Chapter 481: Master and Apprentice Go on a Journey

The Solar Province.

An immortal cave on Cloudsky Divine Mountain.

“Xinzhao, the sect has made its decision.” Daoist Master Coldsmoke entered the cave and sat down, a trace of exhaustion on her brow.

She was born with supreme beauty. In her teens, she was the publicly recognized top beauty of the sect’s younger generation.

Although she was now close to three hundred years old, she was just as beautiful as in her youth. Her skin was smooth and lustrous, and her figure was slender and graceful. Her soft black hair was tied up in a casual bun, revealing a beautiful face with features so delicate, it seemed like you could break them just by blowing on them.

Among cultivators who’d mastered the art of maintaining a youthful appearance, there was no talk of hiding one’s white hair from the world.

Daoist Master Coldsmoke was in the mid-stage Spiritual Manifestation Realm, and she was still so beautiful that the mere sight of her shook the heart.

The influence of her many years had only given her every movement a maturity and softness she lacked in her youth. Her bearing was extraordinary.

“Master, what did the sect leader decide?” Wen Xinzhao rose and passed her a cup of steaming hot spiritual tea.

She was as beautiful as a painting. Compared to her master, she had a lively, vital air about her. Both women had their own distinctive charms.

Daoist Master Coldsmoke sighed. “The sect leader stripped Zhang Yuntao of his position as elder. Furthermore, starting today, he is to proceed to the Heart-Tempering Cliff, and he is not to leave for three years.”

The look on Wen Xinzhao’s face shifted.

Their group returned to the sect just five days ago. That very day, Zhang Yuntao recounted everything that happened along the way, throwing all levels of the sect into uproar.

Huo Yunsheng, Sun Feng, and Qian Tianlong, three inner sect disciples, had been murdered! Who wouldn’t have been shocked?

Huo Yunsheng in particular was the heir of the head of the Huo Family. His death even shook several reclusive old monsters out of their long seclusion.

After hearing the full story, a fierce dispute broke out among Cloudsky Divine Palace’s leadership.

Some of the higher-ups thought that since Huo Yunsheng and his companions hired an assassin to target Su Yi, they started this whole mess, so they brought their deaths upon themselves.

Furthermore, the strength Su Yi had displayed was overly heaven-defying. He might hail from a tiny, remote nation, but he was nonetheless a dangerous character. Given the circumstances, it was better not to go to war with him.

The other higher-ups were resolute. Their disciples had been killed; this wasn’t a matter of right and wrong. Su Yi dared kill inheritors of Cloudsky Divine Palace; he had to pay the corresponding price!

If they let this go, what would become of the sect’s prestige? How would they maintain their footing in the Great Xia?

The debate lasted for several days.

Wen Xinzhao paid close attention. She wouldn’t have guessed it would end in such bad news!

She took a deep breath, then asked softly, “Master, does that mean that the sect’s higher-ups have unanimously agreed to target Su Yi?”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke shook her head. “This was a decision made by Grand Elder Huo Tiandu and a group of inner sect elders.

“Xinzhao, as I’m sure you’re aware, Huo Tiandu is Huo Yunsheng’s great uncle. It’s only natural that he wouldn’t let this go. Furthermore, Huo Tiandu’s decision won the approval of the third high elder, True Monarch Tranquil Seas.”

True Monarch Tranquil Seas!

He was an old monster who’d stepped into the Spiritual Manifestation Realm a full five hundred years ago. Following his breakthrough, he spent practically all of his time in seclusion, and it was very rare for him to heed worldly affairs.

Yet now, he’d expressed support for Huo Tiandu. This carried enormous weight!

Wen Xinzhao’s heart felt increasingly heavy. “The sect master… agreed to this too?”

“The sect master was unwilling to watch a single Su Yi cause division and strife within the sect. He could only give his tacit permission,” sighed?Daoist?Master Coldsmoke. “I understand his difficulties. It might seem like his words carry enormous weight, but sometimes, he has no choice but to compromise for the sake of the bigger picture.”

Wen Xinzhao’s face filled with melancholy and concern. She muttered, “In that case, it seems… there’s really no room to turn this around…”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke’s gaze was somewhat strange. She stared intently at her closed-door disciple, the student she was the most proud of.

“Xinzhao,” she said gently. “There’s something I still don’t understand. You and Su Yi haven’t known each other for very long at all, but you seem very concerned about his predicament. Don’t tell me…”

Wen Xinzhao’s fair and untainted beautiful face flushed red, and her starry eyes filled with bashfulness. She dared not meet her master’s gaze, so she lowered her head and said, “Master, you’re overthinking this. I just have deep respect and admiration for Fellow Daoist Su’s attainments in the Dao of the Sword, that’s all.”

This only made the look in Daoist Master Coldsmoke’s eyes even stranger. She laughed, “I’ve been in your shoes. How could I fail to understand that feelings between men and women aren’t the least bit logical? Love at first sight might seem ridiculous, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”

Wen Xinzhao was dumbstruck. Her bright eyes widened, but just as she was about to argue, Daoist Master Coldsmoke gently interrupted her. “You needn’t explain. It doesn’t matter whether you like him or whether you simply admire his attainments in the Dao of the Sword. I’ll just ask you this: should the sect act against him, what will you do?”

As she asked this question, her young, beautiful face turned utterly solemn and grave.

Zhang Yuntao had once asked Wen Xinzhao this very question, so she didn’t even need to pause to think. “Master, that won’t be difficult for me. All I have to do is stand back and watch from the sidelines. I’ll just stay out of it.”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke was stunned. “You… Aren’t you afraid Su Yi will be killed?”

