Chapter 201: Idiot, why must you do something so foolish?
When Dao Xuan Zhenren, who had long experienced the vicissitudes of the world, saw the young man kneeling in the light screen, his expression couldn’t help but stir. After all, this young man in the scene was someone he had watched grow up since childhood…
Once upon a time, the young man was just a child barely a month old. The scene of him carrying his older sister up the Tai Xuan Sky Ladder step by step, his stubbornness refusing to give up even when he fell from the stone steps due to exhaustion, seemed to be before his eyes.
Dao Xuan Zhenren had greatly favored this little boy’s character back then. After taking him into the sect, the boy did not disappoint him. While perhaps not exceptionally diligent in his cultivation, he never neglected it. His well-behaved and sensible nature from childhood endeared him to the senior brothers and sisters in the sect.
Perhaps the only “shortcoming” was that he cared too much about family affection. This point both pleased Dao Xuan Zhenren and often gave him a headache. For example, when he was still in the Qi Refining stage, he would often secretly stuff his cultivation resources, as well as the rare spiritual materials rewarded by his Master, to his older sister. He thought he was being discreet, but in reality, Dao Xuan Zhenren saw everything. He simply couldn’t be bothered to argue, so he turned a blind eye.
Now, what gave Dao Xuan Zhenren the most headaches was the matter concerning the young girl beside him. He knew that given his foolish disciple’s personality, he would never stand by and watch her suffer. Even if he explained the whole reason and told Chen An that his sister had already half-stepped into the Demonic Path, it would likely be useless. Moreover, if there was a choice, Dao Xuan Zhenren certainly did not want things to escalate to this point.
But as he had told Mu Sanniang before, as the Sect Master, every decision he made affected the entire sect. The beloved disciple of the Shang Xuan Peak Master had died, and so inexplicably. He had to provide an explanation. And the matter of the girl’s descent into demonic arts was ultimately bound to come to light. Furthermore, Feng Xiang Song, in a certain sense, was indeed killed by her. Once Mu Sanniang’s cultivation of demonic arts was exposed, it would likely not be as simple as confinement.
Thinking of this, Dao Xuan Zhenren sighed deeply in his heart, feeling utterly exhausted. If it weren’t for Chen An, he would not have chosen to forcefully protect the girl, keep the matter secret, and confine her to Tianshan Mountain. Otherwise, if dealt with according to the sect’s laws, the young man still kneeling in the snow would have learned that his sister’s cultivation was crippled, she had become a mortal, and had been expelled from the sect.
With this thought, Dao Xuan Zhenren couldn’t help but turn his head, his gaze falling on the dazed girl beside him. Her dark hair was long. Perhaps because her younger brother had once casually mentioned that long hair looked beautiful, she had never cut it since. Now she sat slumped on the ground, her eyes shimmering with tears, staring blankly at the light screen, at the young man gradually being buried by the snow. Perhaps no one could understand the girl’s feelings at this moment. Yet, her beautiful and delicate face was even paler than her white skirt and the surrounding snow.
…
…
Tianxuan Peak.
The wailing of the wind and snow sweeping through the mountains seemed like a silent mockery of the young man. He was still unaware that his every move had been broadcast live by Dao Xuan Zhenren. He was simply doing as he had said. He wanted to see Sanniang. So how could he see her? Besides finding a way to see his Master first, he could think of no other method. The ultimate reason was that he was not strong enough…
At this moment, Chen An suddenly regretted his past. He regretted why he hadn’t cultivated diligently. If he had, perhaps even if his sister had committed a great transgression, he would have had the opportunity to help her escape. But Chen An quickly regained his senses. What he was facing was a righteous sect that had been passed down for thousands of years. It was the Tai Xuan Sect, boasting six Nascent Soul cultivators and one Tribulation Crossing True Monarch. This was just what was openly known, enough to make one despair. No matter how hard he tried, he could not grow to a point of contending with the sect within these ten years.
With this thought, a self-mocking smile appeared on the young man’s lips. Perhaps the snowfall was too heavy, freezing his brain, making him mistakenly believe that diligent cultivation could change the status quo. Without the protection of spiritual energy, his thoughts and body were slowly becoming stiff under the influence of the frigid weather. It had to be said that using the act of kneeling to force his Master’s hand was indeed somewhat despicable. But Chen An had no choice. Although he maintained his composure on the surface, his heart was more nervous than anyone else. As long as he couldn’t see Sanniang for a day, his heart would not be at ease.
…
The news of the young man kneeling before the Sect Master’s Cave Mansion did not remain a secret for long. Or rather, he had never intended to conceal it. As for whether he would be ridiculed by other disciples of the sect or something else, he did not care. Compared to his sister’s safety, all of that seemed insignificant. Perhaps young men of this age were always proud and unwilling to lose face. But Chen An was not like that. As long as he could find his sister, he would even consider selling himself.
Time ticked by, slowly. The winter nights always came faster than in other seasons. More and more people came, wanting to witness it for themselves. Some were strangers who just came to watch the spectacle, while some acquaintances, senior brothers and sisters, showed worried expressions. Of course, there was also a group of excited Shang Xuan Peak disciples clapping and cheering. After all, in the eyes of the Shang Xuan Peak disciples, they were more willing to believe the words of their senior disciple Lu Ning. He had undeniably seen Mu Sanniang stab Feng Xiang Song in the chest with a knife. On this point, even the Sect Master could not refute. Now that they couldn’t see Mu Sanniang, they naturally vented their anger on the young man kneeling in the snow.
Perhaps they also knew that there should be other hidden circumstances. But people were ultimately emotional. They hadn’t attacked the young man. It was just dislike and watching him for a show. What was the problem? They couldn’t force them to maintain a good impression of the young man, could they? However, these disciples who came could only stand far away and watch, unable to interfere further. This was the Sect Master’s order.
The wind and snow intensified that night. Fortunately, having reached the Foundation Establishment stage, his physique was far from that of an ordinary person, allowing Chen An’s consciousness to remain clear. However, the bone-chilling cold and the increasingly stiff body were unavoidable. What was even more dire was that this heavy snow, which had been falling for a day and a night, seemed to show no signs of stopping. Looking at the vast expanse of white before him, Chen An was once again reminded of Liucheng. Although the time spent in Liucheng was extremely difficult, looking back now, he felt a strange sense of nostalgia. He missed the nights when he slept embraced with his sister. They would warm each other in the cold wind and bitter snow, relying on the last residual warmth on their skin.
Finally, after kneeling for an unknown amount of time, until night completely fell, until all the onlookers had dispersed, Chen An suddenly felt that the snow on his head… had stopped? Chen An was a little confused. Because just a foot away from him, the wind and snow were still falling normally. So the young man looked up. He saw a familiar crimson color. Someone was holding a paper umbrella for him in the vast snowy expanse. The paper umbrella was not large, but a very bright crimson. Beside him, a gentle and pitying voice whispered, “Idiot, why must you do something so foolish.”
(End of this chapter)
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