Desert North, the cold night pierces the bones.

The Dantai tribe suffered an assassination attempt on the Celestial Maiden and the Great Sovereign. Several felt tents caught fire, resulting in significant losses of gold, silver, and provisions.

No one expected that this heart-stopping night, a long-planned scheme, was all to kill a mere youth.

To prevent any unforeseen changes, Dantai Jingyue meticulously calculated every step of the assassination plot, leaving virtually no flaws.

Perhaps the only thing Dantai Jingyue didn’t anticipate was Bai Wangyu’s formidable strength. His power alone nearly unraveled the entire plan.

Dantai Jingyue had underestimated Bai Wangyu’s abilities, and even more so, the bond between Bai Wangyu and Li Ziye.

No matter how clever, Dantai Jingyue couldn’t have imagined that Li Ziye’s peril would drive the Confucian School’s top disciple to madness, unstoppable even by the true Dantai.

Inside the tent, Dantai Jingyue helped her father lie down to rest, her face full of contemplation.

“How severe are Dantai Zhen’s injuries?” the Great Sovereign inquired.

“He’s lost an arm, and the chest wound is fatal. Whether he survives remains uncertain,” Dantai Jingyue replied gravely.

“And the youth?” the Great Sovereign continued.

“His injuries are equally critical; he won’t last three days,” Dantai Jingyue responded.

“A well-devised plan, yet both sides suffer.”

The Great Sovereign sighed softly, “To kill a Li Ziye, we sacrificed a Dantai Zhen. In this game, our Dantai do not have the upper hand.”

“It was my miscalculation.”

Dantai Jingyue spoke calmly, “Bai Wangyu’s prowess indeed exceeded my expectations.”

“There are always variables in a plan. Go and check on the youth. If it’s a play, we must see it through,” the Great Sovereign advised.

“Yes.”

Dantai Jingyue nodded, “Father, you should rest early as well.”

After speaking, Dantai Jingyue stood up and walked towards the tent’s exit.

Inside, the Great Sovereign sighed softly, a trace of helplessness crossing his weary face.

It was his fault for being unwell, bedridden for years, placing the burden of reviving the Dantai clan entirely on his daughter’s shoulders.

On the grasslands, where men are revered, although Jingyue is the Celestial Maiden of the Dantai clan, silencing all dissent was no easy feat.

Now, with the northern demons descending, the Dantai clan faced a critical moment of choice, and the pressure on Jingyue was unimaginable.

If not for this, she wouldn’t have been so aggressive, resorting to any means to achieve her goals.

Outside the tent, feeling the chill of the night, Dantai Jingyue instinctively tightened her fur cloak and walked towards a distant felt tent.

The youth was unlikely to survive.

In the end, Dantai Zhen had completed his mission.

In the distance, inside another tent, Confucian scholars, Chen Qiao’er, Li Qingshan, and others had gathered, looking at the unconscious youth on the bed with heavy hearts.

Even after trying all the medicinal pills they carried, there was no change in his condition.

Li Ziye’s injuries were too severe; his Five Viscera and meridians were all critically damaged. Even the miraculous medicines of the Confucian School could not bring him back.

Beside him, Bai Wangyu watched the youth on the bed, remaining silent, having not spoken a word since earlier.

“Something’s off about today’s events.”

Chen Qiao’er adjusted her glasses and spoke coldly, “If the assassins’ true intent was to kill the Great Sovereign and the Celestial Maiden, why would the Five Realms’ great cultivator not assist them but instead come here to Li Ziye and the others? It doesn’t add up.”

“Unless, today’s scheme wasn’t about assassinating the Great Sovereign and the Celestial Maiden at all,” Li Qingshan surmised.

“Not for assassinating the Great Sovereign and the Celestial Maiden?”

Yao Guihai, who was not the brightest, showed a puzzled expression, “Then what for?”

Li Qingshan looked at the youth on the bed and said, “For him!”

“The Li family’s kid?”

Yao Guihai’s expression shook with surprise, “How is that possible? Such a grand scheme for this kid? Today, even a Five Realms’ great cultivator took action!”

“No matter the process or appearances, the ultimate outcome of this assassination plot clearly targets Li Ziye.”

Li Qingshan spoke solemnly, “Now, the only thing unclear is who wants to kill this kid and why?”

“It’s Dantai Jingyue!”

Finally, Bai Wangyu, who had been silent, spoke up, his eyes filled with murderous intent, “In this Dantai tribe, the only one capable of setting this trap is Dantai Jingyue. Moreover, Brother Li once said upon first meeting Dantai Jingyue that he disliked her intensely. Brother Li has never been so averse to someone without reason. It seems Dantai Jingyue must have felt similarly, hence striking first.”

“Li Ziye said that?”

Li Qingshan expressed surprise, “He and Dantai Jingyue should be meeting for the first time, strange, why is that?”

“Fate!”

At that moment, the Confucian Scholar finally understood the reason, his face showing shock, “Kings do not see kings!”

“What are you talking about, Master?”

Li Qingshan and the others looked over, confused.

The Confucian Scholar collected himself, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and explained, “The Confucian Scholar once said, there are people in this world with the same abilities, the same fate, but completely opposing stances. Such people must never meet in their lifetime, for if they do, one must perish.”

Hearing this, everyone’s faces changed, was there really such a thing?

“So, Dantai Jingyue already knew Brother Li was her fateful adversary?” Wen Xiuru asked gravely.

The Confucian Scholar nodded, “With the wisdom of the Dantai clan’s Celestial Maiden, even if she didn’t know, she could guess. That’s why she was determined to kill.”

“Such a ruthless woman,” Li Qingshan said coldly.

Beside him, Bai Wangyu reached for the sword beside him, stood up, and headed outside.

“Wangyu!”

Seeing this, the Confucian Scholar immediately shouted, “What are you doing?”

“Slashing that woman!”

Bai Wangyu spoke word by word, his tone so chilling that it sent a shiver through everyone in the tent.

Li Hanqing and Yao Guihai exchanged glances, their eyes filled with shock. Was this the same refined top disciple of the Confucian School?

“Don’t be rash!”

The Confucian Scholar shouted angrily, “We’re in Desert North, not the Central Plains. Moreover, this is still conjecture without solid evidence. If you act recklessly, you’ll only put yourself in a death trap.”

“So what?”

Bai Wangyu said indifferently, “If I kill her, at most I’ll owe her my life. As for evidence, the truth is clear, evidence is no longer important!”

“Presumptuous!”

Hearing this, the Confucian Scholar was thoroughly enraged, “You speak so lightly of owing her your life, isn’t your life valuable? When have you become so unreasonable?”

Bai Wangyu looked at his mentor and said calmly, “I was too reasonable before, which led to today’s disaster. Master, did the Celestial Maiden talk about reason when she struck at Brother Li? Similarly, my desire to kill her is reason enough!”

With that, Bai Wangyu said no more and turned to leave.

“Celestial Maiden!”

Just then, outside, the voices of the Dantai clan’s warriors rose, reaching inside the tent.