Other disciples were there, some handpicked by the elders to study, all in silent reverence. Han Ling passed among them like an invisible serpent, each step cold and calculated in his search for a technique that pleased him.
After walking through the ancient shelves filled with techniques of various types for a few hours, Han Ling ended up reaching a deep part of the sacred library.
This specific area of the library exuded a heavy and evil aura, which instantly caught Han Ling's attention. However, this area was sealed with complex arrays and formations, preventing anyone from entering, including Han Ling.
Disappointed, Han Ling decided to look for an interesting technique among the thousands of others scattered across the countless shelves of that huge library, as he would not accept all this effort only to leave empty-handed.
In his search, Han Ling ended up finding a technique with an interesting name displayed on an old shelf.
"Immortal Void Sword Art?"
He became curious about this technique and took it for himself. There were some ancient seals, but they were old and had lost their power over time, so they were easily broken.
The moment this technique was removed, three elders appeared suddenly.
The three elders emerged in the midst of a vortex of golden light, as if space itself had been torn apart by their wills.
Their presences were suffocating — three silent storms that forced even the most arrogant cultivators to kneel.
The other disciples froze in fear, some even staggered backward, unable to withstand the pressure of three powerful cultivators in the Mahayana Realm.
"Who dares?" growled the first elder, with long white beards and eyes that seemed to see through time. His gaze pierced through shelves and walls, searching every corner with his divine sense.
"The seal of the 'Immortal Void Sword Art' was broken, but…" said the second elder, frowning. "Nothing. There is no trace at all of who took it."
The third remained silent. His body seemed made of solid mist, hard to define. He had already expanded his divine sense to the limit — and still, nothing. Not a trace of strange qi, not a thread of residual aura. It was as if the technique had been swallowed by the void.
"This doesn't make sense." murmured the first elder, his eyes glowing with golden runes. "Not even the treasures of the Open Sky Sect can hide someone from three Mahayana… Unless…"
"…They are also in the Mahayana Realm." completed the second, his eyes narrowing. "Someone powerful enough to hide even from our sight."
The third elder slowly turned to the frozen disciples, his words falling like a sentence:
"Did anyone here see anything?"
All shook their heads in desperate denial. One or two even fell to their knees, swearing they hadn't seen anything.
The disciple who had entered last seemed particularly nervous, looking around, sweating cold. The elders noticed him.
"You." said the first elder, pointing at him. "What did you see?"
The disciple trembled.
"N-nothing, elder! I just… thought I heard a voice, but… but I must've imagined it! I… I was using an herb to calm my nerves, you know how it is…"
The third elder looked at him for a long moment, then merely snorted.
"Pathetic." he whispered, before vanishing in a ripple of light.
The other two followed, their presences dissipating like smoke.
Silence returned to the library.
And among the shelves, Han Ling remained motionless, as invisible as the shadow itself. His gaze was sharp as a blade and his smile… more cruel than ever.
"Behind seals, under divine eyes… and still, they were fooled. Han Xinrou really exceeded my expectations."
He looked at the technique manual now in his hands. The words "Immortal Void Sword Art" seemed to pulse, as if they were drawing his attention.
Han Ling slid it inside his robe, like someone hiding a deadly secret.
"Now then… things are starting to get interesting."
Han Ling then moved to leave, but his amber eyes turned for a moment in the direction where the elders had been.
"They'll look for a culprit… And someone will pay for this."
Han Ling smiled.
"Good thing it's not me."
Han Ling took advantage of a random disciple's exit who had opened the formations, slipping out like a ghost, as if he had never been there.
***
On Jade Peak, Han Ling picked up the Immortal Void Sword Technique to try to comprehend it.
"I didn't understand a thing."
After hours of study, Han Ling hadn't even scratched the surface of the technique. He was already beginning to grow impatient.
As the frustration swelled in his chest, a sweet and familiar breeze wrapped around his body. Two delicate arms curled around his neck from behind, and a soft scent of spiritual flowers invaded his senses. The voice that whispered in his ear was sweet as honey… and laced with possessive venom.
"Why are you frustrated, sweetheart?"
Han Ling didn't even need to turn his face.
"This technique makes no sense," he replied in a cold and irritated tone. "Nothing I try works. The instructions are vague, and the spatial control it suggests is… illogical."
Han Xinrou laughed. A light, almost musical sound, but with an undertone of scorn and superiority.
"You picked that one, hmm?" She leaned closer, her lips brushing against his ear. "The Immortal Void Sword Art… of course you wouldn't be able to comprehend it."
Han Ling narrowed his eyes. "Are you saying I'm stupid?"
Han Xinrou gently bit Han Ling's ear and whispered:
"No, I'm saying this technique wasn't made for you… Not for anyone, actually."
Han Xinrou pulled back just enough to sit sideways on his lap, gently pulling the ancient manual from his hands. Her crystalline eyes glowed with a dark light as she flipped through the pages.
"This technique was thrown among the common ones for a reason. It can only be comprehended by cultivators of the highest level… and even then, it's not worth it. Cultivators at the Void Refinement Realm already control space instinctively. This technique only serves to do what's already natural at that level."
