Chapter 201 Preserving Integrity in Old Age:
On the way back, Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi discussed the current situation of the Xuantian Sect, the attack methods of the Hehuan Flower Demon, and possible ways to break the spell.
By the time they arrived at Elder Hong's small building, they had finished their discussion.
The two stopped simultaneously and fell silent for a moment.
"So, are we really going to leave here and go to the Xuantian Sect?" Rong Xie asked.
Although neither of them mentioned going to the Xuantian Sect, their discussion was entirely based on the premise of going to the Xuantian Sect. Leaving the Hehuan Sect and going to the Xuantian Sect seemed to have become the default condition for their discussion.
“...It seems so,” Shen Bingsi murmured.
“But your cultivation hasn’t recovered yet,” Rong Xie sighed.
"……really."
Another silence followed.
The topic has returned to its original point: with Shen Bingsi's current cultivation level, could he really have helped instead of being a hindrance?
“But,” Shen Bingsi said, “I always feel that the answer might be right there.”
Rong Xie looked at Shen Bingsi, but he didn't ask him why he said such a nonsensical sentence, or what the answer was.
Their deep-rooted understanding allowed him to grasp Shen Bingsi's meaning immediately.
The methods of the Hehuan Sect could not restore Shen Bingsi's cultivation; this was not the path he was looking for.
"Then let's go," Rong Xie said.
Elder Hong was not in the small building, so Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi found Protector Seju and explained the situation to him.
“We are planning to leave,” Rong Xie said. “Thank you so much for taking care of us during this time. You have really helped us a lot. If you need any help in the future, please contact me.”
Protector Seju was somewhat surprised: "Are you leaving in such a hurry? Can't you wait until the sect leader returns from his inspection?"
“Yes, we have unfinished business with the Xuantian Sect, and we also have a friend who is in trouble there, so we can’t stay any longer,” Rong Xie explained.
"I see," said Protector Seju. "Do you need me to give you a ride?"
Rong Xie knew that Protector Seju's teleportation array was very powerful and could instantly send them to the vicinity of Xuantian Sect. Although the Qingtian Crane was comfortable, its speed was not as fast as the teleportation array.
"Is this convenient?" Rong Xie asked immediately. "Thank you very much!"
"It's convenient. You're going to the Xuantian Sect, right? There are quite a few teleportation points nearby," Guardian Seju recalled.
"That's wonderful!" Rong Xie exclaimed happily.
"However, there is one more thing..." Rong Xie sorted out his thoughts and felt that he should tell the Hehuan Sect people, "I don't know if Protector Seju has heard that the Xuantian Sect is currently being disturbed by a great demon. That great demon can infiltrate people's dreams and control people by controlling the dreams. Even the demon-slaying official who replaced Bing Si was no match for it and has now gone mad and died from his dreams."
Protector Seju was not surprised. He nodded and said, "I know about this. It's all over the place. In the last couple of days, all the branches have been sending back intelligence. That's why the sect leader went out on inspection."
Hearing that the Hehuan Sect was already on alert, Rong Xie felt a little relieved. After all, the Hehuan Sect had branches all over Liujin City. How could the Hehuan Sect be completely unaware of the news that he and Shen Bingsi had heard?
"Then, does Elder Hong know that the great demon that brought disaster to the Xuantian Sect is the Hehuan Flower Demon?" Rong Xie asked.
The Guardian of Color Fear was shocked: "What?"
Clearly, Protector Seju didn't know, and Elder Hong probably didn't know either, or wasn't sure.
“Although there is no conclusive evidence yet, based on the clues we have gathered, it is most likely the Albizia Flower Demon,” Rong Xie said. “We once encountered an Albizia Flower Demon in the Ruthless Dao Palace. It was hiding behind the servant of a Ruthless Dao disciple, and we didn’t discover it until… that Ruthless Dao disciple killed his closest servant to prove his Dao in order to keep his position in the Xuan Tian Sect.”
