Chapter 137: Chapter 137: Leaving the Sect to Avoid Disaster, the Jadeite Ruyi

During the conversation that followed, none of Xiao Sheng’s words came as a surprise to Su Ye.

For example:

’The immortal city fighting the Beast Tide to win the hearts of the people is just a ploy for fame, a hidden conspiracy...’

’The Cyan Profound Sect seems indifferent, but in reality, they have some profound plan or other...’

In any case, it was all nonsense.

It was in Su Ye’s nature to dislike hearing what others said; he preferred to watch what they did.

No matter how beautifully one spun their words, it couldn’t hide the facts.

In this calamitous Beast Tide, the Cyan Profound Sect, the hegemon of this sea region, had remained indifferent, allowing the Foundation Establishment families under its command to be annihilated.

How could the vile impact of this incident be soothed or dispelled with mere words?

The leaders of the Foundation Establishment families were not ignorant fools. They weren’t that easy to deceive...

Besides...

’This Mr. Xiao seems rather uninterested in this lobbying mission, doesn’t he?’

’His words have a certain perfunctory, going-through-the-motions feel to them...’

Su Ye was a little surprised.

Xiao Sheng had long been famous for his eloquence and social grace.

If he were to truly put his heart into persuading someone, perhaps... he really could have turned black into white.

But right now, this perfunctory attitude was doing nothing to help improve the Cyan Profound Sect’s reputation.

’Why is that... has he just given up?’

Su Ye’s eyes narrowed slightly, a thoughtful look passing over them.

...

"Rest assured, Mr. Xiao."

"My Luo Family has always been respectful toward the main sect. That will not change..."

"The Beast Tide won’t affect that in the slightest..."

Su Ye promised casually, his expression sincere.

He wasn’t lying. His attitude toward the Cyan Profound Sect hadn’t changed one bit before or after the Beast Tide.

—He had zero loyalty to them.

Indeed, nothing had changed. His loyalty had remained steadfastly at zero.

Very stable, and completely unaffected by the Beast Tide.

However, despite this "unspeakable loyalty," Su Ye had no intention of turning against the Cyan Profound Sect just yet.

One’s actions should match one’s strength. Given his current power, openly rebelling would be extremely unwise.

At this stage, it was best to interact with the Cyan Profound Sect by maintaining ’surface-level loyalty’ and to ’follow their orders but not their summons’!

"Alas... Mr. Su, you are a man of principle..."

After confirming that Su Ye held no ill will toward the Cyan Profound Sect,

Xiao Sheng changed the subject.

He abandoned the tedious lobbying and started making small talk with Su Ye.

Compared to the perfunctory placating, this conversation felt much more genuine.

"To be honest, I truly envy you, Mr. Su. Cultivating peacefully here on Donglong Island, with a beautiful wife by your side, what a happy life..."

"Unlike me, caught in a whirlpool, in an impossible situation..."

Xiao Sheng took a sip of Spirit Tea, his expression revealing a hint of helplessness as he sighed.

"Oh? And why is that?"

Su Ye’s eyes flickered as a thought crossed his mind.

’Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator is just a slightly more important pawn in front of those esteemed masters.’

’If you don’t pick a side... the consequences are hard to predict...’

Xiao Sheng sighed with emotion, swirling the white porcelain cup in his hand with a bitter smile.

"I am not a direct disciple of any of the Crystal Perfection masters, so I’m unwilling to get involved in their struggles. Before, I relied on my own skills and some connections to barely maintain neutrality."

"Unfortunately, under all the pressure, it’s ultimately impossible to maintain..."

"To be frank, this trip away from the sect is a mission, but it’s also a way to escape disaster..."

Xiao Sheng poured out his grievances. As he finished, he let out a sigh that was utterly sincere.

"Oh... is that really how it is?"

Hearing this, Su Ye’s eyes widened in a momentary daze.

He really hadn’t expected the internal strife among the Crystal Perfection masters in the Cyan Profound Sect had already reached such an intense level.

