ILDV Chapter 33

Leaving the rental point, before Shen Muxuan could open his mouth to question her, Li Baisu hastily explained first, “Jin Yue wasn’t sent by me.”

Jin Yue was at the early Soul Separation stage, among the peak masters also belonging to the lowest tier in terms of status. Although through various connections he could be considered under Li Baisu’s command, he absolutely didn’t have the qualification or honor to be directly commanded by a Tribulation stage elder.

Yin Lang believed this.

“Muxuan naturally trusts Martial Aunt.” Shen Muxuan took out a Healing Spirit Pill and stuffed it into his disciple’s palm, without looking back. “But the one who suffered this unwarranted disaster wasn’t Muxuan. What use is it if only I trust you?”

Li Baisu naturally heard the underlying meaning and frowned.

Tianji was at the Mahayana stage and also wielded the Tianji Divine Sword. It was nothing for her to explain herself, but what gave this little Foundation Establishment disciple such a big face?

Li Baisu couldn’t afford to lose this face.

She made a promise on her own accord, “This lady will immediately investigate who instigated Jin Yue upon returning and will certainly give you a proper explanation.”

Li Baisu left in a hurry.

Xu Rong imperceptibly glanced at her retreating figure, and his eyes immediately reddened. “Master…”

He didn’t continue speaking, just looked up at Yin Lang with teary eyes.

But Yin Lang suddenly asked, “Disciple, the situation was too chaotic earlier and I haven’t had time to ask—how did you break through during battle? Don’t you know that the convergence of internal and external spiritual power is a critical matter that cannot tolerate any mistakes?”

Xu Rong had acted in desperate determination at that time, treating a dead horse as if it were alive and gambling everything on one throw. Who knew he would actually succeed? Now being questioned about it, he showed a rare expression of genuine bewilderment and lingering fear.

Seeing his reaction, Shen Muxuan revealed a rather subtle expression that vanished in an instant. Probably considering that his disciple had indeed suffered quite a fright, he didn’t scold him much, just offered a few gentle words of comfort before moving on.

“I’ve tidied up Tianji Peak. Go back and find a place you like for your residence. Don’t wander around outside for the next few days, focus on recovering from your injuries.” Looking at his disciple’s uneasy expression, Shen Muxuan reached out and ruffled his fluffy head. “Elder Li will provide a proper explanation for Jin Yue’s attack. Don’t overthink those messy things.”

Xu Rong’s eyes rolled, looking aggrieved. “Master, can Elder Li really find out who deliberately tried to harm me? They did it so openly—clearly they’re not afraid of being investigated…”

This was practically saying outright that Li Baisu had orchestrated the whole thing herself.

The entire Taihua Immortal Sect knew that the Sword-Wielding faction and the Law Enforcement faction had been at odds for a long time. Even those who thought the sect master’s judgment was biased believed that Tianji Daojun actually stood with the Sword-Wielding faction, which wasn’t surprising.

Xu Rong received a slap on the back of his head. “Overthinking.”

Shen Muxuan said, “You only need to know that Martial Aunt Li actually isn’t as enthusiastic about power struggles as she appears on the surface.”

Shen Muxuan refused to say more. Xu Rong only felt he was too lazy to deal with his own questions, or else hadn’t seen through that vicious woman’s true face.

Ever since advancing to the Tribulation stage, Li Baisu had basically devoted all her remaining time to winning people over and consolidating power. How could she not be enthusiastic about power?

However, he didn’t think that just once would be enough to make Shen Muxuan raise his guard against Li Baisu and develop suspicions. The seed of doubt had been planted—sooner or later it would grow into a towering tree.

Xu Rong found a courtyard to rest in. Yin Lang stood beside a blood-red flower patch that had bloomed overnight, unconsciously crushing the soft petals between his fingers.

Those words about the ‘Dao’ that had slipped out so naturally, as if already thoroughly familiar. 

The unprecedented breakthrough during battle.

The mortal prince whom the Heavenly Dao had schemed and used both threats and enticements to have him take as a disciple.

——Just what kind of extraordinary background did this mortal named ‘Xu Rong’ have?

Yin Lang most detested this kind of thing slipping beyond his control.

Unpredictable, ethereal and intangible, like flowing clouds passing through his fingers—unable to see where they came from, unable to calculate where they were going, only making him increasingly irritated.

Li Baisu returned in a fury and summoned all her disciples and grand-disciples except Tu Feng to her palace.

Everyone looked at each other, all bewildered about why such a commotion had suddenly been raised.

Hua Feiying spotted Hua Qilan from afar, squeezed through the crowd to her daughter’s side, and carefully took her hand. Considering the people around them, she could only ask vaguely, “You haven’t encountered any problems these past days, have you?”

Hua Qilan shook her head, and only then did Hua Feiying reluctantly set down her worries.

A nearby Integration stage peak master smiled kindly. “Qilan has long since grown into a young lady. With you as her mother and master here, who in the entire Taihua Immortal Sect would dare slight her?”

Hua Feiying reflexively returned a smile, her mind so unsettled she didn’t even see the other person’s face clearly. “You’re too kind.”

While several people chatted below, soon Li Baisu entered with a cold face and raised her hand to slam the door shut heavily.

“This lady has no time for idle talk with you all.”

After closing the door, she directly turned around on the spot, holding a long ribbon in one hand and impatiently rubbing it back and forth. “Whoever did it, stand out yourself. Don’t waste this lady’s time. You all know this lady’s temper—consider carefully the difference between standing out yourself versus being dragged out!”

The disciples and grand-disciples who had been scolded looked completely bewildered.

