A deep darkness enveloped the area, where only the sound of water could be heard.
On both sides of the passage, people stood in a row, expressionless.
At the end, a man sitting in a large chair quietly sipped his tea.
Clack.
The teacup merely touched the ground, yet the space seemed to echo with a loud thud.
Soon, the teacup shattered.
The man quietly revealed his presence and spoke.
"The Shaanxi branch was completely wiped out."
Someone answered the man's question.
"Yes."
"Who was in charge?"
"Yaxue Ji."
Hm.
The man quietly closed his eyes.
Yaxue Ji.
From memory, he was undoubtedly a peak martial artist who had reached a high level of proficiency.
Though he had not reached the Hua Jing realm and had remained at the same level for a long time, his skill was undoubtedly high.
On the contrary, his ignorance, personality, and attitude were problematic, which led to him being demoted from the main palace.
Originally, he should have been executed, but due to his loyalty to the palace master and his formidable strength, he was demoted but still held the position of branch leader.
He shouldn't have been so easily defeated.
"Did the Plum Blossom Immortal move?"
"It doesn't seem so."
"Still, that old man in the back room couldn't have been that quick."
In the past, the Plum Blossom Immortal might have been, but now he's just a fast tiger.
"The elixir from Huashan isn't that important, but it's a bit troublesome."
There were many others, so it wasn't necessarily important.
That's why he entrusted it to someone like Yaxue Ji, who was ignorant.
Since there seemed to be some progress, he thought it was fine and sent the elixir.
It was a mistake.
He should have sent a martial artist from the main palace.
'He just raised unnecessary suspicions.'
Considering that all the others failed, the only one left was the elixir.
"Any traces?"
"•••When we tried to check the branch, it was already overrun by the Huashan Sect, so we couldn't see properly. However, the lack of heavy battle traces suggests... a small group, or even a single person, cleared the branch in an instant."
Yaxue Ji is said to have died outside the branch, but even so, there should have been dozens of people stationed there.
'And they were all wiped out in an instant.'
Even if the stationed people were of low level, it would have been different if it happened in one night.
Especially with no signs of battle.
'Could the Dark King (暗王) have appeared?'
The master of the Iron Night Assassins, who can kill anyone if they wish.
Or another high-level assassin of similar caliber.
"Who do you think killed Yaxue Ji?"
"•••It seems to be a late-stage genius, but it's taking time to confirm as the Huashan Sect is hiding it."
"Late-stage genius?"
A peak martial artist being killed by a mere late-stage genius?
It was the most puzzling thing he had heard today.
Could it be Jianlong from Huashan?
The genius who took the nickname Jianlong from the Nangong clan.
He heard he hadn't even reached his twenties.
If so, had he already reached this level?
'Too fast, even.'
He didn't seem to be at a level to worry about yet, but if so, he might start to stand out.
"Find out as soon as possible."
"Understood."
"The elixir..."
If the elixir was definitely in the Huashan Sect, capturing it immediately would cause many problems.
Still, the elixir needed to be captured.
The best way would be for the palace master himself to move, but he couldn't leave his position now.
"Send a Night Hunter. Order them to capture it as quietly as possible."
"Understood. I will order them to depart immediately."
The person who received the order quietly disappeared, and the palace master opened his eyes in the darkness.
His light purple eyes gazed down at the crowd.
Those who bowed their heads in the dark gaze trembled.
'Just a little more to the final piece.'
He was only a few steps away from his goal.
Everything was for his own sky.
As the dark clouds grew thicker, the man closed his eyes again.
.
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After another day, he could finally move his body.
The pain was still there, but compared to the intense pain he felt when he regained consciousness, it was just an itch.
The demonic energy circulating in his body was almost gone, and he was told his body was almost fully recovered.
After Shenyi told him he could return to his quarters, Mei Huaxian came to visit.
"I'm sorry..."
Mei Huaxian's face was filled with various emotions.
