The five Taiqing Pavilion elders moved in unison.
Sweeping forward like ghosts, their golden spiritual energy condensed into chains that flew straight toward the elders.
Second Elder and the others had already exhausted most of their spiritual energy earlier. Moreover, they were too worried about the disciples behind them to fight with everything they had. Within a few exchanges, they were subdued. The spiritual energy locks bound their shoulders and wrists, forcing their long swords to slip from their hands and clatter to the ground. They were pinned firmly to the armchairs, unable to budge.
Ming Ran's eyes were bloodshot as she struggled to break free, but two cultivators held her shoulders in a death grip, forcing her knees to slam heavily onto the blue flagstones.
Feng Qing looked down from her high vantage point, her voice turning icy cold, each word sharp and clear. “Do it. One hundred discipline whips for each person. Not a single lash less.”
The pupils of the restrained elders shrank in horror.
One hundred discipline whips.
The discipline whips used by the sects in the cultivation world were different from ordinary whips. They were spiritual whips infused with spiritual energy; each lash penetrated deep into the bone marrow, and they were absolutely lethal.
In Nine Saints Hall, the discipline whip was never used unless a disciple had committed a heinous crime.
Even if they had truly made a grave mistake, ten lashes of the discipline whip were more than enough to teach them a lesson.
Yet she had demanded one hundred lashes right off the bat...
She clearly had no intention of letting them live!
A crowd of cultivators stepped forward at her command, pinning the already injured disciples firmly to the ground.
Another group of disciples brought over the black iron discipline whips. The whip bodies were wrapped in dense spiritual patterns, glinting with a chilling, frosty light.
Feng Qing raised her eyes slightly and said coldly, “Strike!”
Several whips lashed into the air at the same time, whistling with fierce winds.
But in the next second, the whistling shadows of the whips suddenly froze, as if blocked by an invisible wall. No matter how much strength the whip-wielding cultivators channeled, their wrists remained completely motionless, unable to bring the whips down even a fraction of an inch.
The hundreds of cultivators exchanged bewildered looks, their faces filled with shock and suspicion.
The smile on Feng Qing's lips froze instantly. Her brow furrowed sharply, and she barked, “I told you to strike! Are you deaf?”
The cultivators gritted their teeth and struggled, blue veins bulging on their temples.
Yet the whips remained suspended in midair, completely motionless.
One of them turned red from the strain and said in a trembling voice, “Sect Master... I—I can't move!”
“Me too...!”
Feng Qing's face darkened completely. “What is going on?! Who is playing tricks!”
She brushed past her attendants, intending to investigate personally. But just as she took two steps, a clear and resonant phoenix cry suddenly echoed from the direction of the back mountain. A crimson-gold spiritual light tore through the sky, sweeping over like a raging wildfire.
Zhu Zhao appeared, dressed in a crimson outfit. Her spiritual energy surged around her like blazing flames. As the phoenix shadow dispersed, she landed right in front of the disciples. Her sharp, overbearing aura forced the surrounding cultivators to retreat.
At the same time, Xie Zhou appeared out of nowhere. Several pale gold talismans slowly rotated and gathered around him before settling down a few paces away from Zhu Zhao.
The two of them briefly locked eyes in the air before immediately looking away.
“The Crimson Phoenix Sovereign and the Myriad Talisman Sovereign?”
Seeing them, Feng Qing instinctively took half a step back.
There were very few people in the cultivation world who could earn such titles at such a young age, unless they possessed profound attainments. This alone showed how terrifyingly strong these two were.
However, Taiqing Pavilion and Beiyao Sect were no pushovers either. They had come fully prepared this time. No matter how strong these two were, they were no match for so many opponents.
At this thought, Feng Qing's eyes darkened slightly, and she forced herself to regain her calm composure. “They say this generation of personal disciples from Nine Saints Hall is extraordinary, and it seems the rumors are true. Now that Nine Saints Hall is falling apart, at least the two of you are left to hold up the fort.”
Zhu Zhao stood tall and straight, her voice sharp. “These disciples came here under my orders. If Sect Master Feng wishes to punish anyone, punish me alone. It has nothing to do with them.”
