Chapter 48: Tower-Suppressing Stone—Something Seems Off About Everyone

Before the members of the three major sects departed, two elders from Wunian Sect were ambushed.

News of the incident spread throughout Gui Xian Sect on the very day it happened.

That night, two alchemy elders from Wunian Sect had just lain down to rest when a sudden eerie wind swept through. Out of nowhere, they both lost consciousness.

Though they retained some awareness, their limbs were weak, and they were blindfolded. Helpless to resist, they were pinned down and beaten mercilessly with fists and kicks. By the time morning came, they had broken arms, fractured legs, and faces swollen beyond recognition.

Whoever carried out the attack was meticulous—they didn’t use spiritual power, relying purely on physical force. The surroundings were also wiped clean, leaving no trace of evidence.

After the incident, the other two sects remained silent, packed up their belongings, and left.

Wunian Sect demanded that Gui Xian Sect conduct a thorough investigation, but their request was denied. Murong Yizun from Cold Arrival Peak personally intervened, suppressing the issue under the guise of appeasement but, in reality, warning Wunian Sect to get lost.

The two elders of Wunian Sect had no choice. After all, they were on Gui Xian Sect’s turf and vastly outnumbered. One moment, they were being served tea by Murong Yi, and the next, they were boarding a Silver Kite to return west to White Tiger Domain.

The outcome of this event was immensely satisfying to the entire Gui Xian Sect, lifting the sect’s spirits considerably.

—

Qianling Peak – Spirit Tower

After finishing their work, a group of artifact refiners gathered to discuss the matter. Everyone had been speculating about who had assaulted the Wunian Sect elders, but no one could pinpoint the culprit.

“Something like this takes serious guts—probably a hot-tempered elder.”

“Hard to say. I heard the Wunian elders were drugged first. Maybe an alchemy cultivator was involved.”

“That means the elders from Cold Arrival Peak and Incense Peak must have worked together.”

At the edge of Ziyun Terrace, Xu Xianxing listened to their conversation with a flood of emotions: “……”

“Junior Brother Xu, why haven’t your two friends come looking for you lately?”

Caught off guard, Xu Xianxing was momentarily startled before regaining his usual calm demeanor. “…I told them I’ve been busy recently, so they don’t need to find me.”

The truth was, Xu Xianxing had indeed been busy. However, telling them not to visit was just something he said out of irritation. What he didn’t expect was that Lian Mu and Baili Que actually took it seriously—they hadn’t come to see him for days.

As for the ambush on the Wunian elders? Xu Xianxing could guess with his toes that it was definitely Lian Mu and the others.

Ji Mingyue must have been the one who used the knockout drug—she was from Mist Ridge and knew all about that sort of thing. Wen Yun would have handled the kidnapping, and the beating? That had to be Lian Mu—she was the only one who liked punching people in the face.

And as for why no evidence was left behind… With Baili Que around, a teleportation array was all they needed to get in and out. His barrier-breaking skills were top-notch, making it effortless to silently dismantle the defenses around the Wunian elders’ residence.

Four people, perfectly coordinated, each playing their role.

“Junior Brother Xu, are you alright?”

Xu Xianxing snapped back to reality and smiled faintly. “I’m fine. You all go rest—I’ll handle the rest.”

“No, Junior Brother Xu, we’ll stay and help. Let’s repair these damages first.”

“Alright, I’ll trouble you, Senior Brothers and Sisters.”

The Spirit Tower had been a headache for Xu Xianxing for days.

A few days ago, the Sect Leader of Gui Xian Sect came out of seclusion. His first order of business was inspecting the Spirit Tower. After he left, the Tower-Suppressing Stone at the base of the tower suddenly shook, causing numerous spirit artifacts to fall and shatter. The repairs were still ongoing.

“The Tower-Suppressing Stone hasn’t moved in centuries—why would it suddenly…?”

“Forget that—let’s just finish fixing everything and be done with it.”

Xu Xianxing was the only Heaven-Spirit-Root disciple among those assigned to repair spirit artifacts. As such, he handled the highest-grade artifacts, which were also the most challenging and time-consuming to restore.

“Strange, this artifact… Junior Brother Xu, come take a look.”

