Chapter 137: Another Damn Twist of Fate (End of the Second Update)

The main hall of the Xuanji Sect, which had only just returned to tranquility, was now packed to the point of suffocation. Rows of disciples dressed in black, their eyes filled with arrogance and contempt, stared fixedly at Ye Dao, who stood alone before the hall.

Ye Dao looked in surprise at this sudden, uninvited throng. It was an enormous force, with even the weakest among them at the Golden Core stage. Furthermore, there were three powerful cultivators at the mid-Nascent Soul stage, and one major figure who had yet to reveal himself, though Ye Dao could sense his presence. He could not fathom the purpose of their arrival.

Was it truly just to demand Su Fan?

Ye Dao cast an inadvertent glance at Elder Tang, who had returned as quickly as he had departed, and suddenly understood: the previous visit had merely been a prelude; this was the true objective.

After a few tolling bells, the nervous disciples of the Xuanji Sect finally gathered behind their Sect Leader. The heads of the Heaven, Earth, and Human factions stared coldly at the hostile forces before them. Neither side had spoken, yet the air was heavy with crisis; the tension was so palpable that it seemed many souls might be lost on this very plaza at any moment.

Ye Dao kept his gaze fixed on the distance behind the Yongle Sect disciples. To bring such a large group here silently, undetected by anyone, required immense supernatural power.

Seemingly discovering something, Ye Dao finally let out a deep breath, a smile appearing on his face. He said, "Friends from the Yongle Sect, I wonder what brings you here this time?"

This time, Elder Tang did not speak. He cast a furtive glance at the old woman beside him, then bowed his head deeply and whispered, "Elder Li, do not entangle yourself with him."

The elder surnamed Li nodded at Elder Tang’s words and said in a deep voice, "We have only come for one person. There is no need for you to be so tense."

Hearing that they were once again demanding someone, the old woman could no longer contain her fury. That they had come in person was already enough to make her want to kill; that they dared to demand a person on top of that was a complete disregard for the Xuanji Sect. To disregard the Xuanji Sect was to disregard her, and that was absolutely intolerable.

Ye Dao ultimately restrained the nearly maddened old woman, saying only calmly, "This is the Xuanji Sect. You are being most impolite to provoke us time and again."

Seeing that the other side seemed somewhat wary, Elder Tang hurried to say, "And what if we are impolite? Whenever the Yongle Sect wants someone, we take them directly. If it weren't for the fact that cultivation is difficult to attain and we were showing you enough respect, we would have slaughtered every last one of you long ago."

Ye Dao’s expression shifted slightly, and he smiled faintly. "Always threatening people with death seems a bit improper. Have you ever died?"

Elder Tang was taken aback by the question. After a moment, he stammered, "Of course I haven't died! Enough idle talk—hand over Su Fan!"

As he spoke, Elder Tang felt a light breeze brush past him. A figure drifted silently to his side, performed some unknown action, and vanished just as quickly.

"Elder Tang, your arm!" a disciple suddenly cried out from the crowd.

Elder Tang suddenly felt a sharp pain in his arm. Looking down, he saw that his left arm, which had been attached to his body moments ago, was now lying on the ground, withering at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He looked in horror at the old woman, who appeared not to have moved but had clearly struck, and stared at her with hollow eyes, weakly gasping, "You dare attack me..."

The old woman sneered and flicked her finger. A willow leaf drifted down and landed on the withered arm, which instantly burst into flames and turned to ash in a heartbeat.

This subtle movement brought all conversation to a halt. The plaza, already quiet, now fell into a deathly silence.

The old woman snorted coldly and snapped, "Su Fan is my disciple. This is the price for wishing him harm. Today I have only crippled his cultivation; should anyone else try, they will die."

In truth, compared to being crippled, perhaps death is not so terrifying. But to have one's cultivation destroyed is to see a hundred years of painstaking effort erased. This was exactly what Elder Tang was thinking. He cursed himself for offending such a monster, yet he could not exact revenge. His century of cultivation was lost.

Despite her shout, not a single person retreated, not even Elder Tang. There was only one explanation: retreating would bring an even more horrific punishment.

The hidden figure still had not appeared, but Ye Dao could sense his presence and thus did not strike. He had been displeased by the old woman’s action, fearing it might trigger a full-scale battle involving the entire sect.

As he had said, it was only a possibility. Another possibility was that the group would be intimidated by the old woman’s display and retreat, or become hesitant. Even if a master of the three realms of Dao-Transformation were present, it would not be hopeless; by joining forces to resist, there was a glimmer of survival. Moreover, he had said this was the Xuanji Sect, and it possessed its own mysteries and hidden cards.

...

