The Grand Elder's Written Order

A Heavenly Lightning Talisman.

It was also a type of conventional talisman, releasing lightning to attack when used. Master Wei himself could inscribe one.

But a Heavenly Lightning Talisman above first grade was already beyond that tier.

It had undergone a qualitative change.

It could truly draw upon the power of heaven and earth to bring down heavenly lightning.

Its power was unparalleled.

Rumble!!

A bolt of heavenly lightning struck. Although Master Wei now had a copper head and iron bones thanks to the talisman's reinforcement, he still could not withstand it.

In moments, the strike left him gravely injured.

His fine robes had been burned away by the heavenly lightning. Now, his entire body was charred black and his hair hung loose. What trace of a talisman master's pride remained?

But compared to his injuries, the blow to his spirit was even harder for him to accept.

"Impossible! This is impossible!"

Master Wei's breathing was ragged as he stared with wide eyes. "Where did you get that above-first-grade talisman?"

"Of the countless great Daos, whichever one you cultivate, you should be humble as a valley, not arrogant and cruel, believing yourself above others as you do," Chen Ning said calmly.

"I'm asking you! Where did that talisman come from?"

Master Wei could not hear a word of anything else. All he wanted to know now was this one thing.

Chen Ning paid him no heed and continued, "You defied your superior and bullied a fellow sect member. If I don't kill you, can the Dragon-Seeking Sect still be said to have rules?"

Chen Ning took two steps closer, killing intent rising.

Master Wei immediately began to panic. He hurriedly backed away and said, "You can't kill me. I'm a talisman master invited here by the grand elder. If you kill me, the grand elder won't let you off!"

But Chen Ning still acted as though he had heard nothing, walking toward Master Wei one step at a time.

The crowd was stunned as well.

They had not expected to witness such a scene today.

Master Wei, who had always been arrogant and unruly, really had been dealt with by the sect master.

The sect master even intended to take his life, all because he had bullied a steward of the talisman workshop.

The sect master was going to kill a talisman master for the sake of a steward?

At that thought, warmth stirred in everyone's hearts.

In this world, the strong preyed on the weak, and the powerful regarded human lives as blades of grass. Who would care about the voices of the weak?

If this had been another sect, or another elder handling the matter, it most likely would have been brushed aside without so much as a sting. There was no chance Master Wei would have been punished severely.

A single talisman master was worth far more than tens of millions of Steward Hongs.

Yet the sect master's actions moved them all.

Many more thought that if it had been them lying on the ground instead of Steward Hong, the sect master surely would have done the same.

At that moment, the way many disciples in the crowd looked at Chen Ning quietly changed.

Their gazes were no longer calm.

They had begun to truly respect this young sect master.

Chen Ning knew nothing of what the crowd around him was thinking. He simply called over a disciple at random and told him to hurry and take Steward Hong to the medicine pavilion.

Then he raised his right foot and brought it down on Master Wei.

"Who gave you the nerve to tear up my stamped paper?"

Chen Ning looked down at him from above. Master Wei was already gravely injured, and now even his breaths were exceedingly weak.

But when his gaze fell upon the scraps scattered across the ground, he could not help trembling with fear.

Just now, he had personally torn up that sheet of paper bearing the sect master's seal.

From the look of things, Chen Ning clearly meant to put him to death.

He had no idea what strange medicine this sect master had taken, insisting on making things difficult for him over a mere steward.

But no matter what, he had to find a way to survive.

"Sect Master... I beg you to let the grand elder look into this matter. If the grand elder finds me, Wei... guilty, I'll have no complaint."

Master Wei held his head up, his eyes flickering.

"Fine."

This time, however, Chen Ning agreed to his request.

It was even more unexpected to those present.

The disciples in the crowd could not help feeling anxious for the sect master.

They could not let the grand elder intervene. Once she looked into the matter, they certainly would not be able to kill Master Wei.

A major matter would surely be reduced to a minor one, and the minor matter reduced to nothing.

The best solution was to kill Master Wei first and then inform the grand elder.

By then, even if Master Wei had been invited by the grand elder, it would already be too late, and she would not openly make things difficult for the sect master.

But now, there was no telling.

After all, a high-level talisman master was valuable enough to make people weigh their options and make a choice.

The talismans inscribed by a high-level talisman master were of extremely high quality, and selling them could bring in enormous wealth and profit.

High-grade talismans were in short supply on the market.

That was only the value brought by sales, not counting their other value.

To a sect, one could never have too many talisman masters. The more, the better.

In one respect, they were also a symbol of strength.

So once the grand elder looked into the matter, there was an eighty or ninety percent chance that Master Wei would escape this disaster.

That was precisely Master Wei's means of staying alive.

He just had not expected the sect master to actually agree.

"Thank you, Sect Master."

When Master Wei heard Chen Ning agree, he too was taken aback, and a subtle expression appeared on his face.

As long as the grand elder learned of this, she would surely protect him.

She was even less likely to find him guilty.

This sect master had some ability, but he was still too young in the end, always wanting everything to be aboveboard and justified. Little did he know that not only would he fail to kill Wei this time, he might even have to apologize to him under pressure from the grand elder.

As Master Wei thought this, a smile appeared on his face, as though he had survived a calamity.

Someone immediately went to urgently notify the grand elder at Verdant Peak.

Chen Ning brought over a chair and sat down in the talisman workshop's courtyard.

Before long, the person who had left returned.

As soon as he entered, he knelt and bowed to Chen Ning. "Sect Master, this disciple has brought the grand elder's written order."

"Read it."

Chen Ning smiled faintly.

"Yes."

The disciple unfolded a sheet of writing paper.

When Master Wei saw this, he felt a surge of joy. The grand elder was being very formal, even writing out an order. She truly did hold him, Wei, in high regard.

The many talismans he had offered to the Dragon-Seeking Sect over the past few years had not been in vain.

The people in the crowd all began to breathe tensely.

If the grand elder excused Master Wei, that fellow might not dare offend the sect master, but he might still seek revenge on Steward Hong.

The disciple then read aloud respectfully, "Master Wei defied his superior and offended the sect master, a capital crime in itself. In addition, he harmed a fellow sect member, making his crimes unforgivable. Immediately... execute him."

By the time he reached the end, the disciple could scarcely believe his own eyes.

The grand elder actually wanted Master Wei executed?

The crowd turned pale with shock as well, everyone drawing in a sharp breath.

The grand elder's written order was brief and cleanly worded, its intent plain and easy to understand.

It came down to two words: kill him.

But that was not right. Wasn't Master Wei the talisman master the grand elder had invited?

But many disciples soon thought that the grand elder had most likely been unable to stand Master Wei for a long time as well, so the sect master's actions today had merely accorded with her wishes.

"I knew it. How could a goddess-level figure like the grand elder possibly make excuses for scum like Master Wei?"

"The grand elder is mighty!"

Now that even Master Wei's last support would not save him, the disciples no longer had any misgivings. They spoke up one after another, cheering and applauding the sect master.

Master Wei's face went rigid, and his entire body shook violently, as though he had plunged into an ice cavern.