CHAPTER 20

— Factional Strife —

"Senior Brother, Senior Brother, why did you think of coming to pick up me and Young Master Ding? Do you know about the plan to steal the elixirs?"

"Quiet."

"Senior Brother, Senior Brother, aren't we supposed to return to Qiuye Peak? Why did we suddenly turn around?"

"Stop nagging."

"Senior Brother, Senior Brother, my head feels so dizzy..."

"Idiot."

Su Yan irritably reached out to catch Tong Tong, who nearly collapsed, and after a moment's thought, picked her up in his arms, swiftly heading toward Luoxia Peak.

She had held on for so long—the effects of the pills were finally taking hold. Eight Baining Pills! It was a miracle she hadn't exploded from the overload!

She wanted to sneer but instead pressed her lips tightly together, a flicker of concern flashing in her eyes.

A few hours earlier, when He Gu came to her with the note Ding Ding had left behind, she knew something would go wrong.

Yin Xiaoxiang had always been dissatisfied with their master taking over as Sect leader, leading to constant overt and covert competition between Xiangzhu Peak and Qiuye Peak.

Usually, playing small tricks was one thing, and stealing some ordinary pills would likely be overlooked by Yin Xiaoxiang without much fuss. But when it involved top-grade pills, the severity was incomparable.

Everyone in Chonghua knew how much effort she had poured into this batch of Baining Pills, and the news that this batch was of top-grade quality had further elevated the status of Xiangzhu Peak's disciples within Chonghua.

—Baining Pills, crafted from a hundred rare medicinal herbs, refined in the Kui-Dragon Li-Fire Furnace, and condensed with the icy snow water of the Heavenly Pool, were top-grade pills for consolidating cultivation and nourishing meridians. They were particularly effective in breaking through cultivation barriers. In other words, if a cultivator stuck at the peak of Foundation Establishment took just one Baining Pill, their chances of forming a Golden Core would increase by at least thirty percent!

For other cultivators—especially those at a bottleneck—such a rare and miraculous pill was now wasted by a mere Qi Refining novice. Not only did the girl in white want to beat her up, but even Su Yan felt the urge to give her a good thrashing.

—She was now at the peak of Golden Core cultivation, just one step away from reaching Nascent Soul!

Of course, the path of cultivation grew increasingly difficult the further one progressed. Relying solely on pills for assistance was not the proper way. Moreover, mere Baining Pills might be useful for those below Golden Core, but for an expert like her, who was nearing Nascent Soul, they offered little benefit. Otherwise, Su Yan wasn't sure what she might do to the unconscious girl in her arms.

She retracted the Changhong Sword before landing and continued carrying her without pause toward her cave dwelling, her brows furrowed in irritation. Even when Jiya approached, she gave it a cold look and sent it outside to guard the entrance.

Unlike Master Ye Zhiqiu's elegant and lofty Jiuhan Palace or Yin Xiaoxiang's magnificent Caiyun Palace, Su Yan's cave dwelling truly lived up to the word "cave"—it was a hollowed-out cavern halfway up the mountain.

She had no particular preferences for her residence and couldn't be bothered with elaborate decorations, prioritizing simplicity and comfort above all. Thus, aside from the entire cave being constructed from top-grade spirit stones at Ye Zhiqiu's insistence, the only sign of a high-ranking disciple's prestige was the pure white beast fur rugs covering the floor.

—Spirit stones were the primary currency in the cultivation world and an essential resource for cultivation, generally categorized into top, middle, and low grades. Top-grade spirit stones were exceptionally rare and seldom used in transactions.

In typical cultivation clans, a single mid-grade spirit stone could sustain a young disciple's cultivation needs for an entire year. With an exchange rate of one to a hundred between different grades of spirit stones, it was clear just how lavishly Sect Leader Ye had invested in her beloved disciple.

Amid such abundant spiritual energy, one's cultivation progress would naturally far outpace that of ordinary individuals, let alone someone with Su Yan's exceptional talent.

Of course, Sect Leader Ye's blatant favoritism was also why Su Yan's Luoxia Peak had become one of the few forbidden zones within the Chonghua Sect.

As for Tong Tong, who had already broken multiple first-time records on Luoxia Peak, she unknowingly added another to the list—becoming the first and only woman ever carried into Su Yan's cave abode by the man himself. Had the two parties involved not been one stern and aloof, the other unconscious, the scene could easily have been spun into a tale of romantic intrigue.

