Chapter 138: Chapter 138: Seeing Yi Tingsheng Again

"So you’re telling me you were trapped for three years, and you didn’t go anywhere other than that bamboo forest?"

Within the grand hall, Li Chunfeng stood with his hands behind his back. Below him, Li Shangxian stood with his hands hanging by his sides, his expression calm.

"Yes!"

"And you broke through to Foundation Establishment purely because of the bamboo forest’s Spiritual Qi? You achieved the breakthrough just by cultivating?" Li Chunfeng asked again.

"That’s right, Master!"

It was both unexpected and expected. Inside the Secret Realm, the Spiritual Qi was rich. No one knew which Banished Immortal had left behind that cave dwelling, nor what kind of grand fortuitous encounters awaited within. Perhaps, for the disciples of Purple Cloud Peak, reaching Foundation Establishment was a matter of monumental importance. But as for that cave dwelling? It was likely just a trivial afterthought!

As Li Shangxian was only the second disciple from Purple Cloud Peak to return alive from exploring the Secret Realm over the years, Li Chunfeng naturally asked for every detail, leaving no stone unturned. Although the area the disciple had stayed in spanned a mere hundred or so feet, and whatever lay beyond the bamboo forest was entirely unknown... it was precisely this information that solidified Li Chunfeng’s determination to enter!

Exactly! If a mere bamboo forest could allow someone to reach Foundation Establishment, then if he managed to obtain a Treasure of Heaven and Earth or two, his hopes for the Golden Core would undoubtedly be realized!

Golden Core! Golden Core! Countless Cultivators in the Cyan Yang Sect bitterly pursued it their entire lives to no avail, failing to even touch its threshold. Now that Li Chunfeng could see the gates of the Golden Core right before his eyes, how could he possibly give up?

At that moment, having answered the Peak Master, Li Shangxian suddenly thought of someone and asked, "Master, where is Junior Sister Si? Why don’t I see her around?"

In the past, whenever he was at Purple Cloud Peak, Si Yu would always follow him around. How could Li Shangxian not know her feelings? The reason he had chosen to avoid the topic all these years wasn’t because he disliked this junior sister whose Talent was equally outstanding, but because his mind was entirely focused on cultivating the Dao and reaching Foundation Establishment. He hadn’t wanted to slack off for even a single moment! Because of this, Si Yu had always misunderstood. But how could she have known? Back then, having her accompany him to collect the grain wasn’t an order from the Peak Master at all; it was a request he had made himself! Now that he had finally reached Foundation Establishment, there were some things he needed to say!

Right after Li Shangxian asked his question, the deep-in-thought Peak Master suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"Master? What’s wrong?" Li Shangxian faintly sensed a problem. "Did she go down the mountain? Or did she get into trouble?"

Li Chunfeng looked at the first Foundation Establishment Disciple he had nurtured himself. His gaze suddenly turned sorrowful... Gradually, a wave of grief spread from the bottom of his heart, creeping all the way to his disciple. Li Shangxian’s heart skipped a beat.

"Si Yu is dead."

"Dead? How did she die? How could she possibly be dead?!" Li Shangxian simply couldn’t believe his ears. His heartbeat accelerated, the Long Sword in his hand trembled, and his blood began to boil! A surge of fury erupted from within!

"Sigh!" Li Chunfeng sighed. In an instant, he seemed to have aged significantly.

"Who killed her?" Li Shangxian gritted his teeth, his fingers digging into his clenched fists until they bled.

Originally, with Li Shangxian at Foundation Establishment, Si Yu about to reach the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, and the exceptionally talented Mo Junqing, there was a chance their lineage could produce three Foundation Establishment Disciples! When that time came, he could stand out among the 112 Immortal Peaks and thereby receive a bestowed treasure from the Golden Core Ancestor. And with that bestowed treasure in hand, he could safely and boldly explore that Immortal Secret Realm! But now...

"Shangxian, you are now at Foundation Establishment. Your mind should be even more focused on cultivation. Only by reaching the Golden Core early can you establish a foothold in this chaotic world!"

