The Five Mountains' Predicament

Having won the bout, Li Mu performed a cupped-fist salute toward the dejected Zuo Lengchan and said nonchalantly, "Brother Zuo, you have conceded."

To be frank, this bout left him feeling very disappointed. Among his peers, Zuo Lengchan was indeed considered outstanding, but he was merely that—outstanding.

The current Zuo Lengchan was just a talented disciple of the Mount Song Sect; he was not yet the leader of the Five Mountains Alliance seen in the legends, and both his martial arts and his temperament were far from meeting the mark.

It was his misfortune to encounter Li Mu; if no accidents occurred, this future leader of the Five Mountains Alliance might well meet an early end.

Honestly, Zuo Lengchan was also a miserable soul. With a neighbor like the Shaolin Temple, even getting a good night's sleep was a struggle.

In the original story, it was unclear which nerve had gone haywire, but he had actually fantasized about merging the Five Mountains Sword Sects to contend with Shaolin and Wudang.

Anyone with a modicum of sanity knew that the Five Mountains Sword Sects were scattered across the corners of the land; forming an alliance to watch over one another was fine, but merging them was a joke.

Did he really think everyone would risk their lives just for the title of a "Five Mountains Sect"?

Even if the Mount Song Sect were formidable, others could simply pay lip service while defying them in secret; what could one do when the emperor was far away?

Should an external enemy arrive, these coerced disciples of the four sects would be the first to act as guides, turning their blades against their masters in an instant.

Seeming to struggle internally, Zuo Lengchan remained silent for a long while before his gloomy face finally spoke: "Brother, your martial arts are peerless. My own training is insufficient; this defeat is deserved!"

He could accept losing to the likes of Yao and Cai, as both were nurtured with the full resources of the Mount Hua Sect, enjoying treatment he could never compare to.

But losing to an obscure, ordinary Mount Hua disciple was something Zuo Lengchan found hard to swallow. That he could control his emotions and not erupt was already quite an achievement.

Scanning the arena, Li Mu noticed that everyone remained calm, as if this result had been within everyone's expectations.

Even the defeated Mount Song Sect members showed only slight disappointment rather than shock, as if everything were a matter of course.

At this moment, Li Mu finally understood the influence of the Mount Hua Sect within the Five Mountains; the four sects had grown accustomed to being subordinate to Mount Hua. After all, ambition required strength to support it, and with such vast gaps in every aspect, how could they dare to harbor grand ideas?

"Brother Mo, please grant me your guidance!"

Having won one match, Li Mu did not step down to rest; instead, he issued another challenge.

It was not that Li Mu was arrogant; it was simply that the previous bout had been too short, consuming very little of his internal energy, and he remained at his peak.

This bout was intended as a routine reminder from Mount Hua to the four sects, a way to remind them who was the boss; naturally, the more impressive the victory, the better.

The bouts continued, but the attention of the five sect leaders was no longer on the arena; a result determined from the start was not worth their concern.

Ning Qingyu, leader of the Five Mountains Alliance, spoke: "In recent years, our Five Mountains Sword Sects have grown increasingly prosperous, yet the troubles we encounter have also multiplied. I believe everyone here has felt it."

At the mention of "troubles," the others opened the floodgates, their grievances pouring forth like a relentless river.

Yuxuzi, leader of the Mount Tai Sect, was the first to pour out his bitterness: "The Demonic Cult has begun stirring again in recent years, and to make matters worse, the martial arts factions in Shandong are restless, creating trouble for us everywhere.

According to intelligence gathered by my sect, the Thousand Buddha Temple, the Meng Mountain Sect, and the Heavenly River Gang show signs of forming an alliance. The pressure on my Mount Tai Sect is immense!"

Shandong lacked a dominant martial arts hegemon, with righteous and evil forces intertwined. Although the Mount Tai Sect was the largest righteous sect in Shandong, it lacked the strength to suppress all others.

