The moon shone bright in the sparse stars above.
Su Bai stood atop a Flying Boat, a gentle breeze lifting her waist-length black hair, the dark strands fluttering like ink in the air.
She wore a simple Qingpao, ethereal and dreamlike, her beauty beyond compare.
At this moment, she was reviewing everything that had happened recently, her beautiful eyes flickering with an unusual light.
The increasingly fierce conflict between the Zongzhu Pai and the Elder Faction within the sect, her being sent to Wanhun Yin Cheng for refusing to take sides, the sudden passing of the Old Jindan, and the rumors of the sect about to be merged into another…
This string of events all seemed to quietly point toward some unknown outcome.
“Mom~ We just said goodbye to Senior Zhang, and now we’re rushing back to the sect. Isn’t that too hasty? Besides, it’s already so late. Aren’t you going to rest in your room?”
A lazy, sleepy male voice came from behind. Su Xiaohei rubbed his eyes drowsily, looking toward the slender, aloof figure at the bow.
“Just finished going over everything.” Su Bai turned her head to glance at Su Xiaohei behind her. She had wanted to remind him again to call her “Father,” but thinking about her current physical state, the thought faded instantly.
Fine, Mom is Mom.
After all, he was her little pet.
“Xiaohei, do you know why we’re returning to the sect this time?” Su Bai looked up at the starry sky, her tone cool and detached.
“Of course, to inherit the sect.” Su Xiaohei answered lazily.
“The Xianmeng rules that when the sect leader of Jindan rank passes, only another Jindan can automatically inherit the Sect Leader position.”
“Master… Shizun is now a Jindan Zhenren. Our return to the sect is a matter of great importance. Just like those Book of Words say, the Zhuji Elders will all bow immediately. Anyone who disobeys will be killed!”
At this, Su Xiaohei even made a slashing gesture, looking eager to try it out. Su Bai’s mouth twitched slightly.
Her little pet really was adorably foolish.
She smiled lightly, shook her head, then stepped forward to Su Xiaohei’s side. With a slap, she ruffled his head like petting a cat.
“Turn the Flying Boat. Head to the sect’s Resource Point — the Xuanhuang Wuji Stone.”
“Huh? Not going back to the sect?”
“Do as you’re told.”
“Alrighty!”
Su Xiaohei immediately took out the Array Plate controlling the Flying Boat and adjusted the direction according to Su Bai’s orders.
“Tsk~ Your Shizun really knows some tricks.”
Who said that!
Su Xiaohei abruptly turned his head, trying to locate the voice’s origin, but in the sudden movement, his nose brushed against something cherry-like beneath the cloth.
In an instant, a faint peach blossom milk fragrance filled his nostrils. Su Xiaohei froze for a moment, then a rush of redness spread rapidly across his face like a blazing flame, from his cheeks all the way to his ears.
“Ma-ma-ma… Master, I-I…”
He tried to say something to ease the awkwardness, but his throat felt blocked, his words coming out stammered and hesitant.
His dark eyes revealed panic and shyness, like a child caught doing something wrong, standing there helplessly and staring blankly at Su Bai. The expression was both cute and embarrassed.
A tingling electric sensation surged through Su Bai’s hand as she slapped her little pet again. Her cold, indifferent female voice echoed around them.
“Don’t let it happen again.”
However, in truth, a certain dumpling-loving, appearance-obsessed wolf was howling inside!
Howwwl! Blushed! Such a cute little pet!
If only he were smaller! Could hold him in my arms and squeeze as much as I want!
…
One day later.
San Shan Zong, Xuanhuang Wuji Stone Resource Point — famous for forging materials.
Inside a closed chamber, Zhuji cultivator Zhao Shanming sighed again as he felt the sparse spiritual energy around him.
As a staunch member of the Zongzhu Pai, he had suffered a crushing defeat in the recent fierce struggle and was helplessly exiled to guard this resource outpost, likely to waste away the next ten years of his life.
Boom!
The earth trembled, the mountain crumbled.
Zhao Shanming was startled and immediately sprang out of his closed chamber.
As soon as he stepped outside, the scene before him froze him in shock. Above the resource point, a massive Flying Boat spanned the horizon, blotting out the sky and casting a huge shadow like a floating fortress.
“This is!!” Zhao Shanming’s legs weakened, almost collapsing to the ground.
A bright Qingyang slowly rose, its radiant light illuminating the entire area.
“I am Qingyang. Having just attained Jindan, I live a thousand years. Upon hearing of the Old Sect Leader’s passing, I claim the inheritance of the sect’s leadership. Will you return to the sect under my rule? You have three breaths to decide.”
A vast, melodious female voice sounded as if from the heavens, reverberating throughout the space.
“One breath…”
“Zhao Shanming pays respects to the Sect Leader.”
Before the words fell, Zhao Shanming prostrated himself, eyes shining with excitement.
“Good.”
…
“Mom, what exactly are we doing?”
On the Flying Boat, Su Xiaohei looked at Su Bai’s strange actions with confusion.
Retracting the Qingyang projection, Su Bai reached out to stroke her little pet’s head and sighed softly.
“Xiaohei, tell me, why are we returning to the sect this time?”
“To inherit the sect. Why are you asking again? You’re the only Jindan; no one else can compete for the Sect Leader position.”
“Mom and I will go back and force those Zhuji Elders to acknowledge the Sect Leader position. If they don’t listen, we’ll kill them all.”
“And after killing them? Who will manage such a huge sect?” Su Bai’s lips curved into a faint smile.
This time, Su Xiaohei was stumped.
“Politics isn’t just about fighting and killing. There are also relationships and social graces. Besides, if I massacre cultivators inside the sect, the sect’s morale will destabilize, not to mention the Xianmeng won’t be happy.”
“No matter how things are handled privately, the Xianmeng’s rule that cultivators cannot kill each other openly must never be broken.”
“That’s why I need them.”
Su Bai pointed to Zhao Shanming prostrating below the Flying Boat, her tone calm.
“As the loser in this political struggle, he was exiled here, doomed to stagnate for ten years. Before, he had no choice.”
“But now, he does.”
She pointed at herself again. “I am a Jindan Zhenren. The Old Jindan passed away, the new Jindan inherits. This is the Xianmeng tradition.”
“I naturally hold the great righteousness. Moreover, I am the only Jindan in the sect — no one can rival me. Following me, they can not only wash away past humiliations but also turn the tables and take control.”
“He will naturally know how to choose.”
She reached out again to stroke the little pet’s temporarily frozen brain.
“Study hard; you’ll need this in the future.”
“Let’s go. Next stop.”
“The Resource Point, Baicao Valley.”
…
San Shan Zong, Council Hall.
“Speak. What do we do next?”
“Who would have thought that woman named Su could form a Jindan so quickly, and in Wanhun Yin Cheng of all places — a death zone with over fifty percent mortality.”
“Sigh, we had already arranged with the Yiqi Zong Sect Leader! Who knew some unexpected trouble would show up mid-way!”
“No! Absolutely not! If she returns, what will happen to our Chuandan Secret Art!”
Six elders from the Elder Faction — two mid-stage Zhuji, three late-stage Zhuji, and one perfect Zhuji — argued fiercely.
Some were bitter and regretful, some proposed rebellion, some decided to go all in, their debates endless and chaotic.
“Enough!”