Shui Lǜ looked into the distance. A dawn broke through the hazy darkness, and the sun emerged from this gap, its rays gradually illuminating the entire land, and his world.
"Grandpa, look, the sun is coming out."
Old Yao was somewhat bewildered. The sun rose every day, there was nothing to be curious about.
"With your current cultivation, going back now would only be walking into a slaughterhouse. If you must go back, you should at least reach the Golden Core stage. You've been away from home for so many years; if you suddenly return, won't those brothers of yours try every means to take your life?" Old Yao worried deeply, unwilling from the bottom of his heart for Shui Lǜ to return to that den of wolves.
"Ultimately, they owe me," Shui Lǜ's voice was as gentle as ever. "They treated me as a medicinal ingredient for detoxification. After I was born, they cruelly abandoned me. In the past, I didn't compete or snatch because I disdained it. But now, I want to fight for it."
"Good, worthy of being my grandson!" Old Yao clapped his hands. "Before, you didn't compete or snatch, and I didn't want to make things difficult for you, so I let you be. Now that you want to compete and snatch, Grandpa will help you!"
"Grandpa, thank you."
Old Yao leaped onto the wall and sat beside Shui Lǜ. In the past, Shui Lǜ lived precariously, unsure when the poison would claim his life, naturally having no interest in competing or snatching. But now, his life was saved, yet he had become a poisoned individual, whom even he could not approach closely. However, those who had wronged him should compensate him!
"When do you plan to set off?" Old Yao inquired.
"The sooner the better," Shui Lǜ stated decisively. "I want to return as quickly as possible and establish a foothold in the family."
"But I have a half-year agreement with Lan Xiao. If Lan Xiao returns after half a year, he will come here to find us," Old Yao hesitated. He hoped Shui Lǜ could recover his health and cultivate to the Core Formation stage before returning to the Shui family. So many years had passed; another half year wouldn't matter.
"I'm afraid that won't do," Shui Lǜ lowered his gaze. If his guess was correct, Xiao Man would inevitably clash with the Jin family. She was alone; how could she contend with such a large family? He had to return to the Shui family as soon as possible and control it. Only then could he be her backing when she clashed with the Jin family.
"The Shui family has three Nascent Soul elders guarding it," Old Yao reminded Shui Lǜ. Even if his poison could incapacitate Nascent Soul stage cultivators, he would need to be able to reach them first. With his current cultivation, returning to the Shui family might mean he couldn't even protect his own life.
"Grandpa, don't forget, ultimately, they owe me!" Shui Lǜ said gently. "He sacrificed me to save his youngest son. At this time, if I go back, they, husband and wife, should compensate me both in terms of sentiment and reason. If they try to kill me, wouldn't it chill people's hearts? Grandpa, get ready. Tomorrow, we will return to Bingpo City."
Atop Mount Cangshan, the Sect Master of the Xuanji Sect watched Ze Fang, who was in meditation, gritting his teeth.
"You broke your promise, you are going back on your word!"
Ze Fang didn't even open his eyes, his tone soft and gentle, "Master, my body has always been here, never leaving half a step."
"But your primordial spirit left your body and went outside!"
"I promised that I would never step out of the Tianxuan Sect until my cultivation recovered to the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. I haven't stepped out," Ze Fang asked calmly. "How am I going back on my word?"
The Sect Master of Xuanji was choked for a moment. "Tell me, what were you doing?"
"Cultivating."
"Lies!" the Sect Master of Xuanji berated. "Since when did you stop trusting even me?"
Ze Fang remained silent for a long time, not answering. It wasn't that he didn't trust him, but rather that apart from himself, he dared not trust anyone. As his cultivation recovered, some sealed memories were also gradually returning. His pursuits were too heaven-defying; he couldn't burden his master who cared for him. Sudan Novel Network.
"Where did you go during the time you were missing? Why did your cultivation plummet so drastically? Why did you revert to the appearance of a child after going to Wuji City? Is that girl the one destined for tribulation?"
His long eyelashes trembled incessantly. Ze Fang finally opened his eyes and looked at the old man before him, sighing, "Master, as for my own affairs, please let me handle them myself."
"Your affairs are not just your affairs!" The Sect Master of Xuanji rebuked. "Don't forget, you are the young sect master of the Tianxuan Sect! How can you disregard the Tianxuan Sect? Have you forgotten the tragic lessons of the Qin clan?"
"Disciple dare not forget."
"What else do you dare not do?" The Sect Master of Xuanji was somewhat exasperated. "The four great sects counterbalance each other. Originally, the Tianling Sect, Tianjian Sect, and Tianxuan Sect each had a cultivator at the Transformation Stage. Now, the one from the Tianling Sect has broken through the void and gone to another plane, causing the Tianling Sect's strength to plummet. As for our Tianxuan Sect, we have been able to maintain our current stability only because you supported it. But now, among the four great sects, only the person from the Tianjian Sect is a cultivator at the Transformation Stage, and a peak expert at that, just one step away from ascension. Yet, why hasn't he left?"
"He dares not."
"Yes, he dares not!" The Sect Master of Xuanji emphasized. "Everyone has seen the precedent of the Qin clan. The Qin family ancestor couldn't see through it, sacrificed himself, leading to the destruction of the entire Qin clan, and their transformation into medicinal resources. Do you think no one covets the bloodline of our Tianxuan Sect?"
"Master, disciple knows his mistake."
"You know your mistake?" The Sect Master of Xuanji laughed. "What is your mistake?"
Ze Fang remained silent. He said he was wrong, but he hadn't felt he was wrong at all. Admitting fault was merely a perfunctory act.
The Sect Master of Xuanji sneered, "You don't think you made any mistake at all, do you?"
"No, Master, I was wrong," Ze Fang said calmly. "I was too self-important, thinking that all matters in the world were under my control. However, in the end, I could control nothing and grasp nothing. Therefore, I have decided not to be so greedy and only grasp the one thing I want the most."
"What is the one thing you want the most?" the Sect Master of Xuanji asked softly. If the one thing Ze Fang wanted most was to protect the Tianxuan Sect, then he could rest assured. He was just afraid that all his thoughts were not on this.
"Master, please rest assured, I will cultivate to the Transformation Stage as soon as possible," Ze Fang said calmly to the Sect Master of Xuanji. "I will not give anyone an opportunity to take advantage."
"When can you return to the Transformation Stage?"
"At most three years." Three years was the limit. If he couldn't recover to the Transformation Stage within three years, not only Xiao Man but possibly the Tianxuan Sect would be in danger.
Hearing this, the Sect Master of Xuanji was finally somewhat relieved. As long as he still had the will to cultivate, it meant he was not beyond saving. However, the matter he most wanted to know had not yet been asked.