Right and Wrong, Hard to Tell Apart

The two found a secluded military tent, lifted the spiritual seal, and dismissed their attendants.

"When did you find out, fellow Daoist?" Kang Dabao asked, his voice tinged with melancholy, his brows furrowed, his expression complex beyond words.

A Breeze Formation breeze stirred within the tent, brushing against Qin Sufu's hair. As stray hairs lightly brushed against his cheeks, a ray of warm sunlight slanted down from the glass curtain wall above the tent. This halo of light seemed to linger on him, clinging to his body, unyielding to the wind.

The phrase "a gentleman as handsome as jade" is indeed very fitting to describe him.

The Sect Leader Kang Da had envied his close fellow Daoist's handsome face countless times before, but now, even though his State of Mind had matured considerably, a trace of envy still seeped into his heart.

"I thought you, my brother, would be like me, occasionally letting things slide." Qin Sufu's voice was low and full of exhaustion.

Kang Dabao's expression relaxed, and he stammered, "That was my intention, but..."

Qin Sufu interjected, "I suspect it's Brother Pei who has passed away, isn't it?"

"."

Kang Dabao remained silent, his face filled with sorrow. Qin Sufu stopped pressing him for details. He simply sighed, closed his eyes, and said, "Your disciple and his mother look so alike. When I first met them, I felt a strange sensation that I couldn't forget."

And every time I visited, Brother Pei would refuse to see me. How could I not know after all this time? After all, this is the only time I've ever done this in my life."

Upon hearing this, Kang Dabao's eyes flashed with pain. At the same time, Pei Yi's weary voice floated in his ears. "Junior brother lost his mother at the age of three. After his stepmother gave birth to his younger brother, she treated my younger brother and me even more harshly. She didn't care about our biological father or our clan."

In the winter of the sixth year, the weather was extremely cold, and the ice on the Great Ling River was more than five feet thick. My younger brother fell ill with a high fever that wouldn't go down. We had no money at home and couldn't find a doctor, so my stepmother asked me to go out and break the ice to catch carp so I could cook soup to help my younger brother get better.

Even though I was wearing a cloth robe, the cold wind was still biting. After three days of digging, I still couldn't find any carp and fell seriously ill. My father still didn't care, and my stepmother continued to beat and scold me. At that time, my younger brother, who was only four years old, went to the door of every household in the clan and kowtowed to them one by one. After much difficulty, he finally managed to get a pot of hot porridge to keep me alive.

After that, my parents continued to rarely inquire about us. My younger brother and I always had only coarse grains and wild vegetables to fill our stomachs. Occasionally, a kind person in the clan would take pity on us and we could barely get a full meal. This situation only improved when my junior brother ascended to heaven at the age of seven and became a disciple of our master.

My younger brother has no Spirit Root and cannot cultivate, but because of me, he has gained the support of various families in the clan, and has fertile land, mansions, gold, silver and children, so he is quite settled. Even when Master took me away from the sect temporarily, I did not forget to take my younger brother's family with me. But I never expected that this time, it would harm my younger brother and sister-in-law.

The year Que'er was born, my master and I glimpsed a spiritual opportunity on the road and left behind a group of mortals to search for the treasure. However, we were tricked by three severely injured Evil Cultivator who, on a whim, lured us away from the mountain and wanted to use the mortals from the Pei and Li families as food for healing.

In just a few breaths, hundreds were killed or wounded, the cries of agony filling the air. At this moment, however, a cultivator stepped forward to help.

Kang Dabao remembered that when Pei Yi arrived here, he paused and then said in a low voice, "Qin Sufu wielded the axe to help, killing the Evil Cultivator and saving the lives of everyone present."

However, he didn't want to be poisoned by the Evil Cultivator's "Gossamer Powder" during the fierce battle. Unable to dispel it in time, he desperately sought a woman to dispel the poison and prevent it from seeping into his heart. His sister-in-law was thus abducted. His younger brother, brave and resolute, did not retreat, but in his attempt to stop him, he was grazed by the sharp light of the rising magic axe, and his body was never recovered.