It was not common for the leader of a sect to be so immersed in gloom.
"I'm fine."
That was all he could say.
In reality, even if the Huashan Sect was involved, his actions were not for their sake.
"•••I heard from Taiyi that your condition has improved a lot. Is that true?"
"Fortunately, that's what I heard."
"If so, the choices available to you have increased greatly..."
Was he talking about the spirit pill he mentioned last time?
If so, he was ready to take it.
His body was weak, after all.
"I heard you weren't seriously injured. That's fortunate, as it's too sad when others' precious children die on this land."
What could he mean? Even as he said it was fortunate, the emotion in his words didn't seem to be directed at him.
It didn't seem like a situation to ask what was going on, so he remained silent.
He would ask Lingfeng later.
"Even though you were injured in another sect, I'm sorry that as the leader of a sect, I rarely show my face... "
"•••No, it's fine."
He wasn't injured, and he would be compensated. Moreover, he received treatment from the best doctor in the Central Plains.
There was no real problem.
Besides, he had something to ask for.
He planned to bring it up when he visited later.
'•••It's a bit of a problem that I was delayed due to fainting.'
He was tied up for too long.
He intended to leave after the Zehua Hall event ended, but when Guilin Hua announced she wouldn't return to the family, he wanted to leave yesterday.
Now, he had been delayed for four more days.
Thinking about it, wasn't it around the time of the Zehua Hall event?
The timing seemed to match.
"Leader, is it the Zehua Hall event period now?"
At his question, Mei Huaxian's eyebrows twitched.
"Originally, it was the right time, but due to some matters, it has been postponed for a few days. It will start soon."
He was inwardly surprised by Mei Huaxian's words.
The Huashan Sect postponed one of its few major events?
'This must be a significant matter.'
He suddenly remembered hearing about the disappearance of scholars.
Was it because of that?
There could be other reasons, but that was all he knew for now.
"I'm sorry for disturbing you while you're resting. I'll visit again later, so rest well."
"No, I'm fine. Since I'm almost recovered, I'll visit you next time."
Mei Huaxian smiled slightly at his response.
Even that smile seemed a bit tired.
"Once you feel better, go outside. I saw someone waiting for you."
"Me?"
As Mei Huaxian said this and left, he also got up.
Who could be waiting for him?
Nangong Bei or Weixue?
They usually visited often, so he might have told them to stop coming.
Could it be Lingfeng?
'Having a guy visit is a bit awkward, so who could it be...?'
He stopped the thought he was about to voice.
Shen Noya wasn't around, after all.
Thinking about it made him feel a bit uncomfortable.
'•••Where did he go?'
He treated him like a demon, but now that he was gone, he felt a bit disappointed.
It was an ambiguous feeling.
He was just a strange old man who came with the aura of Huashan.
'Is this the influence of demonic energy?'
The demonic energy that suddenly started circulating in his body might have calmed it, leading to Shen Noya's disappearance.
'He came and left so suddenly.'
•••Is this really the will of the spirits?
Or maybe he's just sleeping.
He hoped it was the latter.
Four days after regaining consciousness, he stepped outside the building.
It was early morning, and he was in a building he hadn't seen before, but it was definitely within the Huashan Sect.
Was it the medical hall?
"Hmm?"
As he looked around, he heard a sound from somewhere.
Shifting his gaze, he saw something behind a tree.
Was someone hiding there?
"What are you doing there?"
"..."
Behind the tree, Guilin Hua was exuding an unknown presence.
She had an embarrassed look, as if she didn't expect to be caught, and someone pushed her out.
"Ugh...!"
It was Nangong Bei, with a bandage on one arm.
Guilin Hua still seemed to have something to say, hesitating.
"What's wrong?"
When he asked, she avoided his gaze.
Nangong Bei approached and patted her back.
Guilin Hua cleared her throat a few times before speaking.
"•••A, are you okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"•••Are you okay, your body!"
