Chapter 145: Killing (3)

It is entirely normal for hot-blooded, youthful disciples to have minor disputes among themselves. However, if those of higher seniority or established prestige engage in fierce brawls in front of their juniors, it makes for a very unsightly spectacle.

Therefore, even though Ye Yang was deeply angered, he merely chuckled and dismissed it. As he walked away, he softly remarked, "Fellow Daoist Su's state of mind appears somewhat unstable."

Su凡 did not offer a counter-argument. He allowed the other man to hurl insults and walk away in gloating triumph; his previous words had been forced upon him by circumstance.

Those seemingly casual remarks were actually a bloodless battle. Ye Yang had first lowered his own status by addressing Su凡 as an equal, attempting to breed arrogance within him—a perilous mindset for anyone walking the path of cultivation.

Recognizing the trap, Su凡 immediately countered. Brushing aside his own past glories, he elevated Ye Yang's standing instead, effortlessly deflecting the first wave of attack.

Next, Ye Yang craftily fabricated rumors regarding Su凡. While those few words might not directly damage Su凡's cultivation base, once they entered the Qingming Valley, they would undoubtedly sow seeds of misunderstanding, breeding suspicion and distrust among the disciples toward Su凡—a truly terrifying prospect.

Fortunately, Su凡 seized upon a flaw in Ye Yang's logic and fought back fiercely, leaving Ye Yang momentarily speechless and winning the conviction of the surrounding disciples. Once again, danger was averted.

At the final juncture, Ye Yang had no choice but to propose a wager: a race to see who could reach the three realms of Dao-Transformation first. Though it sounded harmless enough, the intent behind it was deeply malicious.

Cultivation demands peace and tranquility of the mind. How could one casually wager upon it? Once the desire to compete takes root, one's cultivation would likely stall forever at the late Nascent Soul stage, cutting off any hope of ever attaining the Dao-Transformation realms.

Having endured three rounds of provocation, Su凡 could tolerate no more. If he did not fight back, this man would likely continue to pester him. Although the remaining month was short, he could not allow such behavior to persist.

Thus, Su凡 ignored the wager entirely and instead declared that Ye Yang would die right here. Ye Yang already harbored a deep-seated dread of Su凡, and this pronouncement severely disrupted his inner peace; until Su凡 died, he would never find tranquility.

With those words uttered, Ye Yang would find it exceedingly difficult to step into the three realms of Dao-Transformation before Su凡's death—unless some supreme cultivator were to impart teachings and resolve his doubts, and even then, only if Ye Yang possessed the enlightenment to grasp them. Otherwise, Su凡 would forever remain an insurmountable barrier in his state of mind.

After Ye Yang departed, the disciples lapsed back into boisterous activity. A few even waded into the water to catch fish, while others teamed up to hunt wild beasts in the surrounding area.

By early evening, the disciples began roasting their captured game. Although they had long since fasted by absorbing spiritual energy, out of sheer enthusiasm, Su凡 reluctantly ate a little. Lamenting the destruction of his storage pouch, his wine gourd had also vanished, leaving him unable to drink his peach blossom wine—a true regret.

As the moon shone bright and the stars grew sparse, gazing up into the vast starry sky stirred a baseless wave of melancholy deep within his mind. He silently vowed that once he avenged the tragedy of Peach Blossom Creek, he would return to Tianyuan Prefecture by any means necessary, for that was his true home.

"Tomorrow, disciples from the other sects will likely arrive. We must exercise caution; there may be those with malicious intentions and despicable designs among them."

The speaker was Yu Ming, his cold gaze fixed squarely upon the camp of the Everlasting Joy Sect. Ever since he had been ambushed by Elder Liu in the dead of night, he had harbored not a shred of goodwill toward them.

Su凡 smiled and gestured for Yu Ming to sit down. "Senior Brother, there is no need for such concern," he said. "Once we enter Qingming Valley, all matters shall be settled together."

In the distance, the starlight flickered a few times before vanishing into the firmament. Moments later, a contingent of figures approached the entrance of Qingming Valley. As if prearranged, they were unaccompanied by any senior elders of their sect; the disciples had come entirely of their own accord.

The newly arrived group were all dressed in pale blue Daoist robes. Their leader possessed refined and delicate features, yet his expression was icy and forbidding, keeping others at a distance.

After surveying the surroundings for a moment, the group casually found an open patch of ground and sat cross-legged in meditation. Their companions bore the same demeanor, marked by a similar chilling coldness.

After sweeping his gaze over them, Yu Ming stated with certainty, "They are disciples of the Southern Heaven Observatory from the Extreme North. That region is sparsely populated, and the Observatory is the sole sect there. Owing to its remote location and the fact that its disciples are as frigid as the weather of the Extreme North, they rarely interact with other sects."

Su凡 cast a deep glance at the leading young man. In an instant, the youth shifted his gaze to meet Su凡's, and Su凡 offered a slight, cupped-fist salute.

The young man returned the gesture, lowered his gaze, gently closed his eyes, and began to meditate.

Yu Ming frowned slightly and murmured, "I recall Master mentioning that the Southern Heaven Observatory recently accepted a disciple surnamed Li, a genuine prodigy. Just ten years after entering the Observatory, he defeated his own master. His name is Li Mingxuan."

The biting wind was desolate; even the night breeze of Qingming Valley carried a hint of chill, whether brought by these sudden arrivals or inherent to the valley's gloomy nature.

The disciples of the Southern Heaven Observatory sat cross-legged in unison. Faintly discernible was the formation they formed among the fifteen of them—an arrangement following a certain tactical array, which was a rare sight indeed.

"Young Master, is that the fellow the Observatory Master mentioned—the brat who triggered the heavenly tribulation?" a disciple sitting close to Li Mingxuan whispered softly.

