The night was cold and still, a time when ordinary people were deep in sweet slumber, yet in a spacious and lofty hall at the corner of Wuyu Palace, the lights blazed as bright as day.
Originally a summer pavilion for enjoying the cool breeze, ever since Mu Ming left with his son, the exquisite doors and windows had been boarded up with thick wooden planks, sealing it off and leaving it as gloomy and eerie as a massive coffin.
You Guanyue seemed to have had no time to tidy the place. The hall was desolate and barren, with only seven or eight jade screens, each taller than a person, arranged around the perimeter. In the center stood three or four armchairs.
Mu Qingyan sat in one of them, while Sun Ruoshui sat in another a few steps in front of him. When she first arrived, she had wanted to sit close to her son. But as soon as she began dragging her chair toward him, Mu Qingyan shot her a glance, and the two martial maids standing nearby immediately pinned her in place as if nailing her down.
Sun Ruoshui cooed and groaned for a long while, but seeing her son remain utterly unmoved, she bit her lip and resigned herself to sitting obediently. It wasn’t the first time she had realized how different her son was from his father, Mu Ming.
"...The Nie Clan’s scourge, which spanned generations, was finally eradicated by you. Our ancestors must be so proud. Ah, when I left you in swaddling clothes, you suffered so much hardship afterward. I won’t make excuses for my reasons. Hate me, resent me—it’s all up to you. Just one thing: take care of your health. As long as I know you’re safe and well, I’ll be content."
She rambled on for a long time, but Mu Qingyan remained cold and indifferent, his thoughts wandering far away, completely deaf to his mother’s "concern."
Seeing this, Sun Ruoshui seethed inwardly.
But she was a pragmatic and patient woman—had she not been, Nie Hengcheng would never have chosen her to impersonate Master Sun’s daughter and get close to Mu Ming. Though Mu Ming was good-natured, he wasn’t a fool who would fall for a damsel in distress at first sight.
After joining Mu Ming’s side, she spent a full two or three years without overstepping any boundaries. She never casually flirted or tried to seduce him with her beauty. Aside from occasionally asking Mu Ming for scholarly advice, she only let slip a few words about her loneliness and helplessness after losing her family. It wasn’t until the fourth year that Mu Ming finally let his guard down around her.
She knew her son was ten times more troublesome than her ex-husband, but so what?
She had all the time in the world. If one day didn’t work, she’d try a year. If a year didn’t work, she’d try ten. Eventually, that lingering resentment would fade. Besides, they were mother and son, bound by blood. She refused to believe he would keep her imprisoned forever.
She continued her lament: "Everyone says I abandoned you and your father for wealth and status, but who knows the suffering I endured? Nie Zhe, that beast, looked respectable on the outside but had those unspeakable vices. Living with him was like counting the days till my death..."
"You only found out about Nie Zhe’s preference for men later, didn’t you?" Mu Qingyan suddenly spoke. "While Nie Hengcheng was alive, Nie Zhe didn’t dare show it. Even after Nie Hengcheng died but before Nie Zhe seized power, he still didn’t dare act recklessly. It wasn’t until Zhao Tianba and Han Yisu were defeated at the Green Gauze River, and the remnants of the Nie Clan fell under his control, that he began his underhanded deeds. Only after capturing Elder Yuheng, bribing Elder Tianshu, and installing Hu Fengge as Elder Tianji did he feel secure enough in his position to openly keep male concubines. Before that, no matter how rotten he was inside, outwardly, he still treated you, his lawful wife, with affection and respect."Mu Qingyan's gaze was as cold as the moon, making Sun Ruoshui feel utterly exposed under its implicit mockery, as if she were being stripped naked for interrogation—she hadn't expected her son to uncover the past so thoroughly.
"Madam Sun, save your breath. You’ll have your chance to defend yourself later," Mu Qingyan said indifferently, shifting his gaze away.
