No guesswork was needed — that voice could only belong to the Poison Concubine,
He could see plainly that although Lu Mingye and Shi Qinglu were hailed as the twin pillars of the Hundred Saints Holy Land, their relationship was far from perfectly harmonious and free of friction.
Frictions existed within their own ranks as well.
That said, even though Jiang Chen wore the air of a spectator, he had not let his guard down in the slightest. Another possibility had already crossed his mind: that all of this — the discord, the bickering — could be an act put on deliberately by Shi Qinglu and Lu Mingye.
Even if genuine rivalry truly existed between the two, when faced with a common enemy like himself, they might very well set aside their grudges and cooperate wholeheartedly. That was entirely possible.
In the end, they were fellow disciples, after all, bound by shared interests.
Jiang Chen stood in a relatively open clearing, his calm gaze locking onto a specific area up ahead. His spiritual sense was extraordinarily powerful, and he could pinpoint the location of the Poison Concubine Shi Qinglu in an instant.
Moments later, a graceful figure emerged from the dense forest.
"What a Poison Concubine, this Shi Qinglu," Jiang Chen murmured inwardly, a flicker of surprise stirring at the sight. The woman's skin was luminous and translucent, and as she stepped out at a unhurried pace, she resembled a lotus rising from the water — an impact of beauty pushed to its absolute extreme. Her multi-hued robes only amplified the effect, making her look like a living butterfly in flight, dazzlingly radiant.
In terms of both bearing and appearance, this Shi Qinglu was in no way inferior to Huang'er. She perhaps lacked a touch of Huang'er's serene elegance, but made up for it with an even more striking, vivacious allure.
Worthy indeed of being counted among the Sixteen Golden Beauties. And according to Gan Ning, the Poison Concubine Shi Qinglu ranked exceedingly high among those sixteen — she even carried the reputation of being their foremost beauty.
Jiang Chen's reaction, however, went no further than that. Though he was surprised by Shi Qinglu's breathtaking looks, his heart remained as still as undisturbed water.
Not the faintest ripple stirred.
Shi Qinglu's eyes, at first glance, appeared as pure and clear as a mountain spring. But when her gaze shifted, it shimmered with iridescent light, bewitchingly captivating.
When the Poison Concubine Shi Qinglu appeared, Lu Mingye's brow furrowed.
Shi Qinglu cast him a fleeting, indifferent glance. "You may leave."
Frost crept across Lu Mingye's face. "On what grounds? He hasn't even fully entered your territory yet."
"If you actually had any way of dealing with him, you wouldn't have let him get this far. Lu Mingye, I don't mean to look down on you — you're competent enough in your own right, but there's nothing more for you to do here."
Lu Mingye erupted in fury. "Shi Qinglu, I tolerate you — that doesn't mean I fear you. Don't push your luck."
Shi Qinglu replied coolly, "I'm only telling the truth. If you can't accept it, there's nothing I can do."
Seeing the two disciples seemingly at each other's throats, Jiang Chen did not utter a word. He simply watched with a cold, knowing smile — for who could say whether this little drama was genuine or staged?
Unlike most others, Jiang Chen would never allow appearances to deceive him.
Shi Qinglu seemed to have little interest in continuing to spar with Lu Mingye. Her gaze settled on Jiang Chen's face, her tone detached. "You are Jiang Chen."
"That's right." Jiang Chen made no attempt to deny it. "Hand over Wu You. If you do, I'll let bygones be bygones regarding what happened before."
"I can hand him over — but first, you'll need to get past me. If you do, you can take whomever you like. However…" Shi Qinglu's cold, striking eyes locked onto Jiang Chen with piercing intensity. "What if you can't?"