Chapter 180: The Position of Sect Leader
Chapter 180: Chapter 180: The Position of Sect Leader
Under the might of Huang Yunzi, a Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator, the grand hall was utterly silent. No one dared to speak.
Outsiders like Li Ping and Wu Feng naturally kept to themselves, as the matter had nothing to do with them.
Meanwhile, cultivators and families like Cheng Yao and the Wang family, who stood closely with the Meng family, were both shocked and delighted. They were delighted Dai Sangyu was dead, but shocked the Meng family hadn’t informed them in advance.
As for cultivators like Xu Guikai and Lin Yue, who had close ties to Dai Sangyu and Fenglan Master, beyond their horror, they were at a complete loss.
The Meng family’s Old Ancestor swept his gaze over everyone in the hall and said sorrowfully, "Dai Sangyu’s murder of her master is simply too appalling. Therefore, the wedding cannot continue. I hope everyone can understand."
"Of course."
"Of course."
Once he broke the hall’s silence, the others finally dared to speak, quickly chiming in to agree with him.
At that moment, Meng Qingyi stepped forward. "However, since all of you are already here, please stay for the banquet before you leave."
After such a major incident, how could anyone in the hall still be in the mood for a feast? If the Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator, Huang Yunzi, wasn’t standing at the entrance, they would have fled long ago.
But now, under Huang Yunzi’s smiling gaze, who dared to refuse? One by one, they obediently sat down and raised their glasses of Spirit Wine to soothe their nerves.
As the others were taking their seats, one person finally recovered from his shock.
His gaze fell on Meng Qingyi, his eyes holding a hint of resolve. "Martial Aunt, I want to ask you—you say my Master murdered Grandmaster, but do you have any proof? From what I understand, my Master and Grandmaster were always very close, like a mother and daughter. Tell me, how could she possibly commit such a monstrous act!"
Li Ping looked up and immediately recognized the one confronting Meng Qingyi was none other than Xu Guikai.
Judging by his pale face, he was obviously terrified by the might of the Late-stage Core Formation Cultivator. But in the end, he still asked the question, withstanding the immense pressure!
The moment he asked the question, all the other cultivators in the hall froze.
Meng Qingyi looked at him for a long while before slowly speaking, "Nephew Xu, it’s normal for you to have questions. In fact, it’s not just you; I’m very puzzled myself. After all, Senior Sister Dai’s personality isn’t usually like this. But the facts are what they are. As for the specific reason she did this, it will probably require further investigation to confirm."
Xu Guikai had been ready to risk his life and had prepared many questions to grill Meng Qingyi, but her words were a masterful deflection that left him stonewalled.
After a long silence, he finally spoke. "Fine. I’ll be waiting for the results of your investigation, Martial Aunt!"
Meng Qingyi nodded slightly. "That is a matter of course."
Seeing this, Li Ping couldn’t help but sigh to himself.
He thought Xu Guikai was too impulsive. Regardless of the truth behind this incident, the reality was that both Fenglan Master and Dai Sangyu had fallen.
From Li Ping’s perspective, the rational course of action would be to preserve his own life and plan for the future, not to hastily jump out and challenge Meng Qingyi now.
...
Because of Xu Guikai’s questioning, the atmosphere in the hall became very strange.
Fortunately, nothing else unexpected happened. The banquet lasted for nearly two hours, with Huang Yunzi sitting on the dais, smiling and savoring the fine wine.
As his gaze swept across the hall, everyone felt as if they were sitting on pins and needles.
Only when the Meng family’s Old Ancestor announced the end of the banquet did everyone breathe a sigh of relief, hastily rising to bid farewell to their hosts.
Although Li Ping was worried about Xu Guikai, there was nothing he could do at the moment. He could only bid farewell to the Meng family’s Old Ancestor along with the others, then leave Cyan Dragon Mountain under the guidance of a Qi Refining attendant.