Just then, You Guanyue arrived. Behind him, two burly men carried a stretcher bearing a figure exuding a thick stench of blood mingled with the foul odor of rotting flesh, accompanied by agonized groans.
Sun Ruoshui glanced up and nearly died of fright on the spot.
Nie Zhe was only half a man left.
To halt the effects of the Bone-Corroding Sky Rain, Yu Huixin had amputated one of his arms and a leg. But due to the delay in treatment in the underground cavern, the poison had continued to corrode his body, forcing the physician to remove half his shoulder and part of his thigh down to the groin.
Beyond that, a gaping, festering wound marred his cheek, and beneath his ribs, countless small rotting holes dotted his flesh. He looked like a tortured demon from hell, a ghastly and horrifying sight.
Unaware of the full story, Sun Ruoshui assumed Nie Zhe had been reduced to this monstrous state by Mu Qingyan’s hand. Trembling, she nearly collapsed. "Y-you... if you hated him so much, you could’ve just killed him! Why... why..." Her teeth chattered, rendering her speechless.
Mu Qingyan ignored her and instead approached Nie Zhe. "I’ve sent for Ghost Doctor Lin Shu. Your life will undoubtedly be saved, so stop pretending to be dead. I know you’re awake—and fully lucid."
Nie Zhe slowly opened his eyes. "Ask whatever you want."
"Speaking with you is far more straightforward than with Madam Sun," Mu Qingyan remarked with a faint smile. "Given your injuries, I’ll do the talking. Just nod, shake your head, or grunt in response."
Nie Zhe snorted coldly.
"Over a year ago, I wagered the position of sect leader and challenged you to a duel," Mu Qingyan said, clasping his hands behind his back as he paced. "Though I feigned humility, I had already gauged the limits of your skill and knew you were no match for me. I was certain of victory. Yet the outcome defied all expectations—not only was I injured, but I was also afflicted with a strange poison. Everyone praised the might of Acting Sect Leader Nie’s Five Venoms Palm, so I had no choice but to retreat, wounded."
Nie Zhe rolled his eyes.
"But something didn’t sit right with me. During the duel, I sensed that I had been poisoned first, slowing my movements, which then allowed you to land a fatal blow. Yet how had I been poisoned? I had been cautious every step of the way on your turf—no one had the chance to dose me."
Mu Qingyan frowned, as if reliving his confusion. "I had never witnessed the true Five Venoms Palm before, only heard that at its peak, even the palm’s wind carried poison. So I assumed you had been playing the fool all along, secretly poisoning me through your palm’s unseen force. The victor writes history—there was no point arguing. I accepted my defeat."
"Yet after fleeing the Vast Sea Mountains, I encountered someone who genuinely practiced the Five Venoms Palm—albeit poorly, but it was the authentic technique. After exchanging dozens of blows with them, my doubts only grew." Mu Qingyan turned back to Nie Zhe, who lay half-collapsed on the stretcher. "His martial arts were entirely different from yours. That’s when I began to suspect your Five Venoms Palm was a sham—and yesterday, when we clashed again, my suspicions were confirmed. You never mastered the Five Venoms Palm at all."Nie Zhe's face, covered in dried blood, grew increasingly grim, while Sun Ruoshui seated beside him looked even worse.
"Since you haven't mastered the Five Venoms Palm, let alone poison-laden palm strikes, where did the poison on me come from?" Mu Qingyan fixed his gaze on the pair. "There's only one possibility—someone poisoned me beforehand, timed it for our duel, then staged the illusion that I was defeated by your Five Venoms Palm. But I was extremely cautious around you. How did you administer the poison?"
"You're so clever. Is there anything in this world you can't figure out?" Nie Zhe laughed hoarsely, his throat ruined by the corrosive poison.
"It's not difficult to deduce." Mu Qingyan turned his cold stare to Sun Ruoshui. "Four years ago when I left Buzhai, my sword was aimed at the sect leader's position. After that, no matter how warmly you two spoke of kinship, I never believed a word. Except once..."
