"It would be best if you truly knew nothing! I have offended you greatly today, Sect Leader Ye. We shall meet again another day!"
The Sword Saint snorted coldly, still harboring doubts, patted his dusty robes, turned to leave, showing no remorse for interrupting the important ceremony.
Even though the members of Tianwu Sect were seething with anger, no one dared to rush forward and provoke this veteran of the martial arts world, as their sect leader had not spoken.
"If you have time, senior, you might as well visit the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion in a couple of days."
Lingyan chuckled softly and, after completing the proper etiquette, extended an invitation.
"That is exactly what I intend to do, and I will soon visit the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion."
The Sword Saint stared at her intently for a moment, his words carrying a profound meaning.
"This junior awaits your arrival."
"Sect Master, I don't understand what you've done today."
After the Sword Saint left, Ye Tian, with a forced smile on his face, confronted Ling Yan, demanding an explanation.
"I am merely curious, where exactly is the Cui family from? Does the sect leader truly not recognize them?"
Lingyan then turned the tables and questioned him in return.
"Of course I don't know him."
A murderous glint flashed in Ye Tian's eyes, and it was unclear what he was planning.
After the Sword Saint's outburst, the originally solemn and grand ceremony was inevitably shrouded in a shadow, and today's events will surely become nothing more than idle gossip in the martial arts world.
Although Ye Feng inherited the position of sect leader, his prestige was ultimately insufficient to convince the masses, and the desire to salvage the precarious state of Tianwu Sect was a major headache for him.
However, misfortune never comes singly; as night fell, another wave of chaos and turmoil ensued.
"Young lady, you are in high spirits tonight, having specially found a good spot to admire the moon."
Hanging on the eaves of the Tianwu Gate's secret treasure building, Ling Yan spoke coldly to the person standing next to her.
"However, since we share the same idea, Lord Pavilion Master, could it be considered fate?"
Gu Zhongjiao chuckled softly and snuggled closer to her.
"you!"
Ling Yan stiffened, her breathing became rapid, and she hurriedly reached out to push the person away.
"Please don't push me away, Lord. What if I fall into this tiny space?"
Gu Zhong, however, reached out and wrapped his arms around the back of her neck.
"You! Go take a look over there!"
"The thief must not have gone far."
"Reporting to the Sect Master..."
"...No losses!"
The disciples of Tianwu Sect came and went downstairs, their torches like a long string of light illuminating the entire building.
If they are not careful, they will be exposed to the public, and it will be extremely difficult for them to leave.
But Gu Zhong, oblivious to the gravity of the situation, continued to provoke them.
"Just now I realized that the Pavilion Master has never called me by my name before?"
"···"
Lingyan kept her lips tightly closed and did not answer.
Since Gu Zhong used her name, she really couldn't bring herself to call herself that.
"Does the Pavilion Master have some secret he needs to tell me?"
Gu Zhong's fingertips traced Ling Yan's hair, touching the cold mask on her face, carefully tracing its contours.
"...What do you want to know?"
Finally, unable to withstand Gu Zhong's increasingly probing questions, Ling Yan took his soft hand in her palm and let go.
"Who exactly is the Pavilion Master?"
Gu Zhong's smile held a hint of coldness, leaving Ling Yan unsure of the consequences of answering truthfully.
"Whoever you think you are, that's who you are."
Ultimately, she chose a seemingly plausible but ultimately ambiguous answer.
"The Pavilion Master is truly cunning."
Fortunately, Gu Zhong didn't seem to need an answer today and didn't press the matter further.
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
"You shouldn't have come today."
To break the awkward silence, Lingyan had no choice but to continue speaking.
"It seems like the Pavilion Master knows everything? But if you really do know, why did you stop me?"
Gu Zhong coldly rejected the offer.
"I noticed something was off about your expression during the day. Was there something wrong with Ye Tian's swordsmanship?"
Lingyan changed the subject again.
"That heinous, deceitful villain who wiped out his entire family! That's my family's secret sword technique!"
At this point, Gu Zhong couldn't help but grit his teeth.
