Liu Luoyin, the proud daughter of Qingliu Sword Sect, now knelt on the ground and cried bitterly.
However, this cry made all the friendly smile on Wen Yun's face disappear. She stared quietly at the woman at her feet, stepped aside, and ignored her kneeling.
"Don't kneel." Wen Yun turned his back, pretending not to see it, and refused without any discussion: "I shouldn't do this, and neither should he."
"Why not?" Liu Luoyin seemed to have not expected Wen Yun to say that. She stared at him with wide eyes, her expression very complicated: "If Grand Elder Ouyang was still here, I would not come..."
Now that the two supreme elders are gone, in the entire Qingliu Sword Sect, only Senior Ye Shubai has the highest cultivation level and can save Liu Zhengxu.
Wen Yun didn't even turn her head. She didn't like beating around the bush, so she answered directly: "Your father did something wrong to him. I think Sect Leader Liu would be frightened to death if he saw him."
In the end, she chose to be more tactful and didn't say directly that she might be scared to death.
After hearing this, Liu Luoyin's eyes turned red, and he raised his head and retorted: "You are talking nonsense!"
"I know you have some misunderstandings about the First Peak because of Elder Ouyang's matter. Even if Elder Ouyang really did something evil, but... but how can my father, a junior, get involved in the grudges between the elders? He has been fair and diligent since he took over as the head of the sect, and he treats all disciples equally. How can he let down Senior Ye!"
Now that the sect's leader has been involved, the other disciples cannot say anything. They can only watch while holding their wine glasses and pretending not to hear.
Wen Yun pretended not to hear. She was not a pushover. Ye Shubai had become much smarter after being taught by her. They didn't care about such trivial matters.
Just as she was thinking this, she paused in her drinking motion with her head tilted back.
It was not because of Liu Luoyin, but because a figure in white had appeared on the moss-covered winding stone road, half hidden in the lush green woods, standing tall and straight.
Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong's wine glasses tilted, and the aroma of wine filled their bodies.
Before, when I didn't know Ye Shubai's identity, I just thought he was a fellow disciple from the Tenth Peak. When we got along, I just felt that this person had a particularly cold personality. It was easy for me to call him Junior Brother Ye, and it was natural for us to put our arms around each other's shoulders.
Now that I know Ye Shubai's identity and seniority, and I've been beaten by my master before, I dare to brag as much as I want behind his back, but in front of him... I feel complicated now. On the one hand, I want to reminisce about the past, but on the other hand, I'm afraid that he will turn against me and settle old scores. I feel uncomfortable all over.
Ye Shubai's gaze swept across everyone, and when it fell on Bao Pilong and Zhu Erchong, he nodded slightly at them.
The embarrassment on their faces was immediately swept away, and they smiled foolishly while holding their empty wine glasses, and they couldn't hide their smug looks. See, I'm not bragging, Master Ye is just good to us brothers!
What made them even more overjoyed was that Ye Shubai called them by their names: "Zhu Erchong, Bao Pilong."
"Why!"
"How is your sword training going? Come to the Tenth Peak someday and let me see it."
"… "
The smiles on Zhu Erchong and Bao Pilong's faces froze. Amid the shocked and envious gazes of the other disciples, they recalled the fear they had felt when they were practicing sword skills with Ye Shubai.
Ye Shubai calmly shifted his gaze away from them and finally looked at Liu Luoyin, who had an anxious look on his face.
"I know about your father's affairs. Take me to see him."
Wen Yun was very angry and was even too lazy to ride Ye Shubai's flying sword. He picked out a round piece of firewood from the ones given by his third senior brother, threw it into the sky, and used the sword-controlling technique to make the sword fly steadily.
When she went up to the sky, the senior brothers and sisters below were all dumbfounded and almost bit their tongues.
"Junior Sister Wen, what... did you control?"
"Why doesn't Junior Sister Wen fly a sword, but a fire stick?"
Liu Luoyin was in a hurry, so he took the two of them and flew straight to the top of the first peak. Ye Shubai followed closely behind with his sword, but his eyes were always following Wen Yun. He asked in a gentle voice: "Do you want to come over?"
Wen Yun quietly gathered the golden energy in his dantian, and the wooden stick under his feet suddenly flew in front of Ye Shubai.
It is impossible to flip the stick. She has now mastered the sword-wielding technique and is no longer the sword-dizzy girl of the past.
