In the Black Wind Forest, a group of more than ten people from the Lingxiao Pavilion were walking.
Yang Kai really didn't expect that the good place Su Mu mentioned yesterday would be the Black Wind Forest. Walking through the forest, Yang Kai saw a very clear path here. If it weren't for frequent human traffic, it would be impossible for such a dense forest to have a path.
Are there many people entering and exiting the Black Wind Forest? Yang Kai looked around and found that it was indeed the case. There were indeed some figures not far ahead, moving in the same direction as his group.
"Senior Brother, do you know why we ran into Cheng Shaofeng's group at the edge of the Black Wind Forest that day?" Su Mu asked Yang Kai, walking shoulder to shoulder with him.
Yang Kai's expression changed, and he had a vague guess: "Could it be that Cheng Shaofeng's group also came to the Black Wind Forest?"
"Exactly. The distance between our Lingxiao Pavilion, Fengyu Tower, and Xuezhan Gang is not too far, and this Black Wind Forest is roughly the same distance from all three. Basically, if the disciples of our three factions want to enter here, they all have to pass through that four-way intersection."
"What's so attractive about this place? Otherwise, why would everyone come here?"
"Hehe." Su Mu smiled proudly. "Senior Brother, you don't know. There's a market in the Black Wind Forest, a place where disciples of our three factions and all the martial artists in Wu Mei Town trade. Disciples can exchange useless cultivation materials for useful things, or sell them for silver and gold. This Black Wind Market is quite lively, and Senior Brother must come and see it."
Li Yuntian also said, "Yes, Senior Brother. You can often find some good things here. Last time, Su Shao bought a Tianyuan Fruit for ten taels of silver."
"Tianyuan Fruit?" Yang Kai's expression changed slightly.
"Yes, a lower-grade Earth-class spirit fruit. The seller didn't know its value, so I got a good deal." Su Mu was quite proud when he talked about this.
A lower-grade Earth-class spirit fruit, if sold for silver, would be worth at least a thousand taels, but Su Mu bought it for just ten taels. That was indeed a great deal.
Yang Kai had never heard of this Black Wind Market. He had been in the Lingxiao Pavilion for more than three years and hadn't made any friends, so no one had told him about these things.
It seemed that Su Mu's group often visited here, and they were all quite familiar with it. From their conversations, Yang Kai heard many interesting stories and began to look forward to this place.
Since he had cultivated the True Yang Technique, he could find some yang-attribute elixirs and medicines here, but he was a bit short on funds. Thinking of the bottle of Small Rejuvenation Pills Su Mu gave him yesterday, Yang Kai felt a bit more confident.
The Black Wind Market was quite far, and the group walked and chatted along the way.
Yang Kai suddenly asked, "Junior Brother Su, does our Lingxiao Pavilion have an Eleventh Elder?"
He remembered the old man he saw by the Dragon Trapping Ravine that day. The old man was mysterious, making it hard to forget.
"Eleventh Elder?" Su Mu was taken aback. "Where did the Lingxiao Pavilion get an Eleventh Elder?"
"Oh, I was just asking." Yang Kai understood. When the old man called himself the Eleventh Elder, he had his doubts. Now it seemed that this identity was indeed fake. However, the old man was kind and had no ill intentions toward him, so Yang Kai didn't want to pry and cause unnecessary trouble.
Li Yuntian laughed, "Senior Brother Yang focuses on cultivation and probably doesn't know much about our Lingxiao Pavilion. There are only five elders in the pavilion, and there is no Eleventh Elder."
This group knew about Yang Kai's past of being bullied and felt sorry for him, so they kindly told him a lot about the Lingxiao Pavilion to avoid any embarrassing questions in the future.
Su Mu had an elder as a backing, so he knew more about the Lingxiao Pavilion than anyone else. As they talked, he somehow mentioned the Lingxiao Pavilion's leader.
Su Mu lowered his voice, "I heard from Old Ghost that our leader is an extraordinary person. His current strength has reached the peak of the Divine Traveling Realm, and he's just one step away from breaking through. He is the top expert within a few thousand miles."
The peak of the Divine Traveling Realm! Yang Kai was shocked.
The cultivation levels of martial artists start from the Body Tempering stage, then come the Origin Opening, Qi Movement, Separation, True Essence, and Divine Traveling Realms. Each realm has nine levels, and the higher the level, the harder it is to break through. The Divine Traveling Realm is rare, and he didn't expect the Lingxiao Pavilion's leader to have reached the peak. If he broke through further, he would be a true peak figure.
"The leader of the Xuezhan Gang, Hu Man, and the leader of the Fengyu Tower, Xiao Ruohan, are only at the sixth or seventh level of the Divine Traveling Realm. They can't compare to our leader." Su Mu said this with pride, as a powerful leader brings glory to the disciples.
"How long will it take for the leader to break through?" Li Yuntian asked excitedly. If the leader suddenly broke through, the Lingxiao Pavilion would dominate within a few thousand miles, and no one would dare to provoke them.
Su Mu's expression darkened, and he slowly shook his head and sighed.
"What's wrong?" Li Yuntian was worried.
"Old Ghost said that the leader has been at the peak of the Divine Traveling Realm for over ten years."
"Why hasn't he broken through until now?" Everyone was puzzled.
Ten years. Even if cultivation is difficult, he should have broken through by now.
Su Mu just shook his head, "I dare not say."
"Su Shao, how can you do this? You pique our curiosity and then leave it hanging. It's like undressing a beautiful woman and not touching her. That's too inhumane." Zhao Hu shouted, and the group also enthusiastically demanded that Su Mu continue.
"Alright, but you must remember, this must not be spread outside. Otherwise, there will be big trouble." Su Mu put on a serious face, looked around, and then lowered his voice. "Over ten years ago, something major happened in our Lingxiao Pavilion. Because of this, the leader's realm has stagnated."
"What happened?" Everyone swallowed hard.
"Our leader has no wife or children and has only taken in two disciples. The incident started with these two disciples. The elder brother is diligent, and the younger brother is intelligent. Both are outstanding talents, and the leader has taught them with all his heart, holding nothing back. They both worked hard and were evenly matched in strength. However, because of their different personalities, the leader's teaching methods were different. He praised the elder brother more and was strict with the younger brother. This made the younger brother misunderstand the leader's intentions, thinking the leader favored the elder brother. Out of jealousy, the younger brother distanced himself from the elder brother, and his personality became more and more gloomy, leading him to find and cultivate an evil technique from somewhere."
"Ah..." Everyone was shocked.
Su Mu continued, and everyone listened intently.
It turned out that Su Mu had a silver tongue and was a master storyteller. His words were precise, and in just a few sentences, he vividly portrayed the conflict between the two disciples.
Yang Kai listened silently without interrupting. He felt that the story was probably true, but Su Mu had added some embellishments.