Chapter 18 (2/2)
Shen Qiao continued, “When Kunye sent us the written challenge for the duel, I didn’t want to take it up at first However, you brought up the fight between Kunye’sthat if I didn’t take up the challenge, it ht hurt Master’s and Mount Xuandu’s reputations Afterwards, you repeatedly expressed your liking for little junior sister in front of e was that you never had any impulsive expressions or behaviors in front of her I didn’t suspect that you had otheropportunities for you two to spend ti about it now, all of those were also fake, weren’t they?”
Yu Ai finally sighed, “You’re right I’ve never had any ahts for little junior sister The reason why I said those words was just to lead you to aso that you would be even less suspicious of other things It was also for creating an opportunity for me to talk to you alone before the final battle You have inherited Master’s st all our martial brothers Normal poison has no effect on you, so I had to use one of the world’s most rare poisons, Quietus [1]Quietus won’t kill people ie is controlled well, it can work its way in silence without anyone realizing After a long period of ti it look like a natural death
“But I never thought of taking your life I only used a little bit just to ht that with your level of martial arts, even if you fell off the cliff, you wouldn’t die from it At most, you would be injured a little more seriously, and that could be fixed within a few o as I had planned After you fell off the cliff, I immediately sent people to search for you, but we couldn’t find you at all”
Shen Qiao frowned even harder “Quietus is extreht to the Central Plains by Zhang Qian through his trip to the Western Regions and was lost later on Even the Iht not have it, let alone Mount Xuandu Where did you get it?”
Before Yu Ai could answer, Shen Qiao’s look suddenly changed He was stunned, “Kunye? You obtained it from Kunye?”
“…Yes”
“You even colluded with the Tujue people just to remove me from the position of sect leader?!”
A faint anger finally appeared on Shen Qiao’s face “It was true that Master passed the position of the sect leader to me, but you know very well that I never had much ambition for it Over theseme handle the affairs of the sect If you had only said it, I would certainly have yielded the position to you I just don’t understand why you would rather seek what is far away than take what is offered to you, going after the Tujue people instead?!”
His state of e , he couldn’t help but start to cough
Yu Ai wanted to stroke Shen Qiao’s back to help him breathe As soon as he reached out his hand, however, he paused for a second Then he pulled it back at last and slowly said, “Because, Mount Xuandu cannot go on like this Shutting itself away from all other worldly affairs, even the nuoing to lose its advantage eventually!
“Just take a look around this world A Daoist Monastery of Mount Qingcheng appears to be rising in power Their Monastery Leader, Yi bi+chen, is also one of the top ten reater than yours In contrast, look at us, the Purple Mansion of Mount Xuandu Ever since Master ascended as an i prestige?
“Your martial arts skill is not any inferior to Yi bi+chen’s If you are willing to enter the secular world, you ht even have a chance to strive for the place as the top ly kept yourselfthat you would rather stay as a nobody deep in the s continue on like this, no matter how profound and rich Mount Xuandu’s foundation is, it will eventually be replaced by others!”
Speaking to this point, Yu Ai’s tone started to become passionate, “The world is in chaos now All Daoist sects are establishi+ng their own Daoist orthodoxies, while the other two schools, Buddhism and Confucianism, each have co voice, intending to assist a wise ruler to seize the power of the world Even the Demonic Sects have had their hands in it! All except our Mount Xuandu, withdrawn fro a blind eye and a deaf ear to the outside world We have a great sword in our hand, and yet we refuse to put it to use If a lord supported by the Buddhist sects or the Confucius sects aimed to unify the world one day, by that time, do you think there will still be a place for our Daoist sects to live in?!”
He calht about replacing you I’m also aware that those who are not our kin are sure to be of a different heart Working together with the Tujue people is but a part of my plan However, if you were still here, you definitely wouldn’t allow me to do this, so I had no choice but to come up with this bad idea Since you’re back now, don’t leave again Stay here and have a nice recovery, all right?”
Shen Qiao asked, “What about ten days later?”
Yu Ai was taken by surprise, “What?”
“How are you going to explain to the other martial brothers and disciples in the sect about my return to Mount Xuandu? Ten days later, at the Jade Terrace Conference, how are you going to explain it to everyone else around the world?”
For a short while, Yu Ai wasn’t able to answer him
Shen Qiao further asked, “After all, what are you sche ith the Tujue people?”
“I’ at this moment”
“What if I’ainst it?”
Yu Ai didn’t reply
“If I oppose, you will put me under house arrest From then on, I will only stay as a noain, so that I won’t hinder your great plan Aht?”
He was answered with silence again
Shen Qiao sighed, “Your health was not good when you were young Even though you are two years older than me, it was hard to tell from your appearance You always liked to act
liked to act spoiled when you were sick Only because you were afraid that the younger generations would take you lightly since you were not steady enough did you e Even to this day, I still re that I call you ‘Senior Martial Brother”
As the events of the past were brought up, Yu Ai’s expression slightly softened “That’s right, I re, and I would pull a cold face in front of everyone and my words often put other people in aard positions Even Little Martial Sister avoided me Out of all the martial brothers, you are the one with the best temper, and you have always been the one to tolerate me”
“Noto be a botto to be the sect leader and sche you too much But the Tujue people are obsessed with a the Central Plains Even though Mount Xuandu has never helped any country fight over the rulershi+p of the world, it won’t cooperate with the Tujue people either!”
Yu Ai gave a bitter smile, “I knew that you would never leteffort of planning all this?”
Shen Qiao said, “The recluse principle pursued by the generations of our sect leaders , but it’s definitely not because we didn’t cooperate with the Tujue people You still have time to stop here and repent”
Yu Ai replied angrily, “Mount Xuandu is also where I grew up, so of course, I wish it could becos for it isn’t any less than yours, so why do you need to assu that you are the only one who is right in the world, and all the other people are wrong?!
“Why don’t you go ask the other disciples in the sect? Even though they didn’t say anything, do they also feel discontented on the inside about Mount Xuandu’s reclusion over these years? After the Jade Terrace Daoist Conference, I can officially announce that ill open our gates and take in more disciples By that tiher, and I will never let the Tiantai Sect and the Linchuan Institute lory!”
For a long ti froer The two of theht winds
Yu Ai suddenly felt a little sad No o back to the close relationshi+p they had before
Shen Qiao finally said, “Since you’ve alreadyelse for me to say”
Yu Ai asked, “Where are you going?”
Shen Qiao replied indifferently, “My defeat in Kunye’s hand has already ashamed Mount Xuandu in all aspects Even if the others don’t say anything, I don’t have the face to be the sect leader anymore As for the poisons, I don’t have any evidence besides my own testimony Even if I were to accuse you in public, people probably won’t believe it Theyout nonsense because I’ to acceptalready Why do you still care about where I’”
Yu Ai softly persuaded, “You’re seriously wounded You need to stay here to recuperate”
Shen Qiao shook his head and turned around, ready to leave
However, Yu Ai’s slightly chilly voice sounded behind hio”