Chapter 111

Chapter 111: The Chaos at Ling Xu Peak

Shen Yue said quietly: “First Senior Brother, I’ll go with you to take a look.”

Sheng Yuan did not refuse and nodded.

At Ling Xu Peak, because the Full Disciples had all raised protests, and with the Sect Master’s approval, the Disciplinary Hall had stepped in. A Steward led the team, and every disciple of Ling Xu Peak was questioned.

By the time Sheng Yuan and Shen Yue arrived, the Disciplinary Hall’s work was nearly done. All the disciples’ statements had been recorded and bound into a thick volume.

The Steward of the Disciplinary Hall glanced at Sheng Yuan and said: “Sheng Yuan, read what they said yourself. If you find anything untrue, you may point it out.”

He signaled a disciple to hand the book to Sheng Yuan.

Sheng Yuan flipped a few pages, and his face paled. Nothing written was exactly false. But these disciples really gave him no face at all. Some even spoke at length about the huge gap between him and Li Shuang. When Li Shuang was there, Ling Xu Peak had been disciplined and orderly. Since he became First Senior Brother, it had taken only a short time for the peak to fall into disorder with no rules at all. All of these comparisons had been recorded one by one.

He bit down on the inside of his cheek. Earlier he had thought Zhao Zhao’s claim that Li Shuang had deliberately raised up Chang Le An was a bit much, but now he felt her guess might not be wrong. Li Shuang had already left Ling Xu Peak, yet the disciples here still spoke up for her like this. [Is there really no deliberate hand in this?]

Even if some of them had wronged her in the past, she had destroyed Zhao Zhao’s cultivation, blocked Second Junior Brother’s Way of the Sword, and dragged Third Junior Brother down into the dust. Was that not enough? [Does she want to make everyone despise me too?]

His fingers tightened on the book.

The Steward of the Disciplinary Hall said: “As for you withholding disciples’ resources, there are basically no doubts left. Do you have any explanation now?”

Sheng Yuan could only shake his head, helpless.

“Since you don’t, you have three days to make up the cultivation resources for these disciples,” the Steward said with a nod.

“Three days…” His lips trembled, and he asked, voice thin: “What if I can’t make it up?”

“If you can’t? Then it depends on what these disciples want,” the Steward replied, turning to the crowd. “After all, they are the ones harmed.”

The disciples of Ling Xu Peak fell silent.

Then Yan Xiao stepped out and said loudly: “If it can’t be made up, I can forgo my share. I only ask for one thing, a chance to change peaks!”

Sheng Yuan’s pupils tightened: “Change peaks? Yan Xiao, what are you trying to do!”

Gritting his teeth, Yan Xiao threw caution to the wind: “Ling Xu Peak is this chaotic now, with no rules up and down. How can we cultivate in peace? If possible, I am willing to take the tests of the other four peaks. If I pass, I hope to join one of them.”

He most wanted Emotionless Peak, of course. But everyone knew Lin Qing Ling was lazy and, aside from a few Direct Disciples, had not accepted others for years. He would not force it. Anywhere was better than Ling Xu Peak.

As soon as he spoke, eyes flickered across the crowd. In a moment, nearly half the disciples proposed the same idea. They could give up a month of resources, but they wanted a chance to switch peaks.

In theory, once you joined a peak you could not casually change. Li Shuang’s case had been rare, and she had been driven out by Immortal Ling Xu himself. Now, these Full Disciples of Ling Xu Peak wanted to leave of their own will. If word spread, Immortal Ling Xu’s old face would be ground underfoot.

Watching them, Sheng Yuan turned paler and paler. His body swayed as if he might fall. [Am I really this much of a failure as First Senior Brother?] When Li Shuang was still here, everyone envied Ling Xu Peak’s training environment. How long had it been since then? Now, half the disciples were willing to give up a month of resources just to get away?

A rush of anger surged, and he coughed up blood.

“First Senior Brother,” Shen Yue cried as he caught him, worry flashing in his eyes.

Sheng Yuan shook his head and forced himself upright: “There’s… no precedent for this. I…”

A cold voice cut in: “I approve it.”

Sheng Yuan looked up and saw Immortal Ling Xu’s gloomy face.

“Peak Master of Ling Xu Peak,” the Steward of the Disciplinary Hall said with a bow.

Immortal Ling Xu said coldly: “Record their names. Anyone who wants to go, let them go.”

His face stayed dark and cold.

The disciples of Ling Xu Peak hesitated. Then Yan Xiao bit down and said: “Write down my name.”

He knew this would earn Immortal Ling Xu’s resentment, but he had no other choice. First, he had already spoken out; whether he left or not, he would be marked. Second, he did not want to keep scowling at Senior Sister Li against his conscience. If he could join another peak, Immortal Ling Xu would have to give face to the other Peak Masters and could not do much to him.

With the same thoughts, others stepped forward in turn. The Disciplinary Hall’s Steward hurried to take down their names.

Immortal Ling Xu snorted, glanced at Sheng Yuan, and said: “Those who want to leave, let them. For the disciples who remain, you’ll handle it yourself.”

Then, with no help offered, he flicked his sleeves and left.

Sheng Yuan could only answer respectfully. Looking up at the chaos that was now Ling Xu Peak, he felt a stab of sorrow. Ling Xu Peak was the first peak of the Sword Sect. How had it come to this? [If Senior Sister Li sees this, won’t her heart ache? Or… was this all planned by her hand?]

Shen Yue spoke softly: “First Senior Brother, quite a few disciples still chose to stay. The urgent task now is to make up the deficit. We truly have no spirit stones left. Junior Sister is like this now… I can’t think of any way. Who could produce that many spirit stones in three days?”

As he spoke, a thought stirred in Sheng Yuan’s eyes. [Who can pull together so many spirit stones in three days?] He did not know about others, but there was one person who certainly could: Li Shuang, who had just returned from the Langya Secret Realm with a full harvest. This time she had cashed in a lot of contribution points. On top of that, what she turned in might not have been everything. She likely still held treasures on her. One trip to the Langya Secret Realm had left Ling Xu Peak stranded and poor while Li Shuang suddenly grew rich.

If it was Li Shuang, she could definitely cover the spirit stones to fill the gap. But with how things stood between her and Ling Xu Peak, how could she possibly help?

Then a thought struck him. [If I do it this way, it won’t be taking from her for nothing. This is what Li Shuang owes us.]

“Second Junior Brother, coordinate with the Disciplinary Hall disciples here,” he said after a brief pause. “I need to go out.”

With that, he hurried away.