Leaving the Heaven Sect

Xu Qi'an ignored the Celestial Venerable's question, descended from the sky, and stood lightly beside Li Miaozhen.

He first checked on the Flying Swallow Heroine's condition. Her injuries were not serious; even for the physically weak Daoist School, they were only minor injuries that could be recovered in ten to fifteen days.

What's truly terrible is Li Miaozhen's Primordial Spirit condition. To put it simply, it's like an ordinary person being stabbed and the bleeding not stopping; their life is being lost in large quantities along with the blood.

Li Miaozhen's Primordial Spirit was in this state, as weak as a candle flickering in the wind, seemingly about to be extinguished at any moment.

"That's only two lashes. If you were hit by the five-lash lightning strike, even a god couldn't save you," Xu Qi'an muttered. The only reason he could still complain was because Li Miaozhen wouldn't be in danger.

Her body contained a powerful medicinal force that nourished her weakened Primordial Spirit, like a clear spring gushing forth from parched, cracked ground.

"What are you looking at!"

Li Miaozhen didn't even have the strength to sit up, but her tone was still fierce. She glanced at him with unfocused eyes, turned her head away, and muttered:

"That's incredibly embarrassing."

"Too competitive, "Xu Qi'an chuckled, teasingly saying.

"You've embarrassed yourself in front of me more than once or twice. Look, even Asuro is laughing."

He was referring to the mass deaths on the 2nd, 4th, and 7th.

Asuluo didn't laugh, but Li Miaozhen was so angry she laughed. She wanted to clench her fist and punch the man surnamed Xu, but she was too weak, so weak she felt she could die at any moment.

What are your plans to do?

Li Miaozhen's beautiful eyes were half-open, and she spoke in a weak voice.

She feared that Xu Qi'an might act impulsively and wreak havoc or cause widespread destruction within the Heavenly Sect, something she did not want to see.

Xu Qi'an took off his outer robe and covered her with it, then got up and walked towards the Heavenly Venerable Hall.

Do you remember what I said to you in Jianzhou?

His voice carried from afar.

What did she say? Li Miaozhen lay on the high platform, with the blue sky above and the sunlight somewhat dazzling. She seemed to have thought of something, and her long eyelashes trembled slightly.

Li Miaozhen strained to open her eyes, twisted her neck, and watched the figure enter the Heavenly Venerable Hall.

What echoed in my ears was a sentence he had said back in Jianzhou:

If you fear gossip, or the opinions of your fellow disciples, then I can take you away.

Just kidding!

A prophetic statement!

The disciples of the Heavenly Sect, along with Luo Yuheng, Jinlian, and Asuluo, three extraordinary experts, watched Xu Qi'an enter the Heavenly Venerable Hall. Silence reigned, and no one spoke.

The elders, along with Bingyi Yuanjun and Xuancheng Daoist, maintained their unchanging indifference, but the ordinary disciples' hearts were in their throats.

At this moment, they weren't thinking, "It would be best to let the Celestial Venerable teach these rude bastards a lesson," or "Those who dare to act wildly before my Celestial Venerable will pay the price." Instead, they were thinking, "What if a fight breaks out?" and "Let's run! That's a first-rank martial artist!"

The people of the Heavenly Sect, including the elders, were completely unprepared for Xu Qi'an to go to such lengths for Li Miaozhen, and for Jin Lian, the leader of the Earthly Sect, to dare to come and threaten them.

How did the Holy Maiden, a mere fourth-rank official, manage to cultivate such a deep network of connections during her three-year travels after descending the mountain?

Although the Heavenly Sect knew that the Holy Son and Holy Daughter had connections with the Golden Lotus of the Earthly Sect and with Xu Qi'an of the Silver Gong, their willingness to interfere in the internal affairs of the Heavenly Sect for Li Miaozhen and offend the Heavenly Sect was a different matter altogether.

Stepping into the magnificent and imposing hall, Xu Qi'an casually glanced around before turning his gaze to the figure sitting cross-legged on the lotus platform high on the throne.

His hair and beard were white, and he hung his head like a drowsy old man, with a four-colored halo rotating behind his head.

In Xu Qi'an's eyes, the Celestial Venerable on the lotus platform was like a projection, a projection from another world.

"Transcending the cycle of reincarnation, outside the Five Elements," Xu Qi'an thought spontaneously. "You seem to be almost integrated with the Heavenly Dao."

"The struggle between Celestial Person and Man can help me stabilize human nature."

The Heavenly Venerable's grand voice echoed within the hall, seemingly coming from all directions, with no clear source.

He didn't press Xu Qi'an about why he knew the secrets of the Heavenly Sect, whether it was because he had expected it or because he had perfectly controlled his emotions.

Curiosity is also one of the emotions of living beings.

"Why can the struggle between Celestial Person and man help you regain your humanity and help the leader of the Human Sect overcome the heavenly tribulation?" Xu Qi'an asked the question that had been buried in his heart for a long time.

Why should I tell you!

The Celestial Venerable asked the question.

