Chapter 52

Chapter 52: Fighting for Status

Purple Sky Hall was set up for tea.

Ling Yun Gao never considered himself a strict sect master. When he discussed affairs, he preferred a table, a pot of tea, and the quiet pace that followed. A long tea table had been laid out with delicate pastries and snacks; the fragrance of brewed leaves softened the sharp edges of any conversation.

Ling Bu Fei stepped forward and saluted properly, expression composed. “Greetings, Uncle. Greetings, Elders.”

Young Sect Master Ling wasn’t stupid. Even when he wanted to sulk, he knew when to put it away. Before anything else, he had to be beyond reproach.

Heads turned. Eyes swept over him.

The Ling family resemblance was strong. Standing beside Ling Bu Fei, Ling Yun Gao could have been mistaken for his father.

Ling Yun Gao’s tone was almost paternal. “You’re back? Did you enjoy your trip?”

“Perching Phoenix Valley was so-so,” Ling Bu Fei replied, “but the trip itself was pretty fun.”

Ling Yun Gao laughed softly. “You had fun. You also scared the elders half to death.”

He gestured to the seat at the end of the table.

Ling Bu Fei dropped into it without ceremony, then nodded to either side. “I made the elders worry. I’ll punish myself with a cup.”

He lifted the tea like wine and downed it in one gulp.

A ripple of laughter went around the table.

“He’s grown up,” one elder said, amused. “Next time we should switch to wine.”

“Look at that build,” another chimed in. “He’s taller than us already.”

An older woman leaned forward, concern softening her eyes. “I heard Second Lady Hu used a secret technique on you. You suffered, didn’t you?”

Ling Bu Fei answered each question smoothly. To that one, he said, “It was all right. It just hurt a bit more than when the devil qi flares up.”

Several female elders immediately frowned in sympathy. A few offered comfort, a few pressed gifts into his hands as if he were still a child. By the time the chatter began to drift, Ling Bu Fei had collected an embarrassing pile of things for no reason other than being young and alive.

Ling Yun Gao cleared his throat, gently steering the conversation back where it belonged. “I heard you brought back a young lady. What’s that about?”

The hall went quiet.

Every gaze fixed on Ling Bu Fei, waiting.

Ling Bu Fei didn’t flinch. “When Second Lady Hu grabbed us, she happened to be there too. She got dragged into it. I’d been hit with that technique and the pain was… unbearable. She helped me through it. To repay that kindness, I promised to marry her.”

“You Yan said she has the Jade-Tempered Body,” Ling Yun Gao said.

“She does.” Ling Bu Fei’s voice sharpened with certainty. “Not only that—she accidentally formed a devil heart. When she helped me sort through the chaos in my body, the devil qi settled quickly. Second Lady Hu even said we’re well-suited for dual cultivation.”

Ling Yun Gao nodded, expression calm. “You’re grown now. Having another person in your bedchamber isn’t a problem. Since you’ve brought her back, let her stay.”

Ling Bu Fei’s brows rose. “A bedchamber woman?”

Ling Yun Gao met his eyes. “What? You have a problem with that?”

“Uncle,” Ling Bu Fei said bluntly, “did you not hear me? I promised marriage. How do you repay someone by making her a concubine? Besides—cultivators form bonds and cultivate together. Taking concubines is a vulgar mortal custom. Bringing that into the sect would only ruin our reputation.”

His tone was righteous enough that several female elders nodded along, clearly pleased.

Troublemaker or not, at least the boy had principles.

Ling Yun Gao tried again, patience steady. “That isn’t what I meant. Your situation is special. We can make an exception. If you think taking a concubine is wrong, then don’t. I can take her as my disciple instead, as repayment. How about that?”

“No.” Ling Bu Fei didn’t hesitate. “As the Young Sect Master, my word has to count. I promised marriage, so she will be my wife. She saved me, and I spoke with certainty. If I bring her back and suddenly pretend my promise means nothing, what am I doing? Bullying her?”

