Chapter 67

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Chapter 67: All Five Families Have Come to Trouble You

Liu Luoyin, the proud daughter of the Qingliu Sword Sect, was now kneeling on the ground, crying in despair.

However, this cry made Wen Yun’s friendly smile disappear completely. She calmly looked at the woman at her feet, took a step back to make way, and did not respond to the kneeling.

"Don’t kneel." Wen Yun turned away, pretending not to see, and refused firmly, "I shouldn’t do this, and he shouldn’t either."

"Why shouldn’t he!" Liu Luoyin seemed surprised by Wen Yun’s response, she stared wide-eyed with a complex expression, "If Supreme Elder Ouyang were still here, I wouldn’t have come…"

Now both Supreme Elders are gone, and the whole Qingliu Sword Sect relies on Ye Shubai, the most senior, to be able to save Liu Zhengxu.

Without looking back, Wen Yun straightforwardly replied, "Your father did something wrong to him. I assume Sect Master Liu would be scared to see him."

In the end, she chose to be more tactful, without directly saying he might be scared to death.

After hearing this, Liu Luoyin’s eyes reddened and she retorted, "You’re talking nonsense!"

"I know you have misunderstandings about The First Peak because of Elder Ouyang. Even if Elder Ouyang did such a bad thing, but… how could my father, a junior, get involved in the grudges among their elders? Since he became the Sect Master, he has been fair and diligent, treating all disciples equally. How did he wrong Senior Ye?"

Now that it involves the sect’s leaders and ancestors, the other disciples dare not speak, they just pretended not to hear while holding their wine glasses.

Wen Yun acted as if she didn’t hear, she wasn’t a busybody. Ye Shubai had learned a lot from her, and they didn’t get involved in such trivial matters.

As she was thinking like that, she paused in her action of drinking by tilting her head back.

It was not because of Liu Luoyin, but because on the winding stone path covered in moss, there stood a figure in white clothes, partly hidden in the lush green forest, with a graceful and elegant posture.

Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong’s wine glasses tilted, filling the air with the scent of wine.

Before knowing Ye Shubai’s identity, they only thought of him as a fellow disciple of The Tenth Peak. They found him to be particularly cool in temperament. Calling him Junior Brother Ye felt natural, and they interacted casually.

Now that they knew Ye Shubai’s identity and seniority, coupled with having been scolded by their master, they dared to boast behind his back, but in front of him… Now their feelings were mixed. On one hand, they wanted to catch up, but on the other hand, they feared he might hold a grudge or act coldly towards them, making them feel uneasy all over.

Ye Shubai’s gaze lightly swept over the crowd and landed on Bao Pilong and Zhu Erchong, nodding slightly at the two of them.

The awkwardness on the two’s faces disappeared instantly. They chuckled while holding their empty wine glasses, unable to hide the pleased look in their eyes. See, they weren’t bragging. Ancestral Master Ye is indeed good friends with both of us!

What made them even more thrilled was that Ye Shubai called out their names, "Zhu Erchong, Bao Pilong."

"Oh!"

"How is your sword training going? Come to The Tenth Peak another day and let me see."

"…"

Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong’s smiles froze as they remembered the fear they had when training swords with Ye Shubai in front of other disciples who were shocked and envious.

Ye Shubai calmly shifted his gaze away from them, finally landing on Liu Luoyin, whose face was full of anxiety.

"I know about your father. Take me to see him."

*

Wen Yun was very angry, so much so that she didn’t want to ride on Ye Shubai’s flying sword. Instead, she picked a round piece of firewood from the ones given by Third Martial Brother, tossed it into the sky, and used Sword Control Art to make it fly steadily.

As she ascended into the sky, the junior martial brothers and sisters below watched in astonishment, almost biting their tongues in disbelief.

"Martial Sister Wen, what did you just control?"

"Why doesn’t Martial Sister Wen use a sword, but uses a burning stick instead?"

Liu Luoyin hurriedly flew straight to The First Peak with two people, Ye Shubai followed closely behind, his eyes fixed on Wen Yun, and asked, "Do you want to come along?"

Wen Yun silently activated the golden energy in her dantian, causing the wooden stick under her feet to leap forward towards Ye Shubai.

Flipping the stick was impossible, as she had now mastered the Sword Control Art skillfully and was no longer the girl who used to be clumsy with swords.

