Chapter 64

Chapter 64: When Challenged

Cries rang out. Disciples scrambled backward, talisman paper scattering across the floor.

Master Sun’s face changed. He lifted a hand and swept it outward.

A golden barrier rose, blocking the black dragon’s charge. But the dragon twisted midair, unnaturally agile, and lunged straight for him instead.

Master Sun formed a hand seal, light flashing between his fingers. A burst of radiance struck the dragon’s head. At last, the black dragon shattered into drifting black smoke.

The cave fell into stunned silence.

Then someone snorted.

A few more couldn’t hold it.

Laughter bubbled up, quickly swallowed into coughs as people tried to hide it.

Bai Meng Jin had drawn the talisman directly under Master Sun’s nose. It had detonated too close. His brows and beard were singed to ash, uneven and embarrassing.

“What are you laughing at!” Master Sun roared, furious.

A bold disciple hastily cast a water mirror in front of him. “Master… your face…”

Master Sun saw himself and nearly choked. With a furious wave of his sleeve, he used a spell to erase the burnt brows and beard, restoring his stern appearance.

But his momentum was gone. No matter how hard he tried to stiffen his face, the authority had cracked.

He turned on Bai Meng Jin.

She stood to the side with hands folded, eyes lowered, obedient as a well-trained disciple—as if that vicious black dragon had nothing to do with her at all.

“You…” Master Sun’s voice was thick with disbelief. “That was a devil talisman. Are you a devil cultivator?”

The cave went deathly quiet.

Then breath sucked in from every corner.

Dozens of eyes fixed on Bai Meng Jin as if she’d grown fangs.

News had already spread that the Young Sect Master had brought a young woman back. A few days ago, they’d even heard she had broken through Elder Hua’s four formations in a row. Everyone assumed the Young Sect Master, unable to cultivate, was seeking a gifted Young Sect Master’s Wife to assist him.

But a devil cultivator?

In this age, the righteous path and the devil path could not coexist. Every great sect saw it as duty to purge devils and uphold the Dao. How could Limitless Sect’s future Young Sect Master’s Wife be a devil cultivator?

How could the elders allow it?

Absurd. Completely absurd.

Bai Meng Jin looked more surprised than Master Sun. “Master, you didn’t know?”

She paused—just enough to leave room for suspicion, then stopped as if she’d said too much. “I thought…”

The half-sentence was a hook. It made people wonder: did she think Master Sun already knew? If so, and he still pushed her to draw talismans in front of everyone, then was this deliberate?

After all, spiritual qi and demonic qi clashed. Drawing talismans required stability. With spiritual qi so dense here, something going wrong was almost inevitable.

Master Sun’s beard—freshly restored—trembled with anger. “If I had known, would I have let you draw talismans in front of me and do something this dangerous?!

“Wait.” His eyes narrowed again. “If you’re a devil cultivator, why did you join Limitless Sect? The elders—”

“Master Sun.” Ling Bu Fei stood. His voice was calm, but every word carried weight. “The fact that she can stand here means her background is clean. If you have questions, go ask Steward Hall.”

If it had been anyone else, Master Sun might have swallowed it and investigated privately.

But he was stubborn to the point of rigidity. With disciples whispering, with eyes bright with excitement, he spoke at once. “Nothing should be hidden from others. If there’s no problem, then please explain it, Young Sect Master.”

Ling Bu Fei drew breath—

Bai Meng Jin cut in smoothly. “That might not be appropriate, right?

“Master, the elders haven’t approved it. We shouldn’t speak carelessly.”

They hadn’t said that. Ling Bu Fei’s heart jerked. He looked at her.

Bai Meng Jin blinked at him.

Understanding struck. Ling Bu Fei straightened, his face cooling into arrogance. “That’s right. I brought her back, and the elders agreed. Master Sun, are you questioning this young lord… or questioning Tai Yi Hall?”

Master Sun’s temper flared instantly. “Limitless Sect belongs to all disciples of Limitless Sect, not one person or one clan!

“This woman is a devil cultivator. Letting her join the sect breaks the rules. Isn’t it normal for disciples to question it?” His finger stabbed toward Ling Bu Fei. “But you, Young Sect Master, keep hiding things. Where is the dignity of a sect’s young lord!”

Ling Bu Fei frowned. “If we’re discussing one matter, discuss that matter. Why are you dragging in something else?

“You’re a teacher. Is this how you set an example for the disciples?”

Master Sun pointed at him and laughed in anger. “Fine, fine. Young Sect Master, you’re throwing your weight around and trying to settle accounts with me!

“My status may be low, but you can’t pin a charge on me with a single sentence.”

His gaze swept across the cave. “This woman’s origins are questionable, and allowing a devil cultivator into the sect violates our rules.

“I will go to Steward Hall and ask. I’ll request that the Sect Master make the reasons for accepting her public, so we get a clear and fair answer.” His voice rose. “Disciples—are you willing to go with me as witnesses?”

Young people loved a spectacle. And beyond that, they wanted the answer.

One after another, they stood.

“I’m willing to go with Master!”

“I’ll go too. If the reason is legitimate, we can’t wrong the Young Sect Master!”

“Right! If it’s right, it should be said out loud!”

“When we entered Limitless Sect, we fought our way through tests. How can someone else stroll in so easily?”

“We take it as our duty to purge devils and uphold the Dao. What does it mean to let a devil cultivator join the sect?”

“We need an explanation!”

“Steward Hall!”

Master Sun snorted, satisfied. He produced a flying boat.

When the disciples boarded, he looked back at Ling Bu Fei. “Young Sect Master, are you coming too?”

Ling Bu Fei lifted a hand and let out a whistle.

The Kaiming Beast roared and dropped from the sky on beating wings. Wind rolled through the cave entrance.

“I won’t trouble you, Master,” Ling Bu Fei said coolly. “I’ll go myself.”

Master Sun flicked his sleeve and flew off with the crowd.

As soon as they were gone, Ling Bu Fei beckoned Bai Meng Jin close. “I knew you did it on purpose, but why?

“Master Sun has a bad temper, but he’s not a bad person.”

“He’s the one who tried to embarrass me first,” Bai Meng Jin said, unapologetic.

She took Ling Bu Fei’s hand and climbed onto the Kaiming Beast. “I didn’t practice with my hands, but I listened carefully.

“Even if he disliked it, he could’ve asked in private. Scolding me in public was meant to make me lose face.”

Ling Bu Fei’s eyes narrowed. “You’re right. He had no reason to humiliate you like that.” He hesitated. “Did he hear something?”

“Who knows?” Bai Meng Jin didn’t bother pretending to care. “Whether he heard it from someone or dreamed it up himself, the point is he’s against me.

“And I’m going to control the sect someday.” Her smile was bright, almost wicked. “This is the perfect chance to show everyone what happens when they oppose me.”

Ling Bu Fei let out a laugh, half disbelief, half delight. “We sound like villains in a storybook—bullying people in the sect and stirring up trouble.”

Bai Meng Jin waved a hand. “No. Someone else is stirring trouble.

“Sooner or later, everyone will learn that I have a devil heart. With me standing in this position, the sect should have made it public from the start so the disciples know what to think.

“Why keep it hidden?” Her eyes cooled. “Is someone secretly hoping I get pushed out?”