Chapter 82: Ironclad Truth

As for Sect Master Gu’s character, the disciples all understood it perfectly.

The Little Grand-Uncle Master, Chen Zui, and Bian Chunzhou were the renowned iron triangle of Yonglu Mountain’s Qi Refining Stage. For all three of them to show up on Sect Master Peak working so obediently, they had definitely gotten into trouble together.

So, what kind of trouble did they get into that would prompt the Sect Master to punish them personally instead of handing them over to the Punishment Hall?

At this moment, the disciples’ curiosity reached its peak.

However, the Sect Master kept his lips sealed tight this time, tighter than anyone could have imagined. Everyone searched high and low for a long time, but failed to find even a single trace of evidence.

Could it be that the Little Grand-Uncle Master and the others were truly volunteering to help ease the Sect Master’s workload? No one believed that for a second.

Let alone the ordinary disciples, even the staff of the Punishment Hall didn’t believe a word of it. A certain Punishment Hall elder had personally gone to Sect Master Peak to drop subtle hints, but in the end, he returned empty-handed.

A certain busybody named Zheng, having caught wind of the rumors, even traveled all the way from Refining Peak to Sect Master Peak to stake them out. He caught his target, but no matter how much he wagged his tongue, he couldn’t wring a single shred of useful information out of Junior Brother Wen.

“Can’t you share just a little bit? My master is about to ascend, and he wants to know the truth before he departs!”

Wen Xu replied, “…If I remember correctly, the peak master of Lianqi Peak went into seclusion to prepare for breaking through to the Body Integration Stage.” In other words, ascension was still a long way off.

“Oh, don’t be so pedantic. He’s already at the peak of Soul Transformation. Rounding it up, that’s basically the peak of the Tribulation Transcendence Stage.”

Wen Xu had always marveled at Senior Brother Zheng Jin’s incredible eloquence, but not this time. His master’s dignity was on the line. Even if he were subjected to a soul search, he wouldn’t utter a single word.

Yet, despite Wen Xu’s tight lips, some eagle-eyed disciples still managed to piece the truth together. Although they didn’t get every detail right, they were not far off.

First of all, since the Little Grand-Uncle Master and the others had started doing hard labor for the Sect Master on the second day of the Lunar New Year, the offense must have occurred before then. Sect Master Gu rarely left the mountain, but according to reliable sources, he always went to catch up with City Lord Xia of Langyuan City on the first day of the New Year. Although the details of their meeting were unknown, the Sect Master had definitely been away.

As for the three of them, Chen Zui had only just emerged from the back mountain secret realm before New Year’s Eve. The Little Grand-Uncle Master went without saying, having spent two months clearing spiritual fields on Lingyao Peak, a truly ruthless character. Since all three of them must have committed the offense together, the only possibility was that something had happened on the first day of the New Year, when they thought no one was watching.

Bian Chunzhou’s whereabouts were easy to trace. On New Year’s Eve, many disciples had gone to Gongshang Bistro to support their fellow disciple’s business. The hotpot and shrimp dumplings there were truly delicious. According to a certain Foundation Establishment Senior Brother, Junior Brother Bian was in the shop at the time, likely waiting for his friends to finish eating.

After dinner, everyone was preparing to watch the fireworks in the city, and given Junior Brother Bian’s personality, he definitely wouldn’t have missed it. Strangely, however, the disciples guarding the mountain gate said the three of them had returned by the hour of Hai [9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.].

What was even stranger was that no one saw them after they returned. The Little Grand-Uncle Master was so recognizable; there was no reason why not a single person would have spotted him.

The disciples analyzed the details carefully and boldly locked onto their target: Juyong Hall.

Good grief, as expected of the winners of the Sect Tournament. Were they really that daring? Upon hearing this, the Punishment Hall elder went up to Sect Master Peak once again. Gu Wufang flatly denied it, and with no evidence, the Punishment Hall was forced to withdraw in defeat once more.

But a lack of evidence did not mean the rumors were false. In the end, except for those in death seclusion or those who had absolutely no interest in gossip, every single disciple knew that the Little Grand-Uncle Master and his “iron triangle” friends had been conscripted by the Sect Master for sneaking into Juyong Hall.

Unverified, but absolutely ironclad!

So, what was so special about Juyong Hall that it was worth the Little Grand-Uncle Master and his friends sneaking in there?! Maybe… they should try it too?!

“Hahahahaha! Ah Xu, how did you guys not know to avoid people? Of all the people to catch you, how did you end up caught by Martial Nephew Sect Master? That man… Hahahahahahaha!”

As the instigator of the whole incident, a certain Divine Venerable slapped his thighs and doubled over with laughter, tears almost streaming down his face. “Oh, this is just too hilarious! So? He’s using you as slave labor? Why didn’t you come complain to your master?”

“Master!”

“Don’t shout so loudly. Your master’s hearing is perfectly fine. I told you to come complain to me if anything happened, so why can’t you ever remember?” Venerable Chengwei’s attitude screamed: Come to me, hurry up and complain, so I can go torment my martial nephew.

What a pity, though, that his little disciple A-Xu refused to take the bait.

“Master, the Sect Master will cry. If he throws in the towel, you’ll be dealt with by the other Grand Elders…”

Venerable Chengwei: “…”

“How heartbreaking. A-Xu, you’ve only worked on Sect Master Peak for a few days, and you’re already taking his side.” After wallowing in self-pity, Venerable Chengwei wiped away a nonexistent tear. “So, how long do you have to help out on Sect Master Peak?”

In a rare moment of defeat, Wen Xu’s shoulders slumped. “Until the Five Sects Conference.”