After jumping off the wooden stick steadily, Liu Luoyin wiped her tears and hurried towards the cave where Liu Zhengxu was in seclusion. Wen Yun was about to follow her, but Ye Shubai, who was half a step behind her, gently pulled her back.
"Are you mad at me?"
Wen Yun is not a stubborn person. She will speak out when she is unhappy. So she nodded and said, "Yes, you actually came to save Liu Zhengxu. I feel very uncomfortable."
She couldn't stand this kind of drama of repaying evil with kindness. Even if Liu Zhengxu wasn't among those who stole his jade baby, he was undoubtedly an accomplice. In Wen Yun's opinion, not causing trouble for Liu Zhengxu was already magnanimous. Why should she save him? It wasn't them who caused him to fail in his attempt to cross the tribulation realm.
It’s my own fault, who can I blame
Ye Shubai tilted his head to look at her, with a hint of smile in his eyes, and said gently: "I'm not here to save him."
"So are you here to watch the fun?" Wen Yun turned his head away in surprise. He didn't realize that Ye Shubai had such a bad side in his character
He laughed and asked in a low voice: "Do you still remember what Mo You said at that time?"
Wen Yun answered truthfully: "He talked a lot, I can't remember clearly."
"He said that the reason why Liu Zhengxu was able to survive the calamity was also due to his handiwork. I just wanted to find out the truth."
The voice stopped abruptly. Liu Luoyin in front had already used the token to unlock the spirit formation and open the cave. He wiped away the tears from his eyes, turned back to look at Ye Shubai, and said in a hoarse voice: "Senior Ye, my father is in there now."
There was a screen in the cave, and the people inside seemed to hear the noise outside, and a warning voice came out -
"who?"
"Father, it's me." Liu Luoyin was waiting outside. The tears she had just wiped away flowed out again. She sobbed and said, "I asked my master to help you. You are saved."
"Senior... is this Uncle Master Ouyang?" The voice inside was weak and seemed to be about to dissipate at any time, but at this moment, it suddenly regained its spirit and raised its voice: "Luo Yin, get out. I have something to say to your great master."
Liu Luoyin glanced at Ye Shubai. The news of Elder Ouyang's death shocked her father, so she didn't dare to say who the visitor was. She also knew that her father was in danger, so she didn't dare to leave. She just took half a step back to hide her figure, looking behind the screen with red eyes.
Her father couldn't bear to see her worrying about her and had been unwilling to see her until now. She didn't dare to disobey her father's orders, but she couldn't bear to leave at this moment.
Fortunately, Ye Shubai had no intention of stopping her. Perhaps what they wanted to discuss was not a big deal, so she stayed here.
Liu Zhengxu no longer had the energy to find out who was outside. He took a breath after each word he spoke, his voice breaking: "Master, since you are willing to save me, do you believe me? It is true that I did not kill Master Dongfang... I dare not covet the white jade..."
Another cold voice answered him: "I killed him."
The moment he heard the sound, Liu Zhengxu, who was lying flat with his eyes closed, suddenly opened his eyes wide. His weak breathing became rapid and heavy, and his whole body began to tremble uncontrollably as if he had been struck by lightning.
He slowly turned his head.
Then I saw the slender figure on the screen move, and a very young man walked out from behind. He was wearing the most common white shirt of Qingliu Sword Sect, without any decoration, and only holding a wooden sword in his hand.
Liu Zhengxu's eyes were bloodshot and he made a vague sound of "ah" from his mouth, but he couldn't even utter a complete sentence. His originally limp body was struggling desperately at this moment, and finally fell to the ground with a bang.
Liu Luoyin was anxious when she heard the noise and subconsciously wanted to rush in to help, but Wen Yun held her back: "He won't hurt your father."
Because there is no need.
Ye Shubai looked down at the man lying on the ground, who looked like a rotten wood, and frowned slightly.
He had actually met Liu Zhengxu several times before the great battle between good and evil.
At that time, Ye Shubai was still a world-famous swordsmanship genius of the Qingliu Sword Sect. Due to his high seniority, most of the younger generations under him were older than him, with the exception of Liu Zhengxu, who was a rare nephew who was younger than him.
Liu Zhengxu's grandfather was one of the four supreme elders of the sect and Ye Shubai's fourth master, while his father was the head of the sect.