His rhetorical questions were devoid of personal emotion; they weren't meant to be argumentative, but were purely questions.

"In exchange, you can also ask me a question," Xu Qi'an replied.

"Fair!"

The Celestial Venerable lowered his head, his voice echoing. "The cultivation methods of the Human Sect and the Celestial Sect are completely different, yet they can complement each other. The conflict between Celestial Person and Man is each other's salvation."

The Celestial Venerable's answer was like a programmed response, without detailed explanation, just a straightforward statement.

The Human Sect's mental cultivation method leads to being consumed by karmic fire, and the seven emotions and six desires erode one's foundation for cultivation. In contrast, the Heavenly Sect's mental cultivation method is precisely about transcending emotions and achieving oneness with Celestial Person. "So that's how it is," Xu Qi'an suddenly realized.

This makes sense. The karmic fire of the Human Sect might be a good remedy for the Heavenly Sect, allowing the Heavenly Venerable to regain some of his humanity, fighting poison with poison. Similarly, the Heavenly Sect's Supreme Forgetfulness could also quell the karmic fire of the Human Sect.

"To complement each other through a life-or-death struggle?" Xu Qi'an asked.

"We will plunder each other's primordial spiritual power!" the Celestial Venerable replied.

Xu Qi'an originally wanted to ask why the leaders of the Human Sect and the Heavenly Sect in previous generations did not complement each other through dual cultivation, but then he thought about it and realized that the previous leader of the Human Sect was a man.

The celestial lords of different dynasties were not necessarily male and female; they could be male-male or female-female.

Furthermore, the High Antiquity Daoist School dual cultivation technique had long been lost. The reason Luo Yuheng agreed to cultivate with him was not only because he possessed great fortune, but also because he had mastered this Secret Method.

Finally, during his dual cultivation with Luo Yuheng, although both of them increased their Law Technique abilities and energy, it was their luck that extinguished the karmic fire—a process of giving without receiving anything in return. The complementarity between Celestial Person and man may not be suitable for dual cultivation.

"So often both sides suffer heavy losses, or one dies and the other is injured?"

"A mutually destructive outcome often indicates a stalemate, with both sides gaining something, which is considered a relatively good result," the Celestial Venerable replied.

Xu Qi'an nodded and asked:

"Why shouldn't the Earth Sect participate? Are the merits of the Earth Sect useless to the Celestial Person and Human Sects?"

"Merit will allow me to ascend directly and merge with the Heavenly Dao. Merit will also entangle the Human Sect in karma, risking demonic possession and certain death." The Heavenly Venerable replied emotionlessly.

"The Earth Sect is truly unloved by anyone," Xu Qi'an thought to himself, then said:

"It's your turn to ask."

"I have no problem!" The Celestial Venerable's voice was loud and indifferent.

So when you said "fairness" earlier, you really just felt it was fair, and didn't actually have a question for me? Xu Qi'an slowly exhaled, about to speak, when the Heavenly Venerable added:

"You can put it in the book first!"

Do we need to draw up a written agreement? Xu Qi'an nodded:

"Good!

"I have another question. What are your thoughts on the Daoist Master?"

The Daoist Master remained silent for a moment before his grand voice rang out:

"A pitiful man, all three methods he tried in his later years failed."

"What is he trying to do?" Xu Qi'an asked casually.

"I don't know," the Celestial Venerable replied.

There was silence for a moment, then Xu Qi'an suddenly remembered something and said:

"Dao Zun's Heavenly Sect avatar merged with the Heavenly Dao, while his Earthly Sect avatar cultivated himself into the Earthly Book. Both the Heavenly Sect Dao Leader and the Earthly Sect Dao Leader know these secrets. So why doesn't the Human Sect Dao Leader know what became of Dao Zun's Human Sect avatar?"

He once asked Luo Yuheng if there were any records of the Daoist Master in the ancient books of the Human Sect.

Luo Yuheng's answer was no.

At that time, Xu Qi'an's cultivation was still shallow, and he thought that the Daoist was too mysterious and that people of later generations did not understand him very well.

As his cultivation level has increased and he has learned more and more secrets, he has come to realize that both the Heaven and Earth Sects knew about the Dao Venerable's clone, but the Human Sect was unaware of it.

"The Daoist Venerable's avatar in the Human Realm is still alive." The Heavenly Venerable succinctly and unemotionally revealed this enormous secret.

As expected, Xu Qi'an was not surprised or shocked. Instead, he breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a sense of satisfaction as if a raised boot had finally fallen.

He continued:

"I want to take the Holy Maiden with me. Please, Heavenly Venerable, grant my request."

The Celestial Venerable asked directly:

"If you don't grant my request!"

Xu Qi'an also spoke frankly:

"Then let's begin the battle between the Celestial Person and the mortals ahead of schedule today. The four of us will fight against you alone!"

After weighing the pros and cons, the Celestial Venerable gave a perfectly rational and calm reply:

"Li Miaozhen had no further connection with the Tianzong sect after that."

