Ms. Diviner: The Prodigal Daughter's Return

Mu Hanyan passed through the cave, and outside the hut was a ground covered in rubble, as well as faint traces of blood. Following the bloodstains for several zhang, she finally saw Ye Yanran’s figure.

The female thief was lying on the ground, her eyes staring into the vast night sky with a gaze emptier than the sky itself.

”Hey, you’re not dead, are you?” Mu Hanyan asked worriedly.

Several zhang though, she had been blown away by her punch—several zhang—and had even broken through a wall. Mu Hanyan wasn’t proud of the power behind her punch; instead, she admired Ye Yanran for not falling apart. Although her condition was unknown, at least she remained intact.

”Cough, cough...” Ye Yanran suddenly sat up straight, and that movement, combined with her still wooden expression, was eerily reminiscent of a corpse coming back to life in legendary tales.

Mu Hanyan instinctively stepped back. Despite her strength, she was somewhat uneasy about the ominous nature of such things as the return of the dead.

”How did you do it? Even my master couldn’t detect my Nihility Barrier; how did you notice it?” Ye Yanran coughed up a few mouthfuls of clotted blood, a trace of divine light returning to her eyes, as she asked Mu Hanyan.

She didn’t ask about the Deep Sleep Barrier because she knew the weakness of that magic. What truly puzzled her was how her Nihility Barrier, once cast, would be completely silent and undetected, difficult even for a Sword Master to perceive. How had Mu Hanyan known and prepared in advance? Surely her strength couldn’t have reached the realm of a Sword Saint?

”Secret,” Mu Hanyan said mysteriously. Ever since meeting Qu Shanling, Mu Hanyan found herself increasingly adept at being cryptic and godlike.

”I get it, you must’ve guessed I would come tonight, so you didn’t sleep at all and remained fully on guard, right?” Mu Hanyan didn’t respond, but Ye Yanran filled in the blanks on her own.

”If you want to think that, sure,” Mu Hanyan neither confirmed nor denied. She wasn’t a fool to reveal her secrets to a stranger, especially since it was her greatest secret.

”If you want to kill me, just do it. It’s my bad luck running into you,” Ye Yanran said, frustrated.

”Forget it, you can go,” Mu Hanyan said curtly. She didn’t like the feeling of being targeted. If it weren’t for the unusual behavior of the Star Illusion Thousand Machine earlier, she might have indeed killed her. She wouldn’t show mercy to someone who planned to strip her bare and throw her onto the streets. But now, she couldn’t do it.

”You’re not going to kill me?” Ye Yanran looked at Mu Hanyan in surprise.

”Not interested,” Mu Han said, unconcerned and not bothering to explain. Her mind, however, added its own mocking commentary, cocky in its pretense.

Ye Yanran, looking at Mu Hanyan who stood with her hands behind her back and a detached expression, suddenly found herself momentarily lost.

”All right, if you can still walk, then leave quickly. I can spare you out of mercy, but if someone else sees you, you might not be able to leave at all,” Mu Hanyan said, gesturing with her hand.

Ye Yanran struggled to her feet and began to walk unsteadily out.

”Don’t think that because you didn’t kill me, I’ll be grateful. We haven’t settled our score yet. If it comes to it, next time I might spare your life too,” Ye Yanran said, looking back at Mu Hanyan after a few steps, her face stubborn.

Mu Hanyan suddenly felt that perhaps she should have ignored the Star Illusion Thousand Machine and just killed her. This woman was too headstrong, always with her Nihility Barriers and Deep Sleep Barriers, truly difficult to defend against. If one day she actually stripped her bare, that would be disastrous! Even if she didn’t strip her, if Ye planned a sneak attack, Mu Hanyan might not be able to handle it.

”No, you can’t kill her!” A frantic voice from the Star Illusion Thousand Machine echoed in her ears once again.