SWNOVELXO Chapter 32:
Chapter 32: That’s Not Love:
Yue Hongling resisted the urge to merge with the Pure Water Pearl.
She suppressed her body’s desperate craving for survival, the primal instinct of living beings to cling to life.
An overwhelming pain spread through her mind as her body screamed for her to absorb the pearl immediately.
So this was the kind of pain her senior brother had endured back then.
To help her improve her aptitude, he had suppressed the most basic instinct for survival.
No wonder he had been so gravely injured.
No wonder… no wonder…
The pain was excruciating.
Yue Hongling deeply felt the agony Lu Ye must have suffered. A sharp regret gnawed at her heart like countless venomous insects.
Her senior brother had been too good to her.
Who else in this world would value her more than their own life?
Feng Wuxie wouldn’t!
Though Yue Hongling had never been with Feng Wuxie, she was certain he could never measure up.
But senior brother, that wasn’t love!
‘No matter how good you are to me, I’ve never felt my heart race for you, not even for a moment. All I feel for you is gratitude, not love.’
Only when Yue Hongling was with Feng Wuxie did her experience that excitement—the racing heart and burning heat that came with love.
Senior brother, in this life, I promise you everything except being with you. I’ll even die for you if that’s what you want.
Yue Hongling made a silent vow, etched deep in her heart.
As she swam upward, her strength waned.
She couldn’t hold on any longer.
After much hesitation, she finally decided to refine the Pure Water Pearl.
Her senior brother had no use for it, and if it could improve her aptitude, she could repay him by finding an even more valuable treasure for him.
As she absorbed the Pure Water Pearl, her injuries rapidly healed. The pearl’s energy began transforming her body, expelling countless impurities.
Her cultivation level surged as she broke through to the Nascent Soul Realm.
Yes, during her earlier battle with Shangguan Wuchang, she had been holding back her breakthrough, concealing her true cultivation level.
Had she already reached the Nascent Soul Realm, a single move would have been enough to leave Shangguan Wuchang half-dead.
After all, she was a reincarnated Empress.
When Yue Hongling resurfaced, fully healed and having successfully advanced, she found Shangguan Wuchang waiting for her, his halberd in hand.
“I wasn’t satisfied with our fight underwater. How about another round now?” he said, twirling the heavy weapon and pointing it at her.
Yue Hongling’s beautiful face broke into a cold smile. “You couldn’t beat me underwater. What makes you think you can now?”
She unleashed her Fearless Divine Fist.
A fist imprint shot toward Shangguan Wuchang with lightning speed.
He swung his halberd to shatter the imprint, already planning his counterattack.
But as soon as the halberd clashed with the fist imprint, an overwhelming force surged through it, leaving Shangguan Wuchang unable to resist.
“Boom!”
The halberd flew upward, and Shangguan Wuchang staggered back, each step leaving deep imprints in the ground. After retreating a dozen steps, he barely managed to stop himself.
His face turned red as he stared at Yue Hongling in shock.
How could this be possible?
Yue Hongling, however, paid him no further attention. She didn’t intend to kill him, leaving that to Shangguan Huanling instead.
…
Lu Ye emerged from the volcano, a ribbon-like flame swirling around his Dao Nascent Soul.
One of the three flames on the mountain had extinguished, signifying that one of the divine flames had been taken.
The flame he had claimed was called the White Sun Flame. Its temperature was sufficient for his needs until he reached the fourth layer of the battlefield. If necessary, he could further enhance it.
His next destination was the Hundred Herb Valley.
To condense his second life, he needed a Golden Sunflower located at the valley’s core. This flower was exceedingly rare outside the battlefield, and he had only found it here in his previous life.
As Lu Ye left, Chu Ling followed.
She had come to a stark realization—Lu Ye’s strength was growing at an astonishing pace. If her own progress remained slow, she would soon lose even the right to follow him.
In her past life, Lu Ye had willingly guided her.
In this life, he didn’t care whether she lived or died.
As Lu Ye glanced upward, he noticed whirlpools of varying colors—purple, black, and more—appearing in the sky one after another.
Demons, ghosts, monsters…
The air filled with their cries, laughter, and roars, creating a chaotic cacophony.
Lu Ye found it all irritating and didn’t bother giving them a second glance.
When he reached the Hundred Herb Valley, he found it protected by numerous formations. The valley was said to have once been the medicinal garden of an ancient, powerful sect.
But Lu Ye knew the truth.
This rumor was false.
The formations in the valley had been laid by a single person, a brilliant array master who had sought to challenge the prodigies of eternity with his formations. He had indeed made a name for himself, even achieving significant contributions in his death, cementing his legacy.
Of course, he wasn’t dead yet.
A group of people was busy studying the formations in the valley. For the array masters among them, the formations were more precious than the herbs.
After all, these formations had been crafted when the array master was only twenty years old, designed specifically for younger disciples.
Among the group was a young man who repeatedly disappeared and reappeared, breaking one formation after another.
Watching his progress, Lu Ye raised an eyebrow.
How had such a talented array master gone unnoticed before?
Judging by his speed, it didn’t make sense for him to be so obscure.
There was only one possibility—he had died prematurely.
Lu Ye felt a pang of regret. Such talent, lost before it could bloom. Perhaps he could help this young man grow.
Entering the formations, Lu Ye moved swiftly. Instead of breaking them, he navigated through them effortlessly.
Soon, he appeared in front of the young man.
Startled, the youth jumped.
“Y-you… Are you human or ghost?” he stammered, his rosy lips and white teeth making him seem almost cherubic.
Lu Ye raised an eyebrow. “Have you seen a ghost before?”
“N-no.”
“Have you seen a person before?”
“Yes.”
“Do I look any different from a person?”
Realizing his mistake, the youth blushed in embarrassment. Lu Ye had indeed startled him.
“I’m sorry… You look more handsome than anyone I’ve ever seen.”
Lu Ye couldn’t help but laugh. What a peculiar kid—both naive and unexpectedly shrewd.
“What’s your name?”
“I am Li Huaiyu.”
“Good. Continue breaking formations and observe carefully.”
With that, Lu Ye disappeared.
Li Huaiyu’s eyes widened in disbelief. He stared at the direction where Lu Ye had vanished, then at the still-intact formation.
H-how did he do that?