Xu Xianxing was bent over picking up a magic crystal dagger when he heard someone call him.

“What is it?”

A senior brother held up a lamp-shaped spirit artifact and handed it to him. “This spirit lamp seems unusual.”

Xu Xianxing examined it closely. The Lotus Spirit Lamp had a crack along its edge. Its Wind Beast crystal core was still glowing, but a faint black mist seeped from the fractured area.

Frowning, he pondered for a moment before speaking in a low voice. “Don’t repair this lamp. Store it in the Three Treasures Box. Tell the others to gather all the broken spirit lamps.”

“I’ll go right away!”

After the messenger left, Xu Xianxing still didn’t relax. He stared at the Lotus Spirit Lamp on the table, touched the cracked edge, and an inexplicable irritation surged within him.

The next moment, he abruptly grabbed the lamp and tossed it into the forge, melting it down completely.

“Junior Brother Xu, that was a third-tier artifact—” Another senior brother tried to stop him.

“Shut up.”

The Lotus Spirit Lamp dissolved in the forge. Xu Xianxing braced himself against Ziyun Terrace, closed his eyes, and remained silent for a long time.

When he opened them again, the frustration in his gaze had vanished. He turned and walked out the door.

—

Cold Arrival Peak

Four figures stood in a straight line against the wall, bodies rigid, not daring to move.

Lian Mu was in the center, with Wen Yun to her right, and Ji Mingyue and Baili Que to her left.

“The two-hour mark just passed,” Baili Que noted as the bell from Yasui Peak rang.

At his words, all four of them simultaneously relaxed, slumping onto the ground in exhaustion.

It was obvious that their actions this time had not escaped the notice of their elders. Especially Murong Yi—having personally met with the elders of Wunian Sect, he only needed one look at their injuries to guess who was responsible.

Since they were all members of Gui Xian Sect, Murong Yi naturally wouldn’t expose them in front of outsiders. But once the outsiders were gone, there was no avoiding a round of discipline.

Lian Mu was the first to be singled out, Baili Que was the second, followed by Wen Yun—the true instigator who seemed uninvolved at first glance. The last to be caught was Ji Mingyue, which left even Murong Yi silent for a long while.

In just a month and a half, out of the sect’s five top cultivators, four had been led astray by Lian Mu.

Although Lian Mu wanted to explain that Wen Yun was not a good person to begin with and that this wasn’t her idea, her reputation as a troublemaker was deeply ingrained in Murong Yi’s mind. The more she explained, the guiltier she seemed.

Murong Yi dragged the four of them to Cold Arrival Peak and made them stand in punishment for two hours.

The peak was bitterly cold with heavy snowfall. After just one hour, they were covered in snow like human snowmen. By the end of two hours, their limbs were completely numb.

Wen Yun’s teeth chattered as he spoke, “Why… why is Elder Murong punishing us? Weren’t we… dealing with Wunian Sect?”

Ji Mingyue pulled out some pre-prepared Warming Pills from her pouch and split them among the four of them. “It’s not because of Wunian Sect—it’s because Baili Que broke the formation, and when we returned, he forgot to patch one spot. The cold wind killed the flowers Elder Lingshu was cultivating.”

Baili Que: “You all ran so fast and dragged me along—I forgot in an instant.”

Lian Mu swallowed a few Warming Pills, feeling warmth gradually return to her limbs. “Elder Lingshu… isn’t that Xu Xianxing’s master? I haven’t seen Xu Xianxing around lately.”

As she spoke, she accidentally bit into a mouthful of snow, her cheeks stinging from the cold.

“The Spirit Tower had an incident. He’s been too busy to leave,” Baili Que explained. “Also, the Sect Leader has come out of seclusion.”

It was the first time Lian Mu had heard anything about Gui Xian Sect’s Sect Leader—no one had ever mentioned him before.

But someone of that stature had nothing to do with her. She simply nodded and changed the subject. “I’m freezing. Let’s go to the dining hall for something warm.”

Wen Yun rubbed his arms. “Alright. Who’s paying?”

Lian Mu pointed at Baili Que. “He forgot to repair the formation, so he should pay.”