When faced with the pressure of the Demonic Cult, the Mount Tai Sect could barely unite the various factions to resist, but once the Cult retreated, everyone returned to their own agendas.

In recent years, the rapid growth of Mount Tai's strength had triggered deep unease among the various Shandong factions, who had begun to hold them back at every turn.

Hearing Yuxuzi's complaints, Abbess Lingqing of the Mount Heng Sect smiled bitterly: "Brother Yuxuzi, your situation is still manageable; our Mount Heng Sect is the one truly suffering.

Shanxi may not have many martial arts factions, but the Demonic Cult is powerful there. I hear Dugu Qingyun has already seized control, and this round of internal strife is likely nearing its end.

I won't hide it from you—these past few days, I haven't been able to sleep soundly, fearing that once the Demonic Cult finishes its internal struggle, they will use my Mount Heng Sect to make an example of themselves!"

The plight of the Mount Heng Sect was known to all under heaven. As the major sect closest to the Demonic Cult's lair, the pressure they endured was unimaginable.

Almost every time a great war between righteousness and evil broke out, the Mount Heng Sect would be bathed in blood. Often, they were forced to abandon their mountain gates and flee into the wilderness.

Fortunately, the Mount Heng Sect was an order of nuns, which the Demonic Cult did not consider a major threat, or they would have been wiped out long ago.

Zhou Changlong, leader of the Mount Heng Sect, added: "The Abbess's pressure is indeed the greatest, but we are not much better off. Although Huguang is a land of fish and rice, it is home to that great titan, the Wudang Sect.

Currently, Wudang occupies seven-tenths of Huguang. My Mount Heng Sect, along with the Beggar Sect, the Yuelu Sect, the Lotus Sect, and dozens of other factions, must divide the remaining three-tenths."

This was the price of being neighbors with a hegemon; as long as there were conflicts of interest, suppression was inevitable. If the pressure hadn't been so great, the Mount Heng Sect would never have joined the Five Mountains Alliance to seek warmth in numbers.

"Sigh!"

Zuo Jigao, leader of the Mount Song Sect, sighed.

"The situation of my Mount Song Sect is even worse. Sharing a mountain with the Shaolin Temple, every move we make must be subject to their approval.

Even when recruiting disciples, we let the Shaolin Temple choose first, and we dare not compete with them for sect industries."

Enduring the most severe constraints, the Mount Song Sect's strength still managed to grow, which spoke volumes of Zuo Jigao's capability. The prosperity of the Mount Song Sect in the legends was, in fact, built by Zuo Jigao himself.

As his subordinates poured out their grievances, Ning Qingyu felt helpless. The Five Mountains Alliance appeared formidable, but in reality, it was just five unlucky children huddling together for warmth.

"I am well aware of the pressure you all face. In truth, the situation of the Mount Hua Sect is no better. Although we sit atop the Guanzhong martial arts world, the Guanzhong region has long since withered.

The Northwest is even poorer, and with the complex situation of Hu and Han intermingling, entering it would be a losing proposition. The path to the Central Plains is blocked by the Shaolin Temple; moving north into Zhili brings the threat of the Demonic Cult; and moving west into Bashu is blocked by the Emei, Qingcheng, and Tang Sect factions.

Our Five Mountains Sword Sects are like prisoners trapped in a giant cage, tightly hemmed in by enemies, unable to move a muscle.

I summoned you all here not only to strengthen our communication but also to discuss countermeasures and seek a way to break this deadlock."

Breaking the deadlock sounded simple, but execution was troublesome. The enemies were not fools; they too would form alliances and counter-alliances. Once a move was made, the entire situation would be set in motion.

In fact, this was not the first time the Mount Hua Sect had attempted a breakout. Unfortunately, every time they acted, the Demonic Cult would jump out to stir up trouble, and with the Shaolin Temple pulling strings from behind, they were ultimately forced to abandon their plans.