Turns Out, I’m In A Villain Clan!

Chapter 269 Bai Xueqing Vs Shui Lianʼer! (...So quickly?)

Her Fragrant Mirage Physique had never failed before.

Once her illusions entrapped someoneʼs mind, they would wander in their deepest fears for hours, sometimes days, before the strain broke them.

Yet Bai Xueqing... had shattered it within moments. (Did I make some mistake?)

Shui Lianʼerʼs jade-like fingers tightened slightly at her side.

She didnʼt think that her ability had failed, but it had been broken-either Bai Xueqing was far stronger than she imagined, or she had made some mistake.

But she had no time to dwell. ”-Youʼll pay for that!”

Bai Xueqingʼs roar cracked the silence.

She wielded her sword, ready to strike at Shui Lianʼer. ”Nine Shadows Flowing Light Sword!”

Her figure blurred-one moment standing firm, the next splitting into nine dazzling shadows that struck from every angle at once.

The stage erupted with streaks of light, each slash sharp enough to tear the air itself.

Shui Lianʼerʼs sleeves fluttered as her body flowed like drifting mist.

Every time a sword light descended, she slipped aside by the slimmest margin, her movements precise and anticipatory-as if she already knew where the next strike would fall.

Clang! Swish! Crack!

Steel met only empty air, grazing strands of Shui Lianʼerʼs hair but never her body.

She moved not with speed, but with a strange inevitability-a calm lotus swaying in the current, always just beyond reach of the blade.

Slash! Slash!

As if already anticipating the strikes, she was able to dodge every single one. Bai Xueqing split into nine shadows, each flowing seamlessly into the next, every strike aimed with lethal precision directly at Shui Lianʼer.

It was as if countless swords were descending at once-inescapable, merciless. And yet-

Shui Lianʼerʼs steps never faltered.

To the crowd, her movements looked impossibly graceful, like a lotus drifting through turbulent waves, always avoiding destruction at the last instant. ”Damn! I thought apart from her mysterious ability, Shui Lianʼer would be easy to beat. But looks like she still has other strength to back it up.” ”Hmph! Just dodging? What can she do?” ”Can it be that she can truly see the future?”

It isnʼt a surprise that some thought like that years ago, when Shui Lianʼer fought in private matches between sects-it was said that her opponent wasnʼt able to land a single attack, Shui Lianʼer dodging as if she already knew.

Rumors began to spread about her and her ability which is assumed to be that of prediction.

Celestial Jade Hall is full of such mysterious techniques, so one couldnʼt be sure whether it was true or false.

But looking at her right now, it seemed to be true.

Otherwise, there was no way that Shui Lianʼer could dodge Bai Xueqingʼs attacks.

A faint glow rippled within Shui Lianʼerʼs pupils-like the reflection of starlight across a still lake.

Fragments of the future shimmered before her mind.

A step here she saw herself slashed in half.

A turn there-her shoulder pierced clean through.

She shifted instead, flowing like water, and the fatal strike missed by a hairʼs breadth.

Her voice rang softly, almost like a chant. ”Spirit Art-Moonlit Reflection.”

The air shimmered as a faint mirage of herself split off, stepping to the side.

Bai Xueqingʼs sword cleaved straight through it, dispersing the afterimage into motes of light.

Shui Lianʼer raised her hand, jade fingers flicking gently.

Qi surged, condensing into a rain of crystalline lotus petals that spiraled around her.

Each petal was sharp as a blade, yet elusive, phasing in and out of solidity.

Clang-clang-clang-!

The sword shadows clashed with the lotus petals, scattering sparks and Qi ripples across the stage.

Bai Xueqingʼs eyes hardened. ”Petals and illusions wonʼt save you!”

She swung her sword in a rising arc, the nine shadows converging into a single blinding thrust aimed directly at Shui Lianʼerʼs heart.

But Shui Lianʼer had already seen it.

Her body swayed aside an instant before the blade arrived, her sleeve brushing the swordʼs edge without so much as a cut.

At the same time, the lotus petals shifted-not randomly, but precisely into Bai Xueqingʼs path-forcing her to redirect her strikes or risk tearing herself apart with Qi backlash.

The audience erupted. ”She... predicted that strike!” ”No-sheʼs reading Bai Xueqingʼs attacks before they even land!”

On the stage, the lotus petals converged into a glowing spear of spiritual light, thrusting forward at the exact moment Bai Xueqingʼs next movement left a gap in her defenses.

For the first time in the fight-Bai Xueqingʼs expression flickered.

The arena pulsed with tension, every spectator holding their breath as Shui

Lianʼer raised both arms.

The lotus petals swirling around her suddenly dissolved into motes of emerald light, gathering high above her in a storm of dazzling radiance.

The very air quivered, suffused with a fragrance so sweet it made weaker cultivatorsʼ minds drift, their senses almost stolen away.

Her voice, calm yet ringing like jade chimes, echoed across the stage: ”-Heavenly Jade Butterfly Storm.”

The light condensed, shaping into thousands of luminous butterflies, each one crystalline and razor-sharp, wings shimmering with destructive spiritual force.

They swarmed together into a spiraling tempest, blotting out the sky above the platform.

Then-like a floodgate breaking-they descended.

The butterflies streaked downward in a storm of annihilation, covering every path of escape, cutting off every possible retreat.

Even Shui Lianʼerʼs foresight told her the outcome: there was no surviving this.

The crowd gasped. ”Bai Xueqing is finished! This is the Celestial Jade Hallʼs Strongest Technique!” ”No one could dodge that-itʼs inescapable!”

And yet- Bai Xueqingʼs eyes blazed, her pale-blue irises burning like cold fire.

She did not shrink back, nor did she attempt to counter with some flashy technique.

Instead, her body moved.

Step-twist-strike-

Her sword danced with blinding speed, shattering the butterflies that dared to touch her path.

Her figure blurred, weaving through impossible gaps, bending low as deadly wings brushed past her hair, twisting mid-air as another swarm sought to cut her down.

Her reaction speed was beyond belief, her agility monstrous, her instincts sharper than foresight.

She dodged.

Not with prediction.

But with raw speed and terrifying reflexes honed in countless battles.

One by one, the Heavenly Jade Butterflies shattered against her sword light, until the great storm above the stage collapsed into falling sparks that fizzled out against the arena floor.

The audience erupted in disbelief, some even standing to their feet. ”She dodged it! Impossible!”

On the stage, Shui Lianʼerʼs calm finally cracked.

Her eyes widened, breath catching as she stared at Bai Xueqing, who now stood unscathed amidst the fading light. (How...? Even I couldnʼt find an escape, and yet she...)

Her jade-like fingers trembled slightly before lowering at her side. Slowly, her serene expression returned-not from arrogance, but from acceptance. ”I see now,” she said softly, her voice carrying even through the roaring crowd. ”No matter how refined my arts, no matter how precise my foresight... before your sheer power and will, there is no path to victory for me.”

Shui Lianʼer closed her eyes, exhaled deeply, and gave a graceful bow toward

Bai Xueqing. ”I concede!”