Chapter 178 - 40: It Turns Out to Be the Forerunner Senior’s Fault

“Why not?” the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor asked displeasedly. “You rise to interrupt before your elder has finished speaking. Is this the kind of unruly and disrespectful upbringing Su Jian has provided?”

Clenching her lower lip, An Zhisu refused to give in, insisting:

“Even if my master truly owes you a favor, it still requires a direct conversation between you two to settle it. If my master doesn’t wish for my junior brother to leave and is only preoccupied with his seclusion, does it justify you seizing the opportunity to snatch away his disciple? How should I, as a junior, handle myself? If this were known to all, how would the world view the Longxi Guan Family?”

The Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor snorted coldly and said:

“Don’t try to provoke me with that.”

“You’ve said it yourself, your Ling Yunpo is exceptionally talented—he’s an ‘Innate Sword Bone,’ do you understand?”

An Zhisu gasped in shock, while Ling Yunpo fell silent, his heart nearly bursting with emotion.

At last… after many years at Shushan, someone had finally recognized the extraordinary talent of Ling Yunpo!

“Innate Sword Bone?” An Zhisu pondered for a moment, hesitant, “Is that the ‘Innate Sword Bone’ known alongside the ‘Innate Sword Heart’?”

“Precisely,” the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor affirmed proudly. “In fact, the cultivation potential of the Innate Sword Bone is even stronger than the Innate Sword Heart, mainly because while one’s state of mind can change, the root bone is extremely difficult to alter.”

“With such a peerless talent, even if Su Jian were willing to personally teach him, he would struggle to utilize eighty percent of his potential. How could that compare to instruction from an immortal like me? If you truly cared for your junior brother, you wouldn’t stand in the way of his great future.”

An Zhisu’s face turned pale as she stumbled several steps back until her back was against the wall—each sentence from the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor was like a heavy hammer, relentlessly striking at her heart.

Indeed, no matter how it was dressed up (whether the junior brother himself wished to stay, or how hard she tried to be kind to him), it couldn’t change one fact.

Ling Yunpo was indeed delaying his own cultivation progress by staying on Qingluo Peak.

Not to mention, the one currently aiming to poach him was one of the rare terrestrial immortals in the world, the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor!

Even as much as An Zhisu found it hard to let go, as long as she still had a shred of goodwill towards her junior brother, she couldn’t find the words to let him refuse the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor.

Seeing her subdued and retreating, the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor then turned his gaze to Ling Yunpo:

“I’ve already heard about your experiences at Shushan from Yue’er.”

“You joined Qingluo Peak alone, involving your master Su Jian, and fell victim to the targeting by Ziyun Peak and the other peaks. Fortunately, you overcame the hardships with significant determination and fought your way here, you must be aware of the various difficulties of the sect with no one to turn to.”

“If you’re willing to join my sect, firstly, the resources of the Longxi Guan Family will be fully available to you, and secondly, I will teach you my Dao without reservation. Those Shushan disciples who once humiliated you will have to avoid you by three clear steps when they see you, giving you due respect!”

Ling Yunpo hung his head, unable to deny that he was completely tempted.

Being favored by an immortal, bestowed with longevity. If he accepts here and now, Ling Yunpo’s identity would catapult him upward, surpassing even Qiu Changtian and becoming the “super account” among numerous secondary ones, with Qiu Changtian unable to grasp its edge!

It’s well known that Qiu Changtian’s status as the Chief Disciple of Kunlun is partly due to his innate “Daoist Heart Clarity” talent, with the greater part owing to the Ziwei Sect Leader’s insightful recognition and full support.

As for the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor, a terrestrial immortal, it goes without saying that he would only be more formidable than the Ziwei Sect Leader, and not less!

Under normal circumstances, Ling Yunpo would have immediately nodded vigorously, knelt as if his knees were rooted to the ground, and performed the grand gesture of discipleship to the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor… alas, what a pity, what a pity!

“Ah Jing, ah,” he sighed inwardly, “for the sake of helping you seize that fragment of the Heaven-Mending Stone from Shushan, I’ve made quite the sacrifice.”

“Tsk,” the Kunlun Mirror scoffed disdainfully, “If you have the heart to hurt Senior Sister An, then just go ahead and do it.”

“Hmph,” Ling Yunpo laughed without a word, his face falling silent for a moment before he revealed a sequence of expressions indicative of hesitation, inner turmoil, long deliberation, heartache, and finally resolute determination, saying gravely:

“I am grateful for the ancestor’s generous love, but… having been accepted into the Shushan sect, it would be improper for me to change allegiance to another. I apologize for not living up to the ancestor’s recognition.”

“No matter,” the Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor waved his hand dismissively, “I am also a Guest Elder of the Shushan Shangqing Faction; moving from Qingluo Peak to join my sect does not constitute a betrayal of Shushan.”

“Qingluo Peak is all the same,” Ling Yunpo said with a small smile, one laden with extreme determination.

So determined that his synchronization value for an unyielding persona even began to rise.

The Longxi Guan Family’s ancestor furrowed his brow and stared at him for a long while before suddenly asking in a deep voice:

“Are you practicing the Sentiment Inquiry Path?”

Ling Yunpo: ?

He had already prepared five or six excuses to deal with the various recruiting conditions offered by the old immortal, but he did not expect him to ask such a question.

Seeing him at a loss for words, the Guan Family elder turned to An Zhisu and frowned:

“Are you also practicing the Sentiment Inquiry Path?”

An Zhisu lowered her head in silence, uttering not a word.

