In the midst of Feng Mo's surging emotions, the words he heard rang and repeatedly echoed in his mind. The tone of ridicule was mocking every part of his brain.
'Was it really my fault?' he tried to clear his mind. His hands pressed both his head with slight force, struggling to contain all the panic in his heart. But, his line of vision move to the side and he saw a drip of his blood on the floor.
Then, a realization dawned upon him.
'Qiaolian knew the purpose of the incense burner!'
Feng Mo raised his head and glared at Qiaolian. Yet before he could speak a word, Feng Lu and senior Xu appeared at the door.
These elders had stationed themselves not far from Feng Mo's courtyard. So, when they heard the piercing scream of Feng Mo, they were quick to respond.
"What is happening!? My son----" mumbled Feng Lu with a stern expression on his face. He had not yet noticed the real disaster.
"Father..." Feng Mo forced his trembling hand to move and point in the direction of his vital organ.
Feng Lu followed his signal and became enraged! His son does not need to explain what happened. Qiaolian was still holding the Fengjian sword in her hand.
"I will get a physician!" senior Xu spoke and vanished right away. He may have activated a teleportation formation as Qiaolian did not even notice how he left the room.
"Lady Zhou, have we wronged you? I--- I have treated you well!" Feng Lu's aura burst into bright red and engulfed his entire body. "The Zhou Clan perished but I welcomed you to my Feng Sect! How--- How could you?!"
More shadows emerged on the side of Feng Mo. They were two physicians that senior Xu brought. They quickly attended to the man.
Then, beyond the expectations of anyone inside this room, there were four more figures who suddenly appeared behind Feng Lu.
Zhou Qiaolian tilted her face and look at the figures. She suddenly felt tense after recognizing one of them. It was the Master of the Dong Clan.
"I think that young master Feng Mo used his inner core energy to scream earlier. We were beast hunting just a few miles away from the Feng Sect territory when we heard his distress. Pardon our intrusion, sect master Feng Lu," one of the figures spoke before he stepped forward and stood side by side with Feng Lu.
'The Dong Clan is known for its techniques in trapping beasts. It is foolish for me to stay here any longer! Even if the Dong Clan is known for its just and upright temperament, in this situation, they will view me as a criminal. I must get out of here quickly!' Qiaolian thought and looked for an escape route.
She was a victim of the Feng Sect schemes! But, it was not reflected in her situation. Her feet started to move backward while she calculated her next plan.
"Oh? Dong Clan patriarch! You are just right in time. I do need your help! Let's capture this ungrateful girl! She attacked my son and cut off his vital organ! This lady Zhou is really vicious! What she had done, I will have her pay us tenfold!" Feng Lu announced and then his figure vanished in the doorway.
Qiaolian quickly leaped on the bed and simultaneously jumped into the corner. She did not hesitate to throw the sword toward Feng Mo to distract his father from following her.
Seeing the direction of the sword, Feng Lu naturally moved his hand to the other side and caught its hilt while it was still suspended in the air.
His focus on the target was slightly disturbed. This was the only opportunity for Qiaolian to escape.
Thick smoke of a dark aura coming from her inner core appeared on her body. The energy and essence that she absorbed from 29 beast cores did not fail to grant her the power she needed.
When she finished circulating her inner force, Qiaolian slammed her body on the window and broke it. Then, she started running at full speed, carefully avoiding all the hidden formations in the area.
Just like that, Qiaolian made her way out of Feng Mo's courtyard. The master of Dong Clan was left speechless at the speed that he just witnessed.
"She did not use the power from her elixir field? Did I see it correctly? Was it the power from her inner core?" the figure standing beside the master of the Dong Clan spoke in disbelief.
"That girl is a forged cultivator. And there is a problem with the foundation of the elixir field in her body. It is too powerful for her inner core to sustain... Ahh, I intended to help her solve that problem but she actually dared betray me!" Feng Lu dramatically spoke.
He did fail to anticipate that Qiaolian would utilize the energy of her inner core. But, now that it had come to this situation. He might as well dragged her reputation down!
"Lady Zhou is a forged cultivator?" the master of the Dong Clan asked again. He was seemingly not convinced of the idea.
"Yes! Her elixir field is rather strong for her own good. I plan to remove it so that she won't be burdened anymore. But, she---" Feng Lu trailed his sentence and let everyone speculate. He put Fengjain on the side and went to check on his son.
"Sect Master, these physicians I brought here are experts. No need to worry," senior Xu comforted.
Feng Mo was now sleeping in his bed. The physicians had made a great effort of wrapping his vital organ with white fabric.
"That girl---" Feng Lu whispered but did not know what to say. It's just that, in front of the Master of the Dong Clan, he could not speak freely!
"She may have discovered the incense burner. According to Feng Mo, she wanted to destroy it but he protected the object," senior Xu secretly said.
"So... that's what it is!" Feng Lu sighed and decided not to talk anymore.