Chapter 467 – My Master Is Not Human – Hating One’s Own Cowardice (14)
The plaza was silent as a grave; no one wanted to challenge the bottom line of this Frostcold Fairy.
Wen Leng sat guard at the entrance to the secret realm with her sword in her arms. She was waiting—Bai Tang and Pei Boyi would come out.
When someone played the villain, someone else had to play the peacemaker. The sect master stepped forward to organize the injured disciples and move them into the temporary shelters that had been set up for them to rest. Fu Maiwen also lent a hand.
Le’an Immortal Sect was enormous. In truth, there were more than enough guest rooms to accommodate the disciples from the other sects. However, the sect master had no intention of doing so. After being openly insulted to his face, he had no desire to selflessly throw open the gates and welcome those people inside. That kind of boundless compassion and saintly path was not one he could cultivate, nor was he willing to.
Inside Fengxian Hall, Le Xiyin stared at the flickering life lamps, anxiety rising in his heart.
Nothing will happen to him.
His master had once spoken of a prophecy: hundreds of years later, the cultivation world would face a great war between the righteous path and the demonic path, and Bai Tang would be the key figure in ending that war. Now that the demonic path had already begun to make its move, the great battle was not far away. Bai Tang could not afford to meet with disaster at such a critical moment.
Le Xiyin suddenly recalled the words his master had spoken after bringing Bai Tang back all those years ago.
“Bai Tang came out of the Daji Secret Realm. The tragedy that occurred inside was deeply regrettable, yet he was still able to survive as a cultivator until I found him. He is certainly no ordinary person. In the future, you martial brothers must treat him well and never allow him to harbor resentment toward you. For both yourselves and Le’an Immortal Sect, the benefits will far outweigh the disadvantages…”
Later, their master disappeared. Bai Tang lost an elder who had cherished him dearly, but his senior brothers continued to care for him as they always had. He also displayed astonishing talent with his wood spiritual root. The spirit herbs and medicinal plants he nurtured had protected Le’an Immortal Sect for hundreds of years, proving his master’s words true—that treating Bai Tang well would bring far more benefits than harm.
“You won’t die. Senior Brother Le won’t allow anything to happen to you either.”
Le Xiyin rose to his feet and took out a jade token from his storage space. This jade token differed somewhat from the disciples’ teleportation tokens. Countless intricate flowering vines were wrapped around its surface. At first glance, it merely looked exquisite, but after observing it more carefully, one could sense the sinister yin energy hidden within it.
Just as Le Xiyin was about to crush the jade token, Du Ting rushed into the hall from outside.
“Master, this disciple wishes to accompany you.”
Du Ting had only just emerged from the Daji Secret Realm. Because Le Peak had close ties with Medicine Peak, he had also received one of Bai Tang’s Restoration Pills as friendly support, making him one of the few disciples to leave the secret realm completely unharmed.
“Who allowed you to come here? Go back to Le Peak.”
Seeing that Du Ting was healthy and unharmed, Le Xiyin finally relaxed, but immediately afterward, he put on a stern expression and ordered him back to Le Peak to rest.
“I’m not leaving.”
Du Ting was just as stubborn. Having come out of the Daji Secret Realm himself, he naturally knew what kind of situation existed inside. He could not allow his master to enter such a dangerous place alone.
“Ting’er, be obedient.”
“I won’t.”
Du Ting had always displayed a level of maturity and heaviness unlike others his age, making him one of the disciples Le Xiyin trusted the most. Who would have thought that this troublesome child would suddenly become rebellious at a time like this, giving Le Xiyin an enormous headache?
“Ting’er…”
“Master, I’m more familiar with the Daji Secret Realm than you are. Let me come with you—I can help you find Martial Uncle He Yi and Junior Brother Pei.”
Du Ting stepped in front of Le Xiyin and looked at him with hopeful eyes.
“I don’t want Master to face danger alone. This disciple’s life is worthless. If possible, I’m willing to stand in front of Master and shield you.”
