The emerald bamboo sways in the wind, and the thin leaves rustle.

Yuxiao Peak is located at the center of Taihua Mountain, surrounded by six other peaks, occupying the top position of a spiritual vein of the first rank. There are a total of 98 first-level restrictions, 36 second-level restrictions corresponding to the 36 states of the Xuantian Continent, and 9 third-level restrictions symbolizing the unity of the ninety-nine.

Even on the mountain peak, there is a Heaven-Sealing Great Array jointly set up by the past Supreme Elders of Taihua Mountain, which can trap all cultivators below the Great Accomplishment stage.

If Taihua Mountain is the holy land of cultivators in the world, then Yuxiao Peak is the foundation of Taihua Mountain.

Yuxiao Peak has only accepted one disciple for thirteen generations in a row, for two reasons. One is that the requirement for accepting disciples is too high; they must have excellent innate talent. The other is that it takes a lot of effort to raise a disciple. If they simply accepted disciples without any thought, it wouldn’t be a problem, but Yuxiao Peak accepts disciples with the aim of cultivating future Supreme Elders within the sect.

Xuan Lingzi has been cultivating for only 316 years and is currently the only cultivator in the world who has reached the Nascent Soul stage. Luo Jianqing built his foundation at the age of seventeen and formed his Core at the age of thirty-two. He is already a dragon and phoenix among his peers, and it is believed that he will definitely enter the Nascent Soul stage one day.

And now, Xuan Lingzi looks down at the palm of his disciple’s hand, which is covered in bloody scars, silent.

As a cultivator in the middle stage of the Golden Core realm, his body is as strong as iron and it is impossible to be injured easily.

These crescent-shaped wounds are obviously just left behind, and they were made by their owner with their own fingernails. What kind of determination does it take to use finger joints that have no fingernails to pierce through such tough skin, causing pain and bleeding?

Xuan Lingzi did not inquire, but just took out a small white jade bottle from his storage ring and applied a little Concentrated Jade dew to those scars on the palm of Luo Jianqing’s hand. The plump and round fingertips gently rubbed over the delicate skin of his palm, causing Luo Jianqing’s body to tremble slightly, and a tingling sensation spread through his hand.

Even when applying spiritual medicine, Xuan Lingzi remained calm and indifferent, without any fluctuations.

Those narrow eyes drooped slightly, and his white dao robe was high and cold, exuding a noble and majestic aura that made people not dare to approach him. After carefully applying medicine to the wound on the left palm of Luo Jianqing, he smoothly reached out to take the other hand.

Unexpectedly, Luo Jianqing withdrew his hand and said in a hoarse voice, “Master, let me do it myself.”

Xuan Lingzi’s movement suddenly stopped for a moment. After a while, he nodded slightly and handed over the bottle Concentrated Jade Syrup.

Luo Jianqing dipped a little pale green ointment and applied it to the palm of his right hand. This was his most important hand as a sword cultivator, as he wielded his sword with his right hand. His left hand was already so sensitive that if he really let this person apply ointment to his right hand, he didn’t know what he would do.

After a moment, Luo Jianqing finished applying the ointment. The pale green ointment immediately dissolved, and he felt a slight itch at the wound. When he raised his hand to take a look, he saw that the small wounds had already healed, leaving only a shallow pink scar.

Xuan Lingzi whispered, “Take this bottle of Concentrated Jade Syrup with you, and don’t hurt yourself again.”

Luo Jianqing nodded in agreement.

In just a moment, the two of them arrived at the open space outside the bamboo house, ready to spar.

Luo Jianqing held his sword in his right hand, his gaze focused and his expression cold as he looked ahead, as if there was an enemy there. The Shuang Fu Sword in his hand responded to his movements, eager to try, emitting bursts of blue light, as if it couldn’t wait.

In the next moment, sword moves emerged, and the sword light rose.

The long sword danced, clothes fluttered, and the green sword light moved around the verdant bamboo forest like a swimming dragon, stirring up bursts of dust. The sharp sword energy swept through the entire bamboo forest with great momentum, but also controlled the balance well, without harming the bamboo itself, only making them sway violently.

The sword is a lifeline magic weapon of the Earth Realm, and those who dance with swords are among the top young talents.

With hair black as ink flowing without wind, a face of exquisite elegance appeared amidst the beautiful sword moves, emanating an otherworldly aura, with sword energy pressuring people. If Little Junior Sister were to witness this scene, she would probably be smitten, but the only one watching on the side was Xuan Lingzi, who remained indifferent and silent.

After waiting for the sword competition to end, Luo Jianqing held the Shuang Fu in his hand and returned to his bamboo house.

“Master, this sword is in perfect harmony with my heart.”

Xuan Lingzi nodded faintly. “Mm, practice well.”