With an unchanging expression and his eyes half-closed, Li Mingxuan replied coldly, "What concerns you are the affairs of others? To lack mental tranquility even during meditation—all your years of quiet contemplation have gone to waste."

The disciple's face instantly turned pale. He hurriedly shut his mouth, closed his eyes tight, and resumed his meditation, though his hands continued to tremble uncontrollably and the corners of his lips were drained of color.

"Very well. Since we are outside, the Observatory Master will not be overly strict. As long as I do not speak of it, he will not know. Apply your heart to meditation," Li Mingxuan said, his tone devoid of emotion.

Hearing this, the young man visibly relaxed. At least the cold sweat on his forehead was finally allowed to trickle down in peace, and his hands rested normally upon his knees.

At that very moment, the sky, which had long since darkened, suddenly flared with a crimson glow. Patches of clouds seemed to have been set ablaze, resembling a corner of that heavenly tribulation from years past.

Instantly, the various Nascent Soul cultivators who had been meditating with closed eyes snapped them wide open, gazing toward the distant source of the fiery glare.

"Someone is engaging in a battle of spells."

It took a long while of silence before Yu Ming uttered those words.

Su凡 felt an overwhelming surge of killing intent drifting from the far horizon, accompanied by a nameless, raging fury that drove him almost to slay the master of that murderous aura.

Li Mingxuan merely opened his eyes a fraction, cast a frigid glance into the distance, and then resumed his meditation.

As for the members of the Everlasting Joy Sect, their expressions turned frosty as they stared fearfully toward the horizon, one of them even faintly twitching as if reaching for a weapon.

A short while later, a wave of ferocious, unbridled killing intent rushed over them, followed instantly by the thick stench of blood piercing their nostrils. A group of cultivators clad in beast-skin garments descended before the entrance of Qingming Valley. All fifteen members of this group wielded long sabers dripping with fresh blood, as though they had just finished a massacre not long before.

Clad in rough furs, every one of them appeared robust and muscular, making a remarkably slender youth among them stand out sharply. The youth was short in stature, with small eyes, a small nose, and small ears; even the saber he carried was a size smaller than the rest.

Without sparing the seated crowd even a glance, the short youth shouted, "No need to wait any longer! The rest of them have all been slaughtered by us. The valley can be opened now."

Smiling broadly, Ye Yang stepped out before the short youth and cupped his fists. "Could you brothers perhaps be from the Wild North Berserk Saber Gate?"

The short youth sized Ye Yang up with a half-smile before asking playfully, "You're from the Everlasting Joy Sect, aren't you? Our Berserk Saber Gate has never crossed paths with your people."

Ye Yang hurriedly forced a flattering smile. "The Everlasting Joy Sect and the Berserk Saber Gate have always enjoyed friendly relations. This fellow Daoist must surely be Blood Cloud, the personal eldest disciple of the Sect Master."

A flicker of surprise crossed the short youth's face, and he asked with mild curiosity, "You know me?"

Ye Yang laughed heartily. "Who in the world does not know Blood Cloud? You are more than qualified to be considered the premier figure of Everlasting Joy Prefecture."

Blood Cloud burst into delighted laughter, and his companions joined in. Abruptly cutting off his laughter, which caused his followers to fall silent instantly, Blood Cloud declared, "Since we are on friendly terms, let us look out for one another once we enter the valley."

This was precisely what Ye Yang had been waiting for. He hastily cupped his fists and said, "Then many thanks, Fellow Daoist Blood Cloud. The trip into the valley will surely be fraught with danger; I ask that Fellow Daoist Blood Cloud hold nothing back should we encounter difficulties."

Blood Cloud waved a hand and laughed heartily. "Naturally."

Ye Yang smiled. "The opening of the valley is set for tomorrow, so I must ask Fellow Daoist Blood Cloud and your men to endure a night of hardship here."

After another round of polite, albeit insincere, pleasantries between the two, the area before the valley fell silent once more.

From beginning to end, Yu Ming never once shifted his gaze away from Blood Cloud. Only after Blood Cloud sat down did Yu Ming say coldly, "People from the Wild North have hands stained with blood. We must be wary of them."

Confusion filled Su凡's face. Although the killing intent emanating from this group was formidable, in his estimation, it still fell somewhat short compared to his own—at least they lacked a certain hardened baleful aura. Yet ever since their arrival, someone as proud as Ye Yang had lowered his own dignity to curry favor with them.

Given Yu Ming's cultivation level, for him to harbor such deep dread toward these people piqued Su凡's curiosity. "I see that their highest cultivation is merely at the early Nascent Soul stage, with the majority sitting at the late Golden Core stage. Are they really that terrifying?"

With a frosty expression, Yu Ming replied chillingly, "There were once many sects in the Wild North, but now only the Berserk Saber Gate remains, and very few outsiders dare to venture there anymore.

"That is because ever since the Berserk Saber Gate was established in the Wild North, sects have been systematically annihilated one after another—a true annihilation, leaving not a single living soul behind. Even those who fled to distant lands were relentlessly hunted down by the Berserk Saber Gate until they perished."

A flicker of realization crossed Su凡's face. He muttered in a deep voice, "If it were me, I would root them out completely as well. Leaving behind future troubles always leaves one ill at ease."

Yu Ming glanced at Su凡 with a mixture of surprise and a slight pause, then gave a bitter smile. "It would be best if we can avoid them altogether. If we cannot, our strikes must be swift and fatal."

"The rules for this trial remain the same as in previous years: each person will be issued a token. During the competition, one must stop before going too far, the ultimate goal being to seize the opponent's tokens. When the trial concludes, the quotas for training slots allocated to each sect will be determined by the proportion of tokens they hold relative to the total. The trial shall last for the duration of one year."