After landing smoothly from the wooden stick, Liu Luoyin wiped away tears and hurried towards Liu Zhengxu’s secluded cave, Wen Yun was about to follow, but Ye Shubai gently held her back.

"Are you mad at me?"

Wen Yun was not one to hold back her feelings, so she nodded and said, "Yes, I can’t believe you actually came to rescue Liu Zhengxu, it makes me very uncomfortable."

She couldn’t stand the idea of repaying kindness with resentment; even if the person who stole Liu Zhengxu’s jade nascent soul was not Liu Zhengxu, he was undoubtedly an accomplice. In Wen Yun’s eyes, not seeking trouble for Liu Zhengxu was already being generous, so why should they save him? It’s not like they were the ones who caused his failure in reaching the Transmigration Realm.

Blaming others when she herself was incompetent, who could she blame?

Ye Shubai tilted his head and looked at her with a faint smile in his eyes, gently saying, "I didn’t come to save him."

"Are you here just to watch the excitement?" Wen Yun turned her head in surprise, unable to see the wicked side hidden in Ye Shubai’s nature.

He chuckled and asked softly, "Do you remember what Mo You said at that time?"

Wen Yun answered truthfully, "He talked a lot, I can’t remember clearly."

"He said that Liu Zhengxu’s ability to Transmigration was also his doing, I just wanted to find out the truth."

With a sudden stop in the conversation, Liu Luoyin in front had already used the token to open the cave, wiped away the tears hanging in her eyes, looked back at Ye Shubai, her voice hoarse, "Senior Ye, Father is inside now."

There was a screen separating the cave, and the people inside seemed to hear the commotion outside, a cautious voice coming out –

"Who’s there?"

"Father, it’s me." Liu Luoyin waited outside, tears that had just been wiped away welled up again, choked with sobs, "I begged the ancestral master to come help you, you are saved."

"Is Elder Ouyang your senior, Martial Uncle Ou Yang?" The voice inside sounded weak, as if it could dissipate at any moment, but suddenly regained strength, raising its volume, "Since you’re leaving, I have something to discuss with your ancestral master."

Liu Luoyin glanced at Ye Shubai, the news of Elder Ouyang’s death stirred up her father. She didn’t dare to say who the visitor was, knowing her father’s precarious condition. She took a step back, hiding her figure, her eyes staring red at the folding screen.

Her father couldn’t bear to see her worry, still unwilling to meet her. She didn’t dare to disobey her father’s orders, yet she couldn’t bear to leave at such a moment.

Luckily, Ye Shubai showed no intention of stopping her. Perhaps it wasn’t a big issue he wanted to discuss, so she stayed.

Liu Zhengxu had no strength left to investigate who was outside. His breathing was ragged with each word he uttered, "Martial Uncle, if you are willing to come to save me, do you trust me? I didn’t kill Eastern Martial Uncle. I didn’t dare to covet the white jade…"

Another cold voice responded, "I killed him."

At the sound of the voice, Liu Zhengxu, who had been lying still with closed eyes, suddenly widened his eyes. His weak breath became rapid and he trembled uncontrollably as if struck by lightning.

He slowly turned his head.

He saw a slender figure move on the folding screen. Walking out from behind was a very young-looking man, dressed in the common white shirt of the Qingliu Sword Sect, without any embellishments, holding only a wooden sword.

Liu Zhengxu’s eyes widened, and he made unclear sounds as he struggled to speak. His body, which was weak moments ago, was now desperately trying to move, before falling heavily to the ground with a loud thud.

Hearing the commotion, Liu Luoyin was about to rush in instinctively to help, but Wen Yun stopped her, saying, "He won’t harm your father."

Because it was no longer necessary.

Ye Shubai looked down at the man on the ground, who looked like a decaying wood, and furrowed his brows imperceptibly.

He had met with Liu Zhengxu a few times before the battle between the light and dark forces.

At that time, Ye Shubai was a renowned sword genius of the Qingliu Sword Sect. Due to his high seniority, most of his juniors were older than him, except for Liu Zhengxu, who was a rare younger disciple.

Liu Zhengxu’s grandfather was one of the four Supreme Elders of the sect, and also Ye Shubai’s Fourth Master. His father was the sect leader.

Because of this relationship, Liu Zhengxu often came to the valley to practice swordsmanship with Ye Shubai. Back then, as a young child, he would follow Ye Shubai with a small wooden sword in hand, imitating his moves. The Fourth Master would laugh and say that Ye Shubai was his master, and that he should respect and honor him in the future.

