Chapter 157: Choice, Value
Upon hearing that Lingtian Sect intended to massacre the Li Clan, Li Qingqiu’s expression turned icy cold.
He did not care for the Li Clan itself, but he was extremely displeased by such behavior.
If they wanted to deal with Clear Sky Sect, they could come for him directly—what meaning was there in implicating the innocent?
Zhang Yuchun followed up, “For Lingtian Sect to act like this, they must have some reliance, yet they have no absolute confidence against us.”
Li Qingqiu spoke calmly, “Go find Shen Yue and have him replace Third Brother.”
Zhang Yuchun nodded, immediately leaping off the cliff and flying away on his sword.
Li Qingqiu closed his eyes again and continued cultivating the Soul-Seizing Flying Sword.
The next morning, Jiang Zhaoxia returned early.
Sensing his aura, Li Qingqiu stepped out of his cave dwelling and entered the Lingxiao Courtyard, instructing Yuan Qi to summon Li Yang and Xu Ning.
“Senior Brother, what’s so urgent?” Jiang Zhaoxia asked in confusion.
Li Qingqiu motioned for him to sit and then explained everything Lingtian Sect had done.
After listening, Jiang Zhaoxia’s face remained expressionless, as though he truly had no ties to the Jiang Clan.
Li Qingqiu sighed softly.
“Before your Senior Brother, there’s no need to pretend to be calm. I know your pride—you truly wish to sever ties with the Jiang Clan—but after their extermination, there’s no way your heart is entirely unmoved.”
Hearing that, Jiang Zhaoxia’s face darkened.
“I’ll go down the mountain. I can’t let them continue their rampage.”
“Mn. You’ll descend tomorrow—but not alone.”
“Who else?”
“Li Yang will go as well. Since Lingtian Sect has endangered the Li Clan, he must contribute to his family. Xu Ning will accompany you—she has already reached the eighth layer of the Nourishing Vital Energy Realm. Take fifty True Transmission Disciples with you.”
Li Qingqiu’s voice was calm, yet his resolve was unmistakable—Lingtian Sect must be destroyed!
When Jiang Zhaoxia heard that Xu Ning had reached the eighth layer, his expression shifted slightly, but he said nothing.
He did not object to Li Qingqiu’s arrangement.
He understood that sending a group carried far greater meaning than one person alone.
This time, Li Qingqiu wanted the entire martial world to feel the wrath of Clear Sky Sect.
“Jiang Nian has arrived—will you go see him? You’re leaving tomorrow after all, and no matter what, he’s still your younger brother.” Li Qingqiu looked at Jiang Zhaoxia as he spoke.
Jiang Zhaoxia subconsciously wanted to refuse, but under his senior brother’s gaze, he swallowed his words.
“Alright.”
He stood and left without even asking where Jiang Nian was.
Li Qingqiu believed he would find him, so he didn’t call him back.
After the time of one incense stick, Xu Ning flew into Lingxiao Courtyard, while Yuan Qi had yet to return—clearly, Xu Ning had rushed over from Ziyang Peak upon receiving the message.
“Master, what is it?” Xu Ning asked, her tone tinged with anticipation.
It had been a long time since she last went down the mountain on a mission—her hands were itching for action.
“Wait for everyone to arrive first,” Li Qingqiu replied.
Upon hearing that, Xu Ning immediately sat beside him, patient once more.
The two waited in silence.
After nearly half an hour, Yuan Qi finally returned with Li Yang.
Having traveled between two mountain peaks, Yuan Qi was slightly out of breath.
Li Qingqiu wasn’t in any rush—he liked to push Yuan Qi a bit, hoping it would spur him to train harder.
“Sect Master, what’s the matter?” Li Yang asked curiously.
He had been practicing spells at Clear Sky Mountain instead of cultivating in the blessed land these past days.
Li Qingqiu once again explained Lingtian Sect’s actions.
The two of them turned pale as they listened, and even Yuan Qi was shocked.
There was still a sect daring to provoke Clear Sky Sect?
And to act with such cruelty—it was a stance of mutual destruction.
When Li Yang heard that Lingtian Sect had threatened Clear Sky Sect using his family, he was enraged.
Yet he was no longer the rash martial champion of the past.
He restrained his anger, waiting for the Sect Master’s orders.
“Go and make preparations. Tomorrow morning, gather at the Free Spirit Hall. Hall Master Zhang will hand you Lingtian Sect’s intelligence.” Li Qingqiu instructed.
Xu Ning and Li Yang nodded, stood, saluted, and took their leave.
After they left, Li Qingqiu retrieved several sheets of paper from his storage pouch—each recorded the names of fifty True Transmission Disciples.
“Have those on the list prepare as well. Tomorrow morning, gather at the Free Spirit Hall,” Li Qingqiu ordered Yuan Qi.
Yuan Qi accepted the list, saluted, and left.
Li Qingqiu then looked toward the peach tree in the courtyard and murmured, “Martial Legend, huh? I hope you truly live up to the name.”
——
Another day passed.
At dawn the next day, Jiang Zhaoxia, Xu Ning, and Li Yang led fifty True Transmission Disciples down the mountain.
So many disciples descending at once stirred great curiosity among those who witnessed it.
By noon, the three Xiao brothers were brought to the courtyard by Yuan Qi.
After Yuan Qi left, Xiao Wudi asked curiously, “Sect Master, why did so many True Transmission Disciples go down the mountain early this morning?”
Xiao Wuqing frowned.