"However, Qin Sufu, perhaps out of concern for his reputation, a sense of guilt, or a lingering sense of goodwill, did not silence the mortals who witnessed the incident. But he did not expect that the young patriarch of the Pei Household family, who had been climbing the mountain every year to deliver spring vegetables and winter fruits to me, had once witnessed Qin Sufu discussing the Dao with us and had etched his divine face into his memory."

Pei Yi raised his eyes and cast his gaze upon Sect Leader Kang Da, sighing with melancholy:

"I told him he must never tell anyone about this, not even our master, so as not to cause him unnecessary trouble. Senior brother, you must have only learned of this terrible thing when you passed by Shandu Ridge once, when this old man, who longs for his homeland, came to the sect leader to complain?"

Kang Dabao's expression was solemn, and he nodded in agreement.

Pei Yi's face showed no emotion, only his voice trembled slightly:

"So, senior brother, do you think junior brother should hold this grudge?"

"So, senior brother, do you think junior brother can rest assured?"

"So, in your opinion, is Qin Sufu right or wrong?"

A sharp glint flashed in Sect Leader Kang Da. The image of Pei Yi dying with resentment flashed through his mind, forcing him to suppress the turmoil in his heart. Even though he knew he had no right to ask this question, he still spoke firmly, "Brother Dao, do you think you are wrong?"

Qin Sufu was slightly surprised, but the worry between his brows vanished in an instant. He didn't answer Kang Dabao's question, but simply asked in a calm voice, "Whether you believe it or not, brother, in all my years of cultivation, I've only done this once."

"Isn't it wrong to do it once?!"

"So you can't even do it once?!" Qin Sufu roared, his voice so powerful it could have shattered the camp walls outside the tent.

Caught off guard, Kang Dabao's momentum was diminished by Qin Sufu said, "After harming that woman, I followed Lord Shan to restrain the Rogue Cultivator and comfort the common people. I have saved so many people who deserved to die that I can't even count them myself!"

If I were to lose my life there, who would do these things?! Would you, a peddler who only knows how to talk to people in a certain way and is only good at sweet talk, do them?!

Kang Dabao was caught off guard by Qin Sufu's outburst and didn't know how to respond. Qin Sufu, however, had been holding this matter in for a long time, and now that it was exposed, it was out of control.

"If I hadn't saved him back then, would your apprentice have ever grown up?!"

"If I hadn't saved him back then, would I have never suffered from this heart condition all these years?!"

"If I hadn't saved him then, wouldn't I have gained a brother and lost an enemy?!"

"If I hadn't saved you then, would it be your place Alliance Leader Kang Da, coming all the way to my door to question me now?!"

Kang Dabao's imposing manner vanished, and he was rendered speechless by the questioning. However, Qin Sufu did not stop there; he continued to ask:

"If I had only harmed an ordinary woman, not Pei Yi's sister-in-law, would you and he have come to thank me afterwards, or would you still hold a grudge against me?"

"If I had only harmed an ordinary woman back then, not Pei Yi's sister-in-law, would I have been free of these superfluous thoughts and my inner knots untied, or would I still be suffering this torment of conscience all these years?! Wasting my spiritual practice?!"

Although Qin Sufu spoke softly, Kang Dabao's mind was shaken by these questions, and he remained silent for a long time, unable to answer.

After a long while, Sect Leader Kang Da realized he could not stay any longer. So he bowed again, turned his back, and left.

"Please wait a moment, Sect Leader Kang,"

Kang Dabao paused, slowly turned around, and saw that although Qin Sufu's eyes were still bloodshot, the anger on his face had subsided considerably.

Seeing Kang Dabao turn around, Qin Sufu let out another long sigh, as if he had finally expelled all the pent-up frustration in his heart. He took a deep breath and forced a warm expression onto his face. "If Sect Leader Kang still considers me his brother in the future, then I will not forget you, my little brother."

