Chapter 2198 - A Visitor

There were only one hundred and nine peaks in all of Qingwu Divine Court.

Eighteen of them were top-class blessed grounds. The sect’s old monsters had long since monopolized them and gone into seclusion there.

Of these eighteen peaks, Purple Jade Peak was the most extraordinary. It was the site of the Qingwu Divine Mountains’ underground spirit vein, as well as a forbidden zone!

Numerous Undying Realm Master Gods who’d overcome five or more tribulations had taken up residence there.

Those eighteen peaks aside, there were thirty-six peaks just one notch below them. These were occupied by the sect leader and the authority figures of the inner court.

Some of the other peaks were cultivation grounds for the sect’s disciples, while others were home to scripture repositories, pill workshops, weapon forges, and other facilities.

That left only thirteen peaks to house the sect’s other higher-ups.

Vice Palace Master Mo Yong wasn’t the only one living on Red Mist Peak. Several other sect higher-ups had immortal caves there as well.

Spirit Bamboo Peak was small, and it was far inferior to Red Mist Peak.

However, Su Yi, who’d only just joined the sect and become a deacon of Wandering Night Palace, had actually monopolized the whole mountain. That naturally stirred up no small number of waves in the sect.

Everyone in the sect knew that Vice Palace Master Mo Yong had repeatedly requested to take up residence there, to no avail.

Su Yi knew about this too, and he’d anticipated that Mo Yong would come looking for trouble!

Mo Yong endured for half a month. Has he finally reached his limit?

As Su Yi pondered, he made up his mind. “Go back and tell Palace Master Mo Yong that I’m grateful for his invitation, but that I was recently injured and need peace and quiet to recover. I’m afraid I cannot attend, and I humbly request his understanding.”

The golden-robed man at the foot of the mountain was stunned. He furrowed his brow and said, “His Excellency Mo Yong personally issued an invitation. Deacon Xiao, don’t you think refusing like that... is a bit inappropriate?”

A moment later, he sneered. “Or is it that you don’t dare to attend?”

Whap!

The power of one of the mountain’s formations condensed into a palm and smacked the golden-robed man across the face.

A crisp, resounding slap.

The golden-robed man staggered backward and fell, the left side of his face visibly swelling. Blood flowed from the corners of his mouth.

“How dare you hit me!?” the golden-robed man roared in fury.

“A sect is a hierarchy. You’re just a Wandering Sun God, yet you’re deliberately provoking your superior. According to the sect’s rules, I’d be well within my rights to pluck your tendons and flay you alive,” Su Yi said calmly. “If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to keep pushing.”

The golden-robed man’s face was ashen with anger, but in the end, he dared not argue. All he said was, “You’re quite domineering, Deacon Xiao. Very well. I’ll go back and report to His Excellency Mo Yong immediately!”

With that, he left with a swoosh of his sleeves.

A mere errand boy dared come to my territory and bark at me. It seems that a lot of my sectmates take issue with me,

thought Su Yi.

He currently knew two things for sure.

First, Third Elder Ku Zhen wouldn’t trust him so easily. If Ku Zhen found any dirt on him, the old man was sure to go for the throat.

Second, there was something off about Sect Leader Liang Lingxu’s decision to assign him to Spirit Bamboo Peak.

He was a newcomer to the sect. Even though he had a Torch Dragon bloodline, and even though the sect valued him highly, he was in no way qualified to monopolize Spirit Bamboo Peak.

Yet Liang Lingxu had gone and assigned it to him anyway.

He was clearly planning something, and whatever it was, it wasn’t simple.

Su Yi was starting to understand.

This might well be some kind of test.

The sect leader wants to see if I can handle the trouble that comes with taking up residency on Spirit Bamboo Peak.

There’s another possibility too. The sect leader might well be using me as a weapon!

I’ve only just joined the sect, and I’ve yet to lay down roots here. If you need to use someone as a weapon, a newbie like me is the best choice.

Did the sect leader place me on Spirit Bamboo Peak precisely because he anticipated that Mo Yong would object? Did he want me and Mo Yong to fight?

Admittedly, Mo Yong is just the vice palace master of Wandering Sun Palace, but the palace master is Grand Elder Wei Zhong, a high-ranking authority second only to the sect leader.

How will the grand elder feel if I deal with Mo Yong?

In other words, if Mo Yong makes trouble for me, even if I lose, it would give Sect Leader Liang Lingxu an opening to punish Mo Yong, and in turn, take the grand elder down a peg!

As a newcomer, it seems that I most likely became a pawn the day I joined Qingwu Divine Court!

I might have been placed on Spirit Bamboo Peak as a trial of sorts, but I’m being exploited too, aren’t I?

The sect leader wants to kill two hawks with a single arrow!

This was the nature of a sect.

Where there were people, there was the

Jianghu.

A peak faction like Qingwu Divine Court inevitably had all sorts of internal conflicts, division, and power struggles.

Su Yi hated nothing more than paltry little tricks and schemes like this.

He also disdained playing games and scheming against random nobodies. If trouble really came looking for him, he’d naturally just crush it!

Liang Lingxu is actually quite like his master, Hua Hongzhen. He’s crafty and shrewd.

It’s a pity, but although he doesn’t realize it, in my eyes, his schemes are no more than paltry, unseemly little tricks...

He’d decided to cultivate in Qingwu Divine Court for two simple reasons:

One, to take on a new identity and keep a low profile. He could also use Qingwu Divine Court’s name and influence toward his own ends.