She tossed the manual aside with disdain.
"It's useless for high-level cultivators… and also for the low ones. There are far more practical spatial techniques, with fewer requirements, less risk, and better results. This one? It only confuses and frustrates."
Han Ling raised an eyebrow.
"Then why was it sealed?"
Han Xinrou smiled again, this time with a wicked gleam in her eyes.
"Because this technique was stolen from the legendary Void Assassin. Someone who's still feared in legends — a cultivator who killed without leaving a trace, without aura, without the target ever resisting. He was a ghost. A specter. A demon incarnate."
Han Xinrou caressed Han Ling's chest, lazily tracing circles with her finger.
"The elders of the Open Sky Sect hunted him, claiming to seek justice. But what they really wanted… was this technique. They thought it was the secret behind his power. But when they obtained it and realized it was… useless, they simply hid it among the thousands of common techniques in the library. Erased any mention of the theft, to preserve the image of a 'righteous and honorable' sect."
Han Ling scoffed, a faint smile on his lips.
"So they were fooled…"
Han Xinrou laughed, this time with a light touch of sarcasm in her voice.
"Of course they were. They thought they had claimed something grand, but all they got was an empty shell. The real secret of the Void Assassin was never discovered."
She looked up, and her crystalline eyes shone with a strange intensity.
"And that's the real reason behind the elders' rage, sweetheart. It wasn't about the broken seal. It wasn't about you touching the technique. And it definitely wasn't because they lost something valuable."
She moved closer, until their faces were almost touching.
"They're furious because someone managed to fool the defenses of the Open Sky Sect. The greatest sect in the world. Untouchable. Inviolable. To them, this isn't just theft… it's humiliation."
Han Ling slightly furrowed his brow, understanding.
"Their reputation…"
Han Xinrou nodded slowly.
"Exactly. They've built an image of absolute perfection for centuries. And now, someone appeared, slipped into the most protected library in the world, took what they wanted… and left without a trace. That… that is like spitting in their faces."
Han Ling smiled and picked up the 'Immortal Void Sword Art' technique book.
"Looks like I have a destiny with this technique, both of us are stains on the reputation of the Open Sky Sect."
Han Xinrou smiled back, her eyes half-closed with a possessive and sick affection.
"Yes… you two have something in common. But there's one difference, sweetheart."
She swung her leg over him, straddling his lap in a way that allowed her lower wetness to be felt by him, her fingers tangling in Han Ling's hair, gently pulling it back to force him to look at her.
"The technique is empty. You, on the other hand… are full of secrets that are mine alone."
Han Ling didn't look away. His amber eyes seemed even darker under the dim light of Jade Peak, a predatory gleam behind the calm façade.
"You're obsessed."
Han Xinrou laughed, leaning in until her lips nearly touched his.
"I'm obsessed… because I lost you once. And I will never let that happen again. Not even if I have to kill this whole world."
She kissed him, but the gesture was less of affection and more of a mark, as if she wanted to carve her feelings into him with her teeth.
When she pulled away, Han Ling ran his fingers along the side of her neck, where a vein pulsed gently, his gaze sharp.
"You're insane, Xinrou."
"I am," she whispered, her eyes glowing with passionate madness. "And you… are mine."
Han Xinrou was breathing softly, her chest rising and falling against his. The look in her crystalline eyes was that of a hungry beast, her lips slightly parted and red like freshly spilled blood.
"Enough talking," she said in a hoarse voice, consumed by a fervor bordering on madness. Her breathing was already growing ragged. "Shut up, sweetheart…"
Han Ling stared at her in silence, still provocative, as if testing how long she could hold before breaking.
But this time, it was Han Xinrou who broke.
"I'll teach you," she whispered, and then her voice burst out in a tone of restrained pleasure, intoxicated by dark euphoria. "I'll teach you the true pleasures of dual cultivation!"
Without warning, she tore the manual from Han Ling's hands and threw it away, as if that pile of old paper was garbage. The scroll spun through the air before hitting the wall with a dull thud, completely ignored.
Han Xinrou was already in motion — her nimble hands pulling at his robe with a brutality full of desire. The threads of the garment tore easily, ripping under her fingers as if made of rotted silk.
Han Ling was pushed backward, his expression finally changing as the cold air touched his skin — and the heat of her body quickly replaced it. The white Chinese-style dress she wore slid off one shoulder, revealing the almost hypnotic whiteness of her skin, glowing under the spiritual light filling the silent hall of Jade Peak.
"Han Xinrou…" he began to say, but she silenced him with a hot, hungry kiss that felt more like a bite of possession.
"Silence." She panted against his mouth, her eyes wide with pure ecstasy. "You're mine… My treasure… My sin… My redemption… And now, my dual-cultivator."
She pushed him onto the smooth jade floor, mounting him as if sealing an ancient, sacred ritual. Her qi began to spiral, whirling around them — a purple and silver energy full of lust.
"You want to understand deep techniques, sweetheart?" she whispered, sliding her hands over his chest. "Then start… with my body."
***
End of chapter.