Li Baisu was extremely irritable. She had only gone to probe for information and show sincerity, but these troublesome disciples and grand-disciples had turned around and caused such a huge mess for her, directly making her efforts worthless and forcing her to suppress her temper and bow in apology to a junior like Shen Muxuan.

Ahhh——so infuriating!

Why was it that Feng Jiangcheng’s two disciples were each more reliable and capable than the last, while she had recruited a whole bunch but didn’t have a single presentable one!

Li Baisu refused to admit to her dying breath that this was the result of her insistence years ago on building her own power base.

The Heavenly Dao is supremely impartial—how could there be such a good thing as enjoying power without fulfilling obligations?

****

Lin Xinqiao slowly blinked her eyes.

Her spiritual roots had been destroyed in the secret realm. The once bright and charming young lady now lay withered like skeletal remains on the bed. If not for the slight rise and fall of her chest, the attending servants would have almost thought she was a corpse.

If the destruction of the Jihe Alliance had bent her proud spine, then having her spiritual roots destroyed and being cut off from the immortal path forever had completely broken what remained of her backbone.

Lin Xinqiao thought, having come to this point, what meaning was there in her continuing to live?

Her clan had been destroyed, her spiritual roots ruined.

The first enemy was a Tribulation stage Demon Venerable, the second enemy was already the personal disciple of a Mahayana stage Daojun. She was a cripple—how could she possibly take revenge on these two?

This life was hopeless. Better to die and be done with it.

The door opened with a creak. Seeing Lin Xinqiao’s posture about to fall off the bed, the young man in wide-sleeved robes frowned slightly and quickly stepped forward, flicking his sleeve to support her back onto the bed.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”

Lin Xinqiao looked up at him, tears flowing uncontrollably. Her voice hoarse, she cried, “Master, stop caring about me. Just let me die. I truly cannot endure even one more day of this existence, lying in bed waiting to die.”

“What nonsense!” Her master lightly scolded. “It’s only lost spiritual roots. In the vast Lantian Continent, can there really be no secret method to restore spiritual roots? Moreover, when your father passed away, your master swore to care for his orphaned child. How could I watch you die with my own eyes?”

He soothingly rubbed the top of the young girl’s head, consoling her gently, “Your parents’ grievances remain unavenged. If you go down so easily like this, how could you have the face to meet your elders? Having your spiritual roots destroyed by Xu Rong’s sneak attack from behind—do you truly have no resentment, no desire to make him taste the same painful suffering as you?”

“Of course I want to!”

“If you have a goal, then pursue it.” The young man cut off the latter half of Lin Xinqiao’s sentence, pressing on her shoulders and crouching down to meet her eyes at the same level. “Believe in yourself. Master will certainly find a way to restore your spiritual roots and let you become once again that proud and confident Lin Xinqiao of the Jihe Alliance.”

****

Northern Demon Territory.

Chao Liang was somewhat panicked.

Although he had instigated Jiao Yuyu to cause trouble for Yin Lang, his goal had merely been to sow discord between the two and incidentally probe whether the Seventh Venerable, well-informed about the recent undercurrents in the Northern Demon Territory, knew anything.

Who knew that in less than half a month, the latest news would arrive——Yan Guihe was finished.

Chao Liang: “……”

To use a more vivid analogy, he thought he had played a pair of threes, only to discover after throwing them out that they were actually bomb cards.

Chao Liang was completely stunned on the spot, with just a tiny bit of regret at not being able to prepare in advance.

…All right, it was overwhelming regret surging like tidal waves.

Yan Guihe ranked third, he Chao Liang ranked fourth. Jiuyou Court and his sphere of influence naturally shared large overlapping border regions.

If he had prepared in advance, he could have swallowed nearly a third of Yan Guihe’s power the very moment Jiuyou Court fell into chaos! The possibility of challenging for the position of Third Venerable in one go was extremely high!

…Unfortunately, he hadn’t.

Even after discovering that Jiuyou Court had fallen into chaos, Chao Liang hadn’t been able to react immediately. Instead, he had cautiously observed the situation for three days. Only after news came that Yan Guihe was severely injured and missing did he finally give free rein and order his subordinates to begin annexing Jiuyou Court’s forces.

But by this time, the First and Second Venerables who also shared borders, and even teams sent by the later-ranked Venerables to fish in troubled waters, had all already mixed into this muddy situation. Chao Liang had completely lost his initial advantage and had no choice but to compete with the other Demon Venerables in frustration, with countless small conflicts and frictions between them.

“How strange, the First Venerable actually didn’t send out his most capable subordinate?”

Chao Liang propped up his chin, thinking seriously. “By all logic, such a fat piece of meat as Yan Guihe’s Jiuyou Court should make even the First Venerable’s heart stir. Could it be he has something more important than dividing up Jiuyou Court?”

After thinking for a long time without reaching any conclusion, Chao Liang simply gave up.

Forget it, whatever. Whether he discovered fragments of the legendary Primordial Jade or some even more important secret treasure, it had nothing to do with him, Chao Liang.

Not everyone wanted to ascend, after all.

His carefree attitude didn’t last three days before it crumbled.

“What did you say? Say it again for this Venerable!”

Chao Liang was so angry his eyes were turning red. The subordinate before him was also pressed flat to the ground by the Demon Venerable’s overwhelming pressure, his voice squeezing out through clenched teeth. “Re-reporting to the Venerable, the First Venerable’s forces suddenly surged en masse into Jiuyou City. People from Jiuyou Court at various strongholds have also opened their defenses to the First Venerable’s forces…”

“This subordinate suspects that Jiuyou Court, having lost its Demon Venerable, has chosen to pledge allegiance entirely to the First Venerable!”