After a pause, the Celestial Venerable said:

"After the conflict between Celestial Person and Man, the Heavenly Sect closed its mountain, and no one is allowed to disturb it anymore."

Xu Qi'an nodded in agreement, and then took the opportunity to propose another condition:

"During the battle between Celestial Person and Man, the battlefield must be within the Central Plains. I will not interfere in your battle with Luo Yuheng, but I will protect her life. On that basis, I will not care how much primordial spiritual power you can plunder, or how much primordial spiritual power she can plunder."

He can use his power to intimidate others, but he can't go too far. The Heavenly Sect is not weak. Apart from the Heavenly Venerable, Ice-Yi Yuanjun and Xuancheng Daoist are both third-grade Yang Gods.

The Celestial Venerable remained silent, tacitly agreeing to his suggestion.

Outside the hall, a group of people were closely watching the situation inside the Heavenly Venerable Hall. The hall door was open, and they could see Xu Qi'an and the Heavenly Venerable, but they could not hear any sound.

However, the relatively calm attitude of both sides put the minds of the Tianzong disciples at ease.

At least we don't have to worry about being caught in the crossfire of a major war.

Luo Yuheng and Daoist Jinlian looked relaxed. As fellow Daoist School, they knew that Tianzong was the most calm and rational.

When dealing with matters, they will first weigh the pros and cons, and will not act impulsively and fight you to the death.

Beside Master Xuancheng, Li Lingsu felt relaxed, knowing she was about to escape a calamity.

To be honest, when he was in Yongzhou, he was terrified when faced with the "search and capture" by his master and Bingyi Yuanjun.

After that incident, Li Lingsu was constantly worried about her sect's attitude. She knew she would be punished when she returned, but she couldn't come up with a solution and just hoped that the day would pass.

At that time, the Heavenly Sect was too powerful, and indeed no one could help them.

During her time in seclusion at her sect, Li Lingsu heard that Xu Qi'an had been promoted to the first rank. She felt a pang of envy, yet inwardly exclaimed:

That scumbag did a great job!

He knew that he and his junior sister were saved.

At this moment, everyone saw Xu Qi'an inside the hall turn around and walk out of the hall.

All eyes were focused on him.

The results are out?

Will the Heavenly Sect still punish the Holy Maiden?

Amidst the myriad thoughts swirling among the disciples of the Heavenly Sect, the majestic voice of the Heavenly Venerable resounded in their ears:

"From this day forward, Li Miaozhen has no further connection with the Heavenly Sect."

The crowd erupted in uproar.

The disciples were filled with anger, frustration, and relief, their feelings a complex mix.

It was obvious that the Celestial Venerable had compromised. But there was nothing that could be done about it; it wasn't that the Celestial Sect wasn't tough enough, it was that they were too strong.

Miao Zhen left the sect, so what about me? Li Lingsu stood there dumbfounded.

He immediately took a deep breath and thought to himself, forget about all this, let's leave Tianzong first.

Li Miaozhen had a premonition about leaving the sect. She wasn't surprised, but overwhelmed with grief, she struggled to her feet, bowed to Bingyi Yuanjun, and choked out:

"This disciple is unworthy and has failed my master."

Master Xuancheng glanced at Bingyi Yuanjun, whose face was expressionless and whose emotions were unreadable. She took out a fragment of the Earth Book from her sleeve, tossed it beside the high platform, and said calmly:

Let's go, never to meet again in this life!

Li Miaozhen wept uncontrollably.

Xu Qi'an walked up to the high platform, picked up the fragment of Li Miaozhen's Earth Book, picked her up in his arms, nodded slightly to Jinlian and the others, and said:

Let's go!

The several extraordinary individuals immediately transformed into streaks of light and vanished from the sight of the Heavenly Sect members.

It was finally over. Li Lingsu breathed a sigh of relief, but then she immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Huh? What about me?!

"You haven't taken me away yet! Hey, come back now!" The Holy Son slowly opened his mouth, his expression gradually stiffening.

He suddenly felt that the world was so cold, without a trace of warmth.

Just as he was filled with despair, he heard the cold voice of Daoist Xuancheng:

"Get out of here!"

Li Lingsu's eyes reddened, her nose tingled, and she stammered, "I... I didn't want to leave the sect. I will come back."

He wanted to kowtow, but fearing that Tianzong might suddenly change his mind, he steeled himself, mounted his sword, and chased after the direction where Xu Qi'an and the others had disappeared.

No one stopped him.

"Bingyi, enter the palace!"

The voice of the Celestial Venerable resounded.

Bingyi Yuanjun withdrew her gaze and turned to enter the Heavenly Venerable Hall.

The Celestial Venerable sat cross-legged on the lotus throne, his head bowed, his voice echoing throughout the hall:

"Your karmic ties with the Holy Maiden and her disciples have ended; you have relinquished your mortal desires and are preparing to advance to the second rank."

Bingyi Yuanjun bowed respectfully.

"Yes!

"Thank you, Heavenly Venerable One, for granting my wish!"