Before leaving, he secretly sent a voice transmission to Xu Guikai, reminding him to be cautious in his words and actions and not to act rashly for a moment’s satisfaction.
Once off Cyan Dragon Mountain, Wu Feng quickly invited, "Fellow Daoist Han, Fellow Daoist Ning, why not come to my place for a while?"
Li Ping was quite tempted by his offer.
But in the end, he refused, shaking his head with a smile. "Fellow Daoist Wu, I have some other matters to attend to, so I’m afraid I can’t accept your invitation."
After his polite refusal, Wu Feng didn’t press the matter. He just nodded and departed in a hurry with Ning Wuxu.
Li Ping glanced back at Cyan Dragon Mountain behind him, as if trying to see through the many obstructions and find out what had really happened on the mountain. But of course, it was futile.
"Sigh!"
He sighed and paced back toward Cyan Dragon Mountain.
Unlike the guests who could leave freely, others, including Zhang Tie, Gumu Sheng, Cheng Yao, and Wang Xingwei, were all considered members of the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage.
Right now, they were all still on Cyan Dragon Mountain, kept behind to discuss matters.
While inside the hall, he had already sent voice transmissions to them, asking them to visit Immortal Peach Mountain after they left Cyan Dragon Mountain. Naturally, they all readily agreed.
The reason Li Ping had refused Wu Feng’s invitation was precisely that he needed to return to Cyan Dragon Mountain to wait for news from them.
Thinking of Xu Guikai’s situation, he couldn’t help but worry. ’I hope you’ll be all right.’
He didn’t know what role he played in this great upheaval, but if he had known earlier that his master’s reincarnation had taken Dai Sangyu as their teacher...
...he might not have told the Meng family’s Old Ancestor that piece of information.
But now, it was too late for anything.
...
After the banquet ended, disciples from the Cyan Dragon Mountain lineage at the Qi Refining Stage hurried in, clearing away all the leftover food and drink, along with the tables and chairs.
In the blink of an eye, the grand hall’s solemn and dignified atmosphere was restored.
With all the banquet guests gone, the hall seemed rather empty.
Xu Guikai, Lin Yue, and Ah Yun stood together. Everyone else unconsciously kept their distance, making the trio look like a lonely island in the middle of the sea.
Seeing this, Lin Yue instinctively shrank back, as if she wanted to hide in a dark corner.
"Senior Sister!" Xu Guikai said softly, taking her hand to help her calm down.
As for Ah Yun, though she was only a Qi Refining Cultivator, she was holding up better than Lin Yue. However, her gaze toward Xu Guikai was filled with unconcealable worry.
The Meng family’s Old Ancestor surveyed the crowd. "Dai Sangyu murdered her master. Though the reason is unknown, I believe it is inappropriate for her disciple, Lin Yue, to continue serving as the Sect Leader for general affairs. What do you all think?"
As he spoke, Huang Yunzi sat on the dais above, leisurely sipping his wine, looking completely unconcerned with everyone in the hall.
But the might of his Late-stage Core Formation cultivation constantly blanketed the entire hall, making everyone feel as though they couldn’t breathe.
At a time like this, naturally, no one dared to oppose the words of the Meng family’s Old Ancestor.
Even Xu Guikai, remembering Li Ping’s warning, simply lowered his head and remained silent.
Seeing this, the Meng family’s Old Ancestor nodded with satisfaction and continued, "Lin Yue cannot serve as the Sect Leader for general affairs. However, the Immortal City cannot be without a leader for a single day. And due to the Master’s fall, it is not appropriate to proceed with any marriage celebrations in the near future. I suggest that Qingyi continue to serve as the Sect Leader for general affairs. What do you all think?"
The moment his voice fell, Cheng Yao immediately stood up. "For Senior Sister Meng to serve as the Sect Leader for general affairs is the most fitting arrangement. I agree!"