A dark aura gradually clouded his eyes. "Two days before our duel, Madam Sun claimed to have a relic of my late father for me. I didn't want to see her, but she said it was a sword Father personally forged for me..."
Mu Ming had no interest in power, devoting his life instead to various arts—literature, painting, sculpture, calligraphy—all mastered. After Sun Ruoshui bore their child, Mu Ming personally forged a sword for his beloved son.
In his youth, Mu Ming was vigorous and single-minded, at the peak of his physical and technical prowess. That sword was crafted like a clear spring—razor-sharp, swift as a fleeting swan, named 'Not Full', nearly comparable to the divine blades in the Sword Cave.
Not long after completing the sword, he was ambushed and forced into hiding to recover.
During his seclusion at Huanglao Peak, Mu Ming often wished to forge another sword for his son, but post-injury, he could never achieve the same perfection again. He frequently lamented, "If only we could recover 'Not Full'..."
Yet until his death, 'Not Full' remained lost.
Thus when Sun Ruoshui used the sword as bait, despite knowing better, Mu Qingyan couldn't resist his longing.
"After retrieving 'Not Full', I examined it repeatedly and found nothing amiss," Mu Qingyan said. "But still uneasy, I discarded the scabbard..."
Nie Zhe suddenly cackled, "No wonder you survived—you threw away the scabbard!"
"So you had Madam Sun poison the scabbard?" Mu Qingyan asked calmly.
Sun Ruoshui turned deathly pale, trembling violently. "No, no! It wasn't me, it wasn't..."
"Not poison," Nie Zhe grinned savagely. "I knew you were cunning—ordinary toxins would never fool you. It was Plain Seed Incense! Colorless, odorless, harmless alone, but when combined with Thousand-Seeking Wood, it becomes deadly. I soaked both sword and scabbard in Plain Seed Incense for days. On our duel day, when you sat on a Thousand-Seeking Wood chair, how could you not fall into the trap!"
His glee grew with recollection. "Hahaha! You should've discarded the sword too. The blade's steel barely absorbed the scent, but the hilt's gold and silver wire wrappings... you were still ensnared..."
Mu Qingyan lowered his eyes. "I should have discarded both. But I couldn't bear to part with the sword my father labored over."Nie Zhe was immensely pleased with himself, suppressing the excruciating pain in his body. "Didn’t expect that, did you? The sword that nearly killed you was forged by your own father and delivered by your dear mother! Hahaha, you truly are the cursed lone star destined to see your entire family perish!"
Sun Ruoshui wept bitterly, "No, no, I didn’t know... I didn’t know the sword was poisoned. Yan’er, believe your mother—"
"No, you knew," Mu Qingyan cut her off. "On the day of the duel, to avoid arousing my suspicion, Nie Zhe replaced all the chairs in the main hall with Thousand-Seeking Wood. No matter where I sat, I would have been poisoned. Nie Zhe and the others had never touched Plain Seed Incense, so they had no fear of the wood and could sit freely. Only you—not only did you refuse to sit, but you even pretended you couldn’t bear to watch the duel and left early."
"You and Nie Zhe were enemies. His male favorites openly mocked you several times. With your temperament, you should have been eager to watch me beat him like a dog. Why would you leave? Now I realize it was because you had handled Plain Seed Incense when you gave me the sword. You feared that if you touched Thousand-Seeking Wood, you would die without a doubt."
Sun Ruoshui collapsed to her knees, tears streaming down her face. "Yan’er, forgive your mother! I’m weak by nature, and this vile wretch forced me—he’s inhuman! I was afraid—"
"Madam Sun, don’t be so modest," Mu Qingyan said calmly. "You were a top spy from the Heavenly Dipper Earthly Fiend Camp. Your courage isn’t that small. Even if Nie Zhe threatened you, if you had truly wanted to warn me, a glance or a word—you could have found a way. But you didn’t."
Sun Ruoshui was left speechless.
