day and one night…” Xu Ze was stunned. 

He turned to look around. 

Not only were his Master and the Holy Lord smiling at him, but there were also a group of elders from the Holy Land, hundreds of experts, and even cultivators from the Nalan Chamber of Commerce. All eyes were now fixed on him.

Xu Ze scratched his head awkwardly and said, “Isn’t today Xiang’s birthday?” 

Qu Qinghan lightly hit him and teared up, “What nonsense are you saying at a time like this?”

“Of course I have to say it. Otherwise, my gift would be wasted…” Xu Ze smiled bitterly and extended his right hand. “However, there was a small problem with the gift I prepared earlier, so… this year’s gift…” Opening his palm, a folded paper frog appeared.

Xu Ze rubbed his nose awkwardly, “If you don’t mind… it’s the same as last time. What do you think?” Laughter broke out among the crowd of the Holy Land. 

The Holy Lord stroked his beard, smiling and nodding repeatedly, as if saying that Xu Ze’s way of wooing girls was just like his teacher’s in the past.

Qu Qinghan was stunned for a moment before tears welled up in her eyes, and then she burst out laughing, “Scumbag!” 

Hugging Xu Ze tightly, she rested her head against his chest, showing a sweet smile.

At that moment, it was as if a plum blossom had bloomed in the cold winter. Her smile was so bright that the entire Holy Land erupted in amazement.

“She smiled! The Holy Maiden actually smiled!”

“No way! I’ve known the Holy Maiden for twenty years, and this is the first time I’ve seen her smile!”

“The Holy Maiden’s smile… is so beautiful…”

Everyone sighed in admiration. 

Even Xu Ze was stunned by her smile and couldn’t recover for a long time.

Nalan Qing and Nalan Yun stood to the side, exchanging glances. 

Though they said nothing, they could see the jealousy hidden in each other’s eyes. Nalan Qing curled her lips sourly, muttering, “Hmph… When it’s my birthday, I want the Holy Son to give me an even bigger one.”

Nalan Yun shook her head, speechless at her sister’s pettiness. 

Soon, she seemed to notice something unusual. Nalan Yun looked behind Xu Ze. Her eyes widened as she spotted a blurry figure slowly materializing.

“Gu Ling…” Nalan Yun whispered, startling Nalan Qing. 

Hurriedly, Nalan Qing turned to look and saw the ancient spirit’s figure gradually condensing, appearing silently behind Xu Ze. The figure’s face was pale and expressionless, and those deep, dark eyes watched Xu Ze and Qu Qinghan embrace without a sound.

“Demon, Demon Lord!” someone in the crowd cried out as they noticed Gu Ling’s presence. The crowd, which had relaxed moments before, instantly tensed up again, nervous and on edge.

The Holy Lord stroked his long beard, frowning slightly, “Oh? Little one, your devilish aura is not ordinary.”

Gu Ling said nothing. 

She simply turned her eyes toward Xu Ze, as if silently asking for his opinion. 

Xu Ze gently let go of Qu Qinghan’s hand, turned around, and cupped his fists toward the Holy Lord, saying, “Master, although Gu Ling is an evil cultivator, she shares certain connections with this disciple. I hope Master will permit me to take her into my custody.”

The moment Xu Ze spoke, everyone was shocked. 

Qu Qinghan, Nalan Qing, and Nalan Yun all looked at him in disbelief.

The Holy Lord’s expression remained unreadable as he asked, “Xu Ze, are you intending to protect an evil cultivator?”

Sheltering an evil cultivator was a grave crime in the Holy Land. As the Holy Son, Xu Ze was expected to set a perfect example. Protecting an evil cultivator would be an unforgivable offense for someone in his position.

However, Xu Ze remained calm, his eyes firm as he met the Holy Lord’s gaze. “It is not to protect her. This disciple only hopes to punish Gu Ling in my own way.”

According to the Holy Land’s laws, an evil cultivator who had orchestrated the massacre of cultivators, leading indirectly to the deaths of countless mortals, would be subjected to severe punishment. Even though Gu Ling hadn’t killed innocents directly, she had commanded those who had. 

The minimum punishment for such crimes would be eternal suppression in the Holy Land for a thousand years, stripped of all hope of recovery. In the worst cases, the guilty would suffer endless tribulations of divine thunder, a fate worse than death.

No matter how much Xu Ze wished to protect Gu Ling, he understood the severity of her sins.

The Holy Lord’s eyes narrowed as he studied Xu Ze. After a long silence, he suddenly laughed heartily, “Good!” He clapped Xu Ze heavily on the shoulder and continued laughing, “You are indeed my proudest disciple. In matters of love, you remind me of my younger self, hahaha!”

But as the laughter faded, the Holy Lord’s expression grew solemn. “However, the sins committed by the demonic cultivators are inseparable from her actions. I will leave her to you, but you must find a way to give everyone a satisfactory explanation.”

Xu Ze glanced at Gu Ling. She simply smiled at him without speaking. 

Xu Ze cupped his fists again and bowed respectfully to the Holy Lord, “Yes, Master. This disciple will surely give the world a perfect explanation!”