When the battle between light and dark forces broke out, from the mortal world to the cultivation world, there was no peace in any of the four continents. The disciples of the Qingliu Sword Sect, from the Supreme Elders to the beginners in the Foundation Establishment Stage, almost all went down the mountain with their swords to fight demons and uphold the righteous path.

In the past ten years, all four Transmigration Realm Supreme Elders of Qingliu Sword Sect have fallen, the sect leader and the Peak Lord of the Soul Changing Stage have also perished, and many lower-level cultivators have been injured or killed, causing great damage to the sect.

At that time, Liu Zhengxu had grown into a young man and had started taking care of the affairs of the sect. On the day Ye Shubai was about to leave, he stood desolately at the mountain gate with his voice still hoarse from adolescence, solemnly saying, "Master Uncle Ye, I’ll wait for your return."

The once youthful-looking boy was now curled up on the ground, trembling as he looked at him, as if he had seen a ghost.

In fact, Liu Zhengxu himself looked more like a ghost.

Due to the failed impact into the Transmigration Realm, his spiritual power had started to break through his body and disperse, making his skin wrinkled as if it were old tree bark. His skin was surrounded by a gray dead aura, and his face looked unbelievably aged, with white hair and a withered appearance. Only his two protruding eyes occasionally showed signs of life.

He stared straight at Ye Shubai, his face seemingly in a mix of crying and smiling, and finally tremblingly shouted, "Master Uncle Ye."

This voice was filled with a myriad of complex emotions – shock, regret, fear, and apprehension. It was like a huge boulder that had been weighing on his heart for hundreds of years, and now it had finally fallen in front of him.

Ye Shubai remained silent, and Liu Zhengxu nervously asked in a hoarse voice, "Did you kill Eastern Martial Uncle? What about Ouyang Martial Uncle?"

Without needing an answer, he had already guessed the response. He closed his eyes and sighed deeply, "You’ve avenged the two of them, so now you have come to kill me."

"No need for me to do it." Ye Shubai calmly stated the fact, "You won’t live for more than two days."

Upon hearing this, Liu Luoyin covered her mouth, slowly sank to the ground in disbelief, covering her face and crying silently.

"It’s all karma." Liu Zhengxu shrank on the ground, seeming to face the reality, his eyes shining with a sudden burst of energy, word by word he said, "Although I didn’t physically harm you like the others when you were injured, I covered up all their evil deeds afterwards and helped them slowly erase your existence…"

He covered his face with his bony hands, tears streaming down, "I didn’t want to harm Master Uncle Ye, but at that time there were only two Martial Uncles left in the sect, Eastern and Ouyang, although the demon cultivators retreated, our sect suffered the most casualties, the other major sects were eyeing us, without the support of the strong Transmigration experts, we would have been devoured completely."

"Would Master Uncle Ye forgive me for the sake of my grandfather and father? Grandfather has always cherished you more than me, for the sake of teaching you, he rarely guided my swordsmanship, my father also took care of you in every way, always putting you first, the resources and techniques were only selected by you, do you remember calling them Master, calling them Elder Martial Brother?"

"Grandfather was beheaded by demon cultivator for protecting the Four Continents, father was devoured by the demon cultivator’s venomous insects for protecting the sect, they both asked you to help me guard the sect before they died, do you remember?"

Ye Shubai’s eyes showed no emotion, not a hint of pity for his words.

Perhaps he of five hundred years ago would have been touched by such righteousness and warmth, but now, he had long seen through it, behind the so-called righteousness, there may be selfish motives hidden.

The original intention of Liu Zhengxu might have been for the stability of the sect, but later on, he attributed Ye Shubai’s achievements to himself, suppressing The Tenth Peak bit by bit to the sidelines, were these actions truly for the sect?

The master always taught him to be a kind person, but Wen Yun also taught him that sometimes it’s better to hide your kindness when facing bad people.

When Liu Zhengxu saw that Ye Shubai did not argue back, he felt hopeful. He crawled towards Ye Shubai like a dog and begged in a hoarse voice, "Master Uncle Ye, save me, Martial Uncle save me… If you defeat those two, you will surely restore your power. Only you can save me. How can you not save me? I don’t want to die. If the sect loses its leader, chaos will ensue. I need to come out and take charge."