“Yes.”

Sweat had already drenched his hair, and his bright eyes were filled with a serene color. Luo Jianqing’s lips were stained with a deep red, and his cheeks carried a hint of powder. His face was already as beautiful as an immortal’s, but at this moment, an astonishing beauty emerged, like a wisp of smoke and clouds in the scenery, surpassing all the beauty in the world and transcending the boundaries of gender.

However, Xuan Lingzi had no reaction to this. After giving some instructions, he turned and left.

Luo Jianqing was slightly stunned, and subconsciously called out, “Master!”

Xuan Lingzi turned to look at him. “What is it?”

Luo Jianqing bit his lip for a long time before asking, “Master, how long do you plan to stay in seclusion this time?”

As if taken aback, it took Xuan Lingzi a while to reply, “Half a year at least. Three years at most.”

Luo Jianqing’s expression dimmed.

This is completely different from the previous life.

In the previous life, after this person took in Li Xiuchen, he never closed himself in cultivation again. For a full eighteen years, he spent a lot of time teaching and guiding Li Xiuchen, helping the young man with no aptitude to reach Foundation Establishment at the age of twenty and even giving him the ability to resist higher-level enemies.

In the previous life, he was already in the late stage of Golden Core and was only one step away from Nascent Soul. However, at that time, Li Xiuchen was only in his mid-thirties and was only at the Foundation Establishment stage. Yet, he led a group of righteous sect members to overthrow an entire realm and stabbed him in the heart with a sword.

With Li Xiuchen here, this person never closed himself in cultivation and was willing to remain at the early stage of Deity Transformation for eighteen years. But now that Li Xiuchen is gone, this person immediately resumed his cultivation and only instructed him on trivial matters, saying nothing else.

The sour taste had slowly turned into bitterness, and in the end, it became a blazing flame, roasting Luo Jianqing’s heart.

The handsome face no longer had the joy from earlier. Luo Jianqing bowed and said expressionlessly, “Master, I hope to receive your Elder Token and expel a new disciple who should not have entered Taihua Mountain.”

Luo Jianqing had been waiting with his head bowed for Xuan Lingzi’s response. After a long time, he heard the other party calmly ask, “Why?”

Luo Jianqing replied, “Don’t you need to ask who it is?”

Xuan Lingzi said, “The young man who just tried to join the Jade Peak, right?”

Luo Jianqing’s body stiffened.

His master never remembered people. Even the seven top disciples of Taihua Mountain, his master couldn’t remember them all. Yet, he remembered Li Xiuchen.

Luo Jianqing lowered his eyes and spoke even more coldly, “It’s him. Master, on the Thunder Road, I saw him intentionally step back and hide behind an eight or nine-year-old girl who was traveling with him. He even pulled the girl’s clothes to completely block the thunder for him. Such a despicable person should not be allowed to enter Taihua Mountain. Please see through him, Master.”

Luo Jianqing clenched his fists tightly, waiting for the person’s response.

After a long time, Xuan Lingzi’s voice, without any fluctuations, sounded, “Since he has already joined Haoming Peak, naturally, Guangling Junior Brother will check on his behalf. You should tell Guangling Junior Brother about this matter and have him investigate it thoroughly. If there is any truth to it, don’t show any mercy.”

Luo Jianqing gritted his teeth, and the flame in his heart had already burned into a ball.

“Jianqing, you must not get involved in this matter, remember, you should focus on cultivating and avoid getting too involved with that disciple.”

As soon as the words fell, the door to the bamboo house was closed

Luo Jianqing stood alone in front of the bamboo house, still maintaining the gesture of bowing and saluting. After a long time, he slowly stood up straight, gazing at the bamboo house with a bitter and complex expression, as if he can see the person inside.

Yes, he had forgotten that it was this person’s life-bound magic weapon that had stabbed his chest fiercely. That sword was too cold, as cold as this person. The decades of master and disciple relationship couldn’t even compare to Li Xiuchen, who had only been with him for eighteen years. If it weren’t for that Heaven Rank treasure, Xuan Ling Sword, even if Li Xiuchen was favored by the Heavenly Dao, he should not have been able to kill him across realms.

But unfortunately, it was the Xuan Ling Sword!

With a surge of turbid energy in his chest, Luo Jianqing’s eyes narrowed as he quickly flew into the bamboo hut that belonged to him. Once inside, he coughed up a mouthful of blood, and the resentment and anger that had been boiling in his heart since his rebirth dissipated, replaced by overwhelming fury.

“Aren’t you my master, and aren’t I yourdisciple?”

“In my previous life, I followed the rules and didn’t take a single step out of line. What did I get in the end?”

“Wu Yin…Wu Yin.”

“Wu Yin!”

