Jin Yu let out a cold laugh.
They dared to make a move right in front of him?
Without even turning his head, Jin Yu sent a burst of sword qi into the air. It blocked the attack aimed at the Yuányīng. Another burst shot directly at Yu Lin.
That earlier strike had come from Yu Lin.
Trying to pull such a petty trick in front of him? Might as well be digging his own grave.
Yu Lin hadn't expected Jin Yu to react so swiftly—let alone retaliate without a moment's hesitation. Caught completely off guard, Yu Lin staggered back several steps, his face growing even paler.
"Patriarch Yu seems eager to silence the witnesses," Yun Jin said with a mocking smile.
Yu Lin's expression changed. He quickly said, "What are you talking about? I was simply outraged after seeing the tragic state of the missing cultivators. My strike was fueled by righteous fury."
"Is that so?" Yun Jin looked toward the two Yuányīng hovering in the air. "And you two? Is that how you saw it? You witnessed it yourselves—he struck with full force. He intended to destroy your souls completely."
The two Yuányīng looked at Yu Lin. Their eyes now held a trace of resentment.
Yu Lin spoke slowly, trying to steady his voice. "Eliminating evildoers is everyone's duty. I've no ties to them, so why would I silence them? These two have committed countless atrocities. Even if I didn't strike, would you have let them live? Either way, they were doomed to soul annihilation. Also, you've practiced demonic arts for years. I wonder if your juniors and descendants followed your path. If so, they too must be dealt with—root and branch."
Yu Lin's words made the two Yuányīng' expressions shift again.
One of them said slowly, "Patriarch Yu is of the righteous path. We walk the demonic one. If you're asking if there's any connection, it's hatred, plain and simple."
Yu Lin's lips curled into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
Yun Jin nodded in understanding. "So, your descendants must be in Yu Lin's hands. Makes sense. It's hard to cooperate without holding something over each other's heads. They're probably hidden within the Yu clan estate, yes? Once we return and conduct a thorough search, we should be able to find them easily."
Yun Jin's voice remained calm and level, but both Yu Lin and the two Yuányīng visibly tensed.
Yu Lin quickly cried out in protest, "Fairy Yun, have you already judged me guilty in your heart? I haven't done these things. If I haven't done them, then I haven't done them. You can't slander me like this! I understand you're close to Yu Songnian. My nephew has long held a grudge about my succession as Patriarch. That's why you're trying to fabricate charges against me—to pull me down and return the clan to him. Immortal Yun, you don't need to go this far. Songnian's cultivation isn't there yet, but once he reaches Unity, I'd gladly pass the position back to him."
Yu Lin spoke with an air of sincere humility.
Yun Jin narrowed her eyes.
Such pretty words. But this man had long known that her senior brother suffered from petrification. He was already struggling just to maintain his current cultivation, let alone advance to Unity.
"Junior Sister Yun, there's no need to waste your breath on him," Jin Yu said calmly. "If you suspect anything, just interrogate those two Yuányīng. They're going to die either way, but how they die—now that's where it gets interesting. With disciples from Xuandan Gate here, do you think they'll keep their mouths shut?"
Ye Liuqin gave a small smile and pulled out a porcelain bottle. "I happen to have a pill here. It's called the Soul-Torment Pill. It was specially crafted to target Nascent Souls. Once ingested, it causes immense pain in the soul. After that, I'm sure they'll be quite eager to talk."
Soul-Torment Pill.
The two Yuányīng had heard of it before. The agony it caused was said to go straight to the soul, a torment worse than death and utterly unbearable.
Ye Liuqin didn't waste any time. With a casual flick of her wrist, she tossed two pills directly into their mouths.
Yu Lin's expression twitched ever so slightly. Meanwhile, the two Yuányīng let out anguished cries.
The pain that tore through their very souls was leagues beyond mere physical torment. It felt like dying over and over again in a pit of hell. Truly worse than death.
"I'll talk! I'll say everything!" one of the Yuányīng screamed.
The other quickly followed with pleas for mercy.
Ye Liuqin raised a brow and tossed in two more pills.
Only then did their soul forms stabilize. Both wore expressions of lingering terror—clearly unwilling to ever experience that pain again.
"Speak," Yun Jin said, her expression emotionless.
Yu Lin's face shifted continuously. He glared at the two men, eyes cold and sharp.
"Patriarch Yu, there's no point staring at us," said one of the Yuányīng. "They've already suspected you. Even if they scour the Yu estate, our descendants won't escape. Might as well drag someone down with us."
Yu Lin's face changed again, but he forced himself to remain composed. "I don't know what you're talking about."
The Yuányīng went on anyway. "It's a simple story. The three of us were old friends with Patriarch Yu. Around ten years ago, we took the blood path to advance, using Blood Path Sect's methods. We invited Yu Lin to join us back then, but he hesitated and refused. After we obtained the Sacred Flower, Yu Lin invited us to settle in Lin City. He listed all the benefits we'd receive, so we agreed and planted the Sacred Flower here."
The Yuányīng glanced at Yu Lin.
Yu Lin's face was ashen, his eyes darting furiously as if scrambling for a way out.
"Don't blame us for giving you up, Yu Lin. None of us are getting out of this. Having one more person fall with us is a small comfort." The Yuányīng continued, "Later, when Yu Lin learned we needed stronger cultivator blood to nourish the Sacred Flower, he made a plan. He lured Yu Feng over, and the four of us killed him together. We fed his corpse to the Sacred Flower."
In the blood pool—
Yu Songnian's hand froze for a moment. His body trembled as if he had seen something unspeakable. Step by step, he walked toward a pile of white bones. Silent tears fell from his eyes.
He recognized them.
They were his father's remains.
His father had once cultivated a secret healing art to treat his mother's illness. Over time, it changed his bones, turning them to something like white jade.
Moments ago, Yu Songnian had pushed aside the bones on top.
At the very bottom—his father's remains had been crushed beneath.
No wonder they couldn't find the body back then.
After his death, even his flesh and blood had been completely devoured and sold off by that wonderful uncle of his.
Yu Songnian carefully gathered the bones and stored them in his spatial ring.
Then he turned and looked at Yu Lin.
Yu Lin instinctively averted his gaze.
The Yuányīng continued speaking. "After Yu Feng died, some of the old relics in the Yu clan kept pushing to find his body and uncover the truth. They were strongly against Yu Lin becoming Patriarch. So Yu Lin came to us again. One by one, those old geezers were ambushed and killed by us. Their bodies are all in the blood pool now, keeping Yu Feng company."