He mumbled some unclear words, tears streaming down his face. His vitality was draining from his body, his cultivation plummeting. He was now even weaker than the Qi Refining Stage, with only a little spiritual power left.

However, Ye Shubai just sighed softly and told him, "Liu Zhengxu, no one can save you in your current state."

Gasping for breath, Liu Zhengxu chuckled self-deprecatingly, "For thousands of years, we have all thought that the path to immortality was cut off and ascension was hopeless, so we didn’t believe in karma. But now karma has finally caught up with me. My failed attempt at Transmigration is just the result of the seeds I sowed in the past…"

"It’s not just karma," Ye Shubai looked at him coldly. "After you closed off, the Xie Family’s collusion with demon cultivators was exposed and they fell. The so-called secret method the Xie Family gave you for breaking through Transmigration is just a demon cultivator’s technique, which only depletes your lifespan to forcefully break through the realm. Regardless of success, it’s a dead end. Haven’t you noticed? Your lifespan is already depleted."

"What, how could the Xie Family collude with demon cultivators…"

Liu Zhengxu couldn’t believe it. He had even planned for Liu Luoyin and Xie Mian to become Dao companions. Upon hearing this news, he was greatly shaken.

"You speak for the sect in every word, yet you didn’t realize that you almost let the sect be destroyed by trusting the words of demon cultivators."

After Ye Shubai spoke, he threw a jade slip that recorded the Xie Family’s affairs.

If Liu Zhengxu dies, his body might be controlled by Mo You and Qingliu Sword Sect could become the next Xie Family, facing extinction.

Trembling, Liu Zhengxu crawled over and tightly grasped the jade slip, using his last drop of spiritual power to read the message inside.

This jade slip is from the well-informed Wan family, who gather major events in the cultivation world each month to sell in jade slips. This one was a gift from Wan Baocai when he left the Dark Heaven Secret Realm.

Holding onto the jade slip firmly, Liu Zhengxu raised his head, almost unable to believe what he saw and heard. The last bit of vitality he regained seemed to be exhausted, as he spat out a mouthful of dark blood and cried out in a tragic voice.

"My Liu family has served the Sword Sect for generations… I have devoted my whole life to the Sword Sect…"

"I for the Sword Sect…"

After all my painstaking effort for the Sword Sect, have I only made mistakes at every turn?

The voice of a dying man was full of sorrow, despair, mixed with various emotions and regret.

Liu Luoyin ran inside crying, only to see Liu Zhengxu’s withered body. His spiritual power, cultivated for hundreds of years, returned to the earth. His flesh decayed, and Sect Master Liu, once highly respected, turned into a skeleton.

The beautiful young girl looked up and cried, tears streaming down her pale face.

"Father, please wake up! Look at me, it’s Yin Yin, your daughter!"

"Father, please acknowledge me!"

"Daddy!"

Wen Yun sighed, looked up, and noticed a hint of loneliness in Ye Shubai’s eyes. She remembered that Liu Zhengxu seemed to be his last acquaintance.

She took a step forward and held Ye Shubai’s cold hand.

Cause and effect, in this world, all causes will eventually bear fruit.

*

The news of Liu Zhengxu’s failed Transmigration spread very quickly.

After Elder Ouyang’s death, the elders and disciples of The First Peak lost a great support, so they no longer acted arrogantly and instead stayed obediently on the peak, eagerly waiting for Sect Master Liu to emerge.

Little did they know, they were about to receive another piece of bad news.

The once extravagant The First Peak now appeared plain, with black and white gauze covering its once golden beams and painted halls. The red candles were replaced by white ones, and the disciples knelt inside the main hall, looking as if they had lost their spirits.

As the sect leader had passed away, disciples from other peaks needed to come to offer condolences. Liu Luoyin, with swollen eyes, had long forgotten how to cry. He numbly led the visitors to kneel and pay respects, mechanically thanking them, as if he had lost his spirit.

The people from The Tenth Peak did not go, as they heard about the situation from the other Peak Lords.

These Peak Lords were actually quite young, and in terms of seniority, they were either called Ye Shubaiancestral masters or Martial Uncles – all of them were younger generations.

During the battle between the righteous and demonic forces, they had not been born yet, so they naturally did not know about the events of those years. At most, they had only heard about this name from their ancestors, knowing that this was an outstanding predecessor. As for The Tenth Peak, they thought it was just a title created by a few rebellious predecessors.

