As she spoke, the Darkness Phoenix Leng Yucaipa raised her arms. Two purple-black swords of light formed in her hands and then thrust them straight at Leng Yaozhu.Leng Yaozhu was furious and sad. She raised her arms similarly and formed two flaming swords to block her sister’s attack.

The four swords collided with one another. At that moment, Leng Yaozhu’s eyes filled with tears. They poured down her face and blurred her vision. Her heart ached so much that she was almost suffocating when she saw her sister standing so close to her.

Yes, she confessed her love to the Atlas Douluo Yun Ming in the past.

…

“Yun Ming.” Leng Yaozhu looked at the man before her in a slight daze.

Ever since the first time she saw him, she was attracted to his indomitable, heroic quality. All this time, the Leng Clan was one of the largest of the famed soul master clans. It was also one of the most important in the Spirit Pagoda.

In fact, Leng Yaozhu grew up with someone constantly watching over her. She had displayed her amazing natural talent ever since she was born. Her martial soul awakened when she was six years old. It was revealed to be her clan’s martial soul, the Heavenly Phoenix. She even possessed Innate Full Soul Power. Furthermore, her martial soul evolved into Variant Fire which allowed her to possess extraordinary pyrokinetic abilities.

Her cultivation journey was smooth sailing. She had always been the best of her generation.

She had a younger sister, Leng Yulai, and the two of them were the most outstanding young soul masters in the clan. When Leng Yulai’s Heavenly Phoenix martial soul awakened, it evolved as well. It also had a beneficial variation, but Leng Yulai’s variant martial soul was of a dark attribute.

The clan did not mind the attribute. After all, the three greater attributes of light, darkness, and space were generally superior to the four elemental attributes of water, fire, earth, and wind.

For her part, Leng Yulai’s cultivation speed was equal to her sister’s. In fact, she later came close to overtaking her by relying on her dark attribute.

Thus, Leng Yulai was even more valued by the clan for a period of time. According to the Leng Clan’s rules, the future master of the clan would be chosen out of these sisters.

However, things changed with the passing of time. The siblings Leng Yaozhu and Leng Yulai had displayed incredible natural gifts. Leng Yulai had even surpassed her sister in certain areas. Nevertheless, the clan discovered that Leng Yulai was having some issues with her temperament due to her dark attribute.

In simpler terms, Leng Yulai’s temperament was extreme. Moreover, she was highly competitive. This was not necessarily a bad thing for a cultivator as it motivated a person to improve. Even so, there was a saying, ‘the stiffest tree is most easily cracked’. This was especially true for the successor of a clan. Thus, when they were adults, Leng Yaozhu was identified as the clan’s successor and more resources would be granted to her. Afterward, Leng Yaozhu became the deputy Pagoda Master of the Spirit Pagoda with the support and guidance of her clan. She held important positions in her life.

Leng Yaozhu loved Yun Ming for his indomitable will, heroic bearing, and righteousness. On the other hand, Leng Yulai loved him for his handsome looks and formidable abilities.

Leng Yulai had always been a straightforward person. She immediately began to brazenly pursue Yun Ming’s affection. However, Yun Ming did not like the way she was.

Not long after Leng Yulai was rejected by Yun Ming, Leng Yaozhu found an opportunity to meet with him at last.

“Hello.” Yun Ming greeted Leng Yaozhu with a polite nod. He admired Leng Yaozhu very much. They were both the best soul masters of their generation. Additionally, Leng Yaozhu had a more reserved and mature temperament. She had managed the Leng Clan’s businesses ever since she became the clan’s successor, and they were thriving under her leadership.

She was completely different from her younger sister. Leng Yulai was rather introverted, yet also invasive. Leng Yaozhu was the exact opposite.

Yun Ming’s experience growing up was much more intriguing than theirs and he was slightly older than them. He admired the two girls to some extent, and perhaps, he even fancied them a little. However, there was still something missing for him to love either one of them. In any case, he already held someone else in his heart.

