Chapter 129: The Helplessness at the Mid-Lake Pavilion

The lake rippled with emerald waves. A few fallen willow leaves, disturbed by the casual brush of passing fish, sank to the depths and vanished without a trace.

Yuming looked at Su Fan with a solemn expression and said, "From today on, you are a disciple of the Heaven Branch. I am your Third Senior Brother, and you are the Fourth."

Su Fan nodded respectfully and asked casually, "Third Senior Brother, why have I not seen our Master or the other senior brothers?"

Yuming remained silent for a long time, as if the question had stirred up memories of a past too painful to revisit, yet he struggled with whether or not to speak of it. Su Fan had lived a long life and encountered countless people; while his cultivation level at his peak was not as high as Yuming’s, he was nonetheless profoundly experienced.

Su Fan observed every flicker of change in Yuming’s expression. However, needing to conceal his own history as a former cultivator and his complicated past, he quickly and nervously added, "If it is inconvenient for you to speak of it, then let us say no more. I was merely asking out of curiosity."

Yuming looked at Su Fan and gave a faint, calm smile. "It is no matter. I only feared that speaking of it might bring you harm, for you have yet to begin your cultivation, and I did not wish to add unnecessary burdens to your life."

"What do you mean by 'unnecessary burdens'? Our eldest and second senior brothers were both killed by the Yongle Sect. Why is that something that cannot be spoken of?"

The voice rang out, and Yuming hurriedly lowered his head. An old woman in black had appeared behind them. She continued, "He may have low cultivation now, but that does not mean he always will. Knowing the history of our Heaven Branch is, in a sense, accepting his mission in advance."

Su Fan bowed respectfully to her and said in a low voice, "Greetings, Master. Your disciple is named Su Fan."

The old woman nodded slightly, a faint smile touching her lips. "Su Fan, good. You said something earlier—is the Yongle Sect so impressive? Very good. Whether or not it is impressive elsewhere is of no consequence. What matters is that within our Heaven Branch, it is worth nothing."

Su Fan was stunned. He thought to himself that the position of the Yongle Sect in Yongle County was likely much like that of the Tianyuan Sect in Tianyuan County. Though it allowed smaller sects to exist under its shadow, he had never heard any small sect dare to speak with such arrogance.

Yet, here were the master and disciple of the Heaven Branch of the Xuanji Sect—the disciple was outrageously proud, and the master was even more impossibly arrogant.

However, hearing Yuming’s earlier words about their two senior brothers being killed by the Yongle Sect, Su Fan could infer that it was hatred driving their attitude. Then again, it was just an inference; perhaps they truly possessed the strength to look down upon the Yongle Sect, given how terrified Ye Yang had seemed of them earlier.

When Su Fan had sensed Ye Yang’s sword flying toward him, he had wanted to dodge, but as a mere mortal, he could not have escaped it. He had only been able to feign ignorance and continue walking. When he had vaguely glimpsed the old woman, he found himself suddenly at ease.

Later, without even seeing the old woman cast a spell, that high-grade magic sword had melted into molten iron, completely ruined. He realized then that his sense of security had come from a powerful protection.

Thinking of this, Su Fan bowed even more respectfully to the old woman. "This disciple will take Master’s teachings to heart. Once I have achieved some success in my cultivation, I will surely take action."

The old woman suddenly laughed. Yuming, standing to the side, was astonished. Since he had joined the Heaven Branch, he had never seen his Master laugh, yet she had laughed twice today because of this young man.

The old woman covered her mouth and smiled. "What 'take action'? To kill is to kill. Once you have the strength, you will simply slaughter that pack of lackeys who do not know the heights of the heavens or the depths of the earth."

Yuming’s expression darkened even further. He remembered when he had first joined the Heaven Branch; he had spoken just as the Master had, only to be punished with three years of meditation in the Lake Pavilion. Yet here was the Master saying it herself—what kind of logic was that?

Su Fan felt a sense of returning to the Tianyuan Sect. Someone there had once been just as bold and unrestrained, willing to kill his enemies with a single word, even at the cost of offending the Sect Leader or sacrificing their own life. But the subsequent turn of events left Su Fan sighing even now, though only a short time had passed.

Those past events were now just that—the past. Just as he had said when he was in the fog: let it all fade away. Su Fan nodded calmly. "If the day comes when they deserve to die, this disciple will not hold back."

The old woman nodded in satisfaction, her expression returning to its usual icy coldness. "Very well. That lake pavilion will be of great help to you. Go there to cultivate; this is your first time. Yuming, take him there."

Yuming was startled. Seeming to recall something, he hurriedly asked, "But Su Fan has yet to begin his cultivation..."

"Take him inside. You are not to bring him out. When he can come out on his own, bring him to see me. You have made some progress lately, so you need not remain in the pavilion. You shall stay on the shore and watch the willow trees."

The old woman rebuffed Yuming’s words quite bluntly, leaving behind this uncompromising order. Su Fan looked at the pavilion with great curiosity, wondering why Yuming reacted as he did.

Yuming forced a smile and shook his head helplessly. With a flick of his fingers and a flash of movement, the two were already inside the pavilion. In that instant, Su Fan felt a wave of dizziness and darkness. He could tell it was not due to the speed of travel, but rather that there was something strange about the lake surface itself.

Yuming looked deeply at Su Fan and said with great sympathy, "Little Junior Brother, take care."

Su Fan blinked, thinking there was nothing strange or dangerous here, and asked, "Senior Brother, should I be meditating here, or..."

"Do not trouble yourself so much. Do whatever you like; whatever makes you comfortable. Even if you want to lie down, if you can, you may." With that, Yuming fled the pavilion as if escaping, went to the lake shore, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes slightly.

Su Fan looked at the bizarre scene, shook his head helplessly, and sat casually on the railing of the pavilion, surveying the environment.

The pavilion was made of wood and seemed to float upon the water. Upon the exquisite beams were inscribed what looked like ancient characters. As Su Fan stared at them, he felt his mind drifting further into a trance.

The characters began to shift, bit by bit, suddenly transforming into a ball of flame that lunged fiercely toward him. Su Fan instinctively raised his hand to block it, but the scorching heat forced him to recoil. He tumbled and fell onto the floor of the pavilion.

In an instant, the flames vanished. The characters remained on the pavilion, but the dizzying sensation was gone. On the shore, Yuming smiled smugly and muttered, "I cannot help you, Little Junior Brother. You must fend for yourself." He then closed his eyes again—hardly a way to watch the willow trees.

Su Fan was shocked. In his panic, his hands had brushed against something sharp, and he was now bleeding. The blood seemed impossible to stop, so Su Fan frowned and sat cross-legged to compose himself.