"After he started cultivating that technique, our second senior brother's temperament changed drastically, but his strength also surged suddenly. Even our eldest senior brother was no match for him. The second senior brother believed that with his newfound power, the Sect Leader would favor him instead. But his cultivation of an evil technique was finally discovered by the Sect Leader, who was heartbroken and decided to cripple his cultivation. Before the Sect Leader could act, however, the second senior brother had already received word in advance. That news drove him to completely surrender his mind to the demonic power, and he fell into the demonic path. That night, over a decade ago, the Lingxiao Pavilion ran red with blood! Our eldest senior brother died a horrible death on the spot, and the second senior brother fled in fear of punishment."
At this point, Su Mu paused and turned to see everyone holding their breath, ears perked and listening intently. He nodded in satisfaction and continued: "In a single night, the Sect Leader's hair turned white. His two most prized disciples — one dead, one fallen to darkness. You can imagine how devastating that blow was."
"Since then, the Sect Leader has secluded himself. Rarely has anyone caught sight of him, and the world assumed his spirit was utterly shattered and that he had passed on. But who could have guessed that a few years later, the Sect Leader emerged once more — and this time, he traveled thousands of miles to personally capture his second disciple and seal him within the Kunlong Gorge!"
Yang Kai's heart stirred suddenly. He recalled the final words of that mysterious Eleventh Elder.
"I didn't come here to see treasures. I came to see a person!"
What person? Without question, it had to be the person sealed beneath the Kunlong Gorge.
Could that Eleventh Elder be…?
Su Mu went on: "But after this incident, the Sect Leader was unable to break through to the Shenyou Realm. He could only remain stuck at his current stage. With that knot in his heart unresolved, he'll never know peace for the rest of his life."
When the story was over, everyone sighed with regret, lamenting the Sect Leader's misfortune and cursing that heartless second disciple who had abandoned righteousness for the demonic path.
Yang Kai's emotions churned as well. Was that Eleventh Elder truly the person in the story? If what Su Mu had said was true, then it was very likely the old man was who he suspected.
Just then, a burst of lively noise drifted over from ahead. Yang Kai looked up and saw that a large clearing had opened up in the middle of the dense forest. It was now bustling with voices, like an enormous market. Disciples from the three sects had gathered here, and stalls of every size were packed with all manner of goods, dazzling the eye.
Nearby there were also dozens of wooden huts. They were roughly built, some small and some large. The small ones seemed meant for lodging, while the larger ones could shelter quite a few people from wind and rain.
Since it was a blazing sunny day, the disciples from all three sects had set up their stalls out in the open clearing.
The Black Wind Market — quite the hidden gem.
"Alright, we're here." Su Mu's main purpose in coming was to bring Yang Kai to this place so he'd know it existed. If he ever needed to trade in the future, he could come here.
"Not bad at all," Yang Kai said, eyeing the crowds streaming through the market with a hint of excitement.
Su Mu grinned. "Of course. You can find just about anything us low-level martial artists could want here. And you don't have to worry about safety either — every sect has experts stationed here to keep the peace. See those wooden huts? That's where our Lingxiao Pavilion disciples hold the fort. My older sister is in one of them."
"Your older sister?" Yang Kai glanced at him and suddenly remembered that Su Mu had mentioned before that his sister was a Core Disciple. Core Disciples were the future hope of the Lingxiao Pavilion.
Su Mu immediately went on guard: "I'm warning you now — don't even think about making a move on my sister."
Yang Kai couldn't help but laugh.
Su Mu added: "Though even if you did want to try, you probably wouldn't have the ability."
"Is your sister that strong?"
"Absolutely. She's at the third level of the Zhenyuan Realm. There are barely any of our generation who can match her."
Yang Kai was mildly impressed. For a disciple of the younger generation to have cultivated to the Zhenyuan Realm was already remarkable. And beyond the Zhenyuan Realm lay the Shenyou Realm — the very stage their Sect Leader currently occupied.