A second ago, he’d thought the man from before was just an exception, that the atmosphere inside the Life Crane Sect couldn’t be this vicious. But the very next mont, reality dealt him a harsh slap in the face.
’No! What in the world is going on?!’
Watching the woman run her sword through Elder Life Crane’s chest, Yang An felt his mind descend into chaos. He couldn’t make any sense of what was happening.
’Does joining the Life Crane Sect an you have to find a way to kill this old bastard, Elder Life Crane?’
’Is there no other choice but to kill him?’
’What could this old man have possibly done to be so universally despised?’
’Even his own Direct Disciples are treating him this way, one after another.’
Yang An suddenly felt he had waded into deep waters with this Life Crane Sect. The place he’d arrived at was likely a bottomless mire.
But at this mont, in stark contrast to Yang An’s profound shock, the other disciples seed completely unfazed by the woman’s sudden appearance. They remained perfectly calm.
Even Elder Life Crane kept smiling, as if it wasn’t his body that had just been impaled by a sword.
"Master! Senior Brother couldn’t even wound you, but I managed to injure you!"
"Hee hee! I won this ti!"
An expression of imnse pride spread across the woman’s delicate, beautiful face, yet it was steeped in a dented glee.
It seed that in her eyes, attacking her Master was rely a contest between her and her Senior Brother.
And she had done a better job of it than him!
"Not bad at all."
Elder Life Crane nodded slightly. The smile on his face grew even more amiable, making him look like a kind, benevolent grandfather.
He reached out a withered, ancient hand and gently stroked the woman’s head as if she were his most beloved granddaughter. Then, in the next instant, he slapped her so hard she was sent sprawling to the ground.
With a sickening sound, a large chunk of her flesh tore open. The woman collapsed, her neck twisted at a grotesque angle, her once-stunning face instantly split in two.
Thankfully, it hadn’t fallen off completely; so skin and muscle still held it together. But the bones and teeth within had shattered, piercing through from the inside. The injury looked severe.
Despite receiving such a violent blow from Elder Life Crane, the woman cupped her ruined face and laughed with genuine delight.
As she laughed, she spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with shattered teeth that splattered onto the ground.
"Thank you for your acknowledgnt, Master!"
"I won this ti! Next ti... I’ll win next ti, too!"
Seeing the woman’s deranged reaction to her own horrific injuries, as if nothing were wrong, Yang An sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth. He could almost feel a phantom pain in his own cheek.
He glanced at the others and saw their accustod expressions; one of them even let out an unrestrained snicker.
Yang An now had only one thought.
’There probably isn’t a single sane person in this entire Life Crane Sect.’
’He was going to be living and cultivating in this environnt for a long ti. He’d inevitably have to interact with these people. He had to be wary of every single one of them!’
At that mont, Elder Life Crane pulled the longsword from his chest and tossed it carelessly to the ground.
The gaping wound in his chest healed in an instant. If it weren’t for the two holes in the front and back of his robes, it would be as if nothing had ever happened.
"Co, et your new Junior Brother. This is the new Direct Disciple I have just accepted."
He said slowly to the disciples before him, revealing Yang An’s identity.
Only then did the disciples turn to look at Yang An, including the woman who had just gotten back to her feet.
She cupped one half of her face, her robes already soaked crimson with blood, yet she gave Yang An a polite nod. Her mangled mouth curved into a slight smile, which was utterly terrifying to behold.
"I am Yang An. It is a pleasure to et my Senior Brothers and Sisters."
’No matter what, you don’t hit a smiling face.’ Following proper etiquette, Yang An bowed to the group.
The disciples of Elder Life Crane all returned his bow, seemingly quite happy to et their new Junior Brother.
"Fu Ming!"
At the sound of Elder Life Crane’s call, one of the disciples imdiately stepped forward.
"Master!"
"For the next few days, I want you to be responsible for familiarizing your Junior Brother with the ways of our Life Crane Sect.
Also, I have decided to hold an initiation banquet for your Junior Brother one month from now. This is a rare, joyous occasion for our Life Crane Sect, so I’ll entrust you with sending out the invitations as well. Be sure to summon every one of those fellows within Han State."
"Yes! This disciple obeys!"
The disciple nad Fu Ming imdiately agreed, but then a thought seed to strike him, and he hastily asked:
"Master, should we invite the people from Yuxiang Mountain as well?"
"Boy! Did I just hear you use the word ’invite’?"
Fu Ming had barely finished speaking when He Tou shot forward, its razor-sharp beak pressing against his throat like a dagger, poised to plunge in at any mont.
Elder Life Crane, however, just gave a cold sneer—an expression rarely seen on his face.
"No need. That fellow will co uninvited."
"Yes!"
Fu Ming replied, cold sweat already trickling down his forehead. Only then did He Tou slowly retract. It licked a drop of blood from the side of its beak and imdiately showed a look of disgust.
"You sickly thing. I have no desire to touch you. Ptooey!"
"Fu Ming, take your Junior Brother. The rest of you, with ."
Leaving them with that one sentence, Elder Life Crane walked back into the blood-red mist without a backward glance. The other disciples each shot a final look at Yang An before turning to hurry after their master.
Soon, the dispersed mist coalesced once more, shrouding the surroundings completely and leaving only Yang An and Fu Ming behind.
Fu Ming was a very gaunt man. He looked young, but his skin had a sickly pallor, and he had heavy, dark circles under his eyes as if he hadn’t rested properly in a long ti.
Sizing up Fu Ming, Yang An cautiously took a step back.
"How should I address you, Senior Brother?"
"I joined Master’s sect quite early, just a little after our Senior Brother. Junior Brother, you can simply call Second Senior Brother."
Fu Ming seed very polite, but just as he finished speaking, he couldn’t help but break into a fit of coughing, spitting up a mouthful of black blood.
He smiled at Yang An, casually wiped the black blood from his lips, and sared it on the hem of his robe.
Seeing this, and recalling what He Tou had said earlier, Yang An started to get the picture.
’You can know a person’s face, but never their heart.’ Even though this Second Senior Brother made a decent first impression, Yang An didn’t believe for a second that he was sane. He remained on high alert.
"Co with , Junior Brother. I’ll take you to get settled first."
"Then thank you, Second Senior Brother."
Yang An nodded and followed Fu Ming into the depths of the blood-red mist, though out of caution, he kept a distance of about two ters between them.
After about a quarter of an hour, the surrounding mist gradually began to thin, until finally, their surroundings ca into focus.
Gazing deeper into the valley, he saw countless magnificent buildings, their splendor no less grand than those found in great cities. It was like a small town hidden deep in the mountains.
But on closer inspection, one could see an undeniable air of desolation hanging over the place. Many areas had fallen into ruin, with crumbling walls and broken ramparts. Not a single soul could be seen on the crisscrossing roads; there was no sign of life whatsoever.
Weeds grew rampant in every corner, and the ground was littered with withered branches and fallen leaves. It was obvious the place hadn’t been tended to in a very long ti.
Even so, one could still glimpse the forr glory and power of the Life Crane Sect. But now, it had clearly fallen into a state of decline.
’So this is the Life Crane Sect?’
Yang An stood frozen, montarily stunned.
’This place seems to be full of stories!’
"Junior Brother, let take you to find a residence first. Co with ."
"Okay."
Tearing his gaze away, Yang An nodded.
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