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Published at 19th of August 2022 05:11:54 AM


Chapter 22

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In the past, Feng Ci had considered once before that Pei QianYue might have somewhat guessed his identity already, but he never imagined that Pei QianYue would actually use this kind of method to verify it.

However, thinking about it now in the aftermath, this was indeed Pei QianYue’s style of conduct. 

Just like how back then, in the secret realm under the roots of the BanYan Tree, he had guessed that Feng Ci wasn’t the original host of the body and wanted to know if Feng Ci were friend or foe; he also pretended to be in danger to test and see if Feng Ci would save him.

Using the same strategy twice in such a short period, and yet Feng Ci still stepped inside them both times.

Feng Ci really didn’t know if he should say that Pei QianYue was very accurate at reading people’s hearts or he, Feng Ci, was too softhearted.

Suddenly, the ground began to quake violently. Feng Ci raised his head and looked over. 

LinXian Terrace was located at the apex of LangFeng City, capable of overlooking the entire sect beneath it. Therefore, he saw in the distance, masses of black smoke flying out of nowhere, darting across the empty skies and landing in different areas of the sect. When the masses of black smoke dissipated, people were actually revealed to be inside them.

No, perhaps they couldn’t be counted as ‘people’.

The ‘people’ that walked out of the black smoke were two times the height of an adult man. Body covered in armor and face concealed in a black hood, they looked rather sinister. They raised their hands and thick iron chains flew out of their heavy black robes. They instantly wrapped around the throats of the cultivators who have already lost the ability to move, restraining them.

Xiao Que swiftly stepped onto LinXian Terrace.

The armored golems inside these black smoke were soldiers that Pei QianYue had prepared ahead of time a while ago. Normally, they were hidden under LangFeng City. This was actually the first time Pei QianYue used them since he became the City Master.

Today, Xiao Que followed Pei QianYue’s orders and waited underground, anticipating for the huge array to activate to release the soldiers.

Right now, the entire rebel army has been captured, only waiting to be dealt with after he reported back to the City Master.

Xiao Que was still pondering on serious matters in his head, but all of these thoughts turned blank the instant he stepped onto LinXian Terrace. 

What…what happened here?

The atmosphere on LinXian Terrance was so thick that the air seemed to have stagnated. Xiao Que saw his City Master kneeling on the ground not far away, as well as Feng Ci standing in front of him. Subconsciously, Xiao Que raised his sleeve to rub his eyes.

In that moment, the first reaction in his mind was actually: Could he have fallen under an illusion?

But that can’t be. 

He had been hiding underneath LangFeng City this entire time. There shouldn’t have been an opportunity for him to be hit by an illusion spell.

In a daze, Xiao Que didn’t even know if he should join the City Master and also kneel down.

The youth holding a plum branch looked over at Xiao Que, the corner of his mouth curving upwards in an ambiguous smile: “How very well prepared.”

Clearly these words weren’t directed at Xiao Que. 

Because immediately afterwards, he saw the youth casually throw aside the plum branch and lean down towards Pei QianYue.

Feng Ci raised his hand and softly wiped away the blood on Pei QianYue’s cheek with his fingertips.

This movement actually carried some gentleness.

But the words that he spoke were ice-cold, even a bit vicious. 

“Actually, I don’t like being deceived either.” Feng Ci cupped that handsome face —his gaze traveling from Pei QianYue’s eyes, which were oozing with blood, to the bloody mark on his cheek, to those sharp lips, which were also stained crimson by blood— and said quietly: “So there won’t be a next time, Pei QianYue.”

After saying this, Feng Ci turned around and went to leave. However, Pei QianYue grabbed his sleeve.

His fingertips were covered with a bit of blood as well. They left imprints on Feng Ci’s light green sleeve, like fallen plum flowers.

“Mast—” Before Pei QianYue opened his mouth, he was immediately interrupted by Feng Ci. 