For the next three days, Luo Jianqing meditated in his bamboo hut, healing the agitation in his heart caused by his anger. On the third afternoon, he heard a commotion coming from the foot of Yuxiao Peak and flew down to investigate, only to see the uncoordinated Xie Zizhuo.

Luo Jianqing’s lips twitched, and he turned to leave.

Xie Zizhuo hurriedly followed, without a word, suddenly crawling down and grabbing onto Luo Jianqing’s thigh. “Senior Brother!!!”

Luo Jianqing: “…”

After a moment, Luo Jianqing shook off the thing on his leg, but this guy cLuong on tightly like a piece of dog skin plaster, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t shake him off.

Luo Jianqing said helplessly, “Junior Brother, as a Golden Core cultivator, could you please show some dignity?”

Xie Zizhuo shook his head without any shame. “No! Senior Brother, if you don’t agree to my request, I won’t let go!”

Luo Jianqing: “…”

After dragging Xie Zizhuo up Yuxiao Peak, Luo Jianqing brewed some bamboo green tea and Xie Zizhuo guzzled it down, boldly pouring the tea straight into his own mouth like a cow chewing on peonies. Luo Jianqing gave him a sideways glance, and Xie Zizhuo didn’t seem to notice, only to crawl back down and cling to Luo Jianqing’s thigh again.

“Senior Brother, save me!!!”

Luo Jianqing rolled his eyes and gave Xie Zizhuo a punch before finally listening to his explanation.

It turned out that the reason Xie Zizhuo was looking for the junior sister to refine pills was not for himself, but for Fifth Junior Brother’s spirit beast. When Xie Zizhuo went to Beast-Taming Peak to look for Fifth Junior Brother, he didn’t find him but found a sixth-grade spirit beast that Fifth Junior Brother had just tamed.

Xie Zizhuo took a big sip of tea and said, “Senior Brother, a sixth-grade spirit beast! That’s equivalent to a Nascent soul cultivator, and it’s been tamed!”

Luo Jianqing raised an eyebrow. “So what did you do to it?” Xie Zizhuo smirked and said, “I had a fight with it.”

Luo Jianqing didn’t believe that Xie Zizhuo, who was only at the beginning stage of the Golden Core realm, could pose any threat to a sixth-rank spiritual beast. However, unexpected things happen in the world. Xie Zizhuo didn’t know that the spiritual beast had hidden injuries, and Fifth Junior Brother had left to find medicine for it. Facing Xie Zizhuo’s shameless provocation, the spiritual beast, who had intelligence, couldn’t bear it and fought with Xie Zizhuo despite its injuries. In the end, it was seriously injured by Xie Zizhuo.

Xie Zizhuo originally thought to himself, “Am I really that strong?” But then Fifth Junior Brother arrived and beat him up, leaving him with a pig’s head.

During Luo Jianqing’s absence, Fifth Junior Brother had made it so that every disciple on the Beast Taming Peak wanted to beat up Xie Zizhuo. If they couldn’t beat him up, they would call him over to do so! As a result, Xie Zizhuo had become so miserable that he often had to secLuode himself to avoid being beaten up.

Xie Zizhuo knew he was in the wrong and wanted to ask Little Junior Sister to refine medicine to save the spiritual beast, but Little Junior Sister refused to help him. So he came to Luo Jianqing for help again.

Xie Zizhuo sobbed with tears and snot, “Senior Brother, the grand competition of the sect is only a year away. If we don’t resolve the issue with that spiritual beast, Fifth Junior Brother will definitely beat me to death! Although his cultivation is inferior to mine, his spiritual beasts are too terrifying. You must save me!”

It turned out that while talking, Xie Zizhuo clung to Luo Jianqing’s thigh and began to recount their memories from decades ago. He first talked about how he had knelt with Luo Jianqing in front of the admonition hall  when they were children and then talked about their bond of peeking at Third Senior Sister while she was bathing…

These words made Luo Jianqing’s forehead vein throb. “Stop making things up! You were the one who dragged me there. I didn’t even know it was third senior sister… cough, and it wasn’t you accompanying me to kneel, it was me accompanying you! And as for our master…” His voice trailed off.

Xie Zizhuo didn’t notice anything unusual about Luo Jianqing and spoke up for him, “Yes, yes, I know that Senior Xuan lingzi is always strict with you, even if it’s not your fault, he still makes you kneel with me. Senior Brother, can you help me this time? I don’t want your jade ox comb anymore, just…”

Suddenly, a brownish-yellow short jade comb appeared in front of Xie Zizhuo.

Xie Zizhuo quickly snatched the jade ox comb and looked up with a shy smile. He wanted to thank Luo Jianqing, but he saw his senior brother, known as the “Taihua One Flower,” smile lightly and a glimmer of stars flashed in his clear and elegant eyes, as if he could draw people in.

