A righteous young hero? But I am a demonic cultist.

Chapter 36 To Cut or Not to Cut, Yue Buqun is Very Troubled

After returning to Huashan Villa from Siguo Cliff, Liu Jing took out the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual that Yue Yuan had left her.

Seeing that she had taken out a sword manual, Qu Feiyan asked curiously, "Why did you take out a sword manual, sister? People in the martial arts world are fighting tooth and nail over sword manuals these days."

"Heh, this sword manual is a treasure to others, but to me, it's a death warrant. Didn't you notice how quiet the courtyard is at night?"

Qu Feiyan thought about it carefully and it seemed to be true. There used to be chirping of insects and birds, but there hadn't been any these past few days.

Liu Jing said with a smile, "Look, if I don't know what's good for me, I might accidentally fall off Mount Hua one day. Rather than that, I might as well take the initiative."

Qu Feiyan didn't speak this time, but simply nodded in agreement.

There are things one should not do.

This is Yue Buqun's residence, named after the Confucian saying: "A gentleman has things he will do and things he will not do."

Ironically, Yue Buqun appears humble and upright, but in reality, he is ruthless, vicious, and ambitious, which doesn't fit the description at all.

She took a deep breath and knocked on Yue Buqun's courtyard gate.

"Master, your disciple has something to ask of you."

After a few moments, a voice came from inside the room, "Jing'er, come in by yourself."

Liu Jing left Qu Feiyan outside and went inside herself.

At this moment, Yue Buqun was holding a book, sitting upright at his desk. The incense burner beside him emitted wisps of smoke, forming a natural barrier in front of him, making it impossible to see the expression on his face.

Liu Jing knelt on a futon not far from him, holding the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual aloft with both hands. "I have come here to hand over the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual. Now that I have entered the Huashan Mountain sect, this Evil-Repelling Sword Manual should be kept by my master."

Upon hearing this, Yue Buqun paused, his breath slowing for two seconds.

But he quickly adjusted his mindset and said in a nonchalant tone, "These are your own things, so you can keep them safe."

Upon hearing this, Liu Jing lowered her head even further and said in a panic, "It's not that I didn't mean to give it to you, Master. It's just that I haven't felt safe these past few days. Now that I'm safe in Mount Hua, please accept this sword manual, Master."

"This...this sword manual was obtained by your father with his life. It's not appropriate for me to have it."

In ancient times, a virtuous man who ascended to a high position would always decline three times upon request. In today's case, Yue Buqun accepted the sword manual as a way of advancing by retreating. It seemed like he was making excuses, but in reality, he was creating a situation where Liu Jing would definitely give it to him.

Gentleman's Sword, bah!

Although Liu Jing felt extremely disgusted, she was under someone else's roof and could only reiterate, "Master, my Liu family was harmed by this sword manual. Please accept it."

Having said all that, Yue Buqun stopped pretending.

He put down the book in his hand, slowly walked to Liu Jing, and helped her up.

"Jing'er, why are you doing this?" After saying that, he took the sword manual from her hand, flipped through it once, and then lit it on the candle, burning it to ashes.

"To practice divine skills, one must castrate oneself; such a practice, which violates human ethics, should not exist in the world."

His action completely baffled Liu Jing, who was standing to the side.

She couldn't quite understand this hypocrite's actions. Had she wrongly accused Yue Buqun? Did he really not care about the sword manual? And who was the person who had been monitoring him lately?

These questions lingered in her mind, and she couldn't figure them out even after thinking about them for a long time.

What he didn't know was that although Yue Buqun's martial arts skills were not very good, he was good at studying. He had a photographic memory since childhood, and he memorized the entire Evil-Repelling Sword Manual after only reading it once.

After Liu Jing left, he copied everything down word for word.

But looking at those eight words, he felt a pang of unease.

He was already in his fifties, so logically speaking, it wouldn't matter if he gave up two ounces of meat for the sake of Mount Hua.

But then again, this thing is not just two ounces of meat; it is a symbol of a man, a manifestation of his integrity.

If he were castrated, wouldn't the reputation of the Gentleman Sword, and the reputation of the entire Huashan Sect, be ruined?

Furthermore, if Ning Zhongze and Shan'er knew that he had done this for martial arts, how could he still be a father and a husband?

Ugh, this is tough!

