# Chapter 646: Old Friend from Liangyi Sect
Zhao Han'er saw everyone mocking Lin Yue, so she clenched her teeth, gathered her courage, and stepped forward, saying, "Senior Brother Lin Yue wasn't being used by anyone. The Azure Star Envoy was really killed by him, and he has already broken through..."
Originally, Zhao Han'er wanted to say that Senior Brother Lin Yue had already broken through to the Fish-Dragon Realm, but before she could finish her sentence, Pang Long's laughter interrupted her: "Just him? He could kill the Azure Star Envoy? If he could kill the Azure Star Envoy, then I could beat the Azure Star Envoy down with just one hand. Haha!"
"Someone actually believes Lin Yue could kill the Azure Star Envoy? Lin Yue's skill at tricking little girls is truly impressive."
"Lin Yue does have a decent appearance. I've heard he's slept with no fewer than twenty female disciples, most of them from the Longevity Courtyard and the Purple Mansion Courtyard. That little junior sister standing next to him is probably one of his little lovers too."
A burly inner disciple said with great jealousy, "The female disciples these days just love blind worship and sweet talk. They don't bother to see what kind of person Lin Yue really is."
...
The commotion caused by Zhang Ruochen, Pang Long, and the others quickly attracted the attention of the inner disciples in the Purple Mansion Courtyard.
The Purple Mansion Courtyard was quite special among the seventy-two courtyards, as it only accepted female disciples, many of whom were exceptionally beautiful.
"It's Lin Yue again. He's already been taught a lesson by Senior Sister Han Qiu four times, and he still dares to come to the Purple Mansion Courtyard." A tall, slender woman in a Daoist robe sneered, clearly looking down on Lin Yue.
Of course, some female disciples looked at "Lin Yue" with rather shy expressions, saying, "Senior Brother Lin Yue is also a martial artist on the Heavenly Ranking. His strength is still quite formidable."
"That's right, that's right! Senior Brother Lin Yue is so handsome. I'd love to go to the Longevity Courtyard and practice swordsmanship with him." Another pretty-faced woman gazed at "Lin Yue" with spring in her eyes, like a lovesick fool.
It had to be said that Lin Yue's appearance was indeed quite handsome, making him very popular among the female disciples. It was estimated that he only needed to crook his finger, and a large number of female disciples would willingly throw themselves into his arms.
Therefore, among the female disciples of the Purple Mansion Courtyard, about half had a fairly good impression of him.
"No wonder Han Qiu taught Lin Yue a lesson. It seems Lin Yue's romantic debts are quite numerous."
Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power was strong, allowing him to keenly sense several pairs of burning gazes fixed on him from among the female disciples of the Purple Mansion Courtyard.
That particular look was filled with spring passion, showing that they were definitely not just simple senior-junior sibling relationships with Lin Yue.
Just then, a commotion arose from within the Purple Mansion Courtyard.
Soon after, cheers were heard: "Senior Sister Han Qiu has come out of seclusion!"
"What? Didn't Senior Sister Han Qiu take the Fish-Dragon Pill and go into seclusion to break through to the Fish-Dragon Realm? Has she already broken through?"
A moment later, the female disciples of the Purple Mansion Courtyard parted from the middle, automatically making way.
Zhang Ruochen looked over and saw a stunning woman radiating black, cold light walking out from the gate of the Purple Mansion Courtyard.
Han Qiu's figure was very slender, with her chest, waist, and hips rising and falling, forming a perfect curve.
Her skin was as white as jade, her black hair fell to her waist, her beautiful eyes were like two autumn pools, her neck was slender, and her legs were straight. Despite wearing a holy Daoist robe, she looked like a demoness capable of stealing a man's soul.
Compared to Han Qiu, all the other women of the Purple Mansion Courtyard paled in comparison.
Even if all of them were combined, they could hardly match even a single finger of Han Qiu.
"It really is her."
Zhang Ruochen was somewhat surprised, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
The Han Qiu before him was the same Han Qiu from the Cloud Platform Sect Mansion of the Demon Ridge. She and Zhang Ruochen were old friends.
Now, with the help of a saint from Liangyi Sect, Han Qiu had cultivated a Dark Constitution.
At the same time, she had also cultivated Liangyi Sect's foundational code, the "Taiji Innate Dao," and her entire temperament had become quite eerie, like a demoness walking through hell or a celestial maiden standing atop the clouds.
In terms of beauty alone, Han Qiu was on par with Huang Yanchen, a notch below Mu Lingxi and Luo Shuihan.
However, the strong contrast between darkness and light in her temperament added extra points, making her one of the four great beauties of Liangyi Sect.
Zhang Ruochen could tell that Han Qiu's cultivation had just broken through to the first transformation of the Fish-Dragon Realm.
Because her cultivation had just broken through, she couldn't yet control that powerful force, so her true qi surged out of her body, radiating dark and icy light all over.
Han Qiu stared at Zhang Ruochen, her gaze cold as she said, "Lin Yue, you still dare to come to the Purple Mansion Courtyard? Was my lesson last time not severe enough?"
"Boom!"
As her words fell, a wave of black cold air surged from beneath her feet, rushing toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen stood with his hands behind his back, his body as steady as a rock, unmoving as he stood in place, looking very calm as he effortlessly neutralized Han Qiu's dark power.
