Chapter 66: Three Directions Converge

Beyond the ruins, opposite the towering mountain known as the Central Immortal Mountain.

On the gentle slope sat a group of Lingjian Mountain disciples, watching the spiritual fortune surging across the horizon.

At the same time, another person lay on the ground, unconscious and with an unknown fate.

Zhuo Wanqiu arrived with water and, along with several other disciples, lifted the man from the ground and began removing his clothing.

He bore few wounds—only a bloodied hole, pierced clean through, located one inch to the right of his heart; the darkened blood had turned black, but for a Rong Dao cultivator, this alone would not kill him.

Yet, the strangeness lay precisely here.

Cultivators possess spiritual sense—they cannot fail to locate their own heart.

The only possibility was that the attacker had deliberately missed by exactly this one inch.

Even stranger was the prior battle: nearly all the dead were from the Wenda Sect, causing suspicion to spread among them, and they had since severed ties with them.

{Remember: do not stir up trouble, and do not meddle in others’ affairs.}

{Brother-in-law, didn’t you say not to meddle in others’ affairs?}

{No, we must save Lingjian Mountain’s disciples.}

As Zhuo Wanqiu changed Gongsu Chou’s bandages, the conversation she had overheard in the forest kept echoing in her mind.

That man named Ji You seemed to harbor goodwill toward Lingjian Mountain’s disciples, yet she could not fathom the source of this kindness.

Lingjian Mountain lay far to the south, at the edge of the Xuan Sea, and had never interacted with the Tian Shu Academy.

If Ji You were a Wenda Sect disciple, and his restraint stemmed from the sect’s deep affection for its own Master of the Mirror, then his mercy might be understandable.

But the key point was—he wasn’t…

As Zhuo Wanqiu tied the new bandage, still pondering this possibility, she suddenly noticed her mountain gate jade tablet glowing brightly.

Only the sect master or the Junior Mirror Master could activate the jade tablet for communication.

She was merely an outside envoy—the sect master would never send her a message; the only possibility was that the Junior Mirror Master needed her.

Zhuo Wanqiu tossed the soiled bandages into the basin, walked to a secluded corner, drew out the jade tablet, and as a surge of immortal light flowed forth, the Mirror Master’s cold voice emerged.

{Order all disciples: leave Qiling immediately. Any who disobey will be expelled from the mountain.}

Zhuo Wanqiu froze: {Mirror Master, what has happened?}

{What’s inside the mountain isn’t spiritual fortune—it’s disaster. Have Ding Yao lead the others out, and notify the Tian Shu Academy disciples as well—tell them to leave quickly.}

{?}

Zhuo Wanqiu had just been puzzling over the matter of Tian Shu Academy and Lingjian Mountain, and now, hearing the Junior Mirror Master specifically task her with warning Tian Shu, her confusion deepened.

Ji You’s goodwill toward Lingjian Mountain… it wasn’t one-sided…

After long consideration, Zhuo Wanqiu said: {Mirror Master, Senior Sister Ding recently joined Wenda Sect in attacking Tian Shu Academy. They won’t believe me.}

{Attacked?}

{Yes. One of Tian Shu’s female disciples carried a large quantity of spirit stones. With the mountain’s malevolent qi disrupting spiritual flow, Senior Sister Ding targeted them.}

The Junior Mirror Master fell silent for a moment: {Casualties?}

Zhuo Wanqiu pressed her lips: {Several of their disciples were severely wounded. Gongsu Chou nearly died.}

{Two sects attacked, yet one Rong Dao cultivator nearly died?}

{We were winning—until a martial-cultivation dual cultivator appeared, wielding seven swords. He pierced Gongsu Chou through the body, but for some reason, he held back and spared his life. Oh, and he once saved me—he said Lingjian Mountain’s disciples must still be saved.}

{Hmph, he’s quite formidable.}

{?}

Zhuo Wanqiu felt a question rise in her mind—why did the Junior Mirror Master’s tone sound oddly… strained? Had he caught a cold?

Yet praising an enemy so openly felt even stranger.

Before she could ponder further, the Junior Mirror Master’s voice spoke again.

{Wanqiu, you must go. If the Tian Shu disciples don’t believe you, find Ji You. If he refuses, tell him I’ll be angry.}

The moment the words ended, the jade tablet’s light vanished swiftly.

Zhuo Wanqiu stood frozen for a long while, her eyes filled with a clear, uncomprehending blankness—she hadn’t even said his name was Ji You…

Do they know each other?

