"Actually…" Elder Yang glanced at Snowy and continued speaking when he saw Snowy gave a small nod, "From the beginning, Sect Master had predicted that the disturbance caused by Heavenly Blood Sect was actually a bait for me to leave the Phoenix City. Their goal was to ambush us and to buy time for Yan Family to seize control of the city. So, the Sect Master ordered me, Lin Ming, and Zi Ling to stay in the city."

"Hmm. So why were you still leaving if you were ordered to stay behind?" Feng Xue tilted her head confused. But, before Elder Yang could answer, she clapped and blurted out excitedly," Ah, I know! You wanted to avoid their suspicion so they would continue with their plans, and then we can finish them in one swoop!"

"Yes, as you say, we had pretended to leave so we could lure them to make a move. The main reason we successfully fooling them was because of Snowy's effort…" Elder Yang said as he once again looked at Snowy, but this gaze was filled with appreciation.

Hearing Snowy's name was mentioned by Elder Yang, Feng Xue couldn't hide her curiosity and then asked, "Huh, Snowy? What this is all about?"

"She gave us her Earth-ranked, and Heaven-ranked technique," The one who answered her question was neither Elder Yang nor Snowy, but Lin Ming.

"Ah! You gave them Yin Yang Shadow Step and Aura Concealment?!" Feng Xue looked at Snowy with a sharp glare questioning her sanity. Snowy just casually shrugged her shoulder in response and acted nonchalantly as usual.

Next, Feng Xue changed her target to the trio and said," I hope that Master, First Brother Lin, and Senior Sister Zi can keep this as a secret between us. If this secret is leaked, I don't think I can forgive you three."

Her intense gaze and firm expression made them aware that she was serious, so serious that it felt a little bit scary.

"Don't worry, Junior Sister Feng. We won't tell a soul about this," Zi Ling said in a gentle voice, not offended in the slightest by Feng Xue's threat.

"Aiyaa, my little disciple, had already grown up and really forgetting about her roots after finding someone she likes. She's not anything right now, but she's already taking her side all the time. What happens once both of them are actually get together? She won't even look at her master at that point." Elder Yang said with an exaggerated sigh while shook his head.

"Wha-what are you saying, Master! I… I don't even know if she likes me…" Feng Xue flustered by her master's teasing. Her voice became smaller and smaller as she continued her words.

"You don't even deny that you have a crush on her, huh?" Lin Ming smirked at Feng Xue's cute reaction; he wasn't going to let her off easily.

"First Brother Lin!!" Feng Xue growled and when she was one step away to pounce him, Snowy held her waist and patted her head.

"I like you too, Xue," Snowy said firmly.

"R-really?" Feng Xue's stuttered, her heart pounding like crazy when she heard Snowy's confession. She quickly covered her face with her hands preventing Snowy to take a look at her blushing cheek.

"Yes, of course. And, I like Elder Yang, Lin Ming, and Zi Ling too. They're nice people." Snowy added.

"…."

"…."

Everybody was speechless and the mood quickly turned awkward.

"But, I still like Xue the most,"  Sensing Feng Xue's mood worsened, Snowy quickly coaxed Feng Xue as if talking to a little girl.

The trio astounded when they looked at Snowy's panic expression. "So she can make that kind of expression too," they thought.

On the other hand, Feng Xue had a hard time sorting out her feeling. She was obviously happy knowing that she was Snowy's favorite. At the same time, though, she was also anxious since she didn't know whether Snowy's like was the same as her like. Heck, she didn't even have a good idea about what kind of like she had toward Snowy. Her heart was a jumbled mess!

"Anyway, where were we before?" Elder Yang coughed and bring back the previous topic, "Ah, yes. After Snowy heard about the Sect Master order, she suggested using herself as a lure to trap the enemies. At that point, she was confident the culprit was indeed Feng Luo, and with his obsession toward her, he would somehow try to coerce you to help him get his hand on her. Exploiting that obsession, she would strike when they dropped their guard and force the hidden Nascent Soul expert to come out from his hiding spot."

"She also gave us her movement and concealing techniques so we could sneakily go back to the mansion after we had to fake our departure and wait until enemies' Nascent Soul enter the stage. As expected from Heaven-ranked technique, we could easily deceive the enemies' watchers and move without the risk of being detected by their forces," Elder Yang said.

"So, everything had always been in Snowy's palm?" Feng Xue's eyes sparkled, she covered her mouth but failed to hide the neat line of her unblemished teeth. She realized that the naïve and clueless girl in her mind turns out to be a sly old fox.

What was the idiom that perfectly suits this occasion? Was it "don't judge a book by its cover" or "a wolf in sheep clothing"? Either way, Snowy's insight and scheming mind were really an eye-opener.

Feng Xue suddenly felt angry and shame as she remembered how worried and helpless she felt when Snowy stepped forward to confront Feng Luo and was nearly crushed by Wu Qing. This was turning out to be a part of Snowy's calculation.

'Hmph. Just you wait, you little vixen, next time I'll pay you back ten-fold!' She raised her imaginary fist with an evil smile plastered on her face.

Snowy's instinct kicked off and her body suddenly jolted as she felt someone was setting its gaze on her like a predator waiting to devour its prey as a whole!

Oblivious to Snowy's inevitable fate and Feng Xue's determination, Elder Yang leads the group went back to City Lord's Mansion.

On the way there, they were suddenly approached by unexpected faces.

"Big Sis Xuan, why are you here?" Feng Xue narrowed her eyes couldn't help but stay cautious.