There was deep affection in Du Ting’s gaze—the kind that Le Xiyin did not dare examine too closely.
Le Xiyin did not dare think further, nor did he want to. Right now, the most important thing was finding Bai Tang and bringing him back safely. Since Du Ting insisted on going, then so be it.
“You may come, but there is one condition you must fulfill.”
“Please speak, Master.”
“If you encounter danger, don’t worry about me. Turn around and run.”
“Master…”
“If you can’t do that, then don’t enter.”
Le Xiyin was someone whose decisions were almost never open to discussion. The fact that he had already compromised and allowed Du Ting to accompany him was fortunate enough. If Du Ting refused to agree, Le Xiyin absolutely would not let him follow.
Du Ting lowered his eyes and replied softly, “This disciple obeys Master’s command.”
Their conversation had already delayed them for some time. Afraid that something might happen if they arrived too late, Le Xiyin told Du Ting to hold tightly onto his hand. Then he crushed the jade token, and the two of them were teleported into the Daji Secret Realm.
Where Le Xiyin could not see, the corners of Du Ting’s lips curved upward slightly.
Master… this disciple does not wish to let go of your hand.
Inside the Daji Secret Realm—
The four of them moved through a narrow, pitch-black passageway. The ground was uneven, and they nearly stumbled several times. Fortunately, the tunnel was narrow enough that they could steady themselves against the walls as they continued forward.
Only after leaving the tunnel and entering a brightly lit grand hall did they realize that their bodies were covered in filth, and their hands were stained with a black, foul-smelling substance.
Pei Boyi cast a Cleansing Spell, removing all the dirt from himself and Bai Tang. The two disciples quickly copied him and cleaned the grime from their clothes as well.
“I think we’ve reached the main hall of a demonic cultivator’s cave dwelling,” Bai Tang said as he looked at the pile of skulls scattered across the floor, his tone filled with disgust.
He hated these kinds of things the most. They were creepy, and they accumulated resentment that could be used to harm people.
“Junior Brother Pei, how do we get out of here?”
Inside the cave dwelling, Pei Boyi had already become the leader of their small group. He guided them around danger after danger, and his standing in their hearts had risen dramatically.
Thinking about it now, the two disciples felt deeply ashamed. As senior brothers, they had failed to take care of their junior brother. Instead, it was their junior brother taking care of them.
“What we need to do is defeat him.”
Pei Boyi’s eyes gleamed as he stared at the black throne above them.
The other three followed his gaze, but there was no one seated on the throne. The owner of this cave dwelling was most likely already dead—otherwise, they would never have been able to enter without the master’s permission.
So who exactly was Pei Boyi talking about?
“Junior Brother Pei, are your eyes playing tricks on you from exhaustion?”
This cave dwelling belonged to a demonic cultivator, so there could easily be restrictions or illusions hidden inside. Pei Boyi had led them all the way here while avoiding danger after danger. It was entirely possible he had accidentally triggered something and begun hallucinating.
“No. He’s here.”
Pei Boyi gently stroked Bai Tang’s hair and guided him beside one of the pillars.
“Tang Tang, can you wait here for a little while?”
“Mhm~” Bai Tang nodded obediently before asking, “Where are you going?”
“To fight. I’ll come back safely.”
Pei Boyi pressed a kiss to Bai Tang’s forehead, causing the two disciples’ expressions to turn horrified.
They had already thought the way Junior Brother Pei looked at their master seemed somewhat off. But this was far beyond merely “off.” He was clearly taking advantage of their master’s memory loss to flirt with him—despicable behavior, truly shameless behavior!
Pei Boyi ignored their reactions completely. After instructing the two disciples to protect Bai Tang, he walked over to the black throne and sat down heavily upon it.
Those in positions of power never liked others coveting the seat beneath them.
And now, Pei Boyi was sitting directly on the cave master’s throne.
The moment he sat down, black mist began pouring out from the tunnel they had passed through earlier. The mist moved rapidly, and before long it had spread to the pillar where Bai Tang and the others were hiding.