“Didn’t the great City Master say he didn’t like to be touched by others?” Feng Ci glanced at the hand holding his sleeve and sneered: “What a coincidence. I also don’t like it.”

After saying this, he tugged his sleeve out resolutely and flew off on his flying sword, leaving LinXian Terrace.

Xiao Que was already dumbfounded by this scene.

Pei QianYue wasn’t in a hurry to get up. He turned his head slightly and faced the direction of the departing flying sword. Xiao Que also looked over and noticed that it was in the direction of the outer disciples’ courtyard in the back mountains. 

It wasn’t until that figure on the sword vanished completely that Pei QianYue finally raised his hand and touched his cheek.

The long and slender cut that was there previously on his face was now smooth and clean, gone without leaving even a trace.

When Feng Ci touched him just now, he had healed it for Pei QianYue.

Pei QianYue suddenly started chuckling quietly. 

The LangFeng City Master has always been cold-blooded and heartless, and extremely temperamental. Most of the time, he hid his emotions very well, making others unable to discern if he were happy or angry. Serving by his side, people could only do so with fear and trepidation, as if walking on thin ice.

It’s not that he’s never smiled before, but his smile has always been accompanied by ridicule, contempt, and even danger.

Not like how it was today.

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—These were the same cultivators who had imprisoned Pei QianYue on LinXian Terrace previously.

Wen HuaiYu sat to one side, a chain also fastened around his neck. His face was white as paper.

Next to his feet was Cheng Chao’s blood-soaked corpse. The old man’s face was frozen in his horrified expression before death. Even his blue Daoist robes have been stained a dark black.

A tense and uneasy atmosphere spread within the Great Hall. 

“XuanYue Sword Sect.”

The person in the main seat up front suddenly spoke up. In the Great Hall, a young man in his 20s jolted upward, causing the chains around his neck to tug and release a loud clank.

Unconcerned, Pei QianYue continued to call out: “CangYan School.”

“LeiTing School.” 

“LuoHua Gates.”

“LiuGuang Mountain.”

Every time he mentioned a name, one or several of the people below would tremble in fear. Within the dark Great Hall, only the sound of stifled, panicked breathing could be heard.

Pei QianYue said: “Since the establishment of the Immortal Alliance, besides the Six Sects, there are 22 other sects in addition. Of those who participated in this rebellion, 2 are from the Six Sects; 10 are from the 22 other Sects. That’s nearly half of the alliance.” 

He spoke very slowly. For some reason, perhaps because of his injury, his voice was somewhat raspy, but not deep.

His tone, however, seemed light and relaxed on the contrary.

“……Looks like you guys have quite the objections towards this Alliance Leader.”

No one answered. 

The cultivators present were all the finest and strongest of the rebel sects. In fact, half of them were sect leaders. However, right now, no one dared to speak. There was dead silence in the Great Hall.

In actuality, whenever Pei QianYue spoke like this, in such an ambiguously sarcastic tone, no one has ever dared to reply to him, except Feng Ci.

However, Pei QianYue continued to be very patient: “Let’s hear then. Just what did this Venerable One do to make you guys so dissatisfied.”

“…… Sect Leader Wen, you can start first.” 

Wen HuaiYu lowered his eyes, his complexion looking even paler thanks to the gold talisman inscriptions on the chains around his neck: “HuaiYu only wanted to seek justice for Sect Leader Jue Hui, who had died, as well as the 80 some disciples wounded in the Endless Valley.”

“Sect Leader Wen has always been considerate and warmhearted.” Pei QianYue nodded and said: “As for the DanYang Sect Leader, he was indeed killed by this Venerable One.”

“The DanYang Sect Leader, Jue Hui, often had close dealings with LingXiao Gates and held secret discussions, plotting rebellion to seek the gratification of eliminating this Venerable One. Was it wrong for this Venerable One to kill him?” Pei QianYue paused briefly and then asked: “Or are you saying, only Sect Leader Wen can plant spies inside LangFeng City, this Venerable One can’t do it as well?”

