With Yang Ze gone, the atmosphere in the room eased a bit. Even though both Lin Yue and Xiao Ruolan had been paraded around naked, sharing the same room with a man, much less a slave, was a daunting task. Even Lin Yue, who had gone through so much, visibly relaxed before gazing at the woman in front of her.
"Why are you doing this?" She finally asked the question that she wanted to know. Even if they infiltrated the Duality sect, there shouldn't have been a need to treat them this way. After all, the two of them were from the strongest families of Yuyang City. A might sect like this knew better than to parade them naked. At least, they should have asked for tributes or ransom.
"Why am I doing this?" Cang Yue looked at her with a playful smile before muttering softly, "Do I need a reason?"
"...." Lin Yue just narrowed her eyes before letting out a cold snort, "Hmph! I don't believe that the saintess of the Duality sect would be so bored to take action against two complete strangers."
"Heh." Cang Yue just let out a sneer. "Strangers? You?"
In an instant, the emotions on her face disappeared as her eyes grew incomparably deep. "Aren't you here to rescue your dear 'Sister', Lin Wan?"
"You..." Lin Yue's eyes went wide with disbelief. Till now, she believed that they were caught as mere trespassers. Their wanting to rescue Lin Wan was a secret that they didn't share with anyone. Even in their families, none of them were aware of their plans. Otherwise, they would have simply put these two women under house arrest. After all, they represented their respective families.
Xiao Ruolan, on the side who was pretending to be invisible, couldn't help but widen her eyes with shock. And in the next moment, the figure of Yang Ze flashed past her eyes. Other than the two of them, only that bastard knew what they were planning to do.
"Was it that bastard?" Xiao Ruolan's cold voice echoed in the room. Even Lin Yue, who was still panicking, couldn't help but pause as she too thought about it.
"No wonder... no wonder..." It didn't take too long for her to imagine the scenario.
"So that bastard sold us out... And in return, he gets to play with us." The more she thought about it, the more it seemed to be the truth.
"No wonder he didn't even struggle. Turns out, the two of you were merely acting in a play."
"....." Cang Yue first looked at Xiao Ruolan and then at Lin Yue before letting out a soft chuckle.
"Ha... haha... hahahhaa..." Her bell-like laughter filled the room as her twin peaks threatened to burst out. It wasn't until a few more moments had passed did she stopped and looked at the two women kneeling there with a hint of pity.
"No wonder you all got caught this easily." Shaking her head, she took a deep breath before speaking with an amused expression. "You... the young lady of the Lin Family. Where did you get your intel from?"
"That..." The moment she heard the question, Lin Yue's eyes narrowed into slits as a figure enveloped in black flashed past her eyes.
"Didn't you go to the Silent Eye Pavilion to know more about the Duality sect? Didn't you buy your so-called map from there?"
"...." The more she spoke, the rapid Lin Yue's breathing got. She already had an answer to her doubts, but she wasn't willing to believe it.
"Yeah, that's right. It is one of the branches of the Duality Sect."
*Bang~
Lin Yue felt her mind had stopped working. She couldn't believe the pavilion that was known for intelligence gathering in both kingdoms was just a branch of the Duality sect. No wonder... No wonder they were caught the moment they entered. No wonder their plan failed before they could even act. It was like going to the Imperial House and asking for directions to the Empress's chambers.
"Where is she?" Since the other party was already well aware of their intentions, there was no need to act ignorant. Lin Yue's voice was now full of murderous intentions. First, they kidnapped her sister, then they humiliated her and Ruolan... If she managed to escape this place, she would make sure to kill every single member in the future.
"She is where she should be." Cang Yue just shook her head. "Instead of her, you should be worried about yourself. You do know what infiltrating the Duality Sect means, right?"
"It was you who kidnapped her first. We are here just to take her back." This time, it was Xiao Ruolan who spoke. "Return her to us and let us go, and this matter will be over. Otherwise..."
She didn't complete her words, but the threat behind them was obvious.
"Mere toads wanting to swallow the moon." Cang Yue didn't laugh at their ridiculous thoughts. How could people like these, who have lived in small towns all their lives, know the true terror of the Duality sect? Any one of the elders can easily destroy their so-called Yuyang City.
"Forget it. I am not in the mood now. Just wait for tomorrow." Shaking her head, she stood up, stretched her body and left the room.
------------
"This is your temporary residence." On the other side, Yang Ze, who was completely unaware of the discussion between the three women, was silently admiring the house he was temporarily staying at.