She had previously been ordered by Dai Sangyu to return to Mist and Smoke Mountain for closed-door punishment, and she had been stewing in resentment ever since. Now that Dai Sangyu was dead, with her temperament, how could she possibly hold back? She was the first to jump out and declare her stance.
Seeing Cheng Yao be the first to declare her position, the Meng family’s Old Ancestor smiled and nodded at her before his gaze fell upon Zhang Tie and Gumu Sheng.
The two were sons-in-law to the Meng family, and since they had also been mistreated by Dai Sangyu and held grievances, it was expected that they would stand with the Meng family now.
Zhang Tie and Gumu Sheng shot Lin Yue an apologetic glance before speaking one after the other, "I agree that Senior Sister Meng should continue to serve as the Sect Leader for general affairs."
Receiving a satisfactory answer, the Meng family’s Old Ancestor’s gaze passed over them and fell on the others.
Fenglan Master’s three disciples had already spoken in agreement. The rest naturally lacked the courage to remain silent and, one by one, voiced their approval of the Meng family’s Old Ancestor’s proposal.
As for Lin Yue, Xu Guikai, and Ah Yun, everyone acted as if the trio didn’t exist.
And so, with everyone’s ’unanimous agreement,’ Meng Qingyi resumed her post as the Sect Leader for general affairs of Cyan Dragon Mountain.
During this process, the Meng family’s Old Ancestor secretly made a mental note of those who had agreed reluctantly.
Loyalty that isn’t absolute is absolute disloyalty.
Of course, the ’shocking case of Dai Sangyu murdering her master’ had already happened today, and Qingyi had reclaimed the position of Sect Leader. This was not the time for more trouble.
And so, with the ’support’ of the crowd, Meng Qingyi resumed her post as Sect Leader.
Soon, a stream of commands issued from her lips. With their orderly execution, Cyan Dragon Mountain quickly returned to normal, as if nothing had ever happened.
But everyone knew that the Immortal City had changed.
...
With all arrangements made, Meng Qingyi was left in the grand hall to manage the situation.
The Meng family’s Old Ancestor, meanwhile, respectfully accompanied Huang Yunzi, flying toward the mountain’s peak.
Huang Yunzi chuckled. "Friend Meng, I must congratulate you. From now on, the Meng family will be the masters of the Immortal City."
"Senior, please don’t joke." The Meng family’s Old Ancestor put on a panicked expression. "This junior and the Meng family are merely looking after the house for you, Senior. We would never dare claim the title of Master of the Immortal City."
Upon hearing this, Huang Yunzi merely smiled and said nothing more.
Soon, the two arrived at the palace on the mountaintop and went inside together.
Inside the palace, eight figures were already waiting for them.
To ensure their plan was foolproof this time...
...the three sects—Purple Cloud Valley, the Sword Washing Pool, and the Cyan Wood Sect—had mobilized every last one of their Core Formation Cultivators, not even leaving anyone behind to guard their own Sects.
A total of nine Core Formation Cultivators, among them the Great Cultivator Huang Yunzi, who was at the late stage of Core Formation.
They had joined forces in a sneak attack.
Fenglan Master and Dai Sangyu had been powerless to resist, cut down in a matter of moves before their lives were snuffed out.
Of course, the main reason it had all gone so smoothly was because of the Meng family acting as a mole from the inside.
Otherwise, relying on the power of their Tier Three Array, Fenglan Master and her disciple might have been able to hold out for a little while.
But thanks to the arrangements made by the Meng family mole, the nine Core Formation Cultivators had used the wedding procession as cover to enter the Immortal City early and lie in wait. Then, today, they had secretly infiltrated Cyan Dragon Mountain and launched a lightning-fast strike.
Fenglan Master and her disciple died in confusion, without ever figuring out what was happening.
Perhaps, even in their final moments, they couldn’t understand how the Core Formation Cultivators of the three Sects dared to defy the pact set by Alliance Leader Xiao and charge into the Immortal City.
Where did they get the confidence to withstand the punishment of the Daoist Guardian Alliance?