Wen HuaiYu lowered his eyes and did not reply. 

Pei QianYue said: “Bring him up.”

The big doors of the Great Hall were pushed open. The first to arrive was the sound of heavy footsteps and chains dragging on the ground.

A moment later, a big and tall soldier appeared in front of everyone’s eyes, dragging the chain.

At the other end of the chain was a person. 

The new arrival’s hair fell scattered and disheveled, blocking the  expression on his face. He still wore LangFeng City’s uniformed robes. The light green robes were covered with spots of blood.  The soldier dragged him to the front of the Great Hall and picked up the chain. Finally that battered and disgraced face was revealed.

“Looks like my soldier has treated you somewhat rudely,” Pei QianYue said calmly: “Discipline Elder.”

The Discipline Elder seemed heavily wounded. His life force was  already extremely weak. However, upon hearing these words, he  abruptly opened his eyes and glared at Pei QianYue: “Pei. Qian. Yue!”

He spread both arms, almost like he wanted to tackle Pei  QianYue. However, the next second, the gold inscriptions on the Discipline Elder’s neck flashed and he choked, coughing out a mouthful of blood. 

Wen HuaiYu looked away and closed his eyes, almost like he didn’t want to see what’s to come.

“The Discipline Elder collaborated an attack with the Rebel Army from inside and damaged LangFeng City’s Aerial Prohibition Array. This Venerable One caught him at the scene of the crime.” Pei QianYue said slowly: “Discipline Elder, you’ve been in charge of the laws in LangFeng City for over 300 years. Why don’t you tell this Venerable One, what’s the punishment for betraying one’s sect?”

“Betraying?” The Discipline Elder spat out blood and sneered: “This old man has never betrayed my sect. If it weren’t for you— If it weren’t for your arrival in LangFeng City 300 years ago, bewitching my Shixiong with Demon(妖) magic and making him transfer the position of City Master to you before his death— What rights do you have to sit in this position, and what rights do you have to represent LangFeng City!”

“Not transferring the position to this Venerable One?” 

Pei QianYue chuckled quietly: “If he didn’t transfer it to this Venerable One, should he have transferred it to you, his Shidi, who had casted a malicious curse on him, which caused him to become heavily wounded during an enemy encounter and ultimately die from being unable to recover properly?”

The Discipline Elder’s pupils constricted instantly.

Pei QianYue stood up and walked down the front stairs of the Main Hall to stop in front of the Discipline Elder: “The previous City Master of LangFeng City, Sword Saint Rong Ji, was an honest and kind-hearted person. Back then, Rong Ji saved this Venerable One’s life. In repayment, this Venerable one promised to fulfill one of his request. Discipline Elder, do you want to guess what it was?”

The Discipline Elder looked at Pei QianYue in a daze. Suddenly, he started to tremble violently. 

Pei QianYue said coolly: “He wanted this Venerable One to promise to let you remain in LangFeng City. As long as you remained loyal, this Venerable One would spare your life.”

“No…… not possible…….” The Discipline Elder trembled all over. His emotions fluctuated violently, causing the gold inscriptions on the shackles around his neck to flash incessantly: “I never wanted to kill him, I only wanted….. In Shizun’s eyes, it’s always been only him. The City Master’s position was his. The citizen’s admiration and reverence were also his…I only wanted…… I only wanted him to resign. I didn’t know that he’d encounter a powerful enemy at that time. I didn’t know—”

Looking like he had suddenly recalled something, he raised his head, looked directly at Pei QianYue, and yelled: “It was you! At that time, Shixiong said that he was going to LingWu Mountain to pay respect to Grandmaster QianQiu. When he encountered the enemy, you were the only person present. All of this is only a one-sided recount from you! Clearly, it was you; it must have been you—”

Wen HuaiYu, who had been silent and taciturn this entire time, suddenly looked up. 

