Chapter 509: Xiang Jianzong Elder, Do You Regret It?

Huh?!

What's going on?

Lin Changsheng stared blankly at the sky, at the vast white light that spread across the night curtain yet did not feel the slightest bit glaring.

Pure, clean.

As if it were the very symbol of ultimate purity and cleanness in the world, capable of sweeping away every impurity and banishing all manner of evil and delusion.

At a single glance, he even felt that every thought within his heart was being reflected out, and he could not help but feel ashamed of certain unsavory notions from days past.

Holy crap!

Sensing something amiss, he hurriedly gathered his spirit and shifted his gaze away from that white light.

Just as he was about to ask Wu Zhongfeng what had happened, he spoke first:

"The Pure World Dao Lord has returned to the sect."

This Pure World Dao Lord is...?

"The sole personal disciple of our sect's progenitor, who vowed to sweep clean every evil and ferocious sort, to slay every perverse villain in the world, and who greatly admired what your sect's Xiang Jianzong progenitor did in his day." Wu Zhongfeng continued to explain.

Huh?!

Lin Changsheng stared at him in horror.

I shouldn't have said anything out loud, right?

When the hell did you learn mind-reading too?

"Under the illumination of the Dharma Domain, every thought in one's heart is laid bare in the finest detail — nothing can be hidden, nothing can be dodged."

Sure enough, though clearly Wu Zhongfeng had not spoken aloud, Lin Changsheng still heard with perfect clarity the thoughts in his heart, the explanation he was about to give.

Ah?!

Then if someone were caught off guard and suddenly hit with this, wouldn't they die of social embarrassment on the spot?

Just returning to the sect, and already this...

"According to the records in the sect's classics, the Pure World Dao Lord has always been like this."

Under the illumination of the Dharma Domain, those who would feel fear are only those with crooked hearts,

moreover, as a fanatical follower of the Xiang Jianzong progenitor, every time the Pure World Dao Lord returns to the sect, she combs through the entire sect from top to bottom.

Those who should be killed, killed; those who should be punished, punished.

Before her, not the slightest courtesy can be expected.

"..."

After hearing Wu Zhongfeng's explanation in his heart, Lin Changsheng found himself, for a moment, at a loss for words.

Although this does sound like a good thing, but...

Isn't this method a bit too extreme?

For a time, the entire Hehuan Sect fell into silence, with only an occasional thought or two echoing in some corner.

Although they had been notified in advance, a small portion of the Charm Cultivators who were livestreaming still failed to pay attention.

Their inner thoughts were thus broadcast live in their entirety, completely unguarded.

The vast majority of them were — 'If it weren't for cultivation, who would willingly preen and pose for a bunch of fat otaku losers like Xiao Chunan?'

As for the remaining, very small portion of Charm Cultivators...

emm...

Let's just say that when the forest is big, all sorts of birds are in it — every single thought in their hearts turned out to be content unfit for broadcast.

Not long after the inner thoughts began airing, the livestream rooms were shut down on the spot.

In any case, if nothing unexpected happens, by tomorrow the trending topics about Lin Changsheng should have been drowned out.

Just then, an exceedingly faint voice rang out across the sky, its tone carrying a hint of helplessness.

"This should be about enough, yes?"

"..." A reply came from within the white light, "This junior obeys."

Immediately after, the vast, gentle white light that had blanketed the entire night sky began to draw inward.

The familiar black once more began to reclaim the night sky.

A few seconds later, all the white light had vanished, and the entire Hehuan Sect was once again cloaked in the familiar night.

Beneath the high night sky, a figure's calm gaze swept across the entire Hehuan Sect.

Finally, with a single turn, she vanished straight into the night.

On the ground.

Lin Changsheng was still gazing at the sky, a look of puzzlement in his eyes.

That voice that just came... it shouldn't be Master Mei Zu's progenitor, right?

After all, that Pure World Dao Lord called herself a 'junior.'

And, for some unknown reason,

he kept feeling that the voice was very much like the voice of the Xiang Jianzong progenitor's lingering image when he was receiving the inheritance of the «Grand Void Sword Canon»...

An illusion!

It must be an illusion!

How could the Xiang Jianzong progenitor possibly be at the Hehuan Sect!

Impossible!

Absolutely impossible!

The Joyful Sect, Ancestral Cave Realm.

A windowless, sealed room.

Master Mei Zu, who usually lounged lazily on a soft couch, now sat upright on a redwood chair beneath a painting of red maple leaves falling.

She was rarely so serious; Xu Xing glanced at her twice.

"Brother Dao, if you want to look, just look directly—no need to sneak around," Master Mei Zu smiled, tilting her head. "Shall I go change into something prettier?"

"..." Xu Xing paused, ignoring her teasing. "I rarely see you this serious."

"Oh come on, little Ji Yin Xue knows—just to spare her nagging."

With her obsessive-compulsive tendencies, seeing me lying around would make her utterly miserable.

We haven't seen each other in so many years—why bother?

She considers herself a proper, caring master!

Here, I must sternly condemn the Sword Sovereign for making his disciple create memes for her!

Even though I had the same idea, I at least hadn't acted on it yet!

In the midst of these few sentences, a cold, calm voice came from outside the Ancestral Cave Realm.

"Master, disciple Ji Yin Xue requests an audience."

Although she was the only person besides Master Mei Zu granted access to the Ancestral Cave Realm.

Yet every time she wished to meet Master Mei Zu, she followed protocol and asked first, waiting for permission before entering.

"Mm, come in," Master Mei Zu replied.

