The managing cultivator cautiously asked, "Then Elder Lu being arrested..."
Elder Yue answered swiftly.
"True Monarch Qingyun invited True Monarch Baiyi out to investigate the case right in front of the Sect Master. All of Elder Lu's crimes were exposed. Not even a True Monarch could protect him."
"Now do you understand why I told you there would be no future for you?"
Elder Yue's mild, indifferent tone scared the managing cultivator into breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Elder Yue, I'll go apologize to her right away! I was at fault in this matter, but could the punishment be a little lighter...?"
He looked at Elder Yue with pleading eyes.
Elder Yue remained unmoved.
"Too late. If I don't deal with you over today's matter, then once these disciples return to their respective sects, Slaughter Ice Peak's reputation will be utterly ruined."
"I only knew that you were arrogant in the past, but I never expected you to be this foolish. You resent these disciples for taking up Slaughter Ice Peak disciples' spots, but do you know how much Slaughter Ice Peak stands to gain from their entering the Lübing Abyss?"
"I... I just couldn't accept it." The managing cultivator no longer had the strength to argue. His face had turned deathly pale.
"Then endure it for me. If you can't endure it, the only one who'll suffer will be you!"
After saying that, Elder Yue left.
Lin Qi later learned that this cultivator had been stripped of his post and sent to the spirit mine district to mine.
In the blink of an eye, he had fallen from managing the ice passage to becoming a miner—truly, one moment in the heavens, the next in the earth.
Tan Yueqing lowered her eyes for a long while before softly sighing.
"Even a small Slaughter Ice Peak is filled with worldly dealings and social maneuvering. Can cultivators truly break free from worldly desires and remain wholly unaffected?"
Lin Qi was practicing basic sword techniques with her Small Wooden Sword. Hearing this, she mocked, "Worrying over nothing!"
Tan Yueqing shot her a glare, while Chen En also looked over with keen interest.
"Whether it can be done is one matter. Whether you can do it is another."
"If you only look downward, of course you'll think it impossible. But if you look upward, who can say that everything isn't possible?"
Lin Qi would not have dared say such words before, but in the Cangwu Realm, she dared to pound her chest and shout them aloud.
Seeing how full of energy Lin Qi was, Tan Yueqing and Chen En suddenly believed her.
Chen En could not help sighing from the side. "I don't know about anyone else, but Little Qi, you really might be able to do it."
Tan Yueqing was so provoked that she immediately worked hard to better herself, cultivating with almost the same desperate intensity as Lin Qi.
Chen En was also greatly stirred by it.
Her ability to break through to the Third Stage Qi Refining within fifteen days was absolutely inseparable from the stimulation Lin Qi and Tan Yueqing had given her.
Before leaving the Lübing Abyss, Chen En deliberately left Lin Qi's imprint on her jade token.
"If I ever feel like slacking off in the future, I'll send you a message and ask what you're doing. That way, I'll be too motivated to dare slack off."
Lin Qi said, "I'm not cultivating every single moment either..."
Tan Yueqing and Chen En both looked at her with disdain.
As though they were saying, Do you even believe that yourself?
She could explain! She used to slack off by sneaking into the Underground Palace to draw talismans!
Tan Yueqing asked, "What are you planning to do during the half month after leaving the Lübing Abyss?"
Chen En also leaned closer with a curious expression.
Lin Qi answered proudly, "I'm going out to gain experience with my Senior Sister!"
"You can already go down the mountain to gain experience?" Chen En could not conceal the envy in her eyes.
Tan Yueqing was also somewhat surprised. "I thought you'd stay on Zonglei Peak and cultivate like your life depended on it?"
Lin Qi brought out the excuse True Monarch Qingyun had long prepared for her.
"I've reached the point where I should be learning spells. Master told me not to shut myself away and build a cart behind closed doors. I should follow Senior Sister, learning as I go and gaining real combat experience. Only then can I master spells more firmly."
Tan Yueqing fell into thought after hearing this. Only after a long while did she say, "I think that makes a lot of sense. Maybe I can try it too."
Chen En was envious beyond compare. "Then... can I try it with you two?"
Lin Qi and Tan Yueqing looked at her at the same time.
After returning to Zonglei Peak, Lin Qi soon received a message from Chen En.
Lin Qi did not know how Chen En had persuaded Tan Yueqing, but the two had decided to cultivate while beginning to accept sect missions during this half month. Their purpose was self-evident.
Lin Qi calmly replied, "Trust your choice. Follow an academic genius, and even if you can't become one yourself, you'll at least become a top student. With Tan Yueqing leading the way ahead, you'll definitely surpass the people around you."
Chen En did not understand Lin Qi's words, but she understood the last sentence and sent Lin Qi an affirmative reply.
"Much obliged for the guidance!"
When Lin Qi had just packed her things and returned to Zonglei Peak, she saw Luo Ci looking utterly pleased with himself, his grin nearly reaching his ears.
"Master, did Junior Brother break through again?" Lin Qi asked sincerely.
Otherwise, why was he so happy?
Luo Ci's smile froze, and he immediately countered, "You broke through to the Fifth Stage Qi Refining?!"
"No." Lin Qi answered unhurriedly.
Before Luo Ci could breathe a sigh of relief, Lin Qi added, "But I'm close."
Luo Ci: ...Half his good mood vanished at once.
True Monarch Qingyun had always enjoyed watching the two bicker. Only after they quieted down did she answer Lin Qi's question.
"Your Senior Sister has accepted a mission in Ming City. Ming City is a subordinate city of Luo City. Your Junior Brother is probably especially happy because he realized he can go home."
Senior Sister Yuan Xi added from the side, "Third Junior Brother has cultivated diligently these past half month and already broken through to the Fourth Stage Qi Refining. He's had two pieces of good news in a row these days. He smiles at everyone he greets."
After hearing them, Luo Ci simply stood there grinning foolishly, looking as though he had been delighted silly.
He had probably been driven mad by Lin Qi's relentless grinding on Zonglei Peak. The moment he left Tianyi Sect, his whole person became a little excessively excited.
He even made a huge fuss for ages over a strangely shaped flower.
Senior Sister Yuan Xi had a good temperament and indulged him the entire way.
Lin Qi silently watched for an hour. When they arrived at an inn to rest, she deliberately had her room arranged opposite Luo Ci's.
Luo Ci had just been about to head downstairs for dinner when he saw Lin Qi holding her Small Wooden Sword. Dressed in ordinary clothes, she looked brimming with energy.
Luo Ci widened his eyes and belatedly asked, "Senior Sister, aren't you going to eat?"
Lin Qi looked utterly serious. "No. I haven't cultivated for an hour already. I still haven't reviewed today's sword techniques."
Luo Ci immediately felt much less hungry.
After returning from dinner, Luo Ci ran into Lin Qi again, fresh from her bath.
Seeing Lin Qi heading toward Senior Sister Yuan Xi's room, Luo Ci could not help asking, "Second Senior Sister, what are you going to see Eldest Senior Sister for?"
Lin Qi said leisurely, "I have an Ice-Lightning Spiritual Root, but I haven't learned any lightning-elemental spells yet. I want Senior Sister to teach me a few powerful offensive spells, so I can prepare for the Sect Grand Competition."
Luo Ci: ...
Why did he suddenly feel a little panicked?
Forced to choose between having fun and cultivating, Luo Ci, who had been holding himself back for so long, hesitantly chose to keep having fun and tried hard to block out Lin Qi's influence.
Yet before half an hour had passed, he "happened" to see Lin Qi successfully cast the Minor Lightning Descent Technique, and he could no longer sit still.
Before you continue