"But this is truly strange. Why would you poison me?" The young man frowned, indifferent to his kneeling birth mother. "Back then, you and Nie Zhe had been at odds for years, and your situation worsened daily. It was only after I left Busi Zhai that Nie Zhe, trying to play the role of a cheap father to me, allowed you to live in luxury again."
"No matter how thin our mother-son bond was, as long as Father’s last wish stood, I would have ensured you lived a comfortable, wealthy life. By any measure, you should have hoped for my victory over Nie Zhe. So why did you help him poison me?"
"What leverage did Nie Zhe have over you to force you into poisoning me?" He pressed relentlessly.
Sun Ruoshui trembled like a leaf, her face ashen, silent.
Nie Zhe seemed thoughtful. "So you’re not here to settle the score over the poisoning? You’re here for something else."
Mu Qingyan looked up at the ceiling beam, his voice dark. "Father once said that Madam Sun carried me for ten months and endured hours of labor to bring me into this world. That kindness cannot be forgotten. If she had only tried to kill me, I would have at most confined her."
He turned to Nie Zhe. "May I ask, Acting Sect Leader Nie, what reason you used to force Madam Sun to poison me?"
"No, no, you can’t—you mustn’t—" Sun Ruoshui grew frantic, shaking her hands at Nie Zhe in desperation.
Nie Zhe didn’t even glance at her, his envious gaze fixed solely on Mu Qingyan—his tall, slender frame, the firm muscles of his arms, his lean and powerful waist, his strikingly handsome yet melancholic face, his clear and captivating aura. He was perfection incarnate, like a young deity.
Meanwhile, Nie Zhe himself was rotting away, stinking as he slowly died. He sneered darkly, "What’s in it for me if I tell you?"
Mu Qingyan smirked. "Even if you don’t, I can guess."
Nie Zhe froze."Father created the 'Innate Qi Preservation and Regulation Art' and had been recuperating for years, gradually recovering," Mu Qingyan said. "But then one day, his condition suddenly worsened, and he passed away half a year later. Before his death, Father claimed he had practiced the technique incorrectly, leading to a fatal relapse of his injuries."
"Yet the deeper I practiced the 'Innate Qi Preservation and Regulation Art' over the years, the more I realized how gentle and balanced it was. Even if one failed to master it, at worst it would be ineffective—never would it backfire and cause death."
Mu Qingyan slowly walked up to Sun Ruoshui, his eyes filled with dark, oppressive fury.
He grabbed her hair, yanking her up to demand, "Madam Sun, I ask you—how did Father really die? If you could poison me without hesitation, did you also poison Father?"
"Father believed maternal love was innate and pitied me for lacking a mother's care. Seeing me discard the gifts you sent every year, he couldn’t bear it and often kept a few as mementos for me—did you seize that chance to poison those items?! Did you kill Father?! And later, did Nie Zhe use this to force you into poisoning me?!"
With the last words, he violently shoved his birth mother away.
Sun Ruoshui saw the icy killing intent in her son’s eyes, cold sweat breaking out over her body.
She had faced many crises in her life, but none as perilous as this.
Mu Ming had actually guessed on his deathbed that his ex-wife had poisoned him, but he never mentioned it. Instead, he urged his son to leave the Vast Sea Mountains as soon as possible, to stay far from the struggles for power, and to live freely under the open sky. He even instructed his son to care for his ex-wife in her old age.
Sun Ruoshui could only resent Mu Qingyan for not inheriting his father’s kindness and mercy, instead being vengeful, ruthless, and cruel. The moment his father died, he emerged to seize the sect leader’s throne—though, to be fair, no one in the Nether Sect had known his true temperament until he emerged from seclusion four years ago.
Sun Ruoshui knew well how deep Mu Qingyan’s bond with his father was. No matter what other wrongs she had committed, Mu Qingyan might not have sought her death—but if he learned the truth about Mu Ming’s death, a quick death would be a mercy.
