Chapter 83: The Truth Revealed

Gu Qingxiao stared at Li Xun, fear flashing across her face. After a hesitant pause, she finally spoke up. “Senior, about what happened in the Longyang Secret Realm, I need to explain. That day, we arrived near Jade Pool Mountain through the Academy’s teleportation portal, only to find the place packed. Cultivators from all over crowded around the secret realm’s entrance, desperate to be the first inside.”

“But what nobody knew was that the entrance was protected by a deadly restriction. Anyone who got close would be wiped out on the spot.”

“That was when your sect’s lead disciple, Zhi Yin, noticed something was wrong. He suggested each sect send five disciples to die first, to burn away some of the restriction’s power.”

“Zhi Yin caught five disciples from your sect and shoved them at the gate. It worked—just like that, the restriction weakened.”

“Some rogue cultivators tried to escape after seeing what happened, but Zhi Yin refused to show mercy. With one sweep, he grabbed them all and threw them at the gate, too. After that, the restriction thinned even further.”

“Everyone was relieved, but hesitation crept in again when Zhi Yin insisted every sect must sacrifice five people.”

“If there was resistance, Zhi Yin simply crushed it with absolute force. None of the sect leaders dared defy him and personally dragged more disciples to the gate.”

“Hundreds of lives were spent. Only then did the restriction finally collapse.”

“The entrance came into view. In an instant, grief gave way to greed as everyone surged forward, desperate to rush inside.”

“All anyone could think about was claiming the treasures for themselves. The ground was blanketed with rare heavenly and earthly treasures, both sides of the path lined with low-tier spirit herbs.”

“But the deeper we went, the more corpses we saw. They’d been poisoned by worms and driven into hallucinations, slaughtering each other in the chaos.”

“We only survived because we sensed something was wrong and managed to use the Mind-Clearing Incantation in time. If not for that, we’d be dead among them.”

“As we went even deeper, the bodies piled up—most of them freshly dead. We tried not to pay attention and just focused on searching the secret realm.”

“I don’t know how long passed before, while we rested, dizziness suddenly hit us hard. We all blacked out, just like that.”

“When we woke again, we saw Zhi Yin, blood-soaked and twisted with rage, shouting that he’d kill us for his amusement.”

“We realized we were tied up, powerless. All our spiritual power was gone, vanished without a trace. It wasn’t long before Zhi Yin slashed a few disciples’ throats with a single swing of his sword.”

“Then it was my turn. I panicked and blurted out my brother’s name. I never expected Zhi Yin to have a grudge against him.”

“So he just waited, taunting us, refusing to kill us right away—like he was playing with us, using us as bait for my brother to show up.”

“Eventually, my brother did arrive. The moment they locked eyes, their hatred boiled over and they started fighting. The battle lasted a long while, but in the end, my brother barely managed to kill Zhi Yin.”

“We finally broke free of our restraints, searched the rest of the Longyang Secret Realm, and found corpses everywhere along the way.”

“Near a tree, the bodies of your sect’s disciples and others from different sects were scattered all around, each with throats cut in the same way—just like the weapon Zhi Yin used.”

“We stripped the secret realm clean and left. What happened after that… we honestly don’t know.”

“If you still don’t believe me, Senior, you can search my soul!” Gu Qingxiao squeezed her eyes shut, ready for whatever was coming.

……………..

“So be it!” Li Xun’s face turned icy as he finished listening. Without another word, he pressed his palm to Gu Qingxiao’s head and began searching her soul.

“Ah… my head, it hurts so much!” Gu Qingxiao squeezed her eyes shut as pain twisted her face.

“If you want revenge, take it out on me, leave my sister alone!” Gu Qingyi’s veins bulged with anger as he lunged at Li Xun.

Li Xun glanced back at Gu Qingyi, irritation flashing in his eyes as he snapped, “Stay out of this. This has nothing to do with you right now!”

With a flick of his wrist, Li Xun sent a beam of light that sealed Gu Qingyi’s mouth, silencing him instantly.

……………..

In an instant, Li Xun understood everything that had happened.

“So that’s how it is… Golden Gate, Purification Tree, none of it interests me. You can go now, girl.” Li Xun slowly opened his eyes, lifted his hand from Gu Qingxiao’s head and let out a dismissive snort, tossing her aside.

Nangong Wentian rushed forward and caught Gu Qingxiao as she fell from the air.

“Damn you, Zhi Yin! I trusted you so much, let you lead the outer sect disciples for training, and you wiped out the very foundation of the Sky Sword Sect’s future!” Li Xun’s eyes suddenly blazed red as he threw his head back and roared in fury.

“Zhi Yin deserves to die, but he was still one of the Sky Sword Sect.” Li Xun turned away, releasing the restraints on Gu Qingyi who was frozen in place, and barked, “It’s not your place to kill him. Whatever punishment he gets is for us to decide, so today you owe us your life!”

“Senior, if someone kills me, shouldn’t I be allowed to avenge myself? Or do you mean, just because he’s from your sect I have to let him butcher me? Ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous! And yet you call yourselves the leader of the hundred sects!” Gu Qingyi broke into wild laughter, eyes boring into Li Xun. “With this kind of favoritism, how will you face the rest of the sects in the world?”

“What a slippery-tongued brat, you’re right that you can take revenge. I won’t stop you, but you acted too fast, killing Zhi Yin before we could judge him. You took justice into your own hands. How can that convince everyone?” Li Xun smiled coldly at Gu Qingyi’s reaction but then his expression darkened.

“I’ll have to answer to the sect for this. Still, I won’t make things too hard on you—you’re coming back with me. We’ll see if they want you to live or die. How’s that?” With that, Li Xun reached out to seize Gu Qingyi, intent on dragging him away.

……………..

“Isn’t this a bit much? You’re just going to take my Academy’s disciple? You’ll have to answer for that.” Seeing things take a turn, Nangong Wentian soared into the air and blocked Li Xun’s path to Gu Qingyi.

“Your disciples were all killed by Zhi Yin, while my Academy’s Gu Qingyi was the one who stopped him. Doesn’t that count as justice for all the lives lost from every sect?” Nangong Wentian’s eyes chilled as he stared at Li Xun, a flash of anger passing over his face. “If you ask me, he should be rewarded, not condemned. If you insist on taking him, I’m afraid I can’t just stand by!”