Chapter 176: Bullying the Weak, Avoiding the Strong—Only Picking the Soft Ones to Squeeze

Wind Eagle Cliff.

When Jiang Yuechen woke up, her whole body ached. As her vision cleared, she saw her fellow disciples sprawled all over the ground and couldn’t help but frown.

She instinctively reached for a talisman, only to realize her spatial pouch was gone. Everyone else looked just as disheveled, like they’d been completely looted.

Jiang Yuechen tapped Ying You on the shoulder. “Team Leader?”

Ying You’s eyes remained shut, his brows slightly furrowed, as if caught in some kind of pain.

Jiang Yuechen looked around again but couldn’t find Fengyun Yi. Even Ying You’s sword had vanished without a trace.

There were signs that the barrier had been disturbed—someone had broken in. Unfortunately, when she set up the barrier, she hadn’t anticipated something like this. She’d only meant it as a temporary rest stop. The barrier wasn’t strong enough to keep others out.

She searched the other talisman cultivators in the team but couldn’t find a single Talisman Paper. Whoever had come had taken everything.

Jiang Yuechen: “…”

This kind of swift, clean sweep robbery felt oddly familiar.

Still, she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, so she couldn’t be sure it was who she suspected. They’d have to wait until everyone woke up before investigating.

With no Talisman Paper, Jiang Yuechen had no choice but to prick her finger, using her blood as cinnabar, and cloth as a substitute for Talisman Paper to draw runes.

This kind of makeshift talisman really tested a talisman cultivator’s skill. Its effectiveness was poor and would only last for a short time.

She drew a large-scale communication talisman, trying to contact the Azure Profound Sect’s talisman cultivators across the island. But no one responded.

Only a few people had woken up. The situation in the other sects was still unknown.

Jiang Yuechen thought for a moment. If things continued like this, they’d fall further and further behind. Besides, she knew the quirks of her teammates well—having spent so much time with them—and she could tell they wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon. Leaving them exposed on the cliff was far too dangerous.

If she had Talisman Paper, she could just set up a barrier to shield everyone. Among the Four Great Sects, no talisman cultivator had yet managed to break through her barriers—unless the strongest Chief Disciples of each sect went all out to force their way through.

But she had none.

She hadn’t yet reached the realm of Heart-Spirit Talisman Fusion. Without Talisman Paper, a talisman cultivator was in a very difficult position.

Just as Jiang Yuechen was debating whether to head out, Ying You’s eyelashes fluttered. Slowly, he opened his eyes.

“Team Leader, are you alright?” Jiang Yuechen looked surprised. “We were robbed.”

Ying You’s eyes were a bit dazed. When he saw Jiang Yuechen’s face, he finally remembered he was still inside the Illusion Realm.

He propped himself up and looked at the flower in his hand, seeming to understand what had happened.

Jiang Yuechen had also pieced it together, her brows tightly knit. “That Lian Mu is too cunning. So she gave you that flower with this in mind. After we passed out, she must’ve come by and even took Fengyun Yi with her.”

Ying You’s gaze gradually cleared. He unconsciously tightened his grip on the little blue flower and lowered his eyes. “Maybe she didn’t know either. If she was the only one who knew what would trigger the Heart Realm Trial, that wouldn’t be fair. The Venerable Elders wouldn’t have told just her and not us. It might’ve been an accident.”

Jiang Yuechen blinked. “Team Leader… are you sure you’re okay?”

He looked utterly exhausted, his face pale.

Ying You gave a faint smile. “A mixed bag.”

The bad news was he’d drawn the Tragic Path. The good news was that the Pangu Illusion Realm didn’t actually know his true weakness.

He had long since let go of those mortal-world memories. By the fifth collapse of the Heart Realm, he had already sensed something was off.

“Looks like the Venerable Elders were overthinking it,” Jiang Yuechen sighed in relief. “Now that we’ve passed this trial, no one can threaten us anymore.”

Ying You was silent for a moment, staring at his hand as if lost in thought.

Jiang Yuechen asked, “Team Leader, what’s wrong?”

Ever since he woke up, she’d felt like something about him had changed.

Ying You looked away. “Nothing. Just remembered a few things.”

He steadied himself, scanned the area, and saw that only he and Jiang Yuechen were awake. Fengyun Yi was still missing.

Ying You instinctively reached for his waist. Only the sword sheath remained—his Flying Swan Sword was gone.

His expression turned grim. He closed his eyes and used his spiritual power to sense the sword’s location. Then he said, “Set up a barrier to protect the others. We’re going to find them.”

Jiang Yuechen hesitated. “Just the two of us? But all our Talisman Papers were stolen—there’s not a single one left. I really think it was Lian Mu.”

At her words, Ying You moved his fingers slightly, gathering spiritual energy. He drew seawater from the distant ocean, dispersing it with his power into a mist that enveloped the other Azure Profound Sect disciples.

“Let’s go.”

…

…

Lian Mu flew halfway around the island’s edge but found no trace of the Returning Immortal Sect’s Chief team. However, she did spot a ring of Yinghui Flowers growing along the island’s perimeter.

She suspected that the Wind Core Flower for this Illusion Realm wasn’t on the island itself, but beyond that ring of Yinghui Flowers. But outside the ring was nothing but sea. She wasn’t sure if the Wind Core Flower could grow in the ocean, so she didn’t dare charge out recklessly.

After all, this sea was home to many aquatic beasts. Compared to other types of demonic beasts, water beasts were especially good at hiding. Water had no fixed form, and water beasts could alter their shape and color to blend in perfectly, making them nearly impossible to detect with the naked eye.

