novelraw Chapter 381: It’s Not Surprising to Become the Enemy of the Entire Cultivation World
Chapter 381: It’s Not Surprising to Become the Enemy of the Entire Cultivation World
Yu Zhao opened her eyes and let out a long breath. The power of the pill she had taken finally settled, yet a thin stream of energy still slept inside her, waiting for its next cue to rise.
She searched her inner world. Every meridian shimmered with fresh spiritual light. She had stepped into mid-stage Nascent Soul. A smile touched her lips. This was good fortune, considering the danger she had faced.
Rising, she remembered how she had rushed to meditate inside a barrier in Chaozong Gorge. She had no idea what had happened outside. She lifted her gaze—and froze.
Above her, a line of elders peered down, eyes sharp as swords. Several were familiar.
“Little Yu Zhao, finished already? Not bad. You have grown again.”
“Yu Zhao, you have given us another grand surprise.”
“Come up here so we can see you clearly.”
Embarrassment washed over her. [Why must they all watch me at once?]
Suppressing the warmth in her cheeks, Yu Zhao leaped onto the platform and greeted each elder.
Elder Sacrificial Blade of the Aspiration Pavilion laughed. “So soon after the Cultivation World Competition, and you already stand at mid-stage Nascent Soul. Truly praiseworthy.”Elder Liu Xi of Hundred Flowers Valley regarded her with gentle pride. “I saw boundless promise in Yu Zhao the day we first met, yet even I measured too low.”
Sword Sovereign Jiu Hua of the Heavenly Sword Sect was more direct. He pressed a storage pouch into her palm. “Good child, take this. It is my gift.”
“Senior, I cannot—” Yu Zhao started to refuse.
Jiu Hua’s tone left no gap. “Han Zhou would never have reached this point without you. Refusing would slight me.”
[What a schemer!] the surrounding elders cursed in silence. They did not know Yu Zhao had saved Ji Han Zhou or helped him win the Xuan Yuan Unyielding legacy. They assumed Jiu Hua still sought to lure her into his sect.
While they scolded him within their hearts, each secretly searched for a worthy gift of their own. Alas, they had come in haste and brought little. A grave misstep.
Because Jiu Hua spoke so strongly, Yu Zhao could only accept with thanks.
After wave upon wave of compliments, she finally learned why so many elders crowded Chaozong Gorge.
Three months had slipped by during her retreat. Rumor of a dragon’s roar echoing through the gorge had spread, so every great sect had sent Divine Transformation elders to investigate.
Glancing around, Yu Zhao asked, “Why is no one from the Five Elements Dao Sect here?”
Silence fell. Faces tightened, hard to read.
Yu Zhao felt their mood shift, but a distant surge of spiritual energy stole her attention. A pillar of water burst skyward, thunder cracking behind it. None of the elders looked alarmed, as though such sights had become common.
“Honored seniors, what is happening over there?” she pressed.
Jiu Hua coughed. “Well… the Five Elements Dao Sect did send someone. The one fighting is…”
Her heart skipped.
She knew the sect’s elders—quarrelsome, unwelcome, wielders of water arts…
“Master Qing Yan?” she ventured.
Elder Sacrificial Blade gave an awkward chuckle. “Haha, sharper and sharper. You miss nothing.”
Yu Zhao’s lips twitched. Their expressions had made the answer plain.
Sect Master Ji Yuan’s choice to involve Master Qing Yan surprised her. He rarely touched sect affairs, showing himself only at grand ceremonies, spending the rest of his days in seclusion. How had Sect Master Ji Yuan convinced him?
“And the other side?” Yu Zhao asked. Anyone who could stand against Master Qing Yan must be formidable.
The elders broke into lively chatter.
“Oh, there have been many. A few days back it was Daoist Huang Quan. Before that, the evil cultivator Gui Wu Ji.”
“I recall the first was an old ancestor from a Southern Region clan.”
“Not just them. The Heaven-Devouring Rat and the Moonshadow Rabbit clan leaders joined the fray.”
“…”
Yu Zhao fell silent. Truly, chaos bloomed wherever Master Qing Yan walked. [With his temper, he might battle the entire cultivation world one day.]
Her gaze drifted across the grounds. She did not find Hua Tu or Si Tu Xuan, but she spotted Silence in a corner. Seeing her, he smiled and bowed.
Excusing herself, she crossed to him. “How is Long Fei Fei?”
“She has awakened,” Silence said. “She is resting now at Harmony Sound Temple. This place is too turbulent for healing.”
Relief warmed Yu Zhao’s chest. She then asked about Hua Tu and Si Tu Xuan.
“Hua Tu left with the demonic beasts of Chaozong Gorge after the Heavenly Fire Sect Master’s soul fled,” Silence replied. “The Si Tu clan called Si Tu Xuan home for family matters and sent another Divine Transformation elder in his place.”
He did not mention that Abbot Jie Chen’s mere presence had frightened Hua Tu and the others. Snow Child and a few helpers had stayed, but the rest fled swiftly.
Yu Zhao nodded. She glanced at the quiet gorge, then turned back. “May I visit Abbot Jie Tan?”
Silence joined his palms. “I have awaited your arrival. Please follow me.”
A spark lit Yu Zhao’s eyes. [Did Silence wait on his own, or at the abbot’s bidding? Did the abbot already know I would come?] She brushed the thought aside and walked with him toward Harmony Sound Temple.
Not long after they left, a mighty aura dropped from the sky and smashed onto the platform. Wild pressure rippled outward.
The elders’ faces darkened, yet they forced smiles for the newcomer.
Master Qing Yan started to return the greeting, then his gaze swept the crowd and chilled. “Where is Zhao’er? Why is she not here? Where did she go?”
Sword Sovereign Jiu Hua’s eye twitched hard. Zhao’er? Such closeness! Everyone remembered how Master Qing Yan had cast Yu Zhao from the sect and pressed her down at every chance. Now he acted the devoted mentor. Could he have arrived any later?
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