"Master!" Li Shangxian took a step forward. "I just want to know who killed Junior Sister Si!"

"No one killed her. She participated in the Cyan Yang Sect’s Immortal Sect Grand Competition. Weapons have no eyes; no one wanted this to happen," Li Chunfeng shook his head and lamented.

"But there must still be..."

"Li Shangxian!" Li Chunfeng suddenly barked out. Opposite him, the disciple he had single-handedly raised stood proudly, his face full of stubbornness.

"Master!"

"If you still call me Master, then do not ask anymore!"

"But..."

"Enough! I’m tired. Leave!" Li Chunfeng waved his hand, issuing an order of eviction. He would not let anyone in Purple Cloud Peak know about this matter!

Li Shangxian bit his lip, flicked his Long Sword, and turned to leave. Exiting the grand hall, he summoned his Flying Sword and departed using Sword Control. Arriving at the back mountain, he utilized Qi Sword Control, slashing wildly in all directions to vent the dissatisfaction in his heart!

After a bout of venting, Li Shangxian stood bare-chested by the messy lakeside, a trace of killing intent leaking from his sorrowful eyes. He absolutely had to find out who the murderer was!

Suddenly, a figure flashed through Li Shangxian’s mind. He then pressed his thumb and index finger together, placed them to his lips, and whistled. A moment later, a handsome red-and-black bird flew in from the horizon with a low chirp. He lowered his head, wrote a letter, tied it to the bird’s leg, and released it once more.

Li Shangxian remembered! He seemed to know someone in the Cyan Yang Sect!

...

Yi Tingsheng poked his head out and peered around the cave entrance for a while. Finally, that terrifying aura was gone! He executed the Bone Shrinking Technique, crawled out through the dog hole, and patted his chest to calm his nervous heart. "That was close, too close! I was almost discovered!"

Yi Tingsheng was certain that no one had been here for months. He didn’t expect a Cultivator to actually show up. Not only that, but the other party seemed to be a terrifying existence at the Foundation Establishment Realm!

"What atrocious luck! When I find that guy again this time, I definitely have to sell it for a good price! I absolutely won’t sell for anything less than two Low Grade Spirit Stones!"

Having made up his mind, Yi Tingsheng dusted himself off and changed into a clean Daoist Robe before stepping upon the Seven Stars to hurry toward Purple Cloud Peak’s White Snake Marketplace.

By the time he arrived at the marketplace, it was already 2:45 PM. He casually asked a couple of people and actually managed to find out where Chen Mo lived.

"This guy seems to be a minor celebrity around here!" Yi Tingsheng surmised. "Then he must be loaded! It’s decided—I’m selling it to him for three Spirit Stones!"

He jogged all the way until he reached the residence that looked completely different from those of the other Spirit Plant Cultivators. He knocked on the door, but there was no response. "Fellow Daoist Chen, are you home?" He strained his voice and shouted a couple of times. Finally, after a few more breaths of time, the door opened.

In fact, Chen Mo had noticed him the moment he entered the Silence Array. However, Chen Mo happened to be learning the Ancient Zither at the time, and it was quite a few steps from the inner room to the front gate, which was why he was a beat slow.

However, that damned Kang! It had surprisingly disappeared to who knows where again! Sure enough, whenever someone stronger than it came to the door, it would always be the first to hide.

"Fellow Daoist Yi?" The moment he opened the door, Chen Mo was quite pleasantly surprised. The Loose Cultivator before him was quite the oddball. Having not seen him for more than half a year, could it be that he...

"Fellow Daoist Chen, aren’t you going to invite me in for a seat? For a cup of wine or something?" Yi Tingsheng wasn’t polite at all; he acted as if they were old acquaintances. Of course, now that he had seeds in his pocket, he had the confidence to back it up!

"Sure, come on in." Chen Mo stepped aside. Hong Yan also walked over from the inner room at this moment. She took the initiative to say, "Fellow Daoist Chen, you and the guest can go to the study first. I’ll bring the wine over for you in a moment."

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