Even a cultivator like Xiao Sheng, so socially adept and at the Mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, was forced to leave the sect to seek refuge?

’Truly terrifying...’ Su Ye thought, then changed his line of questioning.

"Speaking of which... what exactly is the situation within the main sect?"

"I’ve always been in the dark about it, completely clueless. Could you perhaps enlighten me, Mr. Xiao?"

Su Ye’s expression was sincere; he was genuinely interested in the Cyan Profound Sect’s internal conflict.

However, the Luo Family’s rank within the Cyan Profound Sect was too low.

They couldn’t get a clear picture of the struggles between the Crystal Perfection masters.

But now, with an insider like Xiao Sheng who knew the situation inside and out, Su Ye naturally wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass.

"Well..."

A hint of hesitation appeared on Xiao Sheng’s face.

"Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for you, Mr. Xiao..."

Su Ye smiled and handed over a Storage Pouch.

Xiao Sheng took the Storage Pouch, and when his Divine Sense swept over it, his expression changed.

However, after a moment,

he waved his hand, not accepting the Storage Pouch, and sighed.

"This information isn’t a secret to Foundation Establishment cultivators like me who have been in the sect for decades."

"Since you wish to hear it, Mr. Su, I’ll make an exception and explain it to you..."

"Of course... we shouldn’t air our dirty laundry in public."

"Mr. Su, it’s one thing to tell Miss Luo... but don’t spread it any further!"

Xiao Sheng added as a warning.

"I understand." Su Ye’s gaze was serious as he nodded sincerely.

He understood the stakes and was not one to gossip or spread rumors.

...

Within the Cyan Profound Sect, there are currently five Crystal Perfection cultivators.

They are [Hongri], [Zhaoxia], [Qinghe], [Shenling], and [Tianhe]!

The five great Crystal Perfection masters!

And they are divided into two factions.

Hongri and Zhaoxia belong to one faction.

The other three belong to the other faction!

"Hongri is a veteran master of our sect."

"This master studied under the previous Qingxuan, possesses profound cultivation, has formed three divine seeds, and wishes to achieve a Three-Method Golden Core..."

"And this is the very source of the direct conflict between him and the other three Crystal Perfection masters..." Xiao Sheng explained steadily.

The root of the conflict among the Crystal Perfection masters in the Cyan Profound Sect was, as always, resources!

To be precise,

—the resources to achieve the Golden Core!

Qingxuan passed away a hundred years ago. Now, within the Cyan Profound Sect, those who have reached Crystal Perfection and are qualified to attempt breaking through to the Golden Core Realm...

...are two people: [Hongri] and [Qinghe]!

Of course, this doesn’t mean that...

...in the entire, vast Cyan Profound Sect, only two people are qualified to vie for the Golden Core.

In fact, there have been other Crystal Perfection cultivators who wanted to break through to the Golden Core Realm before.

But unfortunately, their foundations were insufficient...

After barely managing to condense a True Method Golden Core, one couldn’t even survive the Heart Demon Tribulation and died on the spot...

The only good news was that he died so quickly that the treasures prepared for the Thunder Tribulation were not wasted!

You could say: the man died, but the treasures remained!

However, the failure of this Crystal Perfection master...

...also wasted a precious Core Formation Spiritual Object, as well as numerous treasures for dealing with the Heart Demon Tribulation.

Currently, after decades of accumulation, the Cyan Profound Sect only has a single Core Formation Spiritual Object!

The treasures and resources for dealing with the Heart Demon Tribulation are also only enough for one person...

So, naturally,

the Crystal Perfection masters are fighting endlessly over it. No one is willing to give up!

"And besides that, the thing they are fighting over most fiercely..."

"...is the fourth-tier Spiritual Treasure left behind by the previous Qingxuan after he passed away: the [Jadeite Ruyi]!"

"The masters want to use the power of the Spiritual Treasure to resist the Golden Core Thunder Tribulation..."

Xiao Sheng said in a low voice.