Watching the Mountain

Chapter 279: Chapter 170: A Draw

”I believe he’s in grave danger right now. As fellow cultivators, if my Profound Pure Sect were to stand by and let him die—or worse, kick him while he’s down—all because of suspicion, how would that make us any different from a ’plague’? Isn’t this atmosphere of division and mistrust precisely what we are supposed to be fighting against?”

He took a deep breath. ”I am willing to personally lead a rescue mission. The team can be composed of any fellow disciples who volunteer. If no one is willing to go, I will go alone.”

”As for the Illusion Spirit Sect, I will immediately send a message explaining the situation. I will invite them to dispatch trustworthy members to join us—not to watch over us, but to work together to rescue their own disciple and clear away any suspicion.”

He had barely finished speaking when an Elder stepped forward and chided him, ”Nonsense! You’re still far too naive. After the incident, only our disciples were affected. The people from the Illusion Spirit Sect vanished without a trace. This is obviously their conspiracy.”

”It is admirable that you hold to your principles, but that integrity should be reserved for your own people. As for other Sects...”

”The Cultivation Realm is not as simple as you think. As the Sect’s Chief Disciple, you must abandon this naivety.”

In truth, many of the Sect’s Elders had grown concerned about Li Daoyi lately. The current Chief Disciple was perfect in every respect, from his talent to his moral character.

But that was precisely the problem. Some Elders worried he was *too* righteous. It was fine within the Sect, but they feared he would suffer for it out in the world.

The Elder didn’t actually want to criticize Li Daoyi. He just wanted to take this opportunity to teach him about the darker side of the Cultivation Realm. He hoped to prepare him mentally, to convince him not to be so naive, lest the Sect might one day lose a Chief Disciple with such limitless potential.

Hearing this, Li Daoyi replied with unwavering conviction, ”Fellow Daoist Chu is a comrade I trust. He is as reliable a partner as any of my fellow disciples.”

”You...” The Elder who had spoken earlier was about to say more, but at that very moment, a disciple rushed in from outside to report that all the missing disciples had returned.

With them was the Chief Disciple of the Illusion Spirit Sect, Chu Lingxiao. He was covered in blood, but his expression was calm. Upon seeing Li Daoyi, he said nothing, merely giving him a slight nod.

Only after the returning disciples explained did everyone understand what had happened. When the incident occurred, it was Chu Lingxiao who, disregarding the danger, had led the effort to save them.

Furthermore, the disciples recounted that the array trap had actually sprung near the Profound Pure Sect group; the Illusion Spirit Sect members hadn’t been affected at all. They could have simply ignored the situation. It had been incredibly dangerous, with lava erupting...

The best choice would have been to leave immediately. But Chu Lingxiao didn’t. Instead, he resolutely chose to save the Profound Pure Sect disciples. He managed to save every single one of them, but at the cost of being grievously injured himself.

After the disciples finished their story, Li Daoyi’s bright eyes swept over the assembled Elders. He spoke in a calm voice:

”Do any of you Elders have anything more to say? If not, then I will be taking my comrade to treat his wounds.”

When he said the word ”comrade,” an undeniable pride shone in his expression.

And Chu Lingxiao’s actions were indeed worthy of that pride.

A moment of silence fell over the hall after he spoke, followed by a sigh. ”Chief Li, you should take our friend from the Illusion Spirit Sect to be treated.”

’It seemed there was no way to lecture him today, anyway.’

Li Daoyi smiled at this, then turned to Chu Lingxiao. ”Brother Chu,” he said cheerfully, ”let’s go.”

Chu Lingxiao nodded lightly, said nothing, and followed silently.

Xu Ran, who had also entered the hall, saw the scene unfold. He quietly exited and approached Chu Lingxiao, holding out a Second Grade Life Creation Pill.

Chu Lingxiao didn’t refuse. He took the Elixir, swallowed it, and said, ”Thank you, Elder Hidden Mountain.”

Xu Ran nodded slightly in acknowledgment, saying nothing more. He simply watched the two of them, a wave of emotion washing over him.

’Their friendship withstood the test this time. It’s a wonderful thing to see.’

He then gave the two a small smile and a gentle wave before departing in silence, leaving the young partners and comrades to themselves.

Because of this incident, the cooperation between the Profound Pure Sect and the Illusion Spirit Sect reached a new level. Throughout the Sect, no one tried to obstruct Li Daoyi’s actions any longer.

Li Daoyi, Chu Lingxiao, and Luo Qianxue were all deeply encouraged by this, feeling that everything was unfolding just as they had hoped.

Even Xu Ran, who had witnessed it all, was gratified. He found himself looking forward to the day these young prodigies would finally shine with their own brilliance.

’When that day comes,’ he mused, ’they will surely be a dazzling sight, won’t they?’

Xu Ran glanced at the scorching sun hanging high in the sky and silently immersed himself in his own Cultivation.

It wasn’t long, however, before Deceitful Blade Chen Chang’an found him. ”I hear you’ve grasped a new sword technique?” he asked quietly.

Xu Ran wasn’t surprised by the question. After grasping the new Swordsmanship, the first thing he’d done was find Ye Shu. He’d had him bring out Ye Shan’s sword, intending to use him as a conduit to cross blades with Ye Shan once more.

He was absolutely confident that this new technique was stronger than his previous three. He was eager to see what would happen if he clashed with Ye Shan this time.

Unfortunately, Ye Shan’s sword didn’t activate this time. The remote duel through Ye Shu never happened, which left him feeling somewhat disappointed.

To assuage his disappointment, he turned to Zhang Zhentian, asking him to suppress his Cultivation and fight him at the same Realm.

The final result was a draw.

But Xu Ran wasn’t the least bit disappointed by this. He had fought the Evergreen Sword Saint, Zhang Zhentian—the strongest fighter below the Nascent Soul Realm—to a draw, fair and square.

A result like that was more than enough to prove the power of his new technique.

Thinking back to when he had just started out, he never would have imagined that he could catch up to the pace of the top prodigies in just a few short centuries.

According to his original plan, he was supposed to wait until after this generation of prodigies had faded from the stage, after an eternity had passed, before he could finally shine.

And yet, here he was, already able to fight one of the most brilliant prodigies of the age to a standstill.

Even if his opponent had been suppressing his Cultivation.

Facing Chen Chang’an’s question, he answered calmly, ”Yes. This Swordsmanship technique is called Scorching Sun.”

Chen Chang’an nodded slightly. ”Can you show it to me?”

Xu Ran smiled. ”Of course.”