The pavilion had been swept clean, and the Drunken Moon Pavilion returned to calm.
Su Muyue stood there, her expression indifferent, seemingly recalling what had just transpired.
“What is on your mind, Miss?” an elderly man approached and could not help but ask.
“I am thinking about Lu Changsheng!”
“Is there something amiss with him?” the old man inquired.
Su Muyue asked, “Elder Qi, what do you make of him?”
The old man pondered for a long time, but only offered a single sentence.
“He is a useless playboy!”
“Do you think so as well?”
“Setting aside today’s matters, who in the entire Cangyun Sect does not know? I previously suspected he might be hiding his strength and even secretly tailed him. Yet, aside from drinking tea and sleeping, he does nothing but wander about idly. He has hardly ever done an honest day of work!”
The old man spoke of these findings, discovered through his day and night observations over the years.
Moreover, right on the corridor ahead lay a special formation. Anyone who passed through it would be sensed, their cultivation realm laid bare.
Lu Changsheng had visited many times, and it was not as though he remained entirely unchanged.
From the ninth layer of Qi Condensation a few years ago, to the first layer of Spirit Accumulation, then the second layer, and recently, he finally reached the third layer of Spirit Accumulation.
Let alone a Direct Disciple, he could not even compare to the vast majority of inner sect disciples in the Cangyun Sect.
Su Muyue, however, said, “I simply feel this person is not so simple. He is quite interesting!”
The old man offered no argument, only a gentle reminder. “It is fine for you to take an interest, Miss, so long as you do not forget our true purpose. The Cangyun Diagram must be obtained!”
“I know!”
Su Muyue nodded.
At the same time, Lu Changsheng quietly observed those few Core Formation cultivators.
None of them had spoken at first. After a short while, Shi Feng was carried into the courtyard.
Seeing him in such a miserable state, the several men frowned.
One of them ordered, “Carry him down to heal his wounds!”
“Understood!”
Watching Shi Feng leave, someone finally spoke up. “This Lu Changsheng truly is… extraordinary!”
He did not know how else to describe what had just occurred.
By all rights, it was a classic scene of two young men fighting out of jealousy over a woman. Normally, a duel would be unavoidable.
In the end, a fight did break out, but it was an entire group ganging up to beat Shi Feng.
“We originally planned to have Lu Changsheng beaten up to draw out Zhou Qingyu and test his depths. Who would have expected him to summon a crowd to surround our man?”
“It is not too surprising; we simply failed to consider the circumstances!”
“How so?” The source of this chapter is g.com.
“Lu Changsheng’s cultivation is merely at the third layer of Spirit Accumulation. By refusing to fight Shi Feng directly, it shows he is not stupid. Furthermore, what kind of moral integrity could someone like him possess? Why would he ever dirty his own hands?”
“Fair point!”
Listening to this exchange, Lu Changsheng slightly raised an eyebrow and muttered to himself, “What kind of person am I?”
The three men exchanged glances, and one of them said, “Never mind. We can test Zhou Qingyu another time. The matter at hand is more important!”
“Mm!”
“The patrol rotation in Cangyun City shifts today. Only after they return to the Cangyun Sect will the next watch arrive. We have half an hour to make our move!”
“That should be enough. The Ning family only brought one Core Formation cultivator this time. I will lure him away; the two of you must wait for the right moment to strike!”
The group finalized their plans.
Lu Changsheng grew curious. So these people were actually targeting the Ning family, and provoking him had just been an incidental scheme?
“We only have this one chance. Tomorrow they ascend Qingyun Peak, and the opportunity will be lost. Later, once I draw their guard away, you two will slay the Ning siblings. If they are murdered right here in Cangyun City, the Ning family will certainly not let the matter rest!”
“When that happens, the Cangyun Sect will be plunged into chaos. With the Ning family inadvertently aiding us, we will have the chance to eradicate the sect completely!”
“Hiss!”
Hearing these words, Lu Changsheng was genuinely surprised.
He had not expected these people to be harboring such vicious designs.
Ning Yuxin had come to the Cangyun Sect to ascend Qingyun Peak. If she and her brother died in Cangyun City, the Sect would inevitably shoulder the blame.
With someone secretly fanning the flames and driving the Ning family and the Cangyun Sect to turn against one another, it would technique a tremendous disaster.