Compared to the murderous atmosphere on the plaza, the tranquility and peace of the quiet corridor felt comforting, at least to Su Fan.

He stared blankly at the small pagoda. It was exquisite and perfect, almost flawless. Every line was placed exactly where it should be, and even the flying eaves were aesthetically pleasing.

Su Fan stood under the pagoda, feeling light as a feather. The purple energy swirling around his body was surprisingly powerful, as if he could shatter the firmament with a mere wave of his hand.

He did not know that there had already been two attempts to seize him on the plaza, nor did he know that someone had been crippled for his sake, or that a man had just walked into the quiet corridor.

It was a middle-aged man dressed in black. Su Fan was very familiar with that shade of absolute black, and even the pendant at the man’s waist was achingly familiar.

"You've come for me," Su Fan said lightly, not turning his head, his eyes still fixed on the pagoda.

The middle-aged man in black looked slightly surprised. "How did you know I was looking for you?" He was astonished that a junior only at the early stage of Nascent Soul could detect his presence despite his concealment, but he did not ask.

Su Fan was silent for a moment before saying, "What do you want?"

The middle-aged man in black smiled slightly. "To ascend the mountain of the Xuanji Sect and reach the early Nascent Soul stage in just a few months—such talent is beyond even the monstrous geniuses of the Imperial Capital."

Su Fan remained expressionless, still watching the pagoda as if trying to memorize every line and surface, though he already knew it by heart.

"You surely didn't come just to praise me."

The man in black smiled calmly. "I have come to offer you a great opportunity."

Su Fan sighed inwardly. Why was it always an "opportunity"? Since he began his cultivation, he had been offered many such opportunities, and each one inevitably came with a heavy condition.

Without waiting for Su Fan’s reply, the man continued, "I am the Elder in charge of discipline for the Yongle Sect. I rank fourth in status within the sect."

Over the past few months, Su Fan had learned much about the Yongle Sect, as his goal was to destroy it. To know oneself and the enemy is the way to victory. He knew well of the Discipline Elder; it was rumored that his cultivation had reached the Heart-Transformation stage, and Ye Yang was a disciple under his tutelage.

"So, it is Elder Liu."

The middle-aged man in black did not fly into a rage at Su Fan’s indifference. Instead, he looked at Su Fan with great appreciation and said, "If you are willing to join the Yongle Sect, I can take you as my direct disciple. All the pills and treasures of the sect will be at your disposal."

The Yongle Sect was the wealthiest in the world; having access to all its resources was no small matter. If he possessed such things, raising his cultivation would be a mere matter of time, and he would have no reason to worry about his path, for he would have a Heart-Transformation master to guide him.

"The Yongle Sect is not lacking in geniuses. Why would you waste your time on me, Elder?"

The man in black shook his head. "You are different from them. You will go further than they ever could, while they will stop at any moment. In other words, their Dao hearts are not firm."

Though the praise kept coming, Su Fan would not believe it was that simple. He even suspected that the matter at Peach Blossom Creek and the exposure of his identity meant the other party simply wanted to lure him out before killing him.

This thought crossed his mind for a moment, but Su Fan forcibly dismissed it. If that were the case, the man would not be wasting so much breath; it would be simple to just kill him.

"With my current cultivation, I don't seem to be of much use to a giant like the Yongle Sect."

The man in black shook his head helplessly and said in a deep voice, "Do you know of the Thirty-Six Prefecture Exercises?"

Su Fan had never heard of them, though he knew of the Thirty-Six Prefectures—the Great Song Empire consisted of thirty-six.

Seeing Su Fan did not answer, the man sighed. "The Thirty-Six Prefecture Exercises are a competition held by the Empire. To put it bluntly, it is a killing contest. Whichever prefecture kills the most people wins."

"Wouldn't that cause massive losses within the prefectures? Why would anyone participate?"

"The Imperial reward is extremely generous."

"Does this have anything to do with me?"

"I want you to lead the Yongle Sect disciples in this exercise."

Su Fan suddenly laughed. "Since we are all in the same prefecture, I could just as easily lead the disciples from the Xuanji Sect."

The man’s expression shifted, and he said coldly, "I do not want anyone from the Xuanji Sect to go."

Su Fan shook his head helplessly. "And I do not want to join your Yongle Sect."

The middle-aged man in black suddenly laughed as well. "Usually, if someone defies the wishes of the Yongle Sect, there is only one path for them."

Su Fan smiled. "It would be useless for you to kill me, Elder."

The man in black’s expression hardened. He formed a seal with his hands, and the surrounding spiritual energy tightened abruptly. Su Fan felt his entire body freeze, unable to move, as he watched a soul-shaking blood-red sword descend toward his heart.