Hearing Mo Jiujiao's words, Li Qingqiu froze in surprise.
Qingxiao Sect only had three small courtyards and a handful of disciples. Why would anyone covet such a place?
"Who sent you here?" Li Qingqiu asked cautiously. If the man had been sent by Lin Xunfeng, he would need to handle this carefully. But if he had no connection to Lin Xunfeng and was simply here to seize the sect, then there would be no need for politeness.
As he spoke, Li Qingqiu brushed his right hand across the nine swords before him, his eyes fixed sharply on Mo Jiujiao.
Mo Jiujiao strode closer, grinning. "Your master, Lin Xunfeng, announced at the Martial Gathering of Xiaoyao Prefecture that he had washed his hands of the jianghu. Since he's withdrawn from the martial world, it'll be hard for Qingxiao Sect to hold onto this fine mountain territory. Why not let me take over?"
Li Qingqiu instantly understood.
Of course—Taikun Mountain Range was vast and rich, yet it only housed a single sect. Clearly, this had been possible only because Lin Xunfeng's might had once suppressed the region. Now that Lin Xunfeng was gone, it was natural for other sects to set their sights here.
He couldn't help but grumble inwardly. 'Master, if you wanted to pursue immortality, fine—but why did you have to make such a big show of it?'
Still, thinking again, Lin Xunfeng had likely done so to avoid attracting old enemies.
If those enemies were the ones coming, they wouldn't waste time talking—they'd already be slaughtering everyone.
But Mo Jiujiao only wanted to occupy Qingxiao Sect.
Li Qingqiu asked calmly, "If you become Sect Master, what benefits do we disciples get?"
Mo Jiujiao smiled, eyes narrowing. "Naturally, you'll become my disciples. To tell you the truth, I'm from the Seven Peaks Alliance. Once I take over as Sect Master, Qingxiao Sect will become part of the Alliance. You'll all gain protection—a rare blessing, really. You know how things are in the jianghu. Fights for territory always draw blood."
Li Qingqiu nodded slightly. It was a reasonable point.
"Yes, fights over territory draw blood," Li Qingqiu agreed. Then he asked calmly, "So… can I refuse?"
He didn't even stand up, remaining seated cross-legged on the grass.
Mo Jiujiao's expression twisted into a smirk. "Aren't you going to ask your Sect Master?"
"I am the Sect Master."
Li Qingqiu's answer made Mo Jiujiao stop in his tracks. The man stared him up and down, his face turning strange.
"They say that after the bloodbath twenty years ago, only Lin Xunfeng was left in Qingxiao Sect," he muttered. "Turns out that's true—and he actually let a child inherit the sect?"
Mo Jiujiao shook his head and laughed mockingly.
If he'd known that earlier, he wouldn't have wasted time talking.
"In that case, you have no choice," he sneered. "Submit to me—or I'll tear out your tongues, gouge out your eyes, and turn you all into slaves for life."
His face twisted with menace as he stepped forward again, closing the distance between them.
Li Qingqiu narrowed his eyes, preparing to strike. But then his ears twitched slightly—and he relaxed again.
"How dare you!"
A thunderous voice exploded from above.
Yang Jueding came leaping over the mountain gate, stepping on the cliff face like a soaring wild goose before landing heavily on the stone stairs, blocking the path between Li Qingqiu and Mo Jiujiao.
Mo Jiujiao frowned, glaring at him. "And who are you supposed to be?"
He cursed inwardly. 'That brat tricked me! Lin Xunfeng might've been eccentric, but he'd never let a kid run the sect!'
"Yang Jueding. Ever heard of me?" Yang Jueding's voice boomed like rolling thunder across the mountainside, his aura pressing down with the weight of a storm.
Mo Jiujiao's face immediately darkened. He gritted his teeth and said, "Dragon-Subduing Hero? I didn't know you had any ties to Qingxiao Sect."
"Now you do. Get lost."
Yang Jueding's voice grew colder, his inner qi surging violently as his robes fluttered around him. His presence was like that of a fierce tiger looming over its prey.
Mo Jiujiao's face flickered with hesitation. His own reputation was nothing compared to Yang Jueding's. Facing such a legendary figure, fear crept up instinctively.
