Chapter 31

"Impossible!" Xu Feinian said, "I often visit Chanxia the Bandit Nun. She treats me with great respect and courtesy. We play chess, drink tea, and even exchange sword techniques. As for Xun Lanin's separate residence on Jiuhua Mountain, I frequently visit as a guest. They..."

"They are just putting on a show for you! They are waiting for the day when they can tear off their masks and have you gather all your former fellow disciples, fellow Daoists from various sects, and even the side sects and demon cults, to wipe you all out in one fell swoop!" Yue Qing said with a stern face, "Have you forgotten? Since the ascension of the Long Eyebrowed Immortal, Qi Shuming and the others have been waving the banner of eradicating all the evil in the world! Ask yourself, aren't we of the Wutai Sect considered evil and demonic in their eyes? Haven't they been trying to exterminate us completely over the years? Have they ever shown us the slightest bit of courtesy?"

Xu Feinian pondered, her expression uncertain. "Why did you have the time to come to Huangshan today, Junior Brother?"

"Of course, it's for the great cause of reviving the Wutai Sect!" Yue Qing strode past Xu Feinian and walked into the cave, "Senior Sister, the great vengeance for our Master should be taken soon, but there is an even more important task: to revitalize the Wutai Sect."

Xu Feinian smiled, a touch of coldness and bitterness in her voice. She then walked in, picked up the teapot from the counter, and poured a cup for Yue Qing and Liu Quan. She felt that Yue Qing's temperament and demeanor had changed a lot from the past, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly what had changed.

Yue Qing took the teacup and sipped, then said earnestly, "The Emei Sect is at the height of its power, and their arrogance is only growing. It's becoming more and more obvious these past few years, and their determination to exterminate us is set in stone. What we need to do is find a way to revitalize the Wutai Sect, gather allies, and stand against them, not just forge a few flying swords or magical treasures and go to our deaths. When our Master was alive, the Five Poison Immortal Sword was incredibly powerful, but even that couldn't match the strength of numbers. A lone tiger can't stand against a pack of wolves. They have the Three Immortals and Two Elders, but what do we have? Even if you truly forge the Demon-Slaying Immortal Sword, can you defeat the Three Immortals and Two Elders alone? And even if you kill them, there are still the Seven Immortals of Luofu, and after them, there are Zui Daoren, Jian Bingru, and the bandit nuns Chanxia and Tulong, not to mention the likes of Luo Ziyun and Hua Yaosong, who are always ready to serve them. Even if you kill all of them, there are still the Three Heroes and Two Clouds, the Seven Dwarfs of Emei, and the traitorous monks and scattered immortals of the side sects, all of whom stand on their side. You've spent decades refining the Demon-Slaying Immortal Sword, but can you kill all of them with just one sword?"

Xu Feinian's expression was calm as she held the teacup. "You say my methods won't work. What are your plans? How can we revive the Wutai Sect? Our former fellow disciples have been killed or exterminated, and those who remain are mostly terrified! Just the two of us? Oh, right, there's also the Golden Body Arhat, who is still guarding Wutai Mountain. That's quite commendable."

"Here it is!" Yue Qing opened his right hand, revealing a ball of colorful smoke in his palm.

"The Taiyi Five Smoke Silk!" Xu Feinian's voice almost broke as she rushed over, clutching the Taiyi Five Smoke Silk to her chest, tears streaming down her face. She choked out, "You, you, did you see the traitor?"

"Yes, I have killed him!" Yue Qing took out the Dingjia Spirit Demon Gourd, opened the stopper, and tapped the bottom of the gourd, releasing a stream of blood mist. Zhu Hong's soul appeared inside.

Seeing Xu Feinian, Zhu Hong immediately collapsed in the blood mist, too weak even to beg for mercy: "Xu, Xu, Xu..."

Looking at Zhu Hong, Xu Feinian's eyes blazed with hatred. She grabbed him, tearing him to pieces with a snarl, and when he reappeared in the blood mist, she stomped him into the ground. In a short moment, Zhu Hong experienced dozens of deaths, each one more gruesome than the last. His screams echoed through the cave, making the hearts of those who heard them clench.

After killing Zhu Hong nearly a hundred times, Xu Feinian's anger subsided. She hugged the Five Smoke Silk and cried until her voice was hoarse. She then lifted her hair, wiped her tears, and said with red eyes, "I lost my composure, Junior Brother and Daoist Liu, please forgive me." She then returned the Taiyi Five Smoke Silk to Yue Qing and went into the inner cave to freshen up.

