Chapter 161: Keep Your Junior Brother in Line
This novel is translated and hosted only on BCatranslation
“You’re not Yu Zhao! Who are you? Get out of her body, now!” Quan Ye shouted, his face twisted in anger. A faint purple energy swirled around him, crackling with lightning every few seconds.
Ye Cong Xin stood beside him, feeling the immense pressure radiating from him. Her face went pale, and she started to breathe faster.
“Fifth Senior Brother… I don’t feel well,” she whispered, her voice trembling.
“Shut up!” Quan Ye snapped without looking at her.
Unlike Fang Cheng Lang and the others, Quan Ye wasn’t the type to notice small details. Ye Cong Xin’s discomfort only irritated him further.
Ye Cong Xin bit her lip in frustration.
No one on Lone Moon Peak is normal! she thought bitterly. They’re all a bunch of idiots! How could someone as brainless as Quan Ye be blessed by the heavens?
“You think staying silent will save you? I’ll force you out of Yu Zhao’s body and find out what you really are!” Quan Ye’s anger grew as he glared at Yu Zhao.
He let out a sinister laugh, clenched his fist, and charged at her, lightning dancing around him as he moved.
Yu Zhao stood her ground, not even flinching. She formed a hand seal with her right hand, and as her thoughts shifted, several illusions expanded outward from her.
“Stop!”
Two voices yelled at the same time, just as Quan Ye was about to step into the illusion. Before he could react, two powerful forces slammed into him, knocking him out of the air and pinning him to the ground.
Bang!
The heavy impact echoed, silencing everyone around.
Two groups of people pushed through the crowd from different directions.
When Yu Zhao saw the woman on the right, her cold expression softened, and she smiled. “Senior Sister Jin Yue.”
Zhou Jin Yue quickly approached, her eyes scanning Yu Zhao for any injuries. “Are you alright? Did Quan Ye hurt you?”
“Don’t worry, I’m fine.” Yu Zhao smiled gently, though she couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed. If Senior Sister Jin Yue had been just a bit later, she would’ve seen me completely crush Quan Ye.
Seeing that Yu Zhao was unharmed, Zhou Jin Yue sighed in relief. Then she noticed that Yu Zhao’s cultivation level had risen to match her own—late-stage Golden Core.
“Junior Sister Yu Zhao, you’ve broken through!” Zhou Jin Yue exclaimed, surprise evident in her voice.
Zhang Jun, who had arrived a bit later, looked like his eyes were about to pop out of his head. What kind of powerful place did Yu Zhao fall into? How did she suddenly surpass me in cultivation?
“Just luck,” Yu Zhao replied humbly.
Fang Cheng Lang, Lan Zi Yu, and Su Ming, who had rushed over after hearing the commotion, stood by with conflicted expressions, watching Yu Zhao and Zhou Jin Yue chat. They weren’t sure how to feel.
Yu Zhao had changed so much that they could barely recognize her anymore.
“Senior Brother, Fifth Senior Brother is still on the ground. He looks like he’s in pain. Shouldn’t we let him go?” Ye Cong Xin’s voice cut through their thoughts, drawing Fang Cheng Lang and the others’ attention away from Yu Zhao.
Fang Cheng Lang glanced at Quan Ye, who was still pinned to the ground, and said coldly, “Quan Ye just finished his punishment, yet he’s already causing trouble. He deserves to be punished.”
“Fifth Senior Brother didn’t mean it. He was just worried about Senior Sister Yu Zhao,” Ye Cong Xin defended.
“Junior Sister, being too lenient won’t help Quan Ye. It’ll only harm him,” Fang Cheng Lang said with a tone that left no room for argument.
Ye Cong Xin shivered slightly and didn’t dare to say more.
By this time, Zhou Jin Yue had finished checking on Yu Zhao. She turned to Fang Cheng Lang and warned, “Junior Brother Fang, keep your Lone Moon Peak people in line. Yu Zhao is now an inner disciple of the sect. If they keep bothering her, I’ll handle it according to the sect rules.”
Lan Zi Yu and Su Ming exchanged unhappy glances. Even if Yu Zhao left Lone Moon Peak, she’s still connected to it in many ways. Why shouldn’t they be allowed to see her?
To everyone’s surprise, Fang Cheng Lang responded calmly, “Don’t worry, Senior Sister Jin Yue. I’ll make sure they don’t bother her again.”
He didn’t argue or try to defend his position.
Zhou Jin Yue gave him a suspicious look but then took Yu Zhao and Zhang Jun back to the main peak.
With the main event over, the other disciples quickly lost interest and dispersed.
Only the Lone Moon Peak group remained.
“Senior Brother, why did you agree to that? There’s no rule in the Five Elements Sect’s hundreds of regulations that says we can’t talk to Yu Zhao! Just because she’s the Senior Sister, does that mean she can use sect rules to control us?” Su Ming exploded as soon as the others were out of earshot.
Lan Zi Yu stayed silent, but his expression clearly showed he agreed with Su Ming.
Fang Cheng Lang didn’t answer them. Instead, he turned to Ye Cong Xin and asked, “Junior Sister, do you feel the same way?”
Su Ming and Lan Zi Yu looked at Ye Cong Xin expectantly.
Ye Cong Xin hesitated, then chose the safest response. “I—I’ll listen to Senior Brother.”
Su Ming and Lan Zi Yu, thinking she was on their side, were pleased.
But Fang Cheng Lang caught the underlying meaning in her words. He let out a laugh, his tone unreadable. “Good. If that’s the case, then none of you should approach Yu Zhao anymore. Act as if you don’t know her.”
“Senior Brother!”
Lan Zi Yu, Su Ming, and Ye Cong Xin all stared at him in shock.
Fang Cheng Lang was the one who wanted Yu Zhao back on Lone Moon Peak the most. He had even stayed in the swamp forest, refusing to leave until he found her. But ever since he returned to the Five Elements Sect with the injured Cui Jue, he had changed. He never mentioned Yu Zhao again and wouldn’t let anyone else bring her up either. Now, he was even forbidding them from talking to her.
“Did Yu Zhao say something to you? Or did she do something to make you angry?” Su Ming asked cautiously.
He remembered being furious when Yu Zhao had tricked him with illusions. He’d wanted to string her up and whip her to vent his anger. But once his anger subsided, he joined Fang Cheng Lang and the others in searching for her.
He suspected Fang Cheng Lang had experienced something similar and was now angry at Yu Zhao.
“If you still consider me your senior brother, don’t disturb her anymore,” Fang Cheng Lang said sternly, sidestepping the question.
Lan Zi Yu and Su Ming were reluctant, but out of respect for their senior brother’s authority, they agreed.
This novel is translated and hosted only on BCatranslation
Ye Cong Xin, however, could barely hide her satisfaction. Yu Zhao’s plan to retreat and advance has backfired. Fang Cheng Lang must be heartbroken and ready to give up on her completely.
With Lan Zi Yu and Su Ming angry at her and even Quan Ye, who had once felt guilty, now turned against her, Yu Zhao would never step foot on Lone Moon Peak again.
“Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, I’m leaving Quan Ye in your care. Make sure he learns the meaning of caution and restraint,” Fang Cheng Lang said before walking away, his departure swift and decisive.
Lan Zi Yu and Su Ming exchanged uneasy glances. That strange feeling they couldn’t shake lingered.
Senior Brother Fang never used to delegate the responsibility of disciplining junior brothers. He always took care of it himself. He’s changed.
The change made them feel both uneasy and unfamiliar.
Will Lone Moon Peak ever be the same again?