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Chapter 25 The Bixie Sword Manual Exposed, Yue Buqun’s Discourse on Good and Evil

Inside the projection, after Mo Da left, Liu Zhengfeng and Qu Yang handed over the musical score of Smiling Proud Wanderer to Linghu Chong, asking him to pass it down to a worthy successor.

Linghu Chong agreed.

Liu and Qu grasped each other’s hands, let out a long laugh, and severed their own heart vessels—ending their lives. Linghu Chong and Yilin buried them.

Suddenly, Linghu Chong noticed a distant fight. As he stealthily approached, he saw that it was none other than Yue Buqun and Yu Canghai locked in combat.

It turned out that after accepting Lin Pingzhi as his disciple, Yue Buqun confronted Yu Canghai, demanding the return of Lin Zhennan and his wife.

Yu Canghai was unable to match him and fled. Yue Buqun pursued him. Just as Linghu Chong was about to leave, a long, agonizing scream rang out from the forest to his left—chilling and desperate.

Startled, Linghu Chong took a few steps forward and saw the outline of a yellow wall through the gaps in the trees—it seemed to be a temple. Fearing that his junior disciples had gotten into a fight with the Qingcheng Sect and suffered injuries, he quickly rushed towards the yellow wall.

But as he got closer, he discovered that it was Desert Mirage Camel Mu Gaofeng brutally torturing Lin Zhennan and his wife, trying to force them to reveal the whereabouts of The Bixie Sword Manual.

Thinking fast, Linghu Chong used the name of Yue Buqun to scare Mu Gaofeng away. Upon learning that their son, Lin Pingzhi, had become a disciple of Mount Hua Sect, Lin Zhennan and his wife were overjoyed.

Lin Zhennan pleaded, “Please… tell my son… the things in our old house at Xiangyang Alley in Fuzhou… are our Lin family’s ancestral heirlooms… He must… must keep them safe… But… but his great-grandfather Yuan Tu left behind a warning… None of our descendants must ever read it, or endless disaster will follow… He… must remember this…”

With his final words spoken, Lin Zhennan—who had been barely holding on—breathed his last.

His wife followed soon after, throwing herself onto the stone steps in grief, ending her life.

_____

The scene caused an uproar.

【Hua Manlou】: What Lin Zhennan referred to as the ‘ancestral heirloom’ must be The Bixie Sword Manual.

【Four-Eyed Brow Lufeng】: I’m really curious—why did Lin Yuantu forbid his descendants from reading The Bixie Sword Manual? ‘Endless disaster’? What kind of disaster?

【Master of the World’s Number One Manor, Shangguan Haitang】: This Bixie Sword Manual must have some serious problems!

【Fortune Escort Agency’s Lin Pingzhi】: Father! Mother! Yu Canghai! Mu Gaofeng! You killed my parents! I will never let you go, even as a ghost! AHHH!!

【Qingcheng Sect’s Hou Renying】: You little bastard, we weren’t afraid of you when you were alive—why would we fear you as a ghost?

_____

Inside a ruined temple, staring at Lin Zhennan’s lifeless body, Yu Canghai smirked with satisfaction.

“No matter how stubborn you were, you still couldn’t protect The Bixie Sword Manual.”

He was certain that by now, the disciples he had stationed in Fuzhou had already gone straight to the Lin family’s old residence in Xiangyang Alley. If all went according to plan, they would be the first to seize The Bixie Sword Manual before any other sect could intervene.

“Master, should we kill them?” Hou Renying asked sinisterly.

Yu Canghai shook his head.

“No. Not only should we spare them, but we must keep them alive.”

“That little bastard Lin Pingzhi wants revenge, doesn’t he?”

“As long as his parents are in our hands, won’t he come straight to us like a moth to a flame?”

“Watch them carefully. Make sure they don’t kill themselves.”

“Yes, Master! Brilliant strategy!” Hou Renying flattered.

_____

Beyond the Qingcheng Sect, nearly all factions in Smiling Proud Wanderer State, as long as they weren’t too far away—Had sent people rushing towards Fuzhou.

Even some lone martial artists refused to be left behind. After all, it was The Bixie Sword Manual—A manual that had once made a man invincible!

Who could ignore such a thing?

Yue Buqun, who had been lecturing Linghu Chong, suddenly darkened. He hadn’t expected The Bixie Sword Manual’s location to be exposed so publicly. How was he supposed to obtain it now?

____

After the deaths of Lin Zhennan and his wife, Yue Buqun arrived with his disciples. Lin Pingzhi collapsed in front of his parents’ bodies, wailing in despair.

Linghu Chong was about to relay Lin Zhennan’s dying words, but Yue Buqun interrupted, “These are your father’s last words to you. You can hear them in private—there’s no need for others to know.”

The group then returned to Mount Hua. Once back on the mountain, Yue Buqun held Linghu Chong accountable.

First, he accused him of instigating conflict by kicking Hou Renying and Hong Renxiong. Second, he reprimanded him for his disrespectful remark about the Hengshan Sect, saying, ‘See a nun, lose a gamble.’

Third, he criticized him for hiding with Yilin in the Jade Courtyard while healing, nearly damaging the reputations of both Mount Hua and Hengshan Sect.

However, since these incidents had reasonable explanations, Linghu Chong was let off after admitting fault.

But then, Yue Buqun’s expression grew increasingly severe. After a long silence, he finally asked, “You knew that girl Qu Feiyan was from the demonic sect, yet why didn’t you strike her down?”

“Yes, her grandfather saved your life. But that was nothing more than a demonic sect’s deceit—an insidious scheme to sow discord within the Five Mountain Sword Alliance. You are not a fool—how could you not see this?”

“They save a single life, yet the real purpose is a much larger conspiracy.”

“Liu Zhengfeng was a wise and capable man, yet he still fell into their trap—ultimately losing his reputation, his family, and his life.”

“You have now seen for yourself how sinister and ruthless the demonic sect can be.”

“But from Hunan to Mount Hua, I never once heard you say a single word condemning the demonic sect.”

“Chong’er, I fear that ever since they saved your life, your perception of right and wrong has become severely clouded.”

“This matter concerns your very survival in the martial world. There is no room for uncertainty here.”

Linghu Chong listened but remained unconvinced.

Seeing the hesitation in his disciple’s eyes, Yue Buqun pressed further, “Chong’er, this matter is critical to the honor and future of Mount Hua Sect. It also determines your own safety and success.”

“You must not conceal your true thoughts from me.”

“I ask you this—if you encounter members of the demonic sect in the future, will you treat them as enemies and kill them without hesitation?”

Linghu Chong stared at his master in shock.

A thought kept swirling in his mind.

Does this mean that from now on, I must draw my sword and kill them without question, regardless of right or wrong?

For the first time in his life—he found himself utterly unable to answer. Yue Buqun studied Linghu Chong’s face for a long moment.

Seeing that he still refused to answer, Yue Buqun let out a deep sigh—and sentenced him to a year of solitary reflection at Repentance Cliff.