Confidence arose on the delicate contour of Wen Xinzhao’s face. “Nothing will happen to him, but the sect…”

She paused here, uncertain of whether or not to proceed.

“You can speak freely,” said Daoist Master Coldsmoke.

Wen Xinzhao pursed her pink lips, then, as if throwing all caution to the wind, finished her initial thought. “I’m worried that the sect won’t be able to bear the consequences of becoming Fellow Daoist Su’s enemy.”

This declaration left?Daoist?Master Coldsmoke utterly dumbstruck. The look in her beautiful eyes shifted erratically, seemingly in disbelief.

As if afraid her master wouldn’t believe her, Wen Xinzhao said seriously, “Master, I’m not just saying that because I’m angry. I say that because I know that Fellow Daoist Su is far beyond a typical ‘miraculous genius.’ Neither monsters of the ancient era like the Nirvanic?Winds?Holy Son nor the most dazzling figures of our sect’s younger generation are comparable to him.”

Wen Xinzhao paused to consider her words, but in the end, she couldn’t hold back. “I’m afraid that even ordinary Spiritual Manifestation Realm cultivators are unworthy of his concern.”

A single rock could create a thousand ripples!

In response to this declaration,?Daoist?Master Coldsmoke’s beautiful eyes focused, and her heart shook. “Xinzhao, are you serious?”

Beneath her master’s dignified, focused gaze, Wen Xinzhao felt enormous pressure. Nonetheless, she nodded in complete seriousness. “Master, I take full responsibility for everything I just said.”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke instantly fell silent.

She understood her disciple. Wen Xinzhao wasn't the type to engage in empty rhetoric; even if she’d fallen for Su Yi, there was no way she would exaggerate like this.?She had never been careless about matters of principle.

“If it’s really as you say, Su Yi… Is indeed incredible. However, with my status and rank, even if I share everything you just said with the sect leader, I’m afraid… I’m afraid it’ll be difficult to change Grand Elder Huo Tiandu’s attitude,” said Daoist Master Coldsmoke with a sigh.

Huo Tiandu was a grand elder of the inner court, as well as a member of the Huo Family. He wanted to avenge Huo Yunsheng. How could just anyone convince him to give up on the idea?

Wen Xinzhao said softly, “Master, Fellow Daoist Su once said that if he got the chance, he’d pay Cloudsky Divine Palace a visit personally.”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke was instantly caught off guard. “Whatever for?”

Wen Xinzhao’s starry eyes shone with reminiscence. “He was worried that I’d face difficulties on both sides, so he said he’d visit our mountain to see whose fist was bigger. He said that afterward, we might well change our attitudes and make a more rational choice.”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke was instantly overcome by the sheer absurdity of it, and she couldn’t help but laugh. “He’s a young man in the Grain Avoidance Realm, and he’s just one person. Don’t tell me he plans to single-handedly force the entire Cloudsky Divine Palace to lower its head?”

If Wen Xinzhao weren’t her disciple, she’d assume she was an irrational madwoman!

However, against all expectations, Wen Xinzhao’s face shone with an inscrutable, hard-to-describe radiance. When she spoke, it was with unprecedented gravity. “I think he can do it!”

A moment later, she smiled. “Of course, you’re welcome to interpret that as a joke; it won’t do any harm.”

Her smile was radiant, like a poem or a painting.

Daoist Master Coldsmoke stared intently at her for a moment. Then, she couldn’t help but sigh. “Hearing you praise him like this, I can’t help but feel curious. I want to see just whether or not he’s as impressive as you say.”

Wen Xinzhao blinked. “Seeing him shouldn’t be difficult, right? When the Orchid Terrace Dharma Assembly begins, we’ll head to Nine Tripod City. We’ll see him then.”

Daoist Master Coldsmoke shook her head. “By then, it’ll be too late. Grand Elder Huo Tiandu has already decided to leave for Nine Tripod City tomorrow and settle the score with Su Yi personally.

“At his speed, he’ll arrive in less than three days. With the Huo Family forces stationed in Nine Tripod City, locating Su Yi won’t be difficult.”

She paused here, then seemed to reach a decision. She rose and said, “Xinzhao, are you willing to go to Nine Tripod City with me right away?”

Wen Xinzhao was stunned. “Master, what do you want to do there?”

“I want to see this Su Yi you speak of. If possible, I’d like to stop this tragedy before it occurs. You don’t want anything to happen to Su Yi. I don’t want anything to happen to him either. Similarly, I don’t want the sect to suffer unnecessary losses on his account.” Determination appeared on Daoist Master Coldsmoke’s beautiful face.

Wen Xinzhao’s heart shook, and she nodded her agreement.

“Of course, before I leave, I’ll request a private audience with the sect leader to tell him my decision. We’ll see whether we can resolve this in the end or not…” Daoist Master Coldsmoke paused here and sighed. “I’ll do everything I can. The rest is up to the heavens.”

Later that day, she and the leader of Cloudsky Divine Palace, Yu Jiuzhen, conversed for an hour.

Wen Xinzhao didn’t know what the two of them talked about. However, she could tell that after meeting with the sect leader, her master was in poor spirits.

Daoist Master Coldsmoke nonetheless left Cloudsky Divine Palace that very day, taking Wen Xinzhao with her.

That same day.

The Heng Province, the Qingyi Dao Sect.

An elder in gray?Daoist?robes rushed excitedly into the sect’s grand hall to report to their leader, Daoist Master Moyang.

“Sect Master, our people have already investigated. Su Yi once traveled with disciples of Cloudsky Divine Palace. They set out from Spiritbend City, and parted ways after arriving in Golden Willow City. Based on his route, it seems most likely that Su Yi is headed toward the imperial capital!”