The meeting proceeded quickly. Perhaps because Ning Qingyu was injured, everyone had tacitly held back, and, for once, no arguments broke out.
However, Li Mu knew this was only the calm before the storm. Ning Qingyu's condition made it impossible for him to oversee the sect's affairs for long. Next, he would have to enter seclusion to heal.
Once the Sect Leader went into seclusion, the elders would inevitably take control of the sect. No one knew what the Sword and Qi Factions would do without anyone to restrain them.
Just after leaving Sword Qi Soaring Hall, he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Senior Nephew Li, please wait!"
Hearing that voice, Li Mu knew that what was coming had finally arrived. Ning Qingfeng had made his move, and the Sword Sect certainly wouldn't sit by and do nothing.
With Zhou Qingyun and Feng Qingyang both still away from the mountain, this was precisely when the forces supporting Li Mu were at their weakest. If they wanted to make a move, now was the best time.
For instance, they could use the greater good to pressure him into withdrawing from the competition.
He was a nobody with few supporters in the sect. If they tried to force him out, it would be difficult to handle.
A thought suddenly flashed through Li Mu's mind. "Uncle-Master Wang, the sect's important affairs are naturally for the uncles-master and senior uncles to handle. This disciple is of limited ability and will not meddle.
"By chance, I just had a sudden insight and touched upon a bottleneck in my cultivation. I must return to enter seclusion and break through, so I won't stay any longer."
With that, he didn't give Uncle-Master Wang a chance to stop him. Li Mu immediately set his lightness skill in motion and leaped away.
Clashing openly with one's elders in the sect was an absolute taboo, especially when it involved a struggle for power. It was all too easy to be branded as "greedy for power and heedless of the greater good."
To avoid an awkward scene, Li Mu decided on the spot to bring out his—drag-it-out tactic.
Breaking through in cultivation was a martial artist's highest priority. The martial world had always held that "anyone who blocks another's path to enlightenment must fight to the death."
As long as he went into seclusion, no matter how many schemes they had, they would have no chance to put them into action.
Besides, his cultivation advanced fast enough. After a year or two of hard training, he would be on another level, and their next meeting wouldn't be awkward.
"Slippery fellow!"
After cursing under his breath, Wang Qingyuan could only turn and leave helplessly.
He didn't have any ill will toward Li Mu. It was just that Cai Buli was the grandson of his grandmaster, Cai Zifeng, and blood ties determined where his loyalties lay.
As one of the key figures behind the theft of the Sunflower Manual, Cai Zifeng had been the first to propose the "Sword Sect theory." He could be called the founding patriarch of the Sword Sect faction.
Most of Cai Buli's current supporters were Cai Zifeng's disciples and their descendants. It was precisely because of this connection that they had not abandoned Cai Buli, even after Li Mu appeared out of nowhere.
Seeing Wang Qingyuan return alone, Feng Qingshan, seated in the host's place, asked:
"Junior Brother Wang, why hasn't Senior Nephew Bu Mu come?"
After glancing at everyone, Wang Qingyuan answered honestly, "Senior Nephew Bu Mu was looking at the 'Sword Qi Soaring' plaque just now when he suddenly gained some insight. He's gone into seclusion to break through.
"Since this concerns his personal cultivation, I couldn't say much. Before leaving, Senior Nephew Bu Mu also said that the sect's affairs should be decided by everyone."
No one believed such a clumsy excuse about gaining insight from the sect's plaque.
Still, no one could deny it outright. Those grand characters had been left behind by an ancestor who had broken through to the Connate realm. It was said they contained the essence of his swordsmanship.
Whether it was true or not didn't matter. The claim had already been made, and a good disciple naturally couldn't accuse the elders of the sect of lying. If he hadn't grasped anything, that only meant he was too stupid.
Seeing that the atmosphere had turned a little strange, Elder Yu promptly stepped in to smooth things over. "Senior Nephew Bu Mu is exceptionally gifted. It's truly cause for celebration that he could gain insight from the words left by our ancestor.
"Since Senior Nephew Bu Mu is going into seclusion to break through, let's get started. Senior Brother Feng, you were in such a hurry to summon us. May I ask what it's about?"
At the words "what it's about," Feng Qingshan felt his scalp go numb. He'd had everything arranged, but at the critical moment, the person at the center of it all had failed to show up.
If Li Mu gave up the competition to become the next Sect Leader of his own accord, then even if Zhou Qingyun, Feng Qingyang, and the others returned, they wouldn't be able to object.
But if they made the decision for him, things would get ugly. If Zhou Qingyun, Feng Qingyang, and the others refused to accept it, Feng Qingshan wouldn't be able to control the situation.
In the end, he was only an elder of the Mount Hua Sect, not its Sect Leader. Even if he usually had more sway within the sect, their positions were still equal on the surface.
If things really spiraled out of control, the Sword Sect would lose its unity. But now that the arrow was on the bowstring, he couldn't simply hold back.
The Sword Sect had twenty-three elders in total. Only eleven had clearly declared their support for Cai Buli. Of the remaining twelve, five leaned toward Li Mu, while the other seven had yet to take a side.
At first glance, Cai Buli seemed to have the advantage, but that wasn't the case. After the sect meeting ended, Feng Qingshan had clearly sensed a shift in the stance of the seven neutral elders.
And that was before Zhou Qingyun and the others had returned to the mountain. Otherwise, things would be even worse. To prevent the worst from happening, he had to help Cai Buli establish an advantage within the Sword Sect as soon as possible.
After thinking it over, Feng Qingshan said gravely, "The Sect Leader's clash with the Three Peerless Monks of Shaolin greatly enhanced our Mount Hua Sect's prestige, but it also came at a terrible cost.
"I don't know the specifics, but judging by the fight that day, I'm afraid the Sect Leader has suffered serious internal injuries. He'll certainly have to enter seclusion to heal.
"Under these circumstances, he may well appoint a successor to oversee the sect's affairs.
"To avoid being caught off guard, we must unite our position as soon as possible and put forward a successor to compete with the Qi Sect for the position of next Sect Leader.
"Senior Nephews Bu Mu and Buli have both performed exceptionally well. They are both rare talents in the Mount Hua Sect.
"Senior Nephew Bu Mu's talent in martial arts is especially impressive, almost on par with Junior Brother Feng's. But he is too young, and I'm afraid he can't shoulder this responsibility just yet."
Elder Yu objected, "Senior Brother Feng, the Sect Leader is highly skilled. His Purple Mist Divine Skill has reached the point of perfection. Even if he's injured, he'll recover soon enough.
"Choosing a successor is a major decision. Even if the Sect Leader has someone in mind, it's not something he can decide on his own. I think we should take our time and wait until Junior Brother Feng and the others return to the mountain.
"After all, Junior Brother Feng is the only peerless master in our Sword Sect. There's no way we can bypass him on a matter this important."
In the martial world, the strong were revered. As the Sword Sect's number one expert, Feng Qingyang wielded great influence in the sect, even though he disliked handling its affairs.
Elder Fang, who had remained neutral, agreed. "Junior Brother Yu is right. For a major decision that will determine the Sword Sect's fortunes for decades to come, we should wait until all the elders of our Sword Sect are present before discussing it.
"We must also take our disciples' opinions into account. If we put forward a successor whom everyone opposes, how can we expect them to accept him?
"If we can't even win over our own Sword Sect disciples, how can we expect the Qi Sect to submit?"
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