Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Talking About the Past

Bai Meng Jin wasn’t interested. She ate at her own slow pace.

The Star-Plucking Tower’s dishes tasted slightly different from what she remembered. A thousand years could change even the flavor of a sauce. Still, everything was exquisitely made. At a price like this, it had better be.

Bai Meng Lian, indulging her brother’s excitement more than his news deserved, asked, “What did you find out?”

Bai Meng Xing swept his gaze around and lowered his voice as if sharing a forbidden secret. “Young Sect Master Ling has Severed Meridians. He can’t cultivate!”

Bai Meng Lian’s chopsticks paused midair. “He can’t cultivate? Then he’s… a mortal? How can he be the Young Sect Master? That’s the Limitless Sect—one of the Upper Three Sects!”

Bai Meng Xing looked just as baffled. “Right? Why would the Limitless Sect let a mortal be the Young Sect Master?”

Bai Meng Jin set her chopsticks down. “He’s not a mortal.”

Her brother and sister snapped their gazes to her. “You know?” Bai Meng Lian demanded.

Bai Meng Jin nodded and let a lie slide out with practiced ease. “Senior Sister Yue told me.”

Because she’d been close to Yue Yun Qiao, neither of them questioned it.

Bai Meng Xing leaned forward, desperate. “If he can’t cultivate, how is he not a mortal? Don’t tell me he was born with cultivation!”

“In a way,” Bai Meng Jin said. She searched the shape of old stories in her memory. “Do you know why he’s the Young Sect Master?”

“Because his father is the sect master,” Bai Meng Xing blurted.

“Wrong.” Bai Meng Jin’s mouth curved. “The current Sect Master of the Limitless Sect is his uncle. That sect master position was passed down from his maternal grandfather.”

Bai Meng Xing stared. “What?”

Bai Meng Jin spoke slowly, letting the tale unfold. “The previous sect master of the Limitless Sect was surnamed Jiang. When he was young, he was a powerhouse who could go toe-to-toe with the Devil Clan.”

Bai Meng Lian listened, breath held.

“He had a daughter,” Bai Meng Jin continued. “She was raised to be the next sect master. More than 10 years ago, when she was guarding the Ming River, the Devil Clan launched a surprise attack.”

She paused a beat. “At the time, Young Sect Master Ling was still in her belly. His mother—Madam Jiang—was struck into premature labor.”

Bai Meng Lian’s eyes widened. “Then…”

“The devil qi injured the child,” Bai Meng Jin said. “He barely survived. Madam Jiang couldn’t bear it. She used a secret method to transfer her own cultivation to her son, and only then did she save his life.”

Bai Meng Lian’s voice came out strained. “What about Madam Jiang?”

“She died,” Bai Meng Jin said flatly. “She was already injured, and she gave up her cultivation. How could she live?”

Bai Meng Lian’s expression dimmed with grief she didn’t even know where to place. “She sounds like a true heroine… What a waste.”

Bai Meng Jin nodded once. “Madam Jiang was already at the Divine Transformation Stage. That vast power was sealed inside Young Sect Master Ling with a secret method. So he has spiritual power protecting him without needing to cultivate.”

Bai Meng Xing looked shamelessly envious. “That kind of thing exists?”

Before Bai Meng Lian could rap him, Bai Meng Jin glanced at him with a half-smile. “What’s so good about it? His Severed Meridians came from that. He has power but can’t use it. He can’t even conjure a tiny flame.”

Bai Meng Xing thought hard. “Still… he can’t fight, but he can live a long time…”

He didn’t finish. Bai Meng Lian rapped him on the head. Bai Meng Xing clutched his skull and whined, “Elder Sister…”

“Why don’t you think about where that cultivation came from?” Bai Meng Lian snapped. “His mother traded her life for it. If your mother traded her life to give you cultivation, would you accept it?”

Bai Meng Xing’s faults were many, but he was devoted to his mother. He shook his head honestly. “No.”

Bai Meng Lian’s expression softened a fraction.