After a moment of hesitation, and considering Tong Tong's delicate constitution, Su Yan ultimately placed her on her own bed, taking her wrist to check her pulse.

To her surprise, she did not detect the turbulent, chaotic pulse she had expected. Instead, it flowed like a dragon set free in the vast ocean—calm, unrestrained, and at ease. While relieved, a flicker of doubt arose in her heart.

A day later, news from Xiangzhu Peak only deepened her unease, leaving her with a sense of being entangled in some conspiracy.

Assuming she would need time to fully absorb the medicinal energy, Su Yan settled Tong Tong inside the cave and instructed Jiya to keep watch. She decided that the most urgent matter now was to head to the Jiuhan Palace and consult her master.

Upon arriving at the hall, however, she found that someone had already beaten her to it.

"Sect Leader Junior Sister, I presume you understand the purpose of my visit," Yin Xiaoxiang said with a deceptively sweet smile, reclining gracefully in the chair beside the main seat. "This batch of supreme-grade Baining Pills is not my personal property—it belongs to the entire Chonghua Sect. Now that your little disciple has stolen them, shouldn't you give everyone a reasonable explanation?" Her words cleverly elevated the matter to a higher level, a move that could only be described as insidious.

What was originally a conflict between two peaks was twisted by her into an act of Qiuye Peak harming the entire Chonghua Sect. With such a heavy accusation leveled, even the Chonghua Sect Leader would have to respond with caution.

Seated on the main throne, Ye Zhiqiu elegantly sipped from her teacup. Just as Yin Xiaoxiang felt her forced smile beginning to strain, Ye Zhiqiu finally set the cup down and spoke gently, "Senior Sister Yin, I too am deeply distressed by the theft of the Baining Pills. Therefore, I will not hold Xiangzhu Peak accountable for its negligence in security... As for Little Seven, she is young and naive, with a lively and restless nature. Her accidental intrusion into the alchemy room was merely a coincidence. I have already punished her with confinement for reflection—let us consider this matter closed."

The underlying message was clear: "Without evidence, stop spouting nonsense. It's better to downplay the issue for everyone's benefit."

Bang! Yin Xiaoxiang could no longer maintain her elegant demeanor—not that she had much to begin with—and slammed her palm onto the table beside her. The priceless Crackle-Glazed Cold-Jade Cup rattled and shattered into pieces. "Ye Zhiqiu, don't you dare play dumb with this old lady! An entire shelf of elixirs! Aren't you afraid of bursting? Hand over the Baining Pills and the rest of the pills now! Or don't blame this old lady for disregarding our sect sisterhood and tearing down your Jiuhan Palace! This old lady is a woman of her word!"

T/N: [In this translation, using "this old lady" for 老娘 (lǎoniáng) adds a layer of aggressive, self-assertive arrogance. It shows she is so enraged that she has abandoned all formal "Peak Master" etiquette to speak like a street-tough or a fierce matriarch.]

Her repeated use of "old lady" flowed smoothly from her lips, leaving no trace of the dignity expected of a peak master.

"Tsk." Ye Zhiqiu gazed heartbrokenly at the teacup that had truly earned its name as "Crackle-Glazed," yet her face remained wreathed in a smile, as if she didn't mind Yin Xiaoxiang's audacious behavior in the slightest. "Senior Sister Yin, your fiery temper hasn't changed a bit! However," her tone shifted abruptly, and even Su Yan at the far end of the hall could sense the astonishing aura—the sharp, imposing sword intent unique to Chonghua's top master, "I acknowledge that you are indeed a thousand years my senior, but that does not grant you the right to disregard my authority as the Sect leader."

As Yin Xiaoxiang glared at her with a mix of fury and apprehension, a voice as cold as jade leisurely added, "The crime of disrespecting the Sect leader is no light matter... Martial Aunt Yin."

"You!" Yin Xiaoxiang, cut off mid-sentence, nearly twisted her beautiful face in rage. The thick layer of pearl powder she wore began to flake off like a shattered porcelain mask. "Don't push me too far!"

"Yan'er, mind your manners." Though it was a reprimand, Ye Zhiqiu's face was filled with doting amusement, making it seem more like praise for her beloved disciple.

