Chapter 289: Chapter 289: Factional Strife

His gaze shifted to the gray-robed elder with murky eyes. "Senior Brother Cui, Yunfan was recently at the Langhuan Book Tower comprehending the Mountain-Slaying Sword. Why don’t we take this opportunity to test his progress and send him to the Sword Burial Abyss..."

Before he could finish, the red-faced elder on the right suddenly snorted coldly, and the Wooden Sword at his waist hummed without any wind.

Xu Yunfan instantly felt a sharp Sword Intent sweep over his body, as if intending to slice open his very marrow for inspection. His muscles tensed instinctively, and he pushed his Dragon and Tiger Hibernation Skill to its absolute limit, quickly concealing his aura.

"His Powerful Qi is condensed but held back. He’s good raw material, but the Strength in his body is too mixed... What in the world has he been practicing?"

Cui Yu’s figure flickered. Like a phantom, he materialized between Xu Yunfan and the red-faced elder, muttering under his breath.

His wide gray robes billowed without a wind, and the aura around him spread out silently, making his silhouette shimmer with a faint light. It completely intercepted the blade-like gaze of Li Zhi, the Peak Leader of Dragon and Tiger Peak.

Li Zhi’s brow furrowed, and a cold snort escaped his nose.

The Wooden Sword at his waist quivered, sliding half an inch from its sheath with a soft SHING, but he ultimately made no further move. Even a Ninth Realm Grandmaster had to give face to the head of the Punishment Hall, especially since Cui Yu’s own power was considerable.

Xu Yunfan took it all in. ’So the Taoist Sect isn’t a monolith after all,’ he thought. The situation spoke volumes.

’It seems many in the Taoist Sect are unhappy that Bi Yuan took me as his disciple.’

"Young man, you don’t mind if this old one lends a hand, do you?"

The candlelight in the hall flickered, casting deeper shadows on Cui Yu’s withered face.

When he grinned, his jade-colored teeth looked particularly eerie in the shifting light and shadows.

The man’s bones, and even his teeth, had been refined until they had the quality of jade.

Though Xu Yunfan’s expression remained calm, his nerves were taut. ’The factions within the Taoist Sect are complex. The attitude of this head of the Punishment Hall could decide my immediate future.’

He glanced at Bi Yuan on the high seat from the corner of his eye. When he saw his master tap the Jade Table and give a nearly imperceptible nod, his heart settled. Cui Yu was one of the Sect Leader’s people.

He immediately cupped his fists and said, "Please, Leader Cui, I await your guidance."

"You’re a clever one, Martial Nephew."

Cui Yu let out a low chuckle, his twig-like hand already on Xu Yunfan’s wrist.

In an instant, a stream of True Qi, both cold like the Taiyin attribute yet dignified and orthodox, drilled into his meridians like a venomous snake. The moment it touched his flesh, however, it transformed into a gentle spring rain, meticulously examining every inch of his sinews and bones.

’This must be a Taoist True Skill of the Taiyin Attribute...’

Xu Yunfan subconsciously circulated his Dragon and Tiger Hibernation Skill, concealing all traces of his mixed aura. But Cui Yu’s Cultivation was far beyond his imagination. That wisp of True Qi was like silk being unraveled from a cocoon, peeling back his disguise layer by layer!

"This Dragon and Tiger Hibernation Skill... I created it..."

Cui Yu grinned, but his laughter died abruptly, his expression tinged with a hint of disbelief.

Under his senses, Xu Yunfan’s Three Jiao Sword Force was like a dormant Flood Dragon, its sharpness faintly visible within his Triple Jiao Meridians, while the Nine Luminaries Blood Qi surged through his flesh.

Deeper still, drawn out by Cui Yu’s probing Qi, the phenomenon of the Jade Bone Chime—a product of the Yijing Marrow Cleansing Skill—was laid completely bare...

Cui Yu’s pupils shrank as a tidal wave of shock crashed through his mind.

’This boy has only just entered the Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm, yet his body has integrated the top cultivation techniques from all the Great Zhou Sects! They operate with a bizarre smoothness, not interfering with each other but blending together. It’s the nascent form of the Ten Thousand Laws Return to the Stream!’

He forcefully suppressed his shock, his face betraying nothing, and gave Xu Yunfan a deep look, as if to pierce his very soul.

Xu Yunfan couldn’t help but return a smile.

But in return, he received a look from Cui Yu as if he were staring at a monster.

’So many Martial Arts in one body... his Blood Qi has been tempered several times, and yet there are no issues. If it were anyone else...’