Because of this relationship, Liu Zhengxu often came to the valley to practice sword. At that time, he was still a young boy, holding a small wooden sword and following Ye Shubai, learning in an accurate manner. The Fourth Master smiled and said that Ye Shubai was his master, and he would be filial to Ye Shubai in the future.
Later, the great war between good and evil broke out. From the mortal world to the world of cultivation, there was no peace in the four continents. Almost all the disciples of Qingliu Sword Sect, from the supreme elder to the disciples in the foundation-building stage, drew their swords and went down the mountain to slay demons and defend the way.
During those ten years, all four supreme elders of the Qingliu Sword Sect who were at the Tribulation Realm died, the sect leader died, all the elders and peak masters at the Spirit Transformation Realm died, and those with lower cultivation levels suffered countless casualties, and the entire sect was severely damaged.
At that time, Liu Zhengxu had grown into a young man and started to manage the affairs of the sect. On the day when Ye Shubai was about to leave, he stood at the gate of the mountain in a desolate manner, his voice still hoarse as a teenager, and said solemnly: "Uncle Ye, I will wait for you to come back."
And the young boy with a childish face back then 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 is more like a ghost.
Due to the failure in his attempt to break through the Tribulation Realm, the spiritual energy in his body had begun to break through his body and dissipate. His skin was dry and wrinkled like the bark of rotten wood, and it was filled with a gray and dead aura. His face was incredibly old, with white hair and a haggard appearance. Only his two bulging eyes, which occasionally turned, showed some vitality.
He stared at Ye Shubai, his face half crying and half laughing, and finally he called out in a trembling voice: "Uncle Master Ye."
This voice was filled with a myriad of complex emotions, including shock, regret, fear and terror. This was the huge rock that had been weighing on his heart for hundreds of years, and now it had finally fallen before his eyes.
Ye Shubai didn't say anything. Liu Zhengxu asked in a hoarse and panicked voice, "Did you kill Master Dongfang? What about Master Ouyang?"
He didn't even need to answer, he had already guessed the answer, he closed his eyes and sighed resignedly: "You have already avenged the two of them, so you are here to kill me."
"I don't need to do anything." Ye Shubai calmly stated the facts: "You won't live for more than two days now."
Hearing this, Liu Luoyin covered her mouth, slowly collapsed to the ground in disbelief, and sobbed.
"It's all retribution." Liu Zhengxu huddled on the ground, and seemed to have realized the reality. His eyes brightened, and he seemed to have suddenly regained some strength. He said word by word: "Although I didn't take advantage of your injury to attack you like they did, I covered up all their evil deeds afterwards and helped them slowly erase your existence..."
He covered his face with his skinny hands, tears rolling down his cheeks. “I didn’t mean to harm Master Ye, but Masters Dongfang and Ouyang were the only two left in our sect at the time. Although the demon cultivators had retreated, our sect suffered the most casualties. Other major sects had long been eyeing us covetously. If we didn’t have the support of a powerful transcender, I’m afraid we would have been devoured completely.”
"Uncle Master Ye, can you forgive me for the sake of grandfather and father? Grandfather has always loved you a thousand times more than me. In order to teach you, he rarely taught me swordsmanship. Father also took care of you everywhere and put you first in everything. The resources and skills were all left over by you before I got a share... You call them Master and Senior Brother, do you remember?"
"My grandfather was beheaded by a demon cultivator in order to protect the four continents, and my father was eaten by poisonous insects of a demon cultivator in order to protect the sect. Before they died, they asked you to help me guard the sect. Do you remember?"
There was no wave in Ye Shubai's eyes, and he didn't feel any sympathy at all because of his words.
Perhaps five hundred years ago he would have been moved by such righteousness and warmth, but by now he has long seen through that behind the so-called righteousness, there may be selfish motives.
At first, Liu Zhengxu might really have done it for the stability of the sect, but later he took credit for Ye Shubai's achievements, suppressed the Tenth Peak and marginalized it little by little. Was all this also for the sect
His master had always taught him to be a kind person, but Wen Yun also taught him that he should put away his kindness when facing evil people.
Seeing that Ye Shubai did not refute, Liu Zhengxu felt some hope in his heart. He crawled at his feet like a dog, sobbing and begging hoarsely: "Master Ye, save me, Master Ye, save me... You can kill them both, you must have recovered your cultivation. Only you can save me, how can you not save me? I don't want to die. The sect will be in chaos without its leader. I have to come out to take charge of the affairs."
