“You don’t need to say much to them,” Yan Xuan said indifferently.
“Then leave, Junior Brother Yan Xuan,” Senior Brother Shi looked at him coldly, “Don’t force us to take action.” As he spoke, he intentionally emphasized the word “us,” as if to warn Meng Qi and Sikong Xing, and also to remind others they should be standing with him.
“I entered here not intending to leave like this,” Yan Xuan stood upright, quietly looking at his senior brother, “I will not leave on my own.”
“Then don’t blame us,” Senior Brother Shi walked towards him with a disdainful laugh. “We don’t want your life; just leave here and return the fairness and clarity to Ten Absolutes Mountain.”
“Please leave!” A cultivator beside Senior Brother Shi also yelled fiercely.
“Yeah! Leave this place and return Ten Absolutes Mountain its clarity.”
“Right! Fellow Daoist Shi is absolutely correct. No matter the reason, as a cultivator, even if you’re injured, even if it’s unfair, where do you put your Dao heart? Your Dao? Are you going to abandon all of that? Then, you don’t deserve to be a cultivator.”
Sikong Xing: “…”
Meng Qi: “…”
The two exchanged glances, both somewhat dumbfounded. Compared to this Senior Brother Shi, they were indeed a bit naive! As Meng Qi’s thoughts raced, watching the people pressing closer and closer, she suddenly had an idea.
Just as she was about to speak—
“Heh heh heh…” A burst of strange laughter suddenly came from all directions. No one knew where the laughter came from, nor who was laughing, but the vast grassland seemed to be full of its voice. The laugh was extremely eerie, but the voice itself was quite pleasant, like a clear stream in a mountain brook or flowing water from a high peak. But it was disturbing to listen to, as if it was deliberately made to annoy and disrupt. Meng Qi found it extremely uncomfortable to hear.
“Who is it?!” Senior Brother Shi was the first to react, “If there is a senior present, please show yourself.”
“Heh heh heh, why should This Lord show himself to you? This Lord is just laughing at something amusing. Continue talking, heh heh heh…”
This wasn’t the person who previously gave her the Karmic Fire Red Lotus—Meng Qi silently noted in her mind. Although they both liked to laugh strangely, their voices were quite pleasant, and both referred to themselves as ‘This Lord,’ the one laughing now wasn’t the Senior she had encountered in the swamp earlier.
“Senior,” Senior Brother Shi’s gaze turned slightly cold, “May I ask what you find so amusing?”
“Ten Absolutes Mountain, fair and just?! Heh heh heh… A bunch of greenhorns, entering Ten Absolutes Mountain for the first time, and yet they dare to spout such grandiose nonsense. Attempting to represent Ten Absolutes Mountain and judge others. Heh heh heh…” The voice laughed maniacally, “The last one… well, the one before last who tried to do something like this, the grass over their grave is already two meters tall.”
“Who exactly are you?” Now it was Senior Brother Shi’s turn to look ashen. He initially thought the voice was some predecessor they couldn’t afford to offend, but the way the person spoke didn’t seem to fit. Being a disciple of the Jingyuetian, he knew that Ten Absolutes Mountain was a sacred place passed down from ancient times. Those who could speak here were mostly great beings from the ancient era. But who would speak in such a strange and unreliable manner?
“Ten Absolutes Mountain is a place where everyone relies on their abilities, where killing and schemes are not forbidden, and where any dirty trick, too shameful or dangerous to use outside, can be employed. Otherwise, why provide you with a guarantee so that once you leave, you’ll forget what happened here?” The voice continued, “And yet you talk about returning clarity and fairness to Ten Absolutes Mountain… Heh heh heh… It’s hilarious! I’m dying of laughter! Oh, my stomach hurts.”
The voice burst into wild laughter again, “You want to eliminate outliers, then be open and straightforward, do it in front of this old man… no, in front of This Lord. Stop talking about propriety, righteousness, benevolence, and other bullshit in my Ten Absolutes Mountain!”
Meng Qi and Sikong Xing exchanged glances, seeing a hint of surprise in each other’s eyes. Was this person encouraging them to fight amongst themselves?
“If you’ve always disliked your fellow disciple like this guy here, you can take your revenge while you are in the Ten Absolutes Mountain. Don’t worry, even if he dies by your hand, as long as you leave this place, no one will know it was you who killed him.”
Towards the end, the voice became softer and more melodious, filled with an indescribable temptation. It was like a warm breeze brushing past your ears and into your heart, touching some things that were deeply hidden, things that you forcefully concealed, and things that couldn’t be shown to others. Slowly, the breeze blew away the coverings on these things, exposing them bit by bit.
“Now, go ahead and act,” the voice sighed leisurely, “Rest assured… as long as you leave here, no one will ever know what happened. Even if you cut off one of his hands now, even if you push your fellow disciple off a cliff to reach the top yourself, no one will know…”
“Ah—” As if to mark his words, a scream suddenly rang out.
“This person…” Yan Xuan suddenly exclaimed, “Is a spell cultivator! He’s using a spell to bewitch people’s minds!”
Yan Xuan’s voice wasn’t soft, and although he only had a Qi Condensation strength now, he was still a cultivator. The other cultivators had already gathered around them, and theoretically, everyone should have heard him. But at that moment, it was as if no one heard him speaking. The cultivators who were just looking coldly at the three of them, telling Yan Xuan to get out, had now turned their attention elsewhere. They began to look at those around them, those familiar and unfamiliar, those with whom they had grown up with, their fellow disciples, and even their Dao companions.
“We seem unaffected?” Meng Qi looked at Yan Xuan and then pointed to herself. She only felt the voice was quite strange, but would not be bewitched into doing anything by it.
“Karmic Fire Red Lotus!” Yan Xuan and Meng Qi almost blurted out simultaneously. Even Sikong Xing’s gaze was somewhat vague, but the two of them were completely unaffected. Was it because of the Karmic Fire Red Lotus?!
“Spell? Bewitchment?” Meng Qi’s brows furrowed slightly as she placed her hand on Sikong Xing’s wrist.
“Hm?” She frowned slightly and looked around. Suddenly, she crouched down and plucked a few blades of grass. “Oh, no!” she exclaimed, “We’ve been careless.”
With a flick of Meng Qi’s finger, the Five Spirits Cauldron was already floating above her head. At the same time, the voice rang in her ears again, “Young Daoist, why bother with them? Have you forgotten what they were about to do to you? You can proceed to the next stage on your own. Don’t forget…” The person spoke earnestly, “…all these people are your competitors.”
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