As the acting peak master of Lingyun Peak, Yu Mi felt even more like crying than Bao Gu.
When the ancestor was alive, Xuantian Sect was ranked among the top ten immortal sects for cultivation, and Lingyun Peak, with him at its helm, was the main peak and the most important location of Xuantian Sect.
Over thirty thousand years ago, the ancestor fell during a great upheaval that nearly destroyed Xuantian Sect, turning the location of Lingyun Peak’s main peak into a forbidden area. Many precious secret manuals, treasures, and even the treasure vault of Lingyun Peak were all destroyed and lost.
The surviving disciples of Lingyun Peak were forced to choose another location for the main peak, and since then, the lineage of Lingyun Peak has never recovered. Over these thirty thousand years, the original site of Lingyun’s main peak became known as the Sea of Deathly Bamboo, where countless disciples of Lingyun Peak met their end, leading to the peak’s decline day by day. By the time it reached Yu Mi’s generation, all that was left of Lingyun Peak was the empty palace buildings on the mountain summit and the medicinal field behind the mountain.
The palace buildings, aside from looking nice and decorating the facade, were of no use. The medicinal field behind the mountain was the last asset of Lingyun Peak. Relying on that field, at least they could ensure that each generation of Lingyun Peak could cultivate two or three disciples who could reach the Golden Core stage and continue the lineage.
But now, with the havoc wreaked by the Duobao Spirit Monkey, Lingyun Peak was left destitute and couldn’t even afford to cultivate disciples at the Foundation Establishment stage.
That gluttonous monkey dealt a fatal blow to the already declining Lingyun Peak. Perhaps after Yu Mi, the lineage of Lingyun Peak would be removed from Xuantian Sect and the world of cultivation.
If they could catch the Duobao Spirit Monkey, there might still be hope to revive Lingyun Peak. But now, everyone in Xuantian Sect was searching for this spirit monkey, including peak masters, Nascent Soul ancestors, elders from various courts, and acting sect leaders, all wanting to get their hands on the monkey personally raised and sealed by the ancestor. Not to mention that with Yu Mi’s current cultivation level, she couldn’t catch it, and even if she could, she would ultimately have to hand it over.
Yu Mi turned to Bao Gu, who was wiping her tears, and said, “There, there, stop crying. I feel more like crying than you do.” She then lazily sat down on a chair nearby, dispirited. With disciples from various peaks searching everywhere for the Duobao Spirit Monkey, she had no interest in getting involved.
Bao Gu felt much better after shedding a few tears. She consoled Yu Mi, “Senior sister, don’t be sad. If the spiritual herbs are gone, they’re gone. We’ll find a way to plant new ones in the medicinal field later.”
Yu Mi hummed in response. She had just turned nineteen and had already successfully formed her Golden Core, becoming a high-level Golden Core expert. As long as she was there, the lineage of Lingyun Peak wouldn’t be considered extinct. Besides, her master and junior martial uncle were still in closed-door cultivation and not dead yet! With this thought, Yu Mi’s mood improved a lot. She stood up and said, “I’m going back to my room! You should rest early too. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to Yun City for a stroll, and by the way, collect the final payment for the auction of the two Golden Core Pills.”
She had been busy advancing her cultivation and had returned to the sect for closed-door cultivation after getting an advance of one thousand medium-grade spirit stones as the starting bid from the auction house. Golden Core Pills wouldn’t fail to sell, and even if they did, the auction house would buy them and consign them in the store, which would definitely be worth more than one thousand medium-grade spirit stones.
After sending Yu Mi out of the courtyard, Bao Gu didn’t return to her room but stood outside the small courtyard, looking up at the disciples from other peaks searching for the little monkey in the sky.
She watched for an hour and didn’t see them leave; instead, seven or eight disciples riding flying swords rushed towards her. Leading them were a man and a woman dressed in the attire of true disciples, followed by six inner sect disciples, all standing on flying swords, though their swords were not as beautiful as Yu Mi’s.
The young woman dressed as a true disciple looked around and ordered, “Search!” The inner sect disciples scattered and charged into the various houses.