Lingyan knew that she was precocious, so it was not difficult for her to memorize the Gu family sword technique at a young age.
"Then you shouldn't have come at all."
Lingyan repeated it again.
"I only want to find the sword manual and avenge my blood feud. What's wrong with that?"
Gu Zhong glared angrily.
"Doing so would only alert the enemy and lure them into eliminating you completely. Have you considered your own safety?"
With a helpless sigh, Ling Yan knew that for Gu Zhong, the truth he had been pursuing for twenty years had suddenly begun to emerge, making it inevitable that he would lose control and act impulsively.
"It's just a life I got for free, I never care about it."
Gu Zhong replied nonchalantly.
"Some people might care—" Ling Yan stopped mid-sentence, forcibly changing her words, "Ahem! I mean, wouldn't it be a pity to die before avenging our great grudge?"
"Does the Pavilion Master care about this?"
Gu Zhong raised an eyebrow, turned back to look at Ling Yan again, his affectionate eyes seeming to see into the depths of her soul.
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Author's Note:
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival everyone!
Chapter 62 The Leader of the Righteous Alliance and the Leader of the Demonic Cult (Part 15)
====================================
"..." Ling Yan's heart skipped a beat. She opened her mouth, her throat moved slightly, as if she wanted to speak, but in the end she remained silent.
After waiting for a long time without receiving a response, Gu Zhong lowered his eyes and looked downstairs.
Unable to find the door through which the thief broke in, the crowd opened the building doors and entered in groups to continue the search, leaving far fewer people on the outside.
"Tonight, I would like to take a night stroll to the former residence of the Heavenly Martial Sect Master. Would you like to join me, Sect Master?"
The questions were asked calmly and rationally, revealing no expectation whatsoever.
"nature."
This unwavering and firm answer amused Gu Zhong.
"Master, you're such a contradictory person sometimes..."
Under the cover of night, bypassing the heavily guarded area, the two continued their stealthy advance towards the center of Tianwu Gate.
As expected of one of the top sects in the martial arts world, Tianwu Sect was brightly lit even at night. The training grounds and residences were arranged in a well-organized manner, with the council hall in the center surrounded by four sides, making it look magnificent and grand.
With this well-ordered layout, it wouldn't be difficult for the two to find Ye Tian's location. He was on the left side of the council hall. The security here was comparable to that of the secret treasure building that housed all the sect's treasures. It was unclear whether Ye Tian valued his life or if there was some secret here that was more important than the lifeline of the entire Tianwu Sect.
"It's not easy to infiltrate this place."
Perched atop the roof ridge, Lingyan scrutinized her surroundings, her brows furrowing.
"Is the Pavilion Master afraid?"
Gu Zhong, on the contrary, provoked him.
"You've made quite a commotion tonight; Ye Tian should be on high alert. Perhaps we should try again another day."
As things stand, Lingyan doesn't think they'll be able to find out anything useful, and taking any rash action would only add to the risks.
"Otherwise, there won't be a legitimate reason for us to appear at Tianwu Gate. Taking advantage of the crowd and the chaos is the perfect opportunity to slip away. Besides, the Pavilion Master is usually so clever, why is he acting so foolishly now?"
What do you mean?
Startled by Gu Zhongyan's words, Lingyan began to ponder where she might have overlooked something.
"The Secret Treasure Pavilion has been suspected of being robbed, yet Ye Tian has not appeared, nor has Ye Feng. The security here is unusually tight, so there must be something more important—perhaps related to the Sword Saint's matter today."
As they were talking, the previously closed study door of Ye Tian silently opened, and a man in black robes flashed out, leaping lightly towards the southeast. The lights in Ye Tian's study were all turned off at the same time.
If the two hadn't had excellent eyesight and hadn't been constantly watching Ye Tian's movements, they probably would have missed this scene.
"Perhaps we don't need to keep an eye on Sect Master Ye anymore."
Lingyan looked thoughtfully in the direction where the man in black had disappeared.
"This is truly an unexpected delight."