Zhao Chun took another item out from her sleeve. It was crystal clear and lustrous, the very formation eye of the Tu Family's Heaven-Connecting and Lightning-Guiding Great Formation—the White Jade Talisman.
"The Tu Family Head has entrusted this disciple to present this item. They wish to relocate to the Secluded Valley and return to the sect's protection."
Li Su took the talisman, his interest waning. He said flatly, "In that case, send a message and tell the Tu Family to make their own way here."
"Reporting to Master, the Tu Family has suffered the calamity of internal strife. Currently, only a cultivator at the second level of Qi Refinement is in charge. They fear the journey is long and the relocation difficult, and wish to request that the Sect go to Pine Mountain to guide them..."
Having said this, Zhao Chun had done all she could. As for how the sect would handle it, it was difficult for her to intervene.
"Inappropriate!"
Li Su immediately refused, displeased.
"These are troubled times. We don't even know if that Tu Family is clean. Besides, the sect does not have many idle people. How can we accommodate others given these difficulties?"
After his rebuke, he then admonished Zhao Chun, "Although you are my in-name disciple, you are still considered a disciple under an Elder. You should be cultivating with a calm heart, in hopes of reaching Foundation Establishment soon, to be of benefit to the sect. Being entangled in worldly affairs is not conducive to cultivation.
You should properly collect your heart!" Zhao Chun knew he was taking his anger out on her. She did not talk back, obediently nodding in agreement, only sighing for the Tu Family in her heart.
The True Spirit Sect that Tu Cenzhen spoke of, one of benevolent rule and compassionate heart, was probably not going to fulfill his final wish... After coming out of Suhong Hall, she went to visit the people of Daylily Garden. Before, when she lived in the garden, she had not felt anything.
Now that she had gone to the Inner Sect and entered the mid-stage of Qi Refinement, she finally understood the concept of distance. Among cultivators, even those as close as parents and children, or husband and wife, found it difficult to be together day and night. The Great Dao of Eternal Life was mostly a solitary path.
Individual talents differed, and the realms one could reach were not the same. A Foundation Establishment stage cultivator had a lifespan of two hundred years, long enough to see two or three generations pass. Furthermore, cultivators often entered seclusion to cultivate, sometimes for a few months, other times for several decades or even a century.
Just meeting was already difficult, let alone being together. Zhao Chun was still in Qi Refinement, and it was already rare for her to meet with the people of Daylily Garden. If her cultivation were to advance in the future, she was afraid they would become even more estranged.
Separation in life and separation by death, most cultivators were already accustomed to this. Zhao Chun cherished her relationship with them and was willing to do her best to maintain it. As for what would happen in the future, she would leave that for the future to decide.
Her heart was filled with melancholy, but her face was as normal as ever as she stepped into the courtyard. She had specifically chosen a later hour, when the senior sisters who were on duty had all returned to the courtyard. Seeing her enter, they welcomed her with joy.
Zhao Chun selectively recounted the matter of the Four-Eyed Demon Moth, but kept the affair of the Yang Water Sect quite secret. Even so, the several people in the courtyard were extremely worried.
Among them, although Lian Jing was at the fourth level of Qi Refinement, she did not have to undergo the minor trial because she was a menial laborer. Cui Lan'e sighed, "Fortune and misfortune are intertwined.
We only thought menial labor was hard, but we didn't know the disciples' examinations were so strict, where a moment of carelessness could lead to the danger of death." Lian Jing, however, disagreed. She frowned and said, "On the path of the Great Dao, how can there be a smooth and easy way?
If I had broken through a year earlier, I would have also gone to try what it feels like to slay a monster!" The two had opposing opinions, each with their own reasons. Zhao Chun smiled and said, "How could the sect place its disciples in danger?
They are all easy-to-deal-with demonic creatures, just for the sake of testing our own skills." Cui Lan'e repeatedly agreed. The group then chatted about some trivial matters of their daily lives.
It was not until the night grew truly dark that she heard Cui Lan'e say hesitantly, "A'Chun, Senior Sister here has a favor to ask of you..." Zhao Chun was also straightforward, her gaze steadying as she said, "Senior Sister Cui, please speak."
She took Hu Wanzhi's hand and sighed, "Actually, this matter was already concluded, so I didn't want to tell you. But some changes occurred a while ago, which is why I must ask you now."
"Do you remember a person named Xu Kuangrui?"
Zhao Chun was taken aback for a moment, then instantly remembered. She replied, "I remember. I had a conflict with him before, and I was confined for three months because of our fight.
