Zhang Yiyi was astonished, for the figure that appeared before her was not someone she recognized at all.

In the entire Yun Xian Sect, Inner First Peak was the most tranquil place. Besides the personnel related to their lineage, there were hardly any outsiders coming and going.

Of course, this didn't mean that Inner First Peak was unwelcome; on the contrary, it was so highly revered that unless someone had a very close relationship, others simply didn't have the qualifications to enter freely.

Moreover, Zhang Yiyi didn't have many friends; her only friend, Senior Sister Pan, had also gone out a few days ago. Given that the person outside was using formal terms like "requesting an audience," it was clear that her status was different from Yiyi's.

"Who is that? Don't you know her?"

Yuan Ying followed Zhang Yiyi's gaze and saw a woman standing outside the courtyard, waiting respectfully.

The woman had merely reached the Qi Refinement stage and appeared delicate and beautiful, but her clothing didn't resemble that of any disciple from Yun Xian Sect, leaving Yuan Ying puzzled as to how she managed to enter Inner Peak.

Even though Yuan Ying was not from Yun Xian Sect, as a direct disciple of a major sect, she understood that a place like Inner Peak was not accessible to ordinary outsiders.

"I don't know her either."

Zhang Yiyi was equally perplexed.

It seemed that besides her senior brother, only Senior Sister Pan would come here. So why was this unfamiliar female cultivator requesting to see her outside the courtyard?

Although she had mentioned to her senior brother that there was no need for a dedicated servant disciple to guard the courtyard, there were disciples stationed at the entrances of Inner Peak who would never allow an unidentified person to enter.

"Do you want to see her?"

Yuan Ying found the situation interesting and cheerfully awaited Zhang Yiyi's decision, showing no concern that her status as a guest was being interrupted.

There was nothing to be done; cultivators like them lived such boring lives.

She even thought about making a bet with Yiyi on what this woman outside wanted from her: was it good or bad?

However, it was clear that Yiyi wouldn't cooperate.

"Let's meet her; after all, I have nothing else to do right now."

Seeing that her senior sister didn't mind the sudden disturbance, Zhang Yiyi felt no hesitation. She waved her hand to withdraw the formation that restricted the woman's entry and calmly said, "Come in."

Alright, even though Zhang Yiyi didn't want to put on any airs, she couldn't ignore her senior brother's teachings.

After all, she was the prized disciple of a Great Ascension True Saint in Inner Peak. While she didn't care much for status divisions, she also didn't want to be looked down upon, as that would tarnish her master's reputation.

Thus, sometimes, a certain level of authority was necessary; otherwise, it would undermine the proper decorum.

Moments later, the female cultivator approached the garden and stopped in front of the pavilion where Zhang Yiyi and Yuan Ying were seated. She greeted them respectfully, "Greetings to Immortal Zhang and Immortal Yuan."

"Who are you, and what is the purpose of your visit?"

Zhang Yiyi found the female cultivator in front of her somewhat strange. Although she appeared gentle and polite, the moment she entered, it was obvious she wasn't looking at Yiyi but was instead cautiously surveying Yuan Ying.

"I am Du Sanniang. I came today to..."

Du Sanniang's beautiful eyes flickered, and she hesitated before finally looking directly at Yuan Ying, addressing her with utmost respect: "Today, I heard that Yuan Xianzi has arrived at Yun Xian Sect, so I took the liberty of borrowing Zhang Xianzi's space to specifically pay my respects to you."

"Wait, wait, are you saying you're not here to see Yiyi, but rather to find me?"

Yuan Ying interrupted Du Sanniang immediately, her gaze shifting back and forth across the woman's face with an odd expression. She asked in return, "So, do we know each other?"

Beside them, Zhang Yiyi couldn't help but find the situation amusing. She hadn't expected things to take such a complete turn. At the same time, she quickly thought of a few things but decided to hold off on confirming them for the moment.

No need to rush; her senior sister was so clever that she would surely think of more and better things. It seemed she could comfortably sit back and enjoy the show for now.

"As Senior Sister of the Lishan sect, who doesn't know your esteemed name? I have long admired you, but I never had the opportunity to meet you. Thus, upon learning of your arrival at Yun Xian Sect today, I couldn't help but act on my admiration and came to visit. I hope you won't hold it against me."

Du Sanniang spoke with an excessively gentle and respectful tone, her attitude towards Yuan Ying humble and unassuming, making it hard for anyone to say anything harsh, let alone bully her.

