Central Lands, Yu Province, Mount Fangcun.
Little Green Peak.
Since Jiang Yingxue had followed her elder sister into the Mortal Dust Immortal Sect, voices within Mount Fangcun had proposed sealing off Little Green Peak or merging its disciples into other lineages.
Either would leave the peak existing in name alone.
But every such proposal had been rejected by Mount Fangcun's current master,
Nong Mu, the Righteous Dao's sole Supreme Grandmaster.
With Nong Mu's present standing, his word carried the weight of a mountain.
Little Green Peak was thus preserved, though its position of peak master remained vacant.
Three months ago, the peak's disciples had jointly chosen Qi Ling as their new peak master.
They had also invited Nie Qingzhu to serve as acting deputy peak master and help Qi Ling manage the peak's affairs.
Though Nie Qingzhu had only reached the middle stage of the Dragon Court Realm, her long experience commanded everyone's respect.
The disciples she had taught as an elder were now the pillars of the peak.
In years past, Little Green Peak had seemed poised to rise among Mount Fangcun's top three lineages.
Then it had toppled overnight, its former glory gone.
With two successive peak masters defecting from the sect, its disciples had often endured mockery from the other lineages.
The peak, too, had lost its old drive to forge ahead.
Over the past six years, Little Green Peak had grown steadily quieter.
Yet lately, it had once again become the focus of every eye and the center of discussion throughout the sect.
Ripples had even spread across all of Yu Province in the Central Lands.
And the cause was someone from Little Green Peak who had died years ago.
Zhou Jing, once a disciple of Little Green Peak.
Today, behind Little Green Peak.
Before a