The usually calm expression on the Dharma Protector's face now revealed an intolerable rage: "What? He actually did this? The ruthless path is truly inhuman and deserves to be punished by heaven and earth!"
"...Later, the soul of that servant boy merged with the acacia flower demon, and they began to take revenge on the people of the Ruthless Dao Palace. The first target was Shang Gan, the demon-slaying official who forced them to attain enlightenment, followed by other Ruthless Dao cultivators, and they even caused trouble in our Spirit Mirror Sect," Rong Xie said.
"Well done, those ruthless cultivators deserved it." The words of the Protector of the Fearful Sect were full of praise. After a moment, he noticed that Rong Xie and Shen Bing Si had not spoken. "What I mean is that those ruthless cultivators who persecuted them deserved it. I don't mean to blame your sect."
The Path of Ruthlessness and the Joyful Union Sect have a long-standing feud, and Rong Xie did not expect that Protector Seju would be able to remain rational and objective in this matter.
“I told the Protector about this only to remind him that the great demon has become the common enemy of the Spirit Mirror Sect and the Profound Heaven Sect. Given the frequency of its troublemaking, it will probably become the common enemy of the entire cultivation world soon. Once the news spreads and everyone knows that it is the Hehuan Flower Demon, it will probably be detrimental to the Hehuan Sect.” Rong Xie sighed.
“This…” Protector Seju realized the seriousness of the problem. “I understand! I will go and report to the Sect Leader immediately and ask him to make a decision!”
"Okay." Rong Xie felt relieved. All he could do for the Hehuan Sect was to give them a reminder. In fact, after staying here for so many days, he knew that the Hehuan Sect had no ambition to overthrow the cultivation world at all. They were content with eating and playing every day.
"Thank you very much," said Protector Seju sincerely. "Let's go, I'll take you to the Xuantian Sect first."
Xuantian Sect, Chongyue Terrace.
In the alley behind the inn, Rong Xie pulled Shen Bingsi up from the teleportation array pit.
This was the first time Shen Bingsi had ever sat in the teleportation array of the Fear Protector. She was shocked, not expecting that a small sect like the Joyful Union Sect would have such a powerful array.
"Doesn't that mean we can go anywhere?" Shen Bingsi asked.
The Fearful Protector explained the principle to Shen Bingsi: there must be a building he designed near the destination for teleportation to take place. For example, there is no such building near the Shen Family Manor, so the Fearful Protector cannot teleport there.
"I see... So the mimosa flower fairy also knows this trick?" Shen Bingsi asked warily.
“This… probably not,” Protector Seju hesitated for a moment. “You said that the mimosa flower demon was initially following behind a servant, so it doesn’t necessarily mean that it was a mimosa flower from our Hehuan Sect that became a demon. After all, mimosa flowers can be found everywhere, and it’s not unique to our Hehuan Sect that we have this kind of flower.”
“That’s true.” Shen Bingsi nodded.
"This mimosa flower demon first appeared in the Heartless Dao Palace. Its origin should be asked of Elder Bai," said Protector Fearful in a cold voice.
"We will ask." Rong Xie felt that he was about to stir up the fifty-year-old feud between the Hehuan Sect and the Wuqing Dao Palace again, so he quickly ended the topic. "Thank you for escorting us."
"It's alright." Protector Seju waved his hand and said, "I'll go back and report to the sect leader first. You all be careful."
“Alright,” Rong Xie said. Protector Seju turned around, about to walk into the magic array, when Rong Xie suddenly remembered something extremely important. He stepped forward and grabbed Protector Seju, “Protector, wait!!”
Startled by Rong Xie, the Fearful Protector turned around and asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"
"Bing Si and I might go back. Could you please keep the little building we live in?" Rong Xie gripped the clothes of Protector Se Ju tightly, as if he wouldn't let him leave until he agreed. "No need to clean it, and don't let anyone else in. Our... things are still there, very valuable things!"
