Infighting

Bai Fan was strong. Unlike with Senior Brother Li, Xu Yuan had watched the battle between Bai Fan and Shen Weixiu from beginning to end. During the fight, a ring of thick, black liquid had constantly swirled around Bai Fan. This viscous substance could transform at will, taking shape as armor or blades, and was extraordinarily corrosive! In just a few exchanges, the shimmering blue saber in the Taiqing Dao Sect head disciple's hands had been corroded by the black substance around Bai Fan until its spiritual luster was completely ruined. At that moment, the gathered disciples had all felt their spirits surge. When a swordsman lost his weapon, his combat strength would collapse by more than half. But the ensuing battle made everyone realize that Shen Weixiu's true mastery lay not in blades or swords, but in elemental Dao arts—and he was particularly adept in lightning arts. Bai Fan didn't actually have to die. The gap between him and Shen Weixiu was plain to see, but because of that layer of black slime coating his body, Shen Weixiu hadn't been able to kill him instantly either. Bai Fan showed no intention of conceding defeat, true to his usual fiercely loyal nature. He wanted to avenge their eldest brother. And then he died. The blade formed from the viscous black fluid grazed Shen Weixiu's cheek, but his own chest was pierced through by a lightning art. A hair's breadth of difference, yet as impassable as an abyss. "True disciples, Jinghe, and Xiao Jianqing stay. Everyone else... disperse." Before Qionghua Hall, as the faintly trembling voice trailed off, an elder with white hair and beard said nothing more, cradling Bai Fan's corpse as he walked slowly, step by step, into Qionghua Hall. His back seemed to have aged immensely in an instant. Xu Yuan stood at the edge of the grounds, watching the core disciples walk away with hung heads. Within the Qionghua Sect, they were geniuses chosen from among hundreds, even thousands. Yet in this present scene, a sense of powerlessness had rooted itself deeply into every cell of their bodies. If the sect elders handled it properly, this humiliation could become the driving force to steel their resolve and spur them forward. But if mishandled, the spine of this generation of the Qionghua Sect would be thoroughly snapped. As the surrounding crowd dispersed, Tianyan suddenly took Xu Yuan's hand and spoke via intent-soul transmission: "What do you plan to do?" Xu Yuan pondered slightly, a hint of laughter in his voice: "What do you think my chances of winning against Shen Weixiu are?" Having watched the earlier battle from start to finish, Tianyan hesitated a moment before replying softly, "Twenty percent at most." "Twenty percent?" Xu Yuan sounded somewhat surprised. "And that twenty percent is only factoring in that he might not expect you to open with a killing move. Bai Fan failed to force out Shen Weixiu's 'Dao' even to the moment of his death. The man still has plenty held in reserve," Tianyan explained. "No, I meant I'm surprised you actually think that highly of me." Xu Yuan was already well pleased with Tianyan's assessment. "Hah." Tianyan rolled her eyes at him helplessly. She found that this man lacked even a shred of pride. Exhaling a breath, she asked instead, "Do you need me to come with you?" Xu Yuan pondered briefly. "The actual historical outcome was that the Qionghua Sect kept the Meishen cherry tree. It's unlikely Jinghe won against both Shen Weixiu and Tianrui by himself; there must have been some other unexpected development. I'll go check out the situation first. You don't need to expose yourself just yet." Pausing, Xu Yuan glanced toward the group of Qionghua higher-ups. "Besides, we belong to the Sect Master's faction. Senior Brother Li and Bai Fan are both dead. For the next life-and-death wager duel, it ought to be the Second Elder's faction sending someone up, no matter how you look at it." Tianyan mused for a moment, then nodded. "All right. I'll wait for you in the room..." "Jinghe." As they were speaking, a somewhat hoarse voice suddenly came from beside them. Xu Yuan looked over to see Tang Jiuqing, Yun Xi, and the others. Overnight, the sharp, haughty edge on the faces of these young scions had vanished completely. Tang Jiuqing walked slowly up to the two of them, tightly gripping his longsword, his voice thick with bitter frustration: "Sorry. The life-and-death wager duels are business for us true disciples, yet we still ended up dragging you into it." "Hm?" Xu Yuan's eyes flickered. Tang Jiuqing glanced toward the Second Elder over there and ground his teeth. "Yin Wuhuan and those old bastards agreed to hand over the Meishen cherry tree sapling." "..." A vague suspicion formed in Xu Yuan's mind. After entering Qionghua Hall alongside Tang Jiuqing and the others, Xu Yuan found his suspicion confirmed. Infighting. Even at this moment, the two factions within the Qionghua Sect were still locked in their internal struggle. "For the next match, let Jinghe go up," a middle-aged elder with drooping eyelids suggested in a muffled drone. His voice echoed repeatedly through the cavernous hall. No sooner had the words landed than Tang Jiuqing fired back bluntly, without waiting for the elders to speak: "Send Jinghe up? Old Man Wang, do you have the gall to say that out loud? With Jinghe's cultivation and talent, he could have become a true disciple six years ago! His spot was usurped by your lot, and now that it's time to lay down a life, you finally remember him?" The middle-aged elder frowned upon hearing this, but showed no anger, merely replying, "Tang Huaiqing, this brat of yours truly lacks manners. If you count it that way, Yun Xi, Bai Fan, Qingwu, and Ziyue also took their spots from Jinghe." "Bullshit!" Tang Jiuqing immediately cursed back. "Whether by contributions to the sect or cultivation talent, Yun Xi and the others rank far ahead of the trash from your families—" "Jiuqing, that's enough." The Sixth Elder suddenly stopped Tang Jiuqing and cast a glance at the middle-aged man across from them. "Zhou Guchang, know when to stop. Li Qiuyu and Bai Fan are already dead." Belonging to the Second Elder's faction, another somewhat chubby old man seemed utterly oblivious to the implication in the Sixth Elder's words, chuckling in reply: "Young Bai wanted to fight—those were his own words. What does that have to do with us?" Pausing, the chubby elder looked straight into the Sixth Elder's eyes and squinted as he said, "Li Qiuyu seized the chance when the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion's Holy Son and the Dao Palace's head disciple weren't looking to steal the Meishen cherry tree sapling, and was cut down—" Before he could finish his words, the Qionghua Sect Master on the high seat suddenly slammed his hand down with violent force. Boom! The entire Qionghua Hall instantly shook violently, as if a subterranean dragon were turning in the earth. The Qionghua Sect Master glared at the chubby elder, speaking each word with deliberate weight: "Huang Chan, watch your tongue. Remember that you are an elder of the Qionghua Sect." The chubby elder's expression shifted, but before he could speak, the Second Elder—who had been resting with his eyes closed to the side all along—suddenly spoke up in apparent agreement: "Huang Chan, you've indeed crossed the line a bit." Yet immediately after, the Second Elder changed his tune, looking toward the Sect Master on the dais with a sneer playing on his lips: "Old Bai, you hid the Meishen cherry tree sapling so thoroughly. By the rules, we old fellows should have had the right to know about it, wouldn't you say? Now that people from the Taiqing Dao Palace and Overseeing Heaven Pavilion have cornered us at our own gates, you finally think of us. Isn't that just a little inappropriate?" The Sect Master looked deeply at him, exhaustion and fury brewing in his eyes. He flicked his sleeves: "Enough. For the next match, Xiao Jianqing will take the field. And the match after that, Jinghe." "The Sect Master is truly imposing." The Second Elder sneered, cupping his hands. "Let it be as the Sect Master says."