Unfortunately, the person she faced was not a soft-hearted man but a straightforward and candid Yuan Ying.

"Tsk tsk, please don't talk to me like that; it sounds so cringy!"

Yuan Ying couldn't help but glance at Zhang Yiyi beside her and laughed, saying, "Yiyi, who exactly is this person? She doesn't look like one of your Yun Xian Sect disciples. How can she so easily come to a place like Inner First Peak and not look for you, but for me instead?"

"Du Sanniang, who are you really, and how were you able to freely enter my Inner Peak territory?"

Zhang Yiyi saw that her senior sister did not intend to let her comfortably watch the show alone. She had to adopt the demeanor of a host, frowning slightly and taking on a serious questioning expression.

Given the current situation, it wasn't difficult to guess who this woman was.

After all, aside from the sect's own disciples, the remaining visitors were clearly defined guests.

The fact that the disciples stationed at Inner Peak allowed Du Sanniang to enter freely indicated that her status as a guest was not low. Furthermore, since she had come directly to see Yuan Ying, the answer was almost obvious.

Zhang Yiyi wasn't sure whether to call this woman clever or foolish, but she clearly had far too many thoughts.

It was no wonder that she was still at the sixth level of Qi Refinement; perhaps all her thoughts were directed elsewhere, and she hadn't seriously focused on her cultivation.

Du Sanniang had no choice but to directly respond to Zhang Yiyi's scrutinizing inquiry, for this was Inner First Peak, not Inner Five Peak—it was their territory.

"In response to Zhang Xianzi, I am currently residing at Inner Five Peak, and I am the cousin of Mo Yan, a direct disciple of the True Saint Tian Jiu from Inner Five Peak."

Du Sanniang remained gentle as water, her demeanor impeccable, with not a hint of flaw in her words or actions.

Currently, there are only two True Saints of Great Ascension in the entire Yun Xian Sect: one is Zhang Yiyi's master, Jiang Heng, and the other is Mo Yan's master, True Saint Tian Jiu.

Thus, Du Sanniang's ability to borrow the reputation of True Saint Tian Jiu means her status as a guest at Inner Five Peak is much better than that of ordinary peaks. Even today, when she entered Inner First Peak, she only needed to be thoroughly questioned and documented at the base of the peak before being allowed to proceed without issue.

"Oh, so you're Senior Brother Mo's cousin! No wonder you're not here looking for me but for Senior Sister Yuan."

Zhang Yiyi smiled meaningfully and turned to Yuan Ying, saying, "Senior Sister, this is your fiancé's cousin. Her status must be fine, and she's here to see you, so..."

"So you just want to enjoy the show while sitting aside, you ungrateful little thing!"

Yuan Ying laughed and teased but wasn't genuinely angry, not even with Du Sanniang.

This left Du Sanniang, who was standing below, quite surprised. She hadn't expected Yuan Ying to remain so composed upon learning her true identity, showing no signs of displeasure whatsoever.

She just couldn't tell if Yuan Ying truly didn't care or was just suppressing her emotions without revealing them.

"So you are Du Sanniang, Mo Yan's distant cousin."

Turning her head, Yuan Ying looked at the woman below again, no longer pretending to be unaware. She spoke casually, "I've heard about you, but I'm curious—what identity do you come here with today?"

Before Du Sanniang could respond, Yuan Ying continued with an even more nonchalant tone: "If you're here as Mo Yan's distant relative, then there's really no need for your visit. If you're here as Mo Yan's future concubine, then it's even less necessary."

"Immortal Yuan, I don't quite understand what you mean by that."

Du Sanniang's face flushed. She couldn't tell if she felt insulted by the term "concubine" or if Yuan Ying's utterly dismissive attitude was what struck her.

"Du Sanniang, you're so clever; how could you possibly not understand what I'm saying?"

Yuan Ying couldn't be bothered to beat around the bush: "Hasn't Mo Yan ever mentioned that I said I wanted to break off the engagement during the incident at Luoxian River's mystic realm? I'm already planning to break off the engagement, and if he wants nothing to do with me, then what do you even have to do with this?"

"What? Did he not even mention this to you? It seems your relationship isn't that significant after all?"

