“Who goes there?!”
A sharp shout rang out from within the hall, and a vast, overwhelming spiritual pressure surged forth.
Ling Jiancheng hurriedly took a swift step to the doorway, bowing deeply. “Master, quell your anger! It is your disciple and Junior Sister Qingyue!”
Ren Qingyue followed Ling Jiancheng in saluting. “Disciple Ren Qingyue greets the Sect Master.”
At the same time, her gaze rapidly swept left and right, assessing the situation.
There were three people inside the hall. Fuyun Sect Master Bu Donghou sat in the seat of honor, his square face marked by thick eyebrows and an imposing, dignified presence without showing anger.
To his left was a lavishly dressed middle-aged man holding a bowl of tea. Pale fingers lifted the cup lid, gently skimming away the mist from the tea’s surface, his emotions unreadable.
This man was the Xuanjing Peak Lord, known as Immortal Venerable Daoling, one of the few Mahayana Realm cultivators within Fuyun Sect.
Opposite Immortal Venerable Daoling sat another figure, dressed in a black robe, with puffy, half-asleep eyes. His demeanor was listless and aged, like a doddering old man. This was the Elder of Diling Peak, Immortal Yanxu.
At this moment, all three simultaneously looked towards the hall’s entrance. Bu Donghou’s eyebrows were knit, his expression displeased as he scolded, “Reckless and rash! What kind of behavior is this? Why didn’t you have someone announce your arrival?”
Ling Jiancheng lowered his head deeply. “Disciple admits his fault!”
Immortal Yanxu’s eyes cracked open a sliver. Playing the peacemaker, he said, “An unintentional fault of juniors is no major transgression. Let it go. Just remember next time.”
Immortal Venerable Daoling also spoke up on Ling Jiancheng’s behalf. “In just a few months without seeing him, Jiancheng’s cultivation base seems to have advanced again. Perhaps he was rushing to report the good news to his master and thus neglected the formalities?”
Ling Jiancheng nodded, following the convenient excuse Immortal Venerable Daoling offered. “Yes.”
Only then did Bu Donghou’s expression ease slightly, though he verbally added, “What use is advancement in cultivation? Your temperament is still too poor; it requires more tempering.”
Ling Jiancheng earnestly admitted his fault. “Disciple engraves Master’s teachings in his heart and dares not transgress again in the future.”
Bu Donghou’s gaze shifted from Ling Jiancheng to Ren Qingyue. “Qingyue, it’s been some time since you last visited the Main Peak. Could it be that your Tianzhu Peak’s hands-off manager has some message he’s asked you to convey?”
Ren Qingyue maintained her composure, pretending she hadn’t heard the earlier conversation. Composed and self-assured, she produced a bamboo scroll and presented it with both hands. “Sect Master’s perception is truly penetrating. It is indeed Shishu Yuan Yi who sent this disciple to deliver something.”
“This is the roster of Tianzhu Peak disciples going down the mountain for training next month. Please review it, Sect Master.”
Bu Donghou beckoned with his hand, and the bamboo scroll rose into the air, flying into his grasp.
As he tore off the seal and carefully examined it, Immortal Venerable Daoling laughed freely. “Well, wonders never cease! That idle Daoist Yuan Yi actually remembered the Immortal Sect Disciple Assembly. This is no small feat.”
Immortal Yanxu, however, gave a cold snort. “This Yuan Yi is indeed unfit to be the Peak Lord of Tianzhu Peak. Over the last hundred years, Tianzhu Peak has been deteriorating. In this old man’s opinion, even handing Tianzhu Peak over to the lass Qingyue would be managed more properly than by Yuan Yi!”
Ren Qingyue was inexplicably singled out. The words went in one ear and out the other; she did not respond.
As the two were speaking, Bu Donghou finished reading the bamboo scroll Ren Qingyue presented. The thick eyebrows on his forehead knit into a tight knot.
Seeing this, Immortal Venerable Daoling asked, “Has Immortal Venerable Yuan Yi posed a difficult problem for the Sect Master?”