He uttered some unclear words, tears streaming down his face, the vitality in his body was exhausted, his cultivation level kept declining, and now he was not even at the Qi Refining Stage, with only some residual spiritual power left.
However, Ye Shubai just sighed and told him: "Liu Zhengxu, no one can save you in your current state."
Liu Zhengxu panted and laughed at himself: "For thousands of years, we have felt that the path to immortality was cut off and there was no hope of ascending to heaven, so we did not believe in the law of cause and effect. But now the law of cause and effect has finally fallen on me. My failure to overcome the tribulation is the result of the cause I sowed in the past..."
"It's not that cause and effect." Ye Shubai looked at him indifferently. "After you went into seclusion, the Xie family was overthrown after their collusion with the demon cultivators was exposed. The so-called secret method that the Xie family gave you to break through the tribulation is also a method of the demon cultivators. In fact, it just consumes your lifespan to force a breakthrough. Whether you succeed or not, you will die. Didn't you realize that your lifespan is now exhausted?"
"What? How could the Xie family collude with the demon cultivators..."
Liu Zhengxu couldn't believe it. He had even planned to let Liu Luoyin and Xie Mi'an become a Taoist couple. When he heard the news, he was shocked.
"You said every word for the sect, but you didn't realize that you believed the evil cultivator's words and almost caused the sect to be destroyed by the evil cultivator."
After Ye Shubai finished speaking, he threw over a jade slip that recorded the affairs of the Xie family.
Once Liu Zhengxu dies, his body will most likely be controlled by Mo You and become a puppet. Then the Qingliu Sword Sect will most likely become the second Xie family and cease to exist.
Liu Zhengxu crawled over trembling, holding the jade slip with bloodshot eyes, and used the last bit of his spiritual power to read the message inside.
This jade slip came from the Wan family, who are the most well-informed. Every month, they would collect various major events in the world of cultivation and record them in jade slips to sell. This jade slip was given to Wan Baocai when he left the Xuantian Secret Realm.
Liu Zhengxu tightly grasped the jade slip, raised his head, and could hardly believe what he saw and heard. The last bit of life he had just had seemed to have finally been exhausted. After vomiting a mouthful of black blood, he howled miserably.
"My Liu family has been a sword sect for generations... I have also spent my entire life as a sword sect..."
"I am a sword master..."
I worked so hard for the Sword Sect, but in the end every step I took was wrong
The voice of a dying person is mournful and desperate, mixed with all kinds of emotions and regret.
Liu Luoyin ran in crying, but she only saw the withered body of Liu Zhengxu. The spiritual power he had cultivated for hundreds of years had returned to heaven and earth, and his flesh and blood were damaged. The once highly respected Master Liu was finally reduced to a pile of bones.
The bright and beautiful girl raised her head and cried bitterly, tears of blood flowing down her pale face.
"Father, wake up! Look at Luo Yin! I am your Yin Yin!"
"Father, please pay attention to me!"
“Daddy!”
Wen Yun sighed and looked up, only to see a hint of loneliness between Ye Shubai's brows. Then she remembered that Liu Zhengxu seemed to be his last old friend.
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 that Liu Zhengxu failed in his tribulation and died spread very quickly.
Since the death of Elder Ouyang, the elders and disciples of the First Peak lost a major support and no longer dared to act arrogantly as usual. They just stayed quietly on the peak, eagerly waiting for Master Liu to come out.
But I never expected that what I was waiting for was another bad news.
The First Peak, which was once the most luxurious, was quietly covered in plain white. The golden carved beams and painted buildings were covered with black and white gauze. The red candles were replaced with white ones. The disciples knelt in the hall, and each of them looked like they had lost their souls.
Because the deceased was the leader of a sect, all the masters and disciples of other peaks needed to come to pay their respects. Liu Luo had red and swollen eyes and had long forgotten to cry. He dully led the visitors to kneel and burn incense, and thanked them numbly, as if he had lost his soul.
The people from the Tenth Peak naturally did not go there. They heard all this from the other peak masters who came to the peak later.
These peak masters are actually quite young. In terms of seniority, some call Ye Shubai "grandmaster" or "uncle master". In short, they are all juniors.
