ALL NOVEL Chapter 15: Punishment
Within the Verdant Mountain Sect, Lin Qingxue knelt with her head bowed, awaiting her Master’s reprimand.
Her Master is a stern man, and he was dressed in the elder’s robes of the Verdant Mountain sect, with a sword at his waist.
This man, Wan Zhu, had taken many disciples under his tutelage within the sect, often teaching them to uphold justice and morality, and was thus well-regarded. Lin Qingxue also greatly admired this righteous Master, believing him to be the true example she ought to follow.
“Qingxue, how did you let that demoness escape?” Wan Zhu’s back was turned to Lin Qingxue as he spoke, his voice tinged with disappointment and frustration. “Do you not realize that if that demoness is free, she will inevitably bring harm to the innocent?”
“This disciple was wrong.” Lin Qingxue didn’t dare lift her head, aware that she had made a grave mistake. Yu Lan was a demoness who drank the blood of the living; allowing her to live would indeed imperil others.
“This disciple pursued her to Divine Vision Sect, but lost her trail there,” Lin Qingxue said quietly.
“I’ve already heard your explanation.” Wan Zhu shook out his sleeves, making clear that he had no intention of forgiving Lin Qingxue.
“I entrusted this matter to you precisely because I believed you to be a righteous young woman, capable of upholding justice.” Wan Zhu paused, then continued, “And now, you’ve disappointed me greatly.”
Verdant Mountain Sect was a righteous sect located near White City, and it maintained a close partnership with the White City government. Sometimes, disciples of Verdant Mountain Sect—who, like Lin Qingxue, preferred to gain practical experience outside the sect—would handle affairs related to cultivators on behalf of White City. The case of capturing Yu Lan was a prime example.
“This time, the White City government is disappointed in us, and I’m sure the common people have complaints about us as well,” Wan Zhu lamented.
Reputation was everything. If word got out that Verdant Mountain Sect had allowed such a vicious demoness to escape, their reputation would suffer irreparable damage.
Lin Qingxue raised her head abruptly, “Master, please punish me!!!”
“Punishment? At this point, what would punishing you accomplish?” Wan Zhu shook his head. “This matter—”
“Father, I’m sure Junior Sister is already tormented enough; please forgive her.” A white-robed young master clad in elegant attire stepped forward, fanning himself with a folding fan.
“Were you not cultivating, Ruicai?” Wan Zhu’s expression softened upon seeing his son.
“Senior Brother!” Seeing the white-robed young master, Lin Qingxue couldn’t help but rejoice.
This white-robed young master was her Master’s son, and the female disciples of Verdant Mountain Sect often admired him.
Even Lin Qingxue admired him. After all, Wan Ruicai possessed not only exceptional talent, but also an exceptionally handsome face.
Despite having practiced cultivation for only forty years, he had already reached the Core Formation stage, which could be considered astonishingly fast.
It was no small feat to reach the Core Formation stage, and many cultivators failed to do so in their entire lives. Even those who did often reached the stage only in their nineties.
Lin Qingxue’s Master had a cultivation level of late Core Formation, and he was already a hundred years old.
Wan Ruicai might not truly compare to those blessed by the heavens, but he was certainly one of the most talented disciples within the Verdant Mountain Sect.
Lin Qingxue had only recently stepped into the Middle Foundation Building stage, and it was uncertain how many months or years it would take for her to break through to the late stage of Foundation Building.
“Father, I’ve reached a bottleneck in my cultivation, so I came to see you,” Wan Ruicai said with a smile.
“A bottleneck, huh… That’s true. If there’s anything Ruicai doesn’t understand, you can ask the other senior members for their insights,” Wan Zhu said indulgently to his son. “If you run out of medicinal pills—”
“I’ll look into it myself,” Wan Ruicai replied, nodding. He cut his father off before he could finish speaking.
“I heard the conversation outside the door,” he said faintly. “Qingxue said the trail ended only after she chased the cultivators all the way to Divine Vision Sect.” He paused, then added, “Thus, I presume that the Divine Vision sect is shielding that demoness.”
“Divine Vision Sect…” Wan Zhu murmured.
Perhaps younger cultivators didn’t know of this demonic sect, but Wan Zhu was over a hundred years old, so naturally he knew. In the past, this sect had produced countless demonic cultivators, striking terror into the hearts of all the major righteous sects. Fortunately, Divine Vision Sect seemed to have fallen due to a betrayal from one of its disciples, leading to its gradual decline.
Its cultivators met their end one by one, including those of the founding generation. People widely speculated that the sect’s tragic demise was the result of an internal conflict, a theory Wan Zhu himself largely agreed with. After all, no other reason could explain the deaths of so many cultivators; thus, they could only imagine that the sect had indeed destroyed itself from within.
“This demonic sect has already fallen to the point that only a few individuals remain,” he muttered to himself.
“Perhaps we should pay them a visit another day, and then once again search for that demoness?” Wan Ruicai narrowed his eyes and suggested in a soft voice, “The last time, it’s likely that Junior Sister did not search thoroughly enough.”
“I…” Lin Qingxue wanted to explain, but now that she thought about it, she had been frightened by Zhi Shi and avoided many places during her search.
Her initial bravado deflated, and she couldn’t manage the rest of the sentence for a long while.
“But if they really were shielding that demoness, they would have let her leave long ago,” she finally said, weakly.
No one would be so foolish as to keep a walking disaster within their sect, especially a sect as downtrodden as Divine Vision Sect, which could ill afford any misfortunes.
“My instincts tell me that the demoness is still within Divine Vision Sect,” Wan Ruicai said confidently, his tone making it difficult not to believe him.
“Very well then, In a few days, I’ll pay that Sect a visit,” he said. “I’m curious to see exactly what the Divine Vision Sect looks like.”
“Qingxue, don’t forget to thank your Senior Brother Ruicai,” Wan Zhu called out.
Only then did Lin Qingxue react. “Thank you, Senior Brother!”
“For Ruicai’s sake, I’ll lighten your punishment this time,” Wan Zhu said sternly. “However, you will still face the altar in the main hall for reflection. You may return to your quarters only after the second day.”
“Yes, this disciple accepts this punishment.” Lin Qingxue accepted the penalty without complaint.
The punishment was quite light, a mere symbolic gesture. Without Wan Ruicai’s intervention, she could have been left on the mountain peak for half a month as punishment.
“Junior Sister, you must do your best to bring honor to our Verdant Mountain Sect in the upcoming competition,” Wan Ruicai said kindly as he patted her shoulder. “You are the most outstanding disciple among all the Foundation Building members of our sect; I have high hopes for you.”
Wan Ruicai looked no older than twenty, but he was actually already forty. There was nothing strange about him looking at Lin Qingxue like a member of the older generation.
“I will definitely do my best!” Lin Qingxue nodded firmly. She didn’t dislike the feeling of being entrusted with great expectations. She would definitely shine in the White City cultivator competition and let the people of White City know just how powerful Verdant Mountain Sect was.
“You may go to the Main Hall,” Wan Zhu said. “I have something to discuss with Ruicai.”
“Understood, this disciple will take her leave.” Lin Qingxue rose and bowed before leaving the room, heading toward the Main Hall without being told twice.