“Elder Brother, don’t ask what you shouldn’t ask.”
Li Qingqiu did not conceal anything—he explained the cause and purpose of the mission.
The three brothers grew furious, wishing they could descend the mountain themselves.
“There’s one thing I must tell you,” Li Qingqiu said seriously.
“What is it?” Xiao Wuqing asked cautiously.
He suddenly realized that being summoned at such a time likely wasn’t a good sign.
Li Qingqiu’s expression remained calm as he said softly, “The Second Protector of Lingtian Sect is named Xiao Wuhui.”
The three brothers froze, their faces instantly changing.
Xiao Wuqing quickly said, “Sect Master, we have nothing to do with Lingtian Sect!”
Xiao Wudi added angrily, “That beast Xiao Wuhui—of course he’d fall so low! To think he’d join such a sect!”
Xiao Wuming remained silent, only staring at Li Qingqiu with cold, piercing eyes.
If Li Qingqiu hadn’t known his fate traits and loyalty, he might have thought the man bore resentment toward him.
“I know this has nothing to do with you. But as things stand, the feud between Clear Sky Sect and Lingtian Sect cannot be resolved. If your father escapes alive, then so be it. But if he dies, don’t blame me.” Li Qingqiu’s tone was firm.
He preferred to speak plainly, lest resentment fester later.
Xiao Wudi clenched his teeth.
“Grandfather changed our names to the ‘Wu’ generation precisely because he refused to acknowledge that man as his son. Sect Master, if he’s the one behind all this, even if the sect decides to hunt him down, we’ll have no objections.”
In their memories, Xiao Wuhui’s face was already faint.
If he hadn’t abandoned them, their grandfather might not have died so early.
Had they never met Clear Sky Daoist, they’d likely still be living in that small village, leading dull, meaningless lives.
“If the Sect Master doubts us, the three of us can abolish our cultivation and leave the mountain ourselves,” Xiao Wuming suddenly said.
Li Qingqiu rolled his eyes.
“Am I such a petty man? I told you this only to prevent future misunderstandings. Though you three never formally became my disciples, in my heart you’re no different from apprentices. I just hope you understand me—and don’t resent me.”
The three Xiao brothers breathed a collective sigh of relief.
They weren’t afraid of being punished by Li Qingqiu—they simply couldn’t bear to lose their current life.
And since it was Lingtian Sect who provoked Clear Sky Sect and committed such atrocities, they could neither defend Xiao Wuhui nor wish to.
“Alright, go train.”
“Yes!”
The three immediately saluted and withdrew.
Yuan Qi watched their departing figures thoughtfully.
After they left Lingxiao Courtyard, he turned to Li Qingqiu and asked softly, “Sect Master, should I have someone keep watch over them?”
Li Qingqiu glared at him.
“Do you also think I’m that narrow-minded?”
Yuan Qi scratched his head awkwardly.
“It’s not about that—it’s just… family ties are complicated.”
“This is the martial world. Conflicts between loyalty and affection are inevitable. On the path of cultivation, such choices are even more frequent. This will be their test.” Li Qingqiu shook his head.
If the three brothers betrayed him, he wouldn’t be angry—he’d simply eliminate them.
In this life, he sought not great virtue, only a clear conscience.
Yuan Qi fell silent, deep in thought.
For some reason, he began wondering—what if he and his own brother ever stood on opposite sides of the sect? How would he choose then?
The thought alone made him shake his head violently.
What nonsense was he imagining?
——
Meanwhile—
After leaving Lingxiao Courtyard, the three Xiao brothers walked in silence.
When they reached a secluded forest, Xiao Wuqing stopped.
“I don’t know what you two think, but I intend to stand with Clear Sky Sect—not just because Lingtian Sect will surely lose, but because I truly love this sect. I believe it can fulfill my ambitions, and I don’t want to disappoint the Sect Master.”
Xiao Wudi turned to glare at him.
“Second Brother, what are you saying? Do you think we’d betray the sect for that beast? Impossible! Murderers must pay with their lives—that’s the natural order!”
He called his father a beast because their grandfather had always cursed Xiao Wuhui that way.
Xiao Wuming added coldly, “He’s a Protector now and still never sought us out. What fatherly love is there to speak of?”
Xiao Wuqing smiled faintly.
“Perhaps he had his reasons, but remember—no matter who comes seeking us in his name, even if he himself does, no matter how pitiful his excuse or tragic his story, we cannot waver. From this moment on, we might become weapons Lingtian Sect uses against Clear Sky Sect.”
Xiao Wudi and Xiao Wuming both nodded.
Even so, all three still felt uneasy, uncertain of what the Sect Master truly thought of them.
But in the days that followed, Li Qingqiu continued to guide them in cultivation and spell practice as before, as though the matter of Xiao Wuhui had never existed.
This steadied their hearts and deepened their gratitude toward him.
They knew well—if their positions were reversed, they could never have been so magnanimous.
——
Late at night, in a forest clearing, a campfire flickered.
Xue Jin sat cross-legged across from a young boy of twelve or thirteen.
The boy held a piece of flatbread, glancing up at Xue Jin now and then, his eyes filled with worry.
Xue Jin was meditating, his sword sheathed and thrust into the earth beside him.
His face was pale—he was healing from injuries.
“Senior, perhaps you should go on without me,” the boy said through clenched teeth.
“You don’t have to bring me along.”
Without opening his eyes, Xue Jin replied, “I saved you not just because you’re pitiful—but because you’re valuable. Our Sect Master might have use for you.”