Seeing that neither of them could speak, the Guan Family elder realized the situation and immediately felt a bit numb.

Su Jian, oh Su Jian, you are truly a disgrace to Shushan! Not only did you switch from the Forgetting Love Path to the Sentiment Inquiry Path, but you also led two outstanding disciples astray!

However, he was after all of Immortal rank, and at least he had some composure, so he heaved a sigh, patted his knee, and said:

“The Sentiment Inquiry Path, why is it always the Sentiment Inquiry Path? Alas, I had long told Jade Capital to let you young disciples know of the past misdeeds of the Sentiment Inquiry Path, but he always insisted on not airing our dirty laundry…”

“May I ask, elder, what exactly is the old affair?” Seeing that the elder had more to say, Ling Yunpo immediately caught on to the subject, going with the flow to ease the awkward mood.

“It’s nothing indescribable.” The Guan Family elder sighed, “Do you know that the ancient progenitor of the Human Race, Fuxi, once forged two Supreme Immortal Swords called ‘Tai Yin’ and ‘Sun’?”

“Of course we remember.” Ling Yunpo replied.

“After the Demon Race was driven to the Eastern Emperor Demon Realm, the contact between the two realms was not as weak as it is nowadays. Often, great demons would cross the Boundary Gate to attack.” The Guan Family elder, feeling quite melancholic, began to recount the secrets of the past, “Therefore, the Human Race passed down the two Supreme Immortal Swords from generation to generation, with each generation having two people responsible for holding the swords, defending the Human Race, and deterring the Demon Race. The title bearers were known as the ‘Tai Yin Sword Master’ and the ‘Sun Sword Master’.”

“By the last generation, the Sun Sword Master was named ‘Ouyang Zhao’, and the Tai Yin Sword Master was ‘Yin Xiaojing’. These two were cultivators of the Sentiment Inquiry Path and, after years of studying under the same master, ascended to immortality and became Daoist Companions, with a remarkably affectionate relationship.”

“Little did anyone know, Yin Xiaojing’s true identity was that of a Celestial Fox from Qingqiu of the Eastern Emperor Demon Realm, who had smuggled herself over. She had just transformed and, using a special magical treasure of the Celestial Fox Clan, assumed a human identity and infiltrated this realm for many years, all to seize the Tai Yin ‘Suming’ Sword.”

An Zhisu listened intently, while Ling Yunpo was inwardly laughing and crying.

Goodness me, so this Yin Xiaojing is also a senior in the same line of work as me!

Both of us infiltrated a sect to obtain a precious treasure, each using some kind of special magical treasure. This sense of déjà vu is overwhelming… Alas, from what the Guan Family elder said, it seems Yin Xiaojing resorted to using her charms, something I disdain to do!

“Later, not long after Yin Xiaojing became the Tai Yin Sword Master, before she could escape back to the Eastern Emperor Realm, her identity was exposed.”

The Guan Family elder contemptuously said:

“The Human Race cultivators intended to surround and kill her, but that Sun Sword Master Ouyang Zhao, to protect his Daoist Companion, boldly made himself an enemy of the entire Human Race. The two fought their way to the Boundary Gate of the Eastern Emperor Realm, causing countless deaths and injuries to the Human Race.”

“In the end, Yin Xiaojing returned to the Eastern Emperor Realm while Ouyang Zhao died at the Boundary Gate. Before dying, he sealed the gate with the Sun True Fire Sword. Ever since, the passage between the two realms has been eternally separated by the burning Sun True Fire, and humans and demons took separate paths, no longer able to interact.”

“And the Tai Yin ‘Suming’ Sword has been lost ever since.”

“Lost?” asked Ling Yunpo curiously, “Wasn’t it taken back to the Demon Realm by Yin Xiaojing?”

“Before Ouyang Zhao’s defection, he proposed that he and Yin Xiaojing relinquish the swords and find a place in this realm to live together in seclusion forever, never to step into the outside world again. Hence, he had left the Tai Yin ‘Suming’ Sword somewhere, intending to trade its location for Yin Xiaojing’s life.” The Guan Family elder said with a cold laugh.

“But later, probably because negotiations with the Human Race failed, they ended up with one dead and one escaped. As for the Tai Yin ‘Suming’ Sword, the likelihood of it being taken back to the Eastern Emperor Demon Realm is low; otherwise, across these hundreds of thousands of years, it would not have remained hidden unused by the Demon Race… It is indeed likely, as Ouyang Zhao claimed, hidden somewhere in this realm, simply yet to be found.”

“And ever since then, the Sentiment Inquiry Path was swiftly severed, considered by the various cultivator sects as dangerous as floods and wild beasts, strictly shunned.”

“You have to understand, the Sentiment Inquiry Path prioritizes emotion, but if your whole heart’s emotions are mistakenly devoted to a non-human, then what?”

“If you insist on the Sentiment Inquiry, you might make a grave mistake like Ouyang Zhao; but if you try to switch to forgetting love, your Daoist Foundation may immediately become unstable, risking deviation…” Towards the end, the Guan Family elder was sneering continuously, “After all, binding the pursuit of Dao with the desires and love of ordinary people is extremely foolish behavior!”

Seeing that Ling Yunpo remained indifferent, he then derided and mocked:

“Take you, for example! You’re willing to give up the Daoist lineage of immortals for your Senior Sister An, is it not an act of cutting yourself off from the great Dao?”

“Over the years, all cultivators of the Sentiment Inquiry Path have been fools to the extreme, just like you!”