"It was Gu Chengming of Huiyuan Gate."
At those five words, Elder Jingxuan nearly stopped breathing. She had prepared a whole speech to help soothe Su Qingmeng's feelings, but Su Qingmeng's reaction was far beyond her expectations.
"So it was Fellow Daoist Gu."
Elder Jingxuan froze. That was it? No other reaction?
"Qingmeng, don't you feel wronged?"
Elder Jingxuan asked tentatively, afraid the girl was forcing all her feelings down inside. That would only make her more likely to suffer a cultivation deviation.
At her words, Su Qingmeng instead looked utterly perplexed.
"Wronged? Elder, what makes you say that?" Su Qingmeng tilted her head slightly and spoke without mincing words. "The Sect Competition has always been decided by ability. Since the Sect Master chose Fellow Daoist Gu to lead, it must be because he has the skill to convince everyone. Why should I feel wronged?"
Elder Jingxuan was left speechless.
However, what Su Qingmeng said next confirmed that she truly knew nothing about what had been happening outside.
"It's just that I've spent the past two years in seclusion, focused on Pure Cultivation, and know very little about what's going on out there."
Su Qingmeng furrowed her brows slightly, curiosity entering her voice. "After I came out of seclusion, I occasionally ran into a few junior sisters. Whenever they saw me while chatting, they immediately fell silent. They were especially tight-lipped about that Fellow Daoist Gu."
Su Qingmeng paused, seemingly finding her junior sisters' behavior rather amusing. "I thought at first that something had gone wrong with Fellow Daoist Gu's cultivation, and that they'd kept quiet because they were afraid it might disturb my cultivation. Now I see—they were afraid I'd learn that Fellow Daoist Gu's cultivation had advanced so much that I'd feel inferior and my Dao Heart would