A moment later, Xu Feinian reappeared, wearing a new green robe, different from the white she usually wore. Her hair was neatly styled, but her eyes were still red and swollen. "Since Zhu Hong has been punished, the second volume of the Daoist book must be in your possession."

"It's here." Yue Qing took out the Hunyuan Secondary Volume.

Xu Feinian took it, flipped through a few pages, and tears streamed down her face as she read the familiar notes.

Yue Qing slowly said, "Not only do I have the secondary volume, but I also know the entire first volume."

Xu Feinian was shocked, "Zhu Hong stole the Tongxuan Scripture along with it? That's impossible. The Tongxuan Scripture... no one can steal it."

Yue Qing asked tentatively, "Senior Sister, have you practiced the Tongxuan Scripture?"

Xu Feinian hesitated, "I practiced one of the scriptures and a few of the alchemy and treasure refinement methods."

"The Tongxuan Scripture has nine volumes. Which one did you practice?"

"You know that the Tongxuan Scripture has nine volumes? I practiced the first one."

Yue Qing recited the first volume of the scripture.

Xu Feinian's face was full of surprise, "Where did you learn this? Could it be... impossible. At the time, only Sikong Zhan learned three volumes, Tuo Tuo Senior Brother learned two, I learned one, and Fayuan Senior Brother learned less than half."

"Master taught me," Yue Qing said frankly.

Xu Feinian's face darkened, "Junior Brother, you know my thoughts. Don't joke with me like this!"

"Senior Sister, please calm down," Yue Qing said, "Master really did teach me. He has taught me all nine volumes of the scripture, and he also taught the Taiyi Hunyuan Sword Qi to Junior Brother Liu."

"Junior Brother Liu?" Xu Feinian looked at Liu Quan, "White Water Immortal Liu Quan, your former Senior Brother, the Poison Dragon Venerable, was an old friend of mine. I met you a few times when you first joined the sect. Later, when Chali the Old Buddha caused trouble, I heard you joined Elder Kuti and went overseas." She then turned to Yue Qing, "How did he become your junior brother? Did you defect to another sect?"

Yue Qing quickly explained, "Senior Sister, please calm down. I did not defect to another sect. Junior Brother Liu joined our Wutai Sect."

This was a surprise to Xu Feinian, "You took the initiative to accept a disciple without Master's permission?"

Yue Qing recounted everything that had happened since they parted ways, including how he killed the traitor Zhu Hong at Simen Mountain, fought with the Emei Sect, met Mingyi Zi who helped him establish the Chongyang Sect, and how he took Liu Quan as a disciple and visited his master's grave at Maoshan. He then described how he met his master in a meditative state and received the Tongxuan Scripture. "Junior Brother Liu also saw Master during his meditation and formally joined the sect. Master taught him the Taiyi Hunyuan Sword Qi. If you still don't believe me, Junior Brother can demonstrate it for you. The Taiyi Hunyuan Sword Qi is known only to Master, so you can easily tell if I'm telling the truth."

Liu Quan used his original energy to perform the sword qi, shooting a beam of white light that pierced a small hole in the cave ceiling.

Xu Feinian was completely stunned. The things Yue Qing told her were too incredible. The person she had been thinking about day and night might still be alive! Just this news alone was enough to digest. If she didn't believe it, where did Yue Qing's Tongxuan Scripture and Liu Quan's Taiyi Hunyuan Sword Qi come from? These things couldn't be faked. Although Liu Quan's performance was a bit awkward, the technique and the form of the sword qi were unmistakably the Taiyi Hunyuan Sword Qi. She had seen it used for hundreds of years and would never mistake it.

Could it be that he is still alive? Xu Feinian's heart pounded. "Junior Brother, let's go to Maoshan now!"

Yue Qing held her back, "Senior Sister, there's no need to rush to Maoshan. Didn't I tell you that Master's spirit is now寄托于虚空之中, and he can't manifest too frequently? If he does, even a slight mistake could cause him to be expelled from the void and revert to his original form..."

"Right, right, right." Xu Feinian rubbed her eyes, "When practicing the Tongxuan Scripture, one must not have the slightest thought or desire while寄托元神. I tried many times but couldn't maintain it for long." She became restless, sitting down to drink tea, then standing up to pace, her hands tightly clenched, her mind already flying to Maoshan.