Though the house was small with only two rooms, the scenery outside was breathtaking. There was a small stream just beside the house and a small mountain range just behind it. He could hear the sound of insects and birds as well as a comforting silence.
"Do not move unnecessarily. If you leave the boundaries of this area, you will be killed. Just stay here and wait." The woman in her forties didn't waste any more words with him. After giving him a few more instructions, she left the room, leaving behind the figure of Yang Ze, who was still admiring the simplicity of the house he was staying in.
"Finally..." It wasn't until ten minutes had passed that he let out a relieved smile. For now, he no longer needs to be worried about being left alone. He could finally focus on improving his cultivation.
With a smile, he looked around and, after making sure that no one else was there, finally took a look at his personal panel that had undergone massive changes.
[Name: Yang Ze]
[Age: 18]
[Realm: Mid-stage Pulse Opening]
[Physique: Supreme Dao Body]
[Talen: Mighty Vigour(Blue), Affinity For Water(Blue), Enlightment(Purple), Persistence(Purple), Trembling Fingers(Purple)]
[Skills: Thousand Years Art, Black Tiger Technique(First Grade)]
[Evaluation: Still a weakling.]
Looking at the panel in front of him in satisfaction, Yang Ze immediately entered Enlightenment. Earlier, he wanted to get Cang Yue's talents, but because he was forced to do such things, he completely forgot about it.
"Forget it." There was no use crying over the spilt milk. He would have plenty of time to get her talents in the future.
"Now then..." He first looked at his realm and then at his skills. Since he had just stepped into the mid-stage Pulse opening realm, it was impossible to make any progress in the short term. And without any pills to assist him, it was even more difficult.
"Should I or should I not?" Yang Ze struggled for a moment before gritting his teeth and deciding to just increase his realm. No matter how small, a mosquito's leg is still meat.
Without wasting another moment, he entered the Enlightenment, and with the help of his other talent, Persistent, he could already feel his strength increasing slowly.
In the next fifteen minutes, he managed to condense five strands of internal energy. If words of his progress got out, it would create a shockwave throughout the world. It was impossible for anyone to make such progress, even with the help of precious resources, and yet he did it without any external help.
After his Enlightenment state ended, Yang Ze didn't stop practising, even without it, the Persistent talent was still at play. Even though the progress wasn't as fast as before, it was still better than nothing.
....
While Yang Ze was busy increasing his strength, a completely different scene was playing out on the other side of the Duality sect.
Inside a dimly lit, luxurious room in one of the core areas of the Duality sect, the figure of a woman in her late twenties was sitting with a blank look on her face. Her hair was let loose, her robes dishevelled, and her eyes seemed to be swollen red due to extensive crying.
If Yang Ze were here, he would have screamed in shock.
This seemingly pitiful woman was the devil who was responsible for his sad state of affairs and the person whom they were supposed to rescue... 'Lin Wan'
In her state, she didn't even feel the presence of someone else arriving behind her and standing directly beside her. And before she could react, she felt another person reaching out to her neck before hugging her tightly from behind and taking a deep breath down her neck.
But Lin Wan seemed oblivious to it all. She didn't even react to it.
The other party didn't seem to be bothered by her lack of response. Instead, they slowly reached beside her ear and whispered softly.
"Guess who I just caught today?"
"...."
"Oh come on, not interested in the slightest?"
"..." Lin Wan still didn't reply.
"Fine... fine... I will tell you myself." With a gentle laugh, the other party took a deep breath and whispered softly.
"Your so-called sisters and your little lover."
~Bang
The moment she finished speaking, Lin Wan, who was still sitting there silently, felt her head exploding. Her eyes went wide with disbelief, and her body began to tremble. She couldn't believe... she couldn't believe that someone would come here to rescue her.
She was about to turn around and rush out, but felt a hand pressing her shoulder, making it impossible to move.
"Wait... What's the rush?" With a chuckle, the other party gently bit her earlobe.
"How about you tell me about your little lover first?"
------------
"Damn it... How hard is it to practice?" On the other side, Yang Ze finally opened his eyes after practising till midnight. Without the Enlightenment, it would have taken years just to reach one hundred strands.
And just when he was about to head to sleep, he felt the room to his door opening.
"Who...?" Yang Ze was about to retreat when he suddenly passed mid-sentence as his eyes widened in shock.
In front of him was the familiar figure of a woman wearing a black robe with a veil on her face.
"LIN WAN?"