With a creak, the wooden door was pushed open, and Ning Zhongze walked into the house carrying a lantern.

"Senior brother, why aren't you lighting the lamps?"

Yue Buqun closed the sword manual and looked at Ning Zhongze with a smile, "More won't do any good; one oil lamp is enough."

"Senior brother, you're still so frugal. A dim lamp is no help for studying." With that, she lit all the candles and oil lamps in the room. "I really don't know if you're the head of the Huashan Sect or a Huashan scholar. You're always so engrossed in your books. I thought you were going to take the imperial examination!"

"Hahaha~~" Yue Buqun stroked his beard and laughed. "Junior sister always teases me. Your senior brother is long past the age of taking the imperial examination, but junior sister is still in her prime and radiant."

"Senior brother, your mouth..." Although Ning Zhongze complained, she was still quite sweet inside. She had been married to her senior brother for many years, and he treated her very well.

It's a pity that the talents of Mount Hua are dwindling, and the entire Mount Hua is on his shoulders. If Chong'er wasn't so dissolute, and Shan'er were more ambitious and could share some of the burden with him, that would be wonderful.

~~~~

Songshan Mountain in Henan Province.

Zuo Lengchan, the leader of the Songshan Sect, looked at the corpses scattered on the ground, his face turning ashen.

"Senior brother, the bodies of our brothers are all here. All the brothers we sent out this time have been wiped out." After Tang Ying'e finished speaking, he stood in front of Zuo Lengchan with his head down.

Zuo Lengchan gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with murderous intent. "Who did this?"

"According to some eyewitnesses, it was a mad Taoist priest who led Yu Renyan and the two of them who caused a scene at Liu Zhengfeng's Golden Basin Washing-off Ceremony."

"A mad Taoist priest?" Zuo Lengchan glared at Tang Yin'e. "Where did this mad Taoist priest come from? What sect or school does he belong to?"

"The Way of Sitting in Oblivion, Li Huowang!"

"The Dao of Sitting in Oblivion, Li Huowang!" Zuo Lengchan frowned, muttering these six words over and over. He paced around a few times, but he couldn't recall where he had offended this Daoist sect.

"Forget it, let's put this aside for now. Since it's a fait accompli, there's no going back. But we need to speed things up and find the people from the Huashan Sword Sect. We need to get rid of Yue Buqun first."

"Yes!" Tang Ying'e replied, cupping his hands in greeting.

After Tang Ying'e left the room, Zuo Lengchan used his whistle to summon a carrier pigeon, tied a piece of paper to its leg, and then released the pigeon.

Tianmen, Hengshan Sanding, Yue Buqun, and Li Huowang, you all wait. After he unites the Five Sacred Mountains, it will be the time for your souls to return to the Western Paradise.

"Achoo, achoo!"

Yue Yuan touched his nose, wondering who was talking about him behind his back this time.

He had only enjoyed a few days of leisure.

"Coo coo coo~~"

Upon hearing the sound, Linghu Chong, who was asleep, immediately opened his eyes.

He nudged Yue Yuan beside him, "Junior Brother, did you hear anything?"

"A sound? What sound?"

"It looks like a pigeon?"

"Pigeon?"

Yue Yuan was stunned for a moment, then flew out of the cave.

This damn pigeon must be from Mount Song. He almost forgot that he also has the identity of an undercover agent for the Mount Song Sect.

Damn pigeon, how did it find its way here?

After finding the gray pigeon and taking the note off its leg, they twisted its neck.

You can find it anywhere, aren't you in a terrible situation?

If Yue Buqun were to see this, how would he maintain his position in the Huashan Sect?

So, you pigeon, you're the only one who can survive.

Entering the cave, he tossed the pigeon in front of Linghu Chong, "Senior Brother, go and roast the pigeon."

"I'm the senior disciple!"

"Um?"

"Okay, I'll go!"

There's no way around it, whoever has the bigger fist gets to decide. Right now, the food chain at Siguo Cliff is that Feng Qingyang eats Yue Yuan, and Yue Yuan eats Linghu Chong.

When Yue Yuan saw Linghu Chong begin to skillfully pluck the feathers, a slight smile appeared on his lips.

You little brat, you think you can't be dealt with? Yue Buqun is such a waste, he can't even handle his eldest disciple. When it comes to training, it has to be Yue Yuan.

But what does Zuo Lengchan want with me?