Zhao Chun was greatly shocked to hear this and asked directly, “A time of crisis? I came here under the Sect Master's orders with an important matter to attend to. I do not know what kind of major event would require all of you to evacuate completely!”
Tu Congwen looked around cautiously and said in a low voice, “The Sect Master’s lifespan has reached its end, and there is no chance to reverse it. He intends to forsake reincarnation and perform a spiritual qi infusion to help a sect elder break through to the Profound Division stage and guard the sect.
During this process, we fear that enemy sects will cause trouble and seize the opportunity to attack. That is why he ordered us to quickly head to the Secluded Valley to avoid harm.”
“Absurd!”
Zhao Chun scolded angrily, her voice full of suspicion.
“This concerns the very survival of the sect. How could such news be spread so easily? Now even Pine Mountain has heard the news. I'm afraid the matter of the Sect Master has already spread throughout the entire Southern Region... I fear... there is a spy within our ranks!”
What the Tu Family had received was indeed a True Spirit Sect command token; it could not be fake. She just did not know who had issued the order. It was an act of plugging one's ears while stealing a bell, completely exposing the True Spirit Sect's crisis for any sect with ill intentions to see!
It was utterly foolish, yet it also showed the extent of the True Spirit Sect's crisis, that they would even abandon the old ancestral grounds of the sect. Master Tusheng had probably sensed this long ago, which was why he had ordered her to come and retrieve the ancestor's item, completely abandoning Pine Mountain!
There was only half a day left before the evacuation. The entire Tu Family had already packed up, and the vast residence had become an empty shell. Zhao Chun had an important matter to attend to and could not leave.
She could only see Tu Congwen’s group off, and watching the increasingly desolate Pine Mountain, her heart sank to the bottom of a valley. Thinking about it carefully, True Spirit Sect disciples had been disappearing mysteriously, and the disturbance had not settled for a long time.
This time, with the Sect Master about to pass away, the news had spread early again. The sect's internal affairs were probably completely understood by the enemy sect. And who could this enemy be, other than the Yang Water Sect?
She just did not know which of the sect's elders would succeed Master Tusheng and become the next Profound Division cultivator, and whether they could withstand this crisis... In her heart, Zhao Chun was more inclined towards Qiu Jianying. She was a sword cultivator, skilled in offense, and young.
She was naturally more suitable than Li Su. She believed the Sect Master must have had the same thought.
“I must quickly retrieve the Return-Kill Sword and return to the sect!”
With this thought decided, she headed towards the summit of Pine Mountain. The sky had already darkened. From the information the Sect Master had given her, she knew that the Return-Kill Sword was suppressed beneath the Dao Arena at the peak of Pine Mountain.
Only a sword cultivator could draw it out. Furthermore, this sword was the personal sword of Duan Daoren, who was at the fifth realm of sword intent. It possessed a sliver of spiritual sentience and could distinguish between friend and foe, loyalty and treachery.
Zhao Chun cultivated the orthodox techniques of the True Spirit Sect and carried the sect's fortune on her. This sword would surely be able to recognize her. However, as soon as she reached the summit, Zhao Chun sensed that something was wrong.
She quickly concealed her aura and hid in the shadows. She could sense two other people here, also likely around the early Foundation Establishment stage. As long as she suppressed her aura, she would not be detected.
Sure enough, the two of them, unaware of a third person on the mountain, walked onto the Dao Arena with confident steps. One of them looked up at the sky for a few breaths and sighed, “It’s only just past dusk. There’s still some time to wait until the moon is high in the sky.”
“Waiting a while is fine. As long as we bring the treasure from under this Pine Mountain back, it will be a heavenly great merit. Perhaps you and I can use this to gain the favor of the elders and obtain a few top-grade Gu techniques.”
Gu arts?
The Yang Water Sect! Zhao Chun’s killing intent flared. Her hand was already on the hilt of her sword, ready to strike and kill the two, but then she heard the man speak again, “It’s just a pity for you, Senior Brother Lang.
If the sect hadn't sent you to the True Spirit Sect back then, how could Zhuo Gongqing be so arrogant now!”
“What could I do? That Zhuo Gongqing is of Elder Zhuo’s bloodline and inherited the Azure Spider Life Gu. The sect naturally wouldn't let him go.”
Senior Brother Lang’s expression was displeased as he said angrily, “How can the True Spirit Sect’s spells be as exquisite as my Yang Water Sect's Gu arts? If I hadn't been delayed by them, I would have entered the late Foundation Establishment stage long ago...”
The Gu arts of the Yang Water Sect cultivated the path of the life Gu and did not place much importance on spiritual roots. Hearing this, Zhao Chun knew that this Senior Brother Lang was likely quite talented in Gu arts.
