Chapter 053: The Sect of Mothers and Daughters Only

Seeing Qin Xuanxi standing atop a bamboo stalk, hands clasped behind her back, the beautiful woman felt as though she were facing a formidable enemy. She immediately rose to her feet and instructed her daughter beside her, “Qingyu, return to the house at once!”

“Yes, Mother!” Su Qingyu, long accustomed to obeying her mother’s commands without question, rose carefully from the ground, gathered up the zither before her, and quietly retreated indoors. Throughout, Qin Xuanxi made no move.

Once her daughter had entered the house, the woman addressed Qin Xuanxi: “Dark Abyss Demon Lord, you are the second to break the barrier I set and trespass upon this Black Bamboo Mountain.”

“But I, Su Yunhe, have had no dealings nor grievances with you in the past. I wonder, what brings the Demon Lord here today?”

Qin Xuanxi replied coldly, “You said I am the second to break your barrier; was the first ‘Flute Immortal’ Zhong Lei?”

Su Yunhe was taken aback; she had not expected that this visitor came for the Flute Immortal. Quickly regaining her composure, she answered, “I do not know any Flute Immortal. If you have come here searching for him, I fear your efforts are in vain. Please, leave at once.”

Su Yunhe knew full well that, in the past three centuries, many had sought the Flute Immortal. Although nothing untoward had occurred between herself and him, she preferred to avoid unnecessary trouble and so uttered this lie.

“You should know I detest liars above all,” Qin Xuanxi seemed to see straight through Su Yunhe’s heart. “So consider carefully before answering the questions I am about to ask you.”

Though she could not see Qin Xuanxi’s face nor discern her expression, the knowledge that she stood before the Demon Lord was enough to send chills down Su Yunhe’s spine.

“If you seek answers from me, speak plainly. I will tell you all I know,” Su Yunhe replied.

Qin Xuanxi asked, “What was the name of the piece your daughter played just now?”

“It is called ‘The Long Night.’”

“I have never heard such a sublime melody,” Qin Xuanxi continued, her voice still cold. “Did you compose ‘The Long Night’ yourself?”

“Yes,” Su Yunhe replied. “‘The Long Night’ was indeed written by me. It is my honor for it to earn your appreciation.”

Qin Xuanxi’s lips curled into a frosty smile. “Then you should know that I have heard the Flute Immortal play this very piece.”

Su Yunhe’s heart shook with dread; she realized she had let slip a secret.

Perhaps it was the invisible pressure radiating from Qin Xuanxi that unsettled her mind, causing her to forget that the Flute Immortal had also once heard her play ‘The Long Night’ here. Qin Xuanxi’s questioning, it seemed, always circled back to the Flute Immortal.

“So you were deceiving me. The Flute Immortal has indeed been here, which is why he knows this piece,” Qin Xuanxi's aura suddenly darkened, black energy seeping from her form. “I have told you before that I loathe women who lie!”

No sooner had her words faded than a colossal manifestation of the Supreme Heaven Demon appeared behind Qin Xuanxi, blotting out the sky, its vast form looming like an oppressive storm.

Su Yunhe trembled, sweat breaking out across her brow; never before had she witnessed such overwhelming force.

Suddenly, the Supreme Heaven Demon opened its gaping maw and inhaled. Su Qingyu, who had just returned indoors, along with the house itself, was swept up and swallowed whole.

“Qingyu!” Su Yunhe cried in terror, stunned that Qin Xuanxi would first target her daughter.

Desperate, Su Yunhe poured forth all her cultivation, ready to gamble her life to rescue her child, but Qin Xuanxi swiftly warned her, “I advise you not to act rashly. Your daughter is now within the demon’s body. If I wish her dead, a single thought would suffice.”

“However, let me assure you—as you said, I have neither dealings nor grudges with you. Your lives are of no interest to me. Tell me everything you know about the Flute Immortal, and your daughter will be spared.”

Qin Xuanxi had waited over four months for her disciples to discover that the melody played by the Flute Immortal in the Nether Domain was composed by Su Yunhe, the master of the Solitary Jade Sect.

The Solitary Jade Sect was a peculiar order; true to its name, for generations it had consisted only of the sect master and a single disciple—a tradition maintained by forbidding male disciples. As a result, the sole disciple was often the sect master’s daughter. In essence, the entire sect was a mother and daughter.

Were it not for her pursuit of the Flute Immortal’s whereabouts, Qin Xuanxi would never have come to Black Bamboo Mountain to trouble these two.

Now, Su Yunhe addressed Qin Xuanxi, “So long as you spare my daughter’s life, I will tell you everything.”

Su Yunhe was well aware that she was no match for Qin Xuanxi. Her sect, Solitary Jade, was renowned for only two things, passed down through generations: barriers and musical skill. Yet her most prized defensive barrier had already been broken by this demon, leaving her with no means of resistance.

Now, with her daughter a hostage, Su Yunhe had no choice but to lay everything bare.

“‘The Long Night’ was my gift to Qingyu on her first month. I have rarely performed it in front of others.”

“But fifteen years ago, the Flute Immortal broke my barrier and entered Black Bamboo Mountain, asking only to hear me play this piece.”

“At the time, Qingyu was just a year old. Fearing he might harm her, I agreed to his request.”

“We played together—zither and flute—discussing music on this very mountain. Before nightfall, he left alone.”

“So, there was but a single meeting between us.”

After hearing this, Qin Xuanxi sensed no falsehood, though she suspected Su Yunhe was still withholding something. She pressed further, “Do you know how to find the Flute Immortal?”

“I do not,” Su Yunhe shook her head.

“Su Yunhe, I will ask you one last time—do you know how to find the Flute Immortal?” Qin Xuanxi’s tone grew sharper.

Su Yunhe recognized the warning: should she conceal anything further, her daughter’s life would be forfeit. Moreover, she understood that unless the Flute Immortal was found, Qin Xuanxi would not relent.

Unable to risk her daughter’s life, Su Yunhe revealed all she knew.

“Please, Demon Lord, do not be angry. I sincerely do not know where to find the Flute Immortal. Yet, on the day he left, he told me that on my daughter’s wedding day, he would surely appear.”