Suddenly, a treasure sword engulfed in blazing flames flew out of Yu Mi’s courtyard and circled around the inner sect disciples who were rushing into the houses. Two disciples couldn’t dodge in time and were cut, their clothes catching fire. They hurriedly landed and rolled on the ground, using spirit talismans to extinguish the flames.
The woman in true disciple attire frowned and shouted, “Yu Mi, how dare you attack and injure people!”
The flaming treasure sword landed on the ground with a clang, half a foot deep, the sword’s hum unceasing, and the powerful sword intent spread out, causing the faces of the people present to change.
Standing in the courtyard, Bao Gu felt as if a sword was pressed against her heart, as if it could take her life at any moment, even though the sword was clearly several feet away from her on the ground.
Yu Mi’s unhurried voice floated out from the courtyard, “As the acting peak master of Lingyun Peak, I have the right to execute anyone who trespasses on my main peak without permission. Did you report your entry into my main peak courtyard?”
“Ha! Lingyun Peak is almost extinct, and you’re still putting on airs?”
The man in true disciple attire called out, “Junior sister!” He bowed to Yu Mi’s courtyard and said, “Immortal Yu Mi, we are here by the order of our master to search for the Duobao Spirit Monkey. If we have offended you, we hope for your forgiveness. We have searched everywhere in Lingyun Peak, only this main peak courtyard remains unchecked. Please, Immortal Yu Mi, grant us convenience.”
Yu Mi chuckled lightly and said, “Do you think that broken monkey would be in my main peak courtyard?”
The young woman replied, “Whether it’s here or not, we’ll know after searching. If you don’t let us search, you’ll be suspected of hiding the spirit monkey.”
Yu Mi’s courtyard door opened, and she stepped out slowly. Her flowing fairy dress turned a bright red, and she was enveloped in blazing flames. Her steps were slow, but each one seemed heavy, as if stepping on people’s hearts. Yu Mi said, “Even if that monkey is in my Lingyun Peak’s main courtyard, if you want to search and catch that monkey, you should have reported to me first before stepping into my main courtyard. Have you forgotten the rules of Xuantian Sect? Do I need to teach you?”
The woman snorted with laughter, “Oh, using the sect rules to pressure me?” As she spoke, the man in true disciple attire beside her called out “Junior sister” and reached out to pull her, but she waved him away.
Yu Mi said with a smile, “True disciple of Elder Fan Tuan, I, Yu Mi, wouldn’t dare to pressure you with sect rules. Fairy Hua Sheng, I see you have great courage. How about we settle this with a life-and-death duel?”
The true disciple called Hua Sheng’s face changed, and she exclaimed, “You dare to kill me?”
Yu Mi asked, “Do you dare to accept the challenge?”
An inner sect disciple, whose robe had been cut by Yu Mi’s treasure sword and half his clothes burned, shouted, “Immortal Yu Mi, if you obstruct us like this, could it be that the Duobao Spirit Monkey is already in your possession?”
Yu Mi laughed and said, “You trespass into my main peak courtyard without permission and then make baseless accusations. It seems you no longer value your head!” As she spoke, she raised her hand, and the Li Huo Sword that was stuck in the ground flew up into the air. Yu Mi grasped the treasure sword and swung it, her figure moving instantly, slashing directly at the inner sect disciple!
The inner sect disciple’s face turned pale with terror, and he threw out more than a dozen talismans, also sacrificing his treasure sword to block in front of him.
The two true disciples also moved at the same time, drawing their swords to block in front of Yu Mi.
The man in true disciple attire shouted, “Immortal Yu Mi, hold on! Killing a fellow sect member is a capital offense!”
Yu Mi swung her sword again, and at the same time, she declared loudly, “I’m merely enforcing the sect rules. What crime is there?” A group of people barged into her Lingyun Peak’s main courtyard without a word, searching as they pleased, treating her as if she were dead and Lingyun Peak as if it were extinct. She would make them the dead ones!