Bu Donghou didn’t answer, but instead glanced at Ren Qingyue. “You two may withdraw for now.”
Ling Jiancheng had long wanted to leave but never found the chance. Hearing Bu Donghou’s command now, he immediately agreed, “Disciple takes his leave!”
Ren Qingyue also cupped her hands to the figures in the hall and smoothly withdrew from the meeting chamber.
Just outside the hall doors, before Ling Jiancheng could invite her for tea and flower appreciation, Ren Qingyue announced her departure.
Ling Jiancheng’s face was full of regret, but with Ren Qingyue citing cultivation as her reason, he couldn’t very well insist she stay.
Ren Qingyue formed a sword art, mounted her blade, and soared into the air. Less than a hundred li from the Main Peak, she secretly looped around in the sky, transforming into a streak of green energy that darted into the forest.
Moments later, a spirit fox with a coat of pure, gleaming white slipped out from the underbrush. Its intelligent, lively eyes blinked with alertness, locking onto the majestic complex of buildings in the distance.
It cast an Obfuscation Spell upon itself, concealing its form and suppressing its aura. Then, bypassing the mountain guard patrols, it quickly approached the Sect Affairs Hall.
·
Once Ling Jiancheng and Ren Qingyue had withdrawn, Immortal Yanxu asked, puzzled, “What’s the matter?”
Bu Donghou didn’t want to explain further. He sighed. “See for yourselves.”
So saying, he passed the bamboo scroll in his hand for the two to read.
A few breaths later, Immortal Venerable Daoling and Immortal Yanxu simultaneously changed their expressions. “Yuan Yi nominated Yan Zhao? Is he deliberately letting the tiger return to the mountain?”
Bu Donghou reminded them, “Keep reading.”
Their gazes shifted down, noticing there were several more lines of small text at the bottom of the scroll, explaining the reasoning.
Immortal Venerable Daoling read Yuan Yi’s proposal aloud, word by word: “I have heard that Devil Venerable Cangli is soon to emerge from seclusion. The Devil Clan’s power is greatly flourishing. They will certainly not forget the grudge of their severed arm and will likely pose a threat to the stable order the Immortal Sects have painstakingly maintained for tens of thousands of years.”
Immortal Yanxu picked up the latter half: “I believe that while the Devil Clan is in internal turmoil and has yet to fully consolidate, we might proactively strike. By utilizing Yan Zhao’s unique identity, we can cast a long line to catch a big fish, destroying them one by one.”
The two men exchanged glances, their intentions perfectly understood.
Bu Donghou then asked, “What are your thoughts?”
Immortal Venerable Daoling and Immortal Yanxu rose simultaneously and spoke in unison, “Immortal Venerable Yuan Yi’s proposition is not without merit.”
Bu Donghou pondered for a moment, then nodded. “Since you both also deem it feasible, then tomorrow, summon all Peak Lords and Elders for a vote.”
His words were barely finished when Immortal Venerable Daoling suddenly formed a hand seal and pointed two fingers toward a corner of the eaves.
Crack—
A hole was instantly blasted open in the roof, and golden-glazed tiles clattered down noisily.
Bu Donghou’s expression hardened, his face immediately darkening.
Immortal Yanxu looked utterly stunned, his squinted eyes even widening slightly. “What happened?!”
Immortal Venerable Daoling flicked his sleeve and snorted coldly. “Just a reckless, uninsightful beast.”
Bu Donghou snapped his fingers, summoning two Shadow Guards. He ordered, “Pursue. I want it alive.”
·
Yan Zhao had slept without knowing for how long. Upon waking, her vision was dim; the environment was cold, dark, and damp.
Pushing herself up and looking around, she recognized it—it was the cave she had randomly found in the forest before passing out.
Opening her eyes, her stomach was hungry again. She yawned lazily, planning to go outside the cave to forage, hoping to find some fruit to eat.
Pushing aside the green vines hanging over the cave entrance, a beam of sunlight shone inside, painfully bright.