Actually, there was nothing valuable. Even the Sky Crane was shrunk by Rong Xie's magic and placed in the Golden Fish Pattern Bag. It was just that the small building, which was full of traces of the two of them having sex, was not suitable for any outsiders to visit. Rong Xie made a mistake and forgot to burn it before leaving.
Just thinking about it made Rong Xie break out in a cold sweat.
"Oh, you'll be coming back?" Protector Seju didn't realize Rong Xie's true intentions in his panic. "In that case, Xiaolou will be preserved, don't worry."
"Mmm." Rong Xie breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you."
He preserved his reputation in his later years.
The Dharma Protector of Color Fear took a step forward, then suddenly turned back: "What valuable thing is it? Should I go and get it now?"
"No need, no need!" Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi said in unison.
"Oh..." Protector Seju seemed a little confused, but he wasn't one to meddle in other people's business. "Shall I go now?"
"Go on, go on!" Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi waved their hands at the same time.
Xuantian Sect, Zhilan Ridge.
Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi arrived at the Wuqing Dao Palace without any obstacles, much to their surprise. The heartland of the Xuantian Sect was so open and undefended, with almost no effective checks or barriers, a stark contrast to the scene when they first arrived here.
Anyone could see that something had happened to the Xuantian Sect.
This is a big deal.
Fortunately, there were still disciples guarding the gate of the Ruthless Dao Palace. Rong Xie stepped forward to inquire about the situation, and when the person turned around, he recognized the face.
“You are…” Rong Xie couldn’t recall the person’s Daoist name.
"Qingfeng!" Qingfeng hurriedly said, "Fellow Daoist Rong, Sword Saint Shen, what brings you here as well? The Dao Palace is in grave danger right now, I'm afraid we don't have time to entertain you!"
Rong Xie thought to himself, "Qingfeng is an honest man. He's even thinking about how he doesn't have time to entertain us." He smiled and said, "No need to greet us. We're here to help."
"Help? You can't help here. Everyone's in danger right now. You'd better leave quickly!" Qingfeng said dejectedly.
Clearly, the numerous disappointments had dampened Qingfeng's enthusiasm for foreign aid.
"Where is Elder Bai?" Rong Xie's gaze swept over the outer perimeter of the Dao Palace. Fortunately, no black banners were hung. The matter must be quite serious, but not serious enough to result in the death of an important figure.
“Master…” Qingfeng’s mood dropped. “He has been fighting the flower demons, and the situation is still unclear. He is resting in his bedroom inside.”
"Rest?" Rong Xie thought for a moment and realized, "Elder Bai... could he also be under the spell of the Nightmare Curse?"
Qingfeng sighed and acquiesced.
Rong Xie's mood turned heavy: "Could you take us to see it?"
Qingfeng hesitated for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the two faces.
"Alright, come with me." Qingfeng stepped back and led the two into the Ruthless Dao Palace.
Although the Ruthless Palace of the past was quiet, it was a quietness of order.
At this moment, however, there was an eerie silence.
Chairs and awnings were overturned on the ground, garbage was scattered in the grass, and there was a puddle of vomit beside the road. A strange smell wafted in the air, a mixture of musty and faint rose fragrance. The fresh and crisp mountain air of the past was long gone.
"...The disciples who had places to go in the Dao Palace have all gone down the mountain, leaving only those who had nowhere to go or those who swore to live and die with the Dao Palace." Qingfeng told the two of them what had happened here as he led them inside.
"What about the adjudicators from the Mirror Palace? Have they left too?" Rong Xie couldn't help but ask.
“Brother Jiang won’t leave,” Shen Bingsi said immediately with certainty.
Qingfeng sighed, "The Adjudicator has come to see, but... he couldn't get rid of that flower demon. They've gone to the main peak to guard it now."
"Go to the main peak?" Rong Xie asked in confusion. "But isn't the flower demon causing trouble in Zhilan Ridge? Isn't it targeting the Heartless Dao Palace?"
“That’s true, but…” Qingfeng said indignantly, “The sect leader and elders called them over, and there was nothing we could do.”