Sect Leader Kang Da trembled, offering no reply, but instead bowed deeply again. "I hope you will never forget Lord Shan's teachings over the years, and never forget the orphaned boy that our master carried out of the water."

Qin Sufu's fierce expression suddenly hardened, and then his confidence vanished. He remained silent, watching Kang Dabao's figure disappear from the front of the tent.

The sun gradually set, and the halo surrounding him had dissipated at some point, leaving only a solitary figure standing silently in the dark military tent.

Ten days later, Little Ring Mountain

Despite his busy schedule, Sect Leader Kang Da still managed to leave the front lines of the land reclamation project and return to the mountains. Without informing anyone, he went alone to Pei Yi's coffin.

He stood there, suddenly recalling the scene when he, along with Han Yundao and Duan Anle, reunited with the Pei Household uncle and nephew at the Fish Mountain Market, and sighed inwardly.

Of all the people present, only Duan Anle remained by his side.

Besides Kang Rongquan, who had returned from Wild Fox Mountain, Yuan Changsheng, who had rushed back from the front lines of the Pitu Temple, and Ye Yaoling, whose injuries had not yet healed, the person who had been guarding the coffin was also Little Wu Meng, the close follower of the Sect Leader Kang Da.

That little boy from back then is now nearing sixty, and his loyal and adorable appearance is long gone. Now that Sect Leader Kang Da is a Foundation Establishment, comparable to False Core- True Cultivator, he no longer needs an old, mortal Martial Ancestor to serve him.

However, Kang Dabao never revoked the title of the sect leader's personal attendant, which was enough to allow Little Wu Meng to live a carefree life on Little Ring Mountain, which was full of cultivators.

"Sect Leader, you're finally back!" Wu Meng, his eyes red, stepped forward and bowed. Sect Leader Kang Da forced a smile and said calmly, "Junior Brother Pei told me last time that your eldest grandson, Little Wu Meng, Spirit Root the Immortal Ascension Assembly a few years ago and has been cultivating at the Nurturing Qilin Hall. That's wonderful. You should return home and enjoy your grandson's company."

"Yes," Wu Meng replied, his face still showing grief. Kang Dabao stopped talking to him and instead moved closer to Pei Yi's coffin, scrutinizing the latter's face.

Inside the coffin were several preservative herbs, carefully selected by the Lady Kuai, all of which were flavors that Pei Yi had liked during his lifetime, without any conflicting effects. When Pei Yi's disciples saw their sect leader return to the clan, they could no longer hide their sorrow, each with tears in their eyes, a truly moving sight.

Kang Dabao remained silent for a moment, and no one could discern the change in his heart. They only heard him ask in a deep voice, "Did Junior Brother Pei leave any unfinished words in the letter before he passed away?"

Lady Kuai was already sobbing uncontrollably and behaving improperly. Ye Zhengwen frowned and did not answer. Only Kang Rongquan, the senior brother who was leading the group, came forward to respond.

"Before his departure, Master said that the Li and Pei families were originally sinners of the sect, and it was only through the sect leader's benevolence that they were able to return to the sect and share in its glory. Master said he had come to his senses and asked the sect leader to prioritize the greater good and not to let the Pei Household's actions delay the sect's important affairs."

Seeing the doubt on Kang Rongquan's face as he spoke, Kang Dabao knew that Pei Yi hadn't told anyone a word before leaving. He felt relieved and muttered, "Why did my junior brother speak such Outer Dao language before leaving?"

After a sigh of disappointment, Kang Dabao continued, "I went in place of my junior brother. I asked him, but he couldn't answer; he asked me, but I couldn't answer either. I went there full of resentment and returned full of disappointment."

Senior brother, I am not capable of discerning right from wrong in this matter. I can only promise junior brother that, in the future, under Double Brightness's jurisdiction, unless there is a situation beyond one's capabilities, there will be absolutely no way for Evil Cultivator to survive."

After saying this, Sect Leader Kang Da only kept Pei Yi's face in his mind, and then, without speaking to anyone else in the hall, he turned around and rushed to the front line of the land reclamation, never looking back.