Sure enough, Venerable Chengwei chuckled. “But it was worth it, wasn’t it? The wind atop Juyong Hall is the clearest and most transparent wind on Yonglu Mountain, isn’t it?”

Wen Xu nodded in silence. Thinking back, he didn’t regret climbing onto Juyong Hall to act as a roof beast at all. In fact, he… wanted to go up there again. However, it wouldn’t be possible anytime soon. When the Sect Master had secretly brought them down from Juyong Hall, he had swept his hand across the hall’s entrance, likely placing a spiritual barrier over it.

Although with his current cultivation, he couldn’t sense what kind of spiritual barrier it was at all.

“It was breathtaking. Truly incredible.”

“Tell me about it in detail. It’s been a long time since I went up there myself.”

This was where the benefits of Wen Xu being a scholar showed. Even when just describing the scenery and the wind, he could paint a vivid picture with his words, making it easy for others to visualize.

“So, did you gain anything from it?”

Wen Xu shook his head. “No, my cultivation didn’t budge in the slightest.”

“That’s only natural.”

Huh?

“Don’t let yourself be bound, A-Xu. When you see the wind, what is your first reaction?”

Joy, and seizing the moment to comprehend it. At the time, he had wanted nothing more than to imprint the wind’s trajectory and shape into his mind. Could this… be wrong?

The divine dragon was clearly adept at mind-reading. “It is wrong, A-Xu. You are very clever, and you have a great talent for cultivation. If any other cultivator were teaching you, they would be absolutely delighted by your self-discipline and perseverance. But your master is no ordinary person. Foundation Establishment is about building the foundation of a cultivator’s journey. Yet before the foundation comes the cultivator’s exploration of the world’s spiritual Qi and making it their own.”

“But is that enough?”

Venerable Chengwei suddenly grew serious, and Wen Xu was completely unable to withstand it. For a novice who had only just crossed the threshold, a few words of insight from a Body Integration Stage powerhouse were enough to utterly overwhelm him.

Fortunately, Venerable Chengwei did not need his disciple’s answer this time.

“Of course it is far from enough. What you cultivate is your heart, your body, and even more so, your spirit.” Venerable Chengwei’s voice suddenly became ethereal, pouring into Wen Xu’s mind like distant, celestial music. “Tell me, who rushes to analyze and comprehend all things the moment they see them? A-Xu, when you see the wind, your first reaction should be to appreciate it.”

Sometimes, trying too hard can backfire.

Wen Xu looked up. He never wore his blindfold when seeing his master. At this moment, the confusion in his eyes was so plain that anyone could read it at a glance. But with his master’s abilities, even if Wen Xu kept his eyes tightly shut, the man would still see right through him.

He… had indeed never truly appreciated the world around him. His eyes could not see people’s faces clearly, but in truth… he had never truly seen anything else clearly either.

Wen Xu knew in his heart that he needed to change, but his past experiences clung to him like maggots on a bone. He had always refused to look back, to the point that even as the wound festered, he chose to turn a blind eye.

He wanted to wrap up and discard his past weak, powerless self, showing only a decent, clean present. What he failed to notice, however, was that the past continued to exert a profound influence on his present self.

Just as he had told Chunzhou, he was a coward.

“Master.”

“Hmm?”

“No one has ever taught me this before. I… don’t know how.”

He only knew that if he did not work hard and push himself, he would fall behind, fail, and become a stepping stone for others. He had only himself. He wanted to stop and clear his state of mind, but he simply could not stop!

Since the end of the Sect Tournament, he had seemingly paused his steps to farm on Lingyao Peak. Yet his mind was still constantly thinking about how to improve, how to better use his spiritual energy, how to utilize the wind, and so on. The moment his mind went blank, an inexplicable sense of dread would seize his soul.

His effort had already been carved into his muscle memory. Even if he wanted to stop, he could not!

It had not been easy. Getting this child to open up was much harder than teasing his martial nephew, the Sect Master.

It had to be said that the Heavenly Dao was fair. Simple-minded people had their own fortunes, while clever people… thought too much, making their state of mind even harder to temper.

“No, A-Xu, you do know how.”

Wen Xu looked up. He still could not see his master’s face clearly, but strangely, he felt no obvious irritation or anxiety in his heart this time.

“This is an instinct that exists within your body. You knew how to do it the moment you were born. It is currently locked away in the chest of your heart. One day, when you open it, you will know what to do.”

The chest of his heart? Wen Xu touched his chest, but felt nothing.

“Oh, don’t look so miserable. You can’t rush these things. Even your master was stuck on this for a long time in the past. The more you care, the tighter it binds you. With your current cultivation and age, there is really no need to be in such a hurry.” Venerable Chengwei patted his disciple’s shoulder. “The Five Sects Conference is quite fun. You should go and have a good time.”

“Play?”

“Yes. Have your friends take you along. If you don’t run wild during the Qi Refining Stage, are you going to wait until the Tribulation Transcendence Stage to poke a hole in the heavens? If you cause trouble, someone will naturally clean up after you. Don’t worry.”

Wen Xu silently shed a tear of sympathy for the Sect Master.

Having finished a rare, serious lesson on the state of mind, the master and disciple parted. Wen Xu descended Guochun Peak and headed to Sect Master Peak for his duties. Perhaps because of his master’s words, he decided not to deliberately suppress himself this time. Instead, he simply divided his attention, reflecting on his own state of mind while handling tedious paperwork.

Sect Master Gu, who saw through it at a glance: …I hate my eyes. What on earth did that person on Guochun Peak teach him this time?! Is this ever going to end?!

Gu Wufang silently recited the Heart-Calming Mantra three times before preparing to bury his head back in his paperwork. But then…

“Who? Who triggered the spiritual barrier I set up around Juyong Hall this time?!”