Hearing this, Rong Xie felt sorry for Qing Feng. He had already seen what kind of people the sect leader and elders of the Xuan Tian Sect were like when they were in Wen Xin Gorge.
"That shouldn't be the case..." Shen Bingsi muttered to herself.
“What’s right or wrong! They’ve just abandoned our Ruthless Dao Palace! They even called away the adjudicator that the Mirror Palace specially sent! Our Ruthless Dao Palace’s life is cheap! They’re high-ranking and powerful, so their lives are precious!” Qingfeng’s voice suddenly rose, and his words became cynical.
“That’s not what I meant,” Shen Bingsi said calmly. “Based on my understanding of Brother Jiang, he wouldn’t submit to the will of any sect leader. It’s more likely that something difficult has happened on the main peak that’s why he went there.”
Qingfeng had finally mustered the courage to vent his anger, but Shen Bingsi's reaction made him seem like a spoiled child. Qingfeng's momentum immediately deflated, and he muttered under his breath, "Is that so? What about our Ruthless Dao Palace? Master hasn't woken up yet, and they're just leaving like this..."
"Elder Bai was affected by the Nightmare Spell. Did he experience any unusual symptoms?" Shen Bingsi asked.
"No, he's just unconscious," Qingfeng replied.
Shen Bingsi then asked about the reactions of the other people who had been affected by the nightmare spell, paying particular "concern" about Shang Gan's symptoms. The answers she received were similar to what the people from the Mountain Moving Sect had told her, only with a few more details.
"So, those who are under the spell either fall into a deep sleep or wake up and cause trouble? Their common characteristic is that they all start by suddenly falling asleep?" Shen Bingsi summarized.
"Yes." Qingfeng nodded.
"So, as long as you don't sleep, you won't get infected," Shen Bingsi said.
“That’s how it is,” Qingfeng said. “However, it’s not so easy to stay awake. The flower demon is cunning and treacherous. No matter how much we try to guard against it, we can’t stop its hypnotic spells. Whoever it wants to sleep can fall asleep immediately.”
“Indeed, but at least you can use this pattern to identify people possessed by flower spirits,” Shen Bingsi said. “Cultivators don’t need to sleep, so whoever is sleeping is a suspect.”
Shen Bingsi quickly grasped the crux of the problem, and Rong Xie's spirits lifted, feeling that guarding against the flower demon wasn't so difficult after all.
"...lock these suspects in one place and control them with a magic array. Even if the flower demon wants to use them to go crazy and cause trouble, it won't work," Shen Bingsi said confidently.
"This..." Qingfeng frowned, "Sword Saint Shen, the method you mentioned was also mentioned by the Adjudicator, but at the time... we didn't expect things to develop to this point, so we didn't implement it properly, and as a result... it became unmanageable."
Qingfeng put it simply, but the reality was that the Wuqing Dao Palace was riddled with factions and powerful forces. The method proposed by Jiang Caijie was simply impossible to implement. Which faction would oversee which faction, and whether this incident would cause an imbalance of power within the palace, were all issues that the Wuqing Dao Palace cultivators had to consider. Without a Grand Palace Master who could make the final decision to supervise the matter, it could not be implemented.
Since Lu Yingqi's madness, Elder Bai has been in a slump and has no ability to lead these scheming internal forces. As a result, when faced with external shocks, they have become a disorganized mess, even less capable than the Moving Mountain Sect. They were quickly dismantled from within by the Hehuan Flower Demon.
After listening to Qingfeng's description, Shen Bingsi remained silent for a while before asking, "So, you didn't lock up those sleeping people and just let them wander around?"
"..." Qingfeng felt a little guilty.
"If they go out, won't they all become puppets of the Acacia Flower Fairy? And be able to move freely within the Xuan Tian Sect?"
"..."
"And what about those who go home to seek protection? Aren't they bringing danger to those people as well?"
"..." Qingfeng's face stiffened, sweat beaded on his forehead, and he was speechless.
Rong Xie listened from the side, and the more he listened, the more distressed he became.