“Are their minds truly so venomous?”
Lu Changsheng had not expected to stumble upon such a plot.
Usually, whoever these people wanted to kill was none of his business.
But if the Ning siblings were murdered and the Cangyun Sect fell into turmoil, that would absolutely affect him.
Without the Sect to shield him, how could he live comfortably?
This was practically smashing his rice bowl!
Subsequently, one of the men moved out, heading straight for the Drunken Immortal Pavilion.
They had even mapped out the Cangyun Sect’s patrol shifts and knew exactly when Ning Yuxin would ascend Qingyun Peak. They had clearly been plotting this for a long time.
Soon, a disturbance echoed from afar. Two figures left the Drunken Immortal Pavilion one after the other, rushing straight out of the city.
They did not want to risk beating the grass and startling the snake, which would attract the Cangyun Sect Elders.
Seeing their plan succeeding, the remaining two Core Formation experts prepared to move out.
Yet, at the very instant they stood up, a figure descended from the heavens, slowly drifting down.
As they looked up, a youth hovered Ling Kong. Dressed in white robes completely untainted by worldly dust, he descended before the two with his hands clasped behind his back.
“Lu Changsheng!”
The two cried out in sheer surprise.
Lu Changsheng stood before them with a faint smile. “How exactly has my Cangyun Sect offended you, that you wish to drive my Sect to ruin?”
“You heard everything?”
The two instantly grew vigilant. Their gazes swept the surroundings as their Divine Sense rippled outward.
They had assumed their plan was exposed and that they were surrounded, only to discover that aside from the youth standing before them, there was no one else in sight.
“It is only Lu Changsheng. No need to fear!”
One of them declared.
The other sneered, “If you had stayed hidden, you might have kept your life. Yet you insist on courting death!”
“Why waste words with him? Kill him!”
As he spoke, spiritual power surged with a flip of his palm. He formed a sword seal, aiming to end the youth immediately, not placing Lu Changsheng in his eyes at all.
Seeing them prepare to attack, Lu Changsheng frowned. “Fighting one against two is indeed pushing it a bit, but I suppose I can try!”
“Try?”
“You think you can deal with us?”
The two could not help but laugh aloud. It was a completely absurd notion.
Chuckling, they unleashed their strikes.
But just as the lethal sword arts drew near, an inexplicable force violently erupted, instantly shattering their killing moves.
“What is going on?”
The attacker frowned in shock. Without giving him any time to react, Lu Changsheng raised his hand. A strand of sword qi manifested, slicing through the void and instantly severing the man’s neck.
“Thud!”
The body hit the ground. The remaining man’s eyes filled with absolute terror.
“Core Formation… how is this possible…”
The old man stared in disbelief upon sensing that overwhelming cultivation base.
The youth standing before him was merely seventeen or eighteen years old, yet he possessed the cultivation of a Core Formation expert. Moreover, that terrifying aura was leaps and bounds above their own.
What young prodigies of Cangzhou? What Little Sword Immortal Zhou Qingyu? Before this youth, they were all nothing but flatulence…
Without hesitation, the old man whirled around, activating an escape technique to flee for his life.
Regardless of the cost, sensing that dark, oppressive aura alone told him this was a monstrous existence he could not possibly fight.
Yet, as Lu Changsheng merely took a single step, his figure flickered out like a phantom, reappearing in midair to completely block the escape path.
Not a single word was spoken. As he raised his hand, spiritual power manifested, ruthlessly extinguishing the old man’s life force.
The old man died with disbelief frozen on his face. Only in his final moments did he finally understand: the most terrifying entity in the Cangyun Sect was not the Sect’s foundation, nor was it Zhou Qingyu. It was this seemingly harmless youth standing right before him!
Lu Changsheng gazed down at the two corpses. After pondering for a brief moment, he formed a fire seal with his fingers. He burned them completely clean until nothing but ashes remained.
Sweeping his sleeve, he stirred up a gust of dirt to scatter the ashes to the four winds. Only after obliterating all remaining traces did he finally turn to leave.
Yet, as he glanced toward the outskirts of the city, he deliberated for a moment longer. Finally, tapping his fingertip, a bright streak of spiritual light shot high into the firmament.
It was the Cangyun Sect’s distress signal.