“You child…” Ling Yun Gao looked at him for a long moment, then spoke more plainly. “With your status, you’ll need a wife who can stand on the stage someday. This isn’t only about your own future. It’s about the sect’s future. You can’t be willful.”

Yang Xiang Tian finally spoke, frowning. “Yes. I heard that young lady is weak and fragile—small-minded, too. If you truly marry her, won’t people laugh that the Limitless Sect’s Young Sect Master’s Wife can’t hold her head up in public?”

Another elder frowned and added, “The Azure Cloud Bai Clan… I’d never even heard of them until I sent someone to ask around. Their strongest is only Golden Core Stage, and their clan carries the shame of falling to devils. Our future Young Sect Master’s Wife coming from that sort of background—how can that sound acceptable?”

At the words “falling to devils,” the table stirred.

“Falling to devils?” someone echoed sharply. “Elder Bei Feng, what did you find out? Tell us.”

Elder Bei Feng explained, matter-of-fact. “An elder in their clan fell. That’s where her devil heart came from. Chang Ling didn’t pursue it because she saved people. Otherwise, with a devil heart alone, the world wouldn’t have room for her.”

A wave of unease moved through the elders.

“So it’s true,” someone said grimly. “Then it really isn’t appropriate. The Young Sect Master’s Wife being a devil cultivator—how could that be allowed?”

“But she has the Jade-Tempered Body,” another countered. “A devil heart isn’t the same as falling to devils. You can’t lump them together!”

“Even so, it harms the sect’s image.”

The hall fractured into argument—voices rising, overlapping, tightening into something sharp.

Ling Bu Fei listened for a few breaths, then slammed the conversation flat with a single word. “Enough.”

Silence fell.

He lifted his head, eyes bright with anger and something colder beneath. “I’ll answer your questions one by one.”

He looked directly at Elder Bei Feng. “Martial Uncle is right—someone in her clan fell to devils. But you also heard why she has a devil heart, didn’t you? Because she sacrificed herself to save others. Back then she was only at the Qi Refining Stage. She forcibly drew in devil qi and was prepared to die. Because of that, she saved what was left of the Bai Clan and saved an entire city of people in Azure Cloud City. Does that not count as great merit?”

The elders hesitated.

Ling Bu Fei didn’t let them breathe. “Why did Perfected Chang Ling want to bring her back to the Cinnabar Cloud Palace? Because he was reasonable. Because he acknowledged that chivalrous heart. Elders—are we saying the Limitless Sect is worse than the Cinnabar Cloud Palace?”

That landed like a slap.

They could debate reputation, bloodlines, and politics. They could not swallow “worse than the Cinnabar Cloud Palace.”

Someone spoke at once, almost too quickly. “The Young Sect Master is right. If Chang Ling can see it, how could we not?”

Ling Bu Fei turned his gaze to Yang Xiang Tian. “And calling her weak and fragile has no basis. When we were abducted by a Divine Transformation Stage cultivator, if she truly couldn’t handle anything, could she have stepped in and saved me? Martial Uncle Yang, you’re older than I am. You can’t judge people by appearances—do I really need to say that to you?”

Yang Xiang Tian’s mouth tightened. In the end, he didn’t argue.

Finally, Ling Bu Fei delivered the last blow, calm and deliberate. “And her background isn’t low at all. Everyone here has heard of the Bei Ming Gu Clan, right? Her mother was an orphan from the Gu Clan. That makes her the only heir of the Bei Ming Gu Clan.”

A stir went around the table.

Ling Bu Fei looked at Ling Yun Gao. “Uncle—does the Bei Ming Gu Clan match our Ling family, or not?”

“Bei Ming Gu Clan?” an elder blurted, startled. “The Bei Ming Gu Clan that guarded the Ming River back then? They still have an heir?”

Ling Bu Fei nodded once. “The Gu Clan’s treasure, the Yin-Yang Umbrella, is in her hands. If you don’t believe me, call her in and have her show you.”

*