Baili Que: “You scammed Wunian Sect out of so much money—you should be the one paying.”

Ji Mingyue: “Is this even worth arguing over? Last one into the dining hall pays.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she bolted.

There was no way Lian Mu would pay out of her own pocket—she immediately summoned her treasure, stepping on it like a snowboard to glide away.

Baili Que was prepared as well. As a talisman cultivator, he never lost a race—he pulled out a teleportation talisman and vanished in the blink of an eye.

Wen Yun, who was empty-handed and slow to react: “…”

Predictably, Wen Yun ended up with the honor of paying. He went to the dining hall with a blank expression, paid with a blank expression, and then watched with a blank expression as the other three feasted.

After their meal, the four of them sat at the table resting. Out of the corner of her eye, Lian Mu spotted a familiar figure.

“Xu Xianxing?”

Baili Que turned his head as well, seeing Xu Xianxing sitting alone not far away with a tray in his hands. “…”

At that moment, Baili Que suddenly remembered—he had originally come to fetch Lian Mu on Xu Xianxing’s behalf, but not only had he forgotten, he had also…

Wen Yun glanced at Lian Mu, sensing an opportunity. Lian Mu caught on immediately and walked toward Xu Xianxing.

Though the distance wasn’t far, Xu Xianxing hadn’t noticed her approach—he was still staring down, lost in thought.

Lian Mu patted him on the shoulder. Xu Xianxing looked up, and she was startled by how exhausted and haggard he appeared. “What happened to you?”

Recalling what Baili Que had said, she added, “Is it about the Spirit Tower?”

Xu Xianxing rubbed his forehead and closed his eyes briefly. “So you already know… Yes. The Tower-Sealing Stone has shifted, and the artifact refiners of Qianling Peak are working on repairing the spiritual artifacts, but… something feels off.”

Lian Mu assumed he was talking about the difficulty of the repairs. “You’re a Heaven-Spirit-Root Artifact Refiner—you’ll definitely succeed. From the looks of it, you probably haven’t left Qianling Peak for days… Why are you eating something so plain? Someone wants to treat you to a meal. Interested?”

Xu Xianxing: “?”

Xu Xianxing: “If someone is offering kindness for no reason, they’re either scheming or up to no good.”

Lian Mu slung an arm around his shoulder, pulling him along. “How can you say that? They’re just being thoughtful.”

When they reached another table, Xu Xianxing finally saw who was sitting there: Ji Mingyue, Baili Que… and Wen Yun.

Xu Xianxing stopped, meeting Wen Yun’s gaze with a raised brow. “So, is it Young Master Wen who’s treating me?”

Wen Yun, thick-skinned as ever, remained unfazed. To show his sincerity, he even stood up and pulled out a chair for Xu Xianxing. “Senior Xu, everything before was just a misunderstanding. Come, sit. I’ve warmed the seat for you.”

Xu Xianxing was momentarily confused. “What’s going on here?”

Baili Que whispered, “He’s here to apologize.”

Wen Yun sat beside him and started piling food onto his plate. “Eat more. From now on, if anything happens, we’ll talk it out. You don’t have to hold back with us.”

Xu Xianxing remained silent, so Wen Yun kept piling food onto his plate until it was stacked like a small mountain. Finally, Xu Xianxing couldn’t hold back anymore. “…That’s enough.”

Wen Yun grinned. “So you forgive me? It was wrong of me to break your spiritual artifact before—I’ve already commissioned an artifact refiner to make an identical replacement. I’ll bring it to you soon.”

Xu Xianxing: “There’s no need. I’m an artifact refiner myself—I don’t want to use another refiner’s work.”

“So we’re good now?” Wen Yun pressed. “Senior Xu, I heard from Lian Mu that you’ve always been a broad-minded person, and sure enough, it’s true.”

Xu Xianxing turned his gaze onto Lian Mu. Lian Mu played dead.

He was silent for a moment before saying, “I suppose so. But if you guys team up to cause trouble again… remember to invite me.”

“Of course, no problem!”

Ji Mingyue: “……”

Why did she ever think Xu Xianxing was a steady and reliable person?

Looking at it now, it seemed like no one here was particularly normal.