They were not yet born during the great war between good and evil, so naturally they had no idea what happened back then. At most, they had heard of the name from their ancestors and knew that this was an extremely outstanding senior. As for the Tenth Peak, they only thought it was a name casually made up by a few rebellious seniors.
After all, the Tenth Peak is too small and too short. Compared with the other nine peaks, it looks nothing like a small hill.
But today they all came to this small hill, and stood in the courtyard with their backs bent and extremely respectful. Their posture was even more obedient than that of the six little kids at the foot of the hill who had not yet cultivated their Qi.
"Master Ye, we have sent people to the First Peak to help with the rest of the matter, so you don't have to worry." The one who spoke was the master of the Second Peak, who was also Zhu Erchong's master. These two were indeed master and disciple. They both looked handsome swordsmen with fine eyebrows and eyes, but their true natures were revealed within two sentences -
"There are some people who always like to complain, such as old man Hong Zhuo. I... No, I slapped him on the spot, and he has now become obedient.
Ye Shubai didn't care too much, he just raised his eyelids lazily: "Since there is nothing else, you can go back."
"No... Actually, we are here for something."
The head of the second peak hesitated for a long time and was unable to speak. Finally, Zi Yun from the sixth peak stepped out, saluted gracefully, and said respectfully: "Master Ye..."
Wen Yun, who was holding the little fire dragon and basking in the sun, coughed lightly and reminded in a low voice: "Senior Sister Ziyun, you can just call me uncle."
After all, everyone in the Tenth Peak knew that Xu Wanfeng and Ziyun watched the sunrise and sunset, talked about life and ideals, and according to the rules... she could follow Xu Wanfeng and move up a generation.
Elder Ziyun's beautiful face flushed, but she remained calm and said, "Now that the Sect Master has passed away, the Sect needs someone to take charge of the overall situation. We should elect a Sect Master as soon as possible."
Ye Shubai said calmly: "Liu Zhengxu has a daughter."
The leader of Qingliu Sword Sect has always been surnamed Liu, because the predecessors who founded the sect were from the Liu family. It has become a custom to select the leader from the Liu family.
Elder Ziyun sighed and said, "Luo Yin is a talented girl, but she is still young, and a sect leader in the Golden Core stage... I'm afraid she can't take charge of the sect."
Several peak masters bowed silently, and it seemed that these words were what all of them thought.
It's not about suppressing the First Peak, nor is it about seizing power from the Liu Family, but Liu Luoyin is really not capable enough. How can a mere Jindan-stage cultivator be competent for the important task of being the head of the First Sect
It would be fine if she could reach the Nascent Soul stage like Wen Yun, but she is still very far from it now. She may not be able to break through within a hundred years. The sect cannot wait for her for a hundred years. The leader is the face of the sect. The most suitable person now is Ye Shubai, who has unfathomable strength!
"The disciples beg Uncle Ye to come out and take over as the head of the sect!"
The eight peak masters kowtowed and bowed together.
Wen Yun glanced dimly in the direction of Ye Shubai. If she remembered correctly, the Fourth Master had indeed thought of letting Ye Shubai become the head of the sect. However, the First Master said that such a thing was troublesome and it was right for him to focus on practicing sword skills. So his words became a joke.
But he didn't expect that after five hundred years, 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 would not interfere in such matters, so she just calmly touched the round head of the sleeping little fire dragon. She accidentally touched the dragon's mouth and was bitten again.
She took a cold breath, and threw the unfortunate thing in her arms down the mountain.
"Ah! What hit my head... Eh? Junior Sister Wen, why did you drop your pig?"
Xu Wanfeng brought the little fire dragon up with its pair of wings with a look of disgust, and when he walked into the yard he found the peak master kneeling on the ground.
He greeted them with a smile: "Why are all of you here, my fellow apprentices?"
"… "
The peak masters looked at the baby face and quickly lowered their heads, pretending they didn't see it.
Fortunately, Xu Wanfeng did not intend to take advantage of him this time. He threw the little fire dragon to Wen Yun, then bowed respectfully in the direction of Ye Shubai and said seriously, "Master, someone is coming outside."
"The Jiang family, the Yu family, the Wan family, Chuixue Island, and Tianyin Temple have all gathered outside the mountain gate, saying they are here to pay their respects to Old Dog Ouyang and Sect Leader Liu."