However, the Discipline Elder did not continue talking.

Because the chains wrapped around his neck suddenly tightened.

Like a snake, the chains swiftly crawled around his neck and four limbs. The Discipline Elder’s face very quickly swelled bright red as the bones of his neck made the frightening sound of being strangled.

A moment later, the chains loosened and the Discipline Elder collapsed to the ground. 

Without any signs of life.

“LangFeng City law: Those who betray the sect will be sentenced to death, their bones crushed into ashes and scattered to the wind.” Pei QianYue said coolly: “Take him away.”

The soldier dragged off the recently deceased corpse and left the Great Hall.

Pei QianYue said: “I apologize to everyone for having you listen to some internal grievances. Now, how do you want this Venerable One to deal with you guys next?” 

Naturally, no one dared to answer this question.

However, Pei QianYue seemed to be in a pretty good mood today. Not annoyed, he said slowly: “Then this Venerable One will say it differently. Do you guys want to live…… or die?”

“Pei QianYue!” In the darkness, someone finally spoke up. A middle-aged man in purple struggled to stand up. He yelled loudly: “You are merciless and cruel, slaughtering innocents  indiscriminately. My LuoHua Sect definitely won’t surrender and swear allegiance—”

His voice stopped abruptly. 

The same sound of bones being crushed could be heard within the Great Hall, like right before the Discipline Elder’s death. This was accompanied by Pei QianYue’s ice-cold voice: “LuoHua Sect…… very good. From today onward, LuoHua Sect will be expelled from the Immortal alliance. The LuoHua disciples captured tonight will be executed. The remaining disciples of the sect will have their spiritual roots destroyed, never to enter the cultivation world again in this lifetime.”

As soon as his voice fell, the hall finally ceased to be silent.

“City Master, spare us. LiuGuang Mountain is willing to surrender and swear allegiance!”

“LeiTing School is willing to surrender and swear allegiance!” 

“XuanYue Sword Sect is willing to surrender ands swear allegiance!”

……

The LuoHua Sect Leader slumped to the ground. The other nine Sects all expressed their stance. However Pei QianYue ignored them. Instead, he turned his head slightly.

To face Wen HuaiYu. 

“Sect Leader Wen, what about you?” Pei QianYue asked.

In the darkness, Wen HuaiYu closed his eyes and said in a low, hoarse voice: “From today onward, QingJing Sect…… will obey the Alliance Leader completely.”

The crowd departed, leaving only Pei QianYue inside the Main Hall.

Xiao Que walked inside swiftly. 

“City Master. According to your instructions, I have injected the Life Soul Parasite into all of the…… elders’ bodies. If they consider rebelling again in the future, their Divine Consciousness will shatter, and their body will explode.” Xiao Que said.

Pei QianYue acknowledged it indifferently.

Most of his figure was hidden in the darkness. When Xiao Que looked up however, he was shocked at the sight of Pei QianYue untying the black silk in front of him.

Since Pei QianYue’s eyes were injured many, many years ago, he rarely removed the black silk in front of others. 

His eyes were photophobic. Without anything to cover the light, it was tantamount to exposing his weakness in front of others.

Xiao Que opened his mouth, wanting to say something. However, he then saw Pei QianYue reach into his pocket, pull out a bloodstained green cloth, and tie it over his eyes.

Xiao Que: “……”

That strip of fabric was cut from a LangFeng disciple’s uniform. It had already lost its magic enchantments. Then the edges were ripped in a previous fight. It was covered in a faint color of blood. 

Nevertheless, Pei QianYue didn’t show any disgust towards it.

Xiao Que didn’t dare to speak. He stood to the side, waiting for Pei QianYue to finish tying the fabric. Then he heard Pei QianYue say: “Add another clause to the poisonous parasite’s restrictions. They are not allowed to reveal even the slightest details about what they saw on LinXian Terrace today.”

This was naturally talking about how Feng Ci unveiled his sword aura, killed Cheng Chao, and saved Pei QianYue.