The master and disciple played off each other perfectly, leaving Yin Xiaoxiang so enraged that she stormed off in a huff.

"Just you wait! This isn't over!" She had arrived swiftly and left just as abruptly, her flamboyant rose-gold embroidered robe swishing sharply behind her, leaving the two junior disciples tasked with holding its hem scrambling in confusion.

"Pfft... hahaha..." Ding Ding, who had been keeping his head down like a statue, immediately jumped up to mock her the moment she left. "Was that old hag here just to make a fool of herself? Ahahaha..."

He Gu, who had also kept her head lowered, glanced worriedly at Ye Zhiqiu, who sat smiling silently in the main seat, and discreetly tugged at the oblivious Ding Ding—who paid no attention.

"Is it funny?" Ye Zhiqiu asked with a gentle smile, her tone so soft it was hard to detect the sharpness hidden within.

"Haha... ha... um... n-no, not funny..." Ding Ding forced out a few awkward laughs, nervously rubbing the tip of his nose. He glanced uneasily at Ye Zhiqiu, whose smile remained unchanged, then at He Gu, who kept her eyes fixed on the ground, and finally at Su Yan, who maintained an air of detached indifference. Alarm bells began ringing in his mind.

Unfortunately, Ye Zhiqiu had no intention of letting him off. Still smiling, she asked in a tone even someone as dense as Ding Ding could tell was laced with anger, "Little Six, tell me—if your Second Senior Sister hadn't taken advantage of the chaos to sneak you out, what were the odds you could have escaped unscathed?"

"Uh..." Ding Ding guiltily fiddled with his fingers, at a loss for words.

"Let me ask you again—if you had been caught by the people of Xiangzhu Peak, how would you have handled it?"

"This... uh..." A cold sweat had already broken out on Ding Ding's forehead.

"Where did you place the dignity of Qiuye Peak? Where did you place the rules and discipline of the Chonghua Sect? Where did you place my authority as Sect leader?" A series of rhetorical questions, delivered in a flat tone, pierced straight to his heart, leaving him unable to utter a single word in response.

"Master, I was wrong..." Ding Ding knelt down, crestfallen and filled with shame.

"What angers me most is this—why did you choose the shelves of the alchemy room instead of the Caiyun Palace elixir treasury? Didn't you know Yin Xiaoxiang hides her best elixirs there? Such short-sightedness! Truly, a hopeless disciple!" As Ding Ding stared at her with his jaw hanging open in disbelief, she concluded with a definitive statement, "I am deeply disappointed in you."

"Has He Gu finished the tally?" Ignoring Ding Ding's foolish expression, Ye Zhiqiu turned to ask He Gu, who had already taken over the results from Ding Ding.

"Yes, Master." Casting a sympathetic glance at the petrified Ding Ding, He Gu handed over a silver storage pouch with embroidered blue piping—the very one belonging to Ding Ding—and respectfully reported, "There are a total of one thousand three hundred and seventy-two bottles of pills, including three hundred bottles of high-grade Huanzhu Pills, one hundred bottles of high-grade Qingxin [Heart-Cleansing/Mind-Clarifying] Pills..."

While He Gu delivered the orderly report, Ding Ding finally snapped out of his frozen state. His lips twitching, he stared at Ye Zhiqiu, who was leaning on the armrest of the main seat, listening attentively, as if looking at a stranger.

'My master couldn't possibly be this shameless! It must be that I opened my eyes the wrong way!'

Ding Ding deceived himself with this thought, closing and opening his eyes repeatedly, only to see the exact same scene each time. After a while, he finally gave up trying. His heart felt as though it had been ground back and forth between the Sahara Desert and the depths of the Arctic Ocean, unable to bear the strain and shattering into dust.

After listening to He Gu's tally, Ye Zhiqiu nodded, her gaze sweeping over the heartbroken Ding Ding before settling on Su Yan, who looked utterly unfazed. A genuinely gentle smile curved her lips. "Yan'er, you're here... By the way, where's Little Seven?" And what about that batch of Baining Pills?"

Ye Zhiqiu's relaxed expression turned grave upon hearing Su Yan's reply.

After a long while, she chuckled softly, exuding an air of unwavering confidence. "A loss may turn out to be a gain. Let Little Seven begin her seclusion."

BACK | TABLE OF CONTENTS | NEXT