Has he done something?" Cui Lan'e looked at Hu Wanzhi and let out a long sigh before saying, "He harbors hatred in his heart, but he doesn't dare direct it at you. A'Jing and Pianran are in the Reed River Medicine Garden, where he can't interfere, so he has been frequently troubling Wanzhi."
"When did this start? Why didn't Senior Sister tell me?"
Zhao Chun said, incensed.
"When he was released from confinement, you had just gone to Ji City. So he bothered Wanzhi for a few days. Fortunately, you became an Inner Sect Disciple afterward, so he stopped. Seeing that he hadn't caused any trouble for several months, we didn't tell you, afraid of disturbing your cultivation..."
Zhao Chun was moved in her heart and said sincerely, "How could Senior Sister's affairs be a bother? Besides, this matter arose because of me, so it should rightly be resolved by me!" Her thoughts turned, and she asked again, "Senior Sister said there has been a change in circumstances.
Has that Xu Kuangrui come to cause trouble again?" Cui Lan'e's expression turned grave, and she nodded.
"Before, he was wary of your status as an Inner Sect Disciple. But half a month ago, his father, Xu Feng, achieved Foundation Establishment, and he was rated 'Grade B Upper' in the Major Trial. This has made him conceited, and he has started acting out again."
The Major Trial was graded A, B, C, with upper, middle, and lower tiers, for a total of nine grades. Grade B Upper was already considered excellent. Then, Lian Jing added that Xu Feng was only in his early thirties, with a boundless future ahead of him.
Once his climate was established, he would not be someone they could afford to provoke. Zhao Chun, however, chuckled lightly.
"Since he only achieved Foundation Establishment a short while ago, he must have been at the ninth layer of Qi Refining and about to break through when Xu Kuangrui was punished. At that time, I was just a disciple who had just started Qi Guiding, and he still didn't step up for his son. Now that we are both in the Inner Sect, it's even less likely he'll act for him. In my opinion, I fear he doesn't value Xu Kuangrui very much."
Cui Lan'e seemed to remember something, and she suddenly let out a soft "oh" in surprise.
"Hearing you say that, I remember now. This Xu Feng indeed came from a small world. He was betrothed to someone in his childhood. After being selected into the sect, it should have been forgotten, but unexpectedly, his parents forced him to go through with the marriage. That's how he has a son this old."
Most cultivators did not get entangled in personal affections. In their youth, they were diligent in cultivation. Only in their twilight years, when their path forward was hopeless, would they choose to leave behind offspring.
Contrary to this, the more profound one's cultivation was, the more difficult it was to have children. Therefore, in cultivation families, there were also those with outstanding talent who were forced to leave behind a bloodline in their youth.
In the small world where Xu Feng was originally from, spiritual qi was still present, and cultivators were often selected to enter the upper realm. After he entered the sect, he became an official disciple in just two and a half years.
His family deeply felt his extraordinary talent, and before he could become too powerful, they tricked him into returning to the clan to get married, resulting in Xu Kuangrui.
"Because of this, he dislikes this son very much. To make matters worse, Xu Kuangrui also possesses a spiritual root and entered the sect. However, he did not inherit his father's talent. After four years, he is still lingering at the first level of Qi Refinement, without a single inch of progress."
Zhao Chun raised her eyes and said with certainty, "Others are merely afraid of his father, but I am not. Besides, a person like that shouldn't be the type to harbor a festering problem. Xu Kuangrui's improper conduct will bring him his own suffering."
"Even so, we menial laborers don't dare to actually go to his door. Wanzhi has a soft temperament, and I fear she will be harmed again. I was thinking of sending her to your place to stay for a few days, and she can come back after the matter is settled."
Zhao Chun had no reason not to agree. She nodded her assent and then asked, "On what grounds will Senior Sister come to my place?" Menial disciples could not enter the Inner Sect at will, and Zhao Chun could not bend the rules for personal reasons either.
Cui Lan'e smiled faintly.
"That's also simple. Just say you're bringing a mortal servant, and others won't bother with it."
"How can I let Senior Sister be my servant?"
"Will you make Wanzhi do the work of a mortal servant?"
Zhao Chun shook her head. That was certainly not going to happen.
"Then it's settled. We are most at ease with Wanzhi staying with you. You don't have to worry too much either. Actually, among the mortal servants in the Inner Sect, quite a few are menial disciples with cultivation bases. To be a servant or a maid by their side, in the eyes of some, is actually better than being a menial laborer."
Zhao Chun did not know this. It was only because Cui Lan'e had been established in the sect for a long time that she knew of these minor matters.
(End of this chapter)