After a long moment, Cui Yu withdrew his hand, turned to Bi Yuan, and nodded solemnly. "His foundation is profound and he is blessed by Destiny. He is indeed qualified to enter the Sword Burial Abyss."

Before his voice had faded, the red-faced elder, Li Zhi, suddenly sneered, "The Sword Burial Abyss is a Soldier Resolution Holy Land. How can we allow an outsider to desecrate it?"

The Wooden Sword at his waist hummed, its Sword Intent as cold as frost.

Cui Yu’s gray robes billowed as he materialized in front of Xu Yunfan like a phantom, a sharp light bursting from his murky eyes. "Junior Brother Li, do you dare question the Sect Leader’s Decree?"

His aura was like an abyss, and he forcibly severed the sharp Sword Intent.

He then sneered, "Xu Yunfan is now the Sect Leader’s second True Inheritor. Whether he is worthy or not is not for your Dragon and Tiger Peak to decide."

The air in the hall grew still.

Bi Yuan, however, seemed completely oblivious. He gave his Duster a light flick and said gently to Xu Yunfan, "In that case, have Cangming take you to the Sword Burial Abyss tomorrow at 7:00 AM."

His tone was level, but his words were final.

Xu Yunfan bowed and accepted. He caught a glimpse of Li Zhi’s ashen face from the corner of his eye. ’The waters of the Taoist Sect run even deeper than I imagined...’

Just as he was about to turn and leave, Li Zhi suddenly spoke.

"Wait."

Before Li Zhi’s words had faded, the candlelight in the hall suddenly dimmed, as if the very air had been sliced apart by the sharpness in his voice.

He tilted his neck up slightly, his gaze like a poisoned dagger stabbing straight at Bi Yuan. "The Sword Burial Abyss is a forbidden land designated by the Ancestral Master! According to sect rules, anyone who enters the abyss requires the joint approval of the leaders of at least half of the Thirty-Six Peaks. This boy has just joined the Taoist Sect. What right does he have to be an exception?"

Bi Yuan’s Duster froze in mid-air. A faint light swirled in the depths of his eyes, looking exceptionally mystical.

He stared at Li Zhi for a long moment, then suddenly chuckled. "Junior Brother Li, are you trying to use the Profound Celestial Ancestral Teachings to pressure me?"

His voice was still gentle, but it made the bronze lamps hanging from the ceiling tremble without any wind.

The gray-robed elder, Cui Yu, quietly shifted his position, his withered hand now resting on Xu Yunfan’s shoulder. A gentle but yin-aspected Qi Force enveloped and protected him. The head of the Punishment Hall had clearly sensed the surging undercurrent of conflict.

Xu Yunfan saw it clearly. ’Li Zhi and Bi Yuan obviously have a long-standing grudge, otherwise they would never have shed all pretenses like this.’

"I wouldn’t dare."

Li Zhi sneered as a Jade Scroll slid from his sleeve. "I am merely reminding the Sect Leader that when Chu Cangming entered the abyss three years ago, he did so with the Cyan Jade Tokens from nineteen Peak Leaders, earned fair and square."

He deliberately emphasized the three words "fair and square," his gaze sweeping over the silent Elders in the corner of the hall.

From the moment Xu Yunfan first entered the hall, these silent Elders had not said a word, sitting there with an air of detached composure.

Xu Yunfan understood at once.

’They’re clearly using the Sect’s old rules to stop me from entering the Sword Burial Abyss. They must have already found out about my true foundation.’

’Reaching the Marrow Cleansing stage in two years... If I were Bi Yuan’s rival, I’d be losing sleep over it too. A genius who can defy the conventions of the Martial Dao, and on the opposing side, no less. Who could rest easy?’

’But the Taoist Sect still values camaraderie. They can argue and have public fallings-out, but they can’t actually resort to private ambushes. That would truly shatter the rules.’

’So Li Zhi and the others are using the ancestral teachings—the "approval of half the Thirty-Six Peak Leaders"—to force my hand. I either have to reveal my trump cards in public or admit defeat and back down.’

’A truly bloodless and overt scheme!’

CRACK!

Bi Yuan’s knuckle rapped against the Jade Table, the sound like the clash of metal.

He suddenly stood up, and the embroidered Big Dipper pattern on his Daoist robe lit up star by star. "Since Junior Brother Li wants to talk about rules... then let’s set up an arena for a martial contest. By the Ancestral Master’s rules, Xu Yunfan is not yet thirty years of age. He only needs to win the approval of the Daoist Children from the various peaks."