Yan Zhao closed her eyes for a moment to recover, then lightly hopped out of the cave.
The lands of Fuyun Sect were vast and rich in resources. Although its people were not particularly outstanding, its natural produce was abundant. The mountains were filled with various types of spirit fruits, thin-skinned with thick flesh, plump, sweet, and fragrant. With luck, one could even encounter rare mountain delicacies.
For instance, just now, Yan Zhao had climbed a tree to raid a bird’s nest and unexpectedly found a golden mushroom.
While picking the mushroom, she also encountered a venomous snake as thick as a forearm. It bit Yan Zhao without warning, puncturing four bloody holes in her arm.
After biting her, the snake even flaunted its prowess at Yan Zhao. Unexpectedly, in the next second, it was seized by the seven-inch vital spot.
Crack! Yan Zhao twisted the venomous snake’s head off. The snake body writhed a few times before going still.
Agile as a monkey, Yan Zhao climbed down the tree. She dug a shallow pit on the spot for a fire pit and reached into her Universe Bag, rummaging around before pulling out a large pot.
Although her meridians were blocked and her cultivation base was minuscule, leaving her at the mercy of others, it wasn’t as if she had no Dharma Power at all.
After all, growing up on an immortal mountain, she, like the fruits of this forest, had been thoroughly marinated by the spiritual qi of heaven and earth. A thin layer of Dharma Power was stored within her meridians, barely enough to cast some basic spells that Qi Condensation disciples would all know.
It took three tries with the Ignition Spell before the kindling caught fire. Yan Zhao was used to this. She then tossed the golden mushroom and bird eggs into the pot to boil together. She also gutted the venomous snake, removed its gallbladder, and snapped the snake body into several segments, throwing them into the soup as well.
Just as the bird egg, snake meat, and mushroom soup was ready, Yan Zhao hugged the soup bowl and took a taste.
It felt pretty good. The broth was rich, fresh, and fragrant, the snake meat tender and succulent.
“Junior Sister Yan! Where are you?!”
A voice suddenly called out from afar.
Yan Zhao looked in the direction of the sound and saw a figure drawing closer.
It was the disciple newly admitted to the Inner Sect yesterday. She couldn’t quite recall the name.
Being disturbed during her meal displeased Yan Zhao. Her brow furrowed in annoyance, she pretended not to hear and continued drinking her soup.
The newcomer passed through several dwarf trees and quickly spotted Yan Zhao beneath a tree, a look of delight appearing on her face.
“Junior Sister Yan! I finally found you! The Acting Peak Lord told me to tell you…” Bi Lan’s steps were swift as she jogged closer. Halfway through, she noticed the stove set up in front of Yan Zhao. “What are you doing?”
Yan Zhao ignored her, hugging the soup bowl and taking a huge gulp.
Her food-protective manner made Bi Lan laugh involuntarily. “Slow down, I’m not going to snatch it from you.”
As she spoke, Bi Lan leaned over to peek inside the pot.
Aside from the beaten egg flower, which was unrecognizable, the other ingredients were rather familiar in appearance.
Her eyes blinked rapidly, shifting from curiosity to bewilderment, finally revealing shock.
“That mushroom you used to make soup… is it an Earth-grade immortal herb, the Yuanjin Lingzhi?! Wait…” The corner of Bi Lan’s eye caught a colorful, iridescent snake head in the grass. Her face instantly turned pale. “That’s… the Body Tempering fierce beast, the Five Venom Snake King!!”
Yan Zhao had gulped down the entire pot of soup in just a few mouthfuls. She looked up from the soup bowl, the tail end of a thoroughly cooked snake still hanging from the corner of her mouth.
Bi Lan watched in stunned disbelief as Yan Zhao slurped it in—the snake tail swallowed whole, bones and flesh together—then patted her belly and lazily let out a satisfied burp.
“…”
Bi Lan was silent for a moment, then suddenly clutched her head and screamed.
“AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!”
“What have you eaten?! Spit it out quickly!”