Then she immediately turned to Xu Xing and complained, "Compared to you, my disciple seems more like she was trained by the Sword Sovereign—so rigid and proper."

Xu Xing shook his head with a faint smile: "She's not like that."

"At least she puts on a convincing act!"

As she spoke, she seemed to remember something.

"By the way, when you have time, Brother Dao, bring the Sword Sovereign's disciple to meet me."

"Hm?"

"Look, you've already taken the Sword Sovereign's disciple to meet the Spirit Ancestor and Xiang Yuanjun—surely you must bring her to meet me too!"

Xu Xing: "..."

Are these things even related?

"Emm... and I feel the Sword Sovereign's disciple and I would get along quite well," Master Mei Zu declared confidently.

She had long wanted to meet the girl properly.

The Grand Competition was too rushed.

"..." Xu Xing fell silent for two seconds. "We'll see when the chance arises."

That thing is asking for trouble, and Master Mei Zu herself is just as mischievous.

Emm...

Let's just watch and wait for now.

When a proper opportunity comes, I'll bring her along.

Thump. Thump.

Footsteps sounded outside the door.

Each step landed with perfect, unvarying intervals.

Master Mei Zu sat up slightly and smoothed her skirt, ensuring perfect symmetry.

Soon, a woman with a blank expression and shoulder-length hair appeared at the doorway.

She stepped forward a few paces and bowed deeply.

"Disciple greets Master."

Then she bowed to Xu Xing as well.

"Junior respectfully greets the Xiang Jianzong."

Every movement was precise and flawless.

Honestly, just watching her was pleasing to the eye.

"Mm, sit down, sit down—we're family, no need for such formality."

"Yes!"

Ji Yin Xue brought over a chair, carefully aligned its angle until it was perfectly straight, then sat down upright.

"Master, how have you been these many years?"

"I'm fine—eat well, play well," Master Mei Zu replied casually, then asked in return, "And you, little Ji Yin Xue?"

At the question, Ji Yin Xue's expression turned solemn: "During this deployment on the Starry Front, from arrival to departure, the duration was one hundred thirteen years, seven months, and five days, eleven hours, seven minutes, and twenty-five seconds."

"Repelled seven thousand three hundred fifty-four Cang Tribe assaults, severely wounded seven Cave-True Cang Tribe, fifty-two Passage-Enlightened Cang Tribe, slain fourteen Dao-Breaking Ghost Beasts, fifty-seven thousand four hundred three Reversal-Refining biological weapons, Soul Transformation biological weapons..."

Ji Yin Xue recited these figures with a blank, expressionless face.

Master Mei Zu: "..."

I should've asked more carefully.

Only after several minutes, when she finally finished reporting all enemy kills during this Starry Front deployment,

did Xu Xing ask: "How is Xiao Ding's condition?"

"His injuries are severe, but not life-threatening," Ji Yin Xue turned slightly toward Xu Xing. "To capture Yi Feng, Friend Sheng Ji was surrounded by multiple Cave-True Cang Tribe."

"I previously entrusted Master to relay this message."

"I did say it," Master Mei Zu hurried to say.

"I did indeed hear about this matter from your master." Xu Xing nodded slightly. "What arrangements have you made?"

"Yifeng has already been suppressed back to the Xiang Jianzong by Daoist Friend Sheng Ji. According to Senior Jie Ye's arrangement, he should be sent to the Silutang prison for suppression." Ji Yin Xue replied, "Moreover, Senior Jie Ye will also personally come to see you, Xiang Jianzong Senior, after you return to the Ninhui Sect."

Junior Brother Jie Ye...

That incident back then did indeed hit him very hard.

"I understand. I will return to the sect as soon as possible."

The matter of 'Dao Wang' can only be left like this for now; there is little point in continuing to stay in the Hehuan Sect.

There are still quite a few matters waiting for him to resolve over at the Xiang Jianzong.

"You've worked hard."

"It is my duty." Ji Yin Xue's tone was solemn. "Compared to all that Xiang Jianzong Senior did back then, what this junior has done still falls far short."

What I did back then...?

Does it refer to the primordial era, or the 'Grand Mysterious Blood Calamity' before the era of great transformation?

Still, judging by Little Yin Xue's temperament, it should be both.

Just as Xu Xing was contemplating preparing to take his leave.

"Xiang Jianzong Senior, actually this junior has always had a question I wished to ask." Ji Yin Xue said again.

Hmm?

Could it be about Qian Ning?

That's normal too. If the Cang Clan hadn't suddenly launched a large-scale attack, she would certainly have come back to see her before Qian Ning went into closed-door cultivation.

"Go ahead."

However, Ji Yin Xue's question was somewhat beyond Xu Xing's expectations.

"Xiang Jianzong Senior, do you regret it?" Within the calm tone, a rare trace of perplexity appeared.

This time, even Master Mei Zu was somewhat surprised.

Just as he was about to say something, he was stopped by Xu Xing:

"Since I began cultivating, there are indeed quite a few things that make me feel regret. I wonder which one you are asking about?"

"Yifeng." Ji Yin Xue said softly.

"Why would you think so?"

Xu Xing looked at her.

"If you had killed more cleanly back then, the matter of Yifeng's later defection would not have happened."

"The treasure of the Xiang Jianzong's Silutang would not have been lost, and hundreds of millions of people would not have perished because of it."

"Furthermore, Cang Zu Xuan would not have appeared on the starry front battlefield because of it. Then, even if the ancestors of the various sects could not stop you, you would surely have been able to eliminate evil completely."

"So, do you regret it?" (End of this chapter)