She wanted to defend herself but found no words. Nie Zhe, however, burst into laughter. "Never expected it, did you? Your father was poisoned by your own mother! Hahahaha, what a joke! The illustrious Mu family of the two-century-old Nether Sect actually produced a weakling like Mu Ming—a spineless man who let others control him his whole life, only to die in obscurity! Hahahaha…"
Sun Ruoshui suddenly stood up, shrieking, "It was Nie Zhe! Nie Zhe forced me to kill your father! You can’t blame me—I had no choice! He threatened to have men defile me if I didn’t poison your father! Qingyan, you must believe me! I never meant to—"
Nie Zhe’s face twisted in rage. "You filthy, promiscuous bitch! When did I ever tell you to poison Mu Ming?! You’re trying to shift the blame! Look at your sagging, rotten flesh—I wouldn’t touch you even if you paid me!"
Sun Ruoshui’s ears rang with Nie Zhe’s vulgar insults, her vision filled with her son’s cold, disgusted, murderous gaze. Her mind spun in chaos—if not for Nie Zhe, she would never have abandoned the infant Mu Qingyan to become some secondary wife. If not for Nie Zhe, when Mu Ming returned to take their son, she could have followed him to Huanglao Peak’s Reflection Abode.
Life in Reflection Abode might have been austere, but if she had endured just a few more years until Mu Qingyan grew up and reclaimed the sect leader’s seat, she would have become the exalted Dowager of the Nether Sect, bathing in endless power and luxury.It's all Nie Zhe's fault, yes, it's all Nie Zhe's fault!
Overwhelmed by fury, she yanked out her hairpin and lunged forward, stabbing it forcefully toward Nie Zhe's throat.
With a dull thud, Nie Zhe's laughter was abruptly cut short as blood sprayed from his throat. Though the Bone-Corroding Sky Rain had reduced him to a shadow of his former self, he was still a trained martial artist with some remaining cultivation. Gathering all his remaining strength, he struck back with a palm strike— smack —Sun Ruoshui was hit squarely in the chest and sent flying, landing unconscious on the ground.
In the silent, abandoned hall late at night, only the whistling sound of air escaping Nie Zhe's throat remained.
Mu Qingyan watched the scene coldly. "...Everyone, come out now."
From behind the tall jade screen emerged several figures—Elder Yuheng Yan Xu, Elder Tianji Hu Fengge, Yu Huixin, and You Guanyue, who hadn't yet managed to leave.
Yan Xu and Yu Huixin had originally intended to speak in Nie Zhe's defense to spare his life, but after hearing everything, they could only shake their heads and sigh repeatedly, unable to utter another word.
Hu Fengge gazed at Sun Ruoshui, who still clung to life on the ground, her expression complicated. She knew that while other crimes might be excused, poisoning Mu Ming left Sun Ruoshui with no chance of survival.
You Guanyue's face was as bitter as coptis root, inwardly lamenting—he really didn't want to know so many of his lord's private affairs.
"You've all heard everything," Mu Qingyan said. "I will deal with these two now. I ask that none of you interfere." With that, he turned and walked away.
Old Man Yan stood frozen for a moment before suddenly rushing after Mu Qingyan, grabbing his sleeve. "Young Lord, listen to this old man. A man must hold great power!"
"In terms of character, appearance, and ability, Nie Zhe isn't even worth one of your father's fingers. Yet Sun Ruoshui was still willing to remarry him. Do you know what your mother wanted? Did she want Nie Zhe's delicate, effeminate looks?"
"Let me tell you—it's because your father was indifferent to power and refused to contend for the sect leader position with the Nie uncle and nephew, no matter how Elder Chou urged him. That's why Sun Ruoshui gave up on him and turned to Nie Zhe!"
"A man must have power. Without it, not only will he be constrained at every turn, but he won't even be able to protect his woman or his own life! Hey—I'm not finished yet, Young Lord, Young Lord—"
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