“You alone?”
Feng Qing sneered. “There are over a hundred foolish disciples here. One hundred lashes of the discipline whip for each of them. If you want to take it all on yourself, you are far too overconfident.”
“There is no need for Sect Master Feng to be so overbearing,” Zhu Zhao interrupted coldly, her tone neither humble nor arrogant. “Taiqing Pavilion and Beiyao Sect have forced their way into Nine Saints Hall. If you beat hundreds of disciples to death in a single day, are you not afraid of leaving a foul reputation for ten thousand years? Even a clay figure has a temper. If you truly push us to a dead end, Taiqing Pavilion and Beiyao Sect will surely pay a heavy price as well.”
“Furthermore, of everyone present today, you, Sect Master Feng, are the one giving the orders. If something truly goes wrong, who do you think Nine Saints Hall will hate first—Taiqing Pavilion or Beiyao Sect? In the eyes of the world's cultivators, will the villain be you or Ye Chongguang?”
Feng Qing choked on her words.
This indeed hit her right where it hurt.
Ye Chongguang had chosen to feign illness and stay behind closed doors, acting as their trump card. Even then, she had worried that he was actually trying to shirk responsibility, avoiding the public's criticism and leaving her to take all the blame alone.
However...
Her gaze shifted.
Currently, Taiqing Pavilion and Beiyao Sect had the moral high ground. Even if word got out in the future, people would only praise them for punishing evil and upholding justice.
She slowly sat back down on her jade throne, resting her elbow on the armrest and propping up her chin. She studied the two below the platform with a lazy, playful expression. “The Crimson Phoenix Sovereign should use her head before trying to drive a wedge between us. Pavilion Master Ye and I came together to uphold justice. How could we possibly be villains in the eyes of the world?”
“Besides, this venerable one is merely disciplining the disciples and setting rules on your behalf. How could I possibly beat them to death?”
Her gaze swept over Zhu Zhao and Xie Zhou, and a smile tugged at the corners of her eyes. “But then again, the two of you... this venerable one actually quite admires you. If you are willing to submit to Beiyao Sect and work under me, I can temporarily spare these disciples today.”
Zhu Zhao clenched her fists. She lowered her eyelashes and fell silent for a moment, appearing deeply conflicted. It took a long time before she raised her eyes and reluctantly squeezed out two words: “Very well.”
Hearing this, Xie Zhou turned his head and gave her a faint, indifferent glance.
There was no emotion on his handsome face, save for the gloomy, cold depths of his eyes, which looked like an impenetrable frost.
Without a single word, he withdrew his gaze, turned around, and walked toward the back mountain. He seemed like a spectator who had come to watch a show, caring neither for the lives of these disciples nor the survival of the sect.
Feng Qing propped up her chin, watching his cold, retreating back disappear around the corner with great interest. The smile in her eyes deepened instead. “The Myriad Talisman Sovereign is indeed extraordinary...”
She withdrew her gaze and casually waved her sleeve. “Since the Crimson Phoenix Sovereign is willing to submit, the discipline whips for these disciples today shall be temporarily put on hold.”
With that, she raised her hand and pressed it down toward the open space in front of the platform.
With a deafening boom, a ten-foot-tall green stone tablet descended from the sky, slamming heavily onto the ground and sending dust flying in all directions.
The surface of the tablet was densely carved with new rules and regulations, the neat handwriting stretching out seemingly without end.
“Starting tomorrow, all Nine Saints Hall disciples shall gather at Fuguang Platform at the Hour of the Rabbit to learn the sect rules. No absences are allowed for any reason. Anyone who dares to be late will be served ten lashes of the discipline whip!”
As she spoke, Feng Qing swept her gaze over the rolling mountain ranges of Nine Saints Hall and added coldly, “Do not even think about hiding anywhere. This venerable one will drag every single one of you out!”
The expressions of the elders turned solemn once more.
Before they could speak, Feng Qing cast a nonchalant glance over. “As for the elders, you shall perform your respective duties on your own peaks. You are not permitted to take a single step away from your peak halls, let alone contact one another. You should be able to manage that, right?”
Rate on N.U.
