The Butterfly's Wings

Stroking his beard, Zhou Qingyun said thoughtfully, "Hmm, it is indeed best to meet movement with stillness for now. You are still young, after all; there is no need to contend with them for temporary gains."

"However, we must also teach them a lesson, lest they think that because the Sect Leader is in seclusion, the Mount Hua Sect can be trifled with at their whim."

"The reason they have the energy for such schemes is simply that they are too idle. It seems we must find some work for them to do, to keep everyone busy."

Hearing Zhou Qingyun's words, Li Mu felt a sense of profound strangeness. "Too idle" was a phrase he had been the first to propose, though the situation back then involved disciples constantly brawling and fighting.

Although the circumstances were clearly different, one had to admit that being "too idle" was indeed one of the primary reasons for the intense internal strife within the Mount Hua Sect.

Yet, making everyone busy was not an easy task.

With Ning Qingyu currently in seclusion, the Mount Hua Sect's expansion had come to a near-total standstill. Every elder was holed up on the mountain, and there simply wasn't that much business to attend to within the sect.

Half a year later, inside a secret chamber on Chaoyang Peak.

A middle-aged man wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his expression ferocious as he hissed, "Damn those bald donkeys, they truly struck with such ruthlessness!"

If any Mount Hua disciples were to witness this scene, they would be shocked beyond measure. They could never have imagined that their gentle and refined Sect Leader possessed such a side.

However, if one were to put oneself in his shoes, it would not seem so strange. No one, having reached the pinnacle of life as the leader of the Five Mountains Alliance only to be beaten within an inch of their life, would be in a good state of mind.

By comparison, Ning Qingyu had shown remarkable restraint, at least maintaining his glorious image in front of others.

But that was no longer possible. As one attempt at healing after another failed, and knowing his time was running out, even Ning Qingyu's excellent cultivation could no longer suppress his frustration.

At this moment, his hatred for Shaolin had reached its peak. If not for the lingering attachments in his heart that kept a final shred of reason intact, he would likely be leading the Mount Hua Sect into war with Shaolin right now.

After venting the gloom in his heart and tidying his appearance to restore his usual gentle and refined demeanor, Ning Qingyu dragged his broken body out of seclusion.

No sooner had he exited the chamber than the lively Ning the Little Girl came bounding over like a rabbit.

"Father, you've finally come out! It's always seclusion, seclusion—you haven't spent any time with your daughter in so long..."

Clearly, the fact that Ning Qingyu was injured had been classified as a top-secret matter within the sect; even Ning Zhongze, as his daughter, was unaware of the truth.

Patting his daughter's forehead, Ning Qingyu said with affection, "Ze'er, you are a grown woman now. Don't just think about playing all day; you must practice your martial arts diligently."

The dissatisfied Ning the Little Girl retorted huffily, "I know, you're so long-winded. All you do is stay in seclusion, and Senior Brother Li is always in seclusion too, there's no one to..."

Ning Qingyu's expression fell instantly; it was clear that the "Senior Brother Li" his daughter kept mentioning was a source of great headache for him.

If his body were still healthy and he had decades to plan, he would only be happy to see the Mount Hua Sect producing such talent.

But things were different now. Having returned to the mountain to seclude himself for over half a year, he had tried every healing treasure the Mount Hua Sect could procure, yet there was not the slightest sign of improvement.

Knowing his life was nearing its end, Ning Qingyu had to consider his legacy. He felt a deep sense of belonging to the sect that had raised him and for which he had fought his entire life, and he did not want to leave a mess for his successors.

With the current level of infighting, if he could not arrange things properly in advance, there was no telling what might happen in the future.

The most realistic problem was the successor to the Sect Leader.

He had originally thought that by promoting Li Mu, he could divide the Sword Sect and the Qi Sect from within and gain an advantage in the ensuing competition.

Unfortunately, plans could not keep up with changes. The expected infighting within the Sword Sect never erupted; instead, it was the Qi Sect that suffered a rift.

The most direct reason was that Li Mu refused to take the bait. Not only did he ignore the lure, but he also chose to go into seclusion, voluntarily withdrawing from the power struggle.

Righteous sects were not like the Demonic Cult where it was a fight to the death; as long as one party withdrew from the power struggle, the other could not simply exterminate them.

No one was willing to accept a Sect Leader who lacked the capacity to tolerate others. Li Mu had chosen to step back, and if the Cai faction continued to be aggressive, they would only push the neutral elders to the opposing side.

Regardless, in the eyes of the Sword Sect disciples, Li Mu was one of their own. Compared to causing trouble for their own junior brother, everyone was more inclined to make life difficult for the Qi Sect.

Cai Buli was never a true mastermind. Seeing that Li Mu refused to show his face, and spurred on by his subordinates, he soon began clashing with his old rival, Yao Buzhou.

Yao Buzhou should have held the upper hand, but at this critical juncture, Wang Buyao of the Qi Sect made a breakthrough.

Having been stuck at the peak of the second-rate realm for years, Wang Buyao, who had broken through through his own efforts, had long been dissatisfied with Yao Buzhou, who occupied the majority of the resources.

With his strength increased, his voice within the sect naturally carried more weight.

Unwilling to continue acting as a cheerleader for Yao Buzhou, Wang Buyao gathered a group of fellow disciples who were equally dissatisfied with Yao Buzhou and formed a small clique within the Qi Sect.

Such changes among the disciples naturally influenced the stance of some elders. If one could not even manage the internal relations of the Qi Sect, how could one lead the Mount Hua Sect?

Many began to doubt Yao Buzhou's capabilities, and his prestige within the Qi Sect plummeted.

Thus, influenced by Li Mu, that great butterfly, the internal structure of the Mount Hua Sect was shattered. Originally consisting of two major factions—Sword and Qi—it had now splintered into three smaller groups each.

Excluding the neutral factions on both sides, that still left four small cliques, and the situation had become increasingly complex.

Ning Qingyu had a premonition that this was only the beginning. As the disciples of the "Bu" generation continued to make breakthroughs, the number of such small groups would only continue to grow in the future.

For the sect as a whole, the division of the Sword and Qi sects was undoubtedly a good thing; but for Ning Qingyu, who wanted to select a successor, it was a source of immense agony.

The more factions there were within the sect, the harder it was to unify their stances.

Deep down, he naturally favored his own disciple, Yao Buzhou, but given the current state of the sect, even if he were to force Yao Buzhou into the position, he would not be able to hold it.

It was not just his own disciple who was unsuitable; looking across the entire Mount Hua Sect, there was no one who could garner support from more than half the members.

"You don't know how to practice properly. A young girl, talking about 'Senior Brother Li' all day long—what kind of decorum is that!"

With the sect's affairs unresolved and the "cabbage" he had raised for over a decade seemingly about to be stolen by someone else, it was no wonder Ning Qingyu was in a foul mood.

Unfortunately, Ning the Little Girl had already developed an immunity to this level of scolding.

"Who says I haven't been practicing properly? Look, I made a breakthrough days ago. It's clearly because you don't know how to teach; if Senior Brother Li were teaching me, I would have broken through long ago."