Suddenly, something clicked in Zhuo Wanqiu’s mind. She held her breath as she reconsidered.

Deep within the ruins, spiritual fortune surged, drawing immortals and noble houses alike, each fearing to be left behind.

To urge them to leave now was to urge them to abandon spiritual fortune—yet the Junior Mirror Master ordered her to tell Ji You that if he didn’t leave, she would be angry.

That meant the Mirror Master believed his own anger mattered more to Ji You than spiritual fortune…

Recalling the peculiar tone used when mentioning him, Zhuo Wanqiu’s expression turned profoundly strange.

But her immediate priority wasn’t this. Zhuo Wanqiu rose and went to find Ding Yao, informing her of the Mirror Master’s message.

{Leave? Spiritual fortune is right before us—how can we leave?}

{The Mirror Master said: anyone who disobeys will be expelled immediately.}

Ding Yao stared at the boundless immortal light just ahead. Though reluctant beyond words, she dared not defy the order. After long thought, she gave the command to withdraw.

Yet another group of Lingjian Mountain disciples—those from the inner sect—ignored the order. Instead, they slipped into the night amid the chaos of retreat.

These disciples were all highly cultivated, arriving later, most belonging to the Heaven Sword Peak.

Even after hearing the Mirror Master’s warning of great disaster, they paid no heed.

Fortune lies in danger. Most had been stuck at their cultivation bottlenecks for years; abandoning spiritual fortune now was simply too hard. This was the conflict between individual will and collective order.

Ever since the demonic seed plague began and immortals kept vanishing, many had suspected foul play—and that Qiling held great disaster.

Yet even so, the immortal sects and noble houses still came.

Because this was not a conspiracy—it was an open stratagem.

Of the Seven Immortal Sects, only Yu Danzong stood apart with its irreplaceable elixir arts; the other six maintained perfect balance.

But if one sect gained the spiritual fortune, the thousand-year equilibrium would shatter.

The sects who failed to obtain it would become like the extinct Array Masters, or like Yu Danzong, once enslaved in the Dark Age—no one could stand aside.

{Senior Sister Ding, return along the original path. I must leave first.}

Ding Yao turned to him: {Where are you going?}

Zhuo Wanqiu paused, then decided the Mirror Master’s order made secrecy unnecessary: {I must warn the Tian Shu Academy disciples—tell them to evacuate quickly.}

{Ji You saved your life, so now you want to repay him? But don’t forget—we’re now mortal enemies with Tian Shu. Why care for them?}

{The Mirror Master ordered me to go.}

{What?}

Zhuo Wanqiu glanced at her, then swept her sleeve and departed, thinking: Senior Sister Ding, you’re arrogant and domineering in the mountain, and everyone tolerates you because you’re the Mirror Master’s maid.

But now, you’ve offended someone extraordinary.

His extraordinariness isn’t from his cultivation or status—it’s entirely because of the Junior Mirror Master’s favor.

Zhuo Wanqiu vanished into the forest, following her memory toward Tian Shu Academy’s retreat path, soon finding Wen Zhengxin and his group.

They were returning along the same route, intending to withdraw via the only main path into the mountain—so their encounter wasn’t surprising.

Yet when they saw Zhuo Wanqiu in her Lingjian Mountain immortal robes, the Tian Shu disciples immediately drew their swords and advanced toward her.

{I… I’m not here for revenge. I’m here to warn you—the mountain holds disaster. Leave quickly.}

Wen Zhengxin narrowed his eyes: {Whether we advance or retreat is none of your Lingjian Mountain disciples’ concern.}

Zhuo Wanqiu scanned the crowd: {Where’s Ji You?}

{Why are you looking for him?}

{I have urgent news for him. He saved my life—I won’t harm him.}

Bai Ru spoke up: {She speaks truth. I saw her many times in the foothills—she never attacked us.}

Ban Yangshu blinked: {After all that fighting, you still had time to stare at girls?}

Bai Ru narrowed his eyes, thinking: The girl illuminated my Dao heart.

Wen Zhengxin hesitated, then said: {Young Master Ji left us to enter the mountain—to rescue someone.}

{To rescue his fiancée!}

Bai Ru added, thinking: My brother Ji is utterly invincible—he has a fiancée everywhere! One in Tian Shu, another outside!

And last time, on the White Jade Terrace of Ascension—that ethereal immortal woman—he charmed her with two words. Absolute role model.

Zhuo Wanqiu: {?}

(End of Chapter)