It was just that after infiltrating the True Spirit Sect, he had no choice but to cultivate a Daoist technique, which had delayed his own innate talent, hence his great resentment.
“Fortunately, Senior Brother, you entered an elder’s discipleship as soon as you joined the True Spirit Sect and gained his favor, entering the inner sect. This time, you learned many secrets from that Ge Xingchao, rendering a great merit for our Yang Water Sect.”
Senior Brother Lang glanced at him and frowned, “Do you think this merit of mine came easily? When I entered the sect, there was a senior brother above me. If I hadn't tampered with his Foundation Establishment and cut off his future path, I'm afraid I wouldn't have even caught Qi Shiyu's eye.
As for Ge Xingchao, he's indeed a fool. With just a little flattery, he told me everything.” How could Zhao Chun not know that this person was the junior brother Cao Wenguan had spoken of, the mysteriously disappeared inner sect disciple, Lang Zhen!
This person was actually a spy from the Yang Water Sect. No wonder he had acted so ruthlessly against her for no reason! Lang Zhen continued to speak with great relish about the anecdotes he had learned in the True Spirit Sect.
But as he spoke, he suddenly noticed that his junior brother's face in front of him had become rigid. Before he could ask, “What’s wrong with you?” That person’s head suddenly slid to the ground, and blood shot into the sky!
“Who’s there!”
Lang Zhen’s eyes looked like they were about to split. He retreated dozens of meters in haste, utterly terrified. To be able to kill an early Foundation Establishment cultivator in front of him without a sound showed that the person's strength was extremely high, definitely above his own.
“Qiu Jianying, it’s Qiu Jianying!”
He looked around in panic but saw no one, muttering, “Impossible...
Impossible!
Elder Chunyu said there would definitely be no Core Formation cultivators coming here. Who is it, who!”
“I am indeed not at the Core Formation stage.”
Zhao Chun stood on the Dao Arena, holding her sword in one hand.
“But it is enough to kill you.”
She had thought she could defeat these two, but she hadn't expected it to be so frighteningly easy. The crimson-gold True Qi, as if it were a magic tool itself, was infused into the sword radiance. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator's physical body was like cutting melons and vegetables, with no resistance felt at all.
Seeing that she was only at the early Foundation Establishment stage, Lang Zhen seemed to disbelieve it and repeatedly looked around to see if there was anyone else.
“No need to look, I am the only one here!”
In an instant, Zhao Chun had already closed the distance. Her sword entered Lang Zhen’s chest. He had a defensive magic tool protecting his heart, but he hadn't expected Zhao Chun's True Qi to pierce straight through, shattering even the magic tool, let alone his physical body.
However, after enduring such an infusion of True Qi, the Red-Edged Dagger was also having some trouble. Mottled cracks had already appeared on the dagger's body. Zhao Chun would have to find another handy magical tool.
Fighting two cultivators of the same rank, both were slain in a single encounter. Zhao Chun had only just entered this realm, yet she possessed an invincible bearing among her peers. The crimson-gold True Qi and the perfected sword radiance, neither of these two things could be missing; both were the foundation of her strength.
However, after killing the two, Zhao Chun felt no sense of the crisis being resolved. Lang Zhen had said that there would definitely be no Core Formation cultivators here, which meant that the True Spirit Sect's situation was so critical that not a single Core Formation elder could be allowed to leave the sect.
And the two sent to retrieve the treasure were only at the Foundation Establishment stage. The Yang Water Sect’s Core Formation cultivators must have also been gathered together, with the intention of attacking the Secluded Valley!
“I have to be faster!”
Zhao Chun gritted her teeth secretly, leaped to the center of the Dao Arena, drew out her sword radiance, and placed her hand on the head of the immortal crane on the ground. She forced out a mouthful of her heart's blood.
When the crane received the blood, its eyes lit up for a moment, but then dimmed again, with no further change. Zhao Chun was puzzled, clenching both her fists, not knowing what had gone wrong. But then, she suddenly heard a crane's cry.
Looking up, dark clouds had obscured the bright white moon. An immortal crane flew towards the clouds, its sharp beak wide open, and gradually ate away the clouds before the moon. When the clouds completely dispersed and the bright moon hung high in the sky, Pine Mountain suddenly shook violently, and the entire Dao Arena split in two!
Under the frosty moonlight, a dark-colored longsword rose into the air. The body of the sword was black, the hilt was gold, and it had no guard.
Just by watching from afar, Zhao Chun could feel the surging killing intent within it, like a tide from the sea! --- The author's note: I've revised the Sect Master to be the sixth generation (don't know if I mentioned it before), sorting out the timeline is giving me a headache (kneels).
(End of this chapter)