What’s more, water beasts tended to travel in packs. As someone with a primary fire Spiritual Root, dealing with them wouldn’t be easy.

Lian Mu had been planning to fly elsewhere to look for the Returning Immortal Sect’s Chief team and wait until everyone regrouped before discussing whether to enter the sea. But halfway there, she spotted a group wearing blue sect robes. Looking closely, she realized it was the Crimson Sky Sect’s Chief team.

Not only had they not triggered the Heart Realm Trial, but their team was fully intact, with virtually no casualties.

Lian Mu thought for a moment and decided she ought to lend them a hand. With that, she flew off in their direction.

Within the Crimson Sky Sect’s chief team, everyone moved with extreme caution. Every step had to be confirmed safe by the talisman cultivator before they dared to proceed.

As members of the Crimson Sky Sect, they were all too familiar with their Sect Master’s temperament. They were constantly being messed with back at the sect, so in this Illusion Realm, being wary of everything had become second nature.

“That’s strange. How did Fengyun Yi from the Azure Profound Sect get eliminated?”

They had just received the update via the spirit jade token and were all puzzled.

“To think the Chief Alchemist got knocked out—did Ying You fall asleep in the middle of a fight or something?”

Lu Feishuang said, “Maybe Fengyun Yi got separated from the group… But anyone bold enough to take on someone from the Azure Profound Sect must be at least top four on the Five Paths Ranking.”

The Azure Profound Sect was notorious for their fanatical protectiveness. Targeting one of their own was basically asking to be hunted down for revenge.

“Clear Thought Sect always likes to take out the alchemy cultivators first, then pick off the rest one by one. Probably their doing. Azure Profound Sect did say they were gunning for them. Push a rabbit too far, and it’ll bite,” Gao Linzhen said. “Haven’t heard a peep from Returning Immortal Sect in a while. What are they scheming in the shadows?”

Tang Jianming nodded in agreement. “My cousin might be a bit timid normally, but when it comes to going full psycho, he’s not losing to anyone. Still, someone in Clear Thought Sect being able to beat Ying You? That’s just bizarre.”

“It was the Heart Realm Trial,” Lu Feishuang said. “Ying You probably got trapped in it, which gave Clear Thought Sect the opening.”

“You know about Ying You, Team Leader?”

Lu Feishuang nodded. “Years ago, when I was choosing a sect, I spent some time at Azure Profound Sect. I know a bit. He’s… not exactly normal. If he really did fall into the Heart Realm Trial, he might be stuck there until the Illusion Realm ends.”

Lu Feishuang also came from the mortal world, but she’d been luckier than Ying You. She was taken in by the Lu Clan, a prestigious sword family, and raised as their heir.

Young masters and ladies from Immortal Sect clans, as long as their background was strong and their talent exceptional, could visit various sects ahead of time to try them out before choosing where to join.

Lu Feishuang had met Ying You even before the Immortal Sect Grand Competition. She was still a child then, and had heard he was someone born for the sword—his talent alone crushed his peers. Everyone said he was destined to become the number one sword cultivator under the heavens.

Unwilling to accept that, she sought him out for a few duels during her stay at Azure Profound Sect.

That was when Lu Feishuang first noticed something was off—Ying You seemed mentally unstable. He liked talking to his sword, and during their matches, he even started chatting with the sword in her hand.

She lost. Later, she asked around and learned that his past had been so inhumanly harsh it had broken something inside him. That’s why he talked to swords.

For someone like Ying You, the Heart Realm Trial would trap him with ease.

Shen Wusang shook his head. “No. I have a feeling… Ying You’s already broken out of the Heart Realm Trial.”

Lu Feishuang raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

Shen Wusang said, “I don’t know why, but I have this gut feeling that Fengyun Yi’s elimination has something to do with Lian Mu.”

His instincts were rarely wrong—almost never.

“But didn’t Lian Mu like Fengyun Yi? Why would she let him get eliminated?” Tang Jianming asked.

Gao Linzhen snorted, “You actually believe that? Lian Mu probably just liked the spirit plants on him. Come to think of it, for a sword cultivator, she’s always eyeing other people’s spirit plants and spirit materials. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her challenge another sword cultivator.”

Sword cultivators were naturally combative. Those participating in the Immortal Sect Grand Competition all aimed to climb the Magnolia Ranking, and in the Illusion Realm, they’d actively seek out sword cultivators from other sects to challenge.

The chief team’s main goal was to fight for sect rankings, so they usually only fought when they ran into someone. But second-seat sword cultivators often went around issuing challenges just to boost their personal rank.

Lian Mu was different. From the very first match, she never initiated a fight with another sword cultivator. Only when someone got fed up and challenged her did she respond. Instead, she kept her focus on alchemy cultivators and artifact refiners.

Normally, a sword cultivator picking on alchemists and refiners would be mocked by their peers for being a bully who only dared to go after the weak.

“Who knows what’s going on in her head,” Changsun Li scoffed. “I think she’s not right in the head either. Always waving that sword around to bully alchemists and refiners—does that look like a real sword cultivator to you?”

Shen Wusang said, “You can’t say that. There’s no rule that sword cultivators can only fight other sword cultivators. Maybe this is just Returning Immortal Sect’s strategy.”

As the Crimson Sky Sect group chatted, a shadow suddenly flashed overhead. They looked up—and saw the very person they’d been talking about.

Changsun Li’s eyes widened. “Lian Mu?”

Lu Feishuang narrowed her eyes slightly, watching the figure fly off into the distance. It seemed she hadn’t noticed them.

“Perfect timing. Let’s go after her.”