Second, to get revenge!

The rest, he didn’t care about in the slightest.

......

Red Mist Peak.

The residence of Vice Palace Master Mo Yong.

“Your Excellency, it doesn’t matter that Xiao Jian slapped

me,

but wasn’t that effectively a slap in your face too?” said the golden-robed man. He was visibly enraged.

“You insulted Deacon Xiao to his face. That slap was well-deserved,” Mo Yong said coldly.

He had a large, bushy beard and long, dark hair. He was big-boned, with an imposing, ferocious air about him.

The golden-robed man was stunned, then aggrieved. “I was speaking up on your behalf...”

Mo Yong’s gaze was instantly fierce. “Wu Feng, I sent you there to deliver a message, not to act wantonly!”

The golden-robed Wu Feng was instantly as silent as a cicada in winter. He hung his head in shame.

“It was Third Elder Ku Zhen’s idea to place Xiao Jin on Spirit Bamboo Peak, and it was the sect leader who approved this decision,” said Mo Yong, his gaze deep and intense. “Who in the sect would dare object?”

“But... But this is just too unfair,” said Wu Feng, still aggrieved. “Everyone in the sect knows that you’re the most qualified to live on Spirit Bamboo Peak!”

“That’s right. Who among the sect’s old-timers doesn’t know that?” Mo Yong sighed. “Yet the sect leader and the third elder made this decision anyway. I can roughly guess their intentions.”

Wu Feng was stunned. He asked tentatively, “What do you mean, Your Excellency?”

Mo Yong’s gaze was cold and indifferent. He disregarded the question, then directly issued orders. “Go back to see Xiao Jian. Tell him I’ll come see him at Spirit Bamboo Mountain tomorrow morning!”

Wu Feng was obviously still confused, but he dared not ask any further questions. He scurried off to carry out his orders.

Mo Yong watched him fade from view, then sighed to himself. A hint of exhaustion appeared on his brow.

He knew that the sect leader and third elder had joined forces to use the newbie, Xiao Jian, against him.

It might have seemed like he was the target of all this, but in truth, they were targeting his backer, the grand elder!

If he didn’t respond to this provocation, they’d take it to mean that he was dead set on standing with the grand elder. Things absolutely wouldn’t be easy for him after that.

But if he

did

respond and went to make trouble for Xiao Jian, it wouldn’t matter who won and who lost. The sect leader would seize the opportunity to make trouble for the grand elder either way!

In that case, the grand elder would be very unhappy. How could he possibly let Mo Yong get away scot-free?

After all, when the time came, the grand elder would see him as a complete good-for-nothing!

Admittedly, the sect leader was sure to use this as an opportunity to rope him in, but that would mean completely betraying the grand elder and joining the sect leader’s camp!

No matter what Mo Yong chose, there was no way he could remain a bystander.

He sighed to himself.

Xiao Jian is a pawn in all this, but I am too.

Competitions between high-ranking authority figures were the cruelest of all. When the sect leader and grand elder fought, it was trivial figures like him who suffered the most.

This was what they meant when they said, “When gods and immortals do battle, it’s the mortals who suffer.”

Half a month ago, when Xiao Jian entered the sect and became the master of Spirit Bamboo Peak, the grand elder almost certainly saw through the sect leader and third elder’s plans.

But the grand elder did nothing, and said nothing. I’m afraid he wanted to take this chance to see how I’d respond.

Mo Yong looked a bit dazed and uncertain. He suddenly felt deeply exhausted.

So what if he’d become a god? And so what if he was the vice palace master of Wandering Sun Palace?

His position and authority had ultimately been granted to him by other people. He was still a pawn helpless to stop others from manipulating him, swept uncontrollably into a power struggle.

Mo Yong knew that the sect’s old-timers were all watching and waiting to see what he did next, because this was a power struggle between the grand elder and the sect leader!

The following morning, Mo Yong set course for Spirit Bamboo Mountain!

Many of his sectmates saw him leave, stirring up ripples beneath the surface. No small number of people were watching in secret, hoping to see how Mo Yong handled this, and how Xiao Jian would respond.

𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

But there was no sign of the dark currents or ambient tension on Spirit Bamboo Peak.

In the bamboo tower at the highest point of the mountain, Su Yi sat casually in a bamboo chair, watching the bamboo forest sway. As the light of the heavens streamed through the misty clouds, it took on the resplendent hues of dawn.

“How does it feel to be a pawn? Not good, right?” Su Yi asked between sips of wine.

His robes were whiter than snow, and he sat there casually. The sight left Mo Yong stunned.

“It seems you understand your position, too,” Mo Yong said thoughtfully. “But I’m fairly certain you’re unaware of the danger lurking behind the scenes.”

Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh dryly. “There’s no need for me to guess, nor do I need to concern myself with all that. All I need to do is act in accordance with the sect’s rules. As for you...”

Su Yi finally looked away from the distant sea of clouds and met Mo Yong’s gaze. “You’re a helpless pawn, unable to advance or retreat. No matter what you do, you’ll pay a heavy price for it. Your situation... is far too difficult.”

Mo Yong’s gaze was instantly conflicted. He suddenly felt like he’d met someone who truly understood him. He even felt the urge to pour his heart out in front of Xiao Jian!

Who could have imagined it? Xiao Jian was a complete stranger, yet he understood Mo Yong’s situation better than anyone!