But after coming all this way, could he really back down now?
After a long silence, Mo Jiujiao exhaled slowly, then cupped his hands and said, "Understood. I'll take my leave."
With that, he turned and started descending the mountain path.
"Yang Jueding—kill him."
Li Qingqiu's cold voice rang out from behind.
Mo Jiujiao's expression changed instantly. He broke into a sprint, vanishing into the forest below.
Yang Jueding blinked in surprise and turned toward Li Qingqiu. But what he saw made his heart tighten—Li Qingqiu's eyes were cold, sharper than he had ever seen.
It was the first time he had seen that look on the young Sect Master's face.
"This is an order. Execute it immediately."
Li Qingqiu's voice was calm, but the weight behind it was unmistakable.
Yang Jueding clenched his jaw and charged down the mountain after Mo Jiujiao.
Watching him go, Li Qingqiu slowly shook his head.
If not for his strength, Yang Jueding would've been devoured by the jianghu long ago—without even his bones left behind.
Having lived two lives, and after everything he'd gone through as a child in this one, Li Qingqiu fully understood the nature of this world.
Killing was something one couldn't avoid.
He didn't kill the innocent. But if someone dared to provoke him, he would never show mercy.
That was why, when Jiang Zhaoxia killed Luo Lie, Li Qingqiu hadn't blamed him at all. In fact, he'd admired his Third Junior Brother's decisiveness.
Now, he sat quietly in the same spot, waiting.
He wasn't worried that Yang Jueding might let Mo Jiujiao go.
This was a test—and Yang Jueding's moment to prove himself.
If Yang Jueding couldn't pass this test, then he could live out the rest of his days as a martial artist and stay behind to guard Qingxiao Sect's gates.
As for that so-called Seven Peaks Alliance—if they came again, there would be no more talk. They'd just have to face them head-on.
How could a cultivation sect be frightened off by a martial alliance?
Judging by the Supreme Sword Defense Technique Yang Jueding had acquired, there were clearly other cultivators in the world. If cultivators existed, then there must also be immortal sects—just hidden from mortal eyes or existing beyond the Great Li Dynasty's borders.
Li Qingqiu had already begun imagining the kind of enemies they might face in the wider cultivation world.
After the time of one incense stick, Yang Jueding walked out from the forest below, carrying Mo Jiujiao slung over his shoulder.
Mo Jiujiao's limbs hung limp, his body sagging like mud. There were gruesome wounds across his back, streaked with blood.
Yang Jueding's hair was slightly disheveled. He walked up to Li Qingqiu, dropped the man heavily onto the ground, and exhaled sharply.
Li Qingqiu glanced at the body. Mo Jiujiao wasn't dead—just unconscious.
"What would've happened if you had let him go?" Li Qingqiu asked.
Yang Jueding's face darkened. He clenched his jaw and said, "He'd bring more people."
"He said he came from the Seven Peaks Alliance and wanted to take over Qingxiao Sect."
Li Qingqiu's tone grew colder, his irritation directed squarely at Yang Jueding.
'So much for being Sect Master—does my word mean nothing?'
He'd said kill him!
When Yang Jueding heard the words "Seven Peaks Alliance," his expression shifted instantly.
He had trained for twenty years, and his hearing was exceptional. Earlier, he had only caught Mo Jiujiao's threats, not his background.
Taking a deep breath, Yang Jueding raised his right foot and stomped hard on Mo Jiujiao's back.
Mo Jiujiao's eyes flew open, and he spat out a mouthful of blood before going limp, completely lifeless.
Li Qingqiu glanced once more to confirm he was truly dead, then gathered the nine swords before him, stood up, and said flatly, "Bury the body—and clean the ground."
He turned and walked away.
Yang Jueding stood watching him leave, feeling oddly conflicted.
He had just been intimidated—by a teenager.
'This kid is something else,' he thought.
'No wonder he can keep that brat Jiang Zhaoxia in check.'
Yang Jueding sighed to himself, but then a strange realization struck him.
'Wait… I came here to help, so why do I feel like I've been scolded—and now have to bury the body too?'