Seeing Du Sanniang momentarily stunned by her words, Yuan Ying found it amusing: "Could it be that he still thinks I'm just saying this out of anger to force him? Tsk tsk, your cousin is quite confident, but being overconfident isn't a good thing. If he ends up unprepared for the break-up, it'll be quite embarrassing."

There was no fault in what she said, but to Du Sanniang's ears, it was unbearably harsh.

The things she yearned for but couldn't obtain, which she had to exhaust her mind and effort to pursue, were being treated as garbage by the person before her. It made her want to scratch Yuan Ying's face.

But Du Sanniang was fully aware now that she was not only inferior to Yuan Ying but also had to abandon her previous plans and forcefully persuade Yuan Ying against her own wishes.

Whether Yuan Ying genuinely wanted to break off the engagement or was intentionally targeting her, one thing was clear: she could not let her cousin misunderstand that Yuan Ying was causing these troubles because of her, leading to unnecessary complications.

"Immortal Yuan, you must be misunderstanding."

Before long, Du Sanniang, with a face full of urgency and genuine emotion, even shed tears: "Sanniang and my cousin are not what you think, and I absolutely have no improper feelings towards him. My cousin is only being particularly caring out of familial ties and sympathy for me. But aside from that, there's truly nothing improper between us that you might be imagining. Please, don't misunderstand my cousin. If such a misunderstanding leads to you breaking off the engagement and ruining this great match between you and my cousin, Sanniang would rather die..."

"Alright, alright, stop talking. You've been going on like you're performing in a play, and it's giving me a headache."

Yuan Ying waved her hand to interrupt Du Sanniang's endless lamentation, genuinely finding it hard to tolerate such a woman: "Whether you have any other relationship with Mo Yan doesn't matter to me. Breaking off the engagement is between him and me; it's the same either way. So don't think too highly of yourself and stop adding unnecessary drama here, okay?"

"Immortal Yuan..."

Du Sanniang was left dumbfounded by such blunt words, her whole body trembling with anger but unable to do anything about it.

In terms of status or cultivation, she was no match for Yuan Ying, so she could only humiliate herself.

"Stop talking and crying. It's as if I've bullied you."

Yuan Ying could no longer tolerate it and directly ordered her to leave: "Enough! Whatever your purpose for coming here, just take a break. I don't have the time to indulge a stranger in a drama of intrigue. Whether you're trying to please the future lady of the house or stir up trouble, you've definitely come to the wrong person. Hurry back. I'll soon find Mo Yan to break off the engagement in person. You might as well inform him first to avoid wasting my breath later."

Her words were incredibly straightforward and unrelenting.

After speaking, Yuan Ying lost interest in continuing to observe Du Sanniang's tearful expressions of grievance and helplessness, and with a wave of her hand, she sent her out of the courtyard, using just the right amount of force.

Once outside the courtyard, the protective barrier automatically blocked Du Sanniang again, finally giving Yuan Ying some peace and quiet.

"Ha! Senior Sister is really quick to cut through the nonsense; I admire you!"

Zhang Yiyi thought about how Du Sanniang had looked shocked, angry, afraid, and completely at a loss, feeling utterly delighted.

It was a perfect match: the unconventional senior sister against Du Sanniang, who was full of schemes but had no opportunity to execute them. It was a fitting saying: "A chaotic fist can defeat the master!"

People like Du Sanniang were truly miscast; clearly a master of domestic strife, yet she had come to the realm of cultivation to perform, facing off against someone like Senior Sister of the Lishan Sect—those tactics were utterly useless.

"Oh, don't flatter me. That woman pretends to be a delicate flower, thinking I'm foolish, but unfortunately for her, I'm not a soft-hearted man. It's clear she's just putting on a show for the blind."

Yuan Ying recalled Du Sanniang's act and felt a shiver run down her spine: "But speaking of which, this woman really does match well with Mo Yan. Birds of a feather flock together; they're both clueless. No wonder they find solace in each other."

"Absolutely."

Zhang Yiyi nodded vigorously. Trashy men and women were indeed a natural pair: "Since they're true love, then they should be together, but please don't run out and harm others."

"Ha ha!"

Yuan Ying scoffed: "Don't tarnish the term 'true love.' If it were true love, could Mo Yan really let his dear cousin become his concubine? But they do match perfectly; it's best they don't harm others."

...

The two were chatting happily when, once again, a visitor arrived at the courtyard. This time, however, it was not some cousin or concubine, but the very aggrieved Mo Yan, looking furious.