Watching Pei Boyi sitting alone at the head of the hall, Bai Tang immediately tried to run toward him, but the two disciples grabbed hold of him.
“Master, Junior Brother Pei said you can’t go over there.”
Although Pei Boyi clearly harbored improper intentions toward their master, he was still the strongest fighter among them. For the sake of protecting their master and escaping safely, they chose to trust his judgment.
“But Ah Yi is in danger.”
Bai Tang could clearly sense that the black mist had come with malicious intent, and that its target was Pei Boyi.
“Master, we have to trust Junior Brother Pei.”
At this point, trusting Pei Boyi was the only thing they could do.
“But…”
“Master, staying here allows us to observe the whole situation. If something happens to Junior Brother Pei, we can rush over immediately to help him. But if all of us charge in recklessly and get trapped up there, then none of us will ever make it out alive.”
The two disciples tried their best to persuade him earnestly, though even they felt uncertain about their own words. If even Pei Boyi could not handle the situation, then with their lower cultivation levels, they would most likely only be walking toward death.
Bai Tang finally seemed convinced. Suppressing the anxiety in his heart, he fixed his gaze unblinkingly on Pei Boyi at the head of the hall.
As the mist gradually spread through the hall, a mass of black energy condensed into a solid form at the center of the main chamber. A man dressed in black robes and wearing a mask appeared before them.
The man’s voice was hoarse, so much so that one had to listen carefully just to understand what he was saying.
“Who are you, and why have you trespassed into my cave dwelling?”
The demonic cultivator sensed that there was more than one person in the hall and turned to search for the others. The moment he spotted Bai Tang and the two disciples, a crazed light burst forth in his eyes.
“Heh heh heh… Since you’ve come here, then leave your lives behind.”
Pei Boyi greatly disliked the way the demonic cultivator looked at Bai Tang. Without another word, the two of them immediately began fighting.
The thick mist served as excellent cover. Hidden behind the pillar, the three of them could not clearly see how the battle was unfolding. They could only tell how fierce the fight was from the constant flashes of light erupting through the fog.
Not only Pei Boyi—even Bai Tang himself hated the way that man looked at him. Just one glance from him made Bai Tang’s skin crawl.
Inside the mist, the two fighters were evenly matched. As their attacks repeatedly smashed into the surrounding structures, chunks of stone began falling from above. Then tens of thousands of Bloodthirsty Birds swooped down from the ceiling, their densely packed screeches enough to make one’s scalp go numb.
There were only a few living people inside the hall, so the Bloodthirsty Birds quickly locked onto their targets and charged toward Bai Tang and the others.
The two disciples hurriedly formed hand seals to fend them off while shielding Bai Tang and searching for another place to hide. At the same time, they had to avoid the two people battling in the center of the hall.
Because the fierce fight was destroying the structure around them, many pillars collapsed, crushing large numbers of Bloodthirsty Birds to death. The surviving birds immediately rushed forward to devour the corpses of their companions. Having tasted blood, the Bloodthirsty Birds became even more frenzied.
While they were trying to circle around the battlefield, Bai Tang was suddenly shoved forward without warning. His knees slammed hard against the ground, and the sharp pain caused his expression to change instantly.
Turning around, he saw the two disciples slicing open their own arms, using the scent of blood to lure the Bloodthirsty Birds away in another direction.
“Master, run—!”
The disciples shouted furiously at Bai Tang, successfully stopping him from rushing over to join them.
“You…”
For the sake of Bai Tang’s safety, they were willingly making themselves the targets of the Bloodthirsty Birds.
Bai Tang suddenly felt his eyes burning hot, as though something was about to spill out. They had only known each other for a few days—was it really worth throwing away their lives for him?!
Humans might speak of compassion, but birds certainly did not—especially Bloodthirsty Birds. They even devoured the bodies of their own kind, proving they possessed not the slightest sense of kinship or morality.
With loud screeches, they swarmed toward the two disciples.
Bai Tang gritted his teeth. Watching both sides fight desperately for his safety, he hated his own cowardice with all his heart.