Chapter 253

Chapter 253: No Matter How Far I Fall, It Is Not Your Place to Lecture Me
In Five Elements Dao Sect, Lan Zi Yu’s reputation was mixed.

Those who admired him praised his unbending pride. Those who disliked him thought he was arrogant and acted in a high-profile, reckless way.

He himself never cared what others thought and still did as he pleased.

His strength was his greatest support.

Quan Ye was worse than him in every way and had never gotten the upper hand in any of their past spars, yet this time Quan Ye had trampled his dignity underfoot in front of everyone.

When Lan Zi Yu fainted, the last thing he saw was the watching fellow disciples’ faces, full of shock, excitement, or schadenfreude.

Whenever he thought of that day, he felt as if his organs were burning and his cheeks were swollen, as if someone had slapped him dozens of times.

Using healing as an excuse, he hid on Lone Moon Peak and refused to listen to what others were saying.

But he kept thinking about it all the time, almost possessed, imagining what they were saying about him behind his back, unable to sleep.

The two different emotions pulled at his heart. He became suspicious and jumpy, terrified at the slightest rustle.

He was about to be driven mad.

“Second senior brother, you are overthinking.”

Facing the agitated Lan Zi Yu, Cui Jue was very calm.

He said: “Your spar with fifth junior brother is already in the past, and now no one even mentions it. If you do not believe me, you can go check for yourself.”

Ever since the Five Elements Dao Sect Enforcement Squad was formed, the atmosphere in Five Elements Dao Sect had greatly improved.

The disciples’ talk during their free time had slowly changed from gossip to cultivation tips. The learning atmosphere was strong, and few people still paid attention to trivial matters.

What Lan Zi Yu’s spar with Quan Ye left them with was not the memory of how miserably Lan Zi Yu had lost, but the understanding that if you did not work hard, sooner or later you would be caught up by the very person you looked down on.

With his own experience, Lan Zi Yu had sounded an alarm for all the disciples.

Now, there were hardworking training figures everywhere in Five Elements Dao Sect.

After Cui Jue stopped doing alchemy, he had plenty of time and knew very well how the sect was changing.

Lan Zi Yu, however, since returning from Floating Island, had either been healing or tangled up with Ye Cong Xin, so of course he did not know the sect’s situation and still thought he was at the center of attention.

But in fact,

no one cared.

Lan Zi Yu’s expression changed.

He said: “No, you must be lying to me.”

He still refused to believe it.

He was the most watched rising star of Five Elements Dao Sect. Every move he made could stir up a wave.

How could no one be paying attention?

Cui Jue stood up and looked down at him.

He said: “Second senior brother, everyone is moving forward. You should look ahead too. Do not let the superficial glitz in front of you blind your eyes.”

Good advice is hard to hear but helpful to follow.

Cui Jue had only kindly reminded him because of their many years of friendship.

Lan Zi Yu did not appreciate it. With a cold face, he snapped: “Cui Jue, no matter how down and out I become, it is not your place to lecture me.”

Cui Jue let out a cold laugh.

He turned and left.

He had long known that Lan Zi Yu was selfish and stubborn. He really should not have said that sentence at all.

After Cui Jue left, the anger on Lan Zi Yu’s face faded. He stared blankly into the air.

He suddenly felt very tired.

It was a kind of exhaustion he could not put into words.

Ever since Yu Zhao left, everything had fallen apart.

Lone Moon Peak, which had once shielded him from the wind and rain, no longer held the warmth it used to.

There were also conflicts among the senior and junior brothers.

Even worse, his cultivation state had plummeted.

Before, he only needed to put thirty percent of his mind into cultivation to surpass most fellow disciples.

But recently he had slowly started feeling powerless. A full day of cultivation now was not as effective as half a day used to be.

Lan Zi Yu helplessly covered his face.

He bore the bitter taste alone.

…

A thousand miles away.

Quan Ye slowly woke up.

His memory was still stuck on the scene of his spar with Lan Zi Yu. Suddenly realizing he was in a strange place, he sat up in shock and doubt.

The next moment, he fell heavily back down.

“Uh… ah!”

Sharp pain swept through his whole body.

His eyes were bloodshot. His vein-jumping forehead pressed against the bed, and his body curled up into a ball.

[It hurts!]

[How can it hurt so much!]

It hurt like someone was using a hammer to break his bones inch by inch.

The pain from Thunder Tempering the Body was not even one ten-thousandth of what he was going through now.

“Fifth brother! Fifth brother! You are awake!”

Su Ming, who was living in the next room, heard the noise and rushed in. Seeing Quan Ye in unbearable pain, he stood there at a loss, not knowing what to do.

Right then, Quan Ye suddenly threw his head back and let out a long howl.

Then he snapped his head around, his gaze locked right on Su Ming.

Su Ming shivered.

It was because Quan Ye’s eyes were completely blood red, like a bloodthirsty, violent Demonic Beast that had lost all humanity.

Su Ming sensed that something was wrong and shouted fiercely, though his heart was weak: “Fifth brother, look carefully at who I am!”

Before he finished speaking, Quan Ye’s figure flashed, and his huge fist came straight toward Su Ming’s face.

Su Ming had already had a feeling and crushed a defensive tool in advance.

But he had not expected that Quan Ye’s strength, under the boost of his bloodline, had risen by another level.

With one punch, he forcibly shattered the defensive tool.

The shock wave from the explosion washed over Su Ming. His pupils shrank, and he turned and ran out.

“Master, save me!”

Quan Ye had just stepped out of the room when a pressure from above pressed him to the ground.

He struggled and roared in fury, but in return the force pressing down on him only grew heavier.

Under the ever-increasing pressure, Quan Ye’s eyes instead slowly became clear again.

[What is wrong with me…]

Su Ming circled in front of Quan Ye twice. After confirming he had regained his senses, he crouched down and slapped Quan Ye on the head: “Fifth brother, you almost scared me to death just now!”

Su Ming had no doubt that if Master had not acted in time, Quan Ye really would have struck him down.

What made it worse was that he could not beat Quan Ye.

He finally believed that there really was Demonic Beast blood in Quan Ye’s body, and a faint trace of envy rose in his heart.

Before, he and Quan Ye could barely be called brothers in hardship. Neither of them was liked by their master.

But now Quan Ye’s identity was special. Even if Master did not like him, he would still give him extra care.

Only he was plain and ordinary.

He could never get their master’s attention.

Quan Ye asked: “Third senior brother, what happened to me just now? And why am I here? Where is this place?”

Maybe because he saw that Quan Ye was speaking clearly, Master Qing Yan withdrew his pressure.

Once Quan Ye was free again, he asked a string of questions in a row.

Su Ming said: “Fifth brother, tell me the truth. Do you know anything about your own background?”

“My background?”

Quan Ye had not expected Su Ming to ask this. He froze for a moment and asked in confusion: “Third senior brother, what background would I have? I am the same as Yu Zhao. We are both orphans who have never seen our own parents. We survived only by relying on our own strength.”

When Quan Ye was very young, he found that he was stronger than other children his age. At seven years old, he had beaten everyone on his street and officially became a little tyrant of the neighborhood.

Later, he heard by chance that Five Elements Dao Sect was recruiting disciples. He went through countless hardships to come to Five Elements Dao Sect, passed the test, then entered Master Qing Yan’s tutelage and officially became a member of Lone Moon Peak.

Su Ming knew all of this.

So why would he suddenly ask this?