She suddenly shouted, startling him a bit.
Why did she shout all of a sudden?
"•••I'm fine."
Ironically, the one who was more seriously injured was Nangong Bei.
"•••I see."
Saying this, Guilin Hua seemed unable to bear it and tried to run away, but Nangong Bei held her back.
"Big sister, big sister."
"No."
She called out desperately, but Nangong Bei's attitude was firm.
He just watched silently.
He didn't know what to say.
Finally, Guilin Hua seemed to realize something and stood in front of him again.
Her trembling shoulders were noticeable.
"Th... thank you..."
Her voice was as small as a mouse's.
He almost had to strain to hear it.
"•••Thank you!"
At that moment, Guilin Hua suddenly shouted.
She could shout like that.
Embarrassed by what she said, she ran off.
This time, Nangong Bei didn't try to stop her.
"•••Did you grab her to make her say that?"
When he asked, Nangong Bei nodded slightly. He scratched his neck, feeling a bit awkward.
He was grateful, but...
It wasn't necessary.
He had something to say to Guilin Hua first.
Still, her words were sincere.
He knew what Nangong Bei was thinking.
"Thank you."
He could say it calmly.
It was probably the first time he had said it to Nangong Bei in his entire life.
Nangong Bei froze, seemingly surprised by the unexpected words.
Was it that surprising?
"•••Why are you like that...?"
He was about to ask if something was wrong when Nangong Bei suddenly ran towards the mountains.
She looked very urgent.
"Where... Come back before you eat!"
He shouted, but did she hear?
With a bandage on her arm, she probably wasn't going to practice.
And, her ears were red.
When he finally returned to his quarters, he was surprised to find Jian Zun there.
He jumped in surprise.
Jian Zun, who was sweeping, bowed to him.
"I'm sorry for not being able to work during this time, young master."
"•••No, it's fine. I heard the family head allowed it. Did you complete your task well?"
"Yes... Thanks to the family head's consideration, I completed it well. I heard you were injured, young master. Are you okay?"
"Fortunately, I wasn't seriously injured."
Jian Zun smiled slightly in relief.
After thanking him for his hard work, he moved on.
Jian Zun was always a difficult person to understand.
Mei Huaxian, who was said to be of similar level, felt more approachable.
Still, with Jian Zun back, he could start preparing to return to the family.
'Where is Weixue?'
She usually rushed over to greet him as soon as she noticed, but not this time.
'Is she caught by Hongwa?'
If so, she probably couldn't come even if she wanted to.
Assuming she was doing well, he decided to enter his room.
He needed to start planning what to do after returning to the family.
Jian Zun watched Guo Yangqian's back as he entered the room.
'Something is strangely different.'
Guo Yangqian, whom he hadn't seen for a few days since arriving in Shaanxi, seemed different.
He couldn't be sure if it was for the better or worse, but it was a peculiar direction.
There were energies that shouldn't coexist in one body, intertwined like a ring.
Even Jian Zun, the Sword Master, couldn't understand how it was maintained.
Last night, he heard from Mei Huaxian that Guo Yangqian had killed a villain from the Black Night Palace.
He also heard that the opponent's realm wasn't low.
Jian Zun thought Guo Yangqian wasn't at the level to defeat such a martial artist.
Was his eyesight wrong?
The growth of the son of a righteous hero was too excessive.
'Truly, it's so alien.'
He knew the sect itself contained many things, but even so...
"Grandfather."
Hearing Weixue's voice, Jian Zun turned around.
Behind him stood Weixue.
It had been a while since he saw her, and even when he returned, she seemed lost in thought.
Still, she was his beautiful and adorable granddaughter.
Jian Zun smiled warmly.
"Sure, sure, what is it?"
"Grandfather..."
"Why are you like that?"
At Jian Zun's question, Weixue hesitated before speaking.
"•••I want to learn the Tree Technique."
Thud.
Weixue's words made Jian Zun's broom fall to the ground.