She turned back to Bai Meng Jin. “Then what about Young Sect Master Ling’s father? Who was he?”

“The Ling Family is a cultivation clan too,” Bai Meng Jin said. “In the Limitless Sect, their status is high. They were a good match for Madam Jiang.”

She let the next part drop like a stone. “Back then, the couple guarded the Ming River together. Madam Jiang died in battle, and her husband vanished in that fight. He probably fell into the Ming River and died to wandering spirits.”

“So miserable…” Bai Meng Lian exhaled. “Young Sect Master Ling looks so impressive, but his background is that tragic.”

“I haven’t even gotten to the rest,” Bai Meng Jin said.

“There’s more?” Bai Meng Lian’s mind caught on something. “Wait—his maternal grandfather was still alive then, wasn’t he? So why did the sect master position pass to his uncle?”

Bai Meng Jin gave her an approving look. “Exactly.”

She lowered her voice. “Old Sect Master Jiang couldn’t accept losing his daughter. He went to the Ming River to search for her soul. No one knows what happened to him there, but after he returned, he passed away not long after.”

She finished simply, “Young Sect Master Ling was still in swaddling clothes. He’d already lost his parents and his maternal grandfather. He became an orphan.”

Bai Meng Lian’s heart tightened. “Then his uncle treated him well, right? He raised him and even made him the Young Sect Master.”

Bai Meng Jin shook her head. “Old Sect Master Jiang and his daughter contributed too much. Within the Limitless Sect, there were still people who wanted the sect master position to return to their only remaining bloodline.”

She tapped the table once, thoughtful. “No one outside knows how they negotiated it, but the rumors say the sect master seat was meant for Young Sect Master Ling. He was too young, and his Severed Meridians weren’t cured, so his uncle acted as regent for the time being.”

A maid arrived with fresh dishes, setting plates down with soft clinks. Bai Meng Xing shoveled food into his mouth and mumbled through it, “If it’s called Severed Meridians, can it even be cured? What if it can’t?”

For once, he’d asked the right question.

Bai Meng Jin smiled slightly. “That’s the problem. It’s called Severed Meridians because it’s basically incurable. And the longer time passes, the less Old Sect Master Jiang’s authority matters. Who would keep caring about a Young Sect Master who can’t cultivate?”

Bai Meng Lian nodded slowly. “So Young Sect Master Ling’s life in the Limitless Sect isn’t easy.”

“Right.” Bai Meng Jin’s finger traced the rim of her teacup. Her voice cooled. “Don’t forget—even if it was ‘temporary,’ his uncle already became the sect master. How could he be willing to hand power back? The longer he sits in that seat, the more he’ll start believing it belongs to him.”

In her last life, Ling Bu Fei was a puppet for decades. Later, no one knew what method he used, but he cured his Severed Meridians, tore power from his uncle, and climbed onto the sect master throne his maternal grandfather had left behind.

The thought stirred something sharp in Bai Meng Jin’s chest.

From what she’d seen and heard, Ling Bu Fei was formidable. Across the cultivation world, the only ones who could stand against Ning Yan Zhi were that ancient tree on Cang Ling Mountain—and him.

Now that she had returned, she was destined to become Ning Yan Zhi’s enemy. But she was alone, while the Cinnabar Cloud Palace was a vast giant. The mismatch was obvious.

If she could latch onto Ling Bu Fei early and use him as backing, wouldn’t her odds improve?

By her calculations, Ling Bu Fei’s situation right now wasn’t good. No matter how arrogant he acted on the surface, it couldn’t hide how precarious his position was.

If she stood at his side now—helped him seize the throne—he would repay her in the future, wouldn’t he?

Just like Bai Li Xu. Later he became the Chief Elder, terrifyingly powerful.

As Bai Meng Jin’s thoughts shifted and sharpened, hurried drumbeats suddenly rolled through the hall.

Shang Lian Cheng strode onto the central stage with a smile, as if some special holiday had arrived.