Despite his frustration, he obediently lifted Mo Jiujiao's corpse.
Just then, he noticed Jiang Zhaoxia and Wu Man'er emerging from the forest below. He froze for a moment, and a chill ran through him.
If he hadn't caught Mo Jiujiao first, and the man had run into Jiang Zhaoxia instead, he would have died there anyway. Which meant that, in the end, he had technically disobeyed the Sect Master's order.
Yang Jueding's thoughts grew uneasy. He realized Li Qingqiu's mind ran deeper than he'd expected.
And the most terrifying thing was—so long as Jiang Zhaoxia stood behind Li Qingqiu, even if the Sect Master punished him, he wouldn't dare resist.
…
Li Qingqiu didn't bother hiding Mo Jiujiao's death.
First, because Yang Jueding's shout had already been heard by the disciples. Second, because he wanted to make something clear—Qingxiao Sect was not some meek, reclusive sect that only cultivated quietly in the mountains.
He wanted his disciples to understand: Qingxiao Sect could kill.
As for whether the authorities might hear of it, Li Qingqiu wasn't worried. In this world, there were no witnesses or surveillance. The saying went: "If alive, show the man; if dead, show the body."
Besides, every sect in the martial world had earned its fame by stepping over bones and corpses.
Seven days later, the disciples had already stopped talking about the matter.
A gentle breeze swept the mountain, the weather bright and pleasant.
In the forest, Li Qingqiu sat cross-legged across from Jiang Zhaoxia, his arms folded and a proud smirk on his face.
Jiang Zhaoxia held a thin scroll of fine leather inscribed with the Supreme Sword Defense Technique. His eyes gleamed as he read through it. When he finished, he looked at Li Qingqiu and asked, "You're really giving me this kind of supreme technique? Aren't you afraid, as Sect Master, that you'll be left with nothing secret to yourself?"
He was honestly moved. It seemed Li Qingqiu hadn't grown wary of him despite his strength and status.
Li Qingqiu rolled his eyes. "Do I look like that kind of person? I want you to always be Qingxiao Sect's strongest. You promised you'd assist me for life—so don't you dare run off halfway."
Jiang Zhaoxia chuckled. "I did want to run before, but not anymore. Don't worry—I've got your back for life."
Li Qingqiu had long since figured things out.
At this stage, it was impossible for him to catch up to Jiang Zhaoxia in strength. Rather than waste energy comparing, it was better to let Jiang Zhaoxia keep improving.
Once Qingxiao Sect advanced another level, he could use another Fate Selection Opportunity—and that would be his chance to overtake.
Letting Jiang Zhaoxia be the face and strongest fighter of Qingxiao Sect was no bad thing.
Meanwhile, Li Qingqiu himself would focus on becoming the sect's hidden trump card.
He was competitive too—it just wasn't written in his Fate yet.
"By the way, Senior Brother," Jiang Zhaoxia asked curiously, "have you mastered it already?"
Li Qingqiu grinned with pride. "Of course. I only had to read it once."
Jiang Zhaoxia felt the pressure mount. He didn't doubt the claim. His senior brother's comprehension of swordsmanship was the most frightening he had ever seen.
Lowering his gaze to the scroll, Jiang Zhaoxia said thoughtfully, "Senior Brother, when we cultivate, we do draw on the energy of heaven and earth. But I've noticed something strange—the spiritual energy we absorb feels different from others. Those who practice martial arts can't even sense it, and Yang Jueding doesn't know what 'spiritual energy' is at all. Why is that?"
Li Qingqiu nearly choked. 'This junior's too sharp for his own good!'
He raised an eyebrow. "You're asking me? Who should I ask, then? Fine, I'll tell you the truth—we're not practicing martial arts… we're cultivating immortality."
Jiang Zhaoxia's eyes widened. "Senior Brother, can you not joke about that?"
Just then, Li Sifeng came running into the forest. Jiang Zhaoxia quickly tucked the scroll into his sleeve.
"Senior Brother! Third Brother! Hurry, come see! Second Brother and the others found a whole nest of baby eagles!" Li Sifeng shouted excitedly, waving his arms from a distance.