Path of the Sect Leader

Chapter 157: Miscellaneous Notes on a Quiet Flow

The Chu Qin crew came home grinning like fools, exhaustion be damned. They crammed into the main hall anyway. Shen Chang slung an arm around Kan Da’s shoulders while the poor man was still pouring tea, planted a loud smack on his forehead. “Missed you to death, you big oaf.”

Laughter rolled through the room.

Qi Xiu copied Bai Xiaosheng’s pose—half-sprawled in his chair, dignity long gone—and slapped his own thigh. “We walked into a proper slaughterhouse today, and every single one of us strolled back with all our limbs attached. That’s the kind of luck that makes the heavens jealous.”

Qin Hu, still too young to read the room, dropped the obvious bucket of ice water. “Hey… where are the two Mo seniors?”

The smile froze on Qi Xiu’s face.

Qin Hu kept going, oblivious. “And Senior Brother Li Tan’s missing too…”

Everyone blinked. Heads turned. “Li Tan?”

They spilled outside in a chaotic rush.

The Wind Lizard Crane lay flat under the Azure Jade Spirit Tree, tongue lolling, completely pinned. The tree—jade-smooth bark over dense wood—must have weighed as much as a small hill. Li Tan circled it in a panic, half crying, half scheming how to lift the damn thing without hurting his prized mount.

The whole group swarmed in, grunting and cursing, finally hauled the tree around back to the spiritual field. They tore down an old thatched hut for space, then planted the thing haphazardly and dumped water and spiritual liquid on its roots. Good enough.

Mo Guinong had already bolted. No one left knew how to tend an Azure Jade Spirit Tree properly, so they left it to fend for itself.

“Bet Mo Guinong’s guts are green with regret right now,” someone muttered. “That Luo family Golden Core ancestor never even showed at the three-way peace summit. Word leaking out of Luo territory says the old monster’s been missing for a while—some whisper he already fell. Storm’s brewing over there. Civil war’s coming.”

“Serves them right. Betraying your sect is common enough on White Mountain, but Sect Leader treated them with kid gloves. Rare decency.”

“Luo family played it smart, though. No wonder they cozied up to the much stronger Artifact & Talisman Alliance out of nowhere. While the Wei family bled fighting that alliance tooth and nail, Luo sat pretty, even poached a bunch of neutral sect cultivators. Turns out their Golden Core was never there to begin with. Now they sign a non-aggression pact with Wei, dodging future payback. They scammed everyone and walked away with the fattest prize. Who saw that coming?”

“Pfft. No external threat anymore—perfect time for internal knives to come out. Watch.”

“I read the full text of the accord. It only says mutual non-aggression going forward. Nothing explicitly forbids the Wei family from striking first if they find an excuse.”

“Wei still has to save face for Gao Guangsheng. Without a solid pretext they won’t move. Eight, maybe ten years of quiet at least.”

“And the Artifact & Talisman Alliance is still looming. Wei took heavy losses this time. They’re not itching for round two anytime soon.”

The hall filled with armchair strategists picking apart the post-war map.

Once the three-way accord was signed, Wei declared a full withdrawal. Chu Qin finally limped back to Immortal Grove Hollow feeling like they’d cheated death.

Green Stream Mountain had been profitable. Combined with no major war on the horizon, spirits ran high.

Qi Xiu listened to the chatter, then crooked a finger at Li Tan. “Once you and the Wind Lizard Crane recover, go fetch little Zhan Chou and Yue’er. After that, swing by Luo territory. Find Mo Guinong. Tell him exactly what I said: I want Jianxin back. See how he reacts.”

Bai Xiaosheng raised an eyebrow. “You’re really willing to eat that grass? Mo Guinong has the face to crawl back?”

“I didn’t say Mo Guinong. I said Jianxin. He’ll understand the distinction. The man spent his whole life plotting for that boy. Right now Luo looks shaky, and we’re offering Jianxin a way home. Someone as calculating as him will make the smart play.”

Qi Xiu turned back to Li Tan. “Make sure the message is clear: Jianxin. Only Jianxin. Got it?”

“Got it…”

Li Tan bowed out to tend his suffering spirit beast.

Zhao Yao was already being hounded by Qin Sigao. “Senior Sister Zhao, that flying sword you got looks perfect. My whisk’s trashed again. How about trading for this hairpin I picked up?”

Zhao Yao frowned. “I don’t like wearing jewelry…”

Bai Xiaosheng cut in with a wave. “What’s the rush? Let’s finish sorting the loot, tally contributions, hand out rewards properly. Then we hold an internal exchange meet. Fair?”

Everyone liked that idea.

Qi Xiu figured the mood was right. He dismissed the meeting, sent people home to their families, then took Wei Minniang and the Bai father-daughter pair straight to the captured Scripture Pavilion. They pulled every public asset—books, tools, talismans—and cataloged them methodically.

Bai Xiaosheng knew value when he saw it; Qi Xiu’s Treasure Sight missed nothing. The two worked like a well-oiled machine.

“This sect was tiny, but older and better organized than Chu Qin ever was,” Bai Xiaosheng remarked while sorting. “Proper lineage, proper progression…”

Low-grade items went to Bai Muhan for storage. The real haul was books—more volumes than Chu Qin had ever owned. Bai Xiaosheng shelved most, pulling out only the noteworthy ones.

He laid four titles in a neat row.

Azure Jade Sigh. Azure Jade Life-Healing Art. Azure Jade Orthodox Profound Art. Azure Jade Master, Volume One.