"Where is Lu Yingqi?" Shen Bingsi's face was ashen. "Is he still stuck in a rut?"
“He…” Qingfeng said in a hoarse voice, “Yes.”
I never imagined that things would develop to such an irreparable state in just half a month.
Shen Bingsi and Rong Xie fell silent, and Qingfeng was also trembling with fear, not daring to speak.
Suddenly, a cold laugh came from the other side of the wall: "What Sword Saint Shen said makes perfect sense. Suspects should all be locked up!"
The three turned around and saw a person dressed in the robes of a high-ranking disciple of the Xuantian Sect walk in, followed by two others. This high-ranking disciple rolled up his sleeves and fixed his gaze on Shen Bingsi: "But, I wonder if Sword Saint Shen is a suspect?"
"..." Shen Bingsi subtly turned to the side, blocking Rong Xie from view.
"Brother Lao!" Qingfeng rushed forward in a panic, bowing and scraping to the high-ranking disciple. After a brief exchange, Rong Xie and Shen Bingsi learned that this Brother Lao was also a disciple of the Ruthless Dao Palace. He used to be in the same faction as Shang Gan, but later he sided with a powerful elder on the main peak and is now the de facto ruler of the Ruthless Dao Palace after Elder Bai's downfall.
"Senior Brother Lao, Sword Saint Shen came to see my master. He left after visiting my master and is not a suspect," Qingfeng explained.
"Oh? What kind of place is our Ruthless Dao Palace? A vegetable market? A place where he can come and go as he pleases?" Senior Brother Lao had an arrogant attitude, just like Shang Gan back then. "Where did Sword Saint Chen come from? Did he sleep before he came? Was he controlled by a demon? We don't know anything. Qingfeng, do you know anything?"
"I...don't know." Qingfeng glanced hesitantly at Shen Bingsi and Rong Xie, then quietly moved a little to the side.
"That's it! They're both suspects. Arrest them and lock them up in the backyard!" Senior Brother Lao ordered. "Don't be afraid. This Sword Saint Shen's Dao Heart is shattered; he's on the verge of death and can't use his spiritual power at all. You—"
"Whoosh!"
A flash of blue light passed by, grazing past Senior Brother Lao's temples. Several strands of severed hair were tossed into the air and slowly fell.
Senior Brother Lao was startled and stood there, staring at Shen Bingsi in disbelief.
Seeing this, the other two lower-ranking disciples dared not make any rash moves and obediently stayed behind Senior Brother Lao.
Rong Xie pushed Shen Bingsi: "Let's go."
Shen Bingsi nodded, took out a flying talisman, and rushed towards the small door at the end of the road.
Rong Xie casually cast a few tricky spells at Senior Brother Lao, took out the Cloud Dream Boat, and while running, picked up the light-emitting white orchids that he had just thrown out from the ground.
That's right, the blue light just now was the light-emitting white orchid that Rong Xie threw. He hasn't formed his core yet and doesn't know sword control, so he can only use this method to scare Senior Brother Lao. He didn't expect that Senior Brother Lao, who is as timid as a mouse, would actually be scared.
Rong Xie grabbed the white orchid, turned around and jumped onto the Cloud Dream Boat. He then maneuvered the boat over the courtyard wall and caught up with Shen Bingsi, who was passing through the small gate.
Rong Xie pulled Shen Bingsi behind him with force, the movements were so smooth and fluid that it was hard to believe that this was done by a law-abiding citizen with little combat experience.
Shen Bingsi hugged Rong Xie's waist from behind, clinging to him: "Rong'er, you're amazing."
"Right?" Rong Xie said smugly, feeling full of power. "Rely on the broad shoulders of a Foundation Establishment expert!"
"It's all up to you now," Shen Bingsi said, clinging to him like a bird.
"Where to now?" Rong Xie patted the hand that was on his waist.
“The main peak,” Shen Bingsi said, “something big must have happened there. Let’s go take a look.”
"Alright." Rong Xie steered the Cloud Dream Boat, flying towards the direction he remembered.
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