Leng Yaozhu looked at the man before her. She took a few deep breaths trying to gather her courage, yet she just could not utter the words.

“What’s going on? Your Excellency the Heavenly Phoenix, do you have something to say to me?” Yun Ming looked at her in confusion.

Leng Yaozhu instinctively replied, “What are your plans for the future?” She felt like she wanted to die when she heard herself asking the question. What sort of question was that?

Yun Ming smiled and answered, “I may be traveling far away for some time. They say ‘you can learn more by traveling a thousand miles than by reading a thousand books’. I’m planning to travel to the Heaven Dou Continent and the Star Luo Continent as a part of my training.”

Leng Yaozhu was startled. “Then, how long are you going to be gone?”

Yun Ming said, “No idea. Three years, maybe? Or even five years, I can’t say. I’m leaving in a few days.”

Leng Yaozhu’s breathing quickened. She knew that she would not stand a chance again if she did not speak now.

She struggled to calm herself, but she was still swallowing the words on the tip of her tongue.

“Your Excellency the Heavenly Phoenix, what’s going on with you?” asked Yun Ming, perplexed.

Leng Yaozhu said with a forced smile, “You can call me Yaozhu.”

Yun Ming was stunned for a moment, but he remained silent.

Leng Yaozhu lowered her head. She no longer had the courage to look into his eyes. “After all, I have liked you for so many years. Or more accurately, I’ve had a crush on you for such a long time. Perhaps, we don’t stand a chance to be with each other, but I don’t want you to be so distant with me either.”

Yun Ming looked at her in astonishment. The Heavenly Phoenix Douluo, who he had always seen as a reserved and mature person, was acting like a guilty young girl.

“You…”

Leng Yaozhu finally mustered the courage after her previous statement. She raised her head once again and looked at Yun Ming. She said, “Yes, I like you. I’ve loved you for a very, very long time. Yun Ming, I do love you. Although I’m well aware that I shouldn’t have fallen for you given the relationship between our Spirit Pagoda and your academy. But how can we possibly control our feelings? I have already liked you for many years. Actually, I envy Yulai sometimes. At least, she is able to express her feelings and emotions well when I can’t. I don’t have the courage to express myself because I’m not only representing myself but my clan as well.”

“If I don’t confess today, perhaps I won’t have another chance. Yes, I have loved you in secret all this time. Yun Ming, I…” At this point, streams of tears were pouring down her face.

All of a sudden, she took a step forward and threw herself into him. She wrapped her arms around him tightly as if she was afraid that he would struggle out of her grip. She was exerting herself to the best of her abilities.

Yun Ming was completely stunned. He wanted to shove her away, of course. At the same time, he could clearly feel that the woman, or the girl, hugging him was shivering all over. Though he could not accept her love, he did not want to hurt her either.

Yun Ming heaved a sigh. He stroked her long hair gently out of helplessness. He attempted to pacify her agitated emotions.

They were unaware that a pair of eyes that seemed to be spurting flames of rage was watching them closely from a distance.

When she saw Leng Yaozhu throw herself into Yun Ming, she clenched her teeth so hard that she almost crushed them.

She turned around abruptly and ran away like an insane person. She charged into the distance toward darkness…

That year, the Heavenly Phoenix Douluo Leng Yaozhu was twenty-nine years old while the Darkness Phoenix Douluo Leng Yulai was twenty-seven years old.

Leng Yaozhu lost track of time before she finally managed to sober up from her emotional outburst. Her charming face was already blushing scarlet from embarrassment.

“It was worth it. Thank you for not pushing me away.” She lowered her head while the flush from her face reached all the way to her neck. She felt a warmth and stability that she had never felt before. She could not tell if time was flying past or standing still. She was the pillar of her clan, yet she felt like she found her own pillar in that moment.

It was worth it. She felt like her years of unrequited love were worth it. Although she wanted far more than what she had acquired, she had managed to regain her senses.