Chapter 48: A Game for Appearances

At that moment, a seductive woman dressed in red hurriedly spoke up. As she did, she cast flirtatious glances at both Lin Hao and his junior brother. As men, they were briefly taken aback by her coquettish gaze; then, regaining their senses, Lin Hao averted his eyes, his expression growing grave. His junior brother, on the other hand, blushed furiously.

It was evidently his first time experiencing such a situation. The female cultivators from the Sect of Passion, witnessing the reactions of Lin Hao and his junior brother, covered their mouths and laughed quietly. Embarrassed by their amusement, the junior brother’s face became even redder, and he hastily hid behind Lin Hao.

Lin Hao, too, turned his face away awkwardly and coughed, saying, “Ahem, we truly are grateful for your help earlier, senior sisters. However, it seems our paths do not align. My junior brother and I must search for our sect elders, so we cannot travel with you.”

Lin Hao politely declined the suggestion of the red-clad senior sister.

“Senior brother, when did we say we were looking for the elders?” his junior brother asked in confusion. “I think these senior sisters, being women, would be unsafe on the road. Why don’t we escort them for a while?”

As he spoke, his eyes darted toward the women, and seeing their revealing attire, he looked away shyly, scratching his head.

The women burst into laughter. “Oh, is it really necessary for senior brother to be so embarrassed? Have you never seen a woman before?”

“That’s right! Look how red his face is—how adorable!”

They whispered among themselves, but their voices were loud enough for Lin Hao and his junior brother to hear. Lin Hao glanced at his brother’s mortified expression—it was indeed rather shameful, as if they had never met women before.

Suppressing a twitch at the corner of his mouth, Lin Hao put on a stern face and said, “Junior brother, have you forgotten? After we were separated from the elders, they sent us a message to regroup immediately. How can we join these senior sisters? That would waste precious time.”

After Lin Hao’s repeated refusals and seeing his brother’s bashful manner, the women exchanged glances, their eyes flickering with strange lights as they whispered among themselves, discussing something unknown. They glanced frequently at Lin Hao and his brother, their gazes laced with cunning.

Lin Hao’s sense of vigilance climbed sharply. He felt these women were far from innocent. The very name “Sect of Passion” struck him as dubious. Though he had never encountered truly sinister sects before, he had heard enough tales: some cultivators practiced wicked arts. Who could say if these women weren’t of such a sort?

Judging by their actions, it seemed obvious—they had only just met and already invited him to travel together under the pretense of protection, yet Lin Hao did not believe they required his safeguarding.

But seeing his junior brother falling headlong into their traps, Lin Hao frowned, finding it difficult to handle. If his brother kept undermining him, Lin Hao truly did not know how to refuse further.

Once more, Lin Hao’s reminder left his junior brother bewildered. However, he could read faces, and seeing Lin Hao’s displeasure and meaningful glances, he swallowed his words, though he thought silently, “When did we contact the elders? Why don’t I know about it?”

He then stole another glance at the women, his gaze lingering.

He had never met such beautiful female cultivators before, let alone so many at once. In the Pure Breeze Sect, women were rare; what a rare opportunity to feast his eyes—why was his senior brother so resolute in refusing?

Moreover, these delicate women would surely face great perils within Skyfeather Mountain. Should they encounter formidable spirit beasts, wouldn’t they be in danger? The thought made him anxious for their safety, and he was about to open his mouth to discuss it with his senior brother again.

After a brief discussion among themselves, the women from the Sect of Passion reached a conclusion. The senior sister who had first spoken now addressed them: “My junior just now was indeed presumptuous. We’ve only just met you both, and merely helped you break a formation—not a great favor. There’s no need for you, senior brothers, to repay us so dearly. However, to be frank, we entered Skyfeather Mountain on our master’s orders. Our sect is composed solely of women, whose strength is generally less than men’s, and we are often bullied. My junior was merely anxious for our safety, hence the request.”

Her words made Lin Hao sneer inwardly. She was skillful—diminishing her own merit, yet subtly emphasizing that she had saved them by breaking the formation. Then, by playing the role of the weak, bullied women, she claimed not to wish to trouble them, though every word pressed them to act as protectors.

Now, Lin Hao was truly curious about their scheme. He stood his ground, watching them with a mocking smile, but said nothing.

The women’s faces changed at his reaction, but quickly resumed their weak, tearful expressions, some even trembling. To Lin Hao, it was all an act.

But to his junior brother, it was moving. He immediately stepped forward, about to approach them, saying, “Senior sisters, please don’t be like this. We agree to help. After all, you are women, traveling through perilous Skyfeather Mountain. My senior brother and I will protect you on your journey, so you may travel more safely.”

Lin Hao immediately grabbed his brother’s wrist. The junior brother looked back, protesting, “Senior brother, look how pitiful they are. Don’t you think we should offer help?”

He looked genuinely unhappy, as if Lin Hao would be a criminal if he refused. Lin Hao could only smile bitterly—somehow he was cast as the villain. Seeing his brother’s naive look, he didn’t know whether to be angry or to scold him.

The women, seeing the junior brother agree and about to approach, smiled in delight. But when Lin Hao pulled him back, their gazes toward Lin Hao changed.

Lin Hao immediately sensed malice from their eyes. When he met their gaze, they instantly resumed their weak expressions. But in private, they muttered, “Damn it, senior sister, this man is not easy to handle. But I can sense his powerful spiritual energy—if we could absorb it, our strength would rise a level.”

“Yes, but his gaze just now was so calm, I felt as if he saw right through us. I’m worried he’ll ruin everything.”

“Don’t worry. With that fool here, we’ll manage. He may be weak, but it’s better than nothing. I’ll go first and drain him.”

They chatted idly. The senior sister appraised Lin Hao hungrily—she, too, wished to absorb his spiritual energy.

Indeed, their plan was to drain Lin Hao and his brother’s spiritual power. The Sect of Passion had always cultivated by absorbing men’s spiritual force.

Lin Hao’s suspicions were correct: in the cultivation world, the Sect of Passion was notorious. It was only because Lin Hao and his brother were naive that they hadn’t heard of them.

Though comprised of women, the sect’s members were ruthless as vipers. The more powerful a woman, the more spiritual energy she had absorbed from men. Practicing their wicked arts, they became ever more bewitching and beautiful, attracting more men.

Since entering Skyfeather Mountain, they had already seduced and destroyed many male cultivators. Their encounter with Lin Hao was by chance—they had noticed winged figures passing by, suspected they were hiding within the formation, and broke it open, only to find Lin Hao and his brother instead.

On seeing Lin Hao, they instantly coveted him. Sensing his strength, they knew that absorbing him would elevate all their powers. Combined with his good looks, they decided to play the pitiful act and invite him to join them, hoping to deceive him as they had others.

Yet Lin Hao refused to be duped.

Their tricks, used countless times since entering Skyfeather Mountain, had never failed—until now, with Lin Hao.

Frustrated but undeterred by this setback, they only grew more determined to make Lin Hao theirs.

The senior sister stepped forward, closing in on Lin Hao and his brother. Seeing this, Lin Hao quickly pulled his brother back, keeping a safe distance.

The senior sister’s face darkened, her smile stiffened briefly, but then she quickly restored her charming, bashful expression.