“These four require an Azure Jade-affinity natal constitution to cultivate properly. The first two are arts. Azure Jade Orthodox Profound Art is a legitimate second-tier Daoist scripture—can carry someone straight to Nascent Soul if they’ve got the affinity. True secret transmission. Guard it well; save it for the right person. Volume One of Azure Jade Master is the founder’s personal cultivation log. Shame it only goes to Foundation Establishment. Still invaluable reference, even without the affinity.”

Next three: Return to Truth Scripture, Orthodox Profound Scripture,離山 Scripture.

“These anyone can practice. Fundamental Qi Refining manuals—deeper than your Long Spring Art, faster progress, each with a different emphasis. Match them to disciple aptitude. Of course your Yellow Court Scripture is still superior. Read these anyway.”

Then: Combined Pill Dao Annotations, Pill Song with Annotations, Cauldron-Making Technique with Annotations.

“Pill and artifact refinement texts. Common on the market, but the personal commentary here is sharp—genuine insights. Keep them as core inheritance material.”

Three more on swords: Azure Jade Sword Fabrication, Azure Jade Sword Canon, Secret Three Styles of the Azure Jade Sword.

“Everything sword-related. Especially Fabrication—includes the water-tempering method. If Jianxin comes back, tailor-made for him. Extra income stream.”

Finally: Azure Jade Ruyi Scepter. Second-tier high-grade, perfect match for Azure Jade affinity. Store it.

Qi Xiu stared at the neat Azure Jade inheritance sets and remembered the碧火 collection he’d sold off years ago. Bai Xiaosheng caught the look and promptly chewed him out.

“Complete sets of arts, techniques, and matching treasures are the backbone of any lineage. You don’t sell them unless you’re one breath from starving. Otherwise, the day you get a disciple with matching affinity, you’ll hate yourself forever.”

Qi Xiu nodded. Lesson learned.

The rest—some jade slips, second-tier tools—were middling. They picked the usable ones for war bounties, along with the sect’s meager savings.

Spiritual stones totaled barely twenty-odd third-tier. Qi Xiu’s face fell. “That’s it? After wiping them out? If we can’t keep that tree alive, how do we cover the hole?”

Bai Muhan did quick mental math. “Doesn’t matter. Stones are few, but they had piles of low-grade pills and miscellaneous goods. Sell the lot—seventy to eighty third-tier easy.”

Qi Xiu exhaled. “Wei’s debt has no interest clause. I’ll pay on the very last day of the ten-year term. Let them stew.”

That got a round of dark chuckles.

Outside they ran into Yu Denou. Talk turned to Qi Xiu’s belated Foundation Establishment ceremony. Nothing ostentatious—Chu Qin still wasn’t that kind of sect—but it couldn’t look cheap either.

“Usually we’re the ones sending gifts,” Yu Denou said with a grin. “This time we invite more guests. Might actually turn a profit.”

“Since it’s belated, no need to rush the date. We’ll wait—see if little Jianxin comes back first.”

Qi Xiu liked Mo Jianxin. A lot. The way the boy had left… his heart probably hadn’t aligned with his father’s schemes.

He took Wei Minniang back to Yue’er’s refined residence. The three of them—Kan Qin included—soaked in the hot spring pool until the water sloshed everywhere, washing away days of blood and tension. Only then did they emerge, just in time for the contribution assessment.

The two Foundation Establishment cultivators didn’t bother competing with Qi Refining disciples for glory. Each claimed one Moon Shadow Mysterious Ice Sword and called it even.

Bai Muhan took top honors for coordination and the joint kill on the late-stage Qi Refining cultivator. Zhang Shishi’s tower-and-shield combo came second—heavy on both offense and defense. Yu Denou racked up the most individual kills—third. Zhao Yao’s three confirmed—fourth. Qin Weiyu’s wide-area natal talent shifted the entire battlefield—fifth. Qin Sigao one solo kill plus an assist—sixth. The rest trailed: Wei Minniang, Li Tan, Chu Wuying, Shen Chang, Yu Jing, Yu Shang.

Then came the spoils. Disciples stepped up, picked items, laughed and bickered over shared storage bags. When the chaos settled, Bai Xiaosheng declared the Chu Qin internal exchange meet officially open.

Bai Xiaosheng went first—laid out his haul, called prices like a marketplace hawker. Calculated every copper. Almost nothing traded. Bai Muhan gave him an affectionate scolding.

Qi Xiu followed. Broke as he was, he offered only low-grade junk—most went to Shen Chang and Yu Jing at a deliberate loss. The two had fought every battle yet always ranked at the bottom. A quiet subsidy.

Yu Denou did the same for Yu Shang.

One by one they traded. Qin Sigao finally got Zhao Yao’s flying sword. General contentment all around.

Truth was, even average Chu Qin disciples carried heavier purses than their peers in similar small sects. Generous stipends. Qi Xiu’s open hand. Several rounds of war spoils plus the windfall from the Wang family. It added up.

Watching the younger ones trade purely on personal taste—blissfully ignorant of market value—Qi Xiu nudged Bai Muhan. “After my ceremony, rotate the kids through our Black River Market shop for a stint. Can’t have them going out into the world clueless and getting fleeced.”

“Agreed. Once the ceremony ends I’m heading to Black River myself. Right now it’s all mortal attendants. Higher-realm cultivators feel slighted and stop coming.”

Qi Xiu considered it. After he reached Foundation Establishment, Bai Muhan’s lifespan would fall far short of his own. Unless he died unexpectedly, she’d never take the sect leader seat. Better she focus on commerce—steady profits served the sect best.

Finally Bai Xiaosheng took the floor again, delivered an impromptu Dao lecture that left everyone pleasantly dazed, and closed out the long, full day.