A strange light flickered in Han Qiu's beautiful eyes, and a soft exclamation escaped her lips.
Just now, she had mobilized her dark power to teach "Lin Yue" a lesson, but she found that her power had vanished without a trace, like a stone sinking into the sea, completely unable to affect "Lin Yue."
What was going on?
No matter what, Han Qiu couldn't believe that Lin Yue could neutralize her power.
Pang Long didn't know that Zhang Ruochen and Han Qiu had already secretly exchanged a move.
Seeing Han Qiu come out of the Purple Mansion Courtyard, Pang Long's face lit up with excitement, and he volunteered, "Junior Sister Han Qiu, why bother dealing with a shameless scoundrel like Lin Yue yourself? Let me teach him a lesson."
How could he miss such a rare opportunity to show off?
It was time to perform well in front of Junior Sister Han Qiu.
With Hao Feng's previous example, Pang Long naturally didn't dare to underestimate his opponent. He prepared to unleash his strongest power, aiming to knock down "Lin Yue" with just one move.
The true qi inside Pang Long's body rapidly circulated, surging from his palm and injecting into the two-foot-long jade flute.
"Whoosh——"
Green inscriptions emerged from the surface of the jade flute, releasing a powerful wave of energy.
Strange sounds immediately came from the jade flute.
The sound waves surged outward, entering the ears of all the martial artists present, actually affecting their spiritual power and martial souls. Some outer disciples whose cultivation hadn't reached the Heavenly Extreme Realm directly closed their eyes and collapsed to the ground.
Even martial artists who had reached the Heavenly Extreme Realm felt extremely irritated by the sound waves.
The Jade Spring Wind Flute was an eleventh-rank True Martial Treasure, capable not only of sound wave attacks but also of immense power.
"Clear Spring on Stone."
Using the jade flute as a sword, Pang Long rapidly twisted his wrist, executing a exquisite sword technique that quickly struck toward Zhang Ruochen's heart.
Instantly, eighty-one sword shadows radiated from the jade flute, converging into a stream of sword qi that coiled around Pang Long's body.
A young female disciple in the Purple Mansion Courtyard gasped, exclaiming, "Senior Brother Pang is using the Ghost-grade lower-rank sword technique, the Clear Spring Sword Technique. I've heard this sword technique is extremely powerful. On the surface, it seems like 'clear spring flowing over stone,' but it can actually unleash the force of surging rivers."
"To master the Clear Spring Sword Technique, Senior Brother Pang once sat beside the Spirit Sea Spring, observing the true essence of the spring water. He spent five years in contemplation before finally achieving mastery of the sword technique. For five years, Senior Brother Pang never left the Spirit Sea Spring, and besides drinking the spring water, he ate nothing else."
"Spending five years just to master a single sword technique—what perseverance!"
"Senior Brother Pang's place in the top hundred of the Heavenly Ranking is no empty reputation. His understanding of the sword path is more profound than many uncles and masters. I've heard he's close to reaching the Sword Heart Illumination realm."
"Senior Sister Han Qiu once said that among the inner disciples of Liangyi Sect, no one's swordsmanship can surpass Senior Brother Pang. Those who can withstand even one move of Senior Brother Pang's sword technique are few and far between."
"Can Senior Brother Lin Yue withstand one move from Senior Brother Pang?"
"What are you talking about? Senior Brother Pang is using the perfected Clear Spring Sword Technique. How powerful it is! How could Senior Brother Lin Yue possibly withstand it?"
...
...
Han Qiu's beautiful eyes showed a look of admiration. She thought to herself that Pang Long's swordsmanship had improved another level, making his strength even greater.
If the inner sect competition were held again, Pang Long would likely overpower all the other heroes and take first place.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Pang Long and nodded slightly. It had to be said that Pang Long's swordsmanship was indeed quite good.
However, his understanding of the sword path still had a slight flaw.
If he could make up for that flaw, he might be able to step into the Sword Heart Illumination realm.
"Swish, swish!"
Pang Long had already rushed in front of Zhang Ruochen. The jade flute shot out like lightning, and eighty-one streams of sword qi followed the flute, charging toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen merely extended a finger, elegantly pointing forward.
"Yin Meridian Sword Wave!"
A bowl-thick sword wave shot out from Zhang Ruochen's fingertip, erupting with an icy, bone-piercing aura that instantly scattered all eighty-one streams of sword qi.
"Boom!"
Pang Long flew backward, crashing heavily to the ground ten zhang away, rolling like a gourd.
The icy sword qi condensed into a thick layer of ice, freezing most of Pang Long's body.
Pang Long circulated his true qi, shattering the ice on his body, trying to force himself to stand. But as soon as he steadied himself, his injuries flared up, and he spat out a mouthful of blood before collapsing again.
The sword qi released by the sword wave left dozens of bloody sword wounds on Pang Long's body. At this moment, Pang Long was utterly miserable, with none of his previous dashing appearance.
All the inner disciples and the female disciples of the Purple Mansion Courtyard were stunned, their jaws nearly dropping to the ground.
With just one move, Lin Yue had severely injured Pang Long?
This couldn't be real!