Chapter 220

The formation was broken, and the disciples of the Yueqing Sect consciously stayed behind. Song Hansheng coldly stomped on the formation before him, shattering it. The figure of the sect’s founder gradually appeared. Song Hansheng immediately bowed his head respectfully, “Founder.”

What remained in the place of inheritance were merely the shadows of the founder, a trace of consciousness left behind. Even so, it was extremely exciting. Who wouldn’t yearn to see the founder of their own sect?

Compared to the Sword Inquiry Sect’s founder, who had a tough and taciturn personality, the Yueqing Sect’s founder was much more amiable.

The figure gradually materialized. Seeing the people fleeing, the founder of the Yueqing Sect’s voice was evidently puzzled, “Why did that disciple who ran away just now leave?”

He had clearly marked her, yet she fled without looking back.

Song Hansheng didn’t know how to respond for a moment. After some consideration, he said, “She is not a direct disciple of our sect…”

The founder exclaimed, “But wasn’t the formation she used from our sect? Although not as proficient as you all, her talent is not bad. With more training, she would certainly improve.”

“She is from the Yueqing Sect,” Su Zhuo said after a few seconds of silence, “but not entirely.”

This was a difficult question for Song Hansheng to answer. After all, he had been busy either cultivating or guiding his junior brothers and sisters, leaving no time to care about an inner disciple.

Su Zhuo explained, “She was once our second senior sister and grew up with us. Later, she went down the mountain to join the Changming Sect as an apprentice.”

“What?” The founder’s voice suddenly rose, startling the elders outside the barrier.

“Why would a direct disciple of our sect go to the Changming Sect?” He couldn’t fathom it, “Could it be that our treatment is inferior to the Changming Sect?” That was unlikely. From the beginning, the Yueqing Sect had been a prominent sect of symbol cultivators. In terms of resources, how could it be inferior to the Changming Sect?

Su Zhuo’s lips curled slightly, “She is not a direct disciple.”

Because the situation was somewhat complicated and inextricably linked to all of them, Su Zhuo’s explanation was a bit vague, “Initially, her talent wasn’t considered very good. After she left the mountain, our master didn’t care for her anymore, thinking she would return once she came to her senses.”

Who would have thought that Ye Qiao would prove the Yueqing Sect wrong with her actions?

The voice of the Yueqing Sect’s founder turned cold, “Who is the sect master of your generation?”

Song Hansheng lowered his eyes, sensing that his master was in trouble this time. Unable to withstand the founder’s covert pressure, he replied softly, “Master Yunhen.”

Then Song Hansheng glanced up at the founder and saw him smiling—a very cold smile.

Letting such a genius leave, the Yueqing Sect’s founder immediately decided to visit Yunhen in his dreams for a serious talk and to question his intentions.

Moreover—

“She can be considered half a disciple of the Yueqing Sect.”

The founder could sense the other party’s talent, faintly surpassing many direct disciples. Regardless of how one looked at it, she was a promising candidate. The Yueqing Sect never cared much about the origins of talented individuals, and if Ye Qiao hadn’t left, she would have been a disciple of the Yueqing Sect.

Given that, he planned to find this child later and test her in a guided duel.

Unaware that she was already being targeted, Ye Qiao was being dragged along by Mu Chongxi, rushing headlong into the Changming Sect’s trial grounds. As soon as they stepped in, the ground under their feet and the road ahead vanished.

Below them was an abyss.

The only path consisted of floating stepping stones, arranged in a scattered pattern. One misstep or slip would result in falling into the abyss.

Mu Chongxi immediately stopped, “Is this our trial?” His eyes widened.

As if to confirm his words, a voice suddenly drifted into everyone’s ears, “Do you see the other side? You must use the ‘Stepping on Clear Wind’ technique to cross. This is your first trial.”

Ye Qiao found the voice familiar. She had seen the image of the Changming Sect’s founder long ago while transcribing alchemy scrolls. It was said that the founder’s wish was to dismantle the Changming Sect after getting rich and start raising pigs.

Her expression became subtly amused. Having such an irresponsible founder, it was quite a feat that the Changming Sect had survived until now.

“Walking on these stones? It doesn’t seem that simple,” Qin Huai said, rubbing his chin.

If it were just about walking on these floating stones, it would be relatively easy for the Changming Sect members, who excelled in speed, to pass the trial.

Zhou Xingyun looked at Qin Huai, “Then how about you scout the path for us?”

Qin Huai smiled and retreated back into the group, ignoring him.

Who would want to scout the path for them? Besides, this wasn’t their trial; they could use flying swords or flight-type artifacts to pass through.

But now, the entire Chengfeng Sect wasn’t planning to leave. They mainly wanted to watch the excitement of the Changming Sect.

Mu Chongxi, being bold, stepped onto the first stone. Just before he landed, the stone quickly disappeared. He reacted swiftly, retreating in time to avoid falling.

“These stones move,” Mu Chongxi shouted. “You have to move quickly to cross.”

Seeing this, Ye Qiao stepped onto the stone beneath her. As soon as she landed, it disappeared. Using the ‘Stepping on Clear Wind’ technique, she leaped to the second stone, which then shifted positions. She quickly jumped to another side, using the technique to its fullest. In this situation, she could only keep moving forward.

There was no room for pause.

Was this a test of their proficiency in the ‘Stepping on Clear Wind’ technique?

Duan Hengdao clicked his tongue, “Your sect doesn’t seem much better.”

People said the Yueqing Sect’s formations were treacherous, but wasn’t this just as tricky?

“Don’t gloat. Your Chengfeng Sect is next,” Ming Xuan said, landing on a stone and quickly jumping to the next. He glanced at the abyss below and shuddered.

They didn’t want to find out what would happen if they fell.

Duan Hengdao was delighted, recording everything with a shadow stone.

The five needed to jump between the stones. One misstep and they would fall. This required testing their teamwork, pulling up those about to fall, with no room for error. A single failure would result in a fellow disciple or oneself plummeting into the abyss.

“Changming Sect… is ruthless,” someone commented.

Such trials were harsh.

Their coordination was impeccable, but it was hard on Zhou Xingyun, who had to save one person after another.

Ye Qiao led the way, testing the stones’ patterns. She concluded that the stones’ destruction speed was predictable. They seemed to follow the Five Elements Eight Trigrams formation. By calculating the next position of the formation, she could anticipate the founder’s moves.

This made the Changming Sect’s founder, who was secretly observing, laugh.

It was rare to see a direct disciple who could think on their feet.

Not bad at all.