“Take it… to Junior Sister and tell her that my heart is taken. Let her not wait for me anymore.”

The voice was soft and pleasant, and Xie Zizhuo gradually became infatuated as he listened. When Luo Jianqing got up to see him off, Xie Zizhuo finally came back to his senses. He looked at his senior brother with complex and profound eyes and couldn’t help but say, “Senior Brother, Junior Sister won’t forget you even after thirty-three years of friendship. Even if you use this excuse, she will never believe it.”

Luo Jianqing couldn’t help but chuckle at Xie Zizhuo’s words, which made him dazed for a moment.

Like in his past life, everyone thought his “heart being taken” was just an excuse, but no one knew that he wasn’t lying.

However, Xie Zizhuo’s words reminded Luo Jianqing that in two months, it would be the first time for new disciples to go on a mission, and Junior Sister would lead the team.

 “I remember that the new disciple’s first practice is in two months. It’s Junior Sister who’s leading the team, right?” he asked with a frown.

Xie Zizhuo nodded heavily, “Yes, Senior Brother, it’s Junior Sister.”

This incident happened too long ago, but with just a reminder, Luo Jianqing remembered it all. Xie Zizhuo said that Junior Sister wouldn’t forget him, but she still ended up marrying Li Xiuchen and becoming his first wife. During that mission, Junior Sister and Li Xiuchen fell into a ruin of a powerful Nascent Soul cultivator and were eventually infected with a Lust poison, leading to their intimate relationship.

Knowing Li Xiuchen’s character and his own understanding of Junior Sister, Xie Zizhuo could imagine how the young man at the third level of Qi Refining stage violated her when her mind was not clear in the early stage of his own Golden Core cultivation. He remembered that in his past life, Junior Sister closed herself off for five years after she returned and even came to YuXiao Peak to see him before going into secLuosion.

The little junior sister waited at the foot of the peak for ten whole days, but he ignored her in order to make her give up on him. At that time, the little junior sister had just lost her virginity, and the one who had humiliated her was Li Xiuchen from Yuxiao Peak. However, she still came to the place where her enemy was and waited earnestly. Thinking of this, Luo Jianqing felt heartbroken.

He would never give that evil-doer the chance to defile his little junior sister again!

Even though later on, the little junior sister was saved by Li Xiuchen several times and ultimately had no choice but to marry him, he would not allow Li Xiuchen to force himself on his sister under such circumstances. The novel “Seeking Immortality” had no boundaries, and even described the situation in the secret realm in detail.

‘This senior sister was already feverish all over her body, but she refused to move. In the end, Li Xiuchen could not bear it any longer and grabbed her hand. A tear trickled down her eye, and after a while, she finally grabbed Li Xiuchen’s hand as well. The arrogance she had when they first met had disappeared under Lust, and Li Xiuchen flipped over this arrogant and willful senior sister, tearing open her clothes.’

The description below is even more unspeakable.

His eyes were already red. Luo Jianqing was prepared for this matter, so he tried to calm himself down and turned to Xie Zizhuo, saying, “I will ask the Sect Master for permission, and two months later, I will lead the team for the training. You tell the little junior sister not to worry and slowly refine pills for you.”

Xie Zizhuo was puzzled, “Senior brother, it’s not necessary for you to lead the newbies’ training.”

Luo Jianqing shook his head heavily, “I’ll go this time.”

Xie Zizhuo nodded in confusion. When Xie Zizhuo was about to leave, Luo Jianqing looked at him with indifference and calmly asked, “What happened to Li Xiuchen after he arrived at Haoming Peak?”

At the mention of this name, Xie Zizhuo’s face turned black, “What else could happen? His aptitude is so poor that it seems he has not yet entered the Qi Refining stage.”

Understanding, Luo Jianqing nodded his head and whispered, “Junior brother, I don’t like him.”

Xie Zizhuo suddenly paused, then smirked and said, “I understand, senior brother, you can rest assured.”

Soon after, Xie Zizhuo turned into a silver light and disappeared into the sky. As for the matter of “expelling him from the sect” mentioned earlier, Luo Jianqing did not bring it up with Xie Zizhuo because he knew that, with only his words, no one would believe him. Moreover, Liu Xiaoxiao herself did not know what had happened and was likely to support her elder brother Chen. Luo Jianqing would not do anything that would startle the snake.

Looking at the Lush jungle beneath the Yuxiao Peak, Luo Jianqing frowned slightly and let out a long sigh. In two months, he would lead the new disciples on a trial, and during this time, he had to focus on cultivation. He needed to at least properly handle the erratic spiritual energy running through his body and his cultivation level… could not afford to fall any lower!