Yu Mi was already a high-level Golden Core expert, while those two true disciples were only at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment. How could they resist? Yu Mi’s treasure sword slashed directly at the inner sect disciple. If she hit him, he would undoubtedly die. The two true disciples were terrified and hurriedly sacrificed their treasure swords to block, but Yu Mi broke their swords with one strike. Their interference gave the inner sect disciple a chance to catch his breath. He didn’t dare to linger any longer, scrambled to his feet, stepped on his flying sword, and fled in a panic.
The man in true disciple attire kept calling out, “Immortal Yu Mi, please show mercy! We will leave immediately, we apologize! We apologize!” Without further ado, he grabbed Hua Sheng’s arm and dragged her back, secretly transmitting a message, “Let’s go! The medicinal field of the Fire Dragon is completely destroyed, and she’s on a rampage. If we don’t leave now, she might kill us both!” They were only using sword energy to cause trouble, and she had them completely suppressed. If she used her spells, they might really die there.
Yu Mi was a rare Heavenly Spirit Root, one of the few talented disciples in Xuantian Sect. As the only successor of Lingyun Peak’s generation and also acting as the peak master, all the family treasures and valuables of Lingyun Peak were basically on her. Plus, she had earned quite a bit of private wealth over the years. In terms of wealth, Yu Mi was also considered the richest among her peers. Although they were also true disciples, they had dual spirit roots and were slightly less talented than Yu Mi.
They also had several brothers and sisters competing for cultivation resources and had always cultivated within the sect without going out to earn external wealth. They didn’t have the acting sect leader’s Golden Core Pills to break through realms, and they were inferior to Yu Mi in every aspect. Now that Yu Mi was in the right and had the advantage, fighting her was simply seeking death. Even if Yu Mi killed them, their master would stand up for them, and the acting sect leader wouldn’t let Yu Mi pay with her life, cutting off Lingyun Peak’s lineage. At most, she would be reprimanded and confined for a few years.
The disciples fled for their lives and disappeared from the main courtyard in an instant.
Yu Mi didn’t pursue them. She retracted the Li Huo Sword and took back the true fire she had released, her flowing fairy dress returning to white. She sat cross-legged in the courtyard to meditate.
Before long, an old man in his sixties, slightly plump, stepped into the courtyard.
Yu Mi opened her eyes and quickly got up, greeting him with a smile, “Yu Mi pays respects to Uncle-Master.”
The old man lifted his eyelids to look at Yu Mi and showed a kind smile, “You wouldn’t blame me for intruding, would you?”
Yu Mi replied with a smile, “Uncle-Master’s visit brings glory to Lingyun Peak. I’m too happy to have time to blame you. Please, Uncle-Master.” She turned to Bao Gu and said, “Bao Gu, serve the tea.” Then she looked at Fan Tuan with a smile and said, “But Uncle-Master, you’ve come at just the right time. Yu Mi has a complaint to make!”
“Oh? A complaint? Against whom?”
Yu Mi said with a wronged expression, “Of course, it’s against Uncle-Master’s disciples. My master and junior martial uncle are in closed-door cultivation, and Lingyun Peak’s medicinal field is completely destroyed. Our lineage is on the verge of breaking, but at least Lingyun Peak still has two living people. They barged into my main peak courtyard without a word, causing chaos everywhere. Those who know say they’re searching for the spirit monkey, but those who don’t know might think…”
Fan Tuan’s expression darkened, and he asked, “Might think what?”
Yu Mi lowered her head, looked timidly at Fan Tuan, and muttered softly, “Those who don’t know might think that Lingyun Peak is completely extinct.”
Fan Tuan’s index finger curled slightly, pointing at Yu Mi, his gaze sweeping over Bao Gu and then towards Bao Gu’s small courtyard. He stepped into the courtyard, his electric gaze scanning the surroundings, and finally locked onto a corner. He walked to the corner, picked up a clump of mud, and squeezed it in his hand, asking, “Bao Gu, have you seen a small monkey with golden fur the size of a palm?”
Bao Gu knew that the elder Fan Tuan had found the mud with blood from the monkey, and the powder she had scattered might also have fallen on the ground. With his Nascent Soul cultivation, there was no way to hide the monkey’s situation from him. Her lips quivered, and she said with a sense of grievance, “I saw it earlier.”