LinXian Terrace was at the highest point of LangFeng City, but it was also some distance from the Main Hall and entrance plaza of the front mountains. Although the sword aura that Feng Ci displayed today was strong, it was far away. It’s unlikely others know what happened. 

The only people, who knew the whole story and witnessed Grandmaster QianQiu’s astonishing strike, were actually the dozen cultivators who were present at the scene.

Even Xiao Que had only guessed a general idea from the way the two people acted and behaved.

However, Xiao Que didn’t dare to ask too much; he only acknowledged quietly with a “Yes”.

Pei QianYue stood up. When he got up, he tugged on some unknown wound, which made him pause slightly. 

“City Master, your injury……”

That Demon(妖) Imprisonment Talisman inherently damages a demon(妖)’s primordial soul. In addition, Cheng Chao had attacked mercilessly. Even though Pei QianYue didn’t show anything outwardly, in truth, he had been fairly injured.

Xiao Que hastily stepped forth: “This disciple will heal you right away, City Master.”

Pei QianYue didn’t move. He suddenly asked: “Does this Venerable One look very heavily injured?” 

Xiao Que was completely dumbfounded by this question.

This was LingXiao Gate’s Demon(妖) Imprisonment Talisman. In these years, who knew how many demons(妖) had died inside this magic array. Even a great demon like Pei QianYue, who had cultivated over 3000 years, might face the danger of having his soul scattered if he stayed within that array for a little while longer.

Xiao Yue didn’t understand why he’d ask this. However, he still answered honestly: “That Demon(妖) Imprisonment Talisman is no trivial matter. City Master, you should not delay treatment for your injuries.”

Pei QianYue seemed to be very satisfied with this answer. 

Chuckling quietly, he said faintly: “Very good.”

After Feng Ci left LinXian Terrace, he flew on his sword and returned directly to the outer disciples’ courtyard.

This group of young outer disciples did not participate in the battle and still didn’t know what had happened in the front mountains. Thus, Feng Ci was unhindered on his way back to his own little residence.

Tonight Feng Ci had really been pissed off majorly by Pei QianYue, that asshole. 

To prevent himself from picking up his sword in anger and giving that little brat a good beating, he simply returned to his room and entered static meditation, which at the same time, would help him calm down a bit.

When he woke up again, the sun was already starting to rise.

Feng Ci’s anger came quickly and also left quickly. After meditating for an entire night, his anger had already dissipated pretty much.

Exposing his true identity in front of Pei QianYue… really wasn’t anything major. 

Even if those things didn’t happen last night, Feng Ci would have still found a chance to confess to him anyway. What really pissed Feng Ci off the most was that this asshole bastard didn’t care about his own body at all and used Feng Ci’s soft spot for him as a way to test Feng Ci.

However, the ultimate reason why that asshole bastard had such terrible ideas right now… was most likely because Feng Ci had left him when he was still young. The many years of negligence in the hatchling’s upbringing and discipline was what caused baby to grow more and more crooked.

Therefore, despite being possibly too late, Feng Ci still felt like he needed to have a good chat with Pei QianYue.

As he thought this, he got out of bed and opened the door. 

A black-robed figure was kneeling ramrod straight in front of his door.

Yesterday night, it snowed in LangFeng City. Pei QianYue didn’t use his spirit energy to resist the cold. Snow landed all over his hair and robes, making his complexion even more pale white.

Hearing the door open, Pei QianYue raised his head slightly, looking like he wanted to say something. However, as soon as he opened his mouth, he first started to cough quietly.

Feng Ci: “……” 

Was this asshole bastard aware that he’s still injured?

Feng Ci took a breath of the cold and fresh morning air after the snow, only feeling the fiery anger that he had finally suppressed returning again.

The author has something to say:

Xiao Hei: What’s three days and three nights. Master loves this act of mine. You guys don’t have wives, you don’t understand.




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