After all, The Tenth Peak was too small and too low, completely different from the other nine peaks, more like a small hill.

But today they all came to this small mountain, standing respectfully in the courtyard with bent waists. Their posture was even more obedient than the six kids at the foot of the mountain who hadn’t reached Qi Refining yet.

"Master Ye, we have already sent people to The First Peak to help with the following matters, so you don’t need to worry," said the Peak Lord of The Second Peak, who is also Zhu Erchong’s master. These two, master and disciple, were indeed a handsome pair of sword cultivators. They barely spoke a few words before their true natures were revealed.

"There are always some people who like to linger and ramble there, like the old man Hongzhuo, I mean, my disciple. I gave him a slap on the ear right there and then, and now he’s behaving well."

Ye Shubai didn’t pay much attention and lazily raised his eyelids, saying, "Since there’s nothing else, you all can go back."

"It’s not… actually, we came here for a reason."

The Peak Lord of The Second Peak hesitated for a long time and couldn’t speak. Eventually, Ziyun from the sixth peak stepped forward, bowing gracefully and respectfully saying, "Master Ye…"

Holding a small fire dragon and sunbathing nearby, Wen Yun cleared her throat and whispered, "Elder martial sister Ziyun, you can just call him Martial Uncle."

After all, everyone from The Tenth Peak was aware of Xu Wanfeng and Ziyun watching the sunrise and sunset together, talking about life and ideals. By the rules… she could follow Xu Wanfeng’s seniority and move up a generation.

Elder Ziyun’s beautiful face blushed, but she remained calm and composed as she said, "With the current Sect Master’s passing, the sect needs someone to oversee the situation and elect a new Sect Master early on."

Ye Shubai whispered, "Liu Zhengxu has a daughter."

The leader of Qingliu Sword Sect has always been from the Liu family, as the ancestor who founded the sect belonged to the Liu family. It has become a tradition to choose the sect leader from the Liu family.

Elder Ziyun sighed softly and said, "Because that girl has good talent, but she is still young, and being at the Golden Core Stage… I’m afraid she may not be able to lead the sect."

Several Peak Lords bowed their heads in silence, indicating that they all shared the same thoughts.

It’s not about suppressing The First Peak or trying to seize power from the Liu family. It’s just that Liu Luoyin is really not suitable. How can a mere Golden Core Stage cultivator handle the responsibility of leading the top sect?

Even if she could reach the Nascent Soul Stage like Wen Yun, she is still far from it now. It may take her centuries to break through. The sect cannot wait for her that long. The position of sect leader is about the reputation of the whole sect, and the most suitable person now is Ye Shubai, whose strength is unfathomable.

"Disciples plea for Master Uncle Ye to come forward and take on the role of sect leader!"

The Peak Lords all bowed down and paid their respects.

Wen Yun glanced subtly in Ye Shubai’s direction. If she remembered correctly, Fourth Master did consider making Ye Shubai the sect leader initially, but their Master dismissed it as unnecessary distractions and encouraged him to focus on sword practice. It became a joke among them.

Little did he expect that after five hundred years of wandering, so many people would beg him to be the head of the sect.

Wen Yun didn’t say much. This was Ye Shubai’s own choice, and she wouldn’t interfere in such matters. So she absentmindedly patted the round head of the sleeping baby dragon. Without realizing it, she touched its dragon mouth and got bitten.

She took a deep breath, then casually threw the unlucky one in her arms down the mountain.

"Ouch! What hit my head… Huh? Martial Sister Wen, why did you drop your pig down here!"

Xu Wanfeng, looking disgusted, lifted the baby dragon by its small wings and brought it along. Walking into the courtyard, he realized that there were many Peak Lords kneeling on the ground.

He greeted them with a smile, "Why have all the disciples gathered here?"

"…"

The Peak Lords looked at his young face, then quickly looked away as if they hadn’t seen him.

Luckily, this time Xu Wanfeng didn’t intend to take advantage. He handed the baby dragon to Wen Yun, then respectfully bowed towards Ye Shubai, saying seriously, "Master, someone is outside."

"The Jiang family, Yu family, Wan family, Blizzard Island, and Tianyin Temple all gathered outside the mountain gate to pay their respects to Old Ouyang and Sect Master Liu."